Determining the geographical origin of Chinese cabbages using multielement composition and strontium isotope ratio analyses.

Recently, the Korean market has seen many cases of Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp. pekinensis) that have been imported from China, yet are sold as a Korean product to illegally benefit from the price difference between the two products. This study aims to establish a method of distinguishing the geographical origin of Chinese cabbage. One hundred Chinese cabbage heads from Korea and 60 cabbage heads from China were subjected to multielement composition and strontium isotope ratio ((87)Sr/(86)Sr) analyses. The (87)Sr/(86)Sr ratio differed, based on the geological characteristics of their district of production. In addition, the content of many elements differed between cabbages from Korea and China. In particular, the difference in the content of Sr and Ti alone and the combination of Sr, Ca, and Mg allowed us to distinguish relatively well between Korea and China as the country of origin. The present study demonstrates that the chemical and Sr isotopic analyses exactly reflect the geology of the production areas of Chinese cabbage.

Identification of the BrRHP1 locus that confers resistance to downy mildew in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp. pekinensis) and development of linked molecular markers.

Inheritance of resistance to downy mildew (Hyaloperonospora parasitica) in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp. pekinensis) was studied using inbred parental lines RS1 and SS1 that display strong resistance and severe susceptibility, respectively. F(1), F(2), and BC(1)F(1) populations were evaluated for their responses to downy mildew infection. Resistance to downy mildew was conditioned by a single dominant locus designated BrRHP1. A random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) marker linked to BrRHP1 was identified using bulked segregant analysis and two molecular markers designated BrPERK15A and BrPERK15B were developed. BrPERK15B was polymorphic between the parental lines used to construct the reference linkage map of B. rapa, allowing the mapping of the BrRHP1 locus to the A1 linkage group. Using bacterial artificial chromosome clone sequences anchored to the A1 linkage group, six simple polymerase chain reaction (PCR) markers were developed for use in marker-assisted breeding of downy mildew resistance in Chinese cabbage. Four simple PCR markers flanking the BrRHP1 locus were shown to be collinear with the long-arm region of Arabidopsis chromosome 3. The two closely linked flanking markers delimit the BrRHP1 locus within a 2.2-Mb interval of this Arabidopsis syntenic region.

Direct Detection of Cylindrocarpon destructans, Root Rot Pathogen of Ginseng by Nested PCR from Soil Samples.

We have successfully applied the nested PCR to detect Cylindrocarpon destructans, a major pathogen causing root rot disease from ginseng seedlings in our former study. The PCR assay, in this study, was used to detect the pathogen from soils. The nested PCR using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) 1, 4 primer set and Dest 1, 4 primer set maintained the specificity in soils containing various microorganisms. For a soil DNA extraction method targeting chlamydospores, when several cell wall disrupting methods were tested, the combination of lyophilization and grinding with glass beads, which broke almost all the chlamydospores, was the strongest. The DNA extraction method which was completed based on the above was simple and time-saving because of exclusion of unnecessary stages, and efficient to apply in soils. As three ginseng fields whose histories were known were analyzed, the PCR assay resulted as our expectation derived from the field information. The direct PCR method will be utilized as a reliable and rapid tool for detecting and monitoring C. destructans in ginseng fields.

Chinese Cabbage Clubroot Pathogen, Plasmodiophora brassicae, Is Genetically Stable.

Single spore isolates of Plasmodiophora brassicae e4 and e9 obtained from diseased Chinese cabbage were identified as race 4 and race 9, respectively, by the Williams' differential variety set. To confirm the possibility of variation in same generation and progeny of a single spore isolate of P. brassicae, random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis was conducted using the URP 3, 6 and OPA 7 primers. There was no difference in band type at each part of the gall of Chinese cabbage obtained by inoculation of e4 and e9 and amplification using the URP 3 and 6 primers when the same generation was analyzed. In addition, the progeny analysis, which was expanded to the third generation and conducted using the URP 3 and OPA 7 primers, revealed no differences in the band type of the e4 isolate. Based on these results, the single spore isolate of P. brassicae was genetically stable.