• Plant Biotechnology Reports
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.235-243
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• 2011

The non-edible plant Jatropha curcas L. is one of the most promising feedstock for sustainable biodiesel production as it is not a source of edible vegetable oils, produces high amounts of oil (approx. 30-60% in dry seeds) and does not require high-cost maintenance. However, as with other undomesticated crops, the cultivation of J. curcas presents several drawbacks, such as low productivity and susceptibility to pests. Hence, varietal improvement by genetic engineering is essential if J. curcas is to become a viable alternative source of biodiesel. There is to date no well-established and efficient transformation system for J. curcas. In this study, we tested various physical wounding treatments, such as sonication and sand-vortexing, with the aim of developing an efficient Agrobacterium-mediated transformation for J. curcas. The highest stable transformation rate (53%) was achieved when explants were subjected to 1 min of sonication followed by 9 min of shaking in Agrobacterium suspension. The transformation frequency achieved using this protocol is the highest yet reported for J. curcas.

• Plant Biotechnology Reports
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.139-148
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• 2010

Jatropha curcas L. (Physic nut) is a commercially important non-edible oil seed crop known for its use as an alternate source of biodiesel. In order to investigate the morphogenic potential of immature embryo, explants from four developmental stages were cultured on medium supplemented with combinations of auxins and cytokinins. It was found that the size of embryo is critical for the establishment of callus. Immature embryos (1.1-1.5 cm) obtained from the fruits 6 weeks after pollination showed a good response of morphogenic callus induction (85.7%) and subsequent plant regeneration (70%) with the maximum number of plantlets (4.7/explant) on Murashige and Skoog's (MS) medium supplemented with IBA (0.5 $mg\;l^{-1}$) and BA (1.0 $mg\;l^{-1}$). The above medium when supplemented with growth adjuvants such as 100 $mg\;l^{-1}$ casein hydrolysate + 200 $mg\;l^{-1}$ L-glutamine + 8.0 $mg\;l^{-1}$ $CuSO_4$ resulted in an even higher frequency of callus induction (100%). Plant regeneration (90%) with the maximum number of plantlets (10/explant) was achieved on MS medium supplemented with 500 $mg\;l^{-1}$ polyvinyl pyrrolidone + 30 $mg\;l^{-1}$ citric acid + 1 $mg\;l^{-1}$ BA + 0.5 $mg\;l^{-1}$ Kn + 0.25 $mg\;l^{-1}$ IBA. It was observed that plantlet regeneration could occur either through organogenesis of morphogenic callus or via multiplication of pre-existing meristem in immature embryos. The age of immature embryos and addition of a combination of growth adjuvants to the culture medium appear to be critical for obtaining high regeneration rates. Well-developed shoots rooted on half-halfstrength MS medium supplemented with 0.5 $mg\;l^{-1}$ IBA and 342 $mg\;l^{-1}$ trehalose. The rooted plants after acclimatization were successfully transferred to the field in different agro-climatic zones in India. This protocol has been successfully evaluated on five elite lines of J. curcas.

• Clean Technology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.161-167
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• 2019

Several types of reactors have been used during the past decade to perform fast pyrolysis of biomass. Among the developed fast pyrolysis reactors, fluidized bed reactors have been widely used in the fast pyrolysis process. In recent years, experimental studies have been conducted on the characteristics of biomass fast pyrolysis in a spouted bed reactor. The fluidization characteristics of a spouted bed reactor are influenced by particle properties, fluid jet velocity, and the structure of the core and annulus. The geometry of the spouted bed reactor is the main factor determining the structure of the core and annulus. Accordingly, to optimize the design of a spouted bed reactor, it is necessary to study the pyrolysis characteristics of biomass. However, no detailed investigations have been made of the fast pyrolysis characteristics of biomass in accordance with the geometry of the spouted bed reactor. In this study, fast pyrolysis experiments using Jatropha curcas L. seed shell cake were conducted in a conical spouted bed reactor to study the effects of reaction temperature and reactor cone angle on the product yield and pyrolysis oil quality. The highest energy yield of pyrolysis oil obtained was 63.9% with a reaction temperature of $450^{\circ}C$ and reactor cone angle of $44^{\circ}$. The results showed that the reaction temperature and reactor cone angle affected the quality of the pyrolysis oil.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.69-77
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• 2008

Jatropha curcas L. is an oil bearing species with many uses and considerable economic potential as a biofuel crop. Salt stress effect on growth, ion accumulation, contents of protein, proline and antioxidant enzymes activity was determined in callus and seedling to understand the salt tolerance of the species. Exposure of callus and seedling to salt stress reduced growth in a concentration dependent manner. Under salt stress Na content increased significantly in both callus and seedling whereas, differential accumulation in the contents of K, Ca, and Mg was observed in callus and seedling. Soluble protein content differed significantly in callus as compared to seedling, however proline accumulation remained more or less constant with treatments. The proline concentration was ~2 to 3 times more in callus than in seedling. Salt stress induced qualitative and quantitative differences in superoxide dismutase (SOD; E.C. 1.15.1.1) and peroxidase (POX; E.C. 1.11.1.7) in callus and seedling. Salt induced changes of the recorded parameters were discussed in relation to salinity tolerance.

• Plant Biotechnology Reports
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.7-11
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• 2008

A simple, high-frequency and reproducible protocol for induction of adventitious shoot buds and plant regeneration from leaf-disc cultures of Jatropha curcas L. has been developed. Adventitious shoot buds were induced from very young leaf explants of in vitro germinated seedlings as well as mature field-grown plants cultured on Murashige and Skoog's (MS) medium supplemented with thidiazuron (TDZ) ($2.27{\mu}M$), 6-benzylaminopurine (BA) ($2.22{\mu}M$) and indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) ($0.49{\mu}M$). The presence of TDZ in the induction medium has greater influence on the induction of adventitious shoot buds, whereas BA in the absence of TDZ promoted callus induction rather than shoot buds. Induced shoot buds were multiplied and elongated into shoots following transfer to the MS medium supplemented with BA ($4.44{\mu}M$), kinetin (Kn) ($2.33{\mu}M$), indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) ($1.43{\mu}M$), and gibberellic acid ($GA_3$) ($0.72{\mu}M$). Well-developed shoots were rooted on MS medium supplemented with IBA ($0.5{\mu}M$) after 30 days. Regenerated plants after 2 months of acclimatization were successfully transferred to the field without visible morphological variation. This protocol might find use in mass production of true-to-type plants and in production of transgenic plants through Agrobacterium/biolistic-mediated transformation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2017.10a
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• pp.273-273
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• 2017

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.183-191
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• 2011

This study was undertaken to collect basic knowledge of Jatropha which is one of bio-energy crops, based on the understanding of physiological and molecular aspects under salt and drought conditions. The treatments were followed as: 100, 200 and 300 mM NaCl for salt stress and 5, 10, 20 and 30% PEG for drought stress for 8 days, respectively. Leaf growth, stomatal conductance, chlorophyll fluorescence and gene expression of aquaporin (JcPIP2) of Jatropha were investigated. From 2 days after treatments, plants treated with higher than 100 mM NaCl and 10% PEG respectively were significantly suppressed in leaf length, width, and stomatal conductance, but 5% PEG treatment showed that plant growth was improved more than control plant. Semi-quantitative RT-PCR analyses revealed that the JcPIP2 gene was expressed in root, stem, cotyledon and leaves. It was not detected in leaves at 200 and 300 mM NaCl treatments. However, transcripts of JcPIP2 were induced in roots and stems under salt and drought conditions compared to those of healthy plants. Therefore, it was concluded that JcPIP2 plays an important role in improving drought tolerance.