Determining the appropriate parents for breeding programs is the most important decision that plant breeders must make to maximize the genetic variability and produce excellent recombinant genotypes. Several methods are used to identify genotypes with desirable phenotypic features for breeding experiments. In this study, five kalanchoe genotypes were morphologically characterized by assessing plant height, number of inflorescences, number of flowers, flower length, flower diameter and number of petals. The analysis showed the distinction of yellow kalanchoe in the plant height trait, while the orange kalanchoe was distinguished in the number of inflorescences, the number of flowers and flower length traits, whereas the violet kalanchoe possessed the largest flower diameter and the highest number of petals. The molecular profiling was performed by random amplified polymorphism DNA (RAPD), inter-simple sequence repeats (ISSR) and start codon targeted (SCoT)-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tools. Genomic DNA was extracted from young leaves and the PCR reactions were performed using ten primers for each SCoT, ISSR and RAPD marker. Only four out of ten primers showed amplicon profiles in all PCR markers. A total of 70 bands were generated by SCoT, ISSR and RAPD-PCR with 35 polymorphic bands and 35 monomorphic bands. The total number of bands of RAPD, ISSR and SCoT was 15, 17 and 38, respectively. The polymorphism percentages achieved by RAPD, ISSR and SCoT were 60.25%, 15% and 57%, respectively. The cluster analysis based on morphological data revealed two clusters. Cluster I consisted of violet and orange kalanchoe, and cluster II comprised red, yellow and purple kalanchoe. Whereas the cluster analysis based on molecular data revealed three clusters. Cluster I included only yellow kalanchoe, cluster II comprised orange and violet kalanchoe while cluster III comprised red, and purple kalanchoe. The study concluded that orange, violet and yellow kalanchoe are distinguished parents for breeding economically valued traits in kalanchoe. Also, the study concluded that SCoT and RAPD markers reproduced reliable banding patterns to assess the genetic polymorphism among kalanchoe genotypes that consider the basis stone for genetic improvements in ornamental plants.

Mango fruit (cv. Seddik) is known as a delicate fruit for storage after harvest. Herein, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and guar gum-based silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were used as fruit coatings, and their effects on postharvest storage behavior and quality attributes were investigated. AgNPs were synthesized using a chemical reduction approach and then combined with CMC and guar gum as coating bases. Mango fruits were coated with the developed and pre-characterized CMC-AgNPs and guar gum-AgNPs, and then packed and stored at 13 °C for 4 weeks. The results showed an increase in weight loss, respiration rate, total soluble solids (TSS), total sugars, and total carotenoids over the storage period. However, this increase was comparatively less significant in coated fruits compared to uncoated fruits. Firmness and titratable acidity (TA) significantly decreased during storage, but this decrease was less in coated fruits. Silver traces in fruit pulp samples were not detected. These findings showed the efficacy of CMC-AgNP and guar gum-AgNP coatings in delaying mango fruit ripening and maintaining fruit quality during cold storage. Therefore, these coatings could be promising alternative materials for extending the postharvest life and marketing period of mango fruit.

J.M. AL-KHAYRI, A.A.H. ABDEL LATEF, H.S.A. TAHA, A.S. ELDOMIATY, M.A. ABD-ELFATTAH, A.A. REZK, W.F. SHEHATA, M.I. ALMAGHASLA, T.A. SHALABY, M.N. SATTAR, M.F. AWAD, and A.A. HASSANIN SUMMARY Advancements in DNA sequencing technologies with decreasing costs have sparked the generation of larger gene expression datasets generated at an accelerating rate. The

Background: Reducing the requirements of chemical fertilizers has emerged as a critical target with economic and environmental concerns in agricultural sector. Consequently, there is a growing need for research focused on developing sustainable approaches to enhance fertilizer use efficiency. Omeprazole (OMZ) and chitosan nanoparticles (ChNPs) have shown promising results and are considered as growth promoters. However, to the best of our knowledge there are no available data about the application of OMZ on fruit trees. Aim: Decreasing utilization rate of N chemical fertilizers while maintaining optimal growth of plum plants (Solar Eclipse and Suplum 41 cvs.) as changes related to vegetative growth and leaf anatomy by application of OMZ and ChNPs had been investigated under low nitrogen conditions. Methods: Plum grafted seedlings of each cultivar are divided to four groups: (a) Plants received 10 mM NO ₃ ⁻ , (b) Plants received 2 mM NO ₃ ⁻ , (c) Plants received 2 mM NO ₃ ⁻ loaded on ChNPs, and (d) Plants received OMZ + 2 mM NO ₃ ⁻ . ChNPs were synthesized using the ionotropic gelation and characterized by transmission electron microscope and zetasizer. Vegetative growth parameters including plant height, stem diameter, number of leaves per plant, and leaf area were measured. Photosynthetic pigments and total N content in leaves of plum plants were analyzed. Leaf anatomy was performed to identify leaf structural changes in response to different treatments. One-way analysis of variance was performed for statistical analysis and significant differences (α ≤ 0.05) were determined using Duncan’s multiple range test. Results: The obtained results revealed that ChNPs and OMZ enhanced vegetative growth and leaf structure compared to untreated plants, even when receiving low nitrogen (2mM NO ₃ ⁻ ) or high (10 mM NO ₃ ⁻ ). Plum plants treated with OMZ exhibited improvement in growth and leaf structure higher than ChNPs under low nitrogen conditions. Conclusion: OMZ and ChNPs could be a cost-effective way to save amounts of chemical fertilizers added to soil and increase nutrient use efficiency.