The portable chlorophyll (Chl) meter (CL-01, Hansatech) has been successfully used for a rapid and direct estimation of total Chl content in the leaves of some crops. We compared CL-01 meter readings (Chl value) and Chl contents in leaves of Zea mays, Cucumis sativus, Raphanus sativus, and Ceiba speciosa. Chl index was linearly and positively correlated to Chl content in all the species.

The effects of salinity stress on chlorophyll fluorescence and the growth of Brassica napus L were investigated. The chlorophyll a fluorescence transient were recorded and analyzed according to the JIP-test which can quantify PSII performance. Salt stress resulted in decreased leaf area and dry matter compared with the control treatment (0 mM NaCl). The most pronounced effects of salt stress were observed with 200 mM NaCl, and the hybrids displayed different levels of sensitivity to stress. The Performance Index (PI ABS) was the most sensitive parameter to salt stress, which suggests that this parameter can be used to screen genotypes for salt tolerance

With Japonica rice BRS Firmeza and indica rice BRS Pelota (low and high grain yield, respectively) as materials, Chl content and Chl a fluorescence parameters in flag leaves from the heading to mature grain stage were investigated. The Chl content and the Chl a fluorescence were measured using a portable chlorophyll meter CL-01 and portables fluorometer Handy-PEA and FMS-2 (Hansatech, Kings Lynn, UK), respectively. All measurements were taken on middle part of the flag leaves (n = 10). The results showed that the Chl content and Chl a fluorescence parameters declined after full expansion of flag leaves in both rice cultivars. However, these biochemical and photochemical parameters did not show similar changing pattern and the behavior of flag leaves senescence showed some differences between BRS Pelota and BRS Firmeza rice cultivars. During the senescence of flag leaves, BRS Pelota, the rice cultivar with higher grain yield capacity, was characterized by significant reductions in Chl content, PI ABS,Total, TR0/ABS, ET0/ABS, ET0/TR0, RC/ABS compared to BRS Firmeza. On the other hand, DI0/RC, TR0/RC and ET0/RC were significantly higher in BRS Pelota. These results show that the decreased photosystem II activity, evaluated through chlorophyll fluorescence analysis, was resultant of leaves senescence process, which was much more expressive in BRS Pelota rice variety. We suggest that the higher productivity of BRS Pelota rice cultivar results from its higher assimilate mobilization ability or energy usage efficiency, in despite of its lower light absorption capacity

The objective of this work was to evaluate the physiological changes that occur in different leaves during the early and late grain-filling stages of two rice genotypes (Oryza sativa subsp. indica , BRS Pelota cultivar, and O. sativa subsp. japonica , BRS Firmeza cultivar), which present differences in grain yield potential. The plants were cultivated in greenhouse. Pigment content, chlorophyll fluorescence, electron transport and oxygen evolution rate were determined in the grain-filling stage, from the first to the forth leaf (top to bottom). Pigment content, photochemical efficiency of photosystem II and electron transport decreased significantly according to the position of leaves in 'BRS Pelota'. The BRS Firmeza cultivar shows higher pigment content and higher activity of the photosynthetic apparatus in comparison to 'BRS Pelota' during the grain-filling stage.

Foram estudados o crescimento, a partição de assimilados e a produção de grãos nas cultivares de arroz BRS Pelota (maior produtividade) e BRS Firmeza (menor produtividade). O experimento foi realizado em casa de vegetação, com plantas cultivadas em vaso. Utilizou-se o delineamento experimental inteiramente casualizado, com duas cultivares, nove coletas e quatro repetições por tratamento. Com a cultivar BRS Pelota houve maior acúmulo de matéria seca total (Wt), principalmente no fim do ciclo, bem como maior área foliar (Af). A matéria seca alocada para o colmo + bainha e às panículas também foi maior em BRS Pelota. Porém, a porcentagem de Wt destinada às panículas aos 125 DAE foi semelhante entre as cultivares. Em BRS Firmeza, o aumento em Wt nas raízes pode ter influenciado o direcionamento de fotoassimilados para os grãos e contribuído para o atraso na senescência das plantas. A produtividade de BRS Pelota foi maior que a de BRS Firmeza (17,4 contra 11,8 g por vaso) e seu número de panículas por planta por vaso foi três vezes superior em relação à cultivar BRS Firmeza. O componente de produção de maior expressão no rendimento foi o número de panículas. A maior produtividade da cultivar BRS Pelota pode estar relacionada à maior área foliar e sua duração, o que permite o fornecimento de elevada quantidade de fotoassimilados por um período maior. The growth, assimilate partitioning and grain yield in BRS Pelota (high yield) and BRS Firmeza (low yield) rice cultivars were evaluated. The experiment was conducted in greenhouse (Department of Botany, Federal University of Pelotas) with complete randomized design composed by two cultivars, nine plant sampling times and four replicates. BRS Pelota rice cultivar exhibited higher accumulation of total dry matter (Wt), mainly at the end of life cicle, as well as higher leaf area (Af). The dry matter allocated toward culm + sheath and panicles was higher in BRS Pelota. However, the Wt percentage accumulated in panicles at 125 DAE was the same between cultivars. In BRS Firmeza the increase in Wt in the roots may had influenced photoassimilates partitioning toward grains, and also contributed to delay of in plant senescence. Grain yield was higher in BRS Pelota than in BRS Firmeza (17.4 versus 11.8 g vaso), and also panicle number was three times greater in relation to BRS Firmeza. The yield component which exhibited higher relevance for productivity was the panicle number. The higher grain yield of BRS Pelota could be related to higher leaf area and leaf area duration, which allows the provision of elevated quantity of photoassimilates during longer period time