Event 2: 25th to 29th June, 2001 PLANT PHYSIOLOGY University of Vigo

        Allelopathy has traditional roots in Europe : the first mention of those plant-plant chemical interactions has been described by Pliny the Elder (23-79 A.D.) whereas the term "allelopathy" has been coined by Molisch (1937). It is one of the scientific disciplines in modern biology to which European scientists try to contribute significantly to the rapid progress of the field.
        A better understanding of allelopathy needs competencies in various disciplines such as organic chemistry, plant anatomy, plant physiology, plant ecology… The second event of the Eurolabcourse in allelopathy series aimed not only at gathering knowledge of few European teams involved in this field but also at creating a synergism by multidisciplinary exchange of methods. This holistic perception of allelopathy should benefit to young scientists, giving them tools to extend the knowledge on chemical interactions in plant science.
        Therefore, the goal of this training course has been to organise an advanced training course in plant physiology, focusing on allelochemicals effects on various physiological processes in target-plants. One of the most famous teams in the world working on these aspects organised this event. By means of an integrated study on plants subjected to salt and allelopathic stresses, they provided to the participants an introduction to techniques allowing the quantification of plant damages due to both abiotic (salt) and biotic (allelopathy) stresses. In this respect the elucidation of the physiology methods whereby allelochemicals and minerals alter plant growth and development has been presented to young scientists, theoretically and in practice.
        Further, this event has been coupled with the organisation of the First European Allelopathy Symposium, which also took place in Vigo, from June 21st to 23rd. Young scientists were not only invited to attempt this symposium but also to present their own interest and investigation in the field of allelopathy. Invited keynote lectures pointed out the state-of-the-art in allelopathy whereas young scientists showed how wide and how diverse can be their need for theoretical knowledge, prior to dedicate to practical experiences, from June 25th to 29th.

Training:

        The programme of the course has been divided in modules. Each module mixed plenary sessions to present the basic aspects and theory of methods and, practical session during which participants used the material and discussed on the way to adapt the method to their own field of investigation. The introduced methods / material were flow cytometry, oxygen electrode, stress markers dosage (polyamines, proline, proteins), 2D electrophoresis, photosynthesis (IRGA) and fluorescence measurements (PEA), HPLC and extraction of phenolics, transpiration of plants measured by means of steady-state porometer… All those methods were performed in order to quantify the effects of two stresses (biotic and abiotic) on lettuce plants. A final session allowed the participants to discuss obtained data with respect to this objective and a crossfire discussion on the need for a paradigm in allelopathy was introduced and guided by Drs. G. ALIOTTA, Manuel REIGOSA (Univ. of Vigo) and François PELLISSIER (Univ. of Savoie).

        To achieve the proposed objectives, that is, to teach some plant physiology techniques that could be useful to improve allelopathy research, we designed a general experiment in which plants were submitted to stressing (salt and BOA) and non-stressing conditions before the course as follows:
 
 

In the discussion session, there was a presentation including most of the obtained data: Net photosynthetic rate, Chlorophyll fluorescence, Protein content, Total plant protein content, Free Proline and Respiration. Some additional results (not recorded by the students) were used and discussed in relation with other results: Alive above ground biomass, Specific Leaf Area, Leaf Relative Water Content, Litter Percentage. Other results were not statistically treated, considering the low number of samples that the participants could process during the course, but the results were also discussed: Free low molecular weight phenolics, Flavonoids contents and Stress proteins. Participants led to the main conclusion that allelopathic stress is enhanced by a preliminary stress such as salt. Main physiological targets of combined stresses are related to photosynthesis which decreased about 20% compared to control and respiration (-15%). Further, synthesis of secondary metabolites such as phenolics and flavonoids seemed to be affected (type of chemicals as well as quantity of some of them) in plants submitted to allelopathic stress.

European Added Value (incl. Networking):

        During this event, participants and the three organisers stood together in the hotel. This allowed stimulating discussions throughout the seminar. Further, each time that it was possible, lecturers and keynote speakers were invited to the restaurant in order to guaranty an almost ideal mixing between the young investigators at the doctoral level and the leading scientists in the field. After having had such a meeting for the second time, there is no doubt that this series should be continued since it is clear that in particular young scientists will benefit tremendously from the critical and enthusiastic discussions during the meeting and, even more importantly, from the hands on that allowed them to get advice from the leading figures in the field. And, last but not least, we can also expect some future collaborations between the young scientists in the forthcoming years.
 

Lecturers and Keynote Speakers :

REIGOSA, Manuel : Local Coordinator
PEDROL Nuria
RAMOS Pilar
BLANCO Alfonso
BOLANO Carlos
GARCIA Angeles
GONZALEZ Luis
SOUTO Carlos
BANUELOS Rosa
WEISS Oliver

Attendants :
 

SINKKONEN Aki CHIAPUSIO Geneviève TESCH Claudia ERHARD  Daniela STAVRUANDA Sotiria KARAMANOLI Katerina KARAGEORGEOU Panagiota BRÜCKNER Dénes ORSOLYA Mile AGNOLI Francesca CANGIANO Tiziana SILVESTRINI Andrea OLIVA Anna SORBO Sergio SANTIAGO Rogelio SOTELO Jesus FERNANDEZ Raul MARTÍNEZ Ana SANCHEZ MOREIRAS A SANTOS COSTA X. X. BAAMONDE CES M. D. WALLSTEDT Anna

Pori, FIN Le Bourget-du-lac, F Konstanz, D Konstanz, D Athens, EL Tessaloniki, EL Patra, EL Mosonmagyaróvár, HU Debrecen, HU Venice, I Caserta, I Roma,I Caserta, I Napoli, I Vigo, E Vigo, E Cadiz, E Vigo, E Vigo, E Vigo, E Vigo, E Umea, S

BACK TO THE CONTENT PAGE