Rapid cell division and expansion in early fruit development are important phases for cucumber fruit yield and quality. Kinesin proteins are microtubule-based motors responsible for modulating cell division and enlargement. In this work, the candidate kinesin genes involved in rapid cell division and expansion during cucumber fruit development were investigated. The morphological and cellular c...

Chromosome-specific painting is a powerful technique in molecular cytogenetic and genome research. We developed an oligonucleotide (oligo)-based chromosome painting technique in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) that will be applicable in any plant species with a sequenced genome. Oligos specific to a single chromosome of cucumber were identified using a newly developed bioinformatic pipeline and then...

The feasibility of the production of a reference material for pesticide residue analysis in a cucumber matrix was investigated. Cucumber was spiked at 0.075 mg/kg with each of the 15 selected pesticides (acetamiprid, azoxystrobin, carbendazim, chlorpyrifos, cypermethrin, diazinon, (α + β)-endosulfan, fenitrothion, imazalil, imidacloprid, iprodione, malathion, methomyl, tebuconazole and thiabend...

The combination effects of light and air temperature, which were expressed as photothermal ratio (PTR), on the growth and sex expression of three monoecious cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L. cv. “Xintaimici”, “Jinyan 3” and “Jinyan 4”) were studied with hydroponics in this research. The results showed that with the increase of PTR, different growth responses were observed in the three cucumber cult...

Although we have made great progress in developing resistance to root – knot nematodes in cucumber, no source has been created or screened to resistance to M. incognita, the main species affecting cucumber (9, 10). Resistance to M. incognita exists in horned cucumber (Cucumis metuliferus), but efforts by many research groups (including our own) to make crosses of Cucumis species with cucumber h...

Cucurbitacin E glycoside, extracted from a bitter mutant of Hawkesbury watermelon [Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai (Syn. Citrullus vulgaris Schrad)] is the active ingredient of a feeding stimulant for the corn rootworm complex. It is the primary component of a water-soluble bait that can be combined with toxins for adult diabroticite control. Studies were conducted using phloxine B (...

In order to clarify the influence of the rootstock cultivar and fruit storage on the texture of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) fruit, we examined the physical properties of the fruit, i.e., flesh firmness, placental firmness, skin toughness, and the crispness index. Cucumber fruits from own-rooted plants and from plants grafted onto the three rootstock cultivars of ‘Shin-tosa’ (Cucurbita maxima ...

Natural enemies and pollinators require nutritional and habitat resources that are often not found in conventional agricultural fields. The addition of flowering plants within agroecosystems may provide the resources necessary to support beneficial insects at the local scale. We hypothesized that insect pollinator and natural enemy abundance would increase in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) plots co...

The spines and bloom of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) fruit are two important quality traits related to fruit market value. However, until now, none of the genes involved in the formation of cucumber fruit spines and bloom trichomes has been identified. Here, the characterization of trichome development in wild-type (WT) cucumber and a spontaneous mutant, glabrous 1 (csgl1) controlled by a sing...

The alleviative effects of silicon (Si) on cadmium (Cd) toxicity were investigated in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) and tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) grown hydroponically. The growth of both plant species was inhibited by 100 μM Cd, but Si application counteracted the adverse effects on growth. Si application significantly decreased the Cd concentrations in shoots of both species and roots o...