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January 2004
Curriculum Vitae
Moshe Sagi
1. Personal Details
Date and Place of Birth
Permanent address
Temporary address
Tel
E-mail
2. Education
B.Sc. Agr.
1980-1982
20/07/52, Israel
Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade, D.N. Chalutza, 85510
Yasur 2, Lehavim, 85338
+972-8-6479312
gizi@bgumail.bgu.ac.il
Area: Vegetable and Field Crops
Institution: Faculty of Agriculture, Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel; Graduated cum laude
Rector's prize for distinguished student
Ph. D.
1994-1998
Area: Relationships between salinity of the growth
medium, N metabolism and ionic balance in annual
ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum)
Institution: Faculty of Agriculture, Hebrew University of
Jerusalem
Post-Doc
1999-2000
Area: Transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of
reactive oxygen species production in response to biotic and
abiotic stresses
Institution: Department of Plant Sciences, Weizmann
Institute of Science
3. Employment history
1972- present
Member of Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade, Ramat Negev
1972-78
Manager of field crop production at Mashabbe Sade
(growing cotton, sorghum, wheat, alfalfa, clover Rhodesgrass at Ramat Negev using brackish and/or sewage water)
1983-85
Director of the RAM (Revivim and Mashabbe Sade)
experimental agricultural farm for irrigation with recycled
sewage water produced in Beer-Sheva. (growing cotton,
sorghum, corn, wheat, and alfalfa at Ramat Negev)
1986-89
General manager of Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade
1989- present
Researcher and Director of the Desert Agricultural Negev
Saline Water Experimental Center, Ramat Negev, Israel
1996-2000
Joint appointment with the Biostress Research Laboratory,
J. Blaustein Institute for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion
University of the Negev, Sede Boqer, Israel
10/2000- 10/2003
Researcher, The Institutes for Applied Research,
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva
11/2003-Present
Researcher grade B, The Institutes for Applied Research.
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4. Scientific Publications
Articles in Peer-Reviewed Scientific Journals
1. Pasternak, D., Sagi, M., De-Malach, Y., Keren, Y. and Shaffer, A.1995.
Irrigation with brackish water under desert conditions XI. Salt tolerance in
sweet-corn cultivars. Agric. Water Manag. 28:325-334.
2. De Malach, Y., Ben- Asher, J., Sagi, M. and Alert, A. 1995. Double emitter
source (DES): an adaptation of trickle irrigation to the double line source
method. Int. Water Irrig. Review 15: 34-39.
3. Gao, Z., Sagi, M. and Lips, S. H. 1996. Assimilate allocation priority as
affected by nitrogen compounds in the xylem sap of tomato. Plant Physiol.
Biochem. 34:807-815.
4. De Malach, Y., Ben- Asher, J., Sagi, M. and Alert, A. 1996. Double emitter
source (DES) for salinity and fertilization experiments. Agron. J. 88: 987-990.
5. Sagi, M., Savidov, N.A., L'vov N.P. and Lips, S.H. 1997. Nitrate reductase and
molybdenum cofactor in annual ryegrass as affected by salinity and
nitrogen source. Physiol. Plant. 99: 546-553.
6. Sagi, M., Dovrat, A., Kipnis, T. and Lips, S.H. 1998. Nitrate reductase,
phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase and glutamine synthetase in annual
ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) as affected by salinity, N source and
level. J. Plant Nutr. 21:707-723
7. Sagi, M., Dovrat, A., Kipnis, T. and Lips, S.H. 1997. Ionic balance, biomass
production, and organic nitrogen as affected by salinity and nitrogen source
in annual ryegrass. J. Plant Nutr. 20: 1291-1316.
8. Savidov, N. A., L'vov, N. P., Sagi, M. and Lips, S. H. 1997. Molybdenum
cofactor biosynthesis in two barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) genotypes as
affected by nitrate in the tissue and in the growth medium. Plant Sci. 122: 5159.
9. Savidov, N. A., Sagi, M. and Lips, S.H. 1997. The assay of the molybdenum
cofactor in higher plants as affected by pyridine nucleotides and nitrate.
Plant Physiol. Biochem. 35: 419-426.
10. Sagi, M., Omarov, R. T. and Lips, S.H. 1998. The Mo-hydroxylases xanthine
dehydrogenase and aldehyde oxidase in ryegrass as affected by nitrogen and
salinity. Plant Sci. 135:125-135.
11. Sagi, M. and S.H. Lips. 1998. The levels of nitrate reductase and
molybdenum cofactor in annual ryegrass as affected by nitrate and
ammonium. Plant Sci. 135: 17-24.
12. Gao, Z., Sagi, M. and Lips, S.H. 1998. Carbohydrate metabolism in leaves
and assimilate partitioning in fruits of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum L.)
as affected by salinity. Plant Sci. 135: 149-159.
13. Omarov R., Sagi, M. and Lips, S.H. 1998. Regulation of aldehyde oxidase
and nitrate reductase in roots of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) by nitrogen
sources and salinity. J. Exp. Bot. 49: 897-902.
14. Li, J. Sagi, M., Gale, J., Volokita, M. and Novoplansky, A. 1999. Response of
tomato plants to saline water as affected by carbon dioxide
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supplementation. I: Growth, yield and fruit quality. J. Horticult. Sci.
Biotech. 74:232-237.
15. Sagi, M. Fluhr, R. and Lips, S.H. 1999 Aldehyde oxidase and xanthine
dehydrogenase in a flacca tomato mutant with deficient abscisic acid and
wilty phenotype. Plant Physiol. 120:571-578.
16. Lips, S.H., Omarov R. T. and Sagi, M. 2000. Mo-enzymes at the crossroads
of signal transmission from root to shoot. In: "Nitrogen in a sustainable
ecosystem from the cell to the plant." M. A. Martins-Loucao and S. H. Lips
(eds). Backhuys, Leiden.
17. Sagi, M. and Fluhr, R. 2001 Superoxide Production by plant homologues of
the gp91phox NADPH oxidase. modulation of activity by calcium and by
tobacco mosaic virus infection. Plant Physiol. 126: 1281-1290.
18. Lichter, A., Ostrovski, A., Dvir, O., Cohen, S., Golan, R., Shemer, Z. and
Sagi, M. 2002. Cracking of cherry tomatoes in solution. Postharv. Biol.
Technol. 26: 305-312.
19. Sagi, M., Scazzocchio, C. and Fluhr, R. 2002. The absence of molybdenum
cofactor sulfuration is the primary cause of the flacca phenotype in tomato
plants. Plant J. 31:305-317
20. Chen, G., Lips, S.H. and Sagi, M. 2002. Biomass, transpiration and
endogenous ABA levels in grafts of flacca and wild-type tomato
(Lycopersicon esculentum). Aust. J. Plant Physiol. [present journal name:
Functional Biology] 29: 1329-1335.
21. Chen, G., Shi, Q., Lips, S.H. and Sagi, M. 2003. Comparison of growth of
flacca and wild-type tomato grown under conditions diminishing their
differences in stomatal control. Plant Sci. 164:753-757.
22. Chen, G., Fu, X., Lips, S.H. and Sagi, M. 2003. Control of plant growth
resides in the shoot and not the root in the presence and absence of salinity
stress in reciprocal grafts of flacca and wild-type tomato (Lycopersicon
esculentum). Plant and Soil 256:205-215.
23. Sagi, M, Davydov, O, Orazova, S, Yesbergenova, Z, Ophir, R, Stratmann, J W
and Fluhr R, (2004) Rboh impinges on wound responsiveness and development in
tomato. Plant Cell (in Press)
Articles in preparation
24. Guoxiong Chen, Moshe Sagi, Song Weining, Tamar Krugman, Tzion
Fahima, Abraham B Korol, and Eviatar Nevo, * Wild barley eibi1
mutation identifies a gene essential for leaf water conservation
(Submitted to Planta).
25. Man-Kim Cheung, Radhika Desikan, Jayne Davies, Rebecca Smith, Moshe
Sagi, Robert Fluhr, Christopher Rock, John Hancock and Steven Neill. H2O2 is
required for stomatal closure in response to darkness and ABA in guard cells of
Pisum sativum L. (Submitted to Plant J).
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26. Alikulov, Z..A, and Sagi M. Molybdenum cofactor and Mo-enzymes in
dormant and developing wheat seeds (in preparation).
27. Xing-Yu, J., Omarov, R.T. and Sagi, M. 2003. Effects of molybdate and
tungstate on abscisic acid, aldehyde oxidase and xanthine dehydrogenase
in barley roots and leaves (in preparation).
Additional Publications
Sagi M., U. Naphtaliahu, A. Alert, Z. Hoffman and Y. de Malach. 1991.
Sunflower irrigated with saline water in the Ramat HaNegev region.
Hassadeh 72:306-309.
De Malach Y., M. Sagi, A. Alert, Y. David, Z. Hoffman and C. Efron. 1992. A
gradual two-variable design of field experiments using trickler double
source. Hassadeh 73:80-82.
Kipnis T., M. Sagi and Y. de Malach. 1990. Adaptation to the Negev conditions
of different cultivars of sorghum for forage irrigates with sewage water.
Report in Ramat HaNegev Research and Development annual activity
summary.
Sagi M. and Y. de Malach. 1990. Influence of alternated fresh brackish water
irrigation on maize. Report in Ramat HaNegev Research and Development
annual activity summary.
Kipnis T., M. Sagi and Y. de Malach. 1991. The effect of saline water irrigation
on the yield of different cultivars of sorghum for forage. Report in Ramat
HaNegev Research and Development annual activity summary.
Sagi M., Y. Keren and Y. de Malach. 1992. Cultivars of sweet corn irrigated with
brackish water at the Ramat Negev. Report in Ramat HaNegev Research
and Development annual activity summary.
Leshem Y., M. Sagi, Ch. Frenkel, D. Chanoch and Y. de Malach. 1992.
Irrigation of forage beet with brackish water. Report in Ramat HaNegev
Research and Development annual activity summary.
Katz I., M. Sagi and U. Silberstein. 1992. Development of technologies for the
production of dry and humid hay of ryegrass with brackish water in the
Ramat HaNegev area. Report in Ramat HaNegev Research and
Development annual activity summary.
Sagi M., T. Kipnis and M. Dovrat. 1992. Ryegrass irrigated with brackish water.
Report in Ramat HaNegev Research and Development annual activity summary.
Sagi M., T. Kipnis and M. Dovrat. 1992. The effect of brackish water irrigation
with different irrigation methods on the yield of sorghum. Report
Sagi M. 1992. Trial of different cultivars of Sudan irrigated with brackish water.
Report in Ramat HaNegev Research and Development annual activity summary.
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5. Lectures and Presentations at Conferences
Sagi, M., N. P. L’vov, N. A. Savidov, A. Dovrat, T. Kipnis, and S. H. Lips. 1994.
Nitrogen nutrition of annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) under saline conditions.
Poster presented at the 9th. FESPP Congress. Brno. Chech Rep. Biolog. Plant.
36:379.
Sagi, M., N. A. Savidov, N. P. L’vov, and S. H. Lips. 1995. MoCo and NR in
ryegrass as affected by salinity, nitrate, nitrite and ammonium.
Lecture at the Fourth International Symposium on Inorganic Nitrogen
Assimilation and the First Fohs Biostress Symposium, July 23-28, 1995,
Seehim/Darmstadt, Germany.
Sagi, M., R.T, Omarov, and S. H. Lips. 1998. The Mo-hydroxylases xanthine dehydrogenase and aldehyde oxidase in ryegrass as affected by nitrogen and salinity.
Lecture at the 5th International Symposium on Inorganic Nitrogen Assimilation
and the 3rd Fohs Biostress Symposium, July 13-17, 1998, Luso Portugal.
Sagi, M., and S.H., Lips. 1998. Aldehyde oxidase and xanthine dehydrogenase in
a flacca tomato mutant with deficient abscisic acid and wilty phenotype.
Poster presented in Salt and Water stress in Plants at Gordon Research
Conference. Oxford.
Sagi, M. and R. Fluhr 2001. Superoxide production by the gp91phox NADPH
oxidase plant homologue: modulation by calcium and TMV.
Lecture presented at the annual conference of the Israeli Society of Plant
Sciences, held in The Faculty of Agriculture, Rehovot, April 4th 2001.
Sagi, M. and Fluhr, R. 2002. The absence of molybdenum cofactor sulfuration is
the primary cause of the flacca phenotype in tomato plants.
Poster presented in Salt and Water stress in Plants at Gordon Research
Conference. Oxford.
6. Grants History
Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 884-0068-91-93
(1991-1993). The production of forage irrigated with saline water in Ramat Negev.
$100,000
Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 255-0388-94-97
(1994-1997). Production of high-quality tomatoes irrigated with saline water: The
influence of salinity and its components on physiological processes.
$75,000.
Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 255-0297-94-96
(1995-1997). Enhancement of melon yield by controlling plant density and
architecture when grown in greenhouse in Ramat Negev.
$40,000
Ministry of Science and Technology (S. H. Lips and Moshe Sagi).
(1996-1998). Novel techniques for the production of high-quality fruit in
greenhouses.
$ 120,000.
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Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 884-0141-99/01
(1999-2001). Prevention of brown spots in melon (Cucumis melo L.) fruits.
$45,000.
Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 884-0140-99/01
(1999-2001). Improvement of fruits yield and quality in pepper grown in
greenhouse at Ramat Negev.
$45,000
Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 402-0271-99/01
(1999-2001). Study of the factors affecting fruit cracking in cherry tomato fruits.
$30,000
AID/CDR/CAR CA20-036 (Moshe Sagi in cooperation with Z. Alikulov [Kazakhstan])
(2001-2004). Prevention of pre-harvest sprouting.
$75,000
Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 884-0150-02
In cooperation with Ramat Negev R&D.
(2002-2004). Development of agrotechniques for exportable tomato production
without the use of methyl bromide.
$38,000
The Harry Stern Applied Research Grant (Moshe Sagi)
(2002-2003). Development of Salicornia, a new halophyte crop for export to the
gourmet market of Europe.
$30,000
The Harry Stern Applied Research Grant (Moshe Sagi)
(2003-2004). Development of Salicornia, a new halophyte crop for export to the
gourmet market of Europe.
$28,000
Seed money - Research Encouragement Foundation of Ben-Gurion University
(Moshe Sagi)
(2002-2003). Novel molybdenum cofactor sulfurase and control of plant molybdo
enzymes in response to biotic and abiotic stress.
Seed money was given to fund a proposal receiving high scoring from The Israel
Science Foundation but unfortunately not granted due to funding limitations.
$4, 200.
ICA foundation (Moshe Sagi).
(2002-2004). Innovative cash-crop halophytes for future halophyte growers in Ramat
Hanegev - A triennial project. In cooperation with Ramat Negev R&D.$165000.
Ministry of Science, Culture and Sport (Moshe Sagi). M. Sagi and N. Bernstein.
(2003-2005). Development of Salicornia, a new halophyte crop for export to the
gourmet market of Europe. In cooperation with Dead Sea R&D.
$ 70,000.
Peres Center for Peace and Ramat Negev R&D (Moshe Sagi).
(2003-2005). " Water Culture " at Ramat Hanegev [Principal Investigator of the project
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with total budget over $700, 000 (confidential)].
$177,000
Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 884-0165-03
(2003-2005). Increase salt resistance in tomato by use of tomato rootstocks able to
minimize root to shoot salt movement.
$51,000.
Ministry of Agriculture (Moshe Sagi). Chief Scientist Project 884-0166-03
(2003-2005). Development of high-quality pepper in combined (net/greenhouse)
growing system.
$38,000
The Israel Science foundation (ISF) 417/03. (2003-2007) Novel role of
molybdoenzymes in biotic and abiotic stresses.
($200,000)
The Israel Science foundation (ISF) 9056/03. (2003-2005) Budget to purchase Real
Time Quantitative PCR for detection of molybdoenzymes gene products expressed in
plants exposed to biotic and abiotic stresses.
$30,000 from ISF complemented with $30,000 from BGU.
7. Students
Project students
Eynav Oron (4th year Biotechnology)
Dana Sofer (4th year Biotechnology)
Carmit Porat (4th year Biotechnology)
M.Sc
1. Guoxiong Chen
2. Xiaoping Fu
PhD
1. Dina Haraonovitzc (to be registered).
Post-docs
1. Xing-Yu Jiang (China)
2. Saltanat Orazova (Kazakhstan)
3. Zhazira Yesbergenova (Kazakhstan)
4. Guohua Yang (China, to be registered)
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8. Cloned and registered genes
1. FLACCA- tomato molybdenum cofactor sulfurase [Lycopersicon esculentum].
LOCUS
AAL71858
816 aa
linear PLN 07-AUG-2002
ACCESSION AAL71858
VERSION AAL71858.1 GI:22128583
DBSOURCE accession AY074788.1
9. Activities in Public Forums
1. 1989 – present: Member, Agricultural Committee of Ramat Negev Regional
Council
2. 1989 – present: Member, Ramat Negev R&D Management
3. 2002 – present: Member, Ministry of Agriculture, Chief Scientist's Steering
Committee for Indoor Vegetables
10. Synopsis of Current Research
A. Roles of plant molybdo enzymes in response to plant stress
Aldehyde oxidase (AO), xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH), nitrate reductase (NR) and
sulfite oxidase (SO) — enzymes that contain a molybdenum cofactor (MoCo) — are
involved in the essential aspects of oxidative metabolism in plants. NR catalyzes a
step in ammonium production from nitrate, and SO catalyzes the detoxification of
sulfite to sulfate. XDH plays a role in nitrogen assimilation and has been found in
high concentrations in nitrogen-fixing nodules of legumes. We have found that the
MoCo level of NR is induced not only by nitrate, as expected, but also by the
ammonium level in the plant growth medium [5, 8, 10, 11, 13]. We also showed that
AO-type enzymes (AO and XDH) play a role in the biosynthesis of abscissic acid
(ABA) and purine metabolism in response to salinity stress and in controlling the
concentration and type of nitrogen compounds produced [10, 11, 13, 16]. The
insertion of a terminal sulfur ligand into the MoCo site is required for XDH and AO
activity, but not for NR and SO activity. Lesions in MoCo sulfuration result in the
disruption of AO functioning, as is found in wilty mutants. By analysis of such
mutants, we have shown that the additional sulfuration step in MoCo has the
potential to provide a regulatory point for XDH and AO activities [15, 19].
NO, a reactive oxygen species (ROS), serves as a stress signaling molecule in plants
and animals. Plant NR can catalyze the production of NO and other reactive nitrogen
species (RNS) from nitrite and NAD(P)H. Interestingly, organically liganded
molybdenum can catalyze the reduction of nitrite to NO in the absence of protein.
While NO plays an important function in plant stress signaling, the source of
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physiological NO is unknown in plants and most likely differs from that in animals.
We have shown that ROS are readily produced in plants by AO and that AO
increases during stress response [preliminary unpublished results]. Thus, MoCo
oxidative class enzymes may serve a dual function in metabolism and ROS/RNS
production in the stress response of plants. The extent of the contribution of MoCo
enzymes to both ROS and RNS is currently one of the main thrusts of my research
activity. By appropriate use of mutants [19] and transgenic plants engineered by us,
we propose to delineate the coordinated regulation of AO, XDH, SO and NR and the
type of ROS and/or RNS produced in response to environmental changes. The
importance of this research lies in the fact that ROS production plays a crucial role in
plant productivity. Delimiting the molecular players involved in the production of
reactive species is thus an important step to rational plant improvement.
B. Production of tomato plants with altered resistance to biotic and abiotic stress by
manipulation of NADPH oxidase gene expression levels
A major problem in crop production are losses to biotic (diseases and insects) and
abiotic stress. Consequently, increasing resistance to stresses in important crops,
such as tomato, is of high economic value. Many forms of biotic stress lead to the
rapid generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which have been shown to be a
component of the resistance response of plants to pathogens and insects. These
species serve as direct protective agents (because of their toxicity to pests) or as
essential signaling intermediates that transduce the stress signal, leading to activation
of defensive genes. A paradigmatic abiotic stress response of plants is the triggering
of ROS production by ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation: ROS cause damage to cellular
macromolecules but are also required for activation of UV-protective genes. We
propose to manipulate the control of ROS levels by an ROS-generating enzyme,
NADPH oxidase, as a biotechnological approach to engineering plants with
increased resistance to multiple forms of stress. There is increasing evidence that
plant NADPH oxidase is required for ROS accumulation in the plant defense
response. We hypothesize that altering the expression levels of this enzyme will have
striking consequences for plant stress responses. Previously, we developed a novel
NADPH oxidase activity gel assay and showed that the plant plasma membrane
NADPH oxidase can produce the ROS superoxide (O2-) in tobacco leaves infected
with tobacco mosaic virus [17]. We have already produced transgenic tomato plants
with decreased levels of NADPH oxidase gene expression, and the next step in the
research will be to engineer tomato plants with overexpression of the gene. The
proposed investigation will be carried out on two levels. Transgenic plants with
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altered NADPH oxidase activity will be challenged with necrotrophic and biotrophic
fungi, insect pests and UV-B radiation. This part of the research is directly aimed at
producing tomato plants with increased resistance to stressful environmental
conditions. Because of the universal role of ROS in the plant kingdom, we expect
that the approach will be directly applicable to other crop plants. The second part of
the research is aimed at determining the role of NADPH oxidase and ROS in
signaling mechanisms and gene activation patterns underlying plant responses to
stress and development. Indeed, we have recently shown in transgenic tomato plants
decreased levels of NADPH oxidase gene expression, resulting in developmental
phenotypes such as branching, dwarfish plants and curly leaves, a finding that
indicates the important role of NADPH oxidase in plant development [25]. This
research will enable us to test for overlaps in ROS requirements between pathogen,
insect, and UV stress signal transduction and to explore the limitations of the direct
regulation of NADPH oxidase as an approach to increasing plant tolerance to stress.
C. Salinity and Arid Zone Agriculture
C.1. Increase of salt resistance in tomato by use of tomato rootstocks able to
minimize root to shoot salt movement
There is ample saline water available for agriculture at Ramat Negev, while fresh
water is limited. Fruit quality of tomato is influenced by salinity and by nitrogen and
carbon compounds [3, 12, 14]. Salinity improves fruit quality (taste, firmness, shelf
life and sugar content) but significantly decreases yield, thus reducing profit.
Classical breeding to produce new varieties giving high yields under salinity is likely
to take a long time. We have therefore sought to produce such crops by means of
grafting. Our recent study indicates that shoot genotype plays a dominant role in
determining biomass accumulation of grafted tomato plants [20, 22]. We have also
shown that in grafted tomato plants growing under high salinity (200 mM) growth
rate is markedly affected by rootstock genotype [22]. The reduction in yield under
salinity is attributed to the damage caused by the uptake and accumulation in the
leaves of significant quantities of ions such as Na+ and Cl-. Thus, salt resistance in
tomato may be enhanced by the use of tomato rootstocks able to minimize root to
shoot salt movement. Our survey of tomato rootstocks has revealed at least three
lines of rootstocks able to diminish root to shoot salt movement. The search for the
optimal combination(s) of rootstocks with high-yielding scion(s) is now under way.
The molecular basis for decreased ion uptake and reduced root to shoot movement of
the ions is also being studied as an approach to increasing plant tolerance to high
salinity. A different study with grafted and nongrafted tomato plants has contributed
to the elucidation of the role of abscissic acid (ABA) in growth regulation. ABA
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originating in the shoot accounted for the shoot dominance of the growth of twomonth-old grafted plants [20, 22]. In nongrafted young tomato seedlings, ABA
improved root growth and inhibited shoot growth under conditions diminishing
stomatal control [21].
C.2. Use of highly saline water for developing cash-crop halophytes for potential
halophyte growers at Ramat Negev
The extensive desalination facilities now under construction at Ramat Negev will
generate both fresh water and large quantities of highly saline brine. Halophytes are
the only plants capable of tolerating the salts present in such brines (~0.5 M NaCl).
Among these plants, salicornia excels in evapotranspiration of water and vigor under
saline irrigation. Salicornia is consumed fresh as a gourmet food in several European
countries. However, the supply is limited because salicornia is not grown as an
agricultural crop and must be harvested from wild plants growing along the seashore,
the harvest season being limited to five months of the year. In view of the demand for
salicornia in European markets and its ability to grow on saline water, this halophyte
could become an important source of income for the farmers of Ramat Negev. We are
developing agro-techniques for the year-round production of salicornia, as a cash
crop, in sand-dune fields and along the sand-dune banks of the brine evaporation
reservoir. Such a crop would provide a use for the highly saline brine available from
natural sources in the region, thereby contributing to preservation of the environment.
Preliminary results obtained so far (after 8 months of the study) reveal that local
salicornia ecotypes grown in greenhouse and irrigated with high saline water have the
potential to produce well-shaped and good-tasting salicornia during the winter. In
addition, the molecular basis for salt resistance mechanisms in salicornia will be
studied.