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The article focuses on polyembryony in Commiphora wightii collected from India. Topics discussed include the degree of polyembryony within C. wightii germplasm that would make it possible to introduce apomictic genes, the cultivation practices in India related to C. wightii that is mostly found in the rocky tracts of Rajasthan and Gujarat and the noteworthy discovered made by the authors including its accession DMAPR CW3.

A letter to the editor about gender instability in Tinospora cordifolia is presented.

Confocal fluorescence microscopy has established itself now as an indispensable tool for biomedical and biomolecular research. However, the rigid design and high cost of the commercially available confocal microscopes have limited its wider usage. Here we report on the development of a confocal laser scanning microscope and demonstrate the three-dimensional sectioning capability of the microscope. The design is versatile and cost-effective, and can be constructed using components normally available in an optics laboratory with minimum amount of additional expenditure. Detailed description of the design and alignment procedure is given so that this note can serve as a primer for construction of a simple confocal microscope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera Dunal.) is an important medicinal plant cultivated in about 4000 ha in India. It is mainly distributed in the northwestern region of Madhya Pradesh and also in limited areas of different states. However, wild collection of the species continues to be a source of raw drug in Ayurvedic preparations. In the present communication, results of a comparative study of the wild type distributed locally in Anand, Gujarat and the superior variety, Jawahar Ashwagandha (JA-20), are presented. Results revealed conspicuous differences between the cultivated and wild-type plants in most of the characters studied. One of the major differences between cultivated and wild-type plants is that the former are annual, whereas the latter are perennial. Photosynthetic rate was higher in the wild type, which was reflected in its higher biomass production. Another distinguishing character was the floral structure which favours self-pollination in the cultivated plants because of short stigma covered with anther lobes, which is in contrast to the wild type having long, projected stigma inviting cross-pollination. The cultivated plants were in full bloom during December-February; however, in the wild type flowering was a continuous process throughout its lifespan. Flow cytometer study revealed the same ploidy level for both the plant types. However, chemical profile showed variation between the two plant types, even though targeted chemical constituents tested in the study were common to both. However, HPLC quantification of these constituents showed superiority of the wild type compared to JA-20. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]