In order to evaluate the effect of salycilic acid on some reproductive and yield of safflower under drought stress an experiment was conducted in 2015 at research farm of Islamic Azad University of Tabriz in form of split plot based on randomized complete block design with three replications. The main factor included water stress (S) at two levels of evaporation (70 and 140 mm) from the surface of Class A basin. Post-establishment irrigation (the 4 leaves stage) was applied until the physiological maturity figures were obtained. The first sub-factor included salicylic acid in 3 control levels (distilled water spraying), spraying with concentrations of 100 and 200 mg per liter. The second sub-factor included local safflower of Isfahan and the Isfahan (Goldasht) cultivars. The results showed that water stress causes a significant reduction in plant height, number of sub branches, the number of heads per plant, number of seeds per head, seed weight, number of seeds per plant and yield. Salycilic acid effect on growth and yield under non-stress was felt that the use of different concentrations of salycilic acid significantly increased the number of branches, number of heads per plant, number of seeds per plant and seed yield in the absence of stress and the highest increase in 100 mg per liter salycilic acid was obtained. Spying had no significant effect on grain yield in drought stress conditions and in these conditions only plant height and number of branches increased. In general, the results showed that although in drought conditions negative effect on grain yield with consuming salycilic acid decreased, but the use of small amounts (concentration of 100 mg/ l) can be somewhat alleviated the negative effects of stress on plant growth. Type cultivars significantly influenced traits and results of mean comparison showed that Goldasht had highest plant height, number of lateral branches, number of heads per plant, number of seeds per head, number of seeds per plant and yield. As for interactions, the interaction between water stress and variety on number of branches, numbers of seeds per plant and seed yield were significant. The highest number of brances, number of seed in plant and seed yield obtained from 70 mm irrigation and glodasht. Therefore, this variety had better and more effective defence system than the local variety and was tolrerance to rought stress.

Research was conducted to develop and release new improved winter safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) cultivar suitable for cold and semi cold areas of Iran. In 1995, 1996 and 1997, line L.R.V.51.51  was selected from Uromeieh landraces based on agronomic traits, resistance to diseases and abiotic stresses under field conditions. It was included in yield trials in main Research Stations Karaj, Isfahan and Darab, together with 9 safflower lines, as well as widely grown improved cheek cultivar Zrgan-279 Results showed that this line produces significantly higher and stable yield. Analysis of the grain and oil yields using Eberhart and Russel method showed significant difference for the main effects of genotype and genotype × environment (linear) interactions and non-significant difference for deviation from regression. According to the classification of genotypes based on the mean of grain and oil yields, coefficient of regression and deviation from regression, the new line L.R.V.51.51 with its high grain and oil yields and stability was selected as a desirable genotype while it has more tolerant to cold than Zargan-279, with mean grain and oil yields 2205 kgha-1 and 600 kgha-1 respectively. The new line was released in 2005, with the name of Paideh. 

Extended Abstract Background: The safflower oilseed plant (Carthamus tinctorius L.) has favorable agronomic and yield characteristics that make it a suitable crop for various practical purposes and achieving sustainable development in the food, energy, and pharmaceutical industries. This plant has various medical, industrial, and nutritional applications. The high quality of the oil (more than 90% unsaturated fatty acids of oleic and linoleic acids), high tolerance to abiotic stresses (cold, salinity, and drought), and the wide range of cultivation have always been of interest. Knowledge of the expression atlas of this plant during its growth and development helps to modify agricultural characteristics, including improving yield, quality, nutritional, and health factors. Due to the good quality of the oil extracted from its seeds, the cultivation of this industrial plant has recently received attention in countries with hot and dry ecosystems. The lack of detailed knowledge about the genome structure and the function of genes is one of the limiting factors to accelerate safflower breeding programs to improve the quality and quantity of this plant. Most safflower NGS studies have been conducted to investigate genetic diversity and identify molecular markers. In this study, the molecular factors involved in the biosynthesis of fatty acids and tocopherol of safflower seeds are considered based on RNA-seq data. Methods: In this research, the Goldasht variety was selected among the local and commercial safflower varieties available in Iran. This variety has outstanding features, such as high tolerance to salinity and drought, red flowers, spineless, medium height, and large capitula. The seeds were planted in the research farm of the National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in the 2018-2019 cultivation year. The plants were sampled with the daily monitoring of plant growth after the start of reproductive growth. Samples were collected from seed development stages, including seed formation (14 days after flowering), seed filling (28 days after flowering), and physiological ripening (35 days after flowering), to examine the transcriptome of safflower seed development. Each sample consisted of five sub-replicates and two replicates. Total RNA was extracted from the samples using a modified Trizol method. In this study, the BGISEQ-500 platform was used for sequencing and produced 100 bp pair-end reads for each library. FastQC and Trimmomatic software were used to evaluate the quality and clean up the raw reads of each library, respectively. Trinity software was used to assemble the filtered reads of all samples. Differentially Expressed Transcripts (DETs) and their clustering were obtained using the DESeq2 package in R. Functional annotation was performed using Trinotate, gene enrichment was performed using the goseq package in R, and the biochemical pathway was identified using the KEGG database. Results: An average of 71 million reads was obtained from each library. As a result of reassembling and creating a reference transcriptome, the alignment rate of raw data against the final assembled file was 97.29%. After screening the data, 86,585 transcripts were categorized into 68,809 genes. A total of 16,755 DETs were identified in this analysis. The highest number of transcripts identified with differential expression in pairwise comparisons and during the seed development stages belonged to the transition phase from seed filling to seed maturation, with 10,198 transcripts. Three main patterns of gene expression were evident based on the results of seed transcriptome atlas data analysis. Most genes at 14 days after flowering (DAF) coincided with a rapid increase in oil content during seed development. Genes that were highly expressed at 14 and 28 DAF were related to the formation of metabolites and early stages of oil biosynthesis, including the formation of pyruvate and acetyl-CoA. Moreover, genes related to protein storage peaked at 35 DAF. Genes were identified using five public databases (NR, COG, Swiss-Prot, KEGG, and GO). In the KEGG database, all identified genes were classified into 398 biological pathways and eight functional categories, which were related to fatty acid and tocopherol biosynthesis, with the synthesis of lipid metabolites and ubiquinone during safflower seed growth and development. Conclusion: The expression profile of the genes involved in the biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids showed a higher frequency of their expression in the first stage of seed development. Furthermore, this level of expression was at its lowest level during seed maturation. Studying the expression profile of the genes involved in the metabolic pathway of tocopherol biosynthesis showed a higher frequency of occurrence of these genes in the middle and final stages of seed development, which indicates a clear temporal relationship between oil accumulation and physiological changes in safflower seeds. This study shows that the increased expression of genes related to fatty acid biosynthesis occurs earlier than seed development. Besides, oil accumulation begins before the accumulation of proteins in safflower seeds. Identifying the molecular factors involved in improving plant yield and the identification of the interaction between them as well as with the environment can be a valuable tool for better crop management and breeding activities.

Introduction Safflower, scientifically known as Carthamus tinctorius L., is an annual plant belonging to the Asteraceae family. Today, with the development of high-yield varieties that produce substantial quantities of high-quality oil, safflower is recognized as one of the world's important oilseed crops. Given its strong resistance to salinity and ability to grow under rain-fed conditions, it is considered a drought-tolerant plant—an attribute that significantly enhances its value. Additionally, humic acid, as an organic compound, poses minimal harm to the environment. Additionally, through its hormone-like activity, it has many positive effects on various traits, including performance characteristics. The presence of micronutrients, especially Fe, enhances the plant's resistance to various biotic and abiotic stresses.   Materials and Methods This study was conducted at the Ardabil Agricultural Research Center to evaluate the effect of two types of fertilizers (iron fertilizer and humic acid) on the yield and phenological traits of two safflower cultivars. This experiment was conducted as a split-plot design based on a completely randomized block design with three replications. The main factor included two safflower varieties named "Chini" and "Goldasht," while the sub-factor consisted of nine fertilizer levels. These fertilizer levels included one control level, two levels of 95% humic acid (two milligrams per liter and four milligrams per liter), two levels of 12% EDTA chelated iron (one milligram per liter and two milligrams per liter), and four combined levels of iron and humic acid fertilizers.   Results and Discussion The results revealed a significant difference in performance traits between the two varieties, Chini and Goldasht. Observations showed that the Goldasht variety produced a significantly higher seed yield of 1,462.5 kg per hectare, compared to 1,403.3 kg per hectare for the Chini variety. Additionally, the second level of iron + second level of humic acid treatment showed significantly the highest yield, resulting in a 49% increase in seed yield compared to the control. Overall, the combined use of these two fertilizers is recommended. The Goldasht variety requires a shorter time for flowering and maturity compared to the Chini variety and matures earlier while also having a higher yield, making it preferable in this regard. For the traits of plant height and antioxidant activity, there is no significant difference among the cultivars. However, among the fertilizer levels, the second level of humic acid resulted in a height of 68.3 cm, and for antioxidant activity, the combination of the second level of humic acid and the second level of iron exhibited the highest activity at 84.5%. Overall, among the cultivars, 'Goldasht' and among the fertilizer levels, the treatment combining the second levels of iron and humic acid had the highest biological yield, the highest harvest index, oilseed yield, and seed yield.  Humic acid, due to its nitrogen-like effects and its richness in organic materials, leads to increased seed filling and higher thousand-grain weight. On the other hand, the application of iron helps to cleanse reactive oxygen species and improves the plant's sink performance, providing more seeds for filling.   Conclusion The studies indicated that the Goldasht variety matures earlier and yields more than the Chini variety. Due to its longer growth period, the Chini variety is more susceptible to late-season challenges such as heat stress, pests, and bird damage, which can negatively affect yield. Therefore, the cultivation of the Goldasht variety is preferable in this context. In terms of physiological traits, the application of iron and humic acid fertilizers was found to enhance the stability and resilience of both varieties. The interaction between humic acid and iron proved beneficial for safflower health, promoting greater nutrient uptake, improved growth parameters, increased seed yield, and enhanced stress tolerance.

In order to investigate the effect under late season cutting off irrigation on biochemical properties and yield of safflower cultivars a split factorial experiment in a randomized complete block design was conducted in three replicates at College of Agriculture and Natural resources of Darab, Shiraz University during 2017-2018 growing season. The main factor was irrigation regime in three levels included of normal irrigation, cutting off irrigation in the middle of the flowering, and in the early seed filling stages and sub factor was safflower cultivars including Padideh, Goldasht, Faraman and Isfahan local. Cutting off irrigation in flowering stage decreased 30. 37% of chlorophyll a and 25. 8% of chlorophyll b, and increased 15. 38% carotenoid, 23. 38% of catalase activity and 34. 94 % of peroxidase activity, which in Goldasht cultivar was more than the other cultivars. Under cutting off irrigation at flowering and seed filling, the highest seed yield was obtained in Goldasht cultivar as 132 and 150. 5 g/m2, respectively. Overall, cutting of irrigation at flowering and seed filling stages reduced grain yield by 32. 3 and 19. 93%, respectively. Under cutting off irrigating, seed yield with chlorophyll a content (r=0. 77**), chlorophyll b (r=0. 86**), carotenoid (r=0. 74**), catalase (r=0. 71**), peroxidase (r=0. 72**), and harvest index (r=0. 83**) had positive and significant correlation. In addition, Goldasht cultivar of safflower could by increasing photosynthetic pigments and enzyme activity under water deficit in late season obtained the more seed yield compared to other cultivars.

Biological and abiotic stresses reduce growth and yield in plants. During their growth period, plants may be subjected to various abiotic stresses such as heavy metals, lack of essential elements, increase of some elements, and also biological stresses such as the attack of herbivorous insects. In this research, the effect of both nickel and zinc 300 µM salts on the change of resistance and some growth and physiological parameters of the safflower plant (Goldasht cultivar) was studied under standard greenhouse conditions in the presence or absence of safflower aphid biological stress. For this purpose, an experiment was conducted in the form of a randomized complete block design and factorial form with 8 treatments including Hoagland's solution (control), zinc, nickel, and zinc + nickel in two conditions with treatment or without treatment with seven blocks (repetition). Plant growth parameters such as plant height, number of leaves, leaf area, root wet weight, aerial organ wet weight, and some physiological parameters such as relative water content, chlorophyll content, carotenoid content, and ion leakage percentage were measured. The research results showed that the reducing effect of nickel toxicity and aphid biological stress on plant growth parameters was significant. The interaction between heavy metal treatment and biological stress had a significant effect on the height of the stem and the number of leaves, which indicated the combined effect of the toxicity of heavy metals nickel and zinc along with aphid stress on these two growth parameters and increased plant sensitivity. However, overall, the results of this research showed that if the plant is placed in non-stress conditions of zinc and nickel metals and given proper nutrition, it will have more performance and resistance during biological stress such as aphid attack and the presence of toxic amounts of heavy metals causes more sensitivity during the attack of pests and herbivores.

Background and Objectives: The shortage of oilseeds and the high volume of oil imports in Iran and the limitation of water resources for the many oilseeds production, showed the necessity of identifying species and varieties adapted to these stressful conditions and determining the most sensitive stages. Nowadays, safflower, due to drought resistance, is considered as a plant crop in the Iranian crop rotation. Therefore, with respect to importance of water stress and selection of appropriate planting date in crop production, this research was conducted to investigate the effect of delay cropping and irrigation regime on assimilate remobilization, yield components and yield safflower. Materials and Methods: In order to investigate the effect of delay cropping and irrigation regime on assimilate remobilization rate, yield components and yield of safflower, a field experiment was conducted as split factorial in a completely randomized blocks design with three replicates at Agriculture College and Natural Resources of Darab, Shiraz University, during 2018-2019 growing season. Experimental factors consisted of irrigation regimes in three levels included normal irrigation, Cutting of irrigation at flowering and cutting of irrigation at seed filling, three planting dates (6 December, 26 December and 15 January) and two safflower cultivars (Goldasht and local Isfahan). In this research, dry matter remobilization, remobilization contribution and remobilization efficiency, yield components and yield of safflower were determined. Results: Results showed that the measured traits were affected by irrigation regime, planting date and cultivar, significantly. Cutting of irrigation at flowering reduced number of capitule per plant, number of seeds per capitule, 1000-seed weight and grain yield of safflower cultivars by 21. 86%, 23. 87%, 28. 37% and 33. 74%, respectively compared to normal irrigation. The amount of dry matter remobilization, remobilization contribution and remobilization efficiency in cutting of irrigation at flowering increased 30. 44%, 37. 81% and 25. 37%, respectively compared to normal irrigation. Also, delayed third planting date (15 January) reduced dry matter remobilization (44. 17%), remobilization contribution (22. 72%), remobilization efficiency (17. 88%), number of capitule per plant (%). 14. 57, number of seeds per capitule (20. 65%) and grain yield (13. 31%). Conclusion: Cutting of irrigation at flowering and seed filling treatments decreased 52. 32% and 34. 54% of grain yield in Isfahan local cultivar at second planting date (26 December) compared to the normal irrigation treatment, respectively. However, seed yield in this treatment did not differ significantly with the treatment of cutting of irrigation at seed filling in planting date on 6 December in Isfahan and Goldasht cultivars which seems to be due to increased assimilate remobilization and remobilization efficiency in cutting of irrigation at seed filling compared to normal irrigation. Therefore, selection of optimum planting date (26 December) compared to early planting date (6 December) and early mature Goldasht cultivar by 12. 91% higher yield can be an appropriate strategy to improve and increase safflower seed yield under late season water stress in semi-arid regions.

This study was designed to investigate the total phenolic content, total flavonoid content and antioxidant activity of fruits methanolic extracts from Momordica charantia L., Ecballium elaterium (L. ) A. Rich, Cucurbita pepo L. cultivar pumpkin, Lagenaria siceraria L. cultivar Marankka belonging to Cucurbitaceae family. For this purpose, a factorial experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with three replications. The matured fruits were harvested from the research farm in Zanjan university during the September to December 2017. Phytochemical characteristics of total phenol content (Folin– Ciocalteu method), total flavonoid (Aluminum Chloride method) and antioxidant activity (DPPH method) were evaluated. The highest level of phenolic and flavonoid contents was recorded for the fruit methanolic extracts from the Ecballium elaterium (L. ) and Momordica charantia L., with 85/5 ± 3/5 mg GAE/g and 12. 13 ± 0. 8, respectively. The results of DPPH test showed that the methanolic extract of Momordica charantia exhibited potent activity (97. 09 % ± 0. 96), followed by Ecballium elaterium (87. 8% ± 1. 5) and the lowest antioxidant activity related to methanolic extract of pumpkin fruit (58/02 % ± 2. 7). Furthermore, there was a strong correlation between flavonoids content and antioxidant activity (P = 0. 87) and also there was a positive correlation between phenolic content and antioxidant activity (P = 0. 54). Generally, the phytochemical analysis showed that, Ecballium and Karella extracts are rich in polyphenol compounds against other sspecies and can be used as food. drug-

The present study aims at evaluating the effects of leaf foliar of growth regulators and nitrogen on growth parameters and yield of spring safflower. To do so it has carried out a research at East Azerbaijan Agricultural Research Center as a factorial experiment based on RCBD (Randomized Complete Block Design) with three replications. The factors include growth regulators in four levels, namely auxin, cytokinin, auxin + cytokinin (wherein the treatment’ s concentration has been 1000 mg/L), and control (no use of growth regulator, whatsoever), foliar application of nitrogen (3 and 6 per thousand), and two spring cultivars (Soffe and Goldasht). Results show taller plants (17%) and greater number of heads per plant (39%), seeds per head (9%), and lateral stems (37%) for Soffeh cultivar, compared to Goldasht variety. On the other hand, Goldasht cultivar provides the maximum head diameter (15%) and 1000 seed weight (47%), in comparison to Soffeh cultivar. The maximum grain yield is observed for Soffeh cultivar with auxin growth regulator and a concentration of three per thousand foliar application of nitrogen (3205 kg ha-1), displaying no significant difference from either the control or the application of three per thousand foliar of nitrogen (3120 kg ha-1). The application of growth regulators has changed the fatty acid composition. The application of auxin + cytokinin as the growth regulator with a concentration of three and six per thousand foliar of nitrogen increase the oleic, palmitic, and linolenic acids. However, the use of auxin and cytokinin separately increase linoleic and stearic acids among the fatty acids, compared to the control, which is higher in Soffeh cultivar than Goldasht. In general, Soffeh cultivar shows higher growth and yield, compared to Goldasht cultivar, indicating the positive effect in foliar application of hormones and nitrogen for the latter.

Drought is the most important stress and decreases the yield of plants. Safflower is resistant to stress and is one of the most important oil seed plants. In order to evaluate of yield and yield components of two safflower under optimal irrigation and drought stress conditions an split factorial experiment was conducted based on randomized complete block design with four replications at the research farm of Agriculture Faculty, the University of Zanjan in spring 2010 and 2011 years. Experimental treatments included optimal irrigation (-0. 5 MPa) and drought stress (-2 MPa) and two safflower cultivars (Zendehrood and Goldasht). The effect of irrigation treatments, cultivar and year not significant on diameter capitul, number of main and lateral capitul in plant. The highest of thousand weight seed (35. 5 g), grain yield (214. 42 kg/ha), biological yield (9600. 1 kg/ha), harvest index (25. 6%) and oil yield (634. 6 kg/ha) obtained in optimal irrigation, and in other traits, was not difference between optimal irrigation and drought stress. The maximumof number of seed in capitul, biological yield, oil percent and oil yield were obtained in zendehrood cultivar, and in other traits there was not difference between Zendehrood and Goldasht. Grain yield and oil yield reduced under drought stress amount 51 and 65 percent, respectively. Oil percentage in optimal irrigation was 8 percent more than drought stress condition. Grain yield, oil percentage and oil yield of Goldasht cultivar 7, 8 and 26 percent were higher than Zendehrood cultivar, respectively. The results showed that Goldasht was superior to Zendehrood cultivar, and is more tolerant to stress condition, therefore suggested that cultivate Goldasht cultivar in deficit condition.