Experiments were conducted to determine the efficacy of glyphosate on four common lambsquarters populations collected from Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Ohio. Glyphosate dose-response studies for common lambsquarters treated at 2.5-, 7.5-, and 15-cm heights showed that glyphosate at 1.1 kg ae ha−1 caused more than 80% injury to 2.5-cm plants but less than 55% injury to 7.5- and 15-cm plants. All populations were susceptible to glyphosate at the 2.5-cm height. The glyphosate rate required to cause 50% injury (GR50) was 430, 500, 500, and 560 g ha−1 for the Kansas, North Dakota, Ohio, and Nebraska populations, respectively. Differential response of common lambsquarters populations was evident with 15-cm plants where the GR50 was glyphosate at 1,010, 1,230, 1,650, and 2,770 g ha−1 for the Kansas, North Dakota, Nebraska, and Ohio populations, respectively. Reduced injury on 15-cm common lambsquarters plants by glyphosate may be partly attributed to reduced glyphosate accumulation per unit of plant tissues and enhanced calcium content in more-developed plants. All four common lambsquarters populations at the early seedling stage were susceptible to glyphosate, but tolerance increased as the plant developed and the extent of tolerance differed among populations.

Pomegranate is a rich source of polyphenols, which are believed to be responsible for the oestrogenic activities of extracts of this fruit in mice. One of these potential activities is the prevention of bone loss. The objectives of the present study were to determine the effects of pomegranate extract on chondrogenesis and osteogenesis in mouse embryos in vivo and limb bud cultures in vitro. A total of fifty pregnant Balb/c mice were given vehicle, pomegranate juice extract (PJE), pomegranate husk extract (PHE) or a mixture of husk and juice extract (PME). Their embryos were stained with alizarin red S and alcian blue, and the length of the femur, tibia and their ossification zones were measured on day 19 of gestation. Bone Ca content in pregnant mice was also measured. Mice treated with PJE showed an increase in bone Ca content. Dietary supplementation with all extracts significantly increased embryo femur length and osteogenesis index. Mesenchymal cells from fetal limb buds were cultured and exposed to 10, 100, 1000 and 10 000 μg/ml of PJE, PHE or PME. The number of viable cells was greater in cultures exposed to the extracts than in control cultures. The number of cartilage nodules and their diameters were greater in extract-treated cell cultures, a finding which reflected increased cell proliferation and differentiation rates. In conclusion, the findings of the present study suggest that pomegranate is able to enhance bone formation.