Workshop on tools for environmental cleanup: engineered plants for phytoremediation.
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Biotechnology offers sustainable solutions to the problem of plant parasitic nematode control. There are several possible approaches for developing transgenic plants with improved nematode resistance; these include anti-invasion and migration strategies, feeding-cell attenuation, and antinematode feeding and development strategies. The essential elements of an effective control strategy are (a) genes that encode an antinematode effector protein, peptide or interfering RNA and (b) promoters that direct a specific pattern of expression for that effector. This review summarizes information on effectors that act directly against the nematode as well as those aimed at disrupting the nematode feeding site. We discuss patterns of promoter activity that could deliver expression of these effectors in a restricted and directed manner. Societal opposition to the technology of GM-nematode control is also discussed.
A wastewater-treatment facility at Ford (Dearborn, Michigan) was recently upgraded from chemical de-emulsification to ultrafiltration (UF) followed by a membrane-biological reactor (MBR). This paper describes the design, startup, and initial operational performance of the facility. Primary findings are as follows: (1) the MBR proved resilient; (2) the MBR removed approximately 90% of chemical-oxygen demand (COD) after primary UF; (3) the removal of total Kjeldahl nitrogen by MBR appeared to be more sensitive to operating conditions than COD removal; (4) nitrification and denitrification were established in one month; (5) the MBR removed oil and grease and phenolics to below detection levels consistently, in contrast to widely fluctuating concentrations in the past; (6) permeate fluxes of the primary and MBR UF were adversely affected by inadvertent use of a silicone-based defoamer; and (7) zinc concentrations in the effluent increased, which might have been a result of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid used in membrane washing solutions and/or might have been within typical concentration ranges.
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The authors analyzed the incidence of cerebrovascular diseases (dg. 430-438) in an industrial population in 1982-1986. The morbidity from cerebrovascular diseases associated with temporary or permanent work incapacity had during the investigation period a slightly rising trend which was more marked in manual male workers above 50 years of age. Strokes are the cause for granting invalidity pensions in cca 4%. In general cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases account for cca 21% of invalidity pensions. In the register of cerebrovascular attacks the incidence of strokes was roughly double in men as compared with women; it was on average 30 patients per year per 36,000 employees, i.e. cca 0.8%. Cerebrovascular attacks are in cca 70% associated with hypertension and the basis of almost three quarters of strokes is cerebral ischaemia. The trend of cerebrovascular diseases is unfavourable and depends above all on the control of hypertension in the population.
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Vitamin E is important for human and animal health. Many human diseases, such as certain cancers and neurodegenerative and cardiovascular disease, are associated with the insufficient intake of vitamin E. The daily requirements for vitamin E in men and women have been increased to 15-30 mg. Because the primary source of dietary vitamin E comes from plants, there is a need to increase vitamin E production through plant engineering in order to meet the demand in human consumption. Numerous studies have been carried out in this field, leading to many successful examples. In this review, we summarized the recent progress in vitamin E metabolic engineering in plants aimed at improving the vitamin E content and regulating composition of vitamin E.
The functional expression of a novel gene in a genetically engineered plant has not yet been reported. One major barrier in movement toward this goal is our limited understanding of the molecular bases of gene expression. Attempts to establish genetic engineering as a practical facet of plant breeding are also complicated by the fact that genes for most important plant characteristics have not yet been identified. However, the benefits to be gained from all aspects of plant improvement are stimulating research into both the development of plant transformation technology and the isolation and characterization of genes responsible for valuable traits. As scientists develop greater knowledge of plant molecular genetics, we can expect to see practical applications in such diverse areas as improvement of plant nutritional quality, decreases in fertilization requirements, and increases in resistance to environmental stresses and pathogens.
Plant volatiles mainly include terpenoid, benzenoid/phenylpropanoid and fatty-acid derivatives, and they play diverse roles in plant-plant and plant-insect communications. In recent years, great progress has been made in biochemical and molecular characterization of the formation and release of these volatiles, and this make it possible to dissect their biological functions. More than 30 kinds of genes related with biosynthesis of these volatiles have been cloned. The pathways leading to synthesis of these metabolites can be controlled by enzyme activity and the substrates available as well as gene architecture. Plant volatiles can serve as attractants for specific pollinators, important cellular regulators in developmental processes and protection against environmental stress, whereas those released after herbivory or pathogen attacks can induce the expression a set of defensive genes or attraction of predators of the herbivores. An attractive prospect in this area is to design scent spectrum of plant with genetic and molecular technology. Two alternative approaches are used to genetically engineer these plant volatiles. One is based on the introduction of foreign genes encoding enzymes with activities that are missing in target plant, while the other is focused on modulating the expression of native genes.