Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “Cold tolerance”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 847 records · Page 47Linked to original sources

The rice genome encodes two vacuolar invertases with fructan exohydrolase activity but lacks the related fructan biosynthesis genes of the Pooideae.

* Fructans are believed to contribute to cold and drought tolerance in several plant families (Poaceae, Asparagaceae and Asteraceae), but it is not clear why the ability to accumulate these polymers is found in some genera (e.g. Triticum) but not in others (e.g. Oryza). * As fructan biosynthesis enzymes (FBEs) evolved from vacuolar invertases (VINs), we searched the rice genome sequence for genes related to both FBE and VIN genes of wheat and other members of the Pooideae. We compared them at the levels of exon-intron structure, protein sequence, and the enzymatic properties of recombinant proteins after expression in the yeast Pichia pastoris. * We found that rice possesses two VIN genes (OsVIN1 and OsVIN2) and no FBE genes. FBE genes appear to have arisen in the Pooideae by a series of gene duplications from an ancestor of wheat TaVIN3. Recombinant TaVIN2, OsVIN1 and OsVIN2 behaved as invertases with no FBE activity, but possessed high fructan exohydrolase activity, especially OsVIN1. * The engineering of fructan accumulation into rice for greater stress tolerance could founder on endogenous exohydrolases, but the fact that OsVIN1 transcripts are absent from peduncles of well watered and drought-stressed plants removes one potential obstacle to this endeavour.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

A fertile amphiploid between durum wheat (Triticum turgidum) and the x Agroticum amphiploid (Agropyron cristatum x T. tauschii).

Agropyron (Gaertn) is a genus of Triticeae which includes the crested wheatgrass complex, i.e. A. cristatum (L.) as representative species containing the P genome. This species is an important source for increase the genetic variability of both durum and bread wheat. Among the possible interesting features to be introgressed into wheat are resistance to wheat streak mosaic virus, rust diseases, and tolerance to drought, cold and moderate salinity. By crossing tetraploid wheat (Triticum turgidum conv durum, 2n = 4x = 28; AABB) with a fertile allotetraploid (2n = 4x = 28; DDPP) between diploid wheat (T. tauschii) and crested wheatgrass (A. cristatum L.), amphiploid plants were obtained. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) using both genomic DNA from A. cristatum and the repetitive probe pAs1, proved that the plants were true amphiploids with a chromosome number 2n = 8x = 56 and genomic constitution AABBDDPP. Using total genomic in situ hybridization (GISH) to study meiotic metaphase I, data on allosyndetic and autosyndetic chromosome pairing were obtained. The amphiploids were perennial like the male parent but their morphology was close to that of the wheat parent. They were resistant to wheat leaf rust and powdery mildew under field conditions.

Chimera↗

Transgenic mice overexpressing leptin accumulate adipose mass at an older, but not younger, age.

Sensitivity to leptin is associated with a normal regulation of the adipose mass, whereas decreased leptin sensitivity results in elevated adipose tissue stores. To address whether the effects of chronic hyperleptinemia are sustained with age, we generated transgenic mice that overexpress leptin under the control of the fat specific aP2 promoter/enhancer. At 6-9 weeks of age, transgenic mice overexpressed 5-fold more human leptin than endogenous mouse levels and had consistently low body weights, with reduced brown and white fat depots characterized by adipocytes either devoid of or containing minute lipid droplets. However, at 33-37 weeks, despite continuous secretion of human leptin, the transgenic mice showed a rebound effect characterized by an increase in body weight, accumulation of adipose mass, and lipid-filled adipocytes. Thus, this mouse model exhibits a two-stage phenotype, with respect to fat accumulation. In addition, plasma glucose, triglycerides, and cholesterol levels were markedly depressed in young, but not older, transgenic mice. A detrimental consequence of early hyperleptinemia was a failure of the transgenic mice to acclimatize to the cold, as a result of depleted fat stores within their brown adipocytes. Cold exposure was tolerated after a 2-week high-fat diet or at an older age when fat depots had naturally accumulated. Treatment of the older transgenic mice with large doses of leptin stimulated weight loss, demonstrating that the leptin pathway still responds to pharmacological levels of leptin. Overall, these studies show that moderate hyperleptinemia in normal mice results in a sensitivity of the adipose mass to leptin at a younger (but not older) age. The mechanisms that lead to the accumulation of fat at an older age remain largely unknown, and this hyperleptinemic mouse model will allow the uncovering of at least some of these mechanisms.

Adipocytes↗

Ionizing irradiation quarantine treatment against oriental fruit moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in ambient and hypoxic atmospheres.

Oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Busck), is a pest of many rosaceous temperate fruits, including pomes, Malus spp., and stone fruits, Prunus spp., in much of the world. However, some areas are free of the pest, and shipments of fruit hosts from infested to noninfested areas may be regulated. Current quarantine treatments for oriental fruit moth include methyl bromide fumigation and cold storage for several weeks. Methyl bromide use is being restricted because it is a stratospheric ozone-depleting substance, and alternatives are sought. Cold is not tolerated by many hosts of oriental fruit moth. The objective of this research was to develop irradiation quarantine treatments against the pest under ambient and hypoxic storage conditions because some hosts of oriental fruit moth are stored in hypoxic atmospheres, and hypoxia is known to lessen the effects of irradiation. In ambient atmospheres, no adults emerged from 58,779 fifth instars (the most radiotolerant stage present in fruit) irradiated with a target dose of 200 Gy (195-232 Gy measured). In atmospheres flushed with nitrogen, 5.3% of adults emerged from 44,050 fifth instars irradiated with a target dose of 200 Gy (194-230 Gy measured), but they died at a faster rate than control adults and without laying eggs. A dose of 232 Gy (the maximum recorded when 200 Gy was targeted) is recommended to disinfest any fruit of oriental fruit moth under ambient and hypoxic atmospheres.

Animals↗

Fasting reduces plasma leptin-and ghrelin-immunoreactive peptide concentrations of the burbot (Lota lota) at 2 degrees C but not at 10 degrees C.

The effects of fasting at two water temperatures (2 and 10 degrees C) on plasma leptin- and ghrelin-immunoreactive peptide concentrations and energy metabolism were investigated in the burbot (Lota lota), a freshwater gadoid, which lives in cold waters and tolerates long periods of fasting. Burbot were assigned to fed and fasted groups at 2 and 10 degrees C. Leptin- and ghrelin-immunoreactive peptides were identified in burbot plasma. Fasting at 2 degrees C reduced the plasma leptin- and ghrelin-immunoreactive peptide concentrations and reduced the relative liver weights and the liver and muscle glycogen concentrations. The concentrations of the leptin- and ghrelin-immunoreactivities correlated positively with each other. At 10 degrees C there were decreased plasma thyroxine levels in both sexes, and slightly lower plasma testosterone concentrations in males. The results support previous studies in stating that immunoreactivities resembling mammalian leptin and ghrelin can be detected in burbot plasma and liver, but the specific functions of these peptides will have to be determined in future studies.

Animals↗

Age-dependent changes in the morphology of brown adipose tissue in mice.

The multocular fat cells of brown adipose tissue of the mouse show an age-dependent change to the unilocular fat cell type. This change starts immediately after birth and continues throughout life. This morphological change can be correlated with the animal's age-dependent decrease in tolerance to a cold environment.

Adipose Tissue↗

Beta-blocking agents with vasodilator activity.

Use of non-selective beta-blockers: Non-selective beta-blockers reduce blood pressure by reducing cardiac output. They have a proven record of efficacy, alone or in combination with other drug classes, in the treatment of hypertension, ischemic heart disease and some tachyarrhythmias. They have also proved effective in the primary and secondary prevention of myocardial infarction. However, adverse effects include increased peripheral resistance, limitation of exercise tolerance, and bradyarrhythmia, cold extremities and bronchoconstriction in susceptible patients. Effects of beta 1-selective blockers: beta 1-Selective antagonists cause less vasoconstriction and less bronchoconstriction than non-selective beta-blockers, but the reduction in cardiac output may still activate a sympathetically mediated increase in peripheral resistance. beta 1-blockers with beta 2 agonist activity are vasodilatory because they activate postsynaptic beta 2 receptors on vascular smooth muscle cell membranes, via the formation of cyclic AMP. Non-selective beta-blockers with alpha 2-adrenoceptor blocking activity: Non-selective beta-adrenoceptor blockers with alpha 1-adrenoceptor blocking activity, such as carvedilol, labetalol, medroxalol and bucindolol, combine the advantages of beta- and alpha 1-blockade, including peripheral vasodilation. As an example of this class of agent, carvedilol has been shown to be effective in the treatment of hypertension by reducing peripheral resistance. There are some indications, still to be confirmed, that it improves left ventricular diastolic function and causes regression of left ventricular hypertrophy, and that it may be useful in the treatment of some patients with congestive heart failure or arrhythmia. In animal models of myocardial ischemia, carvedilol has proved to be cardioprotective.

Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists↗

Freezing induces a loss of freeze tolerance in an overwintering insect.

Cold-hardy insects overwinter by one of two main strategies: freeze tolerance and freeze avoidance by supercooling. As a general model, many freeze-tolerant species overwinter in extreme climates, freeze above -10 degrees C via induction by ice-nucleating agents, and once frozen, can survive at temperatures of up to 40 degrees C or more below the initial freezing temperature or supercooling point (SCP). It has been assumed that the SCP of freeze-tolerant insects is unaffected by the freezing process and that the freeze-tolerant state is therefore retained in winter though successive freeze-thaw cycles of the body tissues and fluids. Studies on the freeze-tolerant larva of the hoverfly Syrphus ribesii reveal this assumption to be untrue. When a sample with a mean 'first freeze' SCP of -7.6 degrees C (range of -5 degrees C to -9.5 degrees C) were cooled, either to -10 degrees C or to their individual SCP, on five occasions, the mean SCP was significantly depressed, with some larvae subsequently freezing as low as -28 degrees C. Only larvae that froze at the same consistently high temperature above -10 degrees C were alive after being frozen five times. The wider occurrence of this phenomenon would require a fundamental reassessment of the dynamics and distinctions of the freeze-tolerant and freeze-avoiding strategies of insect overwintering.

Acclimatization↗

Cold hardiness and supercooling capacity in the pea leafminer Liriomyza huidobrensis.

Pupal SCP (supercooling point) of Liriomyza huidobrensis showed no variation with age, with an average of -20.9 degree C. Low temperature survival of different ages of pupae showed no correlation with their SCP. Nonlinear regression analysis found that the response of L. huidobrensis pupae to exposure time under different low temperature regimes above -5 degree C was best fitted by a logistic equation. Both low temperature and exposure time had significant effects on pupal mortality. Temperatures above 5 degree C do not prevent pupae from emergence. L. huidobrensis was shown to be a freeze susceptible, and at the same time, a chill tolerant insect. It can tolerate subzero temperatures by supercooling. Compared with L. sativae, another dominant leafminer in China, L. huidobrensis is more cold tolerant. Our results explain differences between the species in geographic distribution and phenology.

Animals↗

A novel cold-inducible gene from Arabidopsis, RCI3, encodes a peroxidase that constitutes a component for stress tolerance.

A cDNA from Arabidopsis corresponding to a new cold-inducible gene, RCI3 (for Rare Cold Inducible gene 3), was isolated. Isoelectric focusing electrophoresis and staining of peroxidase activity demonstrated that RCI3 encodes an active cationic peroxidase. RNA-blot analysis revealed that RCI3 expression in response to low temperature is negatively regulated by light, as RCI3 transcripts were exclusively detected in etiolated seedlings and roots of adult plants. RCI3 expression was also induced in etiolated seedlings, but not in roots, exposed to dehydration, salt stress or ABA, indicating that it is subjected to a complex regulation through different signaling pathways. Analysis of transgenic plants containing RCI3::GUS fusions established that this regulation occurs at the transcriptional level during plant development, and that cold-induced RCI3 expression in roots is mainly restricted to the endodermis. Plants overexpressing RCI3 showed an increase in dehydration and salt tolerance, while antisense suppression of RCI3 expression gave dehydration- and salt-sensitive phenotypes. These results indicate that RCI3 is involved in the tolerance to both stresses in Arabidopsis, and illustrate that manipulation of RCI3 has a potential with regard to plant improvement of stress tolerance.

Abscisic Acid↗

A Comparison of Freezing Injury in Oat and Rye: Two Cereals at the Extremes of Freezing Tolerance.

A detailed analysis of cold acclimation of a winter rye (Secale cereale L. cv Puma), a winter oat (Avena sativa L. cv Kanota), and a spring oat cultivar (Ogle) revealed that freezing injury of leaves of nonacclimated seedlings occurred at -2[deg]C in both the winter and spring cultivars of oat but did not occur in winter rye leaves until after freezing at -4[deg]C. The maximum freezing tolerance was attained in all cultivars after 4 weeks of cold acclimation, and the temperature at which 50% electrolyte leakage occurred decreased to -8[deg]C for spring oat, -10[deg]C for winter oat, and -21[deg]C for winter rye. In protoplasts isolated from leaves of nonacclimated spring oat, expansion-induced lysis was the predominant form of injury over the range of -2 to -4[deg]C. At temperatures lower than -4[deg]C, loss of osmotic responsiveness, which was associated with the formation of the hexagonal II phase in the plasma membrane and subtending lamellae, was the predominant form of injury. In protoplasts isolated from leaves of cold-acclimated oat, loss of osmotic responsiveness was the predominant form of injury at all injurious temperatures; however, the hexagonal II phase was not observed. Rather, injury was associated with the occurrence of localized deviations of the plasma membrane fracture plane to closely appressed lamellae, which we refer to as the "fracture-jump lesion." Although the freeze-induced lesions in the plasma membrane of protoplasts of spring oat were identical with those reported previously for protoplasts of winter rye, they occurred at significantly higher temperatures that correspond to the lethal freezing temperature.

Journal Article↗

Ethnic differences in responses to multiple experimental pain stimuli.

A growing body of literature suggests that the experience of clinical pain differs across ethnocultural groups. Additionally, some evidence indicates greater sensitivity to experimentally induced pain among African Americans; however, most studies have included only one pain modality. This study examined ethnic differences in responses to multiple experimental pain stimuli, including heat pain, cold pressor pain, and ischemic pain. Heat pain threshold and tolerance, ratings of repetitive suprathreshold heat, and ischemic and cold pressor pain threshold and tolerance were assessed in 120 (62 African American, 58 white) healthy young adults. Also, several psychological instruments were administered. No ethnic group differences emerged for threshold measures, but African Americans had lower tolerances for heat pain, cold pressor pain and ischemic pain compared to whites. Ratings of intensity and unpleasantness for suprathreshold heat stimuli were significantly higher among African Americans. African Americans reported greater use of passive pain coping strategies and higher levels of hypervigilance. Controlling for passive pain coping did not account for group differences in pain responses, while controlling for hypervigilance rendered group differences in heat pain tolerance and ischemic pain tolerance non-significant. These findings demonstrate differences in laboratory pain responses between African Americans and whites across multiple stimulus modalities, and effect sizes for these differences in pain tolerance were moderate to large for suprathreshold measures. Hypervigilance partly accounted for group differences. Additional research to determine the mechanisms underlying these effects is warranted.

Adolescent↗

Organic solutes in freezing tolerance.

The accumulation of high levels of low-molecular-weight solutes (polyhydric alcohols, saccharides) provides cryoprotection to freeze-tolerant animals by minimizing, via colligative effects, the percentage of body water converted to extracellular ice and the extent of cell volume reduction. Many freeze-tolerant insects accumulate high levels of polyols during autumn cold hardening, whereas freeze-tolerant frogs respond to ice formation in peripheral tissues by synthesizing large amounts of glucose in the liver and rapidly distributing the sugar throughout the body. Seasonal patterns of enzymatic change occur in cold-hardy insects; activities associated with cryoprotectant synthesis rise in the fall, whereas enzymes associated with polyol degradation dominate in the spring. Enzyme profiles also revealed the route of glycerol degradation via polyol dehydrogenase and the novel enzyme, glyceraldehyde kinase. Proton magnetic resonance imaging of freezing and thawing in whole frogs showed a new adaptive effect of the very high glucose levels in core organs; during thawing, organs such as liver and heart melted first, allowing recovery of their vital functions to begin while the rest of the frog thawed. New studies have examined signal transduction in the stimulation of glucose production by wood frog liver, revealing the key role of beta-adrenergic receptors and cAMP-mediated activation of glycogenolysis for cryoprotectant synthesis. The seasonal elevation of plasma membrane glucose transporters was also shown to be key to cryoprotectant distribution during freezing. Other new work has shown that frog freeze tolerance probably grew out of preexisting mechanisms of amphibian dehydration tolerance and that both freeze-tolerant and -intolerant frogs show a hyperglycemic response to desiccation at 5 degrees C.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

Effect of alterations in metabolic rate on the duration of tolerance in neonatally injected animals.

Exposure to low environmental temperature caused a decrease in the half-life of human albumin (HA) in rabbits injected with 20 mg HA at birth, and a twofold increase in the proportion of animals which lost their tolerance by 150 days of age. Administration of thyroxin produced an even greater effect with respect to tolerance loss. Simlar mechanisms may be involved in the effects of cold exposure and thyroxin administration on tolerance duration. One possible mecahnism is that the duration of tolerance is dependent upon the metabolic half-life of the tolerance-inducing antigen. An alternative mechanism could be a cold- or thyroxin-induced enhancement of the recruitment of immunologically competent cells from an undifferentiated population of stem cells.

Albumins↗

Thermoregulation in swimmers and runners.

Thermoregulatory responses of six trained swimmers and five runners to cold and heat were evaluated during 30 min of exercise (60% VO2max) while immersed to the neck in 20, 25, 30, and 35 degrees C water. Mean oxygen uptake was similar for both groups during all four trials. Changes in metabolic rate during the 8th to 28th min were significantly greater for the runners in 20 degrees C water, and swimmers in 30 and 35 degrees C water. Heart rates, Tsk, delta Tre, Tb, body heat content, and heat storage were dependent on water temperature. Runners were able to attain higher sweat rates than swimmers in 35 degrees C water. Swimmers had significantly greater tissue conductance values in the 35 degrees C exposure. Swimmers thermoregulated better in 20 degrees C water than runners, possibly due to a larger surface area-to-volume ratio, percentage body fat, subcutaneous fat, or improved vasomotor control. Exercise in the heat was better tolerated by runners. Physical training in water does not improve heat acclimatization to the extent of training in air, but does improve cold tolerance.

Adolescent↗

Thermal tolerance trade-offs associated with the right arm of chromosome 3 and marked by the hsr-omega gene in Drosophila melanogaster.

Drosophila melanogaster occurs in diverse climatic regions and shows opposing clinal changes in resistance to heat and resistance to cold along a 3000 km latitudinal transect on the eastern coast of Australia. We report here on variation at a polymorphic 8 bp-indel site in the heat shock hsr-omega gene that maps to the right arm of chromosome 3. The frequency of the genetic element marked by the L form of the gene was strongly and positively associated with latitude along this transect, and latitudinal differences in L frequency were robustly associated with latitudinal differences in maximum temperature for the hottest month. On a genetic background mixed for genes from each end of the cline a set of 10 lines was derived, five of which were fixed for the L marker, the absence of In(3R)P and 12 kb of repeats at a second polymorphic site at the 3' end of hsr-omega, and five that were fixed for the S marker, In(3R)P and 15 kb of hsr-omega repeats. For two different measures of heat tolerance S lines outperformed L lines, and for two different measures of cold tolerance L lines outperformed S lines. These data suggest that an element on the right arm of chromosome 3, possibly In(3R)P, confers heat resistance but carries the trade-off of also conferring susceptibility to cold. This element occurs at high frequency near the equator. The alternate element on the other hand, at high frequency at temperate latitudes, confers cold resistance at the cost of heat susceptibility.

Acclimatization↗

Cold acclimation and cryoprotectants in a freeze-tolerant Antarctic nematode, Panagrolaimus davidi.

Panagrolaimus davidi is a freeze-tolerant Antarctic nematode which survives extensive intracellular freezing. This paper describes the development of culture techniques which provide clean samples, with a high degree of freeze tolerance and in sufficient quantities for the analysis of potential cryoprotectants. Cultures grown at 20 degrees C survived a short-term freezing stress but survival declined with the time spent frozen. Acclimation of cultures at 5 degrees C enhanced the long-term survival of freezing. Starvation, however, reduced the nematode's ability to survive short-term freezing. The principal cryoprotectants detected by gas chromatography were trehalose and glycerol. The levels of trehalose, but not those of glycerol, increased significantly after acclimation. Trehalose may stabilise membranes and protect them against the dehydrating effects of the osmotic stresses resulting from freeze concentration effects but other factors, such as recrystallisation inhibition, may be involved in long-term survival.

Acclimatization↗