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Visualization of nodulation gene activity on the early stages of Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae symbiosis.

A technique was optimized for the in situ detection of nodulation (nod) gene activity in Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae symbiosis with compatible plant hosts Vicia tetrasperma (L.) SCHREB. and Pisum sativum L. The transcription of nodABC-lacZ fusion was visualized as beta-galactosidase (beta-Gal) activity after reaction with the chromogenic substrate X-Gal and subsequent light microscopy, while the background of the indigenous beta-Gal activity of rhizobia and the host plant was eliminated by glutaraldehyde treatment. V. tetrasperma was suggested as a suitable model plant for pea cross-inoculation group due to its advantages over the common model of V. hirsuta (L.) S.F. GRAY: compactness of the plant, extremely small seeds, fast development and stable nodulation under laboratory conditions. In the roots of both plants, a certain extent of nod gene activity was detectable in all rhizobia colonizing the rhizoplane. In pea 1 d after inoculation (d.a.i.), the maximum was localized in the region of emerging root hairs (RH) later (3 and 6 d.a.i.) shifting upwards from the root tip. Nodulation genes sustained full expression even in the infection threads inside the RH and the root cortex, independently of their association with nodule primordia. Comparison of two pea symbiotic mutant lines, Risnod25 and Risnod27, with the wild type did not reveal any differences in the RH formation, RH curling response and rhizoplane colonization. Both mutants appeared to be blocked at the infection thread initiation stage and in nodule initiation, consistent with the phenotype caused by other mutant alleles in the pea sym8 locus. Judging from the nod gene expression level and pattern in the rhizoplane, flavonoid response upon inoculation is preserved in both pea mutants, being independent of infection thread and nodule initiation.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Effects of heavy metal pollution on genetic variation and cytological disturbances in the Pinus sylvestris L. population.

This isoenzymatic and cytogenetic study has shown significant differences in genetic composition between two groups of Pinus sylvestris trees: tolerant and sensitive to heavy metal pollution. Total and mean numbers of alleles and genotypes per locus were higher in the pollution-sensitive group of trees, but heterozygosity (Ho) was lower in this group. Fixation index (F) indicates that trees tolerant for pollution were in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, while the sensitive group had a significant excess of homozygosity. Cytological analyses demonstrated numerous aberrations of chromosomes in meristematic root tissue of seedlings developed from seeds collected from trees in the polluted area. The aberrations included chromosome bridges and stickiness, laggards, retarded and forward chromosomes, and their fragments. The mitotic index was markedly lower in this group of seedlings, as compared to the control. Both isoenzymatic and cytological analyses showed a significant influence of heavy metal ions on the genetic structure of the Pinus sylvestris population.

Chromosome Aberrations↗

Isolation and characterization of a myo-inositol 1-phosphate synthase cDNA from developing sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) seeds: functional and differential expression, and salt-induced transcription during germination.

A cDNA (SeMIPS1) encoding myo-inositol 1-phosphate synthase (EC 5.5.1.4) (MIPS) has been characterized from sesame (Sesamum indicum L. cv. Dan-Baek) seeds and its functional expression analyzed. The SeMIPS1 protein was highly homologous with those from other plant species (88-94%), while a much lower degree of sequence homology (53-62%) was found with other organisms such as humans, mouse, algae, yeast, Drosophila, bacteria and other prokaryotes. A yeast-based complementation assay in yeast mutants containing a disrupted INO1gene for yeast MIPS confirmed that the SeMIPS1 gene encodes a functional MIPS. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that the SeMIPS1 gene diverged as a different subfamily or family member. Southern hybridization revealed several copies of the SeMIPS1 gene present in the sesame genome and northern blotting indicated that expression of the SeMIPS1gene may be organ specific. Salt stress during sesame seed germination had an adverse influence on transcription of SeMIPS1and greatly reduced transcript levels as the duration of exposure to a saline environment increased and NaCl concentration increased. Germination initiation of sesame seeds was severely delayed as NaCl level increased. These results suggest that expression of SeMIPS1 is down-regulated by salt stress during sesame seed germination.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Characterizing the interaction between the bogus yucca moth and yuccas: do bogus yucca moths impact yucca reproductive success?

Yucca moths are most well known for their obligate pollination mutualism with yuccas, where pollinator moths provide yuccas with pollen and, in exchange, the moth larvae feed on a subset of the developing yucca seeds. The pollinators, however, comprise only two of the three genera of yucca moths. Members of the third genus, Prodoxus, are the "bogus yucca moths" and are sister to the pollinator moths. Adult Prodoxus lack the specialized mouthparts used for pollination and the larvae feed on plant tissues other than seeds. Prodoxus larvae feed within the same plants as pollinator larvae and have the potential to influence yucca reproductive success directly by drawing resources away from flowers and fruit, or indirectly by modifying the costs of the mutualism with pollinators. We examined the interaction between the scape-feeding bogus yucca moth, Prodoxus decipiens, and one of its yucca hosts, Yucca filamentosa, by comparing female reproductive success of plants with and without moth larvae. We determined reproductive success by measuring a set of common reproductive traits such as flowering characteristics, seed set, and seed germination. In addition, we also quantified the percent total nitrogen in the seeds to determine whether the presence of larvae could potentially reduce seed quality. Flowering characteristics, seed set, and seed germination were not significantly different between plants with and without bogus yucca moth larvae. In contrast, the percent total nitrogen content of seeds was significantly lower in plants with P. decipiens larvae, and nitrogen content was negatively correlated with the number of larvae feeding within the inflorescence scape. Surveys of percent total nitrogen at three time periods during the flowering and fruiting of Y. filamentosa also showed that larval feeding decreased the amount of nitrogen in fruit tissue. Taken together, the results suggest that although P. decipiens influences nitrogen distribution in Y. filamentosa, this physiological effect does not appear to impact the female components of reproductive success.

Analysis of Variance↗

Treatment of spinal cord ependymomas by surgery with or without postoperative radiotherapy.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effectiveness of complete resection and postoperative radiotherapy in spinal cord ependymomas. METHODS AND MATERIALS: We conducted a retrospective study over 20 patients (13 males and 7 females) with histologically confirmed spinal cord ependymomas between July 1985 and April 2001. Among them, 13 patients had ependymomas, 6 had myxopapillary ependymomas, and 1 had anaplastic ependymoma. All patients received radical surgery for tumor removal with 13 patients achieving complete resection and 7 incomplete resection due to technical difficulty. Among those with incomplete resection, 6 patients received postoperative radiotherapy to tumor bed and only one patient with anaplastic ependymoma received surgery alone. The total tumor dose ranged from 50 to 60 Gy. RESULTS: Among the 20 patients, 19 patients were alive and showed local control. The median survival time of all patients was 109 months, with 104 months in the complete resection alone group and 135 months in the incomplete resection with postoperative radiotherapy group. One patient with anaplastic ependymoma and no postoperative radiotherapy developed leptomeningeal seeding 9 months after surgery. Salvage therapy of radiotherapy and chemotherapy maintained normal neurological functions. The patient expired 34 months from the initial diagnosis due to progression of leptomeningeal seeding. CONCLUSION: Complete resection alone in spinal cord ependymoma can achieve excellent local control and survival. Patients should receive complete resection if technically possible. Postoperative radiotherapy is not recommended for complete resection. For incomplete resection, postoperative local radiotherapy is recommended and it can also achieve excellent local control and survival. Local radiotherapy with 50-60 Gy is effective and safe. Salvage radiotherapy improves quality of life for local recurrence or leptomeningeal seeding patients.

Adult↗

The effect of hypolipidemic drugs WY14643 and DH990, and lysophospholipids on the metabolism of oleate in plants.

The effects of the addition of hypolipidemic drugs and 1-acylglycerolipids on the metabolism of oleate in plants have been studied in vivo and in vitro. Using aged potato slices with [14C]oleate as a precursor, it was found that these drugs markedly inhibited both the incorporation into complex lipids and the desaturation of oleate to linoleate. Moreover, in vitro experiments, carried out with microsomes prepared from developing safflower seeds and [14C]oleate or [14C]oleoyl-CoA as precursors, confirmed the inhibitory effect of the drugs on oleate desaturation, and showed that while WY14643 mainly affected oleoyl thiokinase activity, DH990 exerted its strongest effect on the formation of PL, indicating that the mode of action of these two drugs in safflower microsomes is essentially different. Addition of LPC or LPE stimulated the incorporation of radiolabeled precursor into PC and PE, respectively, as well as the desaturation of oleate to linoleate when [14C]oleoyl-CoA was the precursor. The evidence obtained suggests that oleoyl-PE, as well as oleoyl-PC, should be considered as a possible substrate for oleate desaturation in plants.

Acyl Coenzyme A↗

Studies of the delta 12 desaturase of Carthamus tinctorius L.

The delta 12 desaturase of developing safflower seeds responsible for the conversion of an oleoyl moiety to the linoleoyl moiety of phospholipids was further characterized. The protein concentration of the microsomal preparation, the oleoyl-CoA concentration (the primary substrate), short incubation periods, and the addition of lysophospholipids must be controlled to obtain optimal desaturation. No evidence could be obtained to implicate cytochrome b5 as the intermediate electron carrier. Attempts to solubilize the desaturase with a variety of detergents and chaotropic reagents were not successful. Brief exposure of the microsomal preparation to trypsin resulted in rapid loss of activity. The overall evidence would suggest that the delta 12 desaturase requires a reductant (NADPH), a NADPH:electron carrier reductase, an electron carrier, a specific desaturase, and an acyltransferase with oleoyl-CoA as the substrate to acylate lysophospholipid to the active oleoyl phospholipids (presumably phosphatidylcholine or phosphatidylethanolamine). The complexity of this system suggests that purification of the components and a reassembling of the purified components will be difficult.

Acyl Coenzyme A↗

Partial purification and characterization of two forms of malonyl-coenzyme A:acyl carrier protein transacylase from soybean leaf tissue.

Investigation of malonyl-CoA:acyl carrier protein transacylase from soybeans has shown that this fatty acid biosynthetic enzyme occurs in at least two isozymic forms. Both forms exist as soluble, low-molecular-mass polypeptides (approx 43 kDa) which catalyze one of the first committed steps in the synthesis of C16 and C18 fatty acids. We have partially purified the two forms of this enzyme from soybean leaf tissue 1200- and 3900-fold respectively. Isozyme 1 does not adhere to ion-exchange or blue dye affinity chromatographic supports and elutes from a polybuffer exchanger column at a pH of 7.3. Isozyme 2 requires salt to be eluted from ion-exchange and affinity matrices and elutes from a polybuffer exchanger column at a pH of 5.3. The two forms of malonyl-CoA:acyl carrier protein transacylase also differ in their sensitivity to catalytic inhibitors, heat treatment, and inhibition by acyl-CoA ester substrates. Both forms utilize malonyl-CoA as the preferred substrate, and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of reaction products indicated that malonyl-acyl carrier protein was the major product formed. Analysis of developing soybean seeds indicates that only one form (isozyme 1) is predominant, whereas leaf tissue possesses both isozymes.

Acyl-Carrier Protein S-Malonyltransferase↗

Single and interactive effects of low levels of O3, SO2 and NO2 on the growth and yield of spring rape.

During three consecutive seasons (1987-1989), the effects of low-levels of O3, SO2 and NO2 singly and in all possible combinations (NO2 in 1988 and 1989 only) on growth and yield of potted plants of spring rape (Brassica napus L. var. napus, 'callypso') were investigated by means of factorial fumigation experiments in open-top chambers. Plants were exposed from the early vegetative stage of development until seed harvest, to charcoal-filtered air (CF; control) and CF which was supplemented for 8-h per day (8.00-16.00) with O3, for 16-h per day with NO2 (16.00-8.00) and continuously with SO2. Including the controls, the 24-h daily mean concentrations [microg m(-3)] ranged between 6-44 (O3), 9-88 (SO2) and 10-43 (NO2). The corresponding daily mean concentrations during the time of fumigation were 10-121 and 11-60 microg m(-3) for O3 and NO2, respectively. Single effects of O3 on growth and yield parameters were mostly negative and the magnitude of this effect was dependent on the season. O3 reduced plant dry weight by 11.3-18.6% and yield of seeds by 11.4-26.9%. While medium levels of SO2 stimulated the weight of pods up to 33%, higher concentrations (88 microg m(-3)) caused a decline of yield of 12.3%. From the significant interactive effects which were observed, it could be established that SO2 and NO2 alone mostly acted positively, but that their interaction with each other and especially with O3 was antagonistic, as some of the detrimental effects of O3 were mitigated by these pollutants. An important antagonistic effect between SO2 and O3 or NO2 was observed on yield. While 56 microg m(-3) SO2 increased yield by 9.9% compared to the control treatment, it aggravated the yield loss caused by O3 from -16.18% to -21.4%, and it reduced the yield stimulation caused by NO2 from +11.8% to +4.2%. Leaf area was the only parameter which was negatively affected by all pollutants, their joint action being synergistic.

Journal Article↗

Patterns of disease recurrence following definitive therapy of adenocarcinoma of the pancreas using surgery and adjuvant radiotherapy:correlations of a clinical trial.

PURPOSE: Between 1980 and 1984, 26 patients with resectable adenocarcinoma of the pancreatic head were enrolled in a National Cancer Institute protocol evaluating intraoperative radiotherapy vs. standard therapy. METHODS AND MATERIALS: After complete excision of their lesions, patients were observed (Stage I), or randomized to intraoperative radiotherapy vs. external beam radiotherapy (Stages II-IV). The intraoperative dose was 20 Gy in a single fraction using 9-20 MeV electrons. The external beam radiotherapy schema involved daily 150-180 cGy fractions to 45-55 Gy in 5-6 weeks. Chemotherapy was not used for primary disease but was administered off protocol for recurrent disease. Median potential followup for the trial was > 9 years, with a median patient survival of 18 months. Perioperative mortality was 27% (7 patients). Of the remaining 19 patients, one remains alive and without evidence of disease 9 years post-therapy. Twelve patients underwent autopsy and 2 required antemortem laparotomy; histopathologic evidence of disease recurrence was analyzed. RESULTS: Of 15 patients evaluable for intra-abdominal control, 7 (47%) suffered local recurrences and 7 (47%) failed regionally, with 5 patients (35%) failing in both areas. Five patients (35%) developed peritoneal seeding. Of 13 patients evaluable for systemic disease, 8 (62%) suffered distant failure. There were no differences in outcome between intraoperative or external beam radiotherapy or observation in this subset of patients. CONCLUSION: This report is among the most rigorous descriptions of patterns of failure after resection of pancreatic cancer. It appears clear that advances in local control of this disease are unlikely to translate into increased survival in the absence of improved systemic therapy.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Serendipitous solution to the problem of culturing Arabidopsis plants in sealed containers for spaceflights of long duration.

For the development of an experiment to determine how a higher plant will develop from seed to maturity when deprived of essentially all gravitational information that it might use to guide its growth, we selected Arabidopsis thaliana as our test species. We were unable to culture it heterophically on nutrient agar in darkness. Light was required for germination and growth. Presumably the plants were dependent on photosynthesis for the major contribution to their organic nutrition. Plants were grown in relatively small modules closed to the atmosphere by plastic film. The permeability of the film for CO2 was found to be orders of magnitude too low for the plants to be growing by photosynthetic assimilation of CO2 diffusing into the modules from the ambient air. This anomaly was examined quantitatively. Rates of CO2 metabolism were measured for plants at various ages. The film permeability coefficient was rechecked. The effectiveness of the seal (as a barrier for H2O diffusion) and the dependence of diffusional transport on film thickness were reconfirmed. By elimination of all possible alternatives it was concluded that Arabidopsis thrives on light-assisted assimilation of organic compounds from the culture medium quite independently of a gaseous CO2 supply. Photoassimilation often has been reported for microalgae and photosynthetic bacteria but it is not commonly recognized that a higher plant can exhibit the same capability which greatly simplifies the establishment of reproducible culture conditions for test plants completely sealed from possibly noxious constituents of a spacecraft atmosphere or from the vacuum of free space. That Arabidopsis is a facultative photoheterotroph may be of even more general interest.

Arabidopsis↗

Biodegradation of pyridine in a completely mixed activated sludge process.

A potential bacterial culture (P1), isolated from garden soil and identified as Pseudomonas pseudoalcaligenes-KPN, was used as a starter seed to develop the biomass in a completely mixed activated sludge (CMAS) reactor and the system was evaluated for treatment of wastewater containing pyridine. The results of this study indicate that pyridine could be degraded efficiently at a loading of 0.251 kg pyridine kg MLSS(-1) d(-1) (0.156 kg TOC kg MLSS(-1) d(-1)) and at an optimal hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 24 h. Pyridine was used as the sole source of carbon and nitrogen by the biomass. Ammonia-nitrogen (NH3-N) was formed due to the metabolism of the pyridine ring. In the present investigation, the performance of CMAS with reference to pyridine biodegradation and the bio-kinetic constants for the biodegradation of pyridine, in a continuous system, were computed. The results indicate that a CMAS system inoculated with P. pseudoalcaligenes-KPN, under optimum conditions of HRT and pyridine loading, gives a yield coefficient of (Y) 0.29, decay coefficient (Kd) 0.0011 d(-1), maximum growth rate constant (mumax) 0.108 d(-1) and saturation rate constant (Ks) 5.37 mg L(-1) for pyridine.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗

Germination and seedling growth of the water cress Rorippa sp. exposed to the chelant [S,S]-EDDS.

With the implementation of the new EU environmental framework directives, high tier risk assessments of chemicals will be increasingly needed. For high production chemicals, additional tests will complement the standard battery for aquatic toxicity assessments (daphnids, algae, and fish). In the context of a new chemical notification at the European Union level, we have developed a seed germination and root elongation toxicity test with the freshwater aquatic plant Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum (water cress) to confirm the low environmental risk of the chelant [S,S]-EDDS. A 14 day semi-static growth inhibition test was conducted with daily renewal of the test solution. No concentration related inhibition was found on the basis of any of the criteria investigated, i.e., time and extent of germination, biomass, number of leaves, stalk and root lengths. The no-observed effect concentration was considered to be >or=387 mg SS-EDDS/l. Although germination was selected as an appropriate endpoint to assess the effect of a chelant on an aquatic plant (other endpoints would have been dependant on essential metals that are chelated in standard culture tests), the absence of dose related effects requires further tests with higher exposure concentrations and/or other toxicant(s) to assess the validity of the test as a general tool for aquatic risk assessment.

Chelating Agents↗

Plant development: multiple strategies for breaking seed dormancy.

Plant seeds will not germinate when in a dormant state. What then are the factors controlling dormancy? A recent study has uncovered two basic-helix-loop-helix proteins which repress germination and are critical for maintaining dormancy. The combined action of light and cold synergistically alleviates activity of these repressors thus stimulating germination.

Arabidopsis↗