Role of protein kinase C activators and inhibitors, calmodulin antagonists and membrane sialic acids in polyamine transport in murine leukemia cells

The effects of activators and inhibitors of protein kinase C (phorbol esters and H-7) and antagonist to calmodulin (TFP) on polyamine transport in murine leukemia (L1210) cells are investigated. Phorbol esters and H-7 are found to enhance and curtail the uptake of 14C-Spermidine (Spd) respectively in L1210 cells. TFP also inhibits the uptake process. After desialation of cells with neuraminidase, phorbol esters are found to further increase the uptake of 14C-Spd by 35% compared to untreated cells. The sialic acid contents of the cells are regenerated by incubation with 14C-glucosamine for 18 hours. The regenerated cells mimic like untreated cells for the uptake of 14C-Spd i.e. after regeneration of sialic acids, the Spd uptake is curtailed significantly in comparison with desialated cells. Phorbol esters are found to enhance the activity of transglutaminase present in L1210 cells while H-7 and TFP exhibit reverse effects. The possible role of phorbol esters, H-7 and TFP and their effects on transglutaminase activity in relation with Spd transport process are discussed.     

On two fresh water red algae from Dehradun

Summary The present communication deals with morphological features of a new fresh water species of the genus Acrochaetium Naëg. (A. sarmaii sp. nov.). The occurrence of Compsopogon iyengarii is also recorded for the first time from a locality in North India.     

Significance of mirex-caused hypoglycemia and hyperlipidemia in rats

Treatment of rats with mirex (40 ppm in diet) caused hypoglycemia, liver enlargement, and inhibition of adrenal corticosteroid-synthesizing enzyme activity. At toxic dosages (20,000 ppm mirex in diet, which has a lethal toxicity-50 [LT-50] of ten days) poisoned female rats showed severe hypoglycemia, fatty liver, adrenal hyperplasia, hypophagia, lipid mobilization, and body weight (bw) loss. A 50 μg/kg intraperitoneal (IP) dose of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) in male rats caused similar effects two days posttreatment. Hypoglycemia could be overcome by prednisone (which also inhibited adrenocorticoid-synthesizing enzyme activities) but not by streptozotocin treatment, indicating that hypoglycemia may be related to glucocorticoid deficiency resulting from inhibition of their synthesis and not by direct effects on pancreatic β-cells. Glucocorticoid deficiency could also cause increased release of adrenocorticoid hormone (ACTH), which may enhance fat mobilization caused by hypophagia.     

Wild bacterial probiotics fed to larvae of mass‐reared Queensland fruit fly [Bactrocera tryoni (Froggatt)] do not impact long‐term survival,mate selection,or locomotor activity

Queensland fruit fly [Bactrocera tryoni (Froggatt), Diptera, Tephritidae] is the most devastating insect pest impacting Australian horticulture. The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is an important component of tephritid pest management programs. However, mass‐rearing and irradiation (to render insects sterile) may reduce the fitness and performance of the insect, including the ability of sterile males to successfully compete for wild females. Manipulation of the gut microbiome, including the supplementation with bacterial probiotics shows promise for enhancing the quality of mass‐reared sterile flies, however there are fewer published studies targeting the larval stage. In this study, we supplemented the larval stage of mass‐reared B. tryoni with bacterial probiotics. We tested several individual bacteria that had been previously isolated and characterized from the gut of wild B. tryoni larvae including Asaia sp., Enterobacter sp., Lactobacillus sp., Leuconostoc sp. We also tested a consortium of all four of these bacterial isolates. The fitness parameters tested included adult survival in field cages, laboratory mate selection of bacteria supplemented males by bacteria nonsupplemented females, and laboratory locomotor activity of adult flies. None of the bacterial probiotic treatments in the current study was significantly different to the control for field survival, mate selection or locomotor activity of adult B. tryoni, which agree with some of the other studies regarding bacterial probiotics fed to the larval stage of tephritids. Future work is needed to determine if feeding the same, and/or other probiotics to adults, as opposed to larvae can positively impact survival, mating performance, mating competitiveness and locomotor activity of B. tryoni. The bacterial group(s) and function of bacterial species that increase fitness and competitiveness is also of interest to tephritid mass‐rearing programs.     

Biodegradation of Mordant orange-1 using newly isolated strain Trichoderma harzianum RY44 and its metabolite appraisal

Bioprocess and Biosystems Engineering - Herein, we systematically reported the capability of T. harzianum RY44 for decolorization of Mordant orange-1. The fungi strains were isolated from the...     

Halophytes – A resource for the future

Wetlands Ecology and Management -     

The key roles of salicylic acid and sulfur in plant salinity stress tolerance

Journal of Plant Growth Regulation - The salinization of agriculture soils over the globe has become one of the most devastating stresses and is significantly limiting cultivated land area, and...