Elevated temperature may intensify the positive effects of nutrients on microbial decomposition in streams

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Dall's sheep horn growth and harvest management in the Mackenzie Mountains,Northwest Territories,Canada

Across most of their native North American range, the horns of mountain sheep (Ovis spp.) males are getting smaller, a pattern attributed to selective hunting pressure. We measured the horns of 755 Dall's sheep males (Ovis dalli dalli) in the southern Mackenzie Mountains, Northwest Territories, between 2002 and 2017. For each male, we measured the circumference and length of each annulus for the right horn and calculated horn volume for each year. We examined changes in horn size in 4 different outfitter areas, using age at harvest as a covariate. Hunting pressure across years in the study area was consistently low, and this population did not experience the decline in horn size observed in several other mountain sheep populations in Canada. Over the 16-year period, the average horn volume of harvested males was stable and even increased in 1 outfitter area. Local management of Dall's sheep delivered independently by the guide outfitters in the Mackenzie Mountains appears to contribute to maintaining a population of males that has not been adversely affected by strong selective hunting pressure. The resilience of this management strategy may be challenged by environmental changes associated with rapid warming in northern mountain environments.     

Standard YPD, even supplemented with extra nutrients, does not always compensate growth defects of Saccharomyces cerevisiae auxotrophic strains

Conventional complex media are routinely used to grow auxotrophic strains under the assumption that they can compensate the latter's nutritional deficiencies. We here demonstrate that this is not always true. This study compares the growth parameters of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S288C) and its derived auxotrophic strains FY1679-14C and BY4741 in synthetic minimal medium (SD), standard YPD medium from two of the most commonly used suppliers, or modified YPD medium. Maximum specific growth rates of auxotrophic strains were slightly lower than the prototrophic case in all growth conditions tested. Also, the biomass production of auxotrophic strains in synthetic medium was slightly less than the prototrophic case. However in both of the two standard YPD media used, the biomass production of both auxotrophic strains was markedly lower than that of the prototrophic one. The extent of the differences depended on the medium used. Indeed in one of the two YPD media, the lower biomass production of auxotrophic strains was evident even at the diauxic shift. Uracil seems to be the main limiting growth factor for both auxotrophic strains growing in the two standard YPD medium tested. No YPD media or specific supplement was able to compensate for the effect of the auxotrophic mutations in the multiple auxotrophic marker strain BY4741. The fact that auxotrophic strains grew poorly on YPD when compared to their prototrophic counterpart indicates that standard YPD medium is not sufficient to overcome the effect of auxotrophic mutations.     

High-resolution crystal structure of MltE, an outer membrane-anchored endolytic peptidoglycan lytic transglycosylase from Escherichia coli

The crystal structure of the first endolytic peptidoglycan lytic transglycosylase MltE from Escherichia coli is reported here. The degradative activity of this enzyme initiates the process of cell wall recycling, which is an integral event in the existence of bacteria. The structure sheds light on how MltE recognizes its substrate, the cell wall peptidoglycan. It also explains the ability of this endolytic enzyme to cleave in the middle of the peptidoglycan chains. Furthermore, the structure reveals how the enzyme is sequestered on the inner leaflet of the outer membrane.     

Characterization of enhanced monovalent and bivalent thrombin DNA aptamer binding using single molecule force spectroscopy

Thrombin aptamer binding strength and stability is dependent on sterical parameters when used for atomic force microscopy sensing applications. Sterical improvements on the linker chemistry were developed for high-affinity binding. For this we applied single molecule force spectroscopy using two enhanced biotinylated thrombin aptamers, BFF and BFA immobilized on the atomic force microscopy tip via streptavidin. BFF is a dimer composed of two single-stranded aptamers (aptabody) connected to each other by a complementary sequence close to the biotinylated end. In contrast, BFA consists of a single DNA strand and a complementary strand in the supporting biotinylated part. By varying the pulling velocity in force-distance cycles the formed thrombin-aptamer complexes were ruptured at different force loadings allowing determination of the energy landscape. As a result, BFA aptamer showed a higher binding force at the investigated loading rates and a significantly lower dissociation rate constant, k_off, compared to BFF. Moreover, the potential of the aptabody BFF to form a bivalent complex could clearly be demonstrated.     

Effects of meteorological factors on the levels of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Alternaria</Emphasis> spores on a potato crop

Alternaria solani Soraeur produces early blight in Solanum tuberosum L., leading to significant agricultural losses. The current study was carried out on the extensive potato crop situated in north-western of Spain during 2007, 2008 and 2009. In this area potato crops are the most important source of income. In this work we used a Hirst-type volumetric spore-trap for the aerobiological monitoring of Alternaria spores. The highest spore concentrations were recorded during the 2009 cycle (10,555 spores), and the lowest concentrations were recorded during the 2008 cycle (5,471 spores). Over the 3 years of study, the highest concentrations were registered during the last stage of the crop. The aim of the study was to observe the influence of meteorological factors on the concentration of Alternaria spores, which can lead to serious infection and early blight. Prediction of the stages during which a crop is particularly vulnerable to infection allows for adjustment of the application of fungicide and is of environmental and agricultural importance. For this reason, we tested three models (P-Days, DD and IWP) to predict the first treatment and decrease the negative effect that these spores have on potato crops. The parameter that showed the most significant correlation with spore concentrations was minimum temperature. We used ARIMA (autoregressive integrated model of running mean) time-series models to determine the forecast. We considered weather data as predictor variables and the concentration of spores on the previous day as the fixed variable.     

A further comparison of pathologies after thoracic irradiation among different mouse strains: finding the best preclinical model for evaluating therapies directed against radiation-induced lung damage

The human lung is among the most sensitive and critical tissues of concern in localized and systemic radiation exposures, and it is a subject of active preclinical research for evaluating mitigating therapies within the radiation countermeasures program. Our previous study comparing C57BL/6, CBA and C57L mice after whole-thorax irradiation pointed to the problems of late pleural effusions that prevented the full development of lung injury in C57BL/6 mice and suggested that the CBA and C57L strains are more favorable for modeling lung injury in humans (Jackson et al., Radiat. Res. 173, 10-20, 2010). We extended these comparisons to include three other mouse strains (BALB/c, C57BR/J and A/J mice) irradiated with 10, 12.5 or 15 Gy. Most of these mice were unable to survive the first 6 months and presented with a mixture of lung injury and pleural effusions as determined from gross pathology, histology and micro-CT. The independent and varying development of compressive pleural effusions of ill-defined etiology represents a concern for these strains in that they may not satisfy the preclinical requirements for approval of medical countermeasures (e.g. radiation mitigators) for human use. Thus, among the various different mouse strains studied so far for these pathologies, only three (CBA, C3H and C57L) appear to be desirable in exhibiting an early wave of pulmonary dysfunction attributed exclusively to radiation pneumonitis and for further assessment of radioprotective and mitigating therapies. C57L mice are particularly relevant in that they show significant lung damage at lower radiation doses that are closer to what is predicted for humans.     

Epigenetic and physiological effects of gibberellin inhibitors and chemical pruners on the floral transition of azalea

The ability to control the timing of flowering is a key strategy in planning the production of ornamental species such as azaleas; however, it requires a thorough understanding of floral transition. DNA methylation is involved in controlling the functional state of chromatin and gene expression during floral induction pathways in response to environmental and developmental signals. Plant hormone signalling is also known to regulate suites of morphogenic processes in plants and its role in flowering-time control is starting to emerge as a key controlling step. This work investigates if the gibberellin (GA) inhibitors and chemical pinching applied in improvement of azalea flowering alter the dynamics of DNA methylation or the levels of polyamines (PAs), GAs and cytokinins (CKs) during floral transition, and whether these changes could be related to the effects observed on flowering ability. DNA methylation during floral transition and endogenous content of PAs, GAs and CKs were analysed after the application of GA synthesis inhibitors (daminozide, paclobutrazol and chlormequat chloride) and a chemical pruner (fatty acids). The application of GA biosynthesis inhibitors caused alterations in levels of PAs, GAs and CKs and in global DNA methylation levels during floral transition; also, these changes in plant growth regulators and DNA methylation were correlated with flower development. DNA methylation, PA, GA and CK levels can be used as predictive markers of plant floral capacity in azalea.     

Promotion of flowering in azaleas by manipulating photoperiod and temperature induces epigenetic alterations during floral transition

The ability to control the timing of flowering is a key strategy for planning production in ornamental species such as the azalea; however, this requires a thorough understanding of floral induction pathways. DNA methylation is one of the main mechanisms involved in controlling the functional state of chromatin and gene expression in response to environmental and developmental signals. This work investigated the promotion of flowering in azaleas by the manipulation of environmental factors, using DNA methylation levels as a marker of floral bud development. The results showed that the change of long-day (LD) to short-day (SD) photoperiod is the primary factor responsible for floral induction in azaleas, whereas the existence of the previous cold period as well as the physiological memory are factors which improve floral production. Furthermore, for blooming to take place, 1300 units of growing degree days under an LD were necessary. The promotion of flowering in azaleas by alterations of photoperiod and temperature induced DNA methylation changes. The demethylation observed after the change from LD to SD is linked to a change in cell fate which is necessary for floral transition to take place and seems to be associated with the floral signal.