Water Balance in Cucumis Plants, Measured by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, I

In this paper we demonstrate the study of plant water balanceby the non-invasive measurement of tissue water content andwater flow using proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Sapvelocity and flux were measured independently in the presenceof an excess of stationary tissue water. The instrumentationdescribed allows automated and unattended measurement of flow-and water content-variables in a well-defined region of theplant over periods of several days, with a time resolution betweensuccessive measurements of c. 5 s. Using this apparatus theeffect of changes in light intensity (day/night rhythm) andrelative humidity on stem tissue water content as well as onthe velocity and flux of xylem sap in the stem were investigatedin a cucumber plant. The results are in agreement with predictionsfrom a simple model for plant water balance, which is basedon water potential, flow rate and resistance to flow. As longas only transpiration is varied, flow rate and water content(or potential) are affected in opposite ways as demonstratedin this paper. In contrast, the model predicts that changesin uptake (resulting from changes in, for example, root resistance)will induce changes in water content and flow in the same direction.An experimental verification of this prediction is given ina subsequent paper, where, in addition, the NMR results arecompared to those obtained with a dendrometer. Key words: Water balance model, Cucumis sativus L., flow, water content, NMR, water balance measurement     

TASTE GROUP THRESHOLDS AND SENSORY EVALUATION OF SPANISH WINE VINEGARS

Wine vinegar is a product obtained from wine acidification which contains at least 5% by wt. of acetic acid, in general without any additives or colorings.
Aspects studied in this work include: the determination of the taste group thresholds (geometric mean of the individual best-estimate thresholds "BET") of two different acids (citric and acetic acids) in aqueous solution and spanish vinegars produced from table and sherry wines. The results obtained suggest that wine vinegar can be considered something more than just an acidulant agent.
In order to evaluate differences among wine vinegars, discriminant tests for twenty-five spanish vinegars (sherry, table and flavored vinegars) were applied. Six of the twelve attributes freely chosen by assessors allowed grouping of the spanish wine vinegars according to their sensory aspects.     

Genetic and phylogenetic analyses of human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I variants from Melanesians with an without spastic myelopathy

Molecular variants of human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) have been isolated recently from lifelong residents of remote Melanesian populations, including a Solomon Islander with tropical spastic paraparesis/HTLV-I-associated myelopathy (TSP/HAM) or HTLV-I myeloneuropathy. To clarify the genetic heterogeneity and molecular epidemiology of disease-associated strains of HTLV-I, we enzymatically amplified, then directly sequenced representative regions of thegag, pol, env, andpX genes of HTLV-I strains from Melanesians with and without TSP/HAM, and aligned and compared these sequences with those of HTLV-I strains from patients with TSP/HAM or adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma and from asymptomatic carriers from widely separated and culturally disparate populations. Overall, the HTLV-I variant from the Solomon Islander with TSP/HAM, like HTLV-I strains from asymptomatically infected Melanesians, diverged by approx 7% from cosmopolitan HTLV-I strain. No disease-specific viral sequences were found. Gene phylogenies, as determined by the unweighted pair-goup method of assortment and by the maximum parsimony method, indicated that the Melanesian and cosmopolitan strains of HTLV-I have evolved along separate geographically dependent lineages, one comprised of HTLV-I strains from Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, and the other composed of virus strains from Japan, India, the Caribbean, Polynesia, the Americas, and Africa. The total absence of nonhuman primates in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands precludes any possibility that the Melanesian HTLV-I strains have evolved recently from the simian homolog of HTLV-I.     

Arginine deprivation in KB cells: I. Effect on cell cycle progress

When exponentially growing KB cells were deprived of arginine, cell multiplication ceased after 12 h but viability was maintained throughout the experimental period (42-48 h). Although tritiated thymidine ([(3)H]TdR) incorporation into acid-insoluble material declined to 5 percent of the initial rate, the fraction of cells engaged in DNA synthesis, determined by autoradiography, remained constant throughout the starvation period and approximately equal to the synthesizing fraction in exponentially growing controls (40 percent). Continous [(3)H]TdR-labeling indicated that 80 percent of the arginine-starved cells incorporated (3)H at some time during a 48-h deprivation period. Thus, some cells ceased DNA synthesis, whereas some initially nonsynthesizing cells initiated DNA synthesis during starvation. Flow microfluorometric profiles of distribution of cellular DNA contents at the end of the starvation period indicated that essentially no cells had a 4c or G2 complement. If arginine was restored after 30 h of starvation, cultures resumed active, largely asynchronous division after a 16-h lag. Autoradiographs of metaphase figures from cultures continuously labeled with [(3)H]TdR after restoration indicated that all cells in the culture underwent DNA synthesis before dividing. It was concluded that the majority of cells in arginine-starved cultures are arrested in neither a normal G1 nor G2. It is proposed that for an exponential culture, i.e. from most positions in the cell cycle, inhibition of cell growth after arginine with withdrawal centers on the ability of cells to complete replication of their DNA.     

p38 MAPK inhibitors suppress biomarkers of hypertension end-organ damage,osteopontin and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1

The assessment of target organ damage is important in defining the optimal treatment of hypertension and blood pressure-related cardiovascular disease. The aims of the present study were (1) to investigate candidate biomarkers of target organ damage, osteopontin (OPN) and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), in models of malignant hypertension with well characterized end-organ pathology; and (2) to evaluate the effects of chronic treatment with a p38 MAPK inhibitor. Gene expression, plasma concentrations, and renal immunohistochemical localization of OPN and PAI-1 were measured in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats on a salt–fat diet (SFD SHR-SP) and in spontaneously hypertensive rats receiving N^ω-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME SHR). Plasma concentrations of OPN and PAI-1 increased significantly in SFD SHR-SP and L-NAME SHR as compared with controls, (2.5–4.5-fold for OPN and 2.0–9.0-fold for PAI-1). The plasma levels of OPN and PAI-1 were significantly correlated with the urinary excretion of albumin (p<0.0001). Elevations in urinary albumin, plasma OPN and PAI-1 were abolished by chronic treatment (4–8 weeks) with a specific p38 MAPK inhibitor, SB-239063AN. OPN immunoreactivity was localized predominantly in the apical portion of tubule epithelium, while PAI-1 immunoreactivity was robust in glomeruli, tubules and renal artery endothelium. Treatment with the p38 MAPK inhibitor significantly reduced OPN and PAI-1 protein expression in target organs. Kidney gene expression was increased for OPN (4.9- and 7.9-fold) and PAI-1 (2.8- and 11.5-fold) in SFD SHR-SP and L-NAME SHR, respectively. In-silico pathway analysis revealed that activation of p38 MAPK was linked to OPN and PAI-1 via SP1, c-fos and c-jun; suggesting that these pathways may play an important role in p38 MAPK-dependent hypertensive renal dysfunction. The results suggest that enhanced OPN and PAI-1 expression reflects end-organ damage in hypertension and that suppression correlates with end-organ protection regardless of overt antihypertensive action.     

Two closely linked tomato HKT coding genes are positional candidates for the major tomato QTL involved in Na+/K+ homeostasis

The location of major quantitative trait loci (QTL) contributing to stem and leaf [Na⁺] and [K⁺] was previously reported in chromosome 7 using two connected populations of recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of tomato. HKT1;1 and HKT1;2, two tomato Na⁺‐selective class I‐HKT transporters, were found to be closely linked, where the maximum logarithm of odds (LOD) score for these QTLs located. When a chromosome 7 linkage map based on 278 single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was used, the maximum LOD score position was only 35 kb from HKT1;1 and HKT1;2. Their expression patterns and phenotypic effects were further investigated in two near‐isogenic lines (NILs): 157‐14 (double homozygote for the cheesmaniae alleles) and 157‐17 (double homozygote for the lycopersicum alleles). The expression pattern for the HKT1;1 and HKT1;2 alleles was complex, possibly because of differences in their promoter sequences. High salinity had very little effect on root dry and fresh weight and consequently on the plant dry weight of NIL 157‐14 in comparison with 157‐17. A significant difference between NILs was also found for [K⁺] and the [Na⁺]/[K⁺] ratio in leaf and stem but not for [Na⁺] arising a disagreement with the corresponding RIL population. Their association with leaf [Na⁺] and salt tolerance in tomato is also discussed.     

Production of endothelial progenitor cells obtained from human Wharton's jelly using different culture conditions

Endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) participate in revascularization and angiogenesis. EPC can be cultured in vitro from mononuclear cells of peripheral blood, umbilical cord blood or bone marrow; they also can be transdifferentiated from mesenchymal stem cells (MSC). We isolated EPCs from Wharton's jelly (WJ) using two methods. The first method was by obtaining MSC from WJ and characterizing them by flow cytometry and their adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation, then applying endothelial growth differentiating media. The second method was by direct culture of cells derived from WJ into endothelial differentiating media. EPCs were characterized by morphology, Dil-LDL uptake/UEA-1 immunostaining and testing the expression of endothelial markers by flow cytometry and RT-PCR. We found that MSC derived from WJ differentiated into endothelial-like cells using simple culture conditions with endothelium induction agents in the medium.     

Analysis of superfamily specific profile-profile recognition accuracy

Background  

Annotation of sequences that share little similarity to sequences of known function remains a major obstacle in genome annotation. Some of the best methods of detecting remote relationships between protein sequences are based on matching sequence profiles. We analyse the superfamily specific performance of sequence profile-profile matching. Our benchmark consists of a set of 16 protein superfamilies that are highly diverse at the sequence level. We relate the performance to the number of sequences in the profiles, the profile diversity and the extent of structural conservation in the superfamily.     

Diagnostic criteria for diabetes revisited: making use of combined criteria

Background  

Existing cut-offs for fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and post-load glucose (2hPG) criteria are not equivalent in the diagnosis of diabetes and glucose intolerance. Adjusting cut-offs of single measurements have not helped so we undertook this project to see if they could be complementary.     

Interference of Quorum Sensing by Delftia sp. VM4 Depends on the Activity of a Novel N-Acylhomoserine Lactone-Acylase

Background

Turf soil bacterial isolate Delftia sp. VM4 can degrade exogenous N-acyl homoserine lactone (AHL), hence it effectively attenuates the virulence of bacterial soft rot pathogen Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum strain BR1 (Pcc BR1) as a consequence of quorum sensing inhibition.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Isolated Delftia sp. VM4 can grow in minimal medium supplemented with AHL as a sole source of carbon and energy. It also possesses the ability to degrade various AHL molecules in a short time interval. Delftia sp. VM4 suppresses AHL accumulation and the production of virulence determinant enzymes by Pcc BR1 without interference of the growth during co-culture cultivation. The quorum quenching activity was lost after the treatment with trypsin and proteinase K. The protein with quorum quenching activity was purified by three step process. Matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) and Mass spectrometry (MS/MS) analysis revealed that the AHL degrading enzyme (82 kDa) demonstrates homology with the NCBI database hypothetical protein (Daci_4366) of D. acidovorans SPH-1. The purified AHL acylase of Delftia sp. VM4 demonstrated optimum activity at 20–40°C and pH 6.2 as well as AHL acylase type mode of action. It possesses similarity with an α/β-hydrolase fold protein, which makes it unique among the known AHL acylases with domains of the N-terminal nucleophile (Ntn)-hydrolase superfamily. In addition, the kinetic and thermodynamic parameters for hydrolysis of the different AHL substrates by purified AHL-acylase were estimated. Here we present the studies that investigate the mode of action and kinetics of AHL-degradation by purified AHL acylase from Delftia sp. VM4.

Significance

We characterized an AHL-inactivating enzyme from Delftia sp. VM4, identified as AHL acylase showing distinctive similarity with α/β-hydrolase fold protein, described its biochemical and thermodynamic properties for the first time and revealed its potential application as an anti-virulence agent against bacterial soft rot pathogen Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum based on quorum quenching mechanism.