Promoting effect of wood vinegar compounds on fruit-body formation ofPleurotus ostreatus

The promoting effect of wood vinegar compounds on the fruiting ofPleurotus ostreatus (Japanese name, Hiratake) was investigated. Not only crude wood vinegar but its components, 3,5-dimethylphenol, 2-methoxyphenol, butanoic acid and 1-pentanol, had the ability to promote fruit-body formation on liquid medium. For use of these promoters industrially, a test for practical cultivation was carried out using a commercial sawdust medium. The addition of 100 µg/ml butanoic acid and 100 µg/ml 2-methoxyphenol into the sawdust medium after removal of the surface mycelial layer (kinkaki in Japanese) produced 29 and 23% higher yields of fruit-bodies than the control cultures (137.2 g/bottle), respectively. The addition of the crude wood vinegar as a medium component into sawdust substrates in the concentration range of 0.1–6% increased yields of fruit-bodies by 21–42% over the control.     

Purification and characterization of extracellular laccase fromPleurotus ostreatus

Laccase (EC 1.10.3.2) from the culture filtrate of a strain of white rot basidiomycetePleurotus ostreatus was purified using DEAE-Toyopearl 650M and butyl-Toyopearl 650M column chromatographies and Superdex 75 HR 10/30 fast protein liquid chromatography. Molecular weight of the purified laccase was about 55,000, and the isoelectric point was 3.0. The optimum pH for enzyme activity was 6.5, and the optimum temperature was 50°C. This enzyme contained 7.4% sugar and two copper atoms per molecule. The substrate specificity was similar to those of other fungal laccases. Comparison of the N-terminal amino acid sequence of theP. ostreatus laccase with those fromPleurotus ostreatus Florida,Coriolus hirsutus, Phlebia radiata, basidiomycete PM1 (CECT 2971),Trametes villosa, Pycnoporus cinnabarinus, Ceriporiopsis subvermispora, andAgaricus bisporus showed 95, 65, 60, 55, 55, 55, 50, and 35% similarity, respectively, in the first 20 residues. No similarity in this region was detected with laccases fromNeurospora crassa, Aspergillus nidulans, andCryptococcus neoformans.     

Changes in low molecular weight carbohydrates composition and chitin throughout the cultivation stages ofPleurotus ostreatus

Changes in contents of soluble low molecular weight carbohydrates and chitin in a sawdust-rice bran medium during mycelial growth ofPleurotus ostreatus in bottle cultivation were examined in relation to fruit-body yield of nine stocks. Glucose, mannitol, inositol, sucrose, and trehalose were detected in cultures after mycelial spreading. No significant correlation was observed between contents of soluble low molecular weight carbohydrate during mycelial growth and the fruit-body yield. Negative correlation was found between trehalose content in post-harvest cultures and the fruit-body yield. Chitin content in cultures decreased in the fruiting stage. Positive correlation was detected between chitin content of fruit-bodies and the decrement of chitin in post-harvest culture caused by fruit-body growth.     

The response of a cytokinin resistant mutant is highly specific and permits a new cytokinin bioassay

We have previously isolated six independent cytokinin-resistant mutants of Nicotiana plumbaginifolia which define three complementation groups, zeal, zea2 and zea3. We report here the characterization of the phenotypic response to cytokinin treatment of the mutant 1–64, belonging to the zeal group, and the result of the study of the specificity of this response. The phenotype of this mutant grown in the presence of cytokinin concentrations higher than 0.1 M is characterized by a hypertrophy of the cotyledons and hypocotyl which results in an increase of plantlet fresh weight. This hypertrophy is correlated to cytokinin concentration in a range between 0.01 to 10 M. The specificity of this response has been verified by using adenine and urea type cytokinins, as well as enantiomers of methylzeatin and methylbenzyladenine which differ widely in their cytokinin activities. We show that the high specificity of the hypertrophic response to cytokinins can be used as a convenient bioassay to screen the cytokinin activity of adenine or urea type molecules.Abbreviations zeatin [6-(4-hydroxy-3-methylbut-trans-2-enylamino)purine] - iP isopentenyladenine [6-(3-methylbut-2-enylamino)purine] - BA benzyladenine [6-(benzylamino)purine] - (R)-(+)-MeZea [(R)--methylzeatin] - (S)-(–)-MeZea [(S)--methylzeatin] - (R)-(+)-MeBA [(R)--methylbenzyladenine] - (S)-(–)-MeBA [(S)--methylbenzyladenine] - CPPU N-(2-chloro-4-pyridyl)-N-phenylurea - thidiazuron N-(1,2,3-thiadiazol-5-pyridyl)-N-phenylurea The authors dedicate this paper to the memory of Jean-Pierre Bourgin, Director of the Laboratoire de Biologie Cellulaire, who died suddenly on October 29, 1994.     

Isolation and characterization of mutant Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains unable to assimilate nitrate

Single-site mutants of Pseudomonas aeruginosa that lack the ability aerobically to assimilate nitrate and nitrite as sole sources of nitrogen have been isolated. Twentyone of these have been subdivided into four groups by transductional analysis. Mutants in only one group, designated nis, lost assimilatory nitrite reductase activity. Mutants in the other three transductional groups, designated ntmA, ntmB, ntmC, display a pleiotropic phenotype: utilization of a number of nitrogen-containing compounds including nitrite as sole nitrogen sources is impaired. Assimilatory nitrite reductase was shown to be the major route by which hydroxylamine is reduced in aerobically-grown cells.In memoriam of Professor R. Y. Stanier     

The capsule and slime polysaccharides of the wild type and a phage resistant mutant ofRhodopseudomonas capsulata St. Louis

A rhamnose, galactose and pyruvic acid containing polysaccharide (capsule) together with the peptidoglycan was isolated fromRhodopseudomonas capsulata St. Louis as the insoluble sediment after sodium dodecyl sulfate extraction of cell envelope fractions. Treatment with pronase E separated the soluble polysaccharide from the insoluble peptidoglycan. After lysozyme-digestion, both the capsule polysaccharide and peptidoglycan were soluble.The capsule was also accumulated in the combined interphase/phenol-phase of hot phenol-water extracts of whole cells. Again, the capsule and peptidoglycan were sedimented together as long as no pronase E-treatment was performed. With the phage-resistant mutant (R. capsulata St. Louis RC1^-), no capsule polysaccharide was obtained in the combined interphase/phenol phase.An acidic polysaccharide (slime) different from the capsule in composition and serology was obtained by Cetavlon fractionation of hot phenol/water extracts of cells of both the wild-type and the mutant cells. It was shown to consist mainly of rhamnose, glucosamine and galacturonic acid.The use of O/K-antisera and of capsule polysaccharideantisera allowed a separate visualization of the capsule and slime layers.This paper is dedicated to Professor Hans G. Schoegel on the occasion of his 60th birthday     

Structural and kinetic characterization of native laccases from Pleurotus ostreatus, Rigidoporus lignosus, and Trametes trogii

A comparative study has been performed on five native laccases purified from the three basidiomycete fungi Pleurotus ostreatus, Rigidoporus lignosus, and Trametes trogii to relate their different catalytic capacities to their structural properties. Spectroscopic absorption features and EPR spectra at various pH values of the five enzymes are very similar and typical of the blue oxidases. The analysis of the dependence of kinetic parameters on pH suggested that a histidine residue is involved in the binding of nonphenolic substrates, whereas both a histidine and an acidic residue may be involved in the binding of phenolic compounds. His and an Asp residue are indeed found at the bottom of a cavity which may be regarded as a suitable substrate channel for approaching to type 1 copper in the 3D homology models of the two laccases from Pleuorotus ostreatus (POXC and POXA1b) whose sequences are known.     

Purification and characterization of an aflatoxin degradation enzyme from Pleurotus ostreatus

Nineteen fungi were tested for their ability to degrade aflatoxin B1 (AFB1). An extracellular enzyme from the edible mushroom Pleurotus ostreatus showed afaltoxin-degradation activity detected by thin-layer chromatography (TLC). An enzyme with this activity was purified by two chromatographies on DEAE-Sepharose and Phenyl-Sepharose. The apparent molecular mass of the purified enzyme was estimated to be 90 kDa by SDS-PAGE. Optimum activities were found in the pH range between 4.0 and 5.0 and at 25 degrees C. Also, degradation activity of several dyes in the presence of H2O2 was tested, resulting in the detection of bromophenol blue-decolorizing activity. Based on these data, we suggest this enzyme is a novel enzyme with aflatoxin-degradation activity. Fluorescence measurements suggest that the enzyme cleaves the lactone ring of aflatoxin.     

Isolation and characterization of a barley mutant with abscisic-acid-insensitive stomata

A barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) mutant (cool) with leaf transpiration unaffected by the application of 1 mM abscisic acid (ABA) was isolated from the population of M2 seedlings using thermography (electronic visualization, and quantitation of the temperature profiles on the surface of the leaves). Stomata of the mutant plants were insensitive to exogenously applied ABA, darkness, and such desiccation treatments as leaf excision and drought stress. The evaporative cooling of the leaves of the cool barley was always higher than that of the wild-type barley, even without ABA application, indicating that the diffusive resistance of the mutant leaves to water loss was always lower. Guard-cell morphology and stomatal density as well as ABA level and metabolism were seemingly unaltered in the mutant plants. In addition, gibberellin-induced -amylase secretion and precocious embryo germination in the mutant barley was inhibited by ABA to the same extent as in the wild-type barley.Abbreviations ABA (±) cis-trans abscisic acid - GA gibberellin     

双孢蘑菇萎锈灵抗性基因定点突变的载体构建与遗传转化

为建立更为安全、有效的双孢蘑菇遗传转化体系,构建了双孢蘑菇琥珀酸脱氢酶的铁硫蛋白亚基Agsdi1突变（His突变为Leu）表达载体pAgsdi1,并通过农杆菌介导方法转化双孢蘑菇W192,经萎锈灵筛选以及PCR扩增和MnlⅠ酶切验证后获得了转化菌株。验证结果表明,点突变的铁硫蛋白亚基Agsdi1可以作为双孢蘑菇有效的抗性标记基因。因其并未引入新的外源基因,是一种比潮霉素抗性基因更为安全的筛选标记,将可用于双孢蘑菇等食用菌的遗传转化。     

Isolation of a gram-positive bacterium effective in suppression of brown blotch disease of cultivated mushrooms,Pleurotus ostreatus andAgaricus bisporus, caused byPseudomonas tolaasii

A Gram-positive bacterium was isolated from a rottingPleurotus ostreatus fruiting body that markedly reduced the level of extracellular toxins (i.e., tolaasins) produced byPseudomonas tolaasii, the most destructive pathogen of cultivated mushrooms. The isolated bacterium is saprophytic but not parasitic nor pathogenic toP. ostreatus. A low ratio, ca. 10⁻³ cells of the isolated bacterium for oneP. tolaasii cells, was sufficient for detoxification in vitro. Inoculation of the isolated bacterium prevents the development of bacterial disease inP. ostreatus andAgaricus bisporus. The suppression of the disease development, however requires the initial cell density equivalent to ca. 10⁻¹ cells of the isolated bacterium for one cells of the pathogen. The effects is ascribed to the inactivation of tolaasin by the live, suppressive bacterial cells, and not to metabolites secreted from the organism into culture media. Examination by conventional bacteriological tests and with testing kits, i.e., MicroStation^TMSystem Release 3.5 (Biolog Inc., Hayward, CA), ATB Expression (bioMerieux Inc. Japan) and VITEK (bioMerieux Inc. Japan), failed to assign the organism to any defined bacterial genus. The suppressive bacterium may be useful in future for the development of biocontrol system and/or the construction of genetically modified edible fungi resistant to the disease caused byP. tolaasii.     

Isolation and characterization of Zymomonas mobilis mutants resistant to octadecyltrimethylammonium chloride,a detergent acting on hopanoid-producing bacteria

Growth of the hopanoid-producing bacterium Zymomonas mobilis was inhibited at low concentrations of the cationic detergent octadecyltrimethylammoniumchloride (OTAC). A relationship between sensitivity of Zymomonas mobilis to OTAC, presence of hopanoids and ethanol tolerance was postulated. Mutants resistant to OTAC were isolated from strains ZM1 and ZM4. They did not present any alteration of the hopanoid content and their squalene cyclases showed the same sensitity to OTAC as the parent enzymes. Resistance to OTAC paralleled pleiotropic effects including, enhanced accessibility of the membrane-bound alkaline phosphatase, important release of proteins from cells by Tris/HCl treatment, increased resistance to antibiotics and increased sensitivity to ethanol. In addition, OTAC^R mutants were also characterized by the synthesis or the overproduction of an outer membrane protein (F53) not detected on 2D-PAGE maps of parent strains and by a normal heat shock response. The role of hopanoids, heat shock proteins, protein F53 and membrane organization in ethanol tolerance is discussed.Abbreviations OTAC octadecyltrimethylammoniumchloride - SLS sodium lauryl sarcosinate     

Characterization of heat resistant mutant strains of Rhizobium sp. [Cajanus] for growth, survival and symbiotic properties

Fourteen heat resistant mutant strains were isolated from a wild-type strain (PP201, Nod⁺ Fix⁺) of Rhizobium sp. (Cajanus) by giving it a heat shock of 43°C. These mutant strains showed a greater increase in optical density (O.D.) and a higher viable cell count in both rhizospheric and non-rhizospheric soil at high temperature. Symbiotic studies showed that pigeon pea plants inoculated with a few mutant strains had ineffective nodules (Nod⁺ Fix⁻) under controlled temperature (43°C) conditions, but under natural high temperature (40–45°C) conditions, the host plants infected with all the mutant strains showed higher total shoot nitrogen than the plants inoculated with the parent strain. Four mutant strains (HR-3, HR-6, HR-10 and HR-12) were found to be highly efficient for all the symbiotic parameters, and thus have the potential to be used as bioinoculants in the North-Western regions of India during the summer season.     

一株耐Cd菌株的分离、鉴定及基本特性

【目的】从活性污泥中筛选耐镉(Cd)菌株,并研究其生长特性及对溶液中Cd~(2+)吸附的最佳条件,以期为重金属Cd污染水体的微生物修复提供菌株资源和应用技术参考。【方法】采用平板划线法,从活性污泥中分离、筛选、驯化出耐Cd菌株,通过16SrRNA基因序列分析及溶血试验、蛋白质毒素结晶试验进行初步鉴定,并采用单因素实验优化菌株的培养条件,通过正交实验确定菌粉吸附溶液中Cd~(2+)的最佳条件,同时利用SEM-EDS及FTIR分析探讨菌粉吸附Cd~(2+)的机理。【结果】经分离、驯化得到1株耐Cd细菌菌株,命名为H6,初步鉴定为蜡样芽孢杆菌(Bacilluscereus),最大Cd~(2+)耐受浓度为350 mg/L。菌株H6的最佳生长条件为:pH 6.0–8.0,温度28°C,转速120–210 r/min,接种量1%–5%;菌株H6在生长过程中,培养液pH值先稍微下降然后不断上升。菌粉吸附Cd~(2+)的正交优化条件为:菌粉用量0.125 g/L,吸附时间2 h,pH 5.0,温度30°C,此条件下吸附量为205 mg/g。SEM-EDS分析和红外光谱(FTIR)分析表明,在吸附过程中主要作用基团有羟基、羧基、羰基、酰胺基和烷基,此外,Ca~(2+)与Cd~(2+)发生了离子交换。【结论】从活性污泥中分离出的菌株H6,初步鉴定为蜡样芽孢杆菌(Bacillus cereus),是1株具有较强Cd~(2+)吸附能力的细菌菌株。     

ses, a novel visible mutant ofArabidopsis thaliana related to anther development

Analysis of mutants and clone of genes is crucial for unraveling the mechanism of anther development. The lack of elongation of siliques in a novel shortened early-stage siliques (ses) mutant was caused by unsuccessful pollination because of aborted pollens. At stage 11, microspores of mutantses appeared weakly stained and degenerated. At stage 14, mutantses produced abnormal pollens, and the anther wall was collapsed and crumpled; furthermore, some cavities were also found under the epidermis. Mutantses showed that the gene responsible for the defects plays a role in anther development. By mapping, mutantses was narrowed into a 67-kb interval on chromosome 1 between CER448792 (2,000,541 bp) and CER464544 (2,067,844 bp). By using the sequence-based map ofArabidopsis genes with mutant phenotypes,ses was localized on the right of phenotype marker AT1g06150 and on the left of phenotype marker AT1g08060. The phenotyping and mapping data both pointed to the conclusion thatses was a novel mutant related to anther development. Sequencing showed that there was a point mutation in gene AT1G06710.1; thus, gene AT1G06710.1 is the mist likely candidate gene responsible for the mutation.     

空肠弯曲菌fliD基因突变株的构建及其生物学特性

【目的】研究fliD基因对空肠弯曲菌生物学特性的影响,为阐明该基因的功能和作用机制奠定基础。【方法】利用同源重组技术构建fliD基因的插入失活突变株NCTC11168△fliD,并通过与野生株比较,对fliD突变株生长速率、运动力、黏附力和侵袭力等生物学特性进行研究。【结果】与野生型NCTC11168相比,突变株NCTC11168△fliD的生理生化特性不变;突变株的生长速率无明显变化;MH半固体穿刺实验中,突变株只能在接种处生长,运动力明显减弱;在Caco-2细胞黏附、侵袭实验中,fliD突变株的黏附率和侵袭率分别为164.00±19.49、55.00±6.09,fliD基因失活使得突变株的黏附率和侵袭率显著降低(0P0.01)。【结论】fliD基因是空肠弯曲菌运动能力重要的分子基础,与空肠弯曲菌感染细胞的黏附侵袭作用密切相关,即与空肠弯曲菌的致病性密切相关。     

产胞外多糖菌株的分离鉴定及其功能研究

微生物产生的胞外多糖(exopolysaccharides, EPS)可促进大粒径土壤团聚体形成,高产EPS的菌株在土壤改良、促进作物生长方面具有较好的应用前景。【目的】从土壤样品中筛选高产胞外多糖的细菌,研究其在土壤改良、环境适应性、广谱抗病等方面的功能,为制备土壤改良型功能菌剂提供候选菌株。【方法】采用蒽酮硫酸法测定菌株胞外多糖的产量,通过形态学观察、生理生化试验及16S rRNA基因序列测定确定其分类地位,结合土壤培养试验研究菌株对土壤团聚体形成的影响。【结果】获得3株胞外多糖产量大于500 mg/L的细菌,经鉴定A-5为地衣芽孢杆菌(Bacillus licheniformis),XJ-3为萎缩芽孢杆菌(Bacillus atrophaeus),KW3-10为耐盐芽孢杆菌(Bacillus halotolerans)。菌株A-5、XJ-3、KW3-10处理后,土壤大团聚体(>0.25 mm)含量较对照分别提高了4.07、2.14和3.16倍。3株菌株对疮痂链霉菌(Streptomyces scabies)、尖孢镰刀菌(Fusarium oxysporum)、茄链格孢菌(Alternaria solani)和立枯丝核菌(Rhizoctonia solani)等多种植物病原菌具有明显的抑制效果,可耐受pH为5-9和NaCl含量1%‒9%的盐碱环境,促进植物生长,其中KW3-10的代谢产物中IAA含量为25.58 mg/L。【结论】菌株A-5、XJ-3、KW3-10可显著促进土壤团粒结构形成,具有较好的广谱抗病性和促生长特性,可作为高效复合功能菌剂的候选菌株。     

rtpA, a gene encoding a bacterial two-component sensor kinase, determines pathogenic traits ofPseudomonas tolaasii, the causal agent of brown blotch disease of a cultivated mushroom,Pleurotus ostreatus

Pseudomonas tolaasii strain PT814 produces extracellular toxins, tolaasins, and a volatile toxin, tovsin, that are responsible for the induction of brown blotch and rotting, respectively, in a cultivated mushroom,Pleurotus ostreatus. Insertions of single transposon mini-Tn5Km 1 into the chromosome ofP. tolaasii strain PT814 generated mutants that are pleiotropically defective in tolaasin and protease production, and altered in colony morphology. The mutants, however, produce tovsin at the level of wild-type. Variants phenotypically similar to the pleiotropic mutants ofP. tolaasii strain PT814 spontaneously occurred inP. tolaasii strain S8501 at 22–30°C in vitro. The occurrence of variants was significantly reduced in the presence of extracts ofP ostreatus or at a temperature of 15–20°C. ThertpA gene (rtpA=regulator gene of tolaasin production and other pleiotropic traits) isolated from aP. tolaasii strain PT814 gene library restored the wild-type phenotype in both the mini-Tn5km 1 insertion and spontaneous mutants. mini-Tn5km 1 insertions were also located in the allele ofrtpA. Nucleotide sequencing of thertpA DNA revealed an open reading frame of 2,751 bp predicted to encode a protein consisting of 917 amino acid residues with a molecular mass of 100.6 kDa and displaying the conserved amino acid sequence of both sensor, and receiver domains of “bacterial two-component regulators”. The data suggest that the machinery responding to environmental stimuli is essential for the pathogenic interaction ofP. tolaasii with the mushroom.     

Oxidation of syringic acid by extracellular peroxidase of white-rot fungus,Pleurotus ostreatus

The oxidative degradation of syringic acid by the extracellular peroxidase ofPleurotus ostreatus was studied. Three products formed in the oxidation of syringic acid by the peroxidase in the presence of O₂ and H₂O₂ were identified as 2,6-dimethoxyphenol, 2,6-dimethoxy-1,4-dihydroxybenzene, and 2,6-dimethoxy-1,4-benzoquinone. A free radical was detected as the reaction intermediate of the extracellular peroxidase-catalyzed oxidation of acetosyringone. These results can be explained by mechanisms involving the production of a phenoxy radical and subsequent decarboxylation. This is the first time that 2,6-dimethoxyphenol has been identified in extracellular peroxidase-catalyzed reactions.     

Isolation and characterization of a nitrate reductase deficient mutant of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Chlorella ellipsoidea</Emphasis> (Chlorophyta)

Using X-ray mutagenesis and a chlorate-resistance selection method, a nitrate reductase (NR)-deficient mutant of Chlorella ellipsoidea nrm-4 was isolated, which is incapable of using NO₃⁻ as a nitrogen source. NR activity was not detected in nrm-4, suggesting this is a null mutation. Molecular analysis revealed that nrm-4 has a two base deletion at position 2348–49 of its DNA sequence, which produced a frame-shift mutation. The nrm-4 mutation is stable and nrm-4 algae could only use NH₄⁺ and NO₂⁻ as nitrogen sources. Expression of a wild-type NR gene could complement this NR-deficient mutant. Furthermore, this transgenic strain was able to grow in NO₃⁻ medium, when the growth rate of the nrm-4 strain was equal to that of the wide type alga. The nrm-4 strain could potentially be used as a bioreactor that uses nitrate as a selectable marker instead of an antibiotic or herbicide.