Biological and biochemical characterization of a red-eye mutant in Nilaparvata lugens （Hemiptera： Delphacidae）

A red-eye colony was established in our laboratory in brown planthopper （BPH）, Nilaparvata lugens （Stal）, a major rice pest in Asia. Except for the red-eye phenotype, no other differences were observed between the wild-type （brown eye） and the mutant-type （red eye） in external characters. Genetic analysis revealed that the red-eye phenotype was controlled by a single autosomal recessive allele. Biological studies found that egg produc- tion and egg viability in the red-eye mutant colony were not significantly different from those in the wild-type BPH. Biochemical analysis and electronic microscopy examination revealed that the red-eye mutants contained decreased levels of both xanthommatin （brown） and pteridine （red） and reduced number of pigment granules. Thus, the changes of amount and ratio of the two pigments is the biochemical basis of this red-eye mutation. Our results indicate that the red-eye mutant gene （red） might be involved in one common gene locus shared by the two pigments in pigment transportation, pigment granule formation or some other processes.     

02428×合系35 的RIL群体糙米总黄酮与总生物碱含量的遗传分析

测定了水稻02428与合系35杂交培育的222个RIL（重组自交系）及其亲本的发芽糙米和糙米总黄酮和生物碱含量,对其进行遗传分析和探讨了发芽糙米和糙米中总黄酮、生物碱的含量变化。结果表明,RIL群体发芽糙米和糙米中总黄酮、生物碱呈现广泛的遗传变异,糙米总黄酮含量略高于发芽糙米,但两者均呈正态分布,类似于数量性状的分布特征。RIL群体发芽糙米生物碱含量是糙米的1.5倍,且两者呈偏态分布;为功能水稻的遗传及品种选育提供一定的理论依据。     

02428×合系35的RIL群体糙米总黄酮与总生物碱含量的遗传分析

测定了水稻02428与合系35杂交培育的222个RIL(重组自交系)及其亲本的发芽糙米和糙米总黄酮和生物碱含量,对其进行遗传分析及探讨了发芽糙米和糙米中总黄酮、生物碱的含量变化.结果表明,RIL群体发芽糙米和糙米中总黄酮、生物碱呈现广泛的遗传变异,糙米总黄酮含量略高于发芽糙米,但两者均呈正态分布,类似于性状的分布特征.RIL群体发芽糙米生物碱含量是糙米的1.5倍,且两者呈偏态分布;为功能水稻的遗传及品种选育提供了一定的理论依据.     

FRACTIONATION OF THE EYE PIGMENTS OF DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER

Eye pigments of normal and mutant types of D. melanogaster have been extracted with water and fractionated by chromatographic adsorption on powdered talc. Spectra of all the fractions obtainable in solution have been measured and the general chemical behavior of the pigments is described. Two chemically distinct groups of pigments are found, to be identified with the earlier designated red and brown components. The red component in the wild-type eye contains three well defined pigments, two of them capable of further subdivision so that the total number of fractions obtained is five. There is also present a brown component pigment which could not be treated quantitatively by the methods employed. All members of the wild-type red component are found in cinnabar eyes, unaccompanied by the brown component. Conversely, brown eyes contain a pigment indistinguishable from the wild-type brown component, virtually alone. In sepia eyes, one red component and two brown component pigments can be distinguished, all three pigments differing from those of wild-type eyes. Pigments apparently identical with those found in wild-type melanogaster eyes have also been found in D. virilis.     

Chemical Characteristics of Grains of Rice (Oryza sativa L.) Cultivated in Saline Media of Varying Ionic Composition

Two varieties of rice (Oryza sativa L.), Pokkali (salt-tolerant)and IR5929-12-3 (salt-sensitive), were grown in media of varyingionic composition namely chloride-sulphate (with sulphate dominant),sulphate-chloride (with chloride dominant) and chloride. Eachsalinity type had four different levels (expressed as electricalconductance) 2, 4, 6 and 8 dS m^–1. Amylose content ofthe endosperm, gelatinization temperature of the endosperm starch,brown rice protein content and the Na content of the hull andmilled rice showed that different salinity types affect thesecharacteristics differently. The greater Na accumulation inthe hull than in the milled rice in both varieties is presumedto be an adaptive response to salinity. Key words: Salinity, ionic compositions, rice grain.     

Transgenic rice lines expressing maize C1 and R-S regulatory genes produce various flavonoids in the endosperm

Flavonoids, compounds that possess diverse health-promoting benefits, are lacking in the endosperm of rice. Therefore, to develop transgenic lines that produce flavonoids, we transformed a white rice cultivar, Oryza sativa japonica cv. Hwa-Young, with maize C1 and R-S regulatory genes. Expression of these transgenes was restricted to the endosperm using the promoter of a rice prolamin gene. The pericarp of the C1/R-S homozygous lines became dark brown in accordance with their maternal genotype, whereas the endosperm turned chalky, similar to the opaque kernel phenotype. Analysis via high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) revealed that numerous kinds of flavonoids were produced in these transgenic kernels. To identify individual flavonoids, the number of HPLC peaks was reduced through moderate acid hydrolysis, followed by ethyl acetate partitioning. Amongst the major flavonoids, dihydroquercetin (taxifolin), dihydroisorhamnetin (3'-O-methyl taxifolin) and 3'-O-methyl quercetin were identified through liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance analyses. Fluorescence labelling with diphenylboric acid showed that the flavonoids were highly concentrated in the cells of four to five outer endosperm layers. More importantly, a high fluorescence signal was present in the cytosol of the inner endosperm layers. However, the overall signal in the inner layers was significantly lower because starch granules and protein bodies occupied most of the cytosolic space. Our estimate of the total flavonoid content in the transgenic kernels suggests that C1/R-S rice has the potential to be developed further as a novel variety that can produce various flavonoids in its endosperm.     

The pleiotropic ABNORMAL FLOWER AND DWARF1 affects plant height,floral development and grain yield in rice

Moderate plant height and successful establishment of reproductive organs play pivotal roles in rice grain production. The molecular mechanism that controls the two aspects remains unclear in rice. In the present study, we characterized a rice gene, ABNORMAL FLOWER AND DWARF1 (AFD1) that determined plant height, floral development and grain yield. The afd1 mutant showed variable defects including the dwarfism, long panicle, low seed setting and reduced grain yield. In addition, abnormal floral organs were also observed in the afd1 mutant including slender and thick hulls, and hull‐like lodicules. AFD1 encoded a DUF640 domain protein and was expressed in all tested tissues and organs. Subcellular localization showed AFD1‐green fluorescent fusion protein (GFP) was localized in the nucleus. Meantime, our results suggested that AFD1 regulated the expression of cell division and expansion related genes.     

水稻OsLecRK1基因介导的抗褐飞虱功能分析

褐飞虱Nilaparvata lugens St(a)l是对水稻最具破坏性的害虫之一,OsLecRK1是水稻Bph3基因簇中对褐飞虱抗性贡献最大的基因.本文对RHTd(含Bph3)等材料进行了褐飞虱抗性评价,克隆并构建了OsLecRK1过量表达突变体水稻,利用该突变体分析了OsLecRK1基因对褐飞虱若虫存活率、若虫发育历期等生物学参数的影响.结果 表明,含Bph3基因水稻RHTd对褐飞虱的抗性明显地强于含Bph1基因水稻Mudgo和bph2基因水稻ASD7,RHTd水稻的褐飞虱受害指数仅为Mudgo和ASD7水稻的53.5％和24.1％.过量表达OsLecRK1基因能显著地增加水稻对褐飞虱的驱避性和抗生性,褐飞虱雌成虫偏好于在野生型水稻上产卵;突变体水稻上的褐飞虱若虫存活率显著地降低,仅为野生型水稻上若虫存活率的75.2％ ～81.8％,且若虫发育历期显著地延长,羽化率和初羽化雌成虫体重均显著地降低;此外,褐飞虱在突变体水稻上取食分泌的蜜露量只有野生型上的40.3％ ～ 60.9％,褐飞虱单雌产卵量只为野生型51％ ～61.2％,卵孵化率只有野生型的52.2％～56.7％,均显著地减少.结果 表明,含Bph3基因水稻RHTd对褐飞虱的抗性明显地高于分别含Bph1、bph2的水稻Mudgo和ASD7;水稻Bph3基因座的OsLecRK1单个基因过量表达即可显著增加水稻对褐飞虱的抗性,OsLecRK1协同影响褐飞虱的多个生物学参数降低褐飞虱的适合度.     

Interaction of major coat color gene functions in mice as studied by chemical analysis of eumelanin and pheomelanin

Melanocytes produce two chemically distinct types of melanin pigments, eumelanin and pheomelanin. These pigments can be quantitatively analyzed by acidic permanganate oxidation or reductive hydrolysis with hydriodic acid to form pyrrole-2,3,5-tricarboxylic acid or aminohydroxyphenylalanine, respectively. About 30 coat color genes in mice have been cloned, and functions of many of those genes have been elucidated. However, little is known about the interacting functions of these loci. In this study, we used congenic mice to eliminate genetic variability, and analyzed eumelanin and pheomelanin contents of hairs from mice mutant at one or more of the major pigment loci, i.e., the albino (C) locus that encodes tyrosinase, the slaty (Slt) locus that encodes tyrosinase-related protein 2 (TRP2 also known as dopachrome tautomerase, DCT), the brown (B) locus that encodes TRP1, the silver (Si) locus that encodes a melanosomal silver protein, the agouti (A) locus that encodes agouti signaling protein (ASP), the extension (E) locus that encodes melanocortin-1 receptor, and the mahogany (Mg) locus that encodes attractin. We also measured total melanin contents after solubilization of hairs in hot Soluene-350 plus water. Hairs were shaved from 2-3-month-old congenic C57BL/6J mice. The chinchilla (c(ch)) allele is known to encode tyrosinase, whose activity is about one third that of wild type (C). Phenotypes of chinchilla (c(ch)/c(ch)) mice that are wild type or mutant at the brown and/or slaty, loci indicate that functioning TRP2 and TRP1 are necessary, in addition to high levels of tyrosinase, for a full production of eumelanin. The chinchilla allele was found to reduce the amount of pheomelanin in lethal yellow and recessive yellow mice to less than one fifth of that in congenic yellow mice that were wild type at the albino locus. This indicates that reduction in tyrosinase activity affects pheomelanogenesis more profoundly compared with eumelanogenesis. Hairs homozygous for mutation at the slaty locus contain 5,6-dihydroxyindole-2-carboxylic acid (DHICA)-poor melanin, and this chemical phenotype was retained in hairs that were mutant at both the brown locus and the slaty locus. Hair from mice mutant at the brown locus, but not at the slaty locus, do not contain DHICA-poor melanin. This indicates that the proportion of DHICA in eumelanin is determined by TRP2, but not by TRP1. Mutation at the slaty locus (Slt(lt)) was found to have no effect on pheomelanogenesis, supporting a role of TRP2 only in eumelanogenesis. The mutation at silver (si) locus showed an effect similar to brown, a partial suppression of eumelanogenesis. The mutation at mahogany (mg) locus partially suppressed the effect of lethal yellow (Ay) on pheomelanogenesis, supporting a role of mahogany in interfering with agouti signaling. These results show that combination of double mutation study of congenic mice with chemical analysis of melanins is useful in evaluating the interaction of pigment gene functions.     

Genetic mapping identifies a rice naringenin O-glucosyltransferase that influences insect resistance

Naringenin, the biochemical precursor for predominant flavonoids in grasses, provides protection against UV damage, pathogen infection and insect feeding. To identify previously unknown loci influencing naringenin accumulation in rice (Oryza sativa), recombinant inbred lines derived from the Nipponbare and IR64 cultivars were used to map a quantitative trait locus (QTL) for naringenin abundance to a region of 50 genes on rice chromosome 7. Examination of candidate genes in the QTL confidence interval identified four predicted uridine diphosphate-dependent glucosyltransferases (Os07g31960, Os07g32010, Os07g32020 and Os07g32060). In vitro assays demonstrated that one of these genes, Os07g32020 (UGT707A3), encodes a glucosyltransferase that converts naringenin and uridine diphosphate-glucose to naringenin-7-O-β-d -glucoside. The function of Os07g32020 was verified with CRISPR/Cas9 mutant lines, which accumulated more naringenin and less naringenin-7-O-β-d -glucoside and apigenin-7-O-β-d -glucoside than wild-type Nipponbare. Expression of Os12g13800, which encodes a naringenin 7-O-methyltransferase that produces sakuranetin, was elevated in the mutant lines after treatment with methyl jasmonate and insect pests, Spodoptera litura (cotton leafworm), Oxya hyla intricata (rice grasshopper) and Nilaparvata lugens (brown planthopper), leading to a higher accumulation of sakuranetin. Feeding damage from O. hyla intricata and N. lugens was reduced on the Os07g32020 mutant lines relative to Nipponbare. Modification of the Os07g32020 gene could be used to increase the production of naringenin and sakuranetin rice flavonoids in a more targeted manner. These findings may open up new opportunities for selective breeding of this important rice metabolic trait.     

Development of transgenic rice seed accumulating a major Japanese cedar pollen allergen (Cry j 1) structurally disrupted for oral immunotherapy

Rice seed-based edible vaccines expressing T-cell epitope peptides derived from Japanese cedar major pollen allergens have been used to successfully suppress allergen-specific Th2-mediated immunoglobulin E (IgE) responses in mouse experiments. In order to further expand the application of seed-based allergen-specific immunotherapy for controlling Japanese cedar pollinosis, we generated transgenic rice plants that specifically express recombinant Cry j 1 allergens in seeds. Cry j 1 allergens give low specific IgE-binding activity but contain all of the T-cell epitopes. The allergens were expressed directly or as a protein fusion with the major rice storage protein glutelin. Fusion proteins expressed under the control of the strong rice endosperm-specific GluB-1 promoter accumulated in rice endosperm tissue up to 15% of total seed protein. The fusion proteins aggregated with cysteine-rich prolamin and were deposited in endoplasmic reticulum-derived protein body I. The production of transgenic rice expressing structurally disrupted Cry j 1 peptides with low IgE binding activity but spanning the entire Cry j1 region can be used as a universal, safe and effective tolerogen for rice seed-based oral immunotherapy for cedar pollen allergy in humans and other mammals.     

The rice HGW gene encodes a ubiquitin-associated (UBA) domain protein that regulates heading date and grain weight

Heading date and grain weight are two determining agronomic traits of crop yield. To date, molecular factors controlling both heading date and grain weight have not been identified. Here we report the isolation of a hemizygous mutation, heading and grain weight (hgw), which delays heading and reduces grain weight in rice. Analysis of hgw mutant phenotypes indicate that the hemizygous hgw mutation decreases latitudinal cell number in the lemma and palea, both composing the spikelet hull that is known to determine the size and shape of brown grain. Molecular cloning and characterization of the HGW gene showed that it encodes a novel plant-specific ubiquitin-associated (UBA) domain protein localized in the cytoplasm and nucleus, and functions as a key upstream regulator to promote expressions of heading date- and grain weight-related genes. Moreover, co-expression analysis in rice and Arabidopsis indicated that HGW and its Arabidopsis homolog are co-expressed with genes encoding various components of ubiquitination machinery, implying a fundamental role for the ubiquitination pathway in heading date and grain weight control.     

纤维素高效降解菌YN1的筛选及其降解特性

为了获得降解天然纤维素的微生物菌株,并用于农田秸秆腐熟及竹林地稻壳促腐。从牛羊粪堆肥中筛选出一株纤维素降解菌YN1,对其进行了形态和系统发育分析;测定了YN1的液、固体发酵酶活;进行了YN1对纤维素的失重测定;对YN1在纤维素表面上的定殖及其对纤维素的降解进行了电镜观察。经菌株形态分析和ITS基因序列分析,将YN1鉴定为曲霉(Aspergillussp.);在YN1菌株的液体发酵培养第3天,内切酶、外切酶、β-糖苷酶和总纤维素酶活性都达到最大值,分别为95.7、14.6、20.5和26.6U/mL,固体发酵培养第5d各酶活均达到峰值,依次为1192.2、100.6、136.9和210.7U/g;在失重测定中,YN1在7d内可降解41.87%的秸秆,31.59%的稻壳;在扫描电镜下可明显观察到YN1对滤纸、秸秆和稻壳的降解。YN1可有效降解天然纤维素,对农田秸秆腐熟及竹林地稻壳促腐具有较好的应用前景。