Effect of germination temperature on characteristics of phytase production from barley

The effects of germination temperature on the growth of barley seedlings for phytase production were studied at 15, 20 and 25 degrees C for 6-10 days. The growth rate of the barley seedlings was increased as the germination temperature was increased. The initial rate of total protein production was closely coupled to that of the barley growth, and the rate of total protein production tended to increase as the germination temperature was increased. SDS-PAGE analysis of total protein from the barley seedlings showed time-dependent appearance and disappearance of protein bands. Although no significant phytase activity was detected at zero time of germination, a significant increase in phytase activity up to 7.9-fold occurred during the first several days of germination then decreased. Phosphate production (viz. phytate degradation) in the barley seedlings occurred rapidly at the beginning of germination. However, the rate of production continued to decrease with further germination. A time lag of about 1-2 days between the rate of total protein production and that of phytase production was observed. Unlike the extent of total protein production, that of phytase production was similar irrespective of germination temperature. Partial purification of a crude enzyme extract by hydrophobic interaction chromatography resulted in two phytase fractions (PI and PII). Zymogram analysis demonstrated that PI had two bands with molecular masses of about 66 and 123 kDa while PII had one band corresponding to a molecular mass of about 96 kDa. The optimal temperature for PI was found to be 55 degrees C, while it was 50 degrees C for PII. The enzyme fraction PI had a pH optimum at 6.0, whereas the optimum pH for PII was found to be 5.0. Addition of 0.1% (v/v) Tween 80 was found to increase enzyme activity significantly (i.e., 167% for PI and 137% for PII). Phytate in cereals including barley, rice, corn and soybean degraded effectively by the treatment of the barley phytases.     

Suppression of thymus- and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC/CCL17) production by 1,2,3,4,6-penta-O-galloyl-β-d-glucose via blockade of NF-κB and STAT1 activation in the HaCaT cells

Keratinocytes, one of major cell types in the skin, can be induced by TNF-α and IFN-γ to express thymus- and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC/CCL17), which is considered to be a pivotal mediator in the inflammatory responses during the development of inflammatory skin diseases, such as atopic dermatitis (AD). In this study, we examined the effect of 1,2,3,4,6-penta-O-galloyl-β-d-glucose (PGG), isolated from the barks of Juglans mandshurica, on TNF-α/IFN-γ induced CCL17 expression in the human keratinocyte cell line HaCaT. Pretreatment of HaCaT cells with PGG suppressed TNF-α/IFN-γ-induced protein and mRNA expression of CCL17. PGG significantly inhibited TNF-α/IFN-γ-induced NF-κB activation as well as STAT1 activation. Furthermore, pretreatment with PGG resulted in significant reduction in expression of CXCL9, 10, and 11 in the HaCaT cells treated with IFN-γ. These results suggest that PGG may exert anti-inflammatory responses by suppressing TNF-α and/or IFN-γ-induced activation of NF-κB and STAT1 in the keratinocytes and might be a useful tool in therapy of skin inflammatory diseases.     

Relationship Between β-Amyloid and Mitochondrial Dynamics

Mitochondria as dynamic organelles undergo morphological changes through the processes of fission and fusion which are major factors regulating their functions. A disruption in the balance of mitochondrial dynamics induces functional disorders in mitochondria such as failed energy production and the generation of reactive oxygen species, which are closely related to pathophysiological changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Recent studies have demonstrated a relationship between abnormalities in mitochondrial dynamics and impaired mitochondrial function, clarifying the effects of morphofunctional aberrations which promote neuronal cell death in AD. Several possible signaling pathways have been suggested for a better understanding of the mechanism behind the key molecules regulating mitochondrial morphologies. However, the exact machinery involved in mitochondrial dynamics still has yet to be elucidated. This paper reviews the current knowledge on signaling mechanisms involved in mitochondrial dynamics and the significance of mitochondrial dynamics in controlling associated functions in neurodegenerative diseases, particularly in AD.     

RML1 and RML2, Arabidopsis genes required for cell proliferation at the root tip.

New cells are produced from the meristematic tissues located at the shoot and root tip throughout the life of higher plants. To investigate the genetic mechanism regulating meristematic activity, we isolated and characterized four single-gene, recessive mutants in Arabidopsis thaliana called root meristemless (rml). Complementation tests identified two RML loci; RML1 maps to chromosome IV and RML2 maps to chromosome III. These mutants produce normal embryonic roots that either did not undergo or experienced limited cell division following germination, resulting in primary roots of less than 2.0 mm in length. Mutants can produce lateral and adventitious roots, which can grow to a length comparable to the embryonic root and arrest, indicating that the growth arrest is unrelated to the embryonic dormancy process. Neither the addition of growth regulators to the media nor the removal of shoots can rescue mutant roots from growth arrest, indicating that the mutant phenotype is not caused by a shortage of known growth regulators or by a transmissible shoot inhibitor. Normal cell division ability in mutant embryo, shoot, and callus cells indicates that the RML gene functions are not part of the general cell division processes; rather, they are involved specifically in activating the cell division cycle in the root apical cells.     

Fabrication of degradable carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) microneedle with laser writing and replica molding process for enhancement of transdermal drug delivery

Transdermal drug delivery system (TDDS) may provide a more reliable method of drug delivery than oral delivery by avoiding gut absorption and first-pass metabolism, but needs a method for efficiently crossing the epidermal barrier. To enhance the delivery through the skin, we have developed a biocompatible, dissolvable microneedle array made from carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC). Using laser ablation for creating the mold greatly improved the efficiency and reduced the cost of microneedle fabrication. Mixing CMC with amylopectin (AP) enhanced the mechanical and tunable dissolution properties of the microneedle for controlled release of model compounds. Using the CMC microneedle array, we observed significant enhancement in the skin permeability of a fluorescent model compound, and also increase in the anti-oxidant activity of ascorbic acid after crossing the skin. Our dissolvable microneedle array provides a new and biocompatible method for delivery of drugs and cosmetic compounds through the skin.     

Facilitation of Expression and Purification of an Antimicrobial Peptide by Fusion with Baculoviral Polyhedrin in Escherichia coli

Several fusion strategies have been developed for the expression and purification of small antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) in recombinant bacterial expression systems. However, some of these efforts have been limited by product toxicity to host cells, product proteolysis, low expression levels, poor recovery yields, and sometimes an absence of posttranslational modifications required for biological activity. For the present work, we investigated the use of the baculoviral polyhedrin (Polh) protein as a novel fusion partner for the production of a model AMP (halocidin 18-amino-acid subunit; Hal18) in Escherichia coli. The useful solubility properties of Polh as a fusion partner facilitated the expression of the Polh-Hal18 fusion protein (~33.6 kDa) by forming insoluble inclusion bodies in E. coli which could easily be purified by inclusion body isolation and affinity purification using the fused hexahistidine tag. The recombinant Hal18 AMP (~2 kDa) could then be cleaved with hydroxylamine from the fusion protein and easily recovered by simple dialysis and centrifugation. This was facilitated by the fact that Polh was soluble during the alkaline cleavage reaction but became insoluble during dialysis at a neutral pH. Reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography was used to further purify the separated recombinant Hal18, giving a final yield of 30% with >90% purity. Importantly, recombinant and synthetic Hal18 peptides showed nearly identical antimicrobial activities against E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus, which were used as representative gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria, respectively. These results demonstrate that baculoviral Polh can provide an efficient and facile platform for the production or functional study of target AMPs.     

Effect of organosolv pretreatment on mechanically pretreated biomass by use of concentrated ethanol as the solvent

In this study, we determined the effect of organosolv pretreatment on herbaceous biomasses corn stover and wheat straw, by using high-concentration ethanol as the solvent. A high-concentration of ethanol allows for the easy reuse and recycling of the solvent. First, we tested the effects of ethanol pretreatments at 60 and 99.5% (w/w) and found that highest solvent concentration resulted in low glucose digestibility. The maximum enzymatic glucose digestibility with 60% ethanol was 92.6% at 190°C for 120 min (using corn stover) and 86.9% at 190°C for 120 min (using wheat straw). In contrast, the digestion rates with 99.5% ethanol were 68.8 and 77.4% under the same conditions, respectively, indicating that there is a limit to the use of high-concentration ethanol as the solvent. To overcome this limitation, we applied a mechanical pretreatment step before the chemical pretreatment. Subsequently, glucose digestibility increased significantly to 93.1% with 99.5% ethanol as the solvent. Additionally the enzymatic digestibility of mechanically pretreated corn stover was higher than that of non-pretreated corn stover by about 40%. Taken together, these results confirm the efficacy of using high-concentration ethanol as a solvent for organosolv pretreatment when done in conjunction with mechanical pretreatment.     

Expression of aldehyde dehydrogenase 6 reduces inhibitory effect of furan derivatives on cell growth and ethanol production in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Yeast dehydrogenases and reductases were overexpressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae D452-2 to detoxify 2-furaldehyde (furfural) and 5-hydroxymethyl furaldehyde (HMF), two potent toxic chemicals present in acid-hydrolyzed cellulosic biomass, and hence improve cell growth and ethanol production. Among those enzymes, aldehyde dehydrogenase 6 (ALD6) played the dual roles of direct oxidation of furan derivatives and supply of NADPH cofactor to their reduction reactions. Batch fermentation of S. cerevisiae D452-2/pH-ALD6 in the presence of 2 g/L furfural and 0.5 g/L HMF resulted in 20-30% increases in specific growth rate, ethanol concentration and ethanol productivity, compared with those of the wild type strain. It was proposed that overexpression of ALD6 could recover the yeast cell metabolism and hence increase ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass containing furan-derived inhibitors.