Specificity of cellulase and β-xylanase induction in Trichoderma reesei QM 9414

Cellulose- and xylan-degrading enzymes of Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 induced by, sophorose, xylobiose, cellulose and xylan were analyzed by isoelectric focusing. The sophorose-induced enzyme system contained two types of endo-1,4--glucanases (EC 3.2.1.4), one specific for cellulose and the other non-specific, hydrolyzing both cellulose and xylan, and exo-1,4--glucanases (cellobiohydrolases I, EC 3.2.1.91), i.e. all types of glucanases that are produced during growth on cellulose. Specific endo-1,4--xylanases (EC 3.2.1.8) present in the cellulose-containing medium were less abundant in the sophorose-induced enzyme system. Xylobiose and xylan induced only specific endo-1,4--xylanases. It is concluded that syntheses of cellulases and -xylanases in T. reesei QM 9414 are under separate control and that the non-specific endo-1,4--glucanases are constituents of the cellulose-degrading enzyme system.     

Influence of blood sera from dogs subjected to ischemia and recirculation on incorporation of14C-amino acids in vitro

Incomplete ischemia of the spinal cord was produced in dogs by 40 min occlusion of the abdominal aorta that was followed by 5–40 min of recirculation. Amino acid incorporation into ribosomes in vitro in the presence of venous blood sera was estimated. The most significant reduction in incorporation was produced by sera of the dogs following a short recirculation period (5–10 min). No significant changes were observed at the end of the ischemic period nor at longer periods of recirculation. The decrease in incorporation might be the consequence of inactivation or absence of a substance stimulating polypeptide synthesis in vitro, normally present in blood sera of intact dogs, that temporarily loses its activity during recirculation.     

Effect of glucose on the amount of bacteria mineralizing 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid in soil

Plate numbers of bacteria and relative incidence of strains capable of mineralization of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) in chernozem samples incubated for 14 d with the herbicide (50 ppm) in the presence or absence of glucose (1000 ppm) were compared. Whereas the total number of bacteria increased 1.2-fold in the variant with 2,4-D and 2.4-fold in the variant with glucose and the herbicide, the number of 2,4-D-mineralizing bacteria increased 12.1-fold and 34.2-fold, respectively. In a collection of 96 isolates of soil bacteria substantially more strains capable of degradation of 2,4-D in the presence of glucose were detected as compared with the variant without it, indicating that processes of cometabolic type are involved during the degradation of this herbicide in the soil.     

Effect of labuctril 25 and three other herbicides on wild soil isolates and mutant strains of streptomycetes

Labuctril 25 (3,5-dibromo-4-hydroxybenzonitrile, LAB) at concentrations up to 100μg/mL inhibits effectively growth, morphology, and pigmentation of most soil streptomycete isolates grown under laboratory conditions. Oxytril CM (OXT), Basagran (BAS) and Faneron 50 WP (FAN) applied at the same concentrations had no detectable effect on growth of substrate mycelium but suppressed both aerial mycelium and pigment formation, the effectivity decreasing in the order OXT—BAS—FAN. The LAB-sensitivity of mutant strains was markedly higher as compared with that of the soil isolates. A wild strain resistant to 100–400μg of LAB per mL (depending on the medium composition) was isolated. It was capable of supporting the growth and development of sensitive strains on the LAB-containing medium. A stimulatory effect of low doses of LAB (10–20μg/mL) on the antibiotic activity of streptomycetes was observed.     

Cholinesterase activity in some species of theAllium genus

In partly purified protein complexes obtained from 22 species of theAllium genus and 6 cultivars ofAllium cepa the activity of cholinesterases was detected and measured using the method of Ellman et al. The degree of its inhibition with 10^-4 M neostigmine was also tested. It was found that the activity of cholinesterase differed in individual species up to two hundred times, while the differences in the inhibitory activity of 10^-4 M neostigmine occurred only in a few cases. Individual sections and cultivars could not be characterized on the basis of the differences in the activities of the cholinesterases. Of all the sections that ofPhyllodolon shows the highest average activity. In the case of the tested cultivars distinctly the lowest activity was observed in cv. Kastická. The values of the enzymatic activity measured by Ellman’s method in this plant material include the activity of specific and unspecific cholinesterases and the part uninhibitable by neostigmine.     

Comparison of malate dehydrogenase isoenzymes in someAllium species by isoelectric focusing

Malate dehydrogenase isoenzymes were studied in tenAllium species and in six cultivars ofA. cepa by isoelectric focusing in polyacrylamide gel with Ampholine pH 3.5–10.0. Using this method better resolution was obtained than by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The number of MDH isoenzymes obtained by isoelectric focusing is from five to ten in the range of pH 3.65 to 6.75. MDH isoenzymes can be used for characterization on the level of species and cultivars (inA. cepa), but its use on the level of sections and subgenera is questionable.     

The comparison of seed protein patterns within the genusArachis by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis

The seed protein patterns of 12Arachis species were compared by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE), similarities between patterns were measured by the Jaccard index. Results obtained confirm the close relationships established between members of the genus on morphological grounds and support the more recent classification schemes.A. villosa andA. correntina could well be regarded as distinct species on grounds of protein differences whileA. macedoi andA. villosulicarpa (although members of the same section, Extranervosae) show considerable differentiation of their protein patterns. Surprisingly, the formA. ×batizogaea showed less similarity in protein pattern to those of its parental species than might have been expected. The principle value of seed protein pattern data appears to be in distinguishing species within sections.     

Differential tolerance ofArabidopsis thaliana crown gall tumors and calli to 5-bromo-2′-deoxyuridine

The degree of tolerance of two crown gall tumors and leaf calli ofArabidopsis thaliana to BUdR was compared. The nopaline producing teratoma tumor tolerated BUdR in concentration as high as 2.10^?4 M. The tolerance of octopine producing unorganized crown gall tumor to BUdR was lower, but both exceeded significantly the degree of tolerance to BUdR of untransformedA. thaliana calli, where 10^?5 M BUdR already show some inhibitory effect on the growth rate.