Cryptococcus cerealis sp. nov. a psychrophilic yeast species isolated from fermented cereals

Two yeast strains isolated in 2007 from fermented pig feed were studied, including the analysis of sequences of the D1/D2 and ITS-regions of the rDNA-repeats, their morphology and nutritional physiology. Sequence comparison of the D1/D2 and ITS regions demonstrated that the strains do not belong to any known species. Therefore, a new species, Cryptococcus cerealis with the type strain CBS 10505, is proposed. The species belongs to Filobasidiales (Agaricomycetes, Basidiomycota), and has Cryptococcus saitoi as the closest related species. The new species is psychrophilic, showing significant growth at 4 and 10°C.     

Temperature-Induced Replacement of Phosphate Proton with Metal Ion Captured in Neutron Structures of A-DNA

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Mitochondrial function and autophagy: integrating proteotoxic,redox, and metabolic stress in Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a movement disorder with widespread neurodegeneration in the brain. Significant oxidative, reductive, metabolic, and proteotoxic alterations have been observed in PD postmortem brains. The alterations of mitochondrial function resulting in decreased bioenergetic health is important and needs to be further examined to help develop biomarkers for PD severity and prognosis. It is now becoming clear that multiple hits on metabolic and signaling pathways are likely to exacerbate PD pathogenesis. Indeed, data obtained from genetic and genome association studies have implicated interactive contributions of genes controlling protein quality control and metabolism. For example, loss of key proteins that are responsible for clearance of dysfunctional mitochondria through a process called mitophagy has been found to cause PD, and a significant proportion of genes associated with PD encode proteins involved in the autophagy‐lysosomal pathway. In this review, we highlight the evidence for the targeting of mitochondria by proteotoxic, redox and metabolic stress, and the role autophagic surveillance in maintenance of mitochondrial quality. Furthermore, we summarize the role of α‐synuclein, leucine‐rich repeat kinase 2, and tau in modulating mitochondrial function and autophagy. Among the stressors that can overwhelm the mitochondrial quality control mechanisms, we will discuss 4‐hydroxynonenal and nitric oxide. The impact of autophagy is context depend and as such can have both beneficial and detrimental effects. Furthermore, we highlight the potential of targeting mitochondria and autophagic function as an integrated therapeutic strategy and the emerging contribution of the microbiome to PD susceptibility.

     

Dimerization of the p53 oligomerization domain: identification of a folding nucleus by molecular dynamics simulations

Dimerization of the p53 oligomerization domain involves coupled folding and binding of monomers. To examine the dimerization, we have performed molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of dimer folding from the rate-limiting transition state ensemble (TSE). Among 799 putative transition state structures that were selected from a large ensemble of high-temperature unfolding trajectories, 129 were identified as members of the TSE via calculation of a 50% transmission coefficient from at least 20 room-temperature simulations. This study is the first to examine the refolding of a protein dimer using MD simulations in explicit water, revealing a folding nucleus for dimerization. Our atomistic simulations are consistent with experiment and offer insight that was previously unobtainable.     

Daily Rhythm of Mutualistic Pollinator Activity and Scent Emission in Ficus septica: Ecological Differentiation between Co-Occurring Pollinators and Potential Consequences for Chemical Communication and Facilitation of Host Speciation

The mutualistic interaction between Ficus and their pollinating agaonid wasps constitutes an extreme example of plant-insect co-diversification. Most Ficus species are locally associated with a single specific agaonid wasp species. Specificity is ensured by each fig species emitting a distinctive attractive scent. However, cases of widespread coexistence of two agaonid wasp species on the same Ficus species are documented. Here we document the coexistence of two agaonid wasp species in Ficus septica: one yellow-colored and one black-colored. Our results suggest that their coexistence is facilitated by divergent ecological traits. The black species is longer-lived (a few more hours) and is hence active until later in the afternoon. Some traits of the yellow species must compensate for this advantage for their coexistence to be stable. In addition, we show that the composition of the scent emitted by receptive figs changes between sunrise and noon. The two species may therefore be exposed to somewhat different ranges of receptive fig scent composition and may consequently diverge in the way they perceive and/or respond to scents. Whether such situations may lead to host plant speciation is an open question.     

Egg laying preference of Sesamia nonagrioides (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) among primary and secondary hosts

Sesamia nonagrioides Lefébvre (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) has a fairly wide range of host plants. The present study tests the egg-laying preference of S. nonagrioides on four potential host plants (maize, sweet and fiber sorghum and johnsongrass) with respect to several life history traits. No-choice and two-choice tests in all possible combinations were conducted. Concerning no-choice tests, significantly higher number of eggs were laid on sweet sorghum (282.5 eggs/female) in relation to the other tested plants. Moreover, viability of eggs that were laid on sweet sorghum was significantly higher in relation to those that were laid on johnsongrass. Longevity of females reared on maize plants was significantly greater compared with the other test plants except johnsongrass. Furthermore, pre-oviposition period of females reared on maize was significantly longer (2.4-fold) compared with that on sweet sorghum and johnsongrass. Similarly post-oviposition period of females reared on maize was significantly longer compared with that on fiber sorghum. On two choice tests significantly fewer eggs were laid on sweet sorghum than on maize. On the other hand, significantly more eggs were laid on sweet sorghum than on fiber sorghum and johnsongrass. We discuss the potential of secondary hosts to be used as trap plants.