NADPH oxidase involvement in cellular integrity

NADPH oxidase activity is involved in plant adaptation and development. The reactive oxygen species sourced by NADPH oxidase activity may contribute to wall strength and protoplast volume adjustment. Root hair bulge apices of the NADPH oxidase mutant rhd2/Atrbohc were more robust than the kjk cellulose synthase mutant, but burst more readily than the wild type (WT). Root epidermal wall appeared impaired in rhd2/Atrbohc, as revealed by the number of protoplasts released by wall-degrading enzymes. Root hair bulges of rhd2/Atrbohc burst more than the WT when challenged in situ with hypo-osmotic low ionic strength medium. Inhibition of NADPH oxidase activity with diphenylene iodonium caused WT to phenocopy the rhd2/Atrbohc bursting in response to hypo-osmotic shock. This implicates RHD2/AtRBOHC in softening the cell wall to permit protoplast expansion. Overall, the results point to a role for RHD2/AtRBOHC in contributing to wall strength.     

水稻移栽密度和早期水管理对无芒稗生态控制效果的影响

在 5 0株·m-2 无芒稗的干扰下 ,杂交水稻Ⅱ优 2 0 70移栽密度 1 9 8cm× 2 6 4cm处理对无芒稗的生态控制效果显著高于较稀密度的 1 9 8cm× 4 6 2cm ,无芒稗颖果减少 71 %。移栽密度 1 9 8cm× 2 6 4cm保证了较高的水稻有效穗和千粒重 ,比移栽密度 1 9 8cm× 4 6 2cm的水稻增产 1 3 3%。早期深水灌溉能有效控制萌芽期的无芒稗 ,但不能防治 3叶龄的无芒稗     

Ultrastructural aspects of localized membrane damage in Spirillum serpens VHL early in its association with Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus 109D

The freeze-fracture technique and electron microscopy have been used to demonstrate that localized damage is inflicted upon the cytoplasmic membrane of Spirillum serpens VHL within 20 to 30 min after the start of its association with Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus 109D. This damage is not observed in uninfected Spirillum cells, nor in infected cells within the first 10 min. This damage takes the form of a “blister” which, when viewed stereoscopically in electron micrographs, is seen to project toward the interior of the Spirillum cell. Shortly after its formation, the blister becomes elaborated into a series of ridges which may assume forms ranging from an elaborate spiral to a series of loops or knots. The formation of a blister is shown to involve both the inner and outer leaves of the membrane bilayer, and evidence is presented to indicate that the blister site corresponds to the site of attachment of the Bdellovibrio cell. The hypothesis is proposed that this ultrastructural damage is the cytological basis for the controlled and localized leakage through the cytoplasmic membrane into the periplasmic space of the Spirillum cell at locations adjacent to the Bdellovibrio cell. It is suggested that this localized membrane damage may be the ultrastructural basis for the high efficiency with which bdellowvibrios are known to incorporate cytoplasmic materials from the other bacteria in whose periplasmic spaces they develop.     

Gene Transmission Among Strains of Erwinia amylovora

Stable donor strains of Erwinia amylovora were obtained from strain EA178R(1) (harboring an Escherichia coli F'lac) by selection for clones resistant to curing by acridine orange. These donor strains (EA178R(1)-99 and EA178R(1)-111) transfer chromosomal markers (arg, cys, gua, ilv, met, pro, ser, trp); the frequency of the appearance of recombinants prototrophic for Cys, Gua, Met, Ser, and Trp is highest (> 10(-5)), followed by recombinants prototrophic for Arg, Ilv, and Pro (10(-7) to 10(-5)). The results of interrupted matings, as well as the frequency of transmission of various markers, suggest that cys is transferred as an early marker by both donor strains. The Hfr state of these donor strains is rather likely on the basis of the following observations. The donor strains exhibit a relatively efficient and possibly oriented chromosome transfer; the Lac(+) character is not cured by acridine orange in these donor strains; and these donor strains do not transfer F.     

Parasitoid wasp virulence

In nature, larvae of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster are commonly infected by parasitoid wasps. Following infection, flies mount an immune response termed cellular encapsulation in which fly immune cells form a multilayered capsule that covers and kills the wasp egg. Parasitoids have thus evolved virulence factors to suppress cellular encapsulation. To uncover the molecular mechanisms underlying the antiwasp response, we and others have begun identifying and functionally characterizing these virulence factors. Our recent work on the Drosophila parasitoid Ganaspis sp.1 has demonstrated that a virulence factor encoding a SERCA-type calcium pump plays an important role in Ganaspis sp.1 virulence. This venom SERCA antagonizes fly immune cell calcium signaling and thereby prevents the activation of the encapsulation response. In this way, the study of wasp virulence factors has revealed a novel aspect of fly immunity, namely a role for calcium signaling in fly immune cell activation, which is conserved with human immunity, again illustrating the marked conservation between fly and mammalian immune responses. Our findings demonstrate that the cellular encapsulation response can serve as a model of immune cell function and can also provide valuable insight into basic cell biological processes.     

GUX1 and GUX2 glucuronyltransferases decorate distinct domains of glucuronoxylan with different substitution patterns

Xylan comprises up to one‐third of plant cell walls, and it influences the properties and processing of biomass. Glucuronoxylan in Arabidopsis is characterized by a linear β‐(1,4)‐linked backbone of xylosyl residues substituted by glucuronic acid and 4‐O‐methylglucuronic acid (collectively termed [Me]GlcA). The role of these substitutions remains unclear. GUX1 (glucuronic acid substitution of xylan 1) and GUX2, recently identified as glucuronyltransferases, are both required for substitution of the xylan backbone with [Me]GlcA. Here, we demonstrate clear differences in the pattern of [Me]GlcA substitution generated by each of these glucuronyltransferases. GUX1 decorates xylan with a preference for addition of [Me]GlcA at evenly spaced xylosyl residues. Intervals of eight or 10 residues dominate, but larger intervals are observed. GUX2, in contrast, produces more tightly clustered decorations with most frequent spacing of five, six or seven xylosyl residues, with no preference for odd or even spacing. Moreover, each of these GUX transferases substitutes a distinct domain of secondary cell wall xylan, which we call the major and minor domains. These major and minor xylan domains were not separable from each other by size or charge, a finding that suggests that they are tightly associated. The presence of both differently [Me]GlcA decorated domains may produce a xylan molecule that is heterogeneous in its properties. We speculate that the major and minor domains of xylan may be specialised, such as for interaction with cellulose or lignin. These findings have substantial implications for our understanding of xylan synthesis and structure, and for models of the molecular architecture of the lignocellulosic matrix of plant cell walls.