Reduced Severity of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis in GMF-Deficient Mice

Glia maturation factor (GMF), a highly conserved brain-specific protein, isolated, sequenced and cloned in our laboratory. Overexpression of GMF in astrocytes induces the production and secretion of granulocyte-macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), and subsequent immune activation of microglia, expression of several proinflammatory genes including major histocompatibility complex proteins, IL-1β, and MIP-1β, all associated with the development of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), the animal model for multiple sclerosis. Based on GMF’s ability to activate microglia and induce well-established proinflammatory mediators, including GM-CSF, we hypothesize that GMF is involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory disease EAE. In this present investigation, using GMF-deficient mice, we study the role of GMF and how the lack of GMF affects the EAE disease. Our results show a significant decrease in incidence, delay in onset, and reduced severity of EAE in GMF-deficient mice, and support the hypothesis that GMF plays a major role in the pathogenesis of disease.     

The Hha–TomB toxin–antitoxin module in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium limits its intracellular survival profile and regulates host immune response

Cell Biology and Toxicology - The key to bacterial virulence relies on an exquisite balance of signals between microbe and hosts. Bacterial toxin–antitoxin (TA) system is known to play a...     

Precise Disease Severity Assessment for False Smut Disease of Rice

False smut is a disease of rice inflorescence. The existing systems of disease severity assessment for rice false smut disease are not very sensitive as the ball quality and also the impact of false smut on filled grain number and grain‐filling were not under consideration. Here, a precise assessment method to evaluate the severity of the disease was developed. The ‘yield representative’ (YR) based on ‘mean floret wt.’ and ‘filled grain %’ was simulated for the precise disease severity assessment of rice false smut disease. The single floret weight envisages major yield components irrespective of the type of panicle. Correlation between YR and major yield attributes was studied, and it was observed that YR had significant correlation with ‘filled grain %’ (0.77–0.95) and ‘single spikelet weight’ (0.88–0.98). Significant negative correlation of YR was observed with the chaff percentage, false smut ball number and ball weight. This YR‐based methodology was utilized to assess the disease severity in nine rice cultivars. The disease severity in those nine cultivars was evaluated by the already existing methodologies also. The disease severity measured by the present technique was compared with the disease severity assessed by the old methodologies. The procedure adapted here for disease severity measurement was found to be more informative and useful. It was observed that in case of mild infection, the false smut was enhancing yield attributes. The high‐yielding rice varieties Savitri and Gayatri were found to be tolerant to false smut and may be used as resistant donors.     

Impact of ammonia concentration on Spirulina platensis growth in an airlift photobioreactor

Spirulina platensis was cultivated in a bench-scale airlift photobioreactor using synthetic wastewater (total nitrogen 412 mg L(-1), total phosphorous 90 mg L(-1), pH 9-10) with varying ammonia/total nitrogen ratios (50-100% ammonia with balance nitrate) and hydraulic residence times (15-25 d). High average biomass density (3500-3800 mg L(-1)) and productivity (5.1 g m(-2) d(-1)) were achieved when ammonia was maintained at 50% of the total nitrogen. Both high ammonia concentrations and mutual self-shading, which resulted from the high biomass density in the airlift reactor, were found to partially inhibit the growth of S. platensis. The performance of the airlift bioreactor used in this study compared favorably with other published studies. The system has good potential for treatment of high strength wastewater combined with production of algae for biofuels or other products, such as human and animal food, food supplements or pharmaceuticals.     

Microautophagy of cytosolic proteins by late endosomes

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Highlights? Late endosomes take up cytosolic proteins through membrane invaginations ? Endosomal microautophagy (eMI) requires multivesicular body formation ? hsc70 mediates selective targeting of cytosolic proteins during eMI ? hsc70 binds to the endosomal membrane through its polybasic cluster     

Future climate‐driven shifts in distribution of Calanus finmarchicus

Calanus finmarchicus is a key‐structural species of the North Atlantic polar biome. The species plays an important trophic role in subpolar and polar ecosystems as a grazer of phytoplankton and as a prey for higher trophic levels such as the larval stages of many fish species. Here, we used a recently developed ecological niche model to assess the ecological niche (sensu Hutchinson) of C. finmarchicus and characterize its spatial distribution. This model explained about 65% of the total variance of the observed spatial distribution inferred from an independent dataset (data of the continuous plankton recorder survey). Comparisons with other types of models (structured population and ecophysiological models) revealed a clear similarity between modeled spatial distributions at the scale of the North Atlantic. Contemporary models coupled with future projections indicated a progressive reduction of the spatial habitat of the species at the southern edge and a more pronounced one in the Georges Bank, the Scotian Shelf and the North Sea and a potential increase in abundance at the northern edge of its spatial distribution, especially in the Barents Sea. These major changes will probably lead to a major alteration of the trophodynamics of North Atlantic ecosystems affecting the trophodynamics and the biological carbon pump.