Exploring the Least Studied Australian Eucalypt Genera: Corymbia and Angophora for Phytochemicals with Anticancer Activity against Pancreatic Malignancies

While the pharmacological and toxicological properties of eucalypts are well known in indigenous Australian medicinal practice, investigations of the bioactivity of eucalypt extracts against high mortality diseases such as pancreatic cancer in Western medicine have to date been limited, particularly amongst the genera Corymbia and Angophora. Four Angophora and Corymbia species were evaluated for their phytochemical profile and efficacy against both primary and secondary pancreatic cancer cell lines. The aqueous leaf extract of Angophora hispida exhibited statistically higher total phenolic content (107.85 ± 1.46 mg of gallic acid equiv. per g) and total flavonoid content (57.96 ± 1.93 mg rutin equiv. per g) and antioxidant capacity compared to the other tested eucalypts (P < 0.05). Both A. hispida and A. floribunda aqueous extracts showed statistically similar saponin contents. Angophora floribunda extract exerted significantly greater cell growth inhibition of 77.91 ± 4.93% followed by A. hispida with 62.04 ± 7.47% (P < 0.05) at 100 μg/ml in MIA PaCa‐2 cells with IC₅₀ values of 75.58 and 87.28 μg/ml, respectively. More studies are required to isolate and identify the bioactive compounds from these two Angophora species and to determine their mode of action against pancreatic malignancies.     

Focus on Water: Leaf Shrinkage with Dehydration: Coordination with Hydraulic Vulnerability and Drought Tolerance

Leaf shrinkage with dehydration has attracted attention for over 100 years, especially as it becomes visibly extreme during drought. However, little has been known of its correlation with physiology. Computer simulations of the leaf hydraulic system showed that a reduction of hydraulic conductance of the mesophyll pathways outside the xylem would cause a strong decline of leaf hydraulic conductance (K_leaf). For 14 diverse species, we tested the hypothesis that shrinkage during dehydration (i.e. in whole leaf, cell and airspace thickness, and leaf area) is associated with reduction in K_leaf at declining leaf water potential (Ψ_leaf). We tested hypotheses for the linkage of leaf shrinkage with structural and physiological water relations parameters, including modulus of elasticity, osmotic pressure at full turgor, turgor loss point (TLP), and cuticular conductance. Species originating from moist habitats showed substantial shrinkage during dehydration before reaching TLP, in contrast with species originating from dry habitats. Across species, the decline of K_leaf with mild dehydration (i.e. the initial slope of the K_leaf versus Ψ_leaf curve) correlated with the decline of leaf thickness (the slope of the leaf thickness versus Ψ_leaf curve), as expected based on predictions from computer simulations. Leaf thickness shrinkage before TLP correlated across species with lower modulus of elasticity and with less negative osmotic pressure at full turgor, as did leaf area shrinkage between full turgor and oven desiccation. These findings point to a role for leaf shrinkage in hydraulic decline during mild dehydration, with potential impacts on drought adaptation for cells and leaves, influencing plant ecological distributions.As leaves open their stomata to capture CO₂ for photosynthesis, water is lost to transpiration, which needs to be replaced by flow through the hydraulic system. The leaf hydraulic system has two components, which act essentially in series: the pathways for water movement through the xylem from the petiole to leaf minor veins, and those through the living bundle sheath and mesophyll cells to the sites of evaporation (Tyree and Zimmermann, 2002; Sack et al., 2004; Sack and Holbrook, 2006). The decline in leaf hydraulic conductance (K_leaf) with dehydration may thus depend on both components. The importance of the xylem component is well established. Vein xylem embolism and cell collapse have been observed in dehydrating leaves (Salleo et al., 2001; Cochard et al., 2004a; Johnson et al., 2009), and computer modeling and experimental work showed that species with high major vein length per leaf area (VLA; i.e. for the first three vein-branching orders) were more resistant to hydraulic decline, providing more pathways around embolisms (Scoffoni et al., 2011). However, the physical impacts of dehydration on the extraxylem pathways have not been studied, even though in turgid leaves these pathways account for 26% to 88% of leaf hydraulic resistance (i.e. of 1/K_leaf), depending on species (Sack et al., 2003a; Cochard et al., 2004b). The aim of this study was to determine whether leaf shrinkage during dehydration relates to the decline of K_leaf as well as the structural determinants of leaf shrinkage.The shrinkage of leaves with dehydration has drawn attention for over 100 years. Leaves shrink in their area (Bogue, 1892; Gardner and Ehlig, 1965; Jones, 1973; Tang and Boyer, 2007; Blonder et al., 2012) and, considered in relative terms, even more strongly in their thickness (Fig. 1; Meidner, 1952; Gardner and Ehlig, 1965; Downey and Miller, 1971; Syvertsen and Levy, 1982; Saini and Rathore, 1983; Burquez, 1987; McBurney, 1992; Sancho-Knapik et al., 2010, 2011). Leaves fluctuate in thickness daily and seasonally according to transpiration (Kadoya et al., 1975; Tyree and Cameron, 1977; Fensom and Donald, 1982; Rozema et al., 1987; Ogaya and Peñuelas, 2006; Seelig et al., 2012). Indeed, the relation of leaf thickness to water status is so tight that using leaf thickness to guide irrigation has led to water savings of up to 45% (Seelig et al., 2012).Open in a separate windowFigure 1.Sketches of a fully turgid leaf (A) versus a strongly dehydrated leaf (B; drawings based on leaf cross sections of sunflower in Fellows and Boyer, 1978). Note the strong reduction in leaf thickness, cell thickness, and intercellular airspaces in the dehydrated leaf. Epidermal cells are shrunk in the dehydrated leaf, inducing whole-leaf area shrinkage. Note that this sketch represents shrinkage for a typical drought-sensitive species. Many species such as oaks (Quercus spp.) will experience less thickness shrinkage and an increase in intercellular airspace (see “Discussion”). [See online article for color version of this figure.]Previous studies of leaf shrinkage with progressive dehydration have tended to focus on single or few species. These studies showed that thickness declines with water status in two phases. Before the bulk leaf turgor loss point (TLP; leaf water potential [Ψ_leaf] at TLP) is reached, the slope of leaf thickness versus Ψ_leaf or relative water content (RWC) is shallower than past TLP for most species (Meidner, 1955, Kennedy and Booth, 1958, Burquez, 1987, McBurney, 1992, Sancho-Knapik et al., 2010, 2011). This is because before TLP, declining Ψ_leaf is strongly driven by declines in turgor pressure, which have a relatively low impact on cell and airspace volume, whereas past the TLP, declining Ψ_leaf depends only on solute concentration, which increases in inverse proportion as cell water volume declines while airspaces may shrink or expand (Tyree and Hammel, 1972, Sancho-Knapik et al., 2011). However, the steepness of the slope of leaf thickness versus Ψ_leaf before TLP seems to vary strongly across species (Meidner, 1955; Kennedy and Booth, 1958; Fellows and Boyer, 1978; Burquez, 1987; Colpitts and Coleman, 1997; Sancho-Knapik et al., 2010).A high leaf cell volume and turgor is crucial to physiological processes (Boyer, 1968; Lawlor and Cornic, 2002). Shrinkage may affect cell connectivity and water transport (Sancho-Knapik et al., 2011). However, no studies have tested for a possible relationship of leaf shrinkage with the decline of K_leaf during dehydration. Such an association would arise if, across species, shrinkage occurred simultaneously with vein xylem embolism or if tissue shrinkage led to declines in the extraxylem hydraulic conductance.To refine our hypotheses, we modified a computer model of the leaf hydraulic system (Cochard et al., 2004b; McKown et al., 2010; Scoffoni et al., 2011) to predict the impact of losses of xylem and extraxylem conductance on the response of K_leaf to dehydration. We characterized the degree of leaf shrinkage in thickness, in the thickness of cells and airspaces within the leaf, and in leaf area for 14 species diverse in phylogeny, leaf traits, and drought tolerance. We hypothesized that loss of extraxylem hydraulic conductance should have a greater impact on K_leaf at less negative water potentials when xylem tensions are too weak to trigger embolism and induce dramatic declines in K_leaf. We hypothesized that species with greater degrees of shrinkage before TLP would experience greater loss of K_leaf. Furthermore, we hypothesized that species from moist habitats would have greater degrees of shrinkage.For insight into the mechanisms and consequences of leaf shrinkage, we also investigated the relationships of 18 indices of leaf shrinkage with a wide range of aspects of leaf structure and composition, including gross morphology, leaf venation architecture, parameters of pressure-volume curves, and leaf water storage. We hypothesized that, across species, shrinkage in whole leaf, cell, and intercellular airspace thickness would be lower for species with greater allocation to structural rigidity and osmotic concentration, and thus shrinkage would be positively correlated with a lower modulus of elasticity (ε), less negative osmotic pressure at full turgor (π_o), lower leaf mass per area (LMA), and lower leaf density. Additionally, we tested the longstanding hypothesis that species with higher major VLA and/or minor VLA (i.e. the fourth and higher vein-branching orders) would shrink less in area and/or thickness with dehydration (Gardner and Ehlig, 1965). Finally, we tested the ability of dehydrated leaves to recover in size with rehydration. We hypothesized that recovery would be greater for mildly than for strongly dehydrated leaves and that species with greater leaf shrinkage would be better able to recover from shrinkage.     

Molineus torulosus (Nematoda, Trichostrongylina, Molineoidea) a parasite of Neotropical primates: new morphological and histological data

Molineus torulosus (Molin, 1861) parasite of Cebus spp. from South America is redescribed in Cebus apella and C. olivecaeus (new host) from French Guyana with emphasis on the synlophe. During the maturation process, the larvae dwelt in the cysts carved alongside the external part of the small intestine. The turn-out of the mature worms and the laid eggs depended on the tissular organisation of cyst walls as the inflammatory process waned and fibrosis progressed to seal the cystic lumen. Adult worms entwine themselves in the cysts, live there permanently as their presence has never been evidenced in the intestinal lumen. They copulated, laid eggs, degenerated and died once entrapped by the fibrotic process. Laid eggs released in the intestinal lumen through a narrow channel ensured the continuation of the developmental cycle. However, erratic migration was possible via the vascular channels surrounding the cysts.     

Identification of quantitative trait loci controlling linolenic acid concentration in PI483463 (Glycine soja)

Key message

The QTLs controlling alpha-linolenic acid concentration from wild soybean were mapped on nine soybean chromosomes with various phenotypic variations. New QTLs for alpha-linolenic acid were detected in wild soybean.

Abstract

Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is a polyunsaturated fatty acid desired in human and animal diets. Some wild soybean (Glycine soja) genotypes are high in ALA. The objective of this study was to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling ALA concentration in a wild soybean accession, PI483463. In total, 188 recombinant inbred lines of F_5:6, F_5:7, and F_5:8 generations derived from a cross of wild soybean PI483463 (~15 % ALA) and cultivar Hutcheson (~9 % ALA) were planted in four environments. Harvested seeds were used to measure fatty acid concentration. Single nucleotide polymorphism markers of the universal soybean linkage panel (USLP 1.0) and simple sequence repeat markers were used for molecular genotyping. Nine putative QTLs were identified that controlled ALA concentration by model-based composite interval mapping and mapped to different soybean chromosomes. The QTLs detected in four environments explained 2.4–7.9 % of the total phenotypic variation (PV). Five QTLs, qALA5_3, qALA6_1, qALA14_1, qALA15_1, and qALA17_1, located on chromosomes 5, 6, 14, 15, and 17 were identified by model-based composite interval mapping and composite interval mapping in two individual environments. Among them, qALA6_1 showed the highest contribution to the PV with 10.0–10.2 % in two environments. The total detected QTLs for additive and epistatic effects explained 52.4 % of the PV for ALA concentration. These findings will provide useful information for understanding genetic structure and marker-assisted breeding programs to increase ALA concentration in seeds derived from wild soybean PI483463.     

Characterization of the Arabidopsis augmin complex uncovers its critical function in the assembly of the acentrosomal spindle and phragmoplast microtubule arrays

Plant cells assemble the bipolar spindle and phragmoplast microtubule (MT) arrays in the absence of the centrosome structure. Our recent findings in Arabidopsis thaliana indicated that AUGMIN subunit3 (AUG3), a homolog of animal dim γ-tubulin 3, plays a critical role in γ-tubulin-dependent MT nucleation and amplification during mitosis. Here, we report the isolation of the entire plant augmin complex that contains eight subunits. Among them, AUG1 to AUG6 share low sequence similarity with their animal counterparts, but AUG7 and AUG8 share homology only with proteins of plant origin. Genetic analyses indicate that the AUG1, AUG2, AUG4, and AUG5 genes are essential, as stable mutations in these genes could only be transmitted to heterozygous plants. The sterile aug7-1 homozygous mutant in which AUG7 expression is significantly reduced exhibited pleiotropic phenotypes of seriously retarded vegetative and reproductive growth. The aug7-1 mutation caused delocalization of γ-tubulin in the mitotic spindle and phragmoplast. Consequently, spindles were abnormally elongated, and their poles failed to converge, as MTs were splayed to discrete positions rendering deformed arrays. In addition, the mutant phragmoplasts often had disorganized MT bundles with uneven edges. We conclude that assembly of MT arrays during plant mitosis depends on the augmin complex, which includes two plant-specific subunits.     

Influence of olive-derived hydroxytyrosol on the toll-like receptor 4-dependent inflammatory response of mouse peritoneal macrophages

Macrophages play important roles in the host innate immune response and are involved in the onset of diseases caused by inflammation. Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)-mediated inflammatory responses of macrophages may be associated with diseases such as diabetes and diseases of the cardiovascular system. Hydroxytyrosol (HT) exerts strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects and may be applied in the treatment of inflammatory diseases. In the present study conducted in vitro, we investigated the effects of the TLR4-dependent anti-inflammatory effect of HT on peritoneal macrophage of BALB/c mice. We show here that the elevated levels of iNOS gene expression and nitric oxide production induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (0.25 μg/ml) were suppressed by HT (12.5 μg/ml). LPS-dependent NF-κB gene expression and phosphorylation of NF-κB were not affected by HT under these conditions. In contrast, the expression of TNF-α was significantly increased in the presence of LPS and HT. These results suggest that HT suppressed nitric oxide production by decreasing iNOS gene expression through a mechanism independent of the NF-κB signaling pathway. These novel findings suggest that the modulation by HT of the expression of genes involved in inflammation may involve multiple mechanisms.     

Differences in the apical and basolateral pathways for glycosaminoglycan biosynthesis in Madin-Darby canine kidney cells

Serglycin with a green fluorescent protein tag (SG-GFP) expressed in epithelial Madin-Darby canine kidney cells is secreted mainly (85%) into the apical medium, but the glycosaminoglycan (GAG) chains on the SG-GFP protein core secreted basolaterally (15%) carry most of the sulfate added during biosynthesis (Tveit et al. (2005) J. Biol. Chem., 280, 29596-29603). Here we report further differences in apical and basolateral GAG synthesis. The less intensely sulfated chondroitin sulfate (CS) chains on apically secreted SG-GFP are longer than CS chains attached to basolateral SG-GFP, whereas the heparan sulfate (HS) chains are of similar lengths. When the supply of 3'-phosphoadenosine-5'-phosphosulfate (PAPS) is limited by chlorate treatment, the synthesis machinery maintains sulfation of HS chains on basolateral SG-GFP until it is inhibited at 50 mM chlorate, whereas basolateral CS chains lose sulfate already at 12.5 mM chlorate and become longer. Apically, incorporation of 35S-sulfate into CS is reduced to a lesser extent at higher chlorate concentrations than basolateral CS, although apical CS is less intensely sulfated than basolateral CS in control cells. Similar to what was found for basolateral HS, sulfation of apical HS was not reduced at chlorate concentrations below 50 mM. Also, protein-free, xyloside-based GAG chains secreted basolaterally are more intensely sulfated than their apical counterpart, supporting the view that separate apical and basolateral pathways exist for GAG synthesis and sulfation. Introduction of benzyl beta-d-xyloside (BX) to the GAG synthesis machinery reduces the apical secretion of SG-GFP dramatically and also the modification of SG-GFP by HS.     

Transferrin receptor 2-alpha supports cell growth both in iron-chelated cultured cells and in vivo

In most cells, transferrin receptor (TfR1)-mediated endocytosis is a major pathway for cellular iron uptake. We recently cloned the human transferrin receptor 2 (TfR2) gene, which encodes a second receptor for transferrin (Kawabata, H., Yang, R., Hirama, T., Vuong, P. T., Kawano, S., Gombart, A. F., and Koeffler, H. P. (1999) J. Biol. Chem. 274, 20826-20832). In the present study, the regulation of TfR2 expression and function was investigated. A select Chinese hamster ovary (CHO)-TRVb cell line that does not express either TfR1 or TfR2 was stably transfected with either TfR1 or TfR2-alpha cDNA. TfR2-alpha-expressing cells had considerably lower affinity for holotransferrin when compared with TfR1-expressing CHO cells. Interestingly, in contrast to TfR1, expression of TfR2 mRNA in K562 cells was not up-regulated by desferrioxamine (DFO), a cell membrane-permeable iron chelator. In MG63 cells, expression of TfR2 mRNA was regulated in the cell cycle with the highest expression in late G(1) phase and no expression in G(0)/G(1). DFO reduced cell proliferation and DNA synthesis of CHO-TRVb control cells, whereas it had little effect on TfR2-alpha-expressing CHO cells when measured by clonogenic and cell cycle analysis. In addition, CHO cells that express TfR2-alpha developed into tumors in nude mice whereas CHO control cells did not. In conclusion, TfR2 expression may be regulated by the cell cycle rather than cellular iron status and may support cell growth both in vitro and in vivo.