Entomogenous fungi of arboreal Coleoptera from Worcestershire,England, including the new species <Emphasis Type="Italic">Harposporium bredonense</Emphasis>

During entomological surveys in ancient woodland and orchards in the English county of Worcestershire, dead arboreal beetles were found exhibiting external evidence of primary colonisation by anamorphic fungi belonging to the Clavicipitales. One of these proved to be an undescribed species and a new taxon is proposed: Harposporium bredonense on the larva of a longhorn beetle, Leiopus nebulosus (Cerambycidae), with a Hirsutella synanamorph. Hirsutella guignardii on the adult histerid beetle, Paromalus flavicornis, is a new host record, as well as a new fungal record for the British Isles. In addition, Lecanicillium psalliotae and Paecilomyces farinosus were isolated from mummified ecloded pupae of the Noble Chafer, Aleurostictus nobilis (Scarabaeidae), which is recognised as a rare or endangered species in Britain.     

Selection of a highly virulent fungal isolate, Metarhizium anisopliae CLO 53, for controlling Hoplia philanthus

The June beetle, Hoplia philanthus Füessly (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), has become a widespread and destructive insect pest of lawns, sport turf, pastures, and horticultural crops in Belgium. The virulence of 34 entomopathogenic fungal isolates from the genera Metarhizium, Beauveria, and Paecilomyces to third-instar H. philanthus was tested in bioassays by dipping larvae in 10(7)conidia/ml suspensions. Two isolates of Metarhizium anisopliae (CLO 53 and CLO 54) caused maximally 90% mortality 10 weeks post-inoculation while other isolates only caused mortalities between 10 and 62%. The virulence of M. anisopliae CLO 53 was further tested by exposing H. philanthus larvae to conidial serial concentrations of 10(4)-10(9)conidia/g sandy soil for up to 11 weeks at 15, 20 or 25 degrees C. Mortality was dependant on the fungal concentration, exposure time, and temperature. Eleven weeks after inoculation, the LC50 values for this isolate ranged from 1.3 to 4.0 x 10(6), 1.0 to 3.2 x 10(5), and 2.5 x 10(4) to 10(5)conidia/g soil at 15, 20, and 25 degrees C, respectively. The LT50 values for this isolate ranged from 3.5 to 21.7, 2.4 to 18.7, and 2.9 to 16.1 weeks at concentrations of 10(9) and 10(4)conidia/g soil at 15, 20, and 25 degrees C, respectively. In glasshouse pot experiment with perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), the isolate CLO 53 caused mortalities of 50 and 88% of H. philanthus larvae 10 weeks after application of 10(4) and 10(6)conidia/cm(2) soil surface, respectively. The present results suggest that the Belgian isolate CLO 53 has excellent potential for biological control of H. philanthus.     

Purification and characterization of a thermostable α-amylase produced by the fungus Paecilomyces variotii

An α-amylase produced by Paecilomyces variotii was purified by DEAE-cellulose ion exchange chromatography, followed by Sephadex G-100 gel filtration and electroelution. The α-amylase showed a molecular mass of 75 kDa (SDS-PAGE) and pI value of 4.5. Temperature and pH optima were 60 °C and 4.0, respectively. The enzyme was stable for 1 h at 55 °C, showing a t₅₀ of 53 min at 60 °C. Starch protected the enzyme against thermal inactivation. The α-amylase was more stable in alkaline pH. It was activated mainly by calcium and cobalt, and it presented as a glycoprotein with 23% carbohydrate content. The enzyme preferentially hydrolyzed starch and, to a lower extent, amylose and amylopectin. The K_m of α-amylase on Reagen® and Sigma® starches were 4.3 and 6.2 mg/mL, respectively. The products of starch hydrolysis analyzed by TLC were oligosaccharides such as maltose and maltotriose. The partial amino acid sequence of the enzyme presented similarity to α-amylases from Bacillus sp. These results confirmed that the studied enzyme was an α-amylase ((1→4)-α-glucan glucanohydrolase).     

Transformation of the entomopathogenic fungus Paecilomyces fumosoroseus with Agrobacterium tumefaciens

AIMS: To test the suitability of the Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation (AMT) method with Paecilomyces fumosoroseus, a fungal pathogen that causes diseases in a wide range of insects including whiteflies. METHODS AND RESULTS: Conidia of P. fumosoroseus were successfully transformed to hygromycin B resistance using the hph gene of Escherichia coli as the selectable marker. Transformation frequencies were 58.3 +/- 18.5, 98.3 +/- 24.8 and 169.7 +/- 35.5 (+/-SEM) transformants per 10(5), 10(6) and 10(7) target conidia respectively. After confirmation by PCR, transformants were subjected to Southern analysis, and the results revealed that 45% (four of nine) of the transformants contained single-copy integration of the T-DNA. CONCLUSIONS: In our AMT system, we efficiently transformed conidia of P. fumosoroseus. The employment of this method circumvents time-consuming protoplast preparation and allows the isolation of transformants containing single-copy integration of the T-DNA. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Considering the efficiency of Ag. tumefaciens-mediated transformation, this method represents a useful tool for insertional mutagenesis to characterize genes that are important for the pathogenicity of P. fumosoroseus.     

蛹虫草研究进展

蛹虫草（Cordyceps militaris）作为一种药（食）用菌已经被广泛接受,在药理作用、有效成分、人工栽培等方面得到了广泛而深入的研究,具有重要开发价值。依据近年来的有关研究成果,就以上3个方面的研究进展状况展开论述,为蛹虫草进一步的研究与开发提供参考。     

不同北虫草菌株产类胡萝卜素分析

通过对不同来源北虫草菌株子实体中提取的色素进行定性分析并对其含量进行测定,获得类胡萝卜素含量高的北虫草菌株。结果表明,浓硫酸反应中溶液在两相交界处呈现特征性的蓝绿色,色素提取液在400～600 nm范围内有波长分别为415、440和460 nm的3个吸收峰与类胡萝卜素标准的吸收光谱一致,证明子实体中提取的色素为类胡萝卜素;6个菌株子实体类胡萝卜素的含量差异较大,且J菌株的类胡萝卜素的含量最高,达到5.021 mg/g。     

一株红树林真菌抗单纯疱疹病毒Ⅱ型的研究

目的:对分离自海南红树林真菌菌株PH0016的胞外多糖(exopolysaccharide,EPS)抗单纯疱疹病毒Ⅱ型(Herpes simplex virus type 2,HSV-2)活性进行研究。方法:收集纯化菌株PH0016产生的EPS,体外采用细胞病变观察EPS的细胞毒性和抗HSV-2作用。为观察EPS对HSV-2体内感染的治疗效果,小鼠颅内注射0.02ml滴度为100LD50/0.1ml-1的HSV-2,24小时后以不同浓度EPS灌胃,持续7天,14天后计算小鼠存活率和存活时间。菌株分类采用形态学观察和ITS序列分析。结果:EPS可抑制HSV-2病毒活性,病毒感染的细胞病变的半抑制浓度(Inhibited concentration,IC50)为313μg/mL,SI为11.43。EPS 25mg.kg-1.d-1灌胃后,小鼠存活率为40.0%,存活时间为9.82±1.87天,相比模型组实验动物存活时间和存活率均有提高。菌株初步鉴定为淡紫色拟青霉。结论:从海南红树林分离一株淡紫色拟青霉,其产生的EPS具有抗HSV-2活性,值得进一步研究。     

人工发酵古尼虫草中甘露醇的测定

利用比色法简便、准确和快速地测定发酵生产的古尼虫草菌丝中甘露醇含量。结果表明 ,甘露醇的最大特征吸收峰在 41 2nm处 ,质量浓度在 1 0～ 5 0mg/L范围内线性较好 ,其回归方程 ρ=-0 842 +97 3 2 9A,r=0 9992 ;平均回收率 1 0 0 2 4% ,RSD =0 5 4% (n=5 )。样品中甘露醇采用水提取法 ,提取时间 2h。甘露醇显色后 2 0min内测定对结果影响不大 ,在测定时要注意排除果糖对测定结果的影响。用此法测得发酵古尼虫草菌丝体中甘露醇的含量为 7.4% ,RSD =0 .2 4% (n =6)。     

北虫草对四氯化碳诱导的脂质过氧化的影响

通过体内及体外自由基发生体系 ,进一步研究了北虫草提取液的抗氧化作用。肝脏形态学观察可见 ,北虫草对膜系统损伤具有明显的保护作用 ;人工培育的北虫草子座对Fenton反应生成的羟自由基具有较强的清除作用 ,且作用明显强于相同剂量的羟自由基特异清除剂甘露醇 (P <0 0 1) ;北虫草对邻苯三酚自氧化体系产生的氧自由基亦具有清除作用 ,与对照组比较P <0 0 1,但作用弱于相同剂量的抗坏血酸。结果显示 :北虫草具有抗脂质过氧化作用     

Isolation of an agent affecting the development of an internal parasitoid

The development of an internal braconid parasitoid, Glyptapanteles militaris, is adversely affected when its host, Pseudaletia unipuncta, is infected with the Hawaiian strain of granulosis virus. A plasma-derived agent, isolated from virus-infected hosts, was shown to elicit developmental aberrations in the parasitoid similar to those observed in virus-infected hosts. This agent was isolated by ammonium sulfate precipitation, gel filtration, and anion exchange chromatography, and its molecular weight, established by gel filtration and SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, was determined to be about 64,000. The dilution end point of the agent and some stability properties were also established.