Strategies for Pyramiding Resistance Genes Against the Barley Yellow Mosaic Virus Complex (BaMMV,BaYMV, BaYMV-2)

Barley Yellow Mosaic Virus disease caused by different strains of BaYMV and BaMMV is a major threat to winter barley cultivation in Europe. Pyramiding of resistance genes may be considered as a promising strategy to avoid the selection of new virus strains and to create more durable resistances. However, this goal cannot be achieved by phenotypic selection due to the lack of differentiating virus strains. For pyramiding of resistance genes rym4, rym5, rym9 and rym11, located on chromosomes 3H and 4H of barley two different strategies have been developed. These strategies are based on doubled haploid lines (DHs) and marker assisted selection procedures. On the one hand F₁ derived DH-plants of single crosses were screened by molecular markers for genotypes being homozygous recessive for both resistance genes. These genotypes were crossed to lines carrying one resistance gene in common and an additional third gene, leading to a DH-population of which 25% carry three resistance genes, 50% have two resistance genes and 25% possess a single resistance gene homozygous recessively. Alternatively, F₁ plants having one resistance gene in common were directly inter-crossed [e.g. (rym4 × rym9) × (rym4 × rym11)] and about 100 seeds were produced per combination. Within these complex cross progenies plants were identified by markers being homozygous at the common resistance locus and heterozygous at the others. From such plants, theoretically present at a frequency of 6.25%, DH-lines were produced, which were screened for the presence of genotypes carrying three or two recessive resistance genes in a homozygous state. Besides DH-plants carrying all possible two-gene combinations, 20 DH-plants out of 107 analysed carrying rym4, rym9, and rym11 and 27 out of 187 tested carrying rym5, rym9, and rym11 homozygously have been detected using the second strategy which is faster but needs co-dominant markers, because in contrast to the first strategy marker selection is carried out on heterozygous genotypes.     

Gene stacking in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phalaenopsis</Emphasis> orchid enhances dual tolerance to pathogen attack

Cymbidium Mosaic Virus (CymMV) and Erwinia carotovora have been reported to cause severe damage to orchid plants. To enhance the resistance of orchids to both viral and bacterial phytopathogens, gene stacking was applied on Phalaenopsis orchid by double transformation. PLBs originally transformed with CymMV coat protein cDNA (CP) were then re-transformed with sweet pepper ferredoxin-like protein cDNA (Pflp) by Agrobacterium tumefaciens, to enable expression of dual (viral and bacterial) disease resistant traits. A non-antibiotic selection procedure in the second transformation minimized the potential rate of ‘stacking’ antibiotic genes in the orchid gene pool. Transgene integration in transgenic Phalaenopsis lines was confirmed by Southern blot analysis for both CP and pflp genes. Expression of transgenes was detected by northern blot analysis, and disease resistant assays revealed that transgenic lines exhibited enhanced resistance to CymMV and E. carotovora. This is the first report describing a transgenic Phalaenopsis orchid with dual resistance to phytopathogens.     

Transformation of mouse fibroblasts alters the induction pattern of type I IFNs after virus infection

Type I interferons (IFNs) have been shown to be involved in many immune defence and inflammatory responses. We here show that IFN-beta plays an absolute essential role in the efficient induction of all type I IFNs after infection of primary embryonic as well as primary adult fibroblasts with Sendai virus. In contrast, after immortalization of such fibroblasts with SV40 large T antigen, IFN-alpha4 can be induced independently of IFN-beta. However, efficient secretion of type I IFNs even in immortalized fibroblasts is only found when the complete signalling loop is induced by IFN-beta.     

The Ry-fsto gene from Solanum stoloniferum for extreme resistant to Potato virus Y maps to potato chromosome XII and is diagnosed by PCR marker GP122718 in PVY resistant potato cultivars

A novel locus for extreme resistance to Potato virus Y (PVY), Ry-f_sto, was identified on potato chromosome XII. The gene Ry-f_sto has been introgressed from the wild potato species Solanum stoloniferum. Inheritance of Ry-f_sto in the tetraploid potato population Rysto was consistent with the model of a single, dominant gene. Bulked segregant analysis identified an ISSR (inter-simple sequence repeat) marker UBC 857₉₈₀ linked to Ry-f_sto. This marker mapped to linkage group XII of a reference potato RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism) map. Chromosome XII specific RFLP markers were converted into PCR-based STS and CAPS markers and tested for linkage with Ry-f_sto in the population Rysto. CAPS marker GP122₇₁₈ was tightly linked to the resistance gene and was successfully used to identify Polish and German cultivars expressing extreme resistance to PVY. This indicates that the source of Ry-f_sto has been widely utilized in various potato breeding programs and can be monitored by a diagnostic marker in marker-assisted selection.     

QM/MM study of D-fructose in aqueous solution

The QM/MM molecular dynamics methodology was applied to the study of the two main D-fructose tautomers present in aqueous solution, beta-D-fructofuranose and beta-D-fructopyranose. The solute was treated at the AM1 semi-empirical level, and for the solvent water molecules we used the TIP3P potential. We analyzed the structure of the water molecules around the hydroxyl groups to explain the differences in sweet taste between the two tautomers.     

Bayesian experimental design for nonlinear mixed-effects models with application to HIV dynamics

Bayesian experimental design is investigated for Bayesian analysis of nonlinear mixed-effects models. Existence of the posterior risk for parameter estimation is shown. When the same prior distribution is used for both design and inference, existence of the preposterior risk for design is also proven. If the prior distribution used in design is different from that used for inference, sufficient conditions are established for existence of the preposterior risk for design. A case study of design for an experiment in population HIV dynamics is provided.     

The role of virus infection in a simple phytoplankton zooplankton system

Many planktonic species show spectacular bursts ("blooms") in population density. Though viral infections are known to cause behavioural and other changes in phytoplankton and other aquatic species, yet their role in regulating the phytoplankton population is still far from being understood. To study the role of viral diseases in the planktonic species, we model the phytoplankton-zooplankton system as a prey-predator system. Here the prey (phytoplankton) species is infected with a viral disease that divides the prey population into susceptible and infected classes, with the infected prey being more vulnerable to predation by the predator (zooplankton). The dynamical behaviour of the system is investigated from the point of view of stability and persistence both analytically and numerically. The model shows that infection can be sustained only above a threshold of force of infection, and, there exists a range in the infection rate where this system shows "bloom"-like stable limit cycle oscillations. The time series of natural "blooms" with different types of irregular oscillations can arise in this model simply from a biologically realistic feature, i.e., by the random variation of the epidemiological parameter (rate of infection) in the infected prey population. The difference in mean strength of infection alone can lead to the different types of patterns observed in natural planktonic blooms.     

猴副流感病毒SV5 PCR检测方法的建立与初步应用

目的建立检测SV5的PCR方法并加以初步应用。方法根据GenBank中报道的SV5序列,针对其中的SH基因设计引物进行PCR反应,扩增产物进行测序并用BLAST软件进行同源性比对,同时利用限制性内切酶的酶切反应以证实此PCR反应的特异性。在此基础上设计巢式PCR提高此方法的灵敏度。利用此方法对20份猴肾源细胞培养物和40份血清标本进行检测。结果利用设计的引物扩增出的序列测序结果证实与报道的SV5SH基因相对位置的序列一致。AccⅢ限制性内切酶可对PCR产物进行特异性酶切。巢式PCR比一次PCR的敏感度有所提高。用此方法检测的20份猴肾源细胞培养物和40份血清标本结果为阴性。结论初步建立了检测SV5病毒的PCR方法,排除实验室用20份猴肾源细胞培养物和40份血清标本SV5的污染。     

仙台病毒核衣壳蛋白基因的克隆与原核表达

目的利用原核表达系统表达仙台病毒(Sendai Virus,SV)核衣壳蛋白。方法根据GenBank上发表的仙台病毒(Sendai Virus,SV)核衣壳蛋白基因序列,设计并合成一对引物,通过RT-PCR扩增出核衣壳蛋白全长cDNA序列,将其克隆至原核表达载体pET-30a,转化大肠杆菌BL21(DE3)PlysS,于37℃1mmol/LIPTG条件下诱导表达,大肠杆菌裂解物经SDS-PAGE分析,在相对分子质量约60×103处出现一新蛋白带,与预期目的蛋白分子量相符。结果Western blot检测表明,表达产物能与兔抗SV阳性血清发生特异性反应,出现单一反应带,表明其具有免疫原性。结论为建立以重组NP蛋白为诊断抗原检测SV奠定基础。     

应用两种基因组快速扩增方法进行病毒芯片杂交鉴定

为了摸索均衡的病毒基因组扩增方法,建立高通量的病毒检测基因芯片技术平台,本研究以甲病毒属的辛德比斯病毒作为检测模型,分别以随机PCR扩增法和MDA( Multiple Displacement Amplification)扩增法扩增病毒基因组,并以两种扩增产物作为模板,扩增辛德比斯病毒的特异基因片段以验证基因组扩增的均衡性;然后将两种基因组扩增产物标记荧光染料后与基因芯片进行杂交;结果表明从两种基因组扩增产物中正确扩增出了辛德比斯的特定基因片段,作为探针可与基因芯片上的靶标基因特异性结合;基因组扩增产物与基因芯片进行杂交,可成功检测到甲病毒属的特异性信号,充分说明随机PCR扩增法和MDA扩增法用于扩增病毒基因组均具有良好的均衡性,扩增产物可用于病毒性病原体的基因芯片检测。