Glutathione in Bacteria

Glutathione metabolism and its role in vital functions of bacterial cells are considered, as well as common features and differences between the functions of glutathione in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. Particular attention is given to the recent data for the role of glutathione in bacterial redox-regulation and adaptation to stresses.     

Comparative analysis of physical stress responses in soybean seedlings using cloned heat shock cDNAs

Summary Soybean seedlings were subjected to a wide range of physical (abiotic) or environmental stresses. Cloned cDNAs to heat shock (hs)-induced mRNAs were used to assess whether these diverse stresses induced the accumulation of poly(A)RNAs in common with those induced by hs. Northern blot hybridization analyses indicated that a wide range of stress agents lead to the accumulation of detectable levels of several of the hs-induced poly(A)RNAs; the relative concentration of those RNAs induced by the wide range of stress agents (e.g. water stress, salt stress, anaerobiosis, high concentrations of hormones, etc.), was generally in the order of 100-fold lower than that induced by hs. There are two notable exceptions to that pattern of response to the stress agents. First, arsenite treatment resulted in accumulation of the hs poly(A)RNAs to levels similar to those induced by hs. Cadmium also induced a somewhat normal spectrum of the hs poly(A)RNAs, but generally lower levels accumulated than in hs- and arsenite0treated tissues. Second, one set of poly(A)RNAs which are present at low and variable levels in control (non-stressed tissue) tissue, and which are increased some 5- to 10-fold by hs, increased in relative concentration in response to a wide range of the stress agents similarly to the response to hs. The physiological significance of the accumulation of this set of poly(A)RNAs (which translate into four electrophoretically different 27 kd proteins) is not known, but they certainly seem to serve as a monitor (or barometer) of physiological stress conditions. Cadmium treatment results in the accumulation of those same poly(A)RNAs and an additional band of higher molecular weight poly(A)RNA homologous to the same hs cDNA clone (clone pCE 54). Ethylene seems to have no obvious causal relationship to the hs response, even though hs-treated seedlings display some symptoms similar to those exhibited by ethylene-treated seedlings.     

Current genetic research on groundnut in India

The progress in genetic improvement of groundnut in India during the last five decades has been possible largely due to understanding and utilizing the information generated on the genetics of various characters of the plant. The current genetic studies on groundnut in India are carried out both on qualitative and agronomically important quantitative characters. Research accomplishments which are noteworthy in these areas have been reported in this paper. However, the genetics of several characters of economic importance has not been analyzed so far. Efforts to incorporate resistance to abiotic and biotic factors have gained momentum and a large number of resistant sources have been identified for each of these constraints. Additional efforts are expected to be made on gaining insight into the genetics of resistance to abiotic stresses and insect pests among biotic stresses, where the available information is meagre. Future studies are also expected to concentrate on unravelling the relationship of economic yield with various other characters, including the physiological and biochemical ones. Molecular marker techniques hold promise for genetic analysis of groundnut, as in other crop plants.     

Acid-induced elongation of Reynoutria stems requires tissue stresses

Measurements of the elongation rate of strips of outer tissue composed of epidermis and collenchyma, peeled from the elongating internodes of Reynoutria japonica Houtt. (Japanese knotweed) and stretched in buffer, showed that the rate depended on pH and the stretching force. At pH 6.8, elongation was barely perceptible in the force range studied, but the rate of elongation increased rapidly with the force at pH 5.0 (acid-induced elongation). The yield threshold stress at pH 5.0 amounted to 1.8×10⁶ N m^?2. It was three times higher than the osmotic pressure in the outer tissue, but was lower than the average tensile tissue stress in this tissue in intact stems. We infer that tensile tissue stress in the outer tissue is required for the manifestation of acid-induced elongation of this tissue in situ.     

Rationale of selection for specific nutritional characters in crop improvement withPhaseolus vulgaris L. as a case study

Genetic effects are obtainable for any aspect of transport, accumulation, and efficiency of nutrient use by plants, and for virtually any element. Some of the important characters are: tolerance to acid soils (18% of soils or 2.4 billion ha), tolerance to high pH induced Fe-chlorosis, and tolerance to salinity (about 1,000 m ha). Genotypes which made better use of N and P would be the means of saving fertilizers, especially important to developing countries. A 10% economy of fertilizer use represents a minimum world saving of US$6 billion annually. Phaseolus vulgaris is taken as a model to show that although we know quite a lot about the extent of its nutritional variation, e.g. adaptability to acid soils, and the crop's utilization of N and P, we are handicapped in exploiting this because of lack of genetic information. This in turn depends on knowledge of specific mechanisms, and investigating these must be a priority.IAEA Project BRA/5/009     

Modeling fish dynamics and effects of stress in a hydrologically pulsed ecosystem

Many wetlands undergo seasonal cycles in precipitation and water depth.This environmental seasonality is echoed in patterns of production of fishbiomass, which, in turn, influence the phenology of other components of thefood web, including wading birds. Human activities, such as drainage orother alterations of the hydrology, can exacerbate these natural cycles andresult in detrimental stresses on fish production and the higher trophic levels dependent on this production. In this paper we model theseasonal pattern of fish production in a freshwater marsh, with specialreference to the Everglades/Big Cypress region of southern Florida.The model illustrates the temporal pattern of production through theyear, which can result in very high densities of fish at the end of ahydroperiod (period of flooding), aswell as the importance of ponds and other deep depressions, both as refugia and sinks during dry periods. The model predicts that: (1) there is an effective threshold in the length of the hydroperiod that must beexceeded for high fish-population densities to be produced, (2) large,piscivorous fishes do not appear tohave a major impact on smaller fishes in the marsh habitat, and (3) therecovery of small-fish populations in the marsh following a major droughtmay require up to a year. The last of these results is relevant toassessing anthropogenic impacts on marsh production, as these effectsmay increase the severity and frequency of droughts.     

Rainbow trout responses to water temperature and dissolved oxygen stress in two southern California stream pools

Habitat use by rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss is described for a southern California stream where the summer water temperatures typically exceed the lethal limits for trout (>25°C). During August 1994, water temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), and trout distribution were monitored in two adjacent pools in Sespe Creek, Ventura County, where summer water temperature reached 28.9° C. Water temperature was an important factor in trout distribution in the two pools. During 1–11 August 1994, water temperatures in pool 1 ranged from 21.5°C at the bottom (4.1 m) to 28.9° C at the surface. After 5 August, trout were no longer found in this pool, suggesting that trout had moved out of the high temperature water or died. In the adjacent, shallower (1.5m) pool 2, surface water temperatures were as high as 27.9° C, but temperatures on the bottom remained cooler (17.5–21° C) than pool 1, presumably due to groundwater seeps. Consistent aggregations of trout were observed in pool 2 throughout the study period. During the day when water temperature was highest, most trout were found in a region of the pool with the lowest water temperature (mean=18.3° C). Conversely, regions with the highest water temperatures had the fewest trout during the day. The seeps may have introduced water with low dissolved oxygen into pool 2, as the DO in many locations on the bottom ranged from <1 mg 1^?1 to 5 mg 1^?1 over 24 h, while the surface DO ranged from 4.1 to 10.0mg 1^?1. Lowest DO occurred from 2400 to 0600 hours. During August, water temperature and DO were positively related. Thus, rainbow trout faced a trade-off between the relatively cool water temperature with low, possibly lethal levels of DO (e.g. 1.7 to 3.4 mg 1^?1 in region 3), and lethally high water temperature but high DO. Seeps may serve as important thermal refugia for trout, and an increased understanding of their role as potential critical refugia in Southern California is necessary.