Polyacetylenes accumulation in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ambrosia maritima</Emphasis> hairy root and cell cultures after elicitation with methyl jasmonate

Three lines of hairy root culture of Ambrosia maritima induced by Agrobacterium rhizogenes ATCC15834 were established. Thiarubrine A, thiarubrine A epoxide, thiarubrine A diol and their precursor pentayneene were produced by the hairy roots after elicitation with methyl jasmonate, the common signal molecule in the plant defense and development. Thiarubrine A diol was the main form detected in the medium. Maximum yield was achieved when the 13-day-old hairy root cultures were exposed to 40 M methyl jasmonate for 72 h. Callus and cell suspension cultures were established and maintained on Murashige and Skoog medium supplied with -naphthylacetic acid (NAA) and kinetin. When the cell suspension cultures were elicited with methyl jasmonate, pentayneene was the only polyacetylene produced. The yield of pentayneene in hairy root cultures was much higher (9.6 times) than that of cell suspension cultures.     

Effect of dietary fiber of “Rihane” barley grains and azoxymethane on serum and liver lipid variables in Wistar rats

The aim of the present study is to evaluate the effects of diet enriched with dietary fiber of barley variety “Rihane” and azoxymethane on serum and liver lipid variables in male rats. Forty male rats were divided into four groups and fed on control diet or experimental diet that contained control enriched with dietary fiber of barley variety “Rihane”. Animals were injected with saline (controls) or azoxymethane (20 mg/kg body weight s.c.) at 7 and 8 weeks of age. The experimental diet significantly decreased cholesterol level compared with the control diet. Rats fed with BR diet significantly increased the serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and significantly decreased low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol concentrations. The experimental diet decreased the atherogenic index (p < 0.05) compared with the control diet. Whereas the azoxymethane induced a significant increase of liver lipid, serum LDL and triglyceride concentrations, but it caused a significant reduction of HDL. Consequently, the ratio of HDL/TC decreased significantly compared with the control (p < 0.05). Accordingly, these results indicated that the diet enriched with dietary fiber of barley variety “Rihane” could be effective in decreasing the atherogenic risk factors in rats whereas the use of the azoxymethane as colon-specific carcinogen substance altered the lipid metabolism.     

Salinity tolerance of hydroponically grown <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinus pinea</Emphasis> L. seedlings

The salinity tolerance and ion transport of 2-month-old seedlings of stone pine (Pinus pinea L.) grown in hydroponic solution containing various concentrations of NaCl (0–100 mM) were studied. The presence of salt of up to 100 mM did not significantly reduce growth. Seedling hydration was insensitive to salinity. High salt concentrations reduced K⁺ and Ca²⁺ uptake, root accumulation, and export to shoots. Na⁺ and Cl⁻ ions, representing the major part of the ionic uptake, were effectively compartmentalized in vacuoles. We concluded that seedlings of stone pine cultivated hydroponically were highly tolerant to salt concentrations of up to 100 mM for a culture period of 38 days. This tolerance was associated with the accumulation of Na⁺ and Cl⁻ ions in the shoots.     

Sterilization and protection of protein in combinations of Camellia sinensis green tea extract and gamma irradiation

Sterilization of milk protein without heating is of great interest. Gamma irradiation is a very powerful method to decontaminated casein. Gamma-irradiation of proteins in aqueous media at doses higher than 5kGy is known to induce their aggregation (without oxygen) or degradation (in presence of oxygen). Camellia sinensis green tea extract addition before irradiation of caseins cow milk proteins was examined. It was found that the presence of C. sinensis green tea extract during irradiation in the presence of oxygen conditions prevented the protein aggregation even at doses higher than 10kGy, probably by scavenging oxygen radicals produced by irradiation. The protective role of C. sinensis green tea extract allowing the gamma-irradiation treatment of caseins cow milk proteins in solution, was asserted by sodium dodecyl-sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and by high performance liquid chromatography inverse phase (RP-HPLC). The total viable microorganisms content evaluated by Plate Count Agar (PCA) incubation for 12h at 37°C, showed that caseins protein preparations gamma-irradiated remained sterile at a dose 2kGy in absence of C. sinensis green tea extract and at a dose lower than 2kGy in the presence of C. sinensis green tea extract.     

Enhanced salt tolerance of tomatoes by exogenous salicylic acid applied through rooting medium

In Tunisia, like in the other countries of the Mediterranean, tomato is ranked among the important vegetables in the economic sphere. Tunisia ranks as the first consumer of this vegetable in the world. However, tomatoes are exposed to multiple environmental stresses. In particular, salinity is the most stressful limiting factor to productivity. Salt tolerance of the tomato is susceptible to be ameliorated by genetic and physiologic ways. Salicylic acid (SA), a plant phenolic, is now considered as a hormone-like endogenous regulator, and its role in the defense mechanisms against biotic and abiotic stressors has been well documented. So, the aim of this study was to investigate the impact of exogenous application of SA (0.01 mM) on growth, nutritional behavior, and some metabolic parameters (total chlorophyll, soluble sugars, proline, and proteins) of tomato plants cv. Moneymaker exposed to NaCl (100 mM). Our results showed that the application of 0.01 mM SA to tomato plants via root drenching attenuate the depressive effect of salinity on plants. This amelioration results in stimulation of growth and development of plant. Under stress conditions, SA-treated plants exhibited more accumulation of photosynthetic pigments and K(+) contents. Thus, SA induces an increase in soluble sugars in roots and leaves; also, we noted the increase of proteins only in roots. Overall, the adverse effects of salt stress tomato plants were alleviated by the exogenous application of SA at vegetative stage, which upregulated nutrition and the accumulation of some organic solutes and osmoprotectors such sugars, proline, and proteins. So salicylic acid can be greatly used to enhance salt tolerance of tomato plants.     

Improvement of Cerebellum Redox States and Cholinergic Functions Contribute to the Beneficial Effects of Silymarin Against Manganese-Induced Neurotoxicity

Manganese (Mn) is a potent neurotoxin involved in the initiation and progression of various cognitive disorders. Oxidative stress is reported as one of accepted mechanisms of Mn toxicity. The present study was designed to explore the effects of silymarin, a natural antioxidant, in attenuating the toxicity induced by Mn in rat cerebellum. In this investigation, rats were treated orally with MnCl₂ (20 mg/ml) for 30 days, subsets of these animals were treated intraperitoneally daily with silymarin (100 mg/kg) along with respective controls. Mn exposure caused a marked oxidative stress in cerebellum as indicated by a significant decrease in the activities of enzymatic antioxidants like superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase and in the levels of non-enzymatic antioxidants like reduced glutathione (GSH), total thiols and vitamin C. Conversely an increase was obtained in lipid and protein markers such as thiobarbituric reactive acid substances, lipid hydroperoxide and protein carbonyl products contents. A Significant increase in acetylcholinesterase and a decrease in Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase activities were also shown, with a substantial rise in the expression of acetylcholinesterase and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and nitric oxide levels. The potential effect of SIL to prevent Mn induced neurotoxicity was also reflected by histopathological observations. Rats exposed to Mn showed a reduced number and morphological alterations of cerebellar Purkinje cells. These phenomenons were completely reversed by SIL co-treatment. We concluded that silymarin may protect against Mn-induced oxidative stress in cerebellum by inhibiting both lipid and protein oxidation and by activating acetylcholinesterase and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) gene expression.     

Molecular Genetic Diversity in Populations of Fusarium pseudograminearum from Tunisia

Fusarium pseudograminearum is one of the major pathogens causing crown rot of wheat in the semi‐arid and arid areas in Tunisia. In this study, the molecular diversity of 74 isolates of F. pseudograminearum representing three populations from Tunisia and a set of isolates from the world collection was investigated. The potential mycotoxin‐producing ability was tested by PCR using primer pairs specific for the Tri3, Tri7 and Tri13 genes. Results indicated that all the isolates are potentially DON and/or 3‐AcDON producers. The mating‐type idiomorphs were identified using diagnostic PCR primer for MAT1‐1 and MAT1‐2. Both mating types were recovered from the same region and in some cases from the same field. Restriction analysis of the nuclear ribosomal DNA (nrDNA) intergenic spacer region (IGS) revealed 11 haplotypes, five of which were identified in the world collection. The analysis of population structure using the combined IGS and MAT data revealed that the total gene diversity (H_T = 0.108) was mostly attributable to diversity within populations (H_S = 0.102) and that the genetic differentiation among the four populations was low (G_ST = 0.09). The analysis of molecular variance (amova ) showed that 15% of the variability was between the Tunisian populations and the world collection. These findings indicate that quarantine measures should be in place to limit the introduction of new populations of F. pseudograminearum into Tunisia.     

Salt tolerance of Setaria verticillata L.: a short-cycle poaceae

The responses of growth, development, and nutrition to salt stress are examined in short-cycle Setaria verticillata. For these, two experiments are led. The first intended to study the effects of various concentrations of NaCl on the parameters of growth and nutrition during the vegetative phase. Fifteen-day-old platelets were grown on commercial peat irrigated with pure NaCl solutions (0 to 300 mM). After three weeks of culture, the plants were collected and divided into roots and shoots. The fresh and dry matter masses of the various bodies are given. The second experiment was intended to study the effect of different concentrations of NaCl on crop plants until maturity. The culture was led under the same conditions as the preceding one, but for three months until the end of the cycle (production and maturation of the seeds). At harvest, the plants were separated in roots, shoots, and grains. During all the development cycle, Setaria vertillata was very sensitive to salinity. The concentration of NaCl that caused an important reduction of dry weight production was about 75 mM. Dry matter deposition was more diminished in roots than shoots. The reduction of the production of growth observed seems associated with a higher accumulation of Na(+) in shoots and with a deficit alimentation of organs in K(+). During the reproductive phase, salt affects the components of the output and induces variability on the level of the production of biomass as significant as that noted during the phase of vegetative growth. Lastly, the capacity of germination of seeds was strongly dependent on the salt concentration of the culture medium of the plants mothers, a total loss of viability appearing on crop plants collected in the presence of NaCl 300 mM. To cite this article: H. Ben Ahmed et al., C. R. Biologies 331 (2008).     

Regulation of lifespan in Drosophila by modulation of genes in the TOR signaling pathway

In many species, reducing nutrient intake without causing malnutrition extends lifespan. Like DR (dietary restriction), modulation of genes in the insulin-signaling pathway, known to alter nutrient sensing, has been shown to extend lifespan in various species. In Drosophila, the target of rapamycin (TOR) and the insulin pathways have emerged as major regulators of growth and size. Hence we examined the role of TOR pathway genes in regulating lifespan by using Drosophila. We show that inhibition of TOR signaling pathway by alteration of the expression of genes in this nutrient-sensing pathway, which is conserved from yeast to human, extends lifespan in a manner that may overlap with known effects of dietary restriction on longevity. In Drosophila, TSC1 and TSC2 (tuberous sclerosis complex genes 1 and 2) act together to inhibit TOR (target of rapamycin), which mediates a signaling pathway that couples amino acid availability to S6 kinase, translation initiation, and growth. We find that overexpression of dTsc1, dTsc2, or dominant-negative forms of dTOR or dS6K all cause lifespan extension. Modulation of expression in the fat is sufficient for the lifespan-extension effects. The lifespan extensions are dependent on nutritional condition, suggesting a possible link between the TOR pathway and dietary restriction.