The effects of light and tyrosinase during sclerotium development in Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc.

1977 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 278-287 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Michael Miller ◽  
Anthony E. Liberta

Some effects of light on morphogenesis in Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. were studied. Physiological competence to visible light developed during the first 120 h after inoculation, with an optimum sensitivity phase between 84 and 96 h that coincided with the leading hyphae reaching the edge of the Petri dish. Although sclerotial initials were produced in dark-grown cultures, light was necessary for the continuation of the developmental and maturation phases of sclerotial morphogenesis. Tyrosinase activity (o-diphenol: oxygen oxidoreductase, EC 1.10.3.1) was detected during sclerotial formation and the pH and temperature optima for this polyphenol oxidase in vitro were about 6.0 and 45 °C respectively. The enzyme was inhibited by cysteine. Similar activity levels of tyrosinase were obtained in blue and 'white' light-grown cultures but in red light activity was comparable with that of dark-grown cultures. Laccase activity was not detected at any stage of development.

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiago Silva Lima ◽  
Yoah Nayara Caetano da Silva Melo ◽  
Jackeline Laurentino Da Silva ◽  
Jaqueline Figueredo De Oliveira Costa ◽  
Gaus Silvestre De Andrade Lima ◽  
...  

Essential oils promote the inhibitory control of several fungi, including those within the genus Colletotrichum, the causal agent of Anthracnose, a disease which may occur at any stage of development in various crops, reducing up to 70% of crop production in some cases. Thus, the use of alternative products constitutes an important strategy for the integrated management, promoting less persistent molecules in the environment and lower toxicity rates, providing health benefits to producers and consumers of agricultural products. In this context, the present study evaluated the in vitro fungitoxic effect of essential oils from Java citronella (Cymbopogon winterianus), clove (Syzygium aromaticum), eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus) and rose pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius) on the mycelial growth of Colletotrichum theobromicola. The experiment was performed under completely randomized design, in a 4x5 factorial scheme (4 essential oils x 5 concentrations), with five replications, and the experimental unit consisting of a Petri dish. The treatments were generated by combining the concentrations (0, 5, 10, 15, 25 and 50 μL mL-1) of essential oils (citronella, clove, eucalyptus and rose pepper). The plates were inoculated with the pathogen C. theobromicola and incubated for seven days at 25 ± 2 °C. To verify the difference between treatments, the percentage of mycelial growth inhibition (PGI) was estimated. The mycelial growth of C. theobromicola was significantly reduced with increasing concentrations of essential oils. At a concentration of 50 μL mL-1, the essential oil from S. terebinthifolius showed the best result inhibiting 54.57% of mycelial growth, followed by the oil from S. aromaticum (49.26%), C. winterianus (23.70%) and E. globulus (17.90%). All the studied oils showed antifungal activity.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (03) ◽  
Author(s):  
PREM PANDEY ◽  
G. C. SAGAR ◽  
SUNDARMAN SHRESTHA2 ◽  
HIRAKAJI MANANDHAR ◽  
RITESH K. YADAV ◽  
...  

Nine isolates of Trichoderma spp. were isolated from different agro- ecological regions of Nepal viz; Jumla, Palpa, Chitwan, Tarahara, Banke, Illam and Salyan and screened against Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. Adreded soil borne phytopathogen causing collar rot of chickpea in chickpea; In-vitro efficacy of nine fungal antagonist (Trichoderma spp.) against Sclerotium rolfsii were screened. Pot experiment was done to find out the effective management of S. rolfsi through Tricoderma using different methods i.e. Seed treatment, soil drenching and soil application. All the tested isolates of Trichoderma spp. were found effective on mycelial growth inhibition and sclerotial parasitization of S. rolfsii. Trichoderma isolated from Palpa district showed maximum growth inhibition (%) of pathogen periodically after 48(93.78%), 72(96.00%), 96(97.96%) and 120(100.00%) hours of inoculation. Parasitized sclerotium showed minimum sclerotial germination on agar plates. Moreover, Trichoderma species isolated from Palpa districts showed second best percent mycelial growth inhibition periodically at 72(25.00%), 120(29.16%), 168(29.16%) and 216(29.16%).In pot experiment at 40 days after sowing, Seedling height was maximum in soil drenching with 30g per 100ml of water (22.27cm) and Mortality percentage of seedlings was least or highest disease control was observed in seed treated with 109cfu/ml (0.000%).


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (12) ◽  
pp. 3402
Author(s):  
Lena Wepner ◽  
Harald Andreas Färber ◽  
Andreas Jaensch ◽  
Anna Weber ◽  
Florian Heuser ◽  
...  

Various orthodontic wire compositions and configurations are present on the market for removable appliances; however, there have still been only few studies focusing on the effect of resin color and additives such as glitter on corrosion of metallic wires under different conditions. Thus, the aim of the study was to compare concentrations of released ions (aluminium, chromium, nickel) in a corrosive medium under three different conditions: non-loaded wires, loaded wires, and non-loaded wires treated with Kukis® cleaning tablets. Six different wires made of three types of steel alloy were embedded in PMMA resin leaving one centimetre of each wire emerging from the resin to come into contact with the corrosive medium. Glitter particles were added to half of the produced test specimens. For the unloaded test series, five specimens of each group were covered in a petri dish with 50 mL of corrosive medium (pH 2.3) following EN-ISO 10271 for seven days at 37 °C. The wires for the mechanically loaded test specimens overlapped the resin by 5 cm and were clamped into a time-switched electric drive for a defined period of time before the samples were taken after a testing time of 7 days. In the third group, unloaded test specimens were transferred from their petri dishes into the prepared Kukis® solution every 24 h before being stored in the corrosive medium. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used to quantify the specific ions in the corrosive solution. Statistical analysis showed that the mechanical loading of all wires could significantly raise the diffusion of ions into the corrosive medium. The colour of the resin did not affect the concentration of the released ions. The Kukis® cleaning tabs could not lower the corrosion of the tested metals, as some of the wires were corroded even more using the brace cleanser. Glitter-containing test specimens showed significantly higher amounts of aluminium. Mechanical loading as well as the presence of glitter particles in the resin significantly affected ion concentrations.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 56
Author(s):  
Mark A. Faghy ◽  
Kirsty E. Armstrong-Booth ◽  
Vicki Staples ◽  
Micheal J. Duncan ◽  
Clare M. P. Roscoe

Interventions to increase physical activity in children have adopted broad approaches and achieved varying success. There is a need to adopt approaches underpinned with a theoretical basis. Accordingly, the aim here was to implement and evaluate a 12-week intervention designed using the concepts of the COM-B model to determine the effect this has on physical activity levels. One hundred and forty-seven school-age children (mean age 8.9 ± 1.3 years) took part in a 12-week program delivered in a school setting. Topics included physical activity, healthy eating, sleep quality and reducing screen time/sedentary activities when not in school. A sample of participants wore a wrist-worn accelerometer for seven days pre-and post-intervention (N = 11). The physical activity frequency was unchanged (2.9 ± 1.0 AU) when compared with post-intervention values (3.1 ± 0.8 AU, mean increase 6.8 ± 3.7%, p > 0.05). Changes were observed in the daily consumption of fruit and vegetables (pre-intervention 44.6% vs. post-intervention 60.2%, p < 0.05). Sedentary time, light activity, moderate activity and vigorous activity were unchanged post-intervention (p > 0.05). There is a need to adopt a broader approach that incorporates a theoretical basis and considers the complex ways by which physical activity behaviours are influenced.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ji-wen Cheng ◽  
Li-xia Duan ◽  
Yang Yu ◽  
Pu Wang ◽  
Jia-le Feng ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) play a crucial role in cancer development and tumor resistance to therapy in prostate cancer, but the influence of MSCs on the stemness potential of PCa cells by cell–cell contact remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the effect of direct contact of PCa cells with MSCs on the stemness of PCa and its mechanisms. Methods First, the flow cytometry, colony formation, and sphere formation were performed to determine the stemness of PCaMSCs, and the expression of stemness-related molecules (Sox2, Oct4, and Nanog) was investigated by western blot analysis. Then, we used western blot and qPCR to determine the activity levels of two candidate pathways and their downstream stemness-associated pathway. Finally, we verified the role of the significantly changed pathway by assessing the key factors in this pathway via in vitro and in vivo experiments. Results We established that MSCs promoted the stemness of PCa cells by cell–cell contact. We here established that the enhanced stemness of PCaMSCs was independent of the CCL5/CCR5 pathway. We also found that PCaMSCs up-regulated the expression of Notch signaling-related genes, and inhibition of Jagged1-Notch1 signaling in PCaMSCs cells significantly inhibited MSCs-induced stemness and tumorigenesis in vitro and in vivo. Conclusions Our results reveal a novel interaction between MSCs and PCa cells in promoting tumorigenesis through activation of the Jagged1/Notch1 pathway, providing a new therapeutic target for the treatment of PCa.


2000 ◽  
Vol 20 (8) ◽  
pp. 2941-2948 ◽  
Author(s):  
John C. Prescott ◽  
Elizabeth H. Blackburn

ABSTRACT Telomeric DNA is maintained within a length range characteristic of an organism or cell type. Significant deviations outside this range are associated with altered telomere function. The yeast telomere-binding protein Rap1p negatively regulates telomere length. Telomere elongation is responsive to both the number of Rap1p molecules bound to a telomere and the Rap1p-centered DNA-protein complex at the extreme telomeric end. Previously, we showed that a specific trinucleotide substitution in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae telomerase gene (TLC1) RNA template abolished the enzymatic activity of telomerase, causing the same cell senescence and telomere shortening phenotypes as a complete tlc1 deletion. Here we analyze effects of six single- and double-base changes within these same three positions. All six mutant telomerases had in vitro enzymatic activity levels similar to the wild-type levels. The base changes predicted from the mutations all disrupted Rap1p binding in vitro to the corresponding duplex DNAs. However, they caused two classes of effects on telomere homeostasis: (i) rapid, RAD52-independent telomere lengthening and poor length regulation, whose severity correlated with the decrease in in vitro Rap1p binding affinity (this is consistent with loss of negative regulation of telomerase action at these telomeres; and (ii) telomere shortening that, depending on the template mutation, either established a new short telomere set length with normal cell growth or was progressive and led to cellular senescence. Hence, disrupting Rap1p binding at the telomeric terminus is not sufficient to deregulate telomere elongation. This provides further evidence that both positive and negativecis-acting regulators of telomerase act at telomeres.


The experiments to be reported in the following pages were suggested by observations made by one of us on the so-called Creeper fowl. Creeper chickens are characterized by a disproportionate shortness of the long bones of the extremities. Histological study has shown that Creeper chickens belong in the same category as the disproportionate dwarfism of mammals known as chondrodystrophy or achondroplasia (Landauer, 1931) . The Creeper characters are inherited as a Mendelian dominant and are lethal in homozygous condition (Landauer and Dunn, 1930). Homozygous Creeper embryos generally die after about 72 hours of incubation, but in rare cases they survive beyond this stage and continue development up to nearly hatching time. These late stages of homozygous Creeper embryos exhibit striking malformations of the extremities which are known as phokomelia (Landauer, 1933). A study of the early embryonic development of homozygous Creeper embryos (Landauer, 1932) led to the conclusion that the effects of the Creeper mutation are not brought about by specific gene action on those body parts which later show deformities, but by a general retardation of body growth at a definite stage of development. This conclusion was strengthened by a detailed comparison of embryonic and post-natal bone growth in heterozygous Creeper and normal chickens (Landauer, 1934). All evidence which so far has been obtained in this work points to the conclusion that the characteristic traits of heterozygous as well as homozygous Creeper chicks are produced by an unspecific retardation of development at a time when formation of the buds of the extremities (and of the head which in homozygous embryos also shows deformities later on) are proceeding at a particularly rapid rate, thereby causing specific disturbances in the differentiation of these parts. It seemed to us that it should be possible to put these conclusions to an experimental test. The most promising way of approach appeared to be an attempt to produce in vitro the extreme abnormalities of bone formation shown by the extremities of phokomelic homozygous Creeper embryos. These abnormalities chiefly consist in (1) a general retardation of cartilage differentiation; (2) lack of bone formation; and (3) frequent partial fusion of ulna and radius on the one hand, tibia and fibula on the other, or presence of only one bone in these segments instead of two.


2015 ◽  
Vol 87 (9-10) ◽  
pp. 937-951 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernd Herzog ◽  
Uli Osterwalder

AbstractSunscreens are used to protect the human skin against harmful effects of solar UV radiation. The most important quantity characterizing sunscreen performance is the sun protection factor (SPF). At the stage of development of new sun protection formulations quick and inexpensive methods for estimation of the UV screening performance are highly desirable. The most convenient approach towards this goal is given by computational simulations. Models for the calculation of the SPF employ the same algorithm as used with in vitro SPF measurements, but replace the transmittance measurement by the calculation of the overall absorbance of the UV filters in an irregular sunscreen film. The simulations require a database with quantitative UV extinction spectra of the relevant UV filters as well as a mathematical description of the film irregularity. The simulation algorithm implies also the consideration of photodegradation properties of the UV filters in the sunscreen composition. Besides using such simulations for designing new sunscreen formulations, the calculations can also support the understanding of sunscreen performance in general.


The simian malaria Plasmodium knowlesi provides many favourable features as an experimental model; it can be grown in vivo or in vitro . Parasites of defined variant specificity and stage of development are readily obtained and both the natural host and a highly susceptible host are available for experimental infection and vaccination trials. Proteins synthesized by erythrocytic P. knowlesi parasites are characteristic of the developmental stage, as are the alterations that the parasite induces in the red cell surface. Erythrocytic merozoites are anatomically and biochemically complex, their surface alone is covered by at least eight distinct polypeptides. Immune serum from merozoite-immunized rhesus recognizes many parasite components, especially those synthesized by schizonts. All of the merozoite surface components and some of the schizont-infected red cell surface antigens are recognized by such immune sera. Rhesus monkeys rendered immune by repeated infection may by contrast recognize comparatively few antigens; a positive correlation was established for these ‘ naturally ’ immunized monkeys between protection and antibody directed against a 74000 molecular mass antigen. Im m unization with this purified antigen confers partial protection. O ther putative protective antigens have been identified by monoclonal antibodies that inhibit merozoite invasion of red cells in vitro . The antigens recognized by inhibitory monoclonal antibodies are synthesized exclusively by schizonts and are processed, at the time ofschizont rupture and merozoite release, to smaller molecules that are present on the merozoite surface. The multiplicity of protective antigens is clearly demonstrated by the fact that seven distinct merozoite surface antigens are recognized by three different inhibitory monoclonals. None of the protective antigens identified are variant or strain specific.


1997 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 1642-1651 ◽  
Author(s):  
M J Weiss ◽  
C Yu ◽  
S H Orkin

The zinc finger transcription factor GATA-1 is essential for erythropoiesis. In its absence, committed erythroid precursors arrest at the proerythroblast stage of development and undergo apoptosis. To study the function of GATA-1 in an erythroid cell environment, we generated an erythroid cell line from in vitro-differentiated GATA-1- murine embryonic stem (ES) cells. These cells, termed G1E for GATA-1- erythroid, proliferate as immature erythroblasts yet complete differentiation upon restoration of GATA-1 function. We used rescue of terminal erythroid maturation in G1E cells as a stringent cellular assay system in which to evaluate the functional relevance of domains of GATA-1 previously characterized in nonhematopoietic cells. At least two major differences were established between domains required in G1E cells and those required in nonhematopoietic cells. First, an obligatory transactivation domain defined in conventional nonhematopoietic cell transfection assays is dispensable for terminal erythroid maturation. Second, the amino (N) zinc finger, which is nonessential for binding to the vast majority of GATA DNA motifs, is strictly required for GATA-1-mediated erythroid differentiation. Our data lead us to propose a model in which a nuclear cofactor(s) interacting with the N-finger facilitates transcriptional action by GATA-1 in erythroid cells. More generally, our experimental approach highlights critical differences in the action of cell-specific transcription proteins in different cellular environments and the power of cell lines derived from genetically modified ES cells to elucidate gene function.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document