Some properties of active and latent catechol oxidase of mushroom

Latent form of mushroom catechol oxidase was activated by O,1% sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). Catalytic power of the latent form, calculated from the kinetic parameters was 1,8 times higher than that of active one. Salicyl hydroxamic acid (SHAM) appeared as a powerful inhibitor for both active and latent forms of catechol oxidase. However, in the range of 150-250 μM SHAM the inhibitory effect for active catechol oxidase was significantly higher than that for the latent one. Non-competitive and irreversible characteristics of inhibition of latent and active catechol oxidase was calculated from kinetic data. Electrophoretic analysis followed by scanning of the gels was used. The spots' absorbance was determined from a computer image of the isoenzyme band patterns. It allowed us to estimate gels quantitatively. Presence of one additional clearly defined slow moving isoform of SDS-activated catechol oxidase, differed in the respect of 3 bands for the active and 4 bands for the total.

Harpin-Induced Hypersensitive Cell Death Is Associated with Altered Mitochondrial Functions in Tobacco Cells

Mitochondria play important roles in animal apoptosis and are implicated in salicylic acid (SA)-induced plant resistance to viral pathogens. In a previous study, we demonstrated that SA induces rapid inhibition of mitochondrial electron transport and oxidative phosphorylation in tobacco cells. In the present study, we report that plant programmed cell death induced during pathogen elicitor-induced hypersensitive response (HR) is also associated with altered mitochondrial functions. Harpin, an HR elicitor produced by Erwinia amylovora, induced inhibition of ATP synthesis in tobacco cell cultures. Inhibition of ATP synthesis occurred almost immediately after incubation with harpin and preceded hypersensitive cell death induced by the elicitor. Diphenylene iodonium, an inhibitor of the oxidative burst, did not block harpin-induced inhibition of ATP synthesis or cell death, suggesting that oxidative burst was not the direct cause for these two harpin-induced processes. Unlike SA, harpin had no significant effect on total respiratory O2 uptake of treated cells. However, respiration of harpin-treated tobacco cells became very sensitive to the alternative oxidase inhibitors salicyl-hydroxamic acid and n-propyl gallate. Thus, harpin treatment resulted in reduced capacity of mitochondrial cytochrome pathway electron transport, which could lead to the observed inhibition of ATP synthesis. Given the recently demonstrated roles of mitochondria in apoptosis, this rapid inhibition of mitochondrial functions may play a role in harpin-induced hypersensitive cell death.

ISOLATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF TEMPERATURE-SENSITIVE RESPIRATORY MUTANTS OF NEUROSPORA CRASSA

ABSTRACT Filtration-enrichment and inositol-less death methods of mutant isolation, coupled with a screen for cyanide-insensitive respiration, proved to be highly efficient methods for isolating temperature-sensitive (ts) nuclear Neurospora mutants having defective respiration. Eighteen different ts respiratory mutants have been isolated. Most of them are pleiotropic and defective in one or more of the following phenotypes: cytochrome aa3, b, and c (individual or multiple defects); oligomycin inhibition of ATPase activity; respiration and its inhibition by KCN and salicyl hydroxamic acid; and growth rates in liquid and solid media at 25° and 38°. Among these mutants are the first cytochrome c mutant of Neurospora and an extranuclear ts ATPase mutant. An added bonus was the fact that aver half of the mutants were affected either in ribosome assembly or in protein synthesis in the mitochondrion. We have yet to find any mutants completely lacking activities associated with the respiratory chain. However, the wide spectrum of mutants isolated here, along with those currently available, constitutes a considerable resource for investigating respiration in obligate aerobes.