Overexpression of D-Xylose Reductase (xyl1) Gene and Antisense Inhibition of D-Xylulokinase (xyiH) Gene Increase Xylitol Production inTrichoderma reesei

T. reeseiis an efficient cellulase producer and biomass degrader. To improve xylitol production inTrichoderma reeseistrains by genetic engineering, two approaches were used in this study. First, the presumptive D-xylulokinase gene inT. reesei(xyiH), which has high homology to known fungi D-xylulokinase genes, was silenced by transformation ofT. reeseiQM9414 strain with an antisense construct to create strain S6-2-2. The expression of thexyiHgene in the transformed strain S6-2-2 decreased at the mRNA level, and D-xylulokinase activity decreased after 48 h of incubation. This led to an increase in xylitol production from undetectable levels in wild-typeT. reeseiQM9414 to 8.6 mM in S6-2-2. TheT. reeseiΔxdh is a xylose dehydrogenase knockout strain with increased xylitol production compared to the wild-typeT. reeseiQM9414 (22.8 mM versus undetectable). The copy number of the xylose reductase gene (xyl1) inT. reeseiΔxdh strain was increased by genetic engineering to create a new strain Δ9-5-1. The Δ9-5-1 strain showed a higherxyl1 expression and a higher yield of xylose reductase, and xylitol production was increased from 22.8 mM to 24.8 mM. Two novel strains S6-2-2 and Δ9-5-1 are capable of producing higher yields of xylitol.T. reeseihas great potential in the industrial production of xylitol.

(139) A Capacity for Mannitol Biosynthesis is a Critical Component of Salt Tolerance in Celery

Mannitol, a sugar alcohol that appears to serve as an osmoprotectant/compatible solute to cope with salt stress, is synthesized in celery (Apium graveolens L.) via the action of a NADPH dependent mannose-6-phosphate reductase (M6PR). To evaluate the abiotic stress effects of mannitol biosynthesis, we transformed celery with an antisense construct of the celery leaf M6PR gene under control of the CaMV 35S promoter. Unlike wild type (WT) celery, independent antisense M6PR transformants did not accumulate significant amounts of mannitol in any tissue, with or without salt stress. In the absence of NaCl, and despite the lack of any significant accumulation of mannitol that is normally the major photosynthetic product, antisense transformants were mostly phenotypically similar to the WT celery. However, in the presence of NaCl, mature antisense transgenic plants were significantly less salt-tolerant, with reduced growth and photosynthetic rates, and some transformant lines were killed at 200 mM NaCl, a concentration that WT celery can normally withstand. Although mannitol biosynthesis is normally enhanced in salt-treated WT celery, no such increase was observed in the antisense transformants. Like our previous gain of function results showing enhanced salt tolerance in Arabidopsis plants transgenic for a sense M6PR construct, these loss of function results, using an antisense construct in celery, demonstrate a major role for mannitol biosynthesis in developing salt-tolerant plants.

Doxorubicin Requires the Sequential Activation of Caspase-2, Protein Kinase Cδ, and c-Jun NH2-terminal Kinase to Induce Apoptosis

Here, we identified caspase-2, protein kinase C (PKC)δ, and c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) as key components of the doxorubicin-induced apoptotic cascade. Using cells stably transfected with an antisense construct for caspase-2 (AS2) as well as a chemical caspase-2 inhibitor, we demonstrate that caspase-2 is required in doxorubicin-induced apoptosis. We also identified PKCδ as a novel caspase-2 substrate. PKCδ was cleaved/activated in a caspase-2–dependent manner after doxorubicin treatment both in cells and in vitro. PKCδ is furthermore required for efficient doxorubicin-induced apoptosis because its chemical inhibition as well as adenoviral expression of a kinase dead (KD) mutant of PKCδ severely attenuated doxorubicin-induced apoptosis. Furthermore, PKCδ and JNK inhibition show that PKCδ lies upstream of JNK in doxorubicin-induced death. Jnk-deficient mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEFs) were highly resistant to doxorubicin compared with wild type (WT), as were WT Jurkat cells treated with SP600125, further supporting the importance of JNK in doxorubicin-induced apoptosis. Chemical inhibitors for PKCδ and JNK do not synergize and do not function in doxorubicin-treated AS2 cells. Caspase-2, PKCδ, and JNK were furthermore implicated in doxorubicin-induced apoptosis of primary acute lymphoblastic leukemia blasts. The data thus support a sequential model involving caspase-2, PKCδ, and JNK signaling in response to doxorubicin, leading to the activation of Bak and execution of apoptosis.