microPublication biology最新文献

Climate change is increasing average temperature and decreasing water availability, both stressors that affect plant growth. High heat consistently decreases growth rate but plants may grow rapidly to escape drought or grow more slowly and avoid water loss. We use Arabidopsis thaliana to investigate how heat and drought together shape plant growth and if their impact differs between plants that escape or avoid drought. Our results show that leaf area growth differs but the response to heat and drought is consistent between locally adapted populations in widespread plants like A. thaliana.

The classic dominant longfin zebrafish strain ( lof ^t2 ) has long fins due to ectopic expression of the potassium channel Kcnh2a in the fin mesenchyme. Potassium channel function is also known to affect the vasculature, but the fin vasculature has not been characterized in lof ^t2 fish. Here we show that lof ^t2 fish contain significantly increased artery and vein diameters in the caudal fin as compared to wildtype fish. Interestingly, these changes in blood vessel size are associated with areas of fin overgrowth, consistent with a possible role for the vasculature in fin size regulation. .

The ciliate protozoan Paramecium exhibits complex behaviors in response to environmental cues. Here we report a method that enables long-term observation (over 24 hours) of Paramecium with a simple experimental procedure. We observed the behavior of Paramecium bursaria , a species of Paramecium harboring symbiotic green algae, in gas-permeable chambers, where they exhibited light-dependent changes in behavior. We found that, in the 12-hour light-dark (LD) cycles, P. bursaria responds to both the dark-to-light and the light-to-dark transitions in different manners. This method provides a way to evaluate the long-term changes in the behaviors of Paramecium and other protists.

Planaria ( Dugesia dorotocephala ) are being utilized as a model system to test the effectiveness of ARV-825. ARV-825 belongs to the drug class proteolysis targeting chimeras (PROTACs), which targets and degrades the protein Bromodomain-containing protein 4 (BRD4) via the proteasome. To examine the impact of ARV-825 on the planaria, planaria viability was tested at different ARV-825 concentrations. This demonstrated a concentration-dependent reduction in viability, 91.7% survival with 1µM ARV-825 reduced to 25% survival in 10 µM ARV-825. This suggests ARV-825 has an effect on Dugesia dorotocephala , and indicates that this may be a suitable model organism for studying ARV-825.

Individual cells must rapidly repair any cortical damage from environmental or physiological stresses, to survive and to contribute to maintaining the proper function of tissues and organs. The formation of an actomyosin ring around the wound periphery is an important step in physically closing the cell wound. Here, we find that the Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) pathway, which is usually associated with plasma membrane homeostasis, is needed for optimal cell wound repair. In this context, the LDL pathway is required for robust actomyosin ring formation, revealing an unexpected role in regulating actin dynamics during cell wound repair.

The C. elegans smg-1 gene encodes a PI3K-related kinase responsible for initiating the process of nonsense-mediated decay (NMD). The smg-1 ( r861 ) allele is a strong loss-of-function variant that disrupts NMD activity leading to the stabilization of transcripts containing premature stop codons (PTCs). This allele has been used extensively in studies of RNA surveillance, transcript stability, and transgene regulation. Despite its widespread use, the mutation in smg-1 ( r861 ) has not been reported, and identification is often based solely on phenotype. Here, we identify the underlying mutation and present a restriction digestion-based genotyping strategy that enables quick confirmation of the smg-1 ( r861 ) allele.

The promoter of the Arabidopsis MYB93 ( MYB93 ) transcription factor was previously identified in a large-scale screen using the SCARECROW ( SCR ) transcription factor. Independent high-throughput studies also identified MYB93 as a protein-interaction partner of the MAP kinase 3 ( MPK3 ). Here, we validate and extend those observations using RT-PCR, yeast two-hybrid assays and phenotypic analysis. MYB93 transcript levels were elevated in the scr-3 mutant and reduced upon expression of SCR-GFP, indicating regulation by SCR. In yeast, the N-terminal domain of MYB93 , but not the C-terminal region, interacted with MPK3 . We also observed that mpk3-1 mutants exhibited a lateral root phenotype similar to myb93-1 . Together, these findings support a model in which both MYB93 gene expression and MYB93 protein function are modulated by SCR and MPK3 , respectively.

Grafting and adventitious root formation are plant regeneration mechanisms used in horticulture. In grafting, a scion (shoot) of one plant is joined to a stock (root) of another plant through vascular reconnection. Adventitious roots arise from above-ground plant tissue, and graft failure occurs when the scion develops adventitious roots. The molecular mechanisms underlying grafting success and adventitious root formation are unclear. We developed a hypocotyl grafting approach to determine regulators involved in grafting success vs adventitious root formation. We suggest that reduced cytokinin signaling by the F-box protein, KISS ME DEADLY2 (KMD2, AT1G15670), promotes adventitious root formation over successful grafting. .

Plant shade avoidance response includes elongated hypocotyls and petioles as well as increased leaf elevation angles. Our time-course image analyses indicate that the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) affects leaf elevation angles in Arabidopsis. While mutants with impaired ABA production ( aba1-6 ) or with insensitivity to ABA ( abi5-10 ) did not fully increase the angles under shade avoidance conditions, a higher concentration of exogenous ABA inhibited leaf elevation under the same conditions. These suggest that certain levels of ABA production and sensing are required for leaf elevation during shade avoidance response, whereas higher concentrations of ABA can inhibit the process.

MicyPS is a bacteriophage with siphovirus morphology infecting Corynebacterium glutamicum strain MB001. It was isolated from soil near a henhouse in Villiers-sur-Marne, France. Its 78,208-bp genome encodes 115 predicted protein-encoding genes and 5 tRNAs. Based on gene-content similarity with actinobacteriophage PSonyx, MicyPS was assigned to the new cluster EQ.