Image_4_Spatial Expression and Functional Analysis of Casparian Strip Regulatory Genes in Endodermis Reveals the Conserved Mechanism in Tomato.TIF

<p>Casparian strip (CS) is an impregnation of endodermal cell wall, forming an apoplastic diffusion barrier which forces the symplastic and selective transport of nutrients across endodermis. This extracellular structure can be found in the roots of all higher plants and is thought to provide the protection of vascular tissues. In Arabidopsis, a genetic toolbox regulating the formation of Casparian strips has emerged recently. However, Arabidopsis has the stereotypical root which is much simpler than most other plant species. To understand the Casparian strip formation in a more complex root system, we examined CS regulatory pathways in tomato. Our results reveal a spatiotemporally conserved expression pattern of most essential components of CS machinery in tomato. Further functional analyses verify the role of homologous CS genes in the Casparian strip formation in tomato, indicating the functional conservation of CS regulatory cascade in tomato.</p

Table_1_Spatial Expression and Functional Analysis of Casparian Strip Regulatory Genes in Endodermis Reveals the Conserved Mechanism in Tomato.PDF

<p>Casparian strip (CS) is an impregnation of endodermal cell wall, forming an apoplastic diffusion barrier which forces the symplastic and selective transport of nutrients across endodermis. This extracellular structure can be found in the roots of all higher plants and is thought to provide the protection of vascular tissues. In Arabidopsis, a genetic toolbox regulating the formation of Casparian strips has emerged recently. However, Arabidopsis has the stereotypical root which is much simpler than most other plant species. To understand the Casparian strip formation in a more complex root system, we examined CS regulatory pathways in tomato. Our results reveal a spatiotemporally conserved expression pattern of most essential components of CS machinery in tomato. Further functional analyses verify the role of homologous CS genes in the Casparian strip formation in tomato, indicating the functional conservation of CS regulatory cascade in tomato.</p

Table_3_Spatial Expression and Functional Analysis of Casparian Strip Regulatory Genes in Endodermis Reveals the Conserved Mechanism in Tomato.PDF

<p>Casparian strip (CS) is an impregnation of endodermal cell wall, forming an apoplastic diffusion barrier which forces the symplastic and selective transport of nutrients across endodermis. This extracellular structure can be found in the roots of all higher plants and is thought to provide the protection of vascular tissues. In Arabidopsis, a genetic toolbox regulating the formation of Casparian strips has emerged recently. However, Arabidopsis has the stereotypical root which is much simpler than most other plant species. To understand the Casparian strip formation in a more complex root system, we examined CS regulatory pathways in tomato. Our results reveal a spatiotemporally conserved expression pattern of most essential components of CS machinery in tomato. Further functional analyses verify the role of homologous CS genes in the Casparian strip formation in tomato, indicating the functional conservation of CS regulatory cascade in tomato.</p

Image_5_Spatial Expression and Functional Analysis of Casparian Strip Regulatory Genes in Endodermis Reveals the Conserved Mechanism in Tomato.TIF

<p>Casparian strip (CS) is an impregnation of endodermal cell wall, forming an apoplastic diffusion barrier which forces the symplastic and selective transport of nutrients across endodermis. This extracellular structure can be found in the roots of all higher plants and is thought to provide the protection of vascular tissues. In Arabidopsis, a genetic toolbox regulating the formation of Casparian strips has emerged recently. However, Arabidopsis has the stereotypical root which is much simpler than most other plant species. To understand the Casparian strip formation in a more complex root system, we examined CS regulatory pathways in tomato. Our results reveal a spatiotemporally conserved expression pattern of most essential components of CS machinery in tomato. Further functional analyses verify the role of homologous CS genes in the Casparian strip formation in tomato, indicating the functional conservation of CS regulatory cascade in tomato.</p

Development of an automated, high-throughput SARS-CoV-2 neutralization assay based on a pseudotyped virus using a vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) vector

The global outbreak of COVID-19 has caused a severe threat to human health; therefore, simple, high-throughput neutralization assays are desirable for developing vaccines and drugs against COVID-19. In this study, a high-titer SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus was successfully packaged by truncating the C-terminus of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein by 21 amino acids and infecting 293T cells that had been stably transfected with the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor and furin (named AF cells), to establish a simple, high-throughput, and automated 384-well plate neutralization assay. The method was optimized for cell amount, virus inoculation, incubation time, and detection time. The automated assay showed good sensitivity, accuracy, reproducibility, Z' factor, and a good correlation with the live virus neutralization assay. The high-throughput approach would make it available for the SARS-CoV-2 neutralization test in large-scale clinical trials and seroepidemiological surveys which would aid the accelerated vaccine development and evaluation.</p