Production of engineered long-life and male sterile Pelargonium plants

[EN] Background: Pelargonium is one of the most popular garden plants in the world. Moreover, it has a considerable economic importance in the ornamental plant market. Conventional cross-breeding strategies have generated a range of cultivars with excellent traits. However, gene transfer via Agrobacterium tumefaciens could be a helpful tool to further improve Pelargonium by enabling the introduction of new genes/traits. We report a simple and reliable protocol for the genetic transformation of Pelargonium spp. and the production of engineered long-life and male sterile Pelargonium zonale plants, using the pSAG12::ipt and PsEND1::barnase chimaeric genes respectively. Results: The pSAG12::ipt transgenic plants showed delayed leaf senescence, increased branching and reduced internodal length, as compared to control plants. Leaves and flowers of the pSAG12::ipt plants were reduced in size and displayed a more intense coloration. In the transgenic lines carrying the PsEND1::barnase construct no pollen grains were observed in the modified anther structures, which developed instead of normal anthers. The locules of sterile anthers collapsed 3¿4 days prior to floral anthesis and, in most cases, the undeveloped anther tissues underwent necrosis. Conclusion: The chimaeric construct pSAG12::ipt can be useful in Pelargonium spp. to delay the senescence process and to modify plant architecture. In addition, the use of engineered male sterile plants would be especially useful to produce environmentally friendly transgenic plants carrying new traits by preventing gene flow between the genetically modified ornamentals and related plant species. These characteristics could be of interest, from a commercial point of view, both for pelargonium producers and consumers.This work was funded by grants AGL2009-13388-C03-01 and BIO2009-08134 from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN). We acknowledge support of the publication fee by the CSIC Open Access Publication Support Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI). In the past five years we have received funding from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN) and the article-processing charge will be pay with funds from two granted projects. The authors received salaries from two different institutions: The Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) or the High Spanish Council of Scientific Research (CSIC). We are not currently applying for a patent related with the content of this manuscript. All the mentioned organisms/institutions do not gain or lose financially from the publication of this manuscript either now or in the future.García Sogo, B.; Pineda Chaza, BJ.; Roque Mesa, EM.; Antón Martínez, MT.; Atarés Huerta, A.; Borja, M.; Beltran Porter, JP.... (2012). Production of engineered long-life and male sterile Pelargonium plants. BMC Plant Biology. 12:156-171. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2229-12-1561561711

Nuevo cultivar con frutos y sépalos convertidos en frutos de alto interés para su consumo fresco y procesado industrial

Número de publicación: 2 341 527 21 Número de solicitud: 200900003 51 Int. Cl.: C12N 15/82 (2006.01) A01H 5/00 (2006.01Nuevo cultivar con frutos y sépalos convertidos en frutos de alto interés para su consumo fresco y procesado industrial. En la presente invención se describen secuencias de nucleótidos capaces de incrementar la expresión de un gen de desarrollo reproductivo lo que tiene como resultado la generación de cultivares con un fruto de alto interés para su consumo fresco y procesado industrial caracterizado por poseer características mejoradas respecto de los cultivares conocidos de variedades comerciales. Estos nuevos cultivares tienen el cáliz de la flor carnoso y convertido en fruto. El fruto verdadero y el cáliz tienen mayores niveles de azúcares y licopeno y un mayor contenido en grados Brix. Además, exhiben una mayor tasa de cuajado de fruto y tienen inhibida la zona de abscisión del fruto, lo que facilita la recolección mecánica.Universidad de Almerí

Alq mutation increases fruit set rate and allows the maintenance of fruit yield under moderate saline conditions

[EN] Arlequin (Alq) is a gain-of-function mutant whose most relevant feature is that sepals are able to become fruit-like organs due to the ectopic expression of the ALQ-TAGL1 gene. The role of this gene in tomato fruit ripening was previously demonstrated. To discover new functional roles for ALQ-TAGL1, and most particularly its involvement in the fruit set process, a detailed characterization of Alq yield-related traits was performed. Under standard conditions, the Alq mutant showed a much higher fruit set rate than the wild type. A significant percentage of Alq fruits were seedless. The results showed that pollination-independent fruit set in Alq is due to early transition from flower to fruit. Analysis of endogenous hormones in Alq suggests that increased content of cytokinins and decreased level of abscisic acid may account for precocious fruit set. Comparative expression analysis showed relevant changes of several genes involved in cell division, gibberellin metabolism, and the auxin signalling pathway. Since pollination-independent fruit set may be a very useful strategy for maintaining fruit production under adverse conditions, fruit set and yield in Alq plants under moderate salinity were assessed. Interestingly, Alq mutant plants showed a high yield under saline conditions, similar to that of Alq and the wild type under unstressed conditions.This work was supported by the research grants AGL2015-64991-C3-3-R and AGL2015-64991-C3-1-R from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO/FEDER). The PhD grant to CRA (BES-2013-063778) was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness.The authors thank Dr Isabel Lopez-Diaz and Dr Esther Carrera for their help in hormone quantification carried out at the Plant Hormone Quantification Service, IBMCP,Valencia, Spain. The authors thank David Harry Rhead for reviewing the manuscript in the English language.Ribelles Alfonso, C.; García Sogo, B.; Yuste-Lisbona, FJ.; Atarés Huerta, A.; Castañeda, L.; Capel, C.; Lozano, R.... (2019). Alq mutation increases fruit set rate and allows the maintenance of fruit yield under moderate saline conditions. Journal of Experimental Botany. 70(20):5731-5744. https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erz342S57315744702

The sodium transporter encoded by the HKT1;2 gene modulates sodium/potassium homeostasis in tomato shoots under salinity

[EN] Excessive soil salinity diminishes crop yield and quality. In a previous study in tomato, we identified two closely linked genes encoding HKT1-like transporters, HKT1;1 and HKT1;2, as candidate genes for a major quantitative trait locus (kc7.1) related to shoot Na+/K+ homeostasis - a major salt tolerance trait - using two populations of recombinant inbred lines (RILs). Here, we determine the effectiveness of these genes in conferring improved salt tolerance by using two near-isogenic lines (NILs) that were homozygous for either the Solanum lycopersicum allele (NIL17) or for the Solanum cheesmaniae allele (NIL14) at both HKT1 loci; transgenic lines derived from these NILs in which each HKT1;1 and HKT1;2 had been silenced by stable transformation were also used. Silencing of ScHKT1;2 and SlHKT1;2 altered the leaf Na+/K+ ratio and caused hypersensitivity to salinity in plants cultivated under transpiring conditions, whereas silencing SlHKT1;1/ScHKT1;1 had a lesser effect. These results indicate that HKT1;2 has the more significant role in Na+ homeostasis and salinity tolerance in tomato.We thank Dr Espen Granum for critically reading the manuscript, Maria Isabel Gaspar Vidal and Elena Sanchez Romero for technical assistance, the Instrumental Technical Service at EEZ-CSIC for DNA sequencing and ICP-OES mineral analysis and Michael O'Shea for proofreading the text. In addition, we thank Dr Ana P. Ortega who assisted in preliminary experiments. This work was supported by ERDF-cofinanced grants, AGL2010-17090 and AGL2013-41733-R (A.B.), AGL2015-64991-C3-3-R (V.M.) and AGL2014-56675-R (M.J.A.) from the Spanish "Ministerio de Economia, Industria y Competitividad'; CVI-7558, Proyecto de Excelencia, from Junta de Andalucia (A.B); and the Australian Research Council (ARC) for Centre of Excellence (CE14010008) and Future Fellowship (FT130100709) funding (M.G.). N.J-P. was supported by an FPI program BES-2011-046096 and her stay in M.G.'s lab by a short-stay EEBB-I-14-08682, both from the Spanish from "Ministerio de Economia Industria y Competitividad'. The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.Jaime-Perez, N.; Pineda Chaza, BJ.; García Sogo, B.; Atarés Huerta, A.; Athman, A.; Byrt, CS.; Olias, R.... (2017). The sodium transporter encoded by the HKT1;2 gene modulates sodium/potassium homeostasis in tomato shoots under salinity. Plant Cell & Environment. 40(5):658-671. https://doi.org/10.1111/pce.12883S65867140

Approaching the genetic dissection of indirect adventitious organogenesis process in tomato explants

[EN] The screening of 862 T-DNA lines was carried out to approach the genetic dissection of indirect adventitious organogenesis in tomato. Several mutants defective in different phases of adventitious organogenesis, namely callus growth (tdc-1), bud differentiation (tdb-1,-2,-3) and shoot-bud development (tds-1) were identified and characterized. The alteration of the TDC-1 gene blocked callus proliferation depending on the composition of growth regulators in the culture medium. Calli from tds-1 explants differentiated buds but did not develop normal shoots. Histological analysis showed that their abnormal development is due to failure in the organization of normal adventitious shoot meristems. Interestingly, tdc-1 and tds-1 mutant plants were indistinguishable from WT ones, indicating that the respective altered genes play specific roles in cell proliferation from explant cut zones (TDC-1 gene) or in the organization of adventitious shoot meristems (TDS-1 gene). Unlike the previous, plants of the three mutants defective in the differentiation of adventitious shoot-buds (tdb-1,-2,-3) showed multiple changes in vegetative and reproductive traits. Cosegregation analyses revealed the existence of an association between the phenotype of the tdb-3 mutant and a T-DNA insert, which led to the discovery that the SlMAPKKK17 gene is involved in the shoot-bud differentiation process.Vicente Moreno and Rafael Lozano thank the Ministry of Science and Innovation (State Innovation Agency) for granting the projects PID2019-110833RB-C32 and PID2019-110833RB-C31. Benito Pineda's work in the context of this article has been funded by 'Aid for First Research Projects (PAID-06-18)' by the Vicerrectorado de Investigacion, Innovacion y Transferencia de la Universitat Politecnica de Valencia (UPV), Valencia, Spain'. The PhD fellowship for Jorge Sanchez-Lopez and Marybel Jaquez-Gutierrez were funded by the Universidad de Sinaloa and the CONACYT of Mexico.Sanchez-Lopez, J.; Atarés Huerta, A.; Jaquez-Gutierrez, M.; Ortiz-Atienza, A.; Capel, C.; Pineda Chaza, BJ.; García Sogo, B.... (2021). Approaching the genetic dissection of indirect adventitious organogenesis process in tomato explants. Plant Science. 302:1-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plantsci.2020.110721S11430

Indicadores de comportamiento de la competencia de innovación en el ámbito académico y en el profesional: revisión de la literatura

[EN] Companies pay more and more attention to the innovation competence of their employees. Innovation is understood as either the introduction of something such as a product, service, process or method, completely new, or the improvement of something that already exists. This paper presents the work performed by the research group IEMA-UPV so as to improve the INCODE barometer (from their previous European project “Innovation Competencies Development”), to be used by both companies and universities. This barometer has been adopted and will be refined in the framework of their new European project FINCODA (“Framework for Innovation Competencies Development and Assessment”) as a tool to measure and assess the behavioral indicators of the innovation competence, which are being identified through a systematic literature review. As a part of the research being performed, this paper also introduces the new model established by the FINCODA project. In this model, the innovation competence is presented as a cluster with three dimensions: creativity, critical thinking and the third one, intrapreneurship, which includes three sub-dimensions (initiative, teamwork and networking).[ES] Las empresas valoran cada vez más la competencia de innovación de sus empleados, entendiendo por innovación la introducción de algo (producto, servicio, proceso o método) completamente nuevo o también la mejora de algo que ya existe. Este trabajo presenta el trabajo realizado por el grupo de investigación IEMA-UPV para la mejora del barómetro INCODE (de su proyecto europeo anterior “Innovation Competencies Development”), y la utilización de este tanto en la empresa como en la universidad. Este barómetro ha sido adoptado y será mejorado en el marco de su nuevo proyecto europeo FINCODA (“Framework for Innovation Competencies Development and Assessment”) como instrumento para medir y evaluar los indicadores del comportamiento de la competencia de innovación, que están siendo identificados como resultado de una revisión sistemática de la literatura. Como parte de la investigación que se está realizando, en este trabajo se presenta, asimismo, el nuevo modelo establecido por el proyecto FINCODA, en el que la competencia de innovación se muestra como un conjunto en el que se encuentran integradas tres dimensiones: creatividad, pensamiento crítico y una tercera, intraemprendedurismo, que incluye tres sub-dimensiones (iniciativa, trabajo en equipo y trabajo en red).Este trabajo ha sido financiado con el Proyecto Erasmus+ Project FINCODA, Framework for Innovation Competences Development and Assessment_554493-EPP-1-2014-1-FIEPPKA2-KA (The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein) y el Proyecto PIME 2015-2016 A/09_Evaluación de los indicadores del comportamiento innovador en el alumno universitario, de la Universitat Politècnica de València.Aznar Más, L.; Pérez Peñalver, MJ.; Montero Fleta, MB.; González Ladrón De Guevara, FR.; Marín García, JA.; Atarés Huerta, LM. (2016). Indicadores de comportamiento de la competencia de innovación en el ámbito académico y en el profesional: revisión de la literatura. En In-Red 2016. II Congreso nacional de innovación educativa y docencia en red. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/INRED2016.2016.4389OC

The SlCBL10 calcineurin B-like protein ensures plant growth under salt stress by regulating Na+ and Ca2+ homeostasis

[EN] Characterization of a new tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) T-DNA mutant allowed for the isolation of the CALCINEURIN B-LIKE PROTEIN 10 (SlCBL10) gene whose lack of function was responsible for the severe alterations observed in the shoot apex and reproductive organs under salinity conditions. Physiological studies proved that SlCBL10 gene is required to maintain a proper low Na+/Ca2+ ratio in growing tissues allowing tomato growth under salt stress. Expression analysis of the main responsible genes for Na+ compartmentalization (i.e. Na+/H+ EXCHANGERs, SALT OVERLY SENSITIVE, HIGH-AFFINITY K+ TRANSPORTER 1; 2, H+-pyrophosphatase AVP1 [SlAVP1] and V-ATPase [SlVHA-A1]) supported a reduced capacity to accumulate Na+ in Slcbl10 mutant leaves, which resulted in a lower uploading of Na+ from xylem, allowing the toxic ion to reach apex and flowers. Likewise, the tomato CATION EXCHANGER 1 and TWO-PORE CHANNEL 1 (SlTPC1), key genes for Ca2+ fluxes to the vacuole, showed abnormal expression in Slcbl10 plants indicating an impaired Ca2+ release from vacuole. Additionally, complementation assay revealed that SlCBL10 is a true ortholog of the Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) CBL10 gene, supporting that the essential function of CBL10 is conserved in Arabidopsis and tomato. Together, the findings obtained in this study provide new insights into the function of SlCBL10 in salt stress tolerance. Thus, it is proposed that SlCBL10 mediates salt tolerance by regulating Na+ and Ca2+ fluxes in the vacuole, cooperating with the vacuolar cation channel SlTPC1 and the two vacuolar H+-pumps, SlAVP1 and SlVHA-A1, which in turn are revealed as potential targets of SlCBL10.This study was supported by grants from the Plant KBBE Program (EUI2009-04074), the Spanish Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (AGL2012-40150, AGL2015-64991-C3-1-R/2-R/3-R, and BIO2016-79187-R), as well as the French National Research Agency ENDOREPIGEN project. A.O.-A. was supported by a PhD fellowship from the Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (BIO2009-11484).Egea, I.; Pineda Chaza, BJ.; Ortiz Atienza, A.; Plasencia, F.; Drevensek, S.; García Sogo, B.; Yuste-Lisbona, FJ.... (2018). The SlCBL10 calcineurin B-like protein ensures plant growth under salt stress by regulating Na+ and Ca2+ homeostasis. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY. 176(2):1676-1693. https://doi.org/10.1104/pp.17.01605S16761693176

Proposal of a Framework for Innovation Competencies Development and Assessment (FINCODA)

[EN] In this article we propose a model of innovation competence of people, based on the existing literature to integrate and complement the existing models. The main contribution of this work consists in demonstrating the differences and similarities of current models and in providing a conceptual definition for each model element. In this way, both researchers and people in charge of Human Resources in companies can obtain a framework to design measuring instruments to assess the innovation competence, which can fulfil the twofold demand requirement of validity and reliability.This work has been conducted as part of a European project financed by the European Union ["FINCODA" Project 554493-EPP-1-2014-1-FI-EPPKA2-KA] (http://bit.ly/FINCODA-EUsite01). (The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein); and by the Universitat Politénica de Valencia PIME 2015-2016 A/09 “Evaluación de los indicadores del comportamiento innovador en el alumno universitario”.Marín García, JA.; Andreu Andrés, MA.; Atarés Huerta, LM.; Aznar Más, L.; García Carbonell, A.; González-Ladrón-De-Guevara, F.; Montero Fleta, MB.... (2016). Proposal of a Framework for Innovation Competencies Development and Assessment (FINCODA). Working Papers on Operations Management. 7(2):119-126. https://doi.org/10.4995/wpom.v7i2.6472SWORD1191267

A novel form of human disease with a protease-sensitive prion protein and heterozygosity methionine/valine at codon 129: Case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) is a rare neurodegenerative disorder in humans included in the group of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies or prion diseases. The vast majority of sCJD cases are molecularly classified according to the abnormal prion protein (PrP^Sc) conformations along with polymorphism of codon 129 of the PRNP gene. Recently, a novel human disease, termed "protease-sensitive prionopathy", has been described. This disease shows a distinct clinical and neuropathological phenotype and it is associated to an abnormal prion protein more sensitive to protease digestion.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We report the case of a 75-year-old-man who developed a clinical course and presented pathologic lesions compatible with sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and biochemical findings reminiscent of "protease-sensitive prionopathy". Neuropathological examinations revealed spongiform change mainly affecting the cerebral cortex, putamen/globus pallidus and thalamus, accompanied by mild astrocytosis and microgliosis, with slight involvement of the cerebellum. Confluent vacuoles were absent. Diffuse synaptic PrP deposits in these regions were largely removed following proteinase treatment. PrP deposition, as revealed with 3F4 and 1E4 antibodies, was markedly sensitive to pre-treatment with proteinase K. Molecular analysis of PrP^Scshowed an abnormal prion protein more sensitive to proteinase K digestion, with a five-band pattern of 28, 24, 21, 19, and 16 kDa, and three aglycosylated isoforms of 19, 16 and 6 kDa. This PrP^Scwas estimated to be 80% susceptible to digestion while the pathogenic prion protein associated with classical forms of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease were only 2% (type VV2) and 23% (type MM1) susceptible. No mutations in the PRNP gene were found and genotype for codon 129 was heterozygous methionine/valine.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>A novel form of human disease with abnormal prion protein sensitive to protease and MV at codon 129 was described. Although clinical signs were compatible with sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, the molecular subtype with the abnormal prion protein isoforms showing enhanced protease sensitivity was reminiscent of the "protease-sensitive prionopathy". It remains to be established whether the differences found between the latter and this case are due to the polymorphism at codon 129. Different degrees of proteinase K susceptibility were easily determined with the chemical polymer detection system which could help to detect proteinase-susceptible pathologic prion protein in diseases other than the classical ones.</p

Population-based colorectal cancer screening programmes using a faecal immunochemical test:Should faecal haemoglobin cut-offs differ by age and sex?

Abstract Background The Basque Colorectal Cancer Screening Programme has both high participation rate and high compliance rate of colonoscopy after a positive faecal occult blood test (FIT). Although, colorectal cancer (CRC) screening with biannual (FIT) has shown to reduce CRC mortality, the ultimate effectiveness of the screening programmes depends on the accuracy of FIT and post-FIT colonoscopy, and thus, harms related to false results might not be underestimated. Current CRC screening programmes use a single faecal haemoglobin concentration (f-Hb) cut-off for colonoscopy referral for both sexes and all ages. We aimed to determine optimum f-Hb cut-offs by sex and age without compromising neoplasia detection and interval cancer proportion. Methods Prospective cohort study using a single-sample faecal immunochemical test (FIT) on 444,582 invited average-risk subjects aged 50–69 years. A result was considered positive at ≥20 μg Hb/g faeces. Outcome measures were analysed by sex and age for a wide range of f-Hb cut-offs. Results We analysed 17,387 positive participants in the programme who underwent colonoscopy. Participation rate was 66.5%. Men had a positivity rate for f-Hb of 8.3% and women 4.8% (p < 0.0001). The detection rate for advanced neoplasia (cancer plus advanced adenoma) was 44.0‰ for men and 15.9‰ for women (p < 0.0001). The number of colonoscopies required decreased in both sexes and all age groups through increasing the f-Hb cut-off. However, the loss in CRC detection increased by up to 28.1% in men and 22.9% in women. CRC missed were generally at early stages (Stage I-II: from 70.2% in men to 66.3% in women). Conclusions This study provides detailed outcomes in men and women of different ages at a range of f-Hb cut-offs. We found differences in positivity rates, neoplasia detection rate, number needed to screen, and interval cancers in men and women and in younger and older groups. However, there are factors other than sex and age to consider when consideration is given to setting the f-Hb cut-off