Molecular strategies towards combined gene expression in transgenic plants

Fil: Ceriani, María Fernanda. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina

Clave para la identificación de especies de la familia Diatrypaceae (Xylariales, Ascomycota)

Clave para la identificación de especies en la familia Diatrypaceae Xylariales, Ascomycota). El presente trabajo brinda una clave para la identificación de las especies y/o complejo de especies, octosporados de la familia Diatrypaceae sobre la base de caracteres morfológicos. Adicionalmente se propone dos nuevos sinónimos para Diatrype chilensis Henn y Eutypella murrayae Syd.A dichotomous key for 74 species and/or species complex of Diatrypaceae is presented based on morphological characters. Additionally, two new synonyms are proposed to Diatrype chilensis Henn y Eutypella murrayae SydFil: Carmaran, Cecilia Cristina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botanica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botanica; ArgentinaFil: Robles, Carolina Analía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botanica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botanica; ArgentinaFil: D'Jonsiles, María Fernanda. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botanica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botanica; ArgentinaFil: Ceriani Nakamurakare, Esteban Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botanica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botanica; ArgentinaFil: Español, Esteban. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botanica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botanica; ArgentinaFil: Lopez, Silvia Edith. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botanica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botanica; ArgentinaFil: Novas, María Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botanica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botanica; Argentin

Optical study of laser biospeckle activity in leaves of Jatropha curcas L. A noninvasive analysis of foliar endophyte colonization

Currently, the detection of endophytic fungi is determined mostly by invasive methods, including direct isolation of fungal organismsfrom plant tissue in growth media, molecular detection of endophyticfungi DNA from plant material by PCR, or evaluation under microscopy techniques.In this work we explore the potential of laser biospeckle activity (LBSA) to be usedfor the detection of endophytic colonization of leaves of a promising energy crop, Jatropha curcas L. We compared the laser biospeckle activityof endophyte infected and uninfected J. curcas leaves. The differences between blade and veins (including midrib) of the studied leaves was validated and growth parameters of the studied plants were also analyzed using the normalized weigthed generalized differencescoefficient (nWGD). The obtained results showeda relationship between the endophytic burden of leaves and the LBS, suggesting that LSBA is a useful tools to detect endophytic colonization in situ.Also, the increasedwater movements inside leaves promoted by endophytic colonizationcould be explainby the obtained data

Circadian Remodeling of Neuronal Circuits Involved in Rhythmic Behavior

Clock output pathways are central to convey timing information from the circadian clock to a diversity of physiological systems, ranging from cell-autonomous processes to behavior. While the molecular mechanisms that generate and sustain rhythmicity at the cellular level are well understood, it is unclear how this information is further structured to control specific behavioral outputs. Rhythmic release of pigment dispersing factor (PDF) has been proposed to propagate the time of day information from core pacemaker cells to downstream targets underlying rhythmic locomotor activity. Indeed, such circadian changes in PDF intensity represent the only known mechanism through which the PDF circuit could communicate with its output. Here we describe a novel circadian phenomenon involving extensive remodeling in the axonal terminals of the PDF circuit, which display higher complexity during the day and significantly lower complexity at nighttime, both under daily cycles and constant conditions. In support to its circadian nature, cycling is lost in bona fide clockless mutants. We propose this clock-controlled structural plasticity as a candidate mechanism contributing to the transmission of the information downstream of pacemaker cells

M6 Membrane Protein Plays an Essential Role in Drosophila Oogenesis

We had previously shown that the transmembrane glycoprotein M6a, a member of the proteolipid protein (PLP) family, regulates neurite/filopodium outgrowth, hence, M6a might be involved in neuronal remodeling and differentiation. In this work we focused on M6, the only PLP family member present in Drosophila, and ortholog to M6a. Unexpectedly, we found that decreased expression of M6 leads to female sterility. M6 is expressed in the membrane of the follicular epithelium in ovarioles throughout oogenesis. Phenotypes triggered by M6 downregulation in hypomorphic mutants included egg collapse and egg permeability, thus suggesting M6 involvement in eggshell biosynthesis. In addition, RNAi-mediated M6 knockdown targeted specifically to follicle cells induced an arrest of egg chamber development, revealing that M6 is essential in oogenesis. Interestingly, M6-associated phenotypes evidenced abnormal changes of the follicle cell shape and disrupted follicular epithelium in mid- and late-stage egg chambers. Therefore, we propose that M6 plays a role in follicular epithelium maintenance involving membrane cell remodeling during oogenesis in Drosophila

A Functional Misexpression Screen Uncovers a Role for Enabled in Progressive Neurodegeneration

Drosophila is a well-established model to study the molecular basis of neurodegenerative diseases. We carried out a misexpression screen to identify genes involved in neurodegeneration examining locomotor behavior in young and aged flies. We hypothesized that a progressive loss of rhythmic activity could reveal novel genes involved in neurodegenerative mechanisms. One of the interesting candidates showing progressive arrhythmicity has reduced enabled (ena) levels. ena down-regulation gave rise to progressive vacuolization in specific regions of the adult brain. Abnormal staining of pre-synaptic markers such as cystein string protein (CSP) suggest that axonal transport could underlie the neurodegeneration observed in the mutant. Reduced ena levels correlated with increased apoptosis, which could be rescued in the presence of p35, a general Caspase inhibitor. Thus, this mutant recapitulates two important features of human neurodegenerative diseases, i.e., vulnerability of certain neuronal populations and progressive degeneration, offering a unique scenario in which to unravel the specific mechanisms in an easily tractable organism

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

The axon-guidance roundabout gene alters the pace of the Drosophila circadian clock

Great efforts have been directed to the dissection of the cell-autonomous circadian oscillator in Drosophila. However, less information is available regarding how this oscillator controls rhythmic rest-activity cycles. We have identified a viable allele of roundabout, robo(hy), where the period of locomotor activity is shortened. From its role in axon-pathfinding, we anticipated developmental defects in clock-relevant structures. However, robo(hy) produced minor defects in the architecture of the circuits essential for rhythmic behaviour. ROBO's presence within the circadian circuit strengthened the possibility of a novel role for ROBO at this postdevelopmental stage. Genetic interactions between pdf (01) and robo(hy) suggest that ROBO could alter the communication within different clusters of the circadian network, thus impinging on two basic properties, periodicity and/or rhythmicity. Early translocation of PERIOD to the nucleus in robo(hy) pacemaker cells indicated that shortened activity rhythms were derived from alterations in the molecular oscillator. Herein we present a mutation affecting clock function associated with a molecule involved in circuit assembly and maintenance.Fil: Berni, Jimena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Beckwith, Esteban Javier. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez, María Paz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Ceriani, Maria Fernanda. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires. Fundación Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires; Argentin

Mycorrhizal Colonization and Soil Parameters Affected by Foliar Endophytes in Jatropha curcas L.

Considering that rhizospheric microorganisms play a critical role in providing the plant nutrients for growth and in the adaptation of plants to ecosystems, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the association between foliar endophytes and their effect on soil and rhizospheric fungi using Jatropha curcas, a promising crop for high-quality biofuel, as a model plant. We conducted a factorial experiment. Endophytes and selected rhizospheric fungi were isolated and identified, and the colonization of mycorrhizal fungi was recorded. While the most interesting result was the significant increase in mycorrhizal colonization when J. curcas was associated with endophytes, it was also evident that this association is able to modulate some soil chemical parameters. This study suggests that the association between J. curcas and endophytes has an impact on specific root symbiotic fungi that usually plays relevant roles in nutrient availability for plants, and it would provide tools to enhance plant growth and oil yields.Fil: D'jonsiles, María Fernanda. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; ArgentinaFil: Carmaran, Cecilia Cristina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; ArgentinaFil: Robles, Carolina Analía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; ArgentinaFil: Ceriani Nakamurakare, Esteban Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; ArgentinaFil: Novas, María Victoria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Micología y Botánica. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Micología y Botánica; Argentin