Culture Systems and Selection Procedures.

Plant tissue culture provides a powerful technique to assist the plant breeder in improving the propagation and performance of agricultural, horticultural and forest species, to provide the industrialist with a potential source of pharmaceuticals, safe colours and flavours, and to supply the biochemist with standardised plant material for the analysis of plant metabolism. The actmil contribution that tissue culture has made to these fields of endeavour is variable, and is a principal theme of the review chapters of this book, but the ability to distinguish specific phenotypes at the cell level is a recurrent feature of the diverse fundamental and applied investigations in this area. For example, i~w-~_s(jon)IJay lead to the production of plants showing resistl!llCe (or tolerance) to specific environmental stresses, such as low tern erature, salini , drought, herbicides, toxic metals, and pathogens-,- the-pro uctton of resistant cell lines or an ys1s o e res1stan mec m arthe· cellular level and the selection of cell lines for high yields of secondary products such as alkaloids, steroids, terpenes, colourings and flavourings. In addition, contemporary approaches to genetic recombination, such as cell fusion and transformation, are dependent on our ability to identify the desired recombinants

Annales de Bretagne. Tome 34, numéro 2, 1919.

Plant tissue culture provides a powerful technique to assist the plant breeder in improving the propagation and performance of agricultural, horticultural and forest species, to provide the industrialist with a potential source of pharmaceuticals, safe colours and flavours, and to supply the biochemist with standardised plant material for the analysis of plant metabolism. The actmil contribution that tissue culture has made to these fields of endeavour is variable, and is a principal theme of the review chapters of this book, but the ability to distinguish specific phenotypes at the cell level is a recurrent feature of the diverse fundamental and applied investigations in this area. For example, i~w-~_s(jon)IJay lead to the production of plants showing resistl!llCe (or tolerance) to specific environmental stresses, such as low tern erature, salini , drought, herbicides, toxic metals, and pathogens-,- the-pro uctton of resistant cell lines or an ys1s o e res1stan mec m arthe· cellular level and the selection of cell lines for high yields of secondary products such as alkaloids, steroids, terpenes, colourings and flavourings. In addition, contemporary approaches to genetic recombination, such as cell fusion and transformation, are dependent on our ability to identify the desired recombinants

Assessment of the flavour of fresh uncooked onions by taste-panels and analysis of flavor precursors, pyruvate and sugars.J Sci Food Agric 85:112–120 CSA

Abstract: Flavour in fresh onions is dominated by volatile sulphenic and thiosulphenic acids that are liberated once alk(en)yl cysteine sulphoxide (ACSO) flavour precursors are cleaved by the enzyme alliinase after tissue disruption. The levels of pyruvate and ACSOs in over 100 samples of onions marketed in the UK were measured, and compared with assessment by taste-panels. There was a linear relationship between the content of ACSOs and pyruvate. Measurements of pyruvate indicated that the marketing classification of some types of onion did not correspond to their pyruvate levels. A significant linear relationship was found between a sensory measure of strength and pyruvate over the range 1.2-9.3 µmol pyruvate g −1 fresh weight. In most cases, when a flavour classification of sweet, mild or strong was applied to a sample of onions based on pyruvate content, the taste-panels agreed with the categorization. The taste-panels were unable to identify a sweet flavour in onions, except at low levels of pyruvate. Taste-panels were able to define a likeability character (attractiveness of flavour) for onions, which correlated with the level of pyruvate. However, for some varieties, the flavour classification or likeability did not correspond to predictions based on pyruvate levels alone. Pyruvate measurements were seen as a suitable method for routine quality control once the characteristics of a variety of onion had been established, but initial evaluations should include well-designed taste-panel assessments

Common mutations in autoimmune polyendocrinopathy-candidiasis-ectodermal dystrophy patients of different origins

Autoimmune polyendocrinopathy-candidiasis-ectodermal dystrophy (APECED; OMIM *240300, also called APS 1,) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder that is more frequent in certain isolated populations. It is generally characterized by two of the three major clinical symptoms that may be present, Addison's disease and/or hypoparathyroidism and/or chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis. Patients may also have a number of other clinical symptoms including chronic gastritis, gonadal failure, and rarely, autoimmune thyroid disease and insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. We and others have recently identified the gene for APECED, which we termed AIRE (for autoimmune regulator). AIRE is expressed in thymus, lymph nodes, and fetal liver and encodes a protein containing motifs suggestive of a transcriptional regulator, including two zinc finger motifs (PHD finger), a proline-rich region, and three LXXLL motifs. Six mutations, in cluding R257X, the predominant Finnish APECED allele, have been defined. R257X was also observed in non-Finnish APECED patients occurring on different chromosomal haplotypes suggesting different mutational origins. Here we present mutation analyses in an extended series of patients, mainly of Northern Italian origin. We have detected 12 polymorphisms, including one amino acid substitution, and two additional mutations, R203X and X546C, in addition to the previously described mutations, R257X, 1096-1097insCCTG, and a 13-bp deletion (1094-1106del). R257X was also the common mutation in the Northern Italian patients (10 of 18 alleles), and 1094-1106del accounted for 5 of 18 Northern Italian alleles. Both R257X and 1094-1106del were both observed in patients of four different geo-ethnic origins, and both were associated with multiple different haplotypes using closely flanking polymorphic markers showing likely multiple mutation events (six and four, respectively). The identification of common AIRE mutations in different APECED patient groups will facilitate its genetic diagnosis. In addition, the polymorphisms presented provide the tools for investigation of the involvement of AIRE in other autoimmune diseases, particularly those affecting the endocrine system