Large-scale proteomic analysis of the grapevine leaf apoplastic fluid reveals mainly stress-related proteins and cell wall modifying enzymes

BACKGROUND: The extracellular space or apoplast forms a path through the whole plant and acts as an interface with the environment. The apoplast is composed of plant cell wall and space within which apoplastic fluid provides a means of delivering molecules and facilitates intercellular communications. However, the apoplastic fluid extraction from in planta systems remains challenging and this is particularly true for grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.), a worldwide-cultivated fruit plant. Large-scale proteomic analysis reveals the protein content of the grapevine leaf apoplastic fluid and the free interactive proteome map considerably facilitates the study of the grapevine proteome. RESULTS: To obtain a snapshot of the grapevine apoplastic fluid proteome, a vacuum-infiltration-centrifugation method was optimized to collect the apoplastic fluid from non-challenged grapevine leaves. Soluble apoplastic protein patterns were then compared to whole leaf soluble protein profiles by 2D-PAGE analyses. Subsequent MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry of tryptically digested protein spots was used to identify proteins. This large-scale proteomic analysis established a well-defined proteomic map of whole leaf and leaf apoplastic soluble proteins, with 223 and 177 analyzed spots, respectively. All data arising from proteomic, MS and MS/MS analyses were deposited in the public database world-2DPAGE. Prediction tools revealed a high proportion of (i) classical secreted proteins but also of non-classical secreted proteins namely Leaderless Secreted Proteins (LSPs) in the apoplastic protein content and (ii) proteins potentially involved in stress reactions and/or in cell wall metabolism. CONCLUSIONS: This approach provides free online interactive reference maps annotating a large number of soluble proteins of the whole leaf and the apoplastic fluid of grapevine leaf. To our knowledge, this is the first detailed proteome study of grapevine apoplastic fluid providing a comprehensive overview of the most abundant proteins present in the apoplast of grapevine leaf that could be further characterized in order to elucidate their physiological function

Evaluation of Hungarian Wines for Resveratrol by Overpressured Layer Chromatography

A method, including solid phase extraction sample preparation, overpressured layer chromatographic separation and subsequent densitometric evaluation, was developed for measurement of total resveratrol (cis- and trans-isomers) content of wine. The amount of resveratrol was determined in wine samples from different winemaking regions of Hungary. The total resveratrol was high in Hungarian red wines (3.6–11 mg/L), and much lower in white ones (0.04–1.5 mg/L)

Antibacterial Activity of Phenolic Compounds Against the Phytopathogen Xylella fastidiosa

Xylella fastidiosa is a pathogenic bacterium that causes diseases in many crop species, which leads to considerable economic loss. Phenolic compounds (a group of secondary metabolites) are widely distributed in plants and have shown to possess antimicrobial properties. The anti-Xylella activity of 12 phenolic compounds, representing phenolic acid, coumarin, stilbene and flavonoid, was evaluated using an in vitro agar dilution assay. Overall, these phenolic compounds were effective in inhibiting X. fastidiosa growth, as indicated by low minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs). In addition, phenolic compounds with different structural features exhibited different anti-Xylella capacities. Particularly, catechol, caffeic acid and resveratrol showed strong anti-Xylella activities. Differential response to phenolic compounds was observed among X. fastidiosa strains isolated from grape and almond. Elucidation of secondary metabolite-based host resistance to X. fastidiosa will have broad implication in combating X. fastidiosa-caused plant diseases. It will facilitate future production of plants with improved disease resistance properties through genetic engineering or traditional breeding approaches and will significantly improve crop yield

A methoxy derivative of resveratrol analogue selectively induced activation of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway in transformed fibroblasts

Resveratrol (R-3), a trihydroxy trans-stilbene from grape, inhibits multistage carcinogenesis in animal models. A resveratrol derivative 3,4,5,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene (R-4) exhibits potent growth inhibitory effect against transformed human cells. Here we report that 3,4,5,4′-tetramethoxystilbene (MR-4), converted from R-4, was more potent against cancer cell lines (WI38VA, IMR-90SV, HeLa, LNCaP, HT-29, and HepG2), but had almost no inhibitory effect on the growth of normal cells (WI38, IMR-90, BJ-T) at the concentrations tested. The IC50 value of MR-4 on the growth inhibition of transformed WI38VA human cells was 0.5 μM, as compared to the value of greater than 50 μM for the normal WI38 cells. Resveratrol, however, did not exhibit such clear differential effect and the IC50 value of R-3 for WI38VA cells was about 50 μM. The growth inhibitory effect of MR-4 correlated with the induction of apoptosis in the transformed cells. When normal WI38 cells and transformed WI38VA cells were compared, MR-4 induced increases of the Bax/Bcl-2 mRNA ratio, p53 and Bax protein level, activation of caspases, and DNA fragmentation in transformed, but not in normal cells. Further analysis revealed that MR-4 caused a rapid appearance of perinuclear aggregation of mitochondria in WI38VA but not in WI38 cells, suggesting that the mitochondria could serve as an early target of MR-4. R-3 also induced apoptosis and mitochondrial clustering but only at a much higher concentration, close to 500 μM. Taken together, the specific activation of the mitochondria-mediated apoptotic pathway could be a major reason for the striking differential growth inhibitory effect of MR-4

Chemical Diversity and Complexity of Scotch Whisky as Revealed by High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry

Scotch Whisky is an important product, both culturally and economically. Chemically, Scotch Whisky is a complex mixture, which comprises thousands of compounds, the nature of which are largely unknown. Here, we present a thorough overview of the chemistry of Scotch Whisky as observed by Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS). Eighty-five whiskies, representing the majority of Scotch Whisky produced and sold, were analyzed by untargeted high-resolution mass spectrometry. Thousands of chemical formulae were assigned for each sample based on parts-per-billion mass accuracy of FT-ICR MS spectra. For the first time, isotopic fine structure analysis was used to confirm the assignment of high molecular weight CHOS species in Scotch Whisky. The assigned spectra were compared using a number of visualization techniques, including van Krevelen diagrams, double bond equivalence (DBE) plots, as well as heteroatomic compound class distributions. Additionally, multivariate analysis, including PCA and OPLS-DA, was used to interpret the data, with key compounds identified for discriminating between types of whisky (blend or malt) or maturation wood type. FT-ICR MS analysis of Scotch Whisky was shown to be of significant potential in further understanding of the complexity of mature spirit drinks and as a tool for investigating the chemistry of the maturation processes. [Figure: see text] ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13361-016-1513-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Metabolic constituents of grapevine and grape-derived products

The numerous uses of the grapevine fruit, especially for wine and beverages, have made it one of the most important plants worldwide. The phytochemistry of grapevine is rich in a wide range of compounds. Many of them are renowned for their numerous medicinal uses. The production of grapevine metabolites is highly conditioned by many factors like environment or pathogen attack. Some grapevine phytoalexins have gained a great deal of attention due to their antimicrobial activities, being also involved in the induction of resistance in grapevine against those pathogens. Meanwhile grapevine biotechnology is still evolving, thanks to the technological advance of modern science, and biotechnologists are making huge efforts to produce grapevine cultivars of desired characteristics. In this paper, important metabolites from grapevine and grape derived products like wine will be reviewed with their health promoting effects and their role against certain stress factors in grapevine physiology

Erratum: The solar orbiter radio and plasma waves (RPW) instrument (Astronomy and Astrophysics (2020) 642 (A12) DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201936214)

The erratum concerns Fig. 9 entitled "Antenna radio-electrical properties" for which some of the parameters are not correct. The new figure with new parameters is provided in Fig. 1 of this corrigendum. Fig. 1. Corrected Antenna radio-electrical properties. (Figure Presented)

Plant cell culture technology in the cosmetics and food industries : current state and future trends

The production of drugs, cosmetics, and food which are derived from plant cell and tissue cultures has a long tradition. The emerging trend of manufacturing cosmetics and food products in a natural and sustainable manner has brought a new wave in plant cell culture technology over the past 10 years. More than 50 products based on extracts from plant cell cultures have made their way into the cosmetics industry during this time, whereby the majority is produced with plant cell suspension cultures. In addition, the first plant cell culture-based food supplement ingredients, such as Echigena Plus and Teoside 10, are now produced at production scale. In this mini review, we discuss the reasons for and the characteristics as well as the challenges of plant cell culture-based productions for the cosmetics and food industries. It focuses on the current state of the art in this field. In addition, two examples of the latest developments in plant cell culture-based food production are presented, that is, superfood which boosts health and food that can be produced in the lab or at home

The International Natural Product Sciences Taskforce (INPST) and the power of Twitter networking exemplified through #INPST hashtag analysis

Background: The development of digital technologies and the evolution of open innovation approaches have enabled the creation of diverse virtual organizations and enterprises coordinating their activities primarily online. The open innovation platform titled "International Natural Product Sciences Taskforce" (INPST) was established in 2018, to bring together in collaborative environment individuals and organizations interested in natural product scientific research, and to empower their interactions by using digital communication tools. Methods: In this work, we present a general overview of INPST activities and showcase the specific use of Twitter as a powerful networking tool that was used to host a one-week "2021 INPST Twitter Networking Event" (spanning from 31st May 2021 to 6th June 2021) based on the application of the Twitter hashtag #INPST. Results and Conclusion: The use of this hashtag during the networking event period was analyzed with Symplur Signals (https://www.symplur.com/), revealing a total of 6,036 tweets, shared by 686 users, which generated a total of 65,004,773 impressions (views of the respective tweets). This networking event's achieved high visibility and participation rate showcases a convincing example of how this social media platform can be used as a highly effective tool to host virtual Twitter-based international biomedical research events