Insights into sugar metabolism during bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) fruit development

Bilberry fruit is regarded as one of the best natural sources of anthocyanins and iswidely explored for its health-beneficial compounds. Besides anthocyanins, one of themajor attributes that determine the berry quality is the accumulation of sugars thatprovide sweetness and flavor to ripening fruit. In this study, we have identified 25 sugarmetabolism-related genes in bilberry, including invertases (INVs), hexokinases (HKs),fructokinases (FKs), sucrose synthases (SSs), sucrose phosphate synthases (SPSs), andsucrose phosphate phosphatases (SPPs). The results indicate that isoforms of the identified genes are expressed differentially during berry development, suggesting special-ized functions. The highest sugar content was found in ripe berries, with fructose andglucose dominating accompanied by low sucrose amount. The related enzyme activi-ties during berry development and ripening were further analyzed to understand themolecular mechanism of sugar accumulation. The activity of INVs in the cell wall andvacuole increased toward ripe berries. Amylase activity involved in starch metabolismwas not detected in unripe berries but was found in ripe berries. Sucrose resynthesizing SS enzyme activity was detected upon early ripening and had the highestactivity in ripe berries. Interestingly, our transcriptome data showed that supplementalirradiation with red and blue light triggered upregulation of several sugar metabolism-related genes, including α- and β-amylases. Also, differential expression patterns inresponses to red and blue light were found across sucrose, galactose, and sugar-alcoholmetabolism. Our enzymological and transcriptional data provide new understanding ofthe bilberry fruit sugar metabolism having major effect on fruit quality (20) (PDF) Insights into sugar metabolism during bilberry ( Vaccinium myrtillus L.) fruit development

Red and blue light treatments of ripening bilberry fruits reveal differences in signalling through abscisic acid-regulated anthocyanin biosynthesis

The biosynthesis of anthocyanins has been shown to be influenced by light quality. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the light-mediated regulation of fruit anthocyanin biosynthesis are not well understood. In this study, we analysed the effects of supplemental red and blue light on the anthocyanin biosynthesis in non-climacteric bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.). After 6 days of continuous irradiation during ripening, both red and blue light elevated concentration of anthocyanins, up to 12- and 4-folds, respectively, compared to the control. Transcriptomic analysis of ripening berries showed that both light treatments up-regulated all the major anthocyanin structural genes, the key regulatory MYB transcription factors and abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthetic genes. However, higher induction of specific genes of anthocyanin and delphinidin biosynthesis alongside ABA signal perception and metabolism were found in red light. The difference in red and blue light signalling was found in 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase (NCED), ABA receptor pyrabactin resistance-like (PYL) and catabolic ABA-8'hydroxylase gene expression. Red light also up-regulated expression of soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor (SNARE) domain transporters, which may indicate involvement of these proteins in vesicular trafficking of anthocyanins during fruit ripening. Our results suggest differential signal transduction and transport mechanisms between red and blue light in ABA-regulated anthocyanin and delphinidin biosynthesis during bilberry fruit ripening.Peer reviewe

Changes in the Proanthocyanidin Composition and Related Gene Expression in Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) Tissues

Berries of genus Vaccinium are rich in flavonoids and proanthocyanidins (PAs). We studied the PA composition and biosynthesis in bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) tissues and during fruit development. Soluble PAs, analyzed by UHPLC-MS/MS, were most abundant in stem and rhizome with the mean PA polymerization level varying between 4 and 6 in all tissues. Both A- and B-type PAs were present in all tissues. Procyanidin subunits were more common than prodelphinidin subunits in PAs. During fruit ripening, the amount of procyanidin subunits decreased while prodelphinidin subunits and F3'5'H expression increased, indicating a shift in biosynthesis toward the delphinidin branch of the flavonoid pathway. Epicatechin was the most abundant flavan-3-ol in all tissues. Expression of ANR and three isolated LAR genes, analyzed by qRT-PCR, showed connection to accumulation of PAs and flavan-3-ols biosynthesized from different flavonoid branches. Insoluble PAs accumulated during berry development, suggesting that PAs are not recycled after biosynthesis

Temperature has a major effect on the cuticular wax composition of bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) fruit

Cuticle is the first layer protecting plants against external biotic and abiotic factors and is responsive to climatic factors as well as determined by genetic adaptations. In this study, the chemical composition of bilberry fruit cuticular wax was investigated through a latitudinal gradient from Latvia (56◦N 24◦E) through Finland (65◦N 25◦E) to northern Norway (69◦N 18◦E) in two seasons 2018 and 2019. Changes in the major cuticular wax compounds, including triterpenoids, fatty acids, alkanes, aldehydes, ketones, and primary alcohols, were detected by GC-MS analysis. Generally, a decreasing trend in the proportion of triterpenoids from southern to northern latitudes, accompanied with an increase in proportion of fatty acids, aldehydes, and alkanes, in bilberry fruit cuticular wax was observed. A correlation analysis between climatic factors with proportion of wax compounds indicated that temperature was the main factor affecting the cuticular wax composition in bilberries. A controlled phytotron experiment with southern and northern bilberry ecotypes confirmed the major effect of temperature on bilberry fruit cuticular wax load and composition. Elevated temperature increased wax load most in berries of northern ecotypes. The level of triterpenoids was higher, while levels of fatty acids and alkanes were lower, in wax of bilberry fruits ripened at 18◦C compared to 12◦C in both northern and southern ecotypes. Based on our results, it can be postulated that the predicted increase in temperature due to climate change leads to alterations in fruit cuticular wax load and composition. In northern ecotypes, the alterations were especially evident

Prioritising National Competitiveness over Support for Democracy? Finnish Media Policy in the 21st Century

Ever since the launch of the World Press Freedom Index almost 20 years ago, Finland has always been among the top five countries of that index. According to the annual Reuters Digital News reports, Finnish people also have the highest level of trust in the news media and one of the highest levels of press readership in the EU. Most of the media companies are doing quite well, while Google and Facebook have a much less dominant role in the advertising market than elsewhere in Europe. In this context, you might expect Finland to have a comprehensive and visionary media and communications policy to support democracy. However, our meta-study of Finnish media and communications policy based on two recent reportsto the Ministry of Transport and Communications, other earlier studies, along with official documents as well as statistical data suggests that is not the case. Our analysis shows that most decisions have been pragmatic ad hoc solutions serving economic interests rather than any specifi c media and communication policy goals. A closer examination also proves that Finland does not fit into the Nordic Media Welfare State model either, despite a long, shared history and cultural ties.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

Operationalising communication rights : the case of a “digital welfare state”

Academic debates tend focus on attempts to codify and promote communication rights at the global level. This article provides a model to analyse communication rights at a national level by operationalising four rights: access, availability, dialogical rights, and privacy. It highlights specific cases of digitalisation in Finland, a country with an impressive record as a promoter of internet access and digitalised public services. The article shows how national policy decisions may support economic goals rather than communication rights, and how measures to realise rights by digital means may not always translate into desired outcomes, such as inclusive participation in decision-making.Peer reviewe

Narrow-band Ultraviolet B Treatment Boosts Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D in Patients with Psoriasis on Oral Vitamin D Supplementation

Peer reviewe

The Coordinated Action of MYB Activators and Repressors Controls Proanthocyanidin and Anthocyanin Biosynthesis in Vaccinium

Vaccinium berries are regarded as “superfoods” owing to their high concentrations of anthocyanins, flavonoid metabolites that provide pigmentation and positively affect human health. Anthocyanin localization differs between the fruit of cultivated highbush blueberry (V. corymbosum) and wild bilberry (V. myrtillus), with the latter having deep red flesh coloration. Analysis of comparative transcriptomics across a developmental series of blueberry and bilberry fruit skin and flesh identified candidate anthocyanin regulators responsible for this distinction. This included multiple activator and repressor transcription factors (TFs) that correlated strongly with anthocyanin production and had minimal expression in blueberry (non-pigmented) flesh. R2R3 MYB TFs appeared key to the presence and absence of anthocyanin-based pigmentation; MYBA1 and MYBPA1.1 co-activated the pathway while MYBC2.1 repressed it. Transient overexpression of MYBA1 in Nicotiana benthamiana strongly induced anthocyanins, but this was substantially reduced when co-infiltrated with MYBC2.1. Co-infiltration of MYBC2.1 with MYBA1 also reduced activation of DFR and UFGT, key anthocyanin biosynthesis genes, in promoter activation studies. We demonstrated that these TFs operate within a regulatory hierarchy where MYBA1 activated the promoters of MYBC2.1 and bHLH2. Stable overexpression of VcMYBA1 in blueberry elevated anthocyanin content in transgenic plants, indicating that MYBA1 is sufficient to upregulate the TF module and activate the pathway. Our findings identify TF activators and repressors that are hierarchically regulated by SG6 MYBA1, and fine-tune anthocyanin production in Vaccinium. The lack of this TF module in blueberry flesh results in an absence of anthocyanins.publishedVersio