Nutrient Cycling in Soils: Sulfur

Sulfur is an essential element required for normal plant growth, a fact that has been recognized since 1860 (Alway, 1940). It is considered a secondary macronutrient, following the primary macronutrients nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, but is needed by plants at levels comparable to P. Sulfur deficiency will impair basic plant metabolic functions, thus reducing both crop yield and quality. Deficiencies and responses to S amendments have been reported in crops worldwide (Tisdale et al., 1986; McGrath and Zhao, 1995; Scherer, 2001), and are becoming more common (Haneklaus et al., 2008). The likelihood of a response is determined by the balance between sulfur supply and crop demand. The main reasons for recent increases in documented S deficiencies include the reduction of SO2 emissions from various industrial sources, mainly coal-fired power plants, an increase in the use of high-analysis fertilizers with little S, decreased use of S-containing pesticides, greater S removals with ever-increasing crop yields, and continued losses through leaching and erosion of topsoil. As pointed out by Haneklaus et al. (2008), in only a few years, the reputation of S has changed from that of an undesirable pollutant to a limiting factor in crop production. In this chapter, we provide current information on the demand for S in various cropping systems, what we know about the soil supply of S, the best ways of assessing S status and managing S inputs, and how all of this information can be put together to optimize crop production. In each section, references will provide the reader with an opportunity to explore the topic in greater detail than can be given in these few pages

Pharmacokinetic and Biodistribution Assessment of a Near Infrared-Labeled PSMA-Specific Small Molecule in Tumor-Bearing Mice

Prostate cancer is themost frequently diagnosed cancer in men and often requires surgery. Use of near infrared (NIR) technologies to perform image-guided surgery may improve accurate delineation of tumor margins. To facilitate preclinical testing of such outcomes, here we developed and characterized a PSMA-targeted small molecule, YC-27. IRDye 800CW was conjugated to YC-27 or an anti-PSMA antibody used for reference. Human 22Rv1, PC3M-LN4, and/or LNCaP prostate tumor cells were exposed to the labeled compounds. In vivo targeting and clearance properties were determined in tumor-bearing mice. Organs and tumors were excised and imaged to assess probe localization. YC-27 exhibited a dose dependent increase in signal upon binding. Binding specificity and internalization were visualized by microscopy. In vitro and in vivo blocking studies confirmed YC-27 specificity. In vivo, YC-27 showed good tumor delineation and tissue contrast at doses as low as 0.25 nmole. YC-27 was cleared via the kidneys but bound the proximal tubules of the renal cortex and epididymis. Since PSMA is also broadly expressed on the neovasculature of most tumors, we expect YC-27 will have clinical utility for image-guided surgery and tumor resections

Phosphorus source--sink relationships of stream sediments in the Rathbun Lake watershed in southern Iowa, USA

The surface waters of Rathbun Lake watershed in southern Iowa are impacted by agricultural sources of sediments and nutrients, including phosphorus (P). Because stream sediments often play an important role in regulating P concentrations in stream water, we investigated sediment-water column P relationships in four creeks within the watershed and then evaluated the relationship between sediment properties and indicators of the risk of P loss. Based on Mehlich-3-extractable P (17 to 68 mg kg -1) and degree of P saturation (2 to 12 %), stream bank and bed sediments at the four sites were unlikely to serve as major sources of P. However, equilibrium P concentrations, which ranged from 0.02 to 0.12 mg L-1, indicated that bed sediments could release P to the water column depending on dissolved P (DP) concentrations in the stream water and the time of year. The likelihood of P desorption from the sediments increased with increasing pH (r=0.92, p \u3c 0.01) and sand content (r = 0.78, p \u3c 0.05), but decreased with clay content (r = −0.72, p \u3c 0.05) and iron (Fe) (r = −0.93, p \u3c 0.001) associated with organic matter. From these results, we speculate that changes in land use within the riparian areas may, at least initially, have little effect on P concentrations in the streams. Low concentrations of DP relative to total P (TP) in these streams, however, suggest that P loads to Rathbun Lake can be reduced if P inputs from eroded bank sediments are controlled

Formin-based control of the actin cytoskeleton during cytokinesis

Cytokinesis, the terminal event in the canonical cell cycle, physically separates daughter cells following mitosis. For cleavage to occur in many eukaryotes, a cytokinetic ring must assemble and constrict between divided genomes. Although dozens of different molecules localize to and participate within the cytokinetic ring, the core machinery comprises linear actin filaments. Accordingly, formins, which nucleate and elongate F-actin (filamentous actin) for the cytokinetic ring, are required for cytokinesis in diverse species. In the present article, we discuss specific modes of formin-based actin regulation during cell division and highlight emerging mechanisms and questions on this topic. © 2013 Biochemical Society

Modeling Phosphorus Capture by Plants Growing in a Multispecies Riparian Buffer

The NST 3.0 mechanistic nutrient uptake model was used to explore P uptake to a depth of 120 cm over a 126 d growing season in simulated buffer communities composed of mixtures of cottonwood (Populus deltoids Bartr.), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.), and smooth brome (Bromus inermis Leyss). Model estimates of P uptake from pure stands of smooth brome and cottonwood were 18.9 and 24.5 kg ha−1, respectively. Uptake estimates for mixed stands of trees and grasses were intermediate to pure stands. A single factor sensitivity analysis of parameters used to calculate P uptake for each cover type indicated that Imax, k, ro, and Lo were consistently the most responsive to changes ranging from −50% to +100%. Model exploration of P uptake as a function of soil depth interval indicated that uptake was highest in the 0–30 cm intervals, with values ranging from 85% of total for cottonwood to 56% for switchgrass

The fission yeast cytokinesis formin Cdc12p is a barbed end actin filament capping protein gated by profilin

Cytokinesis in most eukaryotes requires the assembly and contraction of a ring of actin filaments and myosin II. The fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe requires the formin Cdc12p and profilin (Cdc3p) early in the assembly of the contractile ring. The proline-rich formin homology (FH) 1 domain binds profilin, and the FH2 domain binds actin. Expression of a construct consisting of the Cdc12 FH1 and FH2 domains complements a conditional mutant of Cdc12 at the restrictive temperature, but arrests cells at the permissive temperature. Cells overexpressing Cdc12(FH1FH2)p stop growing with excessive actin cables but no contractile rings. Like capping protein, purified Cdc12(FH1FH2)p caps the barbed end of actin filaments, preventing subunit addition and dissociation, inhibits end to end annealing of filaments, and nucleates filaments that grow exclusively from their pointed ends. The maximum yield is one filament pointed end per six formin polypeptides. Profilins that bind both actin and poly-l-proline inhibit nucleation by Cdc12(FH1FH2)p, but polymerization of monomeric actin is faster, because the filaments grow from their barbed ends at the same rate as uncapped filaments. On the other hand, Cdc12(FH1FH2)p blocks annealing even in the presence of profilin. Thus, formins are profilin-gated barbed end capping proteins with the ability to initiate actin filaments from actin monomers bound to profilin. These properties explain why contractile ring assembly requires both formin and profilin and why viability depends on the ability of profilin to bind both actin and poly-l-proline

Effects of Grazing Management on Selected Stream Bank Characteristics and Stream Bank Erosion

Six 30-acre cool-season grass pastures, containing predominantly smooth bromegrass and bisected by a 642- foot stream segment, were grouped into 2 blocks and assigned one of three treatments: continuous stocking - unrestricted stream access (CSU), continuous stocking - restricted stream access (CSR), and rotational stocking (RS). Stream bank condition and surface roughness and stream morphology were evaluated pre-, mid-, and post-grazing from 2005 to 2007. Stream bank erosion was monitored monthly from May through November over the same three years. Stream banks in CSU pastures had greater vegetative cover, stability, and condition scores than did the CSR or RS pastures implying that the stream banks in pastures in which cattle had unrestricted access were more susceptible to erosion than stream banks in pastures in which cattle access to stream banks was restricted or controlled. However, no effect of grazing management on the rate of change of stream cross sectional area, net stream bank erosion, or erosion deposition activity was observed in any of the three years

C/EBPβ-1 promotes transformation and chemoresistance in Ewing sarcoma cells.

CEBPB copy number gain in Ewing sarcoma was previously shown to be associated with worse clinical outcome compared to tumors with normal CEBPB copy number, although the mechanism was not characterized. We employed gene knockdown and rescue assays to explore the consequences of altered CEBPB gene expression in Ewing sarcoma cell lines. Knockdown of EWS-FLI1 expression led to a decrease in expression of all three C/EBPβ isoforms while re-expression of EWS-FLI1 rescued C/EBPβ expression. Overexpression of C/EBPβ-1, the largest of the three C/EBPβ isoforms, led to a significant increase in colony formation when cells were grown in soft agar compared to empty vector transduced cells. In addition, depletion of C/EBPβ decreased colony formation, and re-expression of either C/EBPβ-1 or C/EBPβ-2 rescued the phenotype. We identified the cancer stem cell marker ALDH1A1 as a target of C/EBPβ in Ewing sarcoma. Furthermore, increased expression of C/EBPβ led to resistance to chemotherapeutic agents. In summary, we have identified CEBPB as an oncogene in Ewing sarcoma. Overexpression of C/EBPβ-1 increases transformation, upregulates expression of the cancer stem cell marker ALDH1A1, and leads to chemoresistance