Crocus adamioides (Iridaceae) in the Bulgarian flora

Crocus adamioides Kernd. et Pasche, as it is currently known, was originally treated as C. biflorus Mill. subsp. adamii B. Mathew in the flora of Bulgaria by Mathew (1982) and verified by Rukšāns (2017). The taxon was afterwards described as a separate species (Kerndorff et al. 2012), the holotype being collected in Kırklareli Province, European Turkey. The species was for the first time mapped in two floristic regions of Bulgaria. The diagnostic characters based on the general morphology and leaf anatomy were defined from the natural populations of the species and compared to the type specimen and relevant data from the literature. The phylogenetic position of the species was clarified by sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS: ITS1 + 5.SsrDNA + ITS2) and comparison of the obtained sequence with those annotated in NCBI. A phylogenetic tree was built using Bayesian phylogeny. Results have shown the highest degree of phylogenetic similarity with C. adamioides from Turkey. The closest relative C. ranjeloviciorum Kernd., Pasche, Harpke et Raca remains in the proximity. Our morphological, anatomical and molecular analyses have revealed that the Bulgarian population shows a peculiar combination of characters specific to C. adamioides

Toxicity of Bacillus thuringiensis (L.) Cry proteins against summer fruit tortrix (Adoxophyes orana - Fischer von Rosslerstamm)

The activity of seven Cry1, one Cry9 and one hybrid Cry1 protoxins against neonate larvae of summer fruit tortrix (Adoxophyes orana - Fischer von Rosslerstamm) has been investigated. Cry1Ia is identified as the most toxic protein, followed by Cry1Aa and Cry1Ac. Cry1Ca, Cry1Cb, Cry1Da and Cry1Fa were less active, while SN19 (Cry1 hybrid protein with domain composition 1Ba/1Ia/1Ba) and Cry9Aa exhibited negligible toxicity against A. orana. In vitro trypsin-activated Cry1Ac is still less active than Cry1Ia pro toxin, suggesting that toxicity of Cry1Ia is most probably due to more complex differences in further downstream processing, toxin-receptor interactions and pore formation in A. orana's midgut epithelium. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Peer-reviewed manuscript: [http://cherry.chem.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/3656

A Prospectus of Tenomodulin

Tenomodulin is a type II transmembrane glycoprotein that can regulate growth of tendon. The human tenomodulin encoding gene is mapped to Х chromosome and encodes a polypeptide consisting of 317 alpha amino acids. The protein is located on the cell surface as N-glycosylated or non-N-glycosylated polypeptide with molecular mass of 45 and 40 kDa, respectively. The molecule consists of three domains and a short cytoplasmic tail at N-terminus. Tenomodulin is predominantly expressed in dense connective hypovascularized tissues such as tendons, skeletal muscle epimysium, and ligaments. Furthermore, tenomodulin is an efficient marker of tenocyte differentiation and plays an important role in the regulation of tenocyte proliferation, tendon development, and angiogenesis inhibition. A number of tenomodulin gene polymorphisms have been recently associated with a risk of obesity, diabetes, systemic immune mediators, cholesterol levels, Alzheimer disease, and age-related macular degeneration. Tenomodulin is involved in cell adhesion, determination of cell morphology, cell aging and bone mineral density. It is expected to play an important role in tendon recovery, tendon tissue engineering, anti-tumor therapy, treatment of chordal disruption, and remodeling of extracellular matrix

<i>Crocus speciosus</i> (Iridaceae)—A New Species for the Bulgarian Flora

This is the first report on the autumn-flowering species Crocus speciosus, belonging to C. ser. Speciosi from the Bulgarian flora. The species was found in Southeastern Bulgaria, in the area between Ahtopol and Rezovo. Re-examining the Bulgarian collections, the earliest specimen was collected in 1975, was probably overlooked, and most likely determined as C. pulchellus. The nearest known localities of the species are on the territory of Türkiye. In this study, we compared C. pulchellus and C. ibrahimii using DNA sequence data from the nuclear ITS1/2 region and morphological features. Our study showed a close relationship between the specimens from Bulgaria and the recently deposited data of C. speciosus and their separation from the closely related C. pulchellus. Together with the previously cited white anthers as a key feature for determination, the molecular data confirmed a clear distinction between the samples with white anthers in the two species. The morphological data of our taxon overlapped with the description of C. ibrahimii. The molecular data strongly supported the affiliation of C. speciosus s.l., but did not support the recognition of C. ibrahimii as a separate species and it should be referred to as a subspecies of C. speciosus subsp. ibrahimii Rukšāns

Crocus pallidus (Iridaceae)&mdash;A Neglected Species for the Bulgarian Flora and Critical Taxon in the Balkans

For a long time, the Balkan endemic species Crocus pallidus has been unconfirmed and neglected for the flora of Bulgaria. It has remained an uncertain species from the Balkans, often listed as a synonym of C. weldenii. The morphological resemblance to the albinistic forms of C. chrysanthus has led to incorrect identification in the past, resulting in uncertainty regarding the distribution of this species in Bulgaria. In this regard, a detailed morphological and anatomical study of Bulgarian natural populations was carried out. A phylogenetic comparison in the ITS region of two Bulgarian populations of C. pallidus with other related species was conducted, revealing the distinction of C. pallidus populations from the closely related C. weldenii. The recently described new endemic species from Turkey, C. thracicus, shows very similar morphological and anatomical characteristics to C. pallidus and logically continues the distribution range in Eastern Thrace, along the Black Sea coast. We have a basis for suggesting that it should be treated as a synonym of C. pallidus

Solubilization, Activation, and Insecticidal Activity of Bacillus thuringiensis Serovar thompsoni HD542 Crystal Proteins▿

Cry15Aa protein, produced by Bacillus thuringiensis serovar thompsoni HD542 in a crystal together with a 40-kDa accompanying protein, is one of a small group of nontypical, less well-studied members of the Cry family of insecticidal proteins and may provide an alternative for the more commonly used Cry proteins in insect pest management. In this paper, we describe the characterization of the Cry15Aa and 40-kDa protein's biochemical and insecticidal properties and the mode of action. Both proteins were solubilized above pH 10 in vitro. Incubation of solubilized crystal proteins with trypsin or insect midgut extracts rapidly processed the 40-kDa protein to fragments too small to be detected by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, whereas the Cry15 protein yielded a stable product of approximately 30 kDa. Protein N-terminal sequencing showed that Cry15 processing occurs exclusively at the C-terminal end. Cry15 protein showed in vitro hemolytic activity, which was greatly enhanced by preincubation with trypsin or insect gut extract. Larvae of the lepidopteran insects Manduca sexta, Cydia pomonella, and Pieris rapae were susceptible to crystals, and presolubilization of the crystals enhanced activity to P. rapae. Activity for all three species was enhanced by preincubation with trypsin. Larvae of Helicoverpa armigera and Spodoptera exigua were relatively insensitive to crystals, and activity against these insects was not enhanced by prior solubilization or trypsin treatment. The 40-kDa crystal protein showed no activity in the insects tested, nor did its addition or coexpression in Escherichia coli increase the activity of Cry15 in insecticidal and hemolytic assays

Bacillus thuringiensis -endotoxin Cry1Ac domain III enhances activity against Heliothis virescens in some, but not all Cry1-Cry1Ac hybrids

Abstract We investigated the role of domain III of Bacillus thuringiensis -endotoxin Cry1Ac in determining toxicity against Heliothis virescens. Hybrid toxins, containing domain III of Cry1Ac with domains I and II of Cry1Ba, Cry1Ca, Cry1Da, Cry1Ea, and Cry1Fb, respectively, were created. In this way Cry1Ca, Cry1Fb, and to a lesser extent Cry1Ba were made considerably more toxic. 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved