Role of gliotoxin in the symbiotic and pathogenic interactions of Trichoderma virens

Using a gene disruption strategy, we generated mutants in the gliP locus of the plant-beneficial fungus Trichoderma virens that were no longer capable of producing gliotoxin. Phenotypic assays demonstrated that the gliP-disrupted mutants grew faster, were more sensitive to oxidative stress and exhibited a sparse colony edge compared with the WT strain. In a plate confrontation assay, the mutants deficient in gliotoxin production were ineffective as mycoparasites against the oomycete, Pythium ultimum, and the necrotrophic fungal pathogen, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, but retained mycoparasitic ability against Rhizoctonia solani. Biocontrol assays in soil showed that the mutants were incapable of protecting cotton seedlings from attack by P. ultimum, against which the WT strain was highly effective. The mutants, however, were as effective as the WT strain in protecting cotton seedlings against R. solani. Loss of gliotoxin production also resulted in a reduced ability of the mutants to attack the sclerotia of S. sclerotiorum compared with the WT. The addition of exogenous gliotoxin to the sclerotia colonized by the mutants partially restored their degradative abilities. Interestingly, as in Aspergillus fumigatus, an opportunistic human pathogen, gliotoxin was found to be involved in pathogenicity of T. virens against larvae of the wax moth, Galleria mellonella. The loss of gliotoxin production in T. virens was restored by complementation with the gliP gene from A. fumigatus. We have, thus, demonstrated that the putative gliP cluster of T. virens is responsible for the biosynthesis of gliotoxin, and gliotoxin is involved in mycoparasitism and biocontrol properties of this plant-beneficial fungusFil: Vargas, Walter Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Rosario. Centro de Estudios Fotosintéticos y Bioquímicos (i); ArgentinaFil: Mukherjee, Prasun K.. Bhabha Atomic Research Centre; IndiaFil: Laughlin, David. Texas A&M University; Estados UnidosFil: Wiest, Aric. University Of Missouri; Estados UnidosFil: Moran Diez, Maria E.. Texas A&M University; Estados UnidosFil: Kenerley, Charles M.. Texas A; Estados Unido

Host-specific transcriptomic pattern of Trichoderma virens during interaction with maize or tomato roots

BACKGROUND: Members of the fungal genus Trichoderma directly antagonize soil-borne fungal pathogens, and an increasing number of species are studied for their potential in biocontrol of plant pathogens in agriculture. Some species also colonize plant roots, promoting systemic resistance. The Trichoderma-root interaction is hosted by a wide range of plant species, including monocots and dicots. RESULTS: To test the hypothesis that gene expression by the fungal partner in this beneficial interaction is modulated by the plant, Trichoderma virens was co-cultured with maize or tomato in a hydroponic system allowing interaction with the roots. The transcriptomes for T. virens alone were compared with fungus-inoculated tomato or maize roots by hybridization on microarrays of 11645 unique oligonucleotides designed from the predicted protein-coding gene models. Transcript levels of 210 genes were modulated by interaction with roots. Almost all were up-regulated. Glycoside hydrolases and transporters were highly represented among transcripts induced by co-culture with roots. Of the genes up-regulated on either or both host plants, 35 differed significantly in their expression levels between maize and tomato. Ten of these were expressed higher in the fungus in co-culture with tomato roots than with maize. Average transcript levels for these genes ranged from 1.9 fold higher on tomato than on maize to 60.9 fold for the most tomato-specific gene. The other 25 host-specific transcripts were expressed more strongly in co-culture with maize than with tomato. Average transcript levels for these genes were 2.5 to 196 fold higher on maize than on tomato. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the relevant role of Trichoderma virens as a biological control agent this study provides a better knowledge of its crosstalk with plants in a host-specific manner. The differentially expressed genes encode proteins belonging to several functional classes including enzymes, transporters and small secreted proteins. Among them, glycoside hydrolases and transporters are highlighted by their abundance and suggest an important factor in the metabolism of host cell walls during colonization of the outer root layers. Host-specific gene expression may contribute to the ability of T. virens to colonize the roots of a wide range of plant species. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-014-1208-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Organization and Biology of the Porcine Serum Amyloid A (SAA) Gene Cluster: Isoform Specific Responses to Bacterial Infection.

Serum amyloid A (SAA) is a prominent acute phase protein. Although its biological functions are debated, the wide species distribution of highly homologous SAA proteins and their uniform behavior in response to injury or inflammation in itself suggests a significant role for this protein. The pig is increasingly being used as a model for the study of inflammatory reactions, yet only little is known about how specific SAA genes are regulated in the pig during acute phase responses and other responses induced by pro-inflammatory host mediators. We designed SAA gene specific primers and quantified the gene expression of porcine SAA1, SAA2, SAA3, and SAA4 by reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) in liver, spleen, and lung tissue from pigs experimentally infected with the Gram-negative swine specific bacterium Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, as well as from pigs experimentally infected with the Gram-positive bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. Our results show that: 1) SAA1 may be a pseudogene in pigs; 2) we were able to detect two previously uncharacterized SAA transcripts, namely SAA2 and SAA4, of which the SAA2 transcript is primarily induced in the liver during acute infection and presumably contributes to circulating SAA in pigs; 3) Porcine SAA3 transcription is induced both hepatically and extrahepatically during acute infection, and may be correlated to local organ affection; 4) Hepatic transcription of SAA4 is markedly induced in pigs infected with A. pleuropneumoniae, but only weakly in pigs infected with S. aureus. These results for the first time establish the infection response patterns of the four porcine SAA genes which will be of importance for the use of the pig as a model for human inflammatory responses, e.g. within sepsis, cancer, and obesity research

Glutathione Transferase from Trichoderma virens Enhances Cadmium Tolerance without Enhancing Its Accumulation in Transgenic Nicotiana tabacum

BACKGROUND: Cadmium (Cd) is a major heavy metal pollutant which is highly toxic to plants and animals. Vast agricultural areas worldwide are contaminated with Cd. Plants take up Cd and through the food chain it reaches humans and causes toxicity. It is ideal to develop plants tolerant to Cd, without enhanced accumulation in the edible parts for human consumption. Glutathione transferases (GST) are a family of multifunctional enzymes known to have important roles in combating oxidative stresses induced by various heavy metals including Cd. Some GSTs are also known to function as glutathione peroxidases. Overexpression/heterologous expression of GSTs is expected to result in plants tolerant to heavy metals such as Cd. RESULTS: Here, we report cloning of a glutathione transferase gene from Trichoderma virens, a biocontrol fungus and introducing it into Nicotiana tabacum plants by Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer. Transgenic nature of the plants was confirmed by Southern blot hybridization and expression by reverse transcription PCR. Transgene (TvGST) showed single gene Mendelian inheritance. When transgenic plants expressing TvGST gene were exposed to different concentrations of Cd, they were found to be more tolerant compared to wild type plants, with transgenic plants showing lower levels of lipid peroxidation. Levels of different antioxidant enzymes such as glutathione transferase, superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase, guiacol peroxidase and catalase showed enhanced levels in transgenic plants expressing TvGST compared to control plants, when exposed to Cd. Cadmium accumulation in the plant biomass in transgenic plants were similar or lower than wild-type plants. CONCLUSION: The results of the present study suggest that transgenic tobacco plants expressing a Trichoderma virens GST are more tolerant to Cd, without enhancing its accumulation in the plant biomass. It should be possible to extend the present results to crop plants for developing Cd tolerance and in limiting Cd availability in the food chain

Texture analysis of MR images of patients with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Our objective was to study the effect of trauma on texture features in cerebral tissue in mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI). Our hypothesis was that a mild trauma may cause microstructural changes, which are not necessarily perceptible by visual inspection but could be detected with texture analysis (TA).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We imaged 42 MTBI patients by using 1.5 T MRI within three weeks of onset of trauma. TA was performed on the area of mesencephalon, cerebral white matter at the levels of mesencephalon, corona radiata and centrum semiovale and in different segments of corpus callosum (CC) which have been found to be sensitive to damage. The same procedure was carried out on a control group of ten healthy volunteers. Patients' TA data was compared with the TA results of the control group comparing the amount of statistically significantly differing TA parameters between the left and right sides of the cerebral tissue and comparing the most discriminative parameters.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were statistically significant differences especially in several co-occurrence and run-length matrix based parameters between left and right side in the area of mesencephalon, in cerebral white matter at the level of corona radiata and in the segments of CC in patients. Considerably less difference was observed in the healthy controls.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>TA revealed significant changes in texture parameters of cerebral tissue between hemispheres and CC segments in TBI patients. TA may serve as a novel additional tool for detecting the conventionally invisible changes in cerebral tissue in MTBI and help the clinicians to make an early diagnosis.</p

Target highlights in CASP14 : Analysis of models by structure providers

Abstract The biological and functional significance of selected CASP14 targets are described by the authors of the structures. The authors highlight the most relevant features of the target proteins and discuss how well these features were reproduced in the respective submitted predictions. The overall ability to predict three-dimensional structures of proteins has improved remarkably in CASP14, and many difficult targets were modelled with impressive accuracy. For the first time in the history of CASP, the experimentalists not only highlighted that computational models can accurately reproduce the most critical structural features observed in their targets, but also envisaged that models could serve as a guidance for further studies of biologically-relevant properties of proteins. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Nanoparticles induced multiferroicity in liquid crystal

Soft multiferroic character has been observed in a ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) dispersed with nickel nanoparticles (Ni NPs). A suitable amount of ferromagnetic Ni NPs has been added into FLC material, and the co-existence of ferroelectric and ferromagnetic ordering is examined using P-E and M-H hysteresis measurements. The magnitude of ferromagnetic order is found to depend strongly on the concentration of Ni NPs. Our theoretical approach indicated a strong dependence of helical pitch of FLC on the doping concentration of Ni NPs. We proposed that the intrinsic magnetic field of Ni NPs has been coupled with that of director field of the FLC molecules to result in the observed multiferroic behavior

Regulation of Morphogenesis and Biocontrol Properties in Trichoderma virens by a VELVET Protein, Vel1▿ †

Mycoparasitic strains of Trichoderma are applied as commercial biofungicides for control of soilborne plant pathogens. Although the majority of commercial biofungicides are Trichoderma based, chemical pesticides, which are ecological and environmental hazards, still dominate the market. This is because biofungicides are not as effective or consistent as chemical fungicides. Efforts to improve these products have been limited by a lack of understanding of the genetic regulation of biocontrol activities. In this study, using gene knockout and complementation, we identified the VELVET protein Vel1 as a key regulator of biocontrol, as well as morphogenetic traits, in Trichoderma virens, a commercial biocontrol agent. Mutants with mutations in vel1 were defective in secondary metabolism (antibiosis), mycoparasitism, and biocontrol efficacy. In nutrient-rich media they also lacked two types of spores important for survival and development of formulation products: conidia (on agar) and chlamydospores (in liquid shake cultures). These findings provide an opportunity for genetic enhancement of biocontrol and industrial strains of Trichoderma, since Vel1 is very highly conserved across three Trichoderma species

Structural, Dielectric and Electrical Studies of Ba4CaRTi3Nb7O30 (R = Eu, Dy) Ferroelectric System

The polycrystalline samples of Ba4CaRTi3Nb7O30 (R = Eu, Dy), members of tungsten-bronze family, were prepared by high-temperature solid state reaction method and studied for their dielectric and electrical properties. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis reveals the formation of single-phase compounds having orthorhombic crystal structure at room temperature. Microstructural analysis by scanning electron microscope (SEM) shows that the compounds have well defined grains, which are distributed uniformly throughout the sample. Detailed dielectric properties of the compounds as a function of frequency and temperature show that the compounds undergo non-relaxor kind of ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transition of diffuse nature. Ferroelectric, piezoelectric and pyroelectric studies of the compounds have been discussed in this paper. The temperature dependence of dc conductivity of the compounds have been investigated. The conductivity study over a wide temperature range suggests that the compounds have negative temperature coefficient of resistance (NTCR) behaviour