Radiation-induced DNA Double Strand Breaks and Their Modulations by Treatments with Moringa oleifera Lam. Leaf Extracts: A Cancer Cell Culture Model

Gamma radiation brings deleterious effects upon human cells by inducing oxidative stress and DNA damages. Antioxidants have been shown to confer protective effects on irradiated normal cells.  Moringa oleifera Lam. is a widely used nutritional supplement with antioxidant activities.  This report showed that antioxidant-containing supplements, in addition to protecting normal cells, could protect cancer cells against genotoxic effects of gamma radiation. γ-H2AX immunofluorescent foci were utilized as an indicator of radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks. MCF-7 human breast adenocarcinoma cells were irradiated with 2-8 Gy gamma radiation. A linear relationship between the formation of γ-H2AX foci and radiation dose was observed with an average of 10 foci per cell per Gy. A 30-minute pretreatment of the cells with either the aqueous or the ethanolic extract of M. oleifera leaves could partially protect the cells from radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks. A pretreatment with 500 µg/mL aqueous extract reduced the number of foci formed by 15% when assayed at 30 minutes post-irradiation.  The ethanolic extract was more effective; 500 µg/mL of its concentration reduced the number of foci among irradiated cells by 30%. The results indicated that irradiated cancer cells responded similarly to nutritional supplements containing antioxidants as irradiated normal cells. These natural antioxidants could confer protective effects upon cancer cells against gamma radiation.Received: 08 November 2013; Revised: 01 March 2014; Accepted: 17 March 201

Radiation-induced DNA Double Strand Breaks and Their Modulations by Treatments with Moringa Oleifera Lam. Leaf Extracts: a Cancer Cell Culture Model

Gamma radiation brings deleterious effects upon human cells by inducing oxidative stress and DNA damages. Antioxidants have been shown to confer protective effects on irradiated normal cells. Moringa oleifera Lam. is a widely used nutritional supplement with antioxidant activities. This report showed that antioxidant-containing supplements, in addition to protecting normal cells, could protect cancer cells against genotoxic effects of gamma radiation. γ-H2AX immunofluorescent foci were utilized as an indicator of radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks. MCF-7 human breast adenocarcinoma cells were irradiated with 2-8 Gy gamma radiation. A linear relationship between the formation of γ-H2AX foci and radiation dose was observed with an average of 10 foci per cell per Gy. A 30-minute pretreatment of the cells with either the aqueous or the ethanolic extract of M. oleifera leaves could partially protect the cells from radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks. A pretreatment with 500 µg/mL aqueous extract reduced the number of foci formed by 15% when assayed at 30 minutes post-irradiation. The ethanolic extract was more effective; 500 µg/mL of its concentration reduced the number of foci among irradiated cells by 30%. The results indicated that irradiated cancer cells responded similarly to nutritional supplements containing antioxidants as irradiated normal cells. These natural antioxidants could confer protective effects upon cancer cells against gamma radiation.Received: 08 November 2013; Revised: 01 March 2014; Accepted: 17 March 201

The chemical compound 'Heatin' stimulates hypocotyl elongation and interferes with the Arabidopsis NIT1-subfamily of nitrilases

Temperature passively affects biological processes involved in plant growth. Therefore, it is challenging to study the dedicated temperature signalling pathways that orchestrate thermomorphogenesis, a suite of elongation growth-based adaptations that enhance leaf-cooling capacity. We screened a chemical library for compounds that restored hypocotyl elongation in the pif4-2-deficient mutant background at warm temperature conditions in Arabidopsis thaliana to identify modulators of thermomorphogenesis. The small aromatic compound 'Heatin', containing 1-iminomethyl-2-naphthol as a pharmacophore, was selected as an enhancer of elongation growth. We show that ARABIDOPSIS ALDEHYDE OXIDASES redundantly contribute to Heatin-mediated hypocotyl elongation. Following a chemical proteomics approach, the members of the NITRILASE1-subfamily of auxin biosynthesis enzymes were identified among the molecular targets of Heatin. Our data reveal that nitrilases are involved in promotion of hypocotyl elongation in response to high temperature and Heatin-mediated hypocotyl elongation requires the NITRILASE1-subfamily members, NIT1 and NIT2. Heatin inhibits NIT1-subfamily enzymatic activity in vitro and the application of Heatin accordingly results in the accumulation of NIT1-subfamily substrate indole-3-acetonitrile in vivo. However, levels of the NIT1-subfamily product, bioactive auxin (indole-3-acetic acid), were also significantly increased. It is likely that the stimulation of hypocotyl elongation by Heatin might be independent of its observed interaction with NITRILASE1-subfamily members. However, nitrilases may contribute to the Heatin response by stimulating indole-3-acetic acid biosynthesis in an indirect way. Heatin and its functional analogues present novel chemical entities for studying auxin biology

Rice actin binding protein RMD controls crown root angle in response to external phosphate

Root angle has a major impact on acquisition of nutrients like phosphate that accumulate in topsoil and in many species; low phosphate induces shallower root growth as an adaptive response. Identifying genes and mechanisms controlling root angle is therefore of paramount importance to plant breeding. Here we show that the actin-binding protein Rice Morphology Determinant (RMD) controls root growth angle by linking actin filaments and gravity-sensing organelles termed statoliths. RMD is upregulated in response to low external phosphate and mutants lacking of RMD have steeper crown root growth angles that are unresponsive to phosphate levels. RMD protein localizes to the surface of statoliths, and rmd mutants exhibit faster gravitropic response owing to more rapid statoliths movement. We conclude that adaptive changes to root angle in response to external phosphate availability are RMD dependent, providing a potential target for breeders

Radiation-induced DNA Double Strand Breaks and Their Modulations by Treatments with Moringa oleifera Lam. Leaf Extracts: A Cancer Cell Culture Model

Gamma radiation brings deleterious effects upon human cells by inducing oxidative stress and DNA damages. Antioxidants have been shown to confer protective effects on irradiated normal cells. Moringa oleifera Lam. is a widely used nutritional supplement with antioxidant activities. This report showed that antioxidant-containing supplements, in addition to protecting normal cells, could protect cancer cells against genotoxic effects of gamma radiation. -H2AX immunofluorescent foci were utilized as an indicator of radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks. MCF-7 human breast adenocarcinoma cells were irradiated with 2-8 Gy gamma radiation. A linear relationship between the formation of -H2AX foci and radiation dose was observed with an average of 10 foci per cell per Gy. A 30-minute pretreatment of the cells with either the aqueous or the ethanolic extract of M. oleifera leaves could partially protect the cells from radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks. A pretreatment with 500 µg/mL aqueous extract reduced the number of foci formed by 15% when assayed at 30 minutes post-irradiation. The ethanolic extract was more effective; 500 µg/mL of its concentration reduced the number of foci among irradiated cells by 30%. The results indicated that irradiated cancer cells responded similarly to nutritional supplements containing antioxidants as irradiated normal cells. These natural antioxidants could confer protective effects upon cancer cells against gamma radiatio

A novel sensor to map auxin response and distribution at high spatio-temporal resolution

International audienceAuxin is a key plant morphogenetic signal(1) but tools to analyse dynamically its distribution and signalling during development are still limited. Auxin perception directly triggers the degradation of Aux/IAA repressor proteins(2-6). Here we describe a novel Aux/IAA-based auxin signalling sensor termed DII-VENUS that was engineered in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. The VENUS fast maturing form of yellow fluorescent protein(7) was fused in-frame to the Aux/IAA auxin-interaction domain (termed domain II; DII)(5) and expressed under a constitutive promoter. We initially show that DII-VENUS abundance is dependent on auxin, its TIR1/AFBs co-receptors(4-6,8) and proteasome activities. Next, we demonstrate that DII-VENUS provides a map of relative auxin distribution at cellular resolution in different tissues. DII-VENUS is also rapidly degraded in response to auxin and we used it to visualize dynamic changes in cellular auxin distribution successfully during two developmental responses, the root gravitropic response and lateral organ production at the shoot apex. Our results illustrate the value of developing response input sensors such as DII-VENUS to provide high-resolution spatio-temporal information about hormone distribution and response during plant growth and development

Root gravitropism requires lateral root cap and epidermal cells for transport and response to a mobile auxin signal

Re-orientation of Arabidopsis seedlings induces a rapid, asymmetric release of the growth regulator auxin from gravity-sensing columella cells at the root apex. The resulting lateral auxin gradient is hypothesized to drive differential cell expansion in elongation-zone tissues. We mapped those root tissues that function to transport or respond to auxin during a gravitropic response. Targeted expression of the auxin influx facilitator AUX1 demonstrated that root gravitropism requires auxin to be transported via the lateral root cap to all elongating epidermal cells. A three-dimensional model of the root elongation zone predicted that AUX1 causes the majority of auxin to accumulate in the epidermis. Selectively disrupting the auxin responsiveness of expanding epidermal cells by expressing a mutant form of the AUX/IAA17 protein, axr3-1, abolished root gravitropism. We conclude that gravitropic curvature in Arabidopsis roots is primarily driven by the differential expansion of epidermal cells in response to an influx-carrier-dependent auxin gradient