Albino Plant Formation in Androgenic Cultures: An Old Problem and New Facts.

High frequency of albino plant formation in isolated microspore or anther cultures is a great problem limiting the possibility of their exploitation on a wider scale. It is highly inconvenient as androgenesis-based doubled haploid (DH) technology provides the simplest and shortest way to total homozygosity, highly valued by plant geneticists, biotechnologists and especially, plant breeders, and this phenomenon constitutes a serious limitation of these otherwise powerful tools. The genotype-dependent tendency toward albino plant formation is typical for many monocotyledonous plants, including cereals like wheat, barley, rice, triticale, oat and rye - the most important from the economical point of view. Despite many efforts, the precise mechanism underlying chlorophyll deficiency has not yet been elucidated. In this chapter, we review the data concerning molecular and physiological control over proper/disturbed chloroplast biogenesis, old hypotheses explaining the mechanism of chlorophyll deficiency, and recent studies which shed new light on this phenomenon.

Extracellular Polysaccharide Production in a Scytonemin-Deficient Mutant of Nostoc punctiforme Under UVA and Oxidative Stress.

Some cyanobacteria can protect themselves from ultraviolet radiation by producing sunscreen pigments. In particular, the sheath pigment scytonemin protects cells against long-wavelength UVA radiation and is only found in cyanobacteria which are capable of extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) production. The presence of a putative glycosyltransferase encoded within the scytonemin gene cluster, along with the localization of scytonemin and EPS to the extracellular sheath, prompted us to investigate the relationship between scytonemin and EPS production under UVA stress. In this study, it was hypothesized that there would be a relationship between the biosynthesis of scytonemin and EPS under both UVA and oxidative stress, since the latter is a by-product of UVA radiation. EPS production was measured following exposure of wild-type Nostoc punctiforme and the non-scytonemin-producing strain SCY59 to UVA and oxidative stress. Under UVA, SCY59 produced significantly more EPS than the unstressed controls and the wild type, while both strains produced more EPS under oxidative stress compared to the controls. The results suggest that EPS secretion occurs in response to the oxidative stress by-product of UVA rather than as a direct response to UVA radiation.

Intraclonal polymorphism in the bacterium Streptomyces ambofaciens ATCC23877: evidence for a high degree of heterogeneity of the wild type clones.

In Streptomyces ambofaciens a genetic instability generates a high degree of polymorphism consisting of four main phenotypes: pigmented colonies (Pig(+) qualified as WT phenotype), pigment-defective colonies, pigmented colonies with pigment-defective sector and pigmented colonies with pigment-defective papillae. Molecular analysis of Pig(col)(-) and Pig(sec)(-) (pigment-defective mutant derived from a colony and a sector, respectively) produced by genetic instability and isolated in five Pig(+) subclones progenies revealed a new aspect of polymorphism in S. ambofaciens ATCC23877. Frequencies of Pig(col)(-) and Pig(sec)(-) mutants deleted at the chromosome ends varied from one WT progeny to another. Two main types of deleted mutants were observed: deleted for one or both chromosomal extremities. The relative proportion of these two categories differed according to the WT progeny. These results argue for heterogeneity of the WT clones, i.e., Pig(+) colonies, originated from S. ambofaciens ATCC23877.

Ommochrome deficiency in an albino strain of a terrestrial isopod, Armadillidium vulgare.

In order to clarify the cause of ommochrome deficiency in an albino strain of the terrestrial isopod, Armadillidium vulgare, levels of xanthommatin, 3-hydroxykynurenine, 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid and tryptophan in whole body extracts of the albino and the wild type individuals were determined together with enzyme activities of kynurenine-3-hydroxylase, kynureninase and tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase. Xanthommatin could not be detected in the albinos. The levels of 3-hydroxykynurenine and 3-hydroxyanthranilic acid were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with electrochemical detection and were markedly low in the albinos compared with the wild type individuals. In contrast to those, the tryptophan levels determined by HPLC with fluorescence detection did not differ significantly between the two phenotypes. In the albino A. vulgare, kynurenine-3-hydroxylase activity was lower and kynureninase activity was higher than in the wild type, although the differences were not statistically significant. Tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase activity in the albinos was less than 10% that in the wild type. Thus, ommochrome deficiency in the albino A. vulgare is considered to be caused by the extremely low activity of tryptophan-2,3-dioxygenase.

Tn4351-generated non-haemolytic and/or non-pigmented mutants of Porphyromonas gingivalis.

Escherichia coli-Porphyromonas gingivalis plasmid-shuttle vectors R751::* omega 4, pVOH1, and pVAL-1 were used for isolation of non-pigmented, defective protease, or non-haemolytic activity phenotypes in P. gingivalis. Transfer frequencies for R751::* omega 4, pVOH1, and pVAL-1 varied from 1.7 x 10(-9) to 5.3 x 10(-11) depending on the P. gingivalis 381 and ATCC 33277 strains. Two erythromycin-resistant transconjugants were screened from P. gingivalis 381 and eighteen were screened from ATCC 33277. Among isolated transconjugants, two from ATCC 33277 contained only one transposon insertion, while others included both Tn4351 and R751 sequences. The one transconjugant which contained a single insertion of Tn4351, designated NUM-T14, demonstrated defective pigmentation, and defective protease and haemolytic activities. The other transconjugant, designated NUM-T29, demonstrated defective haemolytic activity, but had black pigmentation and protease activity. Cell surface protein analysis by SDS-PAGE indicated that 40 and 18 kD proteins were lost or reduced and that 45 and 36 kD proteins were made to appear in both NUM-T14 and NUM-T29 transconjugants.

The density of cones in the fovea centralis of the human dichromat.

We present estimates, based on psychophysical measurements, of the density of cones in the fovea centralis of human dichromats. The estimates for a group of three protanopes and three deuteranopes (this study) were compared to the estimates of the density of cones in a group of six color normal trichromats from previous studies (Cicerone & Nerger, 1985, 1989). The results support the conclusion that the density of cones in the fovea centralis of the dichromat is comparable to that of the color normal trichomat. These results tend not to support a model of dichromacy in which a class of cones as well as the associated pigment are lost in the dichromatic eye. Instead, dichromacy appears to involve a loss of one of the three visual pigments associated with human trichromacy, with a retention of the full numbers of cones.

Characterization of a pyoverdine-deficient mutant of Pseudomonas fluorescens impaired in the secretion of extracellular lipase.

A mutant of Pseudomonas fluorescens strain B52 deficient in the synthesis of the fluorescent pigment, pyoverdine, was isolated. Absence of pyoverdine and other siderophores was confirmed by gel filtration, a specific siderophore assay, and inhibition studies with the iron chelator EDDA. Both parent and mutant synthesized additional outer membrane proteins in response to iron-limitation. Mutant cells cultured in the absence of iron(III) accumulated 55Fe-labeled pyoverdine. The mutant produced extracellular proteinase normally on various media, but was deficient in lipase secretion. Growth of the mutant with partially-purified pyoverdine resulted in a 2.5-fold stimulation of lipase secretion. The mutant grew poorly in deferrated medium; however, the addition of iron(III) stimulated growth. Proteinase secretion in deferrated medium was stimulated over a narrow range of iron(III) concentration, while lipase secretion was only slightly affected. The data suggest that separate regulatory mechanisms exist for the control of proteinase and lipase secretion by iron(III).