The elemental defense effect of cadmium on Alternaria brassicicola in Brassica juncea.

BACKGROUND: The elemental defense hypothesis states a new defensive strategy that hyperaccumulators defense against herbivores or pathogens attacks by accumulating heavy metals. Brassica juncea has an excellent ability of cadmium (Cd) accumulation. However, the elemental defense effect and its regulation mechanism in B. juncea remain unclear. RESULTS: In this study, we profiled the elemental defense effect and the molecular regulatory mechanism in Cd-accumulated B. juncea after Alternaria brassicicola infection. B. juncea treated with 180 mg Kg- 1 DW CdCl2 2.5H2O exhibited obvious elemental defense effect after 72 h of infection with A. brassicicola. The expression of some defense-related genes including BjNPR1, BjPR12, BjPR2, and stress-related miRNAs (miR156, miR397, miR398a, miR398b/c, miR408, miR395a, miR395b, miR396a, and miR396b) were remarkably elevated during elemental defense in B. juncea. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that Cd-accumulated B. juncea may defend against pathogens by coordinating salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA) mediated systemic acquired resistance (SAR) and elemental defense in a synergistic joint effect. Furthermore, the expression of miRNAs related to heavy metal stress response and disease resistance may regulate the balance between pathogen defense and heavy metal stress-responsive in B. juncea. The findings provide experimental evidence for the elemental defense hypothesis in plants from the perspectives of phytohormones, defense-related genes, and miRNAs.

Detection and identification of allergens from Canadian mustard varieties of Sinapis alba and Brassica juncea.

Currently, information on the allergens profiles of different mustard varieties is rather scarce. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess protein profiles and immunoglobulin E (IgE)-binding patterns of selected Canadian mustard varieties. Optimization of a non-denaturing protein extraction from the seeds of selected mustard varieties was first undertaken, and the various extracts were quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed by means of protein recovery determination and protein profiling. The IgE-binding patterns of selected mustard seeds extracts were assessed by immunoblotting using sera from mustard sensitized and allergic individuals. In addition to the known mustard allergens-Sin a 2 (11S globulins), Sin a 1, and Bra j 1 (2S albumins)-the presence of other new IgE-binding protein bands was revealed from both Sinapis alba and Brassica juncea varieties. Mass spectrometry (MS) analysis of the in-gel digested IgE-reactive bands identified the unknown ones as being oleosin, ß-glucosidase, enolase, and glutathione-S transferase proteins. A bioinformatic comparison of the amino acid sequence of the new IgE-binding mustard proteins with those of know allergens revealed a number of strong homologies that are highly relevant for potential allergic cross-reactivity. Moreover, it was found that Sin a 1, Bra j 1, and cruciferin polypeptides exhibited a stronger IgE reactivity under non-reducing conditions in comparison to reducing conditions, demonstrating the recognition of conformational epitopes. These results further support the utilization of non-denaturing extraction and analysis conditions, as denaturing conditions may lead to failure in the detection of important immunoreactive epitopes.

Development of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method to detect mustard protein in mustard seed oil.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the detection of mustard protein was developed. The assay is based on a polyclonal antiserum directed against a mixture of mustard proteins raised in rabbits. The assay has a detection limit of 1.5 ppm (milligrams per kilogram) and is suitable for the detection of traces of mustard protein in mustard seed-derived flavoring ingredients. Limited cross-reactivity testing showed that no other plant proteins reacted significantly. From the animal proteins tested, only milk showed some cross-reactivity. With this sensitive assay, it was shown that refined mustard seed oil produced by steam distillation does not contain detectable amounts of mustard protein. Mustard seed oil is used as a flavoring in very low quantities, typically between 40 and 200 mg/kg. Thus, 100 g of a food product flavored with 200 mg of mustard seed oil per kg containing < 1.5 mg of protein per kg would represent an amount of mustard seed protein of <30 ng. Taking into account the published literature on allergic reactions to the unintended ingestion of mustard, this conservatively low calculated level indicates that it is unlikely that food products containing mustard seed oil as a flavoring ingredient will elicit an allergic reaction in mustard-allergic individuals.

Expression in Escherichia coli of Sin a 1, the major allergen from mustard.

Sin a 1, the major yellow mustard allergen, is a seed storage protein that belongs to the 2S albumin family. It is composed of two disulfide-bonded polypeptide chains. The cloning of this allergen has been carried out by means of the polymerase chain reaction using non-degenerate oligonucleotides encoding the N-terminal and C-terminal regions of the mature protein as primers. Five genomic nucleotide sequences have been analyzed, encoding both mature polypeptide chains linked by the internal processed fragment. The sequence data show the existence of microheterogeneities at ten positions, demonstrating the polymorphism exhibited by the natural protein. One of the genomic clones was expressed in Escherichia coli by fusion to glutathione S-transferase from Schistosoma japonicum. The resulting chimeric protein was purified by affinity chromatography on a glutathione-Sepharose 4B matrix, and digested with thrombin to release the recombinant allergen. The recombinant Sin a 1 is recognized by rabbit polyclonal and mouse monoclonal antisera raised against natural Sin a 1, as well as by the IgE of mustard-sensitive human sera. In addition, recombinant Sin a 1 possesses a high resistance to trypsin digestion, like the native mustard allergen.

Epitope mapping of the major allergen from yellow mustard seeds, Sin a I.

The antigenic sites on the major allergen from yellow mustard (Sinapis alba L.) seeds were studied using murine (BALB/c) monoclonal antibodies (mAb) and human IgE antibodies. Ten IgG1 (K) mAb from two fusions were analyzed. Competition and complementation studies performed with peroxidase labeled mAb reveal the existence of two main antigenic sites in Sin a I. All the described mAb failed to recognize the unordered carboxyamidomethylated polypeptide chains, with the single exception of 2B3, which binds the alkylated large chain. However, this mAB cannot react with the tetranitromethane-modified protein which retains the native conformation. This fact suggests that the only tyrosine of Sin a I, located in the large chain, may be part of a sequential epitope of the allergen. This chemical modification also alters the binding of the mAb 4A11 and 3F3 to the allergen, besides 2B3. The three mAb belong to the same complementation group. Specific IgE binding cannot be inhibited either by the large or small carboxyamidomethylated polypeptide chains, while the nitrated allergen shows a weaker inhibitory activity than the native Sin a I. 4A11, which is a tyrosine-dependent mAb, causes the greatest binding inhibition of the tested mAb on human IgE from atopic individuals, as determined from a reverse enzyme immunoassay, suggesting an important role played by tyrosine in the immunochemical recognition of Sin a I.