The Gynandropsis gynandra genome provides insights into whole-genome duplications and the evolution of C4 photosynthesis in Cleomaceae.

Gynandropsis gynandra (Cleomaceae) is a cosmopolitan leafy vegetable and medicinal plant, which has also been used as a model to study C4 photosynthesis due to its evolutionary proximity to C3 Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Here, we present the genome sequence of G. gynandra, anchored onto 17 main pseudomolecules with a total length of 740 Mb, an N50 of 42 Mb and 30,933 well-supported gene models. The G. gynandra genome and previously released genomes of C3 relatives in the Cleomaceae and Brassicaceae make an excellent model for studying the role of genome evolution in the transition from C3 to C4 photosynthesis. Our analyses revealed that G. gynandra and its C3 relative Tarenaya hassleriana shared a whole-genome duplication event (Gg-α), then an addition of a third genome (Th-α, +1×) took place in T. hassleriana but not in G. gynandra. Analysis of syntenic copy number of C4 photosynthesis-related gene families indicates that G. gynandra generally retained more duplicated copies of these genes than C3T. hassleriana, and also that the G. gynandra C4 genes might have been under positive selection pressure. Both whole-genome and single-gene duplication were found to contribute to the expansion of the aforementioned gene families in G. gynandra. Collectively, this study enhances our understanding of the polyploidy history, gene duplication and retention, as well as their impact on the evolution of C4 photosynthesis in Cleomaceae.

Environmental Presence of Hexavalent but Not Trivalent Chromium Causes Neurotoxicity in Exposed Drosophila melanogaster.

A number of environmental chemicals are known to cause neurotoxicity to exposed organisms. Chromium (Cr), one of the major elements in earth's crust, is a priority environmental chemical depending on its valence state, and limited information is available on its neurotoxic potential. We, therefore, explored the neurotoxic potential of environmentally present trivalent- (Cr(III)) and hexavalent-Cr (Cr(VI)) on tested brain cell types in a genetically tractable organism Drosophila melanogaster along with its organismal response. Third instar larvae of w 1118 were fed environmentally relevant concentrations (5.0-20.0 µg/ml) of Cr(III)- or Cr(VI)-salt-mixed food for 24 and 48 h, and their exposure effects were examined in different brain cells of exposed organism. A significant reduction in the number of neuronal cells was observed in organism that were fed Cr(VI)- but not Cr(III)-salt-mixed food. Interestingly, glial cells were not affected by Cr(III) or Cr(VI) exposure. The tested cholinergic and dopaminergic neuronal cells were affected by Cr(VI) only with the later by 20.0 µg/ml Cr(VI) exposure after 48 h. The locomotor activity was significantly affected by Cr(VI) in exposed organism. Concomitantly, a significant increase in the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) coupled with increased oxidative stress led to apoptotic cell death in the tested brain cells of Cr(VI)-exposed Drosophila, which were reversed by vitamin C supplementation. Conclusively, the present study provides evidence of environmental Cr(VI)-induced adversities on the brain of exposed Drosophila along with behavioral deficit which would likely to have relevance in humans and recommends Drosophila as a model for neurotoxicity.

Two-stage culture procedure using thidiazuron for efficient micropropagation of Stevia rebaudiana, an anti-diabetic medicinal herb.

Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni, member of Asteraceae family, has bio-active compounds stevioside and rebaudioside which taste about 300 times sweeter than sucrose. It regulates blood sugar, prevents hypertension and tooth decay as well as used in treatment of skin disorders having high medicinal values, and hence there is a need for generating the plant on large scale. We have developed an efficient micropropagation protocol on half strength Murashige and Skoog (MS) media, using two-stage culture procedures. Varying concentrations of cytokinins, i.e., benzylaminopurine, kinetin and thidiazuron (TDZ) were supplemented in the nutrient media to observe their effects on shoot development. All the cytokinins promoted shoot formation, however, best response was observed in the TDZ (0.5 mg/l). The shoots from selected induction medium were sub-cultured on the multiplication media. The media containing 0.01 mg/l TDZ produced maximum number of shoot (11.00 ± 0.40) with longer shoots (7.17 ± 0.16) and highest number of leaves (61.00 ± 1.29). Rooting response was best observed in one-fourth strength on MS media supplemented with indole-3-butyric acid (1.0 mg/l) and activated charcoal (50 mg/l) with (11.00 ± 0.40) number of roots. The plantlets thus obtained were hardened and transferred to the pots with soil and sand mixture, where the survival rate was 80 % after 2 months. Quantitative analysis of stevioside content in leaves of in vivo mother plant and in vitro plantlets was carried out by high performance liquid chromatography. A remarkable increase in stevioside content was noticed in the in vitro-raised plants as compared to in vivo grown plants. The protocol reported here might be useful in genetic improvement and high stevioside production.