The impact of dose, irradiance and growth conditions on Aspergillus niger (renamed A. brasiliensis) spores low-pressure (LP) UV inactivation.

The use of Aspergillus niger (A. niger) fungal spores as challenge organism for UV reactor validation studies is attractive due to their high UV-resistance and non-pathogenic nature. However A. niger spores UV dose-response was dependent upon sporulation conditions and did not follow the Bunsen-Roscoe Principle of time-dose reciprocity. Exposure to 8 h of natural sunlight for 10 consecutive days increased UV resistance when compared to spores grown solely in dark conditions. Application of 250 mJ cm(-2) at high irradiance (0.11 mW cm(-2)) resulted in a 2-log inactivation; however, at low irradiance (0.022 mW cm(-2)) a 1-log inactivation was achieved. In addition, surface electron microscopy (SEM) images revealed morphological changes between the control and UV exposed spores in contrast to other well accepted UV calibrated test organisms, which show no morphological difference with UV exposure.

Membrane binding of SRP pathway components in the halophilic archaea Haloferax volcanii.

Across evolution, the signal recognition particle pathway targets extra-cytoplasmic proteins to membranous translocation sites. Whereas the pathway has been extensively studied in Eukarya and Bacteria, little is known of this system in Archaea. In the following, membrane association of FtsY, the prokaryal signal recognition particle receptor, and SRP54, a central component of the signal recognition particle, was addressed in the halophilic archaea Haloferax volcanii. Purified H. volcanii FtsY, the FtsY C-terminal GTP-binding domain (NG domain) or SRP54, were combined separately or in different combinations with H. volcanii inverted membrane vesicles and examined by gradient floatation to differentiate between soluble and membrane-bound protein. Such studies revealed that both FtsY and the FtsY NG domain bound to H. volcanii vesicles in a manner unaffected by proteolytic pretreatment of the membranes, implying that in Archaea, FtsY association is mediated through the membrane lipids. Indeed, membrane association of FtsY was also detected in intact H. volcanii cells. The contribution of the NG domain to FtsY binding in halophilic archaea may be considerable, given the low number of basic charges found at the start of the N-terminal acidic domain of haloarchaeal FtsY proteins (the region of the protein thought to mediate FtsY-membrane association in Bacteria). Moreover, FtsY, but not the NG domain, was shown to mediate membrane association of H. volcanii SRP54, a protein that did not otherwise interact with the membrane.