Colonization patterns of an mCherry-tagged Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. brasiliense strain in potato plants.

Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. brasiliense is a newly identified member of the potato soft rot enterobacteriaceae. The pathogenesis of this pathogen is still poorly understood. In this study, an mCherry-P. carotovorum subsp. brasiliense-tagged strain was generated to study P. carotovorum subsp. brasiliense-potato plant interactions. Prior to use, the tagged strain was evaluated for in vitro growth, plasmid stability, and virulence on potato tubers and shown to be similar to the wild type. Four potato cultivars were evaluated for stem-based resistance against P. carotovorum subsp. brasiliense. Confocal laser-scanning microscopy and in vitro viable cell counts showed that P. carotovorum subsp. brasiliense is able to penetrate roots of a susceptible potato cultivar as early as 12 h postinoculation and migrate upward into aerial stem parts. Due to the phenotypic differences observed between tolerant and susceptible cultivars, a comparison of P. carotovorum subsp. brasiliense colonization patterns in these cultivars was undertaken. In the susceptible cultivar, P. carotovorum subsp. brasiliense cells colonized the xylem tissue, forming "biofilm-like" aggregates that led to occlusion of some of the vessels. In contrast, in the tolerant cultivar, P. carotovorum subsp. brasiliense appeared as free-swimming planktonic cells with no specific tissue localization. This suggests that there are resistance mechanisms in the tolerant cultivar that limit aggregation of P. carotovorum subsp. brasiliense in planta and, hence, the lack of symptom development in this cultivar.

Development of a novel rDNA based plasmid for enhanced cell surface display on Yarrowia lipolytica.

In this study, a novel rDNA based plasmid was developed for display of heterologous proteins on the cell surface of Yarrowia lipolytica using the C-terminal end of the glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchored Y. lipolytica cell wall protein 1 (YlCWP1). mCherry was used as a model protein to assess the efficiency of the constructed plasmid. Y. lipolytica transformants harbouring the expression cassettes showed a purple colour phenotype on selective YNB-casamino plates as compared to control cells indicating that mCherry was displayed on the cells. Expression of mCherry on cells of Y. lipolytica was confirmed by both fluorescent microscopy and flow cytometry. Furthermore, SDS-PAGE analysis and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI)-time-of (TOF)-mass spectrometry (MS) peptide mass fingerprinting (PMF) confirmed that the protein cleaved from the yeast cells using enterokinase was mCherry. Efficient cleavage of mCherry reported in this work offers an alternative purification method for displayed heterologous proteins on Y. lipolytica cells using the plasmid constructed in this study. The developed displaying system offers great potential for industrial production and purification of heterologous proteins at low cost.

Activation of the thiazide-sensitive Na+-Cl- cotransporter by the WNK-regulated kinases SPAK and OSR1.

Mutations increasing WNK1 kinase expression in humans cause the pseudohypoaldosteronism type II hypertension syndrome. This condition is treated effectively by thiazide diuretics, which exert their effects by inhibiting the Na+-Cl(-) cotransporter (NCC), suggesting a link between WNK1 and NCC. Here, we demonstrate that the SPAK and OSR1 kinases that are activated by WNK1 phosphorylate human NCC at three conserved residues (Thr46, Thr55 and Thr60). Activation of the WNK1-SPAK/OSR1 signalling pathway by treatment of HEK293 or mpkDCT kidney distal-convoluted-tubule-derived cells with hypotonic low-chloride conditions induced phosphorylation of NCC at residues phosphorylated by SPAK/OSR1. Efficient phosphorylation of NCC was dependent upon a docking interaction between an RFXI motif in NCC and SPAK/OSR1. Mutation of Thr60 to Ala in NCC markedly inhibited phosphorylation of Thr46 and Thr55 as well as NCC activation induced by hypotonic low-chloride treatment of HEK293 cells. Our results establish that the WNK1-SPAK/OSR1 signalling pathway plays a key role in controlling the phosphorylation and activity of NCC. They also suggest a mechanism by which increased WNK1 overexpression could lead to hypertension and that inhibitors of SPAK/OSR1 might be of use in reducing blood pressure by suppressing phosphorylation and hence activity of NCC.

Phosphorylation of the ARE-binding protein DAZAP1 by ERK2 induces its dissociation from DAZ.

A protein in RAW 264.7 macrophages, which became phosphorylated in response to LPS (lipopolysaccharide), was identified as the RNA-binding protein called DAZAP1 [DAZ (deleted in azoospermia)-associated protein 1]. The phosphorylation of this protein was prevented by specific inhibition of MKK1 [MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) kinase 1], indicating that it was phosphorylated via the classical MAPK cascade. Further experiments showed that DAZAP1 was phosphorylated stoichiometrically in vitro by ERK2 (extracellular-signal-regulated protein kinase 2) at two Thr-Pro sequences (Thr269 and Thr315), and that both sites became phosphorylated in HEK-293 (human embryonic kidney 293) cells in response to PMA or EGF (epidermal growth factor), or RAW 264.7 macrophages in response to LPS. Phosphorylation induced by each stimulus was prevented by two structurally distinct inhibitors of MKK1 (PD184352 and U0126), demonstrating that DAZAP1 is a physiological substrate for ERK1/ERK2. The mutation of Thr269 and Thr315 to aspartate or the phosphorylation of these residues caused DAZAP1 to dissociate from its binding partner DAZ. DAZ interacts with PABP [poly(A)-binding protein] and thereby stimulates the translation of mRNAs containing short poly(A) tails [Collier, Gorgoni, Loveridge, Cooke and Gray (2005) EMBO J. 24, 2656-2666]. In the present study we have shown that DAZ cannot bind simultaneously to DAZAP1 and PABP, and suggest that the phosphorylation-induced dissociation of DAZ and DAZAP1 may allow the former to stimulate translation by interacting with PABP.

Rhodotorula cycloclastica sp. nov., Rhodotorula retinophila sp. nov., and Rhodotorula terpenoidalis sp. nov., three limonene-utilizing yeasts isolated from soil.

During a search for yeasts that hydroxylate monoterpenes, four yeast strains were isolated from soil and plant residue in monoterpene-rich environments using enrichment techniques with cyclohexanedioic acid or cyclohexanedimethanol as sole carbon source. These strains were able to utilize (+)-limonene supplied as a vapor as only carbon source. The yeasts have a CoQ-10 system. Morphology and physiological properties of the strains did not fit any known yeast species. Recent analysis of the 26S D1/D2 and ITS-5.8S rDNA sequences of basidiomycetous yeasts showed that these strains represented three hitherto unknown species of Rhodotorula and fell in a cluster consisting of Rhodotorula philyla and the mycoparasitic fungus Colacogloea peniophorae. Descriptions of three new species Rhodotorula cycloclastica (type strain TVN 309=UOFS Y 2046=CBS 8448), Rhodotorula retinophila (type strain TVN 295=UOFS Y 2043=CBS 8446), Rhodotorula terpenoidalis (type strain TVN 310=UOFS Y 2042=CBS 8445) are proposed to accommodate these isolates.

Transfection of Diaporthe perjuncta with Diaporthe RNA virus.

Diaporthe perjuncta is a pathogen of grapevines worldwide. A positive-strand RNA virus, Diaporthe RNA virus (DaRV), occurs in hypovirulent isolates of this fungus. A virus-free isolate from a South African grapevine was transfected with in vitro-transcribed positive strands of DaRV. Based on reverse transcription-PCR and partial sequence analysis, the transfected virus was identified as DaRV. The in vitro-transcribed RNA transcripts used to transfect fungal spheroplasts contained parts of the vector at their distal ends. These vector sequences were separated from the DaRV genome during replication in the new host. The transfected isolate had morphological features that differed from those of the isogenic virus-free strain, including production of a yellow pigment, a decreased growth rate, and lack of sporulation. An apple-based pathogenicity test did not reveal any differences in virulence between the virus-free and DaRV-transfected isolates. This study showed that virus-free fungal hosts can be successfully transfected with viruses other than the Cryphonectria parasitica hypovirus.