Comparative Physiological, Biochemical, and Leaf Proteome Responses of Contrasting Wheat Varieties to Drought Stress.

Drought stress severely affects crop productivity and threatens food security. As current trends of global warming are predicted to exacerbate droughts, developing drought-resilient crops becomes urgent. Here, we used the drought-tolerant (BW35695) and drought-sensitive (BW4074) wheat varieties to investigate the physiological, biochemical, and leaf proteome responses underpinning drought tolerance.

Regulation of Proline Accumulation and Protein Secretion in Sorghum under Combined Osmotic and Heat Stress.

Plants reprogramme their proteome to alter cellular metabolism for effective stress adaptation. Intracellular proteomic responses have been extensively studied, and the extracellular matrix stands as a key hub where peptide signals are generated/processed to trigger critical adaptive signal transduction cascades inaugurated at the cell surface. Therefore, it is important to study the plant extracellular proteome to understand its role in plant development and stress response.

Exogenous abscisic acid treatment regulates protein secretion in sorghum cell suspension cultures.

Drought stress adversely affects plant growth, often leading to total crop failure. Upon sensing soil water deficits, plants switch on biosynthesis of abscisic acid (ABA), a stress hormone for drought adaptation. Here, we used exogenous ABA application to dark-grown sorghum cell suspension cultures as an experimental system to understand how a drought-tolerant crop responds to ABA.

Heterologous production of the insecticidal pea seed albumin PA1 protein by Pichia pastoris and protein engineering to potentiate aphicidal activity via fusion to snowdrop lectin Galanthus nivalis agglutinin; GNA).

Background: New bioinsecticides with novel modes of action are urgently needed to minimise the environmental and safety hazards associated with the use of synthetic chemical pesticides and to combat growing levels of pesticide resistance. The pea seed albumin PA1b knottin peptide is the only known proteinaceous inhibitor of insect vacuolar adenosine triphosphatase (V-ATPase) rotary proton pumps. Oral toxicity towards insect pests and an absence of activity towards mammals makes Pa1b an attractive candidate for development as a bioinsecticide.

Independent Membrane Binding Properties of the Caspase Generated Fragments of the Beaded Filament Structural Protein 1 (BFSP1) Involves an Amphipathic Helix.

Background: BFSP1 (beaded filament structural protein 1) is a plasma membrane, Aquaporin 0 (AQP0/MIP)-associated intermediate filament protein expressed in the eye lens. BFSP1 is myristoylated, a post-translation modification that requires caspase cleavage at D433. Bioinformatic analyses suggested that the sequences 434-452 were α-helical and amphipathic.

Enhancing the oral and topical insecticidal efficacy of a commercialized spider venom peptide biopesticide via fusion to the carrier snowdrop lectin (Galanthus nivalis agglutinin).

Background: Spear®-T sold as a contact foliar spray for the control of glasshouse pests such as aphids, thrips, spider mites and whiteflies, contains the recombinant spider venom peptide GS-ω/κ-HxTx-Hv1h (named as GS-ω/κ-HxTx-Hv1a by Vestaron) as the active ingredient. Here we investigate whether fusion of the peptide to snowdrop lectin, (Galanthus nivalis agglutinin; GNA) enhances the efficacy of this venom peptide towards aphid pests.

Results: Recombinant GS-ω/κ-HxTx-Hv1h (HxTx-Hv1h) and an HxTx-Hv1h/GNA fusion protein were produced using the yeast Pichia pastoris.

Allophycocyanin A is a carbon dioxide receptor in the cyanobacterial phycobilisome.

Light harvesting is fundamental for production of ATP and reducing equivalents for CO fixation during photosynthesis. However, electronic energy transfer (EET) through a photosystem can harm the photosynthetic apparatus when not balanced with CO. Here, we show that CO binding to the light-harvesting complex modulates EET in photosynthetic cyanobacteria.

The importance of the epithelial fibre cell interface to lens regeneration in an in vivo rat model and in a human bag-in-the-lens (BiL) sample.

Human lens regeneration and the Bag-in-the-Lens (BIL) surgical treatment for cataract both depend upon lens capsule closure for their success. Our studies suggest that the first three days after surgery are critical to their long-term outcomes. Using a rat model of lens regeneration, we evidenced lens epithelial cell (LEC) proliferation increased some 50 fold in the first day before rapidly declining to rates observed in the germinative zone of the contra-lateral, un-operated lens.

Ubiquitin is a carbon dioxide-binding protein.

The identification of CO-binding proteins is crucial to understanding CO-regulated molecular processes. CO can form a reversible posttranslational modification through carbamylation of neutral N-terminal α-amino or lysine ε-amino groups. We have previously developed triethyloxonium (TEO) ion as a chemical proteomics tool for covalent trapping of carbamates, and here, we deploy TEO to identify ubiquitin as a mammalian CO-binding protein.

Isolation of Arabidopsis extracellular ATP binding proteins by affinity proteomics and identification of PHOSPHOLIPASE C-LIKE 1 as an extracellular protein essential for fumonisin B1 toxicity.

ATP is secreted to the extracellular matrix, where it activates plasma membrane receptors for controlling plant growth and stress-adaptive processes. DOES NOT RESPOND TO NUCLEOTIDES 1 (DORN1), was the first plant ATP receptor to be identified but key downstream proteins remain sought after. Here, we identified 120 proteins secreted by Arabidopsis cell cultures and screened them for putative stress-responsive proteins using ATP-affinity purification.

Heat Stress Triggers Differential Protein Accumulation in the Extracellular Matrix of Sorghum Cell Suspension Cultures.

Plants reprogram gene expression as an adaptive response to survive high temperatures. While the identity and functions of intracellular heat stress-responsive proteins have been extensively studied, the heat response of proteins secreted to the extracellular matrix is unknown. Here, we used , a species adapted for growth in hot climates, to investigate the extracellular heat-induced responses.

Secure Record Linkage of Large Health Data Sets: Evaluation of a Hybrid Cloud Model.

Background: The linking of administrative data across agencies provides the capability to investigate many health and social issues with the potential to deliver significant public benefit. Despite its advantages, the use of cloud computing resources for linkage purposes is scarce, with the storage of identifiable information on cloud infrastructure assessed as high risk by data custodians.

Objective: This study aims to present a model for record linkage that utilizes cloud computing capabilities while assuring custodians that identifiable data sets remain secure and local.

Comparative physiological and root proteome analyses of two sorghum varieties responding to water limitation.

When exposed to drought stress many plants reprogram their gene expression to activate adaptive biochemical and physiological responses for survival. However, most of the well-studied adaptive responses are common between drought-sensitive and drought-tolerant species, making it difficult to identify the key mechanisms underpinning successful drought tolerance in crops. We developed a sorghum experimental system that compares between drought-sensitive (ICSB338) and enhanced drought-tolerant (SA1441) varieties.

Demonstrating the potential of a novel spider venom-based biopesticide for target-specific control of the small hive beetle, a serious pest of the European honeybee.

The parasitic small hive beetle () feeds on pollen, honey and brood of the European honey bee (); establishment in North America and Australia has resulted in severe economic damage to the apiculture industry. We report potential for the "in-hive" use of a novel biopesticide that is toxic to this invasive beetle pest but harmless to honeybees. Constructs encoding the spider venom neurotoxin ω-hexatoxin-Hv1a (Hv1a) linked to the - or -terminus of snowdrop lectin (GNA) were used to produce recombinant Hv1a/GNA and GNA/Hv1a fusion proteins.

Elucidation of the AGR2 Interactome in Esophageal Adenocarcinoma Cells Identifies a Redox-Sensitive Chaperone Hub for the Quality Control of MUC-5AC.

AGR2 is a tissue-restricted member of the protein disulfide isomerase family that has attracted interest because it is highly expressed in a number of cancers, including gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma. The behavior of AGR2 was analyzed under oxidizing conditions, and an alkylation trapping and immunoprecipitation approach were developed to identify novel AGR2 interacting proteins. The data show that AGR2 is induced in esophageal adenocarcinoma, where it participates in redox-responsive, disulfide-dependent complexes.

Reductive Stress Selectively Disrupts Collagen Homeostasis and Modifies Growth Factor-independent Signaling Through the MAPK/Akt Pathway in Human Dermal Fibroblasts.

Redox stress is a well-known contributor to aging and diseases in skin. Reductants such as dithiothreitol (DTT) can trigger a stress response by disrupting disulfide bonds. However, the quantitative response of the cellular proteome to reductants has not been explored, particularly in cells such as fibroblasts that produce extracellular matrix proteins.

Author Correction: The identification of carbon dioxide mediated protein post-translational modifications.

The original version of this Article omitted the following from the Acknowledgements: 'This work was support by EPSRC grant EP/K504336/1 and Leverhulme Trust grant RPG-2016-017.' This has been corrected in both the PDF and HTML versions of the Article.

The identification of carbon dioxide mediated protein post-translational modifications.

Carbon dioxide is vital to the chemistry of life processes including metabolism, cellular homoeostasis, and pathogenesis. CO is generally unreactive but can combine with neutral amines to form carbamates on proteins under physiological conditions. The most widely known examples of this are CO regulation of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase and haemoglobin.

Identifying differentially expressed proteins in sorghum cell cultures exposed to osmotic stress.

Drought stress triggers remarkable physiological changes and growth impediments, which significantly diminish plant biomass and crop yield. However, certain plant species show notable resilience, maintaining nearly normal yields under severe water deficits. For example, sorghum is a naturally drought-tolerant crop, which is ideal for studying plant adaptive responses to drought.

Estimating parameters for probabilistic linkage of privacy-preserved datasets.

Background: Probabilistic record linkage is a process used to bring together person-based records from within the same dataset (de-duplication) or from disparate datasets using pairwise comparisons and matching probabilities. The linkage strategy and associated match probabilities are often estimated through investigations into data quality and manual inspection. However, as privacy-preserved datasets comprise encrypted data, such methods are not possible.

Evaluating privacy-preserving record linkage using cryptographic long-term keys and multibit trees on large medical datasets.

Background: Integrating medical data using databases from different sources by record linkage is a powerful technique increasingly used in medical research. Under many jurisdictions, unique personal identifiers needed for linking the records are unavailable. Since sensitive attributes, such as names, have to be used instead, privacy regulations usually demand encrypting these identifiers.

Ensuring Privacy When Integrating Patient-Based Datasets: New Methods and Developments in Record Linkage.

In an era where the volume of structured and unstructured digital data has exploded, there has been an enormous growth in the creation of data about individuals that can be used for understanding and treating disease. Joining these records together at an individual level provides a complete picture of a patient's interaction with health services and allows better assessment of patient outcomes and effectiveness of treatment and services. Record linkage techniques provide an efficient and cost-effective method to bring individual records together as patient profiles.

Comparative proteomic analysis of horseweed (Conyza canadensis) biotypes identifies candidate proteins for glyphosate resistance.

Emergence of glyphosate-resistant horseweed (Conyza canadensis) biotypes is an example of how unrelenting use of a single mode of action herbicide in agricultural weed control drives genetic adaptation in targeted species. While in other weeds glyphosate resistance arose from target site mutation or target gene amplification, the resistance mechanism in horseweed uses neither of these, being instead linked to reduced herbicide uptake and/or translocation. The molecular components underpinning horseweed glyphosate-resistance remain unknown.

Limited privacy protection and poor sensitivity: Is it time to move on from the statistical linkage key-581?

Background: The statistical linkage key (SLK-581) is a common tool for record linkage in Australia, due to its ability to provide some privacy protection. However, newer privacy-preserving approaches may provide greater privacy protection, while allowing high-quality linkage.

Objective: To evaluate the standard SLK-581, encrypted SLK-581 and a newer privacy-preserving approach using Bloom filters, in terms of both privacy and linkage quality.

Accuracy and completeness of patient pathways--the benefits of national data linkage in Australia.

Background: The technical challenges associated with national data linkage, and the extent of cross-border population movements, are explored as part of a pioneering research project. The project involved linking state-based hospital admission records and death registrations across Australia for a national study of hospital related deaths.

Methods: The project linked over 44 million morbidity and mortality records from four Australian states between 1st July 1999 and 31st December 2009 using probabilistic methods.