Stereoselective reduction of ketones by Daucus carota hairy root cultures.

Reduction of acetophenone by Daucus carota hairy root cultures afforded (S)-phenylethanol in high yield (96%) and excellent enantiomeric excess (ee>or=98%). Aromatic ketones, keto esters, and a simple aliphatic ketone were reduced with good stereoselectivity (ee=62-98%) and moderate to high chemical yields (25-90%).

Differential morphogenesis of the extraradical mycelium of an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus grown monoxenically on spatially heterogeneous culture media.

A new in vitro experimental system was developed to study the morphogenesis of discrete regions of a single extraradical mycelium of the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus Glomus intraradices, growing simultaneously in six different agar-based media. The media were (i) unamended water agar (WA), (ii) WA+PO(4)(3-) (PO(4)(3-)), (iii) WA+NO(3)(-) (NO(3)(-)), (iv) WA+NH(4)(+) (NH(4)(+)), (v) WA+NH(4)(+)+MES (NH(4)(+)+MES) and (vi) minimal medium (M, complete nutrients). Each medium was amended with the pH indicator bromocresol purple.

Breaking dormancy is spores of the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus Glomus intraradices: a critical cold-storage period.

To elucidate the effect of cold storage on spore dormancy in the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus Glomus intraradices, spores were cold stratified at 4 degrees C, for either 0, 3, 7, 14, 90 or 120 days, prior to germination tests at 25 degrees C. The results showed that cold stratification longer than 14 days significantly increased spore germination. Moreover, the longer cold storage periods clearly reduced spore mortality from 90% to 50% and considerably altered the hyphal growth pattern.