Fungal Histidine Phosphotransferase Plays a Crucial Role in Photomorphogenesis and Pathogenesis in .

Two-component signal transduction (TCST) pathways play crucial roles in many cellular functions such as stress responses, biofilm formation, and sporulation. The histidine phosphotransferase (HPt), which is an intermediate phosphotransfer protein in a two-component system, transfers a phosphate group to a phosphorylatable aspartate residue in the target protein(s), and up-regulates stress-activated MAP kinase cascades. Most fungal genomes carry a single copy of the gene coding for HPt, which are potential antifungal targets.

Apoptosis-inducing factor (Aif1) mediates anacardic acid-induced apoptosis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Anacardic acid is a medicinal phytochemical that inhibits proliferation of fungal as well as several types of cancer cells. It induces apoptotic cell death in various cell types, but very little is known about the mechanism involved in the process. Here, we used budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model to study the involvement of some key elements of apoptosis in the anacardic acid-induced cell death.

Magnesium Uptake by CorA Transporters Is Essential for Growth, Development and Infection in the Rice Blast Fungus Magnaporthe oryzae.

Magnaporthe oryzae, the causative organism of rice blast, infects cereal crops and grasses at various stages of plant development. A comprehensive understanding of its metabolism and the implications on pathogenesis is necessary for countering this devastating crop disease. We present the role of the CorA magnesium transporters, MoAlr2 and MoMnr2, in development and pathogenicity of M.

Proteogenomics of Candida tropicalis--An Opportunistic Pathogen with Importance for Global Health.

The frequency of Candida infections is currently rising, and thus adversely impacting global health. The situation is exacerbated by azole resistance developed by fungal pathogens. Candida tropicalis is an opportunistic pathogen that causes candidiasis, for example, in immune-compromised individuals, cancer patients, and those who undergo organ transplantation.

Skp1, a component of E3 ubiquitin ligase, is necessary for growth, sporulation, development and pathogenicity in rice blast fungus (Magnaporthe oryzae).

Ubiqitination is an important process in eukaryotic cells involving E3 ubiquitin ligase, which co-ordinates with cell cycle proteins and controls various cell functions. Skp1 (S-phase kinase-associated protein 1) is a core component of the SCF (Skp1-Cullin 1-F-box) E3 ubiquitin ligase complex necessary for protein degradation by the 26S proteasomal pathway. The rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae has a single MoSKP1(MGG_04978) required for viability.

Genome analysis of rice-blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae field isolates from southern India.

The Indian subcontinent is the center of origin and diversity for rice (Oryza sativa L.). The O.

Anacardic acid induces apoptosis-like cell death in the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae.

Anacardic acid (6-pentadecylsalicylic acid), extracted from cashew nut shell liquid, is a natural phenolic lipid well known for its strong antibacterial, antioxidant, and anticancer activities. Its effect has been well studied in bacterial and mammalian systems but remains largely unexplored in fungi. The present study identifies antifungal, cytotoxic, and antioxidant activities of anacardic acid in the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae.

CastorDB: a comprehensive knowledge base for Ricinus communis.

Background: Ricinus communis is an industrially important non-edible oil seed crop, native to tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Although, R. communis genome was assembled in 4X draft by JCVI, and is predicted to contain 31,221 proteins, the function of most of the genes remains to be elucidated.

Heterologous expression and characterization of recombinant OsCDR1, a rice aspartic proteinase involved in disease resistance.

The Oryza sativa constitutive disease resistance 1 (OsCDR1) gene product is an aspartic proteinase that has been implicated in disease resistance signaling. This apoplastic enzyme is a member of the group of 'atypical' plant aspartic proteinases. Recombinant OsCDR1 expressed in Escherichia coli exhibited protease activity against succinylated-casein substrate.

Overexpression of rice (Oryza sativa L.) OsCDR1 leads to constitutive activation of defense responses in rice and Arabidopsis.

Plant aspartic proteases (AP) play key roles in the regulation of biological processes, such as the recognition of pathogens and pests and the induction of effective defense responses. A large number of AP (>400) have been identified in silico in the rice genome. None have previously been isolated and functionally characterized for their involvement in disease resistance.

Expression of a plant defensin in rice confers resistance to fungal phytopathogens.

Transgenic rice (Oryza sativa L. cv. Pusa basmati 1), overexpressing the Rs-AFP2 defensin gene from the Raphanus sativus was generated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation.

Expression of Dm-AMP1 in rice confers resistance to Magnaporthe oryzae and Rhizoctonia solani.

Magnaporthe oryzae and Rhizoctonia solani, are among the most important pathogens of rice, severely limiting its productivity. Dm-AMP1, an antifungal plant defensin from Dahlia merckii, was expressed in rice (Oryza sativa L. sp.

Bacterial population structure of the jute-retting environment.

Jute is one of the most versatile bast fibers obtained through the process of retting, which is a result of decomposition of stalks by the indigenous microflora. However, bacterial communities associated with the retting of jute are not well characterized. To investigate the presence of microorganisms during the process of jute retting, full-cycle rRNA approach was followed, and two 16S rRNA gene libraries, from jute-retting locations of Krishnanagar and Barrackpore, were constructed.

Functional analysis of a novel ABC transporter ABC4 from Magnaporthe grisea.

The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) superfamily of membrane transporters has been implicated to play a role in pathogenesis in various phytopathogenic fungi. In an insertional mutagenesis screen for pathogenicity mutants of Magnaporthe grisea obtained via Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation (ATMT), a novel gene belonging to the ABC transporter family was identified. The gene ABC4 was predicted to be 5045 bp in length coding for a protein of 1654 amino acids.

A novel gene MGA1 is required for appressorium formation in Magnaporthe grisea.

Insertional mutagenesis is an effective way to study the infection mechanism of fungal pathogens. In an attempt to identify the genes involved in appressorium formation from Magnaporthe grisea, we carried out Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation (ATMT) of the fungus. Analysis of the region flanking the T-DNA integration site in one of the appressorium mutants showed insertion in a gene coding a 78 amino acid protein (MGA1), showing no significant homology to any of the known proteins.

Expression of the lipid transfer protein Ace-AMP1 in transgenic wheat enhances antifungal activity and defense responses.

To enhance fungal disease resistance, wheat plants (cv. Bobwhite) were engineered to constitutively express the potent antimicrobial protein Ace-AMP1 from Allium cepa, driven by a maize ubiquitin promoter along with its first intron. The bar gene was used for selection of putative transformants on medium containing phosphinothricin (PPT).

Expression of Vitreoscilla hemoglobin enhances growth and levels of alpha-amylase in Schwanniomyces occidentalis.

A metabolic engineering approach was exploited to improve growth and protein secretion in the non-conventional yeast, Schwanniomyces occidentalis. Vitreoscilla hemoglobin (VHb) gene was expressed in S. occidentalis under the control of the native alpha-amylase (AMY1) promoter.

Bioprocess development for the production of an antifungal molecule by Bacillus licheniformis BC98.

The optimization of process parameters for the production of an antifungal molecule produced by Bacillus licheniformis BC98 was carried out using novel statistical tools. The parameters studied were pH, temperature and agitation rate. Fed batch cultivations were carried out since the maximum production of the molecule was observed in the late log phase.

A simple protocol for isolation of fungal DNA.

Genomic DNA was isolated from as little as 2 mg dry biomass of Magnaporthe grisea by microwave treatment within 30 s. The quantity of DNA was good enough for PCR analysis and Dot blot hybridization. This technique can be used for various studies, such as DNA fingerprinting to study the population structure of the phytopathogen in different regions, and for a quick screening of M.

Induction of H2O2 in transgenic rice leads to cell death and enhanced resistance to both bacterial and fungal pathogens.

Oxidative burst, mediated by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), has been recognized as a key component of plant defense response during an incompatible interaction. To determine if elevated levels of H2O2 lead to cell death, activation of defense genes and enhanced resistance to diverse pathogens, transgenic rice plants expressing a fungal glucose oxidase gene (GOX) were generated using both constitutive and inducible expression systems. Constitutive or wound/pathogen-induced expression of GOX also allowed us to determine the effectiveness of these systems in conferring long lasting resistance to various pathogens.

Expression of vitreoscilla hemoglobin improves growth and levels of extracellular enzyme in Yarrowia lipolytica.

Enhancement in oxygen uptake by high-cell-density cultivations has been achieved previously by expression of the bacterial hemoglobin gene from Vitreoscilla. The Vitreoscilla hemoglobin (VHb) gene was expressed in the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica to study the effect of expression in this commercially important yeast. The expression of VHb in this yeast was found to enhance growth, contrary to reported observations in wild-type Saccharomyces cerevisiae in which there was no significant growth enhancement.