Genetic diversity of submergence stress response in cytoplasms of the Triticum-Aegilops complex.

Genetic diversity in cytoplasmic and nuclear genomes and their interaction affecting adaptive traits is an attractive research subject in plants. We addressed submergence stress response of wheat that has become increasingly important but remained largely uninvestigated. Our primary aim was to disclose cytoplasmic diversity using nucleus-cytoplasm (NC) hybrids possessing a series of heterologous cytoplasms in a common nuclear background.

Mapping QTLs for cold tolerance at germination and the early seedling stage in rice ( L.).

Cold tolerance is an important breeding target in rice production. We studied quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling cold tolerance at germination (CTG) and early seedling (CTS) stages, using recombinant inbred lines derived from a × cross. CTG was evaluated based on the percentage rate of germination at 15 °C for 12 days after pre-incubation of imbibed seeds at 20 °C for 2 days.

Preparation, crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction studies of the glycosylated form of human interleukin-23.

Interleukin-23 (IL-23), a member of the IL-12 family, is a heterodimeric cytokine composed of p19 and p40 subunits. IL-23 plays crucial roles in the activation, proliferation and survival of IL-17-producing helper T cells which induce various autoimmune diseases. Human p19 and p40 subunits were cloned and coexpressed in N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase I-negative 293S cells, which produce high-mannose-type glycosylated proteins in order to diminish the heterogeneity of modified N-linked glycans.

Profiling of mitochondrial transcriptome in germinating wheat embryos and seedlings subjected to cold, salinity and osmotic stresses.

Mitochondrial functions are potential targets of abiotic stresses that are major environmental factors limiting plant development and productivity. To evaluate mitochondrial responses to abiotic stresses we studied mitochondrial transcriptome profiles at the early stages of wheat development after imbibition under normal and induced stress conditions. Three stresses given were low temperature (4 degrees C), high salinity (0.

[Multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) and maintenance of wakefulness test (MWT)].

To define and evaluate sleepiness thoroughly has not yet completely established because of its multidimensional aspects of character. Multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) and maintenance of wakefulness test (MWT) have been the important tools to assess sleepiness in the research and clinical settings, although they have several limitations and pitfalls. The coverage by the National Health Insurance of MSLT, since April 1, 2008, in Japan, so far not MWT, would extend the diagnosis and care of sleep disorders concerning excessive daytime sleepiness including narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomnia.

Genotyping of the Q locus in wheat by a simple PCR-RFLP method.

The Q locus located on the long arm of chromosome 5A is a key factor in evolution and widespread cultivation of domesticated wheat. The Q locus pleiotropically affects many agronomically important traits including threshability, glume shape and tenacity, rachis fragility and others. Genotyping of the Q locus based on the complex traits is ambiguous due to their multi-genetic control through interactions with the Q locus.

Expression profiles of respiratory components associated with mitochondrial biogenesis during germination and seedling growth under normal and restricted conditions in wheat.

Germination of plant embryo is a dynamic phase-changing process that is driven by a rapid increase in mitochondrial respiration. We studied the development of respiratory electron transport pathways and the profiles of their transcript and protein components during this critical period using wheat embryos. Oxygen consumption through both the cytochrome and alternative pathways increased rapidly upon imbibition.

Mitochondrial biogenesis as revealed by mitochondrial transcript profiles during germination and early seedling growth in wheat.

Germination of imbibed embryos is the initial stage of plant development that is accompanied by the burst of mitochondrial respiration. To understand the process of mitochondrial biogenesis during this critical stage in wheat development, we monitored changes in mitochondrial transcript profiles during the first 3 days by adopting a newly devised macroarray system. The whole experiment was conducted in the dark to avoid influences of photosynthesis.

Increased freezing tolerance in an ABA-hypersensitive mutant of common wheat.

To study role of abscisic acid (ABA) in cold acclimation and cold/freezing tolerance in wheat, we analyzed an ABA-hypersensitive mutant of Triticum aestivum, named ABA27. ABA-hypersensitivity in ABA27 was confirmed by bioassays involving germination and seedling growth and expression analysis of ABA-responsive genes in comparison with the parental cultivar 'Chihoku-komugi' (Chihoku). ABA27 showed significantly increased freezing tolerance in seedlings without cold acclimation.

Overexpression of wheat alternative oxidase gene Waox1a alters respiration capacity and response to reactive oxygen species under low temperature in transgenic Arabidopsis.

Under low temperature conditions, the cytochrome pathway of respiration is repressed and reactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced in plants. Mitochondrial alternative oxidase (AOX) is the terminal oxidase responsible for the cyanide-insensitive and salicylhydroxamic acid-sensitive respiration. To study functions of wheat AOX genes under low temperature, we produced transgenic Arabidopsis by introducing Waox1a expressed under control of the cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoter in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Ramsay-Hunt syndrome with vesicular stomatitis in a 4-year-old infant.

Ramsay-Hunt syndrome (RHS) usually affects adults, but rare cases of preschool children with RHS have been reported. We report a case of RHS in a healthy 4-year-old girl. At the age of 4 years and 5 months, she complained of pain in her mouth and herpes zoster vesicles were noted on the left soft palate and tongue without left pinna, and complete left facial paralysis subsequently developed.

Differential regulation of transcript accumulation and alternative splicing of a DREB2 homolog under abiotic stress conditions in common wheat.

A number of cold responsive (Cor)/late embryogenesis abundant (Lea) genes are induced by both low temperature (LT) and dehydration. To understand the molecular basis of cold acclimation and its relationship with drought stress response in wheat seedlings, we isolated a DREB2 homolog Wdreb2, which is the candidate gene for a transcription factor of the Cor/Lea genes. The Wdreb2 expression was activated by cold, drought, salt and exogenous ABA treatment.

Improvement of freezing tolerance in tobacco plants expressing a cold-responsive and chloroplast-targeting protein WCOR15 of wheat.

Cold acclimation, an adaptive process for developing freezing tolerance in over-wintering plants, is associated with increased expression levels of a series of cold-responsive (Cor)/late embryogenesis abundant (Lea) genes. To investigate the function of Wcor15, a member of the wheat Cor/Lea gene family, for improvement of freezing tolerance, two types of transgenic tobacco lines expressing Wcor15-containing chimeric genes were produced and characterized. Immunoblot and gene expression analyses of a transgenic tobacco line expressing the Wcor15-GFP fusion gene under control of the CaMV35S promoter showed transport and abundant accumulation of the WCOR15 protein in the stromal compartment of the chloroplasts.

Heteroplasmy and paternally oriented shift of the organellar DNA composition in barley-wheat hybrids during backcrosses with wheat parents.

Mitochondrial (mt) and chloroplast (ct) genome inheritance was studied in barley-wheat hybrids, as were their progenies obtained from backcrosses with different common wheat cultivars, by monitoring the composition of 4 mtDNA (coxI, a 5'-flanking region of cob, nad3-orf156, and 5'-upstream region of 18S/5S) and 2 ctDNA (simple-sequence repeat locus downstream of trnS and a 3'-flanking region of rbcL) loci. In male sterile F1 and BC1 plants, maternal barley mtDNA fragments were mainly detected and very low levels of paternal wheat fragments were occasionally detected by PCR in coxI, a 5'-flanking region of cob and nad3-orf156, whereas a 5'-upstream region of 18S/5S showed clear heteroplasmy, containing both maternal and paternal copies, with maternal copies prevailing. Plants showing such heteroplasmic mtDNA composition remained either semisterile or became completely sterile in the later backcross generations.

Novel cytoprotective mechanism of anti-parkinsonian drug deprenyl: PI3K and Nrf2-derived induction of antioxidative proteins.

Neuroprotection has received considerable attention as a strategy for the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD). Deprenyl (Selegiline) is a promising candidate for neuroprotection; however, its cytoprotective mechanism has not been fully clarified. Here, we report a novel cytoprotective mechanism of deprenyl involving PI3K and Nrf2-mediated induction of oxidative stress-related proteins.

Structural dynamics of cereal mitochondrial genomes as revealed by complete nucleotide sequencing of the wheat mitochondrial genome.

The application of a new gene-based strategy for sequencing the wheat mitochondrial genome shows its structure to be a 452 528 bp circular molecule, and provides nucleotide-level evidence of intra-molecular recombination. Single, reciprocal and double recombinant products, and the nucleotide sequences of the repeats that mediate their formation have been identified. The genome has 55 genes with exons, including 35 protein-coding, 3 rRNA and 17 tRNA genes.

Differential and coordinated expression of Cbf and Cor/Lea genes during long-term cold acclimation in two wheat cultivars showing distinct levels of freezing tolerance.

The cold acclimation process in plants is primarily regulated through the signal transduction pathways that lead to the induction and enhancement of expression of different sets of Cor/Lea genes. Winter wheat 'Mironovskaya 808' (M808) exhibited a much higher level of freezing tolerance than spring wheat 'Chinese Spring' (CS), and the difference became clearer after the long-term cold acclimation. To understand the molecular basis of this cultivar difference, we isolated two CBF/DREB1 homologs, Wcbf2, which are the candidate gene for a transcription factor of the Cor/Lea genes.

Intragenic diversity and functional conservation of the three homoeologous loci of the KN1-type homeobox gene Wknox1 in common wheat.

Common wheat represents a typical allohexaploid species and provides a good experimental system for studying genomic alterations associated with allopolyploidization. We studied three homoeologous loci of wheat Wknox1 gene, which is highly homologous to the knotted1 (kn1)-like homeobox (KNOX) genes functioning at shoot apical meristems (SAM). Wknox1 transcripts were detected in SAM, and its overexpression caused abnormal leaf morphology with occasional ectopic leaves in transgenic tobacco plants.

Regulation by Vrn-1/Fr-1 chromosomal intervals of CBF-mediated Cor/Lea gene expression and freezing tolerance in common wheat.

Vrn-1/Fr-1 chromosomal regions of common wheat possess major QTLs for both winter hardiness (Fr) and vernalization requirement (Vrn). The Vrn-1/Fr-1 intervals are assigned to long arms of the homologous group 5 chromosomes. To investigate the role of the Vrn-1/Fr-1 intervals on the low-temperature (LT) inducibility of wheat Cor/Lea genes and its putative transcription factor gene Wcbf2, LT response of these genes was monitored using near-isogenic lines (NILs) for the Vrn-1 loci.

Chloroplast and nuclear DNA variation in common wheat: insight into the origin and evolution of common wheat.

To understand the origin and evolution of common wheat, chloroplast (ct) and nuclear DNA variations were studied in five hexaploid and three tetraploid wheat subspecies. Based on chloroplast simple sequence repeats at 24 loci, they were classified into two major plastogroups. Plastogroup I consisted of 11 plastotypes, including the major plastotype H10 that occurred at the highest frequency (59%) in common wheat.

Preferential expression of a HLP homolog encoding a mitochondrial L14 ribosomal protein in stamens of common wheat.

Interaction between nucleus and cytoplasm has essential roles in plant development, including that of floral organs. We isolated a wheat homolog Whlp of Arabidopsis HUELLENLOS PARALOG (HLP) gene encoding a mitochondrial (mt) ribosomal protein L14. Transient expression analysis using the green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion protein showed that 50 amino residues located on the N-terminal of the wheat HLP homolog (WHLP) protein acted as a mt-targeting signal (MTS).

Marker-assisted pyramiding of brown planthopper (Nilaparvata lugens Stål) resistance genes Bph1 and Bph2 on rice chromosome 12.

Brown planthopper (BPH) (Nilaparvata lugens Stål) is a significant insect pest of rice (Oryza sativa L.). We constructed a gene-pyramided japonica line, in which two BPH resistance genes Bph1 and Bph2 on the long arm of chromosome 12 independently derived from two indica resistance lines were combined through the recombinant selection.

Comparative study of the expression profiles of the Cor/Lea gene family in two wheat cultivars with contrasting levels of freezing tolerance.

Expression profiles of a set of Cor/Lea genes were assessed during early stages of cold acclimation in seedlings of two wheat cultivars, which showed contrasting levels of freezing tolerance. These Cor/Lea family members consisted of three EST clones and 13 previously identified cDNA clones of wheat and rye. Northern blot analysis using RNA extracted from seedling leaves and roots showed that most of the genes exhibited a quite similar time-course of expression, although with different expression levels: They rapidly responded to low temperature and their transcript levels reached high plateaus within 3-5 days.