CeO nanoparticle dose and exposure modulate soybean development and plant-mediated responses in root-associated bacterial communities.

Agricultural soils are increasingly undergoing inadvertent and purposeful exposures to engineered CeO nanoparticles (NPs), which can impact crops and root-associated microbial communities. However, interactions between NP concentration and exposure duration on plant-mediated responses of root-associated bacterial communities are not well understood. Soybeans seedlings were grown in soil with uncoated NPs added at concentrations of 0, 1 or 100 mg kg.

Using eRNA/eDNA metabarcoding to detect community-level impacts of nanoplastic exposure to benthic estuarine ecosystems.

Plastic particles are ubiquitous in marine systems and fragment into smaller pieces, such as nanoplastics (NPs). The effects of NPs on marine organisms are of growing concern but are not well understood. Marine sediments act as a sink for many contaminants, like microplastics, and are rich habitats for benthic micro- and meiofauna which are ecologically-important components of marine food webs; however, little is known about the sensitivities of specific organisms to NPs or the effects on community diversity and composition.

Environmental RNA as a Tool for Marine Community Biodiversity Assessments.

Microscopic organisms are often overlooked in traditional diversity assessments due to the difficulty of identifying them based on morphology. Metabarcoding is a method for rapidly identifying organisms where Environmental DNA (eDNA) is used as a template. However, legacy DNA is problematically detected from organisms no longer in the environment during sampling.

Focused Microbiome Shifts in Reconstructed Wetlands Correlated with Elevated Copper Concentrations Originating from Micronized Copper Azole-Treated Wood.

Micronized copper (Cu) azole (MCA) wood preservative formulations include Cu in nano form, and relatively little is known about longer term effects of Cu leached from MCA into wetland ecosystems. We tested the hypothesis that changes in soil microbiomes within reconstructed freshwater wetlands will be associated with exposure to elevated Cu concentrations originating from immersed MCA-treated wood stakes. Eight replicate communities were assembled with Willamette Valley (OR, USA) flood plain soil and clonally propagated wetland plants within mesocosms.

Douglas-Fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) Transcriptome Profile Changes Induced by Diesel Emissions Generated with CeO Nanoparticle Fuel Borne Catalyst.

It is important to understand molecular effects on plants exposed to compounds released from use of products containing engineered nanomaterials. Here, we present mRNA sequencing data on transcriptome impacts to Douglas-fir following 2 weeks of sublethal exposure to 30:1 diluted airborne emissions released from combustion of diesel fuel containing engineered CeO nanoparticle catalysts (DECe). Our hypothesis was that chamber exposure to DECe would induce distinct transcriptome changes in seedling needles compared with responses to conventional diesel exhaust (DE) or filtered DECe Gas Phase.

A comprehensive framework for evaluating the environmental health and safety implications of engineered nanomaterials.

Engineered nanomaterials (ENM) are a growing aspect of the global economy, and their safe and sustainable development, use, and eventual disposal requires the capability to forecast and avoid potential problems. This review provides a framework to evaluate the health and safety implications of ENM releases into the environment, including purposeful releases such as for antimicrobial sprays or nano-enabled pesticides, and inadvertent releases as a consequence of other intended applications. Considerations encompass product life cycles, environmental media, exposed populations, and possible adverse outcomes.

Molecular and physiological responses to titanium dioxide and cerium oxide nanoparticles in Arabidopsis.

Changes in tissue transcriptomes and productivity of Arabidopsis thaliana were investigated during exposure of plants to 2 widely used engineered metal oxide nanoparticles, titanium dioxide (nano-titania) and cerium dioxide (nano-ceria). Microarray analyses confirmed that exposure to either nanoparticle altered the transcriptomes of rosette leaves and roots, with comparatively larger numbers of differentially expressed genes found under nano-titania exposure. Nano-titania induced more differentially expressed genes in rosette leaves, whereas roots had more differentially expressed genes under nano-ceria exposure.

Separate introns gained within short and long soluble peridinin-chlorophyll a-protein genes during radiation of Symbiodinium (Dinophyceae) clade A and B lineages.

Here we document introns in two Symbiodinium clades that were most likely gained following divergence of this genus from other peridinin-containing dinoflagellate lineages. Soluble peridinin-chlorophyll a-proteins (sPCP) occur in short and long forms in different species. Duplication and fusion of short sPCP genes produced long sPCP genes.

Phenotypic and genomic responses to titanium dioxide and cerium oxide nanoparticles in Arabidopsis germinants.

The effects of exposure to nanoparticles of titanium dioxide (nano-titanium) and cerium oxide (nano-cerium) on gene expression and growth in Arabidopsis thaliana germinants were studied by using microarrays and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), and by evaluating germinant phenotypic plasticity. Exposure to 12 d of either nano-titania or nano-ceria altered the regulation of 204 and 142 genes, respectively. Genes induced by the nanoparticles mainly include ontology groups annotated as stimuli responsive, including both abiotic (oxidative stress, salt stress, water transport) and biotic (respiratory burst as a defense against pathogens) stimuli.

Video-rate molecular imaging in vivo with stimulated Raman scattering.

Optical imaging in vivo with molecular specificity is important in biomedicine because of its high spatial resolution and sensitivity compared with magnetic resonance imaging. Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy allows highly sensitive optical imaging based on vibrational spectroscopy without adding toxic or perturbative labels. However, SRS imaging in living animals and humans has not been feasible because light cannot be collected through thick tissues, and motion-blur arises from slow imaging based on backscattered light.

A composite transcriptional signature differentiates responses towards closely related herbicides in Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica napus.

In this study, genome-wide expression profiling based on Affymetrix ATH1 arrays was used to identify discriminating responses of Arabidopsis thaliana to five herbicides, which contain active ingredients targeting two different branches of amino acid biosynthesis. One herbicide contained glyphosate, which targets 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS), while the other four herbicides contain different acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibiting compounds. In contrast to the herbicide containing glyphosate, which affected only a few transcripts, many effects of the ALS inhibiting herbicides were revealed based on transcriptional changes related to ribosome biogenesis and translation, secondary metabolism, cell wall modification and growth.

Establishment of transgenic herbicide-resistant creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.) in nonagronomic habitats.

Concerns about genetically modified (GM) crops include transgene flow to compatible wild species and unintended ecological consequences of potential transgene introgression. However, there has been little empirical documentation of establishment and distribution of transgenic plants in wild populations. We present herein the first evidence for escape of transgenes into wild plant populations within the USA; glyphosate-resistant creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.

Evidence for landscape-level, pollen-mediated gene flow from genetically modified creeping bentgrass with CP4 EPSPS as a marker.

Sampling methods and results of a gene flow study are described that will be of interest to plant scientists, evolutionary biologists, ecologists, and stakeholders assessing the environmental safety of transgenic crops. This study documents gene flow on a landscape level from creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.), one of the first wind-pollinated, perennial, and highly outcrossing transgenic crops being developed for commercial use.

PCP gene family in Symbiodinium from Hippopus hippopus: low levels of concerted evolution, isoform diversity, and spectral tuning of chromophores.

Photosynthetic dinoflagellates have evolved unique water-soluble light harvesting complexes known as peridinin-chlorophyll a-binding proteins (PCPs). Most species of dinoflagellates express either 14 to 17 kDa or 32 to 35 kDa mature PCP apoproteins and do so in stable combinations of isoforms that differ in isoelectric point (pI). The source (posttranslational modification, protein degradation, or genetic) and functional significance of PCP isoform variation have remained unclear.