Understanding the defense mechanism of plants through the onion isoallicin-omics study.

Onion ( L.) is an important seasoning vegetable worldwide. It belongs to the Allium genus, which produces distinctive flavor compounds, allicin/isoallicin.

Immunoreactivity of MAPK Signaling in a Rat Model of Intrauterine Growth Retardation Induced by Uterine Artery Ligation.

Background/aim: Intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) causes very low birth weight and is related to the morbidity and mortality of the newborn. In our previous study, expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) was found reduced in the cerebral cortex and dentate gyrus of fetuses with IUGR. BDNF protected cortical neurons against hypoxic injury via activation of the extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK) pathway.

Differential Expression of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor in the Cortex and Hippocampus upon Cerebral Hypoperfusion.

Background/aim: Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) provides tolerance against ischemic brain injury, yet, the pattern of VEGF expression in the neurogenic zones following chronic cerebral hypoperfusion has not been studied. Here we evaluated the immunoreactivity of VEGF in a rat model of chronic cerebral hypoperfusion.

Materials And Methods: Chronic hypoperfusion was induced by bilateral common carotid artery ligation in rats.

Sugary Endosperm is Modulated by Starch Branching Enzyme IIa in Rice (Oryza sativa L.).

Background: Starch biosynthesis is one of the most important pathways that determine both grain quality and yield in rice (Oryza sativa L.). Sugary endosperm, sugary-1 (sug-1), is a mutant trait for starch biosynthesis.

Body image and depression in girls with idiopathic precocious puberty treated with gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogue.

Purpose: Precocious puberty (PP) is associated with psychological and behavioral problems. This study aimed to evaluate the perception of body image and depression in girls with PP receiving gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analogue therapy.

Methods: From March to August 2013, 82 girls with PP receiving GnRH analogue therapy were enrolled.

Antibacterial Activity of Cinnamaldehyde and Estragole Extracted from Plant Essential Oils against Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidiae Causing Bacterial Canker Disease in Kiwifruit.

Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidiae (Psa) causes bacterial canker disease in kiwifruit. Antibacterial activity of plant essential oils (PEOs) originating from 49 plant species were tested against Psa by a vapor diffusion and a liquid culture assays.

Harpins, multifunctional proteins secreted by gram-negative plant-pathogenic bacteria.

Harpins are glycine-rich and heat-stable proteins that are secreted through type III secretion system in gram-negative plant-pathogenic bacteria. Many studies show that these proteins are mostly targeted to the extracellular space of plant tissues, unlike bacterial effector proteins that act inside the plant cells. Over the two decades since the first harpin of pathogen origin, HrpN of Erwinia amylovora, was reported in 1992 as a cell-free elicitor of hypersensitive response (HR), diverse functional aspects of harpins have been determined.

Two leucines in the N-terminal MAPK-docking site of tomato SlMKK2 are critical for interaction with a downstream MAPK to elicit programmed cell death associated with plant immunity.

Tomato MAPK kinase SlMKK2 is a key protein regulating immunity-associated programmed cell death (PCD) in plants. We examined the role of the N-terminal MAPK-docking site (or D-site) of SlMKK2 in PCD elicitation. In vivo assays revealed that SlMKK2 interacted with the downstream MAPK SlMPK3 independent of PCD elicitation and two conserved leucines in the D-site were required for both interaction with SlMPK3 and PCD elicitation.

Teosinte Branched 1 modulates tillering in rice plants.

Tillering is an important trait of cereal crops that optimizes plant architecture for maximum yield. Teosinte Branched 1 (TB1) is a negative regulator of lateral branching and an inducer of female inflorescence formation in Zea mays (maize). Recent studies indicate that TB1 homologs in Oryza sativa (rice), Sorghum bicolor and Arabidopsis thaliana act downstream of the auxin and MORE AUXILIARY GROWTH (MAX) pathways.

SPL28 encodes a clathrin-associated adaptor protein complex 1, medium subunit micro 1 (AP1M1) and is responsible for spotted leaf and early senescence in rice (Oryza sativa).

To expand our understanding of cell death in plant defense responses, we isolated a novel rice (Oryza sativa) spotted leaf mutant (spl28) that displays a lesion mimic phenotype in the absence of pathogen attack through treatment of Hwacheongbyeo (an elite Korean japonica cultivar) with N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU). Early stage development of the spl28 mutant was normal. However, after flowering, spl28 mutants exhibited a significant decrease in chlorophyll content, soluble protein content, and photosystem II efficiency, and high concentrations of reactive oxygen species (ROS), phytoalexin, callose, and autofluorescent phenolic compounds that localized in or around the lesions.

Map-based cloning of the ERECT PANICLE 3 gene in rice.

Panicle architecture in rice can have a strong influence on yield. Using N-methyl-N-nitrosourea mutagenesis, we isolated an erect panicle mutant, Hep, from Hwasunchalbyeo, a glutinous japonica rice cultivar. Genetic analysis revealed that the erect panicle phenotype was controlled by a single recessive mutation designated erect panicle 3 (ep3).

Inactivation of the UGPase1 gene causes genic male sterility and endosperm chalkiness in rice (Oryza sativa L.).

A rice genic male-sterility gene ms-h is recessive and has a pleiotropic effect on the chalky endosperm. After fine mapping, nucleotide sequencing analysis of the ms-h gene revealed a single nucleotide substitution at the 3'-splice junction of the 14th intron of the UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase 1 (UGPase1; EC2.7.