Project description:The aim of the experiment was to study the gene expression changes occurring when cells of the diatom Skeletonema marinoi undergo sexual reproduction. In this species, sex can be induced by an environmental trigger, specifically a change in salinity of the cultivation media. In diatoms the unique mode of cell division with unequal inheritance of the rigid cell wall components determines a progressive cell size reduction as cells divide. Large cells above a given size threshold are not competent for sex, on the other hand small cells, under appropriate conditions, can undergo sexual reproduction. RNA-seq included three experimental conditions: a) large cells above the sexualization size threshold, grown at standard salinity (control condition: no sex, no salinity stress); b) large cells above the sexualization size threshold transferred to higher salinity (treatment 1: no sex, salinity stress); c) small cells below the sexualization size threshold transferred to higher salinity (treatment 2: sex, salinity stress).
Project description:Anaerobic ammonium-oxidising (anammox) bacteria, members of the ‘Candidatus Brocadiaceae’ family, play an important role in the nitrogen cycle and are estimated to be responsible for about half of the oceanic nitrogen loss to the atmosphere. Anammox bacteria combine ammonium with nitrite and produce dinitrogen gas via the intermediates nitric oxide and hydrazine (anammox reaction) while nitrate is formed as a by-product. These reactions take place in a specialized, membrane-bound compartment called the anammoxosome. Therefore, the substrates ammonium, nitrite and product nitrate have to cross the outer-, cytoplasmic- and anammoxosome membranes to enter or exit the anammoxosome. The genomes of all anammox species harbour multiple copies of ammonium-, nitrite- and nitrate transporter genes. Here we investigated how the distinct genes for ammonium-, nitrite- and nitrate- transport were expressed during substrate limitation in membrane bioreactors. Transcriptome analysis of Kuenenia stuttgartiensis planktonic cells under ammonium-limitation showed that three of the seven ammonium transporter genes and one of the six nitrite transporter genes were significantly upregulated, while another ammonium and nitrite transporter gene were downregulated in nitrite limited growth conditions. The two nitrate transporters were expressed to similar levels in both conditions. In addition, genes encoding enzymes involved in the anammox reaction were differentially expressed, with those using nitrite as a substrate being upregulated under nitrite limited growth and those using ammonium as a substrate being upregulated during ammonium limitation. Taken together, these results give a first insight in the potential role of the multiple nutrient transporters in regulating transport of substrates and products in and out of the compartmentalized anammox cell.
Project description:Bisulphite sequencing of salinity sensitive and salinity tolerant chickpea genotypes during salinity stress response using Illumina platform has been performed. At least 195 million reads in bisulphite sequencing were generated in each sample. Methylated cytosines in each sample were identified for their genomic location and sequence context.
Project description:Bradyrhizobia are common members of soil microbiomes and known as N2-fixing symbionts of economically important legumes. Many are also denitrifiers, which can act as sinks or sources for N2O. Inoculation with compatible rhizobia is often needed for optimal N2-fixation, but the choice of inoculant may have consequences for N2O emission. Here, we determined the phylogeny and denitrification capacity of Bradyrhizobium strains, most of them isolated from peanut-nodules. Analyses of genomes and denitrification end-points showed that all were denitrifiers, but only ~1/3 could reduce N2O. The N2O-reducing isolates had strong preference for N2O- over NO3--reduction. Such preference was also observed in a study of other bradyrhizobia and tentatively ascribed to competition between the electron pathways to Nap (periplasmic NO3- reductase) and Nos (N2O reductase). Another possible explanation is lower abundance of Nap than Nos. Here, proteomics revealed that Nap was instead more abundant than Nos, supporting the hypothesis that the electron pathway to Nos outcompetes that to Nap. In contrast, Paracoccus denitrificans, which has membrane-bond NO3- reductase (Nar), reduced N2O and NO3- simultaneously. We propose that the control at the metabolic level, favoring N2O reduction over NO3- reduction, applies also to other denitrifiers carrying Nos and Nap but lacking Nar.
Project description:Progressive mitochondrial respiratory chain (RC) deficiency is associated with a wide spectrum of adult-onset degenerative diseases, as well as with normal aging. We have previously generated the Deletor mice to model late-onset progressive RC defects. Here we report novel tissue-specific pathways contributing to mitochondrial disease pathogenesis, identified by gene expression analysis. We found that RC-deficient muscle fibers secrete the fasting-induced hormone, fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21). This response leads to fatty acid recruitment from adipocytes and resistance to high-fat-diet induced obesity in mice, but does not affect glucose or insulin metabolism. FGF21 is also induced in the muscle of mitochondrial myopathy patients and in other RC-deficient mice. These data show that skeletal muscle is an endocrine organ, which signals its energy deficiency through FGF21. Furthermore, RC deficiency in single muscle fibers initiates a global starvation response. These data have important implications for conditions with primary or secondary RC deficiency. Mice overexpressing mutant Twinkle (C10ORF2) protein are the first animal model for Progressive External Ophtalmoplegia (PEO). Using PEO-model and wt-mice, skeletal muscle (quadriceps femoris) was analyzed for gene expression profile.
Project description:In low rainfall regions soils are naturally conditioned with frequent co-occurrence of salinity and alkalinity. Plant salinity responses both at physiological and molecular level have been extensively researched. However, effects of the combined treatment of alkaline salinity that could greatly reduce plant growth and the mechanisms responsible for tolerance remain indeterminate. In Brassica juncea, large reductions in biomass and increased leaf Na+ concentration under alkaline salinity indicates that the combined treatment had greater negative effect than salinity on both growth and the physiological responses of the plant. To determine molecular mechanisms potentially controlling adaptive tolerance responses to salinity and alkaline salinity, the moderately tolerant genotype NDR 8501 was further investigated using microarray analysis. The transcripts of treated leaf tissues verses those of the untreated control sample were analysed after prolonged stress of four weeks. In total, 528 salinity responsive and 1245 alkaline salinity responsive genes were indentified and only 101 genes were expressed jointly in either of the two treatments. Transcription of 37% more genes involved in response to alkaline salinity than salinity alone, which suggests the increased impact and severity of the combined stress on the plant, indicating the transcription of a far greater number of genes likely involved in mitigation and damage control. Transcription of KUP2 and KUP7 genes involved in potassium homeostasis under salinity alone and NHX1 and ENH1 genes for ion (K+ and Na+) homeostasis under alkaline salinity, clearly demonstrated that different genes and genetic pathways are involved in response to each stress. They further provide supporting evidence for the physiological responses that occur in the plant, with massive reprogramming of the transcriptome leading to partial ion exclusion, shuttling and compartmentation.
Project description:Aged patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) have more progressive and severe symptoms, even though aged people have increased frequency of peripheral Treg (pTreg) cells which inhibit this disease. Our goal is to how aged pTreg cells with changes in their frequency and functionality contribute to increased severity of late-onset MS using mouse model experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). For this purpose, we reported the Treg cell plasticities and T cell clonalities in the CNS infiltrated T cells in the late-onset EAE mouse model.