Project description:The physiological and transcriptional response of Nitrosomonas europaea biofilms to phenol and toluene was examined and compared to suspended cells. Biofilms were grown in Drip Flow Biofilm Reactors under continuous flow conditions of growth medium containing ammonia as growth substrate. The responses of N. europaea biofilms to the aromatic hydrocarbons phenol and toluene were determined during short-term (3 h) additions of each compound to the biofilms. Ammonia oxidation in the biofilms was inhibited 50% by 60 uM phenol and 100 uM toluene. These concentrations were chosen for microarray analysis of phenol- and toluene-exposed N. europaea biofilms. Liquid batch cultures of exponentially growing N. europaea cells were harvested alongside the biofilms to determine differential gene expression between attached and suspended growth of N. europaea.
Project description:Pure cultures of ammonia oxidizing bacterium, Nitrosomonas europaea, are exposed to cyanide in pseudo-steady state batch reactor in presence of ammonia. Nitrosomonas europaea are generally regarded as the most sensitive organism to various inhibitors commonly encountered in the wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). To find stress genes of Nitrosomonas europaea to cyanide known as inhibitor of respiratory process, whole-genome transcript response to cyanide was determined in this research using microarray and qRT-PCR. When 1 uM NaCN inhibits nitrification about 50 %, transcript levels of 35 genes were increased while transcript levels of 29 genes were decreased, showing more than 2-fold in total 2460 genes. moeZ (NE2353), homologue with rhodanases related to detoxification of CN-, showed 7-fold up regulation and gene cluster including moeZ also showed significant up regulation. Keywords: cyanide, stress response, moeZ
Project description:Investigation of the whole genome gene expression level changes relative to exponential phase growth in Nitrosomonas europaea ATCC19718 after 12 hours ammonia starvation, 144 hours ammonia starvation, and 20 minutes following ammonia addition to starved cells. The ammonia monooxygenase of chemolithotrophic ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) catalyzes the first step in ammonia oxidation by converting ammonia to hydroxylamine. The monooxygenase of Nitrosomonas europaea is encoded by two nearly identical operon copies (amoCAB1,2). Several AOB, including N. europaea, also posess a divergent monocistronic copy of amoC (amoC3) of unknown function. Previous work suggested a possible functional role for amoC3 in N. europaea during recovery from extended ammonia starvation as part of the σE- stress response regulon during the recovery of N. europaea from extended ammonia starvation, thus indicating its importance during the exit of cells from starvation. We here used global transcription analysis to show that expression of amoC3 is part of a general post-starvation cellular response system in N. europaea. We also found that amoC3 is required for efficient exit from prolonged ammonia starvation, as deleting this gene impaired growth at elevated temperatures and recovery following starvation under high oxygen tensions. Deletion of the σ32 global stress response regulator demonstrated that the heat shock regulon also plays a significant role in mediating the recovery of N. europaea from starvation. These findings provide the first described phenotype associated with the divergent AmoC3 subunit which appears to function as a stress responsive subunit capable of maintaining ammonia oxidation activity under stress conditions.
Project description:Cultivated olive tree (Olea europaea L. subsp. europaea var. europaea) is one of most relevant worldwide-extended crops. Since this plant has a huge effect on the economy of several regions, especially in those located in the Mediterranean basin, all efforts focused on its protection have a great relevance in agriculture sustainability. As all extended crops, olive tree cultivars are under the threat of a wide range of pathogens. Among them, Verticillium dahliae has been in the spotlight in the last decades because the disease caused by this soil-borne fungus (Verticillium wilt) is easily spread and can eventually kill the tree. In this line, many different factors have been studied in order to shed some light on the molecular/genetic mechanisms underlying the Olea europaea-Verticillium dahliae interaction, some of them focused on the gene expression pattern of the host. In this study, the expression pattern of roots from thirty-six O. europaea cultivars with different resistance/susceptibility degree to Verticillium wilt has been analyzed by RNA-Seq. As a result, processes involved in plant defense, transcription and root development have emerged as potential players in the differential response to Verticillium wilt of these cultivars. Additionally, a quite interesting set of 421 genes with an opposite expression pattern in those cultivars showing extreme resistance/susceptibility to Verticillium wilt has been discovered, establishing a solid group of candidates to take into account in future genetic improvement programs.