The short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase (SDR) gene family is widely distributed in all kingdoms of life. The
genes, 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (
) and progesterone 5-β-reductases (
,
) play a ...crucial role in cardenolide biosynthesis pathway in the
species. However, their role in plant stress, especially in salinity stress management, remains unexplored. In the present study, transplastomic tobacco plants were developed by inserting the
,
and
genes. The integration of transgenes in plastomes, copy number and transgene expression at transcript and protein level in transplastomic plants were confirmed by PCR, end-to-end PCR, qRT-PCR and Western blot analysis, respectively. Subcellular localization analysis showed that 3β-HSD and P5βR1 are cytoplasmic, and P5βR2 is tonoplast-localized. Transplastomic lines showed enhanced growth in terms of biomass and chlorophyll content compared to wild type (WT) under 300 mM salt stress. Under salt stress, transplastomic lines remained greener without negative impact on shoot or root growth compared to the WT. The salt-tolerant transplastomic lines exhibited enhanced levels of a series of metabolites (sucrose, glutamate, glutamine and proline) under control and NaCl stress. Furthermore, a lower Na
/K
ratio in transplastomic lines was also observed. The salt tolerance, mediated by plastidial expression of the
,
and
genes, could be due to the involvement in the upregulation of nitrogen assimilation, osmolytes as well as lower Na
/K
ratio. Taken together, the plastid-based expression of the
genes leading to enhanced salt tolerance, which opens a window for developing saline-tolerant plants via plastid genetic engineering.
GATA is one of the prominent transcription factor families conserved among many organisms in eukaryotes and has different biological roles in many pathways, particularly in light regulation in ...plants. Although GATA transcription factors (TFs) have been identified in different crop species, their roles in abiotic stress tolerance have not been studied in potato. In this study, we identified 32 GATA TFs in potato (Solanum tuberosum) by in silico analyses, and expression levels of selected six genes were investigated in drought‐tolerant (Sante) and sensitive (Agria) cultivars under light, drought, and combined (light + drought) stress conditions. According to the phylogenetic results, StGATA TFs were divided into four main groups (I, II, III, and IV) and different sub‐groups in I and II (eight and five, respectively). StGATA genes were uniformly localized to each chromosome with a conserved exon/intron structure. The presence of cis‐elements within the StGATA family further supported the possible involvement in abiotic stress tolerance and light response, tissue‐specific expression, and hormonal regulation. Additional PPI investigations showed that these networks, especially for Groups I, II, and IV, play a significant role in response to light and drought stress. Six StGATAs were chosen from these groups for expressional profiling, and their expression in both Sante and Agria was mainly downregulated under purple and red lights, drought, and combined stress (blue + drought and purple + drought). The interactomes of selected StGATAs, StGATA3, StGATA24, and StGATA29 were analyzed, and the accessions with GATA motifs were checked for expression. The results showed that the target proteins, cyclin‐P3‐1, SPX domain‐containing protein 1, mitochondrial calcium uniporter protein 2, mitogen‐activated protein kinase kinase kinase YODA, and splicing factor 3 B subunit 4‐like, mainly play a role in phytochrome‐mediated stomatal patterning, development, and activity. Understanding the interactions between drought stress and the light response mechanisms in potato plants is essential. It will eventually be possible to enhance potato resilience to climate change by manipulating the TFs that play a role in these pathways.
Sweet pepper is a typical type of
from Abruzzo region, recognized as a traditional and local product, traditionally cultivated in the town of Altino (Abruzzo region, Italy). The aim of this study is ...to compare the sweet type of peppers from Altino with the hot pepper cultivated in the same area, in order to delineate their different phytochemical and biological profiles in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we elucidated their phytochemical composition, fatty acids composition and phenolic/flavonoid contents in extracts. Then antioxidant and enzyme inhibition assays were performed to evaluate their biological properties, together with in vitro cell assay and in vivo anti-inflammatory activity. Microwave (1000 mg/mL) extract of hot pepper showed the best inhibition value on in vitro cell growth assay; in fact, the number of survived cells was about 20% and 40% for microwave and Soxhlet extracts, respectively. In vivo anti-inflammatory assay revealed good activity for both species, which, when associated with in vitro cell inhibition results, could explain the protective effect on human prostatic hyperplasia.
Late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins are large and diverse group of polypeptides which were first identified during seed dehydration and then in vegetative plant tissues during different stress ...responses. Now, gene family members of LEA proteins have been detected in various organisms. However, there is no report for this protein family in watermelon and melon until this study. A total of 73
LEA
genes from watermelon (
ClLEA
) and 61
LEA
genes from melon (
CmLEA
) were identified in this comprehensive study. They were classified into four and three distinct clusters in watermelon and melon, respectively. There was a correlation between gene structure and motif composition among each LEA groups. Segmental duplication played an important role for
LEA
gene expansion in watermelon. Maximum gene ontology of
LEA
genes was observed with poplar
LEA
genes. For evaluation of tissue specific expression patterns of
ClLEA
and
CmLEA
genes, publicly available RNA-seq data were analyzed. The expression analysis of selected
LEA
genes in root and leaf tissues of drought-stressed watermelon and melon were examined using qRT-PCR. Among them,
ClLEA
-
12
-
17
-
46
genes were quickly induced after drought application. Therefore, they might be considered as early response genes for water limitation conditions in watermelon. In addition,
CmLEA
-
42
-
43
genes were found to be up-regulated in both tissues of melon under drought stress. Our results can open up new frontiers about understanding of functions of these important family members under normal developmental stages and stress conditions by bioinformatics and transcriptomic approaches.
is a great tropical plant and is widely used for various traditional purposes. In the present study, we examined the influence of solvents (dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, methanol and infusion ...(water)) on chemical composition and biological capabilities of
. An UHPLC-HRMS method was used to determine the chemical characterization. The biological ability was examined for antioxidant, enzyme inhibitory and anti-cancer effects. To evaluate antioxidant effects, different chemical methods (ABTS, DPPH, CUPRAC, FRAP, metal chelating and phosphomolybdenum) were applied. With regard to enzyme inhibitory properties, cholinesterases, amylase, glucosidase and tyrosinase were used. The MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line was chosen to determine anticancer activity. Based on the UHPLC-HRMS analysis, 37 specialized metabolites were dereplicated and identified in the studied extracts. Results revealed the presence of 15 hydroxybenzoic, hydroxycinnamic, acylquinic acids, and their glycosides, one rotenoid, seven flavonoids, 12 fatty acids and two other glycosides. Among the tested extracts, the methanol extract showed a stronger antioxidant ability compared with other extracts. The methanol extract also showed the best inhibitory effects on tyrosinase and glucosidase. In the anti-cancer evaluation, the methanol extract showed stronger anticancer effects compared with water extract. In summary, our observations can contribute to the establishment of
as a potential candidate for functional applications in the preparation.
In this study, DNA protective, antioxidant, antibacterial and enzyme inhibiting properties of methanol extracts obtained from juniper and olive heartwood and sapwood were determined. These extracts ...were tested by five antioxidant methods (DPPH scavenging, FRAP, CUPRAC, metal chelating and phosphomolybdenum). Generally, heartwood extracts of both species are more efficient for DPPH radical scavenging activity, cupric ion reducing activity, ferric reducing antioxidant power and metal chelating activity than sapwood extracts. When compared to heartwood extracts, sapwood extracts have larger inhibition zone in disk diffusion test. In addition, all extracts showed high antibacterial activity against
Staphylococcus aureus
. DNA protection of both extracts had a capacity to inhibit the DNA damage arisen from Fenton's reagent. The highest DNA protective activity was observed in juniper sapwood extract with 84%. Furthermore, other extracts also indicated more than 60% of DNA protective activity. Olive wood extracts displayed the strongest enzyme inhibition activities against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE). Although juniper heartwood extracts showed highest anti-amylase, anti-glucosidase and anti-tyrosinase effects, they had no ability for inhibition BChE. The methanol extracts of olive samples demonstrated the most antioxidant activity (DPPH, CUPRAC and FRAP). In addition, juniper samples showed the highest anti-amylase, anti-tyrosinase, metal chelating and DNA protective activity. According to these results, the extracts of juniper and olive wood can be considered as a source of natural bio active agents for dietary, pharmacological and medicinal applications. This research will also serve as a base for future studies about biological activities of wood extracts.
In this study, DNA protective, antioxidant, antibacterial and enzyme inhibiting properties of methanol extracts obtained from juniper and olive heartwood and sapwood were determined.
Growth-regulating factor (GRF) genes play a regulatory role for plant growth and development. The recently available cucumber, melon and watermelon genomes provide an opportunity to conduct a ...comprehensive overview of the GRF gene family. In the present study, identification and analysis of the GRF gene family was conducted using bioinformatics methods. Totally, 24 potential GRF genes were identified in cucumber, melon and watermelon. Cucumber and watermelon GRF gene members were physically mapped to their corresponding chromosomes. All GRF genes contain an intron whose number ranging from 2 to 3. Phylogenetic analysis categorized the cucurbit GRF proteins into 2 distinct classes. GRF proteins of cucurbits and Arabidopsis were clustered together in a joined tree and grouped into the same cluster with high bootstrap values. WRC and QLQ motifs, specific for GRF proteins, were found in all predicted GRF proteins. Gene Ontology analysis showed that majority of the GRFs was predicted to function in response to biological regulation and binding activity. In addition, predicted GRF proteins were localized in the nucleus. These results provide information about the relationship between evolution and functional divergence in the GRF family. We assume that systematic characterization of these GRF genes will enable researcher to open new insights for further exploration into the functions of this significant gene family in Cucurbitaceae family members.
Vitiligo is a disease characterized by acquired depigmentation, white macules, and patches on the skin due to the dysfunction of epidermal melanocytes. In this study, we attempt to profile the ...microRNA (miRNA) expression patterns and predict the potential targets, assessing the biological functions of differentially expressed miRNAs in the blood of generalized vitiligo patients. Peripheral blood samples were taken from all participants, and the expression levels of 89 identified miRNAs were analyzed with real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The results indicated significant upregulation of six miRNAs and downregulation of 19 miRNAs in the plasma of vitiligo patients. The top three upregulated miRNAs were hsa-miR-451a, hsa-miR-25-3p, and hsa-miR-19a-3p, and the top three downregulated miRNAs were hsa-miR-146a-5p, hsa-miR-940, and hsa-miR-142-3p. Moreover, the miRNA expression profiles of patients with Type 3 and Type 4 phototypes were substantially different in such a way that the patients with Type 3 phototype would be more prone to the emergence of melanoma and cancer. While significant variations in the expression patterns of miRNAs in male and female vitiligo patients were demonstrated, miR-let-7i-5p, miR-19a-3p, miR-25-3p, and miR-451a were commonly upregulated, and miR-142-3p and miR-146a-5p were commonly repressed in both sexes. This study may shed light on the roles of differentially expressed miRNAs in vitiligo patients by examining the miRNA expression patterns and the combined effects of miRNA and their predicted targets.
Heat shock protein (
gene family members in the watermelon genome were identified and characterized by bioinformatics analysis. In addition, expression profiles of genes under combined drought and ...heat stress conditions were experimentally analyzed. In the watermelon genome, 39 genes belonging to the sHsp family, 101 genes belonging to the Hsp40 family, 23 genes belonging to the Hsp60 family, 12 genes belonging to the Hsp70 family, 6 genes belonging to the Hsp90 family, and 102 genes belonging to the Hsp100 family were found. It was also observed that the proteins in the same cluster in the phylogenetic trees had similar motif patterns. When the estimated 3-dimensional structures of the Hsp proteins were examined, it was determined that the α-helical structure was dominant in almost all families. The most orthologous relationship appeared to be between watermelon, soybean, and poplar in the
gene families. For tissue-specific gene expression analysis under combined stress conditions, expression analysis of one representative
gene each from root, stem, leaf, and shoot tissues was performed by real-time PCR. A significant increase was detected usually at 30 min in almost all tissues. This study provides extensive information for watermelon Hsps, and can enhance our knowledge about the relationships between
genes and combined stresses.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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