MoFLP1, encoding a novel fungal fasciclin-like protein, is involved in conidiation and pathogenicity in Magnaporthe oryzae

Fasciclin family proteins have been identified as cell adhesion molecules in various organisms. In this study, a novel Magnaporthe oryzae fasciclin-like protein encoding gene, named MoFLP1, was isolated from a subtractive suppressive cDNA library and functionally analyzed. Sequence analysis showed that the MoFLP1 gene contains an open reading frame (ORF) of 1050 nucleotides encoding 349 amino acids with a calculated molecular weight of 35.85 kDa and a pl of 7.76. The deduced MoFLP1 protein contains a 17-amino acid secretion signal sequence and an 18-amino acid sequence with the characteristics of a glycosylphosphotidylinositol (GPI) anchor additional signal at its N- and C-terminuses, respectively. Potential N-glycosylation sites and domains involving cell adhesion were also identified in MoFLP1. Sequence analysis and subcellular localization by the expression of MoFLP1-GFP fusion construct in M. oryzae indicated that the MoFLP1 protein is probably localized on the vacuole membrane. Two MoFLP1 null mutants generated by targeted gene disruption exhibited marked reduction ofconidiation, conidiai adhesion, appressorium turgot, and pathogenicity. Our results indicate that fasciclin proteins play important roles in fungal development and pathogenicity in M. oryzae.     

A CHASE domain containing protein kinaseOsCRL4, represents a newAtCRE1-like gene family in rice

AtCRE1 is known to be a cytokinin receptor inArabidopsis. TheAtCRE1 protein contains CHASE domain at the N-terminal part, followed by a transmitter (histidine kinase) domain and two receiver domains. The N-terminal CHASE domain ofAtCRE1 contains putative recognition sites for cytokinin. Five CHASE domains containing proteins were found in rice,osCRL1a,OsCRL1b,OsCRL2,OsCRL3, andOsCRL4.OsCRL1a,OsCRL1b,OsCRL2 andOsCRL3 contain the four domains existing inCRE1, whereasOsCRL4 only contains the CHASE domain and a putative Ser/Thr protein kinase domain. The authors cloned the encoding geneOsCRL4 and found that it represents a new member of the cytokinin receptor protein in rice. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China     

Investigation of the biological roles of autophagy in appressorium morphogenesis in Magnaporthe oryzae

Magnaporthe oryzae has been used as a primary model organism for investigating fungus-plant interaction. Many researches focused on molecular mechanisms of appressorium formation to restrain this fungal pathogen. Autophagy is a very high conserved process in eukaryotic cells. Recently, autophagy has been considered as a key process in development and differentiation in M. oryzae. In this report, we present and discuss the current state of our knowledge on gene expression in appressorium formation and the progress in autophagy of rice blast fungi. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 30671351 and 30870101) and the Hi-Tech Research and Development Program (863) of China (No. 2002AA245041)     

Magnaporthe oryzae MTP1 gene encodes a type III transmembrane protein involved in conidiation and conidial germination

In this study the MTP1 gene, encoding a type III integral transmembrane protein, was isolated from the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae. The Mtp1 protein is 520 amino acids long and is comparable to the Ytp1 protein of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with 46% sequence similarity. Prediction programs and MTP1-GFP (green fluorescent protein) fusion expression results indicate that Mtp1 is a protein located at several membranes in the cytoplasm. The functions of the MTP1 gene in the growth and development of the fungus were studied using an MTP1 gene knockout mutant. The MTP1 gene was primarily expressed at the hyphal and conidial stages and is necessary for conidiation and conidial germination, but is not required for pathogenicity. The Deltamtp1 mutant grew more efficiently than the wild type strain on non-fermentable carbon sources, implying that the MTP1 gene has a unique role in respiratory growth and carbon source use.     

Enhancing rice resistance to fungal pathogens by transformation with cell wall degrading enzyme genes from<Emphasis Type="Italic">Trichoderma atroviride</Emphasis>

Three genes encoding for fungal cell wall degrading enzymes (CWDEs),ech42, nag70 andglu78 from the biocontrol fungusTrichoderma atroviride were inserted into the binary vector pCAMBIA1305.2 singly and in all possible combinations and transformed to rice plants. More than 1800 independently regenerated plantlets in seven different populations (for each of the three genes and each of the four gene combinations) were obtained. Theech42 gene encoding for an endochitinase increased resistance to sheath blight caused byRhizoctonia solani, while the exochitinase-encoding gene,nag70, had lesser effect. The expression level of endochitinase but exochitinase was correlated with disease resistance. Nevertheless, exochitinase enhanced the effect of endochitinase on disease resistance when the two genes co-expressed in transgenics. Resistance toMagnaporthe grisea was found in all kinds of regenerated plants including that with singlegluc78. A few lines expressing eitherech42 ornag70 gene were immune to the disease. Transgenic plants are being tested to further evaluate disease resistance at field level. This is the first report of multiple of expression of genes encoding CWDEs fromTrichoderma atroviride that result in resistance to blast and sheath blight in rice. Project (No. 3997002) supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China     

Cloning and characterization of a glucose 6-phosphate/phosphate translocator from<Emphasis Type="Italic">Oryza sativa</Emphasis>

Plastids of nongreen tissues import carbon as a source of biosynthetic pathways and energy, and glucose 6-phosphate is the preferred hexose phosphate taken up by nongreen plastids. A cDNA clone encoding glucose 6-phosphate/phosphate translocator (GPT) was isolated from a cDNA library of immature seeds of rice and named asOsGPT. The cDNA has one uninterrupted open reading frame encoding a 42 kDa polypeptide possessing transit peptide consisting of 70 amino acid residues. TheOsGPT gene maps on chromosome 8 of rice and is linked to the quantitative trait locus for 1000-grain weight. The expression ofOsGPT is mainly restricted to heterotrophic tissues. These results suggest that glucose 6-phosphate imported viaGPT can be used for starch biosynthesis in rice nongreen plastids. Project supported by National Natural Scienc Foundation of China (No.39830250) and Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (No.2A0106), China. The nucleotide sequence data will appear in the GenBank under accession number AF375053.     

Mixedl 2/l 1 control for discrete-time systems via lagrange multiplier theory

The dual formulation of the discrete-time mixedl ₂/l ₁ control design problem was achieved by using the duality theory of Lagrange multipliers. For some special dual mixedl ₂/l ₁ problems, an approximation method for the optimal value is introduced. A suboptimal value of the infinite-dimensional dual problem can be obtained by solving a sequence of truncated problems. The convergence property of the solution scheme is investigated. This paper gives a low approximation method for the primal problem. Project(699085) supported by Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China.     

Deletion analysis of SMN1 and NAIP genes in southern Chinese children with spinal muscular atrophy

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a disorder characterized by degeneration of lower motor neurons and occasionally bulbar motor neurons leading to progressive limb and trunk paralysis as well as muscular atrophy. Three types of SMA are recognized depending on the age of onset, the maximum muscular activity achieved, and survivorship: SMA1, SMA2, and SMA3. The survival of motor neuron (SMN) gene has been identified as an SMA determining gene, whereas the neuronal apoptosis inhibitory protein (NAIP) gene is considered to be a modifying factor of the severity of SMA. The main objective of this study was to analyze the deletion of SMN1 and NAIP genes in southern Chinese children with SMA. Here, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) combined with restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) was performed to detect the deletion of both exon 7 and exon 8 of SMN1 and exon 5 of NAIP in 62 southern Chinese children with strongly suspected clinical symptoms of SMA. All the 32 SMA1 patients and 76% (13/17) of SMA2 patients showed homozygous deletions for exon 7 and exon 8, and all the 13 SMA3 patients showed single deletion of SMN1 exon 7 along with 24% (4/17) of SMA2 patients. Eleven out of 32 (34%) SMA1 patients showed NAIP deletion, and none of SMA2 and SMA3 patients was found to have NAIP deletion. The findings of homozygous deletions of exon 7 and/or exon 8 of SMN1 gene confirmed the diagnosis of SMA, and suggested that the deletion of SMN1 exon 7 is a major cause of SMA in southern Chinese children, and that the NAIP gene may be a modifying factor for disease severity of SMA1. The molecular diagnosis system based on PCR-RFLP analysis can conveniently be applied in the clinical testing, genetic counseling, prenatal diagnosis and preimplantation genetic diagnosis of SMA. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. J0710043), and the Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (No. 2007C33049), China     

Monotone routing in multirate rearrangeable logd（N,m，p） network

The construction of multirate rearrangeable network has long been an interesting problem. Of many results published, all were achieved on 3-stage Clos network. The monotone routing algorithm proposed by Huet al. (2001) was also first applied to 3-stage Clos network. In this work, we adopt this algorithm and apply it to log _d (N,m,p) networks. We first analyze the properties of log _d (N,m,p) networks. Then we use monotone algorithm in log _d (N,0,p) network. Furthermore we extend the result to construct multirate rearrangeable networks based on log _d (N,m,p) network (1≤m≤n−1). Project (No. 10371028) supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China     

Bochner-Orlicz序列空间的λ性质

The sufficient and necessary conditions of the Bochner-Orlicz sequence spaces equipped with the Luxemburg norm,which have λ property,are given.The result shows,which is not as usual,that the λ property of the Bochner-Orlicz seauence spaces can not be lift from X.     

Molecular characterization of a defense-related AMP-binding protein gene, OsBIABP1, from rice

We cloned and characterized a rice gene OsBIABPI encoding an AMP-binding protein. The full-length cDNA of OsBIABP1 is 1912-bp long and is predicted to encode a 558-aa protein. OsBIABP1 contains a typical AMP-binding signature motif and shows high similarity to members of AMP-binding protein family. OsBIABP1 is expressed in stems, leaves and flowers of rice plants, but is not expressed, or expressed at a very low level, in rice roots. The expression of OsBIABP1 was induced by some defense-related signal molecules, e.g., salicylic acid (SA), benzothiadiazole, jasmonic acid (JA), and 1-amino cyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid, which mediate SA-and JA/ethylene (ET)-dependent defense signaling pathways, respectively. Furthermore, the expression of OsBIABP1 is activated by the infection of Magnaporthe oryzae, and the induced expression is quicker and stronger during early stages of pathogenesis in incompatible interaction than that in compatible interaction between rice and M. oryzae. Our results suggest that OsBIABP1 may be a defense-related AMP-binding protein that is involved in the regulation of defense re-sponse through SA and/or JA/ET signaling pathways.     

Science Letters： A TOM1 homologue is required for multiplication of Tobacco mosaic virus in Nicotiana benthamiana

The AtTOM1 gene ofArabidopsis thaliana had been shown to be essential for the efficient multiplication of Tobacco mosaic virus （TMV） in A. thaliana. In this study, we cloned an AtTOM1-like gene from Nicotiana benthamiana named as NbTOM1. Sequence alignment showed that NbTOM1 is closely related to AtTOM1 homologues of N. tabacum and Lycopersicon esculentum with 97.2% and 92.6% nucleotide sequence identities, respectively. Silencing of NbTOM1 by a modified viral satellite DNA-based vector resulted in complete inhibition of the multiplication of TMV in N. benthamiana. The result suggests that inhibition of NbTOM1 via RNA silencing is a potentially useful method for generating TMV-resistant plants.     

Targeting of human aFGF gene into silkworm,<Emphasis Type="Italic">Bombyx mori</Emphasis> L. through homologous recombination

The long-arm and short-arm genes of fibroin light chain (L-chain) of silkworm,Bombyx Mori L., and the gene of human acidic fibroblast growth factor were cloned respectively and subsequently inserted into a transfer vector pVL 1392 used as a tool to target the L-chain region of the silkworm genome. Genomic DNA from their offsprings was extracted and the expected targeting was detected using polymerase chain reaction and DNA sequencing, as well as protein analysis. The results showed that positive events occurred and that the FGF gene was integrated into the L-chain locus through homologous recombination. Project supported by the Scientific Research Foundation for Returned Overseas Chinese Scholars, Education Ministry of China and the Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (No. 301306), China     

Review：BRCA1/2 associated hereditary breast cancer

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of death in women today. Some of the patients are hereditary, with a large proportion characterized by mutation in BRCA1 and/or BRCA2 genes. In this review, we provide an overview of these two genes, focusing on their relationship with hereditary breast cancers. BRCA1/2 associated hereditary breast cancers have unique features that differ from the general breast cancers, including alterations in cellular molecules, pathological bases, biological behavior, and a different prevention strategy. But the outcome of BRCA1/2 associated hereditary breast cancers still remains controversial; further studies are needed to elucidate the nature of BRCA1/2 associated hereditary breast cancers. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30772510) and the Joint Program of Ministry of Health and Zhejiang Provincal Government of China (No. WKJ2006-2-008)     

A pair of two-component regulatory genes<Emphasis Type="Italic">ecr</Emphasis>A1/A2 in<Emphasis Type="Italic">S. coelicolor</Emphasis>

Two-component genes are kinds of genetic elements involved in regulation of antibiotic production inStreptomyces coelicolor. DNA microarray analysis revealed thatecrA1/A2, which mapped at distant sites fromred lucus and encode respectively the kinase and regulator, expressed coordinately with genes of Red specific biosynthetic pathway.ecrA1 andecrA2 gene-disruptive mutants were constructed using homogenotisation by reciprocal double crossover. Fermentation data showed that the undecylprodigiosin (Red) level of production was lower than that of wild-type strain. However, the change of the actinorhodin (Act) production level was not significant compared with wild type. Thus, these experiment results confirmed that the two-component systemecrA1/A2 was positive regulatory element forred gene cluster. Project (No.20172046) supported by the National Natural Foundation of China     

Production of bacterial blight resistant lines from somatic hybridization between Oryza sativa L. and Oryza meyeriana L.

Novel bacterial blight (BB) resistance gene(s) for rice was (were) introduced into a cultivated japonica rice variety Oryza sativa (cv. 8411), via somatic hybridization using the wild rice Oryza meyeriana as the donor of the resistance gene(s). Twenty-nine progenies of somatically hybridized plants were obtained. Seven somatically hybridized plants and their parents were used for AFLP (amplified fragment length polymorphism) analysis using 8 primer pairs. Results confirmed that these plants were somatic hybrids containing the characteristic bands of both parents. The morphology of the regenerated rice showed characters of both O. sativa and O. meyeriana. Two somatic hybrids showed highest BB resistance and the other 8 plants showed moderate resistance. The new germplasms with highest resistance have been used in the rice breeding program for the improvement of bacterial blight resistance. Project (No. 98001) supported by Ningbo Agriculture Key Scientific Research Foundation, China     

Characterization of enhancer trap and gene trap harboring<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ac/Ds</Emphasis> transposon in transgenic rice

Insertion mutagenesis has become one of the most popular methods for gene functions analysis. Here we report a two-elementAc/Ds transposon system containing enhancer trap and gene trap for gene tagging in rice. The excision ofDs element was examined by PCR amplification. The excision frequency ofDs element varied from 0% to 40% among 20 F₂ populations derived from 11 differentDs parents. Southern blot analysis revealed that more than 70% of excisedDs elements reinserted into rice genome and above 70% of the reinsertedDs elements were located at different positions of the chromosome in rice. The result of histochemical GUS analysis indicated that 28% of enhancer trap and 22% of gene trap tagging plants displayed GUS activity in leaves, roots, flowers or seeds. The GUS positive lines will be useful for identifying gene function in rice. Project supported by the Hi-Tech Research and Development Program (863) of China (No. 2002AA2Z1003)     

关于T凸函数的不等式

In this paper, the Tφ-convex functions were introduced as a generalizations of convex functions. Then the characteristics of the Tφ-convex functions were discussed. Furthermore, some new inequalities for the Tφ-convex functions were derived.