0000000000134005
AUTHOR
Anna T. Kunert
Dynamic Precision Phenotyping Reveals Mechanism of Crop Tolerance to Root Herbivory.
The western corn rootworm (WCR; Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte) is a major pest of maize (Zea mays) that is well adapted to most crop management strategies. Breeding for tolerance is a promising alternative to combat WCR but is currently constrained by a lack of physiological understanding and phenotyping tools. We developed dynamic precision phenotyping approaches using 11C with positron emission tomography, root autoradiography, and radiometabolite flux analysis to understand maize tolerance to WCR. Our results reveal that WCR attack induces specific patterns of lateral root growth that are associated with a shift in auxin biosynthesis from indole-3-pyruvic acid to indole-3-aceton…
Atmospheric protein chemistry influenced by anthropogenic air pollutants: nitration and oligomerization upon exposure to ozone and nitrogen dioxide
The allergenic potential of airborne proteins may be enhanced via post-translational modification induced by air pollutants like ozone (O3) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). The molecular mechanisms and kinetics of the chemical modifications that enhance the allergenicity of proteins, however, are still not fully understood. Here, protein tyrosine nitration and oligomerization upon simultaneous exposure of O3 and NO2 were studied in coated-wall flow-tube and bulk solution experiments under varying atmospherically relevant conditions (5–200 ppb O3, 5–200 ppb NO2, 45–96% RH), using bovine serum albumin as a model protein. Generally, more tyrosine residues were found to react via the nitration pathw…
Fresh water, marine and terrestrial cyanobacteria display distinct allergen characteristics.
During the last decades, global cyanobacteria biomass increased due to climate change as well as industrial usage for production of biofuels and food supplements. Thus, there is a need for thorough characterization of their potential health risks, including allergenicity. We therefore aimed to identify and characterize similarities in allergenic potential of cyanobacteria originating from the major ecological environments. Different cyanobacterial taxa were tested for immunoreactivity with IgE from allergic donors and non-allergic controls using immunoblot and ELISA. Moreover, mediator release from human FceR1-transfected rat basophilic leukemia (RBL) cells was measured, allowing in situ ex…
Radiosynthesis of 3-indolyl[1-11C]acetic acid for phyto-PET-imaging: An improved production procedure and formulation method
Abstract An improved production procedure and formulation method for the carbon-11 radiolabeled phytohormone, 3-indolyl-[l- 11 C]acetic acid ([ 11 C]IAA), was developed by modifying selected original reaction parameters. This updated procedure both doubled the yield (from 25.9±6.7% ( n =12) to 61.0±0.3% ( n =10)) and increased the concentration (0.2–0.4 GBq/0.15–0.3 mL), enabling us to provide the radiotracer [ 11 C]IAA suitable for in vivo phyto-PET-imaging studies. The specific activity was improved by more than a factor of three (26.7±5.6 GBq/µmol to 82.5±36.1 GBq/µmol). The total synthesis time for both production and formulation was 81.8±3.0 min ( n =10). In addition, a streamlined sem…