Search results for "Bacterial"
showing 10 items of 3246 documents
Shared Binding Sites in Lepidoptera for Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Ja and Cry1A Toxins
2001
ABSTRACT Bacillus thuringiensis toxins act by binding to specific target sites in the insect midgut epithelial membrane. The best-known mechanism of resistance to B. thuringiensis toxins is reduced binding to target sites. Because alteration of a binding site shared by several toxins may cause resistance to all of them, knowledge of which toxins share binding sites is useful for predicting cross-resistance. Conversely, cross-resistance among toxins suggests that the toxins share a binding site. At least two strains of diamondback moth ( Plutella xylostella ) with resistance to Cry1A toxins and reduced binding of Cry1A toxins have strong cross-resistance to Cry1Ja. Thus, we hypothesized that…
Variation in Susceptibility to Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins among Unselected Strains of Plutella xylostella
2001
ABSTRACT So far, the only insect that has evolved resistance in the field to Bacillus thuringiensis toxins is the diamondback moth ( Plutella xylostella ). Documentation and analysis of resistant strains rely on comparisons with laboratory strains that have not been exposed to B. thuringiensis toxins. Previously published reports show considerable variation among laboratories in responses of unselected laboratory strains to B. thuringiensis toxins. Because different laboratories have used different unselected strains, such variation could be caused by differences in bioassay methods among laboratories, genetic differences among unselected strains, or both. Here we tested three unselected st…
Interaction of Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins with Larval Midgut Binding Sites of Helicoverpa armigera (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
2004
ABSTRACT In 1996, Bt-cotton (cotton expressing a Bacillus thuringiensis toxin gene) expressing the Cry1Ac protein was commercially introduced to control cotton pests. A threat to this first generation of transgenic cotton is the evolution of resistance by the insects. Second-generation Bt-cotton has been developed with either new B. thuringiensis genes or with a combination of cry genes. However, one requirement for the “stacked” gene strategy to work is that the stacked toxins bind to different binding sites. In the present study, the binding of 125 I-labeled Cry1Ab protein ( 125 I-Cry1Ab) and 125 I-Cry1Ac to brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV) of Helicoverpa armigera was analyzed in com…
High Genetic Variability for Resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins in a Single Population of Diamondback Moth
2001
ABSTRACT The long-term benefit of insecticidal products based on Cry toxins, either in sprays or as transgenic crops, is threatened by the development of resistance by target pests. The models used to predict evolution of resistance to Cry toxins most often are monogenic models in which two alleles are used. Moreover, the high-dose/refuge strategy recommended for implementation with transgenic crops relies on the assumption that the resistance allele is recessive. Using selection experiments, we demonstrated the occurrence in a laboratory colony of diamondback moth of two different genes (either allelic or nonallelic) that confer resistance to Cry1Ab. At the concentration tested, resistance…
Global variation in the genetic and biochemical basis of diamondback moth resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis
1997
Insecticidal proteins from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) are becoming a cornerstone of ecologically sound pest management. However, if pests quickly adapt, the benefits of environmentally benign Bt toxins in sprays and genetically engineered crops will be short-lived. The diamondback moth ( Plutella xylostella ) is the first insect to evolve resistance to Bt in open-field populations. Here we report that populations from Hawaii and Pennsylvania share a genetic locus at which a recessive mutation associated with reduced toxin binding confers extremely high resistance to four Bt toxins. In contrast, resistance in a population from the Philippines shows multilocus control, a …
Genetic and Biochemical Approach for Characterization of Resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis Toxin Cry1Ac in a Field Population of the Diamondback M…
2000
ABSTRACT Four subpopulations of a Plutella xylostella (L.) strain from Malaysia (F 4 to F 8 ) were selected with Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki HD-1, Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. aizawai , Cry1Ab, and Cry1Ac, respectively, while a fifth subpopulation was left as unselected (UNSEL-MEL). Bioassays at F 9 found that selection with Cry1Ac, Cry1Ab, B. thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki , and B. thuringiensis subsp. aizawai gave resistance ratios of >95, 10, 7, and 3, respectively, compared with UNSEL-MEL (>10,500, 500, >100, and 26, respectively, compared with a susceptible population, ROTH). Resistance to Cry1Ac, Cry1Ab, B. thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki , and B. thuringiensis subsp…
Type-IIA secreted phospholipase A2 is an endogenous antibiotic-like protein of the host.
2010
International audience; Type-IIA secreted phospholipase A(2) (sPLA(2)-IIA) has been proposed to play a role in the development of inflammatory diseases. It has been shown to release arachidonic acid, the precursor of proinflammatory eicosanoids, to hydrolyze phospholipids of pulmonary surfactant, and to bind to specific receptors located on cell surface membranes. However, the most established biological role of sPLA(2)-IIA is related to its potent bactericidal property in particular toward Gram-positive bacteria. This enzyme is present in animal and human biological fluids at concentrations sufficient to kill bacteria. Human recombinant sPLA(2)-IIA is able to kill Gram-positive bacteria at…
The widespread presence of a family of fish virulence plasmids in Vibrio vulnificus stresses its relevance as a zoonotic pathogen linked to fish farms
2021
Vibrio vulnificus is a pathogen of public health concern that causes either primary septicemia after ingestion of raw shellfish or secondary septicemia after wound exposure to seawater. In consequence, shellfish and seawater are considered its main reservoirs. However, there is one aspect of its biology that is systematically overlooked: its association with fish in its natural environment. This association led in 1975 to the emergence of a zoonotic clade within phylogenetic lineage 2 following successive outbreaks of vibriosis in farmed eels. Although this clade is now worldwide distributed, no new zoonotic clades were subsequently reported. In this work, we have performed phylogenetic, ge…
Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH) on Formalin-Fixed Paraffin-Embedded (FFPE) Tissue Sections
2011
Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (FISH) is a powerful technique for localizing specific DNA targets directly in the fixed tissue or cells. Bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) as well as commercial probes, which could be supplied ready for use or concentrated and must be diluted following the manufacturers instructions, can be used. The technique requires 2 days, as an overnight incubation of the FISH probes is needed for optimal hybridization. The critical steps include deparaffinization of tissue sections, optimal pretreatment (target retrieval and protein digestion), and probe hybridization. In this chapter, the described FISH protocol provides a methodology for analyzing the cytogene…
Presence of a capsule in Vibrio vulnificus biotype 2 and its relationship to virulence for eels
1993
Strains of Vibrio vulnificus biotype 2, isolated from internal organs of diseased European eels as pure cultures of opaque cells, together with some reference strains from Japanese eels, were used in this study. Spontaneous translucent-phase variants were obtained from the corresponding parent strains and compared for a variety of phenotypic traits related to virulence for eels. The rate of colony dissociation from opaque to translucent cells was higher (around 10(-2)) than that observed for translucent to opaque cells (10(-3) to 10(-4)). Electron microscopy with ruthenium red revealed the presence of a capsule of variable thickness on opaque cells, whereas translucent-type colonies had no …