Search results for "Biophysics"
showing 10 items of 3515 documents
Activation of the plant plasma membrane H+ -ATPase. Is there a direct interaction between lysophosphatidylcholine and the C-terminal part of the enzy…
1996
The antagonistic effects of the fungal toxin beticolin-1 and of L-alpha-lysophosphatidylcholine (lysoPC) were investigated on the plasma membrane H+-ATPase of the plant Arabidopsis thaliana (isoform 2) expressed in yeast, using both wild-type enzyme (AHA2) and C-terminal truncated enzyme (aha2delta92). Phosphohydrolytic activities of both enzymes were inhibited by beticolin-1, with very similar 50% inhibitory concentrations, indicating that the toxin action does not involve the C-terminal located autoinhibitory domain of the proton pump. Egg lysoPC, a compound that activates the H+-ATPase by a mechanism involving the C-terminal part of the protein, was found to be able to reverse the inhibi…
A secondary mode of action of the herbicide lenacil: Modification of K+ permeability of Acer pseudoplatanus cells
1984
Abstract The action of lenacil on plasmalemma permeability to K+, transmembrane electric potential difference (PD) calculated from the tetraphenylphosphonium distribution, proton extrusion and intracellular pH of Acer pseudoplatanus cells calculated from the 5,5-dimethyloxazolidine,4-dione distribution, was studied and compared with the action of fusicoccin (FC) and diethylstilbestrol (DES). The three compounds temporarily stimulated the rate of 86Rb+ uptake with a half-maximum effect at 5.0 μM for 3-cyclohexyl-6, 7-dihdro-1H-cyclopentapyrimidine-2,4(3H,5H)-dione (lenacil). Lenacil and FC had no action on transmembrane electric potential difference, whereas DES decreased it. Lenacil inhibit…
Interspecific comparison of the performance of soaring migrants in relation to morphology, meteorological conditions and migration strategies.
2012
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.-- et al.
Mineral phase in shell repair of Manila clam Venerupis philippinarum affected by brown ring disease.
2011
14 pages; International audience; The mineral phase of shell repair in the Manila clam Venerupis philippinarum affected by brown ring disease (BRD) was characterised at various scales and at various stages of shell repair by confocal Raman microspectrometry and scanning electron microscopy. Spherulitic and quadrangular aragonite microstructures associated with polyene pigments were clearly observed. Von Kossa staining showed that at the beginning of shell repair, hemocytes are filled with insoluble calcium carbonate salts in all fluids and then are transported toward the extrapallial fluids and the repair sites. Our analyses suggest that after a Vibrio tapetis attack and BRD deposit some cl…
Shell repair process in the green ormer Haliotis tuberculata: a histological and microstructural study.
2008
In the present paper, juvenile and adult shells of the green ormer Haliotis tuberculata ('Oreille de Saint-Pierre') were perforated in a zone close to the shell edge and the shell repair process was followed at two levels: (1) by observing the histology of the calcifying mantle in the repair zone and (2) by analyzing with SEM the microstructure of the shell repair zone. Histological data clearly show the presence of calcium carbonate granules into the connective tissues, but not in the epithelial cells. This suggests that calcium carbonate granules are synthesized by sub-epithelial cells and actively transported through the epithelium to the repair zone, via a process which may be similar t…
Magnesium ions promote assembly of channel-like structures from beticolin 0, a non-peptide fungal toxin purified from Cercospora beticola.
1998
Beticolins are toxins produced by the fungus Cercospora beticola. Using beticolin 0 (B0), we have produced a strong and Mg(2+)-dependent increase in the membrane conductance of Arabidopsis protoplasts and Xenopus oocytes. In protein-free artificial bilayers, discrete deflexions of current were observed (12 pS unitary conductance in symmetrical 100 mM KCl) in the presence of B0 (approximately 10 microM) and in the presence of nominal Mg2+. Addition of 50 microM Mg2+ induced a macroscopic current which could be reversed to single channel current by chelating Mg2+ with EDTA. Both unitary and macroscopic currents were ohmic. The increase in conductance of biological membranes triggered by B0 is…
Cytosolic pH regulates root water transport during anoxic stress through gating of aquaporins.
2003
Flooding of soils results in acute oxygen deprivation (anoxia) of plant roots during winter in temperate latitudes, or after irrigation1, and is a major problem for agriculture. One early response of plants to anoxia and other environmental stresses is downregulation of water uptake due to inhibition of the water permeability (hydraulic conductivity) of roots (Lpr)2,3,4,5. Root water uptake is mediated largely by water channel proteins (aquaporins) of the plasma membrane intrinsic protein (PIP) subgroup6,7,8. These aquaporins may mediate stress-induced inhibition of Lpr2,4,9 but the mechanisms involved are unknown. Here we delineate the whole-root and cell bases for inhibition of water upta…
Constitutive expression of clathrin hub hinders elicitor-induced clathrin-mediated endocytosis and defense gene expression in plant cells.
2012
International audience; Endocytosis has been recently implicated in the signaling network associated with the recognition of microbes by plants. In a previous study, we showed that the elicitor cryptogein was able to induce clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME) in tobacco suspension cells. Herein, we investigate further the induced CME by means of a GFP-tagged clathrin light chain and a CME inhibitor, the hub domain of clathrin heavy chain. Hub constitutive expression does affect neither cell growth nor constitutive endocytosis but abolishes cryptogein-induced CME. Such an inhibition has no impact on early events in the cryptogein signaling pathway but reduces the expression of defense-associ…
AtCCS is a functional homolog of the yeast copper chaperone Ccs1/Lys7
2005
AbstractIn plant chloroplasts two superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities occur, FeSOD and Cu/ZnSOD, with reciprocal regulation in response to copper availability. This system presents a unique model to study the regulation of metal-cofactor delivery to an organelle. The Arabidopsis thaliana gene AtCCS encodes a functional homolog to yeast Ccs1p/Lys7p, a copper chaperone for SOD. The AtCCS protein was localized to chloroplasts where it may supply copper to the stromal Cu/ZnSOD. AtCCS mRNA expression levels are upregulated in response to Cu-feeding and senescence. We propose that AtCCS expression is regulated to allow the most optimal use of Cu for photosynthesis.
Simple learning rules to cope with changing environments
2008
10 pages; International audience; We consider an agent that must choose repeatedly among several actions. Each action has a certain probability of giving the agent an energy reward, and costs may be associated with switching between actions. The agent does not know which action has the highest reward probability, and the probabilities change randomly over time. We study two learning rules that have been widely used to model decision-making processes in animals-one deterministic and the other stochastic. In particular, we examine the influence of the rules' 'learning rate' on the agent's energy gain. We compare the performance of each rule with the best performance attainable when the agent …