Uptake, accumulation and translocation mechanisms of organophosphate esters in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) following foliar exposure.

Organophosphate esters (OPEs) have been frequently detected in crops. However, few studies have focused on the uptake and translocation of OPEs in plants following foliar exposure. Herein, to investigate the foliar uptake, accumulation and translocation mechanisms of OPEs in plant, the cucumber (Cucumis sativus) was selected as a model plant for OPEs exposure via foliar application under control conditions. The results showed that the content of OPEs in the leaf cuticle was higher than that in the mesophyll on exposed leaf. Significant positive correlations were observed between the content of OPEs in the leaf cuticle and their log Kow and log Kcw values (P < 0.01), suggesting that OPEs with high hydrophobicity could not easily move from the cuticle to the mesophyll. The moderately hydrophobic OPEs, such as tris (2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate (TCPP, log Kow = 2.59), were more likely to move not only from the cuticle to the mesophyll but also from the mesophyll to the phloem. The majority of the transported OPEs accumulated in younger leaves (32-45 %), indicating that younger tissue was the primary target organ for OPEs accumulation after foliar exposure. Compared to chlorinated OPEs (except TCPP) and aryl OPEs, alkyl OPEs exhibited the strongest transport capacity in cucumber seedling due to their high hydrophilicity. Interestingly, tri-p-cresyl phosphate was found to be more prone to translocation compared to tri-m-cresyl phosphate and tri-o-cresyl phosphate, despite having same molecular weight and similar log Kow value. These results can contribute to our understanding of foliar uptake and translocation mechanism of OPEs by plant.

Root Uptake Pathways and Cell Wall Accumulation Mechanisms of Organophosphate Esters in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).

The behavior of organophosphate esters (OPEs) in plants has drawn considerable attention because of their adverse effects to biota. However, the root uptake pathways and cell wall accumulation mechanisms of OPEs in plants are still unclear. In this study, the uptake pathways, subcellular distribution, and accumulation mechanisms of OPEs in wheat roots were elucidated. The results demonstrated that the symplast is the major pathway for uptake of both tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) and triphenyl phosphate (TPHP) in wheat roots. Inhibitor experiments showed that the transmembrane transport of OPEs is a passive uptake process, and aquaporins and carrier proteins contribute to the uptake of OPEs. More than 69% of TCEP was accumulated in cell sap due to its high hydrophilicity, while the hydrophobic TPHP was mainly stored in the root cell wall. The sorption affinity of TPHP decreased gradually following the sequential fractionation of wheat roots, which confirmed the significant contribution to TPHP sorption on wheat roots. A significant positive correlation between the sorption affinity values and the percentage of aromatic carbon was observed (r2 = 0.856, p < 0.01), indicating that the accumulation of hydrophobic OPEs in roots does not just depend on lipids alone, but the aromatic moieties of lignin in the cell wall also contribute to OPE accumulation.

Study of measurement methods on phenotype of translucent eggs.

Scoring is a common method to evaluate eggshell translucency, and it mainly depends on the area and the density of translucent spots in eggshells. However, the lack of common scoring criteria and the difficulty of quantitatively measuring spots in eggshells impede effective comparisons between research papers and greatly hinder the progress of research on translucent eggshell. To make measurement of translucent eggshells more objective, we optimized the scoring method and compared it with 2 new methods: grayscale recognition and the colorimeter method. Briefly, a total of 354 eggs from 600, 395-day-old dwarf brown laying hens were collected and classified into 4 score groups according to their degree of translucency. This subjective process was repeated 5 times. Then, we captured the profile side of each egg using a camera and measured spot characteristics using grayscale recognition, which involved measuring the quantity of spots (QS), diameter of each spot (DS), average area of each spot (AAES), sum of spot areas (SUSA), sum of shell area (SUSHA), and ratio of SUSA to SUSHA (RSS) on the eggshell. Furthermore, the L, A, and B values of each egg at the sharp, middle, and blunt ends were separately measured using a colorimeter. As a result, average values of 31.31, 29.78, 29.81, and 9.08% of all eggs were divided into score levels 1, 2, 3, and 4 (from opaque to translucent), which correspond with RSS values of 1.34, 3.23, 6.21, and 11.89%, respectively. By grayscale recognition, QS, DS, AAES, SUSA, SUSHA, and RSS all increased along with increased translucency scores (P < 0.05). Using scoring, an egg with a specific RSS value was more easily assigned to a specific score level (50%) or adjacent score levels (50%). The L, A, and B values of eggshells in score level 1 were significantly different from those of eggshells in levels 3 or 4; however, there were no significant differences between any adjacent score levels. In summary, the present study explored objective reference metrics to measure eggshell translucency.

Cadmium-induced cell killing in Sacharomyces cerevisiae involves increases in intracellular NO levels.

Cadmium is a widespread environmental pollutant and poses some potential risks to human health. However, the signaling events controlling cadmium toxicity are not fully understood. In this study, we examined the effect of cadmium chloride on cell viability and the intracellular nitric oxide (NO) level in yeast cells. The results showed that exposure of yeast cells to cadmium (0-100 µM) could induce cell killing with significantly increased intracellular NO levels. Morphological analysis of the nuclei with 4('),6-diamidino-2-phenylindole staining and DNA strand breaks analysis showed that cadmium at 50 µM can induce cell apoptosis in yeast cells. Treatment of yeast cells with cadmium (50 µM) and the nitric oxide scavenger c-PTIO [2-(4-carboxyphenyl)-4,4,5,5-teramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide; 0.2 mM] showed that c-PTIO attenuated the cadmium-induced cell killing. Our findings indicated that cadmium-induced yeast cell killing is mediated by a directly increased intracellular NO level.

Targeted anti-colon cancer activities of a millet bran-derived peroxidase were mediated by elevated ROS generation.

Foxtail millet (Setaria italica) is the sixth most important cereal in the world. In particular, the millet-derived active components play important roles in disease prevention. In this study, we found that a peroxidase from foxtail millet bran, named FMBP, displayed profound inhibitory effects on the growth of human colon cancer cells, but not on that of the normal colon epithelial cells. Mechanistic investigations suggested that the selective anti-cancer effects of FMBP were mainly achieved by inducing more accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in colon cancer cells than normal cells. The preferential ROS accumulation in cancer cells by FMBP appears to be partially attributed to the down-regulation of NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) expression, and the reduction of catalase activities and glutathione contents. The increased ROS accumulation is speculated to block the STAT3 signaling pathway, which results in the anti-proliferative effects on colon cancer cells. Therefore, these results suggest that the millet bran-derived peroxidase has a therapeutic potential in the management of colon cancer.

Thermopower and specific heat of the organic molecular salt (TMTSF)(2)ClO(4): observation of the narrow band response.

Measurements of thermopower S(a)(T) along the highly conducting a axis and specific heat of the Bechgaard salts (TMTSF)(2)ClO(4) for various cooling rates through the anion ordering temperature T(a) = 24 K were carried out. Sign reversal in S(a)(T) is found below T(a) and it decreases with increasing cooling rate, which is attributed to the change of a narrow band filling level as the temperature and the cooling rates change. The crossover from 2D to 3D in S(a)(T) is observed around 15 K. The onset temperature of anion ordering in S(a)(T) decreases from 29.8 to 24.2 K as the cooling rate increases. Meanwhile, the electronic specific heat coefficient γ has a pronounced change within this temperature region, giving strong evidence for a narrow band contribution. The difference in the specific heat between the quenched and relaxed states follows a T-cubic law from 5 to 24 K, implying a lattice distortion by the ordered anion only. The entropy estimated from the specific heat peak between 28 and 15 K is Rln (4/3) lower than the value Rln2, consistent with the thermopower result that some anions have been ordered far above T(a) for the relaxed state.