Trichoderma harzianum Improves Defense Against Fusarium oxysporum by Regulating ROS and RNS Metabolism, Redox Balance, and Energy Flow in Cucumber Roots.

Plant survival in the terrestrial ecosystem is influenced by both beneficial and harmful microbes. Trichoderma spp. are a group of filamentous fungi that promote plant growth and resistance to harmful microbes. Previously, we showed that the genus Trichoderma could effectively suppress Fusarium wilt in cucumber. However, the mechanisms that underlie the effects of the genus Trichoderma on plant defense have not been fully substantiated. Two essential metabolic pathways, such as the ascorbate (AsA)-glutathione (GSH) cycle and the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway (OPPP), have been shown to participate in plant tolerance to biotic stressors; nevertheless, the involvement of these pathways in Trichoderma-induced enhanced defense remains elusive. Here, we show that Trichoderma harzianum could alleviate oxidative and nitrostative stress by minimizing reactive oxygen species (ROS; hydrogen peroxide and superoxide) and reactive nitrogen species (nitric oxide [NO]) accumulation, respectively, under Fusarium oxysporum infection in cucumber roots. The genus Trichoderma enhanced antioxidant potential to counterbalance the overproduced ROS and attenuated the transcript and activity of NO synthase and nitrate reductase. The genus Trichoderma also stimulated S-nitrosylated glutathione reductase activity and reduced S-nitrosothiol and S-nitrosylated glutathione content. Furthermore, the genus Trichoderma enhanced AsA and GSH concentrations and activated their biosynthetic enzymes, γ-GCS and l-galactono-1,4-lactone dehydrogenase. Interestingly, the genus Trichoderma alleviated Fusarium-inhibited activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase, enzymes involved in the OPPP. Such positive regulation of the key enzymes indicates the adequate maintenance of the AsA-GSH pathway and the OPPP, which potentially contributed to improve redox balance, energy flow, and defense response. Our study advances the current knowledge of Trichoderma-induced enhanced defense against F. oxysporum in cucumber.

[Establishment of the detection method for two causative genes of cattle arachnomelia syndrome].

Arachnomelia syndrome (AS) is a recessive inherited disease in cattle. Although the arachnomelia phenotypes are virtually identical in Brown Swiss and Simmental cattle, the causative mutation are different, which are a 1 bp insertion c.363-364insG in the sulfite oxidase (SUOX) gene and a 2 bp deletion c.1224_1225delCA in the molybdenum cofactor syn-thesis step 1 (MOCS1) gene, respectively. In the current study, combining fluorescence PCR with capillary electrophoresis technology, an automatic fluorescence method was established, which could detect the two causative loci rapidly and cor-rectly with a single reaction. Samples from 51 Simmental bulls, 80 cows mated artificially using semen of Simmental bulls and their resulted 106 progeny, together with 55 Xinjiang Brown were collected and used for validation of the newly de-signed methods. Our results have laid a foundation for screening AS disease causing mutations in Chinese cattle.

Cultural studies coupled with DNA based sequence analyses and its implication on pigmentation as a phylogenetic marker in Pestalotiopsis taxonomy.

Previous phylogenetic studies based on DNA sequence data have partially resolved taxonomic relationships among Pestalotiopsis species. There are still some morphological characters whose phylogenetic significance have not been assessed properly due to limited taxon sampling, in particular the degree of pigmentation of median cells. In this study, the stability of pigmentation of median cells of conidia in Pestalotiopsis species was evaluated in subculture, and a molecular phylogenetic analysis was conducted on 45 strains belonging to 26 species in order to reappraise the pigmentation of median cells for its significance in the taxonomy of Pestalotiopsis. Phylogenetic relationships were inferred from nucleotide sequences in ITS regions (ITS1, 5.8S and ITS2) and ß-tubulin 2 gene (tub2). The results showed that pigmentation of median cells was stable and it could be a key character in the taxonomy of Pestalotiopsis species. Instead of "concolorous" and "versicolor" proposed by Steyeart (1949), "brown to olivaceous" and "umber to fuliginous" are described and proposed in this paper.

[Research advances in endophytic fungi of mangrove].

Mangrove, a kind of special host plants, is a resource of abundant endophytic fungi. More than 200 species of endophytic fungi are isolated and identified from mangrove, being the second largest community of marine fungi. The reported endophytic fungi of mangrove are mainly Alternaria, Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Colletotrichum, Fusarium, Paecilomyces, Penicillium, Pestalotiopsis, Phoma, Phomopsis, Phyllosticta and Trichoderma. Most endophytic fungi have wide range of hosts, and a few only have single host. However, the composition and dominant species on each mangrove plant are different. The colonization of endophytic fungi always varies with different parts (leaves, twigs, stems) and age of host plants and with seasons. The endophytic fungi of mangrove can produce many kinds of metabolites with great potential for anti-microbial and anti-tumor medicinal use. In this paper, the research advances in biodiversity of endophytic fungi in mangrove, their distribution, biological and ecological function, and secondary metabolites were reviewed.

[Effects of salt stress on the growth and the nitrate reductase activity in Thellungiella halophila].

The results showed that when Thellungiella halophila was treated with NaCl, the fresh and dry weight, the water content, the succulency of whole plant and the root/shoot ratio were decreased (Figs. 2-4, 7); the organic matter content in roots was increased and the inorganic matter content in roots was decreased, while those in shoots changed in the opposite direction (Fig. 6); osmotic adjustment ability, the Na+ content, the root activity were increased (Figs. 5, 7, 8); the nitrate reductase activity increased significantly; the O(-)(2*) content decreased at about NaCl 50 mmol/L but increased at about NaCl 100-400 mmol/L (Fig. 10). The micrographs of T. halophila leaf surface by scanning electron microscope (SEM) indicate that there is no salt gland or bladder on the surface of T. halophila (Fig. 1), so it is not a salt-secreting halophyte. The determination of growth parameters, the Na(+) content and Na(+) X-ray (Table 1) microanalysis of T. halophila indicate that T. halophila is not a salt-exclusing halophyte but it probability is a salt-dilution halophyte.

[Osmotica accumulation and its role in osmotic adjustment in Thellungiella halophila under salt stress].

Thellungiella halophila was treated with different concentrations of NaCl (0, 50, 100, 200, 300 and 400 mmol/L). Water content, osmotic potential, various organic and inorganic osmotica contents in the leaves and roots were determined and the calculated osmotic potential (COP) of osmotica in the osmotic adjustment was calculated (Figs.1-10 and Table 1). The result showed that water content, osmotic potential decreased with the increase of salinity; Na(+) and Cl(-) were the accumulated inorganic osmotica in roots and leaves; soluble sugar, organic acid and free amino acid were the accumulated organic osmotica in roots; and proline was the accumulated organic osmotica in both root and leaf. Na(+) X-ray microanalysis indicated that vacuole in the cell was the main organelle of accumulation toxic ions (Table 2).