High-throughput screening reveals small molecule modulators inhibitory to Acidovorax citrulli

Acidovorax citrulli is a seed-transmitted gram-negative bacterium that can cause substantial economic yield loss in watermelon and melon production worldwide. Four small-molecule libraries containing 4,952 compounds were selected for high-throughput screening against A. citrulli wild-type strain Xu3-14 by evaluation of growth inhibition. One hundred and twenty-seven molecules (2.5% hit rate) were identified as bactericidal or bacteriostatic against A. citrulli at 100 μM. Secondary screens indicated that 27 candidate compounds were more effective against A. citrulli Group II strains than Group I strains (classified using repetitive element PCR). Several compounds were inhibitory to other pathogenic bacteria, including Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis and Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris, but did not affect the growth of plant beneficial bacteria Pseudomonas fluorescens and Bacillus subtilis. More than half of the compounds did not inhibit germination of Arabidopsis or watermelon seeds. The effect of small molecules on A. citrulli seed-to-seedling transmission was evaluated by applying each compound to inoculated watermelon seeds and assessing seedling infection. Nine compounds were chosen for further investigation based on their reduction of percentage seedling infection and compiling scores on their specificity, sensitivity, and phytotoxicity obtained in the secondary screens. The five best compounds were selected (thiamphenicol, nadifloxacin, pipemidic acid, ciclopirox, and zinc pyrithione) for greenhouse tests and were found to effectively reduce the seed-to-seedling transmission of A. citrulli in both artificially and naturally infested seeds. These top five compounds provide a basis for future development of an A. citrulli-specific bactericide.     

Antimicrobial activity of Ixora coccinea leaves

Ether and methanol extracts of Ixora coccinea dry leaves were tested for their antimicrobial activity. Ether fraction was found to be more active than the methanol fraction.     

Enzymatic grafting of peptides from casein hydrolysate to chitosan. Potential for value-added byproducts from food-processing wastes

Tyrosinase was used to initiate the grafting of peptides onto the amine-containing polysaccharide chitosan. Chemical evidence for covalent grafting was obtained from electrospray mass spectrometry for products formed from reactions with glucosamine (the monomeric unit of chitosan) and the model dipeptide Tyr-Ala. When this model dipeptide was incubated with tyrosinase and chitosan, there was a marked increase in the viscosity of the solution. This viscosity increase provides physical evidence that tyrosinase can initiate peptide grafting onto the chitosan backbone. A peptide-modified chitosan derivative was generated by reacting chitosan (0.32 w/v%) with acid-hydrolyzed casein (0.5 w/v %) using tyrosinase. After reaction, the peptide-modified chitosan was partially purified and dissolved in an aqueous acetic acid solution. Low concentrations of this peptide-modified chitosan were observed to confer viscoelastic properties to the solutions. Specifically they conferred high viscosities and shear thinning properties to the solutions, and solutions containing only 1 w/w % of the peptide-modified chitosan behaved as weak gels. Thus, tyrosinase provides a simple and safe way to convert food-processing byproducts into environmentally friendly products that offer useful functional properties. The selectivity of tyrosinase and the relatively high reactivity of chitosan's amines allow grafting to be performed with uncharacterized peptide mixtures present in crude hydrolysates.     

Model system for testing the efficacy of antioxidants in muscle foods

The objective of this research was to study the effect of the antioxidants, delta-tocopherol, butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), tertiary butylhydroquinone (TBHQ), and propyl gallate in a model system of lean muscle and canola oil and to compare the effects with those in minced herring. Two carrier solvents with different dielectric constants (epsilon), ethanol (epsilon = 24) and oil (epsilon= 2), were used. Oxidation was measured using thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and sensory analysis. In both the lean muscle-canola oil model system and in herring muscle, the hydrophilic antioxidants, propyl gallate and TBHQ, were more effective in providing oxidative stability than the lipophilic antioxidants, delta-tocopherol and BHT. The oxidative stability of a cod muscle-canola oil system in the presence of propyl gallate, and delta-tocopherol was not affected by the dielectric constant of the carrier solvent, while BHA was more effective as an antioxidant when added in the polar solvent ethanol.     

Conformational and rheological changes in catfish myosin as affected by different acids during acid-induced unfolding and refolding

Changes in the conformation of catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) myosin due to (i) anions, (ii) acid pH, and (iii) salt addition were determined using tryptophan fluorescence, hydrophobicity measurements, differential scanning calorimetry, and circular dichroism. The relationship between conformation and storage modulus (G') of acid-treated myosin was studied. Three acids, HCl, H2SO4, and H3PO4, were used for unfolding myosin at three acidic pH conditions, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5. Unfolded myosin was refolded to pH 7.3. Denaturation and unfolding of myosin was significantly (p < 0.05) lower when salt (0.6 M NaCl) was present during acid unfolding than in the absence of salt. When salt was added before unfolding, the alpha-helix content of myosin treated at pH 1.5 was significantly lower than that treated at pH 2.5. When salt was added after refolding, the alpha-helix content of myosin was unaffected by different pH treatments. The G' of myosin increased with an increase in myosin denaturation. The G' of myosin was significantly (p < 0.05) higher when salt was added to myosin after refolding than before acid unfolding. Among the different anion treatments, the G' of acid-treated myosin decreased in the order Cl- approximately SO42- > PO43-. Among the different pH treatments, the G' of myosin treated at pH 1.5 was significantly (p < 0.05) higher than myosin treated at pH 2.5. The conditions that would result in maximum myosin denaturation and maximum G' were unfolding of myosin at pH 1.5 using Cl- (from HCl) followed by refolding at pH 7.3 and subsequent addition of 0.6 M NaCl.     

Growth and proximate composition of the Chaetoceros calcitrans f. pumilus under different temperature, salinity and carbon dioxide levels

The marine diatom Chaetoceros calcitrans f. pumilus has been examined for its potential source as live feed in aquaculture. The present study investigated effects of temperature (20, 25 and 30 °C), salinity (25 and 35) and carbon dioxide addition (air+CO₂) on the growth and proximate composition of C. calcitrans under laboratory conditions. The growth and biomass of C. calcitrans were primarily affected by carbon dioxide addition, and to a lesser extent by temperature and salinity. In general, lipid and carbohydrate contents were higher at lower temperatures (20 and 25 °C), while the protein content was unaffected. Carbon dioxide addition increased protein, while lowering carbohydrates, but had no effect on lipid content. Carbohydrates were increased while lipids and protein decreased at the highest salinity (35±0.9). These results should be taken into consideration when evaluating the dietary value of this micro alga for aquaculture.     

Hydraulic characteristics of conventionally and zero-tilled field plots

A silage corn crop was grown on field plots entering their 2nd-year cycle of zero tillage, and on control plots representing traditional tillage practices. Concurrent measurements of soil matric suction and water content were made under transient conditions of a draining profile without evaporation. The results indicated some similarity in the soil moisture characteristics of the untilled soils which produced high crop yields. The time rate of change of soil water content, the root extraction rate and the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity were always smaller in the zero-tilled plots than in the conventionally tilled plots.     

Environmental risk factors for equine West Nile virus disease cases in Texas

West Nile Virus (WNV) was first detected in the Texas equine population during June 2002. Infection has since spread rapidly across the state and become endemic in the equine population. Environmental risk factors associated with equine WNV attack rates in Texas counties during the period 2002 to 2004 were investigated. Equine WNV attack rates were smoothed using an empirical Bayesian model, because of the variability among county equine populations (range 46−9,517). Risk factors investigated included hydrological features (lakes, rivers, swamps, canals and river basins), land cover (tree, mosaic, shrub, herbaceous, cultivated and artificial), elevation, climate (rainfall and temperature), and reports of WNV-positive mosquito and wild bird samples. Estimated county equine WNV attack rate was best described by the number of lakes, presence of broadleaf deciduous forest, presence of cultivated areas, location within the Brazos River watershed, WNV-positive mosquito status and average temperature. An understanding of environmental factors that increase equine WNV disease risk can be used to design and target disease control programs.     

Global Bibliometric Analysis of the Research in Biochar

Global interest in studying biochar stems from its ability to sequester carbon in soil and render nutrients and moisture more readily available to root systems. Therefore, a bibliometric analysis was conducted to investigate global scientific publications related to biochar research, providing insight into the number of articles published, journal platforms, subjects, citations, and overall trends. The primary databases employed were the Web of Science and Science Citation Index. A total of 1,697 articles published between 2000 and 2015 were evaluated. This systematic bibliometric analysis will assist research groups and individuals to understand global biochar research trends and focus future research. The influence of biochar on soil, plants, and the environment continues to require greater attention.     

Extraction and colorimetric determination of azadirachtin-related limonoids in neem seed kernel.

A colorimetric method was developed for the determination of total azadirachtin-related limonoids (AZRL) in neem seed kernel extracts. The method employed acidified vanillin solution in methanol for the colorization of the standard azadirachtin or neem seed kernel extracts in dichloromethane. Through the investigation of various factors influencing the sensitivity of detection, such as the concentration of vanillin, acid, and the time required for the formation of color, optimum conditions were selected to perform the assay. Under the optimum conditions, a good linearity was found between the absorbance at 577 nm and the concentration of standard azadirachtin solution in the range of 0.01-0.10 mg/mL. In addition, different extraction procedures were evaluated using the vanillin assay. The HPLC analysis of the extracts indicated that if the extractions were performed in methanol followed by partitioning in dichloromethane, approximately 50% of the value determined by the vanillin assay represents azadirachtin content.