Interactions Among Wx Genes and Effects of a Mutated Wx‐D1e Allele on Starch Properties in Wheat

The waxy mutant wheat Tanikei A6599‐4 contains little amylose and exhibits a stable hot paste viscosity. It has null alleles at the Wx‐A1 and Wx‐B1 loci and a mutated allele at the Wx‐D1 locus (Wx‐D1e). From the cross‐combination of Kanto 123 (normal amylose line) and Tanikei A6599‐4, 51 DH (doubled haploid) lines were produced and their genotypes were determined by SDS‐PAGE and a derived cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence (dCAPS) analysis. Eight genotypes were obtained at the expected ratio. Using a Rapid Visco Analyser (RVA), all the lines with the same genotype as Tanikei A6599‐4 showed a stable hot paste viscosity. The other lines did not show a stable hot paste viscosity regardless of the presence of the Wx‐D1e allele. When two genotypes with the same Wx‐A1 and Wx‐B1 alleles were compared, the one with Wx‐D1e contained less amylose and exhibited a lower final viscosity and a lower setback with RVA. Although the Wx‐D1e allele produces an almost inactive Wx protein, these findings suggest that this allele contributes at some level to starch synthesis.     

Relationships between ammonia oxidizers and N2O and CH4 fluxes in agricultural fields with different soil types

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) is a greenhouse gas that contributes to the destruction of stratospheric ozone, and agricultural soil is an important source of N₂O. Aerobic soils are sinks for atmospheric methane (CH₄), a greenhouse gas. Ammonia monooxygenase (AMO) can oxidize CH₄, but CH₄ is mostly oxidized by methane monooxygenase (MMO), and CH₄ oxidation by AMO is generally negligible in the soil. We monitored the N₂O and CH₄ fluxes after urea application in fields containing different soils using an automated sampling system to determine the effects of environmental and microbial factors on the N₂O and CH₄ fluxes. The soil types were Low-humic Andosol (Gleyic Haplic Andosol), yellow soil (Gleyic Haplic Alisol) and gray lowland soil (Entric Fluvisol). Cumulative N₂O emissions from the yellow soil were higher than those from other soil types, although the difference was not significant. The CH₄ uptake level by Andosol was one order of magnitude higher than that by other soils. There were significant relationships between the ammonia oxidation potential, AOB and AOA amoA copy numbers, and the CH₄ uptake. In contrast, the gene copy numbers of methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) pmoA were below the detection limit. Our results suggested that the AMOs of AOB and AOA may have more important roles than those previously considered during CH₄ oxidation in agricultural soils treated with N fertilizers.     

Upregulation of the genes for ferritin,RNase, and DnaJ in leaves of rice plants in response to sulfur deficiency

Microarray analysis was carried out with mRNAs isolated from aerial portions of rice plants subjected to sulfur deficiency. Among the candidate clones regulated by sulfur deficiency, three genes were identified by northern analysis that showed altered levels of mRNA accumulation. Genes similar to those for ferritin, S-like ribonuclease, and DnaJ-like protein were down-, down-, and upregulated by sulfate deficiency, respectively. These genes were found for the first time to be responsive to sulfur nutrition in the present study.     

Mobilization of the active transposon mPing in interspecific hybrid rice between Oryza sativa and O. glaberrima

Miniature Ping (mPing) is the first active miniature inverted-repeat transposable element to be identified in rice, and its mobilization is activated by stress treatments. We have examined the mobilization of mPing in four NERICA (New Rice for Africa) lines and 13 interspecific lines. All 17 lines are inbred progenies derived from crosses between Oryza sativa variety WAB56-104 as the recurrent parent and the O. glaberrima variety CG14 as the donor parent. We found that 16 of the 17 lines studied inherited mPing together with its autonomous partner, Pong, from WAB56-104. Transposon display of mPing disclosed polymorphic banding patterns among these lines. Most importantly, seven of the lines displayed clear polymorphic banding patterns for mPing, indicating that mPing might have been mobilized in these lines. Locus-specific PCR analysis also confirmed the mobilization of mPing. These results signify that interspecific hybridization may activate the transposition of mPing. Based on these results, we discuss the potential use of the mPing system as an efficient tool for gene tagging in interspecific hybrid rice.     

Factors associated with antimicrobial-resistant Escherichia coli in zoo animals

Factors associated with the carriage of antimicrobial-resistant Escherichia coli isolates were analysed among zoo animals. An association was observed between selection of amoxicillin as the first-line therapy and a significantly higher percentage of resistance to ampicillin (54.5%) from 11 animals treated with antimicrobials, compared with isolates from 32 untreated animals (9.4%). In addition, the percentage resistance to kanamycin (36.4%), gentamicin (27.3%), trimethoprim (27.3%) and tetracycline (63.6%) from 11 treated animals was significantly higher than those from 32 untreated animals (3.1%, 3.1%, 3.1% and 25%, respectively), although these antimicrobials were rarely used. All kanamycin-, gentamicin- and trimethoprim-resistant isolates and more than half of the tetracycline-resistant isolates from treated animals were also resistant to ampicillin. Co-resistance to other antimicrobials with ampicillin was suggested to contribute to an increasing of resistance towards antimicrobials that were rarely administered. The present investigation revealed an association of antimicrobial treatment with the spread of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria among zoo animals.     

Accumulation of phosphorylated repressor for gibberellin signaling in an F-box mutant

Gibberellin (GA) regulates growth and development in plants. We isolated and characterized a rice GA-insensitive dwarf mutant, gid2. The GID2 gene encodes a putative F-box protein, which interacted with the rice Skp1 homolog in a yeast two-hybrid assay. In gid2, a repressor for GA signaling, SLR1, was highly accumulated in a phosphorylated form and GA increased its concentration, whereas SLR1 was rapidly degraded by GA through ubiquitination in the wild type. We conclude that GID2 is a positive regulator of GA signaling and that regulated degradation of SLR1 is initiated through GA-dependent phosphorylation and finalized by an SCF(GID2)-proteasome pathway.