A paradoxical effect of 2,4-dinitrophenol in stimulating the rooting of hypocotyl cuttings ofPhaseolus mungo

Summary 2,4-dinitrophenol enhanced root formation on dark-grown hypocotyl cuttings ofPhaseolus mungo. This effect is probably related to uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation and not through IAA-metabolism as is evident from studies with respiratory inhibitors (Cd²⁺) and non-phenolic uncouplers of oxidative phosphorylation (arsenate).The research has been financed by a grant from United States Department of Agriculture.     

IAA oxidase activity in relation to adventitious root formation on stem cuttings of some forest tree species

Summary IAA oxixase activity was very high in stem cuttings ofSalix tetrasperma andPopulus robusta, which rooted profusely, less in stem cuttings ofHibiscus rosa sinensis which rooted less, and insignificant in those ofEucalyptus citriodora which did not root at all. Protein(s) extracted from the stem cuttings ofE. citriodora inhibited the activity of IAA oxidase as well as root formation on hypocotyl cuttings ofPhaseolus mungo. The possibility of involvement of IAA oxidase activity in the process of adventitious root formation is discussed.The research has been financed by a grant from U.S. Department of Agriculture.     

Effect of germination on the glycoprotein of mash (Phaseolus mungo) seeds

Summary The soluble carbohydrates and insoluble proteins ofPhaseolus mungo seeds decreased considerably up to 96 h of germination, whereas the soluble proteins remained nearly constant. The carbohydrates content of glycoprotein also remained constant. This suggests that a negligible change took place in the glycoprotein during the initial period of mash seed germination.     

Comparative study of oxalate oxidase in three genotypes ofSorghum vulgare

Summary The presence of an oxalate oxidase (EC 1.2.3.4) has been demonstrated in 15,000×g supernatants prepared from 10-day-old seedlings of three genotypes ofSorghum vulgare: grain sorghum hybrid (CSH-5), grain-cum-forage sorghum (PC-6) and forage sorghum (PC-1). The specific activity of the enzyme in the different tissues of seedlings was found to be present in the order leaves > stems > roots in PC-6 and PC-1, but this order was reversed in CSH-5. A comparison of the different properties of the leaf enzyme of these three genotypes of sorghum revealed that the enzyme has maximum activity in the acidic pH range from 4.0 to 5.0 and in the temperature range from 37°C to 40°C. The enzyme was stimulated by Cu²⁺ and Fe²⁺. The rate of H₂O₂ formation in the enzyme reaction was linear up to 5 min and was stoichiometrically related to oxalate consumption. The enzyme is unaffected by Na⁺ at physiological concentration (0.15 M). The superiority of this enzyme over moss and other plant enzymes for enzymic determination of urinary oxalate is discussed.     

Identification of (3R,4R)-gD 1(6) as an isolation artefact of cannabinoid acids formed by callus cultures ofCannabis sativa L

Summary For the first time we have isolated a major psychoactive cannabinoid, (3R, 4R)- ¹⁽⁶⁾-tetrahydrocannabinol3 from callus cultures ofCannabis sativa L.3 was obtained as an artefact of the actually formed (3R, 4R)- ¹-tetrahydrocannabinol-3- and/or 5-carboxylic acids1 and2 by subjecting the culture material to a decarboxylation step prior to extraction. No attempt was made to isolated acids1 and2. The identity of3 was confirmed by comparison with an authentic sample of (3R, 4R)- ¹-tetrahydrocannabinol. Culture conditions, isolation procedure and identification of the cannabinoid are described.Acknowledgment. The authors are greatly indebted to Dr W. Heller and Dr G. Schroeder-Frey for deriving the callus cultures from seedlings ofC. sativa and to Prof. N. Amrhein for valuable gifts of culture media and growth regulators.     

In vitro flowering of orange jessamine (Murraya paniculata (L.) Jack)

Branch internodes ofMurraya paniculata flowered in vitro on half-strength MT medium containing 5% sucrose supplemented with cytokinins. The cytokinins only induced vegetative shoots from the epicotyl of seedlings. The highest percentage of flowering (76.7% of the explants) was achieved from branch internodes of flowering plants close to the apex, on half-strength MT medium containing 5% sucrose and 0.001 mg l¹ benzyladenine (BA) in light. Flowering required two days' exposure to BA, but shoot formation could be initiated even without exposure to BA.     

Evolution des prostates rudimentaires d'Ellobius lutescens (Microtinae) en culture organotypique; action des androgènes

Summary The structure of the rudimentary prostates ofEllobius lutescens is maintained intact after 6 days of organotypic culture inthe absence of male hormones. Comparion with controls even shows a noticeable increase in the size of the epithelial cells. Adding male hormones to the culture medium does not modify the morphology of adult prostates, while it induces a sharp stimulation of immature prostates. In accordance with our previous results, these experiments show that the prostates ofEllobius lutescens lose their sensivity to androgens after puberty

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Ce travil a pu être réalisé grâce au Fonds n^o3919072 attribué par le Fonds National Suisse de la Recherche Scientifique et à la contribution du Fonds Klaraz.     

The cephalopod heart: The evolution of a high-performance invertebrate pump

Cephalopods typically have high metabolic rates. They have blood in which the oxygen carrier is haemocyanin, a pigment that is found only in solution and which never seems to be present in concentrations that will transport more than 4–5 vols % of oxygen. Their hearts must in consequence have very high cardiac outputs. In this account the performance of the heart ofNautilus, the only surviving ectocochleate, is contrasted with the performance of the hearts of coleoids,Octopus which has a relatively low metabolic rate (for a coleoid) and squids which have very high oxygen uptakes by any standards. In all these animals, heartbeat frequency is temperature-dependent and the additional oxygen demand in exercise is met very largely by a 2–3-fold increase in stroke volume. With the exception ofNautilus, cephalopods tend to utilise nearly all of the oxygen transported in the blood even at rest; they show very limited factorial scopes. Specific power output has, however, increased dramatically from 2.7 mWg^–1 in an activeNautilus to 5.5 mWg^–1 inOctopus and up to 20 or 30 mWg^–1 in species ofLoligo. The increase is almost entirely due to a 10-fold increase in heartbeat frequency. It is argued that frequency cannot be used as a means of responding to extra demand in an animal that must also carry automatic compensation for changes in metabolic rate dependent upon the ambient temperature, and that the use of frequency in some squid may be associated with a reduced temperature tolerance. Cephalopod systemic hearts do not scale directly with body mass, like the hearts of fish and the higher vertebrates. Smaller cephalopods have relatively larger hearts (as Mass^0.9). A typical 100-g coleoid would have a heart mass of 0.15 g. Oegopsid squids appear to be exceptional with hearts twice as large.     

Constituents of Egyptian Euphorbiaceae. IX. Irritant and cytotoxic ingenane esters fromEuphorbia paralias L.

Summary The irritant and cytotoxic constituents of the latex ofEuphorbia paralias L. were separated from the hydrocarbon fraction by means of solvent partition. 3 new ingenane esters were identified from the toxic ether fraction. The major compound was 3-angelyl-20-deoxyingenol and the 2 minor compounds were 3-hexanoyl-20-deoxyingenol and 3-angelylingenol. These compounds were of a similar potency to podophyllin in the inhibition of³H-thymidine uptake by TLX/5 mouse lymphoma cells. In addition the compounds produced a persistent erythema of the mouse ear in sub-microgram doses.Acknowledgments. F.J. Evans is grateful to the Royal Society for a travel grant.     

Vegetation structure and primary production in acidified lakes in southwestern Sweden

Summary Research during the last two decades has clearly pointed out that dramatic ecosystem changes have occured in lakes due to deposition of acid substances and decreased pH. Today a large number of lakes and running waters in Scandinavia are suffering biological damage with disappearing fish populations, overgrowth of the bottom by mosses and filamentous algae, reduced invertebrate fauna, increased transparency etc.—Of all documented biological changes the effect on macrophyte succession, in particular that ofSphagnum, is the most striking effect. Along with the growth of filamentous algae, these changes have brought about major shifts in the composition of the primary producers. The biomass in one lake was estimated to be 6.5 t (dry wt) corresponding to about 24 g m^–2, the relevant proportions being 52% forSphagnum, 34% forLobelia and 15% forIsoetes. Percentage production in the whole lake is 54% forSphagnum, 29% forLobelia and 17% forIsoetes, which gives an estimated production of 2.9 t yr^–1 or 9 g m^–2 yr^–1.Sphagnum is a recent flora element and its occurrence is related to the acidification of the lakes. The investigations also show that the growth ofLobelia is reduced in acid lakes compared to other oligotrophic lakes due to shading by the benthic mat of filamentous algae, detritus andSphagnum debris.—One can conclude that there are several quantitative and qualitative changes in the macrophyte community which are related to acidification. One can also conclude that liming of lakes cause elimination ofSphagnum and some increase in the production ofIsoetids.     

Action de la capsicine sur la multiplication et la virulence de l'Agrobacterium tumefaciens

Summary It was established that the treatment of liquid cultures ofAgrobacterium tumefaciens with capsicine (in doses of 0.0025–0.01) in the course of 6 h, causes a more abundant and quicker multiplication of the micro-organism and an increase of its virulence, as measured by the method ofBernaerts andDe Ley.     

Rana esculenta complex: An experimental analysis of lethality and hybridogenesis

Summary Experiments designed to analyze the lethality and hybridogenesis in the European green frog complex have yielded the following results: 1. As a rule the inter-se cross ofRana esculenta is lethal, but several crosses have produced fully viable progeny. The frequency of such break-through crosses appears to be related to parental population structure. 2. Parabiotic joining of lethal to viable embryos indicates that manifestation of the lethal effect is autonomous. There is, however, a 16–18% increase in the life span of the lethal partner. 3. Studies of LDH isozyme patterns revealed that thelessonae-specific alleles coding for the B^a and B^c subunits can be passed to the F₁ progeny from a parental female or male of theesculenta phenotype. This demonstrates that there is no total elimination of thelessonae genome in theesculenta germ cells. 4. Immunologically, offspring from the inter-se cross ofR. esculenta show a closer relationship to theridibunda than to theesculenta phenotype. Variations of antigenic protein patterns suggest the possibility of chromosomal recombination betweenlessonae andridibunda in theesculenta hybrid. These results are confirmed by two-dimensional electrophoretic analysis of proteins in the oocytes of the three frog phenotypes.This work was supported by grants from the Swiss National Science Foundation and the Georges and Antoine Claraz Schenkung.     

A potent attractant of zoospores ofAphanomyces cochlioides isolated from its host,Spinacia oleracea

A highly potent attractant of zoospores ofAphanomyces cochlioides, a causal fungus of the root rot disease of spinach (Spinacia oleracea), was isolated from spinach roots, and its structure was determined by spectroscopic evidence and chemical synthesis as cochliophilin A (5-hydroxy-6,7-methylenedioxyflavone,1). A chromosorb particle prepared by soaking in solution of1 showed a potent attracting activity toward the zoospores using concentrations of1 above 10^–9 or 10^–10 M.     

Decrease of serum alpha-tocopherol levels in rabbits after acute treatment withΔ 9-tetrahydrocannabinol

Summary The i.v. administration of 10 mg of ⁹-THC in rabbits produced, after 24 h, a 50% reduction of the initial values of serum alpha-tocopherol.Grant of the Italian Ministry of Health, Service of Social Medicine; thanks are due to Dr O. J. Braenden, Director, UN Narcotics Laboratory at Geneva, for the gift of pure ⁹-THC.     

Effects of the adenylate cyclase activator forskolin and its inactive derivative 1,9-dideoxyforskolin on insect cytochrome P-450 dependent steroid hydroxylase activity

The adenylate cyclase activator forskolin and its pharmacologically inactive derivative 1,9-dideoxyforskolin were found to inhibit in a dose-dependent fashion the ecdysone 20-monooxygenase activity associated with wandering stage larvae ofDrosophila melanogaster and fat body and midgut from last instar larvae of the tobacco hornworm,Manduca sexta. The concentrations of these labdane diterpenes required to elicit a 50% inhibition of the cytochrome P-450 dependent steroid hydroxylase activity in the insect tissues ranged from approximately 5×10^–6 to 5×10^–4 M.     

Release of oxidases from the roots of plants

Summary In this paper, we report on the isolation and purification of the oxidase released from the roots ofLactuca sativa seedlings. This is the first time that the release of oxidases from the roots of plants into their rhizosphere has been reported.     

Induction of chromosome aberrations and chlorophyll mutations in plants by methylisocyanate (MIC) gas

Summary Seeds ofSolanum surattense Burm. f. collected from areas of Bhopal (India) affected by methylisocyanate gas showed chromosome aberrations in root cells, and growth retardation and chlorophyll mutation of seedlings, the frequencies of which varied from one locality to another.     

Photodynamic sensitizers assay: rapid and sensitive iodometric measurement

A rapid, sensitive and simple spectrophotometric method for the detection of¹O₂ produced by photodynamic photosensitizers in slightly acid and air-saturated aqueous solutions has been developed. The method is based on the reaction of¹O₂ (produced by photodynamic processes) with I^– in the presence of ammonium molybdate as a catalyst. The reaction product I₃ ^–, proportional to¹O₂, is followed spectrophotometrically at 355 nm. Several ways of avoiding interference with other oxidizing compounds, either present before or produced during the irradiation, are described.The method could be used to measure the efficiency of water-soluble photodynamic photosensitizers.     

Changes in IAA oxidase activity in rooting hypocotyl cuttings ofPhaseolus mungo L.

Summary IAA oxidase activity increased concomitant with root initiation during 16–52 h, in all cultures, thus showing the necessity of an active IAA oxidase for root initiation inPhaseolus mungo hypocotyl cuttings. The increase being very sharp in IAA alone, but less in all other cultures. The role of sucrose in root initiation via IAA oxidase activity has been discussed.The research has been partly financed by a grant from the US Department of Agriculture. One of us (R.N.C.) is thankful to the CSIR, India, for financial assistance.