The phytotoxins ofMycosphaerella fijiensis,the causative agent of Black Sigatoka disease of bananas and plantains

Black Sigatoka is the most costly to control disease of bananas and plantains in the world. Currently, a worldwide search is underway either to find or to produce cultivars that are disease-resistant or-tolerant. Phytotoxins isolated from the pathogen might facilitate the discovery of such cultivars. Several aromatic compounds from liquid cultures ofMycosphaerella fijiensis, the causal agent of Black Sigatoka disease of bananas and plantains, have been isolated. The most abundant and phytotoxic of these compounds is 2,4,8-trihydroxytetralone, which induces necrotic lesions at 5 g/5 l in less than 12 h on sensitive cultivars of bananas. This compound exhibits host-selectivity that mimics that of the pathogen. Other phytotoxins isolated from this fungus, in lesser amounts, were juglone, the novel compound 2-carboxy-3-hydroxycinnamic acid, isoochracinic acid and 4-hydroxyscytalone. Some of the phytotoxins isolated are melanin shunt pathway metabolites, which makes this fungus unique among plant pathogens.     

Pharmacological versus binding analysis of receptor systems: How do they interplay? Myometrial cell receptors for oxytocin as a paradigm

Summary Binding studies in various biological systems frequently indicate the presence of several binding sites for a biologically active ligand. They differ in their affinity for the ligand in question, binding capacity, and Hill coefficient, which suggests differences in the mechanisms of the binding site-ligand interactions. Identification of the true receptors (sites initiating a cellular response) appears to be difficult. Three clusters of binding sites for oxytocin were found on rat myometrial cells. The oxytocin receptor seems to be linked to the medium-affinity site; the cooperation between the high-and medium-affinity sites in eliciting the uterotonic response seems likely, but lacks experimental proof. Dose-response analysis in partially irreversibly inhibited uterus preparations, the method of equipotent doses (Furchgott-Bursztyn method), and structure-activity analysis of oxytocin-like peptides acting as competitive inhibitors of oxytocin, turned out to be suitable for pharmacological analysis of this receptor system.     

Tamoxifen ‘sex reverses’ alligator embryos at male producing temperature,but is an antiestrogen in female hatchlings

Summary Tamoxifen is an anticancer drug widely used in the treatment of estrogen-dependent breast cancer. In hatchling alligators it acts as a pure antiestrogen in that it completely blocks the effect of estradiol-induced oviductal hypertrophy and completely blocks the estradiol-induced hepatic vitellogenin secretion. Paradoxically, when injected into alligator eggs incubated at 33°C, a temperature which would normally result in 100% male hatchlings, tamoxifen sex reverses the embryos into apparently normal female hatchlings.     

Identification and possible biological relevance of spermatozoal transglutaminase

Summary Normal human spermatozoa were demonstrated by dot immunoblot analysis and immunohistochemistry to possess transglutaminase (TGase). The immunological identification of spermatozoal TGase is consistent with reports by others of its biochemical identification and suggested role in sperm motility,and provides, in view of the immunoregulatory properties of seminal plasma TGase, presumptive identification of a means whereby spermatozoa, under normal physiological conditions, may possibly be protected from immunological attack within the female reproductive tract.     

Effect of feeding cereal-legume diets to rats on in vitro absorption of45Ca

Summary The in vitro absorption of calcium from the duodenum was significantly less in a group of rats fed on a wheat diet than in a group fed a wheat and Bengal gram (7030) diet.     

Biogenesis of mitochondrial porin: The import pathway

Summary We review here the present knowledge about the pathway of import and assembly of porin into mitochondria and compare it to those of other mitochondrial proteins. Porin, like all outer mitochondrial membrane proteins studied so far is made as a precursor without a cleavble signal sequence; thus targeting information must reside in the mature sequence. At least part of this information appears to be located at the amino-terminal end of the molecule. Transport into mitochondria can occur post-translationally. In a first step, the porin precursor is specifically recognized on the mitochondrial surface by a protease sensitive receptor. In a second step, porin precursor inserts partially into the outer membrane. This step is mediated by a component of the import machinery common to the import pathways of precursor proteins destined for other mitochondrial subcompartments. Finally, porin is assembled to produce the functional oligomeric form of an integral membrane protein wich is characterized by its extreme protease resistance.     

Exogenous fibronectin modifies the aggregation of collagen-stimulated human platelets

Summary Fibronectins (FN) are adhesive glycoproteins whose role in platelet aggregation is unclear. Addition of 3, 6 and 12 g/ml of human plasma FN in vitro to isolated human platelets, which had been freed from plasma FN by gel filtration and subsequently stimulated with collagen, inhibited the last stage of platelet aggregation. With 3 and 6g/ml of FN a shortening of the lag-time was also observed. These data showed that FN may play a role in platelet-collagen interaction as well as in platelet-platelet interaction.     

Nitric oxide-related pancreatic endocrine responses to hyperglycaemia in the conscious calf

Mean plasma insulin concentration was reduced and mean plasma glucose concentration increased following the administration of N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME; 100 mol kg^–1 i.a.) in conscious calves given continuous infusions of exogenous glucose (30–60 mol min^–1 kg^–1 i.v.). It is concluded that the rise in plasma insulin concentration which occurs in these animals in response to glucose is mediated, at least in part, by a nitric oxide-related factor (NOx).     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Naja siamensis</Emphasis>, a cryptic species of venomous snake revealed by mtDNA sequencing

Because of possible variation in venom composition, an understanding of venomous snake systematics is of great importance for the optimization of antivenom treatment of snakebite patients. Intraspecific variation in the morphology of many venomous snakes complicates the definition and indentification of some species when allopatric populations are involved. Selectively neutral or near-neutral mtDNA sequences can reveal evolutionary relationships obscured by ecogenetically-caused morphological variation. We use comparative sequencing of the cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 gene to reveal the existence of a widespread, cryptic species of spiting cobra from southeast Asia. This species,Naja siamensis, is widely sympatric with other Asiatic cobra species. This may be of considerable medical significance, and calls for further research into venom composition in Asiatic cobras.