Cytology of germination of spores of homosporous ferns

Author(s):  
V. Raghavan

SynopsisCertain aspects of the cytology of germination of spores of Anemia phyllitidis and Pteris vittata, with particular reference to the role of nucleic acid synthesis, are reviewed. As studied by autoradiography of 3H-thymidine or 3H-uridine incorporation, spore germination resulting in the formation of the rhizoid and protonemal cell is accompanied by the synthesis of DNA and RNA. Experiments using inhibitors of RNA synthesis on gibberellic acid-induced germination of spores of A. phyllitidis have indicated that dry spores contain conserved mRNA and that gibberellic acid-induced polyadenylation of mRNA occurs during the early phase of germination of spores. Recent demonstrations of the presence of polyadenylated mRNA in dry spores of A. phyllitidis suggest specific roles for both functional, conserved mRNA containing polyadenylic acid, as well as for gibberellic acid-induced polyadenylation of mRNA during the early phase of spore germination.

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 513
Author(s):  
Zheng Zhang ◽  
Meng Gu ◽  
Zhongze Gu ◽  
Yan-Ru Lou

Genetic polymorphisms are defined as the presence of two or more different alleles in the same locus, with a frequency higher than 1% in the population. Since the discovery of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which refer to a non-coding RNA with a length of more than 200 nucleotides, their biological roles have been increasingly revealed in recent years. They regulate many cellular processes, from pluripotency to cancer. Interestingly, abnormal expression or dysfunction of lncRNAs is closely related to the occurrence of human diseases, including cancer and degenerative neurological diseases. Particularly, their polymorphisms have been found to be associated with altered drug response and/or drug toxicity in cancer treatment. However, molecular mechanisms are not yet fully elucidated, which are expected to be discovered by detailed studies of RNA–protein, RNA–DNA, and RNA–lipid interactions. In conclusion, lncRNAs polymorphisms may become biomarkers for predicting the response to chemotherapy in cancer patients. Here we review and discuss how gene polymorphisms of lncRNAs affect cancer chemotherapeutic response. This knowledge may pave the way to personalized oncology treatments.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. i19-i19
Author(s):  
Divya Ravi ◽  
Carmen del Genio ◽  
Haider Ghiasuddin ◽  
Arti Gaur

Abstract Glioblastomas (GBM) or Stage IV gliomas, are the most aggressive of primary brain tumors and are associated with high mortality and morbidity. Patients diagnosed with this lethal cancer have a dismal survival rate of 14 months and a 5-year survival rate of 5.6% despite a multimodal therapeutic approach, including surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. Aberrant lipid metabolism, particularly abnormally active de novo fatty acid synthesis, is recognized to have a key role in tumor progression and chemoresistance in cancers. Previous studies have reported a high expression of fatty acid synthase (FASN) in patient tumors, leading to multiple investigations of FASN inhibition as a treatment strategy. However, none of these have developed as efficacious therapies. Furthermore, when we profiled FASN expression using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) we determined that high FASN expression in GBM patients did not confer a worse prognosis (HR: 1.06; p-value: 0.51) and was not overexpressed in GBM tumors compared to normal brain. Therefore, we need to reexamine the role of exogenous fatty acid uptake over de novofatty acid synthesis as a potential mechanism for tumor progression. Our study aims to measure and compare fatty acid oxidation (FAO) of endogenous and exogenous fatty acids between GBM patients and healthy controls. Using TCGA, we have identified the overexpression of multiple enzymes involved in mediating the transfer and activation of long-chain fatty acids (LCFA) in GBM tumors compared to normal brain tissue. We are currently conducting metabolic flux studies to (1) assess the biokinetics of LCFA degradation and (2) establish exogenous versus endogenous LCFA preferences between patient-derived primary GBM cells and healthy glial and immune cells during steady state and glucose-deprivation.


1959 ◽  
Vol 234 (3) ◽  
pp. 625-627
Author(s):  
Ranjan Mehta ◽  
David A. Vaughan ◽  
Shreepad R. Wagle ◽  
Kendall D. Barbee ◽  
S.P. Mistry ◽  
...  

2006 ◽  
Vol 189 (5) ◽  
pp. 1565-1572 ◽  
Author(s):  
Venkata Ramana Vepachedu ◽  
Peter Setlow

ABSTRACT The release of dipicolinic acid (DPA) during the germination of Bacillus subtilis spores by the cationic surfactant dodecylamine exhibited a pH optimum of ∼9 and a temperature optimum of 60°C. DPA release during dodecylamine germination of B. subtilis spores with fourfold-elevated levels of the SpoVA proteins that have been suggested to be involved in the release of DPA during nutrient germination was about fourfold faster than DPA release during dodecylamine germination of wild-type spores and was inhibited by HgCl2. Spores carrying temperature-sensitive mutants in the spoVA operon were also temperature sensitive in DPA release during dodecylamine germination as well as in lysozyme germination of decoated spores. In addition to DPA, dodecylamine triggered the release of amounts of Ca2+ almost equivalent to those of DPA, and at least one other abundant spore small molecule, glutamic acid, was released in parallel with Ca2+ and DPA. These data indicate that (i) dodecylamine triggers spore germination by opening a channel in the inner membrane for Ca2+-DPA and other small molecules, (ii) this channel is composed at least in part of proteins, and (iii) SpoVA proteins are involved in the release of Ca2+-DPA and other small molecules during spore germination, perhaps by being a part of a channel in the spore's inner membrane.


1999 ◽  
Vol 77 (11) ◽  
pp. 1835-1837 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven R Scadding

While the effects of exogenous retinoids on amphibian limb regeneration have been studied extensively, the role of endogenous retinoids is not clear. Hence, I wished to investigate the role of endogenous retinoic acid during axolotl limb regeneration. Citral is a known inhibitor of retinoic acid synthesis. Thus, I treated regenerating limbs of the larval axolotl Ambystoma mexicanum with citral. The result of this inhibition of retinoic acid synthesis was that limb regeneration became extremely irregular and hypomorphic, with serious pattern defects, or was inhibited altogether. I conclude that endogenous retinoic acid plays an important role in pattern formation during limb regeneration.


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