scholarly journals SPIRO-the automated Petri plate imaging platform designed by biologists, for biologists

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonas Alexander Ohlsson ◽  
Jia Xuan Leong ◽  
Pernilla Helena Elander ◽  
Adrian Noble Dauphinee ◽  
Florentine Ballhaus ◽  
...  

The imaging of plant seedlings, fungal mycelia and bacterial colonies grown on Petri plates is commonly used in phenotyping assays, and is typically done manually despite the procedures being time-consuming and laborious. The main reason for this is the still limited availability of existing automated phenotyping tools and facilities. Additionally, constructing a custom-made automated solution is a daunting task for most research groups specializing in biology. Here, we describe SPIRO, the Smart Plate Imaging Robot, an automated platform that acquires time-lapse photos of up to four vertically oriented Petri plates in a single experiment. SPIRO was designed for biologists by biologists; thus its assembly does not require experience in engineering or programming and its operation is sufficiently intuitive to be done without training. SPIRO has a small footprint optimal to fit into standard incubators for plants and microbes and is equipped with an LED light source for imaging in the dark, thus allowing acquisition of photos under optimal growth conditions. SPIRO's web-based user interface allows setting up experiments and downloading data remotely, without interfering with samples growth. The robots' 8 MP camera provides excellent image quality suitable for automated image processing, which we demonstrate on the example of two semi-automated assays for analysis of commonly used phenotypic traits: seed germination and root growth. Moreover, the robot can be easily customized for a specific use, as all information about SPIRO, including the models for 3D-printed structural components, control software, and scripts for image analysis are released under permissive open source licenses.

1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 3827-3833 ◽  
Author(s):  
T H Adams ◽  
W A Hide ◽  
L N Yager ◽  
B N Lee

In contrast to many other cases in microbial development, Aspergillus nidulans conidiophore production initiates primarily as a programmed part of the life cycle rather than as a response to nutrient deprivation. Mutations in the acoD locus result in "fluffy" colonies that appear to grow faster than the wild type and proliferate as undifferentiated masses of vegetative cells. We show that unlike wild-type strains, acoD deletion mutants are unable to make conidiophores under optimal growth conditions but can be induced to conidiate when growth is nutritionally limited. The requirement for acoD in conidiophore development occurs prior to activation of brlA, a primary regulator of development. The acoD transcript is present both in vegetative hyphae prior to developmental induction and in developing cultures. However, the effects of acoD mutations are detectable only after developmental induction. We propose that acoD activity is primarily controlled at the posttranscriptional level and that it is required to direct developmentally specific changes that bring about growth inhibition and activation of brlA expression to result in conidiophore development.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lyudmila P. Trenozhnikova ◽  
Almagul K. Khasenova ◽  
Assya S. Balgimbaeva ◽  
Galina B. Fedorova ◽  
Genrikh S. Katrukha ◽  
...  

We describe the actinomycete strain IMV-70 isolated from the soils of Kazakhstan, which produces potent antibiotics with high levels of antibacterial activity. After the research of its morphological, chemotaxonomic, and cultural characteristics, the strain with potential to be developed further as a novel class of antibiotics with chemotherapeutics potential was identified asStreptomycessp. IMV-70. In the process of fermentation, the strainStreptomycesspp. IMV-70 produces the antibiotic no. 70, which was isolated from the culture broth by extraction with organic solvents. Antibiotic compound no. 70 was purified and separated into individual components by HPLC, TLC, and column chromatography methods. The main component of the compound is the antibiotic 70-A, which was found to be identical to the peptolide etamycin A. Two other antibiotics 70-B and 70-C have never been described and therefore are new antibiotics. The physical-chemical and biological characteristics of these preparations were described and further researched. Determination of the optimal growth conditions to cultivate actinomycete-producer strain IMV-70 and development of methods to isolate, purify, and accumulate preparations of the new antibiotic no. 70 enable us to research further the potential of this new class of antibiotics.


1974 ◽  
Vol 20 (10) ◽  
pp. 1403-1409 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. G. Foster ◽  
Mary O. Hanna

Aeromonas proteolytica was grown for various time periods in nutrient broth, tryptic soy broth, a semisynthetic medium, and 1 and 5% peptone under different conditions involving temperature and in continuous shake and stationary flasks. The cell-free culture filtrates were tested for hemolytic, endopeptidase, and dermonecrotic activity and optimal growth conditions for their production were determined. The dermonecrotic activity and endopeptidase activity was found to be parallel in all tests, while hemolysin was independent of the other two. Studies on the thermal stability of the culture filtrate revealed that hemolysin and dermonecrotic and endopeptidase activity were destroyed at 70 °C for 30 min. Fractionation of the filtrate by Sephadex G-200 resolved three peaks at 280 nm. Peak I was inactive; peak II contained endopeptidase and dermonecrotic and hemolytic activity; peak III contained pigment and hemolysin. Evidence is presented that the endopeptidase and dermonecrotic substance found in the cell-free filtrates of A. proteolytica grown medium appear at the same time and thus may be the same entity.


Author(s):  
Ben Hadj-Daoud H ◽  
◽  
Ben Salem I ◽  
Boughalleb-M’Hamdi N ◽  
◽  
...  

Background: Colletotrichum gloeosporioides is important plant pathogens on a wide range of plant hosts such as citrus causing pre- or post-harvest infections as anthracnose, post-bloom fruit drop, tearstain and stem-end rot on fruit, or wither-tip of twigs. Method: The optimization of growth conditions of this pathogen was performed (solid media, temperature, pH and water potential under laboratory experiments). Results: Our results revealed that the maximum radial growth of C. gloeosporioides was recorded on SDA medium. All isolates were able to grow on PDA at temperatures of 15 and 30°C (over 0.7cm/day). Optimal growth radial was recorded at pH 5, 6, 7 and 8. Similar responses were obtained with both salt types, but, in general, C. gloeosporioides was more tolerant to KCl than NaCl. Conclusion: Studies of cultural, morphological traits of the pathogen are prominent to understand the response of the pathogen in different environmental and nutritional conditions.


2010 ◽  
Vol 60 (12) ◽  
pp. 2996-3001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shi-Ping Tian ◽  
Yong-Xia Wang ◽  
Bin Hu ◽  
Xiao-Xia Zhang ◽  
Wei Xiao ◽  
...  

A novel alkaliphilic, halotolerant, rod-shaped bacterium, designated strain YIM CH208T, was isolated from a soda lake in Yunnan, south-west China. The taxonomy of strain YIM CH208T was investigated by a polyphasic approach. Strain YIM CH208T was Gram-negative, strictly aerobic and non-motile and formed red colonies. Optimal growth conditions were 28 °C, pH 8.5 and 0.5–2.5 % NaCl. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence comparisons showed that the isolate formed a distinct line within a clade containing the genus Echinicola in the phylum Bacteroidetes and was related to the species Echinicola pacifica and Rhodonellum psychrophilum, with sequence similarity of 91.7 and 91.6 % to the respective type strains. The DNA G+C content was 45.1 mol%. The major respiratory quinone was menaquinone-7 (MK-7). The predominant cellular fatty acids were iso-C17 : 1 ω9c (19.9 %), C15 : 0 3-OH (12.1 %), iso-C17 : 0 3-OH (11.3 %), summed feature 3 (iso-C15 : 0 2-OH and/or C16 : 1 ω7c; 10.7 %) and C17 : 1 ω6c (8.7 %). On the basis of the phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic data, strain YIM CH208T represents a novel species of a new genus, for which the name Litoribacter ruber gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Litoribacter ruber is YIM CH208T (=ACCC 05414T =KCTC 22899T).


2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (spe1) ◽  
pp. 01-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alma Rosa González-Esquinca ◽  
Iván De-La-Cruz-Chacón ◽  
Marisol Castro-Moreno ◽  
José Agustín Orozco-Castillo ◽  
Christian Anabi Riley- Saldaña

Chemical studies of the plant family Annonaceae have intensified in the last several decades due to the discovery of annonaceous molecules with medicinal potential (e.g., benzylisoquinoline alkaloids and acetogenins). Approximately 500 alkaloids have been identified in 138 Annonaceae species in 43 genera. In addition, until 2004, 593 annonaceous acetogenins (ACGs) had been identified, from 51 species in 13 genera.This suggests that plants from this family allocate important resources to the biosynthesis of these compounds. Despite the diversity of these molecules, their biological roles, including their physiological and/or ecological functions, are not well understood. In this study, it was provided new data describing the variety and distribution of certain alkaloids and ACGs in annonaceous plants in distinct stages of development. The potential relationships among some of these compounds and the seasonally climatic changes occurring in the plant habitat are also discussed. These data will improve our understanding of the secondary metabolism of these pharmacologically important molecules and their expression patterns during development, which will help to determine the optimal growth conditions and harvest times for their production.


2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 1855-1862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xu Gao ◽  
Han Gil Choi ◽  
Seo Kyoung Park ◽  
Zhong Min Sun ◽  
Ki Wan Nam

BioResources ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 5506-5520
Author(s):  
Guido Wimmers ◽  
Julia Klick ◽  
Linda Tackaberry ◽  
Cora Zwiesigk ◽  
Keith Egger ◽  
...  

The production of environmentally friendly thermal insulation boards is important for the building industry to reduce its environmental impact. The primary objective of this study was to test the feasibility of producing wood-based insulation panels as well as to use fungi as a binding agent and to explore whether a bio-based composite could be a viable alternative to the standard traditional foam insulation board and more expensive wood fibreboards (mainly available in European markets). Experiments were conducted to determine which combinations of wood fibers from selected northern tree species, wood decay fungi, and growth conditions were most suitable for panel making. The results showed that under the determined optimal growth conditions, Polyporus arcularius and Trametes suaveolens on birch wood shavings provided the best combination. Outcomes from initial physical screening tests, particularly thermal conductivity, suggested that these panels had a comparable performance to traditional insulation material.


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