Peroxiredoxins are ubiquitous enzymes which protect cells against oxidative stress. The first step of catalysis is common to all peroxiredoxins and results in oxidation of a conserved peroxidatic cysteine residue to sulfenic acid. This forms an intermolecular disulfide bridge in the case of 2-Cys peroxiredoxins, which is a substrate for the thioredoxin system. 1-Cys Prx's contain a peroxidatic cysteine but do not contain a second conserved cysteine residue, and hence the identity of the in vivo reduction system has been unclear. Here, we show that the yeast mitochondrial 1-Cys Prx1 is reactivated by glutathionylation of the catalytic cysteine residue and subsequent reduction by thioredoxin reductase (Trr2) coupled with glutathione (GSH). This novel mechanism does not require the usual thioredoxin (Trx3) redox partner of Trr2 for antioxidant activity, although in vitro assays show that the Trr2/Trx3 and Trr2/GSH systems exhibit similar capacities for supporting Prx1 catalysis. Our data also indicate that mitochondria are a main target of cadmium-induced oxidative stress and that Prx1 is particularly required to protect against mitochondrial oxidation. This study demonstrates a physiological reaction mechanism for 1-Cys peroxiredoxins and reveals a new role in protection against mitochondrial heavy metal toxicity.All aerobic organisms are exposed to reactive oxygen species (ROS) during the course of normal aerobic metabolism or following exposure to radical-generating compounds. ROS cause wide-ranging damage to macromolecules, which can result in genetic degeneration, physiological dysfunction, and eventual cell death (18,19). Sulfhydryls play a key role in the response to oxidative stress, regulated primarily by the glutathione (GSH)/glutaredoxin and thioredoxin systems (9,19,42,44). These redox systems were originally identified as hydrogen donors for ribonucleotide reductase, but they also act upon metabolic enzymes that form a disulfide as part of their catalytic cycle. They have proposed roles in diverse processes, including protein folding and regulation, reduction of dehydroascorbate, repair of oxidatively damaged proteins, and sulfur metabolism (20,42). Glutaredoxins and thioredoxins are structurally and functionally conserved. Despite this considerable functional overlap, they are differentially regulated. The oxidized disulfide form of thioredoxin is reduced directly by NADPH and thioredoxin reductase, whereas glutaredoxin is reduced by GSH using electrons donated by NADPH via GSH reductase. The two systems are therefore thermodynamically linked, as each uses NADPH as a source of reducing equivalents.During respiration, mitochondria are the primary source of ROS in the cell, and complex III of the respiratory chain is responsible for approximately 80% of ROS production (4, 5). Mitochondrial ROS cause wide-ranging damage to various cellular organelles and tissues and have been implicated in a number of disease processes. Not surprisingly, therefore, mitochondrial thiols are major ROS targets, a fact which...

BackgroundDuring industrial fermentation of lignocellulose residues to produce bioethanol, microorganisms are exposed to a number of factors that influence productivity. These include inhibitory compounds produced by the pre-treatment processes required to release constituent carbohydrates from biomass feed-stocks and during fermentation, exposure of the organisms to stressful conditions. In addition, for lignocellulosic bioethanol production, conversion of both pentose and hexose sugars is a pre-requisite for fermentative organisms for efficient and complete conversion. All these factors are important to maximise industrial efficiency, productivity and profit margins in order to make second-generation bioethanol an economically viable alternative to fossil fuels for future transport needs.ResultsThe aim of the current study was to assess Saccharomyces yeasts for their capacity to tolerate osmotic, temperature and ethanol stresses and inhibitors that might typically be released during steam explosion of wheat straw. Phenotypic microarray analysis was used to measure tolerance as a function of growth and metabolic activity. Saccharomyces strains analysed in this study displayed natural variation to each stress condition common in bioethanol fermentations. In addition, many strains displayed tolerance to more than one stress, such as inhibitor tolerance combined with fermentation stresses.ConclusionsOur results suggest that this study could identify a potential candidate strain or strains for efficient second generation bioethanol production. Knowledge of the Saccharomyces spp. strains grown in these conditions will aid the development of breeding programmes in order to generate more efficient strains for industrial fermentations.

Inhibitors released by the breakdown of plant cell walls prevent efficient conversion of sugar into ethanol. The aim of this study was to develop a fast and reliable inhibitor sensitivity assay for ethanologenic yeast strains. The assay comprised bespoke 96-well plates containing inhibitors in isolation or combination in a format that was compatible with the Phenotypic Microarray Omnilog reader (Biolog, hayward, CA, USA). A redox reporter within the assay permits analysis of inhibitor sensitivity in aerobic and/or anaerobic conditions. Results from the assay were verified using growth on spot plates and tolerance assays in which maintenance of viability was assessed. The assay allows for individual and synergistic effects of inhibitors to be determined. It was observed that the presence of both acetic and formic acid significantly inhibited the yeast strains assessed, although this impact could be partially mitigated by buffering to neutral pH. Scheffersomyces stipitis, Candida spp., and Pichia guilliermondii demonstrated increased sensitivity to short chain weak acids at concentrations typically present in lignocellulosic hydrolysates. S. cerevisiae exhibited robustness to short chain weak acids at these concentrations. However, S. stipitis, Candida spp., and P. guilliermondii displayed increased tolerance to HMF when compared to that observed for S. cerevisiae. The results demonstrate that the phenotypic microarray assay developed in the current study is a valuable tool that can be used to identify yeast strains with desirable resistance to inhibitory compounds found in lignocellulosic hydrolysates.

BackgroundProtein-SH groups are amongst the most easily oxidized residues in proteins, but irreversible oxidation can be prevented by protein glutathionylation, in which protein-SH groups form mixed disulphides with glutathione. Glutaredoxins and thioredoxins are key oxidoreductases which have been implicated in regulating glutathionylation/deglutathionylation in diverse organisms. Glutaredoxins have been proposed to be the predominant deglutathionylase enzymes in many plant and mammalian species, whereas, thioredoxins have generally been thought to be relatively inefficient in deglutathionylation.ResultsWe show here that the levels of glutathionylated proteins in yeast are regulated in parallel with the growth cycle, and are maximal during stationary phase growth. This increase in glutathionylation is not a response to increased reactive oxygen species generated from the shift to respiratory metabolism, but appears to be a general response to starvation conditions. Our data indicate that glutathionylation levels are constitutively high in all growth phases in thioredoxin mutants and are unaffected in glutaredoxin mutants. We have confirmed that thioredoxins, but not glutaredoxins, catalyse deglutathionylation of model glutathionylated substrates using purified thioredoxin and glutaredoxin proteins. Furthermore, we show that the deglutathionylase activity of thioredoxins is required to reduce the high levels of glutathionylation in stationary phase cells, which occurs as cells exit stationary phase and resume vegetative growth.ConclusionsThere is increasing evidence that the thioredoxin and glutathione redox systems have overlapping functions and these present data indicate that the thioredoxin system plays a key role in regulating the modification of proteins by the glutathione system.

Cellular mechanisms that maintain redox homeostasis are crucial, providing buffering against oxidative stress. Glutathione, the most abundant low molecular weight thiol, is considered the major cellular redox buffer in most cells. To better understand how cells maintain glutathione redox homeostasis, cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae were treated with extracellular oxidized glutathione (GSSG), and the effect on intracellular reduced glutathione (GSH) and GSSG were monitored over time. Intriguingly cells lacking GLR1 encoding the GSSG reductase in S. cerevisiae accumulated increased levels of GSH via a mechanism independent of the GSH biosynthetic pathway. Furthermore, residual NADPH-dependent GSSG reductase activity was found in lysate derived from glr1 cell. The cytosolic thioredoxin-thioredoxin reductase system and not the glutaredoxins (Grx1p, Grx2p, Grx6p, and Grx7p) contributes to the reduction of GSSG. Overexpression of the thioredoxins TRX1 or TRX2 in glr1 cells reduced GSSG accumulation, increased GSH levels, and reduced cellular glutathione E h . Conversely, deletion of TRX1 or TRX2 in the glr1 strain led to increased accumulation of GSSG, reduced GSH levels, and increased cellular E h . Furthermore, it was found that purified thioredoxins can reduce GSSG to GSH in the presence of thioredoxin reductase and NADPH in a reconstituted in vitro system. Collectively, these data indicate that the thioredoxin-thioredoxin reductase system can function as an alternative system to reduce GSSG in S. cerevisiae in vivo.

dBoth neuronal acetylcholine and nonneuronal acetylcholine have been demonstrated to modulate inflammatory responses. Studies investigating the role of acetylcholine in the pathogenesis of bacterial infections have revealed contradictory findings with regard to disease outcome. At present, the role of acetylcholine in the pathogenesis of fungal infections is unknown. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine whether acetylcholine plays a role in fungal biofilm formation and the pathogenesis of Candida albicans infection. The effect of acetylcholine on C. albicans biofilm formation and metabolism in vitro was assessed using a crystal violet assay and phenotypic microarray analysis. Its effect on the outcome of a C. albicans infection, fungal burden, and biofilm formation were investigated in vivo using a Galleria mellonella infection model. In addition, its effect on modulation of host immunity to C. albicans infection was also determined in vivo using hemocyte counts, cytospin analysis, larval histology, lysozyme assays, hemolytic assays, and real-time PCR. Acetylcholine was shown to have the ability to inhibit C. albicans biofilm formation in vitro and in vivo. In addition, acetylcholine protected G. mellonella larvae from C. albicans infection mortality. The in vivo protection occurred through acetylcholine enhancing the function of hemocytes while at the same time inhibiting C. albicans biofilm formation. Furthermore, acetylcholine also inhibited inflammation-induced damage to internal organs. This is the first demonstration of a role for acetylcholine in protection against fungal infections, in addition to being the first report that this molecule can inhibit C. albicans biofilm formation. Therefore, acetylcholine has the capacity to modulate complex host-fungal interactions and plays a role in dictating the pathogenesis of fungal infections.

Current technologies for bioethanol production rely on the use of freshwater for preparing the fermentation media and use yeasts of a terrestrial origin. Life cycle assessment has suggested that between 1,388 to 9,812 litres of freshwater are consumed for every litre of bioethanol produced. Hence, bioethanol is considered a product with a high-water footprint. This paper investigated the use of seawater-based media and a novel marine yeast strain ‘Saccharomyces cerevisiae AZ65’ to reduce the water footprint of bioethanol. Results revealed that S. cerevisiae AZ65 had a significantly higher osmotic tolerance when compared with the terrestrial reference strain. Using 15-L bioreactors, S. cerevisiae AZ65 produced 93.50 g/L ethanol with a yield of 83.33% (of the theoretical yield) and a maximum productivity of 2.49 g/L/h when using seawater-YPD media. This approach was successfully applied using an industrial fermentation substrate (sugarcane molasses). S. cerevisiae AZ65 produced 52.23 g/L ethanol using molasses media prepared in seawater with a yield of 73.80% (of the theoretical yield) and a maximum productivity of 1.43 g/L/h. These results demonstrated that seawater can substitute freshwater for bioethanol production without compromising production efficiency. Results also revealed that marine yeast is a potential candidate for use in the bioethanol industry especially when using seawater or high salt based fermentation media.

Worldwide significant amounts of food waste are generated daily causing serious environmental issues, occupying land and requiring expenditure of resources for its treatment. A smart method for handling this food waste problem is the development of novel processes targeting the conversion of this waste into value added products. Although valorization of food waste to biofuels, biochemicals and bio-polymers have been widely investigated, the utilization of food waste streams into biofertiliser has not been intensively reviewed. Conversion of food waste, especially agriculture residues into biofertiliser would reduce its environmental impact, improve nutrition levels of the soil, decrease requirements for synthetic chemical fertiliser and have a direct benefit on food production. This paper reviews recent progress in the field regarding the production of biofertiliser from food waste, using anaerobic digestion, aerobic composting, chemical hydrolysis, in situ degradation and direct burning methods. This review also highlights the latest field applications of biofertiliser derived from various food waste streams. It confirms that the technology for the conversion of food waste to biofertilisers is viable, but the production efficiency could be improved with better process control strategies, strict quality controls, development of a smart product distribution system and adoption of advanced technologies. Field tests have indicated that biofertilisers which are obtained in proper managed AD plants are safe and could partially replace the use of chemical fertilisers in field application.