In this study we have investigated the effects of low dose ionizing radiation (2 Gy) on p70 S6 kinase and Akt signaling with respect to Erb-B receptors in both the A431 squamous and the MDA-MB-231 mammary carcinoma cell lines. Ionizing radiation caused a 2-3-fold increase in p70 S6 kinase activity that was blocked pharmacologically using an EGFR inhibitor (AG1478) alone, or in combination with an Erb-B2 inhibitor (AG825). These results suggested that both EGFR and Erb-B2 receptors could initiate radiation-induced activation of p70 S6K. EGFR dependent Erb-B3 signaling also contributed to p70 S6 kinase activity through recruitment and activation of PI3K, which has been shown to regulate p70 S6 kinase activity. Furthermore, inhibition of the EGFR blocked IR stimulated increases in protein translation, a biologic consequence of p70 S6 kinase activation. We also report that ionizing radiation stimulated Akt activity that was partially independent of PI3K activity, but dependent on Erb-B2 function. Erb-B2 inhibition also correlated with enhanced apoptosis following IR exposure, suggesting an important role for Erb-B2 in cell survival. Together this work demonstrates that the Erb-B receptor tyrosine kinase network stimulates cytoprotective p70 S6 kinase and Akt activity in response to clinically relevant doses of ionizing radiation.

Sclerotinia minor Jagger is the causal agent of Sclerotinia blight, a highly destructive disease of peanut (Arachis hypogaea). Based on evidence that oxalic acid is involved in the pathogenicity of many Sclerotinia species, our objectives were to recover transgenic peanut plants expressing an oxalic acid-degrading oxalate oxidase and to evaluate them for increased resistance to S. minor. Transformed plants were regenerated from embryogenic cultures of three Virginia peanut cultivars (Wilson, Perry, and NC-7). A colorimetric enzyme assay was used to screen for oxalate oxidase activity in leaf tissue. Candidate plants with a range of expression levels were chosen for further analysis. Integration of the transgene was confirmed by Southern-blot analysis, and gene expression was demonstrated in transformants by northern-blot analysis. A sensitive fluorescent enzyme assay was used to quantify expression levels for comparison to the colorimetric protocol. A detached leaflet assay tested whether transgene expression could limit lesion size resulting from direct application of oxalic acid. Lesion size was significantly reduced in transgenic plants compared to nontransformed controls (65%-89% reduction at high oxalic acid concentrations). A second bioassay examined lesion size after inoculation of leaflets with S. minor mycelia. Lesion size was reduced by 75% to 97% in transformed plants, providing evidence that oxalate oxidase can confer enhanced resistance to Sclerotinia blight in peanut.Sclerotinia blight of peanut, caused by the necrotrophic fungus Sclerotinia minor, is one of the most devastating diseases of peanut (Arachis hypogaea) in Virginia, northeastern North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Texas. The fungicide fluazinam provides some protection (Smith et al., 1992), but its benefit to peanut producers is offset by the expense of the multiple applications necessary to achieve modest control. Yield losses due to Sclerotinia blight can be significant. For example, prior to the availability of fluazinam, losses to Sclerotinia blight averaged 10% in Virginia, with pod loss exceeding 50% in severely affected fields (Porter and Melouk, 1997).Oxalic acid is considered a pathogenicity factor in Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and many other fungal pathogens (Maxwell and Lumsden, 1970;Godoy et al., 1990 (Rao and Tewari, 1987), and S. minor (Hollowell et al., 2001). Direct application of oxalic acid to stem or leaf tissue causes marked tissue injury and wilting, similar to plant responses to fungal infection by S. rolfsii (Bateman and Beer, 1965) and S. sclerotiorum (Noyes and Hancock, 1981). The most compelling evidence for the involvement of oxalic acid in disease initiation was the demonstration that mutant isolates of S. sclerotiorum, deficient in oxalic acid production, were not pathogenic on bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), but revertants became pathogenic once they regained the ability to produce oxalic acid (Godoy et al., 1990). Screening for resistance to oxalic acid has also been studied as an indirect test of physiological resist...

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