Survival was measured as a function of the dose of germicidal UV light for the bacteria Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi, Shigella sonnei, Streptococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus subtilis spores, the enteric viruses poliovirus type 1 and simian rotavirus SAil, the cysts of the protozoan Acanthamoeba castellanii, as well as for total coliforms and standard plate count microorganisms from secondary effluent. The doses of UV light necessary for a 99.9% inactivation of the cultured vegetative bacteria, total coliforms, and standard plate count microorganisms were comparable. However, the viruses, the bacterial spores, and the amoebic cysts required about 3 to 4 times, 9 times, and 15 times, respectively, the dose required for E. coli. These ratios covered a narrower relative dose range than that previously reported for chlorine disinfection of E. coli, viruses, spores, and cysts.

Many proteins can be modified by multiple types of post-translational modifications (Mtp-proteins). Although some post-translational modifications (PTMs) have recently been found to be associated with life-threatening diseases like cancers and neurodegenerative disorders, the underlying mechanisms remain enigmatic to date. In this study, we examined the relationship of human Mtp-proteins and disease and systematically characterized features of these proteins. Our results indicated that Mtp-proteins are significantly more inclined to participate in disease than proteins carrying no known PTM sites. Mtp-proteins were found significantly enriched in protein complexes, having more protein partners and preferred to act as hubs/superhubs in protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks. They possess a distinct functional focus, such as chromatin assembly or disassembly, and reside in biased, multiple subcellular localizations. Moreover, most Mtp-proteins harbor more intrinsically disordered regions than the others. Mtp-proteins carrying PTM types biased toward locating in the ordered regions were mainly related to protein-DNA complex assembly. Examination of the energetic effects of PTMs on the stability of PPI revealed that only a small fraction of single PTM events influence the binding energy of >2 kcal/mol, whereas the binding energy can change dramatically by combinations of multiple PTM types. Our work not only expands the understanding of Mtp-proteins but also discloses the potential ability of Mtp-proteins to act as key elements in disease development.

The balance and interplay between sexual and asexual reproduction is one of the most attractive mysteries in fungi. The choice of developmental strategy reflects the ability of fungi to adapt to the changing environment. However, the evolution of developmental paths and the metabolic regulation during differentiation and morphogenesis are poorly understood.Here, we monitor the carbohydrate metabolism and gene expression regulation during the early differentiation process from the "fungal stem cell", vegetative mycelium, to the highly differentiated tissue/cells, fruiting body, oidia or sclerotia, of a homokaryotic fruiting Coprinopsis cinerea strain A43mut B43mut pab1-1 #326, uncovering the systematic changes during morphogenesis and the evolutionary process of developmental strategies. Conversion between glucose and glycogen and conversion between glucose and beta-glucan are the main carbon flows in the differentiation processes. Genes related to carbohydrate transport and metabolism are significantly differentially expressed among paths. RNA editing, a novel layer of gene expression regulation, occurs in all four developmental paths and enriched in ImportanceFungi is a group of species with high diversity and plays essential roles to the ecosystem. The life cycle of fungi is complex in structure and delicate in function. Choice of developmental strategies and internal changes within the organism are both important for the fungus to fulfill their ecological functions, reflecting the relationship between environment and the population. This study put the developmental process of vegetative growth, sexual and asexual reproduction, resistant structure formation of a classical model basidiomycetes fungus, C. cinerea, together for the first time to view the developmental paths differentiation process with physiology, transcriptomics and evolutionary prospects. Carbohydrate assays and RNA-seq showed the changes of the fungus. Our results fill the gaps on gene expression regulation during the early stage of developmental paths differentiation, and expand our understanding of the evolutionary process of life history and reproductive strategy in fungi.

Ovule initiation determines the maximum ovule number and has great impact on seed number and yield. However, the regulation of ovule initiation remains largely elusive. We previously reported that most of the ovule primordia initiate asynchronously at floral stage 9 and PINFORMED1 (PIN1) polarization and auxin distribution contributed to this process. Here, we further demonstrate that a small amount of ovule primordia initiate at floral stage 10 when the existing ovules initiated at floral stage 9 start to differentiate. Genetic analysis revealed that the absence of PIN3 function leads to the reduction in pistil size and the lack of late-initiated ovules, suggesting PIN3 promotes the late ovule initiation process and pistil growth. Physiological analysis illustrated that, unlike picloram, exogenous application of NAA can’t restore these defective phenotypes, implying that PIN3-mediated polar auxin transport is required for the late ovule initiation and pistil length. qRT-PCR results indicated that the expression of SEEDSTICK (STK) is up-regulated under auxin analogues treatment while is down-regulated in pin3 mutants. Meanwhile, overexpressing STK rescues pin3 phenotypes, suggesting STK participates in PIN3-mediated late ovule initiation possibly by promoting pistil growth. Furthermore, brassinosteroid influences the late ovule initiation through positively regulating PIN3 expression. Collectively, this study demonstrates that PIN3 promotes the late ovule initiation and contributes to the extra ovule number. Our results give important clues for increasing seed number and yield of cruciferous and leguminous crops.

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