The effects of a range of concentrations of four nutrients -nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and calcium -in fertilizer solutions on the severity of anthracnose on strawberry cv. Nyoho cultivated under a noncirculation hydroponics system were determined after inoculation with Colletotrichum gloeosporioides . Crop growth and tissue nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and calcium contents of the entire above-ground parts of the plant were also investigated. Elevated nitrogen and potassium concentrations in the fertilizer solution increased disease severity in contrast to phosphorus and calcium. Treatment with either NH 4 or NO 3 nitrogen was not significantly different. The dry weight of the strawberry plants increased significantly with elevated concentrations of nitrogen ( R 2 = 0·9078) and phosphorus ( R 2 = 0·8842), but was not influenced by the elevated amounts of potassium ( R 2 = 0·8587) and calcium ( R 2 = 0·6526) concentrations.

Drug resistance to BCR-ABL1 tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) and disease progression to blast crisis (BC) are major clinical problems in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML); however, underlying mechanisms governing this process remain to be elucidated. Here, we report Cordon-bleu protein-like 1 (Cobll1) as a distinct molecular marker associated with drug resistance as well as progression to BC. In detail, Cobll1 increases IKKγ stability, leading to NF-κB activation and reduction of nilotinib-dependent apoptosis, suggesting Cobll1-mediated NF-κB could be involved in drug resistance. Recently, NF-κB signalling has been highlighted as a core mechanism for chronic phase (CP)-BC progression, stem cell survival and tyrosine kinase inhibitor resistance. We also demonstrated that high expression of Cobll1 confers drug resistance to tyrosine kinase inhibitors in CML cell line as well as patient samples. The analysis of large sets of primary CML samples (n=90) shows that Cobll1 expression is dramatically increased in BC but not in CP, which is correlated with a poor survival rate (P=0.002). Moreover, our studies show that Cobll1 is highly expressed in CD34 primitive stem cell populations, and the zebrafish paralog Cobll1b is important for normal hematopoiesis during embryonic development. Based on these results, we propose that Cobll1 is a novel biomarker and potential therapeutic target for CML-BC.

Cell-permeable peptides (CPPs) promote the transduction of nonpermissive cells by recombinant adenovirus (rAd) to improve the therapeutic efficacy of rAd. In this study, branched oligomerization of CPPs significantly enhanced the transduction of human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) by rAd in a CPP type-independent manner. In particular, tetrameric CPPs increased transduction efficiency at 3000-5000-fold lower concentrations than did monomeric CPPs. Although branched oligomerization of CPPs also increases cytotoxicity, optimal concentrations of tetrameric CPPs required for maximum transduction are at least 300-1000-fold lower than those causing 50% cytotoxicity. Furthermore, although only B60% of MSCs were maximally transduced at 500 mM of monomeric CPPs, 495% of MSCs were transduced with 0.1 mM of tetrameric CPPs. Tetrameric CPPs also significantly increased the formation and net surface charge of CPP/rAd complexes, as well as the binding of rAd to cell membranes at a greater degree than did monomeric CPPs, followed by rapid internalization into MSCs. In a critical-size calvarial defect model, the inclusion of tetrameric CPPs in ex vivo transduction of rAd expressing bone morphogenetic protein 2 into MSCs promoted highly mineralized bone formation. In addition, MSCs that were transduced with rAd expressing brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the presence of tetrameric CPPs improved functional recovery in a spinal cord injury model. These results demonstrated the potential for tetrameric CPPs to provide an innovative tool for MSC-based gene therapy and for in vitro gene delivery to MSCs.

The multifunctional enzyme transglutaminase 2 (TG2) primarily catalyzes cross-linking reactions of proteins via (γ-glutamyl) lysine bonds. Several recent findings indicate that altered regulation of intracellular TG2 levels affects renal cancer. Elevated TG2 expression is observed in renal cancer. However, the molecular mechanism underlying TG2 degradation is not completely understood. Carboxyl-terminus of Hsp70-interacting protein (CHIP) functions as an ubiquitin E3 ligase. Previous studies reveal that CHIP deficiency mice displayed a reduced life span with accelerated aging in kidney tissues. Here we show that CHIP promotes polyubiquitination of TG2 and its subsequent proteasomal degradation. In addition, TG2 upregulation contributes to enhanced kidney tumorigenesis. Furthermore, CHIP-mediated TG2 downregulation is critical for the suppression of kidney tumor growth and angiogenesis. Notably, our findings are further supported by decreased CHIP expression in human renal cancer tissues and renal cancer cells. The present work reveals that CHIP-mediated TG2 ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation represent a novel regulatory mechanism that controls intracellular TG2 levels. Alterations in this pathway result in TG2 hyperexpression and consequently contribute to renal cancer.