Solid-state fermentation (SSF) of starchy grain is a traditional technique for food and alcoholic beverage production in East Asia. In the present study, low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) was introduced for the elucidation of water dynamics and microstructure alternations during the soaking, steaming, and SSF of glutinous rice as a rapid real-time monitoring method. Three different proton fractions with different mobilities were identified based on the degree of interaction between biopolymers and water. Soaking and steaming significantly changed the proton distribution of the sample. The different phases of SSF were reflected by the T2 parameters. In addition, the variations in the T2 parameters were explained by the microstructure changes of rice induced by SSF. The fermentation time and T2 parameters were sigmoidally correlated. Thus, LF-NMR may be an effective real-time monitoring method for SSF in starch systems.
Patterns in functional diversity of organisms at large spatial scales can provide insight into possible responses to future climate change, but it remains a challenge to link large-scale patterns at the population or species level to their underlying physiological mechanisms at the individual level. The climate variability hypothesis predicts that temperate ectotherms will be less vulnerable to climate warming compared with tropical ectotherms, due to their superior acclimatization capacity.However, metabolic acclimatization occurs over multiple levels, from the enzyme and cellular level, through organ systems, to whole-organism metabolic rate (from this point forwards biological hierarchy). Previous studies have focused on one or a few levels of the biological hierarchy, leaving us without a general understanding of how metabolic acclimatization might differ between tropical and temperate species. Here, we investigated thermal acclimation of three species of Takydromus lizards distributed along a broad latitudinal gradient in China, by studying metabolic modifications at the level of the whole organism, organ, mitochondria, metabolome, and proteome. As predicted by the climate variability hypothesis, the two temperate species T. septentrionalis and T. wolteri had an enhanced acclimation response at the whole organism level compared with the tropical species T. sexlineatus, as measured by respiratory gas exchange rates. However, the mechanisms by which whole organism performance was modified was strikingly different in the two temperate species: widespread T. septentrionalis modified organ sizes, whereas the narrowly distributed T. wolteri relied on mitochondrial, proteomic and metabolomic regulation. We suggest that these two mechanisms of thermal acclimatization may represent general strategies used by ectotherms, with distinct ecological costs and benefits. Lacking either of these mechanisms of thermal acclimatization capacity, the tropical species is likely to have increased vulnerability to climate change.
Effect of elevated CO 2 on feeding behavior of the cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii (Glover) (Hemiptera: Aphididae), was investigated using electrical penetration graphs (EPG) on cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L. (Malvaceae). Leaf microstructures and foliar soluble constituents were also measured simultaneously to quantify the impact of foliar changes on leaf nutritional quantity and quality, owing to elevated CO 2 , on stylet penetration and food-quality plasticity of A. gossypii. Significant increases in fresh body weight, fecundity, and population abundances of A. gossypii were found in elevated CO 2 in contrast to ambient CO 2 . Elevated CO 2 influenced the feeding behavior, as evidenced by altered EPG recordings, including the increased non-penetration period (walking and finding the feeding site), E2 <8 min (probes with sustained ingestion of <8 min), and first E2 >8 min (first occurrence of probes with sustained ingestion of >8 min), and decreased E2 >8 min recordings. Moreover, leaf microstructures were significantly affected by CO 2 levels, with thinner upside epidermis (UPE) and thicker underside epidermis (UDE), sponge tissues (ST), and fence tissues under elevated CO 2 compared to that in ambient CO 2 . Therefore, it is expected that A. gossypii spend more time penetrating the thicker leaf UDE and ST when the host plant is exposed to elevated CO 2 . Furthermore, elevated CO 2 significantly enhanced foliar soluble matter, including soluble sugars (SS), free amino acids and fatty acids (FFA), and total soluble matter (TSM), which was congruent with significant increase or decrease in leaf turgor or osmotic potential. Increased leaf turgor and leaf soluble constituents favored ingestion in A. gossypii, resulting in increases in fresh body weight, fecundity, and population abundances under elevated CO 2 . These feeding behaviors and resulting population growth parameters are consistent with the significant positive correlations between aphid fresh body weight and foliar FFA/TSM, between A. gossypii fecundity and foliar SS of cotton plants, and between the time of E2 <8 min recordings and leaf turgor.
Many studies demonstrated that CeO2 nanoparticles (NPs) could protect plant from stress and improve plant growth, with a great application potential in agriculture. However, our knowledge of their fate particularly in asexual plants and their effect on the rhizosphere microbiome is limited. In this study, the transport and transformation of CeO2 NPs in an asexual plantstrawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.)were investigated. The effects of root-exuded/newly formed Ce species on rhizosphere bacterial community were also examined. Strawberries were exposed to CeO2 NPs at 0–2000 mg/L for 45 days via a split-root system in the field. CeO2 NPs were taken up by the exposed mother ramet roots and then translocated to all the mother and daughter ramet tissues. As indicated by the analysis from high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray absorption near-edge structures, in addition to CeO2 NPs, CePO4, Ce(III) acetate, and Ce(III)-cysteine were found in the roots, and CePO4 was present in the rhizosphere soil. The Ce species in the rhizosphere soil decreased the rhizosphere microbial diversity, but stimulated the relative abundance of specific plant growth promoting rhizobacteria. These results provide new insights for understanding the benefits and sustainable applications of NPs.
Low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) was introduced for the elucidation of tofu in the present study. After multiexponential analysis of relaxation decays, three water fractions centered at about 1.5-2.6, 24-114, and 132-305 ms were detected and identified as T2b, T21, and T22, respectively. Principal component analysis (PCA) of the data revealed that sample aggregation was dependent on solubility of coagulants and contained anions. Stepwise centrifugation and microwave drying were employed as dehydration methods. Significant correlations were observed between T21 and T22 relaxation times and water-holding capacity (WHC) in both dehydration processes, which implied LF-NMR measurements could be an efficient method for determination and prediction of tofu's water-holding capacity. Ten linear equations that could be applied in prediction of WHC for tofu were reported. LF-NMR was suggested to be a powerful tool for the study of tofu.
In the present study, a released exopolysaccharide (r-EPS1) from L. plantarum 70810 was modified by acetylation, phosphorylation and carboxymethylation. Scanning electron micrograph (SEM) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed the r-EPS1 derivatives had different surface morphology and thermal behavior. Compared with r-EPS1, the derivatives exhibited stronger antioxidant and antitumor activities. The study provided experimental evidences that chemical modification could be an effective way to improve the bioactivity of exopolysaccharide from L. plantarum 70810. It is noted that these derivatives could be explored as novel potential antioxidant and antitumor agents.
Heat shock proteins (HSPs) function as molecular chaperones and are key components responsible for protein folding, assembly, translocation, and degradation under stress conditions. However, little is known about how HSPs stabilize proteins and membranes in response to different hormonal or environmental cues in plants. Here, we combined molecular, biochemical, and genetic approaches to elucidate the involvement of cytosolic HSP70-3 in plant stress responses and the interplay between HSP70-3 and plasma membrane (PM)-localized phospholipase Dδ (PLDδ) in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Analysis using pull-down, coimmunoprecipitation, and bimolecular fluorescence complementation revealed that HSP70-3 specifically interacted with PLDδ. HSP70-3 bound to microtubules, such that it stabilized cortical microtubules upon heat stress. We also showed that heat shock induced recruitment of HSP70-3 to the PM, where HSP70-3 inhibited PLDδ activity to mediate microtubule reorganization, phospholipid metabolism, and plant thermotolerance, and this process depended on the HSP70-3–PLDδ interaction. Our results suggest a model whereby the interplay between HSP70-3 and PLDδ facilitates the re-establishment of cellular homeostasis during plant responses to external stresses and reveal a regulatory mechanism in regulating membrane lipid metabolism.
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