@article{AbrahamczykLozadaGobilardAckermannetal.2017, author = {Abrahamczyk, Stefan and Lozada Gobilard, Sissi Donna and Ackermann, Markus and Fischer, Eberhard and Krieger, Vera and Redling, Almut and Weigend, Maximilian}, title = {A question of data quality-Testing pollination syndromes in Balsaminaceae}, series = {PLoS one}, volume = {12}, journal = {PLoS one}, publisher = {PLoS}, address = {San Fransisco}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0186125}, pages = {14}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Pollination syndromes and their predictive power regarding actual plant-animal interactions have been controversially discussed in the past. We investigate pollination syndromes in Balsaminaceae, utilizing quantitative respectively categorical data sets of flower morphometry, signal and reward traits for 86 species to test for the effect of different types of data on the test patterns retrieved. Cluster Analyses of the floral traits are used in combination with independent pollinator observations. Based on quantitative data we retrieve seven clusters, six of them corresponding to plausible pollination syndromes and one additional, well-supported cluster comprising highly divergent floral architectures. This latter cluster represents a non-syndrome of flowers not segregated by the specific data set here used. Conversely, using categorical data we obtained only a rudimentary resolution of pollination syndromes, in line with several earlier studies. The results underscore that the use of functional, exactly quanitified trait data has the power to retrieve pollination syndromes circumscribed by the specific data used. Data quality can, however, not be replaced by sheer data volume. With this caveat, it is possible to identify pollination syndromes from large datasets and to reliably extrapolate them for taxa for which direct observations are unavailable.}, language = {en} } @article{AhmedReynaGonzalezSchmidetal.2017, author = {Ahmed, Muhammad N. and Reyna-Gonzalez, Emmanuel and Schmid, Bianca and Wiebach, Vincent and Suessmuth, Roderich D. and Dittmann, Elke and Fewer, David P.}, title = {Phylogenomic Analysis of the Microviridin Biosynthetic Pathway Coupled with Targeted Chemo-Enzymatic Synthesis Yields Potent Protease Inhibitors}, series = {ACS chemical biology}, volume = {12}, journal = {ACS chemical biology}, publisher = {American Chemical Society}, address = {Washington}, issn = {1554-8929}, doi = {10.1021/acschembio.7b00124}, pages = {1538 -- 1546}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Natural products and their semisynthetic derivatives are an important source of drugs for the pharmaceutical industry. Bacteria are prolific producers of natural products and encode a vast diversity of natural product biosynthetic gene clusters. However, much of this diversity is inaccessible to natural product discovery. Here, we use a combination of phylogenomic analysis of the microviridin biosynthetic pathway and chemo-enzymatic synthesis of bioinformatically predicted microviridins to yield new protease inhibitors. Phylogenomic analysis demonstrated that microviridin biosynthetic gene clusters occur across the bacterial domain and encode three distinct subtypes of precursor peptides. Our analysis shed light on the evolution of microviridin biosynthesis and enabled prioritization of their chemo-enzymatic production. Targeted one-pot synthesis of four microviridins encoded by the cyanobacterium Cyanothece sp. PCC 7822 identified a set of novel and potent serine protease inhibitors, the most active of which had an IC50 value of 21.5 nM. This study advances the genome mining techniques available for natural product discovery and obviates the need to culture bacteria.}, language = {en} } @article{AlluSimancasBalazadehetal.2017, author = {Allu, Annapurna Devi and Simancas, Barbara and Balazadeh, Salma and Munne-Bosch, Sergi}, title = {Defense-Related Transcriptional Reprogramming in Vitamin E-Deficient Arabidopsis Mutants Exposed to Contrasting Phosphate Availability}, series = {Frontiers in plant science}, volume = {8}, journal = {Frontiers in plant science}, publisher = {Frontiers Research Foundation}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {1664-462X}, doi = {10.3389/fpls.2017.01396}, pages = {20}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Vitamin E inhibits the propagation of lipid peroxidation and helps protecting photosystem II from photoinhibition, but little is known about its possible role in plant response to Pi availability. Here, we aimed at examining the effect of vitamin E deficiency in Arabidopsis thaliana vte mutants on phytohormone contents and the expression of transcription factors in plants exposed to contrasting Pi availability. Plants were subjected to two doses of Pi, either unprimed (controls) or previously exposed to low Pi (primed). In the wild type, alpha-tocopherol contents increased significantly in response to repeated periods of low Pi, which was paralleled by increased growth, indicative of a priming effect. This growth-stimulating effect was, however, abolished in vte mutants. Hormonal profiling revealed significant effects of Pi availability, priming and genotype on the contents of jasmonates and salicylates; remarkably, vte mutants showed enhanced accumulation of both hormones under low Pi. Furthermore, expression profiling of 1,880 transcription factors by qRT-PCR revealed a pronounced effect of priming on the transcript levels of 45 transcription factors mainly associated with growth and stress in wild-type plants in response to low Pi availability; while distinct differences in the transcriptional response were detected in vte mutants. We conclude that alpha-tocopherol plays a major role in the response of plants to Pi availability not only by protecting plants from photo-oxidative stress, but also by exerting a control over growth-and defense-related transcriptional reprogramming and hormonal modulation.}, language = {en} } @article{AmalfitanoCornoEckertetal.2017, author = {Amalfitano, Stefano and Corno, Gianluca and Eckert, Ester and Fazi, Stefano and Ninio, Shira and Callieri, Cristiana and Grossart, Hans-Peter and Eckert, Werner}, title = {Tracing particulate matter and associated microorganisms in freshwaters}, series = {Hydrobiologia : acta hydrobiologica, hydrographica, limnologica et protistologica}, volume = {800}, journal = {Hydrobiologia : acta hydrobiologica, hydrographica, limnologica et protistologica}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {Dordrecht}, issn = {0018-8158}, doi = {10.1007/s10750-017-3260-x}, pages = {145 -- 154}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Sediment resuspension represents a key process in all natural aquatic systems, owing to its role in nutrient cycling and transport of potential contaminants. Although suspended solids are generally accepted as an important quality parameter, current monitoring programs cover quantitative aspects only. Established methodologies do not provide information on origin, fate, and risks associated with uncontrolled inputs of solids in waters. Here we discuss the analytical approaches to assess the occurrence and ecological relevance of resuspended particulate matter in freshwaters, with a focus on the dynamics of associated contaminants and microorganisms. Triggered by the identification of specific physical-chemical traits and community structure of particle-associated microorganisms, recent findings suggest that a quantitative determination of microorganisms can be reasonably used to trace the origin of particulate matter by means of nucleic acid-based assays in different aquatic systems.}, language = {en} } @article{ApeltBreuerOlasetal.2017, author = {Apelt, Federico and Breuer, David and Olas, Justyna Jadwiga and Annunziata, Maria Grazia and Flis, Anna and Nikoloski, Zoran and Kragler, Friedrich and Stitt, Mark}, title = {Circadian, Carbon, and Light Control of Expansion Growth and Leaf Movement}, series = {Plant physiology : an international journal devoted to physiology, biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology, biophysics and environmental biology of plants}, volume = {174}, journal = {Plant physiology : an international journal devoted to physiology, biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology, biophysics and environmental biology of plants}, publisher = {American Society of Plant Physiologists}, address = {Rockville}, issn = {0032-0889}, doi = {10.1104/pp.17.00503}, pages = {1949 -- 1968}, year = {2017}, language = {en} } @article{AttermeyerGrossartFluryetal.2017, author = {Attermeyer, Katrin and Grossart, Hans-Peter and Flury, Sabine and Premke, Katrin}, title = {Bacterial processes and biogeochemical changes in the water body of kettle holes - mainly driven by autochthonous organic matter?}, series = {Aquatic sciences : research across boundaries}, volume = {79}, journal = {Aquatic sciences : research across boundaries}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {Basel}, issn = {1015-1621}, doi = {10.1007/s00027-017-0528-1}, pages = {675 -- 687}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Kettle holes are small inland waters formed from glacially-created depressions often situated in agricultural landscapes. Due to their high perimeter-to-area ratio facilitating a high aquatic-terrestrial coupling, kettle holes can accumulate high concentrations of organic carbon and nutrients, fueling microbial activities and turnover rates. Thus, they represent hotspots of carbon turnover in the landscape, but their bacterial activities and controlling factors have not been well investigated. Therefore, we aimed to assess the relative importance of various environmental factors on bacterial and biogeochemical processes in the water column of kettle holes and to disentangle their variations. In the water body of ten kettle holes in north-eastern Germany, we measured several physico-chemical and biological parameters such as carbon quantity and quality, as well as bacterial protein production (BP) and community respiration (CR) in spring, early summer and autumn 2014. Particulate organic matter served as an indicator of autochthonous production and represented an important parameter to explain variations in BP and CR. This notion is supported by qualitative absorbance indices of dissolved molecules in water samples and C: N ratios of the sediments, which demonstrate high fractions of autochthonous organic matter (OM) in the studied kettle holes. In contrast, dissolved chemical parameters were less important for bacterial activities although they revealed strong differences throughout the growing season. Pelagic bacterial activities and dynamics might thus be regulated by autochthonous OM in kettle holes implying a control of important biogeochemical processes by internal primary production rather than facilitated exchange with the terrestrial surrounding due to a high perimeter-to-area ratio.}, language = {en} } @article{BareitherScheffelMetz2017, author = {Bareither, Nils and Scheffel, Andre and Metz, Johannes}, title = {Distribution of polyploid plants in the common annual Brachypodium distachyon (s.l.) in Israel is not linearly correlated with aridity}, series = {Israel Journal of Plant Sciences}, volume = {64}, journal = {Israel Journal of Plant Sciences}, publisher = {Taylor \& Francis}, address = {London}, issn = {0792-9978}, pages = {83 -- 92}, year = {2017}, abstract = {The ecological benefits of polyploidy are intensely debated. Some authors argue that plants with duplicated chromosome sets (polyploids) are more stress- resistant and superior colonizers and may thus outnumber their low ploidy conspecifics in more extreme habitats. Brachypodium distachyon (sensu lato), for example, a common annual grass in Israel and the entire Mediterranean basin, comprises three cytotypes of differing chromosome numbers that were recently proposed as distinct species. It was suggested that increased aridity increases the occurrence of its polyploid cytotype. Here, we tested at two spatial scales whether polyploid plants of B. distachyon s. l. are more frequently found in drier habitats in Israel. We collected a total of 430 specimens (i) along a largescale climatic gradient with 15 thoroughly selected sites (spanning 114- 954 mm annual rainfall), and (ii) from corresponding Northern (more mesic) and Southern (more arid) hill slopes to assess the micro- climatic difference between contrasting exposures. Cytotypes were then determined via flow cytometry. Polyploid plants comprised 90\% of all specimens and their proportion ranged between 0\% and 100\% per site. However, this proportion was not correlated with aridity along the large- scale gradient, nor were polyploids more frequently found on Southern exposures. Our results show for both spatial scales that increasing aridity is not the principal driver for the distribution of polyploids in B. distachyon s. l. in Israel. Notably, though, diploid plants were restricted essentially to four intermediate sites, while polyploids dominated the most arid and the most mesic sites. This, to some degree, clustered pattern suggests that the distribution of cytotypes is not entirely random and calls for future studies to assess further potential drivers.}, language = {en} } @article{BauerWerthHaAnNguyenetal.2017, author = {Bauer, Daniel and Werth, Felix and Ha An Nguyen, and Kiecker, Felix and Eberle, J{\"u}rgen}, title = {Critical role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) for synergistic enhancement of apoptosis by vemurafenib and the potassium channel inhibitor TRAM-34 in melanoma cells}, series = {Cell death \& disease}, volume = {8}, journal = {Cell death \& disease}, publisher = {Nature Publ. Group}, address = {London}, issn = {2041-4889}, doi = {10.1038/cddis.2017.6}, pages = {10}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Inhibition of MAP kinase pathways by selective BRAF inhibitors, such as vemurafenib and dabrafenib, have evolved as key therapies of BRAF-mutated melanoma. However, tumor relapse and therapy resistance have remained as major problems, which may be addressed by combination with other pathway inhibitors. Here we identified the potassium channel inhibitor TRAM-34 as highly effective in combination with vemurafenib. Thus apoptosis was significantly enhanced and cell viability was decreased. The combination vemurafenib/TRAM-34 was also effective in vemurafenib-resistant cells, suggesting that acquired resistance may be overcome. Vemurafenib decreased ERK phosphorylation, suppressed antiapoptotic Mcl-1 and enhanced proapoptotic Puma and Bim. The combination resulted in enhancement of proapoptotic pathways as caspase-3 and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential. Indicating a special mechanism of vemurafenib-induced apoptosis, we found strong enhancement of intracellular ROS levels already at 1 h of treatment. The critical role of ROS was demonstrated by the antioxidant vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol), which decreased intracellular ROS as well as apoptosis. Also caspase activation and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential were suppressed, proving ROS as an upstream effect. Thus ROS represents an initial and independent apoptosis pathway in melanoma cells that is of particular importance for vemurafenib and its combination with TRAM-34.}, language = {en} } @article{BeckCarvalhoBarlowetal.2017, author = {Beck, Samantha V. and Carvalho, Gary R. and Barlow, Axel and Ruber, Lukas and Tan, Heok Hui and Nugroho, Estu and Wowor, Daisy and Nor, Siti Azizah Mohd and Herder, Fabian and Muchlisin, Zainal A. and de Bruyn, Mark}, title = {Plio-Pleistocene phylogeography of the Southeast Asian Blue Panchax killifish, Aplocheilus panchax}, series = {PLoS one}, volume = {12}, journal = {PLoS one}, publisher = {PLoS}, address = {San Fransisco}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0179557}, pages = {17}, year = {2017}, language = {en} } @article{BemervanMourikMuinoetal.2017, author = {Bemer, Marian and van Mourik, Hilda and Muino, Jose M. and Ferrandiz, Cristina and Kaufmann, Kerstin and Angenent, Gerco C.}, title = {FRUITFULL controls SAUR10 expression and regulates Arabidopsis growth and architecture}, series = {Journal of experimental botany}, volume = {68}, journal = {Journal of experimental botany}, publisher = {Oxford Univ. Press}, address = {Oxford}, issn = {0022-0957}, doi = {10.1093/jxb/erx184}, pages = {3391 -- 3403}, year = {2017}, abstract = {MADS-domain transcription factors are well known for their roles in plant development and regulate sets of downstream genes that have been uncovered by high-throughput analyses. A considerable number of these targets are predicted to function in hormone responses or responses to environmental stimuli, suggesting that there is a close link between developmental and environmental regulators of plant growth and development. Here, we show that the Arabidopsis MADS-domain factor FRUITFULL (FUL) executes several functions in addition to its noted role in fruit development. Among the direct targets of FUL, we identified SMALL AUXIN UPREGULATED RNA 10 (SAUR10), a growth regulator that is highly induced by a combination of auxin and brassinosteroids and in response to reduced R:FR light. Interestingly, we discovered that SAUR10 is repressed by FUL in stems and inflorescence branches. SAUR10 is specifically expressed at the abaxial side of these branches and this localized activity is influenced by hormones, light conditions and by FUL, which has an effect on branch angle. Furthermore, we identified a number of other genes involved in hormone pathways and light signalling as direct targets of FUL in the stem, demonstrating a connection between developmentally and environmentally regulated growth programs.}, language = {en} }