TY  - JOUR
A1  - Fedders, Ronja
A1  - Muenzner, Matthias
A1  - Weber, Pamela
A1  - Sommerfeld, Manuela
A1  - Knauer, Miriam
A1  - Kedziora, Sarah
A1  - Kast, Naomi
A1  - Heidenreich, Steffi
A1  - Raila, Jens
A1  - Weger, Stefan
A1  - Henze, Andrea
A1  - Schupp, Michael
T1  - Liver-secreted RBP4 does not impair glucose homeostasis in mice
JF  - The journal of biological chemistry
N2  - Retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4) is the major transport protein for retinol in blood. Recent evidence from genetic mouse models shows that circulating RBP4 derives exclusively from hepatocytes. Because RBP4 is elevated in obesity and associates with the development of glucose intolerance and insulin resistance, we tested whether a liver-specific overexpression of RBP4 in mice impairs glucose homeostasis. We used adeno-associated viruses (AAV) that contain a highly liver-specific promoter to drive expression of murine RBP4 in livers of adult mice. The resulting increase in serum RBP4 levels in these mice was comparable with elevated levels that were reported in obesity. Surprisingly, we found that increasing circulating RBP4 had no effect on glucose homeostasis. Also during a high-fat diet challenge, elevated levels of RBP4 in the circulation failed to aggravate the worsening of systemic parameters of glucose and energy homeostasis. These findings show that liver-secreted RBP4 does not impair glucose homeostasis. We conclude that a modest increase of its circulating levels in mice, as observed in the obese, insulin-resistant state, is unlikely to be a causative factor for impaired glucose homeostasis.
KW  - liver
KW  - retinoid-binding protein
KW  - glucose metabolism
KW  - insulin resistance
KW  - mouse
KW  - TTR
Y1  - 2018
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.RA118.004294
SN  - 1083-351X
VL  - 293
IS  - 39
SP  - 15269
EP  - 15276
PB  - American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
CY  - Bethesda
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Wojcik, Laurie Anne
A1  - Ceulemans, Ruben
A1  - Gaedke, Ursula
T1  - Functional diversity buffers the effects of a pulse perturbation on the dynamics of tritrophic food webs
JF  - Ecology and Evolution
N2  - Biodiversity decline causes a loss of functional diversity, which threatens ecosystems through a dangerous feedback loop: This loss may hamper ecosystems’ ability to buffer environmental changes, leading to further biodiversity losses. In this context, the increasing frequency of human-induced excessive loading of nutrients causes major problems in aquatic systems. Previous studies investigating how functional diversity influences the response of food webs to disturbances have mainly considered systems with at most two functionally diverse trophic levels. We investigated the effects of functional diversity on the robustness, that is, resistance, resilience, and elasticity, using a tritrophic—and thus more realistic—plankton food web model. We compared a non-adaptive food chain with no diversity within the individual trophic levels to a more diverse food web with three adaptive trophic levels. The species fitness differences were balanced through trade-offs between defense/growth rate for prey and selectivity/half-saturation constant for predators. We showed that the resistance, resilience, and elasticity of tritrophic food webs decreased with larger perturbation sizes and depended on the state of the system when the perturbation occurred. Importantly, we found that a more diverse food web was generally more resistant and resilient but its elasticity was context-dependent. Particularly, functional diversity reduced the probability of a regime shift toward a non-desirable alternative state. The basal-intermediate interaction consistently determined the robustness against a nutrient pulse despite the complex influence of the shape and type of the dynamical attractors. This relationship was strongly influenced by the diversity present and the third trophic level. Overall, using a food web model of realistic complexity, this study confirms the destructive potential of the positive feedback loop between biodiversity loss and robustness, by uncovering mechanisms leading to a decrease in resistance, resilience, and potentially elasticity as functional diversity declines.
KW  - functional diversity
KW  - nutrient spike
KW  - pulse perturbation
KW  - regime shift
KW  - robustness
KW  - tritrophic food web
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8214
SN  - 2045-7758
N1  - Wojcik and Ceulemans shared first authorship.
VL  - 11
IS  - 22
SP  - 15639
EP  - 15663
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
CY  - Hoboken (New Jersey)
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Wolff, Martin
A1  - Gast, Klaus
A1  - Evers, Andreas
A1  - Kurz, Michael
A1  - Pfeiffer-Marek, Stefania
A1  - Schüler, Anja
A1  - Seckler, Robert
A1  - Thalhammer, Anja
T1  - A Conserved Hydrophobic Moiety and Helix-Helix Interactions Drive the Self-Assembly of the Incretin Analog Exendin-4
JF  - Biomolecules
N2  - Exendin-4 is a pharmaceutical peptide used in the control of insulin secretion. Structural information on exendin-4 and related peptides especially on the level of quaternary structure is scarce. We present the first published association equilibria of exendin-4 directly measured by static and dynamic light scattering. We show that exendin-4 oligomerization is pH dependent and that these oligomers are of low compactness. We relate our experimental results to a structural hypothesis to describe molecular details of exendin-4 oligomers. Discussion of the validity of this hypothesis is based on NMR, circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopy, and light scattering data on exendin-4 and a set of exendin-4 derived peptides. The essential forces driving oligomerization of exendin-4 are helix–helix interactions and interactions of a conserved hydrophobic moiety. Our structural hypothesis suggests that key interactions of exendin-4 monomers in the experimentally supported trimer take place between a defined helical segment and a hydrophobic triangle constituted by the Phe22 residues of the three monomeric subunits. Our data rationalize that Val19 might function as an anchor in the N-terminus of the interacting helix-region and that Trp25 is partially shielded in the oligomer by C-terminal amino acids of the same monomer. Our structural hypothesis suggests that the Trp25 residues do not interact with each other, but with C-terminal Pro residues of their own monomers.
KW  - biophysics
KW  - diabetes
KW  - peptides
KW  - oligomerization
KW  - conformational change
KW  - molecular modeling
KW  - static and dynamic light scattering
KW  - spectroscopy
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/biom11091305
SN  - 2218-273X
VL  - 11
IS  - 9
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Garrido, Claudia
A1  - Leimkühler, Silke
T1  - The inactivation of human aldehyde oxidase 1 by hydrogen peroxide and superoxide
JF  - Drug metabolism and disposition / American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
N2  - Mammalian aldehyde oxidases (AOX) are molybdo-flavoenzymes of pharmacological and pathophysiologic relevance that are involved in phase I drug metabolism and, as a product of their enzymatic activity, are also involved in the generation of reactive oxygen species. So far, the physiologic role of aldehyde oxidase 1 in the human body remains unknown. The human enzyme hAOX1 is characterized by a broad substrate specificity, oxidizing aromatic/aliphatic aldehydes into their corresponding carboxylic acids, and hydroxylating various heteroaromatic rings. The enzyme uses oxygen as terminal electron acceptor to produce hydrogen peroxide and superoxide during turnover. Since hAOX1 and, in particular, some natural variants produce not only H2O2 but also high amounts of superoxide, we investigated the effect of both ROS molecules on the enzymatic activity of hAOX1 in more detail. We compared hAOX1 to the high-O-2(.-)-producing natural variant L438V for their time-dependent inactivation with H2O2/O-2(.-) during substrate turnover. We show that the inactivation of the hAOX1 wild-type enzyme is mainly based on the production of hydrogen peroxide, whereas for the variant L438V, both hydrogen peroxide and superoxide contribute to the time-dependent inactivation of the enzyme during turnover. Further, the level of inactivation was revealed to be substrate-dependent: using substrates with higher turnover numbers resulted in a faster inactivation of the enzymes. Analysis of the inactivation site of the enzyme identified a loss of the terminal sulfido ligand at the molybdenum active site by the produced ROS during turnover.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1124/dmd.121.000549
SN  - 1521-009X
SN  - 0090-9556
VL  - 49
IS  - 9
SP  - 729
EP  - 735
PB  - American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
CY  - Bethesda
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Ceulemans, Ruben
A1  - Guill, Christian
A1  - Gaedke, Ursula
T1  - Top predators govern multitrophic diversity effects in tritrophic food webs
JF  - Ecology : a publication of the Ecological Society of America
N2  - It is well known that functional diversity strongly affects ecosystem functioning. However, even in rather simple model communities consisting of only two or, at best, three trophic levels, the relationship between multitrophic functional diversity and ecosystem functioning appears difficult to generalize, because of its high contextuality. In this study, we considered several differently structured tritrophic food webs, in which the amount of functional diversity was varied independently on each trophic level. To achieve generalizable results, largely independent of parametrization, we examined the outcomes of 128,000 parameter combinations sampled from ecologically plausible intervals, with each tested for 200 randomly sampled initial conditions. Analysis of our data was done by training a random forest model. This method enables the identification of complex patterns in the data through partial dependence graphs, and the comparison of the relative influence of model parameters, including the degree of diversity, on food-web properties. We found that bottom-up and top-down effects cascade simultaneously throughout the food web, intimately linking the effects of functional diversity of any trophic level to the amount of diversity of other trophic levels, which may explain the difficulty in unifying results from previous studies. Strikingly, only with high diversity throughout the whole food web, different interactions synergize to ensure efficient exploitation of the available nutrients and efficient biomass transfer to higher trophic levels, ultimately leading to a high biomass and production on the top level. The temporal variation of biomass showed a more complex pattern with increasing multitrophic diversity: while the system initially became less variable, eventually the temporal variation rose again because of the increasingly complex dynamical patterns. Importantly, top predator diversity and food-web parameters affecting the top trophic level were of highest importance to determine the biomass and temporal variability of any trophic level. Overall, our study reveals that the mechanisms by which diversity influences ecosystem functioning are affected by every part of the food web, hampering the extrapolation of insights from simple monotrophic or bitrophic systems to complex natural food webs.
KW  - food-web efficiency
KW  - functional diversity
KW  - machine learning
KW  - nutrient
KW  - exploitation
KW  - production
KW  - random forest
KW  - temporal variability
KW  - top
KW  - predator
KW  - trait diversity
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.3379
SN  - 0012-9658
SN  - 1939-9170
VL  - 102
IS  - 7
PB  - Wiley
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Sauer, Michael
A1  - Grebe, Markus
T1  - Plant cell biology
BT  - PIN polarity maintained
JF  - Current biology : CB
N2  - PIN-FORMED (PIN) polar protein localization directs transport of the growth and developmental regulator auxin in plants. Once established after cytokinesis, PIN polarity requires maintenance. Now, direct interactions between PIN, MAB4/MEL and PID proteins suggest self-reinforced maintenance of PIN polarity through limiting lateral diffusion.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2021.03.070
SN  - 0960-9822
SN  - 1879-0445
VL  - 31
IS  - 9
SP  - R449
EP  - R451
PB  - Cell Press
CY  - Cambridge
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Stark, Markus
A1  - Bach, Moritz
A1  - Guill, Christian
T1  - Patch isolation and periodic environmental disturbances have idiosyncratic effects on local and regional population variabilities in meta-food chains
JF  - Theoretical ecology
N2  - While habitat loss is a known key driver of biodiversity decline, the impact of other landscape properties, such as patch isolation, is far less clear. When patch isolation is low, species may benefit from a broader range of foraging opportunities, but are at the same time adversely affected by higher predation pressure from mobile predators. Although previous approaches have successfully linked such effects to biodiversity, their impact on local and metapopulation dynamics has largely been ignored. Since population dynamics may also be affected by environmental disturbances that temporally change the degree of patch isolation, such as periodic changes in habitat availability, accurate assessment of its link with isolation is highly challenging. To analyze the effect of patch isolation on the population dynamics on different spatial scales, we simulate a three-species meta-food chain on complex networks of habitat patches and assess the average variability of local populations and metapopulations, as well as the level of synchronization among patches. To evaluate the impact of periodic environmental disturbances, we contrast simulations of static landscapes with simulations of dynamic landscapes in which 30 percent of the patches periodically become unavailable as habitat. We find that increasing mean patch isolation often leads to more asynchronous population dynamics, depending on the parameterization of the food chain. However, local population variability also increases due to indirect effects of increased dispersal mortality at high mean patch isolation, consequently destabilizing metapopulation dynamics and increasing extinction risk. In dynamic landscapes, periodic changes of patch availability on a timescale much slower than ecological interactions often fully synchronize the dynamics. Further, these changes not only increase the variability of local populations and metapopulations, but also mostly overrule the effects of mean patch isolation. This may explain the often small and inconclusive impact of mean patch isolation in natural ecosystems.
KW  - Metacommunity dynamics
KW  - Dispersal
KW  - Patch isolation
KW  - Stability
KW  - Synchronization
KW  - Disturbance
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s12080-021-00510-0
SN  - 1874-1738
SN  - 1874-1746
VL  - 14
IS  - 3
SP  - 489
EP  - 500
PB  - Springer
CY  - Dordrecht
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Guill, Christian
A1  - Hülsemann, Janne
A1  - Klauschies, Toni
T1  - Self-organised pattern formation increases local diversity in metacommunities
JF  - Ecology letters
N2  - Self-organised formation of spatial patterns is known from a variety of different ecosystems, yet little is known about how these patterns affect the diversity of communities. Here, we use a food chain model in which autotroph diversity is described by a continuous distribution of a trait that affects both growth and defence against heterotrophs. On isolated patches, diversity is always lost over time due to stabilising selection, and the local communities settle on one of two alternative stable community states that are characterised by a dominance of either defended or undefended species. In a metacommunity context, dispersal can destabilise these states and complex spatio-temporal patterns in the species' abundances emerge. The resulting biomass-trait feedback increases local diversity by an order of magnitude compared to scenarios without self-organised pattern formation, thereby maintaining the ability of communities to adapt to potential future changes in biotic or abiotic environmental conditions.
KW  - biomass-trait feedback
KW  - fitness gradient
KW  - food chain
KW  - functional
KW  - diversity
KW  - metacommunity
KW  - self-organisation
KW  - source-sink dynamics
KW  - spatio-temporal pattern
KW  - trait-based aggregate model
KW  - Turing instability
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13880
SN  - 1461-023X
SN  - 1461-0248
VL  - 24
IS  - 12
SP  - 2624
EP  - 2634
PB  - Wiley-Blackwell
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Romero-Mujalli, Daniel
A1  - Rochow, Markus
A1  - Kahl, Sandra M.
A1  - Paraskevopoulou, Sofia
A1  - Folkertsma, Remco
A1  - Jeltsch, Florian
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
T1  - Adaptive and nonadaptive plasticity in changing environments: Implications for sexual species with different life history strategies
JF  - Ecology and Evolution
N2  - Populations adapt to novel environmental conditions by genetic changes or phenotypic plasticity. Plastic responses are generally faster and can buffer fitness losses  under variable conditions. Plasticity is typically modeled as random noise and linear reaction norms that assume simple one-to- one  genotype–phenotype maps and no limits to the phenotypic response. Most studies on plasticity have focused on its effect on population viability. However, it is not clear, whether the advantage of plasticity depends solely on environmental fluctuations or also on the genetic and demographic properties (life histories) of populations. Here we present an individual-based model and study the relative importance of adaptive and nonadaptive plasticity for populations of sexual species with different life histories experiencing directional stochastic climate change. Environmental fluctuations were simulated using differentially autocorrelated climatic stochasticity or noise color, and scenarios of directiona
climate change. Nonadaptive plasticity was simulated as a random environmental effect on trait development, while adaptive plasticity as a linear, saturating, or sinusoidal reaction norm. The last two imposed limits to the plastic response and emphasized flexible interactions of the genotype with the environment. Interestingly, this assumption led to (a) smaller phenotypic than genotypic variance in the population (many-to- one genotype–phenotype map) and the coexistence of polymorphisms, and (b) the maintenance of higher genetic variation—compared to linear reaction norms and genetic determinism—even when the population was exposed to a constant environment for several generations. Limits to plasticity led to genetic accommodation, when costs were negligible, and to the appearance of cryptic variation when limits were exceeded. We found that adaptive plasticity promoted population persistence under red environmental noise and was particularly important for life histories with low fecundity. Populations produing more offspring could cope with environmental fluctuations solely by genetic changes or random plasticity, unless environmental change was too fast.
KW  - developmental canalization
KW  - environmental change
KW  - genetic accommodation
KW  - Individual-based models
KW  - limits
KW  - many-to-one genotype–phenotype map
KW  - noise color
KW  - phenotypic plasticity
KW  - reaction norms
KW  - stochastic fluctuations
Y1  - 2020
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 11
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
CY  - New Jersey
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Cahsan, Binia De
A1  - Westbury, Michael V.
A1  - Paraskevopoulou, Sofia
A1  - Drews, Hauke
A1  - Ott, Moritz
A1  - Gollmann, Günter
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
T1  - Genomic consequences of human-mediated translocations in margin populations of an endangered amphibian
JF  - Evolutionary Applications
N2  - Due to their isolated and often fragmented nature, range margin populations are especially vulnerable to rapid environmental change. To maintain genetic diversity and adaptive potential, gene flow from disjunct populations might therefore be crucial to their survival. Translocations are often proposed as a mitigation strategy to increase genetic diversity in threatened populations. However, this also includes the risk of losing locally adapted alleles through genetic swamping. Human-mediated translocations of southern lineage specimens into northern German populations of the endangered European fire-bellied toad (Bombina bombina) provide an unexpected experimental set-up to test the genetic consequences of an intraspecific introgression from central population individuals into populations at the species range margin. Here, we utilize complete mitochondrial genomes and transcriptome nuclear data to reveal the full genetic extent of this translocation and the consequences it may have for these populations. We uncover signs of introgression in four out of the five northern populations investigated, including a number of introgressed alleles ubiquitous in all recipient populations, suggesting a possible adaptive advantage. Introgressed alleles dominate at the MTCH2 locus, associated with obesity/fat tissue in humans, and the DSP locus, essential for the proper development of epidermal skin in amphibians. Furthermore, we found loci where local alleles were retained in the introgressed populations, suggesting their relevance for local adaptation. Finally, comparisons of genetic diversity between introgressed and nonintrogressed northern German populations revealed an increase in genetic diversity in all German individuals belonging to introgressed populations, supporting the idea of a beneficial transfer of genetic variation from Austria into North Germany.
KW  - adaptive introgression
KW  - admixture
KW  - Bombina bombina
KW  - genetic rescue
KW  - mitogenomes
KW  - transcriptomics
Y1  - 2020
SN  - 1752-4563
VL  - 14
IS  - 6
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
CY  - New Jersey
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Spikes, Montrai
A1  - Rodríguez-Silva, Rodet
A1  - Bennett, Kerri-Ann
A1  - Bräger, Stefan
A1  - Josaphat, James
A1  - Torres-Pineda, Patricia
A1  - Ernst, Anja
A1  - Havenstein, Katja
A1  - Schlupp, Ingo
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
T1  - A phylogeny of the genus Limia (Teleostei: Poeciliidae) suggests a single-lake radiation nested in a Caribbean-wide allopatric speciation scenario
JF  - BMC Research Notes
N2  - Objective
The Caribbean is an important global biodiversity hotspot. Adaptive radiations there lead to many speciation events within a limited period and hence are particularly prominent biodiversity generators. A prime example are freshwater fish of the genus Limia, endemic to the Greater Antilles. Within Hispaniola, nine species have been described from a single isolated site, Lake Miragoâne, pointing towards extraordinary sympatric speciation. This study examines the evolutionary history of the Limia species in Lake Miragoâne, relative to their congeners throughout the Caribbean.

Results
For 12 Limia species, we obtained almost complete sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene, a well-established marker for lower-level taxonomic relationships. We included sequences of six further Limia species from GenBank (total N  = 18 species). Our phylogenies are in concordance with other published phylogenies of Limia. There is strong support that the species found in Lake Miragoâne in Haiti are monophyletic, confirming a recent local radiation. Within Lake Miragoâne, speciation is likely extremely recent, leading to incomplete lineage sorting in the mtDNA. Future studies using multiple unlinked genetic markers are needed to disentangle the relationships within the Lake Miragoâne clade.
KW  - Cytochrome b
KW  - Island biogeography
KW  - Fresh water fish
KW  - Phylogeny
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-021-05843-x
SN  - 1756-0500
VL  - 14
SP  - 1
EP  - 8
PB  - BMC Research Notes / Biomed Central
CY  - London
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Krüger, Johanna
A1  - Foerster, Verena Elisabeth
A1  - Trauth, Martin H.
A1  - Hofreiter, Michael
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
T1  - Exploring the Past Biosphere of Chew Bahir/Southern Ethiopia: Cross-Species Hybridization Capture of Ancient Sedimentary DNA from a Deep Drill Core
JF  - Frontiers in Earth Science
N2  - Eastern Africa has been a prime target for scientific drilling because it is rich in key paleoanthropological sites as well as in paleolakes, containing valuable paleoclimatic information on evolutionary time scales. The Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP) explores these paleolakes with the aim of reconstructing environmental conditions around critical episodes of hominin evolution. Identification of biological taxa based on their sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) traces can contribute to understand past ecological and climatological conditions of the living environment of our ancestors. However, sedaDNA recovery from tropical environments is challenging because high temperatures, UV irradiation, and desiccation result in highly degraded DNA. Consequently, most of the DNA fragments in tropical sediments are too short for PCR amplification. We analyzed sedaDNA in the upper 70 m of the composite sediment core of the HSPDP drill site at Chew Bahir for eukaryotic remnants. We first tested shotgun high throughput sequencing which leads to metagenomes dominated by bacterial DNA of the deep biosphere, while only a small fraction was derived from eukaryotic, and thus probably ancient, DNA. Subsequently, we performed cross-species hybridization capture of sedaDNA to enrich ancient DNA (aDNA) from eukaryotic remnants for paleoenvironmental analysis, using established barcoding genes (cox1 and rbcL for animals and plants, respectively) from 199 species that may have had relatives in the past biosphere at Chew Bahir. Metagenomes yielded after hybridization capture are richer in reads with similarity to cox1 and rbcL in comparison to metagenomes without prior hybridization capture. Taxonomic assignments of the reads from these hybridization capture metagenomes also yielded larger fractions of the eukaryotic domain. For reads assigned to cox1, inferred wet periods were associated with high inferred relative abundances of putative limnic organisms (gastropods, green algae), while inferred dry periods showed increased relative abundances for insects. These findings indicate that cross-species hybridization capture can be an effective approach to enhance the information content of sedaDNA in order to explore biosphere changes associated with past environmental conditions, enabling such analyses even under tropical conditions.
KW  - Chew Bahir
KW  - hybridization capture
KW  - ICDP
KW  - paleoclimate
KW  - past biosphere
KW  - sedaDNA
KW  - sediment core
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.683010
SN  - 2296-6463
SP  - 1
EP  - 20
PB  - Frontiers in Earth Science
CY  - Lausanne, Schweiz
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Trindade, Inês
T1  - License to flower
BT  - LEAFY has pioneer activity
JF  - Molecular plant
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molp.2021.04.007
SN  - 1674-2052
SN  - 1752-9867
VL  - 14
IS  - 5
SP  - 719
EP  - 720
PB  - Oxford Univ. Press
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Oberkofler, Vicky
A1  - Pratx, Loris
A1  - Bäurle, Isabel
T1  - Epigenetic regulation of abiotic stress memory
BT  - maintaining the good things while they last
JF  - Current opinion in plant biology
N2  - As sessile organisms, plants have evolved sophisticated ways to constantly gauge and adapt to changing environmental conditions including extremes that may be harmful to their growth and development and are thus perceived as stress. In nature, stressful events are often chronic or recurring and thus an initial stress may prime a plant to respond more efficiently to a subsequent stress event. An epigenetic basis of such stress memory was long postulated and in recent years it has been shown that this is indeed the case. High temperature stress has proven an excellent system to unpick the molecular basis of somatic stress memory, which includes histone modifications and nucleosome occupancy. This review discusses recent findings and pinpoints open questions in the field.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbi.2021.102007
SN  - 1369-5266
SN  - 1879-0356
VL  - 61
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - London
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Gräf, Ralph
A1  - Grafe, Marianne
A1  - Meyer, Irene
A1  - Mitic, Kristina
A1  - Pitzen, Valentin
T1  - The dictyostelium centrosome
JF  - Cells : open access journal
N2  - The centrosome of Dictyostelium amoebae contains no centrioles and consists of a cylindrical layered core structure surrounded by a corona harboring microtubule-nucleating gamma-tubulin complexes. It is the major centrosomal model beyond animals and yeasts. Proteomics, protein interaction studies by BioID and superresolution microscopy methods led to considerable progress in our understanding of the composition, structure and function of this centrosome type. We discuss all currently known components of the Dictyostelium centrosome in comparison to other centrosomes of animals and yeasts.
KW  - microtubule-organizing center
KW  - microtubule-organization
KW  - centrosome
KW  - Dictyostelium
KW  - mitosis
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/cells10102657
SN  - 2073-4409
VL  - 10
IS  - 10
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Raatz, Larissa
A1  - Pirhofer-Walzl, Karin
A1  - Müller, Marina E.H.
A1  - Scherber, Christoph
A1  - Joshi, Jasmin Radha
T1  - Who is the culprit: Is pest infestation responsible for crop yield losses close to semi-natural habitats?
JF  - Ecology and Evolution
N2  - Semi-natural habitats (SNHs) are becoming increasingly scarce in modern agricultural landscapes. This may reduce natural ecosystem services such as pest control with its putatively positive effect on crop production. In agreement with other studies, we recently reported wheat yield reductions at field borders which were linked to the type of SNH and the distance to the border. In this experimental landscape-wide study, we asked whether these yield losses have a biotic origin while analyzing fungal seed and fungal leaf pathogens, herbivory of cereal leaf beetles, and weed cover as hypothesized mediators between SNHs and yield. We established experimental winter wheat plots of a single variety within conventionally managed wheat fields at fixed distances either to a hedgerow or to an in-field kettle hole. For each plot, we recorded the fungal infection rate on seeds, fungal infection and herbivory rates on leaves, and weed cover. Using several generalized linear mixed-effects models as well as a structural equation model, we tested the effects of SNHs at a field scale (SNH type and distance to SNH) and at a landscape scale (percentage and diversity of SNHs within a 1000-m radius). In the dry year of 2016, we detected one putative biotic culprit: Weed cover was negatively associated with yield values at a 1-m and 5-m distance from the field border with a SNH. None of the fungal and insect pests, however, significantly affected yield, neither solely nor depending on type of or distance to a SNH. However, the pest groups themselves responded differently to SNH at the field scale and at the landscape scale. Our findings highlight that crop losses at field borders may be caused by biotic culprits; however, their negative impact seems weak and is putatively reduced by conventional farming practices.
KW  - arable weeds
KW  - cereal leaf beetle
KW  - fungal pathogens
KW  - herbivory
KW  - structural equation model
KW  - wheat
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8046
SN  - 1467-6435
VL  - 11
SP  - 13232
EP  - 13246
PB  - Wiley-Blackwell
CY  - Oxford
ET  - 19
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Trindade, Inês
T1  - A drop of immunity
JF  - Molecular plant
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molp.2021.07.022
SN  - 1674-2052
SN  - 1752-9867
VL  - 14
IS  - 9
SP  - 1437
EP  - 1438
PB  - Oxford Univ. Press
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Petrović, Saša
A1  - Wendler, Petra
T1  - A RADD approach to probing AAA plus protein function
JF  - Nature structural & molecular biology
N2  - AAA+ proteins (ATPases associated with various cellular activities) catalyze the energy-dependent movement or rearrangement of macromolecules. A new study addresses the important question of how to design a selective chemical inhibitor for specific proteins in this diverse superfamily. The powerful chemical genetics approach adds to a growing toolbox of applications that allow dissection of the functions of distinct AAA+ proteins in vivo, facilitating the first steps toward effective drug development.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41594-021-00579-5
SN  - 1545-9993
SN  - 1545-9985
VL  - 28
IS  - 4
SP  - 329
EP  - 330
PB  - Nature Publishing Group
CY  - Berlin
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Leimkühler, Silke
T1  - Transition metals in catalysis
BT  - the functional relationship of Fe-S clusters and molybdenum or tungsten cofactor-containing enzyme systems
JF  - Inorganics : open access journal
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics9010006
SN  - 2304-6740
VL  - 9
IS  - 1
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Steppert, Isabel
A1  - Schönfelder, Jessy
A1  - Schultz, Carolyn
A1  - Kuhlmeier, Dirk
T1  - Rapid in vitro differentiation of bacteria by ion mobility spectrometry
JF  - Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology
N2  - Rapid screening of infected people plays a crucial role in interrupting infection chains. However, the current methods for identification of bacteria are very tedious and labor intense. Fast on-site screening for pathogens based on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) could help to differentiate between healthy and potentially infected subjects. As a first step towards this, the feasibility of differentiating between seven different bacteria including resistant strains was assessed using IMS coupled to multicapillary columns (MCC-IMS). The headspace above bacterial cultures was directly drawn and analyzed by MCC-IMS after 90 min of incubation. A cluster analysis software and statistical methods were applied to select discriminative VOC clusters. As a result, 63 VOC clusters were identified, enabling the differentiation between all investigated bacterial strains using canonical discriminant analysis. These 63 clusters were reduced to 7 discriminative VOC clusters by constructing a hierarchical classification tree. Using this tree, all bacteria including resistant strains could be classified with an AUC of 1.0 by receiver-operating characteristic analysis. In conclusion, MCC-IMS is able to differentiate the tested bacterial species, even the non-resistant and their corresponding resistant strains, based on VOC patterns after 90 min of cultivation. Although this result is very promising, in vivo studies need to be performed to investigate if this technology is able to also classify clinical samples. With a short analysis time of 5 min, MCC-IMS is quite attractive for a rapid screening for possible infections in various locations from hospitals to airports. Key Points center dot Differentiation of bacteria by MCC-IMS is shown after 90-min cultivation. center dot Non-resistant and resistant strains can be distinguished. center dot Classification of bacteria is possible based on metabolic features.
KW  - Bacteria identification
KW  - Volatile organic compounds (VOC)
KW  - Ion mobility
KW  - spectrometry (IMS)
KW  - Antibiotic resistance
KW  - Infection
KW  - Diagnostic
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-021-11315-w
SN  - 0175-7598
SN  - 1432-0614
VL  - 105
IS  - 10
SP  - 4297
EP  - 4307
PB  - Springer
CY  - New York
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Strong, Catherine R. C.
A1  - Scherz, Mark D.
A1  - Caldwell, Michael Wayne
T1  - Deconstructing the Gestalt
BT  - new concepts and tests of homology, as exemplified by a re-conceptualization of "microstomy" in squamates
JF  - The anatomical record : AR ; advances in integrative anatomy and evolutionary biology ; an official publication of the American Association of Anatomists, AAA
N2  - Snakes-a subset of lizards-have traditionally been divided into two major groups based on feeding mechanics: "macrostomy," involving the ingestion of proportionally large prey items; and "microstomy," the lack of this ability. "Microstomy"-considered present in scolecophidian and early-diverging alethinophidian snakes-is generally viewed as a symplesiomorphy shared with non-snake lizards. However, this perspective of "microstomy" as plesiomorphic and morphologically homogenous fails to recognize the complexity of this condition and its evolution across "microstomatan" squamates. To challenge this problematic paradigm, we formalize a new framework for conceptualizing and testing the homology of overall character complexes, or "morphotypes," which underlies our re-assessment of "microstomy." Using micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) scans, we analyze the morphology of the jaws and suspensorium across purported "microstomatan" squamates (scolecophidians, early-diverging alethinophidians, and non-snake lizards) and demonstrate that key components of the jaw complex are not homologous at the level of primary character state identity across these taxa. Therefore, rather than treating "microstomy" as a uniform condition, we instead propose that non-snake lizards, early-diverging alethinophidians, anomalepidids, leptotyphlopids, and typhlopoids each exhibit a unique and nonhomologous jaw morphotype: "minimal-kinesis microstomy," "snout-shifting," "axle-brace maxillary raking," "mandibular raking," and "single-axle maxillary raking," respectively. The lack of synapomorphy among scolecophidians is inconsistent with the notion of scolecophidians representing an ancestral snake condition, and instead reflects a hypothesis of the independent evolution of fossoriality, miniaturization, and "microstomy" in each scolecophidian lineage. We ultimately emphasize that a rigorous approach to comparative anatomy is necessary in constructing evolutionary hypotheses that accurately reflect biological reality.
KW  - ancestral state reconstruction
KW  - functional morphology
KW  - homology
KW  - skull
KW  - anatomy
KW  - snake evolution
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ar.24630
SN  - 1932-8486
SN  - 1932-8494
VL  - 304
IS  - 10
SP  - 2303
EP  - 2351
PB  - Wiley
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Guljamow, Arthur
A1  - Barchewitz, Tino
A1  - Große, Rebecca
A1  - Timm, Stefan
A1  - Hagemann, Martin
A1  - Dittmann, Elke
T1  - Diel Variations of Extracellular Microcystin Influence the
Subcellular Dynamics of RubisCO in Microcystis aeruginosa
PCC 7806
JF  - Microorganisms : open access journal
N2  - The ubiquitous freshwater cyanobacterium Microcystis is remarkably successful, showing a high tolerance against fluctuations in environmental conditions. It frequently forms dense blooms which can accumulate significant amounts of the hepatotoxin microcystin, which plays an extracellular role as an infochemical but also acts intracellularly by interacting with proteins of the carbon metabolism, notably with the CO2 fixing enzyme RubisCO. Here we demonstrate a direct link between external microcystin and its intracellular targets. Monitoring liquid cultures of Microcystis in a diel experiment revealed fluctuations in the extracellular microcystin content that correlate with an increase in the binding of microcystin to intracellular proteins. Concomitantly, reversible relocation of RubisCO from the cytoplasm to the cell’s periphery was observed. These variations in RubisCO localization were especially pronounced with cultures grown at higher cell densities. We replicated these effects by adding microcystin externally to cultures grown under continuous light. Thus, we propose that microcystin may be part of a fast response to conditions of high light and low carbon that contribute to the metabolic flexibility and the success of Microcystis in the field.
KW  - cyanobacterial bloom
KW  - Microcystis
KW  - microcystin
KW  - RubisCO
KW  - extracellular signaling
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms9061265
SN  - 2076-2607
VL  - 9
IS  - 6
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Raatz, Larissa
A1  - Pirhofer-Walzl, Karin
A1  - Müller, Marina E.H.
A1  - Scherber, Christoph
A1  - Joshi, Jasmin Radha
T1  - Who is the culprit: Is pest infestation responsible for crop yield losses close to semi-natural habitats?
JF  - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe
N2  - Semi-natural habitats (SNHs) are becoming increasingly scarce in modern agricultural landscapes. This may reduce natural ecosystem services such as pest control with its putatively positive effect on crop production. In agreement with other studies, we recently reported wheat yield reductions at field borders which were linked to the type of SNH and the distance to the border. In this experimental landscape-wide study, we asked whether these yield losses have a biotic origin while analyzing fungal seed and fungal leaf pathogens, herbivory of cereal leaf beetles, and weed cover as hypothesized mediators between SNHs and yield. We established experimental winter wheat plots of a single variety within conventionally managed wheat fields at fixed distances either to a hedgerow or to an in-field kettle hole. For each plot, we recorded the fungal infection rate on seeds, fungal infection and herbivory rates on leaves, and weed cover. Using several generalized linear mixed-effects models as well as a structural equation model, we tested the effects of SNHs at a field scale (SNH type and distance to SNH) and at a landscape scale (percentage and diversity of SNHs within a 1000-m radius). In the dry year of 2016, we detected one putative biotic culprit: Weed cover was negatively associated with yield values at a 1-m and 5-m distance from the field border with a SNH. None of the fungal and insect pests, however, significantly affected yield, neither solely nor depending on type of or distance to a SNH. However, the pest groups themselves responded differently to SNH at the field scale and at the landscape scale. Our findings highlight that crop losses at field borders may be caused by biotic culprits; however, their negative impact seems weak and is putatively reduced by conventional farming practices.
T3  - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 1240 
KW  - arable weeds
KW  - cereal leaf beetle
KW  - fungal pathogens
KW  - herbivory
KW  - structural equation model
KW  - wheat
Y1  - 2022
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-549622
SN  - 1866-8372
SP  - 13232
EP  - 13246
PB  - Universitätsverlag Potsdam
CY  - Potsdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Flöder, Sabine
A1  - Yong, Joanne
A1  - Klauschies, Toni
A1  - Gaedke, Ursula
A1  - Poprick, Tobias
A1  - Brinkhoff, Thorsten
A1  - Moorthi, Stefanie
T1  - Intraspecific trait variation alters the outcome of competition in freshwater ciliates
JF  - Ecology and evolution
N2  - Trait variation among heterospecific and conspecific organisms may substantially affect community and food web dynamics. While the relevance of competition and feeding traits have been widely studied for different consumer species, studies on intraspecific differences are more scarce, partly owing to difficulties in distinguishing different clones of the same species. Here, we investigate how intraspecific trait variation affects the competition between the freshwater ciliates Euplotes octocarinatus and Coleps hirtus in a nitrogen-limited chemostat system. The ciliates competed for the microalgae Cryptomonas sp. (Cry) and Navicula pelliculosa (Nav), and the bacteria present in the cultures over a period of 33 days. We used monoclonal Euplotes and three different Coleps clones (Col 1, Col 2, and Col 3) in the experiment that could be distinguished by a newly developed rDNA-based molecular assay based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions. While Euplotes feeds on Cry and on bacteria, the Coleps clones cannot survive on bacteria alone but feed on both Cry and Nav with clone-specific rates. Experimental treatments comprised two-species mixtures of Euplotes and one or all of the three different Coleps clones, respectively. We found intraspecific variation in the traits "selectivity" and "maximum ingestion rate" for the different algae to significantly affect the competitive outcome between the two ciliate species. As Nav quickly escaped top-down control and likely reached a state of low food quality, ciliate competition was strongly determined by the preference of different Coleps clones for Cry as opposed to feeding on Nav. In addition, the ability of Euplotes to use bacteria as an alternative food source strengthened its persistence once Cry was depleted. Hence, trait variation at both trophic levels codetermined the population dynamics and the outcome of species competition.
KW  - ciliate predators
KW  - intraspecific trait variation
KW  - microalgal resource
KW  - predator trait variation
KW  - predator-prey systems
KW  - resource competition
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7828
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 15
SP  - 10225
EP  - 10243
PB  - Wiley
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Baunach, Martin
A1  - Chowdhury, Somak
A1  - Stallforth, Pierre
A1  - Dittmann-Thünemann, Elke
T1  - The landscape of recombination events that create nonribosomal peptide diversity
JF  - Molecular biology and evolution : MBE
N2  - Nonribosomal peptides (NRP) are crucial molecular mediators in microbial ecology and provide indispensable drugs. Nevertheless, the evolution of the flexible biosynthetic machineries that correlates with the stunning structural diversity of NRPs is poorly understood. Here, we show that recombination is a key driver in the evolution of bacterial NRP synthetase (NRPS) genes across distant bacterial phyla, which has guided structural diversification in a plethora of NRP families by extensive mixing andmatching of biosynthesis genes. The systematic dissection of a large number of individual recombination events did not only unveil a striking plurality in the nature and origin of the exchange units but allowed the deduction of overarching principles that enable the efficient exchange of adenylation (A) domain substrates while keeping the functionality of the dynamic multienzyme complexes. In the majority of cases, recombination events have targeted variable portions of the A(core) domains, yet domain interfaces and the flexible A(sub) domain remained untapped. Our results strongly contradict the widespread assumption that adenylation and condensation (C) domains coevolve and significantly challenge the attributed role of C domains as stringent selectivity filter during NRP synthesis. Moreover, they teach valuable lessons on the choice of natural exchange units in the evolution of NRPS diversity, which may guide future engineering approaches.
KW  - evolution
KW  - recombination
KW  - structural diversity
KW  - natural products
KW  - nonribosomal peptide synthetases
KW  - microbial ecology
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msab015
SN  - 0737-4038
SN  - 1537-1719
VL  - 38
IS  - 5
SP  - 2116
EP  - 2130
PB  - Oxford Univ. Press
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Ruthsatz, Katharina
A1  - Scherz, Mark D.
A1  - Vences, Miguel
T1  - Dissecting the tree of life
BT  - the prospect of open-access digital resources in morphology, anatomy and taxonomy in training the next generation of zoologists
JF  - Zootaxa : an international journal of zootaxonomy ;
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5016.3.10
SN  - 1175-5326
SN  - 1175-5334
VL  - 5016
IS  - 3
SP  - 448
EP  - 450
PB  - Magnolia Press
CY  - Auckland
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Schneeberger, Karin
A1  - Eccard, Jana
T1  - Experience of social density during early life is associated with attraction to conspecific odour in the common vole (Microtus arvalis)
JF  - Ethology : international journal of behavioural biology
N2  - Social organisation in species with fluctuating population sizes can change with density. Therefore, information on (future) density obtained during early life stages may be associated with social behaviour. Olfactory cues may carry important social information. We investigated whether early life experience of different experimental densities was subsequently associated with differences in attraction to adult conspecific odours. We used common voles (Microtus arvalis), a rodent species undergoing extreme density fluctuations. We found that individuals originating from high experimental density populations kept in large outdoor enclosures invested more time in inspecting conspecific olfactory cues than individuals from low-density populations. Generally, voles from both treatments spent more time with the olfactory cues than expected by chance and did not differ in their latency to approach the odour samples. Our findings indicate either that early experience affects odour sensitivity or that animals evaluate the social information contained in conspecific odours differently, depending on their early life experience of conspecific density.
KW  - early experience
KW  - olfactory
KW  - population cycles
KW  - priming
KW  - rodents
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/eth.13211
SN  - 0179-1613
SN  - 1439-0310
VL  - 127
IS  - 10
SP  - 908
EP  - 913
PB  - Wiley-Blackwell
CY  - Berlin
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Malchow, Anne-Kathleen
A1  - Bocedi, Greta
A1  - Palmer, Stephen C. F.
A1  - Travis, Justin M. J.
A1  - Zurell, Damaris
T1  - RangeShiftR: an R package for individual-based simulation of spatial eco-evolutionary dynamics and speciesu0027 responses to environmental changes
JF  - Ecography
N2  - Reliably modelling the demographic and distributional responses of a species to environmental changes can be crucial for successful conservation and management planning. Process-based models have the potential to achieve this goal, but so far they remain underused for predictions of species' distributions. Individual-based models offer the additional capability to model inter-individual variation and evolutionary dynamics and thus capture adaptive responses to environmental change. We present RangeShiftR, an R implementation of a flexible individual-based modelling platform which simulates eco-evolutionary dynamics in a spatially explicit way. The package provides flexible and fast simulations by making the software RangeShifter available for the widely used statistical programming platform R. The package features additional auxiliary functions to support model specification and analysis of results. We provide an outline of the package's functionality, describe the underlying model structure with its main components and present a short example. RangeShiftR offers substantial model complexity, especially for the demographic and dispersal processes. It comes with elaborate tutorials and comprehensive documentation to facilitate learning the software and provide help at all levels. As the core code is implemented in C++, the computations are fast. The complete source code is published under a public licence, making adaptations and contributions feasible. The RangeShiftR package facilitates the application of individual-based and mechanistic modelling to eco-evolutionary questions by operating a flexible and powerful simulation model from R. It allows effortless interoperation with existing packages to create streamlined workflows that can include data preparation, integrated model specification and results analysis. Moreover, the implementation in R strengthens the potential for coupling RangeShiftR with other models.
KW  - connectivity
KW  - conservation
KW  - dispersal
KW  - evolution
KW  - population dynamics
KW  - range dynamics
Y1  - 2021
SN  - 1600-0587
VL  - 44
IS  - 10
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
CY  - New Jersey
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Köker, Latife
A1  - Akçaalan, Reyhan
A1  - Dittmann, Elke
A1  - Albay, Meriç
T1  - Depth profiles of protein-bound microcystin in Küçükçekmece Lagoon
JF  - Toxicon : an international journal devoted to the exchange of knowledge on the poisons derived from the tissues of plants and animals ; official journal of the International Society on Toxinology
N2  - Microcystis is the most commonly found toxic cyanobacterial genus around the world and has a negative impact on the ecosystem. As a predominant producer of the potent hepatotoxin microcystin (MC), the genus causes outbreaks in freshwaters worldwide. Standard analytical methods that are used for the detection of microcystin variants can only measure the free form of microcystin in cells. Since microcystin was found as free and proteinbound forms in the cells, a significant proportion of microcystin is underestimated with analytical methods. The aim of the study was to measure protein-bound microcystins and determine the environmental factors that affect the binding of microcystin to proteins. Samples were taken at depths of surface, 1 m, 5 m, 10 m, 15 m, and 18 m in Kucukcekmece Lagoon to analyze depth profiles of two different microcystin forms from June to September 2012 at regular monthly intervals. Our findings suggest that the most important parameter affecting proteinbound microcystin at surface water is high light. Due to favorable environmental conditions such as temperature, light, and physicochemical parameters, the higher microcystin contents, both free and protein-bound MCs, were found in summer periods.
KW  - Microcystis
KW  - Microcystin
KW  - Protein-bound microcystin
KW  - Mcy gene
KW  - Kucukcekmece Lagoon
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.toxicon.2021.05.005
SN  - 0041-0101
SN  - 1879-3150
VL  - 198
SP  - 156
EP  - 163
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Münch, Juliane
A1  - Abdelilah-Seyfried, Salim
T1  - Sensing and responding of cardiomyocytes to changes of tissue stiffness in the diseased heart
JF  - Frontiers in cell developmental biology
N2  - Cardiomyocytes are permanently exposed to mechanical stimulation due to cardiac contractility. Passive myocardial stiffness is a crucial factor, which defines the physiological ventricular compliance and volume of diastolic filling with blood. Heart diseases often present with increased myocardial stiffness, for instance when fibrotic changes modify the composition of the cardiac extracellular matrix (ECM). Consequently, the ventricle loses its compliance, and the diastolic blood volume is reduced. Recent advances in the field of cardiac mechanobiology revealed that disease-related environmental stiffness changes cause severe alterations in cardiomyocyte cellular behavior and function. Here, we review the molecular mechanotransduction pathways that enable cardiomyocytes to sense stiffness changes and translate those into an altered gene expression. We will also summarize current knowledge about when myocardial stiffness increases in the diseased heart. Sophisticated in vitro studies revealed functional changes, when cardiomyocytes faced a stiffer matrix. Finally, we will highlight recent studies that described modulations of cardiac stiffness and thus myocardial performance in vivo. Mechanobiology research is just at the cusp of systematic investigations related to mechanical changes in the diseased heart but what is known already makes way for new therapeutic approaches in regenerative biology.
KW  - mechanobiology
KW  - tissue stiffness
KW  - cardiomyocyte
KW  - heart regeneration
KW  - titin
KW  - collagen
KW  - agrin
KW  - extracellular matrix
Y1  - 2020
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2021.642840
SN  - 2296-634X
VL  - 9
PB  - Frontiers Media
CY  - Lausanne
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Bornhorst, Dorothee
A1  - Abdelilah-Seyfried, Salim
T1  - Strong as a Hippo’s Heart: Biomechanical Hippo Signaling During Zebrafish Cardiac Development
JF  - Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology
N2  - The heart is comprised of multiple tissues that contribute to its physiological functions. During development, the growth of myocardium and endocardium is coupled and morphogenetic processes within these separate tissue layers are integrated. Here, we discuss the roles of mechanosensitive Hippo signaling in growth and morphogenesis of the zebrafish heart. Hippo signaling is involved in defining numbers of cardiac progenitor cells derived from the secondary heart field, in restricting the growth of the epicardium, and in guiding trabeculation and outflow tract formation. Recent work also shows that myocardial chamber dimensions serve as a blueprint for Hippo signaling-dependent growth of the endocardium. Evidently, Hippo pathway components act at the crossroads of various signaling pathways involved in embryonic zebrafish heart development. Elucidating how biomechanical Hippo signaling guides heart morphogenesis has direct implications for our understanding of cardiac physiology and pathophysiology.
KW  - Hippo signaling
KW  - Yap1/Wwtr1 (Taz)
KW  - cardiac development
KW  - mechanobiology
KW  - endocardium
KW  - myocardium
KW  - zebrafish
KW  - intra-organ-communication
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2021.731101
SN  - 2296-634X
VL  - 9
SP  - 1
EP  - 10
PB  - Frontiers Media
CY  - Lausanne, Schweiz
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Eilers, Elisabeth Johanna
A1  - Kleine, Sandra
A1  - Eckert, Silvia
A1  - Waldherr, Simon
A1  - Müller, Caroline
T1  - Flower production, headspace volatiles, pollen nutrients, and florivory in tanacetum vulgare chemotypes
JF  - Frontiers in plant science : FPLS
N2  - Floral volatiles and reward traits are major drivers for the behavior of mutualistic as well as antagonistic flower visitors, i.e., pollinators and florivores. These floral traits differ tremendously between species, but intraspecific differences and their consequences on organism interactions remain largely unknown. Floral volatile compounds, such as terpenoids, function as cues to advertise rewards to pollinators, but should at the same time also repel florivores. The reward composition, e.g., protein and lipid contents in pollen, differs between individuals of distinct plant families. Whether the nutritional value of rewards within the same plant species is linked to their chemotypes, which differ in their pattern of specialized metabolites, has yet not been investigated. In the present study, we compared Tanacetum vulgare plants of five terpenoid chemotypes with regard to flower production, floral headspace volatiles, pollen macronutrient and terpenoid content, and floral attractiveness to florivorous beetles. Our analyses revealed remarkable differences between the chemotypes in the amount and diameter of flower heads, duration of bloom period, and pollen nutritional quality. The floral headspace composition of pollen-producing mature flowers, but not of premature flowers, was correlated to that of pollen and leaves in the same plant individual. For two chemotypes, florivorous beetles discriminated between the scent of mature and premature flower heads and preferred the latter. In semi-field experiments, the abundance of florivorous beetles and flower tissue miners differed between T. vulgare chemotypes. Moreover, the scent environment affected the choice and beetles were more abundant in homogenous plots composed of one single chemotype than in plots with different neighboring chemotypes. In conclusion, flower production, floral metabolic composition and pollen quality varied to a remarkable extend within the species T. vulgare, and the attractiveness of floral scent differed also intra-individually with floral ontogeny. We found evidence for a trade-off between pollen lipid content and pollen amount on a per-plant-level. Our study highlights that chemotypes which are more susceptible to florivory are less attacked when they grow in the neighborhood of other chemotypes and thus gain a benefit from high overall chemodiversity.
KW  - terpenoids
KW  - gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)
KW  - Asteraceae
KW  - protein
KW  - lipid-ratio
KW  - insect behavior
KW  - Phalacridae
KW  - chemodiversity
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2020.611877
SN  - 1664-462X
VL  - 11
PB  - Frontiers Media
CY  - Lausanne
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Steppert, Claus
A1  - Steppert, Isabel
A1  - Sterlacci, William
A1  - Bollinger, Thomas
T1  - Rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection by multicapillary column coupled ion mobility spectrometry (MCC-IMS) of breath
BT  - a proof of concept study
JF  - Journal of breath research : volatiles for medical diagnosis ; official journal of the International Association for Breath Research (IABR) and the International Society for Breath Odor Research (ISBOR)
N2  - There is an urgent need for screening of patients with a communicable viral disease to cut infection chains. Recently, we demonstrated that ion mobility spectrometry coupled with a multicapillary column (MCC-IMS) is able to identify influenza-A infections in patients' breath. With a decreasing influenza epidemic and upcoming SARS-CoV-2 infections we proceeded further and analyzed patients with suspected SARS-CoV-2 infections. In this study, the nasal breath of 75 patients (34 male, 41 female, aged 64.4 +/- 15.4 years) was investigated by MCC-IMS for viral infections. Fourteen were positively diagnosed with influenza-A infection and sixteen with SARS-CoV-2 by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) of nasopharyngeal swabs. In one patient RT-PCR was highly suspicious of SARS-CoV-2 but initially inconclusive. The remaining 44 patients served as controls. Breath fingerprints for specific infections were assessed by a combination of cluster analysis and multivariate statistics. There were no significant differences in gender or age according to the groups. In the cross validation of the discriminant analysis 72 of the 74 clearly defined patients could be correctly classified to the respective group. Even the inconclusive patient could be mapped to the SARS-CoV-2 group by applying the discrimination functions. Conclusion: SARS-CoV-2 infection and influenza-A infection can be detected with the help of MCC-IMS in breath in this pilot study. As this method provides a fast non-invasive diagnosis it should be further developed in a larger cohort for screening of communicable viral diseases. A validation study is ongoing during the second wave of COVID-19. 

Trial registration: ClinicalTrial.gov, NCT04282135 Registered 20 February 2020-Retrospectively registered,
KW  - breath analysis
KW  - ion mobility spectrometry
KW  - COVID-19
KW  - influenza-A
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1088/1752-7163/abe5ca
SN  - 1752-7163
VL  - 15
IS  - 2
PB  - IOP Publ. Ltd.
CY  - Bristol
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Apriyanto, Ardha
A1  - Tambunan, Van Basten
T1  - Draft genome sequence, annotation, and SSR mining data of Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust., an essential oil palm pollinating weevil
JF  - Data in Brief
N2  - Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is an essential insect pollinator in oil palm plantations. Recently, researches have been undertaken to improve pollination efficiency using this species. A fundamental understanding of the genes related to this pollinator behavior is necessary to achieve this goal. Here, we present the draft genome sequence, annotation, and simple sequence repeat (SSR) marker data for this pollinator. In total, 34.97 Gb of sequence data from one male individual (monoisolate) were obtained using Illumina short-read platform NextSeq 500. The draft genome assembly was found to be 269.79 Mb and about 59.9% of completeness based on Benchmarking Universal Single-Copy Orthologs (BUSCO) assessment. Functional gene annotation predicted about 26.566 genes. Also, a total of 281.668 putative SSR markers were identified. This draft genome sequence is a valuable resource for understanding the population genetics, phylogenetics, dispersal patterns, and behavior of this species.
KW  - Whole-genome sequencing
KW  - NGS
KW  - Simple Sequence Repeat
KW  - Weevil
KW  - Curculionidae
KW  - Oil Palm
KW  - Pollinator
KW  - Genomics
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2021.106745
SN  - 2352-3409
VL  - 34
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Orzechowski, Slawomir
A1  - Sitnicka, Dorota
A1  - Grabowska, Agnieszka
A1  - Compart, Julia
A1  - Fettke, Jörg
A1  - Zdunek-Zastocka, Edyta
T1  - Effect of short-term cold treatment on carbohydrate metabolism in potato leaves
JF  - International journal of molecular sciences
N2  - Plants are often challenged by an array of unfavorable environmental conditions. During cold exposure, many changes occur that include, for example, the stabilization of cell membranes, alterations in gene expression and enzyme activities, as well as the accumulation of metabolites. In the presented study, the carbohydrate metabolism was analyzed in the very early response of plants to a low temperature (2 degrees C) in the leaves of 5-week-old potato plants of the Russet Burbank cultivar during the first 12 h of cold treatment (2 h dark and 10 h light). First, some plant stress indicators were examined and it was shown that short-term cold exposure did not significantly affect the relative water content and chlorophyll content (only after 12 h), but caused an increase in malondialdehyde concentration and a decrease in the expression of NDA1, a homolog of the NADH dehydrogenase gene. In addition, it was shown that the content of transitory starch increased transiently in the very early phase of the plant response (3-6 h) to cold treatment, and then its decrease was observed after 12 h. In contrast, soluble sugars such as glucose and fructose were significantly increased only at the end of the light period, where a decrease in sucrose content was observed. The availability of the monosaccharides at constitutively high levels, regardless of the temperature, may delay the response to cold, involving amylolytic starch degradation in chloroplasts. The decrease in starch content, observed in leaves after 12 h of cold exposure, was preceded by a dramatic increase in the transcript levels of the key enzymes of starch degradation initiation, the alpha-glucan, water dikinase (GWD-EC 2.7.9.4) and the phosphoglucan, water dikinase (PWD-EC 2.7.9.5). The gene expression of both dikinases peaked at 9 h of cold exposure, as analyzed by real-time PCR. Moreover, enhanced activities of the acid invertase as well as of both glucan phosphorylases during exposure to a chilling temperature were observed. However, it was also noticed that during the light phase, there was a general increase in glucan phosphorylase activities for both control and cold-stressed plants irrespective of the temperature. In conclusion, a short-term cold treatment alters the carbohydrate metabolism in the leaves of potato, which leads to an increase in the content of soluble sugars.
KW  - cold stress
KW  - alpha-glucan
KW  - water dikinase
KW  - phosphoglucan water dikinase
KW  - chloroplast isolation
KW  - glucan phosphorylase
KW  - acid invertase
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22137203
SN  - 1422-0067
VL  - 22
IS  - 13
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Li, Xiaoxiao
A1  - Yang, Wei
A1  - Sun, Tao
A1  - Gaedke, Ursula
T1  - Quantitative food web structure and ecosystem functions in a warm-temperate seagrass bed
JF  - Marine biology : international journal on life in oceans and coastal waters
N2  - Seagrass beds are important habitats in coastal areas but increasingly decline in area and quality, thus conservation measures are urgently needed. Quantitative food webs, describing the biomass distribution and energy fluxes among trophic groups, reveal structural and functional aspects of ecosystems. Their knowledge can improve ecological conservation. For the recently discovered large warm-temperate seagrass (Zostera japonica) habitat in China's Yellow River Delta wetland, we used delta C-13 and delta N-15 measurements and a Bayesian isotope mixing model to construct its food web diagram with quantitative estimations of consumer diet compositions, comprising detritus and 14 living trophic groups from primary producers to fish. We then estimated the quantitative food web fluxes based on biomass measurements and calculated corresponding ecosystem functions. Pelagic producers were significantly C-13-depleted compared to benthic sources. Consumers (except zooplankton) were increasingly C-13-depleted with increasing trophic positions even though the consumed benthic production surpassed the pelagic one. Bivalves dominated consumer biomasses and fluxes and were the first to connect the pelagic and benthic pathways, whereas zooplankton and gastropods were specialized on the two pathways, respectively. We found flat biomass and production pyramids indicating low trophic transfer efficiencies. Generally, the energetic structure of the quantitative food web was consistent with the stable isotope analysis, and the estimated net primary production and most estimated production to biomass ratios of the trophic groups fell within literature ranges. This study provides a systematical understanding of the quantitative trophic ecology of a seagrass bed and facilitates synergistic knowledge on management, conservation, and restoration.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-021-03878-z
SN  - 0025-3162
SN  - 1432-1793
VL  - 168
IS  - 5
PB  - Springer
CY  - Berlin ; Heidelberg
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Warmt, Christian
A1  - Fenzel, Carolin Kornelia
A1  - Henkel, Jörg
A1  - Bier, Frank Fabian
T1  - Using Cy5-dUTP labelling of RPA-amplicons with downstream microarray analysis for the detection of antibiotic resistance genes
JF  - Scientific reports
N2  - In this report we describe Cy5-dUTP labelling of recombinase-polymerase-amplification (RPA) products directly during the amplification process for the first time. Nucleic acid amplification techniques, especially polymerase-chain-reaction as well as various isothermal amplification methods such as RPA, becomes a promising tool in the detection of pathogens and target specific genes. Actually, RPA even provides more advantages. This isothermal method got popular in point of care diagnostics because of its speed and sensitivity but requires pre-labelled primer or probes for a following detection of the amplicons. To overcome this disadvantages, we performed an labelling of RPA-amplicons with Cy5-dUTP without the need of pre-labelled primers. The amplification results of various multiple antibiotic resistance genes indicating great potential as a flexible and promising tool with high specific and sensitive detection capabilities of the target genes. After the determination of an appropriate rate of 1% Cy5-dUTP and 99% unlabelled dTTP we were able to detect the bla(CTX-M15) gene in less than 1.6E-03 ng genomic DNA corresponding to approximately 200 cfu of Escherichia coli cells in only 40 min amplification time.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-99774-z
SN  - 2045-2322
VL  - 11
IS  - 1
PB  - Macmillan Publishers Limited, part of Springer Nature
CY  - [London]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Mazza, Valeria
A1  - Günther, Anja
T1  - City mice and country mice
BT  - innovative problem solving in rural and urban noncommensal rodents
JF  - Animal behaviour
N2  - The ability to produce innovative behaviour is a key determinant in the successful coping with environmental challenges and changes. The expansion of human-altered environments presents wildlife with multiple novel situations in which innovativeness could be beneficial. A better understanding of the drivers of within-species variation in innovation propensity and its consequences will provide insights into the traits enabling animals to thrive in the face of human-induced rapid environmental change. We compared problem-solving performance of 31 striped field mice, Apodemus agrarius, originating from rural or urban environments in a battery of eight foraging extraction tasks. We tested whether differences in problem-solving performance were mediated by the extent and duration of the animal's exploration of the experimental set-ups, the time required to solve the tasks, and their persistence. In addition, we tested the influence of the diversity of motor responses, as well as of behavioural traits boldness and activity on problem-solving performance. Urban individuals were better problem solvers despite rural individuals approaching faster and interacting longer with the test set-ups. Participation rates and time required to solve a task did not differ between rural and urban individuals. However, in case of failure to solve a task, rural mice were more persistent. The best predictors of solving success, aside from the area of origin, were the time spent exploring the set-ups and boldness, while activity and diversity of motor responses did not explain it. Problem-solving ability could thus be a contributing factor to the successful coping with the rapid and recent expansion of human-altered environments.
KW  - animal personality
KW  - anthropogenic environment
KW  - Apodemus agrarius
KW  - HIREC
KW  - individual differences
KW  - innovation
KW  - problem solving
KW  - rodent
KW  - urbanization
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.12.007
SN  - 0003-3472
SN  - 1095-8282
VL  - 172
SP  - 197
EP  - 210
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Enzingmüller, Carolin
A1  - Prechtl, Helmut
T1  - Constructing graphs in biology class
BT  - Secondary biology teachers’ beliefs, motivation, and self-reported practices
JF  - International journal of science and mathematics education
N2  - There has been a growing awareness that graphing is an essential part of the science curriculum. While much research has focused on student conceptions and abilities regarding graphical representations, only few studies have investigated what teachers think about them and how they use graphs in science class. The purpose of this study is to explore educational beliefs, motivation, and teaching practices of German secondary biology teachers regarding graph construction. Via questionnaire surveys, 71 teachers from different regions in Germany rated their beliefs and motivation as well as the frequency of different graph construction activities in biology class. The teachers surveyed in this study were quite motivated in their teaching of graph construction. Furthermore, they tended to believe that graph construction should be practiced explicitly in biology class and that students should learn clear strategies for constructing graphs. We found that teaching subjects and own research experience make a difference in teachers' beliefs and motivation regarding graph construction in biology class. The self-report on classroom practices revealed that participants may provide limited opportunities for students to experience graphing as a social and iterative practice. Implications are drawn for teacher education and professional development as well as for further research in teacher education contexts.
KW  - Biology teachers
KW  - Beliefs and motivation
KW  - Classroom practices
KW  - Graph
KW  - construction
KW  - Secondary school
Y1  - 2019
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10763-019-09975-2
SN  - 1571-0068
SN  - 1573-1774
VL  - 19
IS  - 1
SP  - 1
EP  - 19
PB  - Springer
CY  - Dordrecht
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Merida, Angel
A1  - Fettke, Jörg
T1  - Starch granule initiation in Arabidopsis thaliana chloroplasts
JF  - The plant journal
N2  - The initiation of starch granule formation and the mechanism controlling the number of granules per plastid have been some of the most elusive aspects of starch metabolism. This review covers the advances made in the study of these processes. The analyses presented herein depict a scenario in which starch synthase isoform 4 (SS4) provides the elongating activity necessary for the initiation of starch granule formation. However, this protein does not act alone; other polypeptides are required for the initiation of an appropriate number of starch granules per chloroplast. The functions of this group of polypeptides include providing suitable substrates (maltooligosaccharides) to SS4, the localization of the starch initiation machinery to the thylakoid membranes, and facilitating the correct folding of SS4. The number of starch granules per chloroplast is tightly regulated and depends on the developmental stage of the leaves and their metabolic status. Plastidial phosphorylase (PHS1) and other enzymes play an essential role in this process since they are necessary for the synthesis of the substrates used by the initiation machinery. The mechanism of starch granule formation initiation in Arabidopsis seems to be generalizable to other plants and also to the synthesis of long-term storage starch. The latter, however, shows specific features due to the presence of more isoforms, the absence of constantly recurring starch synthesis and degradation, and the metabolic characteristics of the storage sink organs.
KW  - starch granules
KW  - starch metabolism
KW  - starch granule initiation
KW  - starch
KW  - granule number per chloroplast
KW  - starch morphology
KW  - Arabidopsis thaliana
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.15359
SN  - 0960-7412
SN  - 1365-313X
VL  - 107
IS  - 3
SP  - 688
EP  - 697
PB  - Wiley
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Rödel, Claudia Jasmin
A1  - Abdelilah-Seyfried, Salim
T1  - A zebrafish toolbox for biomechanical signaling in cardiovascular development and disease
JF  - Current opinion in hematology
N2  - Purpose of review 
The zebrafish embryo has emerged as a powerful model organism to investigate the mechanisms by which biophysical forces regulate vascular and cardiac cell biology during development and disease. A versatile arsenal of methods and tools is available to manipulate and analyze biomechanical signaling. This review aims to provide an overview of the experimental strategies and tools that have been utilized to study biomechanical signaling in cardiovascular developmental processes and different vascular disease models in the zebrafish embryo. Within the scope of this review, we focus on work published during the last two years. 

Recent findings 
Genetic and pharmacological tools for the manipulation of cardiac function allow alterations of hemodynamic flow patterns in the zebrafish embryo and various types of transgenic lines are available to report endothelial cell responses to biophysical forces. These tools have not only revealed the impact of biophysical forces on cardiovascular development but also helped to establish more accurate models for cardiovascular diseases including cerebral cavernous malformations, hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasias, arteriovenous malformations, and lymphangiopathies.

Summary
The zebrafish embryo is a valuable vertebrate model in which in-vivo manipulations of biophysical forces due to cardiac contractility and blood flow can be performed. These analyses give important insights into biomechanical signaling pathways that control endothelial and endocardial cell behaviors. The technical advances using this vertebrate model will advance our understanding of the impact of biophysical forces in cardiovascular pathologies.
KW  - angiogenesis
KW  - cardiovascular system
KW  - Danio rerio (zebrafish)
KW  - genetic
KW  - tools
KW  - mechanobiology
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1097/MOH.0000000000000648
SN  - 1065-6251
SN  - 1531-7048
VL  - 28
IS  - 3
SP  - 198
EP  - 207
PB  - Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
CY  - Philadelphia
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Paolini, Alessio
A1  - Fontana, Federica
A1  - Van-Cuong Pham, 
A1  - Rödel, Claudia Jasmin
A1  - Seyfried, Salim
T1  - Mechanosensitive Notch-Dll4 and Klf2-Wnt9 signaling pathways intersect in guiding valvulogenesis in zebrafish
JF  - Cell reports
N2  - In the zebrafish embryo, the onset of blood flow generates fluid shear stress on endocardial cells, which are specialized endothelial cells that line the interior of the heart. High levels of fluid shear stress activate both Notch and Klf2 signaling, which play crucial roles in atrioventricular valvulogenesis. However, it remains unclear why only individual endocardial cells ingress into the cardiac jelly and initiate valvulogenesis. Here, we show that lateral inhibition between endocardial cells, mediated by Notch, singles out Delta-like-4-positive endocardial cells. These cells ingress into the cardiac jelly, where they form an abluminal cell population. Delta-like-4-positive cells ingress in response to Wnt9a, which is produced in parallel through an Erk5Klf2-Wnt9a signaling cascade also activated by blood flow. Hence, mechanical stimulation activates parallel mechanosensitive signaling pathways that produce binary effects by driving endocardial cells toward either luminal or abluminal fates. Ultimately, these cell fate decisions sculpt cardiac valve leaflets.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109782
SN  - 2211-1247
VL  - 37
IS  - 1
PB  - Cell Press
CY  - Maryland Heights, MO
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Göthel, Markus
A1  - Listek, Martin
A1  - Messerschmidt, Katrin
A1  - Schlör, Anja
A1  - Hönow, Anja
A1  - Hanack, Katja
T1  - A New Workflow to Generate Monoclonal Antibodies against Microorganisms
JF  - Applied Sciences
N2  - Monoclonal antibodies are used worldwide as highly potent and efficient detection reagents for research and diagnostic applications. Nevertheless, the specific targeting of complex antigens such as whole microorganisms remains a challenge. To provide a comprehensive workflow, we combined bioinformatic analyses with novel immunization and selection tools to design monoclonal antibodies for the detection of whole microorganisms. In our initial study, we used the human pathogenic strain E. coli O157:H7 as a model target and identified 53 potential protein candidates by using reverse vaccinology methodology. Five different peptide epitopes were selected for immunization using epitope-engineered viral proteins. The identification of antibody-producing hybridomas was performed by using a novel screening technology based on transgenic fusion cell lines. Using an artificial cell surface receptor expressed by all hybridomas, the desired antigen-specific cells can be sorted fast and efficiently out of the fusion cell pool. Selected antibody candidates were characterized and showed strong binding to the target strain E. coli O157:H7 with minor or no cross-reactivity to other relevant microorganisms such as Legionella pneumophila and Bacillus ssp. This approach could be useful as a highly efficient workflow for the generation of antibodies against microorganisms.
KW  - monoclonal antibody
KW  - antibody producing cell selection
KW  - hybridoma
KW  - epitope prediction
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/app11209359
SN  - 1454-5101
VL  - 11
IS  - 20
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Michelchen, Sophia
A1  - Micheel, Burkhard
A1  - Hanack, Katja
T1  - In vitro immunization approach to generate specific murine monoclonal IgG antibodies
JF  - Journal of immunological methods : JIM
N2  - Generating a monoclonal antibody to date is a time intense process that requires immunization of laboratory animals. The transfer of the humoral immune response into in vitro settings enables a shortening of this process and circumvents the necessity of in vivo immunization. However, to orchestrate the complex interplay of dendritic cells, T and B lymphocytes in vitro is very challenging. We therefore aimed for a simplified approach focusing on the protagonist of antibody production: the B lymphocyte. We activated purified murine B lymphocytes alone in vitro by using combinations of antigen and stimuli. We were able to induce a specific antibody response within ten days of culture against a viral coat protein as model antigen. Antibodies were of both IgM and IgG subclass. The stimulated B lymphocytes were transformed into permanently antibody-producing hybridomas by cell fusion technology. We furthermore used this method to induce a specific antibody response against L. pneumophila in vitro. We thus established a useful and effective in vitro protocol to generate monoclonal antibodies. By overcoming the necessity of in vivo immunization this protocol may be the first step towards a universal strategy to generate antibodies from various species.
KW  - Monoclonal antibody
KW  - Hybridoma technology
KW  - In vitro immunization
KW  - B cell activation
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jim.2021.113149
SN  - 0022-1759
SN  - 1872-7905
VL  - 499
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Fudickar, Werner
A1  - Roder, Phillip
A1  - Listek, Martin
A1  - Hanack, Katja
A1  - Linker, Torsten
T1  - Pyridinium alkynylanthracenes as sensitizers for photodynamic therapy
JF  - Photochemistry and photobiology
N2  - Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a mild but effective method to treat certain types of cancer upon irradiation with visible light. Here, three isomeric methylpyridinium alkynylanthracenes 1op were evaluated as sensitizers for PDT. Upon irradiation with blue or green light, all three compounds show the ability to initiate strand breaks of plasmid DNA. The mayor species responsible for cleavage is singlet oxygen (O-1(2)) as confirmed by scavenging reagents. Only isomers 1m and 1p can be incorporated into HeLa cells, whereas isomer 1o cannot permeate through the membrane. While isomer 1m targets the cell nucleus, isomer 1p assembles in the cellular cytoplasm and impacts the cellular integrity. This is in accordance with a moderate toxicity of 1p in the dark, whereas 1m exhibits no dark toxicity. Both isomers are suitable as PDT reagents, with a CC50 of 3 mu m and 75 nm, for 1p and 1m, respectively. Thus, derivative 1m, which can be easily synthesized, becomes an interesting candidate for cancer therapy.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/php.13554
SN  - 0031-8655
SN  - 1751-1097
VL  - 98
IS  - 1
SP  - 193
EP  - 201
PB  - Wiley
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Pitzen, Valentin
A1  - Sander, Sophia
A1  - Baumann, Otto
A1  - Gräf, Ralph
A1  - Meyer, Irene
T1  - Cep192, a novel missing link between the centrosomal core and corona in Dictyostelium amoebae
JF  - Cells : open access journal
N2  - The Dictyostelium centrosome is a nucleus-associated body with a diameter of approx. 500 nm. It contains no centrioles but consists of a cylindrical layered core structure surrounded by a microtubule-nucleating corona. At the onset of mitosis, the corona disassembles and the core structure duplicates through growth, splitting, and reorganization of the outer core layers. During the last decades our research group has characterized the majority of the 42 known centrosomal proteins. In this work we focus on the conserved, previously uncharacterized Cep192 protein. We use superresolution expansion microscopy (ExM) to show that Cep192 is a component of the outer core layers. Furthermore, ExM with centrosomal marker proteins nicely mirrored all ultrastructurally known centrosomal substructures. Furthermore, we improved the proximity-dependent biotin identification assay (BioID) by adapting the biotinylase BioID2 for expression in Dictyostelium and applying a knock-in strategy for the expression of BioID2-tagged centrosomal fusion proteins. Thus, we were able to identify various centrosomal Cep192 interaction partners, including CDK5RAP2, which was previously allocated to the inner corona structure, and several core components. Studies employing overexpression of GFP-Cep192 as well as depletion of endogenous Cep192 revealed that Cep192 is a key protein for the recruitment of corona components during centrosome biogenesis and is required to maintain a stable corona structure.
KW  - Cep192
KW  - SPD-2
KW  - centrosome
KW  - Dictyostelium
KW  - microtubule-organization
KW  - MTOC
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/cells10092384
SN  - 2073-4409
VL  - 10
IS  - 9
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Hasnat, Muhammad Abrar
A1  - Zupok, Arkadiusz
A1  - Olas-Apelt, Justyna Jadwiga
A1  - Müller-Röber, Bernd
A1  - Leimkühler, Silke
T1  - A-type carrier proteins are involved in [4Fe-4S] cluster insertion into the radical S-adenosylmethionine protein MoaA for the synthesis of active molybdoenzymes
JF  - Journal of bacteriology
N2  - Iron sulfur (Fe-S) clusters are important biological cofactors present in proteins with crucial biological functions, from photosynthesis to DNA repair, gene expression, and bioenergetic processes. For the insertion of Fe-S clusters into proteins, A-type carrier proteins have been identified. So far, three of them have been characterized in detail in Escherichia coli, namely, IscA, SufA, and ErpA, which were shown to partially replace each other in their roles in [4Fe-4S] cluster insertion into specific target proteins. To further expand the knowledge of [4Fe-4S] cluster insertion into proteins, we analyzed the complex Fe-S cluster-dependent network for the synthesis of the molybdenum cofactor (Moco) and the expression of genes encoding nitrate reductase in E. coli. Our studies include the identification of the A-type carrier proteins ErpA and IscA, involved in [4Fe-4S] cluster insertion into the radical Sadenosyl-methionine (SAM) enzyme MoaA. We show that ErpA and IscA can partially replace each other in their role to provide [4Fe-4S] clusters for MoaA. Since most genes expressing molybdoenzymes are regulated by the transcriptional regulator for fumarate and nitrate reduction (FNR) under anaerobic conditions, we also identified the proteins that are crucial to obtain an active FNR under conditions of nitrate respiration. We show that ErpA is essential for the FNR-dependent expression of the narGHJI operon, a role that cannot be compensated by IscA under the growth conditions tested. SufA does not appear to have a role in Fe-S cluster insertion into MoaA or FNR under anaerobic growth employing nitrate respiration, based on the low level of gene expression. <br /> IMPORTANCE Understanding the assembly of iron-sulfur (Fe-S) proteins is relevant to many fields, including nitrogen fixation, photosynthesis, bioenergetics, and gene regulation. Remaining critical gaps in our knowledge include how Fe-S clusters are transferred to their target proteins and how the specificity in this process is achieved, since different forms of Fe-S clusters need to be delivered to structurally highly diverse target proteins. Numerous Fe-S carrier proteins have been identified in prokaryotes like Escherichia coli, including ErpA, IscA, SufA, and NfuA. In addition, the diverse Fe-S cluster delivery proteins and their target proteins underlie a complex regulatory network of expression, to ensure that both proteins are synthesized under particular growth conditions.
KW  - iron-sulfur clusters
KW  - Moco biosynthesis
KW  - MoaA
KW  - A-type carrier protein
KW  - FNR
KW  - nitrate reductase
KW  - molybdenum cofactor
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1128/JB.00086-21
SN  - 1098-5530
VL  - 203
IS  - 12
PB  - American Society for Microbiology
CY  - Washington
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Cahsan, Binia De
A1  - Kiemel, Katrin
A1  - Westbury, Michael V.
A1  - Lauritsen, Maike
A1  - Autenrieth, Marijke
A1  - Gollmann, Günter
A1  - Schweiger, Silke
A1  - Stenberg, Marika
A1  - Nyström, Per
A1  - Drews, Hauke
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
T1  - Southern introgression increases adaptive immune gene variability in northern range margin populations of Fire-bellied toad
JF  - Ecology and Evolution
N2  - Northern range margin populations of the European fire-bellied toad (Bombina bombina) have rapidly declined during recent decades. Extensive agricultural land use has fragmented the landscape, leading to habitat disruption and loss, as well as eutrophication of ponds. In Northern Germany (Schleswig-Holstein) and Southern Sweden (Skåne), this population decline resulted in decreased gene flow from surrounding populations, low genetic diversity, and a putative reduction in adaptive potential, leaving populations vulnerable to future environmental and climatic changes. Previous studies using mitochondrial control region and nuclear transcriptome-wide SNP data detected introgressive hybridization in multiple northern B. bombina populations after unreported release of toads from Austria. Here, we determine the impact of this introgression by comparing the body conditions (proxy for fitness) of introgressed and nonintrogressed populations and the genetic consequences in two candidate genes for putative local adaptation (the MHC II gene as part of the adaptive immune system and the stress response gene HSP70 kDa). We detected regional differences in body condition and observed significantly elevated levels of within individual MHC allele counts in introgressed Swedish populations, associated with a tendency toward higher body weight, relative to regional nonintrogressed populations. These differences were not observed among introgressed and nonintrogressed German populations. Genetic diversity in both MHC and HSP was generally lower in northern than Austrian populations. Our study sheds light on the potential benefits of translocations of more distantly related conspecifics as a means to increase adaptive genetic variability and fitness of genetically depauperate range margin populations without distortion of local adaptation.
KW  - Bombina bombina
KW  - heat shock protein
KW  - introgression
KW  - major histocompatibility complex
KW  - scaled mass index
Y1  - 2021
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 14
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
CY  - New Jersey
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Gurke, Marie
A1  - Vidal-Gorosquieta, Amalia
A1  - Pajimans, Johanna L. A.
A1  - Wȩcek, Karolina
A1  - Barlow, Axel
A1  - González-Fortes, Gloria M.
A1  - Hartmann, Stefanie
A1  - Grandal-d’Anglade, Aurora
A1  - Hofreiter, Michael
T1  - Insight into the introduction of domestic cattle and the process of Neolithization to the Spanish region Galicia by genetic evidence
JF  - PLoS ONE
N2  - Domestic cattle were brought to Spain by early settlers and agricultural societies. Due to missing Neolithic sites in the Spanish region of Galicia, very little is known about this process in this region. We sampled 18 cattle subfossils from different ages and different mountain caves in Galicia, of which 11 were subject to sequencing of the mitochondrial genome and phylogenetic analysis, to provide insight into the introduction of cattle to this region. We detected high similarity between samples from different time periods and were able to compare the time frame of the first domesticated cattle in Galicia to data from the connecting region of Cantabria to show a plausible connection between the Neolithization of these two regions. Our data shows a close relationship of the early domesticated cattle of Galicia and modern cow breeds and gives a general insight into cattle phylogeny. We conclude that settlers migrated to this region of Spain from Europe and introduced common European breeds to Galicia.
KW  - Haplogroups
KW  - Mitochondria
KW  - Cattle
KW  - Genomics
KW  - Domestic animals
KW  - Livestock
KW  - Single nucleotide polymorphisms
KW  - Neolithic period
Y1  - 2020
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0249537
SN  - 1932-6203
VL  - 16
IS  - 4
PB  - Public Library of Science
CY  - San Francisco
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Günther, Kerstin
A1  - Schmidt, Marcus
A1  - Quitt, Heinz
A1  - Heinken, Thilo
T1  - Veränderungen der Waldvegetation im Elbe-Havelwinkel von 1960 bis 2015
JF  - Tuexenia : Mitteilungen der Floristisch-Soziologischen Arbeitsgemeinschaft
N2  - Forest ecosystems are subject to a variety of influences such as forest management, nitrogen deposition, changes in the groundwater level or the immigration of invasive species. The repetition of historical releves is an important means of documenting the resulting changes in plant communities and determining their main drivers. In 2015, we examined the vegetation change in 140 semi-permanent plots in managed forests in the Elbe valley in the NE German lowlands (Saxony-Anhalt, Brandenburg). The first survey took place from 1956 to 1963. The releves cover an almost uniquely broad spectrum of different site conditions, ranging from wet forests (alluvial, swamp and bog forests of Alnion incanae, Alnion glutinosae and Betulion pubescentis) to acidic mixed oak forests (Quercion roboris) up to acidic, mostly dry pine forests with different nutrient status (Dicrano-Pinion).
We analyzed the changes in the vegetation with the help of forest stand data, winner and loser species, alpha- and beta-diversity as well as the Ellenberg indicator values for nitrogen, reaction, moisture and light. In contrast to previous resurvey studies, areas were also taken into account on which a complete change of forest stand had taken place before the second survey. 
Particularly in the wet forests and acidic forests with a moderately good nutrient supply, changes in the main tree species have been recorded, and many pine stands have been newly established in the meantime. The species richness has decreased overall and in almost all forest types, but the beta-diversity has remained unchanged or has increased. The Ellenberg values indicate a decrease in soil moisture in the wet forests, while the acidic pine forests in particular have become darker, richer in nutrients and more humid. The number of loser species is more than twice as high as that of the winner species, but with different developments in the individual forest types. In particular, the wet forests, the acidic mixed oak forests and the lichen-pine forests have lost most of their characteristic species. 
The resurvey after more than 50 years shows a different development of the individual forest types. Vegetation changes in the wet forests are mainly due to local groundwater level drawdown and the resulting increased availability of nutrients. The alluvial forests were also strongly influenced by forest interventions. The reasons for the trend towards more humid and more nutrient-rich conditions in formerly dry acidic pine and oak forests are nitrogen depositions and a succession after the abandonment of historical forms of forest use (litter raking, forest pasture). Although the individual forest types have developed differently, eutrophication, falling groundwater levels and silviculture are the most important causes for the changes in vegetation. Silvicultural interventions such as clear cutting and stand conversion with a change of tree species are at the same time the main reason why the vegetation has not been homogenized despite the leveling of the site gradient as measured by the beta-diversity.
N2  - Waldökosysteme unterliegen vielfältigen Einflüssen wie forstlicher Bewirtschaftung, Stickstoffdeposition, Veränderung des Grundwasserspiegels oder der Einwanderung invasiver Arten. Die Wiederholung historischer Vegetationsaufnahmen ist ein wichtiges Mittel, um Veränderungen der Pflanzengesellschaften zu dokumentieren und mögliche Hauptursachen (Treiber) zu bestimmen. Wir haben 2015 den Vegetationswandel auf 140 semi-permanenten Plots in Wirtschaftswäldern der Elbtalniederung im Nordostdeutschen Tiefland (Sachsen-Anhalt, Brandenburg) untersucht. Die Erstaufnahme erfolgte von 1956 bis 1963. Die Vegetationsaufnahmen decken ein fast einzigartig breites Spektrum unterschiedlicher Waldstandorte ab, das von Feuchtwäldern (Au-, Bruch- und Moorwäldern des Alnion incanae, Alnion glutinosae und Betulion pubescentis) über bodensaure Eichen-Mischwälder (Quercion roboris) bis hin zu bodensauren, meist trockenen Kiefernwäldern mit unterschiedlicher Nährstoffausstattung (Dicrano-Pinion) reicht.
Die Veränderungen der Vegetation haben wir mit Hilfe von Bestandesdaten, Gewinner- und Verliererarten, der α- und β -Diversität sowie der Ellenberg-Zeigerwerte für Stickstoff, Reaktion, Feuchte und Licht analysiert. Dabei wurden, anders als in den meisten bisherigen Wiederholungsuntersuchungen, auch Flächen berücksichtigt, auf denen bis zur Zweitaufnahme ein vollständiger Bestandeswechsel stattgefunden hatte.
Insbesondere in den Feuchtwäldern und den bodensauren Wäldern mit mäßig guter Nährstoffversorgung sind Wechsel der Hauptbaumarten zu verzeichnen; außerdem wurden viele Kiefernbestände zwischenzeitlich neu begründet. Die Artenzahl hat insgesamt und in fast allen Waldtypen abgenommen, die β-Diversität ist jedoch unverändert geblieben bzw. hat sich erhöht. Die Zeigerwerte deuten auf eine Abnahme der Bodenfeuchte in den Au-, Bruch-, und Moorwäldern hin, während insbesondere die bodensauren Kiefernwälder dunkler, nährstoffreicher und feuchter geworden sind. Die Anzahl der Verlierer-Arten ist mehr als doppelt so hoch wie die der Gewinner-Arten, jedoch mit unterschiedlicher Entwicklung in den einzelnen Waldtypen. Insbesondere die nassen und feuchten Wälder, die bodensauren Eichen-Mischwälder und die Flechten-Kiefernwälder haben die meisten ihrer charakteristischen Arten verloren.
Veränderungen der Vegetation in den Feuchtwäldern gehen v. a. auf lokal gesunkene Grundwasserspiegel und eine dadurch gestiegene Nährstoffverfügbarkeit zurück; die Artenzusammensetzung der Auwälder wurde zudem sehr stark durch forstliche Eingriffe beeinflusst. Ursachen für den Trend zu feuchteren und nährstoffreicheren Bedingungen in ehemals trockenen bodensauren Kiefern- und Eichenwäldern sind Stickstoffeinträge sowie eine Sukzession nach Aufgabe historischer Waldnutzungs-formen (Streunutzung, Waldweide). Obwohl sich die einzelnen Waldtypen unterschiedlich entwickelt haben, sind Eutrophierung, sinkende Grundwasserspiegel und Waldbaumaßnahmen insgesamt die wichtigsten Ursachen für die beobachteten Vegetationsveränderungen. Forstliche Eingriffe wie Kahlschlag und Bestandesumbau mit Baumartenwechsel sind zugleich die Hauptursache dafür, dass es trotz Nivellierung des Standortsgradienten, gemessen an der β-Diversität, nicht zu einer Homogenisierung der Vegetation gekommen ist.
T2  - Vegetation change in the forests between the Elbe and Havel rivers (NE Germany) from 1960 to 2015
KW  - environmental gradient
KW  - eutrophication
KW  - falling groundwater level
KW  - homogenisation
KW  - phytodiversity
KW  - silviculture
KW  - vegetation change
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.14471/2021.41.005
SN  - 0722-494X
IS  - 41
SP  - 53
EP  - 85
PB  - Floristisch-Soziologische Arbeitsgemeinschaft
CY  - Göttingen
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Dunsing, Valentin
A1  - Petrich, Annett
A1  - Chiantia, Salvatore
T1  - Multicolor fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy in living cells via spectral detection
JF  - eLife
N2  - Signaling pathways in biological systems rely on specific interactions between multiple biomolecules. Fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy provides a powerful toolbox to quantify such interactions directly in living cells. Cross-correlation analysis of spectrally separated fluctuations provides information about intermolecular interactions but is usually limited to two fluorophore species. Here, we present scanning fluorescence spectral correlation spectroscopy (SFSCS), a versatile approach that can be implemented on commercial confocal microscopes, allowing the investigation of interactions between multiple protein species at the plasma membrane. We demonstrate that SFSCS enables cross-talk-free cross-correlation, diffusion, and oligomerization analysis of up to four protein species labeled with strongly overlapping fluorophores. As an example, we investigate the interactions of influenza A virus (IAV) matrix protein 2 with two cellular host factors simultaneously. We furthermore apply raster spectral image correlation spectroscopy for the simultaneous analysis of up to four species and determine the stoichiometry of ternary IAV polymerase complexes in the cell nucleus.
KW  - fluorescence
KW  - optical microscopy
KW  - virus assembly
KW  - protein-protein
KW  - interactions
KW  - diffusion
KW  - Viruses
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.69687
SN  - 2050-084X
VL  - 10
PB  - eLife Sciences Publications
CY  - Cambridge
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Schneeberger, Karin
A1  - Schulze, Michael
A1  - Scheffler, Ingo
A1  - Caspers, Barbara A.
T1  - Evidence of female preference for odor of distant over local males in a bat with female dispersal
JF  - Behavioral ecology : the official journal of the International Society for Behavioral Ecology
N2  - Geographic variation of sexually selected male traits is common in animals. Female choice also varies geographically and several studies found female preference for local males, which is assumed to lead to local adaptation and, therefore, increases fitness. As females are the nondispersing sex in most mammalian taxa, this preference for local males might be explained by the learning of male characteristics. Studies on the preference of females in female-dispersing species are lacking so far. To find out whether such females would also show preferences for local males, we conducted a study on greater sac-winged bats (Saccopteryx bilineata), a species where females disperse and males stay in their natal colony. Male greater sac-winged bats possess a wing pouch that is filled with odoriferous secretion and fanned toward females during courtship display. In a combination of chemical analysis and behavioral preference tests, we analyzed whether the composition of wing sac secretion varies between two geographically distinct populations (300 km), and whether females show a preference for local or distant male scent. Using gas chromatography, we found significant differences in the composition of the wing sac odors between the two geographically distinct populations. In addition, the behavioral preference experiments revealed that females of both populations preferred the scent of geographically distant males over local males. The wing sac odor might thus be used to guarantee optimal outbreeding when dispersing to a new colony. This is-to our knowledge-the first study on odor preference of females of a species with female-biased dispersal.
KW  - bats
KW  - dispersal
KW  - female preference
KW  - male philopatry
KW  - odor
KW  - olfaction
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arab003
SN  - 1045-2249
SN  - 1465-7279
VL  - 32
IS  - 4
SP  - 657
EP  - 661
PB  - Oxford University Press
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Soeriyadi, Angela H.
A1  - Ongley, Sarah E.
A1  - Kehr, Jan-Christoph
A1  - Pickford, Russel
A1  - Dittmann, Elke
A1  - Neilan, Brett A.
T1  - Tailoring enzyme stringency masks the multispecificity of a lyngbyatoxin (indolactam alkaloid) nonribosomal peptide synthetase
JF  - ChemBioChem
N2  - Indolactam alkaloids are activators of protein kinase C (PKC) and are of pharmacological interest for the treatment of pathologies involving PKC dysregulation. The marine cyanobacterial nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) pathway for lyngbyatoxin biosynthesis, which we previously expressed in E. coli, was studied for its amenability towards the biosynthesis of indolactam variants. Modification of culture conditions for our E. coli heterologous expression host and analysis of pathway products suggested the native lyngbyatoxin pathway NRPS does possess a degree of relaxed specificity. Site-directed mutagenesis of two positions within the adenylation domain (A-domain) substrate-binding pocket was performed, resulting in an alteration of substrate preference between valine, isoleucine, and leucine. We observed relative congruence of in vitro substrate activation by the LtxA NRPS to in vivo product formation. While there was a preference for isoleucine over leucine, the substitution of alternative tailoring domains may unveil the true in vivo effects of the mutations introduced herein.
KW  - a domain
KW  - indolactams
KW  - MbtH
KW  - natural products
KW  - teleocidin
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/cbic.202100574
SN  - 1439-4227
SN  - 1439-7633
VL  - 23
IS  - 3
PB  - Wiley-VCH
CY  - Weinheim
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Ouédraogo, Karim
A1  - Zaré, Alhassane
A1  - Korbéogo, Gabin
A1  - Ouédraogo, Oumarou
A1  - Linstädter, Anja
T1  - Resilience strategies of West African pastoralists in response to scarce forage resources
JF  - Pastoralism : research, policy and practice
N2  - Finding sufficient natural fodder resources to feed livestock has become a challenge for herders in the Sahel zone of Burkina Faso. Despite the existence of pastoral reserves, the issue of fodder shortage remains unsolved. This article highlights the changes in behaviour and the evolution of pastoral practices caused by the scarcity of forage resources. These changes are defined and classified as resilience strategies. Thus, this paper aims to analyse these strategies using new semantics that calls for other forms of perceptions or approach to the questions of pastoralists' resilience strategies. Interviews (semi-structured and casual conversations), ethnographic observations and ethnobotanical surveys were used to collect data. In rangelands, such high value fodder species as Andropogon gayanus, Pennisetum pedicellatum and Dactyloctenium aegyptium that were abundant herbaceous plants during the last decades are disappearing. Concomitantly, species with lower forage value, such as Senna obtusifolia, which are more resilient to ecological disturbance factors, are colonizing rangelands. Faced with these ecological changes, pastoralists are trying to redefine and reconfigure their practices, and this implies a redefinition of their identity. They use resilience strategies such as mowing grasses, building up fodder bundles, conserving crop residues, exploiting Senna obtusifolia (a previously neglected species), using woody fodder and adapting the type of livestock and the size of the herds to the ability of pastoralists to feed them. Strategies that are older than these are the integration of agriculture with livestock and decollectivized transhumance. It is these resilience strategies that this article exposes and analyses as defence mechanisms of Sahelian pastoralists in the face of the depletion of forage resources in their environments.
KW  - Pastoralism
KW  - Forage values
KW  - Burkina Faso
KW  - Ecological changes
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1186/s13570-021-00210-8
SN  - 2041-7136
VL  - 11
IS  - 1
PB  - SpringerOpen
CY  - Heidelberg
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kindermann, Liana
A1  - Dobler, Magnus
A1  - Niedeggen, Daniela
A1  - Linstädter, Anja
T1  - A new protocol for estimation of woody aboveground biomass in disturbance-prone ecosystems
JF  - Ecological indicators : integrating monitoring, assessment and management
N2  - Almost one third of global drylands are open forests and savannas, which are typically shaped by frequent natural disturbances such as wildfire and herbivory. Studies on ecosystem functions and services of woody vegetation require robust estimates of aboveground biomass (AGB). However, most methods have been developed for comparatively undisturbed forest ecosystems. As they are not tailored to accurately quantify AGB of small and irregular growth forms, their application on these growth forms may lead to unreliable or even biased AGB estimates in disturbance-prone dryland ecosystems. Moreover, these methods cannot quantify AGB losses caused by disturbance agents. Here we propose a methodology to estimate individual-and stand-level woody AGB in disturbance-prone ecosystems. It consists of flexible field sampling routines and estimation workflows for six growth classes, delineated by size and damage criteria. It also comprises a detailed damage assessment, harnessing the ecological archive of woody growth for past disturbances. 

Based on large inventories collected along steep gradients of elephant disturbances in African dryland ecosystems, we compared the AGB estimates generated with our proposed method against estimates from a less adapted forest inventory method. We evaluated the necessary stepwise procedures of method adaptation and analyzed each step's effect on stand-level AGB estimation. We further explored additional advantages of our proposed method with regard to disturbance impact quantification. Results indicate that a majority of growth forms and individuals in savanna vegetation could only be assessed if methods of AGB estimation were adapted to the conditions of a disturbance-prone ecosystem. Furthermore, our damage assessment demonstrated that one third to half of all woody AGB was lost to disturbances. Consequently, less adapted methods may be insufficient and are likely to render inaccurate AGB estimations.

Our proposed method has the potential to accurately quantify woody AGB in disturbance-prone ecosystems, as well as AGB losses. Our method is more time consuming than conventional allometric approaches, yet it can cover sufficient areas within reasonable timespans, and can also be easily adapted to alternative sampling schemes.
KW  - Damage assessment
KW  - Disturbance impacts
KW  - Tree growth classes
KW  - Method
KW  - comparison
KW  - Flexible sampling strategy
KW  - Tree allometry
KW  - Woody
KW  - aboveground biomass
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.108466
SN  - 1470-160X
SN  - 1872-7034
VL  - 135
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - de Oliveira-Silva, Anna Elizabeth
A1  - Piratelli, Augusto João
A1  - Zurell, Damaris
A1  - da Silva, Fernando Rodrigues
T1  - Vegetation cover restricts habitat suitability predictions of endemic Brazilian Atlantic Forest birds
JF  - Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation
N2  - Ecological niche models (ENMs) are often used to investigate how climatic variables from known occurrence records can estimate potential species range distribution. Although climate-based ENMs provide critical baseline information, the inclusion of non-climatic predictors related to vegetation cover might generate more realistic scenarios. This assumption is particularly relevant for species with life-history traits related to forest habitats and sensitive to habitat loss and fragmentation. Here, we developed ENMs for 36 Atlantic Forest endemic birds considering two sets of predictor variables: (i) climatic variables only and (ii) climatic variables combined with the percentage of remaining native vegetation. We hypothesized that the inclusion of native vegetation data would decrease the potential range distribution of forest-dependent species by limiting their occurrence in regions harboring small areas of native vegetation habitats, despite otherwise favorable climatic conditions. We also expected that habitat restriction in the climate-vegetation models would be more pronounced for highly forest-dependent birds. The inclusion of vegetation data in the modeling procedures restricted the final distribution ranges of 22 out of 36 modeled species, while the 14 remaining presented an expansion of their ranges. We observed that species with high and medium forest dependency showed higher restriction in range size predictions between predictor sets than species with low forest dependency, which showed no alteration or range expansion. Overall, our results suggest that ENMs based on climatic and landscape variables may be a useful tool for conservationists to better understand the dynamic of bird species distributions in threatened and highly fragmented regions such as the Atlantic Forest hotspot.(c) 2021 Associacao Brasileira de Cie circumflex accent ncia Ecol ogica e Conservacao. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ ).
KW  - Conservation
KW  - Ecological niche modeling
KW  - Forest dependency
KW  - Fragmentation
KW  - Habitat loss
KW  - Landscape
KW  - Life-history traits
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pecon.2021.09.002
SN  - 2530-0644
VL  - 20
IS  - 1
SP  - 1
EP  - 8
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Wang, Meng
A1  - Li, Panpan
A1  - Ma, Yao
A1  - Nie, Xiang
A1  - Grebe, Markus
A1  - Men, Shuzhen
T1  - Membrane sterol composition in Arabidopsis thaliana affects root elongation via auxin biosynthesis
JF  - International journal of molecular sciences
N2  - Plant membrane sterol composition has been reported to affect growth and gravitropism via polar auxin transport and auxin signaling. However, as to whether sterols influence auxin biosynthesis has received little attention. Here, by using the sterol biosynthesis mutant cyclopropylsterol isomerase1-1 (cpi1-1) and sterol application, we reveal that cycloeucalenol, a CPI1 substrate, and sitosterol, an end-product of sterol biosynthesis, antagonistically affect auxin biosynthesis. The short root phenotype of cpi1-1 was associated with a markedly enhanced auxin response in the root tip. Both were neither suppressed by mutations in polar auxin transport (PAT) proteins nor by treatment with a PAT inhibitor and responded to an auxin signaling inhibitor. However, expression of several auxin biosynthesis genes TRYPTOPHAN AMINOTRANSFERASE OF ARABIDOPSIS1 (TAA1) was upregulated in cpi1-1. Functionally, TAA1 mutation reduced the auxin response in cpi1-1 and partially rescued its short root phenotype. In support of this genetic evidence, application of cycloeucalenol upregulated expression of the auxin responsive reporter DR5:GUS (beta-glucuronidase) and of several auxin biosynthesis genes, while sitosterol repressed their expression. Hence, our combined genetic, pharmacological, and sterol application studies reveal a hitherto unexplored sterol-dependent modulation of auxin biosynthesis during Arabidopsis root elongation.
KW  - Arabidopsis thaliana
KW  - auxin
KW  - auxin biosynthesis
KW  - cycloeucalenol
KW  - CPI1
KW  - sitosterol
KW  - sterol
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22010437
SN  - 1422-0067
VL  - 22
IS  - 1
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Petrich, Annett
A1  - Dunsing, Valentin
A1  - Bobone, Sara
A1  - Chiantia, Salvatore
T1  - Influenza A M2 recruits M1 to the plasma membrane
BT  - a fluorescence fluctuation microscopy study
JF  - Biophysical journal : BJ / ed. by the Biophysical Society
N2  - Influenza A virus (IAV) is a respiratory pathogen that causes seasonal epidemics with significant mortality. One of the most abundant proteins in IAV particles is the matrix protein 1 (M1), which is essential for the virus structural stability. M1 organizes virion assembly and budding at the plasma membrane (PM), where it interacts with other viral components. The recruitment of M1 to the PM as well as its interaction with the other viral envelope proteins (hemagglutinin [HA], neuraminidase, matrix protein 2 [M2]) is controversially discussed in previous studies. Therefore, we used fluorescence fluctuation microscopy techniques (i.e., scanning fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy and number and brightness) to quantify the oligomeric state of M1 and its interactions with other viral proteins in co-transfected as well as infected cells. Our results indicate that M1 is recruited to the PM by M2, as a consequence of the strong interaction between the two proteins. In contrast, only a weak interaction between M1 and HA was observed. M1-HA interaction occurred only in the event that M1 was already bound to the PM. We therefore conclude that M2 initiates the assembly of IAV by recruiting M1 to the PM, possibly allowing its further interaction with other viral proteins.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2021.11.023
SN  - 0006-3495
SN  - 1542-0086
VL  - 120
IS  - 24
SP  - 5478
EP  - 5490
PB  - Cell Press
CY  - Cambridge
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Qiu, Liang
A1  - Zhang, Haoran
A1  - Bick, Thomas
A1  - Martin, Johannes
A1  - Wendler, Petra
A1  - Böker, Alexander
A1  - Glebe, Ulrich
A1  - Xing, Chengfen
T1  - Construction of highly ordered glyco-inside nano-assemblies through RAFT dispersion polymerization of galactose-decorated monomer
JF  - Angewandte Chemie : a journal of the Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker ; International edition
N2  - Glyco-assemblies derived from amphiphilic sugar-decorated block copolymers (ASBCs) have emerged prominently due to their wide application, for example, in biomedicine and as drug carriers. However, to efficiently construct these glyco-assemblies is still a challenge. Herein, we report an efficient technology for the synthesis of glyco-inside nano-assemblies by utilizing RAFT polymerization of a galactose-decorated methacrylate for polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA). Using this approach, a series of highly ordered glyco-inside nano-assemblies containing intermediate morphologies were fabricated by adjusting the length of the hydrophobic glycoblock and the polymerization solids content. A specific morphology of complex vesicles was captured during the PISA process and the formation mechanism is explained by the morphology of its precursor and intermediate. Thus, this method establishes a powerful route to fabricate glyco-assemblies with tunable morphologies and variable sizes, which is significant to enable the large-scale fabrication and wide application of glyco-assemblies.
KW  - galactose-decorated monomer
KW  - glyco-inside nano-assemblies
KW  - morphology
KW  - evolution
KW  - PISA
KW  - RAFT dispersion polymerization
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202015692
SN  - 1433-7851
SN  - 1521-3773
VL  - 60
IS  - 20
SP  - 11098
EP  - 11103
PB  - Wiley-VCH
CY  - Weinheim
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Malchow, Anne-Kathleen
A1  - Bocedi, Greta
A1  - Palmer, Stephen C. F.
A1  - Travis, Justin M. J.
A1  - Zurell, Damaris
T1  - RangeShiftR
BT  - an R package for individual-based simulation of spatial changes
JF  - Ecography : pattern and diversity in ecology / Nordic Ecologic Society Oikos
N2  - Reliably modelling the demographic and distributional responses of a species to environmental changes can be crucial for successful conservation and management planning. Process-based models have the potential to achieve this goal, but so far they remain underused for predictions of species' distributions. Individual-based models offer the additional capability to model inter-individual variation and evolutionary dynamics and thus capture adaptive responses to environmental change. We present RangeShiftR, an R implementation of a flexible individual-based modelling platform which simulates eco-evolutionary dynamics in a spatially explicit way. The package provides flexible and fast simulations by making the software RangeShifter available for the widely used statistical programming platform R. The package features additional auxiliary functions to support model specification and analysis of results. We provide an outline of the package's functionality, describe the underlying model structure with its main components and present a short example. RangeShiftR offers substantial model complexity, especially for the demographic and dispersal processes. It comes with elaborate tutorials and comprehensive documentation to facilitate learning the software and provide help at all levels. As the core code is implemented in C++, the computations are fast. The complete source code is published under a public licence, making adaptations and contributions feasible. The RangeShiftR package facilitates the application of individual-based and mechanistic modelling to eco-evolutionary questions by operating a flexible and powerful simulation model from R. It allows effortless interoperation with existing packages to create streamlined workflows that can include data preparation, integrated model specification and results analysis. Moreover, the implementation in R strengthens the potential for coupling RangeShiftR with other models.
KW  - connectivity
KW  - conservation
KW  - dispersal
KW  - evolution
KW  - population dynamics
KW  - range dynamics
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.05689
SN  - 1600-0587
VL  - 44
IS  - 10
SP  - 1443
EP  - 1452
PB  - Wiley-Blackwell
CY  - Oxford [u.a.]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Petazzi, Roberto Arturo
A1  - Koikkarah Aji, Amit
A1  - Tischler, Nicole D.
A1  - Chiantia, Salvatore
T1  - Detection of envelope glycoprotein assembly from old world hantaviruses in the Golgi apparatus of living cells
JF  - Journal of virology
N2  - Hantaviruses are emerging pathogens that occasionally cause deadly outbreaks in the human population. While the structure of the viral envelope has been characterized with high precision, protein-protein interactions leading to the formation of new virions in infected cells are not fully understood. We used quantitative fluorescence microscopy (i.e., number and brightness analysis and fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy) to monitor the interactions that lead to oligomeric spike complex formation in the physiological context of living cells. To this aim, we quantified protein-protein interactions for the glycoproteins Gn and Gc from Puumala and Hantaan orthohantaviruses in several cellular models. The oligomerization of each protein was analyzed in relation to subcellular localization, concentration, and the concentration of its interaction partner. Our results indicate that, when expressed separately, Gn and Gc form, respectively, homo-tetrameric and homo-dimeric complexes, in a concentration-dependent manner. Site-directed mutations or deletion mutants showed the specificity of their homotypic interactions. When both glycoproteins were coexpressed, we observed in the Golgi apparatus clear indication of GnGc interactions and the formation of Gn-Gc multimeric protein complexes of different sizes, while using various labeling schemes to minimize the influence of the fluorescent tags. Such large glycoprotein multimers may be identified as multiple Gn viral spikes interconnected via Gc-Gc contacts. This observation provides the possible first evidence for the initial assembly steps of the viral envelope within this organelle, and does so directly in living cells. <br /> IMPORTANCE In this work, we investigate protein-protein interactions that drive the assembly of the hantavirus envelope. These emerging pathogens have the potential to cause deadly outbreaks in the human population. Therefore, it is important to improve our quantitative understanding of the viral assembly process in infected cells, from a molecular point of view. By applying advanced fluorescence microscopy methods, we monitored the formation of viral spike complexes in different cell types. Our data support a model for hantavirus assembly according to which viral spikes are formed via the clustering of hetero-dimers of the two viral glycoproteins Gn and Gc. Furthermore, the observation of large Gn-Gc hetero-multimers provide the possible first evidence for the initial assembly steps of the viral envelope, directly in the Golgi apparatus of living cells.
KW  - fluorescence fluctuation microscopy
KW  - number and brightness
KW  - virus
KW  - assembly
KW  - fluorescence correlation spectroscopy
KW  - protein-protein
KW  - interaction
KW  - fluorescence microscopy
KW  - fluorescent image analysis
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1128/JVI.01238-20
SN  - 1098-5514
VL  - 95
IS  - 4
PB  - American Society for Microbiology
CY  - Baltimore, Md.
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Sandhage-Hofmann, Alexandra
A1  - Linstädter, Anja
A1  - Kindermann, Liana
A1  - Angombe, Simon
A1  - Amelung, Wulf
T1  - Conservation with elevated elephant densities sequesters carbon in soils despite losses of woody biomass
JF  - Global change biology
N2  - Nature conservation and restoration in terrestrial ecosystems is often focused on increasing the numbers of megafauna, expecting them to have positive impacts on ecological self-regulation processes and biodiversity. In sub-Saharan Africa, conservation efforts also aspire to protect and enhance biodiversity with particular focus on elephants. However, elephant browsing carries the risk of woody biomass losses. In this context, little is known about how increasing elephant numbers affects carbon stocks in soils, including the subsoils. We hypothesized that (1) increasing numbers of elephants reduce tree biomass, and thus the amount of C stored therein, resulting (2) in a loss of soil organic carbon (SOC). If true, a negative carbon footprint could limit the sustainability of elephant conservation from a global carbon perspective. To test these hypotheses, we selected plots of low, medium, and high elephant densities in two national parks and adjacent conservancies in the Namibian component of the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Area (KAZA), and quantified carbon storage in both woody vegetation and soils (1 m). Analyses were supplemented by the assessment of soil carbon isotopic composition. We found that increasing elephant densities resulted in a loss of tree carbon storage by 6.4 t ha(-1). However, and in contrast to our second hypothesis, SOC stocks increased by 4.7 t ha(-1) with increasing elephant densities. These higher SOC stocks were mainly found in the topsoil (0-30 cm) and were largely due to the formation of SOC from woody biomass. A second carbon input source into the soils was megaherbivore dung, which contributed with 0.02-0.323 t C ha(-1) year(-1) to ecosystem carbon storage in the low and high elephant density plots, respectively. Consequently, increasing elephant density does not necessarily lead to a negative C footprint, as soil carbon sequestration and transient C storage in dung almost compensate for losses in tree biomass.
KW  - carbon sequestration
KW  - conservation
KW  - elephants
KW  - soil organic carbon
KW  - woody biomass
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15779
SN  - 1354-1013
SN  - 1365-2486
VL  - 27
IS  - 19
SP  - 4601
EP  - 4614
PB  - Blackwell Science
CY  - Oxford [u.a.]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Scheffler, Christiane
A1  - Hermanussen, Michael
A1  - Rogol, Alan D.
T1  - Stunting
BT  - historical lessons that catch-up growth tells us for mapping growth restoration
JF  - Archives of disease in childhood : a peer review journal for health professionals and researchers covering conception to adolescence
Y1  - 2020
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1136/archdischild-2020-319240
SN  - 0003-9888
SN  - 1468-2044
VL  - 106
IS  - 8
SP  - 819
EP  - 820
PB  - BMJ Publishing Group
CY  - London
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Yildiz, Tugba
A1  - Leimkühler, Silke
T1  - TusA is a versatile protein that links translation efficiency to cell division in Escherichia coli
JF  - Journal of bacteriology
N2  - To enable accurate and efficient translation, sulfur modifications are introduced posttranscriptionally into nucleosides in tRNAs. The biosynthesis of tRNA sulfur modifications involves unique sulfur trafficking systems for the incorporation of sulfur atoms in different nucleosides of tRNA. One of the proteins that is involved in inserting the sulfur for 5-methylaminomethyl-2-thiouridine (mnm(5)s(2)U34) modifications in tRNAs is the TusA protein. TusA, however, is a versatile protein that is also involved in numerous other cellular pathways. Despite its role as a sulfur transfer protein for the 2-thiouridine formation in tRNA, a fundamental role of TusA in the general physiology of Escherichia coli has also been discovered. Poor viability, a defect in cell division, and a filamentous cell morphology have been described previously for tusA-deficient cells. In this report, we aimed to dissect the role of TusA for cell viability. We were able to show that the lack of the thiolation status of wobble uridine (U-34) nucleotides present on Lys, Gln, or Glu in tRNAs has a major consequence on the translation efficiency of proteins; among the affected targets are the proteins RpoS and Fis. Both proteins are major regulatory factors, and the deregulation of their abundance consequently has a major effect on the cellular regulatory network, with one consequence being a defect in cell division by regulating the FtsZ ring formation. <br /> IMPORTANCE More than 100 different modifications are found in RNAs. One of these modifications is the mnm(5)s(2)U modification at the wobble position 34 of tRNAs for Lys, Gln, and Glu. The functional significance of U34 modifications is substantial since it restricts the conformational flexibility of the anticodon, thus providing translational fidelity. We show that in an Escherichia coli TusA mutant strain, involved in sulfur transfer for the mnm(5)s(2)U34 thio modifications, the translation efficiency of RpoS and Fis, two major cellular regulatory proteins, is altered. Therefore, in addition to the transcriptional regulation and the factors that influence protein stability, tRNA modifications that ensure the translational efficiency provide an additional crucial regulatory factor for protein synthesis.
KW  - iron-sulfur clusters
KW  - tRNA thio modifications
KW  - FtsZ ring formation
KW  - cell
KW  - division
KW  - TusA
KW  - RpoS
KW  - Fis
KW  - FtsZ
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1128/JB.00659-20
SN  - 1098-5530
VL  - 203
IS  - 7
PB  - American Society for Microbiology
CY  - Washington
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Marzetz, Vanessa
A1  - Wacker, Alexander
T1  - Evaluating the relevance of species sorting and physiological plasticity of phytoplankton communities grown in a multifactor environment
JF  - Freshwater biology / Freshwater Biological Association
N2  - The two important mechanisms influencing the response of phytoplankton communities to alterations of abiotic factors in their environment are difficult to distinguish: species sorting resulting from a change in interspecific competitive pressure, and phenotypic plasticity (here explicitly physiological plasticity i.e. species-specific physiological adjustment). A shift in species composition as well as physiological adjustments in species can lead to changes in fatty acid composition that determine the food quality for zooplankton consumers. We used phytoplankton communities consisting of five species and exposed them to two different light intensities, two light conditions (constant and variable), and two levels of phosphorus supply. Changes in fatty acid and species composition were analyzed. We compared community pairs differing in one factor by calculating the Bray-Curtis similarity index for the composition of both variables. Comparing the Bray-Curtis similarity index of the species composition with the index of the fatty acid composition was used to estimate the effects of species sorting and physiological plasticity. Changes in nutrient supply influenced fatty acid responses based on species sorting and physiological plasticity the most. On one hand, the relevance of physiological plasticity was highest at cultivation in different nutrient supplies but the same light environment. Conversely with low nutrients species sorting appeared to dominate the response to changes in light, while at high nutrients physiological plasticity appeared to influence the response. Overall, under low phosphorus supply the communities showed a lower total fatty acid content per carbon and had increased proportions of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids. Instead, communities in low light produced more of eicosapentaenoic acid. Our results suggest that the relevance of species sorting and physiological plasticity in shaping the community response highly depends on the environmental factors that influence the system. Nutrient supply had the largest effect, while light had more limited conditional effects. However, all of these factors are important in shaping the food quality of the phytoplankton community for higher trophic levels.
KW  - fatty acid composition
KW  - light intensity
KW  - light variability
KW  - nutrient
KW  - supply
KW  - resource competition
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/fwb.13810
SN  - 0046-5070
SN  - 1365-2427
VL  - 66
IS  - 10
SP  - 1992
EP  - 2003
PB  - Wiley-Blackwell
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kahl, Sandra
A1  - Kappel, Christian
A1  - Joshi, Jasmin Radha
A1  - Lenhard, Michael
T1  - Phylogeography of a widely distributed plant species reveals cryptic genetic lineages with parallel phenotypic responses to warming and drought conditions
JF  - Ecology and Evolution
N2  - To predict how widely distributed species will perform under future climate change, it is crucial to understand and reveal their underlying phylogenetics. However, detailed information about plant adaptation and its genetic basis and history remains scarce and especially widely distributed species receive little attention despite their putatively high adaptability.

To examine the adaptation potential of a widely distributed species, we sampled the model plant Silene vulgaris across Europe. In a greenhouse experiment, we exposed the offspring of these populations to a climate change scenario for central Europe and revealed the population structure through whole-genome sequencing. Plants were grown under two temperatures (18°C and 21°C) and three precipitation regimes (65, 75, and 90 mm) to measure their response in biomass and fecundity-related traits. To reveal the population genetic structure, ddRAD sequencing was employed for a whole-genome approach. We found three major genetic clusters in S. vulgaris from Europe: one cluster comprising Southern European populations, one cluster of Western European populations, and another cluster containing central European populations. Population genetic diversity decreased with increasing latitude, and a Mantel test revealed significant correlations between FST and geographic distances as well as between genetic and environmental distances. Our trait analysis showed that the genetic clusters significantly differed in biomass-related traits and in the days to flowering. However, half of the traits showed parallel response patterns to the experimental climate change scenario. Due to the differentiated but parallel response patterns, we assume that phenotypic plasticity plays an important role for the adaptation of the widely distributed species S. vulgaris and its intraspecific genetic lineages.
KW  - climate adaptation
KW  - ddRAD
KW  - Silene vulgaris
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8103
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 20
SP  - 13986
EP  - 14002
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - John, Sheeba
A1  - Olas, Justyna Jadwiga
A1  - Müller-Röber, Bernd
T1  - Regulation of alternative splicing in response to temperature variation in plants
JF  - Journal of experimental botany
N2  - Plants have evolved numerous molecular strategies to cope with perturbations in environmental temperature, and to adjust growth and physiology to limit the negative effects of extreme temperature. One of the strategies involves alternative splicing of primary transcripts to encode alternative protein products or transcript variants destined for degradation by nonsense-mediated decay. Here, we review how changes in environmental temperature-cold, heat, and moderate alterations in temperature-affect alternative splicing in plants, including crops. We present examples of the mode of action of various temperature-induced splice variants and discuss how these alternative splicing events enable favourable plant responses to altered temperatures. Finally, we point out unanswered questions that should be addressed to fully utilize the endogenous mechanisms in plants to adjust their growth to environmental temperature. We also indicate how this knowledge might be used to enhance crop productivity in the future.
KW  - alternative splicing
KW  - ambient temperature
KW  - cold
KW  - heat
KW  - plants
KW  - stress
KW  - adaptation
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erab232
SN  - 0022-0957
SN  - 1460-2431
VL  - 72
IS  - 18
SP  - 6150
EP  - 6163
PB  - Oxford Univ. Press
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - De Sousa Mota, Cristiano
A1  - Diniz, Ana
A1  - Coelho, Catarina
A1  - Santos-Silva, Teresa
A1  - Esmaeeli Moghaddam Tabalvandani, Mariam
A1  - Leimkühler, Silke
A1  - Cabrita, Eurico J.
A1  - Marcelo, Filipa
A1  - Romão, Maria João
T1  - Interrogating the inhibition mechanisms of human aldehyde oxidase by X-ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopy
BT  - the raloxifene case
JF  - Journal of medicinal chemistry / American Chemical Society
N2  - Human aldehyde oxidase (hAOX1) is mainly present in the liver and has an emerging role in drug metabolism, since it accepts a wide range of molecules as substrates and inhibitors. Herein, we employed an integrative approach by combining NMR, X-ray crystallography, and enzyme inhibition kinetics to understand the inhibition modes of three hAOX1 inhibitors-thioridazine, benzamidine, and raloxifene. These integrative data indicate that thioridazine is a noncompetitive inhibitor, while benzamidine presents a mixed type of inhibition. Additionally, we describe the first crystal structure of hAOX1 in complex with raloxifene. Raloxifene binds tightly at the entrance of the substrate tunnel, stabilizing the flexible entrance gates and elucidating an unusual substrate-dependent mechanism of inhibition with potential impact on drug-drug interactions. This study can be considered as a proof-of-concept for an efficient experimental screening of prospective substrates and inhibitors of hAOX1 relevant in drug discovery.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.1c01125
SN  - 0022-2623
SN  - 1520-4804
VL  - 64
IS  - 17
SP  - 13025
EP  - 13037
PB  - American Chemical Society
CY  - Washington
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Brandes, Stefanie
A1  - Sicks, Florian
A1  - Berger, Anne
T1  - Behaviour classification on giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) using machine learning algorithms on triaxial acceleration data of two commonly used GPS devices and its possible application for their management and conservation
JF  - Sensors
N2  - Averting today's loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services can be achieved through conservation efforts, especially of keystone species. Giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) play an important role in sustaining Africa's ecosystems, but are 'vulnerable' according to the IUCN Red List since 2016. Monitoring an animal's behavior in the wild helps to develop and assess their conservation management. One mechanism for remote tracking of wildlife behavior is to attach accelerometers to animals to record their body movement. We tested two different commercially available high-resolution accelerometers, e-obs and Africa Wildlife Tracking (AWT), attached to the top of the heads of three captive giraffes and analyzed the accuracy of automatic behavior classifications, focused on the Random Forests algorithm. For both accelerometers, behaviors of lower variety in head and neck movements could be better predicted (i.e., feeding above eye level, mean prediction accuracy e-obs/AWT: 97.6%/99.7%; drinking: 96.7%/97.0%) than those with a higher variety of body postures (such as standing: 90.7-91.0%/75.2-76.7%; rumination: 89.6-91.6%/53.5-86.5%). Nonetheless both devices come with limitations and especially the AWT needs technological adaptations before applying it on animals in the wild. Nevertheless, looking at the prediction results, both are promising accelerometers for behavioral classification of giraffes. Therefore, these devices when applied to free-ranging animals, in combination with GPS tracking, can contribute greatly to the conservation of giraffes.
KW  - giraffe
KW  - triaxial acceleration
KW  - machine learning
KW  - random forests
KW  - behavior classification
KW  - giraffe conservation
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/s21062229
SN  - 1424-8220
VL  - 21
IS  - 6
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Bergholz, Kolja
A1  - Kober, Klarissa
A1  - Jeltsch, Florian
A1  - Schmidt, Kristina
A1  - Weiß, Lina
T1  - Trait means or variance
BT  - What determines plant species' local and regional occurrence in fragmented dry grasslands?
JF  - Ecology and evolution
N2  - One of the few laws in ecology is that communities consist of few common and many rare taxa. Functional traits may help to identify the underlying mechanisms of this community pattern, since they correlate with different niche dimensions. However, comprehensive studies are missing that investigate the effects of species mean traits (niche position) and intraspecific trait variability (ITV, niche width) on species abundance. In this study, we investigated fragmented dry grasslands to reveal trait-occurrence relationships in plants at local and regional scales. We predicted that (a) at the local scale, species occurrence is highest for species with intermediate traits, (b) at the regional scale, habitat specialists have a lower species occurrence than generalists, and thus, traits associated with stress-tolerance have a negative effect on species occurrence, and (c) ITV increases species occurrence irrespective of the scale. We measured three plant functional traits (SLA = specific leaf area, LDMC = leaf dry matter content, plant height) at 21 local dry grassland communities (10 m × 10 m) and analyzed the effect of these traits and their variation on species occurrence. At the local scale, mean LDMC had a positive effect on species occurrence, indicating that stress-tolerant species are the most abundant rather than species with intermediate traits (hypothesis 1). We found limited support for lower specialist occurrence at the regional scale (hypothesis 2). Further, ITV of LDMC and plant height had a positive effect on local occurrence supporting hypothesis 3. In contrast, at the regional scale, plants with a higher ITV of plant height were less frequent. We found no evidence that the consideration of phylogenetic relationships in our analyses influenced our findings. In conclusion, both species mean traits (in particular LDMC) and ITV were differently related to species occurrence with respect to spatial scale. Therefore, our study underlines the strong scale-dependency of trait-abundance relationships.
KW  - LMA
KW  - niche width
KW  - plant functional trait
KW  - scale-dependency
KW  - species abundance
KW  - trait-environment relationship
Y1  - 2020
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7287
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 7
SP  - 3357
EP  - 3365
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kim, Shin Woong
A1  - Leifheit, Eva F.
A1  - Maaß, Stefanie
A1  - Rillig, Matthias C.
T1  - Time-dependent toxicity of tire particles on soil nematodes
JF  - Frontiers in Environmental Science
N2  - Tire-wear particles (TWPs) are being released into the environment by wearing down during car driving, and are considered an important microplastic pollution source. The chemical additive leaching from these polymer-based materials and its potential effects are likely temporally dynamic, since amounts of potentially toxic compounds can gradually increase with contact time of plastic particles with surrounding media. In the present study, we conducted soil toxicity tests using the soil nematode Caenorhabditis elegans with different soil pre-incubation (30 and 75 days) and exposure (short-term exposure, 2 days; lifetime exposure, 10 days) times. Soil pre-incubation increased toxicity of TWPs, and the effective concentrations after the pre-incubation were much lower than environmentally relevant concentrations. The lifetime of C. elegans was reduced faster in the TWP treatment groups, and the effective concentration for lifetime exposure tests were 100- to 1,000-fold lower than those of short-term exposure tests. Water-extractable metal concentrations (Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in the TWP-soils showed no correlation with nominal TWP concentrations or pre-incubation times, and the incorporated metals in the TWPs may be not the main reason of toxicity in this study. Our results show that toxic effects of TWPs can be time-dependent, both in terms of the microplastic particles themselves and their interactions in the soil matrix, but also because of susceptibility of target organisms depending on developmental stage. It is vital that future works consider these aspects, since otherwise effects of microplastics and TWPs could be underestimated.
KW  - Caenorhabditis elegans
KW  - exposure time
KW  - lifetime
KW  - microplastics
KW  - soil
KW  - incubation
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.744668
SN  - 2296-665X
VL  - 9
PB  - Frontiers Media
CY  - Lausanne
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Mazza, Valeria
A1  - Czyperreck, Inken
A1  - Eccard, Jana
A1  - Dammhahn, Melanie
T1  - Cross-Context Responses to Novelty in Rural and Urban Small Mammals
JF  - Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution
N2  - The Anthropocene is the era of urbanization. The accelerating expansion of cities occurs at the expense of natural reservoirs of biodiversity and presents animals with challenges for which their evolutionary past might not have prepared them. Cognitive and behavioral adjustments to novelty could promote animals’ persistence under these altered conditions. We investigated the structure of, and covariance between, different aspects of responses to novelty in rural and urban small mammals of two non-commensal rodent species. We ran replicated experiments testing responses to three novelty types (object, food, or space) of 47 individual common voles (Microtus arvalis) and 41 individual striped field mice (Apodemus agrarius). We found partial support for the hypothesis that responses to novelty are structured, clustering (i) speed of responses, (ii) intensity of responses, and (iii) responses to food into separate dimensions. Rural and urban small mammals did not differ in most responses to novelty, suggesting that urban habitats do not reduce neophobia in these species. Further studies investigating whether comparable response patters are found throughout different stages of colonization, and along synurbanization processes of different duration, will help illuminate the dynamics of animals’ cognitive adjustments to urban life.
KW  - animal cognition
KW  - anthropogenic environment
KW  - HIREC
KW  - novelty
KW  - neophobia
KW  - neophilia
KW  - rodents
KW  - urbanization
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2021.661971
SN  - 2296-701X
VL  - 9
PB  - Frontiers Media
CY  - Lausanne
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Stiegler, Jonas
A1  - Kiemel, Katrin
A1  - Eccard, Jana
A1  - Fischer, Christina
A1  - Hering, Robert
A1  - Ortmann, Sylvia
A1  - Strigl, Lea
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
T1  - Seed traits matter
BT  - Endozoochoric dispersal through a pervasive mobile linker
JF  - Ecology and Evolution
N2  - Although many plants are dispersed by wind and seeds can travel long distances across unsuitable matrix areas, a large proportion relies on co-evolved zoochorous seed dispersal to connect populations in isolated habitat islands. Particularly in agricultural landscapes, where remaining habitat patches are often very small and highly isolated, mobile linkers as zoochorous seed dispersers are critical for the population dynamics of numerous plant species. However, knowledge about the quali- or quantification of such mobile link processes, especially in agricultural landscapes, is still limited. In a controlled feeding experiment, we recorded the seed intake and germination success after complete digestion by the European brown hare (Lepus europaeus) and explored its mobile link potential as an endozoochoric seed disperser. Utilizing a suite of common, rare, and potentially invasive plant species, we disentangled the effects of seed morphological traits on germination success while controlling for phylogenetic relatedness. Further, we measured the landscape connectivity via hares in two contrasting agricultural landscapes (simple: few natural and semi-natural structures, large fields; complex: high amount of natural and semi-natural structures, small fields) using GPS-based movement data. With 34,710 seeds of 44 plant species fed, one of 200 seeds (0.51%) with seedlings of 33 species germinated from feces. Germination after complete digestion was positively related to denser seeds with comparatively small surface area and a relatively slender and elongated shape, suggesting that, for hares, the most critical seed characteristics for successful endozoochorous seed dispersal minimize exposure of the seed to the stomach and the associated digestive system. Furthermore, we could show that a hare's retention time is long enough to interconnect different habitats, especially grasslands and fields. Thus, besides other seed dispersal mechanisms, this most likely allows hares to act as effective mobile linkers contributing to ecosystem stability in times of agricultural intensification, not only in complex but also in simple landscapes.
KW  - agricultural landscapes
KW  - endozoochory
KW  - Lepus europaeus
KW  - mobile links
KW  - seed dispersal
KW  - seed dispersal syndrome
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8440
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 24
SP  - 18477
EP  - 18491
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Stiegler, Jonas
A1  - Kiemel, Katrin
A1  - Eccard, Jana
A1  - Fischer, Christina
A1  - Hering, Robert
A1  - Ortmann, Sylvia
A1  - Strigl, Lea
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
A1  - Ullmann, Wiebke
A1  - Blaum, Niels
T1  - Seed traits matter
BT  - endozoochoric dispersal through a pervasive mobile linker
JF  - Ecology and evolution
N2  - Although many plants are dispersed by wind and seeds can travel long distances across unsuitable matrix areas, a large proportion relies on co-evolved zoochorous seed dispersal to connect populations in isolated habitat islands. Particularly in agricultural landscapes, where remaining habitat patches are often very small and highly isolated, mobile linkers as zoochorous seed dispersers are critical for the population dynamics of numerous plant species. However, knowledge about the quali- or quantification of such mobile link processes, especially in agricultural landscapes, is still limited. In a controlled feeding experiment, we recorded the seed intake and germination success after complete digestion by the European brown hare (Lepus europaeus) and explored its mobile link potential as an endozoochoric seed disperser. Utilizing a suite of common, rare, and potentially invasive plant species, we disentangled the effects of seed morphological traits on germination success while controlling for phylogenetic relatedness. Further, we measured the landscape connectivity via hares in two contrasting agricultural landscapes (simple: few natural and semi-natural structures, large fields; complex: high amount of natural and semi-natural structures, small fields) using GPS-based movement data. With 34,710 seeds of 44 plant species fed, one of 200 seeds (0.51%) with seedlings of 33 species germinated from feces. Germination after complete digestion was positively related to denser seeds with comparatively small surface area and a relatively slender and elongated shape, suggesting that, for hares, the most critical seed characteristics for successful endozoochorous seed dispersal minimize exposure of the seed to the stomach and the associated digestive system. Furthermore, we could show that a hare's retention time is long enough to interconnect different habitats, especially grasslands and fields. Thus, besides other seed dispersal mechanisms, this most likely allows hares to act as effective mobile linkers contributing to ecosystem stability in times of agricultural intensification, not only in complex but also in simple landscapes.
KW  - agricultural landscapes
KW  - endozoochory
KW  - Lepus europaeus
KW  - mobile links
KW  - seed dispersal
KW  - seed dispersal syndrome
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8440
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 24
SP  - 18477
EP  - 18491
PB  - Wiley
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Yarman, Aysu
A1  - Kurbanoğlu, Sevinç
A1  - Zebger, Ingo
A1  - Scheller, Frieder W.
T1  - Simple and robust
BT  - the claims of protein sensing by molecularly imprinted polymers
JF  - Sensors and actuators : B, Chemical : an international journal devoted to research and development of chemical transducers
N2  - A spectrum of 7562 publications on Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (MIPs) has been presented in literature within the last ten years (Scopus, September 7, 2020). Around 10 % of the papers published on MIPs describe the recognition of proteins. The straightforward synthesis of MIPs is a significant advantage as compared with the preparation of enzymes or antibodies. MIPs have been synthesized from only one up to six functional monomers while proteins are made up of 20 natural amino acids. Furthermore, they can be synthesized against structures of low immunogenicity and allow multi-analyte measurements via multi-target synthesis. Electrochemical methods allow simple polymer synthesis, removal of the template and readout. Among the different sensor configurations electrochemical MIP-sensors provide the broadest spectrum of protein analytes. The sensitivity of MIP-sensors is sufficiently high for biomarkers in the sub-nanomolar region, nevertheless the cross-reactivity of highly abundant proteins in human serum is still a challenge. MIPs for proteins offer innovative tools not only for clinical and environmental analysis, but also for bioimaging, therapy and protein engineering.
KW  - Molecularly imprinted polymer
KW  - Plastibodies
KW  - Functional scaffolds
KW  - Biomimetic sensors
KW  - Proteins
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.snb.2020.129369
SN  - 0925-4005
SN  - 1873-3077
VL  - 330
PB  - Elsevier Science
CY  - Amsterdam [u.a.]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Hampf, Anna
A1  - Nendel, Claas
A1  - Strey, Simone
A1  - Strey, Robert
T1  - Biotic yield losses in the Southern Amazon, Brazil
BT  - making use of smartphone-assisted plant disease diagnosis data
JF  - Frontiers in plant science : FPLS
N2  - Pathogens and animal pests (P&A) are a major threat to global food security as they directly affect the quantity and quality of food. The Southern Amazon, Brazil's largest domestic region for soybean, maize and cotton production, is particularly vulnerable to the outbreak of P&A due to its (sub)tropical climate and intensive farming systems. However, little is known about the spatial distribution of P&A and the related yield losses. Machine learning approaches for the automated recognition of plant diseases can help to overcome this research gap. The main objectives of this study are to (1) evaluate the performance of Convolutional Neural Networks (ConvNets) in classifying P&A, (2) map the spatial distribution of P&A in the Southern Amazon, and (3) quantify perceived yield and economic losses for the main soybean and maize P&A. The objectives were addressed by making use of data collected with the smartphone application Plantix. The core of the app's functioning is the automated recognition of plant diseases via ConvNets. Data on expected yield losses were gathered through a short survey included in an "expert" version of the application, which was distributed among agronomists. Between 2016 and 2020, Plantix users collected approximately 78,000 georeferenced P&A images in the Southern Amazon. The study results indicate a high performance of the trained ConvNets in classifying 420 different crop-disease combinations. Spatial distribution maps and expert-based yield loss estimates indicate that maize rust, bacterial stalk rot and the fall armyworm are among the most severe maize P&A, whereas soybean is mainly affected by P&A like anthracnose, downy mildew, frogeye leaf spot, stink bugs and brown spot. Perceived soybean and maize yield losses amount to 12 and 16%, respectively, resulting in annual yield losses of approximately 3.75 million tonnes for each crop and economic losses of US$2 billion for both crops together. The high level of accuracy of the trained ConvNets, when paired with widespread use from following a citizen-science approach, results in a data source that will shed new light on yield loss estimates, e.g., for the analysis of yield gaps and the development of measures to minimise them.
KW  - plant pathology
KW  - animal pests
KW  - pathogens
KW  - machine learning
KW  - digital
KW  - image processing
KW  - disease diagnosis
KW  - crowdsourcing
KW  - crop losses
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.621168
SN  - 1664-462X
VL  - 12
PB  - Frontiers Media
CY  - Lausanne
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Liu, Qingting
A1  - Li, Xiaoping
A1  - Fettke, Jörg
T1  - Starch granules in Arabidopsis thaliana mesophyll and guard cells show similar morphology but differences in size and number
JF  - International journal of molecular sciences
N2  - Transitory starch granules result from complex carbon turnover and display specific situations during starch synthesis and degradation. The fundamental mechanisms that specify starch granule characteristics, such as granule size, morphology, and the number per chloroplast, are largely unknown. However, transitory starch is found in the various cells of the leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana, but comparative analyses are lacking. Here, we adopted a fast method of laser confocal scanning microscopy to analyze the starch granules in a series of Arabidopsis mutants with altered starch metabolism. This allowed us to separately analyze the starch particles in the mesophyll and in guard cells. In all mutants, the guard cells were always found to contain more but smaller plastidial starch granules than mesophyll cells. The morphological properties of the starch granules, however, were indiscernible or identical in both types of leaf cells.
KW  - starch granules
KW  - starch granule number per chloroplast
KW  - starch morphology
KW  - mesophyll cell
KW  - guard cell
KW  - LCSM
KW  - Arabidopsis thaliana
KW  - starch granule initiation
KW  - starch metabolism
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22115666
SN  - 1422-0067
SN  - 1661-6596
VL  - 22
IS  - 11
PB  - Molecular Diversity Preservation International
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Compart, Julia
A1  - Li, Xiaoping
A1  - Fettke, Jörg
T1  - Starch-A complex and undeciphered biopolymer
JF  - Journal of plant physiology : biochemistry, physiology, molecular biology and biotechnology of plants
N2  - Starch is a natural storage carbohydrate in plants and algae. It consists of two relatively simple homo-biopolymers, amylopectin and amylose, with only alpha-1,4 and alpha-1,6 linked glucosyl units. Starch is an essential source of nutrition and animal food, as well as an important raw material for industry. However, despite increasing knowledge, detailed information about its structure and turnover are largely lacking. In the last decades, most data were generated using bulk experiments, a method which obviously presents limitations regarding a deeper understanding of the starch metabolism. Here, we discuss some unavoidable questions arising from the existing data. We focus on a few examples related to starch biosynthesis, degradation, and structure where these limitations strongly emerge. Closing these knowledge gaps will also be extremely important for taking the necessary steps in order to set up starch-providing crops for the challenges of the ongoing climate changes, as well as for increasing the usability of starches for industrial applications by biotechnology.
KW  - Starch
KW  - Starch structure
KW  - Organization model
KW  - Starch metabolism
KW  - Analytical limitations
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jplph.2021.153389
SN  - 0176-1617
SN  - 1618-1328
VL  - 258
SP  - 258
EP  - 259
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - München
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Tran, V. Phuong
A1  - Tamura, Yui
A1  - Pham, Van-Cuong
A1  - Elhussiny, Mohamed Z.
A1  - Han, Guofeng
A1  - Sur Chowdhury, Vishwajit
A1  - Furuse, Mitsuhiro
T1  - Neuropeptide Y modifies a part of diencephalic catecholamine but not indolamine metabolism in chicks depending on feeding status
JF  - Neuropeptides
N2  - The role of the monoaminergic system in the feeding behavior of neonatal chicks has been reported, but the functional relationship between the metabolism of monoamines and appetite-related neuropeptides is still unclear. This study aimed to investigate the changes in catecholamine and indolamine metabolism in response to the central action of neuropeptide Y (NPY) in different feeding statuses and the underlying mechanisms. In Experiment 1, the diencephalic concentrations of amino acids and monoamines following the intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection of NPY (375 pmol/10 mu l/chick), saline solution under ad libitum, and fasting conditions for 30 min were determined. Central NPY significantly decreased L-tyrosine concentration, the precursor of catecholamines under feeding condition, but not under fasting condition. Central NPY significantly increased dopamine metabolites, including 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid and homovanillic acid (HVA). The concentration of 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol was significantly reduced under feeding condition, but did not change under fasting condition by NPY. However, no effects of NPY on indolamine metabolism were found in either feeding status. Therefore, the mechanism of action of catecholamines with central NPY under feeding condition was elucidated in Experiment 2. Central NPY significantly attenuated diencephalic gene expression of catecholaminergic synthetic enzymes, such as tyrosine hydroxylase, L-aromatic amino acid decarboxylase, and GTP cyclohydrolase I after 30 min of feeding. In Experiment 3, co-injection of alpha-methyl-L-tyrosine, an inhibitor of tyrosine hydroxylase with NPY, moderately attenuated the orexigenic effect of NPY, accompanied by a significant positive correlation between food intake and HVA levels. In Experiment 4, there was a significant interaction between NPY and clorgyline, an inhibitor of monoamine oxidase A with ICV co-injection which implies that co-existence of NPY and clorgyline enhances the orexigenic effect of NPY. In conclusion, central NPY modifies a part of catecholamine metabolism, which is illustrated by the involvement of dopamine transmission and metabolism under feeding but not fasting conditions.
KW  - Neuropeptide Y
KW  - Feeding behavior
KW  - Neonatal chick
KW  - CNS
KW  - Catecholamines
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.npep.2021.102169
SN  - 0143-4179
SN  - 1532-2785
VL  - 89
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - New York, NY
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Scharnweber, Inga Kristin
A1  - Andersson, Matilda L.
A1  - Chaguaceda, Fernando
A1  - Eklöv, Peter
T1  - Intraspecific differences in metabolic rates shape carbon stable isotope trophic discrimination factors of muscle tissue in the common teleost Eurasian perch (Perca fluviatilis)
JF  - Ecology and evolution
N2  - Stable isotopes represent a unique approach to provide insights into the ecology of organisms. δ13C and δ15N have specifically been used to obtain information on the trophic ecology and food-web interactions. Trophic discrimination factors (TDF, Δ13C and Δ15N) describe the isotopic fractionation occurring from diet to consumer tissue, and these factors are critical for obtaining precise estimates within any application of δ13C and δ15N values. It is widely acknowledged that metabolism influences TDF, being responsible for different TDF between tissues of variable metabolic activity (e.g., liver vs. muscle tissue) or species body size (small vs. large). However, the connection between the variation of metabolism occurring within a single species during its ontogeny and TDF has rarely been considered. Here, we conducted a 9-month feeding experiment to report Δ13C and Δ15N of muscle and liver tissues for several weight classes of Eurasian perch (Perca fluviatilis), a widespread teleost often studied using stable isotopes, but without established TDF for feeding on a natural diet. In addition, we assessed the relationship between the standard metabolic rate (SMR) and TDF by measuring the oxygen consumption of the individuals. Our results showed a significant negative relationship of SMR with Δ13C, and a significant positive relationship of SMR with Δ15N of muscle tissue, but not with TDF of liver tissue. SMR varies inversely with size, which translated into a significantly different TDF of muscle tissue between size classes. In summary, our results emphasize the role of metabolism in shaping-specific TDF (i.e., Δ13C and Δ15N of muscle tissue) and especially highlight the substantial differences between individuals of different ontogenetic stages within a species. Our findings thus have direct implications for the use of stable isotope data and the applications of stable isotopes in food-web studies.
KW  - fractionation factors
KW  - metabolism
KW  - ontogeny
KW  - standard metabolic rate
KW  - tissue types
KW  - δ13C
KW  - δ15N
Y1  - 2021
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 14
SP  - 9804
EP  - 9814
PB  - John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
CY  - New Jersey
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Friedrich, Thomas
A1  - Oberkofler, Vicky
A1  - Trindade, Inês
A1  - Altmann, Simone
A1  - Brzezinka, Krzysztof
A1  - Lämke, Jörn S.
A1  - Gorka, Michal
A1  - Kappel, Christian
A1  - Sokolowska, Ewelina
A1  - Skirycz, Aleksandra
A1  - Graf, Alexander
A1  - Bäurle, Isabel
T1  - Heteromeric HSFA2/HSFA3 complexes drive transcriptional memory after heat stress in Arabidopsis
JF  - Nature Communications
N2  - Adaptive plasticity in stress responses is a key element of plant survival strategies. For instance, moderate heat stress (HS) primes a plant to acquire thermotolerance, which allows subsequent survival of more severe HS conditions. Acquired thermotolerance is actively maintained over several days (HS memory) and involves the sustained induction of memory-related genes. Here we show that FORGETTER3/ HEAT SHOCK TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR A3 (FGT3/HSFA3) is specifically required for physiological HS memory and maintaining high memory-gene expression during the days following a HS exposure. HSFA3 mediates HS memory by direct transcriptional activation of memory-related genes after return to normal growth temperatures. HSFA3 binds HSFA2, and in vivo both proteins form heteromeric complexes with additional HSFs. Our results indicate that only complexes containing both HSFA2 and HSFA3 efficiently promote transcriptional memory by positively influencing histone H3 lysine 4 (H3K4) hyper-methylation. In summary, our work defines the major HSF complex controlling transcriptional memory and elucidates the in vivo dynamics of HSF complexes during somatic stress memory. Moderate heat stress primes plants to acquire tolerance to subsequent, more severe heat stress. Here the authors show that the HSFA3 transcription factor forms a heteromeric complex with HSFA2 to sustain activated transcription of genes required for acquired thermotolerance by promoting H3K4 hyper-methylation.
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-23786-6
SN  - 2041-1723
VL  - 12
IS  - 1
PB  - Nature Publishing Group UK
CY  - [London]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Carpio Arias, Tannia Valeria
A1  - Arias Mogrovejo, Diana Carolina
A1  - Nicolalde Cifuentes, Tomás Marcelo
A1  - Tapia Veloz, Estephany Carolina
A1  - Zeeuw, Chris I. de
A1  - Vinueza Veloz, Maria Fernanda
T1  - Sleep quality does not mediate the negative effects of chronodisruption on body composition and metabolic syndrome in healthcare workers in Ecuador
JF  - Diabetes & metabolic syndrome : clinical research & reviews ; the official journal of DiabetesIndia
N2  - Background and aims: 
The objective of the present work was to determine to what extent sleep quality may mediate the association between chronodisruption (CD) and metabolic syndrome (MS), and between CD and body composition (BC). 

Methodology:
Cross-sectional study which included 300 adult health workers, 150 of whom were night shift workers and thereby exposed to CD. Diagnosis of MS was made based on Adult Treatment Panel III criteria. Sleep quality was measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Body mass index (BMI), fat mass percentage, and visceral fat percentage were measured as indicators of body composition (BC). Data were analyzed using logistic, linear regression and structural equation models. 

Results: 
The odds of health workers exposed to CD to suffer MS was 22.13 (IC95 8.68-66.07) when the model was adjusted for age, gender, physical activity and energy consumption. CD was also significantly associated with an increase in fat mass and visceral fat percentages, but not to BMI. Surprisingly, there was not enough evidence supporting the hypothesis that sleep quality contributes to the association between CD and MS or between CD and BC. 

Conclusions:
Sleep quality does not mediate the negative effects of CD on MS nor on BC.
KW  - Shift work
KW  - Metabolic syndrome
KW  - Sleep quality
KW  - Chronodisruption
KW  - Body composition
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2021.01.017
SN  - 1871-4021
SN  - 1878-0334
VL  - 15
IS  - 1
SP  - 397
EP  - 402
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam [u.a.]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Caserta, Giorgio
A1  - Zhang, Xiaorong
A1  - Yarman, Aysu
A1  - Supala, Eszter
A1  - Wollenberger, Ulla
A1  - Gyurcsányi, Róbert  E.
A1  - Zebger, Ingo
A1  - Scheller, Frieder W.
T1  - Insights in electrosynthesis, target binding, and stability of peptide-imprinted polymer nanofilms
JF  - Electrochimica acta : the journal of the International Society of Electrochemistry (ISE)
N2  - Molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) nanofilms have been successfully implemented for the recognition of different target molecules: however, the underlying mechanistic details remained vague. 
This paper provides new insights in the preparation and binding mechanism of electrosynthesized peptide-imprinted polymer nanofilms for selective recognition of the terminal pentapeptides of the beta-chains of human adult hemoglobin, HbA, and its glycated form HbA1c. 
To differentiate between peptides differing solely in a glucose adduct MIP nanofilms were prepared by a two-step hierarchical electrosynthesis that involves first the chemisorption of a cysteinyl derivative of the pentapeptide followed by electropolymerization of scopoletin. 
This approach was compared with a random single-step electrosynthesis using scopo-letin/pentapeptide mixtures. Electrochemical monitoring of the peptide binding to the MIP nanofilms by means of redox probe gating revealed a superior affinity of the hierarchical approach with a Kd value of 64.6 nM towards the related target. 
Changes in the electrosynthesized non-imprinted polymer and MIP nanofilms during chemical, electrochemical template removal and rebinding were substantiated in situ by monitoring the characteristic bands of both target peptides and polymer with surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy. 
This rational approach led to MIPs with excellent selectivity and provided key mechanistic insights with respect to electrosynthesis, rebinding and stability of the formed MIPs.
KW  - SEIRA spectroelectrochemistry
KW  - peptide imprinting
KW  - electrosynthesis
KW  - MIP
KW  - glycated peptide
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2021.138236
SN  - 0013-4686
SN  - 1873-3859
VL  - 381
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - New York, NY [u.a.]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Lozada-Gobilard, Sissi Donna
A1  - Jeltsch, Florian
A1  - Zhu, Jinlei
T1  - High matrix vegetation decreases mean seed dispersal distance but increases long wind dispersal probability connecting local plant populations in agricultural landscapes
JF  - Agriculture, ecosystems & environment : an international journal for scientific research on the relationship of agriculture and food production to the biosphere
N2  - Seed dispersal plays an important role in population dynamics in agricultural ecosystems, but the effects of surrounding vegetation height on seed dispersal and population connectivity on the landscape scale have rarely been studied. Understanding the effects of surrounding vegetation height on seed dispersal will provide important information for land-use management in agricultural landscapes to prevent the spread of undesired weeds or enhance functional connectivity. We used two model species, Phragmites australis and Typha latifolia, growing in small natural ponds known as kettle holes, in an agricultural landscape to evaluate the effects of surrounding vegetation height on wind dispersal and population connectivity between kettle holes. Seed dispersal distance and the probability of long-distance dispersal (LDD) were simulated with the mechanistic WALD model under three scenarios of "low", "dynamic" and "high" surrounding vegetation height. Connectivity between the origin and target kettle holes was quantified with a connectivity index adapted from Hanski and Thomas (1994). Our results show that mean seed dispersal distance decreases with the height of surrounding matrix vegetation, but the probability of long-distance dispersal (LDD) increases with vegetation height. This indicates an important vegetation-based trade-off between mean dispersal distance and LDD, which has an impact on connectivity. Matrix vegetation height has a negative effect on mean seed dispersal distance but a positive effect on the probability of LDD. This positive effect and its impact on connectivity provide novel insights into landscape level (meta-)population and community dynamics - a change in matrix vegetation height by land-use or climatic changes could strongly affect the spread and connectivity of wind-dispersed plants. The opposite effect of vegetation height on mean seed dispersal distance and the probability of LDD should therefore be considered in management and analyses of future land-use and climate change effects.
KW  - Seed dispersal by wind
KW  - Long-distance seed dispersal
KW  - Matrix vegetation
KW  - Kettle holes
KW  - Agricultural landscapes
KW  - Metapopulation dynamics
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2021.107678
SN  - 0167-8809
SN  - 1873-2305
VL  - 322
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Scharnweber, Inga Kristin
A1  - Chaguaceda, Fernando
A1  - Eklöv, Peter
T1  - Fatty acid accumulation in feeding types of a natural freshwater fish population
JF  - Oecologia / in cooperation with the International Association for Ecology, Intecol
N2  - Fatty acids are widely used to study trophic interactions in food web assemblages. Generally, it is assumed that there is a very small modification of fatty acids from one trophic step to another, making them suitable as trophic biomarkers. However, recent literature provides evidence that many fishes possess genes encoding enzymes with a role in bioconversion, thus the capability for bioconversion might be more widespread than previously assumed. Nonetheless, empirical evidence for biosynthesis occurring in natural populations remains scarce. In this study, we investigated different feeding types of perch (Perca fluviatilis) that are specialized on specific resources with different levels of highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFAs), and analyzed the change between HUFA proportions in perch muscle tissue compared to their resources. Perch showed matching levels to their resources for EPA, but ARA and especially DHA were accumulated. Compound-specific stable isotope analyses helped us to identify the origin of HUFA carbon. Our results suggest that perch obtain a substantial amount of DHA via bioconversion when feeding on DHA-poor benthic resources. Thus, our data indicate the capability of bioconversion of HUFAs in a natural freshwater fish population.
KW  - Fatty acid conversion
KW  - Compound-specific stable isotope analysis
KW  - Docosahexaenoic acid
KW  - Bioconversion
KW  - Trophic upgrading
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-021-04913-y
SN  - 0029-8549
SN  - 1432-1939
VL  - 196
IS  - 1
SP  - 53
EP  - 63
PB  - Springer
CY  - Berlin ; Heidelberg [u.a.]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Liu, Qingting
A1  - Zhou, Yuan
A1  - Fettke, Jörg
T1  - Starch granule size and morphology of Arabidopsis thaliana starch-related mutants analyzed during diurnal rhythm and development
JF  - Molecules : a journal of synthetic chemistry and natural product chemistry / Molecular Diversity Preservation International
N2  - Transitory starch plays a central role in the life cycle of plants. Many aspects of this important metabolism remain unknown; however, starch granules provide insight into this persistent metabolic process. Therefore, monitoring alterations in starch granules with high temporal resolution provides one significant avenue to improve understanding. Here, a previously established method that combines LCSM and safranin-O staining for in vivo imaging of transitory starch granules in leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana was employed to demonstrate, for the first time, the alterations in starch granule size and morphology that occur both throughout the day and during leaf aging. Several starch-related mutants were included, which revealed differences among the generated granules. In ptst2 and sex1-8, the starch granules in old leaves were much larger than those in young leaves; however, the typical flattened discoid morphology was maintained. In ss4 and dpe2/phs1/ss4, the morphology of starch granules in young leaves was altered, with a more rounded shape observed. With leaf development, the starch granules became spherical exclusively in dpe2/phs1/ss4. Thus, the presented data provide new insights to contribute to the understanding of starch granule morphogenesis.
KW  - starch metabolism
KW  - starch granule
KW  - starch granule size
KW  - starch granule morphology
KW  - LCSM
KW  - Arabidopsis thaliana
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26195859
SN  - 1420-3049
VL  - 26
SP  - 1
EP  - 9
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel, Schweiz
ET  - 19
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kürschner, Tobias
A1  - Scherer, Cédric
A1  - Radchuk, Viktoriia
A1  - Blaum, Niels
A1  - Kramer-Schadt, Stephanie
T1  - Movement can mediate temporal mismatches between resource availability and biological events in host-pathogen interactions
JF  - Ecology and evolution
N2  - Global change is shifting the timing of biological events, leading to temporal mismatches between biological events and resource availability. These temporal mismatches can threaten species' populations. Importantly, temporal mismatches not only exert strong pressures on the population dynamics of the focal species, but can also lead to substantial changes in pairwise species interactions such as host-pathogen systems. We adapted an established individual-based model of host-pathogen dynamics. The model describes a viral agent in a social host, while accounting for the host's explicit movement decisions. We aimed to investigate how temporal mismatches between seasonal resource availability and host life-history events affect host-pathogen coexistence, that is, disease persistence. Seasonal resource fluctuations only increased coexistence probability when in synchrony with the hosts' biological events. However, a temporal mismatch reduced host-pathogen coexistence, but only marginally. In tandem with an increasing temporal mismatch, our model showed a shift in the spatial distribution of infected hosts. It shifted from an even distribution under synchronous conditions toward the formation of disease hotspots, when host life history and resource availability mismatched completely. The spatial restriction of infected hosts to small hotspots in the landscape initially suggested a lower coexistence probability due to the critical loss of susceptible host individuals within those hotspots. However, the surrounding landscape facilitated demographic rescue through habitat-dependent movement. Our work demonstrates that the negative effects of temporal mismatches between host resource availability and host life history on host-pathogen coexistence can be reduced through the formation of temporary disease hotspots and host movement decisions, with implications for disease management under disturbances and global change.
KW  - classical swine fever
KW  - dynamic landscapes
KW  - global change
KW  - host– pathogen dynamics
KW  - individual‐ based model
KW  - movement ecology
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.7478
SN  - 2045-7758
VL  - 11
IS  - 10
SP  - 5728
EP  - 5741
PB  - Wiley
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kaech, Heidi
A1  - Dennis, Alice B.
A1  - Vorburger, Christoph
T1  - Triple RNA-Seq characterizes aphid gene expression in response to infection with unequally virulent strains of the endosymbiont Hamiltonella defensa
JF  - BMC genomics
N2  - Background
Secondary endosymbionts of aphids provide benefits to their hosts, but also impose costs such as reduced lifespan and reproductive output. The aphid Aphis fabae is host to different strains of the secondary endosymbiont Hamiltonella defensa, which encode different putative toxins. These strains have very different phenotypes: They reach different densities in the host, and the costs and benefits (protection against parasitoid wasps) they confer to the host vary strongly.

Results
We used RNA-Seq to generate hypotheses on why four of these strains inflict such different costs to A. fabae. We found different H. defensa strains to cause strain-specific changes in aphid gene expression, but little effect of H. defensa on gene expression of the primary endosymbiont, Buchnera aphidicola. The highly costly and over-replicating H. defensa strain H85 was associated with strongly reduced aphid expression of hemocytin, a marker of hemocytes in Drosophila. The closely related strain H15 was associated with downregulation of ubiquitin-related modifier 1, which is related to nutrient-sensing and oxidative stress in other organisms. Strain H402 was associated with strong differential regulation of a set of hypothetical proteins, the majority of which were only differentially regulated in presence of H402.

Conclusions
Overall, our results suggest that costs of different strains of H. defensa are likely caused by different mechanisms, and that these costs are imposed by interacting with the host rather than the host's obligatory endosymbiont B. aphidicola.
KW  - Aphis fabae
KW  - Buchnera
KW  - Cost of resistance
KW  - Hamiltonella
KW  - Host-symbiont interaction
KW  - RNA-Seq
KW  - Symbiosis
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-021-07742-8
SN  - 1471-2164
VL  - 22
IS  - 1
PB  - BioMed Central
CY  - London
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Zhang, Xiaorong
A1  - Caserta, Giorgio
A1  - Yarman, Aysu
A1  - Supala, Eszter
A1  - Tadjoung Waffo, Armel Franklin
A1  - Wollenberger, Ulla
A1  - Gyurcsanyi, Robert E.
A1  - Zebger, Ingo
A1  - Scheller, Frieder W.
T1  - "Out of Pocket" protein binding
BT  - a dilemma of epitope imprinted polymers revealed for human hemoglobin
JF  - Chemosensors
N2  - The epitope imprinting approach applies exposed peptides as templates to synthesize Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (MIPs) for the recognition of the parent protein. While generally the template protein binding to such MIPs is considered to occur via the epitope-shaped cavities, unspecific interactions of the analyte with non-imprinted polymer as well as the detection method used may add to the complexity and interpretation of the target rebinding. To get new insights on the effects governing the rebinding of analytes, we electrosynthesized two epitope-imprinted polymers using the N-terminal pentapeptide VHLTP-amide of human hemoglobin (HbA) as the template. MIPs were prepared either by single-step electrosynthesis of scopoletin/pentapeptide mixtures or electropolymerization was performed after chemisorption of the cysteine extended VHLTP peptide. Rebinding of the target peptide and the parent HbA protein to the MIP nanofilms was quantified by square wave voltammetry using a redox probe gating, surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy. While binding of the pentapeptide shows large influence of the amino acid sequence, all three methods revealed strong non-specific binding of HbA to both polyscopoletin-based MIPs with even higher affinities than the target peptides.
KW  - Molecularly Imprinted Polymers
KW  - epitope imprinting
KW  - non-specific
KW  - binding
KW  - redox gating
KW  - SEIRA spectroelectrochemistry
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors9060128
SN  - 2227-9040
VL  - 9
IS  - 6
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Tadjoung Waffo, Armel Franklin
A1  - Mitrova, Biljana
A1  - Tiedemann, Kim
A1  - Iobbi-Nivol, Chantal
A1  - Leimkühler, Silke
A1  - Wollenberger, Ulla
T1  - Electrochemical trimethylamine n-oxide biosensor with enzyme-based oxygen-scavenging membrane for long-term operation under ambient air
JF  - Biosensors : open access journal
N2  - An amperometric trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) biosensor is reported, where TMAO reductase (TorA) and glucose oxidase (GOD) and catalase (Cat) were immobilized on the electrode surface, enabling measurements of mediated enzymatic TMAO reduction at low potential under ambient air conditions. The oxygen anti-interference membrane composed of GOD, Cat and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogel, together with glucose concentration, was optimized until the O-2 reduction current of a Clark-type electrode was completely suppressed for at least 3 h. For the preparation of the TMAO biosensor, Escherichia coli TorA was purified under anaerobic conditions and immobilized on the surface of a carbon electrode and covered by the optimized O-2 scavenging membrane. The TMAO sensor operates at a potential of -0.8 V vs. Ag/AgCl (1 M KCl), where the reduction of methylviologen (MV) is recorded. The sensor signal depends linearly on TMAO concentrations between 2 mu M and 15 mM, with a sensitivity of 2.75 +/- 1.7 mu A/mM. The developed biosensor is characterized by a response time of about 33 s and an operational stability over 3 weeks. Furthermore, measurements of TMAO concentration were performed in 10% human serum, where the lowest detectable concentration is of 10 mu M TMAO.
KW  - trimethylamine N-oxide
KW  - biosensor
KW  - TMAO-reductase
KW  - oxygen scavenger
KW  - immobilized enzyme
KW  - multienzyme electrode
KW  - viologen
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/bios11040098
SN  - 2079-6374
VL  - 11
IS  - 4
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Yan, Jiawei
A1  - Frøkjær, Emil Egede
A1  - Engelbrekt, Christian
A1  - Leimkühler, Silke
A1  - Ulstrup, Jens
A1  - Wollenberger, Ulla
A1  - Xiao, Xinxin
A1  - Zhang, Jingdong
T1  - Voltammetry and single-molecule in situ scanning tunnelling microscopy of the redox metalloenzyme human sulfite oxidase
JF  - ChemElectroChem
N2  - Human sulfite oxidase (hSO) is a homodimeric two-domain enzyme central in the biological sulfur cycle. A pyranopterin molybdenum cofactor (Moco) is the catalytic site and a heme b(5) group located in the N-terminal domain. The two domains are connected by a flexible linker region. Electrons produced at the Moco in sulfite oxidation, are relayed via heme b(5) to electron acceptors or an electrode surface. Inter-domain conformational changes between an open and a closed enzyme conformation, allowing "gated" electron transfer has been suggested. We first recorded cyclic voltammetry (CV) of hSO on single-crystal Au(111)-electrode surfaces modified by self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) both of a short rigid thiol, cysteamine and of a longer structurally flexible thiol, omega-amino-octanethiol (AOT). hSO on cysteamine SAMs displays a well-defined pair of voltammetric peaks around -0.207 V vs. SCE in the absence of sulfite substrate, but no electrocatalysis. hSO on AOT SAMs displays well-defined electrocatalysis, but only "fair" quality voltammetry in the absence of sulfite. We recorded next in situ scanning tunnelling spectroscopy (STS) of hSO on AOT modified Au(111)-electrodes, disclosing, a 2-5 % surface coverage of strong molecular scale contrasts, assigned to single hSO molecules, notably with no contrast difference in the absence and presence of sulfite. In situ STS corroborated this observation with a sigmoidal tunnelling current/overpotential correlation.
KW  - cyclic voltammetry
KW  - human sulfite oxidase
KW  - in  situ scanning
KW  - tunnelling spectroscopy
KW  - self-assembled molecular monolayers
KW  - single-crystal gold electrodes
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/celc.202001258
SN  - 2196-0216
VL  - 8
IS  - 1
SP  - 164
EP  - 171
PB  - Wiley-VCH
CY  - Weinheim
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Scheffler, Christiane
A1  - Rogol, Alan D.
A1  - Iancu, Mirela
A1  - Hanc, Tomasz
A1  - Moelyo, Annang Giri
A1  - Suchomlinov, Andrej
A1  - Lebedeva, Lidia
A1  - Limony, Yehuda
A1  - Musalek, Martin
A1  - Veldre, Gudrun
A1  - Godina, Elena Z.
A1  - Kirchengast, Sylvia
A1  - Mumm, Rebekka
A1  - Groth, Detlef
A1  - Tutkuviene, Janina
A1  - Böker, Sonja
A1  - Ozer, Basak Koca
A1  - Navazo, Barbara
A1  - Spake, Laure
A1  - Koziel, Slawomir
A1  - Hermanussen, Michael
T1  - Growth during times of fear and emotional stress
BT  - Proceedings of the 28th Aschauer Soiree, held at Potsdam, Germany, and online, November 14th 2020
JF  - Human biology and public health
N2  - Twenty-one scientists met for this year’s virtual conference on Auxology held at the University Potsdam, Germany, to discuss child and adolescent growth during times of fear and emotional stress. Growth within the broad range of normal for age and sex is considered a sign of good general health whereas fear and emotional stress can lead to growth faltering. Stunting is a sign of social disadvantage and poor parental education. Adverse childhood experiences affect child development, particularly in families with low parental education and low socioeconomic status. Negative effects were also shown in Indian children exposed prenatally and in early postnatal life to the cyclone Aila in 2009. Distrust, fears and fake news regarding the current Corona pandemic received particular attention though the effects generally appeared weak. Mean birth weight was higher; rates of low, very and extremely low birth weight were lower. Other topics discussed by the participants, were the influences of economic crises on birth weight, the measurement of self-confidence and its impact on growth, the associations between obesity, peer relationship, and behavior among Turkish adolescents, height trends in Indonesia, physiological neonatal weight loss, methods for assessing biological maturation in sportsmen, and a new method for skeletal age determination. The participants also discussed the association between acute myocardial infarction and somatotype in Estonia, rural-urban growth differences in Mongolian children, socio-environmental conditions and sexual dimorphism, biological mortality bias, and new statistical techniques for describing inhomogeneity in the association of bivariate variables, and for detecting and visualizing extensive interactions among variables.
KW  - stunting
KW  - birth weight
KW  - fear
KW  - emotional stress
KW  - economy
KW  - SEPE
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.52905/hbph.v2.15
SN  - 2748-9957
IS  - 2
PB  - Universitätsverlag Potsdam
CY  - Potsdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Wendt, Martin
A1  - Senftleben, Nele
A1  - Gros, Patrick
A1  - Schmitt, Thomas
T1  - Coping with environmental extremes
BT  - population ecology and behavioural adaptation of Erebia pronoe, an Alpine butterfly species
JF  - Insects : open access journal
N2  - Simple Summary:& nbsp;High alpine meadows are home to numerous endemic butterfly species. A combination of climate change and changes in agricultural practices has led to a severe decline in many species. A seemingly unaffected representative of this habitat is Erebia pronoe. We studied the behaviour, resource use and population structure of this species to explain its resilience and estimate its future survival potential. This species shows pronounced protandry in combination with serial eclosion. Males were significantly more active and mobile and were also caught significantly more often than females, resulting in a pronounced shift in sex ratio in the predicted population structure. The adults use a wide range of nectar plants and establish homeranges in areas of high habitat quality. Thus, Erebia pronoe adults use a wide array of resources combined with a slight specialisation to avoid niche overlap with closely related species. The resulting ecological flexibility seems to be an adaptation to unpredictable environmental conditions, which should be the result of a long-lasting adaptation process. Moreover, the combination of opportunism and modest specialisation should also be a good basis for coping with future changes caused by climate and land-use change.</p> <br /> <br></p> <br /> A mark-recapture study of the nominotypical Erebia pronoe in the Alps was conducted to survey its ecological demands and characteristics. Population structure analysis revealed a combination of protandry (one-week earlier eclosion of males) and serial eclosion. Significant differences between both sexes were found in population density (males: 580/ha & PLUSMN; 37 SE; females: 241/ha & PLUSMN; 66 SE), sex-ratio (2.4) and behaviour (57.7 vs. 11.9% flying). Both sexes used a wide range of nectar plants (Asteraceae, 77.3%; Dipsacaceae, 12.3%; Gentianaceae, 9.7%). The use of nectar plants shows a non-specific spectrum, which, however, completely avoids overlap with the locally co-occurring species Erebia nivalis. Movement patterns show the establishment of homeranges, which significantly limits the migration potential. Due to its broad ecological niche, E. pronoe will probably be able to react plastically to the consequences of climate change. The formation of high population densities, the unconcerned endangerment status, the unspecific resource spectrum and the sedentary character of the species make E. pronoe a potential indicator of the quality and general resource occurrence of alpine rupicolous grasslands.
KW  - mark-release-recapture
KW  - movement patterns
KW  - opportunistic behaviour
KW  - partial protandry
KW  - population demography
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/insects12100896
SN  - 2075-4450
VL  - 12
IS  - 10
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Korniienko, Yevheniia
A1  - Nguyen, Linh
A1  - Baumgartner, Stephanie
A1  - Vater, Marianne
A1  - Tiedemann, Ralph
A1  - Kirschbaum, Frank
T1  - Correction to: Intragenus F1-hybrids of African weakly electric fish (Mormyridae: Campylomormyrus tamandua male x C. compressirostris female) are fertile (vol 206, pg 571, 2020)
JF  - Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-021-01513-2
SN  - 0340-7594
SN  - 1432-1351
VL  - 207
IS  - 6
SP  - 773
EP  - 773
PB  - Springer
CY  - Heidelberg
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Olas, Justyna Jadwiga
A1  - Apelt, Federico
A1  - Watanabe, Mutsumi
A1  - Höfgen, Rainer
A1  - Wahl, Vanessa
T1  - Developmental stage-specific metabolite signatures in Arabidopsis thaliana under optimal and mild nitrogen limitation
JF  - Plant science : an international journal of experimental plant biology
N2  - Metabolites influence flowering time, and thus are among the major determinants of yield. Despite the reported role of trehalose 6-phosphate and nitrate signaling on the transition from the vegetative to the reproductive phase, little is known about other metabolites contributing and responding to developmental phase changes. To increase our understanding which metabolic traits change throughout development in Arabidopsis thaliana and to identify metabolic markers for the vegetative and reproductive phases, especially among individual amino acids (AA), we profiled metabolites of plants grown in optimal (ON) and limited nitrogen (N) (LN) conditions, the latter providing a mild but consistent limitation of N. We found that although LN plants adapt their growth to a decreased level of N, their metabolite profiles are strongly distinct from ON plant profiles, with N as the driving factor for the observed differences. We demonstrate that the vegetative and the reproductive phase are not only marked by growth parameters such as biomass and rosette area, but also by specific metabolite signatures including specific single AA. In summary, we identified N-dependent and -independent indicators manifesting developmental stages, indicating that the plant's metabolic status also reports on the developmental phases.
KW  - Amino acids
KW  - Floral induction
KW  - Flowering time
KW  - Nitrogen
KW  - Metabolites
KW  - Vegetative phase
KW  - Reproductive phase
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.plantsci.2020.110746
SN  - 0168-9452
SN  - 1873-2259
VL  - 303
PB  - Elsevier Science
CY  - Amsterdam [u.a.]
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Clegg, Mark R.
A1  - Wacker, Alexander
A1  - Spijkerman, Elly
T1  - Phenotypic Diversity and Plasticity of Photoresponse Across an Environmentally Contrasting Family of Phytoflagellates
JF  - Frontiers in plant science : FPLS
N2  - Organisms often employ ecophysiological strategies to exploit environmental conditions and ensure bio-energetic success. However, the many complexities involved in the differential expression and flexibility of these strategies are rarely fully understood. Therefore, for the first time, using a three-part cross-disciplinary laboratory experimental analysis, we investigated the diversity and plasticity of photoresponsive traits employed by one family of environmentally contrasting, ecologically important phytoflagellates. The results demonstrated an extensive inter-species phenotypic diversity of behavioural, physiological, and compositional photoresponse across the Chlamydomonadaceae, and a multifaceted intra-species phenotypic plasticity, involving a broad range of beneficial photoacclimation strategies, often attributable to environmental predisposition and phylogenetic differentiation. Deceptively diverse and sophisticated strong (population and individual cell) behavioural photoresponses were observed, with divergence from a general preference for low light (and flexibility) dictated by intra-familial differences in typical habitat (salinity and trophy) and phylogeny. Notably, contrasting lower, narrow, and flexible compared with higher, broad, and stable preferences were observed in freshwater vs. brackish and marine species. Complex diversity and plasticity in physiological and compositional photoresponses were also discovered. Metabolic characteristics (such as growth rates, respiratory costs and photosynthetic capacity, efficiency, compensation and saturation points) varied elaborately with species, typical habitat (often varying more in eutrophic species, such as Chlamydomonas reinhardtii), and culture irradiance (adjusting to optimise energy acquisition and suggesting some propensity for low light). Considerable variations in intracellular pigment and biochemical composition were also recorded. Photosynthetic and accessory pigments (such as chlorophyll a, xanthophyll-cycle components, chlorophyll a:b and chlorophyll a:carotenoid ratios, fatty acid content and saturation ratios) varied with phylogeny and typical habitat (to attune photosystem ratios in different trophic conditions and to optimise shade adaptation, photoprotection, and thylakoid architecture, particularly in freshwater environments), and changed with irradiance (as reaction and harvesting centres adjusted to modulate absorption and quantum yield). The complex, concomitant nature of the results also advocated an integrative approach in future investigations. Overall, these nuanced, diverse, and flexible photoresponsive traits will greatly contribute to the functional ecology of these organisms, addressing environmental heterogeneity and potentially shaping individual fitness, spatial and temporal distribution, prevalence, and ecosystem dynamics.
KW  - photoresponse
KW  - behaviour
KW  - physiology
KW  - composition
KW  - photosynthesis
KW  - acclimation
KW  - Chlamydomonas
KW  - ecophysiology
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2021.707541
SN  - 1664-462X
IS  - 12
PB  - Frontiers Media
CY  - Lausanne
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Scheffler, Christiane
A1  - Nguyen, Thi Hong
A1  - Hermanussen, Michael
T1  - Vietnamese migrants are as tall as they want to be
JF  - Human biology and public health
N2  - Background: Members of the same social group tent to have the same body height. Migrants tend to adjust in height to their host communities.

Objectives: Social-Economic-Political-Emotional (SEPE) factors influence growth. We hypothesized that Vietnamese young adult migrants in Germany (1) are taller than their parents, (2) are as tall as their German peers, and (3) are as tall as predicted by height expectation at age 13 years.

Sample: The study was conducted in 30 male and 54 female Vietnamese migrants (mean age 26.23 years. SD=4.96) in Germany in 2020.

Methods: Information on age, sex, body height, school and education, job, height and ethnicity of best friend, migration history and cultural identification, parental height and education, and recalled information on their personal height expectations at age 13 years were obtained by questionnaire. The data were analyzed by St. Nicolas House Analysis (SNHA) and multiple regression.

Results: Vietnamese young adults are taller than their parents (females 3.85cm, males 7.44cm), but do not fully attain height of their German peers. The body height is positively associated with the height of best friend (p < 0.001), the height expectation at age 13 year (p < 0.001), and father’s height (p=0.001).

Conclusion: Body height of Vietnamese migrants in Germany reflects competitive growth and strategic growth adjustments. The magnitude of this intergenerational trend supports the concept that human growth depends on SEPE factors.
KW  - body height
KW  - regulation of growth
KW  - migrants
KW  - Social-Economic-Political-Emotional (SEPE) factors
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.52905/hbph.v2.12
SN  - 2748-9957
IS  - 2
PB  - Universitätsverlag Potsdam
CY  - Potsdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Scheffler, Christiane
A1  - Hermanussen, Michael
T1  - Stunting does not impair physical fitness in Indonesian school children
JF  - Human biology and public health
N2  - Background: Physical fitness is decreased in malnourished children and adults. Poor appearance and muscular flaccidity are among the first signs of malnutrition. Malnutrition is often associated with stunting.

Objectives: We test the hypotheses that stunted children of low social strata are physically less fit than children of high social strata.

Sample: We investigated 354 school girls and 369 school boys aged 5.83 to 13.83 (mean 9.54) years from three different social strata in Kupang (West-Timor, Indonesia) in 2020.

Methods: We measured height, weight, and elbow breadth, calculated standard deviation (SDS) of height and weight according to CDC references, and the Frame index as an indicator of long-term physical fitness, and we tested physical fitness in standing long jump and hand grip strength.

Results: Children of low social strata are physically fittest. They jump longer distances, and they have higher values in the Frame index. No association exists between height SDS and physical fitness, neither in respect to standing long jump, nor to hand grip strength.

Conclusion: Stunting does not impair physical fitness in Indonesian school children. Our results support the concept that SEPE (social-economic-political-emotional) factors are involved in the regulation of human growth.
KW  - stunting
KW  - standing long jump
KW  - handgrip strength
KW  - SEPE
KW  - frame index
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.52905/hbph.v2.19
SN  - 2748-9957
IS  - 2
PB  - Universitätsverlag Potsdam
CY  - Potsdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Mumm, Rebekka
A1  - Hermanussen, Michael
T1  - A short note on the BMI and on secular changes in BMI
JF  - Human biology and public health
N2  - Human size changes over time with worldwide secular trends in height, weight, and body mass index (BMI). There is general agreement to relate the state of nutrition to height and weight, and to ratios of weight-to-height. The BMI is a ratio. It is commonly used to classify underweight, overweight and obesity in adults. Yet, the BMI is inappropriate to provide any immediate information on body composition.

It is accepted that the BMI is “a simple index to classify underweight, overweight and obesity in adults”. It is stated that “policies, programmes and investments need to be “nutrition-sensitive”, which means they must have positive impacts on nutrition”. It is also stated that “a need for policies that address all forms of malnutrition by making healthy foods accessible and affordable, while restricting unhealthy foods through fiscal and regulatory restrictions“. But these statements are neither warranted by arithmetic considerations, nor by historic evidence.

Measuring the BMI is an appropriate screening tool for detecting an unusual weight-to-height ratio, but the BMI is an inappropriate tool for estimating body composition, or suggesting medical and health policy decisions.
KW  - body mass index
KW  - secular trend
KW  - weight-to-height ratio
KW  - malnutrition
KW  - obesity
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.52905/hbph.v2.17
SN  - 2748-9957
IS  - 2
PB  - Universitätsverlag Potsdam
CY  - Potsdam
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Drago, Claudia
A1  - Weithoff, Guntram
T1  - Variable Fitness Response of Two Rotifer Species Exposed to Microplastics Particles
BT  - The Role of Food Quantity and Quality
JF  - Toxics
N2  - Plastic pollution is an increasing environmental problem, but a comprehensive understanding of its effect in the environment is still missing. The wide variety of size, shape, and polymer composition of plastics impedes an adequate risk assessment. We investigated the effect of differently sized polystyrene beads (1-, 3-, 6-µm; PS) and polyamide fragments (5–25 µm, PA) and non-plastics items such as silica beads (3-µm, SiO2) on the population growth, reproduction (egg ratio), and survival of two common aquatic micro invertebrates: the rotifer species Brachionus calyciflorus and Brachionus fernandoi. The MPs were combined with food quantity, limiting and saturating food concentration, and with food of different quality. We found variable fitness responses with a significant effect of 3-µm PS on the population growth rate in both rotifer species with respect to food quantity. An interaction between the food quality and the MPs treatments was found in the reproduction of B. calyciflorus. PA and SiO2 beads had no effect on fitness response. This study provides further evidence of the indirect effect of MPs in planktonic rotifers and the importance of testing different environmental conditions that could influence the effect of MPs.
KW  - microplastics
KW  - population growth rate
KW  - polystyrene
KW  - polyamide
KW  - silica beads
KW  - fitness response
KW  - rotifers
KW  - Brachionus fernandoi
KW  - Brachionus calyciflorus
KW  - egg ratio
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics9110305
SN  - 2305-6304
VL  - 9
IS  - 11
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  -