Genetic relationships between diploid and allotetraploid cherry species (Prunus avium, Prunus x gondouinii and Prunus cerasus).
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Prunus avium L. (diploid, AA, 2n=2x=16), Prunus cerasus L. (allotetraploid, AAFF, 2n=4x=32) species, and their hybrid Prunus x gondouinii Rehd., constitute the most widely cultivated cherry tree species. P. cerasus is supposed to be an hybrid species produced by the union of unreduced P. avium gametes and normal P. fruticosa gametes. A continuum of morphological traits between these three species makes their assignation difficult. The aim of this paper is to study the genetic relationships between tetraploid and diploid cherry species. In all, 114 genotypes belonging to these species were analyzed using 75 AFLP markers. The coordinates of these genotypes on the first axis of a correspondence analysis allowed us to clearly distinguish each species, to identify misclassifications and to assign unknown genotypes to one species. We showed that there are specific alleles in P. cerasus, which are not present in the A genome of P. avium and which probably come from the F genome of P. cerasus. The frequencies of each marker in the A and the F genomes were estimated in order to identify A and F specific markers. We discuss the utility of these specific markers for finding the origin of the A and F genomes in the allopolyploid species. (+info)
A deletion affecting several gene candidates is present in the Evergrowing peach mutant.
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Evergrowing (EVG) peach is one of only two described mutants affecting winter dormancy in woody perennial species. EVG peach does not set terminal buds, cease new leaf growth, nor enter into a dormant resting phase in response to winter conditions. The EVG mutation segregates in F2 progeny as a single recessive nuclear gene. A local molecular genetic linkage map around EVG was previously developed using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers, and a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) contig that contains the EVG mutation was assembled. A MADS box coding open reading frame (ORF) was found in a BAC of this contig and used as a probe. The probe detected a polymorphism between the wild-type and mutant genomes, and the polymorphism is indicative of a deletion in EVG peach. The EVG gene region contained six potential MADS-box transcription factor sequences, and the deletion in EVG affected at least four of these. The deletion was bracketed using RFLP analysis, which showed that it is contained within a segment of the genome no greater than 180 kb. (+info)
Interaction of fat availability and sex on postprandial satiety and cholecystokinin after mixed-food meals.
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BACKGROUND: Cholecystokinin (CCK) is associated with fat-induced satiety. OBJECTIVE: The primary objective of the present study was to determine, in an acute meal setting, whether the availability of dietary fat for alimentary processing, and hence the stimulation of CCK, affects the postmeal satiety response in men and women. DESIGN: In a within-subjects design, subjects (8 men, 7 women) consumed 1 of 3 isoenergetic mixed-food test meals 1 wk apart in random order. The test meals contained 30% of energy from fat, of which more than two-thirds was derived from whole almonds, almond oil, or a mix of safflower and corn oils. Visual analogue scales were used to assess indexes of satiety at defined time points up to 6 h after meal consumption. Blood was sampled at corresponding time points for measurement of CCK, glucose, insulin, and triacylglycerol. Subsequent food intake was also assessed. RESULTS: All meals suppressed hunger and induced a pattern of satiety that was sex-specific and corresponded with the CCK response. Women had higher plasma CCK concentrations and experienced greater satiety after the almond oil and control meals (fat as oil) than after the whole almond meal (fat in whole food structure). Men showed no differential response among meals for CCK and satiety. Plasma triacylglycerol differed by time among meals but not by sex, and no significant differences in glucose and insulin were found. CONCLUSIONS: The satiety response to dietary fat provided in oil or whole food form is influenced by sex and is dependent on the availability of fat to stimulate CCK release in women but not in men. (+info)
Prunus spp. intoxication in ruminants: a case in a goat and diagnosis by identification of leaf fragments in rumen contents.
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Prunus serotina Ehrh. (black cherry) intoxication was diagnosed on postmortem examination of a goat. The clinical signs were weakness, depression, seizure-like activity, and lateral recumbency. Natural cases of black cherry intoxication have not been reported in goats in the United States. In the absence of a history of access to black cherry or the ability to detect cyanide or cyanogenic glycosides in blood or tissues, black cherry intoxication may be diagnosed in ruminants by the identification of black cherry leaves in rumen contents. Three distinctive features facilitate identification of black cherry leaves or leaf fragments: 1) a pair of small glands that protrude from the sides of the petiole just below the base of the blade, 2) incurved, gland-tipped (callous) teeth along the margins of the leaf, and 3) a band of hairs to each side of the lower half of the midvein on the surface of the leaf. Shape of the marginal teeth, presence or absence of glands at the tips of these teeth, the morphology of these glands, and presence or absence of petiolar glands and their morphology may allow identification and differentiation of small fragments of leaves from the 6 most important cyanogenic Prunus spp. in eastern North America: black cherry, Carolina laurel cherry, peach, English laurel cherry, choke cherry, and fire cherry. (+info)
Loss of pollen-S function in two self-compatible selections of Prunus avium is associated with deletion/mutation of an S haplotype-specific F-box gene.
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Recently, an S haplotype-specific F-box (SFB) gene has been proposed as a candidate for the pollen-S specificity gene of RNase-mediated gametophytic self-incompatibility in Prunus (Rosaceae). We have examined two pollen-part mutant haplotypes of sweet cherry (Prunus avium). Both were found to retain the S-RNase, which determines stylar specificity, but one (S3' in JI 2434) has a deletion including the haplotype-specific SFB gene, and the other (S4' in JI 2420) has a frame-shift mutation of the haplotype-specific SFB gene, causing amino acid substitutions and premature termination of the protein. The loss or significant alteration of this highly polymorphic gene and the concomitant loss of pollen self-incompatibility function provides compelling evidence that the SFB gene encodes the pollen specificity component of self-incompatibility in Prunus. These loss-of-function mutations are inconsistent with SFB being the inactivator of non-self S-RNases and indicate the presence of a general inactivation mechanism, with SFB conferring specificity by protecting self S-RNases from inactivation. (+info)
Intestinal SGLT1-mediated absorption and metabolism of benzyl beta-glucoside contained in Prunus mume: carrier-mediated transport increases intestinal availability.
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The intestinal absorption of benzyl beta-glucoside (BNZ beta glc) contained in the fruit of Prunus mume SIEB. et ZUCC. (Rosaceae), which is traditionally used as a medicinal food in Japan, was studied in rat intestines. BNZ beta glc was absorbed from the mucosal to serosal sides. Its metabolite, benzyl alcohol (BAL), was also detected on both the mucosal and serosal sides. In the presence of phloridzin (Na(+)/glucose cotransporter (SGLT1) inhibitor) or in the absence of Na+ (driving force), BNZ beta glc absorption was significantly decreased. Transport clearance of BNZ beta glc across the brush border membrane decreased as its concentration increased. These results indicate that BNZ beta glc is transported by SGLT1. Metabolic clearance of BNZ beta glc also decreased as its concentration increased. The amount ratio of BNZ beta glc to BAL on the serosal side increased with the increase of BNZ beta glc concentration. The intestinal availability of BNZ beta glc was lower in the absence of Na+ than in the presence of Na+, indicating that the SGLT1-mediated transport of BNZ beta glc increases intestinal availability by decreasing the intestinal extraction ratio. This neutraceutical study concluded that intestinal carrier-mediated transport across the brush border membrane improves the intestinal availability of nutritionally, pharmacologically or physiologically active compounds that undergo intestinal metabolism (first-pass effect). (+info)
Armeniacae semen extract suppresses lipopolysaccharide-induced expressions of cyclooxygenase [correction of cycloosygenase]-2 and inducible nitric oxide synthase in mouse BV2 microglial cells.
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Armeniacae semen is the seed of Prunus armeniaca L. var. ansu MAXIM which is classified into Rosaceae. In traditional oriental medicine, Armeniacae semen has been used for the treatment of pain and inflammatory diseases. In this study, the effect of Armeniacae semen extract on lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammation was investigated using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Western blot, prostaglandin E2 immunoassay, and nitric oxide detection on mouse BV2 microglial cells. In the present results, Armeniacae semen extract suppressed prostaglandin E2 synthesis and nitric oxide production by inhibiting the lipopolysaccharide-stimulated enhancement of cyclooxygenase-2 and inducible nitric oxide synthase mRNA expression in BV2 cells. These results show that Armeniacae semen exerts anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects probably by suppression of cyclooxygenase-2 and inducible nitric oxide synthase expressions. (+info)
Variation in organophosphate pesticide metabolites in urine of children living in agricultural communities.
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Children of migrant farmworkers are at increased risk of exposure to organophosphate pesticides because of "carry-home" transport processes and residential location. Although this at-risk status is generally recognized, few available reports describe the extent of this exposure among agricultural communities. We quantified dialkyl phosphate (DAP) levels in serial samples of urine from 176 children, 2-6 years of age, in three Oregon communities hosting differing agricultural industries: pears, cherries, and fruit berries. Up to three spot samples of urine were collected from children at the beginning, mid-point, and end of their parents' work seasons. The median levels of dimethylthiophosphate (DMTP), the most commonly detected metabolite, was significantly higher in urine samples from children in each of the three agricultural communities (17.5, 19.0, and 41.0 ng/mL) relative to a reference group of children who lived in an urban community and whose parents did not work in agriculture (6.5 ng/mL; Kruskal-Wallis, p < 0.001). After controlling for age, sex, and weight, the median level of DMTP in children in the pear community was 1.92 times higher than the level in children of the berry community [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.14-3.23] and 1.75 times higher than the level in children of the cherry community (95% CI, 0.95-3.23). We observed increasing levels of DMTP across the work season only within the berry community. Levels decreased in the cherry community and remained constant in the pear community. Substantial temporal variation within the children followed demonstrates the need for multiple urine samples to most accurately characterize longer term and/or cumulative exposure. The observed variability in urinary DAP levels, between communities and over time, could be attributed to the types and amounts of organophosphate pesticides used, the timing of applications and degradation of residues in the environment, work operations and hygiene practices, the proximity of housing to orchards and fields, or the movement of these working families. Additional studies of variation in pesticide exposure across agricultural regions are needed. (+info)