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Background Clonostachys rosea strain IK726 is a mycoparasitic fungus capable of controlling mycotoxinproducing Fusarium species, including F. graminearum and F. culmorum, known to produce Zearalenone (ZEA) and Deoxynivalenol (DON). DON is a type B trichothecene known to interfere with protein synthesis in eukaryotes. ZEA is a estrogenic-mimicing mycotoxin that exhibits antifungal growth. C. rosea produces the enzyme zearalenone hydrolase (ZHD101), which degrades ZEA. However, the molecular basis of resistance to DON in C. rosea is not understood. We have exploited a genome-wide transcriptomic approach to identify genes induced by DON and ZEA in order to investigate the molecular basis of mycotoxin resistance C. rosea. Results We generated DON- and ZEA-induced cDNA libraries based on suppression subtractive hybridization. A total of 443 and 446 sequenced clones (corresponding to 58 and 65 genes) from the DON- and ZEA-induced library, respectively, were analysed. DON-induced transcripts represented genes encoding metabolic enzymes such as cytochrome P450, cytochrome c oxidase and stress response proteins. In contrast, transcripts encoding the ZEA-detoxifying enzyme ZHD101 and those encoding a number of ATP-Binding Cassette (ABC) transporter transcripts were highly frequent in the ZEA-induced library. Subsequent bioinformatics analysis predicted that all transcripts with similarity to ABC transporters could be ascribed to only 2 ABC transporters genes, and phylogenetic analysis of the predicted ABC transporters suggested that they belong to group G (pleiotropic drug transporters) of the fungal ABC transporter gene family. This is the first report suggesting involvement of ABC transporters in ZEA tolerance. Expression patterns of a selected set of DON- and ZEAinduced genes were validated by the use of quantitative RT-PCR after exposure to the toxins. The qRT-PCR results obtained confirm the expression patterns suggested from the EST redundancy data. Conclusion The present study identifies a number of transcripts encoding proteins that are potentially involved in conferring resistance to DON and ZEA in the mycoparasitic fungus C. rosea. Whilst metabolic readjustment is potentially the key to withstanding DON, the fungus produces ZHD101 to detoxify ZEA and ABC transporters to transport ZEA or its degradation products out from the fungal cell. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Eutrophication is a major threat to many coastal ecosystems worldwide. This paper deals with the sediment-water exchange of phosphorus, one of the elements that may stimulate primary production in the aquatic environment. The lack of phosphorus-binding capacity in sediments at low redox-potential is recognized as an important mechanism for eutrophication-related effects in some areas. Methods: Twelve sediment cores were collected in the Baltic Proper between 61 m and 175 m water depth and a number of phosphorus fractions were analyzed. Integrating the concentrations over the depth profiles, the amounts of mobile phosphorus were estimated in each core. Results: It was found that sediments below the redox cline in the Baltic Proper contained small amounts of mobile phosphorus. The total amount of mobile phosphorus in the entire Baltic Proper sediments below 65 m water depth was estimated to between 55,000 tonnes and 156,000 tonnes or between less than 10% to around 25% of the phosphate in the system (water plus sediments). This represents the maximum amount of phosphorus that could possibly be released to the water column from these areas. We argue that the most reasonable estimate of the pool of mobile phosphorus in the sediments is the lower number. Conclusion: The amounts of mobile phosphorus in sediment cores with oxidized surface layers were higher compared with sediment cores with reduced surfaces, indicating that there is a potential phosphorus-binding capacity in sediments below the redox cline if oxic conditions improved. Oxygenation of the Baltic Proper bottom water between 65 m and 100 m could probably remove around 100,000 tonnes of phosphorus from the water column and reduce phosphorus concentrations in the deep water by on average 30 mg/m3, which would possibly be felt also in the surface water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hyperpolarized 13C NMR spectroscopy can provide the sensitivity and spectral resolution to detect, identify and quantify low-populated reaction intermediates, thus yielding direct chemical information on reaction mechanisms in real-time assays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lightwave communications is a necessity for the information age. Optical links provide enormous bandwidth, and the optical fiber is the only medium that can meet the modern society's needs for transporting massive amounts of data over long distances. Applications range from global high-capacity networks, which constitute the backbone of the internet, to the massively parallel interconnects that provide data connectivity inside datacenters and supercomputers. Optical communications is a diverse and rapidly changing field, where experts in photonics, communications, electronics, and signal processing work side by side to meet the ever-increasing demands for higher capacity, lower cost, and lower energy consumption, while adapting the system design to novel services and technologies. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of this rich research field, Journal of Optics has invited 16 researchers, each a world-leading expert in their respective subfields, to contribute a section to this invited review article, summarizing their views on state-of-the-art and future developments in optical communications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]