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Background: Pyoktanin blue (PB) is used for staining tissues and cells, and it is applied in photodynamic therapy due to its potent bactericidal activity. However, clinical application of PB as an antiviral and antitumor agent has been limited due to its potent toxicity. For clinical application, the antitumor and antiviral activity as well as the neurotoxicity of PB were re-evaluated with a chemotherapeutic index. Methods: Tumor-specificity (TS) was determined by the ratio of CC50 against normal oral cells/oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), neurotoxicity by that of normal oral/neuronal cells, antiviral activity by that of mock-infected/virus-infected cells, and potency-selectivity expression (PSE) by dividing TS by CC50 (OSCC). Results: Antitumor activity of PB (assessed by TS and PSE) was comparable with that of DXR and much higher than that of 5-FU and melphalan. PB induced caspase-3 activation and subG1 cell accumulation in an OSCC cell line (Ca9-22). PB and anticancer drugs showed comparable cytotoxicity against both neuronal cells and OSCC cell lines. PB showed no detectable anti-HIV/HSV activity, in contrast to reverse transferase inhibitors, sulfated glucans, and alkaline extract of leaves of S.P. Conclusions: PB showed first-class anticancer activity and neurotoxicity, suggesting the importance of establishing the safe treatment schedule.

Integrated three-dimensional (3-D) paleomorphologic and sedimentary modeling was used to predict the basin architecture and depositional pattern of Pleistocene forearc basin turbidites in a gas hydrate field along the northeast Nankai Trough, off central Japan. Structural unfolding and stratigraphic decompaction of the targeted stratigraphic unit resulted in successful modeling of the paleobathymetry at the time of deposition. This paleobathymetry was characterized by a simple U-shaped paleominibasin. Subsequent turbidity current modeling on the reconstructed paleobathymetric surface demonstrated morphologically controlled turbidity current behavior and selective turbidite sand distribution within the minibasin, which strongly suggests the development of a confined turbidite system. Among three candidate inflow patterns, a northeasterly inflow pattern was determined as most likely. In this scenario, flow reflection and deflection caused ponding and a concentration of sandy turbidite accumulation in the basin center, which facilitated filling of the minibasin. Such a sedimentary character is undetected by seismic data in the studied gas hydrate reservoir formation because of hydrate-cementation–induced seismic anomalies. Our model suggests that 3-D horizon surfaces mapped from 3-D seismic data along with well-log data can be used to predict paleobasin characteristics and depositional processes in deep-water turbidite systems even if seismic profiles cannot be determined because of the presence of gas hydrates.

In this paper, four plant-inhabiting fungi newly collected from the Nansei Islands, Japan, are reported. Among them, Phaeodiscula tremae Sawada from Tokunoshima Island was transferred to the genus Capnodiastrum and given a new name C. sawadae, because in the genus Capnodiastrum, the specific epithet tremae has already been used for the different South American species. Nyssopsora formosana on Koelreuteria formosana and Pestalotiopsis fici on Ardisia quinquegona collected in Okinawa Main Island and Pseudocercospora acaciae-confusae on Acacia confusa collected in Okinoerabu Island were newly recorded from Japan.

Ozone is a major gaseous pollutant that induces crop loss. Although the physiological and morphological responses of crops to ambient ozone have been well characterized, little is known about the protein responses. We firstly investigated the protein responses in rice seedlings under ambient and elevated ozone stress by a proteome approach. Twenty proteins were differentially expressed. Expression of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO) large subunit (LSU) and their 17–18 kDa fragments and RuBisCO activase were reduced by both ambient and elevated ozone. RuBisCO small subunit (SSU), large subunit fragment (37 kDa), and oxygen-evolving enhancer proteins 1 and 2 increase in expression with ambient ozone, and decreased with elevated ozone. Ambient ozone induced a slight reduction, and elevated ozone induced a significant reduction in the expression of energy metabolism proteins. Expression of the antioxidant proteins glutathione S-transferase and Mn superoxide dismutase increased upon ozone exposure, but thioredoxin peroxidase expression decreased. Three defense/stress-related proteins, pathogenesis-related (PR) class 5 protein (PR5) and two PR10 proteins OsPR10/PBZ1 and RSOsPR10, were significantly induced after 2 days exposure to elevated ozone and gradually increased during exposure period. The results not only indicate the difference in protein responses between leaves exposed to ambient and elevated ozone, but also demonstrated the highly damaging effect of elevated ozone on rice seedlings at the proteome level.

Photoreceptors, phytochromes and cryptochromes regulate hypocotyl growth under specific conditions, by suppressing negative gravitropism, modulating phototropism and inhibiting elongation. Although these effects seem to be partially caused via the regulation of the phytohormone auxin, the molecular mechanisms underlying this process are still poorly understood. In our present study, we demonstrate that the flabby mutation enhances both phytochrome- and cryptochrome-inducible hypocotyl bending in Arabidopsis. The FLABBY gene encodes the ABC-type auxin transporter, PGP19, and its expression is suppressed by the activation of phytochromes and cryptochromes. Our current results therefore indicate that the phytochromes and cryptochromes have at least two effects upon the tropic responses of the hypocotyls in Arabidopsis: the enhancement of hypocotyl bending through the suppression of PGP19, and a PGP19-independent mechanism that induces hypocotyl bending. By the using an auxin polar transport assay and DR5:GUS expression analysis, we further find that the phytochromes inhibit basipetal auxin transport, and induce the asymmetric distribution of auxin in the hypocotyls. These data suggest that the control of auxin transport by phytochromes and cryptochromes is a critical regulatory component of hypocotyl growth in response to light.

Gummy stem blight of balsam pear found in the Kanto district and in the Hokkaido Prefecture was demonstrated to be caused by Didymella bryoniae (Auerswald) Rehm based on inoculation experiments, molecular analysis, and morphological identification of the pathogenic fungus. This fungus was also pathogenic to related plants belonging to Cucurbitaceae. The imperfect stage of the fungus was identified as Phoma cucurbitacearum (Fr.: Fr.) Sacc. based on morphological similarities.

A new disease of pelargonium (Pelargonium domesticum Bailey), ivy geranium (P. peltatum (L.) L'Her. ex Ait.) and scented geranium (P. graveolens L'Her.), primarily causing brown spots on leaves, was found in Kawasaki-shi in Kanagawa Prefecture and Tachikawa-shi in Tokyo. An Alternaria sp. was consistently isolated from these diseased leaves, and the isolates were pathogenic to their host leaves. Based on morphological characteristics, the causal fungus in all three cases was identified as Alternaria alternata (Fr.) Keissler. Because Alternaria leaf spot of geranium by A. alternata has already been reported, the pathogenicity of isolates from four groups of genus Pelargonium was investigated. The isolates from scented geranium were pathogenic only to their original host, but the isolates from pelargonium, ivy geranium and geranium were pathogenic to all groups of pelargonium. This is the first report of this disease on pelargonium, ivy geranium and scented geranium caused by A. alternata in Japan. We propose the names for these diseases as Alternaria leaf spot of pelargonium (kappan-byo), Alternaria leaf spot of ivy geranium (kappan-byo) and Alternaria leaf spot of scented geranium (kappan-byo).

This study focused our attention on the changes in physiological activities of cabbage after treatment under various cooking conditions. Fresh, boiled, broiled and acid-treated cabbage juices and solutions after cooking were examined for their priming effects of the endogenous production of tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) in mice, the induction of quinone reductase [NAD(P)H: (quinone-acceptor) oxidoreductase, EC1.6.99.2: QR] in Hepa 1c1c7 cells, and the anti-proliferative activities on Hepa 1c1c7 cells. Boiled and broiled cabbage juices as well as fresh juice significantly increased the production of TNF-α and raised the potency of QR induction activities. Acid-treated cabbage juice was little effective in enhancing the productivity of TNF-α or the induction of QR. The growth of Hepa 1c1c7 cells was inhibited by fresh and broiled cabbage juices.

A leaf spot disease of scarlet sage (Salvia splendens Sellow ex J.A. Shultes) found in Kanagawa and Tokyo prefectures was demonstrated to be caused by Corynespora cassiicola (Berk. and Curt.) Wei based on inoculation experiments, and morphological identification of the pathogenic fungus. Isolates of C. cassiicola from cucumber, green pepper, and hydrangea were also pathogenic to scarlet sage leaves. Although the isolates from cucumber, green pepper, and hydrangea were pathogenic to scarlet sage leaves, the scarlet sage isolate was not pathogenic to cucumber, green pepper, hydrangea, eggplant, tomato or soybean.

A new disease causing purple spots on leaves of candelabra aloe (Aloe arborescens Mill.) was found in Tahara-cho and Irako, Atsumi Peninsula, Aichi Pref. in October 1993. A species of Fusarium was isolated from lesions of many infected plants. This fungus was found to be pathogenic on A. arborescens by inoculation of wounded and intact leaves. The fungus was identified as Fusarium phyllophilum Nirenberg et O'Donnell on the basis of cultural and morphological characteristics. The disease was also observed at every location examined in Boso, Miura, Kii, Osumi, and Satsuma Peninsulas, where the climate is similar to that in Atsumi Peninsula. Four additional isolates from Jogashima Island were also identified as F. phyllophilum. This is the first report of the disease on A. arborescens in Japan.

To investigate the role of the plant hormones produced by fungi, we tried to construct a system to examine the interaction between Rhizoctonia solani Kiihn MAFF305219 and rice cells in suspension culture (Oc). R. solani was previously found to produce IAA, with the main biosynthetic pathway via the indoIe-3-pyruvate pathway. The amount of IAA in the medium produced by R. solani was increased by cocultivation with rice cells (Oc) and by culture filtrate (CF) of Oc. Further analysis revealed that the factor(s) that induced the enhanced accumulation of IAA was sensitive to heat, to freezing and thawing and lyophilization, and the molecular weight was estimated to more than 10,000. These results suggest that the active agent(s) in the medium was (a) protein or a proteinous substance. Among suspension cultures of various plants, Oc and another line of rice cells (Ok) had the ability to induce the accumulation of IAA in the fungal medium 4 h after inoculation but other cultures of plant cells were ineffective. The promotive effect of rice CF on the accumulation of IAA was also observed with some strains of R. solani that belong to a different anastmosis group from MAFF305219. Thus, the accumulation of IAA was not related to the host specificity.

In a study of various phytopathogenic fungi, we found that fungi that belong to the genus Rhizoctonia produce IAA efficiently from tryptophan. R. solani Kiihn MAFF305219, in particular, produced large amounts of tryptophol (Tol), which was assumed to be a specific by-product of the indole-3-pyruvate (IPy) pathway, in addition to IAA. Therefore, this fungus seemed suitable for analysis of the function and the regulation of the biosynthesis of auxin by a fungal pathogen. Under normal aerobic conditions, the ratio of IAA to Tol synthesized by this strain was higher than that under less aerobic conditions. In metabolic studies with various indole derivatives, R. solani converted L-tryptophan and indole-3-acetaldehyde to IAA and Tol, but other indole derivatives were scarcely metabolized. These results suggest that both IAA and Tol are synthesized from tryptophan through the IPy pathway in Rhizoctonia.

In May 1998 and 1999, two types of leaf spot (black type and brown type) caused by Phoma spp. were found on Farfugium japonicum in Tokyo and in Gunma Prefecture, Japan. The fungus isolated from black-type lesions caused only black-type lesions, and the fungus from brown-type lesions caused only brown-type lesions. We propose to name these diseases black leaf spot of F. japonicum (kokuhan-byo in Japanese) for the disease with black lesions and circular leaf spot of F. japonicum (rinmon-byo in Japanese) for the disease with brown lesions. This is the first report on leaf diseases of F. japonicum caused by Phoma spp.

Abstract Quantitative evaluation of methane hydrate (MH) bearing turbidite reservoir in the eastern Nankai Trough, offshore Japan is conducted using a combination of 3-D seismic and well data. For constructing 3-D facies model, we have interpreted internal sand body and stacking patterns of the channels to discuss reservoir heterogeneities of the turbidite channels. Geobody using seismic volume rendering shows that the extracted body is distributed toward northeast to southwest directions in good agreement with the direction of the channel-filling sediments according to the seismic sequence stratigraphic analysis. Stacking patterns of channel facies are identified around the ß1 well. The identified channels exhibit low sinuosity channels consisting of various magnitudes of channel widths ranging from tens to several hundred meters. Orientation of these channels typically exhibits north-to-south and north-northeast-to-south-southwest directions, which are consistent with Paleo-flow current directions. Internal property of the stacking patterns of the channel sediments is examined using a seismic acoustic inversion analysis. The distribution patterns of the velocity between the BSR and the top of the MH-bearing sediments show that higher velocities are particularly identified along north-northeast direction, which coincides with the sediment supplies of the turbidite channels. Assuming a simple rock physics model, distribution of hydrate saturation is also correlated well with the facies distributions. This fact suggests that reservoir architecture of the MH-bearing turbidite channels is primary controlled by sedimentary conditions (i.e., depositional systems) of the turbidite channels. Introduction The eastern Nankai Trough, which is located offshore of central Japan, is considered an attractive potential resource of methane hydrates (MHs) and a candidate for the exploitation and production of MH test fields (Fujii et al., 2008, 2009; Yamamoto et al., 2009). Previous works conducted various studies of seismic, well logging, and coring operations such as "Nankai Trough" exploratory test well (which was acquired in 1999), a 2-D seismic survey in 2001 (2,802 km), 3-D seismic surveys in 2002 (the total area of three survey fields was 1,960 km2), and a multiple well-drilling campaign in 2004 by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). According to the results, MHs are developed in the pore spaces of an unconsolidated sandy sediment within the deep submarine-fan turbidite system (Nakamizu et al., 2004; Takahashi et al., 2004; Tsuji et al., 2004; Uchida et al., 2004). In some locations in the eastern Nankai Trough, MHs are selectively accumulated in the turbidite formations; such zones are called "MH-concentrated zones". These MH-concentrated zones are the best targets for recovering MHs for future exploitation and for the commercialization of MHs. Therefore, our primary target is the MH-concentrated zones to characterize reservoir potentials of MHs. In this paper, we focus on the submarine channel types of the MH-bearing sediments (ß MH-concentrated zone, hereafter ß site) in one of the MH-concentrated zones in the eastern Nankai Trough. In particular, we discuss quantitaive evaluation of facies distributiona and internal properties for characterizing the reservoir heterogeneities in the MH-bearing turbidite channels.

Photoreceptors, phytochromes and cryptochromes regulate hypocotyl growth under specific conditions, by suppressing negative gravitropism, modulating phototropism and inhibiting elongation. Although these effects seem to be partially caused via the regulation of the phytohormone auxin, the molecular mechanisms underlying this process are still poorly understood. In our present study, we demonstrate that the flabby mutation enhances both phytochrome- and cryptochrome-inducible hypocotyl bending in Arabidopsis. The FLABBY gene encodes the ABC-type auxin transporter, PGP19, and its expression is suppressed by the activation of phytochromes and cryptochromes. Our current results therefore indicate that the phytochromes and cryptochromes have at least two effects upon the tropic responses of the hypocotyls in Arabidopsis: the enhancement of hypocotyl bending through the suppression of PGP19, and a PGP19-independent mechanism that induces hypocotyl bending. By the using an auxin polar transport assay and DR5:GUS expression analysis, we further find that the phytochromes inhibit basipetal auxin transport, and induce the asymmetric distribution of auxin in the hypocotyls. These data suggest that the control of auxin transport by phytochromes and cryptochromes is a critical regulatory component of hypocotyl growth in response to light.

SUMMARY The method of time domain electromagnetic (TDEM) migration is used for fast imaging of subsurface geoelectrical structures. The computation of the migration field is based on downward extrapolation of the observed field in reverse time. In this paper we examine an effective method of EM migration based on the operator of an integral transformation in the spatial-temporal domain. The migration conductivity image is constructed using the convolution of the background and migration fields. We demonstrate in this paper that the method of EM migration can be effectively used for interpretation of multitransient electromagnetic (MTEM) data.

When maize coleoptiles were unilaterally exposed to red light (7.9 μmol m−2s−1 for 5 min), 3 h after treatment IAA levels in coleoptiles decreased in all regions, from top to basal, with levels about 60% of dark controls. Localized irradiation in the 5 mm top zone was sufficient to cause the same extent of IAA reduction in the tips to that in the tips of whole irradiated shoots. When coleoptiles were treated with N-1-naphthylphthalamic acid (NPA), an accumulation of IAA in the tip and a decrease of diffusible IAA from tips were simultaneously detected. IAA accumulation in red-light treated coleoptiles by NPA was much lower than that of dark controls. NPA treatment did not affect the content of conjugated IAA in either dark or light treated coleoptile tips. When 13C11 15N2-tryptophan (Trp) was applied to the top of coleoptiles, substantial amounts of stable isotope were incorporated into free IAA in dark and red-light treated coleoptile tips. The ratio of incorporation was slightly lower in red-light treated coleoptile tips than that in dark controls. The label could not be detected in conjugated IAA. The rate of basipetal transport of IAA was about 10 mm h−1 and the velocity was not affected by red light. These results strongly suggest that red light does not affect the rates of conversion of free IAA to the conjugate form or of the basipetal transport, but just reduces the IAA level in the tips, probably inhibited by IAA biosynthesis from Trp in this region.

Plant roots have important roles not only in absorption of water and nutrients, but also in stress tolerance such as desiccation, salt, and low temperature. We have investigated stress-response proteins from rice roots using 2-dimensional polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis and found a rice protein, RO-292, which was induced specifically in roots when 2-week-old rice seedlings were subjected to salt and drought stress. The full-length RO-292 cDNA was cloned, and was determined to encode a protein of 160 amino acid residues (16.9 kDa, pI 4.74). The deduced amino acid sequence showed high similarity to known rice PR10 proteins, OsPR10a/PBZ1 and OsPR10b. RO-292 mRNA accumulated rapidly upon drought, NaCl, jasmonic acid and probenazole, but not by exposure to low temperature or by abscisic acid and salicylic acid. The RO-292 gene was also up-regulated by infection with rice blast fungus. Interestingly, induction was observed almost exclusively in roots, thus we named the gene RSOsPR10 (root specific rice PR10). The present results indicate that RSOsPR10 is a novel rice PR10 protein, which is rapidly induced in roots by salt, drought stresses and blast fungus infection possibly through activation of the jasmonic acid signaling pathway, but not the abscisic acid and salicylic acid signaling pathway.

In May 1998 leaf spot caused by Septoria chrysanthemella was found on Aster savatieri in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. This is the first report of leaf spot on A. savatieri caused by S. chrysanthemella.

A new metabolite (I) was isolated from the ethionine inhibited culture fluid of Aspergillus fumigatus DH 413, without accompanying the usual toluquinone derivatives such as fumigatin and spinulosin. The chemical structure of the new metabolite was established as 4-carboxy-5, 5'-dihydroxy-3, 3'-dimethyl-diphenylether based on the chemical degradations and physical properties.