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Biomedical subjects

D J Cosgrove

Publications and source records attributed to D J Cosgrove.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Cell wall yield properties of growing tissue : evaluation by in vivo stress relaxation.

Growing pea stem tissue, when isolated from an external supply of water, undegoes stress relaxation because of continued loosening of the cell wall. A theoretical analysis is presented to show that such stress relaxation should result in an exponential decrease in turgor pressure down to the yield threshold (Y), with a rate constant given by phiepsilon where phi is the metabolically maintained irreversible extensibility of the cell wall and epsilon is the volumetric elastic modulus of the cell. This theory represents a new method to determine phi in growing tissues.Stress relaxation was measured in pea (Pisum sativus L.) stem segments using the pressure microprobe technique. From the rate of stress relaxation, phi of segments pretreated with water was calculated to be 0.08 per megapascal per hour while that of auxin-pretreated tissue was 0.24 per megapascal per hour. These values agreed closely with estimates of phi made by a steady-state technique. The yield threshold (0.29 megapascal) was not affected by auxin. Technical difficulties with measuring phi by stress relaxation may arise due to an internal water reserve or due to changes in phi subsequent to excision. These difficulties are discussed and evaluated.A theoretical analysis is also presented to show that the tissue hydraulic conductance may be estimated from the T((1/2)) of tissue swelling. Experimentally, pea stems had a swelling T((1/2)) of 2.0 minutes, corresponding to a relative hydraulic conductance of about 2.0 per megapascal per hour. This value is at least 8 times larger than phi. From these data and from computer modeling, it appears that the radial gradient in water potential which sustains water uptake in growing pea segments is small (0.04 megapascal). This means that hydraulic conductance does not substantially restrict growth. The results also demonstrate that the stimulation of growth by auxin can be entirely accounted for by the change in phi.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1985

Kinetic separation of phototropism from blue-light inhibition of stem elongation.

These experiments tested the hypothesis that phototropic bending arises when a light gradient across the stem differentially inhibits cell elongation because of direct inhibition of cell elongation by light (the Blaauw hypothesis). Continuous irradiation of dark-grown cucumber seedlings (Cucumis sativus L.) with unilateral blue light inhibited hypocotyl elongation within 30 s, but did not induce phototropic curvature until 4.5 h after the start of irradiation. Marking experiments showed that curvature began simultaneously at the top and bottom of the growing region. In situ measurements of the light gradient across the stem with a glass fiber optic indicated that a 5- to 6-fold difference in fluence rate was established on the two sides of the stem. The light gradient established at the start of irradiation was the same as that after 6 h of irradiation. Changes in gravitropic responsiveness during this period were also ruled out. Calculations show that the light gradient should have caused curvature which would be detectable within 30 to 60 min and which would extrapolate to the start of irradiation--if the Blaauw hypothesis were correct. The long lag for phototropism in this case indicates that rapid inhibition of cell elongation by blue light does not cause the asymmetrical growth of phototropism. Rather, phototropism is superimposed upon this separate light growth response.

Cucumis sativus↗
PubMed1984

Stress relaxation of cell walls and the yield threshold for growth: demonstration and measurement by micro-pressure probe and psychrometer techniques.

Theory predicts that, for growing plant cells isolated from a supply of water, stress relaxation of the cell wall should decrease cell turgor pressure (P) until the yield threshold for cell explanation is reached. This prediction was tested by direct P measurements of pea (Pisum sativum L.) stem cortical cells before and after excision of the growing region and isolation of the growing tissue from an external water supply. Cell P was measured with the micro-pressure probe under conditions which eliminated transpiration. Psychrometric measurements of water potential confirmed the pressure-probe measurements. Following excision, P of the growing cells decreased in 1 h by an average of 1.8 bar to a mean plateau value of 2.8 bar, and remained constant thereafter. Treatment with 10(-5) M indole-3-acetic acid or 10(-5) M fusicoccin (known growth stimulants) accelerated the rate of P relaxation, whereas various treatments which inhibit growth slowed down or completely stopped P relaxation in apical segments. In contrast, P of basal (nongrowing) segments gradually increased because of absorption of solutes from the cell-wall free space of the tissue. Such solute absorption also occurred in apical segments, but wall relaxation held P at the yield threshold in those segments which were isolated from an external water supply. These results provide a new and rapid method for measuring the yield threshold and they show that P in intact growing pea stems exceeds the yield threshold by about 2 bar. Wall relaxation is shown here to affect the water potential and turgor pressure of excised growing segments. In addition, solute release and absorption upon excision may influence the water potential and turgor pressure of nongrowing excised plant tissues.

Biomass↗
PubMed1983

Solutes in the free space of growing stem tissues.

The concentration of osmotically active solutes in the cell wall free space of young stem tissues was studied using a variety of extraction methods. When the intercellular air spaces of etiolated pea (Pisum sativum L.) internodes were perfused with distilled H(2)O, the resulting solution contained a solute concentration of about 70 milliosmoles per kilogram. A second procedure involving vacuum infiltration of segments followed by centrifugation to collect the free space solution gave similar results. Apical stem segments yielded free space extracts about twice as concentrated as those from basal portions of the stem. After correcting for dilution of the free space solution by the infiltrated water, the osmotic pressure of the undiluted free space in pea stem tissue was estimated to be 2.9 bars for apical segments, 1.8 bars for basal regions. These values may be somewhat overestimated due to solute efflux from intracellular pools during the extraction procedure. Similar results were obtained for stem regions of etiolated soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) and cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) seedlings.From measurements of the electrical conductivity and refractive index of free space extracts before and after ashing, it appears that 25% of the solutes are inorganic electrolytes and 75% are organic nonelectrolytes with an average size similar to that of glucose.A significant osmotic pressure in the wall space offers an explanation for the frequent observation that nontranspiring plants have negative water potentials. Calculations of hydraulic resistance from water potential data must take into account solutes in the free space, else ;apparent,' but unreal, changes in resistance may be calculated.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1983

Osmotic properties of pea internodes in relation to growth and auxin action.

The water transport properties of etiolated pea (Pisum sativum L.) internodes were studied using both dynamic and steady-state methods to determine (a) whether water transport through the growing tissue limits the rate of cell enlargement, and (b) whether auxin stimulates growth in part by increasing the hydraulic conductance of the growing tissue.Measurements using the pressure probe technique showed that the hydraulic conductivity of cortical cell membranes was the same for both slowly growing and auxin-induced rapidly growing cells (membrane hydraulic conductivity, about 1.5 x 10(-5) centimeters per second per bar). In a second technique which measured the rate of water movement through the entire pea internode, the half-time for radial water flow was about 60 seconds and was not altered by auxin application. These results indicate that auxin does not alter the hydraulic conductance of pea stem tissue, either at the cellular or the whole tissue level.Measurements of the turgor pressure of cortical cells, combined with osmotic pressure measurements of expressed cell sap, show that the water potential of growing pea stems was about -3 bars. When the growth rate was altered by various treatments, including decapitation, auxin application, cold temperature, and KCN treatment, the water potential was independent of the growth rate of the stem. We attribute the depression of the water potential in young pea stems to the presence of solutes in the cell wall free space of the tissue. This interpretation is supported by the results of infiltration and perfusion experiments.From the results of these dynamic and steady-state experiments, we conclude that the internal gradient in water potential (from the xylem to the epidermis) needed to sustain cell enlargement is small (no greater than 0.5 bar). Thus, the hydraulic conductance of the tissue is sufficiently large that it does not control or limit the rate of cell enlargement.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1982

Comparison of respirator protection factors measured by two quantitative fit test methods.

A comparison of measured respirator protection factors for a di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (liquid aerosol challenge) respirator quantitative fit test method is made with a complementary sodium chloride (solid aerosol challenge) method. The United States Army XM-29 chemical warfare defense respirator was used in this evaluation. A subject pool of twelve individuals (two female and ten male) were fitted and tested on both respirator quantitative fit test methods on ten different occasions. An exercise protocol of six different breathing and head movement maneuvers was used in each test. The purpose of the comparison was to determine if there is a difference between the two fit test methods. The di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate method showed a significant order-interaction effect with respect to the exercise sequence and whether it preceded or followed testing with sodium chloride. The sodium chloride method did not show a similar phenomenon, and consistently measured smaller protection factors compared to the di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate method. It appears that the sodium chloride method is more sensitive.

Chemical Warfare↗
PubMed1981

Rapid Suppression of Growth by Blue Light: OCCURRENCE, TIME COURSE, AND GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS.

The inhibition of stem elongation in dark-grown seedlings by blue light was studied with marking techniques and with a high-resolution, growth-measuring apparatus. Blue light rapidly suppresses growth in a variety of cultivated species. In some species, the inhibition persists only during the period of irradiation, after which time growth quickly returns to the high dark rate, whereas, in other species, the light response has an additional long-term component which lasts for at least several hours in the dark. The long-term inhibition may be mediated by phytochrome, whereas the rapid, short-term component is specific to a blue-light receptor.The rapid inhibition of growth in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) requires high-energy blue irradiation, which is perceived directly by the growing region of the hypocotyl and inhibits all regions below the hook to the same extent. Detailed investigation of the kinetics of the inhibition in cucumber and in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) shows that, after a short lag period (20 to 30 seconds in cucumber, 60 to 70 seconds in sunflower), the growth rate declines in an exponential fashion to a lower rate, with a half-time of 15 to 25 seconds in cucumber and 90 to 150 seconds in sunflower. Excision of the hypocotyl greatly reduces the sensitivity of the growth rate to blue-light inhibition. Because of the rapid kinetics, the blue-light photoreceptor cannot affect cell enlargement by altering the supply of growth hormone or the sensitivity to hormones but probably operates more directly either on the biochemical process which loosens cell walls or on cell turgor.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1981

Analysis of the dynamic and steady-state responses of growth rate and turgor pressure to changes in cell parameters.

The physical analysis of plant cell enlargment is extended to show the dependence of turgor pressure and growth rate under steady-state conditions on the parameters which govern cell wall extension and water transport in growing cells and tissues, and to show the dynamic responses of turgor and growth rate to instantaneous changes in one of these parameters. The analysis is based on the fact that growth requires simultaneous water uptake and irreversible wall expansion. It shows that when a growing cell is perturbed from its steady-state growth rate, it will approach the steady-state rate with exponential kinetics. The half-time of the transient adjustment depends on the biophysical parameters governing both water transport and irreversible wall expansion. When wall extensibility is small compared to hydraulic conductance, the growth rate is controlled by the yielding properties of the cell wall, while the half-time for changes in growth rate is controlled by the water transport parameters. The reverse situation occurs when hydraulic conductance is lower than wall extensibility. The analysis also shows explicitly that turgor pressure is tightly coupled with growth rate when growth is controlled by both water transport and wall yielding parameters.In growing tissue where the resistance to water flow is distributed throughout the tissue, the physical analysis is more complicated because gradients in water potential (and hence turgor pressure) are required to sustain high growth rates. However, the analysis of growth in such tissues shows that the turgor and time-course relations are similar to that in single cells. These turgor and time-course relations provide experimentally useful ways for determining (a) whether growth is limited by water uptake, and (b) whether an agent which alters the growth rate does so by affecting the water transport or wall yielding properties or both.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1981

Rapid Suppression of Growth by Blue Light : BIOPHYSICAL MECHANISM OF ACTION.

The mechanism of the rapid inhibition of hypocotyl elongation by blue light was investigated in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) and sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) seedlings by measuring the changes in turgor during the response. A special device, based on the resonance frequency principle, was built which permitted simultaneous and continuous measurements of both tissue rigidity (turgor) and growth rate on a single intact hypocotyl. The large decrease in growth rate following blue irradiation was consistently accompanied by a small increase in resonance frequency. This result indicates that blue light inhibits growth by decreasing the yielding properties of the cell walls, resulting in a slight rise in turgor because of the coupling between growth rate and turgor.The nature of the blue-light inhibition was further studied by measuring the influence of light dose and temperature on the time course of inhibition (lag-time, half-time of inhibition, and amount of inhibition) with the aid of a microcomputer-based system for measuring growth rate and for controlling light duration and energy. The light dose has no influence on either the lag-time or the half-time of inhibition, but strongly affects the amount of inhibition. In contrast, a 10 degrees C drop in temperature (from 30 to 20 degrees C) lengthened the lag-time of the blue-light response, but did not significantly affect the half-time or the per cent inhibition by blue light. The half-time for changes in hypocotyl length (induced by applying a hydrostatic pressure to the roots or to the cut end of seedlings with roots excised) was found to be the same as the half-time of the blue-light inhibition (15 to 25 seconds in cucumber; 90 to 150 seconds in sunflower). These results support the idea that blue light, after a fixed lag period, induces an immediate decrease in the yielding properties of the cell walls. The growth rate subsequently decreases with a half-time that depends on the time required for cell turgor pressures to reach their new steady-state values.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1980

Frank orthogonal vectorcardiograms in humans during and after exposure to +Gz acceleration stress.

Frank orthogonal vectorcardiograms (VCGs) were recorded from 10 subjects prior to, during, and for 15 min after exposures to +3Gz , +5Gz, and +7Gz. The order of acceleration exposure was randomized, with the individual exposures separated by at least 1 week. Standard USAF anti-G suits were worn by all subjects. Detailed analysis of the scalar lead electrocardiograms revealed no abnormalities. There were no consistent signs of conduction disturbances or ischemic ST-T segment changes. The QRS axis of the VCG demonstrated posterior rotation in the sagittal plane and counterclockwise rotation in the transverse plane during +Gz stress. The changes in the VCGs recorded during +Gz stress appeared to be related to rotational changes of the heart due to mechanical stress and/or motion within the thorax. There were no ECG or VCG changes indicative of myocardial ischemia and/or damage during or after +Gz stress.

Acceleration↗
PubMed1972

Inositol phosphate phosphatases of microbiological origin: the inositol pentaphosphate products of Aspergillus ficuum phytases.

The fungus Aspergillus ficuum NRRL 3135 is known to produce an extracellular nonspecific orthophosphoric monoester phosphohydrolase (EC 3.1.3.2) with a pH optimum of 2.0, as well as an extracellular myo-inositol hexaphosphate phosphohydrolase (EC 3.1.3.8; phytase) with pH optima of 2.0 and 5.5. Both these enzymes are also known to hydrolyze myo-inositol hexaphosphate. The pentaphosphates liberated in the first step of this hydrolysis have been isolated and identified by ion-exchange chromatography and optical rotation. The nonspecific orthophosphoric monoester phosphohydrolase produces a single pentaphosphate, d-myo-inositol-1,2,4,5,6-pentaphosphate, whereas the phytase, at both pH 2.0 and 5.5, produces a mixture of two pentaphosphates. The major component of this mixture is d-myo-inositol-1,2,4,5,6-pentaphosphate and the other is d-myo-inositol-1,2,3,4,5-pentaphosphate. Thus the pathways of dephosphorylation of myo-inositol hexaphosphate by these two enzymes differ from that of wheat-bran phytase which forms l-myo-inositol-1,2,3,4,5-pentaphosphate.

6-Phytase↗