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V E Russo

Publications and source records attributed to V E Russo.

31 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Light-regulated protein and poly(A)+ mRNA synthesis in Neurospora crassa.

We have examined the effect of illumination upon the patterns of protein synthesis in the filamentous ascomycete Neurospora crassa by pulse labelling and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Light did not affect overall rates of protein synthesis but did induce the synthesis of six novel polypeptides whose appearance followed a temporally regulated pattern. When translation products of mRNA from illuminated cultures and dark control cultures were compared it was found that the synthesis of five out of six of the polypeptides specific to illuminated cultures could be seen in vitro. We believe that this is consistent with the hypothesis that light regulates the transcription of some genes in N. crassa, although we cannot exclude effects on mRNA stability or the control of precursor splicing.

Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel↗
PubMed1984

Light and dark adaptation in Phycomyces phototropism.

Light and dark adaptation of the phototropism of Phycomyces sporangiophores were analyzed in the intensity range of 10(-7)-6 W X m-2. The experiments were designed to test the validity of the Delbrück-Reichardt model of adaptation (Delbrück, M., and W. Reichardt, 1956, Cellular Mechanisms in Differentiation and Growth, 3-44), and the kinetics were measured by the phototropic delay method. We found that their model describes adequately only changes of the adaptation level after small, relatively short intensity changes. For dark adaptation, we found a biphasic decay with two time constants of b1 = 1-2 min and b2 = 6.5-10 min. The model fails for light adaptation, in which the level of adaptation can overshoot the actual intensity level before it relaxes to the new intensity. The light adaptation kinetics depend critically on the height of the applied pulse as well as the intensity range. Both these features are incompatible with the Delbrück-Reichardt model and indicate that light and dark adaptation are regulated by different mechanisms. The comparison of the dark adaptation kinetics with the time course of the dark growth response shows that Phycomyces has two adaptation mechanisms: an input adaptation, which operates for the range adjustment, and an output adaptation, which directly modulates the growth response. The analysis of four different types of behavioral mutants permitted a partial genetic dissection of the adaptation mechanism. The hypertropic strain L82 and mutants with defects in the madA gene have qualitatively the same adaptation behavior as the wild type; however, the adaptation constants are altered in these strains. Mutation of the madB gene leads to loss of the fast component of the dark adaptation kinetics and to overshooting of the light adaptation under conditions where the wild type does not overshoot. Another mutant with a defect in the madC gene shows abnormal behavior after steps up in light intensity. Since the madB and madC mutants have been associated with the receptor pigment, we infer that at least part of the adaptation process is mediated by the receptor pigment.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1984

Threshold and adaptation in Phycomyces. Their interrelation and regulation by light.

The absolute light sensitivity of Phycomyces sporangiophores was determined by analyzing the intensity dependence of the phototropic bending rate and of the light growth and dark growth responses to step changes of the intensity. We found that the different methods give approximately the same results for the wild-type strain, as well as for several behavioral mutants with defects in the genes madA, madB, and madC. A crucial factor in the determination of thresholds is the light intensity at which the strains grow during the 4 d after inoculation and prior to the experiment. When the wild-type strain grows in the dark, its threshold for the bending rate is 10(-9) W X m-2, compared with 2 X 10(-7) W X m-2 when it is grown under continuous illumination. Further, the maximal bending rate is twice as high in dark-grown strains. This phenomenon is further complicated by the fact that the diameter and growth rate of the sporangiophores also depend on the illumination conditions prior to the experiment: light-grown sporangiophores have an increased diameter and an increased growth rate compared with dark-grown ones. Some of the behavioral mutants, however, are indifferent to this form of light control. Another factor that is controlled by the growth conditions is adaptation: the kinetics of dark adaptation are slower in light-grown sporangiophores than in dark-grown ones. We found empirically a positive correlation between the slower dark adaptation constant and the threshold of the bending rate, which shows that the two underlying phenomena are functionally related.

Dark Adaptation↗
PubMed1984

Isolation of new white collar mutants of Neurospora crassa and studies on their behavior in the blue light-induced formation of protoperithecia.

White collar (wc) mutants of Neurospora crassa are thought to be regulatory mutants blocked in the photoinduction of carotenogenesis. Eight new wc mutants have been isolated after UV mutagenesis; their morphology and linear growth rate are not altered, although blue light-induced carotenogenesis is completely blocked. All of the wc mutations fall into two complementation groups corresponding to the already-known wc-1 and wc-2 loci. It is shown that the wc mutations impair another blue light effect, the photoinduction of protoperithecia formation, as well as the low constitutive production of protoperithecia in the dark. These effects are not due to the lack of carotenoids since the albino mutants show a normal sexual development. The pleiotropic effects of the mutations in the wc genes indicate that they play a key role in the mechanisms of regulation of the blue light-induced responses of N. crassa.

Alleles↗
PubMed1970

On the transfer of information from old to new chains of DNA duplexes in phage lambda: destruction of heterozygotes.

The Watson-Crick model for DNA duplex duplication proposes that the two parental chains separate and that each directs the synthesis of a complementary chain with which it is found associated after the duplication act. Previous experiments have left unchallenged alternative models which propose that in any single act of duplication only one of the two parental chains provides information for the synthesis of both new chains. The models are operationally ditinguishable since the former demands that heteroduplexes are destroyed by duplication while the latter anticipates their survivial. We have shown for phage lambda that duplication destroys heterozygotes as predicted by the Watson-Crick model.A stock of lambda containing a high frequency of heterozygotes at the cI locus was prepared by conducting a cross under conditions of depressed DNA synthesis. Particles in this lysate were permitted to duplicate a few times by adsorbing them to a lambda lysogen in a (15)N (13)C medium along with a heteroimmune lambda strain. Emerging lambda particles were separated according to density. The population of particles carrying DNA of parental density retained the initial high heterozygote frequency. Among particles which had duplicated, 80 per cent or more of the heterozygotes had disappeared.

Adsorption↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Effect of inhibitors of enzymatic DNA methylation on the formation of reproductive structures and carotenoid production in Neurospora crassa].

The effect of inhibitors of DNA methylation on light-sensitive developmental stages of the filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa was studied. Under conditions of nitrogen starvation, when blue light induced protoperithecia development and inhibited conidia formation, 5-azacytidine (3-300 microM) inhibited protoperithecia formation and stimulated conidia formation (a 700-fold increase after light induction). After treatment of the mycelium with 5-azacytidine, the protoperithecia formation was accompanied by inversely proportional changes in the formation of conidia, both in the dark and after illumination. In the mycelium cultivated on the Vogel's medium, 5-azacytidine (up to 30 microM) and methotrexate (up to 3 microM) stimulated the light-induced carotenoid synthesis by 30%, whereas higher concentrations of these agents were toxic to carotenoid synthesis and growth.

Azacitidine↗