Life Sciences Commons^™

Uses Of Phage Display In Agriculture: Sequence Analysis And Comparative Modeling Of Late Embryogenesis Abundant Client Proteins Suggest Protein-Nucleic Acid Binding Functionality, Rekha Kushwaha, A. Bruce Downie, Christina M. Payne

Horticulture Faculty Publications

A group of intrinsically disordered, hydrophilic proteins-Late Embryogenesis Abundant (LEA) proteins-has been linked to survival in plants and animals in periods of stress, putatively through safeguarding enzymatic function and prevention of aggregation in times of dehydration/heat. Yet despite decades of effort, the molecular-level mechanisms defining this protective function remain unknown. A recent effort to understand LEA functionality began with the unique application of phage display, wherein phage display and biopanning over recombinant Seed Maturation Protein homologs from Arabidopsis thaliana and Glycine max were used to retrieve client proteins at two different temperatures, with one intended to represent heat stress. From …

Control Of Erwinia Tracheiphila In Cucumis Melo, John R. Caudle

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Currently there is no control of bacterial wilt disease, Erwinia tracheiphila, in susceptible cucurbit crops, once infection of the plant occurs. Conventional and organic production systems rely on insecticide applications to kill the vectors, striped and spotted cucumber beetles, Acalymma vittatum and Diabrotica undecimpunctata, respectively, prior to transmission of the pathogen which indirectly controls the disease to some extent. Physical barriers such as row covers are used to exclude the vectors from plants prior to flowering; however, pollination requirements expose plants to potential infection. Experimental field plots were developed to test various enhanced organic production systems in an …

Reduced Tillage And Living Mulches For Organic Vegetable Production, Alex G. Hessler

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Reduced tillage and living mulches are alternative management strategies that can improve soil quality by minimizing disturbance and building soil organic matter. Weed suppression by these two practices alone is often insufficient to avoid crop yield losses, but their performance in an integrated system is not well understood. This project investigated the production of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) and dry bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) in conventional tillage and strip tillage with a living mulch of teff (Eragrostis tef Zucc.) and Korean lespedeza (Kummerowia stipulacea Maxim.). Yields of pepper and bean were …

Uses Of Phage Display In Agriculture: A Review Of Food-Related Protein-Protein Interactions Discovered By Biopanning Over Diverse Baits, Rekha Kushwaha, Christina M. Payne, A. Bruce Downie

Horticulture Faculty Publications

This review highlights discoveries made using phage display that impact the use of agricultural products. The contribution phage display made to our fundamental understanding of how various protective molecules serve to safeguard plants and seeds from herbivores and microbes is discussed. The utility of phage display for directed evolution of enzymes with enhanced capacities to degrade the complex polymers of the cell wall into molecules useful for biofuel production is surveyed. Food allergies are often directed against components of seeds; this review emphasizes how phage display has been employed to determine the seed component(s) contributing most to the allergenic reaction …

Human Calmodulin Methyltransferase: Expression, Activity On Calmodulin, And Hsp90 Dependence, Sophia Magen, Roberta Magnani, Sitvanit Haziza, Eli Hershkovitz, Robert Houtz, Franca Cambi, Ruti Parvari

Horticulture Faculty Publications

Deletion of the first exon of calmodulin-lysine N-methyltransferase (CaM KMT, previously C2orf34) has been reported in two multigene deletion syndromes, but additional studies on the gene have not been reported. Here we show that in the cells from 2p21 deletion patients the loss of CaM KMT expression results in accumulation of hypomethylated calmodulin compared to normal controls, suggesting that CaM KMT is essential for calmodulin methylation and there are no compensatory mechanisms for CaM methylation in humans. We have further studied the expression of this gene at the transcript and protein levels. We have identified 2 additional …

Identification Of Late Embryogenesis Abundant (Lea) Protein Putative Interactors Using Phage Display, Rekha Kushwaha, Taylor D. Lloyd, Kim R. Schäfermeyer, Santosh Kumar, A. Bruce Downie

Horticulture Faculty Publications

Arabidopsis thaliana seeds without functional SEED MATURATION PROTEIN1 (SMP1), a boiling soluble protein predicted to be of intrinsic disorder, presumed to be a LATE EMBRYOGENESIS ABUNDANT (LEA) family protein based on sequence homology, do not enter secondary dormancy after 3 days at 40 °C. We hypothesized that SMP1 may protect a heat labile protein involved in the promotion of secondary dormancy. Recombinant SMP1 and GmPM28, its soybean (Glycine max), LEA4 homologue, protected the labile GLUCOSE-6-PHOSPHATE DEHYROGENASE enzyme from heat stress, as did a known protectant, Bovine Serum Albumin, whether the LEA protein was in solution or attached to the bottom …

Sustainable Agriculture Undergraduate Degree Programs: A Land-Grant University Mission, Krista L. Jacobsen, Kim L. Niewolny, Michelle S. Schroeder-Moreno, Mark Van Horn, Alison H. Harmon, Yolanda H. Chen Fanslow, Mark A. Williams, Damian Parr

Horticulture Faculty Publications

There has been considerable growth in the number undergraduate degree programs in sustainable agriculture (SA) in universities and colleges across the country in the past 25 years. As a subset of this national trend, land-grant universities (LGUs) are emerging as catalysts in innovative SA program development, in part due to the LGU tripartite mission of education, extension, and research. This mission compels LGUs to develop undergraduate degree offerings to engage student, faculty, and community stakeholders who are increasingly interested in SA. In this article, which is an outcome of a gathering of faculty, staff and students from SA programs at …

Modified Rubisco Large Subunit N-Methyltransferase Useful For Targeting Molecules To The Active-Site Vicinity Of Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate, Robert L. Houtz

Horticulture Faculty Patents

The present invention generally relates to a modified Rubisco large subunit ^εN-Methyltransferase (Rubisco LSMT, or RLSMT). The present invention also relates to a modified RLSMT-carbonic anhydrase (RLSMT-CA). This modified RLSMT-CA improves the efficiency of the reduction of CO₂ during photosynthesis, which may increase plant growth rates. The present invention also relates to nucleic acids encoding the modified RLSMT-CA or modified RLSMT. Also, the present invention relates to cells including the modified RLSMT-CA or modified RLSMT, plants containing the modified RLSMT-CA or modified RLSMT, and methods using compositions of the present invention. In addition, the present invention relates to …

Is The Common Teasel (Dipsacus Sylvestris) A Carnivorous Plant Or Was Francis Darwin Wrong?, Justin Matthew Thomas

Kaleidoscope

No abstract provided.

Identification And Thermochemical Analysis Of High-Lignin Feedstocks For Biofuel And Biochemical Production, Venugopal Mendu, Anne E. Harman-Ware, Mark Crocker, Jungho Jae, Jozsef Stork, Samuel Morton, Andrew Placido, George Huber, Seth Debolt

Horticulture Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Lignin is a highly abundant biopolymer synthesized by plants as a complex component of plant secondary cell walls. Efforts to utilize lignin-based bioproducts are needed.

RESULTS: Herein we identify and characterize the composition and pyrolytic deconstruction characteristics of high-lignin feedstocks. Feedstocks displaying the highest levels of lignin were identified as drupe endocarp biomass arising as agricultural waste from horticultural crops. By performing pyrolysis coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, we characterized lignin-derived deconstruction products from endocarp biomass and compared these with switchgrass. By comparing individual pyrolytic products, we document higher amounts of acetic acid, 1-hydroxy-2-propanone, acetone and furfural in switchgrass …

Substrates Of The Arabidopsis Thaliana Protein Isoaspartyl Methyltransferase 1 Identified Using Phage Display And Biopanning, Tingsu Chen, Nihar Nayak, Susmita Maitra Majee, Jonathan Lowenson, Kim R. Schäfermeyer, Alyssa C. Eliopoulos, Taylor D. Lloyd, Randy Dinkins, Sharyn E. Perry, Nancy R. Forsthoefel, Steven G. Clarke, Daniel M. Vernon, Zhaohui Sunny Zhou, Tomas Rejtar, A. Bruce Downie

Horticulture Faculty Publications

The role of protein isoaspartyl methyltransferase (PIMT) in repairing a wide assortment of damaged proteins in a host of organisms has been inferred from the affinity of the enzyme for isoaspartyl residues in a plethora of amino acid contexts. The identification of PIMT target proteins in plant seeds, where the enzyme is highly active and proteome long-lived, has been hindered by large amounts of isoaspartate-containing storage proteins. Mature seed phage display libraries circumvented this problem. Inclusion of the PIMT co-substrate, S-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet), during panning permitted PIMT to retain aged phage in greater numbers than controls lacking co-substrate or when …

Horticulture, Timothy A. Woods

Agricultural Economics Presentations

No abstract provided.

Inhibitors Of Plant Peptide Deformylase For Use As Broad-Spectrum Herbicides And Methods For Identifying The Same, Robert L. Houtz, Lynnette M. A. Dirk, Mark Alan Wiliams

Horticulture Faculty Patents

The invention relates to a method of identifying herbicides and to the use of inhibitors of plant peptide deformylase as broad spectrum herbicides.

Modeling Water Use In Nursery Crops, Amy Fulcher

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Water use is an important topic in the global agriculture community and is a critical input in nursery crop production. Several plants in the genus Cornus are important nursery crops. Not only are they economically relevant, they are found in grafted and seedling forms and parents and their hybrid are readily available in the trade, facilitating an assessment of water requirements. Anecdotal information suggests that Cornus taxa have differing stress tolerance and water use requirements. Research was conducted to characterize and model water use among Cornus taxa. Scanning electron microscopy and anatomy‐based micromorphological studies as well as transpiration chamber‐based studies …

Copy Number Variation Shapes Genome Diversity In Arabidopsis Over Immediate Family Generational Scales, Seth Debolt

Horticulture Faculty Publications

Arabidopsis thaliana is the model plant and is grown worldwide by plant biologists seeking to dissect the molecular underpinning of plant growth and development. Gene copy number variation (CNV) is a common form of genome natural diversity that is currently poorly studied in plants and may have broad implications for model organism research, evolutionary biology, and crop science. Herein, comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) was used to identify and interrogate regions of gene CNV across the A. thaliana genome. A common temperature condition used for growth of A. thaliana in our laboratory and many around the globe is 22 degrees C. …

Horticulture, Department Of Agricultural Economics, University Of Kentucky

Agricultural Economics Presentations

No abstract provided.

Inhibitors Of Plant Peptide Deformylase For Use As Broad-Spectrum Herbicides And Methods For Identifying The Same, Robert L. Houtz, Lynnette M. A. Dirk, Mark Alan Wiliams

Horticulture Faculty Patents

The invention relates to a method of identifying herbicides and to the use of inhibitors of plant peptide deformylase as broad spectrum herbicides.

Relative Crystallinity Of Plant Biomass: Studies On Assembly, Adaptation And Acclimation, Darby Harris, Seth Debolt

Horticulture Faculty Publications

Plant biomechanical design is central to cell shape, morphogenesis, reproductive performance and protection against environmental and mechanical stress. The cell wall forms the central load bearing support structure for plant design, yet a mechanistic understanding of its synthesis is incomplete. A key tool for studying the structure of cellulose polymorphs has been x-ray diffraction and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Relative crystallinity index (RCI) is based on the x-ray diffraction characteristics of two signature peaks and we used this technique to probe plant assembly, adaptation and acclimation. Confocal microscopy was used to visualize the dynamics of cellulose synthase in transgenic …

Inhibitor Of Plant Peptide Deformylase For Use As Broad-Spectrum Herbicides And Method For Identifying The Same, Robert L. Houtz, Lynnette M. A. Dirk, Mark Allan Williams

Horticulture Faculty Patents

The invention relates to a method of identifying herbicides and to the use of inhibitors of plant peptide deformylase as broad spectrum herbicides.

Isolated Spinach Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxgenase Large Subunit Ε N-Methyltransferase And Method Of Inactivating Ribulose-1,5-Bishosphatase Ε N-Methyltransferase Activity, Robert L. Houtz

Horticulture Faculty Patents

The gene sequence for ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) large subunit (LS)^εN-methyltansferase (protein methylase III or Rubisco LSMT) from a plant which has a des(methyl) lysyl residue in the LS is disclosed. In addition, the full-length cDNA clones for Rubisco LSMT are disclosed. Transgenic plants and methods of producing same which have the Rubisco LSMT gene inserted into the DNA are also provided. Further, methods of inactivating the enzymatic activity of Rubisco LSMT are also disclosed.

Isolated Spinach Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxygenase Large Subunit ΕN-Methyltransferase And Method Of Inactivating Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphatase Carboxylase/Oxygenase Large Subunit ΕN-Methyltransferase Activity, Robert L. Houtz

Horticulture Faculty Patents

The gene sequence for ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) large subunit (LS) .sup.ε N-methyltransferase (protein methylase III or Rubisco LSMT) from a plant which has a des(methyl) lysyl residue in the LS is disclosed. In addition, the full-length cDNA clones for Rubisco LSMT are disclosed. Transgenic plants and methods of producing same which have the Rubisco LSMT gene inserted into the DNA are also provided. Further, methods of inactivating the enzymatic activity of Rubisco LSMT are also disclosed.

Cloning And Developmental Expression Of Pea Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxygenase Large Subunit Epsilon N-Methyltransferase, Robert L. Houtz

Horticulture Faculty Patents

The gene sequence for ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) large subunit (LS) .sup.ε N-methyltransferase (protein methylase III or Rubisco LSMT) is disclosed. This enzyme catalyzes methylation of the ε-amine of lysine-14 in the large subunit of Rubisco. In addition, a full-length cDNA clone for Rubisco LSMT is disclosed. Transgenic plants and methods of producing same which (1) have the Rubisco LSMT gene inserted into the DNA, and (2) have the Rubisco LSMT gene product or the action of the gene product deleted from the DNA are also provided. Further, methods of using the gene to selectively deliver desired agents to a plant …

Cloning And Developmental Expression Of Pea Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxygenase Large Subunit N-Methyltransferase, Robert L. Houtz

Horticulture Faculty Patents

The gene sequence for ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) large subunit (LS) εN-methyltransferase (protein methylase III or Rubisco LSMT) is disclosed. This enzyme catalyzes methylation of the ε-amine of lysine-14 in the large subunit of Rubisco. In addition, a full-length cDNA clone for Rubisco LSMT is disclosed. Transgenic plants and methods of producing same which (1) have the Rubisco LSMT gene inserted into the DNA, and (2) have the Rubisco LSMT gene product or the action of the gene product deleted from the DNA are also provided. Further, methods of using the gene to selectively deliver desired agents to a plant are …