Collection efficiency of liquid‐based samplers for fungi in indoor air

This study assessed the collection efficiency (CE) of two popularly used sampling devices (BioSampler and Coriolis sampler) for fungal aerosols. Phosphate‐buffered saline (PBS) supplemented with or without surfactant (Tween‐20, Tween‐80, or Triton X‐100) and antifoam agent was prepared and used as collection liquids. The agar impactor (BioStage) was simultaneously operated with liquid‐based samplers to collect fungi from seven sites located at a university building, public library, and animal farming. Fungal concentrations determined by liquid samplers were divided by those by BioStage, and the ratio values represented CE. Results indicate that the CE of BioSampler was superior to that of Coriolis (P = 0.0001) and the PBS containing surfactant collected fungi better than that without surfactant (P < 0.0001), whereas antifoam agent showed no influence (P = 0.8). Moreover, fungal concentrations determined by BioSampler with surfactant‐added PBS were statistically indifferent from those by BioStage (P > 0.05) with a Spearman correlation coefficient of 0.81‐0.83 (P < 0.01). In addition to sampler and collection liquid, sampling location was also identified as a significant CE factor (P = 0.006), implying potential influences by fungal genera in the studied fields. Overall, BioSampler with surfactant‐supplemented PBS (eg, Triton X‐100) is recommended considering the great CE and compatibility with a variety of analytical assays.     

Allelopathic effect of phenolic acids from humic solutions on two spruce mycorrhizal fungi:Cenococcum graniforme andLaccaria laccata

The aim of this investigation was to determine the impact ofp-hydroxyacetophenone,p-hydroxybenzoic acid, catechol, and protocatechuic acid on respiration of two spruce mycorrhizal fungi:Laccaria laccata andCenococcum graniforme. These phenols are produced byVaccinium myrtillus,Athyrium filixfemina, andPicea abies, predominant species of spruce forests in the Alps, and they are also present in humic solutions at 10^–10 M or 10^–5 M. Respiration of the two fungi was inhibited by the four phenolic acids, even at concentrations ranging from 10^–5 M to 10^–7 M. These data show phenolic acids from humic solutions have biological activity at extremely low concentrations, suggesting a contribution ofV. myrtillus, A. filixfemina, andP. abies to allelopathic inhibition of mycorrhizal fungi.     

Yeast sequencing reports. Isolation and sequence analysis of a gene from the linear DNA plasmid pPAC1–2 of Pichia acaciae that shows similarity to a killer toxin gene of Kluyveromyces lactis

The toxin-encoding linear plasmid systems found in Pichia acaciae and Kluyveromyces lactis yeasts appear to be quite similar, both in function and structural organization. By Southern hybridization, a linear plasmid of P. acaciae, pPac1–2, was found to hybridize to the second open reading frame (ORF2) of K. lactis plasmid pGKL1, known to encode the α and β subunits of the K. lactis toxin. A 1·7 kbp segment of pPac1–2 DNA was cloned, sequenced and shown to contain four regions of strong homology to four similarly oriented regions of K. lactis ORF2. This 1·7 kbp fragment also contained an ORF of 1473 bp that could encode a protein of ～ 55·8 kDa. Like the α subunit gene of K. lactis ORF2, a very hydrophobic region occurs at the N-terminus, perhaps representing a signal sequence for transport out of the cell. Unlike K. lactis ORF2, however, the encoded polypeptide is much smaller and lacks a recognizable domain common to chitinases. The structure of a toxin that includes the translation product of this P. acaciae ORF would likely be quite different from that of the K. lactis toxin. Analysis of the upstream region of the P. acaciae ORF revealed an upstream conserved sequence identical to that found before ORFs 8 and 9 of pGKL2. A possible hairpin loop structure, as has been described for each of the four K. lactis pGKL1 ORFs, was found just upstream of the presumed start codon. The similarity of the promoter-like elements found in the linear plasmid genes of these diverse yeasts reinforces the idea of the existence of a unique, but highly conserved, expression system for these novel plasmids. The sequence has been deposited in the GenBank data library under Accession Number U02596.     

胨冻样芽孢杆菌(Bacillus mucilaginosus)对烟草灰霉病菌(Botrytis cinerea)的抑制作用

本文首次报道胨冻样芽孢杆菌XDB1和D4B1对烟草灰霉病菌(Botrytis cinerea)的抑制作用。实验表明,XDB1和D4B1的发酵原液和无细胞提取物具有相同的抑菌效果,而经121℃处理30分钟后,抑菌活性丧失。D481菌株的抑菌活性高于XDB1,钾长石作为基质时的活性高于土壤矿物。但是,XDB1和D481对立枯丝核病菌(R..solani)、西瓜尖孢镰刀菌(F.oxysporum)、腐霉(Pythium sp)、小麦全蚀病菌(G.graminis)、烟炭疽病菌(C.gloeosporides)、烟草赤星病菌(A.alternata)、烟草黑胫病菌(P.nicotianae、串珠镰刀病菌(F.moniliforme)和水稻稻瘟病菌(P.grisea)无抑制作用。     

Fire performance of wood (Pinus radiata) treated with fire retardants and a wood preservative

In this work, we co‐formulated an oil‐borne copper naphthenate/permethrin wood preservative system with synthetic polymer‐based fire‐retardant additives prior to the impregnation of Pinus radiata sapwood. We evaluated what effect, if any, the preservative had upon the fire performance properties of the fire retardants and whether the fire retardants impacted on the fungicidal and termiticidal efficacy of the preservative. The fire retardants included halogenated and phosphorus‐based systems. A mass loss calorimeter, in conjunction with a thermopile, was used to measure the time to ignition and the peak heat release rate (PHRR) from which the fire performance index (FPI) was determined. The preservative properties were evaluated using termite and soil‐block decay bioassays. In summary, we found that the rate of fire growth was reduced when the fire retardants were used in combination with the wood preservative. We also found that the PHRR was a better determinant of fire performance than the FPI. The performance of the wood preservative was enhanced against fungal decay and termite attack when used in combination with the fire retardants. The fire retardants also demonstrated some wood preservative properties of their own. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

海洋丝状真菌转化石油烃的研究

研究从湄洲湾海域分离的4株丝状真菌MF1，MF2，MF3，MF4的生长特性及去除油污的过程，观察在温度26℃，初始油浓度在3g/l,培养12d的过程中培养液的变化，分析培养液的pH值及原油的去除率与时间的关系，结果表明，丝状真菌去除原油的[过程是生物吸附与生物降解相结合的生物转化过程，比较革兰氏阴性细菌与丝状真菌细胞壁组成，结构，得出海洋微生物的脱油作用与其细胞壁有直接的关系。     

一种新型气动装袋装置研制

装袋是食用菌代替料生产过程中的一个重要环节。针对工作强度大、安全性低的现状,研发了一种新型气动工艺装袋机。实践结果表明:该设备能较好满足当前食用菌代料生产中装袋操作要求,且具有结构简单、生产率高、成本低、安全性好的特征。     

丝状真菌纤维素酶合成机制的研究

丝状真菌产生的纤维素酶被认为是最有应用前景的,但就目前酶生产效率来看,离实际应用还有很大的差距,需要对酶的合成调节机制有更为全面和深刻的了解。纤维素酶的生物合成受诱导和阻遏双重控制,酶的生产既有赖于低廉的保持一定浓度诱导物的存在,又必须清除分解代谢产物对酶合成的阻遏,其中的详细机制有待进一步的阐明。真菌纤维素酶的分泌也是相当复杂的,在酶的分泌过程中,酶会发生例如糖基化等一系列变化。提高纤维素酶的活力测定方法的准确性,使其进一步规范化,是研究纤维素酶工作的另外一个重要的领域。随着现代生物学朝着分子水平的不断发展,分子生物学的许多方法也越来越多地被应用于纤维素酶的研究中,并取得了重要进展。对真菌纤维素酶合成调节机制的深入研究,将为提高纤维素酶产量,推动应用工作的发展打下理论基础。