Neo Planta , July 2019 (2)

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Microorganisms for you

First and Second law of Thermodynamics in Environment Medicinal Plants of the Month

Research Methodology— Biosensors method for Determining Antioxidant activity

Facts: Inventions and Discoveries related to Plant Science.

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Fluorescent pseudomonads These bacteria discourage the growth of virulent bacteria by producing antibiotics and colonizing root systems.

Gluconacetobacter azotocaptans This is a species of acetic acid bacteria first isolated from the rhizospheres of coffee plants. The cells are straight rod with round ends and occur singly or in pairs. They possess peritrichous flagella which aid in locomotion. This bacterium is gram negative, catalase positive and oxidase negative. The required temperature and pH for growth are 37ÂşC and 4-7 respectively. Till date only two strains of these bacteria were isolated one from coffee plant in Mexico and another from corn plants in Canada.

It has nitrogen fixing, indole acetic acid producing and phosphate solubilising ability. It has promoted plant growth in many cases. It is linked with IAA and ethylene production and its growth promoting effect varied in tissues depending on sucrose concentration. The strains are aerobic and fix atmospheric nitrogen microaerophically. They grow and produce abundant acids on sucrose, D-glucose and L-fructose. This bacterium oxidises ethanol to acetic acid. The acetate and lactate are oxidized to carbondioxide and water.

Escherichia coli MICRO ORGANISMS FOR YOU

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It is present in intestine and is also known as enteric bacterium. Nissle in 1971 employed the probiotic E.coli in treating bowel diseases like ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, chronic constipation, irritable bowel syndrome etc.

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Glucanacetobacter diazotrophicus This is a species of acetic acid bacteria first isolated from the rhizospheres of coffee plants. The cells are straight rod with round ends and occur singly or in pairs. They possess peritrichous flagella which aid in locomotion. This bacterium is gram negative, catalase positive and oxidase negative. The required temperature and pH for growth are 37ºC and 4-7 respectively. Till date only two strains of these bacteria were isolated one from coffee plant in Mexico and another from corn plants in Canada. It has nitrogen fixing, indole acetic acid producing and phosphate solubilising ability. It has promoted plant growth in many cases. It is linked with IAA and ethylene production and its growth promoting effect varied in tissues depending on sucrose concentration. The strains are aerobic and fix atmospheric nitrogen microaerophically. They grow and produce abundant acids on sucrose, D-glucose and L-fructose.

This bacterium oxidises ethanol to acetic acid. The acetate and lactate are oxidized to carbondioxide and water.

Geobacillus stearothermophilus It is a rod shaped gram positive bacterium. It is thermophilic and is widely distributed in soil, hot springs and ocean sediments. The preferable temperature for growth is 30-75ºC. Some strains of this bacterium is capable of oxidizing carbon monoxide aerobically.

Granulosis virus Each virus particle is enclosed in its own protein coat, giving the infected cell a ‘granular’ appearance under high magnification. These pathogens typically infect the fat bodies in Lepidopteran larvae and pupae. A granulosis virus has been developed for use in apple orchards against larvae of the codling moth.

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ANDIRA INERMAIS (W.Wright)De Family : Fabaceae Medicinal properties: Narcotic, laxative, vermifuge and used to expel worm– Ascaris lumbrecoides.

Phytochemicals reported from the plant: Jamaicine, Andirin aglucoside, andirine, andinermal A,B,C, andriol A,B, biochanin A, berberine, calycosin, dimethyopterocarpon, formononetin, genistein, geoffroyine, inermin, N-methyl tyrosine, pratensein, psunetin, pterocarpans

Medicinal plants of

Facts

the Month 

Robert Mayerr in 1845 said that light energy absorbed by plants is converted into chemical energy during photosynthesis.

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BUTEA PARVIFLORA Roxb Family : Fabaceae Medicinal properties: Used for regulation of hair growth and prevention of hair loss and in all kinds of hair disorders.

Facts 

Boussingault in 1852 concluded that nitrates in soil are the principal sources of nitrogen for plants but not free nitrogen in air.

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Sachs in 1862 observed starch grains in chloroplasts during photosynthesis and concluded that chloroplasts are the sites of photosynthesis.

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Sachs and Knopp in 1865 stated that nitrogen is an important nutrient for the growth of plants.

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Charles Darwin in 1880 stated that the power of movement in plants is under the control of special substances.

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CASTANOSPERMUM AUSTRATE A.Cunn Family : Fabaceae Medicinal properties: Seed pods– astringent, seeds are under investigation for using in the treatment of HIV Phytochemicals reported from the plant: Seeds contain castanospermine

Facts 

Godlewski in 1884 proved the upward movement of water through xylem.

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Jensen in 1898 discovered that denitrification process is effected by soil bacteria.

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Hermann in 1902 discovered purine synthesis from sugars.

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CODARIOCALYX MOTORIUS (Houtt)H.Ohashi Family : Fabaceae Medicinal properties: Diuretic, antimalarial and used to treat rheumatism, wounds, cough, malaria, pyrexia, dysentery, hepatitis, hemoptysis.

Facts 

Fischer in 1902 explained the formation of enzyme substrate complex during enzyme reactions.

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Buchner in 1907 discovered that enzymes in cell free extracts can catalyze fermentation reactions.

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Boysen– Jensen in 1910 proved the presence of growth regulators in plants.

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Willstatter in 1915 discovered the structure and function of chlorophyll molecules.

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First and second law of thermodynamics in environment First law: The first law, also called the Law of conservation of energy, states that energy cannot be created or destroyed in an isolated system. The energy can only be changed from one form to another. The first law is expressed as any change in the internal energy of a system is given by the sum of the heat that flows across its boundaries and the work done on the system by the surrounding.

This law states that there are two kinds of processes viz., heat and work that can lead to a change in the internal energy of a system. Since both heat and work can be measured and quantified, any change in the energy of a system must result in a corresponding change in the energy of the surroundings outside the system. When the heat enters a system or surrounding to do work on it, the internal energy increases and hence q and w are indicated by positive sign. Conversely when the heat moves out of the system, the internal energy decreases and q and w are indicated by negative sign.

Second law: States that the entropy of an isolated system always increase (entropy is the measure of a system’s thermal energy per unit of temperature that is unavailable for doing useful work.)

Example, consider a room, when it is not cleaned it will become messy and disorderly with time. When the room is cleaned, its entropy decreases, but the effort to clean it resulted in an increased entropy outside the room that exceeds the entropy lost.

Heat can be transferred from one place to another by three methods:

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Conduction in solids

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Convection in fluids (liquids or gases)

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Radiation

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All these are based on the fact that if there is a temperature difference in a system heat will always move from higher to lower temperature.

Conduction: This occurs when two objects with different temperatures come in contact with each other. Heat flows from the warmer to cooler object until equilibrium. Conduction is the movement of heat through a substance by collision of molecules. At place where two objects touch, the faster moving molecules of the warm object collide with the slow moving molecules of the cooler object. The slower molecules now gain move thermal energy and collide with other molecules in the cooler object. This process continues until heat becomes equilibrium in both objects.

Solids are good heat conductors that liquids and liquids are better conductors than gas.

Convection: Convection is the most efficient way of heat transfer in liquids and gases. Convection occurs when warmer areas of a liquid or gas rise to cooler areas in the liquid or gas.

As this happens, cooler liquid or gas takes place in the warmer areas which have risen higher. This cycle results in a continuous circulation pattern and heat is transferred to cooler areas.

Radiation: Unlike conduction and convection, radiation does not rely upon any contact between the heat source and heated objects

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Example: we feel heat from the sun even though we are not touching it Objects emit radiation when high energy electrons in a higher atomic level fall down to lower energy levels. The excess energy is emitted as light or electromagnetic radiation.

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Facts 

Lysenko in 1920 stated that vernalized plants need a long day treatment for flowering.

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Garner and Allard in 1920 discovered photoperiodism in plants.

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Svedberg

in

1926

discovered

ultracentrifuge

to

isolate

macromolecules from cell homogenates. 

Went in 1928 discovered auxins in plants.

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Embden, Mayerhoff and Parnas in 1929 discovered the glycolytic pathway for the breakdown of glucose into pyruvic acid.

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Youbuta and Hayashi in 1930 isolated gibberellic acid from the cultures of the fungus Gibberella fujikuroi.

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Osterhourt in 1930 stated that plants absorb mineral salts in the form of cations or anions.

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Facts 

Warburg in 1931 discovered the respiratory enzymes and their functions to explain the mechanism of oxygen evolution during respiration. He also calculated the minimum quanta required for photosynthesis.

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Emerson and Arnols in 1932 showed that about 2500 chlorophyll molecules are required for the reduction of one molecule of carbon dioxide during photosynthesis.

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Lundegardh and Burstom in 1933 proposed the cytochrome pump theory to explain the absorption of minerals by plants.

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Haworth in 1937 described the structure of carbohydrates and Vitamin C.

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Krebs in 1953 discovered TCA cycle in living cells.

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Lipmann in 1953 discovered co enzyme A and its role in intermediary metabolism in cells.

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Facts 

Pauling in 1954 explained the nature of chemical binding in elucidating the shape and structure of protein molecules.

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Ohkuma et al in 1955 isolated absicic acid fro senescent leaves.

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Kornberg and Krebs in 1957 discovered the glyoxylate cycle to explain the conversion of fats into carbohydrates.

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Kramer in 1959 explained the mechanism of opening and closing of stomata.

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M. Calvin in 1961 discovered the path of carbon dioxide assimilation in plants.

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Watson and Crick in 1962 proposed the double helix model for DNA and explained the semi conservative mode of replication.

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Warburg and Dicken

in 1962 discovered the pentose

phosphate pathway as an alternative to normal glycolytic pathway. 

Krotkov et al in 1963 discovered photorespiration in plants.

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Biosensors Methods for determining the Antioxidant Activity.

Oxidoreductases are most applications properties

because during

of

often their

catalysis.

used in electron

The enzymes

biosensor

transferring offer

the

advantages of being stable and in some situations do not require coenzymes or cofactors. Potential applications of biosensors for evaluation of antioxidant status including monitoring of superoxide radical (O2-), monitoring of nitric oxide (NO), monitoring of glutathione, monitoring of uric acid, ascorbic acid or phenolic compound.

A carbon paste DNA based biosensor for the electro catalytic evaluation of total antioxidant capacity was Research

constructed. The method was based on the partial damage

methodology

of a DNA layer absorbed on the electrode surface by OH radicals, generated by Fenton reaction and the subsequent electrochemical oxidation of the intact adenine bases, to generate an oxidation product, that was able to catalyse the oxidation of NADH. The presence of antioxidant compounds scavenged hydroxyl radicals, leaving more adenine molecules unoxidized and thus, increasing the electro catalytic current of NADH measured by differential pulse voltammetry. Using ascorbic acid as a model antioxidant

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Species, the detection of amounts as low as 50nM ascorbic acid in aqueous solution was possible.

Frequently, polyphenols are the main contributors to the antioxidant capacity of several plants which contain them. Several amperometric biosensors for the detection of phenolic compounds have been developed, on the basis of enzymes like tyrosinase, laccase or peroxidase. Biosensors for phenolic compounds were constructed by immobilizing polyphenol oxidase (PPO) into conducting copolymers prepared by electropolymerization of pyrrole with thiophene capped poly tetrahydrofuran. These enzyme based biosensors allow the evaluation of the “total phenol content.�

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Darani Vasudevan daraniauthor.ga

Hi readers, I am a Botanist and writer. This magazine is an outcome of the topics that interested me a lot while doing my research works. I chose this magazine as a platform for sharing many interesting facts related to plant Science and microorganisms.