Plant peroxidases have strong potential utility for decontamination of phenol-polluted wastewater. However, large-scale use of these enzymes for phenol depollution requires a source of cheap, abundant, and easily accessible peroxidase-containing material. In this study, we show that potato pulp, a waste product of the starch industry, contains large amounts of active peroxidases. We demonstrate that potato pulp may serve as a tool for peroxidase-based remediation of phenol pollution. The phenol removal efficiency of potato pulp was over 95 % for optimized phenol concentrations. The potato pulp enzymes maintained their activity at pH 4 to 8 and were stable over a wide temperature range. Phenol solutions treated with potato pulp showed a significant reduction in toxicity compared with untreated phenol solutions. Finally we determined that this method may be employed to remove phenol from industrial effluent with over 90 % removal efficiency under optimal conditions.

BvpAPX is a full-length cDNA-encoding peroxisomal ascorbate peroxidase isolated from leaves of salt-stressed beet (Beta vulgaris) plants. A high level of identity has been reported between the deduced amino acid sequence of BvpAPX and other known ascorbate peroxidases. The genomic sequence of BvpAPX revealed a gene composed of 5 exons and 4 introns. Several sequence motifs revealed in the 5’UTR region of the gene confer to BvpAPX a putative responsiveness to various abiotic stresses. We determined the effect of salt stress on BvpAPX expression in leaves of the cultivated beet varieties, Huzar and Janosik, and their wild salt-tolerant relative B. vulgaris ssp. maritima. Plants were subjected to salt stress during a 32-day culture period (long-term salt treatment). An alternative salinization protocol consisted of an 18-h incubation of detached beet leaves in media supplemented with toxic salt concentrations (short-term salt treatment). RT-Q-PCR analysis revealed that BvpAPX expression markedly increased in leaves of plants subjected to conditions of long-term treatment with salinity, whereas BvpAPX transcript levels remained unaffected in detached leaves during short-term salt treatment. In addition, several leaf redox system parameters, such as ascorbate peroxidase activity or ascorbic acid, hydrogen peroxide, and lipid hydroperoxide concentration, were determined in the leaves of beet plants subjected to salt stress conditions.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11105-013-0636-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Salt tolerance is largely dependent on a plant’s ability to maintain optimal water status in leaves. The adjustment of water relations under salinity involves changes in the transcriptional activity of genes encoding plasma membrane aquaporins (PIPs). Here, we report the effects of long-term or short-term treatments with moderate or strong salt stress on the expression of BvPIP1;1, BvPIP2;1 and BvPIP2;2 in the leaves of sugar beet, Beta vulgaris cv. Huzar, and its halophyte relative, Beta vulgaris ssp. maritima. Plants subjected to long-term treatment were watered with salt-supplemented media during a 32 day long culture period. Short-term salt treatments were executed either by immersing the petioles of excised leaves into salt solutions for 48h, or incubating excised leaf blades in salt-supplemented media for 20h. B. vulgaris ssp. maritima reacted to long-term salt treatment with a decrease in BvPIP1;1, BvPIP2;1 and BvPIP2;2 expression. Contrastingly, only BvPIP2;2 transcript was down-regulated by salinity in leaves of B. vulgaris cv. Huzar, whereas BvPIP1;1 and BvPIP2;1 did not vary in response to salt-treatments. On the other hand, the expression of BvPIP1;1, BvPIP2;1 and BvPIP2;2 was enhanced by salinity if salt solutions was supplied through leaf petioles, irrespective of genotype. PIP expression in excised leaf blades revealed a complex pattern of changes. BvPIP1;1 and BvPIP2;1 expression underwent a period of transient increase in both the control and salt-treated leaves. Furthermore, BvPIP1;1 expression was enhanced by strong salinity. BvPIP2;2 expression was up-regulated by strong salinity or up- or down-regulated by moderate salinity during the treatment period.

The impact of interleukin 28B (IL-28B) on the results of interferon (IFN)-based therapy in patients chronically infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV) is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between IL-28B markers and the response to IFN monotherapy in Polish patients with anti-hepatitis B e (HBe)-positive chronic hepatitis B (CHB). We determined three single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of IL-28B (rs12979860, rs12980275, and rs8099917) in 86 patients who were treated with pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) for 48 weeks. The effectiveness of the therapy was evaluated based on the virological and biochemical response. The primary efficacy parameters were the HBV DNA viral load below 400 IU/ml and 2,000 IU/ml in combination with alanine aminotransferase (ALT) normalization (<40 IU/l), measured 24 weeks after the treatment. Viral load below 400 IU/ml or 2,000 IU/ml with ALT normalization was achieved by 37 % and 46 % of patients, respectively. It has been shown that the distribution of IL-28B genotypes in the dominant genetic model in patients with different therapeutic success differ significantly only for rs12979860. The IL-28B rs12979860 CC genotype was associated with lower treatment success [odds ratio (OR), 0.31; p = 0.025 and OR, 0.37; p = 0.044 for <400 IU/ml HBV DNA with <40 IU/l ALT, and <2,000 IU/ml HBV DNA with <40 IU/l ALT, respectively]. However, in the conditional logistic regression analysis adjusted by factors associated with combined response, rs12979860 was significantly associated only with <400 IU/ml HBV DNA with <40 IU/l ALT (OR, 0.24; p = 0.026). IL-28B polymorphisms have prognostic significance in assessing the treatment effectiveness based on the virological and biochemical response of patients with anti-HBe-positive CHB.