Correlations between solar radiation, sea surface temperature (SST), biometry, and population density were assessed along a wide latitudinal gradient in the non-zooxanthellate solitary coral Caryophyllia inornata. Biometric parameters were more strongly correlated with temperature than with solar radiation as in previous studies on Mediterranean solitary corals. With increasing SST, populations were characterized by bigger polyps, and consequently by a higher percent area coverage and mass per square meter. Population abundance was not correlated with SST, similarly to the non-zooxanthellate solitary Leptopsammia pruvoti. Instead, the population density of the zooxanthellate solitary Balanophyllia europaea decreases with increasing SST. When extrapolating the relationships between biological parameters of the three species and SST, according to the projected seawater temperature increase, a higher tolerance to temperature for non-zooxanthellate species seems to be confirmed.

Defensins are a class of small and diverse cysteine-rich proteins found in plants, insects, and vertebrates, which share a common tertiary structure and usually exert broad-spectrum antimicrobial activities. We used a bioinformatic approach to scan the Vitis vinifera genome and identified 79 defensin-like sequences (DEFL) corresponding to 46 genes and allelic variants, plus 33 pseudogenes and gene fragments. Expansion and diversification of grapevine DEFL has occurred after the split from the last common ancestor with the genera Medicago and Arabidopsis. Grapevine DEFL localization on the 'Pinot Noir' genome revealed the presence of several clusters likely evolved through local duplications. By sequencing reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction products, we could demonstrate the expression of grapevine DEFL with no previously reported record of expression. Many of these genes are predominantly or exclusively expressed in tissues linked to plant reproduction, consistent with findings in other plant species, and some of them accumulated at fruit ripening. The transcripts of five DEFL were also significantly upregulated in tissues infected with Botrytis cinerea, a necrotrophic mold, suggesting a role of these genes in defense against this pathogen. Finally, three novel defensins were discovered among the identified DEFL. They inhibit B. cinerea conidia germination when expressed as recombinant proteins.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract