Publications
| Title | Abstract | Year(sorted ascending) Filter | PMID Filter |
|---|
| mycotoxins and toxigenic fungi on cereal grains in western canada. | toxins occasionally present on cereal grains in the field in western canada include ergot alkaloids produced by claviceps purpurea and trichothecenes produced by fusarium species, particularly fusarium sporotrichiodes and fusarium graminearum. ht-2 toxin, t-2 toxin, diacetoxyscirpenol, and deoxynivalenol are the main trichothecenes encountered. during storage of cereals, the predominant toxins and toxigenic fungi are ochratoxin a and citrinin produced by penicillium aurantiogriseum, p. chrysogen ... | 1990 | 2200591 |
| isopentenyldiphosphate:dimethylallyldiphosphate isomerase: construction of a high-level heterologous expression system for the gene from saccharomyces cerevisiae and identification of an active-site nucleophile. | isopentenyldiphosphate:dimethylallyldiphosphate isomerase (ipp isomerase) is an enzyme in isoprene metabolism which catalyzes the interconversion of the fundamental five-carbon homoallylic and allylic diphosphate building blocks for the pathway. the gene encoding ipp isomerase has recently been isolated from saccharomyces cerevisiae [anderson, m. s., muehlbacher, m., street, i.p., proffitt, j., & poulter, c. d. (1989) j. biol. chem. 264, 19169-19175]. a heterologous expression system was constru ... | 1990 | 2223785 |
| activation of ergot alkaloid biosynthesis in prototrophic isolates by claviceps purpurea protoplast fusion. | intraspecific protoplast fusions were carried out with active ergocornine-ergokryptine and inactive ergocristine claviceps purpurea strains and vice versa. the isolated prototrophic strains from both types of crossings produced all three alkaloid types, showing that biosynthesis of distinct alkaloid was activated in an inactive partner strain. the prototrophic isolates were stable on minimal medium but they segregated by subculturing on complete medium. in comparison with the original partner st ... | 1991 | 1367573 |
| linear dna plasmids of the perennial ryegrass choke pathogen, epichloë typhina (clavicipitaceae). | epichloë typhina is a clavicipitaceous ascomycete which systemically infects grasses, causes choke disease of host inflorescences, and is related to a group of mutualistic grass endophytes. three plasmids of 7.5, 2.1 and 2.0 kilobase pairs were found in mitochondrial dna preparations of an e. typhina isolate from perennial ryegrass (lolium perenne). results of nuclease digestion indicated that the plasmids, designated et7.5l, et2.1l, and et2.0l, were linear, double-stranded dnas with protein lin ... | 1991 | 1782678 |
| [effect of the composition of a nutrient medium on growth and synthesis of ergot alkaloids by claviceps purpurea in the saprotrophic culture]. | the impact of changes in the ratio of the medium-668 components on growth and synthesis of ergot alkaloids in saprotrophic cultures was studied with mathematical design of the experiment. medium-668 used for cultivation of strain vniia-312a-producing peptide +ergot alkaloids was shown to be balanced with respect to the ratio of all the medium components. an important role of phosphate in control of culture growth and alkaloids synthesis was elucidated. it was demonstrated that by changing the ra ... | 1991 | 1814274 |
| physiological controls and regulation of ergot alkaloid formation. | innovation and technical development of ergot alkaloids (ea) has moved closer to scientific research. circumstantial evidence presently links the initiation of ea metabolism to changes in a range of parameters--morphology, concentrations of enzymes and their substrates, nutrients and external stress. the biosynthesis of ea begins at the level of the genetic information apparatus and continues at the level of physiological expression. ea and their formation play a role in the physiology of the pr ... | 1991 | 1822834 |
| steric course of the n-methylation in the biosynthesis of ergot alkaloids by claviceps purpurea. | using the chiral methyl group methodology, the methylation step in the biosynthesis of ergot alkaloids catalyzed by the enzyme adomet:dimethylallyltryptophan n-methyltransferase was found to proceed with net inversion of methyl group configuration. the enzyme thus conforms to the majority of methyltransferases studied which mediate a direct sn2 transfer of the methyl group from adomet to the acceptor nucleophile in a ternary enzyme substrate complex. | 1991 | 1880714 |
| [risks related to the use of ergotamine in the therapy of hemicrania. description of a case]. | the ergotamine tartrate used for the migraine headache therapy can induce to a condition of chronic intoxication (ergotism) similar to what occurs after the ingestion of claviceps purpurea contaminated rye. the case of an italian woman affected by chronic migraine rectally treated with ergotamine showed cerebral and legs ischaemic indications--angiographically documented--vasospasm in the carotid and femoral arterial area. the withdrawal of the drug produced complete remission. it is therefore i ... | 1991 | 1947404 |
| [preservation of claviceps purpurea, the producer of peptide ergot alkaloids, by the method of freeze drying]. | a saprotrophic strain of claviceps purpurea vniia 312a, an organism producing peptide +ergot alkaloids with prolactin inhibiting activity was shown to die under lyophilization conditions. to provide long-term storage of strain 312a, l-drying or drying under vacuum from liquid state was used with success. three protective media were tested. favourable results were obtained by using 25 per cent maltose solution as a protective medium. preservation of the culture viability was accompanied by mainte ... | 1991 | 2025122 |
| hyperthermia and death in feedlot cattle associated with the ingestion of claviceps purpurea. | 1991 | 2043090 | |
| [ergot in feed--the clarification of possible ergot-related infirmity cases]. | practicing veterinarians should realize that the symptoms of ergot intoxication may differ markedly. gangrenous alterations (ears, feet, tail) as well as convulsive signs (excitability) are described as typical symptoms of ergotism. it is noteworthy that inadequate development of the udder and lactation failure may also be related to ergot contaminated diets. ergot contamination of diets is caused by grain infection with claviceps purpurea and sometimes by infection of grass and weed (in grain). ... | 1991 | 2048100 |
| mycotoxins and reproduction in domestic livestock. | molds are parasitic plants that are ubiquitous in livestock feedstuffs. even though molds themselves reduce the quality of grains, their synthesis of chemical substances termed mycotoxins causes the greatest monetary loss to the animal industry. five major mycotoxins that impair growth and reproductive efficiency in north america are aflatoxins, zearalenone, deoxynivalenol, ochratoxin, and ergot. aflatoxins are produced by aspergillus flavus and aspergillus parasiticus. consumption of grains con ... | 1992 | 1388147 |
| efficient transformation of claviceps purpurea using pyrimidine auxotrophic mutants: cloning of the omp decarboxylase gene. | a homologous transformation system was developed for the phytopathogenic fungus claviceps purpurea. orotidine-5'-monophosphate decarboxylase (ompd)-deficient mutants were obtained by uv mutagenesis and selection for resistance against 5-fluoroorotate. these mutants could be complemented well by the corresponding genes of aspergillus niger (pyra) and neurospora crassa (pyr4), yielding significantly higher transformation rates (and lower copy numbers per transformant) than the phleomycin resistanc ... | 1992 | 1508154 |
| transcripts and translation products of a mitochondrial plasmid of claviceps purpurea. | expression of the linear mitochondrial (mt) plasmid pclk1 of strain k of the ascomycete claviceps purpurea was studied at the rna and protein level. using strand-specific probes two major transcripts were detected, corresponding to orf1 and orf2 of the plasmid, which most likely code for a dna-polymerase and an rna-polymerase, respectively. primer extension experiments showed that both transcripts start at identical positions from opposite sides within the terminal inverted repeat (tir). the ini ... | 1992 | 1563051 |
| purification and characterization of dimethylallyl tryptophan synthase from claviceps purpurea. | dimethylallyl tryptophan synthase (dmat synthase) catalyzes the alkylation of l-tryptophan by dimethylallyl diphosphate to form 4-(gamma,gamma-dimethylallyl)-l-tryptophan. the enzyme from mycelia of claviceps purpurea was purified approximately 125-fold to apparent homogeneity by chromatography on n-butyl sepharose, q sepharose, phenyl sepharose, and protein pak as judged by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (sds-page). analysis by gel filtration chromatography and sds-pa ... | 1992 | 1605639 |
| alkaloids of stipa robusta (sleepygrass) infected with an acremonium endophyte. | stipa robusta (= stipa vaseyi) is a perennial grass found in certain areas of the southwestern united states. it is commonly known as sleepygrass, as horses that ingest this grass may become profoundly somnolent or stuporous for periods of time lasting up to several days. in an attempt to determine the active principle(s), fractionation of a methanolic extract of sleepygrass infected with an acremonium endophyte has yielded lysergic acid amide (20 micrograms/g dry wt), isolysergic amide (8), 8-h ... | 1992 | 1344912 |
| pclk1 and pclt5--two linear mitochondrial plasmids from unrelated claviceps purpurea strains: a comparison. | pclt5, a linear mitochondrial (mt) plasmid from claviceps purpurea, strain t5, was sequenced and compared to pclk1, a linear mt plasmid from an unrelated c. purpurea strain. both plasmids have terminal proteins (tps) at their inverted terminal repeats (tlr). the tlrs of both plasmids show short conserved sequences, which are probably involved in plasmid transcription and replication. the coding capacity of pclt5 and pclk1 is similar: there are two large orfs (orf1 and orf2) homologous to the dna ... | 1993 | 8302935 |
| wasson's alternative candidates for soma. | citing recently published challenges to r. gordon wasson's identification of vedic soma as the psychoactive mushroom amanita muscaria (fly-agaric), this article reviews unpublished letters by wasson in which he considered and rejected other psychoactive plants as candidates, including the mint lagochilus inebrians, convolvulaceae (morning glory) seeds, the fungal parasite claviceps purpurea (ergot), and especially the psilocybin mushroom stropharia cubensis, known also as psilocybe cubensis. apa ... | 1993 | 8377083 |
| interaction between mitochondrial dna and mitochondrial plasmids in claviceps purpurea: analysis of plasmid-homologous sequences upstream of the lrrna-gene. | homology of two linear, mitochondrial (mt) claviceps purpurea plasmids, pclk1 and pclt5, to the upstream region of the large ribosomal rna gene in the mtdna of three strains (w3, t5 and k) has been investigated in detail to explore the widespread phenomenon of homology between mt plasmids and mtdna in c. purpurea. sequence comparison indicates that recombination between free plasmids and mtdna is the cause of the observed homology. the process is similar to the integration of the structurally re ... | 1993 | 8467529 |
| mathematical modeling of growth and alkaloid production in claviceps purpurea batch fermentation. | an new systematic approach for describing claviceps purpurea growth and ergot alkaloid production during batch fermentation is presented. the model is based on microbial life, as the main characteristic for microbial development during fermentation process. the aging process of the microorganism is represented by life function, defined in microbial life space. the life space is defined as a measure in which the observer follows the development of a biosystem through physiological and morphologic ... | 1993 | 18609581 |
| long-term production of ergot peptides by immobilized claviceps purpurea in semicontinuous and continuous culture. | the semicontinuous and continuous production of pharmaceutically useful ergot peptides with immobilized claviceps purpurea could be demonstrated. a key aspect was the presence of high concentrations of cacl(2) (96.9 mm) to give marked prolongation of the productive phase, and cultivation in a bubble column reactor became possible. restriction of the phosphate supply avoided an otherwise problematic massive increase of outgrowing hyphae. | 1993 | 16348979 |
| the claviceps purpurea glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase gene: cloning, characterization, and use for the improvement of a dominant selection system. | the gpd 1 gene of claviceps purpurea coding for glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase was cloned and sequenced, including 1,800 bp of its 5' upstream region. this gene shows an identical structure to the gpd gene of podospora anserina and cryphonectria parasitica (one intron at an identical position) with high homology at both the dna and amino-acid levels. two fragments of the promoter spanning from the atg to -500 bp and to -1,400 bp were fused to the phleomycin-resistance gene. both constr ... | 1994 | 8087877 |
| the claviceps purpurea gene encoding dimethylallyltryptophan synthase, the committed step for ergot alkaloid biosynthesis. | the first pathway-specific step of ergot alkaloid biosynthesis in the fungus, claviceps purpurea, is catalyzed by the prenyltransferase, 4-(gamma,gamma-dimethylallyl)tryptophan synthase. partial sequence information was obtained for the purified enzyme and a degenerate oligonucleotide mixture was used to identify and amplify segments of the gene, dmaw. the complete gene and near-full-length cdna were cloned and sequenced. the cdna was cloned in a yeast expression vector in sense and antisense or ... | 1995 | 7488077 |
| history of ergot alkaloids from ergotism to ergometrine. | epidemics of ergotism occurred frequently in the middle ages. they were a source of inspiration for artists and were popularly known as 'st. anthony's fire', resulting in gangrene, neurological diseases and death. it was caused by eating rye bread contaminated with the fungus claviceps purpurea. in 1582 it was described that a delivery could be hastened by administering a few spurs of the secale cornutum. the dosage was, however, very inaccurate resulting in frequent uterine ruptures. the nickna ... | 1995 | 7641960 |
| a mutualistic fungal symbiont of perennial ryegrass contains two different pyr4 genes, both expressing orotidine-5'-monophosphate decarboxylase. | a fragment of the claviceps purpurea pyr4 gene, encoding orotidine-5'-monophosphate decarboxylase (omp decarboxylase), was used to screen a genomic library from an isolate of a fungus, acremonium sp. (designated lp1), which grows as an endophyte in perennial ryegrass (lolium perenne). three positive clones, lambda mc11, lambda mc12 and lambda mc14, were isolated. two of these clones, lambda mc12 and lambda mc14, were overlapping clones from the same locus, while lambda mc11 was from a different ... | 1995 | 7789808 |
| the fungal teratogen secalonic acid d is an inhibitor of protein kinase c and of cyclic amp-dependent protein kinase. | the teratogenic metabolite secalonic acid d deriving from the ergot-producing, rye-infecting ascomycete fungus claviceps purpurea and from penicillum oxalicum is an inhibitor of ca2+- and phospholipid-dependent protein kinase c (pkc) and of the catalytic subunit of cyclic amp-dependent protein kinase (cak) (c50 values 15 microm and 12 microm, respectively). secalonic acid d also inhibits ca2+-calmodulin-dependent myosin light chain kinase (mlck) and plant ca2+-dependent protein kinase (cdpk). th ... | 1996 | 8657739 |
| the isoprenoid pathway: cloning and characterization of fungal fpps genes. | farnesylpyrophosphate synthase (fpps) is a key enzyme in isoprenoid biosynthesis. several classes of essential metabolites, including sterols, quinones, carotenoids and gibberellins, are terpenoids with high biological activity. the structural gene for fpp synthase was isolated from two ascomycete fungi, neurospora crassa and gibberella fujikuroi. a comparative analysis of the nucleotide sequences of both fpps genes revealed the presence of introns at the same positions at the 5' end of the codi ... | 1996 | 8753652 |
| d-lysergyl peptide synthetase from the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea. | the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea produces the medically important ergopeptines, which consist of a cyclol-structured tripeptide and d-lysergic acid linked by an amide bond. an enzyme activity capable of non-ribosomal synthesis of d-lysergyl-l-alanyl-l-phenylalanyl-l-proline lactam, the non-cyclol precursor of the ergopeptine ergotamine, has been purified about 18-fold from the ergotamine-producing c. purpurea strain d1. analysis of radioactively labeled enzyme-substrate complexes revealed a 3 ... | 1996 | 8910337 |
| detection of ergot (claviceps purpurea) in a dairy feed component by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. | a dairy feed that contained barley malt screenings caused hyperthermia in dairy cattle. the feed was suspected of containing ergot and was subsequently analyzed to determine the ricinoleate component, a special and prominent feature of oil-rich ergot tissue. triglyceride oil was extracted by organic solvents from the dairy feed, and the oil was saponified to release fatty acids. ricinoleate, as a methyl ester, was selectively resolved from other fatty acids by silica gel chromatography and was a ... | 1996 | 8961105 |
| subacute toxicity of ergometrine maleate in rats. | ergot alkaloids, produced by the fungus claviceps purpurea, are found in small amounts in foodstuffs. the human disease ergotism, caused by high intake of ergot alkaloids, is well known; however, little is known about the toxicity of these compounds. the subacute toxicity of an ergot alkaloid, ergometrine maleate, was therefore studied. sprague-dawley rats were treated with 0, 2, 10, 50 and 250 mg ergometrine maleate/kg diet for 4 wk. plasma glucose levels were decreased in females at 50 and 250 ... | 1996 | 9012769 |
| [toxicologic risk assessment and prevention: rational and irrational approaches]. | worldwide, the management and evaluation of risks caused by chemical compounds are handled by the aid of threshold concentrations below of which one can be sure that no biological effect whatsoever can be observed. at the working place, we use the maximally tolerated concentration of the chemicals (mak) and, in addition, the biologically tolerated concentrations (btc) of the compounds either in blood or in other body fluids to which a male and/or female worker is exposed. these threshold concent ... | 1996 | 9409918 |
| cel1, probably encoding a cellobiohydrolase lacking the substrate binding domain, is expressed in the initial infection phase of claviceps purpurea on secale cereale. | at the host-pathogen interface of hyphae penetrating host cell walls in the rye ovary, a lack of cellulase-gold labeling of beta-1, 4-glucan in host cell walls indicates that enzymatic degradation of cellulose might be an important factor during the infection of rye by claviceps purpurea. using cbh1 from trichoderma reesei as a probe, a putative cellulase gene (cel1) was isolated from a genomic library of the c. purpurea strain t5. the coding region of 1,616 bp contains two introns and a putativ ... | 1997 | 9057332 |
| ergotism and photosensitization in swine produced by the combined ingestion of claviceps purpurea sclerotia and ammi majus seeds. | poisoning of domestic animals happens frequently in the southeast of buenos aires province (argentina). intoxications are produced mainly by the ingestion of plants and mycotoxins, but animals are rarely affected simultaneously by both types of agents. one herd of pigs suffered simultaneous intoxications by ergot alkaloids from claviceps purpurea sclerotia and furocoumarins from ammi majus seeds. pigs were fed a diet composed of wheat (poor quality) or corn and protein and vitamin supplements. t ... | 1997 | 9087928 |
| mechanism of alkaloid cyclopeptide synthesis in the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea. | previous analyses of the biosynthesis of the alkaloid cyclopeptides from the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea were hampered by a lack of suitable systems for study in vitro, and this led to conflicting results concerning the mechanism of alkaloid cyclopeptide formation. recently, d-lysergyl peptide synthetase (lps) of the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea, which assembles the non-cyclol precursors of the ergopeptines, has been partially purified and shown to consist of two polypeptide chains of 370 ... | 1997 | 9115414 |
| the structures of triacylglycerols from sclerotia of the rye ergot claviceps purpurea (fries) tul. | the triacylglycerol fraction of lipids extracted from sclerotia of the rye ergot claviceps purpurea strain vkm f-2642d has been shown to comprise about 60% of the total lipids and to consist of at least seven constituents, namely, [r]-[r]-[r] (1.6% of the total fraction), [r-ric]-[r]-[r] (27%), [r-ric]-[r-ric]-[r] (65%), [r-ric]-[r-ric]-[r-ric] (4.8%), [r-ric-ric]-[r-ric]-[r-ric] (1.1%), [r-ric-ric]-[r-ric-ric]-[r-ric] (0.3%), and [r-ric-ric-ric]-[r-ric-ric]-[r-ric-ric] (0.2%) (acyl residues at ... | 1997 | 9149387 |
| structure determination and synthesis of lysine isopeptides influencing on cell proliferation. | the clavicepamines are lysine-rich basic proteins isolated from saprophytic culture of ergot (claviceps purpurea), having human pharmacological importance. based on structure determinations, it was demonstrated that the epsilon-lysine (poly)peptides are the fundamental structural units of clavicepamines. to study the relationship between chemical structure and biological effect, solution and solid-phase synthesis of lysine isopeptides were performed. poly-epsilon-lysines were synthesized with po ... | 1997 | 9279124 |
| [stimulatory effect of sodium deoxycholate on alpha-ergocryptine productivity of claviceps purpurea 94002 (ekpn94002)]. | the stimulation of sodium deoxycholate (sdc) on alpha-ergocryptine production of claviceps purpurea strain 94002 (ekpn94002) was investigated. preliminary results indicated that sdc, as a stimulator and at appropriate concentrations, could obviously increase the extracellular and the total production levels of the ergot alkaloid. satisfied results were obtained when 6.0 mg.l-1 of sdc was present in the seed and fermentation media. the possible mechanism was discussed. | 1997 | 11596316 |
| two-dimensional fluorescence spectroscopy: a new tool for on-line bioprocess monitoring. | two-dimensional fluorescence spectroscopy is presented as a new method for bioprocess monitoring. it covers a wide range of excitation and emission wavelengths and is a further development of the fluorescence measurements performed so far, which concentrated mainly on nad(p)h culture fluorescence. biogenic fluorophores such as proteins, coenzymes, and vitamins can simultaneously be detected qualitatively and quantitatively inside and outside the cells. this optical method is noninvasive, suitabl ... | 1998 | 9496670 |
| presence of peptide synthetase gene transcripts and accumulation of ergopeptines in claviceps purpurea and neotyphodium coenophialum. | the production of toxic ergopeptine alkaloids by the fungi claviceps purpurea and neotyphodium coenophialum involves the activity of one or more nonribosomal peptide synthetases. claviceps purpurea and n. coenophialum each have several different peptide synthetase genes, fragments of which have been cloned previously. an additional claviceps purpurea peptide synthetase gene was cloned by hydridization with one of the n. coenophialum peptide synthetase gene fragments. we detected the presence of ... | 1998 | 9546869 |
| nonradioactive in situ hybridization for detection of hydrophobin mrna in the phytopathogenic fungus claviceps purpurea during infection of rye. | hydrophobins are unique fungal extracellular proteins that produce amphipathic films at interfaces, mediate contact to hydrophobic surfaces and are known to be important in phytopathogenicity. in the pathogenic ascomycete claviceps purpurea, causing ergot disease in grasses and cereals and ergotism in livestock, a gene encoding an extraordinary type of hydrophobin has been detected, which appeared to be induced during alkaloid synthesis in axenic culture of an ergot-alkaloid producing strain of ... | 1998 | 9587058 |
| cloning, characterization, and targeted disruption of cpcat1, coding for an in planta secreted catalase of claviceps purpurea. | claviceps purpurea has been shown to secrete catalases in axenic and parasitic culture. in order to determine the importance of these enzymes in the host-parasite interaction, especially their role in overcoming oxidative stress imposed on the pathogen by the plant's defense system, the catr gene from a. niger was used to isolate a putative catalase gene from a genomic library of c. purpurea, cpcat1 consists of an open reading frame of 2,148 bp that is interrupted by five introns. its derived ge ... | 1998 | 9675893 |
| effect of fungal alkaloids on the development of pregnancy and endocrine foetal-placental function in the goat. | the response to claviceps purpurea sclerotia administration in pregnant goats was examined in terms of changes in the levels of plasma hormones, the development of pregnancy and kid production. six treated goats were each given 15 mg milled sclerotia (i.e. 0.105 mg ergotamine) per kilogram live weight twice daily via a stomach tube from days 98 +/- 2 to 107 +/- 2 of gestation. seven control goats were given water twice daily via a stomach tube during the same period of gestation. the goats were ... | 1998 | 9821503 |
| secretion of a fungal extracellular catalase by claviceps purpurea during infection of rye: putative role in pathogenicity and suppression of host defense. | abstract hydrogen peroxide of the host origin accumulates in plant apoplasts in response to pathogen attack and probably functions directly in defense reactions or in signaling, according to a previous study. since claviceps purpurea produces compatible interactions with hundreds of host species, we hypothesized that the fungus might interfere with h(2)o(2)-mediated defense by means of secreted catalases. in axenic culture of c. purpurea, catalase activity accumulated in the medium and was inhib ... | 1998 | 18944879 |
| the xylanolytic system of claviceps purpurea: cytological evidence for secretion of xylanases in infected rye tissue and molecular characterization of two xylanase genes. | abstract claviceps purpurea is a common phytopathogenic fungus that colonizes ovarian tissue of grasses. a concerted approach involving cytological and molecular techniques was initiated to investigate the role of the fungus' xylanolytic system in the interaction. using enzyme-gold and immuno-gold electron-microscopic techniques, the presence of arabinoxylans in cell walls of rye ovarian tissues (i.e., along the usual path of infection of c. purpurea) was confirmed; tissue-print and immunostaini ... | 1998 | 18944813 |
| evidence for an ergot alkaloid gene cluster in claviceps purpurea. | a gene (cpd1) coding for the dimethylallyltryptophan synthase (dmats) that catalyzes the first specific step in the biosynthesis of ergot alkaloids, was cloned from a strain of claviceps purpurea that produces alkaloids in axenic culture. the derived gene product (cpd1) shows only 70% similarity to the corresponding gene previously isolated from claviceps strain atcc 26245, which is likely to be an isolate of c. fusiformis. therefore, the related cpd1 most probably represents the first c. purpur ... | 1999 | 10071219 |
| ergoline derivatives: receptor affinity and selectivity. | ergot comprises a group of indole alkaloids which are predominantly found in various species of the ascomycete claviceps. in pharmacopoeias, the sclerotia of claviceps purpurea (fr.) tulasne parasitizing on rye, secale cereale l., are designed as ergot or secale cornutum. now, the term ergot is used in a broader sense to describe the sclerotia of various claviceps species growing on different host plants or their saprophytic mycelia. due to their many fascinating features, there is a continuing ... | 1999 | 10418123 |
| progress and prospects of ergot alkaloid research. | ergot alkaloids, produced by the plant parasitic fungi claviceps purpurea are important pharmaceuticals. the chemistry, biosynthesis, bioconversions, physiological controls, and biochemistry have been extensively reviewed by earlier authors. we present here the research done on the organic synthesis of the ergot alkaloids during the past two decades. our aim is to apply this knowledge to the synthesis of novel synthons and thus obtain new molecules by directed biosynthesis. the synthesis of clav ... | 2000 | 11036684 |
| chemoraces and habitat specialization of claviceps purpurea populations. | we studied genetic variability of 100 isolates of claviceps purpurea by using randomly amplified polymorphic dna (rapd), an ecori restriction site polymorphism in the 5.8s ribosomal dna (rdna), the alkaloids produced, and conidial morphology. we identified three groups: (i) group g1 from fields and open meadows (57 isolates), (ii) group g2 from shady or wet habitats (41 isolates), and (iii) group g3 from spartina anglica from salt marshes (2 isolates). the sclerotia of g1 isolates contained ergo ... | 2000 | 11097923 |
| application of oxygen vectors to claviceps purpurea cultivation. | the application of a two-phase fermentation system for the production of ergot peptide alkaloids by claviceps purpurea is described. perfluorocarbons (pfc) are used as oxygen vectors in claviceps fermentation for the first time. in shake-flask cultivations, the inclusion of pfc in the medium brings about a five-fold increase in the total alkaloid production and a six-fold increase in the pharmaceutically important component, ergotamine. this rise cannot be correlated with the concentration of th ... | 2001 | 11398919 |
| elimination of ergovaline from a grass-neotyphodium endophyte symbiosis by genetic modification of the endophyte. | the fungal endophytes neotyphodium lolii and neotyphodium sp. lp1 from perennial ryegrass (lolium perenne), and related endophytes in other grasses, produce the ergopeptine toxin ergovaline, among other alkaloids, while also increasing plant fitness and resistance to biotic and abiotic stress. in the related fungus, claviceps purpurea, the biosynthesis of ergopeptines requires the activities of two peptide synthetases, lps1 and lps2. a peptide synthetase gene hypothesized to be important for erg ... | 2001 | 11592979 |
| association of insects and ergot (claviceps purpurea) in kentucky bluegrass seed production fields. | insects in kentucky bluegrass seed production fields in oregon, idaho, and washington were sampled just before harvest and their association with ergot conidia of claviceps purpurea fr. (tul.) was evaluated during 1996-1998. a diversity of insects was observed at all three locations. the most abundant beneficial insects collected with sweep nets were nysium spp., nabis spp., ichneumonid wasps, and hippodamia spp. the cranberry girdler, chrysoteuchia topiaria (zeller), was the only important pest ... | 2001 | 11777051 |
| biotechnology and genetics of ergot alkaloids. | ergot alkaloids, i.e. ergoline-derived toxic metabolites, are produced by a wide range of fungi, predominantly by members of the grass-parasitizing family of the clavicipitaceae. naturally occurring alkaloids like the d-lysergic acid amides, produced by the "ergot fungus" claviceps purpurea, have been used as medicinal agents for a long time. the pharmacological effects of the various ergot alkaloids and their derivatives are due to the structural similarity of the tetracyclic ring system to neu ... | 2001 | 11778866 |
| the biotrophic, non-appressorium-forming grass pathogen claviceps purpurea needs a fus3/pmk1 homologous mitogen-activated protein kinase for colonization of rye ovarian tissue. | claviceps purpurea is a common pathogen of a wide range of grasses and cereals that is able to establish a stable, balanced interaction with its host plant and is considered a biotroph. it does not form special penetration structures such as appressoria. to study the signaling processes involved in this special host-pathogen interaction, we have cloned a gene, cpmk1, encoding a mitogen-activated protein (map) kinase that shows significant homology to fus3 of saccharomyces cerevisiae and to pmk1 ... | 2002 | 12026168 |
| polygalacturonase is a pathogenicity factor in the claviceps purpurea/rye interaction. | claviceps purpurea is a biotrophic, organ-specific pathogen of grasses and cereals, attacking exclusively young ovaries. we have previously shown that its mainly intercellular growth is accompanied by degradation of pectin, and that two endopolygalacturonase genes (cppg1/cppg2) are expressed throughout all stages of infection. we report here on a functional analysis of these genes using a gene-replacement approach. mutants lacking both polygalacturonase genes are not affected in their vegetative ... | 2002 | 12135573 |
| agalactia in mares fed with grain contaminated with claviceps purpurea. | this article reports an outbreak of intoxication of female horses with claviceps purpurea in southern brazil. the outbreak affected twelve pregnant mares which were fed with black oat (avena strigosa) during the pre-delivery period. underdevelopment of the mammary gland in the pre-delivery period resulting in post-delivery agalactia was the most pronounced finding. these mares delivered weak and unviable foals, which showed no suckling reflex and died within a few hours of birth. laboratory anal ... | 2002 | 12206321 |
| comparison of different setups for one- and two-dimensional capillary high-performance liquid chromatography and pressurized capillary electrochromatography coupled on-line with mass spectrometry. | a comparison of different separation methods (high-performance liquid chromatography (hplc), capillary hplc (chplc) and pressurized capillary electrochromatography (pcec)) coupled on-line with mass spectrometry (ms) is undertaken using the separation of a crude extract of ergot fungus (secalis cornuti) as an example. new and simple setups for a two-dimensional chplc coupled on-line with electrospray ionization (esi)-ms (2d-chplc-ms) as well as for capillary size-exclusion chromatography performe ... | 2002 | 12207303 |
| cpmk2, an slt2-homologous mitogen-activated protein (map) kinase, is essential for pathogenesis of claviceps purpurea on rye: evidence for a second conserved pathogenesis-related map kinase cascade in phytopathogenic fungi. | cpmk2, encoding a mitogen-activated protein (map) kinase from the ascomycete claviceps purpurea, is an orthologue of slt2 from saccharomyces cerevisiae, the first isolated from a biotrophic, non-appressorium-forming pathogen. deletion mutants obtained by a gene replacement approach show impaired vegetative properties (no conidiation) and a significantly reduced virulence, although they retain a limited ability to colonize the host tissue. increased sensitivity to protoplasting enzymes indicates ... | 2002 | 12406210 |
| [isolation of the ergot (claviceps purpurea (fr.) tul., strain vkm-f-366d), producing the lactamic alkaloid ergocornam]. | a new ergot strain vkm-f-3662d producing lactamic alkaloid ergocornam with concomitant alkaloids valinamide and ergometrine was isolated during selective works with sclerotium ms-462, which was obtained from ergocryptine ergot strain vkm-f-2642d. the structure of these alkaloids was determined by 1h and 13c nmr. | 2002 | 12449796 |
| the major cu,zn sod of the phytopathogen claviceps purpurea is not essential for pathogenicity. | summary superoxide dismutase (sod) activities of the biotrophic pathogen claviceps purpurea, which causes the ergot disease on a wide range of host grasses, were examined in axenic and pathogenic cultures. almost all sod activity in axenic culture originated from a single cu,zn sod; a substantial part of this activity could be separated from lyophilized intact mycelia by gentle washing, indicating that this protein is at least partially secreted. the corresponding gene (cpsod1) was cloned and ch ... | 2002 | 20569304 |
| endocrine alterations associated with ergopeptine alkaloid exposure during equine pregnancy. | ergopeptine alkaloid exposure is common in pregnant mares. many mares live in geographic areas where neotyphodium coenophialum-infected tall fescue is the dominant grass in pastures and hay. a variety of grasses and cereal grains can be infected by claviceps purpurea, and fungal sclerotia can contaminate forage and especially ground and pelleted feed. an understanding of the endocrine alterations associated with ergopeptine alkaloid exposure during pregnancy is necessary for the diagnosis of pot ... | 2002 | 15635913 |
| molecular cloning and analysis of the ergopeptine assembly system in the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea. | claviceps purpurea produces the pharmacological important ergopeptines, a class of cyclol-structured alkaloid peptides containing d-lysergic acid. these compounds are assembled from d-lysergic acid and three different amino acids by the nonribosomal peptide synthetase enzymes lps1 and lps2. cloning of alkaloid biosynthesis genes from c. purpurea has revealed a gene cluster including two nrps genes, cpps 1 and cpps 2. protein sequence data had assigned earlier cpps1 to encode the trimodular lps1 ... | 2003 | 14700635 |
| chemometric modelling with two-dimensional fluorescence data for claviceps purpurea bioprocess characterization. | modern bioprocess control requires fast data acquisition and in-time evaluation of bioprocess variables. on-line fluorescence spectroscopy and the application of chemometric methods accomplish these goals. in order to demonstrate how time-consuming off-line analysis methods can be replaced for bioprocess monitoring, fluorescence measurements were performed during different cultivations of the fungus claviceps purpurea. to predict process variables like biomass, protein, and alkaloid concentratio ... | 2003 | 14511918 |
| secretion of acid phosphatase in claviceps purpurea--an ultracytochemical study. | the lead phosphate precipitation method showed the reaction product of acid phosphatase (which reflects the presence of the enzyme glycoprotein) in peripheral cytoplasmic vesicles in the ascomycetous fungus claviceps purpurea. the product appeared to diffuse from these vesicles (diameter 100-200 nm) towards the cell wall, usually to its sites covered by the capsular fibres exhibiting also acid phosphatase activity. this observation of diffusion of secretory glycoprotein in the cytoplasmic matrix ... | 2003 | 15058189 |
| evidence that enforced sunlight exposure can cause hyperthermia in cattle ingesting low levels of ergot of rye (claviceps purpurea), when air temperature and humidity conditions are only moderate. | to determine the rectal temperature response of cattle, following the oral administration of ergot of rye (claviceps purpurea), under pen conditions of enforced sunlight compared with those of enforced shade. | 2003 | 15086095 |
| structural and functional analysis of an oligomeric hydrophobin gene from claviceps purpurea. | summary fungal hydrophobins are small hydrophobic proteins containing eight cysteine residues at conserved positions which have the ability to form amphipathic polymers. we have characterized a gene from the phytopathogenic ascomycete claviceps purpurea, cpph1, which encodes a modular-type hydrophobin. it consists of five units, each showing a significant homology to class ii hydrophobins. the units are separated by gn-repeat regions, which could form amphipathic alpha-helices; the amino terminu ... | 2003 | 20569360 |
| an analysis associating the presence of claviceps purpurea in grassland with the incidence of type 1 diabetes. | we introduce our paper by briefly outlining how we came to the conclusion that neurons in the brain and cells in other tissues can be killed by high intracellular concentrations of calcium ions (ca(2+)). the life cycle of claviceps purpurea is then described before theoretical information is drawn upon which indicates that ergot alkaloids can inactivate alpha adrenergic receptors for noradrenaline released from sympathetic nerve terminals. we deduce that inhibition of these receptors by ergot al ... | 2003 | 12615522 |
| [neurological syndromes associated with the ingestion of plants and fungi with a toxic component (ii). hallucinogenic fungi and plants, mycotoxins and medicinal herbs]. | a wide range of fungi and medicinal herbs, rich in hallucinogenic substances and widely used for mystic and medicinal purposes, can give rise to neurotoxic symptoms. | 2003 | 12766871 |
| hyperthermic syndrome in dairy cattle associated with consumption of ergots of claviceps purpurea in southern brazil. | a hyperthermic syndrome (hs) associated with consumption of ration contaminated with claviceps purpurea is described in 4 dairy cattle herds from different counties in the state of rio grande do sul, southern brazil. outbreaks of this mycotoxicosis occurred during the summer of 1999-2000 and autumn of 2002 when 25% to 70% of cattle from those herds were affected. the disease occurred after the introduction of a new batch of feed contaminated with sclerotia of c. purpurea. first clinical signs we ... | 2003 | 12776790 |
| convulsive ergotism: epidemics of the serotonin syndrome? | between 1085 and 1927, epidemics of "convulsive ergotism" were widespread east of the rhine in europe due to consumption of grain contaminated with ergot, which is produced by the fungus claviceps purpurea. west of the rhine, consumption of ergot-contaminated food caused epidemics of gangrenous ergotism. the clinical features of convulsive ergotism--muscle twitching and spasms, changes in mental state, hallucinations, sweating, and fever lasting for several weeks--suggest serotonergic overstimul ... | 2003 | 12849122 |
| purcopia, a ty1-copia truncated retroelement in the genome of claviceps purpurea. | truncated copy of reverse transcriptase of ty1/copia retroelement (purcopia) was found as part of the species-specific rapd 257(540) marker of claviceps purpurea. a region of 94 bp with 78.9% identity to an unannotated region of the genomic clone of the rice blast fungus pyricularia grisea (accession no. aq162050) was found at the 5' end of the pseudogene. comparison with database sequences revealed that purcopia is close to the plant retroelements represented by tto1, ta1-3 and bare-1, whereas ... | 2003 | 12879745 |
| better biosynthesis of ergot alkaloids. | different culture media containing different effectors for production of ergot-alkaloids were prepared. the culture media were inoculated with equal mycelia of claviceps purpurea and some were incubated for 22 days and some incubated for 45 days. the medium that contained a mixture of glucose, glycine and tryptophan showed highest yield of the alkaloids and reached the maximum period for production of agroclavine faster. | 2003 | 12918229 |
| thermoregulatory response of dairy cows fed ergotized barley during summer heat stress. | claviceps purpurea infects the seed heads of cereal grains and grasses and produces ergopeptine alkaloids that cause hyperthermia and agalactia in cattle during periods of heat stress. a field experiment was undertaken to examine the effects of ergopeptine alkaloids found in barley on thermal status of dairy cattle during periods of heat stress. production end points were also measured to identify the effect of the change in thermal status. contaminated barley screenings containing known levels ... | 2003 | 12918817 |
| [about the acting of the brotherhood of st. anthony in würzburg]. | the brotherhood of st. anthony, founded in the old french province of dauphiné in 1095, was elevated to the rank of a monastic order in 1227, complying with the rules of the augustinian canons. in their infirmaries the monks took care of the persons attacked by ergot poisoning. if prayers and ointments were of no avail, in most cases the lower leg was amputated, so that the vital organs were not affected by gangrene. after bad harvests this ergotism became an epidemy, as rye-flour was consumed w ... | 2003 | 15637802 |
| claviceps purpurea: molecular aspects of a unique pathogenic lifestyle. | summary claviceps purpurea is a ubiquitous pathogen of cereals and grasses, causing ergot disease, which results in substitution of grains by sclerotia. these overwintering structures contain ergot-alkaloids, which can cause severe intoxication in mammals. c. purpurea is an interesting model system for the study of host-pathogen interaction. it displays strict organ specificity, attacking exclusively young grass ovaries. it is optimally adapted to this special niche of infection, probably by mim ... | 2004 | 20565614 |
| occurrence of d-histidine residues in antimicrobial poly(arginyl-histidine), conferring resistance to enzymatic hydrolysis. | the antimicrobial peptide poly(arginyl-histidine) is secreted by the ergot fungus verticillium kibiense. we previously showed that poly(arginyl-histidine) from the fungus inhibits the growth of certain microorganisms more effectively than that chemically synthesized from the l-form of arginine and histidine, implying some substantial differences between the fungal and synthetic peptides. to elucidate what causes such differences, we here investigated the structural features of the fungal peptide ... | 2004 | 15476974 |
| cptf1, a creb-like transcription factor, is involved in the oxidative stress response in the phytopathogen claviceps purpurea and modulates ros level in its host secale cereale. | cptf1, a transcription factor with significant homology to atf/creb bzip factors, was identified during an expressed sequence tag (est) analysis of in planta-expressed genes of the phytopathogen claviceps purpurea. using a gene-replacement approach, deletion mutants of cptf1 were created. expression studies in axenic culture showed that the h2o2-inducible gene cpcat1 (encoding a secreted catalase) had a reduced basal expression level and no longer responded to oxidative stress in the delta cptf1 ... | 2004 | 15077671 |
| deuterium nmr used to indicate a common mechanism for the biosynthesis of ricinoleic acid by ricinus communis and claviceps purpurea. | previous studies have shown that ricinoleic acid from castor bean oil of ricinus communis is synthesized by the direct hydroxyl substitution of oleate, while it has been proposed that ricinoleate is formed by hydration of linoleate in the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea. the mechanism of the enzymes specific to ricinoleate synthesis has not yet been established, but hydroxylation and desaturation of fatty acids in plants apparently involve closely related mechanisms. as mechanistic differences i ... | 2004 | 15012155 |
| ergot of rye-the first specific for migraine. | over the past decade the various triptan derivatives have been accepted as the most effective available agents for relieving migraine attacks. prior to that, for a period of half a century, ergotamine was the only 'specific' available for this purpose. in 1918, stoll had isolated it from the various alkaloids present in extracts of the sclerotia of the fungus claviceps purpurea (ergot), which grow on rye and, to a lesser extent, on other grasses. by 1925 ergotamine was beginning to be used to tr ... | 2004 | 14642357 |
| antimicrobial activity of a chelatable poly(arginyl-histidine) produced by the ergot fungus verticillium kibiense. | we have recently developed a convenient method of screening a broad range of microorganisms that produce epsilon-poly-l-lysine (m. nishikawa and k. ogawa, appl. environ. microbiol. 68:3575-3581, 2002). using this method, we found an ergot fungus that secretes a charged polypeptide other than epsilon-poly-l-lysine. it was identified as a new species on the basis of its 28s rrna sequence and was named verticillium kibiense (formerly epichloe kibiensis). peptide sequencing and mass spectrometry rev ... | 2004 | 14693544 |
| the cot1 homologue cpcot1 regulates polar growth and branching and is essential for pathogenicity in claviceps purpurea. | claviceps purpurea, the ergot fungus, is a common grass pathogen attacking exclusively young ovaries. its pathogenic development involves an early phase of directed growth (with strictly suppressed branching) towards the floral vascular tissue. since ser/thr protein kinases of the ndr family have been shown to be involved in polar growth and branching in fungi, we have analyzed a c. purpurea homologue of the neurospora crassa cot-1 gene, cpcot1. it encodes a functional homologue of cot1 since it ... | 2004 | 15670709 |
| an ergot alkaloid biosynthesis gene and clustered hypothetical genes from aspergillus fumigatus. | the ergot alkaloids are a family of indole-derived mycotoxins with a variety of significant biological activities. aspergillus fumigatus, a common airborne fungus and opportunistic human pathogen, and several fungi in the relatively distant taxon clavicipitaceae (clavicipitaceous fungi) produce different sets of ergot alkaloids. the ergot alkaloids of these divergent fungi share a four-member ergoline ring but differ in the number, type, and position of the side chains. several genes required fo ... | 2005 | 15933009 |
| a cdc42 homologue in claviceps purpurea is involved in vegetative differentiation and is essential for pathogenicity. | claviceps purpurea, a biotrophic pathogen of cereals, has developed a unique pathogenic strategy including an extended period of unbranched directed growth in the host's style and ovarian tissue to tap the vascular system. since the small gtpase cdc42 has been shown to be involved in cytoskeleton organization and polarity in other fungi, we investigated the role of cdc42 in the development and pathogenicity of c. purpurea. expression of heterologous dominant-active (da) and dominant-negative (dn ... | 2005 | 16002649 |
| heterothallism in cordyceps takaomontana. | perithecium formation of an entomopathogenic fungus cordyceps takaomontana was promoted by treating the mycelia with cell wall-degrading enzymes and peg 4000. perithecia were formed in the mixed culture of both mating-type strains mat1 and mat2, and not in the culture of mat1 or mat2 alone. the mat1 strains did not possess a mating-type gene mat1-1-3, but could produce perithecia. these results strongly suggested that c. takaomontana is heterothallic, and does not need mat1-1-3 for the peritheci ... | 2005 | 16055279 |
| molecular cloning, expression, and characterization of the cu,zn superoxide dismutase (sod1) gene from the entomopathogenic fungus cordyceps militaris. | we describe the molecular characterization of the cu,zn superoxide dismutase (sod1) gene of cordyceps militaris, which is one of the entomopathogenic fungi called a vegetable wasp and plant worm. the sod1 gene of c. militaris spans 922 bp and consisted of three introns and four exons coding for 154 amino acid residues. the deduced amino acid sequence of the c. militaris sod1 cdna showed 88% identity to claviceps purpurea sod1, 82% to neurospora crassa sod1, and 75-64% to sod1 sequences from othe ... | 2005 | 16389964 |
| structural analysis of a peptide synthetase gene required for ergopeptine production in the endophytic fungus neotyphodium lolii. | lysergyl peptide synthetase 1 catalyzes the assembly of toxic ergopeptines from activated d-lysergic acid and three amino acids. the gene encoding this enzyme in the endophytic fungus neotyphodium lolii was analyzed and compared to a homologous gene from the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea. each gene contained two introns, which were found in the same relative position within two modules of the gene. the 5' ends of the two genes were unusually divergent. signature sequences determining substrate ... | 2005 | 16243728 |
| comparative studies on the effect of ergot contaminated feed on performance and health of piglets and chickens. | two dose response trials were conducted with piglets and chickens to study the effects of increasing amounts of ergot (claviceps purpurea) with a defined alkaloid content and pattern on performance, biochemical serum characteristics and organ weights (of chickens). the ergot was mixed into the cereal-soybean meal based diets at levels of 0, 0.5, 1, 2 and 4 g/kg. the total alkaloid content of the ergot was analysed to be 2775 mg/kg and showed the following composition: ergometrine 8.1%, ergotamin ... | 2005 | 16080303 |
| geographic distribution and diversity in claviceps purpurea from salt marsh habitats and characterization of pacific coast populations. | claviceps purpurea specific to grasses in salt marsh habitats (group g3) has previously been identified on spartina spp. in two locations: new jersey, usa and southern england. we have identified this subgroup of c. purpurea (g3) in 11 distinct populations including western europe, south america, and along the atlantic and pacific coasts of the usa. in addition, g3 c. purpurea was discovered on a new host grass genus, distichlis. unweighted pair group mean analyses of aflp and rapd data reveal d ... | 2005 | 15912931 |
| the ergot alkaloid gene cluster in claviceps purpurea: extension of the cluster sequence and intra species evolution. | the genomic region of claviceps purpurea strain p1 containing the ergot alkaloid gene cluster [tudzynski, p., hölter, k., correia, t., arntz, c., grammel, n., keller, u., 1999. evidence for an ergot alkaloid gene cluster in claviceps purpurea. mol. gen. genet. 261, 133-141] was explored by chromosome walking, and additional genes probably involved in the ergot alkaloid biosynthesis have been identified. the putative cluster sequence (extending over 68.5kb) contains 4 different nonribosomal pepti ... | 2005 | 15904941 |
| norleucine, a natural occurrence in a novel ergot alkaloid gamma-ergokryptinine. | a novel natural peptide ergot alkaloid gamma-ergokryptinine containing norleucine has been isolated from ergot sclerotia of the field-growing parasitic fungus claviceps purpurea ccm 8059. its structure was deduced from the nmr and mass spectral data. the final structural proof was provided by the crystal structure determination, which is the first x-ray structure of a natural nle-containing secondary metabolite. the conformations of three ergopeptinines: gamma-ergokryptinine, ergoladinine, and a ... | 2005 | 15723237 |
| the influence of ergot-contaminated feed on growth and slaughtering performance, nutrient digestibility and carry over of ergot alkaloids in growing-finishing pigs. | diets containing 0, 1 and 10 g ergot (claviceps purpurea) per kg, corresponding to mean total alkaloid contents of 0.05, 0.60 and 4.66 mg/kg (sums of ergometrine, ergotamine, ergocornine, alpha-ergocryptine, ergocristine, ergosine and their -inine isomers analysed by a hplc-method), were each fed ad libitum to 12 pigs in the bw range of 30-115 kg to study the effect of ergot-contaminated feed on growth and slaughtering performance and the carry over of ergot alkaloids. additionally, balance tria ... | 2005 | 16429824 |
| post-genome research on the biosynthesis of ergot alkaloids. | genome sequencing provides new opportunities and challenges for identifying genes for the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. a putative biosynthetic gene cluster of fumigaclavine c, an ergot alkaloid of the clavine type, was identified in the genome sequence of aspergillus fumigatus by a bioinformatic approach. this cluster spans 22 kb of genomic dna and comprises at least 11 open reading frames (orfs). seven of them are orthologous to genes from the biosynthetic gene cluster of ergot alkalo ... | 2006 | 16902860 |
| in vitro pathogenicity assay for the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea. | the pathogenic development of the biotrophic ergot fungus claviceps purpurea is strictly limited to the ovary of grasses. early colonization stages occur within a defined spatio-temporal course of events, including the directed growth to the vascular tissue for nutrient supply. to characterize mutant strains with putative defects in pathogenicity, the close observation of the infection pathway is therefore indispensable. here, we describe the establishment of a new pathogenicity assay, based on ... | 2006 | 16483754 |
| identification of the cytochrome p450 monooxygenase that bridges the clavine and ergoline alkaloid pathways. | clavines and d-lysergic acid-derived alkaloid amides and alkaloid peptides are two different families of compounds that have the indole-derived tetracyclic metergoline ring system in common. previous work has shown that d-lysergic acid is biosynthetically derived from clavine alkaloids. recent cloning and analysis of the ergot alkaloid biosynthesis gene cluster from the d-lysergic acid peptide (ergopeptines)-producing claviceps purpurea, has shown that it most probably contains all genes necessa ... | 2006 | 16538694 |
| phylogenetic evidence for an animal pathogen origin of ergot and the grass endophytes. | grass-associated fungi (grass symbionts) in the family clavicipitaceae (ascomycota, hypocreales) are species whose host range is restricted to the plant family poaceae and rarely cyperaceae. the best-characterized species include claviceps purpurea (ergot of rye) and neotyphodium coenophialum (endophyte of tall fescue). they have been the focus of considerable research due to their importance in agricultural and grassland ecosystems and the diversity of their bioactive secondary metabolites. her ... | 2007 | 17402984 |
| the histidine kinase cphk2 has impact on spore germination, oxidative stress and fungicide resistance, and virulence of the ergot fungus claviceps purpurea. | summary histidine kinases are important mediators for adaptation of bacteria and plants to environmental signals. genome analyses of filamentous fungi have revealed the presence of a high number of potential hybrid histidine kinase (hk)-encoding genes; the role of most of these potential sensors is so far unclear, though some members of the class iii histidine kinases were shown to be involved in osmostress responses. here we present a functional analysis of cphk2, a histidine kinase-encoding ge ... | 2007 | 20507528 |
| comparison of ergot alkaloid biosynthesis gene clusters in claviceps species indicates loss of late pathway steps in evolution of c. fusiformis. | the grass parasites claviceps purpurea and claviceps fusiformis produce ergot alkaloids (ea) in planta and in submerged culture. whereas ea synthesis (eas) in c. purpurea proceeds via clavine intermediates to lysergic acid and the complex ergopeptines, c. fusiformis produces only agroclavine and elymoclavine. in c. purpurea the eas gene (eas) cluster includes dmaw (encoding the first pathway step), cloa (elymoclavine oxidation to lysergic acid), and the lpsa/lpsb genes (ergopeptine formation). w ... | 2007 | 17720822 |
| a complex ergovaline gene cluster in epichloe endophytes of grasses. | clavicipitaceous fungal endophytes of the genera epichloë and neotyphodium form symbioses with grasses of the subfamily pooideae, in which they can synthesize an array of bioprotective alkaloids. some strains produce the ergopeptine alkaloid ergovaline, which is implicated in livestock toxicoses caused by ingestion of endophyte-infected grasses. cloning and analysis of a nonribosomal peptide synthetase (nrps) gene from neotyphodium lolii revealed a putative gene cluster for ergovaline biosynthes ... | 2007 | 17308187 |
| primary structure, regioselectivity, and evolution of the membrane-bound fatty acid desaturases of claviceps purpurea. | two cdnas with sequence similarity to fatty acid desaturase genes were isolated from the phytopathogenic fungus, claviceps purpurea. the predicted amino acid sequences of the corresponding genes, named cpdes12 and cpdesx, share 87% identity. phylogenetic analysis indicates that cpdes12 and cpdesx arose by gene duplication of an ancestral delta(12)-desaturase gene after the divergence of nectriaceae and clavicipitaceae. functional expression of cpdes12 and cpdesx in yeast (saccharomyces cerevisia ... | 2007 | 17510052 |
| claviceps nigricans and claviceps grohii: their alkaloids and phylogenetic placement. | claviceps purpurea, c. grohii, c. zizaniae, c. cyperi, and c. nigricans are closely related ergot fungi and form a monophyletic clade inside the genus claviceps. analysis of alkaloid content in c. nigricans sclerotia using uplc detected ergocristine (1), ergosine (2), alpha-ergocryptine (3), and ergocristam (4). alkaloids 1, 3, and 4 were found in the sclerotia of c. grohii. the content of 4 in the mixture of alkaloids from c. nigricans and c. grohii (over 8% and over 20%, respectively) was unus ... | 2008 | 18461998 |
| multigene analysis suggests ecological speciation in the fungal pathogen claviceps purpurea. | claviceps purpurea is an important pathogen of grasses and source of novel chemical compounds. three groups within this species (g1, g2 and g3) have been recognized based on habitat association, sclerotia and conidia morphology, as well as alkaloid production. these groups have further been supported by random amplification of polymorphic dna (rapd) and amplified fragment length polymorphism (aflp) markers, suggesting this species may be more accurately described as a species complex. however, a ... | 2008 | 18373531 |