A novel dark septate fungal endophyte positively affected blueberry growth and changed the expression of plant genes involved in phytohormone and flavonoid biosynthesis. Wu Fan-Lin,Li Yan,Tian Wei,Sun Yadong,Chen Feiyan,Zhang Yurou,Zhai Yuxuan,Zhang Jing,Su Hongyan,Wang Lei Tree physiology Dark septate endophytes (DSEs) are one of the most studied groups of root fungal endophytes in recent years. However, the effects of DSE on host plant are still under debate, and the molecular mechanisms are poorly understood. In this study, we identified a DSE fungus of the genus Anteaglonium, named T010, from the wild blueberry. When inoculated into Vaccinium corymbosum L. plants, T010 could enhance root growth and promote shoot branching, leading to increased plant growth. By comparative transcriptome analysis, we obtained 1948 regulated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) from the V. corymbosum plants treated by T010. Further functional enrichment analysis identified a series of DEGs enriched in transcriptional regulation, material transport, phytohormone biosynthesis and flavonoid biosynthesis. Moreover, the comparative analysis of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry verified that T010 treatment induced the changes in the contents of various phytohormones and flavonoids. This is the first report on the isolation of DSE fungi of the genus Anteaglonium from blueberry roots. Moreover, our results suggested that T010 colonization could result in a series of changes in cell metabolism, biosynthesis and signal pathways, thereby promoting plant growth. Particularly, the changes of phytohormone and flavonoid metabolism induced by T010 colonization might contribute to the promotion of blueberry growth. Our results will provide new insights into understanding of the interaction of DSE fungi and host plants, as well as the development and utilization of DSE preparations. 10.1093/treephys/tpaa047

Bioactive extracts from berry byproducts on the pathogenicity of Salmonella Typhimurium. Salaheen Serajus,Jaiswal Ekta,Joo Jungsoo,Peng Mengfei,Ho Ryan,OConnor Danielle,Adlerz Katrina,Aranda-Espinoza Jose Helim,Biswas Debabrata International journal of food microbiology The aim of this study was to evaluate the phenotypic and genotypic properties of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (ST) in the presence of lethal and sublethal concentrations (SLC) of blackberry (Rubus fruticosus) and blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) pomace extracts. Antimicrobial susceptibility, physicochemical properties, motility, biofilm formation ability, virulence gene expression patterns, and the ability of ST to colonize in chick cecum were evaluated in the presence of these bioactive extracts. HPLC-MS analysis indicated that the phenolics in the berry pomace extracts consisted, but not limited to, flavan, flavanone, flavones, glucuronides, glucosides, quinolones, catechol, coumarin, phenols, luteolines, tannins, quercetin, chlorogenic acid, ellagic acid, gallic acid, and xanthoxic acid. The SLC of both berry pomace extracts increased the rates of injured ST by ~50%; significantly decreased the hydrophobicity, auto-aggregation, cellular motility, and invasion into cultured INT407, HD11, and DF1 cells. The relative expression of type III secretion system regulated genes, hilA, hilC, invA, invF, sirA, and sirB was significantly downregulated in ST. In addition, natural colonization ability of Salmonella in chick cecum was reduced by more than two logs in the presence of 0.5 and 1.0gGallicAcidEquivalent/L berry pomace extracts when provided as water supplement. Findings from this study reveal the high potential of phenolic extracts from berry pomaces as a green antimicrobial against enteric pathogen Salmonella and application in the reduction of pre-harvest colonization level of Salmonella in poultry gut. 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2016.08.027

Sodium borohydride/chloranil-based assay for quantifying total flavonoids. He Xiangjiu,Liu Dong,Liu Rui Hai Journal of agricultural and food chemistry A novel sodium borohydride/chloranil-based (SBC) assay for quantifying total flavonoids, including flavones, flavonols, flavonones, flavononols, isoflavonoids, flavanols, and anthocyanins, has been developed. Flavonoids with a 4-carbonyl group were reduced to flavanols using sodium borohydride catalyzed with aluminum chloride. Then the flavan-4-ols were oxidized to anthocyanins by chloranil in an acetic acid solution. The anthocyanins were reacted with vanillin in concentrated hydrochloric acid and then quantified spectrophotometrically at 490 nm. A representative of each common flavonoid class including flavones (baicalein), flavonols (quercetin), flavonones (hesperetin), flavononols (silibinin), isoflavonoids (biochanin A), and flavanols (catechin) showed excellent linear dose-responses in the general range of 0.1-10.0 mM. For most flavonoids, the detection limit was about 0.1 mM in this assay. The recoveries of quercetin from spiked samples of apples and red peppers were 96.5 +/- 1.4% (CV = 1.4%, n = 4) and 99.0 +/- 4.2% (CV = 4.2%, n = 4), respectively. The recovery of catechin from spiked samples of cranberry extracts was 97.9 +/- 2.0% (CV = 2.0%, n = 4). The total flavonoids of selected common fruits and vegetables were measured using this assay. Among the samples tested, blueberry had the highest total flavonoid content (689.5 +/- 10.7 mg of catechin equiv per 100 g of sample), followed by cranberry, apple, broccoli, and red pepper. This novel SBC total flavonoid assay can be widely used to measure the total flavonoid content of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, herbal products, dietary supplements, and nutraceutical products. 10.1021/jf070954+

Metabolome and transcriptome profiling unveil the mechanisms of light-induced anthocyanin synthesis in rabbiteye blueberry (vaccinium ashei: Reade). BMC plant biology BACKGROUND:Blueberry is one of the most important fruit crops worldwide. Anthocyanin is an important secondary metabolites that affects the appearance and nutritive quality of blueberries. However, few studies have focused on the molecular mechanism underlying anthocyanin accumulation induced by light intensity in blueberries. RESULTS:The metabolic analysis revealed that there were 134 significantly changed metabolites in the natural light compared to the control, and flavone, flavonol, and anthocyanins were the most significantly increased. Transcriptome analysis found 6 candidate genes for the anthocyanin synthesis pathway. Quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) results confirmed changes in the expression levels of genes encoding metabolites involved in the flavonoid synthesis pathways. The flavonoid metabolic flux in the light intensity-treatment increased the accumulation of delphinidin-3-O-arabinoside compared to under the shading-treatment. Furthermore, we performed qRT-PCR analysis of anthocyanin biosynthesis genes and predicted that the gene of VcF3'5'H4 may be a candidate gene for anthocyanin accumulation and is highly expressed in light intensity-treated fruit. Through the co-expression analysis of transcription factors and anthocyanin synthesis pathway genes, we found that the VcbHLH004 gene may regulate VcF3'5'H4, and then we transformed VcbHLH004 heterologously into tomato to verify its function. CONCLUSION:These results provide novel insights into light intensity regulation of blueberry anthocyanin accumulation and represent a valuable data set to guide future functional studies and blueberry breeding. 10.1186/s12870-022-03585-x

Survey of antioxidant capacity and phenolic composition of blueberry, blackberry, and strawberry in Nanjing. Huang Wu-yang,Zhang Hong-cheng,Liu Wen-xu,Li Chun-yang Journal of Zhejiang University. Science. B Berries are a good source of natural antioxidants. In the present study, the total antioxidant capacity and phenolic composition of three berry fruits (blueberry, blackberry, and strawberry) cultivated in Nanjing were investigated. Blueberry, with a Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) value of 14.98 mmol Trolox/100 g dry weight (DW), exhibited the strongest total antioxidant capacity using both the 2,2-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) and the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) methods. Blueberry also had the highest total phenolic content (TPC, 9.44 mg gallic acid/g DW), total flavonoid content (TFC, 36.08 mg rutin/g DW), and total anthocyanidin content (TAC, 24.38 mg catechin/g DW). A preliminary analysis using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) showed that the blueberry, blackberry, and strawberry samples tested contained a range of phenolic acids (including gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, vanillic acid, caffeic acid, p-coumaric acid, ferulic acid, ellagic acid, and cinnamic acid) and various types of flavonoids (flavone: luteolin; flavonols: rutin, myricetin, quercetrin, and quercetin; flavanols: gallocatechin, epigallocatechin, catechin, and catechin gallate; anthocyanidins: malvidin-3-galactoside, malvidin-3-glucoside, and cyanidin). In particular, the blueberries had high levels of proanthocyanidins and anthocyanidins, which might be responsible for their strong antioxidant activities. These results indicate a potential market role for berries (especially blueberries) as a functional food ingredient or nutraceutical. 10.1631/jzus.B1100137