We identified a gene for β-1,3-glucan synthesis (GBG1), a nonessential gene whose disruption alters cell wall synthesis enzyme activities and cell wall composition. This gene was cloned by functional complementation of defects in β-1,3-glucan synthase activity of the the previously isolated Saccharomyces cerevisiae mutant LP0353, which displays a number of cell wall defects at restrictive tempe...

The influence of the light microscopical stains, Calcofluor white and Congo red, on the process of chitin microfibril formation of the chrysoflagellate alga Poterioochromonas stipitata was studied with light and electron microscopy. There is a concentration-dependent inhibition of lorica formation with both dyes. In the presence of the inhibitors malformed loricae are made, which do not show th...

Microsporidia are eukaryotic, unicellular parasites that have been studied for more than 150 years. These organisms are extraordinary in their ability to invade a wide range of hosts including vertebrates and invertebrates, such as human and commercially important animals. A lack of appropriate labeling methods has limited the research of the cell cycle and protein locations in intracellular st...

To quantify intensity of infection in AIDS-related microsporidiosis, 20 patients with known microsporidiosis submitted stools for quantitative spore counts after staining with a calcofluor white stain. Nine patients collected stools for 24 h, for assessment of daily spore excretion, stool-to-stool variation in spore excretion, and patient-to-patient variation in intensity of infection. The numb...

Acanthamoeba cysts are resistant to unfavorable physiological conditions and various disinfectants. Acanthamoeba cysts have 2 walls containing various sugar moieties, and in particular, one third of the inner wall is composed of cellulose. In this study, it has been shown that down-regulation of cellulose synthase by small interfering RNA (siRNA) significantly inhibits the formation of mature A...

Chitinase (EC 3.2.1.14) was isolated from the culture filtrate of Streptomyces sp. M-20 and purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation, DEAE-cellulose ion-exchange chromatography, and Sephadex G-100 gel filtration. No exochitinase activity was found in the culture filtrate. The molecular mass of the purified chitinase was 20 kDa, estimated by a sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrop...

The ability of two different flow cytometers, the Microcyte (Optoflow) and the PAS-III (Partec), to differentiate sporangia of the late-blight pathogen Phytophthora infestans from other potential airborne particles was compared. With the PAS-III, light scatter and intrinsic fluorescence parameters could be used to differentiate sporangia from conidia of Alternaria or Botrytis spp., rust uredini...

Filamentous fungi in drinking water can block water pipes, can cause organoleptic biodeterioration, and are a source of pathogens. There are increasing reports of the involvement of the organisms in biofilms. This present study describes a sampling device that can be inserted directly into pipes within water distribution systems, allowing biofilm formation in situ. Calcofluor White M2R staining...

310 CMYK Figure 2: (a) Calcofluor white stain of the corneal scraping showing septate, branched fungi with chlamydospores. (x250). (b) Eight day old growth of the fungus on potato dextrose agar showing Grey, fluffy colonies with black granules on the surface. (c) Lactophenol cotton blue wet mount of the colony showing falcate conidia (shown with arrowheads), and conidiomata, upon which darkly p...

The viability of algae belonging to divisions Cyanophyta, Chlorophyta and Xantophyta has been assessed by chlorophyll autofluorescence and after staining with fluorescent dyes rodamin B, neutral rot, calcofluor white and fluorescein diacetate. For this purpose the fluorescence of algal cells from fresh and old cultures was scored. It was established that chlorophyll autofluorescence could be re...