Laboratoire Physiologie Cellulaire & Végétale

Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) is a complex and devastating form of respiratory failure, with high mortality rates, for which there is no pharmacological treatment. The acute exudative phase of ARDS is characterized by severe damage to the alveolar-capillary barrier, infiltration of protein-rich fluid into the lungs, neutrophil recruitment, and high levels of inflammatory mediators. Rapid resolution of this reversible acute phase, with efficient restoration of alveolar functional integrity, is essential before the establishment of irreversible fibrosis and respiratory failure. Several lines of in vitro and in vivo evidence support the involvement of potassium (K+) channels-particularly KvLQT1, expressed in alveolar cells-in key cellular mechanisms for ARDS resolution, by promoting alveolar fluid clearance and epithelial repair processes. The aim of our study was to investigate whether pharmacological activation of KvLQT1 channels could elicit beneficial effects on ARDS parameters in an animal model of acute lung injury. We used the well-established bleomycin model, which mimics (at day 7) the key features of the exudative phase of ARDS. Our data demonstrate that treatments with the KvLQT1 activator R-L3, delivered to the lungs, failed to improve endothelial permeability and lung edema in bleomycin mice. However, KvLQT1 activation significantly reduced neutrophil recruitment and tended to decrease levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines/chemokines in bronchoalveolar lavages after bleomycin administration. Importantly, R-L3 treatment was associated with significantly lower injury scores, higher levels of alveolar type I (HTI-56, AQP5) and II (pro-SPC) cell markers, and improved alveolar epithelial repair capacity in the presence of bleomycin. Together, these results suggest that the KvLQT1 K+ channel may be a potential target for the resolution of the acute phase of ARDS.

Abstract Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) is a major plant pathogen with a worldwide distribution and the widest host range among all known plant viruses. It affects numerous crop species and can cause symptoms that significantly reduce yield. CMV is primarily transmitted by aphids and more sporadically through seeds. It is frequently studied in laboratory settings with the aim of developing effective control strategies. In many experiments, infected plants are placed in direct contact with healthy ones assuming that CMV cannot be transmitted in this way. However, this has not been formally demonstrated. Therefore, this study aimed to assess whether CMV can be transmitted through plant-to-plant contact. Infected plants were first rubbed against healthy ones and then left in contact for 28 days. Target plants were subsequently tested using DAS-ELISA to detect potential transmission. We applied this protocol in two separate tests totalizing 15 combinations of plant species including pepper (Capsicum annuum) and five weed species (Capsella bursa-pastoris, Cerastium glomeratum, Stellaria media, Stachys arvensis and Trifolium repens). We found that CMV could be transmitted through contact between pepper and all tested weed species except T.repens. These findings highlight the importance of verifying whether a virus is capable of contact transmission before carrying out experiments in controlled conditions. In case of transmission, appropriate precautions will be crucial to avoid unintended transmissions.

Background: African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs), particularly species of the genus Momordica, are crucial for West African communities, offering nutritious leaves, fruits, and seeds used both as food and traditional medicine. Earlier publications emphasized the significance of the genus Momordica, focusing on pharmacology, traditional uses, and biochemical components. However, current knowledge and research on sustainable management policies remain limited. This study presents a comprehensive systematic review of the past three decades, highlighting publication trends and key insights on the conservation ecology and domestication of Momordica species in Africa. Methods: The search was conducted in four academic databases and covered peer-reviewed literature from 1993 to 2023. This systematic review initially identified 1,480 potentially relevant publications. Through a sequential screening process, beginning with evaluating titles, keywords, and abstracts, followed by a full-text assessment based on predefined inclusion criteria, 128 studies (8.6%) were ultimately selected for in-depth analysis. Results: A systematic analysis of the literature reveals that research on Momordica species has been geographically uneven across Africa. The majority of studies have been concentrated in West Africa (n = 89). Momordica charantia L. (n = 59), Momordica balsamina L. (n = 20), and Momordica. foetida Schumach. (n = 18) emerged as the most frequently investigated species. Despite growing interest, the systematic review reveals significant research gaps, especially regarding ecosystem services, genetic diversity, and the conservation status of Momordica species across Africa. Conclusion: Addressing these gaps could facilitate more informed decision-making and promote sustainable strategies for the ongoing domestication of these species in Africa. Keywords: African Indigenous Vegetables, genus Momordica, Ethnobotany, Conservation biology, Domestication.

SummaryBioModTool is a Python program allowing easy generation of biomass objective functions for genome-scale metabolic models from user data. BioModTool loads biomass composition data in the form of a structured Excel file completed by the user, normalizes these data into model-compatible units (mmol.gDW−1), and creates a structured biomass objective function to update a metabolic model. Aimed at a wide range of users, BioModTool can be run as a Python module compatible with COBRApy but also comes with an interface allowing its use by non-modelers. By providing an easy definition of new biomass objective functions, BioModTool can accelerate new genome-scale metabolic reconstructions, improve existing ones, and facilitate biomass-specific experimental datasets analyses with genome-scale models.Availability and implementationBioModTool is publicly available on PyPI (https://pypi.org/project/BioModTool/) under a GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL). Installation instructions and source code are available on GitHub (https://github.com/Total-RD/BioModTool). BioModTool is compatible with Windows, Linux, and MacOS operating systems.

Membrane biogenesis requires an extensive traffic of lipids between different cell compartments. Two main pathways, the vesicular and non-vesicular pathways, are involved in such a process. Whereas the mechanisms involved in vesicular trafficking are well understood, less is known about non-vesicular lipid trafficking, particularly in plants. This pathway involves the direct exchange of lipids at membrane contact sites (MCSs) between organelles. In plants, extensive traffic of the chloroplast-synthesized digalactosyldiacylglycerol (DGDG) to mitochondria is specifically promoted during phosphate starvation. This lipid exchange likely occurs by non-vesicular trafficking pathways at MCSs between mitochondria and plastids. By a biochemical approach, a mitochondrial lipoproteic super-complex called MTL (mitochondrial transmembrane lipoprotein complex) involved in mitochondrial lipid trafficking has been identified in Arabidopsis thaliana. This protocol describes the method used to separate the MTL complex and to study the implication of a component of this complex (AtMic60) in mitochondrial lipid transport.

This article is a Commentary on Yang et al. (2025), 245: 1577–1588.