Yeast colony PCR

Alipophilic styryl dye,FM4-64,is a vital stain which istakenupby cells viaendocytosis through plasma membrane(Vida and Emr, 1995). Therefore, it fluorescesonly in live cells. Importantly, neitherfixed cells canbe stained with FM 4-64norcells canbe fixed afterFM 4-64staining. For vacuole staining, single colony of the test strain grown onYPD plate was inoculated in 10 ml YPD medium for overnight. 100 μlovernight culture was inoculated in fresh YPD medium and incubated at 30ºC for 3 hto obtain log-phase cells. C. glabratacells from 1 ml log-phase culture were harvested at 4,000 rpm for 5 minin a table top centrifuge. Supernatant was aspirated out,cells were resuspended in 50 μl YPD medium and 1 μl FM 4-64 (16 μM final concentration) was added.C. glabratacells were incubated in a 30ºC water bath for 30 min. 1 mlYPD medium was added and cells were harvested at 4,000 rpm for 5 minin a table-top centrifuge. After discarding supernatant,C. glabratacells were washed with fresh YPD medium and resuspended in 1 ml YPD medium. C. glabratacells were incubated at 30ºC for 90 min, washed with 1 mlsterile water and were resuspended in 50 μl YNB medium. Labeled C. glabratacells were observed underfluorescence microscope in red filter(730nm)

Stainingof C. glabratavacuoleswith FM4-64

centrifugation at 5,000 rpm for 4 minat room temperature. Harvested cells werewashed with PBS and treated with different compoundse.g.H2O2. After treatment,cells were harvested and further processed according to the type of experiments performed

For several experiments, log-phase C. glabratacells were harvested and treated with different compounds. For this, single colony of aC. glabratastrain was inoculated in YPD-liquid medium and grown for 14-16 h at 30ºC withcontinuous shaking at 200 rpm. Overnight cultures were reinoculated in YPD medium to an initial OD600of 0.1 andgrown for another 4 h. These log-phase cells were harvested by

Harvesting of and treatment to logarithmic phase C. glabratacells

For opsonization,C. glabratacells were incubatedwith 1 μg/μl human IgG for 30 min at 37°C and washed thrice with PBS. Alternatively, yeast cells were incubated with 25% human serum at 37°C for 30 min followed by threePBS washes

Opsonizationof C. glabratacells

C. glabratastrains were grown overnight in YPD medium. Cellswereharvested from 1 mlcultureandwashed withPBS.Cells were next washed with50mM NaH2PO4andresuspendedin 100 μlFITC-dextran(50mg/ml). After incubation at 37°Cfor 45 min, cells were washed thrice with PBS for complete removal of FITC-dextran.Yeast cells were resuspended in 1 ml PBS and used to infect PMA-treated THP-1 cells in 4-chambered glass slide

Fluorescein isothiocyanate(FITC)staining of C. glabratacells

24 h post infection, THP-1 macrophages were washed thrice with PBS, lysed in water and recovered yeast cells were used to infect THP-1 cells at a MOIof 1:10. Three rounds of macrophage infection foreach mutant pool were carried out to enrich for the desired mutants in the final population. The lysate of 3rdround infection was inoculated in YPD medium for overnight (output). Cells were harvested, genomic DNA isolated from each input and output cell pellet andunique signature tags were PCR-amplified with P32-labeledα-dCTP using primers complementary to theinvariant region flanking each unique tag sequence. LabeledPCR products were denatured at 95°C for 10 min, chilled on ice and were hybridized tonylon membranescarrying immobilized plasmid DNA containing 96 unique tagsfor 14-16 h at 42°C.Membranes were washed twicewith 0.1X SSC bufferand exposed to phosphorimager screen for 2-4 h. Radioactive counts for each spot were quantified using Image Quant and Fuji Multi Gauge V3.0 software. Relative percentage intensity for individual spot was calculated with respect to allspots present oneach hybridizedmembrane

YPD-grown cultures (0.05 OD600) of each mutant pool (96 mutants, each carrying a unique signature tag) were either inoculated in YPD medium for overnight (input) or used to infect differentiated THP-1 cells (1X106). After 2 h incubation, non-cell-associated yeastcellswere removed by washing THP-1 cellsthricewith PBS. At

Screening of C. glabrataTn7insertion mutant library

Single colony of C. glabratastrains wasinoculated in 10ml YPD-liquid medium and grown at 30°C with constant shaking at 200 rpm for 14-16 h. Overnight culture was used to inoculate 10 ml YPD broth to an initial OD600of 0.1 and culture was grown for 4-5 h to obtain log-phase culture. Log-phase C. glabratacells were harvested in 15 ml sterile polypropylene tubesby centrifugation at 4,000 rpm for 5 min. Harvested cells were washed with10ml sterile water,resuspendedin 1 ml sterile water and transferred to a 1.5 ml microcentrifuge tube. Cells were harvested at 4,000 rpm for 5 minand resuspended in 100 μl of100mM lithium acetate solution.Yeast transformation cocktail was prepared in a 1.5 ml microcentrifuge tube by mixing 240 μlpolyethylene glycol(50%), 36μl lithium acetate(1 M) and25μlheat-denatured single stranded carrier DNA(2 mg/ml). 50 μlC. glabratacell suspension and 50 μltransforming DNAwas added to the transformation cocktail, mixed well andincubatedat 30 ̊C for45 min. 43 μlDMSO was added and cells were subjected to heat shock at 42 ̊Cfor 15 min. After the heat shock, cells were transferred to ice for 10-15 seconds, centrifuged at 4,000 rpm for 5 min and supernatantwas removed.Cells wereresuspended in 200 μlsterile water andspread platedonappropriate selectionmedium. Plates wereincubatedat30 ̊Cfor 2-3 days

Yeast transformation

Identified mutants were phenotypically characterized in 96-well plate format. Mutant cultures were grown in YPD medium for overnight, diluted 150-fold in PBS and 5 μl of cell suspension was spotted on different plates with a 96-pin replicator. Growth was recorded after 1-2 daysof incubation at 30°C

Phenotypic profiling

at 30°C andimages were captured after 2-8daysof incubationdepending upon the medium used

Yeast strains were grown in YPD medium for 14-16 hat 30°Cunder continuous shaking at 200 rpm. Cells were harvested from 1 mlculture, washed with PBS and were diluted to an OD600of 1. Five ten-fold serial dilutions were preparedfrom aninitial culture of 1OD600.4 μl cultureof each dilution was spotted onYNB-agar plates containing different carbon sources. For spotting on YPD plates containing different compounds, 3 μl cultureof each dilution was spotted. Plates were incubated

Serial dilution spotting assay

For growth analysis of a C. glabratastrain,single colony wasinoculated in appropriate broth medium and grown for 14-16 h. Overnight grown culture was used to inoculate the test medium toan initial OD600of 0.1-0.3. Cultures were transferred to a shaker incubator set at 30°C and 200 rpm. Absorbance ofcultures was measured using Ultraspec 2100 pro UV/visible spectrophotometer (Amersham Biosciences) at 600 nm at regular time-intervalstill 48h. Absorbancevalues were plotted with respect to time and generation time was determined from the logarithmic (log)phase of cell growth usingthefollowing formula.G = Generation time (h)T1= Initial time point taken for analysisT2= Final time point taken for analysisNf= Number of cells at time T2(1 OD600of C. glabrata corresponds to 2 X 107cells.)Ni= Number of cells at time T1(calculated from OD600value as mentioned above)

Growth analysis and determination of generation time

Bacterial strainEscherichia coli DH5αused for cloning purposewas revived on LB medium and grown at 37°C withcontinuous shaking at 200 rpm. LB medium was supplemented with appropriate antibiotics to growbacterial strains carrying plasmids. AnotherE. coli strain,BW23473,was used to rescue the Tn7transposon cassette from C. glabrataTn7insertion mutants. For plasmid DNA purification, bacterial strains were grown overnight in LB broth medium containingsuitable antibiotics

C. glabratastrains were routinely grown either in rich YPD medium or synthetically-defined YNB medium at 30°C withcontinuous shaking at 200 rpm unless otherwise stated. In general, C. glabratafrozen glycerol stocks wererevivedonYPD medium by streaking and allowed to grow for 1-2 days. C. glabratastrainsharboringthe plasmid with URA3as selectable marker were revived onCAA medium.To prepare liquid cell culture, single colony of eachC. glabratastrainwasinoculated either in YPD or YNB broth mediumand grown for 14-16 h. C. glabratastrains streaked on plates were storedat 4°C fora maximum period of2 weeks

Strains and culture conditions

Microbiological methods

To isolate primary peritoneal macrophages, 6-8 week old BALB/c mice were injected with 3% (w/v) thioglycollate broth (0.55% dextrose, 0.05% sodium thioglycollate, 0.5% sodium chloride, 0.05% agar)intraperitonealy (I.P. 50 μl/g body weight). After five days of injection, mice were euthanized by CO2inhalationand peritoneal macrophages were harvested byflushing the peritoneal cavity (lavage) with 10 mlDMEM medium(Zhang et al., 2008)

Isolation of primary (peritoneal) macrophages from BALB/c mice

150 mM NaCl1% Triton-X1% SDSBuffer B50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5)10 mM EDTA1.1 MSorbitol50 mM β-mercaptoethanol (To be added just before use)Buffer C100 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5)10 mM EDTA10% SDSAE buffer3 M Sodium acetate(pH 5.3)0.5 M EDTA (pH 8.0)Phenol:Chloroform:Isoamyl alcohol (25:24:1) solution25 ml Tris-equilibrated Phenol24 ml Chloroform1 ml Isoamyl alcholDNA sample loading buffer0.25% Bromophenol blue0.25% Xylene cyanol15% FicollDNA sample loading buffer was prepared in water

Buffer A50 mM Tris-HCl(pH 8)10 mM EDTA

Buffers for extraction and analysis of genomic DNA and RNA

10 mM NaCl2.5 mM KCl10 mM MgCl210 mM MgSO4LB-ampicillin and LB-kanamycin platesLBmedium50 μg/ml ampicillin30 μg/ml kanamycinMedia and solutions were sterilizedeither by routine autoclaving at 121°C and 15 psi for 20 minor by filtration through membrane of 0.22 μm porosity

Luria Bertani (LB)0.5% Yeast Extract1% Tryptone1% NaClSuper Optimal Broth (SOB)0.5% Yeast Extract2% Peptone

Bacterial media

All antibodies, their sources, clonality and dilutions used are listed in Table 2.2

Antibodies

For restriction digestion(either single or double), 0.5 to 1μg of DNA was used in a reaction containing2 to 5units of commercially available restriction enzyme(s)and 5μl of the recommended buffer (suppliedas 10X concentrationsby the vendor)in atotal reaction volume of 50μl. The reaction mixture was incubated for 2 h or overnight at 37°C. The digested DNA fragments were then visualised by ethidium bromide staining after electrophoresis on agarose gels. Commercially available DNA size markers were loaded along with the samples to ascertain or estimate the sizes of the digestedfragments

Restriction enzyme digestion

Automated DNA sequencing on plasmid templates or on PCR products was carried out with dye terminator cycle sequencing kits from Perkin-Elmer on an automated sequencer (model 377, Applied Biosystems), following the manufacturer’s instructions

DNA sequencing

Agarose gels were preparedby boiling appropriate amount of agarose in TAEbuffer. After dissolution, it was cooled and then poured in a casting tray containing a comb for desired number of wells. The gel was allowed to solidify and then shifted to horizontal electrophoresis tank containing TAE buffer. The DNA samples were mixed with appropriate volumes of 6X DNA loading dye, loaded on the gel andelectrophoresedat appropriate voltage and current conditions (generally 80 V,400 mA). The gel was stained in ethidium bromide solution(1 μg/ml)for 15-min at room temperature and visualisedby fluorescence under UV-light in a UV-transilluminator

Agarose Gel Electrophoresis

2μg of total RNA was reverse-transcribed using SuperScript III Reverse Transcriptase which is a commercially available version of M-MLVRT with reduced RNase H activity and increased thermal stability.According to manufacturer’s protocol1μg of RNA,1μl oligo(dT)(500ng),1μl 10mM dNTPand nuclease freewater was added to afinal volume of 13μlin a PCR tube.Thismixture was then incubated at 65°C for 5 minutesin a thermo cyclerand then quicklytransferredtoicefor 1minute. To this 4μl of 5X first strand buffer 1μl of 0.1MDTTand1μl ofRNaseOUT (40U/μl) were added. Then contents were then mixed and 1μl (200 units/μl) of SuperScript III RT was added. Themixture was then incubated at 50°C for 60 minutesin a thermo cycler.Lastlythe reaction was stopped byincubating the mixture at 70°C for 15 minutes. The cDNA thus prepared was then usedas a template for PCR

RT-PCR (Reverse Transcriptase PCR)

The quantity and purity of nucleic acids was determined by measuring the absorbance at 260 and 280 nm. The concentration of nucleic acids was calculated by considering the OD (λ260)= 1 corresponding to50μg/ml DNA and 40 μg/ml ofRNA. The purity of nucleic acids was checked by their A260/A280 ratioconsidering 1.8 for DNA and 2.0 for RNA. These measurements were done in NanoDrop 2000 UV-Vis Spectrophotometer

Quantification of nucleic acids

Total RNA was isolated by TRIzol method using the manufacturer’s protocol. Briefly, medium was removed from culture dish and recommended amount of TRIzol wasadded directly on to the dish and kept at room temperature for 5 minutes for lysis of cells. The cellular homogenate was then transferred to a 1.5ml microcentrifuge tube. For each mlof TRIzol, 200μl of chloroform was added and tubes were shaken vigorously for 10 seconds to completely dissociate the nucleoprotein complexes, followed by vortexing for about 30 seconds. The mixture was kept for 3-5 minutes at room temperature and then centrifuged at maximum speed of 12,000 rpm for 10 minutes. The upper aqueous phase was transferred into a fresh micro centrifuge tube and RNA was precipitated by adding 500μl of iso-propanol. The RNA pellet was obtainedby centrifugation at 12,000 rpm for 30 minutes at 4°C. The pellet was washed with 1ml of chilled 70% ethanol followed by centrifugation at 12,000 rpmfor 5minutes. The supernatant was removed and the pellet air-dried for about 5 minutes. The pellet was resuspendedin 30-50μl RNase free deionisedwater and dissolved at 55ºC followed by quantificationusingnanodrop spectrophotometerfor further use.The RNA integrity was checked by evaluating the 18S and 28S rRNA signals by running 1μl of total RNA on denaturing agarose gel stained with ethidium bromide

Total RNA isolation from cultured cells

Molecular techniques

Themixture is incubated in a water bath at 37⁰C for 15 min and afterwards transferred on ice and 4μl of DNA loading buffer is added. The samples were then run on a polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis which had been pre-run for 30 min. Electrophoresis was carried out at 4⁰C for 3h till the bromophenol blue migrated to 2cm above the bottom of gel. The gel was taken out and kept on Whatman filter paper sheet and covered by saran wrap followed by drying in a gel dryer at 80⁰C for 1h under suction. The dried gel was exposed to phosphoimager screen by keeping in phosphoimager cassette overnight

A binding reaction mixture was prepared by adding the following components to a microcentrifuge tube on ic

Binding reaction

Cells were seeded in replicates of five @ 3X103cells per wellinfive different 96well cell culture platesand grown in complete media. The method described earlier was slightly modified and followed (Gillies et al., 1986). After every 24h of seeding, one plate was stained with 0.2% crystal violet in 2% ethanolfor 15 minutestill 4thday i.e. 96h.One plate was stained just after the cells get attached to use as 0h time point. Excess dye was removed from the plates by washing with ample amount of water. Crystal violet dye incorporated in the cells was extracted using 0.1% SDS solution by shaking for 10 minutes on a shaker. Absorbance of the extracted dye was then determined at 570 nm in a spectrophotometer. The experiment was repeated at least three times and the average absorbance was plotted for each time point to generate a growth curve

Cell growth Assay

Malachite green reagent

Reaction Buffer

Cell lysis Buffer

Calcineurin phosphatase assay

DNA staining solution

Fixative

For cell cycle analysis by flow cytometry

Inoue buffer

For preparation of Ultra competent cells

DNA loading dye

Agarose gel

TAE

For DNA electrophoresis

Neutralization solution(Solution III)

Lysissolution(Solution II)

Resuspension solution(Solution I)

For Plasmid isolation

Binding Buffer (10X)

EMSA Buffer

Nuclear lysis buffer

Polydeoxy (Inosinate-cytidylate) (Poly dI-dC)

For Electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA)

Nuclear extractionbuffer (without protease inhibitors)

Cytoplasmic extractionbuffer (without protease inhibitors)

For Cell fractionation

Blocking buffer: 2% BSA

Permeabilization buffer: 0.2% Triton X100

Fixative : 4% Formaldehyde

For Immunofluorescence

Stripping Buffer

Blocking Buffer

TBST

Transfer Buffer

Running Buffer

Stacking and resolving AcrylamidegelsResolving gel (10 ml)

6X protein loading buffer (Laemmlibuffer)

Cell lysis buffer(RIPA Buffer)

For Immunoblotting

Tris Buffered Saline (TBS)

Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS)

General Buffers

Ammonium persulfate(APS)

Acrylamide (29:1)

Phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF)

Benzamidine

Aprotinin

Leupeptin

NP-40ComponentsFinal concentrationFor 10 mlNP-4010%1mlH2O9ml

Dithiothreitol (DTT)ComponentsFinal concentrationFor 5 mlDTT1.0M0.7725gH2Oq.s

Ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), pH 8.0ComponentsFinal concentrationFor 500 mlEDTA0.5M93.05gH2Oq.sThe pH is adjusted to 8.0 using 10M NaOH

Ethylene Glycol Tetraacetic acid (EGTA), pH 7.0ComponentsFinal concentrationFor 50 mlEGTA0.1M1.902gH2Oq.sThe pH is adjusted to 7.0 using 10M NaOH

Potassium Chloride (KCl)ComponentsFinal concentrationFor 100 mlKCl2M14.91gH2Oq.s

Sodium Chloride (NaCl)ComponentsFinal concentrationFor 100 mlNaCl5M29.22gH2Oq.s

Potassium Chloride (KCl)

HEPES pH 7.9ComponentsFinal concentrationFor 100 mlHEPES1M23.83gH2Oq.sThe pH wasadjusted to 7.9 using 10M NaOH

Stock solution

Buffers and solutions

Transfection of plasmid DNAin cellswas performed using Lipofectamine 2000 reagent as per manufacturer’s protocolprovided with the reagent. Briefly, 0.5 to 1 million cells were seeded in a 60mm or 100mm tissue culture dish. After 12h of seeding,transfections were performed. 6-12 μg DNA was mixed in 500-1500 μl of Opti-MEM in one polypropylene tube and simultaneously, 15-30 μl of Lipofectamine 2000 was mixed in similar volumes of Opti-MEM in another tube and incubated at room temperature for 10minutes. Opti-MEM containingDNA and Lipofectamine 2000 were then mixed and incubated for 30 minutes at room temperature for the formation of DNA-lipid complex. Meanwhile, the cells were washed with sterile PBS and 4-10ml of Opti-MEM was addedin the plate. DNA-lipid complexes were then added to each dish for 6h. After that, the medium containing complexes was removed and complete medium (DMEM containing FBS) was added. Expression of transgene was evaluated 24-48hafter transfectioneitherby immunoblottingor immunofluorescence or by RT-PCR followed by PCR

Transient transfection in adherent cells

Extraction buffer

10XBinding buffer

Agarose gel

Nuclear lysis buffer (without protease inhibitors

Permeabilisation buffer: 0.2% Triton X100

Stripping buffer

Blocking buffer

TBS-T

Transfer buffer

(f) Running buffer

(e) Stacking polyacrylamide gel

(d) Resolvingpolyacrylamide gel

(c) 6X Protein loading buffer (Lammeli buffer)

(b) Celllysis buffer B(For IB)

Cell lysis bufferA(For IP)

II. For Immunoprecipitation(IP)and Immunoblotting(IB)

(b) Tris Buffered Saline (TBS)

obtained from Gibco, Invitrogen(Carlsbad, CA, USA). For cell culture transfections, Lipofectamine-2000 and Opti-MEM were alsoobtainedfrom Life Sciences, Invitrogen(Carlsbad, CA, USA).Commonly used chemicals in cell culture based experiments such asall-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), arabinoside cytosine (AraC),carbobenzoxy-Leu-Leu-Leucinal (MG-132), cycloheximide (CHX),DMSO, doxorubicin, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2),lipopolysaccharide (LPS, Escherichia coli055:B5), okadaicacid (OA), oleandrin,paclitaxel, phorbolmyristate acetate (PMA), vinblastine and vincristine wereobtained from SigmaAldrichChemicals.Benzofuran was synthesized as reported earlier (Manna et al., 2010).Recombinant human TNFα, IL-1and IL-8 were obtained from PeproTech Inc.(Rocky Hill, NJ, USA).Growth media for bacteria culture,Luria Broth (LB) and Agar were obtained from HiMedia laboratories (Mumbai, India). Bacterial strain DH5was used to make ultra-competent cells for transformation and plasmid isolation. Antibiotics, such as Ampicillin and Kanamycin used for selection of transformed colonies and culture were obtained from Sigma AldrichChemicals

The cell lines used in the present study, HuT-78 (human T-cell lymphoma), MDA-MB-231 (human breast cancer) and MDA-MB-468 (human breast cancer) were obtained from American Type culture collection (Manassas, VA, USA). Human colon carcinoma cell lines HCT-116 (wild-type, p53+/+) and HCT-116 (null, p53-/-) were a kind gift fromProf. B. Vogelstein (Johns Hopkins Oncology Center, Baltimore, MD). Cells were cultured in DMEM or RPMI medium containing 10% FBS, penicillin (100 U/ml), and streptomycin (100 μg/ml). Cells were maintained in humidified incubator at 37ºC in 5% CO2-95% air. Media for mammalian cell culture (DMEM and RPMI),fetal bovine serum (FBS)and other reagentsused in cell culture such as, PBS, Trypsin-EDTA, Antibiotic-antimycotic, Freezing medium, Geniticin, L-Glutamine, HEPES, etc. were

Cell cultureand Media

For growth analysis of S. cerevesiae strain, single colony was inoculated in appropriate broth medium and grown over night. This culture was used to inoculate the test medium to an initial OD600 of 0.1. Cultures were transferred to a shaker incubator set at 30°C and 200 rpm. Absorbance of cultures was measured using Ultraspec 2100 pro UV/visible spectrophotometer (Amersham Biosciences) at 600 nm at regular time-intervals till 72 h. Absorbance values were plotted with respect to time and the generation time was calculated from the logarithmic phase of the growth curve, by plotting A600vs.timeon a semi-logarithmic scale, using GraphPad Prism5 for curve fitting analysis

Growth analysis and determination of generation time

2 mM EDTA5 mM DTT1% Triton-XYeast protease inhibitor cocktail and phosphatase inhibitor cocktail (added fresh to the buffer B)

20 mM HEPES pH 6.8100 mM NaCl

Buffer B

30%GlycerolMade in 100 mL.RNA sample loading buffer (10X)50% glycerol10mM EDTA 0.025% Bromophenol blue 0.025% Xylene cyanolInoue transformation buffer, pH 6.7(125 mL, prepared just before use)10 mM PIPES 15 mM CaCl2.2H2O 250 mM KCl 55 mM MnCl2.4H2O (1.361 g is dissolved in 10 mL of water separately)PIPES(0.307 g), CaCl2.2H2O (0.275 g) and KCl (2.325 g)were added to 80 mL ofsterile water while mixing with a magnetic stirrer and the pH was adjusted to 6.8with 1 N KOH. After attaining the appropriate pH, MnCl2solution wasadded slowly in aliquotes of 300 μL over 10 min,while stirring to avoidabrown precipitate.MOPS buffer(10X)0.2 M MOPS, pH 7.220 mM CH3COONa10 mM EDTABuffer was made in DEPC treated waterYeast transformation reagents1 M Lithium acetate 50% Polyethylene glycol2 mg/mLSalmon sperm carrier DNA Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) Zymolyase cocktail buffer for yeast colony PCR 2.5 mg/mLZymolyase (ZymoResearch)1.2 M SorbitolZymolyase buffer was prepared in 1X PBS

Yeast lysis buffer for genomic DNA extraction50 mM Tris-HCl,pH 8.010 mM EDTA 150 mM NaCl 1% Triton-X 1% SDSAE buffer for RNA extraction50 mMSodium acetate,pH 5.31 mMEDTA,pH 8.0Solution was made in DEPC treated water. 0.2%diethyl pyrocarbonate (DEPC)was added to the water and stirred for 12 h. To remove DEPC,water was autoclaved twice. DNA sample loading buffer (6X)15.25 mg Bromophenol blue15.25 mg Xylene cyanol

Buffers for extraction and analysis of genomic DNA and RNA

0.5% Yeast Extract 1% Tryptone 1% NaClLB-ampicillin plates LB medium 100 μg/mL ampicillin Media and solutions were sterilized either by routine autoclaving at 121°C and 15 psi for 20 min or by filtration through membrane of 0.22 μm porosity.For yeast and bacterial growth, plates were preparedby adding 2% to the medium before autoclaving

Luria-Bertani (LB) medium forbacterialgrowth

Antibodies used in this study are listed in Table 2.3

Antibodies

Plasmids containing the shRNA of interestwere either transfected transiently or were stably transfected. Transient transfection of shRNA was performed using eitherLipofectamine 2000 or PEI (as per the method explained before). Stable integration of shRNA was performed by transfecting shRNA along with retroviral packaging vector PCL-Ampho into BOSC23 packaging cells. The supernatantcontaining the packed viruses (viral medium)was collected at 48 and 72 hours of transfection. The viral mediumwas then added to thetarget cells in the presence of polybrene (8μg/mL). Two days later, cells were cultured in medium containing puromycin for the selection of stable clones.The clones stably expressing the desiredshRNA were identifiedandverified through western blotting and immunostaining using specificantibodies. A similar protocol was used to generate stable cell lines that expressed control shRNA

ShRNA

The plasmid-DNA/PEI mixture was incubated for 15 minutesat room temperature.The mixture was added to cells,andmixed properlyby rocking the culture plate back and forth. Cells were incubated at 37°C in a CO2 incubator.The transfected cells were harvested at 24-48 hours post-transfection

Cells were plated inthe cell culture dishes one day before transfection in RPMI1640 supplemented with FBS and penstrep (complete medium). All the reagents were brought to room temperature before starting transfection. Plasmid-DNA was diluted in serum-free medium and PEI was added(Table 9)Table 9: PEI plasmid-transfection methodology

Plasmid transfection using PEI

PCR products or plasmids were analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis. The samples were mixed with 6X loading dye (0.25% bromophenol blue and 0.25% xylene cyanoland 30% glycerol in water) and loaded onto a pre-cast gel, the percentage of gel ranged from 0.7 to 3 %, depending on the size of the DNA sample. Ethidium bromide at 1 μg/ml was included in the gel. The gel was visualized by fluorescence under UV-light

Agarose gel electrophoresis

All the antibodies used in the present study are mentioned in the table 1.Table 1: Antibodies used in the study

Antibodies

developer solution for appropriate time and immediately kept in fixer solution to see the protein band. For alkaline phosphatase method, blot was incubated with 5 ml of BCIP/NBT solution (Amresco) under dark condition. After incubation, blot was washed with water to see the blue-violet color protein band

volume of 50 mM acetate buffer (pH-5.4), and dialyzed overnight with 10 mM Tris buffer, pH 7.5. Pellet was used for dilution plating for calculating CFUs. For whole cell protein isolation, bacterial pellet was dissolved in 50 mM sodium acetate buffer (pH-5.4) and sonicated for 30 min (1 min on and off, Amplitude 32) by adding phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF) at a final concentration of 1 mM in ice-cold solution. Both extracellular proteins and whole cell lysate fractions were aliquoted in 1.5 ml microcentrifuge tube, and protein quantification was performed using a Pierce BCA protein assay kit (Thermo Scientific) as per manufacturer’s instructions using bovine serum albumin as standard and stored at -80°C for further use. Cell normalized extracellular and whole cell lysate proteins fractions from different strains were resolved on 12% SDS-PAGE gel at 90 V till the dye front reached the bottom. One gel was processed for silver staining (Sambrook et al., 1989), and other for western-blot analysis by using anti-GFP antibody. For western blot analysis, resolved proteins were transferred to Hybond-ECL membrane (Amersham biosciences) at 35 V for overnight in the cold room. Transfer of the proteins were visually confirmed by examining marker’s lane and membranes were incubated in small box for 2-3 h in 5% fat free milk prepared in 1X PBST for blocking. Blocking solutions were discarded, and primary antibody, appropriately diluted in 5% fat free milk prepared in 1X PBST, was added to the box containing membrane. After 2-3 h incubation in primary antibody, membranes were washed thrice with 1X PBST for 10 min. Membranes were incubated for 2 h in appropriate secondary antibody (anti-Rabbit antibody)diluted in 5% fat free milk prepared in 1X PBST. Blots were either developed by chemiluminescence based ECL-plus western detection system or alkaline phosphatase method. For HRP based chemiluminescence method, detection was performed using the ECL plus kit (Amersham biosciences) and incubated for 3 min. Blot was exposed to the film and developed i

For protein extraction, Xanthomonas oryzaepv. oryzaestrains with eGFP plasmid were grown for 24-30 h in PS medium to an OD of 0.8 as described above and centrifuged at 12,000 g for 10 min. The supernatant was taken as extracellular fraction and protein was extracted as described previously (Ray et al., 2000). Extracellular proteins were precipitated from this fraction by constantly adding 50% (wt/vol) ammonium sulphate at 4°C. After precipitation, the solution was kept on ice for 15-20 min and centrifuged at 12,000 g for 30 min at 4°C. The pellet was dissolved in s

Protein extraction and immunoblotting

respectively. The resulting constructs pRR14 and pRR15 were transferred in E.coliDH5α. Through triparental mating using pRK600 helper plasmid the construct were transferred in E.coliS17-1. After confirming pRR14 and pRR15 constructs by sequencing, the constructs were then introduced into BXOR1 strain through biparental mating using E. coliS17-1. X. oryzaepv. oryzicolaGUS and GFP reporter strains were selected on PS medium plates containing suitable antibiotics. Since pVO155 cannot replicate in X. oryzaepv. oryzae, ampicillin and kanamycin-resistant colonies were obtained upon chromosomal integration of the plasmid using the cloned DNA sequence as a region of homology. pProbeGTcan replicate independently in Xanthomonasand report for the gene expression

Glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene fusion and GFP reporter fusion was created by using the suicide plasmid pVO155 having a promoterless gusAgene (Oke and Long, 1999), and pProbeGThaving a promoterless GFP (Miller et al., 2000). To construct the xsuA::gusAand xsuA::gfptranscriptional fusion, a 611-bp DNA fragment containing the putative promoter of the xssoperon (+213 to −398) was amplified by using the SCRsid_ pProbeGFP_F and SCRsid_ pProbeGFP_R primers (Table 2.2). This promoter fragment was subsequently digested with HindIII and BamHI,and directionally cloned upstream of the promoterless gusAand gfpgene in pVO155 and pProbeGTplasmids to create the xsuA::gusAand xsuA::pProbeGT(gfp) reporter constructs pRR1

Construction of xsuA::gusAand xsuA::gfp strains in X. oryzaepv. oryzicola background

(SCR65/ SCR66, SCR63/ SCR64 and SCR61/SCR62, respectively) designed from the neighbourhood region of the deleted gene.Replacement of ΔrpfFdeletion mutant with the point mutant allele (E141A and E161A: Glutamate to Alanine) (rpfF*) was carried out by transforming XocΔrpfFmutant with pbsks suicide vector harbouring full length rpfF* allele. The DNA fragment carrying the rpfF* allele was constructed by overlap PCR as described previously (Ionescu et al., 2013)using two 21 and 28 bp complementary primers for E141A-F/R and E161A-F/R, respectively; harbouring GAA to GCA substitution (Table 2.2). The mutated rpfF* allele was amplified by using the end primers only (SC14 and SC17) and cloned into pbsks vector with HindIII and XhoI restriction sites. The resulting suicide vector (pRR16 and pRR17) was transformed into ΔrpfFmutant and single recombinants were selected on PSA medium with kanamycin and ampicillin. Colonies were screened for integration of rpfF* (E141A or E161A) allele through homologous recombination with the flanking region of deleted rpfF allele

electroporation. Single Kmr recombinants were selected on PSA plate containing kanamycin. Insertion of the pK18mob vector in xssAgene was confirmed with PCR and sequencing. To further confirm the mutation in the siderophore biosynthetic gene, we did siderophore production assay on Peptone-sucrose agar (PSA)-chrome azurol sulfonate (CAS) (Schwyn and Neilands, 1987). PSA-CAS plate assay indicated that the xssA mutnat of Xocwas deficient in production of secreted siderophore.Deletion of the chromosomal rpfG, rpfC andclpgene of the X. oryzaepv. oryzicolawas accomplished by allelic exchange, following homologous recombination, utilizing the suicide vector pK18mobsacB harboring 5’ region and 3’ regions of the gene of interest (Katzen et al., 1999). 5’ and 3’ regions of rpfG and rpfC andclp gene were first amplified from the BXOR1by PCR using primers indicated in Table no. 2.2 and products were ligated together. After restriction digestion of ligated PCR products and the pK18mobsacB vector with appropriate restriction enzymes, they were ligated to get the plasmids pRR9, pRR10 and pRR11, respectively. These plasmids were then transformed into E. coliDH5α cells. The transformed E. colicells were selected on the LB agar plates containing nalidixic acid and kanamycin. The positive colonies carrying vector with correct inserts were further selected by colony PCR. These donor cells carrying pRR9, pRR10 and pRR11 containing 5’ and 3’ regions of the gene of interest were then transformed into electrocompetent BXOR1 wild-typecells. First crossover (single crossover) was achieved by culturing the cell mixture on Nutrient agar(NA) containing rifampicin and kanamycin,after transformation. The second crossover was allowed by passaging the cells with single crossover in nutrient brothmedium and then selecting on PSAplates containing rifampicin and 5% sucrose. BXOR1with deletion of the rpfG,rpfCand clp genes by double crossover was identified by PCR using pri

Two fragments, each approximately 300 bp in length corresponding to 5’and 3’ end of the rpfFgene were amplified using genomic DNA of Xocwild-type strain BXOR1, and cloned in pBSKS vector to obtain pRR7 (Table S1 and S5). pRR8 was obtained after ligation of Kmrcassette (EZ::Tn5TM<Kan-2>; Madison, WI) in the HindIII site of pRR7. The resulting plasmid (pRR8) was introduced into XocBXOR1 strain by electroporation. Doublerecombinants (Kmrand Aps) were screened on PSA plates containing appropriate antibiotics. Deletion of rpfF(76 amino acids) in the ∆rpfF mutant strain was confirmed by PCR and sequencing. For complementation analysis, full lengthrpfF gene was amplifiedfrom genomic DNA of Xoc Wild-typeBXOR1 strain with HindIII and EcoRI restriction sites and cloned into stable broad host range vector pHM1 (Hopkins et al., 1992)downstream to lacZpromoter to obtain pSC9. The pSC9 plasmid harboring the wild-typerpfFallele was introduced into ∆rpfF mutant strain by electroporation.To obtain the insertional nonpolar mutant in the xssA(xanthomonas siderophore synthesis A), a 321 bp internal fragment of the xssAgene containing the XbaI and HindIII sites was cloned inpK18mob suicide vector, in which the lacZpromoter drives the expression of downstream gene (Schäfer et al., 1994; Windgassen et al., 2000)to obtain pRR12. The resulting plasmid (pRR12) was introduced into Xoc BXOR1 strain by

Construction of mutants in X. oryzaepv. oryzicolaand rescue of the mutation

confirmed through PCR (by using primers SC11 and SC10) and squencing. Double mutant was complemented for DSF production by cloning whole rpfFgene of Xoo, cloned in HindIII and EcoRI sites of pHM1 (a broad host range vector for Xanthomonas) to get pSC6 plasmid. The resultant pSC6 plasmid was introduced into double mutant by electroporation

To obtain the insertional nonpolar mutant in the motA (encodes flagellar motor stator protein)andfliC (flagellin)genes, a 321 bp internal fragment of the motAgene and a 450 bp internal fragment of fliC containing the EcoRI and XbaI site were amplified using respective primer listed in Table 2.2. These fragments were cloned in pk18mob suicide vector, in which the lacZpromoter drives the expression of downstream gene (Schäfer et al., 1994; Windgassen et al., 2000), to obtain pRR1 and pRR2,respectively (Table 2.2). The resulting plasmid (pRR1& pRR2) was introduced into XooBXO43 strain by electroporation. Single Kmrrecombinants were selected on PSA plate containing kanamycin. Insertion of the pK18mob vector in motA andfliCgene was confirmed with PCR and sequencing. To further confirm the mutation in the flagellar genes, we did swimming motility assay on 0.1% peptone-sucrose agar (PSA). Swimming plate assay indicated that both motA and fliCmutant of Xoowas deficient in motility. Further, to obtain motAand fliC insertional knock out mutants in rpfFbackground, we cloned spectinomycin cassette obtained from pUC1318Ω plasmid, into the HindIII site of pRR1 and pRR2 plasmid to obtain pRR3 and pRR4. The resulting plasmid (pRR3& pRR4) were transformed in rpfF. Single specrrecombinants were selected on PSA plate containing kanamycin and spectinomycin. Insertion of the vector was further confirmed by PCR and sequencing. T2SSrpfFdouble mutant was constructed by transforming the plasmid with rpfF::Tn7Kanamycin cassette in the T2SS (xpsF) mutant background, and Kmrrecombinants were selected on PSA plates containing kan

Construction of mutants in X. oryzaepv. oryzae

insert of 1:3 for sticky end ligations. Ligation mix was incubated either at 22°C for 30 min or 16°C for 14-16 h. After incubation, T4DNA ligase was inactivated at 65°C for 20 min

After restriction enzyme digestion, digested products were resolved on agarose gels, and desired DNA fragments were extracted from the gel. Otherwise digested DNA fragments were precipitated by Phenol-choloroform-isoamyl alcohol method. Concentration of gel extracted or precipitated fragments were determined using spectrophotometer and ligation reactions were set up using a molar ratio

Ligation

For DNA precipitation after digestion, 500 μl nuclease free water was added to the digested DNA fragment. Equal volume of phenol:chloroform:isoamyl alcohol (25:24:1) was added to the mixture and centrifuged at 13,000 g for 10 minat RT. Upper aqueous phase containing DNA fragment was transferred to fresh microcentrifuge tube and DNA was precipitated by adding 0.7 volume of iso-propanol and 1/10thvolume of sodium acetate. Precipitated DNA was washed with 70% ethanol, pellet was air dried for 20-30 min at RT and dissolved in nuclease-free water

DNA precipitation

QIAGEN QIAquick Gel extraction kit containing required buffers, spin columns and collection tubes was used to extract and purify DNA from agarose gels. Digested DNA samples and PCR products were resolved on 1% agarose gel and gel piece containing desired fragment was cut on an UV-transilluminator. DNA fragment was purified following manufacturer’s instructions

Gel extraction of DNA

strain or the ∆rpfFmutantharboring the Wild-typeallele in plasmid (pSC9).Genes that were significantly up regulated by 0.6 or more or down regulated by -0.6 or less fold (log2–fold change) were identified.The microarray data have been deposited in the NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) under the GEO series accession number GSE53255

8x15k (AMADID: 25096) custom Agilent platform comprised of coding sequences for the three strains of Xanthomonas-X. oryzaepv. oryzae(KACC10331), X. oryzaepv. oryzicola(BLS256) and X. axonopodispv. citri 306 gathered from National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). A total of 8113 probes were designed wherein 2120 probes corresponding to genes of interest replicated three times on Agilent platform. Feature extraction software GeneSpring GX version 10.5.1 of Agilent and GeneSpring GX percentile shift normalization was used for data analysis. Genes that were significantly up or down regulated by more than 1.5 fold and less than 0.5 fold were identified. Hierarchical clustering was performed for the differentially regulated genes and classified based on functional category. Data are the average of two hybridizations from biological replicates of each sample andraw data sets for this study are available at the Gene Expression Omnibus database (Accession number –GSE217809). Likewise, Microarray analysis for Xanthomonas oryzaepv. oryzicolawas performed by isolating RNA from the strains grown under low-ironcondition. The labeled cRNA samples were hybridized on to a Genotypic Technology Private Limited designed 8x15k (AMADID: 41087) Agilent platform. Data extraction from Images was done using Feature Extraction software v 10.7 of Agilent. Data normalization was done in GeneSpring GX using 75thpercentile shift and normalization to specific samples. Differentially regulated genes were clustered hierarchically to identify significant gene expression patterns.Genes were classified based on functional category. Hierarchical clustering of DSF regulated genes in X. oryzaepv. oryzicola grown under low-iron conditions is based on similar expression profiles in ∆rpfFmutant vs either the Wild-typeBXOR1 strain or ∆rpfF(pSC9). Clustering analysis was performed using GeneSpring GX Software using Average Linkage rule with pearson uncentered distance metric. log2–fold change differences between the ∆rpfFmutant with either the Wild-typeBXOR1

Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae strains grown in PS medium to an OD600of 1, were collected, washed once with 150 mM sodium chloride (NaCl) solution to remove excess EPS. RNA isolation was performed using Trizol method described above. After isopropanol precipitation, RNA was frozen at -80°C. Quality of RNA was examined by determining the RNA integrity number (RIN) before microarray analysis. Microarray experiments were performed at Genotypic Technology Pvt. Ltd., Bangalore.Briefly, a

Microarray analysis

BXOR1, ΔrpfFand ΔrpfF(pSC9) strains were grown to OD600of 1 in rich media (PS), PS + 50 μM 2,2’-dipyridyl (DP) and PS + DP + 30 μM FeSO4. RNA was isolated by Trizol (Invitrogen) method as described above. Optimal primer and cDNA concentrations were standardized, and qRT-PCR was performed using ABI 7500 Fast Real-Time PCR system (Applied Biosystems). In brief, 1 μl cDNA, 0.25 picomoles of gene specific primers and 10 μl 2X SYBR GREEN qPCR Mastermix (Qiagen)were mixed in the wells of 96-well PCR plate (Axygen). Final reaction volume was adjusted to 20 μl with nuclease-free water. Transcript levels were quantified with an end-point value known as Ct(cycle thresold) value. Expression of 16S rRNA was used as an internal control. The Ct values defines the number of PCR cycles required for the fluorescent signal of SYBR green dye to cross beyond the background level. Fold-change in transcript expression was determined using following formula.Fold change in expression = 2-ΔΔCtΔΔCt= ΔCt treated-ΔCt untreatedΔCttreated = Ctvalue for the gene of interest under treated condition -Ct value for the internal control gene (16S rRNA) under treated conditionΔ Ctuntreated = Ct value for thegene of interest under untreated condition -Ct value for the internal control (16S rRNA) gene under untreated condition

Primers for real-time PCR analysis were designed using Primer3 plus software and are listed in Table 2.2.For RNA isolation, X. oryzaepv.oryzaewild-type, rpfFmutant, rpfF/CG8 complemented strains were grown in PS medium at 28°C for 28 h at 200 rpm. Similarly, for RNA isolation from X. oryzaepv. oryzicola, the Wild-type

Quantitative real-time PCR

Complementary-DNA synthesis was performed using reverse transcriptase enzyme (Invitrogen) and random hexamers (Qiagen). For this, 1 μg good quality RNA was treated with 1 μl (1 unit) DNase I (Invitrogen) for 20 min to remove DNA contamination. Next, Superscript III Reverse Transcriptase kit (Invitrogen) was used to synthesize cDNA according to the manufacturer’s instructions. cDNA synthesized was further confirmed by using it as a template for amplification in PCR. cDNA was stored at -20°C till further use

Synthesis of complementary DNA (cDNA)

work were autoclaved twice and dried at 80°C for overnight before use. RNA was isolated from Xanthomonasculture using Trizol method. Xanthomonascells were harvested at 12,000 g for 5 min at 4°C, resuspended in approximately 1 ml Trizol (Invitrogen),mixed properly and incubated at room temperature (RT) for 5 min. 200 μl chloroform was added to the tube, shaken for 15 seconds and incubated at RT for 2-15 seconds. Next, tubes were centrifuged at 13,000 g for 15 min at 4°C. Aqueous phase was transferred to new 1.5 ml microcentrifuge tube and RNA was precipitated by adding 500 μl isopropanol and incubated for 5-10 min at RT. Precipitated RNA was collected by centrifugation at 10,000 gfor 10 min at 4°C. RNA pellet was washed with 70% ethanol and resuspended in 20 μl nuclease-free water. RNA concentration was determined by measuring absorbance at 260 nm. Quality of RNA was examined by gel electrophoresis on 0.8% agarose gel with TAE buffer prepared in DEPC treated water

For RNA experiments, all solutions were prepared in RNase free diethylpyrocarbonate (DEPC) treated water. Microcentrifuge and tips u

RNA extraction

Xanthomonasstrains were grown overnight in 3 ml PS medium. Cells were harvested at 12,000 g for 5 min, resuspended in RNase added P1 buffer and were transferred to 2 ml microcentrifuge tube. Cells were lysed by adding 40 μl lysozyme followed by adding 80 μl 10% SDS and incubated at 50°C for 10 min. Further, proteins were removed by treating the cell suspension with 16 μl proteinase K and incubated at 37°C for overnight. Next day, 200 μl CTAB/NaCl was added and cell suspension was heated at 65°C for 10 min. Next, 1 ml chloroform-isoamyl alcohol was added to the cell suspension and tubes were vortexed for 2-3 min. After centrifugation at maximum speed for 10 min at room temperature, aqueous phase was carefully transferred to a fresh microcentrifuge tube. To further remove cell debris, previous step was repeated with 1 ml of phenol-chloroform-isoamyl alcohol and aqueous phase containing DNA was taken out carefully. Genomic DNA from the aqueous phase was precipitated by adding 700 μl isopropanol and 170 μl sodium acetate (3M, pH-7). Next, DNA pellet was washed with 70% ethanol and dried at room temperature for 20 min. Genomic DNA pellet was dissolved in 50 μl nuclease free water and stored at -20°C. Quality of extracted genomic DNA was checked on 0.7% agarose gel by electrophoresis

Xanthomonasstrains were grown overnight in 3 ml PS medium. Cells were harvested at 12,000 g for 5 min, resuspended in RNase added P1 buffer and were transferred to 2 ml microcentrifuge tube. Cells were lysed by adding 40 μl lysozyme followed by adding 80 μl 10% SDS and incubated at 50°C for 10 min. Further, proteins were removed by treating the cell suspension with 16 μl proteinase K and incubated at 37°C for overnight. Next day, 200 μl CTAB/NaCl was added and cell suspension was heated at 65°C for 10 min. Next, 1 ml chloroform-isoamyl alcohol was added to the cell suspension and tubes were vortexed for 2-3 min. After centrifugation at maximum speed for 10 min at room temperature, aqueous phase was carefully transferred to a fresh microcentrifuge tube. To further remove cell debris, previous step was repeated with 1 ml of phenol-chloroform-isoamyl alcohol and aqueous phase containing DNA was taken out carefully. Genomic DNA from the aqueous phase was precipitated by adding 700 μl isopropanol and 170 μl sodium acetate (3M, pH-7). Next, DNA pellet was washed with 70% ethanol and dried at room temperature for 20 min. Genomic DNA pellet was dissolved in 50 μl nuclease free water and stored at -20°C. Quality of extracted genomic DNA was checked on 0.7% agarose gel by electrophoresis

Genomic DNA isolation

200 rpm in LBbroth supplemented with appropriate antibiotics (plasmid antibiotic marker). Cells were harvested by centrifugation at 12,000 g for 5 min. Plasmids were extracted using Qiagen plasmid miniprep ormidiprep kit following the manufacturer’s instructions. Concentration of the extracted plasmid DNAs was measured using spectrophotometer at 280 nm and stored at -20°C

E.colistrains carrying plasmids were inoculated and grown overnight at 37°C and

Plasmid DNA purification

All standard molecular biology and genetics were performed as described previously (Sambrook et al. 1989)

Molecular biology methods

For growth analysis of Xanthomonasstrains, a loopful of bacterial colony was inoculated in appropriate broth medium and grown for 14-16 h. 0.2% of overnight grown culture was used to inoculate the test medium (for iron limitation, PS with 50 or 100 μM of 2,2’-dipyridyl, and for iron supplementation, different concentrations of either FeCl3or FeSO4was added). Cultures were transferred to a shaker incubator set at 28°C and 200 rpm. Absorbance of cultures was measured using Ultraspec 2100 pro UV/visible spectrophotometer (Amersham Biosciences)at 600 nm at regular time-intervals till 48 h. Absorbance values were plotted with respect to time and generation time was determined from the logarithmic (log) phase of bacterial growth using the following formula.G = Generation time (h)T1= Initial time point taken for analysisT2= Final time point taken for analysisNf = Absorbance at time T2(Final OD)Ni= Absorbance at time T1(Initial OD)

Growth analysis and determination of generation time

For bacterial isolates, a single colony from a nutrient agar slant was inoculated into 50 ml of nutrient broth in a 250 ml Erlenmeyer flask. These flasks were incubated at 37±1°C in a incubator shaker till an optical density of 0.6 at 660nm. Now these cultures were used to inoculate 50 ml of the tannase production medium in 250 ml Erlenmeyer flasks using 2% v/v inoculum. These flasks were incubated at 37±1°C in an incubator shaker (Multitron AG-27; Switzerland) at 200 rpm for 72h. The experiments were carried out in triplicates. Samples (2.0 ml for bacteria and same for fungi) were withdrawn at regular intervals of 12h upto 72 h. The samples thus obtained were centrifuged at 10,000 rpm in a refrigerated centrifuge (SIGMA 4K15 Germany) for 10 min at 4°C. The supernatant/s were analyzed for tannase activity

Microorganisms were isolated from the above mentioned sources using direct plating method. Serial dilution of the different soil samples with normal saline was carried out and the different dilutions were spread plated on to potato dextrose agar (PDA) for isolation of fungi and on to nutrient agar (NA) for the isolation of bacteria. The plates were incubated at either 30 or 37±1°C in a bacteriological incubator so that the different organisms could grow and form visible colonies. The different fungal and bacterial colonies isolated by the procedure mentioned above were purified by subculturing on respective media, and subsequently screened for tannase production. The new isolates, alongwith different cultures obtained from laboratory stock culture collection, were revived on potato dextrose agar (PDA) slants. These cultures were regularly subcultured and stored at 8±1°C in a BOD incubator. Their purity was periodically checked by microscopic examination.

Isolation of bacteria and fungi from the samples