mushroom – BioQuakes

There is a reason why it is not advisable to eat wild mushrooms; Amanita phalloides, nicknamed death cap mushrooms, closely resemble edible mushroom variants—but are deadly if ingested. If a person chances upon one and happens to eat it, regardless of whether it is cooked, there is a high likelihood that they die.

A. phalloides are the most toxic of any mushroom species and are responsible for the majority of fatal mushroom poisonings. Notable victims of death cap mushroom poisoning include Roman Emperor Claudius, Pope Clement VII, and Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI. A. phalloides poisoning has always been difficult to diagnose and even more difficult to treat, as symptoms emerge after a long delay and there has been no known antidote to A. phalloides toxin—that is, until researchers utilized CRISPR-Cas9.

Death cap mushrooms contain the amatoxin alpha-amanitin. The amatoxins are a group of toxins that share the trait of inhibiting the enzyme RNA polymerase II. In our AP Biology class, we discussed DNA polymerases and their vital function in DNA replication. Similarly, RNA polymerases are a vital component of RNA transcription and synthesis. RNA polymerase II synthesizes mRNA, the template for protein synthesis. Upon the inhibition of RNA polymerase II, cell metabolism comes to a halt and apoptosis (cell self-destruction) ensues.

Alpha-amanitin is possibly the most deadly of the amatoxins. The particular human genes that are triggered by alpha-amanitin were previously unknown, but CRISPR recently revealed these genes, one of which produces the protein STT3B. STT3B is a required component of alpha-amanitin toxicity, therefore an inhibitor of STT3B would negate the effects of alpha-amanitin.

Researchers found just that—an inhibitor of STT3B, indocyanine green. Once the effectiveness of indocyanine green was confirmed in vitro, scientists experimented with a mouse model of alpha-amanitine poisoning and found that indocyanine green had a profound effect if given one to four hours after ingestion of the toxin. However, if eight to 12 hours had elapsed before the indocyanine green was introduced, its effectiveness was greatly reduced, possibly because irreversible organ damage had already occurred in the subject. This fact poses concern, as alpha-amanitine poisoning symptoms take at least six hours to occur after A. phalloides ingestion.

While more investigation needs to be undertaken before indocyanine green can be proposed as a treatment for death cap mushroom poisoning, these latest discoveries represent a significant advancement in our understanding of the process. Any thoughts regarding CRISPR or this topic as a whole are encouraged.

People are always complaining that their cellphone batteries are inefficient. Our current industries use a lithium ion battery in many consumer products. In these batteries, synthetic graphite is used as the anode in the chemical reaction that supplies power to our devices. However, the production of these anodes is very cost inefficient and harmful to the environment.

Diagram of Lithium Ion Battery

Researchers at the University of California Riverside Bourns School of Engineering have found an alternative anode in the form of Portabella mushrooms. Using the mushrooms’ initial ribbon-like structure, researchers heat the samples up to 500 and 1100 degrees Celsius to create strips of porous carbon. These strips have a very high surface area as a result of these pores and are very useful for the storage of energy.

A Portabella Mushroom

Portabella mushrooms have the potential to be better batteries than our current graphite anode counterparts. When the graphite anodes are mass produced, massive amounts of sulfuric acid and hydrofluoric acid are needed which creates hazardous waste. On the other hand, the Portabella mushroom is an easily grown biomass and has little to no impact on the environment.

In terms of energy efficiency, users usually complain about the decreasing capacity of current batteries with graphite anodes. Portabella mushroom batteries may feature capacities that increase over time. Mushrooms have a high concentration of potassium ions. As these batteries are used, more pores can activate creating an anode with increasing electrolytes.

Now, it is up to the researchers to introduce this product to the world. They are currently filing for patents and will hopefully bring a more environmentally friendly solution to our energy storage troubles.

Original Article

You can find the abstract and published research here: http://www.nature.com/articles/srep14575

BioQuakes

AP Biology class blog for discussing current research in Biology

Tag: mushroom

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