René Fritz

Inhibition of Methionine Biosynthesis in Botrytis cinerea by the Anilinopyrimidine Fungicide Pyrimethanil

When mycelium of Botrytis cinerea was treated with low concentrations of the anilinopyrimidine fungicide pyrimethanil the total amount of free amino acids increased. Qualitative variations were also induced: alanine, glutamine, lysine, glycine, histidine, asparagine, arginine, threonine and moreover, α-aminobutyrate and β-alanine were accumulated; cyst(e)ine, valine, leucine and citrulline were reduced. When mycelium of B. cinerea was incubated with Na2[35S]O4, pyrimethanil at 1·5 μM induced a decrease of [35S]methionine and simultaneously an increase of [35S]cystathionine. These data indicate that the anilinopyrimidine fungicide pyrimethanil inhibits the biosynthesis of methionine and suggest that the primary target could be the cystathionine β-lyase.

Biological effects of sirodesmin PL, a phytotoxin produced by Leptosphaeria maculans

Abstract The phytotoxic effect of sirodesmin PL on cotyledons or leaves of Brassica napus consisted of chlorotic and collapsed lesions. Little differences in sensitivity to the toxin was observed between Brassica species or non-host plants. The toxin alone cannot produce the specificity of the disease. Using B. napus embryogenic tissue cultures, the toxic effects of sirodesmin PL were investigated with respect to several biological parameters: membrane alterations, cell respiration, DNA, RNA and protein synthesis. Only the incorporation of [14C]uridine in RNAs was strongly and rapidly inhibited by 5.2 μM toxin in liquid medium. The toxic activity of sirodesmin PL was attributed to the reactivity of its disulphide bridge. The metals of the II B series (Zn, Hg and Cd) reversed this toxicity. These results suggest an interaction of sirodesmin PL with essential Zn from Zn-containing metalloenzymes such as RNA polymerases.

Metabolism of cymoxanil and analogs in strains of the fungus Botrytis cinerea using high-performance liquid chromatography and ion-pair high-performance thin-layer chromatography.

The metabolism of cyano-oxime fungicide 1-(2-cyano-2-methoxyiminoacetyl)-3-ethylurea (cymoxanil) and analogs was studied on several strains of the fungus Botrytis cinerea owing to their difference in sensitivity towards cymoxanil. Chromatographic analysis of the unextracted culture medium was simpler and more accurate, particularly for ionizable metabolites because it avoids problems associated with extraction. Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography was applied to compare the decrease of cymoxanil and analogs caused by different strains of B. cinerea, by periodic injections of incubated culture medium aliquots, directly on a C4 wide-pore column. Furthermore, a thin-layer chromatographic monitoring on C18 bonded silica gel with ion-pairing allowed the monitoring of the ionizable metabolites for substrates that were demonstrated to decompose most rapidly. These complementary analyses showed that the sensitivity of the highly sensitive strain towards cymoxanil was related to the disappearance of cyano-oximes studied from culture medium, namely to the ability of the strain B. cinerea to metabolize them.

Metabolism of fungicidal cyanooximes, cymoxanil and analogues in various strains of Botrytis cinerea

BACKGROUND The metabolism of cymoxanil [1-(2-cyano-2-methoxyiminoacetyl)-3-ethylurea] and fungicidal cyanooxime analogues was monitored on three phenotypes of Botrytis cinerea Pers. ex Fr. differing in their sensitivity towards cymoxanil. For this purpose, labelled [2-(14)C]cymoxanil was added either to the culture medium of these strains or to its cell-free extract. RESULTS In the culture medium of the most sensitive strain, four main metabolites were detected. Three were isolated and identified. Cymoxanil was quickly metabolised by at least three concurrent enzymatic pathways: (i) cyclisation leading, after hydrolysis, to ethylparabanic acid, (ii) reduction giving demethoxylated cymoxanil, (iii) hydrolysis followed by reduction and then acetylation leading to N-acetylcyanoglycine. In the cell-free extract of the same strain, only the first and the second of these enzymatic reactions occurred. By comparing the metabolic profile of the most sensitive strain with that of the less sensitive ones, it was shown that the decrease in sensitivity to cymoxanil correlates with a reduced acetylcyanoglycine formation. Among all metabolites, only N-acetylcyanoglycine is active against the most sensitive strain. Moreover, in a culture of this strain, two other fungicidal cyanooximes were also metabolised into this metabolite. CONCLUSION The formation of N-acetylcyanoglycine may play an important role in the fungitoxicity of cymoxanil and cyanooxime derivatives.

Behaviour studies of the fungicide cymoxanil in two strains of the fungus Botrytis cinerea and in haemolymph of locust and lobster. I. In situ monitoring by internal surface reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

A method for following the metabolism of the fungicide cymoxanil in various biological media is described. By using a recently developed high-performance liquid chromatographic method, with an internal surface reversed-phase column, it is unnecessary to clean up the sample before analysis. Thus this technique makes monitoring in fungi as well as in arthropod haemolymph easier and faster.

Characterization of metabolites of fungicidal cymoxanil in a sensitive strain of Botrytis cinerea.

The metabolism of cymoxanil [1-(2-cyano-2-methoxyiminoacetyl)-3-ethyl urea] by a very sensitive strain of Botrytis cinerea toward this fungicide was studied by using [2-(14)C]-cymoxanil. Labeled cymoxanil was added either in a culture of this strain or in its enzymatic extract. The main metabolites, detected in biological samples, were isolated and identified by mass and NMR spectrometry. Their identification allowed us to show that this strain quickly metabolized cymoxanil according to at least three enzymatic pathways: (i) cyclization leading, after hydrolysis, to ethyl parabanic acid, (ii) reduction giving demethoxylated cymoxanil, and (iii) hydrolysis and reduction followed by acetylation leading to N-acetylcyanoglycine. In a cell-free extract of the same strain, only the first and the second enzymatic reactions, quoted above, occurred. Biological tests showed that, among all the metabolites, only N-acetylcyanoglycine is fungitoxic toward this sensitive strain.