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In this commentary, we critically review the study of Greiff, Stadler, Sonnleitner, Wolff, and Martin, "Sometimes less is more: Comparing the validity of complex problem solving measures" (Intelligence, 2015, 50, 100-113). The main conclusion of Greiff et al. that the "multiple complex systems" (MCS) approach to measuring complex problem-solving ability possesses superior validity compared to classical microworld scenarios ("less is more") seems to be an overgeneralization based on inappropriate analysis and selective interpretation of results. In its original form, MCS is a useful tool for investigating specific aspects of problem solving within dynamic systems. However, its value as an instrument for the assessment of complex problem solving ability remains limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this rejoinder, we respond to two commentaries on the study by Greiff, S.; Stadler, M.; Sonnleitner, P.; Wolff, C.; Martin, R. Sometimes less is more: Comparing the validity of complex problem solving measures. Intelligence 2015, 50, 100-113. The study was the first to address the important comparison between a classical measure of complex problem solving (CPS) and the more recent multiple complex systems (MCS) approach regarding their validity. In the study, we investigated the relations between one classical microworld as the initially developed method (here, the Tailorshop) with three more recently developed multiple complex systems (MCS; here, MicroDYN, Genetics Lab, and MicroFIN) tests. We found that the MCS tests showed higher levels of convergent validity with each other than with the Tailorshop even after reasoning was controlled for, thus empirically distinguishing between the two approaches. The commentary by Kretzschmar and the commentary by Funke, Fischer, and Holt expressed several concerns with how our study was conducted, our data was analyzed, and our results were interpreted. Whereas we acknowledge and agree with some of the more general statements made in these commentaries, we respectfully disagree with others, or we consider them to be at least partially in contrast with the existing literature and the currently available empirical evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a brief reminiscence of my time in the Ganetzky lab from 1986–1990 and its effect on my scientific trajectory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid cycling Brassica rapa, also known as Wisconsin Fast Plants, are a widely used organism in both K-12 and college science education. They are an excellent system for genetics laboratory instruction because it is very easy to conduct genetic crosses with this organism, there are numerous seed stocks with variation in both Mendelian and quantitative traits, they have a short generation time, and there is a wealth of educational materials for instructors using them. Their main deficiency for genetics education is that none of the genetic variation in RCBr has yet been characterized at the molecular level. Here we present the first molecular characterization of a gene responsible for a trait in Fast Plants. The trait under study is purple/nonpurple variation due to the anthocyaninless locus, which is one of the Mendelian traits most frequently used for genetics education with this organism. We present evidence that the DFR gene, which encodes dihyroflavonol 4-reductase, is the candidate gene for the anthocyaninless (ANL) locus in RCBr. DFR shows complete linkage with ANL in genetic crosses with a total of 948 informative chromosomes, and strains with the recessive nonpurple phenotype have a transposon-related insertion in the DFR which is predicted to disrupt gene function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the collection of raw laboratory footage by former geneticist and filmmaker Alexis Gambis and colleagues, which offers a glimpse into laboratory research for general public. It highlights Gambis' science film platform "Labocine" and collection called "Scenes" through the non profit Imagine Science Films (ISF) and how its presents opportunity for researchers to share their content. Other films include "Naturally Obsessed: The Making of a Scientist" and "Dark Matter."

Students often have difficulty understanding inheritance patterns and issues associated with the nature of science as a process. To help address these issues, we developed a unit plan based on Gregor Mendel's well-known research on inheritance patterns among pea plants. The unit introduces students to Mendel's background and the questions he sought to address. Students then conduct their own investigation, using Virtual Genetics Lab II (VGLII) software to attempt to confirm Mendel's results. In the course of completing their investigations, students learn about alternative inheritance patterns to Mendelian genetics. The unit was created in the context of a college introductory biology course but could be implemented in a high school course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article profiles geneticist and neurobiologist Christine Petit. Topics include Petit's contribution in identifying genes responsible for hearing impairments, the establishment of her own laboratory at the Institut Pasteur in 1993 as part of her interest in olfaction and hearing, and how she examines the link between hair cells and auditory cortex neurons through her Inaugural Article.

With the purpose of developing an activity that would help clarify genetic concepts related to the connection between genotype and phenotype and the nature of mutations, we designed a three hour teaching module using the PyMol software. The activity starts with two pre-laboratory assignments, one to learn how to use PyMol and the other to read about a specific protein or protein family. During the laboratory students are given instructions where and how to find additional information on a specific disease and its causal mutations in order to prepare a 10-minute, in-class presentation. Using a post activity, anonymous quiz, we found a statistically significant different grade distribution in students that participated in the PyMol activity relative to a control group. We also found a significant improvement in the student’s comprehension when answering questions regarding the nature of mutations and protein structure. This demonstrates the utility of this simulation activity as a vehicle to improve student’s understanding of specific key genetic concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes prenatal diagnosis ( PND) of haemophilia B ( HB) within the framework of Italian haemophilia centres and genetics laboratories. The study details the experience from six haemophilia genetic centres (three in the North, one in the Centre and two in the South of Italy) and summarizes the different techniques used to perform PND of HB during the last 15 years. To date, the Italian HB database includes 373 characterized unrelated patients and their genetic information has permitted the identification of 274 carriers of childbearing age. This database represents the main instrument for timely and precise PND. Sixty-six prenatal diagnoses were performed on 52 HB carriers whose average age at the time was 34 (ranging from 24 to 44 years). In 44 cases, genetic counselling for carrier status determination was performed before pregnancy, while eight were not studied prior to pregnancy. Foetal samples were obtained by chorionic villus sampling in 52 cases, by amniocentesis in 12 while two were diagnosed by analysis of free foetal DNA obtained from maternal peripheral blood. In 35 (53%) pregnancies the foetus was female. For 31 men (47%), haemophilia status was determined by analysis of previously determined informative markers or familial mutations (12 affected and 19 unaffected). There may be more than one laboratory involved in the PND diagnostic pathway (providing DNA extraction, karyotype analysis, gender determination, maternal contamination detection, molecular diagnosis and sequencing). Good communication between all the parties, coordinated by the haemophilia centre, is essential for a successful and rapid process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A diagnosis of choroideraemia (CHM) can be made clinically, based on the fundus examination and a family history consistent with X-linked inheritance. Molecular genetic testing offers a means of confirming the clinical diagnosis, establishing carrier status and allows presymptomatic diagnosis for families who wish to pursue these options. The aim of this study was to examine the uptake and assess the results from a diagnostic molecular genetics service for CHM. We have carried out a comprehensive audit of all molecular genetic results of UK NHS patients and families referred to the North West Regional Molecular Genetics Laboratory in Manchester, UK over a 55 month period. 110 people were referred to this service for testing including diagnostic, carrier and predictive requests. Putative pathogenic mutations were identified in 65/83 (78%) of male index cases. The identification of a familial pathogenic change enabled carrier testing in 16 asymptomatic females and predictive testing in 3 males. Case examples illustrate the range of cases referred for testing and also reflect the need for genetic counselling that results from offering a molecular diagnostic service such as this. Clinical molecular testing for CHM is available clinically and can be used to support the clinical diagnosis and management of patients with choroideraemia as well as their families. Case studies demonstrate the need to provide genetic testing to families and the potential clinical utility of testing. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Although the field has a long collaborative tradition, immunology has made less use than genetics of 'consortium biology', wherein groups of investigators together tackle large integrated questions or problems. However, immunology is naturally suited to large-scale integrative and systems-level approaches, owing to the multicellular and adaptive nature of the cells it encompasses. Here, we discuss the value and drawbacks of this organization of research, in the context of the long-running 'big science' debate, and consider the opportunities that may exist for the immunology community. We position this analysis in light of our own experience, both positive and negative, as participants of the Immunological Genome Project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We report the early phase of yeast comparative genomics conducted by a group of seven French CNRS laboratories: the Génolevures Consortium. This first multispecies comparison of Hemiascomycetes (now called Saccharomycotina) opened the way to yeast evolutionary genomics. This analysis indicates that yeasts are powerful organisms to decipher the different mechanisms acting to reshape the genome of eukaryotes during long evolution periods. This initial DNA approach reveals how biodiversity could be characterized with robust data. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Accounts of 'biocapital' abound in studies of the contemporary biosciences. However, these have tended to pay attention to the use and consumption of biological knowledge rather than the means and conditions of the production of data. This article draws on an ethnographic account of a high-throughput genomics laboratory (the Eli and Edythe L. Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA) to show how the means through which biological data is produced exerts a determinative effect on the kind of knowledge that is generated by the laboratory. High-speed, high-volume, high-efficiency production of data requires the high-throughput consumption of data by statistical and computational techniques. These techniques, in turn, generate general, broad-scale accounts of biological systems, rather than particular knowledge about individual genes or biological components. This cycle of production and consumption is described as 'bioinformatics' in order to indicate the centrality of computers and computing to the knowledge production process in contemporary biology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three different versions of assemblage (Deleuzian, actor-network theory and Haraway's companionship) are discussed in terms of the insights they offer into spatial relations between life science, medicine and society. Using the example of a proposal to turn Iceland into an island laboratory for gene discovery research, I ask how assemblages gain friction and tenacity in the world, especially if we accept the post-structuralist insistence on the fragility of any seemingly fixed, isolated and bounded construction of space. Why did so many people (including academics) buy in to the idea of Iceland as an ideal genetic laboratory? How were the pieces of that island laboratory made to fit together and at what price? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports that the Sanger institute’s aborted effort to commercialize gene chip from hinder research in Africa by the genetics laboratory. It mentions that the genome sequencing can reveal the genetic roots of diseases and offer clues for new drugs and personalized medicine. It further reports that the chip could help researchers understand the mechanisms behind common diseases.

This Viewpoint reviews the recent growth and potential benefits and harms of hybrid models of genetic testing, in which testing services retain the low costs of direct-to-consumer testing and send results to patients but clinicians order the tests and also receive results that they can interpret for patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An interview with Robert Gasparini, the man behind the development of the first undergraduate cytogenetic technology education program in the U.S., is presented. When asked about his entry to the field of cytogenetics, he refers to his attraction to biology that made him took his first course in genetics in his junior year. He offers an overview of the field when he first entered it in 1977. He notes the difference of working in genetics laboratories in university and large corporate settings.

Next‐generation sequencing technologies have enabled the sequencing of an entire genome for less than $4,000. With access to all the genetic variation in an individual, our task will be to use this information to assess the genetic influences on drug efficacy, toxicity, and dosage. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2013); 94 2, 211–213. doi:10.1038/clpt.2013.111 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the training provided by the Institute for Quality Management in Healthcare (IQMH) in implementation of the quality management system (QMS) in genetic laboratories in order to provide reliable and accurate results to clinicians.

Currently, all agencies of conformity assessment testing laboratory favor the participation in proficiency testing as a mechanism for quality assurance. In Colombia, the Genes Laboratory has been designated, since 2008, to perform, design and implement proficiency testing for all the interested laboratories. In this report, the results of Colombian exercise Interlaboratory Quality Control for the year 2015 are presented. The exercise consisted of one practical component, one theoretical mandatory component, and an optional theoretical component. Twenty laboratories participated, representing six different countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. For the practical component each participant laboratory received; (1) samples of blood, saliva, and semen stains, in this part they should report the routine own laboratory markers for each sample, (2) three optional theoretical cases of varying complexity, (3) a mandatory theoretical approach about a biological relationship of paternal grandparents – granddaughter case. In the last two components of the exercise, they had to submit only the calculations. For the practical component the consensus of 70 STR markers, distributed between autosomal and linked to the sex chromosomes, was achieved with an error rate of 0.80% in genotyping, 1.0% nomenclature and/or format discrepancies and 3.8% non-reporting. On the other hand, 99.4% of the reported values were correct, only two values were not correct (0.6%) but were within the range of 5% of the correct value, being acceptable values within the rules of the exercise. This inter-laboratory exercise has become an important mechanism for quality assurance and ongoing training in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An essay is presented which describes the Worm Mutants biology course module at the University of North Texas, which was a winner of the periodical "Science" 2012 Prize for Inquiry-Based Instruction. The course includes a genetics laboratory for the investigation of mutation genetics in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, including genetic screening, phenotype analysis, and gene function. Skills developed include teamwork, communication, and time management.

The Virtual Genetics Lab II (VGLII) is an improved version of the highly successful genetics simulation software, the Virtual Genetics Lab (VGL). The software allows students to use the techniques of genetic analysis to design crosses and interpret data to solve realistic genetics problems involving a hypothetical diploid insect. This is a brief outline of the program and its new features; details are available at http://intro.bio.umb.edu/vgl/. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses singlenucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and announces that with the completion of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)-funded Resequencing and SNP Discovery Project in October 2006, researchers now have free access to a data set of SNPs housed on the National Center for Biotechnology Information website. David Threadgill, an associate professor of genetics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, says the data set was critical in recent studies that revealed genes that may contribute to human susceptibility to liver damage from acetaminophen. NIEHS director David Schwartz stated that the Resequencing and SNP Discovery Project represents a milestone that builds on fundamental accomplishments.

The article reflects on whether there are any medical benefits of direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing services offered by various private companies. He says that the companies claim that DTCs increase access to testing and helps consumer become more aware of the risk of developing diseases. He opines that DTC is taking advantage of consumers underestimating the disease genetic determinism complexity.

Abstract: Biological paternity research in Catalonia (north-eastern Spain) began in 1976 when Dr. Castillo, Dr. Gelabert and Dr. Huguet studied the first case at the Department of Forensic and Legal Medicine of the University of Barcelona in cooperation with the Haemostasis and Hemotherapy Service and the Blood Bank of the Hospital Clínic in Barcelona. In the knowledge that each human is genetically unique as a result of genetic polymorphism, blood group antigen typing and other immunological techniques including human histocompatibility leukocyte antigen (HLA) typing became widely used for paternity testing and forensic science application until the end of the 1970s. However, biological tests were not accepted by the courts in Spain until 1981 when the Civil Code was reformed. With the support of Dr. Carracedo from the University of Santiago, in 1982 Dr. Huguet and Dr. Gené, who are still actively researching, set up the Haemogenetic Forensic Laboratory at the University of Barcelona and this area of the Legal Medicine Unit was thus consolidated. It was the first Forensic Genetics Laboratory in Catalonia. The aim of this study is to conduct a retrospective analysis of paternity testing cases over the past 35 years. We report on the social and legal development of the cases analysed, grouped into different periods of time. The results on paternity and non-paternity claims were studied included exclusion and non-exclusion rates. Biomathematical performance values were reported for each methodology stage (number of exclusions, average paternity probability values, population index, etc.). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article reports that China will provide U.S. 300 million dollars in support for the Human Variome Project (HVP), an initiative that aims to reveal the genetic variations that cause human disease. It says that as part of the investment agreement, China will establish a genetics institute in Beijing, China to offer training in genetic testing and counselling. It mentions other countries which are contributing to the project including Australia, Kuwait, and Malaysia.