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IntroductionSport officials are tasked with applying rules, maintaining fairness, and ensuring athlete safety. However, sport officials experience anxiety, burnout, and non-accidental violence, with the incidence of these events increasing worldwide. This has led to rising attrition rates among sport officials, with many sport organizations concerned for their operational capacity. The effects of anxiety, burnout, and non-accidental violence might contribute to or be indicative of sport officials' negative mental health outcomes. To develop a clear understanding of how sport officials' mental health is affected by their occupation, it is necessary to identify the mental health outcomes and predictors they experience, and to what extent. The purpose of this scoping review was to identify and examine the empirical research and policy documents surrounding sport officials' mental health.MethodOne thousand, two hundred six articles were identified across four databases: PubMed, Web of Science, SportDiscus, and PsycINFO. Next, a policy search was conducted on the respective international governing body websites from English-speaking countries for the 60 included sports. Following screening, 18 studies and one policy document met the inclusion criteria for exploring sport officials' mental health.ResultsParticipants (N = 7,941) in the studies were mainly European male soccer and basketball referees. Most studies utilized quantitative inquiry (n = 15) rather than qualitative methods (n = 2) or framework development (n = 1). The research demonstrated that sport officials frequently experienced negative mental health outcomes and predictors including anxiety, depression, burnout, lower mental health literacy, and high levels of stigmatization towards mental health.DiscussionThese outcomes were influenced by gender/sex, age, and experience. There is a need to explore personal and environmental (including occupational) factors that cause or contribute to sport officials' mental health symptoms and disorders.

The Brassica genus comprises the greatest diversity of agriculturally important crops. Several species from this genus are grown as vegetable and oil crops for food, animal feed and industrial purposes. In particular, B. oleracea has been extensively bred to give rise to several familiar vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale and Brussels Sprouts, etc.) that are grouped under seven major cultivars. In 2020, 96.4 million tonnes of vegetable brassicas were produced globally with a 10.6% increase over the past decade. Yet, like other crops, the production of brassicas is challenged by diseases among which, black rot, clubroot, downy mildew and turnip yellows virus have been identified by growers as the most damaging to UK production. In some cases, yield losses can reach 90% depending upon the geographic location of cultivation. This review aims to provide an overview of the key diseases of brassicas and their management practices, with respect to the biology and lifecycle of the causal pathogens. In addition, the existing controls on the market as well as those that are currently in the research and development phases were critically reviewed. There is not one specific control method that is effective against all the diseases. Generally, cultural practices prevent disease rather than reduce or eliminate disease. Chemical controls are limited, have broad-spectrum activity, are damaging to the environment and are rapidly becoming ineffective due to the evolution of resistance mechanisms by the pathogens. It is therefore important to develop integrated pest management (IPM) strategies that are tailored to geographic locations. Several knowledge gaps have been identified and listed in this review along with the future recommendations to control these four major diseases of brassicas. As such, this review paper will act as a guide to sustainably tackle pre-harvest diseases in Brassica crops to reduce food loss.

We performed shotgun genome sequencing on a total of 19 different Musa genotypes including representatives of wild banana species Musa acuminata and M. balibisiana, allopolyploid bananas and plantains, Fe'i banana, pink banana (also known as hairy banana) and abacá (also known as hemp banana). We aligned sequence reads against a previously sequenced reference genome and assessed ploidy and, in the case of allopolyploids, the contributions of the A and B genomes; this provides important quality-assurance data about the taxonomic identities of the sequenced plant material. These data will be useful for phylogenetics, crop improvement, studies of the complex story of intergenomic recombination in AAB and ABB allotriploid bananas and plantains and can be integrated into resources such as the Banana Genome Hub.

We present raw sequence reads and genome assemblies derived from 17 accessions of the Ethiopian orphan crop plant enset (Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman) using the Illumina HiSeq and MiSeq platforms. Also presented is a catalogue of single-nucleotide polymorphisms inferred from the sequence data at an average density of approximately one per kilobase of genomic DNA.

Here we present genome sequences for twelve isolates of the invasive pathogen Phytophthora ramorum EU1. The assembled genome sequences and raw sequence data are available via BioProject accession number PRJNA177509. These data will be useful in developing molecular tools for specific detection and identification of this pathogen.

Xanthomonas vasicola pathovar vasculorum (Xvv) is the bacterial agent causing gumming disease in sugarcane. Here, we compare complete genome sequences for five isolates of Xvv originating from sugarcane and one from maize. This identified two distinct types of lipopolysaccharide synthesis gene clusters among Xvv isolates: one is similar to that of Xanthomonas axonopodis pathovar citri (Xac) and is probably the ancestral type, while the other is similar to those of the sugarcane-inhabiting species, Xanthomonas sacchari. Four of six Xvv isolates harboured sequences similar to the Xac plasmid, pXAC47, and showed a distinct Type-IV pilus (T4P) sequence type, whereas the T4P locus of the other two isolates resembled that of the closely related banana pathogen, Xanthomonas campestris pathovar musacearum (Xcm). The Xvv isolate from maize has lost a gene encoding a homologue of the virulence effector, xopAF, which was present in all five of the sugarcane isolates, while xopL contained a premature stop codon in four out of six isolates. These findings shed new light on evolutionary events since the divergence of Xvv and Xcm, as well as further elucidating the relationships between the two closely related pathogens.

Plant disease resistance (R) proteins of the nucleotide binding-leucine rich repeat class are responsible for pathogen recognition and activation of defense signaling networks leading to the hypersensitive response (HR). Genetically, R-protein signaling appears to be integrated through a limited set of common downstream components. However, the timing of development of visible HR is unique to individual R proteins. By utilizing the phenomena of ultraweak photon emission from leaves undergoing an incompatible interacttion, a powerful nondestructive and facile assay is described to compare timing of defense responses elicited by different R proteins. We demonstrate that ultraweak photon emission, or “biophoton generation,” is demonstrated to be associated with hypersensitive cell death. Biophoton emission requires an intact R signaling network and increases in cytosolic calcium and nitric oxide, but elevated reactive oxygen species are not necessary. Importantly, the assay is robust and applicable to a range of incompatible interactions in various plant species. The ability to assay R responses nondestructively in real time and a chosen genetic background makes this technique amenable to subtle genetic dissection of plant defense responses.

Newly discovered Phytophthora species include invasive pathogens that threaten trees and shrubs. We present draft genome assemblies for three isolates of Phytophthora kernoviae and one isolate of the EU2 lineage of Phytophthora ramorum, collected from outbreak sites in Scotland.

Here we present draft-quality genome sequence assemblies for the oomycete Phytophthora ramorum genetic lineage EU2. We sequenced genomes of seven isolates collected in Northern Ireland between 2010 and 2012. Multiple genome sequences from P. ramorum EU2 will be valuable for identifying genetic variation within the clonal lineage that can be useful for tracking its spread.

Phospholipase D (PLD; EC 3.1.4.4) has been linked to a number of cellular processes, including Tran membrane signaling and membrane degradation. Four PLD genes (α, β, γ1, and γ2) have been cloned from Arabidopsis thalami. They encode isoforms with distinct regulatory and catalytic properties but little is known about their physiological roles. Using cDNA amplified fragment length polymorphism display and RNA blot analysis, we identified Arabidopsis PLDγ1 and a gene encoding a lysophospholipase (EC 3.1.1.5), lysoPL1, to be differentially expressed during host response to virulent and avirulent pathogen challenge. Examination of the expression pattern of phospholipase genes induced in response to pathogen challenge was undertaken using the lysoPL1 and gene-specific probes corresponding to the PLD isoforms α, β, and γ1. Each mRNA class exhibited different temporal patterns of expression after infiltration of leaves with Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato with or without avrRpm1. PLDα was rapidly induced and remained constitutively elevated regardless of treatment. PLDβ was transiently induced upon pathogen challenge. However, mRNA for the lysoPL1 and PLDγ1 genes showed enhanced and sustained elevation during an incompatible interaction, in both ndr1 and overexpressing NahG genetic backgrounds. Further evidence for differential engagement of these PLD mRNA during defense responses, other than gene-for-gene interactions, was demonstrated by their response to salicylic acid treatment or wounding. Our results indicate that genes encoding lysoPL1, PLDγ1, and PLDβ are induced during early responses to pathogen challenge and, additionally, PLDγ1 and lysoPL1 are specifically upregulated during gene-for-gene interactions, leading to the hypersensitive response. We discuss the possible role of these genes in plant-pathogen interactions.

Nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) is a conserved mechanism that targets aberrant mRNAs for destruction. NMD has also been found to regulate the expression of large numbers of genes in diverse organisms, although the biological role for this is unclear and few evolutionarily conserved targets have been identified. Expression analyses of three Arabidopsis thaliana lines deficient in NMD reveal that the vast majority of NMD-targeted transcripts are associated with response to pathogens. Congruently, NMD mutants, in which these transcripts are elevated, confer partial resistance to Pseudomonas syringae. These findings suggest a biological rationale for the regulation of gene expression by NMD in plants and suggest that manipulation of NMD could offer a new approach for crop protection. Amongst the few non-pathogen responsive NMD-targeted genes, one potential NMD targeted signal, the evolutionarily conserved upstream open reading frame (CuORF), was found to be hugely over-represented, raising the possibility that this feature could be used to target specific physiological mRNAs for control by NMD.

Small molecules are central to all biological processes and metabolomics becoming an increasingly important discovery tool. Robust, accurate and efficient experimental approaches are critical to supporting and validating predictions from post-genomic studies. To accurately predict metabolic changes and dynamics, experimental design requires multiple biological replicates and usually multiple treatments. Mass spectra from each run are processed and metabolite features are extracted. Because of machine resolution and variation in replicates, one metabolite may have different implementations (values) of retention time and mass in different spectra. A major impediment to effectively utilizing untargeted metabolomics data is ensuring accurate spectral alignment, enabling precise recognition of features (metabolites) across spectra. Existing alignment algorithms use either a global merge strategy or a local merge strategy. The former delivers an accurate alignment, but lacks efficiency. The latter is fast, but often inaccurate. Here we document a new algorithm employing a technique known as quicksort. The results on both simulated data and real data show that this algorithm provides a dramatic increase in alignment speed and also improves alignment accuracy.

Access to science-based environmental education is critical to improve rural coastal communities' adaptive capacity and resilience. Based on research in two rural, underprivileged schools in South Africa's southern Cape coastal region, we describe the process and lessons learnt in developing and deploying a series of integrated teaching modules for middle school (Gr 7-9) learners. The modules' structure was informed by integrated curriculum design, and lessons were developed to augment the existing syllabus. Social and situated learning paradigms also informed the modules' development, with lessons and practical exercises drawn from the surrounding environment and community, as well as incorporating data from ongoing regional marine science research. In a context of rural isolation, limited resources and a mistrust of outsiders amongst adult community members, the findings suggest that the modules may serve as building blocks of intentional learning to bolster adaptive capacity amongst both learners and the broader local community.