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Objectives: This study was carried out to determine the proportion of hypertension and its associated factors among current drinkers in Malaysia. Methodology: The data were obtained from the National Health and Morbidity Survey 2015, a cross-sectional population survey design with two-stage stratified random sampling method which involved Malaysian adults above 18 years. Data on alcohol consumption were obtained through a validated self-administered Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test questionnaire. A complex sampling analysis and multiple logistic regression analysis were applied. Results: A total of 1065 adults (8.4%; 95% confidence interval: 7.4-9.5) were categorized as current drinkers. Among the current drinkers, 28.4% were identified as having a risky drinking pattern and a fourth (26.6%) of them had hypertension. The multivariable model shows that hypertension risk among current drinkers was significantly higher in male (adjusted odd ratio [AOR] 2.05), with increasing age (AOR 1.06), with risky drinking pattern (AOR 1.44), in current drinkers with diabetes (AOR 2.56) and in overweight (AOR 3.54). Conclusions: The proportion of current drinker having hypertension was alarming and become deleterious, especially among men, increase of age, risky drinker and those with other non-communicable disease co-morbidities. Preventive counselling for alcohol use among them should be integrated into primary care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a quad-band multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antenna for the Internet of Things (IoT) applications. The proposed antenna consists of four quarter-wavelength asymmetrical meandered radiators, microstrip feed lines, and modified ground planes. The antenna elements are arranged in a chiral pattern to improve isolation between them, with two radiators and two ground planes placed on the front side of the substrate and the other two on the back side. The MIMO antenna has an operating bandwidth (S11 ≤ −10 dB) of 1.76–1.84 GHz, 2.37–2.56 GHz, 3.23–3.68 GHz, and 5.34–5.84 GHz, covering GSM, WLAN, WiMAX, and 5G frequency bands. The isolation between the radiating elements is greater than 18 dB in the operating bands. The peak gain of the antenna is 3.6 dBi, and the envelope correlation coefficient (ECC) is less than 0.04. Furthermore, the proposed antenna is validated for IoT-based smart home (SH) applications. The prototype MIMO antenna is integrated with a commercially available ZigBee device, and the measured values are found to be consistent with the expected results. The proposed MIMO antenna could be a good candidate for IoT systems/modules due to its low profile, compact size, lightweight, and easy integration with wireless communication devices.

The northwestern assay is employed to study the interaction between protein and RNA. The RNA binding proteins tend to bind to different kinds of RNA through either known domains or unknown sequences of proteins. Rice LGD1 recombinant protein, a grass-specific novel protein with RNA binding sequences in its C-terminal, was used to probe its function as an RNA binding protein. The LGD1 comprising von Willebrand factor type-A domain (vWA), coiled-coil and nuclear localization signal (NLS) is a class of protein that localizes both in the nucleus and cytoplasm. Although LGD1 does not contain any putative RNA binding domains, we could find high-affinity RNA binding residues at the C-terminus using ‘RNABindR’ prediction software (Terribilini et al., 2007). The LGD1 recombinant protein, purified from bacteria, somehow forms both dimer and monomer even under denaturing conditions. However, only the dimeric form is able to bind to total and mRNAs. Due to its reproducibility and reliability, we believe that this protocol can be used across different organisms.

Background: Reducing the maternal and neonatal mortality rate are the predominant goals of achieving sustainable development for which it is important to ensure adequate health workforce, especially pediatric professionals at all levels of health care. Recent trends reveal a significant decline in the number of doctors opting for pediatrics specialization., Objective: This study was carried out to explore the career preferences of the undergraduate medical students and factors influencing career choice., Methods: This cross sectional study was carried out among 362 undergraduate medical students studying in prefinal and final year during a period of three months. A self administered questionnaire was used to obtain information regarding the career preferences and factors influencing the decision making. Attitudes regarding career choice was assessed using Likert scale and later recoded into binomial variables. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS software., Results: Majority of the participants were females (61.8%). The individual choice of specialty revealed that 12.2% of the males and 18.5% of the females wanted to take up pediatrics as their first career choice while 5.5% of the males and 7.7% of the females had pediatrics as their second choice. Overall, more females preferred pediatrics as a career choice compared to the males. The observed difference was statistically significant (p<0.0001)., Conclusion: Adequate motivation, driven with passion for patient care can be inculcated at the young age and will go a long way in not only addressing the pediatric needs of the society, but also improve health indicators and sustainable development of the country., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (© 2021 Arun Sriram Amudhan, Anitha Palaniyandi, Mahalakshmi Rajan, Premkumar Parthiban, Sasitharan Rajendraprasath, Thulasiraj Saminathan, Reshma Shanmugam, Vinoth Ponnurangam Nagarajan.)

Arsenic (As), a non-biodegradable contaminant, is extremely toxic to plants and animals in its inorganic form. As negatively affects plant growth and development, primarily by inducing oxidative stress through redox imbalance. Here we characterized the Arabidopsis F-box protein gene AT2G16220 (Arsenic Stress-Related F-box (ASRF)) that we identified in the genome-wide association study. The asrf mutant seedlings showed high sensitivity to arsenate (As V ) stress. As V significantly affected asrf seedling growth when germinated on or exposed to As V -supplemented growth regimes. As V stress significantly induced production of reactive oxygen species and proline accumulation in asrf, so the asrf maintained high proline content, possibly for cellular protection and redox homeostasis. Heterozygous seedlings (Col-0 x asrf, F1 progeny) were relatively less affected by As V stress than asrf mutant but showed slightly reduced growth compared with the Col-0 wild type, which suggests that the homozygous ASRF locus is important for As V stress resistance. Transcriptome analysis involving the mutant and wild type revealed altered phosphate homeostasis in asrf seedlings, which implies that ASRF is required for maintaining phosphate and cellular- homeostasis under excess As V . Our findings confirm the roles of ASRF in As stress tolerance in plants, for a novel way to mitigate arsenic stress., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Acid mine drainage (AMD) is a huge environmental problem in mountain-top mining regions worldwide, including the Appalachian Mountains in the United States. This study applied a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to uncover genomic loci in Arabidopsis associated with tolerance to AMD toxicity. We characterized five major root phenotypes-cumulative root length, average root diameter, root surface area, root volume, and primary root length-in 180 Arabidopsis accessions in response to AMD-supplemented growth medium. GWAS of natural variation in the panel revealed genes associated with tolerance to an acidic environment. Most of these genes were transcription factors, anion/cation transporters, metal transporters, and unknown proteins. Two T-DNA insertion mutants, At1g63005 ( miR399b ) and At2g05635 ( DEAD helicase RAD3 ), showed enhanced acidity tolerance. Our GWAS and the reverse genetic approach revealed genes involved in conferring tolerance to coal AMD. Our results indicated that proton resistance in hydroponic conditions could be an important index to improve plant growth in acidic soil, at least in acid-sensitive plant species.

ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter genes act as transporters for different molecules across biological membranes and are involved in a diverse range of biological processes. In this study, we performed a genome-wide identification and expression analysis of genes encoding ABC transporter proteins in three Capsicum species, i.e., Capsicum annuum, Capsicum baccatum and Capsicum chinense. Capsicum is a valuable horticultural crop worldwide as an important constituent of many foods while containing several medicinal compounds including capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin. Our results identified the presence of a total of 200, 185 and 187 ABC transporter genes in C. annuum, C. baccatum and C. chinense genomes, respectively. Capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin content were determined in green pepper fruits (16 dpa). Additionally, we conducted different bioinformatics analyses including ABC genes classification, gene chromosomal location, Cis elements, conserved motifs identification and gene ontology classification, as well as profile expression of selected genes. Based on phylogenetic analysis and domain organization, the Capsicum ABC gene family was grouped into eight subfamilies. Among them, members within the ABCG, ABCB and ABCC subfamilies were the most abundant, while ABCD and ABCE subfamilies were less abundant throughout all species. ABC members within the same subfamily showed similar motif composition. Furthermore, common cis-elements involved in the transcriptional regulation were also identified in the promoter regions of all Capsicum ABC genes. Gene expression data from RNAseq and reverse transcription-semi-quantitative PCR analysis revealed development-specific stage expression profiles in placenta tissues. It suggests that ABC transporters, specifically the ABCC and ABCG subfamilies, may be playing important roles in the transport of secondary metabolites such as capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin to the placenta vacuoles, effecting on their content in pepper fruits. Our results provide a more comprehensive understanding of ABC transporter gene family in different Capsicum species while allowing the identification of important candidate genes related to capsaicin content for subsequent functional validation., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Elevated CO 2 along with drought is a serious global threat to crop productivity. Therefore, understanding the molecular mechanisms plants use to protect these stresses is the key for plant growth and development. In this study, we mimicked natural stress conditions under a controlled Soil-Plant-Atmosphere-Research (SPAR) system and provided the evidence for how miRNAs regulate target genes under elevated CO 2 and drought conditions. Significant physiological and biomass data supported the effective utilization of source-sink (leaf to root) under elevated CO 2 . Additionally, elevated CO 2 partially rescued the effect of drought on total biomass. We identified both known and novel miRNAs differentially expressed during drought, CO 2 , and combined stress, along with putative targets. A total of 32 conserved miRNAs belonged to 23 miRNA families, and 25 novel miRNAs were identified by deep sequencing. Using the existing sweet potato genome database and stringent analyses, a total of 42 and 22 potential target genes were predicted for the conserved and novel miRNAs, respectively. These target genes are involved in drought response, hormone signaling, photosynthesis, carbon fixation, sucrose and starch metabolism, etc. Gene ontology and KEGG ontology functional enrichment revealed that these miRNAs might target transcription factors (MYB, TCP, NAC), hormone signaling regulators (ARF, AP2/ERF), cold and drought factors (corA), carbon metabolism (ATP synthase, fructose-1,6-bisphosphate), and photosynthesis (photosystem I and II complex units). Our study is the first report identifying targets of miRNAs under elevated CO 2 levels and could support the molecular mechanisms under elevated CO 2 in sweet potato and other crops in the future.

The plant microbiome is a key determinant of plant health and productivity, and changes in the plant microbiome can alter the tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses and the quality of end produce. Little is known about the microbial diversity and its effect on carbohydrate metabolism in ripe fruits. In this study, we aimed to understand the diversity and function of microorganisms in relation to carbohydrate metabolism of ripe watermelon fruits. We used 16S metagenomics and RNAseq metatranscriptomics for analysis of red (PI459074, Congo, and SDRose) and yellow fruit-flesh cultivars (PI227202, PI435990, and JBush) of geographically and metabolically diverse watermelon cultivars. Metagenomics data showed that Proteobacteria were abundant in SDRose and PI227202, whereas Cyanobacteria were most abundant in Congo and PI4559074. In the case of metatranscriptome data, Proteobacteria was the most abundant in all cultivars. High expression of genes linked to infectious diseases and the expression of peptidoglycan hydrolases associated to pathogenicity of eukaryotic hosts was observed in SDRose, which could have resulted in low microbial diversity in this cultivar. The presence of GH28, associated with polygalacturonase activity in JBush and SDRose could be related to cell wall modifications including de-esterification and depolymerization, and consequent loss of galacturonic acid and neutral sugars. Moreover, based on the KEGG annotation of the expressed genes, nine α-galactosidase genes involved in key processes of galactosyl oligosaccharide metabolism, such as raffinose family were identified and galactose metabolism pathway was reconstructed. Results of this study underline the links between the host and fruit-associated microbiome in carbohydrate metabolism of the ripe fruits. The cultivar difference in watermelon reflects the quantum and diversity of the microbiome, which would benefit watermelon and other plant breeders aiming at the holobiont concept to incorporate associated microbiomes in breeding programs.

Use of 10,129 singleton SNPs of known genomic location in tetraploid cotton provided unique opportunities to characterize genome-wide diversity among 440 Gossypium hirsutum and 219 G. barbadense cultivars and landrace accessions of widespread origin. Using the SNPs distributed genome-wide, we examined genetic diversity, haplotype distribution and linkage disequilibrium patterns in the G. hirsutum and G. barbadense genomes to clarify population demographic history. Diversity and identity-by-state analyses have revealed little sharing of alleles between the two cultivated allotetraploid genomes, with a few exceptions that indicated sporadic gene flow. We found a high number of new alleles, representing increased nucleotide diversity, on chromosomes 1 and 2 in cultivated G. hirsutum as compared with low nucleotide diversity on these chromosomes in landrace G. hirsutum. In contrast, G. barbadense chromosomes showed negative Tajima's D on several chromosomes for both cultivated and landrace types, which indicate that speciation of G. barbadense itself, might have occurred with relatively narrow genetic diversity. The presence of conserved linkage disequilibrium (LD) blocks and haplotypes between G. hirsutum and G. barbadense provides strong evidence for comparable patterns of evolution in their domestication processes. Our study illustrates the potential use of population genetic techniques to identify genomic regions for domestication., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interests.

Accumulated capsaicinoid content and increased fruit size are traits resulting from Capsicum annuum domestication. In this study, we used a diverse collection of C. annuum to generate 66,960 SNPs using genotyping by sequencing. The study identified 1189 haplotypes containing 3413 SNPs. Length of individual linkage disequilibrium (LD) blocks varied along chromosomes, with regions of high and low LD interspersed with an average LD of 139 kb. Principal component analysis (PCA), Bayesian model based population structure analysis and an Euclidean tree built based on identity by state (IBS) indices revealed that the clustering pattern of diverse accessions are in agreement with capsaicin content (CA) and fruit weight (FW) classifications indicating the importance of these traits in shaping modern pepper genome. PCA and IBS were used in a mixed linear model of capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin content and fruit weight to reduce spurious associations because of confounding effects of subpopulations in genome-wide association study (GWAS). Our GWAS results showed SNPs in Ankyrin-like protein, IKI3 family protein, ABC transporter G family and pentatricopeptide repeat protein are the major markers for capsaicinoids and of 16 SNPs strongly associated with FW in both years of the study, 7 are located in known fruit weight controlling genes.

Principal component analysis (PCA) with 36,621 polymorphic genome-anchored single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) identified collectively for Capsicum annuum and Capsicum baccatum was used to characterize population structure and species domestication of these two important incompatible cultivated pepper species. Estimated mean nucleotide diversity (π) and Tajima's D across various chromosomes revealed biased distribution toward negative values on all chromosomes (except for chromosome 4) in cultivated C. baccatum , indicating a population bottleneck during domestication of C. baccatum . In contrast, C. annuum chromosomes showed positive π and Tajima's D on all chromosomes except chromosome 8, which may be because of domestication at multiple sites contributing to wider genetic diversity. For C. baccatum , 13,129 SNPs were available, with minor allele frequency (MAF) ≥0.05; PCA of the SNPs revealed 283 C. baccatum accessions grouped into 3 distinct clusters, for strong population structure. The fixation index ( F ST ) between domesticated C. annuum and C. baccatum was 0.78, which indicates genome-wide divergence. We conducted extensive linkage disequilibrium (LD) analysis of C. baccatum var. pendulum cultivars on all adjacent SNP pairs within a chromosome to identify regions of high and low LD interspersed with a genome-wide average LD block size of 99.1 kb. We characterized 1742 haplotypes containing 4420 SNPs (range 9-2 SNPs per haplotype). Genome-wide association study (GWAS) of peduncle length, a trait that differentiates wild and domesticated C. baccatum types, revealed 36 significantly associated genome-wide SNPs. Population structure, identity by state (IBS) and LD patterns across the genome will be of potential use for future GWAS of economically important traits in C. baccatum peppers.

Melon ( Cucumis melo L.) is a phenotypically diverse eudicot diploid (2 n = 2 x = 24) has climacteric and non-climacteric morphotypes and show wide variation for fruit firmness, an important trait for transportation and shelf life. We generated 13,789 SNP markers using genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) and anchored them to chromosomes to understand genome-wide fixation indices ( Fst ) between various melon morphotypes and genomewide linkage disequilibrium (LD) decay. The F ST between accessions of cantalupensis and inodorus was 0.23. The F ST between cantalupensis and various agrestis accessions was in a range of 0.19-0.53 and between inodorus and agrestis accessions was in a range of 0.21-0.59 indicating sporadic to wide ranging introgression. The EM (Expectation Maximization) algorithm was used for estimation of 1436 haplotypes. Average genome-wide LD decay for the melon genome was noted to be 9.27 Kb. In the current research, we focused on the genome-wide divergence underlying diverse melon horticultural groups. A high-resolution genetic map with 7153 loci was constructed. Genome-wide segregation distortion and recombination rate across various chromosomes were characterized. Melon has climacteric and non-climacteric morphotypes and wide variation for fruit firmness, a very important trait for transportation and shelf life. Various levels of QTLs were identified with high to moderate stringency and linked to fruit firmness using both genome-wide association study (GWAS) and biparental mapping. Gene annotation revealed some of the SNPs are located in β-D-xylosidase, glyoxysomal malate synthase, chloroplastic anthranilate phosphoribosyltransferase, and histidine kinase, the genes that were previously characterized for fruit ripening and softening in other crops.

Background: MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding endogenous RNAs that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally, play multiple key roles in plant growth and development and in biotic and abiotic stress response. Knowledge and roles of miRNAs in pomegranate fruit development have not been explored., Results: Pomegranate, which accumulates a large amount of anthocyanins in skin and arils, is valuable to human health, mainly because of its antioxidant properties. In this study, we developed a small RNA library from pooled RNA samples from young seedlings to mature fruits and identified both conserved and pomegranate-specific miRNA from 29,948,480 high-quality reads. For the pool of 15- to 30-nt small RNAs, ~50 % were 24 nt. The miR157 family was the most abundant, followed by miR156, miR166, and miR168, with variants within each family. The base bias at the first position from the 5' end had a strong preference for U for most 18- to 26-nt sRNAs but a preference for A for 18-nt sRNAs. In addition, for all 24-nt sRNAs, the nucleotide U was preferred (97 %) in the first position. Stem-loop RT-qPCR was used to validate the expression of the predominant miRNAs and novel miRNAs in leaves, male and female flowers, and multiple fruit developmental stages; miR156, miR156a, miR159a, miR159b, and miR319b were upregulated during the later stages of fruit development. Higher expression of miR156 in later fruit developmental may positively regulate anthocyanin biosynthesis by reducing SPL transcription factor. Novel miRNAs showed variation in expression among different tissues. These novel miRNAs targeted different transcription factors and hormone related regulators. Gene ontology and KEGG pathway analyses revealed predominant metabolic processes and catalytic activities, important for fruit development. In addition, KEGG pathway analyses revealed the involvement of miRNAs in ascorbate and linolenic acid, starch and sucrose metabolism; RNA transport; plant hormone signaling pathways; and circadian clock., Conclusion: Our first and preliminary report of miRNAs will provide information on the synthesis of biochemical compounds of pomegranate for future research. The functions of the targets of the novel miRNAs need further investigation.

Efficient postmining reclamation requires successful revegetation. By using RNA sequencing, we evaluated the growth response of two invasive plants, goutweed (Aegopodium podagraria L.) and mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris), grown in two Appalachian acid-mine soils (MS-I and -II, pH ∼ 4.6). Although deficient in macronutrients, both soils contained high levels of plant-available Al, Fe and Mn. Both plant types showed toxicity tolerance, but metal accumulation differed by plant and site. With MS-I, Al accumulation was greater for mugwort than goutweed (385 ± 47 vs 2151 ± 251 μg g-1). Al concentration was similar between mine sites, but its accumulation in mugwort was greater with MS-I than MS-II, with no difference in accumulation by site for goutweed. An in situ approach revealed deregulation of multiple factors such as transporters, transcription factors, and metal chelators for metal uptake or exclusion. The two plant systems showed common gene expression patterns for different pathways. Both plant systems appeared to have few common heavy-metal pathway regulators addressing mineral toxicity/deficiency in both mine sites, which implies adaptability of invasive plants for efficient growth at mine sites with toxic waste. Functional genomics can be used to screen for plant adaptability, especially for reclamation and phytoremediation of contaminated soils and waters.

This genetic diversity study aimed to estimate the population structure and explore the use of association mapping strategies to identify linked markers for bacterial resistance, growth and fruit quality in pomegranate collections from India. In total, 88 accessions including 37 cultivated types were investigated. A total of 112 alleles were amplified by use of 44 publicly available microsatellites for estimating molecular genetic diversity and population structure. Neighbor-joining analysis, model-based population structure and principal component analysis corroborated the genetic relationships among wild-type and cultivated pomegranate collections from India. Our study placed all 88 germplasm into four clusters. We identified a cultivated clade of pomegranates in close proximity to Daru types of wild-type pomegranates that grow naturally near the foothills of the Himalayas. Admixture analysis sorted various lineages of cultivated pomegranates to their respective ancestral forms. We identified four linked markers for fruit weight, titratable acidity and bacterial blight severity. PGCT001 was found associated with both fruit weight and bacterial blight, and the association with fruit weight during both seasons analyzed was significant after Bonferroni correction. This research demonstrates effectiveness of microsatellites to resolve population structure among the wild and cultivar collection of pomegranates and future use for association mapping studies.

The exploitation of synthetic polyploids for producing seedless fruits is well known in watermelon. Tetraploid progenitors of triploid watermelon plants, compared with their diploid counterparts, exhibit wide phenotypic differences. Although many factors modulate alternative splicing (AS) in plants, the effects of autopolyploidization on AS are still unknown. In this study, we used tissues of leaf, stem, and fruit of diploid and tetraploid sweet watermelon to understand changes in gene expression and the occurrence of AS. RNA-sequencing analysis was performed along with reverse transcription quantitative PCR and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE)-PCR to demonstrate changes in expression and splicing. All vegetative tissues except fruit showed an increased level of AS in the tetraploid watermelon throughout the growth period. The ploidy levels of diploids and the tetraploid were confirmed using a ploidy analyser. We identified 5362 and 1288 genes that were up- and downregulated, respectively, in tetraploid as compared with diploid plants. We further confirmed that 22 genes underwent AS events across tissues, indicating possibilities of generating different protein isoforms with altered functions of important transcription factors and transporters. Arginine biosynthesis, chlorophyllide synthesis, GDP mannose biosynthesis, trehalose biosynthesis, and starch and sucrose degradation pathways were upregulated in autotetraploids. Phloem protein 2, chloroplastic PGR5-like protein, zinc-finger protein, fructokinase-like 2, MYB transcription factor, and nodulin MtN21 showed AS in fruit tissues. These results should help in developing high-quality seedless watermelon and provide additional transcriptomic information related to other cucurbits., (© The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Our genetic diversity study uses microsatellites of known map position to estimate genome level population structure and linkage disequilibrium, and to identify genomic regions that have undergone selection during watermelon domestication and improvement. Thirty regions that showed evidence of selective sweep were scanned for the presence of candidate genes using the watermelon genome browser (www.icugi.org). We localized selective sweeps in intergenic regions, close to the promoters, and within the exons and introns of various genes. This study provided an evidence of convergent evolution for the presence of diverse ecotypes with special reference to American and European ecotypes. Our search for location of linked markers in the whole-genome draft sequence revealed that BVWS00358, a GA repeat microsatellite, is the GAGA type transcription factor located in the 5' untranslated regions of a structure and insertion element that expresses a Cys2His2 Zinc finger motif, with presumed biological processes related to chitin response and transcriptional regulation. In addition, BVWS01708, an ATT repeat microsatellite, located in the promoter of a DTW domain-containing protein (Cla002761); and 2 other simple sequence repeats that association mapping link to fruit length and rind thickness., (© The American Genetic Association 2014. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

We used genotyping by sequencing to identify a set of 10,480 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers for constructing a high-resolution genetic map of 1096 cM for watermelon. We assessed the genome-wide variation in recombination rate (GWRR) across the map and found an association between GWRR and genome-wide nucleotide diversity. Collinearity between the map and the genome-wide reference sequence for watermelon was studied to identify inconsistency and chromosome rearrangements. We assessed genome-wide nucleotide diversity, linkage disequilibrium (LD), and selective sweep for wild, semi-wild, and domesticated accessions of Citrullus lanatus var. lanatus to track signals of domestication. Principal component analysis combined with chromosome-wide phylogenetic study based on 1563 SNPs obtained after LD pruning with minor allele frequency of 0.05 resolved the differences between semi-wild and wild accessions as well as relationships among worldwide sweet watermelon. Population structure analysis revealed predominant ancestries for wild, semi-wild, and domesticated watermelons as well as admixture of various ancestries that were important for domestication. Sliding window analysis of Tajima's D across various chromosomes was used to resolve selective sweep. LD decay was estimated for various chromosomes. We identified a strong selective sweep on chromosome 3 consisting of important genes that might have had a role in sweet watermelon domestication., (Copyright © 2014 Reddy et al.)

Background: A large single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) dataset was used to analyze genome-wide diversity in a diverse collection of watermelon cultivars representing globally cultivated, watermelon genetic diversity. The marker density required for conducting successful association mapping depends on the extent of linkage disequilibrium (LD) within a population. Use of genotyping by sequencing reveals large numbers of SNPs that in turn generate opportunities in genome-wide association mapping and marker-assisted selection, even in crops such as watermelon for which few genomic resources are available. In this paper, we used genome-wide genetic diversity to study LD, selective sweeps, and pairwise FST distributions among worldwide cultivated watermelons to track signals of domestication., Results: We examined 183 Citrullus lanatus var. lanatus accessions representing domesticated watermelon and generated a set of 11,485 SNP markers using genotyping by sequencing. With a diverse panel of worldwide cultivated watermelons, we identified a set of 5,254 SNPs with a minor allele frequency of ≥ 0.05, distributed across the genome. All ancestries were traced to Africa and an admixture of various ancestries constituted secondary gene pools across various continents. A sliding window analysis using pairwise FST values was used to resolve selective sweeps. We identified strong selection on chromosomes 3 and 9 that might have contributed to the domestication process. Pairwise analysis of adjacent SNPs within a chromosome as well as within a haplotype allowed us to estimate genome-wide LD decay. LD was also detected within individual genes on various chromosomes. Principal component and ancestry analyses were used to account for population structure in a genome-wide association study. We further mapped important genes for soluble solid content using a mixed linear model., Conclusions: Information concerning the SNP resources, population structure, and LD developed in this study will help in identifying agronomically important candidate genes from the genomic regions underlying selection and for mapping quantitative trait loci using a genome-wide association study in sweet watermelon.

Pregnancy in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients is associated with a lower risk of progression and lower rate of exacerbation. These beneficial effects are reversed postpartum. Considering that the pathogenesis of MS appears to involve cell-mediated immune reactivity, and that pregnancy is accompanied by a depressed cell-mediated immunity, it has been proposed that the lower relapse rate and risk of progression of MS during pregnancy may be due to a pregnancy-associated down-regulation of cell-mediated immunity. In addition, pregnancy results in a shift towards a T helper (Th) 2 cytokine profile, which is presumably protective for MS. This study was aimed at investigating the relationship between clinical status of MS and cytokine levels in eight patients with MS who were followed through pregnancy and after delivery. Peripheral blood lymphocytes from these women were stimulated with a mitogen at different time points during and after gestation and the levels of Th1 cytokines (IFNgamma, TNFalpha) and Th2 cytokines (IL-4, IL-10) were estimated by ELISA. It was established that six of the eight MS patients studied showed a distinct shift from a Th2 cytokine bias during pregnancy towards a Th1 cytokine bias after delivery. These results suggest a possible association between decreased incidence of exacerbation of MS in pregnancy and a pregnancy-induced shift towards Th2 cytokine bias.

Background: Many pediatric chemotherapy protocols for treatment of ALL require a bone marrow examination at day 7 or day 14 after initiation of therapy. The usefulness of a bone marrow biopsy, in addition to an aspirate, has been a frequently asked question., Procedure: This study addresses the evaluation of bone marrow cellularity and presence of residual leukemia in both aspirate and biopsy specimens in 45 consecutive pediatric patients (ages 1-19 years, 19 females, and 26 males) with ALL 7-14 days after initiation of therapy., Discussion: 20/45 patients showed evidence of residual leukemia by bone marrow biopsy; 16/20 (80%) of these had evidence of residual leukemia in the aspirate specimen. Of the 4 aspirate specimens that did not demonstrate residual leukemia, 2 had <5% blasts and 2 had too few cells in the aspirate for evaluation. Of the 25/45 bone marrow biopsy specimens with no detectable residual leukemia, 14 of the aspirates had <5% blasts, and 11 had too few cells in the aspirate for evaluation. 13/45 (29%) of the aspirates had too few cells for a differential count. The bone marrow cellularity judged from the aspirate specimen was considered to be low (0-1+) in 34/45 patients. Of these 34 patients, the bone marrow biopsy showed hypocellularity (<20% cellularity) in 12/34, moderate cellularity (20-79% cellularity) in 14/34, and hypercellularity (>79% cellularity) in 8/34., Conclusions: We conclude that both the bone marrow aspirate and biopsy specimens provide important information in evaluating the response to chemotherapy in pediatric patients with ALL at day 7-14 of induction chemotherapy. The aspirate alone may be misleading in terms of cellularity in many patients and may not provide evidence of residual leukemia.

Objective: To evaluate the reliability of benign breast aspirates., Design: A 20-year retrospective study of cytologically benign aspirates from palpable breast lesions followed by surgery and review of false negatives., Results: Data encompassed 1518 benign aspirates followed by benign histology, and 99 by malignant histology. Of the latter, 89% underwent biopsy within 1 month. Review of 52 available false negatives revealed 10 (19%) with no change in the original diagnosis, 16 (31%) reviewed as unsatisfactory specimens, and 26 (50%) reviewed as specimens with focal cytologic atypia (dyshesion, nuclear enlargement, and contour irregularity). Cellularity (>20 epithelial groups per slide) was an important criterion in postmenopausal women., Conclusion: Our study confirms the reliability of benign breast aspirates interpreted in light of clinical and mammographic findings and demonstrates the importance of adequacy evaluation and focal atypia in preventing false negatives.

Exfoliative cytologic studies directed toward atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASCUS) and low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LSIL) have been neglected in the rising postmenopausal population. This retrospective study from 60 cases, initially interpreted as ASCUS or LSIL, concentrates on these lesions and their associated diagnostic pitfalls. Cytologic reevaluation of the 60 patients revealed squamous-cell abnormalities in 45 (18 ASCUS and 27 LSIL) and cervicitis alone in 15 cases. Follow-up studies of the 18 ASCUS cases showed cervicitis in seven, persistent ASCUS in five, CIN I in five, and VAIN I-II in one. Follow-up of the 27 cases categorized as LSIL, showed ASCUS in two, CIN in 20 and VAIN in one, while four had cervicitis alone. Interestingly, two of these 45 patients had only vaginal dysplasia. By application of uniform diagnostic criteria, 15 of the 60 cases were reviewed as benign. Pitfalls included inflammatory and drying alterations, reactive metaplasia, and sampling problems. Thus, squamous-cell abnormalities in postmenopausal women can be significant when artifactual alterations are eliminated.