Alternative reproductive tactics and sex-biased gene expression : the study of the bulb mite transcriptome

The sexes experience different selective pressures, which can lead to highly divergent phenotypes that are achieved via sex-biased gene expression. The effect of sexual dimorphism on the degree of sex-bias in gene expression can be studied in species characterized by sexually selected alternative male phenotypes. We analyzed gene expression in the bulb mite Rhizoglyphus robini (Acari, Acaridae), in which more sexually dimorphic, aggressive fighter males, possessing thickened legs of the third pair which are used to kill rivals, coexist with unarmored scrambler males. We sequenced transcriptomes of adult females and both types of males and de-novo assembled 114,456 transcriptome-based gene models (TGMs). Significantly more TGMs had male-biased expression than female-biased expression. Among TGMs that were over expressed in one, but not both, male morphs (compared to expression in females), we found about four times more fighter-biased genes than scrambler-biased genes. This demonstrates that the degree of expression bias reflects the degree of sexually selected dimorphism. However, the number of sex-biased genes was much higher than the number of genes differentially expressed between male morphs, and most male-biased genes were shared between morphs, suggesting that selection pressures act similarly on males irrespective of their morph. Furthermore, we found that male-biased genes evolved at a faster rate than female-biased genes, as evidenced by a higher rate of both gene-turnover and amino acid substitution, indicating that sexual selection, acting more strongly on males, accelerates the rate of molecular evolution. Interestingly, gene turnover was relatively higher, but amino acid substitution rate relatively lower among fighter-biased genes, suggesting that different components of sexual selection may have different effects on the evolution of sex-biased genes

Correct and incorrect knowledge of the risk factors concerning the development of arterial hypertension. Part 2. Population of patients with identified arterial hypertension

Introduction. Hypertension (HT) and its complications significantly shorten the life expectancy in the world population. In addition to pharmacotherapy, life-style changes play a key role in treatment, which requires appropriate knowledge among patients. Material and methods. The study was conducted in a group of 613 adults with HT. After obtaining sociodemographic data, performing anthropometric measurements, measuring resting blood pressure twice, the knowledge was assessed using a personally conducted questionnaire. The questions evaluated the effects of smoking, alcohol, coffee, salt, fat, irregular diet, low fibre and vegetable intake, as well as skimmed dairy products in diet, overweight and obesity, cholesterol, physical activity and stressful lifestyle on the development of HT. Results. False knowledge of the influence on the development of HT in the case of alcohol drinking was found in 16% of the respondents, coffee — 56.4%, large amounts of salt — 7.2%, large amounts of fats — 88%, small amounts of fibre and vegetables and skimmed dairy products — 27.8%, irregular diet — 46.4%, cigarette smoking — 73.4%, overweight and obesity — 4.4%, high cholesterol — 86.9%, low physical activity — 11.2% %, stressful lifestyle — 5.4%. Conclusions. Incorrect knowledge of HT risk factors was most likely to be associated with excessive intake of fat, elevated cholesterol, smoking and coffee drinking. There were no common features of the people who answered the questions incorrectly. The results show the need to educate HT patients about the factors that aggravate this disease

Correct and incorrect knowledge of the risk factors concerning the development of arterial hypertension. Part 1. Population of people without hypertension

Introduction. Hypertension (HT) is one of the most common causes of death in the adult population in the world. The lifestyle factors play a significant role in its pathogenesis. To be effective in preventing its development or slowing its progress the society needs to have proper knowledge. Material and methods. The study was conducted in a population of 929 adults who had no known HT. Sociodemographic data were collected from each subject, anthropometric measurements were taken, blood pressure and heart rate were measured twice. The knowledge was assessed using the authorial questionnaire, and questions were related to knowledge about the effects of smoking, alcohol, coffee, salt, fat, irregular diet, low fibre and vegetables, and skimmed dairy products in diet, overweight and obesity, cholesterol, physical activity, stressful lifestyle on the development of HT. Results. Incorrect knowledge of the influence on the development of HT in the case of alcohol drinking was found in 16.9% of the respondents, coffee — 58.8%, large amounts of salt — 10.3%, large amounts of fat — 82.7%, small amounts of fibre and vegetables and skimmed dairy products — 26.2%, irregular diet — 46.4%, cigarette smoking — 70.9%, overweight and obesity — 5.1%, high cholesterol — 87.6%, low physical activity — 10.9%, stressful lifestyle — 6.5%. Conclusions. Incorrect knowledge of HT-related risk factors was associated particularly with higher level of cholesterol, excessive fat intake, smoking and coffee consumption. Most frequently incorrect answers were given by men, low-educated and non-smokers. In the above-mentioned groups emphasis on health promotion should be placed the most

No evidence for reproductive isolation through sexual conflict in the bulb mite Rhizoglyphus robini

Sexual conflict leading to sexual antagonistic coevolution has been hypothesized to drive reproductive isolation in allopatric populations and hence lead to speciation. However, the generality of this speciation mechanism is under debate. We used experimental evolution in the bulb mite Rhizoglyphus robini to investigate whether sexual conflict promotes reproductive isolation measured comprehensively to include all possible pre- and post-zygotic mechanisms. We established replicate populations in which we either enforced monogamy, and hence removed sexual conflict by making male and female evolutionary interests congruent, or allowed promiscuity. After 35 and 45 generations of experimental evolution, we found no evidence of reproductive isolation between the populations in any of the mating systems. Our results indicate that sexual conflict does not necessarily drive fast reproductive isolation and it may not be a ubiquitous mechanism leading to speciation

Prawidłowa i nieprawidłowa wiedza na temat czynników ryzyka związanych z rozwojem nadciśnienia tętniczego. Część 2. Populacja pacjentów z wykrytym nadciśnieniem tętniczym

Wstęp. Nadciśnienie tętnicze (HT) i jego powikłania powodują istotne skrócenie średniego czasu życia światowej populacji. W leczeniu nadciśnienia tętniczego — oprócz farmakoterapii — istotną rolę odgrywa zmiana stylu życia, a do tego potrzebna jest odpowiednia wiedza pacjentów. Materiał i metody. Badanie przeprowadzono w grupie 613 dorosłych osób z HT. Po uzyskaniu danych socjodemograficznych, wykonaniu pomiarów antropometrycznych i dwukrotnych pomiarach ciśnienia tętniczego w spoczynku z uczestnikami badania przeprowadzano indywidualne rozmowy w celu wypełnienia kwestionariusza do oceny ich wiedzy na temat HT. Pytania dotyczyły wpływu palenia tytoniu, alkoholu, kawy, soli tłuszczu, nieregularnych posiłków, diety zawierającej mało błonnika, warzyw i chudego nabiału, nadwagi i otyłości, cholesterolu, aktywności fizycznej i stresującego trybu życia na rozwój HT. Wyniki. Nieprawidłową wiedzę na temat wpływu poszczególnych czynników na rozwój HT stwierdzono u następującego odsetka respondentów: błędne informacje na temat wpływu spożywania alkoholu miało 16% respondentów, na temat picia kawy — 56,4%, spożywania dużych ilości soli — 7,2%, spożywania dużych ilości tłuszczów — 88%, niskiego spożycia błonnika, warzyw i chudego nabiału — 27,8%, nieregularnych posiłków — 46,4%, palenia tytoniu — 73,4%, nadwagi i otyłości — 4,4%, wysokiego stężenia cholesterolu — 86,9%, małej aktywności fizycznej — 11,2%, stresującego trybu życia — 5,4%. Wnioski. Nieprawidłowa wiedza na temat czynników HT dotyczyła najczęściej nadmiernego spożycia tłuszczów, podwyższonego stężenia cholesterolu, palenia tytoniu i picia kawy. Nie stwierdzono żadnych wspólnych cech u osób, które udzieliły nieprawidłowych odpowiedzi. Wyniki badania wskazują na potrzebę edukowania chorych na HT na temat czynników, które powodują nasilenie choroby

Study of Spin-Orbit Interactions and Interlayer Ferromagnetic Coupling in Co/Pt/Co Trilayers in Wide Range of Heavy Metal Thickness

The spin-orbit torque, a torque induced by a charge current flowing through the heavy-metal conducting layer with strong spin-orbit interactions, provides an efficient way to control the magnetization direction in heavy-metal/ferromagnet nanostructures, required for applications in the emergent magnetic technologies like random access memories, high-frequency nano oscillators, or bio-inspired neuromorphic computations. We study the interface properties, magnetization dynamics, magnetostatic features and spin-orbit interactions within the multilayer system Ti(2)/Co(1)/Pt(0-4)/Co(1)/MgO(2)/Ti(2) (thicknesses in nanometers) patterned by optical lithography on micrometer-sized bars. In the investigated devices, Pt is used as a source of the spin current and as a non-magnetic spacer with variable thickness, which enables the magnitude of the interlayer ferromagnetic exchange coupling to be effectively tuned. We also find the Pt thickness-dependent changes in magnetic anisotropies, magnetoresistance, effective Hall angle and, eventually, spin-orbit torque fields at interfaces. The experimental findings are supported by the relevant interface structure-related simulations, micromagnetic, macrospin, as well as the spin drift-diffusion models. Finally, the contribution of the spin-orbital Edelstein-Rashba interfacial fields is also briefly discussed in the analysis.Comment: 39 pages, 14 figure

Detection of new potentially pathogenic mutations in two patients with primary pigmented nodular adrenocortical disease (PPNAD) — case reports with literature review

Introduction: Primary pigmented nodular adrenocortical disease (PPNAD) is a rare form of ACTH-independent Cushing’s syndrome (CS). Half of patients with PPNAD are sporadic cases and the other half familial.Material and methods: We present two patients with PPNAD confirmed by genetic analysis.Results: In both patients there were no abnormal findings on diagnostic imaging of both adrenals and heart. Patients underwent bilateral two-stage adrenalectomy. Histopathological examination confirmed PPNAD. Genetic testing showed the following mutations in the PRKAR1A gene coding for the regulatory subunit type 1A of the protein kinase A enzyme: c.125dupG (patient 1) and c.15dupT (patient 2). Both these defects lead to inactivation of the PRKAR1A protein and are consequently causative of PPNAD in these patients.Conclusions: The novel mutations presented in this article are considered to be pathogenic for PPNAD.

Konkurencja typu Bertranda przy kwadratowych funkcjach kosztów

Głównym celem niniejszej pracy jest zbadanie różnic w rezultatach konkurencji Bertranda, gdy liniowe funkcje kosztów zostaną zastąpione funkcjami kwadratowymi. Udowadniamy, że wprowadzenie kwadratowych funkcji kosztów prowadzi do jakościowej zmiany konkurencji pomiędzy przedsiębiorstwami. W tym przypadku, standardowe założenie, że firma oferująca swoje produkty po niższej cenie jest zainteresowana przejęciem całego rynku, jest nie tylko nierealistyczne (nawet w przypadku braku ograniczeń mocy wytwórczych), ale po prostu nieracjonalne z punktu widzenia maksymalizacji zysku. Zatem wyniki analiz zawartych we wcześniejszej literaturze przedmiotu są mylące. Demonstrujemy, że duopolistyczny model Bertranda powinien zostać zmodyfikowany, aby lepiej uwzględnić zachowanie firm w warunkach kwadratowych funkcji kosztów. W szczególności, uchylamy założenie, że podaż firm jest zdeterminowana przez istniejący popyt. Proponujemy zmodyfikowaną grę duopolu typu Bertranda, w której firmy konkurujące cenowo mogą swobodnie wybierać poziom produkcji nieprzekraczający wielkości popytu rynkowego na ich produkty przy danych cenach. Przy zmodyfikowanych założeniach, udowadniamy, że gra opisująca statyczną konkurencję cenową identycznych duopolistów nie posiada symetrycznej równowagi w strategiach czystych. Wyniki naszej analizy prowadzą do wniosku, że przy kwadratowych funkcjach kosztów powinniśmy spodziewać się raczej fluktuacji cen na rynkach oligopolistycznych niż sytuacji stabilnej równowagi opisanej w standardowych modelach konkurencji cenowej.The authors focus on a model of competition known in economics as Bertrand competition. They investigate how the outcome of Bertrand competition changes when linear cost functions are replaced by quadratic functions in the model. Named after French mathematician Joseph Louis Francois Bertrand (1822-1900), Bertrand competition describes interactions among firms and a market situation in which firms make their output and pricing decisions based on the assumption that their competitors will not change their own prices. Prokop, Ramsza and Wiśnicki show that the introduction of quadratic cost functions in the model leads to a qualitative change in competition between firms. In this case, the standard assumption that a firm with a lower price is interested in taking over the entire market is not only unrealistic (even in the absence of capacity constraints), but also irrational from the profit-maximization viewpoint, the authors say. Therefore the results of previous studies are misleading, according to Prokop, Ramsza and Wiśnicki. They argue that the so-called Bertrand duopoly model should be adjusted to better capture the behavior of firms under quadratic cost functions. The authors relax the assumption that the output of firms is determined by existing demand. They offer a modified Bertrand duopoly model in which firms competing in prices are free to choose their level of production depending on the market demand for their products at specific prices. “Under the modified assumptions, the static price competition game of identical duopolists has no symmetric equilibrium in pure stra- tegies,” the authors conclude. Their research shows that, under quadratic cost functions, it is possible to expect price fluctuations on oligopolistic markets rather than a stable equilibrium situation described by the standard model of price competition

Al-Kindi - O intelekcie

Publikację stanowi tłumaczenie traktatu Al-Kindiego "De intellectu". Publikacja jest porównaniem dwóch tłumaczeń tekstu oryginalnego - edycji arabskiej i edycji łacińskiej

Alternative reproductive tactics and sex‐biased gene expression: the study of the bulb mite transcriptome

The sexes experience different selective pressures, which can lead to highly divergent phenotypes that are achieved via sex-biased gene expression. The effect of sexual dimorphism on the degree of sex-bias in gene expression can be studied in species characterized by sexually selected alternative male phenotypes. We analyzed gene expression in the bulb mite Rhizoglyphus robini (Acari, Acaridae), in which more sexually dimorphic, aggressive fighter males, possessing thickened legs of the third pair which are used to kill rivals, coexist with unarmored scrambler males. We sequenced transcriptomes of adult females and both types of males and de-novo assembled 114,456 transcriptome-based gene models (TGMs). Significantly more TGMs had male-biased expression than female-biased expression. Among TGMs that were over expressed in one, but not both, male morphs (compared to expression in females), we found about four times more fighter-biased genes than scrambler-biased genes. This demonstrates that the degree of expression bias reflects the degree of sexually selected dimorphism. However, the number of sex-biased genes was much higher than the number of genes differentially expressed between male morphs, and most male-biased genes were shared between morphs, suggesting that selection pressures act similarly on males irrespective of their morph. Furthermore, we found that male-biased genes evolved at a faster rate than female-biased genes, as evidenced by a higher rate of both gene-turnover and amino acid substitution, indicating that sexual selection, acting more strongly on males, accelerates the rate of molecular evolution. Interestingly, gene turnover was relatively higher, but amino acid substitution rate relatively lower among fighter-biased genes, suggesting that different components of sexual selection may have different effects on the evolution of sex-biased genes