High-Density Amplicon Sequencing Identifies Community Spread and Ongoing Evolution of SARS-CoV-2 in the Southern United States

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is constantly evolving. Prior studies focused on high-case-density locations, such as the northern and western metropolitan areas of the United States. This study demonstrates continued SARS-CoV-2 evolution in a suburban southern region of the United States by high-density amplicon sequencing of symptomatic cases. 57% of strains carry the spike D614G variant, which is associated with higher genome copy numbers, and its prevalence expands with time. Four strains carry a deletion in a predicted stem loop of the 3′ UTR. The data are consistent with community spread within local populations and the larger continental United States. The data instill confidence in current testing sensitivity and validate “testing by sequencing” as an option to uncover cases, particularly nonstandard coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) clinical presentations. This study contributes to the understanding of COVID-19 through an extensive set of genomes from a non-urban setting and informs vaccine design by defining D614G as a dominant and emergent SARS-CoV-2 isolate in the United States

5.I Industrial Crops: Cacao, Coconut, Pepper, Sugarcane and Tea

IPGRI maintains a number of databases with summary information on ex situ germplasm collections worldwide. The data include address information on organizations holding germplasm and summary information on the type of germplasm that is maintained, such as: species names, number of accessions per species, type of accessions, etc. Currently, summary information on more than 5 million accessions worldwide is available. IPGRI attempts to keep these databases up to date by continuously incorporating new information. The updating and collation of ex situ germplasm holding data is done in close collaboration with Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) which provides a similar type of data as part of its World Information and Early Warning System (WIEWS) . Synchronization of common data types is achieved through bi-monthly data exchange. Updated versions of IPGRI's ex situ germplasm holdings databases are regularly uploaded to our Internet site where they are available for interactive queries

1.I Food Legumes: Arachis, Cajanus, Cicer, Lens, Lupinus, Phaseolus, Pisum, Psophocarpus, Vicia and Vigna

IPGRI maintains a number of databases with summary information on ex situ germplasm collections worldwide. The data include address information on organizations holding germplasm and summary information on the type of germplasm that is maintained, such as: species names, number of accessions per species, type of accessions, etc. Currently, summary information on more than 5 million accessions worldwide is available. IPGRI attempts to keep these databases up to date by continuously incorporating new information. The updating and collation of ex situ germplasm holding data is done in close collaboration with Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) which provides a similar type of data as part of its World Information and Early Warning System (WIEWS) . Synchronization of common data types is achieved through bi-monthly data exchange. Updated versions of IPGRI's ex situ germplasm holdings databases are regularly uploaded to our Internet site where they are available for interactive queries

The origins of agriculture and crop domestication: Proceedings

We need to understand the past if we are to manage the future; it is therefore necessary to analyze why humans suddenly became sedentary, practised agriculture and evolved civilizations. Wheat and barley together with lentil were among the earliest crops to be domesticated in the arc of land that connects the river valleys of the Euphrates and the Tigris with that of the Jordan. It has become increasingly clear that studies on crop-plant domestication can no longer rely solely on archaeological data but will have to combine the findings of archaeobotanists, archaeozoologists, anthropologists and ecologists to put together all the pieces of the puzzle of how agriculture actually began. A Symposium on the ”Origins of Agriculture and Domestication of Crop Plants in the Near East” was held at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), 10-14 May 1997. The Symposium was successful in assembling outstanding speakers who delivered very interesting presentations that throw new light on several topics. Their papers are presented in this volume in several sections, grouped under the headings of: Centers of Origin of Crop Plants and Agriculture, Near-Eastern Crop Diversity and its Global Migration, Archaeobotanical Evidence for Agricultural Transitions, Domestication of Crop Plants, Historical Aspects and Crop Evolution, and Conservation of Wild Progenitors. The Symposium heard evidence that the climate was wetter in the Near East than it is today. Given the possible climatic changes we face in the next century or two, we should ask whether we face another quantum leap in the way we grow food. The volume is dedicated to Jack R. Harlan (1917-1998), Plant Explorer, Archaeobotanist, Geneticist and Plant Breeder

Increased micronutrient content (Zn, Mn) in the 3Mb(4B) wheat- Aegilops biuncialis substitution and 3Mb.4BS translocation identified by GISH and FISH

3Mb Triticum aestivum L. (Mv9kr1)-Aegilops biuncialis Vis. (MvGB642) addition lines were crossed with the Chinese Spring ph1b mutant genotype (CSph1b) to produce 3Mb-wheat chromosome rearrangements. In the F3 generation, 3Mb(4B) substitution lines and 3M b.4BS centric fusions were identified with in situ hybridization using repetitive and genomic DNA probes, and with SSR markers. Grain micronutrient analysis showed that the investigated Ae. biuncialis accession MvGB382 and the parental line MvGB642 are suitable gene sources for improving the grain micronutrient content of wheat, as they have higher K, Zn, Fe, and Mn contents. The results suggested that the Ae. biuncialis chromosome 3M b carries genes determining the grain micronutrient content, as the 3Mb.4BS centric fusion had significantly higher Zn and Mn contents compared with the recipient wheat cultivar. As yield-related traits, such as the number of tillers, the length of main spike, and spikelets per main spike, were similar in the 3Mb.4BS centric fusion and the parental wheat genotype, it can be concluded that this line could be used in pre-breeding programs aimed at enriching elite wheat cultivars with essential micronutrients. | Des lignées d'addition 3Mb Triticum aestivum L. (Mv9kr1) – Aegilops biuncialis Vis. (MvGB642) ont été croisées avec le mutant Chinese Spring ph1b (CSph1b) afin de produire des réarrangements chromosomiques 3Mb–blé. Au sein de la génération F3, des lignées de substitution 3Mb(4B) et des fusions centriques 3Mb.4BS ont été identifiées par hybridation in situ au moyen de sondes d'ADN répété ou génomique ainsi qu'avec des marqueurs SSR. Une analyse de la composition du grain en matière de micronutriments a montré que l'accession étudiée de l'Ae. biuncialis (MvGB382) et la lignée parentale MvGB642 constituent des sources valables pour améliorer le contenu en micronutriments chez le blé, du fait qu'elles ont une teneur accrue en K, Zn, Fe et Mn. Ces résultats suggèrent que le chromosome 3Mb de l'Ae. biuncialis porte des gènes contribuant a` déterminer le contenu en micronutriments puisque la fusion centrique 3Mb.4BS présentait un contenu en Zn et en Mn significativement supérieur a` la variété de blé réceptrice. Puisque les composantes de rendement comme le nombre de talles, la longueur de la tige principale et le nombre d'épillets par épi étaient semblables chez la fusion centrique 3Mb.4BS et chez le génotype de blé parental, les auteurs en concluent que cette lignée pourrait s'avérer utile dans des programmes de pré-sélection visant a` accroître la teneur en micronutriments essentiels chez les cultivars élites de blé. [Traduit par la Rédaction