Retrotransposon-based genetic variation of Poa annua populations from contrasting climate conditions

Background Poa annua L. is an example of a plant characterized by abundant, worldwide distribution from polar to equatorial regions. Due to its high plasticity and extraordinary expansiveness, P. annua is considered an invasive species capable of occupying and surviving in a wide range of habitats including pioneer zones, areas intensively transformed by human activities, remote subarctic meadows and even the Antarctic Peninsula region. Methods In the present study, we evaluated the utility of inter-primer binding site (iPBS) markers for assessing the genetic variation of P. annua populations representing contrasting environments from the worldwide range of this species. The electrophoretic patterns of polymerase chain reaction products obtained for each individual were used to estimate the genetic diversity and differentiation between populations. Results iPBS genotyping revealed a pattern of genetic variation differentiating the six studied P. annua populations characterized by their different climatic conditions. According to the analysis of molecular variance, the greatest genetic variation was recorded among populations, whereas 41.75% was observed between individuals within populations. The results of principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) and model-based clustering analysis showed a clear subdivision of analyzed populations. According to PCoA, populations from Siberia and the Kola Peninsula were the most different from each other and showed the lowest genetic variability. The application of STRUCTURE software confirmed the unique character of the population from the Kola Peninsula. Discussion The lowest variability of the Siberia population suggested that it was subjected to genetic drift. However, although demographic expansion was indicated by negative values of Fu’s FS statistic and analysis of mismatch distribution, it was not followed by significant traces of a bottleneck or a founder effect. For the Antarctic population, the observed level of genetic variation was surprisingly high, despite the observed significant traces of bottleneck/founder effect following demographic expansion, and was similar to that observed in populations from Poland and the Balkans. For the Antarctic population, the multiple introduction events from different sources are considered to be responsible for such an observation. Moreover, the results of STRUCTURE and PCoA showed that the P. annua from Antarctica has the highest genetic similarity to populations from Europe. Conclusions The observed polymorphism should be considered as a consequence of the joint influence of external abiotic stress and the selection process. Environmental changes, due to their ability to induce transposon activation, lead to the acceleration of evolutionary processes through the production of genetic variability

Rapid environmental changes in the western antarctic peninsula region due to climate change and human activity

The Antarctic and the Southern Ocean are a critically important part of the Earth system. The climatic, physical, and biological properties of this region are closely linked to other parts of the global environment. 200 years of direct human impact, recent climate amelioration and changes in the main sources and circulation of biogenic compounds as well as accumulation of industrial contaminants have significantly affected the whole ecosystem. Particularly sensitive is the region of the Western Antarctic Peninsula, which is considered to be one of the hot spots of the Earth. In this paper, we review recent literature and compare it with historical data to estimate and predict the consequences of this process. The Antarctic ecosystems can no longer be regarded as pristine. Global as well as local human influence has transgressed the barriers isolating that continent from the rest of the World, causing previously observed changes to accelerate

Range‑wide pattern of genetic variation in Colobanthus quitensis

There is only one species representing Magnoliopsida which is considered as native to the Antarctic, i.e., Antarctic pearlwort (Colobanthus quitensis). Although it was intensively studied toward the morphophysiological adaptation to extreme environmental conditions of that area, there is still a lack of sufficient data on its genetic variability. Nine C. quitensis populations from Chile and the Maritime Antarctic were sampled to estimate the pattern of genetic variation in relation to the geographic distribution of analyzed populations and postglacial history of the species. The retrotransposon-based DNA marker system used in our studies appeared to be effective in revealing genetic polymorphism between individuals and genetic differentiation among populations. Although the level of polymorphism was low (9.57%), the Analysis of Molecular Variance showed that overall population differentiation was high (FST = 0.6241) and revealed significant differentiation between the Northern and Southern Group of populations as well as the population from Conguillio Park. The observed genetic subdivision of C. quitensis populations was confirmed by Bayesian clustering and results of Principal Coordinates Analysis. The Southern Group of populations was characterized by generally higher genetic diversity, which was expressed by the values of the effective number of alleles, expected heterozygosity and by the distribution of private alleles. Our results suggest that the species may have survived the Last Glacial Maximum in refugia located both on the South American continent and in geographically isolated islands of the Maritime Antarctic, i.e., they support the concept of the multiregional origin of C. quitensis in Antarctica

The effects of methanesulfonic acid on seed germination and morphophysiological changes in the seedlings of two Colobanthus species

The effect of methanesulfonic acid (MSA) on the morphophysiology and biochemistry of the subantarctic species Colobanthus apetalus and the Antarctic species Colobanthus quitensis was examined. We evaluated the effects of various concentrations of MSA on the germination capacity and germination rate of seeds, seedling growth, chlorophyll fluorescence in cotyledons, and the proline content of seedlings under laboratory conditions at temperatures of 20°C (day) and 10°C (night) with a 12/12 h photoperiod. The examined C. apetalus seeds were grown in a greenhouse, and C. quitensis seeds were harvested in Antarctica and grown in a greenhouse (Olsztyn, Poland). The seeds of C. apetalus were characterized by the highest germination capacity and the highest germination rate, whereas C. quitensis seedlings were characterized by the most favorable growth and development. Only the highest concentrations of MSA decreased the intensity of chlorophyll fluorescence in the cotyledons of both Colobanthus species. The proline content of C. apetalus and C. quitensis seedlings increased significantly after MSA treatments. The results of this study clearly indicated that Colobanthus quitensis is more resistant to chemical stress induced by MSA. This is a first study to investigate the influence of MSA on the morphophysiology and biochemistry of higher plants

Correlation of tests used in Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment. Systematic Review

Perkowski Radosław, Androsiuk Joanna, Kujawska Agnieszka, Gajos Małgorzata, Kasperska Paulina, Topka Weronika, Mądra-Gackowska Katarzyna, Romanowska Ewelina, Płusa Sylwia, Aleksiewicz Tomasz, Kożuchowski Marcin, Biegański Piotr, Główczewska-Siedlecka Emilia. Correlation of tests used in Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment. Systematic Review. Journal of Education, Health and Sport. 2016;6(7):207-217. eISSN 2391-8306. DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.57337http://ojs.ukw.edu.pl/index.php/johs/article/view/3686   The journal has had 7 points in Ministry of Science and Higher Education parametric evaluation. Part B item 755 (23.12.2015).755 Journal of Education, Health and Sport eISSN 2391-8306 7© The Author (s) 2016;This article is published with open access at Licensee Open Journal Systems of Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz, PolandOpen Access. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,provided the original author(s) and source are credited. This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial License(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted, non commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits unrestricted, non commercialuse, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this paper.Received: 15.06.2016. Revised 09.07.2016. Accepted: 09.07.2016.  Correlation of tests used in Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment. Systematic Review Radosław Perkowski1, Joanna Androsiuk1, Agnieszka Kujawska1, Małgorzata Gajos1, Paulina Kasperska1, Weronika Topka1, Katarzyna Mądra-Gackowska1, Ewelina Romanowska1, Sylwia Płusa1, Tomasz Aleksiewicz1, Marcin Kożuchowski1, Piotr Biegański2, Emilia Główczewska-Siedlecka1 1. Katedra i Klinika Geriatrii, Wydział Nauk o Zdrowiu, Collegium Medicum UMK w Bydgoszczy2. Katedra Higieny, Epidemiologii i Ergonomii, Zakład Ergonomii i Fizjologii Wysiłku Fizycznego Abstract Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) has been used in clinics for almost 100 years. It includes holistic approach to patients examination. In this systematic review we analyzed results of tests used in CGA and correlation of results. Moreover, we underlined some issues concerning homogeneity of tests used in CGA as well as scientific validity of some of its tools.Results of prospective studies show that some of results of examination used in CGA are good predictors of functioning in another health domain in next years.Systolic blood pressure as well as BMI could be good predictors for neuropsychological functioning, however results are equivocal.Low scores in dual task (walking and cognitive engaging task simultaneously) are good predictor for falls occurrence. Education measured by socioeconomic status is very often mentioned as one of the best predictors of cognitive functioning.Undergoing Mini Nutritional Assessment by patients could be an effective tool to improve their nutrition status, possibly by indirectly influencing on their diet habits. Moreover, genotype examination could be worth to include into CGA due to, inter alia, examination of possible causes of dietary deficits.Aerobic examination could be done by cost-free tests, which sensitivity and specify are on tolerable level. It could help lowering CGA costs, which will help make it widely available for patients. Keywords: Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment, cognitive functioning, older people

Genetic diversity and differentiation of Pinus sylvestris L. from the IUFRO 1982 provenance trial revealed by AFLP analysis

DNA markers have become effective tools in genetic diversity studies of forest trees. However, molecular marker analyses are associated with laborious and costly effort. One of the possibilities to overcome these constraints is to analyze bulked samples per population, rather than individual plants. We have used bulked DNA-based AFLP analysis to investigate genetic variations in Pinus sylvestris L. (Scots pine) from the IUFRO 1982 provenance trial in Kórnik (western Poland). Four AFLP primer combinations yielded a total of 309 bands, of which 208 (67.31%) were polymorphic. Thirty-six (11.65%) unique alleles were deployed randomly among the populations. Estimated genetic diversity and differentiation was high, as expressed by He = 0.238 and I = 0.356, and by genetic distance values which ranged from 0.154 to 0.363. A geographic pattern of interpopulation differentiation was observed, pointing to the individual character of populations from northeastern Europe. In the light of available data, we discuss the influence of historical migration routes, gene flow and human activity on observed genetic diversity and differentiation of Scots pine in Europe. Our results indicate that the AFLP method applied to DNA templates extracted from bulked leaf samples provides an efficient approach to elucidate genetic diversity and relationships among Scots pine populations

Genetic variation of Colobanthus quitensis from King George Island (Antarctica)

Abstract: Antarctic pearlwort (Colobanthus quitensis) is one of the flowering plant species considered native to maritime Antarctica. Although the species was intensively analyzed towards its morphological, anatomical and physiological adaptation to local environment, its genetic variability is still poorly studied. In the presented study, a recently developed retrotransposon−based DNA marker system (iPBS – inter Primer Binding Site) was applied to assess the genetic diversity and differentiation of C. quitensis populations from King George Island (South Shetland Islands, West Antarctic). A total of 143 scoreable bands were detected using 7 iPBS primers among 122 plant specimens representing 8 populations. 55 (38.5%) bands were found polymorphic, with an average of 14.3% polymorphic frag− ments per primer. Nine of all observed fragments were represented as a private bands de− ployed unevenly among populations. Low genetic diversity (on average He = 0.040 and I = 0.061) and moderate population differentiation (FST = 0.164) characterize the analyzed material. Clustering based on PCoA revealed, that the populations located on the edges of the study area diverge from the central populations. The pattern of population differentia− tion corresponds well with their geographic location and the characteristics of the sampling sites. Due to the character of iPBS markers, the observed genetic variation of populations may be explained by the genome rearrangements caused by mobilization of mobile genetic elements in the response to various stress factors. Additionally, this study demonstrates the usefulness of iPBS markers for genetic diversity studies in wild species

S-Adenosyl-L-Methionine and Cu(II) Impact Green Plant Regeneration Efficiency

The biological improvement of triticale, a cereal of increasing importance in agriculture, may be accelerated via the production of doubled haploid lines using in vitro culture. Among the relevant factors affecting the culture efficiency are Cu(II) or Ag(I) acting, e.g., as cofactors of enzymes. The copper ions are known to positively affect green plant regeneration efficiency. However, the biochemical basis, mainly its role in the generation of in vitro-induced genetic and epigenetic variation and green plant regeneration efficiency, is not well understood. Here, we employed structural equation modeling to evaluate the relationship between de novo DNA methylation affecting the asymmetric context of CHH sequences, the methylation-sensitive Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism related sequence variation, and the concentration of Cu(II) and Ag(I) ions in induction media, as well as their effect on S-adenosyl-L-methionine perturbations, observed using FTIR spectroscopy, and the green plant regeneration efficiency. Our results allowed the construction of a theory-based model reflecting the biological phenomena associated with green plant regeneration efficiency. Furthermore, it is shown that Cu(II) ions in induction media affect plant regeneration, and by manipulating their concentration, the regeneration efficiency can be altered. Additionally, S-adenosyl-L-methionine is involved in the efficiency of green plant regeneration through methylation of the asymmetric CHH sequence related to de novo methylation. This shows that the Yang cycle may impact the production of green regenerants