Gray Matter Changes in Parkinson's and Alzheimer's Disease and Relation to Cognition

Purpose of Review We summarize structural (s)MRI findings of gray matter (GM) atrophy related to cognitive impairment in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) in light of new analytical approaches and recent longitudinal studies results. Recent Findings The hippocampus-to-cortex ratio seems to be the best sMRI biomarker to discriminate between various AD subtypes, following the spatial distribution of tau pathology, and predict rate of cognitive decline. PD is clinically far more variable than AD, with heterogeneous underlying brain pathology. Novel multivariate approaches have been used to describe patterns of early subcortical and cortical changes that relate to more malignant courses of PD. New emerging analytical approaches that combine structural MRI data with clinical and other biomarker outcomes hold promise for detecting specific GM changes in the early stages of PD and preclinical AD that may predict mild cognitive impairment and dementia conversion

Inflammation gene variants and susceptibility to albuminuria in the U.S. population: analysis in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), 1991-1994

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Albuminuria, a common marker of kidney damage, serves as an important predictive factor for the progression of kidney disease and for the development of cardiovascular disease. While the underlying etiology is unclear, chronic, low-grade inflammation is a suspected key factor. Genetic variants within genes involved in inflammatory processes may, therefore, contribute to the development of albuminuria.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We evaluated 60 polymorphisms within 27 inflammatory response genes in participants from the second phase (1991-1994) of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), a population-based and nationally representative survey of the United States. Albuminuria was evaluated as logarithm-transformed albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR), as ACR ≥ 30 mg/g, and as ACR above sex-specific thresholds. Multivariable linear regression and haplotype trend analyses were conducted to test for genetic associations in 5321 participants aged 20 years or older. Differences in allele and genotype distributions among non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks, and Mexican Americans were tested in additive and codominant genetic models.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Variants in several genes were found to be marginally associated (uncorrected P value < 0.05) with log(ACR) in at least one race/ethnic group, but none remained significant in crude or fully-adjusted models when correcting for the false-discovery rate (FDR). In analyses of sex-specific albuminuria, <it>IL1B </it>(rs1143623) among Mexican Americans remained significantly associated with increased odds, while <it>IL1B </it>(rs1143623), <it>CRP </it>(rs1800947) and <it>NOS3 </it>(rs2070744) were significantly associated with ACR ≥ 30 mg/g in this population (additive models, FDR-P < 0.05). In contrast, no variants were found to be associated with albuminuria among non-Hispanic blacks after adjustment for multiple testing. The only variant among non-Hispanic whites significantly associated with any outcome was <it>TNF </it>rs1800750, which failed the test for Hardy-Weinberg proportions in this population. Haplotypes within <it>MBL2</it>, <it>CRP</it>, <it>ADRB2, IL4R</it>, <it>NOS3</it>, and <it>VDR </it>were significantly associated (FDR-P < 0.05) with log(ACR) or albuminuria in at least one race/ethnic group.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our findings suggest a small role for genetic variation within inflammation-related genes to the susceptibility to albuminuria. Additional studies are needed to further assess whether genetic variation in these, and untested, inflammation genes alter the susceptibility to kidney damage.</p

Modern Genomic Tools for Pigeonpea Improvement: Status and Prospects

Pigeonpea owing to its ability to sustain harsh environment and limited input/water requirement remains an excellent remunerative crop in the face of increasing climatic adversities. With nearly 70% share in global pigeonpea production, India is the leading pigeonpea producing country. Since the mid-1900s, constant research efforts directed to improve yield and resistance levels of pigeonpea have resulted in the development and deployment of several commercially accepted cultivars in India, accommodating into diverse agro-climatic zones. However, the crop productivity needs incremental improvements in order to meet the growing nutritional demands, especially in developing countries like India where pigeonpea forms a dominant part of vegetarian diet. Empowering crop improvement strategies with genomic tool kit is imperative to attain the project gains in crop yield. In the context, adoption of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology has helped establish a wide range of genomic resources to support pigeonpea breeding, and the existing molecular tool kit includes genome-wide genetic markers, transcriptome/genome assemblies, and candidate genes/QTLs for target traits. Similarly, availability of whole mitochondrial genome sequence and derived DNA markers is immensely relevant in order to furthering the understanding of cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) system and hybrid breeding. This chapter covers the progress of developing modern genomic resources in pigeonpea and highlights their vital role in designing future crop breeding schemes

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Not AvailableSelection of genotype for target environment is affected by genotype-by-environment interactions (GEI) and AMMI model is widely used tool to analyse GEI. AMMI does not quantify stability measure making it difficult to rank genotypes. To overcome this lacuna AMMI model output is used to quantify stability measures and rank genotypes. Of several stability measures available in literature, only AMMI stability value (ASV) is implemented in package ‘agricole’ and others have not been implemented in any other R packages. ‘ammistability’ uses output from ‘AMMI’ function in ‘agricolae’ package and computes various stability parameters for AMMI model. Further, genotypes are ranked on the basis of simultaneous selection of yield and stability (SSI). Package also helps to study association among several stability measures.Not Availabl

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Agronomical Practices for Production of Organic GroundnutOrganic groundnut market is increasing because of farmers to sell their produce at high premium. Organic production systems can make important contributions to food supply and it combines tradition, innovation and science to benefit the shared environment and promote fair relationships and a good quality of life for all involved. In addition to producing high quality crops, healthy and well balanced soil can help plants to develop natural resistance to insect pests and diseases.Not Availabl

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Not AvailableGGE biplot analysis to identify stable high yielding groundnut genotypes under limited P available conditions.Not Availabl