Analysis of Grain Protein, Tryptophan and Lysine Contents of Quality Protein Maize (QPM) Lines

BACKGROUND: The nutritional well being and health of all people are vital prerequisites for the development of societies. However, malnutrition still remains a widespread problem, and is particularly severe in developing countries with low per capita income. Maize (Zea mays L.) plays a very important role in human nutrition in a number of developed and developing countries, worldwide. Maize proteins, however, have poor nutritional value for humans, because of reduced content of essential amino acids such as lysine, tryptophan and threonine. Maize proteins contain on an average about 2% lysine, which is less than one-half of the concentration recommended for human nutrition. Therefore, healthy diets for humans must include alternate sources of lysine and tryptophan. Significant advances have been made in genetic enhancement of maize for nutritional value. It is in this context that the value of Quality Protein Maize (QPM) assumes significance, as it signifies a breeding achievement of enhancing grain protein quality in maize. In view of the growing importance of QPM in human nutrition, the objective of this study was to analyze the protein, tryptpphan and lysine contents of QPM lines so as to utilize these genotypes in developing hybrid varieties and bringing its nutritional benefits to fruition. METHODS: The seeds for this work were obtained from a field experiment conducted in winter 2000 at Hyderabad and in summer 2000 at New Delhi. A total of 89, 50 and 31 genotypes including three checks were selected and evaluated for their endosperm protein, tryptophan and lysine contents using Microkjeldahl, Colourimetric and ELISA methods respectively. RESULTS: Endosperm protein content ranged from 6.9 to 11.3 (mg/100 mg flour) and genotypes were significantly different from each other (p<0.01). A large majority of the Indian as well as CIMMYT Quality Protein Maize (QPM) inbreds displayed higher levels of tryptophan per 100 mg protein in comparison with the non-QPM checks (p<0.01). The EF-1a concentration (estimator of lysine content) of a vast majority of the QPM genotypes analyzed was significantly superior to the non-QPM cultivars, except DMRQPM-56 x DMRQPM-44 (0.37) and DMRQPM-66 x DMRQPM-60 (0.39). Endosperm protein content showed a highly significant and negative correlation with tryptophan content in endosperm protein, whereas tryptophan content in flour and in protein showed highly significant and positive correlation.Ethiop J Health Sci. Vol. 14, No. 1 January 200

Evaluation of Library Services and Facilities by the Students of BLDE (DU) during the Pandemic COVID-19: A Study

The library plays a significant role in any higher education centre to that provides formation services, resources, and facilities to support its clients for their systematic studies and research activities. This study deals with the awareness and usage of various services and facilities offered by the BLDE (DU) central library during the Pandemic. The research method adopted for this study was a Google Form with a self-designed questionnaire was prepared and circulated randomly among 100 PG students of BLDE-DU, in which 66 were responded. The result revealed that almost all the postgraduate students who responded are aware of the central library\u27s variety of services & facilities. Circulation service is the major service that the PG students utilized following Plagiarism check and Literature search services. The research proposes that user satisfaction assessments be promoted based on the study\u27s results. In addition, library administration should provide training sessions on how to utilise library services effectively on a regular basis. This research adds to the body of knowledge, policy, and practise, especially when it comes to accessing library services and facilities during pandemics like COVID-19

Molecular characterization of diverse CIMMYT maize inbred lines from eastern and southern Africa using single nucleotide polymorphic markers

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Knowledge of germplasm diversity and relationships among elite breeding materials is fundamentally important in crop improvement. We genotyped 450 maize inbred lines developed and/or widely used by CIMMYT breeding programs in both Kenya and Zimbabwe using 1065 SNP markers to (i) investigate population structure and patterns of relationship of the germplasm for better exploitation in breeding programs; (ii) assess the usefulness of SNPs for identifying heterotic groups commonly used by CIMMYT breeding programs; and (iii) identify a subset of highly informative SNP markers for routine and low cost genotyping of CIMMYT germplasm in the region using uniplex assays.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Genetic distance for about 94% of the pairs of lines fell between 0.300 and 0.400. Eighty four percent of the pairs of lines also showed relative kinship values ≤ 0.500. Model-based population structure analysis, principal component analysis, neighbor-joining cluster analysis and discriminant analysis revealed the presence of 3 major groups and generally agree with pedigree information. The SNP markers did not show clear separation of heterotic groups A and B that were established based on combining ability tests through diallel and line x tester analyses. Our results demonstrated large differences among the SNP markers in terms of reproducibility, ease of scoring, polymorphism, minor allele frequency and polymorphic information content. About 40% of the SNPs in the multiplexed chip-based GoldenGate assays were found to be uninformative in this study and we recommend 644 of the 1065 for low to medium density genotyping in tropical maize germplasm using uniplex assays.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>There were high genetic distance and low kinship coefficients among most pairs of lines, clearly indicating the uniqueness of the majority of the inbred lines in these maize breeding programs. The results from this study will be useful to breeders in selecting best parental combinations for new breeding crosses, mapping population development and marker assisted breeding.</p

Root phenotyping pipeline for cereal plants

The proposed system for the phenotypic analysis of root traits that is presented here enables the precise description of the root growth kinetics of cereal plants. The designed pipeline is composed of a drip irrigation system to supplement plants with a medium, a high-resolution root system scanning facility and a method for comprehensive image analysis. The system enables low-effort, accurate and highly repeatable analysis of features of the root system of cereal seedlings and young plants until the early tillering stage. This system employs an automatic drip irrigation line, which is controlled remotely by a programmable logic controller (PLC). The PLC adapter used facilitates the automated control of all system modules, thus allowing the rate of the medium flow to be adjusted for the supplementation of plants. The system employs measuring sensors for the continuous monitoring of the parameters of the culture medium. This continuous sensing of medium parameters can be applicable for mineral nutrition studies and abiotic stress response testing. The installed drip lines are injected into transparent acrylic tubes (500 mm high, 32/30 mm in outer and inner diameter, with a circular opening in the bottom of 3 mm in diameter) that are filled with glass beads. The acrylic tubes are placed in opaque cover tubes that permit the non-destructive observation of the growth of the root system. Enhanced imaging quality contributes to an increase in the precision of the results that are obtained in the course of the analysis of root parameters using specialised root scanners coupled with the WinRHIZO system. This novel phenotyping pipeline permits noninvasive observation of root system growth adjusted for the subsequent root image acquisition with a reduced background noise. The method combines automated control of plant growth conditions with good imaging quality and high replicability of growth parameters

RNA Interference Can Rebalance the Nitrogen Sink of Maize Seeds without Losing Hard Endosperm

Background: One of the goals of plant breeding is to create crops to provide better nutrition for humans and livestock. Insufficient intake of protein is one of the most severe factors affecting the growth and development of children in developing countries. More than a century ago, in 1896, Hopkins initiated the well-known Illinois long-term selection for maize seed protein concentration, yielding four protein strains. By continuously accumulating QTLs, Illinois High Protein (IHP) reached a protein level 2.5-fold higher than normal maize, with the most increased fraction being the zein protein, which was shown to contain no lysine soon after the long-term selection program initiated. Therefore, IHP is of little value for feeding humans and monogastric animals. Although high-lysine lines of non-vitreous mutants were based on reduced zeins, the kernel soft texture precluded their practical use. Kernel hardness in opaque 2 (o2) could be restored in quality protein maize (QPM) with quantitative trait loci called o2 modifiers (Mo2s), but those did not increase total protein levels. Methods: The most predominant zeins are the 22- and 19-kDa a-zeins. To achieve a combination of desired traits, we used RNA interference (RNAi) against both a-zeins in IHP and evaluated the silencing effect by SDS-PAGE. Total protein, amino acid composition and kernel texture were analyzed. Conclusions: The a-zeins were dramatically reduced, but the high total seed protein level remained unchanged by complementary increase of non-zein proteins. Moreover, the residual zein levels still allowed for a vitreous hard seed. Suc

Enhancer of Zeste Homolog 2 Induces Pulmonary Artery Smooth Muscle Cell Proliferation

Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) is a progressively devastating disease characterized by excessive proliferation of the Pulmonary Arterial Smooth Muscle Cells (PASMCs). Studies suggest that PAH and cancers share an apoptosis-resistant state featuring excessive cell proliferation. The proliferation of cancer cells is mediated by increased expression of Enhancer of Zeste Homolog 2 (EZH2), a mammalian histone methyltransferase that contributes to the epigenetic silencing of target genes. However, the role of EZH2 in PAH has not been studied. In this study, it is hypothesized that EZH2 could play a role in the proliferation of PASMCs.In the present study, the expression patterns of EZH2 were investigated in normal and hypertensive mouse PASMCs. The effects of EZH2 overexpression on the proliferation of human PASMCs were tested. PASMCs were transfected with EZH2 or GFP using nucleofector system. After transfection, the cells were incubated for 48 hours at 37°C. Proliferation and cell cycle analysis were performed using flow cytometry. Apoptosis of PASMCs was determined using annexin V staining and cell migration was tested by wound healing assay.EZH2 protein expression in mouse PASMCs were correlated with an increase in right ventricular systolic pressure and Right Ventricular Hypertrophy (RVH). The overexpression of EZH2 in human PASMCs enhances proliferation, migration, and decrease in the rate of apoptosis when compared to GFP-transfected cells. In the G2/M phase of the EZH2 transfected cells, there was a 3.5 fold increase in proliferation, while there was a significant decrease in the rate of apoptosis of PASMCs, when compared to control.These findings suggest that EZH2 plays a role in the migration and proliferation of PASMCs, which is a major hallmark in PAH. It also suggests that EZH2 could play a role in the development of PAH and can serve as a potential target for new therapies for PAH

A multidisciplinary consensus on the morphological and functional responses to immunotherapy treatment

The implementation of immunotherapy has radically changed the treatment of oncological patients. Currently, immunotherapy is indicated in the treatment of patients with head and neck tumors, melanoma, lung cancer, bladder tumors, colon cancer, cervical cancer, breast cancer, Merkel cell carcinoma, liver cancer, leukemia and lymphomas. However, its efficacy is restricted to a limited number of cases. The challenge is, therefore, to identify which subset of patients would benefit from immunotherapy. To this end, the establishment of immunotherapy response criteria and predictive and prognostic biomarkers is of paramount interest. In this report, a group of experts of the Spanish Society of Medical Oncology (SEOM), the Spanish Society of Medical Radiology (SERAM), and Spanish Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SEMNIM) provide an up-to-date review and a consensus guide on these issues