Direct and indirect influences of morphological variations on diseases, yield and quality

Interest in morphological variation in food legume species is increasing as plant breeders search for new variants to satisfy the adaptation requirements from new or changing environments or the needs of new end-users. Examination of evolutionary pathways often provides leads in understanding morphological or physiological variation, which may offer opportunities for exploitation in plant breeding. Variation has direct and indirect effects on yield stability and quality through several parameters acting within the plant and the crop. Traits affecting the development of the crop canopy or the seed, including for example photosynthate repartitions, can have an impact on yield, quality and diseases. Yet the information available is often incomplete for practical use or is very environment specific. Examples are given of the potential utilisation of genetic diversity conserved in different geographic areas as are available in lentils (pilosae types) and chickpeas (kabuli-desi introgression). The concept of quality in pulses is often dominated by morphological traits and the appearance of the seed. There are also instances where the morphological traits affect nutritional and processing quality, (e.g., the novel alleles at the loci controlling both seed shape and starch composition in pea or the gene for zero tannin in lentil). Where prospects are still remote for developing cultivars with high levels of resistance to important diseases, more emphasis needs to be put on other components of integrated disease management. Some plant characteristics, such as growth habit and canopy structure (modulated by sowing date, plant density, etc.), can contribute to control of diseases. However, experiments have shown that an increase in disease incidence due to increased plant density can be compensated for by a yield increase as is the case with chocolate spot and rust in faba bean. Of interest also are morphological traits, which can slow penetration by the pathogen, enabling the plant to deploy post-infection physiological mechanisms of resistance

Kuhnian revolutions in neuroscience: the role of tool development.

The terms "paradigm" and "paradigm shift" originated in "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions" by Thomas Kuhn. A paradigm can be defined as the generally accepted concepts and practices of a field, and a paradigm shift its replacement in a scientific revolution. A paradigm shift results from a crisis caused by anomalies in a paradigm that reduce its usefulness to a field. Claims of paradigm shifts and revolutions are made frequently in the neurosciences. In this article I will consider neuroscience paradigms, and the claim that new tools and techniques rather than crises have driven paradigm shifts. I will argue that tool development has played a minor role in neuroscience revolutions.The work received no fundin

A multicentre, randomised controlled trial to compare the clinical and cost-effectiveness of Lee Silverman Voice Treatment versus standard NHS Speech and Language Therapy versus control in Parkinson’s disease: a study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Abstract: Background: Parkinson’s disease (PD) affects approximately 145,519 people in the UK. Speech impairments are common with a reported prevalence of 68%, which increase physical and mental demands during conversation, reliance on family and/or carers, and the likelihood of social withdrawal reducing quality of life. In the UK, two approaches to Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) intervention are commonly available: National Health Service (NHS) SLT or Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD®). NHS SLT is tailored to the individuals’ needs per local practice typically consisting of six to eight weekly sessions; LSVT LOUD® comprises 16 sessions of individual treatment with home-based practice over 4 weeks. The evidence-base for their effectiveness is inconclusive. Methods/design: PD COMM is a phase III, multicentre, three-arm, unblinded, randomised controlled trial. Five hundred and forty-six people with idiopathic PD, reporting speech or voice problems will be enrolled. We will exclude those with a diagnosis of dementia, laryngeal pathology or those who have received SLT for speech problems in the previous 2 years. Following informed consent and completion of baseline assessments, participants will be randomised in a 1:1:1 ratio to no-intervention control, NHS SLT or LSVT LOUD® via a central computer-generated programme, using a minimisation procedure with a random element, to ensure allocation concealment. Participants randomised to the intervention groups will start treatment within 4 (NHS SLT) or 7 (LSVT LOUD®) weeks of randomisation. Primary outcome: Voice Handicap Index (VHI) total score at 3 months. Secondary outcomes include: VHI subscales, Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire-39; Questionnaire on Acquired Speech Disorders; EuroQol-5D-5 L; ICECAP-O; resource utilisation; adverse events and carer quality of life. Mixed-methods process and health economic evaluations will take place alongside the trial. Assessments will be completed before randomisation and at 3, 6 and 12 months after randomisation. The trial started in December 2015 and will run for 77 months. Recruitment will take place in approximately 42 sites around the UK. Discussion: The trial will test the hypothesis that SLT is effective for the treatment of speech or voice problems in people with PD compared to no SLT. It will further test whether NHS SLT or LSVT LOUD® provide greater benefit and determine the cost-effectiveness of both interventions. Trial registration: International Standard Randomised Controlled Trials Number (ISRCTN) Registry, ID: 12421382. Registered on 18 April 2016

A multicentre, randomised controlled trial to compare the clinical and cost-effectiveness of Lee Silverman Voice Treatment versus standard NHS Speech and Language Therapy versus control in Parkinson’s disease: a study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Abstract: Background: Parkinson’s disease (PD) affects approximately 145,519 people in the UK. Speech impairments are common with a reported prevalence of 68%, which increase physical and mental demands during conversation, reliance on family and/or carers, and the likelihood of social withdrawal reducing quality of life. In the UK, two approaches to Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) intervention are commonly available: National Health Service (NHS) SLT or Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD®). NHS SLT is tailored to the individuals’ needs per local practice typically consisting of six to eight weekly sessions; LSVT LOUD® comprises 16 sessions of individual treatment with home-based practice over 4 weeks. The evidence-base for their effectiveness is inconclusive. Methods/design: PD COMM is a phase III, multicentre, three-arm, unblinded, randomised controlled trial. Five hundred and forty-six people with idiopathic PD, reporting speech or voice problems will be enrolled. We will exclude those with a diagnosis of dementia, laryngeal pathology or those who have received SLT for speech problems in the previous 2 years. Following informed consent and completion of baseline assessments, participants will be randomised in a 1:1:1 ratio to no-intervention control, NHS SLT or LSVT LOUD® via a central computer-generated programme, using a minimisation procedure with a random element, to ensure allocation concealment. Participants randomised to the intervention groups will start treatment within 4 (NHS SLT) or 7 (LSVT LOUD®) weeks of randomisation. Primary outcome: Voice Handicap Index (VHI) total score at 3 months. Secondary outcomes include: VHI subscales, Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire-39; Questionnaire on Acquired Speech Disorders; EuroQol-5D-5 L; ICECAP-O; resource utilisation; adverse events and carer quality of life. Mixed-methods process and health economic evaluations will take place alongside the trial. Assessments will be completed before randomisation and at 3, 6 and 12 months after randomisation. The trial started in December 2015 and will run for 77 months. Recruitment will take place in approximately 42 sites around the UK. Discussion: The trial will test the hypothesis that SLT is effective for the treatment of speech or voice problems in people with PD compared to no SLT. It will further test whether NHS SLT or LSVT LOUD® provide greater benefit and determine the cost-effectiveness of both interventions. Trial registration: International Standard Randomised Controlled Trials Number (ISRCTN) Registry, ID: 12421382. Registered on 18 April 2016

Studies on ergot (Claviceps purpurea) of wheat

Ergot [Claviceps purpurea (fr.) Tul.] is an important disease of cereals and grasses in Australia, as grain contaminated with ergot is rejected or heavily discounted in value because of its toxicity to animals and man. Yield losses from the disease are small. The ergots most commonly detected in grain samples are from ryegrass and only rarely are the much larger cereal ergots present. Laboratory studies showed that C. purpurea can be cultured on several synthetic media, however, yeast malt dextrose agar was the best. On this medium the fungus grew well, sporulated abundantly and pathogenic isolates maintained their virulence. Pathogenicity tests on wheat showed there was a wide range in the virulence of individual isolates. Field studies suggested that direct infection of wheat by ascosporic inoculum was unlikely, but that primary infection of ryegrass by ascospores was possible. Surveys showed that ryegrass was often infected with ergot and glasshouse tests proved that these isolates were able to infect wheat. This suggests that ergot survives from year to year on infected ryegrass and can pass to wheat by conidial transfer when conditions are favourable. The level of ergot contamination of grain was reduced to a negligible level by controlling ryegrass within a crop. Victorian wheat cultivars vary in their reactions to C. purpurea, the cultivars Kewell and Olympic being very susceptible to ergot while the cultivars Halberd, Zenith and Kalkee are moderately resistant. No cultivars tested have shown immunity. The results of these studies show ergot infection of wheat can be avoided by planting seed free of ergot, burning and deep ploughing of ergot infested land, controlling ryegrass within crops and the sowing of resistant cultivars