DNA metabarcoding reveals high relative abundance of trunk disease fungi in grapevines from Marlborough, New Zealand

Grapevine trunk diseases (GTDs) are a threat to grape production worldwide, with a diverse collection of fungal species implicated in disease onset. Due to the long-term and complex nature of GTDs, simultaneous detection of multiple microbial species can enhance understanding of disease development. We used DNA metabarcoding of ribosomal internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) sequences, supported by specific PCR and microbial isolation, to establish the presence of trunk pathogens across 11 vineyards (11–26 years old) over three years in Marlborough, the largest wine producing region in New Zealand. Using a reference database of trunk pathogen sequences, species previously associated with GTD, such as Cadophora luteo-olivacea, Diplodia seriata, Diplodia mutila, Neofusicoccum australe, and Seimatosporium vitis, were identified as highly represented across the vineyard region. The well-known pathogens Phaeomoniella chlamydospora and Eutypa lata had especially high relative abundance across the dataset, with P. chlamydospora reads present between 22 and 84% (average 52%) across the vineyards. Screening of sequences against broader, publicly available databases revealed further fungal species within families and orders known to contain pathogens, many of which appeared to be endemic to New Zealand. The presence of several wood-rotting basidiomycetes (mostly Hymenochaetales) was detected for the first time in the Marlborough vineyard region, notably, the native Inonotus nothofagii which was present at 1–2% relative abundance in two vineyards

Catastrophizing mediates the relationship between the personal belief in a just world and pain outcomes among chronic pain support group attendees

Health-related research suggests the belief in a just world can act as a personal resource that protects against the adverse effects of pain and illness. However, currently, little is known about how this belief, particularly in relation to one’s own life, might influence pain. Consistent with the suggestions of previous research, the present study undertook a secondary data analysis to investigate pain catastrophizing as a mediator of the relationship between the personal just world belief and chronic pain outcomes in a sample of chronic pain support group attendees. Partially supporting the hypotheses, catastrophizing was negatively correlated with the personal just world belief and mediated the relationship between this belief and pain and disability, but not distress. Suggestions for future research and intervention development are made

Gender comparisons of fat talk in the United Kingdom and the United States

This study compared different forms of body talk, including "fat talk," among 231 university men and women in central England (UK; n = 93) and the southeastern United States (US; n = 138). A 2 (gender) by 2 (country) repeated measures ANOVA across types of body talk (negative, self-accepting, positive) and additional Chi-square analyses revealed that there were differences across gender and between the UK and US cultures. Specifically, UK and US women were more likely to report frequently hearing or perceiving pressure to engage in fat talk than men. US women and men were also more likely to report pressure to join in self-accepting body talk than UK women and men

Evolutionary Convergence on Highly-Conserved 3′ Intron Structures in Intron-Poor Eukaryotes and Insights into the Ancestral Eukaryotic Genome

The presence of spliceosomal introns in eukaryotes raises a range of questions about genomic evolution. Along with the fundamental mysteries of introns' initial proliferation and persistence, the evolutionary forces acting on intron sequences remain largely mysterious. Intron number varies across species from a few introns per genome to several introns per gene, and the elements of intron sequences directly implicated in splicing vary from degenerate to strict consensus motifs. We report a 50-species comparative genomic study of intron sequences across most eukaryotic groups. We find two broad and striking patterns. First, we find that some highly intron-poor lineages have undergone evolutionary convergence to strong 3′ consensus intron structures. This finding holds for both branch point sequence and distance between the branch point and the 3′ splice site. Interestingly, this difference appears to exist within the genomes of green alga of the genus Ostreococcus, which exhibit highly constrained intron sequences through most of the intron-poor genome, but not in one much more intron-dense genomic region. Second, we find evidence that ancestral genomes contained highly variable branch point sequences, similar to more complex modern intron-rich eukaryotic lineages. In addition, ancestral structures are likely to have included polyT tails similar to those in metazoans and plants, which we found in a variety of protist lineages. Intriguingly, intron structure evolution appears to be quite different across lineages experiencing different types of genome reduction: whereas lineages with very few introns tend towards highly regular intronic sequences, lineages with very short introns tend towards highly degenerate sequences. Together, these results attest to the complex nature of ancestral eukaryotic splicing, the qualitatively different evolutionary forces acting on intron structures across modern lineages, and the impressive evolutionary malleability of eukaryotic gene structures

Catching-up in the global factory: analysis and policy implications

MNEs shape the location of activities in the world economy, linking diverse regions in what has been called the global factory. This study portrays the evolution of incomes and employment in the global factory using a quantitative input–output approach. We find emerging economies forging ahead relative to advanced economies in income derived from fabrication activities, handling the physical transformation process of goods. In contrast, convergence in income derived from knowledge-intensive activities carried out in pre- and post-fabrication stages is much slower. We discuss possible barriers to catching-up and policy implications for emerging economies in developing innovation capabilities, stressing the pivotal role of MNEs

Plant Pest Impact Metric System (PPIMS): Framework and guidelines for a common set of metrics to classify and prioritise plant pests

Agricultural stakeholders need a common set of metrics to evaluate plant pest impacts to facilitate transparency and harmonisation of pest management and prioritisation across spatial scales and jurisdictions. We propose a classification system that articulates, defines and classifies the magnitude of impacts (historical, current or potential) of pest species (alien and native) in plant production systems. Metrics were identified and criteria defined through consideration of economic parameters, risk assessment standards and guidance tools, discussions with pest risk assessment practitioners and recent advances in environmental impact classification schemes. Twenty metrics were identified and assigned to one of four key metric types: spatiotemporal, market-driven, primary response and mid-to long-term response. Host crop value, Market access, Feasibility of management and Reversibility were identified as disruptor metrics, likely to influence overall classification by at least twice that of other metrics. Application of the system found it was able to classify well-known pests by importance, capturing changes in impact status as the management programme progressed for one pest, and how it was influenced by the geographic scale of assessment for another. Our work demonstrates the value of integrating plant protection science with invasion biology to derive a comprehensive measure of pest impact in agroecosystems that can be utilised by all plant biosecurity stakeholders