Genomic prediction of the recombination rate variation in barley - A route to highly recombinogenic genotypes

Meiotic recombination is not only fundamental to the adaptation of sexually reproducing eukaryotes in nature but increased recombination rates facilitate the combination of favourable alleles into a single haplotype in breeding programmes. The main objectives of this study were to (i) assess the extent and distribution of the recombination rate variation in cultivated barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), (ii) quantify the importance of the general and specific recombination effects, and (iii) evaluate a genomic selection approach’s ability to predict the recombination rate variation. Genetic maps were created for the 45 segregating populations that were derived from crosses among 23 spring barley inbreds with origins across the world. The genome‐wide recombination rate among populations ranged from 0.31 to 0.73 cM/Mbp. The crossing design used in this study allowed to separate the general recombination effects (GRE) of individual parental inbreds from the specific recombination effects (SRE) caused by the combinations of parental inbreds. The variance of the genome‐wide GRE was found to be about eight times the variance of the SRE. This finding indicated that parental inbreds differ in the efficiency of their recombination machinery. The ability to predict the chromosome or genome‐wide recombination rate of an inbred ranged from 0.80 to 0.85. These results suggest that a reliable screening of large genetic materials for their potential to cause a high extent of genetic recombination in their progeny is possible, allowing to systematically manipulate the recombination rate using natural variation

How to supercharge the Amazon T2: observations and suggestions

Cloud service providers adopt a credit system to allow users to obtain periods of performance bursts without additional cost. For example, the Amazon EC2 T2 instance offers low baseline performance and the capability to achie ve short periods of high performance using CPU credits. Once a T2 instance is created and assigned some initial credits, wh ile its CPU utilization is above the baseline threshold, there i s a transient period where performance is boosted and the assig ned CPU credits are used. After all credits are used, the maximum achievable performance drops to baseline. Credits accrue p e- riodically, when the instance utilization is below the base line threshold. This paper proposes a methodology to increase th e performance benefits of T2 by seamlessly extending the dura tion of the transient period while maintaining high performance . This extension of the high performance transient period is combi ned with proactive migration to further take advantage of the in itially assigned credits. We conduct experiments to demonstrate th e benefits of this methodology for both single-tier and multi -tier applications

Using Mitrofanoff's principle and Monti's technique as a surgical option for bladder augmentation with a continent stoma: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Hydronephrosis, reflux and renal failure are serious complications that occur in patients with neurogenic bladder associated with myelomeningocele. When the bladder compliance is lost, it is imperative to carry out surgery aimed at reducing bladder storage pressure. An ileocystoplasty, and for patients not suitable for intermittent catheterization, using the Mitrofanoff principle to form a continent stoma and the subsequent closure of the bladder neck, can be used. We report here, for the first time to the best of our knowledge, an association between two previously described techniques (the Mitrofanoff principle and the technique of Monti), that can solve the problem of a short appendix in obese patients.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 33-year-old male Caucasian patient with myelomeningocele and neurogenic bladder developed low bladder compliance (4.0 mL/cm H₂O) while still maintaining normal renal function. A bladder augmentation (ileocystoplasty) with continent derivation principle (Mitrofanoff) was performed. During surgery, we found that the patient's appendix was too short and was insufficient to reach the skin. We decided to make an association between the Mitrofanoff conduit and the ileal technique of Monti, through which we performed an anastomosis of the distal stump of the appendix to the bladder (with an antireflux valve). Later, the proximal stump of the appendix was anastomosed to an ileal segment of 2.0 cm that was open longitudinally and reconfigured transversally (Monti technique), modeled by a 12-Fr urethral catheter, and finally, the distal stump was sutured at the patient's navel.</p> <p>After the procedure, a suprapubic cystostomy (22 Fr) and a Foley catheter (10 Fr) through the continent conduit were left in place. The patient had recovered well and was discharged on the tenth day after surgery. He remained with the Foley catheter (through the conduit) for 21 days and cystostomy for 30 days. Six months after surgery he was continent with good bladder compliance without reflux and fully adapted to catheterization through the navel.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The unpublished association between the Mitrofanoff and Monti techniques is feasible and a very useful alternative in urologic cases of derivation continent in which the ileocecal appendix is too short to reach the skin (i.e., in obese patients).</p

Foraging ecology of Mediterranean juvenile loggerhead turtles: insights from C and N stable isotope ratios

Bycatch is one of the key threats to juvenile marine turtles in the Mediterranean Sea. As fishing methods are regional or habitat specific, the susceptibility of marine turtles may differ according to inter- and intra-population variations in foraging ecology. An understanding of these variations is necessary to assess bycatch susceptibility and to implement region-specific management. To determine if foraging ecology differs with region, sex, and size of juvenile loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta), stable isotope analysis of carbon and nitrogen was performed on 171 juveniles from a range of foraging regions across the central and eastern Mediterranean Sea. Isotope ratios differed with geographical region, likely due to baseline variations in δ13C and δ15N values. The absence of sex-specific differences suggests that within an area, all comparably sized animals likely exploit similar foraging strategies, and therefore, their susceptibility to fisheries threats will likely be similar. The isotope ratios of juveniles occupying the North East Adriatic and North Levantine basin increased with size, potentially due to increased consumption of more prey items at higher trophic levels from a more neritic source. Isotope ratios of juveniles with access to both neritic and oceanic habitats did not differ with size which is consistent with them consuming prey items from both habitats interchangeably. With foraging habitats exploited differently among size classes in a population, the susceptibility to fisheries interactions will likely differ with size; therefore, region-specific management approaches will be needed

Determining Minimum Wages in China: Do Economic Factors Dominate?

Minimum wages may be an important instrument to reduce income inequality in a society and to promote socially inclusive economic growth. While higher minimum wages can support the Chinese transformation towards consumption driven growth, they can worsen the price competitiveness in export markets. As they differ throughout the country, this paper investigates their determinants at the regional level. In addition to a broad set of economic determinants, such as per capita income and consumption, consumer prices, unemployment and industrial structures, spatial effects are taken into account. They might arise for different reasons, including competition of local policymakers. The results show that the impact of economic variables declines, once spatial spillovers are considered. Although the minimum wage regulation pursues the relevance of economic factors in the determination of the appropriate levels, the actual development is largely driven by regional dependencies. As minimum wage standards set by local officials do not fully reflect the regional economic development, further reforms should be on the agenda

Mission results from the first GEOSTAR observatory (Adriatic Sea, 1998)

We assess the first mission of the GEOSTAR (GEophysical and Oceanographic STation for Abyssal Research) deep-sea multidisciplinary observatory for its technical capacity, performance and quality of recorded data. The functioning of the system was verified by analyzing oceanographic, seismological and geomagnetic measurements. Despite the mission’s short duration (21 days), its data demonstrated the observatory’s technological reliability and scientific value. After analyzing the oceanographic data, we found two different regimes of seawater circulation and a sharp and deepening pycnocline, linked to a down-welling phenomenon. The reliability of the magnetic and seismological measurements was evaluated by comparison with those made using on-land sensors. Such comparison of magnetic signals recorded by permanent land geomagnetic stations and GEOSTAR during a “quiet” day and one with a magnetic storm confirmed the correct functioning of the sensor and allowed us to estimate the seafloor observatory’s orientation. The magnitudes of regional seismic events recorded by our GEOSTAR seismometer agreed with those computed from land stations. GEOSTAR has thus proven itself reliable for integrating other deep-sea observation systems, such as modular observatories, arrays, and instrumented submarine cablesPublished361-373ope

RADON: Rational decomposition and orchestration for serverless computing

Emerging serverless computing technologies, such as function as a service (FaaS), enable developers to virtualize the internal logic of an application, simplifying the management of cloud-native services and allowing cost savings through billing and scaling at the level of individual functions. Serverless computing is therefore rapidly shifting the attention of software vendors to the challenge of developing cloud applications deployable on FaaS platforms. In this vision paper, we present the research agenda of the RADON project (http://radon-h2020.eu), which aims to develop a model-driven DevOps framework for creating and managing applications based on serverless computing. RADON applications will consist of fine-grained and independent microservices that can efficiently and optimally exploit FaaS and container technologies. Our methodology strives to tackle complexity in designing such applications, including the solution of optimal decomposition, the reuse of serverless functions as well as the abstraction and actuation of event processing chains, while avoiding cloud vendor lock-in through models

Foraging ecology of Mediterranean juvenile loggerhead turtles: insights from C and N stable isotope ratios

Bycatch is one of the key threats to juvenile marine turtles in the Mediterranean Sea. As fishing methods are regional or habitat specific, the susceptibility of marine turtles may differ according to inter- and intra-population variations in foraging ecology. An understanding of these variations is necessary to assess bycatch susceptibility and to implement region-specific management. To determine if foraging ecology differs with region, sex, and size of juvenile loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta), stable isotope analysis of carbon and nitrogen was performed on 171 juveniles from a range of foraging regions across the central and eastern Mediterranean Sea. Isotope ratios differed with geographical region, likely due to baseline variations in δ13C and δ15N values. The absence of sex-specific differences suggests that within an area, all comparably sized animals likely exploit similar foraging strategies, and therefore, their susceptibility to fisheries threats will likely be similar. The isotope ratios of juveniles occupying the North East Adriatic and North Levantine basin increased with size, potentially due to increased consumption of more prey items at higher trophic levels from a more neritic source. Isotope ratios of juveniles with access to both neritic and oceanic habitats did not differ with size which is consistent with them consuming prey items from both habitats interchangeably. With foraging habitats exploited differently among size classes in a population, the susceptibility to fisheries interactions will likely differ with size; therefore, region-specific management approaches will be needed

Mediterranean sea turtles: current knowledge and priorities for conservation and research

The available information regarding the 2 sea turtle species breeding in the Mediterranean (loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta and green turtle Chelonia mydas) is reviewed, including biometrics and morphology, identification of breeding and foraging areas, ecology and behaviour, abundance and trends, population structure and dynamics, anthropogenic threats and conservation measures. Although a large body of knowledge has been generated, research efforts have been inconsistently allocated across geographic areas, species and topics. Significant gaps still exist, ranging from the most fundamental aspects, such as the distribution of major nesting sites and the total number of clutches laid annually in the region, to more specific topics like age at maturity, survival rates and behavioural ecology, especially for certain areas (e.g. south-eastern Mediterranean). These gaps are particularly marked for the green turtle. The recent positive trends of nest counts at some nesting sites may be the result of the cessation of past exploitation and decades of conservation measures on land, both in the form of national regulations and of continued active protection of clutches. Therefore, the current status should be considered as dependent on such ongoing conservation efforts. Mitigation of incidental catch in fisheries, the main anthropogenic threat at sea, is still in its infancy. From the analysis of the present status a comprehensive list of research and conservation priorities is proposed