Mb- and FnCpf1 nucleases are active in mammalian cells

Cpf1s, the RNA-guided nucleases of the class II clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats system require a short motive called protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) to be present next to the targeted sequence for their activity. The TTTV PAM sequence of As- and LbCpf1 nucleases is relatively rare in the genome of higher eukaryotic organisms. Here, we show that two other Cpf1 nucleases, Fn- and MbCpf1, which have been reported to utilize a shorter, more frequently occurring PAM sequence (TTN) when tested in vitro, carry out efficient genome modification in mammalian cells. We found that all four Cpf1 nucleases showed similar activities and TTTV PAM preferences. Our approach also revealed that besides their activities their PAM preferences are also target dependent. To increase the number of the available targets for Fn- and MbCpf1 we generated their RVR and RR mutants with altered PAM specificity and compared them to the wild-type and analogous As- and LbCpf1 variants. The mutants gained new PAM specificities but retained their activity on targets with TTTV PAMs, redefining RR-Cpf1's PAM-specificities as TTYV/TCCV, respectively. These variants may become versatile substitutes for wild-type Cpf1s by providing an expanded range of targets for genome engineering applications

The Beaker phenomenon and the genomic transformation of northwest Europe

From around 2750 to 2500 bc, Bell Beaker pottery became widespread across western and central Europe, before it disappeared between 2200 and 1800 bc. The forces that propelled its expansion are a matter of long-standing debate, and there is support for both cultural diffusion and migration having a role in this process. Here we present genome-wide data from 400 Neolithic, Copper Age and Bronze Age Europeans, including 226 individuals associated with Beaker-complex artefacts. We detected limited genetic affinity between Beaker-complex-associated individuals from Iberia and central Europe, and thus exclude migration as an important mechanism of spread between these two regions. However, migration had a key role in the further dissemination of the Beaker complex. We document this phenomenon most clearly in Britain, where the spread of the Beaker complex introduced high levels of steppe-related ancestry and was associated with the replacement of approximately 90% of Britain’s gene pool within a few hundred years, continuing the east-to-west expansion that had brought steppe-related ancestry into central and northern Europe over the previous centuries

The agronomical and economical comperative study of rape seed cultivation in factories with different potentialities

Dolgozatom témájának az agronómiai és ökonómiai elemek összehasonlító vizsgálatát választottam a repcetermesztésben. A témaválasztásom oka az volt, hogy az elmúlt évtizedben a világon és Magyarországon a repce vetésterülete jelentős mértékben emelkedett. Ez a változás a felhasználási körök, elsősorban az energetikai célú, ezen belül is a biodízelként történő felhasználás nagymértékű bővülésének köszönhető. A biodízel alkalmazásának irányába számos tényező hat, ezek közül a legfontosabbak az energiapolitikai, környezetvédelmi, mezőgazdasági és gazdaságpolitikai megfontolások. Energiapolitikai szempontból az Európai Unió külső import-függőségének csökkentése, a világ nagy szénhidrogén lelőhelyein tapasztalható elhúzódó politikai és gazdasági bizonytalanság miatt, mely folyamatos áringadozásokat és kiszámíthatatlan szállításokat okoz. Környezetvédelmi aspektusból a fosszilis energiaforrások túlzott használatából eredő klimatikus gázkibocsátás csökkentésére irányuló törekvések a meghatározóak. Nem elhanyagolható tényező az sem, hogy a fosszilis energiaforrások (kőolaj, földgáz) véges készletet jelentenek. Ezek nem az egyik napról a másikra fogynak ki, hanem a kitermelés bővülését meghaladó keresleti igény folyamatosan növeli azok árát, nehezíti a hozzáférést (ellátás-biztonság). Egy bizonyos árszintet meghaladva azonban a biodízel alkalmazása sokkal jobb megoldást fog majd jelenteni a jövőben.Mag

Tracing the genetic origin of Europe's first farmers reveals insights into their social organization

Abstract Farming was established in Central Europe by the Linearbandkeramik culture (LBK), a well-investigated archaeological horizon, which emerged in the Carpathian Basin, in today's Hungary. However, the genetic background of the LBK genesis is yet unclear. Here we present 9 Y chromosomal and 84 mitochondrial DNA profiles from Mesolithic, Neolithic Starčevo and LBK sites (seventh/sixth millennia BC) from the Carpathian Basin and southeastern Europe. We detect genetic continuity of both maternal and paternal elements during the initial spread of agriculture, and confirm the substantial genetic impact of early southeastern European and Carpathian Basin farming cultures on Central European populations of the sixth–fourth millennia BC. Comprehensive Y chromosomal and mitochondrial DNA population genetic analyses demonstrate a clear affinity of the early farmers to the modern Near East and Caucasus, tracing the expansion from that region through southeastern Europe and the Carpathian Basin into Central Europe. However, our results also reveal contrasting patterns for male and female genetic diversity in the European Neolithic, suggesting a system of patrilineal descent and patrilocal residential rules among the early farmers

The Beaker phenomenon and the genomic transformation of northwest europe

From around 2750 to 2500 bc, Bell Beaker pottery became widespread across western and central Europe, before it disappeared between 2200 and 1800 bc. The forces that propelled its expansion are a matter of long-standing debate, and there is support for both cultural diffusion and migration having a role in this process. Here we present genome-wide data from 400 Neolithic, Copper Age and Bronze Age Europeans, including 226 individuals associated with Beaker-complex artefacts. We detected limited genetic affinity between Beaker-complex-associated individuals from Iberia and central Europe, and thus exclude migration as an important mechanism of spread between these two regions. However, migration had a key role in the further dissemination of the Beaker complex. We document this phenomenon most clearly in Britain, where the spread of the Beaker complex introduced high levels of steppe-related ancestry and was associated with the replacement of approximately 90% of Britain's gene pool within a few hundred years, continuing the east-to-west expansion that had brought steppe-related ancestry into central and northern Europe over the previous centuries

The Beaker phenomenon and the genomic transformation of northwest europe

From around 2750 to 2500 bc, Bell Beaker pottery became widespread across western and central Europe, before it disappeared between 2200 and 1800 bc. The forces that propelled its expansion are a matter of long-standing debate, and there is support for both cultural diffusion and migration having a role in this process. Here we present genome-wide data from 400 Neolithic, Copper Age and Bronze Age Europeans, including 226 individuals associated with Beaker-complex artefacts. We detected limited genetic affinity between Beaker-complex-associated individuals from Iberia and central Europe, and thus exclude migration as an important mechanism of spread between these two regions. However, migration had a key role in the further dissemination of the Beaker complex. We document this phenomenon most clearly in Britain, where the spread of the Beaker complex introduced high levels of steppe-related ancestry and was associated with the replacement of approximately 90% of Britain's gene pool within a few hundred years, continuing the east-to-west expansion that had brought steppe-related ancestry into central and northern Europe over the previous centuries