Searching for the Genetic Basis of Hygienic Behavior and Overwintering in the Honeybee (Apis mellifera)

The recent decline in honeybee populations can be mitigated through genomics and marker-assisted selection. The current techniques, such as chemical treatment to prevent disease, are only short-term solutions. The ability to breed honeybees that are disease and winter resistant would be ideal. Current breeding techniques lack knowledge of predictive markers that may improve these traits. Here we perform a genome-wide association study on 925 colonies by measuring hygienic and overwintering behavior of the colonies, followed by sequencing their genomes. L1 regression is a technique developed to pick the best Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms that explain the variance in the phenotype. Using L1 regression, we found 27 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms for hygiene and 32 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms for overwintering behaviour that could be used to breed for healthier and winter hardy honeybees

Conservation Genomics of the Declining North American Bumblebee Bombus terricola Reveals Inbreeding and Selection on Immune Genes

The yellow-banded bumblebee Bombus terricola was common in North America but has recently declined and is now on the IUCN Red List of threatened species. The causes of B. terricola’s decline are not well understood. Our objectives were to create a partial genome and then use this to estimate population data of conservation interest, and to determine whether genes showing signs of recent selection suggest a specific cause of decline. First, we generated a draft partial genome (contig set) for B. terricola, sequenced using Pacific Biosciences RS II at an average depth of 35×. Second, we sequenced the individual genomes of 22 bumblebee gynes from Ontario and Quebec using Illumina HiSeq 2500, each at an average depth of 20×, which were used to improve the PacBio genome calls and for population genetic analyses. The latter revealed that several samples had long runs of homozygosity, and individuals had high inbreeding coefficient F, consistent with low effective population size. Our data suggest that B. terricola’s effective population size has decreased orders of magnitude from pre-Holocene levels. We carried out tests of selection to identify genes that may have played a role in ameliorating environmental stressors underlying B. terricola’s decline. Several immune-related genes have signatures of recent positive selection, which is consistent with the pathogen-spillover hypothesis for B. terricola’s decline. The new B. terricola contig set can help solve the mystery of bumblebee decline by enabling functional genomics research to directly assess the health of pollinators and identify the stressors causing declines

ખેડ પારડી સત્યાગ્રહમાં ઈશ્વરભાઈ દેસાઈનું પ્રદાન

ખેડ પારડી સત્યાગ્રહ દક્ષિણ ગુજરાતના આદિવાસીઓનું પોતાના અધિકારો મેળવવા માટેનુ આંદોલન હતું. વર્ષોથી પારડીની ઘાસિયા જમીન ઉપર પોતાનો અધિકાર જમાવીને બેઠેલા જમીનદારોએ આદિવાસીઓનું શોષણ કરવામાં કઈ બાકી રાખ્યું ન હતું પરંતુ શ્રી ઇશ્વરભાઇ દેસાઈએ આદિવાસીઓને એકત્રિત કરીને અન્યાય સામે લડત ચલાવી હતી. અને આદિવાસી ખેડૂતોને તેમના અધિકારો અપાવ્યા હતા.</jats:p

An Update on Novel Drug Delivery Systems for the Management of Glaucoma

Glaucoma is recognized as a chronic optic neuropathy marked by progressive optic nerve degeneration, loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs, the neurons responsible for transmitting visual information from the eye to the brain), disruptions in optic disc blood supply, and changes in glial cell activation. It ranks as the second most prevalent cause of irreversible visual impairment worldwide and is a resultant of increased intraocular pressure (IOP). Addressing this condition proves complex due to the inherent hindrances posed by ocular barriers, which curtail the entry of drugs into the eye. Diverse carriers such as inorganic nanoparticles, polymeric nanocarriers, hydrogels, and contact lens-based systems with distinct physical and chemical attributes are being studied for drug delivery. They have shown enhanced ocular drug bioavailability through higher penetration across ocular tissues, prolonged retention in the precorneal space, sustained drug release, and targeted delivery to specific tissues. These ingenious delivery systems can be deployed through various administration routes—intravitreal or periocular injections or systemic administration—enabling the drugs to reach affected areas, aiding in the regeneration of compromised optical nerves. This review presents a comprehensive exploration of contemporary strides in ocular delivery formulations pertaining to glaucoma. This encompasses an examination of various nanocarrier typologies, delivery routes, in vitro and in vivo effectiveness, clinical applicability, and a forward-looking perspective into potential future developments

Gender Differences in Second-Level Schooling

This thesis is concerned with gender differences in Irish secondlevel schooling. The problems generated by this type of genderdifferentiation are identified in the maintenance of sex-stereotyped career choices, the status associated with each sex in the labour force, the division of labour in the home and the contribution of the sexes to the general construction of knowledge. The extent to which gender differences exist in schools and in school-related activities is established, and it is shown that considerable variation exists between boys’ and girls’ subject choices and career expectations. It is also revealed that boys’ and girls’ extracurricular activities tend to be determined on the basis of their sex. It is subsequently shown that both sexes perceive and reject the school’s attempt to channel them into sex-stereotyped roles; the extent of this rejection is limited to verbal disagreement as the pupils have limited opportunity to express overt resistance. Finally, the findings indicate that the gender differences in the pupils’ behaviour and attitudes can be attributed to the influence of the home and the peer-group. It is discovered that the pupils do not perceive this influence as readily as they perceive gender-differentiation in the school

Accurate Detection of scutellata‐Hybrids (Africanized Bees) Using a SNP‐Based Diagnostic Assay

ABSTRACT Hybrid populations of Africanized honey bees (scutellata‐hybrids), notable for their defensive behaviour, have spread rapidly throughout South and North America since their unintentional introduction. Although their migration has slowed, the large‐scale trade and movement of honey bee queens and colonies raise concern over the accidental importation of scutellata‐hybrids to previously unoccupied areas. Therefore, developing an accurate and robust assay to detect scutellata‐hybrids is an important first step toward mitigating risk. Here, we used an extensive population genomic dataset to assess the genomic composition of Apis mellifera native populations and patterns of genetic admixture in North and South American commercial honey bees. We used this dataset to develop a SNP assay, where 80 markers, combined with machine learning classification, can accurately differentiate between scutellata‐hybrids and non‐scutellata‐hybrid commercial colonies. The assay was validated on 1263 individuals from colonies located in Canada, the United States, Australia and Brazil. Notably, we demonstrate that using a reduced SNP set of as few as 10 loci can still provide accurate results

Table_1_Conservation Genomics of the Declining North American Bumblebee Bombus terricola Reveals Inbreeding and Selection on Immune Genes.DOCX

The yellow-banded bumblebee Bombus terricola was common in North America but has recently declined and is now on the IUCN Red List of threatened species. The causes of B. terricola’s decline are not well understood. Our objectives were to create a partial genome and then use this to estimate population data of conservation interest, and to determine whether genes showing signs of recent selection suggest a specific cause of decline. First, we generated a draft partial genome (contig set) for B. terricola, sequenced using Pacific Biosciences RS II at an average depth of 35×. Second, we sequenced the individual genomes of 22 bumblebee gynes from Ontario and Quebec using Illumina HiSeq 2500, each at an average depth of 20×, which were used to improve the PacBio genome calls and for population genetic analyses. The latter revealed that several samples had long runs of homozygosity, and individuals had high inbreeding coefficient F, consistent with low effective population size. Our data suggest that B. terricola’s effective population size has decreased orders of magnitude from pre-Holocene levels. We carried out tests of selection to identify genes that may have played a role in ameliorating environmental stressors underlying B. terricola’s decline. Several immune-related genes have signatures of recent positive selection, which is consistent with the pathogen-spillover hypothesis for B. terricola’s decline. The new B. terricola contig set can help solve the mystery of bumblebee decline by enabling functional genomics research to directly assess the health of pollinators and identify the stressors causing declines.</p

Table_4_Conservation Genomics of the Declining North American Bumblebee Bombus terricola Reveals Inbreeding and Selection on Immune Genes.xlsx

The yellow-banded bumblebee Bombus terricola was common in North America but has recently declined and is now on the IUCN Red List of threatened species. The causes of B. terricola’s decline are not well understood. Our objectives were to create a partial genome and then use this to estimate population data of conservation interest, and to determine whether genes showing signs of recent selection suggest a specific cause of decline. First, we generated a draft partial genome (contig set) for B. terricola, sequenced using Pacific Biosciences RS II at an average depth of 35×. Second, we sequenced the individual genomes of 22 bumblebee gynes from Ontario and Quebec using Illumina HiSeq 2500, each at an average depth of 20×, which were used to improve the PacBio genome calls and for population genetic analyses. The latter revealed that several samples had long runs of homozygosity, and individuals had high inbreeding coefficient F, consistent with low effective population size. Our data suggest that B. terricola’s effective population size has decreased orders of magnitude from pre-Holocene levels. We carried out tests of selection to identify genes that may have played a role in ameliorating environmental stressors underlying B. terricola’s decline. Several immune-related genes have signatures of recent positive selection, which is consistent with the pathogen-spillover hypothesis for B. terricola’s decline. The new B. terricola contig set can help solve the mystery of bumblebee decline by enabling functional genomics research to directly assess the health of pollinators and identify the stressors causing declines.</p

Table_2_Conservation Genomics of the Declining North American Bumblebee Bombus terricola Reveals Inbreeding and Selection on Immune Genes.XLSX

The yellow-banded bumblebee Bombus terricola was common in North America but has recently declined and is now on the IUCN Red List of threatened species. The causes of B. terricola’s decline are not well understood. Our objectives were to create a partial genome and then use this to estimate population data of conservation interest, and to determine whether genes showing signs of recent selection suggest a specific cause of decline. First, we generated a draft partial genome (contig set) for B. terricola, sequenced using Pacific Biosciences RS II at an average depth of 35×. Second, we sequenced the individual genomes of 22 bumblebee gynes from Ontario and Quebec using Illumina HiSeq 2500, each at an average depth of 20×, which were used to improve the PacBio genome calls and for population genetic analyses. The latter revealed that several samples had long runs of homozygosity, and individuals had high inbreeding coefficient F, consistent with low effective population size. Our data suggest that B. terricola’s effective population size has decreased orders of magnitude from pre-Holocene levels. We carried out tests of selection to identify genes that may have played a role in ameliorating environmental stressors underlying B. terricola’s decline. Several immune-related genes have signatures of recent positive selection, which is consistent with the pathogen-spillover hypothesis for B. terricola’s decline. The new B. terricola contig set can help solve the mystery of bumblebee decline by enabling functional genomics research to directly assess the health of pollinators and identify the stressors causing declines.</p