Polyglutamine variation in a flowering time protein correlates with island age in a Hawaiian plant radiation

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A controversial topic in evolutionary developmental biology is whether morphological diversification in natural populations can be driven by expansions and contractions of amino acid repeats in proteins. To promote adaptation, selection on protein length variation must overcome deleterious effects of multiple correlated traits (pleiotropy). Thus far, systems that demonstrate this capacity include only ancient or artificial morphological diversifications. The Hawaiian Islands, with their linear geological sequence, present a unique environment to study recent, natural radiations. We have focused our research on the Hawaiian endemic mints (Lamiaceae), a large and diverse lineage with paradoxically low genetic variation, in order to test whether a direct relationship between coding-sequence repeat diversity and morphological change can be observed in an actively evolving system.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Here we show that in the Hawaiian mints, extensive polyglutamine (CAG codon repeat) polymorphism within a homolog of the pleiotropic flowering time protein and abscisic acid receptor FCA tracks the natural environmental cline of the island chain, consequent with island age, across a period of 5 million years. CAG expansions, perhaps following their natural tendency to elongate, are more frequent in colonists of recently-formed, nutrient-rich islands than in their forebears on older, nutrient-poor islands. Values for several quantitative morphological variables related to reproductive investment, known from Arabidopsis <it>fca </it>mutant studies, weakly though positively correlate with increasing glutamine tract length. Together with protein modeling of FCA, which indicates that longer polyglutamine tracts could induce suboptimally mobile functional domains, we suggest that CAG expansions may form slightly deleterious alleles (with respect to protein function) that become fixed in founder populations.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In the Hawaiian mint <it>FCA </it>system, we infer that contraction of slightly deleterious CAG repeats occurred because of competition for resources along the natural environmental cline of the island chain. The observed geographical structure of <it>FCA </it>variation and its correlation with morphologies expected from Arabidopsis mutant studies may indicate that developmental pleiotropy played a role in the diversification of the mints. This discovery is important in that it concurs with other suggestions that repetitive amino acid motifs might provide a mechanism for driving morphological evolution, and that variation at such motifs might permit rapid tuning to environmental change.</p

Orsaker och följder av försenad start av operationsprogram - en enkätstudie

Försening av dagens första operation innebär konsekvenser för operationsprogrammet. Syfte: Att kartlägga orsaker till försenad start av dagsprogrammets första operation och om det påverkar planerad tid för avslut av dagsprogrammet jämfört med operationsprogram som startat planenligt. Metod: En kvantitativ enkätstudie genomfördes på tre operationsavdelningar inom Region Skåne. Resultat: På de tre operationsavdelningarna försenades 60,9 % av operationsstarterna. I genomsnitt var operationsstarten 19 minuter försenad. Tjugo operationer försenades av medicinskt relaterade orsaker och 33 av organisatoriskt relaterade orsaker. Försenade operationsstarter ledde även till försenad sluttid på operationssalen i 49 % av fallen. Konklusion: Resultatet kan ligga till grund för optimering av planering av operationsprogram och intensifiering av preoperativa förberedelser avseende patienter samt logistik mellan berörda avdelningar

Konsekvenser vid avskaffandet av revisorers anmälningsplikt

Syfte: Uppsatsen avser undersöka om anmälningsplikten har haft den betydelse för externa intressenter som dess ursprungstanke var samt att utreda vilka eventuella konsekvenser ett avskaffande kan komma att leda till, framförallt för externa intressenter. Uppsatsen har också behandlat anmälningspliktens funktion i praktiken de år den varit verksam. Metod: I uppsatsen användes kvalitativ metod med betoning på hermeneutiskt synsätt samt grundad teori. Semistrukturerade intervjuer gjordes med intressenter berörda av anmälningsplikten och debatten kring ämnet studerades. Teoretiskt perspektiv: I syfte att förstå utvecklingen med anmälningsplikten samt för att kunna definiera konsekvenserna av ett eventuellt avskaffande togs del av den institutionella teorin. En genomgång av problematiken rörande oberoende och förtroende för revisorer har gjorts för att därefter mynna ut i diskussion kring ekonomiska brott. Empiri: Genomgången av debatten kring anmälningsplikten i litteraturgenomgången har utgjort grunden för de intervjuerna som utförts. Intressenter som tycks bli påverkade av avskaffandet av anmälningsplikten har intervjuats för att ge ett bredare perspektiv utifrån externa intressenters synvinkel. Resultat: Efter revisionspliktens avskaffande blir det svårt att behålla lagkravet på anmälningsplikten. Studiens resultat visar att anmälningsplikten har varit viktig för externa intressenter, dock inte i samma utsträckning som lagstiftarens syfte var. Lagen har inte kunnat användas i förebyggande syfte som dess ursprungstanke var. Anmälningsplikten har varit en hjälp framförallt för mindre revisionsbyråer vid användandet av den som ett påtryckningsmedel vid upptäckt av oegentligheter. För större revisionsbyråer däremot anses den inte varit påtaglig då riskanalyser gjorts i ett tidigt stadium. Plikten har dock lett till att fler ekonomiska brott uppdagats i ett tidigare skede och åklagarna har genom revisorer fått ingång i bolag som de annars inte skulle ha haft tillträde till vilket har underlättat deras arbete. Ett avskaffande av anmälningsplikten kan påverka uppdagandet av ekonomiska brott då tidsaspekten är av yttersta betydelse

PCR diagnostics of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in historic human long bone remains from 18th century burials in Kaiserebersdorf, Austria

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In the present pilot study we applied recently published protocols for detecting <it>Mycobacterium tuberculosis </it>in human remains. We screened long bones from an 18^thcentury cemetery and skulls from the anatomical "Weisbach collection" (19^thcentury). In addition, besides the study of abundance of tuberculosis in inmates of the poorhouse itself, we were interested to test whether in this particular instance tuberculosis can be identified from cortical bones, which are rarely affected by tuberculosis, but mostly better preserved than the vertebral bodies or epiphyses.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>The DNA extractions from the bone samples were obtained following established ancient DNA protocols. Subsequently extracts were subjected to a series of PCR amplifications using primer pairs published previously <abbrgrp><abbr bid="B1">1</abbr><abbr bid="B2">2</abbr></abbrgrp>. PCR products of the expected size were subsequently sequenced.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Only primers targeting the repetitive IS<it>6110 </it>insertion sequence yielded PCR products of appropriate size. In one sample only (skull sample WB354 of the "Weisbach collection") sequence analysis revealed an authentic <it>M. tuberculosis </it>sequence that matched to a reference sequence from GenBank.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>With a variety of established PCR approaches we failed to detect <it>M. tuberculosis </it>DNA in historic human femurs from an 18^thcentury cemetery relating to a poor house in Kaiserebersdorf, Austria. Our data may indicate that in this particular case, thoracic or lumbar vertebrae, i.e. bones that are severely affected by the disease, would be more suitable for molecular diagnostics than long bones. However, the unpredictable state of DNA preservation in bones from museum collections does not allow any general recommendation of any type of bone.</p

Tillskott av hösilage i ett inhysningssystem med elektronisk utfodring (ESF) av dräktiga suggor

I Sverige ökar intresset för inhysningssystem med elektronisk foderutmatning (ESF) till dräktiga suggor i grupp. Användningen av ESF-system ger flera fördelar såsom individuell utfodring av djuren (djuren identifieras via örontranspondrar) och utrymmesbesparing eftersom suggorna inhyses i stora grupper. Det senare är särskilt relevant efter de senaste ändringarna i de svenska djurskyddsföreskrifterna. I föreskrifter från Jordbruksverket anges att varje sugga måste ha tillgång till minst 2,05 m2när suggor hålls i grupper om 40 eller fler (SJVFS 2017: 25 Saknr L 106). Som jämförelse kräver ett system med individuella ätbås och gemensam liggyta respektive gödselyta (3-rumssystem) minst 2,9 m2 per sugga och system med individuella utfodringsbås och djupströ minst 3,5 m2

Incidence of early posterior shoulder dislocation in brachial plexus birth palsy

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Posterior dislocation of the shoulder in brachial plexus birth palsy during the first year of life is rare but the incidence increases with age. The aim was to calculate the incidence of these lesions in children below one year of age.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The incidence of brachial plexus birth lesion and occurrence of posterior shoulder dislocation was calculated based on a prospective follow up of all brachial plexus patients at an age below one in Malmö municipality, Sweden, 2000–2005.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The incidence of brachial plexus birth palsy was 3.8/1000 living infants and year with a corresponding incidence of posterior shoulder dislocation (history, clinical examination and x-ray) during the first year of 0.28/1000 living infants and year, i.e. 7.3% of all brachial plexus birth palsies.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>All children with a brachial plexus birth lesion (incidence 3.8‰) should be screened, above the assessment of neurological recovery, during the first year of life for posterior dislocation of the shoulder (incidence 0.28‰) since such a condition may occur in 7% of children with a brachial plexus birth lesion.</p

Ancient bears provide insights into Pleistocene ice age refugia in Southeast Alaska

During the Late Pleistocene, major parts of North America were periodically covered by ice sheets. However, there are still questions about whether ice-free refugia were present in the Alexander Archipelago along the Southeast (SE) Alaska coast during the last glacial maximum (LGM). Numerous subfossils have been recovered from caves in SE Alaska, including American black (Ursus americanus) and brown (U. arctos) bears, which today are found in the Alexander Archipelago but are genetically distinct from mainland bear populations. Hence, these bear species offer an ideal system to investigate long-term occupation, potential refugial survival and lineage turnover. Here, we present genetic analyses based on 99 new complete mitochondrial genomes from ancient and modern brown and black bears spanning the last ~45,000 years. Black bears form two SE Alaskan subclades, one preglacial and another postglacial, that diverged \u3e100,000 years ago. All postglacial ancient brown bears are closely related to modern brown bears in the archipelago, while a single preglacial brown bear is found in a distantly related clade. A hiatus in the bear subfossil record around the LGM and the deep split of their pre-and postglacial subclades fail to support a hypothesis of continuous occupancy in SE Alaska throughout the LGM for either species. Our results are consistent with an absence of refugia along the SE Alaska coast, but indicate that vegetation quickly expanded after deglaciation, allowing bears to recolonize the area after a short-lived LGM peak

Insights into bear evolution from a Pleistocene polar bear genome

The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) has become a symbol of the threat to biodiversity from climate change. Understanding polar bear evolutionary history may provide insights into apex carnivore responses and prospects during periods of extreme environmental perturbations. In recent years, genomic studies have examined bear speciation and population history, including evidence for ancient admixture between polar bears and brown bears (Ursus arctos). Here, we extend our earlier studies of a 130,000- to 115,000-y-old polar bear from the Svalbard Archipelago using a 10x coverage genome sequence and 10 new genomes of polar and brown bears from contemporary zones of overlap in northern Alaska. We demonstrate a dramatic decline in effective population size for this ancient polar bear's lineage, followed by a modest increase just before its demise. A slightly higher genetic diversity in the ancient polar bear suggests a severe genetic erosion over a prolonged bottleneck in modern polar bears. Statistical fitting of data to alternative admixture graph scenarios favors at least one ancient introgression event from brown bears into the ancestor of polar bears, possibly dating back over 150,000 y. Gene flow was likely bidirectional, but allelic transfer from brown into polar bear is the strongest detected signal, which contrasts with other published work. These findings may have implications for our understanding of climate change impacts: Polar bears, a specialist Arctic lineage, may not only have undergone severe genetic bottlenecks but also been the recipient of generalist, boreal genetic variants from brown bears during critical phases of Northern Hemisphere glacial oscillations.Peer reviewe

Проект реконструкции ПТБ предприятия ИП Смирнов Б.Г.

Amylase-binding protein A-like subgroup comparison. Includes NCBI protein identifiers, molecular weights, and N-terminal sequences. (DOCX 107 kb

Genome assembly and gene expression in the American black bear provides new insights into the renal response to hibernation.

The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rising worldwide and 10-15% of the global population currently suffers from CKD and its complications. Given the increasing prevalence of CKD there is an urgent need to find novel treatment options. The American black bear (Ursus americanus) copes with months of lowered kidney function and metabolism during hibernation without the devastating effects on metabolism and other consequences observed in humans. In a biomimetic approach to better understand kidney adaptations and physiology in hibernating black bears, we established a high-quality genome assembly. Subsequent RNA-Seq analysis of kidneys comparing gene expression profiles in black bears entering (late fall) and emerging (early spring) from hibernation identified 169 protein-coding genes that were differentially expressed. Of these, 101 genes were downregulated and 68 genes were upregulated after hibernation. Fold changes ranged from 1.8-fold downregulation (RTN4RL2) to 2.4-fold upregulation (CISH). Most notable was the upregulation of cytokine suppression genes (SOCS2, CISH, and SERPINC1) and the lack of increased expression of cytokines and genes involved in inflammation. The identification of these differences in gene expression in the black bear kidney may provide new insights in the prevention and treatment of CKD