Chromatin organisation and computer aided karyotyping of Triticum durum Desf. cv. Timilia

Abstract The tribe Triticeae includes three cereal genera Secale, Hordeum and Triticum and because of their economical and agronomical importance, the relationships among species on the tribe have been extensively investigated. The wild wheat relatives are an important source of genetic variation for cultivated species and wheat is an important crop of the mediterranean region. Banding pattern of metaphase chromosomes and nuclear DNA content in root meristematic cells of an old sicilian landrace "Timilia" were determined. Microdensitometric evaluation of nuclear absorption at different thresholds of optical density indicates the organization of chromatin in the interphase nuclei. Chromosome morphometric data, karyotype simmetry, the TF% values and Syi indices were determined. The results are compared with the data of other durum wheat varieties as Capeiti and Simeto

Effects of mixed of a ketogenic diet in overweight and obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a commonly occurring endocrine disorder characterized by hirsutism, anovulation, and polycystic ovaries. Often comorbid with insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and obesity, it also carries significant risk for the development of cardiovascular and metabolic sequelae, including diabetes and metabolic syndrome. The relationship between central obesity and the development of insulin resistance is widely verified. Adipose tissue excess and the coexistent dysregulation of adipocyte functions directly contribute to the pathogenesis of the metabolic complications observed in women with PCOS. In the light of these evidence, the most therapeutic option prescribed to obese women with PCOS, regardless of the phenotype e from the severity of clinical expression, is lifestyle correction by diet and physical activity. The aim of this study is to evaluate the beneficial effects of ketogenic diet in 17 obese women with PCOS. Our results showed that the ketogenic diet inducing therapeutic ketosis, improves the anthropometric and many biochemical parameters such as LH, FSH, SHBG, insulin sensitivity and HOMA index. In addition, it induces a reduction in androgenic production, whereas the contextual reduction of fat mass reduced the acyclic production of estrogens deriving from the aromatization in the adipose tissue of the androgenic excess, with an improvement of the LH/FSH ratio. This is the first study on the effects of the ketogenic diet on PCOS, however, further studies are needed to elucidate the mechanism underlying ketogenic diet effects

Lessons Learned from the September 11th Disaster: A State Health Agency Perspective

The New York State Department of Health has conducted a number of studies over the past 10 years investigating health impacts related to the September 11, 2001 (9/11) disaster among New York City residents and New York State World Trade Center (WTC) responders. Efforts to evaluate the health effects of WTC exposures in these cohorts presented numerous challenges, including study design and associated concerns about bias, identifying the affected populations, gaining community support and participation, and determining the most appropriate clinical testing and follow-up approaches. The unique position of a state public health agency provided multiple points of support for these efforts. An overview of what was found and the lessons learned during the response to the 9/11 disaster is presented, from the viewpoint of a state public health agency

Maternal occupation and the risk of major birth defects: A follow-up analysis from the National Birth Defects Prevention Study

This study further examined the association between selected maternal occupations and a variety of birth defects identified from prior analysis and explored the effect of work hours and number of jobs held and potential interaction between folic acid and occupation. Data from a population-based, multi-center case-control study was used. Analyses included 45 major defects and specific sub-occupations under five occupational groups: healthcare workers, cleaners, scientists, teachers and personal service workers. Both logistic regression and Bayesian models (to minimize type-1 errors) were used, adjusted for potential confounders. Effect modification by folic acid was also assessed. More than any other occupation, nine different defects were positively associated with maids or janitors [odds ratio (OR) range: 1.72-3.99]. Positive associations were also seen between the following maternal occupations and defects in their children (OR range: 1.35-3.48): chemists/conotruncal heart and neural tube defects (NTDs), engineers/conotruncal defects, preschool teachers/cataracts and cleft lip with/without cleft palate (CL/P), entertainers/athletes/gastroschisis, and nurses/hydrocephalus and left ventricular outflow tract heart defects. Non-preschool teachers had significantly lower odds of oral clefts and gastroschisis in their offspring (OR range: 0.53-0.76). There was a suggestion that maternal folic acid use modified the effects with occupations including lowering the risk of NTDs and CL/P. No consistent patterns were found between maternal work hours or multiple jobs by occupation and the risk of birth defects. Overall, mothers working as maids, janitors, biologists, chemists, engineers, nurses, entertainers, child care workers and preschool teachers had increased risks of several malformations and non-preschool teachers had a lower risk of some defects. Maternal folic acid use reduced the odds of NTDs and CL/P among those with certain occupations. This hypothesis-generating study will provide clues for future studies with better exposure data

Microservice Transition and its Granularity Problem: A Systematic Mapping Study

Microservices have gained wide recognition and acceptance in software industries as an emerging architectural style for autonomic, scalable, and more reliable computing. The transition to microservices has been highly motivated by the need for better alignment of technical design decisions with improving value potentials of architectures. Despite microservices' popularity, research still lacks disciplined understanding of transition and consensus on the principles and activities underlying "micro-ing" architectures. In this paper, we report on a systematic mapping study that consolidates various views, approaches and activities that commonly assist in the transition to microservices. The study aims to provide a better understanding of the transition; it also contributes a working definition of the transition and technical activities underlying it. We term the transition and technical activities leading to microservice architectures as microservitization. We then shed light on a fundamental problem of microservitization: microservice granularity and reasoning about its adaptation as first-class entities. This study reviews state-of-the-art and -practice related to reasoning about microservice granularity; it reviews modelling approaches, aspects considered, guidelines and processes used to reason about microservice granularity. This study identifies opportunities for future research and development related to reasoning about microservice granularity.Comment: 36 pages including references, 6 figures, and 3 table

Precise Spatiotemporal Control of Optogenetic Activation Using an Acousto-Optic Device

Light activation and inactivation of neurons by optogenetic techniques has emerged as an important tool for studying neural circuit function. To achieve a high resolution, new methods are being developed to selectively manipulate the activity of individual neurons. Here, we report that the combination of an acousto-optic device (AOD) and single-photon laser was used to achieve rapid and precise spatiotemporal control of light stimulation at multiple points in a neural circuit with millisecond time resolution. The performance of this system in activating ChIEF expressed on HEK 293 cells as well as cultured neurons was first evaluated, and the laser stimulation patterns were optimized. Next, the spatiotemporally selective manipulation of multiple neurons was achieved in a precise manner. Finally, we demonstrated the versatility of this high-resolution method in dissecting neural circuits both in the mouse cortical slice and the Drosophila brain in vivo. Taken together, our results show that the combination of AOD-assisted laser stimulation and optogenetic tools provides a flexible solution for manipulating neuronal activity at high efficiency and with high temporal precision

Plant spatial arrangement on the production of new cultivars of "seed" propagated artichoke

Two field trials were conducted in southern Italy on new seed-propagated cultivars of artichokes. Seedlings were planted at the end of July-early August and treated with GA3 60 days after planting. The experiments involved 2 or 3 cultivars ('044', '137' and '271', the latter was available only in the first year) and four plant arrangements, both with single and twin-rows, with almost no variation in plant density (12000 plants ha-1). The spacing in the single row was 120 cm between rows and 70 cm between plants, while for the three twin rows the distances were: 70x70x170 cm 60x60x210 cm and 50x50x280 cm between twin-rows, rows and plants respectively. In the first year, offshoot removal was also performed (intact plant, or 1 or 2 offshoots per plant). The twin-row arrangement (120x70x70), together with the single row provided the best yield, but the larger row spacing used for the twin rows may be preferable because it facilitates access for cultivation purposes. The offshoots removal had no effect on yield and yield components. Among cultivars the '271' gave the higher and earliest yield with the smaller heads. The '044' had the more concentrated maturity