Screening Strawberry Clones for Anthracnose Disease Resistance Using Traditional Techniques and Molecular Markers

Cultivated strawberry, Fragaria x ananassa Duchesne, is host for many pathogens. One of the most destructive diseases of strawberry is anthracnose, whose symptoms include fruit rot, leaf and petiole lesions, crown rot, wilt, and death. Three species of Colletotrichum are considered causative agents of anthracnose diseases of strawberry. Colletotrichum acutatum causes anthracnose fruit rot, has a broad host range, and occurs in most areas of the world where strawberries are grown. Colletotrichum fragariae, the primary causal fungus of anthracnose crown rot, may infect all aboveground parts of the strawberry plant, and has restricted host and geographic ranges. Colletotrichum gloeosporioides causes symptoms indistinguishable from those caused by C. fragariae but has much broader host and geographic ranges. Plant breeding programs generally require many years to produce commercially acceptable disease resistant cultivars; however, molecular tools may be used to identify genes that convey disease resistance and decrease the overall time required to develop new disease resistant cultivars. Two disease resistance genes have been identified in strawberry through controlled crosses: Rpf1 for resistance to Phytophthora fragariae and Rca2, a dominant gene that has been suggested to provide resistance to pathogenicity group 2 (q.v.) of C. acutatum (Van de Weg et al., 1997; Denoyes-Rothan et al., 2005). Two sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) markers for the Rca2 resistance allele were found in several European and U.S. cultivars and, although there was not a perfect association with anthracnose resistance, these SCAR markers provide a unique set of tools to use in screening for anthracnose-resistant genotypes in strawberry breeding programs. The primary goal of this research was to establish the resistance or susceptibility of 81 strawberry germplasm lines to all three anthracnose-causing Colletotrichum species and to determine the degree to which an association exists between the resistance or susceptibility of these plants to the presence or absence of the Rca2 resistant allele SCAR markers. A secondary goal of this research was to determine if a detached leaf assay could be used to define the resistance or susceptibility of strawberry plants to anthracnose, thus providing an efficient, non-destructive method to screen strawberry germplasm for anthracnose resistance

From Food and Fuel to Farms and Flocks: The Integration of Plant and Animal Remains in the Study of the Agropastoral Economy at Gordion, Turkey

The site of Gordion, Turkey, provides a case study of the integrated use of archaeobiological data. Associations between botanical and faunal remains suggest a continuum of land‐use practices. At one end, high ratios of the seeds of wild plants versus cultivated cereal grains (calculated as count/weight) and high proportions of the bones of sheep, goat, and deer are signatures of a subsistence economy focused on pastoral production. At the other, low wild/cereal ratios along with high proportions of the bones of cattle, pig, and hare indicate an economy more focused on agriculture. Based on the millennium‐long sequence analyzed, the most sustainable land use around the ancient settlement emphasized pastoral production; only during the wealthy Middle Phrygian period did high population support greater reliance on agriculture

Survey of Blueberry (\u3ci\u3eVaccinium\u3c/i\u3e spp.) Problems in the Gulf South

The blueberry (Vaccinium) industry in Mississippi has been steadily increasing since the early 1980s, but some plants in older fields are now in decline. The root rot pathogen, Phytophthora cinnamomi, is endemic in the southeastern United States and has caused severe losses to blueberries in North Carolina and Arkansas. Because the warm, humid climate of Mississippi, with periods of high precipitation, provides a favorable environment for Phytophthora root rot disease, it was suspected to be the cause of plant decline in older blueberry fields. Members of the Gulf South Blueberry Growers Association were mailed surveys to determine cultural practices and the extent of losses in their blueberry fields. The survey was written in partial, open-ended question format with 33 questions pertaining to cultivars, number of hectares planted, cultural practices, overall health of the blueberry plants, and losses due to diseases, insects, or other problems. Fifty-eight of 146 surveys (40%) were completed and returned. 89% of respondents grew rabbiteye (Vaccinium ashei) cultivars and the balance grew southern highbush (V. corymbosum hybrids) cultivars. The average number of plants per hectare was 1523 with the majority of plants 10 - 20 years old. 79% of the growers described the overall condition of their plants as average, healthy, or vigorous. The most common cause of plant death cited was environmental with damage caused by the 2004 and 2005 hurricanes at the top of the list. No major diseases were reported by 36% of the respondents, while mummy berry (Monilinia vaccinii-corymbosi [Reade] Honey), leaf spots (many causal organisms), and root rot (Phytophthora cinnamomi Rands) were noted as problems by 22, 15, and 10% of the growers, respectively. Phytophthora species were isolated from root and soil samples collected from symptomatic plants on three farms. Weeds were listed as problems on 100% of the surveys. 47% of the respondents plan to increase their blueberry plantings mainly with rabbiteye cultivars

Development, psychometric testing, and revision of the atlanta heart failure knowledge test

BACKGROUND AND RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: Several heart failure (HF) knowledge tools have been developed and tested over the past decade; however, they vary in content, format, psychometric properties, and availability. This article details the development, psychometric testing, and revision of the Atlanta Heart Failure Knowledge Test (A-HFKT) as a standardized instrument for both the research and clinical settings. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: Development and psychometric testing of the A-HFKT were undertaken with 116 New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II and III community-dwelling HF patients and their family members (FMs) participating in a family intervention study. Internal consistency, reliability, and content validity were examined. Construct validity was assessed by correlating education level, literacy, dietary sodium ingestion, medication adherence, and healthcare utilization with knowledge. RESULTS: Content validity ratings on relevance and clarity ranged from 0.55 to 1.0, with 81% of the items rated from 0.88 to 1.0. Cronbach α values were .84 for patients, .75 for FMs, and .73 for combined results. Construct validity testing revealed a small but significant correlation between higher patient and FM knowledge on sodium restriction questions and lower ingested sodium, r = −0.17, P = .05 and r = −0.19, P = .04, respectively, and between patient knowledge and number of days that medications were taken correctly (diuretics: r = 0.173, P < .05, and angiotensin-converting enzyme: r = 0.223, P = .01). Finally, patients seeking emergency care or requiring hospitalization in the 4 months before study entry were found to have significantly lower FM knowledge using both t test and logistic regression modeling. CONCLUSIONS: The A-HFKT was revised using the content and construct validity data and is available for use with HF patients and FMs. The construct validity testing indicates that patient knowledge has a significant relationship to aspects of self-care. Furthermore, family knowledge may influence patient adherence with sodium restriction and healthcare utilization behavior

The role of dietary fatty acids in predicting myocardial structure in fat-fed rats

<p>Abstract</p> <p><it>Background</it></p> <p>Obesity increases the risk for development of cardiomyopathy in the absence of hypertension, diabetes or myocardial ischemia. Not all obese individuals, however, progress to heart failure. Indeed, obesity may provide protection from cardiovascular mortality in some populations. The fatty acid milieu, modulated by diet, may modify obesity-induced myocardial structure and function, lending partial explanation for the array of cardiomyopathic phenotypy in obese individuals.</p> <p><it>Methods</it></p> <p>Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed 1 of the following 4 diets for 32 weeks: control (CON); 50% saturated fat (SAT); 40% saturated fat + 10% linoleic acid (SAT+LA); 40% saturated fat + 10% α-linolenic acid (SAT+ALA). Serum leptin, insulin, glucose, free fatty acids and triglycerides were quantitated. <it>In vivo </it>cardiovascular outcomes included blood pressure, heart rate and echocardiographic measurements of structure and function. The rats were sacrificed and myocardium was processed for fatty acid analysis (TLC-GC), and evaluation of potential modifiers of myocardial structure including collagen (Masson's trichrome, hydroxyproline quantitation), lipid (Oil Red O, triglyceride quantitation) and myocyte cross sectional area.</p> <p><it>Results</it></p> <p>Rats fed SAT+LA and SAT+ALA diets had greater cranial LV wall thickness compared to rats fed CON and SAT diets, in the absence of hypertension or apparent insulin resistance. Treatment was not associated with changes in myocardial function. Myocardial collagen and triglycerides were similar among treatment groups; however, rats fed the high-fat diets, regardless of composition, demonstrated increased myocyte cross sectional area.</p> <p><it>Conclusions</it></p> <p>Under conditions of high-fat feeding, replacement of 10% saturated fat with either LA or ALA is associated with thickening of the cranial LV wall, but without concomitant functional changes. Increased myocyte size appears to be a more likely contributor to early LV thickening in response to high-fat feeding. These findings suggest that myocyte hypertrophy may be an early change leading to gross LV hypertrophy in the hearts of "healthy" obese rats, in the absence of hypertension, diabetes and myocardial ischemia.</p

Charting a course for genetic diversity in the UN Decade of Ocean Science

The health of the world's oceans is intrinsically linked to the biodiversity of the ecosystems they sustain. The importance of protecting and maintaining ocean biodiversity has been affirmed through the setting of the UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 to conserve and sustainably use the ocean for society's continuing needs. The decade beginning 2021-2030 has additionally been declared as the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. This program aims to maximize the benefits of ocean science to the management, conservation, and sustainable development of the marine environment by facilitating communication and cooperation at the science-policy interface. A central principle of the program is the conservation of species and ecosystem components of biodiversity. However, a significant omission from the draft version of the Decade of Ocean Science Implementation Plan is the acknowledgment of the importance of monitoring and maintaining genetic biodiversity within species. In this paper, we emphasize the importance of genetic diversity to adaptive capacity, evolutionary potential, community function, and resilience within populations, as well as highlighting some of the major threats to genetic diversity in the marine environment from direct human impacts and the effects of global climate change. We then highlight the significance of ocean genetic diversity to a diverse range of socioeconomic factors in the marine environment, including marine industries, welfare and leisure pursuits, coastal communities, and wider society. Genetic biodiversity in the ocean, and its monitoring and maintenance, is then discussed with respect to its integral role in the successful realization of the 2030 vision for the Decade of Ocean Science. Finally, we suggest how ocean genetic diversity might be better integrated into biodiversity management practices through the continued interaction between environmental managers and scientists, as well as through key leverage points in industry requirements for Blue Capital financing and social responsibility.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Learning Evaluation: Blending Quality Improvement and Implementation Research Methods to Study Healthcare Innovations

Background: In healthcare change interventions, on-the-ground learning about the implementation process is often lost because of a primary focus on outcome improvements. This paper describes the Learning Evaluation, a methodological approach that blends quality improvement and implementation research methods to study healthcare innovations. Methods: Learning Evaluation is an approach to multi-organization assessment. Qualitative and quantitative data are collected to conduct real-time assessment of implementation processes while also assessing changes in context, facilitating quality improvement using run charts and audit and feedback, and generating transportable lessons. Five principles are the foundation of this approach: (1) gather data to describe changes made by healthcare organizations and how changes are implemented; (2) collect process and outcome data relevant to healthcare organizations and to the research team; (3) assess multi-level contextual factors that affect implementation, process, outcome, and transportability; (4) assist healthcare organizations in using data for continuous quality improvement; and (5) operationalize common measurement strategies to generate transportable results. Results: Learning Evaluation principles are applied across organizations by the following: (1) establishing a detailed understanding of the baseline implementation plan; (2) identifying target populations and tracking relevant process measures; (3) collecting and analyzing real-time quantitative and qualitative data on important contextual factors; (4) synthesizing data and emerging findings and sharing with stakeholders on an ongoing basis; and (5) harmonizing and fostering learning from process and outcome data. Application to a multi-site program focused on primary care and behavioral health integration shows the feasibility and utility of Learning Evaluation for generating real-time insights into evolving implementation processes. Conclusions: Learning Evaluation generates systematic and rigorous cross-organizational findings about implementing healthcare innovations while also enhancing organizational capacity and accelerating translation of findings by facilitating continuous learning within individual sites. Researchers evaluating change initiatives and healthcare organizations implementing improvement initiatives may benefit from a Learning Evaluation approach

A Systematic Review of Mosquito Coils and Passive Emanators: Defining Recommendations for Spatial Repellency Testing Methodologies.

Mosquito coils, vaporizer mats and emanators confer protection against mosquito bites through the spatial action of emanated vapor or airborne pyrethroid particles. These products dominate the pest control market; therefore, it is vital to characterize mosquito responses elicited by the chemical actives and their potential for disease prevention. The aim of this review was to determine effects of mosquito coils and emanators on mosquito responses that reduce human-vector contact and to propose scientific consensus on terminologies and methodologies used for evaluation of product formats that could contain spatial chemical actives, including indoor residual spraying (IRS), long lasting insecticide treated nets (LLINs) and insecticide treated materials (ITMs). PubMed, (National Centre for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), U.S. National Library of Medicine, NIH), MEDLINE, LILAC, Cochrane library, IBECS and Armed Forces Pest Management Board Literature Retrieval System search engines were used to identify studies of pyrethroid based coils and emanators with key-words "Mosquito coils" "Mosquito emanators" and "Spatial repellents". It was concluded that there is need to improve statistical reporting of studies, and reach consensus in the methodologies and terminologies used through standardized testing guidelines. Despite differing evaluation methodologies, data showed that coils and emanators induce mortality, deterrence, repellency as well as reduce the ability of mosquitoes to feed on humans. Available data on efficacy outdoors, dose-response relationships and effective distance of coils and emanators is inadequate for developing a target product profile (TPP), which will be required for such chemicals before optimized implementation can occur for maximum benefits in disease control