Potential of pearl millet as a forage crop in wheat-based double cropping system in Central Asia

Livestock is a vital resource for smallholder farmers’ livelihoods in Central Asia, but shortage of winter season fodder is a major constraint to livestock productivity in this region. Three pearl millet populations were compared with a locally adapted improved maize variety in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan for their forage potential in wheat-based cropping system as a second crop after wheat harvest. Two medium-maturity, dual-purpose populations (HHVBC-Tall and Raj 171) significantly out-yielded locally adapted improved maize cultivars in both countries that had different productivity levels. While HHVBC-Tall had 6.56 t ha-1 of dry forage yield in Kyrgyzstan and 13.70 t ha-1 of dry forage yield in Tajikistan (28% higher than maize cultivars in both countries), Raj 171 had 18% higher dry forage yield than the locally adapted improved maize variety in Kyrgyzstan and 10% higher dry forage yield than locally adapted improved maize variety in Tajikistan. The benefit-cost ratio from forage production of both pearl millet populations was highest for HHVBC-Tall (0.89 in Kyrgyzstan and 1.56 in Tajikistan), followed by Raj 171 (0.74 in Kyrgyzstan and 1.20 in Tajikistan), which were much higher than those for maize varieties. These results showed that medium-maturity pearl millet varieties have good potential to fill in the fallow land after wheat harvest and significantly contribute to fodder security in Central Asia

I/D Polymorphism Gene ACE and Risk of Preeclampsia in Women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Preeclampsia (PE) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are the most common complications of pregnancy, which result in adverse outcomes for the mother and the fetus. GDM is regarded as a separate independent risk factor for PE development, as evidenced by a higher preeclampsia rate in gestational diabetes mellitus than in the general population. The role the endothelial cell dysfunction plays is considered to be the most reasonable one in the origin of these diseases. The activity of plasma and tissue angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) is believed to be genetically controlled. The available data suggests that increased ACE activity due to deletion (D)/insertion (I) in the 16th intron of ACE gene, which is called ACE gene I/D polymorphism, is associated with preeclampsia and varies depending on the studied population and the geography. We did not find any literature data that estimates the influence of ACE gene I/D polymorphism on PE rate in pregnant women with GDM. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate a relationship between ACE gene I/D polymorphism and preeclampsia development in the case of GDM in the Russian population. The study used the genomic DNA derived by phenol-chloroform extraction method from venous blood samples in 137 pregnant women, including samples of 74 women with GDM accompanied with PE and the blood samples of 63 women with GDM w/o preeclampsia. Genotyping of insertion/deletion in the I/D region (16 intron of АСЕ gene) was conducted by real-time PCR using the TaqMan competing probe technology. The particular features in the frequency array of alleles and genotypes of the ACE gen I/D polymorphism under review, as associated with preeclampsia development risk in pregnant women with GDM, were identified. The acquired data testify to the need to further study of ACE gene I/D region polymorphism association in a large patient sample taking into account the PE and GDM risk factors estimated in the clinical practice

Sirtuins and Their Role in the Aging Eye (Review)

Visual impairment in elderly people is a serious problem that significantly affects the quality of life of millions people around the world. The magnitude of this problem is becoming increasingly apparent as the population ages and the number of older people increases. Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the third leading cause of blindness worldwide and the main cause of vision loss in people over 60 years. It is expected that AMD will affect about 288 million people by 2040. AMD is a multifactorial disease with a progressive course. The arised dystrophic changes in the retina cannot be reversed by any of the known treatment methods. A lot of research and effort has already been invested in identifying various biomarkers for predicting the incidence rate, identifying people at risk, finding out the pathogenetic mechanisms of this disease, and finding effective methods of treatment and prevention.Aging is the basis of pathological changes that occur during AMD. Aging biomarkers are measurable vital signs that qualitatively and quantitatively change with the age of the body. DNA methylation is a molecular mechanism that is a potential biomarker of aging. Sirtuins indirectly participate in this process, regulating the activity of the DNMT1 enzyme. The article discusses current knowledge of the mechanisms underlying the action of sirtuins (Sirtuins / SIRT), with an emphasis on SIRT1. Analysis of the pathophysiological action of sirtuins can affect the prevention and treatment of pathological eye changes associated with AMD. The article provides literature sources containing the results of studies of the effect of SIRT1 as a marker of aging in body tissues. SIRT1 is an attractive candidate for developing therapeutic strategies preventing early eye aging, in particular, age-associated diseases such as AMD The impact on the genetic mechanisms of this disease is a promising direction in treatment