Genetic architecture of voluntary exercise in an advanced intercross line of mice

Exercise is essential for health, yet the amount, duration, and intensity that individuals engage in is strikingly variable, even under prescription. Our focus was to identify the locations and effects of quantitative trait loci (QTL) controlling genetic predisposition for exercise-related traits utilizing a large advanced intercross line (AIL) of mice. This AIL (G4) population originated from a reciprocal cross between mice with genetic propensity for increased voluntary exercise (HR, selectively bred for increased wheel running) and the inbred strain C57BL/6J. After adjusting for family structure, we detected 32 significant and 13 suggestive QTL representing both daily running traits (distance, duration, average speed, and maximum speed) and the mean of these traits on days 5 and 6 (the selection criteria for HR) of a 6-day test conducted at 8 weeks of age, with many colocalizing to similar genomic regions. Additionally, 7 significant and 5 suggestive QTL were observed for the slope and intercept of a linear regression across all 6 days of running, some representing a combination of the daily traits. We also observed 2 significant and 2 suggestive QTL for body mass prior to exercise. These results, using a well-defined animal model, reinforce a genetic basis for the predisposition to engage in voluntary exercise, dissect this predisposition into daily segments across a continuous time period, and present unique QTL that may provide insight into the initiation, continuation, and temporal pattern of voluntary activity in mammals

Crop Updates 2000 - Lupins

This session covers nineteen papers from different authors: 1.1999 Lupin Highlights, Bill O’Neill, LUPIN PRODUCTIVITY IMPROVEMENTS AND INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT LUPIN ANTHRACNOSE 2. Anthracnose – 1999/2000, Geoff Thomas and Mark Sweetingham, Agriculture Western Australia LUPIN BREEDING AND AGRONOMY 3. The genetic control of mildly restricted branching in narrow-leafed lupin (Lupinus augustifolius L), Kedar Adhikari1,3, Nick Galwey1,3 and Miles Dracup2,3 1Plant Sciences, University of Western Australia 2Agriculture Western Australia 3Cooperative Research Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture, University of Western Australia 4. Genotype x time of sowing interaction in lupins – Mingenew, Bob French, Agriculture Western Australia 5. Genotype x time of sowing interaction in lupins – Wongan Hills, Bob French, Agriculture Western Australia 6. Genetic variation in lupin tolerance to Brown Leaf Spot, Bob French, Agriculture Western Australia 7. Yellow lupin management in Western Australia, Bob French, Agriculture Western Australia APHIDS AND VIRUS CONTROL 8. Forecasting aphid and virus risk in lupins, Debbie Thackray, Jenny Hawkes and Roger Jones, Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture and Agriculture Western Australia 9. When should lupin crops be sprayed for aphids to achieve maximum yield response? Françoise Berlandier, Agriculture Western Australia 10. Yield limiting potential of the new, non-necrotic strain of bean yellow mosaic virus in narrow-leafed lupin, Roger Jones, Yvonne Cheng and Lisa Smith, Crop Improvement Institute, Agriculture Western Australia, and Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture LUPIN NUTRITION 11. Increasing the value of a rotation by applying lime, Chris Gazey and Michael O’Connell, Agriculture Western Australia HERBICIDE TOLERANCE AND WEED CONTROL 12. Herbicide damage does not mean lower yield in Lupins, Peter Carlton, Trials Coordinator, Elders Limited 13. Effect of herbicides Tordonä 75D and Lontrelä, used for eradication of Skeleton Weed, on production of Lupins in following seasons, John R. Peirce and Brad J. Rayner, Agriculture Western Australia 14. Herbicide tolerance of lupins, Terry Piper, Agriculture Western Australia 15. Tanjil lupins will tolerate metribuzin under the right conditions, Peter Newman, Agronomist Elders Limited and Cameron Weeks, Mingenew/Irwin Group LUPIN ESTABLISHMENT 16. A new seed pressing system for ryegrass suppression and healthy lupin establishment, Mohammad Amjad and Glen Riethmuller,Agriculture Western Australia 17. Banded surfactant for better lupin yield on non-wetting sand, Dr Paul Blackwell, Agriculture Western Australia DROUGHT TOLERANCE 18. Drought tolerance of lupin genotypes in Western Australia, Jairo A. Palta1,2,, Neil C. Turner1,2, Robert J. French2,3 ,1CSIRO Plant Industry, Centre for Mediterranean Agricultural Research, 2Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture, University of Western Australia, 3Agriculture Western Australia, 19. Stem carbohydrate in lupins: a possible buffer to maintain seed growth under adverse conditions, Bob French1, Tim Setter2, Jairo Palta3 , 1Agriculture Western Australia, and CLIMA, 2Agriculture Western Australia, 3CSIRO, Floreat Park, and CLIM

Challenges facing the Family Farm - proceedings of a seminar

The papers put forward should be valuable reference to all farmers in the wheatbelt. to bridge the gap between experts and farmers. My aim in organising this seminar was an attempt to bridge the gap between experts and farmers

Integrative Analysis of Low- and High-Resolution eQTL

The study of expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) is a powerful way of detecting transcriptional regulators at a genomic scale and for elucidating how natural genetic variation impacts gene expression. Power and genetic resolution are heavily affected by the study population: whereas recombinant inbred (RI) strains yield greater statistical power with low genetic resolution, using diverse inbred or outbred strains improves genetic resolution at the cost of lower power. In order to overcome the limitations of both individual approaches, we combine data from RI strains with genetically more diverse strains and analyze hippocampus eQTL data obtained from mouse RI strains (BXD) and from a panel of diverse inbred strains (Mouse Diversity Panel, MDP). We perform a systematic analysis of the consistency of eQTL independently obtained from these two populations and demonstrate that a significant fraction of eQTL can be replicated. Based on existing knowledge from pathway databases we assess different approaches for using the high-resolution MDP data for fine mapping BXD eQTL. Finally, we apply this framework to an eQTL hotspot on chromosome 1 (Qrr1), which has been implicated in a range of neurological traits. Here we present the first systematic examination of the consistency between eQTL obtained independently from the BXD and MDP populations. Our analysis of fine-mapping approaches is based on ‘real life’ data as opposed to simulated data and it allows us to propose a strategy for using MDP data to fine map BXD eQTL. Application of this framework to Qrr1 reveals that this eQTL hotspot is not caused by just one (or few) ‘master regulators’, but actually by a set of polymorphic genes specific to the central nervous system

Eye Movements Affect Postural Control in Young and Older Females

Visual information is used for postural stabilization in humans. However, little is known about how eye movements prevalent in everyday life interact with the postural control system in older individuals. Therefore, the present study assessed the effects of stationary gaze fixations, smooth pursuits, and saccadic eye movements, with combinations of absent, fixed and oscillating large-field visual backgrounds to generate different forms of retinal flow, on postural control in healthy young and older females. Participants were presented with computer generated visual stimuli, whilst postural sway and gaze fixations were simultaneously assessed with a force platform and eye tracking equipment, respectively. The results showed that fixed backgrounds and stationary gaze fixations attenuated postural sway. In contrast, oscillating backgrounds and smooth pursuits increased postural sway. There were no differences regarding saccades. There were also no differences in postural sway or gaze errors between age groups in any visual condition. The stabilizing effect of the fixed visual stimuli show how retinal flow and extraocular factors guide postural adjustments. The destabilizing effect of oscillating visual backgrounds and smooth pursuits may be related to more challenging conditions for determining body shifts from retinal flow, and more complex extraocular signals, respectively. Because the older participants matched the young group's performance in all conditions, decreases of posture and gaze control during stance may not be a direct consequence of healthy aging. Further research examining extraocular and retinal mechanisms of balance control and the effects of eye movements, during locomotion, is needed to better inform fall prevention interventions

Experiential cartography and the significance of “untranslatable” words

Mainstream psychology can be regarded as largely Western-centric, with its concepts and priorities biased towards Western ways of thinking and understanding. Consequently, the field would benefit from greater cross-cultural awareness and engagement. To that end, this article offers one means of engagement, the study of “untranslatable” words (i.e., terms without an exact equivalent in another language, in our case English). A key function of language is that it offers a “map” that allows us to understand and navigate the world. In that respect, such words point to cultural variation in the maps we use, and even to variation in the actual territory mapped. The paper concludes with suggestions for why and how psychology could benefit from engaging with such words

Artificial cell research as a field that connects chemical, biological and philosophical questions

This review article discusses the interdisciplinary nature and implications of artificial cell research. It starts from two historical theories: Gánti's chemoton model and the autopoiesis theory by Maturana and Varela. They both explain the transition from chemical molecules to biological cells. These models exemplify two different ways in which disciplines of chemistry, biology and philosophy can profit from each other. In the chemoton model, conclusions from one disciplinary approach are relevant for the other disciplines. In contrast, the autopoiesis model itself (rather than its conclusions) is transferred from one discipline to the other. The article closes by underpinning the relevance of artificial cell research for philosophy with reference to the on-going philosophical debates on emergence, biological functions and biocentrism

Seismicity trends and detachment fault structure at 13 degrees N, Mid-Atlantic Ridge

© The Author(s), 2021. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Parnell-Turner, R., Sohn, R. A., Peirce, C., Reston, T. J., MacLeod, C. J., Searle, R. C., & Simao, N. M. Seismicity trends and detachment fault structure at 13 degrees N, Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Geology, 49(3), (2021): 320-324, https://doi.org/10.1130/G48420.1.At slow-spreading ridges, plate separation is commonly partly accommodated by slip on long-lived detachment faults, exposing upper mantle and lower crustal rocks on the seafloor. However, the mechanics of this process, the subsurface structure, and the interaction of these faults remain largely unknown. We report the results of a network of 56 ocean-bottom seismographs (OBSs), deployed in 2016 at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge near 13°N, that provided dense spatial coverage of two adjacent detachment faults and the intervening ridge axis. Although both detachments exhibited high levels of seismicity, they are separated by an ∼8-km-wide aseismic zone, indicating that they are mechanically decoupled. A linear band of seismic activity, possibly indicating magmatism, crosscuts the 13°30′N domed detachment surface, confirming previous evidence for fault abandonment. Farther south, where the 2016 OBS network spatially overlapped with a similar survey done in 2014, significant changes in the patterns of seismicity between these surveys are observed. These changes suggest that oceanic detachments undergo previously unobserved cycles of stress accumulation and release as plate spreading is accommodated.This work was funded by UK Natural Environmental Research Council (NERC) grants NE/J02029X/1, NE/J022551/1, and NE/J021741/1 and by U.S. National Science Foundation grants OCE-1458084 and OCE-1839727. OBSs were provided by NERC UK Ocean-Bottom Instrumentation Facility (Minshull et al., 2005)

Association analysis of the glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) gene in schizophrenia

The glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) gene is located within a region of chromosome 5 (5p14.1-q13.3) that has been highlighted as a potential schizophrenia susceptibility locus by a number of genome scans. GDNF is neurotrophic and is also thought to be involved in differentiation of dopaminergic neurones. The GDNF gene is, therefore, a positional and functional candidate gene for schizophrenia. It is of additional interest because altered GDNF mRNA and protein expression has been reported in response to antipsychotics and the psychotomimetic phencyclidine, and two previous studies, focussed on a single variant, have reported weak support for genetic association between GDNF and schizophrenia in small samples. To test the hypothesis that GDNF is a susceptibility gene for schizophrenia, we performed a detailed association study. We chose 9 SNPs that spanned a genomic region of 40 kb and fully encompassed GDNF. SNPs were genotyped in a sample of 673 schizophrenic patients and 716 matched controls, all of Caucasian origin and all collected from the UK or Ireland. Of the 9 SNPs genotyped 2 showed nominally significant genotypic association at the P< or =0.05 level (rs2973050; OR=1.11; P-value=0.007 and rs2910702; OR=1.14; P-value=0.039). Permutation testing to allow for multiple comparisons of non-independent markers gave a corrected genotypic P-value of 0.052 for rs2973050. We also genotyped an (AGG)(n) repeat located in the 3' UTR of the GDNF but this showed no evidence for association. We conclude that our sample does not provide independent statistically significant evidence for association between GDNF and schizophrenia, nor does it replicate previous specific reports of association