A High Density Consensus Map of Rye (Secale cereale L.) Based on DArT Markers

L.) is an economically important crop, exhibiting unique features such as outstanding resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses and high nutrient use efficiency. This species presents a challenge to geneticists and breeders due to its large genome containing a high proportion of repetitive sequences, self incompatibility, severe inbreeding depression and tissue culture recalcitrance. The genomic resources currently available for rye are underdeveloped in comparison with other crops of similar economic importance. The aim of this study was to create a highly saturated, multilocus linkage map of rye via consensus mapping, based on Diversity Arrays Technology (DArT) markers.Recombinant inbred lines (RILs) from 5 populations (564 in total) were genotyped using DArT markers and subjected to linkage analysis using Join Map 4.0 and Multipoint Consensus 2.2 software. A consensus map was constructed using a total of 9703 segregating markers. The average chromosome map length ranged from 199.9 cM (2R) to 251.4 cM (4R) and the average map density was 1.1 cM. The integrated map comprised 4048 loci with the number of markers per chromosome ranging from 454 for 7R to 805 for 4R. In comparison with previously published studies on rye, this represents an eight-fold increase in the number of loci placed on a consensus map and a more than two-fold increase in the number of genetically mapped DArT markers.Through the careful choice of marker type, mapping populations and the use of software packages implementing powerful algorithms for map order optimization, we produced a valuable resource for rye and triticale genomics and breeding, which provides an excellent starting point for more in-depth studies on rye genome organization

Flooding Noordereiland: A Systematic Approach to alter the Performance of the Urban Block Responding to the Extreme Circumstances of Flooding

Climate is changing. Weather conditions are becoming more extreme; we are expecting fiercer storm surges, more intense seasonal precipitation patterns and, in some calculations, up to three meters relative sea level rise. Especially the south coast of the North Sea will be affected the most. Particularly in the Netherlands, the coastal topography is shallow and densely populated. Rotterdam is one of the lowest urban areas along the south coast and it is here where changes will be most apparent. The city is built in a natural river delta, which has been altered extensively in the last millennia to facilitate a desirable and safe living environment for its inhabitants, initiating in the 14th century by damming the river Rotte. From then on, the settlement around the lock mechanism has evolved into one of the biggest urban areas in the Netherlands. It is here, where floods would cause economic loss through property damage and therefore social disruption to the population. My aim was to investigate into the most vulnerable residential districts of the city: Noordereiland, the sole urban river island of Rotterdam, proved itself as the first neighbourhood to flood in a case of high water levels. Not protected by dikes and lying the lowest above current mean water level, it presents itself as the most urgent district to investigate, seeing it as an ideal urban test laboratory to asses solutions to flooding in an urban environment.Firstly, limiting myself to the extents of the urban block, my project aim was to develop a systematic of how to convert the morphology of it under the extreme scenario of flooding. The system is composed of repetitive added portal structures, which span over the existing buildings. These build the framework for a new vertical circulation system, originating in corner gaps of the blocks. The circulatory system is built up by arcades on the inside and outside facades of the block, affixed to the sides of the portals. The new system converts the individual access routes of the units into a collective one for the whole block. Furthermore, extending over the whole island, these arcades, connecting the individual blocks by bridges, provide a new three-dimensional route across the whole district, providing it with an alternative plane to the flooded ground floor. Additionally, the portal structure provides a new foundation for added structures on top of the existing buildings, which compensate for the lost ground floor level.The project is experimenting in how the urban block could re-structure its morphology to cope with flooding. The purpose of the added structure is not to act as an autonomous piece of architecture, superimposed onto the existing fabric. However, as a supporting system to aid the morphological conversion of the block, and in turn, the whole island

A complex intervention to prevent medication-related hospital admissions: Results of the stepped-wedge cluster-randomized trial KiDSafe in pediatrics

BACKGROUND: Children are often treated off-label and are at a disadvantage in pharmacotherapy. The aim of this study was to implement and evaluate a quality assurance measure (PaedPharm) for pediatric pharmacotherapy whose purpose is to reduce medication-related hospitalizations among children and adolescents. METHODS: PaedPharm consisted of the digital pediatric drug information system PaedAMIS, pediatric pharmaceutical quality circles (PaedZirk), and an adverse drug event (ADE) reporting system (PaedReport). The intervention was implemented in a cluster-randomized trial (DRKS 00013924) in 12 regions, with a pediatric and adolescent medicine clinic in each and a total of 152 surrounding private practitioners, in 6 sequences over 8 quarters. In addition to the proportion of ADE-related hospital admissions (primary endpoint), comprehensive process evaluation included other endpoints such as coverage, user acceptance, and relevance to practice. RESULTS: 41 829 inpatient admissions were recorded, of which 5101 were patients of physicians who participated in our study. 4.1% of admissions were ADE-related under control conditions, and 3.1% under intervention conditions (95% CI: [2.3; 5.9] and [1.8; 4.5], respectively). A model-based comparison yielded an intervention effect of 0.73 (population-based odds ratio; [0.39; 1.37]; p = 0.33). PaedAMIS achieved moderate user acceptance and PaedZirk achieved high user acceptance. CONCLUSION: The introduction of PaedPharm was associated with a decrease in medication-related hospitalizations that did not reach statistical significance. The process evaluation revealed broad acceptance of the intervention in outpatient pediatrics and adolescent medicine

Silicification of Peptide-Coated Silver Nanoparticles-A Biomimetic Soft Chemistry Approach toward Chiral Hybrid Core-Shell Materials

Silica and silver nanoparticles are relevant materials for new applications in optics, medicine, and analytical chemistry. We have previously reported the synthesis of pH responsive, peptide-templated, chiral silver nanoparticles. The current report shows that peptide-stabilized nanoparticles can easily be coated with a silica shell by exploiting the ability of the peptide coating to hydrolyze silica precursors such as TEOS or TMOS. The resulting silica layer protects the nanoparticles from chemical etching, allows their inclusion in other materials, and renders them biocompatible. Using electron and atomic force microscopy, we show that the silica shell thickness and the particle aggregation can be controlled simply by the reaction time. Small-angle X ray scattering confirms the Ag/peptide@silica core-shell structure. UV-vis and circular dichroism spectroscopy prove the conservation of the silver nanoparticle chirality upon silicification. Biological tests show that the biocompatibility in simple bacterial systems is significantly improved once a silica layer is deposited on the silver particles