Sequencing technologies and genome sequencing

The high-throughput - next generation sequencing (HT-NGS) technologies are currently the hottest topic in the field of human and animals genomics researches, which can produce over 100 times more data compared to the most sophisticated capillary sequencers based on the Sanger method. With the ongoing developments of high throughput sequencing machines and advancement of modern bioinformatics tools at unprecedented pace, the target goal of sequencing individual genomes of living organism at a cost of $1,000 each is seemed to be realistically feasible in the near future. In the relatively short time frame since 2005, the HT-NGS technologies are revolutionizing the human and animal genome researches by analysis of chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled to DNA microarray (ChIP-chip) or sequencing (ChIP-seq), RNA sequencing (RNA-seq), whole genome genotyping, genome wide structural variation, de novo assembling and re-assembling of genome, mutation detection and carrier screening, detection of inherited disorders and complex human diseases, DNA library preparation, paired ends and genomic captures, sequencing of mitochondrial genome and personal genomics. In this review, we addressed the important features of HT-NGS like, first generation DNA sequencers, birth of HT-NGS, second generation HT-NGS platforms, third generation HT-NGS platforms: including single molecule Heliscope™, SMRT™ and RNAP sequencers, Nanopore, Archon Genomics X PRIZE foundation, comparison of second and third HT-NGS platforms, applications, advances and future perspectives of sequencing technologies on human and animal genome research

Orbital forcing of Cretaceous river discharge in tropical Africa and ocean response

The tropics have been suggested as the drivers of global ocean and atmosphere circulation and biogeochemical cycling during the extreme warmth of the Cretaceous period1, 2; but the links between orbital forcing, freshwater runoff and the biogeochemistry of continental margins in extreme greenhouse conditions are not fully understood. Here we present Cretaceous records of geochemical tracers for freshwater runoff obtained from a sediment core off the Ivory Coast that indicate that alternating periods of arid and humid African climate were driven by orbital precession. Our simulations of the precession-driven patterns of river discharge with a global climate model suggest that ocean anoxia and black shale sedimentation were directly caused by high river discharge, and occurred specifically when the northern equinox coincided with perihelion (the minimum distance between the Sun and the Earth). We conclude that, in a warm climate, the oceans off tropical continental margins respond rapidly and sensitively to even modest changes in river discharge

Positive Emotions as a Potential Mediator of a Multi-Component Positive Psychology Intervention Aimed at Increasing Mental Well-Being and Resilience

We examined mediators of a multi-component positive psychology intervention for healthy employees. We analyzed data from a randomized controlled trial involving 158 participants who were assigned to a six-session intervention program or a wait-list control group. In total, 144 participants completed baseline and post-test assessment. The mediating effects of positive emotions and psychological flexibility on treatment outcomes mental well-being and resilience at post-test assessment were examined. We also examined the influence of a range of moderators on the relationship between the intervention and the outcomes. Mediator analyses showed that these improvements possibly and partially work through increasing positive emotions. Psychological flexibility could not be considered a mediator. However, due to inability to infer causality, definite conclusions on the mediating effect of positive emotions cannot be drawn. In relation to mental well-being, a significant moderating effect for ethnicity was found in the intervention group

Governing the Metropolis: Towards Kinder, Gentler Democracies

Based on a review of experiences in Lyons, Stuttgart and London, this article reflects upon the implications of metropolitanisation for democracy. It examines the institutional set-up of metropolitan authorities, the election procedures of representatives as well as dynamics of decision-making within them. In spite of contrasted institutional settings, political logics and territorial interest representation are present in policy-making at the metropolitan level to a strikingly similar extent. This results in power-sharing strategies among the major political forces and a move away from majoritarian towards more consensual patterns of decision-making