Use of SSR and retrotransposon-based markers to interpret the population structure of native grapevines from Southern Italy

Native grapevines are the quintessential ele- ments of Southern Italy winemaking, and genomic char- acterization plays a role of primary importance for preservation and sustainable use of these unexploited genetic resources. Among the various molecular techniques available, SSR and retrotransposons-based markers result to be the most valuable for cultivars and biotypes distinc- tiveness. A total of 62 accessions including 38 local grape cultivars were analyzed with 30 SSR, four REMAP and one IRAP markers to assess their genetic diversity and obtain a complete genomic profiling. The use of VrZAG79, VrZAG112, VVS2, VVMD25 and VVMD5 combined with retrotransposon-based markers proved to be the most dis- criminating and polymorphic markers for the rapid and unambiguous identification of minority grapevines from Campania region, which is considered one of the most appreciated Italian districts for wine production. Results revealed 58 SSR marker-specific alleles, 22 genotype- specific SSR alleles, and four REMAP and IRAP private bands. Cases of synonymy and homonymy were discov- ered. In conclusion, we provided evidences that the inte- grating SSR and retrotransposon-based markers is an effective strategy to assess the genetic diversity of autochthonous grapes, allowing their easy identification

Heterogeneity of alpha-cardiac myosin heavy chains in a small marsupial, Antechinus flavipes, and the effect of hypothyroidism on its ventricular myosins

The effect of drug-induced hypothyroidism on ventricular myosin gene expression was explored in a small marsupial, Antechinus flavipes. Pyrophosphate gel electrophoresis, SDS-PAGE and western blotting were used to analyse changes in native myosin isoforms and myosin heavy chains (MyHCs) in response to hypothyroidism. In some animals, five instead of the normal three native myosin components were found: V1a, V1b, V1c, V2 and V3, in order of decreasing mobility. In western blots, V1a, V1b, and V1c reacted with anti-a-MyHC antibody, but not with anti-B-MyHC, whereas V2 and V3 reacted with anti-B-MyHC antibody. SDS-PAGE of the unusual ventricular myosins revealed three MyHC isoforms, two of which bound anti-a-MyHC antibody while the third bound anti-B-MyHC antibody. We conclude that V1a, V1b, V1c are triplets arising from the dimerization of two distinct a-MyHC isoforms. Hypothyroidism, veriWed by metabolic studies, decreased a-MyHC content significantly (t-test, P < 0.001) from 91.6 5.9% (SEM, n = 4) in control animals to 67.2 5.7% (SEM, n = 4) in hypothyroid animals, with a concomitant increase in B-MyHC content. We conclude that in adult marsupials, ventricular myosins are also responsive to changes in the thyroid state as found in eutherians, and suggest that evolution of the molecular mechanisms underlying this thyroid responsiveness predate the divergence of marsupials and eutherians