Cereal Domestication and Evolution of Branching: Evidence for Soft Selection in the Tb1 Orthologue of Pearl Millet (Pennisetum glaucum [L.] R. Br.)

BACKGROUND: During the Neolithic revolution, early farmers altered plant development to domesticate crops. Similar traits were often selected independently in different wild species; yet the genetic basis of this parallel phenotypic evolution remains elusive. Plant architecture ranks among these target traits composing the domestication syndrome. We focused on the reduction of branching which occurred in several cereals, an adaptation known to rely on the major gene Teosinte-branched1 (Tb1) in maize. We investigate the role of the Tb1 orthologue (Pgtb1) in the domestication of pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum), an African outcrossing cereal. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Gene cloning, expression profiling, QTL mapping and molecular evolution analysis were combined in a comparative approach between pearl millet and maize. Our results in pearl millet support a role for PgTb1 in domestication despite important differences in the genetic basis of branching adaptation in that species compared to maize (e.g. weaker effects of PgTb1). Genetic maps suggest this pattern to be consistent in other cereals with reduced branching (e.g. sorghum, foxtail millet). Moreover, although the adaptive sites underlying domestication were not formerly identified, signatures of selection pointed to putative regulatory regions upstream of both Tb1 orthologues in maize and pearl millet. However, the signature of human selection in the pearl millet Tb1 is much weaker in pearl millet than in maize. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our results suggest that some level of parallel evolution involved at least regions directly upstream of Tb1 for the domestication of pearl millet and maize. This was unanticipated given the multigenic basis of domestication traits and the divergence of wild progenitor species for over 30 million years prior to human selection. We also hypothesized that regular introgression of domestic pearl millet phenotypes by genes from the wild gene pool could explain why the selective sweep in pearl millet is softer than in maize

Track A Basic Science

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138319/1/jia218438.pd

Anomalies of coronary artery origin: About two cases

Anomalies of coronary artery origin are congenital malformations characterized by the abnormal birth of a coronary artery from the controlateral coronary aortic sinus (birth of the left coronary artery from the right sinus or birth of the right coronary artery from the left sinus). The artery concerned has an abnormal initial path between the aorta and the pulmonary artery; this segment is most often intramural, in the aortic wall. They are rare with a prevalence (0.1% to 0.3% of the population). They pose a high risk of sudden stress death related to exercise myocardial ischemia. The most common mode of discovery is aborted sudden death, but sometimes fortuitously. The contribution of multi-round CT is described for the positive diagnosis of these anatomical variations, sometimes delicate in coronary angiography, but also for the distinction between “benign” and “malignant” forms, potentially responsible for myocardial ischemia. Treatment is usually surgical in symptomatic forms. We report the cases of two patients with coronary connection abnormalities discovered in adulthood

Hemoptysis after subclavian vein puncture for pacemaker implantation: A case report

Background: Subclavian venous access for pacemaker lead insertion is a common procedure and is normally considered safe in the hands of an expert. However, subclavian venepuncture is not without complications, starting from mild subcutaneous hematoma to pneumothorax. We here present a case of hemoptysis occurring after difficult subclavian vein puncture, which subsequently improved on conservative management only. Case Summary: A 65-year-old gentleman, post aortic valve replacement had persistent high-grade AV block and was taken up for a dual chamber pacemaker implantation. Immediately following venous access, he had a bout of hemoptysis, which recovered on its own. Post procedure chest x-ray was suggestive of alveolar hemorrhage which cleared gradually in next three-four days. Discussion: Post subclavian venepuncture hemoptysis is known; but it is a rare complication, arising either because of lung parenchyma injury or arterial injury. This is mostly benign and improves on conservative management only; however rarely it may be massive and life threatening where transcatheter arterial embolization may be required

Downstream signaling pathways in mouse adipose tissues following acute in vivo administration of fibroblast growth factor 21.

FGF21 is a novel secreted protein with robust anti-diabetic, anti-obesity, and anti-atherogenic activities in preclinical species. In the current study, we investigated the signal transduction pathways downstream of FGF21 following acute administration of the growth factor to mice. Focusing on adipose tissues, we identified FGF21-mediated downstream signaling events and target engagement biomarkers. Specifically, RNA profiling of adipose tissues and phosphoproteomic profiling of adipocytes, following FGF21 treatment revealed several specific changes in gene expression and post-translational modifications, specifically phosphorylation, in several relevant proteins. Affymetrix microarray analysis of white adipose tissues isolated from both C57BL/6 (fed either regular chow or HFD) and db/db mice identified over 150 robust potential RNA transcripts and over 50 potential secreted proteins that were changed greater than 1.5 fold by FGF21 acutely. Phosphoprofiling analysis identified over 130 phosphoproteins that were modulated greater than 1.5 fold by FGF21 in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Bioinformatic analysis of the combined gene and phosphoprotein profiling data identified a number of known metabolic pathways such as glucose uptake, insulin receptor signaling, Erk/Mapk signaling cascades, and lipid metabolism. Moreover, a number of novel events with hitherto unknown links to FGF21 signaling were observed at both the transcription and protein phosphorylation levels following treatment. We conclude that such a combined "omics" approach can be used not only to identify robust biomarkers for novel therapeutics but can also enhance our understanding of downstream signaling pathways; in the example presented here, novel FGF21-mediated signaling events in adipose tissue have been revealed that warrant further investigation