Interpreting genotype-by-environment interaction for biomass production in hybrid poplars under short-rotation coppice in Mediterranean environments

Understanding genotype × environment interaction (GEI) is crucial to optimize the deployment of clonal material to field conditions in short‐rotation coppice poplar plantations. Hybrid poplars are grown for biomass production under a wide range of climatic and edaphic conditions, but their adaptive performance in Mediterranean areas remains poorly characterized. In this work, site regression (SREG) and factorial regression mixed models are combined to gain insight into the nature and causes underlying GEI for biomass production of hybrid poplar clones. SREG addresses the issue of clonal recommendation in multi‐environment trials through a biplot representation that visually identifies superior genotypes. Factorial regression, alternatively, involves a description of clonal reaction to the environment in terms of physical variables that directly affect productivity. Initially, SREG aided in identifying cross‐over interactions that often involved hybrids of different taxonomic background. Factorial regression then selected latitude, mean temperature of the vegetative period (MTVP) and soil sand content as main site factors responsible for differential clonal adaptation. Genotypic responses depended strongly on taxonomic background: P. deltoides Bartr. ex Marsh. × P. nigra L. clones showed an overall positive sensitivity to increased MTVP and negative sensitivity to increased sand content, whereas the opposite occurred for P. trichocarpa Torr. & Gray × P. deltoides clones; the three‐cross hybrid [(P. deltoides × P. trichocarpa) × P. nigra] often displayed an intermediate performance. This information can contribute toward the identification and biological understanding of adaptive characteristics relevant for poplar breeding in Mediterranean conditions and facilitate clonal recommendation at eco‐regional level.This research was funded by MINECO (Spain) throughout the project RTA2008-00025-C02-01 and RTA2011-00006-00-00. We also acknowledge the collaboration of project AGL2009-11006. We would like to thank the public company SOMACYL for hosting one of the experimental plots. We are also grateful to Juan Pablo de la Iglesia and Ana Parras for their technical support throughout the experiment

Selection of Bread Wheat for Low Grain Cadmium Concentration at the Seedling Stage Using Hydroponics versus Molecular Markers

The excessive accumulation of Cd in harvested crops grown on high-Cd soils has increased public concerns for food safety. Due to the high consumption of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) per capita, high concentrations of Cd in wheat grain can significantly affect human health. Breeding is a promising way to reduce grain Cd concentration. However, a lack of efficient selection methods impedes breeding for low grain Cd concentration in bread wheat. In this study, a recombinant inbred population segregating for grain Cd concentration was used to assess the efficacy of two selection methods for decreasing grain Cd concentration in bread wheat: a hydroponic selection method used shoot Cd concentration in 2-wk-old seedlings growing in Cd-containing medium, and a marker-based selection method using markers linked to heavy metal transporting P1B-ATPase 3 (HMA3), the gene underlying Cdu1. Both methods effectively selected low-Cd lines. The HMA3-linked marker-based selection was superior to hydroponic selection in terms of both simplicity and response to selection. The HMA3-linked markers explained 20% of the phenotypic variation in grain Cd concentration with an additive effect of 0.014 mg kg−1. The hydroponic selection and marker-based selection may target two different and independent processes controlling grain Cd accumulation, and they had no effect on grain Zn and Fe concentrations. The ALMT1-UPS4 marker associated with Al tolerance was not associated with grain Cd concentration but increased grain Zn and Fe concentrations. The 193-bp allele of the Rht8-associated marker, GWM261, was associated with increased grain Cd concentration

Mountain lions prey selectively on prion-infected mule deer

The possibility that predators choose prey selectively based on age or condition has been suggested but rarely tested. We examined whether mountain lions (Puma concolor) selectively prey upon mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) infected with chronic wasting disease, a prion disease. We located kill sites of mountain lions in the northern Front Range of Colorado, USA, and compared disease prevalence among lion-killed adult (≥2 years old) deer with prevalence among sympatric deer taken by hunters in the vicinity of kill sites. Hunter-killed female deer were less likely to be infected than males (odds ratios (OR) = 0.2, 95% confidence intervals (CI) = 0.1–0.6; p = 0.015). However, both female (OR = 8.5, 95% CI = 2.3–30.9) and male deer (OR = 3.2, 95% CI = 1–10) killed by a mountain lion were more likely to be infected than same-sex deer killed in the vicinity by a hunter (p < 0.001), suggesting that mountain lions in this area actively selected prion-infected individuals when targeting adult mule deer as prey items

Energy dependence of exclusive J/ψJ/\psi photoproduction off protons in ultra-peripheral p-Pb collisions at sNN\sqrt{s_{\rm{NN}}} = 5.02 TeV

The ALICE Collaboration has measured the energy dependence of exclusive photoproduction of $J/\psi$ vector mesons off proton targets in ultra-peripheral p-Pb collisions at a centre-of-mass energy per nucleon pair $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 5.02$ TeV. The e$^+$e$^-$ and $\mu^+\mu^-$ decay channels are used to measure the cross section as a function of the rapidity of the $J/\psi$ in the range $-2.5 < y < 2.7$, corresponding to an energy in the $\gamma$p centre-of-mass in the interval $40 < W_{\gamma\mathrm{p}}<550$ GeV. The measurements, which are consistent with a power law dependence of the exclusive $J/\psi$ photoproduction cross section, are compared to previous results from HERA and the LHC and to several theoretical models. They are found to be compatible with previous measurements.Comment: 25 pages, 3 captioned figures, 3 tables, authors from page 19, published version, figures at http://alice-publications.web.cern.ch/node/455

An Empirical Model for Estimating Annual Consumption by Freshwater Fish Populations

Population consumption is an important process linking predator populations to their prey resources. Simple tools are needed to enable fisheries managers to estimate population consumption. We assembled 74 individual estimates of annual consumption by freshwater fish populations and their mean annual population size, 41 of which also included estimates of mean annual biomass. The data set included 14 freshwater fish species from 10 different bodies of water. From this data set we developed two simple linear regression models predicting annual population consumption. Log-transformed population size explained 94% of the variation in log-transformed annual population consumption. Log-transformed biomass explained 98% of the variation in log-transformed annual population consumption. We quantified the accuracy of our regressions and three alternative consumption models as the mean percent difference from observed (bioenergetics-derived) estimates in a test data set. Predictions from our population-size regression matched observed consumption estimates poorly (mean percent difference = 222%). Predictions from our biomass regression matched observed consumption reasonably well (mean percent difference = 24%). The biomass regression was superior to an alternative model, similar in complexity, and comparable to two alternative models that were more complex and difficult to apply. Our biomass regression model, log10(consumption) = 0.5442 + 0.9962 · log10(biomass), will be a useful tool for fishery managers, enabling them to make reasonably accurate annual population consumption predictions from mean annual biomass estimates

IFNβ Protects Neurons from Damage in a Murine Model of HIV-1 Associated Brain Injury.

Infection with human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) causes brain injury. Type I interferons (IFNα/β) are critical mediators of any anti-viral immune response and IFNβ has been implicated in the temporary control of lentiviral infection in the brain. Here we show that transgenic mice expressing HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein 120 in their central nervous system (HIVgp120tg) mount a transient IFNβ response and provide evidence that IFNβ confers neuronal protection against HIVgp120 toxicity. In cerebrocortical cell cultures, neuroprotection by IFNβ against gp120 toxicity is dependent on IFNα receptor 1 (IFNAR1) and the β-chemokine CCL4, as IFNAR1 deficiency and neutralizing antibodies against CCL4, respectively, abolish the neuroprotective effects. We find in vivo that IFNβ mRNA is significantly increased in HIVgp120tg brains at 1.5, but not 3 or 6 months of age. However, a four-week intranasal IFNβ treatment of HIVgp120tg mice starting at 3.5 months of age increases expression of CCL4 and concomitantly protects neuronal dendrites and pre-synaptic terminals in cortex and hippocampus from gp120-induced damage. Moreover, in vivo and in vitro data suggests astrocytes are a major source of IFNβ-induced CCL4. Altogether, our results suggest exogenous IFNβ as a neuroprotective factor that has potential to ameliorate in vivo HIVgp120-induced brain injury

Measurement of the production of charm jets tagged with D0^{0} mesons in pp collisions at s\sqrt{s}= 7 TeV

The production of charm jets in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}=7$ TeV was measured with the ALICE detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The measurement is based on a data sample corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of $6.23$ ${\rm nb}^{-1}$, collected using a minimum-bias trigger. Charm jets are identified by the presence of a D$^0$ meson among their constituents. The D$^0$ mesons are reconstructed from their hadronic decay D$^0\rightarrow$K$^{-}\pi^{+}$. The D$^0$-meson tagged jets are reconstructed using tracks of charged particles (track-based jets) with the anti-$k_{\mathrm{T}}$ algorithm in the jet transverse momentum range $5<p_{\rm{T,jet}}^{\mathrm{ch}}<30$ ${\rm GeV/}c$ and pseudorapidity $|\eta_{\rm jet}|<0.5$. The fraction of charged jets containing a D$^0$-meson increases with $p_{\rm{T,jet}}^{\rm{ch}}$ from $0.042 \pm 0.004\, \mathrm{(stat)} \pm 0.006\, \mathrm{(syst)}$ to $0.080 \pm 0.009\, \rm{(stat)} \pm 0.008\, \rm{(syst)}$. The distribution of D$^0$-meson tagged jets as a function of the jet momentum fraction carried by the D$^0$ meson in the direction of the jet axis ($z_{||}^{\mathrm{ch}}$) is reported for two ranges of jet transverse momenta, $5<p_{\rm{T,jet}}^{\rm{ch}}<15$ ${\rm GeV/}c$ and $15<p_{\rm{T,jet}}^{\rm{ch}}<30$ ${\rm GeV/}c$ in the intervals $0.2<z_{||}^{\rm{ch}}<1.0$ and $0.4<z_{||}^{\rm{ch}}<1.0$, respectively. The data are compared with results from Monte Carlo event generators (PYTHIA 6, PYTHIA 8 and Herwig 7) and with a Next-to-Leading-Order perturbative Quantum Chromodynamics calculation, obtained with the POWHEG method and interfaced with PYTHIA 6 for the generation of the parton shower, fragmentation, hadronisation and underlying event.Comment: 29 pages, 8 captioned figures, 3 tables, authors from page 24, published version, figures at http://alice-publications.web.cern.ch/node/525

Population characteristics of Shovelnose Sturgeon during low- and high-water conditions in the lower Platte River, Nebraska

Cycles of low- and high-water periods (i.e., years) in river systems are natural occurrences, but understanding how cyclical climatological patterns affect fishes, especially long-lived species, is unclear. We assessed Shovelnose Sturgeon population dynamics between a period of low- (2001-2004) and high- (2009-2012) water years in the lower Platte River, Nebraska. Low-flow periods in the lower Platte River can cause disconnection(s) between upstream and downstream reaches resulting in isolated pools and elevated water temperatures leading to stressful situations for aquatic life and possible mortality. Our data show no measurable differences between key population indices between flow condition periods which is consistent with current paradigms for long-lived fish species. Shovelnose Sturgeon relative weights were generally \u3e 80 during both low- and high-water periods and the size structure did not differ between the two periods. Shovelnose Sturgeon abundances, however, were greater during high-water conditions compared to low-water conditions (Kruskal-Wallis: χ2 = 6.15, d.f. = 1, P = 0.01). Shovelnose Sturgeon may have migrated to more suitable habitats during low-water periods to seek refuge allowing these individuals to return during more suitable conditions. Shovelnose Sturgeon and other riverine fish have evolved in a variable environment and have been able to endure relatively minor anthropogenic changes within the lower Platte River. Rivers like the lower Platte River that have retained much of their original physical features and flow regimes are likely key components for the resistance and resilience of riverine species. However, as alterations to landscapes continue and uncertainty exists surrounding future climate predictions, it is unknown how these riverine species will be able to adapt to future changes. The reduction in anthropogenic changes that disrupt flow regimes and increasing connectivity among river systems could provide more fish refuge during stressful conditions helping to protect these riverine species