A WIDE DISTRIBUTION OF A NEW VRN-B1c ALLELE OF WHEAT TRITICUM AESTIVUM L. IN RUSSIA, UKRAINE AND ADJACENT REGIONS: A LINK WITH THE HEADING TIME AND ADAPTIVE POTENTIAL

The adaptation of common wheat (T. aestivum L.) to diverse environmental conditions is greatly under the control of genes involved in determination of vernalization response (Vrn-1 genes). It was found that the variation in common wheat heading time is affected not only by combination of Vrn-1 homoeoalleles but also by multiple alleles at a separate Vrn-1 locus. Previously, we described the Vrn-B1c allele from T.aestivum cv. 'Saratovskaya 29' and found significant differences in the structure of the first (1st) intron of this allele when compared to another highly abundant Vrn-B1a allele, specifically, the deletion of 0.8 kb coupled with the duplication of 0.4 kb. We suggested that the changes in the intron 1 of Vrn-B1c allele caused earlier ear emergence in the near-isogenic line and cultivars, carrying this allele. In this study we investigate the distribution of the Vrn-B1c allele in a wide set of spring wheat cultivars from Russia, Ukraine and adjacent regions. The analysis revealed that 40% of Russian and 53% of Ukranian spring wheat cultivars contain the Vrn-B1c allele. The high distribution of the Vrn-B1c allele can be explained by a frequent using of 'Saratovskaya 29' in the breeding process inside the studied area. From the other hand, the predominance of the Vrn-B1c allele among cultivars cultivated in West Siberia and Kazakhstan may be due to the selective advantage of this allele for the region where there is a high risk of early fall frosts

Physiological, biochemical and genetic bases of amaranth (Amaranthus L.) breeding for food and feed purposes (a review)

The review gives an insight into amaranth, a very promising crop for the whole world. This crop has a long history dating back to the days of the Aztecs and Incas, for whom it was one of the most important crops, along with corn. However, unlike the latter, amaranth lost its nutritional value after being introduced into Europe. Only in the 20th century, largely thanks to Nikolai Vavilov, amaranth attracted great interest as a food and feed crop. Amaranth is a plant unique in its nutritional properties. It is characterized by a high content of protein saturated with essential amino acids, especially lysine, and a large number of bioactive compounds, such as vitamin C, amaranthine, rutin, carotenoids, etc. Of particular value is grain oil saturated with various lipid compounds: squalene, vitamin E, phytosterols, and fatty acids. These lipid compounds have a number of important properties from the point of view of functional nutrition: as natural antioxidants they bind free radicals, normalize lipid metabolism, and help to decrease blood cholesterol levels. The review focuses on genes that determine the content of the main, valuable biochemical components: squalene, vitamin C, and lysine. The genetic pathways that control the biosynthesis of these components have been studied in detail in various model plant objects. The presence of the complete genomic sequence of Amaranthus hypochondriacus L. makes it possible to identify orthologs of key biosynthetic genes. At the moment, only few genes in amaranth have been identified, including the squalene synthase (SQS) gene, the VTC2 ascorbic acid synthesis gene, and the key genes for lysine synthesis – AK and DHDPS. The article discusses the prospects and trends of marker-assisted selection of this crop as well as the difficulties of its systematization and genotyping, which have to be overcome to successfully solve plant breeding problems

Prospects for marker-associated selection in tomato <i>Solanum lycopersicum</i> L.

The review gives a brief description of tomato, one of the main objects of olericulture for Siberia. The data on the main directions in the breeding of this culture, such as resistance to various pathogens, the nutritional properties of fruits, the timing of their maturation and storage are generalized. A separate chapter is devoted to the use of various types of DNA markers for constructing detailed genetic maps of the specified object, which, along with full-genome sequencing data, can be used to screen for genes responsible for breeding traits. Most of these traits, especially specific resistance to one or another pathogen, were transferred to the cultivated tomato by crossing with wild species, therefore, special attention was paid in the article to identifying and marking resistance genes to a variety of viral, fungal and bacterial pathogens occurring in Western Siberia and adjacent areas. Another important aspect for breeding is the nutrient content of tomato fruits, including carotenoids, vitamins, sugars, organic acids, etc. Recently, due to modern technologies of sequencing, SNP-genotyping, the development of new bioinformatic approaches, it has become possible to establish genetic cascades determining the biochemical composition of tomato fruits, to identify key genes that can be used in the future for marker-associated selection of nutritional value. And, finally, genetic works devoted to the problem of the optimal dates of fruit ripening in certain climatic conditions and their prolonged storage without loss of quality are discussed

Застосування алгоритму рекурсії для визначення натягу нитки та її комп'ютерного впровадження

The correctness of the assumptions made when building the model of interaction of the thread with the guide taking into account its physical and mechanical and structural characteristics and the possibility of using recursion in sequential determination of tension in areas of process equipment from the entrance area to the area of fabric and knitwear. In particular, it is found that the thread tension increases from zone to zone and reaches its maximum before the zone of formation. It is shown that excessive tension leads to disruption of the technological process and to thread breakage. Thus, there is reason to argue about the possibility, even at the initial stage of designing the technological process of fabric and knitwear, aimed at adjusting the tension of the thread in front of the area of fabric and knitwear by adjusting the geometric parameters and design of the thread feed system on process equipment and specific guides, which will minimize the value of the thread tension.Підтверджена коректність зроблених допущень при побудові моделі взаємодії нитки з направляючою з урахуванням її фізико-механічних і структурних характеристик і можливість використання рекурсії при послідовному визначенні натягу по зонах технологічного устаткування від зони входу до зони формування тканини і трикотажу. Зокрема встановлено, що натяг нитки зростає від зони до зони і досягає свого максимуму перед зоною формування. Показано, що надмірне значення натягу приводить до порушення технологічного процесу і до обриву нитки. Таким чином, є підстави стверджувати про можливість, ще на початковій стадії проектування технологічного процесу виготовлення тканини і трикотажу, спрямованого регулювання натягу нитки перед зоною формування тканини і трикотажу за рахунок коригування геометричних параметрів і конструкції як системи подачі нитки на технологічному устаткуванні, так і конкретних направляючих, що дозволить мінімізувати значення натягу нитки

Plant genome modification: from induced mutagenesis to genome editing

The snowballing growth of scientific data obtained using modern techniques of genome editing (GE) calls for their critical evaluation and comparison against previously applied methods such as induced mutagenesis, which was a leading method of genome modification for many decades of the past century, and its application has resulted in a huge diversity of cultivars. However, this method was relatively long and included a number of stages from inducing multiple mutations using different mutagenic factors to crossing and selecting the most valuable cultivars for several generations. A new technology of genetic engineering and transgenesis enabled us to radically reduce the time required to obtain a new genetically-modified cultivar to one generation and make the modification process more effective and targeted. The main drawback of this approach was that an introduced transgene might uncontrollably affect the other genes of a recipient plant, which led to the limitations imposed on transgenesis application in many countries. These limitations have been effectively surmounted thanks to the development of GE techniques allowing for a precise modification within a single gene that in many characteristics make it similar to a natural allele (especially when it comes to ribonucleoprotein complexes), which has paved the way for wide application of GE in routine breeding. The paper reviews the main stages of GE development in its application in plants. It provides short descriptions of different GE techniques, including those using protein editors such as zinc-finger and transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALEN), and the CRISPR/Cas9 technology. It lists a number of achievements in using GE to produce new cultivars of higher yield that are resistant to unfavorable factors and have good nutritional properties. The review also considers the de novo domestication approach, which allows for faster obtaining of new cultivars from natural varieties. In the conclusion, the future ways of GE development are discussed

ОПРЕДЕЛЕНИЕ ТЕРМОДИНАМИЧЕСКИХ ВЕЛИЧИН БИНАРНЫХ МЕТАЛЛИЧЕСКИХ СИСТЕМ С НИЗКОЙ РАСТВОРИМОСТЬЮ КОМПОНЕНТОВ В ТВЕРДОЙ α-ФАЗЕ

Предложен метод определения термодинамических величин: парциальной энтальпии растворения , коэффициентов активности  и активностей  второго компонента В в двойных металлических системах с низкой растворимостью в твердой α-фазе. Алгоритм определения выше указанных величин заключается в последовательности предварительных расчетов предельных и равновесных коэффициентов распределения и построения линий насыщенного твердого раствора для таких систем с низкой растворимостью второго компонента. Предварительно полученные данные являются необходимыми для определения парциальной энтальпии растворения  и других величин в исследуемых системах. Такая последовательность расчетов является предлагаемым методом определения термодинамических параметров растворения.  Определены значения и температурные зависимости энтальпии растворения малорастворимого компонента для таких систем как Cd-Na, Cd-Tl, Te-Ga, Te-As, Te-Cu, Zn-Sn, а также коэффициенты активности  и активности  второго компонента в насыщенной α-фазе в этих системах. Анализ полученных результатов по энтальпии растворения показывает, что наблюдается изменение парциальной энтальпии с изменением температуры растворения. При снижении температуры от точки плавления чистого основного компонента до температуры эвтектики наблюдается увеличение парциальных энтальпий растворения второго компонента для исследованных систем.  Система Te-Ga характеризуется отрицательным значением . Отрицательное значение  указывает на экзотермический процесс растворения галлия в теллуре, в отличие от других систем, в которых растворение второго компонента происходит с поглощением тепла. Анализируя значения энтальпии растворения в исследуемых системах, необходимо отметить, что низким значением   15000 Дж/моль. Системы со значением   > 15000 Дж/моль выявляют тенденцию к возникновению в них ретроградной растворимости. Выявлено различие в значениях  более, чем на два порядка для различных систем

First search for double-beta decay of 184Os and 192Os

A search for double-beta decay of osmium has been realized for the first time with the help of an ultra-low background HPGe gamma detector at the underground Gran Sasso National Laboratories of the INFN (Italy). After 2741 h of data taking with a 173 g ultra-pure osmium sample limits on double-beta processes in 184Os have been established at the level of T_{1/2} about 10^{14}-10^{17} yr. Possible resonant double-electron captures in 184Os were searched for with a sensitivity T_{1/2} about 10^{16} yr. A half-life limit T_{1/2} > 5.3 10^{19} yr was set for the double-beta decay of 192Os to the first excited level of 192Pt. The radiopurity of the osmium sample has been investigated and radionuclides 137Cs, 185Os and 207Bi were detected in the sample, while activities of 40K, 60Co, 226Ra and 232Th were limited at the mBq/kg level.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, 2 table

Search for 2\beta\ decays of 96Ru and 104Ru by ultra-low background HPGe gamma spectrometry at LNGS: final results

An experiment to search for double beta decay processes in 96Ru and 104Ru, which are accompanied by gamma rays, has been realized in the underground Gran Sasso National Laboratories of the I.N.F.N. (Italy). Ruthenium samples with masses of about (0.5-0.7) kg were measured with the help of ultra-low background high purity Ge gamma ray spectrometry. After 2162 h of data taking the samples were deeply purified to reduce the internal contamination of 40K. The last part of the data has been accumulated over 5479 h. New improved half life limits on 2\beta+/\epsilon \beta+/2\epsilon\ processes in 96Ru have been established on the level of 10^{20} yr, in particular for decays to the ground state of 96Mo: T1/2(2\nu 2\beta+) > 1.4 10^{20} yr, T1/2(2\nu \epsilon\beta+) > 8.0 10^{19} yr and T1/2(0\nu 2K) > 1.0 10^{21} yr (all limits are at 90% C.L.). The resonant neutrinoless double electron captures to the 2700.2 keV and 2712.7 keV excited states of 96Mo are restricted as: T1/2(0\nu KL) > 2.0 10^{20} yr and T1/2(0\nu 2L) > 3.6 10^{20} yr, respectively. Various two neutrino and neutrinoless 2\beta\ half lives of 96Ru have been estimated in the framework of the QRPA approach. In addition, the T1/2 limit for 0\nu 2\beta- transitions of 104Ru to the first excited state of 104Pd has been set as > 6.5 10^{20} yr.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables; version accepted for publication on Phys. Rev.