Genetic diversity and population structure of Epichloë fungal pathogens of plants in natural ecosystems

Understanding the population genetic processes driving the evolution of plant pathogens is of central interest to plant pathologists and evolutionary biologists alike. However, most studies focus on host-pathogen associations in agricultural systems of high genetic and environmental homogeneity and less is known about the genetic structure of pathogen populations infecting wild plants in natural ecosystems. We performed parallel population sampling of two pathogenic Epichloë species occurring sympatrically on different host grasses in natural and seminatural grasslands in Europe: E. typhina infecting Dactylis glomerata and E. clarkii infecting Holcus lanatus. We sequenced 422 haploid isolates and generated genome-wide SNP datasets to investigate genetic diversity and population structure. In both species geographically separated populations formed genetically distinct groups, however, population separation was less distinct in E. typhina compared to E. clarkii. The patterns of among population admixture also differed between species across the same geographic range: we found higher levels of population genetic differentiation and a stronger effect of isolation by distance in E. clarkii compared to E. typhina, consistent with lower levels of gene flow in the former. This pattern may be explained by the different dispersal abilities of the two pathogens and is expected to be influenced by the genetic structure of host populations. In addition, genetic diversity was higher in E. typhina populations compared to E. clarkii, indicative of higher effective population size in E. typhina. These results suggest that the effect of genetic drift and the efficacy of selection may differ in the two species. Our study provides evidence of how ecologically similar species occupying the same geographical space can experience different evolutionary contexts, which could influence local adaptation and co-evolutionary dynamics of these fungal pathogens

‘Shall We Send a Panda?’ A Practical Guide to Engaging Schools in Research: Learning from Large-Scale Mental Health Intervention Trials

The substantial time that children and young people spend in schools makes them important sites to trial and embed prevention and early intervention programmes. However, schools are complex settings, and it can be difficult to maintain school engagement in research trials; many projects experience high levels of attrition. This commentary presents learning from two large-scale, mixed-methods mental health intervention trials in English schools. The paper explores the barriers and challenges to engaging schools in promotion or early intervention research and offers detailed recommendations for other researchers

Recombination:The good, the bad and the variable

International audienc

Variation in recombination frequency and distribution across eukaryotes:patterns and processes

International audienc

Promoting mental health and well-being in schools: examining mindfulness, relaxation and strategies for safety and well-being in English primary and secondary schools—study protocol for a multi-school, cluster randomised controlled trial (INSPIRE)

There are increasing rates of internalising difficulties, particularly anxiety and depression, being reported in children and young people in England. School-based universal prevention programmes are thought to be one way of helping tackle such difficulties. This paper describes an update to a four-arm cluster randomised controlled trial (http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN16386254), investigating the effectiveness of three different interventions when compared to usual provision, in English primary and secondary pupils. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the trial was put on hold and subsequently prolonged. Data collection will now run until 2024. The key changes to the trial outlined here include clarification of the inclusion and exclusion criteria, an amended timeline reflecting changes to the recruitment period of the trial due to the COVID-19 pandemic and clarification of the data that will be included in the statistical analysis, since the second wave of the trial was disrupted due to COVID-19. Trial registration ISRCTN Registry ISRCTN16386254. Registered on 30 August 2018

Developing a community-based genetic nomenclature for anole lizards

Background: Comparative studies of amniotes have been hindered by a dearth of reptilian molecular sequences. With the genomic assembly of the green anole, Anolis carolinensis available, non-avian reptilian genes can now be compared to mammalian, avian, and amphibian homologs. Furthermore, with more than 350 extant species in the genus Anolis, anoles are an unparalleled example of tetrapod genetic diversity and divergence. As an important ecological, genetic and now genomic reference, it is imperative to develop a standardized Anolis gene nomenclature alongside associated vocabularies and other useful metrics. Results: Here we report the formation of the Anolis Gene Nomenclature Committee (AGNC) and propose a standardized evolutionary characterization code that will help researchers to define gene orthology and paralogy with tetrapod homologs, provide a system for naming novel genes in Anolis and other reptiles, furnish abbreviations to facilitate comparative studies among the Anolis species and related iguanid squamates, and classify the geographical origins of Anolis subpopulations. Conclusions: This report has been generated in close consultation with members of the Anolis and genomic research communities, and using public database resources including NCBI and Ensembl. Updates will continue to be regularly posted to new research community websites such as lizardbase. We anticipate that this standardized gene nomenclature will facilitate the accessibility of reptilian sequences for comparative studies among tetrapods and will further serve as a template for other communities in their sequencing and annotation initiatives.Organismic and Evolutionary BiologyOther Research Uni

Dissecting the Shared Genetic Architecture of Suicide Attempt, Psychiatric Disorders, and Known Risk Factors

Background Suicide is a leading cause of death worldwide, and nonfatal suicide attempts, which occur far more frequently, are a major source of disability and social and economic burden. Both have substantial genetic etiology, which is partially shared and partially distinct from that of related psychiatric disorders. Methods We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 29,782 suicide attempt (SA) cases and 519,961 controls in the International Suicide Genetics Consortium (ISGC). The GWAS of SA was conditioned on psychiatric disorders using GWAS summary statistics via multitrait-based conditional and joint analysis, to remove genetic effects on SA mediated by psychiatric disorders. We investigated the shared and divergent genetic architectures of SA, psychiatric disorders, and other known risk factors. Results Two loci reached genome-wide significance for SA: the major histocompatibility complex and an intergenic locus on chromosome 7, the latter of which remained associated with SA after conditioning on psychiatric disorders and replicated in an independent cohort from the Million Veteran Program. This locus has been implicated in risk-taking behavior, smoking, and insomnia. SA showed strong genetic correlation with psychiatric disorders, particularly major depression, and also with smoking, pain, risk-taking behavior, sleep disturbances, lower educational attainment, reproductive traits, lower socioeconomic status, and poorer general health. After conditioning on psychiatric disorders, the genetic correlations between SA and psychiatric disorders decreased, whereas those with nonpsychiatric traits remained largely unchanged. Conclusions Our results identify a risk locus that contributes more strongly to SA than other phenotypes and suggest a shared underlying biology between SA and known risk factors that is not mediated by psychiatric disorders.Peer reviewe

Increasing frailty is associated with higher prevalence and reduced recognition of delirium in older hospitalised inpatients: results of a multi-centre study

Purpose: Delirium is a neuropsychiatric disorder delineated by an acute change in cognition, attention, and consciousness. It is common, particularly in older adults, but poorly recognised. Frailty is the accumulation of deficits conferring an increased risk of adverse outcomes. We set out to determine how severity of frailty, as measured using the CFS, affected delirium rates, and recognition in hospitalised older people in the United Kingdom. Methods: Adults over 65 years were included in an observational multi-centre audit across UK hospitals, two prospective rounds, and one retrospective note review. Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), delirium status, and 30-day outcomes were recorded. Results: The overall prevalence of delirium was 16.3% (483). Patients with delirium were more frail than patients without delirium (median CFS 6 vs 4). The risk of delirium was greater with increasing frailty [OR 2.9 (1.8–4.6) in CFS 4 vs 1–3; OR 12.4 (6.2–24.5) in CFS 8 vs 1–3]. Higher CFS was associated with reduced recognition of delirium (OR of 0.7 (0.3–1.9) in CFS 4 compared to 0.2 (0.1–0.7) in CFS 8). These risks were both independent of age and dementia. Conclusion: We have demonstrated an incremental increase in risk of delirium with increasing frailty. This has important clinical implications, suggesting that frailty may provide a more nuanced measure of vulnerability to delirium and poor outcomes. However, the most frail patients are least likely to have their delirium diagnosed and there is a significant lack of research into the underlying pathophysiology of both of these common geriatric syndromes

Differential Avoidance of Snake Odours by a Lizard: Evidence for Prioritized Avoidance Based on Risk

Most studies of predator avoidance behaviours have focussed on single-predator systems, despite the fact that prey often are confronted with predator rich environments. In the presence of more than one predator, prey may have to choose between avoiding one predator over another. How prey cope with exposure to several enemies simultaneously remains largely untested. In this study I set out to investigate if skinks showed preferential avoidance of snake odours based on the relative predation risk posed by different snake species. This relative predation risk was estimated using information on density, diet specificity and foraging habit of each snake species. I tested retreat-site selection in two-choice tests, where lizards chose between different combinations of control and snake treated retreat-sites as well as two retreat-sites treated with different snake species odours. Lizards preferred control–treated retreat-sites to those treated with snake odours and showed a differential avoidance response to refuges treated with odours from different snake species. There was strong evidence to suggest that lizards preferentially avoided refuges with the odours of the snake that posed the greatest predation risk, the white-lipped snake (Drysdalia coronoides). Naïve juvenile lizards were also tested and their response was similar to the adults demonstrating that the behaviour is innate and not the result of higher encounter rates of more common snake odours. To my knowledge this is one of the first studies to demonstrate that prey can prioritize avoidance to a single most dangerous predator in the face of several predators and conflicting avoidance responses.The study was approved by the Australian National University Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee protocol number F.BTZ.17.00 and supported by the Australian Geographic Society, Linnean Society of NSW Joyce Vickery Research Award and the ASIH Gaige Fund award

Individual variation in preferred body temperature covaries with social behaviours and colour in male lizards

1. I tested if individual variation in preferred body temperature (PBT) covaried with behaviours and male phenotypic traits (size and colouration) in Pseudemoia entrecasteauxii. 2. Individuals varied in their PBT and this variation was repeatable across days. PBT was not related to body size but males with orange ventral colour had higher PBT. 3. Males with orange ventral colour were more aggressive and dominated males with white venters. 4. Male behaviours were correlated and they covaried with PBT. Correlated behaviours such as these may be related to a shy-bold continuum