Renormalization analysis of catalytic Wright-Fisher diffusions

Recently, several authors have studied maps where a function, describing the local diffusion matrix of a diffusion process with a linear drift towards an attraction point, is mapped into the average of that function with respect to the unique invariant measure of the diffusion process, as a function of the attraction point. Such mappings arise in the analysis of infinite systems of diffusions indexed by the hierarchical group, with a linear attractive interaction between the components. In this context, the mappings are called renormalization transformations. We consider such maps for catalytic Wright-Fisher diffusions. These are diffusions on the unit square where the first component (the catalyst) performs an autonomous Wright-Fisher diffusion, while the second component (the reactant) performs a Wright-Fisher diffusion with a rate depending on the first component through a catalyzing function. We determine the limit of rescaled iterates of renormalization transformations acting on the diffusion matrices of such catalytic Wright-Fisher diffusions.Comment: 65 pages, 3 figure

Improving stress coping ability: comparison between the CYP17 genotype Of Ovis Aries and Capra Hircus

The ability of animals to adapt to stress is not only an animal health and welfare concern, but also influences reproduction potential and robustness. An important pathway involved in the stress response is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPAA) that results in the release of cortisol from the adrenal gland. In this study the cortisol responses of South African Merinos were measured to assess HPAA responsiveness to stress and relate it to behavioural stress responses to flock-isolation. The experiment was structured according to a 2×2 statistical design, with CYP17 genotype (WT1/WT1 vs. WT1/WT2) and selection line (H-line vs. L-line) as factors. Selection line criteria was based on divergent selection for (H-line) or against (L-line) maternal multiple rearing ability, where the H-line generally outperformed the L-line in terms of reproduction, animal welfare and resistance to certain pathogens. The CYP17 genotype is involved in the biosynthesis pathway of cortisol. In the present study the CYP17 genotype showed a significant influence on behavioural stress responses, where three parameters of the flock-isolation test were affected (P<0.05), namely the number of bleats uttered, the urinating frequency and the average distance from a human operator. It is suggested that the CYP17 genotype affects behavioural responses via its effects on cortisol production, and that the SNPs located within the CYP17 genotype may have application in marker-assisted selection of sheep

The role of Cytochrome P450 17-alpha-Hydroxylase/ 17,20-Lyase (CYP17) in the stress coping ability in a divergently selected Merino sheep population

South African Merino sheep were selected divergently from the same base population for their ability to rear multiples. Two distinct populations were formed over a period of more than 20 years of selection. Reproduction (and therefore presumably fitness) in the line selected in the upward direction (H-line) was substantially improved compared to the line selected in the downward direction (L-line). In the present study, it was demonstrated that the H-line was more stresstolerant than the L-line in terms of their glucose and cortisol response when challenged with insulin. Sheep from the breeding program were genotyped according to one of two cytochrome P450 17α-hydroxylase/17-20 lyase (CYP17) alleles, as these genotypes were previously linked to the ability of Angora goats to cope with external stressors. However, no association was found between CYP17 genotype and selection line. The difference in insulin induced stress response between the H- and the L-line can therefore not be attributed to CYP17 genotype

Structural and Luminescence Properties of ZnO Nanoparticles Synthesized by Mixture of Fuel Approach in Solution Combustion Method

Zinc oxide has been used for many applications, for example optoelectronic devices, ceramics, catalysts, pigments, varistors and many other important applications. In this study, ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by mixture of fuel approach in solution combustion method. Mixtures of urea, glycine and citric acid were mixed at room temperature with Zinc nitrates as fuels resulting in spontaneous ignition resulting in production of ZnO nanopowder. The crystal structure and size of the synthesized powder were determined by X-ray diffractometer (XRD), which revealed that the synthesized ZnO nanopowder has the pure wurtzite structure having crystallite size 26–40 nm. Optical studies of nanomaterial were examined by FTIR and UV-Visible absorption spectrum. The luminescence studies also investigated in the visible region 360–800 nm with excitation 325 nm laser. These nanomaterials may be used in solid-state lightening devices

A ranking method for rating the performances of permutation codes

Abstract: Minimum Hamming distance, dm, has been widely used as the yardstick for the performance of permutation codes (PCs). However, a number of PCs with the same dm and cardinality can have different performances, even if they have the same distance optimality. Since PC is a robust channel coding scheme in power line communications applications, we present a simple and fast ranking method that predicts the relative performance of PCs, by using the information extracted from their Hamming distance distributions. This tool is useful for selecting an efficient PC codebook out of a number of similar ones

Incorporation, Plurality, and the Incorporation of Plurals : a Dynamic Approach

This paper deals with the semantic properties of incorporated nominals that are present at clausal syntax. Such nominals exhibit a complex cluster of semantic properties, ranging from argument structure, scope, and number to discourse transparency. We develop an analysis of incorporation in the framework of Discourse Representation Theory, a dynamic theory that can connect sentence-level and discourse-level semantics. We concentrate on data from Hungarian, where incorporated nominals may be either morphologically singular or plural. We set out to capture two sets of contrasts: (i) those we find when comparing incorporated nominals on the one hand and their non-incorporated, full-fledged argument sisters on the other, and (ii) those we find when comparing morphologically singular and morphologically plural incorporated nominals. A more elaborate version of the analysis can be found in Farkas and de Swart (2003)

Spatial and temporal variation in otolith chemistry for tautog (Tautoga onitis) in Narragansett Bay and Rhode Island coastal ponds

The elemental composition of otoliths may provide valuable information for establishing connectivity between fish nursery grounds and adult fish populations. Concentrations of Rb, Mg, Ca, Mn, Sr, Na, K, Sr, Pb, and Ba were determined by using solution-based inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in otoliths of young-of-the year tautog (Tautoga onitis) captured in nursery areas along the Rhode Island coast during two consecutive years. Stable oxygen (δ18O) and carbon (δ13C) isotopic ratios in young-of-the year otoliths were also analyzed with isotope ratio mass spectrometry. Chemical signatures differed significantly among the distinct nurseries within Narragansett Bay and the coastal ponds across years. Significant differences were also observed within nurseries from year to year. Classification accuracy to each of the five tautog nursery areas ranged from 85% to 92% across years. Because accurate classification of juvenile tautog nursery sites was achieved, otolith chemistry can potentially be used as a natural habitat tag

Origin of salinity variations in Florida Bay

This note presents a method of distinguishing the source of freshwater that causes reductions in salinity in the coastal environment of South Florida. This technique, which uses the 18O and D of the water, allows for differentiation of the freshwater derived from precipitation as opposed to runoff, because surface waters in the Everglades have been highly evaporated and therefore have elevated 18O and dD values relative to precipitation. A time series of monthly 18O and D values of surface waters, collected from stations in Florida Bay between 1993 and 1999, has shown that, during this time, the major source of freshwaters causing depressions in the salinity in the western portion of Florida Bay was derived from precipitation rather than from the runoff of water from the Everglades. In the eastern portion of Florida Bay, close to the boundary between peninsular Florida and the Bay, the proportion of freshwater derived from precipitation drops steadily, reaching \u3c10%. This method not only allows differentiation between the sources of freshwater but can, in a temporal sense, ascertain the effectiveness of water management practices on the salinity of the estuarine ecosystems of South Florida

De novo assembly of transcriptomes from a B73 maize line introgressed with a QTL for resistance to gray leaf spot disease reveals a candidate allele of a lectin receptor-like kinase

Gray leaf spot (GLS) disease in maize, caused by the fungus Cercospora zeina, is a threat to maize production globally. Understanding the molecular basis for quantitative resistance to GLS is therefore important for food security. We developed a de novo assembly pipeline to identify candidate maize resistance genes. Near-isogenic maize lines with and without a QTL for GLS resistance on chromosome 10 from inbred CML444 were produced in the inbred B73 background. The B73-QTL line showed a 20% reduction in GLS disease symptoms compared to B73 in the field (p = 0.01). B73-QTL leaf samples from this field experiment conducted under GLS disease pressure were RNA sequenced. The reads that did not map to the B73 or C. zeina genomes were expected to contain novel defense genes and were de novo assembled. A total of 141 protein-coding sequences with B73-like or plant annotations were identified from the B73-QTL plants exposed to C. zeina. To determine whether candidate gene expression was induced by C. zeina, the RNAseq reads from C. zeina-challenged and control leaves were mapped to a master assembly of all of the B73-QTL reads, and differential gene expression analysis was conducted. Combining results from both bioinformatics approaches led to the identification of a likely candidate gene, which was a novel allele of a lectin receptor-like kinase named L-RLK-CML that (i) was induced by C. zeina, (ii) was positioned in the QTL region, and (iii) had functional domains for pathogen perception and defense signal transduction. The 817AA L-RLK-CML protein had 53 amino acid differences from its 818AA counterpart in B73. A second "B73-like" allele of L-RLK was expressed at a low level in B73-QTL. Gene copy-specific RT-qPCR confirmed that the l-rlk-cml transcript was the major product induced four-fold by C. zeina. Several other expressed defense-related candidates were identified, including a wall-associated kinase, two glutathione s-transferases, a chitinase, a glucan beta-glucosidase, a plasmodesmata callose-binding protein, several other receptor-like kinases, and components of calcium signaling, vesicular trafficking, and ethylene biosynthesis. This work presents a bioinformatics protocol for gene discovery from de novo assembled transcriptomes and identifies candidate quantitative resistance genes