Biotechnologie brengt sturing van aardappeltextuur dichterbij

Aandacht voor een lopend chemisch en biotechnologisch onderzoek naar de achtergronden van de textuureigenschappen van aardappelproducte

Nonprimary Maternal Cytomegalovirus Infection After Viral Shedding in Infants.

Most infants with congenital Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection are born to seropositive women as a result of maternal CMV nonprimary infection (reinfection or reactivation). Although infected children are known to transmit CMV to their seronegative mothers, the frequency and magnitude of nonprimary maternal CMV infection after exposure to viral shedding by children in their household have not been characterized.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Development of the WagRhSNP AXIOM SNP Array Based on Sequences from Tetraploid Cut Roses and Garden Roses

Rose, as many other important ornamental, vegetable and field crops, is polyploid. This poses constraints in genetic analyses due to the occurrence of multiple alleles at marker and trait loci and the existence of multiple allele dosages. Developments in marker discovery (next generation sequencing), detection (SNP arrays) and analysis (software for dosage scoring) now make it feasible to develop high-density molecular marker maps for the homologous chromosomes in tetraploids separately, and thus perform QTL analysis in tetraploids. We developed a SNP array for rose to develop genetic maps in tetraploid garden roses and cut roses, which are to be used for inheritance studies and genetic mapping. Here we have indicated the general strategy followed for developing a SNP array and for scoring and using the SNP data generated, and elaborated on the activities undertaken to use the WagRhSNP Axiom array in rose. The array design is not proprietary but can be used by all researchers working in ros

Partial preferential chromosome pairing is genotype dependent in tetraploid rose

It has long been recognised that polyploid species do not always neatly fall into the categories of auto- or allopolyploid, leading to the term ‘segmental allopolyploid’ to describe everything in between. The meiotic behaviour of such intermediate species is not fully understood, nor is there consensus as to how to model their inheritance patterns. In this study we used a tetraploid cut rose (Rosa hybrida) population, genotyped using the 68K WagRhSNP array, to construct an ultra-high-density linkage map of all homologous chromosomes using methods previously developed for autotetraploids. Using the predicted bivalent configurations in this population we quantified differences in pairing behaviour among and along homologous chromosomes, leading us to correct our estimates of recombination frequency to account for this behaviour. This resulted in the re-mapping of 25 695 SNP markers across all homologues of the seven rose chromosomes, tailored to the pairing behaviour of each chromosome in each parent. We confirmed the inferred differences in pairing behaviour among chromosomes by examining repulsion-phase linkage estimates, which also carry information about preferential pairing and recombination. Currently, the closest sequenced relative to rose is Fragaria vesca. Aligning the integrated ultra-dense rose map with the strawberry genome sequence provided a detailed picture of the synteny, confirming overall co-linearity but also revealing new genomic rearrangements. Our results suggest that pairing affinities may vary along chromosome arms, which broadens our current understanding of segmental allopolyploidy.</p

Robust tobacco smoking self-report in two cohorts: pregnant women or men and women living with or without HIV

Abstract Understanding the true burden of tobacco smoking on adverse pregnancy outcomes is critical in generating appropriate interventions to improve outcomes. Self-reporting of human behaviour that is associated with stigma is associated with underreporting in general and may bias the impact of smoking in studies; however, self-reporting is frequently the most practical method of gleaning this information. The objective of this study was to evaluate concordance between self-reported smoking and concentrations of plasma cotinine, a biomarker of smoking, among participants enrolled in two related HIV cohorts. A total of 100 pregnant women (76 living with HIV [LWH] and 24 negative controls) in their third trimester, and 100 men and non-pregnant women (43 LWH and 57 negative controls) were included. Among all participants, 43 pregnant women (49% LWH and 25% negative controls) and 50 men and non-pregnant women (58% LWH and 44% negative controls) were self-reported smokers. The odds of discordance between self-reported smoking and cotinine levels were not significantly different between self-reported smokers and non-smokers, nor between pregnant women and others, but were significantly increased, regardless of self-reported status, among people LWH compared to negative controls. The overall concordance between plasma cotinine and self-reported data among all participants was 94% with a sensitivity and specificity of 90% and 96%, respectively. Taken together, these data demonstrate that participant surveying in a non-judgemental context can lead to accurate and robust self-report smoking data among both persons LWH and not, including in the context of pregnancy