Evaluating the roles of directed breeding and gene flow in animal domestication

Peer reviewedPostprin

Three-dimensional structure of basal body triplet revealed by electron cryo-tomography.

Basal bodies and centrioles play central roles in microtubule (MT)-organizing centres within many eukaryotes. They share a barrel-shaped cylindrical structure composed of nine MT triplet blades. Here, we report the structure of the basal body triplet at 33 Å resolution obtained by electron cryo-tomography and 3D subtomogram averaging. By fitting the atomic structure of tubulin into the EM density, we built a pseudo-atomic model of the tubulin protofilaments at the core of the triplet. The 3D density map reveals additional densities that represent non-tubulin proteins attached to the triplet, including a large inner circular structure in the basal body lumen, which functions as a scaffold to stabilize the entire basal body barrel. We found clear longitudinal structural variations along the basal body, suggesting a sequential and coordinated assembly mechanism. We propose a model in which δ-tubulin and other components participate in the assembly of the basal body

THE EFFECTS OF WATER RIGHTS AND IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGY ON STREAMFLOW AUGMENTATION COST IN THE SNAKE RIVER BASIN

Three species of salmon in the Snake River Basin have been listed as endangered. Recovery efforts for these fish include attempts to obtain increased quantities of water during smolt migration periods to improve habitat in the lower basin. Agriculture is the dominant user of surface flows in this region. This study investigates farmer cost of a contingent water contract requiring the agricultural release of stored irrigation supplies in low flow years during critical flow periods. Results show that contingent contracts can provide substantial quantities of water at a relatively modest cost without significantly affecting the agricultural base of the area.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Smile4life: a co-designed educational and training resource guide

The second edition of the ‘Smile4life: a co-designed educational and training resource guide’ aims to enable practitioners and support workers from different backgrounds to provide evidence-based, tailored oral health promotion sessions through meaningful conversations with people experiencing homelessness. The content of this guide reflects the learning processes experienced within the Smile4life, the Scottish Oral Health Improvement Programme for people experiencing homelessness and addresses the needs of a wide variety of professionals working within the homelessness sector. The guide expect to raise awareness of the pivotal role that practitioners can play in terms of assessing service user readiness to change, and making every contact a health promotion opportunity for those facing homelessness to achieve and maintain good oral health. The methodology adopted to produce this Smile4life Guide used a co-design approach that involved interviews and workshops with seven different organisations from health and third sector, and people with lived experience of homelessness. This methodology was focused on the specific needs of people with lived experience of homelessness in order to develop an accessible training resource.<br/

Smile4life:a co-designed educational and training resource guide

The second edition of the ‘Smile4life: a co-designed educational and training resource guide’ aims to enable practitioners and support workers from different backgrounds to provide evidence-based, tailored oral health promotion sessions through meaningful conversations with people experiencing homelessness. The content of this guide reflects the learning processes experienced within the Smile4life, the Scottish Oral Health Improvement Programme for people experiencing homelessness and addresses the needs of a wide variety of professionals working within the homelessness sector. The guide expect to raise awareness of the pivotal role that practitioners can play in terms of assessing service user readiness to change, and making every contact a health promotion opportunity for those facing homelessness to achieve and maintain good oral health. The methodology adopted to produce this Smile4life Guide used a co-design approach that involved interviews and workshops with seven different organisations from health and third sector, and people with lived experience of homelessness. This methodology was focused on the specific needs of people with lived experience of homelessness in order to develop an accessible training resource.<br/

Evaluating the roles of directed breeding and gene flow in animal domestication

For the last 150 y scholars have focused upon the roles of intentional breeding and genetic isolation as fundamental to understanding the process of animal domestication. This analysis of ethnoarchaeological, archaeological, and genetic data suggests that long-term gene flow between wild and domestic stocks was much more common than previously assumed, and that selective breeding of females was largely absent during the early phases of animal domestication. These findings challenge assumptions about severe genetic bottlenecks during domestication, expectations regarding monophyletic origins, and interpretations of multiple domestications. The findings also raise new questions regarding ways in which behavioral and phenotypic domestication traits were developed and maintained

Effects of Expression of Streptococcus pneumoniae PspC on the Ability of Streptococcus mitis to Evade Complement-Mediated Immunity

Streptococcus pneumoniae and Streptococcus mitis are genetically closely related and both frequently colonise the naso-oropharynx, yet S. pneumoniae is a common cause of invasive infections whereas S. mitis is only weakly pathogenic. We hypothesise that sensitivity to innate immunity may underlie these differences in virulence phenotype. We compared the sensitivity of S. pneumoniae and S. mitis strains to complement-mediated immunity, demonstrating S. mitis strains were susceptible to complement-mediated opsonophagocytosis. S. pneumoniae resistance to complement is partially dependent on binding of the complement regulator Factor H by the surface protein PspC. However, S. mitis was unable to bind factor H. The S. pneumoniae TIGR4 strain pspC was expressed in the S. mitis SK142 strain to create a S. mitis pspC+ strain. Immunoblots demonstrated the S. mitis pspC+ strain expressed PspC, and flow cytometry confirmed this resulted in Factor H binding to S. mitis, reduced susceptibility to complement and improved survival in whole human blood compared to the wild-type S. mitis strain. However, in mouse models the S. mitis pspC+ strain remained unable to establish persistent infection. Unlike S. pneumoniae strains, culture in serum or blood did not support increased CFU of the S. mitis strains. These results suggest S. mitis is highly sensitive to opsonisation with complement partially due to an inability to bind Factor H, but even when complement sensitivity was reduced by expression of pspC, poor growth in physiological fluid limited the virulence of S. mitis in mice

Math in Motion

Everything we know about the universe rests on the foundation of mathematics. Somehow, though, the magic of mathematics – the true power of numbers and their beautiful wildness – gets lost in math class. Children, our most magical thinkers, get turned off math in grade school and miss out on a language through which they could learn to read and change the world. VCU Math In Motion will generate a creative, dynamic STEM education initiative within the Richmond community using an innovative curriculum and a customized mobile unit to bring the beauty of math to Richmond region school children in grades 5-9, through partnerships across VCU and within the local school system