Development and Validation of Markers for the Fertility Restorer Gene Rf1 in Sunflower

Hybrid breeding in sunflowers based on CMS PET1 requires development of restorer lines carrying, in most cases, the restorer gene Rf1. Markers for marker-assisted selection have been developed, but there is still need for closer, more versatile, and co-dominant markers linked to Rf1. Homology searches against the reference sunflower genome using sequences of cloned markers, as well as Bacterial Artificial Chromosome (BAC)-end sequences of clones hybridizing to them, allowed the identification of two genomic regions of 30 and 3.9 Mb, respectively, as possible physical locations of the restorer gene Rf1 on linkage group 13. Nine potential candidate genes, encoding six pentatricopeptide repeat proteins, one tetratricopeptide-like helical domain, a probable aldehyde dehydrogenase 22A1, and a probable poly(A) polymerase 3 (PAPS3), were identified in these two genomic regions. Amplicon targeted next generation sequencing of these nine candidate genes for Rf1 was performed in an association panel consisting of 27 maintainer and 32 restorer lines and revealed the presence of 210 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) and 67 Insertions/Deletions (INDELs). Association studies showed significant associations of 10 SNPs with fertility restoration (p-value lt 10(-4)), narrowing Rf1 down to three candidate genes. Three new markers, one co-dominant marker 67N04_P and two dominant markers, PPR621.5R for restorer, and PPR621.5M for maintainer lines were developed and verified in the association panel of 59 sunflower lines. The versatility of the three newly developed markers, as well as of three existing markers for the restorer gene Rf1 (HRG01 and HRG02, Cleaved Amplified Polymorphic Sequence (CAPS)-marker H13), was analyzed in a large association panel consisting of 557 accessions

Dinamism of Property Tax Reform in Serbia- Administrative and Fiscal Aspects

Since the introduction of property taxation in Serbian legislation, the tax system has been the subject of reforms a number of times for the purpose of its harmonization it with European Union standards. Initial changes were almost unnoticiable, while the latest modifications in the law attracted considerable interest of the tax policy creators, financial experts, as well as the taxpayers themselves because they introduced a new method of determining the tax basis which has increased the overall tax liabilities at annual level. Bearing in mind that the property tax generates local revenue and that local governments are in constant need for additional resources, the methodology of determining the tax liability should be based on the principle of equity and equality in order to ensure an ultimately efficient tax collection. In this paper, the authors will attempt to analyze both positive and negative aspects of improving the property tax system through a number of years, as well as to propose some solutions for the future reform of this system. By means of fiscal decentralization, this revenue plays an important role in financing local expenditure, while its abundance directly secures a larger autonomy of local self-government units, making them less dependable on the funds coming from the state budget