Utilization of landraces of European flint maize for breeding and genetic research

Maize is one of the most important crops species for agriculture worldwide. Since its domestication, landraces formed the traditional type of variety. Selection and genetic factors formed a broad diversity of open-pollinated populations well adapted to local conditions. This changed with the introduction of hybrid breeding when nearly all existing landraces disappeared from their use in agriculture and as source material for breeding. Molecular analyses showed a narrow genetic base of the flint heterotic pool compared to the dent pool. Since genetic resources in maize are one of the richest of all major crops, the exploitation of this untapped reservoir of genetic variation in landraces could be an option to reverse the ongoing narrowing of the genetic basis to meet the demands of a growing world population as well as new challenges under a changing global climate and reduced inputs. The main goal of this study was the evaluation of European flint maize landraces to unlock their genetic diversity. In detail our objectives were to (i) determine the variation for testcross performance of European maize landraces; (ii) evaluate the phenotypic and genotypic variation of immortalized lines within and among landraces; (iii) compare the per se performance of those line libraries with elite lines as well as founder lines from the European flint germplasm pool; (iv) analyze the breeding potential of immortalized lines from landraces in comparison with elite material to improve the narrow genetic base of the flint heterotic pool; (v) demonstrate the high mapping resolution of DH libraries from landraces in association mapping down to causal variants and underlying genes; and (vi) provide conclusions and guidelines for breeding and research using libraries of immortalized lines from landraces. In a first experiment, we evaluated in multi-environment trials a broad collection of 70 European flint landraces for their testcross performance in combination with two elite dent testers. In comparison with the yield of modern hybrids, grain yield of the testcrosses of landraces was on average 26% lower, but a high genotypic variance among the landrace was observed for all traits and correlations were moderate to high for most trait combinations similar to those found in elite materials. Genetic correlations between the two testcross series exceeded 0.74 for all traits, suggesting that evaluation of testcross performance in combination with one or two single-cross tester(s) from the opposite pool is sufficient to assess the breeding potential of landraces. In a second experiment, we produced libraries of DH lines from the most promising landraces identified in the first experiment. In total 389 DH lines from six European flint landraces were evaluated together with four flint founder lines and 53 elite flint lines for 16 agronomic traits in four locations. In general, the genotypic variance (&#963;^2G) was larger within than among the DH libraries and exceeded also &#963;^2G of the elite flint lines. Furthermore, the means and &#963;^2G varied among the DH libraries resulting in large differences of the usefulness criterion. Mean grain yield of the elite flint lines exceeded that of the flint founder lines by 25% and DH libraries by 62%, indicating the impressive breeding progress achieved in the elite material and the substantial genetic load still present in the DH libraries. Nevertheless, the usefulness of the best DH lines was comparable to that of the elite flint lines for many traits including grain yield, underpinning the tremendous potential of landraces for broadening the genetic base of the elite germplasm. In a third experiment the materials from the 2nd experiment were genotyped with the MaizeSNP50 BeadChip from Illumina® and seeds of all genotypes were used for extracting and analyzing 288 metabolites with GC-MS. Data for agronomic traits and metabolites were used for a novel association mapping study. The much faster decay of linkage disequilibrium for adjacent markers in the DH libraries compared with the elite flint lines resulted in unprecedented map resolution. This was strikingly demonstrated by fine-mapping a QTL for oil content down to the phenylalanine insertion F469 in DGAT1-2 as the causal variant. Further, for the metabolite allantoin, which is related to abiotic stress response, promoter polymorphisms as well as differential expression of an allantoinase were identified as putative causes of variation despite a moderate size of the mapping population. These results are very encouraging to use DH libraries from landraces for association mapping and dissect QTL potentially down to the causal variants. However, larger population sizes of each DH library are recommended, similar to those commonly used with other approaches such as the NAM design, for detection of QTL explaining only a small portion of the genetic variance. This opens a new avenue for utilization of natural and/or engineered alleles in breeding. In conclusion, the genetic variation present in European flint maize landraces represents a unique source to reverse the ongoing narrowing of the genetic basis of the elite germplasm of this heterotic pool. For identifying the most promising landraces, we propose a multi-stage approach, where based on an assessment of the molecular diversity about one hundred landraces are evaluated in observation trials for agro-ecological adaptation and testcrosses with one single-cross tester are used for evaluating their general combining ability with the opposite heterotic pool. For a small number (< 6) of landraces a large number of DH lines are developed, which are phenotyped and genotyped for further use in association mapping and genomic selection with the ultimate goal to make these gold reserves accessible for maize breeding with modern approaches.Mais ist eine der wichtigsten Kulturarten für die Landwirtschaft weltweit. Seit seiner Domestikation bildeten Landrassen den traditionellen Sortentyp. Durch Selektion und genetische Faktoren entstand eine breite Diversität an panmiktisch vermehrten Populationen, die gut an lokale Bedingungen angepasst waren. Dies änderte sich mit der Einführung der Hybridzüchtung, als nahezu alle Landrassen in der landwirtschaftlichen Produktion und als Ausgangsmaterial für die Züchtung verschwanden. Molekulare Analysen zeigen eine enge genetische Basis des Flint Pools im Vergleich zum Dent Pool. Genetische Ressourcen im Mais gehören zu den umfangreichsten aller Nutzpflanzen. Die Nutzung dieses bislang ungenutzten Reservoirs an genetischer Diversität in Landrassen bietet eine Möglichkeit, um der fortschreitenden Einengung der genetischen Basis entgegenzuwirken und somit den Aufgaben der Pflanzenzüchtung im Hinblick auf eine wachsende Weltbevölkerung sowie den Herausforderungen des Klimawandels und reduzierten Inputs im Anbau gerecht zu werden. Übergeordnetes Ziel dieser Studie war die Evaluierung europäischer Flint-Mais Landrassen, um deren genetische Vielfalt nutzen zu können. Im Speziellen waren die Ziele (i) die Variation in Testkreuzungen europäischer Mais-Landrassen zu bestimmen; (ii) die phänotypische und genotypische Variation der Linien innerhalb und zwischen Landrassen zu beurteilen; (iii) die Eigenleistung dieser Linien mit Elite-Linien sowie Founder-Linien aus dem europäischen Flint-Pool zu vergleichen; (iv) das Potential von doppelhaploiden (DH) Linien aus Landrassen im Vergleich zum Elitematerial für die Züchtung zu analysieren, um die enge genetische Basis des Flint-Pools zu erweitern; (v) die Verwendung von DH-Bibliotheken aus Landrassen für die Assoziationskartierung bis hin zur Eingrenzung kausaler Gene zu demonstrieren; und (vi) Schlussfolgerungen und Leitlinien für die Züchtung und Forschung zu erörternum DH-Linien aus Landrassen nutzbar zu machen. In einem ersten Versuch wurde eine umfangreiche Kollektion von 70 europäischen Flint-Landrassen mehrortig in Kombination mit zwei Elite Dent-Testern auf ihre Testkreuzungsleistung hin untersucht. Verglichen mit dem Ertrag moderner Hybriden war der Kornertrag der Testkreuzungen der Landrassen im Durchschnitt um 26 % geringer, jedoch wurde eine hohe genotypische Varianz zwischen den Landrassen für alle Merkmale beobachtet. Die Korrelationen waren mittel bis hoch für die meisten Merkmalskombinationen und entsprachen denen im Elitezuchtmaterial. Die genetische Korrelation der beiden Testkreuzungsserien überstieg 0,74 für alle Merkmale. Dies zeigt, dass es ausreicht die Leistung von Testkreuzungen in Kombination mit einem oder zwei Testern - bestehend aus Einfachkreuzungen des anderen Gen-Pools zu bewerten, um das Potenzial von Landrassen für die Züchtung zu beurteilen. In einem zweiten Versuch produzierten wir Bibliotheken von DH-Linien der vielversprechendsten Landrassen des vorigen Versuches. Insgesamt wurden 389 DH-Linien aus sechs europäischer Flint Landrassen zusammen mit vier Flint Founder-Linien und 53 Elite Flintlinien auf 16 agronomische Merkmale an vier Standorten geprüft. Die genotypische Varianz (&#963;^2G) innerhalb der DH-Bibliotheken war größer als die zwischen den Bibliotheken und übertraf auch &#963;^2G der Elite Flintlinien. Darüber hinaus variierten die Mittelwerte und &#963;^2G zwischen den DH-Bibliotheken, was zu großen Unterschieden im Brauchbarkeits-Kriterium (usefulness) führte. Der mittlere Kornertrag der Elite Flintlinien übertraf den der Flint Founder-Linien um 25 % und der DH-Bibliotheken um 62 %, was auf den beträchtlichen Zuchtfortschritt im Elitematerial hinweist sowie auf die erhebliche genetische Bürde, welche in den DH-Bibliotheken vorliegt. Die Brauchbarkeit der besten DH-Linien war trotzdem für viele Merkmale, einschließlich dem Kornertrag, mit der von Elite Flintlinien vergleichbar. Dies zeigt das enorme Potenzial, Landrassen zur Verbreiterung des genetisch engen Elite Flint-Pools zu verwenden. In einem dritten Versuch wurden das genetische Material des vorherigen Versuches mit dem MaizeSNP50 BeadChip von Illumina® genotypisiert und Samen aller Genotypen zur Extraktion und Analyse von 288 Metaboliten mit GC-MS verwendet. Sowohl die agronomischen Merkmale als auch die Metabolit-Daten wurden für eine Assoziationskartierung verwendet. Der schnelle Abfall des Kopplungsungleichgewichts benachbarter Marker in den DH-Bibliotheken im Vergleich zu den Elite Flintlinien führte zu einer hervorragenden Auflösung in der QTL-Kartierung, was durch die Feinkartierung eines QTL (= quantitative trait locus) für Ölgehalt bis zur Phenylalanin Insertion F469 in DGAT1-2 als kausale Variante demonstriert werden konnte. Darüber hinaus wurden für den Metaboliten Allantoin, der im Zusammenhang mit abiotischem Stress steht, Promotorpolymorphismen sowie die Expression einer Allantoinase als vermutete Ursache der Variation identifiziert. Dies gelang trotz der moderaten Größe der Kartierungspopulation. Diese Ergebnisse sind ermutigend, um DH-Bibliotheken von Landrassen für die Assoziationskartierung zu verwenden und QTL bis auf die kausalen Varianten zu entschlüsseln. Eine Erweiterung der Populationsgrößen der DH-Bibliotheken, ähnlich wie sie in anderen Versuchsdesigns in der Literatur verwendet wurden, ist hierbei zu empfehlen, um mit diesem Ansatz QTL zu detektieren, welche lediglich einen kleinen Teil der genetischen Varianz erklären. Dies eröffnet neue Wege zur Nutzung natürlicher und/oder neu geschaffener Allele in der Züchtung. Zusammenfassend zeigen die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit, dass die genetische Variation europäischer Landrassen bei Flint-Mais eine einzigartige Quelle darstellt, um die fortschreitende Verengung der genetischen Basis des Elitematerials in diesem Gen-Pool umzukehren. Um vielversprechende Landrassen zu identifizieren, schlagen wir folgenden zweistufigen Ansatz vor: (i) Basierend auf der Bewertung der molekularen Diversität werden etwa hundert Landrassen in Leistungsprüfungen auf ihre Anpassungsfähigkeit für die Zielregionen evaluiert und ihre Kombinationsfähigkeit mit dem entgegengesetzten heterotischen Gen-Pool in Testkreuzungen mit einer Einfachkreuzung als Tester bewertet. (ii) Für eine geringe Zahl (< 6) von Landrassen wird anschließend eine große Anzahl von DH-Linien erstellt, welche für die Nutzung in der Assoziationskartierung und/oder genomischen Selektion phänotypisiert und genotypisiert werden, um diese Goldreserven für die Maiszüchtung mit innovativen Methoden zugänglich zu machen

Die Frühen Hilfen aus Sicht der Pädiatrie - Erkenntnisse aus einer bundesweit repräsentativen Studie

Frühe Hilfen sind Angebote für werdende Eltern und Familien mit Kindern bis 3 Jahre - zur Unterstützung, Beratung und Begleitung. Wie stehen Kinderärzte zu diesen Angeboten? Erkenntnisse aus einer bundesweit repräsentativen Studi

Os efeitos da música em biomarcadores de estresse, imunológicos e comportamentais em portadores do espectro autista

Resumo: A utilização da Musicoterapia em portadores do Transtorno do Espectro Autista (TEA) teve início na década de 60 e mostrou promover benefícios, tais como: diminuição de crises comportamentais, diminuição de resistência ao tratamento, melhora nos relacionamentos interpessoais, aquisição de liberdade expressiva, aquisição da melhora vocal, melhora na comunicação, aquisição de confiança verbal e vocal, aquisição de ordem rítmica e melhora na produção da fala e mutualidade (BRANDALISE, 2013). Objetivo: embora os resultados em nível comunicacional sejam de amplo conhecimento e na busca por compreender o impacto da música nos biomarcadores imunológicos e de estresse nesses indivíduos, o presente artigo tem por objetivo apresentar uma breve revisão dos estudos recentes acerca dessa temática. Método: Foram utilizadas ferramentas de busca nas bases de dados PubMed, Lilacs, Cochrane e Scielo. A busca foi realizada em artigos publicados em português e inglês, por meio dos descritores “imunoglobulina”, “cortisol salivar”, “dano celular” e “autismo”. Resultado: por meio da pesquisa foi possível constatar a influência da música como um meio complementar no cuidado de portadores do TEA, enquanto instrumento de promoção da saúde e melhoria de qualidade de vida desses indivíduos. Considerações finais: Embora os estudos apontem os benefícios da música em portadores do TEA, sugere-se que sejam realizadas mais pesquisas nesse campo, sobretudo no Brasil. Portanto, o presente artigo se propõe como base teórica para uma posterior pesquisa-intervenção a fim de verificar os possíveis efeitos provocados por diferentes tipos de escuta musical sobre os indicadores de cortisol salivar, imunoglobulina A e dano celular de células epiteliais, bem como nos aspectos comportamentais, em crianças portadoras do Transtorno do Espectro Autista. A segunda fase da pesquisa já está em desenvolvimento, por meio do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Promoção da Saúde (Mestrado – UNISC) e seus resultados serão conhecidos em 2018

Amphiphilic Copolymers for Versatile, Facile, and In Situ Tunable Surface Biofunctionalization

Precision surface engineering is key to advanced biomaterials. A new platform of PEGylated styrene-maleic acid copolymers for adsorptive surface biofunctionalization is reported. Balanced amphiphilicity renders the copolymers water-soluble but strongly affine for surfaces. Fine-tuning of their molecular architecture provides control over adsorptive anchorage onto specific materials-which is why they are referred to as "anchor polymers" (APs)-and over structural characteristics of the adsorbed layers. Conjugatable with an array of bioactives-including cytokine-complexing glycosaminoglycans, cell-adhesion-mediating peptides and antimicrobials-APs can be applied to customize materials for demanding biotechnologies in uniquely versatile, simple, and robust ways. Moreover, homo- and heterodisplacement of adsorbed APs provide unprecedented means of in situ alteration and renewal of the functionalized surfaces. The related options are exemplified with proof-of-concept experiments of controlled bacterial adhesion, human umbilical vein endothelial cell, and induced pluripotent cell growth on AP-functionalized surfaces

Comparação do consumo de alimentos de acordo com o utensílio bandeja ou prato em um restaurante universitário

O fornecimento de refeições para uma coletividade costuma ser desenvolvido por uma Unidade de Alimentação e Nutrição (UAN). Em uma UAN, é de responsabilidade de um nutricionista a administração e planejamento das refeições. A alimentação para a comunidade acadêmica, a Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) disponibiliza seis Restaurantes Universitários (RU) que fornecem refeições subsidiadas pelo governo, com um baixo custo de acesso. As refeições almoço e jantar são oferecidas na modalidade de buffet livre e conta com um cardápio que oferece saladas, cereal, leguminosa, guarnição, carne e um tipo de fruta como sobremesa. No fornecimento de refeições em UAN o tipo de utensílio disponibilizado para servir as refeições pode interferir na quantidade utilizada de insumos e também nos hábitos alimentares de consumo dos usuários. Este estudo tem por objetivo investigar e comparar o consumo per capita, em dois momentos, de alimentos em relação ao tipo de utensílio utilizado para consumo (bandeja estampada e prato) em um RU público federal na cidade de Porto Alegre-RS. Foi realizado um estudo transversal descritivo de caráter observacional, com avaliação de variáveis quantitativas de consumo per capita dos itens cereais, leguminosas, saladas folhosas e frutas. A quantidade dos insumos utilizados na utilização do utensílio prato contemplou seis semanas de investigação entre julho e agosto de 2016. Os dados encontrados foram comparados com estudo de consumo em bandejas estampadas de inox referente ao ano de 2014. Os dados quantitativos foram lançados em frequências absolutas, além da realização dos cálculos de médias e percentuais das informações. Todos os dados foram tabulados em software do programa Microsoft Excel© 2010. Os resultados encontrados mostraram aumento de consumo per capita do arroz branco (75g) no prato em relação a bandeja (60g). O feijão preto cujo per capita na bandeja era de 35g, no prato passou a ser de 57g. A relação entre os utensílios foi observada entre as saladas folhosas (alface crespa e chicória) que tiveram resultados iguais de 13g per capita na bandeja e 25g no prato, com o aumento de 48% quando servido no prato no ano de 2016. Já com as frutas o resultado foi diferente, dentre todas elas, sendo servidas com casca ou porcionadas e cortadas, teve uma diminuição no consumo, sendo a redução de 31,3% de banana, 25% de mamão, 14,% de mamão e 6,5% de melão. Frente aos resultados, pode-se observar a importância do RU no consumo alimentar diário de alimentos base como arroz e feijão, assim com o de frutas e saladas. Dessa, forma o estudo pode confirmar que o tipo de utensílio utilizado para servir as refeições interferiu diretamente na quantidade e nos tipos de alimentos escolhidos pela clientela investigada.The supply of meals for a community is usually carried out by a Food Nutrition United (NSU). In an NSU, the nutritionist is responsible for administering and planning the meals. In relation to meals for the academic community, the University Federal of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) makes available six University Restaurants (UR) that provide low cost meals. Dinner and lunch meals are offered in buffet free and the menu offers salads, cereal, legume, garnishing, a meat option, and one kind of fruit served as dessert. In the meal supply of the Nutrition and Supply Units, the kind of utensil available to serve the meals can interfere in quantity used as well as in the heating habits of the users. This study aims at investigating and comparing the per capita consumption, in two historical moments, of food in relation to the utensil used (stamped tray or place) in a public federal University Restaurant (UR) in the city of Porto Alegre (RS). A transversal descriptive study of observational character was conducted, with the evaluation of the quantitative variables of per capita consumption of cereal, legumes, leafy salads, and fruit items. The quantity of supplies consumption when using plates comprised six weeks of investigation between July and August, 2016. Data was compared to a study of consumption in stainless steel stamped trays conducted in 2014. The quantitative data were exposed in absolute frequencies, in addition to the mean and percentage calculation of the information. Data were tabulated in the software Microsoft Excel© 2010. Results showed an increase in the per capita consumption of white rice (75 g) in plate in relation to tray (60g). Black beans, whose per capita consumption in tray was of 35g, increased to 57g in plate. The relation between the utensils was observed among leafy salads (lettuce and chicory) that presented the same result of 13g per capita in tray and 25g in place, with an increase of 48% when served in plate in the year of 2016. Regarding the fruits, the results were different among all of them, being served with skin or sliced in portions, there was a decrease in consumption, being banana 31.3%, papaya 25%, orange 14%, and melon 6.5% less consumption. Based on the results, it is possible to determine the importance of the RU in the daily consumption of base food such as rice and beans, as well as fruits and salads. Thus, the study can confirm that the kind of utensil used to serve meals interfered directly in quantity and kind of food chosen by the investigated community

Genetisch modifizierte regulatorische T-Zellen: Therapiekonzepte und ihr regulatorischer Rahmen

Adoptive T‑cell therapies are emerging tools to combat various human diseases. CAR‑T cells are approved and marketed as last line therapeutics in advanced B‑cell lymphomas and leukemias. TCR-engineered T cells are being evaluated in clinical trials for a variety of hematological and solid tumors. Genetically modified regulatory T cells, however, are still in the initial stages of clinical development for the induction of immune tolerance in various indications.Here we outline the general role of regulatory T cells in establishing self-tolerance and the mechanisms by which these suppress the effector immune cells. Further, the role of regulatory T cells in the pathomechanism of certain immune diseases is presented, and the current status of clinical developments of genetically modified Treg cells is discussed. We also present the regulatory framework for genetically modified regulatory T cells as advanced therapy medicinal products, including aspects of manufacture and quality control, as well as nonclinical and clinical development requirements

Die Frühen Hilfen aus Sicht der Pädiatrie – Erkenntnisse aus einer bundesweit repräsentativen Studie

Frühe Hilfen sind Angebote für werdende Eltern und Familien mit Kindern bis 3 Jahre - zur Unterstützung, Beratung und Begleitung. Wie stehen Kinderärzte zu diesen Angeboten? Erkenntnisse aus einer bundesweit repräsentativen Studi

Climate and food resources shape species richness and trophic interactions of cavity-nesting Hymenoptera

Aim Temperature, food resources and top-down regulation by antagonists are considered as major drivers of insect diversity, but their relative importance is poorly understood. Here, we used cavity-nesting communities of bees, wasps and their antagonists to reveal the role of temperature, food resources, parasitism rate and land use as drivers of species richness at different trophic levels along a broad elevational gradient. Location Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. Taxon Cavity-nesting Hymenoptera (Hymenoptera: Apidae, Colletidae, Megachilidae, Crabronidae, Sphecidae, Pompilidae, Vespidae). Methods We established trap nests on 25 study sites that were distributed over similar large distances in terms of elevation along an elevational gradient from 866 to 1788 m a.s.l., including both natural and disturbed habitats. We quantified species richness and abundance of bees, wasps and antagonists, parasitism rates and flower or arthropod food resources. Data were analysed with generalized linear models within a multi-model inference framework. Results Elevational species richness patterns changed with trophic level from monotonically declining richness of bees to increasingly humped-shaped patterns for caterpillar-hunting wasps, spider-hunting wasps and antagonists. Parasitism rates generally declined with elevation but were higher for wasps than for bees. Temperature was the most important predictor of both bee and wasp host richness patterns. Antagonist richness patterns were also well predicted by temperature, but in contrast to host richness patterns, additionally by resource abundance and diversity. The conversion of natural habitats through anthropogenic land use, which included biomass removal, agricultural inputs, vegetation structure and percentage of surrounding agricultural habitats, had no significant effects on bee and wasp communities. Main conclusions Our study underpins the importance of temperature as a main driver of diversity gradients in ectothermic organisms and reveals the increasingly important role of food resources at higher trophic levels. Higher parasitism rates at higher trophic levels and at higher temperatures indicated that the relative importance of bottom-up and top-down drivers of species richness change across trophic levels and may respond differently to future climate change

Gesundheit und Frühe Hilfen: Die intersektorale Kooperation im Blick der Forschung

HINTERGRUND: Frühe Hilfen sind Angebote für Familien mit Kindern bis zum Alter von 3 Jahren. Sie leisten einen Beitrag zur Förderung von elterlichen Kompetenzen, um die Entwicklungs- und Lebensbedingungen von Familien zu verbessern. Ein weiteres, zentrales Element der Frühen Hilfen sind kommunale (Präventions‑)Netzwerke. In diesen Netzwerken arbeiten Akteure des Gesundheitswesens mit Akteuren der Kinder- und Jugendhilfe zusammen, um den Familien einen nichtstigmatisierenden Zugang zu den Angeboten der Frühen Hilfen zu eröffnen. Im Forschungsprogramm „Zusammen für Familien“ (ZuFa-Monitoring) des Nationalen Zentrums Frühe Hilfen (NZFH) in der Bundeszentrale für gesundheitliche Aufklärung (BZgA) werden seit 2017 repräsentative Daten zur Qualität der Kooperation aus Perspektive der niedergelassenen Gynäkologie, der Geburtskliniken sowie der niedergelassenen Pädiatrie erhoben. ZIEL DER ARBEIT: Dargestellt werden Hintergründe und Ziele des ZuFa-Monitorings sowie Design und Methoden der einzelnen Studien. Im vorliegenden Beitrag werden Stichprobenbeschreibungen und Analysen zur Repräsentativität der Erhebungen in Geburtskliniken (ZuFa_GK) und pädiatrischen Praxen (ZuFa_Päd) sowie erste Ergebnisse zur Kooperationsqualität berichtet. ERSTE ERGEBNISSE: Die Stichproben sind repräsentativ für die Grundgesamtheit der Geburtskliniken bzw. der pädiatrischen Praxen in Deutschland. Zwei Drittel der Befragten geben an, dass der Anteil psychosozial belasteter Familien in den letzten Jahren zugenommen hat. Deren Versorgung wird aufgrund von Zeitmangel, nichtangemessener Vergütung und erschwerenden Bedingungen wie Sprachbarrieren als Herausforderung bewertet. Von den Frühen Hilfen wird Entlastung erwartet. DISKUSSION: Das ZuFa-Monitoring erhebt Informationen zur Versorgung psychosozial belasteter Familien und generiert Hinweise auf hemmende und fördernde Bedingungen, die im Rahmen des weiteren Strukturauf- und -ausbaus lokaler Netzwerke berücksichtigt werden können. So kann ein Beitrag zur Erhöhung der Versorgungsqualität im Gesundheitswesen geleistet werden.BACKGROUND: Early childhood interventions are locally and regionally organized support services for families from pregnancy until the end of the third year of life. The interventions promote diverse measures to enhance parental skills in order to improve developmental and living circumstances. One crucial element of early childhood intervention in Germany are prevention networks at municipal level. The collaboration of healthcare professionals and child and youth welfare professionals in these networks aims to provide nonstigmatizing access to early childhood intervention for families with psychosocial burdens. From the point of view of the healthcare sector, the research program Together for Families (ZuFa Monitoring) of the National Centre on Early Prevention (NZFH) at the Federal Centre for Health Education (BZgA) has collected representative data at the interfaces of gynecology, obstetrics, pediatrics, and early childhood intervention since 2017. GOAL: The background and goals, as well as design and methods of the ZuFa Monitoring studies are described. For obstetrics clinics and resident pediatricians, sample descriptions, including data on representativeness and early data regarding collaboration quality, are given. EARLY RESULTS: The samples are representative for the population of obstetric clinics and resident pediatricians in Germany. At least two-thirds of the respondents indicate that the proportion of families with psychosocial burdens has increased. Care for psychosocially burdened families is regarded as challenging due to a lack of time, limited financial compensation, and aggravating conditions, such as language barriers. Respondents expect early childhood intervention to alleviate their daily work. DISCUSSION: ZuFa Monitoring collects data regarding the care for families with psychosocial burdens at the interface of the health and the child and youth welfare sector. The research program generates information on inhibitory as well as promoting factors, thereby informing the further development and expansion of prevention networks at the municipal level, and heightening the quality of care for families in the health sector