Discovering consensus genomic regions in wheat for root-related traits by QTL meta-analysis

Root system architecture is crucial for wheat adaptation to drought stress, but phenotyping for root traits in breeding programmes is difficult and time-consuming owing to the belowground characteristics of the system. Identifying quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and linked molecular markers and using marker-assisted selection is an efficient way to increase selection efficiency and boost genetic gains in breeding programmes. Hundreds of QTLs have been identified for different root traits in the last few years. In the current study, consensus QTL regions were identified through QTL meta-analysis. First, a consensus map comprising 7352 markers was constructed. For the meta-analysis, 754 QTLs were retrieved from the literature and 634 of them were projected onto the consensus map. Meta-analysis grouped 557 QTLs in 94 consensus QTL regions, or meta-QTLs (MQTLs), and 18 QTLs remained as singletons. The recently published genome sequence of wheat was used to search for gene models within the MQTL peaks. As a result, gene models for 68 of the 94 Root_MQTLs were found, 35 of them related to root architecture and/or drought stress response. This work will facilitate QTL cloning and pyramiding to develop new cultivars with specific root architecture for coping with environmental constraints.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Wheat: A Crop in the Bottom of the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid

Wheat currently provides 18% of the daily intake of calories and 20% of proteins for humans. Since its domestication in the Fertile Crescent, wheat has been the basic staple food of the major civilizations of Europe, West Asia and North Africa. The wheat-growing area within the Mediterranean Basin represents 27% of the arable land, and the region represents 60% of the world’s growing area for durum wheat, the species used for pasta manufacturing. Many changes have occurred from the low-productive plants cultivated in prehistoric times to the modern varieties that are now grown, which offer high productivity and quality standards. During the migration process of ancient forms of wheat from the east to the west of the Mediterranean Basin, both natural and human selections occurred, resulting in the development of local landraces characterized by their huge genetic diversity and their documented resilience to abiotic stresses. Wheat breeding activities conducted in the Mediterranean Basin during the twentieth century resulted in large genetic gains in yield and quality. New wheat varieties to be grown in the Mediterranean Basin will need to be resilient to climate change because more frequent episodes of higher temperatures and water scarcity are to be expected

From landraces to improved cultivars: Assessment of genetic diversity and population structure of Mediterranean wheat using SNP markers

Assessment of genetic diversity and population structure in crops is essential for breeding and germplasm conservation. A collection of 354 bread wheat genotypes, including Mediterranean landraces and modern cultivars representative of the ones most widely grown in the Mediterranean Basin, were characterized with 11196 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. Total genetic diversity (HT) and polymorphic information content (PIC) were 0.36 and 0.30 respectively for both landraces and modern cultivars. Linkage disequilibrium for the modern cultivars was higher than for the landraces (0.18 and 0.12, respectively). Analysis of the genetic structure showed a clear geographical pattern for the landraces, which were clustered into three subpopulations (SPs) representing the western, northern and eastern Mediterranean, whereas the modern cultivars were structured according to the breeding programmes that developed them: CIMMYT/ICARDA, France/Italy, and Balkan/eastern European countries. The modern cultivars showed higher genetic differentiation (GST) and lower gene flow (0.1673 and 2.49, respectively) than the landraces (0.1198 and 3.67, respectively), indicating a better distinction between subpopulations. The maximum gene flow was observed between landraces from the northern Mediterranean SPs and the modern cultivars released mainly by French and Italian breeding programmes.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Psicología política como eje para la toma de decisiones en el desarrollo de proyectos de leyes ordinarias en Colombia

La Psicología Política se ha constituido como una disciplina académica independiente de la política y de la psicología propiamente dicha, la cual ha ido adquiriendo mayor relevancia para los psicólogos interesados por aspectos políticos y sociales, así como también para profesionales de diferentes áreas como el derecho que participan en todas las actuaciones que se adelantan tanto entidades públicas como privadas. Es así, como por medio del presente proyecto hemos desarrollado una investigación acerca de la incidencia que tiene la Psicología Política en el contexto de la creación de leyes y del juicio o determinación del legislador a la hora de proponer proyectos de ley determinando su importancia. En primer lugar se hizo un acercamiento al concepto de Psicología Política y a sus antecedentes para determinar cómo nació y cuál fue su relevancia en los procesos políticos en la historia, seguido a esto, se adelantó una revisión de literatura a fin de observar perspectivas de diferentes autores y poder llegar a determinar si era un eje transversal en la toma de decisiones del legislador, o por el contrario se trataba de un aspecto irrelevante, determinando que, la Psicología Política constituye un punto importante y casi que fundamental en el papel del legislador al tomar decisiones para tramitar proyectos de ley, puesto que, estos comprometen el interés general, y deben ser guiados por propuestas inteligentes y acordes a la necesidad de la población. Finalmente, con el desarrollo del análisis del tema en cuestión es pertinente que las cámaras legislativas de Colombia, adelanten la inclusión de programas educativos y de capacitación a sus representantes sobre Psicología Política, a fin de que se implemente verdaderamente en las decisiones en el desarrollo de proyectos de ley.Universidad Libre Seccional Socorro -- Facultad de derecho, ciencias políticas y sociales -- DerechoPolitical psychology has become an academic discipline independent of politics and psychology itself, which has become increasingly relevant for psychologists interested in political and social aspects, as well as for professionals from different areas such as law who participate in all the actions carried out by both public and private entities. Thus, through this project we have developed an investigation about the incidence of Political Psychology in the context of the creation of laws and the judgment or determination of the legislator when proposing bills, determining its importance. First, an approach was made to the concept of Political Psychology and its background to determine how it was born and what was its relevance in the political processes inhistory, followed by a literature review in order to observe the perspectives of different authors and to determine whether it was a transversal axis in the legislator's decision making, On the contrary, it was an irrelevant aspect, determining that political psychology constitutes an important and almost fundamental point in the legislator's role when making decisions to process bills, since they compromise the general interest and must be guided by intelligent proposals in accordance with the needs of the population. Finally, with the development of the analysis of the subject in question, it is pertinent that the legislative chambers of Colombia, advance the inclusion of educational and training programs to their representatives on Political Psychology, so that it is truly implemented in the decisions in the development of bills

La granadilla, su caracterización física y comportamiento postcosecha

La agricultura moderna tiende a un aumento de la producción agrícola, mediante la aplicación de tecnología que permita aumentar la oferta de productos perecederos frescos, pero sólo hasta hace relativamente poco se ha comprendido que es necesario y urgente conservar la calidad de los productos obtenidos ya que ésto disminuye las grandes pérdidas que se producen, desde el campo, durante las cosechas, el empaque, transporte y comercialización. Para contrarrestar estas pérdidas postcosecha, se hace necesario un programa integral que incentive la conservación, permitiendo un aprovechamiento de los excedentes de producción en los perlodos de cosecha, además de regular los precios en el mercado. La granadilla como fruta para estudio, fue escogida por ser ésta una de las frutas que ha iniciado su proceso de tecnificación desde el cultivo, iniciando operaciones de exportación, pero de la cual se desconocen sus características, que permitan hacer un adecuado manejo postcosecha. El Departamento de Ingeniería Agrícola de la Facultad de Ingeniería de la Universidad Nacional de Colombia dentro de su actividad docente e investigativa, ha venido desarrollando desde hace varios años, una línea de investigación en todos los aspectos relacionados con la Ingeniería de postcosecha de productos perecederos, como uno de los medios para la reducción de las pérdidas postcosecha, marco dentro del cual fue desarrollada la presente investigación

Reduced melt on debris-covered glaciers: investigations from Changri Nup Glacier, Nepal

International audienceApproximately 25 % of the glacierized area in the Everest region is covered by debris, yet the surface mass balance of debris-covered portions of these glaciers has not been measured directly. In this study, ground-based measurements of surface elevation and ice depth are combined with terrestrial photogrammetry, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and satellite elevation models to derive the surface mass balance of the debris-covered tongue of Changri Nup Glacier, located in the Everest region. Over the debris-covered tongue, the mean elevation change between 2011 and 2015 is −0.93 m year−1 or −0.84 m water equivalent per year (w.e. a−1). The mean emergence velocity over this region, estimated from the total ice flux through a cross section immediately above the debris-covered zone, is +0.37 m w.e. a−1. The debris-covered portion of the glacier thus has an area-averaged mass balance of −1.21 ± 0.2 m w.e. a−1 between 5240 and 5525 m above sea level (m a.s.l.). Surface mass balances observed on nearby debris-free glaciers suggest that the ablation is strongly reduced (by ca. 1.8 m w.e. a−1) by the debris cover. The insulating effect of the debris cover has a larger effect on total mass loss than the enhanced ice ablation due to supraglacial ponds and exposed ice cliffs. This finding contradicts earlier geodetic studies and should be considered for modelling the future evolution of debris-covered glaciers

Percepción de médicos recién egresados sobre el internado médico en Lima, Perú 2014

Objetivo: describir la percepción de los médicos recién egresados de las facultades de Medicina Humana de Lima (Perú) sobre su internado. Métodos: Se llevó a cabo un estudio observacional, descriptivo y transversal. Se encuestó a médicos durante un curso, recolectando datos sobre el internado relacionados a bioseguridad, seguro médico, agresión, docencia, carga laboral, y carga administrativa. Resultados: en una población de 268 médicos, el 42,5% afirmó que se le ha entregado materiales de bioseguridad siempre que fuera necesario, el 35,8% que no contaron con seguro de salud, el 42,5% no haber tenido descanso postguardia en ninguna rotación, el 63,1% haber sufrido alguna vez durante su internado agresión verbal, el 21,6% acoso sexual, y 6,3% agresión física. Conclusión: según la percepción de los encuestados, se describen situaciones problemáticas durante el internado con respecto al abastecimiento de materiales de bioseguridad, el seguro de salud, los descansos postguardia, y la violencia

Optimizing Winter Wheat Resilience to Climate Change in Rain Fed Crop Systems of Turkey and Iran

Erratic weather patterns associated with increased temperatures and decreasing rainfall pose unique challenges for wheat breeders playing a key part in the fight to ensure global food security. Within rain fed winter wheat areas of Turkey and Iran, unusual weather patterns may prevent attaining maximum potential increases in winter wheat genetic gains. This is primarily related to the fact that the yield ranking of tested genotypes may change from one year to the next. Changing weather patterns may interfere with the decisions breeders make about the ideotype(s) they should aim for during selection. To inform breeding decisions, this study aimed to optimize major traits by modeling different combinations of environments (locations and years) and by defining a probabilistic range of trait variations [phenology and plant height (PH)] that maximized grain yields (GYs; one wheat line with optimal heading and height is suggested for use as a testing line to aid selection calibration decisions). Research revealed that optimal phenology was highly related to the temperature and to rainfall at which winter wheat genotypes were exposed around heading time (20 days before and after heading). Specifically, later winter wheat genotypes were exposed to higher temperatures both before and after heading, increased rainfall at the vegetative stage, and reduced rainfall during grain filling compared to early genotypes. These variations in exposure to weather conditions resulted in shorter grain filling duration and lower GYs in long-duration genotypes. This research tested if diversity within species may increase resilience to erratic weather patterns. For the study, calculated production of a selection of five high yielding genotypes (if grown in five plots) was tested against monoculture (if only a single genotype grown in the same area) and revealed that a set of diverse genotypes with different phenologies and PHs was not beneficial. New strategies of progeny selection are discussed: narrow range of variation for phenology in families may facilitate the discovery and selection of new drought-resistant and avoidant wheat lines targeting specific locationsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Barriers of mental health treatment utilization among first-year college students: First cross-national results from the WHO World Mental Health International College Student Initiative.

BACKGROUND: Although mental disorders and suicidal thoughts-behaviors (suicidal thoughts and behaviors) are common among university students, the majority of students with these problems remain untreated. It is unclear what the barriers are to these students seeking treatment. AIMS: The aim of this study is to examine the barriers to future help-seeking and the associations of clinical characteristics with these barriers in a cross-national sample of first-year college students. METHOD: As part of the World Mental Health International College Student (WMH-ICS) initiative, web-based self-report surveys were obtained from 13,984 first-year students in eight countries across the world. Clinical characteristics examined included screens for common mental disorders and reports about suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Multivariate regression models adjusted for socio-demographic, college-, and treatment-related variables were used to examine correlates of help-seeking intention and barriers to seeking treatment. RESULTS: Only 24.6% of students reported that they would definitely seek treatment if they had a future emotional problem. The most commonly reported reasons not to seek treatment among students who failed to report that they would definitely seek help were the preference to handle the problem alone (56.4%) and wanting to talk with friends or relatives instead (48.0%). Preference to handle the problem alone and feeling too embarrassed were also associated with significantly reduced odds of having at least some intention to seek help among students who failed to report that they would definitely seek help. Having 12-month major depression, alcohol use disorder, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors were also associated with significantly reduced reported odds of the latter outcome. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of first-year college students in the WMH-ICS surveys report that they would be hesitant to seek help in case of future emotional problems. Attitudinal barriers and not structural barriers were found to be the most important reported reasons for this hesitation. Experimental research is needed to determine whether intention to seek help and, more importantly, actual help-seeking behavior could be increased with the extent to which intervention strategies need to be tailored to particular student characteristics. Given that the preference to handle problems alone and stigma and appear to be critical, there could be value in determining if internet-based psychological treatments, which can be accessed privately and are often build as self-help approaches, would be more acceptable than other types of treatments to student who report hesitation about seeking treatment.status: publishe