Genetic Modification of Disease Resistance: Fungal and Oomycete Pathogens

Development of recombinant DNA technology allowed scientists to manipulate plant genomes, making it possible to study genes and exploit them to modify novel agronomic traits. Here, we review the current and future potential of genetic modification (GM) strategies used to increase the resistance of plants to oomycete and fungal pathogens. Numerous resistance genes (R-genes) have been cloned, and under laboratory conditions, transgenic plants have given promising results against some important plant pathogens. However, only a few have so far been deployed as commercial crop plants.GMof plants to disrupt pathogenicity, such as by inhibiting or degrading pathogenicity factors, especially by necrotrophic pathogens, has also been exploited. The potential to engineer plants for the production of antimicrobial peptides or to modify defense-signaling pathways have been successfully demonstrated under laboratory conditions. The most promising current technology is genome editing, which allows researchers to edit DNA sequences directly in their endogenous environment. The potential of this approach is discussed in detail and examples where broad-spectrum resistance has been achieved are given.

Future Air Quality Related Health Effects in Europe and the Nordic Region—Sensitivity to Changes in Climate, Anthropogenic Emissions, Demography and Building Stock

Future changes in population exposures to ambient air pollution are inherently linked with long-term trends in outdoor air quality, but also with changes in the building stock. Moreover, the burden of disease is further driven by the ageing of the European populations. This study aims to assess the impact of changes in climate, emissions, building stocks and population on air pollution related human health impacts across Europe in the future. Therefore an integrated assessment model combining atmospheric models and health impacts has been setup for projections of the future developments in air pollution related premature mortality. The focus is here on the regional scale impacts of exposure to surface ozone (O3), Secondary Inorganic Aerosols (SIA) and primary particulate matter (PPM).

A Global Portrait of Counselling Psychologists’ Characteristics, Perspectives, and Professional Behaviors

Counselling psychologists in eight countries (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the United States) responded to survey questions that focused on their demographics as well as their professional identities, roles, settings and activities. As well, they were asked about satisfaction with the specialty and the extent to which they endorsed 10 core counselling psychology values. This article reports those results, focusing both on areas in which there were between-country similarities as well as on those for which there were differences. These data provide is a snapshot of counselling psychology globally and establish a foundation for the other articles in this special issue of the journal.