Single gene resistance to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense Race 4 in the wild banana Musa acuminata subsp. malaccensis

Fusarium wilt of banana, caused by the fungal pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc), is one of the most destructive diseases of banana. A particularly virulent strain of the pathogen, tropical race 4 (TR4), presents an emerging threat to banana producing regions throughout the world. No commercially acceptable banana cultivar is resistant to TR4 and, as with all strains of the Fusarium wilt pathogen, there is no effective chemical control. Genetic resistance to TR4 has been observed in the diploid wild banana Musa acuminata subsp. malaccensis, which has consequently received attention as a potential source of Fusarium resistance genes. The aim of this research was to determine the pattern of inheritance of the resistance trait by screening plants for resistance to Foc subtropical race 4 (SR4) and TR4. Our results showed that the F1 progeny of self-fertilized malaccensis plants challenged in pot trials against SR4 (VCGs 0120, 0129, 01211) and TR4 (VCG 01213/16) segregated for resistance according to a Mendelian ratio of 3:1 which is consistent with a single dominant gene hypothesis.

Centrioles: active players or passengers during mitosis?

No funding agencies or grants indicated in the publication.

Meta-analysis of telomere length in 19 713 subjects reveals high heritability, stronger maternal inheritance and a paternal age effect

Telomere length (TL) has been associated with aging and mortality, but individual differences are also influenced by genetic factors, with previous studies reporting heritability estimates ranging from 34 to 82%. Here we investigate the heritability, mode of inheritance and the influence of parental age at birth on TL in six large, independent cohort studies with a total of 19 713 participants. The meta-analysis estimate of TL heritability was 0.70 (95% CI 0.64–0.76) and is based on a pattern of results that is highly similar for twins and other family members. We observed a stronger mother–offspring (r=0.42; P-value=3.60 × 10−61) than father–offspring correlation (r=0.33; P-value=7.01 × 10−5), and a significant positive association with paternal age at offspring birth (β=0.005; P-value=7.01 × 10−5). Interestingly, a significant and quite substantial correlation in TL between spouses (r=0.25; P-value=2.82 × 10−30) was seen, which appeared stronger in older spouse pairs (mean age ≥55 years; r=0.31; P-value=4.27 × 10−23) than in younger pairs (mean age<55 years; r=0.20; P-value=3.24 × 10−10). In summary, we find a high and very consistent heritability estimate for TL, evidence for a maternal inheritance component and a positive association with paternal age.

Significant evidence of one or more susceptibility loci for endometriosis with near-Mendelian inheritance on chromosome 7p13-15

BACKGROUND: Endometriosis is a common disease with a heritable component. The collaborative International Endogene Study consists of two data sets (Oxford and Australia) comprising 1176 families with multiple affected. The aim was to investigate whether the apparent concentration of cases in a proportion of families could be explained by one or more rare variants with (near-)Mendelian autosomal inheritance. METHODS AND RESULTS: Linkage analyses (aimed at finding chromosomal regions harbouring disease-predisposing genes) were conducted in families with three or more affected (Oxford: n = 52; Australia: n = 196). In the Oxford data set, a non-parametric linkage score (Kong & Cox (K&C) Log of ODds (LOD)) of 3.52 was observed on chromosome 7p (genome-wide significance P = 0.011). A parametric MOD score (equal to maximum LOD maximized over 357 possible inheritance models) of 3.89 was found at 65.72 cM (D7S510) for a dominant model with reduced penetrance. After including the Australian data set, the non-parametric K&C LOD of the combined data set was 1.46 at 57.3 cM; the parametric analysis found an MOD score of 3.30 at D7S484 (empirical significance: P = 0.035) for a recessive model with high penetrance. Critical recombinant analysis narrowed the probable region of linkage down to overlapping 6.4 Mb and 11 Mb intervals containing 48 and 96 genes, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first report to suggest that there may be one or more high-penetrance susceptibility loci for endometriosis with (near-)Mendelian inheritance.

Boundary regularity of correspondences in C-n

Let M, M' be smooth, real analytic hypersurfaces of finite type in C-n and f a holomorphic correspondence (not necessarily proper) that is defined on one side of M, extends continuously up to M and maps M to M-t. It is shown that f must extend across M as a locally proper holonnorphic correspondence. This is a version for correspondences of the Diederich-Pinchuk extension result for CR maps.

Error analysis of discontinuous Galerkin methods for the Stokes problem under minimal regularity

In this article, we analyse several discontinuous Galerkin (DG) methods for the Stokes problem under minimal regularity on the solution. We assume that the velocity u belongs to H-0(1)(Omega)](d) and the pressure p is an element of L-0(2)(Omega). First, we analyse standard DG methods assuming that the right-hand side f belongs to H-1(Omega) boolean AND L-1(Omega)](d). A DG method that is well defined for f belonging to H-1(Omega)](d) is then investigated. The methods under study include stabilized DG methods using equal-order spaces and inf-sup stable ones where the pressure space is one polynomial degree less than the velocity space.

Regimes of nonlinear depletion and regularity in the 3D Navier-Stokes equations

The periodic 3D Navier-Stokes equations are analyzed in terms of dimensionless, scaled, L-2m-norms of vorticity D-m (1 <= m <= infinity). The first in this hierarchy, D-1, is the global enstrophy. Three regimes naturally occur in the D-1-D-m plane. Solutions in the first regime, which lie between two concave curves, are shown to be regular, owing to strong nonlinear depletion. Moreover, numerical experiments have suggested, so far, that all dynamics lie in this heavily depleted regime 1]; new numerical evidence for this is presented. Estimates for the dimension of a global attractor and a corresponding inertial range are given for this regime. However, two more regimes can theoretically exist. In the second, which lies between the upper concave curve and a line, the depletion is insufficient to regularize solutions, so no more than Leray's weak solutions exist. In the third, which lies above this line, solutions are regular, but correspond to extreme initial conditions. The paper ends with a discussion on the possibility of transition between these regimes.

Strain Regularity and Stiffness Tensor of Reinforcers in Dense Particle Reinforced Composites

针对高体积份数、随机分布、等轴状颗粒增强复合材料 ,研究了材料的应变分布规律 ,给出了基体和增强体应变平均值与材料微观结构参数之间的定量关系。结果表明 ,除应变平均值外 ,应变涨落是影响刚度张量的另一个重要因素 ,研究了应变涨落与材料微观结构参数之间的关系 ,并推导出了复合材料的刚度张量。与实验结果和以往的理论比较 ,预测结果与实验结果吻合良好

Regularity of strain distribution in short-fiber/whisker reinforced composites

Based on studies on the strain distribution in short-fiber/whisker reinforced metal matrix composites, a deformation characteristic parameter, lambda is defined as a ratio of root-mean-square strain of the reinforcers identically oriented to the macro-linear strain along the same direction. Quantitative relation between lambda and microstructure parameters of composites is obtained. By using lambda, the stiffness moduli of composites with arbitrary reinforcer orientation density function and under arbitrary loading condition are derived. The upper-bound and lower-bound of the present prediction are the same as those from the equal-strain theory and equal-stress theory, respectively. The present theory provides a physical explanation and theoretical base for the present commonly-used empirical formulae. Compared with the microscopic mechanical theories, the present theory is competent for stiffness modulus prediction of practical engineering composites in accuracy and simplicity.

Approximate Best Proximity Points of Cyclic Self-maps in Metric Spaces and Cyclic Asymptotic Regularity

3rd International Conference on Mathematical Modeling in Physical Sciences (IC-MSQUARE) Madrid, AUG 28-31, 2014 / editado por Vagenas, EC; Vlachos, DS; Bastos, C; Hofer, T; Kominis, Y; Kosmas, O; LeLay, G; DePadova, P; Rode, B; Suraud, E; Varga, K

Polymorphic EST-SSR markers and their mode of inheritance in Fenneropenaeus chinensis

229 SSRs (simple sequence repeats) were identified among 10,443 ESTs (expressed sequence tags) of Chinese shrimp (Fenneropenaeus chinensis). The average density of SSRs was one SSR per 19.1 kb of EST sequence screened. The dinucleotide repeats appeared to be the most abundant SSRs detected. Nine EST-SSR markers were detected polymorphisms of the thirty SSR primer pairs derived from F chinensis ESTs. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 5 to 15, with an average of 9.1 alleles per locus. The observed heterozygosity of nine loci ranged from 0.47 to 0.87. These loci were used successfully for pedigree analysis in three families of Fenneropenaeus chinensis. Two of the nine microsatellite loci showed the existence of null alleles. Assuming the existence of null alleles at Fc07 and Fc14 loci, the allelic inheritance mode of the EST-SSR DNA markers (Fc04, Fc06, Fc07, Fc10, Fc14, Fc18, Fc22, Fc24, and Fc27) was consistent with Mendelian segregation. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Recovering a lost inheritance : The marital economy and its absence from the Prehistory of Economics in Britain

Roberts, Michael. 'Recovering a lost inheritance: the marital economy and its absence from the Prehistory of Economics in Britain', in: 'The Marital Economy in Scandinavia and Britain 1400-1900', (Eds) Argen, Maria., Erickson, Amy Louise., Farnham: Ashgate, 2005, pp.239-256 RAE2008

Intersubject Regularity in the Intrinsic Shape of Human V1

Previous studies have reported considerable intersubject variability in the three-dimensional geometry of the human primary visual cortex (V1). Here we demonstrate that much of this variability is due to extrinsic geometric features of the cortical folds, and that the intrinsic shape of V1 is similar across individuals. V1 was imaged in ten ex vivo human hemispheres using high-resolution (200 μm) structural magnetic resonance imaging at high field strength (7 T). Manual tracings of the stria of Gennari were used to construct a surface representation, which was computationally flattened into the plane with minimal metric distortion. The instrinsic shape of V1 was determined from the boundary of the planar representation of the stria. An ellipse provided a simple parametric shape model that was a good approximation to the boundary of flattened V1. The aspect ration of the best-fitting ellipse was found to be consistent across subject, with a mean of 1.85 and standard deviation of 0.12. Optimal rigid alignment of size-normalized V1 produced greater overlap than that achieved by previous studies using different registration methods. A shape analysis of published macaque data indicated that the intrinsic shape of macaque V1 is also stereotyped, and similar to the human V1 shape. Previoud measurements of the functional boundary of V1 in human and macaque are in close agreement with these results.

Regularity of invariant densities for 1D systems with random switching

© 2015 IOP Publishing Ltd & London Mathematical Society.This is a detailed analysis of invariant measures for one-dimensional dynamical systems with random switching. In particular, we prove the smoothness of the invariant densities away from critical points and describe the asymptotics of the invariant densities at critical points.