Next Generation Sequencing in Newborn Screening in the United Kingdom National Health Service.

Next generation DNA sequencing (NGS) has the potential to improve the diagnostic and prognostic utility of newborn screening programmes. This study assesses the feasibility of automating NGS on dried blood spot (DBS) DNA in a United Kingdom National Health Service (UK NHS) laboratory. An NGS panel targeting the entire coding sequence of five genes relevant to disorders currently screened for in newborns in the UK was validated on DBS DNA.

Combined Chlorophyll Fluorescence and Transcriptomic Analysis Identifies the P3/P4 Transition as a Key Stage in Rice Leaf Photosynthetic Development.

Leaves are derived from heterotrophic meristem tissue that, at some point, must make the transition to autotrophy via the initiation of photosynthesis. However, the timing and spatial coordination of the molecular and cellular processes underpinning this switch are poorly characterized. Here, we report on the identification of a specific stage in rice (Oryza sativa) leaf development (P3/P4 transition) when photosynthetic competence is first established.