QTL-seq for rapid identification of candidate genes for 100-seed weight and root/total plant dry weight ratio under rainfed conditions in chickpea.

Terminal drought is a major constraint to chickpea productivity. Two component traits responsible for reduction in yield under drought stress include reduction in seeds size and root length/root density. QTL-seq approach, therefore, was used to identify candidate genomic regions for 100-seed weight (100SDW) and total dry root weight to total plant dry weight ratio (RTR) under rainfed conditions.

Parasternal intercostal electromyography: a novel tool to assess respiratory load in children.

Background: Parasternal intercostal muscle electromyography (EMGpara) represents a novel tool to assess respiratory load when volitional techniques are not possible. This study examined the application of EMGpara in healthy, wheezy, and critically ill children.

Methods: Surface EMGpara was measured during tidal breathing in 92 healthy children, 20 wheezy preschool children (with measurements repeated following bronchodilator), and 25 mechanically ventilated children during supported ventilation and on continuous positive airways pressure.

Impaired sodium-dependent adaptation of arterial stiffness in formerly preeclamptic women: the RETAP-vascular study.

Women with a history of preeclampsia have an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases later in life. Persistent vascular alterations in the postpartum period might contribute to this increased risk. The current study assessed arterial stiffness under low sodium (LS) and high sodium (HS) conditions in a well-characterized group of formerly early-onset preeclamptic (fPE) women and formerly pregnant (fHP) women.

Cerebral amyloid-β accumulation and deposition following traumatic brain injury--A narrative review and meta-analysis of animal studies.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) increases the risk of neurodegenerative disorders many years post-injury. However, molecular mechanisms underlying the relationship between TBI and neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), remain to be elucidated. Nevertheless, previous studies have demonstrated a link between TBI and increased amyloid-β (Aβ), a protein involved in AD pathogenesis.

One step ahead: a parasitoid disperses farther and forms a wider geographic population than its fig wasp host.

The structure of populations across landscapes influences the dynamics of their interactions with other species. Understanding the geographic structure of populations can thus shed light on the potential for interacting species to co-evolve. Host-parasitoid interactions are widespread in nature and also represent a significant force in the evolution of plant-insect interactions.

Acute appendicitis: variation in outcomes by insurance status.

Background: Acute appendicitis (AA) is often studied as a surrogate for acute care surgery. Previous studies have shown differences in outcomes based on insurance status, but associated costs to health care systems are in need of further study. The purpose of the present study was to investigate how treatment, outcomes, and health care resource utilization differ between the uninsured and commercially insured in the setting of AA.

Novel application of complementary imaging techniques to examine in vivo glucose metabolism in the kidney.

The metabolic status of the kidney is a determinant of injury susceptibility and a measure of progression for many disease processes; however, noninvasive modalities to assess kidney metabolism are lacking. In this study, we employed positron emission tomography (PET) and intravital multiphoton microscopy (MPM) to assess cortical and proximal tubule glucose tracer uptake, respectively, following experimental perturbations of kidney metabolism. Applying dynamic image acquisition PET with 2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (F-FDG) and tracer kinetic modeling, we found that an intracellular compartment in the cortex of the kidney could be distinguished from the blood and urine compartments in animals.

Muc1 enhances the β-catenin protective pathway during ischemia-reperfusion injury.

The hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1 and β-catenin protective pathways represent the two most significant cellular responses that are activated in response to acute kidney injury. We previously reported that murine mucin (Muc)1 protects kidney function and morphology in a mouse model of ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) by stabilizing HIF-1α, enhancing HIF-1 downstream signaling, and thereby preventing metabolic stress (Pastor-Soler et al. Muc1 is protective during kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Mechanisms That Link Parenting Practices to Adolescents' Risky Sexual Behavior: A Test of Six Competing Theories.

Risky sexual behavior, particularly among adolescents, continues to be a major source of concern. In order to develop effective education and prevention programs, there is a need for research that identifies the antecedents of such behavior. This study investigated the mediators that link parenting experiences during early adolescence to subsequent risky sexual behaviors among a diverse sample of African American youth (N = 629, 55 % female).

A Barley Efflux Transporter Operates in a Na+-Dependent Manner, as Revealed by a Multidisciplinary Platform.

Plant growth and survival depend upon the activity of membrane transporters that control the movement and distribution of solutes into, around, and out of plants. Although many plant transporters are known, their intrinsic properties make them difficult to study. In barley (Hordeum vulgare), the root anion-permeable transporter Bot1 plays a key role in tolerance to high soil boron, facilitating the efflux of borate from cells.

Childhood Physical and Sexual Abuse and Social Network Patterns on Social Media: Associations With Alcohol Use and Problems Among Young Adult Women.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to examine the links between severities of child abuse (physical vs. sexual), and alcohol use versus problems via social media (Facebook) peer connection structures.

Method: A total of 318 undergraduate female students at a public university in the United States reported severity of child abuse experiences and current alcohol use and problems.

Prioritization of candidate genes in "QTL-hotspot" region for drought tolerance in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.).

A combination of two approaches, namely QTL analysis and gene enrichment analysis were used to identify candidate genes in the "QTL-hotspot" region for drought tolerance present on the Ca4 pseudomolecule in chickpea. In the first approach, a high-density bin map was developed using 53,223 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) identified in the recombinant inbred line (RIL) population of ICC 4958 (drought tolerant) and ICC 1882 (drought sensitive) cross. QTL analysis using recombination bins as markers along with the phenotyping data for 17 drought tolerance related traits obtained over 1-5 seasons and 1-5 locations split the "QTL-hotspot" region into two subregions namely "QTL-hotspot_a" (15 genes) and "QTL-hotspot_b" (11 genes).

The prevention and management of chronic disease in primary care: recommendations from a knowledge translation meeting.

Background: Seven chronic disease prevention and management programs were implemented across Quebec with funding support from a provincial-private industry funding initiative. Given the complexity of implementing integrated primary care chronic disease management programs, a knowledge transfer meeting was held to share experiences across programs and synthesize common challenges and success factors for implementation.

Methods: The knowledge translation meeting was held in February 2014 in Montreal, Canada.

Improving the quality of paediatric malaria diagnosis and treatment by rural providers in Myanmar: an evaluation of a training and support intervention.

Background: This study evaluates the effectiveness of a training programme for improving the diagnostic and treatment quality of the most complex service offered by Sun Primary Health (SPH) providers, paediatric malaria. The study further assesses whether any quality improvements were sustained over the following 12 months.

Methods: The study took place in 13 townships in central Myanmar between January 2011 and October 2012.

Diversity in boron toxicity tolerance of Australian barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) genotypes.

Background: Boron (B) is an important micronutrient for plant growth, but is toxic when levels are too high. This commonly occurs in environments with alkaline soils and relatively low rainfall, including many of the cereal growing regions of southern Australia. Four major genetic loci controlling tolerance to high soil B have been identified in the landrace barley, Sahara 3771.

Novel Reassortant Human-Like H3N2 and H3N1 Influenza A Viruses Detected in Pigs Are Virulent and Antigenically Distinct from Swine Viruses Endemic to the United States.

Unlabelled: Human-like swine H3 influenza A viruses (IAV) were detected by the USDA surveillance system. We characterized two novel swine human-like H3N2 and H3N1 viruses with hemagglutinin (HA) genes similar to those in human seasonal H3 strains and internal genes closely related to those of 2009 H1N1 pandemic viruses. The H3N2 neuraminidase (NA) was of the contemporary human N2 lineage, while the H3N1 NA was of the classical swine N1 lineage.

Evaluating the real-world predictive validity of the Body Image Quality of Life Inventory using Ecological Momentary Assessment.

Perceptions of physical appearance, or body image, can affect psychosocial functioning and quality of life (QOL). The present study evaluated the real-world predictive validity of the Body Image Quality of Life Inventory (BIQLI) using Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA). College women reporting subclinical disordered eating/body dissatisfaction (N=131) completed the BIQLI and related measures.

Quantitative profiling of polar primary metabolites of two chickpea cultivars with contrasting responses to salinity.

This study reports a GC-QqQ-MS method for the quantification of forty-eight primary metabolites from four major classes (sugars, sugar acids, sugar phosphates, and organic acids) which can be applied to a number of biological systems. The method was validated in terms of linearity, reproducibility and recovery, using both calibration standards and real samples. Additionally, twenty-eight biogenic amines and amino acids were quantified using an established LC-QqQ-MS method.

A Nurse Practitioner Clinic: A Novel Approach to Supporting Patients Following Heart Valve Surgery.

Background: Valvular heart disease is an important healthcare issue and its impacts are increasing. Following valve surgery, traditional models of care involve medical personnel, however, significant gaps in guideline adherence and delays in follow-up have been reported. Internationally, there is increasing evidence that specialist nurses can function in a variety of clinical settings and improve patient management.

Color associations to emotion and emotion-laden words: A collection of norms for stimulus construction and selection.

Color has the ability to influence a variety of human behaviors, such as object recognition, the identification of facial expressions, and the ability to categorize stimuli as positive or negative. Researchers have started to examine the relationship between emotional words and colors, and the findings have revealed that brightness is often associated with positive emotional words and darkness with negative emotional words (e.g.

Muc1 is protective during kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) due to hypotension is a common cause of human acute kidney injury (AKI). Hypoxia-inducible transcription factors (HIFs) orchestrate a protective response in renal endothelial and epithelial cells in AKI models. As human mucin 1 (MUC1) is induced by hypoxia and enhances HIF-1 activity in cultured epithelial cells, we asked whether mouse mucin 1 (Muc1) regulates HIF-1 activity in kidney tissue during IRI.

Loss of ATRX and DAXX expression identifies poor prognosis for smooth muscle tumours of uncertain malignant potential and early stage uterine leiomyosarcoma.

Uterine smooth muscle tumours of uncertain malignant potential (STUMP) are diagnostically and clinically challenging. The alternative lengthening of telomeres (ALT) telomere maintenance mechanism is associated with poor survival in soft tissue leiomyosarcoma. Time to first recurrence and survival were known for 18 STUMP and 43 leiomyosarcomata (LMS).

The role of APOE-ɛ4 and beta amyloid in the differential rate of recovery from ECT: a review.

Individual biological differences may contribute to the variability of outcomes, including cognitive effects, observed following electroconvulsive treatment (ECT). A narrative review of the research literature on carriage of the apolipoprotein E ɛ4 allele (APOE-ɛ4) and the protein biomarker beta amyloid (Aβ) with ECT cognitive outcome was undertaken. ECT induces repeated brain seizures and there is debate as to whether this causes brain injury and long-term cognitive disruption.