Development of molecular inversion probes for soybean progeny genomic selection genotyping.

Increasing rate of genetic gain for key agronomic traits through genomic selection requires the development of new molecular methods to run genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). The main limitation of current methods is the cost is too high to screen breeding populations. Molecular inversion probes (MIPs) are a targeted genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) method that could be used for soybean [Glycine max (L.

Photonics probing of pup brain tissue and molecular-specific nuclear nanostructure alterations due to fetal alcoholism via light scattering/localization approaches.

Significance: Light is a good probe for studying the nanoscale-level structural or molecular-specific structural properties of brain cells/tissue due to stress, alcohol, or any other abnormalities. Chronic alcoholism during pregnancy, i.e.

Carbon footprint and net carbon gain of major long-term cropping systems under no-tillage.

Due to increased contribution from agriculture sector to total greenhouse gas emissions, there is need to study the ability of no-tilled diverse cropping systems including crop sequences and bio-covers to mitigate C equivalent emissions. Thus, C-footprint was calculated for a long-term experiment at the University of Tennessee's Research and Education Center in Milan with six-crop sequences: continuous cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.), cotton-corn (Zea mays L.

Paternal Cocaine in Mice Alters Social Behavior and Brain Oxytocin Receptor Density in First Generation Offspring.

It is well established that the damaging effects of drugs of abuse, such as cocaine, can extend beyond the user to their offspring. While most preclinical models of the generational effects of cocaine abuse have focused on maternal effects, we, and others, report distinct effects on offspring sired by fathers treated with cocaine prior to breeding. However, little is known about the effects of paternal cocaine use on first generation (F1) offspring's social behaviors.

Defining the multidimensional phenotype: New opportunities to integrate the behavioral ecology and behavioral neuroscience of vocal learning.

Vocal learning has evolved independently in several lineages. This complex cognitive trait is commonly treated as binary: species either possess or lack it. This view has been a useful starting place to examine the origins of vocal learning, but is also incomplete and potentially misleading, as specific components of the vocal learning program - such as the timing, extent and nature of what is learned - vary widely among species.

Mitigating nitrogen pollution with under-sown legume-grass cover crop mixtures in winter cereals.

Nitrogen (N) pollution from N inputs to agricultural soils contributes to widespread eutrophication and global climate change. One period susceptible to N losses is between winter grain harvest in summer and corn planting in spring in a corn (Zea mays L.)-soybean [Glycine max (L.

Bayesian estimation and sensitivity analysis of toluene and trichloroethylene biodegradation kinetic parameters.

Parameter estimation is needed for process management, design, and reactor scaling when values from the literature vary tremendously or are unavailable. A Bayesian approach, implemented via Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulations using SAS software, was used to estimate the kinetic parameters of toluene and trichloroethylene (TCE) biodegradation by the microorganism Pseudomonas putida F1 in batch cultures. The prediction capabilities of Bayesian estimation were illustrated by comparing predicted and observed data and reported in goodness-of-fit statistics.

Insecticidal Gene Silencing by RNAi in the Neotropical Region.

Insecticidal gene silencing by RNA interference (RNAi) involves a post-transcriptional mechanism with great potential for insect control. Here, we aim to summarize the progress on RNAi research toward control of insect pests in the Neotropical region and discuss factors determining its efficacy and prospects for pest management. We include an overview of the available RNAi information for Neotropical pests in the Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Diptera, and Hemiptera orders.

New Cockroaches (Dictyoptera: Blattodea) from French Guiana and a Revised Checklist for the Region.

Although French Guiana is one of the greatest hotspots of cockroach biodiversity on Earth, there are still undocumented species. From both newly collected and museum specimens, we provide species descriptions for Buboblatta vlasaki sp. nov.

Thermal Inactivation Kinetics of Tulane Virus in Cell-Culture Medium and Spinach.

Human noroviruses (HNoVs) cause significant gastrointestinal disease outbreaks worldwide. Tulane virus (TV) is a cultivable HNoV surrogate widely used to determine control measures against HNoVs. The objective of this study was to determine the heat inactivation kinetics (D- and z-values) of TV in cell-culture media and on spiked homogenized spinach using the first-order and Weibull models.

High Intensity Ultrasound for Salmonella Enteritidis Inactivation in Culture and Liquid Whole Eggs.

High intensity ultrasound (HIU) continues to be researched as a nonthermal inactivation technology of appeal to food manufacturers. The advantages of HIU include maintenance of product quality, freshness, product homogenization, along with simultaneous inactivation of pathogens. Besides, it is simple, relatively inexpensive, and easily adaptable to most processing environments.

Paternal Cocaine Disrupts Offspring Circadian Clock Function in a Sex-Dependent Manner in Mice.

The present study is the first to explore the multigenerational effects of mammalian paternal cocaine intake on offspring (F1) circadian clock regulation. Parental cocaine use poses significant health risks to the offspring, through both maternal and paternal drug influences. With respect to the latter, recent evidence suggests that a paternal mode of cocaine inheritance involves epigenetic germ line actions that can ultimately disrupt offspring behavior.

Antimicrobial Effects of Quillaja saponaria Extract Against Escherichia coli O157:H7 and the Emerging Non-O157 Shiga Toxin-Producing E. coli.

Natural alternate methods to control the spread of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are important to prevent foodborne outbreaks. Quillaja saponaria aqueous bark extracts (QE), cleared by the U.S.

Essential Oils Against Pathogen and Spoilage Microorganisms of Fruit Juices: Use of Versatile Antimicrobial Delivery Systems.

Essential oils (EO) are increasingly used as natural antimicrobial compounds, however the effect of delivery system to enhance their antimicrobial activity has not been widely studied. Limonene (0 to 10 μL/mL) was added to microbial suspensions (∼10 CFU/mL) of selected foodborne pathogens (Listeria monocytogenes Scott A, Salmonella enterica Typhimurium, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus), and spoilage microorganisms (Lactobacillus plantarum, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Candida albicans). S.

Antimicrobial Efficacy of an Array of Essential Oils Against Lactic Acid Bacteria.

The essential oils of clove bud, cinnamon bark and thyme, and their individual compounds including allyl isothiocyanate (AIT), carvacrol, cinnamaldehyde, cinnamic acid, eugenol, and thymol were initially assessed for antimicrobial activity against 9 lactic acid bacteria (LAB) species. Carvacrol and thymol were the most inhibitory with MICs of 0.1% (v/v and w/v, respectively).

Comparison of SIRT and SQS for Regularized Weighted Least Squares Image Reconstruction.

Tomographic image reconstruction is often formulated as a regularized weighted least squares (RWLS) problem optimized by iterative algorithms that are either inherently algebraic or derived from a statistical point of view. This paper compares a modified version of SIRT (Simultaneous Iterative Reconstruction Technique), which is of the former type, with a version of SQS (Separable Quadratic Surrogates), which is of the latter type. We show that the two algorithms minimize the same criterion function using similar forms of preconditioned gradient descent.

Antilisterial Peptides Released by Enzymatic Hydrolysis from Grass Carp Proteins and Activity on Controlling L. monocytogenes Inoculated in Surimi Noodle.

Unlabelled: The primary objective of this study was to prepare the antilisterial peptides by enzymatic (pepsin, trypsin, protamex, neutrase, flavourzyme, papain, alcalase, and acid protease) hydrolysis of grass carp proteins with various degree of hydrolysis. The second objective was to evaluate the antilisterial activity of grass carp proteins hydrolysates (GCPH) at differnet levels in the surimi noodle samples with or without boiling treatment inoculated with 10(4) CFU/g of Listeria monocytogenes for storage at 4 and 25 °C up to 20 d. These results revealed that GCPH, obtained by treatment with the neutrase hydrolysates at degree of hydrolysis of 19% (NSH19), showed the highest antilisterial activity reaching up to 64.

Engineered Nanoscale Food Ingredients: Evaluation of Current Knowledge on Material Characteristics Relevant to Uptake from the Gastrointestinal Tract.

The NanoRelease Food Additive project developed a catalog to identify potential engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) used as ingredients, using various food-related databases. To avoid ongoing debate on defining the term nanomaterial, NanoRelease did not use any specific definition other than the ingredient is not naturally part of the food chain, and its dimensions are measured in the nanoscale. Potential nanomaterials were categorized based on physical similarity; analysis indicated that the range of ENMs declared as being in the food chain was limited.

Impact of rearing conditions on the microbiological quality of raw retail poultry meat.

There is a gap in knowledge of microbiological quality in raw chicken products produced by nonconventional methods and no studies have reported the microbiological quality of turkeys produced under different rearing environments. Thus, the aim of this study was to compare the microbiological quality of conventionally and organically reared whole chicken and turkey carcasses purchased from 3 retail outlets in Knoxville, Tenn., U.

Variation in sodium current amplitude between vasopressin and oxytocin hypothalamic supraoptic neurons.

Biophysical characteristics of tetrodotoxin-sensitive sodium (Na(+)) currents were studied in vasopressin (VP) and oxytocin (OT) supraoptic neurons acutely isolated from rat hypothalamus. Na(+) current density (pA/pF) was significantly greater in VP neurons than in OT neurons. No significant difference between VP and OT neurons was detected regarding the voltage dependence of activation and steady-state inactivation, or rate of recovery from inactivation of Na(+) currents.

Sweet-bitter and umami-bitter taste interactions in single parabrachial neurons in C57BL/6J mice.

We investigated sweet-bitter and umami-bitter mixture taste interactions by presenting sucrose or umami stimuli mixed with quinine hydrochloride (QHCl) while recording single-unit activity of neurons in the parabrachial nucleus (PbN) of urethane-anesthetized C57BL/6J mice. A total of 70 taste-responsive neurons were classified according to which stimulus evoked the greatest net response (36 sucrose-best, 19 NaCl-best, 6 citric acid-best, and 9 QHCl-best). Although no neurons responded best to monopotassium glutamate (MPG) or inosine 5'-monophosphate (IMP), the combination of these two stimuli evoked a synergistic response (i.