SNP-based association analysis for seedling traits in durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. durum (Desf.)).

In the present study, 150 accessions of worldwide originated durum wheat germplasm (Triticum turgidum spp. durum) were observed for major seedling traits and their growth. The accessions were evaluated for major seedling traits under controlled conditions of hydroponics at the 13th, 20th, 27th and 34th day-after germination. Biomass traits were measured at the 34th day-after germination. Correlation analysis was conducted among the seedling traits and three field traits at maturity, plant height, grain weight and 1000-grain weight observed in four consecutive years. Associations of the measured seedling traits and SNP markers were analyzed based on the mixed linear model (MLM). The results indicated that highly significant genetic variation and robust heritability were found for the seedling and field mature traits. In total, 259 significant associations were detected for all the traits and four growth stages. The phenotypic variation explained (R2) by a single SNP marker is higher than 10% for most (84%) of the significant SNP markers. Forty-six SNP markers associated with multiple traits, indicating non-neglectable pleiotropy in seedling stage. The associated SNP markers could be helpful for genetic analysis of seedling traits, and marker-assisted breeding of new wheat varieties with strong seedling vigor.

Cloning, expression analysis, and antibacterial propertiesof three serum amyloid A in common carp (Cyprinus carpio).

Three serum amyloid A (SAA) genes were identified from the common carp (Cyprinus carpio) by PCR and RT-PCR. Considering both direction and sequence similarity with mammal's orthologs, they were named CcSAA3a, CcSAA3b and CcSAA1. CcSAA3b and CcSAA1 are adjacent on contig LHQP01017858, suggesting that the prototype of or the simplest SAA multigene family have occurred in common carp. A phylogenetic analysis of the SAAs indicated that the fish SAAs were closer to those of invertebrates and Ornithorhynchus anatinus, a primitive mammal, than to mammalian SAAs. Quantitative real-time RT-PCR results displayed different expression profiles of three CcSAAs. The CcSAA3a was detected in all tested tissues, and was most abundant in the muscle; CcSAA3b was predominately expressed in the intestine and liver, and CcSAA1 in the skin. The expression level of CcSAA3a was higher than that of CcSAA3b and CcSAA1 in most tissues. Stimulation with Aeromonas hydrophila dramatically induced the expression of the three CcSAAs in all examined tissues, especially in the liver. Like Epinephelus coioides SAA, all of three rCcSAA fusion proteins could bind to both Gram-negative bacteria (A. hydrophila and E. coli) and Gram-positive bacterium (S. aureus), playing a role in the identification of bacteria. However, only rCcSAA3a showed significantly anti-A. hydrophila and anti-E. coli in vitro antibacterial activity assays. These results suggested that the three CcSAAs were in functional differentiation and play significant roles in the innate immunity of common carp.

Adaptive Genetic Differentiation and Solar Radiation in Wild Emmer Wheat, Triticum dicoccoides.

BACKGROUND: Microgeographic studies of molecular markers could reveal the nature and dynamics of genetic diversity and the evolutionary driving forces shaping evolution. METHODS: The microclimatic genetic divergence of wild emmer wheat associated with solar radiation was investigated, in the present study, using multiple types of molecular markers including allozyme, amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), simple sequence repeat (SSR), and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP). The studies included two climatic microniches: (1) sunny between oak trees; and (2) shady under the canopies of oak trees. RESULTS: All four types of markers showed a similar microniche tendency of genetic variance, i.e., lower in the shady than in the sunny niche. Significant genetic divergence at some loci including allozyme, RAPD, SSR, and SNP was detected between the two climatic microniches, and also, the observed genetic differentiation is mainly due to natural selection. Based on different FST outlier detection algorithms, there were 21 candidate loci subjected to positive selection. Importantly, most of the identified candidate loci were mapped in the selection "hot spots" of wheat genome. CONCLUSION: The present work implies that microclimatic selection appears to play an important role either in the protein-coding region or in the non-coding region of wheat genomes, and hence, highlights the evolutionary theory of natural selection.

Influence of the active layer nanomorphology on device performance for ternary PbS(x)Se(1-x) quantum dots based solution-processed infrared photodetector.

In this paper, the influence of the active layer nanomorphology on device performance for ternary PbS(x)Se(1-x) quantum dot-based solution-processed infrared photodetector is presented. Firstly, ternary PbS(x)Se(1-x) quantum dots (QDs) in various chemical composition were synthesized and the bandgap of the ternary PbS(x)Se(1-x) QDs can be controlled by the component ratio of S/(S + Se), and then field-effect transistor (FET) based photodetectors Au/PbS0.4Se0.6:P3HT/PMMA/Al, in which ternary PbS0.4Se0.6 QDs doped with poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) act as the active layer and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as the dielectric layer, were presented. By changing the weight ratio of P3HT to PbS0.4Se0.6 QDs (K = M(P3HT):M(QDs)) in dichlorobenzene solution, we found that the device with K = 2:1 shows optimal electrical property in dark; however, the device with K = 1:2 demonstrated optimal performance under illumination, showing a maximum responsivity and specific detectivity of 55.98 mA W(-1) and 1.02 × 10(10) Jones, respectively, at low V(DS) = -10 V and V(G) = 3 V under 980 nm laser with an illumination intensity of 0.1 mW cm(-2). By measuring the atomic force microscopy phase images of PbS0.4Se0.6:P3HT films in different weight ratio K, our experimental data show that the active layer nanomorphology has a great influence on the device performance. Also, it provides an easy way to fabricate high performance solution-processed infrared photodetector.

Stability enhancement of PbSe quantum dots via post-synthetic ammonium chloride treatment for a high-performance infrared photodetector.

Infrared (IR) emission lead selenide (PbSe) quantum dots (QDs) have gained considerable attention in the last decade due to their potential applications in optoelectronic devices. However, the comprehensive applications of PbSe QDs have not been realized yet due to their high susceptibility to oxidation in air. In this paper, we demonstrate the stability enhancement of PbSe colloidal QDs via a post-synthetic ammonium chloride treatment and its applications in a solution-processed high-performance IR photodetector with a field-effect transistor (FET) configuration by reversely fabricating the PbSe active layer and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) dielectric layer. The responsivity and the specific detectivity of the FET-based photodetector Au(source, drain)/PbSe(52 nm)/PMMA(930 nm)/Au(gate) reached 64.17 mA W(-1) and 5.08 × 10(10) Jones, respectively, under 980 nm laser illumination with an intensity of 0.1 mW cm(-2). Therefore, it provides a promising way to make a high-sensitivity near-IR/mid-IR photodetector.

Association of Agronomic Traits with SNP Markers in Durum Wheat (Triticum turgidum L. durum (Desf.)).

Association mapping is a powerful approach to detect associations between traits of interest and genetic markers based on linkage disequilibrium (LD) in molecular plant breeding. In this study, 150 accessions of worldwide originated durum wheat germplasm (Triticum turgidum spp. durum) were genotyped using 1,366 SNP markers. The extent of LD on each chromosome was evaluated. Association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) markers with ten agronomic traits measured in four consecutive years was analyzed under a mix linear model (MLM). Two hundred and one significant association pairs were detected in the four years. Several markers were associated with one trait, and also some markers were associated with multiple traits. Some of the associated markers were in agreement with previous quantitative trait loci (QTL) analyses. The function and homology analyses of the corresponding ESTs of some SNP markers could explain many of the associations for plant height, length of main spike, number of spikelets on main spike, grain number per plant, and 1000-grain weight, etc. The SNP associations for the observed traits are generally clustered in specific chromosome regions of the wheat genome, mainly in 2A, 5A, 6A, 7A, 1B, and 6B chromosomes. This study demonstrates that association mapping can complement and enhance previous QTL analyses and provide additional information for marker-assisted selection.