Replicated high-density genetic maps of two great tit populations reveal fine-scale genomic departures from sex-equal recombination rates

Linking variation in quantitative traits to variation in the genome is an important, but challenging task in the study of life-history evolution. Linkage maps provide a valuable tool for the unravelling of such trait−gene associations. Moreover, they give insight into recombination landscapes and between-species karyotype evolution. Here we used genotype data, generated from a 10k single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) chip, of over 2000 individuals to produce high-density linkage maps of the great tit (Parus major), a passerine bird that serves as a model species for ecological and evolutionary questions. We created independent maps from two distinct populations: a captive F2-cross from The Netherlands (NL) and a wild population from the United Kingdom (UK). The two maps contained 6554 SNPs in 32 linkage groups, spanning 2010 cM and 1917 cM for the NL and UK populations, respectively, and were similar in size and marker order. Subtle levels of heterochiasmy within and between chromosomes were remarkably consistent between the populations, suggesting that the local departures from sex-equal recombination rates have evolved. This key and surprising result would have been impossible to detect if only one population was mapped. A comparison with zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata, chicken Gallus gallus and the green anole lizard Anolis carolinensis genomes provided further insight into the evolution of avian karyotypes.     

Effects of maternal opiate abuse on the newborn

Infants born to opiate-dependent women frequently have low birth weights and low 1- and 5-min Apgar scores. Significant postnatal problems, excluding neonatal withdrawal, can include jaundice, infection, aspiration pneumonia, transient tachypnea, and hyaline membrane disease. Neonatal abstinence may be severe and persist for as long as 3 months. Abstinence symptoms can include central nervous system hyperirritability, gastrointestinal dysfunction, respiratory distress, tremors, fever, high-pitched cry, increased muscle tone, uncoordinated sucking and swallowing reflexes, dehydration, and possible electrolyte imbalance. During the first week of life, increased respirations associated with hypocapnia and alkalosis may occur. The Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale has been used to quantify the neurobehavioral effects on neonates of narcotics administered prenatally. A marked decline in mortality rates of infants born to opiate-dependent mothers is evident. In Philadelphia, infant morbidity has been related not only to the type of maternal narcotic dependence, but also to the amount of prenatal care. Infants whose mothers received prenatal care have been found to have higher birth weights similar to infants of control mothers. Although the newborn with intrauterine exposure to narcotic agents may appear normal at birth, the effects of the pharmacologic agent may not become apparent until later in development. To obtain a more favorable outcome for the high-risk mother and child involved in the problems of perinatal addiction, several recommendations are proposed.     

Derived,still living cockroach genus Cariblattoides (Blattida: Blattellidae) from the Eocene sediments of Green River in Colorado,USA

Abstract Cariblattoides labandeirai sp.n. from the Eocene sediments of Green River in Colorado, USA bear only two plesiomorphies, but also several significant autapomorphies within the advanced and highly derived living cockroach genus. Thus, Cariblattoides with extant occurrence in the Caribbean and South America was historically common in the Nearctic, and represents important evidence for the occurrence of derived living genera of cockroaches ～50 Ma ago. Generally, the vast majority of living genera were absent during the Palaeocene, thus the diversification of most living cockroach lineages near the Palaeocene/Eocene boundary must have been extremely rapid. Females of living C. suave, the type species, have identical (sophisticated) coloration of pronotum, but the most related living taxa are C. piraiensis and C. fontesi from Brazil (supported by phylogenetical analysis).     

Transposable elements.

Transposable elements comprise a major fraction of eukaryotic genomes. They are studied both because of their intrinsic biological interest and because they can be exploited as valuable research tools. Many interesting papers dealing with various aspects of the biology of these elements have been published during the past year and a number of new elements have been reported. Four areas in which particularly valuable contributions have been made are the mechanisms of transposition, the regulation of transposition, the use of transposable elements as research tools, and the biological function of transposable elements.