Reinventing quantitative genetics for plant breeding: something old,something new,something borrowed,something BLUE

The goals of quantitative genetics differ according to its field of application. In plant breeding, the main focus of quantitative genetics is on identifying candidates with the best genotypic value for a target population of environments. Keeping quantitative genetics current requires keeping old concepts that remain useful, letting go of what has become archaic, and introducing new concepts and methods that support contemporary breeding. The core concept of continuous variation being due to multiple Mendelian loci remains unchanged. Because the entirety of germplasm available in a breeding program is not in Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium, classical concepts that assume random mating, such as the average effect of an allele and additive variance, need to be retired in plant breeding. Doing so is feasible because with molecular markers, mixed-model approaches that require minimal genetic assumptions can be used for best linear unbiased estimation (BLUE) and prediction. Plant breeding would benefit from borrowing approaches found useful in other disciplines. Examples include reliability as a new measure of the influence of genetic versus nongenetic effects, and operations research and simulation approaches for designing breeding programs. The genetic entities in such simulations should not be generic but should be represented by the pedigrees, marker data, and phenotypic data for the actual germplasm in a breeding program. Over the years, quantitative genetics in plant breeding has become increasingly empirical and computational and less grounded in theory. This trend will continue as the amount and types of data available in a breeding program increase.Subject terms: Plant sciences, Genetics     

Neoplastic transformation of human hybrid cells by gamma radiation: a quantitative assay

Human skin fibroblasts are extremely refractory to neoplastic transformation by ionizing radiation [C. Borek, Nature 283, 776-778 (1980); M. Namba, H. Nishitani, and T. Kimoto, J. Exp. Med. 48, 303-311 (1978)] and are therefore unsuitable for quantitative studies of dose-effect relationships. We show here that a nontumorigenic human hybrid cell line (HeLa X skin fibroblast) can be neoplastically transformed by treatment with gamma radiation. Furthermore, a dose-response relationship has been established. We propose that this human hybrid cell line may be a useful system for mechanistic studies of transformation from the preneoplastic to the neoplastic state by ionizing radiation and other agents.     

Acute moderate-intensity exercise in middle-aged men has neither an anti- nor proinflammatory effect.

Strenuous exercise induces an initial pro- and subsequent anti-inflammatory response, and it has been suggested that this may be one of the ways that regular exercise reduces chronic inflammation and therefore the risk of cardiovascular disease. However, public health recommendations emphasize moderate-intensity physical activity, and it is important to understand whether moderate-intensity exercise has a similar anti-inflammatory effect. Twelve sedentary male volunteers (age 54 +/- 4 yr) completed two main trials, moderate-intensity exercise and rest (30 min at 50% maximal oxygen uptake vs. sitting, respectively). There were no significant changes in circulating neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, or serum interleukin-6, interleukin-10, and C-reactive protein concentration over the 7 days following exercise. Similarly, lymphocyte adhesion to cultured endothelial cells and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) expression in lymphocytes and monocytes were not affected by walking at any time point. These results suggest that the long-term anti-inflammatory and antiatherogenic effects of regular moderate-intensity physical activity must be explained by something other than a profound net anti-inflammatory response to each exercise bout since a single bout of walking did not lead to a change in various markers of inflammation or lymphocyte adherence to cultured endothelial cells.     

Concerted Action Of Reduced Glutathione And Superoxide Dismutase In Preventing Redox Cycling Of Dihydroxypyrimidines, And Their Role In Antioxidant Defence

Dialuric Acid, the reduced form of the β-cell toxin alloxan, and the related fava bean derivatives divicine and isouramil, autoxidize rapidly in neutral solution by a radical mechanism. GSH promotes redox cycling of each compound, with concomitant GSH oxidation and H₂O₂ production. With superoxide dismutase present, there is a lag period in which little oxidation occurs, followed by rapid oxidation. GSH extends this lag and decreases the subsequent rate of oxidation, so that with superoxide dismutase and a sufficient excess of GSH. coupled oxidation of GSH and each pyrimidine is almost completely suppressed. This mechanism may be a means whereby GSH in combination with superoxide dismutase protects against the cytotoxic effects of these reactive pyrimidines. Superoxide dismutase may also protect cells against oxida-tive stress in other situations where GSH acts as a radical scavenger. and we propose that the concerted action of GSH and superoxide dismutase constitutes an important antioxidant defence     

Foliage diterpenes of Dacrydium Intermedium: identification,variation and biosynthesis

The major diterpenes in the foliage of Dacrydium intermedium have been identified as rimuene, ent-rosadiene, ent-beyerene, phyllocladene, ent-kaurene, sclarene and ent-sclarene. ent-Rosadiene and ent-sclarene have not been reported previously from natural sources. Considerable tree-to-tree variations are encountered and genetic control is proposed. Biosynthetic mechanisms are put forward to explain the presence of diterpenes of both enantiomeric series. A lack of mono- and sesquiterpenes in both D. intermedium and D. fonkii, which ties in with Quinn's proposed revision of the Dacrydium genus, is also noted.     

Biorhythms of four serum proteins of the laboratory rat: IgG transferrin alpha 2-acute phase protein and a VLD lipoprotein

Four serum proteins (IgG, alpha 2-macroglobulin or alpha 2-acute phase protein, transferrin and a VLD-lipoprotein) of the rat have been examined wit respect to quantitative alterations reflecting biorhythms. All four proteins show distinct biorhythms. VLDL and alpha 2-AP seem to undergo a common circadian rhythm whereas the circadian rhythms of IgG and transferrin are superimposed by an infradian and ultradian rhythm, respectively. The examined proteins are apparently regulated by different ways possibly dependent in each case on the biological function. By means of chronobiological investigations perhaps further functional characterization of serum proteins are possible and alterations of the biorhythm may give additional information for pharmacological or toxicological research.     

Development and utilization of a somatic cell hybrid mapping panel to assign NotI linking probes to the long arm of human chromosome 6.

A somatic cell hybrid mapping panel that defines seven regions of the long arm and one region of the short arm of human chromosome 6 has been developed. Utilizing this panel, 17 NotI boundary clones from a NotI linking library were regionally assigned to the long arm of chromosome 6. The majority of these clones (11) were found to localize within band regions 6q24-q27. The nonuniform distribution of NotI sites may indicate a cluster of HTF islands and likely represents a coincidence of coding sequences in this region of chromosome 6. Cross-hybridization of these linking clones to DNA from other species (zoo blots) provides further evidence for transcribed sequences in 7 of the NotI clones. These NotI clones were also used to identify corresponding NotI fragments using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, facilitating further physical mapping of this region. Finally, regional assignment of five polymorphic probes to the long arm of chromosome 6 is also presented. These hybrids and probes should facilitate the construction of a physical and genetic linkage map to assist in the identification of disease loci along chromosome 6.