Notes

An instant Way of Stably Transforming Almond Seeds.
Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most common malignant brain tumour in children and is subdivided into four subgroups WNT, SHH, Group 3, and Group 4. These molecular subgroups differ in their metastasis patterns and related prognosis rates. Conventional 2D cell culture methods fail to recapitulate these clinical differences. Realistic 3D models of the cerebellum are therefore necessary to investigate subgroup-specific functional differences and their role in metastasis and chemoresistance. A major component of the brain extracellular matrix (ECM) is the glycosaminoglycan hyaluronan. MB cell lines encapsulated in hyaluronan hydrogels grew as tumour nodules, with Group 3 and Group 4 cell lines displaying clinically characteristic laminar metastatic patterns and levels of chemoresistance. The glycoproteins, laminin and vitronectin, were identified as subgroup-specific, tumour-secreted ECM factors. Gels of higher complexity, formed by incorporation of laminin or vitronectin, revealed subgroup-specific adhesion and growth patterns closely mimicking clinical phenotypes. ECM subtypes, defined by relative levels of laminin and vitronectin expression in patient tissue microarrays and gene expression data sets, were able to identify novel high-risk MB patient subgroups and predict overall survival. Our hyaluronan model system has therefore allowed us to functionally characterize the interaction between different MB subtypes and their environment. It highlights the prognostic and pathological role of specific ECM factors and enables preclinical development of subgroup-specific therapies. © 2020 The Authors. The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. on behalf of The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland.The unpredictable precipitation and water deficit conditions in semiarid regions significantly reduce the yield of summer maize. The exogenous application of plant growth regulators can be used as a strategy to enhance plant stress tolerance and improve the growth and yield of maize under semiarid conditions. Here, we studied the protective role of melatonin application on maize yield using grain filling rate and hormonal crosstalk in maize grains. In the first field experiment, seeds were soaked with melatonin at a concentration of 0 (SM0 ), 25 (SM1 ), 50 (SM2 ), and 75 μM (SM3 ) μM. In contrast, in the second experiment, melatonin was applied on the foliage at the ninth leaf stage at a concentration of 0 (FM0 ), 25 (FM1 ), 50 (FM2 ), and 75 (FM3 ) μM. Our findings showed that melatonin treatments as seed soaking significantly increased single seed weight, seed filling rate in superior, medium and inferior seeds by regulating the hormone levels compared to foliar application. Application of melatonin significantly increased the zeatin+zeatin riboside (Z+ZR), indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), and gibberellic acid (GA) contents. However, it significantly inhibited the contents of abscisic acid (ABA) during the seed filling period. The content of Z+ZR, IAA, and GA was positively correlated with the maximum seed filling rate, seed weight, and mean filling rate in middle, superior and lower seeds, while the ABA was negatively correlated. The ABA content in inferior seeds was positively correlated with the maximum and mean seed filling rate. In semiarid regions, melatonin treatment of SM2 and FM2 significantly increased the dry matter per plant, 100-grain weight, seed filling rate, IAA, Z+ZR, GA contents, ear characteristics, and maize yield.
Corticobasal syndrome (CBS) is an atypical parkinsonian syndrome related to multiple underlying pathologies.

To investigate if individual brain [
F]fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) patterns could distinguish CBS due to Alzheimer's disease (AD) from other pathologies based on [
C]Pittsburgh Compound-B (PIB)-PET.

Forty-five patients with probable CBS were prospectively evaluated regarding cognitive and movement disorders profile. They underwent FDG-PET and were distributed into groups likely related to AD (CBS FDG-AD) or likely non-AD (CBS FDG-nonAD) pathology. Thirty patients underwent PIB-PET on a hybrid PET-magnetic resonance imaging equipment to assess their amyloid status. FDG and PIB-PET images were classified individually based on visual and semi-quantitative analysis, blinded to each other. Quantitative group analyses were also performed.

CBS FDG-AD group demonstrated worse cognitive performances, mostly concerning attention, memory, visuospatial domains, and displayneration patterns, different clinical features, and brain amyloid deposition. © 2020 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.
In randomized controlled trials, lung cancer screening with low-dose chest computed tomography (LCS) has been reported to reduce lung cancer mortality. Although initial studies suggested that only approximately 5% of eligible patients have undergone LCS, recent studies have indicated that use of LCS may be increasing nationwide. The objective of the current study was to estimate recent LCS use using cross-sectional survey data from the 2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey.

The BRFSS is a nationally representative, cross-sectional telephone survey of adults in the United States (response rate of approximately 50%). The 2018 BRFSS survey included questions regarding LCS eligibility and use in 8 states. The primary outcome was the percentage of participants (aged 55-79 years with a smoking history of >30 pack-years) who reported undergoing LCS. Logistic regression analyses evaluated the association between LCS use and sociodemographic characteristics, adjusted for potential confo remains low (19%) among eligible participants.
Knowledge of how drinking motives are differentially associated with alcohol use (e.g., frequency, quantity) and drinking problems is critical in understanding risky drinking and the development of alcohol use disorder. The purpose of this paper was to use meta-analytic techniques to answer 2 overarching questions (a) Which types of drinking motives (i.e., enhancement, coping, social, conformity) are most strongly associated with alcohol use and drinking problems? and (b) What are the most likely mechanisms (alcohol use or drinking problems) through which motives may be indirectly associated with outcomes?

A comprehensive literature search identified 229 studies that met inclusion criteria (254 samples; N=130,705) with a subset containing longitudinal data (k=5; N=6283). Data were analyzed using 2-stage meta-analytic structural equation modeling.

Results showed that both enhancement and coping motives were the strongest predictors of drinking problems, but only enhancement motives were the strongest predictor of alcohol use. Enhancement and social motives were indirectly associated with alcohol use through drinking problems and with drinking problems through alcohol use, whereas coping motives were only indirectly associated with alcohol use through drinking problems, although the results differed for cross-sectional and longitudinal data.

Overall, findings from this meta-analysis provide evidence that drinking motives differentially predict alcohol use outcomes through unique direct and indirect pathways.
Overall, findings from this meta-analysis provide evidence that drinking motives differentially predict alcohol use outcomes through unique direct and indirect pathways.Symbiotic nitrogen-fixation of soybean (Glycine max [Merr.] L) commonly decreases in response to soil drying in advance of other plant processes. While a few soybean lines express nitrogen-fixation drought tolerance, breeding for genetic variation is hampered by laborious phenotyping procedures. The objective of this research was to explore the potential of an initial screen for nitrogen-fixation drought-tolerant genotypes based on a possible relationship with xylem-vessel diameter. The hypothesis was that nitrogen-fixation drought tolerance might result from fewer, large-diameter xylem vessels in the stem that are vulnerable to disrupted flow as water deficit develops. The disrupted flow could cause nitrogen products to accumulate in nodules resulting in negative feedback on nitrogen-fixation rate. The proposed screen involved exposing de-rooted shoots to a suspension containing microspheres (45-53 μm diameter) and recording the decrease in transpiration rate as a result of microsphere xylem-blockage. Two soybean populations were tested. One population was progeny derived from mating of two parents with high and low nitrogen-fixation drought sensitivity. A high correlation (R2 = 0.68; P  less then  0.001) was found in this population between decreasing transpiration rate resulting from the microsphere treatment and increasing sensitivity of nitrogen-fixation to soil drying. The second tested population consisted of 16 genotypes, most of which had been previously identified in germplasm screens as expressing nitrogen-fixation drought tolerance. Nearly half of the lines in this second population were identified in the screen as showing minimum blockage of transpiration when exposed to the microspheres. Overall, these results showed the potential of using the microsphere screen to identify candidate genotypes expressing nitrogen-fixation drought tolerance.Atmospheric CO2 concentrations exert a strong influence on the susceptibility of plants to pathogens. However, the mechanisms involved in the CO2 -dependent regulation of pathogen resistance are largely unknown. Here we show that the expression of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) β-CARBONIC ANHYDRASE 3 (βCA3) is induced by the virulent pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000. The role of βCA3 in the high CO2 -mediated response in tomato and two other Solanaceae crops is distinct from that in Arabidopsis thaliana. Using βCA3 knock-out and over-expression plants, we demonstrate that βCA3 plays a positive role in the activation of basal immunity, particularly under high CO2 . βCA3 is transcriptionally activated by the transcription factor NAC43 and is also post-translationally regulated by the receptor-like kinase GRACE1. The βCA3 pathway of basal immunity is independent on stomatal- and salicylic-acid-dependent regulation. Global transcriptome analysis and cell wall metabolite measurement implicate cell wall metabolism/integrity in βCA3-mediated basal immunity under both CO2 conditions. These data not only highlight the importance of βCA3 in plant basal immunity under high CO2 in a well-studied susceptible crop-pathogen system, but they also point to new targets for disease management strategies in a changing climate.
To determine the concurrent validity of the Warner Initial Developmental Evaluation of Adaptive and Functional Skills (WIDEA-FS), a criterion-specified questionnaire that assesses a child's adaptive skills in everyday contexts, and the Bayley Infant and Toddler Scales of Development, Third Edition (Bayley-III).

In a prospective cohort study, 431 WIDEA-FS and Bayley-III assessments were completed among 341 children, aged 10 to 36months corrected age (158 females, 183 males; median [interquartile range] gestational age at birth 32wks [29-38]), monitored in a high-risk neonatal intensive care unit follow-up clinic.

WIDEA-FS scores were significantly associated with Bayley-III scores in all domains. Lower scores on the WIDEA-FS were significantly associated with an increased risk of adverse developmental performance on all Bayley-III scales. The association was strongest for motor and language Bayley-III scores when tested at <30months of age, and for cognitive Bayley-III scores when tested at ≥30months of age.
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