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Sesame Fusarium wilt (SFW), caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. sesami (Fos), is one of the most devastating diseases affecting sesame cultivation. Deciphering the genetic control of SFW resistance is pivotal for effective disease management in sesame. An inheritance study on a cross between the highly resistant variety Yuzhi 11 and the highly susceptible accession Sp1 using a Fos pathogenicity group 1 isolate indicated that resistance was conferred by a single dominant allele. The target locus was located in a 1.24 Mb interval on chromosome 3 using a combination of cross-population association mapping and bulked segregant analysis. Fine genetic mapping further narrowed the interval between 21,350 and 21,401 kb. The locus Sindi_0812400 was identified as the SFW resistance gene and officially designated SiRLK1. This gene encodes a specific malectin/receptor-like protein kinase with three putative tandem kinase domains and is considered a kinase fusion protein. Sequence analysis revealed that a high proportion (49.44%) of variants within the locus was located within the kinase domain III, and several of which were evidently associated with the diversity in SFW response, indicating the critical role of kinase domain III in expression of disease resistance. These findings provide valuable information for further functional analysis of SFW resistance genes and marker-assisted resistance breeding in sesame. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fusarium wilt is a common fungal disease in sesame caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. sesami (FOS). To determine the toxin production profiles of the FOS isolates with different pathogenicity levels under various culture conditions, we assessed the content variation of fusaric acid (FA) and 9, 10-dehydrofusaric acid (9, 10- DFA) produced by the four representative FOS isolates. Results indicated that the concentration of FA reached to a maximum of 2848.66 μg/mL in Czapek medium, while 9, 10-DFA was mainly produced in Richard and Lowcarbon Richard medium. The concentration of 9, 10-DFA on Richard culture medium varied from 0 μg/mL to 716.89 μg/mL. Of the five culture media used in this study, Czapek culture medium was the most conductive to produce FA. FA production was significantly affected by culture medium, culture time, and their interactions. Results suggest that there is no correlation between toxin production and pathogenicity level of FOS isolates. These findings provide key information for the mechanism analysis of FOS- sesame interaction and pathogen control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. sesami is an extremely destructive pathogen, causing sesame Fusarium wilt disease worldwide. To clarify the pathogenicity and the genetic characters of F. oxysporum f. sp. sesami, we systematically investigated 69 F. oxysporum isolates collected from major sesame-growing areas in China. Among these isolates, 54 isolates were pathogenic and 15 were nonpathogenic according to pathogenicity testing on sesame seedlings. For the pathogenic isolates, three F. oxysporum f. sp. sesami pathogenicity groups were defined based on the three differential sesame hosts for the first time. A translation elongation factor 1a gene tree was constructed to determine the genetic diversity of the F. oxysporum isolates but could not separate F. oxysporum f. sp. sesami isolates from the nonpathogenic isolates and other F. oxysporum formae speciales. Ten secreted-in-xylem (SIX) genes (one family of effectors) were identified in F. oxysporum f. sp. sesami isolates by a search with the genome data, and were subsequently screened in the 69 F. oxysporum isolates. Compared with the SIX gene profiles in other F. oxysporum formae speciales, the presence and sequence variations of the SIX gene homologs directly correlated with the specific pathogenicity of F. oxysporum f. sp. sesami toward sesame. Furthermore, eight of these F. oxysporum f. sp. sesami SIX genes were significantly expressed in sesame plants as infection of the F. oxysporum f. sp. sesami isolate. These findings have important significance for understanding the pathogenic basis of F. oxysporum f. sp. sesami isolates, and will contribute to improve the diagnostics to effectively control Fusarium wilt disease in sesame. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study involved healthy community-living older adults in an investigation of the association between moderate alcohol consumption (AC) and acute changes in postural stability and whether the association differed according to pre-AC balance skills. Thirty-nine moderate drinkers aged ≥ 65 years (62% women; mean age: 73.9 ± 6.1 years) consumed a moderate dose of alcohol (0.4g/kg; administered as two drinks). Breath alcohol concentration and postural stability were measured at five time points (pre-AC and 40, 80, 120, and 160 minutes post-AC) using unipedal stance time (UPST) and center of pressure (CoP) displacement. Pre-AC UPST was used to categorize participants into good-balance (≥30 seconds) and poor-balance (<30 seconds) groups. Peak breath alcohol concentration was 30mg/dL at 40 minutes post-AC. For all participants, postural stability declined significantly at 80 minutes post-AC (UPST, p = .005; anterior-posterior CoP displacement, p = .029). While the poor-balance group did not show a significant decrease in UPST duration over the course of the study, the good-balance group experienced significant decline at 80 minutes compared with baseline (p < .001) and remained above the 30-second UPST cutoff. Both groups experienced similar worsening in anterior-posterior CoP displacement at 80 minutes post-AC. Thus, moderate AC was associated with acute decline in postural stability in older adults. The worsened anterior-posterior CoP displacement post-AC in the poor- balance group was of particular concern because these participants were already at lower balance functioning pre-AC. Larger, more representative studies of varying groups of participants are needed to further explore how this change relates to fall incidents and fall risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To examine the association between statin use and the risk of delirium in hospitalized patients with an admission to the medical ICU.Design: Retrospective propensity-matched cohort analysis with accrual from September 1, 2012, to September 30, 2015.Setting: Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT.Patients: An initial population of patients with an admission to a medical ICU totaling 10,216 visits were screened for delirium by means of the Confusion Assessment Method. After exclusions, a population of 6,664 was used to match statin users and nonstatin users. The propensity-matched cohort resulted in a sample of 1,475 patients receiving statin matched 1:1 with control patients not using statin.Interventions: None.Measurements and Main Results: Delirium defined as a positive Confusion Assessment Method assessment was the primary end point. The prevalence of delirium was 22.3% in the unmatched cohort and 22.8% in the propensity-matched cohort. Statin use was associated with a significant decrease in the risk of delirium (odds ratio, 0.47; 95% CI, 0.38-0.56). Considering the type of statin used, atorvastatin (0.51; 0.41-0.64), pravastatin (0.40; 0.28-0.58), and simvastatin (0.33; 0.21-0.52) were all significantly associated with a reduced frequency of delirium.Conclusions: The use of statins was independently associated with a reduction in the risk of delirium in hospitalized patients. When considering types of statins used, this reduction was significant in patients using atorvastatin, pravastatin, and simvastatin. Randomized trials of various statin types in hospitalized patients prone to delirium should validate their use in protection from delirium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Calcineurin plays a key role in morphogenesis, pathogenesis and drug resistance in most fungi. However, the function of calcineurin genes in Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst) is unclear. We identified and characterized the calcineurin genes PsCNA1 and PsCNB1 in Pst. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that PsCNA1 and PsCNB1 form a calcium/calmodulin regulated protein phosphatase belonging to the calcineurin heterodimers composed of subunits A and B. Quantitative RT-PCR analyses revealed that both PsCNA1 and PsCNB1 expression reached their maximum in the stage of haustorium formation, which is one day after inoculation. Using barely stripe mosaic virus (BSMV) as a transient expression vector in wheat, the expression of PsCNA1 and PsCNB1 in Pst was suppressed, leading to slower extension of fungal hyphae and reduced production of urediospores. The immune-suppressive drugs cyclosporin A and FK506 markedly reduced the germination rates of urediospores, and when germination did occur, more than two germtubes were produced. These results suggest that the calcineurin signaling pathway participates in stripe rust morphogenetic differentiation, especially the formation of haustoria during the early stage of infection and during the production of urediospores. Therefore PsCNA1 and PsCNB1 can be considered important pathogenicity genes involved in the wheat-Pst interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst) is an obligate biotrophic fungus that causes the destructive wheat stripe rust disease worldwide. Due to the lack of reliable transformation and gene disruption method, knowledge about the function of Pst genes involved in pathogenesis is limited. Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) genes have been shown in a number of plant pathogenic fungi to play critical roles in regulating various infection processes. In the present study, we identified and characterized the first MAPK gene PsMAPK1 in Pst. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that PsMAPK1 is a YERK1 MAP kinase belonging to the Fus3/Kss1 class. Single nucleotide polymerphisms (SNPs) and insertion/deletion were detected in the coding region of PsMAPK1 among six Pst isolates. Real-time RT-PCR analyses revealed that PsMAPK1 expression was induced at early infection stages and peaked during haustorium formation. When expressed in Fusarium graminearum, PsMAPK1 partially rescued the map1 mutant in vegetative growth and pathogenicity. It also partially complemented the defects of the Magnaporthe oryzae pmk1 mutant in appressorium formation and plant infection. These results suggest that F. graminearum and M. oryzae can be used as surrogate systems for functional analysis of well-conserved Pst genes and PsMAPK1 may play a role in the regulation of plant penetration and infectious growth in Pst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) is the most common cause of severe childhood diarrhea worldwide. Objectives were to estimate the burden of RVGE among children less than five years old in the Middle East (Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, UAE, Yemen), North Africa (Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia) and Turkey. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted in major databases on the epidemiology and burden of rotavirus among children less than five years old between 1999 and 2009. Data from each country was extracted and compared. Results: The search identified 43 studies. RVGE was identified in 16-61% of all cases of acute gastroenteritis, with a peak in the winter. RVGE-related hospitalization rates ranged from 14% to 45%, compared to 14%-28% for non- RVGE. Annually, RVGE caused up to 112 fatalities per 100,000 in certain countries in the region. Hospitalization costs ranged from $1.8 to $4.6 million annually, depending on the country. The most recent literature available showed that G1P[8] was the most prevalent genotype combination in 8 countries (range 23%-56%). G2P[4] was most prevalent in 4 countries (26%-48%). G9P[8] and G4P[8] were also frequently detected. Conclusions: RVGE is a common disease associated with significant morbidity, mortality, and economic burden. Given the variety and diverse rotavirus types in the region, use of a vaccine with broad and consistent serotype coverage would be important to help decrease the burden of RVGE in the Middle East and North Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]