Snakes (Serpentes) are a group of squamate reptiles (Squamata) including more than 3600 species. The vast majority of snakes are from the group Caenophidia, which includes approximately 90% of all extant snake species and represents the most studied lineage. Squamate reptiles are variable in sex determination and genome organisation, however, caenophidian snakes are quite stable in these respects. The typical - and probably ancestral - snake karyotype is composed of 36 chromosomes with 16 macro- and 20 microchromosomes. In all snake species, genotypic sex determination (GSD) is expected and it was assumed until recently that all snakes possessed ZZ/ZW sex chromosomes. The main reason for this is that most of the studied snakes were from the group Caenophidia and in the rest of the snake lineages it was believed that their sex chromosomes were homologous. In fact, the sex chromosomes of non-caenophidian snakes have not yet been identified - with the single exception of Acrantophis dumerili. Nevertheless, a recent study showed that there was an independent evolution of XX/XY sex chromosomes in pythons and boas. Sex chromosomes of these snakes are homomorphic and so far they have not been detected by classical cytogenetic methods. In this context, the aim of this study is to explore whether it is...

In an attempt to correlate genetic data with possible species delineation, this study investigates the presence of chromosomal variants between the North Atlantic bottle nose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, and the North Pacific bottle nose dolphin, T. gilli. Blood samples were obtained from oceanaria in the United States. Location of capture was correlated with karyotype to compare chromosome morphology with geographic range.

A publication by the National Academy of Sciences, USA (1979) outlined some of the research need for a great variety of economically important woody species whose remaining genetic resources need urgently to be collected and conserved. A viable regeneration system was established via tissue and cell suspension culture for Albizia falcataria and A. lebbeck, two important wood yielding leguminous tree species. The culture medium was standardized after several trials to obtain callus from the leaflet explants of these two tree species. The optimum use of casein hydrolysate (w/v) and coconut milk (v/v) in addition to 6-Benzylaminopurine and Indole-3-butyric acid could induce morphogenesis and somatic embryogenesis in the cultured tissue. This reports the first observation on somatic embryogenesis ofA. lebbeck using leaflets as the explants. Scanning Electron Microscopy and histological studies were done on the different stages plant development following standard techniques. Embryogenesis in suspension culture followed regeneration of plantlets in A. lebbeck. In A.falcaaria the regenerative process followed via organogenesis from the shoot buds developed on the leaf explants. After hardening the regenerated plants were transferred to the greenhouse. Some of the trees grew more than 25 feet tall within a few months outside the greenhouse. Karyotype of the three leguminous trees Albizia lebbeck, A. falcataria, and Dalbergia sissoo was analyzed. In D. sissoo, various chromosomal anomalies were observed in the cultured tissue. The abnormality indices and ploidy level varied with the age and the frequency of the subculture. In the aged culture the regenerative potential declined but was reinstated to some extent with the addition of two complex growth factors, coconut milk and casein hydrolysate. Seed anatomy of 26 species of 4 leguminous genera was studied with SEM. The main distinguishing anatomical features observed in the seed sections were uniseriate or multiseriate epidermis, epidermal projections, and number of rows and nature of columns of hypodermal layer, especially the nature of endosperm. Three species of Dalbergia, Acacia and Cassia and two species of Albizia are difficult to distinguish externally even with seed coat study under SEM, but this study with cross sections provided enough characteristic features to distinguish one from the other.

Submitted by Verena Bastos (verena@uefs.br) on 2015-09-21T14:21:13Z No. of bitstreams: 1 DISSERTA??O_Mariana Santos de Jesus_2013_v.FINAL.pdf: 2182580 bytes, checksum: 54eae6f08c950fc41cd0623949c61663 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-09-21T14:21:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DISSERTA??O_Mariana Santos de Jesus_2013_v.FINAL.pdf: 2182580 bytes, checksum: 54eae6f08c950fc41cd0623949c61663 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-03-25 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior - CAPES / The Brazilian semiarid region undergoes seasonal distribution of rainfall that is concentrated in short periods of the year, combined with shallow and stony soils with low organic matter content and ability to retain moisture. Given these limitations, has intensified in this region the use of cactus as a food source herd due to its high capacity to adapt to the climate of this region. This study evaluated for agronomic characteristics, chemical characteristics and chromosome 20 clones preselected by Oliveira 2010, forming part of the breeding program of cactus pear State University of Feira de Santana, in existence since December 2008. Two experiments were conducted. In the first containing palm girl (Nopalea cochenillifera & Salm Dyck) and the second with giant cactus (Opuntia ficus-indica Mill). The experimental design was randomized blocks with five replicates, the spacing was 0.5 x 1.0 m (x plant rows) and fertilization administered 30 t/ha-1 of manure. Data were submitted to ANOVA and Tukey test (p <0.01 and p <0.05). For agronomic characteristics, the tiny palm clones showed no significant differences between the observed means. For the giant cactus, clone 4:06 stood out compared to the other featuring the best averages for the number of cladodes per plant. In assessing chemical was observed on average 69.91% NDF, 13.09% ADF and 8.49% CP for Palm kid. For giant cactus values were 45.63% NDF, 18.20% ADF and 9.18% PB. Chromosome analysis revealed that the numbers ranged from 2n = 22 in the palm girl to 2n = 88 in the giant cactus, without occurrence of disploidias or aneupoidias plants analyzed. It was found that clones are very promising for breeding programs, and are recommended for cultivation in the region of Feira de Santana-BA. / O semi?rido brasileiro apresenta sazonalidade na distribui??o de chuvas que s?o concentradas em per?odos curtos do ano, aliados a solos pouco profundos e pedregosos com baixo teor de mat?ria org?nica e capacidade de reter umidade. Diante destas limita??es, tem-se intensificado nessa regi?o o uso da palma forrageira como fonte de alimento do rebanho devido a sua alta capacidade de adapta??o ao clima dessa regi?o. Este trabalho objetivou avaliar quanto ?s caracter?sticas agron?micas, bromatol?gicas e cromoss?micas 20 clones pr? selecionados por Oliveira (2010), que fazem parte do programa de melhoramento gen?tico da palma forrageira da universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana, existente desde Dezembro de 2008. Foram estabelecidos dois experimentos. No primeiro contendo palma mi?da (Nopalea cochenillifera Salm & Dyck) e o segundo com palma gigante (Opuntia f?cus-indica Mill). O delineamento experimental utilizado foi de blocos ao acaso com cinco parcelas, o espa?amento foi 0,5 x 1,0 m (plantas x fileiras) e a aduba??o administrada de 30 t/ha-1 de esterco bovino. Os dados foram submetidos ? an?lise de vari?ncia e teste de Scott-Knott (p<0,05). Para as caracter?sticas agron?micas, os clones de palma mi?da foram inferiores em rela??o ?s testemunhas IPA-sert?nia e IPA-mi?da para os caracteres CC, DC e AC. Para a palma gigante, o clone 04 destacou-se em rela??o aos demais diferindo estatisticamente quanto ao n?mero de clad?dios por planta. Na avalia??o bromatol?gica observou-se em m?dia 69,91% de FDN, 13,09% de FDA e 8,49% de PB para a palma mi?da. Para palma gigante os valores m?dios foram 45,63% FDN, 18,20% FDA e 9,18% PB. As an?lises cromoss?micas revelaram que os n?meros variaram de 2n=22 na palma mi?da a 2n=88 na palma gigante, sem ocorr?ncia de disploidias ou aneupoidias nas plantas analisadas. Verificou-se que os clones s?o bastante promissores para programas de melhoramento, e s?o recomend?veis para cultivo na regi?o de Feira de Santana-BA.

Orientador: Gonçalo Amarante Guimarães Pereira / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-06T16:13:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rincones_Johana_D.pdf: 3507237 bytes, checksum: b5905da7ffa8ea3a869dd3090e9a1d1f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006 / Resumo: A Vassoura-de-Bruxa do cacaueiro constitui um patosistema complexo e até o momento não foi estabelecido um plano de controle efetivo na região produtora da Bahia. O objetivo principal deste trabalho foi aprimorar os conhecimentos sobre a interação C. perniciosa-Cacaueiro com informações referentes à: 1) tamanho e organização do genoma através da obtenção do cariótipo molecular do fungo; 2) variabilidade genética deste fitopatógeno a nível cromossômico na região produtora da Bahia; e 3) expressão gênica do fungo em presença de extratos do hospedeiro. O cariótipo molecular foi estabelecido por eletroforese em gel de campo pulsado. Esta mesma metodologia foi utilizada em combinação com análise tipo microsatélites para um estudo de variabilidade a nível cromossômico de 38 isolados provenientes de três biótipos e diferentes regiões geográficas. Para análise da expressão gênica foram seqüenciadas quatro bibliotecas de cDNA do fungo sob diferentes condições de cultivo e em diferentes estágios do desenvolvimento, incluindo uma biblioteca subtrativa obtida por SSH. Como resultados, apresentamos o cariótipo molecular de C. perniciosa e a existência de polimorfismos cromossômicos. A análise dos 38 isolados permitiu observar que o cariótipo do biótipo-C é estável ao longo do tempo e sua variabilidade na região da Bahia é baixa, mostrando assim a fragilidade do programa de melhoramento genético do cacaueiro na Bahia, onde os clones resistentes selecionados no campo foram desafiados contra apenas dois genótipos do patógeno. Com relação à análise da expressão do fungo, obtivemos 1427 unigenes e sua análise por similaridade com as bases de dados permitiu a identificação de diversos mecanismos pelos quais o fungo poderia estar manipulando o metabolismo da planta para seu benefício e em detrimento da produção de cacau. Assim, consideramos que a partir deste trabalho foi possível obter uma maior compreensão dos mecanismos utilizados por C. perniciosa no desenvolvimento da Vassoura-de-Bruxa em cacaueiro e estudos mais aprofundados, baseados nos resultados aqui obtidos, deverão auxiliar no desenvolvimento de estratégias de controle para esta importante doença / Abstract: Witches' broom disease of cocoa is a complex pathosystem that has evaded an efficient control program in the cacao-producing region of Bahia, Brazil. The main goal of this work was to acquire a better understanding of the C. perniciosa-Cacao interaction by providing new data regarding: 1) the size and organization of the fungal genome through molecular karyotyping; 2) the genetic variability of this phytopathogen at the chromosomal level in the cacao-producing region of Bahia; and 3) the gene expression of the fungus in the presence of host extracts. The molecular karyotype was obtained through pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. This same technique was applied in combination with microsatellite PCR analysis of 38 isolates from different biotypes and geographic regions in order to study the chromosomal-level genetic variability of this pathogen. For the gene expression analysis, four cDNA libraries of the fungus grown under different culture conditions and developmental stages, including a subtractive library using SSH, were sequenced and searched for similarities in the public databases. As results, we present the molecular karyotype of C. perniciosa and the existence of chromosome-length polymorphism. The analysis of the 38 isolates showed that the karyotype of the C-biotype is very stable in time and that the variability of the pathogen in Bahia is very low, thus indicating the fragility of the current cacao-breeding program in Bahia, where the resistant cacao clones selected in the field were challenged against only two different genotypes of the pathogen. With regards to the gene expression analysis, we obtained 1427 unigenes and the similarity searches allowed the identification of various mechanisms through which the fungus might be manipulating the metabolism of the plant for its own benefit and in detriment of cocoa production. Therefore, we consider that this work allowed us to acquire a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms used by C. perniciosa during witches' broom development in cacao and more detailed studies, based on the results presented here, might aid in the development of novel control strategies for this important disease / Doutorado / Bioquimica / Doutor em Biologia Funcional e Molecular

- ABSTRACT - Snakes (Serpentes) are a group of squamate reptiles (Squamata) that represents more than one third of the total reptile species diversity. Snake karyotype is generally conserved with the most common chromosome number of 36 (16 macro- and 20 microchromosomes) in diploid state. It is believed that this karyotype was also present in the common ancestor of all snakes. The majority of snake species belong to the group Caenophidia and share homologous ZW sex chromosomes. Snakes from the groups "Scolecophidia" and "Henophidia" have mostly poorly differentiated, homomorphic sex chromosomes, which made them impossible to distinguish from the autosomes in the past. These snakes were for many years assumed to have ZW sex chromosomes as well. However, recent studies demonstrated not only ZW but also two non- homologous XY sex chromosome systems in non-caenophidian snakes and thus the sex determination systems in snakes are much more variable than previously thought. In this thesis, eight species of henophidian snakes (representatives from the genera Eryx, Cylidrophis, Python and Tropidophis) and one caenophidian species (Ophiophagus hannah) were examined using conventional and molecular cytogenetic methods. However, sex chromosomes were not detected in the henophidian species, only in Ophiophagus hannah,...

Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) is a clonal disease of hematopoesis resulting from damage to hematopoietic stem cells. The most common chromosomal aberration in patients with MDS is deletion of the long arms of chromosome 5, del(5q). The aim of this study is to analyse unbalanced aberrations of chromosome 5 in MDS patients, to compare the extent of 5q deletion in groups of patients with isolated del(5q) and with del(5q) in complex karyotypes, and to study the effect of the extent of del(5q) on overall survival and prognosis of the disease. We combined cytogenomic methods to examine 88 bone marrow samples from patients with MDS and del(5q) confirmed by conventional banding methods. Del(5q) was present in the karyotype as an isolated aberration in 31 patients (35,2 %), in combination with one other clonal aberration in 9 patients (10,2 %), and as part of complex karyotypes in 48 patients (54,6 %). Patients with complex karyotypes had a lower overall survival than patients with isolated del(5q). The occurrence of complex karyotypes was associated with a large extent of 5q deletion. When both the occurrence of complex karyotypes and the extent of 5q deletion were considered, only karyotype complexity had a significant effect on patients' overall survival. The extent of the deletion does not affect...

Les angiospermes (ou plantes à fleurs) regroupent environ 350 000 espèces ayant divergé il y a 150 à 200 millions d’années en deux familles botaniques principales, les monocotylédones (les orchidées, les palmiers, les bananiers, les joncs, les graminées...) et les eudicotylédones (les Brassicaceae, les Rosaceae, les légumineuses...) représentant respectivement 20% et 75% des plantes à fleurs. Les angiospermes font l’objet de nombreux travaux de recherche, en particulier en génomique depuis 2000 avec le séquençage du premier génome de plantes (Arabidopsis thaliana) qui a précédé le décryptage des génomes d’un nombre important d’autres espèces modèles et/ou d’intérêt agronomique (environ 100 aujourd’hui). L’accès croissant à la séquence des génomes de plantes a permis de mettre à jour une importante diversité structurale de leur génome, en termes de taille physique, de nombre de chromosomes, de nombre de gènes et de richesse en éléments transposables. Les forces évolutives ayant permis une telle diversité structurale des génomes au cours de l’évolution sont au cœur des travaux de cette thèse. La paléogénomique se propose d’étudier à travers la reconstruction de génomes ancestraux, comment ces espèces ont divergé à partir d’ancêtres communs et quels mécanismes ont contribué à une telle plasticité de structure génomique. Dans cet objectif, les travaux de cette thèse ont mis en œuvre des méthodes basées sur la génomique comparée permettant l’étude de l’évolution structurale des génomes via la reconstruction des génomes ancestraux fondateurs des espèces modernes. Ainsi, un génome ancestral des angiospermes a été reconstruit constitué de 5 chromosomes et porteur de 6707 gènes ordonnés sur ceux-ci, permettant d’intégrer dans un même modèle les monocotylédones et les eudicotylédones et élucider leur histoire évolutive, notamment pour les espèces d’intérêt agronomique majeur telles que les céréales, les rosids et les Brassicaceae. L’inférence de ces génomes ancestraux des plantes modernes a permis l’identification et l’étude de l’impact des évènements de polyploïdie (doublement génomique), ubiquitaires chez les plantes. Nous avons montré que les génomes tendent à revenir à une structure diploïde suite à un évènement de polyploïdie. Cette diploïdisation structurale se fait au niveau caryotypique (par le biais de réarrangements chromosomiques impliquant la perte des centromères et télomères ancestraux) mais aussi géniques (par le biais de pertes de gènes ancestraux en double copies). Il a été montré que cette perte se faisait préférentiellement sur un des sous-génomes post-polyploïdie, menant au phénomène de « dominance des sous-génomes ». Ces biais de plasticité structurale (on parle de compartimentation de la plasticité) se font différentiellement entre les espèces, les chromosomes, les compartiments chromosomiques mais aussi les types de gènes, aboutissant à la diversité structurale observée entre les génomes modernes de plantes. Ces travaux qui rentrent dans le cadre de la recherche fondamentale ont également un fort aspect appliqué à travers la recherche translationnelle en ayant permis de créer des passerelles entre les différentes espèces travaillées en agriculture. Le passage d’une espèce à une autre via les génomes ancestraux fondateurs reconstruits permet notamment le transfert de connaissances des gènes ou de régions d’intérêt des espèces modèles aux espèces cultivées. Les travaux de thèse, par la reconstruction d’ancêtres, permettent une comparaison de haute-résolution des génomes de plantes et in fine l’étude de leur plasticité acquise au cours de l’évolution, et revêtent donc à la fois un aspect fondamental (pour comprendre l’évolution des espèces) mais aussi appliqué (pour l’amélioration des espèces d’intérêt agronomique à partir des modèles). / Angiosperms (or flowering plants) consist in approximatively 350 000 species that have diverged 150 to 200 million years ago in two main families, monocots (orchids, palm trees, banana, bulrushes, grasses...) and dicots (Brassicaceae, Rosaceae, legumes...) representing respectively 20% and 75% of flowering plants. Angiosperms are the subject of intense researches, in particular in genomics since 2000 with the sequence release of the first plant genome (Arabidopsis thaliana) preceding a large number of genomes of plant models and/or species of agronomical interest (around 100 today). Increasing access to plant genome sequences has allowed the identification of their structural diversity, in terms of genome size, number of chromosomes and genes as well as transposable element content. The evolutionary forces that have shaped such structural genomic divergence are at the center of this thesis. Our paleogenomics approach will investigate, through ancestral genome reconstructions, how modern species have diverged from common ancestors and which mechanisms have contributed to such present-day genome plasticity. In this thesis, we have developed methods based on comparative genomics to study plant genome evolution and reconstruct ancestral genomes, extinct progenitors of the modern angiosperm species. An ancestral angiosperm genome has been reconstructed made of 5 chromosomes and 6707 ordered genes allowing the integration in the same model of monocots and eudicots and finally elucidating evolutionary trajectories for species of major agricultural interest such as cereals, rosids and Brassicaceae. The reconstructed paleohistory of modern flowering plants enabled the identification as well as the investigation of the impact of polyploidy events (WGD, whole genome duplications), ubiquitous in plants, as a major driver of the observed structural plasticity of angiosperms. We established that genomes tend to return to a diploid status following a polyploidy event. This structural diploidization is performed at the karyotypic level through chromosomal rearrangements (involving ancestral centromeres and telomeres losses) as well as the gene level (through ancestral duplicates loss). It has been shown that this diploidization is preferentially done on one of the post-polyploidy subgenome, leading to the "sub-genome dominance" phenomenon. This structural plasticity bias (also referenced as plasticity partitioning) is acting differentially between species, chromosomes, chromosomal compartments, gene types, resulting in the structural diversity observed between the present-day plant genomes. This thesis is clearly within the scope of fundamental researches but also has a strong applied objective through translational research in creating bridges between species of major relevance for agriculture. The comparison of one species to another through the reconstructed ancestral genomes allows transferring knowledge gained on genes or any region of interest from model species to crops. Paleogenomics, in reconstructing ancestral genome and unveiling the forces driving modern plant genome plasticity, is therefore of fundamental (toward understanding species evolution) but also applied (toward improving orphan species from knowledge gained in models) objectives.