HL Lines Research Articles

Flavonoid Biosynthesis Pathway May Indirectly Affect Outcrossing Rate of Cytoplasmic Male-Sterile Lines of Soybean.

(1) Background: Cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) is important for exploiting heterosis. Soybean (Glycine max L.) has a low outcrossing rate that is detrimental for breeding sterile lines and producing hybrid seeds. Therefore, the molecular mechanism controlling the outcrossing rate should be elucidated to increase the outcrossing rate of soybean CMS lines; (2) Methods: The male-sterile soybean lines JLCMS313A (with a high outcrossing rate; HL) and JLCMS226A (with a low outcrossing rate; LL) were used for a combined analysis of the transcriptome (RNA-seq) and the targeted phenol metabolome; (3) Results: The comparison between HL and LL detected 5946 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 81 phenolic metabolites. The analysis of the DEGs and differentially abundant phenolic metabolites identified only one common KEGG pathway related to flavonoid biosynthesis. The qRT-PCR expression for eight DEGs was almost consistent with the transcriptome data. The comparison of the cloned coding sequence (CDS) regions of the SUS, FLS, UGT, and F3H genes between HL and LL revealed seven single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) only in the F3H CDS. Moreover, five significant differentially abundant phenolic metabolites between HL and LL were associated with flavonoid metabolic pathways. Finally, on the basis of the SNPs in the F3H CDS, one derived cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence (dCAPS) marker was developed to distinguish between HL and LL soybean lines; (4) Conclusions: The flavonoid biosynthesis pathway may indirectly affect the outcrossing rate of CMS sterile lines in soybean.

Combinatorial ixazomib and belinostat therapy induces NFE2L2-dependent apoptosis in Hodgkin and T-cell lymphoma.

Ixazomib activity and transcriptomic analyses previously established in T cell (TCL) and Hodgkin (HL) lymphoma models predicted synergistic activity for histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitory combination. In this present study, we determined the mechanistic basis for ixazomib combination with the HDAC inhibitor, belinostat, in HL and TCL cells lines (ixazomib-sensitive/resistant clones) and primary tumour cells. In ixazomib-treated TCL and HL cells, transient inhibition followed by full recovery of proteasomal activity observed was accompanied by induction of proteasomal gene expression with NFE2L2 (also termed NRF2) as a prominent upstream regulator. Downregulation of both NFE2L2 and proteasomal gene expression (validated by quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction) occurred with belinostat treatment in Jurkat and L428 cells. In addition, CRISPR/Cas9 mediated knockdown of NFE2L2 in Jurkat cells resulted in a significant decrease in cell viability with ixazomib compared with untreated control cells. Using transcriptomic and proteasomal activity evaluation of ixazomib, belinostat, or ixazomib+belinostat treated cells, we observed that NFE2L2, proteasome gene expression and functional recovery were abrogated by ixazomib+belinostat combination, resulting in synergistic drug activity in ixazomib-sensitive and -resistant cell lines and primary cells. Altogether, these results suggest that the synergistic activity of ixazomib+belinostat is mediated via inhibition NFE2L2-dependent proteasomal recovery and extended proteasomal inhibition culminating in increased cell death.

Polymorphism of genes controlling low level of linolenic acid in lines from VIR flax genetic collection

Background. Linseed solin varieties were created for nutrition, but the effect of oil fatty acid (FA) composition on other characters is not clear.
 Materials and methods. Using 6 inbreeding generations from 26 heterogeneous flax accessions were generated 19 high (HL), 7 medium (ML) and 14 low linolenic (LL) lines. For each lines contents of 5 basic FA: palmitic, stearic, oleic (OLE), linoleic (LIO) and linolenic (LIN); the ratio LIO/LIN, oil iodine number, vegetative period (VP) phases and plants size were evaluated. Development of CAPS marker for LuFAD3A gene was performed using idtdna.com. Sequencing of LIN genes sites was done in the Centre MCT SPBGU and Eurogen.
 Results. ANOVA showed significant differences HL, ML and LL groups for PAL, OLE, LIO, LIN, LIO/LIN, IOD. Considerable decrease of LIN, causes asymmetric changes in FA ratio and correlations between them and other traits. Factor analysis revealed the influence of two factors. The first one divided lines according to their LIN level and characters associated with it, the second one according to the VP and OLE. LIN synthesis is controlled by two complementary genes LuFAD3A and LuFAD3B. Sequencing of LuFAD3A gene 1 exon of 6 lines revealed a mutation (G255 A255), resulting in formation of stop codon. Developed developed CAPS-marker confirmed the homozygosity of hybrids between LL (gc-391) and HL lines (gc-65, 109, 121). Descendants of hybrid between gc-109 and gc-391 ripened 8-10 days earlier than gc-391. CAPS markers of LuFAD3B gene revealed differences between HL, ML, LL lines. Sequencing of this gene first exon and the beginning of the second one in 3 lines (1HL, 2LL) showed that this method reveals a mutation in the second restriction site, located in the 2 exon (C6 T6), and causing the replacement Hys Tyr.
 Conclusion. Lines from GC have wide variability of FA and other agronomic characters, combination of which will expand the cultivation of solin.

DETERMINATION OF MATERNAL ANTIBODY (IGY) CONCENTRATION AS A GENETIC MARKER TO IMPROVE FERTILITY, HATCHABILITY AND LIVABILITY PERCENTAGES IN TWO LOCAL STRAINS OF CHICKENS

The present study was carried out at the Department of Poultry and Fish Production, Faculty of Agriculture at Shibin El-Kom, Menoufia University. The aim of the present study was to determine the concentrations of maternal antibody (IgY) in blood serum of layers and hatched chicks, in addition to egg yolk of three, control, high and low IgY antibody lines of Sinai and Silver Montazah local strains of chickens as a genetic marker to improve fertility, hatchability and livability percentages. The results were summarized as follows: 1. Sinai strain had significantly higher IgY antibody concentration than Silver Montazah strain of chickens, being 4.68 vs 4.22 mg/ml in hen blood serum, 4.11 vs 3.46 mg/ml in egg yolk, 3.09 vs 2.66 mg/ml in hatched chicks serum and 48.00 vs 38.41 mg/egg yolk total, respectively. 2. Highly significant differences (P<0.01) among lines, the high (LH) lines harvested the highest IgY level and control line (CL) occupied intermediate level, whereas the low lines (LL) had the lowest IgY level in both strains of chickens. The means of IgY concentrations were 3.74, 6.15 and 2.44 mg/ml in Silver Montazah strain, where the corresponding values in Sinai strain were 4.63, 6.65 and 2.47 mg/ml for control, HL and LL lines, respectively. 3. The high IgY antibody lines had significant (P < 0.05) higher percentages of fertility than the control and low IgY antibody lines. The averages of fertility percentages were 76.97 vs 77.21 for control lines, 85.29 vs 88.19 for high lines and 68.38 vs 68.81 for low lines of Silver Montazah and Sinai strains of chickens, respectively. 4. The means of hatchability percentages of fertile eggs were 72.32% vs 77.60% for Silver Montazah and Sinai chickens, respectively. Also, means of hatchability percentages were 89.18 vs 91.89% for high lines, 75.11 vs 77.65% for control lines and 57.07 vs 61.33% for low lines of Silver Montazah and Sinai strains of chickens, respectively. 5. Sinai chickens had significantly (P < 0.5) higher livability (%) as compared to Silver Montazah chickens (80.65 vs 75.14%) due to the direct action of maternal antibody (IgY) transferred from layers to newly hatched chicks. 6. High IgY lines had significantly (P < 0.5) higher percentages of livability at 28d. The means of livability (%) were 75.83 vs 80.91 (%) for control lines, 87.92 vs 93.49 (%) for high lines, and 65.29 vs 65.79 (%) for low lines of Silver Montazah and Sinai strains of chickens, respectively. 7. Since the high IgY antibody improved fertility, hatchability and viability, So that, the IgY can be used as a genetic marker to improve some productive traits in chickens.

Reed-Sternberg cells in Hodgkin's lymphoma present features of cellular senescence.

Hodgkin's Lymphoma (HL) is one of the most prevailing malignancies in young adults. Reed–Sternberg (RS) cells in HL have distinctive large cell morphology, are characteristic of the disease and their presence is essential for diagnosis. Enlarged cells are one of the hallmarks of senescence, but whether RS cells are senescent has not been previously investigated. Here we show that RS cells have characteristics of senescent cells; RS cells in HL biopsies specifically express the senescence markers and cell cycle inhibitors p21Cip1 and p16INK4a and are negative for the proliferation marker Ki-67, suggesting that these cells have ceased to proliferate. Moreover, the RS-like cells in HL lines, stained specifically for senescence-associated β-galactosidase (SA-β-gal). Oxidative stress promoted senescence in these cells as demonstrated by their staining for p21Cip1, p16INK4a, p53 and γH2AX. Senescent cells produce copious amounts of inflammatory cytokines termed ‘senescence-associated secretory phenotype' (SASP), primarily regulated by Nuclear Factor κB (NF-κB). Indeed, we show that NF-κB activity and NF-κB-dependent cytokines production (e.g., IL-6, TNF-α, GM-CSF) were elevated in RS-like cells. Furthermore, NF-κB inhibitors, JSH-23 and curcumin reduced IL-6 secretion from RS-like cells. Thus, defining RS cells as senescent offers new insights on the origin of the proinflammatory microenvironment in HL.

The PI3 Kinase (PI3K) Inhibitor, Buparlisib/BKM120, in B-Cell, T-Cell and Hodgkin Lymphoma Cell Lines: Cell Death Studies and Examination of Genomic Pathway Analyses Via a Systems Biology Approach

Introduction: The PI3K pathway plays a significant role in cell cycle, apoptosis, and DNA repair. It is commonly dysregulated in cancers making it a potential therapeutic target. BKM120 is a novel oral pan-class I PI3K inhibitor with antitumor activity and efficacy reported in solid tumors. It is in phase I/II clinical trials for treatment of relapsed-refractory NHL. There are additional data desired towards molecular mechanism of action and biological pathways of resistance for BKM120-treated lymphoma.Methods: TCL cell lines (Jurkat, Hut78, HH), HL lines (L428, L540) and DLBCL lines (SUDHL4, SUDHL6, SUDHL10, OCILY3, OCILY19) were treated with increasing concentrations of BKM120 (0.16-10uM) in 96 well plate and cell viability assessed by MTT assay. For gene expression profiling (GEP), SUDHL6, OCILY3, Jurkat, Hut78 and L540 cells were treated at IC50and analyzed on Illumina human HT12 gene chip. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) and biological network analysis were done using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis and Cytoscape. Apoptosis was evaluated by Annexin V and propidium iodine (AV/PI) staining and flow cytometry. For cell cycle analysis, Jurkat cells were exposed to BrdU and stained with anti-BrdU FITC and 7-AAD and analyzed by flow cytometry.Results: Cell viability showed dose-dependent growth inhibition in all lines. IC50 was between 0.316μM - 3.72μM at 72 hours (hrs). GEP analyses showed significant gene changes following BKM120 treatment with a 1.2 fold-change for OCILY3 (1886 genes), SUDHL6 (1884 genes), Hut78 (1474 genes), L540 (859 genes) and Jurkat (212 genes) (Fig 1). Differential gene expression with BKM120-treated cells showed significant overlap among DLBCL cell lines, with 991 genes of 1886 (OCILY3) and 1884 (SUDHL6). The differentially expressed genes in L540 HL cells treated with BKM120 showed better overlap with DLBCL lines than with TCL lines, with 366 and 315 of 859 L540 genes overlapping with OCILY3 and SUDHL6 lines, respectively. This may reflect the B cell of origin related response to BKM120 treatment. TCL lines had different profiles, with 52 overlapping genes of 212 for Jurkat and 1474 for Hut78. Jurkat is known to harbor a PTEN mutation with constitutively active PI3K, which may explain the differences in the GEP observed with BKM120 treatment in Jurkat and Hut78 TCL. GSEA and biological network analysis of BKM120 treated lymphoma cells showed conserved inhibitory effects on cell cycle, DNA replication and metabolic process across all lymphoma cells. However, we observed that immune signaling processes were oppositely regulated in B and T cell lymphomas. AV/PI-staining and flow cytometry revealed dose-dependent increase of apoptotic cells in all lymphoma cell lines. Analysis based on BrdU incorporation revealed induction of G2/M arrest in Jurkat cells treated with BKM120. Western blots showed decreased phosphorylation of PI3K and mTOR substrates including 4-EBP and phospho-p70S6K with BKM120 treatment. Although phosphorylation of MEK/ERK were downregulated at lower doses of BKM120, at higher doses, increased MEK/ERK phosphorylation were seen. Analysis of cell cycle regulatory proteins Cyclin, CDK and phospho-histone H3 with BKM120 treatment resulted in expression changes consistent with G2/M arrest and also resulted in increased apoptosis related PARP cleavage in all lymphoma cell lines.Conclusions: BKM120 treatment elicited biologically distinct GEP with immune functions oppositely regulated in B and T cell lymphomas, however impairment of cell cycle, DNA replication and metabolic function were the core responses/function to PI3K inhibition. Furthermore, based on GSEA, it was predicted that cell cycle arrest and MAPK activation as likely mechanisms of resistance to BKM120 treatment in these lymphoma cell lines. Additional studies are planned to examine rational combinations of BKM120 together with other targeted small molecules (e.g., Chk1-inhibitor, CDK4/6 inhibitor and MEK inhibitor). [Display omitted] DisclosuresNo relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Mir-15a/16-1 Cluster Is Frequently Deleted In Primary Hodgkin Lymphoma and Modulates Multiple Survival Pathways Including AP-1

AbstractAbstract 746Classical Hodgkin Lymphoma (cHL) Reed-Sternberg (RS) cells have crippling mutations of their rearranged Ig genes and lack B-cell receptor-mediated survival signals. As a consequence, cHLs rely on alternative survival and proliferation pathways including AP-1. Although cHL RS cells express high levels of the AP-1 components, cJun and JunB, and depend on AP-1-mediated proliferation signals, the mechanism of constitutive AP-1 activation in cHL remains undefined. In a screen for genetic abnormalities in cHL, we integrated microRNA (miR) expression profiles with high resolution copy number data and identified single copy loss of the miR-15a/16-1 locus (chromosome 13q14) and decreased miR-15a/16 expression in 75% of examined HL cell lines. We isolated primary Hodgkin RS cells using laser-capture microdissection and confirmed frequent single copy loss of the miR-15a/16-1 locus by quantitative PCR and associated decreased miR-15a/16 abundance by RT-PCR in 10/23 (43%) of primary tumors. Using retroviral vectors containing miR-15a and miR-16, we reconstituted miR-15a/16 expression in HL cell lines with single copy loss of chromosome 13q14. In these HL lines, miR-15a/16 reconstitution was associated with cell cycle arrest, significantly decreased cellular proliferation and induction of apoptosis (88% apoptotic cells at 48 hours). In addition, miR-15a/16 reconstitution resulted in significant downregulation of multiple survival pathway components and known miR-15a/16 targets including panAKT, BCL2 and cyclin D1. Using a stand-alone miRanda algorithm with direct sequence entry, we also identified a candidate miR-15a/16 binding site in the AP-1 component, cJun. In multiple HL cell lines, miR-15a/16 reconstitution decreased the expression of cJun and additional known AP-1 targets such as galectin-1. Therefore, miR-15a/16-1 deletion is a frequent genetic abnormality in HL cell lines and primary tumors, a candidate mechanism of AP-1 activation in HL and a modulator of multiple critical survival pathways in this disease. Disclosures:No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Comparative Study on Breeding Utilization Characteristics of the Isonuclear Alloplasmic &lt;I&gt;Japonica&lt;/I&gt; CMS Lines Liuqianxin A with Four Different Cytoplasm Sources

A set of isonuclear alloplasmic japonica CMS lines Liuqianxin A,constructed with four different cytoplasm sources from Hainan Male Sterile Wild Rice (WA type),Hainan Red Awned Wild Rice (HL type),Hunan Chaling Wild Rice (CL type),and India Chinsurah Boro II (BT type),respectively,together with their maintainer line Liuqianxin B,were applied to study their male sterile stability,flowering habits,outcrossing rate,and restorable ability.The results showed:(1) Most pollen granules of BT,HL and CL Liuqianxin A were mainly stained-abortion,while those of WA Liuqianxin A were mainly typical-abortion.Selfed seed-setting rate of BT Liuqianxin A was 0.60%,which would cause application risk in agricultural production.There were no selfed seeds in HL and CL Liuqianxin A,indicating that sterility of them was better than that of BT type.(2) The length of 1st internode to the top was affected by the degree of abortive pollen,which influenced the plant height and the panicle exsertion (i.e.the length of panicle-neck above the sheath of flag leaf).Namely the more serious abortive degree,the shorter panicle exsertion.Therefore,panicle was enclosed within the sheath of the flag leaf in WA Liuqianxin A,not in BT,HL,and CL Liuqianxin A.(3) The flowering habits of WA Liuqianxin A presented as sporadic flowering,distinctly lagged flowering time and stretched flowering duration,and were the worst in the four type CMS lines,thus its outcrossing rate was lower.Flowering habits and outcrossing rate between HL,CL CMS lines and BT CMS lines were not significantly different.However it was better in HL,CL CMS lines than in WA CMS lines.(4) BT Liuqianxin A showed the best restorable characteristic,HL was a little worse than BT,WA was the worst.And japonica restorers for HL or CL CMS lines could be selected from the japonica restorers for BT CMS lines.HL,CL CMS lines balanced above contradictions well,so an idea of substituting HL,CL CMS lines partly for BT type was put forward,it can be used to solve the problems of single type sterile cytoplasm in current Japonica hybrid rice and fertility not stable in BT CMS lines.

Gene Expression Profiling of Microdissected Hodgkin Reed Sternberg Cells: Molecular Subtypes and Treatment Outcome Correlations.

Abstract 268 INTRODUCTION:Classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) is unique among lymphomas due to the scarcity of the malignant Hodgkin Reed Sternberg (HRS) cells, which are derived from clonal germinal center B cells. Investigations using laser capture microdissection permit more detailed analysis of these cells. However, most recent studies were limited by low case numbers and lack of available clinical data. PATIENTS AND METHODS:We studied 29 cases of cHL and the 5 HL lines KMH2, HDLM2, L428, L540, and L1236 by gene expression profiling. All patients were treated at the BC Cancer Agency between 1984 and 2006 and received at least 4 cycles of polychemotherapy and stage-dependent radiotherapy. The cohort also included 5 biopsies taken at relapse. Treatment failure was defined as disease progression or relapse at any time (n=14) after initiation of treatment; treatment success as absence of progression (n=15). We used laser microdissection (Molecular Machines & Industries Cellcut with Nikon Eclipse TE2000-S microscope) to study the enriched HRS cell compartment separately from the microenvironment. RNA extraction was performed on pools of 1000 microdissected HRS cells in each case. Gene expression profiles were generated using Affymetrix HG UA133 2.0 Plus arrays using two-cycle labeling reactions. HRS cell profiles were compared to microdissected germinal centers (GC), and HL cell line profiles compared to enriched tonsillar CD77+ centroblasts (MACS cell separation, Miltenyi). Furthermore, we compared gene expression profiles of treatment failures to those of treatment successes. RESULTS:We identified 1342 differentially expressed probesets (fold change >5, False Discovery Rate (FDR) adjusted p value <0.001) between HRS and GC cells. Using overrepresentation analysis we found genes involved in NFκB, JAK/Stat, IL-6, IL-9 signaling, cytotoxic T lymphocyte-mediated apoptosis and IL-15 production to be significantly over-expressed in HRS cells and genes involved in B cell, T cell receptor signaling and many transcriptional regulators such as FOXO1, E2F5, IRF8, NFATC1, NFYB, POU2AF1 to be significantly under-expressed in HRS cell. Comparison of these data to differentially expressed genes in the HL cell lines (1004 genes, fold change >5, FDR-adjusted p value <0.001) showed significant overlap of genes involved in proliferation, apoptosis, IL15 signaling and B cell receptor signaling, while overrepresentation of metabolism genes was unique to the cell lines. Hierarchical clustering of all 29 primary HL cases identified 3 separate clusters characterized by 1) a cytotoxic signature, 2) TNF/TGFB receptor signaling or 3) a residual B cell signature. Dichotomizing the profiles into the two treatment outcome groups demonstrated that NFγB signaling, complement system genes and genes involved in the developmental process of hematopoietic progenitor cells, macrophages and blood vessels were overexpressed in treatment failure samples. DISCUSSION:Using microdissection of HRS cells in a large number of cases we were able to further characterize the unique expression program of HL and refine the data inventory about dysregulated cellular functions and pathways in this disease. Overexpression of genes associated with NFκB, complement and hematopoietic progenitor cells proliferation correlate strongly with treatment failure. Further study using immunohistochemistry is currently ongoing to validate these findings and to develop clinically useful biomarkers. Disclosures:Gascoyne:Roche Canada: Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding.

Determination of Body Weight and Some Carcass Traits in Japanese Quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) of Different Lines

Summary The purpose of this study was to determination of body weight and some carcass traits in Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) of different lines. The material used in this experiment was selected from three lines: high body weight line (HL), low body weight line (LL) of 5-week body weight and a random bred control line (C). There were significant differences among the lines in respect to body weight and carcass weight. Highest and lowest body weight and carcass weight were measured in HL and LL lines, respectively. While there were no significant differences among the lines in terms of relative proportion of breast, the sex affected significantly (P<0.01). No significant differences were found in terms of left wing, right wing, neck and back percent of body weight for lines and sexes. Also, there were found significant correlations among the carcass traits..

Effects of Selection for Body Weight and Egg Production on Egg Quality Traits in Japanese Quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) of Different Lines and Relationships between These Traits

Summary This research was conducted to investigate the effects of selection on egg weight, shell thickness, shell weight, shape index, albumen index, yolk index and Haugh Unit in 11 generations selected Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica). The material used in this research was selected for 11 generations from high (HL) or low (LL) body weight Japanese quail lines according to 5-week body weights and their random bred control line (C) and layer line (L) for 120 d egg production. There were found significant differences among the lines in terms of all egg traits (P<0.01). The egg weights were determined in HL, LL, L and C lines as 14.14±0.17 g, 9.23±0.07, 10.49±0.10 and 11.43±0.13 g respectively. Besides there were significant (P<0.01) differences among the lines for the shell weight, and highest and lowest values were determined as 1.15±0.02 g and 0.84±0.02 g in HL and LL lines. Once again, there were found significant (P<0.05) differences among the lines in point of Haugh Unit. The highest positive correlation (P<0.01) was found between egg weight and egg width (0.938), and the highest negative correlation (P<0.01) was found between shape index and egg length (-0.531). Almost all of the internal quality traits of the egg changes depending on external quality traits of the egg.

Antibody Responses and Morbidity Following Infection with Infectious Bronchitis Virus and Challenge with Escherichia coli, in Lines Divergently Selected on Antibody Response

We evaluated the association between antibody (Ab) production and disease resistance. A controlled-challenge protocol was developed to mimic natural infection and to yield a higher rate of mortality following Escherichia coli (EC) challenge. Chicks were first infected with infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) by injecting a high dose of vaccine (attenuated virus) into their air sacs and then were infected with pathogenic EC introduced intratracheally. The experimental population consisted of lines divergently selected for high (HH) or low (LL) Ab response to EC vaccination, an HH × LL cross (HL), and commercial broilers (CC). When chicks were vaccinated with EC vaccine, mean Ab titer 15 d post-EC challenge was threefold higher in HH than LL lines, but both lines exhibited very low mortality (~2%). When chicks were not vaccinated prior to EC challenge, high mortality (8 to 20%) occurred in the slow-growing HH, LL, and HL lines, and much higher mortality (~40%) occurred among the CC broilers that were 38% heavier than the HH, LL, and HL lines. Mean level of Ab to EC, 7 d after EC challenge, was about twofold higher in HH vs. LL chicks and intermediate in HL and CC chicks. Within each line, Ab levels were higher in chicks exhibiting colibacillosis than in healthy ones, suggesting that these Ab were produced as a result of ongoing infection but were too late to fully prevent morbidity and mortality. These results indicate that rapid growth rate substantially reduces broiler viability, whereas Ab levels produced in response to acute pathogenic challenge without prior vaccination do not contribute to disease resistance. Among the relatively slow-growing lines, mortality was about twofold higher in HH than in LL lines. This finding may confirm previous reports that without prior vaccination, high Ab response to acute challenge increases consequent mortality; alternatively, the LL line may be superior in nonspecific defense mechanisms.

Effects of divergent selection for incidence of tibial dyschondroplasia (TD) on purebred and crossbred performance. 1. TD incidence and calcium and phosphorus plasma concentrations

1. The effect of divergent selection for high (H) or low (L) incidence of tibial dyschondroplasia (TD) for 7 generations on blood calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P) concentrations was studied. 2. The chicks used in this experiment were obtained from diallel crosses between H and L lines to obtain HH, HL, LH, and LL lines. A random-bred control (CC) line was also used. 3. The chicks were reared under standard management conditions. Body weight and plasma Ca and P concentrations were measured at 2, 4, and 7 weeks of age. Incidence of TD was recorded at 4 and 7 weeks. 4. Although HH birds had lower body weights than the other lines, there was no significant effect attributable to line selection for body weight at 2, 4, and 7 weeks of age. 5. The LL line birds had no incidence of TD at 4 weeks of age; however, the incidence of TD in LL line birds was 5.3% at 7 weeks of age. The incidence of TD was higher in HH line birds than the other line at 4 and 7 weeks of age. 6. Plasma Ca and P concentrations and Ca:P ratios increased with age. These results showed that HH line birds had higher plasma Ca, lower plasma P and higher Ca:P ratios than birds of the LL line.

Digestibility and Cell‐Wall Components of Alfalfa Following Selection for Divergent Herbage Lignin Concentration

Breeding schemes to improve alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) forage quality based on total herbage chemical composition can result in altered morphology. Additionally, cell‐wall composition of plant parts also may be altered. This study investigated the effects of divergent selection for lignin concentration in total herbage of alfalfa on concentration of cell‐wall components and digestibility of stems. Two groups of alfalfa previously derived from herbage‐based selection were studied. Group 1 consisted of six two‐parent Syn‐2 lines randomly selected from ‘Saranac‐AR’ for high (HL) or low (LL) acid‐detergent lignin (ADL) concentration in the total herbage. Group 2 had 11 HL and 13 LL lines produced from crossing pairs of parents of the Group 1 lines. Neutral‐detergent fiber (NDF) concentration in stem bases was 4 and 3% greater in HL lines than in LL lines in Group 1 and 2, respectively. Likewise, herbage NDF concentration was 8% greater in HL than in LL lines of Group 1 and 4% greater in Group 2. There were no differences between divergent lines in NDF concentration of stem tops. Lignin concentration in cell walls of Group 1 was 8 and 6% greater in LL lines than in HL lines in stem tops and stem bases, respectively. In Group 2, the LL lines had 2% greater cell‐wall lignin concentration than HL lines in both stem fractions. Total‐herbage NDF concentration correlated more closely with leaf‐to‐stem ratio of entire plants (r = − 0.96 and −0.78 for Group 1 and 2, respectively) than with stem length and maturity. Thus, herbage‐based selection for improved nutritive quality of alfalfa results in complex changes in stem cellwall component concentrations in addition to large morphological changes.

Correlated responses in development and distribution of fat depots in mice selected for body composition traits

Development of adipose tissue in five depots was investigated in mice selected for high or low 12-week epididymal fat pad weight as a percentage of body weight (HF and LF lines), or high or low 12-week hind carcass weight as a percentage of body weight (HL and LL lines). An unselected control line (RC) was maintained. Hind carcass (HC) and fat pads from subcutaneous hindlimb, subcutaneous forelimb, gonads, kidneys and mesentery were dissected and weighed at 4, 6, 9, 12 or 15 weeks of age. Generally, body weight (BW), daily gain (DG), feed intake (FI), feed efficiency (FE) and feed intake/metabolic body weight (FC) were higher (P≤0.05) in HF than in LF, and in LL than in HL. HF had more fat (as a percentage of BW) than LF in all depots (P≲-0.01), and asymmetry (P≤0.01) was detected for gonadal fat. LL consistently had a higher (P≤0.01) fat percentage than HL, and asymmetry (P≤0.01) was observed for perirenal fat. At age of selection, ranking of fat depot weights as a percentage of total fat depot weight was not changed by selection; however, gonadal fat accounted for more of the total fat in HF and LL compared with RC, while the opposite was found in LF and HL. HC percentage was higher (P≤0.01) in HL than LL, and higher (P≤0.01) in LF than HF. Growth rate of each fat depot relative to BW was not affected by selection. These results demonstrated that selection for proportion of fat in one depot or for HC percentage changed fat percentage in other depots. However, the rate of fat deposition in each depot relative to body weight gain was not altered.

Morphology of Alfalfa Divergently Selected for Herbage Lignin Concentration

Programs to improve alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) nutritive value have used selection criteria based on total herbage cell‐wall composition. There is only limited information addressing the effect of total‐herbage based phenotypic selection on changes in dry‐matter partitioning of the plant and on the nutritive value of plant parts. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of divergent herbage selection for alfalfa cell‐wall components on plant morphology. Two groups of germplasm were observed. Group 1 consisted of six syn‐2 lines derived from two‐parent combinations, which were randomly selected from ‘Saranac‐AR’ for high (HL) or low (LL) herbage acid‐detergent lignin concentration. Group 2 had HL and 13 LL lines that were full‐sib lines produced on pairs of parents from the Group 1 synthetics. Group 1 was grown for two harvests in a greenhouse and one harvest in the field, and Group 2 was grown for two harvests in the field. Compared with HL lines, LL lines had a greater leaf‐to‐stem ratio, especially in the fraction above the sixth node from the stem base. For LL lines, this ratio in the upper plant fraction was 53, 26, and 18% greater than HL lines for Group I greenhouse, Group 1 field, and Group 2, respectively. When harvested at the same time, LL lines were less mature than HL lines, and, for Group 2, main stem length of LL lines was about 30 mm shorter than HL lines. Dry‐matter yield of HL lines was 17, 28, and 28% greater than LL lines for Group 1 greenhouse, Group 1 field, and Group 2, respectively. Most of the differences between divergent types were related to changes above the sixth node. Thus, selection for improved nutritive value in total herbage of alfalfa may result in marked changes in plant morphology.

Effects of Genotype and Nutrition before Mating on the Reproductive Performance of Mice

The effects of genotype and nutritional restriction before mating were studied in three lines of mice designated high (HL), control (CL) and low (LL). The HL and LL lines had been selected for differential body size and limb length relationships. This selection resulted in HL mice being larger and having relatively longer limb bones than the randomly bred control line, while the converse was true of LL mice.