| 1. |
- Wade, C. M., et al.
(author)
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Genome Sequence, Comparative Analysis, and Population Genetics of the Domestic Horse
- 2009
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In: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 326:5954, s. 865-867
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report a high-quality draft sequence of the genome of the horse ( Equus caballus). The genome is relatively repetitive but has little segmental duplication. Chromosomes appear to have undergone few historical rearrangements: 53% of equine chromosomes show conserved synteny to a single human chromosome. Equine chromosome 11 is shown to have an evolutionary new centromere devoid of centromeric satellite DNA, suggesting that centromeric function may arise before satellite repeat accumulation. Linkage disequilibrium, showing the influences of early domestication of large herds of female horses, is intermediate in length between dog and human, and there is long-range haplotype sharing among breeds.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Schoville, Sean D., et al.
(author)
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A model species for agricultural pest genomics : The genome of the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)
- 2018
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In: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 8
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Colorado potato beetle is one of the most challenging agricultural pests to manage. It has shown a spectacular ability to adapt to a variety of solanaceaeous plants and variable climates during its global invasion, and, notably, to rapidly evolve insecticide resistance. To examine evidence of rapid evolutionary change, and to understand the genetic basis of herbivory and insecticide resistance, we tested for structural and functional genomic changes relative to other arthropod species using genome sequencing, transcriptomics, and community annotation. Two factors that might facilitate rapid evolutionary change include transposable elements, which comprise at least 17% of the genome and are rapidly evolving compared to other Coleoptera, and high levels of nucleotide diversity in rapidly growing pest populations. Adaptations to plant feeding are evident in gene expansions and differential expression of digestive enzymes in gut tissues, as well as expansions of gustatory receptors for bitter tasting. Surprisingly, the suite of genes involved in insecticide resistance is similar to other beetles. Finally, duplications in the RNAi pathway might explain why Leptinotarsa decemlineata has high sensitivity to dsRNA. The L. decemlineata genome provides opportunities to investigate a broad range of phenotypes and to develop sustainable methods to control this widely successful pest.
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| 4. |
- Kareskoski, A. M., et al.
(author)
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Protein Composition of Seminal Plasma in Fractionated Stallion Ejaculates
- 2011
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In: Reproduction in domestic animals. - : Wiley. - 0936-6768 .- 1439-0531. ; 46:1, s. 79-84
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Seminal plasma (SP) contains several types of compounds derived from the epididymides and accessory glands. The aim of this study was to examine the protein composition of different ejaculate fractions. Trial I: fractionated ejaculates were collected from two normal and two subfertile stallions. Samples containing pre-sperm fluid and the first sperm-rich jets (HIGH-1), the main sperm-rich portion (HIGH-2), the jets with low sperm concentrations (LOW), and a combined whole-ejaculate (WE) sample was centrifuged, and the SP was filtered and frozen. A part of each SP sample was stored (5 degrees C, 24 h) with spermatozoa from HIGH-2 and skim milk extender. Sperm motility was evaluated after storage in extender mixed with the stallion's own SP or SP from one of the other stallions (sperm from a normal stallion stored in SP from a subfertile stallion and vice versa). Protein composition was analysed using reverse-phase liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC), N-terminal sequencing and mass spectrometry. The area-under-the-curve (AUC) was used for quantitative comparison of proteins within fractions. Trial II: semen samples were collected from seven stallions. Fractions with the highest (HIGH) and lowest (LOW) sperm concentrations and WE samples were examined using SDS-PAGE and densitometry. No significant differences emerged between fractions in the AUC-values of the Horse Seminal Protein-1 (HSP-1) and HSP-2 peaks, or the peak containing HSP-3 and HSP-4 (HSP-3/4). Levels of HSP-1, HSP-2 and HSP-3/4 were not significantly correlated with total sperm motility, progressive sperm motility or average path velocity after storage. Significant differences between ejaculate fractions in the amount of different protein groups present in SP were not found in Trial I; but in Trial II, the proteins in the 60-70 kDa range were more abundant in LOW than in HIGH and WE, indicating that this band contained proteins derived mainly from the seminal vesicles, which produce most of the SP in LOW.
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| 5. |
- Andersson, I. M., et al.
(author)
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Effects of feed composition, protein denaturation and storage of milk serum protein/lactose powders on rehydration properties
- 2020
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In: International Dairy Journal. - : Elsevier BV. - 0958-6946. ; 110
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Whey powder rehydration is expected to be closely linked to both denaturation and lactosylation of the proteins. This study investigated the relation between the forced imbibition rate of spray-dried milk serum protein/lactose powders and the particle morphology and how it is related to the insoluble and lactosylated protein fraction, respectively. Despite extensive variation in protein denaturation, aggregation and lactosylation, only comparably small effects on the forced imbibition rate of the powders and the particle morphology could be observed. A possible explanation for this rather limited effect on the rehydration properties and particle morphology might be that the surface composition of the powder particles is rather similar and dominated by native proteins. These insights have relevance for the formulation of whey powders with improved rehydration properties.
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| 6. |
- Andersson, I. M., et al.
(author)
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Impact of protein surface coverage and layer thickness on rehydration characteristics of milk serum protein/lactose powder particles
- 2019
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In: Colloids and Surfaces A. - : Elsevier BV. - 0927-7757 .- 1873-4359. ; 561, s. 395-404
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Spray-dried powders were produced from milk serum protein concentrate and lactose in varying ratios, and the rehydration characteristics of the powders were evaluated. The dissolution rate was estimated with a flow-cell based technique, and the external and internal distribution of the powder components were evaluated with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and confocal Raman microscopy, respectively. The surface of the powder particles is more or less covered by a thin protein layer. A phase segregation between protein and lactose is observed in the interior of the particle resulting in a protein rich layer in the vicinity of the surface. However, the protein layer in the vicinity of the particle surface tends to become thinner as the bulk protein concentration increases in the powders (from 10 to 60% w/w). The time for the spontaneous imbibition to occur show a linear correlation with the protein surface coverage. The dissolution rate of powders containing 0.1% w/w protein is around 60 times faster than for a powder containing 1% w/w protein but the dissolution rate of powders containing 1% and 100% w/w differ only by a factor of 2. Thus, it is suggested that the outer protein layer becomes denser at the interface as the protein content increases in the powders, thereby causing poorer rehydration characteristics of the powders (especially for low protein concentrations 0.1–1% w/w). This insight has relevance for the formulation of whey protein powders with improved rehydration characteristics. © 2018 Elsevier B.V.
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| 7. |
- Andersson, I. M., et al.
(author)
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Impact of surface properties on morphology of spray-dried milk serum protein/lactose systems
- 2018
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In: International Dairy Journal. - : Elsevier BV. - 0958-6946 .- 1879-0143. ; 85, s. 86-95
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study investigated milk serum protein concentrate/lactose systems with varying ratios and how the morphology of the spray-dried particles of these systems could be described by the surface properties of the feed as well as the protein surface coverage of the particles. An extrapolation of the surface pressure of the feed to 0.3 s, the approximate time for molecular diffusion in an atomised droplet in the spray-dryer, showed a relationship with the particle morphology. At low protein concentrations (<1%), the particles were almost totally smooth. At higher protein concentrations (≥1%), the particles became dented and ridged, and these tended to become deeper and thicker as the protein concentration increased. It is suggested that the surface pressure of the feed at low protein concentrations is the most prominent surface property, whereas the modulus of elasticity seems to be the most prominent surface property for particle surface deformation at higher protein concentrations.
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| 8. |
- Rader, Romina, et al.
(author)
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Non-bee insects are important contributors to global crop pollination.
- 2016
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In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. - : Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. - 1091-6490 .- 0027-8424. ; 113:1, s. 146-151
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Wild and managed bees are well documented as effective pollinators of global crops of economic importance. However, the contributions by pollinators other than bees have been little explored despite their potential to contribute to crop production and stability in the face of environmental change. Non-bee pollinators include flies, beetles, moths, butterflies, wasps, ants, birds, and bats, among others. Here we focus on non-bee insects and synthesize 39 field studies from five continents that directly measured the crop pollination services provided by non-bees, honey bees, and other bees to compare the relative contributions of these taxa. Non-bees performed 25-50% of the total number of flower visits. Although non-bees were less effective pollinators than bees per flower visit, they made more visits; thus these two factors compensated for each other, resulting in pollination services rendered by non-bees that were similar to those provided by bees. In the subset of studies that measured fruit set, fruit set increased with non-bee insect visits independently of bee visitation rates, indicating that non-bee insects provide a unique benefit that is not provided by bees. We also show that non-bee insects are not as reliant as bees on the presence of remnant natural or seminatural habitat in the surrounding landscape. These results strongly suggest that non-bee insect pollinators play a significant role in global crop production and respond differently than bees to landscape structure, probably making their crop pollination services more robust to changes in land use. Non-bee insects provide a valuable service and provide potential insurance against bee population declines.
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| 9. |
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| 10. |
- Allen-Perkins, Alfonso, et al.
(author)
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CropPol : a dynamic, open and global database on crop pollination
- 2022
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In: Ecology. - : Wiley. - 0012-9658 .- 1939-9170. ; 103:3
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Seventy five percent of the world's food crops benefit from insect pollination. Hence, there has been increased interest in how global change drivers impact this critical ecosystem service. Because standardized data on crop pollination are rarely available, we are limited in our capacity to understand the variation in pollination benefits to crop yield, as well as to anticipate changes in this service, develop predictions, and inform management actions. Here, we present CropPol, a dynamic, open and global database on crop pollination. It contains measurements recorded from 202 crop studies, covering 3,394 field observations, 2,552 yield measurements (i.e. berry weight, number of fruits and kg per hectare, among others), and 47,752 insect records from 48 commercial crops distributed around the globe. CropPol comprises 32 of the 87 leading global crops and commodities that are pollinator dependent. Malus domestica is the most represented crop (32 studies), followed by Brassica napus (22 studies), Vaccinium corymbosum (13 studies), and Citrullus lanatus (12 studies). The most abundant pollinator guilds recorded are honey bees (34.22% counts), bumblebees (19.19%), flies other than Syrphidae and Bombyliidae (13.18%), other wild bees (13.13%), beetles (10.97%), Syrphidae (4.87%), and Bombyliidae (0.05%). Locations comprise 34 countries distributed among Europe (76 studies), Northern America (60), Latin America and the Caribbean (29), Asia (20), Oceania (10), and Africa (7). Sampling spans three decades and is concentrated on 2001-05 (21 studies), 2006-10 (40), 2011-15 (88), and 2016-20 (50). This is the most comprehensive open global data set on measurements of crop flower visitors, crop pollinators and pollination to date, and we encourage researchers to add more datasets to this database in the future. This data set is released for non-commercial use only. Credits should be given to this paper (i.e., proper citation), and the products generated with this database should be shared under the same license terms (CC BY-NC-SA). This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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