The chloroplast (cp) is an essential organelle in higher plants. The genes of the plastome are well suited to infer phylogenetic relationships among taxa. In this study, we report the assembly of the ...cp genome of Artocarpus altilis and its phylogeny among species from Moraceae family. The cp genome of A. altilis was 160,822 base pair (bp) in length, comprising one large single-copy region of 88,692 bp, one small single-copy region of 19,290 bp, and a pair of inverted repeat regions (IRs) of 26,420 bp. A total of 113 different genes were predicted, including 79 protein-coding genes, 30 tRNA genes, and four rRNA genes. The phylogenetic analysis of 19 species belonging to the Moraceae family confirmed the phylogenetic proximity of the genus Artocarpus and Morus and the genetic similarity of A. camansi and A. altilis.
Brazil currently ranks second in absolute deaths by COVID-19, even though most of its population has completed the vaccination protocol. With the introduction of Omicron in late 2021, the number of ...COVID-19 cases soared once again in the country. We investigated in this work how lineages BA.1 and BA.2 entered and spread in the country by sequencing 2173 new SARS-CoV-2 genomes collected between October 2021 and April 2022 and analyzing them in addition to more than 18,000 publicly available sequences with phylodynamic methods. We registered that Omicron was present in Brazil as early as 16 November 2021 and by January 2022 was already more than 99% of samples. More importantly, we detected that Omicron has been mostly imported through the state of São Paulo, which in turn dispersed the lineages to other states and regions of Brazil. This knowledge can be used to implement more efficient non-pharmaceutical interventions against the introduction of new SARS-CoV variants focused on surveillance of airports and ground transportation.
In this study, we report the development and characterization of 15 new microsatellite markers for
Stryphnodendron adstringens
(Leguminosae) in order to support future analyses of genetic diversity ...in populations of this species. In screening with 48 individuals from three different populations of
S. adstringens
, we tested the amplification of 20 microsatellite loci, of which five are not useful for population genetic studies due to the lack of polymorphisms or amplification failures. For the final set of 15 loci, the number of alleles ranged from 2 to 15, with a total of 116 alleles. The expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.1219 to 0.8965, with an average of 0.6694 per locus. The combined probability of genetic identity (
PI
= 8.12 × 10
−15
) and paternity exclusion (
Q
= 0.99999) estimations showed that the loci may be useful to discriminate between individuals of
S. adstringens.
Initial cross-amplification tests were satisfactory in three species of the genus
Stryphnodendron
:
S. rotundifolium
,
S. coriaceum
and
S. polyphyllum
. This new set of markers will be a useful tool for population genetic studies, contributing to the knowledge about the evolutionary history of
S. adstringens
and, additionally, correlated species.
The vegetation loss in the Brazil's Legal Amazon (BLA) in 2020 corresponds to the highest loss observed in a decade, caused by the intensification of fires, mineral extraction activities, and other ...pressures. The possibility of earning from illegal activities such as deforestation and mining attracts the population to indigenous territories, while fires aggravate respiratory problems and enhance the current COVID-19 crisis. Furthermore, the BLA's road network is usually related to increased deforestation and fires in its areas of influence, and airports are known to contribute to spreading COVID-19 infections worldwide. Therefore, we decided to evaluate the effect of characteristics of Special Indigenous Health Districts (DSEIs) (including population, number of airports, and extent of the road network) and vegetation loss rates (deforestation, and area of vegetation lost by fires and mining) on the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths among the indigenous population in DSEIs in the BLA. We observed a positive correlation between the number of cases and deaths and the number of Indigenous Primary Healthcare Units, suggesting that many of these units did not increase appropriate activities for prevention and protection from COVID-19 in the DSEIs. The DSEIs with larger air transport and road networks were more affected by COVID-19. These networks constituted critical mechanisms for facilitating the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the BLA. Additionally, we noted that changes that impact the landscape of DSEIs, such as fires and mining, also impact legal indigenous areas (IAs). Thus, IAs are not spared from exploratory processes in the district's landscape. Models that associate the air transport and road networks with the transformation of the landscape in IAs from burning or mining can explain the number of indigenous people who died due to COVID-19. These results are particularly important given the current disruptive scenario imposed by the Brazilian government on critical institutions that detect and fight fires in indigenous lands and the policies enacted to combat COVID-19 in Brazil, which are based on denying isolation measures and delaying vaccinations.
Abstract Medicinal plant microbiomes undergo selection due to secondary metabolite presence. Resident endophytic/epiphytic microorganisms directly influence plant’s bioactive compound synthesis. ...Hypothesizing low microbial diversity in Serjania erecta leaves, we assessed leaf colonization by epiphytic and endophytic fungi. Given its traditional medicinal importance, we estimated diversity in the endophytic fungal microbiome. Analyses included scanning electron microscopy (SEM), isolation of cultivable species, and metagenomics. Epiphytic fungi interacted with S. erecta leaf tissues, horizontally transmitted via stomata/trichome bases, expressing traits for nematode trapping. Cultivable endophytic fungi, known for phytopathogenic habits, didn’t induce dysbiosis symptoms. This study confirms low leaf microbiome diversity in S. erecta , with a tendency towards more fungal species, likely due to antibacterial secondary metabolite selection. The classification of Halicephalobus sp. sequence corroborated the presence of nematode eggs on the epidermal surface of S. erecta by SEM. In addition, we confirmed the presence of methanogenic archaea and a considerable number of methanotrophs of the genus Methylobacterium. The metagenomic study of endophytic fungi highlighted plant growth-promoting yeasts, mainly Malassezia , Leucosporidium , Meyerozyma , and Hannaella . Studying endophytic fungi and S. erecta microbiomes can elucidate their impact on beneficial bioactive compound production, on the other hand, it is possible that the bioactive compounds produced by this plant can recruit specific microorganisms, impacting the biological system.
The vegetation loss in the Brazil's Legal Amazon (BLA) in 2020 corresponds to the highest loss observed in a decade, caused by the intensification of fires, mineral extraction activities, and other ...pressures. The possibility of earning from illegal activities such as deforestation and mining attracts the population to indigenous territories, while fires aggravate respiratory problems and enhance the current COVID-19 crisis. Furthermore, the BLA's road network is usually related to increased deforestation and fires in its areas of influence, and airports are known to contribute to spreading COVID-19 infections worldwide. Therefore, we decided to evaluate the effect of characteristics of Special Indigenous Health Districts (DSEIs) (including population, number of airports, and extent of the road network) and vegetation loss rates (deforestation, and area of vegetation lost by fires and mining) on the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths among the indigenous population in DSEIs in the BLA. We observed a positive correlation between the number of cases and deaths and the number of Indigenous Primary Healthcare Units, suggesting that many of these units did not increase appropriate activities for prevention and protection from COVID-19 in the DSEIs. The DSEIs with larger air transport and road networks were more affected by COVID-19. These networks constituted critical mechanisms for facilitating the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the BLA. Additionally, we noted that changes that impact the landscape of DSEIs, such as fires and mining, also impact legal indigenous areas (IAs). Thus, IAs are not spared from exploratory processes in the district's landscape. Models that associate the air transport and road networks with the transformation of the landscape in IAs from burning or mining can explain the number of indigenous people who died due to COVID-19. These results are particularly important given the current disruptive scenario imposed by the Brazilian government on critical institutions that detect and fight fires in indigenous lands and the policies enacted to combat COVID-19 in Brazil, which are based on denying isolation measures and delaying vaccinations.
RESUMO O Cerrado é considerado um dos "hotspots" mundiais de biodiversidade, em função da grande extensão de vegetação natural que vem sendo continuamente perdida e do elevado número de espécies ...endêmicas de plantas, que muitas vezes têm sido listadas como prioridades em programas de conservação e para estudos de genética de populações. A fim de verificar tendências nos estudos de genética de populações das espécies de plantas deste bioma, uma avaliação cienciométrica dos artigos publicados e disponíveis em diferentes bases de dados foi realizada. Um total de 171 publicações provenientes de 48 periódicos foi encontrada, entre os anos de 1999 a 2014, com o número de publicações aumentando significativamente nesse período. Noventa e uma espécies com diferentes formas de vida foram estudadas, usando diferentes tipos de marcadores moleculares. A análise cienciometrica dos artigos encontrados permitiu uma melhor compreensão do conhecimento atual sobre a genética de populações de plantas do bioma Cerrado.
Stryphnodendron adstringens, commonly known as “barbatimão”, is a native Brazilian savannah tree that has been long used in folk medicine due to its phytotherapy properties. The aim of the present ...study was to perform a scientometric analysis based on articles published in journals indexed in Web of Science database. Seventy publications on barbatimão were found and included in this scientometric research, most of which were published in English. The temporal trend analysis in the number of publications showed that the number of scientific articles about S. adstringens had increased significantly over the years. The papers found were published in 51 scientific journals, most of which are international. The main knowledge gaps relating to S. adstringens were in the fields of environmental sciences, evolutionary biology and genetics. The mains trends in barbatimão studies involves pharmacology pharmacy, forestry and medicinal chemistry. Tannin and medicinal plant were the most frequent keywords, showing its importance as a phytotherapeutic resource. Brazil was responsible for 92.96% of the knowledge about this species, obtained through scientific production. The analysis of the publications found made it possible to understand the current knowledge about the species S. adstringens.
RESUMO O Cerrado é considerado um dos "hotspots" mundiais de biodiversidade, em função da grande extensão de vegetação natural que vem sendo continuamente perdida e do elevado número de espécies ...endêmicas de plantas, que muitas vezes têm sido listadas como prioridades em programas de conservação e para estudos de genética de populações. A fim de verificar tendências nos estudos de genética de populações das espécies de plantas deste bioma, uma avaliação cienciométrica dos artigos publicados e disponíveis em diferentes bases de dados foi realizada. Um total de 171 publicações provenientes de 48 periódicos foi encontrada, entre os anos de 1999 a 2014, com o número de publicações aumentando significativamente nesse período. Noventa e uma espécies com diferentes formas de vida foram estudadas, usando diferentes tipos de marcadores moleculares. A análise cienciometrica dos artigos encontrados permitiu uma melhor compreensão do conhecimento atual sobre a genética de populações de plantas do bioma Cerrado.
ABSTRACT The Cerrado biome is considered one of the biodiversity hotspots in the world, due to both the large extent of natural vegetation that has been continually lost and the high number of endemic plant species. It has often been listed as a priority in conservation programs and in population genetic studies. In order to determine trends in plant population genetic studies in this biome, a scientometric evaluation of published and available articles in different databases was performed. A total of 171 publications from 48 journals was found between the years 1999 and 2014, with the number of publications increasing significantly during this period. Ninety-one species with different life forms were studied, using different types of molecular markers. These analyses confer a better understanding of the current knowledge of plant population genetics in the Cerrado biome.
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