This review explores how imaging techniques are being developed with a focus on deployment for crop monitoring methods. Imaging applications are discussed in relation to both field and glasshouse-based plants, and techniques are sectioned into ‘healthy and diseased plant classification’ with an emphasis on classification accuracy, early detection of stress, and disease severity. A central focus of the review is the use of hyperspectral imaging and how this is being utilised to find additional information about plant health, and the ability to predict onset of disease. A summary of techniques used to detect biotic and abiotic stress in plants is presented, including the level of accuracy associated with each method.

The field of systems biology is often held back by difficulties in obtaining comprehensive, highquality, quantitative data sets. In this paper, we undertook an interlaboratory effort to generate such a data set for a very large number of cellular components in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a widely used model organism that is also used in the production of fuels, chemicals, food ingredients and pharmaceuticals. With the current focus on biofuels and sustainability, there is much interest in harnessing this species as a general cell factory. In this study, we characterized two yeast strains, under two standard growth conditions. We ensured the high quality of the experimental data by evaluating a wide range of sampling and analytical techniques. Here we show significant differences in the maximum specific growth rate and biomass yield between the two strains. on the basis of the integrated analysis of the highthroughput data, we hypothesize that differences in phenotype are due to differences in protein metabolism.

Background: In response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the UK government introduced social distancing measures and identified specific populations at high risk from the virus. People ≥70 were deemed “Clinically Vulnerable.” Distancing measures were introduced to reduce the risk of contracting COVID-19. However, these may have a negative impact on older people who are vulnerable to social isolation and may have challenges accessing services and provisions. Objectives: To investigate the impact of COVID-19 lockdown measures on the lives of older people. Study design and setting: Cross-sectional telephone survey. Participants: Community-dwelling older people, 76–97 years. Outcomes: Health anxiety; General health (RAND Short-form 36 Survey); Physical activity; Depression (PHQ-8); Anxiety (GAD-2); Loneliness; Access to services; Challenges, concerns and positive experiences. Data analysis: Counts (%), means (SDs). Thematic analysis was used to identify themes from open questions. Results: n = 142. 52% did not worry about their health; 76% rated their health as “good”, “very good” or “excellent”. < 10% met the criteria indicative of depression (PHQ-8), or anxiety (GAD-2). 42% were less active than before lockdown. 27% were lonely at least some of the time. Over half of participants identified positive aspects. Conclusions: Most participants reported good health with low levels of health anxiety, anxiety and depression. Many were able to identify positive aspects to lockdown and may be better equipped to deal with lockdown than anticipated. Strategies may be required to ameliorate the negative impact of loneliness for a minority of older people, and help some resume previous activity levels and pursuits.

Seven plastid microsatellite markers derived from plastome sequence data were used to study the population genetic structure in two widespread Begonia spp. from Central America. In B. nelumbiifolia, no variation was found at any locus. In contrast, significant haplotype diversity was found in B. heracleifolia (hT = 0.937, hS = 0.444, 39 haplotypes, mean of 3.3 haplotypes per population), and populations showed high absolute levels of genetic differentiation (G'ST = 0.829, D = 0.407). The distribution of haplotypes showed strong phylogeographical structure (GST = 0.526, RST = 0.737, GST < RST, P < 0.05), but this pattern was poorly accounted for by commonly studied historical scenarios, such as Pleistocene refugia or Pliocene differentiation at the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Instead, subdivision into a large number of regions, each containing local populations (e.g. when k = 9, FCT = 0.749, P < 0.05), best explained the haplotype distribution. The lack of haplotype diversity in B. nelumbiifolia, a moist adapted species, suggests that it may have been severely restricted in range during dry spells in the Pleistocene, and has subsequently expanded from this recent population bottleneck. The high haplotype diversity in B. heracleifolia may indicate that its adaptation to drought enabled it to survive in small, but ecologically suitable, pockets of isolated habitat throughout the Pleistocene. Limited seed exchange between B. heracleifolia populations is likely to be responsible for its high population substructure, and provided the opportunity for divergence through genetic drift. This interpretation is consistent with previous population genetic studies in Begonia, and suggests a common pattern of extremely low genetic exchange among a series of small, but long‐lived, populations that may predispose the genus to rapid speciation. © 2012 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2012, 00, 000–000.

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The increasing speed and decreasing cost of generating DNA sequence data has transformed experimental approaches in many fields of biology. In this review we describe some of the new technologies commercially available and in development, and discuss how plant taxonomy could benefit from the possible data generated. These benefits include better resolved phylogenies, potential for dealing with the difficulties posed by polyploidy and hybridisation, and new options for studying species boundaries and species relationships in recent radiations.

A biparental cross of octoploid strawberry segregating for resistance to Verticillium dahliae, the causative agent of Verticillium wilt, was screened under field conditions for three seasons. Average wilt scores were significantly associated with multiple QTL, which were mostly significant across all years. Markers significantly associated with the traits were used to screen material with known wilt resistance and susceptibility phenotypes. A clear and statistically significant relationship was observed between resistant, tolerant and susceptible material and the total number of markers present in the different resistance classes. In field situations resistance QTL appear to behave in an additive manner. These markers are abundant in the cultivated strawberry germplasm indicating that, despite the large number of markers, clear genetic gain is possible through marker-assisted breeding.

Begonia is one of the ten largest angiosperm genera with over 1,500 species found throughout the tropics. To use this group as a model for the evolution of diversity in tropical herbaceous plants, we have produced three species transcriptomes, physical genome size measures, and two backcross genetic maps. We chose to focus on two Central American species, B. conchifolia and B. plebeja, and one SE Asian species, B. venusta, allowing us to pose questions at widely different evolutionary scales within the genus. We used next generation sequencing of cDNA libraries to produce annotated transcriptome databases for each of the three species. Though Begonia is functionally diploid, transcriptome analysis suggested a genome duplication occurred at or near the base of the Begonia clade. The genetic maps were built from first generation backcrosses in both directions between B. plebeja and B.conchifolia using 105 SNP markers in genes known to regulate development that were identified from the transcriptomes and the map bulked out with 226 AFLP loci. The genetic maps had 14 distinct linkage groups each and mean marker densities of between 3.6 and 5.8 cM providing between 96 and 99 % genomic coverage within 10 cM. We measured genome size 1C value of 0.60 and 0.63 pg for B. conchifolia and B. plebeja corresponding to recombination rates of between 441 and 451 Kb per cM in the genetic maps. Altogether, these new data represent a powerful new set of molecular genetic tools for evolutionary study in the genus Begonia.