Letter to the Editorwith phylogenetic tree analyses, allow at present for the Unified Nomenclature for the designation of eight subclasses into which all known (CEL)Sema-1a for C. elegans, etc.). Given the difficulty * Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Molecular and in firmly establishing ortholog relationships among in-

Twenty-seven crosses were used to study the genetics of rapidly evolving traits in a recently founded population of threespine stickleback in Loberg Lake, Alaska. Lateral plate morph segregation ratios were inconsistent with all published models of lateral plate morph genetics except Avise's (1976) general two-locus model. Incompatibility of the results of our plate morph crosses with those of most previous studies suggests that the genetic architecture underlying lateral plate morphs differs among populations or is more complex than presently recognized. Segregation ratios for lateral plate morphs indicate that consistently low frequencies of partial morphs observed in the Loberg Lake population at least partly reflect genetic architecture. Gillraker number and probably low morph lateral plate number are highly heritable and correlated with each other. Lateral plate asymmetry was high but not significantly heritable. Low and complete morph lateral plate number do not appear to be genetically correlated, indicating a significant element of independent genetic control.

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The Global Strategy for Women’s Children’s and Adolescents’ Health emphasizes accountability as essential to ensure that decision-makers have the information required to meet the health needs of their populations and stresses the importance of tracking resources, results, and rights to see ‘what works, what needs improvement and what requires increased attention’. However, results from accountability initiatives are mixed and there is a lack of broadly applicable, validated tools for planning, monitoring and evaluating accountability interventions. This article documents an effort to transform accountability markers—including political will, leadership and the monitor–review–act cycle—into a measurement tool that can be used prospectively or retrospectively to plan, monitor and evaluate accountability initiatives. It describes the development process behind the tool including the literature review, framework development and subsequent building of the measurement tool itself. It also examines feedback on the tool from a panel of global experts and the results of a pilot test conducted in Bauchi and Gombe states in Nigeria. The results demonstrate that the tool is an effective aid for accountability initiatives to reflect on their own progress and provides a useful structure for future planning, monitoring and evaluation. The tool can be applied and adapted to other accountability mechanisms working in global health.

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