The Russian wheat aphid (RWA) [Diuraphis noxia (Kurdjumov)] is an economically significant insect pest of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) in the USA. Since 1986, only one biotype existed in the USA. In 2003, a new biotype appeared which was virulent to all known resistance genes in wheat, with the exception of Dn7. Dn7 is a rye gene transferred into a wheat background via 1RS/1BL translocation. It was previously mapped; however, no PCR‐based markers were developed for marker‐assisted selection (MAS) and the map was sparse. This study presents a higher density map of Dn7 containing 19 markers. The markers spanning Dn7 are XHor2 and Xscb241 at distances of 1.4 and 1 cM, respectively, from Dn7 PCR markers were developed and tested on 19 wheat cultivars. Two markers which amplified rye‐specific fragments proved to be useful for MAS. Xrems1303 amplified a 320‐bp band only in cultivars with high‐level resistance to biotype 2 and is effective for MAS of Dn7. Xib267 is linked to the susceptible locus and amplified a fragment specific for rye Petkus 1RS and would be a good marker for selecting against the susceptible locus. The value of Dn7 as a source of resistance has increased because of the broad spectrum resistance it provides against several biotypes. The markers developed in this study will be useful for facilitating the transfer of Dn7 into wheat cultivars with or without translocation chromosomes containing 1RS.

a b s t r a c tObjective: This paper presents an innovative idea of applying a hybrid ensemble technique i.e. ensemble of ensemble methods for improving the predictive performance of Artificial intelligence based system for screening of cervical cancer by characterization and classification of Pap smear images. Methodology: Papanicolaou smear (also referred to as Pap smear) is a microscopic examination of samples of human cells scraped from the lower, narrow part of the uterus, called the cervix. A sample of cells after being stained by using Papanicolaou method is analyzed under microscope for the presence of any unusual developments indicating any precancerous and potentially precancerous changes. Abnormal findings, if observed are subjected to further precise diagnostic subroutines. Examining the cell images for abnormalities in the cervix provides grounds for provision of prompt action and thus reducing incidence and deaths from cervical cancer. It is the most popular technique used for screening of cervical cancer. Pap smear test, if done with a regular screening programs and proper follow-up, can reduce cervical cancer mortality by up to 80% [1]. The contribution of this paper is that we have pioneered to apply hybrid ensemble technique to screen cervical cancer by classification of Pap smear data. The hybrid ensemble designed in this work has also presented an idea to use an ensemble of ensemble techniques. Using such a technique, the classification potentials of individual algorithms are fused together to gain greater classification accuracy. In addition to this we have also presented a comparative analysis of various artificial intelligence based algorithms for screening of cervical cancer. Results:The results indicate that hybrid ensemble technique is an efficient method for classification of Pap smear images and hence can be effectively used for diagnosis of cervical cancer. Among all the algorithms implemented, the hybrid ensemble approach outperformed & expressed an efficiency of about 96% for 2-class problem and about 78% for 7-class problem. The results when compared with the all the standalone classifiers were significantly better for both 2-class and 7-class problems.

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Twenty two apple cultivars grown in Himachal Pradesh, India were harvested at commercial maturity and analysed for different physical (fruit weight, fruit dimensions, firmness, color) and nutritional attributes (ascorbic acid, antioxidant activity, total carotenoid, sugars, organic acids, phenolic compounds and minerals). Cultivar 'Oregon Spur II' was found to have maximum fruit size and weight while the least was observed for cultivar 'Starkrimson'. Quantitative differences were found in the nutritional profile among the cultivars with respect to all the above attributes. The ascorbic acid content ranged between 19.38 mg 100 g ('Well Spur') and 32.08 mg 100 g ('Starkrimson') while the antioxidant activity varied between 2.64 μmol Trolox equivalent g ('Granny Smith') and 13.20 μmol Trolox equivalent g ('Silver Spur'). The highest total carotenoid was found in 'Red Chief' (147.06 mg kg) while in 'Early Red-I' the total carotenoid was only 29.03 mg kg. HPLC analysis for individual sugars, organic acids and phenolic compounds was carried out. Fructose (average 50.79 g L) was the most abundant sugar. Malic acid (average 6.03 mg L) predominated among the individual organic acids. Potassium (average 795.14 mg 100 g) and iron (average 2.04 µg g) were the predominant macro and micro elements, respectively. Chlorogenic acid was the major constituent among phenolic compounds.

The APETALA2 transcription factor homolog CaAP2 is a candidate gene for a flowering repressor in pepper, as revealed by induced-mutation phenotype, and a candidate underlying a major QTL controlling natural variation in flowering time. To decipher the genetic control of transition to flowering in pepper (Capsicum spp.) and determine the extent of gene function conservation compared to model species, we isolated and characterized several ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS)-induced mutants that vary in their flowering time compared to the wild type. In the present study, we report on the isolation of an early-flowering mutant that flowers after four leaves on the primary stem compared to nine leaves in the wild-type 'Maor'. By genetic mapping and sequencing of putative candidate genes linked to the mutant phenotype, we identified a member of the APETALA2 (AP2) transcription factor family, CaAP2, which was disrupted in the early-flowering mutant. CaAP2 is a likely ortholog of AP2 that functions as a repressor of flowering in Arabidopsis. To test whether CaAP2 has an effect on controlling natural variation in the transition to flowering in pepper, we performed QTL mapping for flowering time in a cross between early and late-flowering C. annuum accessions. We identified a major QTL in a region of chromosome 2 in which CaAP2 was the most significant marker, explaining 52 % of the phenotypic variation of the trait. Sequence comparison of the CaAP2 open reading frames in the two parents used for QTL mapping did not reveal significant variation. In contrast, significant differences in expression level of CaAP2 were detected between near-isogenic lines that differ for the flowering time QTL, supporting the putative function of CaAP2 as a major repressor of flowering in pepper.