Cassava mosaic disease (CMD) is a serious threat to cassava production in sub-Saharan Africa. The use of genomic-assisted selection at the seedling trial stage would help to reduce the time for release, breeding cost, and resources used, hence increase selection efficiency in cassava breeding programs. Five cassava populations were screened for resistance to CMD during the seedling evaluation trial at 1, 3, and 5 months after planting using a scale of 1–5. The genotypes in the five populations were also screened using six molecular markers linked to the CMD2 gene. The correlation between the phenotypic and marker data was estimated. Based on Cassava Mosaic Disease Severity Score (CMDSS), between 53 and 82% of the progenies were resistant across the populations with an average of 70.5%. About 70% of the progenies were identified to be resistant to the disease across the populations with a range of 62–80% using the marker data. With both marker data and CMDSS combined, 40–60% of the progenies in each population, with an average of 52%, were identified to be resistant to CMD. There was a fairly significant correlation between the marker data and CMDSS in each cassava population with correlation coefficients ranging from 0.2024 to 0.3460 suggesting that novel genes not associated to the markers used might be involved in the resistance to CMD. The resistant genotypes identified in this study with potential for other desirable traits were selected for evaluation at the advanced trial stage thereby shortening the period required for the breeding program.

Tea (Camellia sinensis) infusions are widely consumed beverages with numerous health benefits. However, physiological and molecular responses mediating these activities are poorly understood. Three replicates of 4TI cancer cell suspension (2.0 × 105 cells/ml) were challenged in vitro with various concentrations of green, black and purple tea infusions to asseses their cytoxicity and associated differentially expressed genes in the cells. Inhibitory activity was tested by using serial dilutions of respective tea infusions in a 96 well ELISA plate. Green tea had the highest inhibition on 4TI cells proliferation at a concentration of IC50 = 13.12 μg/ml. Further analysis of the 4TI cancer cell line treated with tea using 454 pyrosequencing generated 425,696 reads with an input mean length of 286.54. Trimmed sequences were imported on a CLC genomic workbench v7.03 and annotated on a reference mouse genome (Mus musculus strain C57BL/6 J). Results revealed a differential expression of apoptosis related genes in the transcriptome. Casp8, Casp9, Casp3, Casp6, Casp8AP2, Aifm1, Aifm2 and Apopt1 genes were significantly upregulated indicating the process of apoptosis was initiated and executed. These findings on caspases offer valuable information on the mechanism of tea as an anticancer agent and will contribute to further research in future novel treatments.

The emergence of commercial fish farming has stimulated the establishment of fish feed factories in Uganda. However, no information is available on the safety of the feed, mainly due to lack of mycotoxin testing facilities and weak regulatory systems. A study was carried out to examine fungal colonization and mycotoxin contamination in fish feed samples (n = 147) of different types collected from nine fish farms (n = 81) and seven fish feed factories (n = 66) in the Lake Victoria Basin (LVB). Fungi were isolated in potato dextrose agar, grouped into morphotypes and representative isolates from each morphotype were identified based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of ribosomal DNA sequences. Aflatoxin B₁ (AFB₁) and total fumonisin (combinations of B₁, B₂ and B₃; hereinafter named fumonisin) levels in feed samples were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A wide range of fungi, including toxigenic Aspergillus flavus and Fusarium verticillioides, were isolated from the fish feed samples. AFB₁ was detected in 48% of the factory samples and in 63% of the farm samples, with toxin levels 400 µg/kg, respectively. Similarly, 31% of the factory samples and 29% of the farm samples had fumonisin contamination ranging between 0.1 and 4.06 mg/kg. Pellets and powder had higher mycotoxin contamination compared to other commercially available fish feed types. This study shows AFB₁ as a potential fish feed safety issue in the LVB and suggests a need for more research on mycotoxin residues in fish fillets.

The stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1 (SCD1) A293V and acyl CoA: diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1) K232A polymorphisms have been associated with significant variation in bovine milk fatty acid composition and unsaturation indices in western cattle breeds. This study aimed to estimate the milk fatty acid variability in indigenous Borgou and White Fulani cattle breeds of Benin, and the effects of the SCD1 A293V and DGAT1 K232A polymorphisms on milk and fatty acid composition and unsaturation indices. Thus, 85 Borgou and 96 White Fulani cows were genotyped for the SCD1 A293V and DGAT1 K232A polymorphisms and their milk and fatty acid composition and unsaturation indices were determined. Borgou presented milk with higher linoleic acid (P < 0.001), oleic acid (P < 0.05), C18 index (P < 0.001), total unsaturation index (P < 0.05), and lower total saturated fatty acid (SFA) compared to White Fulani. The SCD1 VV genotype was associated with higher protein and lactose contents in White Fulani (P < 0.05). In Borgou, the SCD1 AV genotype was associated with higher C14 and total unsaturation indices (P < 0.01), while the SCD1 V allele was associated with decrease in C14 index (P < 0.05). In White Fulani, the SCD1 VV genotype was associated with lower C18:1 cis-9 content (P < 0.05) while the DGAT1 K allele was associated with increased total SFA (P < 0.05), and decreased C18 index (P < 0.05), total unsaturation index (P < 0.01) and total monounsaturated fatty acid (P < 0.01). The SCD1 A293V and DGAT1 K232A may serve as genetic markers to improve milk fatty acid traits in Borgou and White Fulani breeds.

Background: Ethiopian sheep living in different climatic zones and having contrasting morphologies are a most promising subject of molecular-genetic research. Elucidating their genetic diversity and genetic structure is critical for designing appropriate breeding and conservation strategies.Objective: The study was aimed to investigate genome-wide genetic diversity and population structure of eight Ethiopian sheep populations.Methods: A total of 115 blood samples were collected from four Ethiopian sheep populations that include Washera, Farta and Wollo (short fat-tailed) and Horro (long fat-tailed). DNA was extracted using Quick-DNA™ Miniprep plus kit. All DNA samples were genotyped using Ovine 50 K SNP BeadChip. To infer genetic relationships of Ethiopian sheep at national, continental and global levels, genotype data on four Ethiopian sheep (Adilo, Arsi-Bale, Menz and Black Head Somali) and sheep from east, north, and south Africa, Middle East and Asia were included in the study as reference.Results: Mean genetic diversity of Ethiopian sheep populations ranged from 0.352 ± 0.14 for Horro to 0.379 ± 0.14 for Arsi-Bale sheep. Population structure and principal component analyses of the eight Ethiopian indigenous sheep revealed four distinct genetic cluster groups according to their tail phenotype and geographical distribution. The short fat-tailed sheep did not represent one genetic cluster group. Ethiopian fat-rump sheep share a common genetic background with the Kenyan fat-tailed sheep.Conclusion: The results of the present study revealed the principal component and population structure follows a clear pattern of tail morphology and phylogeography. There is clear signature of admixture among the study Ethiopian sheep populations