Research Articles (Genetics)
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Characterisation of different GLRaV-3 variant infections by determining virus concentration ratios and miRNA expression profiles
(Bundesanstalt fur Zuchtungsforschung an Kulturpflanzen, 2019)Grapevine leafroll disease (GLD) is present in all grape-growing regions of the world and is considered the most significant grapevine viral disease. Grapevine leafroll-associated virus 3 (GLRaV-3) is considered the primary ... -
Mitochondrial genetic variation reveals phylogeographic structure and cryptic diversity in Trioza erytreae
(Nature Research (part of Springer Nature), 2020)Trioza erytreae is the main vector for ‘Candidatus Liberibacter africanus’, the causative agent of African Citrus Greening disease. The insect is widespread in Africa, and has recently disseminated to Southwestern Europe. ... -
DNA methylation and demethylation are regulated by functional DNA methyltransferases and DnTET enzymes in diuraphis noxia
(Frontiers Media, 2020)Aphids are economically important insect pests of crops worldwide. Despite resistant varieties being available, resistance is continuously challenged and eventually broken down, posing a threat to food security. In the ... -
The application of a commercially available citrus-based extract mitigates moderate NaCl-stress in arabidopsis thaliana plants
(MDPI, 2020)Aims: The aim of this study was to assess the effect of BC204 as a plant biostimulant on Arabidopsis thaliana plants under normal and NaCl-stressed conditions. Methods: For this study, ex vitro and in vitro growth experiments ... -
Wheat line “RYNO3936” is associated with delayed water stress-induced leaf senescence and rapid water-deficit stress recovery
(Frontiers Media, 2020)Random mutagenesis was applied to produce a new wheat mutant (RYNO3926) with superior characteristics regarding tolerance to water deficit stress induced at late booting stage. The mutant also displays rapid recovery from ... -
Phylogeography, genetic diversity, and population structure of Nile crocodile populations at the fringes of the southern African distribution
(Public Library of Science, 2018)Nile crocodiles are apex predators widely distributed in sub-Saharan Africa that have been viewed and managed as a single species. A complex picture of broad and fine-scale phylogeographic patterns that includes the ... -
The complete mitochondrial genome and phylogenetic position of the leopard catshark, Poroderma pantherinum
(Taylor & Francis Open, 2018)We present the first mitochondrial genome of a South African endemic catshark, Poroderma pantherinum. The complete mitogenome is 16,686 bp in length, comprising 13 protein-coding genes, 2 rRNA genes, 22 tRNA genes, and ... -
Modification of cassava root starch phosphorylation enhances starch functional properties
(Frontiers Media, 2018)Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is a root crop used as a foodstuff and as a starch source in industry. Starch functional properties are influenced by many structural features including the relative amounts of the two ... -
Repression of sex4 and like sex four2 orthologs in potato increases tuber starch bound phosphate with concomitant alterations in starch properties physical
(Frontiers Media, 2018-07-23)To examine the roles of starch phosphatases in potatoes, transgenic lines were produced where orthologs of SEX4 and LIKE SEX FOUR2 (LSF2) were repressed using RNAi constructs. Although repression of either SEX4 or LSF2 ... -
Confirmation of the effectiveness and genetic positions of disease resistance loci in ‘Kishmish Vatkana’ (Ren1) and ‘Villard Blanc’ (Ren3 and Rpv3)
(South African Society for Enology and Viticulture, 2018)This study aimed to validate the effectiveness and to genetically characterise the fungal disease resistance genes of ‘Kishmish Vatkana’ and ‘Villard Blanc’ in South Africa using microsatellite (SSR) markers and a ... -
Mutations in glucan, water dikinase affect starch degradation and gametophore development in the moss physcomitrella patens
(Nature Research, 2019)The role of starch degradation in non-vascular plants is poorly understood. To expand our knowledge of this area, we have studied this process in Physcomitrella patens. This has been achieved through examination of the ... -
The structure and function of the global citrus rhizosphere microbiome
(Nature Research (part of Springer Nature), 2018)Citrus is a globally important, perennial fruit crop whose rhizosphere microbiome is thought to play an important role in promoting citrus growth and health. Here, we report a comprehensive analysis of the structural and ... -
Starch trek : the search for yield
(Frontiers Media, 2019)Starch is a plant storage polyglucan that accumulates in plastids. It is composed of two polymers, amylose and amylopectin, with different structures and plays several roles in helping to determine plant yield. In leaves, ... -
Population genetics of Southern Hemisphere tope shark (Galeorhinus galeus) : Intercontinental divergence and constrained gene flow at different geographical scales
(Public Library of Science, 2017)The tope shark (Galeorhinus galeus Linnaeus, 1758) is a temperate, coastal hound shark found in the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific oceans. In this study, the population structure of Galeorhinus galeus was determined across the ... -
A comparative study of selected physical and biochemical traits of wild-type and transgenic sorghum to reveal differences relevant to grain quality
(Frontiers Media, 2017)Transgenic sorghum featuring RNAi suppression of certain kafirins was developed recently, to address the problem of poor protein digestibility in the grain. However, it was not firmly established if other important quality ... -
Monetary value of the impacts of filamentous green algae on commercial agriculture : results from two geographically different case studies
(South African Water Research Commission, 2016-07)This paper presents estimates of the monetary value of the impact of eutrophication (algae) on commercial agriculture in two different catchments in South Africa. A production function approach is applied to estimate the ... -
Microsatellite-based DNA fingerprinting of selected grapevine cultivars
(South African Society for Enology and Viticulture, 2018)Cultivar identification by ampelography is often difficult and is sensitive to environmental conditions, thus it can be problematic to distinguish between closely related cultivars. DNA fingerprinting offers an alternative ... -
Genome of Russian wheat aphid an economically important cereal aphid
(BioMed Central, 2017-12-28)Although the hemipterans ( Aphididae ) are comprised of roughly 50,000 extant insect species, only four have sequenced genomes that are publically available, namely ... -
In silico analysis of the grapefruit sRNAome, transcriptome and gene regulation in response to CTV-CDVd co-infection
(BioMed Central, 2017)Background: Small RNA (sRNA) associated gene regulation has been shown to play a significant role during plant-pathogen interaction. In commercial citrus orchards co-infection of Citrus tristeza virus (CTV) and viroids ... -
The use of high-through put small RNA sequencing reveals differentially expressed microRNAs in response to aster yellows phytoplasma-infection in Vitis vinifera cv. Chardonnay
(Public Library of Science, 2017)Phytoplasmas are cell wall-less plant pathogenic bacteria responsible for major crop losses throughout the world. In grapevine they cause grapevine yellows, a detrimental disease associated with a variety of symptoms. The ...