Search bioRxiv⌕ Search
Home/Archive/bioRxiv

bioRxiv · 10.1101/2022.03.17.484730

Standardization of cytological behavior of pollens in sorghum by Image analysis

Deshpande, S. P.·Narkhede, G. W.·Mehtre, S. P.
View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

The development of iso-nuclear male sterile (A) and maintainer (B) line along with male fertile (R) lines, referred to as fertility restorers, helped in cost-effective seed production and deployment of hybrids. The pollen viability/fertility for maintenance (B-line) and restoration (R-line) remains a significant phenotyping hurdle in developing new lines. We carried out the present investigation to evaluate the pollen fertility status of Cytoplasmic Genetic Male Sterility (CGMS) based hybrids in sorghum. The experimental material consisted of 238 CGMS based hybrids developed from the crossing of individuals of (296B xIS 188551) - based Recombinant Inbred Line (RIL) population (F7:F8) with male-sterile line (296A). The experiment was conducted in the rainy and post-rainy seasons during 2016 to evaluate pollen fertility. The authors illustrated the pollen fertility status by counting pollen counts using two methods: viz., visual counting by the naked eye, and image analysis using ImageJ (NIH, USA) software. We compared results between counts recorded visually and ImageJ reads for randomly selected 50 individuals each during the rainy and post-rainy seasons. The pollen counts from ImageJ were 95% efficient in detecting sterile vs. fertile counts. These results provide a better, efficient, and quick tool for characterizing the pollen behavior and also add value to the genetics studies by accounting for the quantitative variation encoded by multiple loci.

Explore related subjects

geneticsPreprint

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Deshpande, S. P., Narkhede, G. W., Mehtre, S. P.. 2022-03-19. Standardization of cytological behavior of pollens in sorghum by Image analysis. https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.03.17.484730

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related preprints

bioRxiv2026

Large language model-based bibliometric evaluation of population descriptors in human genetics

As the use of population descriptors such as race, ethnicity, and ancestry have become increasingly common in modern genetics research, there have been growing calls to critically examine their use. Most notably, in 2023, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) published a report titled Using Population Descriptors in Genetics and Genomics Research: A New Framework for an Evolving Field, which included eight specific and actionable recommendations for researchers to implement the ethical and accurate use of population descriptors in genetic research. Here, we use the 2023 NASEM report as a benchmark to analyze the use of population descriptors in genome-wide association studies (GWAS). We develop a general toolkit for large language model-based bibliometrics, operationalize the report's recommendations into an evaluation framework, and apply this framework to evaluate all 4,007 papers from the GWAS Catalog published between 2007 and 2025 with full text available on PubMedCentral. We find significant improvements in adherence to NASEM report recommendations over time. However, most improvements predate the publication of the NASEM report itself, suggesting the report functioned primarily as a synthesis of existing best practices rather than a catalyst for change. We conclude by highlighting opportunities for growth in the field of human genetics.

genetics↗
bioRxiv2026

Mitigating biases of rescaling in forward-in-time population genetic simulations

Forward-in-time population genetic simulations are widely used in evolutionary analyses, but simulating large populations and long genomic regions remains computationally demanding. To reduce this cost, parameter rescaling is widely employed, in which the original evolutionary process is approximated by one with a smaller population size and fewer generations. Recently, several studies using the SLiM simulator have raised concerns about the accuracy of this rescaling approach. In this study, we show that many of the biases reported in these studies can be mitigated by using a different simulation algorithm. These results reveal that the accuracy of parameter rescaling depends on how well the simulation algorithm preserves diffusion-limit properties under rescaling.

genetics↗
bioRxiv2026

OPA1 controls mitochondrial dysfunction-driven liver fibrosis in MASLD

Progressive hepatic fibrosis is the principal determinant of morbidity and mortality in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease and steatohepatitis (MASLD/MASH). Mitochondrial dysfunction is a hallmark of MASH, and the release of mitochondrial damage-associated molecular patterns (mito-DAMPs) from injured hepatocytes can promote fibrosis. However, how mitochondrial dynamics and quality control shape the fibrotic response in MASLD/MASH remains unclear. Here, through large-scale genomic analyses of mitochondrial genes governing mitophagy, fusion and fission in human MASLD, with a power-equivalent sample size of approximately 700,000 individuals, we identify a strong association between hepatic fibrosis and the mitochondrial fusion factor dynamin-like GTPase optic atrophy 1 (OPA1). OPA1 transcripts and protein abundance in the liver epithelium were progressively dysregulated with advancing fibrosis. In mice, hepatocyte-specific OPA1 loss alone was sufficient to induce hepatic stellate cell activation and fibrosis in zone 3, promoted the release of mito-DAMPs into the circulation and exacerbated fibrosis in experimental MASH. These findings identify OPA1 as a central regulator of the hepatic fibrotic response and connect defective mitochondrial homeostasis to mito-DAMP release, hepatic stellate cell activation and fibrosis in MASLD.

genetics↗