although molecular markers have been successfully used to analyze genetic variability within and among perennial forage grasses, examples of applications to benefit their breeding programs are rare. Additionally, molecular information about effect of genetic diversity on performance of synthetic cultivars and their application toward parental selection are limited. In this study, 25 tall fescue genotypes were selected from a base population and the genetic diversity among them was assessed using morphological (12 Agro-morphological traits) and molecular (using 50 EST-SSR primers) characteristics. For each morphological and EST-SSR evaluation, two polycross of six parental plants with contrasting levels of genetic diversity (narrow and wide) were composed and the corresponding synthetic varieties were morphologically evaluated. Average genetic diversity among parents selected for narrow polycrosses in molecular and morphological analysis was 55% and 14% lower than among parents selected for wide polycrosses, respectively. Results showed that progenies from molecularly wide polycross had significantly higher hay yield (25%), stem number (12%) and crown diameter (10%) when compare to progenies from molecularly narrow polycross. Morphological diversity did not affect these traits. On the other hand, higher morphological diversity increased days to pollination and plant height by 4.5 and 7% respectively. Results indicated that progeny performance in tall fescue can be estimated by molecular information of their parents. The results provide evidence for an efficient application of molecular markers to select genetically diverse parents especially for quantitative traits.

Landraces are valuable genetic resources in crop breeding program. Determining level of genetic variation and relationships between landraces is necessary for optimal conservation and utilization of these valuable resources. In the present study, genetic diversity and relationships of 119 barley landraces from Iran, China, Egypt, Russia, Pakistan and Spain as well as 25 commercial varieties and breeding lines were evaluated using 22 EST-SSR primer pairs. A total of 87 alleles were amplified with an average of 4.14 alleles per locus in 21 polymorphic EST-SSR loci. Polymorphic information content ranged from 0.23 (GBM1212) to 0.84 (SCSSR09398) with an average of 0.52. The average of gene diversity for the studied markers was 0.58 with range of 0.24 to 0.86. Cluster analysis based on EST-SSR data, using Neighbor-Joining algorithm and Kimura 2-parameter evolutionary distance coefficient assigned the genotypes into five groups. In principal coordinate analysis, the first three coordinates explained about 70.09% of total molecular variance. Biplot presentation of the genotypes based on the two first coordinates confirmed the grouping resulted from cluster analysis. Analysis of molecular variance revealed high within group variance in geographical groups of barley which could be utilized in barley breeding programs. The results indicated that EST-SSR markers as functional markers have acceptable efficiency in analysis of genotypes relationships and determining population structure.

This paper aims at introducing a group of linguistic items called discourse markers among other things. These items constitute a functional-pragmatic category of linguistic expressions which as the name suggests fuction primarily or even exclusively on the level of discourse, rather than that of sentence,i.e. they pertain to language use, rather than to language structure, and thus cannot be studied in the absence of a context. Discourse markers are thought of as providing metalinguistic indications about the unfolding discourse. This paper first introduces an approach to the study of discourse markers formulated by Deborah Schiffrin (1987), and then based on the line of analysis in that approach attempts at comparing and contrasting the functions of but from English and "اما" from Persian as discourse markers. It will become known that while these two markers have certain functions in common, they differ in one important function, that is, whereas "اما" is used as a marker of topic shift and introducing a new topic in Persian discourse, but does not have such a function in the English discourse.

Background: Considering the close link between metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) and cardiovascular diseases, considerable attention has been devoted to the identification of their shared underlying pathological mechanisms in recent decades. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the association between pro-inflammatory factors and newly-diagnosed MetSyn. Methods: This case-control study recruited obese and nonobese individuals who were newly diagnosed with MetSyn (cases, n = 84) and healthy individuals (controls, n = 83). The medical and sociodemographic data of the participants were collected on enrollment. Serum analysis was performed to ascertain the concentrations of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-, ), C-reactive protein (CRP), fasting blood sugar (FBS), total cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and atherogenic coefficient (AC). Multiple regression analysis was carried out to explore the relationship between inflammatory markers and AC with MetSyn odds. The Pearson correlation test was also performed to investigate the correlations between metabolic and inflammatory parameters. Results: Positive relationships were observed between the serum levels of TNF-, and CRP with the odds of MetSyn following controlling for confounders (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1. 32,95% confidence interval [CI]: 1. 01-1. 72,AOR = 1. 29,95% CI: 1. 18-1. 41,respectively, P,0. 03). Additionally, higher AC was accompanied by increased odds of MetSyn (AOR = 1. 98,95% CI: 1. 31-2. 98,P = 0. 001). The Pearson correlation analysis also showed positive correlations between TNF-, levels and serum metabolic abnormalities, including elevated LDL-C, FBS, and AC and lowered HDL-C levels (P ,0. 02). Conclusions: The present results revealed that higher serum concentrations of pro-inflammatory and atherogenic indices, including CRP, TNF-, , and AC, might be associated with elevated odds of newly diagnosed MetSyn regardless of potential confounders, particularly body mass index. The obtained findings might be moderated by the positive correlations observed between serum TNF-, , as the chronic inflammatory state indicator, and impaired lipid and glycemic markers.

Neuroblastoma, one of the common malignant childhood tumors, arises from neuroblast cells derived from the neural crest and destined for the adrenal medulla and the sympathetic nervous system and shows remarkable biological heterogeneity, resulting in favorable or unfavorable outcomes. Some tumors make rapid progress with a fatal outcome. In other instances, the tumors regress spontaneously in infants or to differentiate into a benign ganglioneuroma in older patients. This heterogeneity within neuroblastoma depends on the molecular characteristics of tumor cells. Several distinct genomic alterations have been found in neuroblastoma, including MYCN amplification, DNA ploidy, deletion of the short arm of chromosome 1, gain of chromosome 17q, and deletion of 11q. The difference of expression was also found in genes related to cellular growth, differentiation, and apoptosis of neural network including signaling by NTRK1 or ALK receptor tyrosine kinases, and telomerase activity. And this presentation discusses diagnostic and prognostic molecular makers for extensive heterogeneity of neuroblastoma. This should lead to more risk-adapted therapies according to the genetic markers by which individual neuroblastomas are biologically characterized.

Moving in line with the postulation that metadiscourse (MD) markers help transform a dry and tortuous piece of text into a coherent and reader-friendly one, the researchers in the current study attempted to investigate the effect different metadiscourse markers might have on Iranian EFL learners’ perception of written texts. To this end, 120 undergraduate English students were given three different texts chosen from the most common textbooks in BA, along with their doctored versions (all MD-removed, interactive-removed, and interactional-removed). Each text duo was then accompanied by an 8-item questionnaire following Ifantido’s (2005) lead. The findings, overall, were indicative of the positive role of metadiscourse markers in bringing about EFL learners’ ameliorated text perception. Furthermore, data analysis via ANOVA and LSD tests revealed that texts with both interactive and interactional resources had more effect on learners’ perception. Moreover, it was found that interactive and interactional resources had more or less the same effect on learners’ reactions to texts. To sum it up, in line with the findings of the present study further evidence is garnered in favor of the postulation holding that metadiscourse markers bring about an increased amount of coherence and reader-friendliness in texts.