Carrot is an important vegetable crop worldwide valued for its fleshy edible roots of varied colours. Owing to its highly cross-pollinated nature and small flower size, cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) is being utilized for hybrid development. Among different types of male sterility, petaloid CMS is widely used for hybrid carrot breeding globally. This study aimed to develop selection criteria for parents in developing heterotic F1 hybrids using CMS lines. A large number of agro-morphological traits and Simple Sequence Repeats (genomic-SSRs) were used to assess the diversity among parental lines. We developed 60 F1 hybrids by crossing four petaloid CMS lines and 15 testers in line × tester mating design and evaluated them in replicated randomized block design trial for four vegetative and 11 economic traits. The mean squares of all the traits in line × tester interactions were significant. The estimates of genetic components of variance indicated predominance of non-additive gene action except for root maturity, root length and core diameter. The hybrids with highest per se performance also had significant positive specific combining ability effects. The root yield and root weight showed highest heterosis percentage (33%). The best performing heterotic hybrids were DCatH-5392, DCatH-700 and DCatH-9892. Correlation between genetic distance and relative heterosis of economic traits indicated no significant association and thus genetic distance could not be used to predict heterosis. As most of the yield-related traits were controlled by non-additive gene action, heterosis breeding could be potentially used along with combining ability analysis to reduce time in selection of best parents and crosses in tropical carrot.

MeerTime is a five-year Large Survey Project to time pulsars with MeerKAT, the 64-dish South African precursor to the Square Kilometre Array. The science goals for the programme include timing millisecond pulsar (MSPs) to high precision ( ${<} 1 \unicode{x03BC} \mathrm{s}$ ) to study the Galactic MSP population and to contribute to global efforts to detect nanohertz gravitational waves with the International Pulsar Timing Array (IPTA). In order to plan for the remainder of the programme and to use the allocated time most efficiently, we have conducted an initial census with the MeerKAT ‘L-band’ receiver of 189 MSPs visible to MeerKAT and here present their dispersion measures, polarisation profiles, polarisation fractions, rotation measures, flux density measurements, spectral indices, and timing potential. As all of these observations are taken with the same instrument (which uses coherent dedispersion, interferometric polarisation calibration techniques, and a uniform flux scale), they present an excellent resource for population studies. We used wideband pulse portraits as timing standards for each MSP and demonstrated that the MeerTime Pulsar Timing Array (MPTA) can already contribute significantly to the IPTA as it currently achieves better than $1\,\unicode{x03BC}\mathrm{s}$ timing accuracy on 89 MSPs (observed with fortnightly cadence). By the conclusion of the initial five-year MeerTime programme in 2024 July, the MPTA will be extremely significant in global efforts to detect the gravitational wave background with a contribution to the detection statistic comparable to other long-standing timing programmes.

Background: Neonatal cerebral sinovenous thrombosis (CSVT) can lead to severe brain injury and long-term neurodevelopmental impairments. Previous studies of neonatal CSVT have mainly included term infants. In this study, we examined the clinical and radiological features, treatment and outcome of CSVT in preterm infants. Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of preterm infants born <37 weeks with radiologically confirmed CSVT. All MRI/MRV and CT/CTV scans were re-reviewed. Clinical and radiological data were analysed using descriptive statistics, ANOVA and chi-square tests. Results: A total of 26 preterm infants with CSVT were included. Of these, 65% were late preterm, 27% very preterm and 8% extreme preterm. Most were symptomatic (seizures 50%, abnormal exam 50%). Radiological features included transverse sinus (85%) and sagittal sinus thrombosis (42%), intraventricular hemorrhage (42%) and venous infarction (19%). Most preterm infants with CSVT (69%) were treated with anticoagulation. Anticoagulation was not associated with new or worsening intracranial hemorrhage. Outcome at follow-up ranged from no impairment (39%), mild impairment (19%), severe impairment (19%) and death (23%). Conclusions: Preterm infants with CSVT are often symptomatic and present with a distinct pattern of brain injury. Anticoagulation treatment of preterm CSVT appeared to be safe. Further studies and treatment guidelines for preterm CSVT are needed.

Background: Neonatal Arterial Ischemic Stroke (NAIS) is a common form of paediatric stroke often affecting classical language areas. The post-stroke reorganization of functional language networks may provide insight into later-emerging language deficits and may help to identify at-risk children with NAIS. Methods: A cross-sectional study of fourteen children with left (n=8; 2M; 11.1±2.2 years) or right (n=6; 3M; 12.4±4 years) middle cerebral artery (MCA) NAIS, as well as seven neurotypical children (5M; 13.4±2.7 years), was conducted. Children listened to correct/incorrect syntactic sentences while MEG was recorded, and task-related functional connectivity in the time window and frequency band of interest was determined. Language outcomes were assessed using a battery of neuropsychological tests. Results: A network-based analysis of syntactic language processing (4-7 Hz, 1.2-1.4s) revealed a dysfunctional bilateral frontal-temporal network involving language areas in patients (p=0.01). Patients with right-MCA stroke exhibited a positive correlation between left hemispheric connectivity and measures of language skill (p<0.01), resembling the neurotypical children. In left-MCA stroke patients, greater bilateral connectivity or right laterality in the language network is correlated with good outcome (p<0.05). Conclusions: Depending on the hemispheric location of stroke, certain patterns of language network reorganization may account for impairments in a bilateral frontal-temporal language subnetwork and support language outcome.

A Mediterranean-style eating pattern (MED-EP) may include moderate red meat intake. However, it is unknown if the pro-atherogenic metabolite trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) is affected by the amount of red meat consumed with a MED-EP. The results presented are from a secondary, retrospective objective of an investigator-blinded, randomised, crossover, controlled feeding trial (two 5-week interventions separated by a 4-week washout) to determine if a MED-EP with 200 g unprocessed lean red meat/week (MED-CONTROL) reduces circulating TMAO concentrations compared to a MED-EP with 500 g unprocessed lean red meat/week (MED-RED). Participants were seventy-seven women and twelve men (n 39 total) who were either overweight or obese (BMI: mean (30·5) (sem 0·3) kg/m2). Serum samples were obtained following an overnight fast both before (pre) and after (post) each intervention. Fasting serum TMAO, choline, carnitine and betaine concentrations were measured using a targeted liquid chromatography-MS. Data were analysed to assess if (a) TMAO and related metabolites differed by intervention and (b) if changes in TMAO were associated with changes in Framingham 10-year risk score. Serum TMAO was lower post-intervention following MED-CONTROL compared with MED-RED intervention (post-MED-CONTROL 3·1 (sem 0·2) µmv. post-MED-RED 5·0 (sem 0·5) µm, P < 0·001), and decreased following MED-CONTROL (pre- v. post-MED-CONTROL, P = 0·025). Exploratory analysis using mixed model ANCOVA identified a positive association between changes in TMAO and changes in homoeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (P = 0·036). These results suggest that lower amounts of red meat intake lead to lower TMAO concentrations in the context of a MED-EP.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused mild illness in children, until the emergence of the novel hyperinflammatory condition paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome temporally associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) (PIMS-TS). PIMS-TS is thought to be a post-SARS-CoV-2 immune dysregulation with excessive inflammatory cytokine release. We studied 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) concentrations in children with PIMS-TS, admitted to a tertiary paediatric hospital in the UK, due to its postulated role in cytokine regulation and immune response. Eighteen children (median (range) age 8·9 (0·3-14·6) years, male = 10) met the case definition. The majority were of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) origin (89 %, 16/18). Positive SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies were present in 94 % (17/18) and RNA by PCR in 6 % (1/18). Seventy-eight percentage of the cohort were vitamin D deficient (< 30 nmol/l). The mean 25OHD concentration was significantly lower when compared with the population mean from the 2015/16 National Diet and Nutrition Survey (children aged 4–10 years) (24 v. 54 nmol/l (95 % CI −38·6, −19·7); P < 0·001). The paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) group had lower mean 25OHD concentrations compared with the non-PICU group, but this was not statistically significant (19·5 v. 31·9 nmol/l; P = 0·11). The higher susceptibility of BAME children to PIMS-TS and also vitamin D deficiency merits contemplation. Whilst any link between vitamin D deficiency and the severity of COVID-19 and related conditions including PIMS-TS requires further evidence, public health measures to improve vitamin D status of the UK BAME population have been long overdue.

We describe system verification tests and early science results from the pulsar processor (PTUSE) developed for the newly commissioned 64-dish SARAO MeerKAT radio telescope in South Africa. MeerKAT is a high-gain ( ${\sim}2.8\,\mbox{K Jy}^{-1}$ ) low-system temperature ( ${\sim}18\,\mbox{K at }20\,\mbox{cm}$ ) radio array that currently operates at 580–1 670 MHz and can produce tied-array beams suitable for pulsar observations. This paper presents results from the MeerTime Large Survey Project and commissioning tests with PTUSE. Highlights include observations of the double pulsar $\mbox{J}0737{-}3039\mbox{A}$ , pulse profiles from 34 millisecond pulsars (MSPs) from a single 2.5-h observation of the Globular cluster Terzan 5, the rotation measure of Ter5O, a 420-sigma giant pulse from the Large Magellanic Cloud pulsar PSR $\mbox{J}0540{-}6919$ , and nulling identified in the slow pulsar PSR J0633–2015. One of the key design specifications for MeerKAT was absolute timing errors of less than 5 ns using their novel precise time system. Our timing of two bright MSPs confirm that MeerKAT delivers exceptional timing. PSR $\mbox{J}2241{-}5236$ exhibits a jitter limit of $<4\,\mbox{ns h}^{-1}$ whilst timing of PSR $\mbox{J}1909{-}3744$ over almost 11 months yields an rms residual of 66 ns with only 4 min integrations. Our results confirm that the MeerKAT is an exceptional pulsar telescope. The array can be split into four separate sub-arrays to time over 1 000 pulsars per day and the future deployment of S-band (1 750–3 500 MHz) receivers will further enhance its capabilities.

Approximately, 1.7 million individuals in the United States have been infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the novel coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). This has disproportionately impacted adults, but many children have been infected and hospitalised as well. To date, there is not much information published addressing the cardiac workup and monitoring of children with COVID-19. Here, we share the approach to the cardiac workup and monitoring utilised at a large congenital heart centre in New York City, the epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.

Introduction: Selecting appropriate patients for hospitalization following emergency department (ED) evaluation of syncope is critical for serious adverse event (SAE) identification. The primary objective of this study is to determine the association of hospitalization and SAE detection using propensity score (PS) matching. The secondary objective was to determine if SAE identification with hospitalization varied by the Canadian Syncope Risk Score (CSRS) risk-category. Methods: This was a secondary analysis of two large prospective cohort studies that enrolled adults (age ≥ 16 years) with syncope at 11 Canadian EDs. Patients with a serious condition identified during index ED evaluation were excluded. Outcome was a 30-day SAE identified either in-hospital for hospitalized patients or after ED disposition for discharged patients and included death, ventricular arrhythmia, non-lethal arrhythmia and non-arrhythmic SAE (myocardial infarction, structural heart disease, pulmonary embolism, hemorrhage). Patients were propensity matched using age, sex, blood pressure, prodrome, presumed ED diagnosis, ECG abnormalities, troponin, heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, arrival by ambulance and hospital site. Multivariable logistic regression assessed the interaction between CSRS and SAE detection and we report odds ratios (OR). Results: Of the 8183 patients enrolled, 743 (9.0%) patients were hospitalized and 658 (88.6%) were PS matched. The OR for SAE detection for hospitalized patients in comparison to those discharged from the ED was 5.0 (95%CI 3.3, 7.4), non-lethal arrhythmia 5.4 (95%CI 3.1, 9.6) and non-arrhythmic SAE 6.3 (95%CI 2.9, 13.5). Overall, the odds of any SAE identification, and specifically non-lethal arrhythmia and non-arrhythmia was significantly higher in-hospital among hospitalized patients than those discharged from the ED (p < 0.001). There were no significant differences in 30-day mortality (p = 1.00) or ventricular arrhythmia detection (p = 0.21). The interaction between ED disposition and CSRS was significant (p = 0.04) and the probability of 30-day SAEs while in-hospital was greater for medium and high risk CSRS patients. Conclusion: In this multicenter prospective cohort, 30-day SAE detection was greater for hospitalized compared with discharged patients. CSRS low-risk patients are least likely to have SAEs identified in-hospital; out-patient monitoring for moderate risk patients requires further study.

In turbulent combustors, the transition from stable combustion (i.e. combustion noise) to thermoacoustic instability occurs via intermittency. During stable combustion, the acoustic power production happens in a spatially incoherent manner. In contrast, during thermoacoustic instability, the acoustic power production happens in a spatially coherent manner. In the present study, we investigate the spatiotemporal dynamics of acoustic power sources during the intermittency route to thermoacoustic instability using complex network theory. To that end, we perform simultaneous acoustic pressure measurement, high-speed chemiluminescence imaging and particle image velocimetry in a backward-facing step combustor with a bluff body stabilized flame at different equivalence ratios. We examine the spatiotemporal dynamics of acoustic power sources by constructing time-varying spatial networks during the different dynamical states of combustor operation. We show that as the turbulent combustor transits from combustion noise to thermoacoustic instability via intermittency, small fragments of acoustic power sources, observed during combustion noise, nucleate, coalesce and grow in size to form large clusters at the onset of thermoacoustic instability. This nucleation, coalescence and growth of small clusters of acoustic power sources occurs during the growth of pressure oscillations during intermittency. In contrast, during the decay of pressure oscillations during intermittency, these large clusters of acoustic power sources disintegrate into small ones. We use network measures such as the link density, the number of components and the size of the largest component to quantify the spatiotemporal dynamics of acoustic power sources as the turbulent combustor transits from combustion noise to thermoacoustic instability via intermittency.

The discovery of the first electromagnetic counterpart to a gravitational wave signal has generated follow-up observations by over 50 facilities world-wide, ushering in the new era of multi-messenger astronomy. In this paper, we present follow-up observations of the gravitational wave event GW170817 and its electromagnetic counterpart SSS17a/DLT17ck (IAU label AT2017gfo) by 14 Australian telescopes and partner observatories as part of Australian-based and Australian-led research programs. We report early- to late-time multi-wavelength observations, including optical imaging and spectroscopy, mid-infrared imaging, radio imaging, and searches for fast radio bursts. Our optical spectra reveal that the transient source emission cooled from approximately 6 400 K to 2 100 K over a 7-d period and produced no significant optical emission lines. The spectral profiles, cooling rate, and photometric light curves are consistent with the expected outburst and subsequent processes of a binary neutron star merger. Star formation in the host galaxy probably ceased at least a Gyr ago, although there is evidence for a galaxy merger. Binary pulsars with short (100 Myr) decay times are therefore unlikely progenitors, but pulsars like PSR B1534+12 with its 2.7 Gyr coalescence time could produce such a merger. The displacement (~2.2 kpc) of the binary star system from the centre of the main galaxy is not unusual for stars in the host galaxy or stars originating in the merging galaxy, and therefore any constraints on the kick velocity imparted to the progenitor are poor.

The Molonglo Observatory Synthesis Telescope (MOST) is an 18000 m2 radio telescope located 40 km from Canberra, Australia. Its operating band (820–851 MHz) is partly allocated to telecommunications, making radio astronomy challenging. We describe how the deployment of new digital receivers, Field Programmable Gate Array-based filterbanks, and server-class computers equipped with 43 Graphics Processing Units, has transformed the telescope into a versatile new instrument (UTMOST) for studying the radio sky on millisecond timescales. UTMOST has 10 times the bandwidth and double the field of view compared to the MOST, and voltage record and playback capability has facilitated rapid implementaton of many new observing modes, most of which operate commensally. UTMOST can simultaneously excise interference, make maps, coherently dedisperse pulsars, and perform real-time searches of coherent fan-beams for dispersed single pulses. UTMOST operates as a robotic facility, deciding how to efficiently target pulsars and how long to stay on source via real-time pulsar folding, while searching for single pulse events. Regular timing of over 300 pulsars has yielded seven pulsar glitches and three Fast Radio Bursts during commissioning. UTMOST demonstrates that if sufficient signal processing is applied to voltage streams, innovative science remains possible even in hostile radio frequency environments.