bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Complex resistance of spring and winter bread wheat lines to biotic and abiotic stresses
Authors: Lapochkina I. F. , Gainullin N. R. , Baranova O. A. , Kovalenko N. M. , Marchenkova L. A. , Pavlova O. V. , Mitroshina O. V. 
Published: December 2021

An original initial material of spring and winter bread wheat with group resistance to stem and leaf rust was developed using new donors of resistance to stem rust: winter soft wheat GT 96/90 (Bulgaria) and accession 119/4-06rw with genetic material of the species Triticum migushovae and (Aegilops speltoides and Secale cereale), respectively, a line of spring wheat 113/00i-4 obtained using the species Ae. triuncialis and T. kiharae, as well as spring accession 145/00i with genetic material of the species Ae. speltoides resistant to leaf rust. The transfer of effective Sr-genes to progeny was monitored using molecular markers. New lines underwent a field assessment of resistance to leaf and stem rust in the epiphytotic development of diseases in the Central Region of the Russian Federation, as well as in the North Caucasus and Western Siberia, and showed high resistance to these pathogens. Fourteen genotypes of spring wheat with group resistance to these diseases and parental forms that participated in the origin of the lines were evaluated for resistance to spot blotch (Cochliobolus sativus) and tan spot (Pyrenophora tritici-repentis) using isolates from Kazakhstan and Omsk in laboratory conditions. A highly resistant parental form of winter soft wheat from “Arsenal” collection 119/4-06rw (wheat-Ae. speltoides-rye hybrid 2n = 42) with group resistance to two spots, four medium-resistant genotypes to both isolates of tan spot from Kazakhstan and Omsk populations of the pathogen, as well as genotypes resistant to the Omsk isolate of P. triticirepentis (parental form 113/00i-4 and lines 1-16i, 6-16i, 9-16i) were isolated. Among the lines of winter wheat, four were identified with group resistance to spot blotch and tan spot. Additionally, the stress resistance of the lines to NaCl salinization and prolonged flooding of seeds with water was evaluated at the early stages of ontogenesis in laboratory conditions. Lines 33-16i, 37-16i, 32-16i and 9-16i showed a high ability to withstand excess moisture. Lines 33-16i, 37-16i, 32-16i and 3-16i were characterized by high salt tolerance, exceeding the average of 49.7 %. Among the winter genotypes, lines were identified with increased resistance to hypoxia (37-19w, 32-19w, 16-19w, 90-19w) and with increased salt tolerance (20-19w, 9-19w, 37-19w, 90-19w), significantly exceeding the standard cv. Moskovskaya 39. The listed lines are of interest as sources of resistance to anaerobic and salt stress, as well as donors of resistance to a group of fungal diseases: leaf and stem rust and tan spot. We attribute the increased level of resistance of the new initial material to the presence of alien translocations in the original parental forms involved in the origin of the lines.
The gene Sr38 for bread wheat breeding in Western Siberia
Authors: Skolotneva E. S. , Kelbin V. N. , Shamanin V. P. , Boyko N. I. , Aparina V. A. , Salina E. A. 
Published: December 2021

Present-day wheat breeding for immunity exploits extensively closely related species from the family Triticeae as gene donors. The 2NS/2AS translocation has been introduced into the genome of the cultivated cereal Triticum aestivum from the wild relative T. ventricosum. It contains the Lr37, Yr17, and Sr38 genes, which support seedling resistance to the pathogens Puccinia triticina Eriks., P. striiformis West. f. sp. tritici, and P. graminis Pers. f. sp. tritici Eriks. & E. Henn, which cause brown, yellow, and stem rust of wheat, respectively. This translocation is present in the varieties Trident, Madsen, and Rendezvous grown worldwide and in the Russian varieties Morozko, Svarog, Graf, Marquis, and Homer bred in southern regions. However, the Sr38 gene has not yet been introduced into commercial varieties in West Siberia; thus, it remains of practical importance for breeding in areas where populations of P. graminis f. sp. tritici are represented by avirulent clones. The main goal of this work was to analyze the frequency of clones (a)virulent to the Sr38 gene in an extended West Siberian collection of stem rust agent isolates. In 2019–2020, 139 single pustule isolates of P. graminis f. sp. tritici were obtained on seedlings of the standard susceptible cultivar Khakasskaya in an environmentally controlled laboratory (Institute of Cytology and Genetics SB RAS) from samples of urediniospores collected on commercial and experimental bread wheat fields in the Novosibirsk, Omsk, Altai, and Krasnoyarsk regions. By inoculating test wheat genotypes carrying Sr38 (VPM1 and Trident), variations in the purity of (a)virulent clones were detected in geographical samples of P. graminis f. sp. tritici. In general, clones avirulent to Sr38 constitute 60 % of the West Siberian fungus population, whereas not a single virulent isolate was detected in the Krasnoyarsk collection. The Russian breeding material was screened for sources of the stem rust resistance gene by using molecular markers specific to the 2NS/2AS translocation. A collection of hybrid lines and varieties of bread spring wheat adapted to West Siberia (Omsk SAU) was analyzed to identify accessions promising for the region. The presence of the gene was postulated by genotyping with specific primers (VENTRIUP-LN2) and phytopathological tests with avirulent clones of the fungus. Dominant Sr38 alleles were identified in Lutescens 12-18, Lutescens 81-17, Lutescens 66-16, Erythrospermum 79/07, 9-31, and 8-26. On the grounds of the composition of the West Siberian P. graminis f. sp. tritici population, the Sr38 gene can be considered a candidate for pyramiding genotypes promising for the Novosibirsk, Altai, and Krasnoyarsk regions.
Using the synthetic form RS5 to obtain new introgressive lines of common wheat
Authors: Davoyan R. O. , Bebyakina I. V. , Davoyan E. R. , Zubanova Y. S. , Boldakov D. M. , Mikov D. S. , Bibishev V. A. , Zinchenko A. N. , Badaeva E. D. 
Published: December 2021

The use of the gene pool of wild relatives, which have a significant reserve of genetic diversity, is of immediate interest for breeding common wheat. The creation and use of synthetic forms as “bridges” is an effective method of transferring valuable genetic material from wild relatives to cultivated wheat. For this purpose, genome addition, genome substitution and recombinant “secondary” synthetic forms have been created in the P.P. Lukyanenko National Center of Grain. The synthetic recombination form RS5 (BBAASDt ), in which the third genome consists of chromosomes of Aegilops speltoides (S) and Aegilops tauschii (Dt ), was obtained from crossing the synthetic forms Avrodes (BBAASS) and M.it./Ae. tauschii (BBAADt Dt ), in which the D genome from Ae. tauschii was added to the BBAA genomes of the durum wheat cultivar Mutico italicum. Introgression lines resistant to leaf rust, yellow rust and powdery mildew have been obtained from backcrosses with the susceptible common wheat cultivars Krasnodarskaya 99, Rostislav and Zhirovka. Twelve resistant lines that additionally have high technological characteristics of grain and flour have been selected. The cytological study (С-banding) has revealed chromosomal modifications in 6 of 8 lines under study. The rearrangements mainly affected the chromosomes of the D genome, 1D, 3D, 4D, 6D and 7D. It was found that in most cases the genetic material from the synthetic form RS5 in the studied lines was represented by substituted chromosomes from Ae. tauschii. In line 5791p17, the substitution of chromosomes 6D from Ae. tauschii and 7D from Ae. speltoides was revealed. Substitutions 4D(4Dt ), 6D(6Dt ) from Ae. tauschii and 7D(7S) from Ae. speltoides were obtained for the first time. Molecular analysis of 12 lines did not reveal effective leaf rust resistance genes, presumably present in synthetic forms of M.it./Ae. tauschii and Avrodes. It is assumed that the lines may carry previously unidentified genes for fungal disease resistance, in particular for resistance to leaf rust, from Ae. tauschii and Ae. speltoides.
A bioinformatics approach for identifying the probable cause of the cross-interaction of antibodies to the antigenic protein HPV16 L1 with the HPV6 L1 protein
Authors: Stolbikov A. S. , Salyaev R. K. , Rekoslavskaya N. I. 
Published: December 2021

This paper describes an attempt to analyze, with the aid of bioinformatics resources (programs and databases), the probable cause of the cross-interaction of antibodies against HPV16 L1 with antigenic protein HPV6 L1, which has been revealed in the investigation of the candidate vaccine obtained on the base of a plant expression system (tomato plants). In our opinion, the most likely reason for the cross-interaction of antibodies with antigens of different pathogenic HPV types is the similarity of their antigenic determinants. In this work, the amino acid sequences of HPV16 L1 and HPV6 L1 used for the development of a binary vaccine against cervical cancer and anogenital papillomatosis have been analyzed. For the analysis of antigenic determinants, the programs BepiPred-2.0: Sequential B-Cell Epitope Predictor, DiscoTope 2.0 Server and SYFPEITHI have been used. As a result of the analysis of probable B-cell linear determinants (epitopes), it has been found that in both types of HPV the proteins have approximately the same location and size of linear antigenic determinants; the difference is observed only in the form of small shifts in the size of several amino acid residues. However, there are some differences in the amino acid composition of epitopes; therefore, the possibility for cross-interaction of the antibodies with the antigens due to the similarity of linear antigenic determinants for B-cells is very small. The analysis of potential threedimensional epitopes for B-cells has shown that due to little difference between them the HPV16 L1 and HPV6 L1 proteins have no prerequisites for cross-interaction of the antibodies with the antigens belonging to the two different pathogenic HPV types. The analysis of probable linear epitopes for T-cells has revealed a common antigenic determinant in the two protein sequences. According to the rank made with the SYFPEITHI program, the amino acid sequence AQL(I)FNKPYWL is the second most likely antigenic determinant for T-cells. Meanwhile, the amino acid sequences of this determinant in HPV16 L1 and HPV6 L1 are virtually identical. There is a difference in only one position, but it is not critical due to the similarity of the physicochemical properties of amino acids, for which there is a replacement in the amino acid sequence of antigenic determinants. Consequently, some moderate cross-interaction of the antibodies to HPV16 L1 with the antigens of HPV6 L1 may be expected.
Pre-service accounting teachers’ confidence and motivation in doing mathematics
Authors: Mkhize Msizi 
Published: December 2021

The purpose of the study was to determine pre-service accounting teachers’ perceptions of the confidence and motivation in doing mathematics in Bachelor of Education Accounting courses at a higher education institution, with the aim of informing higher education heutagogy as it relates to teaching and learning in accounting. This study included a convenience sample of 255 preservice accounting teachers from a higher education institution in South Africa and a purposive sample of 18 students was drawn. Data collection was done through questionnaires and an interview schedule. A sequential explanatory design and sampling were employed. Data were analysed using SPSS for quantitative data and the interviews were transcribed and analysed qualitatively. The mean scores are above average (positive) for the cohort, however, there were numerous students with low scores in the effectance motivation and confidence scales. A more positive attitude towards effectance motivation in doing mathematics came from Indian, English and suburban respondents (p<.050). These students were not discouraged by difficult mathematical problems and are thus motivated by the challenges of mathematics. The interviews showed that parents positively influenced these students to persevere when faced with challenging mathematics problems. The results show no significant differences in the confidence in doing mathematics subscale (p >.050) in relation to gender, age, race group, mother tongue, Grade 12 mathematics, accounting module or location of schools. This finding runs counter to interview responses where 10 of the participants did not believe that they had a lot of selfconfidence when it comes to mathematical accounting calculations and could not do advanced work without seeking help from others, compared with 6 participants who agreed that they had a lot of selfconfidence when it comes to mathematical accounting calculations and could do advanced work without seeking help from others. In third-year accounting, strong significant connections were found between motivation in doing mathematics, confidence in doing mathematics and achievement in Accounting 420.
A case study of early childhood development facility infrastructure in Philippi, South Africa
Authors: Madyibi Siphe , Bayat Amiena 
Published: December 2021

Adequate infrastructure plays a critical role in early childhood development (ECD) facilities providing high-quality early learning services. An ECD facility is a partial care facility that provides an early childhood programme that encompasses early learning and the development of children before they start formal schooling. Hence early learning in South Africa is primarily accommodated in privately owned facilities that range from registered to unregistered facilities. For this reason, the inadequate infrastructure that characterises conditions under which most ECD facilities operate in South Africa has been noted with concern in numerous studies. This paper assesses the state of the physical infrastructure of ECDfacilities in Philippi, an impoverished township in the City of Cape Town in the Western Cape. Owing to the regulatory function of the state in the ECD sector, through which compliance standards have to be met to secure subsidisation, the authors analyse the impact of ECD legislation on the state of ECD infrastructure in Philippi. The analysis shows statistical differences in the infrastructure of 10 registered and 10 unregistered facilities. The infrastructure differs partly due to the registration status and the location in which the facilities are situated. We therefore deduce that the current state’s avoidance of infrastructure investment in ECD facilities amounts to the denial of positive early learning outcomes to these children in Philippi.
From not-for-profit to profit-driven independent schools through the eyes of some of the stakeholders
Authors: Breedt Ilze , Beckmann Johan , Du Plessis Andre 
Published: December 2021

This qualitative study sought to explore the experiences of stakeholders at independent schools during and after the transition from a not-profit governance approach to a for-profit governance approach after a change of ownership. Section 29(3) of the Constitution of South Africa provides that “everyone has the right to establish and maintain, at their own expense, independent educational institutions” subject to certain requirements to ensure quality education (RSA, 1996a).
Such schools have become an integral part of the South African education system. However, some independent schools represent the notions of investment and profitable business and companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) have started to invest in the independent school sector. The requirements of good governance, as stipulated in the King III Report on Corporate Governance for South Africa 2009, were used as the conceptual framework for this study.
Two independent schools that transitioned from a not-for-profit approach to a profit-driven governance approach were sampled. It was found that the experiences of the principals and management teams of the participating schools differed significantly from the experiences of the teachers and parents at these schools. A school is part of a community and when a company takes over a school, they need to make sure the communication to all stakeholders is clear and transparent.
Playing games in a masters class: Experiences of student educational psychologists
Authors: Fourie Jean , Wilson Claire 
Published: December 2021

Playing authentic educational games can support learners of all ages and abilities, particularly those with special educational or remedial needs. Playing games in cooperative groups allows learners to relate socially, motivate each other competitively and rehearse schoolwork. Literature mostly covers computer games rather than real-life educational games.
This study explored student educational psychologists’ experiences in creating and playing authentic educational games to facilitate learning for children with special educational needs. In pairs, the students constructed educational games from everyday recyclable material with the purpose of reinforcing concepts related to phonics, spelling, reading and mathematics. The games required small groups of learners to play together with minimal teacher facilitation. Working with a generic, qualitative, interpretive research design, the experiences of this cohort (n=29) of Master’s students were gleaned from their reflective writings and the researcher’s journal. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data and identify the emergent themes within the theoretical framework of game-based learning.
The findings indicated that authentic self-made educational games exhibited all the required features conceptualised in the theory of gameplay. Learning through play created experiences that are fun, motivating and have learners requesting more. Authentic educational games provided emotional and educational support. Playing educational games is a supportive adjunct to remedial interventions in the therapeutic context.
Twenty years into the new millennium: How integrated is Mathematics, Physics and Computer Science at secondary school level?
Authors: Basson Ilsa 
Published: December 2021

Twenty years into the millennium, the world has been confronted with a pandemic that has had an immeasurable impact on the workplace, learning environment and related technologies. Technology and technological advancements are founded on three disciplines, namely Physics, Mathematics and Computer Science. Internationally, an integration of the curricula of these disciplines are promoted in the education space, as an effective way to achieve 21st century capabilities that lately includes computational thinking. This study explores the changes in the content and alignment of the three subjects in the South African secondary school system from an interdisciplinary framework perspective. Textbooks, curriculum documents and planning calendars provided the information for the content analysis. The content in Physics and Mathematics have remained basically the same, with a few topics removed from Physics and some added to Mathematics. Information Technology has replaced Computer Science, with significant changes in content in alignment with developments in computing technology. No clear indication of an alignment between the disciplines could be found, which, to a certain extent, puts South Africa outside the international frame. The basic education system appears to run an assessment-driven curriculum in Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Information Technology. This system produces poor results and seemingly does not allow for interdisciplinary skills development.
The influence and value of science and technology in the education systems of South Africa and Russia
Authors: Maree Niconette , Vos Deon 
Published: December 2021

The aim of this study was to identify the influence of technology on the education systems of South Africa and Russia. The study has brought to light the importance of technology, and that it contributes to the increase of quality of education. The correct application of relevant technology in education can be used as valuable support to education delivery, it can stimulate creativity, contribute to the development of higher-order cognitive thinking skills, assist learners to develop technological skills and finally it can help economic growth in the country. Moreover, the study created an opportunity to highlight differences and similarities in the purpose of technology, the access to and distribution thereof, the implementation thereof in classrooms and the challenges in terms of implementing them successfully. By using a comparative method, the researchers had the opportunity to identify gaps in the research for future studies, methods for the implementation of technology and universal challenges, such as the digital divide. This study has provided ample evidence of the value that technology adds if successfully implemented and how much value it can bring towards an education system. This is also the reason why an education system of any country should ensure the sustainability of the implementation of technology in the system. It is important that the education systems of both South Africa and Russia proceed to directly identify and address gaps in their approaches to implementing technology. It is also important for these countries to release more relevant data and policies regarding this topic, specifically in education. Although the role of the BRICS organisation is identified as the science and technology innovation (STI) initiative, there are no clear indicators in policy documents or references to technology in education. Moreover, looking specifically at the BRICS countries, it is clear that they have made strides in addressing such challenges as stipulated in the literature. To conclude, this research can be used to further address the challenges and limitations that were identified in the study in order to assess the future impact of technology on an education system.
Turning constraints into opportunities: Online delivery of communication skills simulation sessions to undergraduate medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Abraham Reina 
Published: December 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted higher-learning institutions. Communication skills training in medical education needed innovative solutions to adjust to the situation. In times of change, evaluation channels should be developed, and any problems raised by learners and educators should be responded to rapidly. A remotely facilitated communication skills simulation-based training programme was piloted by the clinical skills laboratory tutors using Zoom as the online platform. The goal of the pilot session was to establish a communication skills training strategy remotely, to test an online session using the defined online platform and to assess its effectiveness. Though locally facilitated face-to-face simulationbased training as the conventional format is easier to use and experience, training on virtual simulation-based communication skills enabled through the online portal has been described by participants as both feasible and effective. The results show that an efficient educational environment can be provided by remote simulation of communication skills. An important requirement for learner engagement with remotely facilitated simulation-based training is the development of contextual understanding, multiple exposures and a respectful learner-teacher relationship. Any negative impact of remotely facilitated simulation-based training may be concealed by an overarching high perceived value of simulation-based trainings in general. This pilot online simulation programme shows the value of using this modality and lays the foundation for communication skills teaching during future disasters. There is the need to consider how online simulation can be sustained after the pandemic and not just returning to the conventional face-to-face teaching and learning.