Where are the alcohol advertising hotspots near schools?

ISSUE ADDRESSED: Physically locating liquor stores near schools can strongly influence the chances of youth accessing and consuming alcohol, and may also increase children's exposure to alcohol advertising. Investigating the association between the presence of a liquor store near a school and the prevalence of outdoor alcohol advertising is crucial from a policy perspective, as it can inform future regulations on the placement of liquor stores and outdoor advertising near educational institutions. METHODS: All outdoor alcohol advertising within a 500 m radius (audit zone) of 64 randomly selected schools from local government areas across metropolitan Perth was identified by direct observation; recording the size, setting, location and content of each advertisement. Results were compared based on whether the school audit zone contained a liquor store or not. RESULTS: Over half (n = 36, 56%) of all school audit zones had at least one alcohol advertisement, with an average number of 5.9 alcohol advertisements per zone (SD = 10.2). The majority (97.9%) of advertisements were in the 38 audit zones containing a liquor store (average = 9.7, SD = 11.9 per zone), compared to zones without a liquor store (average = .3, SD = .7 per zone). CONCLUSIONS: Perth school zones containing a liquor store in their 500 m radius had, on average, 30 times more outdoor alcohol advertising, compared with school zones without a nearby liquor store. SO WHAT?: The siting of liquor stores and the display of alcohol advertisements around educational settings require combined policy, planning and public health approaches to mitigate children's exposure to alcohol marketing, especially during school transit.

'Black Out Rage Gallon' (aka borg): An investigation of a risky drinking trend on TikTok.

ISSUE ADDRESSED: A 'Black Out Rage Gallon' (borg) is a customised, individual alcoholic beverage popularised on TikTok, whereby half the water in a gallon jug is replaced with alcohol (usually spirits), flavourings, electrolytes and caffeine. We investigated the characteristics and portrayal of the emerging alcohol trend associated with the hashtag descriptor #borg on TikTok. METHODS: We identified highly viewed TikTok videos with the #borg hashtag (n = 103) and conducted a content analysis, capturing viewer engagement ('likes', shares, comments), techniques used, characteristics of featured individuals, and the portrayal of alcohol and risky drinking behaviours. RESULTS: Alcohol was visible in three quarters of the videos analysed (n = 78, average amount of alcohol present 865 mL per borg) and consumed in one third of the videos (n = 34). One quarter of videos (n = 25) promoted alleged benefits of borg consumption compared to other alcohol products or approaches to drinking, yet only nine videos included a warning about potential harms. CONCLUSIONS: The borg trend on TikTok may encourage risky drinking, by portraying it in a style that younger viewers are likely to see as fun and entertaining. SO WHAT?: We were able to gain a better understanding of how this potentially health harming activity is represented on a social media platform that is popular with young people. The speedy dissemination of this trend highlights the need to monitor, investigate and counter emerging trends. Concurrently, there is an urgent need for content restrictions to limit the visibility and promotion of risky alcohol consumption on TikTok.

Plant homeodomain proteins provide a mechanism for how leaves grow wide.

The mechanisms whereby leaf anlagen undergo proliferative growth and expansion to form wide, flat leaves are unclear. The maize gene NARROWSHEATH1 (NS1) is a WUSCHEL-related homeobox3 (WOX3) homolog expressed at the margins of leaf primordia, and is required for mediolateral outgrowth. To investigate the mechanisms of NS1 function, we used chromatin immunoprecipitation and laser-microdissection RNA-seq of leaf primordial margins to identify gene targets bound and modulated by NS1. Microscopic analyses of cell division and gene expression in expanding leaves, and reverse genetic analyses of homologous NS1 target genes in Arabidopsis, reveal that NS1 controls mediolateral outgrowth by repression of a growth inhibitor and promotion of cell division at primordial leaf margins. Intriguingly, homologous WOX gene products are expressed in stem cell-organizing centers and traffic to adjoining cells to activate stem-cell identity non-autonomously. In contrast, WOX3/NS1 does not traffic, and stimulates cell divisions in the same cells in which it is transcribed.

A novel skin cancer prevention strategy: Preservice teachers' perceptions of a sun safety intervention and experiences in schools.

ISSUE ADDRESSED: Teachers play a vital role in developing children's sun protection routines however upskilling preservice teachers (PSTs) while at university has not yet been trialled as a targeted skin cancer prevention strategy. Hence, this study investigated PSTs perceptions and experiences of sun safety following a brief pilot intervention and placement in primary schools in Western Australia. METHODS: This study used a triangulation mixed methods design. Participants (n = 161) completed a post intervention survey which was analysed quantitatively. A random sub-sample was invited to participate in focus groups (three groups, n = 21) and one-on-one interviews (n = 4). This data was transcribed and uploaded in NVIVO software for thematic analysis. RESULTS: Participants felt the intervention increased their awareness of the dangers of overexposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) with many feeling more knowledgeable, skilled and confident to teach sun safety in school settings. Most reported clear sun safety messages in their placement schools. However, only 34.4% reported they had been briefed on the school's sun safety procedures. There was consensus among PSTs that sun protection in primary schools needs to be improved to maximise the protection of children from harmful UVR overexposure. Participants supported a need for consistent sun protection messaging across primary schools with greater emphasis on education rather than compliance management to sun protection. CONCLUSION: Enhancing existing teacher education programs to include more rigorous curriculum content and pedagogical approaches to sun protection education is a novel skin cancer prevention strategy and could feasibly support PSTs self-efficacy to effectively deliver sun safety curriculum in Australian schools.

A high-resolution gene expression atlas links dedicated meristem genes to key architectural traits.

The shoot apical meristem (SAM) orchestrates the balance between stem cell proliferation and organ initiation essential for postembryonic shoot growth. Meristems show a striking diversity in shape and size. How this morphological diversity relates to variation in plant architecture and the molecular circuitries driving it are unclear. By generating a high-resolution gene expression atlas of the vegetative maize shoot apex, we show here that distinct sets of genes govern the regulation and identity of stem cells in maize versus Arabidopsis. Cell identities in the maize SAM reflect the combinatorial activity of transcription factors (TFs) that drive the preferential, differential expression of individual members within gene families functioning in a plethora of cellular processes. Subfunctionalization thus emerges as a fundamental feature underlying cell identity. Moreover, we show that adult plant characters are, to a significant degree, regulated by gene circuitries acting in the SAM, with natural variation modulating agronomically important architectural traits enriched specifically near dynamically expressed SAM genes and the TFs that regulate them. Besides unique mechanisms of maize stem cell regulation, our atlas thus identifies key new targets for crop improvement.

Network analyses identify a transcriptomic proximodistal prepattern in the maize leaf primordium.

The formation of developmental boundaries is a common feature of multicellular plants and animals, and impacts the initiation, structure and function of all organs. Maize leaves comprise a proximal sheath that encloses the stem, and a distal photosynthetic blade that projects away from the plant axis. An epidermally derived ligule and a joint-like auricle develop at the blade/sheath boundary of maize leaves. Mutations disturbing the ligule/auricle region disrupt leaf patterning and impact plant architecture, yet it is unclear how this developmental boundary is established. Targeted microdissection followed by transcriptomic analyses of young leaf primordia were utilized to construct a co-expression network associated with development of the blade/sheath boundary. Evidence is presented for proximodistal gradients of gene expression that establish a prepatterned transcriptomic boundary in young leaf primordia, before the morphological initiation of the blade/sheath boundary in older leaves. This work presents a conceptual model for spatiotemporal patterning of proximodistal leaf domains, and provides a rich resource of candidate gene interactions for future investigations of the mechanisms of blade/sheath boundary formation in maize.

Parents' concerns about Leavers celebrations: A cross-sectional study.

ISSUE ADDRESSED: "Schoolies' or "Leavers' is a mass celebration of the end of compulsory schooling where excessive drinking is considered integral to the experience. Leavers are at risk of alcohol-related harms. This paper reports the concerns of parents for their Year 12 students (age 17 years) when attending Leavers celebrations. METHODS: Parents of Year 12 students (n = 87) were asked to complete a survey in relation to their eldest school-aged child. Six items relating to parents' level of "concern' about Leavers celebrations were measured on a 5-point scale. RESULTS: Parents were concerned about their child experiencing peer pressure to consume alcohol (60%), 30% were neutral or unconcerned about peer pressure. Almost two thirds of parents were concerned about their child being injured as a result of their own alcohol use (66.7%). Parental concern relating to their child being injured because of others' alcohol use rated most highly (88.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggested that parents were more concerned with harm caused to their child by others than the use of alcohol by their own child. Parents were somewhat less concerned with peer pressure to drink, though given peer influence is a major factor in young people's decisions regarding alcohol, parents' apparent confidence in their children's capacity to resist peer pressure may be inflated. SO WHAT?: Future interventions reinforcing the important role that parents play in the decisions that young people make while at Leavers have the potential to reduce their alcohol intake and subsequent alcohol-related harm.

Investigating primary preservice teachers' ultraviolet radiation awareness and perceived ability to teach sun safety.

ISSUE ADDRESSED: Sun protection practices in Australian primary schools remain inconsistent. Therefore, this study investigates primary PSTs sun protective sun behaviours, ultraviolet (UV) radiation awareness and perceived ability to teach sun safety. METHODS: A convenience sample of undergraduate PSTs (N = 275; mean age = 23.13 years) enrolled at one Western Australian university completed an online survey. Descriptive analyses provided features of the data. Factors associated with sun protection behaviours and perceived knowledge and skill to teach sun safety were explored using multivariable logistic regression models. RESULTS: Lesser than 10% of participants reported using sun protective measures daily (midday shade use: 6.5%; sunscreen: 7.6%; hat: 4.4%). Only 56.3% reported they understand the UV index, with 68.0% rarely/never using it to aid sun protection. Under half the participants reported they felt they had the knowledge (38.5%) or skills (40%) to effectively teach sun safety in primary schools. Regression analysis revealed gender, undergraduate, year and skin sensitivity were not predictors of UV index use (P > .05) or perceived knowledge of sun safety (P > .05). Skin sensitivity was the strongest predictor for shade usage (P = .02), hat usage (P = .05) and perceived skill to teach sun safety (P = .02). CONCLUSIONS: Survey data indicate UV radiation is inconsistently understood by PSTs. Many felt that they did not have the required knowledge or skill to teach sun safety effectively. SO WHAT?: Improving PSTs UV radiation knowledge while at university is a potential opportunity to improve sun safety delivery in primary schools. A targeted intervention for PSTs is warranted.

Child and family health nursing: A workforce profile.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To develop a profile of registered nurses working in Child and Family Health services across the Northern Sydney Local Health District to inform workforce strategic planning. BACKGROUND: Child and family health nurses (CFHNs) are registered nurses holding recognized qualifications in child and family health. To date, information regarding Child and family health nurses has been very limited. METHODS: The survey was conducted using a self-administrated online questionnaire between March-June 2017. RESULTS: Just over 75% of the respondents were aged over 50 years. Job satisfaction and feeling valued are enablers for remaining in current positions and not feeling valued can contribute to leaving employment. Nearly, one-third of respondents are currently a carer. CONCLUSION: This study provides an insight into the demographics of Child and family health nurses in Northern Sydney Local Health District, including roles as carers. It also examines factors influencing Child and family health nurses to remain or leave current positions. IMPLICATION FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: This survey has drawn attention to the need for managers to urgently develop strategies, for example succession planning, to ensure that shortages of these experienced Child and family health nurses do not occur. The inability to staff Child and Family Health could potentially impact on the ability to provide services and meet key performance indicators.

A maize glutaredoxin gene, abphyl2, regulates shoot meristem size and phyllotaxy.

Phyllotaxy describes the geometric arrangement of leaves and is important for plant productivity. Auxin is well known to regulate phyllotactic patterns via PIN1-dependent auxin polar transport, and studies of maize (Zea mays) aberrant phyllotaxy1 (abph1) mutants suggest the importance of auxin and cytokinin signaling for control of phyllotaxy. However, whether additional regulators control these patterns is poorly understood. Here, we report a new dominant maize mutant, Aberrant phyllotaxy2 (Abph2), in which the shoot meristems are enlarged and the phyllotactic pattern switches from alternate to decussate. Map-based cloning revealed that the Abph2 mutation was caused by transposition of a glutaredoxin gene, MALE STERILE CONVERTED ANTHER1 (MSCA1), which gained an altered expression pattern in Abph2 mutant embryos. msca1 loss-of-function mutants have reduced meristem size and revealed a novel function of glutaredoxins in meristem growth. In addition, MSCA1 interacts with a TGA transcription factor, FASCIATED EAR4, suggesting a novel regulatory module for regulating shoot meristem size.

Biomechanical implications of the onset of walking.

Changes in long bone strength associated with the onset of bipedal walking in humans have been previously documented in a longitudinal growth sample. However, it is unclear if this transition can be detected using archaeological, cross-sectional data, which likely encompass more cultural and biological variation than a single dataset of living children. Focusing on variation in cross-sectional polar second moment of area, we evaluate the ratios of femoral, tibial, and humeral strength in seven temporally diverse samples of individuals from birth to the age of eighteen years (n = 501), with subsequent comparisons to immature Late Pleistocene fossils. Using these samples, we determine whether changes related to the developmental onset of bipedality can be detected in a large, multi-population sample, test for differences in long bone strength ratios among Holocene groups that may indicate developmental differences in the onset of walking, and determine whether immature Late Pleistocene samples follow the same patterns as modern humans. Despite great variation within the Holocene sample, clear changes in these ratios are apparent around the age of the onset of walking. Humeral-to-femoral strength increases briefly prior to the age of one, with a sharp decline in relative humeral strength thereafter until age four. A similar pattern is apparent in the ratio of humeral/tibial and femoral/tibial strength. While the general pattern is consistent across all human groups sampled, these ratios vary by skeletal population, which seems to be closely related to variation in tibial length among samples. Although the extremely small fossil sample makes differences difficult to interpret, Neandertals also differ from both Late Pleistocene and Holocene modern humans in their strength ratios. Further research in this area may provide additional information about the skeletal impact of the onset of walking in the past and in additional fossil taxa.

Does the Risk Outweigh the Benefits? Adolescent Responses to Completing Health Surveys.

The aim of this study is to describe the self-reported experiences of adolescents in population-based samples when completing health-related surveys on topics with varying potential for evoking distress. Survey data were collected in three school-based studies of bullying behaviors (N = 1,771, 12-14 years), alcohol use (N = 823, 12, 15, and 17 years), and electronic image sharing (N = 274, 13 years). Between 5% and 15% of respondents reported being upset at survey completion, but at most 1.4% were entirely negative in their evaluation. Age was not associated with being upset, but younger adolescents were more likely to see benefit in participation. Although concurrent mental health symptoms increased the risk of being upset, this was mostly mitigated by perceived benefits from participation.

Factors Associated with Parents' Belief in the Appropriateness of Providing Alcohol to their Child.

BACKGROUND: Parental provision of alcohol to their underage child has been associated with risky adolescent drinking. While parents' belief in the appropriateness of providing their child with alcohol may influence their provision behaviors, research into the factors associated with this belief is lacking. OBJECTIVES: This study sought to identify the factors associated with parents' belief in the appropriateness of providing alcohol to their underage child. METHODS: Western Australian parents of 12-17 year olds (n = 443) completed an online survey assessing their drinking habits, alcohol provision behaviors, alcohol-related beliefs and attitudes, their child's alcohol consumption, and demographics. RESULTS: Nearly half (44%) the parents surveyed reported providing their underage child with alcohol. Parents of older children and parents who (i) did not believe in the harms and recommendations associated with alcohol use in youth, (ii) agreed with youth-related drinking myths, and (iii) reported more occasions of alcohol consumption by their child were more likely to believe that it was appropriate to provide alcohol to their underage child. Those who believed providing alcohol to their underage child was appropriate were in turn more likely to provide alcohol. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions aiming to reduce parental provision of alcohol to children should focus on changing parents' beliefs that this is an appropriate harm minimization behavior. Belief change may be facilitated by the implementation of public education campaigns that increase parents' belief in the alcohol-related harms associated with youth drinking and debunk youth-related drinking myths.

Child-parent agreement on alcohol-related parenting: Opportunities for prevention of alcohol-related harm.

ISSUE ADDRESSED: Excessive alcohol consumption places adolescents at increased risk of preventable, acute alcohol-related injury. Parental attitudes and behaviours influence adolescents' alcohol use. This study examined alignment in parent and child reports of alcohol-related parenting and whether misalignment related to the child ever having drunk alcohol. METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in five secondary schools in [information removed for blinding in Perth, Western Australia] in 2015. All students in Years 7, 10 and 12 and their parents were eligible, and data were matched for 124 child-parent dyads. Alignment of parent-child reports was assessed using kappa statistics. In dyads where the parent reported protective attitudes and behaviours, the association between misalignment and alcohol use was tested in logistic regressions. RESULTS: Overall, child-parent reports were aligned on parents' expectations, knowledge and actions (65% and higher agreed). While alignment on parental expectations seemed to decrease with age, alignment on parental communication and rule-setting increased. Misalignment on reports of parents' expectations was associated with increased odds of the child reporting having ever had alcohol (OR = 5.5; 95% CI = 2.7-47.7), as was parental supply (OR = 20.2; 95% CI = 3.3-121.5), but misalignment on parental communication, rule-setting and knowledge were not. CONCLUSIONS: Parent nonsupply of alcohol and disapproval of use were most important in terms of associations with ever drinking. SO WHAT?: These findings call for interventions that support parents to expect no alcohol use and enable parents to communicate their expectation in a manner that resonates with their child. Effective parenting will contribute to reducing alcohol-related harm in adolescents.

Transcriptomic analyses indicate that maize ligule development recapitulates gene expression patterns that occur during lateral organ initiation.

Development of multicellular organisms proceeds via the correct interpretation of positional information to establish boundaries that separate developmental fields with distinct identities. The maize (Zea mays) leaf is an ideal system to study plant morphogenesis as it is subdivided into a proximal sheath and a distal blade, each with distinct developmental patterning. Specialized ligule and auricle structures form at the blade-sheath boundary. The auricles act as a hinge, allowing the leaf blade to project at an angle from the stem, while the ligule comprises an epidermally derived fringe. Recessive liguleless1 mutants lack ligules and auricles and have upright leaves. We used laser microdissection and RNA sequencing to identify genes that are differentially expressed in discrete cell/tissue-specific domains along the proximal-distal axis of wild-type leaf primordia undergoing ligule initiation and compared transcript accumulation in wild-type and liguleless1-R mutant leaf primordia. We identified transcripts that are specifically upregulated at the blade-sheath boundary. A surprising number of these "ligule genes" have also been shown to function during leaf initiation or lateral branching and intersect multiple hormonal signaling pathways. We propose that genetic modules utilized in leaf and/or branch initiation are redeployed to regulate ligule outgrowth from leaf primordia.

Impacts of Soil and Water Conservation Practices on Crop Yield, Run-off, Soil Loss and Nutrient Loss in Ethiopia: Review and Synthesis.

Research results published regarding the impact of soil and water conservation practices in the highland areas of Ethiopia have been inconsistent and scattered. In this paper, a detailed review and synthesis is reported that was conducted to identify the impacts of soil and water conservation practices on crop yield, surface run-off, soil loss, nutrient loss, and the economic viability, as well as to discuss the implications for an integrated approach and ecosystem services. The review and synthesis showed that most physical soil and water conservation practices such as soil bunds and stone bunds were very effective in reducing run-off, soil erosion and nutrient depletion. Despite these positive impacts on these services, the impact of physical soil and water conservation practices on crop yield was negative mainly due to the reduction of effective cultivable area by soil/stone bunds. In contrast, most agronomic soil and water conservation practices increase crop yield and reduce run-off and soil losses. This implies that integrating physical soil and water conservation practices with agronomic soil and water conservation practices are essential to increase both provisioning and regulating ecosystem services. Additionally, effective use of unutilized land (the area occupied by bunds) by planting multipurpose grasses and trees on the bunds may offset the yield lost due to a reduction in planting area. If high value grasses and trees can be grown on this land, farmers can harvest fodder for animals or fuel wood, both in scarce supply in Ethiopia. Growing of these grasses and trees can also help the stability of the bunds and reduce maintenance cost. Economic feasibility analysis also showed that, soil and water conservation practices became economically more viable if physical and agronomic soil and water conservation practices are integrated.

Ontogeny of the sheathing leaf base in maize (Zea mays).

Leaves develop from the shoot apical meristem (SAM) via recruitment of leaf founder cells. Unlike eudicots, most monocot leaves display parallel venation and sheathing bases wherein the margins overlap the stem. Here we utilized computed tomography (CT) imaging, localization of PIN-FORMED1 (PIN1) auxin transport proteins, and in situ hybridization of leaf developmental transcripts to analyze the ontogeny of monocot leaf morphology in maize (Zea mays). CT imaging of whole-mounted shoot apices illustrates the plastochron-specific stages during initiation of the basal sheath margins from the tubular disc of insertion (DOI). PIN1 localizations identify basipetal auxin transport in the SAM L1 layer at the site of leaf initiation, a process that continues reiteratively during later recruitment of lateral leaf domains. Refinement of these auxin transport domains results in multiple, parallel provascular strands within the initiating primordium. By contrast, auxin is transported from the L2 toward the L1 at the developing margins of the leaf sheath. Transcripts involved in organ boundary formation and dorsiventral patterning accumulate within the DOI, preceding the outgrowth of the overlapping margins of the sheathing leaf base. We suggest a model wherein sheathing bases and parallel veins are both patterned via the extended recruitment of lateral maize leaf domains from the SAM.

A Wox3-patterning module organizes planar growth in grass leaves and ligules.

Grass leaves develop from a ring of primordial initial cells within the periphery of the shoot apical meristem, a pool of organogenic stem cells that generates all of the organs of the plant shoot. At maturity, the grass leaf is a flattened, strap-like organ comprising a proximal supportive sheath surrounding the stem and a distal photosynthetic blade. The sheath and blade are partitioned by a hinge-like auricle and the ligule, a fringe of epidermally derived tissue that grows from the adaxial (top) leaf surface. Together, the ligule and auricle comprise morphological novelties that are specific to grass leaves. Understanding how the planar outgrowth of grass leaves and their adjoining ligules is genetically controlled can yield insight into their evolutionary origins. Here we use single-cell RNA-sequencing analyses to identify a 'rim' cell type present at the margins of maize leaf primordia. Cells in the leaf rim have a distinctive identity and share transcriptional signatures with proliferating ligule cells, suggesting that a shared developmental genetic programme patterns both leaves and ligules. Moreover, we show that rim function is regulated by genetically redundant Wuschel-like homeobox3 (WOX3) transcription factors. Higher-order mutations in maize Wox3 genes greatly reduce leaf width and disrupt ligule outgrowth and patterning. Together, these findings illustrate the generalizable use of a rim domain during planar growth of maize leaves and ligules, and suggest a parsimonious model for the homology of the grass ligule as a distal extension of the leaf sheath margin.

The maize milkweed pod1 mutant reveals a mechanism to modify organ morphology.

Plant lateral organs, such as leaves, have three primary axes of growth-proximal-distal, medial--lateral and adaxial-abaxial (dorsal-ventral). Although most leaves are planar, modified leaf forms, such as the bikeeled grass prophyll, can be found in nature. A detailed examination of normal prophyll development indicates that polarity is established differently in the keels than in other parts of the prophyll. Analysis of the maize HD-ZIPIII gene rolled leaf1 (rld1) suggests that altered expression patterns are responsible for keel outgrowth. Recessive mutations in the maize (Zea mays) KANADI (KAN) gene milkweed pod1 (mwp1), which promotes abaxial cell identity, strongly affect development of the prophyll and silks (fused carpels). The prophyll is reduced to two unfused midribs and the silks are narrow and misshapen. Our data indicate that the prophyll and other fused organs are particularly sensitive to disruptions in adaxial-abaxial polarity. In addition, lateral and proximal-distal growth of most lateral organs is reduced in the mwp1-R mutant, supporting a role for the adaxial-abaxial boundary in promoting growth along both axes. We propose that the adaxial-abaxial patterning mechanism has been co-opted during evolution to generate diverse organ morphologies.

The Evolution of an Invasive Plant, Sorghum halepense L. ('Johnsongrass').

From noble beginnings as a prospective forage, polyploid Sorghum halepense ('Johnsongrass') is both an invasive species and one of the world's worst agricultural weeds. Formed by S. bicolor x S. propinquum hybridization, we show S. halepense to have S. bicolor-enriched allele composition and striking mutations in 5,957 genes that differentiate it from representatives of its progenitor species and an outgroup. The spread of S. halepense may have been facilitated by introgression from closely-related cultivated sorghum near genetic loci affecting rhizome development, seed size, and levels of lutein, a photochemical protectant and abscisic acid precursor. Rhizomes, subterranean stems that store carbohydrates and spawn clonal propagules, have growth correlated with reproductive rather than other vegetative tissues, and increase survival of both temperate cold seasons and tropical dry seasons. Rhizomes of S. halepense are more extensive than those of its rhizomatous progenitor S. propinquum, with gene expression including many alleles from its non-rhizomatous S. bicolor progenitor. The first surviving polyploid in its lineage in ∼96 million years, its post-Columbian spread across six continents carried rich genetic diversity that in the United States has facilitated transition from agricultural to non-agricultural niches. Projected to spread another 200-600 km northward in the coming century, despite its drawbacks S. halepense may offer novel alleles and traits of value to improvement of sorghum.