Identification, characterization, and expression analysis of calmodulin and calmodulin-like genes in grapevine (Vitis vinifera) reveal likely roles in stress responses.

Calcium (Ca2+) is an ubiquitous key second messenger in plants, where it modulates many developmental and adaptive processes in response to various stimuli. Several proteins containing Ca2+ binding domain have been identified in plants, including calmodulin (CaM) and calmodulin-like (CML) proteins, which play critical roles in translating Ca2+ signals into proper cellular responses. In this work, a genome-wide analysis conducted in Vitis vinifera identified three CaM- and 62 CML-encoding genes. We assigned gene family nomenclature, analyzed gene structure, chromosomal location and gene duplication, as well as protein motif organization. The phylogenetic clustering revealed a total of eight subgroups, including one unique clade of VviCaMs distinct from VviCMLs. VviCaMs were found to contain four EF-hand motifs whereas VviCML proteins have one to five. Most of grapevine CML genes were intronless, while VviCaMs were intron rich. All the genes were well spread among the 19 grapevine chromosomes and displayed a high level of duplication. The expression profiling of VviCaM/VviCML genes revealed a broad expression pattern across all grape organs and tissues at various developmental stages, and a significant modulation in biotic stress-related responses. Our results highlight the complexity of CaM/CML protein family also in grapevine, supporting the versatile role of its different members in modulating cellular responses to various stimuli, in particular to biotic stresses. This work lays the foundation for further functional and structural studies on specific grapevine CaMs/CMLs in order to better understand the role of Ca2+-binding proteins in grapevine and to explore their potential for further biotechnological applications.

Black doctors and discrimination under South Africa's apartheid regime.

This article discusses an under-researched group and provides an analytical overview of the comparative experiences of African, Indian and Coloured doctors at South African universities during the apartheid era. It probes diversity of experience in training and practice as well as gendered differentiation amongst black students before going on to discuss the careers and political activism of black doctors as well as the impact of recent transformational change on their position. It briefly assesses how singular this South African experience was.

Making a medical living: the economics of medical practice in the Cape c.1860-1910.

The economics of colonial medicine have been largely neglected. This chapter shall seek first to give an overview of the medical market in the Cape during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, before turning to a fuller exploration of the nature of private and public practice, and their inter-relationship. The chapter will end with a case study of Dr William Darley-Hartley whose life exemplified some typical features of life in the Cape medical profession at this time.

Introduction: gender and class in the historiography of British and Irish psychiatry.

This volume had its origin in a stimulating seminar series devoted to historical perspectives on gender and class in the history of psychiatry. The papers presented outlined a number of important perspectives on the place of gender and class within the history of psychiatry and, more broadly, medicine and society. There were also considerable inter-relationships between the various thematic strands developed in the papers - so much so, that organisers, speakers and participants alike were keen to see a published outcome.