ImReMuDF: Redundant Mutants Identification Method Based on Definition and Reference of Variables

Mutation testing is an effective defect-based software testing method, but a large number of mutants lead to expensive testing costs, which hinders the application of variation testing in industrial engineering. To solve this problem and enable mutation testing to be applied in industrial engineering, this paper improves the method of identifying redundant mutants based on data flow analysis and proposes the inclusion relationship between redundant mutants, so that the redundancy rate of mutants is reduced. In turn, the cost of mutation testing can be reduced. The redundant mutants identification method based on definition and reference of variables (ImReMuDF) was validated and evaluated using 8 C programs. The minimum improvement in redundant mutant identification rate was 34.0%, and the maximum improvement was 71.3% in the 8 C programs tested, and the verification results showed that the method is feasible and effective and has been improved in reducing redundant mutants and effectively reducing the execution time of mutation testing.

An Overview of Methods for Cardiac Rhythm Detection in Zebrafish

The heart is the most important muscular organ of the cardiovascular system, which pumps blood and circulates, supplying oxygen and nutrients to peripheral tissues. Zebrafish have been widely explored in cardiotoxicity research. For example, the zebrafish embryo has been used as a human heart model due to its body transparency, surviving several days without circulation, and facilitating mutant identification to recapitulate human diseases. On the other hand, adult zebrafish can exhibit the amazing regenerative heart muscle capacity, while adult mammalian hearts lack this potential. This review paper offers a brief description of the major methodologies used to detect zebrafish cardiac rhythm at both embryonic and adult stages. The dynamic pixel change method was mostly performed for the embryonic stage. Other techniques, such as kymography, laser confocal microscopy, artificial intelligence, and electrocardiography (ECG) have also been applied to study heartbeat in zebrafish embryos. Nevertheless, ECG is widely used for heartbeat detection in adult zebrafish since ECG waveforms’ similarity between zebrafish and humans is prominent. High-frequency ultrasound imaging (echocardiography) and modern electronic sensor tag also have been proposed. Despite the fact that each method has its benefits and limitations, it is proved that zebrafish have become a promising animal model for human cardiovascular disease, drug pharmaceutical, and toxicological research. Using those tools, we conclude that zebrafish behaviors as an excellent small animal model to perform real-time monitoring for the developmental heart process with transparent body appearance, to conduct the in vivo cardiovascular performance and gene function assays, as well as to perform high-throughput/high content drug screening.

Variability and Correlation Studies on Induced Mutants of Marigold (Tagetes erecta L.) for Different Traits and Assessing Them Using Molecular Markers

Induced mutations are important for creating novel variabilities in marigold for different purposes. Distinct putative mutants of marigold var. Pusa Narangi Gainda generated through gamma irradiation (in vivo and in vitro), were studied for variability and correlation in M2 generation for 11 traits. The maximum heritability (h2) was noted for days to flower harvest (0.9982%). The highest positive phenotypic correlation (0.637) was noted for number of flowers per plant to the days to first flower harvest. The most positive genotypic correlation (0.915) was found for seed yield (g) to the number of flowers per plant. Furthermore, the putative mutants in M2 were assessed for their diversity using ISSR markers and the amplified DNA fragments were compared with their respective parent genotype maintained (in vivo and in vitro). Single marker regression analysis indicated that the ISSR 811 and ISSR 817 were highly efficient markers for mutant identification in marigold. On the basis of dendrogram, putative mutant No. 3 (pm3) showed the highest dissimilarity with the parent (0.58). The mutants, pm5 and pm6 were found to be similar to each other (0.65), though they were quite distinct from the parent genotype morphologically. These selected mutants were multiplied up to six generations to attain the desired level of homozygosity for their large scale field evaluation. Plant Tissue Cult. & Biotech. 28(2): 223-236, 2018 (December)