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Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate a series of physiological processes and play an important role in development, metabolism and disease. Our previous studies showed that lncRNAs involved in skeletal muscle differentiation. Here, we demonstrated that lncRNA Has2os is highly expressed in skeletal muscle and significantly elevated during skeletal cell differentiation. The knockdown of Has2os inhibited myocyte fusion and impeded the expression of the myogenic factors MyHC and Mef2C. Mechanically, Has2os regulates skeletal muscle differentiation by inhibiting the JNK/MAPK signaling pathway. Furthermore, we also revealed that Has2os is involved in the early stage of regeneration after muscle injury, and the JNK/MAPK signaling pathway is activated at both protein and mRNA levels during early repair. Our results demonstrate the new function of lncRNA Has2os, which plays crucial roles during skeletal muscle differentiation and muscle regeneration, providing a basis for the therapy of lncRNA-related muscle diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes are the most polymorphic genes in vertebrates and encode molecules that play a crucial role in pathogen resistance. As a result of their diversity, they have received much attention in the fields of evolutionary and conservation biology. Here, we described the genetic variation of MHC class II B (MHCIIB) exon 2 in a wild population of Hume’s pheasant (Syrmaticus humiae), which has suffered a dramatic decline in population over the last three decades across its ranges in the face of heavy exploitation and habitat loss. Twenty-four distinct alleles were found in 73 S. humiae specimens. We found seven shared alleles among four geographical groups as well as six rare MHCIIB alleles. Most individuals displayed between one to five alleles, suggesting that there are at least three MHCIIB loci of the Hume’s pheasant. The dN ⁄ dS ratio at putative antigen-binding sites (ABS) was significantly greater than one, indicating balancing selection is acting on MHCIIB exon 2. Additionally, recombination and gene conversion contributed to generating MHCIIB diversity in the Hume’s pheasant. One to three recombination events and seventy-five significant gene conversion events were observed within the Hume’s pheasant MHCIIB loci. The phylogenetic tree and network analysis revealed that the Hume’s pheasant alleles do not cluster together, but are scattered through the tree or network indicating a trans-species evolutionary mode. These findings revealed the evolution of the Hume’s pheasant MHC after suffering extreme habitat fragmentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic diversity plays a vital role in biological conservation, especially for those species under the threat of habitat loss and fragmentation. In this study, 73 samples of Hume's pheasant ( Syrmaticus humiae ), collected from 6 localities in Guangxi and Guizhou provinces of China, were used to examine the influences of habitat fragmentation on genetic diversity and structure based on 1143 bp sequence of mitochondrial DNA (D-Loop). The results showed that all populations expressed high genetic diversity while lacking genetic differentiation. Phylogenetic analyses suggested that the haplotypes identified from the four putative populations (TXL, LX, PJ and LD) did not cluster into separate geographic branches. Despite habitat fragmentation, we failed to find evidence of genetic depletion or impediment of gene flow within the 6 localities. Therefore, the four geographical populations should be regarded as an identical management unit (MU). Based on our results, we suggest that habitat restoration and hunting prohibition for protection should be highlighted for the increased conservation of the Hume's pheasant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A series of Poly(l-lysine)m-b-poly[N-(N′,N′-diisopropylaminoethyl) aspartamide]n copolymers, abbreviated as PLLm-b-P[Asp(DIP)]n were designed and synthesized via ring-opening polymerization(ROP), click chemistry, aminolysis and hydrolysis. Using 1H NMR, FT-IR and GPC, the structures and compositions of these copolymers have been verified. Through feed ratio control, block copolymer PLLm-b-P[Asp(DIP)]n with different PLL and PAsp(DIP) block lengths were obtained, which can be modified to adjust the pH responsiveness and the self-assembling behaviors of the PLLm-b-P[Asp(DIP)]n. From the results of DLS, TEM and 1H NMR, these block copolymers can form stable micelles with a partially hydrated PAsp(DIP) core and a PLL corona at pH 7.4. While as demonstrated by 1H NMR and TEM, these PLLm-b-P[Asp(DIP)]n micelle was disassembled due to further protonation of the tertiary amine in the PAsp(DIP) block at pH 5.4. These pH responsive character of the PLLm-b-P[Asp(DIP)]n micelles made them as potential pH responsive gene delivery system which may co-deliver drug and DNA simultaneously. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A vole species, Proedromys liangshanensis Liu, Sun, Zeng and Zhao, 2007 (Rodentia: Arvicolinae), which is endemic to the Liangshan Mountains, Sichuan, China, was reported in 2007. The species is restricted to a narrow range because of its weak dispersal ability and habitat specificity, and only lives in fir and spruce forests with abundant grass. In this study, the genetic diversity and phylogeographical structure of 42 P. liangshanensis were examined based on analysis of a partial mitochondrial DNA control region. The results revealed low genetic diversity in the P. liangshanensis populations. Twelve nucleotide haplotypes were defined in the 42 collected individuals, and were divided into two major phylogenetic clades, which were obviously related to geographic pattern. Estimates of gene flow (Nm = 0.09) also revealed a genetic divergence between the Jinyang and Meigu populations. Species-specific traits, habitat specificity and geographic events contributed to the genetic divergence of the new vole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first complete mitochondrial genome of the large white-bellied rat ( Niviventer excelsior) was sequenced and annotated in order to provide a source of phylogenetic characters including an assessment of gene order arrangement. The mitochondrial genome sequence (16,298 bp) of N. excelsior contains 13 protein-coding, 2 rRNA and 22 tRNA genes as well as 1 typical control region (D-Loop), which are shared by other mammalian mitochondrial genomes. The codon usage also followed the typical vertebrate pattern except for an unusual CCA stop codon, which was termination codon of Cyt b. The 16 nucleotide insertion was detected in the central conserved domain of d-Loop. The 12 heavy-strand encoded protein-coding genes were used to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships by the Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood methods. Topologies revealed that N. excelsior clustered together with the species in genus Rattus, indicating their closer phylogenetic relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

TIGAR (TP53‐induced glycolysis and apoptosis regulator) is a p53‐inducible gene and its expression resulted in controlling metabolism and protection from apoptosis. Furthermore, TIGAR participated in promoting the pentose phosphate pathway and help in lowering intracellular reactive oxygen species. miR‐885‐5p has also been reported to be involved in liver tumorigenesis, but whether miR‐885‐5p has a regulatory effect on TIGAR expression is unknown. In this study, we found that their levels were correlated to each other and positively related to cell malignancy. Exogenous miR‐885‐5p induced TIGAR expression through a p53‐independent pathway. The promoter region of TIGAR harbors two tandem putative miR‐885‐5p target sites. Cotransfection of synthetic miR‐885 with TIGAR promoter reporter constructs significantly enhanced TIGAR promoter activity via binding with target sites. Furthermore, miR‐885‐5p and its precursor pre‐miR‐885 had the same stimulatory impact on TIGAR expression. Chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis further verified that increased miR‐885‐5p potentiated the accessibility of TIGAR promoter chromatin to transcriptional factors and facilitated TIGAR expression. miR‐885‐5p and its precursor both can interact mechanically with TIGAR promoter binding site and alter local chromatin structure, and subsequently upregulate TIGAR expression and participate in liver tumorigenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metabolic programming is deeply intertwined with early embryonic development including zygotic genome activation (ZGA), the polarization of zygotic cells, and cell fate commitment. It is crucial to establish a noninvasive imaging technology that spatiotemporally illuminates the cellular metabolism pathways in embryos to track developmental metabolism in situ. In this study, we used two high‐quality genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors, SoNar for NADH/NAD+ and iNap1 for NADPH, to characterize the dynamic regulation of energy metabolism and redox homeostasis during early zygotic cleavage. Our imaging results showed that NADH/NAD+ levels decreased from the early to the late two‐cell stage, whereas the levels of the reducing equivalent NADPH increased. Mechanistically, transcriptome profiling suggested that during the two‐cell stage, zygotic cells downregulated the expression of genes involved in glucose uptake and glycolysis, and upregulated the expression of genes for pyruvate metabolism in mitochondria and oxidative phosphorylation, with a decline in the expression of two peroxiredoxin genes, Prdx1 and Prdx2. Collectively, with the establishment of in situ metabolic monitoring technology, our study revealed the programming of redox metabolism during ZGA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Breast cancer is a heterogeneous disease usually including four molecular subtypes such as luminal A, luminal B, HER2-enriched, and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). TNBC is more aggressive than other breast cancer subtypes. Despite major advances in ER-positive or HER2-amplified breast cancer, there is no targeted agent currently available for TNBC, so it is urgent to identify new potential therapeutic targets for TNBC. Methods: We first used microarray analysis to compare gene expression profiling between TNBC and non-TNBC. Furthermore an integrated analysis was conducted based on our own and published data, leading to more robust, reproducible and accurate predictions. Additionally, we performed qRT-PCR in breast cancer cell lines to verify the findings in integrated analysis. Results: After searching Gene Expression Omnibus database (GEO), two microarray studies were obtained according to the inclusion criteria. The integrated analysis was conducted, including 30 samples of TNBC and 77 samples of non-TNBC. 556 genes were found to be consistently differentially expressed (344 up-regulated genes and 212 down-regulated genes in TNBC). Functional annotation for these differentially expressed genes (DEGs) showed that the most significantly enriched Gene Ontology (GO) term for molecular functions was protein binding (GO: 0005515, P = 6.09E-21), while that for biological processes was signal transduction (GO: 0007165, P = 9.46E-08), and that for cellular component was cytoplasm (GO: 0005737, P = 2.09E-21). The most significant pathway was Pathways in cancer (P = 6.54E-05) based on Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG). DUSP1 (Degree = 21), MYEOV2 (Degree = 15) and UQCRQ (Degree = 14) were identified as the significant hub proteins in the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network. Five genes were selected to perform qRT-PCR in seven breast cancer cell lines, and qRT-PCR results showed that the expression pattern of selected genes in TNBC lines and non-TNBC lines was nearly consistent with that in the integrated analysis. Conclusion: This study may help to understand the pathogenesis of different breast cancer subtypes, contributing to the successful identification of therapeutic targets for TNBC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The DCMD technology for wastewater treatment is very promising. However, it is easily suffered by membrane fouling and wetting. In this study, a Janus membrane was fabricated by coating polyvinylamine (PVAM) and gallic acid (GA) onto one side of a PVDF composite membrane, which another side is covered with POTS-SiO 2. The PVAM and GA side could bind water to form a hydration layer, thus repel the contaminants. The POTS-SiO 2 side was superhydrophobicity and prevented the membrane wetting. Finally, The Janus membrane presented exceptional performance in separating salt containing emulsified oil by DCMD. It kept a stable flux of 17.0 ± 0.2 Kg·m−2·h−1 and a low level conductivity of 0.60 ± 0.02 μS/cm in the cold side during the 36 h DCMD procedure, compared with the pristine PVDF membrane and the PVDF/POTS-SiO 2 membrane. The results presented simultaneously antifouling and antiwetting properties of the Janus membrane. While the Janus membrane can be well used in desalination of emulsified oil containing salt, it has a great potential for application to treat other complex wastewater. [Display omitted] • A Janus membrane was prepared via asymmetric modified process. • The Janus membrane presented simultaneous wetting resistant and antifouling performances. • The Janus membrane maintained stable flux and ultra-low conductivity in 36 h DCMD. • The Janus membrane showed great potential in treating complicated water or wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MicroRNAs (miRNAs/miRs) show great promise as novel cancer biomarkers. Several studies have revealed an association between abnormal miRNA expression and the risk of various cancer types. However, the diagnostic accuracy and reliability of miRNAs remains unclear. The present meta-analysis was performed to summarize the overall diagnostic performance of miR-195 for cancer. The PubMed, Cochrane Library, Wanfang and China National Knowledge Infrastructure databases were searched for associated literature published until December 10, 2017. Eligible studies were selected using multiple search strategies based on study selection criteria. Measures, including sensitivity and specificity, of the performance of miR-195 as a cancer diagnostic tool were pooled using bivariate meta-analysis models. All analyses were performed using Stata 14.0. The pooled analysis included 8 studies comprising 735 cases and 547 controls. The pooled diagnostic results calculated from all studies were as follows: Sensitivity, 0.79 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.69–0.87]; specificity, 0.84 (95% CI, 0.68–0.93); positive likelihood ratio, 4.9 (95% CI, 2.50–9.50); negative likelihood ratio, 0.25 (95% CI, 0.18–0.35); diagnostic odds ratio, 20 (95% CI, 10.00–38.00); and area under the curve, 0.87 (95% CI, 0.84–0.90). Deeks' funnel plot asymmetry test suggested no potential publication bias (P=0.53). The present meta-analysis indicated that miR-195 could be a reliable non-invasive biomarker for the diagnosis of cancer. Further large-scale prospective studies are necessary to confirm the present findings and the clinical value of miR-195 for future diagnostics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The black-spotted tokay and the red-spotted tokay are morphologically distinct and have largely allopatric distributions. The black-spotted tokay is characterized by a small body size and dark skin with sundry spots, while the red-spotted tokay has a relatively large body size and red spots. Based on morphological, karyotypic, genetic, and distribution differences, recent studies suggested their species status; however, their classifications remain controversial, and additional data such as ecological niches are necessary to establish firm hypotheses regarding their taxonomic status. We reconstructed their ecological niches models using climatic and geographic data. We then performed niche similarity tests (niche identity and background tests) and point-based analyses to explore whether ecological differentiation has occurred, and whether such differences are sufficient to explain the maintenance of their separate segments of environmental ranges. We found that both niche models of the black- and the red-spotted tokay had a good fit and a robust performance, as indicated by the high area under the curve ( AUC) values ('black' = 0.982, SD = ± 0.002, 'red' = 0.966 ± 0.02). Significant ecological differentiation across the entire geographic range was found, indicating that the involvement of ecological differentiation is important for species differentiation. Divergence along the environmental axes is highly associated with climatic conditions, with isothermality being important for the 'black' form, while temperature seasonality, precipitation of warmest quarter, and annual temperature range together being important for the 'red' form. These factors are likely important factors in niche differentiation between the two forms, which result in morphological replacement. Overall, beside morphological and genetic differentiation information, our results contribute to additional insights into taxonomic distinction and niche differentiation between the black- and the red-spotted tokay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

□ Fertilization plays an important role in soil fertility and rice yield. A long-term (1990–2006) field experiment was conducted at a typical subtropical hilly agriculture region in south central China. The objectives of this study are to investigate the effects of long-term fertilizations on i) accumulations and distributions of soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in different sizes of water-stable aggregates (WSA); ii) dynamic change of soil C, N, and P over years; and iii) the rice yield. Application of organic materials (OM), especially in combination with chemical fertilizers, increased soil organic C (SOC), soil total N (NT), and soil total P (PT) concentrations in all sizes of WSA, and they more concentrated in WSA (>1 mm). However, single chemical fertilizers had little impact on SOC and NT. There were significantly positive correlations between SOC and NTin each size of WSA, (r≥0.977, n = 15,P< 0.01). It illuminated that application of organic materials benefited the conservation of soil nitrogen. However, application of organic materials had less impact on PT. Variation of C/P was larger than C/N. PTwas mainly affected by input of phosphorus. Data over years showed that SOC and NTcontinued to rise, whereas PTtended to decline irrespective of treatments. Furthermore, economical chemical fertilizers application combining with green manure and half straw returning (NPKe+ SR) can produce approximate effects on PTas conventional dose of chemical fertilizers (NPKc). Average rice yield of NPKcfor 17 years was 9399 kg ha−1. Compared with NPKc, OM decreased yield by only 4.4%, which indicated that traditional organic fertilization could obtain relatively high yield. NPKe+ SR obtained approximate yield as NPKcdid, which showed that green manure and half amount of straw effectually reduced chemical fertilizers by about one third. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim. The complete mitochondrial genome sequence of a newly discovered vole, Proedromys liangshanensis (Rodentia: Cricetidae: Arvicolinae), was determined. Results. The mitogenome of P. liangshanensis is 16,296  bp in length. As with most other mammals, it contains the same gene order and an identical number of genes or regions, including 13 protein-coding genes, two ribosomal RNA genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, and one putative control region. The A++T content of the control region is 58.2%, the lowest proportion detected so far in Myomorpha. To confirm the phylogenetic position of P. liangshanensis, we carried out phylogenetic analyses based on complete mitochondrial genomic data using Bayesian, maximum parsimony, and maximum likelihood methods. Conclusion. All results revealed that P. liangshanenis is sister to Microtus. Although the results do not bear light on the validity of the genus Proedromys, based on the morphological characters, we suggest that Proedromys is an independent genus of equal rank to the genus Microtus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Swine finishing produces a large contribution of manure to nearby surface water and ground water in Jiulong upstream watershed, south Fujian Province, China. It is urgent to find a comprehensive, cost-effective way, not only to solve the manure pollution problem, but also to utilize the nutrients of manure for local farming. Gekou, a small hoggery village in the dense swine-farming core area of the upstream watershed, was selected as the study area. Mixed integer programming models based on uncertain interval numbers were employed to generate optimal whole farm plans for specialized hoggery. Emphasis was placed on discerning the most profitable ways to formulate hog feed rations, manure collection, manure storage, and manure application to achieve the maximum profit and the minimum pollution emission. Analyses were concentrated on ammonia emissions, excess total nitrogen and excess total phosphorus from manure operations, not only as nutrients applied to croplands, but also as pollutants to be minimized in compliance with environmental criteria. Three different hog feed rations, two alternative ways of collecting hog manure, and two alternative storage methods were combined with five alternatives for field application of manure to provide different combinations of hog feeding and manure-handling to be evaluated in the mixed integer programming models. Results indicated tradeoffs between economic goals and environmental goals, the latter being achieved only at some expense to farm net returns. The kaleyard and fishpond are recommended alternatives for field application of manure compared to three other alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding of NAD+ metabolism provides many critical insights into health and diseases, yet highly sensitive and specific detection of NAD+ metabolism in live cells and in vivo remains difficult. Here, we present ratiometric, highly responsive genetically encoded fluorescent indicators, FiNad, for monitoring NAD+ dynamics in living cells and animals. FiNad sensors cover physiologically relevant NAD+ concentrations and sensitively respond to increases and decreases in NAD+. Utilizing FiNad, we performed a head-to-head comparison study of common NAD+ precursors in various organisms and mapped their biochemical roles in enhancing NAD+ levels. Moreover, we showed that increased NAD+ synthesis controls morphofunctional changes of activated macrophages, and directly imaged NAD+ declines during aging in situ. The broad utility of the FiNad sensors will expand our mechanistic understanding of numerous NAD+-associated physiological and pathological processes and facilitate screening for drug or gene candidates that affect uptake, efflux, and metabolism of this important cofactor. • FiNad responds to subtle changes of NAD+ metabolism in live cells and animals • The role of NAD+ precursors in boosting NAD+ levels is mapped in various organisms • Increased NAD+ synthesis controls morphofunctional changes of activated macrophages • FiNad enables live-cell and in vivo imaging of NAD+ decline during aging Zou et al. report the development of "FiNad," a highly responsive genetically encoded NAD+/AXP ratio sensor, where AXP is the total pool of ATP and ADP. FiNad is a useful reagent for monitoring NAD+ metabolism in a variety of organisms, including bacteria, cell lines, mice, zebrafish, and human-derived stem cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary The ancestral panda Ailurarctos lufengensis , excavated from the late Miocene, is thought to be carnivorous or omnivorous [ 1 ]. Today, giant pandas exclusively consume bamboo and have distinctive tooth, skull, and muscle characteristics adapted to a tough and fibrous bamboo diet during their long evolution [ 1, 2 ]. A special feature, the pseudo-thumb, has evolved to permit the precise and efficient grasping of bamboo [ 3, 4 ]. Unlike those of extant pandas, little is known about the diet and habitat preferences of extinct pandas. Prevailing studies suggest that the panda shifted to specialized bamboo feeding in the Pleistocene [ 5, 6 ]; however, this remains questionable. Pandas now survive in a fraction of their historical habitat [ 7 ], but no specific information has been reported. Stable isotope analyses can be used to understand diet- and habitat-related changes in animals [ 8 ]. Isotopic signals in bone collagen reflect dietary compositions of ancient human diets [ 9, 10 ] and dietary changes between historical and modern animal populations [ 11, 12 ]. Here, we conduct stable isotope analyses of bone and tooth samples from ancient and modern pandas and from sympatric fauna. We show that pandas have had a diet dominated by C 3 resources over time and space and that trophic niches of ancient and modern pandas are distinctly different. The isotopic trophic and ecological niche widths of ancient pandas are approximately three times larger than those of modern pandas, suggesting that ancient pandas possibly had more complex diets and habitats than do their modern counterparts. Our findings provide insight into the dietary evolution and habitat contraction of pandas. Highlights • We determine stable isotope values of ancient and modern pandas and sympatric species • The isotopic trophic niches of ancient and modern pandas are distinctly different • The niche widths of ancient pandas are about 3× larger than those of modern pandas • The diet specialization of pandas was probably unfinished at the mid-Holocene Han et al. compare stable isotope ratios from the bones and teeth of extant and extinct pandas and show that their trophic niches are distinctly different, although both species had a C 3 -dominated diet over time and space. The results indicate that ancient pandas possibly had more complex diets and habitats than do their modern counterparts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]