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Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) plays an important role in the regulation of lipid metabolism and has been widely identified in diverse species. Gymnocypris przewalskii is a native fish of the Qinghai Tibetan Plateau that survives in a chronically cold environment. In the current study, we conducted genome-wide identification of PPAR genes, revealing the existence of seven PPARs in the G. przewalskii genome. Collinearity was observed between two copies of PPARαb and PPARγ in G. przewalskii, suggesting that the additional copy might be gained through whole genome duplication. Both phylogenetic and multiple sequence alignment analyses indicated that PPARs in G. przewalskii were conserved with teleosts. The cold treatment (10 °C and 4 °C) led to the developmental delay of G. przewalskii embryos. Continuous expression of PPARs was observed during the embryonic development of G. przewalskii under normal and cold conditions, with significantly different transcriptional patterns. These results indicated that PPARs participated in the embryonic development of G. przewalskii, and were involved in the cold response during development. The current study proposed a potential role of PPARs in the cold response in the embryonic development of G. przewalskii, which shed light on understanding cold adaptation in Tibetan highland fish., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.)

Gymnocypris przewalskii is a native cyprinid fish that dwells in the Lake Qinghai with salinity of 12-13‰. It migrates annually to the freshwater rivers for spawning, experiencing the significant changes in salinity. In the present study, we performed the physiological, morphological and transcriptomic analyses to understand the osmoregulation in G. przewalskii. The physiological assay showed that the osmotic pressure of G. przewalskii was almost isosmotic to the brackish lake water. The low salinity reduced its ionic concentrations and osmotic pressure. The plasticity of gill microstructure was linked to the salinity variations, including the presence of mucus and intact tight junctions in brackish water and the development of the mitochondria-rich cells and the loosened tight junctions in freshwater. RNA-seq analysis identified 1926 differentially expressed genes, including 710 and 1216 down- and up-regulated genes in freshwater, which were enriched in ion transport, cell-cell adhesion, and mucus secretion. Genes in ion uptake were activated in low salinity, and mucus pathways and tight junction showed the higher transcription in brackish water. The isosmoticity between the body fluid and the environment suggested G. przewalskii was in the metabolic-saving condition in the brackish water. The decreased salinity disrupted this balance, which activated the ion uptake in freshwater to maintain osmotic homeostasis. The gill remodeling was involved in this process through the development of the mitochondria-rich cells to enhance ion uptake. The current finding provided insights into the potential mechanisms of G. przewalskii to cope with salinity alteration., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Probiotic bacteria are receiving increased attention due to the potential benefits to their hosts. Plateau yaks have resistance against diseases and stress, which is potentially related to their inner probiotics. To uncover the potential functional genes of yak probiotics, we sequenced the whole genome of Lactobacillus sakei ( L. sakei ). The results showed that the genome length of L. sakei was 1.99 Mbp, with 1943 protein coding genes (21 rRNA, 65 tRNA, and 1 tmRNA). There were three plasmids found in this bacteria, with 88 protein coding genes. EggNOG annotation uncovered that the L. sakei genes were found to belong to J (translation, ribosomal structure, and biogenesis), L (replication, recombination, and repair), G (carbohydrate transport and metabolism), and K (transcription). GO annotation showed that most of the L. sakei genes were related to cellular processes, metabolic processes, biological regulation, localization, response to stimulus, and organization or biogenesis of cellular components. CAZy annotation found that there were 123 CAZys in the L. sakei genome, with glycosyl transferases and glycoside hydrolases. Our results revealed the genome characteristics of L. sakei , which may give insight into the future employment of this probiotic bacterium for its functional benefits.

Schizopygopsis pylzovi, an endemic fish of the subfamily Schizothoracinae, is comparatively well adapted to dissolved oxygen fluctuations in the aqueous environments of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Here, we cloned the complete cDNA of cytoglobin 1 and 2 (Cygb1 and Cygb2) from S. pylzovi and then investigated transcriptional changes of both genes in the selected tissues in response to hypoxia. Both the two genes had the standard exon-intron structure of vertebrate Mb genes but lacked an exon at downstream of the H helix (HC11.2) as seen in mammals. We applied severe hypoxia (4 h at PO 2  = 3.6% saturation) and moderate hypoxia (72 h at PO 2  = 36.0% saturation) to adult S. pylzovi. Under severe hypoxia, the Cygb1 mRNA levels decreased significantly in the liver, kidney, and brain, but increased significantly in the heart, while the Cygb2 mRNA levels downregulated significantly in the muscle and liver. But, the transcriptional activity of Cygb1 in muscle and that of Cygb2 in the kidney, brain, and heart remained almost unchanged. Under moderate hypoxia, the transcriptional activities of both genes in muscle and brain were turned down quickly after onset hypoxia, while in the liver, kidney, and heart, the transcriptional activities of both genes showed a short-term upregulation in different time periods of hypoxia exposure. Our data suggest that both the Cygb1 and Cygb2 in S. pylzovi are hypoxia-induced genes, and the responses of the transcription regulation of Cygb1 and Cygb2 genes to hypoxia are tissue specific and also depend on the hypoxia regime, which are different from that of other fish species.

Schizothoracine fishes distributed in the water system of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau (QTP) and adjacent areas are characterized by being highly adaptive to the cold and hypoxic environment of the plateau, as well as by a high degree of diversity in trophic morphology due to resource polymorphisms. Although convergent and parallel evolution are prevalent in the organisms of the QTP, it remains unknown whether similar evolutionary patterns have occurred in the schizothoracine fishes. Here, we constructed for the first time a tentative molecular phylogeny of the schizothoracine fishes based on the complete sequences of the cytochrome b gene. We employed this molecular phylogenetic framework to examine the evolution of trophic morphologies. We used Pagel's maximum likelihood method to estimate the evolutionary associations of trophic morphologies and food resource use. Our results showed that the molecular and published morphological phylogenies of Schizothoracinae are partially incongruent with respect to some intergeneric relationships. The phylogenetic results revealed that four character states of five trophic morphologies and of food resource use evolved at least twice during the diversification of the subfamily. State transitions are the result of evolutionary patterns including either convergence or parallelism or both. Furthermore, our analyses indicate that some characters of trophic morphologies in the Schizothoracinae have undergone correlated evolution, which are somewhat correlated with different food resource uses. Collectively, our results reveal new examples of convergent and parallel evolution in the organisms of the QTP. The adaptation to different trophic niches through the modification of trophic morphologies and feeding behaviour as found in the schizothoracine fishes may account for the formation and maintenance of the high degree of diversity and radiations in fish communities endemic to QTP.

Clarification of the genetic structure and population history of a species can shed light on the impacts of landscapes, historical climate change and contemporary human activities and thus enables evidence-based conservation decisions for endangered organisms. The red panda (Ailurus fulgens) is an endangered species distributing at the edge of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and is currently subject to habitat loss, fragmentation and population decline, thus representing a good model to test the influences of the above-mentioned factors on a plateau edge species. We combined nine microsatellite loci and 551 bp of mitochondrial control region (mtDNA CR) to explore the genetic structure and demographic history of this species. A total of 123 individuals were sampled from 23 locations across five populations. High levels of genetic variation were identified for both mtDNA and microsatellites. Phylogeographic analyses indicated little geographic structure, suggesting historically wide gene flow. However, microsatellite-based Bayesian clustering clearly identified three groups (Qionglai-Liangshan, Xiaoxiangling and Gaoligong-Tibet). A significant isolation-by-distance pattern was detected only after removing Xiaoxiangling. For mtDNA data, there was no statistical support for a historical population expansion or contraction for the whole sample or any population except Xiaoxiangling where a signal of contraction was detected. However, Bayesian simulations of population history using microsatellite data did pinpoint population declines for Qionglai, Xiaoxiangling and Gaoligong, demonstrating significant influences of human activity on demography. The unique history of the Xiaoxiangling population plays a critical role in shaping the genetic structure of this species, and large-scale habitat loss and fragmentation is hampering gene flow among populations. The implications of our findings for the biogeography of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, subspecies classification and conservation of red pandas are discussed., (© 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.)

The complete 1140 bp mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences were obtained from 39 individuals representing five species of all four genera of highly specialized schizothoracine fishes distributed in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. Sequence variation of the cytochrome b gene was surveyed among the 39 individuals as well as three primitive schizothoracines and one outgroup. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that the group assignment based on 1140 bp of the cytochrome b sequence is obviously different from previous assignments, and the highly specialized schizothoracine fishes (Schizopygopsis pylzovi, Gymnocypris przewalskii, G. eckloni, Chuanchia labiosa, and Platypharodon extremus) form a monophyletic group that is sister to the clade formed by the primitive schizothoracine fishes (Schizothorax prenanti, S. pseudaksaiensis, and S. argentatus). The haplotypes of Schizopygopsis pylzovi and G. przewalskii were paraphyletic based on cytochrome b data, which most likely reflected incomplete sorting of mitochondrial DNA lineages. The diploid chromosome numbers of Schizothoracinae were considered in phylogenetic analysis and provided a clear pattern of relationships. Molecular dating estimated for highly specialized schizothoracine fishes suggested that the highly specialized schizothoracine fishes diverged in the late Miocene Pliocene to Pleistocene (4.5 x 10(4)-4.05 x 10(6 ) years BP). The relationship between the cladogenesis of highly specialized schizothoracine fishes and geographical events of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau is discussed.