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Rapid, economical, and reliable genotyping is an important requirement for germplasm analysis and cultivar identification in crop species. Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. subsp. pekinensis (Lour.) Hanelt) originated in China and is now an economically important vegetable crop worldwide, especially in East Asia. In this study, we evaluated 1167 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) among 166 representative Chinese cabbage inbred lines using a KASP genotyping assay. On the basis of polymorphisms and principal component analysis, we selected 60 core SNPs distributed on all Brassica rapa chromosomes with allele frequencies sufficiently balanced so as to provide adequate information for genetic identification. The core set of SNPs was used for construction of a neighbor-joining dendrogram, in which the 166 inbred lines were clustered into spring, summer, and autumn ecotype groups. Clustering of the ecotype groups was better resolved than that achieved with 1167 and 360 polymorphic SNP datasets. Stability and resolution of the core SNP markers were tested using 178 commercial hybrid Chinese cabbage cultivars to confirm their utility in genetic identification. The set of 60 informative and stable SNP markers showed high discriminatory power and relatively uniform genomic distribution (4–9 markers per chromosome). The SNPs represent a cost-efficient and accurate marker set for germplasm analysis and cultivar identification and are suitable for molecular marker-assisted breeding in Chinese cabbage.

Li-S batteries are a promising next-generation battery technology but are confronted with a series of fundamental challenges, in particular the notorious shuttle effect of soluble polysulfide intermediates. Current research efforts are mostly focused on designing proper host materials for the entrapment and immobilization of polysulfides. Herein, we demonstrate that electrocatalysis may play an unexpected role in Li-S batteries. Nanosized tungsten carbide particles dispersed on the carbonaceous support are prepared from the pyrolysis of phosphotungstic acid-functionalized metal-organic frameworks. Both experimental measurements and theoretical calculations demonstrate that they not only have strong affinity toward polysulfide intermediates, but also significantly accelerate the reduction of low-order polysulfides that is otherwise kinetically challenged. Using these supported tungsten carbide nanoparticles as the cathode catalyst, our Li-S batteries achieve large capacity, excellent cycling stability and impressive rate capability.

The wall-associated kinase (WAK) gene family, a subfamily of the receptor-like kinase (RLK) gene family, is associated with the cell wall in plants, and has vital functions in cell expansion, pathogen resistance, and heavy metal stress tolerance because of their roles of the extracellular environment sensors to trigger intracellular signals in Arabidopsis. In the present study, 96 Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp. pekinensis) BrWAK gene family members were identified from the B. rapa genome using a reiterative database search and manual confirmation. The protein domain characterization, gene structure analysis, and phylogenetic analysis of the BrWAKs classified them into three gene groups. Comparative genomic analysis between WAK genes from Chinese cabbage and Arabidopsis revealed that the BrWAK genes have undergone the gene expansion and deletion events during evolution. Furthermore, the conserved motifs in the kinase domains of the WAK proteins and eukaryotic protein kinase family proteins were compared and some non-RD kinase proteins among the BrWAKs were identified. Ultimately, expression analysis of BrWAK genes in six tissues and under various stress conditions revealed that some tissue-specific WAK genes might function in callus cell growth and reproduction process; Bra012273, Bra016426, Bra016427, and Bra025882 might be involved in downy mildew resistance and high humidity stress; Bra012273, Bra025882, and Bra025883 might be responded to drought and heat stress. Taken together, this research was identified and classified the WAK gene family in Chinese cabbage and provided valuable resources to explore the potential roles of BrWAK genes in plant development and stress responses.

Image super-resolution is one of the most popular computer vision problems with many important applications to mobile devices. While many solutions have been proposed for this task, they are usually not optimized even for common smartphone AI hardware, not to mention more constrained smart TV platforms that are often supporting INT8 inference only. To address this problem, we introduce the first Mobile AI challenge, where the target is to develop an end-to-end deep learning-based image super-resolution solutions that can demonstrate a real-time performance on mobile or edge NPUs. For this, the participants were provided with the DIV2K dataset and trained quantized models to do an efficient 3X image upscaling. The runtime of all models was evaluated on the Synaptics VS680 Smart Home board with a dedicated NPU capable of accelerating quantized neural networks. The proposed solutions are fully compatible with all major mobile AI accelerators and are capable of reconstructing Full HD images under 40-60 ms while achieving high fidelity results. A detailed description of all models developed in the challenge is provided in this paper., Mobile AI 2021 Workshop and Challenges: https://ai-benchmark.com/workshops/mai/2021/

We report on a comparison of two possible Λ+c spin hypotheses, J=½ and 3/2, via the process e+e− → Λ+c¯Λ−c, using the angular distributions of Λ+c decays into pK0S, Λπ+, Σ0π+, and Σ+π0. The data we ...

The oriental armyworm, Mythimna separata (Walker) is a serious pest of agriculture that does particular damage to Gramineae crops in Asia, Europe, and Oceania. Metamorphosis is a key developmental stage in insects, although the genes underlying the metamorphic transition in M. separata remain largely unknown. Here, we sequenced the transcriptomes of five stages; mature larvae (ML), wandering (W), and pupation (1, 5, and 10 days after pupation, designated P1, P5, and P10) to identify transition-associated genes. Four libraries were generated, with 22,884, 23,534, 26,643, and 33,238 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) for the ML-vs-W, W-vs-P1, P1-vs-P5, and P5-vs-P10, respectively. Gene ontology enrichment analysis of DEGs showed that genes regulating the biosynthesis of the membrane and integral components of the membrane, which includes the cuticular protein (CP), 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E), and juvenile hormone (JH) biosynthesis, were enriched. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis indicated that DEGs were enriched in the metabolic pathways. Of these DEGs, thirty CP, seventeen 20E, and seven JH genes were differentially expressed across the developmental stages. For transcriptome validation, ten CP, 20E, and JH-related genes were selected and verified by real-time PCR quantitative. Collectively, our results provided a basis for further studies of the molecular mechanism of metamorphosis in M. separata.

Brassica downy mildew, a severe disease caused by Hyaloperonospora brassicae, can cause enormous economic losses in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis) production. Although some research has been reported recently concerning the underlying resistance to this disease, no studies have identified or characterized long noncoding RNAs involved in this defense response. In this study, using high-throughput RNA sequencing, we analyzed the disease-responding mRNAs and long noncoding RNAs in two resistant lines (T12–19 and 12–85) and one susceptible line (91–112). Clustering and Gene Ontology analysis of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) showed that more DEGs were involved in the defense response in the two resistant lines than in the susceptible line. Different expression patterns and proposed functions of differentially expressed long noncoding RNAs among T12–19, 12–85, and 91–112 indicated that each has a distinct disease response mechanism. There were significantly more cis- and trans-functional long noncoding RNAs in the resistant lines than in the susceptible line, and the genes regulated by these RNAs mostly participated in the disease defense response. Furthermore, we identified a candidate resistance-related long noncoding RNA, MSTRG.19915, which is a long noncoding natural antisense transcript of a MAPK gene, BrMAPK15. Via an agroinfiltration-mediated transient overexpression system and virus-induced gene silencing technology, BrMAPK15 was indicated to have a greater ability to defend against pathogens. MSTRG.19915-silenced seedlings showed enhanced resistance to downy mildew, probably because of the upregulated expression of BrMAPK15. This research identified and characterized long noncoding RNAs involved in resistance to downy mildew, laying a foundation for future in-depth studies of disease resistance mechanisms in Chinese cabbage.

Heterosis is a complex phenomenon in which hybrids show better phenotypic characteristics than their parents do. Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapaL. spp.pekinensis) is a popular leafy crop species, hybrids of which are widely used in commercial production; however, the molecular basis of heterosis for biomass of Chinese cabbage is poorly understood. We characterized heterosis in a Chinese cabbage F1hybrid cultivar and its parental lines from the seedling stage to the heading stage; marked heterosis of leaf weight and biomass yield were observed. Small RNA sequencing revealed 63 and 50 differentially expressed microRNAs (DEMs) at the seedling and early-heading stages, respectively. The expression levels of the majority of miRNA clusters in the F1hybrid were lower than the mid-parent values (MPVs). Using degradome sequencing, we identified 1,819 miRNA target genes. Gene ontology (GO) analyses demonstrated that the target genes of the MPV-DEMs and low parental expression level dominance (ELD) miRNAs were significantly enriched in leaf morphogenesis, leaf development, and leaf shaping. Transcriptome analysis revealed that the expression levels of photosynthesis and chlorophyll synthesis-related MPV-DEGs (differentially expressed genes) were significantly different in the F1hybrid compared to the parental lines, resulting in increased photosynthesis capacity and chlorophyll content in the former. Furthermore, expression of genes known to regulate leaf development was also observed at the seedling stage. Arabidopsis plants overexpressingBrGRF4.2and bra-miR396 presented increased and decreased leaf sizes, respectively. These results provide new insight into the regulation of target genes and miRNA expression patterns in leaf size and heterosis for biomass ofB. rapa.

Using 2.93 fb−1 of e+e− annihilation data collected at a center-of-mass energy √s=3.773 GeV with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider, we search for the semileptonic D0(+) decays ...

Summary Brassica rapa displays a wide range of morphological diversity which is exploited for a variety of food crops. Here we present a high‐quality genome assembly for pak choi (Brassica rapa L. subsp. chinensis), an important non‐heading leafy vegetable, and comparison with the genomes of heading type Chinese cabbage and the oilseed form, yellow sarson. Gene presence–absence variation (PAV) and genomic structural variations (SV) were identified, together with single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). The structure and expression of genes for leaf morphology and flowering were compared between the three morphotypes revealing candidate genes for these traits in B. rapa. The pak choi genome assembly and its comparison with other B. rapa genome assemblies provides a valuable resource for the genetic improvement of this important vegetable crop and as a model to understand the diversity of morphological variation across Brassica species.

We present a measurement of the strong-phase difference between D-0 and (D) over bar (0) -> (KS,LK+K-)-K-0 decays, performed through a study of quantum-entangled pairs of charm mesons. The measu ...

We report on an analysis of the decay J/ψ→γπ0η′ using a sample of (1310.6±7.0)×106J/ψ events collected with the BESIII detector. We search for the CP-violating process ηc→π0η′ and a dark gauge boso ...

The cross sections of the process e(+)e(-) -> eta J/psi lip at center-of-mass energies (root s) between 3.81 and 4.60 GeV are measured with high precision by using data samples collected with th ...

Flowering is an important trait in Chinese cabbage, because premature flowering reduces yield and quality of the harvested products. Water deficit, caused by drought or other environmental conditions, induces early flowering. Drought resistance involves global reprogramming of transcription, hormone signaling, and chromatin modification. We show that a histone H4 protein, BrHIS4.A04, physically interacts with a homeodomain protein BrVIN3.1, which was selected during the domestication of late-bolting Chinese cabbage. Over-expression of BrHIS4.A04 resulted in premature flowering under normal growth conditions, but prevented further premature bolting in response to drought. We show that the expression of key abscisic acid (ABA) signaling genes, and also photoperiodic flowering genes was attenuated in BrHIS4.A04-overexpressing (BrHIS4.A04OE) plants under drought conditions. Furthermore, the relative change in H4-acetylation at these gene loci was reduced in BrHIS4.A04OE plants. We suggest that BrHIS4.A04 prevents premature bolting by attenuating the expression of photoperiodic flowering genes under drought conditions, through the ABA signaling pathway. Since BrHIS4.A04OE plants displayed no phenotype related to vegetative or reproductive development under laboratory-induced drought conditions, our findings contribute to the potential fine-tuning of flowering time in crops through genetic engineering without any growth penalty, although more data are necessary under field drought conditions.

Using a 2.93 fb(-1) data sample of electron-positron collisions taken with the BESIII detector at a center-of-mass energy of 3.773 GeV, which corresponds to (8296 +/- 31 +/- 64) x 10(3) D+ D- pairs ...

Alkali metal batteries are now under revival for their large energy density. But their practical viability hinges on the successful development of safe and cyclable alkali metal anodes, preferrentially via scalable and cost-effective methods. Despite tremendous research efforts on the Li metal anode, the attention on Na and K is considerably less. In this work, we report a general and straightforward strategy to enhance the electrochemical performances of Na and K metal anodes. When their surfaces are covered with a thin piece of commercial carbon paper as the protection layer, both Na and K metal anodes exhibit significantly improved overpotentials and cycling stability (up to ~1200 cycles for Na and ~3000 cycles for K) within carbonate or ether electrolyte and even under large current density (5 mA cm−2). Proof-of-concept sodium metal batteries are also assembled using the protected Na metal anode and Na3V2(PO4)3 cathode, and demonstrate large areal capacity and impressive cycle life. Given its effectiveness, scalability and low cost, we believe that our strategy holds great promise for practical implementation.

High-throughput functional proteomics assay was conducted to investigate post-transcriptional changes in plant proteins upon interactions between Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis) and the clubroot pathogen Plasmodiophora brassicae. Protein profiles between infected and uninfected clubroot-susceptible plants of different genotypes at 10 days after inoculation (DAI) were compared and consolidated. A total of 295 proteins, functioning in energy and lipid metabolism, plant defense, cell wall modification, and hormone biosynthesis and signaling, were found to be differentially expressed during the secondary phase of the Chinese cabbage-P. brassicae interaction. It is worth noting that upregulation of proteins involved in brassinosteroids (BR) metabolism was confirmed: cycloartenol synthase (CAS1) and cytochrome P450 51G1 (CYP51G1), which are deeply involved in BR biosynthesis, were upregulated after inoculation. Furthermore, the treatment of P. brassicae-infected Chinese cabbage plants with an inhibitor of cycloartenol synthase resulted in reduced root gall size, revealing a contribution of CAS1 to clubroot development. These results demonstrated important aspects of the Chinese cabbage-P. brassicae interactions and might lead to the identification of key regulators in the BR pathway involved in clubroot development.

Years of continuous cropping of Brassica rapa crops in main producing areas in China lead to the outbreak of some diseases, such as downy mildew (DM), turnip mosaic virus (TuMV), black rot (BR), verticillium wilt (VW), and club root (CR), causing severe loss in yield and quality. Resistance to the aforementioned diseases of 302 inbred lines of Brassica rapa to DM, TuMV, BR, VW, and CR were evaluated under controlled conditions at seedling stage. Forty lines were identified to be highly resistant to DM, 13 to TuMV, 0 to BR, 30 to VW, and 24 to CR. Among the 302 lines, 121 exhibited high resistance to two diseases, 70 to three diseases, and eight to four diseases, but none of these lines showed comprehensive resistance to all the five diseases. Chinese cabbage lines XDYFX, 536S, 536Q, DY×T, and CR-C, and Pak choi lines DFAK×SH, NB, and SYHTC showed high resistance to four diseases and therefore represent elite materials in multiple-disease resistance breeding. In addition, different disease resistance tendencies were discovered in diverse Chinese cabbage groups which were classified in different ways, such as the ecotype, heading-type, and geographical origin.

Urban roads play a key role in sponge city construction, especially because of their drainage functions. However, efficient methods to enhance their drainage performance are still lacking. Here, we propose a new strategy to combine roads, green spaces, and the drainage system. Generally, by considering the organization of the runoff and the construction of the drainage system (including sponge city facilities) as the core of the strategy, the drainage and traffic functions were combined. This new strategy was implemented in a pilot study of road reconstruction conducted in Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, China. Steel slag was used in the structural layers to enhance the water permeability of the pavement and the removal of runoff pollutants. The combined effects of this system and of the ribbon biological retention zone, allowed achieving an average removal rate of suspended solids, a chemical oxygen demand, a removal of total nitrogen and total phosphorus of 71.60%, 78.35%, 63.93%, and 49.47%; in contrast, a traditional road could not perform as well. Furthermore, the volume control rate of the annual runoff met the construction requirements (70%). The results of the present study indicate that, combining the traditional basic functions of roads with those of landscape and drainage might be a promising strategy for sponge city construction of urban road.

Using E1 radiative transitions psi(3686) -> gamma chi(cJ) from a sample of (448.1 +/- 2.9) x 10(6) psi(3686) events collected with the BESIII detector, the decays chi(cJ) -> Sigma(+)(p) over ...

Using a sample of 448.1 x 10(6) psi(3686) events collected with the BESIII detector, we perform a study of the decay psi(3686) -> phi pi(+)pi(-)eta. The branching fraction of psi(3686) -> phi ...

The decay D+-> K-S(0)pi(+)pi(+)pi(-) is studied with an amplitude analysis using a data set of 2.93 fb(-1) of e(+)e(-) collisions at the psi(3770) peak accumulated by the BESIII detector. Interm ...

By analyzing 2.93 fb(-1) of e(+)e(-) annihilation data taken at the center-of-mass energy root s = 3.773 GeV with the BESIII detector, we determine the branching fractions of the inclusive decays D ...

Using e(+)e(-) -> Lambda(+)(c)(Lambda) over bar (-)(c). production from a 567 pb(-1) data sample collected by BESIII at 4.6 GeV, a full angular analysis is carried out simultaneously on the four ...

Using a data sample of 1.31 x 10(9) J/psi events collected with the BESIII detector, a search for eta' -> gamma gamma eta via J/psi ->gamma eta' is performed for the first time. No significan ...

Using 448.1 x 10(6) psi(3686) events collected with the BESIII detector at BEPCII, we employ a single-baryon tagging technique to make the first observation of psi(3686) -> Xi(1530)(-)(Xi) over ...

The reversible electrochemical storage of Li+ and Na+ ions is the operating basis of secondary lithium-ion and sodium-ion batteries. In recent years, there has been rapid growth in the search for appropriate electrode materials. Nevertheless, the development of host materials for active and durable electrochemical storage of both Li+ and Na+ ions remain challenging. In this study, we report a facile solvothermal method to prepare hierarchical assemblies of thin SnS2 nanosheets in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone. The as-prepared product has an expanded layered structure due to the presence of organic intercalates. Mild annealing restores the normal 2H-SnS2 phase with the hierarchical architecture preserved. When annealed SnS2 was evaluated as the anode material of lithium-ion batteries, it exhibited large capacity in excess of 1200 mA h g−1 and decent short-term cycling stability. It was further coated with a thin carbon layer as the physical and electrical reinforcement, which led to a much improved cycle life at both low and high current rates. Moreover, carbon coated SnS2 also demonstrated a large capacity (∼600 mA h g−1) and decent cycling stability as the anode material of sodium-ion batteries.

Anthocyanins are the major pigments responsible for purple coloration in flowers, fruits and leaves, and the genes involved in their biosynthetic pathway have been identified in many plants. A purple-leaf Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis) was bred by interspecies crossing between Chinese cabbage and purple-leaf mustard [Brassica juncea (L.) Coss. var. foliosa L. H. Bailey]. In this study, high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis indicated purple coloration in Chinese cabbage is due to the accumulation of the same kind of cyaninin as in purple mustard. To elucidate the genetic factors controlling anthocyanin accumulation in this purple-leaf Chinese cabbage, we mapped the anthocyanin gene from the mustard (Anm) locus in an F2 population and performed expression profiling of anthocyanin-related genes. A genetic analysis revealed that the purple-leaf phenotype is a qualitative trait and that its inheritance is unstable in purple-leaf Chinese cabbage. Mapping insertion/deletion markers from 288 individuals of the F2 population located the Anm locus within a 2.5-cM interval on B. rapa chromosome A02. The sequencing and alignment of the amplified fragments demonstrated that purple Chinese cabbage contains fragments of purple mustard on chromosome A02. We evaluated the expression profiles of 12 anthocyanin-related genes on A02 by reverse-transcription and quantitative real-time PCR methods, which revealed that the expression levels of five genes were higher in purple Chinese cabbage than in the non-purple variety. These results offer insights into the molecular mechanism of anthocyanin biosynthesis and improve the knowledge on molecular breeding of purple-type Chinese cabbage.

Room temperature sodium-ion batteries are of great potential for large-scale energy storage applications because of the abundance and low cost of sodium resources. However, their future viability will largely hinge on the development of high-capacity and stable electrode materials. In this study, we report thin TiS2 nanoplates as a possible cathode material for sodium-ion batteries. These nanoplates possess nanoscale dimensions and large surface areas. Their interlayer galleries are open toward the edges, providing easy access to the large internal space. Electrochemical measurements and multiple ex-situ studies demonstrate that TiS2 nanoplates are capable of fast and reversible Na+ intercalation and deintercalation. They deliver a large capacity close to full Na+ intercalation (186 mAh/g), high rate capability (~100 mAh/g at 10 C) and satisfactory cycling stability at both low and high current rates. Our study suggest that with proper nanostructure engineering, two-dimensional layered materials may hold great promise as sodium ion battery electrode materials to enable fast and robust energy storage at low costs.

By analyzing an e(+)e(-) data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.93 fb(-1) taken at a centerof- mass energy of 3.773 GeV with the BESIII detector, we measure the branching fractions of the Cabibbofavored hadronic decays D-0 -> K- pi' eta', D-0 -> K-s(0)pi(0)eta', which are determined to be (6.43 +/- 0.15(stat)+/- 0.31(syst)) x 10(-3), (2.52 +/- 0.22(stat) +/- 0.15(syst)) x 10(-3,) and (1.90 +/- 0.17(stat) +/- 0.13(syst)) x 10(-3), respectively. The precision of the branching fraction of D-0 -> K- pi(+) eta' is significantly improved, and the processes D-0 -> K-S(0)pi(0)eta' and D+ -> K-S(0) pi(+)eta' are observed for the first time.

Chinese cabbage is the most consumed leafy crop in East Asian countries. However, premature bolting induced by continuous low temperatures severely decreases the yield and quality of the Chinese cabbage, and therefore restricts its planting season and geographic distribution. In the past 40 years, spring Chinese cabbage with strong winterness has been selected to meet the market demand. Here, we report a genome variation map of Chinese cabbage generated from the resequencing data of 194 geographically diverse accessions of three ecotypes. In-depth analyses of the selection sweeps and genome-wide patterns revealed that spring Chinese cabbage was selected from a specific population of autumn Chinese cabbage around the area of Shandong peninsula in northern China. We identified 23 genomic loci that underwent intensive selection, and further demonstrated by gene expression and haplotype analyses that the incorporation of elite alleles of VERNALISATION INSENTIVE 3.1 (BrVIN3.1) and FLOWER LOCUS C 1 (BrFLC1) is a determinant genetic source of variation during selection. Moreover, we showed that the quantitative response of BrVIN3.1 to cold due to the sequence variations in the cis elements of the BrVIN3.1 promoter significantly contributes to bolting-time variation in Chinese cabbage. Collectively, our study provides valuable insights into the genetic basis of spring Chinese cabbage selection and will facilitate the breeding of bolting-resistant varieties by molecular-marker-assisted selection, transgenic or gene editing approaches.

The process e(+)e(-) -> D*D-+(s)*(s0) (2317)(-) + c.c. is observed for the first time with the data sample of 567 pb(-1) collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider at a center-of-mass energy root s = 4.6 GeV. The statistical significance of the D*(s0) (2317)(+/-) signal is 5.8 sigma and the mass is measured to be (2318.3 +/- 1.2 +/- 1.2) MeV/c(2). The absolute branching fraction B(D*(s0) (2317)(+/-) -> pi D-0(s)+/-) is measured as 1.00(-0.14)(+0.00) (stat)(-0.14)(+0.00) (syst) for the first time. The uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively.

Competitive allele-specific PCR (KASPar) assay is a user-friendly system that provides flexibility in the numbers of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and genotypes. Based on Illumina-GA-IIx genomic data from 10 genotypes with a broad genetic background, 3183 SNPs were selected for KASPar assays development, and 568 were finally converted and selected for Brassica rapa germplasm characterization (17.8%) on the basis of reproducibility, missing data rate, and uniform genetic distribution. High levels of polymorphism of these markers across 231 B. rapa genotypes were verified, illustrating by high polymorphic information content (averaged 0.34), minor allele frequency (0.37), genetic diversity (0.45), and the low observed heterozygosity (0.10). Based on the SNP dataset, structure and principal coordinates analysis, and neighbor-joining phylogenetic methods were used to examine the population structure and gave highly consistent results. The 231 accessions were divided into the four primary subspecies, representing 99 accessions from B. rapa ssp. pekinensis, 85 from B. rapa ssp. chinensis, 30 from B. rapa ssp. rapifera, and 17 from B. rapa ssp. oleifera and were further subdivided into 12 lower-order clusters according to different morphotypes. The genetic variability and pairwise fixation index analysis revealed that the ssp. pekinensis accessions possess the most extensive genetic variation among the four subspecies. The KASPar system is highly useful for validating SNPs and will be valuable for genetics research and breeding applications in B. rapa.

Using 567 pb-1 of e+e− collisions recorded at s=4.599 GeV with the BESIII detector, we report on first measurements of absolute hadronic branching fractions of Cabibbo-favored decays of Λc+ baryon with a double tag technique. A global least-square fitter is utilized to improve the measured precision. The branching fractions for twelve hadronic decay modes are significantly improved. We also report the first model-independent measurement of the absolute branching fraction B(Λc+→Λe+νe)=(3.63±0.38(stat))%, which is the most accurate result to date and improves the previous precision more than twofold.

Using a sample of 448.1 x 10(6) psi(3686) events collected with the BESIII detector, a search for the isospin violating decay eta(c) -> pi(+) pi(-) pi(0) via psi(3686) -> gamma eta(c) is presented. No signal is observed, and the upper limit on B(psi(3686) -> gamma eta(c)) x B(eta(c) -> pi(+) pi(-) pi(0)) is determined to be 1.6 x 10(-6) at the 90% confidence level. In addition, a search for eta(1405) -> f(0) (980) pi(0) in psi(3686) radiative decays is performed. No signal is observed, and the branching fraction B(psi(3686) -> gamma eta(1405)) x B(eta(1405) -> f(0)(980)pi(0)) x B(f(0)(980) -> pi(+)pi(-)) is calculated to be less than 5.0 x 10(-7) at the 90% confidence level.

Using a sample of 1.31 x 10(9) J/Psi events collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider, we study the decays of J/Psi -> KSKL and KSKS. The branching fraction of J/Psi -> KSKL is determined to be B(J/Psi -> KSKL) = (1.93 +/- 0.01 (stat) +/- 0.05 (syst)) x 10(-4), which significantly improves on previous measurements. No clear signal is observed for the J/Psi -> KSKS process, and the upper limit at the 95% confidence level for its branching fraction is determined to be B(J/Psi -> KSKS) < 1.4 x 10(-8), which improves on the previous searches by 2 orders in magnitude and reaches the order of the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen expectation.

Based on a sample of 1.31 billion J/psi events collected with the BESIII detector, we report the study of the doubly radiative decay eta' -> gamma gamma pi(0) for the first time, where the eta' meson is produced via the J/psi -> gamma eta' decay. The branching fraction of eta' -> gamma gamma pi(0) inclusive decay is measured to be B(eta' -> gamma gamma pi(0))(Incl) = (3.20 +/- 0.07(stat) +/- 0.23(sys)) x 10(-3), while the branching fractions of the dominant process eta' -> gamma omega and the non-resonant component are determined to be B(eta' -> gamma omega) x B(omega -> gamma pi(0)) = (23.7 +/- 1.4(stat) +/- 1.8(sys)) x 10(-4) and B(eta' -> gamma gamma pi(0))(NR) = (6.16 +/- 0.64(stat) +/- 0.67(sys)) x 10(-4), respectively. In addition, the M-gamma gamma(2)-dependent partial widths of the inclusive decay are also presented.

The Brassica genus comprises many economically important worldwide cultivated crops. The well-established model of the Brassica genus, U’s triangle, consists of three basic diploid plant species (Brassica rapa, Brassica oleracea and Brassica nigra) and three amphidiploid species (Brassica napus, Brassica juncea and Brassica carinata) that arose through interspecific hybridizations. Despite being extensively studied because of its commercial relevance, several aspects of the origin of the Brassica species and the relationships within and among these six species still remain open questions. Here, we successfully de novo assembled 60 complete chloroplast genomes of Brassica genotypes of all six species. A complete map of the Single Nucleotide Variants (SNVs) and Insertions and Deletions (InDels) in the chloroplast genomes of different Brassica species was produced. The chloroplast genome consists of a Large and a Small Single Copy (LSC and SSC) region between two Inverted Repeats (IRs), and while these regions of chloroplast genomes have very different molecular evolutionary rates, phylogenetic analyses of different regions yielded no contradicting topologies and separated the Brassica genus into four clades. B. carinata and B. juncea share their chloroplast genome with one of their hybridization donors B. nigra and B. rapa, respectively, which fits the U model. B. rapa, surprisingly, shows evidence of two types of chloroplast genomes, with one type specific to some Italian broccoletto accessions. B. napus clearly has evidence for two independent hybridization events, as it contains either B. rapa chloroplast genomes. The divergence estimation suggests that B. nigra and B. carinata diverged from the main Brassica clade 13.7 million years ago (Mya), while B. rapa and B. oleracea diverged at 2.18 Mya. The use of the complete chloroplast DNA sequence not only provides insights into comparative genome analysis but also paves the way for a better understanding of the phylogenetic relationships within the Brassica genus.

Introgression breeding is a widely used method for the genetic improvement of crop plants; however, the mechanism underlying candidate gene flow patterns during hybridization is poorly understood. In this study, we used a powerful pipeline to investigate a Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis) introgression line with the anthocyanin overaccumulation phenotype. Our purpose was to analyze the gene flow patterns during hybridization and elucidate the genetic factors responsible for the accumulation of this important pigment compound. We performed RNA-seq analysis by using two pipelines, one with and one without a reference sequence, to obtain transcriptome data. We identified 930 significantly differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the purple-leaf introgression line and B. rapa green cultivar, namely, 389 up-regulated and 541 down-regulated DEGs that mapped to the B. rapa reference genome. Since only one anthocyanin pathway regulatory gene was identified, i.e., Bra037887 (bHLH), we mined unmapped reads, revealing 2,031 de novo assembled unigenes, including c3563g1i2. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that c3563g1i2, which was transferred from the Brassica B genome of the donor parental line Brassica juncea, may represent an R2R3-MYB transcription factor that participates in the ternary transcriptional activation complex responsible for the anthocyanin overaccumulation phenotype of the B. rapa introgression line. We also identified genes involved in cold and light reaction pathways that were highly upregulated in the introgression line, as confirmed using quantitative real-time PCR analysis. The results of this study shed light on the mechanisms underlying the purple leaf trait in Brassica plants and may facilitate the use of introgressive hybridization for many traits of interest.

Based on data samples collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII storage ring at center-of-mass energies root s > 4.4 GeV, the processes e(+)e(-) -> omega chi(c1,2) are observed for the first time. With an integrated luminosity of 1074 pb(-1) near root s = 4.42 GeV, a significant omega chi(c2) signal is found, and the cross section is measured to be (20.9 +/- 3.2 +/- 2.5) pb. With 567 pb(-1) near root s = 4.6 GeV, a clear omega chi(c2) signal is seen, and the cross section is measured to be (9.5 +/- 2.1 +/- 1.3) pb, while evidence is found for an omega chi(c2) signal. The first errors are statistical, and the second are systematic. Due to low luminosity or low cross section at other energies, no significant signals are observed. In the omega chi(c2) cross section, an enhancement is seen around root s = 4.42 GeV. Fitting the cross section with a coherent sum of the psi(4415) Breit-Wigner function and a phase-space term, the branching fraction B(psi(4415) -> omega chi(c2)) is obtained to be of the order of 10(-3).