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Objective To construct a precise model for identifying traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) constitutions, thereby offering optimized guidance for clinical diagnosis and treatment planning, and ultimately enhancing medical efficiency and treatment outcomes. Methods First, TCM full-body inspection data acquisition equipment was employed to collect full-body standing images of healthy people, from which the constitutions were labelled and defined in accordance with the Constitution in Chinese Medicine Questionnaire (CCMQ), and a dataset encompassing labelled constitutions was constructed. Second, heat-suppression valve (HSV) color space and improved local binary patterns (LBP) algorithm were leveraged for the extraction of features such as facial complexion and body shape. In addition, a dual-branch deep network was employed to collect deep features from the full-body standing images. Last, the random forest (RF) algorithm was utilized to learn the extracted multifeatures, which were subsequently employed to establish a TCM constitution identification model. Accuracy, precision, and F1 score were the three measures selected to assess the performance of the model. Results It was found that the accuracy, precision, and F1 score of the proposed model based on multifeatures for identifying TCM constitutions were 0.842, 0.868, and 0.790, respectively. In comparison with the identification models that encompass a single feature, either a single facial complexion feature, a body shape feature, or deep features, the accuracy of the model that incorporating all the aforementioned features was elevated by 0.105, 0.105, and 0.079, the precision increased by 0.164, 0.164, and 0.211, and the F1 score rose by 0.071, 0.071, and 0.084, respectively. Conclusion The research findings affirmed the viability of the proposed model, which incorporated multifeatures, including the facial complexion feature, the body shape feature, and the deep feature. In addition, by employing the proposed model, the objectification and intelligence of identifying constitutions in TCM practices could be optimized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In the silkworm Bombyx mori, non-susceptibility to the Zhenjiang (China) strain of the densonucleosis virus (DNV-Z) is controlled by the recessive gene nsd-Z (non-susceptible to DNV-Z), which is located [...]

Purpose. To decipher transcriptomic changes and related genes with potential functions against Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus infection and to increase the understanding of the enhanced virus resistance of silkworm on the transcriptomic level. Methods. We assembled and annotated transcriptomes of the Qiufeng (susceptible to infection) and QiufengN (resistant to infection) strains and performed comparative analysis in order to decipher transcriptomic changes and related genes with potential functions against BmNPV infection. Results. A total of 78,408 SNPs were identified in the Qiufeng strain of silkworm and 56,786 SNPs were identified in QiufengN strain. Besides, novel AS events were found in these 2 strains. In addition, 1,728 DEGs were identified in the QiufengN strain compared with Qiufeng strain. These DEGs were involved in GO terms related to membrane, metabolism, binding and catalytic activity, cellular processes, and organismal systems. The highest levels of gene representation were found in oxidative phosphorylation, phagosome, TCA cycle, arginine and proline metabolism, and pyruvate metabolism. Additionally, COG analysis indicated that DEGs were involved in “amino acid transport and metabolism” and “carbohydrate transport and metabolism.” Conclusion. We identified a series of major pathological changes in silkworm following infection and several functions were related to the antiviral mechanisms of silkworm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, we report the complete mitochondrial genome of a Bombyx mori strain BaiyuN, which is identified to be highly resistant to Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV). Its complete mitochondrial genome is 15,655 bp in length (GenBank accession no. MG797555), consisting of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, 2 rRNA, and 1 control region (494 bp). The complete mitogenome of the B. mori strain BaiyuN could provide a basic data for further phylogenetics and antivirus research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fluoride tolerance is an important economic trait in sericulture, especially in some industrial development regions. Analyses of physiological changes involving structural damage to the insect body and molecular analyses of some related genes have focused on this area; however, the changes that occur at the metabolic level of silkworms after eating fluoride-contaminated mulberry leaves remain unclear. Here, metabonomic analysis was conducted using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to analyze the changes in midgut tissue after NaF stress using silkworm strains 733xin (susceptible stain) and T6 (strain resistant to fluoride), which were previously reported by our laboratory. Differential metabolomics analysis showed that both T6 and 733xin strains displayed complex responses after exposure to 200 mg/kg NaF. The purine metabolism and arginine and proline metabolic pathways of fluoride-tolerant strains reached significant levels, among which 3′-adenylic acid and hypoxanthine were significantly upregulated, whereas guanine, allantoic acid, xanthine, N-acetyl-L-glutamic acid, and pyruvate were significantly downregulated. These metabolic pathways may be related to the fluoride tolerance mechanism of NaF poisoning and tolerant strains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Two species of wild silkworms, the Chinese oak silkworm (Antheraea pernyi) and the castor silkworm Philosamia cynthia ricini, can acquire a serious disease caused by Nucleopolyhedrin Viruses (NPVs) (known as AnpeNPV and PhcyNPV, respectively). The two viruses have similar polyhedral morphologies and their viral fragments share high sequence similarity. However, the physical maps of the viral genomes and cross-infectivity of the viruses are different. The genome sequences of two AnpeNPV isolates have been published., Results: We sequenced and analyzed the full-length genome of PhcyNPV to compare the gene contents of the two viruses. The genome of PhcyNPV is 125, 376 bp, with a G + C content of 53.65%, and encodes 138 open reading frames (ORFs) of at least 50 amino acids (aa) (GenBank accession number: JX404026). Between PhcyNPV and AnpeMNPV-L and -Z isolates, 126 ORFs are identical, including 30 baculovirus core genes. Nine ORFs were only found in PhcyNPV. Four genes, cath, v-chi, lef 10 and lef 11, were not found in PhcyNPV. However, most of the six genes required for infectivity via the oral route were found in PhcyNPV and in the two AnpeNPV isolates, with high sequence similarities. The pif-3 gene of PhcyNPV contained 59 aa extra amino acids at the N-terminus compared with AnpeNPV., Conclusions: Most of the genes in PhcyNPV are similar to the two AnpeNPV isolates, including the direction of expression of the ORFs. Only a few genes were missing from PhcyNPV. These data suggest that PhcyNPV and AnpeNPV might be variants of each other, and that the differences in cross-infection might be caused by gene mutations.