Female-germline specific protein Sakura interacts with Otu and is crucial for germline stem cell renewal and differentiation and oogenesis.

During oogenesis, self-renewal and differentiation of germline stem cells (GSCs) must be tightly regulated. The female germline serves as an excellent model for studying these regulatory mechanisms. Here, we report that a previously uncharacterized gene , which we named , is essential for oogenesis and female fertility in .

A transcriptomic (RNA-seq) analysis of Drosophila melanogaster adult testes overexpressing microRNA-2b-1.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding single-stranded RNAs with approximately 22 nucleotides in length that negatively regulate the mRNA translation of a target gene. MiR-2b-1 belongs to the largest miR-2 family in with 8 members and this miRNA family is conserved in invertebrates. miRNAs play key roles in gene regulation, cell proliferation, cell death, cell differentiation and cell developmental homeostasis in multicellular organisms.

Revised Annotation and Characterization of Novel miRNAs and Their Potential Functions in Dengue Virus Infection.

The Asian tiger mosquito, , is a highly invasive species that transmits several arboviruses including dengue (DENV), Zika (ZIKV), and chikungunya (CHIKV). Although several studies have identified microRNAs (miRNAs) in , it is crucial to extend and improve current annotations with both the newly improved genome assembly and the increased number of small RNA-sequencing data. We combined our high-depth sequence data and 26 public datasets to re-annotate miRNAs and found a total of 72 novel mature miRNAs.

Metabarcoding of Fish Larvae in the Merbok River Reveals Species Diversity and Distribution Along its Mangrove Environment.

The Merbok River (north-west of Peninsular Malaysia) is a mangrove estuary that provides habitat for over 100 species of fish, which are economically and ecologically important. Threats such as habitat loss and overfishing are becoming a great concern for fisheries conservation and management. The identification of larval fish in this estuarine system is important to complement information on the adults.

Dual inhibition of anti-apoptotic proteins BCL-XL and MCL-1 enhances cytotoxicity of Nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells.

One of the many strategies that cancer cells evade death is through up-regulation of the BCL-2 anti-apoptotic proteins. Hence, these proteins have become attractive therapeutic targets. Given that different cell populations rely on different anti-apoptotic proteins for survival, it is crucial to determine which proteins are important for Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cell survival.

Data on RNA-seq analysis of Drosophila melanogaster during ageing.

Ageing is defined as gradual decline of physiological, cellular and molecular state of an organism with time. The age-associated cell dysfunctions usually cause chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancers and other age-related diseases. Many of the genes and pathways involved in ageing are conserved in different species.

Genome-wide identification of Aedes albopictus long noncoding RNAs and their association with dengue and Zika virus infection.

The Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus (Ae. albopictus), is an important vector that transmits arboviruses such as dengue (DENV), Zika (ZIKV) and Chikungunya virus (CHIKV). Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are known to regulate various biological processes.

Strains Alleviated Hyperlipidemia and Liver Steatosis in Aging Rats via Activation of AMPK.

In this study, we hypothesized that different strains of can alleviate hyperlipidemia and liver steatosis via activation of 5' adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (), an enzyme that is involved in cellular energy homeostasis, in aged rats. Male rats were fed with a high-fat diet (HFD) and injected with D-galactose daily over 12 weeks to induce aging. Treatments included ( = 6) (i) normal diet (ND), (ii) HFD, (iii) HFD-statin (lovastatin 2 mg/kg/day), (iv) HFD- DR9 (10 log CFU/day), (v) HFD- DR7 (10 log CFU/day), and (vi) HFD- 8513d (10 log CFU/day).

Ageing, and Epigenetics.

Ageing is a phenomenon where the accumulation of all the stresses that alter the functions of living organisms, halter them from maintaining their physiological balance and eventually lead to death. The emergence of epigenetic tremendously contributed to the knowledge of ageing. Epigenetic changes in cells or tissues like deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) methylation, modification of histone proteins, transcriptional modification and also the involvement of non-coding DNA has been documented to be associated with ageing.

Identification and characterization of long noncoding RNAs and their association with acquisition of blood meal in Culex quinquefasciatus.

The Southern house mosquito, Culex quinquefasciatus (Cx. quinquefasciatus) is an important vector that transmit multiple diseases including West Nile encephalitis, Japanese encephalitis, St. Louis encephalitis and lymphatic filariasis.

Systematic identification and characterization of Aedes aegypti long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs).

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play diverse roles in biological processes. Aedes aegypti (Ae. aegypti), a blood-sucking mosquito, is the principal vector responsible for replication and transmission of arboviruses including dengue, Zika, and Chikungunya virus.

Genome-wide identification and characterization of long intergenic noncoding RNAs in the regenerative flatworm Macrostomum lignano.

The free-living flatworm Macrostoma lignano (M. lignano) is an emerging model organism for aging and regeneration research. Long intergenic non-coding RNAs (lincRNAs) have important roles in many biological processes such as aging, stem cell maintenance and differentiation.

Lactobacillus sp. improved microbiota and metabolite profiles of aging rats.

Aging is closely associated with altered gut function and composition, in which elderly were reported with reduced gut microbiota diversity and increased incidence of age-related diseases. Probiotics have been shown to exert beneficial health-promoting effects through modulation of intestinal microflora biodiversity, thus the effects of probiotics administration on D-galactose (D-gal) senescence-induced rat were evaluated based on the changes in gut microbiota and metabolomic profiles. Upon senescence induction, the ratio of Firmicutes/ Bacteroidetes was significantly lowered, while treatment with Lactobacillus helveticus OFS 1515 and L.

CTP synthase knockdown during early development distorts the nascent vertebral column and causes fluid retention in multiple tissues in zebrafish.

CTP Synthase (CTPS) is a metabolic enzyme that is recognized as a catalyst for nucleotide, phospholipid and sialoglycoprotein production. Though the structural characteristics and regulatory mechanisms of CTPS are well-understood, little is known regarding the extent of its involvement during the early developmental stages of vertebrates. Zebrafish carries two CTPS genes, annotated as ctps1a and ctps1b.

Evaluation of reference genes at different developmental stages for quantitative real-time PCR in Aedes aegypti.

The mosquito Aedes aegypti (Ae. aegypti) is the most notorious vector of illness-causing viruses such as Dengue, Chikugunya, and Zika. Although numerous genetic expression studies utilizing quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) have been conducted with regards to Ae.

Argonaute: The executor of small RNA function.

The discovery of small non-coding RNAs - microRNA (miRNA), short interfering RNA (siRNA) and PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) - represents one of the most exciting frontiers in biology specifically on the mechanism of gene regulation. In order to execute their functions, these small RNAs require physical interactions with their protein partners, the Argonaute (AGO) family proteins. Over the years, numerous studies have made tremendous progress on understanding the roles of AGO in gene silencing in various organisms.