Genomic analysis of Tibetan ground tits identifies molecular adaptations associated with cooperative breeding.

Cooperative breeding is a sophisticated altruistic social behavior that helps social animals to adapt to harsh environments. The Tibetan ground tit, , is a high-altitude bird endemic to the Tibetan plateau. Recently, it has become an exciting system for studying the evolution of facultative cooperative breeding.

Local Adaptation of Bitter Taste and Ecological Speciation in a Wild Mammal.

Sensory systems are attractive evolutionary models to address how organisms adapt to local environments that can cause ecological speciation. However, tests of these evolutionary models have focused on visual, auditory, and olfactory senses. Here, we show local adaptation of bitter taste receptor genes in two neighboring populations of a wild mammal-the blind mole rat Spalax galili-that show ecological speciation in divergent soil environments.

ACE2 receptor usage reveals variation in susceptibility to SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 infection among bat species.

Bats are the suggested natural hosts for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and the causal agent of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, SARS-CoV-2. The interaction of viral spike proteins with their host receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is a critical determinant of potential hosts and cross-species transmission. Here we use virus-host receptor binding and infection assays to examine 46 ACE2 orthologues from phylogenetically diverse bat species, including those in close and distant contact with humans.

Diet and Adaptive Evolution of Alanine-Glyoxylate Aminotransferase Mitochondrial Targeting in Birds.

Adaptations to different diets represent a hallmark of animal diversity. The diets of birds are highly variable, making them an excellent model system for studying adaptive evolution driven by dietary changes. To test whether molecular adaptations to diet have occurred during the evolution of birds, we examined a dietary enzyme alanine-glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT), which tends to target mitochondria in carnivorous mammals, peroxisomes in herbivorous mammals, and both mitochondria and peroxisomes in omnivorous mammals.

[Comparison of the prognosis of intertrochanteric fracture with different surgical methods in elderly: a retrospective survival analysis].

Objective: To determine the difference of post-operative mortality between ORIF (open reduction internal fixation) and hip replacement for the treatment of intertrochanteric fracture in elderly by using survival analysis.

Methods: The clinical data of 110 patients above 60 years old who underwent surgical treatment (ORIF or hip replacement) for the intertrochanteric fracture between April 2003 and May 2013 were retrospectively analyzed. Among the patients, 83 cases were treated with ORIF (ORIF group), there were 32 males and 51 females, aged from 61.

Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China.

Background: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging infectious disease discovered in rural areas of Central China in 2009, caused by a novel bunyavirus, SFTS virus (SFTSV). The disease usually presents as fever, thrombocytopenia, and leukocytopenia, with case-fatality rates ranging from 2.5% to 30%.

Clinical progression and predictors of death in patients with severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome in China.

Background: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging infectious disease of which the clinical progression and factors related to death are still unclear.

Objective: To identify the clinical progression of SFTS and explore predictors of fatal outcome throughout the disease progress.

Study Design: A prospective study was performed in a general hospital located in Xinyang city during 2011-2013.

Case-fatality ratio and effectiveness of ribavirin therapy among hospitalized patients in china who had severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome.

Background: The wide distribution and high case-fatality ratio of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) have made it a significant public health problem. This study was designed to identify the predictors of fatal outcomes and to evaluate the effectiveness of antiviral therapy in treating SFTS virus (SFTSV)-infected patients.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed in a general hospital located in Xinyang city, whereas the largest number of patients with SFTS in China were treated during 2011-2012.

[The clinical characteristics of 169 cases of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome].

Objective: To analyze the clinical characteristics of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) so as to improve the recognition of the emerging infectious disease.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed upon clinical manifestations, laboratory test results and prognostic features of 169 patients with SFTS admitted to the 154 Hospital, Chinese People's Liberation Army from October 2010 to May 2011. The patients were divided into moderate disease group and severe disease group according to the prognosis.

[Determination of rat serum emodin level by microemulsion liquid chromatography with direct sample loading].

Objective: To establish a microemulsion liquid chromatography system with direct sample loading for determining the serum level of emodin in rats.

Methods: The separation was performed on C₁₈ column (Hypersil BDS, 5 µm,150 mm×4.6 mm) with the microemulsion mobile phase consisting of 3.