A chromosome-level genome assembly for the desert scorpion Mesobuthus przewalskii from Asian drylands.

Scorpions are an ancient and charismatic group of arthropods with medical importance, but a high-quality reference genome for this group is still lacking. Here we perform whole-genome sequencing of Mesobuthus przewalskii, a desert scorpion endemic to the Taklimakan Desert. We combine PacBio HiFi sequencing and Hi-C chromosome conformation capturing to generate chromosomal-level, haplotype-resolved, and fully annotated genome assembly for this medically important scorpion.

Genomic and Phenotypic Adaptations of Rattus tanezumi to Cold Limit Its Further Northward Expansion and Range Overlap with R. norvegicus.

Global climate change has led to shifts in the distribution ranges of many terrestrial species, promoting their migration from lower altitudes or latitudes to higher ones. Meanwhile, successful invaders have developed genetic adaptations enabling the colonization of new environments. Over the past 40 years, Rattus tanezumi (RT) has expanded into northern China (Northwest and North China) from its southern origins.

OsEIL2 balances rice immune responses against (hemi)biotrophic and necrotrophic pathogens via the salicylic acid and jasmonic acid synergism.

Plants typically activate distinct defense pathways against various pathogens. Heightened resistance to one pathogen often coincides with increased susceptibility to another pathogen. However, the underlying molecular basis of this antagonistic response remains unclear.

Antagonistic control of rice immunity against distinct pathogens by the two transcription modules via salicylic acid and jasmonic acid pathways.

Although the antagonistic effects of host resistance against biotrophic and necrotrophic pathogens have been documented in various plants, the underlying mechanisms are unknown. Here, we investigated the antagonistic resistance mediated by the transcription factor ETHYLENE-INSENSITIVE3-LIKE 3 (OsEIL3) in rice. The Oseil3 mutant confers enhanced resistance to the necrotroph Rhizoctonia solani but greater susceptibility to the hemibiotroph Magnaporthe oryzae and biotroph Xanthomonas oryzae pv.

[Retracted] circNSUN2 promotes the malignant biological behavior of colorectal cancer cells via the miR‑181a‑5p/ROCK2 axis.

Following the publication of the above article, a concerned reader drew to the Editor's attention that the data showing the results of TUNEL staining of tumours featured in the four panels of Fig. 2G on p. 4, and potentially some of the photographs of the tumours shown in Fig.

Phylogeography of the desert scorpion illuminates a route out of Central Asia.

A comprehensive understanding of phylogeography requires the integration of knowledge across different organisms, ecosystems, and geographic regions. However, a critical knowledge gap exists in the arid biota of the vast Asian drylands. To narrow this gap, here we test an "out-of-Central Asia" hypothesis for the desert scorpion by combining Bayesian phylogeographic reconstruction and ecological niche modeling.

Composition and Diversity of Endophytic Rhizosphere Microbiota in Apple Tree with Different Ages.

In order to determine the underlying mechanism of the senescence occurring in older apple trees, the effects of tree age on the community structure and dominant genus of endophytic rhizosphere bacteria in apple were investigated. The diversity and structure of the bacterial communities and corresponding changes in the dominant genera of endophytic rhizosphere bacteria of apple at different ages (2, 8, 16, 22 years) were compared based on 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing technology. The results revealed that the longer the tree age, the less the number of ASV in the endophytic bacteria.

Analysis of the Mitogenomes of Two Helotid Species Provides New Insights into the Phylogenetic Relationship of the Basal Cucujoidea (Insecta: Coleoptera).

Helotid beetles are commonly found in places where sap flows from tree trunks and in crevices in bark. The Helotidae family is a rare and primitive group of Cucujoidea. To date, no complete mitochondrial (mt) genome has been sequenced for this family.

Genomic analysis unveils mechanisms of northward invasion and signatures of plateau adaptation in the Asian house rat.

The Asian house rat (AHR), Rattus tanezumi, has recently invaded the northern half of China. The AHR is a highly adaptive rat species that has also successfully conquered the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) and replaced the brown rat (BR), R. norvegicus, at the edge of the QTP.

The first chromosome-level genome assembly of a green lacewing Chrysopa pallens and its implication for biological control.

Many lacewing species (Insecta: Neuroptera) are important predators of pests with great potential in biological control. So far, there is no chromosome-level published genome available for Neuroptera. Here we report a high-quality chromosome-level reference genome for a green lacewing species Chrysopa pallens (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae), which is one of the most important insect natural enemies used in pest biocontrol.

Three Complete Mitochondrial Genomes of Erotylidae (Coleoptera: Cucujoidea) with Higher Phylogenetic Analysis.

The family Erotylidae belongs to the superfamily Cucujoidea, which are phytophagous and mycophagous. So far, only two representative complete mitochondrial (mt) genomes of Erotylidae have been sequenced. Mitochondrial genomes of , , and , which all belong to the subfamily Erotylinae, were sequenced using next-generation sequencing technology to better understand the diversity of mt genomes of Erotylidae.

circNSUN2 promotes the malignant biological behavior of colorectal cancer cells via the miR‑181a‑5p/ROCK2 axis.

Aberrant expression of circular RNAs (circRNAs) has been demonstrated to be related to the development of colorectal cancer (CRC), the third most common cancer worldwide. However, the mechanism of the effect of circRNA NOP2/Sun domain family, member 2 (circNSUN2) on the malignant biological behavior of CRC remains unclear. In the present study, the expression of circNSUN2 and microRNA (miR)‑181a‑5p was detected by RT‑qPCR.

Population genomics reveal rapid genetic differentiation in a recently invasive population of Rattus norvegicus.

Background: Invasive species bring a serious effect on local biodiversity, ecosystems, and even human health and safety. Although the genetic signatures of historical range expansions have been explored in an array of species, the genetic consequences of contemporary range expansions have received little attention, especially in mammal species. In this study, we used whole-genome sequencing to explore the rapid genetic change and introduction history of a newly invasive brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) population which invaded Xinjiang Province, China in the late 1970s.

Population Genetics of SARS-CoV-2: Disentangling Effects of Sampling Bias and Infection Clusters.

A novel RNA virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is responsible for the ongoing outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Population genetic analysis could be useful for investigating the origin and evolutionary dynamics of COVID-19. However, due to extensive sampling bias and existence of infection clusters during the epidemic spread, direct applications of existing approaches can lead to biased parameter estimations and data misinterpretation.

Long non-coding RNA LUCAT1 promotes proliferation and invasion in gastric cancer by regulating miR-134-5p/YWHAZ axis.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to research the function of lncRNA LUCAT1 in gastric cancer.

Methods: Human gastric cancer tissues and paracancer tissues were obtained from 98 patients undergoing surgical resection in our hospital. The human gastric cancer cell lines (HGC27, BGC823, MGC803, SGC7901 and AGS), and normal gastric mucosal cell line GSE1 were used to research the role of lncRNA LUCAT1.

LINC00339 promotes gastric cancer progression by elevating DCP1A expression via inhibiting miR-377-3p.

Up to date, the mechanism of gastric cancer (GC) development is poorly understood. This study was to demonstrate the effects of LINC00339 on GC progression. Here, we found that LINC00339 was overexpressed expressed in GC tissues and predicted poor outcome.

Ancestry informative SNP panels for discriminating the major East Asian populations: Han Chinese, Japanese and Korean.

Ancestry informative markers play an important role in medical genetics and forensic analyses. Several ancestry informative SNP panels have been developed and validated that can differentiate global populations into continental or major regional groups. These global panels have served as good first-tier genetic markers; however, their performance in discriminating populations within regions appears unsatisfactory.

AIM-SNPtag: A computationally efficient approach for developing ancestry-informative SNP panels.

Inferring an individual's ancestry or group membership using a small set of highly informative genetic markers is very useful in forensic and medical genetics. However, given the huge amount of SNP data available from a diverse of populations, it is challenging to develop informative panels by exhaustively searching for all possible SNP combinations. In this study, we formulate it as an algorithm problem of selecting an optimal set of SNPs that maximizes the inference accuracy while minimizes the set size.

Inferring Chinese surnames with Y-STR profiles.

Co-ancestry of human surnames and Y-chromosomes in most human populations and social groups suggests the possibility of inferring one from the other. However, such an intuitive perspective remains to be formally explored. In the present study, we develop two computational methods, based on cosine distance (d) and coalescence distance (d) respectively, to infer surnames from Y-STR profiles.

Coalescent-Based Analyses of Genomic Sequence Data Provide a Robust Resolution of Phylogenetic Relationships among Major Groups of Gibbons.

The phylogenetic relationships among extant gibbon species remain unresolved despite numerous efforts using morphological, behavorial, and genetic data and the sequencing of whole genomes. A major challenge in reconstructing the gibbon phylogeny is the radiative speciation process, which resulted in extremely short internal branches in the species phylogeny and extensive incomplete lineage sorting with extensive gene-tree heterogeneity across the genome. Here, we analyze two genomic-scale data sets, with ∼10,000 putative noncoding and exonic loci, respectively, to estimate the species tree for the major groups of gibbons.

Altered expression profiles of circular RNA in colorectal cancer tissues from patients with lung metastasis.

The lung is the most common extra-abdominal site of metastasis in colorectal cancer (CRC), in which circular RNA (circRNA) may have a crucial role. Therefore, the present study detected circRNA expression to identify novel targets to further study lung metastasis in CRC. In the present study, total RNA was extracted from CRC tissues of patients with and without lung metastasis to perform high-throughput microarray assay in order to detect differentially expressed circRNA.