Publications by authors named "Shi-wei Zhao"

Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PanNETs), though uncommon, have a high likelihood of spreading to other body parts. Previously, the genetic diversity and evolutionary patterns in metastatic PanNETs were not well understood. To investigate this, we performed multiregion sampling whole-exome sequencing (MRS-WES) on samples from 10 patients who had not received prior treatment for metastatic PanNETs.

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  • The study focuses on Populus, a key model for tree genomics, and addresses challenges in identifying chromosomes in hybrid poplar strains, particularly the "84K" hybrid.
  • Researchers utilized advanced sequencing techniques and developed high-quality genome assemblies of both parental species, thoroughly mapping their chromosomes and analyzing gene expression patterns at the allele level.
  • Machine learning models showed promise in predicting allele-specific expression, identifying critical genomic features influencing expression differences, and paving the way for future functional studies in Populus hybrids.
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(yellowhorn) is a woody oil plant with super stress resistance and excellent oil characteristics. The yellowhorn oil can be used as biofuel and edible oil with high nutritional and medicinal value. However, genetic studies on yellowhorn are just in the beginning, and fundamental biological questions regarding its very long-chain fatty acid (VLCFA) biosynthesis pathway remain largely unknown.

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The , a deciduous broadleaved tree species, holds significant ecological and economical value. While a chromosome-level genome for this species has been made available, it remains riddled with unanchored sequences and gaps. In this study, we present a nearly complete comprehensive telomere-to-telomere (T2T) and haplotype-resolved reference genome for .

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  • - Terpenes and terpenoids are important compounds in plants that contribute to their defense and the quality of plant oils, significantly impacting commercial value.
  • - Terpene synthases are key enzymes responsible for the diversity of terpenes and studying their gene family can help improve oil-producing plants genetically.
  • - Phylogenetic analysis indicates that a significant gene fusion event occurred in the ancestor of land plants, with evidence of gene transfer between microbes and plants, highlighting the evolutionary patterns influencing terpene diversity.
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  • - The study examined how different levels of soil erosion (light, moderate, heavy) affect the hydraulic properties of black soil in slope farmlands, focusing on factors such as saturated hydraulic conductivity and water capacity.
  • - Results indicated that as soil erosion increased, the saturated hydraulic conductivity, water holding capacity, and water supply capacity declined, with greater impacts seen in the topsoil compared to the subsoil.
  • - The decrease in soil organic matter and the increase in soil bulk density were identified as key factors causing reduced water retention, highlighting the importance of understanding these changes for better soil management and erosion prevention.
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Background: Mammalian palatal shelves erupted from maxillary prominences undergo vertical extention, transient elevation, and horizontal growth to fuse. Previous studies in mice reported that the retinoic acid (RA) contributed to cleft palate in high incidence by delaying the elevating procedure, but little was known about the underlying biological mechanisms.

Methods: In this study, hematoxylin-eosin and immunofluorescence staining were employed to evaluate the phenotypes and the expression of related markers in the RA-treated mice model.

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Coriaria nepalensis Wall. (Coriariaceae) is a nitrogen-fixing shrub which forms root nodules with the actinomycete Frankia. Oils and extracts of C.

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Wood decay resistance (WDR) is marking the value of wood utilization. Many trees of the Lauraceae have exceptional WDR, as evidenced by their use in ancient royal palace buildings in China. However, the genetics of WDR remain elusive.

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The genus (Ericaceae), with more than 1000 species highly diverse in flower color, is providing distinct ornamental values and a model system for flower color studies. Here, we investigated the divergence between two parental species with different flower color widely used for azalea breeding. Gapless genome assembly was generated for the yellow-flowered azalea, .

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  • - The study investigates the history of allopolyploidization in Ericales, a diverse group of flowering plants, integrating data from about 200 species to understand their evolutionary background.
  • - Researchers found that Ericales originated from ancient hybridizations and experienced significant gene loss after polyploidization, which affects genetic diversity.
  • - This research proposes a new hypothesis about how Ericales evolved and emphasizes that gene loss plays a crucial role in their genetic variation and adaptation.
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A novel polymer support was prepared by curing of epoxy resin in ethanol solution in the macropores of a melamine sponge. The produced polymer gel could uniformly deposit on the surface of melamine in either porous or nonporous morphology. The composite sponge with porous coating can be used as a large-sized and well-mass transferred support for the immobilization of β-galactosidase from Bacillus circulans through method of adsorption and crosslinking, and a column reactor was made for the preparation of N-acetyllactosamine in a sealed circulation way.

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Through quantitatively adjust soil electric field, we investigated the effect of soil electric field on aggregate stability and soil erosion in black soil region of Northeast China with the experiments of wet sieving and rainfall simulation. Results showed that: 1) Soil surface potential absolute value and electric field strength increased with the decreases of electrolyte concentration in bulk solution. Soil electric field strength could reach to 10 V·m.

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  • Soil nematode communities are crucial for nutrient cycling and energy flow in ecosystems, and this study investigated their characteristics in different rotation systems in southern Ningxia.
  • Comparing alfalfa continuous cropping with alfalfa-corn and alfalfa-potato rotations revealed significant increases in soil organic carbon and total nitrogen levels, along with higher nematode abundance, shifting the dominant trophic group from plant parasites to omnivores-predators.
  • The findings suggest that crop rotations enhanced soil health by improving nutrient levels, reducing plant parasite impact, and promoting a more mature and stable soil food web, contributing to sustainable agriculture practices.
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Intensive application of biochar requires better understanding of their environmental behaviors such as stability, fate, and mobility. The release of bulk biochar into biochar nanoparticles (NPs) may bring risks because of their potential flowing into downstream water bodies with nutrients/containments attached. Low-temperature pyrolyzed biochars, namely fruit tree branch biochar of 350/450/550 °C (FB350, FB450 and FB550), corn straw biochar of 350 °C (CB350) and peanut straw biochar of 350 °C (PB350), were produced, and their NPs were extracted.

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  • The study explores the restoration of artificial grasslands using Medicago sativa on the Loess Plateau, focusing on soil microbe and nematode communities over four cultivation years (1, 2, 6, and 12 years).
  • It finds that the diversity of soil bacteria initially increases and then decreases, peaking at six years, while the fungal community shows different trends based on age.
  • The research also reveals that changes in soil nutrients affect both microbial and nematode communities, highlighting the importance of soil conditions in ecological restoration efforts.
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Background: Over the last decade, surgical decompression procedures have been commonly used in the treatment of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). However, the effectiveness of them remains to be proved.

Methods: A comprehensive literature search of databases including PubMed-Medline, Ovid-Embase, and Cochrane Library was performed to collect the related literatures.

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  • Chemotherapy is a key treatment for colorectal cancer (CRC), but only about 50% of patients respond well, prompting research into the impact of PIK3CA mutations on treatment outcomes.
  • In a study of 440 CRC patients, PIK3CA mutation was found in 9.55% of cases, associated with advanced cancer stages and poor response to first-line chemotherapy.
  • The mutation activates the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway, enhancing the survival and proliferation of CRC stem cells, leading to increased chemotherapy resistance, suggesting that PIK3CA and LGR5 could serve as biomarkers for monitoring treatment effectiveness.
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This work compared the collection 6 MODIS aerosol optical depth products with sun photometer data from AERONET, and evaluated the applicability of C6 merged data in the northwest of China. The spatio-temporal variation characteristics and influencing factors of AOD over northwest of China were analyzed by MODIS/AQUA C6 MYD08-M3 products from 2006 to 2015, and the results showed that Southern Xinjiang and Guanzhong region of Shanxi province had relatively high AOD, whereas the south of Qinghai and Gansu province had low values; Junggar Basin was the incremental area of AOD for the first 5 years and second 5 years, whereas converse result existed in Qaidam Basin and Hetao area. Temporally, the yearly mean AOD ranged from 0.

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This study aimed to investigate the effects of biochar addition on the emission of greenhouse gases from farmland soil in semi-arid region. Through an in-situ experiments, the influence of sawdust biochar(J) and locust tree skin biochar (H) at three doses (1%, 3%, and 5% of quality percentage) on C2, CH4 and N2O emissions were studied within the six months in the south of Ningxiaprovince. The results indicated that soil CO2 emission flux was slightly increased with the addition doses for both biochars, and the averaged CO2 emission flux for sawdust and locust tree skin biochar was enhanced by 1.

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Soil samples were collected from the fields planted with alfalfa for different years in the hilly region of southern Ningxia, and the technique of synchrotron radiation-fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (SR-FTIR) was adopted to study the characters of soil organic carbon (SOC) functional groups in different sizes of soil aggregates. Planting alfalfa changed the contents of SOC functional groups and their distribution in soil aggregates. With the increasing year of planting alfalfa, the SOC content, percentage of macro-aggregates (> 0.

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  • The study used synchrotron radiation soft X-ray and SR-FTIR spectroscopy to analyze changes in soil organic carbon (SOC) structure in grasslands of the Yun-wu mountains over time.
  • Results showed a significant increase in aliphatic carbon (C) in fallowing grasslands compared to slope farmland, while other carbon types like aromatic and polysaccharides remained stable.
  • Both techniques provided consistent results, confirming that synchrotron radiation soft X-ray is a viable method for studying changes in SOC structure in these environments.
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The effects of water-retaining agent (60 kg x hm(-2)) and nitrogen fertilizer (0, 225, and 450 kg x hm(-2)) on the leaf photosynthetic characteristics, chlorophyll content, and water utilization of winter wheat at jointing and grain-filling stages were studied under field conditions. In all treatments, the net photosynthetic rate, stomata conductance, intercellular CO2 concentration, water use efficiency, and chlorophyll content were greater at grain-filling stage than at jointing stage. Under nitrogen fertilization but without water-retaining agent application, the water use efficiency (WUE) of single leaf at jointing stage increased with increasing nitrogen fertilization rate, while the net photosynthetic rate, stomata conductance, intercellular CO2 concentration, and transpiration rate decreased after an initial increase.

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