RNAi-mediated silencing of NlGRP3 augments the insecticidal virulence of Metarhizium anisopliae to the brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens.

The rapid development of insecticide resistance reinforces the urgent need to develop eco-friendly strategies for controlling Nilaparvata lugens (brown planthopper, BPH), the most destructive insect pest of rice. Both entomopathogens and RNA interference (RNAi) provide attractive alternatives to chemical insecticides. In this study, we demonstrated the synergistic potential of the combination use of entomopathogen- and RNAi-mediated approaches to control BPH.

A Droplet Digital PCR-Based Approach for Quantitative Analysis of the Adulteration of Atlantic Salmon with Rainbow Trout.

Low-cost fish species are often used to adulterate or substitute for Atlantic salmon products, posing a serious threat to market order and public health. Hence, reliable techniques are urgently needed to detect Atlantic salmon adulteration. In this study, a precise method for identifying and quantifying adulterated Atlantic salmon with rainbow trout based on droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) testing was developed.

Characterization and transcriptomic analysis of a native fungal pathogen against the rice pest .

The brown planthopper (BPH), , is one of the most destructive pests of rice. Given the threats posed by insecticide resistance to its control, eco-friendly strategies based on microbial pathogens emerged as a promising biocontrol alternative. In the present study, we isolated a native fungal pathogen against BPH from infected BPH cadavers and preliminarily identified as a strain of based on morphological and molecular methods.

Comprehensive insights into host-pathogen interaction between brown planthopper and a fungal entomopathogen by dual RNA sequencing.

Background: The brown planthopper (BPH) is one of the most destructive pests of rice, causing tremendous yield and economic losses every year. The fungal entomopathogen Metarhizium anisopliae was previously proved to have great potential for BPH biocontrol. Genome-wide insight into the insect-fungus interaction is crucial for genetic improvement of M.

Host-Plant Induced Shifts in Microbial Community Structure in Small Brown Planthopper, Laodelphax striatellus (Homoptera: Delphacidae).

Microbiome associated with insects play vital roles in host ecology and physiology. The small brown planthopper (SBPH), Laodelphax striatellus, is a polyphagous insect pest that caused enormous damage to a wide range of cereal crops. Previous studies have assessed the effects of environmental factors, such as antibiotics, insecticide, and geographical habitat on the bacterial composition of SBPH.

The complete mitochondrial genome of an orb-weaver spider (Araneae: Araneidae).

The complete mitochondrial genome of an orb-weaver spider is 14,205 bp in length and contains 13 protein-coding genes, 2 ribosomal RNAs, 22 transfer RNAs, and a control region. The A + T content of the major strand is 75.4%.

Cullin 4B regulates cell survival and apoptosis in clear cell renal cell carcinoma as a target of microRNA-217.

Cullin 4B (CUL4B) was reported to be closely related to the progression of some tumors, but its function in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) has not been reported. Our present study found CUL4B was upregulated in ccRCC, and CUL4B knockdown markedly inhibited ccRCC cell growth and induced apoptosis. In addition, CUL4B knockdown markedly inhibited antiapoptotic proteins' expression in ccRCC cells, including Mcl-1 and Bcl-2, and silenced CUL4B also induced the cleavages of PARP, an important index of apoptosis.

The gut bacterial flora associated with brown planthopper is affected by host rice varieties.

Gut microbiota plays vital roles in the development, evolution and environmental adaptation of the host insects. The brown planthopper (BPH) is one of the most destructive pests of rice, but little is known about its gut microbiota. In this study, we investigated the gut bacterial communities in two BPH populations feeding on susceptible and resistant rice varieties by high-throughput amplicon sequencing.

The Non-Concentration-Quenching Phosphor CaEuBO for WLED Application.

Commercial white LED devices usually suffer from a high color temperature and poor color rendering. Developing a new, efficient, and stable red phosphor is the key to solving this problem. In this work, a series of pure CaYBO:Eu (0 < ≤ 2) samples, including the new and fully transitional borate phosphor CaEuBO (CEBO), have been successfully prepared by solid-state reaction synthesis.

Efficient and stable SrEuBO red phosphor benefiting from low symmetry and distorted local environment.

The development of suitable red phosphors to obtain improved white color stands a good chance to serve in the new generation of white light-emitting diodes. Owing to multi-elements via doping and oxidation of reduced valence state of lanthanide or transition metal ions, most of the reported phosphors usually suffer from complex synthetic processes and unstable color of the lighting industry cycle. In this work, we present a new red emitting and stable SrEuBO phosphor with regard to its special structure.

The zinc finger transcription factors Bbctf1α and Bbctf1β regulate the expression of genes involved in lipid degradation and contribute to stress tolerance and virulence in a fungal insect pathogen.

Background: To initiate insect infection, entomopathogenic fungi produce diverse cuticle-degrading enzymes. Of those, lipolytic enzymes participate in epicuticular lipid hydrolysis and thus facilitate fungal penetration through the outermost cuticular barrier of the insect host. The Far/CTF1-type zinc finger transcription factors play an important role in the regulation of lipolytic activity and fungal pathogenicity in plant pathogens but remain functionally unknown in fungal insect pathogens.

Diversity and dynamics of microbial communities in brown planthopper at different developmental stages revealed by high-throughput amplicon sequencing.

The microbiome associated with brown planthopper (BPH) plays an important role in mediating host health and fitness. Characterization of the microbial community and its structure is prerequisite for understanding the intricate symbiotic relationships between microbes and host insect. Here, we investigated the bacterial and fungal communities of BPH at different developmental stages using high-throughput amplicon sequencing.

Tracing Geographical Origins of Teas Based on FT-NIR Spectroscopy: Introduction of Model Updating and Imbalanced Data Handling Approaches.

This work presents a reliable approach to trace teas' geographical origins despite changes in teas caused by different harvest years. A total of 1447 tea samples collected from various areas in 2014 (660 samples) and 2015 (787 samples) were detected by FT-NIR. Seven classifiers trained on the 2014 dataset all succeeded to trace origins of samples collected in 2014; however, they all failed to predict origins for the 2015 samples due to different data distributions and imbalanced dataset.

Complete mitochodrial genome of the crab spider Ebrechtella tricuspidata (Araneae: Thomisidae): A novel tRNA rearrangement and phylogenetic implications for Araneae.

Mitochondrial genomes are widely used for phylogenetic and phylogeographic analyses among arthropods, but there is a lack of sufficient mitochondrial genome sequence data for spiders. Herein, we sequenced and characterized the complete mitochondrial genome of a crab spider Ebrechtella tricuspidata (Araneae: Thomisidae). The circular mitochondrial genome is 14,352 bp long, including a standard set of 37 genes and an A + T-rich region.

DNA barcoding evaluation and implications for phylogenetic relationships in ladybird beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae).

Ladybird beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), with broad morphological diversity, wide geographic distribution and substantial agricultural significance, are a challenging group for taxonomists and phylogenetics. As a promising tool to identify and discover new species, DNA barcoding might offer significant potential for identification, taxonomy and phylogeny of ladybird beetles. In the present study, a total of 1364 COI (cytochrome C oxidase subunit I) sequences representing 128 species from 52 genera of ladybird beetles were screened for barcoding evaluation and phylogenetic analysis.

Assessing the effectiveness of mitochondrial COI and 16S rRNA genes for DNA barcoding of farmland spiders in China.

DNA barcoding has been widely used to identify and discover new species in a wide range of taxa. In order to assess the effectiveness of COI (cytochrome C oxidase subunit I) and 16S (16S ribosomal RNA) in the discrimination of spiders, we have generated 289 barcodes for a total of 56 farmland spider species from 14 different families for the first time in China. Our results reveal that the standard barcoding marker COI can be used to distinguish the farmland spiders both in species and family level by NJ tree-based method, despite the absence of a barcode gap between the intra- and inter-specific genetic divergences.

The complete mitogenome of a jumping spider Carrhotus xanthogramma (Araneae: Salticidae) and comparative analysis in four salticid mitogenomes.

The complete mitogenome of the jumping spider Carrhotus xanthogramma was determined and comparative analysis among four salticid mitogenomes was conducted. The circular genome is 14,563 bp in size and contains a complete set of genes that usually present in the metazoa. All of the 13 protein-coding genes begin with a typical ATN codon and stop with the canonical stop codons, except for ND4 and ND4L genes with an incomplete stop codon T.

Novel Diterpenoids from the Twigs of Podocarpus nagi.

Phytochemical investigation of the twigs of Podocarpus nagi (Podocarpaceae) led to the isolation of two new abietane-type diterpenoids, named 1β,16-dihydroxylambertic acid (1) and 3β,16-dihydroxylambertic acid (2), along with two new ent-pimarane-type diterpenoids, named ent-2β,15,16,18-tetrahydroxypimar-8(14)-ene (3) and ent-15-oxo-2β,16,18-trihydroxypimar-8(14)-ene (4). Their respective structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analyses, including 1D- and 2D-NMR, IR, CD, and HR-ESI-MS. This is the first time ent-pimarane-type diterpenoids from the genus Podocarpus has been reported.

Characterization of the complete mitogenomes of two Neoscona spiders (Araneae: Araneidae) and its phylogenetic implications.

The complete mitogenomes of two orb-weaving spiders Neoscona doenitzi and Neoscona nautica were determined and a comparative mitogenomic analysis was performed to depict evolutionary trends of spider mitogenomes. The circular mitogenomes are 14,161bp with A+T content of 74.6% in N.

The Complete Mitochondrial Genome of two Tetragnatha Spiders (Araneae: Tetragnathidae): Severe Truncation of tRNAs and Novel Gene Rearrangements in Araneae.

Mitogenomes can provide information for phylogenetic analysis and evolutionary biology. The Araneae is one of the largest orders of Arachnida with great economic importance. In order to develop mitogenome data for this significant group, we determined the complete mitogenomes of two long jawed spiders Tetragnatha maxillosa and T.

Isolation and characterization of a crude oil degrading bacteria from formation water: comparative genomic analysis of environmental Ochrobactrum intermedium isolate versus clinical strains.

In this study, we isolated an environmental clone of Ochrobactrum intermedium, strain 2745-2, from the formation water of Changqing oilfield in Shanxi, China, which can degrade crude oil. Strain 2745-2 is aerobic and rod-shaped with optimum growth at 42 °C and pH 5.5.

The complete mitochondrial genomes of two orb-weaving spider Cyrtarachne nagasakiensis (Strand, 1918) and Hypsosinga pygmaea (Sundevall, 1831) (Araneae: Araneidae).

The complete mitogenomes of Cyrtarachne nagasakiensis and Hypsosinga pygmaea are determined to be 14,402 and 14,193 bp in length, with the A + T content of 75.7% and 76.1%, respectively.

The complete mitochondrial genome of the orb-weaver spider Cyclosa argenteoalba Boes. et Str. (Araneae: Araneidae).

The complete mitochondrial genome of an orb-weaver spider Cyclosa argenteoalba is determined in this article. The genome encodes the same 37 genes with a length of 14,575 bp as all other metazoan mitogenomes. The A + T content of the majority strand is 73.

The complete mitochondrial genome of the orb-weaving spider Neoscona theisi (Walckenaer) (Araneae: Araneidae).

The complete mitochondrial genome of an orb-weaving spider Neoscona theisi (Walckenaer) is determined in this article. It is a typical circular duplex DNA molecule with a length of 14,156 bp, which encodes the same 37 genes as all metazoan mitogenomes and an A + T-rich region (D-loop). The overall A + T content is 75.

The complete mitochondrial genome of the wolf spider Wadicosa fidelis (Araneae: Lycosidae).

The complete mitochondrial genome of the wolf spider Wadicosa fidelis was determined. It is a circular molecule of 14,741 bp in length and contains a standard set of 13 protein-coding genes, 2 ribosomal RNAs, 22 transfer RNAs and a control region. The A + T content of the overall base composition of majority strand (J-strand) is 76.