Gene drives are programmable genetic elements that can spread beneficial traits into wild populations to aid in vector-borne pathogen control. Two different drives have been developed for population modification of mosquito vectors. The Reckh drive (vasa-Cas9) in Anopheles stephensi displays efficient allelic conversion through males but generates frequent drive-resistant mutant alleles when passed through females. In contrast, the AgNosCd-1 drive (nos-Cas9) in Anopheles gambiae achieves almost complete allelic conversion through both genders. Here, we examined the subcellular localization of RNA transcripts in the mosquito germline. In both transgenic lines, Cas9 is strictly coexpressed with endogenous genes in stem and premeiotic cells of the testes, where both drives display highly efficient conversion. However, we observed distinct colocalization patterns for the two drives in female reproductive tissues. These studies suggest potential determinants underlying efficient drive through the female germline. We also evaluated expression patterns of alternative germline genes for future gene-drive designs.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkab369 | DOI Listing |
J Evol Biol
January 2025
ISTA (Institute of Science and Technology Austria), Am Campus 1, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria.
Polymorphic short insertions and deletions (INDELs ≤ 50 bp) are abundant, although less common than single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Evidence from model organisms shows INDELs to be more strongly influenced by purifying selection than SNPs. Partly for this reason, INDELs are rarely used as markers for demographic processes or to detect divergent selection.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBrain Commun
December 2024
Faculty of Science and Medicine, University of Fribourg, Fribourg 1700, Switzerland.
Individuals diagnosed with functional neurological disorder experience abnormal movement, gait, sensory processing or functional seizures, for which research into the pathophysiology identified psychosocial contributing factors as well as promising biomarkers. Recent pilot studies suggested that (epi-)genetic variants may act as vulnerability factors, for example, on the oxytocin pathway. This study set out to explore endogenous oxytocin hormone levels in saliva in a cohort of 59 functional neurological disorder patients and 65 healthy controls comparable in sex and age.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPlant Sci
December 2024
Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. Electronic address:
In recent years, light red or white strawberries have attracted much attention because of their unusual color, however, the mechanism of strawberry color formation, especially light red strawberry color, is not well understood. By EMS mutagenesis of woodland strawberry (Fragaria vesca), we identified two mutants, rg40 and rg120, with light red fruit and yellow-green petiole, and allelic hybridization and BSA mixed-pool sequencing revealed that the phenotype was caused by mutation in the FvPAL2 protein in the anthocyanin synthesis pathway. Enzyme activity experiments showed that the mutant FvPAL2 protein barely catalyzed the substrate conversion normally, thus blocking anthocyanin synthesis, which in turn led to a decrease in anthocyanin accumulation in fruits and petioles.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPlant Commun
December 2024
State Key Laboratory of Vegetable Biobreeding; Institute of Vegetables and Flowers, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China. Electronic address:
BMC Genomics
December 2024
Biotechnology and Nuclear Technology Research Institute, Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, 610011, China.
Sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas L.), an important food and industrial crop in the world, has a highly heterozygous hexaploid genome, making the development of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers challenging. Identifying SNP loci and developing practical SNP markers are crucial for genomic and genetic research on sweetpotato.
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