Mapping QTL for fat area ratios and serum leptin concentrations in a Duroc purebred population

The reduction of extra subcutaneous, intermuscular and abdominal fat is important to increase the carcass lean percentage of pigs. Image analyses of fat area ratios were effective for estimation of separated fat in pig carcasses. Serum concentrations of leptin are useful as physiological predictors of fat accumulation in pigs. The objectives of the present study were to perform a quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis for fat area ratios and serum leptin concentrations in a Duroc purebred population. Pigs (n = 226 to 538) were measured for fat area ratios of carcass cross‐sections at the fifth to sixth thoracic vertebrae, half body length and last thoracic vertebra using an image analysis system, and serum leptin concentration. In total, animals were genotyped for 129 markers and used for QTL analysis. For fat area ratios, four significant and 12 suggestive QTLs were detected on chromosomes 1, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12 and 13. Significant QTLs were detected on the same region of chromosome 6, which was located near a leptin receptor gene. For serum leptin concentrations, two significant and two suggestive QTLs were detected on chromosomes 6, 9, and 16, and the QTLs on chromosome 6 were also in the same region for fat area ratios.     

Ferroelectric columnar liquid crystal featuring confined polar groups within core-shell architecture

Ferroelectric liquid crystals are materials that have a remnant and electrically invertible polar order. Columnar liquid crystals with a ferroelectric nature have potential use in ultrahigh-density memory devices, if electrical polarization occurs along the columnar axis. However, columnar liquid crystals having an axial nonzero polarization at zero electric field and its electrical invertibility have not been demonstrated. Here, we report a ferroelectric response for a columnar liquid crystal adopting a core-shell architecture that accommodates an array of polar cyano groups confined by a hydrogen-bonded amide network with an optimal strength. Under an applied electric field, both columns and core cyano groups align unidirectionally, thereby developing an extremely large macroscopic remnant polarization.     

Historical impacts on linear habitats: The present distribution of grassland species in forest-edge vegetation

In highly fragmented agricultural landscapes, abandoned forests and dense coniferous plantations established on former semi-natural grassland remain potentially suitable sites for the restoration of grassland communities. The roadside vegetation along the edges of these remnant forests could be a key landscape component, because these communities retain pools of grassland species that are maintained by regular mowing alongside public roads to improve traffic safety. We evaluated the effect of land-use history and the proportion of suitable surrounding habitats on the present distribution of grassland species in roadside forest-edge vegetation. The average number of grassland species was significantly lower at sites that had been cultivated since the 1950s, but it did not differ between uncultivated sites and sites cultivated during the 1880s. Positive effects of the proportion of suitable habitats around the sites were detected at specific spatial scales (500- and 700-m squares), and these effects were indistinct at sites that had lost populations to cultivation. In addition to the present habitat conditions (e.g., forest type), the best-fit model for explaining the present distribution of grassland species at a site included both the site’s land-use history and the past proportion of suitable habitat around the sites. Even in remnant linear habitats such as forest-edge vegetation along roads, historical patterns of site conditions and the landscape matrix at optimum scales can provide useful knowledge to improve explanations of the present distributions of grassland species. These information can help identify abandoned or planted forest sites potentially suitable for restoration with grassland species.     

新疆小麦地方品种资源HMW-GS的遗传多样性组成分析

为了明确新疆小麦地方品种高分子量麦谷蛋白亚基的遗传多样性,并为小麦品质改良提供基础材料,利用十二烷基硫酸钠聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳(SDS-PAGE) 技术,分析了源自新疆地区的282份小麦地方品种的高分子量麦谷蛋白亚基组成。结果表明,在Glu-A1、Glu-B1和Glu-D1位点上的等位变异分别为3、6和 5种,三个位点上的优势亚基依次为null、7+8和2+12,其频率分别是75.5%、90.8%和72.0%。在Glu-1位点共检测到20种亚基组合,其中(null, 7+8, 2+12)组合的频率最高,为52.8%, 其次是(null, 7+8, 2.6+12)和(2*, 7+8, 2+12)组合,其频率分别为14.1%和11.0%,其它亚基组合的频率均低于10%。另外,在Glu-D1位点上还检测到一个新的亚基2.6+12。在供试的282份新疆地方品种中发现了两份具有优质亚基组合的材料,它们的亚基组成为(2*, 7+9, 5+10)和(1, 7+9, 5+10),这些地方品种可作为改良小麦品质性状的重要遗传资源。     

新疆冬小麦地方品种高分子量麦谷蛋白亚基的地理分布及其新发现亚基的特性

[目的]和方法]为了揭示新疆小麦地方品种高分子量谷蛋白亚基( HMW - GS)的遗传多样性,对新疆北部地区(北疆)、东部地区(东疆)和南部地区(南疆)小麦地方品种HMW - GS的分布进行了研究.[结果]研究表明:新疆小麦地方品种HMW - GS等位变异的分布与其地理来源具有密切关系,除Glu - B1位点外,Glu -A1和Glu - D1位点等位变异在北部地区、东部地区和南部地区的分布频率存在显著差异.在Glu - A1位点,Glu - A1c编码的亚基出现的频率最高,其次是Glu - A1b编码的2*亚基;但在北部地区,几乎所有品种都含有Glu -A1c编码的亚基,仅有1个品种含有Glu-A1b编码的2*亚基.在Glu - B1位点,新疆大多数小麦地方品种含有Glu -B1b编码的7+8亚基.在Glu - D1位点,新发现的等位基因Glu -D1bp(t)编码的2.6亚基在东疆和南疆出现的频率较高,但在北疆出现的频率最低,分别为91;(东疆),61;(南疆),19;(北疆);等位基因Glu - D1bp(t)在南疆冬小麦地方品种中普遍存在.然而,北疆是以等位基因Glu - D1a编码的2+12亚基为主,其频率为83;.关于Glu - D1bp(t)的起源,推测可能是在南疆地区自然突变产生,然而由于南疆和东疆荒漠化造成的地理阻碍使其向北疆传播的概率较低,同时抑制了该基因向东亚地区的迁移.[结论]基于DNA序列的氨基酸序列比对,发现Glu -D1bp(t)编码的2.6亚基与Glu - D1al编码的2.2*亚基非常相似.     

Identification of new Pina null mutations among Asian common wheat cultivars

Wheat grain hardness is one of the most important phenotypes related to milling, baking and noodle making. Either a mutation of the Puroindoline-a (Pina) gene or Puroindoline-b (Pinb) gene results in hard grain texture. A deletion mutation of Pina (Pina-D1b) is widely distributed among common wheat cultivars. Although North/South American and Australian cultivars and their descendants have a 15-kbp deletion in common, two new types of deletion mutation were found among Asian wheat cultivars. A 4.4-kbp deletion was found in one Korean and two Chinese wheat cultivars beginning at position +371 within the Pina coding region. The other, a 10.4-kbp deletion, was found in three Chinese and nine Japanese wheat cultivars, including five Japanese landraces, beginning at position −5112. It caused the deletion of the full-length Pina gene. These findings suggest that Asian wheat cultivars are genetically distinct from those in other regions. The 4.4-kbp and 10.4-kbp deletion mutants were designated as Pina-D1r and Pina-D1s, respectively.     

Evaluation of Short-term Myelotoxicity Study in Dietary Reduced Rats

This study attempted to prove our hypothesis that a short-term toxicity study, using a 4-day dosing regimen as an example, is suitable for evaluating myelotoxicity in rats. We compared the hematological, bone marrow cytological and histopathological results of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) treated and pair-feeding groups after a 4-day administration period. Several experimental groups were defined for this 4-day study as well as for our previously reported 14-day study (Miyata et al., 2009); these included 5-FU treated groups receiving 12, 15 and 18 mg/kg/day (FU12, FU15 and FU18), pair-feeding groups (R12, R15 and R18 receiving the same amount of food as the FU12, FU15 and FU18 groups, respectively) and a nontreated control group. Although severe reductions in body weight gain and food consumption were reported in the 14-day study, only slight reductions were observed in the 4-day study. In the 4-day study, a decrease in blood reticulocytes and a decreasing trend of marrow erythroid cells were only observed in the FU18 group, and no effects were observed in the pair-feeding groups. The erythroblastic changes observed in this 4-day study were thought to reflect the direct influence of 5-FU administration. Since concerns regarding the influence of secondary changes related to undernutrition were minimized in the 4-day study, it was thought to clarify the direct influence of 5-FU administration on erythroblastic cells. Thus, a 4-day study protocol might be helpful for distinguishing secondary changes related to undernutrition.     

Land and Water Use in Rice-upland Crop Rotation Areas in Lower Ili River Basin, Kazakhstan

The lower Ili River Basin is located in semi-arid area, and the annual rainfall is 177mm. Therefore, the irrigation is inevitable for agriculture. Large-scale irrigated agriculture had been developed since 1960＇s in the lower parts of the river and the total irrigated area is about 32 000 hm2. In the project area, the paddy rice-upland crop rotation has been practiced. Due to the domestic water use for hydropower and agriculture as well as water use among riparian countries, the deficit of water for agriculture in the lower part has been concerned. The authors, therefore, conducted the field survey and water balance analysis of the Akdara irrigation project in the lower Ill River Basin in order to assess the land and water uses. Moreover, the impact of the water use on water environment to the basin was analyzed. The following results were obtained as following （1） the groundwater level in the irrigated district varied from 1.5 m to 3.5 m through year. （2） 1970＇s groundwater level was drastically raised from 8 m to 3 m and the groundwater had been recharged in this period. （3） Water use efficiency of agriculture, which is the ratio of total evapotranspiration to the total water withdrawal was as low as 0.23.     

Conformational change in hamster scrapie prion protein (PrP27-30) associated with proteinase K resistance and prion infectivity

The scrapie prion protein (PrP27-30) is a crucial component of the prion and is responsible for its transmissibility. Structural information on this protein is limited because it is insoluble and shows aggregated properties. In this study, PrP27-30 was effectively dispersed using sonication under the weak alkaline condition. Subsequently, the small PrP27-30 aggregates were subjected to different pH, heat, and denaturing conditions. The loss of proteinase K (PK) resistance of PrP27-30 and prion infectivity were monitored along with spectroscopic changes. Prion inactivation could not be achieved by the loss of PK resistance alone; a significant loss of the PrP27-30 amyloid structure, which was represented by a decrease in thioflavin T fluorescence, was required for the loss of transmissibility.