一株稀有海洋真菌Stachybotrys longispora FG216的De Novo测序及基因组学分析

【背景】长孢葡萄穗霉菌(Stachybotrys longispora) FG216是一株稀有海洋真菌,其次生代谢产物FGFC1具有纤溶活性。进行S. longispora FG216的基因组序列分析,将充实和促进海洋微生物功能基因和次生代谢产物合成生物学的基础研究和应用研究。【目的】解析S. longispora FG216的基因组序列,分析基因组生物功能和同源相似性关系,分析次生代谢产物纤溶活性化合物FGFC1的相关基因。【方法】基于Illumina HiSeq高通量测序平台对S. longispora FG216菌株进行De Novo测序,使用SSPACE、Augustus等软件进行组装、编码基因预测、基因功能注释、物种共线性分析以及预测FGFC1次生代谢产物合成基因簇。【结果】S. longispora FG216的基因组测序总长度为45622830bp,共得到605个Scaffold,GC含量为51.31%,注释预测得到13329个编码基因和169个非编码RNA。基因组测序数据提交至国家微生物科学数据中心(编号为NMDC60016264),其中13 053、8 422、8 460、7 714和2 847个基因分别能够在NR、KEGG、KOG、GO和CAZy数据库匹配到注释信息。比较基因组学分析发现,Stachybotrys具有保守性,核心基因占基因家族总数目的71.44%,S. longispora FG216与S. chlorohalonata IBT 40285的相似性最高;同时,预测得到101个次生代谢产物合成基因簇,其中18个基因簇与已知的化合物相匹配。通过antiSMASH预测,Cluster57是编码合成FGFC1母核结构异吲哚啉酮的基因簇,与S.chlorohalonataIBT40285中的基因簇相似度为40%。【结论】海洋稀有真菌S.longisporaFG216的基因组信息已上传至国家微生物科学数据中心公开使用,为Stachybotrys种属的研究提供了重要的参考意义,同时发现了S. longispora FG216次生代谢产物纤溶活性化合物FGFC1母核部分编码基因是Cluster 57。     

The Genomic Architecture of Adaptation to Larval Malnutrition Points to a Trade-off with Adult Starvation Resistance in Drosophila

Periods of nutrient shortage impose strong selection on animal populations. Experimental studies of genetic adaptation to nutrient shortage largely focus on resistance to acute starvation at adult stage; it is not clear how conclusions drawn from these studies extrapolate to other forms of nutritional stress. We studied the genomic signature of adaptation to chronic juvenile malnutrition in six populations of Drosophila melanogaster evolved for 150 generations on an extremely nutrient-poor larval diet. Comparison with control populations evolved on standard food revealed repeatable genomic differentiation between the two set of population, involving >3,000 candidate SNPs forming >100 independently evolving clusters. The candidate genomic regions were enriched in genes implicated in hormone, carbohydrate, and lipid metabolism, including some with known effects on fitness-related life-history traits. Rather than being close to fixation, a substantial fraction of candidate SNPs segregated at intermediate allele frequencies in all malnutrition-adapted populations. This, together with patterns of among-population variation in allele frequencies and estimates of Tajima’s D, suggests that the poor diet results in balancing selection on some genomic regions. Our candidate genes for tolerance to larval malnutrition showed a high overlap with genes previously implicated in acute starvation resistance. However, adaptation to larval malnutrition in our study was associated with reduced tolerance to acute adult starvation. Thus, rather than reflecting synergy, the shared genomic architecture appears to mediate an evolutionary trade-off between tolerances to these two forms of nutritional stress.     

Origins and Long-Term Patterns of Copy-Number Variation in Rhesus Macaques

Mutations play a key role in the development of disease in an individual and the evolution of traits within species. Recent work in humans and other primates has clarified the origins and patterns of single-nucleotide variants, showing that most arise in the father’s germline during spermatogenesis. It remains unknown whether larger mutations, such as deletions and duplications of hundreds or thousands of nucleotides, follow similar patterns. Such mutations lead to copy-number variation (CNV) within and between species, and can have profound effects by deleting or duplicating genes. Here, we analyze patterns of CNV mutations in 32 rhesus macaque individuals from 14 parent–offspring trios. We find the rate of CNV mutations per generation is low (less than one per genome) and we observe no correlation between parental age and the number of CNVs that are passed on to offspring. We also examine segregating CNVs within the rhesus macaque sample and compare them to a similar data set from humans, finding that both species have far more segregating deletions than duplications. We contrast this with long-term patterns of gene copy-number evolution between 17 mammals, where the proportion of deletions that become fixed along the macaque lineage is much smaller than the proportion of segregating deletions. These results suggest purifying selection acting on deletions, such that the majority of them are removed from the population over time. Rhesus macaques are an important biomedical model organism, so these results will aid in our understanding of this species and the disease models it supports.     

How to Make a Rodent Giant: Genomic Basis and Tradeoffs of Gigantism in the Capybara,the World’s Largest Rodent

Gigantism results when one lineage within a clade evolves extremely large body size relative to its small-bodied ancestors, a common phenomenon in animals. Theory predicts that the evolution of giants should be constrained by two tradeoffs. First, because body size is negatively correlated with population size, purifying selection is expected to be less efficient in species of large body size, leading to increased mutational load. Second, gigantism is achieved through generating a higher number of cells along with higher rates of cell proliferation, thus increasing the likelihood of cancer. To explore the genetic basis of gigantism in rodents and uncover genomic signatures of gigantism-related tradeoffs, we assembled a draft genome of the capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris), the world’s largest living rodent. We found that the genome-wide ratio of nonsynonymous to synonymous mutations (ω) is elevated in the capybara relative to other rodents, likely caused by a generation-time effect and consistent with a nearly neutral model of molecular evolution. A genome-wide scan for adaptive protein evolution in the capybara highlighted several genes controlling postnatal bone growth regulation and musculoskeletal development, which are relevant to anatomical and developmental modifications for an increase in overall body size. Capybara-specific gene-family expansions included a putative novel anticancer adaptation that involves T-cell-mediated tumor suppression, offering a potential resolution to the increased cancer risk in this lineage. Our comparative genomic results uncovered the signature of an intragenomic conflict where the evolution of gigantism in the capybara involved selection on genes and pathways that are directly linked to cancer.     

The use and misuse of regression models in landscape genetic analyses

The field of landscape genetics has been rapidly evolving, adopting and adapting analytical frameworks to address research questions. Current studies are increasingly using regression‐based frameworks to infer the individual contributions of landscape and habitat variables on genetic differentiation. This paper outlines appropriate and inappropriate uses of multiple regression for these purposes, and demonstrates through simulation the limitations of different analytical frameworks for making correct inference. Of particular concern are recent studies seeking to explain genetic differences by fitting regression models with effective distance variables calculated independently on separate landscape resistance surfaces. When moving across the landscape, organisms cannot respond independently and uniquely to habitat and landscape features. Analyses seeking to understand how landscape features affect gene flow should model a single conductance or resistance surface as a parameterized function of relevant spatial covariates, and estimate the values of these parameters by linking a single set of resistance distances to observed genetic dissimilarity via a loss function. While this loss function may involve a regression‐like step, the associated nuisance parameters are not interpretable in terms of organismal movement and should not be conflated with what is actually of interest: the mapping between spatial covariates and conductance/resistance. The growth and evolution of landscape genetics as a field has been rapid and exciting. It is the goal of this paper to highlight past missteps and demonstrate limitations of current approaches to ensure that future use of regression models will appropriately consider the process being modeled, which will provide clarity to model interpretation.     

Elevated rates of positive selection drive the evolution of pestiferousness in the Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata,Say)

Contextualizing evolutionary history and identifying genomic features of an insect that might contribute to its pest status is important in developing early detection and control tactics. In order to understand the evolution of pestiferousness, which we define as the accumulation of traits that contribute to an insect population's success in an agroecosystem, we tested the importance of known genomic properties associated with rapid adaptation in the Colorado potato beetle (CPB), Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say. Within the leaf beetle genus Leptinotarsa, only CPB, and a few populations therein, has risen to pest status on cultivated nightshades, Solanum. Using whole genomes from ten closely related Leptinotarsa species native to the United States, we reconstructed a high‐quality species tree and used this phylogenetic framework to assess evolutionary patterns in four genomic features of rapid adaptation: standing genetic variation, gene family expansion and contraction, transposable element abundance and location, and positive selection at protein‐coding genes. Throughout approximately 20 million years of history, Leptinotarsa species show little evidence of gene family turnover and transposable element variation. However, there is a clear pattern of CPB experiencing higher rates of positive selection on protein‐coding genes. We determine that these rates are associated with greater standing genetic variation due to larger effective population size, which supports the theory that the demographic history contributes to rates of protein evolution. Furthermore, we identify a suite of coding genes under positive selection that are putatively associated with pestiferousness in the Colorado potato beetle lineage. They are involved in the biological processes of xenobiotic detoxification, chemosensation and hormone function.     

胭脂素的生物合成及应用研究进展

由于合成色素对人类健康具有潜在危害,天然色素逐渐受到青睐。胭脂素作为类胡萝卜素物质是世界第二大天然色素,其生物合成途径是国际研究热点,目前尚未被完整解析。文中综述了胭脂素的化学特性与提取方法、合成途径研究及应用现状,比较传统提取方法与新提取技术的特点,阐述胭脂素合成通路相关基因及非生物胁迫对合成通路的影响,介绍胭脂素在食品、医药、化工产业应用现状。由于胭脂素合成通路的研究多停留在转录组水平,大多数基因功能未进行验证,文中提出综合应用基因组学、生物信息学、植物化学等学科技术进行深入研究以解析完整的胭脂素合成途径,为胭脂素合成生物学研究及新药研发奠定基础,促进胭脂素的资源开发及可持续发展。