Chromosome‐level genome assembly for the horned‐gall aphid provides insights into interactions between gall‐making insect and its host plant

The aphid Schlechtendalia chinensis is an economically important insect that can induce horned galls, which are valuable for the medicinal and chemical industries. Up to now, more than twenty aphid genomes have been reported. Most of the sequenced genomes are derived from free‐living aphids. Here, we generated a high‐quality genome assembly from a galling aphid. The final genome assembly is 271.52 Mb, representing one of the smallest sequenced genomes of aphids. The genome assembly is based on contig and scaffold N50 values of the genome sequence are 3.77 Mb and 20.41 Mb, respectively. Nine‐seven percent of the assembled sequences was anchored onto 13 chromosomes. Based on BUSCO analysis, the assembly involved 96.9% of conserved arthropod and 98.5% of the conserved Hemiptera single‐copy orthologous genes. A total of 14,089 protein‐coding genes were predicted. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that S. chinensis diverged from the common ancestor of Eriosoma lanigerum approximately 57 million years ago (MYA). In addition, 35 genes encoding salivary gland proteins showed differentially when S. chinensis forms a gall, suggesting they have potential roles in gall formation and plant defense suppression. Taken together, this high‐quality S. chinensis genome assembly and annotation provide a solid genetic foundation for future research to reveal the mechanism of gall formation and to explore the interaction between aphids and their host plants.     

颧颞部骨折术后并发颞部凹陷的临床回顾性研究

目的：分析不同颧颞部骨折性质与颞部凹陷的相关性,评价颧颞部骨折术后并发颞部凹陷的防治效果。方法：对105例颧颞部骨折病例进行回顾性分析,52例患者行颞部凹陷修复术,采用头皮冠状切口,应用钛网修复颞部凹陷,术后通过长期随访评价治疗效果。结果：陈旧性骨折颞部凹陷的发生率显著高于新鲜骨折,但治疗后颞部外形均有明显改善。结论：钛网植入能有效地修复颧颞部骨折术后并发的颞部凹陷,但应把握手术时机及治疗方法。     

Diversity of endophytic bacteria within nodules of the Sphaerophysa salsula in different regions of Loess Plateau in China

A total of 115 endophytic bacteria were isolated from root nodules of the wild legume Sphaerophysa salsula grown in two ecological regions of Loess Plateau in China. The genetic diversity and phylogeny of the strains were revealed by restriction fragment length polymorphism and sequencing of 16S rRNA gene and enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus-PCR. Their symbiotic capacity was checked by nodulation tests and analysis of nifH gene sequence. This is the first systematic study on endophytic bacteria associated with S. salsula root nodules. Fifty of the strains found were symbiotic bacteria belonging to eight putative species in the genera Mesorhizobium, Rhizobium and Sinorhizobium, harboring similar nifH genes; Mesorhizobium gobiense was the main group and 65 strains were nonsymbiotic bacteria related to 17 species in the genera Paracoccus, Sphingomonas, Inquilinus, Pseudomonas, Serratia, Mycobacterium, Nocardia, Streptomyces, Paenibacillus, Brevibacillus, Staphylococcus, Lysinibacillus and Bacillus, which were universally coexistent with symbiotic bacteria in the nodules. Differing from other similar studies, the present study is the first time that symbiotic and nonsymbiotic bacteria have been simultaneously isolated from the same root nodules, offering the possibility to accurately reveal the correlation between these two kinds of bacteria. These results provide valuable information about the interactions among the symbiotic bacteria, nonsymbiotic bacteria and their habitats.     

Protein molecular dynamics with electrostatic force entirely determined by a single Poisson-Boltzmann calculation

The electrostatic force including the intramolecular Coulombic interactions and the electrostatic contribution of solvation effect were entirely calculated by using the finite difference Poisson-Boltzmann method (FDPB), which was incorporated into the GROMOS96 force field to complete a new finite difference stochastic dynamics procedure (FDSD). Simulations were performed on an insulin dimer. Different relative dielectric constants were successively assigned to the protein interior; a value of 17 was selected as optimal for our system. The simulation data were analyzed and compared with those obtained from 500-ps molecular dynamics (MD) simulation with explicit water and a 500-ps conventional stochastic dynamics (SD) simulation without the mean solvent force. The results indicate that the FDSD method with GROMOS96 force field is suitable to study the dynamics and structure of proteins in solution if used with the optimal protein dielectric constant.     

紫翅猪毛菜的种子多型性及其结实格局

紫翅猪毛菜(Salsola affinis)主要分布于新疆准噶尔荒漠, 具有很强的抗干旱和耐盐碱能力, 其种子具有多型现象。我们对紫翅猪毛菜的种子形态、萌发特性及结实格局进行了观测研究。结果表明: (1) 紫翅猪毛菜3种类型的种子在形状、大小、颜色、着生方式及包被其花被片背部是否具翅方面均有明显不同; (2) 3种类型的种子具有不同的散布特性和萌发行为: A型种子容易从母体脱落, 发达的果翅能够借助风进行远距离传播; B、C型种子成熟时紧连母体, 不易脱落。在变温下A型种子和B型种子能够快速萌发, 且B型种子比A型种子的萌发速度快; 而C型种子萌发缓慢, 最终萌发率小于10%, 表明其处于休眠状态; (3)随植株个体的增大, A型种子所占比例逐渐增多, 由0.43%增加到51.07%; B型种子所占比例逐渐减少, 由65.80%减少到18.06%; C型种子所占比例没有显著变化, 约为30–35%。紫翅猪毛菜的种子多型性以及种子输出的灵活性有利于其在荒漠异质环境中成功定居。对种子多型性及其结实格局的研究将为探讨其生态适应机制及生活史进化研究提供科学依据。     

Plasma metabonomics as a novel diagnostic approach for major depressive disorder

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a socially detrimental psychiatric disorder, contributing to increased healthcare expenditures and suicide rates. However, no empirical laboratory-based tests are available to support the diagnosis of MDD. In this study, a NMR-based plasma metabonomic method for the diagnosis of MDD was tested. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance ((1)H NMR) spectra of plasma sampled from first-episode drug-na??ve depressed patients (n = 58) and healthy controls (n = 42) were recorded and analyzed by orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA). The OPLS-DA score plots of the spectra demonstrated that the depressed patient group was significantly distinguishable from the healthy control group. Moreover, the method accurately diagnosed blinded samples (n = 26) in an independent replication cohort with a sensitivity and specificity of 92.8% and 83.3%, respectively. Taken together, NMR-based plasma metabonomics may offer an accurate empirical laboratory-based method applicable to the diagnosis of MDD.     

Biomarkers of neurodegenerative disorders： How good are they？

Biomarkers are very important indicators of normal and abnormal biological processes. Specific changes in pathologies,biochemistries and genetics can give us comprehensive information regarding the nature of any particular disease. A good biomarker should be precise and reliable, distinguishable between normal and interested disease, and differentiable between different diseases. It is believed that biomarkers have great potential in predicting chances for diseases, aiding in early diagnosis, and setting standards for the development of new remedies to treat diseases. New technologies have enabled scientists to identify biomarkers of several different neurodegenerative diseases. The followings, for instance,are only a few of the many new biomarkers that have been recently identified: the phosphorylated tau protein and aggregated β-amyloid peptide for Alzheimer‘s disease (AD), α-synuclein contained Lewy bodies and altered dopamine transporter (DAT) imaging for Parkinson‘s disease (PD), SOD mutations for familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and CAG repeats resulted from Huntington‘s gene mutations in Huntington‘s disease (HD). This article will focus on the most-recent findings of biomarkers belonging to the four mentioned neurodegenerative diseases.