Self-assembly of Large-scale Two-dimensional Plasmonic Superlattices Based on Single-Crystal Au Nanospheres and the FDTD Simulation of Its Optical Properties

Plasmonics - Large-scale ordered two-dimensional (2D) superlattices at oil/water interface were fabricated using single-crystal Au nanospheres (NSs) with different diameters as building blocks. A...     

Application of the phosphomannose-isomerase/mannose selection system in the Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of Lonicera hypoglauca Miq.

Journal of Plant Biochemistry and Biotechnology - The dried buds of Lonicera hypoglauca Miq. have antipyretic, antidotal and anti-inflammatory properties and as Flos lonicerae are widely used in...     

Expression patterns and association analysis of the porcine DHX58 gene

RIG-1 signalling is responsible for the detection of cytoplasmic viral RNA molecules. DEXH (Asp-Glu-X-His) box polypeptide 58 (encoded by DHX58) is a negative regulator of the RIG-1 signalling pathway. In human, the DHX58 gene can be upregulated and can inhibit the RIG-1 signalling pathway during viral infection. In this study, porcine DHX58 gene expression patterns were studied. According to our results, the porcine DHX58 gene was upregulated not only by the stimulation of Poly I:C but also by the stimulation of 1ipopolysaccharides (LPS). One polymorphism (g.4919G>C), detected in the ninth intron, was significantly associated with some blood parameters including the red cell distribution width of 1-day-old pigs and white blood cell counts, lymphocyte absolute counts, and platelet distribution width of 17-day-old pigs (P < 0.05). Moreover, the individuals with the genotype GG have a significantly higher mean white blood cell count than individuals with genotype CC or GC (P < 0.05). Our study indicates that DHX58 is an important gene that is associated with the immune response in swine.     

Mitogenomic analysis of Montipora cactus and Anacropora matthai (cnidaria; scleractinia; acroporidae) indicates an unequal rate of mitochondrial evolution among Acroporidae corals

The complete nucleotide sequence of the mitochondrial (mt) genome was determined for specimens of the coral species Montipora cactus (Bernard 1897) and Anacropora matthai (Pillai 1973), representing two morphologically distinct genera of the family Acroporidae. These sequences were compared with the published mt genome sequence for the confamilial species, Acropora tenuis (Dana 1846). The size of the mt genome was 17,887 bp and 17,888 bp for M. cactus and A. matthai. Gene content and organization was found to be very similar among the three Acroporidae mt genomes with a group I intron occurring in the NADH dehyrogenase 5 (nad5) gene. The intergenic regions were also similar in length among the three corals. The control region located between the small ribosomal RNA (ms) and the cytochrome oxidase 3 (cox3) gene was significantly smaller in M. cactus and A. matthai (both 627 bp) than in A. tenuis (1086 bp). Only one set of repeated sequences was identified at the 3′-end of the control regions in M. cactus and A. matthai. A lack of the abundant repetitive elements which have been reported for A. tenuis, accounts for the relatively short control regions in M. cactus and A. matthai. Pairwise distances and relative rate analyses of 13 protein coding genes, the group I intron and the largest intergenic region, igr3, revealed significant differences in the rate of molecular evolution of the mt genome among the three species, with an extremely slow rate being seen between Montipora and Anacropora. It is concluded that rapid mt genome evolution is taking place in genus Acropora relative to the confamilial genera Montipora and Anacropora although all are within the relatively slow range thought to be typical of Anthozoa.