The goose genome sequence leads to insights into the evolution of waterfowl and susceptibility to fatty liver

BACKGROUND: Geese were domesticated over 6,000 years ago, making them one of the first domesticated poultry. Geese are capable of rapid growth, disease resistance, and high liver lipid storage capacity, and can be easily fed coarse fodder. Here, we sequence and analyze the whole-genome sequence of an economically important goose breed in China and compare it with that of terrestrial bird species. RESULTS: A draft sequence of the whole-goose genome was obtained by shotgun sequencing, and 16,150 protein-coding genes were predicted. Comparative genomics indicate that significant differences occur between the goose genome and that of other terrestrial bird species, particularly regarding major histocompatibility complex, Myxovirus resistance, Retinoic acid-inducible gene I, and other genes related to disease resistance in geese. In addition, analysis of transcriptome data further reveals a potential molecular mechanism involved in the susceptibility of geese to fatty liver disease and its associated symptoms, including high levels of unsaturated fatty acids and low levels of cholesterol. The results of this study show that deletion of the goose lep gene might be the result of positive selection, thus allowing the liver to adopt energy storage mechanisms for long-distance migration. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first report describing the complete goose genome sequence and contributes to genomic resources available for studying aquatic birds. The findings in this study are useful not only for genetic breeding programs, but also for studying lipid metabolism disorders. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13059-015-0652-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

A Facile And Fast Gelation Process To Prepare Highly Spherical Millimeter-Sized Silica Aerogel Beads

Millimeter-sized silica aerogel beads were successfully prepared by a facile fast gelation process, in which silica sol beads were generated by extruding preformed silica sol through multiple nozzles into oil phase and then transformed into silica alcogel beads, followed by supercritical drying. The transition process from the silica sol to the silica alcogel beads was finished at a 97.6% conversion rate. The resultant silica aerogel beads have an average diameter of ~1.5 mm with a good sphericity, and an average pore size of ~12 nm with topical porous three-dimensional network structures

Synthesis Of Silica Aerogel Microspheres By A Two-Step Acid–Base Sol–Gel Reaction With Emulsification Technique

Silica aerogel microspheres were synthesized by a two-step acid–base sol–gel reaction in water-in-oil emulsion systems, in which tetraethoxysilane was used as a precursor and ethanol as a solvent, and HCl and NH4OH as acid–base catalysts in two steps. The synthesis process and parameters of the emulsion process including viscosity, surfactant concentration and stirring rate have been investigated. In the emulsifying process, the viscosity of silica sol is vital to restrain the occurrence of flocculation phenomenon for forming monodisperse alcogel microspheres. The smooth silica aerogel microspheres can be formed from the silica sol with the viscosity of 107 mPa s. The resultant silica aerogel microspheres with similar surface areas above 650 m2/g, bulk densities in the range of 0.094–0.138 g/cm3, and mean diameters ranging from 40.3 to 126.1 μm can be formed by controlling these parameters of the emulsion process. The minimum of polydispersity and roundness of silica aerogel microspheres are 0.058 and 1.11, respectively. Furthermore, silica aerogel microspheres show a high capacity of uptaking bean oil, isopropanol, kerosene and n-hexane, highlighting the possibility to remove oils from water for oil spill cleanup

Preparation Of Flexible, Hydrophobic, And Oleophilic Silica Aerogels Based On A Methyltriethoxysilane Precursor

We report the synthesis of flexible, hydrophobic, and oleophilic silica aerogels through a two-step acid-base sol-gel reaction followed by supercritical drying, in which methyltriethoxysilane (MTES) is used as a precursor, ethanol (EtOH) as a solvent, and hydrochloric acid (HCl) and ammonia (NH 3·H2O) as catalysts. At the optimal molar ratio of MTES:EtOH:H2O:HCl:NH3·H2O is 1:18:3.5:1.44 × 10-4:1.2, MTES-based silica aerogels show the minimum density of 0.046 g/cm3 and the maximum compression ratio of 80 % with 15.09 kPa stress. They are superhydrophobic with a water contact angle of 157° and thermally stable up to 350 °C. We also find that they show the excellent adsorption for ethanol with a ratio of 1400 %. © 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York

Agarwood Alcohol Extract Ameliorates Isoproterenol-Induced Myocardial Ischemia by Inhibiting Oxidation and Apoptosis

Agarwood is a traditional medicine used for treating some diseases, including painful and ischemic diseases. This study was carried out to investigate the potential cardioprotective effect of the whole-tree agarwood-inducing technique-produced agarwood alcohol extract (WTAAE) on isoproterenol- (ISO-) induced myocardial ischemia (MI) in rats and explore the underlying molecular mechanisms. Compared to the MI group, WTAAE pretreatment significantly improved ST wave abnormal-elevation, mitigated myocardial histological damage; decreased creatinine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), alanine transaminase (ALT), and aspartate transaminase (AST) levels; reduced hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and lipid peroxide (LPO) production; and increased total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) and catalase (CAT) activities. Moreover, agarwood alcohol extracts (AAEs) markedly enhanced the mRNA levels of Nrf2-ARE pathway, and Bcl-2 reduced the apoptotic Bax family mRNA expressions. In addition, the effect of WTAAE was greater than that of wild agarwood alcohol extract (WAAE) and burning-chisel-drilling agarwood alcohol extract (FBAAE). All of these data indicate that WTAAE exerted the protective effects of MI, and its mechanism was associated with upregulating Nrf2-ARE and suppressing Bcl-2 pathways

Extraction Behaviors of Heavy Rare Earths with Organophosphoric Extractants: The Contribution of Extractant Dimer Dissociation, Acid Ionization, and Complexation. A Quantum Chemistry Study

Heavy rare earths (HREs), namely Ho³⁺, Er³⁺, Tm³⁺, Yb³⁺ and Lu³⁺, are rarer and more exceptional than light rare earths, due to the stronger extraction capacity for 100 000 extractions. Therefore, their incomplete stripping and high acidity of stripping become problems for HRE separation by organophosphoric extractants. However, the theories of extractant structure–performance relationship and molecular design method of novel HRE extractants are still not perfect. Beyond the coordination chemistry of the HRE-extracted complex, the extractant dimer dissociation, acid ionization, and complexation behaviors can be crucial to HRE extraction and reactivity of ionic species for understanding and further improving the extraction performance. To address the above issues, three primary fundamental processes, including extractant dimer dissociation, acid ionization, and HRE complexation, were identified and investigated systematically. The intrinsic extraction performances of HRE cations with four acidic organophosphoric extractants (P507, P204, P227 and Cyanex 272) were studied by using relativistic energy-consistent 4f core pseudopotentials, combined with density functional theory and a solvation model. Four acidic organophosphoric extractants have been qualified quantitatively from microscopic structures to chemical properties. It has been found that the Gibbs free energy changes of the overall extraction process (sequence: P204 > P227 > P507 > Cyanex 272) and their differences as a function of HREs (sequence: Ho/Er > Er/Tm > Tm/Yb > Yb/Lu) are in good agreement with the experimental maximum extraction capacities and separation factors. These results could provide an important approach to evaluate HRE extractants by the comprehensive consideration of dimer dissociation, acid ionization, and complexation processes. This paper also demonstrates the importance of the P–O bond, the P–C bond, isomer substituent, and solvation effects on the structure–performance relationship that can be used to guide molecular designs of HRE extraction in future

Reference Values of 14 Serum Trace Elements for Pregnant Chinese Women: A Cross-Sectional Study in the China Nutrition and Health Survey 2010–2012

The development of reference values of trace elements is recognized as a fundamental prerequisite for the assessment of trace element nutritional status and health risks. In this study, a total of 1400 pregnant women aged 27.0 ± 4.5 years were randomly selected from the China Nutrition and Health Survey 2010–2012 (CNHS 2010–2012). The concentrations of 14 serum trace elements were determined by high-resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Reference values were calculated covering the central 95% reference intervals (P2.5–P97.5) after excluding outliers by Dixon’s test. The overall reference values of serum trace elements were 131.5 (55.8-265.0 μg/dL for iron (Fe), 195.5 (107.0–362.4) μg/dL for copper (Cu), 74.0 (51.8–111.3) μg/dL for zinc (Zn), 22.3 (14.0–62.0) μg/dL for rubidium (Rb), 72.2 (39.9–111.6) μg/L for selenium (Se), 45.9 (23.8-104.3) μg/L for strontium (Sr), 1.8 (1.2–3.6) μg/L for molybdenum (Mo), 2.4 (1.2–8.4) μg/L for manganese (Mn), 1.9 (0.6–9.0) ng/L for lead (Pb), 1.1 (0.3-5.6) ng/L for arsenic (As), 835.6 (219.8–4287.7) ng/L for chromium (Cr), 337.9 (57.0–1130.0) ng/L for cobalt (Co), 193.2 (23.6–2323.1) ng/L for vanadium (V), and 133.7 (72.1–595.1) ng/L for cadmium (Cd). Furthermore, some significant differences in serum trace element reference values were observed between different groupings of age intervals, residences, anthropometric status, and duration of pregnancy. We found that serum Fe, Zn, and Se concentrations significantly decreased, whereas serum Cu, Sr, and Co concentrations elevated progressively compared with reference values of 14 serum trace elements in pregnant Chinese women. The reference values of serum trace elements established could play a key role in the following nutritional status and health risk assessment

Fabrication of natural cellulose films with pattern by viscosity regulation of its solution

The structure and properties of polymer film are greatly affected by the patterns on its surface arising from solution convection. Therefore, it is necessary to explore more detail mechanism of pattern formation. Herein, we have successfully designed variable patterns on the surface of cellulose films via roller coating method. The cellulose with three degrees of polymerization was used as raw material, and a solution of N,N-dimethyl-acetamide/lithium chloride (DMAc-LiCl) was selected as the solvent system. The pattern variations were controlled by the solution viscosity, which was affected by the degree of polymerization of cellulose, concentration and temperature of solution. The formation process of the pattern on cellulose film was in situ tracked by video recording with the help of carbon black tracker. It was found that the solution moved from the edge of the cell pattern to the center at a relatively lower viscosity (eta = 8.06 Pa s), the direction of its convection was completely opposite and a circular or circular-like combination pattern with concave center appeared on the surface of the cellulose film. The higher the viscosity, the larger the concave area. Moreover, the film with polygon pattern demonstrated excellent mechanical properties, and also exhibited a potential anti-counterfeiting value. These results could provide guidance in perfecting the theory of polymer fluid, and regulating the structure and properties of polymer products