775 research outputs found
Mega-blowouts in QinghaiâTibet Plateau: morphology, distribution and initiation.
Blowouts are windâeroded landforms that are widely distributed in the northâeastern part in QinghaiâTibet Plateau (QTP), China. These blowouts are thought to form in response to climate change and/or human activity but little is known about their morphodynamics. Using field surveys, remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) spatial analysis, the distribution and morphology of blowouts are analysed and their initiation considered. Results show the QTP megaâblowouts are some of the largest in the world. The orientations of the trough shaped blowouts are parallel with the prevailing wind, but the saucer and bowlâshaped blowouts are influenced by biâdirectional transport. Whilst regional patterns of blowout shape and size were observed to reflect the extent of aeolian sediments and wind regimes, the relationship between the different morphological parameters showed consistency. During initial stages of development, the length to width ratios of blowouts increase rapidly with area but after they reach a mega size this relationship stabilizes as blowouts widen. Initial luminescence dating shows that blowouts appear to have initiated ~100 to 500âyears ago, coinciding with the Little Ice Age (LIA) climate event when northwest winds are known to have intensified. Further work is required to confirm this initiation period and establish the significance of mega blowouts for landscape degradation and human activities
Optimisation of UAVsâSfM data collection in aeolian landform morphodynamics : a case study from the Gonghe Basin, China
UAVsâSfM (Unmanned Aerial Vehiclesâ Structure from Motion) systems can generate highâresolution 3D topographic models of aeolian landforms. To explore the optimisation of UAVsâSfM for use in aeolian landform morphodynamics, this study tested flight parameters for two contrasting aeolian landform areas (free dune and blowout) to assess the 3D reconstruction accuracy of the UAVs survey compared with field point measurements using differential RTKâGPS (Realâtime KinematicâGlobal Positioning System). The results reveal the optimum UAVsâSfM flight setâup at the freeâdune site was: flying height = 74 m, camera tilt angle = â90°, photo overlap ratio = 85%/70% (heading/sideways). The horizontal/vertical location error was around 0.028~0.055 m and 0.053â0.069 m respectively, and a point cloud density of 463/m3 was found to generate a clear texture using these flying parameters. For the <20m deep blowout the optimum setâup with highest accuracy and the lowest cliff texture distortion was: flying height = 74 m combined camera tilt angle = â90° and â60°, photo overlap ratio = 85%/70% (heading/sideways), and an evenly distributed GCPs (Ground Control Points) density of 42/km2 using these flying parameters. When the depth of the blowouts exceeded 40 m, the optimum flight/survey parameters changed slightly to account for more challenging cliff texture generation: flying height = 80 m (with â90° and â60°combined camera tilt angle), GCPs density = 63/km2 to generate horizontal and vertical location error of 0.024 m and 0.050 m respectively, and point cloud density of 2597.11/m3. The main external factors that affect the successful 3D reconstruction of aeolian landforms using UAVsâSfM are the weather conditions, manipulation errors, and instrument system errors. The UAVsâSfM topographic monitoring results demonstrate that UAVs provide a viable and robust means for aeolian landform morphodynamics monitoring. Importantly, the rapid and high precision 3D reconstruction processes were significantly advanced using the optimal flight parameters reported here
Observation of a ppb mass threshoud enhancement in \psi^\prime\to\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi(J/\psi\to\gamma p\bar{p}) decay
The decay channel
is studied using a sample of events collected
by the BESIII experiment at BEPCII. A strong enhancement at threshold is
observed in the invariant mass spectrum. The enhancement can be fit
with an -wave Breit-Wigner resonance function with a resulting peak mass of
and a
narrow width that is at the 90% confidence level.
These results are consistent with published BESII results. These mass and width
values do not match with those of any known meson resonance.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Chinese Physics
Two Novel Mutations in the EYS Gene Are Possible Major Causes of Autosomal Recessive Retinitis Pigmentosa in the Japanese Population
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a highly heterogeneous genetic disease including autosomal recessive (ar), autosomal dominant (ad), and X-linked inheritance. Recently, arRP has been associated with mutations in EYS (Eyes shut homolog), which is a major causative gene for this disease. This study was conducted to determine the spectrum and frequency of EYS mutations in 100 Japanese arRP patients. To determine the prevalence of EYS mutations, all EYS exons were screened for mutations by polymerase chain reaction amplification, and sequence analysis was performed. We detected 67 sequence alterations in EYS, of which 21 were novel. Of these, 7 were very likely pathogenic mutations, 6 were possible pathogenic mutations, and 54 were predicted non-pathogenic sequence alterations. The minimum observed prevalence of distinct EYS mutations in our study was 18% (18/100, comprising 9 patients with 2 very likely pathogenic mutations and the remaining 9 with only one such mutation). Among these mutations, 2 novel truncating mutations, c.4957_4958insA (p.S1653KfsX2) and c.8868C>A (p.Y2956X), were identified in 16 patients and accounted for 57.1% (20/35 alleles) of the mutated alleles. Although these 2 truncating mutations were not detected in Japanese patients with adRP or Leber's congenital amaurosis, we detected them in Korean arRP patients. Similar to Japanese arRP results, the c.4957_4958insA mutation was more frequently detected than the c.8868C>A mutation. The 18% estimated prevalence of very likely pathogenic mutations in our study suggests a major involvement of EYS in the pathogenesis of arRP in the Japanese population. Mutation spectrum of EYS in 100 Japanese patients, including 13 distinct very likely and possible pathogenic mutations, was largely different from the previously reported spectrum in patients from non-Asian populations. Screening for c.4957_4958insA and c.8868C>A mutations in the EYS gene may therefore be very effective for the genetic testing and counseling of RP patients in Japan
A Novel Statistic for Genome-Wide Interaction Analysis
Although great progress in genome-wide association studies (GWAS) has been made,
the significant SNP associations identified by GWAS account for only a few
percent of the genetic variance, leading many to question where and how we can
find the missing heritability. There is increasing interest in genome-wide
interaction analysis as a possible source of finding heritability unexplained by
current GWAS. However, the existing statistics for testing interaction have low
power for genome-wide interaction analysis. To meet challenges raised by
genome-wide interactional analysis, we have developed a novel statistic for
testing interaction between two loci (either linked or unlinked). The null
distribution and the type I error rates of the new statistic for testing
interaction are validated using simulations. Extensive power studies show that
the developed statistic has much higher power to detect interaction than
classical logistic regression. The results identified 44 and 211 pairs of SNPs
showing significant evidence of interactions with FDR<0.001 and
0.001<FDR<0.003, respectively, which were seen in two independent studies
of psoriasis. These included five interacting pairs of SNPs in genes LST1/NCR3,
CXCR5/BCL9L, and GLS2, some of which were located in the target sites of
miR-324-3p, miR-433, and miR-382, as well as 15 pairs of interacting SNPs that
had nonsynonymous substitutions. Our results demonstrated that genome-wide
interaction analysis is a valuable tool for finding remaining missing
heritability unexplained by the current GWAS, and the developed novel statistic
is able to search significant interaction between SNPs across the genome. Real
data analysis showed that the results of genome-wide interaction analysis can be
replicated in two independent studies
Metabolic Profiles and cDNA-AFLP Analysis of Salvia miltiorrhiza and Salvia castanea Diel f. tomentosa Stib
Plants of the genus Salvia produce various types of phenolic compounds and tanshinones which are effective for treatment of coronary heart disease. Salvia miltiorrhiza and S. castanea Diels f. tomentosa Stib are two important members of the genus. In this study, metabolic profiles and cDNA-AFLP analysis of four samples were employed to identify novel genes potentially involved in phenolic compounds and tanshinones biosynthesis, including the red roots from the two species and two tanshinone-free roots from S. miltiorrhiza. The results showed that the red roots of S. castanea Diels f. tomentosa Stib produced high contents of rosmarinic acid (21.77 mg/g) and tanshinone IIA (12.60 mg/g), but low content of salvianolic acid B (1.45 mg/g). The red roots of S. miltiorrhiza produced high content of salvianolic acid B (18.69 mg/g), while tanshinones accumulation in this sample was much less than that in S. castanea Diels f. tomentosa Stib. Tanshinones were not detected in the two tanshinone-free samples, which produced high contents of phenolic compounds. A cDNA-AFLP analysis with 128 primer pairs revealed that 2300 transcript derived fragments (TDFs) were differentially expressed among the four samples. About 323 TDFs were sequenced, of which 78 TDFs were annotated with known functions through BLASTX searching the Genbank database and 14 annotated TDFs were assigned into secondary metabolic pathways through searching the KEGGPATHWAY database. The quantitative real-time PCR analysis indicated that the expression of 9 TDFs was positively correlated with accumulation of phenolic compounds and tanshinones. These TDFs additionally showed coordinated transcriptional response with 6 previously-identified genes involved in biosynthesis of tanshinones and phenolic compounds in S. miltiorrhiza hairy roots treated with yeast extract. The sequence data in the present work not only provided us candidate genes involved in phenolic compounds and tanshinones biosynthesis but also gave us further insight into secondary metabolism in Salvia
De novo domestication of wild tomato using genome editing
Breeding of crops over millennia for yield and productivity1 has led to reduced genetic diversity. As a result, beneficial traits of wild species, such as disease resistance and stress tolerance, have been lost2. We devised a CRISPRâCas9 genome engineering strategy to combine agronomically desirable traits with useful traits present in wild lines. We report that editing of six loci that are important for yield and productivity in present-day tomato crop lines enabled de novo domestication of wild Solanum pimpinellifolium. Engineered S. pimpinellifolium morphology was altered, together with the size, number and nutritional value of the fruits. Compared with the wild parent, our engineered lines have a threefold increase in fruit size and a tenfold increase in fruit number. Notably, fruit lycopene accumulation is improved by 500% compared with the widely cultivated S. lycopersicum. Our results pave the way for molecular breeding programs to exploit the genetic diversity present in wild plants
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