A Comprehensive Analysis of Codon Usage Patterns in Blunt Snout Bream (Megalobrama amblycephala) Based on RNA-Seq Data

Blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala) is an important fish species for its delicacy and high economic value in China. Codon usage analysis could be helpful to understand its codon biology, mRNA translation and vertebrate evolution. Based on RNA-Seq data for M. amblycephala, high-frequency codons (CUG, AGA, GUG, CAG and GAG), as well as low-frequency ones (NUA and NCG codons) were identified. A total of 724 high-frequency codon pairs were observed. Meanwhile, 14 preferred and 199 avoided neighboring codon pairs were also identified, but bias was almost not shown with one or more intervening codons inserted between the same pairs. Codon usage bias in the regions close to start and stop codons indicated apparent heterogeneity, which even occurs in the flanking nucleotide sequence. Codon usage bias (RSCU and SCUO) was related to GC3 (GC content of 3rd nucleotide in codon) bias. Six GO (Gene ontology) categories and the number of methylation targets were influenced by GC3. Codon usage patterns comparison among 23 vertebrates showed species specificities by using GC contents, codon usage and codon context analysis. This work provided new insights into fish biology and new information for breeding projects

Highly stable viologens-based electrochromic devices with low operational voltages utilizing polymeric ionic liquids

In this work, we proposed an effective route of introducing poly(ionic liquid) (PIL) gel as electrolyte to suppress dimer formation of viologen radical cation during switching in electrochromic devices (ECDs). The ECDs were fabricated based on ion gels consisting of various viologens, PIL and ferrocene (Fc). We found that incorporation of PIL contributed to the suppression of dimer production. The suppression of dimer formation can provide ECDs with improved colouration efficiencies, faster switching times, longer cycle lives, and potentially reduced costs. The results showed that an excellent cyclic stability over 96% of initial transmittance change after 4000 cycles of switching

Hierarchically porous MoS2-carbon hollow rhomboids for superior performance of the anode of sodium-ion batteries

It is always challenging to fabricate two-dimensional transition-metal dichalcogenides into multiple hollow micro-/nanostructures with improved properties for various potential applications. Here, hierarchically porous MoS-C hollow rhomboids (MCHRs) have been creatively synthesized via a facile self-templated solvothermal approach. It has been clarified that the obtained MCHRs assembled beneath ultrathin γ-MnS and carbon cohybridized MoS nanosheets under the structural direction of the MnMoO·0.49HO self-template. The prepared MCHR anode of sodium-ion batteries exhibited a reversible capacity of 506 mA h g at 0.1 A g, ultrahigh rate capabilities up to 10 A g with 310 mA h g, and exceptional stability over 3000 cycles. This study provides inspiration for the rational design of hierarchically porous hollow nanostructures with specific geometries as an excellent electrode material for outstanding performance energy storage equipment

Genetic Analysis of <i>S5</i> Regulating the Hybrid Sterility between <i>Indica</i> and <i>Japonica</i> Subspecies in Rice

Hybrid sterility is the major obstacle to the utilization of inter-subspecific heterosis in hybrid rice breeding. The S5 locus, composed of three adjacent genes ORF3, ORF4, and ORF5, plays a crucial role in regulating indica/japonica hybrids’ female sterility. Through a series of crosses involving 38 parents, three alleles of S5, ORF3+ORF4−ORF5n, ORF3+ORF4+ORF5n, and ORF3−/ORF4−/ORF5n, all could be regarded as wide-compatibility alleles, and when crossed with indica or japonica rice, they all showed significantly high fertility. Then, in order to explore the genes’ function, we further knocked out genes by using CRISPR/Cas9-based genome editing. Our results demonstrate that the ORF3+ was not just the protector in the killer-protector system, and knocking out ORF3 of the indica allele seriously affected the rice’s normal development. We observed the concrete enhancing hybrid spikelet fertility from the crosses between the ORF4+ knockout japonica materials with indica varieties. By conducting the comparative RNA-Seq analysis of young spikelets, we found that the ORF4+/ORF4− could modulate the hybrid fertility by affecting the expressions of genes related to the function of the Golgi apparatus. This study indicated that knocking out the ORF4+ of the japonica allele or using the alleles carrying ORF5n would provide effective approaches to overcome indica/japonica hybrid female sterility in rice breeding

Hierarchically Porous MoS2-Carbon Hollow Rhomboids for Superior Performance of the Anode of Sodium-Ion Batteries

2020 American Chemical Society. It is always challenging to fabricate two-dimensional transition-metal dichalcogenides into multiple hollow micro-/nanostructures with improved properties for various potential applications. Here, hierarchically porous MoS2-C hollow rhomboids (MCHRs) have been creatively synthesized via a facile self-templated solvothermal approach. It has been clarified that the obtained MCHRs assembled beneath ultrathin γ-MnS and carbon cohybridized MoS2 nanosheets under the structural direction of the MnMoO4·0.49H2O self-template. The prepared MCHR anode of sodium-ion batteries exhibited a reversible capacity of 506 mA h g-1 at 0.1 A g-1, ultrahigh rate capabilities up to 10 A g-1 with 310 mA h g-1, and exceptional stability over 3000 cycles. This study provides inspiration for the rational design of hierarchically porous hollow nanostructures with specific geometries as an excellent electrode material for outstanding performance energy storage equipment

Interface Engineering with Ultralow Ruthenium Loading for Efficient Water Splitting

Developing high-performance and cost-effective bifunctional electrocatalysts for water splitting is the key to large-scale hydrogen production. How to achieve higher performance with a lower amount of noble metal is still a major challenge. Herein, using a facile wet-chemistry strategy, we report the ultralow amount loading of ruthenium (Ru) on porous nickel foam (NF) as a highly efficient bifunctional electrocatalyst for water splitting. Theoretical simulations reveal that the coupling effect of Ru and Ni can significantly reduce the d-band center of the composite. The Ru-modified NF exhibits a very high level of HER activity with only 0.3 wt% of Ru, far surpassing commercial Pt/C. It only requires an extremely low overpotential (eta(10)) of 10 mV to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm(-2). in alkaline solution and a quite low Tafel slope of 34 mV dec(-1). This catalyst also shows remarkable performance for overall water splitting with a low voltage of 1.56 V at 10 mA cm(-2). These findings indicate the potential of this material in water-alkali electrolyzers, providing a new approach for fabrication of low-cost advanced electrocatalysts