Molecular cloning and characterization of a novel expressed sequence tag (EST) associated with fecundity in goats

To screen the genes controlling the fecundity traits in goats, a DDRT-PCR technique was applied. We found a new EST which highly expressed in Chinese native prolific goat breed, Haimen goats. There exists a difference of EST expression level between the prolific and non-prolific goat breed, indicating EST might associate to fecundity in goats. A full-length cDNA with 2253 base pairs was obtained by the 3’- and 5’-RACE method based on the EST sequence encoding a protein segment of 201 amino acid residues. Tissue specific distribution and sequence analysis implicated the likely involvement of EST in the regulation of the hormones related to fecundity

Bear bile: dilemma of traditional medicinal use and animal protection

Bear bile has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for thousands of years. Modern investigations showed that it has a wide range of pharmacological actions with little toxicological side effect and the pure compounds have been used for curing hepatic and biliary disorders for decades. However, extensive consumption of bear bile made bears endangered species. In the 1980's, bear farming was established in China to extract bear bile from living bears with "Free-dripping Fistula Technique". Bear farming is extremely inhumane and many bears died of illness such as chronic infections and liver cancer. Efforts are now given by non-governmental organizations, mass media and Chinese government to end bear farming ultimately. At the same time, systematic research has to be done to find an alternative for bear bile. In this review, we focused on the literature, laboratory and clinical results related to bear bile and its substitutes or alternative in English and Chinese databases. We examined the substitutes or alternative of bear bile from three aspects: pure compounds derived from bear bile, biles from other animals and herbs from TCM. We then discussed the strategy for stopping the trading of bear bile and issues of bear bile related to potential alternative candidates, existing problems in alternative research and work to be done in the future

Advanced paternal age effects in neurodevelopmental disorders?review of potential underlying mechanisms

Multiple epidemiological studies suggest a relationship between advanced paternal age (APA) at conception and adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in offspring, particularly with regard to increased risk for autism and schizophrenia. Conclusive evidence about how age-related changes in paternal gametes, or age-independent behavioral traits affect neural development is still lacking. Recent evidence suggests that the origins of APA effects are likely to be multidimensional, involving both inherited predisposition and de novo events. Here we provide a review of the epidemiological and molecular findings to date. Focusing on the latter, we present the evidence for genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underpinning the association between late fatherhood and disorder in offspring. We also discuss the limitations of the APA literature. We propose that different hypotheses relating to the origins of the APA effects are not mutually exclusive. Instead, multiple mechanisms likely contribute, reflecting the etiological complexity of neurodevelopmental disorders

Pan-cancer analysis of whole genomes

Cancer is driven by genetic change, and the advent of massively parallel sequencing has enabled systematic documentation of this variation at the whole-genome scale(1-3). Here we report the integrative analysis of 2,658 whole-cancer genomes and their matching normal tissues across 38 tumour types from the Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes (PCAWG) Consortium of the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). We describe the generation of the PCAWG resource, facilitated by international data sharing using compute clouds. On average, cancer genomes contained 4-5 driver mutations when combining coding and non-coding genomic elements; however, in around 5% of cases no drivers were identified, suggesting that cancer driver discovery is not yet complete. Chromothripsis, in which many clustered structural variants arise in a single catastrophic event, is frequently an early event in tumour evolution; in acral melanoma, for example, these events precede most somatic point mutations and affect several cancer-associated genes simultaneously. Cancers with abnormal telomere maintenance often originate from tissues with low replicative activity and show several mechanisms of preventing telomere attrition to critical levels. Common and rare germline variants affect patterns of somatic mutation, including point mutations, structural variants and somatic retrotransposition. A collection of papers from the PCAWG Consortium describes non-coding mutations that drive cancer beyond those in the TERT promoter(4); identifies new signatures of mutational processes that cause base substitutions, small insertions and deletions and structural variation(5,6); analyses timings and patterns of tumour evolution(7); describes the diverse transcriptional consequences of somatic mutation on splicing, expression levels, fusion genes and promoter activity(8,9); and evaluates a range of more-specialized features of cancer genomes(8,10-18).Peer reviewe

A Highly Selective Rasorber With Ultraminiaturized Unit Based on Interdigitated 2.5-D Parallel Resonator

A high selectivity frequency selective rasorber (FSR) with an ultraminiaturized unit based on 2.5 dimensional (2.5-D) parallel resonator (PR), exhibiting low insertion loss passband between two absorption bands, is investigated. The lossy unit is realized by inserting a 2.5-D strip-type PR structure into the center of each side of the metal square ring and loaded with resistors connected at the four corners. The novel 2.5-D PR consists of interdigitated capacitors and strip metal wire connecting the other side of the lossy layer obtained by using metallized vias. The 2.5-D PR can effectively alleviate the congestion of the single-sided structures and achieve a high degree of miniaturization by means of tortuous extension inductance structure; as an additional feature, the values of L and C can be independently adjusted to determine the passband frequency allowing to provide additional degree of freedom to the design. An equivalent circuit model is proposed to analyze its operating principle. The dimensions of the miniaturized unit are $0.13 \lambda _{\text{f}} \times 0.13 \lambda_{\text{f}} \times 0.16 \lambda_{\text{f}}$ (being $\lambda_{\text{f}}$ the free space wavelength at the passband). A transmission window with low insertion loss of 0.125 dB is obtained at 4.65 GHz under normal incidence. The fractional bandwidth for -10 dB reflection is about 96%. The miniaturized FSR satisfies the characteristic of polarization insensitivity (TE and TM) and angular insensitivity (up to 45 degrees). A prototype of miniaturized FSR has been manufactured and measured, showing a reasonable agreement with simulations

A novel spermatogenesis-specific uPAR gene expressed in human and mouse testis

The urokinase receptor, uPAR, which binds to the Urinary-type plasminogen activator, controls matrix degradation in the processes of tissue remodeling, cell migration, and invasion. In the present study, we found a new urokinase receptor gene that encodes a 249-amino acid putative protein. Northern blot analysis showed specific expression in the testis of this gene, which we named the spermatogenesis-related gene (SGRG). In situ hybridization revealed a strong expression signal for SGRG in spermatogonia, but not in spermatocytes. Therefore, we conjecture that SGRG may regulate spermatocyte migration through breakdown of extracellular matrix protein barriers in spermatogenesis. Since SGRG is specifically expressed in spermatogonia, it provides an attractive candidate for development of it contraceptive vaccine. (c) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved