Trends towards revealing the genetic architecture of sheep tail patterning: Promising genes and investigatory pathways

Different sheep breeds have evolved after initial domestication, generating various tail phenotypic patterns. The phenotypic diversity of sheep tail patterns offers ideal materials for comparative analysis of its genetic basis. Evolutionary biologists, animal geneticists, breeders, and producers have been curious to clearly understand the underlying genetics behind phenotypic differences in sheep tails. Understanding the causal gene(s) and mutation(s) underlying these differences will help probe an evolutionary riddle, improve animal production performance, promote animal welfare, and provide lessons that help comprehend human diseases related to fat deposition (i.e., obesity). Historically, fat tails have served as an adaptive response to aridification and climate change. However, the fat tail is currently associated with compromised mating and animal locomotion, fat distribution in the animal body, increased raising costs, reduced consumer preference, and other animal welfare issues such as tail docking. The developing genomic approaches provide unprecedented opportunities to determine causal variants underlying phenotypic differences among populations. In the last decade, researchers have performed several genomic investigations to assess the genomic causality underlying phenotypic variations in sheep tails. Various genes have been suggested with the prominence of several potentially significant causatives, including the BMP2 and PDGFD genes associated with the fat tail phenotype and the TBXT gene linked with the caudal vertebrae number and tail length. Although the potential genes related to sheep tail characteristics have been revealed, the causal variant(s) and mutation(s) of these high-ranking candidate genes are still elusive and need further investigation. The review discusses the potential genes, sheds light on a knowledge gap, and provides possible investigative approaches that could help determine the specific genomic causatives of sheep tail patterns. Besides, characterizing and revealing the genetic determinism of sheep tails will help solve issues compromising sheep breeding and welfare in the future.

The structural and functional corneal reinnervation mechanism at different regions after LASIK-an in vivo confocal microscopy study

PURPOSE

To determine the recovery of structural and functional corneal sensory nerves within the LASIK flap in order to provide insight to more proximal corneal reinnervation and symptoms post-LASIK.

METHODS

Twenty participants underwent femtosecond LASIK with a superior flap hinge. Ocular Comfort Index in Chinese (OCI-C), Cochet-Bonnet esthesiometry, and in vivo confocal microscopy were conducted before surgery and 1 week, 1-, 3-, and 6-months post-LASIK to measure symptoms, corneal sensitivity, nerve fiber density, width, and the number of interconnections within the flap (central and mid-temporal regions), and next to the superior flap hinge. Linear mixed models were used to compare differences between corneal regions at each time point post-LASIK and changes over time post-LASIK. Spearman's correlation tests were used to examine the associations between variables post-LASIK.

RESULTS

The least reduction in sensitivity (P < 0.03) and in nerve fiber density (P < 0.02) was found near the flap hinge compared to other regions, but no regional differences were found in nerve fiber width and interconnections. Nerve fiber density and the number of interconnections at all regions within the flap recovered over time (P < 0.02). The recovery of corneal sensitivity and nerve fiber width was only seen at the central and temporal regions (P < 0.04). No association was found between sensitivity and nerve parameters, but a higher OCI-C score was associated with a lower nerve fiber density near the hinge (r =  - 0.43, P = 0.003) over time post-LASIK.

CONCLUSION

Corneal sensitivity and density are preserved in the hinge, but this preservation of the corneal nerve damage does not affect the nerve morphology.

Incorporating the hybrid deformable model for improving the performance of abdominal CT segmentation via multi-scale feature fusion network

Automated multi-organ abdominal Computed Tomography (CT) image segmentation can assist the treatment planning, diagnosis, and improve many clinical workflows' efficiency. The 3-D Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) recently attained state-of-the-art accuracy, which typically relies on supervised training with many manual annotated data. Many methods used the data augmentation strategy with a rigid or affine spatial transformation to alleviate the over-fitting problem and improve the network's robustness. However, the rigid or affine spatial transformation fails to capture the complex voxel-based deformation in the abdomen, filled with many soft organs. We developed a novel Hybrid Deformable Model (HDM), which consists of the inter-and intra-patient deformation for more effective data augmentation to tackle this issue. The inter-patient deformations were extracted from the learning-based deformable registration between different patients, while the intra-patient deformations were formed using the random 3-D Thin-Plate-Spline (TPS) transformation. Incorporating the HDM enabled the network to capture many of the subtle deformations of abdominal organs. To find a better solution and achieve faster convergence for network training, we fused the pre-trained multi-scale features into the a 3-D attention U-Net. We directly compared the segmentation accuracy of the proposed method to the previous techniques on several centers' datasets via cross-validation. The proposed method achieves the average Dice Similarity Coefficient (DSC) 0.852, which outperformed the other state-of-the-art on multi-organ abdominal CT segmentation results.

Esterification catalyzed by an efficient solid acid synthesized from PTSA and UiO-66(Zr) for biodiesel production

p-Toluenesulfonic acid (PTSA) is a typical homogeneous acid for biodiesel production. Due to the shortcomings of high deliquescence and non-recyclability, it is necessary to synthesize a recyclable solid acid. For the sake of this, UiO-66(Zr) is used to support PTSA through defect coordination, and four different preparation routes are compared. The obtained catalyst (UiO-G) is characterized with thermogravimetry analysis (TG), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), pyridine FTIR spectroscopy (py-FTIR), nitrogen adsorption-desorption, and base titration. In addition, the effects of esterification parameters on conversion are investigated to obtain the optimal conditions. To further verify the high catalytic activity of UiO-G, the kinetic model of solid-liquid-liquid esterification is established, in which the kinetic parameters of activation energy, reaction order, and exponential factor are calculated. Results indicate the PTSA is successfully inserted in UiO-66(Zr) without destroying its original structure. With that, the maximum conversion of oleic acid to biodiesel of 91.3% is achieved with a molar ratio of methanol/oleic acid of 12 and a catalyst amount of 8 wt% at 70 °C for 2 h. Moreover, UiO-G could remarkably reduce the activation energy, where the activation energy is 28.61 kJ mol-1, the average reaction order is 1.51, and the pre-exponential factor is 29.11 min-1.

MiR-133b inhibits MPP+-induced apoptosis in Parkinson's disease model by inhibiting the ERK1/2 signaling pathway

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to explore the effect of micro ribonucleic acid (miR)-133b on 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium ion (MPP+)-induced apoptosis in the Parkinson's disease (PD) model.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

PC12 cells were induced by different concentrations of MPP+ to establish the PD cell model. Subsequently, the survival rate of PC12 cells was detected using Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. Quantitative Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression of miR-133b in the PD model induced by different concentrations of MPP+. Next, PC12 cells were transfected with miR-133b mimic and miR-negative control (NC), and divided into MPP+ group, MPP+ + miR-NC group and MPP+ + miR-133b mimic group. Transfection efficiency was verified using qRT-PCR. The apoptosis of cells was detected using terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay. Moreover, the expressions of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) and phosphorylated (p)-ERK1/2 were determined using Western blotting.

RESULTS

After MPP+ treatment, the survival rate of PC12 cells significantly declined (p<0.05). MPP+ exhibited toxicity against PC12 cells in a concentration-dependent manner. Meanwhile, cell survival rate decreased remarkably with the increase of MPP+ concentration (p<0.05). With increased concentration of MPP+, the expression of miR-133b in the PD cell model declined significantly (p<0.05). The apoptosis of PC12 cells was remarkably inhibited by overexpression of miR-133b in the PD cell model (p<0.05). In addition, the protein expression of p-ERK1/2 in PC12 cells was notably reduced after overexpression of miR-133b in the PD cell model (p<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

MiR-133b is lowly expressed in the PD cell model. Furthermore, overexpression of miR-133b inhibits cell apoptosis in the PD cell model by regulating the ERK1/2 signaling pathway.

[Evaluation of safety of two inactivated COVID-19 vaccines in a large-scale emergency use]

Objective: To evaluate the safety of two inactivated COVID-19 vaccines in a large-scale emergency use. Methods: Based on the "Vaccination Information Collection System", the incidence data of adverse reactions in the population vaccinated with the inactivated COVID-19 vaccines developed by Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co., Ltd and Wuhan Institute of Biological Products Co., Ltd, respectively, in emergency use were collected, and the relevant information were analyzed with descriptive epidemiological and statistical methods. Results: By December 1, 2020, the vaccination information of 519 543 individuals had been collected. The overall incidence rate of adverse reactions was 1.06%, the incidence rate of systemic adverse reactions was 0.69% and the incidence rate of local adverse reactions was 0.37%. The main systemic adverse reactions included fatigue, headache, fever, cough and loss of appetite with the incidence rates of 0.21%, 0.14%, 0.06%, 0.05% and 0.05%, respectively; the main local adverse reactions were injection site pain and injection site swelling with the incidence rates of 0.24% and 0.05%, respectively. Conclusion: The two inactivated COVID-19 vaccines by Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co., Ltd and Wuhan Institute of Biological Products Co., Ltd showed that in the large-scale emergency use, the incidence rate of general reactions was low and no serious adverse reactions were observed after the vaccinations, demonstrating that the vaccines have good safety.

A large-scale genome-wide association analysis reveals QTL and candidate genes for intramuscular fat content in Duroc pigs

This study aimed at identifying genomic regions and genes associated with intramuscular fat content (IMF) in Duroc pigs using a weighted single-step GWAS. Data from 3912 pigs, of which 3770 animals were genotyped with GeneSeek Porcine 50K Bead chip, were used for the association analysis. We identified 19 genomic regions that each explained >1% of the additive genetic variance associated with IMF. Notably, a consistent QTL on SSC7 (117.42-117.92 Mb) was confirmed, explaining 3.70% of the additive genetic variance, and two genes, BDKRB2 and ATG2B, were highlighted as promising candidates for IMF. Two QTL (SSC7, 94.19-94.64 Mb; SSC14, 123.25-123.75 Mb), which harbored MED6 and MAP3K9 genes and TCF7L2 gene respectively, were newly identified as associated with IMF. In conclusion, we identified a consistent QTL and additional genomic regions and genes that contributed to the genetic variance of IMF using a large-scale sample size of genotyped pigs and genealogical information.

Iterative stripe artifact correction framework for TOF-MRA

The purpose of this study is to develop a practical stripe artifacts correction framework on three-dimensional (3-D) time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography (TOF-MRA) obtained by multiple overlapping thin slab acquisitions (MOTSA) technology. In this work, the stripe artifacts in TOF-MRA were considered as a part of image texture. To separate the image structure and the texture, the relative total variation (RTV) was firstly employed to smooth the TOF-MRA for generating the template image with fewer image textures. Then a residual image was generated, which was the difference between the template image and the raw TOF-MRA. The residual image was served as the image texture, which contained the image details and stripe artifacts. Then, we obtained the artifact image from the residual image via a filter in a specific direction since the image artifacts appeared as stripes. The image details were then produced from the difference between the artifact image and the image texture. To produce the corrected images, we finally compensated the image details to the RTV smoothing image. The proposed method was continued until the stripe artifacts during the iteration vary as little as possible. The digital phantom and the real patients' TOF-MRA were used to test the approach. The spatial uniformity was increased from 74% to 82% and the structural similarity was improved from 86% to 98% in the digital phantom test by using the proposed algorithm. Our approach proved to be highly successful in eliminating stripe artifacts in real patient data tests while retaining image details. The proposed iterative framework on TOF-MRA stripe artifact correction is effective and appealing for enhancing the imaging performance of multi-slab 3-D acquisitions.

Metabolomics and its application in the mechanism analysis on diabetic bone metabolic abnormality

OBJECTIVE

This study is aimed at analysing the endogenous metabolites profiling of patients with diabetic osteoporosis, so as to provide the reference for pathogenesis research of diabetic osteoporosis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

The 1H-NMR metabolomics technology, combined with pattern recognition analysis and SIMCA-P 12.0 statistical analysis, were employed to identify the metabolites differences between diabetic patients with disordered bone metabolism (research group) and healthy volunteers (normal group) in this study.

RESULTS

Compared with normal group, the results show that in research group, the levels of O-acetyl glycoprotein, proline, 1-methyl histidine, tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA cycle) product (citric acid and α-ketoglutaric acid) decline, while the levels of branched chain amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, valine), glucose, choline, creatine, inositol, glutamine, aspartic acid, alanine, glycine, and citrulline increase.

CONCLUSIONS

There are disordered metabolic pathways and imbalanced bone synthetic materials and regulatory substances in diabetic patients with bone metabolic abnormality. These metabolic abnormalities could be the specific indicators in early diagnosis of diabetic osteoporosis.

A novel multi-DoF surgical robotic system for brachytherapy on liver tumor: Design and control

Purpose

Radioactive seed implantation is an effective invasive treatment method for malignant liver tumors in hepatocellular carcinomas. However, challenges of the manual procedure may degrade the efficacy of the technique, such as the high accuracy requirement and radiation exposure to the surgeons. This paper aims to develop a robotic system and its control methods for assisting surgeons on the treatment.

Method

We present an interventional robotic system, which consists of a 5 Degree-of-Freedom (DoF) positioning robotic arm (a 3-DoF translational joint and a 2-DoF revolute joint) and a needle actuator used for needle insertion and radioactive seeds implantation. Control strategy is designed for the system to ensure the safety of the motion. In the designed framework, an artificial potential field (APF)-based motion planning and an ultrasound (US) image-based contacting methods are proposed for the control.

Result

Experiments were performed to evaluate position and orientation accuracy as well as validate the motion planning procedure of the system. The mean and standard deviation of targeting error is 0.69 mm and 0.33 mm, respectively. Needle placement accuracy is 1.10 mm by mean. The feasibility of the control strategy, including path planning and the contacting methods, is demonstrated by simulation and experiments based on an abdominal phantom.

Conclusion

This paper presents a robotic system with force and US image feedback in assisting surgeons performing brachytherapy on liver tumors. The proposed robotic system is capable of executing an accurate needle insertion task with by optical tracking. The proposed methods improve the safety of the robot’s motion and automate the process of US probe contacting under the feedback of US-image.

Visfatin facilitates gastric cancer malignancy by targeting snai1 via the NF-κB signaling

BACKGROUND

Visfatin acts as an oncogenic factor in numerous tumors through a variety of cellular processes. Visfatin has been revealed to promote cell migration and invasion in gastric cancer (GC). Snai1 is a well-known regulator of EMT process in cancers. However, the relationship between visfatin and snai1 in GC remains unclear. The current study aimed to explore the role of visfatin in GC.

METHODS

The RT-qPCR and western blot analysis were used to measure RNA and protein levels, respectively. The cell migration and invasion were tested by Trans-well assays and western blot analysis.

RESULTS

Visfatin showed upregulation in GC cells. Additionally, Visfatin with increasing concentration facilitated epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process by increasing E-cadherin and reducing N-cadherin and Vimentin protein levels in GC cells. Moreover, endogenous overexpression and knockdown of visfatin promoted and inhibited migratory and invasive abilities of GC cells, respectively. Then, we found that snai1 protein level was positively regulated by visfatin in GC cells. In addition, visfatin activated the NF-κB signaling to modulate snai1 protein expression. Furthermore, the silencing of snai1 counteracted the promotive impact of visfatin on cell migration, invasion and EMT process in GC.

CONCLUSION

Visfatin facilitates cell migration, invasion and EMT process by targeting snai1 via the NF-κB signaling, which provides a potential insight for the treatment of GC.