Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Cinnamon S. Mittan-Moreau, Crystal Kelehear, Luis Felipe Toledo, Jamie Bacon, Juan M. Guayasamin, Andrew Snyder, Kelly R. Zamudio
Summary: This study investigated the establishment success of cane toads across their introduced range by examining the roles of introduction history and genetic diversity. The researchers found that Florida populations were more closely related to native Central American lineages, and there were high levels of diversity and population structure in the native range, supporting the idea that cane toads are a species complex. The study also revealed that introduced populations have slightly lower genetic diversity compared to native populations.
Article
Biology
Brendan H. Cornwell, Luis Hernandez
Summary: The study indicates that temperate anemones and their endosymbionts exhibit different genetic patterns in adapting to climate change, with symbionts more likely than host species to adaptively mitigate the impact of increasing temperatures.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Hannah G. Reich, Sheila A. Kitchen, Kathryn H. Stankiewicz, Meghann Devlin-Durante, Nicole D. Fogarty, Iliana B. Baums
Summary: Research has shown genetic differentiation among Symbiodinium 'fitti' strains from different host taxa, likely influenced by unique selection pressures from host-associated microenvironments. The non-random sorting of S. 'fitti' strains to different hosts may be the basis for ecological specialization and ultimately speciation.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
David R. Blair, Thomas J. Hoffmann, Joseph T. Shieh
Summary: This study investigates the relationship between the severity of rare genetic diseases and common genetic variations using biobank-scale clinical and genetic data. The study develops a model-based approach to infer quantitative traits capturing disease-related phenotypic variability and identifies common genetic variations that predict the diagnosis and outcomes of Mendelian diseases.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Biology
Maeva Perez, Corinna Breusing, Bernard Angers, Roxanne A. Beinart, Yong-Jin Won, C. Robert Young
Summary: Vertical transmission of bacterial endosymbionts leads to gene loss and reduction in genome size. This study investigates the contributions of drift, recombination, and selection to genome evolution in two species of vesicomyid symbionts. The results suggest that drift is a significant force, while selection and interspecific recombination play critical roles in maintaining functional integrity and creating divergent patterns of gene conservation in the symbionts.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Fernando A. Villanea, Emilia Huerta-Sanchez, Keolu Fox
Summary: The study examines ABO gene variants in Neanderthals and Denisovans, revealing connections between modern human ABO variation and genetic landscapes of archaic humans. The findings suggest survival of Neanderthal genetic information in modern human ABO alleles through inbreeding, with sequences retaining higher divergence compared to other Neanderthal genome fragments, indicating potentially balancing selection at play.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Benjamin Dauphin, Maira de Freitas Pereira, Annegret Kohler, Igor Grigoriev, Kerrie Barry, Hyunsoo Na, Mojgan Amirebrahimi, Anna Lipzen, Francis Martin, Martina Peter, Daniel Croll
Summary: The study conducted whole-genome sequencing of 16 European isolates of the ascomycete Cenococcum geophilum, revealing substantial genome-wide structural variation, lineage-specific recombination, and low continent-wide genetic differentiation. Copy-number variation within different lineages was observed, and the presence of a single MAT1 idiomorph per genome confirmed heterothallism. This research establishes a foundation for targeted analyses of intra-specific functional variation in this major symbiosis.
ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Katsura Igai, Osamu Kitade, Jieyang Fu, Kazumi Omata, Takahiro Yonezawa, Moriya Ohkuma, Yuichi Hongoh
Summary: This study focused on the hindgut of the termite Reticulitermes speratus and identified 10 or 11 morphologically distinct oxymonad cell types, or morphospecies. Through phylogenetic analysis, it was found that the genetic divergence of oxymonads is mainly constrained by strong selection. A total of 33 oxymonad ecotypes were predicted, indicating possible underlying mechanisms of coexistence of termite gut protists.
Article
Agronomy
Jinhui Wang, Chao Ma, Shengnan Ma, Haiyang Zheng, Huilin Tian, Xi Wang, Yue Wang, Hongwei Jiang, Jiangxu Wang, Zhanguo Zhang, Chunyan Liu, Mingliang Yang, Qingshan Chen, Dawei Xin
Summary: Symbiosis between soybean and rhizobia is important for soybean yield and quality. A type III effector called NopC from Sinorhizobium fredii HH103 was found to regulate infection and promote nitrogen fixation in soybean. The study also identified 11 QTL associated with rhizobia and discovered a candidate gene Glyma.19G176300 that positively regulates nodulation induced by NopC. These findings have implications for molecular breeding using symbiotic nitrogen fixation.
Article
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Anna L. Schwabe, Samantha K. Naibauer, Mitchell E. McGlaughlin, Avery N. Gilbert
Summary: This study found that genetic inconsistencies within different commercial marijuana strains can lead to differences in aroma profiles, which is important for consumers and the industry.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Asha M. Miles, Heather J. Huson
Summary: Mastitis is the costliest disease for dairy producers, and efforts have shifted towards preventative measures, but breeding for resistance remains challenging.
JOURNAL OF DAIRY SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Li-Na Yang, Haibing Ouyang, Oswald Nkurikiyimfura, Hanmei Fang, Abdul Waheed, Wenyang Li, Yan-Ping Wang, Jiasui Zhan
Summary: Investigating the impact of environmental factors on plant diseases, a study revealed the significant role of climate conditions in the evolution of effector genes. By sampling and sequencing populations of Phytophthora infestans, it was found that the effector gene Pi02860 exhibited moderate genetic variation influenced by altitude and experimental temperature.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Leandro M. Velez, Cassandra Van, Timothy Moore, Zhenqi Zhou, Casey Johnson, Andrea L. Hevener, Marcus M. Seldin
Summary: In this study, the genetic correlations of gene expression were investigated to understand how skeletal muscle interacts with metabolic tissues. The study found that there were little relative differences in myokine gene regulation and muscle cell composition between males and females. However, significant cross-tissue enrichments were found to operate in a sex-specific or hormone-dependent fashion, particularly with estradiol. The study also identified several sex-dependent mechanisms of myokine signaling.
Article
Psychiatry
Sibylle G. Schwab
Summary: The researcher became interested in studying the genetics of psychiatric disorders, particularly schizophrenia, after completing pharmacy studies. The aim is to identify altered genes that contribute to the susceptibility of schizophrenia. Despite some progress, the complexity of the genetic architecture and phenotypes suggests that further research is needed.
PSYCHIATRY RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
M. Ece Kars, A. Nazli Basak, O. Emre Onat, Kaya Bilguvar, Jungmin Choi, Yuval Itan, Caner Caglar, Robin Palvadeau, Jean-Laurent Casanova, David N. Cooper, Peter D. Stenson, Alper Yavuz, Hakan Bulus, Murat Gunel, Jeffrey M. Friedman, Tayfun Ozcelik
Summary: The study on the genetic structure of Turkey reveals a closer genetic relationship of the Turkish population to Europeans. A Turkish Variome has been established as a valuable resource for identifying disease genes in Turkey and for facilitating genome-wide association studies.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)