Comparative analyses of mitogenomes in the social bees with insights into evolution of long inverted repeats in the Meliponini

The insect mitogenome is typically a compact circular molecule with highly conserved gene contents.Nonetheless,mitogenome structural variations have been reported in specific taxa,and gene rearrangements,usually the tRNAs,occur in different lineages.Because synapomorphies of mitogenome organizations can provide information for phylogenetic inferences,comparative analyses of mitogenomes have been given increasing attention.However,most studies use a very few species to represent the whole genus,tribe,family,or even order,overlooking potential variations at lower taxonomic levels,which might lead to some incorrect inferences.To provide new insights into mitogenome organizations and their implications for phylogenetic inference,this study conducted comparative analyses for mitogenomes of three social bee tribes(Meliponini,Bombini,and Apini)based on the phylogenetic framework with denser taxonomic sampling at the species and population levels.Comparative analyses revealed that mitogenomes of Apini and Bombini are the typical type,while those of Meliponini show diverse variations in mitogenome sizes and organizations.Large inverted repeats(IRs)cause significant gene rearrangements of protein coding genes(PCGs)and rRNAs in Indo-Malay/Australian stingless bee species.Molecular evolution analyses showed that the lineage with IRs have lower dN/dS ratios for PCGs than lineages without IRs,indicating potential effects of IRs on the evolution of mitochondrial genes.The finding of IRs and different patterns of gene rearrangements suggested that Meliponini is a hotspot in mitogenome evolution.Unlike conserved PCGs and rRNAs whose rearrangements were found only in the mentioned lineages within Meliponini,tRNA rearrangements are common across all three tribes of social bees,and are significant even at the species level,indicating that comprehensive sampling is needed to fully understand the patterns of tRNA rearrangements,and their implications for phylogenetic inference.

针刺治疗子宫内膜异位症相关性不孕:一项随机对照试验研究方案

Background:Acupuncture has been proven to improve the pregnancy rate in infertile women.Endometriosis is a common cause of infertility.So far,there are no studies of the efficacy of acupuncture on endometriosis-associated infertility(EAI).Therefore,we will conduct a randomized controlled trial(RCT)to investigate whether acupuncture could have higher pregnancy rates in patients with EAI compared with sham acupuncture.The study protocol is reported in this paper.Methods/design:The current trial is a multicenter randomized controlled study undergoing in Shanghai,China.About 224 eligible patients with EAI will be randomly assigned into the acupuncture group and the sham acupuncture group in a 1:1 ratio.In the acupuncture group,patients will be treated with acupuncture on Guanyuan(CV4),Zhongji(CV3),Zigong(EX-CA1),Xuehai(SP10),Zusanli(ST36),Sanyinjiao(SP6),and Taichong(LR3),twice a week,for 3 menstrual cycles,and 12 menstrual cycles will be followed up.The Park sham device will be used to perform non-transdermal acupuncture in the sham acupuncture group.The operation points will be located at 1.5 cm away beside these acupoints in the acupuncture group.The intervention period is the same as that in the acupuncture group.The primary outcome will be pregnancy rate.Secondary outcomes will include ultrasound results,cancer antigen 125(CA125),antiMullerian hormone(AMH),sex hormones,and the Endometriosis Health Profile-5(EHP-5).Outcomes will be collected at baseline,the end of treatment,and follow-up visits at 3,6,and 12 menstrual cycles.All data,including major adverse events,will be recorded in electronic case report forms and analyzed using SPSS V.25.0.Discussion:This study will help to evaluate whether acupuncture is effective in increasing the pregnancy rate of infertile women with endometriosis.