Characterization of mulberry leaf instant tea and evaluation of its hypolipidemia effect via regulation of intestinal microbiota

The purpose of this study was to characterize mulberry leaf instant tea(MLIT)powder prepared from the'Longsang No.1'(Morus abla L.cv.Longsang 1)mulberry leaves in Heilongjiang Province(China)and assess its obesity-preventing/relieving effects.A total of 174 compounds including quercetin,chlorogenic acid,1-deoxyecomycin(1-DNJ)related to antihyperlipidemia effects were identified from the MLIT powder.MLIT treatment reversed the Lee's index,fat coefficient,and serum biochemical parameters in both the obesity relieving and obesity preventing mice fed with high-fat diet.In the obesity relieving experiment,the relative abundance of Desulfovibrio in mouse feces decreased after both 0.5%and 1%MLIT treatments.In obesity preventing experiments,mouse with different amount of MLIT treatments showed increased relative abundance of Akkermansia,Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus,while Deferribacteres,Desulfobacterota decreased.The beneficial bacteria in the intestinal tract of mice treated with MLIT increased.This study proved that MLIT had antihyperlipidemia potential via modulating intestinal microbiota in mice.

Identification of genetic locus with resistance to take-all in the wheat-Psathyrostachys huashanica Keng introgression line H148

Take-all is a devastating soil-borne disease of wheat(Triticum aestivum L.).Cultivating resistant line is an important measure to control this disease.Psathyrostachys huashanica Keng is a valuable germplasm resource with high resistance to take-all.This study reported on a wheat-/R huashanica introgression line H148 with improved take-all resistance compared with its susceptible parent 7182.To elucidate the genetic mechanism of resistance in H148,the F_(2)genetic segregating population of H148×XN585 was constructed.The mixed genetic model analysis showed that the take-all resistance was controlled by two major genes with additive,dominant and epistasis effects.Bulked segregant analysis combined with wheat axiom 660K genotyping array analysis showed the polymorphic SNPs with take-all resistance from P.huashanica alien introgression were mainly distributed on the chromosome 2A.Genotyping of the F_(2)population using the KASP marker mapped a major QTL in an interval of 68.8-70.1 Mb on 2AS.Sixty-two genes were found in the target interval of the Chinese Spring reference genome sequence.According to the functional annotation of genes,two protein genes that can improve the systematic resistance of plant roots were predicted as candidate genes.The development of wheat-P.huashanica introgression line H148 and the resistant QTL mapping information are expected to provide some valuable references for the fine mapping of disease-resistance gene and development of take-all resistant varieties through molecular marker-assisted selection.

Development and characterization of a novel common wheat–Mexico Rye T1DL·1RS translocation line with stripe rust and powdery mildew resistance

Rye(Secale cereale L., 2n=2x=14, RR) is a significant genetic resource for improving common wheat because of its resistance to multiple diseases and abiotic-stress tolerant traits. The 1RS chromosome from the German cultivated rye variety Petkus is critical in wheat breeding. However, its weakened disease resistance highlights the need to identify new resources. In the present study, a novel derived line called D27 was developed from common wheat and Mexico Rye.Cytological observations characterized the karyotype of D27 as 2n=42=21 Ⅱ. Genomic in situ hybridization indicated that a pair of whole-arm translocated Mexico Rye chromosomes were inherited typically in the mitotic and meiosis stages of D27. Experiments using fluorescence in situ hybridization(FISH) and gliadin electrophoresis showed that D27 lacked wheat 1DS chromosomes. They were replaced by 1RS chromosomes of Mexico Rye, supported by wheat simple-sequence repeat markers, rye sequence characterized amplified region markers, and wheat 40K SNP array analysis.The wheat 1DS chromosomes could not be detected by molecular markers and wheat SNP array, but the presence of rye 1RS chromosomes was confirmed. Agronomic trait assessments indicated that D27 had a higher tiller number and enhanced stripe rust and powdery mildew resistance. In addition, dough properties analysis showed that replacing 1DS led to higher viscosity and lower dough elasticity in D27, which was beneficial for cake making. In conclusion, the novel cytogenetically stable common wheat–Mexico Rye T1DL·1RS translocation line D27 offers excellent potential as outstanding germplasm in wheat breeding programs focusing on disease resistance and yield improvement. Additionally,it can be valuable for researching the rye 1RS chromosome’s genetic diversity.

Effect of cDNA fragments in different length derived from Potato Virus Y coat protein gene on the induction of RNA-mediated virus resistance

We have reported that cDNA derived from entire coat protein (CP) gene of potato virus Y (PVY) could induce resistance to PVY infection in transgenic tobacco plants, and the resistance was further demonstrated to be RNA-mediated rather than coat protein-mediated. In this study, we cloned cDNA fragments of 202 bp, 417 bp, and 603 bp in length derived from the 3′ end of the PVY CP gene, and the cDNA fragments were introduced into tobacco (var. NC89) plants via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation system. The results of resistance assay showed that the CP cDNA fragments of 417 bp and 603 bp could confer resistance of the trans-genic plants to PVY infection, but the fragment of 202 bp in length could not. Molecular analysis revealed that the resistance was RNA-mediated, which is believed to be a result of post-transcriptional gene silencing. The results indicate that the length of cDNA fragments needed for resistance induction was located somewhere between 202 bp and 417 bp from the 3′ end of PVY CP gene.

Evidence that Natural Selection is the Primary Cause of the Guanine-cytosine Content Variation in Rice Genes

Cereal genes are classified into two distinct classes according to the guanine-cytosine （GC） content at the third codon sites （GC3）. Natural selection and mutation bias have been proposed to affect the GC content. However, there has been controversy about the cause of GC variation. Here, we characterized the GC content of 1 092 paralogs and other single-copy genes in the duplicated chromosomal regions of the rice genome （ssp. indica） and classified the paralogs into GC3-rich and GC3-poor groups. By referring to out-group sequences from Arabidopsis and maize, we confirmed that the average synonymous substitution rate of the GC3-rich genes is significantly lower than that of the GC3-poor genes. Furthermore, we explored the other possible factors corresponding to the GC variation including the length of coding sequences, the number of exons in each gene, the number of genes in each family, the location of genes on chromosomes and the protein functions. Consequently, we propose that natural selection rather than mutation bias was the primary cause of the GC variation.