Developmental Changes of the FAS and HSL mRNA Expression and Their Effects on the Content of Intramuscular Fat in Kazak and Xinjiang Sheep

Twenty-four male Kazak sheep and 30 Xinjiang fine wool sheep at different ages were selected to investigate the development-dependent expression levels of fatty acid synthase （FAS） gene and hormone-sensitive lipase （HSL） gene in muscle and their effects on the contents of intramuscular fat （IMF）. Longissimus dorsal muscle was sampled to measure IMF and total RNA was extracted to determine FAS and HSL mRNA expression levels by real-time PCR. The results showed that： l） The IMF content increased continuously with growth and showed significant differences （P 〈 0.05） between different age groups in male Kazak sheep, but in Xinjiang fine wool sheep there was no such difference observed. Furthermore, the IMF contents in Kazak were much higher （P 〈 0.01） than that of the other breed from day 30 to 90. 2） FAS mRNA expression level was the highest （P 〈 0.05） on day 0 in Kazak sheep and then declined with growth, in the other breed the gene showed a d‘ecline-rise-decline-rise＇ expression manner as the animals grew. HSL mRNA expression level had a similar model in two breeds, in Kazak sheep it was the highest on day 0 （P 〈 0.05） and in Xinjiang fine wool sheep on day 30 （P 〈 0.01）, then both decreased after this term. 3） In male Kazak sheep, FAS and HSL mRNA expression level were both negatively related to IMF content （r= -0.485 （P = 0.02）, r= -0.423 （P = 0.05））, and the ratio of FAS/HSL expression exhibited significantly negatively related IMF contents. In male Xinjiang sheep, there were no obvious relationship between FAS and HSL expression and IMF content （P 〉 0.05）.

Inferring Genome Ancestry and Estimating Molecular Relatedness Among 187 Chinese Maize Inbred Lines

The inference of genome ancestry and the estimation of molecular relatedness are of great importance for breeding efficiency and association studies. Seventy SSR loci, evenly distributed in 10 chromosomes, were assayed for polymorphism among 187 commonly used maize （Zea mays L.） inbreds which represent the genetic diversity in China. The identified 290 alleles served as raw data for estimating population structure using the coalescent linked loci, based on the ADMIXTURE model. Population number, K, has been inferred to be between five and seven. Specifying five subpopulations （K = 5） led to a distinct decrease and specifying K to be greater than six resulted in only minimal increases in the likelihood value. Therefore, population number, K, has been inferred into six subpopulations, which are PA, BSSS （includes Reid）, PB, Lan （Lancaster Sure Crop）, LRC （Luda Reb Cob, a Chinese landrace, and its derivatives）, and SPT （Si-ping-tou, a Chinese landrace and its derivatives）. The Kullback-Leibler distance of pairwise subpopulation was also inferred as n × p （187 ×6） Q matrices, which gave a detailed percentage of genetic composition of six subpopulations and molecular relatedness of each line. The genome-wide linkage disequilibrium （LD） indicated that the asso- ciation studies in QTLs and/or candidate genes might avoid nonfunctional and spurious associations, as most of the LD blocks were broken among diverse germplasm. The defined population structure has given us a clear genetic structure of these lines for breeding practice and established a good basis for association analysis.

Genetic Diversity of Volatile Components in Xinjiang Wild Apple (Malus sieversii)

To evaluate genetic relationships using qualitative and/or quantitative differentiation of volatile components in Xinjiang Wild Apple （Malus sieversii （Lebed.） Roem.） and to acquire basic data for the conservation and utilization of the species, aroma components in ripe fruit of M. sieversii obtained from 30 seedlings at Mohe, Gongliu County, Xinjiang Autonomic Region, China, and in ripe fruit of 4 M. purnila cultivars （＇Rails＇, ＇Delicious＇, ＇Golden Delicious＇, and ＇Fuji＇） were analyzed using head space-solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The results indicated that the values of similarity coefficient concerning volatile types between the two species were in accordance with the evolution of M. pumila cultivars （forms）, and that M. sieversii seedlings showed considerable genetic variations in these aspects： the total content of volatile components, the classes and contents of each compound classes, the segregation ratio, and content of main components. The results showed significant difference among seedlings and wide genetic diversity within the populations. Comparison of the volatile components in M. sieversii with those in M. pumila cultivars showed that the common compounds whose number were larger than five with the contents over 0.04 mg/L simultaneously between M. sieversii and M. pumila cultivars belonged to esters, alcohols, aldehydes or ketones. This suggests fundamental identity in main volatile components of M. sieversii and M. pumila cultivars. The results above sustained the conclusion ＂M. sieversii is probably the ancestor ofM. purnila＂. However, there were 48 compounds present in M. puraila that were not detected in M. sieversii, including 6 character impact components （i.e., propyl acetate, （Z）-3-hexenal, 2-methyl-l-butanol acetate, pentyl acetate, 3-furanmethanol, and benzene acetaldehyde）. This suggested that in the domestication of M. pumila, introgression of other apple species, except for M. sieversii, by interspecies hybridization was possible. There were 177 compounds in total belonging to 11 classes detected in 30 M. sieversii seedlings, including esters, alcohols, ketones, aldehydes, acids, benzene ramifications, terpenes, heterocycles, hydrocarbon derivates, acetals, and lactones. Among them, acetals and lactones were not detected in M. pumila cultivars, 90 compounds were unique to M. sieversii, and 7 components （l-butanol, ethyl hutanoate, 1-hexanol, ethyl hexanoate, 3-octen-1-ol, ethyl octanoate, and damascenone） belonged to character impact odors. Thus, the potential of M. sieversii in ＂utilization conservation＂ is enormous as a rate germplasm on genetic improvement of M. pumila cultivars.

Assessment of Genetic Diversity of Yunnan,Tibetan,and Xinjiang Wheat Using SSR Markers

A total of 206 SSR （Simple Sequence Repeats） primer pairs were used to detect genetic diversity in 52 accessions of three unique wheat varieties of western China. A total of 488, 472, and 308 allelic variants were detected in 31 Yunnan, 15 Tibetan and 6 Xinjiang wheat accessions with an average of PIC values 0.2764, 0.3082, and 0.1944, respectively. Substantial differences in allelic polymorphisms were detected by SSR markers in all the 21 chromosomes, the 7 homoeologous groups, and the three genomes （A, B, and D） in Yunnan, Tibetan, and Xinjiang wheat. The highest and lowest allelic polymorphisms in all the 21 chromosomes were observed in 3B and 1D chromosomes, respectively. The lowest and highest allelic polymorphisms among the seven homoeologous groups was observed in 6 and 3 homoeologous groups, respectively. Among the three genomes, B genome showed the highest, A the intermediate, and D the lowest allelic polymorphism. The genetic distance （GD） indexes within Yunnan, Tibetan, and Xinjiang wheat, and between different wheat types were calculated. The GD value was found to be much higher within Yunnan and Tibetan wheat than within Xinjiang wheat, but the GD value between Yunnan and Tibetan wheat was lower than those between Yunnan and Xinjiang wheat, and between Tibetan and Xinjiang wheat. The cluster analysis indicated a closer relationship between Yunnan and Tibetan wheat than that between Yunnan and Xinjiang wheat or between Tibetan and Xinjiang wheat.

Genetic Structure of Malus sieversii Population from Xinjiang,China,Revealed by SSR Markers

One hundred and nine Malus sieversii accessions from four geographical populations located at Kuerdening in Mohe town, Gongliu County, Jiaowutuohai, in Xinyuan County, Daxigou in Houcheng County of Ily State, and Baerluke Mountain in Yumin County of Tacheng State, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China were studied by SSR markers. The purpose of the study was to determine the genetic structure and diversity in these eco-geographical populations with eight pair SSR primers of apple. The results indicated that： an average of 16 bands was detected in the four populations. The percentage of polymorphic bands in Gongliu population （89.06%） was the highest in the four populations. The average Nei＇s gene diversity index was 0.257 for all the loci. Totally, 128 polymorphic loci were detected and the percentage of polymorphic loci （P） was 100%, 88.28%, 84.83%, 87.50%, and 87.12%, respectively, at the species level and Gongliu, Xinyuan, Huocheng, and Yumin population levels. The Nei＇s gene diversity index （H = 0.2619） and Shannon＇s information index （1 = 0.4082） in the species level were higher than in the population level. The Nei＇s gene diversity index and Shannon＇s information index in the four populations were Gongliu 〉 Huocheng 〉 Xinyuan 〉 Yumin. Gongliu population and Xinyuan population were the highest in genetic identity and the closest in genetic distance. Gene flow between the populations was 7.265 based on genetic differentiation coefficient （GST = 0.064）. The UPGMA cluster analysis indicated that the genetic relationships between the Gongliu and Xinyuan population were the closest, and the Yumin population were the farthest with the other three populations. The UPGMA cluster analysis indicated that the four geographical populations located in Gongliu, Xinyuan, Huocheng, and Yumin were relatively independent populations. Concurrently, there was also mild gene exchange between the populations. On the basis of the study of population genetic structure and the highest genetic diversity, Gongliu population should be given a high priority consideration in Malus sieversii population＇s in situ germplasm conservation.

Recent Progress in Elucidating the Structure, Function and Evolution of Disease Resistance Genes in Plants

Plants employ multifaceted mechanisms to fight with numerous pathogens in nature. Resistance （R） genes are the most effective weapons against pathogen invasion since they can specifically recognize the corresponding pathogen effectors or associated protein（s） to activate plant immune responses at the site of infection. Up to date, over 70 R genes have been isolated from various plant species. Most R proteins contain conserved motifs such as nucleotide-binding site （NBS）, leucine-rich repeat （LRR）, Toll-interleukin-1 receptor domain （TIR, homologous to cytoplasmic domains of the Drosophila Toll protein and the manamalian intefleukin-1 receptor）, coiled-coil （CC） or leucine zipper （LZ） structure and protein kinase domain （PK）. Recent results indicate that these domains play significant roles in R protein interactions with effector proteins from pathogens and in activating signal transduction pathways involved in innate immunity. This review highlights an overview of the recent progress in elucidating the structure, function and evolution of the isolated R genes in different plant-pathogen interaction systems.

Genetic Variation of Mitochondrial D-loop Region and Evolution Analysis in Some Chinese Cattle Breeds

The complete mitochondrial D-loop region from 123 individuals in 12 Chinese cattle breeds and two individuals in Germany Yellow cattle breed was sequenced and analyzed. The results were shown as follows： 93 variations and 57 haplotypes were detected, and the average number of nucleotide difference was 22.708, nucleotide diversity （π） was 0.0251 ± 0.00479, and haplotype diversity （Hd） was 0.888 ± 0.026, indicating very high genetic diversity in Chinese cattle breeds. In the Neighbor-Joining tree, 13 cattle breeds were divided into two main clades, Bos taurus and Bos indicus; new Clade Ill had only one sequence from Apeijiaza cattle breed in Tibet, which was similar to that of yak at a higher level than other cattle breeds, proving the introgression of genes from the yak. The proportions of Bos taurus and Bos indicus were 64.3 % and 35.7 % respectively in Xigaze Humped cattle breed, and 50.0% and 50.0% respectively in Apeijiaza cattle breed, which revealed that Tibet cattle included Bos indicus haplotypes. The importance of Yunnan cattle in the origin of Chinese cattle was also confirmed based on their abundant haplotypes. Then, a very special haplotype il discovered in 27 Chinese cattle breeds, including 11 breeds in this study and 16 breeds in the GenBank, played the role of a nucleus in Chinese zebu and was further discussed. At the same time, the construction of Chinese zebu core group based on haplotype il validated the distinct origin of Bos indicus in Tibet, which was different from that of the other cattle breeds with zebu haplotypes in China.

Comparative Assessment of Genetic Diversity of Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.)Genotypes with Various Levels of Resistance to Bacterial Wilt Through SSR and AFLP Analyses

Bacterial wilt （BW） caused by Ralstonia solanacearum is an important constraint to peanut （Arachis hypogaea L.） production in several Asian and African countries, and planting BW-resistant cultivars is the most feasible method for controlling the disease. Although several BW-resistant peanut germplasm accessions have been identified, the genetic diversity among these has not been properly investigated, which has impeded efficient utilization. In this study, the genetic relationships of 31 peanut genotypes with various levels of resistance to BW were assessed based on SSR and AFLP analyses. Twenty-nine of 78 SSR primers and 32 of 126 AFLP primer combinations employed in this study were polymorphic amongst the peanut genotypes tested. The SSR primers amplified 91 polymorphic loci in total with an average of 3.14 alleles per primer, and the AFLP primers amplified 72 polymorphic loci in total with an average of 2.25 alleles per primer. Four SSR primers （14H06, 7G02, 3A8, 16C6） and one AFLP primer （P1M62） were found to be most efficient in detecting diversity. The genetic distance between pairs of genotypes ranged from 0.12 to 0.94 with an average of 0.53 in the SSR data and from 0.06 to 0.57 with an average of 0.25 in the AFLP data. The SSR-based estimates of the genetic distance were generally larger than that based on the AFLP data. The genotypes belonging to subsp, fastigiata possessed wider diversity than that of subsp, hypogaea. The clustering of genotypes based on the SSR and AFLP data were similar but the SSR clustering was more consistent with morphological classification ofA. hypogaea. Optimum diverse genotypes of both subsp, hypogaea and subsp.fastigiata can be recommended based on this analysis for developing mapping populations and breeding for high yielding and resistant cultivars.

Population Genetic Diversity in Chinese Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) Cultivars Revealed by Fluorescent-AFLP Markers

Eighty-five pomegranate （Punica granatum L.） cultivars from six geographical populations located at Shandong, Anhui, Shaanxi, Henan, Yunnan, and Xinjiang Provinces were studied for its population genetic diversity by means of fluorescent-AFLP markers. The results indicated that 135-185 polymorphic loci were amplified by eight pairs of primers at species level. An average of 158.25 polymorphic loci was amplified for each primer combination. The polymorphism percentage ranged from 62.5% to 86.11%, and the average polymorphism percentage was 73.26%. This indicated that there was plentiful genetic diversity in pomegranate cultivars. The genetic diversity at the species level was higher than that at the population level. The order of the genetic diversity was Henan population 〉 Xinjiang population 〉 Shaanxi population 〉 Anhui population 〉 Shandong population 〉 Yunnan population. Variance analysis showed that there was significant difference between populations in genetic diversity. The genetic differentiation coefficient between populations （Gsr） was 0.2018, which indicated that gene differentiation was mainly within the population, and between populations, it accounted for 20.18% of the total variation. Gene flow （Nm） between the populations measured was 1.9027 based on the genetic differentiation coefficient between populations, indicating that there was mild gene flow between populations. The UPGMA cluster analysis showed that most accessions from the same population were clustered together, but there was partly gene exchange. All genetic parameters indicated that there was plentiful genetic diversity in pomegranate cultivars in China, of which Henan population was significantly higher than the other populations, and it had wide application foreground in pomegranate breeding in China.

Population Genetic Structure in Apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) Cultivars Revealed by Fluorescent-AFLP Markers in Southern Xinjiang,China

Population-wide genetic structure was studied using fluorescent-AFLP markers on 85 apricot （Prunus armeniaca L.） cultivars collected from Kuche, Kashi, Hetian in the Tarim Basin, southern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China. The purpose of this study was to determine the genetic structure and genotypic diversity among the different eco-geographical populations. Based on the results from this study, 8 pairs of fluorescent-AFLP primers showed clear electrophoregram and high polymorphism amongst the 64 pairs of EcoR Ⅰ/Mse Ⅰ （Mse Ⅰ - a FAM fluorescent marked primer） primers screened. There was a significant polymorphic difference for the same primer pair in different populations and for the same population with different primer pairs. The percentage of polymorphic loci （P） at species level was higher than Kuche, Hetian, Kashi population levels, respectively. The Nei＇s gene diversity index （H） and Shannon＇s information index （I） at species level were higher than those of Kuche, Hetian, and Kashi at population level, respectively. H and I of Kuche population were the highest amongst the three populations. Apricot population genetic diversity was found mainly within the population, Genetic differentiation coefficient between populations （GST） was 0.0882. Gene flow Nm between the populations was 5.1689. Population genetic identity was between 0.9772-0.9811 and genetic distance was between 0.0191-0.0232. These results further indicated that the similarity between populations was higher and the genetic distance between populations was smaller. The UPGMA cluster analysis indicates that the geographical populations at Kuche, Kashi, Hetian were relatively independent Mendelian populations. Concurrently, there was also partial gene exchange between the populations. All the evidences indicated that the genetic diversity in Kuche population was the highest, suggesting that it could be a transition population from wild apricot to cultivated apricot. There were abundant genetic diversities in apricot cultivar populations in southern Xinjiang, China, which provide promising germplasm for further breeding and theoretical basis for biodiversity conservation and utilization for apricot population in this area.

Physiological Character and Gene Mapping in a New Green-revertible Albino Mutant in Rice

A green-revertible albino mutant-Qiufeng M was found from the japonica rice （Oryza sativa L. ssp. japonica） Qiufeng in the field. The first three leaves of the mutant were albino with some green. The leaf color became pale green since the fourth leaf and the glume had the same phenomenon as the first three leaves. The measuring data of the pigment content confirmed the visually observed results. It truly had a remarkable changing process in the leaf color in Qiufeng M. Comparison of the main agronomic characters between Qiufeng and Qiufeng M indicated that the neck length and grain weight showed significant difference at the 1% level, and other characters were not different. Genetic analysis showed that the green-revertible albino trait was controlled by a single recessive nucleic gene. Using 209 recessive mutant individuals in the F2 population derived from the cross Pei＇ai 64S × Qiufeng M, a gene, tentatively named gra（t）, was located between the SSR markers of RM475 and RM2-22 on the long arm of chromosome 2. The genetic distance were 17.3 cM and 2.9 cM respectively.

Phylogenetic Relationships and Status Quo of Colonies for Gayal Based on Analysis of Cytochrome b Gene Partial Sequences

Thirty-three mutations and four different haplotypes were found when cytochrome b（Cytb） gene partial sequences of 12 gayals were analyzed. Together with sequences of Bos indicus, Bos taurus, Bos grunniens, and Bos gaurus with Bubalus bubalis as the out group, the partial sequences of Cytb gene of gayals were aligned and base composition and nucleotide variation of Cytb gene were analyzed. The phylogenetic trees were constructed by the NJ method and the MP method respectively, both supporting almost the same topology. Gayal is an independent species of Bos from Bos indicus, Bos taurus, and Bos gaurus. The results also indicate that a great proportion of gayal bloodline was invaded by other species, and the protection of gayal is facing a formidable situation.

Fine Mapping and Isolation of Bc7(t),Allelic to OsCesA4

Several brittle culm mutants of rice were identified and characterized. In this study, we characterized a brittle mutant （bc7（t）） identified from japonica variety Zhonghua 11 by means of ^60Co-γ radiation. This mutant displays normal phenotype similar to its wild type plants except for the fragility of all plant body, with - 10% decrease in the cellulose content. The genetic analysis and gene fine mapping showed that the bc7（t） mutant was controlled by a recessive gene, residing on an 8.4 kb region of the long arm of chromosome 1. The gene annotation indicated that there was only one putative gene encoding cellulose synthase catalytic subunit （CesA） in this region, which was allelic to OsCesA4. Furthermore, the sequence analysis was carried out and 7 bases deletion in the junction of exon 10 and intron 10 was done in bc7（t） mutant, resulting in the change of reading frame and the consequent failure to generate functional protein. In addition, the result of RNA interference experiment showed that when the Bc7（t） was knocked down, the transplants exhibited fragility, similar to bc7（t） mutant. The finding of novel allele of OsCesA4 locus will facilitate the understanding of the mechanism of cell wall biosynthesis. The potential utilization of the bc7（t） mutant in animal food was discussed as well.

High Altitude Adaptation and Phylogenetic Analysis of Tibetan Horse Based on the Mitochondrial Genome

To investigate genetic mechanisms of high altitude adaptations of animals living in the Tibetan Plateau, three mitochondrial genomes （mt-genome） of Tibetan horses living in Naqu （4,500 m） of Tibetan, Zhongdian （3,300 m） and Deqin （3,100 m） of Yunnan province were sequenced. The structures and lengths of these three mt-genomes are similar to the Cheju horse, which is related to Tibetan horses, but little shorter than the Swedish horse. The pair-wise identity of these three horses on nucleotide level is more than 99.3%. When the gene encoding the mitochondrial protein of Tibetan horses was analyzed, we found that NADH6 has higher non-synonymous mutation rate in all of three Tibetan horses. This implies that NADH6 may play a role in Tibetan horses＇ high altitude adaptation. NADH6 is one of the subunits of the complex I in the respiratory chain. Furthermore, 7 D-loop sequences of Tibetan horse from different areas were sequenced, and the phylogeny tree was constructed to study the origin and evolutionary history of Tibetan horses. The result showed that the genetic diverse was high among Tibetan horses. All of Tibetan horses from Naqu were clustered into one clade, and Tibetan horses from Zhongdian and Deqin were clustered into others clades. The first molecular evidence of Tibetan horses indicated in this study is that Tibetan horse population might have multiple origins.

Association of Polymorphisms of Leptin Gene with Body Weight and Body Sizes Indexes in Chinese Indigenous Cattle

PCR-SSCP was used to analyze the polymorphism of leptin gene in 539 samples of six cattle breeds, namely Nanyang （NY）, Qinchuan （QC）, Jiaxianred （JXR）, Xizhen （XZ）, Luxi （LX）, and Holstein cow （HOL） breeds. PCR products with a 330 bp were amplified and sequenced. The results showed that the frequencies of alleles A/B of NY, QC, JXR, XZ, LX, and HOL breeds were 0.558/0.442, 0.492/0.508, 0.571/0.429, 0.658/0.342, 0.591/0.409, and 0.615/0.385, respectively. The association of variations of leptin gene with growth traits in NY, QC, JXR breeds was analyzed. Some indexes of the individuals with genotype BB were higher than that with genotype AA and AB in NY breed, such as the indexes of body length, heart length, body weight, hucklebone width, body height, and average day gain. The height at hip cross of the individuals with genotype BB was higher than that of those with genotype AA and AB in QC breed （P 〈 0.05）. So leptin gene may be one of the candidate genes for growth traits with height at hip cross, but not for body weight, heart length, and body length trait. However, the height at hip cross and hucklebone width of the individuals with genotype AB and BB were higher than that of those with genotype AA in JXR breed （P 〈 0.05）, but the difference was not statistically significant in body weight and body sizes （body height, body length, and heart length）. And the polymorphisms in leptin gene were caused by G→T transversion at the 66th bp position, A→C transversion at the 67th bp position and G→T transversion at the 299th bp position. These results may be applied to marker-assisted selection of Chinese cattle breeds.

Sequence Variation and Molecular Evolution of Hormone-Sensitive Lipase Genes in Species of Bovidae

The partial sequences of exon Ⅰ of hormone-sensitive lipase （HSL） genes in yak （Bos grunniens）, cattle （Bos taurus）, zebu （Bos indicus）, and buffalo （Bubalus bubalis） were analyzed. Comparisons of these sequences and the deduced amino acid sequences with the homologous HSL gene and protein sequences in other mammalian species including pig （Sus scrofa）, human （Homo sapiens）, mouse （Mus musculus）, and rat （Rattus sp.） retrieved from the GenBank were carried out and finally a phylogenetic tree was constructed using the partial DNA sequences of the HSL genes in all species. The results showed that the homologies of the partial exon Ⅰ sequences of the HSL genes between yak and cattle, zebu, buffalo, pig, human, mouse, and rat were as high as 99.8%, 99.6%, 97.4%, 90.6%, 88.4%, 83.5%, and 82.3%, respectively. This was accompanied by highly homologous amino acid sequences of the HSLs： 100%, 100%, 98.2%, 94.0%, 92.2%, 89.8%, and 89.8% identity, respectively. There are more transitions, less transversions, and no insertion or deletion in variable nucleotides of the HSL genes between the yak and other species. The majority of the variable mutations was synonymous and was found most frequently at the third codon, followed by the first and second codons, a finding that was in accordance with the neutralism hypothesis for molecular evolution. In the phylogenetic tree, the cattle and zebu were clustered together first, followed by the yak, buffalo, pig, human, mouse, and rat. This was in agreement with taxonomy suggesting that the partial sequences of exon Ⅰ of the HSL genes were useful in constructing the phylogenetic tree of mammalian species. Among the four species of Bovidae, genetic differentiation in the HSL genes between yak and buffalo is equivalent to that between buffalo and cattle and between buffalo and zebu. Furthermore, the genetic distances in the HSL genes are much smaller between yak, cattle, and zebu than those between each of the three species and the buffalo. Therefore, it is reasonable to consider yak as an independent species of the genus Bos.

Genetic Analysis and Mapping of Genes Involved in Fertility of Pingxiang Dominant Genic Male Sterile Rice

Pingxiang-dominant genic male sterile rice （PDGMSR） was the first dominant genic male sterile mutant identified in rice （Oryza sativa L.）, and the corresponding dominant genic male sterile gene was designated as Ms-p. The fertility of PDGMSR can be restored by introduction of a dominant epistatic fertility restoring gene in some rice varieties. In the present study, E823, an indica inbred rice variety, restored the fertility of PDGMSR, and the genetic pattern was found to be consistent with a dominant epistatic model, therefore, the dominant epistatic fertility restorer gene was designated as Rfe. The F2 population from the cross of PDGMSR/E823 was developed to map gene Rfe. The F2 plants with the genotypes Ms-pMs-pRferfe or Ms-pms-pRferfe were used to construct a fertile pool, and the corresponding sterile plants with genotypes Ms-pMs-prferfe or Ms-pms-prferfe were used to con- struct a sterile pool. The fertility restoring gene Rfe was mapped to one side of the microsatellite markers RM311 and RM3152 on rice chromosome 10, with genetic distances of 7.9 cM and 3.6 cM, respectively. The microsatellite markers around the location of the Ms-p gene were used to finely map the Ms-p gene. The findings of this study indicated that the microsatellite markers RM171 and RM6745 flanked the Ms-p gene, and the distances were 0.3 cM and 3.0 cM, respectively. On the basis of the sequence of rice chromosome 10, the physical distance between the two markers is approximately 730 kb. These findings facilitates molecular marker-assisted selection （MAS） of genes Ms-p and Rfe in rice breeding programs, and cloning them in the future.

Developmental Changes of Col3a1 mRNA Expression in Muscle and Their Association with Intramuscular Collagen in Pigs

Eighty-four castrated boars including Laiwu Black （LW） （weight 30-90 kg, n = 6） and Lulai Black （LL） （weight 40-100 kg, n = 6） were used to study the developmental changes of collagen type Ⅲ alpha 1 （Col3al） mRNA expression in the muscle and their association with intramuscular collagen （IMC）. The muscle total RNA was extracted to determine the abundance of Col3al mRNA using relative quantitative RT-PCR with β-actin mRNA as the internal standard. The results indicated that the developmental patterns of muscle Col3al mRNA in LW and LL pigs were similar. The abundance of Col3al mRNA increased with body weight, but decreased a little at 70 kg and 80 kg phases for LW and LL, respectively. On the whole, the expression level of Col3al mRNA in muscle of LW was higher than that of LL （P 〈 0.05）. Correlation analysis showed that the expression of Col3al mRNA in muscle was positively correlated with total and insoluble IMC, but was negatively correlated with IMC solubility for LW pigs （P 〈 0.01） and LL pigs （P 〈 0.05）, respectively. These results suggest that the muscle Col3al gene expression is affected by body weight and genotype and has important effect on IMC content and characteristics.

Cloning of a MADS Box Gene(GhMADS3)from Cotton and Analysis of Its Homeotic Role in Transgenic Tobacco

A MADS box gene （GhMADS3） was cloned from cotton （Gossypium hirsutum L.） based on EST sequences. The predicted protein sequence of GhMADS3 showed 85%, 73%, and 62% identity with Theobroma cacao TcAG, Antirrhinum majus FAR, and Arabidopsis thaliana AG, respectively, and was grouped with AG homologues when the full length sequences excluding N-extensions were compared. GhMADS3 expressed in the wild type cotton flower primarily in stamens and carpels, which was comparable to AG in Arabidopsis. However, it was not expressed in floral buds of a homeotic cotton variant chvl. Ectopic expression of GhMADS3 in tobacco （Nicotiana tabacum L.） resulted in flowers with sepal-to-carpel and petal-to-stamen transformation. The carpelloid first whorl organs, with stigmatic tissue on their upper edges, had a white appearance when compared with the dark green color of the wild type sepals. At times, long filaments were observed at the fusion site of the first carpelloid oranges. The second whorl organs in staminoid were usually smaller than the wild type and the color was changed from pink to white. These results suggest that GhMADS3 has a homeotic role in flower development.

Genetic Polymorphism of TLR4 Gene and Correlation with Mastitis in Cattle

Toll-like receptor 4 （TLR4） recognizes pathogen ligands and mediates signaling to initiate innate and adaptive immune responses. In this experiment, a 316 bp and 382 bp fragments of TLR4 gene named T4CRBR1 and T4CRBR2, of Chinese Holstein, Sanhe cattle, and Chinese Simmental was amplified by polymerase chain reaction （PCR）, respectively. The genetic polymorphisms in the three populations were detected by Single-Strand Conformational Polymorphism （SSCP） in the first locus and by digesting the fragments with restriction endonuclease Alu I in the second one. Results showed that both alleles （A and B） of two loci were found in all the three populations and the value of polymorphism information content （PIC） indicated that these were a moderate polymorphism. Statistical results of X^2 test indicated that two polymorphism sites in the three populations fitted with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium （P 〉 0.05）. After sequencing, A-G single nucleotide polymorphism （SNP） was identified at nucleotide 4,525 in intron 1 of TLR4 gene and C-T SNP was identified at nucleotide 1,397 in exon 3 of TLR4 gene. Meanwhile, the effect of polymorphism of TLR4 gene on somatic cell score （SCS） was analyzed, the results indicated that the cattle with allele A in T4CRBR1 showed lower somatic cell score than that of allele B （P 〈 0.05）. In short, the allele A might play an important role in mastiffs resistance in bovine.