Molecular cloning,characterization and promoter analysis of LbgCWIN1 and its expression profiles in response to exogenous sucrose during in vitro bulblet initiation in lily

Lily(Lilium spp.) is an important ornamental flower, which is mainly propagated by bulbs. Cell wall invertases(CWINs), which catalyze the irreversibly conversion of sucrose into glucose and fructose in the extracellular space, are key enzymes participating in sucrose allocation in higher plants. Previous studies have shown that CWINs play an essential role in bulblet initiation process in bulbous crops, but the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. Here, a CWIN gene of Lilium brownii var. giganteum(Lbg) was identified and amplified from genomic DNA. Quantitative RT-PCR assays revealed that the expression level of LbgCWIN1 was highly upregulated exactly when the endogenous starch degraded in non-sucrose medium during in vitro bulblet initiation in Lbg. Phylogenetic relationship, motif, and domain analysis of LbgCWIN1 protein and CWINs in other plant species showed that all sequences of these CWIN proteins were highly conserved. The promoter sequence of LbgCWIN1 possessed a number of alpha-amylase-, phytohormone-, light-and stress-responsive cis-elements. Meanwhile, β-glucuronidase(GUS) assay showed that the 459 bp upstream fragment from the translational start site displayed maximal promoter activity. These results revealed that LbgCWIN1 might function in the process of in vitro bulblet initiation and be in the response to degradation of endogenous starch.

Gene characterization and phylogenetic analysis of four mitochondrial genomes in Caenogastropoda

Caenogastropoda is a highly diverse group,containing~60%of all existing gastropods.Species in this subclass predominantly inhabit marine environments and have a high ecological and economic value.Owing to the increase in relevant phylogenetic studies,our understanding of between species relatedness in Caenogastropoda has improved.However,the biodiversity,taxonomic status,and phylogenetic relationships of this group remain unclear.In the present study,we performed next-generation sequencing of four complete mitochondrial genomes from three families(Buccinidae,Columbellidae,and Cypraeidae)and the four mitogenomes were classical circular structures,with a length of 16177 bp in Volutharpa ampullacea,16244 bp in Mitrella albuginosa,16926bp in Mauritia arabica asiatica and 15422 bp in Erronea errones.Base composition analysis indicated that whole sequences were biased toward A and T.Then compared them with 171 complete mitochondrial genomes of Caenogastropoda.The phylogenetic relationship of Caenogastropoda derived from Maximum Likelihood(ML)and Bayesian Inference(BI)trees constructed based on CDS sequences was consistent with the results of traditional morphological analysis,with all three families showing close relationships.This study supported Caenogastropoda at the molecular level as a separate clade of Mollusca.According to our divergence time estimations,Caenogastropoda was formed during the middle Triassic period(~247.2–237 Ma).Our novel mitochondrial genomes provide evidence for the speciation of Caenogastropoda in addition to elucidating the mitochondrial genomic evolution of this subclass.

Cloning and Sequence Analysis of Actin Gene from Rehmannia glutinosa

[ Objective ] The aim of this study is to clone and analyze the actin gene from Rehmannia glutinosa. [ Method ] Degenerate primers were designed according to the conserved regions of actin sequences of Rehmannia glutinosa and its similar species, RT-PCR was next conducted to amplify the actin gene from Rehmannia glutinosa. [ Result] The amplified fragment is 724 bp and correspondingly 240 amino acids. The BLAST results indicate that the homology between the amplified fragment and other higher plants for aetin gene sequences and amino acid are more than 80% and 90%, respectively, suggesting that the amplified fragment is the actin gene of Rehmannia glutinosa. [ Conclusion] Phylogenetic analysis shows that the actin gene of Rehmannia glutinosa has an intimate genetic relationship with actin7 gene of Nicotiana tabacum.

Phylogenetic Analysis of Actinomycete Isolates from Iron Mine Tailings

[Objective]The aim was to discuss the actinomycete biodiversity of iron-mine tailings by phylogenetic analysis of 12 typical isolates. [Method]The genomic DNAs were extracted by phenol-chloroform method; phylogeny analysis was carried out based on 16S rDNA PCR amplification and sequencing. [Result]The results showed that all the 12 strains belong to the genus Streptomyces sharing 98.7%-99.9% similarities with their nearest known neighbors. [Conclusion]Streptomyces is the dominant culturable actinomycete group of iron mine tailings,in which there are many potential novel species.

Determination and Analysis of Mitochondrial ND2 Gene Sequence of Anas platyrhynchos

[Objective] The study was to analyze the phylogenesis of Anas platyrhynchos. [Method] Complete sequence of mitochondrial ND2 gene of 4 Anas platyrhynchos was determined by direct DNA sequencing based on PCR products. Combined with ND2 gene sequences of the Anas Linnaeus accessed in GenBank, phylogenetic tree was constructed by Neighbor-joining and maximum parsimony methods. [Result] The ND2 gene sequences of 4 Anas platyrhynchos were identical(1 041 bp in length; the nucleotide contents of A, G, T, and C were 28.91%, 13.35%, 20.75% and 36.98% respectively; A+T content approximated to that of C+G). Sequences of ND2 gene of mallard were same as spotbill duck, and had high homology with others. The phylogenetic trees indicated mallard and spotbilled duck were close in genetic relationship, both shared a haplotype; then Philippine duck, green-winged teal and northern pintail fell into branch ''A". [Conclusion] The domestic duck may be domesticated from mallard and spotbilled duck.

Phylogenetic Analysis of Cystatin

[Objective] The molecular weight,isoelectric point,signal peptide,domain and other properties of the encoding protein of the known cystatin genes were analyzed.[Method] Cystatin genes were searched in NCBI and the related amino acids sequences were downloaded.SMART software was used to predict the domain.SingalP program was used to search signal peptide.TMHMM program was used to search and predict the transmembrane domain.CLUSTAL W program was used to make multiple sequence alignment.Using MEGA3.1 software,...

Isolation and Phylogenetic Analysis of Plant Pathogen-Inhibiting Strains from Southern Ocean

[Objective] The aim was to isolate the strains resistant to plant pathogenic fungi from Southern Ocean and study their phylogenetic relationship and antimicrobial spectrum. [Method] Agar diffusion method was adopted to screen antimicrobial strains and determine the antimicrobial spectrum. Phylogenetic relationship of the strains was analyzed by neighbor-joining method of the Mega 4.0 software. [Result] Twenty antimicrobial strains were screened from seawater of Southern Ocean collected during the 27^th Chinese Antarctic Scientific Expedition. Molecular identification and phyloge- netic analysis indicated that two antimicrobial strains were members of Pseu- domonas, two strains were members of Psychrobacter, and the other 16 trains were members of Pseudoalteromonas. The antimicrobial spectrum of four strains which had higher antimicrobial activity indicated that the strains 312, 83-1 and 195 greatly inhibited the growth of Fusarium oxysporum, Rhizoctonia solani K（Jhn, Phytophthora capsici Leonian, Verticillium dahliae, Alternaria solani, Thanatephoru scucumeris and Phomopsis asparagi （Sacc）; strain 312-1 had obvious antimicrobial effect on the six of the plant pathogens except R. solani. [Conclusion] Four strains which had higher antimicrobial effect were obtained and should be further studied for development and application.

Cloning,Sequencing and Molecular Phylogenetic Analysis of the Mitochondrial Cytochrome Oxidase Ⅰ Gene of Chilo suppressalis

[Objective] The research aimed at cloning and analyzing mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I gene（cox 1）of C.suppressalis.[Method] The mitochondrial cox 1 gene of C.suppressalis was cloned with PCR method and sequenced.Then,cox1 sequences of other 21 Lepidopteran species were obtained by blasting the GenBank with cox 1 gene sequence of C.suppressalis.Finally,homology comparison and molecular phylogenitic analysis among the 22 Lepidopteran species were conducted.[Result] The open reading frame of cox 1 gene from C.suppressalis contained 1 531 nucleotides encoding a putative protein of 510 amino acids.The cox1 gene used a start codon CGA,and an incomplete termination codon composed of only T.Based on the amino acid sequences of cox 1,the molecular phylogenetic tree of Lepidoptera was reconstructed using the maximum likelihood（ML）method.The molecular phylogenetic tree was similar to the morphological phylogenetic tree mainly,but also showed some differences.[Conclusion] The result will provide reference for further research on expression and application of cox 1 gene.

Cloning and Phylogenetic Analysis of NS1 Genes from Different Isolates of H9N2 Subtype Duck Influenza Virus

[ Objective] The study aimed to lay a foundation for the further studies on function mechanism of NS1 protein in the interspecies transmission of waterfowl influenza virus. [Method] Using the serologic assay and the specific RT-PCR method, some strains of H9 subtype waterfowl influenza virus were isolated from the 12 to 20 day-old muscovy duck flocks without any clinical symptoms in different areas of Guangdong Province. Four of these strains, including A/duck/ZQ/303/2007（H9N2） （A3 for short）, A/Duck/FJ/301/2007 （H9N2） （C1 for short）, A/Duck/NH/306/2007（H9N2） （ D6 for short）, A/duck/SS/402/2007（H9N2） （ E2 for short）, and a strain named A/duck/ZC/2007（H9N2） （L1 for short） from a muscovy duck died of avian influenza virus （AIV）, were used for NSl gene cloning and sequencing. Subsequently, the obtained NSl gene sequences were compared with other NS1 sequences registered in GenBank, and the phylogenetic analysis was also conducted. [Result] When compared with the H9N2 AIV NS1 sequences in GenBank, the NSl genes of the four AIV strains A3, C1, 136 and E2 displayed homologies ranging from 99% to 100% at nucleotide level, and 95% to 100% at amino acid level; while the NSl gene of L1 strain displayed homology ranging from 94% to 97% at nucleotide level, and 93% to 98% at amino acid level. The phylogenetic tree demonstrated that A3, C1, D6 and E2 were highly resemblant, and L1 was closest to AY66473 （chicken, 2003）. By comparison with the NS1 gene sequences of L1, AF523514 （duck）, AY664743 （chicken） and EF155262.1 （quail） using DNAstar, A3, C1, D6 and E.2 presented nucleotide variations at site 21 （ R→Q）, 70, 71 （ KE→EG）, 86 （ A→S）, 124 （V→M） and 225 （ S→N）, and amino acid variations at site 21,70, 71 and 86 in dsRNA- dependent protein kinase （PKR） binding domain of NSl gene, which induced the evident variations of antigenic determinant and surface proba- bility plot of NS1 protein. [ Conclusion] This study suggested that the amino acid sequence variation in PKR binding domain of NS1 protein had something to do with the virus pathogenicity.

Complete Mitochondrial Genome of the Red Fox (Vuples vuples) and Phylogenetic Analysis with Other Canid Species

The whole mitochondrial genome sequence of red fox （Vuples vuples） was determined. It had a total length of 16 723 bp. As in most mammal mitochondrial genome, it contained 13 protein coding genes, two ribosome RNA genes, 22 transfer RNA genes and one control region. The base composition was 31.3% A, 26.1% C, 14.8% G and 27.8% T, respectively. The codon usage of red fox, arctic fox, gray wolf, domestic dog and coyote followed the same pattern except for an unusual ATT start codon, which initiates the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 3 gene in the red fox. A long tandem repeat rich in AC was found between conserved sequence block 1 and 2 in the control region. In order to confirm the phylogenetic relationships of red fox to other canids, phylogenetic trees were reconstructed by neighbor-joining and maximum parsimony methods using 12 concatenated heavy-strand protein-coding genes. The result indicated that arctic fox was the sister group of red fox and they both belong to the red fox-like clade in family Canidae, while gray wolf, domestic dog and coyote belong to wolf-like clade. The result was in accordance with existing phylogenetic results.

Genome-wide analysis of heat shock transcription factor families in rice and Arabidopsis

The heat shock transcription factors （HSFs） are the major heat shock factors regulating the heat stress response. They participate in regulating the expression of heat shock proteins （HSPs）, which are critical in the protection against stress damage and many other important biological processes. Study of the HSF gene family is important for understanding the mechanism by which plants respond to stress. The completed genome sequences of rice （Oryza sativa） and Arabidopsis （Arabidopsis thaliana） constitute a valuable resource for comparative genomic analysis, as they are representatives of the two major evolutionary lineages within the angiosperms： the monocotyledons and the dicotyledons. The identification of phylogenefic relationships among HSF proteins in these species is a fundamental step to unravel the functionality of new and yet uncharacterized genes belonging to this family.In this study, the full complement of HSF genes in rice and Arabidopsis has probably been identified through the genome-wide scan. Phylogenetic analyses resulted in the identification of three major clusters of orthologous genes that contain members belonging to both species, which must have been represented in their common ancestor before the taxonomic splitting of the angiosperms. Fttrther analysis of the phylogenetic tree reveals a possible dicot specific gene group. We also identified nine pairs of paralogs, as evidence for studies on the evolution history of rice HSF family and rice genome evolution. Expression data analysis indicates that HSF proteins are widely expressed in plants. These results provide a solid base for future functional genomic studies of the HSF gene family in rice and Arabidopsis.

Genome-wide identification, characterization, and expression analysis of the SWEET gene family in cucumber

SWEETs （sugars will eventually be exported transporters） are a novel class of recently identified sugar transporters that play important roles in diverse physiological processes. However, only a few species of the plant SWEETgene family have been functionally identified. Up till now, there has been no systematic analysis of the SWEETgene family in Cucurbitaceae crops. Here, a genome-wide characterization of this family was conducted in cucumber（Cucumis sativus L.）. A total of 17 CsSWEETgenes were identified, which are not evenly distributed over the seven cucumber chromosomes. Cucumber SWEET protein sequences possess seven conserved domains and two putative serine phosphorylation sites. The phylo- genetic tree of the SWEET genes in cucumber, Arabidopsis thaliana, and Oryza sativa was constructed, and all the SWEET genes were divided into four clades. In addition, a number of putative cis-elements were identified in the promoter regions of these CsSWEET genes： nine types involved in phytohormone responses and eight types involved in stress responses. Moreover, the transcript levels of CsSWEETgenes were analyzed in various tissues using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. A majority （70.58%） of the CsSWEET genes were confined to reproductive tissue development. Finally, 18 putative watermelon ClaSWEETgenes and 18 melon CmSWEETgenes were identified that showed a high degree of similarity with CsSWEETgenes. The results from this study provided a basic understanding of the CsSWEETgenes and may also facilitate future research to elucidate the function of SWEET genes in cucumber and other Cucurbitaceae crops.

Structure and expression analysis of the sucrose synthase gene family in apple

Sucrose synthases(SUS) are a family of enzymes that play pivotal roles in carbon partitioning, sink strength and plant development. A total of 11 SUS genes have been identified in the genome of Malus domestica(Md SUSs), and phylogenetic analysis revealed that the Md SUS genes were divided into three groups, named as SUS I, SUS II and SUS III, respectively. The SUS I and SUS III groups included four homologs each, whereas the SUS II group contained three homologs. SUS genes in the same group showed similar structural characteristics, such as exon number, size and length distribution. After assessing four different tissues, Md SUS1 s and Md SUS2.1 showed the highest expression in fruit, whereas Md SUS2.2/2.3 and Md SUS3 s exhibit the highest expression in shoot tips. Most Md SUSs showed decreased expression during fruit development, similar to SUS enzyme activity, but both Md SUS2.1 and Md SUS1.4 displayed opposite expression profiles. These results suggest that different Md SUS genes might play distinct roles in the sink-source sugar cycle and sugar utilization in apple sink tissues.

A survey on porcine circovirus type 2 infection and phylogenetic analysis of its ORF2 gene in Hangzhou,Zhejiang Province,China

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) is closely related to the postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS). In this study, the pig serum and tissue samples collected from different regions of Hangzhou District in Zhejiang Province of China between 2003 and 2005 were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for PCV2 antibody and by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for ORF2 gene. The results show that out of 1250 randomly collected serum samples, 500 sera (40%) were seropositive for PCV2. PCR results demonstrate that Hangzhou PCV2 with more than 50% Chinese PCV2 strains and French PCV2 formed Cluster A. Only one PCV2 from Hangzhou belonged to Cluster B with some other Chinese PCV2 and Netherlands’s isolates. Cluster C consisted of PCV2 isolates from China, US, Canada, UK and Germany. The results indicate that the PCV2 infection was widespread in Hangzhou.

Epidemiological Investigation and Genome Analysis of Duck Circovirus in Southern China

Duck circovirus （DuCV）, a potential immunosuppressive virus, was investigated in Southern China from March 2006 to December 2009 by using a polymerase chain reaction （PCR） based method. In this study, a total of 138 sick or dead duck samples from 18 different farms were examined with an average DuCV infection rate of-35%. It was found that ducks between the ages of 40~60 days were more susceptible to DuCV. There was no evidence showing that the DuCV virus was capable of vertical transmission. Farms with positive PCR results exhibited no regularly apparent clinical abnormalities such as feathering disorders, growth retardation or lower-than-average weight. The complete genomes of 91 strains from Fujian Province and 1 from Zhejiang Province were sequenced and analyzed. The 10 DuCV genomes, comlbared with others genomes downloaded from GenBank, ranged in size from 1988 to 1996 base pairs, with sequence identities ranging from 83.2% to 99.8%. Phylogenetic analysis based on genome sequences demonstrated that DuCVs can be divided into two distinct genetic genotypes, Group I （the Euro-USA lineage） and Group II（the Taiwan lineage）, with approximately 10.0% genetic difference between the two types. Molecular epidemiological data suggest there is no obvious difference among DuCV strains isolated from different geographic locations or different species, including Duck, Muscovy duck, Mule duck, Cheery duck, Mulard duck and Pekin duck.

Identification and Phylogenetic Analysis of an Orf Virus Isolated from an Outbreak in Boer Goat in Shanxi Province

To identify and analyze the Orf virus in Shanxi Province, China, an Orf virus strain was successfully isolated from crust materials of boer goat with clinical sore mouth symptom from a goat farm of Shanxi Province by passaging in lamb testis （LT）. The Orf virus was identified by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） test, recurrent infection test, transmission electron microscopy, and PCR. The nucleotide and amino acid sequences of two genes of the Orf virus were analyzed. The results showed that under the electron microscopy the virus had a presence of typical parapoxvirus virions and there were many eosinophilic intracytoplasmic inclusions observed by hematoxylin-eosin （H＆E） stain. In ELISA test, optical density （OD） readings of the sample showed a positive result, and the rabbits infected with the virus showed a typically Orf virus-infected appearance. All these findings proved that the sample was an Orf virus. The phylogenetic studies of Orf B2L and Orf F1L genes showed that the virus clustered in different branches and were closer to the Orf virus Nantou （DQ904351） and the OV-SA00 isolates （AY386264）. Furthermore, the above results may provide some insight into the genotype of the etiological agent responsible for the Orf outbreak in Shanxi Province, and could also provide a comparative view of the B2L and F1L genes of parapoxvirus.

Cloning and characterization of an actin gene of Chlamys farreri and the phylogenetic analysis of mollusk actins

An actin gene (CfACT1) was cloned by using RT-PCR, 3’and 5’RACE from hemocytes of the sea scallop Chlamys farreri. The full length of the transcript is 1 535 bp, which contains a long 3’ un-translated region of 436bp and 59bp of a 5’ un-translated sequence. The open reading frame encodes a polypeptide of 376 amino acids. Sequence comparisons indicated that CfACT1 is more closely related to vertebrate cytoplasmic actins than muscle types. Phylogenetic analysis showed that molluscan actins could be generally divided into two categories: muscle and cytoplasmic, although both are similar to vertebrate cytoplasmic actins. It was also inferred that different isotypes existed in muscle or cytoplasma in mollusks. The genomic sequence of CfACT1 was cloned and sequenced. Only one intron was detected: it was located between codons 42 and 43 and different from vertebrate actin genes.

Characterization and phylogenetic analysis of a phenanthrene-degrading strain isolated from oil-contaminated soil

Bacterium strain EVA17 was isolated from an oil-contaminated soil, and identified as Sphingomonas sp. based on analysis of 16S rDNA sequence,cellular fatty acid composition and physiological-chemical tests. The salicylate hydroxylase and catechol 2,3-dioxygenase(C23O) were detected in cell-free lysates, suggesting a pathway for phenanthrene catabolism via salicylate and catechol. Alignment showed that both of the C23O and GST genes of the strain EVA17 had high similarity with homologues of strains from genus Sphingomonas. The phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rDNA and C23O gene sequence indicated that EVA17 should be classified into genus Sphingomonas, although the two phylogenetic trees were slightly different from each other. The results of co-amplification and sequence determination indicated that GST gene should be located upstream of the C23O gene.

Identification and expression analysis of group Ⅲ WRKY transcription factors in cotton

The WRKY proteins constitute a large family of transcription factors in plants containing highly conserved WRKYGQK sequences and zinc-finger-like motifs. To comprehensively study WRKY III genes in cotton, we analyzed the genome sequences of Gossypium hirsutum, G. raimondii and G. arboreum. According to the three genome sequences, 18 group III Gh WRKY genes were identified in G. hirsutum, 12 both in G. raimondii and G. arboreum. Phylogenetic and motif analysis showed that proteins with high similarities could be clustered together and had the same motif components. The ratios of non-synonymous（Ka） to synonymous（Ks） of the Gh WRKY to Gr WRKY or Ga WRKY were lower than 1, which indicated that group III WRKY genes in Gossypium species are under purifying selection. Expression analysis revealed that group III Gh WRKY genes expressed during fiber development and leaf senescence, and most of them could be induced by salicylic acid（SA）, jasmonic acid（JA）, ethylene, abscisic acid（ABA）, mannitol, and Na Cl both in roots and cotyledons. Our study gives a briefly introduction on cotton group III WRKY genes and implicates their potential function in cotton fiber development, leaf senescence and abiotic stresses.

Phylogenetic Analysis and Expression Patterns of the MAPK Gene Family in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Mitogen activated protein kinases （MAPK） cascades based on protein phosphorylation play an important role in plant growth and development. In this study, we have identified 15 putative members of the wheat MAPK gene （TaMPK） family through an in silico search of wheat expressed sequence tags （EST） databases based on the presence of amino acid sequence of Arabidopsis and rice MAPKs. Phylogenetic analyses of MAPKs from wheat, rice and Arabidopsis genomes have classified them into seven subgroups （A, B, C, D, E, F, and G）. Using the available EST information as a source of expression data, the MAPK family genes from Triticum aestivum were detected in diverse tissues. Further expression analysis of the MAPKs in NCBI EST database revealed that their transcripts were most abundant in callus （20%）, followed by leaf （12%） and inflorescence （12%）. Most MAPK family genes showed some tissue specificity.