Global Pharmacopoeia Genome Database is an integrated and mineable genomic database for traditional medicines derived from eight international pharmacopoeias

Genomic data have demonstrated considerable traction in accelerating contemporary studies in traditional medicine. However,the lack of a uniform format and dispersed storage limits the full potential of herb genomic data. In this study, we developed a Global Pharmacopoeia Genome Database(GPGD). The database contains 34,346 records for 903 herb species from eight global pharmacopoeias(Brazilian, Egyptian, European, Indian, Japanese, Korean, the Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China, and U.S. Pharmacopoeia’s Herbal Medicines Compendium). In particular, the GPGD contains 21,872 DNA barcodes from 867 species, 2,203 organelle genomes from 674 species, 55 whole genomes from 49 species, 534 genomic sequencing datasets from 366 species, and 9,682 transcriptome datasets from 350 species. Among the organelle genomes, 534 genomes from 366 species were newly generated in this study. Whole genomes, organelle genomes, genomic fragments, transcriptomes, and DNA barcodes were uniformly formatted and arranged by species. The GPGD is publicly accessible at http://www.gpgenome.com and serves as an essential resource for species identification, decomposition of biosynthetic pathways, and molecular-assisted breeding analysis. Thus, the database is an invaluable resource for future studies on herbal medicine safety, drug discovery, and the protection and rational use of herbal resources.

T4SP: A Novel Tool and Database for Type IV Secretion Systems in Bacterial Genomes

Secretion systems, macromolecules to pass which can mediate the across cellular membranes, are essential for virulent and genetic material exchange among bacterial species[1]. Type IV secretion system （T4SS） is one of the secretion systems and it usually consists of 12 genes： VirB1, VirB2 ...VirB11, and VirD4[2]. The structure and molecular mechanisms of these genes have been well analyzed in Gram-negative strains[3] and Gram-positive strains were once believed to be lack of T4SS. However, some recent studies revealed that one or more virB/D genes also exist in some kinds of Gram-positive bacteria and play similar role, and form a T4SS-like system[3]. The VirBl-like, VirB4, VirB6, and VirD4 genes were identified in the chromosome of Gram-positive bacterium Streptococcus suis in our previous studies and their role as important mobile elements for horizontal transfer to recipients in an 89 K pathogenicity island （PAl） was demonstrated[45]. However, their structure and molecular mechanisms in other strains, especially in Gram-positive strains, are remained unclear.

The pineapple reference genome:Telomere-to-telomere assembly, manually curated annotation, and comparative analysis

Pineapple is the third most crucial tropical fruit worldwide and available in five varieties.Genomes of different pineapple varieties have been released to date;however,none of them are complete,with all exhibiting substantial gaps and representing only two of the five pineapple varieties.This significantly hinders the advancement of pineapple breeding efforts.In this study,we sequenced the genomes of three varieties:a wild pineapple variety,a fiber pineapple variety,and a globally cultivated edible pineapple variety.We constructed the first gap-free reference genome(Ref)for pineapple.By consolidating multiple sources of evidence and manually revising each gene structure annotation,we identified 26,656 proteincoding genes.The BUSCO evaluation indicated a completeness of 99.2%,demonstrating the high quality of the gene structure annotations in this genome.Utilizing these resources,we identified 7,209 structural variations across the three varieties.Approximately 30.8%of pineapple genes were located within±5 kb of structural variations,including 30 genes associated with anthocyanin synthesis.Further analysis and functional experiments demonstrated that the high expression of AcMYB528 aligns with the accumulation of anthocyanins in the leaves,both of which may be affected by a 1.9-kb insertion fragment.In addition,we developed the Ananas Genome Database,which offers data browsing,retrieval,analysis,and download functions.The construction of this database addresses the lack of pineapple genome resource databases.In summary,we acquired a seamless pineapple reference genome with highquality gene structure annotations,providing a solid foundation for pineapple genomics and a valuable reference for pineapple breeding.

Bombyx mori Pyridoxal Kinase cDNA Cloning and Enzymatic Characterization

Pyridoxal kinase （PLK） （EC 2.7.1.35） catalyzes the ATP-dependent phosphorylation of pyridoxal, generating pyridoxal-5＇-phosphate （PLP）, an important cofactor for many enzymatic reactions. Bombyx mori, similar to mammals, relies on a nutritional source of vitamin B6 to synthesize PLP. This article describes how a cDNA encoding PLK was cloned from Bombyx mori using the PCR method （GenBank accession number： DQ452397）. The cDNA has an 894 bp open reading frame and encodes a protein of 298 amino acid residues with a molecular mass of 33.1 k.Da. The amino acid sequence shares 48.6% identity with that of human PLK, and it also contains signature conserved motifs of the PLK family. However, the protein is 10 or more amino acids shorter than the PLK from mammals and plants, and several amino acid residues conserved in the PLK from mammals and plants are changed in the protein. The cDNA cloned was expressed successfully in Escherichia coli using the T7 promoter/T7 RNA polymerase expression system, and the crude extracts containing the expressed product were found to have strong PLK enzymatic activity with a value of 30 nmol/min/mg, confirming that the cDNA encodes the functional PLK of Bombyx mori. This is the first identification of a gene encoding PLK in insects.

Identification of key genes controlling cancer stem cell characteristics in gastric cancer

BACKGROUND Self-renewal of gastric cancer stem cells(GCSCs)is considered to be the underlying cause of the metastasis,drug resistance,and recurrence of gastric cancer(GC).AIM To characterize the expression of stem cell-related genes in GC.METHODS RNA sequencing results and clinical data for gastric adenoma and adenocarcinoma samples were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas database,and the results of the GC mRNA expression-based stemness index(mRNAsi)were analyzed.Weighted gene coexpression network analysis was then used to find modules of interest and their key genes.Survival analysis of key genes was performed using the online tool Kaplan-Meier Plotter,and the online database Oncomine was used to assess the expression of key genes in GC.RESULTS mRNAsi was significantly upregulated in GC tissues compared to normal gastric tissues(P<0.0001).A total of 16 modules were obtained from the gene coexpression network;the brown module was most positively correlated with mRNAsi.Sixteen key genes(BUB1,BUB1 B,NCAPH,KIF14,RACGAP1,RAD54 L,TPX2,KIF15,KIF18 B,CENPF,TTK,KIF4 A,SGOL2,PLK4,XRCC2,a n d C1 orf112)were identified in the brown module.The functional and pathway enrichment analyses showed that the key genes were significantly enriched in the spindle cellular component,the sister chromatid segregation biological process,the motor activity molecular function,and the cell cycle and homologous recombination pathways.Survival analysis and Oncomine analysis revealed that the prognosis of patients with GC and the expression of three genes(RAD54 L,TPX2,and XRCC2)were consistently related.CONCLUSION Sixteen key genes are primarily associated with stem cell self-renewal and cell proliferation characteristics.RAD54 L,TPX2,and XRCC2 are the most likely therapeutic targets for inhibiting the stemness characteristics of GC cells.

Association between chromosomal aberration of COX8C and tethered spinal cord syndrome:array-based comparative genomic hybridization analysis

Copy number variations have been found in patients with neural tube abnormalities.In this study,we performed genome-wide screening using high-resolution array-based comparative genomic hybridization in three children with tethered spinal cord syndrome and two healthy parents.Of eight copy number variations,four were non-polymorphic.These non-polymorphic copy number variations were associated with Angelman and Prader-Willi syndromes,and microcephaly.Gene function enrichment analysis revealed that COX8 C,a gene associated with metabolic disorders of the nervous system,was located in the copy number variation region of Patient 1.Our results indicate that array-based comparative genomic hybridization can be used to diagnose tethered spinal cord syndrome.Our results may help determine the pathogenesis of tethered spinal cord syndrome and prevent occurrence of this disease.

Construction and validation of an immune-related lncRNA prognostic model for rectal adenocarcinomas

Objective This study aimed to construct a prognostic model for rectal adenocarcinomas based on immune-related long noncoding RNAs(lncRNAs)and verify its prediction efficiency.Methods Transcript data and clinical data of rectal adenocarcinomas were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA)database.Perl software(strawberry version)and R language(version 3.6.1)were used to analyze the immune-related genes and immune-related lncRNAs of rectal adenocarcinomas,and the differentially expressed immune-related lncRNAs were screened according to the criteria|log2FC|>1 and P<0.05.The key immune-related lncRNAs were screened using single-factor Cox regression analysis and lasso regression analysis.Multivariate Cox regression analysis was performed to construct an immune-related lncRNA prognostic model using the risk scores.Next,we evaluated the effectiveness of the model through Kaplan-Meier(K-M)survival analysis,ROC curve analysis,and independent prognostic analysis of clinical features.In addition,prognostic biomarkers of immune-related lncRNAs in the model were analyzed by K-M survival analysis.Results In this study,we obtained gene expression profile matrices of 89 rectal adenocarcinomas and 2 paracancerous specimens from TCGA database and applied immunologic signatures to these transcripts.Through R and Perl software analysis,we obtained 847 immune-related lncRNAs and 331 protein-encoded immune-related genes in rectal adenocarcinomas.Eight important immune-related lncRNAs related to the prognosis of rectal adenocarcinomas were identified using univariate Cox regression and lasso regression analysis.Furthermore,four immune-related lncRNAs were identified as prognostic markers of rectal adenocarcinomas via multivariate Cox regression analysis.The prognostic risk model was as follows:risk score=(-4.084)*expression LINC01871+(3.112)*expression AL158152.2+(7.616)*expression PXN-AS1+(-0.867)*expression HCP5.The independent prognostic effect of the rectal adenocarcinoma risk score model was revealed through K-M analysis,ROC curve analysis,and univariate,and multivariate Cox regression analysis(P=0.035).LINC01871(P=0.006),PXN-AS1(P=0.008),and AL158152.2(P=0.0386)were closely correlated with the prognosis of rectal adenocarcinomas through the K-M survival analysis.Conclusion We constructed a prognostic model of rectal adenocarcinomas based on four immune-related lncRNAs by analyzing the data based on TCGA database,with high prediction accuracy.We also identified two biomarkers with poor prognosis(PXN-AS1 and AL158152.2)and one biomarker with good prognosis(LINC01871).

Prognostic risk model construction and prognostic biomarkers identification in esophageal adenocarcinoma based on immune-related long noncoding RNA

Objective The aim of this study was to construct a prognostic model of esophageal adenocarcinoma(EAC)based on immune-related long noncoding RNAs(immune-related lncRNAs)and identify prognostic biomarkers using the Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA)database.Methods Whole genomic mRNA expression and clinical data of esophageal adenocarcinoma were obtained from the TCGA database.The software Strawberry Perl,R and R packets were used to identify the immune-related genes and lncRNAs of esophageal adenocarcinoma,and for data processing and analysis.The differentially expressed lncRNAs were detected while comparing esophageal adenocarcinoma and normal tissue samples.The key immune-related lncRNAs were screened using lasso regression analysis and univariate cox regression analysis,and used to construct the prognostic model using multivariate cox regression analysis.To evaluate the accuracy of the risk prognostic model,all esophageal adenocarcinomas were divided into high-risk and low-risk groups according to the median risk score,after which Kaplan-Meier(K-M)survival curves,operating characteristic(ROC)curve and independent prognostic analysis of clinical traits were created.In addition,statistically significant immune-related lncRNAs and potential prognostic biomarkers were identified using the prognostic model and multifactor cox regression analysis for k-m survival analysis.Results A total of 1322 differentially expressed immune-related lncRNAs were identified,28 of which were associated with prognosis via univariate cox regression analysis.In addition,K-M survival analysis showed that the total survival time of the higher risk group was significantly shorter than that of the lower risk group(P=1.063e-10).The area under the ROC curve of 5-year total survival rate was 0.90.The risk score showed independent prognostic risk for esophageal adenocarcinoma via single factor and multifactorial independent prognostic analyses.In addition,the HR and 95%CI of each key immune-related lncRNA were calculated using multivariate Cox regression.Using k-m survival analysis,we found that 5 out of 12 key significant immune-related lncRNAs had independent prognostic value[AL136115.1(P=0.006),AC079684.1(P=0.008),AC07916394.1(P=0.0386),AC087620.1(P=0.041)and MIRLET7BHG(P=0.044)].Conclusion The present study successfully constructed a prognostic model of esophageal adenocarcinoma based on the TCGA database,with moderate predictive accuracy.The model consisted of the expression level of 12 immune-related lncRNAs.Furthermore,the study identified one favorable prognostic biomarker,MIRLET7BHG,and four poor prognostic biomarkers(AL136115.1,AC079684.1,AC016394.1,and AC087620.1).

Differentiating snail intermediate hosts of Schistosoma spp.using molecular approaches:fundamental to successful integrated control mechanism in Africa

Background:Snail intermediate hosts play active roles in the transmission of snail-borne trematode infections in Africa.A good knowledge of snail-borne diseases epidemiology particularly snail intermediate host populations would provide the necessary impetus to complementing existing control strategy.Main body:This review highlights the importance of molecular approaches in differentiating snail hosts population structure and the need to provide adequate information on snail host populations by updating snail hosts genome database for Africa,in order to equip different stakeholders with adequate information on the ecology of snail intermediate hosts and their roles in the transmission of different diseases.Also,we identify the gaps and areas where there is need for urgent intervention to facilitate effective integrated control of schistosomiasis and other snail-borne trematode infections.Conclusions:Prioritizing snail studies,especially snail differentiation using molecular tools will boost disease surveillance and also enhance efficient schistosomaisis control programme in Africa.

rePROBE:Workflow for Revised Probe Assignment and Updated Probe-set Annotation in Microarrays

Commercial and customized microarrays are valuable tools for the analysis of holistic expression patterns,but require the integration of the latest genomic information.This study provides a comprehensive workflow implemented in an R package(rePROBE)to assign the entire probes and to annotate the probe sets based on up-to-date genomic and transcriptomic information.The rePROBE package can be applied to available gene expression microarray platforms and addresses both public and custom databases.The revised probe assignment and updated probe-set annotation are applied to commercial microarrays available for different livestock species,i.e.,chicken(Gallus gallus;ChiGene-1_0-st:443,579 probes and 18,530 probe sets),pig(Sus scrofa;PorGene-1_1-st:592,005 probes and 25,779 probe sets),and cattle(Bos Taurus;BovGene-1_0-st:530,717 probes and 24,759 probe sets),as well as available for human(Homo sapiens;HuGene-1_0-st)and mouse(Mus musculus HT_MG-430_PM).Using current species-specific transcriptomic information(RefSeq,Ensembl,and partially non-redundant nucleotide sequences)and genomic information,the applied workflow reveals 297,574 probes(15,689 probe sets)for chicken,384,715 probes(21,673 probe sets)for pig,363,077 probes(21,238 probe sets)for cattle,481,168 probes(23,495 probe sets)for human,and 324,942 probes(32,494 probe sets)for mouse.These are representative of 12,641,15,758,18,046,20,167,and 16,335 unique genes that are both annotated and positioned for chicken,pig,cattle,human,and mouse,respectively.Additionally,the workflow collects information on the number of single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNPs)within respective targeted genomic regions and thus provides a detailed basis for comprehensive analyses such as expression quantitative trait locus(eQTL)studies to identify quantitative and functional traits.The rePROBE R package is freely available at https://github.com/friederhadlich/rePROBE.

Web Resources for Model Organism Studies

An ever-growing number of resources on model organisms have emerged with the continued development of sequencing technologies. In this paper, we review 13 databases of model organisms, most of which are reported by the National Institutes of Health of the United States（NIH; http：//www.nih.gov/science/models/）. We provide a brief description for each database, as well as detail its data source and types, functions, tools, and availability of access. In addition,we also provide a quality assessment about these databases. Significantly, the organism databases instituted in the early 1990s––such as the Mouse Genome Database（MGD）, Saccharomyces Genome Database（SGD）, and Fly Base––have developed into what are now comprehensive, core authority resources. Furthermore, all of the databases mentioned here update continually according to user feedback and with advancing technologies.