Genome-wide association with transcriptomics reveals a shade-tolerance gene network in soybean

Shade tolerance is essential for soybeans in inter/relay cropping systems.A genome-wide association study(GWAS)integrated with transcriptome sequencing was performed to identify genes and construct a genetic network governing the trait in a set of recombinant inbred lines derived from two soybean parents with contrasting shade tolerance.An improved GWAS procedure,restricted two-stage multi-locus genome-wide association study based on gene/allele sequence markers(GASM-RTM-GWAS),identified 140 genes and their alleles associated with shade-tolerance index(STI),146 with relative pith cell length(RCL),and nine with both.Annotation of these genes by biological categories allowed the construction of a protein–protein interaction network by 187 genes,of which half were differentially expressed under shading and non-shading conditions as well as at different growth stages.From the identified genes,three ones jointly identified for both traits by both GWAS and transcriptome and two genes with maximum links were chosen as beginners for entrance into the network.Altogether,both STI and RCL gene systems worked for shade-tolerance with genes interacted each other,this confirmed that shadetolerance is regulated by more than single group of interacted genes,involving multiple biological functions as a gene network.

An Experimental Study of Irregular Wave Forces on Multiple Quasi-ellipse Caissons

An experimental investigation of irregular wave forces on quasi-ellipse caisson structures is presented. Irregular waves were generated based on the Jonswap spectrum with two significant wave heights, and the spectrum peak periods range from 1.19 s to 1.81 s. Incident wave directions relative to the centre line of the multiple caissons are from 0＆#176; to 22.5＆#176;. The spacing between caissons ranges from 2 to 3 times that of the width of the caisson. The effects of these parameters on the wave forces of both the perforated and non-perforated caissons were compared and analyzed. It was found that the perforated caisson can reduce wave forces, especially in the transverse direction. Furthermore, the relative interval and incident wave direction have significant effects on the wave forces in the case of multiple caissons.

Quantitative Trait Loci for Mercury Tolerance in Rice Seedlings

Mercury （Hg） is one of the most toxic heavy metals to living organisms and its conspicuous effect is the inhibition of root growth. However, little is known about the molecular genetic basis for root growth under excess Hg2＋ stress. To map quantitative trait loci （QTLs） in rice for Hg2＋ tolerance, a population of 120 recombinant inbred lines derived from a cross between two japonica cultivars Yuefu and IRAT109 was grown in 0.5 mmol/L CaCI2 solution. Relative root length （RRL）, percentage of the seminal root length in ＋HgCI2 to -HgCI2, was used for assessing Hg2＋ tolerance. In a dose-response experiment, Yuefu had a higher RRL than IRAT109 and showed the most significant difference at the Hg2＋ concentration of 1.5 tJmol/L. Three putative QTLs for RRL were detected on chromosomes 1, 2 and 5, and totally explained about 35.7% of the phenotypic variance in Hg2＋ tolerance. The identified QTLs for RRL might be useful for improving Hg2＋ tolerance of rice by molecular marker-assisted selection.

Association between Physical Activity and Telomere Length in a North Chinese Population： A China Suboptimal Health Cohort Study

Several studies have demonstrated an association between physical activity and telomere length; however, the association remains inconsistent. A cross-sectional study consisting of 588 participants （375 females, median age of 33.8 years） was carried out to investigate the association between telomere length and physical activity in a general population from North China. The results show that relative telomere length is not significantly different in participants in the northern Chinese population with different levels of physical activity, either in the model only adjusted for age （F = 2.127, P = 0.120） or in the model adjusted for demographics and lifestyle （F = 1.227, P = 0.294）. The gender-stratified analysis also produced insignificant results. Our study confirmed a non-significant association between physical activity and telomere length in the northern Chinese population, which adds to the inconsistent association between physical activity and telomere length across different ethnic populations.

Mathematical expression for the relationship between internode number and internode length for bamboo, Phyllostachys pubescens

We analyzed the relationship between internode number and intemode length for one of the largest bamboo, Phyllostachys pubescens Mazel ex Houz. For 50 sample culms with various sizes felled in a pure stand of P. pubescens, the intemode number was assigned from base to tip and the length for each internode was directly measured. The result indicated that the intemode length should be cumulated from base to tip, and then the cumulated internode length should be relativized by the total culm length. It was inappropriate to relativize the internode length by the maximum intenode length. In addition, the relationship between the relative internode number （the intemode number relativized by the total number of intemodes） and the relative cumulated internode length should be described not by a power function but by a sigmoid function such as the third-order function. The determined function enabled us to estimate the actual internode length, with the root mean squared error being 4 cm. In conclusion, the mathematical expression presented here, i.e., the relativization of the cumulated internode length by the total culm length and the application of the sigmoid function, will be useful in describing the relationship between internode number and internode length for P. pubescens.

Effect of Forging Ratio on Microstructure of the of the 1.5710 Grade Steel

Intensity of structural changes during forging is usually determined in dependence on the forging ratio. Forging ratio at elongation is most often calculated with use of simple relations, which are based on the change of cross section of the forged pieces. The intensity of structure development is influenced not only by the simple change of cross sections, but also by relative length of the stroke, magnitude of deformation in individual passes, manner of edging, temperature, friction and shape of anvils. The paper gives an analysis of influence of the relative length of the stroke on the forging ratio.

Thermal Expansion of Solids

The work covers a novel approach to the description of the phenomenon of thermal expansion of solids. The reason for undertaking the scientific quest is presented to follow with the analysis of existing knowledge on the characteristics of phenomenon of thermal expansion of bodies being in the state of aggregation. A critical approach to the existing law of the linear thermal expansion is given. The paper presents an adequate approach to this considered phenomenon. The description provides parametric and functional characteristics of this phenomenon. The relationships of the coefficients of linear expansion on temperature for particular interstate zones, as well as the initial coefficients related to these zones, are presented. In the summary a synthesis of all actions and considerations with the directions to the adequate knowledge with advantage on the subjected phenomenon has been performed. It regards also to the latest thermal characteristics of solids, referred to the phase transformations. All they are realized by dilatometric studies together with determination of curves of thermal expansions of solids.

Association between Long Interspersed Nuclear Element-1 Methylation and Relative Telomere Length in Wilms Tumor

Background： DNA hypomethylation of long interspersed nuclear elements- 1 （LINEs- 1 ） occurs during carcinogenesis, whereas intbmaation addressing LINE-1 methylation in Wilms tumor （WT） is limited. The main purpose of our study was to quantity, LINE-1 methylation levels and evaluate their relationship with relative telomere length （TL） in WT. Methods： We investigated LINE-1 methylation and relative TL using bisulfite-polymerase chain reaction （PCR） pyrosequencing and quantitative PCR, respectively, in 20 WT tissues, 10 normal kidney tissues and a WT cell line. Significant changes were analyzed by t-tests. Results： LINE-1 methylation levels were significantly lower （P 〈 0.05） and relative TLs were sigmificantly shorter （P 〈 0.05） in WT compared with normal kidney. There was a significant positive relationship between LINE- 1 methylation and relative TL in WT （r = 0.671, P = 0.001 ）. LINE- 1 Methylation levels were significantly associated with global DNA methylation （r = 0.332, P 〈 0.01 ）. In addition, relative TL was shortened and LINE- 1 methylation was decreased in a WT cell line treated with the hypomethylating agent 5-aza-2＇-deoxycytidine compared with untreated WT cell line. Conclusion： These results suggest that LINE-1 hypomethylation is common and may be linked to telomere shortening in WT.