Selenoprotein W cDNAs From Five Species of Animals

The nucleotide sequences of the open reading frames of cDNAs for selenoprotein W from skeletal muscle of rat, mouse, sheep, rhesus monkey and human are reported. Theoretical translation of the coding sequences indicated highly similar proteins of 88 (mouse and rat) or 87 (human, monkey and sheep) amino acids. In 73 of 88 positions the specified amino acids are identical for all five proteins. TGA encoding selenocysteine is the 13th codon of all the cDNAs. The rnouse, rat and sheep open reading frames terminate with TGA but the human and rhesus monkey coding regions terminate with TAA. The encoded amino acid sequences are identical for the rat and mouse proteins, and for the human and monkey proteins. The similarity of the cDNAs continues in the 3' noncoding regions through the putative selenocysteine insertion sequence (SEClS) elements which are required for correct interpretation of the selenocysteine codon. The region between the SECIS elements and the polyadenylation signals showed much lower similarity. The cloned rat gene for selenoprotein W is 5000 bases long,with the 663 bases of the cDNA in six exons. The transcription start site was identified by nuclease protection assay to be 16 bases upstream of the longest cDNA clone. A canonical TATA box occurs 150 bases upstream, but the assay did not indicate the presence of longer mRNAs

The speciation, leachability and bioaccessibility of Cu and Zn in animal manure-derived biochar： effect of feedstock and pyrolysis temperature

Biochars derived from animal manures may accumulate potentially toxic metals and cause a potential risk to ecosystem. The synchrotron-based X-ray spectroscopy, sequential fractionation schemes, bioaccessibility extraction and leaching procedure were performed on poultry and swine manure-derived biochars （denoted PB and SB, respectively） to evaluate the variance of speciation and activity of Cu and Zn as affected by the feedstock and pyrolysis temperature. The results showed that Cu speciation was dependent on the feedstock with Cu-citrate-like in swine manure and species resembling Cu-glutathione and CuO in poultry manure. Pyrolyzed products, however, had similar Cu speciation mainly with species resembling Cu-citrate, CuO and CuS/Cu2S. Organic bound Zn and Zn3（PO4）2-1ike species were dominant in both feedstock and biochars. Both Cu and Zn leaching with synthetic precipitation leaching procedure （SPLP） and toxicity characteristic leaching procedure （TCLP） decreased greatly with the rise of pyrolysis temperature, which were consistent with the sequential extraction results that pyrolysis converted Cu and Zn into less labile phases such as organic/ sulfide and residual fractions. The potential bioaccessibility of Zn decreased for both the PB and SB, closely depending on the content of non-residual Zn. The bioaccessibility of Cu, however, increased for the SB prepared at 300℃ 700℃, probably due to the increased proportion of CuO. Concerning the results of sequential fi＇actionation schemes, bioaccessibility extraction and leaching procedure, pyrolysis at 500℃ was suggested as means of reducing Cu/Zn lability and poultry manure was more suitable for pyrolysis treatment.

Morphological characterization and habitat suitability modeling of the goat population of Benin under climate change scenarios

Background:Insufficient knowledge of the genetic and phenotypic diversity in the local Beninese goat population combined with the lack of understanding of its adaptive capacity to ongoing environmental and societal changes hampers the development of strategies for better management and genetic improvement.The objective of this study was to establish the current geographical distribution of goats in Benin based on their morphology and model the potential habitat suitability of the three known main goat phenotypes(i.e.,Djallonkégoat or TypeⅠ,Sahelian goat or TypeⅡ,and their Crossbreeds or TypeⅢ)under climate change scenarios.Ten qualitative and 26 linear body measurements were taken on 2114 adult female goats sampled across the three vegetation zones of the country.Fifteen ratios were generated from the quantitative variables.The data were analyzed using generalized linear model procedures followed by multiple comparisons of least-squares means and multivariate analytical methods,including canonical discrimination analysis and hierarchical ascendant classification.Each goat was then assigned to one of the three aforementioned main goat phenotypes following its morphological characteristics and according to the a priori cluster membership defined in the previous step.The Maximum Entropy algorithm was used to model the current and future distribution of the three goat phenotypes under climate change scenario using the Representative Conservation Pathways 4.5 and 8.5.Results:All linear body measurements varied among vegetation zones.In the discriminant function analysis,71%of the measured individuals were correctly classified in their vegetation zone of origin by seven measured variables and three ratios.The cluster procedure analysis revealed two groups of goats subdivided into the three main phenotypes.The modeling results showed that the currently highly favorable habitats were distributed in the South for TypeⅠ,in the North for TypeⅡ,and both South and North for TypeⅢ.However,under climate change scenarios,the favorable habitats for TypeⅠdecreased while those of TypesⅡandⅢincreased.Conclusions:The results of this study confirm the spatial variation of the goat population in Benin.The habitat suitability model can be used to support decision-making toward better management of goat genetic diversity in Benin.