An international team of scientists has made now a breakthrough by showing that many genes controlling the development of the brain
Rabbit domestication has occurred primarily by altering the frequencies of gene variants that were already present in the wild ancestor.
Our data shows that domestication primarily involved small changes in many genes and not drastic changes in a few genes states Kerstin Lindblad-Toh co-senior author Director of Vertebrate Genome
The team observed very few examples where a gene variant common in domestic rabbits had replaced completely the gene variant present in wild rabbits;
if you release domestic rabbits into the wild there is an opportunity for back selection at those genes that have been altered during domestication
The scientists found no example where a gene has been inactivated during rabbit domestication and there were many more changes in the non-coding part of the genome than in the parts of the genome that codes for protein.
which genes they carry but how their genes are regulated i e. when and how much of each gene is used in different cells explains Miguel Carneiro.
The study also revealed which genes that have been altered during domestication. The researchers were amazed by the strong enrichment of genes involved in the development of the brain
and the nervous system among the genes particularly targeted during domestication. But that of course makes perfect sense in relation to the drastic changes in behaviour between wild and domestic rabbits concludes Kerstin Lindblad-Toh.
The study shows that the wild rabbit is a highly polymorphic species that carries gene variants that were favourable during domestication
and that the accumulation of many small changes led to the inhibition of the strong flight response--one of the most prominent phenotypic changes in the evolution of the domestic rabbitwe predict that a similar process has occurred in other domestic animals
and that we will not find a few specific domestication genes that were critical for domestication. It is very likely that a similar diversity of gene variants affecting the brain
and the nervous system occurs in the human population and that contributes to differences in personality
and behaviour says Leif Andersson. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Uppsala University.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. Journal References e
#Less than $200 million would conserve precious Atlantic Forest in Brazil, say researchersbrazil could conserve its valuable Atlantic Forest by investing just 0. 01 per cent of its annual GDP according to a new study.
#Water thermostat could help engineer drought-resistant cropsduke University researchers have identified a gene that could help scientists engineer drought-resistant crops.
The gene called OSCA1 encodes a protein in the cell membrane of plants that senses changes in water availability
and hundreds of genes are involved. The problem is confounded by the fact that drought is accompanied often by heat waves
Pei and Duke colleagues Fang Yuan James Siedow and others identified a gene that encodes a protein in the cell membranes of plant leaves
The gene was identified in Arabidopsis thaliana a small unassuming plant related to cabbage and canola that is the lab rat of plant research.
and plants with defective versions of the gene side by side in the same pot and exposed them to drought stress the mutant plants experienced more wilting.
The team's next step is to manipulate the activity of the OSCA1 gene and related genes and see how those plants respond to drought--information that could lead to crops that respond more quickly and efficiently to dehydration.
Plants that enter drought-fighting mode quickly and then switch back to normal growth mode quickly when drought stress is gone should be able to allocate energy more efficiently toward growth Pei said.
The shift from an approach focused on single candidate genes to the large-scale computational approach analyzing all of them is made possible by the availability of the poplar genome
and light levels and they examined variation in those genes as they vary across environmental gradients.
what genes fall under those fingerprints. Watch a video of Tuskan on the importance of selection in trees at http://bit. ly/Tuskan14fingerprints.
and 45000 genes to figuring out what's not just statistically significant but biologically meaningful wasn't easy said study first author Luke Evans of West Virginia University.
and selection such that the alleles or gene variants that we have identified have great promise to provide robust long-term improvements to biofuel feedstocks.
That's a massive number of naturally occurring variants a lot in cell wall chemistry genes and other known productivity genes.
The researchers also identified specific mutations in genes important in adaptation to factors such as climate
Before scientists sequenced its genes people assumed that chickens and all birds taste things the same way that mammals do:
The gene for tasting sweetness is present in their genomes but it's nonfunctional. Scientists suspect that an interplay between taste receptors
It has no trace of a sweet-taste receptor gene. Faced with this all-or-nothing scenario Maude Baldwin co-first author of the paper had one reaction.
After cloning the genes for taste receptors from chickens swifts and hummingbirds--a three-year process--Baldwin needed to test what the proteins expressed by these genes were responding to.
She joined forces with another scientist at another International Taste and Smell meeting. Yasuka Toda a graduate student of the University of Tokyo and co-first author of the paper had devised a method for testing taste receptors in cell culture.
and hummingbird taste receptors into hybrid chimeras to understand which parts of the gene were involved in this change in function.
and are capable of activating genes that change the protein composition in the cell. A team of scientists--headed by Prof.
The scientists believe that the CES transcription factor collects in specific regions of the DNA in order to effectively control gene function.
and while two individuals with the same phenotype may look alike their genes may differ substantially.
Several of these regions contained genes known to be involved with growth in humans. They then studied these regions to look for indications that the changes were persisted ones that
The results of the genetic comparison indicated that there was a statistical difference between the two groups indicative of multi gene adaptation.
The first advance was the ability to produce genetically engineered pigs as a source of donor organs by NHLBI's collaborator Revivicor Inc. The pigs had the genes that cause adverse immunologic reactions in humans knocked out and human
genes that make the organ more compatible with human physiology were inserted. The second advance was the use of target-specific immunosuppression
The gene that synthesizes the enzyme alpha 1-3 galactosidase transferase was knocked out in all piglets
The researchers found that in one group with a human gene) the average transplant survival was more than 200 days dramatically surpassing the survival times of the other three groups (average survival 70 days 21 days
This longest-surviving group was the only one that had the human thrombomodulin gene added to the pigs'genome.
or species. These markers are genes or DNA sequences with known locations on a chromosome.
But many economically important traits are controlled by a large number of genes with small effects. Because the genomic prediction model captures all these small-effect genes predictability is improved vastly.
Without genomic prediction breeders must grow all possible crosses in the field to select the best cross (hybrid.
In genetics dominance describes the joint action of two different alleles (copies) of a gene.
For example if one copy of a gene has a value of 1 and the other copy has a value of 2 the joint effect of the two alleles may be 4 indicating that the two alleles are not additive.
Epistasis refers to any type of gene-gene interaction. By incorporating dominance and epistasis we took into account all available information for prediction Xu said.
and other crops might be improved genetically without the need to introduce foreign genes according to researchers writing in the Cell Press publication Trends in Biotechnology on August 13th.
The simple avoidance of introducing foreign genes makes genetically edited crops more natural than transgenic crops obtained by inserting foreign genes said Chidananda Nagamangala Kanchiswamy of Istituto Agrario San Michele in Italy.
Most transgenic fruit crop plants have been developed using a plant bacterium to introduce foreign genes and only papaya has been commercialized in part because of stringent regulation in the European union (EU). The researchers say that genetically edited plants modified through the insertion deletion
or altering of existing genes of interest might even be deemed as nongenetically modified depending on the interpretation of the EU commission and member state regulators.
Transfer of foreign genes was the first step to improve our crops but GEOS will surge as a natural strategy to use biotechnology for a sustainable agricultural future.
which is both environmentally friendly and effective. â#The Oxitec method works by introducing a female-specific gene into the insects that interrupts development before females reach a reproductive stage.
If genetics do play a role she suspects multiple genes may interact with environmental factors to determine tolerance;
and Institute for Genomic Biology director Gene Robinson who also led the new analysis . When he and his colleagues looked at brain gene activity in honey bees after they had faced down an intruder the team found that some metabolic genes were suppressed.
These genes play a key role in the most efficient type of energy generation in cells a process called oxidative phosphorylation.
It was a counterintuitive finding because these genes were regulated down Robinson said. You tend to think of aggression as requiring more energy not less.
In the new study postdoctoral researcher Clare Rittschof used drugs to suppress key steps in oxidative phosphorylation in the bee brains.
In a Phd project at the National Food Institute Technical University of Denmark the latest technologies within whole genome sequencing were exploited to develop new methods to identify genes which are important for the survival of MRSA in pigs.
which can identify genes important for the survival of MRSA in pigs. High-throughput approaches can identify those genes in the total gene pool of the bacteria
which are essential or the presence of which is advantageous for the bacteria under some given circumstances.
By studying which genes are essential for the bacteria in pigs it may be possible for researchers to identify the factors important for the bacterium to colonise on pigs.
They do this by changing their genes either by mutating or by transferring resistance genes among themselves.
It is therefore important not to overconsume antibiotics but only to use the necessary amount.
or glycolate two products of the gene DJ-1 can stop and even counteract this process:
and Genetics with rather different research programs--but both happened to stumble upon the gene DJ-1 and joined forces.
This gene originally thought of as an oncogene has been linked to Parkinson's disease since 2003. Recent studies showed that DJ-1 belongs to a novel glyxolase family.
The major function of these genes is assumed to detoxify aggressive aldehyde by-products from mitochondrial metabolism. The Dresden research team now showed that the products of DJ-1 D-lactate
The study was conducted by Gene Towne research associate and the Konza Prairie Biological Station fire chief and Joseph Craine research assistant professor both in the Division of Biology.
#Study advances DNA revolution, tells butterflies evolutionary historyby tracing nearly 3000 genes to the earliest common ancestor of butterflies
The researchers identified 2696 genes by breaking down the DNA down and piecing it back together Kawahara said.
because many of the genes code for traits that make African rice resistant to environmental stress such as long periods of drought high salinity in the soils and flooding.
and move genes more rapidly through conventional breeding methods or through genetic modification techniques noted Wing who is also a member of the UA's BIO5 Institute and holds the Axa Endowed Chair of Genome Biology and Evolutionary Genomics at the International Rice Research
In analyzing the 33000 genes that make up the African rice genome the researchers discovered that during the process of domestication Africans
and have enabled since the discovery of hundreds of agriculturally important genes including genes that code for faster breeding cycles
One example he said would be adding disease resistance genes from all of the wild rice varieties to a species of cultivated rice creating a new super-crop that is resistant to diseases and pests.
Analyzing the RNA transcriptome shows which genes are active under different circumstances. The UC Davis team published a paper last year comparing the RNA transcripts of domestic tomato
Using the new genome data the researchers found genes related to dehydration resistance fruit development and fruit ripening.
They also found genes that contribute to volatile compounds related to fruit scent and flavor. The UC Davis portion of the work was supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
The researchers say the pesticide may be affecting how genes are turned on and off in the progeny of an exposed animal even though its DNA and gene sequences remain unchanged.
This is called transgenerational epigenetic inheritance. In recent years the Skinner lab has documented epigenetic effects from a host of environmental toxicants including DDT plastics pesticides fungicides dioxins hydrocarbons and the plasticizer bisphenol-A or BPA.
which are governed by all kinds of genes. In order to bring them together in a cow in the best
and New hampshire cottontails to travel the large distances between fragmented habitats necessary to maintain gene flow among populations of cottontails Kovach said.
and used information about genetic relatedness to make estimates of gene flow. They identified four major genetic clusters of New england cottontails in the region.
This research which was funded in part by the NH Agricultural Experiment Station is presented in the article A multistate analysis of gene flow for the New england cottontail an imperiled habitat specialist in a fragmented landscape in the journal Ecology and Evolution.
We found that some bees are working very very hard--as we would have expected said University of Illinois Institute for Genomic Biology director Gene E. Robinson who led the research.
#Asian genes in European pigs result in more pigletspigs which are bred commercially in Europe are found to have varied a highly mosaic of different European and Asian gene variants.
The Asian genes in particular result in a large number of piglets in European pig breeds. In the latest issue of the science journal Nature Communications researchers from Wageningen University explain that a number of important characteristics of European pigs have Asian origins.
They previously demonstrated that the genetic diversity among commercial pigs is greater than within the existing populations of wild boar.
An example is the AHR gene of which many European pigs have the Asian version. Sows with the European gene have significantly fewer piglets than carriers of the Asian version.
Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Wageningen University and Research Centre. Note:
In the first experiment the scientists studied the relative abundances of gut-microbe genes in two groups of the creosote-eating Mojave woodrats.
DNA was isolated from the microbes to identify genes involved in detoxification. The scientists found that a woodrat's diet determines the composition of its gut microbes.
and grammar--were significantly heritable with genes accounting for about 43 percent of the overall twins'deficit.
For the first time they have at their disposal a set of tools enabling them to rapidly locate specific genes on individual wheat chromosomes throughout the genome Akhunov said.
This resource is invaluable for identifying those genes that control complex traits such as yield grain quality disease pest resistance and abiotic stress tolerance.
Akhunov Shichen Wang a programmer and bioinformatics scientist in plant pathology and Jesse Poland assistant professor of plant pathology collaborated with the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium to order genes along the wheat chromosomes.
Chromosomal segments were analyzed by short gene sequences and overlapping sequences were stitched together with computer software.
#Scientists track gene activity when honey bees do and dont eat honey: Significant differences depending on dietmany beekeepers feed their honey bees sucrose
In a new study described in Scientific Reports researchers took a broad look at changes in gene activity in response to diet in the Western honey bee (Apis mellifera)
and Institute for Genomic Biology director Gene Robinson who performed the new analysis together with entomology graduate student Marsha Wheeler.
The researchers focused on gene activity in response to feeding with honey high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) or sucrose.
They found that those bees fed honey had a very different profile of gene activity in the fat body than those relying on HFCS or sucrose.
Hundreds of genes showed differences in activity in honey bees consuming honey compared with those fed HFCS or sucrose.
Some of the genes that were activated differently in the honey-eating bees have been linked to protein metabolism brain-signaling and immune defense.
I. entomology professor and department head May Berenbaum who reported that some substances in honey increase the activity of genes that help the bees break down potentially toxic substances such as pesticides.
#Transplanting gene into injured hearts creates biological pacemakerscardiologists at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute have developed a minimally invasive gene transplant procedure that changes unspecialized heart cells into biological pacemaker cells
It is possible that one day we might be able to save lives by replacing hardware with an injection of genes.
n and his team heralds a new era of gene therapy in which genes are used not only to correct a deficiency disorder
In the study laboratory pigs with complete heart block were injected with the gene called TBX18 during a minimally invasive catheter procedure.
On the second day after the gene was delivered to the animals'hearts pigs who received the gene had significantly faster heartbeats than pigs who did not receive the gene.
#Transplanting gene into injured hearts creates biological pacemakerscardiologists at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute have developed a minimally invasive gene transplant procedure that changes unspecialized heart cells into biological pacemaker cells
It is possible that one day we might be able to save lives by replacing hardware with an injection of genes.
n and his team heralds a new era of gene therapy in which genes are used not only to correct a deficiency disorder
In the study laboratory pigs with complete heart block were injected with the gene called TBX18 during a minimally invasive catheter procedure.
On the second day after the gene was delivered to the animals'hearts pigs who received the gene had significantly faster heartbeats than pigs who did not receive the gene.
#Gene discovery could lead to better soybean varieties for northern United Statesresearchers from Purdue University
and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln have discovered a soybean gene whose mutation affects plant stem growth a finding that could lead to the development of improved soybean cultivars for the northern United states. Purdue agronomy professor Jianxin Ma (pronounced Jen-SHIN'Ma)
and collaborators identified a gene known as Dt2 which causes semideterminacy in soybean plants. Semideterminate soybean plants--mid-size plants that continue vegetative growth even after flowering--can produce as many
This gene could help us improve the yield potential and adaptability of soybeans for specific growing areas Ma said.
Ma--who had identified previously Dt1 the gene that causes indeterminancy in soybeans--used an integrated genetic approach to isolate
After identifying the gene he inserted it into indeterminate cultivars to confirm that it caused the plants to become semideterminate.
#A-maize-ing double life of a genomeearly maize farmers selected for genes that improved the harvesting of sunlight a new detailed study of how plants use'doubles'of their genomes reveals.
They then traced how maize evolved to use these'copied'genes to cope with the pressures of domestication
They discovered that these copied genes were vital to optimizing photosynthesis in maize leaves and that early farmers selecting for them'fuelled'the transformation of maize into a high-yield crop.
'Although whole genome duplication events are widespread in plants finding evidence of exactly how plants use this new'toolbox'of copied genes is said very difficult Dr Steve Kelly of Oxford university's Department of Plant sciences
and after'of the associated genetic changes but with maize we can chart how these gene copies were acquired first then put to work
'Understanding the complete trajectory of duplication and how copied genes can transform a plant is relevant for current efforts to increase the photosynthetic efficiency of crops such as the C4 Rice Project c4rice. irri. org/.
and shows how human selection has sculpted'copies of genes to create one of the world's staple food sources.'
#Novel gene for salt tolerance found in wild soybeana team of researchers from The Chinese University of Hong kong BGI
and other institutes have identified a gene of wild soybean linked to salt tolerance with implication for improving this important crop to grow in saline soil.
Among the lost genes some may play important roles for the adaptation to different environments.
In this study scientists used wild soybean as a resource for investigating the valuable genes that adapt to certain environmental conditions They sequenced
and their previous germplasm re-sequencing data the team discovered a novel ion transporter gene Gmchx1
During the following rapid gain-of-function tests the gene Gmchx1 was conferred its function on salt tolerance
The authors assumed that the elimination of Gmchx1 in salt-sensitive germplasms may be an example of negative selection against a stress tolerance gene in unstressed environments.
The expression of stress tolerance genes may be an energy burden on the plant if the functions of these genes are required not.
Through this study researchers developed an efficient strategy using the combination of whole-genome de novo sequencing high-density-marker QTL mapping by re-sequencing and functional analyses
which could greatly enhance the efficiency of uncovering QTLS and genes for beneficial traits in crop breeding.
In a paper published in this weekâ##s early online edition of Nature they report the discovery of a new genetic pathway in plants made up of four genes from three different gene families that control the density
and genes by which CO2 represses stomatal pore developmentâ#says Schroeder. Working in a tiny mustard plant called Arabidopsis which is used as a genetic model
and shares many of the same genes as other plants and crops he and his team of biologists discovered that the proteins encoded by the four genes they discovered repress the development of stomata at elevated CO2 levels.
and genes have the potential to address a wide range of critical agricultural problems in the future including the limited availability of water for crops the need to increase water use efficiency in lawns as well as crops
After introducing a gene from oregano the transformed maize plants released E-Î-caryophyllene constantly.
In some cases the virus incorporated part of a cow gene or another virus in the part of the genome in which most mutations take place Chase explains.
#Boron tolerance discovery for higher wheat yieldsaustralian scientists have identified the genes in wheat that control tolerance to a significant yield-limiting soil condition found around the globe--boron toxicity.
Published in the journal Nature today the identification of boron tolerance genes in wheat DNA is expected to help plant breeders more rapidly advance new varieties for increased wheat yields to help feed the growing world population.
Our identification of the genes and their variants responsible for this adaptation to boron toxicity means that we now have molecular markers that can be used in breeding programs to select lines for boron tolerance with 100%accuracy.
The wheat genome is very large with about six times the number of genes as humans.
This complexity has meant that genes controlling yield and adaptation to environmental stresses have remained extremely challenging to identify.
In this study the researchers tracked these specific boron tolerance genes from wild wheats grown by the world's earliest farmers in the Mediterranean region through wheat lines brought into Australia more than a century ago to current day
They found a distinct pattern of gene variant distribution that was correlated to the levels of boron in soils from different geographical regions.
and the knowledge to select for the right variants of the tolerance gene needed to do the job in specific environments says Dr Sutton.
The bitter perception is highly complex according to Hayes with 25 known bitter receptor genes. It's also not destiny.
and masculinizing developmental genes respectively. According to the authors this is the first time they observed such results in a metazoan.
Scott says that the gene construct responsible for lethality in antibiotic-free diets is female-specific Interestingly
and unexpectedly the genetically modified female larvae containing the tetracycline lethality genes also took on a crimson color due to overexpression of the linked red fluorescent protein marker gene.
Overexpression of the gene responsible for the reliance on tetracycline also seems to overexpress this marker gene Scott says.
In the study the researchers showed that the tetracycline gene construct also works in Drosophila the fruit fly lab rat of the insect world that is a distant cousin of the sheep blowfly.
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