Project description:Chlorogenic acids (CGAs) and luteolin are active compounds in Lonicera japonica, a plant of high medicinal value in traditional Chinese medicine. This study provides a comprehensive overview of gene families involved in chlorogenic acid and luteolin biosynthesis in L. japonica, as well as its substitutes Lonicera hypoglauca and Lonicera macranthoides. The gene sequence feature and gene expression patterns in various tissues and buds of the species were characterized. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that 14 chlorogenic acid and luteolin biosynthesis-related genes were identified from the L. japonica transcriptome assembly. Phylogenetic analyses suggested that the function of individual gene could be differentiation and induce active compound diversity. Their orthologous genes were also recognized in L. hypoglauca and L. macranthoides genomic datasets, except for LHCHS1 and LMC4H2. The expression patterns of these genes are different in the tissues of L. japonica, L. hypoglauca and L. macranthoides. Results also showed that CGAs were controlled in the first step of biosynthesis, whereas both steps controlled luteolin in the bud of L. japonica. The expression of LJFNS2 exhibited positive correlation with luteolin levels in L. japonica. This study provides significant information for understanding the functional diversity of gene families involved in chlorogenic acid and the luteolin biosynthesis, active compound diversity of L. japonica and its substitutes, and the different usages of the three species.
Project description:This article contains data related to the two research articles titled Transcriptomic and iTRAQ proteomic approaches reveal novel short-term hyperosmotic stress responsive proteins in the gill of the Japanese eel (Anguilla japonica) (Tse et al. [1]) and iTRAQ-based quantitative proteomic analysis reveals acute hypo-osmotic responsive proteins in the gills of the Japanese eel (Anguilla japonica) (Tse et al. [2]). The two research articles show the usefulness of combining transcriptomic and proteomic approaches to provide molecular insights of osmoregulation mechanism in a non-model organism, the Japanese eel. The information presented here combines the raw data from the two studies and provides an overview on the physiological functions of fish gills.
Project description:BACKGROUND:Accumulation of genome-wide transcriptome data provides new insight on a genomic scale which cannot be gained by analyses of individual data. The majority of rice (O. sativa) species are japonica and indica cultivars. Genome-wide identification of genes differentially expressed between japonica and indica cultivars will be very useful in understanding the domestication and evolution of rice species. RESULTS:In this study, we analyzed 983 of the 1866 entries in the Affymetrix array data in the public database: 595 generated from indica and 388 from japonica rice cultivars. To discover differentially expressed genes in each cultivar, we performed significance analysis of microarrays for normalized data, and identified 490 genes preferentially expressed in japonica and 104 genes in indica. Gene Ontology analyses revealed that defense response-related genes are significantly enriched in both cultivars, indicating that japonica and indica might be under strong selection pressure for these traits during domestication. In addition, 36 (34.6%) of 104 genes preferentially expressed in indica and 256 (52.2%) of 490 genes preferentially expressed in japonica were annotated as genes of unknown function. Biotic stress overview in the MapMan toolkit revealed key elements of the signaling pathway for defense response in japonica or indica eQTLs. CONCLUSIONS:The percentage of screened genes preferentially expressed in indica was 4-fold higher (34.6%) and that in japonica was 5-fold (52.2%) higher than expected (11.1%), suggesting that genes of unknown function are responsible for the novel traits that distinguish japonica and indica cultivars. The identification of 10 functionally characterized genes expressed preferentially in either japonica or indica highlights the significance of our candidate genes during the domestication of rice species. Functional analysis of the roles of individual components of stress-mediated signaling pathways will shed light on potential molecular mechanisms to improve disease resistance in rice.
Project description:We developed a specific and rapid detection system for Rickettsia japonica and R. heilongjiangensis, the causative agents of spotted fever, using a TaqMan minor groove binder probe for a particular open reading frame (ORF) identified by the R. japonica genome project. The target ORF was present only in R. japonica-related strains.
Project description:Given the ever-increasing commercial planting of transgenic plants across the world, an evaluation of their impacts on non-target organisms is as an important part of the risk assessment process. Propylea japonica is a dominant non-target predator and pollen feeder insect that is prevalent in Bt cotton fields, and it is thus in direct contact with Bt proteins. However, the effect of Bt proteins on P. japonica has not received much attention. In this study, the effects of Cry1Ac and/or Cry2Ab proteins on P. japonica were investigated from three aspects. First, no significant differences in the diversity of the microbiota nor change in species composition and community structure were observed among Cry protein treatments. Firmicutes are the most abundant bacterial phylum present in P. japonica, followed by Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria. The most abundant genus was Staphylococcus. Second, the expression levels of the detoxification and digestion-related genes did not change significantly in any Cry protein treatment. Third, none of the Cry proteins affected the population fitness of P. japonica. These results indicated that P. japonica was not sensitive to Bt proteins, suggesting that growing Bt cotton expressing Cry1Ac and/or Cry2Ab will pose negligible risks to P. japonica.
Project description:The Panel on Plant Health performed a pest categorisation of Popillia japonica (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) for the EU. P. japonica is a distinguishable species listed in Annex IAII of Council Directive 2000/29/EC. It is native to Japan but established in the USA in the early 20th century. It spreads from New Jersey to most US states east of the Mississippi, some to the west and north into Canada. P. japonica feeds on over 700 plant species. Adults attack foliage and fruit surfaces. They can cause serious injury to tree fruits and soft fruit, vegetable crops, ornamental herbaceous plants, shrubs, vines and trees. Larvae are root feeders regarded as serious pests of lawns and turf, vegetables and nursery stock. Adults emerge during the summer and can fly short distances on warm sunny days. The life cycle is usually completed in one year. In cooler regions, development takes two years. P. japonica occurs in the EU in the Azores (Portugal), Lombardy and Piedmont (Italy) where it is under official control. Adults are suspected of being able to spread on aircraft as hitchhikers, i.e. without host plants. Soil accompanying plants for planting provides a pathway for further introductions. Hosts are widely available within the EU. Climatic conditions across central and parts of southern EU are suitable for development in one year. Across parts of northern Europe development over two years is likely. Without control, impacts could be expected on a range of plants. Phytosanitary measures are available to reduce the likelihood of introduction of P. japonica. All criteria assessed by EFSA for consideration as a potential Union quarantine pest are met. Plants for planting are not necessarily the main means of spread so P. japonica does not satisfy all criteria necessary for it to be regarded as a Union regulated non-quarantine pest (RNQP).
Project description:Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura; Diptera: Drosophilidae) is a key pest of sweet cherry and small fruits worldwide. Biological control remains unutilized in the framework of D. suzukii management. Nonetheless, natural enemies may play an important role in regulating this pest. We report for the first time the presence of Leptopilina japonica Novkovi? and Kimura (Hymenoptera: Figitidae) in Europe. Two specimens emerged from ripened fruits and one was collected after direct observation on a cherry tree in June 2019. They showed the distinctive morphological traits already described and shared more than 99% sequence similarity with specimens of L. japonica collected in Asia. This first finding was confirmed by a wider survey carried out in 2020; L. japonica emerged from cherry fruit samples collected in five other sites across the Trentino region, suggesting that L. japonica has already colonized a wide area. Detection of this Asian species is relevant to the future direction in managing D. suzukii, both in Europe and North America. In fact, L. japonica showed similarity with Ganaspis brasiliensis (Ihering) (Hymenoptera: Figitidae), the most promising candidate for the classical biological control, in terms of developmental time, egg maturation, host age preference and lifetime fecundity.
Project description:We report a case of Rickettsia japonica infection in an 81-year-old man in central Japan. The patient had fever, rash, and an eschar but no evidence of a tick bite. His symptoms began 8 days after a land leech bite. The land leech is a potential vector of R. japonica.
Project description:The data presented in this article are associated with the research article entitled " Novel flavonoids from Lonicera japonica flower buds and validation of their anti-hepatoma and hepatoprotective activity in vitro studies " (Ge et al., 2018) [1]. The aim of this data was to provide the NMR spectrum of novel flavonoids from Lonicera japonica flower buds. Samples were isolated from EtOAc fraction of Lonicera japonica flower buds extracts, then dissolved in DMSO-d6 before NMR testing.
Project description:Aluminum (Al) at high concentrations inhibits root growth, damage root systems, and causes significant reductions in rice yields. Indica and Japonica rice have been cultivated in distinctly different ecological environments with different soil acidity levels; thus, they might have different mechanisms of Al-tolerance. In the present study, transcriptomic analysis in the root apex for Al-tolerance in the seedling stage was carried out within Al-tolerant and -sensitive varieties belonging to different subpopulations (i.e., Indica, Japonica, and mixed). We found that there were significant differences between the gene expression patterns of Indica Al-tolerant and Japonica Al-tolerant varieties, while the gene expression patterns of the Al-tolerant varieties in the mixed subgroup, which was inclined to Japonica, were similar to the Al-tolerant varieties in Japonica. Moreover, after further GO (gene ontology) and KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) analyses of the transcriptomic data, we found that eight pathways, i.e., "Terpenoid backbone biosynthesis", "Ribosome", "Amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism", "Plant hormone signal transduction", "TCA cycle", "Synthesis and degradation of ketone bodies", and "Butanoate metabolism" were found uniquely for Indica Al-tolerant varieties, while only one pathway (i.e., "Sulfur metabolism") was found uniquely for Japonica Al-tolerant varieties. For Al-sensitive varieties, one identical pathway was found, both in Indica and Japonica. Three pathways were found uniquely in "Starch and sucrose metabolism", "Metabolic pathway", and "Amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism".