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Background: Earthquakes and other catastrophic events frequently occurring worldwide can be considered as outliers and cause a growing and urgent need to improve our understanding of the negative effects imposed by such disasters. Earthquakes can intensively impact the birth outcomes upon psychological and morphological development of the unborn children, albeit detailed characteristics remain obscure. Methods and Findings: We utilized the birth records at Du Jiang Yan and Peng Zhou counties to investigate the birth outcomes as a consequence of a major earthquake occurred in Wenchuan, China on May 12, 2008. Totally 13,003 of neonates were recorded, with 6638 and 6365 for pre- and post- earthquake, respectively. Significant low birthweight, high ratio of low birthweight, and low Apgar scores of post-earthquake group were observed. In contrast, the sex ratio at birth, birth length and length of gestation did not show statistical differences. The overall ratio of birth-defect in the postearthquake (1.18%) is statistically high than that of pre-earthquake (0.99%), especially for those in the first trimester on earthquake day (1.47%). The birth-defect spectrum was dramatically altered after earthquake, with the markedly increased occurrences of ear malformations. The ratio of preterm birth post-earthquake (7.41%) is significant increased than that of pre-earthquake (5.63%). For the birth outcomes of twins, significant differences of the ratio of twins, birth weight, ratio of low birthweight and birth-defect rate were observed after earthquake. Conclusion: A hospital-based study of birth outcomes impacted by the Wenchuan earthquake shows that the earthquake was associated with significant effects on birth outcomes, indicating it is a major monitor for long-term pregnant outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seed germination activates many new biological processes including DNA, membrane and mitochondrial repairs and requires active protein synthesis and sufficient energy supply. Alternative splicing (AS) regulates many cellular processes including cell differentiation and environmental adaptations. However, limited information is available on the regulation of seed germination at post-transcriptional levels. We have conducted RNA-sequencing experiments to dissect AS events in barley seed germination. We identified between 552 and 669 common AS transcripts in germinating barley embryos from four barley varieties (Hordeum vulgare L. Bass, Baudin, Harrington and Stirling). Alternative 3’ splicing (34%-45%), intron retention (32%-34%) and alternative 5’ splicing (16%-21%) were three major AS events in germinating embryos. The AS transcripts were predominantly mapped onto ribosome, RNA transport machineries, spliceosome, plant hormone signal transduction, glycolysis, sugar and carbon metabolism pathways. Transcripts of these genes were also very abundant in the early stage of seed germination. Correlation analysis of gene expression showed that AS hormone responsive transcripts could also be co-expressed with genes responsible for protein biosynthesis and sugar metabolisms. Our RNA-sequencing data revealed that AS could play important roles in barley seed germination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic maps in barley are usually constructed from a limited number of molecular markers such as SSR (simple sequence repeat) and DarT (diversity arrays technology). These markers must be first developed before being used for genotyping. Here, we introduce a new strategy based on sequencing progeny of a doubled haploid population from Baudin × AC Metcalfe to construct a genetic map in barley. About 13,547 polymorphic SNP tags with >93% calling rate were selected to construct the genetic map. A total of 12,998 SNP tags were anchored to seven linkage groups which spanned a cumulative 967.6 cM genetic distance. The high-density genetic map can be used for QTL mapping and the assembly of WGS and BAC contigs. The genetic map was evaluated for its effectiveness and efficiency in QTL mapping and candidate gene identification. A major QTL for plant height was mapped at 105.5 cM on chromosome 3H. This QTL with LOD value of 13.01 explained 44.5% of phenotypic variation. This strategy will enable rapid and efficient establishment of high-density genetic maps in other species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

:Colorectal cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. The disease is curable when detected at an early stage. However, the compliance rate with current screening recommendations remains poor. An accurate, minimally invasive blood test that has the potential for greater patient compliance would be a welcome addition to the current methods. Recent data have shown that gene expression profile of peripheral blood cells can reflect disease states and thus have diagnostic value. In this study, genome-wide gene expression profiling of peripheral blood cells from 20 healthy controls and 20 colorectal cancer patients were performed using PAXgene™ technology and Affymetrix GeneChip® microarrays. We identified a list of 1,469 genes that were differentially expressed between the healthy controls and cancer patients. Gene annotation and functional enrichment analysis revealed that those genes are mainly related to immune functions. Particularly, a set of genes belonging to the Toll-Like Receptor pathways were up-regulated in the colorectal cancer patients. These findings provide a new understanding of blood gene expression profile in colorectal cancer. Our result may serve as the basis for further development of blood biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of colorectal cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]