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Abundant and diverse domestic mammals living on the Tibetan Plateau provide useful materials for investigating adaptive evolution and genetic convergence. Here, we used 327 genomes from horses, sheep, goats, cattle, pigs and dogs living at both high and low altitudes, including 73 genomes generated for this study, to disentangle the genetic mechanisms underlying local adaptation of domestic mammals. Although molecular convergence is comparatively rare at the DNA sequence level, we found convergent signature of positive selection at the gene level, particularly the EPAS1 gene in these Tibetan domestic mammals. We also reported a potential function in response to hypoxia for the gene C10orf67 , which underwent positive selection in three of the domestic mammals. Our data provide an insight into adaptive evolution of high-altitude domestic mammals, and should facilitate the search for additional novel genes involved in the hypoxia response pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soon enough, autonomous driving systems may not need drivers at all. Ideally, a passenger can ride an autonomous vehicle (AUV) from one location to another without (either partial or complete) human intervention, inherently removing aberrant human driving behavior from the equation, requiring no or only a few parking spaces near a passenger's destination, and possessing environmental advantages over traditional vehicles powered by internal combustion engines. The current study aims to investigate the interrelationships between influential factors and behavioral intention with regard to AUVs. The research was implemented with: (1) partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to examine path relationships, (2) partial least squares multi-group analysis (PLS-MGA) to elaborate observed heterogeneity, and (3) partial least squares prediction orientation segmentation (PLS-POS) to study unobserved heterogeneity. The empirical results showed significant direct effects for Hypotheses H1-a ∼ H1-c (Attitude, Subjective norm, and Perceived Behavior Control on Behavior Intention) and for Hypothesis H3-a (Personal Innovativeness on Behavior Intention). Additionally, the results showed that observed heterogeneity does not exist by gender, and by city, and that unobserved heterogeneity can be best identified and divided into two segments by employing PLS-POS. A few final remarks concern the research findings and preparing for future AUV transportation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aux/IAAs interact with auxin response factors (ARFs) to repress their transcriptional activity in the auxin signaling pathway. Previous studies have focused on gain-of-function mutations of domain II and little is known about whether the expression level of wild-type Aux/IAAs can modulate auxin homeostasis. Here we examined the perturbation of auxin homeostasis by ectopic expression of wild-type IAA15. Root gravitropism and stem cell differentiation were also analyzed. The transgenic lines were less sensitive to exogenous auxin and exhibited low-auxin phenotypes including failures in gravity response and defects in stem cell differentiation. Overexpression lines also showed an increase in auxin concentration and reduced polar auxin transport. These results demonstrate that an alteration in the expression of wild-type IAA15 can disrupt auxin homeostasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zn1−xCdxO films are grown on c-sapphire substrates by laser molecular beam epitaxy (LMBE) at different temperatures. Their crystallographic structures, compositions, surface electronic structures are investigated. The a-axis lattice constant of Zn0.95Cd0.05O is 3.20 Å. Moreover, the epitaxial relationship shows a 30°-in-plane rotation of the film with respect to the c-sapphire substrate. When the substrate temperatures arrives at 500°C, the in situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) pattern of ZnCdO film shows sharp streaky pattern. The maximum Cd content of ZnCdO film grown at low substrate temperatures increases up to about 29.6 at.%, which is close to that of the ceramic target. In situ ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) measurements demonstrate that ZnCdO film exhibits intense peaks at 4.7 eV and 10.7 eV below the Fermi level, which are assigned to the O 2p and Zn 3p states. Energetic distance between Zn 3d and Cd 4d is 0.60 eV. Above 470 nm, the thin film shows excellent optical transmission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα) exhibits diverse biological functions; however, its regulatory roles in myogenesis are not fully understood. In the present study, we explored the function of TNFα in myoblast proliferation, differentiation, migration, and myotube fusion in primary myoblasts and C2C12 cells. To this end, we constructed TNFα muscle-conditional knockout ( TNFα -CKO) mice and compared them with flox mice to assess the effects of TNFα knockout on skeletal muscles. Results indicated that TNFα -CKO mice displayed phenotypes such as accelerated muscle development, enhanced regenerative capacity, and improved exercise endurance compared to flox mice, with no significant differences observed in major visceral organs or skeletal structure. Using label-free proteomic analysis, we found that TNFα -CKO altered the distribution of several muscle development-related proteins, such as Hira, Casz1, Casp7, Arhgap10, Gas1, Diaph1, Map3k20, Cfl2, and Igf2, in the nucleus and cytoplasm. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) further revealed that TNFα deficiency resulted in positive enrichment in oxidative phosphorylation and MyoD targets and negative enrichment in JAK-STAT signaling. These findings suggest that TNFα -CKO positively regulates muscle growth and development, possibly via these newly identified targets and pathways.

To assess the genetic diversity between randomly and selectively bred populations, we sequenced 438 bp of the mitochondrial DNA control region from 102 pigs. These samples represented four native pig breeds, one nucleus and one conservation herd from Yunnan, China. Twenty haplotypes with sixteen polymorphic sites were identified. The number of haplotypes in the nucleus herd of Saba pig and the conservation herd of Banna miniature pig were restricted to three and one, respectively, while the randomly bred pig populations exhibited over six haplotypes. Notably, haplotype diversity in randomly bred populations was significantly greater than the selectively bred populations (h=0.732 vs. 0.425 and 0, exact test, P<=0.0036). These findings demonstrate that selective breeding generated low genetic diversity compared to randomly bred pig breeds. A timely intervention and well programmed breeding approach would stop further genetic diversity reduction in the nucleus and conservation herds of native pig breeds. Otherwise, selective breeding would dramatically reduce genetic diversity in only several years, indicating that sharp contradictions exist between breeding, conservation and genetic diversity. Genetic relationships are discussed based on net genetic distances among pig populations.