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Dogs are the most phenotypically diverse mammalian species, and they possess more known heritable disorders than any other non-human mammal. Efforts to catalog and characterize genetic variation across well-chosen populations of canines are necessary to advance our understanding of their evolutionary history and genetic architecture. To date, no organized effort has been undertaken to sequence the world's canid populations. The Dog10K Consortium (http://www.dog10kgenomes.org) is an international collaboration of researchers from across the globe who will generate 20× whole genomes from 10 000 canids in 5 years. This effort will capture the genetic diversity that underlies the phenotypic and geographical variability of modern canids worldwide. Breeds, village dogs, niche populations and extended pedigrees are currently being sequenced, and de novo assemblies of multiple canids are being constructed. This unprecedented dataset will address the genetic underpinnings of domestication, breed formation, aging, behavior and morphological variation. More generally, this effort will advance our understanding of human and canine health. This work was supported by a number of entities including grants from the Breakthrough Project of the Strategic Priority Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) (XDB13000000 to G-DW); the National Natural Science Foundation of China (91731304, 31621062); the Intramural Program of the National Human Genome Research Institute of the National Institutes of Health, USA (to EAO); a CAS international collaborating grant proposal (152453KYSB20150002 to G-DW); the Morris Animal Foundation (to RKW); the Swedish Research Council (to KLT); the European Research Council (ERC-2013-StG-337574-UNDEAD to GL and LF); the Natural Environmental Research Council (NE/K005243/1 and NE/K003259/1 to GL and LF); grant ‘Cani-DNA_CRB’ (ANR-11-INBS-0003) for the French Tissue Bank (to CA and CH); and a Young Innovation Promotion Association Award (to G-DW).

The permanent human settlement of the Tibetan Plateau (TP) has been suggested to have been facilitated by the introduction of barley agriculture ∼3.6 kilo-years ago (ka). However, how barley agriculture spread onto the TP remains unknown. Given that the lower altitudes in the northeastern TP were occupied by millet cultivators from 5.2 ka, who also adopted barley farming ∼4 ka, it is highly possible that it was millet farmers who brought barley agriculture onto the TP ∼3.6 ka. To test this hypothesis, we analyzed mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from 8277 Tibetans and 58 514 individuals from surrounding populations, including 682 newly sequenced whole mitogenomes. Multiple lines of evidence, together with radiocarbon dating of cereal remains at different elevations, supports the scenario that two haplogroups (M9a1a1c1b1a and A11a1a), which are common in contemporary Tibetans (20.9%) and were probably even more common (40–50%) in early Tibetans prior to historical immigrations to the TP, represent the genetic legacy of the Neolithic millet farmers. Both haplogroups originated in northern China between 10.0–6.0 ka and differentiated in the ancestors of modern Tibetans ∼5.2–4.0 ka, matching the dispersal history of millet farming. By showing that substantial genetic components in contemporary Tibetans can trace their ancestry back to the Neolithic millet farmers, our study reveals that millet farmers adopted and brought barley agriculture to the TP ∼3.6–3.3 ka, and made an important contribution to the Tibetan gene pool.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1002114.].

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)-associated protein 9 (Cas9) genome editing system is a powerful tool for targeted gene modifications in a wide range of species, including plants. Over the last few years, this system has revolutionized the way scientists perform genetic studies and crop breeding, due to its simplicity, flexibility, consistency and high efficiency. Considerable progress has been made in optimizing CRISPR/Cas9 systems in plants, particularly for targeted gene mutagenesis. However, there are still a number of important challenges ahead, including methods for the efficient delivery of CRISPR and other editing tools to most plants, and more effective strategies for sequence knock-ins and replacements. We provide our viewpoint on the goals, potential concerns and future challenges for the development and application of plant genome editing tools.

© 2017 Zerbinis Publications. All rights reserved.Purpose: Current evaluation of response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) shows that it could achieve pathological complete response (pCR). The purpose of this study was to assess the consistency of maximum uptake values (SUVmax) changes and pCR in hormone-positive locally advanced breast cancer (LABC). Methods: Ninety hormone-positive LABC patients treated at Marmara University Medical Oncology Clinic, Istanbul, Turkey, between 2009 and 2015 were retrospectively studied. All eligible patients (n=51) received NAC (4-8 cycles) and were evaluated for pCR. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/ computed tomography (18F-FDG-PET/CT) scan was performed before and after the completion of NAC. The relative changes of SUVmax both in the primary tumor and the axilla were assessed for consistency with pCR. Results: The patient median age was 46 years (range 26-76). The patients 13.7% achieved pCR. Values of >50% (n=40) and 75% SUVmax changes could achieve pCR of 20%. Interestingly, most patients with complete metabolic response did not achieve pCR (81%). The difference of the Ki67 levels before and after NAC, tumor localization, HER-2 positivity, menopausal status, grade of differentiation, lymphovascular and perineural invasion were not associated with pCR. Conclusion: SUVmax changes in later cycles of NAC as commonly practised in oncology clinics were not consistent with pCR (p=1.0). Complete metabolic response may not be associated with pCR in hormone-positive LABC. However, almost 80% of patients had >50% decrease in SUVmax and may still have a chance for conservative surgery and less postoperative morbidity. Therefore, 18F-FDG-PET/CT may still have a role to evaluate the tumor response with a need of larger studies and analysis for cost-effectiveness.

Foregut duplication cyst of the stomach is an extremely rare disease entity. A 35-year-old Korean man presented with epigastric pain. An abdominal cystic mass, measuring 7 ¥ 6 ¥ 5 cm, was found in the lesser curvature of the stomach. The cyst was unilocular with a grey-white, rubbery wall. Microscopically, the cyst wall was lined by pseudostratified ciliated, columnar epithelium and gastric mucosa with a complete lining of smooth muscle bundles. Although the origin of this lesion remains uncertain, this case suggests that the gastric cyst arose from the embryonic foregut and showed differentiation toward respiratory and gastric structures.