Phylogeographic Relationships among Bombyx mandarina (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) Populations and Their Relationships to B. mori Inferred from Mitochondrial Genomes

We report 37 mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) sequences of Bombyx mori strains (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) and four of B. mandarina individuals, each preserved and collected, respectively, in South Korea. These mitogenome sequences combined with 45 public data showed a substantial genetic reduction in B. mori strains compared to the presumed ancestor B. mandarina, with the highest diversity detected in the Chinese origin B. mori. Chinese B. mandarina were divided into northern and southern groups, concordant to the Qinling–Huaihe line, and the northern group was placed as an immediate progenitor of monophyletic B. mori strains in phylogenetic analyses, as has previously been detected. However, one individual that was in close proximity to the south Qinling–Huaihe line was exceptional, belonging to the northern group. The enigmatic South Korean population of B. mandarina, which has often been regarded as a closer genetic group to Japan, was most similar to the northern Chinese group, evidencing substantial gene flow between the two regions. Although a substantial genetic divergence is present between B. mandarina in southern China and Japan, a highly supported sister relationship between the two regional populations may suggest the potential origin of Japanese B. mandarina from southern China instead of the Korean peninsula.

Measurement report: Source apportionment of carbonaceous aerosol using dual-carbon isotopes (¹³C and ¹⁴C) and levoglucosan in three northern Chinese cities during 2018–2019

In this study, we investigated the characteristics of and changes in the sources of carbonaceous aerosols in northern Chinese cities after the implementation of the Action Plan for Air Pollution Prevention and Control in 2013. We collected PM2.5 samples from three representative inland cities, viz. Beijing (BJ), Xi’an (XA), and Linfen (LF) from January 2018 to April 2019. Elemental carbon (EC), organic carbon (OC), levoglucosan, stable carbon, and radiocarbon were measured in PM2.5 to quantify the sources of carbonaceous aerosol employing Latin hypercube sampling. The best estimate of source apportionment showed that the emissions from liquid fossil fuels contributed 33.6 ± 12.9 %, 26.6 ± 16.4 %, and 24.6 ± 13.4 % of the total carbon (TC) in BJ, XA, and LF, whereas coal combustion contributed 11.2 ± 9.1 %, 19.2 ± 12.3 %, and 39.2 ± 20.5 %, respectively. Non-fossil sources accounted for 55 ± 11 %, 54 ± 10 %, and 36 ± 14 % of the TC in BJ, XA, and LF, respectively. In XA, 48.34 ± 32.01 % of non-fossil sources was attributed to biomass burning. The highest contributors to OC in LF and XA were fossil sources (65.4 ± 14.9 % and 44.9 ± 9.5 %, respectively), whereas that in BJ was non-fossil sources in BJ (56.1 ± 16.7 %). The main contributors to EC were fossil sources, accounting for 92.9 ± 6.13 %, 69.9 ± 20.9 %, and 90.8 ± 9.9 % of the total EC in BJ, XA, and LF, respectively. The decline (6–17 %) in fossil source contributions in BJ and XA since the implementation of the Action Plan indicates the effectiveness of air quality management. We suggest that measures targeted to each city should be strengthened in the future.

The Impact of Air Pollution (PM2.5) on Atherogenesis in Modernizing Southern versus Northern China

To evaluate the impact of PM2.5 air pollution on atherogenic processes in modernizing Southern versus Northern China, we studied 1323 asymptomatic Chinese in Southern and Northern China in 1996–2007. PM2.5 exposure and metabolic syndrome (MS) were noted. Brachial flow-mediated dilation (endothelial function FMD) and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) were measured by ultrasound. Although age and gender were similar, PM2.5 was higher in Northern China than in Southern China. The Northern Chinese were characterized by lower lipids, folate and vitamin B12, but higher age, blood pressures, MS and homocysteine (HC) (p = 0.0015). Brachial FMD was significantly lower and carotid IMT was significantly greater (0.68±0.13) in Northern Chinese, compared with FMD and IMT (0.57 ± 0.13, p < 0.0001) in Southern Chinese. On multivariate regression, for the overall cohort, carotid IMT was significantly related to PM2.5, independent of location and traditional risk factors (Model R2 = 0.352, F = 27.1, p < 0.0001), while FMD was inversely related to gender, age, and northern location, but not to PM2.5. In Southern Chinese, brachial FMD was inversely correlated to PM2.5, independent of age, whereas carotid IMT was significantly related to PM2.5, independent of age and gender. In Northern Chinese, brachial FMD was inversely related to gender only, but not to PM2.5, while carotid IMT was related to traditional risk factors. Despite a higher PM2.5 pollution in Northern China, PM2.5 pollution was more significantly associated with atherogenic surrogates in Southern compared to Northern Chinese. This has potential implications for atherosclerosis prevention.

Diverse northern Asian and Jomon-related genetic structure discovered among socially complex Three Kingdoms period Gaya region Koreans

The genetic history of prehistoric and protohistoric Korean populations is not well understood due to the lack of ancient Korean genomes. Here, we report the first paleogenomic data from Korea; eight shotgun-sequenced genomes (0.7X~6.1X coverage) from two archeological sites in Gimhae: Yuha-ri shell mound and Daesung-dong tumuli, the most important funerary complex of the Gaya confederacy. All eight individuals are from the Korean Three Kingdoms period (4th-7th century CE), during which there is archaeological evidence of extensive trade connections with both northern (modern-day China) and eastern (modern-day Japan) kingdoms. All genomes are best modeled as an admixture between a northern-Chinese Iron Age genetic source and a Japanese-Jomon-related ancestry. The proportion of Jomon-related ancestry suggests the presence of two genetic groups within the population. The observed substructure indicates diversity among the Gaya population that is not related to either social status or sex.

The SNPs rs429358 and rs7412 of APOE gene are Association With Dyslipidemia but Not Cerebral Infarction in Northern Chinese Han population

BackgroundTo analyze the relationship between apolipoprotein E(APOE) (including the SNPs rs429358 and rs7412) gene and cerebral infarction(CI) in Northern Chinese Han population.Methods457 CI patients and 416 controls (without CI) in Chinese Han population were recruited for our study to test the SNPs by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-fluorescence probe technique.ResultsThe distribution of APOE genotypes were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, and the frequencies of ɛ4 allele orɛ4 containing were significantdifference between CI and control groups. Compared to ε2 or ε3 carriers, ε4 carriers had a high level of total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C) and high presenceof dyslipidemia in recruited peoples. And we found APOE ε4 allele was associated with an increased risk of dyslipidemia in the control and CI groups (OR = 2.232, 95% CI= 1.143-4.361, P<0.000; OR = 3.442, 95% CI= 1.885-6.284, P=0.019). However, further logistic regression showed that ɛ4 allele or carriers were not the independent risk factors of CI (OR = 2.232, 95% CI= 1.143-4.361, P=0.144; OR = 3.442, 95% CI= 1.885-6.284, P=0.162).ConclusionAPOE ε4 allele was associated with an increased risk of dyslipidemia (OR = 2.232, 95% CI= 1.143-4.361; OR = 3.442, 95% CI= 1.885-6.284), but ɛ4 allele or carriers were not the independent risk factors of CI in Northern Chinese Han population (OR = 2.232, 95% CI= 1.143-4.361, P=0.144; OR = 3.442, 95% CI= 1.885-6.284, P=0.162).