Project description:The microbiome plays a significant role in gut brain communication and is linked to several animal and human diseases. Hypertension is characterized by gut dysbiosis, and this study aimed to determine how the gut microbiome differed between male and female normotensive and hypertensive rodents. WKY is a genetic control for spontaneous hypertensive rats or SHR which is well documented to have elevated blood pressure at approximately 8 to 10 weeks. We compared the microbiome of normotensive and hypertensive rodents using a meta-genomics approach.
Project description:Skeletal muscle atrophy is one of the critical issues which elderly people face. The precise mechanism underlying muscle atrophy during aging is not fully understood. In order to identify miRNA whose expression is changed in age-associated muscle atrophy, we performed miRNA expression profiling of skeletal muscles in young and aged rats. Microarray analysis revealed differential miRNA expression in EDL and soleus muscles of aged rats compared with those of young rats. We next investigated whether the age-associated changes of miRNA expression observed in rats were recapitulated in mice and found that the expression level of miR-206 in EDL muscle and that of miR-196a in EDL and soleus muscles were respectively higher and lower in aged rodents than in young rodents. In mouse C2C12 myoblasts and myotubes, introduction of miR-196a decreased the protein level of Forkhead-box transcription factor Foxo1, a known target of miR-196a, indicating that miR-196a may regulate Foxo1 expression also in skeletal muscles. Furthermore, miR-196a overexpression exacerbated cell death caused by an exposure to hydrogen peroxide. Lastly, we demonstrated that expression of Foxo1 was elevated in EDL and soleus muscles of aged mice compared with those of young mice. These results suggest that miRNAs are involved in skeletal muscle atrophy during aging and that decreased miR-196a expression may protect skeletal muscle cells from oxidative stress in part through induction of Foxo1.
2016-08-31 | GSE70990 | GEO
Project description:Virome of rodents collected in Xinjiang, China
Project description:Ultraconserved Elements Improve the Resolution of Difficult Nodes within the Rapid Radiation of Neotropical Sigmodontine Rodents (Cricetidae: Sigmodontinae).
Project description:Yunnan Province, China is thought to be the original source of biovar Orientalis of Yersinia pestis, the causative agent of the third plague pandemic that has spread globally since the end of the 19th century. Although encompassing a large area of natural plague foci, Y. pestis strains have rarely been found in live rodents during surveillance in Yunnan, and most isolates are from rodent corpses and their fleas. In 2017, 10 Y. pestis strains were isolated from seven live rodents and three fleas in Heqing County (HQ) of Yunnan. These strains were supposed to have low virulence to local rodents Eothenomys miletus and Apodemus chevrieri because the rodents were healthy and no dead animals were found in surrounding areas, as had occurred in previous epizootic disease. We performed microscopic and biochemical examinations of the isolates,and compared their whole-genome sequences and transcriptome with those of 10 high virulence Y. pestis strains that were isolated from the adjacent city (Lijiang). We analyzed the phenotypic, genomic, and transcriptomic characteristics of live rodent isolates. The isolates formed a previously undefined monophyletic branch of Y. pestis that was named 1.IN5. Six SNPs, two indels, and one copy number variation were detected between live rodent isolates and the high virulence neighbors. No obvious functional consequence of these variations was found according to the known annotation information. Among the genes that were differentially expressed between the live rodent isolates and their high virulence neighbors, we detected five iron transfer-related genes that were significantly up-regulated in live rodent isolates compared with high virulence isolates (|log2 (FC) | >1, p.adjust <0.05), indicating these genes may be related to the low-virulence phenotype. The novel genotype of Y. pestis reported here provides further insights into the evolution and spread of plague as well as clues that may help to decipher the virulence mechanism of this notorious pathogen.