Identification of regulators of polyploidization presents therapeutic targets for treatment of AMKL.

The mechanism by which cells decide to skip mitosis to become polyploid is largely undefined. Here we used a high-content image-based screen to identify small-molecule probes that induce polyploidization of megakaryocytic leukemia cells and serve as perturbagens to help understand this process. Our study implicates five networks of kinases that regulate the switch to polyploidy. Moreover, we find that dimethylfasudil (diMF, H-1152P) selectively increased polyploidization, mature cell-surface marker expression, and apoptosis of malignant megakaryocytes. An integrated target identification approach employing proteomic and shRNA screening revealed that a major target of diMF is Aurora kinase A (AURKA). We further find that MLN8237 (Alisertib), a selective inhibitor of AURKA, induced polyploidization and expression of mature megakaryocyte markers in acute megakaryocytic leukemia (AMKL) blasts and displayed potent anti-AMKL activity in vivo. Our findings provide a rationale to support clinical trials of MLN8237 and other inducers of polyploidization and differentiation in AMKL.

Endurance training improves oxygen uptake/demand mismatch, metabolic flexibility and recovery in patients with sickle cell disease.

Patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) display lower slope coefficients of the oxygen uptake (V_O2) vs. work rate (W) relationship (delineating an O2 uptake/demand mismatch) and a poor metabolic flexibility. Because endurance training (ET) increases the microvascular network and oxidative enzymes activity including one involved in lipid oxidation, ET might improve the slope coefficient of the V_O2 vs. W curve and the metabolic flexibility of SCD patients. ET may also contribute to improve patient post-exercise cardiopulmonary and metabolic recovery. Fifteen patients with SCD performed a submaximal incremental test on a cycle ergometer before (SIT1) and after (SIT2) 8 weeks of ET. Minute ventilation, ventilation rate (VR), heart rate (HR), V_O2, CO2 production, respiratory exchange ratio, carbohydrate/lipid utilization and partitioning (including %Lipidox) and blood lactate concentration ([lactate]b) were measured during and after SIT1 and SIT2. At baseline, the slope coefficient of the V_O2 vs. W curve positively correlated with total hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin and percentage of HbF. After training, the slope coefficient of the V_O2 vs. W curve was significantly higher and the [lactate]b increase was delayed. If patients' energy metabolism apparently relied largely on carbohydrate sources during SIT1, %Lipidox tended to increase at low exercise intensities during SIT2, supporting a training-induced improvement of metabolic flexibility in patients with SCD. Post-exercise recovery of VR, V_E/V_CO2, HR and [lactate]b was faster after training. We concluded that ET in patients with SCD i) ameliorated the oxygen uptake/demand mismatch, ii) blunted the metabolic inflexibility, and iii) improved post-exercise cardiopulmonary and metabolic responses.

[Effect of CKIP-1 on hepatocyte apoptosis in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease].

Objective: To explore the effect and underlying mechanism of casein kinase 2 interacting protein-1 (CKIP-1) on hepatocyte apoptosis in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Methods: Experimental study. An NAFLD cell model was established by inducing human hepatoma cell line, HepG2 cells, with oleic acid (OA). Flag-CKIP-1 expression vector and shRNA-CKIP-1 were transfected into HepG2 cells. Flow cytometry was used to detect the effect of CKIP-1 on the activity and apoptosis of NAFLD hepatocytes. The levels of apoptosis-related proteins were detected by Western blot. CKIP-1 knockout mice in C57BL/6 back-ground were fed with either standard or high-fat diet for 8 weeks. Apoptosis-related signal proteins in NAFLD hepatocytes were detected by immunohistochemistry. Results: After CKIP-1 was transfected into HepG2 cells, the degree of OA induced cell liposis was significantly reduced (P<0.05). Annexin V-FITC/PI flow cytometry showed that CKIP-1 reduced the apoptosis of steatotic hepatocytes. Overexpression of CKIP-1 could significantly inhibit the expression of caspase-3 and caspase-9 and increase the expression of Bcl-2/Bax (P<0.05). Knockdown of CKIP-1 could increase the expression of caspase-3 and caspase-9 (P<0.05). CKIP-1 knockout could further increase the expression of caspase-3 and caspase-9 in NAFLD mice (P<0.01,P<0.05), and further decrease the expression of Bcl-2/Bax (P<0.05). Conclusion: CKIP-1 inhibited the apoptosis of steatotic hepatocytes by up-regulating the expression of apoptosis inhibitor gene, Bcl-2/Bax, and affecting the proteases, caspase-3 and caspase-9.

[Research on the determination of the limit value of perchlorate in the "Standards for Drinking Water Quality（GB5749-2022）" in China].

Perchlorate is an environmental pollutant that has been a focus of attention in recent years. It has been detected in many environmental water bodies and drinking water in China, with a high level of presence in some areas of the Yangtze River Basin. The human body may ingest perchlorate through exposure pathways such as drinking water and food, and its main health effect is to affect the thyroid's absorption of iodine. The "Standards for Drinking Water Quality" (GB5749-2022) includes perchlorate as an expanded indicator of water quality, with a limit value of 0.07 mg/L. This article analyzes the technical content related to the determination of hygiene standard limits for perchlorate in drinking water, including the environmental presence level and exposure status of perchlorate, main health effects, derivation of safety reference values, and determination of hygiene standard limits.

[Research on the establishment of standard limits for perfluorooctanoic acid and perfluorooctane sulfonate in the "Standards for Drinking Water Quality（GB5749-2022）"in China].

Perfluorinated compounds, especially Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), are widely detected in water environments in China. Considering the potential health risks of drinking water exposure routes, PFOA and PFOS have been added to the water quality reference index of the newly issued "Standards for Drinking Water Quality (GB5749-2022)", with limit values of 40 and 80 ng/L, respectively. This study analyzed and discussed the relevant technical contents for determining the limits of the hygiene standard, including the environmental existence level and exposure status of PFOA and PFOS, health effects, derivation of safety reference values, and determination of hygiene standard limits. It also proposed prospects for the future direction of formulating drinking water standards.

Multi-gigaelectronvolt acceleration of positrons in a self-loaded plasma wakefield.

Electrical breakdown sets a limit on the kinetic energy that particles in a conventional radio-frequency accelerator can reach. New accelerator concepts must be developed to achieve higher energies and to make future particle colliders more compact and affordable. The plasma wakefield accelerator (PWFA) embodies one such concept, in which the electric field of a plasma wake excited by a bunch of charged particles (such as electrons) is used to accelerate a trailing bunch of particles. To apply plasma acceleration to electron-positron colliders, it is imperative that both the electrons and their antimatter counterpart, the positrons, are efficiently accelerated at high fields using plasmas. Although substantial progress has recently been reported on high-field, high-efficiency acceleration of electrons in a PWFA powered by an electron bunch, such an electron-driven wake is unsuitable for the acceleration and focusing of a positron bunch. Here we demonstrate a new regime of PWFAs where particles in the front of a single positron bunch transfer their energy to a substantial number of those in the rear of the same bunch by exciting a wakefield in the plasma. In the process, the accelerating field is altered--'self-loaded'--so that about a billion positrons gain five gigaelectronvolts of energy with a narrow energy spread over a distance of just 1.3 metres. They extract about 30 per cent of the wake's energy and form a spectrally distinct bunch with a root-mean-square energy spread as low as 1.8 per cent. This ability to transfer energy efficiently from the front to the rear within a single positron bunch makes the PWFA scheme very attractive as an energy booster to an electron-positron collider.

[Chronic kidney disease after adrenalectomy in a patient with primary aldosteronism].

We report one case of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) decline after taking unilateral adrenalectomy due to aldosterone adenoma. A 60-year-old male with 23-year history of hypertension was reported to the endocrinologist due to hypokalemia (serum potassium 3.01 mmol/L). Urine microalbumin/creatinine (ALB/CR) was 70.15 mg/g, serum creatinine was 82 µmol/L and eGFR was 89.79 mL/(min·1.73 m2). Random serum aldosterone was 172.2-203.5 ng/L, and random plasma rennin activity was 0-0.17 µg/(L·h). His captopril challenge test suggested that his aldosterone le-vels were suppressed by 8% (< 30%) and the adrenal enhanced computed tomography scan revealed a left adrenal tumor. The patient was diagnosed with primary hyperaldosteronism (PA), aldosterone adenoma and underwent left laparoscopic adrenalectomy. Histological examination confirmed adrenal cortical adenoma. One week after the operation, his serum creatinine was increased to 127 µmol/L compared with preoperative level; eGFR was 32.34 mL/(min·1.73 m2). His systolic blood pressure (SBP) was 110 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) was 60 mmHg (hypotensive drugs discontinued), and serum potassium level was 5.22 mmol/L. At the end of the 2-year follow up, the serum creatinine of this patient remained at 109-158 µmol/L and eGFR fluctuated from 63.28-40.12 mL/(min·1.73 m2). PA is one of the most common causes of secondary hypertension. Several studies have reported renal function deterioration of PA patients after unilateral adrenalectomy, like the patient in this article. Age, preoperative plasma aldosterone concentration, albuminuria and preoperative potassium level might be significant predictors of a decrease in the eGFR. Growing evidence suggests that aldosterone could contribute to structural kidney damage, arterial injury and hemodynamic disorder. At the same time, patients with PA exhibit glomerular hyperfiltration and glomerular vascular hypertension, leading to the misinterpretation of renal function in PA patients as subtle kidney damage may be masked by the glomerular hyperfiltration before treatment. After a unilateral adrenalectomy, glomerular hyperfiltration by aldosterone excess is resolved and renal damage can be unmasked. In conclusion, kidney function deterioration after adrenalectomy can be detected in some patients with PA. Thus, accurate evaluation of kidney function in patients with PA may be essential, especially for those with preoperative risk factors for postoperative renal impairment. After unilateral adrenalectomy, close monitoring of renal function and adequate management are required for PA patients.

"This Life is Normal for Me": A Study of Everyday Life Experiences and Coping Strategies of Live-in Carers in Taiwan.

Recruiting migrant live-in carers has become the main strategy to address the rapid increase in the number of older persons with intensive care needs in many parts of the developed world. This is also the case in northern Taiwan, where this study took place. Thirteen live-in carers from Indonesia and the Philippines were interviewed in the fall of 2019. In this article, we discuss their two main coping strategies: a) "accepting destiny", which refers to carers accepting their life and viewing their role as a live-in carer as a job that allowed them to meet their parents' expectations of financial support; and b) "connecting to significant others", which is the most important way carers found motivation to keep going. However, despite their coping strategies, working as a live-in carer was experienced as a challenging and precarious lifestyle. In the conclusion, we discuss how professional social workers in collaboration with decision-makers and non-governmental organizations in Taiwan could contribute to fostering a system that would support live-in carers in ways that allow them, and the older persons they care for, to thrive.

High-efficiency acceleration of an electron beam in a plasma wakefield accelerator.

High-efficiency acceleration of charged particle beams at high gradients of energy gain per unit length is necessary to achieve an affordable and compact high-energy collider. The plasma wakefield accelerator is one concept being developed for this purpose. In plasma wakefield acceleration, a charge-density wake with high accelerating fields is driven by the passage of an ultra-relativistic bunch of charged particles (the drive bunch) through a plasma. If a second bunch of relativistic electrons (the trailing bunch) with sufficient charge follows in the wake of the drive bunch at an appropriate distance, it can be efficiently accelerated to high energy. Previous experiments using just a single 42-gigaelectronvolt drive bunch have accelerated electrons with a continuous energy spectrum and a maximum energy of up to 85 gigaelectronvolts from the tail of the same bunch in less than a metre of plasma. However, the total charge of these accelerated electrons was insufficient to extract a substantial amount of energy from the wake. Here we report high-efficiency acceleration of a discrete trailing bunch of electrons that contains sufficient charge to extract a substantial amount of energy from the high-gradient, nonlinear plasma wakefield accelerator. Specifically, we show the acceleration of about 74 picocoulombs of charge contained in the core of the trailing bunch in an accelerating gradient of about 4.4 gigavolts per metre. These core particles gain about 1.6 gigaelectronvolts of energy per particle, with a final energy spread as low as 0.7 per cent (2.0 per cent on average), and an energy-transfer efficiency from the wake to the bunch that can exceed 30 per cent (17.7 per cent on average). This acceleration of a distinct bunch of electrons containing a substantial charge and having a small energy spread with both a high accelerating gradient and a high energy-transfer efficiency represents a milestone in the development of plasma wakefield acceleration into a compact and affordable accelerator technology.

[Study on constructing the U-shaped response relationship of urinary iodine level and thyroid nodule prevalence based on piecewise function quantile regression method].

Objective: To establish an asymmetric U-shaped response relationship between urinary iodine level and thyroid nodule prevalence. Methods: Taking "Iodine" "Urine Iodine" "Thyroid" and "Thyroid Nodule" as Chinese keywords, and "Urine Iodine" "Goiter" and "Thyroid Nodule" as English keywords, literatures about urine iodine level and thyroid nodule prevalence were searched in China Biology Medicine disc, China National Knowledge Internet, Wanfang Data, PubMed and Springer databases from January 2000 to December 2019 respectively. The language of literatures was restricted in Chinese and English. There were 46 articles (24 domestic and 22 foreign) included in the study. The quantile regression method and Sigmoid function model were used to fit the dose-response relationship between different levels of urinary iodine and thyroid nodule prevalence to estimate the prevalence of thyroid nodule in Chinese residents. Results: The fitted dose-response curves between different levels of urine iodine, ranging from low level to appropriate level and then to high level, and thyroid nodule prevalence had a good performance on the simulation of the asymmetric U-shaped relationship between urine iodine level and thyroid nodule prevalence. The median level of urinary iodine at the cut-off point of the piecewise function was 198 µg/L. Based on the weighted calculation of the total sample size included in the literature, the prevalence of thyroid nodules (95%CI) in Chinese residents was 23.0% (17.3%-30.7%). Conclusion: The asymmetric U-shaped response relationship between urinary iodine level and thyroid nodule prevalence based on piecewise function has good feasibility and fitting effect.

Producing multi-coloured bunches through beam-induced ionization injection in plasma wakefield accelerator.

This paper discusses the properties of electron beams formed in plasma wakefield accelerators through ionization injection. In particular, the potential for generating a beam composed of co-located multi-colour beamlets is demonstrated in the case where the ionization is initiated by the evolving charge field of the drive beam itself. The physics of the processes of ionization and injection are explored through OSIRIS simulations. Experimental evidence showing similar features are presented from the data obtained in the E217 experiment at the FACET facility of the SLAC National Laboratory. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Directions in particle beam-driven plasma wakefield acceleration'.

Betatron radiation and emittance growth in plasma wakefield accelerators.

Beam-driven plasma wakefield acceleration (PWFA) has demonstrated significant progress during the past two decades of research. The new Facility for Advanced Accelerator Experimental Tests (FACET) II, currently under construction, will provide 10 GeV electron beams with unprecedented parameters for the next generation of PWFA experiments. In the context of the FACET II facility, we present simulation results on expected betatron radiation and its potential application to diagnose emittance preservation and hosing instability in the upcoming PWFA experiments. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Directions in particle beam-driven plasma wakefield acceleration'.

Immediate and short-term effects of gait retraining on the knee joint moments and symptoms in patients with early tibiofemoral joint osteoarthritis: a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of a knee adduction moment (KAM) gait retraining in patients with early knee osteoarthritis up to 6 months post-training. METHOD: We conducted a single blinded randomized controlled trial on a total of 23 patients with early knee osteoarthritis who were randomly allocated to the gait retraining group and walking exercise group. Twenty of them completed the corresponding training and the 6-month evaluation. We measured KAM, knee flexion moment (KFM) and western ontario and McMaster universities osteoarthritis index (WOMAC) osteoarthritis index before, immediate after, and 6 months after training. A repeated measures analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to compare KAM, KFM and WOMAC osteoarthritis index scores across the three time points i.e., pre-training, post-training, and 6-month follow-up with gender, knee osteoarthritis severity, and pre-training KAM, KFM and WOMAC scores set as covariates. Post-hoc analyses were conducted when indicated. RESULTS: Significant time × group interactions were found for both KAM and WOMAC osteoarthritis index scores (P < 0.002). No interaction was found for KFM (P = 0.123). KAM after gait retraining was significantly lower than the pre-training value (P < 0.001) and such effect was maintained at 6-month follow-up (P = 0.01). There was no significant difference in the KAM across time in the walking exercise group (P > 0.208). WOMAC osteoarthritis index score after training and score at the 6-month follow-up were significantly improved in the gait retraining group (P = 0.001), while the WOMAC osteoarthritis index score remained similar. CONCLUSIONS: Gait retraining is an effective intervention to reduce KAM during walking and to improve the symptoms of patients with early knee osteoarthritis in short term.

Measurement of Transverse Wakefields Induced by a Misaligned Positron Bunch in a Hollow Channel Plasma Accelerator.

Hollow channel plasma wakefield acceleration is a proposed method to provide high acceleration gradients for electrons and positrons alike: a key to future lepton colliders. However, beams which are misaligned from the channel axis induce strong transverse wakefields, deflecting beams and reducing the collider luminosity. This undesirable consequence sets a tight constraint on the alignment accuracy of the beam propagating through the channel. Direct measurements of beam misalignment-induced transverse wakefields are therefore essential for designing mitigation strategies. We present the first quantitative measurements of transverse wakefields in a hollow plasma channel, induced by an off-axis 20 GeV positron bunch, and measured with another 20 GeV lower charge trailing positron probe bunch. The measurements are largely consistent with theory.

Targeting BRCA1- and BRCA2-deficient cells with RAD52 small molecule inhibitors.

RAD52 is a member of the homologous recombination (HR) pathway that is important for maintenance of genome integrity. While single RAD52 mutations show no significant phenotype in mammals, their combination with mutations in genes that cause hereditary breast cancer and ovarian cancer like BRCA1, BRCA2, PALB2 and RAD51C are lethal. Consequently, RAD52 may represent an important target for cancer therapy. In vitro, RAD52 has ssDNA annealing and DNA strand exchange activities. Here, to identify small molecule inhibitors of RAD52 we screened a 372,903-compound library using a fluorescence-quenching assay for ssDNA annealing activity of RAD52. The obtained 70 putative inhibitors were further characterized using biochemical and cell-based assays. As a result, we identified compounds that specifically inhibit the biochemical activities of RAD52, suppress growth of BRCA1- and BRCA2-deficient cells and inhibit RAD52-dependent single-strand annealing (SSA) in human cells. We will use these compounds for development of novel cancer therapy and as a probe to study mechanisms of DNA repair.

[Study of diffusion weighted imaging in combination with conventional MRI signs for inflammation activity of chronic hepatitis B].

Objective: To study the correlation between ADC values of diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) and the pathological grading in inflammation activity of chronic hepatitis B, and combined with conventional MRI features to predict the diagnosis effectiveness. Methods: A total of 142 cases of patients with chronic hepatitis B were selected as inflammatory group in 302 Hospital of PLA from January 2014 to December 2015, while 20 cases of healthy subjects without history of liver disease were chosen as control group.All patients underwent MR plain scan and dynamic contrast enhancement and DWI examinations (b=0, 800 s/mm(2)) for liver, and were performed liver biopsy within two days.According to the degree of inflammation activity (G), the inflammation group was divided into G1, G2 and G3-4 level.The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value, and the MRI features of each group were analyzed. Results: The ADC values showed statistical difference (F=8.392, P<0.01) within inflammation group of chronic hepatitis B from different pathologic grading, and there was significant negative correlation between ADC values and liver inflammation activity grading (r=-0.613, P<0.01). The ADC value of inflammation group and control group was (1.31±0.16), (1.12±0.15)×10(-3) mm(2)/s, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). The ADC value of G1, G2 and G3-4 level was (1.22±0.12), (1.05±0.12), (0.98±0.10)×10(-3) mm(2)/s respectively, and there was statistical difference (P<0.05) between G1 and G2, G1 and G3-4. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve in diagnosis of equal and above G2 level showed the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.880, the sensitivity and the specificity was 82.4% and 76.8% respectively, the diagnostic cut-off value was 1.09×10(-3) mm(2)/s.Besides, the detection rate of portal around its orbit and gallbladder wall edema in inflammation group had statistical difference (P<0.05), and there was no statistical difference in the detection rate of abnormal liver arterial enhancement, hilus lymph node increases and ascites in inflammation group(P>0.05). The ROC in diagnosis of equal and above G2 level by ADC values combined with the MRI characteristic signs showed AUC was 0.938, the sensitivity and the specificity was 88.4% and 88.9% respectively. Conclusions: ADC values can predict the inflammation activity of chronic hepatitis B with quantitatively and non-invasively.Combining with characteristic MRI signs, ADC values can improve the diagnosis efficiency.

[Quantitative comparison of diffusion weighted image in liver at two field strengths for chronic hepatitis B].

Objective: To evaluate whether there were differences between apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values derived from 3.0 T and 1.5 T MR diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in liver of patients with chronic hepatitis B. Methods: From January 2016 to November 2016, a total of 40 chronic hepatitis B prospectively underwent both 1.5 T and 3.0 T DWI before liver biopsy, the interval between two scans was within 15 minutes, the protocol was respiratory-triggered DWI(RT-DWI). The ADC values were measured at both field strengths using ROI method. Bland-Altman tests and paired t-tests were used to compare ADC values obtained at 1.5 T and 3.0 T. Results: The ADC values of different b values for patients with mild inflammation at 1.5 T were(1.22-1.48(1.35±0.08)×10(-3) mm(2)/s), the ADC values of different b values for patients with mild inflammation at 3.0 T were(1.18-1.45(1.30±0.08)×10(-3) mm(2)/s); the ADC values of different b values for patients with moderate to severe inflammation at 1.5 T were(1.11-1.37(1.25±0.06)×10(-3) mm(2)/s), the ADC values of different b values for patients with moderate to severe inflammation at 3.0 T were(1.08-1.31(1.20±0.06)×10(-3) mm(2)/s). There were significantly differences between the ADC values of different b values for patients with chronic hepatitis B obtained at two field strengths (P<0.01). Conclusions: Different field strengths have influence on ADC values in liver, the ADC values derived from 3.0 T are lower than the ADC values derived from 1.5 T.

Physics of Phase Space Matching for Staging Plasma and Traditional Accelerator Components Using Longitudinally Tailored Plasma Profiles.

Phase space matching between two plasma-based accelerator (PBA) stages and between a PBA and a traditional accelerator component is a critical issue for emittance preservation. The drastic differences of the transverse focusing strengths as the beam propagates between stages and components may lead to a catastrophic emittance growth even when there is a small energy spread. We propose using the linear focusing forces from nonlinear wakes in longitudinally tailored plasma density profiles to control phase space matching between sections with negligible emittance growth. Several profiles are considered and theoretical analysis and particle-in-cell simulations show how these structures may work in four different scenarios. Good agreement between theory and simulation is obtained, and it is found that the adiabatic approximation misses important physics even for long profiles.

Nanoscale Electron Bunching in Laser-Triggered Ionization Injection in Plasma Accelerators.

Ionization injection is attractive as a controllable injection scheme for generating high quality electron beams using plasma-based wakefield acceleration. Because of the phase-dependent tunneling ionization rate and the trapping dynamics within a nonlinear wake, the discrete injection of electrons within the wake is nonlinearly mapped to a discrete final phase space structure of the beam at the location where the electrons are trapped. This phenomenon is theoretically analyzed and examined by three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations which show that three-dimensional effects limit the wave number of the modulation to between >2k_{0} and about 5k_{0}, where k_{0} is the wave number of the injection laser. Such a nanoscale bunched beam can be diagnosed by and used to generate coherent transition radiation and may find use in generating high-power ultraviolet radiation upon passage through a resonant undulator.

Phylogenetic analysis of the Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) from China based on mitochondrial genome.

Meriones unguiculatus (Gerbillinae, Rodentia) is widely used as an animal model of human disease. Here, we provide the first report of the complete mitochondrial genome sequence of M. unguiculatus (GenBank accession Nos. KF425526 and NC_023263). The sequence contained the conserved vertebrate pattern of 13 protein-coding genes, 2 ribosomal RNAs, 22 transfer RNAs, and 1 major noncoding region. We identified one extended termination-associated sequence and one conserved sequence block in the non-coding region. The putative origin of replication for the light strand (OL) was 35 bp long. The OL stem and adjacent sequences were highly conserved, but the loop region differed from those of other rodent species. Base composition and codon usage of the 13 protein-coding genes in M. unguiculatus were compared with those of 23 rodent species with previously sequenced mitochondrial genomes. An A+T content of 63.0% was present in M. unguiculatus; this is similar to the Murinae average (62.4 ± 0.8%) and falls between the average for Mus musculus (63.1 ± 0.1%) and Rattus sp (61.7 ± 0.4%). The AT and GC skew values of M. unguiculatus were 0.035 and -0.28, respectively, similar to those of Cricetinae species (0.057 ± 0.05 and -0.31 ± 0.05). The codon families exhibited similar abundance in all 24 species. Analysis of phylogenetic relationships with 23 other rodent species using neighbor-joining and maximum likelihood protocols and the 12 protein-coding regions on the H strand showed that M. unguiculatus should be classified as genus Meriones, sub-family Gerbillinae, family Muridae.