Paired box 7 (Pax7) gene: molecular characterisation, polymorphism and its association with growth performance in goose (Anser cygnoides).

1. Paired box (Pax7) gene is a member of the paired box family and plays a critical role in animal growth and muscle development. However, the molecular characterisation of the goose Pax7 gene is unknown. 2. The open-reading frame of goose Pax7 is composed of 1509 bp, which encodes a protein of 503 amino acids and shares high homology with Pax7 of other birds. 3. Ten single-nucleotide polymorphisms were identified in the genomic DNA sequence, 8 located in the intron region and two located in the exon region. 4. Association analysis showed the C122T locus was significantly associated with the body weight of Zhedong-White geese in week 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12. 5. It was concluded that the goose Pax7 gene may be an important candidate gene for goose growth traits and marker-assisted selection.

Molecular cloning, expression and polymorphism of goose LRP8 gene.

1. The low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 8 (LRP8), a member of the low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) gene family, participates in the supplying of lipid during follicular development. The objective of the study was to identify and characterise the LRP8 gene in goose. 2. A 2867 bp fragment that covered the complete coding region (CDS) of goose (Anser cygnoides) LRP8 gene was cloned. It encoded a protein of 917 amino acid residues containing a 24-amino acid signal peptide and 5 functional domains. The goose LRP8 showed high nucleic acid and amino acid identities with those in other species. 3. Similarly to duck LRP8 gene, two splice variants of LRP8, LRP8-1 (containing 8 ligand-binding repeats) and LRP8-2 (containing 7 ligand-binding repeats), were identified in goose. 4. Semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis indicates that the LRP8-1 transcript is expressed in heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, breast muscle, duodenum, hypothalamus, pituitary and ovary, negligible or absent in sebum and oviduct, and the LRP8-2 transcript is widely expressed in all examined tissues. 5. A total of 7 SNPs were identified in the coding region of the goose LRP8 gene.

[Resources of Chinese materia medica in shennonjia].

There are 2023 species of Chinese materia medica in Shennonjia, belonging to 300 families and 974 genera, of which 1800 (including subspecies) are plants, 213 animals and 10 minerals. Protection, exploitation and utilization of these resources have been discussed.

Effectiveness and safety of patient initiated single-dose versus continuous low-dose antibiotic prophylaxis for recurrent urinary tract infections in postmenopausal women: a randomized controlled study.

This study evaluated patient-initiated single-dose antibiotic prophylaxis and continuous long-term low-dose daily antibiotic use for the prevention of recurrent urinary tract infections (UTI) in 68 postmenopausal women. The women were randomized to take a low-dose antibiotic each night (continuous group, n = 37) or a single-dose antibiotic each time they experienced conditions predisposing to UTI (intermittent group, n = 31). During the 12-month study, 1.4 and 1.9 UTIs/patient developed in the continuous and the intermittent groups, respectively, which was significantly lower than the incidence of UTIs in the previous 12 months in these patients (4.7 and 5.1 UTIs/patient, respectively). The incidence of gastro intestinal adverse events was significantly lower in the intermittent group compared with the continuous group (9.1% versus 30.0%). In conclusion, patient-initiated single-dose intermittent antibiotic prophylaxis was as effective as low-dose daily antibiotic prophylaxis in the treatment of recurrent UTIs in post menopausal women and was associated with fewer gastrointestinal adverse events.