Biology subjects

Dou, Y.

Publications and source records attributed to Dou, Y..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2018

Identification of genes affecting saturated fat acid content in Elaeis guineensis by genome-wide association analysis

Oil palm is the highest yielding oil crop per unit area worldwide. Unfortunately, palm oil is often considered unhealthy. In particular, palmic acid (C16:0) is a major component of palm oil. In this study a total of 1 261 501 SNP markers were produced in a diversity panel of 200 oil palm individuals. Oil content in this population varied from 29.8% to 70.3%, palmic acid varied from 31.3% to 48.8%, and oleic acid varied from 31.3% to 50.1%. We identified 274 SNP markers significantly associated with fatty acid compositions; 44 candidate genes in the flanking regions of these SNPs were involved in fatty acid biosynthesis and metabolism. Among them, two acyl-ACP thioesterase B genes had differential expression patterns between the mesocarp and kernel, tissues which show different oil profiles in oil palm (high palmic acid and high lauric acid respectively). Overexpression of both genes caused a significant increase in palmic acid content, while overexpression of the EgFatB2 gene also caused an accumulation of lauric acid and myristic acid. Our research provides genome-wide SNPs, a set of markers significantly associated with fatty acid content, and validated candidate genes for future targeted breeding of lower saturated fat content in palm oil.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2017

De novo mutations involved in post-transcriptional dysregulation contribute to six neuropsychiatric disorders

While deleterious de novo mutations (DNMs) in coding region conferring risk in neuropsychiatric disorders have been revealed by next-generation sequencing, the role of DNMs involved in post-transcriptional regulation in pathogenesis of these disorders remains to be elucidated. Here, we identified 1,736 post-transcriptionally impaired DNMs (piDNMs), and prioritized 1,482 candidate genes in four neuropsychiatric disorders from 7,748 families. Our results revealed higher prevalence of piDNMs in the probands than in controls (P = 8.19x10-17), and piDNM-harboring genes were enriched for epigenetic modifications and neuronal or synaptic functions. Moreover, we identified 86 piDNM-containing genes forming convergent co-expression modules and intensive protein-protein interactions in at least two neuropsychiatric disorders. These cross-disorder genes carrying piDNMs could form interaction network centered on RNA binding proteins, suggesting a shared post-transcriptional etiology underlying these disorders. Our findings illustrate the significant contribution of piDNMs to four neuropsychiatric disorders, and lay emphasis on combining functional and network-based evidences to identify regulatory causes of genetic disorders.

genomics↗