열대거세미나방의 저온 내성에 관여하는 분자적 기작을 규명하기 위하여, 4°C 저온 처리 후 뇌 조직을 대상으로 전사체 분석을 수행하였 다. 그 결과 총 266,051개의 유니진(unigene)이 확보되었으며, 저온 처리군에서 6,917개의 유전자가 차등발현을 보였다. 저온 반응에서는 상향 조절 유전자보다 하향 조절 유전자가 전반적으로 더 많이 나타났다. 차등발현 유전자 중에서는 저온 스트레스 반응과 관련있는 단백질 안정화, 세포막 안정성, 및 에너지 대사 관련 유전자들이 다수 확인되었다. 특히 Hsp와 PGPEP1은 50배 이상 상향 조절되었고, RN7SK는 저온 처리군에 서 175배 수준으로 현저히 하향 조절되었다. 주요 차등발현 유전자에 대한 정량적 RT-PCR 분석 결과, RNA-Seq 분석과 일치하는 발현 경향이 확인되었다. 본 연구는 열대거세미나방의 저온 적응에 대한 분자생리학적 이해를 확장하며, 저온 저항성 및 환경 적응 연구를 위한 후보 분자마커 를 제시한다.

Osteoprotegerin (OPG), a conventional potent inhibitor of osteoclastogenesis, is being increasingly recognized for its diverse roles beyond bone metabolism. However, the cell-autonomous role of OPG in regulating the differentiation and fate of mesenchymal progenitor cells (MPCs) remains to be fully elucidated. To address this issue, OPG-knockout (OPG-KO) human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived MPCs were generated using CRISPR/Cas9 technology. Transcriptomics revealed that OPG deficiency fundamentally alters the functional landscape of the MPCs, with a significant downregulation of the pathways related to the extracellular matrix (ECM), cell adhesion, and structural signaling. Specifically, the expression of numerous key ECM components was broadly attenuated in OPG-KO MPCs. Such molecular disruption functionally translated into severely impaired osteogenic potential, characterized by a marked transcriptional attenuation of osteogenic markers and reduced matrix mineralization at the cell level. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that OPG is essential for maintaining the structural integrity of the MPC niche by regulating the expression of ECM-related genes, thereby promoting osteoblast differentiation.

Chitin and chitosan, abundant biopolymers from shellfish, crustaceans, and fungal hyphae, have diverse applications in food, biomedical, and industrial sectors. Also, insects offer a one of the chitin and chitosan source, yet research into the biological processes of chitin and chitosan within insects remains inadequate. To investigates the safety and benefits of insect-derived chitin and chitosan, we orally administered crab-derived and insect-derived chitin and chitosan to mice and compared RNA expression. NGS derived sequences were obtained and DEG and GO analyses were performed. This study displays a chance to progress the application of edible insects.

Because of the physiological and immunological similarities between pigs and humans, porcine embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have been identified as important candidates in preliminary studies on human disease. A comparative understanding of pig ESCs with the human is required to achieve these goals. To gain insights into pig stem cells, the transcriptome of pig ES-like cells were compared with pig preimplantation embryos and human/mouse pluripotent stem cells by RNA-seq analysis. As a result, pig stem cells were more similar to late epiblasts of pig preimplantation embryos than early ICM as revealed by transcriptome analysis, suggesting that pig stem cells are in a developmentally primed state. Moreover, the physiological and biological functions of pig ESCs were more similar to those of human PSCs than to those of mouse PSCs, as determined by direct differentiation and GO/KEGG term analysis. Overall, our data indicate that pig ESCs are in a primed pluripotent state resembling human PSCs. Our findings will facilitate both the development of large animal models for human stem cell therapy and the generation of pluripotent stem cells from other domestic animals for agricultural use. This work was supported by the Korea Institute of Planning and Evaluation for Technology in food, agriculture, forestry, and fisheries (IPET) through the Development of High Value-Added Food Technology Program funded by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (MAFRA; 118042-03-1-HD020), and partially supported by the grants from the Agenda Program of Rural Development Administration, Republic of Korea (No. PJ01362402)

Pheromone biosynthesis in the pheromone gland is stimulated by pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (PBAN) produced in the suboesophageal ganglion. PBAN binds its receptor and transduces biological signal into the molecules for the pheromone biosynthesis. To understand pheromone biosynthesis pathway in legume pod borer, Maruca vitrata, transcriptome of the pheromone gland was analyzed. A total of 191 contigs involved in the pheromone biosynthesis were identified. Putative pheromone biosynthetic pathways for sex pheromone components in M. vitrata were proposed through transcriptomic analysis.

The hornets Vespa crabro and V. analis are widely distributed in Asia and are known to be aggressive when disturbed, resulting in frequent stinging accidents. To investigate the differences in venom properties and toxicities between these two hornets, the transcriptomic profiles of venom glands, in conjunction with the venom components, were analyzed and compared. A total of 35 venom-specific genes were identified in both venom gland transcriptomes, but their transcriptional profiles were different between V. crabro and V. analis. In addition, the major venom components were identified and confirmed by mass spectroscopy. Prepromastoparan, vespid chemotactic precursor and vespakinin were the top three genes most prevalently transcribed in the venom gland of V. crabro, and their transcription rates were 112-, 16- and 161-fold higher, respectively, compared with those in V. analis, as judged by FPKM values. In the venom gland of V. analis, however, vespid chemotactic precursor was the most abundantly transcribed gene, followed by premastoparan and vespakinin. In general, most major venom genes were more abundantly expressed in V. crabro, whereas some minor venom genes exhibited higher transcription rates in V. analis, including muscle LIM protein, troponin, paramyosin, calponin, etc. Our findings reveal that the overall venom components of V. crabro and V. analis are similar, but that their expression profiles and levels are considerably different. The comparison of venom gland transcriptomes suggests that V. crabro likely produces venom with more highly enriched major venom components, which has potentially higher toxicity compared with V. analis venom.