Reconstructing the genomes of bilaterian ancestors is central to our understanding of animal evolution, where knowledge from ancient and/or slow-evolving bilaterian lineages is critical. Here we report a high-quality, chromosome-anchored reference genome for the scallop Patinopecten yessoensis, a bivalve mollusc that has a slow-evolving genome with many ancestral features. Chromosome-based macrosynteny analysis reveals a striking correspondence between the 19 scallop chromosomes and the 17 presumed ancestral bilaterian linkage groups at a level of conservation previously unseen, suggesting that the scallop may have a karyotype close to that of the bilaterian ancestor. Scallop Hox gene expression follows a new mode of subcluster temporal co-linearity that is possibly ancestral and may provide great potential in supporting diverse bilaterian body plans. Transcriptome analysis of scallop mantle eyes finds unexpected diversity in phototransduction cascades and a potentially ancient Pax2/5/8-dependent pathway for noncephalic eyes. The outstanding preservation of ancestral karyotype and developmental control makes the scallop genome a valuable resource for understanding early bilaterian evolution and biology.

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To better our ability to analyze the facial disproportions of patients of Chinese ancestry, we compared the validity of four neoclassical canons of facial proportion in Chinese and North American Caucasians populations. We tested the frequency of four horizontal facial canons and their eight variations in 206 healthy adults (105 males and 101 females, 18-25 years old) belonging to the predominant ethnic group (Han: 400 million) of the Chinese population, and compared them to those of 103 healthy young North American Caucasian adults. The nose width corresponded to one-quarter of the face width (the nasofacial canon) significantly more frequently in Chinese participants (51.5%) than in Caucasian adults (36.9%). The nose was narrower than one-quarter of the face width in 38.8% of North American Caucasians and in 21.8% of Chinese; this difference was also statistically significant. In defiance of the naso-oral canon, the mouths of Chinese people were significantly more often narrower than 1.5 times the nose width (71.8%), while in North American Caucasian ethnics the mouth was significantly more frequently wider (60.2%).

The Chinese Imaging Genetics (CHIMGEN) study establishes the largest Chinese neuroimaging genetics cohort and aims to identify genetic and environmental factors and their interactions that are associated with neuroimaging and behavioral phenotypes. This study prospectively collected genomic, neuroimaging, environmental, and behavioral data from more than 7000 healthy Chinese Han participants aged 18-30 years. As a pioneer of large-sample neuroimaging genetics cohorts of non-Caucasian populations, this cohort can provide new insights into ethnic differences in genetic-neuroimaging associations by being compared with Caucasian cohorts. In addition to micro-environmental measurements, this study also collects hundreds of quantitative macro-environmental measurements from remote sensing and national survey databases based on the locations of each participant from birth to present, which will facilitate discoveries of new environmental factors associated with neuroimaging phenotypes. With lifespan environmental measurements, this study can also provide insights on the macro-environmental exposures that affect the human brain as well as their timing and mechanisms of action.

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