Objective The aim of this study was to select the candidate genes affecting meat quality and preliminarily explore the related molecular mechanisms in the Mashen pig. Methods The present study explored genetic factors affecting meat quality in the Mashen pig using RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). We sequenced the transcriptomes of 180-day-old Mashen and Large White pigs using longissimus dorsi to select differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Results The results indicated that a total of 425 genes were differentially expressed between Mashen and Large White pigs. A gene ontology enrichment analysis revealed that DEGs were mainly enriched for biological processes associated with metabolism and muscle development, while a Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes analysis showed that DEGs mainly participated in signaling pathways associated with amino acid metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, and skeletal muscle differentiation. A MCODE analysis of the protein-protein interaction network indicated that the four identified subsets of genes were mainly associated with translational initiation, skeletal muscle differentiation, amino acid metabolism, and oxidative phosphorylation pathways. Conclusion Based on the analysis results, we selected glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase 1, malate dehydrogenase 1, pyruvate dehydrogenase 1, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4, and activator protein-1 as candidate genes affecting meat quality in pigs. A discussion of the related molecular mechanisms is provided to offer a theoretical basis for future studies on the improvement of meat quality in pigs.

Despite the expectation that retinoic acid receptor could be the potential therapeutic targets for pancreatic cancers, there has been the lack of information about the role and the impact of retinoic acid receptor gamma (RARγ, RARG) on pancreatic cancer, unlike other two RARs. Herein, we applied TCGA and GEO database to show that the expression and prognosis of RARG is closely related to pancreatic cancer, which demonstrates that RARG is commonly overexpressed in human pancreatic cancer and is an independent diagnostic marker predicting the poor prognosis of pancreatic cancer patients. In addition, we demonstrated that the reduction in the expression of RARG in human pancreatic cancer cells dramatically suppress their proliferation and tumor growth in vivo, partially attributable to the downregulation of tumor-supporting biological processes such as cell proliferation, antiapoptosis and metabolism and the decreased expression of various oncogenes like MYC and STAT3. Mechanistically, RARG binds on the promoters of MYC, STAT3, and SLC2A1 which is distinguished from well-known conventional Retinotic acid response elements (RAREs) and that the binding is likely to be responsible for the epigenetic activation in the level of chromatin, assessed by the measurement of deposition of the gene activation marker histone H3 K27 acetylation (H3K27ac) using ChIP-qPCR. In this study, we reveal that RARG plays important role in the tumorigenesis of pancreatic cancer and represents new therapeutic targets for human pancreatic cancer.

The electron transport layer (ETL) is a critical component in achieving high device performance and stability in organic solar cells. Conjugated polyelectrolytes (CPEs) have become an attractive alternative due to film‐forming properties and ease of preparation. However, p‐type CPEs generally exhibit poor charge mobility and conductivity, incorporation of electron‐withdrawing units forming alternated D‐A conjugated backbone can make up for these deficiencies. Herein, the ratio of electron withdrawing moieties are further increased and two poly(A1‐alt‐A2) typed PIIDNDI‐Br and PDPPNDI‐Br based on the combination of naphthalene diimide (NDI) with isoindigo (IID) or diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) via direct arylation polycondensation are synthesized. These CPEs possess excellent alcohol solubility, a suitable lowest unocuppied molecular orbital energy level, and work function tunability. Surprisingly, the incorporation of IID and DPP units generate distinct self‐doping behaviors, which are confirmed by UV–vis absorption and ESR spectra. However, no matter doped or undoped, both CPEs present better charge‐transporting properties and conductivity when utilized as ETLs. The PIIDNDI‐Br and PDPPNDI‐Br display good universal compatibility with the blend of PM6:Y6 and PM6:L8‐BO, and PCEs of 18.32% and 18.36% are obtained, respectively, which also present excellent storage stability. In short, the combination of two different acceptors demonstrates an efficient strategy to design highly efficient ETLs for high performance photovoltaic devices.

The carcass weight of Chinese Shanxi Black Pigs is relatively lower in comparison with that of the counterparts, i.e., Large White Pigs, although the former are resistant to harsh conditions. Since gut microflora has been recognized to play a key role in pork production, it is of interest to explore the microbial communities in different intestinal segments of pigs and its potential relatedness with host features. In this study, 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, accompanied by the inter-and intra-group comparisons, was implemented to investigate the structure composition and potential functions of microbial communities of four distinct intestinal segments [duodenum (D), jejunum (J), ileum (I), and cecum (C)] between adult Chinese Shanxi Black Pigs and Large White Pigs. Comparative survey revealed that the dominant phylum in both breeds was Firmicutes, followed by Proteobacteria, and Bacteroidetes. At the genus level, Lactobacillus was predominant in all samples, and Prevotella was specifically prevalent in the cecum. Further inspection showed the differences of dominant species in the same segments between these two groups. Notably, unique taxa in C and D segments were more than that in I and J segments. Additionally, each segment was characterized by specifically enriched genera, and distinctive pathways were predicted in certain intestinal segments. In short, the findings presented a coherent picture of structure composition and predicted functionalities of gut microbiota in diverse intestinal segments of adult Chinese Shanxi Black Pigs and Large White Pigs, and extend the understanding of potential link between intestinal microbiota and their hosts.