Human challenge models, in which volunteers are experimentally infected with a pathogen of interest, provide the opportunity to directly identify both natural and vaccine-induced correlates of protection. In this review, we highlight how the application of transcriptomics to human challenge studies allows for the identification of novel correlates and gives insight into the immunological pathwa...

The molecular genetic program for root hair development has been studied intensively in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). To understand the extent to which this program might operate in other plants, we conducted a large-scale comparative analysis of root hair development genes from diverse vascular plants, including eudicots, monocots, and a lycophyte. Combining phylogenetics and transcripto...

Transcriptomics (or functional genomics) is a powerful tool that allow researchers to connect their knowledge of cells, biomarkers, and disease onset, hence providing novel diagnostic therapeutic solutions perspectives. It includes the tempo-spatial distribution, communication interaction key cellular mRNA biomarkers cross-talking networks, role in influencing intracellular extracellular dynami...

Ticks are important economic parasites that are involved in the transmission of disease pathogens in cattles around the world. The health and economic burden caused by tick borne infections has warranted better control measures. At present, control of tick and tick borne diseases is mainly achieved by the wide spread use of chemical acaricides like carbamates, pyrethroids, amidines, organophosp...

Epidemiologic studies highlight the potential role of dietary selenium (Se) in colorectal cancer prevention. Our goal was to elucidate whether expression of factors crucial for colorectal homoeostasis is affected by physiologic differences in Se status. Using transcriptomics and proteomics followed by pathway analysis, we identified pathways affected by Se status in rectal biopsies from 22 heal...

Yarrowia lipolytica, located at the frontier of hemiascomycetous yeasts and fungi, is an excellent candidate for studies of metabolism evolution. This yeast, widely recognized for its technological applications, in particular produces volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) that fully contribute to the flavor of smear cheese. We report here a relevant global vision of sulfur metabolism in Y. lipolytic...

Tandem and segmental duplications significantly contribute to gene family expansion and genome evolution. Genome-wide identification of tandem and segmental genes has been analyzed before in several plant genomes. However, comparative studies in functional bias, expression divergence and their roles in species domestication are still lacking. We have carried out a genome-wide identification and...

The evolutionary accessibility of novel adaptations varies among lineages, depending in part on the genetic elements present in each group. However, the factors determining the evolutionary potential of closely related genes remain largely unknown. In plants, CO2-concentrating mechanisms such as C4 and crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) photosynthesis have evolved numerous times in distantly re...

The highly specialized evolution of Strepsiptera has produced one of the most unusual eyes among mature insects, perhaps in line with their extremely complex and challenging life cycle. This relatively rare insect order is one of the few for which it has been unclear what spectral classes of photoreceptors any of its members may possess, an even more apt question given the nocturnal evolution o...

52 Animals must interact with others and their environment to survive and reproduce. Thus, a fundamental challenge in biology is to understand how animals acquire, evaluate, and then translate information from their environment into adaptive physiological and behavioral changes. Social interactions in particular can profoundly influence an individual’s behavior and physiology, which is often me...