Transposable elements (TEs), once considered genomic "junk", are now recognized as critical regulators of genome function and human disease. These mobile genetic elements-including retrotransposons (long interspersed nuclear elements [LINE-1], Alu, short interspersed nuclear element-variable numbers of tandem repeats-Alu [SVA], and human endogenous retrovirus [HERV]) and DNA transposons-are tightly regulated by multilayered mechanisms that operate from transcription through to genomic integration. Although typically silenced in somatic cells, TEs are transiently activated during key developmental stages-such as zygotic genome activation and cell fate determination-where they influence chromatin architecture, transcriptional networks, RNA processing, and innate immune responses. Dysregulation of TEs, however, can lead to genomic instability, chronic inflammation, and various pathologies, including cancer, neurodegeneration, and aging. Paradoxically, their reactivation also presents new opportunities for clinical applications, particularly as diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Understanding the dual role of TEs-and balancing their contributions to normal development and disease-is essential for advancing novel therapies and precision medicine.
Humans ; DNA Transposable Elements/physiology* ; Animals ; Long Interspersed Nucleotide Elements/genetics* ; Neoplasms/genetics* ; Genomic Instability/genetics* ; Endogenous Retroviruses/genetics*

This study investigates the genetic diversity and evolutionary relationships of different Artemisia argyi germplasm resources to provide a basis for germplasm identification, variety selection, and resource protection. A total of 192 germplasm resources of A. argyi were studied, and EST-based simple sequence repeat(EST-SSR) primers were designed based on transcriptomic data of A. argyi. Polymerase chain reaction(PCR) amplification was performed on these resources, followed by fluorescence capillary electrophoresis to detect genetic diversity and construct DNA fingerprints. From 197 pairs of primers designed, 28 pairs with polymorphic and clear bands were selected. A total of 278 alleles were detected, with an average of 9.900 0 alleles per primer pair and an average effective number of alleles of 1.407 2. The Shannon's diversity index(I) for the A. argyi germplasm resources ranged from 0.148 1 to 0.418 0, with an average of 0.255 7. The polymorphism information content(PIC) ranged from 0.454 5 to 0.878 0, with an average of 0.766 9, showing high polymorphism. Cluster analysis divided the A. argyi germplasm resources into three major groups: Group Ⅰ contained 136 germplasm samples, Group Ⅱ contained 45, and Group Ⅲ contained 11. Principal component analysis also divided the resources into three groups, which was generally consistent with the clustering results. Mantel test results showed that the genetic variation in A. argyi populations was to some extent influenced by geographic distance, but the effect was minimal. Structure analysis showed that 190 germplasm materials had Q≥ 0.6, indicating that these germplasm materials had a relatively homogeneous genetic origin. Furthermore, 8 core primer pairs were selected from the 28 designed primers, which could distinguish various germplasm types. Using these 8 core primers, DNA fingerprints for the 192 A. argyi germplasm resources were successfully constructed. EST-SSR molecular markers can be used to study the genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationships of A. argyi, providing theoretical support for the identification and molecular-assisted breeding of A. argyi germplasm resources.
Artemisia/classification* ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Genetic Variation ; Expressed Sequence Tags ; DNA Fingerprinting ; Phylogeny ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; DNA, Plant/genetics* ; Genetic Markers

Forsythia suspensa is a traditional Chinese medicine and a commonly used landscaping plant. Its dried fruit is used in medicine for its functions of clearing heat, removing toxins, reducing swelling, dissipating masses, and dispersing wind and heat. It possesses extremely high medicinal and economic value. However, the genetic differentiation and diversity of its wild populations remain unclear. In this study, chloroplast genome sequences were obtained from 15 wild individuals of F. suspensa using high-throughput sequencing technology. The sequence characteristics and intraspecific variations were analyzed. The results were as follows:(1) The full length of the F. suspensa chloroplast genome ranged from 156 184 to 156 479 bp, comprising a large single-copy region, a small single-copy region, and two inverted repeat regions. The chloroplast genome encoded a total of 132 genes, including 87 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, and 8 rRNA genes.(2) A total of 166-174 SSR loci, 792 SNV loci, and 63 InDel loci were identified in the F. suspensa chloroplast genome, indicating considerable genetic variation among individuals.(3) Population structure analysis revealed that F. suspensa could be divided into five or six groups. Both the population structure analysis and phylogenetic reconstruction results indicated significant genetic variation within the wild populations of F. suspensa, with no obvious correlation between intraspecific genetic differentiation and geographical distribution. This study provides new insights into the genetic diversity and differentiation within F. suspensa species and offers additional references for the conservation of species diversity and the utilization of germplasm resources in wild F. suspensa.
Genome, Chloroplast ; Forsythia/classification* ; Phylogeny ; Genetic Variation ; Chloroplasts/genetics* ; Microsatellite Repeats

Chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) lymphocytes are at the forefront of adoptive immunotherapy research, and this technology has significantly advanced the prospects of tumor immunotherapy. CAR-T therapy has demonstrated remarkable efficacy in haematological tumours of lymphoid origin and provided therapeutic possibility for solid tumours. Currently, CAR-T cell preparation predominantly involves transfection of T cells with viral vectors. However, the production of viral vectors is time-consuming, expensive, and the vectors have low loading capacity, along with insertion instability. Consequently, there is a pressing need to develop more convenient and precise non-viral gene delivery methods. This paper reviews the most promising non-viral gene delivery technologies, including CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing, transposon systems such as Sleeping Beauty (SB) and PiggyBac (PB), and mRNA, and anticipates the future development of non-viral vector-based CAR-T therapies.
Humans ; Immunotherapy, Adoptive/methods* ; Receptors, Chimeric Antigen/immunology* ; Animals ; Gene Transfer Techniques ; Genetic Vectors/genetics* ; Gene Editing ; CRISPR-Cas Systems/genetics* ; DNA Transposable Elements/genetics* ; T-Lymphocytes/immunology* ; Neoplasms/immunology*

OBJECTIVE: To distinguish the ambiguous genotyping results of human leukocyte antigen (HLA), identify a novel HLA-B allele and analyze the nucleotide sequence. METHODS: A total of 2 076 umbilical core blood samples from the Zhejiang Cord Blood Bank in 2022 were detected using the next generation sequencing technology (NGS) based on the Ion Torrent S5 platform. Among these a rare HLA-B allele with ambiguous combination result containing a base mutation was identified, and was further confimed by the third-generation sequencing (TGS) based on the nanopore technology. RESULTS: The NGS typing result of HLA-B locus showed HLA-B* 46:18, 54:06 or HLA-B*46:01, 54:XX (including a base mutation), and nanopore sequencing confirmed the typing as HLA-B*46:01, 54:XX (including a base mutation). Compared with HLA-B*54:01:01:01, the HLA-B*54:XX allele showed one single nucleotide substitution at position 1014 T>C in exon 6, with no amino acid change. The nucleotide sequence of the novel HLA-B*54:XX has been submitted to the GenBank nucleotide sequence database and the accession number OP853532 was assigned. CONCLUSION A ambiguous genotyping of the HLA-B Locus detected by NGS was distinguished by nanopore sequencing and a new HLA-B allele was successfully identified, which was officially named as HLA-B*54:01:11 by the World Health Organization Nomenclature Committee for Factors of the HLA System.
Humans ; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing ; Alleles ; HLA-B Antigens/genetics* ; Genotype ; Mutation ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Base Sequence

We studied the genetic diversity and established the DNA molecular identify for Prunus mume with both ornamental and edible values, aiming to collect, identify, evaluate, and breed new varities of this plant and promote the upgrading of the P. mume industry chain in northern China. We employed 13 pairs of primers with good polymorphism, clear bands, and good repeatability to analyze the genetic diversity and establish the molecular identify of 68 germplasm accessions of P. mume with both ornamental and edible values from Xingtai, Hebei Province. We then employed the unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic means (UPGMA) to perform the cluster analysis based on genetic distance. After that, we analyzed the genetic structure of the 68 germplasm accessions based on a Bayesian model. The 13 pairs of SSR primers amplified a total of 124 alleles from 68 P. mume germplasm accessions, with the mean number of alleles (Na) of 9.538 5, the minor allele frequency (MAF) of 0.369 3, the mean number of effective alleles (Ne) of 4.483 5, and the mean Shannon genetic diversity index (I) of 1.712 4. The mean Nei's gene diversity index (H) of 0.763 7, the mean observed heterozygosity (Ho) of 0.719 5, the mean expected heterozygosity (He) of 0.769 3, the mean polymorphism information content (PIC) of 0.733 6, and the mean genetic similarity (GS) of 0.772 9 suggested that there were significant genetic differences and rich genetic diversity among the studied P. mume germplasm accessions. The cluster analysis revealed that the 68 accessions were classified into three groups, with the mean genetic distance of 0.622 6. The population structure analysis classified the germplasm accessions into two populations. According to the PIC of primers, we selected primers for combination and constructed the combination with the fewest primers required for germplasm differentiation of P. mume with both ornamental and edible values. This study provides a theoretical basis for the innovation and industrial upgrading of P. mume with both ornamental and edible values in gardening and the improvement of breeding efficiency.
Prunus/classification* ; Microsatellite Repeats/genetics* ; Genetic Variation ; China ; Phylogeny ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; DNA, Plant/genetics* ; Alleles

OBJECTIVE: To identify the nucleotide sequence of a novel HLA-DRB1*12:106 allele. METHODS: A blood donor who was joined into the database for platelet matching transfusion at the Blood Center of Zhejiang Province in 2023 was selected as the study subject. HLA genotyping was carried out through next-generation sequencing based on AllType NGS 11 locus, AllType FASTPlex NGS reagents, and Sanger sequencing method. The HLA genotype of the donor by Sanger sequencing and next generation sequencing were assigned by using uTYPE 7.3 and TypeStream Visual 3.0 software, respectively. This study was approved by Medical Ethics Committee of the Zhejiang Blood Center (Ethics No. Provincial Blood Center Ethics Review 2022 Research No. 001). RESULTS: A novel HLA-DRB1*12 allele has been identified, and the full coding sequence has been submitted to the GenBank database (No. OR101190), and the length of submitted sequence was 801 bp, which was officially named as HLA-DRB1*12:106 by the WHO Nomenclature Committee for Factors of the HLA System (submission No. HWS10066755). Compared with the sequence of the highest homology (HLA-DRB1*12:01:01:01 allele), a single nucleotide change was identified at position 344 T>G in the exon 2 of the HLA-DRB1*12:106, which has resulted in replacement of Valine by Glycine at residue 86. The HLA genotype of the proband was determined as HLA-A*02:01, 11:01;-B*13:02, 40:01;-C*01:02, 03:03;-DRB1*07:01, 12:106;-DRB3*01:01;-DRB4*01:03;-DQA1*02:01,04:01;-DQB1*02:02,04:02;-DPA1*01:03,01:03; -- DPB1*02:01:02G,04:01:01G. CONCLUSION A novel HLA-DRB1 allele has been identified in the Chinese population. The mutated amino acid, located in the peptide binding region of the β chain, may affect the binding characteristics of antigen peptides.
Humans ; HLA-DRB1 Chains/genetics* ; Alleles ; Base Sequence ; Genotype ; Male ; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing ; Blood Donors

OBJECTIVE: To analyze a Chinese pedigree with Hereditary coagulation factor Ⅻ (FⅫ) deficiency duo to variants of F12 gene and explore its molecular pathogenesis. METHODS: A patient who underwent laparoscopic cystectomy at the Department of Gynecology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University in June 2012 was selected as the study subject. Coagulation factor indexes of the proband and her family members (5 individuals from three generations) were determined. All exons, flanking sequences, 5' and 3' untranslated regions of the F12 gene of the proband and her family members were analyzed by direct sequencing. Three bioinformatics software was used to analyze the conservation, pathogenicity and protein model of the variant. This study was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of the Hospital (Ethics No. 2012-17). RESULTS: The activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), FⅫ activity (FⅫ:C) and FⅫ antigen (FⅫ:Ag) of the proband was 180.0 s, 1.0% and 2.1%, respectively. DNA sequencing revealed that she has harbored compound heterozygous variants of the F12 gene, namely c.712_713insT (p.Cys238Leufs *73) in exon 8 and c.1561G>A (p.Glu521Lys) in exon 13. Her mother and younger son were heterozygous for the p.Cys238Leufs*73 variant, while her older son was heterozygous for the p.Glu521Lys variant. Bioinformatic analysis suggested that Cys238 is highly conserved and p.Cys238Leufs*73 is a pathogenic variant, which eventually resulted in a truncated protein. CONCLUSION The c.712_713insT and c.1561G>A compound heterozygous variants of the F12 gene probably underlay the decreased FⅫ level in this pedigree, among which c.712_713insT (NM_000505) was unreported previously.
Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Base Sequence ; China ; Factor XII/genetics* ; Heterozygote ; Mutation ; Pedigree ; Factor XII Deficiency/genetics* ; East Asian People

OBJECTIVE: To explore the genetic basis of a patient with suspected Oculocutaneous albinism (OCA). METHODS: An OCA patient presented at the West China Second Hospital of Sichuan University and his mother were selected as the study subjects. Peripheral blood samples were collected for the extraction of, genomic DNA, and whole exome sequencing (WES) was carried out. Candidate variants were verified through specific primer amplification, Sanger sequencing, and agarose gel electrophoresis. Bioinformatic analysis and pathogenicity rating were conducted on the candidate variants. This study has been approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of West China Second Hospital (No. 2024-228). RESULTS: Genetic testing revealed that the patient had harbored variants in exon 1 of the TYR gene, including a c.157G>T (p.G53C) missense variant and a c.609dup (p.A204fs) frameshifting variant. Specific primer amplification and Sanger sequencing, combined with agarose gel electrophoresis, confirmed that these are compound heterozygous variants. Based on the guidelines from the ACMG, the c.157G>T was rated as likely pathogenic, and c.609dup was rated as pathogenic. Alphafold3 predicted that the variant proteins had significant structural changes. CONCLUSION The patient was diagnosed with OCA due to compound heterozygous variants of the TYR gene. Discovery of the c.609dup variant has enriched the mutational spectrum of OCA and provided a basis for genetic counseling and prenatal diagnosis for this patient.
Humans ; Albinism, Oculocutaneous/enzymology* ; Male ; Female ; Monophenol Monooxygenase/chemistry* ; Base Sequence ; Mutation, Missense

OBJECTIVE: To carry out serological and molecular tests on 12 blood donors and family members of one proband with discrepancy results for ABO serological typing. METHODS: Twelve blood donors with ABO discrepancies identified by the Blood Center of Shaanxi Province from March 2015 to December 2023 and family members of one proband were selected as the study subjects. Serological blood typing was carried out to determine their blood phenotype. ABO genotype of the samples was determined by direct sequencing of amplicons of exons 1 to 7 and cloning sequencing of amplicons of exons 6 and 7. This study has been approved by the Ethics Committee of Blood Center of Shaanxi Province (202328). RESULTS: Serological results showed that 5 samples were Aweak, 4 samples were Aweak with anti-A1 antibody, and 3 samples were AweakB with anti-A1. Direct sequencing and cloning sequencing results showed that all 12 samples had the haplotype ABO*A1.01/c.389T>C, and family studies showed that the allele could be stably inherited. Glycosyltransferase activity in the plasma was decreased in all samples. CONCLUSION The c.389T>C variant of the ABO*A1.01 allele can alter the encoded amino acid p.Leu130Pro, which weakens the activity of A glycosyltransferase, ultimately leading to the weak expression of A antigen.
Humans ; ABO Blood-Group System/genetics* ; Blood Donors ; Alleles ; Male ; Female ; Exons ; Genotype ; China ; Adult ; Base Sequence ; Haplotypes