Na An

TL;DR: Using next-generation sequencing technology alone, a draft sequence of the giant panda genome is generated and assembled, indicating that its bamboo diet might be more dependent on its gut microbiome than its own genetic composition.

TL;DR: This work explored bird macroevolution using full genomes from 48 avian species representing all major extant clades to reveal that pan-avian genomic diversity covaries with adaptations to different lifestyles and convergent evolution of traits.

TL;DR: It is found that massive gene loss occurred in the wake of sex-chromosome 'birth' in Cynoglossus semilaevis, and the sex chromosomes of these fish are derived from the same ancestral vertebrate protochromosome as the avian W and Z chromosomes.

TL;DR: High-quality draft genome sequences from two macaque species, the cynomolgus/crab-eating macaque and the Chinese rhesus macaque, are presented and several putatively dysfunctional genetic differences are identified, which may explain functional differences between them previously observed in clinical studies.

TL;DR: The study uncovered an unexpected complexity of avian sex chromosomes, due to the lineage-specific recombination suppressions and different tempo of W degeneration, which may relate to different intensities of sexual selection across bird species and explain their lack of a general chromosome-wide dosage compensation mechanism.