Insects are the most speciose group of animals, but the phylogenetic relationships of many major lineages remain unresolved. We inferred the phylogeny of insects from 1478 protein-coding genes. Phylogenomic analyses of nucleotide and amino acid sequences, with site-specific nucleotide or domain-specific amino acid substitution models, produced statistically robust and congruent results resolving previously controversial phylogenetic relations hips. We dated the origin of insects to the Early Ordovician [~479 million years ago (Ma)], of insect flight to the Early Devonian (~406 Ma), of major extant lineages to the Mississippian (~345 Ma), and the major diversification of holometabolous insects to the Early Cretaceous. Our phylogenomic study provides a comprehensive reliable scaffold for future comparative analyses of evolutionary innovations among insects.

BackgroundVarious factors can modify the health effects of outdoor air pollution. Prior findings about modifiers are inconsistent, and most of these studies were conducted in developed countries.ObjectivesWe conducted a time-series analysis to examine the modifying effect of season, sex, age, and education on the association between outdoor air pollutants [particulate matter < 10 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM10), sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone] and daily mortality in Shanghai, China, using 4 years of daily data (2001–2004).MethodsUsing a natural spline model to analyze the data, we examined effects of air pollution for the warm season (April–September) and cool season (October–March) separately. For total mortality, we examined the association stratified by sex and age. Stratified analysis by educational attainment was conducted for total, cardiovascular, and respiratory mortality.ResultsOutdoor air pollution was associated with mortality from all causes and from cardiorespiratory diseases in Shanghai. An increase of 10 μg/m3 in a 2-day average concentration of PM10, SO2, NO2, and O3 corresponds to increases in all-cause mortality of 0.25% [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.14–0.37), 0.95% (95% CI, 0.62–1.28), 0.97% (95% CI, 0.66–1.27), and 0.31% (95% CI, 0.04–0.58), respectively. The effects of air pollutants were more evident in the cool season than in the warm season, and females and the elderly were more vulnerable to outdoor air pollution. Effects of air pollution were generally greater in residents with low educational attainment (illiterate or primary school) compared with those with high educational attainment (middle school or above).ConclusionsSeason, sex, age, and education may modify the health effects of outdoor air pollution in Shanghai. These findings provide new information about the effects of modifiers on the relationship between daily mortality and air pollution in developing countries and may have implications for local environmental and social policies.

Objective To prospectively determine the capacity of measures of mediolateral (ML) protective stepping performance, maximum hip abduction torque, and trunk mobility, in order to predict the risk of falls among community-living older people. Design Cross-sectional study. Setting A balance and falls research laboratory. Participants Medically screened and functionally independent community-living older adult volunteers (N=51). Interventions Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures Measures included: (1) protective stepping responses: percentage of trials with multiple balance recovery steps and sidestep/crossover step recovery patterns, and first step length following motor-driven waist-pull perturbations of ML standing balance; (2) hip abduction strength and axial mobility: (3) peak isokinetic hip abduction joint torque and trunk functional axial rotation (FAR) range of motion; and (4) fall incidence: monthly mail-in reporting of fall occurrences with follow-up contact for 1 year post-testing. One- and 2-variable logistic regression analysis models determined which single and combined measures optimally predicted fall status. Results The single variable model with the strongest predictive value for falls was the use of multiple steps in all trials (100% multiple steps) (odds ratio, 6.2; P=.005). Two-variable models, including 100% multiple steps and either hip abduction torque or FAR variables, significantly improved fall prediction over 100% multiple steps alone. The hip abduction and FAR logistic regression optimally predicted fall status. Conclusions The findings identify new predictor variables for risk of falling that underscore the importance of dynamic balance recovery performance through ML stepping in relation to neuromusculoskeletal factors contributing to lateral balance stability. The results also highlight focused risk factors for falling that are amenable to clinical interventions for enhancing lateral balance function and preventing falls.

The findings on health effects of ambient fine particles (PM2.5) and coarse particles (PM10-2.5) remain inconsistent. In China, PM2.5 and PM10-2.5 are not the criteria air pollutants, and their monitoring data are scarce. There have been no epidemiological studies of health effects of PM2.5 and PM10-2.5 simultaneously in China. We conducted a time series study to examine the acute effects of PM2.5 and PM10-2.5 on daily mortality in Shanghai, China from Mar. 4, 2004 to Dec. 31, 2005. We used the generalized additive model (GAM) with penalized splines to analyze the mortality, air pollution and covariate data. The average concentrations of PM2.5 and PM10-2.5 were 56.4 microg/m3 and 52.3 microg/m3 in our study period, and PM2.5 constituted around 53.0% of the PM10 mass. Compared with the Global Air Quality Guidelines set by World Health Organization (10 microg/m3 for annual mean) and U.S. National Ambient Air Quality Standards (15 microg/m3 for annual mean), the PM2.5 level in Shanghai was much higher. We found that PM2.5 was associated with the death rates from all causes and from cardiorespiratory diseases in Shanghai. We did not find a significant effect of PM10-2.5 on mortality outcomes. A10 microg/m3 increase in the 2-day moving average (lag01) concentration of PM2.5 corresponded to 0.36% (95% CI 0.11%, 0.61%), 0.41% (95% CI 0.01%, 0.82%) and 0.95% (95% CI 0.16%, 1.73%) increase of total, cardiovascular and respiratory mortality. For PM10-2.5, the effects were attenuated and less precise. Our analyses provide the first statistically significant evidence in China that PM2.5 has an adverse effect on population health and strengthen the rationale for further limiting levels of PM2.5 in outdoor air in Shanghai.

Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), the natural auxin in plants, regulates many aspects of plant growth and development. Extensive analyses have elucidated the components of auxin biosynthesis, transport, and signaling, but the physiological roles and molecular mechanisms of auxin degradation remain elusive. Here, we demonstrate that the dioxygenase for auxin oxidation (DAO) gene, encoding a putative 2-oxoglutarate-dependent-Fe (II) dioxygenase, is essential for anther dehiscence, pollen fertility, and seed initiation in rice. Rice mutant lines lacking a functional DAO display increased levels of free IAA in anthers and ovaries. Furthermore, exogenous application of IAA or overexpression of the auxin biosynthesis gene OsYUCCA1 phenocopies the dao mutants. We show that recombinant DAO converts the active IAA into biologically inactive 2-oxoindole-3-acetic acid (OxIAA) in vitro. Collectively, these data support a key role of DAO in auxin catabolism and maintenance of auxin homeostasis central to plant reproductive development.