BEIJING, April 11 (Xinhua) -- The following are the highlights of China's science news from the past week:

BODY HEIGHT GENE

Researchers from the East China Normal University identified the Gpr126 as a key gene in regulating body height after conducting genome-wide association studies and doing experiments on mice.

They found that the gene Gpr126 in the osteoblast is a critical regulator of mouse body length and bone mass. Mouse model results indicated that the knockout of Gpr126 in osteoblast led to decreased body length and bone formation.

FASTEST ROTATING STAR

A Chinese astronomer has discovered the fastest rotating star in the Milky Way galaxy based on data from the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) located in Xinglong, north China's Hebei Province.

The star has an estimated rotational velocity of 540 km per second, which is about 100 km per second faster than that of the previous record holder -- HD 191423.

PTEROSAUR FOSSIL

New research on the first complete pterosaur skeleton discovered in China provides more information on pterosaur phylogeny and sheds light on their living habit during the Cretaceous period more than 100 million years ago.

Dsungaripterus weii, discovered in Wuerhe region in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and made public in 1964, is the first fossilized pterosaur with a nearly complete skeleton found in China.

REDUCING CADMIUM RISK IN RICE

Chinese researchers have found that several dietary components can reduce the cadmium solubility in the intestinal system. The researchers from the South China Botanical Garden of the Chinese Academy of Sciences constructed an invitro gastrointestinal model to assess the influence of 39 dietary components on cadmium bioaccessibility in water or rice.

LITHIUM RESOURCE

Chinese researchers have discovered that the lithium contained in the brine and saline lakes in western Qaidam Basin, in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, mainly originates from the hot springs of Hoh Xil, now a nature reserve on the plateau.

The researchers hope that the study will provide guidance for the protection of precious lithium brine deposits and sustainable lithium resource exploration. Enditem

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