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This article discusses a study on the antioxidant activity of flavonoids found in Pelargonium graveolens, a plant commonly used in perfumes, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. The study focuses on the aerial part of the plant, which was collected in Yunnan Province, China, and extracted using methanol. Ten compounds, including kaempferol, quercetin, apigenin, and icariin, were identified through chromatographic and purification techniques. The research highlights the antioxidant capabilities of these flavonoids, with quercetin, quercetin-3-O-β-D-galactopyranoside, myricitrin, and (–)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate showing particularly strong antioxidant activity. The authors express gratitude to the State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources for their assistance. [Extracted from the article]

Purpose: Testicular sperm aspiration (TESA) is widely used to retrieve sperm from testis. Diagnostic testicular biopsy should not be routinely performed for azoospermia. Therefore, a good predictive model is needed before TESA. Methods: A total of 1972 azoospermia patients constituted the modelling set, and 260 azoospermia patients from two other centres constituted the validation set. An integrated predictive model was built using logistic regression. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC), calibration and decision curve analyses were performed to evaluate the performance of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), semen volume, testicular volume and the integrated model. Results: The FSH level was the best univariate predictor for successful sperm retrieval (SSR) and was better than semen volume and testicular volume alone (p<0.001, threshold 6.17 IU/L, modelling set area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) 0.80, accuracy 0.79; validation set AUC 0.87, accuracy 0.78). The integrated predictive model had excellent accuracy for predicting SSR (modelling set: AUC 0.93, accuracy 0.89; validation set: AUC 0.96, accuracy: 0.89). Calibration curve analysis indicated that the integrated model calibration was good and better than that of FSH, semen volume and testicular volume alone. Decision curve analysis indicated with a threshold probability between 0.05 and 0.98, the integrated model added more benefit than treating either all or no patients. Conclusions: The integrated model has excellent discrimination and good calibration. It can help azoospermic men make better decisions before TESA. It should be noted that TESA is not the first-line treatment for non-obstructive azoospermia because of a low sperm retrieval rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fraction 10 was chromatographed over a column of silica gel with gradient elution by dichloromethane-methanol (50:1-1:1) to yield compounds B 7 b , B 8 b , and B 9 b . Fraction 7 was decolored through an MCI column and then chromatographed over a column of silica gel with gradient elution by dichloromethane-EtOAc (100:1-30:1) to yield compound B 6 b . Fraction 2 was chromatographed over a column of silica gel with gradient elution via dichloromethane-EtOAc (100:1-15:1) to yield compound B 1 b . Fraction 8 was chromatographed over a column of silica gel with gradient elution by petroleum ether-EtOAc (30:1-1:1) and HPLC (acetonitrile-H SB 2 sb O, 7:3) to obtain two compounds B 4 b and B 5 b . [Extracted from the article]

Objective: We assessed the risk of liver injuries following low doses of N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) below threshold limit values (20 mg/m³) among leather industry workers and comparison groups. Methods: A cohort of 429 workers from a leather factory and 466 non-exposed subjects in China were followed for 4 years. Poisson regression and piece-wise linear regression were used to examine the relationship between DMF and liver injury. Results: Workers exposed to a cumulative dose of DMF were significantly more likely than non-exposed workers to develop liver injury. A nonlinear relationship between DMF and liver injury was observed, and a threshold of the cumulative DMF dose for liver injury was 7.30 (mg/m³) year. Conclusions: The findings indicate the importance of taking action to reduce DMF occupational exposure limits for promoting worker health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering mass transfer and energy transfer between liquid phase and vapor phase, a mixture model for boiling heat transfer of nanofluid is established. In addition, an experimental installation of boiling heat transfer is built. The boiling heat transfer of TiO2-water nanofluid is investigated by numerical and experimental methods, respectively. Thermal conductivity, viscosity, and boiling bubble size of TiO2-water nanofluid are experimentally investigated, and the effects of different nanoparticle mass fractions, bubble sizes and superheat on boiling heat transfer are also discussed. It is found that the boiling bubble size in TiO2-water nanofluid is only one-third of that in de-ionized water. It is also found that there is a critical nanoparticle mass fraction (wt.% = 2%) between enhancemen t and degradation for TiO2-water nanofluid. Compared with water, nanofluid enhances the boiling heat transfer coefficient by 77.7% when the nanoparticle mass fraction is lower than 2%, while it reduces the boiling heat transfer by 30.3% when the nanoparticle mass fraction is higher than 2%. The boiling heat transfer coefficients increase with the superheat for water and nanofluid. A mathematic correlation between heat flux and superheat is obtained in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates a type of STGM (system testability growth model) based on the nonhomogeneous Poisson process which incorporates TGEF (testability growth effort function). First, we analyze the process of TGT (testability growth test) for equipment, which shows that the TGT can be divided into two committed steps: make the unit under test be in broken condition to identify TDL (testability design limitation) and remove the TDL. We consider that the amount of TGF (testability growth effort) spent on identifying TDL is a crucial issue which decides the shape of testability growth curve and that the TGF increases firstly and then decreases at different rates in the whole life cycle. Furthermore, we incorporate five TGEFs: an Exponential curve, a Rayleigh curve, a logistic curve, a delayed S-shape curve or an inflected S-shaped curve which are collectively referred to as Bell-shaped TGEFs into STGM. Results from applications to a real data set of a stable tracking platform are analyzed and evaluated in testability prediction capability and show that the Bell-shaped function can be expressed as a TGF curve and that the logistic TGEF dependent STGM gives better predictions based on the real data set. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the past decades, significant effort has been invested into the research and development of optical limiting materials and processes in order to develop practical solutions for the protection from laser beams. In this study, a new soluble graphene oxide based material (GO-Cz) has been synthesized through the covalent modification of graphene oxide (GO) with a carbazole derivative (Cz). The formation of an amido bond between the Cz group and GO has been confirmed by X-ray photoelectron and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. At the same concentration, both the nonlinear extinction coefficient and the imaginary third-order susceptibility were increased by a factor of ≈6.93 at 532 nm and ≈6.07 at 1064 nm relative to those of GO, as a result of the covalent grafting of the Cz moieties onto the GO surface. The GO-Cz dispersions exhibit a much better optical limiting performance than GO and GO/Cz blends at both 532 and 1064 nm due to the possible intramolecular electron-transfer between the GO and Cz moieties and the effective combination of the different nonlinear optical mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High intensity laser beams can cause the atoms that make up retinal tissue to be completely torn apart to form a highly unstable plasma. Functional materials for laser protection are an extremely important research field for the safety and security of users. In their Full Paper on page 4622 ff., B. Zhang, Y. Chen et al. describe a new, soluble graphene oxide (GO) based material that was covalently functionalized by an amidation reaction with a carbazole (Cz) derivative. At 532 and 1064 nm, the new material exhibits a larger absorption coefficient than GO and a better optical limiting performance than GO and GO/Cz blends due to the possible intramolecular electron ‐ transfer between the GO and Cz moieties and the effective combination of the different nonlinear optical mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The resonance Raman spectroscopy in conjunction with the density functional theory calculations were used to study the excited state structural dynamics of 2-mercapto-1-methylimidazole (MMI). The experimental UV absorption bands were assigned according to the time-dependent density functional calculations. The vibrational assignments were done for the A-band resonance Raman spectra of MMI in water and acetonitrile on the basis of the Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and FT-Raman measurements in solid, in water and in acetonitrile and the corresponding B3LYP/6-311+G(d, p) computations. The dynamic structures of MMI were obtained by analysis of the resonance Raman intensity pattern and normal mode analysis. The differences in the dynamic structures of MMI and thiourea were revealed and explained. The structural dynamic of MMI was found to be similar to that of 2-thiopyrimidone in terms of major reaction coordinates and thus favored the intra-molecular proton transfer reaction. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates new damage detection method for bridges to ensure their safety. The idea of using displacement data of two symmetrical points for multiple damage detection is presented for the first time. After introducing the concept of Equivalent Element, a novel index termed as 'Symmetrical Displacement Difference Index (SDDI),' is proposed. The displacement under static load is used for constructing the new index. Then the relationship between the local flexural stiffness change caused by damage and SDDI value is generated. In application, SDDI values can be plotted after the measurement of displacement. The relative changes between the intact state and the damage state in the curve shapes can be used to indicate the position of damage. This new damage detection method based on SDDI is flexible enough to be applied to real-world bridges with inherent random uncertainty and actual support condition. Numerical and experimental examples have been conducted to examine the suitability of the method. This paper provides a simple, convenient, cost-effective, and nondestructive damage detection method for bridges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Urotensin-II (UII) rs228648 polymorphism has been reported to be associated with the risk of diabetes mellitus (DM) with inconsistent results. The present study sought to reassess the relationship between this polymorphism and susceptibility to DM by meta-analysis. Methods: Relevant eligible studies and whole genome association study (GWAS) data electronically searched were pooled to evaluate the strength of the association with odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: Seven case–control studies involving 894 cases and 1186 controls were finally included in the meta-analysis. Overall analyses indicated that UII gene rs228648 variant was significantly associated with reduced risk of DM (allele, A vs. G: OR = 0.68, 95%CI = 0.56–0.82; dominant, AA+GA vs. GG: OR = 0.70, 95%CI = 0.53–0.91; homozygote, AA vs. GG: OR = 0.41, 95%CI = 0.28–0.61; recessive, AA vs. GA+GG: OR = 0.36, 95%CI = 0.19–0.71). In subgroup analyses based on ethnicity, the results showed a significant association of rs228648 polymorphism with decreased risk of DM in Chinese population under all five genetic models as well as in non-Chinese population under heterozygote and recessive models. Stratified analyses by specific type of DM also presented a significant association for common diabetes mellitus (CDM) under allele and homozygote as well as gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) under all genetic models except for homozygote model. However, the synthetic analysis with GWAS data suggested an increased risk of DM with rs228648 effect allele in European population (OR = 1.01, 95%CI = 1.00–1.02). Conclusion: The present meta-analysis preliminarily suggested a potentially opposite role of rs228648 polymorphism associated with DM risk in the Chinese and European population. Further studies are in great request to verify the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early-life sensory input plays a crucial role in brain development. Although deprivation of orofacial sensory input at perinatal stages disrupts the establishment of the barrel cortex and relevant callosal connections, its long-term effect on adult behavior remains elusive. In this study, we investigated the behavioral phenotypes in adult mice with unilateral transection of the infraorbital nerve (ION) at postnatal day 3 (P3). Although ION-transected mice had normal locomotor activity, motor coordination, olfaction, anxiety-like behaviors, novel object memory, preference for social novelty and sociability, they presented deficits in social memory and spatial memory compared with control mice. In addition, the social memory deficit was associated with reduced oxytocin (OXT) levels in the hypothalamus and could be partially restored by intranasal administration of OXT. Thus, early sensory deprivation does result in behavioral alterations in mice, some of which may be associated with the disruption of oxytocin signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Repeated degradation testing data have been widely used to assess lifetime of highly-reliable products or components with scarce failures. In this paper, we consider the problem of planning repeated degradation testing for products exhibiting three-source variability in their degradation characteristics, including the temporal variability, unit-to-unit variability, and measurement variability. The primary objective of this paper is centered on deciding the amount of units and the measurement schedule to achieve required estimation precision for some important statistics of interest. In such a planning process, the testing budget is limited and used as a constraint of an optimization model. To do so, a kind of Wiener degradation process, which has a random drift coefficient and a constant volatility coefficient, is used to model the repeated degradation testing data, where the measurement errors are considered and described as additive zero-mean random variables. Under the presented modeling framework, the lifetime distribution is formulated under the concept of the first passage time of the stochastic degradation process. Then, the large-sample approximate standard errors of the maximum likelihood estimations for the mean failure time and the quantile of the degradation distribution are derived, respectively. Furthermore, the constrained optimization model, which incorporates the cost of each degradation measurement, is proposed to plan the degradation testing by minimizing the testing cost under the condition of a maximum acceptable approximate standard error. Finally, an example is provided to illustrate the procedure and advantages of the presented method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patchouli alcohol (PA) is a kind of methanol extracted from traditional Chinese medicine Pogostemonis Herba. Our research aimed to observe the anti-influenza virus role of PA in vitro. 16HBE (human respiratory epithelial cell) was infected by H1N1 (A/FM1/1/47) to set the cell model. Then the 16HBE was co-cultivated with three kinds of immune cells: dendritic cells, macrophages, and monocytes, PA (the concentration is 10 μg/mL) was added as a treatment intervention for 24 h. The immune cells and the supernate were collected for RT-PCR and ELISA detection related to RLH (RIG-1-like helicases) pathway. Results showed that the IL-4 and IFN-γ in supernate were increased after H1N1 infection, and the PA treatment suppressed the expression of cytokines and the mRNA of RLH pathway. PA anti-influenza virus may through regulate the RLH singal pathway. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although intestinal flora are crucial in maintaining immune homeostasis of the intestine, the role of intestinal flora in immune responses at other mucosal surfaces remains less clear. Here, we show that intestinal flora composition critically regulates the toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7) signaling pathway following respiratory influenza virus infection. TLR7 ligands rescued the immune impairment in antibiotic-treated mice. Intact microbiota provided signals leading to the expression of mRNA for TLR7, MyD88, IRAK4, TRAF6, and NF-κB at steady state. Significant changes in the composition of culturable commensal bacteria reduced the expression levels of components of the TLR7 signaling pathway. Our results reveal the importance of intestinal flora in regulating immunity in the respiratory mucosa through the upregulation of the TLR7 signaling pathway for the proper activation of inflammasomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The antivirus effect of quercetin and oseltamivir on the Toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7) signaling pathway was observed when dendritic cells and macrophages were infected with H1N1. Leukomonocytes were obtained from umbilical cord blood and harvested after stimulation by recombinant human Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor (rhGM-CSF) and recombinant human Interleukin 4 (rhIL-4). Virus-infected cell model was established by human bronchial epithelial cells (16HBE) infected with H1N1. After immunological cells and virus-infected cells were co-cultured, quercetin and oseltamivir were also added into the medium as a treatment intervention. Then the immunological cells were collected for Real Time PCR (RT-PCR) and Western blot to determine the expression levels of genes related to TLR7 pathway. Viral infection led to cell death and increased the gene expression levels of TLR7 signal pathway. Quercetin and oseltamivir increased cell viability and reduced the expression levels of TLR7 signal pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the anticancer effects of desacetyluvaricin (DES) on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in vitro, and to study its mechanism. Materials and Methods: Using DES and cisplatin (DDP) to intervene the cell lines of hepatocarcinoma G2.2.15 (HepG2.2.15) and HepG2, by detecting the expression of HBxAg by immunofluorescence method, the cell cycle and apoptosis by flow cytometry method (FCM), and expression of NF-κB protein by ELISA. Results: DES and DDP showed to suppress proliferation of HepG2.2.15 and HepG2; they increase the S-phase cells and decrease G2/M phase cells. DES and DDP both could promote the apoptosis and reduce the expression of NF-κB on the cell line. DES and DDP both can suppress the expression of HbxAg in HepG2.2.15. There were no statistical differences of the above results between these two drugs (P > 0.05). Conclusions: DES possesses anticancer effect on hepatocarcinoma. The possible mechanism might be due to promotion the apoptosis of the cancer cells, and downregulate the expression of HBx andNF-κB protein. DES is a kind of natural products, Because of the lighter clinical side effects; our observations suggest that DES has the potential to be explored as an effective anticancer agent for HCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: O-GlcNAc is a monosaccharide attached to serine or threonine hydroxyl moieties on numerous nuclear and cytoplasmic proteins; O-GlcNAcylation is dynamically regulated by O-GlcNAc transferase (OGT) and O-GlcNAcase (OGA). Although recent studies have shown that O-GlcNAcylation plays essential roles in breast cancer progression, it is also necessary to know whether O-GlcNAcylation is involved in other types of human cancer. In this study, O-GlcNAcylation levels and the expressions of OGT and OGA in human lung and colon cancer tissues were examined by immunohistochemistry analysis. We found that O-GlcNAcylation as well as OGT expression was significantly elevated in the cancer tissues compared with that in the corresponding adjacent tissues. Additionally, the roles of O-GlcNAcylation in the malignancy of lung and colon cancer were investigated in vitro. The results showed that O-GlcNAcylation markedly enhanced the anchorage-independent growth of lung and colon cancer cells; O-GlcNAcylation could also enhance lung and colon cancer invasion in a context-dependent manner. All together, this study suggests that O-GlcNAcylation might play important roles in lung and colon cancer formation and progression, and may be a valuable target for diagnosis and therapy of cancer. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]