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Root regeneration is an important factor influencing the healing rate of graft union and the survival of double-root-cutting grafting. To date, little information is available on how to enhance root regeneration of rootstock in grafted watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) seedlings. In this study, the effects of different light treatments on root regeneration were determined. This revealed that addition of far-red light (Fr) could significantly expedite root formation in the rootstock. Moreover, the results of transcriptome analysis revealed that plant hormone pathway and auxin-related genes were greatly induced by Fr, especially for auxin-response proteins (including CmIAA11, CmIAA17, and CmAUX28), Small auxin-up RNA genes (including CmSAUR20 and CmSAUR50) and the auxin efflux transporter (CmPIN3). In addition, the expression of Phytochrome Interacting Factor (PIFs), such as CmPIF1, CmPIF3 and CmPIF7, was remarkably increased by Fr. These genes may act together to activate auxinrelated pathways under Fr treatment. Based on the results of HPLC-MS/MS analysis, the concentrations of different auxin-types in adventitious root were significantly influenced by Fr. Furthermore, the better growth of rootstock root displayed superior vasculature transport activity of the graft union with Fr treatment, which was determined by the acid magenta dyeing experiment. Therefore, all the results suggested that Fr could induce AR formation in rootstocks, which may be associated with the auxin accumulation by regulating the transcriptional level of auxin-related and PIF genes. The findings of this study demonstrated a practicable way to shorten the healing period of graftings and improve the quality of grafted watermelon seedlings, which will provide a theoretical basis for the speeding development of industrialized seedlings production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A PCM was added to filling materials in an appropriate proportion to realize the effective collection and storage of geothermal energy. Based on the theory of heat transfer and similarity, the heat-storage performance of filling body was numerically simulated in different states, then, the influences of paraffin proportion, initial temperature of filling body, surrounding rock temperature, stope air-flow temperature, and velocity on the heat-storage behavior of filling body were analyzed. The results revealed that reducing the initial heat-storage temperature of filling body, increasing surrounding rock temperature, and increasing the air-flow temperature in the stope all effectively increased the heatstorage capacity of filling body. In which the influence of initial temperature and surrounding rock temperature were more significant. At the end of 16 hours heatstorage period, when the initial temperature of filling body was reduced from 24 °C to 18 °C, the heat transfer capacity of filling body without paraffin and that with 5% paraffin decreased by 2.85 · 103 kJ and 2.40 · 103 kJ, respectively. When surrounding rock temperature increased from 35 °C to 45 °C, the amount of heat stored by two bodies increased by 3.89 · 103 kJ and 4.51 · 103 kJ, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A compact WLAN band-notched reconfigurable wideband antenna using two mushroom-like electromagnetic band-gap (EBG) structures is proposed in this paper. It is designed based on a dual wideband microstrip feed patch antenna with operating frequency bands of 2.2-3.7 GHz and 4.8-6 GHz. One of the EBG cells is positioned alongside the feed line, while the other EBG cell is laid on the back of the substrate. The patch or ground of the two EBG units are fed with a stronger current through a ground slot and a parasitic stub respectively, and the connections between the EBG structures and the antenna are controlled by loading a PIN diode with two 56 pF DC blocking capacitors. The advantage of this proposed design is that the antenna and the EBG unit can be designed independently. The proposed antenna has an overall size of 35×46×1.6 mm3. When testing the S11 of the antenna, the influence of the bias circuit on the antenna is also considered. The measured results show that the proposed antenna can generate two notched bands of 2.3-2.49 GHz and 5.11-5.51 GHz of WLAN, and the realized gain in the notch bands can be reduced to -2.65 dBi and -4.55 dBi, respectively, demonstrating its anti-interference characteristics, and can be applied in band notch broadband communication systems or anti-interference communication equipments such as unmanned aerial vehicles and radars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generally, side slotting and directional techniques can improve the performance of a conventional Vivaldi antenna (CVA), but the optimal structure and distribution of slots and directors may be irregular or even complex, requiring significant manual effort, thus limiting the design possibilities. In this paper, a genetic algorithm (GA) is introduced to assist in designing and optimizing a new type of balanced side slotted Vivaldi antenna with director (SSVAD). The methods of artificial intelligence make the process of searching for the optimal structure of such a multi-objective and multi-dimensional problem simpler and more diverse. The GA-generated SSVAD antenna consists of a CVA and 34 slots with varying lengths, as well as 5 metal strips. It has a compact size of 38.2×49×0.8 mm3 (or 0.32λL×0.41λL×0.007λL, where λL is the lowest operating frequency of 2.48 GHz). The measured results show that the antenna has a peak gain >0 dBi over 2.48-10.88 GHz and >5 dBi over 4.6-10.88 GHz with S11<-10 dB standard, and exhibits directional characteristics at most of the operating frequencies. Since the measured results are basically consistent with the simulation ones, the effectiveness of the designed scheme has been proven. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enterovirus 71 (EV71) infection is one of the main causes of severe hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD), which is usually accompanied by a marked inflammatory response. The excessive inflammatory response has been implicated to serve an important role in EV71-caused HFMD. Pyroptosis is a type of inflammatory programmed cell death. Therefore, a novel treatment strategy against EV71 infection could aim to alleviate the inflammatory response through inhibition of EV71-induced pyroptosis. The present study revealed that metformin had this therapeutic potential. A cell model of EV71 infection was established, cell viability was measured by CCK8 assay, cell damage was measured by LDH release kit, and the dead and dying cells were excluded by propidium iodide staining. The intracellular levels of DEP domain-containing mTOR interacting protein (DEPTOR) and pyroptosis-associated molecules were measured by western blot analysis, the NLRP3 expression was assessed by immunofluorescence labeling, and virus titers in cell culture supernatants were determined by a cell culture infectious dose 50 assay. The results demonstrated that EV71 infection could induce pyroptosis in a time- and dose-dependent manner, and metformin could inhibit EV71-induced pyroptosis. The mechanism of metformin inhibiting EV71-induced pyroptosis was explored next. Subsequent experiments indicated that metformin could increase the levels of DEPTOR, which were decreased by EV71. Finally, overexpression of DEPTOR in cells could reduce EV71-induced pyroptosis. Overall, the present study demonstrated that metformin could exert a novel pharmacodynamic anti-pyroptosis effect in the treatment of EV71 infection by upregulating DEPTOR expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Horizontal logistics collaboration is characterized by the highly professional cooperation of logistics service providers at the same level of the supply chain, which is an effective way to optimize the development and sustainability of modern logistics. Conducting a coding analysis of data from 41 in-depth interviews, this study constructs a theoretical framework of the driving force of horizontal logistics collaboration among Chinese logistics service providers to synchronously improve service, market, efficiency, and emergency competitiveness through cooperation with peer competitors to enhance sustainable comprehensive competitiveness. The four driving forces encourage logistics service providers to adjust their thoughts in the planning stage, change their behavior in the implementation stage, and transform their strategy in the evaluation stage. The results also indicate differences between China and other countries in the driving force, effective utilization of logistics workers, cross-institutional collaboration of state-owned enterprises, and integration of artificial intelligence technology. Finally, we propose relevant recommendations for managers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of less memory costs and time consumption, a finite difference subgrid technique can effectively deal with multiscale problems in electromagnetic fields. When used in Maxwell equation, symmetric elements of the matrix are required; otherwise, the algorithm will be unstable. Usually, the electro-thermal problem also contains multiscale structures. However, the coefficient matrix of the heat transfer equation is asymmetric because the parameters of the equation vary with temperature and the Robbin boundary condition is used as well. In this paper, a three-dimensional (3D) finite difference subgridding method is proposed to simulate the electro-thermal coupling process of the multiscale circuits. The stability condition of the algorithm is deduced with a matrix method. And the efficiency and the effectiveness of the proposed subgridding approach are verified through square- and n-shaped resistances. Compared with the results of the COMSOL software and the traditional finite difference method (FDM), the proposed subgridding method has less unknowns and faster speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 19 th National Congress of the Communist Party of China proposed a strategy for rural revitalization and made a scientific deployment. In this context,how to pursue the development of rural collective economy is of great significance. Analysis on the status of the development of rural collective economy in Shandong Province showed that decentralized small farmers had a wide range of wealth,poor income-generating capacity,and weak income growth. The development models of rural collective economy in Shandong mainly included the follows: property leasing to explore the way to make money on the spot; relying on resources to build advantageous industries; creating a livable living environment led by capable persons; cooperative management to sound agricultural production and management system; and reform of property rights system to develop the collective economy. In addition,it also found that the rural collective economy in Shandong Province had weak economic foundations,uneven development,financing difficulties,debt resolution difficulties,lack of scientific support policies,and limited innovation and development of leadership team. In response to these problems,countermeasures and suggestions were put forward in this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a waveguide power divider is proposed for a 94 GHz horn antenna. The entire structure was machined using 3D printing technology, and is comprised of two pyramidal horn antennas, a one to two E-plane waveguide power divider, three waveguide bends, and a flange. By introducing a wedge-shaped groove, two trapezium taper ports, and a λg/2 extension on the T-junction of the waveguide, we found improved impedance matching of the power divider, and the two output ports had the same phase. Our results show that the bandwidth of the antenna was 3.2% (3 GHz), its gain was higher than 21.2 dBi with an approximately 10° half power beam width at 94 GHz, and it could be applied to a precise location at close range (6 m to 10 m), which is suitable for automotive radar applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sirtuin 2 (SIRT2) is an NAD-dependent sirtuin deacetylase that regulates microtubule and chromatin dynamics, gene expression and cell cycle progression, aswell as nuclear envelope reassembly. Recent proteomic analyses have identifiedGolgi proteins as SIRT2 interactors, indicating that SIRT2 may also play a role in Golgi structure formation. Here, we show that SIRT2 depletion causes Golgi fragmentation and impairsGolgi reassembly at the end of mitosis. SIRT2 interacts with the Golgi reassembly stacking protein GRASP55 (also known as GORASP2) in mitosis when GRASP55 is highly acetylated on K50. Expression of wild-type and the K50R acetylation-deficient mutant of GRASP55, but not the K50Qacetylation-mimetic mutant, inGRASP55 and GRASP65 (also known as GORASP1) double-knockout cells, rescued the Golgi structure and post-mitotic Golgi reassembly. Acetylation-deficient GRASP55 exhibited a higher self-interaction efficiency, a property required for Golgi structure formation. These results demonstrate that SIRT2 regulates Golgi structure bymodulating GRASP55 acetylation levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, accreditation standards for international engineering education have led to a dramatic rise in the use of outcome-based education at universities. In this system, enticing new undergraduate students to science and engineering, although challenging, is the first important step toward building students' career competencies. An ongoing effort to attract students to biotechnology was initiated 13 years ago in the School of Biotechnology at the East China University of Science and Technology in Shanghai. We describe the design and organization of the Microbe Competition, a program attracting a total of nearly 6,500 students as of 2018. In the competition, students need to pass the microbiology knowledge test, provide a practical experiment proposal related to the topic of competition, and finish the experiment under the supervision of teachers before getting final prizes. The competition develops students' competencies in acquiring and applying knowledge, problem solving, teamwork, communication, and experimental skills. By investigating students' feedback, we have been continuously improving the quality of competition to attract more students from the biotechnology major. We hope that by sharing our experience, we can help educators at other universities organize similar introductory activities on their own campuses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is caused by the fusion of the BCR activator of RhoGEF and GTPase activating protein (BCR) and ABL proto-oncogene, the nonreceptor tyrosine kinase (ABL) genes. Although the tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) imatinib (IM) and nilotinib (NI) have remarkable efficacy in managing CML, the malignancies in some patients become TKI-resistant. Here, we isolated bone marrow (BM)-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from several CML patients by Ficoll-Hypaque density-gradient centrifugation for coculture with K562 and BV173 cells with or without TKIs. We used realtime quantitative PCR to assess the level of interleukin 7 (IL-7) expression in the MSCs and employed immunoblotting to monitor protein expression in the BCR/ABL, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT, and JAK/STAT signaling pathways. We also used a xenograft tumor model to examine the in vivo effect of different MSCs on CML cells. MSCs from patients with IM-resistant CML protected K562 and BV173 cells against IM- or NI-induced cell death, and this protection was due to increased IL-7 secretion from the MSCs. Moreover, IL-7 levels in the BM of patients with IM-resistant CML were significantly higher than in healthy donors or IM-sensitive CML patients. IL-7 elicited IM and NI resistance via BCR/ABL-independent activation of JAK1/STAT5 signaling, but not of JAK3/STAT5 or PI3K/AKT signaling. IL-7 or JAK1 gene knockdown abrogated IL-7-mediated STAT5 phosphorylation and IM resistance in vitro and in vivo. Because high IL-7 levels in the BM mediate TKI resistance via BCR/ABL-independent activation of JAK1/ STAT5 signaling, combining TKIs with IL-7/JAK1/STAT5 inhibition may have significant utility for managing CML. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Usually, a reasonably designed electromagnetic band-gap (EBG) structure can reduce the surface wave of an antenna. However, it may take a long time to design. In this paper, a dual-band circular patch multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna on an EBG surface is proposed. Defects are simply introduced into rows and columns of the EBG cells. In this way, the band-gap bandwidth (BG-BW) of those cells can be as large as 29.2%, which enables the EBGs can cover two frequency bands with a large interval, and to generate over 25 dB isolation between the antenna elements, as well. The measured results show that the proposed antenna, incorporating defective EBGs, operates at 5.71-5.97 GHz and 6.31-6.54 GHz. The -10 dB impedance bandwidth of the antenna is extended by 28.9% and 27.8% at the low and high frequency band. In addition, its gain is enhanced by 5 dB and 6.9 dB, and its back radiation decreased by 15 dB and 10.3 dB at the resonant frequencies of 5.75 GHz and 6.44 GHz, respectively. The proposed design may have many applications in communication systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the composition in portrait paintings and develops an algorithm to improve the composition of portrait photographs based on example portrait paintings. A study of portrait paintings shows that the placement of the face and the figure is pose-related. Based on this observation, this paper develops an algorithm to improve the composition of a portrait photograph by learning the placement of the face and the figure from an example portrait painting. This example portrait painting is selected based on the similarity of its figure pose to that of the input photograph. This similarity measure is modeled as a graph matching problem. Finally, space cropping is performed using an optimization function to assign a similar location for each body part of the figure in the photograph with that of the figure in the example portrait painting. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. A user study shows that the proposed pose-based composition improvement is preferred more than rule-based methods and learning-based methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the clinical effect of aspirin combined with clopidogrel on acute myocardial infarction after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods: One hundred thirty two patients with acute myocardial infarction who were admitted to the hospital between December 2016 and December 2017 were divided into a control group and an observation group according to random number table, 66 each group. Both groups were given emergency PCI and symptomatic treatment. The control group was given aspirin on the basis of conventional treatment before and after operation, while the observation group was given clopidogrel treatment on the basis of the treatment the same as the control group. The treatment lasted for 4 months. The clinical efficacy of the two groups was analyzed, and the cardiac function indicator, coagulation indicator and occurrence of adverse reactions were compared before and after treatment. Results: There was no thrombosis at the infarct site in coronary angiography after treatment in both groups. The efficacy in the observation group and control group were 89.4% and 81.8%, respectively; there was no significant difference between the two groups. The incidence of re-thrombosis in the two groups was 1.5% and 12.1% respectively, which was significantly lower in the observation group than in the control group (P<0.05). The cardiac function indicator of both groups improved after treatment, especially the observation group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), prothrombin activity (PA) and platelet aggregation rate (PAR) in the two groups before treatment (P>0.05). There was also no significant difference in PT and PA before and after treatment (P>0.05). The APTT and PAR were significantly different after treatment (P<0.05), and the PAR of the observation group was significantly higher than that of the control group (P<0.05). The incidence of adverse reactions in the observation group was 7.58%, which was not significantly different with that of the control group (12.12%) (P<0.05). Conclusion: Aspirin combined with clopidogrel can effectively reduce the occurrence of re-thrombosis after PCI and improve the recovery of cardiac function after acute operation, moreover the safety is high. It has important clinical application values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A general formula for numerical dispersion of the two-dimensional time-domain radial point interpolation meshless (2-D RPIM) method is analytically derived. Numerical loss and dispersion characteristics of the RPIM method with both Gaussian and multiquadric basis functions are investigated. It is found that numerical loss and dispersion errors of the RPIM vary with types of basis functions used and associated parameters, number of the nodes, and medium conductivities. In addition, condition numbers of the moment matrix of the meshless methods can also increase numerical dispersion errors. With a reasonable condition number of the moment matrix, the radial point interpolation meshless methods perform generally better than the FDTD method in terms of numerical dispersion errors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different countries have employed various strategies for controlling the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic because there is no consensus regarding effective control measures in the literature. Epidemic control strategies can be classified into two types based on their characteristics. The first type is the "severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-like epidemic control strategy," i.e., containment. The second type is the "influenza pandemic-like epidemic control strategy" (flu pandemic-like strategy), i.e., mitigation. This paper presents a comparative analysis on the prevention and control strategies for COVID-19 in different countries to provide a reference to control the further spread of the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-party cooperative education is one of the important contents in the construction of new engineering, and also an effective way to improve the quality of higher engineering education. By using the methods of literature analysis and case study, this study analyzes the defects of the traditional education mode in colleges and universities, and introduces the multi-party cooperative education mode which meets the requirements of new engineering and covers "family-school-internship unit-society". Then this study puts forward the concrete implementation way of multi-party cooperative education mode in engineering education, namely, to strengthen the psychological quality and gratitude consciousness of college students through family emotion education, to teach the basic knowledge and professional ability to college students through school professional education, to train the practical skills and innovative consciousness of college students through the internship unit, and to promote college students to further understand and fulfil social and professional responsibilities through the social environment. Through three-year application practice test, it is found that the research has played a positive role in training innovative advanced engineering talents and promoting the further development of new engineer education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have evaluated the association of miR-146a C/G with head and neck cancer (HNC) susceptibility, and overall cancer risk, but with inconclusive outcomes. To drive a more precise estimation, we carried out this meta-analysis. The literature was searched from MEDLINE (mainly PubMed), Embase, the Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar databases to identify eligible studies. A total of 89 studies were included. The results showed that miR-146a C/G was significantly associated with increased HNC risk in dominant model (I2 =15.6%, Pheterogeneity=0.282, odds ratio (OR) =1.088, 95% confidence interval (CI) =1.002-1.182, P=0.044). However, no cancer risk was detected under all genetic models. By further stratified analysis, we found that rs4919510 mutation contributed to the risk of HNC amongst Asians under homozygote model (I2 =0, Pheterogeneity=0.541, OR =1.189, 95% CI =1.025-1.378, P=0.022), and dominant model (I2 =0, Pheterogeneity=0.959, OR =1.155, 95% CI =1.016-1.312, P=0.028). Simultaneously, in the stratified analysis by source of controls, a significantly increased cancer risk amongst population-based studies was found under homozygote model, dominant model, recessive model, and allele comparison model . However, no significant association was found in the stratified analysis by ethnicity and source of control. The results indicated that miR-146a C/G polymorphism may contribute to the increased HNC susceptibility and could be a promising target to forecast cancer risk for clinical practice. However, no significant association was found in subgroup analysis by ethnicity and source of control. To further confirm these results, well-designed large-scale case-control studies are needed in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CagA, an important virulence factor of Helicobacter pylori, targets and interacts with a series of host proteins to activate signaling factors involved in many functions, such as development, cytoskeleton rearrangement and inflammatory molecule release. Despite extensive efforts, the relationship between CagA and gastric cancer is far from completely understood. Here, the GAL4 yeast two-hybrid system was used to screen cellular proteins for binding to CagA, and five cellular proteins, including tyrosine 3-monooxygenase/tryptophan 5-monooxygenase activation protein, epsilon (YWHAE), were identified. The CagA-YWHAE interaction was further verified not only in vitro by a glutathione S-transferase pull-down assay, but also in vivo by immunolocalization and co-immunoprecipitation assays. In SGC7901 and AGS cells, overexpression of the YWHAE protein promoted the activation of NF-κB by CagA; conversely, knockdown of the YWHAE protein inhibited the activation of NF-κB by CagA. These results indicate that CagA enhances the YWHAE-mediated transactivation of NF-κB, providing a new clue to the molecular mechanisms of H. pylori-associated tumorigenesis mediated by CagA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared to homogeneous catalysis, heterogeneous catalysis allows for ready separation of products from the catalyst and thus reuse of the catalyst. C-C coupling is typically performed on a molecular catalyst which is mixed with reactants in liquid phase during catalysis. This homogeneous mixing at a molecular level in the same phase makes separation of the molecular catalyst extremely challenging and costly. Here we demonstrated that a TiO2-based nanoparticle catalyst anchoring singly dispersed Pd atoms (Pd1/TiO2) is selective and highly active for more than 10 Sonogashira C-C coupling reactions (R≡CH + R′X → R≡R′; X = Br, I; R′ = aryl or vinyl). The coupling between iodobenzene and phenylacetylene on Pd1/TiO2 exhibits a turnover rate of 51.0 diphenylacetylene molecules per anchored Pd atom per minute at 60 °C, with a low apparent activation barrier of 28.9 kJ/mol and no cost of catalyst separation. DFT calculations suggest that the single Pd atom bonded to surface lattice oxygen atoms of TiO2 acts as a site to dissociatively chemisorb iodobenzene to generate an intermediate phenyl, which then couples with phenylacetylenyl bound to a surface oxygen atom. This coupling of phenyl adsorbed on Pd1 and phenylacetylenyl bound to Oad of TiO2 forms the product molecule, diphenylacetylene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As we move into the information age, the amount of data in various fields has increased dramatically, and data sources have become increasingly widely distributed. The corresponding phenomenon of missing data is increasingly common, and it leads to the generation of incomplete multi-source information systems. In this context, this paper's proposal aims to address the limitations of rough set theory. We study the method of multi-source fusion in incomplete multi-source systems. This paper presents a method for fusing incomplete multi-source systems based on information entropy; in particular, by comparison with another method, our fusion method is validated. Furthermore, extensive experiments are conducted on six UCI data sets to verify the performance of the proposed method. Additionally, the experimental results indicate that multi-source information fusion approaches significantly outperform other approaches to fusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the study of cycles and paths, the meta-conjecture of Bondy that sufficient conditions for Hamiltonicity often imply pancyclicity has motivated research on the existence of cycles and paths of many lengths. Hendry further introduced the stronger concepts of cycle extendability and path extendability, which require that every cycle or path can be extended to another one with one additional vertex. These concepts have been studied extensively, but there exist few results on path extendability in digraphs, as far as we know. In this paper, we make the first attempt in this direction. We establish a number of extremal and degree conditions for path extendability in general digraphs. Moreover, we prove that every path of length at least two in a regular tournament is extendable, with some exceptions. One of our proof approaches is a new contraction operation to transform nonextendable paths into nonextendable cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To investigate the preventive effect of resveratrol against renal pathological changes in a rat model of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Methods: CKD was induced by daily intragastric administration of adenine (200 mg/kg) for 1 month. The effect of 10, 15, and 20 mg/kg doses of resveratrol on the levels of parathyroid hormone, phosphorous, and fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF-23) in rat urine samples after 2 months of adenine administration were analyzed using an auto-analyzer. Results: Resveratrol treatment significantly inhibited the adenine-mediated increase in serum parathyroid hormone, phosphorous and FGF-23 levels (p < 0.002). In rats treated with 10, 15 and 20 mg/kg doses of resveratrol after adenine, urine protein/creatinine ratio was reduced to 5, 675.6 ± 2453.7, 4, 789.8 ± 1,534.9, and 1, 965 ± 576.8 mg/g, respectively. In the untreated and normal control groups, the respective values were 7, 004 ± 1, 653.3 and 1, 627.5 ± 568.7 mg/g. Treatment with resveratrol after administration of adenine inhibited increases in creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, and uric acid levels in a dose-dependent manner (p < 0.002). Resveratrol treatment also inhibited adeninemediated increases in monocytes and inflammatory cells. Furthermore, resveratrol prevented renal tubule swelling and expansion induced by adenine administration. Conclusion: Resveratrol treatment prevent the renal pathological changes induced by adenine administration in a rat model of CKD by inhibiting FGF-23, parathyroid hormone, and phosphate. Thus, resveratrol may be of therapeutic importance for the treatment of CKD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long lifespan and late maturation make it difficult to establish gamete maturity and breeding age of captive endangered Chinese sturgeon, Acipenser sinensis. This greatly handicaps timely breeding and future conservation stocking efforts. We used ultrasound imagery and sex steroids to determine the gender and gonadal maturity stage of captive Chinese sturgeon (age, 10--17 years old). The echogenicity of the reproductive organs and the respective morphology of the gonads were described and two quantitative parameters po (proportion of the ovary to the entire reproductive organs) and d (thickness of the reproductive organs) were measured to characterize sex and maturity stage of Chinese sturgeon. Females were accordingly placed fish into several categories: FII (FII-, FII, FII+), FIII (FIII, FIII+) and FIV (FIV, FIV+) and FVI and males as MII, MIII, MIV, MV and MVI. The accuracy of gender and maturity stage determination provided by ultrasonographic methods was 72.7% for FII- ovary (n = 11) and 76.2% for MII testis (n = 42). Accuracy of sex and maturity determination using only serum sex steroid of testosterone (T) and estradiol-17β (E2) was low (58--73%, depending on maturity stage). However, when the two methods were used together, accuracy increased sharply, especially for immature (II stage) females. In summary, of 151 Chinese sturgeon, whose sex and maturity stage were independently confirmed, 88.1% (n = 133), 62.9% (n = 95), and 96.7% (n = 146) were successfully sexed and staged using ultrasound, sex steroids, or both methods, respectively. The results provide reliable non-invasive techniques for determining sex and gonadal maturation of captive Chinese sturgeon. These methods can track individual gonad characteristics over multi-year reproductive cycles, which will assist captive broodstock management, artificial reproduction, and future conservation stocking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is characterized by simple hepatic steatosis (SS), nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), hepatic fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Dysregulated fatty acid metabolism in the liver plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of NAFLD. Cytochrome P450 omega-hydroxylase 4A14 (CYP4A14) is a homolog of human CYP4A hydroxylase that catalyzes omega-hydroxylation of mediumchain fatty acids and arachidonic acid in mice. The goal of this study was to determine the role of CYP4A14 in the development and the progression of NAFLD. Here, we showed that hepatic CYP4A expression was up-regulated in the livers of patients and three murine models of NAFLD. Adenovirus-mediated overexpression of CYP4A14 in the livers of C57BL/6 mice resulted in a fatty liver phenotype with a significant increase in hepatic fatty acid translocase (FAT/CD36) expression. In contrast, CYP4A14 gene-deficient mice fed a highfat diet or a methionine and choline-deficient (MCD) diet exhibited attenuated liver lipid accumulation and reduced hepatic FAT/CD36 expression. In addition, hepatic inflammation and fibrosis was markedly ameliorated in MCD diet-fed CYP4A14-deficient mice. Collectively, CYP4A14 plays an important role in the pathogenesis of both SS and NASH and may represent a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of NAFLD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major global public health problem. New treatment methods on TB are urgently demanded. In this study, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) rv2190c DNA vaccine was prepared and its immunogenicity and therapeutic effects were evaluated. Results: Non-infected mice immunized with rv2190c DNA or ag85a DNA showed higher levels of interferongamma (IFN-γ) in stimulated spleen lymphocyte culture supernatants, and had more Th1 cells and an elevatory ratio of Th1/Th2 immune cells in whole blood, indicating that Th1-type immune response was predominant. Compared with the saline group, ag85a DNA group and rv2190c DNA group in the infected mice decreased the lung colony-forming units (CFUs) by 0.533 and 0.283 log10, and spleen CFUs by 0.425 and 0.321 log10 respectively, and pathological lesion. Conclusions: The rv2190c DNA had some immunotherapeutic effect on TB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Prenatal screening and diagnosis is important for the detection of birth defects and genetic diseases. The nationwide proficiency testing (PT) of maternal serum prenatal screening in second trimester in China has been launched since 2003 and partly reflected the performance of screening laboratories. This study analysed the 2015 PT results to examine the performance of clinical laboratories and different platforms. Materials and methods: Fifteen lyophilized samples with different concentrations divided into three panels, were distributed to 613 clinical laboratories in 2015. Acceptable performance was defined as scores more than 80% of acceptable responses with the evaluation criterion of ± 30%. The robust coefficient of variation (CV) was also analysed. Chi-square (X2) test was used to compare the acceptable performance while Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney test were applied to compare the robust CV among analytes and mainstream platforms. Results: Overall, 605, 61, 214, 416, 303 laboratories submitted effective results for alpha fetoprotein (AFP), total human chorionic gonadotropin (thCG), β-hCG, unconjugated estriol (uE3) and free β-hCG. The acceptable performances of AFP (μg/L), AFP (KIU/L), t-hCG, β-hCG, uE3, and free β-hCG were 98.45%, 99.24%, 95.58%, 98.72%, 94.50%, and 98.66%, respectively. The X2 test indicated significant differences existed in the acceptable performances among different analytes and platforms for uE3. Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney test suggested the robust CV differed significantly in different analytes and platforms. Conclusions: The majority of results were acceptable. However, further effort is needed to achieve the standardization and harmonization among analytes and various platforms, particularly for uE3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, making decisions and analyzing data are getting more and more attention by taking advantage of rough set and intuitionistic fuzzy set theories. Additionally, it can be found that many works have been developed about intuitionistic fuzzy rough set approaches from different viewpoints. In this article, we introduce similarity degrees and four kinds of uncertainty measurement, called θ-conditional entropies, θ-similarity intuitionistic fuzzy accuracies, θ-similarity intuitionistic fuzzy roughness and θ-rough decision entropies in intuitionistic fuzzy decision tables. Also, we provide a novel method for classifying the objects' intuitionistic fuzzy decision table. Moreover, we carefully discuss the lower approximation and upper approximation of a given set and classify their important properties based on the novel classes in the intuitionistic fuzzy decision table. Furthermore, an illustrated example is employed to demonstrate the conceptual arguments of these measurements based on different similarity degrees and similarity rates. From this, it can be found that the new measures are superior to the classical accuracy and roughness, and the method is valuable and useful in real life situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several recent deep network architectures tried to handle the depth estimation process as an image reconstruction problem, in order to overcome the shortfall that the ground truth depth data is not sufficiently available. The authors introduce and validate an efficient deeper network architecture for unsupervised depth estimation with an automated parameter optimisation. In addition, a hybrid appearance loss function is also proposed to improve the depth estimation accuracy and effectiveness. The authors' proposed model achieves the advantage that individual element of the loss function is weighted using normal distribution characteristics of a Gaussian model. The proposed ideas are validated on KITTI dataset achieving best reported results among recent state-of-the-art methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Brassica yellows virus (BrYV), proposed to be a new polerovirus species, three distinct genotypes (BrYV-A, BrYV-B and BrYV-C) have been described. This study was to develop a simple, rapid, sensitive, cost-effective method for simultaneous detection and differentiation of three genotypes of BrYV. Results: In this study, a multiplex reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (mRT-PCR) was developed for simultaneous detection and differentiation of the three genotypes of BrYV. The three genotypes of BrYV and Tunip yellows virus (TuYV) could be differentiated simultaneously using six optimized specific oligonucleotide primers, including one universal primer for detecting BrYV, three BrYV genotype-specific primers, and a pair of primers for specific detection of TuYV. Primers were designed from conserved regions of each virus and their specificity was confirmed by sequencing PCR products. The mRT-PCR products were 278 bp for BrYV-A, 674 bp for BrYV-B, 505 bp for BrYV-C, and 205 bp for TuYV. Amplification of three target genotypes was optimized by increasing the PCR annealing temperatures to 62 °C. One to three fragments specific for the virus genotypes were simultaneously amplified from infected samples and identified by their specific molecular sizes in agarose gel electrophoresis. No specific products could be amplified from cDNAs of other viruses which could infect crucifer crops. Detection limits of the plasmids for multiplex PCR were 100 fg for BrYV-A and BrYV-B, 10 pg for BrYV-C, and 1 pg for TuYV, respectively. The mRT-PCR was applied successfully for detection of three BrYV genotypes from field samples collected in China. Conclusions: The simple, rapid, sensitive, and cost-effective mRT-PCR was developed successfully for detection and differentiation of the three genotypes of BrYV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Myocardial contractility of the left ventricle (LV) plays an essential role in maintaining normal pump function. A recent ex vivo experimental study showed that cardiomyocyte force generation varies across the three myocardial layers of the LV wall. However. the in vivo distribution of myocardial contractile force is still unclear. The current study was designed to investigate the in vivo transmural distribution of myocardial contractility using a noninvasive computational approach. For this purpose, four cases with different transmural distributions of maximum isometric tension (Tmax) and/or reference sarcomere length (lR) were tested with animal-specific finite element (FE) models, in combination with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), pressure catheterization, and numerical optimization. Results of the current study showed that the best fit with in vivo MRl-derived deformation was obtained when Tmax assumed different values in the subendocardium, midmyocardium, and subepicardium with transmurally varying lR. These results are consistent with recent ex vivo experimental studies, which showed that the midmyocardium produces more contractile force than the other transmural layers. The systolic strain calculated from the best-fit FE mode! was in good agreement with MRI data. Therefore, the proposed noninvasive approach has the capability to predict the transmural distribution of myocardial contractility. Moreover, FE models with a nonuniform distribution of myocardial contractility could provide a better representation of LV function and be used to investigate the effects of transmural changes due to heart disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The graded rough set and multi-granulation rough set are two significant generalized rough set models which be constructed on the indiscernibility relation. They solve the issues that the degree of overlap between the equivalence class and basic set in different view points of quantitative information. The purpose of this study is that research the good points of graded rough set in the multi-granulation environment which in different granules have different grades based on dominance relation. Three new types of multi-granulation with different grades rough set models are proposed, which include the optimistic, pessimistic and mean multi-granulation with different grades rough set. Then, their principal structure, basic properties and serval kinds of uncertainty measure methods are investigated as well. Furthermore, an experimental evaluation about urban investment is utilized to verify the proposed properties, which is valuable for applying these theories to deal with practical issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a tungsten diselenide (WSe2) polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-based, saturable absorber and related experiment results of a Q-switched fiber laser. WSe2-PVA film is synthesized by liquid phase exfoliation method, and its saturable absorption is measured via a nonlinear transmission experiment. The result shows that WSe2-PVA saturable absorber has a modulation depth of 3.5%, which means it has potential for generating an ultrafast pulse laser. We apply this absorber into a ring-cavity erbium-doped fiber laser and obtain Q-switched pulses under appropriate pump power. Our work demonstrates the reliable nonlinear optical characteristics of WSe2 and the feasibility for this two-dimensional material to be applied in the field of nonlinear optics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to explore the spectral features and sensitive wave band of wheat leaf, we establish a quantitative relationship model between wheat chlorophyll content and spectral features to promote the application of hyperspectral technology in precise wheat fertilization and fast, non-destructive growth monitoring. Using the relational analysis, we analyze the relationship between chlorophyll content and spectral reflectance or the first derivative, and establish the chlorophyll content monitoring model. By selection and verification, the best estimation models for wheat chlorophyll content are as follows: SPAD = 36.75 + 188. 168R387, SPAD = 2094.242R'715³ + 112646.744 R'715²-1.561E7 R'715 + 42.991. The two models can well estimate the SPAD value of wheat leaf, and comparatively speaking, the SPAD estimation model based on wave band R387 has greater accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amblyceps yunnanensis, a new species, is described here based on the specimens collected from a tributary of the upper Irrawaddy in the western Yunnan Province, China. It differs from all its congeners by the following combination of morphological features: skin smooth with a complete lateral line; adipose-fin originates at vertical level from anterior one quarter of the length of the anal-fin base, in the form of a low and smooth edge; dorsal-fin with one very weak spine; pectoral-fins without spines; caudal-fin truncated without pinnate-like rays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The release of soil organic matter (SOM) has been frequently studied, while its effects on sorption kinetics and on the capacity of phenanthrene (PHE) on sediments have seldom been studied. In this study, sodium chloride (NaCl, 0-0.1 mol/L) was introduced to adjust the release of SOM, and three sediments were prepared: a raw sediment (SI), an eluted sediment (S2), and an SOM-removed sediment (S3). The release of SOM , with dissolved organic matter (DOM) formed in solution, was confirmed in sediment 1. Sorption kinetics on sediment 1 showed atypical results as three stages: rapid sorption, pseudo sorption with partial desorption, and slow sorption. Also, a defined "sorption valley" occurred in the kinetic curve, which can be qualitatively determined by the characteristics of the release of SOM, including its amount, rate and sequence in each SOM fraction. Sorption capacity on sediments 1 and 2 was negatively correlated with aqueous DOM concentrations. By changing sediment characteristics and solution properties, the release of SOM significantly impacts polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) sorption behaviors. These results help clarify the transport of PAHs in sediment-water systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advances in genomic technology have enabled the faithful detection and measurement of mutations and the gene expression profile of cancer cells at the single-cell level. Recently, several single-cell sequencing methods have been developed that permit the comprehensive and precise analysis of the cancer-cell genome, transcriptome, and epigenome. The use of these methods to analyze cancer cells has led to a series of unanticipated discoveries, such as the high heterogeneity and stochastic changes in cancer-cell populations, the new driver mutations and the complicated clonal evolution mechanisms, and the novel identification of biomarkers of variant tumors. Thesemethods and the knowledge gained fromtheir utilization could potentially improve the early detection and monitoring of rare cancer cells, such as circulating tumor cells and disseminated tumor cells, and promote the development of personalized and highly precise cancer therapy. Here, we discuss the current methods for single cancer-cell sequencing, with a strong focus on those practically used or potentially valuable in cancer research, including single-cell isolation, whole genome and transcriptome amplification, epigenome profiling, multi-dimensional sequencing, and next-generation sequencing and analysis. We also examine the current applications, challenges, and prospects of single cancer-cell sequencing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. China launched new healthcare reforms in 2009 and several policies targeted village clinics, which affected village doctors' income, training and duties. The aim of the present study was to assess village doctors' job satisfaction during the reforms and to explore factors affecting job satisfaction. Methods. Using a stratified multistage cluster sampling process, 935 village doctors in Jiangxi Province were surveyed with a self-administered questionnaire that collected demographic information and contained a job satisfaction scale and questions regarding their work situation and individual perceptions of the new healthcare reforms. Descriptive analysis, Pearson's Chi-squared test and binary logistic regression were used to identify village doctors' job satisfaction and the factors associated with their job satisfaction. Results. Only 12.72% of village doctors were either satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs and the top three items leading to dissatisfaction were pay and the amount of work that had to be done, opportunities for job promotion and work conditions. Marriage, income, intention to leave, satisfaction with learning and training, social status, relationship with patients and satisfaction with the new healthcare reforms were significantly associated with job satisfaction (P < 0.05). Conclusions. China is facing critical challenges with regard to village doctors because of their low job satisfaction. For future healthcare reforms, policy makers should pay more attention to appropriate remuneration and approaches that incentivise village doctors to achieve the goals of the health reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to observe and compare the sedative effect of different doses of DEX on heart rate (HR) and blood pressure (BP) in critically ill patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs). The study included patients that were retained in ICUs and required sedation between January and March 2014. Patients were excluded if they had a BP of >200 mmHg, a HR of <60 bpm or were in a state of shock. The included patients were randomized into three groups: Group A, 1.0 μg/kg/10 min DEX; group B, 0.5 μg/kg/10 min DEX; and group C, 0.4 μg/kg/h DEX. After receiving these initial designated doses of DEX via an intravenous (IV) infusion pump for 10 min, the patients were maintained continuously at an identical dose of 0.4 μg/kg/h DEX. Ramsay score, HR, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), breathing rate (BR) and peripheral capillary oxygen saturation (SpO2) were recorded prior to the IV pump infusion and at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 60, 120, 180 and 240 min following infusion. Patients in groups A and B achieved sedation more rapidly compared with those in group C (P<0.05). HR decreased more significantly at 8 and 60 min after the initial IV pump infusion with DEX in groups A and B compared with group C (P<0.05). SBP decreased significantly at 10 min after IV pump infusion in group A compared with groups B and C (P<0.05). No significant difference existed in the SBP reduction trend between the three groups during the maintenance period. Therefore, the routine dose of DEX (0.4 μg/kg/h) provides an ideal sedative effect in ICU patients. The recommended loading dose for a more rapid sedation is 0.5 μg/kg/h. High loading doses of DEX via IV pump infusion should be avoided in elderly individuals, patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and anemic patients, in whom combination medication, such as midazolam or propofol, may be considered when necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The AT motif-binding factor (ATBF1) not only interacts with protein inhibitor of activated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) (PIAS3) to suppress STAT3 signaling regulating embryo early development and cell differentiation, but is required for early activation of the pituitary specific transcription factor 1 (Pit1) gene (also known as POU1F1) critically affecting mammalian growth and development. The goal of this study was to detect novel nucleotide variations and haplotypes structure of the ATBF1 gene, as well as to test their associations with growth-related traits in goats. Herein, a total of seven novel single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (SNP 1-7) within this gene were found in two well-known Chinese native goat breeds. Haplotypes structure analysis demonstrated that there were four haplotypes in Hainan black goat while seventeen haplotypes in Xinong Saanen dairy goat, and both breeds only shared one haplotype (hap1). Association testing revealed that the SNP2, SNP5, SNP6, and SNP7 loci were also found to significantly associate with growth-related traits in goats, respectively. Moreover, one diplotype in Xinong Saanen dairy goats significantly linked to growth related traits. These preliminary findings not only would extend the spectrum of genetic variations of the goat ATBF1 gene, but also would contribute to implementing marker-assisted selection in genetics and breeding in goats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pt fibers (15 μm) were coated with topological insulator Bi2Se3 nanoplates via a single mode microwave-assisted synthesis technique. With the Bi2Se3/Pt fibers, flexible memory devices were facilely assembled, and they were demonstrated to exhibit rewritable nonvolatile resistive switching characteristics of low switching voltage (-1.2V and +0.7 V), high ON/OFF current ratio (106), and good retention (4500 s), showing the potential application in data storage. The resistive switching mechanism was analyzed on the bases of formation and rupture of conductive filaments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A finite element model of the expansion Joints' common damages of a novel comb-plate by using the finite element software ABAQUS is presented in this paper. The mechanical behavior of expansion Joints is analyzed to verify the weak parts of it. The research results provide a reference for the design of the comb-plate expansion Joints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ICAI (Intelligent Computer Assisted Instruction, hereinafter referred as ICAI), is a teaching mode on the theoretical foundation of the cognitive science and thinking science, through the study of the characteristics and process of the thinking of human in learning, with the application of the artificial intelligence technology to the computer assisted instruction. The domain knowledge as the "memory" of the intelligent computer assisted instruction system for the storage of knowledge is an important part of the Intelligent Computer Assisted Instruction System. In this paper, according to the characteristics of the current single and linear organizational relationship that exists in the current ICAI system, it describes the basic theory and the development principles of the ICAI system, for the Authorware software platform, it adopts the Prolog language and the SCORM standards as well as other related technologies as the development tools, to have an in-depth discussion on some of the important models in the process of system design and the key technologies which are applied in the system; the basic model and structure of WBIETS system is designed, and an overall framework and application module is developed to support four kinds of users including students, teachers, educators and administrators to complete a variety of English teaching, evaluation and management activities in Web. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The left ventricle (LV) of the heart is composed of a complex organization of cardiac muscle fibers, which contract to generate force and pump blood into the body. It has been shown that both the orientation and contractile strength of these myoftbers vary across the ventricular wall. The hypothesis of the current study is that the transmural distributions of myofiber orientation and contractile strength interdependently impact LV pump function. In order to quantify these interactions a finite element (FE) model of the LV was generated, which incorporated transmural variations. The influences of myofiber orientation and contractile strength on the Starling relationship and the end-systolic (ES) apex twist of the LV were assessed. The results suggest that reductions in contractile strength within a specific transmural layer amplified the effects of altered myofiber orientation in the same layer, causing greater changes in stroke volume (SV). Furthermore, when the epicardial myofibers contracted the strongest, the twist of the LV apex was greatest, regardless of myofiber orientation. These 'Corresponding author. Manuscript received June 24, 2014; final manuscript received October 30, results demonstrate the important role of transmural distribution of myocardial contractile strength and its interplay with myofiber orientation. The coupling between these two physiologic parameters could play a critical role in the progression of heart failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is an emerging metabolic regulator associated with glucose and lipid metabolism, and it is still unclear whether FGF21 is related to atherosclerosis. Here, we explored the potential link between FGF21 and lower extremity atherosclerotic disease (LEAD) in type 2 diabetic patients. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 504 type 2 diabetic patients (283 men, 221 women). LEAD was defined by Ankle-brachial index (ABI) <0.9 and lower extremity arterial plaque evaluated by color Doppler ultrasound. Serum FGF21 concentrations were quantified by a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: The total FGF21 levels of male and female patients had no significant differenence ((299.14(177.31-534.49) vs 362.50(214.01-578.73), P=0.516). Serum FGF21 levels in LEAD group were significantly higher than non-LEAD group in females (385.34(243.89-661.54) vs 313.13(156.38-485.79), P=0.006), while not in male patients (295.52(177.09-549.64) vs 342.09 (198.70-549.87), P=0.613). In diabetic women, subjects with LEAD had significantly higher serum FGF21 regardless of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) (P < 0.05). And serum FGF21 levels were positively correlated with waist circumference and systolic blood pressure after adjusted for age and BMI (r=0.198, P=0.004; r=0.152, P=0.027; respectively). Moreover, FGF21 was independently tied to femoral intima-media thickness (FIMT) (β=0.208, P=0.031). After adjusted for other LEAD risk factors, FGF21 was demonstrated to be an independent risk factor for LEAD in type 2 diabetic women (OR, 1.106; 95%CI 1.008-1.223; P=0.028). In addition, FGF21 was negatively correlated with estradiol in premenopausal diabetic women (r=-0.368, P=0.009). After adjusted for estradiol, serum FGF21 levels were still positively associated with FIMT in premenopausal diabetic women (r=0.381, P=0.007). In diabetic men, serum FGF21 levels were correlated with triglyceride and C-reactive protein even after adjusted for age and BMI (r=0.204, P=0.001; r=0.312, P < 0.001; respectively). However, serum FGF21 was not an independent impact factor for LEAD in men (P >0.05). Conclusions: Serum FGF21 level independently and positively links LEAD in Chinese women with type 2 diabetes. The gender difference may be due to different estrogen levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between diabetes mellitus (DM), mainly type II, with metabolic syndrome (MS) and diabetic nephropathy (DN)/diabetic retinopathy (DR). Based on the analysis of the prevalence of MS, patients with DM were divided into MS and non-MS groups according to the presence or absence of MS. The correlation between DN, DR and certain factors, including gender, age, disease duration and the presence or absence of a family history of MS, were analyzed. The prevalence of MS among the patients with DM was 62.50%. The prevalence of DN was 55.33% in the MS group and that of DR was 26.00%. DN was positively correlated with age, gender, blood pressure, triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and blood uric acid. DR was positively correlated with traceable disease duration and LDL-C. In conclusion, DM occurred more frequently in concurrence with MS than without MS, and the prevalence of DN/DR in the MS group was higher than that in the non-MS group. Age, gender, blood pressure, TG, LDL-C and blood uric acid were risk factors for DN and the traceable disease duration and LDL-C were risk factors for DR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic and effective application of surfactant enhanced remediation (SER) technology in a sediment-freshwater/saline water system was investigated by batch method using the combined effects of inorganic salt (sodium chloride, NaCl) and anionic surfactant (sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDBS)) on phenanthrene (PHE) removal via sorption by sediment. In all cases, PHE sorption followed a linear equation and partition as the main mechanism for PHE removal from aqueous solution. Separate addition of SDBS (2 mmol L-1) and NaCl (2-100 mmol L-1) moderately enhanced PHE removal, while with their combined addition the enhancement was substantial, and the removal efficiency achieved a peak of 92.8%. The combined effect expressed a synergy, and the sorption enhancement increased by factors of 2.7, 3.2 and 3.4 when compared with the sum of the separate entities at elevated salinity. This was because the sorbed SDBS, with increasing amount and a high packing conformation at elevated salinity, outcompeted aqueous SDBS for PHE partition. Moreover, a combination of 2 mmol L-1 SDBS and 2 mmol L-1 NaCl was optimal for PHE removal. Therefore, SER technology appears more effective for PHE removal in saline water than in freshwater, and preliminary water quality monitoring is essential for economic and efficient SER application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]