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To summarize the experience of identifying and caring for a stroke patient with ruptured internal iliac artery branch bleeding. The experience was summarized in 3 aspects, including how to recognize the presence of active bleeding in the patient, confirmation of the diagnosis and treatment of the bleeding point, prevention of postoperative complications, and rehabilitation care. After aggressive treatment and care, the patient was discharged after 30 days of hospitalization and improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sirtuins (SIRT) exhibit deacetylation or ADP-ribosyltransferase activity and regulate a wide range of cellular processes in the nucleus, mitochondria, and cytoplasm. The role of the only sirtuin that resides in the cytoplasm, SIRT2, in the development of ischemic injury and cardiac hypertrophy is not known. In this paper, we show that the hearts of mice with deletion of Sirt2 (Sirt2-/-) display improved cardiac function after ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) and pressure overload (PO), suggesting that SIRT2 exerts maladaptive effects in the heart in response to stress. Similar results were obtained in mice with cardiomyocyte-specific Sirt2 deletion. Mechanistic studies suggest that SIRT2 modulates cellular levels and activity of nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (NRF2), which results in reduced expression of antioxidant proteins. Deletion of Nrf2 in the hearts of Sirt2-/- mice reversed protection after PO. Finally, treatment of mouse hearts with a specific SIRT2 inhibitor reduced cardiac size and attenuates cardiac hypertrophy in response to PO. These data indicate that SIRT2 has detrimental effects in the heart and plays a role in cardiac response to injury and the progression of cardiac hypertrophy, which makes this protein a unique member of the SIRT family. Additionally, our studies provide a novel approach for treatment of cardiac hypertrophy and injury by targeting SIRT2 pharmacologically, providing a novel avenue for the treatment of these disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reasonable formation pressure maintenance level is significant to high-efficient development of oilfields. In order to study the effects of overlying strata pressure on permeability, oil-water phase permeability curve, and oil displacement efficiency, a physical simulation experiment is designed. Based on the experimental results and the oil-water phase flow theory, the production equation and the mathematical model of oil displacement efficiency considering stress sensitivity are established. And the productivity changes with pressure drop under different permeability are plotted. Then, the permeability coefficients calculated by quantitative characterization of stress sensitivity under different formation pressures are introduced into the numerical simulation model to quantitatively determine the reasonable formation pressure maintenance level of different reservoir properties. Experimental and theoretical studies show that the permeability decreases continuously with the increase in effective overlying strata pressure. In a low permeability reservoir, the more permeability decrease is caused by the increase in effective overlying strata pressure. When reservoir pressure is restored by water injection, the permeability loss is irreversible. With the increase in effective overlying strata pressure, the producer productivity decreases obviously, and the effective seepage capacity and oil displacement efficiency decrease. For reservoirs with permeability below 100 mD and high stress sensitivity, high formation pressure level should be maintained. For reservoirs with permeability of more than 300 mD, lower formation pressure is acceptable in the initial stage. The results are consistent with the actual production characteristics, which effectively guide the establishing of reasonable oilfield development strategy. It has important guiding significance to the oilfield development plans and development of the middle-deep oilfields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organic acids could improve the phosphorus (P) availability through enhancing the release of inorganic phosphorus (Pi) in the soil. However, the effects of organic acids on the Pi release are still poorly understood, especially from soils with different organic matter contents. Here, a biochemically produced humic acid and P fertiliser were added to the soil to modify the content of the soil organic matter (SOM) and soil P, respectively. And then the soil samples were incubated at 25 °C for 30 days. The release of Pi fractions (such as H2O-Pi, NaHCO3-Pi, NaOH-Pi, HCl-Pi, and Residual-P) from the soils with different organic matter contents in the presence of citric, oxalic, and malic acids was evaluated using a sequential chemical fractionation method. The results showed that the release of the NaHCO3-Pi, NaOH-Pi, and HCl-Pi fractions also showed a decreasing trend with an increasing content of soil organic matter, and more NaOH-Pi than the other Pi fractions was generally released in the presence of organic acids. Considering the types of organic acids, oxalic acid and malic acid most effectively and least effectively released Pi, respectively. The path analysis indicated that the NaOH-Pi release had the highest direct and indirect effects on the total inorganic P (TPi) release. NaOH-Pi was, therefore, the most effective source of Pi in the Mollisols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypoglycemic drugs such as metformin increase glucose uptake and utilization by peripheral tissues to maintain glucose homeostasis, and the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling pathway is an important component of this pharmacological activity. Liver kinase B1 (LKB1) acts as a kinase upstream of AMPK and plays an important regulatory role in glucose metabolism. In recent years, as a tumor suppressor, LKB1's antitumor activity has been widely studied, yet its hypoglycemic activity is not clear. Here, using biochemical and cell viability assays, site-directed mutagenesis, immunoblotting, and immunofluorescence staining, we found that a natural product, antroalbol H isolated from the basidiomycete mushroom Antrodiella albocinnamomea, increases cellular glucose uptake in murine L6 myotubes and 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Of note, our results indicated that this effect is related to LKB1-mediated Thr-172 phosphorylation of AMPKα. Furthermore, we observed that antroalbol H induces the phosphorylation of LKB1 specifically at Thr-189 and changes subcellular localization of LKB1. Finally, antroalbol H treatment strikingly promoted glucose transporter type 4 (GLUT4) translocation to the plasma membrane. We conclude that antroalbol H promotes Thr-189 phosphorylation of LKB1, leading to AMPK activation, revealing this residue as a potential target for increasing glucose uptake, and that antroalbol H therefore has potential for managing hyperglycemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We fabricated superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) made of NbTiN and NbN thin films in the same fabrication batch. Various parameters, such as critical temperature, resistivity, switching current, and kinetic inductance, were compared between the two types of SNSPDs. These data indicate that NbTiN SNSPD surpasses NbN SNSPD in many aspects, including a shorter recovery time due to smaller kinetic inductance, a lower timing jitter due to higher switching current, and better uniformity. Based on the measurement of 28 out of 121 NbTiN SNSPDs on a 2-in Si wafer, 71% of detectors show a system detection efficiency of over 50% at a dark count rate of 100 Hz, with the maximum efficiency being 77.5%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the possibility of indigenous rice cultivation cannot be entirely ruled out, there is increasing evidence suggesting that rice farming was introduced to South China during the late-Holocene. However, determination of the exact timing of the spread of rice farming to South China is fraught with the lack of reliable radiocarbon dates. In this article, we present 15 new AMS 14C dates of charred plant remains recovered from late-Holocene sites of Shixia and Guye in Guangdong Province of South China. Our new AMS 14C dates suggest a later arrival of rice farming in the Pearl River Delta than previously thought. These new AMS 14C dates will shed new lights to an improved understanding of the environmental background and ecology of the southward spread of rice farming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overexpression of adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette (ABC) transport protein is emerging as a critical contributor to anticancer drug resistance. The eukaryotic translation initiation factor (eIF) 4F complex, the key modulator of mRNA translation, is regulated by the phosphoinositide 3-kinase-AKT-mammalian target of rapamycin pathway in anticancer drug-resistant tumors. The present study demonstrated the roles of ABC translation protein alterations in the acquisition of the Adriamycin (ADM)-resistant phenotype of MCF-7 human breast cells. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis were applied to examine the differences in mRNA and protein levels, respectively. It was found that the expression of the ABC sub-family B member 1, ABC sub-family C member 1 and ABC sub-family G member 2 transport proteins were upregulated in MCF-7/ADR cells. An MTT assay was used to detect the cell viability, from the results MCF-7/ADR cells were less sensitive to ADM, tamoxifen (TAM) and taxol (TAX) treatment compared with MCF-7 cells. We predicted that the 3'-untranslated region of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4-γ 1 (eIF4G) contains a potential miRNA binding site for microRNA (miR)-503 through using computational programs. These binding sites were confirmed by luciferase reporter assays. eIF4G mRNA degradation was accelerated in cells transfected with miR-503 mimics. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that eIF4G and ABC translation proteins were significantly downregulated in MCF-7/ADR cells after transfection with miR-503. It was found that miR-503 mimics could sensitize the cells to treatment with ADM, TAM and TAX. These findings demonstrated for the first time that eIF4G acted as a key factor in MCF-7/ADR cells, and may be an efficient agent for preventing and reversing multi-drug resistance in breast cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SIRT2 is a cytoplasmic sirtuin that plays a role in various cellular processes, including tumorigenesis, metabolism, and inflammation. Since these processes require iron, we hypothesized that SIRT2 directly regulates cellular iron homeostasis. Here, we have demonstrated that SIRT2 depletion results in a decrease in cellular iron levels both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, we determined that SIRT2 maintains cellular iron levels by binding to and deacetylating nuclear factor erythroid-derived 2-related factor 2 (NRF2) on lysines 506 and 508, leading to a reduction in total and nuclear NRF2 levels. The reduction in nuclear NRF2 leads to reduced ferroportin 1 (FPN1) expression, which in turn results in decreased cellular iron export. Finally, we observed that Sirt2 deletion reduced cell viability in response to iron deficiency. Moreover, livers from Sirt2-/- mice had decreased iron levels, while this effect was reversed in Sirt2-/- Nrf2-/- double-KO mice. Taken together, our results uncover a link between sirtuin proteins and direct control over cellular iron homeostasis via regulation of NRF2 deacetylation and stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salidroside (SAL) is a phenylethanoid glycoside isolated from the medicinal plant Rhodiola rosea. R. rosea has been reported to have beneficial effects on diabetic nephropathy (DN) and high-glucose (HG)-induced mesangial cell proliferation. Given the importance of caveolin-1 (Cav-1) in transcytosis of albumin across the endothelial barrier, the present study was designed to elucidate whether SAL could inhibit Cav-1 phosphorylation and reduce the albumin transcytosis across glomerular endothelial cells (GECs) to alleviate diabetic albuminuria as well as to explore its upstream signaling pathway. To assess the therapeutic potential of SAL and the mechanisms involved in DN albuminuria, we orally administered SAL to db/db mice, and the effect of SAL on the albuminuria was measured. The albumin transcytosis across GECs was explored in a newly established in vitro cellular model. The ratio of albumin to creatinine was significantly reduced upon SAL treatment in db/db mice. SAL decreased the albumin transcytosis across GECs in both normoglycemic and hyperglycemic conditions. SAL reversed the HG-induced downregulation of AMP-activated protein kinase and upregulation of Src kinase and blocked the upregulation Cav-1 phosphorylation. Meanwhile, SAL decreased mitochondrial superoxide anion production and moderately depolarized mitochondrial membrane potential. We conclude that SAL exerts its proteinuria- alleviating effects by downregulation of Cav-1 phosphorylation and inhibition of albumin transcytosis across GECs. These studies provide the first evidence of interference with albumin transcytosis across GECs as a novel approach to the treatment of diabetic albuminuria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper complexes with N-nilpotent differentials are considered. We proceed by generalizing a defining property of injective and projective resolutions to define dg-injective and dg-projective N-complexes, and construct dg-injective and dgprojective resolutions for arbitrary N-complexes. As applications of these results, we prove that the category DN(R) is compactly generated, the category KN(I) of injectives is compactly generated whenever R is left noetherian, and the category KN(P) of projectives is compactly generated whenever R is a right coherent ring for which every flat left R-module has finite projective dimension. We also establish a recollement of the category KN(R) relative to KNex (R) and DN(R). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Osteoinduction and proliferation of bone-marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) in three-dimensional (3D) poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) scaffolds have not been studied throughly and are technically challenging. This study aimed to optimize nanocomposites of 3D PCL scaffolds to provide superior adhesion, proliferation and differentiation environment for BMSCs in this scenario. Methods: BMSCs were isolated and cultured in a novel 3D tissue culture poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) scaffold coated with poly-lysine, hydroxyapatite (HAp), collagen and HAp/collagen. Cell morphology was observed and BMSC biomarkers for osteogenesis, osteoblast differentiation and activation were analyzed. Results: Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) micrographs showed that coating materials were uniformly deposited on the surface of PCL scaffolds and BMSCs grew and aggregated to form clusters during 3D culture. Both mRNA and protein levels of the key players of osteogenesis and osteoblast differentiation and activation, including runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2), alkaline phosphates (ALP), osterix, osteocalcin, and RANKL, were significantly higher in BMSCs seeded in PCL scaffolds coated with HAp or HAp/collagen than those seeded in uncoated PCL scaffolds, whereas the expression levels were not significantly different in collagen or poly-lysine coated PCL scaffolds. In addition, poly-lysine, collagen, HAp/collagen, and HAp coated PCL scaffolds had significantly more viable cells than uncoated PCL scaffolds, especially scaffolds with HAp/collagen and collagen-alone coatings. That BMSCs in HAp or HAp/collagen PCL scaffolds had remarkably higher ALP activities than those in collagen-coated alone or uncoated PCL scaffolds indicating higher osteogenic differentiation levels of BMSCs in HAp or HAp/collagen PCL scaffolds. Moreover, morphological changes of BMSCs after four-week of 3D culture confirmed that BMSCs successfully differentiated into osteoblast with spread-out phenotype in HAp/collagen coated PCL scaffolds. Conclusion: This study showed a proof of concept for preparing biomimetic 3D poly (ε-caprolactone)/ hydroxyapatite/collagen scaffolds with excellent osteoinduction and proliferation capacity for bone regeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and objective We recently found that exogenous angiotensin-(1-7) [Ang-(1-7)] inhibits Angiotensin II (Ang-II)-induced atherosclerotic lesion formation and enhances plaque stability. Our objective was to evaluate the role of endogenous activated Ang-(1-7) during atherosclerosis. Methods and results In mice, the effects of endogenous Ang-(1-7) on atherogenesis in early stage and plaque stability in late stage were observed in ApoE knockout (ApoE -/-) mice fed with a high fat diet. Blockage of endogenous Ang-(1-7) with A779, an Ang-(1-7) antagonist, did not increase early plaque lesion formation, however, it remarkably enhanced contents of lipids and macrophages and decreased contents of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and collagens in late lesions. The expressions of proinflammatory cytokines, and the expressions and activities of matrix metalloproteinases were significantly elevated in A779-treated group than those in vehicle-treated group in late lesions. Exogenous Ang-(1-7) treatment attenuated early atherosclerotic plaque formation and enhanced late plaques stability in this model. The contents of Ang-II and Ang-(1-7) and activity of ACE2 in late atherosclerotic plaques were higher than those of early atherosclerotic lesions. Conclusion Endogenous activated Ang-(1-7) enhanced late atherosclerotic plaques stability but did not affect early atherosclerotic plaque formation. Therapies to elevate endogenous Ang-(1-7) may be a potentially effective approach to attenuate atherosclerotic plaques vulnerability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we introduce and study V-Gorenstein flat modules and show the stability of the category of V -Gorenstein flat modules. We investigate the existence of V -Gorenstein flat covers and V -Gorenstein flat preenvelopes for any left R-module. Also we prove that (V -GF, V- GF⊥) is a perfect hereditary cotorsion pair in Bl(R), where V -GF stands the class of V -Gorenstein flat left R-modules and Bl(R) is the left Bass class. Some applications are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of 6-oxo-1,4,5,6-tetrahydropyrimidine-5-carboxylate derivatives were prepared to evaluate their ability of inhibiting neuraminidase (NA) of influenza A virus. All the compounds were synthesized in good yields starting from aldehyde by using a suitable synthetic strategy, which showed moderate inhibitory activity against influenza A NA. Compound 6g exhibited the strongest inhibitory activity against influenza virus A NA (IC50 = 17.64 µM), which indicated pyrimidine ring could be used as a core structure to design novel influenza NA inhibitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background--Repair of the endothelium after vascular injury is crucial for preserving endothelial integrity and preventing the development of vascular disease. The underlying mechanisms of endothelial cell repair are largely unknown. We sought to investigate whether endothelial microparticles (EMPs), released from apoptotic endothelial cells (ECs), influence EC repair. Methods and Results--Systemic treatment of mice with EMPs after electric denudation of the endothelium accelerated reendothelialization in vivo. In vitro experiments revealed that EMP uptake in ECs promotes EC migration and proliferation, both critical steps in endothelial repair. To dissect the underlying mechanisms, Taqman microRNA array was performed, and microRNA (miR)-126 was identified as the predominantly expressed miR in EMPs. The following experiments demonstrated that miR-126 was transported into recipient human coronary artery endothelial cells by EMPs and functionally regulated the target protein sprouty-related, EVH1 domain-containing protein 1 (SPRED1). Knockdown of miR-126 in EMPs abrogated EMP-mediated effects on human coronary artery endothelial cell migration and proliferation in vitro and reendothelialization in vivo. Interestingly, after simulating diabetic conditions, EMPs derived from glucose-treated ECs contained significantly lower amounts of miR-126 and showed reduced endothelial repair capacity in vitro and in vivo. Finally, expression analysis of miR-126 in circulating microparticles from 176 patients with stable coronary artery disease with and without diabetes mellitus revealed a significantly reduced miR-126 expression in circulating microparticles from diabetic patients. Conclusions--Endothelial microparticles promote vascular endothelial repair by delivering functional miR-126 into recipient cells. In pathological hyperglycemic conditions, EMP-mediated miR-126-induced EC repair is altered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we characterize some rings in terms of the DG-projective, injec-tive and flat complexes. We also give some connections between DG-injective complexes and DG-flat complexes and prove that under some additional conditions, every complex of left ii-modules has a DG-flat preenvelope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The second development program developed in this work was introduced to obtain physicochemical properties of DPP-IV inhibitors. Based on the computation of molecular descriptors, a two-stage feature selection method called mRMR-BFS (minimum redundancy maximum relevance-backward feature selection) was adopted. Then, the support vector regression (SVR) was used in the establishment of the model to map DPP-IV inhibitors to their corresponding inhibitory activity possible. The squared correlation coefficient for the training set of LOOCV and the test set are 0.815 and 0.884, respectively. An online server for predicting inhibitory activity pIC50 of the DPP-IV inhibitors as described in this paper has been given in the introduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is generally understood that foxtail millet and broomcorn millet were initially domesticated in Northern China where they eventually became the dominant plant food crops. The rarity of older archaeological sites and archaeobotanical work in the region, however, renders both the origins of these plants and their processes of domestication poorly understood. Here we present ancient starch grain assemblages recovered from cultural deposits, including carbonized residues adhering to an early pottery sherd as well as grinding stone tools excavated from the sites of Nanzhuangtou (11.5-11.0 cal kyBP) and Donghulin (11.0-9.5 cal kyBP) in the North China Plain. Our data extend the record of millet use in China by nearly 1,000 y, and the record of foxtail millet in the region by at least two millennia. The patterning of starch residues within the samples allow for the formulation of the hypothesis that foxtail millets were cultivated for an extended period of two millennia, during which this crop plant appears to have been undergoing domestication. Future research in the region will help clarify the processes in place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bi2WO6with multilayered disc-like and 3D hierarchical nest-like architectures self-assembled from 2D nanosheets were successfully synthesized by a hydrothermal method in EDTA-mediated processes. It was found that the morphology modulation of the as-obtained products could be easily realized simply by changing the amount of EDTA introduced into the reaction system. The stepwise self-assembly formation mechanisms for two different hierarchical architectures were proposed on the basis of a series of time-dependent experiments. The photocatalytic activities of the different Bi2WO6samples for the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) were also evaluated. Due to the unique morphology, porous structure and large surface area, Bi2WO6nest-like architectures exhibited better activity performance than Bi2WO6multilayered microdiscs. The present work not only presents an efficient way for the selectively controllable preparation of Bi2WO6hierarchical structures viaself-assembly from 2D nanosheets, but also provides a step forward in the design of photocatalysts with controllable morphology and enhanced photocatalytic activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intrinsic radiosensitivity of normal and tumour tissues has been shown to be an independent prognostic factor for patients' response to radiotherapy. This study compares the real-time cell-impedance sensing (RT-CES) assay with the conventional clonogenic assay in terms of in-vitro radiosensitivity. One objective in this study was to predict in-vivo response to gold nanoparticle (GNP) treatment on the basis of in-vitro RT-CES testing results. Four adenocarcinoma cancer cell lines were tested using both the RT-CES and the clonogenic assays. Cell-survival curves were plotted, and the mean SF2 values obtained by these two different assay methods were compared using ANOVA. Radiation sensitivities obtained in-vitro were then compared with the in-vivo results. On the basis of the measurement of cell colonies, the RT-CES assay has similar radiosensitivity to the clonogenic assay, but significantly shortens the testing time from 14-21 days to only 72 h. Intrinsic GNP enhanced radiation sensitivity using tumour volume (mm) in vivo is comparable with that using RT-CES cell survival assay in vitro. Furthermore, the RT-CES system provides real-time information regarding the state of cell radiosensitivity that may give useful information towards personalizing radiotherapy. The RT-CES assay enables more reliable and time-efficient results in the evaluation of radiosensitivity. [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tetragonal NaEu(MoO4)2with rugby-like microstructures were successfully synthesized by a hydrothermal method in an EDTA-mediated process. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) techniques were employed to characterize the products in detail. It was found that the amount of EDTA, reaction temperature and pH value are important parameters affecting the morphology, crystallinity and size of the final product, respectively. The possible formation mechanism for the microrugbies was proposed on the basis of a series of time-dependent experiments. This facile method was also successfully applied in the synthesis of NaSm(MoO4)2and NaGd(MoO4)2microrugbies. The photoluminescence (PL) properties of NaEu(MoO4)2microrugbies were strongly dependent on the size and crystallinity. The calcined products displayed excellent luminescence behaviors with a high color purity and have the potential to be applied in LED devices. The possible reasons for the difference in the relative intensities of luminescence are also discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In basic homological algebra, projective, injective and flat modules play an important and fundamental role. In this paper, we discuss some properties of Gorenstein projective, injective and flat modules and study some connections between Gorenstein injective and Gorenstein flat modules. We also investigate some connections between Gorenstein projective, injective and flat modules under change of rings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-local hydrogen bonding interactions between main chain amide hydrogen atoms and polar side chain acceptors that bracket consecutive βα or αβ elements of secondary structure in αTS from E. coli, a TIM barrel protein, have previously been found to contribute 4-6 kcal mol-1 to the stability of the native conformation. Experimental analysis of similar βα-hairpin clamps in a homologous pair of TIM barrel proteins of low sequence identity, IGPS from S. solfataricus and E. coli, reveals that this dramatic enhancement of stability is not unique to αTS. A survey of 71 TIM barrel proteins demonstrates a 4-fold symmetry for the placement of βα-hairpin clamps, bracing the fundamental βαβ building block and defining its register in the (βα)8 motif. The preferred sequences and locations of βα-hairpin clamps will enhance structure prediction algorithms and provide a strategy for engineering stability in TIM barrel proteins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Duck virus enteritis is an acute and contagious herpesvirus infection of duck, geese and swans with high morbidity and mortality. The kinetics of viral DNA loads and immunohistochemical localization of virulent duck enteritis virus, as well as histopathological examination in various tissues of ducks following oral infection, were investigated. The time course for the appearance of viral antigen and tissue lesions in various tissues was coincident with the levels of duck enteritis virus at the various sites, suggesting that the levels of duck enteritis virus in systemic organs have a close correlation with the progression of disease. The abundance of target epithelial and lymphoid cells may contribute to the high levels of virus infection and replication in lymphoid and intestinal tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exchange kinetics of cationic gemini surfactants of the alkanediyl---bis(tetradecyldimethylammonium bromide) type, with alkanediyl being 1,2-ethylene, 1,3-propylene, and 1,4-butylene, were investigated by 1H NMR, 2D COSY, and 2D EXSY experiments. In contrast to the conventional surfactants, a second set of well-resolved resonance peaks appeared in the 1H NMR spectra of these surfactants when their concentrations reached their critical concentrations. These two sets of resonance peaks originate from their monomers and micelles, which are proved by the correlation in the 2D COSY experiments and the cross polarization in the 2D NOESY spectra. Therefore, exchanges between monomers in the bulk solution and in the micelles or other aggregates of this series of surfactants occur slowly on the NMR time scale. The exchange rate constants were obtained by both NMR line shape analysis and 2D EXSY experiments, which are very consistent with each other. The exchange rate constants for the gemini surfactants were found to be orders of magnitude less than those for the conventional single surfactants, and for geminis 14-s-14, the shorter the spacer, the slower the exchange dynamic. It still has been found that the fast exchange between monomers in the bulk solution and in the micelles for gemini surfactant 12-2-12 at 25 °C occurs slowly at 5 °C on the NMR time scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: We have previously shown GM3 to positively regulate TNF-α expression via a PI3K/Akt pathway in mouse melanoma B16 cells [Wang et al.: Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2007;356:438–443]. The GM3 signal was shown to be located upstream of Akt, but whether it is located upstream of PI3K and which molecule is the effector of PI3K remain to be clarified. Methods: We used inhibitors of PI3K and mTOR, and siRNA directed to Rictor, Raptor and Rho-GDP dissociation inhibitor β (Arhgdib). Results: PI3K inhibitors LY294002 and LY303511 were shown to suppress TNF-α expression that is stimulated by GM3 in B16 cells, suggesting that the GM3 signal is located upstream of the PI3K-Akt pathway. Rapamycin suppressed TNF-α expression, indicating mTOR to be involved in the pathway. Either siRNA Raptor or siRNA Rictor suppressed TNF-α expression, but the latter suppressed the effects of GM3 on TNF-α expression and Akt phosphorylation at Ser473, indicating the GM3 signal to be transduced via Rictor/mTOR and Akt (Ser473), leading to TNF-α stimulation. Finally, Arhgdib, the tumor suppressor gene whose expression is associated with GM3, was shown to be upstream of TNF-α. Conclusions: The GM3 signal is thus transduced in B16 cells through a PI3K, Rictor/mTOR, Akt, Arhgdib pathway, leading to stimulated expression ofTNF-α. Copyright © 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Black phosphorus (BP), emerging as a new member of two-dimensional nanomaterials, has attracted growing research interests for its amazing photoelectric properties and promising application in electronic devices. Recently, BP has been confirmed to be a desirable candidate for phototherapy against cancer, including photothermal therapy and photodynamic therapy. By regulating the number of layers, the bandgap of BP nanosheets (NSs) can be finely tuned to present near infrared light triggered phototherapeutic behaviors. Furthermore, the exfoliated nano-sized BP also exhibits excellent tumor-targeting property as a nanomedicine via the enhanced permeability and retention effect. With biodegradable nature and outstanding therapeutic performance, BP is highly expected to be developed as novel anti-cancer agents as well as a potential carrier for advanced cancer theranostics. In this review, on the basis of summarizing the recent advances of BP in biomedical applications, the size and layer effects of BP on its targeting effect and phototherapeutic performance are discussed. Then, the rationally designed multifunctional nanoplatforms based on BP are introduced. And, the remaining challenges and prospects of nano-BP for clinic applications against cancer are discussed and outlooked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noodles have been a popular staple food in many parts of the world for at least 2,000 years, although it is debatable whether the Chinese, the Italians or the Arabs invented them first. Here we analyse a prehistoric sample of noodles contained in a well preserved, sealed earthenware bowl discovered in the Late Neolithic archaeological site of Lajia in northwestern China. We identify millet as the source of the abundant seed-husk phytoliths and starch grains present in the vessel. This shows that the conversion of ground millet flour into dough that could be repeatedly stretched into long, thin strands for the preparation of boiled noodles was already established in this region 4,000 years ago. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on a study from the Jirentaigoukou site in Xinjiang, China, which shows that systematic exploitation of coal for fuel occurred around 3600 B.P., extending the understanding of energy history by approximately a millennium. It highlights the complex relationship between social demand and environmental concerns during the early stages of energy transition.

Glucaric acid is a valuable chemical with applications in the detergent, polymer, pharmaceutical and food industries. In this study, two key enzymes for glucaric acid biosynthesis, MIOX4 (myo-inositol oxygenase) and Udh (uronate dehydrogenase), were fused and expressed with different peptide linkers. It was found that a strain harboring the fusion protein MIOX4-Udh linked by the peptide (EA3K)3 produced the highest glucaric acid titer and thereby resulted in glucaric acid production that was 5.7-fold higher than that of the free enzymes. Next, the fusion protein MIOX4-Udh linked by (EA3K)3 was integrated into delta sequence sites of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae opi1 mutant, and a strain, GA16, that produced a glucaric acid titer of 4.9 g/L in a shake flask fermentation was identified by a high-throughput screening method using an Escherichia coli glucaric acid biosensor. Strain improvement by further engineering was performed to regulate the metabolic flux of myo-inositol to increase the supply of glucaric acid precursors. The downregulation of ZWF1 and the overexpression of INM1 and ITR1 increased glucaric acid production significantly, and glucaric acid production was increased to 8.49 g/L in the final strain GA-ZII in a shake flask fermentation. Finally, in a 5-L bioreactor, GA-ZII produced a glucaric acid titer of 15.6 g/L through fed-batch fermentation. IMPORTANCE Glucaric acid is a value-added dicarboxylic acid that was synthesized mainly through the oxidation of glucose chemically. Due to the problems of the low selectivity, by-products, and highly polluting waste of this process, producing glucaric acid biologically has attracted great attention. The activity of key enzymes and the intracellular myo-inositol level were both rate-limiting factors for glucaric acid biosynthesis. To increase glucaric acid production, this work improved the activity of the key enzymes in the glucaric acid biosynthetic pathway through the expression of a fusion of Arabidopsis thaliana MIOX4 and Pseudomonas syringae Udh as well as a delta sequence-based integration. Furthermore, intracellular myo-inositol flux was optimized by a series of metabolic strategies to increase the myo-inositol supply, which improved glucaric acid production to a higher level. This study provided a way for constructing a glucaric acid-producing strain with good synthetic performance, making glucaric acid production biologically in yeast cells much more competitive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we apply standard zooarchaeological methods and novel osteological approaches to analyse faunal remains from five Middle– Late Holocene sites in the southern Tibetan Plateau (STP). Framed by direct radiocarbon dates on taxonomically classified bioarchaeological remains and compared with published palaeoclimate data, our findings revealed a three-stage process of agro-pastoral development in the STP ca. 5.5 to 1.0 ka. In the first phase, habitation was restricted to the lower southeastern part of the plateau and human subsistence essentially based on foraging and low-level pig–millet farming. With the onset of colder and drier climatic conditions ca. 3.8 ka, the study area witnessed a growing human presence at higher elevations in its central and western parts, together with a shift towards bovid husbandry and barley cultivation, that is, agricultural practices that originated in west Asia; these were likely introduced to the STP following the eastern margin of the TP and/or arrived by sub-Himalayan transfer. Climate and ecological degradation might have contributed to the decline of local game in favour of cold-and-dry-tolerant pastoral livestock and crops. Our work shows that Middle–Late Holocene climate change, ecological change, human subsistence shifts, and prehistoric cultural transmissions are intimately connected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Significant increases in the solar conversion performance of thin film CdS/CdTe solar cells have been realized in recent years by the inclusion of wider gap materials, notably CdS:O, in place of the CdS window layer. Similarly, use of CdSe in combination with CdTe has given yet further increases in current density due to the formation of CdTe1-xSex and the resulting enhanced long wavelength collection. Here we report the synthesis and properties of oxygenated CdSe films and their influence on device performance when included into CdTe solar cells. The CdSe:O films were made by pulsed laser deposition in oxygen at pressures of 0.01 and 0.03Pa. Optical transmission measurements indicated that oxygenation acts to increase transparency in the 400-750nm range, and that increased oxygen content acts to increase the apparent absorption threshold slightly. The higher transmission acts to increase the spectral response of CdTe solar cells in the range 350-500nm compared to CdSe- and CdS-containing control devices. Moreover, the already known advantage of enhanced long wavelength response (850-910nm) over that of CdS/CdTe is retained for both CdSe and CdSe:O window layers. Hence the use of CdSe:O as a window layer is demonstrated to increase the current harvesting of these solar cells by increasing both their long and short wavelength performances. These gains in the short circuit current outweigh small losses in fill factor and open circuit voltage making CdSe:O a valuable possible means to increase the performance of CdTe solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To improve the photocatalytic activity and photostability of ZnO, a novel cable-like Pt/ZnO@C composite is successfully fabricated by coating a 3-5 nm hydrothermal carbon (HTC) layer on the surface of the Pt nanoparticle-modified ZnO nanowire. After investigating the optical and photoelectrochemical performance in detail, it is found that the Pt/ZnO@C nanocable shows a dual-enhanced migration efficiency for the photoinduced surface electrons, distributing to the modified Pt nanoparticles and the coated HTC layer. Consequently, the Pt/ZnO@C nanocable exhibits a dual-enhanced photocatalytic activity for the degradation of various organic pollutants under the UV light irradiation. The coated HTC layer can also play a role in suspending the ZnO photocorrosion and significantly improves the photostability of the Pt/ZnO@C nanocable. Furthermore, the photocatalysis and photocorrosion mechanism of the Pt/ZnO@C nanocable is proposed and discussed in terms of its structural feature and photoelectrochemical property. The resultant Pt/ZnO@C nanocable with the unique HTC layer-coated structure will probably stimulate to design and synthesize more HTC-hybridized composites with a superior photocatalytic or photoelectrocatalytic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gastric cancer (GC) is associated with high morbidity and mortality rates. Thus, early diagnosis is important to improve disease prognosis. Endoscopic assessment represents the most reliable imaging method for GC diagnosis; however, it is semi-invasive and costly and heavily depends on the skills of the endoscopist, which limit its clinical applicability. Therefore, the search for new sensitive biomarkers for the early detection of GC using noninvasive sampling collection methods has attracted much attention among scientists. Urine is considered an ideal biofluid, as it is readily accessible, less complex, and relatively stable than plasma and serum. Over the years, substantial progress has been made in screening for potential urinary biomarkers for GC. This review explores the possible applications and limitations of urinary biomarkers in GC detection and diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is one of the most common hematopoietic malignancies and the development of new drugs is crucial for the treatment of this lethal disease. Iheyamine A is a nonmonoterpenoid azepinoindole alkaloid from the ascidian Polycitorella sp., and its anticancer mechanism has not been investigated in leukemias. Herein, we showed the significant antileukemic activity of L42 in AML cell lines HEL, HL-60 and THP-1. The IC 50 values were 0.466±0.099 µM, 0.356±0.023 µM, 0.475±0.084 µM in the HEL, HL-60 and THP-1 cell lines, respectively, which were lower than the IC 50 (2.594±0.271 µM) in the normal liver cell line HL-7702. Furthermore, L42 significantly inhibited the growth of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from an AML patient. In vivo , L42 effectively suppressed leukemia progression in a mouse model induced by Friend murine leukemia virus (F-MuLV). Mechanistically, we showed that L42 induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in leukemia cell lines. RNA sequencing analysis of L42-treated THP-1 cells revealed that the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were enriched in the cell cycle and apoptosis and predominantly enriched in the PI3K/AKT pathway. Accordingly, L42 decreased the expression of the phospho-PI3K (p85), phospho-AKT and phospho-FOXO3a. Docking and CETSA analysis indicated that L42 bound to the PI3K isoform p110α (PIK3CA), which was implicated in the suppression of the PI3K/AKT pathway. L42 was also shown to initiate the TNF signaling-mediated apoptosis. Moreover, L42 exhibited stronger anti-leukemia activity and sensitivity in IDH2-mutant HEL cells than in IDH2-wild-type control. In conclusion, L42 effectively suppresses cell proliferation and triggers apoptosis in AML cell lines in part through inhibition of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway to restore FOXO3a expression and activation of the TNF signaling pathway. Thus, the iheyamine A derivative L42 represents a novel candidate for AML therapy. [Display omitted] • L42 possesses significant anti-AML activities in vitro and in vivo. • L42 suppresses myeloid leukemia growth through inhibition of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway to restore FOXO3a. • L42 triggers apoptosis partly through activation of the TNF signaling pathway. • L42 exhibits anti-leukemia activity and sensitivity in the IDH2-mutant HEL cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: NutritionDay is a yearly global point-prevalence study of malnutrition or nutritional risk in hospitals. We aimed to provide a comprehensive nutritional survey of hospitalized patients and analyze the risk factors of malnutrition and prolonged hospitalization in Chinese inpatients. Methods and Study Design: The international daylong cross-sectional survey was performed on November 07th, 2019. Ten hospitals were invited to participate in this NutritionDay survey. Nutritional risk was identified by nutritional risk screening 2002, and malnutrition was identified by the ESPEN criteria. We measured the incidence of malnutrition and nutritional risk. And we analysed risk factors for malnutrition and length of stay in Chinese hospitalized patients. Results: 875 hospitalized patients from 6 departments were included in the analysis. The malnutrition rate was 11.6% and the incidence of nutritional risk was 17.8%. It was analyzed that tumor load, end-stage disease, motility, self-rated health, types of oral medicine, and food intake during the past week were independent risk factors for malnutrition or nutritional risk. 56.2% (118/210) of patients at nutritional risk or malnutrition received extra nutritional support, whereas 22.5% (88/391) well-nourished patients did. Moreover, nutrition status, ever stayed in ICU and self-rated health were associated with prolonged length of stay. Conclusions: In a word, the prevalence of malnutrition or nutritional risk was about 29.4%. Patients with malnutrition or nutritional risk had a higher transfer rate, lower rehabilitation rate and longer hospital stays. The attention to malnutrition patients needs to be further strengthened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For exploring the influences of application and residue of chemical fungicides on chlamydospore preparations of Trichoderma spp., the effects of seven chemical fungicides on chlamydospore germination and mycelia growth of two biocontrol fungi T. harzianum 610 and T. longibrachiatum 758 were studied. Carben-dazim, tebuconazole and difenoconazole showed strong toxicities, thiram and car-boxin showed moderate toxicities, pentachloronitrobenzene and metalaxyl showed weak toxicities to the tested two strains. Mycelia growth of the two strains was more sensitive to most tested fungicides than those of chlamydospore germination. Chlamydospore germination of 610 was more sensitive to tested fungicides than those of 758, and mycelia growth of 758 was more sensitive to most tested fungicides than those of 610. Among the seven fungicides, 98% carbendazim had the strongest effects (EC50 values were 1.64 and 0.05 μg/ml), and 70% pentachloronitrobenzene had the weakest effects (EC50 values were 1.64 and 0.05 pg/ml) for chlamydospore germination and mycelia growth of 610. As for 758, 98% carbendaz-im had the strongest inhibitory effects and 95% metalaxyl had the weakest inhibitory for chlamydospore germination of 758 (EC50 values were 0.62 and 1 108.61 μ/ml respectively), whereas 96.2% tebuconazole showed the strongest inhibitory effects for mycelia growth of 758 (EC50 value was 0.32 μg/ml), and 95% metalaxyl was the weakest (EC50 value was 1 206.29 μg/ml). According to the applied concentration of different fungicides in practice, we concluded that chlamydospore preparations of 610 and 758 could not be combined with carbendazim, tebuconazole, thiram and carboxin for controlling plant diseases, and the pesticide residues to the biocontrol effects should be kept in mind. Chlamydospore preparations of 610 and 758 can be combined with pentachloronitrobenzene and difenoconazole for controlling plant diseases, 758 chlamydospore preparations and germinated chlamydospore of 610 can be combined with metalaxyl for controlling plant diseases, and pesticide residue risk was not serious. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uniform single-crystalline NaLa(WO4)2 microspindles were successfully prepared via a hydrothermal method in combination with a post annealing process by adding an extremely small amount of EDTA-2Na into the reaction system. Meanwhile, the product morphology could also be tuned into microplates, nanocrystals, submicrodumbbells and connected twin-microspheres by simply altering the amount of additive used and the ratio of the mixed solvents. The prepared NaLa(WO4)2 nanocrystals could be homogeneously dispersed in the distilled water for a very long time, and thus might find potential application in the field of biological labeling. The photoluminescent (PL) performance of the NaLa(WO4)2 : Eu3+ microspindles and microplates was investigated and it was found that the NaLa(WO4)2 : Eu3+ microspindles had a much more intensive emission, and furthermore, the possible reasons responsible for the improved photoluminescent performance of the microspindles were discussed. More importantly, due to the efficient energy transfer from Tm3+, Tb3+ to Eu3+, a novel single-phased and near-UV-pumped white-light-emitting phosphor NaLa(WO4)2 : Eu3+/Tb3+/Tm3+ was also successfully fabricated through optimizing the molar ratio among Eu3+, Tb3+ and Tm3+ in the NaLa(WO4)2 microspindle host. This NaLa(WO4)2 : Eu3+/Tb3+/Tm3+ microspindle phosphor might be promising in the field of near-UV-pumped white LEDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) is highly pathogenic and infects suckling piglets, thereby imposing a major burden on the swine industry all over the world. The aim of this study is to develop two ELISA systems for the detection of antigens and antibodies against PEDV in pigs. The PEDV N recombinant protein was expressed and was used as the coating antigen to establish an indirect ELISA for detecting PEDV-specific antibodies in pig serum. Moreover, MAb was induced with the recombinant N protein and used for sandwich ELISA to specifically test for PEDV. The specificities of the two ELISAs were validated by comparing the results with other viruses and the reproducibility was evaluated by intra-assay or inter-assay variation. The diagnostic sensitivity and specificity also were evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The two ELISAs both indicated acceptable reproducibility. Neither ELISA cross-reacted with other viruses. ROC curve analysis revealed 100.0% sensitivity and 95.2% specificity of the iELISA, 100.0% sensitivity and 90.0% specificity of the sELISA. Consequently, this work indicates that these two ELISAs can be used clinically to diagnose PEDV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glässer's disease of swine caused by Haemophilus parasuis (H. parasuis) is one of the major bacterial diseases affecting pig farms worldwide. Vaccination is a crucial measure for controlling the H. parasuis infection. Adjuvants are employed to enhance the immunity effects of inactivated vaccines or subunit vaccines. In the present study, a red clover isoflavone extract (RCIE) was investigated as an adjuvant for the H. parasuis inactivated vaccine. Thirty colostrum-deprived (CD) piglets (mixed-breed: Large White × Landrace) aged 15 days were vaccinated on days 0 and 14 with an inactivated H. parasuis vaccine with or without an adjuvant. The adjuvant groups' vaccines were mixed with a high-dose RCIE (20 mg/ml), a middle-dose RCIE (10 mg/ml), a low-dose RCIE (5 mg/ml), or with Montanide Gel 01 (10%, v/v). Phosphate buffer saline (PBS) was also given as a blank control. Fourteen days after the booster immunisation, the piglets were challenged with H. parasuis LY02 (serotype 5). The IgG antibody, cytokines, T lymphocyte subpopulations, and clinical and pathological signs of the piglets were evaluated. The results showed that the RCIE enhanced the H. parasuis vaccine and elicited strong antibody levels as well as the cytokines IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-γ in serum, and the levels depended on the RCIE dose. Moreover, the piglets vaccinated with the inactivated LY02 containing the Middle-dose RCIE had a higher survival rate in the challenge experiments. In conclusion, RCIE can enhance the H. parasuis vaccine immunity by promoting titres of IgG antibody and by improving the Th1-type cellular immunity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemotherapy is widely used to treat cancer. The toxic effect of conventional chemotherapeutic drugs on healthy cells leads to serious toxic and side effects of conventional chemotherapy. The application of nanotechnology in tumor chemotherapy can increase the specificity of anticancer agents, increase the killing effect of tumors, and reduce toxic and side effects. Currently, a variety of formulations based on nanoparticles (NPs) for delivering chemotherapeutic drugs have been put into clinical use, and several others are in the stage of development or clinical trials. In this review, after briefly introducing current cancer chemotherapeutic methods and their limitations, we describe the clinical applications and advantages and disadvantages of several different types of NPs-based chemotherapeutic agents. We have summarized a lot of information in tables and figures related to the delivery of chemotherapeutic drugs based on NPs and the design of NPs with active targeting capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vascular endothelial (VE)-cadherin forms homotypic adherens junctions (AJs) in the endothelium, whereas N-cadherin forms heterotypic adhesion between endothelial cells and surrounding vascular smooth muscle cells and pericytes. Here we addressed the question whether both cadherin adhesion complexes communicate through intracellular signaling and contribute to the integrity of the endothelial barrier. We demonstrated that deletion of N-cadherin (Cdh2) in either endothelial cells or pericytes increases junctional endothelial permeability in lung and brain secondary to reduced accumulation of VE-cadherin at AJs. N-cadherin functions by increasing the rate of VE-cadherin recruitment to AJs and induces the assembly of VE-cadherin junctions. We identified the dual Rac1/RhoA Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) Trio as a critical component of the N-cadherin adhesion complex, which activates both Rac1 and RhoA signaling pathways at AJs. Trio GEF1-mediated Rac1 activation induces the recruitment of VE-cadherin to AJs, whereas Trio GEF2-mediated RhoA activation increases intracellular tension and reinforces Rac1 activation to promote assembly of VE-cadherin junctions and thereby establish the characteristic restrictive endothelial barrier. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine the relationship between ATP7B mutations and diabetes in Wilson disease (WD).Research Design and Methods: A total of 21 exons and exon-intron boundaries of ATP7B were identified by Sanger sequencing.Results: Two novel compound heterozygous mutations (c.525 dupA/ Val176Serfs*28 and c.2930 C>T/ p.Thr977Met) were detected in ATP7B. After d-penicillamine (D-PCA) therapy, serum aminotransferase and ceruloplasmin levels in this patient were normalized and levels of HbA1c decreased. However, when the patient ceased to use D-PCA due to an itchy skin, serum levels of fasting blood glucose increased. Dimercaptosuccinic acid capsules were prescribed and memory recovered to some extent, which was accompanied by decreased insulin dosage for glucose control by 5 units.Conclusions: This is the first report of diabetes caused by WD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Salicylic acid (SA) and nitric oxide (NO) are key signal molecules involved in the reduction of Al accumulation in many plants. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether they could reduce the root content of Al and/or its binding to the root cell wall (CW) fractions in Panax notoginseng, and to investigate the corresponding regulatory mechanisms.Methods: Effects of Al treatments on the endogenous SA and NO contents of P. notoginseng were detected. Exogenous SA and paclobutrazol (PAC, a SA synthesis inhibitor) treatments were conducted to test the effects on endogenous NO content; exogenous sodium nitroprusside (SNP, a NO doner) and 2-phenyl-4,4,5,5-tetramethyl- imidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxyde (cPTIO, a NO synthesis inhibitor) treatments were conducted to test the effects on endogenous SA content. Pectin methyltransferase (PMT) and pectin methylesterase (PME) activity and the gene expression, pectin methylesterification degree (PMD), pectin content, and the accumulation of Al in roots were also studied under the treatments described above.Results: Al stress induced a significant increase of the activity and expression of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), and promoted the significant increase of endogenous SA content of P. notoginseng roots. The Al promoted accumulation of endogenous NO could be enhanced by exogenous SA treatment, but was reduced by PAC. Accumulation of endogenous NO that promoted by Al could be enhanced by exogenous SA treatment, but was reduced by PAC treatment. However, SNP or cPTIO treatments had no significant effect on the Al-induced endogenous SA content of P. notoginseng. This showed that NO acted downstream of SA signaling of P. notoginseng under Al stress. Al stress can increase the activity and genes expression of PME in the roots of P. notoginseng, reduce PMD, increase CW pectin content, and thus, the binding capacity of CW pectin to Al was enhanced in P. notoginseng roots. Exogenous SA or SNP both reduced the Al-binding capacity of root CW pectin by decreasing the pectin content, and increased the PMD by inhibiting the genes expression and activity of PME. The effects of PAC or cPTIO on the above-mentioned indicators under Al stress were opposite to that of exogenous SA or SNP treatments.Conclusions: The Al stress induced accumulation of pectin and the reduction of PMD in the root CW of P. notoginseng could be reversed by the treatments of exogenous SA or SNP, then the Al contents in root CW pectin were reduced. Al stress activated the endogenous SA and NO signaling pathways in P. notoginseng, and NO acted downstream of SA. It showed that the Al-activated NO-SA signaling pathway contributed in the reduction of Al binding to the root under Al stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elastic therapeutic taping (ET) has been widely used for a series of musculoskeletal diseases in recent years. However, there remains clinical uncertainty over its efficiency for knee osteoarthritis (knee OA) management. To assess the effects of ET on patients with knee OA, we investigated outcomes including selfreported pain, knee flexibility, knee-related health status, adverse events, muscle strength, and proprioceptive sensibility. Ten databases including PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Web of Science, PEDro, Research Gate, CNKI, CBM, and Wanfang were systematically searched. Eleven randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with 168 participants with knee OA provided data for the meta-analysis. Statistical significance was reported in four from five outcomes, such as self-related pain (during activity, MD -0.85, 95% CI, -1.55 to -0.14; P =0.02), knee flexibility (MD 7.59, 95% CI, 0.61 to 14.57; P =0.03), knee-related health status (WOMAC scale, MD -4.10, 95% CI, -7.75 to -0.45; P =0.03), and proprioceptive sensibility (MD -4.69, 95% CI, -7.75 to -1.63; P =0.003), while no significant enhancement was reported regarding knee muscle strength (MD 1.25, 95% CI, -0.03 to 2.53; P =0.06). Adverse events were not reported in any of the included trials. The overall quality of evidence was from moderate to very low. In conclusion, there is underpowered evidence to suggest that ET is effective in the treatment of knee OA. Large, well-designed RCTs with better designs are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Panax notoginseng is normally cultivated in acidic red soil with high soluble Al, however, the distribution pattern of Al in P. notoginseng is unknown. The aim of this study is to investigate the Al distribution in different organs of P. notoginseng grown in different acid soil, in order to get a deeper insight into the Al tolerance mechanism in this species.Methods: P. notoginseng was sampled from different sites and subjected to Al determination. Al tolerance and accumulation were investigated by exposing the seedlings to different Al concentrations in hydroponic solution. The expression of pectin methylesterase genes was determined by quantitative RT-PCR.Results: The soil pH ranged from 4.68 to 6.13. The total Al concentration in soil was 76.7-168.5 g·kg−1 and active Al was 1.34-5.01 g·kg−1. Al concentration differed with organs of P. notoginseng, following the order: rootlet > rhizome > main root > leaf and stem. Furthermore, Al concentration in the cell wall, organelle and cytoplasmic supernatant of P. notoginseng was approximately 15:2:1 and most Al in the cell wall was bound to pectin component. Al treatment significantly increased the content of pectin and enhanced the expression of PME3, PME7, and PME40 of P. notoginseng root.Conclusions: P. notoginseng was able to grow under high active Al condition and accumulated high Al in its underground parts. The pectin component in the cell wall was the major binding site of Al of P. notoginseng root. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To date, little attention has been given to remote sensing-based algorithms for inferring urban surface evapotranspiration. A multi-source parallel model based on ASTER data was one of the first examples, but its accuracy can be improved. We therefore present a modified multi-source parallel model in this study, which has made improvements in parameterization and model accuracy. The new features of our modified model are: (1) a characterization of spectrally heterogeneous urban impervious surfaces using two endmembers (high- and low-albedo urban impervious surface), instead of a single endmember, in linear spectral mixture analysis; (2) inclusion of an algorithm for deriving roughness length for each land surface component in order to better approximate to the actual land surface characteristic; and (3) a novel algorithm for calculating the component net radiant flux with a full consideration of the fraction and the characteristics of each land surface component. HJ-1 and ASTER data from the Chinese city of Hefei were used to test our model’s result with the China–ASEAN ET product. The sensitivity of the model to vegetation and soil fractions was analyzed and the applicability of the model was tested in another built-up area in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. We conclude that our modified model outperforms the initial multi-source parallel model in accuracy. It can obtain the highest accuracy when applied to vegetation-dominated (vegetation proportion > 50%) areas. Sensitivity analysis shows that vegetation and soil fractions are two important parameters that can affect the ET estimation. Our model is applicable to estimate evapotranspiration in other urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]