Search

Traditional database-based peptide sequencing methods have shortcomings in discoverability and universality, while de novo sequencing is the essential way to analyze unknown proteins and discover new peptides and proteins. Most existing de novo sequencing algorithms have the problem of accumulated deviation and unbalanced output. At the same time, some algorithms could be more suitable for Data-Independent Acquisition Mass Spectrometry (DIA-MS) data. This paper designed a bidirectional peptide sequencing method to alleviate the problems of unbalanced output and deviation accumulation in the sequencing process. The self-attention mechanism was applied to de novo sequencing to increase the interaction within the peptide sequence and the interaction between the MS/MS spectra and the peptide sequence. On the DIA-MS dataset, the peptide prediction accuracy improved by an average of 15.6% compared with the state-of-the-art method. On the DDA-MS dataset, our method achieved the best performance on partial datasets, the amino acid accuracy improved by an average of 3%. At the same time, two new evaluation scores, Position-BLEU and Alignment score, were proposed to evaluate the misalignment between the predicted sequence and the reference sequence, and the partial absence of fragment ions.

A series of cyanines exhibiting absorption between 750 and 930 nm reacted after NIR excitation with the bis(t-butylphenyl) iodonium cation comprising the [(CF3SO2)2N]− anion (NTf2)−, resulting in the generation of free radicals and conjugate acids.

Cyanines comprising either a benzo[e]‐ or benzo[c,d]indolium core facilitate initiation of radical photopolymerization combined with high power NIR‐LED prototypes emitting at 805 nm, 860 nm, or 870 nm, while different oxime esters function as radical coinitiators. Radical photopolymerization followed an initiation mechanism based on the participation of excited states, requiring additional thermal energy to overcome an existing intrinsic activation barrier. Heat released by nonradiative deactivation of the sensitizer favored the system, even under conditions where a thermally activated photoinduced electron transfer controls the reaction protocol. The heat generated internally by the NIR sensitizer promotes generation of the initiating reactive radicals. Sensitizers with a barbiturate group at the meso‐position preferred to bleach directly, while sensitizers carrying a cyclopentene moiety unexpectedly initiated the photosensitized mechanism., Tackling the impossible: Photoinduced electron transfer between an NIR sensitizer and oxime esters results in unexpected initiation of radical photopolymerization using cyanines as sensitizers. This strategy facilitates unexpected chemistry with environmentally friendly devices.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a high mortality disease. We studied the function and mechanism of long non-coding RNA prostate cancer-associated transcript 6 (lncRNA PCAT6) on cell proliferation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in GC cells. CCK-8, flow cytometry and colony formation assay were respectively used to detect the cell viability, apoptosis and colony formation. PCAT6 and miR-15a expression were changed by cell transfection. Moreover, the level of Cyclin D1, p53, Bax, Cleaved caspase-3 and relate-proteins of EMT and cell pathways were investigated by Western blot. Besides, the level of miR-15a and PCAT6 was tested by RT-qPCR. Besides, the target relation between miR-15a and PCAT6 were tested by luciferase assay. PCAT6 was highly expressed in GC cells and tissues. Silencing of PCAT6 restrained the relate-proteins of cell proliferation and EMT. Furthermore, PCAT6 reversely regulated miR-15a and miR-15a inhibitor reversed the efficacy of sh-PCAT6 in cell proliferation and EMT. PCAT6 restrained the relate-proteins of RB/E2F and Wnt/β-catenin pathways and miR-15a reverse this progress. Finally, PCAT6 was a target of miR-15a. Silencing of lncRNA PCAT6 restrained proliferation and EMT of GC cells by targeting miR-15a via RB/E2F and Wnt/β-catenin pathways.

BackgroundWe aimed to assess a serological biopsy using five stomach-specific circulating biomarkers pepsinogen I (PGI), PGII, PGI/II ratio, anti- Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) antibody, and gastrin-17 (G-17) for identifying high-risk individuals and predicting risk of developing gastric cancer (GC).ResultsIn the cross-sectional analysis, PGII, the PG ratio, G17, anti- H. pylori IgG were associated with the presence of CAG, and the five biomarkers combined prediction is more effective than single factor prediction (0.692 vs 0.54, 0.604, 0.616, 0.629).ConclusionThe combination of pepsinogens, G17 and anti-H. pylori antibodies for serological analysis is helpful to screen CAG high-risk individuals from the general population and recommend that these people should carry out further endoscopy and biopsy.

This letter reports a piezoelectric vibration energy harvester which energy conversion efficiency is significantly improved by arraying piezoelectric sheets on cantilever beams, and the operation frequency band is widened by applying two-segment cantilever beams. A prototype is developed and tested. In this case, two group piezoelectric arrays are combined on the cantilever beams with the optimum load resistance. The total output power remains above 6.54 mW within the operation frequency band ranges from 27.5 Hz to 37.5 Hz when the generator is under an acceleration of 0.7 g and reaches two power peaks: 20.5 mW at 29.2 Hz and 12.95 mW at 35.4 Hz.

Hydrogen abstract co-initiator is necessary component for type II photoinitiator to induce the photopolymerization and to decrease the effect of oxygen inhibition. However, as is known that the most commonly used amine is normally highly toxic. To solve this problem, the concentration of amine should be as low as possible, nevertheless, in order to reduce the oxygen inhibition, the concentration of amine in the system should be as high as possible. For the photopolymerization coating system, the oxygen comes from the surface, which means that if the amine concentration on the surface is high enough, the effect of oxygen inhibition could be reduced. Thus, in this work, polyethylene imine (PEI) modified magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticle (Fe3O4@PEI NPs) was synthesized and used as co-initiator in the photopolymerization system contained 1, 6-hexanediol diacrylate (HDDA) and 2-isopropylthioxanthone (ITX). In this case, with external magnetic field, Fe3O4@PEI NPs would migrate to the surface, as a result, the concentration of amine on the surface of the sample would be very high which could reduce the oxygen inhibition, while the concentration of amine in the whole system could be very low which decreased the toxicity. Transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectra were used to characterize the Fe3O4@PEI NPs, and Laser Confocal Raman Spectroscopy was employed to investigate the double bond conversion at different depth.

Gastric cancer (GC) is the third leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Circular RNA circHIAT1 has been proved to play an antitumor role. We aimed to explore the function and mechanism of circHIAT1 in GC. MKN28 and MKN45 cells were transfected with PLCDH-circHIAT1, miR-21 mimic, and relative control. Cell viability and apoptosis were examined through Cell Counting Kit-8 and flow cytometry, respectively. CircHIAT1 expression and other relative factors were tested through quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis, respectively. Our findings demonstrated that circHIAT1 was lowly expressed in GC tissues. After transfection with PLCDH-circHIAT1 in MKN28 and MKN45 cells, cell viability was decreased, while the expression levels of p53 and p21 were raised, as well as apoptosis. Besides this, the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process was inhibited by PLCDH-circHIAT1 transfection. Mechanistically, miR-21 expression was upregulated in GC tissues and could be negatively regulated by circHIAT1. Further experiments showed that the addition of miR-21 mimic reversed the growth inhibition effects of circHIAT1 overexpression. Moreover, circHIAT1 inhibited the activation of phosphatase and tensin homolog/phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase/protein kinase B and extracellular signal-regulated kinase signal pathways via downregulating miR-21. CircHIAT1 functioned as a tumor inhibitor in GC cells through downregulating miR-21, and could be a novel target for GC treatment.

In this work, a novel modified carbon nanofibers composites were prepared via electrospinning, facile hydrothermal process and carbonization. The composites combined the advantage of the carbon nanofibers (CNFs) and β-cyclodextrin based carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) which gained much higher specific surface area (3561.59 m2⋅g−1), larger total pore volume (4.78 cm3⋅g−1) and more abundant mesoporous structure (4.63 cm3⋅g−1) than that of pure carbon nanofibers. And the adsorption performances for tetracycline (TC) and methylene blue (MB) were systematically studied. The optimal pH values were 6 for TC and 11 for MB. The adsorption capacity remained stable under the presence of Na+ and Cl－ in solution and slightly decreased due to the disturbance of humic acid. The maximum adsorption capacities of the CNFs@CNPs at 298 K reached 543.48 mg⋅g−1 and 746.27 mg·g−1 for TC and MB, respectively. Their high adsorption performance and the basic fiber skeleton of porous structure could maintain after 5 consecutive cycles. Moreover, to further improve the practical application of the material, the adsorption performance towards TC and MB in natural water was also investigated. This work demonstrated that the CNFs@CNPs can be an efficient and practical adsorbent for antibiotics and dyes remove from wastewater.

A novel magnetically hyper-cross-linked polymer (Fe3O4@HCP-NH2) was prepared in this study, which combined the advantage of the amino-modified HCP-NH2 and the magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles. The Fe3O4@HCP-NH2 composite has a high specific surface area (532.62 m2 g−1), well-developed mesoporous (0.3786 cm3 g−1) and good magnetic property. This Fe3O4@HCP-NH2 composite exhibits excellent adsorption ability for tetracycline, and the maximum adsorption capacity calculated by Langmuir model at 298 K is up to 694 mg g−1. The adsorption mechanisms could be attributed to the complexation interactions, hydrogen bonding and cation exchange, and the dominant interaction was the surface complexation which was elucidated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. In addition, the composite can be rapidly separated and maintains high adsorption performance after five regeneration cycles. More importantly, it can be used as a broad-spectrum and highly efficient adsorbent for organic contaminants including methyl orange, methylene blue, bisphenol A and 2,4-dichlorophenol removal from contaminated water. This work demonstrated that the Fe3O4@HCP-NH2 composite would be the most promising candidates for application in the adsorption of organic pollutants.

Gastric carcinoma (GC) remains the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Good biomarkers are of paramount importance for GC therapy. This study aimed to assess the role of long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) CAT104 in GC. We found that CAT104 was highly expressed in human GC NCI-N87, SGC7901, BGC823, BGC803, and AGS cells. Suppression of CAT104 decreased NCI-N87 cell viability, migration, and invasion, but promoted apoptosis. CAT104 knockdown enhanced the expression of microRNA-381 (miR-381) expression in NCI-N87 cells. miR-381 participated in the regulatory effects of CAT104 on NCI-N87 cell viability, migration, invasion, and apoptosis. Zinc finger E-box-binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1) was identified as a direct target of miR-381. Overexpression of ZEB1 reversed the miR-381 mimic-induced cell viability, migration, and invasion inhibition. Suppression of ZEB1 reversed the miR-381 inhibitor-induced activation of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway and Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathways in NCI-N87 cells. In conclusion, CAT104 might function as an oncogenic factor in GC cells via regulating the expression of miR-381 and ZEB1.

Collie coal is the only coal being mined in Western Australia and plays an important role in supplying cheap energy to the State’s energy mix. This study reports a systematic investigation into the occurrence and characteristics of the fine mineral matter in Collie coal that is crushed to the size of

Background Chemoresistance remains a main clinical obstacle in the treatment of gastric cancer (GC). microRNAs have been revealed to participate in the regulation of drug resistance in a variety of cancers. However, little is known about the function and detailed molecular mechanism of miR-101 in GC chemoresistance. Methods The expressions of miR-101 and Annexin A2 (ANXA2) in GC tissues and cells were detected by qRT-PCR and western blot. The effects of miR-101 overexpression on P-glycoprotein (P-gp) at mRNA and protein levels, cell viability, and apoptosis in drug-resistant GC cells were examined by qRT-PCR, western blot, MTT and flow cytometry analysis, respectively. Luciferase reporter assay, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) and qRT-PCR were applied to confirm whether miR-101 could target ANXA2 and regulate its expression. Rescue experiment was performed to verify the mechanism by which miR-101 involved in chemoresistance. Results miR-101 was downregulated in GC tissues and drug-resistant GC cells. A negative correlation between miR-101 and ANXA2 expression was observed in GC tissues. Forced expression of miR-101 significantly reduced P-gp expression at mRNA and protein levels in drug-resistant GC cells. Overexpression of miR-101 enhanced sensitivity to cisplatin (DDP) or vincristine (VCR) via viability inhibition and apoptosis promotion. ANXA2 was identified as a direct target of miR-101 and miR-101 negatively regulated ANXA2 expression. Moreover, ectopic expression of ANXA2 reversed the effect of miR-101 on P-gp expression, cell viability and apoptosis. Conclusion miR-101 alleviated chemoresistance of gastric cancer cells by targeting ANXA2. Therefore, targeting miR-101 may be a potential therapeutic approach for drug-resistant GC.

Background CircMAN2B2 is a newly discovered circRNA that has been found to be an oncogene in lung cancer and glioma. The present study was designed to reveal the role of circMAN2B2 in gastric carcinoma (GC). Methods qRT‐PCR method was utilized to examine circMAN2B2 expression in GC tissues and paracancerous tissues. Next, circMAN2B2 expression in SNU‐16 and AGS cells was silenced by transfection. CCK‐8 assay, colony formation assay, flow cytometer, Transwell assay, and Western blot were conducted for testing cell phenotype changes. Further, the downstream genes and signaling were uncovered by qRT‐PCR and Western blot. Results As relative to paracancerous tissues, circMAN2B2 was high‐expressed in GC tissues. Silence of circMAN2B2 clearly declined SNU‐16 and AGS cells viability, survival, migration but enhanced apoptosis. Meanwhile, silence of circMAN2B2 induced the cleavage of caspases (−3 and −9), down‐regulation of MMPs (−2 and −9), and up‐regulation of miR‐145. The impacts of circMAN2B2 silence toward SNU‐16 and AGS cells were attenuated by miR‐145 silence. Moreover, circMAN2B2 silence deactivated PI3K, AKT while activated JNK through regulating miR‐145. Conclusion This work presented the oncogenic function of circMAN2B2 in GC cells growth and migration. CircMAN2B2 exerted its function possibly through regulating miR‐145 as well as PI3K/AKT and JNK pathways.

Background Gastric carcinoma (GC) is a familiar carcinoma and serious threat to human health. We investigated the efficacy and mechanism of circular RNA hsa_circ_0001649 on the growth, migration, and invasion of GC cells. Methods microRNA (miR)‐20a and hsa_circ_0001649 expression was investigated by RT‐qPCR and was changed by cell transfection. CCK‐8, flow cytometry, and BrdU assays were, respectively, used to investigate the efficacies of hsa_circ_0001649 and miR‐20a on cell viability, apoptosis, and proliferation. Transwell assay was used to investigate the efficacies of hsa_circ_0001649 and miR‐20a on cell migration and invasion. Moreover, the levels of cyclin D1, Bax, cleaved caspase‐3, and signal pathway‐related proteins were investigated by Western blot. Results Hsa_circ_0001649 was downregulated in GC cells and tissues. Upregulation of hsa_circ_0001649 restrained viability, proliferation, migration, and invasion, while promoted apoptosis. Furthermore, miR‐20a was negatively regulated by hsa_circ_0001649 and miR‐20a overexpression reversed the efficacy of hsa_circ_0001649 upregulation. Finally, upregulation of hsa_circ_0001649 restrained ERK and Wnt/β‐catenin pathways while miR‐20a overexpression reversed these progresses. Conclusion Upregulation of hsa_circ_0001649 restrained GC cell growth and metastasis by downregulating miR‐20a and thereby inactivated ERK and Wnt/β‐catenin pathways.

In this work, one superhydrophobic surface was facilely achieved by one-step photopolymerization of tridecafluorooctyl acrylate (G06C) with solvent. The superhydrophobic property was created by the combination of low surface energy material polytridecafluorooctyl acrylate and the rough structure created by the solvent evaporation. The roughness of polytridecafluorooctyl acrylate (PG06C) coating was determined by the content of solvent.

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) is a prospective visible-light photocatalyst. Two important strategies, nano-structuring and element-doping, are synergistically applied on g-C3N4 to co-improve its activity. Specifically, P-doped g-C3N4 nanosheets were prepared via a facile one-pot approach by calcining dicyandiamide containing NH4Cl and (NH4)2HPO4 as gas-template and P-dopant, respectively. Powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) confirmed that the as-obtained g-C3N4 samples are nanosheets structure. UV–Vis spectrometer demonstrated that PCNS-3 showed obvious red shift of absorption edge corresponding to the increased bandgap in comparison with BCN. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra and photocurrent analysis testified the accelerated efficiency of photo-induced electron-hole pairs. It demonstrated a visible-light photocatalytic H2 evolution efficiency 8.9 times that of bulk g-C3N4, benefitting from the increased specific surface area and promoted separation of photo-induced charge carriers. The proposed method is easy to be established and can inspire the scalable synthesis of other element-doped nanoscale g-C3N4.

The development of the oil industry brings the critical problem of ocean pollution by oil spill or fossil fuels. The use of materials for water/oil separation is one of the effective approaches to solve this crisis. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) has been used to prepare water/oil separation materials. Currently, glutaraldehyde has been employed as the cross-linking agent, which is well known to be toxic and environmentally unfriendly. Moreover, it is difficult to deal with the disposal of the Across-linked material. Here, we propose a strategy of fabricating macroporous material which was prepared by PVA and sodium silicate (Na2SiO3) in aqueous solution. Following through with the one-step method of sol–gel reaction of hydroxyl groups with trimethoxy(octadecyl)silane, the low surface energy substance was grafted on the macroporous material and a super-hydrophobic macroporous membrane for water/oil separation was prepared. As oil sorbent, the as-prepared dried super-hydrophobic PVA/Na2SiO3 porous materials (PSD...

The number of double bonds effects on the flotation of low-grade poor manganese ores using hydroxamic acid was studied. Four types of hydroxamic acids, namely stearic hydroxamic acid (SHA), oleic hydroxamic acid (OHA), linoleate hydroxamic acid (LHA) and α-Linolenic hydroxamic acid (αLHA) were synthesized and tested to float manganese ores containing 10.7% Mn. In all of the collectors screened, the study showed that LHA is a particularly good collector and has an excellent selectivity in rhodochrosite flotation. The surface tension experiment indicates that the values of surface tension cannot always function as a reliable indicator of the effectiveness of flotation collectors. The results of zeta potential and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) demonstrate that chemisorption accounts for the flotation mechanism. Besides, the formation of five-membered chelate ring of rhodochrosite with LHA was proposed. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) data indicate that the flotation separation using LHA is significantly efficient, and the adsorption of LHA onto rhodochrosite leads to the formation of hydrophobic agglomerates of rhodochrosite particles which enhance the floatability of rhodochrosite.

Increasing evidence has indicated that metabotropic glutamate receptor‑7 (mGluR7) is an important target for reducing anxiety and stress‑associated behaviours. Notably, mood disorders exhibit high levels of comorbidity with gastrointestinal dysfunction; however, the role of mGluR7 outside of the central nervous system is currently unknown. Activating mGluR7 likely increases colonic secretory function. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the possible effects of mGluR7 on the visceral hypersensitivity of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in rats. The expression levels of mGluR7 were assessed in the colon tissues of rats with neonatal maternal separation (NMS)‑induced visceral hypersensitivity using reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction, western blotting and immunohistochemistry. In addition, the mGluR7 agonist AMN082 (3 or 10 mg/kg; i.p.) was administered 1 h prior to the visceral hypersensitivity test, and the effects of AMN082 were then observed on the nuclear factor (NF)‑κB signalling pathway. The mRNA and protein expression levels of mGluR7 were upregulated in the colon mucosa of NMS rats compared with in normal control rats. Notably, administration of AMN082 (10 mg/kg) attenuated colorectal distension (CRD)‑induced visceral hypersensitivity in NMS rats. In addition, interleukin‑10 and transforming growth factor‑β mRNA expression levels were upregulated, whereas interferon‑γ mRNA expression levels were downregulated in the NMS + AMN082 group compared with in NMS rats. The number of cluster of differentiation 3+ T cells in the intestinal mucosa and myeloperoxidase activity were decreased in NMS + AMN082 rats. Furthermore, AMN082 treatment reduced the protein expression levels of phosphorylated‑NF‑κB in the colon tissue of NMS rats. These results indicated that activation of mGluR7 may attenuate CRD‑induced visceral hypersensitivity in experimental IBS and reduce the abnormal immune cytokine response. In addition, it was suggested that the role of AMN082 in modulating the inflammatory response may be partially associated with inhibiting NF‑κB activation. These data suggested that targeting mGluR7 may be useful in the treatment of stress‑associated IBS.

We designed and synthesized a novel linoleate hydroxamic acid (LHA) which demonstrated high selectivity and strong collecting capacity for the beneficiation of manganese ore by selective flotation. The performance of this LHA and oleic acid (OA) used for anionic froth flotation was compared, and the critical factors of rhodochrosite flotation were investigated. It demonstrated that the use of sodium carbonate instead of sodium hydroxide as the pH regulator, dosages of depressant and collector, and the addition of synergist are essential to the effective recovery of Mn in the flotation. And the concentrate grade of 18.3% Mn had been produced from a feed mixture with 10.7% Mn, and the Mn recovery could be achieved as highly as 97% when the LHA was used for the flotation separation of rhodochrosite under the optimum operating conditions. It was found that compared to OA, the novel LHA achieved superior results. Moreover, the analyses of Zeta-potential, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) indicated that chemisorption accounted for the flotation mechanism. Besides, results of the Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) revealed that the concentrate obtained had significantly higher proportion of manganese-bearing grains (e.g., rhodochrosite and pyrolusite) relative to the tail and implied that Mn-LHA compounds or chelates might be produced through the interaction between the rhodochrosite and LHA.

In this paper, coal blending combustion performance in a 600 MWe supercritical boiler has been investigated through a series of on-site measurements and computational fluid dynamic modellings. A bituminous coal was used as reference, which was blended with brown coal or brown coal semicoke in an indirect way, i.e., different coals being fed separately into the boiler without prior mixing in the mill. The coal blending combustion behavior was assessed upon varying brown coal injection location, brown coal blending ratio, air staging ratio, and the use of brown coal pyrolysis-derived semicoke. ANSYS FLUENT 15.0 was employed for numerical simulations. Upon a successful validation, the model was further used to predict the influence of individual variables. The main conclusions achieved include (1) the bituminous coal-designed mill can be used safely for brown coal, at the expense of an increased mass ratio of primary air to coal, a decreased temperature for the outlet of the mill, and an incomplete drying of...

Silicon based anode materials has got significant attention in recent years due to its environmental affinity, lower cost and high capacity in lithium ion batteries. The Photo cured 3D porous Silica-carbon membrane (SiO2–C material) was synthesized via binary phase solid state photo-polymerization, freeze dried to obtain porous membrane and then used as template to get silica deposited membrane by chemical vapor deposition method (CVD) at 30 °C, followed by calcination. The silicon deposition has been confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). The Barret-Joyner-Halenda (BJH) pore size distribution results showed the pore size of 10.2924 nm and surface area of 21.1957 m2/g with cumulative pore volume of 0.040248 cm³/g. The first discharge capacity reached to 719 mAhg−1 with 79.94% columbic efficiency regarding first cycle and discharge capacity for 100 cycles reached to 693 mAhg−1 with 99% columbic efficiency, which indicated high reaction reversibility. The silicon deposition with a porous structure improved the electronic conductivity and stabilized the material. The better electrochemical performance observed could be due to porous structure and carbon matrix of SiO2–C material.

The metabolic disorder of succinate in myocardial tissue during ischemia-reperfusion can lead to the myocardial oxidative injury. The activation of succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) plays a vital role in the process. Silent information regulator 5 (Sirt5), a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD)-dependent desuccinylase, desuccinylates and inactivates SDH thus exerting a protective effect on the myocardium. This research was designed to investigate whether exogenous NAD protects the myocardium from the ischemia-reperfusion-induced oxidative injury through regulating Sirt5-SDH pathway and succinate metabolism. We first found that myocardial total NAD level was remarkably increased with NAD treatment (10 mg/kg) for 14 days. NAD administration significantly decreased the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level in coronary leakage, decreased the malondialdehyde (MDA) level and increased the reduced glutathione/oxidized glutathione disulfide ratio (GSH/GSSG) in myocardial tissue. In addition, NAD treatment effectively attenuated the depression of cardiac function in the isolated rat hearts after ischemia-reperfusion. Furthermore, we found that exogenous NAD attenuated the succinate accumulation during ischemia and decreased its depleting rate during reperfusion. We also found that NAD administration had no obvious effects on myocardial Sirt5 and SDH-a expressions. However, the results of immunofluorescence showed that Sirt5 and SDH-a interacted in ischemia-reperfused myocardium. Utilizing co-immunoprecipitation method, we found that NAD administration promoted the Sirt5 and SDH-a interaction and decreased the succinylation level of SDH-a. These results implied that exogenous NAD administration promoted Sirt5-mediated SDH-a desuccinylation and decreased the activity of SDH-a, which attenuated the succinate accumulation during ischemia and its depleting rate during reperfusion and finally alleviated reactive oxygen species generation.

During coal gasification, the resulting slag varies in the mineral compositions and amount due to the ambient gas in gasifier. In this study, the microstructure and leaching behavior of typical slag were investigated under simulated mildly/strongly reducing gasification conditions with different H2S concentration. XRF, XRD and SEM-EDX were used to study the properties of slag. And ICP-AES was used to determine the metallic ions in acid-digested slag samples. The results indicate that iron phase was separated from molten slag phase in melting process under a strongly reducing condition. In the strongly reducing condition with H2S, FeSx(x

BACKGROUND:: Syndecan-1 (SDC1) and its endo-beta-D-glucuronidase heparanase (HPA) are implicated in the maintenance of intestinal barrier function, but their detailed functions in Crohn's disease (CD) are not fully investigated. The aim of this study was to determine alteration patterns of SDC1 and HPA and their potential roles in evaluating disease activity and differentiating CD from intestinal tuberculosis (ITB). METHODS:: Tissue and serum specimens were obtained from 89 patients, including 15 patients with functional bowel disorders, 18 active patients with ITB, and 56 patients with CD (remission = 19, active = 37). Basic clinical data were collected and routine blood tests were analyzed. SDC1 and HPA were measured by immunohistochemistry, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, and western blot. Colonic epithelial cells were incubated with recombinant HPA, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and mycobacterium tuberculosis culture filtrate protein to detect the alterations of SDC1 and HPA. RESULTS:: In the CD group, SDC1 was significantly decreased in mucosa and increased in serum, whereas HPA level in both were elevated. Such alterations were associated with clinicopathological features representing disease activity and injury severity and were not available in functional bowel disorder and ITB groups. Recombinant HPA incubation increased soluble SDC1 in culture supernatants (P = 2 × 10), and low-dose TNF-α effectively enhanced HPA's activity (P = 3 × 10). Exogenous TNF-α destroyed cellular SDC1 and raised HPA expressions dose dependently, whereas mycobacterium tuberculosis culture filtrate protein showed no effects. CONCLUSIONS:: Unique alterations of SDC1 and HPA are shown in both patients with CD and in vitro model. The results indicate SDC1 and HPA are potential markers for CD in evaluating its disease activity and differentiating it from ITB.

BACKGROUND: The resistance of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) to antibiotics is increasing worldwide, lowering its efficacy in current eradication therapies. This study evaluated H. pylori resistance to antibiotics in the southeast coastal region of China and suggests appropriate alternatives. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventeen thousand seven hundred and thirty one H. pylori strains were collected from eight areas of two provinces in coastal southeast China from 2010 to 2012. The resistance of these strains to six antibiotics was tested using the agar dilution method. RESULTS: The resistance rates to clarithromycin, metronidazole, levofloxacin, amoxicillin, gentamicin and furazolidone were 21.5, 95.4, 20.6, 0.1, 0.1 and 0.1%, respectively. Double, triple and quadruple antibacterial resistant percentages were 25.5, 7.5 and 0.1%, respectively. A positive association between the resistance to levofloxacin and to clarithromycin was found, but there was a negative correlation in the resistances to levofloxacin and to metronidazole. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of H. pylori resistance to clarithromycin, metronidazole, levofloxacin and multiple antibiotics in coastal southeast China is high. Choice of therapy should be individualized based on a susceptibility test in this region of the country.

The effect of three types of Mg-based additives on reducing the emissions of particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than 2.5 μm (PM 2.5 ) during pulverized coal combustion has been investigated. Combustion test was carried out in a lab-scale drop tube furnace (DTF) at 1723 K in air. The physical and chemical properties of PM were quantitatively analyzed by XRF and CCSEM. Experimental results indicate that three different Mg-based additives significantly increase the coalescence probability between sub-micron mineral particles hence reduce the PM 2.5 emission during combustion accordingly. In a case of the superfine dispersed Mg-based additive, ca. 60% PM 1 and PM 2.5 reduction were achieved comparing with raw coal combustion, respectively. However, it is confirmed that the reduction efficiency on PM emissions also related to the physical properties of the additives used in this study. The transformation pathways, which different Mg-based additives undergoing during ash formation process, result in the variation in element distribution and morphology of resultant ash particles.

Amorphous carbon nanotubes were synthesized by vapor deposition polymerization (VDP) method using attapulgite as template and furfuryl alcohol as carbon source. The morphology and microstructure analysis of the as-prepared samples showed that highly pure amorphous carbon nanotubes were obtained, and determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SEAD) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectrum. The Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area analysis indicated that the specific surface area of the as-prepared amorphous carbon nanotubes reaches up to 503.1 m 2 /g. A hypothesis about the formation mechanism of the amorphous carbon nanotubes was also proposed accordingly.

This paper dealt with the Pb contents and Pb isotopic composition of the West Lake Longjing tea. The results showed that in the tea leaves, from young leaf →old leaf →tea limb, the Pb contents tend to increase gradually from 1.63 →4.84 →6.07×10−6, wich revealed that the Pb was accumulated gradually in the tea. After cleaned, the Pb contents of tea leaves were significantly reduced. This indicated that the deposits on the surface of tea leaves made a great contributuion to Pb contents. The survey results for soils in the relevant tea gardens showed that soil from the Longjing tea garden has higher Pb contents, with an average level of 49.6×10−6, two times those of common soils (24×10−6) in China. Results of the systematic analysis for tea, tea garden soil and the samples with the relevant background of the Pb isotopic composition displayed that the Pb isotopic ratio of tea is 206Pb/207Pb=1.164±0.005 (2σ). The ratio of 206Pb/207Pb for the soil gradually decreased from residue phase, soil dilute acid extract phase, and then to urban topsoil, i.e., 1.175 →1.171 →1.170. The 208Pb/(206Pb+207Pb) ratios also show a similar variation trend. 206Pb/207Pb ratios in the samples with the relevant background were: vehicle exhaust, 1.124; coal-combustion, 1.156; atmosphere, 1.168; and water, 1.166. Comparative studies have shown that Pb pollution is popular in the environmental media (soil, atmosphere, water) in Hangzhou. With the aggravation of Pb pollution, the Pb isotopic composition gradually changed from the natural background (soil residues) to the direction of automobile exhaust. This phenomenon could illustrate that the pollution source was the vehicle exhaust, while the coal-combustion contributed little to environmental pollution in Hangzhou. The Pb of the Longjing tea came mostly from soluble phase Pb in the polluted soil. Moreover, secondary pollution was caused by vehicle exhaust.

Co-combustion of pulverised coal with a woody biomass, cedar chip was conducted in a lab-scale drop-tube furnace (DTF) to investigate the synergetic interaction between the inorganic elements of different fuels and the emissions of sub-micron particles (particles smaller than 1.0 μm in size, PM 1 ) and super-micron particles (particles in the size range of 1.0–10 μm, PM 1+ ) during co-firing. The mass fraction of cedar chip in fuel blend ranged from 10% to 50%. All the fuels were burnt in air at two furnace temperatures, 1200 and 1450 °C. The results indicate that, under an identical calorific input, combustion of cedar chip alone favored the emission of sub-micron PM 1 , which is dominated by volatile elements including K, Ca, Fe, Na and P. A large fraction of K and Na were most probably present as gaseous vapors in the furnace. The other metals mainly condensed into nano-scale nuclei which subsequently coagulated into a variety of sizes in flue gas. Coal combustion alone favored the release of super-micron particles rich in Al and Si. Emission of PM upon co-firing was a function of both cedar chip share and furnace temperature. At a small mass fraction for cedar chip in fuel blend, e.g. 10% tested here, interaction between the inorganic elements of single fuels was insignificant at either furnace temperature. Accordingly, the quantities of PM 1 and PM 1+ emitted from co-firing at 10% cedar chip were slightly higher than from the combustion of coal alone, due to the contribution of cedar chip. Significant interaction between the inorganic elements of single fuels was observed for co-firing of coal with >10% cedar chip at the furnace temperature of 1450 °C. As has been confirmed, adding 20–30% cedar chip to coal resulted in the shift of approximately 90% of PM 1 and 50% PM 1+ into coarse ash particles. For the cedar chip-derived alkali vapors and nano-scale/sub-micron particles, the rates of their shift into larger particles were influenced by two competing routes, homogeneous coagulation and surface reaction with coal-derived kaolin. In contrast, the shift of super-micron particles was primarily determined by their collision probability with the coal-derived mineral grains in bulk gas. A sticky surface for particles is also essential. The shift of individual metals into coarse ash differed distinctly from one another.

A well-defined amphiphilic comb-like copolymer of poly(ethylene oxide)(PEO) as main chain and polylactide (PLA) as side chain was successfully prepared via a combination of anionic polymerization and coordination-insertion ring-opening polymerization. The anionic copolymerization of ethylene oxide (EO) and ethoxyethyl glycidyl ether (EEGE) was carried out using potassium 2-(2-methoxyethoxy)ethoxide as initiator, and then ethoxyethyl groups of EEGE units of the copolymers obtained were removed by hydrolysis. Two copolymers of methoxypoly(ethylene oxide-co-glycidol) [mpoly(EO-co-Gly)] were formed with multiple hydroxyl sites (the molar ratio values of Gly to EO in copolymers: 1/10.6 and 1/5.2; Mn: 10,100 and 5,020 respectively), and them were used further to initiate the ring-opening polymerization of lactide in the presence of stannous octoate, and a well-defined comb-like copolymer of PEO as main chain and PLA as side chain was obtained. The intermediate and final products of PEO-g-PLA were characterized by GPC and NMR in detail.

This paper aims to evaluate the addition of a Mg-based additive to coal on the emission/reduction of particulate matter (PM) during coal combustion. Four pulverized coals with different mineralogical properties were investigated. Each of them was mixed with Mg-based additive and combusted at 1723 K in a lab-scale drop tube furnace (DTF). The results indicate that the Mg-based additive tested here has a pronounced impact on particle size distribution of PM and the morphologies of individual ash particles. For all of the coals tested here, the addition of the Mg-based additive increased the coarse ash fraction and substantially reduced the amount of ash particles smaller than 2.5 μm (PM2.5). This is because the Mg-based additive is able to reduce the ash melting point via the formation of low-melting eutectic compounds, which promote the coalescence among sub-micrometer mineral particles. The effect of the Mg-based additive on PM2.5 reduction also depends upon the properties of the original minerals present...

Particulate matter (PM) emission from the combustion of solid fuels potentially poses a severe threat to the environment. In this article, a novel approach was developed to examine the properties of individual particles in PM. With this method, PM emitted from combustion was first size-segregated. Subsequently, each size was characterized by computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy (CCSEM) for both bulk property and single particle analysis. Combustion of bituminous coal, dried sewage sludge (DSS) and their mixture were conducted at 1200 {sup o}C in a laboratory-scale drop tube furnace. Three individual sizes smaller than 2.5 {mu}m were investigated. The results indicate that a prior size-segregation can greatly minimize the particle size contrast and phase contrast on the backscattered images during CCSEM analysis. Consequently, high accuracy can be achieved for quantifying the sub-micron particles and their inherent volatile metals. Regarding the PM properties as attained, concentrations of volatile metals including Na, K, and Zn have a negative relationship with particle size; they are enriched in the smallest particles around 0.11 {mu}m as studied here. Strong interactions can occur during the cofiring of coal and DSS, leading to the distinct properties of PM emitted from cofiring. The method developed here and results attained frommore » it are helpful for management of the risks relating to PM emission during coal-fired boilers.« less

Two bituminous coals used in coal-fired power plants were mixed with either Ca- or Mg-based chemical additives. Coals and the mixtures were burnt in a laboratory-scale drop tube furnace, respectively. The impact of the additives on the transformations of coal minerals, as well as on the emissions of particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than 2.5 μm (PM2.5), was investigated. The generated ash particles were collected using a cyclone combined with a low-pressure impactor. The physical and chemical properties of these ash particles were analyzed. The results indicate that the addition of chemical additives can affect the mineral transformation process, and thus, control the emissions of PM2.5 and PM1 during combustion. In particular, additives have a considerable impact on the particle size distribution and chemical composition of PM, wherein it improves the degree of coalescence of submicron and fine mineral particles, which reduces PM2.5 emissions. The effects of additive on the reductio...

In this study, mixtures of dried Municipal Sewage Sludge (MSS) and pulverized coal were combusted. The MSS contains high amounts of Ca, Fe, P, S, and Zn in the minerals, while, the pulverized coal contains abundant amounts of Si and Al in the minerals. The mineral transformation behaviors and their effects on the solid emitted pollutants, mainly referring to the fine suspended particles of PM 10 (aerodynamic diameter smaller than 10 μm) were investigated. Experimental work was conducted at 1473 K in a lab-scale drop tube furnace (DTF). The experimental results show that both of PM 1 (particles with the aerodynamic diameter smaller than 1 μm) and PM 1–10 (particles with the aerodynamic diameter ranging from 1 μm to 10 μm) generated by the co-combustion of MSS with coal are reduced comparing with their corresponding linear combination results. The reason appears to be that, during combustion, the transformations of P, S, Al, and Si from submicron particles to supermicron particles result in decreasing of PM 1 emissions, and the transformations of Al and Si from PM 10 to coarse particles larger than 10 μm in diameter lead to the reduction of PM 1–10 emissions. The fine Al–Si ( 10 μm in diameter). Meanwhile, the larger melted Ca–Fe–Al–Si or Ca–Fe–P–Al–Si particles have or possess large viscous surface. And then the high amounts of volatile elements like P, S, and toxic elements, such as Zn, can be captured by these large particles, and therefore the emissions of PM 1 are partially reduced.

In this paper the organically bound paramagnetic (transition) metals (Fe, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, V, Zn and Cu) were studied by a combination of sequential acid leaching and electron spin resonance spectroscopy. Additional investigation was also conducted on the occurrence of these metals in coal extracts generated by solvent extraction at 360 °C. The results indicate that, a sequential leaching by acetic acid (1 M), HCl (3 M), HNO 3 (2 M) and HF (48%) can remove most the inorganic species in a coal. The remaining elements are mainly transition metals. Of those, Fe is the most prevalent, which is mainly present as octahedral Fe 3+ complex associated with phenolic hydroxyl or nitrogen-bearing functional groups. Nanometric ferric oxide/hydroxide and highly ordered Fe-rich crystals were also observed in coal extract. They are finely dispersed in the closed voids in the carbonaceous matrix, which may have been of biological origin, such as ferritin iron in proteins and iron porphyrin complexes that have undergone complex transformation during coalification. The water-derived colloidal iron phase can be one possible source as well. Regarding the other transition metals, they mostly have the hyperfine configurations that co-exist with Fe. The amounts of these organically bound species may depend on coal rank, but their relationship has not been clarified yet. Comparison between acid-washed coal and the respective coal extract also indicates the non-uniform distribution of organically bound transition metals within coal matrix.

Solvent extraction of coal is an effective method for removing coal ash, thereby generating the ultraclean fuel that can be directly combusted in gas turbine. Due to their organic affinity, a few inorganic elements can be extracted as well. Ti in coal extract, its elution from raw coal as well as the transformation of eluted Ti during coal extract combustion, have been investigated. Two coals of the U.S. and their acid-washed samples were extracted under 1 MPa N2 (cold) at 360°C. The solvents used include nonpolar 1-methynaphthalene and its mixtures with polar indole. The results indicate that, Ti in coal extracts is mainly composed of nanoparticles including TiO2 (anatase) and Ti associated with quartz. These particles are insoluble in any acids, having a fine dispersion into coal matrix. Upon coal fragmentation at 360°C, they could be librated, and, hence, traversed the filter for isolating coal extracts. The organo-Ti was preferentially extracted as well, which is most likely in a form of Ti porphyrin or Ti chelated with phenol-oxygen. These findings also have implications for revealing the modes of occurrence of Ti in the raw coals. Combustion of coal extract at 1,000°C resulted in the formation of nanometric TiO2 polymorphs and much complex compound like FeZnTiO4. The former species could be mainly formed by the phase change of TiO2 (anatase) at high-temperatures, while formation of the latter one could involve the capture of metallic vapors like Zn on TiO2 polymorphs. The resultant nanoparticles may escape the conventional pollution control devices, causing environmental concern. © 2008 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2008