Search

Prior literature finds senior executives can influence auditor decision making. However, few studies have discussed the impact of employee's personal characteristics. Our research aims to fill the above research gaps by examining the impact of employee level education on audit costs. Taking A-share listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen from 2006 to 2021 as the research object, this paper examines the impact of employee education on audit fees. It is found that highly educated employees can effectively reduce the audit fees borne by the company, but the implementation of the Labor Protection Law weakens this inhibitory effect. In the case of low marketization level and weak Confucian culture intensity, employee education level has a more significant inhibitory effect on audit fees of listed companies. This study provides a basis for empirical research on the impact of employee attributes on auditor decision making, provides a new research perspective on the impact of labor protection law at the corporate micro level, and enriches the theoretical research on corporate governance rooted in traditional Chinese culture. We contribute to the practice that implications for evaluating the effectiveness of adopting labor protection.

Multi-horizontal submerged jets stilling basins have been utilized in large-scale water conservancy and hydropower projects due to its stable flow pattern, high energy dissipation rate and less atomization. This study employs vorticity criterion, Q criterion, λ2 criterion and Ω criterion to investigate the characteristics of vortex formation and turbulent dissipation in multi-horizontal submerged jets stilling basins with various configurations, including crest overflowing orifice alone (COO), combination of crest overflowing orifice and mid-discharge orifice (COO-MO) and mid-discharge orifice alone (MO). The results indicate that the Q criterion and λ2 criterion are effective in identifying vortex structure within multi-horizontal submerged jets stilling basin. Specifically, the stronger intensity of vortex structure and vortex dissipation are mainly distributed in the vicinity of the vertical drop, which gradually weakens for the increasing distance to the vertical drop. Furthermore, the intensity and number of vortexes with COO-MO are the largest. This conclusion can provide guidance for energy dissipation and bottom protection of stilling pool.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0302631.].

With the rapid progress of urbanization in China, the real estate industry, characterized by a long industrial chain, has become a pillar industry for economic development. Therefore, we inspect the nexus between land finance, housing prices, and economic growth. For this purpose, we use the panel data of 277 cities at the prefecture level or above in China from 2011 to 2019, and empirically examine it by using the Panel Vector Auto Regression (PVAR) model. The results show that there is a causal relationship between housing prices and economic growth. Housing prices promote economic growth in the short term and inhibit it in the long term. Both economic growth and housing prices have a significant impact on land finance. The economic growth show a significantly positive impact, while housing prices promote land finance in the short term with a long-term trend from positive to negative. This is the first study that tries to probe the relationship between urban housing prices, land finance, and economic growth by considering 277 prefecture-level and above cities in China. To promote the stable development of the regional economy, local governments need to overcome their dependence on the housing market and land finance and promote the healthy development of the housing market.

As for the problem that the traditional single depth prediction model has poor strain capacity to the prediction results of time series data when predicting lake eutrophication, this study takes the multi-factor water quality data affecting lake eutrophication as the main research object. A deep reinforcement learning model is proposed, which can realize the mutual conversion of water quality data prediction models at different times, select the optimal prediction strategy of lake eutrophication at the current time according to its own continuous learning, and improve the reinforcement learning algorithm. Firstly, the greedy factor, the fixed parameter of Agent learning training in reinforcement learning, is introduced into an arctangent function and the mean value reward factor is defined. On this basis, three Q estimates are introduced, and the weight parameters are obtained by calculating the realistic value of Q, taking the average value and the minimum value to update the final Q table, so as to get an Improved MIMO-DD-3Q Learning model. The preliminary prediction results of lake eutrophication are obtained, and the errors obtained are used as the secondary input to continue updating the Q table to build the final Improved MIMO-DD-3Q Learning model, so as to achieve the final prediction of water eutrophication. In this study, multi-factor water quality data of Yongding River in Beijing were selected from 0:00 on July 26, 2021 to 0:00 on September 5, 2021. Firstly, data smoothing and principal component analysis were carried out to confirm that there was a certain correlation between all factors in the occurrence of lake eutrophication. Then, the Improved MIMO-DD-3Q Learning prediction model was used for experimental verification. The results show that the Improved MIMO-DD-3Q Learning model has a good effect in the field of lake eutrophication prediction.

New colonies of Formosan subterranean termites are founded by monogamous pairs. During swarming season, alates (winged reproductives) leave their parental colony. After swarming, they drop to the ground, shed their wings, and male and female dealates find suitable nesting sites where they mate and become kings and queens of new colonies. The first generation of offspring is entirely dependent on the nutritional resources of the founder pair consisting of the fat and protein reserves of the dealates and their microbiota, which include the cellulose-digesting protozoa and diverse bacteria. Since termite kings and queens can live for decades, mate for life and colony success is linked to those initial resources, we hypothesized that gut microbiota of founders affect pair formation. To test this hypothesis, we collected pairs found in nest chambers and single male and female dealates from four swarm populations. The association of three factors (pairing status, sex of the dealates and population) with dealate weights, total protozoa, and protozoa Pseudotrichonympha grassii numbers in dealate hindguts was determined. In addition, Illumina 16S rRNA gene sequencing and the QIIME2 pipeline were used to determine the impact of those three factors on gut bacteria diversity of dealates. Here we report that pairing status was significantly affected by weight and total protozoa numbers, but not by P. grassii numbers and bacteria diversity. Weight and total protozoa numbers were higher in paired compared to single dealates. Males contained significantly higher P. grassii numbers and bacteria richness and marginally higher phylogenetic diversity despite having lower weights than females. In conclusion, this study showed that dealates with high body weight and protozoa numbers are more likely to pair and become colony founders, probably because of competitive advantage. The combined nutritional resources provided by body weight and protozoa symbionts of the parents are important for successful colony foundation and development.

In this paper, the data of A-share non-financial listed companies from 2008 to 2019 are used to study the impact of the opening of high-speed railway on corporate financing constraints with the difference-in-differences model. The research results show that the opening of high-speed rail can effectively alleviate the financing constraints faced by enterprises. Through the analysis of its influence mechanism, it is found that the opening of high-speed rail can reduce the degree of information asymmetry and agency conflicts between enterprises and their stakeholders, and thereby ease corporate financing constraints. At the same time, the opening of the high-speed rail has a more significant effect on alleviating the financing constraints of non-state-controlled enterprises, technology-intensive enterprises, and enterprises in inland areas. This research is not only a supplement to the economic consequences related to the opening of the high-speed rail, but also a further expansion of the research on the factors affecting corporate financing constraints.

Subterranean termites live in underground colonies with a division of labor among castes (i.e., queens and kings, workers, and soldiers). The function of social colonies relies on sophisticated chemical communication. Olfaction, the sense of smell from food, pathogens, and colony members, plays an important role in their social life. Olfactory plasticity in insects can be induced by long- and short-term environmental perturbations, allowing adaptive responses to the chemical environment according to their physiological and behavioral state. However, there is a paucity of information on the molecular basis of olfaction in termites. In this study, we identified an ortholog encoding the odorant receptor co-receptor (Orco) in the Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus, and examined its expression variation across developmental stages and in response to social conditions. We found that C. formosanus Orco showed conserved sequence and structure compared with other insects. Spatial and temporal analyses showed that the Orco gene was primarily expressed in the antennae, and it was expressed in eggs and all postembryonic developmental stages. The antennal expression of Orco was upregulated in alates (winged reproductives) compared with workers and soldiers. Further, the expression of Orco decreased in workers after starvation for seven days, but it was not affected by the absence of soldiers or different group sizes. Our study reveals the molecular characteristics of Orco in a termite, and the results suggest a link between olfactory sensitivity and nutritional status. Further studies are warranted to better understand the role of Orco in olfactory plasticity and behavioral response.

As a core subunit of the SCF complex that promotes protein degradation through the 26S proteasome, S-phase kinase-associated protein 1 (SKP1) plays important roles in multiple cellular processes in eukaryotes, including gibberellin (GA), jasmonate, ethylene, auxin and light responses. P7-2 encoded by Rice black streaked dwarf virus (RBSDV), a devastating viral pathogen that causes severe symptoms in infected plants, interacts with SKP1 from different plants. However, whether RBSDV P7-2 forms a SCF complex and targets host proteins is poorly understood. In this study, we conducted yeast two-hybrid assays to further explore the interactions between P7-2 and 25 type I Oryza sativa SKP1-like (OSK) proteins, and found that P7-2 interacted with eight OSK members with different binding affinity. Co-immunoprecipitation assay further confirmed the interaction of P7-2 with OSK1, OSK5 and OSK20. It was also shown that P7-2, together with OSK1 and O. sativa Cullin-1, was able to form the SCF complex. Moreover, yeast two-hybrid assays revealed that P7-2 interacted with gibberellin insensitive dwarf2 (GID2) from rice and maize plants, which is essential for regulating the GA signaling pathway. It was further demonstrated that the N-terminal region of P7-2 was necessary for the interaction with GID2. Overall, these results indicated that P7-2 functioned as a component of the SCF complex in rice, and interaction of P7-2 with GID2 implied possible roles of the GA signaling pathway during RBSDV infection.

NFATs are transcription factors involved in immune activation and tumor progression. Previous reports showed that DYRK1A suppressed NFATc2 transcriptional activity through phosphorylation. Nonetheless, our results showed that DYRK1A increased NFATc1/αA protein level and subsequent transcriptional activity. DYRK1A phosphorylation of NFATc1/αA at S261, S278, S403 and S409 interfered with NFATc1 ubiquitination and ubiquitin-proteasome degradation. Our results imply that DYRK1A is a positive kinase in regulation of NFATc1.

This study is aimed to assess the biodegradation of sulfadiazine (SDZ) and characterization of heavy metal resistance in three pure bacterial cultures and also their chemotactic response towards 2-aminopyrimidine. The bacterial cultures were isolated from pig manure, activated sludge and sediment samples, by enrichment technique on SDZ (6 mg L-1). Based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, the microorganisms were identified within the genera of Paracoccus, Methylobacterium and Kribbella, which were further designated as SDZ-PM2-BSH30, SDZ-W2-SJ40 and SDZ-3S-SCL47. The three identified pure bacterial strains degraded up to 50.0, 55.2 and 60.0% of SDZ (5 mg L-1), respectively within 290 h. On the basis of quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry and high performance liquid chromatography, 2-aminopyrimidine and 4-hydroxy-2-aminopyrimidine were identified as the main intermediates of SDZ biodegradation. These bacteria were also able to degrade the metabolite, 2-aminopyrimidine, of the SDZ. Furthermore, SDZ-PM2-BSH30, SDZ-W2-SJ40 and SDZ-3S-SCL47 also showed resistance to various heavy metals like copper, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, lead, nickel and zinc. Additionally, all three bacteria exhibited positive chemotaxis towards 2-aminopyrimidine based on the drop plate method and capillary assay. The results of this study advanced our understanding about the microbial degradation of SDZ, which would be useful towards the future SDZ removal in the environment.

Particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter

We sought to identify cells and cytokines in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluids that distinguish asthma from healthy control subjects and those that distinguish controlled asthma from uncontrolled asthma. Following informed consent, 36 human subjects were recruited for this study. These included 11 healthy control subjects, 15 subjects with controlled asthma with FEV1≥80% predicted and 10 subjects with uncontrolled asthma with FEV1 2.4%) were a higher BAL fluid IL-8 levels, and a lower FEV1 in the latter group. By contrast, compared to eosinophil-normal asthma (eosinophils≤0.3%), eosinophil-high asthma (eosinophils>0.3%) had higher levels of IL-5, IL-13, IL-16, and PDGF-bb, but same neutrophil percentage, IL-8, and FEV1. Our results identify neutrophils and IL-8 are the only inflammatory components in BAL fluids that distinguish controlled asthma from uncontrolled asthma, and both correlate inversely with FEV1.

Rhegmatenous retinal detachment (RRD) is one of the most serious complications after phacoemulsification combined with intraocular lens implantation surgery. It has been reported that vision-related quality of life (VRQoL), as well as visual acuity rapidly decreased when RRD developed. However, little is known of the VRQoL in those RRD patients after anatomical retinal re-attachment, especially whether or not the VRQoL is higher than that before cataract surgery. In this prospective case series study, we use the Chinese-version low vision quality of life questionnaire (CLVQOL) to assess the changes of VRQoL in age-related cataract patients who suffered from RRD after phacoemulsification with intraocular lens (phaco-IOL) implantation. All participants were asked to complete questionnaires in face- to-face interviews one day before and two weeks after cataract surgery, as well as one day before and three months after RRD surgery. A total of 10,127 consecutive age-related cataract patients were followed up to one year after phaco-IOL implantation; among these patients, 17 were diagnosed as RRD. The total CLVQOL scores and subscale scores except "Mobility" decreased significantly when RRD developed. After retinal surgery, only the score of "General vision and lighting" in the CLVQOL questionnaires improved when compared to the scores two weeks after cataract surgery, although the best corrected visual acuity of all patients significantly raised up. However, the mean CLVQOL scores and subscale scores were still considerably higher than the level prior to cataract surgery. Our study suggests that cataract patients at high risk of postoperative RRD should not deny the opportunity to undergo phaco-IOL implantation, even though potential VRQoL impairment induced by RRD exists.

This study aimed to evaluate and compare the utility values associated with diabetic retinopathy (DR) in a sample of Chinese patients and ophthalmologists.Utility values were evaluated by both the time trade-off (TTO) and rating scale (RS) methods for 109 eligible patients with DR and 2 experienced ophthalmologists. Patients were stratified by Snellen best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) in the better-seeing eye. The correlations between the utility values and general vision-related health status measures were analyzed. These utility values were compared with data from two other studies.The mean utility values elicited from the patients themselves with the TTO (0.81; SD 0.10) and RS (0.81; SD 0.11) methods were both statistically lower than the mean utility values assessed by ophthalmologists. Significant predictors of patients' TTO and RS utility values were both LogMAR BCVA in the affected eye and average weighted LogMAR BCVA. DR grade and duration of visual dysfunction were also variables that significantly predicted patients' TTO utility values. For ophthalmologists, patients' LogMAR BCVA in the affected eye and in the better eye were the variables that significantly predicted both the TTO and RS utility values. Patients' education level was also a variable that significantly predicted RS utility values. Moreover, both diabetic macular edema and employment status were significant predictors of TTO and RS utility values, whether from patients or ophthalmologists. There was no difference in mean TTO utility values compared to our American and Canadian patients.DR caused a substantial decrease in Chinese patients' utility values, and ophthalmologists substantially underestimated its effect on patient quality of life.

PURPOSE: The aim was to assess atrial fibrillation (AF) and vulnerability in Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome patients using two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE). METHODS: All patients were examined via transthoracic echocardiography and 2D-STE in order to assess atrial function 7 days before and 10 days after RF catheter ablation. A postoperative 3-month follow-up was performed via outpatient visit or telephone calls. RESULTS: Results showed significant differences in both body mass index (BMI) and supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) duration between WPW patients and DAVNP patients (both P

AIM: To investigate the inhibitory effect of pseudolaric acid B on subcutaneous xenografts of human gastric adenocarcinoma and the underlying molecular mechanisms involved in its multidrug resistance. METHODS: Human gastric adenocarcinoma SGC7901 cells and drug-resistant SGC7901/ADR cells were injected into nude mice to establish a subcutaneous xenograft model. The effects of pseudolaric acid B with or without adriamycin treatment were compared by determining the tumor size and weight. Cyclo-oxygenase-2, protein kinaseC-α and P-glycoprotein expression levels were determined by immunohistochemistry and western blot. RESULTS: Pseudolaric acid B significantly suppressed the tumor growth induced by SGC7901 cells and SGC7901/ADR cells. The combination of pseudolaric acid B and the traditional chemotherapy drug adriamycin exhibited more potent inhibitory effects on the growth of gastric cancer in vivo than treatment with either pseudolaric acid B or adriamycin alone. Protein expression levels of cyclo-oxygenase-2, protein kinaseC-α and P-glycoprotein were inhibited by pseudolaric acid B alone or in combination with adriamycin in SGC7901/ADR cell xenografts. CONCLUSION: Pseudolaric acid B has a significant inhibitory effect and an additive inhibitory effect in combination with adriamycin on the growth of gastric cancer in vivo, which reverses the multidrug resistance of gastric neoplasm to chemotherapy drugs by downregulating the Cox-2/PKC-α/P-gp/mdr1 signaling pathway.

ARID1A (AT-rich interactive domain 1A) has recently been identified as a tumor suppressor gene. Its mRNA expression is significantly low in many breast cancers; this is often associated with more aggressive phenotypes. However, the underlying molecular mechanism for its low expression has not been fully understood. This study was undertaken to evaluate the contribution of gene copy number variation, mutations, promoter methylation and histone modification to ARID1A's low expression. 38 pairs of breast invasive ductal carcinomas and their normal breast tissue counterparts from the same patients were randomly selected for gene expression and copy number variation detection. Promoter methylation and histone modification levels were evaluated by MeDIP-qPCR and ChIP-qPCR, respectively. PCR product Sanger sequencing was carried out to detect the exon mutation rate. Twenty-two out of 38 invasive ductal carcinomas in the study (57.9%) revealed ARID1A mRNA low expression by realtime RT-PCR. The relative promoter methylation level was, significantly higher in ARID1A mRNA low expression group compared with its high expression group (p

BACKGROUND: Massive wasp stings have been greatly underestimated and have not been systematically studied. The aim of this study was to identify the clinical features and treatment strategies of severe wasp stings. METHODS AND FINDINGS: A multicenter retrospective study was undertaken in 35 hospitals and medical centers including 12 tertiary care hospitals and 23 secondary care hospitals in the Hubei Province, China. The detailed clinical data of 1091 hospitalized wasp sting patients were investigated. Over three-fourths (76.9%) of the cases had 10 or more stings and the in-hospital mortality of patients was 5.1%. Forty-eight patients died of organ injury following toxic reactions to the stings, whereas six died from anaphylactic shock. The in-hospital mortality in patients with >10 stings was higher than that of ≤10 stings (5.2% vs. 1.0%, p = 0.02). Acute kidney injury (AKI) was seen in 21.0% patients and most patients required blood purification therapy. Rhabdomyolysis was seen in 24.1% patients, hemolysis in 19.2% patients, liver injury in 30.1% patients, and coagulopathy in 22.5% patients. Regression analysis revealed that high creatinine level, shock, oliguria, and anemia were risk factors for death. Blood purification therapy was beneficial for patients with ≥20 stings and delayed hospital admission of patients (≥4 hours after sting). CONCLUSIONS: In China, most patients with multiple wasp stings presented with toxic reactions and multiple organ dysfunction caused by the venom rather than an anaphylactic reaction. AKI is the prominent clinical manifestation of wasp stings with toxic reaction. High creatinine levels, shock, oliguria, and anemia were risk factors for death.

Ginsenoside Rb1 (RB1), the most clinically effective constituent of ginseng, possesses a variety of biological activities. The objectives of this study were to investigate the protective effects of RB1 and its underlying mechanism on renal injury induced by intestinal ischemia-reperfusion (IIR) in mice. RB1 was administered prior to inducing IIR achieved by occluding the superior mesenteric artery for 45 min followed by 120 min of reperfusion. All-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA) was used as an inhibitor of NF-E2-related factor-2 (Nrf2) signaling. Adult male C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into six groups: (1) sham group, (2) IIR group, (3) RB1 group, (4) sham + ATRA group, (5) IIR + ATRA group, and (6) RB1 + ATRA group. Intestinal histology and pathological injury score were observed. Intestinal mucosal injury was also evaluated by measuring serum diamine oxidase (DAO). Renal injury induced by IIR was characterized by increased levels of histological severity score, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum creatinine (Scr) and neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), which was accompanied with elevated renal TUNEL-positive cells and the Bcl-2/Bax expression ratio. RB1 significantly reduced renal injury and apoptosis as compared with IIR group, which was reversed by ATRA treatment. Immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis demonstrated that RB1 significantly upregulated the protein expression of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and Nrf2, which were attenuated by ATRA treatment. Taken together, these results suggest that the protective effects of RB1 pretreatment against renal injury induced by IIR are associated with activation of the Nrf2/ anti-oxidant response element (ARE) pathway.

BACKGROUND: Functional GABA(B) receptor is believed to require hetero-dimerization between GABA(B1) (GB1) and GABA(B2) (GB2) subunits. The GB1 extracellular domain is required for ligand binding, and the GB2 trans-membrane domain is responsible for coupling to G proteins. Atypical GABA(B) receptor responses observed in GB2-deficient mice suggested that GB1 may have activity in the absence of GB2. However the underlying mechanisms remain poorly characterized. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here, by using cells overexpressing a GB1 mutant (GB1asa) with the ability to translocate to the cell surface in the absence of GB2, we show that GABA(B) receptor agonists, such as GABA and Baclofen, can induce ERK1/2 phosphorylation in the absence of GB2. Furthermore, we demonstrate that GB1asa induces ERK1/2 phosphorylation through Gi/o proteins and PLC dependent IGF-1R transactivation. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our data suggest that GB1 may form a functional receptor at the cell surface in the absence of GB2.

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is responsible for approximately 20,000 deaths per year in the United States. Most of the deaths are due to the metastases. To develop more effective strategies for the prevention of metastasis of HNSCC cells, we have determined the effect of grape seed proanthocyanidins (GSPs) on the invasive potential of HNSCC cell and the mechanisms underlying these effects using OSC19 cells as an in vitro model. Using cell invasion assays, we established that treatment of the OSC19 cells with GSPs resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of cell invasion. EGFR is over-expressed in 90% of HNSCCs and the EGFR inhibitors, erlotinib and gefitinib, are being explored as therapies for this disease. We found that GSPs treatment reduced the levels of expression of EGFR in the OSC19 cells as well as reducing the activation of NF-κB/p65, a downstream target of EGFR, and the expression of NF-κB-responsive proteins. GSPs treatment also reduced the activity of ERK1/2, an upstream regulator of NF-κB and treatment of the cells with caffeic acid phenethyl ester, an inhibitor of NF-κB, inhibited cell invasion. Overexpression of EGFR and high NF-κB activity play a key role in the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, which is of critical importance in the processes underlying metastasis, and we found treatment with GSPs enhanced the levels of epithelial (E-cadherin, cytokeratins and desmoglein-2) and reduced the levels of mesenchymal (vimentin, fibronectin, N-cadherin and Slug) biomarkers in the OSC19 cells. These results indicate that GSPs have the ability to inhibit HNSCC cell invasion, and do so by targeting the expression of EGFR and activation of NF-κB as well as inhibiting the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition.

BACKGROUND: A number of published randomized controlled trials have been conducted to evaluate visual performance of blue light-filtering intraocular lenses (IOL) and UV light-filtering intraocular lenses (IOL) after cataract phacoemulsification surgery. However, results have not always been consistent. Therefore, we carried out a meta-analysis to compare the effectiveness of blue light-filtering IOLs versus UV light-filtering IOLs in cataract surgery. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Comprehensive searches of PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and the Chinese BioMedical literature databases were performed using web-based search engines. Fifteen trials (1690 eyes) were included for systematic review, and 11 of 15 studies were included in this meta-analysis. The results showed that there were no significant differences in postoperative mean best corrected visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, overall color vision, or in the blue light spectrum under photopic light conditions between blue light-filtering IOLs and UV light-filtering IOLs [WMD = -0.01, 95%CI (-0.03, 0.01), P = 0.46; WMD = 0.07, 95%CI (-0.04, 0.19), P = 0.20; SMD = 0.14, 95%CI (-0.33, 0.60), P = 0.566; SMD = 0.20, 95%CI (-0.04, 0.43), P = 0.099]. However, color vision with blue light-filtering IOLs was significantly reduced in the blue light spectrum under mesopic light conditions [SMD = 0.74, 95%CI (0.29, 1.18), P = 0.001]. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis demonstrates that postoperative visual performance with blue light-filtering IOLs is approximately equal to that of UV light-filtering IOLs after cataract surgery, but color vision with blue light-filtering IOLs demonstrated some compromise in the blue light spectrum under mesopic light conditions.

Metastatic melanoma is a leading cause of death from skin diseases, and is often associated with activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. We have examined the inhibitory effect of silymarin, a plant flavanoid from Silybum marianum, on cell migration of metastasis-specific human melanoma cell lines (A375 and Hs294t) and assessed whether Wnt/β-catenin signaling is the target of silymarin. Using an in vitro invasion assay, we found that treatment of human melanoma cell lines with silymarin resulted in concentration-dependent inhibition of cell migration, which was associated with accumulation of cytosolic β-catenin, while reducing the nuclear accumulation of β-catenin (i.e., β-catenin inactivation) and reducing the levels of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) -2 and MMP-9 which are the down-stream targets of β-catenin. Silymarin enhanced: (i) the levels of casein kinase 1α, glycogen synthase kinase-3β and phosphorylated-β-catenin on critical residues Ser(45), Ser(33/37) and Thr(41), and (ii) the binding of β-transducin repeat-containing proteins (β-TrCP) with phospho forms of β-catenin in melanoma cells. These events play important roles in degradation or inactivation of β-catenin. To verify whether β-catenin is a potent molecular target of silymarin, the effect of silymarin was determined on β-catenin-activated (Mel 1241) and β-catenin-inactivated (Mel 1011) melanoma cells. Treatment of Mel 1241 cells with silymarin or FH535, an inhibitor of Wnt/β-catenin pathway, significantly inhibited cell migration of Mel 1241 cells, which was associated with the elevated levels of casein kinase 1α and glycogen synthase kinase-3β, and decreased accumulation of nuclear β-catenin and inhibition of MMP-2 and MMP-9 levels. However, this effect of silymarin and FH535 was not found in Mel 1011 melanoma cells. These results indicate for the first time that silymarin inhibits melanoma cell migration by targeting β-catenin signaling pathway.

Manipulation is an important issue for both developed and emerging stock markets. Many efforts have been made to detect manipulation in stock markets. However, it is still an open problem to identify the fraudulent traders, especially when they collude with each other. In this paper, we focus on the problem of identifying the anomalous traders using the transaction data of eight manipulated stocks and forty-four non-manipulated stocks during a one-year period. By analyzing the trading networks of stocks, we find that the trading networks of manipulated stocks exhibit significantly higher degree-strength correlation than the trading networks of non-manipulated stocks and the randomized trading networks. We further propose a method to detect anomalous traders of manipulated stocks based on statistical significance analysis of degree-strength correlation. Experimental results demonstrate that our method is effective at distinguishing the manipulated stocks from non-manipulated ones. Our method outperforms the traditional weight-threshold method at identifying the anomalous traders in manipulated stocks. More importantly, our method is difficult to be fooled by colluded traders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Functional GABAB receptor is believed to require hetero-dimerization between GABAB1 (GB1) and GABAB2 (GB2) subunits. The GB1 extracellular domain is required for ligand binding, and the GB2 trans-membrane domain is responsible for coupling to G proteins. Atypical GABAB receptor responses observed in GB2-deficient mice suggested that GB1 may have activity in the absence of GB2. However the underlying mechanisms remain poorly characterized. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here, by using cells overexpressing a GB1 mutant (GB1asa) with the ability to translocate to the cell surface in the absence of GB2, we show that GABAB receptor agonists, such as GABA and Baclofen, can induce ERK1/2 phosphorylation in the absence of GB2. Furthermore, we demonstrate that GB1asa induces ERK1/2 phosphorylation through Gi/o proteins and PLC dependent IGF-1R transactivation. Conclusions/Significance: Our data suggest that GB1 may form a functional receptor at the cell surface in the absence of GB2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Risk prediction is one of the important issues that draws much attention from academia and industry. And the fluctuation—absolute value of the change of price, is one of the indexes of risk. In this paper, we focus on the relationship between fluctuation and order volume. Based on the observation that the price would move when the volume of order changes, the prediction of price fluctuation can be converted into the prediction of order volume. Modelling the trader’s behaviours—order placement and order cancellation, we propose an order-based fluctuation prediction model. And our model outperforms better than baseline in OKCoin and BTC-e datasets.

Recent experimental studies indicated that a periodontitis-causing bacterium might be a causal factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD). We applied a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach to examine the potential causal relationship between chronic periodontitis and AD bidirectionally in the population of European ancestry. We used publicly available data of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) on periodontitis and AD. Five single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were used as instrumental variables for periodontitis. For the MR analysis of periodontitis on risk of AD, the causal odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were derived from the GWAS of periodontitis (4,924 cases vs. 7,301 controls) and from the GWAS of AD (21,982 cases vs. 41,944 controls). Seven non-overlapping SNPs from another latest GWAS of periodontitis was used to validate the above association. Twenty SNPs were used as instrumental variables for AD. For the MR analysis of liability to AD on risk of periodontitis, the causal OR was derived from the GWAS of AD including 30,344 cases and 52,427 controls and from the GWAS of periodontitis consisted of 12,289 cases and 22,326 controls. We employed multiple methods of MR. Using the five SNPs as instruments of periodontitis, there was suggestive evidence of genetically predicted periodontitis being associated with a higher risk of AD (OR 1.10, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.19, P = 0.02). However, this association was not verified using the seven independent SNPs (OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.87 to 1.08, P = 0.59). There was no association of genetically predicted AD with the risk of periodontitis (OR 1.00, 95% CI 0.96 to 1.04, P = 0.85). In summary, we did not find convincing evidence to support periodontitis being a causal factor for the development of AD. There was also limited evidence to suggest genetic liability to AD being associated with the risk of periodontitis.

Background/aimTo use liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) to identify endogenous differential metabolites in the urine of rats with chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG).Materials and methodsMethylnitronitrosoguanidine (MNNG) was used to produce a CAG model in Wistar rats, and HE staining was used to determine the pathological model. LC-MS was used to detect the differential metabolic profiles in rat urine. Diversified analysis was performed by the statistical method.ResultsCompared with the control group, the model group had 68 differential metabolites, 25 that were upregulated and 43 that were downregulated. The main metabolic pathways were D-glutamine and D-glutamic acid metabolism, histidine metabolism and purine metabolism.ConclusionBy searching for differential metabolites and metabolic pathways in the urine of CAG rats, this study provides effective experimental data for the pathogenesis and clinical diagnosis of CAG.

The Bitcoin market becomes the focus of the economic market since its birth, and it has attracted wide attention from both academia and industry. Due to the absence of regulations in the Bitcoin market, it may be easier to bring some kinds of illegal behaviors. Thus, it raises an interesting question: Is there abnormity or illegal behavior in Bitcoin platforms? To answer this question, we investigate the abnormity in five leading Bitcoin platforms. By analyzing the financial index, i.e. the normalized logarithmic price return, we find that the properties of price return in bitFlyer are completely different from others. To find the possible reasons, we find that the abnormal ask price and bid price appear simultaneously in bitFlyer, which may be potentially linked to either price manipulation or money laundering. It verifies our conjecture that there may be abnormity or price manipulation in Bitcoin platforms. Furthermore, our findings in price return could also provide an innovative and effective method to detect the abnormity in Bitcoin platforms.