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Mineralogy and separation experiments were carried out for a low-grade linnaeite ore (0.052%), which belonged to limonite-hematite-pyrite type complex mineral. Under the grinding fineness of 80% -0.074 mm, linnaeite concentrate which contained cobalt grade of 0.51%, recovery rate of 80.99%, sulfur grade of 23.79%, recovery of 88.03% was obtained by closed-circuit processes of one roughing, two scaenging and one cleaning, which used sulfate acid (4500 g/t) and copper sulfate (300 g/t) as activator, so-dium silicate (1000 g/t) and CMC (30 g/t) as inhibitor, ethyl xanthate（100 g/t）and butyl xanthate (100 g/t) as collector, 2# oil (40 g/t) as forther in roughing, no agent in cleaing and first scavenging, used ethyl xan-thate（50 g/t）and butyl xanthate (50 g/t) as collector, 2# oil (20 g/t) as forther in second scavenging.

TMDs based heterostructure have drawn much attention for its potential application in photoelectric devices benefiting from the rapid and effective carrier separation and ultra-long interlayer exciton lifetime. Recent studies on carrier dynamics of TMDs based heterostructures are mainly focused on the transfer process of photo-generated carriers across the interface and lifetime of interlayer exciton but little attention is paid on the dynamics of hot carriers. Here, the carrier dynamics of hot carriers in MoS2/WS2 heterostructure is investigated by transient absorption spectra. Rapid separation of electron and hole is observed. More importantly, hot carriers of C exciton, which contribute to the absorption of most of the visible light, could compensate for the carrier loss in the band edge exciton energy band through the intervalley transfer process. This re-injection process of hot carriers of C exciton could compensate for carrier depletion in photoelectric devices, thus may greatly improve the light utilization in optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pinched P–E hysteresis loops have been observed in filled tungsten bronze Ba4Eu2Ti4Nb6O30, indicating the presence of novel polarization mechanisms. We investigate the evolution of polar order in filled tungsten bronze Ba4Eu2Ti4Nb6O30, together with its dielectric properties over a wide temperature range, from 50 K to 773 K. The temperature dependences of the dielectric properties exhibit two low-temperature dielectric relaxations, at around 300 K (P1), and 100 K (P2), and a high temperature peak at 588 K with no frequency dispersion, indicating the ferroelectric transition temperature Tc. Pinched P–E loops are observed in the temperature range between the low temperature relaxation at P1, and the ferroelectric transition. On cooling, the pinched P–E hysteresis loops open gradually, with increasing remnant polarization (Pr). Two pairs of reversal electric fields indicate two types of polar reversal mechanisms, with an activated energy of 1.41 eV (E1), and 0.94 eV (E2), respectively. One corresponds to the field-induced transition from a nonpolar to a polar state, which dominates at a high temperature close to Tc, while the other relates to the reversal of ferroelectric domains which stabilize gradually on cooling. At temperatures below 300 K, the polarization exhibits an evident decrease, probably related to the disruption of the polar order due to the dielectric relaxation at P1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CD137-targeting immune therapy, which activates anti-tumor T effector cell responses, seems to be an attractive concept in clinical oncology. Recent evidence has demonstrated that tumor cells besides T cells and antigen-presenting cells are able to express CD137 and CD137L. Here we aimed to identify CD137/CD137L expression in established colon cancer cell lines and primary tumors (UICC stages I-IV) from patients with documented long-term follow-up. CD137/CD137L expression was highly upregulated in early to late-stage tumors while the inverse was observed in patient-derived peripheral blood mononuclear cells. High CD137L expression within primary tumors was mediated by tumor cells and significantly correlated with the occurrence of distant metastases and shortened survival in advanced stages of disease (UICC stage IV). Interestingly, induced tumor cell signaling via CD137L on its surface in vitro resulted in dual effects: (i) reduced tumor cell proliferation suggesting inhibitory signaling in all investigated cancers and (ii) increased epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition signaling events. Taken together CD137/CD137L expression was stage-dependently upregulated with shortened survival in patients with highly CD137L-expressing tumors. Our clinical and experimental data suggest that colon cancer cells predominantly express CD137L and thereby have negative impact on overall survival through a process of reverse signaling. Beside agonistic CD137 antibody therapy to foster T effector cell responses, CD137L-mediated intervention strategies may become instrumental to circumvent relapsed tumor growth through induced epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and consecutive metastases formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we discuss our most recent results on the optimal L2 extension problem and Siu’s lemma as applications of the strong openness property of multiplier ideal sheaves obtained by Guan and Zhou. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLSs) play a crucial role in RA through producing inflammatory cytokines and proteases which could cause cartilage destruction. We showed previously that elevated expression of tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) in RA synovium correlated significantly with the severity of synovitis and the number of infiltrated inflammatory cells. The aims of this study are to detect the roles of TRAF6 in RA-FLSs. Methods Synovium were collected by closed needle biopsy from inflamed knees of active RA patients, and FLSs were isolated by modified tissue culture method. Expression of TRAF6 and CD55 in RA synivium was tested by double immunofluorescence (IF) staining. TRAF6 in RA-FLSs was inhibited using Lentiviral-TRAF6-shRNA transfection. Real-time PCR and ELISA were used to detect the mRNA expression and secretion of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) and pro-inflammatory cytokines. Cell Counting Kit-8 was used to detect cell proliferation, flow cytometry was used to detect cell cycle, and Annexin V assay was used to detect cell apoptosis. Results We showed that in the intimal and subintimal area of RA synovium, TRAF6 was expressed obviously not only in CD55+ cells, but also in some other CD55− cells. TRAF6 expression in RA-FLSs was suppressed effectively by Lentiviral-TRAF6-shRNA transfection. Inhibition of TRAF6 in RA-FLSs mitigated the mRNA levels and secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines and MMPs, such as IL-1β, IL-8, IL-6, TNF-α, MMP-13, and MMP-3. In addition, it decreased the proliferation of RA-FLSs, blocked RA-FLSs in G0/G1-phase, and inhibited the cells to go into S-phase and G2/M-phase, but not facilitated apoptosis of RA-FLSs. Conclusion TRAF6 plays direct roles in the pro-inflammatory effects and proliferation of RA-FLSs. TRAF6 may serve as a potential treatment target in RA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: With customized CFD commercial code FLUENT software, the numerical simulation of the argon flow field of inductively coupled plasma spheroidization system was performed by using κ–ε turbulent model and PISO pressure–velocity coupling algorithm. The injected TiAl alloy powder particle trajectories were simulated by using dispersed particle group trajectory model (DPM), and after passing through the argon flow field the particle collection rates of the powders with different particle sizes were predicted. The results show that the simulation values of the powder collection rates and granulometric parameters of the spheroidized powders are close to the experimental data, which indicates the numerical simulation of the argon flow field and injected TiAl alloy powder particle trajectories of inductively coupled plasma spheroidization system is reliable. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

T-2 toxin is mainly produced by Fusarium species, which is an extremely toxic mycotoxin to humans and animals. It is well known that T-2 toxin induces oxidative stress, but the molecular mechanism is still unknown. In this study, we found that T-2 toxin significantly promoted reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation in MCF-7 cells at low doses which maintains cell viability at least 80%. Further analysis showed that T-2 toxin downregulated the expression of the master regulator of antioxidant defense gene, nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor (Nrf2), and its targeted antioxidant genes. Overexpression of Nrf2 or its target gene heme oxygenase 1 (HO1) significantly blocked the ROS accumulation in MCF-7 cells under T-2 toxin treatment. Moreover, we found that T-2 toxin downregulated the antioxidant genes via inducing the expression of ATF3ΔZip2a/2b. Importantly, overexpression of ATF3ΔZip2a/2b promoted the ubiquitination and degradation of Nrf2. Altogether, our results demonstrated that T-2 toxin-induced ROS accumulation via ATF3ΔZip2a/2b mediated ubiquitination and degradation of Nrf2, which provided a new insight into the mechanism of T-2 toxin-induced oxidative stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Myocardial bridging of a coronary artery has been noted in 0.5% to 1.6% of arteriograms but the clinical significance is controversial. We reviewed retrospectively 761 consecutive coronary arteriograms performed in the Chinese PLA General Hospital from 1986 to 1996. Myocardial bridging of a coronary artery was noted in 12 cases (1.5%), located exclusively in the left anterior descending coronary artery and isolated without fixed coronary artery stenosis. The bridges ranged in length from 10 to 50mm (mean 24 mm) and were classified as grade 1 (8% of cases), grade 2 (25%) and grade 3 (67%). All patients were hospitalized because of angina. Eight (67%) of the 12 patients suffered from anterioapical dyskinesia including 2 who had acute myocardial infarction with a left ventricular aneurysm. Three patients (25%) with a small posterior descending coronary artery died. In our view, when there is a hyperdominant left anterior descending coronary artery with a small posterior descending artery and a myocardial bridge, the patient appears to be in jeopardy and myocardial bridging can no longer be considered a benign coronary anomaly, especially when there is grade 3 narrowing of the left anterior descending coronary artery during systole. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Micro-fine high Nb containing TiAl alloyed powders were prepared by using fluidized bed jet milling from the pre-crushed Ti–45Al–8.5Nb–0.2W–0.2B–0.02Y(at.%) ingot. The effects of process parameters on the powder characteristics were investigated. The results show that the particle characteristics are mainly determined by classifier frequency. At or above 5600rpm, the ground powders are composed of coarse block-shaped particles and finer flaky debris, with particle number-average diameter lower than 18μm. With the increase of classifier frequency and the decrease of grinding gas pressure, the amount of flaky debris formed under abrasion mechanism gradually increases, which causes the obvious decrease of the powder number-average diameter, distribution uniformity, and sphericity degree. With the classifier frequency of 8400rpm and grinding gas pressure of 0.55MPa, the obtained powders possess the minimum particle size of 5.32μm, with a uniformity level of 0.38 and a Wadell's sphericity factor of 0.820. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] • Aging in soil lead the surface of PS-MP being wrapped by soil particles. • The wrapping effects of soil particles induced the formation of protective layer. • Protective layer increased the particle size of PS-MP and decreased its ingestion. • The aging of PS-MP in the soil decreased its toxicity to earthworms. The recent discovery of microplastics contaminants in most ecosystems has raised major health issues, yet knowledge on their impact on soil organisms is limited, especially their toxicity evolution with aging. Herein, the toxicity of polystyrene microplastic (PS-MP) to earthworm (Eisenia fetida) along with aging was investigated. Results showed that the 28 d-LC 50 (50% lethal concentration) of PS-MP was 25.67 g kg−1, whereas that increased to 96.47 g kg−1 after PS-MP initially aged in soil for 28 days, indicating the toxicity of PS-MP decreased with aging. Laser scanning confocal microscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM) found that the toxicity of PS-MP to earthworm may be due to the ingestion of PS-MP by earthworms and the physical damage (e.g., epidermis abrasion and setae loss) of PS-MP to earthworms. Similarly, the levels of reactive oxygen species, antioxidant enzyme activities and malondialdehyde content increased with PS-MP concentrations from 0.1 to 1.5 g kg−1, but decreased with aging from 7 to 28 days. The integrated biomarker response index also confirmed that the toxicity of PS-MP decreased with aging. SEM found that PS-MP were progressively covered by soil particles during soil aging, inducing the formation of protective layer and increasing the particle size of PS-MP, which prevented direct contact with earthworms and decreased the ingestion of PS-MP, in turn decreased PS-MP toxicity. Overall, our study provides valuable insights for elucidating the effect of aging on the toxicity of microplastics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xylose is the second most abundant sugar in lignocellulose, but it cannot be used as carbon source by budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae . Rational promoter elements engineering approaches were taken for efficient xylose fermentation in budding yeast. Among promoters surveyed, HXT7 exhibited the best performance. The HXT7 promoter is suppressed in the presence of glucose and derepressed by xylose, making it a promising candidate to drive xylose metabolism. However, simple ectopic expression of both key xylose metabolic genes XYL1 and XYL2 by the HXT7 promoter resulted in massive accumulation of the xylose metabolic byproduct xylitol. Through the HXT7 -driven expression of a reported redox variant, XYL1-K270R , along with optimized expression of XYL2 and the downstream pentose phosphate pathway genes, a balanced xylose metabolism toward ethanol formation was achieved. Fermented in a culture medium containing 50 g/L xylose as the sole carbon source, xylose is nearly consumed, with less than 3 g/L xylitol, and more than 16 g/L ethanol production. Hence, the combination of an inducible promoter and redox balance of the xylose utilization pathway is an attractive approach to optimizing fuel production from lignocellulose., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Zhu, Zhang, Zhu, Jia, Li, Xiao and Cao.)

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has resulted in an unprecedented public health crisis. Because of the novelty of the virus, there are currently no SARS-CoV-2-specific treatments or vaccines available. Therefore, rapid development of effective vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 are urgently needed. Here, we developed a pilot-scale production of PiCoVacc, a purified inactivated SARS-CoV-2 virus vaccine candidate, which induced SARS-CoV-2-specific neutralizing antibodies in mice, rats, and nonhuman primates. These antibodies neutralized 10 representative SARS-CoV-2 strains, suggesting a possible broader neutralizing ability against other strains. Three immunizations using two different doses, 3 or 6 micrograms per dose, provided partial or complete protection in macaques against SARS-CoV-2 challenge, respectively, without observable antibody-dependent enhancement of infection. These data support the clinical development and testing of PiCoVacc for use in humans., (Copyright © 2020, American Association for the Advancement of Science.)

Background: Using DNA microarrays, we previously identified 451 genes expressed in 19 different human tissues. Although ubiquitously expressed, the variable expression patterns of these "housekeeping genes" (HKGs) could separate one normal human tissue type from another. Current focus on identifying "specific disease markers" is problematic as single gene expression in a given sample represents the specific cellular states of the sample at the time of collection. In this study, we examine the diagnostic and prognostic potential of the variable expressions of HKGs in lung cancers., Methods: Microarray and RNA-seq data for normal lungs, lung adenocarcinomas (AD), squamous cell carcinomas of the lung (SQCLC), and small cell carcinomas of the lung (SCLC) were collected from online databases. Using 374 of 451 HKGs, differentially expressed genes between pairs of sample types were determined via two-sided, homoscedastic t -test. Principal component analysis and hierarchical clustering classified normal lung and lung cancers subtypes according to relative gene expression variations. We used uni- and multi-variate cox-regressions to identify significant predictors of overall survival in AD patients. Classifying genes were selected using a set of training samples and then validated using an independent test set. Gene Ontology was examined by PANTHER., Results: This study showed that the differential expression patterns of 242, 245, and 99 HKGs were able to distinguish normal lung from AD, SCLC, and SQCLC, respectively. From these, 70 HKGs were common across the three lung cancer subtypes. These HKGs have low expression variation compared to current lung cancer markers (e.g., EGFR, KRAS) and were involved in the most common biological processes (e.g., metabolism, stress response). In addition, the expression pattern of 106 HKGs alone was a significant classifier of AD versus SQCLC. We further highlighted that a panel of 13 HKGs was an independent predictor of overall survival and cumulative risk in AD patients., Discussion: Here we report HKG expression patterns may be an effective tool for evaluation of lung cancer states. For example, the differential expression pattern of 70 HKGs alone can separate normal lung tissue from various lung cancers while a panel of 106 HKGs was a capable class predictor of subtypes of non-small cell carcinomas. We also reported that HKGs have significantly lower variance compared to traditional cancer markers across samples, highlighting the robustness of a panel of genes over any one specific biomarker. Using RNA-seq data, we showed that the expression pattern of 13 HKGs is a significant, independent predictor of overall survival for AD patients. This reinforces the predictive power of a HKG panel across different gene expression measurement platforms. Thus, we propose the expression patterns of HKGs alone may be sufficient for the diagnosis and prognosis of individuals with lung cancer., Competing Interests: The authors declare there are no competing interests.

An aerobic, asporous, flagellated, Gram-stain-positive, rod-shaped bacterium MD-T1-10-2(T) was isolated from the topsoil of Midui Glacier, Tibet Province, China. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis placed the strain in a clade containing Mycetocola manganoxydans CCTCC AB 209002(T), Mycetocola reblochoni DSM 18580(T), Mycetocola tolaasinivorans JCM 11656(T), Mycetocola lacteus JCM 11654(T) and Mycetocola saprophilus JCM 11655(T), with the sequence similarities of 99.2, 98.1, 96.7, 96.6 and 96.4 %, respectively. DNA-DNA hybridization analysis indicated that strain MD-T1-10-2(T) represented a new member of this genus. The optimal ranges of temperature and pH for growth were 20-25 °C and 7.0-9.0, respectively; the strain could even grow at 0 °C. The major cellular fatty acids were anteiso-C15 : 0, iso-C16 : 0 and anteiso-C17 : 0. The predominant menaquinones were MK-10 and MK-11. The cell wall amino acids were lysine, alanine, glycine and glutamic acids. The DNA G+C content was 65.9 mol%. Based on the genotypic and phenotypic data, strain MD-T1-10-2(T) for which the name Mycetocola miduiensis sp. nov. is proposed; the type strain is MD-T1-10-2(T) ( = CGMCC 1.11101(T) = NBRC 107877(T)).

A non-motile, Gram-stain-negative bacterium, designated R-HLS-17(T), was isolated from the meltwater of Hailuogou Glacier located in Sichuan province, south-west China. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that the isolate belonged to the genus Flavobacterium, with the closest relatives being Flavobacterium antarcticum JCM 12383(T) (95.5% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity), F. omnivorum JCM 11313(T) (95.0%) and F. fryxellicola LMG 22022(T) (95.2%). Growth occurred at 0-29 °C (optimum, 10-20 °C) and pH 6.0-8.5 (optimum, 7.0-8.0). The DNA G+C content was 46.5 mol%. The major cellular fatty acids were iso-C15:0, iso-C15:1 G, summed feature 9 (comprising iso-C17:1ω9c and/or 10-methyl C16:0), iso-C17:0 3-OH and iso-C15:0 3-OH. The predominant menaquinone was MK-6. Based on the genotypic and phenotypic characteristics, we propose that strain R-HLS-17(T) represents a novel species of the genus Flavobacterium, Flavobacterium noncentrifugens sp. nov. The type strain is R-HLS-17(T) (=CGMCC 1.10076(T)=NBRC 108844(T)).

Introduction: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease leading to joint destruction and disability. Focal bone erosion is due to excess bone resorption of osteoclasts. Tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) is one of the critical mediators both in inflammatory signal pathway and differentiation and resorption activity of osteoclasts. Here we aimed to investigate TRAF6 expression in RA synovium and its correlation with histological synovitis severity and radiological joint destruction in RA., Methods: Synovitis score was determined in needle biopsied synovium from 44 patients with active RA. Synovium from nine patients with osteoarthritis (OA) and seven with orthopedic arthropathies (Orth.A) were enrolled as "less inflamed" disease controls. Serial sections were stained immunohistochemically for TRAF6 as well as CD68 (macrophage), CD3 (T cell), CD20 (B cell), CD38 (plasmocyte), CD79a (B lineage cells from pre-B cell to plasmocyte stage), and CD34 (endothelial cell). Double immunofluorescence staining of TRAF6 and CD68 were tested. Densities of positive staining cells were determined and correlated with histological disease activity (synovitis score) and radiographic joint destruction (Sharp score)., Results: TRAF6 expression was found in the intimal and subintimal area of RA synovium, with intense staining found in the endochylema and nucleus of intimal synoviocytes and subintimal inflammatory cells. Double immunofluorescence staining showed TRAF6 was expressed in most of the intimal cells and obviously expressed in CD68+ cells and some other CD68- cells in subintimal area. Synovial TRAF6 was significantly over-expressed in the RA group compared with the OA and Orth.A group (2.53 ± 0.94 vs. 0.72 ± 0.44 and 0.71 ± 0.49, P < 0.0001). Synovial TRAF6 expression in RA correlated significantly with synovitis score (r = 0.412, P = 0.006), as well as the inflammatory cell infiltration (r = 0.367, P = 0.014). Significant correlation was detected between synovial TRAF6 expression and intimal CD68+ cells, as well as the cell density of subintimal CD68+ cells, CD3+ cells, CD20+ cells, CD38+ cells, and CD79a+ cells (all P < 0.05)., Conclusions: Elevated synovial TRAF6 expression correlated with synovitis severity and CD68+ cell density in RA. It is, therefore, hypothesized that synovial TRAF6 is involved in the pathogenesis of synovial inflammation and osteoclast differentiation in RA.

Objective: The efficacy of B cell depletion in the treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has revitalized interest in the pathogenic role(s) of B cells in RA. We evaluated the distribution of synovial B lineage cells and their correlation with histologic disease activity and joint destruction in RA., Methods: Synovial tissue samples were obtained by closed-needle biopsy from 69 Chinese patients with active RA, from 14 patients with osteoarthritis (OA), and from 15 with orthopedic arthropathies (OrthA) as disease controls. Serial tissue sections were stained immunohistochemically for CD79a (pro-B cell to plasma cell), CD20 (B cells), CD38 (plasma cells), CD21 (follicular dendritic cells), CD68 (macrophages), CD3 (T cells), and CD34 (endothelial cells). Densities of positive-staining cells were determined and correlated with histologic disease activity (Krenn 3-component synovitis score) and radiographic joint destruction (Sharp score)., Results: Mean sublining CD79a-positive cell density was significantly higher in RA than in OA (p <0.001) or OrthA (p = 0.003). Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that CD79a-positive cell density differentiated RA well from OA [area under the curve (AUC) = 0.79] or OrthA (AUC = 0.75). Spearman's rank order correlation showed significant correlations between sublining CD79a-positive cell density and the synovitis score (r = 0.714, p < 0.001), total Sharp score (r = 0.490, p < 0.001), and the erosion subscore (r = 0.545, p < 0.001), as well as the joint space narrowing subscore (r = 0.468, p = 0.001) in RA., Conclusion: Synovial CD79a-positive B cells may be a helpful biomarker for histologic disease activity in RA and may be involved in the pathogenesis of joint destruction in RA.

Objective: To determine serum glucose-6-phosphate isomerase (GPI) concentrations in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and to test whether they correlate with objective measures of disease activity., Methods: Sera from 116 patients with RA, 69 patients with non-RA rheumatic diseases, and 101 healthy controls were analyzed. Levels of soluble serum GPI were measured by ELISA. Histological disease activity was determined with the synovitis score in synovial needle biopsies from 58 of the 116 patients with RA. Thirty-one of the 58 synovium samples were stained for CD68, CD3, CD20, CD38, CD79a, and CD34 by immunohistochemistry. Demographic data were collected, as well as serological and clinical variables that indicate RA disease activity, for Spearman correlation analysis., Results: Serum GPI level correlated positively with the synovitis score (r = 0.278, p = 0.034). Significantly higher soluble GPI levels were detected in the RA sera compared with sera from healthy controls and the non-RA disease controls (2.25 ± 2.82 vs 0.03 ± 0.05 and 0.19 ± 0.57 μg/ml, respectively; p < 0.0001). The rate of serum GPI positivity was significantly higher in the RA patients than in the non-RA disease controls (64.7% vs 10.1%; p < 0.0001). Spearman analysis showed no significant correlation between serum GPI level and Disease Activity Score in 28 joints at baseline. After initiation of antirheumatic treatments, GPI levels decreased significantly (2.81 ± 3.12 vs 1.44 ± 2.09 μg/ml; p = 0.016), paralleling improvement of the disease activity indices., Conclusion: Elevated serum GPI may be involved in the synovitis of RA and may prove useful as a serum marker for disease activity of RA.