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A porous Cu2O/TiO2 hybrid photocatalyst with n-type Cu2O decorated on the mesoporous TiO2 derived from MIL-125 was designed through the in situ Cu2+ ion reduction strategy. Under UV-vis light irradiation, the Cu2O/TiO2 composite with 4.2 wt% of Cu2O displayed the highest hydrogen evolution rate of 14.39 mmol h−1 g−1, which was about 9.6 and 24.8 times that of the original mesoporous TiO2 and pure Cu2O, respectively. The enhancement in photocatalytic activity can be mainly attributed to the type-I band structure formed, which can efficiently enhance the photoexcited charge carrier mobility across the phase interfaces of the Cu2O/TiO2 composite, as evidenced by the UV-DRS spectra, Mott–Schottky curves, and XPS analysis. Besides, the narrow band gap of Cu2O, conducive to the absorption of visible light, and the high specific surface of TiO2 were also found to contribute to the photoactivity enhancement. This work will provide a new perspective for the study of type-I photocatalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study on the genetic polymorphisms of 29 Y-STR loci in 1 532 unrelated males of Han population in Southern Jiangxi province and its genetic relationship with other ethnic groups in China was conducted. The Y-STR loci were amplified by DNATyper™ Y29 kit, and capillary electrophoresis was carried out by 3730 genetic analyzer. Y-STR typing was carried out by GeneMapper IDX 1.4 software, and genetic data such as allele frequency and haplotype frequency of 29 Y-STR loci were calculated. Mega-X was used to construct the phylogenetic trees for the selected populations. The molecular variance analysis (AMO- VA) of YHRD online tool software was used to calculate the genetic distance between Southern Jiangxi Han population and other populations, and at the same time to construct multi-dimensional scale map (MDS). After analysis, the gene diversity (GD) values of 29 Y-STR loci ranged from 0.381 5 to 0.876 6. In addition to DYS508, DYS437, DYS391 and DYS438 loci, the GD values of the other 25 gene loci were higher than 0.5. The haplotype diversity (HD) was 0.999 924, indicating that 29 Y-STR loci had high genetic polymorphism in Southern Jiangxi Han population. Compared with the Han population in other areas, the genetic distance between the Han population in Southern Jiangxi and Fujian was the closest (genetic distance Rst is 0.000 2), and that between the Han populations in Southern Jiangxi and Heilongjiang was the furthest (Rst is 0.024 9). Compared with other ethnic groups, the Han nationality in Southern Jiangxi had the closest genetic distance to the Bai nationality in Yunnan (Rst is 0.005 9), and the furthest genetic distance to the Tibetan nationality in Ganzi (Rst is 0.468 9). The results showed that the 29 Y-STR loci in this study have high genetic polymorphism in Southern Jiangxi Han population, which can meet the requirements of family investigation and forensic examination. The data obtained can provide data support for research and application of population of genetics and forensic science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes a low-thrust reconfiguration strategy for formation flying based on the Jordan normal form and evaluates its performance based on the required control acceleration and fuel cost. First, the relative dynamics of reconfiguration is disposed by Jordan decomposition to describe the unstable component, i.e., the drift velocity along the track direction, which is not explicit in eigenstructure. Next, the initial states of the Jordan-reduced dynamics are regarded as orbital invariants without control to characterize a formation configuration, similar to the definition of orbital elements that are invariants of the unperturbed Keplerian orbit. Based on the derived differential form of ISJD with control, the reconfiguration trajectory is parameterized by a functional integral, the existence of which is then proved analytically by the proposed polynomial series method. The specified optimal trajectories are yielded by the practical Radau pseudospectral method numerically. Finally, the effects of reconfiguring positions and relative orbital orientation on the required acceleration and fuel cost are investigated using a technique for order preference based on similarity to the ideal solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We in this paper investigate the spin squeezing in relation with the phase transition from the normal to superradiant phases for two atoms in an optical cavity. The squeezing vanishes in the normal phase and jumps sharply to the maximum bound above the critical point of phase transition. In the high atom-field coupling regime, the squeezing vanishes again when the atom-field coupling reaches a threshold value. The squeezing alternates between two spin components in the intermediate region of atom-field coupling. An interesting observation is that the two spin components are squeezed alternately with the variation of phase angle of the cavity field. The squeezing factor indeed can be used to probe the phase transition and coherent-field properties as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study in the present paper the multiple stable states of two different atoms in a single-mode quantum cavity by means of variational method. Eigenenergies and eigenstates are obtained analytically in the optical coherent state of cavity field. The ground state displays the known Dicke phase transition from the normal to superradiant phases at the critical value of atom–field coupling. The rich phase diagrams including the stable excited states are presented respectively for two atoms with different level spaces and atom–field couplings. By adjusting the ratios of two-atom couplings or level spaces, one atom can be in the normally populated state, while the other is in the inversely populated state. We also observe the stimulated radiation from the inversely populated state. Particularly, the normal and stimulated radiations are interchangeable respectively for two atoms. Moreover, the maximally entangled state can be generated with two identical atoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fully convolutional networks were developed for predicting optimal dose distributions for patients with left-sided breast cancer and compared the prediction accuracy between two-dimensional and three-dimensional networks. Sixty cases treated with volumetric modulated arc radiotherapy were analyzed. Among them, 50 cases were randomly chosen to conform the training set, and the remaining 10 were to construct the test set. Two U-Net fully convolutional networks predicted the dose distributions, with two-dimensional and three-dimensional convolution kernels, respectively. Computed tomography images, delineated regions of interest, or their combination were considered as input data. The accuracy of predicted results was evaluated against the clinical dose. Most types of input data retrieved a similar dose to the ground truth for organs at risk (p > 0.05). Overall, the two-dimensional model had higher performance than the three-dimensional model (p < 0.05). Moreover, the two-dimensional region of interest input provided the best prediction results regarding the planning target volume mean percentage difference (2.40 ± 0.18%), heart mean percentage difference (4.28 ± 2.02%), and the gamma index at 80% of the prescription dose are with tolerances of 3 mm and 3% (0.85 ± 0.03), whereas the two-dimensional combined input provided the best prediction regarding ipsilateral lung mean percentage difference (4.16 ± 1.48%), lung mean percentage difference (2.41 ± 0.95%), spinal cord mean percentage difference (0.67 ± 0.40%), and 80% Dice similarity coefficient (0.94 ± 0.01). Statistically, the two-dimensional combined inputs achieved higher prediction accuracy regarding 80% Dice similarity coefficient than the two-dimensional region of interest input (0.94 ± 0.01 vs 0.92 ± 0.01, p < 0.05). The two-dimensional data model retrieves higher performance than its three-dimensional counterpart for dose prediction, especially when using region of interest and combined inputs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have a therapeutic effect on diabetic nephropathy (DN) but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. This study was conducted to investigate whether human umbilical cord-MSCs (hUCMSCs) can induce oxidative damage and apoptosis by activating Nrf2. Methods: We used a type 2 diabetic rat model and a high-glucose and fat-stimulated human glomerular mesangial cell (hGMC) model. Western blotting, RT-qPCR, and TUNEL staining were performed on animal tissues and cultured cells. Nuclear expression of Nrf2 was detected in the renal tissue. Furthermore, Nrf2 siRNA was used to examine the effects of hUCMSCs on hGMCs. Finally, the effect of hUCMSCs on the Nrf2 upstream signalling pathway was investigated. Results: After treatment with hUCMSCs, Nrf2 showed increased expression and nuclear translocation. After Nrf2-specific knockout in hGMCs, the protective effect of hUCMSCs on apoptosis induced by high-glucose and fat conditions was reduced. Activation of the PI3K signalling pathway may be helpful for ameliorating DN using hUCMSCs. Conclusions: hUCMSCs attenuated renal oxidative damage and apoptosis in type 2 diabetes mellitus and Nrf2 activation is one of the important mechanisms of this effect. hUCMSCs show potential as drug targets for DN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The magnetized sintered NdFeB (MS-NdFeB) permanent magnet material is difficult to machine due to high hardness, brittleness, and magnetic force. In this paper, the electrical discharge machining (EDM) of the MS-NdFeB workpiece is studied to improve the machining process of the MS-NdFeB. In addition to the material removal rate (MRR) and the surface roughness (SR), the change rate of the magnetic flux density (MCR) for the MS-NdFeB is proposed and used as the research index of their machining effect by the EDM process. By orthogonal experiments, using the intuitive analysis method and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) method, study the influences of the peak current, the pulse on time, the pulse off time, and the magnetic field intensity of the processing area (MF) on the MRR, the SR, and the MCR. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) pictures of the machined MS-NdFeB surfaces are obtained based on the experimental design with a one-factor variation. The comparative experiment is performed to reveal the change of the MCR in EDM. The intuitive analysis of the orthogonal experimental result reveals regularities of influences. The ANOVA reveals the significance of influences. The regularities and significance of influences of machining parameters on the machining effects are analyzed assisted by the analysis on these SEM pictures and the comparative experimental results. The optimal combinations of machining parameters for MRR, SR, and MCR are obtained by single-objective optimization. The verification experiments prove the reliability of the single objective optimization results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In China, as the "gatekeepers"of rural residents' health, the primary-level village doctors, play a very crucial role in ensuring and serving the health level of rural residents. However, the burnout of village doctors is gravely threatening the stability of rural primary medical system step by step. This study systematically evaluated the effects of personality, work engagement and alexithymia on burnout of village doctors, and further measured and assessed the mediating effect of alexithymia and work engagement in the association between personality and burnout.Methods: The subjects were 2684 village doctors in Jining, Shandong Province, China, from May to June 2019. Sociodemographic characteristics, alexithymia, personality, work engagement and job burnout were quantitated by self-completed questionnaire and measured by Likert 5-7 scale. One-way ANOVA, Person correlation analysis, and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) were used for statistical analysis and mediating effect evaluation.Results: 2693 questionnaires were collected in total, of which 2684 were valid, with an effective rate of 96.2%. 65.2% of village doctors were diagnosed with burnout, and 54.3% showed moderate to severe emotional exhaustion, 61.6% showed moderate to severe low sense of personal achievement, and 33.9% showed moderate to severe depersonalization burnout. Personality had a direct positive effect on work engagement (β = 0.50, p < 0.001), a direct negative effect on alexithymia (β = - 0.52, p < 0.001) and burnout (β = - 0.50, p < 0.001) respectively. Work engagement had a direct negative effect on burnout (β = - 0.10, p < 0.001), while alexithymia had a direct positive effect on burnout (β = 0.16, p < 0.001). In the path between personality and burnout, both work engagement 95%CI:(- 0.17)-(- 0.08), and alexithymia 95%CI:(- 0.36)-(- 0.09), have significant mediating effects. These results strongly confirm that personality, alexithymia, and work engagement are early and powerful predicators of burnout.Conclusion: According to the results, medical administrators should pay attention to the personality characteristics of village doctors in vocational training, practice selection and job assignment, encourage village doctors to reflect on their own personality actively, and to reduce job burnout by obtaining necessary social support, constructing reasonable achievable career expectations, improving time management ability, and participating in psychological counselling programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the dynamic creation of two different geometric quantum discords (GQDs) defined, respectively, via the Hilbert–Schmidt norm (GQD-2) and trace norm (GQD-1) between the two qubits, which are prepared initially in a zero discord two-qubit X-shape state, and subject to a two layers environment that consists of a lossy cavity coupled to the W-coupled lossy cavities. We find that the GQD-2 and GQD-1 exhibit oscillatory behavior in the regime of the strong coupling between the qubit and first-layer cavity environment. And in both the weak and strong coupling regimes, for the greater the number of cavities in the second-layer environment, the GQDs reach their peak value in a larger time and go to zero more slowly. But in the qubit–cavity coupling, the coupling between two nearest neighbor cavities and the decay rate of cavities in the second-layer environment have the opposite effect on the GQDs. Furthermore, the maximum value of GQDs remains unchanged and the steady value increases, or they both decrease, depending on the threshold value of coupling between the two layers environment. Finally, we propose an effective strategy to improve the GQD-2 and GQD-1 by using local filtering operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

aimed to investigate the clinical significance and biological roles of Daam1 in human GC. Methods: Daam1 protein expression was examined in 124 cases of gastric adenocarcinomas using immunohistochemistry. Daam1 plasmid and siRNA transfection were carried out in SGC7901 and AGS cell lines. CCK-8, colony formation, Annexin V/PI, JC-1 staining, and Western blotting were used to explore the biological functions and potential underlying mechanisms of Daam1 in GC cells. Results: Our results showed that Daam1 was overexpressed in GC specimens. A high Daam1 level was associated with tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage, T status, nodal metastasis, and poor patient survival. Analysis of the Oncomine dataset revealed upregulation of Daam1 mRNA in GC tissues. Western blot showed that Daam1 protein expression was higher in GC cell lines compared to the normal GES-1 cell line. CCK-8 and colony formation assays showed that ectopic Daam1 expression upregulated the cell growth rate and colony number in SGC-7901 cells, while Daam1 siRNA knockdown downregulated the growth rate and colony number in AGS cells. CCK-8 and Annexin V/PI apoptosis assays demonstrated that Daam1 overexpression decreased cisplatin sensitivity and downregulated cisplatin-induced apoptosis. JC1 staining showed that Daam1 overexpression upregulated, while Daam1 depletion downregulated mitochondrial membrane potential. Mechanistically, Daam1 overexpression downregulated p21 and upregulated p-ERK and p-AKT. The increased proliferation rate and decreased cisplatin sensitivity/apoptosis induced by ectopic Daam1 were reversed after treatment with AKT and ERK inhibitors. Conclusion: Taken together, our results showed that Daam1 overexpression was associated with poor prognosis and promoted malignant activity via regulation of ERK and AKT pathways in GC cells, indicating Daam1 is a malignant biomarker and potential therapeutic target in GC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metastatic tumour recurrence caused by circulating tumour cells (CTCs) after surgery is responsible for more than 90% of tumour-related deaths. A postoperative evaluation system based on the long-term dynamic detection of CTCs helps in guiding the postoperative treatment of tumours in real time and preventing metastases and recurrence of tumours after treatment. In this study, a simple, rapid, and low-cost postoperative evaluation system was established based on the number of CTCs captured by a label-free acoustic separation device from whole blood samples of mice, of which breast tumours were surgically removed, and tumour metastasis was successfully predicted. First, an acoustofluidic device with a custom-designed bottom microcavity array was fabricated to induce highly localised acoustic microstreaming by applying acoustic vibration. Second, experiments of capturing 'defined' cells (artificially mixed individual 4T1 cancer cells into normal blood) based on optimal acoustic streaming were performed. The separation device exhibited a high capture efficiency (>96%). Further applications of capturing the 'true' CTCs derived from postoperative mice were successfully developed to predict tumour prognosis based on the number of captured CTCs. Finally, the prediction was verified through long-term observation of mice with excised tumours. The acoustofluidic device can efficiently capture CTCs and precisely predict tumour metastasis in a low-cost and non-invasive manner. This will help clinicians monitor patients that underwent surgical resection of tumours over a long period of time and facilitate optimal treatment strategies in a timely manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We described a novel sequencing technology that can explore complex intracellular processes at the single cell level. • The single-cell sequencing technology has been successfully applied in the field of cancer research. We described the latest development of this technique in the study of cancer pathogenesis and clinical application. • We have made a detailed classification and summary of the existing single-cell sequencing technologies. Tumor heterogeneity is a key characteristic of malignant tumors and a significant obstacle in cancer treatment and research. Although bulk tissue sequencing has wide coverage and high accuracy, it can only represent the dominant cell signal information of each sample, while masking the unique gene expression of rare cells; therefore it cannot represent genes that are unstable within a subgroup, but unchanged in a majority of cells. With the progress of genomic technology, the emergence of single-cell sequencing (SCS) has effectively solved the above problem. Genetic, transcriptomic and epigenetic sequencing at the single-cell level provides an important basis for us to correctly classify the cell subsets of heterogeneous tumor populations and to reveal the process of complex changes in tumor cells at the molecular level. Single-cell sequencing technology has been applied to the field of cancer, revealing exciting discoveries in the potential mechanisms of tumor driver gene mutation, clonal evolution, invasion and metastasis. It also provides favorable conditions for developing new tumor biomarkers and providing more accurate and individualized targeted tumor therapy. Herein, we review the steps and methods of single-cell sequencing and highlight the application of SCS in tumor diagnosis and clinical treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate students' awareness, usage and attitude towards e-books at the Zhejiang University in China. The research design was quantitative using a convenience sampling method and chi-square analyses were employed. Library staff responsible for digital resources collection had been interviewed. Results indicated that there was a significant difference of students' awareness and usage of general e-books and academic e-books. There was a higher awareness but lower adoption of general e-books. The awareness and level of usage of library provided e-books were both very low. A search engine was generally used to access e-books. Senior undergraduates and postgraduate students mainly accessed e-books from the library website and library catalog. Students, particularly undergraduate students, used e-books mainly for the purpose of leisure. In contrast, postgraduate students tended to use e-books more for academic purposes. The use of mobile devices and computers was preferred when reading e-books; but for academic e-books students preferred print part of them for reading. University students showed strong preference for printing books. Academic libraries should put more efforts on promotion, stimulating demands, and cooperation with teachers to improve e-books usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrochemical performance of supercapacitors drops precipitously at extreme low temperatures due to a multitude of reasons, which includes electrolyte freezing, sluggish ion transport in the electrode and electrolyte, and high charge transfer resistance at electrode–electrolyte interfaces. To address high interface resistance, a new supercapacitor architecture is reported, in which MXene/carbon nanotube electrodes with vertically aligned channels are synthesized to reduce tortuosity and maximize the electrode–electrolyte contact area. These electrodes are fabricated using a directional‐freezing strategy, generating direct and fast ion transport pathways. Further, a freeze‐resistant electrolyte which shows high ionic conductivity is synthesized by designing a double‐crosslinked polymer network in a binary solvent consisting of ionic liquid and water, which exhibits an ultralow freezing temperature of −54 °C. An all‐in‐one supercapacitor is assembled by an integrated polymerization strategy to minimize interfacial resistances. The resulting device delivers a specific capacitance of 231 F g−1 at 2 mV s−1 and a maximum energy density of 10.17 Wh kg−1, while maintaining a capacitance retention of 92%, even at an extreme low temperature of −50 °C. The supercapacitor architecture developed in this study, demonstrates the feasibility of electrochemical energy storage at extreme low temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through defect modulation, ZrB 2 powder was controllably synthesized using the carbon thermal reduction (CTR) method, with boron powder serving as a novel additive. Thermodynamic data for the ZrO 2 -B 2 O 3 -C system in the presence of boron were calculated using HSC thermodynamic software. Additionally, TG-DSC thermal analysis combined with XRD was used to investigate the reaction process. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to analyze the defect structure and grain surface characteristics of the reaction products. The results indicate that the reaction of B with ZrO 2 and C exothermically alters the nucleation environment of ZrB 2 grains. The helical dislocations generated act as a source of crystal growth steps, promoting the growth of smooth interfaces and leading to a transformation of the ZrB 2 grain growth mechanism. Quantitative calculations of the dislocation density of ZrB 2 powders, using the convolutional multiple whole profile fitting (CMWP-fit), suggest that the inclusion of boron as an additive can modulate the defect concentration of the products. ZrB 2 powders with varied dislocation densities were achieved through meticulously controlled synthesis methods, followed by subsequent densification via hot pressing sintering. The results indicated that the relative density of ZrB 2 ceramics increased from 83.9 % to 96.7 % as the dislocation density of the powder increased from 2.7 × 1013 m−2 to 7.6 × 1014 m−2 with the rise in boron content from 0 wt% to 3 wt%. In addition, the defects create extra sintering-driving forces that induce a shift in the densification mechanism from grain boundary diffusion to dislocation slip during hot-pressing sintering. This shift results in an increase in the apparent activation energy from 105 kJ/mol to 210 kJ/mol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vaginal microbiome plays an essential role in the reproductive health of human females. As infertility increases worldwide, understanding the roles that the vaginal microbiome may have in infertility and in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment outcomes is critical. To determine the vaginal microbiome composition of 1411 individuals (1255 undergoing embryo transplantation) and their associations with reproductive outcomes, clinical and biochemical features are measured, and vaginal samples are 16S rRNA sequenced. Our results suggest that both too high and too low abundance of Lactobacillus is not beneficial for pregnancy; a moderate abundance is more beneficial. A moderate abundance of Lactobacillus crispatus and Lactobacillus iners (~80%) (with a pregnancy rate of I‐B: 54.35% and III‐B: 57.73%) is found beneficial for pregnancy outcomes compared with a higher abundance (>90%) of Lactobacillus (I‐A: 44.81% and III‐A: 51.06%, respectively). The community state type (CST) IV‐B (contains a high to moderate relative abundance of Gardnerella vaginalis) shows a similar pregnant ratio (48.09%) with I‐A and III‐A, and the pregnant women in this CST have a higher abundance of Lactobacillus species. Metagenome analysis of 71 samples shows that nonpregnant women are detected with more antibiotic‐resistance genes, and Proteobacteria and Firmicutes are the main hosts. The inherent differences within and between women in different infertility groups suggest that vaginal microbes might be used to detect infertility and potentially improve IVF outcomes. Highlights: Pregnancy rates vary among women with different vaginal microbiome communities.Too high abundances of both Lactobacillus crispatus and Lactobacillus iners have negative effects on in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes.A moderate abundance (around 80%) of Lactobacillus is more beneficial for pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interleukin 10 (IL-10) is a synthetic inhibitor of human cytokines with immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects. This study was designed to investigate the expression variation of IL-10 in the multiple sites including cortex, hippocampus, and lung tissues of neonatal hypoxic-ischemic (HI) rats and explore the crucial role of IL-10 in alleviating HI brain damage. In this study, neonatal Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to the right common carotid artery ligation, followed by 2 h of hypoxia. The expression of IL-10 in the cortex, hippocampus, and lung tissues was measured with immunohistochemistry, real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), and western blot (WB). Immunofluorescence double staining was performed to observe the localization of IL-10 in neurons and astrocytes. Moreover, not-targeting and targeting IL-10 siRNA lentivirus vectors were injected into the rats of the negative control (NC) and IL-10 group, respectively, and the mRNA levels of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) and endoplasmic reticulum protein 29 (ERp29) were detected by RT-qPCR following IL-10 silence. The results demonstrated that the IL-10 expression was markedly increased after HI and IL-10 were colocalized with neurons and astrocytes which were badly injured by HI insult. In addition, Bcl-2 and ERp29 were remarkably decreased following IL-10 mRNA interference compared with the NC group. Our findings revealed that IL-10 exerted its antiapoptotic and neuroprotective effects by regulating the expression of Bcl-2 and ERp29, indicating that IL-10 may be a promising molecule target for HIE treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The favorable average curvature effect, also known as the GGJ effect (Glasser et al 1975 Phys. Fluids 18 875), is intrinsically associated with parallel sound wave propagation in a tokamak plasma. This work investigates how the GGJ effect is modified by changing the parallel sound wave behavior. Two physics models beyond the standard single fluid theory, i.e. an anisotropic thermal transport model and a parallel sound wave damping model, are employed to change parallel sound waves in a toroidal plasma, and the consequence on the GGJ effect is demonstrated for two important classes of problems, i.e. the resistive plasma response to the applied resonant magnetic perturbation and the stability of the tearing mode. Toroidal modeling reveals that the GGJ effect is significantly altered by both of the aforementioned physics effects. Compared to the thermal transport physics, which completely removes the GGJ effect, the sound wave damping effect only offers partial mitigation. The differences between these two models are further illustrated in terms of the radial structure of the shielding current and the eigenfunction of the tearing instability. In particular, a fundamental reason for complete suppression of the GGJ effect by the thermal transport is identified as an extra toroidal coupling of the poloidal harmonics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trichinellosis is a major foodborne parasitosis caused by Trichinella spiralis. In the present study, a serine protease gene from an adult T. spiralis (Ts-Adsp) cDNA library was cloned, expressed in Escherichia coli and purified by Ni-affinity chromatography. Previous studies of our laboratory have found that mice vaccinated with recombinant Ts-Adsp protein (rTs-Adsp) exhibited partial protection against T. spiralis infection. In this study, the protective effect of rTs-Adsp against T. spiralis infection in pigs was further explored. The cell-mediated and humoral immune responses induced by rTs-Adsp were measured, including the dynamic trends of specific antibody levels (IgG, IgG1, IgG2a and IgM), as well as the levels of cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-4, and IL-10) in the serum. Moreover, the changes in T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes, and neutrophils were measured to evaluate cellular immune responses in pigs vaccinated with rTs-Adsp. The results indicated that a Th1-Th2 mixed immune response with Th1 predominant was induced by rTs-Adsp after vaccination. Flow cytometric analysis showed that the proportions of CD4+ T cells, B cells, and neutrophils in the immunized groups were significantly increased. Furthermore, pigs vaccinated with rTs-Adsp exhibited a 50.9% reduction in the muscle larvae burden, compare with pigs from the PBS group five weeks after challenged. Our results suggested that rTs-Adsp elicited partial protection and it could be a potential target molecule for preventing and controlling Trichinella transmission from pigs to human. Author summary: Trichinellosis is a global foodborne parasitic disease caused by consuming raw or poorly cooked meat. The porcine products are the most common source. Therefore, it will have a great significance for public health security and human health to prevent and control the trichinellosis. We previously found that mice vaccinated with recombinant Adsp protein (rTs-Adsp) exhibited partial protection against T. spiralis infection. In this study, the protective effect of rTs-Adsp against challenge infections with T. spiralis in pigs was further explored. We found that rTs-Adsp elicited partial protection and it could be an important target molecule for preventing and controlling T. spiralis transmission from pigs to human. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has recently been shown that the inner region of protoplanetary discs (PPDs) is governed by wind-driven accretion, and the resulting accretion flow showing complex vertical profiles. Such complex flow structures are further enhanced due to the Hall effect, especially when the background magnetic field is aligned with disc rotation. We investigate how such flow structures impact global dust transport via Monte Carlo simulations, focusing on two scenarios. In the first scenario, the toroidal magnetic field is maximized in the mid-plane, leading to accretion and decretion flows above and below. In the second scenario, the toroidal field changes sign across the mid-plane, leading to an accretion flow at the disc mid-plane, with decretion flows above and below. We find that in both cases, the contribution from additional gas flows can still be accurately incorporated into the advection-diffusion framework for vertically integrated dust transport, with enhanced dust radial (pseudo-)diffusion up to an effective α eff ∼ 10−2 for strongly coupled dust, even when background turbulence is weak α < 10−4. Dust radial drift is also modestly enhanced in the second scenario. We provide a general analytical theory that accurately reproduces our simulation results, thus establishing a framework to model global dust transport that realistically incorporates vertical gas flow structures. We also note that the theory is equally applicable to the transport of chemical species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sample pre-treatment plays an important role in sample analysis, which directly affects the accuracy and reliability of the results. In this work we studied the influence of three common sample pre-treatment methods (direct injection, microwave digestion and wet digestion) on the determination of lead (Pb) content of Chinese health-care wines by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS). Six different brands of Chinese health wines were selected for the research. After each Chinese health-care wine was digested by three digestion methods, GFAAS was used to detect the Pb content of the samples. For the selected six different health-care wines, the results showed that the Pb content obtained by GFAAS with different pre-treatment methods were different. Microwave digestion had the best recovery, and was proposed to be applied to the pre-treatment of many kinds of health-care wines, while the direct injection method might be suitable only for health-care wine with lesser amounts of ingredients such as sugar. In the practical work, due to the complexity of the base composition of Chinese health-care wines, currently there is no relevant standard analysis method for the pre-treatment of Chinese health wines. According to the accuracies of the three chosen common pre-treatment methods, it was proposed that microwave digestion might be more suitable as a standard digestion method for the determination of Pb in Chinese health-care wines. This work could provide theoretical support for the further establishment of a standard analytical method for the determination of lead and other (heavy) metal elements in Chinese health wines by GFAAS and other methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A wide variety of bacterial adaptative responses to environmental conditions are mediated by signal transduction pathways. Two-component signal transduction systems are one of the predominant means used by bacteria to sense the signals of the host plant and adjust their interaction behaviour. A total of seven open reading frames have been identified as putative two-component response regulators in the gram-negative nitrogen-fixing bacteria Azorhizobium caulinodans ORS571. However, the biological functions of these response regulators in the symbiotic interactions between A. caulinodans ORS571 and the host plant Sesbania rostrata have not been elucidated to date. Results: In this study, we identified and investigated a two-component response regulator, AcfR, with a phosphorylatable N-terminal REC (receiver) domain and a C-terminal HTH (helix-turn-helix) LuxR DNA-binding domain in A. caulinodans ORS571. Phylogenetic analysis showed that AcfR possessed close evolutionary relationships with NarL/FixJ family regulators. In addition, six histidine kinases containing HATPase_c and HisKA domains were predicted to interact with AcfR. Furthermore, the biological function of AcfR in free-living and symbiotic conditions was elucidated by comparing the wild-type strain and the ΔacfR mutant strain. In the free-living state, the cell motility behaviour and exopolysaccharide production of the ΔacfR mutant were significantly reduced compared to those of the wild-type strain. In the symbiotic state, the ΔacfR mutant showed a competitive nodule defect on the stems and roots of the host plant, suggesting that AcfR can provide A. caulinodans with an effective competitive ability for symbiotic nodulation. Conclusions: Our results showed that AcfR, as a response regulator, regulates numerous phenotypes of A. caulinodans under the free-living conditions and in symbiosis with the host plant. The results of this study help to elucidate the involvement of a REC + HTH_LuxR two-component response regulator in the Rhizobium-host plant interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we propose a novel semidefinite programming based method to compute robust domains of attraction for state-constrained perturbed polynomial systems. A robust domain of attraction is a set of states such that every trajectory starting from it will approach an equilibrium while never violating a specified state constraint, regardless of the actual perturbation. The semidefinite program is constructed by relaxing a generalized Zubov's equation. The existence of solutions to the constructed semidefinite program is guaranteed, and there exists a sequence of solutions such that their strict one-sublevel sets inner-approximate the interior of the maximal robust domain of attraction in measure under appropriate assumptions. Some illustrative examples demonstrate the performance of our method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thiazole ring is an important active molecular skeleton of drugs. Thiazole in natural products and drugs are usually harmlessly eliminated. However, hepatotoxic reactions may occur due to the biological activation of thiazole to produce reactive thioamide. A typical example is hepatotoxic sudoxicam and safety meloxicam. The only structural difference between them is a methyl group on C5 position of thiazole in meloxicam. The molecular basis for the difference remains unknown and the bioactivation mechanism of the thiazole ring is still obscure. Quantum chemical calculations were performed to elucidate the activation mechanism of the thiazole ring under P450 catalysis, and the influence of the substituents on the activation pathways of thiazole ring was also studied. The calculated results show that the activation of thiazole is closely related to the substituents on the thiazole and spin state of Cpd I. The thiazole and substituted thiazole directly open the ring when catalyzed by doublet spin state Cpd I that catalyzed by the quartet spin state Cpd I can open the ring directly or indirectly, which is related to the substituents. Thiazoles modified with electron-donating substituents mainly undergo direct ring opening, while thiazoles modified with electron-withdrawing groups or weak electron-donating groups mainly undergo indirect ring-opening process accompanied by intermediate formation. The research results laid the foundation for the design of thiazole ring drugs, and also laid a theoretical foundation for the study of reducing the toxicity of thiazole ring drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solvent‐free organic π‐liquids have been attracting increasing attentions owing to the inherent optoelectronic properties accompanied by the advantages of non‐volatility and high processability. Herein, we reported a series of naphthalene derivatives substituted with chiral branched alkyl chains, which are present as liquids (Nap1–3) or solid (Nap4) at room temperature, depending on the substitution positions. Circular dichroism (CD) and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) were only observed for enantiomeric Nap2 (2,3‐substituted) liquid. It is suggested that the chiral aggregation in the π‐liquid leads to the CD signal and the chiral excimer resulting in the CPL performance. When achiral anthracene or pyrene was dissolved in Nap2, the π‐liquid could serve as chirality and energy transfer media in which both CD and CPL emerged from the achiral anthracene. A CPL dissymmetry factor (|glum|) of anthracene reached to 5.2×10−2 when dissolved in chiral Nap2 liquid, which is nearly two orders of magnitude higher than that of the pure Nap2 π‐liquid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solvent‐free organic π‐liquids have been attracting increasing attentions owing to the inherent optoelectronic properties accompanied by the advantages of non‐volatility and high processability. Herein, we reported a series of naphthalene derivatives substituted with chiral branched alkyl chains, which are present as liquids (Nap1–3) or solid (Nap4) at room temperature, depending on the substitution positions. Circular dichroism (CD) and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) were only observed for enantiomeric Nap2 (2,3‐substituted) liquid. It is suggested that the chiral aggregation in the π‐liquid leads to the CD signal and the chiral excimer resulting in the CPL performance. When achiral anthracene or pyrene was dissolved in Nap2, the π‐liquid could serve as chirality and energy transfer media in which both CD and CPL emerged from the achiral anthracene. A CPL dissymmetry factor (|glum|) of anthracene reached to 5.2×10−2 when dissolved in chiral Nap2 liquid, which is nearly two orders of magnitude higher than that of the pure Nap2 π‐liquid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oligoasthenozoospermia (OA) is one of the most common types of male infertility affecting sperm count and sperm motility. Unfortunately, it is difficult for existing drugs to fundamentally improve the sperm quality of OA patients, because the pathological mechanism of OA has not been fully elucidated yet. Morinda officinalis–Lycium barbarum coupled-herbs (MOLBCH), as traditional Chinese Medicines, has been widely used for treating OA over thousands of years, but its molecular mechanism is still unclear. For this purpose, we adopted a comprehensive approach integrated network pharmacology and molecular docking to reveal the bioactive components and potential targets of MOLBCH against OA. The results showed that MOLBCH alleviated apoptosis, promoted male reproductive function, and reduced oxidant stress in the treatment of OA. Ohioensin-A, quercetin, beta-sitosterol and sitosterol were the key bioactive components. Androgen receptor (AR), Estrogen receptor (ESR1), Mitogen-activated protein kinase 3 (MAPK3), RAC-alpha serine/threonine-protein kinase (AKT1), Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) were the core potential targets. PI3K/Akt signaling pathway, prostate cancer, AGE-RAGE signaling pathway in diabetic complications were the most representative pathways. Moreover, molecular docking was performed to validate the strong binding interactions between the obtained core components and targets. These observations provide deeper insight into the pathogenesis of OA and can be used to design new drugs and develop new therapeutic instructions to treat OA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The mixture of polymer and water is separated by underwater superpolymphobic meshes. • Underwater superpolymphobicity is achieved on the mesh by fs laser processing. • The structured mesh has excellent repellence to liquid polymer in water. • The separation can alleviate pollution caused by the discharge of liquid polymers. The widespread use of liquid polymers may pollute water, causing grave environmental problems and even various human diseases. The separation of a mixture of a liquid polymer and water is extremely important in research, but the high viscosity, low fluidity, and high adhesion performance of liquid polymers make this task highly challenging. In this paper, we propose a novel strategy for separating a polymer/water mixture wherein porous underwater superpolymphobic micro/nanostructures are used for the first time. Femtosecond laser (fsL) processing is used to form micro/nanoscale surface structures on a stainless steel mesh (SSM), resulting in excellent repellence (underwater superpolymphobicity) to various liquid polymer droplets in water. The laser-induced underwater superpolymphobicity is very stable even though the SSM suffers from different damage treatments (e.g., sandpaper abrasion, acid or alkali solutions corrosion, UV light irradiation, and tape peeling). The underwater superpolymphobicity is ascribed to an underwater Cassie contact state between the underwater liquid polymer and the surface microstructure of the laser-treated SSM. We demonstrate that the underwater superpolymphobic SSM can be effectively and repeatedly used to separate liquid polymer/water mixtures with a high separation efficiency of 99.0% and a high separation flux of 4.45 × 105 L m−2h−1. The mixtures of water and different polymers are successfully separated. Such a separation strategy can potentially alleviate pollution from liquid polymer discharge, recycle waste polymer resources, and be applied in polymer production and manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A sensitive and selective fluorescent nitrogen-doped carbon dots (N-CDs) probe was synthesized by using glucosamine as a single reagent in a one-step hydrothermal treatment and was also characterized by UV-Vis spectrophotometer, fluorescence spectrophotometer, transmission electron microscope (TEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer, X-ray diffractometer (XRD), and X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS). N-CDs exhibited a superior water solubility and an excellent fluorescence characteristic and was used as a fluorophore to measure ClO− and NO2− based on their oxidation in the presence of Fe2+. The quenching mechanism of ClO− and NO2− to the system probe of Fe2+@N-CDs was also demonstrated. The detection limit of the probe to ClO− was 0.75 μM in the linear range of 1 to 17.5 μM and for NO2− was 0.85 μM with the linear range of 2.5 to 20 μM. Speciation analysis of ClO− and NO2− could be distinguished due to the different reactive response time to the system probe of Fe2+@N-CDs, and the accuracy was further confirmed by detecting them in actual river water and tap water samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gout is the most common inflammatory arthritis affecting 1.1% of the population in mainland China with a higher prevalence in coastal areas.Objective: The purpose of the study was to investigate the clinical outcomes following urate-lowering therapy (ULT) in a real-world group study of primary gout patients in China.Methods: Electronic medical records of all the gout patients (n= 1588) that visited the Clinical Medical Center of Gout of the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University from September 2016 to February 2018 were analyzed in this study. The patients were treated with a standard treat-to-target (T2T) ULT strategy according to the 2016 EULAR Guidelines. Clinical data were collected in the first visit and one-month (defined as the baseline of ULT), 7-month, and 13-month follow-ups were completed.Results: Amongst the patients in the study, 92.70% accepted ULT and 82.93% completed ULT for 3 months, 63.54% for 6 months, and 40.49% (n= 643) for 12 months. Further analysis of the 643 patients included the following data: the sUA level reduced at month 7 and reduced further at month 13. The gout flares, patient global pain visual analogue score, and health assessment questionnaire score improved at month 7 but did not improve further at month 13, and the index tophus size did not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fusobacterium nucleatum (F. nucleatum) is an anaerobic gram-negative bacterium that was previously thought to be related to the progression of colorectal cancer. In F. nucleatum , thiolase participates in fatty acid metabolism, and it can catalyse the transfer of an acetyl group from acetyl-CoA to another molecule, typically a fatty acid or another molecule in the synthesis of lipids. To gain deeper insight into the molecular mechanism governing the function of thiolase in F. nucleatum (Fn0495), we herein report the structure of Fn0495. The monomer of Fn0495 consists of three subdomains, namely, the N-terminal domain (residues 1–117 and 252–270), the C-terminal domain (residues 273–393), and the loop domain (residues 118–251). Fn0495 shows a unique difference in the charge and structure of the substrate binding pocket compared with homologous proteins. This research found three conserved residues (Cys88, His357, and Cys387) in Fn0495 arranged near a potential substrate binding pocket. In this study, the conformational changes between the covering loop, catalytic cysteine loop, regulatory determinant region, and homologous protein were compared. These results will enhance our understanding of the molecular characteristics and roles of the thiolase family. • The structure of F. nucleatum thiolase Fn0495 was determined. • Fn0495 shows a unique difference in the charge and structure of the substrate binding pocket compared with homologous proteins. • The conformational changes between the key domains and homologous protein were compared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single-atom manganese catalysts possess high stability in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) due to their lower Fenton reaction activity. Here, we employ N- and S-co-coordination strategy to modulate the microstructural Mn sites towards high-efficiency ORR. The fabricated Mn-N/S-C catalyst with isolated Mn-N 2 S 2 sites demonstrates a positive half-wave potential of 0.91 V for the ORR. The fabricated zinc–air battery with Mn-N/S-C as the cathode affords a maximal power density of 193 mW cm−2 and superior output stability. Moreover, the maximal power density is increased by 1.53 times compared with S-free Mn-N-C catalyst in anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs). Both experimental characterizations and theoretical simulations unveil that the main active sites in the Mn-N/S-C should be Mn-N 2 S 2 moiety embedded into the graphene framework (Mn-N 2 S 2 G). Further computational results demonstrate that the S atom doping and asymmetry of structure lead to higher ORR activities of ortho-Mn-N 2 S 2 G than Mn-N 4 G, Mn-N 3 SG, para-Mn-N 2 S 2 G and Mn-NS 3 G. [Display omitted] • N- and S-co-coordination to isolated Mn sites improves the catalytic activity. • The Mn-N/S-C exhibits a positive half-wave potential of 0.91 V for the ORR. • The Mn-N/S-C-based zinc–air battery affords a peak power density of 193 mW cm−2. • The Mn-N/S-C-based AEMFC affords a peak power density of 247 mW cm−2. • Ortho-Mn-N 2 S 2 G shows higher activity than Mn-N 4 G, para-Mn-N 2 S 2 G and Mn-NS 3 G. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Skyrmion bags can be driven by propagating SWs and its velocity depends on both the frequency and amplitude of the spin wave. • Skyrmion bags exhibit obvious motion within a specific frequency range of SWs. • The parameters of the nanostrip have impact on the motion of skyrmion bags as well. • The exchange of momentum between spin waves and skyrmion bags causes the skyrmion bags to move. Skyrmion bags are spin textures with arbitrary integer topological charge numbers, holding promise for utilization in high-density racetrack memory devices. In this study, we investigate the dynamics of skyrmion bags driven by propagating spin waves in a magnetic nanostrip, employing micromagnetic simulations. Our findings reveal that propagating spin waves can induce a stable movement of skyrmion bags, irrespective of their topological charge numbers. The amplitude and frequency of the spin wave, alongside material parameters such as damping constant and saturation magnetization, exhibit discernible effects on the behavior of skyrmion bags. These outcomes have the potential to advance the development of racetrack memory based on skyrmion bags. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fish gelatin nanoparticles (FGNPs) of different sizes (∼155–410 nm) were successfully obtained by adjusting the ratio of gelatin and glutaraldehyde (Gel/Glu ratio), and their possible generation mechanisms were revealed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis and transmission electron microscopy images. The FGNPs were then used to fabricate collagen composite films. Compared to a pure collagen film, the tensile strength, elongation at break, and Young's modulus of composite films increased by 37.1%, 34.4%, and 79.2%, respectively, while the water vapor permeability decreased by 51.5%. Meanwhile, scanning electron microscopy images, FTIR, and X-ray diffraction analysis suggested that small-sized and uniformly distributed FGNPs maintained the original crystal structure and well-arranged super helical structure of collagen, while large-sized and cross-linked FGNPs destabilized the collagen structure. A Gel/Glu ratio of 12:4 afforded FGNPs with a size of ∼155 nm, which was the best collagen composite film-forming size. Moreover, the FGNPs could bind to collagen through weak but countless non-covalent bonds (hydrogen bonds and ionic bonds), thereby improving the mechanical properties of the films. Overall, the FGNPs improved the performances characteristic of collagen films by influencing their structure, including hydrogen bonding interaction, crystalline structure, and superhelix structure, which would advance the understanding of collagen-based films. [Display omitted] • Fish gelatin nanoparticles (FGNPs) with different sizes were successfully prepared. • The addition of FGNPs enhanced the properties of the collagen fiber films. • The hierarchical structure was improved after adding the FGNPs into collagen films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tetracycline (TC) as a common antibiotic has adverse effects on human healthy and biological survival. In this study, a novel MXene/TiO 2 /Fe hybrid was designed and successfully synthesized by combination method of calcination and hydrothermal reduction. The photocatalysts were characterized by PXRD, SEM, TEM, VSM and XPS, etc. It was found that MXene/TiO 2 /Fe exhibited 2D multilayer structure like MXene. The in-situ synthesized TiO 2 through calcinating MXene exhibited an octahedral biconical structure with exposed (001) and (101) facets. Surface heterojunction of (001) and (101) facets was formed within TiO 2 , which enhanced the separation of photogenerated electrons and holes. The residual MXene could play a role in co-catalyst to capture the photo-generated electrons from TiO 2. Moreover, Fe nanoparticles not only optimize the band gap structure and increase the specific surface area, but also store the electrons as a good electrons acceptor, which further promote the separation of electrons and holes. The TC removal efficiency of optimal MXene/TiO 2 /Fe could reach 92% within 120 min. Moreover, the influence of external environment factors such as pH, catalyst dosages and common anions were investigated in detail. Mechanism analysis show that h+, •OH and •O 2 − are the main active substances. Finally, the degradation pathways were proposed according to LC-MS. [Display omitted] • A novel MXene/TiO 2 /Fe photocatalyst is designed and synthesized. • TiO 2 with surface heterojunction is obtained by calcining Ti 3 C 2 T x. • Doped Fe nanoparticles improve photocatalytic degradation performance. • A possible degradation mechanism for tetracycline is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although lotus root powder has high nutritional value and good therapeutic effects, there is still few reports on quality analysis of lotus root powder. In this study, we have established a novel method to identify the source and level of adulteration in lotus root powder, based on self-developed derivatization reagents and narrow range mass loss filtration technology. By using this approach, 80 species of oligosaccharides have been identified in lotus root powder, and 18 of them are characteristic and common oligosaccharides for lotus root powder from different places, which might be helpful to distinguish between oligosaccharides and their common adulterants. More importantly, in combination with multivariate statistical methods, the composition proportion of adulterants can also be effectively determined (from 5% to 95%). Furthermore, it is worthy to be mentioned that it is a pioneer report of using narrow range quality loss filtering technology towards successful detection and identification of food ingredients, which achieves rapid detection of adulterated components and their proportions in lotus root powder. In short, the approach of using mass defect filter is effective in sugar spectra analysis, which might be promising for simple, sensitive, and accurate food quality control. • A rapid detection method for adulterated components and their proportions in lotus root powder has been successfully established. • For the first time, oligosaccharide analysis of lotus root powder can be realized. • For the first time, narrow range mass loss filtration technology is applied to the detection and identification of food ingredients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Ethyl caffeate alleviates Aβ-induced paralysis partly through the IIS signaling pathway. Ethyl caffeate decreases oxidative stress and degrades the abnormal accumulation of Aβ by upregulating the expression of SKN-1, DAF-16, HSF-1 and its downstream effectors GST-4, SOD-3 and HSP-16.2. • The C. elegans AD models were used to explore the anti-AD mechanism of ethyl caffeate. • Ethyl caffeate relieved Aβ-induced cytotoxicity in body wall and neurocytotoxicity. • Ethyl caffeate reduced oxidative stress levels in nematodes. • Ethyl caffeate may exert anti-AD effects partly through the IIS signalling pathway. • Ethyl caffeate reduced the level of abnormal aggregation of polyglutamine proteins. The pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), a multifactorial progressive neurodegenerative disease associated with aging, is unclear. Ethyl caffeate is a plant polyphenol that has been reported to have neuroprotective effects, but the mechanisms by which it acts are unclear. In this study, for the first time, we investigated the molecular mechanism of its anti-AD properties using the Caernorhabditis elegans model. The results of our experiments showed that ethyl caffeate delayed the paralysis symptoms of CL4176 to a different extent and reduced the exogenous 5-hydroxytryptophan-induced paralysis phenotype. Further studies revealed that ethyl caffeate lowered Aβ plaques and depressed the expression of Aβ monomers and oligomers, but did not influence the mRNA levels of Aβ. Moreover, it was able to bring paraquat-induced ROS levels down to near-standard conditions. Real-time quantitative PCR experiment showed a significant upregulation of the transcript abundance of daf-16 , skn-1 and hsf-1 , key factors associated with the insulin/insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) signaling pathway (IIS), and their downstream genes sod-3 , gst-4 and hsp-16.2. It was further shown that ethyl caffeate activated the translocation of DAF-16 and SKN-1 from the cytoplasm to the nucleus and enhanced the expression of sod-3 ::GFP, gst-4 ::GFP and hsp-16.2 ::GFP in transgenic nematodes. This meant that the protection against Aβ toxicity by ethyl caffeate may be partly through the IIS signaling pathway. In addition, ethyl caffeate suppressed the aggregation of polyglutamine proteins in AM141, which indicated a potential protective effect against neurodegenerative diseases based on abnormal folding and aggregation of amyloid proteins. Taken together, ethyl caffeate is expected to develop as a potential drug for the management of AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sulfate Radical-Advanced Oxidation Processes are considered an efficient way for purifying dyeing wastewater, which commonly resists conventional treatment processes owing to the complex components, low biodegradability and high toxicity. However, this emerging technique is associated with issues of secondary pollution and great energy consumption during peroxymonosulfate (PMS) or persulfate (PS) activation processes. Herein, a dye pollutant/PS/visible light self-catalytic system was constructed, based on the photosensitive property of organic dyes for PS activation without catalyst and energy input. In this system, the degradation ratio of 100 mL 10 mg L−1 basic fuchsin, rhodamine B and eosin Y significantly increased by 60%, 76% and 50%, compared with the process without light irradiation. Such improvements were attributable to an efficient photo-induced electron transfer from photo-excited dyes to PS, which has the precondition that the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy level of the dye is higher than that of PS, thereby generating oxidizing species like ·SO 4 −, ·OH and 1O 2 for pollutants degradation. Due to the high performance of pollutants simultaneous removal, wide pH adaptability and anti-interference, the complex self-catalytic system consisted of nine dyes and bis -phenol A exhibited the possibility for practical application. Expectedly, the actual dyeing wastewater self-purification system featured a decolorization efficiency of 54% accompanied by the removal of co-existing aromatic proteins and tryptophan-like substances; moreover, the acute bio-toxicity of the raw wastewater greatly decreased by 61.6%. Owing to its high efficiency, eco-friendliness and low consumption, the constructed "using waste to treat waste" system provides a promising way for wastewater treatment. [Display omitted] • A novel PS activation system without catalyst and energy input was constructed. • Well-matched energy level between photosensitive dye and PS leads to activation. • Dye and co-existing pollutants were simultaneously removed with high efficiency. • Actual dyeing wastewater was purified in a novel way of using waste to treat waste. • The eco-friendly and low-cost method has great potential in wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The ND6 level of patients was higher than normal people. • The ND6 levels of patients who needed hemodialysis were higher than controls. • ND6 positively correlated with BVAS in active disease, and returned to normal in remission. • High level of serum ND6 predicts poor prognosis of AAV. Increased serum and urinary mitochondrial DNA have been demonstrated in antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis (AAV). Here we investigated the significance of serum nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-ubiquinone oxidoreductase chain 6 (ND6), which is encoded by mtDNA and can attract neutrophils, in AAV. Thirty-seven AAV patients (32 patients with positive myeloperoxidase-ANCA and 5 patients with proteinase 3-ANCA) were enrolled. Relationship between serum ND6 and clinico-laboratory characteristics were analyzed. The ND6 level of patients was higher than normal people (46.56 ± 23.67 pg/mL vs. 4.95 ± 2.45 pg/mL, P < 0.001) The ND6 levels of patients who needed hemodialysis at disease onset and who had pulmonary hemorrhage (PH) were higher than that of the corresponding controls (P = 0.004 and 0.044 respectively). The ND6 level negatively correlated with the percentages of normal glomeruli in kidney biopsy. The AUC of ROC curve to diagnose hemodialysis and PH was 0.804 and 0.750 respectively. ND6 level positively correlated with Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score in active disease, and returned to normal after remission. Patients with higher serum ND6 had higher mortality (P = 0.023). Serum ND6 increases in active AAV, and its level correlates with the severity of disease. High ND6 level is associated with severe organ injury and predicts poor prognosis of AAV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae can reduce xylose to xylitol. However, in S. cerevisiae , there are several endogenous enzymes including xylitol dehydrogenase encoded by XYL2 , sorbitol dehydrogenases encoded by SOR1 / SOR2 and xylulokinase encoded by XKS1 may lead to the assimilation of xylitol. In this study, to increase xylitol accumulation, these genes were separately deleted through CRISPR/Cas9 system. Their effects on xylitol yield of an industrial S. cerevisiae CK17 overexpressing Candida tropicali s XYL1 (encoding xylose reductase) were investigated. Deletion of SOR1 / SOR2 or XKS1 increased the xylitol yield in both batch and fed-batch fermentation with different concentrations of glucose and xylose. The analysis of the transcription level of key genes in the mutants during fed-batch fermentation suggests that SOR1 / SOR2 are more crucially responsible for xylitol oxidation than XYL2 under the genetic background of S. cerevisiae CK17. The deletion of XKS1 gene could also weaken SOR1 / SOR2 expression, thereby increasing the xylitol accumulation. The XKS1 -deleted strain CK17ΔXKS1 produced 46.17 g/L of xylitol and reached a xylitol yield of 0.92 g/g during simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of pretreated corn stover slurry. Therefore, the deletion of XKS1 gene provides a promising strategy to meet the industrial demands for xylitol production from lignocellulosic biomass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The combined effects of anisotropic thermal transport and trapped energetic particles (EPs) on the stability of the resistive plasma resistive wall mode (RPRWM) are investigated by an energy-principle based analytical model. The results qualitatively confirm that of a recent toroidal modeling study [Bai et al., Phys. Plasmas 27, 072502 (2020)], in which the thermal transport can stabilize the RPPWM depending on the parameters of both the plasma equilibrium and energetic particles. The analytical model predicts a complete stabilization of the RPRWM in highly resistive plasmas, at sufficiently high EPs' pressure, and finite plasma flow. The stabilizing effect of thermal transport originates from its enhancement of energy dissipations associated with both the resistive layer and the trapped energetic particles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study examined the influences of intergenerational relations and marriage on the relationship between financial strain and attitude toward retirement among aging adults in Hong Kong. Background: Financial strain is a source of worry among many older adults in Hong Kong. A considerable percentage of retirees and pre‐retirees have negative attitudes toward retirement. Method: Representative survey data were collected from 767 participants (335 men and 432 women) with 294 participants aged 50 to 64 years; 473, aged 65 years or older). Results: Financial strain was negatively associated with attitude toward retirement both directly and indirectly through intergenerational relationship quality. Cohort differences were identified as affectual closeness and intergenerational conflict (two subdomains of intergenerational relationship quality) partially mediated the relationship between financial strain and attitude toward retirement for the younger cohort aged 50 to 64 years, whereas for adults aged ≥65 years, only affectual closeness was a significant partial mediator. Marriage only acted as a moderator for the younger cohort. Conclusion: The mediating effect of intergenerational relationship quality and moderating effect of marriage were identified, as well as cohort differences. Implications: Tailored programs and policies should be developed for different age groups to enhance intergenerational relations and retirement preparation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Xylitol accumulation is a major barrier for efficient ethanol production through heterologous xylose reductase-xylitol dehydrogenase (XR-XDH) pathway in recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mutated NADH-preferring XR is usually employed to alleviate xylitol accumulation. However, it remains unclear how mutated XR affects the metabolic network for xylose metabolism. In this study, haploid and diploid strains were employed to investigate the transcriptional responses to changes in cofactor preference of XR through RNA-seq analysis during xylose fermentation. Results: For the haploid strains, genes involved in xylose-assimilation (XYL1, XYL2, XKS1), glycolysis, and alcohol fermentation had higher transcript levels in response to mutated XR, which was consistent with the improved xylose consumption rate and ethanol yield. For the diploid strains, genes related to protein biosynthesis were upregulated while genes involved in glyoxylate shunt were downregulated in response to mutated XR, which might contribute to the improved yields of biomass and ethanol. When comparing the diploids with the haploids, genes involved in glycolysis and MAPK signaling pathway were significantly downregulated, while oxidative stress related transcription factors (TFs) were significantly upregulated, irrespective of the cofactor preference of XR. Conclusions: Our results not only revealed the differences in transcriptional responses of the diploid and haploid strains to mutated XR, but also provided underlying basis for better understanding the differences in xylose metabolism between the diploid and haploid strains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Targeted delivery of antitumor drugs is especially important for tumour therapy. Tumour targeting peptides have been shown to be very effective drug carriers for tumour therapy. Interleukin-4 receptor (IL-4R) is overexpressed on the surface of various human solid tumours. To obtain a better targeting peptide, we first designed a novel targeting peptide derived from interleukin-4 (IL-4), ILBP-b. ILBP-b contains the key high-affinity binding residue E9 of IL-4 to IL-4R. Compared with a reported targeting peptide ILBP-a (containing another key high affinity residue R88), ILBP-b was proved to be a better targeting peptide by the fluorescence experiments. Then, we further fused ILBP-b and ILBP-a to increase the multisite-binding ability of ILBP-b and got a better targeting peptide ILBP-ba. ILBP-ba showed a stronger preferential binding ability to IL-4R high-expressing cells than ILBP-a and ILBP-b. Competitive binding experiments demonstrated ILBP-ba specifically targets IL-4R. By fusing ILBP-ba with drug protein trichosanthin (TCS), in vitro drug carrying experiments showed that ILBP-ba could specifically enhance the killing effect of TCS on IL-4R high-expressing tumour cells (more than 10 folds). These results indicated that ILBP-ba has great potential for drug delivery applications targeting IL-4R and will be beneficial for the development of tumour therapeutic agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The ubiquitin-proteasome system participates in the pathogenesis and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). As an E3 ubiquitin ligase, RNF128 has been proved vital in carcinogenesis, whereas, little is known about the oncogenic mechanisms of RNF128 in HCC. Materials and Methods: Through tissue microarray from HCC patients, we analyzed RNF128 expression and its relationship with clinical outcomes in HCC. Western blot and quantitative realtime polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) were performed to examine expression levels of RNF128 in HCC tissues and cell lines. Effects of RNF128 on HCC cellular biological functions and the potential mechanism were evaluated through knockdown and overexpression assays in vitro and in vivo methods. Results: RNF128 expression was found to be remarkably elevated in HCC tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues. Furthermore, the overexpression of RNF128 enhanced hepatoma cells proliferation, colony formation, migration, invasion, and apoptotic resistance both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, RNF128 activated EGFR/MEK/ERK signaling pathway and the EGFR inhibitor, gefitinib partially reversed RNF128-enhanced proliferation, invasion, and migration in hepatoma cells. Conclusion: RNF128 promotes HCC progression by activating EGFR/MEK/ERK signaling pathway, which might function as a novel prognostic molecular signature with the potential to be a candidate therapeutic target for HCC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to identify key genes involved in the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). According to the theory of the multistep process of hepatocarcinogenesis and weighted gene co-expression network analysis, hub genes associated with the progression of HCC were identified using the gene expression profiles of patients with normal to chronic hepatitis/cirrhosis and dysplastic nodules to HCC. An independent dataset was used to verify the association between hub gene and clinical phenotype. The diagnostic and prognostic value of hub genes regarding HCC were evaluated. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was performed to explore the function of hub genes. A co-expression gene module positively associated with HCC progression was identified. Combined with a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network, a total of 10 common hub genes common to both the module of interest and the PPI network were selected as hub genes. Hyaluronan mediated motility receptor (HMMR) was selected as the candidate gene and was significantly upregulated in HCC at the mRNA and protein expression levels. HMMR is a promising diagnostic biomarker for HCC, and is also associated with its progression. The expression of HMMR was positively correlated with HCC tumor grade, pathological stage, tumor stage and Ishak score. The expression of HMMR was an independent prognostic factor compared with clinicopathological features. Patients with high expression levels of HMMR exhibited a less favorable prognosis. GSEA identified 6 representative gene sets that were associated with cancer. Overall, HMMR may serve an important role in HCC and may have potential as a biomarker of HCC diagnosis and progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A combination of point mutation, mating, adaptation, and haploidization was used. • Sugar uptake and ethanol production were enhanced by adaptive evolution. • Evolved strains had strong tolerance to inhibitors in the pretreated straw slurry. Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain with excellent xylose-fermenting capacity and inhibitor tolerance is crucial for lignocellulosic ethanol production. In this study, a combined strategy including site-directed mutagenesis, mating, evolutionary engineering, and haploidization was applied to obtain strains with ideal xylose fermentabilities. Haploid industrial strain KFG4-6B was engineered to overexpress endogenous xylulokinase (XK) and heterologous native or mutated xylose reductase (XR) and xylitol dehydrogenase (XDH) from Scheffersomyces stipitis. The XR-mutated strain HX57D showed over 12% increase in both xylose consumption rate and ethanol yield compared with the XR-native strain. To improve the xylose uptake, the HX57D-derived diploids were subjected to evolutionary engineering. In comparison with HX57D, evolved diploid Z4X-21-18 achieved 4.5-fold increases in rates of xylose consumption and ethanol production when fermenting xylose. When fermenting mixed sugars, the glucose and xylose uptake rates were 1.4-fold and 8.3-fold, respectively, higher. H18s28, a haploid of Z4X-21-18, enabled a further 10% increase in xylose consumption rate when fermenting xylose only. However, it was inferior to its diploid parent when fermenting mixed sugars. In the presaccharification-simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (P-SSF) of the whole pretreated wheat straw slurry with high contents of multiple inhibitors, Z4X-21-18 produced approximately 42 g/L ethanol with a yield of 0.38 g/g total sugars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elevated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have resulted in growing societal interest in natural climate solutions that include enhancing soil organic carbon (SOC). This study evaluated SOC from three USDA soil databases for Maine, a state that is nearly 90% forested. These databases were: (1) Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA), (2) NRCS Soil Survey Geographic (SSURGO), and (3) Rapid Carbon Assessment (RaCA). We compared estimates of SOC density and concentration among databases and analyzed relationships between key soil properties and SOC densities and concentrations. Estimates of SOC density to a 20 cm depth which allows comparison among all three databases were 77 ± 1.2 Mg ha−1, 95 ± 0.3 Mg ha−1, and 39 ± 2.2 Mg ha−1 for SSURGO, RaCA, and FIA, respectively. Significant differences existed among databases in SOC density at shallow depth increments, and marked differences existed among databases in the soil depths measured. Analysis of the influence of soil texture and drainage class on SOC highlighted the importance of silt and clay in SOC retention. A hypothetical increase in forest and agricultural SOC was compared to reported Maine GHG emissions to illustrate potential policy implications in the use of soil databases. We conclude that all three databases are valuable but not interchangeable. The database should be carefully chosen to match the objectives of the user. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]