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MCTs is an important component of fat emulsion for special medical purposes (FESMP), and palm kernel oil is the natural food source of MCTs. In order to develop palm kernel oil based FESMP, the oil phase formula of the emulsion was designed according to the General Rules of Formula Food for Special Medical Use and the Reference Dietary Nutrient Intake of Chinese Residents, and the fatty acid composition was analyzed. The preparation process of fat emulsion was optimized by Zeta potential and particle size, the stability was evaluated and the effect on serum lipid was studied in mice. The results showed that the ratio of n–6 to n–3 in oil phase was 5.16±0.05; Step-by-step emulsification method was adopted, and the optimal emulsification process parameters were as follows: emulsification speed of 10 000 r/min, emulsification time of 20 min, and emulsification temperature of 50 ℃. The initial emulsion was homogenized by high pressure homogenizer at 50 MPa for three times and autoclaved at 121 ℃ for 10 min, and the product quality was stable. The results of animal experiments showed that the fatty acid balanced emulsion could significantly reduce the content of Triglycerides (TG) in serum of mice (P

Slow Slip Events (SSEs) are like long-duration slow earthquakes during which stress is gradually released over several days to months, and a comprehensive catalog of SSEs is essential for a better understanding of the earthquake cycle. However, SSEs usually only produce mm to cm surface deformations, making them a challenge to identify from raw Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) time series, which are often obscured by low-frequency background noise. We devise an approach that first employs variational Bayesian Independent Component Analysis to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of GNSS time series and then utilizes deep learning combining bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory and two different attention mechanisms to identify SSEs. We apply this new method to the GNSS three-component time series at 240 stations along the Cascadia subduction zone from 2012 to 2022. A total of 56 SSEs are detected, 18 more than the number in the existing SSEs catalogs during the same period. The starting time, duration, spatial and propagation pattern of the 56 SSEs are consistent with the tremor catalog, which helps to gain new insights into the slip behavior in the Cascadia subduction zone. In general, our work provides an effective framework for extracting subtle signals hidden in GNSS time series. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apoptosis, as type I cell death, is an active death process strictly controlled by multiple genes, and plays a significant role in regulating various activities. Mounting research indicates that the unique modality of cell apoptosis is directly or indirectly related to different diseases including cancer, autoimmune diseases, viral diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, etc. However, the underlying mechanisms of cell apoptosis are complicated and not fully clarified yet, possibly due to the lack of effective chemical tools for the nondestructive and real-time visualization of apoptosis in complex biological systems. In the past 15 years, various small-molecule fluorescent probes (SMFPs) for imaging apoptosis in vitro and in vivo have attracted broad interest in related disease diagnostics and therapeutics. In this review, we aim to highlight the recent developments of SMFPs based on enzyme activity, plasma membranes, reactive oxygen species, reactive sulfur species, microenvironments and others during cell apoptosis. In particular, we generalize the mechanisms commonly used to design SMFPs for studying apoptosis. In addition, we discuss the limitations of reported probes, and emphasize the potential challenges and prospects in the future. We believe that this review will provide a comprehensive summary and challenging direction for the development of SMFPs in apoptosis related fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Intermediate cells are present in the early stages of human prostate development and adenocarcinoma. While primary cells isolated from benign human prostate tissues or tumors exhibit an intermediate phenotype in vitro, they cannot form tumors in vivo unless genetically modified. It is unclear about the stem cell properties and tumorigenicity of intermediate cells. Methods: We developed a customized medium to culture primary human intermediate prostate cells, which were transplanted into male immunodeficient NCG mice to examine tumorigenicity in vivo. We treated the cells with different concentrations of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and enzalutamide in vitro and surgically castrated the mice after cell transplantation in vivo. Immunostaining, qRT-PCR, RNA sequencing, and western blotting were performed to characterize the cells in tissues and 2D and 3D cultures. Results: We found intermediate cells expressing AR+PSA+CK8+CK5+ in the luminal compartment of human prostate adenocarcinoma by immunostaining. We cultured the primary intermediate cells in vitro, which expressed luminal (AR+PSA+CK8+CK18+), basal (CK5+P63+), intermediate (IVL+), and stem cell (CK4+CK13+PSCA+SOX2+) markers. These cells resisted castration in vitro by upregulating the expression of AR, PSA, and proliferation markers KI67 and PCNA. The intermediate cells had high tumorigenicity in vivo, forming tumors in immunodeficient NCG mice in a month without any genetic modification or co-transplantation with embryonic urogenital sinus mesenchyme (UGSM) cells. We named these cells human castration-resistant intermediate prostate cancer stem cells or CriPCSCs and defined the xenograft model as patient primary cell-derived xenograft (PrDX). Human CriPCSCs resisted castration in vitro and in vivo by upregulating AR expression. Furthermore, human CriPCSCs differentiated into amplifying adenocarcinoma cells of luminal phenotype in PrDX tumors in vivo, which can dedifferentiate into CriPCSCs in vitro. Conclusions: Our study identified and established methods for culturing human CriPCSCs, which had high tumorigenicity in vivo without any genetic modification or UGSM co-transplantation. Human CriPCSCs differentiated into amplifying adenocarcinoma cells of luminal phenotype in the fast-growing tumors in vivo, which hold the potential to dedifferentiate into intermediate stem cells. These cells resisted castration by upregulating AR expression. The human CriPCSC and PrDX methods hold significant potential for advancing prostate cancer research and precision medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The arthroconidial yeast-like species currently classified in the asexual genera Geotrichum and Saprochaete and the sexual genera Dipodascus, Galactomyces and Magnusiomyces are frequently associated with dairy and cosmetics production, fruit rot and human infection. However, the taxonomic system of these fungi has not been updated to accommodate the new nomenclature code adopting the "one fungus, one name" principle. Here, we performed phylogenetic analyses of these yeast-like species based on the sequences of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and the D1/D2 domain of the large subunit of the rRNA gene. Two monophyletic groups were recognised from these species. One group contained Dipodascus, Galactomyces, and Geotrichum species and the other Magnusiomyces and Saprochaete species. We thus assigned the species in each group into one genus and selected the genus name Geotrichum for the first group and Magnusiomyces for the second one based on the principle of priority of publication. Five new Geotrichum species were identified from arthroconidial yeast strains recently isolated from various sources in China. The new species are described as Ge. dehoogii sp. nov., Ge. fujianense sp. nov., Ge. maricola sp. nov., Ge. smithiae sp. nov., and Ge. sinensis sp. nov. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antifibrotic drug screening requires evaluating the inhibitory effects of drug candidates on fibrotic cells while minimizing any adverse effects on normal cells. It is challenging to create organ-specific vascularized organoids that accurately model fibrotic and normal tissues for drug screening. Our previous studies have established methods for culturing primary microvessels and epithelial cells from adult tissues. In this proof-of-concept study, we used rats as a model organism to create a two-dimensional vascularized liver organoid model that comprised primary microvessels, epithelia, and stellate cells from adult livers. To provide appropriate substrates for cell culture, we engineered ECMs with defined stiffness to mimic the different stages of fibrotic tissues and normal tissues. We examined the effects of two TGFβ signaling inhibitors, A83-01 and pirfenidone, on the vascularized liver organoids on the stiff and soft ECMs. We found that A83-01 inhibited fibrotic markers while promoting epithelial genes of hepatocytes and cholangiocytes. However, it inhibited microvascular genes on soft ECM, indicating a detrimental effect on normal tissues. Furthermore, A83-01 significantly promoted the expression of markers of stem cells and cancers, increasing the potential risk of it being a carcinogen. In contrast, pirfenidone, an FDA-approved compound for antifibrotic treatments, did not significantly affect all the genes examined on soft ECM. Although pirfenidone had minor effects on most genes, it did reduce the expression of collagens, the major components of fibrotic tissues. These results explain why pirfenidone can slow fibrosis progression with minor side effects in clinical trials. In conclusion, our study presents a method for creating vascularized liver organoids that can accurately mimic fibrotic and normal tissues for drug screening. Our findings provide valuable insights into the potential risks and benefits of using A83-01 and pirfenidone as antifibrotic drugs. This method can be applied to other organs to create organ-specific vascularized organoids for drug development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrification is the core step of the soil nitrogen cycle and directly affects the nitrogen use efficiency in agricultural systems. Biochar and gypsum are two important soil amendments widely used in coastal saline farmland. However, little is known about their effects on nitrification and ammonia-oxidizing microorganisms. A one-year pot experiment with three treatments including biochar application (BC), gypsum application (SG), and no amendment (CK) was conducted, and the responses of the nitrification rate, amoA gene copies, and the diversity and community structure of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB) to biochar and gypsum were evaluated. The results indicated that biochar and gypsum application both resulted in alterations to the soil properties. They both had inhibiting effects on nitrification and AOB amoA gene copies, whereas they had no significant effect on AOA amoA gene copies. Biochar had no significant effect on the diversity indexes of AOA, but it significantly reduced the Shannon index of AOB. Meanwhile, gypsum had no significant influence on the diversity indexes of both AOA and AOB. Biochar and gypsum did not significantly affect the community structure of AOA but did induce changes in that of AOB. In detail, biochar significantly enhanced the relative abundance of the dominant cluster Nitrosospira, whereas gypsum led to a notable increase in the relative abundance of unclassified_o_Nitrosomonadales. The Shannon index of AOB had a significant negative correlation with soil TOC, TN, and NH4+ content, and soil pH was the first primary environmental factor that affected the AOB community structure. In conclusion, biochar and gypsum inhibited nitrification by suppressing the activities of AOB and changed the diversities and community structure of AOB by altering related soil properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enhancement and improvement of China's high-speed rail network plays a crucial role in promoting sustainable economic growth in the region. By utilizing "new nighttime light data" in China's Yangtze River Delta from 2003 to 2018, this paper investigates the impact of HSR on economic growth using a multiperiod difference-in-differences (DID) model. The operations of high-speed rail have a significant and positive impact on economic growth, which often becomes more apparent with a certain time delay. The operations of high-speed rail have a significant positive impact on the development of large, mega, and super-cities, with this impact becoming more pronounced as the size of the city increases. Furthermore, high-speed rail operations have a significant influence on the economic growth of cities that largely rely on secondary and tertiary industries, in contrast to the primary industry. The promotion of economic growth by high-speed rail is primarily achieved through three transmission channels: low carbon emissions, labor force agglomeration, and innovation. Over time, high-speed rail will progressively reduce economic disparities between regions and facilitate a trend towards regional economic coordination or convergence. This study makes a valuable contribution to the exploration of pathways towards achieving economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]