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Objective To investigate whether protocadherin 7 （PCDH7） participates in the progress of renal tubular epithelial cell pyroptosis induced by lipopolysaccharide （LPS）. Methods HK-2 cell was stimulated by 2 μg/mL LPS to construct renal tubular epithelial cell injury model. The changes in the expression levels of PCDH7, NLRP3, caspase-1, and IL-1β in cells were detected by RT-PCR and western blot. MTT assay was used to detect cell viability. TUNEL assay was employed to determine pyroptosis rate. ELISA was adopted to detect the secretion of TNF-α and IL-6 in cells. The content of lactate dehydrogenase （LDH） in culture medium was detected by automatic biochemical analyzer. Results Compared with the control group, cell viability was decreased, while pyroptosis rate was increased. The expression levels of TNF-α and IL-6 were up-regulated. The expression level of LDH, a biomarker of cell damage, was significantly elevated. The expression levels of PCDH7 and mRNA were significantly down-regulated. The expression levels of NLRP3, caspase-1, IL-1β and mRNA were significantly up-regulated in the LPS group （all P < 0.05）. Conclusion LPS can induce renal tubular epithelial cell pyroptosis by down-regulating the expression of PCDH7.

To consider the influence of the interaction of each clayey layer in the interbedded soils of a foundation on the soil consolidation, a two-dimensional calculation model based on the overall analysis is proposed and the controlling equations of each layer are established. A semianalytic solution for the excess pore-water pressure in the frequency domain is derived by combining the Laplace transform with the Fourier cosine transform and introducing the boundary transformation method. The theoretical solution is compared with numerical simulations for verification, and the relevant parameters are also analyzed to further explore the consolidation characteristics of the foundation. The results show that the proposed theoretical solution can effectively reflect the distribution of excess pore-water pressure in each soil layer under the given foundation conditions; the deviation of the average degree of consolidation from the numerical results is less than 2.0%. When only one sandy layer is laid out in the foundation, it is most conducive to the consolidation to arrange the sandy layer in the middle-lower part of the soil layer. When the total thickness of the sandy layer is the same, the maximum consolidation rate that can be achieved by arranging two sandy layers in the lower part of the foundation is slightly faster than that achieved by arranging a single sandy layer. When the ratio of the horizontal permeability coefficient of the sand to the permeability coefficient of the adjacent clay is greater than or equal to 20, the excess pore-water pressure in the sandy layer can be considered to be evenly distributed along the vertical direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aerosol hygroscopic behavior plays a central role in determining climate effects and environmental influence of atmospheric particulates. Water-soluble organic acids (WSOAs) constitute a significant fraction of organic aerosols. These organic acids have a complex impact on aerosol hygroscopicity due to their physical and chemical interactions with atmospheric inorganic salts. The mixing of WSOAs with inorganic salts exerts a multiple influence on the hygroscopic growth and phase behaviors of aerosol particles, largely depending on the composition ratio, acid properties, particle size and interactions between particle components. The WSOAs play a critical role in determining water uptake characteristics of aerosol particles, especially in the low and moderate RH ranges. The previous studies reveal the occurrence of aerosol chemistry related to chloride/nitrate/ammonium depletions in aerosol droplets containing WSOAs and inorganic salts. The potential influence of WSOAs on the atmospheric recycling of HCl/HNO3/NH3 due to the chloride/nitrate/ammonium depletion may contribute to the atmospheric budget of reactive gases. A fundamental understanding for the hygroscopic behavior and aerosol chemistry of inorganic–WSOA systems is essential for the accurate parameterization of aerosol behaviors in atmospheric models. However, there is still lack of a comprehensive understanding of the hygroscopicity and related aerosol chemistry of internally mixed inorganic–WSOA systems. The present review comprehensively summarizes the impacts of WSOAs on hygroscopicity and phase changes of atmospherically relevant inorganic salts in aerosol particles especially under subsaturated conditions, and overviews the recent advances on aerosol chemistry related to the hygroscopic process for the internally mixed inorganic–WSOA aerosols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

TeO2-Bi2O3-B2O3-ZnO laser glasses doped with Er3+ were synthesized through an optimized melt-quenching method. The absorption spectra at 808 nm LD pumping were studied. Various spectral tests and data analyses indicate that the maximum fluorescence emission intensity can be obtained when the Er3+ doping concentration reaches 2%. In this case, the emission cross-section can reach up to 9.12 × 10−21 cm2 and the gain coefficient at 1.55 μm is 6.17 cm−1. Simultaneously, the sample has a lower phonon energy in the high-frequency band at 1077 cm−1, which reduces the probability of non-radiative relaxation. The calculated energy transfer coefficient CD-A is 13.8 × 10−40 cm6/s, reflecting the high cross-relaxation probability of Er3+ in the sample, which promotes the luminescence of 1.55 μm and favors the emission in the near-infrared region. The comprehensive results demonstrate that the prepared Er3+-doped bismuth telluride laser glass can be used as a promising and high-quality gain material for near-infrared lasers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-loss, high-birefringence, bend-resistant hollow-core anti-resonant fibers for infrared wavelengths have important applications in the fields of precision interferometric sensing, laser systems, and optical communications. In this paper, an eight-tube cladding quasi-symmetric hollow-core anti-resonant fiber is proposed, and two other anti-resonant fibers are designed based on this fiber structure. The finite element analysis method is used to numerically analyze the limiting loss, birefringence coefficient, bending resistance, and other properties of the three optical fibers after the optimized design. The results show that the limiting loss of the three optical fibers at λ = 1.55 μm is lower than 10−4 magnitude, and all of them obtain a birefringence coefficient of 10−4 magnitude; at the same time, the three optical fibers have their own characteristics and advantages, and the first optical fiber can reach a birefringence coefficient of 9.25 × 10−4 at λ = 1.52 μm.The limiting loss at λ = 1.55 μm is 3.42 × 10−5 dB/km. The minimum bending radius of the three types of anti-resonant fibers is less than 40 mm, which represents good bending characteristics, and the eight-tube cladding quasi-symmetric optical fiber has a bending loss of less than 2.10 × 10−3 dB/km when the bending radius is 28 mm. The three types of optical fibers have obtained good results in improving the mutual constraints between low limiting loss and high birefringence, with better results than the other two types. The obtained results have high development potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) not only acts as proinflammatory cytokine conducing to wide spectrum of human diseases including inflammatory diseases, but also can induce tumor development. In the current study, we investigated the relationship between TNF-α gene polymorphisms and the occurrence and development of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Han population of Yunnan Province. Methods: A total of 425 lung cancer patients with NSCLC and 438 healthy individuals were included from Han population of Yunnan Province. The genotypes of 5 polymorphism loci, rs1799964 (-1031T>C), rs1800630 (-863C>A), rs1799724 (-857C>T), rs1800629 (-308G>A) and rs361525 (-238G>A) of TNF-α gene were detected by TaqMan assay. The frequency distributions of allele, genotype and haplotype in NSCLC patients and healthy controls were analyzed. Results: There was no significant difference in the allele and genotype frequency among 5 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) sites in TNF-α gene promoter (P>0.05). And in stratification analysis, the frequency of rs1799724-T was significantly higher in the adenocarcinoma patients than in the controls (P=0.010, OR=1.56, 95% CI: 1.11-2.19), and the rs1799724-TT+TC carrier showed significantly higher susceptibility to adenocarcinoma in dominant model (P=0.007, OR=1.66, 95% CI: 1.146-2.417). The frequency of rs1800630-A was significantly higher in adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and other histological types of carcinoma patients (P=0.013, OR=2.15, 95% CI: 1.16-3.96). The haplotype analysis indicated that the frequency of haplotype rs1799724T-rs1800629G was higher in the adenocarcinoma group than in the control group (P=0.048, OR=1.42, 95% CI: 1.00-2.01). Conclusion: The T allele and TT genotype of rs1799724 (C>T) in TNF-α gene promoter might be associated with the susceptibility to lung adenocarcinoma in Han population of Yunnan Province. And rs1800630 (C>T) -A might be a risk factor of other histological lung cancer in Han population of Yunnan Province.