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We prove the existence of rational maps having smooth degenerate Herman rings. This answers a question of Eremenko affirmatively. The proof is based on the construction of smooth Siegel disks by Avila, Buff and Chéritat as well as the classical Siegel-to-Herman quasiconformal surgery. A crucial ingredient in the proof is the surgery's continuity, which relies on the control of the loss of the area of quadratic filled-in Julia sets by Buff and Chéritat. As a by-product, we prove the existence of rational maps having a nowhere dense Julia set of positive area for which these maps have no irrationally indifferent periodic points, no Herman rings, and are not renormalizable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface maleoyl modification of polymeric carbon nitride leads to construction of core-shell homojunction with enhanced photoabsorption, charge separation, and photocatalytic activity. [Display omitted] • Maleoyl-modified polymeric carbon nitride (MaCN) was firstly synthesized. • The surface modification in MaCN causes variation of the energy band structure. • The core-shell homojunction was constructed in MaCN. • MaCN exhibits enhanced charge separation and optical absorption. • MaCN exhibits prominently enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. Surface modification has been considered a simple and effective strategy to enhance the photocatalytic activity of polymeric carbon nitride (CN), but resultant difference of energy band structures between the modified surface layer and the unmodified inside in the sample has always been neglected. Herein, maleoyl-modified CN (MaCN) was simply prepared via a dehydration reaction between CN and maleic acid, and exhibits enhanced charge separation, optical absorption, and thus photocatalytic hydrogen evolution activity, relative to the bulk CN. The surface modification causes variation of the band structure, suggesting the difference of band levels between the surface layer with maleoyl-modification and the inside without any modification in MaCN, and the surface layer and the inside with matched band levels form type-II core-shell homojunction to enhance the charge separation. This work expounds a conceptual framework of core-shell homojunction in surface-modified CN photocatalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is an incurable and highly complex chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affecting millions of people worldwide. C-phycocyanin (C-PC) has been reported to possess outstanding anti -inflammatory activities and can effectively inhibit various inflammation-related diseases. Whether C-PC-derived bioactive peptides can inhibit intestinal inflammation is worth research and consideration. The inhibition activities of three anti -neuroinflammatory peptides were evaluated using 2-4-6-trinitrobenzen sulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced zebrafish colitis model. Subsequently, the abilities of peptides to promote gastrointestinal motility were also examined. The changes in the intestinal pathological symptoms and ultrastructure of intestinal, reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, and antioxidant enzymes were then determined after co-treatment with peptides and TNBS. Transcriptome analysis was used to investigate the underlying ameliorating TNBS-induced colitis effects molecular mechanisms of better activity peptide. Furthermore, quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction and molecular docking techniques verified the mRNA sequencing results. Three peptides, MHLWAAK, MAQAAEYYR and MDYYFEER, which significantly inhibit macrophage migration, were synthesized. The results showed that these peptides could effectively alleviate the inflammatory responses in the TNBS-induced zebrafish model of colitis. In addition, co-treatment with TNBS and C-PC peptides could decrease ROS production and increase antioxidant enzyme activities in zebrafish larvae. Moreover, MHLWAAK had the most significantly therapeutic effects on colitis in zebrafish. The transcriptome analysis suggests that the effect of MHLWAAK on TNBS-induced colitis may be associated with the modulation of nuclear factor-erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway associated genes. In addition, molecular docking was conducted to study the prospective interaction between peptides and the key proteins that streamline the Nrf2 and MAPK signaling pathways. IL-6, JNK3, TNF-α, KEAP1-NRF2 complex and MAPK may be the core targets of MHLWAAK in treating colitis. The results suggested that the three C-PC-derived peptides could ameliorate TNBS-induced colitis in zebrafish, and these peptides might be a promising therapeutic candidate for UC treatment. • C-phycocyanin peptides could improve the intestinal histopathological damage. • C-phycocyanin peptides could decrease oxidative stress and repair immune capacity of gut. • It could change the expression levels of genes in MAPK/Nrf2 pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to control the assembly of micro/nanosized particles at liquid-liquid interface with external inputs promises new opportunities in nanofabrication and biomedicines. This work aims to demonstrate a way to control of dynamic assembly of nanoparticles at liquid-liquid interface by light and magnetic field, which consequently enables the formation of dynamic emulsion droplets. Magnetic Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles functionalized with azobenzene moieties (Fe 3 O 4 @AZO) were synthesized and were dispersed in toluene/(N, N -dimethylformamide, DMF) binary solvent. After irradiation with UV or visible light, the assembly behavior of these Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles were evaluated by electron microscopy and fluorescent microscopy. Under UV light, Fe 3 O 4 @AZO nanoparticles were self-assembled due to the increase of dipolar interaction from the photoisomerization of azobenzene and polar molecules, DMF, were harvested from a binary solvent of DMF/toluene. While under visible light, a relief of dipolar interactions between Fe 3 O 4 @AZO nanoparticles can induce the secondary assembly of these Fe 3 O 4 @AZO nanoparticles at DMF-toluene interface, resulting in DMF droplets covered by a layer of nanoparticle superlattices. More importantly, coupled with a magnetic field, these emulsion droplets can be shaped into one dimensional ones during the interfacial assembly process, thereby giving rise to dynamic emulsions controlled by light and magnetic field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let (M n , g , e − ϕ d v) be a smooth metric measure space. In this paper, we derive a series of gradient estimates and Harnack inequalities for positive solutions of a nonlinear parabolic partial differential equation (Δ ϕ − ∂ t) u = p u + q u a + 1 in M n × (− ∞ , + ∞) , where p , q ∈ C 2 , 1 (M n × (− ∞ , + ∞)) and a is a positive constant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our study was aimed at investigating the hepatoprotective effects of pentadecapeptide (RVAPEEHPVEGRYLV) from Cyclaina sinensis (SCSP) against cyclophosphamide (CTX)-induced hepatotoxicity in mice. Our results show that SCSP can significantly alleviate CTX-induced hepatotoxicity by decreasing the levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), triglyceride (TG) and malondialdehyde (MDA), and increasing the levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), catalase (CAT) in the liver. In addition, the levels of interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were also significantly decreased in the liver tissues when treated with SCSP. Moreover, the protein levels of the toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)-mediated nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) pathway and apoptosis-related proteins were also restored by SCSP treatment. Overall, our results suggest that SCSP can potentially improve the CTX-induced hepatotoxicity. • The hepatoprotective effects of pentadecapeptide SCSP in vivo were investigated. • SCSP can significantly alleviate CTX-induced hepatotoxicity. • SCSP restored the protein levels in the TLR4-mediated NF-κB pathway. • SCSP restored the levels of some apoptosis-related proteins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • A novel carbonyl reductase was isolated and modified based on based on molecular modification of hydrogen bonding network regulation. • An organic-aqueous biphasic system was first constructed for Vibegron intermediate synthesis. • The substrate concentration of 200 g/L and the spatiotemporal yield of 1.55 g/(L·h·g DCW) were higher than ever reported. Vibegron is a novel, potent, highly selective β 3 -adrenergic receptor agonist for the treatment of overactive bladder with higher therapeutic capacity and lower side effects. Methyl(2 S ,3 R)-2-((tert -butoxycarbonyl)amino)-3-hydroxy-3-phenylpropanoate ((2 S ,3 R)-aminohydroxy ester) is a key chiral intermediate for the synthesis of Vibegron. A novel carbonyl reductase from Exiguobacterium sp. s126 (Ea SDR6) was isolated using data mining technology from GenBank database with preferable catalytic activity. Hydrogen bond network regulation was performed using site-directed saturation mutagenesis and combination mutagenesis. The mutant Ea SDR6A138L/S193A was obtained with the activity improvement by 4.58 folds compared with the wild type Ea SDR6. The K m of Ea SDR6A138L/S193A was decreased from 1.57 mM to 0.67 mM, k cat was increased by 2.17 folds, and the overall catalytic efficiency k cat / K m was increased by 5.07 folds. The organic-aqueous biphasic bioreaction system for the asymmetric synthesis of (2 S ,3 R)-aminohydroxy ester was constructed for the first time. Under the substrate concentration of 150 g/L, the yield of (2 S ,3 R)-aminohydroxy ester was > 99.99%, the e.e. was > 99.99%, and the spatiotemporal yield was 1.55 g/(L·h·g DCW) after 12 h reaction. While the substrate concentration was increased to 200 g/L and the reaction lasted for 36 h, the yield of (2 S ,3 R)-aminohydroxy ester was > 99.99%, the e.e. was > 99.99% and the spatiotemporal yield was 1.05 g/(L·h·g DCW). The substrate concentration and spatiotemporal yield were higher than ever reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we derive local elliptic (Hamilton type and Souplet–Zhang type) gradient estimates for positive solutions of the nonlinear parabolic partial differential equation (Δ t − ∂ t) u = q u + a u (ln ⁡ u) α under the Ricci flow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we study a nonlocal dispersal susceptible-infected-susceptible (SIS) epidemic model with Neumann boundary condition, where the spatial movement of individuals is described by a nonlocal (convolution) diffusion operator, the transmission rate and recovery rate are spatially heterogeneous, and the total population number is constant. We first define the basic reproduction number R 0 and discuss the existence, uniqueness and stability of steady states of the nonlocal dispersal SIS epidemic model in terms of R 0. Then we consider the impacts of the large diffusion rates of the susceptible and infectious populations on the persistence and extinction of the disease. The obtained results indicate that the nonlocal movement of the susceptible or infectious individuals will enhance the persistence of the infectious disease. In particular, our analytical results suggest that the spatial heterogeneity tends to boost the spread of the infectious disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Quantum dots (QDs), considered as a type of excellent semiconductor nanomaterial, are widely employed and have a number of important applications. However, QDs have the potential to produce adverse effects and toxicity with the underlying molecular mechanisms not well understood. Herein, Caenorhabditis elegans was used for in vivo toxicity assessment to detect the reproductive toxicity of CdTe QDs. We found that exposure to CdTe QDs particles (≥ 50 mg/L) resulted in a defect in reproductive capacity, dysfunctional proliferation and differentiation, as well as an imbalance in oogenesis by reducing the number of cells in pachytene and diakinesis. Further, we identified a SPO-11 and PCH-2 mediated toxic mechanism and a GLP-1/Notch mediated protective mechanism in response to CdTe QDs particles (≥ 50 mg/L). Taken together, these results demonstrate the potential adverse impact of CdTe QDs (≥ 50 mg/L) exposure on oogenesis and provide valuable data and guidelines for evaluation of QD biocompatibility. Graphic abstract Our results highlight potential reproductive toxicity of CdTe QDs particles, and announce the underlying mechanism. Exposure to CdTe QDs (≥ 50 mg/L) leads to dysfunction of proliferation and differentiation in germline cells, imbalance of the dynamic balance between mitosis and meiosis, inhibition of SPO-11 and PCH-2 mediated toxicity mechanism and GLP-1/Notch mediated protection mechanism, which makes oogenesis abnormal and produces reproductive toxicity. fx1 Highlights • We investigated the potential reproductive toxicity effects of CdTe QDs in C. elegans. • CdTe QDs exposure induced dysfunction of proliferation and differentiation in germline cell. • CdTe QDs exposure broke the dynamic balance between mitosis and meiosis in germline cell. • SPO-11 and PCH-2 and GLP-1/Notch were involved in response to CdTe QDs toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Abstract The Co 2 P@NiCo 2 O 4 bi-functional electrocatalyst was fabricated for hydrogen evolution reaction and oxygen evolution reaction in acidic, neutral and alkaline media. The Co 2 P@NiCo 2 O 4 in alkaline media exhibites an extremely low overpotential of 170 mV in oxygen evolution to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm−2 and produces stable water splitting nearly 30 h. The anchored-Co 2 P can enhance the electrochemical performance of pristine NiCo 2 O 4 as well as increase the tolerance in acidic media of NiCo 2 O 4. Additional, the Co 2 P is oxidized to oxides/hydroxides species during the electrocatalytic reaction, which acts as the active centers of the electrocatalysis. The Co 2 P@NiCo 2 O 4 catalyst can be used as an effective bifunctional synergistic center in a wide range of pH values (from 0 to 14). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with the existence of traveling waves for a nonlocal dispersal Kermack–McKendrick epidemic model. As we know, due to the semiflow generated by the model does not have the order-preserving property and the solutions lack of regularity, it is difficult to investigate traveling waves with the critical wave speed. Furthermore, the nonlocal dispersal and bilinear incidence bring additional difficulties to get the boundedness of traveling waves. In the present paper, we overcome these difficulties to obtain the boundedness of traveling waves by analysis technique firstly and then prove the existence of traveling waves under the critical wave speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate whether metformin can improve the cardiac function through improving the mitochondrial function in model of heart failure after myocardial infarction. Male C57/BL6 mice aged about 8 weeks were selected and the anterior descending branch was ligatured to establish the heart failure model after myocardial infarction. The cardiac function was evaluated via ultrasound after 3 days to determine the modeling was successful, and the mice were randomly divided into two groups. Saline group (Saline) received the intragastric administration of normal saline for 4 weeks, and metformin group (Met) received the intragastric administration of metformin for 4 weeks. At the same time, Shame group (Sham) was set up. Changes in cardiac function in mice were detected at 4 weeks after operation. Hearts were taken from mice after 4 weeks, and cell apoptosis in myocardial tissue was detected using TUNEL method; fresh mitochondria were taken and changes in oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and respiratory control rate (RCR) of mitochondria in each group were detected using bio-energy metabolism tester, and change in mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) of myocardial tissue was detected via JC-1 staining; the expressions and changes in Bcl-2, Bax, Sirt3, PGC-1α and acetylated PGC-1α in myocardial tissue were detected by Western blot. RT-PCR was used to detect mRNA levels in Sirt3 in myocardial tissues. Metformin improved the systolic function of heart failure model rats after myocardial infarction and reduced the apoptosis of myocardial cells after myocardial infarction. Myocardial mitochondrial respiratory function and membrane potential were decreased after myocardial infarction, and metformin treatment significantly improved the mitochondrial respiratory function and mitochondrial membrane potential; Metformin up-regulated the expression of Sirt3 and the activity of PGC-1α in myocardial tissue of heart failure after myocardial infarction. Metformin decreases the acetylation level of PGC-1α through up-regulating Sirt3, mitigates the damage to mitochondrial membrane potential of model of heart failure after myocardial infarction and improves the respiratory function of mitochondria, thus improving the cardiac function of mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive interstitial lung disease with unclear etiology and poor prognosis. Despite numerous studies on the pathogenesis of IPF, only scant treatment options are available for the management of IPF. Glaucocalyxin A (GLA), an ent-Kaurane diterpenoid, has been demonstrated to exert anti-inflammatory, anti-neoplastic and anti-platelet activities. In this study, we evaluated the role of GLA as an anti-fibrotic agent in bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in mice and investigated the underlying mechanisms by which GLA attenuates lung fibrosis. Intraperitoneal administration of GLA (10 mg/kg) significantly reduced collagen deposition and hydroxyproline content in mouse lungs treated with bleomycin. Importantly, GLA significantly improved survival in bleomycin treated mice. In addition, GLA reduced weight loss in mice that reflects cachexia due to pulmonary fibrosis. Mechanistically, GLA alleviated the infiltration of macrophages and neutrophils in lungs, attenuated the increases of proinflammatory cytokines in lung tissue and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and inhibited the activation of NF-κB in fibrotic lungs induced by bleomycin. These results provide evidence that GLA can effectively ameliorate pulmonary fibrosis through the antagonism of leukocyte infiltration and proinflammatory cytokine production, suggesting that it may become a potential anti-fibrotic agent in IPF management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microcystin-LR (MC-LR), a potent hepatotoxin can cause liver damages. However, research on hepatic lipid metabolism caused by long-term exposure to environmental concentrations MC-LR is limited. In the current study, mice were exposed to various low concentrations of MC-LR (0, 1, 30, 60, 90, 120 μg/L in the drinking water) for 9 months. The general parameters, serum and liver lipids, liver tissue pathology, lipid metabolism-related genes and proteins of liver were investigated. The results show that chronic MC-LR exposure had increased the levels of triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC) in serum and liver. In addition, histological observation revealed that hepatic lobules were disordered with obvious inflammatory cell infiltration and lipid droplets. More importantly, the mRNA and proteins expression levels of lipid synthesis-related nuclear sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c (nSREBP-1c), SREBP-1c, cluster of differentiation 36 (CD36), acetyl-CoA-carboxylase1 (ACC1), stearoyl-CoA desaturase1 (SCD1) and fatty acid synthase (FASN) were increased in MC-LR treated groups, the expression levels of fatty acids β-oxidation related genes peroxisomal acyl-coenzyme A oxidase 1 (ACOX1) was decreased after exposure to 60–120 μg/L MC-LR. Furthermore, the inflammatory factors interleukin 6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were higher than that in the control group. All the findings indicated that mice were exposed to chronic low concentrations MC-LR caused liver inflammation and hepatic lipid metabolism disorder. [Display omitted] • Mice were exposed to MC-LR at environmental concentrations for 9 months. • 30–120 μg/L MC-LR in the drinking water caused liver steatosis. • MC-LR (starting at 1 μg/L) affected the expression of lipid synthesis and β-oxidation. • Chronic MC-LR exposure increased the expression of IL-6 and TNF-α and caused liver inflammation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The longitudinal ultrasonic guided waves in oblique defects pipes were investigated experimentally and numerically in the paper. A novel method of the defect detection for pipes is proposed based on the Duffing–Holmes chaotic oscillator. Five kinds of defects with inclined angle of 0°, 30°, 45°, 60° and 90° were discussed and analyzed, respectively. Based on the experiment, the corresponding simulations were conducted by using finite element software LS-DYNA. Both experimental and numerical results show that this proposed method could be used to inspect the weaker guided waves; and the reflection coefficient of echo increases with the decrease of the inclined angle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the dynamical behavior of the family of complex rational maps which is given by f λ ( z ) = z n ( z 2 n − λ n + 1 ) z 2 n − λ 3 n − 1 , where n ≥ 2 and λ ∈ C ⁎ − { λ : λ 2 n − 2 = 1 } . This family of rational maps can be seen as a perturbation of the unicritical polynomial z ↦ z n if λ is small. We prove that the Julia set J ( f λ ) of f λ is either a quasicircle, a Cantor set of circles, a Sierpiński carpet or a degenerated Sierpiński carpet provided one of the free critical points of f λ is escaping to the origin or to the infinity. In particular, we prove that there exists suitable λ such that the Julia set J ( f λ ) is a Cantor set of circles, but f λ is not topologically conjugate to any McMullen map on their corresponding Julia sets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

background: To evaluate the effect of selective double portazygous disconnection with preserving vagus (SDPDPV) for patients with portal hypertension (PHT) in the authors' hospital. methods: Patients (453) with cirrhotic PHT who underwent either SDPDPV or pericardial devascularization with splenectomy (PDS) for variceal bleeding from February 2007 to January 2013 were retrospectively reviewed. The operation-relevant information, change of lavatory examination data, postoperative complications, and clinical outcomes were analyzed. results: There were no significant difference between the SDPDPV group and the PDS group of mean operative time and intraoperative blood loss (P >0.05). The free portal pressure in the SDPDPV group was much lower than PDS group significantly after operation (P <0.05). The test of biochemical profile of hepatocyte functions and Child-Pugh score at the end of the first postoperative year were significantly more altered in the SDPDPV group than in the PDS group (P <0.05). Except encephalopathy, occurrences or development of postoperative complications including rebleeding, ascites, and gastric stasis showed great difference between the two groups (P <0.05). The operative mortality rate and the 3-y survival rates were great difference between the two groups too (P <0.05). conclusions: The SDPDPV not only controls recurrent bleeding from varices with PHT effectively but also maintains normal dynamics of stomach and physiological function of intestine and hepatobiliary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ventricular human myocyte is spatially organized for optimal ATP and Ca 2+ delivery to sarcomeric myosin and ionic pumps during every excitation–contraction cycle. Comprehension of three-dimensional geometry of the tightly packed ultrastructure has been derived from discontinuous two-dimensional images, but has never been precisely reconstructed or analyzed in human myocardium. Using a focused ion beam scanning electron microscope, we created nanoscale resolution serial images to quantify the three-dimensional ultrastructure of a human left ventricular myocyte. Transverse tubules (t-tubule), lipid droplets, A-bands, and mitochondria occupy 1.8, 1.9, 10.8, and 27.9% of the myocyte volume, respectively. The complex t-tubule system has a small tortuosity (1.04 ± 0.01), and is composed of long transverse segments with diameters of 317 ± 24 nm and short branches. Our data indicates that lipid droplets located well beneath the sarcolemma are proximal to t-tubules, where 59% (13 of 22) of lipid droplet centroids are within 0.50 μm of a t-tubule. This spatial association could have an important implication in the development and treatment of heart failure because it connects two independently known pathophysiological alterations, a substrate switch from fatty acids to glucose and t-tubular derangement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microcystin-leucine arginine (MC-LR), an emerging water pollutant, produced by cyanobacteria, has an acute testicular toxicity. However, little is known about the chronic toxic effects of MC-LR exposure on the testis at environmental concentrations and the underlying molecular mechanisms. In this study, C57BL/6 J mice were exposed to different low concentrations of MC-LR for 6, 9 and 12 months. The results showed that MC-LR could cause testis structure loss, cell abscission and blood-testis barrier (BTB) damage. Long-term exposure of MC-LR also activated RhoA/ROCK pathway, which was accompanied by the rearrangement of α-Tubulin. Furthermore, MC-LR reduced the levels of the adherens junction proteins (N-cadherin and β-catenin) and the tight junction proteins (ZO-1 and Occludin) in a dose- and time-dependent way, causing BTB damage. MC-LR also reduced the expressions of Occludin, ZO-1, β-catenin, and N-cadherin in TM4 cells, accompanied by a disruption of cytoskeletal proteins. More importantly, the RhoA inhibitor Rhosin ameliorated these MC-LR-induced changes. Together, these new findings suggest that long-term exposure to MC-LR induces BTB damage through RhoA/ROCK activation: involvement of tight junction and adherens junction changes and cytoskeleton disruption. This study highlights a new mechanism for MC-LR-induced BTB disruption and provides new insights into the cause and treatment of BTB disruption. [Display omitted] • This study evaluates the chronic reproductive toxicity of microcystin-leucine arginine (MC-LR). • MC-LR causes blood-testis barrier (BTB) disruption by RhoA/ROCK. • MC-LR induces BTB disruption by adherens junction and tight junction disruption. • MC-LR caused-cytoskeletal rearrangement contributes to BTB disruption. • MC-LR has not only a dose effect but also a time effect on testicular toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microcystins (MCs) are the most common and toxic cyanotoxins that are hazardous to human health and ecosystems. Microcystinase is the enzyme in charge of the initial step in the biodegradation of MCs. The characterization, application conditions, and detoxification mechanisms of microcystinase from an indigenous bacterium Sphingopyxis sp. YF1 towards MC-LR were investigated in the current study. The microcystinase gene of strain YF1 was most similar to Sphingomonas sp. USTB-05 and contained a CAAX-family conversed abortive Infection (ABI) domain. The microcystinase was successful obtained and purified by overexpression in Escherichia coli. The highest degradation rate of MC-LR was 1.0 μg/mL/min under the optimal condition of 30 ℃, pH 7, 20 μg/mL MC-LR, and 400 μg/mL microcystinase. The MC-degrading product was identified as linearized MC-LR, which possessed a much lower inhibitory activity against protein phosphatase 2A than MC-LR. Microcystinase interacted with MC-LR via amino acid residues involved in through the formation of conventional Hydrogen Bond, Pi-Pi T-shapes, Van der Waals force, and so on. The optimal MC-degrading condition of pure microcystinase and its detoxification mechanisms against MC-LR were revealed. The toxicity of purified linearized MC-LR was explored for the first time. These findings suggest that pure microcystinase may efficiently detoxify MCs and it is promising in the bioremediation of MC-polluted environments. [Display omitted] • The purified microcystinase of Sphingopyxis sp. YF1 was obtained successfully. • The highest MC-LR degradation rate of microcystinase was 1.0 μg/mL/min. • Purified linearized MC-LR possessed much lower toxicity than that of MC-LR. • The detoxification mechanisms of microcystinase against MC-LR was elucidated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper is concerned with the existence, uniqueness and asymptotic stability of positive steady-states for a nonlocal dispersal equation arising from selection–migration models in genetics. Due to the lack of compactness and regularity of the nonlocal operators, many classical methods cannot be used directly to the nonlocal dispersal problems. This motivates us to find new techniques. We first establish a criterion on the stability and instability of steady-states. This result is effective to get a necessary condition to guarantee a positive steady-state, it also gives the uniqueness. Then we prove the existence of nontrivial solutions by the corresponding auxiliary equations and maximum principle. Finally, we consider the dynamic behavior of the initial value problem. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We study the family of renormalization transformations of the generalized d-dimensional diamond hierarchical Potts model in statistical mechanic and prove that their Julia sets and non-escaping loci are always connected, where . In particular, we prove that their Julia sets can never be a Sierpiński carpet if the parameter is real. We show that the Julia set is a quasicircle if and only if the parameter lies in the unbounded capture domain of these models. Moreover, the asymptotic formula of the Hausdorff dimension of the Julia set is calculated as the parameter tends to infinity. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Cofilin1 is an actin-binding protein that plays a critical role in the regulation of actin cytoskeleton and consequently affects various physiological processes. In this study, the human Cofilin1 cDNA was cloned into the expression vector pET-28a(+) with a 6×His tag and expressed as soluble protein in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3). Approximately 78mg of Cofilin1, which showed high activity as determined by native PAGE, could be purified from each liter of LB medium by His-tag affinity chromatography and gel filtration. Further, high-titer IgG against Cofilin1 was positively detected after immunization in rabbits and the polyclonal antibodies were purified and identified. Together, this report provides the first protocol to efficiently obtain human Cofilin1 with high biological activity and immunogenicity using E. coli BL21 (DE3) expression system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The effects of in vivo exposure of Mytilus galloprovincialis to two anionic surfactants (SDBS and SDS) on the molecular biomarker system were studied. After continuous exposure for 72 days, activities/levels of GST, GPx and GSH were significantly higher than in corresponding control groups following exposure to 3.000mg/L SDS and SDBS. Activities of SOD and CAT were significantly inhibited by experimental SDBS (except CAT in 0.100mg/L group), but not by SDS. Statistical analysis of enzyme activities/levels suggested that there were significant positive relationships between GST and GPx, and negative relationships were found between GSH and CAT, GSH and SOD. Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) results showed that a greater genotoxic effect was observed for SDBS than for SDS. Based on the above results, the biomarker system of mussels can be affected by the two anionic surfactants (≥3.000mg/L); it was more easily affected by SDBS than by SDS. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Using positively charged plate-like layered double hydroxides (LDHs) particles as emulsifier, liquid paraffin-in-water emulsions stabilized solely by such particles are successfully prepared. The effects of the pH of LDHs aqueous dispersions on the formation and stability of the emulsions are investigated here. The properties of the LDHs dispersions at different pHs are described, including particle zeta potential, particle aggregation, particle contact angle, flow behavior of the dispersions and particle adsorption at a planar oil/water interface. The zeta potential decreases with increasing pH, leading to the aggregation of LDHs particles into large flocs. The structural strength of LDHs dispersions is enhanced by increasing pH and particle concentration. The three-phase contact angle of LDHs also increases with increasing pH, but the variation is very small. Visual observation and SEM images of the interfacial particle layers show that the adsorption behavior of LDHs particles at the planar oil/water interface is controlled by dispersion pH. We consider that the particle–particle (at the interface) and particle–interface electrostatic interactions are well controlled by adjusting the dispersion pH, leading to pH-tailored colloid adsorption. The formation of an adsorbed particle layer around the oil drops is crucial for the formation and stability of the emulsions. Emulsion stability improves with increasing pH and particle concentration because more particles are available to be adsorbed at the oil/water interface. The structural strength of LDHs dispersions and the gel-like structure of emulsions also influence the stability of the emulsions, but they are not necessary for the formation of emulsions. The emulsions cannot be demulsified by adjusting emulsion pH due to the irreversible adsorption of LDHs particles at the oil/water interface. TEM images of the emulsion drops show that a thick particle layer forms around the oil drops, confirming that Pickering emulsions are stabilized by the adsorbed particle layers. The thick adsorbed particle layer may be composed of a stable inner particle layer which is in direct contact with the oil phase and a relatively unstable outer particle layer surrounding the inner layer. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The formation and stability of liquid paraffin-in-water emulsions stabilized solely by positively charged plate-like layered double hydroxides (LDHs) particles were described here. The effects of adding salt into LDHs dispersions on particle zeta potential, particle contact angle, particle adsorption at the oil–water interface and the structure strength of dispersions were studied. It was found that the zeta potential of particles gradually decreased with the increase of salt concentration, but the variation of contact angle with salt concentration was very small. The adsorption of particles at the oil–water interface occurred due to the reduction of particle zeta potential. The structural strength of LDHs dispersions was strengthened with the increase of salt and particle concentrations. The effects of particle concentration, salt concentration and oil phase volume fraction on the formation, stability and type of emulsions were investigated and discussed in relation to the adsorption of particles at the oil–water interface and the structural strength of LDHs dispersions. Finally, the possible stabilization mechanisms of emulsions were put forward: the decrease of particle zeta potential leads to particle adsorption at the oil–water interface and the formation of a network of particles at the interface, both of which are crucial for emulsion formation and stability; the structural strength of LDHs dispersions is responsible for emulsion stability, but is not necessary for emulsion formation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The effect of substitutional doping at S site on the electronic properties of MoS 2 /Graphene (MoS 2 /G) was studied by First-principles calculations. Through the analysis on the energy band and density of states of MoS 2 /Graphene, it was found that the S vacancy in MoS 2 monolayer caused the Dirac point shifted, and produced the defect energy levels at the Dirac point, which hindered the carrier transmission. Periods II-IV elements were doped at the S vacancy to improve the electronic properties and performance of MoS 2 /G. The calculated results show that the charge transfer of MoS 2 /G was greatly enhanced by the doping of N, P and As atoms. The current-voltage characteristic of N, P and As-doped G/MoS 2 /MoS 2 /G structure has higher drive-current and stable OFF-state current which can reduce device current consumption. For O-doped and Se-doped MoS 2 /G heterostructures, there is no impurity level introduced, and the Schottky barrier height increase (decrease) with the increase (decrease) of the biaxial strain, meantime the p-type Schottky contact, n-type Schottky contact and Ohmic contact characteristic can be converted mutually by adjusting biaxial strain or vertical external force. Our findings will be of great guiding significance for the designing of interface devices and explorations on nano-electronics. [Display omitted] • The passing carriers were trapped by S vacancy in MoS 2 /G heterostrcture. • The current-voltage characteristics of N-doped, P-doped and As-doped of G/MoS 2 /MoS 2 /G were improved. • The contact type of O-doped, Se-doped and undoped MoS 2 /G can be converted by adjusting external force. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterostructures have attracted significant attention because of their interlayer van der Waals interactions, in this work, six stacking models of GeC/MoS 2 heterostructure were constructed, the AB stacking model has the lowest energy and the most stable interlayer spacing between GeC and MoS 2 is 3.81 Å. Based on First-principles calculations, we explored the structural, electronic and optical properties of GeC/MoS 2 heterostructure and its response to electric field and biaxial strain. The results show that built-in electric field formed at the GeC/MoS 2 interface, which effectively separated photo-generated electrons and holes. Meantime, the absorption of GeC/MoS 2 located at ~200 nm was enhanced compared with monolayers. When the electric field strength increased from −0.7 V/Å to 0.65 V/Å, the band gap value of GeC/MoS 2 heterostructure increased from 0eV to 1.21eV linearly, then decreased continuously to 0eV with the electric field strength increasing from 0.65 V/Å to 0.8 V/Å. Lastly, with the biaxial strain increasing from −6% to 5%, the gap value of GeC/MoS 2 heterostructure increased slowly from 0 eV to 1.19eV, then decreased rapidly to 0 eV when the biaxial strain increased from 5% to 8%, the transitions of direct-to-indirect band gap and N-to-P type characteristic occurred when biaxial strain was 3% and −2% respectively. Results show that the GeC/MoS 2 heterostructure has application prospects in ultraviolet, nanoelectronic, and pressure sensitive devices. The photo-generated holes in MoS 2 will migrate to the GeC monolayer with the valence-band offset and the photo-generated electrons in GeC tend to migrate to the MoS 2 monolayer with the conduction-band offset indicating a typical type-II band alignment. [Display omitted] • GeC/MoS 2 heterostructure exhibited type-II band alignment. • Compared with monolayers, the light absorption of GeC/MoS 2 heterostructure are significantly enhanced. • Electric field can effectively regulate the electron transport. • The transitions of direct to indirect band gap and P type to N type can occurred under biaxial strain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of plant polysaccharides in aquaculture is recognized as a healthy strategy to enhance disease resistance and reduce medication use. Salvia miltiorrhiza polysaccharide (SMP) can regulate the immune function of higher vertebrates. However, the effects of SMP on fish have not been fully investigated. In this study, the ability of SMP to activate the macrophages of Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser bareii) was analyzed in vitro. The effects of SMP on immune cell activity of hybrid sturgeon (A. baerii ♀ × Acipenser schrenckii ♂) and resistance to Aeromonas hydrophila were further detected in vivo. The in vitro results showed that SMP up-regulated phagocytosis, respiratory burst, inducible nitric oxide synthase activity, nitric oxide (NO) concentration, and cytokine mRNA expression of macrophages. The in vivo results showed that dietary supplementation with SMP enhanced the respiratory burst of macrophages and proliferative activity of lymphocytes. Dietary supplementation with SMP increased serum concentrations of lysozyme and NO, and improved the survival rate of hybrid sturgeon challenged with A. hydrophila. Collectively, these results suggest that SMP can improve the immune function and disease resistance of sturgeon. This study provides a theoretical basis for the application of SMP for healthy farming of sturgeon. • Salvia miltiorrhiza polysaccharide (SMP) activated macrophages of sturgeon i n vitro. • SMP improved the immune cell activity of sturgeon in vivo. • SMP enhanced the disease resistance against Aeromonas hydrophila in sturgeon. • SMP alleviated pathological damage to the spleen, liver, and valvular intestine of sturgeon post-challenge with A. hydrophila. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] SnO 2 layer between Li 1.5 Al 0.5 Ge 1.5 (PO 4) 3 (LAGP) and lithium anode was prepared through simple scratch-coating process to improve interface properties. The physical phase, morphology, and electrochemical properties of Li/SnO 2 /LAGP structure were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and electrochemical analytical methods. It was found that SnO 2 layer effectively improved the interface stability of LAGP and lithium anode. The prepared Li/SnO 2 /LAGP/SnO 2 /Li symmetric cell exhibited a large critical current density of 1.8 mA cm−2 and demonstrated excellent cycling characteristics. The polarization voltages of symmetric cell were 0.1 V and 0.8 V after 1000 h of cycling at current densities of 0.04 mA cm−2 and 0.5 mA cm−2, respectively. Li/SnO 2 @LAGP/LiFePO 4 solid-state full cells were also assembled, exhibiting a discharge specific capacity of 150 mAh g−1 after 200 cycles at 0.1C with capacity retention rate of 96 %. The good interface properties of Li/SnO 2 /LAGP structure are attributed to the transformation of SnO 2 layer into a buffer layer containing Li 2 O, Sn0, and Li x Sn y alloy during cycling process, which effectively inhibits the reduction reaction between LAGP and lithium anode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Novel sulfates supported binary RuIrO x be synthesized. • A strong catalyst-support interaction between RuIrO x and BaSrSO 4. • The RuIrO x /BSS exhibits a high OER mass activity of only 324 mV overpotential at 1000 A/g Ru + Ir. • It shows outstanding CER activity and stability. Electrolysis for producing hydrogen powered by renewable electricity can be dramatically expanded by adapting different electrolytes (brine, seawater or pure water), which means the anode materials must stand up to complex electrolyte conditions. Here, a novel catalyst/support hybrid of binary Ru 3.5 Ir 1 O x supported by barium strontium sulfate (BaSrSO 4) was synthesized (RuIrO x /BSS) by exchanging the anion ligands of support. The as-synthesized RuIrO x /BSS exhibits compelling oxygen evolution (OER) and chlorine evolution (CER) performances, which affords to 10 mA cm−2 with only overpotential of 244 mV and 38 mV, respectively. The performed X-ray adsorption spectra clearly indicate the presence of an interface charge transfer effect, which results in the assignment of more electrons to the d orbitals of the Ru and Ir sites. The theoretical calculations demonstrated that the electronic structures of the catalytic active sites were modulated to give a lower overpotential, confirming the intrinsically high OER and CER catalytic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on the Stress Process Model, this study investigates the effect of early migration on health behaviors and psychosocial resources. Further, I consider whether health behaviors and psychosocial processes lead to higher psychological distress for childhood immigrants in adulthood. Cross-sectional data from the Canadian Community Health Survey-Mental Health 2012 (N = 4282) reveal that compared to adult immigrants, childhood immigrants are not only four times more likely to use drugs, but also experience greater interpersonal strain. However, health behaviors such as these contribute less to psychological distress than do psychosocial resources. Additionally, longer duration of migration is found to reduce psychological distress when controlling for age at migration, thus suggesting the migrant health literature should examine age-salient life challenges at the time of migration, instead of continuing to use duration of migration as a proxy for negative acculturation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Compared with AD, DLB and FTD, VD had the highest prevalence of epilepsy. • Early-onset AD had a 4.06-fold increased risk of five-year epilepsy. • The prevalence of dementia in epileptic patients is as high as 17%. • Epidemiologically, there are still gaps between epilepsy and dementia. Epilepsy and dementia are bidirectional. The purpose of this review was to investigate the epidemiological characteristics of and to identify the risk factors for epilepsy in patients with dementia and dementia in patients with epilepsy. We retrieved the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane and Web of Science databases through January 2023. Two individuals screened the articles, extracted the data, and used a random effects model to pool the estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). From 3475 citations, 25 articles were included. The prevalence of seizures/epilepsy was 4% among dementia patients and 3% among Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. For vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, and frontotemporal dementia, the pooled period prevalence of seizures/epilepsy was 6%, 3%, and 2%, respectively. Baseline early-onset AD was associated with the highest risk of 5-year epilepsy (pooled hazard ratios: 4.06; 95% CI: 3.25–5.08). Dementia patients had a 2.29-fold greater risk of seizures/epilepsy than non-dementia patients (95% CI: 1.37–3.83). Moreover, for baseline epilepsy, the pooled prevalence of dementia was 17% (95% CI: 10–25%), and that of AD was 15% (95% CI: 9–21%). The pooled results suggested that epilepsy is associated with a greater risk of dementia (risk ratio: 2.83, 95% CI: 1.64–4.88). There are still gaps in epidemiology regarding the correlation between dementia types and epilepsy, vascular risk factors, and the impact of antiseizure medication or cognitive improvement drugs on epilepsy and AD comorbidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • FBG-AOTF is used to optimize the OCSR of OSSB signal. • The RZ pulse is chosen as the data transmitting pulse. • Data are only modulated on the optical carrier of the OSSB signal to reduce the influence of fiber dispersion. • Both the receiving sensitivity and stability of the RoF-OSSB link can be improved. Abstract An improved OSSB modulation scheme is proposed in this paper. The improvements are realized by three aspects. Firstly, the fiber Bragg grating based acousto-optic tunable filter (FBG-AOTF) is introduced to tune the Optical Carrier-to-Sideband Ratio (OCSR). Secondly, the Return-to-Zero (RZ) pulse is chosen as the data transmitting pulse. In the end, the OSSB signal with optimized OCSR is separated, and only the optical carrier is modulated by the data. When the transmission distance is within 360 km, the receiving sensitivity of the link in the improved scheme is relatively stable in the range of (−23.6 dBm, −24.1 dBm) with the increase of the distance. While for the original OSSB modulation, under the same condition, the receiving sensitivity is only about −20.0 dBm when the fiber length is 200 km. Not only the OCSR of the OSSB can be optimized, but also the problem of time shift of code edges caused by the fiber dispersion can be eliminated. As a result, both the performance and the stability of the OSSB system can be upgraded in the improved scheme. Two complete simulation systems are built by using the characteristic of the experimentally made FBG-AOTF. And the increased receiving sensitivity of 2.6 dB in the improved scheme further verifies the conclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is considered that the essence of acute lung injury (ALI) is an excessive and uncontrolled inflammatory response in lung, of which mainly is attributed to the release of inflammatory mediators. Recent studies demonstrated that irisin, which is a metabolism associated factor after physical exercise could suppression of inflammation by regulating cellular signaling pathways, however, the underlying molecular mechanism remains to be determined. The present study aimed to reveal the potential mechanism responsible for the anti-inflammatory effects of irisin on LPS-induced acute lung injury in mice and in A549 cells. The results of histopathological changes showed that irisin ameliorated the lung injury that was induced by LPS in time- and dose-dependent manner. QRT-PCR assays demonstrated that irisin suppressed the production of IL-1β, IL-6, MCP-1 and TNF-α, and western blot assays demonstrated that irisin suppressed apoptosis of ALI. The expression of caspase-3 and Bax were decreased and Bcl-2 was increased by irisin administration. Further study was conducted on nuclear factor (NF)-κB and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) using pathways using western blots. The results showed that irisin inhibited reduced LPS-induced activation of MAPK and NF-κB signaling. All results indicated that irisin has protective effect on LPS-induced ALI in mice and in A549 cells. Thus, irisn related with physical exercise may be a potential therapy for the treatment of pulmonary inflammation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with a nonlocal (convolution) dispersal susceptible-infected-susceptible (SIS) epidemic model with bilinear incidence and Neumann boundary conditions. First we establish the existence and uniqueness of stationary solutions by reducing the system to a single equation. Then we study the asymptotic profiles of the endemic steady states for large and small diffusion rates to illustrate the persistence or extinction of the infectious disease. The lack of regularity of the endemic steady state makes it more difficult to obtain the limit function of the sequence of endemic steady states. We also observe the concentration phenomenon which occurs when the diffusion rate of the infected individuals tends to zero. Our analytical results demonstrate that limiting the movement of susceptible individuals is not effective in eliminating the infectious disease unless the total population size is relatively small. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series highly efficient and stable metallophthalocyanine/La 0.8 Ce 0.2 NiO 3 (ML/LCNO) photocatalysts were prepared by a facile sol–gel and immersion method. The as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), TEM, N 2 adsorption–desorption, and UV–Vis. The results revealed that LCNO calcined at 700 °C possessed a perovskite structure with porous, and phthalocyanine not only adsorbed on the surface but also loaded in the pores of the LCNO oxide. The photocatalytic activities of the samples were evaluated by the photocatalytic oxidation of dibenzothiophene (DBT) under simulated sunlight irradiation. It was found that either macrocyclic structure or center metal of phthalocyanine had great influences on the photocatalytic activity of ML/LCNO. The oxidative reactivity of the different macrocycles was found in the order of MPc/LCNO > MTAP/LCNO > MPTpz/LCNO; which of different center metals was CoL/LCNO > FeL/LCNO > MnL/LCNO > NiL/LCNO > CuL/LCNO. The catalysts were reused several times with a slight decrease in activity. Furthermore, this kinetics of photocatalytic oxidation of DBT indicated that the reaction was a pseudo-first-order reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wheel load transition in railway turnouts leads to significant wheel-rail impacts, particularly in high-speed crossings. Compared with the plain track, the variable rail profiles, multi-point wheel-rail contact, and structural flexibility of turnouts make it difficult to accurately estimate the high-frequency wheel-rail impacts and identify the characteristic frequency mechanism of dynamic interaction during wheel load transitions. To address these challenges, extensions are made to vehicle-turnout coupled dynamics in time domains and wheel-rail interaction models in frequency domains. The modal superposition-based time domain model considers the flexibilities of the systematic turnout structure and rotating wheelset, expanding the valid frequency range up to 2 kHz. Simulated modal properties of turnout rails align with the field-measured frequency response function (FRF) and operating deflection shape (ODS). For the frequency domain model, a mathematical expression for turnout structural irregularity is introduced as roughness excitation. Eigenfrequencies of the wheel-turnout coupled system and characteristic frequencies of wheel-rail interaction are derived from validated mobilities of turnout rails and wheelsets. Simulations are conducted when a vehicle passes turnouts at speeds of 250 ∼ 400 km/h. The simulated vertical wheel-rail force in time domain models is comparable to the field track inspection train data. At a speed of 350 km/h, the vertical wheel-rail force converges at the cut-off frequency of 1500 Hz, and its characteristic frequencies are close to eigenfrequencies of the wheel-rail system. However, the turnout dynamic model does not account for contact nonlinearities between the long point rail and baseplates, leading to smaller simulated FRF amplitude for the long point rail and slightly higher wheel-rail forces calculated by the frequency domain model in 200 ∼ 400 Hz. Nevertheless, the vertical wheel-rail force and rail acceleration predicted by the frequency domain model align well with results from time domain integrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A Vehicle-Track Coupled Dynamic Reliability Evaluation Model (VTCDREM) is developed. • The effects of multiple stochastic factors are taken into account by VTCDREM. • VTCDREM is based on probability density evolution and absorbing boundary method. • Dynamic reliability of the vehicle-track system was evaluated for different curve radius. To evaluate the dynamic reliability of railway systems comprehensively, the amplitude, wavelength, and probability characteristics of track irregularities are considered. A full probability track irregularity random field is established, and random vibration equations for the vehicle-track system are proposed, taking into account the randomness in vehicle parameters and track structural parameters. The Sobol sequence is utilized to generate deterministic uniform random samples with low bias. The Probability Density Evolution Method (PDEM) is then employed to solve the time-domain probability distribution evolution characteristics of the vehicle-track system's dynamic response under these random influences. In conjunction with the absorbing boundary method, a Vehicle-Track Coupled Dynamic Reliability Evaluation Model (VTCDREM) is developed. This model is validated through numerical examples, demonstrating both correctness and efficiency. It is found that the computational efficiency of VTCDREM is superior to traditional Monte Carlo simulations by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude. VTCDREM reveals a general trend of higher dynamic reliability on the outside of the curve compared to the inside. Despite a slight decrease in reliability of vehicle-track system with decreasing curve radius, it maintains above 98.85 %. Additionally, the global dynamic reliability for different curve radii can be accurately fitted with a third-order polynomial, minimizing error. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper deals with entire solutions of periodic lattice dynamical systems. Unlike homogeneous problems, the periodic equation studied here lacks symmetry between increasing and decreasing pulsating traveling fronts, which affects the construction of entire solutions. In the bistable case, the existence, uniqueness and Liapunov stability of entire solutions are proved by constructing different sub- and supersolutions. In the monostable case, the existence and asymptotic behavior of spatially periodic solutions connecting two steady states are first established. Some new types of entire solutions are then constructed by combining leftward and rightward pulsating traveling fronts with different speeds and a spatially periodic solution. Various qualitative features of the entire solutions are also investigated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Microcystins (MCs) significantly threaten the ecosystem and public health. Biodegradation has emerged as a promising technology for removing MCs. Many MCs-degrading bacteria have been identified, including an indigenous bacterium Sphingopyxis sp. YF1 that could degrade MC-LR and Adda completely. Herein, we gained insight into the MCs biodegradation mechanisms and evolutionary dynamics of MCs-degrading bacteria, and revealed the toxic risks of the MCs degradation products. The biochemical characteristics and genetic repertoires of strain YF1 were explored. A comparative genomic analysis was performed on strain YF1 and six other MCs-degrading bacteria to investigate their functions. The degradation products were investigated, and the toxicity of the intermediates was analyzed through rigorous theoretical calculation. Strain YF1 might be a novel species that exhibited versatile substrate utilization capabilities. Many common genes and metabolic pathways were identified, shedding light on shared functions and catabolism in the MCs-degrading bacteria. The crucial genes involved in MCs catabolism mechanisms, including mlr and paa gene clusters, were identified successfully. These functional genes might experience horizontal gene transfer events, suggesting the evolutionary dynamics of these MCs-degrading bacteria in ecology. Moreover, the degradation products for MCs and Adda were summarized, and we found most of the intermediates exhibited lower toxicity to different organisms than the parent compound. These findings systematically revealed the MCs catabolism mechanisms and evolutionary dynamics of MCs-degrading bacteria. Consequently, this research contributed to the advancement of green biodegradation technology in aquatic ecology, which might protect human health from MCs. [Display omitted] • Sphingopyxis sp. YF1 was a novel indigenous bacterium with various capabilities. • Comparative genomic analysis showed metabolic potentials of MCs-degrading strains. • Evolutionary dynamics indicated the functional genes might experience HGT events. • The MCs catabolism mechanisms of MCs-degrading bacteria were revealed. • The main products of Adda degradation were less toxic than the parent compound. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Fe3O4 nanoparticles coated with oleic acid bilayer (a diameter about 12 nm) were synthesized. The structure and composition of the particles were analyzed by TEM, FTIR and TGA. The TGA experiments of the bilayer-coated particles show a distinct two-stage mass loss. Partition experiments show that the modified Fe3O4 nanoparticles are affected by aqueous dispersion pH and ion strength. Accordingly, the Pickering emulsions stabilized by modified Fe3O4 particles are also sensitive to pH and ion strength. The phase inversion of the emulsions occurs when , and no phase inversion occurs after complete desorption of the second layer surfactants when . The phase inversion of emulsions also can be adjusted by the ion strength. In interfacial adsorption experiments, the hydrophobic Fe3O4 nanoparticles form particle clusters, while the hydrophilic particles form uniform multilayers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The responses of rice quality including milling, appearance, and eating quality between superior (SG) and inferior grains (IG) to temperature during grain filling stage (T GF) remained poorly understood, especially for eating quality. Therefore, the regulation of T GF (17.6−30.4 °C) on quality of three indica hybrid varieties (IHs) was investigated by setting multiple sowing dates and the mechanism underlying taste difference was explored by monitoring chemical compositions, rapid visco analyser (RVA) profiles, and texture properties. Results suggested that T GF ranging from 23.3 to 25.2 °C could comprehensively improve the milling, appearance and eating quality of IHs, and the optimal T GF of SG was 2.3–4.2 °C lower than that of IG. Compared with chemical compositions and RVA profiles, texture properties were better for evaluating the eating quality of IHs. When T GF was higher than 24.0 °C, the taste value of IG was higher than that of SG mainly due to higher elasticity. The findings indicate that T GF had differential regulatory effects on SG and IG, which could provide a useful reference for cultivation of high-quality rice varieties under global climate change. Besides, the determination of texture properties was a reliable method for taste evaluating of IHs in the breeding process. [Display omitted] • T GF had a significant quadratic function relationship with quality of IHs. • T GF ranging from 23.3 to 25.2 °C could improve the quality of IHs. • The optimal T GF of IG was 2.3–4.2 °C higher than that of SG. • Texture properties can effectively evaluate the eating quality of IHs. • The TV of IG was higher than SG at T GF greater than 24 °C, mainly due to higher elasticity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wastewater treatment plants in large urban agglomerations are worldwide among the main sources of emerging contaminants in aquatic systems. The present study is a first comprehensive characterization of potentially harmful emerging contaminants in sewage of a Chinese urban area. The study area Haikou City is located at the coast of tropical Hainan Island. A GC/MS based non-target screening approach for the identification of a wider range of lipophilic to semi-polar organic sewage constituents was applied. Pollution originating from sewage was tracked in the urban coastal waters by using selected source-specific indicators. A set of sewage constituents with a high structural diversity was identified comprising both, industrial and household chemicals. Ingredients of personal care products, pesticides and pharmaceuticals were found, that were rarely reported from other regions of the world. This observation might be attributed to different environmental legislation and consumption habits in China. Exceptionally high concentrations of the illegal drug ketamine with up to 1100 ng L−1 were detected, suggesting its high popularity and consumption rate. Noteworthy, sewage constituents reported here for the first time were the pharmaceuticals marmesin, oxolamine and ansimar also with high concentrations of up to 1200 ng L−1. Elevated concentrations of sewage indicators in the main city area suggest the overflow of the sewage system, in particular in the period of a typhoon event. Tracing the sewage contamination in the surface water system of the coastal urban area of Haikou revealed a lower level of pollution. The concentration ranges point to no acute risks for the coastal ecosystem due to sewage inputs from the city area. Generally, the detected spectrum of municipal emerging contaminants has to be considered for the testing and technical improvement of wastewater treatment techniques, for regular monitoring of the surface water quality and for environmental impact assessment in China. Furthermore, the compound spectrum reported here is a good reference point for the composition of municipal sewage in other emerging economies. Image 1 • Non-target screening of treated and untreated municipal wastewaters from Asia. • High structural diversity of organic contaminants in the domestic wastewaters. • PCPs and pharmaceutical drugs rarely reported from other world regions were detected. • High concentrations of illegal drug ketamine suggest its high popularity in the area. • No acute risks for the coastal ecosystem are related to sewage inputs from the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is mainly concerned with the generalised principal eigenvalue for time-periodic nonlocal dispersal operators. We first establish the equivalence between two different characterisations of the generalised principal eigenvalue. We further investigate the dependence of the generalised principal eigenvalue on the frequency of the periodic oscillation, the dispersal rate and the dispersal spread. Finally, these qualitative results for time-periodic linear operators are applied to time-periodic nonlinear KPP equations with nonlocal dispersal, focusing on the effects of the frequency of the periodic oscillation, the dispersal rate and the dispersal spread on the existence and stability of positive time-periodic solutions to nonlinear equations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In aquaculture, the incidence of enteritis due to Streptococcus iniae infection in Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii) has increased in recent years. The pathogenesis of S. iniae is largely unknown due to the paucity of experimental studies on fish intestinal inflammation. In this study, S. iniae infection of A. baerii juveniles was induced by anal intubation of 0.15 mL at a low lethal dose (2 × 107 CFU/mL). Intestinal pathology and gene expression studies were conducted within 10 days of the experiment. Histopathological examination showed severe intestinal lesions, inflammatory cell infiltration, intestinal submucosa edema, epithelial cell shedding and necrosis. Predominant symptoms of exudative inflammation, metamorphic inflammation and proliferative inflammation on days 1–3, 4–6, and 7–10 post infection were shown, respectively. Ultrastructural observations also revealed fractured microvilli and shedding on days 4–6. Intestinal villi gradually repaired during the subsequent 7–10 days post infection. Expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines, tumor necrosis factor and interleukin 1β were up-regulated on days 1–3 followed by a significant decrease on day 5, ultimately reaching control levels on day 10 post infection. A similar pattern was shown in mucus cells, involving mucin secretion and expression of the mucin encoding gene, Mucin-2. These results showed the cellular response to S. iniae infection associated with inflammatory genes expression in the Siberian sturgeon. • Low lethal dose (2.0 × 107 CFU/mL) of S. iniae induced enteritis in Siberian sturgeon by anal infection. • Intestinal inflammation developed from exudative inflammation, metamorphic inflammation to proliferative inflammation. • The valvular intestine is a potential invasion portal for S. iniae infection. • Intestinal mucin secretion was an important nonspecific measure of host resistance to infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chronic elevation of angiotensin II (Ang II) is an important cause of endothelial dysfunction (ED). The Ang II/type 1 receptor (AT 1 R) signaling pathway can cause endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS)/nitric oxide (NO) dysfunction through various mechanisms leading to ED. The modulation of eNOS phosphorylated at Ser1177 is an important mechanism upregulating eNOS activity. Protein phosphatase 2 A (PP2A) has been reported to dephosphorylate eNOS at Ser1177. The PP2A inhibitor 2 protein (I 2 PP2A) is a specific endogenous inhibitor that binds the catalytic subunit of PP2A and directly inhibits PP2A activity. Therefore, we hypothesized that Ang II might attenuate I 2 PP2A expression to activate PP2A, which downregulates eNOS Ser 1177 phosphorylation, leading to eNOS dysfunction. In our study, we used Ang II-treated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and, found that the eNOS Ser1177 phosphorylation levels were downregulated, the activity of PP2A was increased, and I 2 PP2A expression was decreased. Furthermore, these effects were blocked by candesartan (CAN). The phosphorylation levels of eNOS Ser1177 were decreased after I 2 PP2A was knocked down by specific siRNA but increased after I 2 PP2A overexpression. We also found that the Ang II treatment decreased the association of I 2 PP2A with PP2A but increased the association between PP2A and eNOS. Taken together, our results suggest that Ang II activates PP2A by downregulating the I 2 PP2A expression through the AT 1 R signaling pathway leading to the loss of eNOS Ser1177 phosphorylation and ED. • Angiotensin II induces PP2A activation through AT1R signaling pathway. • Angiotensin II/AT1R pathway activates PP2A by reducing the I2PP2A protein and inhibiting its interaction with PP2Ac. • Angiotensin II reduces p-eNOS Ser1177 level leading to a decrease in NO production through AT1R/PP2A activation pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract A novel 4H-SiC superjunction trench metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (SJ-TMOS) is proposed in this paper. The device features a grounded P+ buried layer below the P-body, an oxide trench beneath the gate, and a P-region surrounding the oxide trench. The P-region, grounded P+ buried layer, and P-body serve as a three-level buffer (TLB) to lower the saturation current and thus improve the short-circuit ruggedness. Moreover, the P-region, P+ buried layer and N-drift form an SJ structure to decrease the specific on-resistance (R on,sp) and increase the breakdown capability. Compared with conventional trench MOSFET (C-TMOS), the saturation current for SJ-TMOS is drastically lowered and thus the short-circuit time (t sc) extends by 175%. Meanwhile, the R on,sp decreases by 45% and the breakdown voltage increases by 10%. In addition, the SJ-TMOS exhibits a low gate-to-drain charge (Q gd) due to the low permittivity of oxide trench and the nonlinearity in SJ capacitance characteristics. Highlights • The three-level buffer of the proposed device lowers the saturation current and thus improves the short-circuit ruggedness. • The superjunction structure reduces the specific on-resistance and improves the breakdown voltage. • The P-region and the grounded P+ buried layer shield the trench and thus reduce the electric field in oxide. • The low switching loss is caused by the low gate-to-drain charge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interstitial cystitis (IC) is a bladder syndrome characterized by pelvic pain and urinary frequency without infection or other identifiable pathology. There are no effective treatments to cure IC. This study investigated the effects of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs) injection on IC rat model. Furthermore, we used a coculture system to find the possible molecular mechanism on the human uroepithelial cells (SV-HUC-1), which was the cell model of IC. A rat model of IC was established via systemic injection with cyclophosphamide (CYP) and a cell model of IC was induced by being exposed to tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α (10 ng/ml). After one week, UC-MSCs injection significantly ameliorated the bladder voiding function in IC rat model. And the Histo- and immunohistochemical analyses showed that UC-MSCs can repair impaired bladder, reduce mast cell infiltration and inhibit apoptosis of urothelium. ELISA results showed that UC-MSCs can decrease IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α in bladder. In the coculture system, UC-MSCs can promote proliferation of impaired SV-HUC-1 cells, and inhibit apoptosis. However, while knocked down EGF secreted by UC-MSCs with siRNA, the effects would be weaken. Western blot showed that UC-MSCs increase protein expression levels of p-AKT and p-mTOR in SV-HUC-1 cells, and decrease the levels of cleaved caspase-3. Taken together, we provide evidence that UC-MSCs therapy can successfully alleviate IC in a preclinical animal Model and cell model by alleviating inflammation, promoting proliferation and inhibiting apoptosis. In addition, we demonstrate that the AKT/mTOR signaling pathway was activated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]