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Realistic hydrological response is sensitive to the spatial variability of landscape properties. For a grid-based distributed rainfall-runoff model with a hypothesis of a uniform grid, the high-frequency information within a grid cell will be gradually lost as the resolution of the digital elevation model (DEM) grows coarser. Therefore, the performance of a hydrological model is usually scale-dependent. This study used the Grid-Xinanjiang (GXAJ) model as an example to investigate the effects of subgrid variability on hydrological response at different scales. With the aim of producing a more reasonable hydrological response and spatial description of the landscape properties, a new distributed rainfall-runoff model integrating the subgrid variability (the GXAJSV model) was developed. In this model, the topographic index is used as an auxiliary variable correlated with the soil storage capacity. The incomplete beta distribution is suggested for simulating the probability distribution of the soil storage capacity within the raster grid. The Yaogu Basin in China was selected for model calibration and validation at different spatial scales. Results demonstrated that the proposed model can effectively eliminate the scale dependence of the GXAJ model and produce a more reasonable hydrological response.

One unique prenylated bibenzyl, kurzphenol A (1), two new prenylated flavonoids, kurzphenols B and C (2 and 3), as well as fourteen known compounds (4-17) were isolated from the twigs of Macaranga kurzii. Compound 1 was the first example of prenylated bibenzyl which possesses a benzofuran ring. All the known compounds were isolated from M. kurzii for the first time. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of extensive spectroscopic interpretation. Compounds 1-17 were tested for their cytotoxicity against A-549 and Hep G2 cancer cell lines and showed IC50 values in the range of 9.76-30.14 μg/mL., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Three new diterpenoids, stracheyioids A-C (1-3), as well as 36 known compounds (4-39) were isolated from the whole plants of Euphorbia stracheyi. Compound 1 was a rare 13-deoxy tigliane diterpenoid and compound 2 was an ingenol diterpenoid characterized by an unique 2Z,4Z-decadienoyl acidic moieties. All the known compounds were isolated from E. stracheyi for the first time. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of extensive spectroscopic interpretation. Compounds 1-39 were tested for their cytotoxicity against five cancer cell lines (A-549, MCF-7, Hep G2, Hela and P388) and showed IC50 values in the range 6.64-42.86 μM. The antiangiogenic activities of the isolated compounds were also evaluated using a zebrafish model., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

From 2001 to 2006, about one-third of the residents aged 5-65 years were selected as the subjects in a schistosome-endemic village located in Jiangxi Province, China. Every 1 year, all participants were analyzed by the Kato-Katz parasitologic examination and indirect hemagglutination assay (IHA). Statistical analysis of the results showed the k indices ranged from 0.250 to 0.347 between the two methods. Assuming the Kato-Katz results as the gold standard reference, the specificity of the IHA was from 60% to 77%, the positive predictive value of this method was from 19% to 30%, and its sensitivity and negative predictive value were more than 97%. The IHA method is unsuitable for individual screening in endemic community with relatively high prevalence (e.g. with >10% or more prevalence). A search for a better diagnostic test that can be applied in field situations in China is essential and should be given high priority.