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Chemotherapy is a standard systemic treatment option for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Cisplatin has been used to treat TNBC, but frequently leads to cisplatin resistance in patients. The aim of our study was to investigate cisplatin-resistant mechanism in TNBC. To identify the potential genes and pathways relative to cisplatin resistance, GSE103115 data were analyzed by the Limma package and Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). TNBC data from TCGA, GSE76250 and GSE115275 datasets were used to calculate NDC80 expression. Immunohistochemistry detected NDC80 protein expression in TNBC tissues from patients before and after cisplatin treatment. After expose to cisplatin treatment, the viability and proliferation of TNBC cells were measured by CCK-8 and colony formation assays, respectively. NDC80 was regarded as a cisplatin-resistant gene because after cisplatin treatment NDC80 was downregulated in cisplatin-sensitive cells but was upregulated in cisplatin-resistant cells. NDC80 was over-expressed in TNBC tissues compared to normal tissues. Furthermore, NDC80 expression in TNBC patients was increased after cisplatin treatment. Cisplatin-sensitive TNBC patients showed lower NDC80 expression than cisplatin-resistant patients. Additionally, NDC80 expression was correlated with clinical stages, tumor size and chemotherapy of TNBC patients. Moreover, NDC80 overexpression promoted the viability and proliferation of TNBC cells and enhanced the cells resistance to cisplatin. The potential pathways relative to cisplatin resistance were obtained, such as p53 signaling pathway and Oxidative phosphorylation. These findings provide new insights for understanding the mechanism of cisplatin resistance in TNBC, and NDC80 may be a potential therapeutic target for TNBC treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermoelectric cooler (TEC) is widely used for temperature control in optoelectronics, machinery, biomedicine, and other fields. However, the unstable temperature control over wide ranges and different gradients restricts the efficiency of TEC. To highlight the neural network's effectiveness in controlling TEC systems, the optimized BPPID (OBPPID) strategy is proposed. In the OBPPID strategy, the factors s ̃ and G are decided through formula derivation and the particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm, respectively contributing to the backward adjustment and forward propagation of BPPID. The OBPPID solves three issues that the BPPID faces: gradient vanishing of network weights, over-reliance of initial network weights and range constraint of control parameters. The OBPPID and BPPID have been simulated 1000 times to evaluate control performance. The results show that, with random initial network weights, the OBPPID strategy reduces the cost variability of the BPPID strategy from 92 to 17, achieving an 81.52% reduction. Physical tests have confirmed that in the temperature control over wide range and the temperature gradients of 5°C, 20°C, and 80°C, the OBPPID strategy can adaptively adjust the control parameters and provide higher efficiency than PID, BPPID and fuzzy PID strategies for TEC system. • The BPNN is optimized by the gradient safety s̃ and the gain matrix G . • The OBPPID strategy reduces the temperature cost compared to the BPPID strategy. • The OBPPID strategy provides adaptive temperature control for thermoelectric system. • The OBPPID strategy performs better than PID, Fuzzy PID and BPPID in different gradients controls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to understand the diagnostic value of serum tumor markers carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), cancer antigen 19-9 (CA19-9), cancer antigen 125 (CA125), cancer antigen 15-3 (CA15-3), and tissue polypeptide-specific antigen (TPS) in metastatic breast cancer (MBC). A total of 164 metastatic breast cancer patients in Shanxi Cancer Hospital were recruited between February 2016 and July 2016. 200 breast cancer patients without metastasis in the same period were randomly selected as the control group. The general characteristics, immunohistochemical, and pathological results were investigated between the two groups, and tumor markers were determined. There were statistical differences in the concentration and the positive rates of CEA, CA19-9, CA125, CA15-3, and TPS between the MBC and control group ( P < 0.05). The highest sensitivity was in CEA and the highest specificity was in CA125 for the diagnosis of MBC when using a single tumor marker at 56.7% and 97.0%, respectively. In addition, two tumor markers were used for the diagnosis of MBC and the CEA and TPS combination had the highest diagnostic sensitivity with 78.7%, while the CA15-3 and CA125 combination had the highest specificity of 91.5%. Analysis of tumor markers of 164 MBC found that there were statistical differences in the positive rates of CEA and CA15-3 between bone metastases and other metastases ( χ 2 = 6.00, P = 0.014; χ 2 = 7.32, P = 0.007, respectively). The sensitivity and specificity values of the CEA and CA15-3 combination in the diagnosis of bone metastases were 77.1% and 45.8%, respectively. The positive rate of TPS in the lung metastases group was lower than in other metastases ( χ 2 = 8.06, P = 0.005).There were significant differences in the positive rates of CA15-3 and TPS between liver metastases and other metastases ( χ 2 = 15.42, P < 0.001; χ 2 = 9.72, P = 0.002, respectively). The sensitivity and specificity of the CA15-3 and TPS combination in the diagnosis of liver metastases were 92.3% and 45.6%, respectively, and the positive rate of CEA in triple-negative metastatic breast cancer is lower than in other subtypes ( χ 2 = 4.80, P = 0.028). Therefore, serum CEA, CA19-9, CA125, CA15-3, and TPS can be used in the diagnosis of MBC, and different combinations of tumor markers have varying diagnostic value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the pedestrian exposure to fine particulate on various typical urban roadways, mass concentration of PM10, PM2.5, PM1 and particle number concentrations in the given size distribution were obtained at four types of urban roads in Xi’an City: urban expressway, arterial road, collector road, and local road. The principal component analysis (PCA) was used. Measurement and analysis results showed that the mean particle number concentration for the size range of 0.25–32 μm on the urban expressway was 9%, 29% and 32% higher than those on the arterial road, the collector road and the local road, respectively. However, the mass concentration of particles, especially for PM2.5 and PM1, varied little. Traffic volumes on the urban expressway, the collector road and the local road all had important influences on PM particle-number concentration, but at different size ranges. Additionally, the results discussion indicated that PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 were generated from the same emission source(i.e. vehicles)on the urban expressway, yet on the other types of roads PM (especially PM10 and PM1) emissions were generated from different sources (i.e. vehicles, pedestrians, or road dust). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a major inflammatory disease worldwide. We previously demonstrated that licorice residue flavones (LFs) showed satisfactory efficacy in the treatment of UC. Therefore, research into the ingredients of LFs may lead to the discovery of novel anti-UC targets. In the current study, we separated licoflavone B (LB) from LFs and administered it to dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-exposed C57BL/6 mice for 14 days. Our results demonstrated that high dose LB (120 mg/kg) significantly prevented DSS-induced weight loss, disease activity index (DAI) increase, histological damage, and colonic inflammation, indicating that LB has ameliorative effects on UC. We also investigated the composition of the intestinal barrier and microflora in an attempt to explore the mechanisms of LB against UC. As a result, we found that LB preserved the integrity of the colonic barrier by inhibiting colonic cell apoptosis and protecting the expression of occludin, claudin-1, and ZO-1. Moreover, LB reshaped the microflora composition by suppressing harmful bacteria (Enterococcus et al.) and boosting beneficial microorganisms (Bacteroides et al.). Further molecular exploration implied that LB exerted anti-UC activity through blocking the MAPK pathway. Here, we explored anti-UC activity of LB for the first time and clarified its mechanisms. These results will provide valuable clues for the discovery of novel anti-UC agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Imidazolium salts, most of which are room temperature ionic liquids (ILs), have been introduced as effective and tunable cocatalysts in the copolymerization of CO2 with epoxides catalyzed by (salen)CrIIICl complex for the first time. Effects of imidazolium salts with different alkyl chains as well as with different anions on the copolymerization were investigated. The results showed that the copolymerization was influenced obviously by the property of anion. In addition, the cation of imidazolium salts with longer alkyl chain length such as n-dodecyl (TOF, 242.5h−1, carbonate linkages>99%) displays better activities and selectivity in the copolymerization as compared with N-MeIm (TOF, 72.5h−1, carbonate linkages 94%). These results are instructive for further design of task-specific ILs as effective cocatalysts to improve the copolymerization of CO2 with epoxides. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The extent of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) contamination in coastal waters around LaiZhou Bay and JiaoZhou Bay in Shandong Peninsula, northern China, was investigated. The areas around the two bays are both densely populated, thrived with intensive agriculture and industrial activities. Multi-techniques including GC–MS, GC–μECD coupled with chemical peak confirmation and strict QC procedures were used for the quantitative determination of 15 OCPs including alpha, beta, gamma and delta isomers of hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), pentachloronitrobenzene (PCNB), heptachlor, aldrin, endosulfan, p,p′-DDE, dieldrin, endrin, p,p′-DDD, o,p′-DDT, p,p′-DDT and methoxychlor. The survey results show that contaminations by OCP residues remain widespread in the areas, but the averaged concentration levels are all below the regulatory limits, e.g., CMC limits (acute criterion values) specified in US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and China national standards. Average concentration of OCPs in water samples were from undetectable to 3. 8ngl−1 in LaiZhou Bay and from 0. 1 to 3. 9ngl−1 in JiaoZhou Bay, respectively. A comparison between the current and historical data shows a rapidly decreasing trend of OCPs over the past twenty years in the study areas. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Optimization model considers different evaluate indexes, the part load performance of equipment and different operation circumstances in different demand. • The optimization model is solved by the genetic algorithm. • A finished CCHP case verifies the practicality and accuracy of our model. • The price of natural gas has little impact on optimal installed capacity when based on the index LCCR. How to decide the capacity of power generation unit (PGU) and chiller properly has always been one of the difficulties in the design of combined cooling, heating and power (CCHP) system. This paper presents an optimal mathematical model of the annual hourly dynamic simulation in CCHP system. Combining the genetic algorithm of multi-objective optimization, the model gives the optimal installed capacity of PGU and the optimal installed proportion of absorption chiller. The optimization model is verified by a completed project in Changsha, China, to have good practicability, and the multi-objective genetic algorithm has good multi-index compatibility. And the impact of gas and the electricity prices on the project is given quantitatively, pointing out that the natural gas price has little effect on the optimal installed capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decreasing bioaccessible antibiotics, heavy metals, and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in soil by adsorption is an attractive, but unrealized, approach for ARG risk reduction. This approach has the potential to reduce the (co)selection pressure from antibiotics and heavy metals on bacteria and ARG horizontal gene transformation to pathogens. Here, a wet-state silicon-rich biochar/ferrihydrite composite (SiC–Fe(W)) synthesized by loading ferrihydrite onto rice straw-derived biochar was examined for i) adsorption of oxytetracycline and Cu2+ to reduce (co)selection pressure and ii) adsorption of extracellular antibiotic resistance plasmid pBR322 (containing tet A and bla TEM-1) to inhibit ARG transformation. SiC–Fe(W) gained the adsorption priority of biochar (for Cu2+) and wet-state ferrihydrite (for oxytetracycline and pBR322) and showed adsorptive enhancement (for Cu2+ and oxytetracycline) from a more wrinkled and exposed surface from biochar silica-dispersed ferrihydrite and a more negatively charged biochar, and the adsorption capacity for SiC–Fe(W) was 17–135 times that of soil. Correspondingly, 10 g/kg SiC–Fe(W) amendment increased the soil adsorption coefficient K d by 31%–1417% and reduced the selection pressure from dissolved oxytetracycline, co-selection pressure from dissolved Cu2+, and transformation frequency of pBR322 (assessed with Escherichia coli). The development of Fe–O–Si bonds on silicon-rich biochar in alkaline enhanced ferrihydrite stability and adsorption capacity (for oxytetracycline), presenting a new potential strategy of biochar/ferrihydrite composite synthesis for adsorptive inhibition of ARG proliferation and transformation in ARG pollution control. [Display omitted] • SiC–Fe(W) containing silica-stabilized and high-surface ferrihydrite and sichar was synthesized. • SiC–Fe(W) held adsorption capacity exceeding biochar and wet-state ferrihydrite for Cu2+ and oxytetracycline. • Adsorptive inhibition of ARG proliferation and transmission in soil was realized by SiC–Fe(W). • SiC–Fe(W) promoted the persistence of soil sorption enhancement towards oxytetracycline and ARG in dry-wet cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Novel nut-like zinc oxide crystal has been prepared by a low temperature hydrothermal method with the presence of Cu2+ ion. It seemed that the ultrasonic pretreatment was the key factor during the preparation process. SEM observations revealed that the as-prepared ZnO crystal exhibited nut shape showing well-defined crystallographic facets. The cross-section of the ZnO crystal was hexagonal of about 800nm–1μm in diameter, and the aspect ratio was a little smaller than 1:1. The room temperature photoluminescence behavior of the nut-like zinc oxide crystal was much stronger than the reference samples. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Preharvest chitosan sprays promoted wound healing and reduced disease development. • Chitosan induced suberin poly phenolic deposition at wound sites during healing. • Chitosan sprays activated phenylpropanoid pathway at wound sites during healing. Suberin poly phenolic is an important component of healing tissue. We aimed to develop a new method to accelerate wound healing of harvested muskmelons. In this study, the plants and fruits of muskmelons were sprayed with 0.1 % chitosan four times during fruit development to evaluate the effect of chitosan treatment on wound healing of harvested muskmelons. The results showed that preharvest chitosan sprays reduced the weight loss and disease index of harvested muskmelons during healing. Chitosan sprays also accelerated the deposition of suberin poly phenolic at wound sites of harvested muskmelons during healing. The treatment increased the activities of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase and cinnamate-4-hydroxylase, and promoted the accumulation of cinnamic acid, caffeic acid, ferulic acid, p -coumaric acid, total phenols and flavonoids at wound sites. We suggest that preharvest chitosan sprays activated phenylpropanoid metabolism, promoted the deposition of suberin poly phenolic at wound sites of harvested muskmelons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • ZIF-67-derived CoO@GC/WO 3 @CL is used as a bifunctional catalyst for the first time. • Intra-particle maturation of WO 3 from microrod to nanosphere forms more O-vacancies. • PVP-derived CL protects Co2+ (CoOOH) and O-vacancies to stabilize ORR/OER activities. • Cooperation between WO 3 and Co2+ boosts electron transfer to promote 4e− ORR pathway. • Interaction between CoOOH (Co3+) and O-vacancies (WO 3) promotes O 2 generation (OER). Oxygen reduction/evolution reactions (ORR/OER) play the vital roles in energy-conversion devices, especially for Zn-air batteries (ZABs). However, it is always a challenge to explore a stable bifunctional catalyst. Here, WO 3 -anchored ZIF-67-derived CoO@graphitized carbon is wrapped by a thin carbon-layer to obtain CoO@GC/WO 3 @CL catalysts. The well-crystallized WO 3 nanospheres are evolved from WO 3 microrods via an intra-particle maturation. For ORR, the peak-potential of CoO@GC/WO 3 @CL-800 (800 ℃) (0.81 V vs. RHE) is higher than that of Pt/C (0.79 V). Synergies between WO 3 (oxygen vacancies) and CoO (Co2+) improve mass/charge transfer to boost the 4e− pathway. For OER, CoO@GC/WO 3 @CL-800 has a lower overpotential (330 mV) than RuO 2 (490 mV) at 10 mA cm−2. The O 2 evolution rate can reach 0.125 mmol s−1 with a high Faraday efficiency of 96.7 %. Cooperation between CoOOH and oxygen vacancies promotes the H 2 O-oxidation to boost the O 2 -generation. A relatively low ΔE [E j=10 (OER)-E 1/2 (ORR)] of 0.72 V confirms the highly-stable ORR/OER activities of CoO@GC/WO 3 @CL-800, which obtains a higher power density (138 mW cm−2) than Pt/C + RuO 2 cathode in primary ZABs. This study indicates a new direction to build a multilayer-structured ORR/OER catalyst by using ZIFs as templates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Phytochelatins, with the general structure of (γ-Glu–Cys)n–Gly (n =2–11), are usually recognized as being strongly induced by metals in microalgae and play an important role in the detoxification of heavy metals in environment. However, there have been few studies on metallothionein (MT) synthesis in Chlorella vulgaris (C. vulgaris) exposed to heavy metals. The present study describes the growth inhibition of C. vulgaris exposed to different concentrations of cadmium and zinc, and the induction of metal-binding MT-like proteins in the cells. The amounts of metal-binding proteins, induced in the alga exposed to different concentrations of Cd and Zn, were analyzed with a size-exclusion HPLC coupled to ICP–MS. After being purified with a gel filtration column (Sephadex G-75, 3.5cm×80cm) and a desalting column (G-25, 1.5cm×30cm), the isoforms and sub-isoforms of Zn-binding protein were characterized by a reverse phase-HPLC coupled to electrospray ionization and a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer (HPLC–ESI–MS/MS). In addition, the ultraviolet spectra of purified Zn-binding proteins were analyzed in media with different pH values. The results showed that the significant inhibitory effects (at p <0.05) on the cell growth were observed when excessive metals such as 80μmoll−1 of Cd, and 60 and 80μmoll−1 of Zn were added. The Cd/Zn-binding proteins induced in C. vulgaris exposed to Cd and Zn were referred to as Cd/Zn-MT-like proteins in which the mean molecular mass of the apo-MT-like was 6152Da. The induced Cd/Zn-MT-like proteins might be involved in the detoxification of heavy metals, such as cadmium and zinc, by the alga. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• SSR distribution patterns across 29 beetle genomes were analyzed. • The number of SSRs was positively correlated with beetle genome size. • Common genomic features of P-SSRs in beetle genomes were rare. • Functional analysis of CDSs containing P-SSRs in beetle genomes were performed. Simple sequence repeats (SSRs) represent an important source of genetic variation that provides a basis for adaptation to different environments in organisms. In this study, we examined the distribution patterns of SSRs in twenty-nine beetle genomes and carried out Gene Ontology (GO) analysis of CDSs embedded with perfect SSRs (P-SSRs). The results demonstrated that imperfect SSRs (I-SSRs) represented the most abundant SSR category in beetle genomes and in different genomic regions (CDS, exon, and intron regions). The numbers of P-SSRs, I-SSRs, compound SSRs, and variable number tandem repeats were positively correlated with beetle genome size, whereas neither the frequency nor the density of the SSRs was correlated with genome size. Moreover, our results demonstrated that common genomic features of P-SSRs within the same suborder or family of Coleoptera were rare. Mono-, di-, tri-, or tetranucleotide SSRs were the most abundant P-SSR categories in beetle genomes. The preferred predominant repeat motif among the mononucleotide P-SSRs was (A)n, but the most frequent repeat motifs for other length classes varied differentially among these genomes. Furthermore, the P-SSR type with the highest GC content differed in the beetle genomes and in different genomic regions. CV (coefficient of variability) analysis demonstrated that the repeat copy numbers of P-SSRs presented relatively higher variation in introns than in CDSs and exons. The GO terms of CDSs containing P-SSRs for molecular functions were mainly enriched in "binding" and "transcription". Our findings will be useful for studying the functional roles of microsatellite heterogeneity in beetle adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ureaplasma spp. are associated with female genital tract infections and are mainly tested by liquid culture in developing countries. To evaluate the accuracy of liquid culture, 686 vaginal swabs were collected and tested by using the Mycoplasma Culturing, Identification, Enumeration, and Susceptibility (IES) Kit. Then these culture broths were verified using real-time PCR. Among 368 Ureaplasma positive broths, 263 contained Ureaplasma parvum , 30 contained Ureaplasma urealyticum , 57 contained both, and 18 were negative by real-time PCR. In 318 Ureaplasmas negative broths, 78 were found to be Ureaplasma positive by real-time PCR. Using real-time PCR as the reference, the false positive rate of the liquid culture was 7.0%. It has been suggested that the liquid culture positive broth should be inoculated onto solid agar to eliminate false-positives. However, solid culture is rarely used due to low sensitivity and being time consuming. Real-time PCR may be performed to replace solid culture to verify suspicious liquid culture results. • The liquid culture has been widely used in the detection of Ureaplasma spp. • The liquid culture of Ureaplasma spp. has a low sensitivity and specificity. • Solid culture (gold standard) had barely been used due to time consuming. • RT-PCR had a high sensitivity and specificity in the detection of Ureaplasma spp. • RT-PCR may be performed to verify the suspicious liquid culture results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]