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Specificity and efficiency of plant virus transmission depend largely on protein-protein interactions of vectors and viruses. Cucurbit chlorotic yellows virus (CCYV), transmitted specifically by tobacco whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, in a semi-persistent manner, has caused serious damage on cucurbit and vegetable crops around the world. However, the molecular mechanism of interaction during CCYV retention and transmission are still lacking. CCYV was proven to bind particularly to the whitefly foregut, and here, we confirmed that the minor coat protein (CPm) of CCYV is participated in the interaction with the vector. In order to identify proteins of B. tabaci that interact directly with CPm of CCYV, the immunoprecipitation (IP) assay and DUALmembrane cDNA library screening technology were applied. The cytochrome c oxidase subunit 5A (COX), tubulin beta chain (TUB) and keratin, type I cytoskeletal 9-like (KRT) of B. tabaci shown strong interactions with CPm and are closely associated with the retention within the vector and transmission of CCYV. These findings on whitefly protein-CCYV CPm interactions are crucial for a much better understanding the mechanism of semi-persistent plant virus transmission by insect vectors, as well as for implement new strategies for effective management of plant viruses and their vector insects.

The clinical treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC) is limited. A traditional Chinese medicinal formula, Huangqin decoction (HQD), is chronicled in Shang Han Lun and is widely used to ameliorate gastrointestinal disorders, such as UC; however, its mechanism is yet to be clarified.The present study aimed to investigate the effect of HQD on 7-day colitis induced by 3% dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) in mice and further explore the inhibitory effect of metabolites on DSS-damaged FHC cells.The therapeutic efficacy of HQD was evaluated in a well-established DSS-induced colitis mice model. The clinical symptoms were analyzed, and biological samples were collected for microscopic examination, metabolomics, metagenomics, and the evaluation of the epithelial barrier function. The mechanism of metabolites regulated by HQD was evaluated in the DSS-induced FHC cell damage model. The samples were collected to detect the physiological functions of the cells.HQD suppressed the inflammation of DSS-induced colitis in vivo, attenuated DSS-induced clinical manifestations, reversed colon length reduction, and reduced histological injury. After HQD treatment, the DSS-induced gut dysbiosis was modulated, and the gut microbiota achieved a new equilibrium state. In addition, HQD activated the mTOR signaling pathway by upregulating amino acid metabolism. Significant phosphorylation of S6 and 4E-BP1 ameliorated intestinal epithelial barrier dysfunction. Moreover, HQD-regulated metabolites protected the epithelial barrier integrity by inhibiting DSS-induced apoptosis of FHC cells and regulating the proteins affecting apoptosis and cell-cell junction.These findings indicated that the mechanism of HQD was related to regulating the gut microbiota and amino acid metabolism, activating the mTOR signaling pathway, and protecting the intestinal mucosal barrier integrity.

Objective: There is no consensus on the diagnostic criteria for acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) caused by combination of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and alcohol. The aim of this study was to describe the characteristics of deaths occurring in patients with this condition, and then to evaluate the efficacy of different diagnostic criteria for ACLF caused by combination of HBV infection and alcohol. Design: Subjects were sourced from two multi-centre prospective Chinese cohorts (CATCH-LIFE investigation & validation cohorts). Patients with acute-on-chronic liver disease (AoCLD) whose etiology were identified as HBV (HBV-AoCLD), alcohol (alcohol-AoCLD), or combination of HBV and alcohol were included. Results Out of 2898 enrolled patients, 2225 had HBV-AoCLD, 339 had alcohol-AoCLD, and 334 had AoCLD caused by combination of HBV and alcohol. Patients who died in HBV-AoCLD and HBV/alcohol combination groups had similar admission characteristics. Age, total bilirubin, international normalised ratio, albumin, hepatic encephalopathy and ascites were independent risk factors for 28-day mortality in AoCLD caused by HBV and alcohol. For ACLF caused by HBV and alcohol, the COSSH ACLF criteria outperformed the EASL-CLIF ACLF criteria and APASL ACLF criteria in predicting 28-/90-/365-day mortality with significantly higher sensitivity and negative predictive value. Regardless of occurrence of liver cirrhosis or decompensated cirrhosis, occurrence of liver failure with concomitant failure of extrahepatic organ was associated with short-term mortality; the 28-day cumulative mortality rate exceeded 33%. Conclusions: Similar with HBV-AoCLD, the short-term mortality of AoCLD caused by combination of HBV and alcohol is mainly attributable to acute liver damage or liver plus coagulation system failure. Our results suggest that the COSSH standard can be used as diagnostic criteria for ACLF caused by combination of HBV and alcohol. Trial Registration: This study was registered it at www.clinicaltrials.org (NCT02457637, NCT03641872). Funding: This work was sponsored by the National Science and Technology Major Project (2018ZX10723203 and 2018ZX100302), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grants No. 81972265, 81900579)，the National Natural Science Foundation of Jilin Province (20200201324JC, 20200201532JC), and the Chongqing Natural Science Foundation (CSTC2019jcyj-zdxmX0004). Declaration of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest. Ethical Approval: The ethics committee of the Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiaotong University (China) approved the study.

Two new ruthenium(II) complexes of [Ru(bpy)2(L1)](ClO4)2 (RuL1) and [Ru2(bpy)4(L2)](ClO4)4 (RuL2) {bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine, L1 = 4-hydroxy-3-(1H-imidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthrolin-2-yl)benzaldehyde and L2 = 2,4-bis(1H-imidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthrolin-2-yl)phenol} were synthesized and characterized using IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, ESI–MS, and elementary analysis. The uncoordinated 2-hydroxyphenyl imidazo moiety in RuL1 and RuL2 could specifically bind with Cu2+, leading to luminescence quenching of the two sensor instantaneously in aqueous buffered solution (20 mM HEPES, pH = 7.2) containing 1% (v/v) CH3CN. The forming RuL1–Cu2+ and RuL2–Cu2+ ensembles could sensitively and selectively detect a low concentration of cyanide ions in 99% aqueous solutions by a “turn-on” fluorescent response. The detection limits for cyanide ions (0.36 μM for RuL1–Cu2+ and 0.87 μM for RuL2–Cu2+) were lower than World Health Organization guideline value for a maximum allowable concentration of 1.90 μM in drinking water. The 2-hydroxyphenyl imidazo appended ruthenium complex-based ensemble systems were expected to be a potential and efficient way for the detection of submicromolar concentrations of cyanide ions in nearly 100% aqueous solutions.

Background: Patients with HBV-related acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF) are characterized by immune paralysis and susceptibility to infections. Macrophages are reported to polarize to proinflammatory or anti-inflammatory functional states in different morbid states. However, the molecular mechanisms of macrophage polarization in the disease progression of HBV-ACLF have not yet been elucidated. Aims: To investigate the dynamic macrophage polarization changes in different stages of HBV-related liver disease and explore the potential mechanism of macrophage polarization during HBV-ACLF. Methods: The functional status of peripheral blood mononuclear cells derived from macrophages from patients with mild chronic hepatitis B, HBV-related compensated liver cirrhosis, HBV-related decompensated liver cirrhosis, HBV-ACLF and healthy controls was determined. A transcriptome sequencing analysis was performed to investigate the pathways involved in macrophage polarization in HBV-ACLF. The chloride intracellular channel-3 (CLIC3) gene expression was suppressed in the human monocytic THP-1-derived macrophages to study its role in macrophage polarization. Results: Macrophages exhibited different functional statuses in different stages of HBV-related liver disease. Macrophages were mainly exhibiting an anti-inflammatory phenotype and functional characteristics in patients with HBV-ACLF, which was predictive of a poor clinical outcome. The expression of CLIC3, which is involved in immunological diseases, was reduced in HBV-ACLF patients, indicating a poor prognosis. In addition, CLIC3 could regulate proinflammatory macrophage polarization through the NF-κB and Akt pathways. Conclusion: Macrophage polarization changes dynamically in HBV-related liver diseases. CLIC3 suppression-mediated anti-inflammatory macrophage polarization plays an important role in the progression of HBV-ACLF, and CLIC3 expression is a potential indicator of the prognosis of HBV-ACLF patients. Funding Statement: Supported by the Guangzhou City Science and Technology Project (No. 201607010064), the Natural Fund of Guangdong Province (No. 2016A030313237), the National Science and Technology Major Project (2018ZX10302204) and The National Natural Science Foundation of China (81672701). Declaration of Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest. Ethics Approval Statement: This study was approved by the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University Ethics Committee ([2018]02-432-01). If patients were unable to provide consent, informed consent was obtained from the next of kin.

Ethnopharmacological relevance Huangqin Decoction (HQD), a traditional Chinese medicinal (TCM) formula chronicled in Shang Han Lun, has been used to treat gastrointestinal diseases for nearly 1800 years. Objective To investigate the effects and underlying mechanisms of HQD on ulcerative colitis (UC). Methods The bioactive compounds in HQD were obtained from the traditional Chinese medicine systems pharmacology database. Then, the HQD and UC-related targets were analyzed by establishing HQD-Compounds-Targets (H–C-T) and protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks. Enrichment analysis was used for further study. The candidate targets for the effects of HQD on UC were validated using a dextran sulfate sodium-induced UC mouse experiment. Results The results showed that 51 key targets were gained by matching 284 HQD-related targets and 837 UC-related targets. Combined with H–C-T and PPI network analyses, the key targets were divided into endothelial growth, inflammation and signal transcription-related targets. Further experimental validation showed that HQD targeted estrogen receptor alpha (ESR1) and endothelial growth factor receptors to relieve endothelial dysfunction, thereby improving intestinal barrier function. The expression of inflammatory cytokines and signal transducers was suppressed by HQD treatment and inflammation was inhibited. Conclusions HQD may acts on UC via the regulation of targets and pathways related to improving the intestinal mucosal barrier and ameliorating endothelial dysfunction. Additionally, ERS1 may be a new target to explore the mechanisms of UC.

3-(3-Carboxypropoxy)benzoic acid (H2cpba) and its four luminescent Zn(II) coordination polymers with different N-heterocyclic ancillary ligands, namely, [Zn(cpba)(bimb)]n 1, [Zn(cpba)(bpy)]n 2, [Zn(cpba)(phen)]n 3 and [Zn2(cpba)(cdppy)2·5H2O]n 4, have been hydrothermally synthesized and fully characterized (bimb = 1,4-bis(imidazol-1-yl-methyl)benzene, phen = 1,10-phenanthroline, bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine, and Hcdppy = 4-carboxy-2,6-dipyrazin-2-ylpyridine). X-ray single crystal test results showed that complexes 1 and 4 show one-dimensional ladder-like structures, while complexes 2 and 3 are one-dimensional chain structures. These Zn(II) complexes displayed the differences not only in coordination geometries and ligand binding modes but also the luminescent properties in the solid state. Additionally, the luminescence sensing properties revealed that complex 4 can identify picric acid efficiently through fluorescence quenching.

The relationship between microbial diversity and sludge toxicity in the biotreatment of refractory wastewater was investigated. Synthetic wastewater containing 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) was treated by an activated sludge using a sequencing batch bioreactor (SBR). At the end of a single SBR cycle, a stable operation stage was reached when the 4-CP was not detected both in aqueous and sludge phases and the effluent COD was maintained at approximately 70 mg L(-1) for the blank and control sludge groups. Then, the diversity of the microorganisms and the sludge toxicity were measured. The results showed that the Microtox acute toxicity of the control sludge was higher than those of the blank sludge. The difference analysis of the microbial diversity between the blank and control sludge indicated that the sludge toxicity was closely related to microbial diversity.

In this paper, using synthetic wastewater containing 50 mg l −1 4-chlorophenol (4-CP), acclimated activated sludge in a sequential aerobic activated sludge reactor (SBR) and a blank SBR without 4-CP, we investigated the relationship between extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and sludge toxicity when activated sludge was exposed to organic toxic compounds. Microtox ® analysis was used to characterize the sludge acute toxicity. During the operation process of the SBR, the influent COD was controlled at approximately 300 mg l −1 , and the sludge retention time (SRT) and hydraulic retention time (HRT) were 20 d and 8 h, respectively. The results indicated a positive relationship between the variation of the EPS content and the sludge toxicity. At the early stage of operation, the EPS compositions, including protein, polysaccharide and DNA, showed an increasing trend with the injection of 4-CP during one SBR circle. However, after 45 days of operation, the activated sludge was successfully acclimated, and the EPS compositions showed no significant difference compared with blank SBR. The toxicity analysis showed that the relationship of the EPS toxicity and the sludge toxicity was in accord with the variation of the EPS compositions at different stages. In addition, the correlation analysis between the EPS composition and the EPS toxicity confirmed that the protein and polysaccharide were correlated with the formation of the EPS toxicity.

A new ruthenium(II) complex of [Ru(bpy) 2 (HL 1 )](ClO 4 ) 2 ·4H 2 O ( 1 ·4H 2 O) {bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine and HL 1 = 2-(4-(2,6-di(pyrazin-2-yl)pyridin-4-yl)phenyl)-1 H -imidazo[4,5- f ][1,10]phenanthroline} was synthesized and characterized by elementary analysis, proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. The ground- and excited-state acid–base properties of 1 were studied by means of UV–vis absorption spectrophotometric and spectrofluorimetric titrations in 100:1 (v/v) Britton–Robinson buffer/CH 3 CN solution in combination with luminescence lifetime measurements. The complex exhibited two-step separate protonation/deprotonation processes in both the ground and excited states, acting as pH-induced “off–on–off” luminescence switches ( I on / I off = 100.0 and 3.96). Importantly, 1 also acted as a highly selective luminescent chemosensor toward Cu 2+ over other metal cations tested (Na + , Mg 2+ , Mn 2+ , Fe 2+ , Fe 3+ , Co 2+ , Ni 2+ , Cu 2+ , Zn 2+ , Cd 2+ , Hg 2+ and Ag + ).

Sludge toxicity, as determined by the inhibition of luminescence in the bacterium Photobacterium phosphoreum ( P. phosphoreum ), was formed during either acclimating or shocking starting processes with high concentrations of N, N-dimethylformamide (DMF). In the acclimating starting process, the sludge was first acclimated with 120 mg L −1 DMF before 200 mg L −1 DMF was added, whereas in the shock starting process, the sludge was fed with 200 mg L −1 DMF directly. The results showed that the toxicity of the sludge shocked with 200 mg L −1 DMF was significantly higher than that of the acclimated sludge throughout the entire process. The maximum toxicity gap between the shocked and acclimated sludge appeared at the initial stage, and the gap decreased with operation time. In addition, the maximum toxicity existed for 6–8 h in a single SBR cycle, regardless of the starting process. Proteomics analysis indicated that the responses of the shocked and acclimated sludge to DMF stimulation were different. As a result, toxic substances accumulated in the sludge through various factors, including secretions from two types of sludge under DMF stress conditions.

This study investigated sludge toxicity in removal of 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) in reactor system with addition of methanol. The toxicity was evaluated in two sequential batch reactors (SBRs), namely acclimated sludge reactor with addition of 10 mg l−1 4-CP and control sludge reactor without 4-CP addition. Results showed that even though 4-CP both in aqueous and sludge phases was undetectable, the toxicity of the acclimated sludge was still higher than the control sludge, which was assessed with Photobacterium phosphoreum (P. phosphoreum). Adsorption and biodegradation assays indicated that secondary metabolites from microorganism also contributed to sludge toxicity in addition to 4-CP itself. The different molecular-weight (MW) distribution of organic substances in sludge analysis validated that the mass fractions of TOC at >10 K and 10 K-500 were significantly related to the sludge toxicity.

A new complex of Cd(II) with ( E )-1-(5-chloro-2-hydroxybenzylideneamino)-pyrrolidin-2-one [ Cd(L) 2 ⋅ 2DMF ] was synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR, TG and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Where the HL ligand is formed in situ by the intramolecular nucleophilic substitution of ( E )- N ′-(5-chloro-2-hydroxybenzyli-dene)-4-(quinolin-8-yloxy)butanehydrazide ( H 2 L ′). The cadmium(II) ion is hexacoordinated by two tridentate L − ligands and giving a distorted octahedral coordination geometry. A cytotoxicity of [ Cd(L) 2 ⋅ 2DMF ] against liver (SMMC-7721) and cervical (HeLa) cancer cells have been studied. The results revealed that this cadmium(II) complex exhibited an effective and selective anticancer activity against HeLa over SMMC-7721 cell line with IC 50 of 1.54 ± 0.25 and 31.02 ± 3.76 μmol/dm −3 .

A ruthenium(II) complex [Ru(bpy)2(HL1)](ClO4)2·3H2O {bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine and HL1 = 2-(2,6-di(pyridin-2-yl)pyridin-4-yl)-1H-imidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthroline}, denoted as RuHL1, was synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry. The pH effects on the UV–visible (UV–vis) absorption and emission spectra and the luminescence lifetimes of RuHL1 have been studied, and their ground- and excited-state acid ionization constants were derived. The complex was found to exhibit pH-induced “off–on–off” luminescence switching properties via protonation/deprotonation of the grafted imidazole and terpyridyl groups. A pH-induced emission on–off intensity ratio of 166 was observed as pH was increased from 2.00 to 5.44, which is one of the largest values observed among imidazole-containing Ru(II) complex-based acidic-pH-induced pH luminescence switches. RuHL1 also strongly binds to calf thymus DNA in mixed binding modes involving classic intercalation and partial intercalation, as determined by UV–vis absorption and emission spectrophotometric DNA titration, ethidium bromide displacement, DNA denaturation and DNA viscosity measurements.

Background and Aims Studies of omega-3 supplementation in dialysis patients describe salutary effects on lipid profiles. However, study results have been inconsistent. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of omega-3 supplementation on serum lipids in chronic dialysis patients. Methods A systematic literature search was performed to identify the relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that investigated the effects of omega-3 supplementation on dialysis patients. The outcomes included the levels of triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and albumin. Mean differences (MDs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated and heterogeneity was assessed with the I 2 test. Results A total of 678 patients from 14 trials were subjected to meta-analysis. Omega-3 supplementation could significantly decrease the levels of TG (MD, −34.8 mg/dL; 95% CI, −62.32 to −7.28) and LDL (MD, −7.15 mg/dL; 95% CI, −10.11 to −4.2). However, no statistically significant effects were observed for TC, HDL and albumin levels. In a subgroup meta-analysis, a statistically significant effect of omega-3 consumption on TG and LDL was observed in a short-term interventional duration and hemodialysis populations. Conclusion Our findings indicate that omega-3 supplementation significantly reduced serum TG and LDL level in dialysis patients. However, there is no conclusive evidence that it can modulate the TC, HDL and albumin level.

This paper examines an optimal portfolio selection problem with a drawndown constraint based on mean-variance model when: (1) there is no arbitrage; (2) the market is complete; (3) there are finitely many states. First, we obtain the necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of the optimal solution to the problem. Then we prove that the efficient frontier of the model is a continuous and convex function, and the efficient frontier consists of a finite number of hyperbola segments and straight line segments with at most one subinterval corresponding to straight line segments. Moreover, we give some investment strategies by the results we obtained. Finally, we provide a numerical example to illustrate our results.

The multilayer films consisting of graphene oxide and a cobalt complex were fabricated though electrostatic layer-by-layer self-assembly technique and characterized by UV–Vis absorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and cyclic voltammetry. The results demonstrated that the hybrid films were successfully prepared and exhibited good electrochemical activity. The film was also subjected to photoelectrochemical studies and were found to exhibit large cathodic photocurrent density of 6.1 μA/cm 2 while irradiated with 100 mW/cm 2 polychromatic light (730 nm > λ > 325 nm) at an applied potential of −0.4 V versus saturated calomel electrode.

Using full-potential linearized augmented plane wave (FLAPW) method, we investigated the effects of intrinsic vacancies on electronic and magnetic properties in graphene-like ZnO nanosheets. The results show that the oxygen vacancy ( V O ) has no influence on magnetism in ZnO nanosheet, whereas the Zn vacancy ( V Zn ) lead to spin polarization of the nanostructures with a total magnetic moment of 2.0μ B due to O-2 p and Zn-3 d hybridization. When the distance of two V Zn defects increases to 6.499 A, the system shows an intriguing half-metallic character with 100% spin-polarized carriers due to O(2 p )–Zn(3 d )–O(2 p ) coupling chain between two V Zn defects.

We perform first-principles study on the electronic and magnetic properties of X-doped (X=Be, B, C, N) graphene-like ZnO nanosheet (NS). When one oxygen is substituted by X atom in ZnONS, X-induced spin polarizations led to transition from the semiconducting to half-metallic properties, with magnetic moments of 2.0, 1.0, 2.0, and 1.0 μ{sub B} per Be, B, C, and N dopant, respectively. The local magnetic moments are found to equal to unpaired electrons in the 2p spin states of the doping X atoms. While two oxygen atoms are substituted by X in ZnONS, the formation energy analysis indicates that X ions have a clear clustering tendency. Depending on distance between two X dopants, the ferromagnetic, antiferromagnetic or nonmagnetic states are all found in X-doped ZnONSs. More interestingly, for C and N doped cases, the half-metallic properties are robust independent on the doping concentrations, while Be or B doped systems would result in half-metallic to magnetic state transition as the doping concentrations increase. - Graphical abstract: Structure of ZnO NS employed to define various configurations of X-doped, as well as spin-density distribution of one Be-doped system. Highlights: ► X-induced spin polarizations result in half-metallicity. ► The local moments equal to unpaired electronsmore » in 2p spin states of X atom. ► The FM, AFM, and NM states are all found in X-doped ZnONSs. ► The half-metallicity in C and N doped cases are robust.« less

Chromatography has been established as one of the most important analytical methods in the modern analytical laboratory. However, preprocessing of the chromatograms, especially peak alignment, is usually a time-consuming task prior to extracting useful information from the datasets because of the small unavoidable differences in the experimental conditions caused by minor changes and drift. Most of the alignment algorithms are performed on reduced datasets using only the detected peaks in the chromatograms, which means a loss of data and introduces the problem of extraction of peak data from the chromatographic profiles. These disadvantages can be overcome by using the full chromatographic information that is generated from hyphenated chromatographic instruments. A new alignment algorithm called CAMS (Chromatogram Alignment via Mass Spectra) is present here to correct the retention time shifts among chromatograms accurately and rapidly. In this report, peaks of each chromatogram were detected based on Continuous Wavelet Transform (CWT) with Haar wavelet and were aligned against the reference chromatogram via the correlation of mass spectra. The aligning procedure was accelerated by Fast Fourier Transform cross correlation (FFT cross correlation). This approach has been compared with several well-known alignment methods on real chromatographic datasets, which demonstrates that CAMS can preserve the shape of peaks and achieve a high quality alignment result. Furthermore, the CAMS method was implemented in the Matlab language and available as an open source package at http://www.github.com/matchcoder/CAMS.

Selection of drugs for antiviral therapy of patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) remains difficult. This study was undertaken to evaluate the short-term efficacy of entecavir versus lamivudine on hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-negative patients with ACLF.The data of 182 HBeAg-negative patients with ACLF were retrospectively collected from patient profiles of the hospital. In these patients, 93 HBeAg-negative patients with ACLF were treated orally with 0.5 mg of entecavir and 89 were treated orally with 100 mg of lamivudine every day. The gender and age were matched between the two groups. Biochemical items, the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) score, and HBV DNA level were matched at baseline between the two groups and monitored during treatment. The 3-month mortalities of the two groups were compared.No significant differences were found in biochemical items, MELD score, and HBV DNA level at baseline (P0.05). HBV DNA level decreased within 3 months in both groups (P0.05), regardless of the pretreatment MELD score. In patients with the same range of pretreatment MELD scores, treatment duration, posttreatment HBV DNA levels, percentage of HBV DNA level2.7 lg copies/mL, biochemical items, MELD scores and 3-month mortality were similar in the two groups (all P0.05). Pretreatment MELD score was not related to posttreatment HBV DNA levels (P0.05), but related to a 3-month mortality in both groups (both P0.001).In HBeAg-negative patients with ACLF, the short-term efficacy of entecavir versus lamivudine was similar. The degree of pretreatment liver failure significantly affected the outcome of treatment.

The electrostatically self-assembled multilayer films of three bipolar hemicyanines with varied alkyl chain lengths were prepared by alternating adsorption of H 4 SiW 12 O 40 and these hemicyanines, and characterized by UV–vis absorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. The results showed that these inorganic–organic composite films were uniformly deposited with good electrochemical activity. Photoelectrochemical investigations showed that the films exhibited large cathodic photocurrent densities of 0.36–1.02 μA/cm 2 with the monochromatic incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency of 0.75–0.98% while irradiated with 100 mW/cm 2 polychromatic light (730 nm > λ > 325 nm) at an applied potential of −0.2 V vs. saturated calomel electrode, being strongly dependent on the alkyl chain lengths.

Based on first-principles calculations, we have investigated the electronic structure and magnetic properties of the fully-hydrogenated ZnO nanosheet (ZnONS) doped with B, C, N, and F atoms. The results show that p-type doped ZnONSs exhibit magnetic behaviors due to less electronegative p-type dopant than substituted oxygen atom, while n-type doping results in nonmagnetic states. More interestingly, B and C doped ZnONSs exhibit half-metallic behaviors with 100% spin-polarized current at the Fermi level. The long-range ferromagnetic order above room temperature, attributed to p–p coupling chain between two dopants, is also observed. It is expected that the physical understanding of ferromagnetic order would direct experiments to synthesize the novel ZnO-based nanostructures in spintronics.

A modified synthesis of terpyridine/phenylimidazo[4,5- f ]phenanthroline hybrid 2-(4-(2,6-di(pyridin-2-yl)pyridin-4-yl)phenyl)-1 H -imidazo[4,5- f ][1,10]phenanthroline ( L ) is reported. The optical and colorimetric sensing properties of L for cations and anions were investigated by naked eye, and UV–vis and fluorescence spectroscopy in CH 3 CN–N,N-dimethylformamide (43:1, v/v). L was shown to effectively and selectively recognize biologically important F − over Cl − , Br − , I − , AcO − , NO 3 − , ClO 4 − , and H 2 PO 4 − . L in CH 3 CN/N,N-dimethylformamide (43:1, v/v) was also found to have fluorimetric sensing ability for Zn 2+ and Cd 2+ . In both the CH 3 CN/N,N-dimethylformamide and aqueous 4-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1-piperazineethanesulfonic acid buffer (pH = 7.2)/CH 3 CN/DMF (13/30/1, v/v/v) solutions, L exhibited colorimetric sensing ability for Fe 2+ by an obvious color change from colorless to magenta.

The electronic and magnetic properties of N-doped ZnO nanosheets are investigated by density functional theory using local spin density approximation. The results show that in an isolated N-doped ZnO nanosheet, there is a clear spontaneous polarization of N 2p state with a magnetic moment 1.0 μ B /N. We also find that the doped nitrogen atoms in ZnO nanosheets have a clustering tendency with ferromagnetic coupling between them, and thus a high room-temperature ferromagnetic nature is expected. The ferromagnetic coupling in N-doped ZnO nanosheets can be attributed to the hole-mediated double-exchange mechanism through strong p–d interaction between nitrogen and zinc atoms.

Three bis(arylmethylidene)cyclopentanone dyes were synthesized and their structures and properties elucidated using single-crystal X-ray diffraction, mass spectrometry, 1H nuclear magnetic resonance, IR and UV–Vis spectroscopy. X-ray analyses revealed that two were monoclinic, with space group P21/c, while the third dye was triclinic, with space group P 1 ¯ . All three molecules adopted an E-configuration about the central olefinic bonds, exhibiting a butterfly-shaped geometry. Molecular structure optimization using density function theory revealed that the optimized geometer parameters were in reasonably good agreement with experimental values. In addition, the highest occupied molecular orbital and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital levels were deduced.

Summary Objective To assess the immune effects and safety of using GM-CSF with the yeast-recombinant hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine for the re-vaccination of healthy adults who did not respond to a previous vaccination. Methods Study participants included 1784 healthy adults and 100 individuals diagnosed as non-responders. These healthy non-responders were randomly assigned to one of the three treatment groups: Group A (34 individuals) was given 150 μg of granulocyte–macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) the first day, then 20 μg of the vaccine; Group B (33 individuals) was given 40 μg of the vaccine only; and, group C (33 individuals) was injected with 20 μg of vaccine each time. All participants were injected three times, at time of study enrollment and one and six months later. Anti-HB surface antigen (HBs) antibody titers were tested before treatment and at one (T1), two (T2) and eight (T8) months post-first injection. Results At T1, the rate of anti-HBs antibody + in groups A, B and C was 26.47%, 48.48% and 18.18%, respectively ( p = .027). At T8, the seropositive rate of group A (64.71%) and group B (75.76%) was significantly higher than in group C (39.39%) ( p = .011); the geometric mean of the antibody titer for groups A and B was higher than for group C (p = .0173). All three treatments were safe and well-tolerated. Conclusions Augmentation of the vaccine dose and co-administration of GM-CSF and the standard vaccine dose are effective for HBV vaccine non-responders. In fact, changing the vaccine dose had a better seropositive response than injecting the vaccine in combination with GM-CSF.