Search

Accessible and superior electrocatalysts to overcome the sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are pivotal for sustainable and low-cost hydrogen production through electrocatalytic water splitting. The iron and nickel oxohydroxide complexes are regarded as the most promising OER electrocatalyst attributed to their inexpensive costs, easy preparation, and robust stability. In particular, the Fe-doped NiOOH is widely deemed to be superior constituents for OER in an alkaline environment. However, the facile construction of robust Fe-doped NiOOH electrocatalysts is still a great challenge. Herein, we report the facile construction of Fe-doped NiOOH on Ni(OH)2 hierarchical nanosheet arrays grown on nickel foam (FeNi@NiA) as efficient OER electrocatalysts through a facile in-situ electrochemical activation of FeNi-based Prussian blue analogues (PBA) derived from Ni(OH)2. The resultant FeNi@NiA heterostructure shows high intrinsic activity for OER due to the modulation of the overall electronic energy state and the electrical conductivity. Importantly, the electrochemical measurement revealed that FeNi@NiA exhibits a low overpotential of 240 mV at 10 mA/cm2 with a small Tafel slope of 62 mV dec−1 in 1.0 M KOH, outperforming the commercial RuO2 electrocatalysts for OER.

A functionalized ethylene–vinyl-alcohol (EVOH) nanofibrous membrane (NFM) was fabricated via co-electrospinning H4SiW12O40 (SiW12) and EVOH first, and then grafting citric acid (CCA) on the electrospun SiW12@EVOH NFM. Characterization with FT-IR, EDX, and XPS confirmed that CCA was introduced to the surface of SiW12@EVOH NFM and the Keggin structure of SiW12 was maintained well in the composite fibers. Due to a number of carboxyl groups introduced by CCA, the as-prepared SiW12@EVOH-CCA NFM can form a high number of hydrogen bonds with CR, and thus can be used to selectively absorb congo red (CR) in aqueous solutions. More importantly, the CR enriched in the NFM can be rapidly degraded via photocatalysis. SiW12 in the NFM acted as a photocatalyst, and the hydroxyl groups in the NFM acted as an electron donor to accelerate the photodegradation rate of CR. Meanwhile, the SiW12@EVOH-CCA NFM was regenerated and then exhibited a relatively stable adsorption capacity in five cycles of filtration–regeneration. The bifunctional nanofibrous membrane filter showed potential for use in the thorough purification of dye wastewater.

The intermetallic PtBi/MgO/Mg monolithic catalyst was first prepared using non-equilibrium plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) technology. Spherical aberration-corrected transmission electron microscope (ACTEM) observation confirms the successful synthesis of the PtBi intermetallic structure. The efficiency of PtBi/Mg/MgO catalysts in catalyzing the reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol (4-AP) in the presence of NaBH4 was demonstrated. The activity factor for the catalyst is 31.8 s−1 g−1, which is much higher than reported values. In addition, the resultant catalyst also exhibits excellent catalytic activity in the organic pollutant reaction of p-nitrobenzoic acid (p-NBA) and methyl orange (MO). Moreover, benefiting from ordered atomic structures and the half-embedded PtBi nanoparticles (NPs), the catalyst demonstrates excellent stability and reproducibility in the degradation of 4-NP. This study provides an example of a simple method for the preparation of intermetallic structures as catalysts for organic pollutant degradation.

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a slow step in electrocatalytic water splitting. NiFe layered double hydroxides (LDH) have shown promise as affordable OER electrocatalysts, but their performance is hindered by poor charge transfer and sluggish kinetics. To address this, we doped NiFe LDH with sulfur (S) using an in situ electrodeposition method. By growing S-doped NiFe LDH on Cu nanoarrays, we created core–shell structures that improved both the thermodynamics and kinetics of OER. The resulting S-NiFe LDH@Cu core–shell nanoarrays exhibited enhanced activity in water oxidation, with a low potential of 236 mV (at 50 mA cm−2) and a small Tafel slope of 50.64 mV dec−1. Moreover, our alkaline electrolyzer, based on these materials, demonstrated remarkable activity, with a low voltage of 1.56 V at 100 mA cm−2 and excellent durability. The core–shell nanoarray structures provided a larger electroactive surface area, facilitated fast electron transport, and allowed for effective gas release. These findings highlight the potential of S-NiFe LDH@Cu core–shell nanoarrays as efficient OER electrocatalysts.

Nowadays, the impact ionization coefficient in the avalanche breakdown theory is obtained using 1-D PN junctions or SBDs, and is considered to be a constant determined by the material itself only. In this paper, the impact ionization coefficient of silicon in a 2D lateral power device is found to be no longer a constant, but instead a function of the 2D coupling effects. The impact ionization coefficient of silicon that considers the 2D depletion effects in real-world devices is proposed and extracted in this paper. The extracted impact ionization coefficient indicates that the conventional empirical impact ionization in the Fulop equation is not suitable for the analysis of 2D lateral power devices. The veracity of the proposed impact ionization coefficient is validated by the simulations obtained from TCAD tools. Considering the complexity of direct modeling, a new prediction method using deep neural networks is proposed. The prediction method demonstrates 97.67% accuracy for breakdown location prediction and less than 6% average error for the impact ionization coefficient prediction compared with the TCAD simulation.

Mitochondria are the energy production center in cells, which regulate aerobic metabolism, calcium balance, gene expression and cell death. Their homeostasis is crucial for cell viability. Although mitochondria own a nucleus-independent and self-replicating genome, most of the proteins, which fulfill mitochondrial functions and mitochondrial quality control, are encoded by the nuclear genome and are imported into mitochondria. Hence, the regulation of mitochondrial protein expression and translocation is considered essential for mitochondrial homeostasis. By means of high-throughput RNA sequencing and bioinformatic analysis, non-coding RNAs localized in mitochondria have been generally identified. They are either generated from the mitochondrial genome or the nuclear genome. The mitochondrial non-coding RNAs can directly interact with mitochondrial DNAs or transcripts to affect gene expression. They can also bind nuclear genome-encoded mitochondrial proteins to regulate their mitochondrial import, protein level and combination. Generally, mitochondrial non-coding RNAs act as regulators for mitochondrial processes including oxidative phosphorylation and metabolism. In this review, we would like to introduce the latest research progressions regarding mitochondrial non-coding RNAs and summarize their identification, biogenesis, translocation, molecular mechanism and function.

In recent years, with the rapid increase in coverage and lines, security maintenance has become one of the top concerns with regard to railway transportation in China. As the key transportation infrastructure, the railway turnout system (RTS) plays a vital role in transportation, which will cause incalculable losses when accidents occur. The traditional fault-diagnosis and maintenance methods of the RTS are no longer applicable to the growing amount of data, so intelligent fault diagnosis has become a research hotspot. However, the key challenge of RTS intelligent fault diagnosis is to effectively extract the deep features in the signal and accurately identify failure modes in the face of unbalanced datasets. To solve the above two problems, this paper focuses on unbalanced data and proposes a fault-diagnosis method based on an improved autoencoder and data augmentation, which realizes deep feature extraction and fault identification of unbalanced data. An improved autoencoder is proposed to smooth the noise and extract the deep features to overcome the noise fluctuation caused by the physical characteristics of the data. Then, synthetic minority oversampling technology (SMOTE) is utilized to effectively expand the fault types and solve the problem of unbalanced datasets. Furthermore, the health state is identified by the Softmax regression model that is trained with the balanced characteristics data, which improves the diagnosis precision and generalization ability. Finally, different experiments are conducted on a real dataset based on a railway station in China, and the average diagnostic accuracy reaches 99.13% superior to other methods, which indicates the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed method.

Carbonic acid is an important species in a variety of fields and has long been regarded to be non-existing in isolated state, as it is thermodynamically favorable to decompose into water and carbon dioxide. In this work, we systematically studied a novel ionic complex [H2CO3·HSO4]− using density functional theory calculations, molecular dynamics simulations, and topological analysis to investigate if the exotic H2CO3 molecule could be stabilized by bisulfate ion, which is a ubiquitous ion in various environments. We found that bisulfate ion could efficiently stabilize all the three conformers of H2CO3 and reduce the energy differences of isomers with H2CO3 in three different conformations compared to the isolated H2CO3 molecule. Calculated isomerization pathways and ab initio molecular dynamics simulations suggest that all the optimized isomers of the complex have good thermal stability and could exist at finite temperatures. We also explored the hydrogen bonding properties in this interesting complex and simulated their harmonic infrared spectra to aid future infrared spectroscopic experiments. This work could be potentially important to understand the fate of carbonic acid in certain complex environments, such as in environments where both sulfuric acid (or rather bisulfate ion) and carbonic acid (or rather carbonic dioxide and water) exist.

Carbon-Encapsulated NiFe Nanofiber NixFey@C-CNFs have been demonstrated to be promising candidates to replace conventional nobel metals-based catalysts for oxygen evolution reaction. Here, we developed a facile method of electrospinning and high temperature carbonization to synthesize NixFey@C-CNFs catalysts. It is proved that Ni3Fe7@C-CNFs exhibited low overpotential (245 mV) and excellent stability in alkaline electrolyte for OER. This work provides a good platform for the synthesis and design of graphene-encapsulated alloy catalysts.

In this study, molded fiber products (MFPs) were prepared from lignin compounded with Lewis acid-modified fibers using enzymatic hydrolysis lignin (EHL) as a bio-phenol. The fibers were modified and compounded entirely through hot-pressing. To improve the reactivity of enzymatic lignin, hydroxylated enzymatic hydrolysis lignin (HEHL) was prepared by hydroxylation modification of purified EHL with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and ferrous hydroxide (Fe(OH)3). HEHL was mixed uniformly with Lewis acid-modified fibers on a pressure machine and modified during the molding process. The purpose of Lewis acid degradation of hemicellulose-converted furfural with HEHL was to generate a resin structure to improve the mechanical properties of a MFPs. The microstructure of the MFP was shown to be generated by resin structure, and it was demonstrated that HEHL was compounded on Lewis acid-modified fibers during the molding process. The thermal stability of the MFP with composite HEHL did not change significantly owing to the addition of lignin and had higher tensile strength (46.28 MPa) and flexural strength (65.26 MPa) compared to uncompounded and modified MFP. The results of this study are expected to promote the application of high lignin content fibers in molded fibers.

Vehicle detection in aerial images plays a significant role in civil and military applications and it faces many challenges including the overhead-view perspective, the highly complex background, and the variants of vehicles. This paper presents a robust vehicle detection scheme to overcome these issues. In the detection stage, we propose a novel algorithm to generate oriented proposals that could enclose the vehicle objects properly as rotated rectangles with orientations. To discriminate the object and background in the proposals, we propose a modified vector of locally aggregated descriptors (VLAD) image representation model with a recently proposed image feature, i.e., local steering kernel (LSK) feature. By applying non-maximum suppression (NMS) after classification, we show that each vehicle object is detected with a single-oriented bounding box. Experiments are conducted on aerial images to compare the proposed method with state-of-art methods and evaluate the impact of the components in the model. The results have proven the robustness of the proposed method under various circumstances and the superior performance over other existing vehicle detection approaches.

A facile aqueous method to construct a platinum nanoflowers (PtNFs)/three-dimensional (3D) graphene electrode for electrochemical catalysis was demonstrated. PtNFs composed of thin Pt nanowires with the length of 6⁻16 nm and the diameter of 2⁻3 nm were prepared on 3D graphene foam as a growth template in the aqueous solution without any surfactant. The 3D graphene foam was used for patterning PtNFs and controlling their morphology. The fabricated PtNF/3D graphene electrode was applied for electrocatalytic methanol oxidation. Electrochemical measurements show that the PtNF/3D graphene electrode has higher electrocatalytic activity and better stability than commercial Pt-C modified glassy carbon electrode. It displays promising potential for applications in fuel cells.

With the rapid development of wind power, the effects of doubly fed induction generators (DFIGs) on the transient stability of power system have attracted more attention. However, the effects are still not clear due to the lack of deep and theoretical analysis. A control method for enhancing system rotor angle stability enhancement is proposed with considering the power constraints of DFIG. The rotor angle oscillation of the synchronous generator (SG) can be reduced and overspeed and the overcurrent of DFIG can be avoided. In this paper, the effects of the DFIG on the rotor angle characteristics of SG are analyzed. The change law of system rotor angle varying with transient power of the DFIG is obtained. Then, the power equation in the emergency pitch control process is explored. The reactive power constraints of the stator and grid-side converter are deduced. Finally, the system rotor angle stability enhancement control method is proposed based on the power constraints of DFIG. The effectiveness of proposed method is proven by simulations.

The flow structure around limited-size vegetation patches is crucial for understanding sediment transport and vegetation succession trends. While the influence of vegetation density has been extensively explored, the impact of the relative diameter of vegetation stems remains relatively unclear. After validating the reliability of the numerical model with experimental data, this study conducted 2D-URANS simulations (SST k-ω) to investigate the impact of varying relative diameters d/D under different vegetation densities λ on the hydrodynamic characteristics and drag force of vegetation patches. The results show that increasing d/D and decreasing λ are equivalent, both contributing to increased spacing between cylinder elements, allowing for the formation of element-scale Kármán vortices. Compared to vegetation density λ, the non-dimensional frontal area aD is a better predictor for the presence of array-scale Kármán vortex streets. Within the parameter range covered in this study, array-scale Kármán vortex streets appear when aD ≥ 1.4, which will significantly alter sediment transport patterns. For the same vegetation density, increasing the relative diameter d/D leads to a decrease in the array drag coefficient C¯D and an increase in the average element drag coefficient C¯d. When parameterizing vegetation resistance using aD, all data points collapse onto a single curve, following the relationships C¯D=0.34lnaD+0.78 and C¯d=−0.42lnaD+0.82.

Recent years have ushered in a transformative era in in vitro modeling with the advent of organoids, three-dimensional structures derived from stem cells or patient tumor cells. Still, fully harnessing the potential of organoids requires advanced imaging technologies and analytical tools to quantitatively monitor organoid growth. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a promising imaging modality for organoid analysis due to its high-resolution, label-free, non-destructive, and real-time 3D imaging capabilities, but accurately identifying and quantifying organoids in OCT images remain challenging due to various factors. Here, we propose an automatic deep learning-based pipeline with convolutional neural networks that synergistically includes optimized preprocessing steps, the implementation of a state-of-the-art deep learning model, and ad-hoc postprocessing methods, showcasing good generalizability and tracking capabilities over an extended period of 13 days. The proposed tracking algorithm thoroughly documents organoid evolution, utilizing reference volumes, a dual branch analysis, key attribute evaluation, and probability scoring for match identification. The proposed comprehensive approach enables the accurate tracking of organoid growth and morphological changes over time, advancing organoid analysis and serving as a solid foundation for future studies for drug screening and tumor drug sensitivity detection based on organoids.

Background: Although its immunomodulatory properties make thymopentin (TP5) appealing, its rapid metabolism and inactivation in the digestive system pose significant challenges for global scientists. PEGylated niosomal nanocarriers are hypothesized to improve the physicochemical stability of TP5, and to enhance its intestinal permeability for oral administration. Methods: TP5-loaded PEGylated niosomes were fabricated using the thin film hydration method. Co-cultured Caco-2 and HT29 cells with different ratios were screened as in vitro intestinal models. The cytotoxicity of TP5 and its formulations were evaluated using an MTT assay. The cellular uptake and transport studies were investigated in the absence or presence of variable inhibitors or enhancers, and their mechanisms were explored. Results and Discussion: All TP5 solutions and their niosomal formulations were nontoxic to Caco-2 and HT-29 cells. The uptake of TP5-PEG-niosomes by cells relied on active endocytosis, exhibiting dependence on time, energy, and concentration, which has the potential to significantly enhance its cellular uptake compared to TP5 in solution. Nevertheless, cellular transport rates were similar between TP5 in solution and its niosomal groups. The cellular transport of TP5 in solution was carried out mainly through MRP5 endocytosis and a passive pathway and effluxed by MRP5 transporters, while that of TP5-niosomes and TP5-PEG-niosomes was carried out through adsorptive- and clathrin-mediated endocytosis requiring energy. The permeability and transport rate was further enhanced when EDTA and sodium taurocholate were used as the penetration enhancers. Conclusions: This research has illustrated that PEG-niosomes were able to enhance the cellular uptake and maintain the cellular transport of TP5. This study also shows this formulation’s potential to serve as an effective carrier for improving the oral delivery of peptides.

Aim: The aim of this project is to use pectin- and chitosan-modified solid lipid nanoparticles for bovine lactoferrin to enhance its cellular uptake and transport. Methods: Solid lipid particles containing bovine lactoferrin (bLf) were formulated through the solvent evaporation technique, incorporating stearic acid along with either chitosan or pectin modification. bLf cellular uptake and transport were evaluated in vitro using the human adenocarcinoma cell line Caco-2 cell model. Results and Discussion: The bLf-loaded SLPs showed no significant effect on cytotoxicity and did not induce apoptosis within the eight-hour investigation. The use of confocal laser scanning microscopy confirmed that bLf follows the receptor-mediated endocytosis, whereas the primary mechanism for the cellular uptake of SLPs was endocytosis. The bLf-loaded SLPs had significantly more cellular uptake compared to bLf alone, and it was observed that this impact varied based on the time, temperature, and concentration. Verapamil and EDTA were determined to raise the apparent permeability coefficients (App) of bLf and bLf-loaded SLPs. Conclusion: This occurred because they hindered efflux by interacting with P-glycoproteins and had a penetration-enhancing influence. These findings propose the possibility of an additional absorption mechanism for SLPs, potentially involving active transportation facilitated by the P-glycoprotein transporter in Caco-2 cells. These results suggest that SLPs have the potential to be applied as effective carriers to improve the oral bioavailability of proteins and peptides.

The leaves of the Chinese cabbage which is most widely consumed come in a wide variety of colors. Leaves that are dark green can promote photosynthesis, effectively improving crop yield, and therefore hold important application and cultivation value. In this study, we selected nine inbred lines of Chinese cabbage displaying slight differences in leaf color, and graded the leaf color using the reflectance spectra. We clarified the differences in gene sequences and the protein structure of ferrochelatase 2 (BrFC2) among the nine inbred lines, and used qRT-PCR to analyze the expression differences of photosynthesis-related genes in inbred lines with minor variations in dark-green leaves. We found expression differences among the inbred lines of Chinese cabbage in photosynthesis-related genes involved in the porphyrin and chlorophyll metabolism, as well as in photosynthesis and photosynthesis-antenna protein pathway. Chlorophyll b content was significantly positively correlated with the expression of PsbQ, LHCA1_1 and LHCB6_1, while chlorophyll a content was significantly negatively correlated with the expression PsbQ, LHCA1_1 and LHCA1_2. Our results provide an empirical basis for the precise identification of candidate genes and a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms responsible for the production of dark-green leaves in Chinese cabbage.

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a common and devastating complication in diabetic patients, which is recognized as a large and growing problem leading to end-stage kidney disease. As dietary-mediated therapies are gradually becoming more acceptable to patients with DKD, we planned to find active compounds on preventing DKD progression from dietary material. The present paper reports the renoprotective properties and underlying mechanisms of ginsenoside compound K (CK), a major metabolite in serum after oral administration of ginseng. CK supplementation for 16 weeks could improve urine microalbumin, the ratio of urinary albumin/creatinine and renal morphological abnormal changes in db/db mice. In addition, CK supplementation reshaped the gut microbiota by decreasing the contents of Bacteroides and Paraprevotella and increasing the contents of Lactobacillu and Akkermansia at the genus level, as well as reduced histidine-derived microbial metabolite imidazole propionate (IMP) in the serum. We first found that IMP played a significant role in the progression of DKD through activating toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). We also confirmed CK supplementation can down-regulate IMP-induced protein expression of the TLR4 signaling pathway in vivo and in vitro. This study suggests that dietary CK could offer a better health benefit in the early intervention of DKD. From a nutrition perspective, CK or dietary material containing CK can possibly be developed as new adjuvant therapy products for DKD.

Aquatic plants widely exist in rivers, which can affect the flow structure in rivers and have an important impact on the evolution of river morphology. The emerged vegetation is an important member of aquatic vegetation in the river, so studying the flow structure around the emerged vegetation patches is of great significance. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation provides support for the related research works. Applying the appropriate turbulence model is crucial to achieving realistic numerical simulation results. In this study, two-dimensional numerical simulations were carried out and compared with experimental data by six different Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) turbulence models, i.e., Standard k-ε model, Renormalization group (RNG) k-ε model, Realizable k-ε model, Standard k-ω model, Shear-stress transport (SST) k-ω Model, and the Reynolds stress model (RSM). CFD is an effective research method, and the results showed that there are different simulation performances with different turbulence models. The shear stress transport k-ω model achieves the most consistent numerical simulation results with the experimental data for the longitudinal mean flow velocity distribution at the centerline, and the Reynolds stress model provides the least consistent numerical simulation with the experimental data. Then the performance of the six models in simulating the flow field characteristics and longitudinal outflow after vegetation patch was compared.

Hyperuricemia is one of the independent risk factors for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Herein, we investigate the association between uric acid and cholesterol metabolism and the effect of dioscin on the prevention of hyperuricemia-induced atherosclerosis. In the potassium oxonate-treated ApoE−/−−/− mice, atherosclerosis was accelerated along with elevated serum cholesterol levels in the hyperuricemic state, which can be ameliorated by dioscin. Together with the in vitro assays, we found that the effect of dioscin was at least partially through the regulation of the farnesoid X receptor (FXR) -small heterodimer partner (SHP) -7α-hydroxylase (CYP7A1) signaling pathway in the liver. Tigogenin (a metabolite of dioscin) suppressed FXR activation and increased CYP7A1, resulting in an increased conversion rate of cholesterols into bile acids. Further clinical study revealed that treatment with a dioscin-enriched preparation decreased serum cholesterol levels in individuals with hyperuricemia. In summary, this study demonstrated a slowdown effect of dioscin on the progression of hyperuricemia-induced atherosclerosis.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a global pandemic, has caused over 216 million cases and 4.50 million deaths as of 30 August 2021. Vaccines can be regarded as one of the most powerful weapons to eliminate the pandemic, but the impact of vaccines on daily COVID-19 cases and deaths by country is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the correlation between vaccines and daily newly confirmed cases and deaths of COVID-19 in each country worldwide. Methods: Daily data on firstly vaccinated people, fully vaccinated people, new cases and new deaths of COVID-19 were collected from 187 countries. First, we used a generalized additive model (GAM) to analyze the association between daily vaccinated people and daily new cases and deaths of COVID-19. Second, a random effects meta-analysis was conducted to calculate the global pooled results. Results: In total, 187 countries and regions were included in the study. During the study period, 1,011,918,763 doses of vaccine were administered, 540,623,907 people received at least one dose of vaccine, and 230,501,824 people received two doses. For the relationship between vaccination and daily increasing cases of COVID-19, the results showed that daily increasing cases of COVID-19 would be reduced by 24.43% [95% CI: 18.89, 29.59] and 7.50% [95% CI: 6.18, 8.80] with 10,000 fully vaccinated people per day and at least one dose of vaccine, respectively. Daily increasing deaths of COVID-19 would be reduced by 13.32% [95% CI: 3.81, 21.89] and 2.02% [95% CI: 0.18, 4.16] with 10,000 fully vaccinated people per day and at least one dose of vaccine, respectively. Conclusions: These findings showed that vaccination can effectively reduce the new cases and deaths of COVID-19, but vaccines are not distributed fairly worldwide. There is an urgent need to accelerate the speed of vaccination and promote its fair distribution across countries.

Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is a promising technology for the non-invasive imaging of vasculature. Many studies in literature present automated algorithms to quantify OCTA images, but there is a lack of a review on the most common methods and their comparison considering multiple clinical applications (e.g., ophthalmology and dermatology). Here, we aim to provide readers with a useful review and handbook for automatic segmentation and classification methods using OCTA images, presenting a comparison of techniques found in the literature based on the adopted segmentation or classification method and on the clinical application. Another goal of this study is to provide insight into the direction of research in automated OCTA image analysis, especially in the current era of deep learning.

This work investigated the effect of lipase addition on a Chinese traditional fermented fish product, Suanzhayu. The accumulation of lactic acid and the decrease of pH during the fermentation were mainly caused by the metabolism of Lactobacillus. The addition of lipase had little effect on pH and the bacterial community structure but promoted the growth of Proteus. The addition of lipase promotes the formation of volatile compounds, especially aldehydes and esters. The formation of volatile compounds is mainly divided into three stages, and lipase had accelerated the fermentation process. Lactobacillus, Enterococcus and Proteus played an important role not only in inhibition of the growth of Escherichia-Shigella, but also in the formation of flavor. This study provides a rapid fermentation method for the Suanzhayu process.

Hyperuricemia is an important risk factor of chronic kidney disease, metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease. We aimed to assess the time-feature relationship of hyperuricemia mouse model on uric acid excretion and renal function. A hyperuricemia mouse model was established by potassium oxonate (PO) and adenine for 21 days. Ultra Performance Liquid Chromatography was used to determine plasma uric acid level. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was applied to observe kidney pathological changes, and Western blot was used to detect renal urate transporters’ expression. In hyperuricemia mice, plasma uric acid level increased significantly from the 3rd day, and tended to be stable from the 7th day, and the clearance rate of uric acid decreased greatly from the 3rd day. Further study found that the renal organ of hyperuricemia mice showed slight damage from the 3rd day, and significantly deteriorated renal function from the 10th day. In addition, the expression levels of GLUT9 and URAT1 were upregulated from the 3rd day, while ABCG2 and OAT1 were downregulated from the 3rd day, and NPT1 were downregulated from the 7th day in hyperuricemia mice kidney. This paper presents a method suitable for experimental hyperuricemia mouse model, and shows the time-feature of each index in a hyperuricemia mice model.

Extreme hydrometeorological events have far-reaching impacts on our daily life and may occur more frequently with rising global temperatures. The probability of the concurrence of these extreme events in the upper reaches of the river network is of particular importance for the lower reaches, which is referred to as the encounter probability of extreme events, and may have even stronger socio-economic impacts. In this study, the Rao River basin in China is selected as an example to explore the encounter probability and risk of future flood and drought based on the encounter probability model. The reference period was 1971−2000, and the future prediction periods were 2020−2049 and 2070−2099. The calibrated and validated statistical downscaling model (SDSM) was used to generate future daily precipitation and daily mean temperature. The calibrated and validated Xin’anjiang model was used to predict future daily mean streamflow in the basin. In addition, the encounter probability model was established using the joint distribution of occurrence dates and magnitudes of daily mean streamflow to investigate the encounter probabilities of flood and drought under future climate change. Results show that, for flood occurrence dates, the encounter probability during the flood season would decrease in the two future periods while the dates would generally be earlier. For flood magnitudes, the encounter probability of the two tributaries’ floods and the probability of flood at each tributary would decrease (e.g., the encounter probability with the same-frequency of 100-years would reduce by 53% to 95%), which indicates reduced risk of future major floods in the study area. For drought occurrence dates, the encounter probability during the non-flood season would decrease. For drought magnitudes, the encounter probability would decrease (e.g., the encounter probability with the same-frequency of 100-years would reduce by 18% to 33%), even though the probability of future drought at each tributary would increase. Such analyses provide important probabilistic information to help us prepare for the upcoming extreme events.

Four new phenolic components, eurylophenolosides A (1) and B (2), eurylolignanosides A (3) and B (4), along with twelve known compounds were isolated from the roots of Eurycoma longifolia Jack. The structure of these components was elucidated by using various spectral techniques and chemical reactions. Among the known isolates, syringaldehyde (12), 3-chloro-4-hydroxybenzoic acid (13), 3-chloro-4-hydroxyl benzoic acid-4-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (14), and isotachioside (15) were isolated from the Eurycoma genus for the first time. Further, the NMR data of 14 was reported here firstly. Meanwhile, the nitric oxide (NO) inhibitory activities of all compounds were examined in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 cells at 40 μM. As results, piscidinol A (6), 24-epi-piscidinol A (7), bourjotinolone A (10), and scopoletin (16) were found to play important role in suppressing NO levels without cytotoxicity. Furthermore, the Western blot method was used to investigate the mechanism of compounds 6, 7, 10, and 16 by analysing the level of inflammation related proteins, such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. Consequently, compounds 6, 7, 10, and 16 were found to significantly inhibit LPS-induced protein expression of IL-6, NF-κB and iNOS in NF-κB signaling pathway. Moreover, it was found that the protein expression inhibitory effects of 6, 7, and 16 exhibited in a dose-dependent manner. The mechanism may be related to the inhibition of the iNOS expressions through suppressing the IL-6-induced NF-κB pathway.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a serious digestive system disease, for which the clinical therapeutic choices remain limited. Dried fruits of Citrus aurantium L. (CAL) are a traditional medicine used for regulation of the digestive system. The aim of this study was to identify the regulatory effects of CAL on IBD and to clarify the mechanism of the active compounds. In trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid-induced IBD rats, 125 to 500 mg/kg of oral CAL significantly alleviated weight loss and diarrhea, decreased colitis inflammatory cell infiltration, and inhibited pro-inflammatory cytokine production. The mechanisms of characteristic flavonoids in CAL were evaluated involving inflammation and intestine contraction aspects. Naringenin, nobiletin, and hesperetin showed anti-inflammatory effects on lipopolysaccharide-induced RAW cells. The mechanism may be related to the inhibition of the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)-induced nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) pathway to suppress cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expressions. Naringenin and nobiletin showed inhibitory effects on isolated jejunum contraction. The mechanism of naringenin is partly related to COX, NOS, inositol triphosphate (IP3), and finally, to decreased jejunum motility. This study demonstrated that CAL, and its flavonoids’ regulatory effects on IBD through anti-inflammation and inhibition of intestine muscle contraction, can provide basic information on developing new drugs or supplements against IBD based on CAL.