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In this work, based on the degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) and rhodamine 6G (R6G) with the catalysis of MnO2 nanosheets (MnO2 NSs) under acidity condition, a colorimetric and fluorescence dual signal sensor array was developed for Baijiu discrimination. Rhodamine B and rhodamine 6G present characteristic UV-vis absorption peaks and fluorescence emission peaks at specific wavelength. MnO2 NSs could induce the degradation of rhodamine B and rhodamine 6G and weaken the intensity of UV-vis and fluorescence. In the presence of organic acids or Baijiu, the degradation of dyes accelerated and the optical signal could be further weakened. Owing to the various of acidity, the sensor array exhibited different responses to organic acids and Baijiu, resulting in unique fingerprint maps. With the method, 8 kinds of organic acids and formic acid-acetic acid mixture samples were successfully recognized. In addition, 12 kinds of Baijiu with different flavor types were identified with 100% accuracy. Notably, 5 other distilled liquors were also successfully discriminated with no misclassifications. The method not only reduces the amount of dyes, but also improves the specificity of the sensor array, demonstrating the potential application prospects of the dual signal sensor array in Baijiu industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The bamboo-wood composite container floor (BWCCF) plays an increasingly important role in the transportation area in recent years. However, the conventional mechanical testing methods are conducted in a time-consuming and resource-wasting way. Therefore, this study is aimed to provide a frugal and high-efficiency method to predict the concentrated load of BWCCF, by comparing models with two sets of parameters. First, three artificial neural network (ANN) models were developed by taking the characteristic parameters of the end face extracted by image processing as input and concentrated load as output. Then, the other three ANN models were presented by taking the vertical density profile (VDP) as input. Of the six models, the two ANN models constructed using all characteristic parameters of cross and vertical sections and all VDP parameters had the strongest generalization. The mean absolute percentage errors were determined as 3.393 and 6.196%, respectively, and the absolute percentage errors were all within 10.000%. The result indicates that the designed model has the potential to be a useful, reliable and effective tool for predicting concentrated load. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1), a newly discovered long intergenic noncoding RNA (lincRNA), has been reported to be aberrantly expressed in various cancers, and may serve as a novel potential biomarker for cancer prognosis. This meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the effects of MALAT1 on cancer prognosis and lymph node metastasis. Methods: A quantitative meta-analysis was performed using a systematic search of PubMed, Medline and Web of Science databases to identify eligible papers on prognostic value of MALAT1 in cancers. The pooled hazard ratios (HRs) or odds ratios (OR) with a 95 % confidence interval (95 % Cl) were calculated to evaluate its prognostic value. Results: A total of 2094 patients from 17 studies between 2003 and 2016 were included. The results revealed that elevated MALAT1 expression was significantly associated with poor overall survival (OS) in 11 types of cancers (HR = 1.91, 95 % CI 1.49-2.34). Furthermore, subgroup analysis indicated that region of study (Germany, Japan or China), cancer type (digestive system cancers, urinary system cancers or respiratory system cancers) and sample size (more or less than 100) did not alter the significant predictive value of MALAT1 in OS from various types of cancer. In addition, upregulation of MALAT1 expression was significantly associated with poor disease-free survival (HR = 2.29, 95 % CI 1.24-3.35), and recurrence-free survival (HR = 2.09, 95 % CI 0.81-3.37). The results showed that the incidence of lymph node metastasis was higher in high MALAT1 expression group than that in low MALAT1 expression group (OR = 1.67, 95 % CI 1.30-2.15). Conclusions: This meta-analysis revealed that elevated MALAT1 expression may serve as a novel predictive biomarker for poor survival and lymph node metastasis in different types of cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a heterogenous group of inherited retinal degenerations caused by mutations in at least 50 genes. To identify genetic mutations underlying autosomal recessive RP (arRP), we performed whole-exome sequencing study on two consanguineous marriage Indian families (RP-252 and RP-182) and 100 sporadic RP patients. Here we reported novel mutation in FAM161A in RP-252 and RP-182 with two patients affected with RP in each family. The FAM161A gene was identified as the causative gene for RP28, an autosomal recessive form of RP. By whole-exome sequencing we identified several homozygous genomic regions, one of which included the recently identified FAM161A gene mutated in RP28-linked arRP. Sequencing analysis revealed the presence of a novel homozygous frameshift mutation p.R592FsX2 in both patients of family RP-252 and family RP-182. In 100 sporadic Indian RP patients, this novel homozygous frameshift mutation p.R592FsX2 was identified in one sporadic patient ARRP-S-I-46 by whole-exome sequencing and validated by Sanger sequencing. Meanwhile, this homozygous frameshift mutation was absent in 1000 ethnicity-matched control samples screened by direct Sanger sequencing. In conclusion, we identified a novel homozygous frameshift mutations of RP28-linked RP gene FAM161A in Indian population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to ascertain the invasive mechanism and control strategy of the invasive Crofton weed, Ageratina adenophora, its ecological adaptability and population differentiation, the formation of single dominant population, displacement of native plants and sustainable management strategies were investigated. The present results helped to clarify and explain such issues as the adaptability post invasion, interaction and competition between inter- and intra-species and community resistance, thereby providing important references to researches on other invasive alien species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]