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Shorter processes and lower temperatures are critical to reducing thermally modified wood costs. In this study, the exogenous H3PO4 was infiltrated into poplar (Populus × euramaricana) and then heated at low temperatures of 130–170 °C to speed up the thermal modification process of wood with better performance. The hygroscopicity was analyzed by dynamic vapor sorption detection and its constituents of modified wood were characterized by high-performance liquid chromatography and solid-state CP/MAS 13C NMR. The results showed that acid combined with low-temperature thermal modification (acid-LTM) resulted in lower equilibrium moisture content compared with the high-temperature thermal modification (HTM) wood. The addition of H3PO4 triggered severe degradation of the carbohydrates in the wood, and the mass loss of cellulose and hemicellulose were 11.9% and 24.1% when modified with 3.0% H3PO4 at 150 °C, respectively, thereby reducing the quantities of water sorption sites. Besides, the degradation products of carbohydrates crosslinked with the thermally stable lignin to form "pseudo-lignin" substances, leading to an increase in the lignin content of acid-LTM wood. The increase in the crystalline index and crystallite size of cellulose in acid-LTM wood was also conducive to reducing the wood hygroscopicity. The better hydrophobicity of acid-LTM poplar was further verified by its decrease in the water sorption site density and the theoretical OH content compared with HTM wood and unmodified wood. This study will offer a potential process to manufacture thermal-modified wood at a low cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Potassium isotopes are a novel tracer for continental weathering. Previous K isotope studies on chemical weathering generally targeted weathering profiles under a particular climate region, yet the effects of chemical weathering on K isotopes under different climatic backgrounds remain unclear. Moreover, little is known about the K isotope signatures of modern unconsolidated detrital sediments. Here, we report K isotopic data of surficial seafloor sediments from continental shelves along the east coast of China (ECC), as well as those around the tropical Hainan island in the northern South China Sea. The ECC sediments have a relatively narrow distribution of δ41K (with reference to NIST3141a) values, which range from (−0.40±0.01)‰ to (−0.57±0.04)‰, with an average of (−0.51±0.09)‰. By contrast, δ41K values of Hainan offshore sediments display a larger variation, ranging from (−0.28±0.07)‰ to (−0.67±0.02)‰. The δ41K values of Hainan offshore sediments exhibit negative correlations with the chemical index of alteration (CIA), Al/K, Ti/K, and total iron (FeT), which underlines the control of chemical weathering on K isotopic signatures of detritus inputs into oceans. We also measured Mg isotope compositions for the same samples; interestingly, the variability in δ26Mg of the samples is small (~0.24‰) for all ECC and Hainan offshore sediments, and δ26Mg values do not show clear correlations with indexes of chemical weathering. Our study demonstrates the link between K isotopic variability of detrital sediments and climatic conditions including rainfall intensity, which indicates that K isotopes of the detrital component of marine sediments could be applied to study Earth's climate in deep time. The δ41K values of the offshore detrital sediments are significantly less variable than those of pelagic marine sediments, highlighting the importance of distinguishing the effects of diagenesis and neoformation of clay minerals from continental weathering in attempts to study deep-time climate-weathering link by K isotopes in detrital sedimentary records. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural rock masses often contain heterogeneous structures with varying sizes, non-uniform distributions, and strengths, which influence the mechanical response characteristics and crack propagation modes under loading. Furthermore, heterogeneous structures can affect the stability of the rock mass, in serious cases, leading to geotechnical and mining engineering disasters. In the present work, a parallel-bond model (PBM)-based numerical simulation using Particle Flow Code (PFC) was carried out to study the strength and failure characteristics of sandstone specimens with heterogeneous structures under different loading rates. The results show that the peak strength increases with the increasing loading rate. In addition, all of the initial cracks occurred at the edges of the heterogeneous structures of specimens under different loading rates. The greater the loading rate, the greater the stress concentration degree at the edge of the heterogeneous structures, the greater the dissipated energy as the sandstone specimens with heterogeneous structures suffer damage, the more intense the acoustic emission activity, and the greater the damage degree of the specimens. The number of cracks generated in sandstone specimens with heterogeneous structures increases gradually with the increasing loading rate during the initial loading stage, and gradually decreases after the specimens are damaged. Cracks propagate and develop from the upper right region to the lower right region of the specimens, forming crack groups that rapidly penetrate the specimens, leading to failure. Under different loading rates, the final failure behavior of the sandstone specimens with heterogeneous structures changes from an inverted V-type to θ-type, then gradually evolves to O-type failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maximum plant height (Hmax), stem tissue mass density (SD), leaf mass per area (LMA), and relative growth rate (RGR) have all been linked to flowering phenology. However, it is still unknown whether these functional traits varying with flowering phenology are related to other floral traits associated with pollinator preference and reproductive success. We investigated the relationship between vegetative and floral traits, as well as the rates of insect visitation and seed set of five Gentiana species in eastern Tibetan meadows. Our results showed that flowering onset and flowering offset time were all found to be positively correlated with the Hmax, SD, and LMA, but negatively correlated with the RGR. Flowering onset time was positively correlated with corolla diameter and pollen grain number, whereas was negatively correlated with flower number and flower longevity. The rates of insect visitation were positively related to flowering onset time, pollen grain number, corolla diameter, and seed set, but negatively related to flower number and longevity. Early flowering species have higher RGR but lower SD, LMA and Hmax, as well as smaller flowers, fewer pollen grains, longer flower longevity, and lower insect visitation rates than late-flowering plant species. Our findings indicate that floral traits are related to vegetative traits in Gentiana species. Also these plant trait relationships were associated with pollinator preference, and plant reproductive success of eastern Tibetan meadows. We speculate that these traits relationships are likely adaptive in unpredictable and often pollinator-limited environments in the Tibet alpine meadows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cellulose, hemicelluloses, and lignin in wood have completely different structures and hygroscopicity, which markedly impact the wood moisture adsorption properties. The equilibrium moisture content (EMC), the density of sorption sites, and hysteresis characteristics of cellulose, hemicelluloses, and ball-milled lignin isolated from white birch (Betula platyphylla Suk.) were investigated to determine their influence on the adsorption isotherm and hysteresis of wood. A dynamic vapor sorption apparatus was used to test the sorption isotherm and the rule of mixture was employed to evaluate differences between in-situ and isolated chemical components. The sorption site occupancy (SSO) model was used to calculate the density of sorption sites of birch cellulose, hemicelluloses, and lignin, and the calculated results were then compared with the theoretical hydroxyl content. The results show that the dewaxed birch sample, cellulose, hemicelluloses, and lignin at 95% relative humidity had EMC values of 20.7%, 20.4%, 107.4%, and 11.6%, respectively, their largest relative hysteresis values were 1.60, 1.20, 1.40, and 1.74, respectively. Sorption site density of birch sample, cellulose, hemicelluloses, and lignin calculated by the SSO model were 10.5, 9.2, 17.3, and 6.0 mmol/g, close to that of theoretical hydroxyl content. Lignin had the highest relative hysteresis compared with cellulose and hemicellulose, and interaction and cross-linking between wood chemical components have a great influence on wood hysteresis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Post-stroke depression (PSD) is the most common mental disorder in stroke survivors. However, its specific pathophysiology remains largely unknown. Previous studies suggested a role of hippocampus in PSD. Therefore, we conducted this study to investigate the lipid metabolic signatures in hippocampus of PSD rats. Here, the liquid chromatography mass spectrometry was used to identify the lipid metabolic signatures in the hippocampus of PSD, control and stroke rats. Then, correlations between behavior indices and differential lipid metabolites in PSD rats were explored. Pathway and enrichment analysis were further conducted to uncover the crucial metabolic pathways related to PSD. Finally, we found that the lipid metabolic phenotype in hippocampus of PSD rats was substantially different from that in control and stroke rats, and identified 50 key lipid metabolites that were significantly decreased in PSD rats. These differential metabolites were mainly involved in glycerophospholipid metabolism. Meanwhile, the sucrose preference and immobility time were found to be significantly positively and negatively, respectively, correlated with glycerophospholipid metabolites. The pathway and enrichment analysis showed that the glycerophospholipid metabolism, especially cardiolipin metabolism, was significantly disturbed in PSD rats. These results suggested that the down-regulated glycerophospholipids in hippocampus, especially cardiolipin, might participate in the pathophysiology of PSD. Our findings would be helpful for future exploring the pathophysiology of PSD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to explore the performance, kinetics characteristics and enhancement mechanisms in anammox process under ferrous iron enhanced conditions, a laboratory-scale UASB anammox reactor has been built up and operated for 534 days. Experimental results showed that the Anammox process was successfully started up in a short operation period and the TNRE reached 83.34 ± 2.96% with a maximum total nitrogen removal rate of 14.4 kg m−3 d−1 after long-term operated under influent Fe(II) concentration of 5.3 mg L−1. Simulation results using different kinetic models showed that the Stover–Kincannon model and the Grau second-order model were useful for describing the anammox performance under Fe(II) enhanced conditions. Extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) act a pivotal part in the granulation of Anammox sludge and the improvement of anammox activity. Iron improved the hydrophobicity of the sludge by reducing the PN/PS ratios, and also increased the Anammox granular diameter. The granular diameter of higher than 2.00 accounted for 58.3% of the total sludge. At the same time, the presence of iron decreased EPS levels, and also decreased the iron adsorption ability to sludge. More iron was transported into Anammox, which improved the nitrogen removal ability in the Anammox reactor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vascular dementia (VD) is the second most common cause of dementia following Alzheimer's disease (AD). The major symptoms of VD including memory loss, language deficits and impairment of executive functions. Its specific etiology and pathogenesis remain unknown. Currently, treatment options of VD are still limited. The therapeutic strategies aim to control the vascular risk factors and improve the cognitive function. In recent years, cell therapy for neurodegenerative diseases has attracted a great deal of attention. Evidence suggested that stem cell transplantation could improve the symptoms of cerebral infarction and AD. Therefore, it may serve as a potential therapy for VD. We summarized the latest research results both in vitro and in vivo. Further, the clinical trial of stem cell transplantation in VD patients was also reviewed. Finally, the limitations and future directions of cell therapy in VD treatment were discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Performance of biofilm reactors for polluted source water pretreatment is usually limited under low-temperature stress in cold winter, and two biofilm reactors were built up for studying performance promotion and spatial distribution of functional bacteria. Experimental results showed that unstable but enhanced pollutants removal was observed in biofilm reactors under low-temperature stress of 8.6 ± 1.8 °C. Proteobacteria was dominant as functional bacteria for nitrogen and organics removal with the maximum relative abundance (RA) values of 30.7–51.7%. Gammaproteobacteria and Alphaproteobacteria were dominant at any spatial locations in blank ESM reactor with RA of 22.8–28.6% and 10.9–14.6%, respectively. The pre-cultured bacteria affected the bacterial distribution under low-temperature stress. Gammaproteobacteria with RA of 14.5% were dominant in the end and Alphaproteobacteria dominant in other locations in precoated ESM reactor with RAs of 12.5–12.9%. Biofilm systems faced the potential risks including Cyanobacteria (0.9–18.62%) and potential bacterial pathogens (PBP) (10.05–12.43%) under low-temperature stress. Fortunately, potential cyanotoxins production genus Planktothrix of Cyanobacteria was gradually decreased and hardly observed at the end of reactors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Gram-stain negative, aerobic, rod-shaped, non-motile, yellow-pigmented and non-spore-forming bacterial strain, designated PM5-8T, was isolated from a culture of a marine toxigenic dinoflagellate Prorocentrum mexicanum PM01. Strain PM5-8T grew at 15-35 °C (optimum, 25-30 °C) and pH 6-11 (optimum, 7.5-8). Cells required at least 1.5% (w/v) NaCl for growth, and can tolerate up to 7.0% with the optimum of 4%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that the strain PM5-8T is closely related to members of the genus Hoeflea, with high sequence similarities with Hoeflea halophila JG120-1T (97.06%) and Hoeflea alexandrii AM1V30T (97.01%). DNA-DNA hybridization values between the isolate and other type strains of recognized species of the genus Hoeflea were between 11.8 and 25.2%, which is far below the value of 70% threshold for species delineation. The DNA G + C content was 50.3 mol%. The predominant cellular fatty acids of the strain were identified as summed feature 8 (C16:1ω7c and/or C16:1ω6c; 51.5%), C18:1ω7c 11-methyl (20.7%), C16:0 (17.2%) and C18:0 (5.7%). The major respiratory quinone was Q-10. Polar lipids profiles contained phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylglycerol, sulfoquinovosyl diacylglycerol, phosphatidylmono- methylethanolamine, phosphatidylethanolamine and four unidentified lipids. On the basis of the polyphasic taxonomic data presented, strain PM5-8T (= CCTCC AB 2016294T = KCTC 62490T) represents a novel species of the genus Hoeflea, for which the name Hoeflea prorocentri sp. nov. is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Looking for a simple and inexpensive method to reduce patients’ pain during tonsillectomy. Bilateral tonsillectomy patients were enrolled and placed into different groups based on their admission numbers. Patients with odd numbers had electrical tonsillectomy on the right side with hypertonic saline injection into peritonsillar gap (group A) or electrical tonsillectomy on the left side without hypertonic saline injection (group B). Those with even numbers had electrical tonsillectomy on the left side with hypertonic saline injection into peritonsillar gap (group A) or electrical tonsillectomy on the right side without hypertonic saline injection (group B). Pain, operative bleeding, post-operation bleeding and operation time were evaluated. Injecting hypertonic saline into peritonsillar gap reduced pain caused by electrical tonsillectomy but did not impact operation or postoperative bleeding and operation time. While simple and economic, monopolar electrical tonsillectomy with the help of hypertonic saline injected into peritonsillar gap can effectively relieve patients from pain compared with surgeries without hypertonic saline injection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During an investigation of the biodiversity of the cultivable bacterial community associated with paralytic shellfish poisoning toxin-producing marine dinoflagellate, Alexandrium minutum a novel algal-associated bacterium, designated strain AT2-AT was isolated. 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity analysis showed that the strain is a member of the genus Ponticoccus, with high sequence similarity to Ponticoccus litoralis DSM 18986T (97.9%) and Ponticoccuslacteus JCM 30379T (96.0%). However, based on the data obtained for the physiological and biochemical characteristics, and low level of DNA-DNA relatedness analysis, the strain could be genotypically and phenotypically differentiated from two type strains of the genus Ponticoccus. Therefore, this algal-associated bacterial strain is concluded to represent a novel species of the genus Ponticoccus, for which the name Ponticoccus alexandrii sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is AT2-AT (CCTCC AB 2017228 T = KCTC 52626 T). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to evaluate the enhancement mechanisms of enhanced startup performance in biofilm systems for polluted source water pretreatment, three lab-scale reactors with elastic stereo media (ESM) were operated under different enhanced sediment and hydraulic agitation conditions. It is interesting to found the previously underestimated or overlooked effects of sediment on the enhancement of pollutants removal performance and enrichment of functional bacteria in biofilm systems. The maximum NH -N removal rate of 0.35 mg L h in sediment enhanced condition was 2.19 times of that in control reactor. Sediment contributed to 42.0-56.5% of NH -N removal and 15.4-41.2% of total nitrogen removal in different reactors under different operation conditions. The enhanced hydraulic agitation with sediment further improved the operation performance and accumulation of functional bacteria. Generally, Proteobacteria (48.9-52.1%), Bacteroidetes (18.9-20.8%) and Actinobacteria (15.7-18.5%) were dominant in both sediment and ESM bioiflm at phylum level. The potentially functional bacteria found in sediment and ESM biofilm samples with some functional bacteria mainly presented in sediment samples only (e.g., Genera Bacillus and Lactococcus of Firmicutes phylum) may commonly contribute to the removal of nitrogen and organics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Each kind of conventional plastic filler (polyurethane filler, SPR-1 suspension filler, TA-II elastic filler and sphere filler) coupled with alkaline pretreated corncob (A.H.corncob) was applied in each bioreactor system for treating polluted water with nitrate and organics. Results demonstrated that addition of A.H.corncob could achieve simultaneous removal of nitrogen and organics, and coupling of SPR-1 suspension filler with A.H.corncob (R) had the best performance. In coupling system of R, the total nitrogen (TN) removal rate improved from below 10% to 55.92 ± 18.27% with effluent COD concentration maintaining at a low level of 2.67 ± 0.44 mg L. Microbial analysis of combined filler system demonstrated that conventional plastic filler mainly accumulated non-solid-phase denitrifiers for both nitrate and organics removal including genera Salipiger, Enterobacteriaceae etc. while A.H.corncob carrier was stronghold of solid-phase denitrifiers ( Runella, etc.) directly using lignocellulosic materials as carbon source and fermentative bacteria ( Coprococcus, etc.) for supplementing available carbon sources for denitrifiers in the system, which were integrated to achieve simultaneous removal of nitrate and organics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coupling of biodegradable corncob and plastic carrier was optimized in continuous-flow solid-phase denitrification systems for enhancing simultaneously removal of nitrogen and organics in agricultural runoff. In compared with preposition of plastic carriers and mixed distribution method, it was demonstrated that the preposition of corncobs simultaneously enhanced nitrate (6.64 ± 1.35 mg L day ) and organics removal (6.33 ± 1.44 mg L day) at a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 6 h. The operation performance could be further enhanced with extension of HRT to 12 h. The dominant genera found in corncob were denitrifiers for nitrate reduction ( Bosea, Simplicispira, Desulfovibrio, Klebsiella, etc.) and fermentative bacteria ( Pleomorphomonas, Actinotalea, Opitutus, Cellulomonas, Bacteroides, etc.) responsible for corncob degrading to simple organics for other denitrifiers. However, much lower and different denitrifiers abundances ( Bradyrhizobium, Acinetobacter, Bacillus, etc.) exhibited on plastic filler than those of corncob. It well explained that the biofilm on plastic carrier was mainly related with organics removal while the biofilm on corncobs inclined to effectively remove nitrate, and simultaneous removal of nitrogen and organics could be achieved in coupling carriers system with preposition of biodegradable corncob. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the dynamics of performance and bacterial community of biofilm under oligotrophic stress is necessary for the process optimization and risk management in biofilm systems for raw water pretreatment. In this study, biofilm obtained from a pilot-scale biofilm reactor was inoculated into a pilot-scale experimental tank for the treatment of oligotrophic raw water. Results showed that the removal of NH -N was impaired in biofilm systems when influent NH -N was less than 0.35 mg L or NH -N loading rate of less than 7.51 mg L day. The dominant bacteria detected in biofilm of different carrier were obvious distinct from phylum to genus level under oligotrophic stress. The dominant bacteria in elastic stereo media carrier changed from Proteobacteria (51.1%) to Firmicutes (32.7%), while Proteobacteria was always dominant in suspended ball carrier after long-term operation under oligotrophic conditions. Oligotrophic stress largely decreased the functional bacteria for the removal of nitrogen and organics including many genera in Proteobacteria and Nitrospirae, but increased several genera with spore forming organisms or potential bacterial pathogens in ESM carrier mainly including Bacillus, Mycobacterium, Pseudomonas, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, radio frequency (RF) energy harvesting systems have gained significant interest as inexhaustible replacements for traditional batteries in RF identification and wireless sensor network nodes. This paper presents an ultra-low-power integrated RF energy harvesting circuit in a SMIC 65-nm standard CMOS process. The presented circuit mainly consists of an impedance-matching network, a 10-stage rectifier with order-2 threshold compensation and an ultra-low-power power manager unit (PMU). The PMU consists of a voltage sensor, a voltage limiter and a capacitor-less low-dropout regulator. In the charge mode, the power consumption of the proposed energy harvesting circuit is only 97 nA, and the RF input power can be as low as $$-$$ 21.4 dBm $$(7.24\,\upmu \hbox {W})$$ . In the burst mode, the device can supply a 1.0-V DC output voltage with a maximum 10-mA load current. The simulated results demonstrate that the modified RF rectifier can obtain a maximum efficiency of 12 % with a 915-MHz RF input. The circuit can operate over a temperature range from $$-40\hbox { to }125\,^{\circ }\hbox {C}$$ which exceeds the achievable temperature performance of previous RF energy harvesters in standard CMOS process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Until recently, little was known about the fungi found in shark gills and their biomedicinal potential. In this article, we described the isolation, bioactivity, diversity, and secondary metabolites of bioactive fungi from the gill of a shark ( Carcharodon carcharias). A total of 115 isolates were obtained and grown in 12 culture media. Fifty-eight of these isolates demonstrated significant activity in four antimicrobial, pesticidal, and cytotoxic bioassay models. Four randomly selected bioactive isolates inhibited human cancer cell proliferation during re-screening. These active isolates were segregated into 6 genera using the internal transcribed spacer-large subunit (ITS-LSU) rDNA-sequence BLAST comparison. Four genera, Penicillium, Aspergillus, Mucor, and Chaetomium were the dominant taxa. A phylogenic tree illustrated their intergenera and intragenera genetic diversity. HPLC-DAD-HRMS analysis and subsequent database searching revealed that nine representative strains produced diverse bioactive compound profiles. These results detail the broad range of bioactive fungi found in a shark's gills, revealing their biopharmaceutical potential. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study characterizing shark gill fungi and their bioactivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concentrations of 28 organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in the urban air of Dalian, China were measured using semipermeable membrane devices (SPMDs) for the first time. Alpha-hexachlorocyclohexane (α-HCH), β-HCH, pentachlorobenzene (PentCB), hexachlorobenzene (HexCB), 4,4′-dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (4,4′-DDT), 4,4′-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethene, endosulfan-I and endosulfan-II were the predominant OCPs in the urban air of Dalian. The concentration of OCPs sequestrated by SPMDs ( C) ranged from undetected to 56,772 pg SPMD and had a linear correlation with the reciprocal of the average ambient atmospheric temperature (1 /T). The C of PentCB and HexCB had negative correlations with T, whereas the other detected OCPs had a positive correlation. The source of HCHs, DDTs, HexCB, PentCB, chlordane, and endosulfan in the air were also evaluated. The OCPs in the urban air of Dalian could be attributed to the seasonal usage of pesticides, combustion, volatilization of aged OCPs from soil, water, plants, and long-range atmospheric transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Curcumin is known to have neuroprotective properties in cerebral ischemia reperfusion (I/R) injury. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely unknown. Recently, emerging evidences suggested that increased mitochondrial biogenesis enabled preventing I/R injury. Here, we sought to determinate whether curcumin alleviates I/R damage through regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis. Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to a 2-h period of right middle cerebral artery occlusion followed by 24 h of reperfusion. Prior to onset of occlusion, rats had been pretreated with either low (50 mg/kg, intraperitoneal injection) or high (100 mg/kg, intraperitoneal injection) dose of curcumin for 5 days. Consequently, we found that curcumin pretreatment enabled improving neurological deficit, diminishing infarct volume and increasing the number of NeuN-labeled neurons in the I/R rats. Accordingly, the index of mitochondrial biogenesis including nuclear respiratory factor-1, mitochondrial transcription factor A and mitochondrial number significantly down-regulated in I/R rats were reversed by curcumin pretreatment in a dose-dependent manner, and the mitochondrial uncoupling protein 2 presented the similar change. Taken together, our findings provided novel evidence that curcumin may exert neuroprotective effects by increasing mitochondrial biogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the outcome between the primary and secondary hypospadias with severe chordee in older patients by the transverse preputial island flap (TPIF). Materials and methods: We retrospectively analyzed 53 hypospadias patients who were performed with TPIF for urethroplasty, including 25 primary hypospadias (Group 1) and 28 secondary hypospadias (Group 2). The mean age in Group 1 was 12.12 ± 10.709 and 18.64 ± 8.727 in Group 2 ( P = 0.0181). The mean follow-up time was 38.7 months (22-60 months). Results: All of the foreskin flaps survived after the operation without necrosis. The overall complication rate was 24 % in Group 1 and 53.57 % in Group 2 ( P = 0.0280). All the patients were also divided into two cohorts according to their ages in surgery. In the 0-10-yr cohort, there was a significant difference in the overall complication rate between the primary and secondary groups ( P = 0.0173). But in the cases who were over 11 year old, there was no significant difference in the overall complications between two groups ( P = 0.1603). Also no significant difference was found in the mean length of the urethral defect between two groups ( P = 0.8312). Conclusion: The Duckett technique is an optional choice for some older Chinese patients undergoing primary operations, but it has a higher complication rate in those who have undergone previous failed urethroplasties. The unsatisfactory results found in the reoperative group were supposed to be linked to the older age, the lack of subcutaneous flap coverage and local scar tissue, but not to the length of the urethral defect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the biological and chemical diversity of 8 symbiotic marine fungal strains, with strong cytotoxicity against brine shrimp larvae, were investigated by nucleotide sequencing, morphology and cluster analysis of HPTLC fingerprint. These strains were identified by ITS rDNA sequencing, phylogenic analysis, and morphology to be Hypocrea lixii, Chaetomium globosum, Aspergillus fumigatus, Asp. clavatus and Alternaria sp. Their differences in secondary metabolites were shown by cluster analysis of digitalized colors of HPTLC spots, a newly developed method, which produced a similar dendrogram with that of ITS cluster analysis. Furthermore, this method can fully display intraspecific differences and even the remarkable difference in Aspergillus strains which goes beyond the boundary between genera. Their biological-chemical diversity may be the basis of their potent cytotoxicity and implies their potential in producing diversified antitumor or pesticidal constituents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioactivity and constituents of 8 common seaweeds from Dalian intertidal zone of northern Yellow Sea were investigated. In the anti-methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) test, Symphyocladia latiuscula and Enteromorpha intestinalis showed obvious activities with MICs much lower than 1.0 mg mL. In the DNA damage repair test (DDRT), Chondrus ocellatu showed selective inhibitory activity against the DNA repair-defective E. coli strain vs. the wild-type E. coli strain; while Sym. latiuscula, Enteromorpha intestinalis and Sar. kjellmanianum showed significant anti- E. coli activity with MICs of 64-128 μg mL. In the anti- Pyricularia oryzae test, Sym. latiuscula and Rh. confervoides strongly inhibited the germination of the spores of P. oryzae on agar plate. In the brine shrimp larvicidal test, Sym. latiuscula, Rh. confervoides and Sar. kjellmanianum exhibited potent toxicity against brine shrimp larvae, with LC much lower than 1 mg mL. The HPTLC analysis revealed their diversified secondary metabolites. The HPLC-DAD-MS analysis of the strongest species Sym. latiuscula and database searching showed that it can produce quite diversified metabolites, including halogenated ones, some of which may be new natural products. The results demonstrated the potentials of these seaweeds in the development of new antibiotics, antitumor drugs, agricultural fungicides and pesticides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tibetan macaque ( Macaca thibetana), an endangered species endemic to China, is categorized as a Category II species under the Chinese Wild Animal Protection Law and listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. To further assess genetic diversity and population structure within this species, we sequenced 477 bp of mitochondrial DNA control region in 30 Tibetan macaques from the Guizhou (GZ) and Yunnan (YN) of China and conducted population genetic analysis, along with 15 previously described haplotype sequences representing 55 individuals from Sichuan (SC) and Anhui (AH). 87 polymorphic sites were detected in the alignment of 45 sequences and defined 22 haplotypes, of which 9 were newly identified. Haplotype diversity ( h), nucleotide diversity ( π) and average number of nucleotide differences ( K) is 0.911 ± 0.015, 0.06090 ± 0.00126 and 28.32, respectively, indicating higher genetic diversity in the whole Tibetan macaque population. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) partitioned the total variation into 83.63 % among populations and 16.37 % within populations, revealing that variations occured among populations mainly. Further analysis demonstrated that significant genetic differentiation ( Fst = 0.83628, P < 0.01) and poor gene flow ( Nm < 1) had occurred among these four populations. On the phylogenetic tree and haplotype network plot, 22 haplotypes cluster together according to their geographical origins, exhibiting an obvious phylogeographic pattern. We speculate that the significant genetic differentiation among these macaque populations might result from long-term geographic barrier and human activity. In particular, Yangtze River probably play a vital role in population differentiation of Tibetan macaques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PCDD/Fs in the urban air of Dalian, China were monitored with high-volume active sampler from November 2009 to October 2010. The concentration of ClDD/Fs ranged from 3065 to 49538 fg m, with an average of 10249 fg m. The international toxic equivalents (I-TEQ) value of that was 61.8-1182 fg m, with an average of 235 fg m, which was comparable to those in the other urban locations around the world. It was found that the ClDD/Fs appeared to be present mainly in the particle phase during winter, spring and autumn, while during summer which were dominantly in gas phase. The ratio of ClDD/Fs present in particle phase increased with the increasing level of chlorination. The concentrations of PCDFs and PCDDs decreased with the increase of chlorinated level, while the concentrations of 2,3,7,8-PCDDs congeners increased with the increase of chlorination level. The homolog profiles of the concentrations of PCDFs presented were higher than those of the PCDDs, which indicated the PCDD/Fs pollution source of the air in Dalian was characteristic for thermal source pollution. The correlation analysis of meteorological parameters with the concentrations of ClCDD/Fs was conducted using SPSS packages, and it was found that the ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure were important factors influence the concentration of PCDD/Fs in the air. The respiratory risk and intake dioxins of the residents around the sampling sites were studied in the paper. It was found that Junge-Pankow model was much more accurate in predicting the gas-particle partitioning behavior of PCDD/Fs homologues during winter, while the Harner-Bidleman model shows better agreement with the measured data during winter and summer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various active components have been extracted from the root of Polygonum cuspidatum. However, the genetic basis for their activity is virtually unknown. In this study, 25600002 short reads (2.3 Gb) of P. cuspidatum root transcriptome were obtained via Illumina HiSeq 2000 sequencing. A total of 86418 unigenes were assembled de novo and annotated. Twelve, 18, 60 and 54 unigenes were respectively mapped to the mevalonic acid (MVA), methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP), shikimate and resveratrol biosynthesis pathways, suggesting that they are involved in the biosynthesis of pharmaceutically important anthraquinone and resveratrol. Eighteen potential UDP-glycosyltransferase unigenes were identified as the candidates most likely to be involved in the biosynthesis of glycosides of secondary metabolites. Identification of relevant genes could be important in eventually increasing the yields of the medicinally useful constituents of the P. cuspidatum root. From the previously published transcriptome data of 19 non-model plant taxa, 1127 shared orthologs were identified and characterized. This information will be very useful for future functional, phylogenetic and evolutionary studies of these plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although it was found that gymnosperm rbcL of three orders evolves under Darwinian positive selection, it is not clear whether rbcL in other gymnosperm lineages is also subject to positive selection. In this study, eleven gymnosperm groups, representing 393 species at various evolutionary levels, were used to illustrate the molecular adaptation and evolutionary dynamics of gene divergence in rbcLs. rbcL sequences were amplified from 21 Taxaceae and 10 Cephalotaxaceae species. rbcL sequences of other species were retrieved from GenBank. Selective influences were investigated using standard dN/dS ratio methods and more sensitive techniques investigating the amino acid property changes resulting from nonsynonymous replacements in a phylogenetic context. Analyses revealed the presence of positive selection in rbcLs of all gymnosperm groups. Twenty most often positively selected amino acid sites were characterized. In Taxaceae and Cephalotaxaceae, seven amino acid properties, equilibrium constant of ionization -COOH as the most significant, were found to be influenced by destabilizing positive selection. Some amino acid sites relating to these properties were found to be involved in active site, intradimer interaction, dimer-dimer interaction, and interactions with Rubisco small subunits. Moreover, removing amino acid sites that are under positive selection has significant effect on the bootstrap values of phylogenetic reconstruction. Our results suggest that the conservative rbcL evolves under positive selection in gymnosperm lineages. Several regions of rbcL have experienced molecular adaptation which fine-tunes photosynthetic Rubisco performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the effects of moso bamboo ( Phyllostachys pubescense) vinegar, with different diluents, on the growth of lettuce, cole and cucumber based on field tests. The results show that moso bamboo vinegar with 500–800 times dilution had good effect on the growth of tested vegetables. The harvest of vegetables increased from 18.8%–20.2% compared with a control. The height and the weight of the average single vegetable tested also increased. The main components of moso bamboo vinegar were analyzed by GC-MS and the positive effect on the growth was, in the first instance, attributed to a synergistic effect of trace amounts of the main components of bamboo vinegar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) cause acute diarrhea in humans and farm animals, and can be fatal if the host is left untreated. As a potential alternative to traditional needle vaccination of cattle, we investigated the feasibility of expressing the major K99 fimbrial subunit, FanC, in soybean ( Glycine max) for use as an edible subunit vaccine. As a first step in this developmental process, a synthetic version of fanC was optimized for expression in the cytosol and transferred to soybean via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Western analysis of T0 events revealed the presence of a peptide with the expected mobility for FanC in transgenic protein extracts, and immunofluorescense confirmed localization to the cytosol. Two T0 lines, which accumulated FanC to levels near 0.5% of total soluble protein, were chosen for further molecular characterization in the T1 and T2 generations. Mice immunized intraperitoneally with protein extract derived from transgenic leaves expressing synthetic FanC developed significant antibody titers against bacterially derived FanC and produced antigen-specific CD4+ T lymphocytes, demonstrating the ability of transgenic FanC to function as an immunogen. These experiments are the first to demonstrate the expression and immunogenicity of a model subunit antigen in the soybean system, and mark the first steps toward the development of a K99 edible vaccine to protect against ETEC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The antioxidant activity of solvent extracts from two main bamboo species, moso bamboo ( Phyllostachys pubescens) and madake bamboo ( P. bambusoides) in Japan, was first evaluated by scavenging free radical of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), the inhibition activity for peroxidation of linoleic acid, and the reduction power. The methanol-extracts of moso bamboo culms and madake bamboo leaves presented stronger antioxidant activity compared with DPPH scavenging activity. Methanol-extract of moso bamboo culms was further fractionated by different solvents and n-butanol soluble fraction exhibited the most significant activity in the DPPH scavenging assay. The fractionation of n-butanol soluble extract was isolated by silica gel column with gradient mixture solvent of chloroform and methanol. The isolated fractions were directed by the antioxidant activity measured by scavenging the stable DPPH free radical. It was observed that most of the eluted fractions showed the antioxidative activity. Fractions acquired from elution with the mixture solvent of chloroform and methanol (10:1–5:1) showed stronger antioxidant activity than the other fractions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subsequent to the publication of this article, it was noted that one of the culture collection numbers given for the type strain was given in error. Consequently, in the abstract “The type strain is AT2-AT (CCTCC AB 2016296T = KCTC 52626T).” should read “The type strain is AT2-AT (CCTCC AB 2016296T = KCTC 62340T).” Likewise, in the protologue section, “The type strain is AT2-AT (= CCTCC AB 201696T = KCTC 52626T), which is a algal-associated bacterium isolated from the culture of a toxigenic marine dinoflagellate, Alexandrium minutum (Amtk-4) collected from southern Taiwan.” should read “The type strain is AT2-AT (= CCTCC AB 201696T = KCTC 62340T), which is an algal-associated bacterium isolated from the culture of a toxigenic marine dinoflagellate, Alexandrium minutum (Amtk-4), collected from southern Taiwan.” [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]