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Sleep is essential for human physical and mental health. Sleep disorders are a significant threat to human health, and a large number of people in the world suffer from sleep disorders. Effective detection of sleep disorders is essential for the treatment of sleep disorders. Questionnaires and scale assessments are traditional methods of sleep disorder detection, which are subjective, time-consuming and prone to misdiagnosis. To detect sleep disorders quickly and accurately, a Multimodal Attention-Fusion Convolutional Neural Network is proposed in this paper. The network uses electroencephalography, electrooculography, electrocardiography, and electromyography signals to automatically identify healthy and five sleep disorders, namely insomnia, narcolepsy, periodic leg movement, rapid eye movement behaviour disorder and nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy. First, multiple convolutional neural network branches are used to extract time-invariant features of multimodal signals. Then, a multi-scale attention module based on dilated convolutional networks and a squeeze and excite block is proposed for further extracting features with different scales and fusing feature information. Finally, a prediction module consisting of fully connected layers is used to detect sleep disorders. The accuracy, F1 score, and Kappa coefficient obtained on the Cyclic Alternating Pattern sleep dataset are 99.56%, 99.49% and 0.9942, respectively. Compared to the existing state-of-the-art studies, the method proposed in this paper has higher performance in sleep disorder detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biodiversity loss is a global concern. Current technological advances allow the development of novel tools that can monitor biodiversity remotely with minimal disturbance. One example is passive acoustic monitoring (PAM), which involves recording the soundscape of an area using autonomous recording units, and processing these data using acoustic indices, for example, to estimate the diversity of various vocal animal groups. We explored the hypothesis that data obtained through PAM could also be used to study ecosystem functions. Specifically, we investigated the potential relationship between seven commonly used acoustic indices and insect leaf herbivory, measured as total leaf damage and as the damage from three major insect feeding guilds. Herbivory was quantified on seedlings in 13 plots in four subtropical forests in south China, and acoustic data, representing insect acoustic complexity, were obtained by recording the evening soundscapes in those same locations. Herbivory levels correlated positively with the acoustic entropy index, commonly reported as one of the best-performing indices, whose high values indicate higher acoustic complexity, likely due to greater insect diversity. Relationships for specific feeding guilds were moderately stronger for chewers, indicating that the acoustic indices capture some insect groups more than others (e.g., chewers include soniferous taxa such as crickets, whereas miners are mostly silent). Our findings suggest that the use of PAM to monitor ecosystem functions deserves to be explored further, as this is a research field with unexplored potential. Well-designed targeted studies could help us better understand how to best use novel technologies to monitor ecosystem functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Nitrogen deficiency in eco-engineered technosol from iron (Fe) ore tailings limits the productivity of colonising soil microbes and pioneer plants, which are critical to further development of the technosol. Symbiotic biological N2 fixation may be a strategy to supply N in the moderately alkaline early technosols since native legumes such as Acacia auriculiformis are tolerant of saline and alkaline soil conditions as those in the technosol. It is hypothesized that tolerant native legume A. auriculiformis could form functional nodules to fix N2 when grown in early eco-engineered technosols. Methods: A. auriculiformis growth and root nodulation in the early tailing technosols were investigated using a glasshouse experiment, and plant N2 fixation was evaluated using the 15 N natural abundance isotope method. Key factors influencing root nodulation and N2 fixation have also been evaluated, including water supply and phosphorous nutrition. Results: The results indicated that A. auriculiformis grew well in the tailing technosols and naturally formed nodules with rhizobia. The nodules were functional in N2 fixation, leading to improved plant N nutrition. The nodulation and N2 fixation were severely limited by water deficiency stress. Improved phosphorous supply favoured nodulation and N2 fixation by A. auriculiformis plants under water deficiency stress. Conclusions: These findings suggested that A. auriculiformis could grow in early tailings technosols and fixed N2, and proper water and phosphorous fertilizer management could improve Acacia plant's performance and N2 fixation functions. It is possible to introduce tolerant native legumes such as A. auriculiformis to improve N supply in the early technosols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A strategy that combined copper catalysis and visible light photocatalysis was realized herein. With diazomalonates as starting material, the Csp3–H bond of tetrahydrofuran and 1,4-dioxane was elegantly functionalized in yields ranging from 22 to 57%. Following the developed protocol, 17 tetrahydrofuryl- and dioxanylmalonates, including (S)-(–)-perillyl alcohol derivative, were synthesized under mild reaction conditions. Moreover, this dual catalytic system was successfully extended to the transformation of sulfonyl diazo ester. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Protozoans of Entamoeba spp. are one of the most common enteric parasites that infect humans and diverse animals including deer. Purpose: However, data regarding the prevalence and species/genotypes of Entamoeba spp. in deer in China is scarce. This study investigated the prevalence and species distribution of Entamoeba spp. in sika deer (Cervus nippon) in Anhui Province. Methods: In our survey, 336 fecal samples were collected from five sika deer farms in different regions of Anhui Province. All samples were examined for the presence of Entamoeba spp. by PCR and phylogenetic analysis of the conserved 18S rRNA gene. Results: 106/336 (31.5%) fecal samples were positive for Entamoeba spp. A statistically significant difference in the prevalence of Entamoeba spp. infection was observed between sampling farms (p < 0.001), and the prevalence of Entamoeba spp. in male and female sika deer showed no significant difference (p > 0.05). Sequence and phylogenetic analysis revealed the single species, E. bovis, was identified in this study. Conclusion: This is the first report about the identification of E. bovis in farm-raised sika deer in China, and these results expand our understanding of host range and species distribution of Entamoeba spp. in ruminants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tetratrichomonasgallinarum and Trichomonas gallinae can colonize the alimentary tract of domestic birds. However, little information is available on the epidemiology of the two trichomonad species in domestic free-range poultry in China. In this study, the occurrence and genetic characteristic of T. gallinarum and T. gallinae among free-range chickens, ducks, and geese in Anhui Province, China, were investigated. The 1910 fecal samples collected from 18 free-range poultry farms throughout Anhui Province were examined for the presence of T. gallinarum and T. gallinae by PCR and sequence analysis of the small subunit (SSU) rRNA gene of T. gallinarum and ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 sequence of T. gallinae. The overall occurrence of T. gallinarum in poultry was 1.2% (22/1910), with infection rates of 2.1% (17/829) in chickens, 0.2% (1/487) in ducks, and 0.7% (4/594) in geese. The constructed phylogeny tree using the concatenated ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region and SSU rRNA indicated the T. gallinarum isolates detected in this study were closely related to previously defined genogroups A, D, and E, respectively. Nine (0.5%) fecal samples were positive for T. gallinae, with infection rates of 0.8% (7/829) in chickens, 0.4% (2/487) in ducks, and 0% (0/594) in geese. Sequence and phylogenetic analysis showed that four T. gallinae ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 sequences obtained from chicken feces and one duck fecal sample belonged to genotype ITS-OBT-Tg-1. This is the first report of the prevalence and genetic characterization of T. gallinarum and T. gallinae in free-range chickens, ducks, and geese in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the two largest countries by population, China and India have pervasive effects on the ecosphere. Because of their human population size and long international boundary, they share biodiversity and the threats to it, as well as crops, pests and diseases. We ranked the two countries on a variety of environmental challenges and solutions, illustrating quantitatively their environmental footprint and the parallels between them regarding the threats to their human populations and biodiversity. Yet we show that China and India continue to have few co-authorships in environmental publications, even as their major funding for scientific research has expanded. An agenda for collaboration between China and India can start with the shared Himalaya, linking the countries' scientists and institutions. A broader agenda can then be framed around environmental challenges that have regional patterns. Coordinated and collaborative research has the potential to improve the two countries' environmental performance, with implications for global sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bocaviruses are typical zoonotic pathogens with a wide range of hosts. Here, we report the detection of human bocavirus (HBoV) in Rattus norvegicus captured in China and the results of sequencing and phylogenetic analysis based on the partial VP1 region and the entire viral genome. A total of 357 fecal samples from rats were collected in 2015-2017 and analyzed for HBoV using PCR. The detection rate of HBoV was 0.84% (3/357). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that this virus is genetically closely related to HBoV-2. R. norvegicus may be a carrier of HBoV, and its impact on public health merits attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incidence of obesity has increased rapidly, becoming a worldwide public health issue that involves insulin resistance. A growing number of recent studies have demonstrated that microRNAs play a significant role in controlling the insulin signaling network. For example, miR-506-3p expression has been demonstrated to correlate with insulin sensitivity; however, the underlying mechanism remains unknown. In this study, we found that miR-506-3p enhanced glucose uptake by 2-deoxy-D-glucose uptake assays and regulated the protein expression of key genes involved in the PI3K/AKT insulin signaling pathway including IRS1, PI3K, AKT, and GlUT4. We next predicted ribosomal protein S6 kinase B1 (S6K1) to be a candidate target of miR-506-3p by bioinformatics analysis and confirmed using dual-luciferase assays that miR-506-3p regulated S6K1 expression by binding to its 3′-UTR. Moreover, modulating S6K1 expression counteracted the effects of miR-506-3p on glucose uptake and PI3K/AKT pathway activation. In conclusion, miR-506-3p altered IR in adipocytes by regulating S6K1-mediated PI3K/AKT pathway activation. Taken together, these findings provide novel insights and potential targets for IR therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Free-range chickens might mediate the spread of Cryptosporidium oocysts to humans and other animals. Few studies have evaluated the prevalence of Cryptosporidium species in domestic free-range poultry in China. Here, we characterized the prevalence and distribution of species and genotypes of Cryptosporidium in domestic free-range chickens, ducks, and geese in Anhui Province, China. A total of 1910 fresh fecal samples from three poultry species were examined from 18 free-range poultry farms by nested PCR and analysis of the Cryptosporidium SSU rRNA gene. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium species was 2.9% (55/1910), with infection rates of 1.3% (11/829) in chickens, 7.3% (36/487) in ducks, and 1.4% (8/594) in geese. C. baileyi (0.6%), C. meleagridis (0.2%), C. galli (0.2%), and C. xiaoi-like genotype (0.2%) were identified in chickens, and only C. baileyi was identified in ducks and geese, with infection rates of 7.4% and 1.3%, respectively. C. baileyi was the most prevalent species. Sequencing of the GP60 gene revealed that the C. meleagridis isolates belonged to the IIIbA26G1R1b subtype. This is the first study to document C. galli and C. xiaoi-like genotype in domestic free-range chickens in China. These findings expand the range of avian hosts known for Cryptosporidium and highlight the need for additional studies to characterize the diversity of Cryptosporidium in avian species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several Cryptosporidium species that infect reptiles, especially squamates, are well described, but there is limited data about Cryptosporidium species infecting crocodilians. In this study, we assess the occurrence of intestinal parasites using traditional microscopic examination and describe the prevalence and Cryptosporidium species in the captive-bred Chinese alligators (Alligator sinensis) in eastern China using molecular methods. The results of microscopic examination showed that no intestinal parasites were detected among the 491 fecal samples examined from the Chinese alligators. The overall prevalence for Cryptosporidium was 0.41% (2/491) by PCR detection using the SSU rRNA locus. Sequence and phylogenetic analysis of the SSU rRNA, COWP, and actin genes revealed the presence of Cryptosporidium testudinis, which has been isolated primarily from chelonians. This is the first detection of the specific DNA of C. testudinis in the feces of the Chinese alligator. This study expands our knowledge of the Cryptosporidium species involved in crocodiles, and more extensive studies are necessary to confirm the validity of C. testudinis in crocodiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of Ru(II)-containing metallopolymers with different polypyridyl complexes, namely [Ru(N^N)2(L)](PF6)2 (L = bipyridine-branched polymer; N^N = bpy: 2,2′-bipyridine (Ru 1); phen: 1,10-phenanthroline (Ru 2); dpp: 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline (Ru 3)), were synthesized with the motive that adjusting π-conjugation length of ligands might produce competent luminescent oxygen probes. The three hydrophobic metallopolymers were studied with 1H NMR, UV-Vis absorption, and emission spectroscopy, and then were utilized to prepare biocompatible nanoparticles (NPs) via a nanoprecipitation method. Luminescent properties of the NPs were investigated against dissolved oxygen by steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopy respectively. Luminescence quenching of the three NPs all followed a linear behavior in the range of 0–43 ppm (oxygen concentration), but Ru 3-NPs exhibited the highest oxygen sensitivity (82%) and longest emission wavelength (λex = 460 nm; λem = 617 nm). In addition, external interferons from cellular environments (e.g., pH, temperature, and proteins) had been studied on Ru 3-NPs. Finally, dissolved oxygen in monolayer cells under normoxic/hypoxic conditions was clearly differentiated by using Ru 3-NPs as the luminescent sensor, and, more importantly, hypoxia within multicellular tumor spheroids was vividly imaged. These results suggest that such Ru(II)-containing metallopolymers are strong candidates for luminescent nanosensors towards hypoxia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are important to the establishment of native vegetation for mined land rehabilitation, particularly in semi-arid and infertile landscapes. However, the information has been scarce about the colonization of AM fungal community in alkaline magnetite Fe ore tailing sites (without toxic metal (loid) contamination). The present study has characterized the diversity of AM fungi across typical domains of a magnetite Fe ore mine located in 200 km south-east of Geraldton, Western Australia, by adopting high throughput Illumina Miseq sequencing. The investigated domains included two tailing sites without top soil covering (T1 and T2), a rehabilitated area of tailings with top soil covering (R1), a revegetated waste rock area (R2), and two native undisturbed soil sites (S1 and S2). The results indicated that the T1/T2 sites had different AM fungal community structure, compared with R1/R2 and S1/S2 sites. The dominant families were Glomeraceae, Claroideoglomeraceae, Archaeosporaceae, Ambisporaceae, and Paraglomeraceae, with Paraglomeraceae (more than 50%) as the most abundant in the T1/T2 and R1/R2 sites. At genus level, Ambispora spp. and Archaeospora spp. were rich in T1/T2 sites (> 10%), while Glomus spp. were preferably dominant in S1/S2 sites (> 10%). Furthermore, amorphous Fe and available P were found to explain the variations associated with AM fungal community composition, particularly the abundance of Archaeosporaceae and Glomeraceae. The study revealed the AM fungal community composition shift across the gradient of Fe ore mine sites, as well as the effects of revegetation on AM fungal community development. The findings indicate the possible restoration of AM fungal community in the tailings undergoing revegetation, and potential adoption of indigenous AM fungi to rapid phytostabilization of the Fe ore tailings under semi-arid climatic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we tested whether larvae brooded by the reef coral Pocillopora damicornis from a naturally extreme and highly variable environment are preadapted to cope with predicted increases in temperature and pCO2. We exposed larvae to two temperatures (29 vs. 30.8 °C) crossed with two pCO2 levels (~ 500 vs. ~ 1000 μatm) in a full-factorial experiment for 5 d. Larval performance was assessed as dark respiration (RD), net and gross photosynthesis (PN and PG, respectively), survival, settlement, and the activity of carbonic anhydrase (CA), the central enzyme involved in photosynthesis. The results showed that RD was unaffected by either elevated temperature or pCO2, while elevated temperature and/or pCO2 stimulated PN and PG and increased the ratios of PN to RD, indicating a relatively higher autotrophic capacity. Consequently, larval survivorship under elevated temperature and/or pCO2 was consistently 14% higher than that under the control treatment. Furthermore, elevated temperature and pCO2 did not affect host CA activity, but synergistically enhanced symbiont CA activity, contributing greatly to the stimulated photosynthetic capacity. These results suggest that brooded larvae of P. damicornis larvae from Luhuitou may be preadapted to cope with projected warming and ocean acidification. More generally, it appears that corals from highly variable environments may have increased resilience to the widespread climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The trichomonad species Tetratrichomonas buttreyi and Pentatrichomonas hominis have been reported in the bovine digestive tract in only a few studies, and the prevalence and pathogenicity of these two protists in cattle herds remain unknown. In this study, the prevalence of T. buttreyi and P. hominis in yellow cattle, dairy cattle, and water buffalo in Anhui Province, China, was determined with a PCR analysis of the small subunit ribosomal RNA genes. The overall infection rates for T. buttreyi and P. hominis were 8.1% and 5.4%, respectively. Double infections were found in 15 (1.6%) samples from four farms. The prevalence of P. hominis in cattle with abnormal feces was significantly higher than that in cattle with normal feces (χ2 = 13.0, p < 0.01), and the prevalence of T. buttreyi in the northern region of Anhui Province was also significantly higher than that in the mid region (χ2 = 16.6, p < 0.01). Minor allelic variations were detected in the T. buttreyi isolates from cattle in this study, as in other hosts in previous studies. Morphological observations, together with the PCR analysis, demonstrated that the trichomonads isolated in this study were P. hominis. The presence of T. buttreyi and P. hominis indicated that cattle are natural hosts of these two trichomonads and could be a potential source of P. hominis infections in humans and other animal hosts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enterocytozoon bieneusi, the dominant zoonotic species of microsporidia, has been reported in various animals and humans. However, relatively little information is available concerning the worldwide prevalence and genotypes of E. bieneusi in ruminants, such as sheep and goats. The present study was conducted to evaluate the prevalence and genetic characteristics of E. bieneusi in sheep and goats in east-central China. Fresh fecal samples from 832 sheep and 781 goats were evaluated for the presence of E. bieneusi using PCR and sequencing of the ribosomal internal transcribed spacer. 28 sheep specimens (3.4%) and 32 goat specimens (4.1%) were positive for E. bieneusi. A total of 12 ITS genotypes were identified, including 7 known genotypes (COS-I, OEB1, BEB6, CHG1, CHG3, COS-II, and CHC8) and 5 novel genotypes (named AHS1, AHS2, JSS1, AHG1, and AHG2). The dominant genotypes in sheep and goats were BEB6 and CHG3, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all genotypes obtained in this study belonged to the so-called "cattle-specific" Group 2. These findings show a relatively low occurrence and genetic diversity of E. bieneusi in sheep and goats in east-central China. Further studies are required to elucidate the role of sheep and goats in the epidemiology of microsporidia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we detected and genetically characterized rat bocavirus (RBoV) carried in 496 murine rodents that were captured in four provinces in China between May 2015 and May 2017. RBoV-positive samples were found in all four provinces, with a total positive rate of 24.8% (123/496) in throat swabs and 58.1% (286/492) in fecal samples. Twelve nearly full-length genome sequences of RBoV were determined, and the average sequence identity was 96.2%. Phylogenetic analysis showed that RBoVs formed a distinct clade that was distinguishable from the bocaviruses discovered in humans and other animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with stochastic differential equations of fractional-order $q \in(m-1, m)$ (where $m \in \mathbb{Z}$ and $m \geq 2$ ) with finite delay at a space $BC ( [ - \tau, 0];R^{d} )$ . Some sufficient conditions are obtained for the existence and uniqueness of solutions for these stochastic fractional differential systems by applying the Picard iterations method and the generalized Gronwall inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People usually travel together with others in groups for different purposes, such as family members for visiting relatives, colleagues for business, friends for sightseeing and so on. Especially, the family groups, as a kind of the most common consumer units, have a considerable scale in the field of passenger transportation market. Accurately identifying family groups can help the carriers to provide passengers with personalized travel services and precise product recommendation. This paper studies the problem of finding family groups in the field of civil aviation and proposes a family group detection method based on passenger social networks. First of all, we construct passenger social networks based on their co-travel behaviors extracted from the historical travel records; secondly, we use a collective classification algorithm to classify the social relationships between passengers into family or non-family relationship groups; finally, we employ a weighted community detection algorithm to find family groups, which takes the relationship classification results as the weights of edges. Experimental results on a real dataset of passenger travel records in the field of civil aviation demonstrate that our method can effectively find family groups from historical travel records. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the clinical prognostic value of protein tyrosine kinase 6 (PTK6) in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting were utilized to measure the mRNA and protein expression levels of PTK6 in 29 and eight pairs of ESCC and peritumoral normal esophageal tissues, respectively. Furthermore, the expression of PTK6 protein in 210 ESCCs was examined with immunohistochemistry (IHC), and its clinical value was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier plots and the Cox proportional hazards regression model. The results found that the expression levels of both PTK6 mRNA and protein in ESCC tissues were significantly lower than those in peritumoral normal esophageal tissues. Regarding the IHC analysis of ESCC, the cytoplasmic expression of PTK6 was significantly correlated with tumor grade ( P < 0.001). Compared with patients with low PTK6 expression, ESCC patients with overexpression of PTK6 displayed preferable disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) ( P < 0.001 and P = 0.001, respectively), especially in stage II disease ( P = 0.002 and P = 0.021, respectively). PTK6 was evaluated as an independent prognostic factor for ESCC using multivariate Cox regression analysis. All data demonstrated that the expression level of PTK6 is an independent prognostic factor in ESCCs. Low expression of PTK6 is correlated with poor DFS and OS in ESCCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silica nanoparticles doped with the luminescent temperature probe Ru(bpy) were prepared by a modified Stöber method and are shown to enable optical sensing of intracellular temperatures. Based on the regrowth of silica nanoseeds, the ruthenium probe was easily incorporated and then covered with a shell of pure silica. The resulting nanothermometers were immune to the quenching by oxygen owing to the outer silica layer. The nanoparticles were further coated with poly-L-lysine in order to reduce cytotoxicity and to warrant cellular uptake. The luminescence of these nanosensors is rather sensitive to temperature in the physiological range (25-45 °C), with a decrease of −1.26 % in intensity per °C increase in temperature. The nanosensors were internalized into living cells of a hepatocellular carcinoma cell line along with gold nanorods. These display longitudinal surface plasmon resonance absorption at ~808 nm that causes a local rise in temperature. The microscopically captured luminescence intensity of the nanosensors after 808 nm irradiation of the gold nanorods decayed with increasing temperature, thereby indicating successful imaging of temperature. [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient approach for yard crane (YC) scheduling is proposed in this paper. The definition of task group for YC scheduling is proposed. A mixed integer programming (MIP) model is developed. In the model, objective functions are subject to the minimization of the total delay of complete time for all task groups and the minimization of block-to-block movements of YCs. Due to the computational scale of the non-deterministic polynomial (NP) complete problem regarding YC scheduling, a rolling-horizon decision-making strategy is employed to solve this problem, by converting the MIP model into another MIP model in the scheduling of each rolling period. Afterwards, a heuristic algorithm based on modified A* search is developed to solve the converted model and obtain near optimal solution. Finally, the computational experiments are used to examine the performance of the proposed approach for YC scheduling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have prepared an ~1.4 μm thin hybrid film from polyurethane (PU) hydrogel and tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) by a sol-gel method, and have incorporated the red-luminescent ruthenium-tris-bipyridyl complex. At an optimized ratio of PU/TEOS (1.5:1; w/w) and annealing temperature (60 °C), the membrane sensor exhibits good capability to extract water from organic solvents but also can well retain the ruthenium dye. If contacted with water-containing organic solvents such as acetone or THF, both the luminescence intensity and wavelength change significantly. The response of luminescence intensity to the water fraction in organics is sigmoidal, which can be well fitted with a modified Stern-Volmer equation. The sensor works in the ranges of 0-6 % and 0-12 % (v/v) of water in acetone and THF, respectively, with detection limits of 0.13 % and 0.486 % (v/v). [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A facile reprecipitation-encapsulation method is used for the preparation of ratiometric fluorescent nanoparticles (NPs) for sensing intracellular oxygen. The surface of the NPs is modified in-situ with poly-L-lysine, which renders good biocompatibility and enables easy internalization into living cells. The sensor NPs contain a red fluorescent probe whose fluorescence is sensitive to oxygen with a quenching response of 77 % on going from nitrogen saturation to oxygen saturation, and a reference dye giving a green signal that acts as an oxygen-independent reference. The ratio of the two emissions serves as the analytical information and is sensitive to dissolved oxygen in the 0-43 ppm concentration range. When incorporated into cells, the ratio of the signals increases by 400 % on going from oxygen-saturated to oxygen-free environment. [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mobile social networks, which consist of mobile users who communicate with each other using cell phones, are reflections of people's interactions in social lives. Discovering typed communities (e.g., family communities or corporate communities) in mobile social networks is a very promising problem. For example, it can help mobile operators to determine the target users for precision marketing. In this paper we propose discovering typed communities in mobile social networks by utilizing the labels of relationships between users. We use the user logs stored by mobile operators, including communication and user movement records, to collectively label all the relationships in a network, by employing an undirected probabilistic graphical model, i.e., conditional random fields. Then we use two methods to discover typed communities based on the results of relationship labeling: one is simply retaining or cutting relationships according to their labels, and the other is using sophisticated weighted community detection algorithms. The experimental results show that our proposed framework performs well in terms of the accuracy of typed community detection in mobile social networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a balanced multi-label propagation algorithm (BMLPA) for overlapping community detection in social networks. As well as its fast speed, another important advantage of our method is good stability, which other multi-label propagation algorithms, such as COPRA, lack. In BMLPA, we propose a new update strategy, which requires that community identifiers of one vertex should have balanced belonging coefficients. The advantage of this strategy is that it allows vertices to belong to any number of communities without a global limit on the largest number of community memberships, which is needed for COPRA. Also, we propose a fast method to generate 'rough cores', which can be used to initialize labels for multi-label propagation algorithms, and are able to improve the quality and stability of results. Experimental results on synthetic and real social networks show that BMLPA is very efficient and effective for uncovering overlapping communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the ideas of infeasible interior-point methods and predictor-corrector algorithms, two interior-point predictor-corrector algorithms for the second-order cone programming (SOCP) are presented. The two algorithms use the Newton direction and the Euler direction as the predictor directions, respectively. The corrector directions belong to the category of the Alizadeh-Haeberly-Overton (AHO) directions. These algorithms are suitable to the cases of feasible and infeasible interior iterative points. A simpler neighborhood of the central path for the SOCP is proposed, which is the pivotal difference from other interior-point predictor-corrector algorithms. Under some assumptions, the algorithms possess the global, linear, and quadratic convergence. The complexity bound O( rln( ɛ/ ɛ)) is obtained, where r denotes the number of the second-order cones in the SOCP problem. The numerical results show that the proposed algorithms are effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local communities in southern Africa derive many benefits from marula [ Sclerocarya birrea (A. Rich.) Hochst. subsp. caffra (Sond.) Kokwaro]. These include the contribution of this species towards health, nutrition, food security and conservation by sharing local skills and knowledge related to it. Marula fruits can be eaten fresh, squeezed to make juice, brewed in traditional beer or used to make jam and jelly. The kernels are also edible and can be pressed to extract oil for cooking and cosmetics, i.e., for skin and hair application. The bark, roots, seeds and leaves are exploited for traditional medicinal purposes. Marula has acquired significant commercial value since its fruits and other products have entered local, regional and international trade in southern Africa. To diversify fruit production and satisfy the increasing demands for this resource, several domestication initiatives have been carried out at regional and international levels. The accumulated knowledge and skills relevant to the establishment and commercialization of marula therefore provide an effective guide in areas where marula remains undomesticated or underutilized. We discuss the great importance of marula in southern Africa to reveal its great potential to regions where it remains unexploited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to identify the relationship between diurnal changes in the net photosynthetic rate ( P) of Pueraria lobata and environmental factors, diurnal changes in the P of leaves of two P. lobata cultivars were measured using a CIRAS-1 portable photosynthesis measurement system (PP-Systems, UK). The results show that diurnal changes in P of both cultivars could be interpreted as double-peak curves, indicating the occurrence of an obvious midday depression. Further analyses indicate that the correlation between P and stomatal conductance was positive and extremely significant ( p < 0.01). The correlations of P with intercellular CO concentration and transpiration rate were positive and significant ( p < 0.05), while the correlations of P with air and leaf temperatures were negative and significant ( p < 0.05). The results indicate that among the factors affecting photosynthetic properties, some can be grouped as stomatal limitations while others are non-stomatal limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractAim:Silibinin (SB), silydianin (SD), and silychristin (SC) are components of silymarin. These compounds can be used to protect the skin from oxidative stress induced by ultraviolet (UV) irradiation and treat it. To this end, the absorption of silymarin constituents via the skin was examined in the present report.Methods:Transport of SB, SD, and SC under the same thermodynamic activity through and into the skin and the effects of pH were studied in vitro using a Franz diffusion assembly.Results:The lipophilicity increased in the order of SC

Abstract Purpose  In the present work, we developed water-in-oil (w/o) nanoemulsions for the intravesical administration of cisplatin. Methods  The nanoemulsions were made up of soybean oil as the oil phase and Span 80, Tween 80, or Brij 98 as the emulsifier system. α-Terpineol and oleic acid were incorporated as permeation enhancers. The physicochemical characteristics of droplet size, zeta potential, and viscosity were determined. Nanoemulsions were administered intravesically for 1 ~ 4 h to rats in vivo. Animals were subsequently sacrificed, and the bladders were harvested to examine drug accumulation and histology. Results  Ranges of the mean size and zeta potential were 30 ~ 90 nm and −3.4 to −9.3 mV, respectively. The addition of enhancers further reduced the size of the nanoemulsions. The viscosity of all systems exhibited Newtonian behavior. The cisplatin-loaded nanoemulsions were active against bladder cancer cells. The nanoemulsions with Brij 98 exhibited the complete inhibition of cell proliferation. The encapsulation of cisplatin and carboplatin, another derivative of cisplatin, in nanoemulsions resulted in slower and more-sustained release. The amount of drug which permeated into bladder tissues significantly increased when using carriers containing Brij 98, with the α-terpineol-containing formulation showing the best result. The nanoemulsion with α-terpineol prolonged the duration of higher drug accumulation to 3 ~ 4 h. At the later stage of administration (3 ~ 4 h), this system increased the bladder wall deposition of cisplatin and carboplatin by 2.4 ~ 3.3-fold compared to the control solution. Histological examination of the urothelium showed near-normal morphology in rats instilled with these nanoemulsions. α-Terpineol possibly caused slight desquamation of umbrella cells. Conclusions  The nanoemulsions are feasible to load cisplatin for intravesical drug delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Camptothecin is an anticancer drug that acts against a broad spectrum of tumors. The clinical application of camptothecin is limited by its insolubility, instability, and toxicity problems. The aim of this study was to develop and characterize lipid nanoparticles with different lipid cores which can circumvent these problems. Methods: Lipid nanoparticles made of Precirol (solid lipid nanoparticles; SLN-P), Compritol (SLN-C), Precirol+squalene (nanostructured lipid carriers; NLC), and squalene (a lipid emulsion; LE) as the lipid core material were prepared. These systems were assessed and compared by evaluating the mean diameter, surface charge, molecular environment, camptothecin release, and cell viability against a melanoma. The safety and storage stability of these systems were also preliminarily examined. Results: The particle size ranged from 190 to 310 nm, with the NLC and LE showing the smallest and largest sizes, respectively. The in vitro drug release occurred in a sustained manner in decreasing order as follows: LE>NLC>SLN-P>SLN-C. It was found that varying the type of inner phase had profound effects on cell viability. The SLN-P generally showed higher cytotoxicity than the free control. The treatment of melanomas with the camptothecin-loaded SLN-C and NLC yielded cytotoxicity comparable to that of the free form. The percentage of erythrocyte hemolysis by all nanoparticles was ≤5%, suggesting a good tolerance to lipid nanoparticles. Conclusion: The results collectively suggest that the SLN-P may have the potential to serve as a delivery system for parenteral camptothecin administration because of the sustained drug release, strong cytotoxicity, limited hemolysis, and good storage stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on optimized forecast method of unascertained classifying, a unascertained measurement classifying model (UMC) to predict mining induced goaf collapse was established. The discriminated factors of the model are influential factors including overburden layer type, overburden layer thickness, the complex degree of geologic structure, the inclination angle of coal bed, volume rate of the cavity region, the vertical goaf depth from the surface and space superposition layer of the goaf region. Unascertained measurement (UM) function of each factor was calculated. The unascertained measurement to indicate the classification center and the grade of waiting forecast sample was determined by the UM distance between the synthesis index of waiting forecast samples and index of every classification. The training samples were tested by the established model, and the correct rate is 100%. Furthermore, the seven waiting forecast samples were predicted by the UMC model. The results show that the forecast results are fully consistent with the actual situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of their low oral bioavailabilities and short half-lives, it may be more feasible to administer narcotic analgesics via the skin. However, this delivery method is limited by the low permeability of the stratum corneum (SC). The aim of this study was to enhance the transdermal delivery of three narcotic drugs, including morphine, nalbuphine, and buprenorphine, with an erbium:yttrium–aluminum–garnet (Er:YAG) laser pretreatment. In an in vitro pig skin permeation experiment, Er:YAG laser pretreatment of the skin produced a 10~35-fold enhancement in drug permeation that was dependent on the laser fluence and the narcotic analgesic used. The permeation of morphine and nalbuphine showed higher enhancement with Er:YAG laser treatment as compared to that of buprenorphine. This may have been due to the higher lipophilicity and molecular mass of buprenorphine than the other two narcotic drugs. A photomechanical wave was generated by filtering laser radiation through a polystyrene target. The experimental results showed that a single photomechanical wave was sufficient to enhance morphine permeation by sevenfold. This enhancement was significantly lower than that produced by direct laser irradiation, indicating the predominant mechanism of SC ablation by the Er:YAG laser for transdermal drug delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel cDNA clone encoding a COR413-like gene was isolated by suppression subtraction hybridization and cDNA library screening from sea-island cotton ( Gossypium barbadense) . This gene (designated as GbCOR413, Accession number: AY761065) has a total length of 893 bp with an open reading frame of 600 bp, encoding a predicated polypeptide of 200 amino acids with a molecular weight of 22.74 kDa and a predicated pI of 9.2. Bioinformatics analyses revealed that this gene belonged to a novel stress-regulated multi-spanning transmembrane protein family without signal peptide. By means of semi-quantities RT-PCR analysis, the expression of GbCOR413 under short-term cold treatment at 4°C, water submergence and abscic acid treatment was investigated. Our studies suggested that the cloned gene was a new member of COR gene family which was slowly responsive to cold stress in cotton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extracellular ATP enhances the mitogenic activity of fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF2) in astrocytes, but the molecular mechanism underlying this synergistic interaction is not known. To determine whether the potentiating effect of extracellular ATP involves cell cycle control mechanisms, we have measured the expression of cyclins that are induced in different phases of the cell cycle in primary cultures of rat cortical astrocytes. We found that ATP potentiated the ability of FGF2 to stimulate expression of cyclin D1, a regulator of cell cycle entry, as well as cyclin A, a regulator of DNA replication. Because FGF2 and P2 purinergic receptors are coupled to extracellular signal regulated protein kinase (ERK), a key member of a signaling cascade that regulates proliferation, we also investigated the role of ERK in regulating cyclin expression induced by FGF2 and ATP. We found that the potentiating effect of ATP on cyclin expression was significantly reduced by U0126, an inhibitor of MEK, the upstream activator of ERK. P2 receptor agonist studies revealed that UTP enhanced FGF2-induced cyclin expression and mitogenesis whereas 2-methylthioADP was ineffective. By contrast, 2-3- O-(4-benzoyl)-benzoyl-ATP markedly inhibited FGF2-induced mitogenesis. Consistent with opposing effects of P2Y and P2X receptors on mitogenesis, UTP stimulated a transient activation of ERK whereas BzATP stimulated a more sustained ERK signal. These findings suggest that signaling by P2Y receptors, most likely of the purine/pyrimidine subtype, enhance the ability of FGF2 to stimulate entry into a new cell cycle, as well as DNA replication, by an ERK-dependent mechanism, whereas signaling by P2X receptors, possibly the P2X7 subtype, inhibits FGF2-induced mitogenesis in astrocytes. Interactions between P2Y, P2X and polypeptide growth factor signaling pathways may have important implications for CNS development as well as injury and repair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the CNS, extracellular ATP can function as an excitatory neurotransmitter as well as a trophic factor. These short-term and long-term actions are mediated by nucleotide receptors. Extracellular ATP can also act as a co-mitogen in conjunction with polypeptide growth factors such as basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF2). Cellular proliferation, differentiation and survival are regulated by signaling cascades composed of protein kinases, including extracellular signal regulated protein kinase (ERK) and protein kinase B (also called Akt). Here we summarize recent studies on nucleotide receptor signaling to ERK and Akt in astrocytes and the role of protein kinase cascades in mediating the trophic actions of extracellular ATP, alone or together with FGF2. Because extracellular ATP and FGF2 contribute to the hyperplastic and hypertrophic response of astrocytes to CNS injuries, an understanding of their protein kinase signaling mechanisms may lead to novel therapeutic approaches for neurological conditions that involve gliosis and the generation of reactive astrocytes, such as trauma, stroke, seizure and neurodegenerative and demyelinating disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The N-terminal proline-rich domain of human p53 has been shown to be important for the induction of apoptosis. However, the corresponding region in mouse and other species is not highly conserved and has been less well studied. In this paper, we have characterized mutants with deletions in this region of mouse p53. Our results demonstrate that deletions in the proline-rich domain have varying effects on function ranging from no effect to severe impairment of cell death activity, depending on precisely which residues are deleted. We also show that the mutants differ in their ability to transactivate different p53 target promoters. Although we have been able to obtain mutants selectively impaired for apoptosis, our data are not generally consistent with this region being a functional domain. The data are more consistent with the interpretation that the region influences function by altering local protein structure which may affect promoter discrimination.Oncogene (2003) 22, 4517-4523. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1206726 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nuclear localization and high levels of the Y-box binding protein YB1 appear to be important indicators of drug resistance and tumor prognosis. YB1 also interacts with the p53 tumor suppressor protein. In this paper, we explore a role for p53 in the nuclear localization of YB1. We report that various genotoxic stresses induce nuclear localization of YB1 in a small proportion of treated cells, but only in cells with wild-type p53. We go on to show directly that functional p53 is required for YB1 to translocate to the nucleus. Tumor-associated p53 mutants however are attenuated for YB1 nuclear localization as are mutants mutated in the proline-rich domain of p53. These data link the DNA-damage response of p53 to YB1 nuclear translocation. In addition, we find that YB1 inhibits p53-induced cell death and its ability to trans-activate promoters of genes involved in cell death signaling. Together these data suggest that some forms of p53 cause YB1 to accumulate in the nucleus, which in turn inhibits p53 activity. These results provide a possible explanation for the correlation of nuclear YB1 with drug resistance and poor prognosis in some tumor types, and for the first time implicate p53 in the process of nuclear translocation.Oncogene (2003) 22, 2782-2794. doi:10.1038/sj.onc.1206357 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The original article can be found online at https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-021-02161-3. Publisher's Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. [Extracted from the article]

TFIIA has initially been identified as a component of transcription initiation complex of RNA polymerase II. Its role in transcription has been controversial. In this paper, we report the characterization and functional analysis of both the Arabidopsis TFIIA large and small subunits. Sequence analysis revealed that Arabidopsis TFIIA is structurally more related to animal than to yeast counterparts. Arabidopsis has at least two genes for the large subunit and one for the small subunit. Both types of genes are constitutively transcribed in various plant organs. The proteins encoded by the cDNA interact each other in yeast 2-hybrid system. Only the N-terminal part of the large subunit is necessary for the interaction with the small subunit. Recombinant Arabidopsis TFIIA polypeptides bind to TBP-DNA complex in gel shift assays. The large subunit of TFIIA can stimulate transcription in yeast and in plant cells when fused to a DNA-binding domain binding to cis sequences upstream of a minimal promoter. This trans-activating activity is localized to a 35 amino acid segment within the evolutionarily unconserved central region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]