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Ethyl carbamate (EC) is a potential carcinogen existing in fermented foods such as Chinese rice wine (Huangjiu). Since urea is an important precursor of EC, the degradation of urea could be an effective way to reduce EC in foods.In this study, an Enterobacter sp. R-SYB082 with acid urea degradation characteristics was obtained through microbial screening. Further research isolated a new acid urea-degrading enzyme from R-SYB082 strain - ureidoglycolate amidohydrolase (UAH) - which could degrade EC directly. The cloning and expression of UAH in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) suggested that the activity of urea-degrading enzyme reached 3560 U LThis study provided a new method for the integrated control of EC in Chinese rice wine and other fermented foods. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Type VI secretion systems (T6SS) are specific antibacterial weapons employed by diverse bacteria to protect themselves from competitors. Pseudomonas putida KT2440 possesses a functional T6SS (K1-T6SS) and exhibits antibacterial activity towards a broad range of bacteria. Here we found that the Wsp signal transduction system regulated K1-T6SS expression via synthesizing the second messenger cyclic di-GMP (c-di-GMP), thus mediating antibacterial activity in P. putida. High-level c-di-GMP produced by Wsp system repressed the transcription of K1-T6SS genes in structural operon and vgrG1 operon. Transcriptional regulator FleQ and ATPase FleN functioned as repressors in the Wsp system-modulated K1-T6SS transcription. However, FleQ and FleN functioned as activators in biofilm formation, and Wsp system promoted biofilm formation largely in a FleQ/FleN-dependent manner. Furthermore, FleQ-FleN complex bound directly to the promoter of K1-T6SS structural operon in vitro, and c-di-GMP promoted the binding. Besides, P. putida biofilm cells showed higher c-di-GMP levels and lower antibacterial activity than planktonic cells. Overall, our findings reveal a mechanism by which Wsp system oppositely modulates antibacterial activity and biofilm formation via FleQ-FleN, and demonstrate the relationship between plankton/biofilm lifestyles and antibacterial activity in P. putida.

In order to improve the high cost of equipment and difficult management caused by the natural aging of Chinese rice wine (Huangjiu), micro‐oxygen (MO) and electric field (PEF) technology are used to accelerate the aging of Huangjiu. The results showed that micro‐oxygen and electric field have a significant effect on the sensory characteristics and flavor characteristics of Huangjiu. Compared with the naturally aged Huangjiu, the flavor compounds of Huangjiu treated with micro‐oxygen and electric field increase significantly. Based on principal component analysis, Huangjiu processed at 0.35 mg L/day or 0.5 mg L/day combined electric field exhibited similar flavor to the natural aged Huangjiu, which was highly associated with long‐chain fatty acid ethyl esters (C13–C18). Moreover, partial least squares regression demonstrated that sensory attributes of cereal aroma and astringency were highlighted after aging time, while fruit aroma, continuation, and full body were dominant after micro‐oxygen and electric field treatment. Micro‐oxygen and electric field effectively enhanced the quality of Huangjiu, which could be applied in other alcoholic beverages., 1. Artificial aging technology affects the sensory and flavor changes of Huangjiu.2. Micro‐oxygen and electric field mixed treatment improve the quality of Huangjiu.3. Artificial aging technology effectively improves the sensory properties of Huangjiu.

Degree of cerebrovascular stenosis in pediatric patients with sickle cell anemia (SCA) informs need for chronic transfusion therapy, which has significant risks. Flow artifact, intrinsic to magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), is dependent on technical parameters and can lead to overinterpretation of stenosis. The primary objective of this study was to document any change in stroke prevention therapy that could be attributed to the implementation of a standardized MRA scanning protocol for patients with SCA.A standardized MRA scanning protocol with an echo time of less than 5 ms was implemented at Montefiore Medical Center (MMC), NY in May 2016. Retrospective chart review identified 21 pediatric patients with SCA, with an MRA head both pre- and post-May 2016. Arterial stenosis on MRA, machine parameters, and treatment plans were compared pre- and post-implementation.Ten of the 21 patients met inclusion criteria. Previously seen stenosis was re-classified to a lower degree in six of the 10 patients, leading to discontinuation of transfusions in five patients. No patients required escalation of therapy to chronic transfusions.Optimizing flow artifact by decreasing echo time to less than 5 ms can improve accurate interpretation of cerebrovascular disease, and ensure appropriate treatment plans are in place for stroke prevention. This is especially important for implementing "TCD With Transfusions Changing to Hydroxyurea (TWiTCH)" clinical trial results in the real-world setting.

Clinical trials of Treg therapy in transplantation are currently entering phases IIa and IIb, with the majority of these employing polyclonal Treg populations that harbor a broad specificity. Enhancing Treg specificity is possible with the use of chimeric antigen receptors (CARs), which can be customized to respond to a specific human leukocyte antigen (HLA). In this study, we build on our previous work in the development of HLA‐A2 CAR‐Tregs by further equipping cells with the constitutive expression of interleukin 10 (IL‐10) and an imaging reporter as additional payloads. Cells were engineered to express combinations of these domains and assessed for phenotype and function. Cells expressing the full construct maintained a stable phenotype after transduction, were specifically activated by HLA‐A2, and suppressed alloresponses potently. The addition of IL‐10 provided an additional advantage to suppressive capacity. This study therefore provides an important proof‐of‐principle for this cell engineering approach for next‐generation Treg therapy in transplantation., Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) constructs can be modified to incorporate elements for enhanced activity. Here, human Tregs were modified to express an anti‐HLA‐A2 CAR as well as IL‐10 and an imaging reporter. These cells maintained a stable Treg phenotype after lentiviral transduction, were specifically activated by cells expressing HLA‐A2, and had enhanced in vitro suppressive potency compared with CAR Tregs without constitutive IL‐10 expression.

Huangjiu (Chinese rice wine) is brewed in an open environment, where bacteria play an important role during the fermentation process. In this study, bacterial community structure and composition changes in the fermented mash liquid of mechanized Huangjiu, well‐fermented manual Huangjiu (wines of good qualities), and poorly fermented manual Huangjiu (wines of poor qualities: spoilage, high acidity, low alcohol content) in different fermentation stages from Guyuelongshan Shaoxing Huangjiu company were analyzed via metagenomic sequencing. And bacterial metabolic difference was analyzed via gene prediction of metabolic pathway enzymes. The results showed that the bacterial diversity degree was abundant, and the number of bacterial species in every sample was approximately 200–400. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) dominated the bacterial community of Huangjiu fermentation, and lactobacillus was predominant species in well‐fermented Huangjiu while Lactobacillus brevis had an absolute dominance in spoilage Huangjiu. Further, gene prediction revealed that transformation of malate to pyruvate and lactate anabolism was more active in mash liquid of well‐fermented manual Huangjiu, while acetate accumulation was stronger in mash liquid of poorly fermented manual Huangjiu, which explained acidity excess reason in poorly fermented Huangjiu at gene level., The bacterial diversity degree was abundant, and the number of bacterial species in every sample was approximately 200–400. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) dominated the bacterial community of Huangjiu fermentation, and lactobacillus was predominant species in well‐fermented Huangjiu while lactobacillus brevis had an absolute dominance in spoilage Huangjiu.

As one of the three most famous brewed wines in the world, Chinese rice wine is made from rice and husked millet, containing 14 percent to 20 percent alcohol. Highly original, yellow wine brewing techniques are regarded as the model of the wine brewing industry in Asia. Shaoxing Huangjiu is produced in Zhejiang province and remains the oldest and most representative Chinese rice wine. During storage, Shaoxing Huangjiu is susceptible to environmental disturbance and produces colloidal haze to result in turbidity. In this study, the main composition and source of colloidal haze protein in Shaoxing Huangjiu were analyzed by two‐dimensional electrophoresis and matrix‐assisted laser ionization time‐of‐flight tandem mass spectrometry (MALDI‐TOF/TOF MS). The results showed that the proteins in colloidal haze mainly consisted of oat protein b1, oat‐like protein, di‐amylase inhibitor, pathogenesis‐related protein, pathogenesis‐related protein‐4, chitinase II derived from wheat and oat‐like protein, and beta‐amylase derived from rice. The amino acid composition and secondary structure of haze protein and supernatant protein in Huangjiu were further explored by high‐performance liquid chromatography and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The study has broadened knowledge of the main composition and source of colloidal haze protein in Shaoxing Huangjiu. The corresponding results indicated that the amino acid composition from colloidal haze had the main characteristics of high hydrophobicity and low water solubility., In this study, the main composition and source of colloidal haze protein in Chinese rice wine (Shaoxing Huangjiu) were analyzed by two‐dimensional electrophoresis and matrix‐assisted laser ionization time‐of‐flight tandem mass spectrometry (MALDI‐TOF/TOF MS). Meanwhile, the amino acid composition and secondary structure of haze protein and supernatant protein in Huangjiu were further explored by high‐performance liquid chromatography and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.

Purpose To investigate a method to classify tissues types for synthetic CT generation using MRI for treatment planning in abdominal radiotherapy. Methods An institutional review board approved volunteer study was performed on a 3T MRI scanner. In‐phase, fat and water images were acquired for five volunteers with breath‐hold using an mDixon pulse sequence. A method to classify different tissue types for synthetic CT generation in the abdomen was developed. Three tissue clusters (fat, high‐density tissue, and spine/air/lungs) were generated using a fuzzy‐c means clustering algorithm. The third cluster was further segmented into three sub‐clusters that represented spine, air, and lungs. Therefore, five segments were automatically generated. To evaluate segmentation accuracy using the method, the five segments were manually contoured on MRI images as the ground truth, and the volume ratio, Dice coefficient, and Hausdorff distance metric were calculated. The dosimetric effect of segmentation accuracy was evaluated on simulated targets close to air, lungs, and spine using a two‐arc volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) technique. Results The volume ratio of auto‐segmentation to manual segmentation was 0.88–2.1 for the air segment and 0.72–1.13 for the remaining segments. The range of the Dice coefficient was 0.24–0.83, 0.84–0.93, 0.94–0.98, 0.93–0.96, and 0.76–0.79 for air, fat, lungs, high‐density tissue, and spine, respectively. The range of the mean Hausdorff distance was 3–29.1 mm, 0.5–1.3 mm, 0.4–1 mm, 0.7–1.6 mm, and 1.2–1.4 mm for air, fat, lungs, high‐density tissue, and spine, respectively. Despite worse segmentation accuracy in air and spine, the dosimetric effect was 0.2% ± 0.2%, with a maximum difference of 0.8% for all target locations. Conclusion A method to generate synthetic CT in the abdomen was developed, and segmentation accuracy and its dosimetric effect were evaluated. Our results demonstrate the potential of using MRI alone for treatment planning in the abdomen.

One new phenylpropanoid schineolignin D (1), one new sesquiterpene (-)-(7S,10S)-3,11,12,13-tetrahydroxycalamenene (2), one new quinic acid 4-(E)-O-coumaroylquinic acid ethyl ester (3), and seven known compounds 4-10 were separated from the roots of Schisandra chinensis. The chemical structures of all compounds were characterized by NMR spectroscopic experiments. All compounds were assessed for their neuroprotective effects on PC12 cell lines induced by H

Graphene oxide (GO) is an important type of 2D nanomaterial and widely used in biomedicine, sensors, photocatalysis and electronic materials. With the extensive exposure of GO, its biological effect is debatable. In this study, we found a novel biological effect of GO, ie, suppression of deoxyribonuclease (DNase). GO inhibited DNA degradation when DNA or the DNA/RNA mixture was exposed to DNase. Moreover, GO suppressed nuclear fragmentation when the nuclei were treated with DNase. Interestingly, GO neither interacted with DNA nor influenced the interaction between DNase and DNA. Further investigation revealed that GO had a strong activity of adsorbing l-phenylalanine and l-histidine, key amino acid residues in the active site of DNase. These results suggest that GO could suppress the activity of DNase by interaction with the active site of DNase, and have an impact on DNase-related cellular processes (eg, apoptosis), implying its potential application in treating diseases associated with disorderly DNase function.

Iron is an indispensable micronutrient for plant growth and development. Limited bioavailability of Fe in the soil leads to iron deficiency chlorosis in plants and yield loss. In this study, two soybean basic helix-loop-helix transcription factors, GmbHLH57 and GmbHLH300, were identified in response to Fe-deficiency. Both transcription factors are expressed in roots and nodules, and are induced by Fe deficiency; these patterns were confirmed in transgenic hairy roots expressing constructs of the endogenous promoters fused to a GUS reporter gene. Bimolecular fluorescence complementation, yeast two-hybrid and coimmunoprecipitation (co-IP) assays indicated a physical interaction between GmbHLH57 and GmbHLH300. Studies on transgenic soybeans overexpressing GmbHLH57 and GmbHLH300 revealed that overexpression of each transcription factor, alone, results in no change of the responses to Fe deficiency, whereas overexpression of both transcription factors upregulated the downstream Fe uptake genes and increased the Fe content in these transgenic plants. Compared to wild type, these double overexpression transgenic plants were more tolerant to Fe deficiency. Taken together, our findings establish that GmbHLH57 and GmbHLH300 are important transcription factors involved in Fe homeostasis in soybean.

Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries are highly considered for next‐generation energy storage due to their ultrahigh theoretical energy density of 2600 Wh kg−1. The conversion reactions between lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) constitute the core process in working Li–S batteries. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) analysis of LiPS symmetric cells is an effective tool to provide detailed information on the LiPS conversion reactions and direct further kinetic promotion. However, reasonable interpretation of the EIS responses is so far insufficiently addressed without a well‐defined equivalent circuit. Herein, a systematic analysis on the EIS responses of LiPS symmetric cells is conducted to provide a comprehensible equivalent circuit. Interfacial contact, surface reaction, and diffusion are decoupled according to their respective characteristic frequency using the distribution of relaxation time analysis method. A well‐defined equivalent circuit is proposed to accurately fit the experimental EIS responses, unambiguously interpret key parameters, and be feasible with a wide range of experimental conditions. This work presents the methodology of understanding the EIS responses of LiPS symmetric cells and inspires analogous analysis on vital electrochemical processes.

Background The effect of penicillin therapy on clinical outcomes vary among patients with general paresis (GP). We sought to explore biomarkers that might serve as predictors of clinical outcomes in GP and identify patients requiring early intervention. Methods Thirty-five inpatients with GP were recruited. Each GP patient underwent comprehensive neuropsychological, neuroimaging and laboratory assessments before receiving penicillin therapy, and returned for follow-up evaluations after 6 months. The visual rating of medial temporal lobe atrophy (MTA) and the Fazekas scale was used to analyze the neuroimaging abnormalities. Results MTA scores were correlated with the pre-treatment cognitive scores and change in Mini Mental State Examination scores. GP patients with a Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR) ≤1 or MTA scores ≤2 achieved significant improvement in neuropsychological test scores, as compared with patients with CDR >1 or MTA scores >2. Fazekas scale scores correlated with the pre-treatment attention scores. Significant improvements in cognitive test scores were observed in GP patients with normalization of serum rapid plasma regain (RPR) titers, but not those without normalization of RPR titers. Conclusions Severe MTA may serve as a predictor of poor cognitive outcome and an indicator of severe cognitive impairment in GP patients. Thus, early interventions for improving cognitive function may be considered for GP patients with severe MTA. White matter hyperintensities may associated with attention impairment. Serum RPR titer may serve as a sensitive indicator of therapeutic effect in GP.

Modern health care requires a proactive and individualized response to diseases, combining precision diagnosis and personalized treatment. Accordingly, the approach to patients with allergic diseases encompasses novel developments in the area of personalized medicine, disease phenotyping and endotyping, and the development and application of reliable biomarkers. A detailed clinical history and physical examination followed by the detection of IgE immunoreactivity against specific allergens still represents the state of the art. However, nowadays, further emphasis focuses on the optimization of diagnostic and therapeutic standards and a large number of studies have been investigating the biomarkers of allergic diseases, including asthma, atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, food allergy, urticaria and anaphylaxis. Various biomarkers have been developed by omics technologies, some of which lead to a better classification of distinct phenotypes or endotypes. The introduction of biologicals to clinical practice increases the need for biomarkers for patient selection, prediction of outcomes and monitoring, to allow for an adequate choice of the duration of these costly and long‐lasting therapies. Escalating healthcare costs together with questions about the efficacy of the current management of allergic diseases require further development of a biomarker‐driven approach. Here, we review biomarkers in diagnosis and treatment of asthma, atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, viral infections, chronic rhinosinusitis, food allergy, drug hypersensitivity and allergen immunotherapy with a special emphasis on specific IgE, the microbiome and the epithelial barrier. In addition, EAACI guidelines on biologicals are discussed within the perspective of biomarkers.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a disease whose hallmark is the degeneration of articular cartilage. There is a worsening epidemic of OA in the United States today, with considerable economic costs. In order to develop more effective treatments for OA, noninvasive biomarkers that permit early diagnosis and treatment monitoring are necessary. T1rho and T2 mapping are two magnetic resonance imaging techniques that have shown great promise as noninvasive biomarkers of cartilage degeneration. Each of the two techniques is endowed with advantages and disadvantages: T1rho can discern earlier biochemical changes of OA than T2 mapping, while T2 mapping is more widely available and can be incorporated into existing imaging protocols in a more time-efficient manner than T1rho. Both techniques have been applied in numerous instances to study how cartilage is affected by OA risk factors, such as age and exercise. Additionally, both techniques have been repeatedly applied to the study of posttraumatic OA in patients with torn anterior cruciate ligaments.

SUMMARY A simple and compact representation framework and the corresponding efficient numerical integration algorithm are developed for constitutive equations of isotropic elastoplasticity. Central to this work is the utilization of a set of mutually orthogonal unit tensor bases and the corresponding invariants. The set of bases can be regarded equivalently as a local cylindrical coordinate system in the three-dimensional coaxial tensor subspace, namely, the principal space. The base tensors are given in the global coordinate system. Similar to the principal space approach, the proposed method reduces the problem dimension from six to three. In contrast to the conventional approach, the transformation procedure between the principal space and the general space is avoided and explicit computation of the principal axes is bypassed. With the proposed technique, the matrices, which need to be inverted during iteration, take a simple form for the great majority of constitutive equations in use. The tangent operator consistent with the proposed algorithm can be decomposed into the direct sum of two linear maps over the coaxial tensor subspace and the subspace orthogonal to it. Consequently, its closed form is derived in an extremely simple manner. Finally, numerical examples demonstrate the high quality performances of the proposed scheme. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.