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To investigate the relationship between the number of hyperintense foci of T2-weighted imaging (T2WI) and the efficacy of high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) in the treatment of adenomyosis.This prospective cohort study enrolled 102 patients with adenomyosis. Participants were classified into two groups: 50 patients in whom the number of hyperintense foci on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) T2WI was more than five were placed in the5 group and 52 patients in whom the number of hyperintense foci on MRI T2WI was five or fewer were placed in the ≤5 group. Uterine fibroid symptoms (UFS) and visual analog scale (VAS) scores were recorded as indicators for the course of adenomyosis treatment.Among the enrolled patients, 84 received HIFU treatment and were followed up. At 6, 12, 24, and 36 months after HIFU treatment, the UFS score of women in the5 group was higher than that of the patients in the ≤5 group (P 0.05). The ablation rate of MRI T2WI in the hyperintense foci ≤5 group was higher than the hyperintense foci5 group (P 0.05).Number of MRI T2WI hyperintense foci is a factor affecting the ablation rate and the clinical efficacy of HIFU treatment in women with adenomyosis. It is likely to be a predictor of the efficacy of HIFU in adenomyosis treatment.

We report a molecular investigation of a cobalt phthalocyanine (CoPc)-catalyzed CO2 reduction reaction by electrochemical scanning tunneling microscopy (ECSTM). An ordered adlayer of CoPc was prepared on Au(111). Approximately 14 % of the adsorbed species appeared with high contrast in a CO2 -purged electrolyte environment. The ECSTM experiments indicate the proportion of high-contrast species correlated with the reduction of CoII Pc (-0.2 V vs. saturated calomel electrode (SCE)). The high-contrast species is ascribed to the CoPc-CO2 complex, which is further confirmed by theoretical simulation. The sharp contrast change from CoPc-CO2 to CoPc is revealed by in situ ECSTM characterization of the reaction. Potential step experiments provide dynamic information for the initial stage of the reaction, which include the reduction of CoPc and the binding of CO2 , and the latter is the rate-limiting step. The rate constant of the formation and dissociation of CoPc-CO2 is estimated on the basis of the in situ ECSTM experiment.

Xylan is the major plant hemicellulosic polysaccharide in the secondary cell wall. The transcription factor KNOTTED-LIKE HOMEOBOX OF ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA 7 (KNAT7) regulates secondary cell wall biosynthesis, but its exact role in regulating xylan biosynthesis remains unclear. Using transactivation analyses, we demonstrate that KNAT7 activates the promoters of the xylan biosynthetic genes, IRREGULAR XYLEM 9 (IRX9), IRX10, IRREGULAR XYLEM 14-LIKE (IRX14L), and FRAGILE FIBER 8 (FRA8). The knat7 T-DNA insertion mutants have thinner vessel element walls and xylary fibers, and thicker interfascicular fiber walls in inflorescence stems, relative to wild-type (WT). KNAT7 overexpression plants exhibited opposite effects. Glycosyl linkage and sugar composition analyses revealed lower xylan levels in knat7 inflorescence stems, relative to WT; a finding supported by labeling of inflorescence walls with xylan-specific antibodies. The knat7 loss-of-function mutants had lower transcript levels of the xylan biosynthetic genes IRX9, IRX10, and FRA8, whereas KNAT7 overexpression plants had higher mRNA levels for IRX9, IRX10, IRX14L, and FRA8. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays indicated that KNAT7 binds to the IRX9 promoter. These results support the hypothesis that KNAT7 positively regulates xylan biosynthesis.

A new and efficient Pd(II) -catalyzed intermolecular annulation of N-benzoylsulfonamide with allenes for the synthesis of 3,4-dihydroisoquinolin-1(2H)-ones is reported. This CH functionalization is compatible with ambient air and moisture, and it can be applied to terminal or internal allenes with different synthetically attractive functional groups. Control experiments and a kinetic isotope effect study are conducted and a plausible mechanism is proposed.

The Dapingliang Cu deposit is located at the eastern part of the Kuruketage block in NW China. Igneous rocks are widely distributed in the district and skarn are formed at the contact zone between igneous rocks and the carbonates of Beiyixi Formation. The ore is distributed in the skarn. Zircon U-Pb isotopic ages of the plagiogranite, which is related to the Cu deposit, indicate that the lower and upper intercept ages are 826 ± 23 Ma and 1886 ± 61 Ma, respectively. The lower intercept age corresponds to a weighted mean 206Pb/238U age of 826 ± 13 Ma, yielded by ten analysis points. The upper intercept age may represent the age of the source rock, from which the plagiogranite originated. Re-Os isotopic analysis of six molybdenite samples from L7 orebody in the Dapingliang deposit shows an isochron age of 830 ± 26 Ma, which corresponds to the weighted mean model age of 829.4 ± 9.5 Ma. The concordant ages obtained by zircon U-Pb dating and molybdenite Re-Os dating are compatible with the skarn-type mineralization at Dapingling and confirm that the deposit formed during the Tarim orogeny.

Aluminum (Al) toxicity is a serious limitation to worldwide crop production. Rice is one of the most Al-tolerant crops and also serves as an important monocot model plant. This study aims to identify Al-responsive proteins in rice, based on evidence that Al resistance is an inducible process. Two Al treatment systems were applied in the study: Al3+-containing simple Ca solution culture and Al3+-containing complete nutrient solution culture. Proteins prepared from rice roots were separated by 2-DE. The 2-DE patterns were compared and the differentially expressed proteins were identified by MS. A total of 17 Al-responsive proteins were identified, with 12 of those being up-regulated and 5 down-regulated. Among the up-regulated proteins are copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (Cu-Zn SOD), GST, and S-adenosylmethionine synthetase 2, which are the consistently known Al-induced enzymes previously detected at the transcriptional level in other plants. More importantly, a number of other identified proteins including cysteine synthase (CS), 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate oxidase, G protein beta subunit-like protein, abscisic acid- and stress-induced protein, putative Avr9/Cf-9 rapidly elicited protein 141, and a 33 kDa secretory protein are novel Al-induced proteins. Most of these proteins are functionally associated with signaling transduction, antioxidation, and detoxification. CS, as consistently detected in both Al stress systems, was further validated by Western blot and CS activity assays. Moreover, the metabolic products of CS catalysis, i.e. both the total glutathione pool and reduced glutathione, were also significantly increased in response to Al stress. Taken together, our results suggest that antioxidation and detoxification ultimately related to sulfur metabolism, particularly to CS, may play a functional role in Al adaptation for rice.

Microarray analysis was initially performed to screen for differentially expressed genes between nitrate-and ammonium-fed rice (Oryza sativa L.) leaves. In total, 198 genes were shown to have a unique expression response to each treatment and most of the genes for which function is known were involved in signal transduction, plant stress resistance, transcriptional regulation, and basic metabolism. Northern blotting analysis confirmed that expression of the MT and PCS genes was highly upregulated in ammonium-fed leaves compared with expression in nitrate-fed leaves and it was further revealed that ammonium-fed leaves accumulated more cysteine and glutathione. The upregulated expressions of the MT and PCS genes and the higher levels of cysteine and glutathione in ammonium-fed leaves indicate that ammonium may be able to accelerate sulfur assimilation metabolism in rice leaves. Unexpectedly, Northern blotting analysis showed that the expression of the two key enzymes in the sulfur assimilation pathway, namely adenosine 5′-phosphosulfate reductase and O-acetylserine(thiol)lyase, was not upregulated by ammonium treatment. It was found that the total content of free amino acids was much higher in ammonium-fed leaves compared with nitrate-fed leaves, mainly resulting from an increase in several amino acids such as serine, asparagine, glutamine, and arginine. The increased amino acids, in particular serine (as a central substrate for the synthesis of the thiol metabolites), may have promoted sulfur assimilation metabolism under conditions of ammonium nutrition. (Managing editor: Ping He)

A new and efficient Pd(II) -catalyzed intermolecular annulation of N-benzoylsulfonamide with allenes for the synthesis of 3,4-dihydroisoquinolin-1(2H)-ones is reported. This CH functionalization is compatible with ambient air and moisture, and it can be applied to terminal or internal allenes with different synthetically attractive functional groups. Control experiments and a kinetic isotope effect study are conducted and a plausible mechanism is proposed.

A mild and efficient copper-catalyzed trifluoromethylation reaction which involves the cyclization of oximes has been developed. This method provides a convenient access to a variety of useful CF3-containing 4,5-dihydroisoxazoles by constructing a C–CF3 bond and a C–O bond in one step.

Based on the evidence that Al resistance is an inducible process and rice is an Al-resistant crop, identification of Al-responsive genes from rice may help to further clone Al-resistant genes in plants. Semi-quantitative and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is widely applied in gene transcriptional analyses, particularly for those genes with low transcript abundance. Normalization with proper endogenous control (EC) genes is critical for these two approaches in terms of reliability and precision. We first noticed that the expression of several commonly-used EC genes was depressed under Al stress, while sulfite reductase gene (SR) was stable throughout the Al treatment. The reliability of SR as an EC gene was further tested by analyzing the expression of a number of genes in response to Al challenge. Except for the consistent results obtained for the four previously-identified genes, nine additional genes were newly defined as Al-responsive in this study. Collectively, our results suggest that SR can be used as a novel EC gene for semi-quantitative and real-time PCR analysis of Al responsive genes, and that activated transport of silicon and stimulated metabolism of carotenoid and terpenoid could be involved in Al resistance in rice plants.