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The operation of iontronic capacitive sensors typically requires an external alternating current (AC) power source, resulting in additional energy consumption and AC‐frequency‐related sensing performance. Here, a class of self‐powered iontronic capacitive sensing units (SICSUs) is proposed based on a dynamic electric double layer (EDL), with a significant charge sensitivity of up to 24270 pC N−1, surpassing most piezoelectric materials by nearly 10 times. The effects of various design parameters and loading conditions on the sensing performance of the SICSUs are systematically investigated. The EDL at the hydrogel‐electrode interface is characterized in situ, revealing the underlying mechanism for high sensitivity and linearity. The capability of SICSUs in detecting diverse human‐related mechanical loads is demonstrated. Furthermore, a robotic hand equipped with a SICSU‐based artificial algesia sensor is fabricated to mimic the withdrawal reflex behavior of a human hand when its skin detects noxious stimuli caused by sharp objects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As widely used commercial sensors, amperometric biosensors based on electrochemical (EC) reactions exhibit good linearity and reproducibility but suffer from a low dynamic range and poor limit of detection (LoD). In contrast, biosensors utilizing field‐effect transistors (FETs) demonstrate a wide detection range and ultralow LoDs but are susceptible to interferences or ionic strength influences and have poor quantitative accuracy due to their nonlinear response mechanism. Here, EC and carbon nanotube (CNT) FET‐based biosensors are integrated into one chip via a compatible fabrication process. The dual‐mode biosensing chip (DMSC) provides the advantages from both the EC biosensors and FET biosensors; these advantages include high reliability and accuracy for quantitatively detecting glucose, a dynamic detection range spanning 6 orders of magnitude, and a detection limit of 1 fM. The introduction of a time‐division multiplexing detection method enables the DMSC to carry out complementary detection of the same target, providing early warning of specific abnormal biomarkers and accurate determination of their concentration in real time. The DMSC approach is generally applicable to the detection of other biomarkers and provides exciting opportunities for more accurate self‐monitoring diagnostics in real situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emergency management bears the important responsibility of preventing and resolving security risks and responding to disasters and accidents in time. At the same time, it shoulders the important mission of protecting people's lives and property and maintaining social stability. However, there is little research on the forecast of the huge gap and demand for talent. To strengthen the emergency management ability and modernization, improve the ability of emergency management personnel training and solve the shortage of emergency management personnel at this stage, this paper studied the positioning of emergency management personnel in China and the demand for various emergency management personnel. By means of field interviews, questionnaire surveys, participatory research and expert meetings, this research analyzed the characteristics of emergency management talents in China, defined its classification and forecasted its demand. The results showed that emergency management talents in China could be divided into four categories: administrative management talents, practical talents, expert talents and support talents. According to the data calculation results of five representative provinces, Guangdong Province (area with relatively developed economy), Beijing (administrative centre and economically developed area), Sichuan Province (natural disaster‐prone area), Shanxi Province (developed area of energy industry such as coal) and Jiangsu Province (industrially developed areas), it is concluded that the total demand for emergency management talents in China at this stage is about 794,900, and the gap is about 411,200. At present, China's emergency management talents are in short supply. The research results of this paper can provide sufficient data support for the training of emergency management talents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum dots have been rapidly developed in the display field, especially as photoluminescent color conversion layers. At the same time, quantum dots have also made increasing research progress in the detection field. We reported a short‐wave infrared sensor based on colloidal quantum dot technology. The photosensitive layer of the sensor uses HgTe colloidal quantum dot material. The detection band is 0.9~1.7um, the resolution is 1280*1024, and the pixel pitch is 15um. Colloidal quantum dot short‐wave infrared sensors get rid of the limitations of the indium pillar flip‐chip bonding process of traditional indium gallium arsenide CMOS short‐wave infrared focal plane sensors. The preparation process is simple, the yield is higher, and the cost is low. Based on the colloidal quantum dot shortwave infrared sensor, we implemented a shortwave infrared camera and characterized its performance parameters, and then we successfully captured shortwave infrared images through the shortwave infrared camera. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study compares the safety and efficacy of general anesthesia (GA) and nongeneral anesthesia (non‐GA) on functional outcomes in patients receiving endovascular therapy for ischemic stroke. Methods: All available studies on the anesthetic management of patients with acute ischemic stroke in PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Embase were included. We also compared the clinical outcomes in the studies with subgroup analyses of the occlusion site (anterior vs. posterior circulation) and preretriever group versus retriever group. Functional independence, mortality, successful recanalization, hemodynamic instability, intracerebral hemorrhage, and respiratory complications were considered primary or secondary outcomes. Results: A total of 24,606 patients in 60 studies were included. GA had a lower risk of 90‐day functional independence (OR = 0.67, 95% CI 0.58 to 0.77), higher risk of 90‐day mortality (OR = 1.29; 95% CI 1.15 to 1.45), and successful reperfusion (OR = 1.18; 95% CI 1.94 to 6.82). However, there were no differences in functional independence and mortality between GA and non‐GA at 90 days after the procedure. Conclusion: The study shows poorer results in the GA group, which may be due to the inclusion of nonrandomized studies. However, analysis of the RCTs suggested that the outcomes do not differ between the two groups (GA vs. non‐GA). Thus, general anesthesia is as safe as nongeneral anesthesia under standardized management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Although plant secondary metabolites are important source of new drugs, obtaining these compounds is challenging due to their high structural diversity and low abundance. The roots of Astragalus membranaceus are a popular herbal medicine worldwide. It contains a series of cycloartane‐type saponins (astragalosides) as hepatoprotective and antivirus components. However, astragalosides exhibit complex sugar substitution patterns which hindered their purification and bioactivity investigation. In this work, glycosyltransferases (GT) from A. membranaceus were studied to synthesize structurally diverse astragalosides. Three new GTs, AmGT1/5 and AmGT9, were characterized as 3‐O‐glycosyltransferase and 25‐O‐glycosyltransferase of cycloastragenol respectively. AmGT1G146V/I variants were obtained as specific 3‐O‐xylosyltransferases by sequence alignment, molecular modelling and site‐directed mutagenesis. A combinatorial synthesis system was established using AmGT1/5/9, AmGT1G146V/S and the reported AmGT8 and AmGT8A394F. The system allowed the synthesis of 13 astragalosides in Astragalus root with conversion rates from 22.6% to 98.7%, covering most of the sugar‐substitution patterns for astragalosides. In addition, AmGT1 exhibited remarkable sugar donor promiscuity to use 10 different donors, and was used to synthesize three novel astragalosides and ginsenosides. Glycosylation remarkably improved the hepatoprotective and SARS‐CoV‐2 inhibition activities for triterpenoids. This is one of the first attempts to produce a series of herbal constituents via combinatorial synthesis. The results provided new biocatalytic tools for saponin biosynthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ghd7 is an important gene involved in the photoperiod flowering pathway in rice. A Ghd7‐involved transcriptional regulatory network has been established, but its translational regulatory pathway is poorly understood. The mutant suppressor of overexpression of Ghd7 (sog7) was identified from EMS‐induced mutagenesis on the background of ZH11 overexpressing Ghd7. MutMap analysis revealed that SOG7 is allelic to Ghd8 and delayed flowering under long‐day (LD) conditions. Biochemical assays showed that Ghd8 interacts with OsHAP5C and Ghd7 both in vivo and in vitro. Surprisingly, a point mutation E96K in the α2 helix of the Ghd8 histone fold domain (HFD) destroyed its ability to interact with Ghd7. The prediction of the structure shows that mutated amino acid is located in the interaction region of CCT/NF‐YB/YC complexes, which alter the structure of α4 of Ghd8. This structural difference prevents the formation of complex NF‐YB/YC. The triple complex of Ghd8‐OsHAP5C‐Ghd7 directly bound to the promotor of Hd3a and downregulated the expression of Ehd1, Hd3a and RFT1, and finally resulted in a delayed heading. These findings are helpful in deeply understanding the Ghd7‐involved photoperiod flowering pathway and promote the elucidation of rice heading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soft network materials (SNMs) represent one of the best candidates for the substrates and the encapsulation layers of stretchable inorganic electronics, because they are capable of precisely customizing the J-shaped stress-strain curves of biological tissues. Although a variety of microstructures and topologies have been exploited to adjust the nonlinear stress-strain responses of SNMs, the stretchability of most SNMs is hard to exceed 100%. Designing novel high-strength SNMs with much larger stretchability (e.g., >200%) than existing SNMs and conventional elastomers remains a challenge. This paper develops a class of hierarchical soft network materials (HSNMs) with developable lattice nodes, which can significantly improve the stretchability of SNMs without any loss of strength. The effects of geometric parameters, lattice topologies, and loading directions on the mechanical properties of HSNMs are systematically discussed by experiments and numerical simulations. The proposed node design strategy for SNMs is also proved to be widely applicable to different constituent materials, including polymers and metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The porous media model theory has been applied to the study of soil wind erosion, and the accuracy of simulation test results using the resistance source term instead of the windbreak geometry model has received much attention. A common shrub windbreak was used as the research object, and a porous media model with a similar shape was established to synthetically compare the wind tunnel experimental data with the results of computational fluid dynamics numerical simulations, analyze its feasibility for windbreak research instead of wind tunnel experiments, and try to elaborate the causes of errors arising from numerical simulations. The relative standard deviation of more than 80% of the sampling points in the porous media model and wind tunnel experimental results was less than 5%, and the wind speed difference at the maximum relative standard deviation was only 0.257 m s−1; the difference in wind speed variation was most obvious on the leeward side of the lower part of the vegetation canopy, but this error does not affect the wind speed recovery trend of the Caragana shrub/forest belt array. The combination of numerical simulations and wind tunnel experiments gives a reference for the accuracy of porous media models used to simulate plant wind protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two unequal K and K' valleys in transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDC) enable large and controllable polarization, which is the cornerstone of emerging valleytronic applications. Here, a phase engineering strategy aided by resonant plasmonic coupling is proposed to manipulate the valley degree of freedom. Compared with the pristine WSe2 monolayer, the hybrid H/T phase WSe2 exhibits an enhanced degrees of circular polarization (DCP) and valley polarization (DVP). As further aided by the designed Au plasmonic array, the T phase facilitates the excitons process and promotes the charge transfer in WSe2/Au interface under the plasmonic‐enhanced electromagnetic field. Consequently, both the DCP and DVP values are considerably enhanced to 38.5% (15.6%) and 15.1% (7.6%) at 13 K (room temperature), respectively. Through finite difference time domain simulations (FDTD), the near‐field excitation, exciton decay, and far‐field detection processes are systematically analyzed, and highly consistent polarizations are quantitatively achieved between the theoretical and the experimental results. Accordingly, the high polarizations are revealed to be contributed by the increased exciton generation and radiation efficiency, chiral electromagnetic field, and non‐equilibrium spin distribution in the hybrid phase. The research presented here illustrates a promising route to control the spin and valley degrees of freedom in TMDC materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two unequal K and K' valleys in transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDC) enable large and controllable polarization, which is the cornerstone of emerging valleytronic applications. Here, a phase engineering strategy aided by resonant plasmonic coupling is proposed to manipulate the valley degree of freedom. Compared with the pristine WSe2 monolayer, the hybrid H/T phase WSe2 exhibits an enhanced degrees of circular polarization (DCP) and valley polarization (DVP). As further aided by the designed Au plasmonic array, the T phase facilitates the excitons process and promotes the charge transfer in WSe2/Au interface under the plasmonic‐enhanced electromagnetic field. Consequently, both the DCP and DVP values are considerably enhanced to 38.5% (15.6%) and 15.1% (7.6%) at 13 K (room temperature), respectively. Through finite difference time domain simulations (FDTD), the near‐field excitation, exciton decay, and far‐field detection processes are systematically analyzed, and highly consistent polarizations are quantitatively achieved between the theoretical and the experimental results. Accordingly, the high polarizations are revealed to be contributed by the increased exciton generation and radiation efficiency, chiral electromagnetic field, and non‐equilibrium spin distribution in the hybrid phase. The research presented here illustrates a promising route to control the spin and valley degrees of freedom in TMDC materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The short‐range impacts of volcanic aerosols from the eruption of the Kilauea volcano on the genesis of tropical cyclone (TC) Wukong in 2018 are investigated by numerical simulations, as distinct from the studies on the aerosol climate effects. The aerosol−radiation and aerosol−cloud effects are isolated through sensitivity experiments. For the aerosol−radiation effect, the radiative cooling at the low levels and heating above by aerosols southeast of Wukong's periphery induce stable sinking and decrease latent heating in the environment far from the storm center. Therefore, the sea‐level pressure increases there, enhancing low‐level radial inflow to the storm, inner‐core convection and the release of latent heat, which is conducive to TC genesis. For the aerosol−cloud effect, volcanic aerosols in storm circulation can be converted into cloud condensation nuclei, invigorating inner‐core convection, and subsequently favoring TC genesis. However, the nonlinear effect resulting from the interaction between aerosol−radiation and aerosol−cloud effects is not conducive to TC genesis, because it weakens the aerosol−cloud effect through the deposition of aerosols and also limits the aerosol−radiation effect through the increasing of peripheral convection. Plain Language Summary: The role of sulfate aerosols released by volcanic eruptions in climatological tropical cyclone (TC) activities over different basins or hemispheres remains uncertain. These aerosols, composed of either solid or liquid particles, not only change the heating or cooling of atmosphere by scattering and absorbing sunlight, but also participate in cloud formation and evolution by conversion into nuclei of cloud droplets. Impacts of aerosol−radiation and aerosol−cloud interaction on a TC formation process during a volcanic eruption still lacks of detailed study for real cases. We investigate whether these effects of aerosols from the Kilauea volcanic eruption were beneficial or not to the formation of TC Wukong in 2018. The aerosol−radiation effect enhances cooling at the low levels of Wukong's environment and increases the sea‐level pressure there, which drives air to flow inward and is beneficial to TC genesis. On the other hand, lots of aerosols ingested into the storm invigorates the convection near the storm center, is also helpful. Instead, the interaction between the above two effects offset partly their own positive contributions to TC genesis. Our findings suggest that considering the interaction of volcanic aerosol−cloud−radiation is necessary to improve our understanding and prediction of TC activities. Key Points: Enhanced radiative cooling at low layer of Wukong's periphery induced by aerosols from Kilauea volcanic eruption advanced its genesisMicrophysical effect of the aerosols partly entering into Wukong's inner core invigorated convection so as to favor its genesisThe nonlinear interaction between the aerosol−radiation and the aerosol−cloud effects contributed negatively to Wukong's genesis [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remotely controllable actuation of engineering polymers is highly demanded in the fast‐developing intelligent society. Here, this work demonstrates that the programmable shape memory of 3D‐printed poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK), which is an excellent engineering material, could be driven by both ultraviolet (UV) light and natural sunlight. The shape recovery ratio reaches 97.6% and could be finely regulated by defining the sample thickness, shape programming, way of placement, and light intensity. Light‐induced continuous, sequential, and programed actuations (shape recovery) are further realized in various 3D‐printed PEEK structures. Meanwhile, the coating of a thin layer of gold is proven to be effective in anti‐UV oxidation and the enhancing of shape recovery. Moreover, natural sunlight during daytime is demonstrated to be able to induce the shape recovery of 3D‐printed PEEK in outdoor environment. The work here can pave the way for the use of PEEK as a smart material in the fields such as aerospace and intelligent industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, three plasticizers with different molecular structures were used to plasticize poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), and the influence of different plasticizers on the flexural fatigue properties of soft PVC was investigated. The plasticizer with the best plasticizing effect was selected, and five gradient dosages were set to study the optimal ratio of plasticizer and PVC. It was found that the glass transition temperature of samples with two phthalate plasticizers (DPHP, 1012P) was lower than that with trimellitate plasticizer (TM‐8). It has excellent low‐temperature mechanical properties and great flexural fatigue resistance. From the comparison of different plasticizer gradient formulations, the glass transition temperature, PVC plastisol viscosity, and melt strength decreased gradually with the increase of plasticizers. When PVC and plasticizer were 1:1 (PVC50P50), the plasticizing effect and the low‐temperature toughness of the sample were the best. The breaking energy (W) and fatigue cycles of Bally Flex at −20°C were 5173 J m−3 and 141 000, respectively. It was concluded that W and Bally Flex fatigue life have a good positive correlation n. Thus, tensile test can be simply used to predict Bally Flex fatigue life of samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cell‐penetrating peptides (CPPs) can aid in intracellular and in vivo drug delivery. However, the mechanisms of CPP‐mediated penetration remain unclear, limiting the development and further application of CPPs. Flow cytometry and laser confocal fluorescence microscopy were performed to detect the effects of different endocytosis inhibitors on the internalization of CC12 and penetratin in ARPE‐19 cells. The co‐localization of CPPs with the lysosome and macropinosome was detected via an endocytosis tracing experiment. The flow cytometry results showed that chlorpromazine, wortmannin, cytochalasin D, and the ATP inhibitor oligomycin had dose‐dependent endocytosis‐inhibitory effects on CC12. The laser confocal fluorescence results showed that oligomycin had the most significant inhibitory effect on CC12 uptake; CC12 was co‐located with the lysosome, but not with the macropinosome. For penetratin, cytochalasin D and oligomycin had obvious inhibitory effects. The laser confocal fluorescence results indicated that oligomycin had the most significant inhibitory effect on penetratin uptake; the co‐localization of penetratin with the lysosome was higher than that with the macropinosome. Cation‐independent CC12 and cationic penetratin may be internalized into cells primarily through caveolae and clathrin‐mediated endocytosis, and they are typically dependent on ATP. The transport of penetratin could be partly achieved through the direct transmembrane pathway, as the positive charge of penetratin interacts with the negative charge of the cell membrane, and partly through the endocytic pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the modern workplace, it is virtually impossible to succeed without seeking any help from others. Despite its widely recognized importance, several areas surrounding help‐seeking have not yet been clearly understood in the organization literature. Specifically, it is unclear whether seeking help always benefits employees in need, and how various work demands drive help‐seeking behavior in different ways. In this research, we drew from the dual‐type view of help‐seeking (i.e., autonomous and dependent help‐seeking) and the challenge‐hindrance stressors framework to elaborate how seeking help of different types influences employees' work competence‐related outcomes in various directions, what work demands drive employees to seek different types of help, and when encountering work demands is particularly influential on their help‐seeking tendencies. Evidence from a field study (Study 1) showed that while challenge stressors increased employees' autonomous help‐seeking, hindrance stressors increased dependent help‐seeking especially for employees with greater workflow centrality. Moreover, autonomous help‐seeking benefited help‐seekers' job performance ratings through increased self‐perceived competence, whereas dependent help‐seeking hurt their job performance via decreased perceived competence by coworkers. To cross‐validate our findings, we then examined and replicated our core findings with three experimental vignette studies (Studies 2, 3a, and 3b). Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Structural colors from photonic crystals (PCs) have attracted emerging attention in the research area of wearable sensors. Conventional self‐assembly of PC takes days to weeks. Here, a fast self‐assembly method of PC with horizontal precipitation of silica nanoparticles (NPs) in a polydimethylsiloxane fence, which can be completed within 1–4 h depending on the fence parameters, is introduced. The resultant PC exhibits tunable structural colors in the entire visible spectrum. With infiltration of composite hydrogels containing acrylic acid, acrylamide, chitosan, and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) into the gaps of NPs to form an inverse opal PC, a structural color hydrogel that can quickly respond to different stimuli, including strain and temperature, is obtained. Moreover, with the addition of CNTs, the composite PC hydrogel can also output an electronic signal together with optical color changes. Based on these extraordinary responsive behaviors, the PC hydrogel sensor for quantitative feedback to external stimuli of stretching, bending, pressing, and thermal stimuli, with brilliant color change and electronic signal outputs simultaneously, is demonstrated. This fast‐assembled PC hydrogel with excellent responsive properties has great potential for applications in wearable devices, mechanical sensors, temperature sensors, and colorimetric displays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fusobacterium nucleatum is a critical microbe that contributes to colorectal cancer progression and chemoresistance. However, whether and how F. nucleatum regulates colorectal cancer stem‐like cells (CCSCs) remains unknown. Here, the authors show that F. nucleatum promotes CCSC self‐renewal, and non‐CCSCs to acquire CCSC features by manipulating cellular lipid accumulation. F. nucleatum infection decreases lipid accumulation in CCSCs by enhancing fatty acid oxidation, thus promoting CCSC self‐renewal. In contrast, F. nucleatum increases lipid accumulation in non‐CCSCs by promoting fatty acid formation. Lipids are deposited as lipid droplets, which recruits Numb, a key cell fate regulator, through the AP2A/ACSL3 complex, and MDM2, an E3 ubiquitin ligase, though VCP and UBXD8. On lipid droplets, Numb is degraded by MDM2, activating Notch signaling, thus promoting gain of stem‐like cell features. Their findings demonstrate that F. nucleatum directly manipulates colorectal cancer cell fate and reveal the mechanism of lipid droplet‐mediated Numb degradation for activating Notch signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The efficiencies of semiconductor photocatalysis are always severely restricted by the rapid recombination of charge carriers in the bulk phase, while local polarization is an efficient scenario to conquer the above issue to boost the photocatalytic performance. Here, as a proof‐of‐concept demonstration, local charge polarization induced by the intrinsic zwitterionic resonance structure of photocatalysts is reported. A novel squaraine‐based covalent organic framework (SQ‐COF‐1) photocatalyst with an interesting zwitterionic resonance structure is creatively developed. Meanwhile, the comparison samples (SQ‐COF‐2 and PDA‐COF) based on similar COF structure with tunable local polarity are accordingly designed and prepared. The local charge polarization generated from the zwitterionic resonance structure profoundly redistributes and separates the charge carriers, as evidenced by experimental and theoretical results collectively. Benefiting by the largest local polarization, SQ‐COF‐1 exhibits superior visible‐light‐driven photocatalytic activities than SQ‐COF‐2, PDA‐COF, and commonly used polymeric carbon nitride photocatalyst. This work presents a local charge polarization protocol for engineering charge behavior to promote photocatalysis, which shows great promise for the future design of high‐performance photocatalytic materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and cancer‐associated fibroblasts (CAFs) play critical roles in liver fibrosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). MyD88 controls the expression of several key modifier genes in liver tumorigenesis; however, whether and how MyD88 in myofibroblasts contributes to the development of fibrosis‐associated liver cancer remains elusive. Here, we used an established hepatocarcinogenesis mouse model involving apparent liver fibrogenesis in which MyD88 was selectively depleted in myofibroblasts. Myofibroblast MyD88‐deficient (Fib‐MyD88 KO) mice developed significantly fewer and smaller liver tumor nodules. MyD88 deficiency in myofibroblasts attenuated liver fibrosis and aerobic glycolysis in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues. Mechanistically, MyD88 signaling in myofibroblasts increased the secretion of CCL20, which promoted aerobic glycolysis in cancer cells. This process was dependent on the CCR6 receptor and ERK/PKM2 signaling. Furthermore, liver tumor growth was greatly relieved when the mice were treated with a CCR6 inhibitor. Our data revealed a critical role for MyD88 in myofibroblasts in the promotion of hepatocellular carcinoma by affecting aerobic glycolysis in cancer cells and might provide a potential molecular therapeutic target for HCC. © 2021 The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anisotropic 2D materials are promising building blocks for future photonic and optoelectronic devices due to their low structural symmetry and in‐plane optical anisotropy. This review systematically summarizes the crystalline structure, growth dynamics, optical anisotropy and their modulation strategies, and the corresponding photonic applications for emerging anisotropic 2D materials. First, the physical properties and crystalline structures of typical anisotropic 2D materials are briefly introduced. After that, special attention is paid to the growth mechanism of low‐symmetry lattices, where the competition between different growth modes determines the crystal morphologies. Then, the physical principles of anisotropic optical absorption, photoluminescence, Raman scattering, photodetection, and nonlinear response are discussed based on recent scientific advances. The discussion on the techniques to modify the intrinsic in‐plane anisotropy, along with the possibility of introducing optical anisotropy to the isotropic materials, add a new degree of freedom to the control over their optical properties. The review of application prospects also helps bridge the gap between the scientific exploration of novel anisotropic materials and the development of polarization‐sensitive photonic devices. The discussions in this review will push forward the scientific frontier in the crystalline growth and anisotropy control of anisotropic 2D materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

2D materials have recently attracted extensive attention in solid‐state laser devices due to the improvement of their beam quality and service life. However, most conventional devices suffer from the fixed saturable absorption properties of certain 2D materials and are confined to the determined operation state. Herein, on‐chip electrically tunable infrared laser signals are realized by introducing a novel 2D nanomesh saturable absorber (SA) interaction layer without other tuning elements based on printable graphene–insulator–semiconductor (GIS) heterostructures. The pulse width can be highly controllable ranging from 1 µs to 360 ns under ultralow electrical modulation power (≈10 pA current and <0.5 nW power), thanks to the high conductivity and tunability of graphene. Furthermore, the precise regulation mechanism of the Fermi level of graphene by the heterostructures is comprehensively explored through opto‐electrical characterization with spectroscopic methods. The GIS device introduces a promising way to achieve actively controlled solid‐state optoelectronic and nonlinear photonic devices in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Lung cancer has the highest mortality rate among the various types of cancer. Panax ginseng (C. A. Mey). is a popular anti‐cancer herbal supplement. The quality control of ginseng is crucial to ensure its clinical efficacy. This study aimed to establish new quality control methods for ginseng and to identify its main active components responsible for lung cancer treatment. Methods: Ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) was used to establish fingerprints of 18 batches of ginseng. CCK‐8 test was performed to evaluate the inhibitory activity of ginseng on Lewis lung cancer (LLC) cells. The spectrum‐effect relationship analysis of ginseng was assessed by canonical correlation analysis (CCA) and bioactivity validation. Key findings: Six common peaks were identified and the variation coefficients were determined. The 18 batches of ginseng inhibited the proliferation of LLC cells to different degrees, showing different half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values. Spectrum‐effect relationship analysis showed that ginsenoside Ro is the main anti‐proliferative constituent of LLC cell. Conclusions: Spectrum‐effect relationship is suitable for quality control of ginseng used for lung cancer. It is also effective in discovering the active ingredients related to the clinical efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine. Panax ginseng is a popular herbal supplement in lung cancer patients. We used cells viability assay and chromatographic fingerprint to establish the spectrum‐effect relationship method to evaluate the effect of 18 ginseng samples on Lewis lung cancer (LLC) cells. We found ginsenoside Ro is the main active constituents. And our work indicates that spectrum‐effect relationships is a reliable method for controlling quality and discovering the material basis related to the clinical efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior work suggests that follower and leader risk orientation is positively associated with follower creativity. We suggest that this view is oversimplified and propose that follower creativity can be stimulated when leader and follower have diverging risk orientations. We, therefore, apply a configurational approach to creativity, evaluating varying combinations of leader and follower risk orientation on follower creativity. Across two field studies, we demonstrate that (a) follower creativity increases as leaders' and followers' risk orientations become more discrepant (i.e., incongruent); (b) follower creativity is higher when leader–follower dyads are congruent at moderate levels of risk orientation compared to congruence at the extremes (i.e., low and high levels); (c) follower‐experienced intellectual stimulation mediates the relationship between leader–follower risk orientation incongruence and congruence and follower creativity; and (d) that leader authority openness moderates the indirect effect of leader–follower risk orientation incongruence on creativity via follower‐experienced intellectual stimulation. Theoretical and practical implications specific to creativity and leader–follower relationships are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phase transition from vegetative to reproductive growth is triggered by internal and external signals that participate in circadian clock in plants. We identified a rice floral inhibitor OsPRR73 encoding a CONSTANS protein. Overexpression of OsPRR73 resulted in late heading under both long‐day (LD) and short‐day (SD) conditions. Knockout mutants led to early heading under LD conditions but no change under SD. OsPRR73 mRNA accumulated at noon and exhibited a robust oscillation under constant light (LL) and constant darkness (DD) conditions. OsPRR73 overexpression exerted negative feedback on endogenous OsPRR73 expression and altered diurnal expressions of key flowering genes and circadian clock genes. OsPRR73 bound to the promoters of the floral gene Ehd1 and the circadian gene OsLHY, and significantly suppressed their expression at dawn. In LL and DD, the oscillatory patterns of the circadian genes OsLHY, OsTOC1, OsGI and OsELF3 were varied in OsPRR73OX and osprr73 mutants. OsPRR73 expression was decreased in osphyb mutants, and overexpression of OsPRR73 complemented the early heading date phenotype of osphyb, indicating OsPRR73 works downstream of OsPhyB. Therefore, OsPRR73 is involved in a feedback loop of the rice clock and connects the photoperiod flowering pathway by binding to the Ehd1 promoter in rice. PRR proteins involve in circadian clock in plants and play important roles in regulating flowering. It is not clear the function of OsPRR73 in rice. This study demonstrated that OsPRR73 links circadian clock and photoperiod pathway to control heading date by binding to the Ehd1 promoter in rice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A spider web collects water by its capture silk for recovering the daytime‐distorted shape during night through water‐sensitive shape memory effect. This unique smart function and geometrical structure of spider‐capture‐silk inspires the development of artificial fibers with periodic knots for directional water collection with vast potential applications in water scarce regions. Existing such fibers are mainly based on nylon filaments coated with petroleum‐originated synthetic polymer solutions. Distinct from using synthetic materials, an all silk‐protein fiber (ASPF) with periodic knots endows extremely high volume‐to‐mass water collection capability. This fiber has a main body consisting of B. mori degummed silk coated with recombinant engineered major ampullate spidroin 2 of spider dragline silk. It is 252 times lighter than synthetic polymer coated nylon fibers that once was reported to have the highest water collection performance. The ASPF collects a maximum water volume of 6.6 µL and has a 100 times higher water collection efficiency compared to existing best water collection artificial fibers in terms of volume‐to‐mass index at the shortest length (0.8 mm) of three‐phase contact line. Since silkworm silks are available abundantly, effective use of recombinant spidroins tandemly shows great potential for scalability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Seed germination is a complex process involving various physical and biochemical cues, determined by exogenous and endogenous factors. Here, we identified a gene, OsMFT2, that negatively regulates seed germination in rice. OsMFT2 knock‐out lines exhibited pre‐harvest sprouting, whereas OsMFT2 overexpression lines showed delayed germination. RNA expression profiling showed that OsMFT2 was specifically expressed in seeds. Subcellular localization indicated that OsMFT2 was a nuclear protein. Exogenous abscisic acid (ABA) treatment of imbibed seeds and seedlings indicated that OsMFT2 altered ABA sensitivity during seed germination and post‐germination growth. In vivo and in vitro assays showed that three bZIP transcription factors, OsbZIP23, OsbZIP66 and OsbZIP72, interacted with OsMFT2. OsbZIP23/66/72 bound to the promoter of Rab16A, a typical gene containing the ABA‐responsive element, and OsMFT2 enhanced the binding to the Rab16A promoter. Moreover, several ABA‐responsive genes were differentially expressed in the imbibed seeds of OsMFT2 transgenic lines and the wild type. The performance of the transgenic plants demonstrated that overexpressing OsbZIP23 rescued the pre‐harvest sprouting phenotype and the decrease in ABA‐signaling genes expression caused by OsMFT2 knock‐out. All of these results demonstrate that OsMFT2 positively regulates ABA‐responsive genes through interacting with OsbZIP23/66/72 and functions in seed germination. Significance Statement: Our findings revealed a novel gene responsible for the regulation of seed germination and established a relationship between OsMFT2 and ABA signaling. These findings enrich our knowledge concerning the regulatory network of seed germination and ABA signaling in rice and provide new insights for understanding the role of PEBP proteins, which act as transcription co‐factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chalcophile elements and lithium (Li) isotopes were measured on lavas from a 220‐km transect across the Kamchatka arc in order to investigate the fluid variations below arc volcanoes and to trace the geochemical behaviour of Li in convergent plate margins. From the Eastern Volcanic Front (EVF), through the Central Kamchatka Depression (CKD), into the Sredinny Range (SR) volcanic zones, chalcophile element ratios (e.g., As/Ce and Sb/Ce) show clear across‐arc variations, decreasing (e.g., As/Ce: 0.20 to 0.03 and Sb/Ce: 0.013 to 0.002) with increasing depth above the slab (110 to 400 km). This clearly indicates a gradually decreasing influx of slab‐derived fluids added to the mantle wedge as the slab subducts below Kamchatka. In addition, the anomalously high U/Th, La/Sm, and B/Nb ratios in the CKD lavas suggest lawsonite breakdown reaction dominates the fluid release in this area. However, Li/Y (0.07 to 1.78) and δ7Li (+1.8 to +5.4‰, with an exception of +8.6‰ in CKD) show limited variations and values similar to the MORB mantle. A dehydration model suggests that slab‐derived fluids, which are characterized by high Li concentration and high δ7Li, do not control the Li budget in Kamchatka arc lavas. Therefore, the isotopic heavy Li from slab‐derived fluids likely equilibrates in the sub‐arc mantle, which acts as a buffer for Li systematics. In addition, based on the Li isotopic signatures of Klyuchevskoy volcano, our study demonstrates insignificant Li isotopic fractionation during mantle melting and subsequent differentiation. Key Points: The Kamchatka arc lavas show across‐arc variations in chalcophile elements, suggesting that the amount of fluid decreases with depthSlab‐derived fluids have a negligible contribution to the Li budget of the Kamchatka arc lavasCKD lavas have high U/Th, Li/Y, La/Sm, and B/Nb ratios, indicating that lawsonite breakdown reaction dominates the water release [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a novel microwave hydrothermal method is developed to prepare hybrid 1T@2H−MoS2 nanospheres, with the 1T and 2H phases confirmed by high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and the stability of the hybrid phase verified by Raman spectroscopy. The efficiencies of methyl orange (MO) degradation and photo‐reduction of Cr(VI) by hybrid 1T@2H−MoS2 are much higher than those by 2H−MoS2, which should be attributed to the synergistic effect of the coexistent 1T and 2H phases. In addition, the hybrid sample prepared by microwave method possesses superior photocatalytic performance than that by conventional hydrothermal method, due to the higher 1T phase concentration and different crystallinity. Free‐radical capture experiments show that.O2− dominates the photocatalytic degradation process with 1T phase producing more electrons. The introduction of 1T−MoS2 into 2H−MoS2 shows great potential for photocatalytic degradation, while microwave treatment could be an effective method to prepare the hybrid phase MoS2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The innovation‐export nexus has been extensively explored, while relatively few studies have focused on innovation's impact on firms' export survival and the role of export mode. Using a large panel dataset from China, this research empirically explores how innovation impacts firms' export survival, considering export modes. First, we employ the discrete‐time survival analysis model (cloglog) to examine this research addressing the censored issue. Second, the propensity score matching (PSM) methodology is employed to address the selection‐bias issue and select the similar firms based on which to compare their Kaplan–Meier survivor probability. Results present a positive role of innovation in the export survival of direct exporters; however, there is an inverted‐U relationship between innovation intensity and their survival probability. For indirect exporters, evidence shows an insignificant innovation‐export survival nexus. In addition, results show higher export survival for Chinese innovative exporters who are foreign‐owned, highly export‐intensive, long‐lasting in export market, in technology industries. For innovative exporters who export directly, those in medium and low‐technological industries and export capital goods are more likely to survive. Our research provides insights for Chinese exporters regarding innovation participation and suggests the government conducting prudent and deliberate design for innovation strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Background: Melasma is an acquired, common hyperpigmented disorder on the face. While many therapeutic approaches are available, their efficacy is moderate. Objective: To investigate the safety and efficacy of a cream containing herbal mixture for melasma. Methods: A total of 90 volunteers with melasma were enrolled in this randomized, double‐blind, controlled clinical study, and they were randomly divided into three groups (A, B, and C). Patients in group A were treated with a cream containing herbal mixture, while groups B and C were treated with arbutin cream and placebo, respectively, twice daily for 12 weeks. Melasma area and severity index (MASI) score, melanin index (MI), erythema index (EI), changes in density of inflammatory cells, and adverse events were evaluated every 4 weeks. Results: Although MASI scores declined significantly in both groups A and B (P < 0.05), a greater reduction was seen in group A (13.00−9.82 = 3.18 for group A; 12.65−10.84 = 1.81 for group B). Moreover, the cream containing herbal mixture, but not arbutin cream and placebo, significantly reduced EI and density of inflammatory cells after 12‐week treatment (P < 0.05). No adverse reactions were observed in either group A or group C. In group B, two subjects experienced mild erythema and itching, which disappeared after stop using the arbutin cream. Conclusion: The cream containing herbal mixture is safe and effective for melasma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This study was conducted to investigate the chronic injury of peritoneal glucose injection on the peritoneum and intestine and the protective effects of omega‐3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (ω‐3PUFA) during peritoneal dialysis (PD). Methods: Peritoneal dialysis animal models were established by intraperitoneal injection of 4.25% glucose for 28 days. Protein expression in ileum and peritoneum was measured by immunofloresence and immunohistochemistry. Protein expression in macrophages was measured by Western blot. Fibrosis was analyzed by Masson staining. Results: Peritoneal dialysis significantly increased the structural injury and decreased junction‐related protein ZO‐1 and occludin expression in ileum, the expression of proteins relating to the activation of M2 (Erg2, IRF4), but not M1 (CD38, IRF5) macrophages. PD significantly increased the expression of TGF‐β1, VEGF and ALK5 protein in peritoneal tissues. PD significantly increased fibrosis (Masson staining) and the expression of fibroblast marker α‐SMA in peritoneal tissues. Injection of macrophage clean reagent and ω‐3PUFA significantly inhibited M2 activation, and decreased Masson staining, α‐SMA, TGF‐β1, VEGF and ALK5 protein expression in peritoneal tissues in PD treated rats. ω‐3PUFA injection significantly decreased PD‐induced injury in ileum and normalized the expression of ZO‐1 and occludin in the ileum of PD rats. Conclusion: Omega‐3 fatty acids can provide a protective role on PD‐induced peritoneal fibrosis and injury of the intestine. SUMMARY AT A GLANCE: This study demonstrated that omega‐3 fatty acids inhibited peritoneal fibrosis through inhibiting activation of fibroblasts and M2 microphages and subsequently TGF‐ß1‐VEGF‐ALK5 signaling in rats that received peritoneal dialysis with 4.25% glucose. Omega‐3 fatty acids may provide a protective role on peritoneal dialysis‐induced peritoneal fibrosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crop residues, particularly standing stubble, can reduce soil erosion by wind in conservation tillage. To determine the optimum architecture of standing stubble for effective reduction of wind speeds near the soil surface, we quantitatively analyzed the interception effect of standing stubbles on soil erosion particles through pure wind experiments and sand‐bearing wind experiments. The relationship between stubble height, row number, and interception rate was also revealed. The study was conducted in a wheat field under conservation tillage. Three representative heights of standing stubble were tested: 10, 20, and 30 cm. All had an average plant density of 400 plants m−2, row spacing of 20 cm, and an average stubble cover of 52%. A wind‐tunnel was placed over the stubble, and the central wind speeds were selected at 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 m s−1. During the experiments, the blowing time was set for 10 min, and 1,404 g of local soil from the experimental area was fed into the wind‐tunnel. A sand collector was placed at the 16th, 19th, 23rd, 27th, and 31st stubble row away from the air inlet of the wind‐tunnel to measure the amount of soil eroded by wind at different stubble heights under conditions of blank and sand‐bearing winds. The concept of 'interception rate' and its corresponding formula were proposed. The interception rates of 10‐cm and 20‐cm high stubbles were lower than those of 30‐cm stubble and decreased sharply, particularly at wind speeds >12 m s−1. Even at the wind speed of 18 m s−1, the interception of wind erosion particles with 30‐cm high stubble at 16th, 19th, 23rd, 27th, and 31st rows were 20.85%, 41.55%, 60.46%, 80.59%, and 85.96%, but only 5.75%, 24.76%, 39.32%, 62.39%, and 76.04% with 10‐cm high stubble at the same positions. The interception effect was similar at the 27th and 31st rows. However, more than 31 rows would be required of the 10‐cm stubble and 20‐cm stubble to intercept the same amount of wind erosion particles as with 27 rows of the 30‐cm stubble. The soil particle interception rate increased with an increase in the number of rows of standing stubble and decreased with an increase in wind speed. As expected, with additional rows of stubble, the amount of soil intercepted increased. Therefore, for a farmland that uses 400 plants m−2, leaves of 30‐cm high stubble with 52% cover, and has row spacing of ≤20 cm, the effective amount of standing stubble should be more than 27 rows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Tumours are more likely to metastasize after the development of resistance to EGFR‐TKIs. CD146 is a multifunctional molecule and is implicated in tumour invasion and metastasis; however, its role in lung cancer has not been clearly established. Objective: Here, we aimed to explore the relationship between CD146 pathway and stem cell phenotype after EGFR‐TKI resistance in lung cancer. Methods: EGFR‐TKI‐resistant cell lines were established by exposing parental cells to erlotinib/gefitinib. The CD146 level was measured by a western blot, RT‐PCR and immunocytochemistry fluorescent. Cell migration was examined by the transwell assay and the scratch assay. Stemness phenotype genes were evaluated by RT‐PCR and stem cell phenotype was observed by the microsphere formation assay. Results: CD146 and stemness phenotype genes increased while β‐catenin decreased in acquired EGFR‐TKI‐resistant cell lines. CD146's over‐expression induced the up‐regulation of stemness‐related genes and was inversely correlated with the β‐catenin expression, which further increased the migration capability of resistant cancer cells. CD146's knockdown suppressed cell migration and stemness phenotype. Conclusions: CD146 molecule contributes to the stemness phenotype and migration in EGFR‐TKI‐resistant cells. CD146 might be a potential therapeutic target for EGFR‐TKI‐resistant lung cancer or metastasis prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Herein, two efficient palladium‐catalyzed intermolecular oxidative coupling reactions of (Z)‐enamines with isocyanides via selective β‐C(sp2)‐H and/or C=C bond cleavage have been developed, leading to controllable chemodivergent and stereoselective construction of a wide range of (E)‐β‐carbamoylenamine derivatives containing strong intramolecular hydrogen bonds. Furthermore, possible reaction pathways for these transformations are proposed on the basis of preliminary mechanism studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Elucidating local dynamics of protein aggregation is crucial for understanding the mechanistic details of protein amyloidogenesis. Herein, we studied the residue‐specific dynamics and local environmental changes of Aβ40 along the course of aggregation by using para‐cyanophenylalanine (PheCN) as a fluorescent and vibrational probe. Our results show that the PheCN residues introduced at various positions all exhibited an immediate decay of fluorescence intensity, indicating a relatively synergistic process in early oligomer formation. The fast decreases in the fluorescence intensities of residues 19 and 20 in the central hydrophobic core region and residue 10 in the N‐terminal region suggest that they play crucial roles in the formation of the oligomeric core. The PheCN4 residue exhibits a remarkably slower decrease in fluorescence intensity, implicating its dynamic conformational characteristics in oligomer and fibril formation. Our results also suggest that the N‐terminal residues in fibrils are surrounded by a relatively hydrophobic local environment, as opposed to being solvated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bug reassignment (also known bug tossing) is a common activity in the life cycle of bug reports, and it increases the cost of time and labour to fix bugs in software projects. In large‐scale projects, about 6–10% of bug reports are tossed at least three times. However, the nature of repeatedly‐tossed bug reports was usually overlooked in previous works. This study focuses on developer features from four aspects, namely network centrality, developer workspace, developer expertise, and transmissibility of developers, to investigate which factors affect the tossing path length (TPL). By using statistical methods, this study finds that working theme, product, component, and degree centrality are key impact factors affecting the change of TPL. The four key features are then simplified to three core features, namely working theme, product, and component, which contribute about 90% of the variance of TPL. Finally, the two feature groups mentioned above are applied in six machine learning algorithms to predict potential developers for bug reports from Eclipse and Mozilla, and the results validate the effectiveness of the feature groups for developer recommendation. Hence, this study provides an easy‐to‐use feature selection method to train quality developer recommenders for automatic bug triage in an efficient way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polyester is commonly used in vascular surgery for patch angioplasty and grafts. We hypothesized that polyester patches heal by infiltration of arterial or venous progenitor cells depending on the site of implantation. Polyester patches were implanted into the Wistar rat aorta or inferior vena cava and explanted on day 7 or 30. Neointima that formed on polyester patches was thicker in the venous environment compared to the amount that formed on patches in the arterial environment. Venous patches had more cell proliferation and greater numbers of VCAM-positive and CD68-positive cells, whereas arterial patches had greater numbers of vimentin-positive and alpha-actin-positive cells. Although there were similar numbers of endothelial progenitor cells in the neointimal endothelium, cells in the arterial patch were Ephrin-B2- and notch-4-positive while those in the venous patch were Eph-B4- and COUP-TFII-positive. Venous patches treated with an arteriovenous fistula had decreased neointimal thickness; neointimal endothelial cells expressed Ephrin-B2 and notch-4 in addition to Eph-B4 and COUP-TFII. Polyester patches in the venous environment acquire venous identity, whereas patches in the arterial environment acquire arterial identity; patches in the fistula environment acquire dual arterial-venous identity. These data suggest that synthetic patches heal by acquisition of identity of their environment. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 105A: 3422-3431, 2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel palladium-catalyzed cyclization of alkynyl carboxylic acids with isocyanides has been successfully developed herein. The corresponding 5-iminofuranone or 5-iminopyrrolone derivatives were constructed in moderate to good yields which were well controlled by the solvents. These reactions proceed under simple and mild reaction conditions with high efficiency, and feature a wide substrate scope, readily available starting materials and easy operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subduction zones involve many complex geological processes, including the release of slab-derived fluids, fluid/rock interactions, partial melting, isotopic fractionations, elemental transporting, and crust/mantle interactions. Lithium (Li) isotopes (6Li and 7Li) have relative mass difference up to 16%, being the largest among metal elements. Thus, Li isotopes have advantage to interprete trace various geological processes. Most importantly, during crust/mantle interactions in deep subduction zones, surface materials and mantle rocks usually have distinct Li isotopic compositions. Li isotopes can be potential tracer for subduction processes, from the onset of subduction to the release of Li from subducted slabs and interaction with mantle wedge, as well as the fate of Li in slab-derived fluids and residual slabs. Moreover, the Li isotopic composition of subducting output materials can provide useful information for understanding global Li circulation. With developments in measurement and expansion of Li isotopic database, Li isotopic geochemistry will provide more inference and be a powerful tracer for understanding subduction-related processes. This work retrospected the application of Li isotopes in tracing successive subduction processes, and made some prospects for further studies of Li isotopes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rachis length is correlated with panicle size in rice. Unveiling the genetic basis of rachis length is important for understanding the genetic regulation of panicle size. In this study, we performed a genomewide association study of rachis length using 529 rice accessions from two environments. In total, 20 loci were identified for rachis length and distributed across the 12 chromosomes except for chromosomes 2 and 5. Thirteen of the 20 loci were not linked to the cloned panicle size genes. Six flowering-related genes, including the CCT domain-containing genes Ghd7, Ghd7.1, Hd1, OsCCT1 and OsCO3 as well as Ehd1, were associated with rachis length in this study. These findings suggest that the network of these flowering-related genes probably participates in the regulation of rachis length and thus affects panicle length and yield. Interestingly, haplotype analysis showed that OsCCT1 is a putative candidate gene which plays a key role in the variation of rachis length. Together, the genetic loci identified in this study could be used for rice breeding by marker-assisted selection to improve grain yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have established the important role of MIF in the development of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) for both therapeutic and diagnostic perspectives, but little is known about the expression and function of D-dopachrome tautomerase (DDT), a functional homolog of MIF, in PDAC. In the present study, we demonstrated that DDT was over-expressed in PDAC tissues in a pattern correlated with MIF. In the pancreatic cancer cell lines, PANC-1, BXPC-3 and ASPC-1, both DDT and MIF were expressed and co-localized with each other in the endosomal compartments and plasma membrane. Knockdown of DDT and MIF in PANC-1 cells cooperatively inhibited ERK1/2 and AKT phosphorylation, increased p53 expression, and reduced cell proliferation, invasion and tumor formation. These effects were rescued by the re-expression of MIF or DDT, but not by the forced expression of the tautomerase-deficient mutants of DDT and MIF, P1G-DDT and P1G-MIF. Finally, we observed that 4-iodo-6-phenylpyrimidine (4-IPP), a covalent tautomerase inhibitor of both DDT and MIF, attenuated PANC-1 cell proliferation and colony formation in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. Thus, targeting the tautomerase sites of both MIF and DDT may offer more efficient therapeutic benefits to PDAC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new hydrophilic polyhydric corrole ( 1) and its Ga(III) complex ( 1-Ga) were synthesized and characterized. Corroles 1 and 1-Ga bind to calf thymus DNA externally and exhibit remarkable photonuclease-like activity. Singlet oxygen (1O2) was identified as the reactive oxygen species involved. These corroles also exhibit significant photocytotoxicity against HeLa, A549, BEL-7402 and HepG2 tumor cell lines. They mainly accumulated in the nuclei of tumor cells. ROS-mediated mitochondrial damage and intracellular DNA disintegration contributed to the observed photodynamic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice cultivars have been adapted to favorable ecological regions and cropping seasons. Although several heading date genes have separately made contributions to this adaptation, the roles of gene combinations are still unclear., We employed a map-based cloning approach to isolate a heading date gene, which coordinated the interaction between Ghd7 and Ghd8 to greatly delay rice heading. We resequenced these three genes in a germplasm collection to analyze natural variation., Map-based cloning demonstrated that the gene largely affecting the interaction between Ghd7 and Ghd8 was Hd1. Natural variation analysis showed that a combination of loss-of-function alleles of Ghd7, Ghd8 and Hd1 contributes to the expansion of rice cultivars to higher latitudes; by contrast, a combination of pre-existing strong alleles of Ghd7, Ghd8 and functional Hd1 (referred as SSF) is exclusively found where ancestral Asian cultivars originated. Other combinations have comparatively larger favorable ecological scopes and acceptable grain yield., Our results indicate that the combinations of Ghd7, Ghd8 and Hd1 largely define the ecogeographical adaptation and yield potential in rice cultivars. Breeding varieties with the SSF combination are recommended for tropical regions to fully utilize available energy and light resources and thus produce greater yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stimuli-responsive poly( N-isopropylacrylamide) nanogel with covalently labeled rhodamine B urea derivatives (P(NIPAM- co-RhBUA)) is utilized as a sensitive fluorescent probe for Cr3+ in aqueous solution, and its thermo-induced tunable detection capacity is investigated. At 20 °C, non-fluorescent nanogel can selectively bind with Cr3+ over some other metal ions, leading to prominent fluorescence OFF-ON switching due to the recognition of RhBUA with Cr3+. Upon heating above the phase transition temperature, enhanced fluorescence intensity is observed (≈61-fold increase at 45 °C) for the nanogel in the presence of Cr3+, accompanied with an improved detection sensitivity, which suggest that hydrophobic microenvironment generated in the collapsed nanogel plays an active role for their detection performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]