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Scheme of the MCN@OEC-loaded CSF hydrogel.

Fiber length is one of the important characteristics of cotton fiber quality. It is of great significance to explore fiber length genes for breeding of cotton varieties with elite fiber quality. In the first phase of the study, 15 quantitative trait loci(QTLs) of fiber length were mapped based on a set of Gossypium mustelinum introgression lines,and an introgression line IL9 with elite fiber quality was selected by molecular marker-assisted breeding. A large F2 population was constructed by crossing of IL9 with the recurrent Upland cotton parent PD94042. Four DNA pools,namely DNA pools with the longest fiber length, the shortest fiber length, and the two parents, were subjected to nextgeneration sequencing-based bulked-segregant analysis(BSA-seq). Totally 34 potential candidate genes controlling fiber length were located in three regions on Chr.7, Chr.10, and Chr.18. By comparing the results of QTL mapping and BSA-seq, three candidate genes, namely Gh＿D13 G1294, Gh＿D13 G1295, and Gh＿D13 G1296 were obtained by functional annotation. These genes may play important roles in the improvement of fiber length in Upland cotton.

Fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLSs) have functions in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) through the onset of synovitis, the growth of pannus and the destruction of cartilage and bone. The significant increase in the proliferation, migration and invasion of FLSs induces the onset and advancement of RA. To date, the exact function of corepressor element-1 silencing transcription factor (CoREST) in RA remains unclear, but its expression has been determined in RA synovial tissues. In this study, the effects of CoREST were investigated in a TNF-α-induced FLS activation model. Following the silencing of CoREST expression with small interfering (si)RNA, the viability and migration of FLSs were evaluated. Furthermore, the possible molecular mechanisms were explored by detecting the expression of key factors, including matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), lysine-specific histone demethylase 1 (LSD1) and associated cytokines, via reverse transcription-quantitative PCR and western blotting. CoREST expression increased not only in the RA synovial tissues, but also in the TNF-α-induced FLS activation model. Following the silencing of CoREST in the FLSs treated with TNF-α, cell viability was inhibited, and the migratory capacity of FLSs was suppressed, which was accompanied by the reduced expression of MMP-3 and MMP-9. The expression of LSD1 was also downregulated. There was a notable decrease in the synthesis of interferon-γ and interleukin (IL)-17, while IL-10 expression was increased. The knockdown of CoREST inhibited the viability and migration of FLSs stimulated with TNF-α. Thus, the suppression of CoREST may have crucial roles in the occurrence and development of RA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared with conventional dynamic nonlinear equation systems, a hybrid double-deck dynamic nonlinear equation system (H3DNES) not only has multiple layers describing more different tasks in practice, but also has a hybrid nonlinear structure of solution and its derivative describing their nonlinear constraints. Its characteristics lead to the ability to describe more complicated problems involving multiple constraints, and strong nonlinear and dynamic features, such as robot manipulator tracking control. Besides, noises are inevitable in practice and thus strong robustness of models solving H3DNES is also necessary. In this work, a multilayered noise-tolerant zeroing neural network (MNTZNN) model is proposed for solving H3DNES. MNTZNN model has strong robustness and it solves H3DNES successfully even when noises exist in both the two layers of H3DNES. In order to develop the MNTZNN model, a new zeroing neural network (ZNN) design formula is proposed. It not only enables equations with respect to solutions to become equations with respect to the second-order derivatives of solutions but also makes the corresponding model have strong robustness. The robustness of the MNTZNN model is proved when parameters in the model satisfy a loose constraint and the error bounds are programmable via setting appropriate parameter values. Finally, the MNTZNN model is applied to the tracking control of the six-link planar robot manipulator and PUMA560 robot manipulator with hybrid nonlinear constraints of joint angle and velocity.

Berberine is a widely used antimicrobial agent in clinic. However, a high dosage is often required due to its low lipophilicity and bioavailability. The current study explores the structural modifications of berberines with potentially lipophilic aryl groups to address this problem. A series of 15 9-O-aryl-substituted berberines ( 3a - o ) and one 9-O-phenylene-bridged berberine dimer ( 5 ) was synthesized by copper-catalyzed cross-coupling of tetrahydroberberrubine and aryl iodides, followed by oxidation with I 2 .