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We have investigated the atomic and electronic structures, and carrier mobility on Group-IV diamond nanothreads (DNTs-C, DNTs-SiC, DNTs-Si and DNTs-Ge) using density functional theory. It is shown that all of Group-IV diamond nanothreads are wide gap semiconductors (>3eV). The highest electron (hole) mobility value is even up to ∼1.15×105 (1.38×103) cm2V-1s-1. Due to the huge difference mobility in hole and electron, DNTs-Si and DNTs-Ge can be considered as p-type semiconductors, and DNTs-C can be considered as n-type semiconductor. Our results suggest that Group-IV diamond nanothreads is a new material that can be applied in optoelectronics and nanoelectronic devices in some special conditions, such as high-temperature devices, wide-gap semiconductors, transparent conductors and so on.

Within the microenvironment of multiple sclerosis lesions, oligodendrocytes are subject to metabolic stress reflecting effects of focal ischemia and inflammation. Previous studies have shown that under optimal conditions in vitro, the respiratory activity of human adult brain-derived oligodendrocytes is lower and more predominantly glycolytic compared to oligodendrocytes differentiated in vitro from post natal rat brain oligodendrocyte progenitor cells. In response to sub-lethal metabolic stress, adult human oligodendrocytes reduce overall energy production rate impacting the capacity to maintain myelination. Here, we directly compare the metabolic profiles of oligodendrocytes derived from adult rat brain with oligodendrocytes newly differentiated in vitro from oligodendrocyte progenitor cells obtained from the post natal rat brain, under both optimal culture and metabolic stress (low/no glucose) conditions. Oxygen consumption and extracellular acidification rates were measured using a Seahorse extracellular flux analyzer. Our findings indicate that under optimal conditions, adult rat oligodendrocytes preferentially use glycolysis whereas newly differentiated post natal rat oligodendrocytes, and the oligodendrocyte progenitor cells from which they are derived, mainly utilize oxidative phosphorylation to produce ATP. Metabolic stress increases the rate of ATP production via oxidative phosphorylation and significantly reduces glycolysis in adult oligodendrocytes. The rate of ATP production was relatively unchanged in newly differentiated post natal oligodendrocytes under these stress conditions, while it was significantly reduced in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells. Our study indicates that both age and maturation influence the metabolic profile under optimal and stressed conditions, emphasizing the need to consider these variables for in vitro studies that aim to model adult human disease.

Chemical fertilizer plays an important role in increasing food production in China. Nevertheless, excessive nitrogen fertilizer use in China has resulted in severe environmental problems. The goal of this paper is to examine the impacts of an improved nitrogen management (INM) training experiment on farmers' chemical nitrogen (N) use behaviors in maize production in China. Based on household data collected from 813 maize farmers in Shandong, China, this study finds that while INM training can significantly reduce farmers' N fertilizer use, an INM training is not sufficient to change farmer's practices significantly, and farmers only partially adopted the recommended INM. This study reveals that China faces challenges to transform its agriculture to a low-carbon one. The research also sheds light on China's extension system and future technologies in meeting the objectives of reducing the excessive nitrogen fertilizer use in agricultural production.

Differentiation of oligodendroglial precursor cells (OPCs), a crucial prerequisite for central nervous system (CNS) remyelination in diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS), is modulated by a multitude of extrinsic and intrinsic factors. In a previous study we revealed that the chemokine CXCL12 stimulates rodent OPC differentiation via activation of its receptor CXCR7. We could now demonstrate that CXCR7 is also expressed on NogoA- and Nkx2.2-positive oligodendroglial cells in human MS brains and that stimulation of cultured primary fetal human OPCs with CXCL12 promotes their differentiation as measured by surface marker expression and morphologic complexity. Pharmacological inhibition of CXCR7 effectively blocks these CXCL12-dependent effects. Our findings therefore suggest that a specific activation of CXCR7 could provide a means to promote oligodendroglial differentiation facilitating endogenous remyelination activities.

Controlling the concentration of drugs in pharmaceutical products is essential to patient’s safety. In this study, a simple and sensitive HPLC method is developed to quantitatively analyze capsaicin in collagen sponge. The capsaicin from sponge was extracted for 30 min with ultrasonic wave extraction technique and methanol was used as solvent. The chromatographic method was performed by using isocratic system composed of acetonitrile-water (70 : 30) with a flow rate of 1 mL/min and the detection wavelength was at 280 nm. Capsaicin can be successfully separated with good linearity (the regression equation is A = 9.7182C + 0.8547; R2 = 1.0) and perfect recovery (99.72%). The mean capsaicin concentration in collagen sponge was 49.32 mg/g (RSD = 1.30%; n = 3). In conclusion, the ultrasonic wave extraction method is simple and the extracting efficiency is high. The HPLC assay has excellent sensitivity and specificity and is a convenient method for capsaicin detection in collagen sponge. This paper firstly discusses the quantitative analysis of capsaicin in collagen sponge.

Multiple sclerosis is the most frequent demyelinating disease in the human CNS characterized by inflammation, demyelination, relative axonal loss and gliosis. Remyelination occurs, but is frequently absent or restricted to a small remyelinated rim at the lesion border. Impaired differentiation of oligodendroglial precursor cells is one factor contributing to limited remyelination, especially in chronic MS. TCF7L2 is an oligodendroglial transcription factor regulating myelin gene expression during developmental myelination as well as remyelination. TCF7L2 binds to co-effectors such as β-catenin or histone deacetylases and thereby activates or inhibits the transcription of downstream genes involved in oligodendroglial differentiation. To determine whether TCF7L2 can be used as a marker for differentiating or myelinating oligodendrocytes, we analyzed the expression patterns of TCF7L2 during myelination and remyelination in human and murine CNS tissue samples. Here, we demonstrate that marked expression of TCF7L2 in oligodendrocytes is restricted to a well defined time period during developmental myelination in human and mouse CNS tissue samples. In demyelinating diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, TCF7L2 is reexpressed in oligodendrocytes in a subset of MS patients, but is also present in tissue samples from patients with non-demyelinating, inflammatory diseases. Furthermore, TCF7L2 expression was also detected in astrocytes. HDAC2, a potential binding partner of TCF7L2 that promotes oligodendroglial differentiation and myelination, is expressed in the majority of oligodendrocytes in controls and MS tissue samples. In summary, our data demonstrate that the expression of TCF7L2 in oligodendrocytes is limited to a certain differentiation stage; however the expression of TCF7L2 is neither restricted to the oligodendroglial lineage nor to (re-)myelinating conditions.

The undecapeptide substance P has been demonstrated to modulate neuronal activity in a number of brain regions by acting on neurokinin-1 receptors. Anatomical studies revealed a moderate level of neurokinin-1 receptor in rat globus pallidus. To determine the electrophysiological effects of neurokinin-1 receptor activation in globus pallidus, whole-cell patch-clamp recordings were performed in the present study. Under current-clamp recordings, neurokinin-1 receptor agonist, [Sar9, Met(O2)11] substance P (SM-SP) at 1 μM, depolarized globus pallidus neurons and increased their firing rate. Consistently, SM-SP induced an inward current under voltage-clamp recording. The depolarization evoked by SM-SP persisted in the presence of tetrodotoxin, glutamate and GABA receptor antagonists, indicating its direct postsynaptic effects. The neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist, SR140333B, could block SM-SP-induced depolarization. Further experiments showed that suppression of potassium conductance was the predominant ionic mechanism of SM-SP-induced depolarization. To determine if neurokinin-1 receptor activation exerts any effects on GABAergic and glutamatergic neurotransmission, the action of SM-SP on synaptic currents was studied. SM-SP significantly increased the frequency of spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic currents, but only induced a transient increase in the frequency of miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents. No change was observed in both spontaneous and miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents. Based on the direct excitatory effects of SM-SP on pallidal neurons, we hypothesize that neurokinin-1 receptor activation in globus pallidus may be involved in the beneficial effect of substance P in Parkinson’s disease.

A convenient, straightforward, two-step reaction of α-hydroxyhydrocarbylphosphonates with arylisothiocyanates in the presence of catalytic amounts of sodium methoxide in 1,2-dichloroethane as solvent produced various new α-(arylamino thiocarbonyloxy) hydrocarbylphosphonates in excellent yields. Their structures have been confirmed by their IR, ¹H NMR and 31P NMR spectra and by elemental analysis. The preliminary antisepsis activity and protein activity of some of the compounds were identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To observe the effect of acupuncture and moxibustion on arterial elasticity in patients with early carotid atherosclerosis., Methods: A total of 62 patients with early carotid atherosclerosis were randomly divided into a blank group (12 cases, 1 cases dropped-off), a sham-acupuncture group (25 cases, 5 cases dropped-off) and an acupuncture group (25 cases, 3 cases dropped-off). Patients in the acupuncture group received acupuncture treatment, including ①acupuncture：Baihui (GV20), Yintang (GV24 + ), Renying (ST9), Neiguan (PC6), Yanglingquan (GB34)；②moxibustion：Yinqiguiyuan (Zhongwan ［CV12］, Xiawan ［CV10］, Qihai ［CV6］, Guanyuan ［CV4］), Sihua (Geshu ［BL17］, Danshu ［BL19］)；③Intradermal needle：Xinshu (BL15), Danshu (BL19). Patients in the sham acupuncture group received placebo acupuncture, moxibustion, an intradermal needle, and the acupoints were the same as the acupuncture group. The above treatments were performed twice a week for 12 weeks. No intervention was given to the patients in the blank group. Diet and lifestyle education was given to the three groups. The ultrafast pulse wave velocity, including beginning-systolic pulse wave velocity (BS) and end-systolic pulse wave velocity (ES), was observed before treatment and 1, 2, 3 months after treatment in the three groups. The blood lipid level and platelet count (PLT) at each time point were observed. The safety of the treatments was also evaluated., Results: Compared with those before treatment, the BS and ES values of both sides in the acupuncture group decreased at 2 and 3 months after treatment ( P <0.05). Compared with the blank group, the bilateral ES of the acupuncture group were decreased at 2 months after treatment ( P <0.05), and the bilateral BS and ES were decreased at 3 months ( P <0.05). Compared with the sham-acupuncture group, the acupuncture group showed a decrease in left BS and left ES after 3 months of treatment ( P <0.05), and the overall decrease on the left side of the acupuncture group was better than that on the right side. There were no significant differences between three groups in the levels of blood lipid and PLT at each time point. No serious adverse safety events occurred in the three groups during the treatment., Conclusions: Acupuncture and moxibustion therapy can improve arterial elasticity in patients with early carotid atherosclerosis, and it is safe and effective.

Fusarium proliferatum is the main pathogen that causes Panax notoginseng root rot. The shortcomings of strong volatility and poor water solubility of Illicium verum essential oil (EO) limit its utilization. In this study, we prepared traditional emulsion (BDT) and nanoemulsion (Bneo) of I. verum EO by ultrasonic method with Tween-80 and absolute ethanol as solvents. The chemical components of EO, BDT, and Bneo were identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and the antifungal activity and mechanism were compared. The results show that Bneo has good stability and its particle size is 34.86 nm. The contents of (-) -anethole and estragole in Bneo were significantly higher than those in BDT. The antifungal activity against F. proliferatum was 5.8-fold higher than BDT. In the presence of I. verum EO, the occurrence of P. notoginseng root rot was significantly reduced. By combining transcriptome and metabolomics analysis, I. verum EO was found to be involved in the mutual transformation of pentose and glucuronic acid, galactose metabolism, streptomycin biosynthesis, carbon metabolism, and other metabolic pathways of F. proliferatum, and it interfered with the normal growth of F. proliferatum to exert antifungal effects. This study provide a theoretical basis for expanding the practical application of Bneo., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Cuproptosis is a novel discovered mode of programmed cell death. To identify the molecular regulatory patterns related to cuproptosis, this study was designed for exploring the correlation between cuproptosis-related genes (CRGs) and the prognosis, metabolism, and treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database was used to screen 363 HCC samples, which were categorized into 2 clusters based on the expression of CRGs. Survival analysis demonstrated that overall survival (OS) was better in Cluster 1 than Cluster 2 which might to be relevant to differences in metabolic based on functional analysis. With LASSO regression analysis and univariate COX regression, 8 prognosis-related genes were screened, a differently expressed genes (DEGs) were then constructed (HCC patients' DEGs)-based signature. The signature's stability was also validated in the 2 independent cohorts and test cohorts (GSE14520, HCC dataset in PCAWG). The 1-year, 3-year, and 5-year area under the curve (AUC) were 0.756, 0.706, and 0.722, respectively. The signature could also well predict the response to chemotherapy, targeted and transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) by providing a risk score. Moreover, the correlation was uncovered by the research between the metabolism and risk score. In conclusion, a unique cuproptosis-related signature that be capable of predicting patients' prognosis with HCC, and offered valuable insights into chemotherapy, TACE and targeted therapies for these patients has been developed., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)

It is widely accepted that body weight and adipose mass are tightly regulated by homeostatic mechanisms, in which leptin plays a critical role through hypothalamic pathways, and obesity is a result of homeostatic disorder. However, in C57BL/6J mice, we found that Rcan2 increases food intake and plays an important role in the development of age- and diet-induced obesity through a leptin-independent mechanism. RCAN2 was initially identified as a thyroid hormone (T3)-responsive gene in human fibroblasts. Expression of RCAN2 is regulated by T3 through the PI3K-Akt/PKB-mTOR-Rps6kb1 signaling pathway. Intriguingly, both Rcan2(-/-) and Rps6kb1(-/-) mutations were reported to result in lean phenotypes in mice. In this study we compared the effects of these two mutations on growth and body weight in C57BL/6J mice. We observed reduced body weight and lower fat mass in both Rcan2(-/-) and Rps6kb1(-/-) mice compared to the wild-type mice, and we reported other differences unique to either the Rcan2(-/-) or Rps6kb1(-/-) mice. Firstly, loss of Rcan2 does not directly alter body length; however, Rcan2(-/-) mice exhibit reduced food intake. In contrast, Rps6kb1(-/-) mice exhibit abnormal embryonic development, which leads to smaller body size and reduced food intake in adulthood. Secondly, when fed a normal chow diet, Rcan2(-/-) mice weigh significantly more than Rps6kb1(-/-) mice, but both Rcan2(-/-) and Rps6kb1(-/-) mice develop similar amounts of epididymal fat. On a high-fat diet, Rcan2(-/-) mice gain body weight and fat mass at slower rates than Rps6kb1(-/-) mice. Finally, using the double-knockout mice (Rcan2(-/-) Rps6kb1(-/-)), we demonstrate that concurrent loss of Rcan2 and Rps6kb1 has an additive effect on body weight reduction in C57BL/6J mice. Our data suggest that Rcan2 and Rps6kb1 mutations both affect growth and body weight of mice, though likely through different mechanisms., Competing Interests: Compliance with ethics guidelines: Jing ZHAO, Shi-wei LI, Qian-qian GONG, Ling-cui DING, Ye-cheng JIN, Jian ZHANG, Jian-gang GAO, and Xiao-yang SUN declare that they have no conflict of interest. All institutional and national guidelines for the care and use of laboratory animals were followed.

Objective: To explore the mechanism of natural moxibustion on regulating immune imbalance in asthma rats., Methods: Seventy SD male rats were divided into a normal group, a placebo group, a dexamethasone group, a big-cake for long-course moxibustion group, a big-cake for short-course moxibustion group, a small-cake for long-course moxibustion group and a small-cake for short-course moxibustion group, ten rats in each one. The rat model of asthma was established by egg albumen sensitization and stimulation in all the groups except the normal group. The natural moxibustion was used in all moxibustion groups, in which big cake of 1 cmX 1 cm size was used in the big-cake groups and small cake of 0.5 cmX 0. 5 cm size was used in the small cake groups. According to relevant acupoints, the natural moxibustion was performed, 5 h per time, once a day. Four times of treatment was considered one course, and three courses were required in the long-course groups and one course was required in the short-course groups. Intraperitoneal injection of dexamethasone was applied in the dexamethasone group, which had the same course as long-course moxibustion group. After the treatment, changes of EOS in peripheral blood of asthma rats were observed; enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was applied to test the contents of IgE, IL-4 and IFN-gamma in the lung tissue; real-time Q-PCR method was adopted to measure the expression level of transcription factor T-bet and GATA binding protein 3 (GATA-3) in the lung tissue., Results: Compared with the normal group, the EOS in whole blood as well as IL-4 and IgE in plasma were all increased in the placebo group (all P< 0. 01), IFN-gamma in plasma was obviously decreased (P<0. 01); while the levels of EOS, IgE and IL-4 were significantly reduced (all P<0. 01), the content of IFN-gamma was increased (P<0. 01) in all moxibustion groups and dexametnasone group. Compared with the normal group, the expression of T-bet mRNA in the placebo group was significantly reduced (P<0. 01). Each treatment group could significantly increase the expression of T-bet mRNA and reduce that of GATA-3 mRNA (P<0. 01). Compared with the short-course moxibustion groups, the expression of T-bet mRNA was obviously increased in the long-course moxibustion group and dexamethasone group (both P<0.01), and that of GATA-3 mRNA was reduced (P<0.01). There was no significant difference between long-course moxibustion group and dexamethasone group (P> 0. 05), and also no significant difference could be seen between big-cake moxibustion group and small-cake moxibustion group (P>0. 05)., Conclusion: The natural moxibustion could obviously reduce airway inflammation in asthma rats. With time passing, the efficacy is enhanced, indicating evident timeliness, which has no apparent relationship with the size of moxibustion cake.