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Zanthoxylum armatum DC. (Rutaceae) is a shrub and/or tree species with the important medicinal and economic values. In this study, the plastid genome of Z . armatum was characterized by Illumina Hiseq 2500 sequencing platform. In total, the plastid genome is 158,557 bp in length, and comprises a large single copy region of 85,752 bp, a small single copy region of 17,605 bp, and two inverted repeat regions of 27,600 bp. The complete plastid genome contains 87 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, and 8 rRNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that Z . armatum and the congeneric Z. simulans clustered into an evolutionary clade with the high support., Competing Interests: No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors., (© 2020 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.)

Background: In pandemics, local hospitals need to anticipate a surge in health care needs. We examined the modelled surge because of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic that was used to inform the early hospital-level response against cases as they transpired., Methods: To estimate hospital-level surge in March and April 2020, we simulated a range of scenarios of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spread in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Canada, using the best available data at the time. We applied outputs to hospital-specific data to estimate surge over 6 weeks at 2 hospitals (St. Michael's Hospital and St. Joseph's Health Centre). We examined multiple scenarios, wherein the default (R 0 = 2.4) resembled the early trajectory (to Mar. 25, 2020), and compared the default model projections with observed COVID-19 admissions in each hospital from Mar. 25 to May 6, 2020., Results: For the hospitals to remain below non-ICU bed capacity, the default pessimistic scenario required a reduction in non-COVID-19 inpatient care by 38% and 28%, respectively, with St. Michael's Hospital requiring 40 new ICU beds and St. Joseph's Health Centre reducing its ICU beds for non-COVID-19 care by 6%. The absolute difference between default-projected and observed census of inpatients with COVID-19 at each hospital was less than 20 from Mar. 25 to Apr. 11; projected and observed cases diverged widely thereafter. Uncertainty in local epidemiological features was more influential than uncertainty in clinical severity., Interpretation: Scenario-based analyses were reliable in estimating short-term cases, but would require frequent re-analyses. Distribution of the city's surge was expected to vary across hospitals, and community-level strategies were key to mitigating each hospital's surge., Competing Interests: Competing interests: Eric Coomes is the co–principal investigator on a randomized controlled trial of chemoprophylaxis for COVID-19. This trial is funded by the Toronto COVID-19 Action Initiative and Thistledown Foundation. No other competing interests were declared., (Copyright 2020, Joule Inc. or its licensors.)

Small-scale optical and mechanical components and machines require control over three-dimensional structure at the microscale. Inspired by the analogy between paper and two-dimensional materials, origami-style folding of atomically thin materials offers a promising approach for making microscale structures from the thinnest possible sheets. In this Letter, we show that a monolayer of molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2 ) can be folded into three-dimensional shapes by a technique called capillary origami, in which the surface tension of a droplet drives the folding of a thin sheet. We define shape nets by patterning rigid metal panels connected by MoS 2 hinges, allowing us to fold micron-scale polyhedrons. Finally, we demonstrate that these shapes can be folded in parallel without the use of micropipettes or microfluidics by means of a microemulsion of droplets that dissolves into the bulk solution to drive folding. These results demonstrate controllable folding of the thinnest possible materials using capillary origami and indicate a route forward for design and parallel fabrication of more complex three-dimensional micron-scale structures and machines.

Current evidence supports the use of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for a diverse range of clinical applications, and many studies have shown that MSCs have renal-protective effects, but the mechanism is not well understood. Therefore, in this study, we aim to further identify whether MSCs can attenuate renal fibrosis by decreasing tubulointerstitial injury in a unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) model. In this study, we cultured MSCs and then transplanted them into a UUO model through the tail vein. Histology, cell proliferation, peritubular capillary (PTC) loss and myofibroblast markers were examined on days 3, 7 and 14 after surgery. We demonstrated that renal interstitial fibrosis in the MSC group was significantly attenuated compared with the UUO and DMEM groups. Moreover, MSC treatment inhibited the loss of PTCs and increased parenchymal cell proliferation. In addition, UUO-induced activation and proliferation of myofibroblasts were suppressed by MSC infusion. Furthermore, MSCs attenuated tubulointerstitial infiltration of macrophages in UUO mice. Tubulointerstitial damage plays a very important role in the progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD). PTC loss, macrophage recruitment, and myofibroblast activation are directly correlated with the development of renal tubulointerstitial fibrosis. Our results suggest that MSC infusion in the UUO model is a promising therapeutic strategy for promoting kidney repair., (© 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Mass concentration, seasonal variation and sources of organic carbon (OC), element carbon (EC), methanol-soluble organic carbon (MSOC), and seven carbon components (OC1-4, EC1-3) were detected by thermal-optical analysis of 353 PM 2.5 samples in Xi'an in 2017. The results show that the average mass concentrations of OC, EC, and MSOC were (17.56±11.83), (4.08±2.95) and (11.10±6.77) μg·m -3 , respectively. The seasonal trend of the OC concentration follows the order winter > spring > summer > autumn. The seasonal trend in EC concentration follows the order winter > spring≈autumn > summer. The average MSOC/OC value is 0.64±0.20. The highest value is observed in winter and the lowest in summer. The correlation between OC and EC is good in spring ( r 2 =0.76), but the correlation is poor in winter ( r 2 =0.43). These results indicate that the source of the carbon aerosols was different. The content of secondary organic aerosols was estimated by the EC tracing method. The average mass concentration of SOC accounted for 51.9%, 38.4%, 37.3% and 44.0% of OC in spring, summer, autumn, and winter, respectively. The main sources of carbonaceous aerosols were analyzed by principal component analysis. The results show that carbonaceous aerosols originate mainly from coal and vehicle emissions in Xi'an.

Metabolomics offers a noninvasive methodology to identify metabolic markers for pathogenesis and diagnosis of diseases. This work aimed to characterize circulating metabolic signatures of benign thyroid nodule (BTN) and papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) via serum-plasma matched metabolomics. A cohort of 1,540 serum-plasma matched samples and 114 tissues were obtained from healthy volunteers, BTN and PTC patients enrolled from 6 independent centers. Untargeted metabolomics was determined by liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometric and multivariate statistical analyses. The use of serum-plasma matched samples afforded a broad-scope detection of 1,570 metabolic features. Metabolic phenotypes revealed significant pattern differences for healthy versus BTN and healthy versus PTC. Perturbed metabolic pathways related mainly to amino acid and lipid metabolism. It is worth noting that, BTN and PTC showed no significant differences but rather overlap in circulating metabolic signatures, and this observation was replicated in all study centers. For differential diagnosis of healthy versus thyroid nodules (BTN + PTC), a panel of 6 metabolic markers, namely myo-inositol, α-N-phenylacetyl-L-glutamine, proline betaine, L-glutamic acid, LysoPC(18:0) and LysoPC(18:1) provided area under the curve of 97.68% in the discovery phase and predictive accuracies of 84.78-98.18% in the 4 validation centers. Taken together, serum-plasma matched metabolomics showed significant differences in circulating metabolites for healthy versus nodules but not for BTN versus PTC. Our results highlight the true metabolic nature of thyroid nodules, and potentially decrease overtreatment that exposes patients to unnecessary risks., (© 2018 UICC.)

Objective To demonstrate the correlation between nuclear and cytoplasmic G protein-coupled oestrogen receptor (GPR30) expression and clinicopathological features and outcome in patients with ovarian cancer. Methods Nuclear and cytoplasmic GPR30 expressions were determined using immunohistochemistry to identify the intracellular location in tissues from patients with ovarian cancer. Data were correlated with clinicopathological characteristics and outcomes. Results Tissue samples were obtained from 110 patients with epithelial ovarian cancer between 2005 and 2010. Nuclear GPR30 was significantly more frequent in the group of patients with recurrence. The presence of nuclear GPR30 predicted lower overall survival) and 5-year progression-free survival in all patients with ovarian cancer and overall survival in patients with high grade ovarian cancer. Cytoplasmic GPR30 was observed significantly more often in advanced ovarian cancer and did not predict survival. Conclusion This study showed that nuclear GPR30 is an independent negative prognostic indicator in patients with ovarian cancer, especially in those with a high grade malignancy.

Purpose: To assess the intraoperative complications during small-incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) for myopia and myopic astigmatism correction and evaluate visual outcomes 6 months postoperatively., Setting: Tianjin Eye Hospital, Tianjin, China., Design: Retrospective case series., Methods: Patients who had small-incision lenticule extraction surgery were examined 1 day, 7 days, 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months postoperatively. Demographic characteristics, visual outcomes, and intraoperative complications were recorded. Moreover, the incidence and management of the complications and the potential factors were analyzed., Results: Of the 3004 eyes (1511 patients), 134 (4.46%) had intraoperative complications, including suction loss (28 cases [0.93%]), incisional bleeding (28 cases [0.93%]), opaque bubble layer (22 cases [0.73%]), subconjunctival hemorrhage (20 cases [0.67%]), black areas (10 cases [0.33%]), unintended posterior plane dissection (10 cases [0.33%]), tearing of the lenticule (8 cases [0.27%]), abrasion at the incision (5 cases [0.17%]), and inaccurate laser pulse placement due to eye movement (3 cases [0.10%]). The complications were resolved instantaneously using appropriate management procedures; all cases had good visual outcomes. Six months postoperatively, 99.80% of cases had an uncorrected distance visual acuity better than 20/25 and the mean corrected distance visual acuity was -0.06 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution ± 0.07 (SD)., Conclusions: Although small-incision lenticule extraction shows promising outcomes for correction of myopia and myopic astigmatism, intraoperative complications still inevitably occur. However, satisfactory visual outcomes may be achieved using appropriate management techniques., (Copyright © 2017 ASCRS and ESCRS. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) is a crucial component of the neuronal circuitry mediating aversive emotion. Its role in the negative affective states during drug withdrawal includes changes in opioidergic, GABAergic, and corticotropin-releasing factor neurotransmission. However, the modulation of the neurobiological interconnectivity in the CeA and its effects in the negative reinforcement of drug dependents are poorly understood., Method: We performed electrophysiological recordings to assess the membrane excitability of parvalbumin (PV) + interneurons in the CeA during chronic morphine withdrawal. We tested the morphine withdrawal-induced negative affective states, such as the aversive (assessed by conditioned place aversion), anxiety (assessed by elevated plus maze), and anhedonic-like (assessed by saccharin preference test) behaviors, as well as the mRNA level of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) via optogenetic inhibition or activation of PV + interneurons in the CeA., Result: Chronic morphine withdrawal increased the firing rate of CeA PV + interneurons. Optogenetic inhibition of the activity of CeA PV + interneurons attenuated the morphine withdrawal-induced negative affective states, such as the aversive, anxiety, and anhedonic-like behaviors, while direct activation of CeA PV + interneurons could trigger those negative affective-like behaviors. Optogenetic inhibition of the CeA PV + interneurons during the morphine withdrawal significantly attenuated the elevated CRH mRNA level in the CeA., Conclusion: The activity of PV + interneurons in the CeA was up-regulated during chronic morphine withdrawal. The activation of PV + interneurons during morphine withdrawal was crucial for the induction of the negative emotion and the up-regulation of CRH mRNA levels in the CeA., (© The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of CINP.)

A novel product-derived bimetallic palladium complex catalyzes a sulfonylazide-transfer reaction with the σ-donor/π-acceptor ligand CO, and is advantageous given its broad substrate scope, high efficiency, and mild reaction conditions (atmospheric pressure of CO at room temperature). This methodology provides a new approach to sulfonylureas, which are present in both pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. The synthesis of Glibenclamide on a gram scale further revealed the practical utility of this procedure. Mechanistically, the generation of a bridged bimetallic palladium species derived from the product sulfonylurea is disclosed as the crucial step for this catalytic cycle., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

A facile and efficient Pd/C-catalyzed carbonylation of both aliphatic and aromatic azides in the presence of amines is reported. Serving as the widely existed fragments in an array of biological pharmaceuticals, functionalized unsymmetrical ureas were straightforwardly synthesized by using readily available and cheap azides with amines under CO atmosphere, with the extrusion of N2 as the only byproduct. It was found that not only aryl azides but also benzyl and alkyl azides were suited for this methodology. Another feature of this procedure was the employment of a highly efficient palladium charcoal catalytic system.

Pyridine-based compounds have been playing a crucial role as agrochemicals or pesticides including fungicides, insecticides/acaricides and herbicides, etc. Since most of the agrochemicals listed in the Pesticide Manual were discovered through screening programs that relied on trial-and-error testing and new agrochemical discovery is not benefiting as much from the in silico new chemical compound identification/discovery techniques used in pharmaceutical research, it has become more important to find new methods to enhance the efficiency of discovering novel lead compounds in the agrochemical field to shorten the time of research phases in order to meet changing market requirements. In this review, we selected 18 representative known agrochemicals containing a pyridine moiety and extrapolate their discovery from the perspective of Intermediate Derivatization Methods in the hope that this approach will have greater appeal to researchers engaged in the discovery of agrochemicals and/or pharmaceuticals., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study aims to investigate the characteristics of genomic variation of pandemic A/H1N1/2009 influenza virus isolated in Fujian Province, China. Complete genome sequence analysis was performed on 14 strains of pandemic A/H1N1/2009 influenza virus isolated from Fujian during 2009-2012. All virus strains were typical low-pathogenic influenza viruses, with resistance to amantadine and sensitivity to neuraminidase inhibitors. Eight genome fragments of all strains were closely related to those of A/California/07/2009 (H1N1) vaccine strain, with > or = 98.2% homology. Compared with the vaccine strain, the influenza strains from Fujian had relatively large variation, and variation was identified at 11 amino acid sites of the HA gene of A/Fujiangulou/SWL1155/2012 strain, including 4 sites (H138R, L161I, S185T, and S203T) involved inthree antigen determinants (Ca, Sa, and Sb). In conclusion, the influenza vaccine has a satisfactory protective effect on Fujian population, but the influenza strains from Fujian in 2012 has antigenic drift compared with the vaccine strain, more attention should therefore be paid to the surveillance of mutations of pandemic A/H1N1/2009 influenza virus.

Efficient stereoselective total synthesis of (+)-muricatacin (1) and (+)-epi-muricatacin (8) was accomplished from commercially available chemical pent-4-ynoic acid via Shi's asymmetric epoxidation and Mitsunobu reaction as the key steps in 17.8% and 26.9% overall yields, respectively.

The racemic 7-methyl-7-hydroxy-2,3-benzo[c]octa-1,6-olide, the analog of natural product (6R)-3,7-dimethyl-7-hydroxy-2-octen-1,6-olide, was totally synthesized using easily available (E)-2-(2-carboxyvinyl)benzoic acid as a raw material in nine-step reactions including three key steps of Wittig reaction, epoxidation, and cyclization, with an overall yield of 10.3%. The bioassay results showed that ( ± )-2 exhibited stronger antifungal activity than the natural product ( ± )-1 and (R)-1 against Alternaria solani with an EC₅₀ value of 27.36 μg/ml.

3,7-Dimethyl-7-hydroxy-2-octen-1,6-olide and 3,7-dimethyl-2,6-octadien-1,6-olide, the natural bioactive compounds isolated from the fruit of Litsea cubeba and the liverwort Plagiochila rutilans, were totally synthesized using easily available cis-geraniol as raw material in short, convenient, and low-cost, five-step reactions including three steps of oxidation, cyclization, and dehydration, with an overall yield of 47.5% and 37.3%.

WU polyomavirus (WUPyV), a new member of the genus Polyomavirus in the family Polyomaviridae, is recently found in patients with respiratory tract infections. In our study, the complete genome of the two WUPyV isolates (FZ18, FZTF) were sequenced and deposited in GenBank (accession nos. FJ890981, FJ890982). The two sequences of the WUPyV isolates in this study varied little from each other. Compared with other complete genome sequences of WUPyV in GenBank (strain B0, S1-S4, CLFF, accession nos. EF444549, EF444550, EF444551, EF444552, EF444553, EU296475 respectively), the sequence length in nucleotides is 5228bp, 1bp shorter than the known sequences. The deleted base pair was at nucleotide position 4536 in the non-coding region of large T antigen (LTAg). The genome of the WUPyV encoded for five proteins. They were three capsid proteins: VP2, VP1, VP3 and LTAg, small T antigen (STAg), respectively. To investigate whether these nucleotide sequences had any unique features, we compared the genome sequence of the 2 WUPyV isolates in Fuzhou, China to those documented in the GenBank database by using PHYLIP software version 3.65 and the neighbor-joining method. The 2 WUPyV strains in our study were clustered together. Strain FZTF was more closed to the reference strain B0 of Australian than strain FZ18.

Objective: To explore the feasibility of a bone cancer pain model by injecting the Lewis lung carcinoma cells into the femur bone marrow cavity of C57BL/6 mice., Methods: Sixty clear grade male C57BL/6 mice (body weight 18 approximately 20 g) were randomly divided into 4 groups(15 in each group). Cancer cell inoculated group: 2*10(6) Lewis lung carcinoma cells in 10 microL PBS were injected into the left femur bone marrow cavity, and the other 3 control groups were injected the heat inactivated Lewis cells, PBS, or a false operation respectively. Spontaneous lifting time and mechanical allodynia threshold of the mice hind paw were measured in the alternative days throughout the experiment. The structural damage of the femur was monitored by radiogram on the 7th,15th, and 23rd day respectively,and the pathohistological changes of the femur bones were observed by HE staining on the same days., Results: Those mice that received intra-femur innoculation of Lewis lung carcinoma cells gradually developed the spontaneous pain, which was began on the 11th day after the innoculation, and followed by mechanical allodynia. The course of flinch lasted in the later experimental session. The 50% Von Frey threshold was significantly decreased on the 13th day after the innoculation, and the mechanical allodynia lasted the whole experimental period. On the 23rd day after the innoculation, X-ray film showed that the medullary cavity of ipsilateral distal femur was filled with tumor cells, and the cortical bone became thick; furthermore, the tumor cells invaded the peripheral muscles., Conclusion: Injecting the Lewis lung carcinoma cells into the femoral medullary cavity of C57BL/6 mice can successfully establish a murine bone cancer pain model, and the murine model shows much resemblance compared with the human bone cancer pain.

Objective: To compare the effect of three different anesthesias on gastrointestinal motility after laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC)., Methods: Forty-two patients undergoing LC were randomly allocated to the combined epidural-general anesthesia group (Group A, n = 14), propofol-based total intravenous anesthesia group (Group B, n = 14) and isoflurane-based inhalational-intravenous general anesthesia group (Group G, n = 14). The concentration of plasma motilin was measured; the incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting and the first flatus time were observed; and the in-hospital day was recorded., Results: 1. The concentration of plasma motilin increased significantly during the first 1 h postoperatively (P < 0.05), but it had no significant difference in the 48 h after operation (P > 0.05) in comparison with the preoperative data in the three groups. The concentration of plasma motilin in Group C was much higher than that in the other two groups during the first 1 h postoperatively (P < 0.05). 2. The incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting was much higher in Group C than that in the other two groups during the first 6 h postoperatively (P < 0.05), but there was no significant difference in the 6 h after operation in the three groups (P > 0.05). 3. The first flatus time and in-hospital day postoperatively had no statistical difference in the three groups (P > 0.05)., Conclusion: Different anesthesias do not influence the recovery of intestinal motion and in-hospital day postoperatively; the combined epidural-general anesthesia and propofol-based total intravenous anesthesia may be ideal anesthesias because of the lower incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting.

Objective: To investigate the chemical constituents from the whole plant of Loxocalyx urticifolius., Method: The chemical constituents were isolated by chromatography and identified by MS, 1H NMR, 13C NMR and 2D-NMR methods., Result: The structures were established as poliothrysoside, beta-sitosterol and stigmasterol, palmitic acid and tyrosine., Conclusion: This is the first time for the chemical constituents of L. urticifolius to be reported.

4-Formyl-3,5-dimethoxyphenol (1) is a key synthetic intermediate used to prepare the BAL family (backbone amide linker) of acid-labile linkers and resins. The utility of these linkers and resins for solid-phase synthesis of both peptides and non-peptides has been amply demonstrated. In this article we report a simple and scalable procedure for preparation of isomerically pure 4-formyl-3,5-dimethoxyphenol (1) and its subsequent incorporation into a representative BAL linker and functionalized resin: 4-(4-formyl-3,5-dimethoxyphenoxy)butanoic acid and 4-formyl-3,5-dimethoxyphenoxy-polystyrene, respectively. The procedures are reproducible, are readily scalable, and require no chromatography.

A new sesquiterpenoid (1) named as celastrine B along with seven known compounds 1 alpha, 6 beta, 13-triacetoxy-9 beta-benzoyloxy-beta-dihydroagarofuran(2), triptogelin G-1(3), 1 alpha, 6 beta-diacetoxy-9 beta-benzoyloxy-beta-dihydroagarofuran (4), triptogelin F-2 (5), 1 alpha, 2 alpha-diacetoxy-9 beta-cinnamoyloxy-beta-dihydroagarofuran (6), celaforlin B-3 (7), 1 alpha, 6 beta-diacetoxy-8 alpha-cinnamoyloxy-9 alpha-benzoyloxy-beta-dihydroagarofuran(8) were isolated for the first time from the seed oil of Celastrus flagellaris Rupr. and their structures elucidated by UV, IR, MS and 1HNMR, 13CNMR, DEPT, 1H-1H COSY, 13C-1H COSY, NOESY and HMBC.

A large increase in the transmembrane voltage, U(t), of a fluid bilayer membrane is believed to result in the occurrence of temporary aqueous pathways ("pores") across the membrane. The number, size, and evolution dynamics of these pores are expected to be crucial to the transport of water-soluble species ranging from small ions to macromolecules such as proteins and nucleic acids. In this paper we use a transient aqueous pore theory to estimate the fraction of the membrane area, Fw(t), which is temporarily occupied by water-filled pores for short square, exponential, and bipolar square pulses. For short pulses, "reversible electrical breakdown" occurs when the transmembrane voltage reaches about 1 V, and Fw(t) is predicted to rise rapidly, but always to be less than 10(-3). The conductance of a large number of pores causes reversible electrical breakdown and prevents a significantly larger U from being reached. Despite the large dielectric constant of water, for reversible electroporation the associated change in membrane capacitance, delta C, due to the pores is predicted to be small. Moreover, for a flat membrane the minimum value of the mean pore-pore separation is large, about 60 times the minimum pore radius. In flat membranes, pores are predicted to repel, but the opposite is expected for curved cell membranes, allowing the possibility of coalescence in cell membranes. For some moderate values of U, rupture (irreversible electrical breakdown) occurs, as one or more supracritical pores expand to the membrane boundary and the entire membrane area becomes aqueous. In all cases it is found that a quantitative description of electroporation requires that a pore size distribution, rather than a single size pore.

Employing the example of a multidimensional caregiver reaction scale, the use of confirmatory factor analysis techniques to establish measurement equivalence across comparison groups is discussed. The discussion is organized around the key concept of factorial invariance which provides the yardstick for assessing measurement equivalence.

Suggests that individuals' "stage fright," or perceptions of anxiety and performance, is a function of tendencies to both average and summate the impact of audience members. We found that under certain conditions adding an evaluative member to an audience decreased anxiety, whereas in other conditions the addition of evaluative members increased anxiety. These results are not expected from social impact theory or social facilitation research and suggest that individuals do not react to groups of individuals in a manner analogous to the way in which trait information is typically averaged in forming impressions of individuals (Anderson, 1981). An averaging-summation model that does account for these findings is presented. This research has implications for research on crowding, stress, social influence, and affective responses.