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Daily minimum temperature (Tmin) and maximum temperature (Tmax) data of Huairou station in Beijing from 1960 to 2008 are examined and adjusted for inhomogeneities by applying the data of two nearby reference stations. Urban effects on the linear trends of the original and adjusted temperature series are estimated and compared. Results show that relocations of station cause obvious discontinuities in the data series, and one of the discontinuities for Tmin are highly significant when the station was moved from downtown to suburb in 1996. The daily Tmin and Tmax data are adjusted for the inhomogeneities. The mean annual Tmin and Tmax at Huairou station drop by 1.377°C and 0.271°C respectively after homogenization. The adjustments for Tmin are larger than those for Tmax, especially in winter, and the seasonal differences of the adjustments are generally more obvious for Tmin than for Tmax. Urban effects on annual mean Tmin and Tmax trends are −0.004°C/10 year and −0.035°C/10 year respectively for the original data, but they increase to 0.388°C/10 year and 0.096°C/10 year respectively for the adjusted data. The increase is more significant for the annual mean Tmin series. Urban contributions to the overall trends of annual mean Tmin and Tmax reach 100% and 28.8% respectively for the adjusted data. Our analysis shows that data homogenization for the stations moved from downtowns to suburbs can lead to a significant overestimate of rising trends of surface air temperature, and this necessitates a careful evaluation and adjustment for urban biases before the data are applied in analyses of local and regional climate change.

The Lens culinaris agglutinin-reactive fraction of AFP (AFP-L3) is widely used to screen for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in Japan and China. We developed a chemiluminescent protein microarray for determining the AFP-L3/AFP index (the ratio of AFP-L3 to total AFP, AFP-L3%) by fixing AFP-specific antibodies and Lens culinaris lectin on aldehyde-coated glass slides. Serum samples were tested for AFP using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to validate the microarray. AFP-L3 was detected using Hotgen Biotech glycosyl capture spin column pretreatment technology and ELISA. When the AFP cut-off value was set to 20 ng/ml, the protein microarray displayed 89.74% sensitivity and 100% specificity for HCC diagnosis, and the ELISA displayed 87.17% sensitivity and 100% specificity. When the AFP-L3% cut-off value was set to 0.1, the protein microarray displayed 56.41% sensitivity and 100% specificity for HCC diagnosis, and the ELISA displayed 53.84% sensitivity and 100% specificity. The ROC curve for the HCC diagnosis showed that the AFP area under the ROC curve (AUC = 0.996; 95% CI: 0.986–1.005) was much higher than that of AFP-L3 (AUC = 0.857; 95% CI: 0.769–0.94) and AFP-L3% (AUC = 0.827; CI: 0.730–0.924). The microarray assay used in this study is a highly sensitive, accurate, and efficient assay for the determination of the AFP-L3%.

Nanomaterials have shown tremendous potentials to impact the broad field of biological sensing. Nanomaterials, with extremely small sizes and appropriate surface modifications, allow intimate interaction with target biomolecules. [...].

Dof (DNA binding with one finger) proteins, which constitute a class of transcription factors found exclusively in plants, are involved in numerous physiological and biochemical reactions affecting growth and development. A genome-wide analysis of SiDof genes was performed in this study. Thirty five SiDof genes were identified and those genes were unevenly distributed across nine chromosomes in the Seteria italica genome. Protein lengths, molecular weights, and theoretical isoelectric points of SiDofs all vary greatly. Gene structure analysis demonstrated that most SiDof genes lack introns. Phylogenetic analysis of SiDof proteins and Dof proteins from Arabidopsis thaliana, rice, sorghum, and Setaria viridis revealed six major groups. Analysis of RNA-Seq data indicated that SiDof gene expression levels varied across roots, stems, leaves, and spike. In addition, expression profiling of SiDof genes in response to stress suggested that SiDof 7 and SiDof 15 are involved in drought stress signalling. Overall, this study could provide novel information on SiDofs for further investigation in foxtail millet.

Fragile X mental retardation syndrome is caused by the transcriptional silence of FMR1. Here, a quantitative PCR technique was used to examine the effect of Fmr1p on the expression of GABA(A) β subunits in different mouse brain regions. Our results demonstrated the reduction of GABA(A) β2 mRNA in all brain regions assessed, and the reduction of GABA(A) β3 mRNA in the cortex, suggesting that the expression of GABA(A) β subunits is transcriptionally regulated by Fmr1p. This finding may help to establish the link between the transcriptional profile of the GABAergic inhibitory system and the development of fragile X mental retardation syndrome.

A simple and convenient route for synthesis of a series of 4- or 6-substituted indirubin derivatives by oxidation and subsequent condensation of indoxyl and isatin is described. Acidic reaction conditions are crucial to the condensation of 4-substituted derivatives, whereas for the condensation of 6-substituted derivatives, both acidic and basic conditions work well. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Wnt signaling pathway plays important roles in the biology of stem cells in maintaining their selfrenewal property. Glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) inhibitors, the Wnt signaling agonists, maintain the pluripotency of embryonic stem cells. We report here that a synthetic GSK-3 inhibitor, 6- bromoindirubin-30-oxime (BIO), showed opposite effects on the expansion of human primitive hematopoietic cells isolated from umbilical cord blood (UCB). In combination with human c-kit ligand (KL), BIO at low concentration (0.2 mM) enhanced the expansion of UCB CD34+ cells, which was BIO structure and exposure time dependent; however, at high concentration (2 mM) it inhibited the expansion of the cells. Furthermore, hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) were exhausted when the UCB CD34+ cells were exposed to 0.2 mM BIO and KL longer than 2 days. In conclusion, the use of BIO in expansion of UCB HSCs remains a significant challenge. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Autism is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder, which typically emerges in early childhood. Most cases of autism have not been linked to mutations in a specific gene, and the etioloty of the disorder remains to be established [S.S. Moy, J.J. Nadler, T.R. Magnuson, J.N. Crawley, Mouse models of autism spectrum disorders: the challenge for behavioral genetics, Am. J. Med. Genet. 142 (2006) 40-51]. Fragile X syndrome is caused by mutation in the FMR1 gene and is characterized by mental retardation, physical abnormalities, and, in most case, autistic-like behavior [R.J. Hagerman, A.W. Jackson, A. Levitas, B. Rimland, M. Braden, An analysis of autism in fifty males with the Fragile X syndrome, Am. J. Med. Genet. 23 (1986) 359-374, C.E. Bakker, C. Verheij, R. Willemsen, R. van der Helm, F. Oerlemans, M. Vermeij, A. Bygrave, A.T. Hoogeveen, B.A. Oostra, E. Reyniers, K. De Boulle, R. D'Hooge, P. Cras, D. van Velzen, G. Nagels, J.J. Marti, P. De Deyn, J.K. Darby, P.J. Willems, Fmr1 knockout mice: a model to study Fragile X mental retardation, Cell 78 (1994) 23-33]. The FMR1 knockout (KO) mouse is one of the best characterized animal models for human disorders associated with autism [S.S. Moy, J.J. Nadler, T.R. Magnuson, J.N. Crawley, Mouse models of autism spectrum disorders: the challenge for behavioral genetics, Am. J. Med. Genet. 142 (2006) 40-51]. We have used real-time PCR to investigate changes in expression levels of three genes: WNT2, MECP2, and FMR1 in different brain regions of Fagile X mice and litter mate controls. We found major changes in the expression pattern for the three genes examined. FMR1, MECP2, and WNT2 expression were drastically down regulated in the Fragile X mouse brain.

A dataset of 282 meteorological stations including all of the ordinary and national basic/reference surface stations of north China is used to analyze the urbanization effect on surface air temperature trends. These stations are classified into rural, small city, medium city, large city, and metropolis based on the updated information of total population and specific station locations. The significance of urban warming effects on regional average temperature trends is estimated using monthly mean temperature series of the station group datasets, which undergo inhomogeneity adjustment. The authors found that the largest effect of urbanization on annual mean surface air temperature trends occurs for the large-city station group, with the urban warming being 0.16°C (10 yr)−1, and the effect is the smallest for the small-city station group with urban warming being only 0.07°C (10 yr)−1. A similar assessment is made for the dataset of national basic/reference stations, which has been widely used in regional climate change analyses in China. The results indicate that the regional average annual mean temperature series, as calculated using the data from the national basic/reference stations, is significantly impacted by urban warming, and the trend of urban warming is estimated to be 0.11°C (10 yr)−1. The contribution of urban warming to total annual mean surface air temperature change as estimated with the national basic/reference station dataset reaches 37.9%. It is therefore obvious that, in the current regional average surface air temperature series in north China, or probably in the country as a whole, there still remain large effects from urban warming. The urban warming bias for the regional average temperature anomaly series is corrected. After that, the increasing rate of the regional annual mean temperature is brought down from 0.29°C (10 yr)−1 to 0.18°C (10 yr)−1, and the total change in temperature approaches 0.72°C for the period analyzed.

Objective To utilize prokaryotic gene expression and protein microarray to develop and evaluate a sensitive, accurate protein microarray assay for detecting antienterovirus antibodies in serum samples from patients with hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD). Enterovirus 71 (EV71) and coxsackievirus A16 (CA16), two common causative agents for HFMD, were used for assay development. Methods Serum was collected from patients with HFMD and healthy controls. EV71 and CA16 VP1 and VP3 genes were expressed in transfected Escherichia coli; the resultant VP1 and 3 proteins were used in a microarray assay for human serum EV71 and CA16 immunoglobulin (Ig) M and IgG. To validate the microarray assay, serum samples were tested for EV71 IgM using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results Out of 50 patients with HFMD, EV71 IgM and CA16 IgM was detected in 80% and 44% of serum samples, respectively, using protein microarray, and EV71 IgM was detected in 78% of samples using ELISA. Protein microarray and ELISA showed 100% specificity for EV71-IgM detection. Conclusion The protein microarray assay developed in the present study shows potential as a sensitive technique for detecting EV71 IgM in serum samples from patients with HFMD.

Objectives To develop and evaluate a protein microarray assay with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) chemiluminescence for quantification of α-fetoprotein (AFP) in serum from patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods A protein microarray assay for AFP was developed. Serum was collected from patients with HCC and healthy control subjects. AFP was quantified using protein microarray and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results Serum AFP concentrations determined via protein microarray were positively correlated ( r = 0.973) with those determined via ELISA in patients with HCC ( n = 60) and healthy control subjects ( n = 30). Protein microarray showed 80% sensitivity and 100% specificity for HCC diagnosis. ELISA had 83.3% sensitivity and 100% specificity. Protein microarray effectively distinguished between patients with HCC and healthy control subjects (area under ROC curve 0.974; 95% CI 0.000, 1.000). Conclusion Protein microarray is a rapid, simple and low-cost alternative to ELISA for detecting AFP in human serum.

This paper proposes a new method to fusion pixel-based classifier and object-based classifier to land cover classification. We choose the Boosting classifier as pixel-based classifier and choose the SVM classifier as object-based classifier. At first, one scene image is classified using Boosting classifier to acquire the labels of each pixel point in the image. Secondly, the same scene image is segmented, and then we cast a vote to each segmentation block, and select the label of the highest votes as the label of the segmentation block. Thirdly, the results of vote and the classification results of SVM classifier are fusion. By we apply the method to Landsat TM, ZiYuan3 and IKONOS images for land cover classification, compare the results of new approach with the results of only using the Boosting algorithms and only using the SVM algorithms. Experimental results show that the significant improvement in classification accuracy.

Object-based classification approach offers higher accuracy and smoother classification map over pixel-based classification, especially on high spatial resolution imagery. However, a potential limitation in using object-based classification is the possible negative impact of under-segmentation. Under-segmentation error cannot be adjusted in the unit of object, and can affect the potential accuracy of classification On the contrary, pixel-based contextual classification utilizes spatial information to reduce salt-and-pepper noise, and does not deal with segmentation issues. Though, a challenge of pixel-based contextual classification is to define appropriate contextual neighbors. In this paper, we propose a new approach, which can avoid the disadvantages of these two kinds of methods, combine the advantage of object-based methods and pixel-based methods, and make a tradeoff between these two methods. We validate the combined approach using two sets of airborne different spatial resolution imagery: TM data and Ziyuan3 image. The results indicate that the proposed method generated highest classification accuracy and best visual effect for the classification map. This study demonstrated the potential of the sub-block approach.

PCL-heparin conjugates were synthesized by coupling mono-hydroxyl terminated PCL (Mn = 2000-10000 g/mol) with heparin via EDC/NHS chemistry. The conjugates enabled to self-assemble into the core-shell nanoparticles in around 100 nm diameter to load binary anti-cancer drugs. Lipophilic and neutral paclitaxel (PTX) was first encapsulated in the core, and then hydrophilic and positive charged doxorubicin (DOX) was incorporated into the negative charged shell of PTX loaded nanoparticles via the electrostatic interaction. The in vitro release profiles of the binary-drug loaded nanoparticles revealed that both PTX and DOX were sustainably released from the particles but behaved differently. The release of DOX was pH dependent, ensuring more drug to be released in the tumor cells than in the normal ones. Hence these particles were featured by a sequential controlled drug delivery behavior with a significant cytotoxicity to cervical cancer (Hela cell) and breast cancer (MDA-MB-321) cells. The CLSM observations clearly indicated that both loaded PTX and DOX aggregated in the nucleus of tumor cells to exert their anti-tumor pharmacodynamic effect on the cells.

Background It is increasingly being recognized that alterations of the GABAergic system are implicated in the pathophysiology of depression. This study aimed to explore in vivo gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels in the anterior cingulate cortex/medial prefrontal cortex (ACC/mPFC) and posterior-cingulate cortex (PCC) of postmenopausal women with depression using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS). Methods Nineteen postmenopausal women with depression and thirteen healthy controls were enrolled in the study. All subjects underwent H-MRS of the ACC/mPFC and PCC using the "MEGA Point Resolved Spectroscopy Sequence" (MEGA-PRESS) technique. The severity of depression was assessed by 17-item Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD). Quantification of MRS data was performed using Gannet program. Differences of GABA+ levels from patients and controls were tested using one-way analysis of variance. Spearman correlation coefficients were used to evaluate the linear associations between GABA+ levels and HAMD scores, as well as estrogen levels. Results Significantly lower GABA+ levels were detected in the ACC/mPFC of postmenopausal women with depression compared to healthy controls (P = 0.002). No significant correlations were found between 17-HAMD/14-HAMA and GABA+ levels, either in ACC/mPFC (P = 0.486; r = 0.170/P = 0.814; r = -0.058) or PCC (P = 0.887; r = 0.035/ P = 0.987; r = -0.004) in the patients; there is also no significant correlation between GABA+ levels and estrogen levels in patients group (ACC/mPFC: P = 0.629, r = -0.018; PCC: P = 0.861, r = 0.043). Conclusion Significantly lower GABA+ levels were found in the ACC/mPFC of postmenopausal women with depression, suggesting that the dysfunction of the GABAergic system may also be involved in the pathogenesis of depression in postmenopausal women.

A novel diisocyanate, i. e. lysine ethyl ester diisocyanate (LDI), was prepared by the present authors. Poly (epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) (M(n) = 2000) was used for reacting with LDI to form prepolymer, and then the chain was extended with butanediol (BDO) to form polyurethane (PU). PU was characterized by gel permeation chromatography, FTIR and 1H-NMR. Mechanical properties test revealed that PU possesses excellent tensile strength. Hydrolytic degradation and enzymatic degradation of PU films showed that PU is biodegradable. Finally, vascular scaffold of PU was fabricated by electrospinning. Morphological and biomechanical properties of scaffold were examined. The tensile strength was 8MPa, suture retention strength 12N, porosity 75% and burst pressure strength 150-170 kPa. Cytotoxicity and cell adhesion showed that PU scaffolds are biocompatible. These results demonstrate that PU vascular scaffolds possess excellent physical strength and biocompatibility and can be developed as substitutes for native blood vessels.

A simple and convenient route for synthesis of a series of 4- or 6-substituted indirubin derivatives by oxidation and subsequent condensation of indoxyl and isatin is described. Acidic reaction conditions are crucial to the condensation of 4-substituted derivatives, whereas for the condensation of 6-substituted derivatives, both acidic and basic conditions work well.

In this study, we applied ensemble machine learning to predict pitch accent. With decision tree as the baseline algorithm, we use popular ensemble method—boosting, at different experiment conditions, such as using acoustic features only, use text-based only, using both acoustic and text-based features to evaluate the performance of ensemble machine learning method. Pitch and Energy related acoustic features are derived from statistic methods, and we consider context influences to pitch and energy related features. Models of pitch accent (accent and unaccented) are built at the syllable level. At the same time, we compare support vector machine (SVM) to predict pitch accent at same experiment conditions. Results showed that in all experiments ensemble machine learning achieved improved performance. The best result obtained using ensemble machine learning is 82.60% accuracy to mandarin read speech.

The aim of this research was to evaluate the influence of steam sterilization on poly(ethylene glycol-terephthalate) and poly(butylene terephthalate) copolymer (PEGT/PBT) and its vascular cells compatibility, which was used as the scaffolds in vascular tissue engineering. Endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells and fibroblasts were cultured separately on the films after steam sterilization and after ultraviolet sterilization. These cells can grow well on the films after ultraviolet sterilization, while they can hardly adhere on steam sterilized films. Differential scanning calorimetry, static contact angle, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, surface carboxyl density quantity, H-nuclear magnetic resonance and scanning electronic microscope were employed to characterize the properties of poly(ether-esters) films before and after sterilization. These results showed that steam sterilization had little effect on the surface morphology and on the constitution of the copolymer, but the copolymer segments were redistributed during steam sterilization. The hydrophilic poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and the end carboxyl groups transferred from the bulk and enriched on the surface and the degree of crystallinity of hard segments increased slightly. Both the end carboxyl and PEG enriched on the surface can hinder the protein adhesion on the surface; so, lacking in receptor, the vascular cells cannot adhere on the films surfaces.