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Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Macrophage lipid accumulation is a characteristic molecular event in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular diseases. Metabolic reprogramming is an intervention target for diseases and toxic effects of environmental pollutants. However, comprehensive metabolic reprogramming related to BaP-induced macrophage lipid accumulation is currently unexplored. Therefore, metabolomics and transcriptomics were conducted to unveil relevant metabolic reprogramming in BaP-exposed macrophages, and to discover potential intervention targets. Metabolomics revealed that most amino acids, nucleotides, monosaccharides, and organic acids were significantly decreased, while most fatty acids and steroids accumulated in BaP-exposed macrophages. Transcriptomics showed that fatty acid synthesis and oxidation, and steroid synthesis and export were decreased, while import of fatty acids and steroids was increased, indicating potential roles of lipid transport in macrophage lipid accumulation following BaP exposure. Meanwhile, alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism, branched-chain amino acid degradation, nucleotide synthesis, monosaccharide import, pentose phosphate pathway, citrate synthesis, and glycolysis were decreased, while nucleotide degradation was increased, thus inducing decreases in most amino acids, nucleotides, monosaccharides, and organic acids in BaP-exposed macrophages. Additionally, increases in oxidative stress and the activation of antioxidant systems were observed in BaP-exposed macrophages, which was evinced by increases in reactive oxygen species, and the activation of Fenton reaction, Vdac2/3, Sod2, and Nrf2. Moreover, BaP-induced accumulation of reactive oxygen species and lipids in macrophages could be abolished by epigallocatechin-3-gallate. Quantitative PCR showed that BaP exposure activated aryl hydrocarbon receptor signaling and promoted the proinflammatory phenotype in macrophages, and these effects were inhibited or even abolished by the separate treatment with epigallocatechin-3-gallate or CH-223191, suggesting the regulatory role of aryl hydrocarbon receptor signaling in BaP-induced toxic effects. This study provides novel insights into the toxic effects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on macrophage metabolism and potential intervention targets.

Fish gelatin (FG) and κ-carrageenan (KC) were mixed to simulate the physicochemical properties of porcine gelatin (PG). The effects of the mixing ratio between FG and KC on the interaction, structure, and rheological properties of FG were investigated. The maximum associative interaction occurred at the critical mixing ratio of KC:FG (w/w) at 4:96, where the median particle size (D50) of the FG-KC coacervates was 1168 ± 175 nm, and the zeta potential was −3.8 ± 0.8 mV. Interestingly, the rheological properties of the mixed gel (KC:FG at 4:96) matched those of PG, including the melting temperature (Tm), gelling temperature (Tg), dynamic consistency factor (Kf), and instantaneous compliance (J0). The relationship between structure and physicochemical properties was proposed as a schematic model. The associative interaction between FG and KC was critical for FG's modification and could be applied to improve FG's rheological properties towards PG.

Background Advances in medical-care for immediately post-stroke mean that many stroke-survivors now live a normal lifespan, although they may suffer residual disability. They are often cared for at home by their spouse, who may be ill-prepared for this task, and may also have health concerns. As demands on formal services increase with population aging in Hong Kong, equipping spousal-caregivers with positive effective caring strategies is increasingly important. Objective To understand what constitutes positive spousal-caregiving for stroke-survivors in Hong Kong within the cultural lens of ‘Zhong (Loyalty)’ Method Naturalistic qualitative research was employed to hear stories about positive caregiving from Hong Kong couples living with stroke sequelae. Three in-depth face-to-face semi-structured interviews were undertaken with eleven dyads (stroke-survivor alone, spousal-caregiver alone, then the couple together). Data validation was by member-checking, further questions, and feedback at a second interview, and corroboration by field-notes. Findings A strength-based interactive model of positive spousal-caregiving was described, whose core tenet was Zhong (Loyalty). This fostered, and in turn was nurtured by, three paired key behaviours (1. Learning new skills linked with satisfaction when efforts paid off; 2. Utilizing formal and informal resources linked with supporting others; 3. Cherishing and bringing out the best linked with managing life- and self-care). Couples’ capacity to develop these behaviours reflected their inner strengths. Conclusions Couples who practiced positive caring and were resilient in the face of adversity were likely to optimise dyadic health and deal constructively with unexpected challenges. To address a looming shortfall between client need, and formal health and social services in Hong Kong, evidence-based policies are required to support effective, positive community-based spousal-caregiving. (266).

Monofluorinated alkyl compounds are of great importance in pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and materials. Herein, we describe a direct nickel-catalyzed monofluoromethylation of unactivated alkyl halides using a low-cost industrial raw material, bromofluoromethane, by demonstrating a general and efficient reductive cross-coupling of two alkyl halides. Results with 1-bromo-1-fluoroalkane also demonstrate the viability of monofluoroalkylation, which further established the first example of reductive C(sp

Understanding the underlying mechanism that drives the microbial community mediated by substrates is crucial to enhance the biostimulation in trichloroethene (TCE)-contaminated sites. Here, we investigated the performance of stable TCE-dechlorinating consortia by monitoring the variations in TCE-related metabolites and explored their underlying assembly mechanisms using 16S rDNA amplicon sequencing and bioinformatics analyses. The monitoring results indicated that three stable TCE-dechlorinating consortia were successfully enriched by lactate-containing anaerobic media. The statistical analysis results demonstrated that the microbial communities of the enrichment cultures changed along with time and were distinguished by their sample sources. The deterministic and stochastic processes were simultaneously responsible for shaping the TCE-dechlorinating community assembly. The indicator patterns shifted with the exhaustion of the carbon source and the pollutants, and the tceA-carrying Dehalococcoides, as an indicator for the final stage samples, responded positively to TCE removal during the incubation period. Pseudomonas, Desulforhabdus, Desulfovibrio and Methanofollis were identified as keystone populations in the TCE-dechlorinating process by co-occurrence network analysis. The results of this study indicate that lactate can be an effective substrate for stimulated bioremediation of TCE-contaminated sites, and the reduction of the stochastic forces or enhancement of the deterministic interventions may promote more effective biostimulation.

Cell therapy offers a promising paradigm for heart tissue regeneration. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPS) and their cardiac derivatives are emerging as a novel treatment for post-myocardial infarction repair. However, the immature phenotype and function of hiPS-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPS-CMs), particularly poor electrical coupling, limit their potential as a therapy. Herein, we developed a hybrid gold nanoparticle (AuNP)-hyaluronic acid (HA) hydrogel matrix encapsulating hiPS-CMs to overcome this limitation. Methacrylate-modified-HA was used as the backbone and crosslinked with a matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) degradable peptide to obtain a MMP-2-responsive hydrogel; RGD peptide was introduced as an adhesion point to enhance biocompatibility; AuNPs were incorporated to regulate the mechanical and topological properties of the matrix by significantly increasing its stiffness and surface roughness, thereby accelerating gap junction formation in hiPS-CMs and orchestrating calcium handling via the αnβ1integrin-mediated ILK-1/p-AKT/GATA4 pathway. Transplanted AuNP-HA-hydrogel-encapsulated-hiPS-CMs developed more robust gap junctions in the infarcted mice heart and resynchronized electrical conduction of the ventricle post-myocardial infarction. The hiPS-CMs delivered by the hydrogels exerted stronger angiogenic effects, which also contributed to the recovery process. This study provides insight into constructing an injectable biomimetic for structural and functional renovation of the injured heart.

Alkali metal potassium is conducive to structure promotion and electronic modulation in metal oxides. Here, K species was successfully introduced into α-MnO

Catalytic oxidation is one of the most efficient approaches for industrial volatile organic compounds (VOCs) elimination. MnOx-based catalysts have attracted much attention due to their remarkable low-temperature catalytic activity. Here, octahedral layered birnessite-type manganese oxide (OL-1) with layer spacing of 7 A and cryptomelane type manganese oxide (OMS-2) with tunneled pore diameter of 4.6 × 4.6 A were synthesized by a reflux method. Following this, Ce-doped OL-1 and OMS-2 were further prepared by an impregnation method with target to improve catalytic performance in toluene oxidation. Results reveal that the OMS-2 material exhibits the best catalytic activity with 90% of toluene decomposed at 224 °C owing to the presence of a large quantity of active lattice oxygen species. Interestingly, the introduction of Ce leads to the formation of large amounts of acidic sites, which limit the oxidation process and enhance the yield of benzoic acid by-product. The findings in the present work are meaningful for deepening our understanding of the role of ceria on metal oxide catalysts and helping us to design effective catalysts for VOC destruction.

Asian countries have made great progress in the osteoporosis research over the past 20 years. Mainland China has a significant increase in the number of articles. The scientific influence of Japan ranked by citations was leading in Asia. Indian researchers published fewer articles on osteoporosis, but the overall citation was quite well. To analyze the quantity and quality of literature regarding osteoporosis from the Asian countries/regions. Data were obtained from the Web of Science (WoS) Core Collection on May 4, 2020. Qualitative and quantitative analysis was conducted based on WoS. Keywords analysis was performed using VosView software. The core countries/regions in Asia in the osteoporosis research included the Mainland China (MC), Japan, South Korea, Turkey, Taiwan, India, and Iran. The core countries/regions published 4798 papers, which accounted for 33.8% of the total globally. The MC with 2242 literature and Japan with 971 were ranked second and fourth worldwide. Over the past decade, MC has published the most articles and increased dramatically. Japan had the highest mean citations and the highest mean citation density. The country with the most publications in the top ten popular osteoporosis-related journals was Japan. The top institutional from the MC, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan published the most articles. The top authors with the most articles were from Japan and MC. Top institutions and authors from Japan, MC, and India led the way in citations. The core countries/regions had more frequent cooperation with the USA, the UK, and Canada compared with the limited cooperation among Asian countries. Osteoporosis research in Asia relies heavily on public funding and pharmaceutical companies. Keywords for these studies have changed over the past 20 years. Asian countries have made progress in the osteoporosis research over the past 20 years. The MC has a significant increase in the number of articles. The scientific influence of Japan ranked by citations was leading in Asia. Indian researchers published fewer articles on osteoporosis, but the overall quality was quite well. The core Asian countries/regions should strengthen in-depth cooperation in the future.

The Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) Project has collected genetic and transcriptome profiles from a wide spectrum of tissues in nearly 1,000 ceased individuals, providing an opportunity to study the regulatory roles of genetic variants in transcriptome activities from both cross-tissue and tissue-specific perspectives. Moreover, transcriptome activities (e.g., transcript abundance and alternative splicing) can be treated as mediators between genotype and phenotype to achieve phenotypic alteration. Knowing the genotype associated transcriptome status, researchers can better understand the biological and molecular mechanisms of genetic risk variants in complex traits. In this article, we first explore the genetic architecture of gene expression traits, and then review recent methods on quantitative trait locus (QTL) and co-expression network analysis. To further exemplify the usage of associations between genotype and transcriptome status, we briefly review methods that either directly or indirectly integrate expression/splicing QTL information in genome-wide association studies (GWASs). The GTEx Project provides the largest and useful resource to investigate the associations between genotype and transcriptome status. The integration of results from the GTEx Project and existing GWASs further advances our understanding of roles of gene expression changes in bridging both the genetic variants and complex traits.

BackgroundSaline-sodic soils are widely distributed in arid and semi-arid regions around the world. High levels of salt and sodium inhibit the growth and development of crops. However, there has been limited reports on both osmotic potential in soil solutions (OPss) and characteristics of Na+and K+absorption in rice in saline-sodic soils under various amendments application.MethodsA field experiment was conducted between 2009 and 2017 to analyze the influence of amendments addition to saline-sodic soils on rice growth and yield. Rice was grown in the soil with no amendment (CK), with desulfurization gypsum (DG), with sandy soil (SS), with farmyard manure (FM) and with the mixture of above amendments (M). The osmotic potential in soil solution, selective absorption of K+over Na+(SA), selective transport of K+over Na+(ST), the distribution of K+and Na+and yield components in rice plants were investigated.ResultsThe results indicated that amendments application have positive effects on rice yield. The M treatment was the best among the tested amendments with the highest rice grain yield. M treatment increased the OPssvalues significantly to relieve the inhibition of the water uptake by plants. Additionally, the M treatment significantly enhanced K+concentration and impeded Na+accumulation in shoots. SA values were reduced while ST values were increased for all amendments. In conclusion, a mixture of desulfurization gypsum, sandy soil and farmyard manure was the best treatment for the improvement of rice growth and yield in the Songnen Plain, northeast China.

Abnormal extracellular microenvironment signals of macrophages contribute to the occurrence and progression of metabolic diseases. Macrophage metabolism is a therapeutic target for treating metabolic diseases. However, molecular mechanisms of metabolic disturbances in the extracellular microenvironment of macrophages remain unclear. Here, an untargeted metabolomics approach based on gas chromatography–mass spectrometry revealed significant metabolic disturbances in the extracellular microenvironment of oleate-treated macrophages. Most of above changes were responsive to resveratrol and/or pioglitazone intervention. Notably, the concentration levels of most saccharides and lactate were increased in the extracellular microenvironment of the oleate-treated macrophages. The increased levels of fructose and lactate were abolished by resveratrol and/or pioglitazone treatment. Additionally, the concentrations of isoleucine and metabolites derived from branched-chain amino acids (including 4-methyl-2-oxovalerate, 3-methyl-2-oxobutanoate, and 3-methyl-2-oxovalerate) were increased in the extracellular microenvironment of the oleate-treated macrophages. These effects were alleviated or abolished by both resveratrol and pioglitazone treatments. Moreover, myristate and oleate accumulated in the extracellular microenvironment of the oleate-treated macrophages. The metabolic disturbances in the extracellular microenvironment of oleate-treated macrophages indicated carbohydrate metabolism, glycolysis, branched-chain amino acid metabolism and fatty acid metabolism as potential therapeutic targets for treating metabolic diseases and the intervention effects of resveratrol and pioglitazone. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to demonstrate the accumulation of saccharides, lactate, isoleucine and branched-chain amino acid-derived metabolites in the extracellular microenvironment of macrophages.

Due to the wide use, bisphenol A (BPA) has been detected frequently in the aquatic environment. However, the information on the distribution of BPA transformation products is limited. In this study, we investigated two BPA transformation products, namely bisphenol A monomethyl ether (BPA-MME) and bisphenol A dimethyl ether (BPA-DME). This study revealed that both transformation products were widely detected in the wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) as well as in surface water of Jiulong River and its estuary with higher detected concentrations and detection frequencies for BPA-DME. Temporal variations were observed in a WWTP based on a five-year sampling campaign. Mass load of BPA and its transformation products was evaluated and results indicated the generation of BPA-MME and BPA-DME during the wastewater treatment processes, which contributed for 1.95% BPA removal. BPA and its transformation products were also widely detected in the surface water of Jiulong River and its estuary. Results indicated their additional generation in the surface water, since BPA-MME and BPA-DME in the surface river water were with similar level or even higher than effluent in WWTPs.

Aim of review: The hyper-inflammatory response is the classical pathogenesis of sepsis course. It has been shown that efferent vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) can regulate inflammatory response through a combination of acetylcholine and special α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor expressed on macrophages, which is defined as the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway (CAP). Furthermore, therapeutic methods related to CAP have been studied on lots of pathologic conditions, such as sepsis, ischemia/reperfusion injury, pancreatitis and hemorrhagic shock, etc. The aim of this review is to provide the evidence that VNS may be an effective adjuvant treatment bringing benefits for prognosis of sepsis by controlling excessive inflammatory response.Methods: We searched literatures published in the Pubmed with keywords "inflammation", "sepsis" and "vagal nerve stimulation (VNS)" from January, 1986 to November, 2016, analyzed them and then assessed the evidence as to whether VNS may be an effective adjuvant for treatment of sepsis. In this review, the evidence regarding the role of hyper-inflammatory response in the pathogenesis of sepsis and inflammatory regulation of CAP will first be described. Then, the possible beneficial effects of VNS on inflammatory response of sepsis by modulating CAP will be provided.Recent findings: Sepsis is complex interactions between infecting microorganism and host's immune, inflammatory, and coagulation systems. The beneficial effects provided by CAP activation have been demonstrated on lots of pathologic conditions related to inflammation. Furthermore, VNS has been shown to promote the gastrointestinal motility and provide protection of intestinal barrier, reducing organ injury. In addition, VNS has been effectively used for treatment of some diseases in clinical practice.Summary: There is limited number of effective therapies available for septic patients. Because the CAP plays an important role in the regulation of inflammatory response, we consider that with the standard intensive care therapy, VNS may be an effective adjuvant treatment bringing benefits for prognosis of sepsis by controlling excessive inflammatory response. If efficiency of this new intervention is proved by clinical experiments, it may represent an exciting opportunity to develop novel therapeutics recovering unregulated inflammatory response in septic patients. Citation: Gui-Zhen Yang, Fu-Shan Xue, Chao Sun, Xu Liao, Jian-Hua Liu. Vagal nerve stimulation: a potential useful adjuvant to treatment of sepsis. J Anesth Perioper Med 2017; x: x-x. doi: 10.24015/JAPM.2017.0012This is an open-access article, published by Evidence Based Communications (EBC). This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format for any lawful purpose. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Background: Oxygen-glucose deprivation-nutrition resumption (OGD-NR) models on H9c2 cells are commonly used in vitro models of simulated myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI), but no study has assessed whether these methods for establishing in vitro models can effectively imitate the characteristics of MIRI in vivo. This experiment was designed to analyze the feasibility of six OGD-NR models of MIRI. Methods: By searching the PubMed database using the keywords "myocardial reperfusion injury H9c2 cells," we obtained six commonly used OGD-NR in vitro models of MIRI performed on H9c2 cells from more than 400 published papers before January 30, 2017. For each model, control (C), simulated ischemia (SI), and simulated ischemia-reperfusion (SIR) groups were assigned, and cell morphology, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) levels, reactive oxygen species (ROS), mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and inflammatory cytokines were examined to evaluate the characteristics of cell injury. Subsequently, a coculture system of cardiomyocyte-endothelial-macrophage was constructed. The coculture system was dealt with SI and SIR treatments to test the effect on cardiomyocytes survival. Results: For models 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, SI treatment caused morphological damage to cells, and subsequent SIR treatment did not cause further morphological damage. In the models 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, LDH release was significantly higher in the SI groups than that in the C group (P < 0.05), and was significantly lower in the SIR groups than that in the SI groups (P < 0.05), except for no significant differences in the LDH release between C, SI and SIR groups in model 6 receiving a 3-h SI treatment. In models 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, compared with the C group, ATP levels of the SI groups significantly decreased (P < 0.05), ROS levels increased (P < 0.05), and MMP levels decreased (P < 0.05). Compared with the SI group, ATP level of the SIR groups was significantly increased (P < 0.05), and there was no significant ROS production, MMP collapse, and over inflammatory response in the SIR groups. In a coculture system of H9c2 cells-endothelial cells-macrophages, the proportion of viable H9c2 cells in the SIR groups was not reduced compared with the SI groups. Conclusion: All the six OGD-NR models on H9c2 cells in this experiment can not imitate the characteristics of MIRI in vivo and are not suitable for MIRI-related study. Key words: Feasibility; In vitro Models; Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury

Microplastics are toxic to aquatic organisms. Metabolic disturbances in the liver are highly correlated with the pathophysiology of diseases and toxicology of contaminants. However, the effects of microplastics on the comprehensive metabolic responses of aquatic animal livers are unclear. Therefore, an untargeted metabolomics approach using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry was employed to discover metabolic disorders in marine medaka (Oryzias melastigmas) liver after microplastic exposure. We found that 83 metabolites were significantly altered in marine medaka liver after 10-μm and/or 200-μm polystyrene microplastic (PS) exposure. Subsequent metabolic pathway analysis revealed that 33 and 28 metabolic pathways, such as glycerolipid metabolism, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, fructose and mannose metabolism, and glycine, serine and threonine metabolism, were significantly altered after 10-μm (PS-10) and 200-μm (PS-200) PS exposure, respectively. Most monosaccharides (e.g., glucose, mannose, and ribose), organic acids (e.g., lactate, fumarate, and malate) and amino acids (e.g., alanine, serine, and leucine) significantly decreased, while most fatty acids and fatty acid methyl and ethyl esters significantly increased in marine medaka liver due to PS-10 and/or PS-200 exposure. The results indicated that PS exposure triggered inhibition of the monosaccharide metabolism, tricarboxylic acid cycle, glycolysis, pentose phosphate pathway, and amino acid metabolism, and accumulation of fatty acids, fatty acid methyl and ethyl esters in marine medaka liver. The varying influences of PS-10 and PS-200 on hepatic metabolism were observed. Changes in the carbohydrate, amino acid, and lipid metabolism induced by PS-10 were greater than those induced by PS-200. However, PS-200 induced the hepatic accumulation of most disaccharides and trisaccharides, including lactose, maltose, mannobiose and maltotriose, while PS-10 did not. The increased toxicity caused by PS-10 than that by PS-200 may be associated with the hepatic accumulation observed only in the group exposed to PS-10. This study provides novel insights into microplastic ecotoxicology.

Songnen meadow grassland is a typical saline-alkaline land majorly comprised of carbonate soil. Salix mongolica, a woody species with high adaptability to carbonate soil, is an important supplementary feed in the grassland. Therefore, it is necessary to cultivate new varieties of S. mongolica by using genetic engineering methods to reveal the functions of the plant’s related genes and to construct a plant regeneration and genetic transformation system. In this study, we used leaves of S. mongolica as the explants for induction of leaf-based callus, differentiation of adventitious buds and rooting of adventitious by adding different ratios of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), 6-benzyl aminopurine and naphthaleneacetic acid into the Murashige and Skoog medium. Under the screening conditions of 7.5 mg L−1 hygromycin B and transformation period of 2–5 min using a specific Agrobacterium containing pCXSN-gus plasmids infection concentration (ODλ600 = 0.5), we obtained transgenic strains. PCR detected exogenous gus gene integrated into the chromosome of S. mongolica, Southern blot analysed the T0 transgenic strains single copy inserted into the chromosome, Northern hybridization signals indicated that gus gene mRNA was expressed in the five contemporary transgenic strains. The infected callus, adventitious buds, and regenerated plants displayed a blue color through detection by GUS staining, which reflected the activity of s-glucuronidase enzyme. This result demonstrated the successful establishment of an Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation system from the callus (S. mongolica leaf as a transformation receptor).

Aim of review: The underlying mechanisms of ischemic preconditioning (IPC) have been studied for many years, but have not been elucidated completely. The available literatures indicate that endothelial derived neuregulin-1 (NRG-1) is involved in myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI) and protects cardiomyocytes against H2O2-induced apoptosis by regulating endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS). The aim of this review is to provide the evidence that endothelial derived NRG-1 maybe a crucial biomolecule mediating powerful cardioprotection by IPC.Methods: According to the available literatures, this review will first discuss the factors attributable to cardioprotection of IPC and then provide an overview of the cellular and molecular mechanisms of endothelial derived NRG-1 maybe involved in IPC induced cardioprotection.Recent findings: Multiple factors are attributable to cardioprotection induced by IPC. It has been shown that anoxia preconditioning in vitro can not provide cardioprotection as much as the IPC in vivo. During myocardial ischemic conditioning, endothelial cells may play several roles: a “receptor” for blood-borne conditioning moieties, a sensor for hypoxic stress and a paracrine organ. The NRG-1 produced by endothelial cells has been proved to protect against myocardial IRI through a PI3K/Akt pathway. Furthermore, unbalanced endoplasmic reticulum stress is one of the important mechanisms of IRI, and IPC has been demonstrated to protect myocardial IRI by regulating endoplasmic reticulum stress. In addition, NRG-1 may attenuate IRI by regulating cold inducible RNA-binding protein with its downstream endoplasmic reticulum stress related signaling pathways.Summary: Endothelial derived NRG-1 and its downstream signaling pathways are involved in multiple aspects of cardiac physiology and function, and can provide a significant protection against myocardial injury. The available evidence indicates that selective deletion of endothelial derived NRG-1 in vivo decreases the tolerance to IRI, as demonstrated by impaired recovery of post-ischemic myocardial contraction function. Thus, endothelial derived NRG-1 maybe a crucial biomolecule mediating powerful cardioprotection by IPC. If this new view is proved by basic and clinical experiments, a crucial biomolecule mediated cardioprotection induced by IPC would be revealed. Citation: Gui-Zhen Yang, Fu-Shan Xue, Chao Sun, Xu Liao, Jian-Hua Liu. Endothelial derived neuregulin-1 may be important for cardioprotection induced by ischemic preconditioning. J Anesth Perioper Med 2017; 4: 225-30. doi: 10.24015/JAPM.2017.0008This is an open-access article, published by Evidence Based Communications (EBC). This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format for any lawful purpose. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Background Saline-sodic soils are widely distributed in arid and semi-arid regions around the world. High levels of salt and sodium inhibit the growth and development of crops. However, there has been limited reports on both osmotic potential in soil solutions (OPss) and characteristics of Na+ and K+ absorption in rice in saline-sodic soils under various amendments application. Methods A field experiment was conducted between 2009 and 2017 to analyze the influence of amendments addition to saline-sodic soils on rice growth and yield. Rice was grown in the soil with no amendment (CK), with desulfurization gypsum (DG), with sandy soil (SS), with farmyard manure (FM) and with the mixture of above amendments (M). The osmotic potential in soil solution, selective absorption of K+ over Na+ (SA), selective transport of K+ over Na+ (ST), the distribution of K+ and Na+and yield components in rice plants were investigated. Results The results indicated that amendments application have positive effects on rice yield. The M treatment was the best among the tested amendments with the highest rice grain yield. M treatment increased the OPss values significantly to relieve the inhibition of the water uptake by plants. Additionally, the M treatment significantly enhanced K+ concentration and impeded Na+ accumulation in shoots. SA values were reduced while ST values were increased for all amendments. In conclusion, a mixture of desulfurization gypsum, sandy soil and farmyard manure was the best treatment for the improvement of rice growth and yield in the Songnen Plain, northeast China.

The CMB observation sets stringent constraints on MeV dark matter (DM) annihilating into charged states/photons in s-wave, and the recent observation of the 21-cm absorption at the cosmic dawn reported by EDGES is also very strict for s-wave annihilations of MeV DM. The millicharged DM with p-wave dominant annihilations during the freeze-out period are considered in literatures to give an explanation about the 21-cm absorption, with photon mediated scattering cooling the hydrogen. In this paper, we focus on the annihilation of millicharged DM being s-wave dominant. To explain the 21-cm absorption and meanwhile be compatible with the CMB and 21-cm absorption bounds on DM annihilations, we consider the annihilation close to the resonance, with the new mediator (here is dark photon) mass being slightly above twice of the millicharged DM mass. In this case, the annihilation cross section at the temperature $T \to 0$ could be much smaller than that at $T_f$, which would be tolerated by the bounds on DM annihilations, avoiding the excess heating from DM s-wave annihilations to the hydrogen gas. The beam dump and lepton collider experiments can be employed to hunt for millicharged DM via the production of the invisible dark photon., 7 pages, 4 figures, discussions improved

Lipid accumulation in macrophages interacts with microenvironment signals and accelerates diabetic atherosclerosis. However, the molecular mechanisms by which macrophage metabolism interacts with microenvironment signals during lipid accumulation are not clearly understood. Accordingly, an untargeted metabolomics approach was employed to characterize the metabolic reprogramming, and to identify potential regulatory targets related to lipid accumulation in macrophages treated with oleate, an important nutrient. The metabolomics approach revealed that multiple metabolic pathways were significantly disturbed in oleate-treated macrophages. We discovered that amino acids, nucleosides, lactate, monoacylglycerols, total free fatty acids (FFAs), and triglycerides (TGs) accumulated in oleate-treated macrophages, but these effects were effectively attenuated or even abolished by resveratrol. Notably, 1-monooleoylglycerol and 2-monooleoylglycerol showed the largest fold changes in the levels among the differential metabolites. Subsequently, we found that oleate triggered total FFA and TG accumulation in macrophages by accelerating FFA influx through the activation of Fatp1 expression, but this effect was attenuated by resveratrol via the activation of PPARα and PPARγ signaling. We verified that the activation of PPARα and PPARγ by WY14643 and pioglitazone, respectively, attenuated oleate triggered total FFA and TG accumulation in macrophages by repressing FFA import via the suppression of Fatp1 expression. Furthermore, the inhibition of Fatp1 by tumor necrosis factor α alleviated oleate-induced total FFA and TG accumulation in macrophages. This study provided the first demonstration that accumulation of amino acids, nucleosides, lactate, monoacylglycerols, total FFAs, and TGs in oleate-treated macrophages is effectively attenuated or even abolished by resveratrol, and that the activation of PPARα and PPARγ attenuates oleate-induced total FFA and TG accumulation via suppression of Fatp1 expression in macrophages. Therapeutic strategies aim to activate PPAR signaling, and to repress FFA import and triglyceride synthesis are promising approaches to reduce the risk of obesity, diabetes and atherosclerosis.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon exposure accelerates the initiation and progression of lung cancer through aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) signaling. Metabolic reprogramming is a hallmark of cancer. However, how AHR reprograms metabolism related to the malignant transformation in of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP)-exposed lung cells remains unclear. After confirming that BaP exposure activated AHR signaling and relevant downstream factors and then promoted epithelial-mesenchymal transition, an untargeted metabolomics approach was employed to discover AHR-mediated metabolic reprogramming and potential therapeutic targets in BaP-exposed BEAS-2B cells. We found that 52 metabolites were significantly altered in BaP-exposed BEAS-2B cells and responsive to resveratrol (RSV) intervention. Pathway analysis revealed that 28 and 30 metabolic pathways were significantly altered in response to BaP exposure and RSV intervention, respectively. Notably, levels of most amino acids were significantly decreased, while those of most fatty acids were significantly increased in BaP-exposed BEAS-2B cells, and above changes were abolished by RSV intervention. Besides, levels of amino acids and fatty acids were highly correlated with those of many metabolites and AHR signaling upon BaP exposure and RSV intervention (the absolute values of Pearson correlation coefficients above 0.8). We further discovered a decrease in peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) A/G signaling and an increase in fatty acid import by the transporter FATP1 in BaP-exposed BEAS-2B cells. Furthermore, inhibition of AHR signaling by CH-223191 abolished BaP-induced repression of PPARA/G signaling and activation of FATP1 in BEAS-2B cells, demonstrating the regulatory role of AHR signaling in fatty acid accumulation via mediating PPARA/G-FATP1 signaling. These data suggested amino acid and fatty acid metabolism, AHR and PPAR-FATP1 signaling as potential therapeutic targets for intervening BaP-induced toxicity and related diseases. As far as we known, fatty acid accumulation and high correlations of AHR signaling with amino acid and fatty acid metabolism are novel phenomena discovered in BaP-exposed lung epithelial cells.

The present study was designed to determine whether glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) was involved in the cardioprotection by α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7nAChR) agonist and limb remote ischemic postconditionings. Forty male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided equally into control (C), α7nAChR agonist postconditioning (P), limb remote ischemic postconditioning (L), combined α7nAChR agonist and limb remote ischemic postconditioning (P+L) groups. At the end of experiment, serum cTnI, creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), high mobility group protein (HMGB1) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) levels were measured; infarct size (IS), myocardial expressions of GSK-3β, p-GSK-3β (Ser9), nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and p-NF-κB (Ser536) in the ischemic area were assessed. The results showed that compared with group C, IS, serum cTnI and CK-MB levels obviously decreased in groups P, L and P+L. Compared with groups P and L, IS, serum cTnI and CK-MB levels significantly decreased in group P+L. Compared with group C, serum TNF-α, IL-6 and HMGB1 levels, and myocardial expression of p-NF-κBp65 (Ser536) evidently decreased, and myocardial expression of p-GSK-3β (Ser9) obviously increased in groups P, L and P+L. Compared with group P, serum TNF-α, IL-6 and HMGB1 levels and myocardial expression of p-NF-κBp65 (Ser536) significantly increased, and myocardial expression of p-GSK-3β (Ser9) evidently decreased in group L. Compared with group L, serum TNF-α, IL-6, HMGB1 levels, and myocardial expression of p-NF-κBp65 (Ser536) significantly decreased, and myocardial expression of p-GSK-3β (Ser9) obviously increased in group P+L. In conclusion, our findings indicate that inhibition of GSK-3β to decrease NF-κB transcription is one of cardioprotective mechanisms of α7nAChR agonist and limb remote ischemic postconditionings by anti-inflammation, but improved cardioprotection by combined two interventions is not completely attributable to an enhanced anti-inflammatory mechanism.

Macrophage metabolism contributes to the progression of metabolic diseases, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) play vital roles in macrophage metabolism and the treatment of metabolic diseases. However, the role of PPARs in metabolic reprogramming related to lipid accumulation in macrophages, a key pathological event in metabolic diseases, remains unclear. We aimed to identify PPAR-mediated metabolic reprogramming and potential therapeutic targets associated with lipid accumulation in macrophages. Following treatment with oleate, oleate + WY-14643 and oleate + pioglitazone to induce alterations in PPAR signaling, lipids and relevant metabolism, macrophage samples were analyzed employing an untargeted metabolomics based on gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The metabolomics approach revealed that multiple metabolic pathways were altered during lipid accumulation in oleate-treated macrophages and responsive to WY-14643 and pioglitazone treatment. Notably, levels of most metabolites involved in amino acid metabolism and nucleotide metabolism were accumulated in oleate-treated macrophages, and these effects were alleviated or abolished by PPARA/G activation. Additionally, during oleate-induced lipid accumulation and lipid lowering with WY-14643 and pioglitazone in macrophages, levels of most amino acids were positively associated with neutral lipid, total cholesterol, cholesterol ester, total free fatty acid and triglyceride levels but negatively associated with expression of genes related to PPARA/G signaling. Furthermore, glycine was found to be a potential biomarker for assessing lipid accumulation and the lipid-lowering effects of PPARA/G in oleate-treated macrophages. The results of this study revealed a high correlation of amino acid metabolism with lipid accumulation and the lipid-lowering effects of PPARA/G in macrophages.

In this paper, a hybrid resonator composed of an all-metal grating made of copper and a dielectric cavity filled with SiO2 between slits is simulated and calculated by the finite-difference time-domain method (FDTD). We study the effect of slit width on surface plasmon resonance by changing the size of the dielectric cavity. In the case of parallel light incident vertically, the resonator can achieve multi-band absorption and have a perfect absorption peak. The dielectric cavity can not only localize the incident light wave, but also enhance the effect of surface plasmon of metal structure. Our results can be widely used in the field of surface plasmon, which is beneficial to the development of surface plasmon resonators in sensing and detection. Keywords: Multi-band, Surface plasmon resonance, Perfect absorption, Full metal grating, Slit

Introduction:The available evidence shows that perioperative oral thyroid hormone can significantly attenuate the postoperative decline in the serum hormone level and improve postoperative hemodynamic and prognostic parameters. However, there has been no study assessing the effects of preoperative oral different-dose thyroid hormone on serum hormone levels and myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) after cardiac surgery.Methods:Forty-eight healthy Wistar rats, aged 35 days, were randomly allocated into six groups: Group BC, Group C and four pretreatment groups in which the rats were given levothyroxine-sodium of 10 μg, 20 μg, 40 μg and 80 μg/100 g. On the eighth day, the serum thyroid hormone levels were determined and then an isolated heart ischemia-reperfusion model was established with a Langendorff apparatus.Results:Compared with Groups BC and C, serum thyroid hormone levels on the eighth day did not significantly change in Group 10 μg, but were significantly increased in Groups 20 μg, 40 μg and 80 μg. The cardiac enzyme myocardial-bound creatine kinase levels in the coronary effluent during reperfusion were significantly lower in Groups 10 μg and 20 μg and 40 μg than in Group C. The recovery rates of + dp/dtmaxand - dp/dtmaxat 30 min during reperfusion were significantly lower in Groups 40 μg and 80 μg than in Groups 10 μg and 20 μg. Compared with Group C, myocardial expressions of heat shock protein 70 and myosin heavy chain α were increased in the four experiment groups and myocardial expression of thyroid hormone receptor α1 was significantly increased in Groups 20 μg, 40 μg and 80 μg.Conclusions:The pretreatment with enterally smaller doses levothyroxine-sodium does not significantly affect serum thyroid hormone levels and produces protection against myocardial IRI, whereas pretreatment with enterally larger doses of levothyroxine-sodium can only provide an attenuated or insignificant cardioprotection because of hyperthyroxinemia. Cardioprotection by levothyroxine-sodium pretreatment is probably attributable to increased myocardial expression of heat shock protein 70 and myosin heavy chain α.

Background: Awake intubation is often regarded as a cornerstone in the management of the known difficult airway, but needs adequate airway topical anesthesia. This randomized clinical study was designed to determine the feasibility, safety and efficacy of the lightwand technique to provide airway topical anesthesia for awake tracheal intubation (ATI) by comparing with the fiberoptic technique.Methods: Eighty adult patients with difficult airways were randomly assigned to one of two study groups to receive airway topical anesthesia by lidocaine sprays with the lightwand (LW group) or fiberoptic bronchoscope (FOB group). After airway topicalization, ATI was also performed using the lightwand and fiberoptic techniques, respectively. Level of sedation, time for each lidocaine spray in different targeted areas, total times for airway sprays, and total dosages of lidocaine were noted. Operators assessed difficulty of the airway spray and ATI using the visual analogue scales (VAS). An independent investigator assessed patients' discomfort during airway topicalization, patients' reaction, coughing severity, and intubating condition during ATI, and observed changes of blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) during airway manipulations. Serial blood samples were obtained for analysis of plasma lidocaine concentrations. Also the postoperative follow-up of complications was done.Results: 96.7% of airway lidocaine sprays were successfully completed on the first attempt in the LW group compared with 84.7% in the FOB group. The operator VAS assessment of difficulty of the airway spray was significantly better, times for each supraglottic spray and first laryngeal spray, and total time for airway sprays were significantly shorter, and total dosages of lidocaine were smaller in the LW group compared with the FOB group. As compared with the FOB group, patients' reaction and coughing scores during ATI were significantly lower, intubating conditions and operator VAS assessment of difficulty of intubation were better, and systolic BP and HR at intubation were significantly lower in the LW group. However, there were not significant differences in the investigator scores of patients' discomfort during airway sprays, plasma lidocaine concentrations at all observed times and the postoperative interview variables between groups.Conclusions: As compared with the fiberoptic technique, use of the lightwand technique to provide airway topical anesthesia is easier for the experienced anesthetists, requires shorter time of airway preparation and smaller dosages of lidocaine, can produce better intubating condition for ATI, and does not result in more postoperative complications in sedated patients with difficult airways. Citation: Fu-Shan Xue, Nong He, He-Ping Liu, Xu Liao, Xiu- Zheng Xu, Jian-Hua Liu, et al. Comparison of lightwand and fiberoptic techniques for airway topical anesthesia in patients with difficult airways. J Anesth Perioper Med 2014; 1: 25-35. doi: 10.24015/JAPM.2014.0005This is an open-access article, published by Evidence Based Communications (EBC). This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format for any lawful purpose. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

More than 230 million of patients undergoing general anesthesia for major surgery require mechanical ventilation annually worldwide (1). It has been reported that 5-10% of all surgical patients and about 30-40% of those undergoing thoracic or abdominal surgery develop postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs), such as atelectasis, pneumonia, respiratory failure, acute respiratory distress syndrome, pleural effsion, etc (2). The improved perioperative management in the past decade has significantly decreased case-fatality rate of surgical patients, but the frequency of PPCs has still remained relatively constant due to the increased number and complexity of the operations performed and the increased acuity and age of patients. It has been shown that PPCs are major causes of postoperative morbidity and mortality, and are associated with considerable costs in hospital cares (3). Thus, PPCs are important clinical problems in modern practice and the prevention of PPCs has become a measure of quality of care (4). Citation: Fu-Shan Xue, Xu Liao, Rui-Ping Li, Xin-Long Cui. Lung-protective ventilation strategy in surgical patients: optimal setting of positive end-expiratory pressure? J Anesth Perioper Med 2015; 2: 45-7. doi: 10.24015/JAPM.2015.0007This is an open-access article, published by Evidence Based Communications (EBC). This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format for any lawful purpose. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

A series of polystyrene-supported imino group-bearing catalysts were prepared. A highly efficient combination of recyclable catalysts and microwave irradiation was developed as a green protocol for the direct aldol reaction. Notably, microwaves greatly shorten the reaction times to only 20 min and improve the yield significantly. Catalyst loading was reduced as well. Different aromatic aldehydes as aldol donors were subjected to our catalyst system and afforded the corresponding products in satisfactory yields. Additionally, the polymer-supported catalysts could be recovered by simple filtration and were reusable for at least four times without significant loss of reactivity. [Supplementary materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Synthetic Communications® for the following free supplemental resource(s): Full experimental and spectral details.]

This paper derives a numerical simulation of direct shearing test and model pile test based on the measured data of bored piles. Characteristics of the interface between bored pile and soil around it are analyzed. Laws of the magnitude and the distribution range of point resistance and frictional resistance of the bored piles in granular and clayey soil are obtained and the mechanism on them is explained.

The SiO2 coated Al thin films deposited on glass substrate for solar front reflectors were designed using Essential Macleod Program (EMP) and successfully fabricated by magnetron sputtering. The obtained thin films showed high reflectivity (up to 89.51%) under the light wavelength ranged from 250 to 2500 nm, which was identical with calculated results. Moreover, the thin films showed high anti-corrosion properties after the harsh abrasion tests. The high performance of the thin films was mainly attributed to the SiO2 layer, which served as a good protection without serious degradation of reflectivity, demonstrating the bright prospects for outdoor solar front reflectors.