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Background Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and tumor growth factor-β (TGFβ) have emerged as pivotal regulators during the progression of osteosarcoma (OS). LHX9 is one crucial transcription factor controlled by FGF, however, its function in OS has not been investigated yet. Methods The expression of LHX9, FRS2, BMP4, TGF-beta R1, SMAD2, beta-catenin and metastasis-related proteins was measured by real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and Western blot. CCK-8 assay and colony formation assay were employed to determine the proliferation of OS cells, while scratch wound healing assay and transwell assay were used to evaluate their migration and invasion, respectively. In vivo tumor growth and metastasis were determined by subcutaneous or intravenous injection of OS cells into nude mice. Results LHX9 expression was evidently up-regulated in OS tumor tissues and cell lines. Knockdown of LHX9 impaired the proliferation, migration, invasion and metastasis of OS cells. Mechanistically, LHX9 silencing led to the down-regulation of BMP-4, β-catenin and metastasis-related proteins, which was also observed in beta-catenin knockdown OS cells. By contrast, FRS2 knockdown conduced to the up-regulation of LHX9, BMP4, β-catenin and TGF-βR1, while TGF-beta inhibition repressed the expression of LHX9 and metastasis-related proteins. Additionally, let-7c modulates LHX9 and metastasis-related proteins by suppressing TGF-beta R1 expression on transcriptional level. Conclusions This study revealed LHX9 was essential for the proliferation, migration, invasion, and metastasis of OS cells via FGF and TGF-β/β-catenin signaling pathways.

Sense of touch is a major part of man’s communication with their environment. Artificial skins can help robots to have the same sense of touch, especially for their social interactions. This paper presents a pressure mapping sensing using piezo-resistive fabric to represent aspects of the sense of touch. In past few years’ electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is considered to be able offer a good alternative for artificial skin in particular for its ease of adaptation for large area skin compared to individual matrix based sensors. The EIT has also very good temporal performance in data collection allowing for monitoring of fast responses to touch stimulation, enabling a truly real time touch sensing. Electromechanical responses of a conductive fabric can be exploited using EIT to create a low cost and large area touch sensing. Such electromechanical properties are often very complex, so to improve the imaging resolution and touch visibility an artificial intelligent (AI) was used in addition to the state of the art spatio-temporal imaging algorithm. This work demonstrates a step towards an integrated seamless skin with large area sensing in dynamical settings, closer to natural human skin’s behaviour. For the first time a dynamical touch sensing are studies by means of a spatio-temporal based electrical impedance tomography (EIT) imaging on a conductive fabric. The experimental results demonstrated the successful results by a combined AI with dynamical EIT imaging results in single and multiple points of touch.

We analyzed greenhouse gas fluxes at the different growth stages of algae and lichen crusts in fixed sand with mobile dune as control in the eastern Hobq Desert, China, using the spatio-temporal substitution method. We explored the correlation of these fluxes with environmental factors and with biological soil crust growth. The results showed that variation of CO以流动沙地为对照,采用时空替代法分析库布齐沙漠东部固定沙地上不同发育阶段生物结皮藻类结皮和地衣结皮土壤温室气体通量特征及其与环境因子之间的关系,研究生物结皮发育对荒漠土壤温室气体通量的影响.结果表明: 荒漠土壤CO

In recent times, Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) synthesized from plant extracts and their anticancer activity have attracted significant attention. We report the green approach for the synthesis of AuNPs using extract from Abies spectabilis plant. In this study, the reaction parameters were optimized to control the size of the nanoparticle, which was confirmed by Transmission Electron microscopy (TEM). Various characterization technique such as SAED pattern, UV visible spectroscopy, EDX, FTIR, and AFM were employed to analyze the synthesized AuNPs obtained from A. spectabilis plant extract. Furthermore, we investigated the anticancer activities using T24 cell lines. Interestingly, the results of extensive screening on the applications of newly synthesized AuNPs were tested for their cytotoxicity effects on anticancer activity against T24 cells by MTT assay. The cell apoptosis was studied using TUNEL, DAPI, caspase activity, cell invasion and migration. Nanoparticles at different concentrations ranging from 1 to 25 μg/ml exhibited a dose dependent cytotoxicity for 24 h. Condensation and DNA fragmentation are characteristic of apoptosis by DAPI, TUNEL staining, and the significant up regulations of Beclin-1, Bax and caspase 3, whereas the expressions of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 and Bid were down regulated. However, this study, therefore attempts to report the synthesis, characterization, and anticancer activity of gold nanoparticles of A. spectabilis plant extract beneficial for cancer therapeutics.

In this study, allergic rhinitis (AR) disease targets and Xiang Ju tablet-associated targets were determined through the use of databases for the identification of putative therapeutic targets and then combined. After the production of a putative therapeutic target interaction network for Xiang Ju tablets against AR, topological analysis was used to determine the core targets of Xiang Ju tablets in AR treatment. For all putative therapeutic targets, analyses of biological function and pathway enrichment were performed to optimize the biological processes and key signaling pathways of Xiang Ju tablets in AR treatment. The top 5 therapeutic targets of Xiang Ju tablets in AR treatment were identified and included CXCL8, IL1B, IL6, IL10, and TNF. The biological processes, molecular functions, and cell composition related to the use of Xiang Ju tablets in AR treatment were predominantly associated with cytokine production, regulation of protein secretion, and regulation of peptide secretion; cytokine activity, cytokine receptor binding, and receptor ligand activity; and platelet alpha granule lumen, collagen-containing extracellular matrix, and platelet alpha granule. In addition, the top 64 key signaling pathways were identified.

The size, morphology, and polymorphism of nano-materials, the key factors determining their physicochemical properties, are significantly affected by the nucleation processes from precursors. Understanding the nucleation kinetics at the atomic scale is fundamental to the designed synthesis of nano-materials with tailored composition, shape and size. Here we report our investigation on the nucleation process in synthesis Platinum nano-particles by chemical reduction of chloroplatinic acid in methanol and methanol/water mixed system. In synergy with the liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS) and first-principle transition-state calculations, specific reaction processes at the pre-nucleation stage are revealed in which the precursor chloroplatinic acid (H2PtCl6) undergoes a two-step reduction process to form divalent and non-valent Pt-contained clusters, respectively. It is found that in both steps, the presence of water molecular can lower the activation energy and accelerate the reaction rate through a proton transport mechanism. Moreover, through free energy analysis and ab-initio molecular dynamic simulation, we identified the initial nucleation process which is characterized by the formation of Pt-Pt bond between two divalent Pt (II)-contained clusters. The theoretical calculations explain the pre-nucleation reaction paths and the nucleation process, consistent with the LCMS measurements and previous XAFS results. This work indicates the nucleation processes in chloroplatinic acid/methanol/water system exhibit more complexities than that described by the classical nucleation theory as well as previous research results on the same system. The finding may shed light upon the size-and-shape-controlled synthesis of noble metal nanoparticles.

China is one of the world’s agricultural development powers, vegetables in agriculture is worthy of the majority of planting. With the improvement of people’s living standard, “eating Chinese cabbage” has become the focus of people’s general attention. This paper mainly studies the analysis of the pollution-free cultivation techniques of leaf vegetables under the information background. Aiming at the defects of the existing vegetable cultivation expert system in protected areas, such as single function and several vegetables, the vegetable network expert system for disaster mitigation and cultivation has no public cellar, and the design and implementation of the system are introduced. The development of the system is oriented towards the majority of agricultural technicians and farmers, and provides them with a service platform for the safe production of vegetables in protected areas, the identification and prevention of major diseases and insect pests, scientific management, and so on, has a strong practical value and development prospects of grassroots.

Congestion and traffic accidents often take place at the entrances and exits of highways. However, reasonable access management and design can greatly mitigate congestion and accidents. This paper discusses the field of suburban highway access management by introducing three typical suburban highways access management models, including the two-way stop-controlled intersection, simplified restricted crossing U-turn (RCUT), and interchange with right-in right-out. To ensure better efficiency and safety, the simulations were conducted in VISSIM and Surrogate Safety Assessment Model (SSAM) software. The travel time, delay, and throughput are used as the efficiency indexes, and the traffic conflicts are used as safety indexes to quantify the access management performance. The results show that the total delay at an interchange with right-in right-out decreased by 40.5%, and the conflict decreased by 50.0% more than a two-way stop-controlled intersection design, as well as the total delay decreased by 30.7% and the conflict decreased by 67.4% more than a simplified RCUT design.

Highlights • NLRP3 inflammasome inhibition reduces TREM-1 expression in the lungs of mice with ALI. • Activation of NLRP3 inflammasome up-regulates TREM-1 expression in murine macrophages via HMGB1 and IL-18. • NLRP3 inflammasome activation induces TREM-1 expression, contributing to the inflammatory network in the lungs of ALI mice., NOD-, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome and triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 (TREM-1) are considered critical orchestrators of the inflammatory response in acute lung injury (ALI). However, few assumptions are based on the relationship between them. Here, we investigated the effect of NLRP3 inflammasome activation on the TREM-1 expression in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI and macrophages. We found that inhibition of the NLRP3 inflammasome reduced the TREM-1 expression and pathological lung injury in mice with ALI. Then, primary murine macrophages were used to dissect the underlying mechanistic events of the activation NLRP3 inflammasome involved in the TREM-1 expression. Our results demonstrated that the conditioned medium (CM) from NLRP3 inflammasome-activated-macrophages up-regulated the TREM-1 expression in macrophages, while this effect was reversed by an NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitor MCC950. Furthermore, neutralizing antibodies anti-IL-18 and anti-HMGB1 reduced the TREM-1 expression induced by NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Mechanistically, we found that CM from NLRP3 inflammasome-activated-macrophages increased the level of inhibitor κB kinase protein phosphorylation (p-IκBα) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) content, and promoted IκBα protein degradation in macrophages. While the inhibition of nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) and scavenging ROS eliminated the up-regulation of TREM-1 induced by the NLRP3 inflammasome activation in macrophages. In summary, our study confers NLRP3 inflammasome as a new trigger of TREM-1 signing, which allows additional insight into the pathological of the inflammatory response in ALI.

In this paper, the analysis is carried out in order to optimize the dynamic distribution network. The analysis is based on the basic principles of distribution network planning technology. It summarizes the ant colony algorithm and the improved ant colony algorithm, and proposes an improved ant colony algorithm for the distribution network planning the mathematical model construction method, and finally verifying the example. The results show that the improved ant colony algorithm has more advantages than the traditional ant colony algorithm, and it is more in line with the basic principles. The digital model of the distribution network planning has been successfully implemented, and it has a good performance in the calculation examples. The application of improved ant colony algorithm to optimize the planning of dynamic distribution network can improve the quality of the planning scheme, indicating that the algorithm has higher application value.

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text, Background: Several studies have shown a relationship between psoriasis and hypertension, but no meta-analysis has been restricted to studies that adjusted for confounders. The aim of the study was to estimate the association between psoriasis and hypertension with adjustment for covariates. Methods: A systematic literature search in the MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane databases, and Google Scholar was conducted to identify relevant studies which reported the association of psoriasis with the risk of hypertension published up to November 2018 in English. Data analysis was performed with Stata V.12, and Begg adjusted rank correlation test and Egger regression asymmetry test were used to detect publication bias. Results: A total of 16 adjusted-for-covariates studies, involving 50,291 cases with hypertension in 255,132 psoriasis patients and 76,547 cases with hypertension in 814,631 controls (no psoriasis), were included in this meta-analysis. The results indicated that psoriasis was associated with an increased risk of hypertension compared to those without psoriasis, and the prevalence of hypertension in severe psoriasis patients was higher than that in mild psoriasis patients, and the risk of hypertension in psoriasis patients was higher than that in nonpsoriasis patients in Europe and Asia. Conclusion: We conducted this meta-analysis using the adjusted-for-covariates odds ratio, demonstrating that psoriasis was associated with an increased risk of hypertension compared to those without psoriasis.

A joint planning method for distribution network and substation considering the influence of electric heating load is proposed based on LCC in this paper. A multi-state model of electric heating load level is obtained by state sampling combination of ordinary load and electric heating load according to Monte Carlo method (MCS). Taking line investment cost, operation and maintenance cost, adjustable capacity transformer investment cost, operation cost, network loss cost and user outage loss cost as objective functions, a joint planning model of distribution network and substation considering the influence of electric heating load is established. The multi-objective optimization problem is transformed into a single-objective optimization problem by weighting, and solved by genetic algorithm with mixed chromosome coding. The simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Metallic nanoparticles were extensively examined to explore their impending exploitations over pharmaceutical purposes. Current work attempting to explores the cytotoxic capacity of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles besides to human melanoma cell line (A375). Viability of cells was resoluted, and the promising cytotoxicity potential was exhibited by zinc oxide nanoparticles. Cellular adhesion and morphology was determined by propidium iodide assay. Characterization studies like UV-Spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD) investigation, transmission electron microscope (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) Spec, and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) examination confirms the accessibility of measurement, form and volume. The mRNA expression of apoptotic genes like caspase 3, 8 and 9 was elevated followed by the exposure to ZnO nanoparticles and it was narrowly proved that ZnO nanoparticles stimulates the apoptotic cell necrosis at the transcriptional stage. Cardiospermum halicacabum down regulated the apoptotic gene expressions. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation was augmented at concentration reliant mode, that changed normalize numerous indicator pathways and manipulate the kinetic cellular actions. ZnO nanoparticle synthesized Cardiospermum halicacabum might persuades programmed cell necrosis via elevated ROS levels in cells. CH-ZnONPs was further stimulates the markers of apoptosis and aggravates necrosis of cancerous cells, toxicity to cells, and accretion of ROS. With sourced on above whole data, this might accomplished that CH-ZnONPs amalgamated Cardiospermum halicacabum appreciably possessed a toxicity to human melanoma cells (A375) via provoking the apoptotic cell necrosis, entailed feasible efficacy of CH-ZnONPs besides malignancy management.

Background and aims: Various prediction indices based on the single time point observation have been proposed in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), but little was known about disease trajectory as a predictor of future exacerbations. Our study explored the association between disease trajectory and future exacerbations, and validated the predictive value of the modified and simplified short-term clinically important deterioration (CID). Methods: This study was a multicenter, prospective observational study. Patients with COPD were recruited into our study and followed up for 18 months. The modified CID (CID-C) was defined as a decrease of 100 mL in forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), or suffering exacerbations, or increase of 2 units in COPD Assessment Test (CAT) during the first 6 months follow-up. Simplified CID was defined when excluding CAT from the CID-C model. Results: A total of 127 patients were enrolled in our final analysis. Compared with patients without exacerbations during the period of the 6th to the 18th month, patients with exacerbations were more likely to have frequent short-term exacerbations in the first 6 months (2.14 versus 0.21, p Conclusion: Disease trajectory, including both the CID-C and the Simplified CID had significant predictive value for future exacerbations. The reviews of this paper are available via the supplemental material section.

Shallow sea, especially the reflection and absorption of seabed, have significant influence on the vibroacoustic radiation and propagation properties of underwater structures. An FEM/BEM algorithm based on modal summation is adopted to calculate the modal source strengths and modal coordinate responses of a slender cylindrical shell, in which the Green function of sound field is obtained via virtual source chain model. Using the modal source strengths and modal coordinate responses obtained, the near/far field radiated sound pressure level (SPL) of the slender cylindrical shell in uniform shallow sea is calculated adopting the 3-parameter seabed model. By comparing the radiated power of all modal shapes, the modes with greater contribution can be acquired. Results show that seabed parameters have influence on the far field acoustic radiation of the slender cylindrical shell, mainly on the modal shapes with large grazing angle waves due to larger bottom loss; while the small grazing angle waves are less susceptible to the seabed and propagate much farther.

Aiyuan Zhou,1–3 Zijing Zhou,1–3 Yating Peng,1–3 Yiyang Zhao,1–3 Jiaxi Duan,1–3 Ping Chen1–3 1Department of Respiratory Medicine, Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410011, China; 2Research Unit of Respiratory Disease, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410011, China; 3Diagnosis and Treatment Center of Respiratory Disease, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410011, China Background: The chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) Assessment Test (CAT) questionnaire is a short patient-completed questionnaire, which is used to assess the health status of patients with stable COPD. However, whether it is a good tool to evaluate the response to treatment in acute exacerbation of COPD (AECOPD) has been less studied.Methods: The patients were assessed at two visits, at admission and on the seventh day. Anthropometric variables were collected at admission. CAT and lung function were measured twice at the above time points. At the second visit, the health status of the patients were divided into five groups based on a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from 1 to 5, which represents “much better,” “slightly better,” “no change,” “slightly worse,” and “much worse.” Responders were those who reported “much better” or “slightly better,” and nonresponders were those who claimed “no change,” “worse,” or “much worse.”Results: In total, 225 patients were recruited. The average CAT score at admission was 24.82±7.41, which declined to 17.41±7.35 on the seventh day. There were 81.33% responders, whose improvement in CAT score (9.37±5.24) was much higher than that of the nonresponders (−1.36±4.35). A moderate correlation was observed between the changes in CAT score and improvement in FEV1, FEV1%, and the length of hospital stay. There was a strong correlation between the changes in CAT score and health status. A 3.5-unit improvement in the CAT score, with highest area under the curve, was the cutoff to differentiate responders from nonresponders.Conclusion: The evolution of CAT scores during exacerbation can provide useful information to assess the health status of patients with AECOPD. A 3.5-unit improvement in CAT score is the best cutoff to differentiate between patients who have a response or no response to treatment, which offers a convenient and easy way for clinicians to monitor the health status of patients with an AECOPD. Keywords: COPD, acute exacerbation, CAT, curative effect

To screen the optimum method for deproteination of Dioscorea nipponica polysaccharides.The ratio of protein removing and polysaccharides remaining were used as indicator,four deproteination methods were evaluated.PapainSevage method was the best one, in which the deproteination rate was 91. 24%,and 80. 12% of polysaccharide was remained. The optimum conditions for deproteinization were as follows, hydrolysing the substrates with 2. 0% papain( p H 7. 0) at 55 ℃ for 122 min, and one times with Sevage method.The papain-Sevage is the best deproteination method for purifying Dioscorea nipponica polysaccharides.

To study the pharmacokinetic and tissue distribution of quercetin injection and submicron emulsion after intravenous administration in mice.The concentration of quercetin in mice plasma and tissues were determined by RPHPLC.Liver had the highest tissue concentration of quercetin submicron emulsion, followed by plasma, kidney, spleen, lung, heart and brain. And their had significantly increased compared with the AUC0→tof plasma, liver, spleen, kidney and brain after administration of quercetin injection( P0. 05). The Rte and Re of liver, brain and spleen were all larger than 1.Quercetin submicron emulsion significantly alters the plasma pharmacokinetic characteristics of quercetin after intravenous administration in mice. And it has good targeting location features in liver, brain, spleen and kidney.

Three types of sand-fixation shrub plantations, including Artemisia ordosica + Hedysarum fruticosum, Caragana korshinskii and Salix psammophila, were selected in the eastern area of Kubuqi Desert to study the changes in soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN), quantities of soil microorganisms, contents of soil nutrients and the relations among these variables under the different plantation types and shifting sandy land. The restoration effects of each plantation type on soil quality were assessed by synthetic index method. The results showed that the contents of soil organic matter, total nitrogen and phosphorus, and available nitrogen and phosphorus under different plantations were all significantly greater than those under shifting sandy land, and the order of increase was A. ordosica + H. fruticosum ＞ C. korshinskii ＞ S. psammophila. The soil nutrient contents decreased with the increase of soil depth under all plantation types. The quantities of soil microorganisms and the contents of soil MBC and MBN under the plantations were higher at different degrees than those under shifting sandy land. MBC, MBN and the relative numbers of bacteria under A. ordosica+H. fruticosum plantation were higher than those under C. korshinskii plantation and S. psammophila plantation. The relative numbers of fungi and actinobacteria decreased in the order of C. korshinskii ＞ S. psammophila ＞ A. ordosica + H. fruticosum. The relative number of bacteria, MBC and MBN under the plantations were mainly affected by the contents of soil organic matter, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, available nitrogen, available phosphorus, as well as C/N, and the relative numbers of actinobacteria and fungi were primarily affected by the contents of soil total phosphorus, available nitrogen and available phosphorus. Soil quality was ranked in the order of A. ordosica + H. fruticosum ＞ C. korshinskii ＞ S. psammophila ＞ shifting sandy land. These results demonstrated that different sand-fixation shrub plantations could improve the quality of the desert soil and the A. ordosica + H. fruticosum plantation was the best for soil restoration and quality improvement in the desert.在库布齐沙漠东段选取人工油蒿+杨柴半灌木混交林、人工柠条锦鸡儿灌木林和人工沙柳灌木林3种人工固沙灌木林为对象,以流动沙地为对照,研究了不同人工固沙灌木林土壤微生物生物量碳和氮、土壤微生物数量、土壤养分变化特征及其相互间的关系,并运用综合指数法对不同人工固沙灌木林的土壤恢复效果进行评价.结果表明: 与流动沙地相比,3种人工固沙灌木林土壤有机质、全氮、全磷、速效氮、速效磷含量均有不同程度的提高,表现为油蒿+杨柴林地＞柠条锦鸡儿林地＞沙柳林地,且均随土层加深而依次降低;3种人工固沙灌木林土壤微生物数量、微生物生物量碳和氮均较流动沙地有不同程度的提高,油蒿+杨柴林地土壤微生物生物量碳氮和细菌相对数量高于柠条锦鸡儿林地和沙柳林地,而真菌与放线菌相对数量则表现为柠条锦鸡儿林地＞沙柳林地＞油蒿+杨柴林地;影响3种人工固沙灌木林土壤细菌相对数量、微生物生物量碳和氮的因素是土壤有机质、全氮、全磷、速效氮、速效磷含量及C/N,而放线菌、真菌相对数量主要受土壤全磷、速效氮和速效磷含量的影响;不同人工固沙灌木林土壤质量排序为:油蒿+杨柴林地＞柠条锦鸡儿林地＞沙柳林地＞流动沙地,表明不同人工固沙灌木林的建植均能提高沙漠土壤质量,其中营造油蒿+杨柴半灌木混交林对提高土壤综合质量效果最好.

We investigated the effect of grafting on the root rhizosphere soil microorganisms, physical properties, nutrient content, soil-borne disease and yield of pepper, using 'Weishi' (WS) and 'Buyeding' (BYD) as rootstocks, the cultivar pepper 'Xinfeng 2' (XF) as scion, and the own-root (XF/XF) pepper as the control. The results indicated that XF/WS and XF/BYD significantly increased the populations of fungi and actinomycetes and the percentage of actinomycetes. 60 days after transplanting, the activities of catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POD) were much higher in root rhizosphere soil of grafted pepper. 90 days after transplanting, the activities of phosphatase, invertase, urease, and nitrate reductase (NR) were much higher in root rhizosphere soil of XF/WS. In addition, The XF/WS and XF/BYD also highly increased hydrocarbon compounds in soil extraction, slightly increased electric conductivity (EC) but lowered nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium contents in root rhizosphere soil. Higher pH in root rhizosphere soil was found in XF/WS but not in XF/BYD. These data indicated that grafting could optimize the rhizosphere soil environment of pepper and enhance the resistance of soil-borne diseases. The yields of XF/WS and XF/BYD were increased by 40.8% and 28.7%, respectively.以‘卫士’(WS)和‘部野丁’(BYD)辣椒为砧木,‘新丰2号’(XF)辣椒为接穗嫁接,以‘新丰2号’自根嫁接辣椒(XF/XF)为对照(CK),研究嫁接对辣椒根际土壤微生物量、物理性质、养分含量及土传病害和产量的影响.结果表明: 嫁接辣椒新丰/卫士(XF/WS)与新丰/部野丁(XF/BYD)根际土壤的真菌和放线菌数量较多,放线菌比例较大;定植60 d时,嫁接辣椒根际土壤过氧化氢酶(CAT)和过氧化物酶(POD)活性显著高于CK;定植90 d时,XF/WS根际土壤磷酸酶、蔗糖酶、脲酶、硝酸还原酶(NR)活性显著高于CK;此外,嫁接辣椒根际土壤浸提液中的烃类化合物增多,XF/WS和XF/BYD根际土壤N、P、K含量显著低于CK,根际土壤电导率(EC)略高,XF/WS的pH显著高于CK,而XF/BYD与CK差异不显著.说明嫁接可优化辣椒根际土壤环境,增强其对土传病害的抗性,XF/WS和XF/BYD的产量分别比CK增加40.8%和28.7%.

The combined processes of powdered activated carbon/biological powdered activated carbon- ultrafiltration (PAC/BPAC-UF) were used to treat secondary effluent. In this study, the effect of PAC and BPAC on membrane flux, membrane resistance and the removal of different molecular weight organic compounds were investigated. In addition, the structure characteristics of the microorganisms of the BPAC were analyzed. The results showed that the optimum dosage of PAC and BPAC was 10 mg/L and 40 mg/L respectively. The reversible membrane fouling resistance of BPAC-UF was higher than that of PAC-UF, and the two processes had the least irreversible resistance at the best dosage. The biodegradation of BPAC increased the concentration of small molecular weight organic matter up to 10,000 Da in the membrane effluent. So the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) removal effect of BPAC-UF process worsened. Microorganisms such as Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Planctomycetes and other microorganisms on the surface of the BPAC enhanced the removal of organic matter in water. The results of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) scans showed that there was net mucus membrane on the UF membrane surface before the backwashing of the BPAC-UF process which increased the proportion of reversible pollution resistance. The physical flushing effect of BPAC-UF was better than that of direct UF and PAC-UF processes.

BACKGROUND:Pneumoconiosis may play an important role in the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and the complication of COPD may impose a heavy burden of illness. METHODS:The study was conducted in Hunan Province in China from December 1, 2015, to December 1, 2016. Consecutive underground male pneumoconiosis patients employed for at least 1year were recruited from the Hunan Occupational Disease Prevention Institute. Patient information, respiratory symptoms and clinical data were collected using a structured questionnaire. The diagnosis of COPD were assessed using the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) criteria. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the clinical and demographic risk factors of COPD among pneumoconiosis patients. RESULTS:The prevalence of COPD in our sample of pneumoconiosis patients was 18.65% (119/638). In pneumoconiosis patients with and without smoking history, the prevalence of COPD was 19.32 and 16.77%. Compared with non-COPD patients, those with COPD are older in age, have longer exposure time, have lower body mass index (BMI), have a higher smoking index and have worse pulmonary function (all p

Sugars Will Eventually be Exported Transporter (SWEET) and SemiSWEET are recently characterized families of sugar transporters in eukaryotes and prokaryotes, respectively. SemiSWEETs contain 3 transmembrane helices (TMHs), while SWEETs contain 7. Here, we performed sequence-based comprehensive analyses for SWEETs and SemiSWEETs across the biosphere. In total, 3,249 proteins were identified and ≈60% proteins were found in green plants and Oomycota, which include a number of important plant pathogens. Protein sequence similarity networks indicate that proteins from different organisms are significantly clustered. Of note, SemiSWEETs with 3 or 4 TMHs that may fuse to SWEET were identified in plant genomes. 7-TMH SWEETs were found in bacteria, implying that SemiSWEET can be fused directly in prokaryote. 15-TMH extraSWEET and 25-TMH superSWEET were also observed in wild rice and oomycetes, respectively. The transporters can be classified into 4, 2, 2, and 2 clades in plants, Metazoa, unicellular eukaryotes, and prokaryotes, respectively. The consensus and coevolution of amino acids in SWEETs were identified by multiple sequence alignments. The functions of the highly conserved residues were analyzed by molecular dynamics analysis. The 19 most highly conserved residues in the SWEETs were further confirmed by point mutagenesis using SWEET1 from Arabidopsis thaliana. The results proved that the conserved residues located in the extrafacial gate (Y57, G58, Y83, G131, and P191), the substrate binding pocket (N73, N192, and W176), and the intrafacial gate (P43, F87, P145, M161, P162, and Q202) play important roles for substrate recognition and transport processes. Taken together, our analyses provide a foundation for understanding the diversity, classification, and evolution of SWEETs and SemiSWEETs using large-scale sequence analysis and further show that that gene duplication and gene fusion are important factors driving the evolution of SWEETs.

Epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs), the metabolites of arachidonic acid derived from the cytochrome P450 (CYP450) epoxygenases, are mainly metabolized by soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) to their corresponding diols. EETs but not their diols, have anti-inflammatory properties and inhibition of sEH might provide protective effects against inflammatory fibrosis. We test the effects of a selected sEH inhibitor, 1-trifluoromethoxyphenyl-3-(1-propionylpiperidin-4-yl) urea (TPPU), on bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis (PF) in mice. A mouse model of PF was established by intratracheal injection of bleomycin and TPPU was administered for 21days after bleomycin injection. We found TPPU treatment improved the body weight loss and survival rate of bleomycin-stimulated mice. Histological examination showed that TPPU treatment alleviated bleomycin-induced inflammation and maintained the alveolar structure of the pulmonary tissues. TPPU also decreased the bleomycin-induced deposition of collagen and the expression of procollagen I mRNA in lung tissues of mice. TPPU decreased the transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and IL-6 levels in the serum of bleomycin-stimulated mice. Furthermore, TPPU inhibited the proliferation and collagen synthesis of mouse fibroblasts and partially reversed TGF-β1-induced α-smooth muscle actin expression. Our results indicate that the inhibition of sEH attenuates bleomycin-induced inflammation and collagen deposition and therefore prevents bleomycin-induced PF in a mouse model.

The planting amount is determined by farmers according to the profit of planting economic crops. Moreover, the planting profit is estimated by using the statistical methods. The relation between the planting amount and the profit is similar to a linear function. However, the straight line equation has been set by using the historical data, calculating the slope of the straight line or adopting the least squares method. Therefore, the planting amount in next year will be calculated based on the equation. In a word, the planting amount in next year will be adjusted and controlled on the basis of the calculated planting amount and the real demand in the market.

The price of the livestock meat is the function of its demand quantity and its supply quantity.The cost function can be obtained by using the least square method or the data analysis of Microsoft Office EXCE. By the function, we can forecast the meat prices in the future. The raising quantity can appropriately be controlled using the cost function.

Calcifying fibrous pseudotumor (CFP) is a rare benign soft tissue lesion. We herein present an extremely rare case of CFP of the adrenal gland. A 32-year-old male patient presented to our hospital with a tumor-like lesion in the area of the left adrenal gland detected by ultrasound during a routine check-up several days prior. Contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging examination revealed a solitary, well-circumscribed mass, in close proximity to the medial arterial branch of the left adrenal gland. Histological examination revealed that the tumor consisted of sheets of varying amount of inflammatory cell infiltration; interstitial fibrosis and psammomatous calcifications were also observed. To the best of our knowledge, this is the third case of CFP occurring in the adrenal gland in the published literature. We herein report the findings of this case and review the two previously reported cases of CFP of the adrenal gland with valuable information.

Pulmonary fibrosis is a life-threatening disease characterized by progressive dyspnea and worsening of pulmonary function. No effective therapeutic strategy for pulmonary fibrosis has been established. Aucubin is a natural constituent with a monoterpene cyclic ring system. The potency of aucubin in protecting cellular components against inflammation, oxidative stress, and proliferation effects is well documented. In this study, we investigated the protective effect of aucubin against pulmonary fibrosis in mice. A mouse model of pulmonary fibrosis was established by intratracheal injection of bleomycin (BLM), and aucubin was administered for 21 days after BLM injection. We found that aucubin decreased the breathing frequency and increased the lung dynamic compliance of BLM-stimulated mice detected by Buxco pulmonary function testing system. Histological examination showed that aucubin alleviated BLM-induced lung parenchymal fibrotic changes. Aucubin also reduced the intrapulmonary collagen disposition and inflammatory injury induced by BLM. In addition, aucubin reduced the expression of pro-fibrotic protein transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) of pulmonary fibrosis mice induced by BLM. Furthermore, the effect of aucubin on the proliferation and differentiation of fibroblast was investigated in vitro. Aucubin inhibited the mRNA and protein expression of Ki67 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) induced by TGF-β1 and reduced the cell proliferation in a murine fibroblast cell NIH3T3. Aucubin also reduced the collagen syntheses and α-SMA expression induced by TGF-β1 in fibroblast. Our results indicate that aucubin inhibits inflammation, fibroblast proliferation, and differentiation, exerting protective effects against BLM-induced pulmonary fibrosis in a mouse model. This study provides an evidence that aucubin may be a novel drug for pulmonary fibrosis.

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a condition resulting from direct or indirect lung injury associated with high mortality and morbidity. The phenotype of macrophages in lung contributes to the pathological progress of ALI. Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) is one of the most abundant neuropeptides in lung, and attenuates lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI in rats. However, the exact effect of CGRP on the activation of macrophages remains unknown. Here we investigate the effect of CGRP on the macrophages activation and inflammation in murine macrophages in vitro. We found that LPS increased the expression of CGRP in a LPS-induced ALI murine model and LPS-stimulated murine macrophages. Although CGRP didn't alter the expression of tumor necrosis factor-α (a marker of pro-inflammatory phenotype of macrophages, M1 macrophages) or Arginase 1 (Arg1, a marker of M2 macrophages) in non-differentiated macrophages, CGRP significantly reduced the NLRP3 and pro-IL-1β mRNA expression induced by LPS, as well as NLRP3 protein and IL-1β secretion induced by LPS+ATP in macrophages in vitro. On the other hand, CGRP dramatically enhanced the Arg1 expression and activity induced by IL-4 in the time- and dose-dependent manners. CGRP also promoted the expression of markers of M2 macrophages (IL-10, Fizz1 and Mrc1) induced by IL-4 in murine macrophages. These effects of CGRP were also observed in primary murine peritoneal macrophages. In addition, we found that CGRP regulated macrophages polarization partially through calmodulin, PKC and PKA pathways. Specifically, CGRP could inhibit the degradation of I-κB induced by LPS, and enhance the phosphorylation of STAT6 induced by IL-4 in macrophages. In conclusion, our results indicate that CGRP regulates macrophage polarization and inhibits inflammation in murine macrophages.

Acute lung injury (ALI) is characterized by rapid alveolar injury, vascular leakage, lung inflammation, neutrophil accumulation, and induced cytokines production leading to lung edema. The mortality rate of patients suffering from ALI remains high. Epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs) are cytochrome P450-dependent derivatives of polyunsaturated fatty acid with antihypertensive, profibrinolytic, and anti-inflammatory functions. EETs are rapidly hydrated by soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) to their less potent diols. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of sEH inhibitor trifluoromethoxyphenyl propionylpiperidin urea (TPPU) and EETs in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI of mice. Our studies revealed that inhibition of sEH with TPPU attenuated the morphological changes in mice, decreased the neutrophil infiltration to the lung, pro-inflammatory cytokine levels (IL-1β and TNF-α) in serum and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), and alveolar capillary leakage (lung wet/dry ratio and total protein concentration in BALF). TPPU improved the survival rate of LPS-induced ALI. In addition, in vitro experiments revealed that both TPPU and EETs (11,12-EET and 14,15-EET) suppressed the expression of IL-1β and TNF-α, and LDH release in RAW264.7 cells. These results indicate that EETs play a role in dampening LPS-induced acute lung inflammation, and suggest that sEH could be a valuable candidate for the treatment of ALI.

This paper focused on the effects of powdered activated carbon (PAC) dosage on ultrafiltration (UF) membrane flux caused by natural organic matter (NOM). Three model foulants, humic acid (HA), bovine serum albumin (BSA) and sodium alginate (SA), were adopted to represent different NOM fractions in secondary effluent treated by the combined process of PAC-UF. Moreover, the membrane fouling resistance and fouling mechanism were also analyzed. The results indicated that the best PAC dosage for the membrane flux variation was 20 mg/L for HA and SA, and 10 mg/L for BSA. SA caused the most serious membrane fouling, which was mainly reversible fouling. The membrane fouling caused by HA and BSA was mainly irreversible membrane fouling. The membrane fouling caused by organics happened mainly at the initial stage of filtration. Because the filter cake layer formed by a moderate amount of PAC could intercept organics, the membrane fouling, especially the irreversible fouling, could be reduced.

Objectives: To provide a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies comparing ureterolithotripsy (URS) with percutaneous nephrolithotripsy (PCNL) or laparoscopic ureterolithotomy (LU) techniques for the management of large proximal ureteral stones (diameter greater than 10 mm). Methods: A literature search was performed using PubMed, EMBASE, EBSCO, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library to identify suitable studies until November 2016. We used weighted mean difference to measure operative time and hospital stay, OR to measure stone free rate (SFR), and complication rate. Subgroup analyses were assessed for heterogeneity. Results: Fourteen publications strictly met our eligibility criteria of which 7 were randomized control studies (RCTs) and 7 non-RCTs. Meta-analysis of extractable data showed that LU and PCNL had higher SFR than URS. URS led to a similar hospital stay like that of LU. However, it had a shorter operative time and lower complication rate than LU. When we compared URS with PCNL, we found a shorter hospital stay in the URS group. However, there was no significant difference in terms of the operative time and complication rate between URS and PCNL. Conclusion: URS should be considered standard therapy for treating large proximal ureteral stones.

The methods for quantity of the influence coefficient are put forward in this paper. The effect of the influence coefficient in voting actions is also explained. However, the simple means of the voting results such as evaluation, calculation, operation and control are introduced in the article.

The offline verification of state of charge estimation, power estimation, fault diagnosis and emergency control of battery management system (BMS) is one of the key technologies in the field of electric vehicle battery system. It is difficult to test and verify the battery management system software in the early stage, especially for algorithms such as system state estimation, emergency control and so on. This article carried out the virtual environment modeling for verification of battery management system. According to the input/output parameters of battery management system, virtual environment is determined to run the battery management system. With the integration of the developed BMS model and the external model, the virtual environment model has been established for battery management system in the vehicle's working environment. Through the virtual environment model, the effectiveness of software algorithm of BMS was verified, such as battery state parameters estimation, power estimation, fault diagnosis, charge and discharge management, etc.

A high speed and high resolution semi-digital DLL (Delay Locked Loop) circuit will be discussed. The circuit is composed of three blocks: delay line, phase detector and digital finite-state machine (FSM). The delay line consists of two steps: the coarse tuning by tapping and the fine delay using interpolation to enable a resolution as high as 2 picoseconds. With the two steps approach and configuration of delay line, 3 GHz speed and picoseconds-level resolution can be achieved.

The profit of raising fatstock is subordinated to the random variables of the normal distribution. The average feeding profit is established by using the statistical methods. Moreover, the function between the feeding profit and raising amount is determined by adopting the method of linear regression. The function relationship among the purchase price, demand and production capacity of raising fatstock is gained by using the binary regression method. Therefore, the price of the meat livestock in the future will be forecast. However, the amount of raising fatstock can be controlled according to the differences between the production capacity and the demand.

Headache is a common problem among the population, many factors may impact the headache characteristics and medical consultation behaviors in different age groups. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics and the diagnosis and treatment status of headaches in elderly patients hospitalized in a gerontologic department. Consecutive patients hospitalized in the Department of Gerontology eligible for this study were registered. All the patients underwent a comprehensive evaluation of their whole health status, performed by three gerontologists initially. Then headache was evaluated by two physicians experienced in headache studies. Headache diagnosis was made according to the criteria of the second edition of the International Classification of Headache Disorders. In this study, 20% of the participants reported at least one headache attack in the previous year. Sixty percent of the migraineurs and 79·7% of the tension type headache (TTH) patients reported bilateral pain. Throbbing/pulsating and tightness/pressing were the most frequently described pain quality by the migraineurs and TTH patients, respectively. The migraineurs reported the most severe pain (P0·001). The frequency of headache attacks was not significantly different in the three subgroups (P = 0·053). About 76·2% of the migraineurs, 68·8% of the TTH, and 80% of the other type headache patients had consulted a physician for their headaches in the previous year. Taking acute analgesics for headache was more common in migraineurs (P0·001). The results showed that headache remained under-recognized and under-treated in the geriatrics department.

Acute lung injury (ALI) is associated with high mortality and uncontrolled inflammation plays a critical role in ALI. TREM-1 is an amplifier of inflammatory response, and is involved in the pathogenesis of many infectious diseases. NLRP3 inflammasome is a member of NLRs family that contributes to ALI. However, the effect of TREM-1 on NLRP3 inflammasome and ALI is still unknown. This study aimed to determine the effect of TREM-1 modulation on LPS-induced ALI and activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome. We showed that LR12, a TREM-1 antagonist peptide, significantly improved survival of mice after lethal doses of LPS. LR12 also attenuated inflammation and lung tissue damage by reducing histopathologic changes, infiltration of the macrophage and neutrophil into the lung, and production of the pro-inflammatory cytokine, and oxidative stress. LR12 decreased expression of the NLRP3, pro-caspase-1 and pro-IL-1β, and inhibited priming of the NLRP3 inflammasome by inhibiting NF-κB. LR12 also reduced the expression of NLRP3 and caspase-1 p10 protein, and secretion of the IL-1β, inhibited activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome by decreasing ROS. For the first time, these data show that TREM-1 aggravates inflammation in ALI by activating NLRP3 inflammasome, and blocking TREM-1 may be a potential therapeutic approach for ALI.

Soluble N-ethylmaleimide sensitive factor attachment protein receptors (SNAREs) are the key regulators control trafficking of cargo proteins to their final destinations and plays key role in plant development; however, their roles in plant defense remain largely unknown. R-SNARE VAMP727 and Qa-SNARE SYP22 were previously reported to associate with vacuolar protein deposition and brassinosteroids (BRs) receptor BRI1 plasma membrane targeting. Here, we identified that VAMP727 and SYP22 are induced by infection of root-knot nematode (RKN), a plant pathogen, which cause severe growth defect and yield loss. Furthermore, decreased root-knot nematode (RKN) invasion, growth and disease index were observed in bri1-5 and SYP22ND, a SYP22 negative dominant mutants when compared to control plants. Overall, our results suggest that VAMP727-SYP22 SNARE complexes regulate plant defense might be via control of abundances of BRI1 on the plasma membrane.

If the function is the algebraic sum of finite infinitely small quantities, among which one is lower order infinitely small quantity of the others, the lowest order infinitely small quantity is the main part of the function. However, the limit of the quotient between two infinitely small quantities is equal to the limit of the quotient of their main parts. Similarly, if the function is the algebraic sum of finite infinitely large quantities, among which one is the higher order infinitely large quantity of the others, the highest order infinitely large quantity is called as the main part of the function. Moreover, the limit of the quotient between two infinitely large quantities is equal to the limit of the quotient of their main parts.

Simplicillium chinense (Snef5) was isolated from Antheraea pernyi pupae and identified by morphological and molecular methods. Culture filtrates of Snef5 showed a high level of nematicidal activity. It is the first time to report that S. chinense can be used as a biological control agent against plant parasitic nematodes.

On the basis of Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) model, this paper has developed the driver's following behavior model. Reasonable following behavior is very important in traffic safety. Firstly, this paper has gotten the relationship between vehicle speed, acceleration and pedal depth by vehicle performance testing. Then car-following model based on regression analysis was developed, meanwhile reasonable amendments of the distance model was added. Finally，graphical user interface (GUI) of driver's following behavior was designed, which can displays the simulation results intuitively. Simulation results show that driver's following behavior model is reasonable and effective. It has a good effect both on traffic safety and traffic-economic.

The identification of complex genetic determinants that control the ability of a fungus to produce bioactive compounds enhances molecular breeding strategies. Through a series of optimizations, we developed a system for the genetic transformation of Gymnoascus reesii that can produce nematicidal activity against the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incoginta. The optimal conditions for protoplast preparation and generation are as follows: mycelia growth time in CM medium of 42 h, Driselase as the cell wall-degrading enzyme, a ratio of 1.5 mL enzyme solution (20 mg/mL Driselase) per gram mycelia, a treatment time of 4 h at 28°C, and 0.7 M NaCl buffer. With the above conditions, the yield of G. reesiiprotoplasts reached 1.84 × 107 protoplasts per mL with a regeneration rate of up to 21.17% on solid regeneration medium (SR medium). The pKNTG vector with green fluorescent protein (GFP) was transformed into the protoplasts by polyethylene glycol (PEG), and 20 positive transformants were obtained. The results provide a basic technique for molecular breeding of G. reesii strains that has improved nematicidal activity. Key words: Gymnoascus reesii, nematicidal activity, genetic transformation.

Timber is a typical orthotropic material, of which the accurate measurement of elasticity modulus and Poisson ratio is important. In this article, the test samples are manufactured according to GB 1943-1991 and 1935-1991. An electronic testing machine is employed to add longitudinal load on samples and the longitudinal and transverse strains are measured via Wheatstone bridge. Then, the compressible elasticity modulus and Poisson ratio of Ziziphus montana wood in three directions is obtained. The results show that the elasticity modulus measured is of similar magnitude to those with similar dry density and of great importance to finite element calculation.

The cylinder for experiment has been excited by steady sinusoidal and random white noise excitation forces and the acceleration responses are measured. The frequency response functions of two excitation ways agree well. The reciprocity law and the linearity are certified by exchanging the excitation and measurement spots and increasing input voltage continuously respectively. The influence of mesh size to calculated time and precision of vacuum vibration mean square velocity and underwater vibration mean square velocity and acoustic radiation are investigated. Results show that time consumed mounts with the mesh size gets smaller, and the vibroacoustic results is less influenced at lower frequencies but much more at higher frequencies.

For hard rocks whose protodyakonov scale of hardness f are greater than 8, research on the optimization design of cutting head of cantilever roadheader. Optimization model of the cutting head was established, in this model, the objective function was established based on dust mount, energy consumption and production efficiency. The design variables contain cutting head structural and kinetic parameters, the constraints are determined in accordance with working condition and practical experience. Cutting head parameters are optimized with parameters change related to rock strength, using genetic algorithm in Matlab7.0. A variety of cutting parameters optimization results related to rock strength are of great significance for the structural design of the cutting head and selection of kinetic parameters.