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Although physical exercise may improve memory in older adults, whether the Chinese traditional fitness exercise Wuqinxi improves working memory and delays cognitive deterioration in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) has not been assessed in randomized controlled experiments.Fifty older adults with MCI based on their Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores were randomized to either a Wuqinxi exercise group or a non-exercise control group. The exercise group engaged in Wuqinxi once a week for 60 min each session for 40 weeks. Participants in the control group received no intervention and maintained their regular living habits. The n-back paradigm was used to measure changes in working memory before and after Wuqinxi exercise.In the 0-back task, the response speed of older adults with MCI who participated in Wuqinxi was faster than that of older adults with MCI in the non-exercise control group (P = 0.031); there was no significant difference in accuracy between the two groups (P 0.05). In the 1-back and 2-back tasks, there was no significant difference in response times or in accuracy between the two groups (P 0.05).In this randomized controlled study, participation in long-term Wuqinxi delayed the deterioration of working memory in older adults with MCI, suggesting that this exercise may be an effective intervention to delay or prevent the progression of MCI to Alzheimer's disease.

Understanding of the evolution of metazoans from their unicellular ancestors is a fundamental question in biology. In contrast to fungi which utilize the Mon1–Ccz1 dimeric complex to activate the small GTPase RAB7A, metazoans rely on the Mon1–Ccz1–RMC1 trimeric complex. Here, we report a near-atomic resolution cryogenic-electron microscopy structure of the Drosophila Mon1–Ccz1–RMC1 complex. RMC1 acts as a scaffolding subunit and binds to both Mon1 and Ccz1 on the surface opposite to the RAB7A-binding site, with many of the RMC1-contacting residues from Mon1 and Ccz1 unique to metazoans, explaining the binding specificity. Significantly, the assembly of RMC1 with Mon1–Ccz1 is required for cellular RAB7A activation, autophagic functions and organismal development in zebrafish. Our studies offer a molecular explanation for the different degree of subunit conservation across species, and provide an excellent example of how metazoan-specific proteins take over existing functions in unicellular organisms.

Gastric adenocarcinoma (GAC) is the most common histological type of gastric cancer and imposes a considerable health burden globally. The purpose of this study was to identify significant genes and key pathways participated in the initiation and progression of GAC. Four datasets (GSE13911, GSE19826, GSE54129, and GSE79973) including 171 GAC and 77 normal tissues from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were collected and analyzed. Through integrated bioinformatics analysis, we obtained 69 commonly differentially expressed genes (DEGs) among the four datasets, including 20 upregulated and 49 downregulated genes. The prime module in protein-protein interaction network of DEGs, including ADAMTS2, COL10A1, COL1A1, COL1A2, COL8A1, BGN, and SPP1, was enriched in protein digestion and absorption, ECM-receptor interaction, focal adhesion, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, and amoebiasis. Furthermore, expression and survival analysis found that all seven hub genes were highly expressed in GAC tissues and 6 of them (except for SPP1) were able to predict poor prognosis of GAC. Finally, we verified the 6 high-expressed hub genes in GAC tissues via immunohistochemistry, Western blot, and RNA quantification analysis. Altogether, we identified six significantly upregulated DEGs as poor prognostic markers in GAC based on integrated bioinformatical methods, which could be potential molecular markers and therapeutic targets for GAC patients.

The effects of SO2 on an one-pot synthesized Cu-SSZ-13 catalyst for selective reduction of NOx by NH3 were examined. The addition of SO2 inhibited NOx conversion significantly below 300 oC, while no effect on NOx conversion was observed above 300 oC. TGA, TPD, and XPS results showed that the deactivation was caused by the formation of (NH4)2SO4, SO2 chemisorption on the isolated Cu2+ ion sites, as well as the formation of CuSO4-like species. Among them, the site-blocking effect of (NH4)2SO4 on Cu2+ was the primary reason for deactivation. Fortunately, 89% of deNOx activity of the poisoned catalyst was recovered after thermal treatment at 500 oC in air, where (NH4)2SO4 was completely decomposed. The activity was further recovered with regeneration temperature increasing to 600 oC, removing the adsorbed SO2 on the Cu2+ sites. The regeneration at 600 oC could not recover the activity completely, because of the high stability of CuSO4-like species.

Mohammad Abul Kashem,1– 3 Lin Li,2 Xin-Yong Yuan,2 Francis A Plummer1 ,†Ma Luo1,2 1Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada; 2JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Center, National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, MB, Canada; 3Department of Microbiology and Veterinary Public Health, Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chittagong, Bangladesh†Dr Francis A Plummer passed away on February 04, 2020Correspondence: Ma Luo, JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Center, National Microbiology Laboratory, 745 Logan Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, R3E 3L5, Canada, Tel +1 204-789-5072, Fax +1 204-789-2018, Email maluo@phac-aspc.gc.caPurpose: TILRR is a modulator of genes in the NF-κB inflammation pathway. It regulates inflammation-responsive genes, the secretion of inflammatory mediators, and the migration of immune cells. Because inflammation drives the pathogenesis of many infectious and inflammatory diseases, it is important to know the expression of TILRR protein in tissues and cells. This study examined TILRR protein expression in healthy adult human and macaques’ tissues and PBMCs (peripheral blood mononuclear cells).Methods and Results: Tissues (trachea, lungs, stomach, small intestine [ileum], cecum, colon, rectum, vagina, cervix, uterus, and penis) and PBMCs from humans and macaques were lysed in RIPA (radioimmunoprecipitation assay) lysis buffer. The TILRR protein was examined by fluorescent Western blot analysis. The relative fluorescence units (rfu) of TILRR protein expression were quantified by Image Studio software (LI-COR). The results showed that adult healthy female (n=1) rectal and cervicovaginal tissues expressed a higher level of TILRR protein than the other tissues (trachea, lungs, stomach, small intestine [ileum], cecum, colon, uterus, and penis) examined. Like humans, the lungs, colon, and rectal tissues of healthy adult female cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) (n=2) expressed the TILRR protein. In addition, PBMCs of healthy adult women (n=4), adult female cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) (n=4), and adult male and female rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) (n=4) showed a similar expression level of TILRR protein (p= 0.2858). TILRR protein was not detected in most of the human cell lines examined, except in Jurkat cells.Conclusion: Our study for the first time showed that TILRR protein is expressed in healthy adult human and monkey tissues and PBMCs. The TILRR protein in these tissues and PBMCs may play a role in the inflammatory response of these tissues and cells in response to infectious pathogens.Keywords: TILRR, tissues, PBMCs, human, rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta), cynomolgus monkey (Macaca fascicularis), inflammation

To determine whether the capability of the CMIP6 version of Beijing Climate Center (BCC) models (BCC-ESM1 and BCC-CSM2-MR) in simulating China summer surface air temperature (SAT) has improved, we presented a multidimensional evaluation of the summer SAT in China including the trends, modes, and influencing factors. Critical comparisons are also made with the results of CMIP5 (BCC-CSM1.1 and BCC-CSM1.1m). In general, the CMIP6, especially BCC-CSM2-MR, has smaller deviations in the trends, the means, the mutations, the maximum centers, the variances, and the spatial patterns of the dominant modes from observatio relative to those of CMIP5. However, the BCC CMIP6 models still underestimate the SAT variation in the Qinghai‒Tibetan Plateau and the northeastern regions of China, and the performance is unsatisfactory with respect to the physical drivers of the dominant modes. Importantly, all the BCC models can capture the spatio-temporal characteristics of the first mode well and can, in general, characterize the spatial pattern of the second mode, but none of the models perform well in the principal component of the second mode (PC2) due to the low performance with respect to the interannual variation of PC2. Furthermore, the factors influencing the leading two modes are evaluated. The two CMIP6 can simulate better the Northern Hemisphere subtropical high northern boundary affecting the first mode. Another factor, the Asia polar vortex area, can only be simulated better by two low-resolution models (BCC-CSM1.1 and BCC-ESM1). For the second mode, all four models simulate the influence of Asian zonal circulation well, but poorly simulate that of the southern Indian Ocean dipole due to a large deviation in the Indian Ocean surface temperature.

Polymer nanowires are advantageous for creating hierarchical composite architectures. Here, we demonstrate a coarse-grained model that can predict the effects of embedded nanoparticles on methylcellulose nanowire formation from electrosprayed droplets.

Biological membranes are fundamental components of living organisms that play an undeniable role in their survival. Molecular dynamics (MD) serves as an essential computational tool for studying biomembranes on molecular and atomistic scales. The status quo of MD simulations of biomembranes studies a nanometer-sized membrane patch periodically extended under periodic boundary conditions (PBC). In nature, membranes are usually composed of different lipids in their two layers (referred to as leaflets). This compositional asymmetry imposes a fixed ratio of lipid numbers between the two leaflets in a periodically constrained membrane, which needs to be set appropriately. The widely adopted methods of defining leaflet lipid ratio suffer from the lack of control over the mechanical tension of each leaflet, which could significantly influence research findings. In this study, we investigate the role of membrane-building protocol and the resulting initial stress state on the interaction between small molecules and asymmetric membranes. We model the outer membrane of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria using two different building protocols and probe their interactions with the Pseudomonas Quinolone Signal (PQS). Our results show that differential stress could shift the position of free energy minimum for the PQS molecule between the two leaflets of the asymmetric membrane. This work provides critical insights into the relationship between the initial per-leaflet tension and the spontaneous intercalation of PQS., Comment: 28 pages, 7 figures, 3 tables

Electrospray deposition (ESD) has shown great promise for manufacturing micro- and nanostructured coatings at scale on versatile substrates with complex geometries. ESD exhibits a broad spectrum of morphologies depending upon the properties of spray fluids. Among them are nanowire forests or foams obtained