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Astaxanthin (AST), a carotenoid molecule extensively found in marine organisms and increasingly used as a dietary supplement, has been reported to have beneficial effects against oxidative stress. In the current paper, the effects of AST on viability of prostate cells were investigated by 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay; cell apoptosis and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were determined by flow cytometry; the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) was measured by fluorospectrophotometer; and activities of malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) were evaluated by a detection kit. The results show that copper ion (Cu2+) induced apoptosis, along with the accumulation of intracellular ROS and MDA, in both prostate cell lines (RWPE-1 and PC-3). AST treatments could decrease the MDA levels, increase MMP, and keep ROS stable in RWPE-1 cell line. An addition of AST decreased the SOD, GSH-Px, and CAT activities in PC-3 cell line treated with Cu2+, but had a contrary reaction in RWPE-1 cell lines. In conclusion, AST could contribute to protecting RWPE-1 cells against Cu2+-induced injuries but could cause damage to the antioxidant enzyme system in PC-3 cells.

A nanocomposite of polyaniline/reduced graphene oxide (PANI-rGO) was synthesized using a hydrothermal method. The product was characterized by FT-IR, Raman spectra, XRD, SEM and TEM. Then the hybrid material of PANI-rGO and Nafion (PANI-rGO-NF) was prepared and used to modify glassy carbon electrode for the trace determination of dopamine (DA) employing differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). It was found that the hybrid material showed good catalytic activity toward the oxidation of DA, and no response to ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA) was observed, suggesting a high selectivity of the sensor toward DA. The peak currents were linearly correlated with the concentration of DA in the range from 0.05 μmol/L to 60.0 μmol/L (R = 0.996) and 60.0 μmol/L to 180.0 μmol/L (R = 0.996) with a detection limit of 0.024 μmol/L (S/N = 3). The modified electrode also exhibited excellent repeatability and stability.

In the last few decades, bacteria capable of bacterial cellulose (BC) synthesis and the characterization of BC have been well-documented. In this study, a new BC-producing bacterial strain was isolated from fermented vinegar. The BC morphology, composition and diameter distribution, and the genes associated with BC production were analyzed. The results showed that one out of five isolates belonging to Komagataeibacter was a BC-producer, which mostly produced the typical cellulose I consisting of nanofibrils and had several functional groups similar to typing paper (i.e., plant cellulose). Several known genes such as glk, pgm and UPG2 in glucose metabolisms, bcsA, bcsB, bcsC and bcsD in BC synthesis and cmcax, ccpAx, bglxA and other genes in BC synthesis regulation or c-di-GMP metabolisms have also been found in the strain W1 based on genome sequencing and gene annotations. The functions of BcsX and BcxY might also be important for BC synthesis in Komagataeibacter sp. W1. Our study provided a new BC-producing bacterial strain that could be used to prepare high-quality BC and to study BC synthesis mechanisms.

Scale issues, which have been extensively studied in the domain of soil erosion, are considerably significant in geomorphologic processes and hydrologic modelling. However, relatively scarce efforts have been made to quantify the spatial scale effect on event-based sediment dynamics in basin-wide floods. To address this issue, sediment-runoff yield data of 44 basin-wide flood events were collected from gauging stations at the Chabagou river basin, a typical agro-basin (unmanaged) in the hilly loess region of the Chinese Loess Plateau. Thus, the spatial scale effect on event-based sediment dynamics was investigated in the basin system across three different spatial scales from sublateral to basin outlet. Results showed that the event-based suspended sediment concentration, as well as the intra- and inter-scale flow-sediment relationships remained spatially constant. Hence, almost all the sediment-laden flows can reach at the detachment-limited maximum concentration across scales, specifically for hyperconcentrated flows. Consequently, limited influence was exerted by upstream sediment-laden flow on downstream sediment output, particularly for major sediment-producing events. However, flood peak discharge instead of total flood runoff amount can better interpret the dynamics of sediment yield across scales. As a composite parameter, the proposed stream energy factor combines flood runoff depth and flood peak discharge, thereby showing more advantages to describe the event-based inter-scale flow-sediment relationship than other flow-related variables. Overall, this study demonstrates the process-specific characteristics of soil erosion by water flows in the basin system. Therefore, event-based sediment control should be oriented by the process to cut off the connectivity of hyperconcentrated flows and redistribute the erosive energy of flowing water in terms of temporality and spatiality. Furthermore, evaluation of soil conservation benefits should be based on the process of runoff regulation to comprehensively assess the efficiency of anti-erosion strategies in sediment control at the basin scale.

Cucumber Fusarium wilt (CFW), caused by the soil-borne fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cucumerium, is a serious disease in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) production worldwide. For the efficient control of the pathogenic fungi, a better understanding of its interaction and associated resistance mechanisms at the molecular level is required. Here, we report a comparative proteomics analysis of total root protein isolated from infected cucumber root of susceptible bulk (SB) and resistant bulk (RB) of cucumber generation F2. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) coupled with MS/MS approaches identified 15 over-accumulated proteins from the RB plants. Identified proteins are mainly involved in defense and stress responses, oxidation reduction, metabolism and transport and other process. These proteins are likely to be a part of resistance-related protein network, playing different roles in cucumber disease resistance. Three vital clues regarding wilt resistance of C. sativus are gained from this study. First, jasmonic acid and redox signaling components were found in response to F. oxysporum infection in resistant plants. Second, the LRR family protein may play an important role in the defense reaction against CFW. Third, biotic and abiotic stress-related proteins were induced by the CFW fungus F. oxysporum, indicating the activation of common stress pathway.

Lateral root (LR) development is a post-embryonic organogenesis event that gives rise to most of the underground parts of higher plants. Auxin promotes LR formation, but the molecular mechanisms involved in this process are still not well understood. We analyzed LR formation induced by FUSCA3 (FUS3), a B3 domain transcription factor, which may function by promoting auxin biosynthesis during this process. We identified FUS3-interacting proteins that function in LR formation. In addition, we searched for the common targets of both FUS3 and its interacting protein. The role of their interactions in regulating auxin accumulation and LR initiation was examined. We identified LEAFY COTYLEDON2 (LEC2) as an interacting factor of FUS3, and demonstrated that these two homologous B3 transcription factors interact to bind to the auxin biosynthesis gene YUCCA4 (YUC4) and synergistically activate its transcription during LR formation. Furthermore, FUS3 expression is activated by LEC2 in LR initiation. The observations indicate that the FUS3-LEC2 complex functions as a key regulator in auxin-regulated LR formation. The results of this study provide new information for understanding the mechanisms of LR regulation.

A novel two-dimensional (2D), layered, helical supramolecular architecture constructed via cooperative hydrogen bond and halogen bonds was synthesized and characterized: [(BMBA)2(TPB)] n (1) [BMBA = 3-bromo-2-methylbenzoic acid, TPB = 1,2,3,4-tetra-(4-pyridyl)-butane]. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were carried out to investigate the nature of intermolecular interactions between BMBA and TPB. The cooperation between hydrogen bond and halogen bond in building up the open organic architecture was demonstrated elaborately. Complex 1 exhibits strong photoluminescence and high thermal stability. The nature of electronic transitions in the photoluminescent process was investigated by means of time-dependent DFT (TDDFT) calculations and molecular orbital analyses, revealing that the luminescent property of the helical supramolecular architecture of 1 was ligand-based. Periodic DFT calculations show that 1 is an electrical insulator with a band gap of 3.29 eV.

Few studies have investigated the use of dexmedetomidine in patients with a high risk of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) following gynaecological laparoscopic surgery.To investigate if the intra-operative use of dexmedetomidine could reduce the incidence of PONV in this patient population.A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.A tertiary hospital in Beijing, China.130 adult patients scheduled for gynaecological laparoscopic surgery.Patients in the dexmedetomidine group (Dex group, n = 65) received a loading dose of dexmedetomidine (0.5 μg kg over 10 min) before induction of anaesthesia, followed by a continuous infusion (0.1 μg kg h) until the end of surgery. Patients in the control group (Ctrl group, n = 65) received volume-matched normal saline. Propofol and remifentanil were used for induction and maintenance of anaesthesia. Intravenous patient-controlled analgesia with morphine was provided after surgery.The incidence of 24-h PONV.The incidence of nausea within the first 2 postoperative hours was lower in the Dex group than in the Ctrl group [0% (0/65) vs. 9% (6/65), P = 0.037]. The overall incidence of PONV within the first 2 postoperative hours was slightly lower in the Dex group than in the Ctrl group, but the difference was not statistically significant [5% (3/65) vs. 14% (9/65), P = 0.069]. There was no significant difference between the two groups regarding the incidence of 24-h PONV.For adult patients undergoing gynaecological laparoscopic surgery, supplemental use of dexmedetomidine during general anaesthesia reduced the incidence of early postoperative nausea but not vomiting within the 24 h after surgery.Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR-IPR-15006914.

Arsenic (As) hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata is efficient in As uptake, translocation and accumulation, but the impacts of soil As concentrations on As accumulation and distribution in P. vittata are still unclear. The impacts of soil As (7.3, 63 and 228 mg kg−1) on plant growth and As accumulation in P. vittata after 6 months of growth were evaluated. Arsenic concentrations in the roots, midribs and pinna margin of P. vittata fronds of different maturity were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and scanning electron microscopy coupled with an energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM-EDS). While moderate As level at As63 didn’t impact P. vittata growth, higher As at As228 decreased plant biomass by 38%. Under As stress, more As was accumulated in the senescing fronds (47%) and mature fronds (11%) than the young fronds. In senescing fronds, As concentrations in pinna margin were 2.3 times that of the midribs, consistent with As-induced necrotic symptom. Arsenic distribution based on SEM-EDS analysis revealed good correlation between Si and As in the pinnae (r = 0.49). Our data showed that As accumulation in pinna margin caused necrosis and Si may have a potential role in As detoxification in P. vittata.

In this work, we designed ZnO/TiO2 nanolaminates by atomic layer deposition (ALD) as anode material for lithium ion batteries. ZnO/TiO2 nanolaminates were fabricated on copper foil by depositing unit of 26 cycles ZnO/26 cycles TiO2 repeatedly using ALD. ZnO/TiO2 nanolaminates are much more stable than pristine ZnO films during electrochemical cycling process. Therefore, ZnO/TiO2 nanolaminates exhibit excellent lithium storage performance with an improved cycling performance and superior rate capability compared to pristine ZnO films. Moreover, coulombic efficiency (CE) of ZnO/TiO2 nanolaminates is above 99%, which is much higher than the value of pristine ZnO films. Excellent ultralong-life performance is gained for ZnO/TiO2 nanolaminates, retaining a reversible capacity of ~667 mAh g−1 within cut-off voltage of 0.05-2.5 V after 1200 cycles of charge-discharge at 500 mA g−1. Constructing nanolaminates structures via ALD might open up new opportunities for improving the performance of anode materials with large volume expansion in lithium ion batteries.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials with nodal-loop band crossing have been attracting great research interest. However, it remains a challenge to find 2D nodal loops that are robust against spin-orbit coupling (SOC) and realized in magnetic states. Here, based on first-principles calculations and theoretical analysis, we predict that monolayer MnN is a 2D nodal-loop half metal with fully spin polarized nodal loops. We show that monolayer MnN has a ferromagnetic ground state with out-of-plane magnetization. Its band structure shows half metallicity with three low-energy bands belonging to the same spin channel. The crossing between these bands forms two concentric nodal loops centered around the $\Gamma$ point near the Fermi level. Remarkably, the nodal loops and their spin polarization are robust under SOC, due to the protection of a mirror symmetry. We construct an effective model to characterize the fully polarized emergent nodal-loop fermions. We also find that a uniaxial strain can induce a loop transformation from a localized single loop circling around $\Gamma$ to a pair of extended loops penetrating the Brillouin zone., Comment: 7 pages, 5 fgures

Background: Recent studies have demonstrated that coronary microcirculation dysfunction (CMVD) is closely correlated with adverse clinical outcomes. In this study, quantitative stress myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE) was used to evaluate the CMVD and to investigate its association with the prognosis of patients with nonobstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). Material and methods: From 2006 to 2014, 227 consecutive patients with chest pain and a diagnostic coronary angiography without significant coronary artery stenosis (

In order to understand the sources and health risks of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the PM

Background Diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) in children is challenging. Epidemiological data of childhood pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) are urgently needed. Methods We described trends in epidemiology, clinical characteristics, and treatment outcomes in seven cities of Shandong province, China, during 2005–2017. Data were collected from the China Information System for Disease Control and Prevention. Results Among 6283 (2.4% of all PTB) PTB cases aged

This study aimed to analyze the epidemiology of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) and gained insight into the future TB control plan in China. We extracted epidemiological, clinical, and geographic data from TB prevention and control institutions in 6 cities of Shandong province, China, during 2005 to 2017. Among 224,480 diagnosed PTB, rural residents accounted for 93%, smear-positive PTB 52%, and new cases 92%. The incidence rate of overall PTB declined from 40.8 to 26.25 per 100,000 during 2005 to 2017. Except smear-negative PTB (7.57–19.87 per 100,000), the incidence of smear-positive PTB and all that stratified by age, sex, and treatment history decreased. With 80% reduction, the incidence of smear-positive PTB (6.38 per 100,000) and relapse cases (1.01 per 100,000) were already very low in 2017. With persistent efforts to combat TB, the disease burden had shifted from smear-positive PTB to smear-negative PTB. While new cases need continuous attention, further reducing the incidence of smear-negative PTB and elderly patients may have a greater impact on future TB control.

A total of ten compounds were isolated from the 90% Et OH extract of Cassia siamea by using various chormatographic techniques,and their structures were established as( 2' S)-2-( propan-2'-ol)-5,7-dihydroxy-benzopyran-4-one( 1),chrobisiamone( 2), 2-( 2'-hydroxypropyl)-5-methyl-7-hydroxychromone( 3), 2,5-dimethyl-7-hydroxychromone( 4), 2-methyl-5-acetonyl-7-hydroxychromone( 5),3-O-methylquercetin( 6),3,5,7,3',4'-pentahydroxyflavonone( 7),luteolin-5,3'-dimethylether( 8),4-( trans)-acetul-3,6,8-trihydroxy-3-methyl-dihydronapht halenone( 9) and 6-hydroxymellein( 10) based on the spectroscopic data.Compound 1 was a new compound,and 3,4,6,8 were isolated from this plant for the first time.

Microbial arsenic transformation is important in As biogeochemical cycles in the environment. In this study, a new As-resistant bacterial strain Leclercia adecarboxylata As3-1 was isolated and its associated mechanisms in As resistance and detoxification were evaluated based on genome sequencing and gene annotations. After subjecting strain As3-1 to medium containing arsenate (AsV), AsV reduction occurred and an AsV-enhanced bacterial growth was observed. Strain As3-1 lacked arsenite (AsIII) oxidation ability and displayed lower AsIII resistance than AsV, probably due to its higher AsIII accumulation. Polymerase chain reaction and phylogenetic analysis showed that strain As3-1 harbored a typical AsV reductase gene (arsC) on the plasmids. Genome sequencing and gene annotations identified four operons phoUpstBACS, arsHRBC, arsCRDABC and ttrRSBCA, with 8 additional genes outside the operons that might have involved in As resistance and detoxification in strain As3-1. These included 5 arsC genes explaining why strain As3-1 tolerated high AsV concentrations. Besides ArsC, TtrB, TtrC and TtrA proteins could also be involved in AsV reduction and consequent energy acquisition for bacterial growth. Our data provided a new example of diverse As-regulating systems and AsV-enhanced growth without ArrA in bacteria. The information helps to understand the role of As in selecting microbial systems that can transform and utilize As.

To explore the effects of small watersheds with different ecological managements on soil properties, the spatial differences of soil organic matter (SOM), bulk density (BD), and clay content (CC) in the four facets, including slope aspect, slope position, zone, and soil layer, were analyzed between Yangjiagou (YJG, artificial Robinia pseudoacacia forest watershed) and Dongzhuanggou (DZG, closed grassland watershed). The results showed that SOM, BD and CC were 12.78 g·kg为探讨不同生态治理小流域土壤性质的差异,本研究分别从坡向、坡位、区段和土层4个方面分析了人工刺槐林流域杨家沟(YJG)与封禁荒草地流域董庄沟(DZG)土壤有机质(SOM)、土壤容重(BD)和黏粒含量(CC)的空间分异.结果表明: YJG与DZG的SOM、BD、CC分别为12.78 g·kg

In this work, we developed a simple electrochemical method for ultrasensitive and label-free detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) based on direct plasmon-enhanced electrochemistry (DPEE). After plasmonic gold nanostars (AuNSs) were modified on the glassy carbon (GC) electrode, the aptamer probe was immobilized on the AuNSs surface, which can selectively capture the CTCs in samples. Upon localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) excitation, the electrochemical current response can be enhanced remarkably due to efficient hot electrons transport from AuNSs to the external circuit. The captured cells on the AuNSs surface will influence the hot electrons transport efficiency, leading to a decreased current response. Using ascorbic acid (AA) as the electroactive probe, it was found that the current responses of the AuNSs/GC electrode upon light irradiation decrease with the cell concentration. Due to the special molecular recognition of the aptamer and enhanced electrochemical performance of the plasmon, the proposed method enables an ultrasensitive and label-free detection of CTCs with excellent selectivity. The experimental results show that CCRF-CEM cell concentrations as low as 5 cells/mL can be successfully detected, which is superior to most reported work up to now. Using the present method, MCF-7 cells as low as 10 cells/mL can be also successfully detected, indicating the universality of the proposed method for CTCs detection. Furthermore, the cytosensor can successfully distinguish CTCs from normal cells in blood samples. The as-proposed strategy provides a promising application of DPEE in the development of novel biosensors for nondestructive analysis of biological samples.

The partition of antibiotics and antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) between the microplastics (MPs) and the surrounding water with various salinity are still unclear. In this study, we hypothesized that adsorption of antibiotics on MPs might cause a significant change of the structure of microbial communities, diversity and abundance of ARGs on MPs and this might be further affected by change of salinity. In this study, we investigated adsorption of four common antibiotics (sulfamerazine, tetracycline, chloramphenicol and tylosin) to polyethylene (PE) MPs in river, estuary and marine waters, and the differences of antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) and bacterial communities on MPs and in the three waters. The results showed that MPs can enrich antibiotics, ARGs and microbes from the surrounding water. Elevated salinity could reduce adsorption of antibiotics to MPs and the abundance of ARGs. For example, MPs can concentrate more antibiotics and ARGs in the fresh river water than in the estuary and the marine waters. In addition, ARGs and bacterial communities on MPs at various salinity were significantly different under the pressure of four antibiotics. On MPs, sul1, sulA/folP-01, tetA, tetC, tetX and ermE increased significantly but a few new ARGs such as sulA/folP-01 and tetA appeared. The structure of the bacterial communities on MPs was different from the surrounding water since some bacteria species found on MPs were barely detected in the surrounding water while some genera on MPs vanished after exposure to antibiotics. As the antibiotics adsorbed and the ARGs on MPs decreased with the water salinity, the structure of the communities on MPs thus varied with salinity change. These findings are important to understand the effects of MPs on the transport, fate and ecological risk of antibiotics and ARGs in different aquatic environments.

Exciton-polaritons have shown great potential as a low-energy consumption and robust solid-state platform for photoelectronics integration and quantum information applications. Here, an all-optical method that uses the spin-sensitive optical Stark effect is proposed to manipulate exciton-polaritons for functional polaritonic operations. We use a Tamm plasmon and WS2 hybrid structure with a patterned transverse potential to form the channeled bright state of polaritons. An optical Stark pulse causes perturbation of the polaritonic potential, so as to control the tunneling of polaritons between isolated channels. Polaritonic operations such as switching, splitting and routing were proposed through properly setting of the optical Stark pulse (e.g., pulse width). In addition, spin-sensitive manipulation of the polaritons was proposed taking advantage of the valley-selective excitonic energy shifting induced by the polarized optical Stark pulse. These basic operations together with time-space programming of the optical Stark pulses would pave a way of routing and addressing of polaritons for future optoelectronic integration and networking.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common clinical condition of growing incidence. Patients who suffer severe AKI have a higher risk of developing interstitial fibrosis, chronic kidney disease, and end-stage renal disease later in life. Cellular senescence is a persistent cell cycle arrest and altered gene expression pattern evoked by multiple stressors. The number of senescent cells increases with age and even in small numbers these cells can induce chronic inflammation and fibrosis; indeed, in multiple organs including kidneys, the accumulation of such cells is a hallmark of aging. We hypothesized that cellular senescence might be induced in the kidney after injury and that this might contribute to progressive organ fibrosis. Testing this hypothesis, we found that tubular epithelial cells (TECs) in mice senesce within a few days of kidney injury and that this response is mediated by epithelial Toll-like and interleukin 1 receptors (TLR/IL-1R) of the innate immune system. Epithelial cell–specific inhibition of innate immune signaling in mice by knockout of myeloid differentiation 88 (Myd88) reduced fibrosis as well as damage to kidney tubules, and also prevented the accumulation of senescent TECs. Importantly, although inactivation of Myd88 after injury ameliorated fibrosis, it did not reduce damage to the tubules. Selectively induced apoptosis of senescent cells by two different approaches only partially reduced kidney fibrosis, without ameliorating damage to the tubules. Our data reveal a cell-autonomous role for epithelial innate immunity in controlling TEC senescence after kidney injury, and additionally suggest that early therapeutic intervention is required for effective reduction of long-term sequelae of AKI.

Background/aims Hypertension is a common public health problem due to its high morbidity and potential risk, which is related to inflammatory actions. Kaempferol (KAE) has anti-inflammation activities. Herein, we explored the effects of KAE on LPS-induced inflammatory injury in human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs). Methods HAECs were treated with KAE before stimulated with LPS or AngII. After miR-203 inhibitor transfection, cell viability and apoptosis were detected by CCK-8 and flow cytometry. The accumulated levels of apoptotic proteins, nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways related proteins, MyD88 and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) were both determined by western blot. The concentrations of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) were detected by ELISA. Expression of miR-203 was analyzed by qRT-PCR. The target of miR-203 was achieved by luciferase assay. Results LPS successfully induced inflammatory injury as evidenced by decreasing cell viability, increasing apoptosis, and also increasing IL-6, TNF-α concentrations. The apoptotic proteins p53 and cleaved-Caspase-3 were both upregulated while Bcl-2 was downregulated. Moreover, LPS activated NF-κB and MAPK pathways. However KAE reversed the results led by LPS. KAE increased miR-203 expression in LPS or AngII-disposed HAECs. More experiments revealed that transfection with miR-203 inhibitor impaired the inflammation-alleviating effects of KAE. MyD88 and TLR4 were predicated as a target of miR-203, which might be implicated in the protective functions of KAE on HAECs. Conclusion KAE exerted the protective impacts on HAECs against inflammatory injury through inactivation of NF-κB and MAPK pathways, as well as upregulation of miR-203.

Five alkaloid compounds (1–5), including one new compound, GKK1032C (1), and four known compounds, pyrrospirones E (2) and F (3), and GKK1032B (4) and A2 (5) were isolated from the culture of endophytic fungus Penicillium sp. CPCC 400817. The planar structures of all compounds were elucidated by NMR and MS spectra. The relative configuration of new compound GKK1032C (1) was deduced from the vicinal J-values and ROESY spectral data. Compound 1 exhibited potent antibacterial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus with an MIC value of 1.6 μg ml−1.

Background Few studies have investigated the associations between outdoor air pollution and outpatient visits for respiratory diseases (RDs) in general population. Methods We collected daily outpatient data of primary RDs from five hospitals in Jinan during January 2012 and December 2016, as well as daily measurements of air pollutants from the Jinan Environmental Monitoring Center and daily meteorological variables from the China Meteorological Data Sharing Service System. A generalized additive model (GAM) with quasi-Poisson regression was constructed to estimate the associations between daily average concentrations of outdoor air pollutants (PM2.5,PM10, SO2, NO2, CO and O3) and daily outpatient visits of RDs after adjusting for long-time trends, seasonality, the “day of the week” effect, and weather conditions. Subgroup analysis stratified by gender, age group and the type of RDs was conducted. Results A total of 1,373,658 outpatient visits for RDs were identified. Increases of 10 μg/m3 in PM2.5, PM10, NO2, CO and O3 were associated with0.168% (95% CI, 0.072–0.265%), 0.149% (95% CI, 0.082–0.215%), 0.527% (95% CI, 0.211–0.843%), 0.013% (95% CI, 0.003–0.023%), and 0.189% (95% CI, 0.032–0.347%) increases in daily outpatient visits for RDs, respectively. PM2.5 and PM10 showed instant and continuous effects, while NO2, CO and O3 showed delayed effects on outpatient visits for RDs. In stratification analysis, PM2.5 and PM10 were associated with acute RDs only. Conclusions Exposure to outdoor air pollutants including PM2.5, PM10, NO2, CO and O3 associated with increased risk of outpatient visits for RDs. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12931-018-0958-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Further exploration of substrate diversity of the sansanmycin biosynthetic pathway using available halogen- and methyl-phenylalanines led to the generation of diverse sansanmycin derivatives, either at the single C- or N-terminus alone or at both C- and N-termini. The structures of all of these derivatives were determined by MS/MS spectra, and amongst them, the structures of [2-Cl-Phe]-sansanmycin H (1) and [2-Cl-Phe]-sansanmycin A (2) were further identified by NMR. Both the C-terminal derivative 1 and the N-terminal derivative 2 were assayed for their antibacterial activities, and compound 1 exhibited moderate activity against P. aeruginosa and ΔtolC mutant E. coli.

Background and Purpose The Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCX) working in either forward or reverse mode participates in maintaining intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) homeostasis, which is essential for determining cell fate. Previously, numerous blockers targeting reverse or forward NCX have been developed and studied in ischaemic tissue injury but barely examined in glioblastoma for the purpose of anti‐tumour therapy. We assessed the effect of NCX blockers on glioblastoma growth and whether NCX can become a therapeutic target. Experimental Approach Patch‐clamp recording, Ca2+ imaging, flow cytometry, and Western blot were used to study the effects of specific and non‐specific NCX blockers on cultured glioblastoma cells. In vivo bioluminescent imaging was used to measure effects on grafted glioblastoma. Key Results Selectively blocking the reverse NCX with SEA0400, SN‐6, and YM‐244769 did not affect tumour cell viability. Blocking the forward NCX with bepridil, CB‐DMB, or KB‐R7943 elevated [Ca2+]i and killed glioblastoma cells. Bepridil and CB‐DMB caused Ca2+‐dependent cell cycle arrest together with apoptosis, which were all attenuated by a Ca2+ chelator BAPTA‐AM. Systemic administration of bepridil inhibited growth of brain‐grafted glioblastoma. Bepridil did not appear to have a cytotoxic effect on human astrocytes, which have higher functional expression of NCX than glioblastoma cells. Conclusions and Implications Low expression of the NCX makes glioblastoma cells sensitive to disturbance of [Ca2+]i. Interventions designed to block the forward NCX can cause Ca2+‐mediated injury to glioblastoma thus having therapeutic potential. Bepridil could be a lead compound for developing new anti‐tumour drugs.

Two-dimensional (2D) emergent fermions and negative Poisson's ratio in 2D materials are fascinating subjects of research. Here, based on first-principles calculations and theoretical analysis, we predict that the hexacoordinated ${\mathrm{Mg}}_{2}\mathrm{C}$ monolayer hosts both exotic properties. We analyze its phonon spectrum, reveal the Raman-active modes, and show that it has small in-plane stiffness constants. Particularly, under the tensile strain in the zigzag direction, the ${\mathrm{Mg}}_{2}\mathrm{C}$ monolayer shows an intrinsic negative Poisson's ratio $\ensuremath{\sim}\ensuremath{-}0.023$, stemming from its unique puckered hinge structure. The material is metallic at its equilibrium state. A moderate biaxial strain can induce a metal-semimetal-semiconductor phase transition, during which several types of 2D unconventional fermions emerge, including the anisotropic Dirac fermions around 12 tilted Dirac points in the metallic phase, the 2D double Weyl fermions in the semimetal phase where the conduction and valence bands touch quadratically at a single Fermi point, and the 2D pseudospin-1 fermions at the critical point of the semimetal-semiconductor phase transition where three bands cross at a single point on the Fermi level. In addition, uniaxial strains along the high-symmetry directions break the threefold rotational symmetry and reduce the number of Dirac points. Interestingly, it also generates 2D type-II Dirac points. We construct effective models to characterize the properties of these fermions. Our result reveals ${\mathrm{Mg}}_{2}\mathrm{C}$ monolayer as an intriguing platform for the study of 2D unconventional fermions, and also suggests its great potential for nanoscale device applications.

To determine Z-score equations and reference ranges for Doppler flow velocity indices of cardiac outflow tracts in normal fetuses. A prospective cross-sectional echocardiographic study was performed in 506 normal singleton fetuses from 18 to 40 weeks. Twelve pulsed-wave Doppler (PWD) measurements were derived from fetal echocardiography. The regression analysis of the mean and the standard deviation (SD) for each parameter were performed against estimated fetal weight (EFW) and gestational age (GA), in order to construct Z-score models. The correlation between these variables and fetal heart rate were also investigated. Strong positive correlations were found between the twelve PWD indices and the independent variables. A linear-quadratic regression model was the best description of the mean and SD of most parameters, with the exception of the velocity time interval (VTI) of ascending aorta against EFW, which was best fitted by a fractional polynomial. Z-score equations and reference values for PWD indices of fetal cardiac outflow tracts were proposed against GA and EFW, which may be useful for quantitative assessment of potential hemodynamic alternations, particularly in cases of intrauterine growth retardation and structural cardiac defects.

Although many long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been identified in muscle, their physiological function and regulatory mechanisms remain largely unexplored. In this study, we systematically characterized the expression profiles of lncRNAs during C2C12 myoblast differentiation and identified an intronic lncRNA, SYISL (SYNPO2 intron sense-overlapping lncRNA), that is highly expressed in muscle. Functionally, SYISL promotes myoblast proliferation and fusion but inhibits myogenic differentiation. SYISL knockout in mice results in significantly increased muscle fiber density and muscle mass. Mechanistically, SYISL recruits the enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) protein, the core component of polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2), to the promoters of the cell-cycle inhibitor gene p21 and muscle-specific genes such as myogenin (MyoG), muscle creatine kinase (MCK), and myosin heavy chain 4 (Myh4), leading to H3K27 trimethylation and epigenetic silencing of target genes. Taken together, our results reveal that SYISL is a repressor of muscle development and plays a vital role in PRC2-mediated myogenesis.

With the development of e-commerce, it provides users with many choices. But how to quickly and accurately recommend goods to users is an important topic in this field. Matrix factorization recommendation model based on scoring data is widely used, but data sparsity affects the recommendation quality of the model. In the paper, a product recommendation algorithm based on deep interest network is proposed. First, the user’s purchased goods and the user’s search are embedded coded, and the sparse features are transformed into low-dimensional dense features.Then, the feature vectors of the purchased goods and the search text vectors are joined together to input the deep interest network as the feature to predict the user’s interest.Finally, the effectiveness of the model is validated by using record data. The validity of the model is verified by comparing with other models.

Surface abrasion, sometimes followed by polishing, can create an altered surface layer (ASL) with thickness of a few hundreds of nanometers, which has different microstructure than the underlying bulk. Such an ASL typically contains ultrafine subgrains, and second phase particles that result from unusual phase transformations. ASLs have been shown to exhibit a different corrosion resistance than the underlying matrix, and can be either more susceptible or more resistant to corrosion. In this work, the ASL microstructure of AA7055 was studied at the early stages of natural aging right after surface abrasion using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atom probe tomography (APT). For the as-abraded ASL, the pre-existing η′/η precipitates and grain boundaries were deformed and aligned along the abrasion direction. However, for the abraded and 7-day natural aged bulk sample, ultrafine subgrains formed in the localized region of the ASL, and MgxZny and Al2Cu particles precipitated at the subgrain boundaries. To accelerate the precipitate kinetics of the ASL, the bulk abraded sample was heated at 50 oC for 1 h; more subgrains and Al2Cu particles formed in the whole ASL. Potentiodynamic polarization testing was performed on the abraded and aged bulk samples during immersion in NaCl solution. With increasing post-aging temperature and time, the breakdown potential of the ASL increased. Acknowledgements: focus ion beam and TEM were conducted at Center for Electron Microscopy and Analysis at The Ohio State University. APT was conducted at Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which is a U.S. DOE Office of Science User Facility.

Al-rich primer (AlRP) is designed to be anodic relative to high strength Al alloys, so that it drives the mixed potential of Al alloy substrates (e.g. AA2024) into the cathodic region below the breakdown potentials of the Al alloys, preventing localized corrosion. The Al-rich primer (AlRP) under study is composed of spherical Al-Zn-In pigments in an epoxy binder. The 2D and 3D microstructure of the AlRP was studied using a combination of X-ray microscopy, plasma focus ion beam/scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy techniques. The primer contained Al-Zn-In particles with various sizes ranging from tens of nanometers to microns, epoxy binder and a significant volume of voids. Potentiodynamic polarization testing was performed to measure the electrochemistry of the Al-Zn-In bulk alloy under neat primer in NaCl solution to simulate the environment which Al-Zn-In pigments are exposed to in the real primer. The bulk alloy under neat primer exhibited higher breakdown potential than the bare bulk alloy exposed to NaCl solution. The polarization curves of the bulk alloy under neat primer provide more accurate boundary conditions for modeling of the galvanic interaction between the AlRP and an alloy substrate. Galvanic corrosion between an AA2024 sample and Al-Zn-In bulk alloy was also studied using a zero resistance ammeter. A trivalent chromium process treatment on galvanic couples can protect AA2024 substrate from cathodic corrosion. Acknowledgements: this project is funded by the Office of Naval Research through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. We thank Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) for providing Al-rich primer samples. We acknowledge Dr. Mansoureh Norouzi Rad at Zeiss for 3D microstructure reconstruction on Al-rich primer using X-ray microscope, and Thermo Fisher Scientific for 3D microstructure reconstruction on Al-rich primer using Helios Plasma FIB/SEM. We appreciate Dr. Babu Viswanathan at OSU for STEM characterization, and Swagelok Center for Surface Analysis of Materials (SCSAM) at Case Western Reserve University for Ar ion polishing.

To reduce self-corrosion of Al-Zn-In pigments in an Al-rich primer, trivalent chromium process (TCP) was applied to the pigments before mixing in the epoxy binder. The formation of TCP and its effects on both the Al-Zn-In bulk alloy and pigment particles were investigated in this study. The TCP layer on the Al-Zn-In alloy has a bilayer structure similar to TCP layers formed on other alloys. The corrosion rate of bulk Al-Zn-In alloy is reduced by the TCP treatment. The TCP layer likely blocks the access of Cl- to the Al-Zn-In alloy, which reduces corrosion attack initiation.

Tunable quantum phase transitions and novel emergent fermions in solid state materials are fascinating subjects of research. Here, we propose a new stable two-dimensional (2D) material, the blue phosphorene oxide (BPO), which exhibits both. Based on first-principles calculations, we show that its equilibrium state is a narrow-bandgap semiconductor with three bands at low energy. Remarkably, a moderate strain can drive a semiconductor-to-semimetal quantum phase transition in BPO. At the critical transition point, the three bands cross at a single point at Fermi level, around which the quasiparticles are a novel type of 2D pseudospin-1 fermions. Going beyond the transition, the system becomes a symmetry-protected semimetal, for which the conduction and valence bands touch quadratically at a single Fermi point that is protected by symmetry, and the low-energy quasiparticles become another novel type of 2D double Weyl fermions. We construct effective models characterizing the phase transition and these novel emergent fermions, and we point out several exotic effects, including super Klein tunneling, supercollimation, and universal optical absorbance. Our result reveals BPO as an intriguing platform for the exploration of fundamental properties of quantum phase transitions and novel emergent fermions, and also suggests its great potential in nanoscale device applications., Comment: 23 pages, 5 figures

A high quality diet is believed to play a functional role in promoting the healthy growth of mankind and preventing many kinds of chronic degenerative diseases, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity. Adherence to a high quality diet has been strongly associated with a lower risk of mortality. To help promote healthy lifestyles and physical strength, the Chinese government has produced a new revised version of the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2016) and the Chinese Food Pagoda, as guidance for dietary intake among its population. Similarly, the Japanese government has produced the Japanese Food Guide Spinning Top Model, and the US government has recently published revised dietary recommendations in its 2015–2020 eighth edition of Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The evidence from all respective cohort studies involved in producing these guidelines shows a reduced risk of many chronic diseases and mortality if the guidelines are followed. All scientific findings support encouraging the general population to consume a broad variety of food on the basis of nutrient and food intakes in order to prevent deficiency diseases and a surplus of energy and nutrients, and recommend daily physical activity for health promotion.

Cu films on Fe, Ni and Ag substrates, Ni films on Fe and Ag substrates, Ag film on Cu substrate, Cr film on Fe substrate, Ag film on Ag substrate, Ni film on Ni substrate and Cu film on Cu substrate were deposited by electroplating. The average internal stress in all films, except Cr, was in-situ measured by the cantilever beam test. The interfacial stress is very large in the films with different materials with substrates and is zero in the films with the same material with substrates. The interfacial stress character obtained from the cantilever beam bending direction is consistent with that obtained from the modified Thomas-Fermi-Dirac electron theory.

Endothelial dysfunction plays a principal role in the pathogenesis of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), which is a fatal disease with limited effective clinical treatments. Mitochondrial dysregulation and oxidative stress are involved in endothelial dysfunction. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α) is a key regulator of cellular energy metabolism and a master regulator of mitochondrial biogenesis. However, the roles of PGC-1α in hypoxia-induced endothelial dysfunction are not completely understood. We hypothesized that hypoxia reduces PGC-1α expression and leads to endothelial dysfunction in hypoxia-induced PAH. We confirmed that hypoxia has a negative impact on endothelial PGC-1α in experimental PAH in vitro and in vivo. Hypoxia-induced PGC-1α inhibited the oxidative metabolism and mitochondrial function, whereas sustained PGC-1α decreased reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation, mitochondrial swelling, and NF-κB activation and increased ATP formation and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) phosphorylation. Furthermore, hypoxia-induced changes in the mean pulmonary arterial pressure and right heart hypertrophy were nearly normal after intervention. These results suggest that PGC-1α is associated with endothelial function in hypoxia-induced PAH and that improved endothelial function is associated with improved cellular mitochondrial respiration, reduced inflammation and oxygen stress, and increased PGC-1α expression. Taken together, these findings indicate that PGC-1α may be a new therapeutic target in PAH.

Thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) is a disorder characterized by microvascular occlusion that can lead to thrombocytopenia, hemolytic anemia, and glomerular damage. Complement activation is the central event in most cases of TMA. Primary forms of TMA are caused by mutations in genes encoding components of the complement or regulators of the complement cascade. Recently, we and others have described a genetic form of TMA caused by mutations in the gene diacylglycerol kinase-ε ( DGKE) that encodes the lipid kinase DGKε(Lemaire M, Fremeaux-Bacchi V, Schaefer F, Choi MR, Tang WH, Le Quintrec M, Fakhouri F, Taque S, Nobili F, Martinez F, Ji WZ, Overton JD, Mane SM, Nurnberg G, Altmuller J, Thiele H, Morin D, Deschenes G, Baudouin V, Llanas B, Collard L, Majid MA, Simkova E, Nurnberg P, Rioux-Leclerc N, Moeckel GW, Gubler MC, Hwa J, Loirat C, Lifton RP. Nat Genet 45: 531–536, 2013; Ozaltin F, Li BH, Rauhauser A, An SW, Soylemezoglu O, Gonul II, Taskiran EZ, Ibsirlioglu T, Korkmaz E, Bilginer Y, Duzova A, Ozen S, Topaloglu R, Besbas N, Ashraf S, Du Y, Liang CY, Chen P, Lu DM, Vadnagara K, Arbuckle S, Lewis D, Wakeland B, Quigg RJ, Ransom RF, Wakeland EK, Topham MK, Bazan NG, Mohan C, Hildebrandt F, Bakkaloglu A, Huang CL, Attanasio M. J Am Soc Nephrol 24: 377–384, 2013). DGKεis unrelated to the complement pathway, which suggests that unidentified pathogenic mechanisms independent of complement dysregulation may result in TMA. Studying Dgke knockout mice may help to understand the pathogenesis of this disease, but no glomerular phenotype has been described in these animals so far. Here we report that Dgke null mice present subclinical microscopic anomalies of the glomerular endothelium and basal membrane that worsen with age and develop glomerular capillary occlusion when exposed to nephrotoxic serum. We found that induction of cyclooxygenase-2 and of the proangiogenic prostaglandin E2are impaired in Dgke null kidneys and are associated with reduced expression of the antithrombotic cell adhesion molecule platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1/CD31 in the glomerular endothelium. Notably, prostaglandin E2supplementation was able to rescue motility defects of Dgke knockdown cells in vitro and to restore angiogenesis in a test in vivo. Our results unveil an unexpected role of Dgke in the induction of cyclooxygenase-2 and in the regulation of glomerular prostanoids synthesis under stress.

The authors study the empirical likelihood method for partially linear errors-in-variablesmodel with covariate data missing at random. Empirical likelihood ratios for the regression coefficients and the baseline function are investigated, and the corresponding empirical log-likelihood ratios are proved to be asymptotically standard chi-squared, which can be used to construct confidence regions. The finite sample behavior of the proposed methods is evaluated by a simulation study which indicates that the proposed methods are comparable in terms of coverage probabilities and average length of confidence intervals. Finally, the Earthquake Magnitude dataset is used to illustrate our proposed method.

One of the most common psychological consequences of stroke is post-stroke depression (PSD). While more than 30 percent of stroke patients eventually develop PSD, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying such a phenomenon have not been well investigated. Given the critical involvement of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and endocannabinoid system in response to stressful stimuli, we evaluated the hypothesis that cannabinoid receptors in the hypothalamus are critical for modulation of post-stroke depression-like behaviors in rats. To this end, rats were treated with middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) followed by chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) treatment procedure. We then assessed the expression of CB1 and CB2 receptors in the hypothalamus, and evaluated the effects of pharmacological stimulations of CB1 or CB2 receptors on the expression and development of depression-like behaviors in PSD rats. We found that PSD rats exhibited decreased the expression of CB1 receptor, but not CB2 receptor, in the ventral medial hypothalamus (VMH). Such an effect was not observed in the dorsally adjacent brain regions. Furthermore, intra-VMH injections of CB2 receptor agonist, but not CB1 receptor agonist, attenuated the expression of depression-like behaviors in PSD rats. Finally, repeated intraperitoneal injections of CB1 or CB2 receptor agonists during CUMS treatment inhibited the development of depression-like behaviors in PSD rats. Taken together, these results suggest that decreased CB1 receptor expression is likely associated with the development of post-stroke depression, and CB2 receptor may be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment post-stroke depressive disorders.

Three novel phenothiazine dyes ( JY31 – 33 ) featured oligothiophene π-bridge have been designed, synthesized and applied as photosensitizers for highly efficient dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The introduction of alkyl chains on oligothiophene π-bridge is found to significantly improve the open-circuit voltage of the resultant device. Phenothiazine bearing a 4-butoxyphenyl group as the secondary donor exhibits a stronger electron-donating ability and a positive acceleration on the short-circuit current density and open-circuit voltage. The dye JY33 containing a secondary donor and two alkyl chains finally gives a high efficiency of 7.48% under the 100 mW cm −2 simulated AM1.5 sunlight, with a short-circuit photocurrent density ( J sc ) of 17.18 mA cm −2 , an open-circuit photovoltage ( V oc ) of 742 mV and a fill factor (FF) of 0.59.

This article develops an adjusted empirical likelihood (EL) method for the additive hazards model. The adjusted EL ratio is shown to have a central chi-squared limiting distribution under the null hypothesis. We also evaluate its asymptotic distribution as a non central chi-squared distribution under the local alternatives of order n− 1/2, deriving the expression for the asymptotic power function. Simulation studies and a real example are conducted to evaluate the finite sample performance of the proposed method. Compared with the normal approximation-based method, the proposed method tends to have more larger empirical power and smaller confidence regions with comparable coverage probabilities.

Ultrathin ZrO2 coatings are successfully adopted to modify the surface of the layered LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2 cathode material via atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology. Compared with the bare LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2, the ultrathin ZrO2-coated cathode materials exhibited a significantly improved discharge capacity and cycleability. Among all of the samples, ZrO2-coated LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2 electrode with 5 ALD layers showed highest initial Coulombic efficiency, excellently electrochemical cycleability and high rate capability in the voltage range of 2.5–4.5 V at room temperature. Furthermore, this sample showed a discharge capacity of 155.1 mAh g−1 with a high retention of 88.1% at the current of 1000 mA g−1 (5C) after 60 cycles at the elevated temperature of 55 °C, which demonstrated a remarkable enhancement about 150% over that of the bare one. Such enhanced electrochemical performance can be attributed to the high-quality ultrathin ALD metal oxide coating for the cathode material, which protects the cathode material from the undesirable side reaction with the electrode and suppresses the increasing impedance in order to facilitate the diffusion of lithium ion into the host oxide.