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Agroforest systems have been widely recognized as an integrated approach to sustainable land use for addressing the climate change problem because of their greater potential to sequester atmospheric CO2 with multiple economic and ecological benefits. However, the nature and extent of the effects of an age-sequence of agroforestry systems on carbon (C) storage remain largely unknown. To reveal the influence of different aged poplar-crop systems on C stocks, we investigated the variation in biomass and C storage under four aged poplar-crop agroforest systems (3-, 9-, 13-, and 17-year-old) in the Henan province of China. The results showed that stand biomass increased with forest age, ranging from 26.9 to 121.6 t/ha in the corresponding four aged poplar-crop systems. The poplar tree biomass accounted for >80% of the total stand biomass in these poplar-crop agroforestry systems, except in the 3-year-old agroforestry system. The average stand productivity peaked in a 9-year-old poplar-crop system (11.8 t/ha/yr), the next was in 13- and 17-year-old agroforestry systems, and the minimum was found in 3-year-old poplar-crop stands (4.8 t/ha/yr). The total C stocks increased, with aging poplar-crop systems ranging from 99.7 to 189.2 t/ha in the studied agroforestry systems. The proportion of C stocks accounted for about 6, 25, and 69% of the total C stocks in the crop, poplar tree, and soil components in all studied agroforestry ecosystems, respectively. Our results suggested that the poplar-crop system, especially in productive and mature stages, is quite an effective agroforestry model to increase the study site’s biomass production and C stocks. This study highlighted the importance of agroforestry systems in C storage. It recommended the poplar-crop agroforest ecosystems as a viable option for sustainable production and C mitigation in the central region of China.

Background Osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH) is a common but intractable disease that appears to involve lipid metabolic disorders. Although numerous studies have demonstrated that high blood levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) are closely associated with ONFH, there is limited evidence to explain the pathological role of LDL. Pathological and in vitro studies were performed to investigate the role of disordered metabolism of LDL and oxidized LDL (ox-LDL) in the femoral head in the pathology of ONFH. Methods Nineteen femoral head specimens from patients with ONFH were obtained for immunohistochemistry analysis. Murine long-bone osteocyte Y4 cells were used to study the effects of LDL/ox-LDL on cell viability, apoptosis, and metabolism process of LDL/ox-LDL in osteocytes in normoxic and hypoxic environments. Results In the pathological specimens, marked accumulation of LDL/ox-LDL was observed in osteocytes/lacunae of necrotic regions compared with healthy regions. In vitro studies showed that ox-LDL, rather than LDL, reduced the viability and enhanced apoptosis of osteocytes. Pathological sections indicated that the accumulation of ox-LDL was significantly associated with impaired blood supply. Exposure to a hypoxic environment appeared to be a key factor leading to LDL/ox-LDL accumulation by enhancing internalisation and oxidation of LDL in osteocytes. Conclusions The accumulation of LDL/ox-LDL in the necrotic region may contribute to the pathology of ONFH. These findings could provide new insights into the prevention and treatment of ONFH.

Jun-ming Huang, Chen-zhong Wang, Shun-yi Lu, Zhe Wang, Zuo-qin Yan Department of Orthopaedics, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Zuo-qin Yan 180 Feng Lin Road, Xuhui District, Shanghai, 200032, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail yan.zuoqin@zs-hospital.sh.cnBackground: Osteoclasts are the major players in bone resorption and have always been studied in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. Previous studies have confirmed that a variety of flavonoids inhibit osteoporosis and improve bone health mainly through inhibiting osteoclastogenesis. Oroxin B (OB) is a flavonoid compound extracted from traditional Chinese herbal medicine Oroxylum indicum (L.) Vent, exerts potent antitumor and anti-inflammation effect, but its effect on osteoclastogensis remains unknown.Methods: We comprehensively evaluated the effect of OB on the formation and function of osteoclasts and the underling mechanism by bone marrow-derived macrophage in vitro. In vivo, we used mice ovariectomized model to verify the protective effect of OB.Results: OB was found to inhibit osteoclast formation and bone resorption function in vitro, in a dose-dependent manner and the increased osteoclastic-related genes induced by RANKL (NFATc1, c-fos, cathepsin K, RANK, MMP9 and TRAP) were also attenuated following OB treatment. Mechanistical investigation showed OB abrogated the increased phosphorylation level of MAPK and NF-κB pathway, and diminished the expression of the vital transcription factors for osteoclastogenesis. OB also prevented ovariectomy (OVX)-induced bone loss by inhibiting osteoclast formation and activity in mice.Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that OB may act as an anti-osteoporosis agent by inhibiting osteoclast maturation and attenuating bone resorption.Keywords: osteoclast, Oroxin B, MAPK, NF-κB, RANKL, osteoporosis

A simple method for measuring grating groove density as well as its position and orientation is proposed based on the idea of ERT (Experimental Ray Tracing). Conventional methods only measure grating groove density with accuracy limited by its rotary stage and goniometer. The method proposed in the paper utilizes linear guides which could be calibrated to much higher accuracy. It is applicable to gratings of arbitrary surface profile or mosaic of a group of various gratings. Various measurement error sources are simulated by the Monte Carlo method and the results show high accuracy capability of grating parameters identification. A verification testing is performed. The accuracy dependency on main configuration parameters is evaluated. A method to expand measurement range by double wavelength is also discussed.

Schistosome japonicum remains one main public concern in China. This is exemplified in the hilly region in Anhui Province, where rodents have served as reservoirs for the parasite and no effective intervention could target such wild animals. The closer relationship between the hilly region and the near marshland induces the worry of spread of the hill parasite to the marshland region. Therefore, the level of snail-parasite compatibility between the hill parasite and snail populations from the Yangtze River valley was investigated. The results of this study demonstrated that both the hill (Shitai, Anhui) and the marshland (Wuxi, Jiangsu) strains of parasite were more infective to the marshland strains of snail (Zongyang and Hexian, Anhui) than to the hill strain of snail (Shitai, Anhui). When snails were individually exposed to one single miracidium, the longest prepatent period for cercarial development was observed in the combination of Shitai schistosome/Shitai snail. A nocturnal cercarial emergence pattern was observed for the hill parasite, either harbored in the hill or the marshland strain of snails. The results suggested a high compatibility between the marshland strains of snail and both the hill and the marshland strains of parasite. This would have practical implications. Moreover, the fact of the lower compatible relationship between the hill parasite and its local intermediate hosts warranted more studies.

The radiation hydrodynamics code MULTI-2D, which was developed by Ramis et al. in 2009 (2009 Comput. Phys. Commun. 180 977) and adopted the single temperature fluid and unstructured lagrangian mesh, is modified into a radiation magnetohydrodynamics code MULTI2D-Z by adding the program module of evolution equation of magnetic field, and self-consistently considering the Lorentz force in the module of motion equation and the Ohmic heating in the module of energy equation. The newly developed module for magnetic field was validated to be reliable. The module is used to study the magnetic field diffusion process, and it is found that the diffusion is weakened due to the increasing of plasma temperature and density and the fluid convection, in which there is minus grads of velocity in radial direction. The new code MULTI2D-Z is used to simulate the formation process of dynamic hohlraum driven by tungsten wire-array Z-pinch at an 8 MA current level. The obtained results are that X-ray power and energy are, respectively, ～30 TW and ～300 kJ, radiation temperature in foam is ～120 eV, and the implosion trajectory of wire-array is also obtained. The calculated results reveal that the magnetic field is mainly distributed in the outside of tungsten plasma during the hohlraum formation. The foam expands due to the radiation heating from the shock wave created by the collision between wire-array plasma and the foam. The thermal radiation wave, which is characterized by radiation temperature, spreads towards the central axis faster than the plasma temperature. When the thermal radiation wave spreads to the central axis, the radiation temperature becomes comparatively uniform in space, and is almost equal to the plasma temperature except at the place of the shock wave. These results help the people to better understand the magnetic field diffusion and convection in Z-pinch, as well as the formation mechanism of dynamic hohlraum driven by wire-array Z-pinch. It is also indicated that the newly developed code MULTI2D-Z can be considered as a new tool for simulating Z-pinch and its applications, such as inertial confinement fusion and magnetically accelerated flyer plates.