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A highly enantioselective conjugate addition of indolizine and its analogues with α,β-unsaturated 2-acyl imidazoles has been developed.

Yong Zhou, Chengzhi Gu, Jia Li, Lianhai Zhu, Guoxiang Huang, Jie Dai, Huaiyu Huang Department of Neurology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, The First People’s Hospital of Nantong, Nantong, China Purpose: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative movement disorder, but the pathogenesis remains elusive. This study was aimed to explore key genes and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) associated with PD.Materials and methods: Three patients with PD and three normal controls were enrolled in the present study from July 12, 2017, to August 29, 2017. RNA sequencing and bioinformatics analysis were performed to obtain differentially expressed micro RNAs (DEmRNAs) and lncRNAs (DElncRNAs) between patients with PD and normal controls. PD-specific protein–protein interaction networks were constructed. DEmRNAs transcribed within a 100kb window upstream or downstream of DElncRNAs were searched, which were defined as cis nearby targeted DEmRNAs of DElncRNAs. Datasets GSE57475 and GSE68719 were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database, which were used to validate the expression of selected DEmRNAs.Results: A total of 857 DEmRNAs and 77 DElncRNAs were obtained between PD and normal controls. Natural killer cell-mediated cytotoxicity was a significantly enriched pathway in PD. ERBB2, HSPB1, and MYC were three hub proteins of PD-specific protein–protein interaction network. LOC105378701-TAL1, LOC102724104-CX3CR1, LOC105375056-TREML1/TREML4, LOC105379392-ANK1, and LOC101928100-KLRK1/KLRD1 interactions were identified DElncRNA nearby targeted DEmRNA pairs in PD. Gene expression results validated by GSE57475 and GSE68719 were consistent with our RNA-sequencing results, generally.Conclusion: This present study identified key genes and lncRNAs associated with PD, which will provide new clues for exploring the pathogenesis and developing potential biomarkers of PD. Keywords: RNA-sequencing, mRNA, bioinformatics analysis, protein–protein interaction network&nbsp

We aimed to analyze the mutation site and frequency of catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene, to explore the relationship between COMT genotype and phenotype, and to find new pathogenic genes for paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia (PKD). PKD patients who were treated from December 2011 to January 2014 were selected and subjected to genetic testing in the exon region of COMT. Two patients and one intrafamilial healthy control were subjected to exome sequencing using whole exome capture in combination with high-throughput sequencing to find candidate pathogenic gene sites. The results were verified by Sanger sequencing. A total of 11 familial PKD patients from 4 families and 9 sporadic patients without family history were included. Pathogenic c.634dupC(p.P220fsX7) mutation of COMT gene was found in 7 familial PKD patients and3 sporadic patients. Mutated COMT gene carriers suffered from PKD earlier (average age of onset: 11.61 ± 2.33 vs 16.21 ± 2.58, P = 0.001) with symmetric symptoms in most cases, while the mutation-negative group only showed unilateral symptoms (P = 0.001). The mutation-positive group also had more daily attacks (P = 0.038). Carbamazepine worked for all mutation-positive patients (10/10, 100%), but only for a part of mutation-negative patients (3/10, 30.0%). About 90000 single nucleotide polymorphisms and 2000 insertion-deletion polymorphisms were detected in each of the three samples. c.737C → T(p.T246 M) mutation of POC1B gene was a new pathogenic site for a selected family. COMT gene mutation, which was the pathogenesis of most familial PKD patients and a part of sporadic patients, predicted the response to carbamazepine. POC1B may be a novel pathogenic gene for PKD.

Objective: To detect the serum levels of D-dimer and N-terminal pro B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-pro BNP) in patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke (AIS), and to explore the risk factors of AIS. Methods: A total of 246 AIS patients treated in our hospital from January 2015 to January 2017 were selected. Meanwhile, 240 healthy subjects were selected as a control group. The D-dimer and NT-pro BNP levels of the two groups were compared. Correlations of such levels with age, gender, blood lipid, Intima-Media Thickness (IMT), fibrinogen and degree of neurological deficits were analyzed. Results: The AIS group had significantly higher levels of Triglyceride (TG), Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL), D-dimer, NT-pro BNP and fibrinogen as well as IMT than those of the control group, but the High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL) level of the AIS group was significantly lower (P

Coreopsis tinctoria flowering (CTF) tops from the Kunlun Mountains in Xinjing (north-western China) have been used for tea production for about a century. This study was to assess antioxidant, nitrite-scavenging and N-nitrosamine inhibitory and antimicrobial activities of the essential oil extracted from CTF tops. The essential oil was extracted through hydrodistillation and its chemical compositions were analysed by GC–MS. Seventy compounds of the oil were identified, representing 81.87% of total oil. The antioxidant capacities of the oil with IC50 values for scavenging DPPH and ABTS were 287.66 ± 12.60 and 1.251 ± 0.127 μg mL− 1, respectively. The nitrite-scavenging and N-nitrosamine inhibitory activities (IC50) were 0.3912 ± 0.0127 and 0.6564 ± 0.036 μg mL− 1, respectively. The oil has a certain antimicrobial capacity, but its capacity was weaker than that of penicillinG (24 μg mL− 1). The oil showed antioxidant and antimicrobial capacities and had a stronger nitrite-scavenging and N-nitrosamine inhibitory properties.

Objective: We aimed to evaluate the effects of positive psychological intervention on Parkinson's disease (PD) patients complicated with depression and cognitive dysfunction. Methods: Two hundred and thirty-two PD patients complicated with depression and cognitive dysfunction treated in our hospital were selected and randomly divided into two groups (n=116). The control group was treated routinely and the observation group was additionally sub-jected to positive psychological intervention for eight consecutive weeks. They were evaluated by the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale in terms of depression and cogni-tive dysfunction. The numerical data between groups were compared by the χ2 test, and the categorical data were compared by the t test. Changes in the depression and cognitive function scores before and after intervention were compared by analysis of variance for repeated measures. P

Coreopsis tinctoria flowering tops (CTFs) from the Kunlun Mountains in Xinjing (north-western China) have been used for tea production for about a century. This study aims to assess the antioxidant activities and total phenolic, flavonoid and proanthocyanidin contents of various solvent extracts of CTF. CTF was extracted using n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, n-butanol, 75% aqueous ethanol (AEE) and water. The antioxidant activities of the CTF extracts were investigated through DPPH, ABTS, *OH, *O2− , total antioxidant capacity and reducing power assays. The results showed that n-butanol extract showed the highest contents of total phenols and flavonoids, with DPPH, ABTS and *OH radical-scavenging activities with IC50 values of 134, 90.72 and 13.8 μg mL− 1, respectively. The AEE demonstrated the strongest DPPH and ABTS radical-scavenging activities, with IC50 values of 103 and 75.16 μg mL− 1, respectively. Given its high antioxidant effect, CTF is a good source of natural antioxidants or functional food materials.

As a core structure of nature photosynthesis, porphyrin has good light, thermal and chemical stability. In the past two decades, porphyin based dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) has attracted much attention relevant to global environmental issues. Up to date, they exhibit the best performance with a benchmark efficiency of 13% reported in 2014 for dye-sensitised solar cells. The progress of porphyrins and their derivatives applied in DSSC from the point of view of molecular engineering design correlated with photovoltaic performance is systematically summarized. Keywords dye-sensitized solar cells; porphyin; molecular engineering design; photovoltaic performance