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Objective This study aims to elucidate the underlying mechanism of hyperglycemia induced Alzheimer's disease (AD)-like pathological changes. Methods Thirty Sprague Dawley rats (aged 18 weeks) were randomly divided into one control groups and two experimental groups (n=10 for each group), including control group, STZ+HFD group, and STZ+HFD+AICAR group. Control rats (n=10) was fed with the standard diet and experimental rats (n=20) was fed with high fat diet (HFD) for 8 weeks. 8 weeks after feeding, we estimated the reliability of the experimental model by measuring blood glucose levels (each week) of rats, serum insulin concentrations and oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) test. Then experimental rats were injected with 50 mg/kg/ day Streptozotocin (STZ) intraperitoneally for three days, whereas the control rats were given the same dose of citric acid buffer for comparison. Morris water maze tests was performed to observe the functional changes of brain regions related to spatial learning and memory in each group. Western blot was performed to detect the abundances of AMPK, p-AMPK, SIRT1, H3acK9 and CDK5 in rats. Immunohistochemistry staining was performed to evaluate the levels of MAPT/Tau which can reflect the AD-like pathological changes. Furthermore, AMPK agonist (AICAR) was used to assess whether AMPK/SIRT1 pathway, which participate in the AD-like pathological changes, is the upstream molecules of H3acK9 and CDK5. Results We found treatment with HFD and STZ significantly increased blood glucose and serum insulin levels, and impaired glucose tolerance in rats. Hyperglycemia led to a decrease in the activity of AMPK and expression of SIRT1. The expression levels of underlying molecules of AMPK including H3acK9 and CDK5 significantly increased. The levels of phosphorylated Tau significantly increased in brain tissues. Additonally, AICAR administration partial reversed hyperglycemia-induced AD-like molecular pathologic changes through activating AMPK/SIRT1, decreasing expression of H3acK9 and CDK5, and inhibiting Tau protein hyperphosphorylation in rat brain tissues. Conclusion Hyperglycemia induces inactivation of AMPK/SIRT1 pathway which promotes excessive deacetylation of H3K9 and over expression of CDK5, these changes in turn lead to Tau protein hyperphosphorylation and AD-like molecular pathologic changes.

A methodology to properly screen all UBD techniques to reduce failure/misapplication and align objectives with expectations had been absent. The paper addresses the latest enhancements to better understand and screen options for UBD operations according to two aspects: formation applicability and engineering applicability. The screening tool considers a range of economic and technical parameter to provide a relative ranking for each candidate of the Underbalanced drilling (UBD) technique. As a case, the methodology was available to optimize the UBD techniques in a risky exploration well in Xinjiang oilfield, which provided guidance and technical support to screen the UBD candidate, design the drilling modeconversion, and establish the emergency schedule.

Due to the characteristics of high recurrence and metastasis, it is still difficult to cure lung cancer. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a group of tumor cells with self-renewal ability and differentiation potential, which are responsible for lung cancer recurrence. Therefore, targeting CSCs may provide a new strategy for lung cancer treatment. Thymoquinone (TQ), the main active ingredient isolated from black seed oil, has shown significant anti-cancer effects in various cancers. However, the effect of TQ on lung cancer stem cells (LCSCs) has never been clarified. In the present study, we successfully separated and enriched lung cancer tumorsphere cells. Our data showed that TQ significantly inhibited the stem-like properties of LCSCs. In addition, we found TQ promoted Yes-associated protein (YAP) phosphorylation and ubiquitination, and the inhibitory effects of TQ on LCSCs could be enhanced by silencing YAP. Taken together, these results suggest that TQ, functions by targeting YAP, may be a potential therapeutic agent against lung cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unstable layer of Aihu oilfield is characterized by strong hydration dispersion and weak expansion. The theory of multiple synergistic wall stabilization was applied to improve synergistic efficiency of the drilling fluid. The recipe of multiple synergistic drilling fluid is worked out. The multiple synergistic drilling fluid was evaluated by analysing the rheology, filtration, wall building, inhibition for the borehole & the weak layers. The inhibition and rheology of the tested drilling fluid system is as good as anti-temperature performance. The ternary-inhibitive drilling fluid system is superior to the binary-inhibitive drilling fluid system. The ternary-inhibitive contained in the multiple synergistic drilling fluid system enhances the ability of water dispersion inhibition. The application of Aihu oilfield shows that the multiple synergistic drilling fluid has satisfied the requirements of low filtration and slight wall expansion.

There are three sets of gravels in Mahu region. The gravels formation is characterized by high heterogeneity, high abrasiveness and poor drillability. It is so difficult to optimize bit that restrict seriously the overall exploration and development process. The compressive strength, internal friction angle, and drillability of the formation are tested to check the rock mechanical characteristic profile established by logging data. The individual bit design is carried out by the 3D simulation technology. A new PDC bit type is designed to form the drill bit series for Mahu area. Single PDC bit increases 90% of the drilling footage. The trip average footage is improved 3.45 times, the horizontal section average penetration increased 34.8%. The technical achievements have greatly improved economic development benefits of Mahu region by improving drilling speed and saving drilling costs.

The mechanism of deep penetration of radial well with hole-drilling in casing technology developed in recent years is to form a plurality of radial hole in reservoir through high pressure water jetting, which could enlarge the drainage area and reduce production pressure drop. This paper analyzes the technical principles of this technology, and then proves the mechanism with well and layer selection of test wells through technical applicability. On the basis of these, the radial hole design plan of two testing wells were proposed, and the on-site operation situation was illuminated from the aspect of field test preparation and construction techniques. The testing results showed that both wells site construction had met the requirement of the design and made the yield increasing effect at some certain degree, even though failed to achieve the anticipated capacity. It is thought that the sand blocking resulted from debris flowback difficulties is the key reason for increase of output not enough during the radial water jetting process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanostructures of ternary topological insulator (TI) Bi 2 Te 2 Se are, in principle, advantageous to the manifestation of topologically nontrivial surface states, due to significantly enhanced surface-to-volume ratio compared with its bulk crystals counterparts. Herein, the synthesis of 2D Bi 2 Te 2 Se crystals on mica via the van der Waals epitaxy method is explored and systematically the growth behaviors during the synthesis process are investigated. Accordingly, 2D Bi 2 Te 2 Se crystals with domain size up to 50 µm large and thickness down to 2 nm are obtained. A pronounced weak antilocalization effect is clearly observed in the 2D Bi 2 Te 2 Se crystals at 2 K. The method for epitaxial growth of 2D ternary Bi 2 Te 2 Se crystals may inspire materials engineering toward enhanced manifestation of the subtle surface states of TIs and thereby facilitate their potential applications in next-generation spintronics., (© 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)