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Street dust samples were collected from industrial, residential, educational, commercial, and park areas in Beijing, China, during spring and winter to investigate the contents of heavy metals (Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb, As, Cd and Hg) and evaluate the source apportionment and degree of environmental pollution according to the geo-accumulation index, ecological indices, and human health risk assessment. The average contents of eight heavy metals (mg/kg) in spring are as follows: Cr (98.17), Ni (26.38), Cu (67.33), Zn (394.87), Pb (64.39), As (6.32), Cd (0.618), and Hg (0.207). In winter they are Cr (94.54), Ni (26.13), Cu (73.03), Zn (341.73), Pb(73.09), As (7.66), Cd (0.635), and Hg (0.279). The rank order of heavy metals concentrations in functional areas is IA (Industrial area) >CA (Commercial area) >EA (Educational area) >RA(Residential area) >PA (Park area). The source apportionment analysis indicates that heavy metals in the street dust are mainly derived from mixed sources of natural, industrial and traffic-related source (54.64%). Both the geo-accumulation index and potential pollution index shows the pollution levels of different heavy metals in different functional areas: from unpolluted, moderately polluted to heavily polluted. A health risk assessment shows no non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risk of heavy metals to children and adults. Among the five functional areas, the industrial area has the highest non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risk compared to that of the others.

Nirmatrelvir-ritonavir has been authorized for emergency use by many countries for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). However, the supply falls short of the global demand, which creates a need for more options. VV116 is an oral antiviral agent with potent activity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).We conducted a phase 3, noninferiority, observer-blinded, randomized trial during the outbreak caused by the B.1.1.529 (omicron) variant of SARS-CoV-2. Symptomatic adults with mild-to-moderate Covid-19 with a high risk of progression were assigned to receive a 5-day course of either VV116 or nirmatrelvir-ritonavir. The primary end point was the time to sustained clinical recovery through day 28. Sustained clinical recovery was defined as the alleviation of all Covid-19-related target symptoms to a total score of 0 or 1 for the sum of each symptom (on a scale from 0 to 3, with higher scores indicating greater severity; total scores on the 11-item scale range from 0 to 33) for 2 consecutive days. A lower boundary of the two-sided 95% confidence interval for the hazard ratio of more than 0.8 was considered to indicate noninferiority (with a hazard ratio of1 indicating a shorter time to sustained clinical recovery with VV116 than with nirmatrelvir-ritonavir).A total of 822 participants underwent randomization, and 771 received VV116 (384 participants) or nirmatrelvir-ritonavir (387 participants). The noninferiority of VV116 to nirmatrelvir-ritonavir with respect to the time to sustained clinical recovery was established in the primary analysis (hazard ratio, 1.17; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01 to 1.35) and was maintained in the final analysis (median, 4 days with VV116 and 5 days with nirmatrelvir-ritonavir; hazard ratio, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.36). In the final analysis, the time to sustained symptom resolution (score of 0 for each of the 11 Covid-19-related target symptoms for 2 consecutive days) and to a first negative SARS-CoV-2 test did not differ substantially between the two groups. No participants in either group had died or had had progression to severe Covid-19 by day 28. The incidence of adverse events was lower in the VV116 group than in the nirmatrelvir-ritonavir group (67.4% vs. 77.3%).Among adults with mild-to-moderate Covid-19 who were at risk for progression, VV116 was noninferior to nirmatrelvir-ritonavir with respect to the time to sustained clinical recovery, with fewer safety concerns. (Funded by Vigonvita Life Sciences and others; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT05341609; Chinese Clinical Trial Registry number, ChiCTR2200057856.).

Aiming at the problems of incomplete description, ambiguity and inconsistency in the traditional requirements analysis method based on prototype system in software development, this paper proposes a requirement analysis method based on prototype portrait, introduces the process of obtaining the software requirement specification and designing the software by using the prototype portrait method according to the user’s requirements, and formalizes the process of the method, and develops the software with the prototype portrait requirement document approved by the customer, so as to ensure the correctness of the designed functional requirements. The practical results show that the requirement analysis method based on prototype portrait overcomes the problems of long development cycle and high failure rate existing in the traditional requirements analysis method of prototype system, and improves the quality and cycle of software development.

Over 30% of the global GDP and 60% of the worldwide population are involved in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), making it one of the greatest development projects in the world. If infrastructure developments in BRI countries are successful, economic growth in those nations will increase dramatically. Using data from 2005 to 2020, this research examines the relationships between environmental psychology, green finance, and sustainable development and variables such as GDP per capita and its square, green financing, government expenditure, and human capital in 57 strategically chosen BRI economies. Economists used cutting-edge techniques that take into account multiple variables at once in their analysis, such as cross-sectional dependence, unit root testing, co-integration analysis, IFE estimation, dynamic panel data (DCCE), and generalized method of moments (system GMM). The findings indicate that green financing, government spending, and GDP per capita squared reduce emissions of carbon dioxide. In this analysis, the level of human capital is similar to GDP per capita in its beneficial effect on carbon emissions. Carbon emissions are negatively impacted by government spending, which has a minor effect on GDP per capita, green financing, and human capital. Using the results of this study, the authors offer recommendations for how a country can reduce its carbon output.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is one of the most prevalent and aggressive central nervous tumors with high mobility and mortality. The prognosis of patients with GBM is poor. It is therefore essential to explore the therapeutic strategies for the treatment of GBM. Previous studies have demonstrated that the long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) Kinectin 1-Antisense RNA 1 (KTN1-AS1) can participate in the development of several types of cancer. However, the underlying mechanism of KTN1-AS1 in GBM remains unknown. The present study aimed to determine the potential role of KTN1-AS1 in GBM. In this study, reverse transcription quantitative PCR analysis was conducted and the results demonstrated that KTN1-AS1 was upregulated in GBM tissues and cell lines compared with normal tissues and astrocytes (NHA). Furthermore, KTN1-AS1 knockdown decreased the viability and invasive ability of glioma cells in vitro and in vivo. In addition, high level of KTN1-AS1 was correlated with poor prognosis in TCGA GBM database. Furthermore, microRNA-505-3p (miR-505-3p) was a promising target of KTN1-AS1, and the suppressing effects of miR-505-3p on cell proliferation and invasive ability was reversed by downregulating KTN1-AS1. Taken together, the results from the present provided novel insights into the roles of KTN1-AS1 in GBM, and suggested that the KTN1-AS1/miR-505-3p axis may be considered as a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of patients with GBM.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE Benefits and risks of restarting oral anticoagulants (OACs) in patients with atrial fibrillation after major bleeding remain unknown. A meta-analysis was performed to systematically evaluate the effects of restarting OACs on thromboembolism and bleeding events in these patients. METHODS Relevant studies were obtained via systematically search of PubMed, Cochrane's Library and Embase databases. A randomized-effect model was used to pool the results. Subgroup analyses according to the types of OACs and sites of reoccurred bleeding were performed. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Seven retrospective cohort studies with 12 197 patients were included. Restarting OACs was associated with reduced risk of thromboembolism (risk ratio [RR]: 0.61, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.42-0.87; P = .007). Subgroup analyses showed that restarting warfarin reduced risk of thromboembolism (RR = 0.59, P = .05), but not for the new oral anticoagulants (NOACs; RR = 1.37, P = .18). Moreover, restarting OACs did not affect the risk of reoccurred bleeding (RR = 0.98, 95% CI: 0.74-1.30, P = .89). Similar results were found for warfarin and NOACs, as well as for reoccurred intracranial haemorrhage or gastrointestinal bleeding. In addition, restarting OACs was associated with significantly reduced risk of all-cause mortality (RR = 0.42, 95% CI: 0.33-0.52, P

Nitrogen (N) deposition and intensified rainfall can strongly affect soil microbial community, but compared with available studies on bacteria, those on soil fungi are quite limited. Here we carried out a field experiment in a mixed deciduous forest of China to study the influences of increased N deposition and rainfall on soil fungi by using quantitative PCR and high-throughput sequencing method. The results demonstrated that (1) N addition significantly increased fungal abundance and alpha diversity (richness, Shannon index and Invsimpson index), changed fungal community composition at OTU level, and marginally increased the relative abundance of Ascomycota and Zygomycota, while water addition showed no remarkable effects on fungal abundance, biodiversity and community composition. (2) N addition significantly increased the richness of saprotrophic fungi and pathogenic fungi, and the relative abundance of saprotrophic fungi, but water addition only slightly increased the abundance of pathogenic fungi. (3) Fungal composition dissimilarity closely correlated with the disparity of soil parameters as a whole. Soil NH4+-N exhibited strong positive correlation with the richness of pathogenic fungi and mycorrhizal fungi, while both soil moisture and NH4+-N tightly correlated with soil fungal abundance and alpha diversity indices. We concluded that in this N-limited but non-water-limited forest ecosystem, N deposition posed stronger effects on soil fungi than increased rainfall, partially mediated by changes in soil properties.

Ti6Al4V artificial implants are increasingly demanded for addressing human dysfunction caused by an aging population and major diseases. However, they are restricted due to the release of vanadium and aluminum ions in the process of corrosion and wear. This work is aimed to provide a protective film for Ti6Al4V artificial implants, and then, a Si-incorporated diamond-like carbon (Si-DLC) film and Si- and N-incorporated DLC (SiN-DLC) film were deposited on the surface of Ti6Al4V by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. Results suggest that the thickness of the as-deposited DLC film is approximately 2 μm, and the SiN-DLC film shows the lowest surface roughness (53.0 ± 3.6 nm) compared with the Ti6Al4V and DLC films. The above DLC film possesses high mechanical properties compared with Ti6Al4V, and the SiN-DLC film shows the best resistance to plastic deformation. In addition, the DLC film exhibits high adhesive strength (13 N) with Ti6Al4V, which is a prerequisite for service in liquid environments. Whether in SBF solution or SBF + BSA solution, the friction coefficient and wear rate of the above DLC film are much lower than those of Ti6Al4V, and the SiN-DLC film displays the optimal tribological properties (0.072 and 1.82 × 10

Consumption of processed foods has been associated with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), but with inconsistent results. Therefore, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to compute results regarding the association between processed foods and risk of NPC in included studies.Studies exploring the association between consumption of processed food and risk of NPC were included in the present study. All included studies were case-control or cohort designed. PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, Medline and Google Scholar databases were searched for articles published before July 2021. We recorded the following data: author, publication year, sample size, study type, study location, years of diagnosis, food item and comparison, and the covariates considered were multivariate adjusted odds ratios (ORs) or relative risks (RRs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the highestA meta-analysis was made for 29 case-control studies (including 14,378 NPC patients and 17,928 controls). The meta-analysis showed that the highest categories of processed food intake were associated with a 65% increase in NPC risk compared with the lowest categories in a random effects model (OR =1.67; 95% CI: 1.56-1.79; P value for Q test0.001; IThe association of processed foods with NPC risk might be significant. Further prospective studies and experimental research are needed to explore this relationship.

Soil CO2-fixing microbes play a significant role in CO2-fixation in the terrestrial ecosystems, particularly in the Tibetan Plateau. To understand carbon sequestration by soil CO2-fixing microbes and the carbon cycling in alpine meadow soils, microbial diversity and their driving environmental factors were explored along an elevation gradient from 3900 to 5100 m, on both east and west slopes of Mila Mountain region on the Tibetan Plateau. The CO2-fixing microbial communities were characterized by high-throughput sequencing targeting the cbbL gene, encoding the large subunit for the CO2-fixing protein ribulose 1, 5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase. The overall OTU (Operational Taxonomic Unit) abundance is concentrated at an altitude between 4300 and 4900 m. The diversity of CO2-fixing microbes is the highest in the middle altitude area, and on the east slope is higher than those on the west slope. In terms of microbial community composition, Proteobacteria is dominant, and the most abundant genera are Cupriavidus, Rhodobacter, Sulfurifustis and Thiobacillus. Altitude has the greatest influence on the structural characteristics of CO2-fixing microbes, and other environmental factors are significantly correlated with altitude. Therefore, altitude influences the structural characteristics of CO2-fixing microbes by driving environmental factors. Our results are helpful to understand the variation in soil microbial community and its role in soil carbon cycling along elevation gradients.

Soil CO

The optical window is a key part of a sensor specially used for oceanographic detection, but it is often severely affected by marine biofouling and oil pollution, resulting in reduced transparency and lifespan. Hydrogel, as a hydrophilic polymer network, has excellent antifouling effects with good transparency, but it is difficult to adhere to substrates, which greatly limits its practical applications. To solve the above problem, a transparent Janus hydrogel wet adhesive was prepared through modifying poly(vinyl alcohol)/glycerol-tannic acid/Cu2+ (PVA/Gly-TA/Cu2+) hydrogel with the underwater adhesive poly(dopamine methacrylamide-co-methoxyethyl acrylate) (P(DMA-co-MEA)) via the coordination effect between Cu2+ and catechol. Even when coated with adhesive, the sample still retained good transmittance. The presence of Cu2+ endowed the hydrogel with better tensile strength and, at the same time, can improve the adhesion of the hydrogel to the substrate through the coordination effect with the adhesive. The tensile stress of Janus hydrogels can even reach 4.4 MPa, and the adhesion strength of the obtained Janus hydrogel can reach about 14 kPa in seawater. Furthermore, the Cu-rich Janus hydrogel presented a significant inhibitory effect on the growth of surface algae. The oil contact angle of the Janus hydrogel was as high as 148° underwater. After the hydrogel was reswollen, there were lower algae densities on the surfaces of the hydrogel and little change in transparency. Considering the above properties, this novel Janus hydrogel is anticipated to be a promising protective material to solve the marine pollution problem confronting optical equipment.

Background Congenital hemophilia A is a recessive inherited hemorrhagic disorder. According to the activity of functional coagulation factors, the severity of hemophilia A is divided into three levels: mild, moderate and severe. The first bleeding episode in severe and moderate congenital hemophilia A occurs mostly in early childhood and mainly involves soft tissue and joint bleeds. At present, there are limited reports on severe congenital hemophilia A with low factor XII (FXII) activity during the neonatal period. Case presentation A 13-day-old neonate was admitted to the hospital with hematoma near the joints of both upper arms. Coagulation tests showed he had low activity of factor VIII (FVIII) and FXII. He was diagnosed with congenital hemophilia A and treated with human coagulation factor VIII (recombinant FVIII). Although the hematoma became smaller, FVIII activity was only increased to a certain extent and FXII activity decreased gradually. Unfortunately, the child responded poorly to recombinant human coagulation factor VIII and his guardian rejected prophylactic inhibitors and genetic testing and refused further treatment. Three months later, the child developed intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) due to low FVIII activity. Conclusions In hemophilia A, the presence of FVIII inhibitors, drug concentration and testing are three important aspects that must be considered when FVIII activity does not reach the desired level. Early positive disease treatment and prophylaxis can decrease the frequency of bleeding and improve quality of life. We recommend that pregnant women with a family history of hemophilia A undergo early prenatal and neonatal genetic testing.

Background The novel noninvasive pressure-strain loop (PSL) is a reliable tool that reflects myocardial work (MW). Systolic blood pressure (SBP) is the only independent factor for MW indices. However, afterload-related reference values have not been previously reported. The aim of the present study was to establish reference values for MW parameters by wide range SBP grading. Methods We prospectively selected healthy individuals and subjects with SBP ≥ 140 mmHg at the time of study without myocardial remodeling. MW parameters were collected and the reference values achieved were grouped by SBP in 10-mmHg. Results Significant differences were noted among the SBP-groups for global work index (GWI) and global constructive work (GCW). The majority of statistical comparisons of the differences in GWI and GCW were significant at each SBP-group. With SBP ranging from 90 to 189 mmHg, the parameters GWI and GCW tended to increase linearly with afterload. Overall, the global wasted work (GWW) tended to rise as SBP was increased, but not all of the differences noted in GWW were significant for each SBP-group. Global work efficiency (GWE) remained stable across all SBP-groups, with the exception of a slight drop noted when it exceeded 160 mmHg. Conclusions The amount of MW but not the work efficiency varied greatly according to the different afterload. This finding cannot be ignored during clinical research or diagnosis and afterload-related reference values are required to make a reasonable judgment on the myocardial function.

Actinobacteria living in frozen soils which potentially could be producers of valuable and biologically active metabolites, remain still largely unexplored. Therefore, the diversity of culturable actinobacteria in the six frozen soil samples collected from the high-latitude and the high-altitude regions in China was investigated by using the culture-dependent method and 16S rRNA gene analysis. A total of 184 culturable actinobacterial isolates (morphotypes) were obtained. The abundance of culturable actinobacteria was 6.20 × 103–3.49 × 105 colony forming units (CFU) per gram of soil (dry weight). The actinobacteria isolated from the high-latitude region in China belong to five genera: Streptacidiphilus, Kitasatospora, Streptomyces, Arthrobacter, and Rhodococcus. The strains belonging to Arthrobacter were dominant, the 19 strains were closely related to Arthrobacter globiformis in terms of evolutionary distance. The actinobacterial isolates from the high-altitude region, from 2, 813 m to 4, 775 m in elevation, in China could be grouped into six genera (Arthrobacter, Microbacterium, Streptomyces, Rhodococcus, Nocardia, and Nocardiopsis), with dominant Streptomyces and Arthrobacter strains. The 4 strains were closely related to Rhodococcus fascians and one strain was closely with Microbacterium hydrocarbonoxydans in terms of evolutionary distance. Three genera of Arthrobacter, Streptomyces, and Rhodococcus were found in both areas. Our research provides new insight into the characteristics of the distribution of actinobacteria associated with frozen soils, which help us gain a better understanding of the potential of the cryogenic environments – the potential source of actinobacterial antibiotics.

Chromium (Cr) pollution has attracted much attention due to its biological toxicity. However, little is known regarding Cr toxicity to soil microorganisms. The present study assesses the toxicity of Cr(VI) on two microbial processes, potential nitrification rate (PNR) and substrate-induced respiration (SIR), in a wide range of agricultural soils and detected the abundance of soil bacteria, fungi, ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and archaea. The toxicity thresholds of 10% and 50% effective concentrations (EC10 and EC50) for PNR varied by 32.18- and 38.66-fold among different soils, while for SIR they varied by 391.21- and 16.31-fold, respectively. Regression model analysis indicated that for PNR, CEC as a single factor explained 27% of the variation in EC10, with soil clay being the key factor explaining 47.3% of the variation in EC50. For SIR, organic matter and pH were found to be the most vital predictors for EC10 and EC50, explaining 34% and 61.1% of variation, respectively. In addition, extended aging time was found to significantly attenuate the toxicity of Cr on PNR. SIR was mainly driven by total bacteria rather than fungi, while PNR was driven by both AOA and AOB. These results were helpful in deriving soil Cr toxicity threshold based on microbial processes, and provided a theoretical foundation for ecological risk assessments and establishing a soil environmental quality criteria for Cr.

Coumarin-pi, a new coumarin derivative isolated from the mushroom Paxillus involutus, has antioxidative activity, but the underlying mechanism against intracellular oxidative stress is still unclear. This study investigated its cytoprotective effects and the antioxidative mechanism in tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP)-induced HepG2 cells. The results demonstrated that coumarin-pi suppressed t-BHP-stimulated cytotoxicity, cell apoptosis, and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Additionally, coumarin-pi promoted nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) expression and upregulated the protein expression of antioxidantenzymes, including heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), NAD(P)H: quinone oxidase (NQO1), glutamyl cysteine ligase catalytic subunit (GCLC), and glutamate-cysteine ligase regulatory subunit (GCLM). After coumarin-pi treatment, transcriptome sequencing and bioinformatic analysis revealed that 256 genes were differentially expressed; interestingly, only 20 genes were downregulated, and the rest of the genes were upregulated. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) functional annotation were used to identify changes in metabolic pathways. Collectively, the results presented in this study indicate that coumarin-pi has a protective effect against t-BHP-induced cellular damage and oxidative stress.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi can substantially contribute to plant water uptake and drought tolerance. However, few studies examined whether AM symbiosis regulates the key functional genes in plant signaling under drought stress. The objective of present study was to investigate the influence of AM symbiosis on the expression of 14-3-3 genes (key genes in ABA signaling pathway) and plant adaptation to water deficit. The ABA-deficient tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) mutant notabilis (not) and its wild-type (wt) were cultivated with or without AM fungus Rhizophagus intraradices under well-watered or drought-stressed conditions. Plant phosphorus (P) concentration, transpiration rate (Tr), water use efficiency (WUE) and expression of 14-3-3 genes (TFT1-TFT12) were determined. The results indicated that mycorrhizal inoculation significantly increased shoot P concentrations of wt plants regardless of water regimes, and increased root P concentrations of the two genotypes under well-watered conditions. AM significantly up-regulated the expression of TFT2 and TFT3 in wt plants under drought stress. The decreased Tr led to increase of WUE and enhanced drought tolerance of wt plants. For not plants, AM significantly up-regulated the expression of TFT5, TFT7, TFT9 and TFT10 under drought stress, which subsequently altered the response of Tr to drought and prevented the decrease in WUE. The study supported that AM symbiosis could modulate the stomatal behavior and maintain WUE to improve plant drought tolerance possibly through regulation of the 14-3-3 genes in the ABA signaling pathway.

A new agar-free bioautographic assay for xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibitors and superoxide scavengers on TLC layers was developed and validated. Compared to the first version of TLC bioautographic agar overlay method, our bioautographic assay greatly improved the sensitivity and quantification ability. The limit of detection (LOD) of this assay was 0.017ng for allopurinol. Quantitative estimation of XO inhibitors and superoxide scavengers was achieved by densitometry scanning, expressed as allopurinol equivalents in millimoles on a per sample weight basis. This assay has acceptable accuracy (95.37-99.23%), intra-day and inter-day precisions (RSD, 2.56-6.69%), as well as intra-plate and inter-plate precisions (RSD, 2.93-9.62%). Six pure compounds and three herbal extracts were evaluated for their potential XO inhibitory and superoxide scavenging activity by this bioautographic assay on TLC layers. Four active components were separated, located and identified in Astragalus membranaceus var. mongholicus extract by the bioautographic assay after TLC separation. The developed method is rapid, simple, sensitive and stable for screening and estimation of the potential XO inhibitors and superoxide scavengers.

Fouling is a ubiquitous and longstanding challenge that causes both economic and environmental problems, especially for underwater detection equipment, as fouling directly limits the normal services and functions of such equipment. Therefore, it is necessary to develop coatings with high transparency and good antifouling performance. Herein, a novel zwitterion compound was synthesized, and an antifouling coating with excellent comprehensive properties was prepared by integrating 3-[[3-(triethoxysilyl)-propyl] amino] propane-1-sulfonic acid (TPAPS) into polyvinyl butyral (PVB) polymer, which possesses excellent mechanical properties and transparency. The physical and chemical, mechanical, and antifouling properties, and the light transmittance of the coating were characterized by the SEM, FT-IR, XPS, UV-VIS. The results show that the coating had good mechanical properties and adhesion to the substrate, and the strong hydration ability of TPAPS endowed the coating with excellent resistance to oil stains and biofouling. More importantly, the structure of the coating was homogenous and its surface roughness was very little, which imparted the coating with high transmittance. This research provides a facile approach for synthesizing high-transparency materials with excellent antifouling and mechanical properties.

Alpine ecosystem in the Tibetan Plateau has a special ecological environment, which may harbor a high richness of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) communities. To explore the molecular diversity of AMF community associated with plants in alpine grasslands, root and rhizosphere soil of two dominant plant species, Kobresia sp. and Leontopodium pusillum in Qinghai province, were studied by molecular biotechnology (clone library and sequencing) at five sites for each plant species. A total of 30 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were identified, including seven families of Glomeromycota. Glomeraceae and Glo1 and Glo2 were most abundant at family and OUT level in roots respectively, while both Glomeraceae and Diversisporaceae were frequently present and Glo1 and Div1 were the most dominant OTUs in the soil. The AMF community was different in the roots and soil. Nineteen OTUs were identified in the roots of Kobresia sp., and 21 OTUs were identified in the rhizosphere soil. As to L. pusillum, fourteen OTUs were identified in roots and 17 OTUs in the soil. Specifically, three OTUs were only found in L. pusillum, and eight OTUs were only found in Kobresia sp. The root biomass and soil C/N ratio were the main factors affecting the AMF community in roots, whereas in soil, the important factors were root carbon content and shoot nitrogen content. These results showed a high diversity of AMF associated with the typical alpine plants, and distinct AMF community exist in roots and soil. Our results confirmed the importance of plant and soil factors in driving AMF assemblages in the fragile ecosystem of Tibetan Plateau.

The identity authentication protocols for devices in Internet of Electric Things (IOET) applications fall under stringent security, privacy protection, and resource consumption requirements which are necessary to prevent power grid security incidents. A Cloud-assisted Authenticated Key Agreement Protocol (CAAKA) for smart devices is proposed in this paper based on ECDH. Formal Real-Or-Random (ROR) model and informal methods are used to verify the security of the CAAKA protocol. The CAAKA resource consumption is evaluated based on computation, communication, and memory resource consumption indicators. The CAAKA shows high safety and low resource consumption.

Here we describe a copper-catalyzed [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction between N-iminoquinazolinium ylide and various polar olefins in mild conditions. In this process, pyrazolo[1,5-c]quinazoline derivatives were efficiently synthesized via cycloaddition followed by oxo-dehydrogenation in moderate to good yield.

Three undescribed seco-ursane stereoisomers, ilexcornutosides A–C, two undescribed triterpenoid saponins, ilexcornutosides D–E, and 11 known triterpenoids were isolated from the leaves of Ilex cornuta Lindl. & Paxton. Ilexcornutosides A–C and F with the same planar structures are unique 13(18)-ene-18,19-seco-ursane skeleton triterpenoids, identified as (3S,12R)-3-O-[β- d -glucopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-α- l -arabinopyranosyl]-12-hydroxyl-19-oxo-18,19-secours-13(18)-en-28,21-lactone. Among them, ilexcornutosides A and F (or ilexcornutosides B and C) are a pair of diastereomers at the C-20 position; ilexcornutosides A and C (or ilexcornutosides B and F) are a pair of diastereomers with epimerization at the C-21. Their structures were established by extensive spectroscopic (IR, 1D and 2D NMR, and HR-ESI-MS) and chemical analyses. The absolute configurations of ilexcornutosides A, B, D and F were determined by a single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis with a Cu Kα radiation. The inhibitory effect of ilexcornutosides A–F on the PPARγ expression was assessed in the 3T3-L1-Lenti-PPARγ-Luc cells using a single luciferase reporter assay. Ilexcornutosides A and C showed a comparable activity in decrease of the PPARγ expression to the positive control (T0070907) at 5 μM.

In this paper, to identify a utilization direction for the processing waste of dracaena sanderiana and improve the rooting rate of myrtle cuttings, with rooting rate, average number of roots and average root length as rooting indicators, we discussed the effects of D. sanderiana extract, different concentrations, IAA and other factors on the rooting of myrtle cuttings. The results showed that D. sanderiana aqueous extract had a comparable rooting-promoting effect to that of IAA and suggested that a rooting-promoting substance existed in D. sanderiana extract, which can provide an experimental technical support for a cheap, non-toxic and effective specialized rooting agent for myrtle, as well as the cutting breeding of myrtle.

Background Study on automated three-dimensional (3D) quantification of left heart parameters by using Heartmodel software is still in the early stage and fully automatic analysis was not clearly achieved. The aim of our study was to evaluate the performance of this new technology in measuring left ventricular (LV) volume and ejection fraction (EF) in patients with a variety of heart diseases on the basis of rationally determining the default endocardial border values. Methods Subjects with a variety of heart diseases were included prospectively. High quality Heartmodel images were selected to determine the end-diastolic and end-systolic default values of endocardial border. The accuracy and reproducibility of automated three-dimensional echocardiography (3DE) for measuring LV end-diastolic volume (EDV), end-systolic volume (ESV) and EF were evaluated with the traditional manual 3DE as the relative standard. Results Ninety seven subjects were enrolled in the study. The default endocardial border values were determined as 66% and 40% for end-diastole (ED) and end-systole (ES), respectively. Most of the subjects (84/97) were automatically analyzed by Heartmodel software without manual adjustment, revealing a close correlation of automated 3DE with manual 3DE in measuring EDV, ESV and EF (r-values: EDV: 0.96, ESV: 0.97, EF: 0.96). The EDV and ESV values obtained by automated 3DE were higher than those measured by manual 3DE (biases: EDV: 16 ± 18 ml, ESV: 11 ± 12 ml). The intra- and inter-observer reproducibility of automated 3DE was better than that of manual 3DE. Automated 3DE with manual adjustment showed good consistency with manual 3DE in assessing the impairment degree of systolic function in patients with wall motion abnormalities (n = 58), (Kappa = 0.74, P = 0.00). Conclusion Fully automated 3DE quantification of LV volume and EF could be achieved in most patients. Since automated 3DE was accurate and more reproducible, it could replace the existing manual 3DE technology and be routinely used in clinical practice.

A simple and efficient [3+2] cycloaddition reaction between N-iminoquinazolinium ylide and nitroolefins was developed. From a synthetic point of view, this protocol represents an efficient way to pyrazolo[1,5-c]quinazolines derivatives.