Search

Although spermatogenic dysfunction is widely found in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the underlying reasons remain unclear. Thus far, potential hypotheses involving viral reservoirs, testicular inflammation, hormone imbalance, and cachexia show inconsistent correlation with spermatogenic dysfunction. Here, northern pig-tailed macaques (NPMs) exhibited marked spermatogenic dysfunction after long-term infection with simian immunodeficiency virus (SIVmac239), with significant decreases in Johnsen scores, differentiated spermatogonial stem cells, and testicular proliferating cells. The above hypotheses were also evaluated. Results showed no differences between SIV− and SIV+ NPMs, except for an increase in follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) during SIV infection, which had no direct effect on the testes. However, long-term SIVmac239 infection undermined pancreatic islet β cell function, partly represented by significant reductions in cellular counts and autophagy levels. Pancreatic islet β cell dysfunction led to glucose metabolism disorder at the whole-body level, which inhibited lactate production by Sertoli cells in testicular tissue. As lactate is the main energy substrate for developing germ cells, its decrease was strongly correlated with spermatogenic dysfunction. Therefore, glucose metabolism disorder appears to be a primary cause of spermatogenic dysfunction in NPMs with long-term SIVmac239 infection.

Microbial translocation is a cause of systemic immune activation in HIV/SIV infection. In the present study, we found a lower CD8+ T cell activation level in Macaca leonina (northern pig-tailed macaques, NPMs) than in Macaca mulatta (Chinese rhesus macaques, ChRMs) during SIVmac239 infection. Furthermore, the levels of plasma LPS-binding protein and soluble CD14 in NPMs were lower than those in ChRMs. Compared with ChRMs, SIV-infected NPMs had lower Chiu scores, representing relatively normal intestinal mucosa. In addition, no obvious damage to the ileum or colon epithelial barrier was observed in either infected or uninfected NPMs, which differed to that found in ChRMs. Furthermore, no significant microbial translocation ( Escherichia coli) was detected in the colon or ileum of infected or uninfected NPMs, which again differed to that observed in ChRMs. In conclusion, NPMs retained superior intestinal integrity and limited microbial translocation during SIV infection, which may contribute to their lower immune activation compared with ChRMs.

As key population groups in HIV infection, transgender women (TGW) share the same oral and anal sexual practices with men who have sex with men (MSM). However, the differences in HIV rates between the two groups are still unclear. In our study, relevant publications were electronically searched in three databases. After excluding irrelevant studies based on review of the title, abstract, and full text, a total of 24 studies, including 37,521 cases, were identified. There were no significant differences between TGW and MSM regarding HIV status and condom use. However, TGW had a higher proportion of high-risk behaviors, including exchanges of sex, forced sex, receptive intercourse, and sex work experience. Moreover, most curable sexually transmitted diseases were more prevalent in the TGW group compared to MSM. Although TGW showed a higher proportion of high-risk behavior and sexually transmitted disease incidence, their HIV incidence was the same as that for MSM.

HIV infection induces pathological changes in the intestinal mucosa. Here, a successful endoscopy was performed on the colon of a Chinese rhesus macaque by using Olympus CV170 gastroscope. The stability on postoperative recovery and the integrity of biopsy tissue implied a possibility of achieving AIDS longitudinal intestinal research on macaques.

Phosphorus is the necessary element for plant growth, and its concentration is one of the main indices for water eutrophication. Hence, it is significant to understand how woody plants purify phosphorus in eutrophic water. The purpose of this study is to reveal the P absorption and removal mechanism of Salix matsudana in eutrophic water with different P concentration. We selected new S. matsudana clone (A42) as experimental material and set three levels of P concentration (low P: 0.1, 0.2 mg·L磷是评价水体富营养化的因子之一,也是植物生长必需营养元素,研究速生木本植物对富营养水体中磷的吸收具有重要意义.本研究以旱柳新无性系A42为对象,于2017年7—9月在温室大棚中进行浮床水培试验,研究了旱柳对不同磷营养水平水体(低磷0.1、0.2 mg·L

The compound super absorbent resin was synthesized by starch, bentonite, acrylic acid and acrylamide, using microwave irradiation. Some key factors affecting the solution absorbency of the polymer such as the amount of bentonite, acrylamide, initiator and cross-linking agent have been discussed. The results showed that the optimal reaction conditions of cross-linking agent, initiator, neutralization degree, bentonite, phosphate starch are 0.045%, 0.32%, 70%, 10%, 3% when the weight ratio of acrylic acid and acrylamide was 2:1, the microwave power was 800W, the radiation time was 15min. Under the conditions, the pure water absorption rate of super absorbent resin was up to 796g/g. when the weight ratio of acrylic acid and acrylamide was 1:1, the absorption rate of 0.9% NaCl was 95g/g.

Based on 57 years (1957-2013) daily precipitation datasets of the 85 meteorological stations in the Loess Plateau region, different spatial interpolation methods, including ordinary kriging (OK), inverse distance weighting (IDW) and radial-based function (RBF), were conducted to analyze the spatial variation of annual average precipitation regionally. Meanwhile, the mean absolute error (MAE), the root mean square error (RMSE), the accuracy (AC) and the Pearson correlation coefficient (R) were compared among the interpolation results in order to quantify the effects of different interpolation methods on spatial variation of the annual average precipitation. The results showed that the Moran's I index was 0.67 for the 57 years annual average precipitation in the Loess Plateau region. Meteorological stations exhibited strong spatial correlation. The validation results of the 63 training stations and 22 test stations indicated that there were significant correlations between the training and test values among different interpolation methods. However, the RMSE (IDW = 51.49, RBF = 43.79) and MAE (IDW = 38.98, RBF = 34.61) of the IDW and the RBF showed higher values than the OK. In addition, the comparison of the four semi-variagram models (Circular, Spherical, Exponential and Gaussian) for the OK indicated that the circular model had the lowest MAE (32.34) and the highest accuracy (0.976), while the MAE of the exponential model was the highest (33.24). In conclusion, comparing the validation between the training data and test results of the different spatial interpolation methods, the circular model of the OK method was the best one for obtaining accurate spatial interpolation of annual average precipitation in the Loess Plateau region.

Transpiration is one of the major processes of water consumption. It is significant for nutrients transportation, plant development, drought stress alleviation and micro-climate amelioration. In this study, the artificially planted Chinese pine (Pinus tabuliformis) was selected as an example to explore its transpiration characteristics, water-use strategies and the adaptability of the living environment in a typical loess hilly area of China. The results showed that: the sap flow rates of Chinese pine varied obviously in different seasons. The minimum sap flow rate occurred in April, followed by October, September and August, which was 0.024, 0.057, 0.062 and 0.071 mL x (cm2 x min)(-1), respectively. The rule of the diurnal variation of sap flow rate was regular, higher in daytime than at night. The flow rate was low during nighttime, but not zero. In rainfall events, the proportion of sap flow during nighttime was significantly increased, which was 3.9 times of that on sunny days, with 31.8% decrease in daytime. Chinese pine had great adaptability to unexpected climates. The variation trend of flow rate in the clod was similar to that on rainy days. The sap flow velocity was in great relevance with meteorological factors, with a declining order of solar radiation, vapor pressure deficit, relative humidity, and atmospheric temperature.

The clinical efficacy and safety of auricular acupuncture (AA) for treatment of primary insomnia was evaluated. After a comprehensive retrieval in domestic and foreign databases, literatures were strictly screened and Revman 5.2 software was applied to perform a Meta-analysis on eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs). The evidence quality was assessed with GRADE profiler 3.6 software. As a result, 8 articles were included involving 894 patients. Compared among AA and sham AA, placebo AA, blank control, there was significant difference in Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) [WMD = -3.48, 95% CI (-3.96, -3.00)], sleep latency LWMD = -10.14, 95% CI (-17.16, -3.12)] and sleep awakening times [WMD = -9.98, 95% CI (-1.10,-0.48)]. Compared between AA and western medication, there was significant difference in PSQI [WMD = -3.62, 95% CI (-4.59, -2.65)]. The evidence quality was moderate in AA vs. sham AA, placebo AA or blank control, while that of the rest was extremely low. No reports of adverse events were described in all studies. In conclusion, for the treatment of primary insomnia, AA could effectively improve sleep quality, but due to the low evidence quality, cautious attitude should be taken on this conclusion, and clinical trials with large sample and high quality were needed in the further.