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Two acetyl chroman derivative, 1-(5,7-dihydroxy-2,2-dimethylchroman-8-yl)ethan-1-one (1) and 1-(5,7-dihydroxy-2,2-dimethylchroman-6-yl)ethan-1-one (2) were synthesized as intermediate products in the preparation of flavonoids. Their structures were characterized by NMR and IR and confirmed by high-resolution mass spectra and single crystal X-ray analysis. The inhibitory effects of the synthesized compounds on the growth of A549, HepG2, SW480, and MCF-7 cancer cell lines were evaluated by the CCK8 methods. Compound 1 showed cytotoxicity against HepG2, SW480, and MCF-7 cell lines with IC50 values of 12.85, 23.94, and 28.72 μM, respectively, and compound 2 showed cytotoxicity against HepG2 and MCF-7 cell lines with IC50 values of 24.78 and 23.87 μM, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction between emodin, frangulin-A (obtained from Ventilago leiocarpa Benth) with bovine serum albumin (BSA), and calf thymus DNA (ct-DNA) has been investigated. The fluorescence spectrum and molecular docking methods are used to investigate the interaction between emodin, frangulin-A, and BSA. The UV spectrum revealed interaction between emodin, frangulin-A, and ct-DNA. The fluorescence spectrum confirmed that the compounds of emodin–BSA and frangulin-A–BSA were formed showing fl uorescence quenching and a decrease of the maximum emission wavelength. The simulated molecular docking showed stable combinations of emodin–BSA and frangulin-A– BSA. Thus, molecular interactions mainly occur due to hydrophobic forces and hydrogen bonds. According to the UV spectrum, emodin and frangulin-A interacted with ct-DNA via electrostatic interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT It is a traditional that the fatigue crack growth behavior is sensitive to microstructure in threshold regime, while it is sensitive to R-ratio in Paris regime. Fatigue test is carried out for welded joints of a Q345 steel where the compact tension specimens with 3.8 and 12.5 mm thickness are used, and comparisons of fatigue crack growth behavior between base metal and a few different locations in the welded joint are considered in Paris regime. Welding residual stresses are removed by heat treatment to focus the study on the microstructural effect. It is shown that fatigue crack growth rate (FCGR) in the base metal is not sensitive to R-ratio, but the FCGR increases in the overheated zone, the fusion zone and the weld metal zone with R-ratio increasing. To the low R-ratio, FCGR in the three zones is smaller than that in the base metal, but they approximate the same with base metal under the high R-ratio. The mechanism of fatigue crack growth is analyzed through crack path in microstructures and SEM fractograph. The coarse-grained ferrite in the base metal is of benefit to relaxation of the average stress at the crack tip, and the fatigue crack growth predicts branching and deflection within above different locations in the welded joint. These tortuous crack paths with crack branching and deflection will promote crack closure as well as crack-tip stress shielding and then resulted in higher crack growth resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A numerical procedure, with an exact strain–displacement relationship of twisted and curved cylindrical panels having variable thickness derived by considering the Green strain tensor on general shell theory, is presented using the principle of virtual work and the Rayleigh–Ritz method with algebraic polynomials as in-plane and transverse displacement functions. The accuracy and applicability of the procedure are verified by comparing the present results with previous experimental and theoretical results for several panels. The effects of variation ratio of thickness in chordwise and lengthwise directions, twist, and curvature both in two directions aforementioned on vibrations of cylindrical panels are studied in detail, and typical vibration mode shapes are plotted to demonstrate the effects. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A genome scan to detect quantitative trait loci (QTL) affecting body weight in chickens was conducted on 238 F2 chickens from a reciprocal cross of Silky Fowl and White Plymouth Rock using 125 microsatellite markers covering 23 autosomes and the Z chromosome. Two types of QTL were considered: static QTL (SQ) and developmental QTL (DQ). Static QTL affected the body weight from hatch to time t, and DQ affected the body weight from time t−1 to time t. Six SQ and nine DQ were detected. Of these QTL, four reached a genome-wide significance of 5% or better, with SQ1 and DQ1 being the most significant QTL. Static QTL1 was on chromosome 1 between GCT0006 and MCW0106 and explained 4.05–9.80% of the phenotypic variation in body weights from 3 to 12 weeks of age. At 9, 10 and 11 weeks, the genome-wide significance thresholds of SQ1 were <1%. Developmental QTL1 was located on chromosome 1 between MCW0168 and GCT0006, and explained 2.75% of the phenotypic variation for body weight from week 7 to 8 with a genome-wide significance level <1%. The results suggest that body weight from hatch to time t and developmental growth from time t−1 to time t may involve two different sets of genes or gene actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The two most commonly used airway management techniques during general anaesthesia are supraglottic airway devices and tracheal tubes. In older patients undergoing elective non‐cardiothoracic surgery under general anaesthesia with positive pressure ventilation, we hypothesised that a composite measure of in‐hospital postoperative pulmonary complications would be less frequent when a supraglottic airway device was used compared with a tracheal tube. We studied patients aged ≥ 70 years in 17 clinical centres. Patients were allocated randomly to airway management with a supraglottic airway device or a tracheal tube. Between August 2016 and April 2020, 2900 patients were studied, of whom 2751 were included in the primary analysis (1387 with supraglottic airway device and 1364 with a tracheal tube). Pre‐operatively, 2431 (88.4%) patients were estimated to have a postoperative pulmonary complication risk index of 1–2. Postoperative pulmonary complications, mostly coughing, occurred in 270 of 1387 patients (19.5%) allocated to a supraglottic airway device and 342 of 1364 patients (25.1%) assigned to a tracheal tube (absolute difference −5.6% (95%CI −8.7 to −2.5), risk ratio 0.78 (95%CI 0.67–0.89); p < 0.001). Among otherwise healthy older patients undergoing elective surgery under general anaesthesia with intra‐operative positive pressure ventilation of their lungs, there were fewer postoperative pulmonary complications when the airway was managed with a supraglottic airway device compared with a tracheal tube. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sodium channel, voltage gated type VIII alpha polypeptide (SCN8A) gene encodes a voltage-gated neuronal sodium channel, which is widely distributed in neurons of the central and peripheral nervous systems. Association of mutant alleles of mouse SCN8A with neurological disorders including ataxia, tremor, paralysis and dystonia; Identification of the SCN8A as a candidate gene for inherited neurological disease not only in the mouse but also in the human; Investigation of the SCN8A using the polymorphic repeat of a minisatellite marker.

Study Question: Is pinopode measurement of any prognostic value?Summary Answer: Pinopode expression was significantly associated with the occurrence of pregnancy after frozen embryo transfer.What Is Known Already: Pinopodes are expressed in the endometrium during the implantation period. Pinopode measurement has been proposed as a marker of endometrial receptivity.Study Design, Size, Duration: A prospective cohort study was conducted at the Center of Reproductive Medicine, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, between 2014 and 2016, recruiting 172 women with infertility and undergoing frozen embryo transfer following IVF treatment. Among 172 participants, 46 women took part in the first study to quantify the daily changing pattern of pinopodes 3-7 days after the initiation of progesterone therapy in the hormone replacement cycles and the remaining 126 women with infertility participated in a study to examine the relationship between pinopode count and pregnancy outcome following frozen embryo transfer in hormone replacement cycles.Participants/materials, Setting, Methods: The mean age of participants was 29 years old. All participants received an artificial hormone replacement protocol capable of supporting successful implantation. Endometrial biopsies from 46 women were obtained 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 days after the initiation of progesterone therapy (P + 3, n = 6; P + 4, n = 6; P + 5, n = 11; P + 6, n = 13; P + 7, n = 10, respectively). Another 126 endometrial biopsies were obtained precisely 6 days after the initiation of progesterone. Scanning electron microscopy was used to capture the pinopode images, followed by use of the image J program to quantify the count and subtype of the pinopodes.Main Results and the Role Of Chance: We found that at least 60 microscopic fields were necessary to achieve a reproducible result. An intra-observer variability study showed good agreement between two measurements regarding the developing pinopode (DP) subtype (r = 0.95) and the fully developed pinopode (FDP) subtype (r = 0.86) but not for the regressing (RP) pinopode subtype (r = 0.39). The proportion of DP/total pinopodes (TP) declined rapidly form day P + 4 to a minimum on day P + 6. The percentage of FDP/TP increased rapidly from day P + 4 to reach a peak on day P + 6. On the other hand, the percentage of RP/TP reached a peak on day P + 7. Participants who conceived had a significantly (P = 0.011) higher percentage of FDP/TP on day P + 6 and significantly (P = 0.005) lower percentage of DP/TP on the same day compared with participants who did not become pregnant. Using a scoring system incorporating the percentages of DP and FDP, it was found that the pregnancy rate and the embryo implantation rate of women with a high pinopode score (82.3%; 63.0%) was significantly (P = 0.001; P = 0.046) higher than that of women with a low pinopode score (53.3%; 46.7%), respectively. There remains a possibility that the observations could have arisen due to chance.Limitations, Reasons For Caution: This study examined pinopode count and subtype in the HRT cycles, and it is uncertain whether the same observations apply to in natural cycles.Wider Implications Of the Fndings: Pinopodes have been questioned as a potential marker of endometrial receptivity for many years. Our results suggested that pinopode measurement may be of value in predicting pregnancy.Study Funding/competing Interest(s): The study was supported by the grants from the general project of medicine and health in Zhejiang Province of China (2015KYA142; 2018KY106), the Key Research and Development Program of Zhejiang Province (2017C03022) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81701514).The funders had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript. We have no competing interests to declare.Trial Registration Number: ISRCTN26300668. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neutrophil lymphocyte ratio ( NLR) and platelet lymphocyte ratio ( PLR) had been analysed in many kind of tumours, but its role of predict the oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma ( ESCC) patients' prognosis was not reach a consensus. Relationship between NLR, PLR and ESCC located in the middle or lower segment was evaluated. 317 patients with ESCC who underwent attempted curative oesophagectomy were analysed in this study. 157 and 98 patients had elevated NLR and PLR respectively ( NLR >3.3 and PLR >150). The median overall survival time ( OS) and disease-free survival ( DFS) was 34.1 and 19.2 months respectively. Multivariate analysis found PLR >150 ( P = 0.018, HR 1.426, 95% CI 1.063-1.912) accompanied by male, lymphatic metastases, tumour size more than 3 cm, tumour located at middle segment and poor differentiation were associated with significantly worse DFS. Meanwhile, gender, lymphatic metastases, tumour location and differentiation along with PLR >150 ( P = 0.003, HR 1.595, 95% CI 1.172-2.170) and NLR>3.3 ( P = 0.039, HR 1.367, 95% CI 1.015-1.840) were all independent prognostic factors for OS. Preoperative NLR and PLR might be used as predictive factors in patients with ESCC. For DFS, elevated PLR compared to NLR may have an advantage to indicate poor prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Body size traits reflect the condition of body development, are always mentioned when a breed is described, and are also targets in breeding programmes. In chicken, there are several reports focused on body size traits, such as shank length, tibia length or bone traits. However, no study was carried out on chest width (CW), chest depth (CD), body slope length (BL) and head width (HW) traits. In this study, genome scans were conducted on an F2 resource population (238 F2 individuals from 15 full-sib families derived from an intercross of the White Plymouth Rock with the Silkies Fowl) to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with CW, CD, BL and HW from 7 to 12 weeks of age. In total, 21 significant or suggestive QTL were found that affected four body size traits. Four QTL reached 1% genome-wide significance level: at 297 cM on GGA3 (associated with CW at 9 weeks of age), between 155 and 184 cM on GGA1 (affecting BL traits at 9 and 10 weeks of age), at 22 cM on GGA2 (related with BL traits at 12 weeks of age) and at 36 cM on GGA1 (for HW trait at 8 weeks of age). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shank length affects chicken leg health and longer shanks are a source of leg problems in heavy-bodied chickens. Identification of quantitative trait loci (QTL) affecting shank length traits may be of value to genetic improvement of these traits in chickens. A genome scan was conducted on 238 F2 chickens from a reciprocal cross between the Silky Fowl and the White Plymouth Rock breeds using 125 microsatellite markers to detect static and developmental QTL affecting weekly shank length and growth (from 1 to 12 weeks) in chickens. Static QTL affected shank length from birth to time t, while developmental QTL affected shank growth from time t−1 to time t. Seven static QTL on six chromosomes (GGA2, GGA3, GGA4, GGA7, GGA9 and GGA23) were detected at ages of 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9 and 12 weeks, and six developmental QTL on five chromosomes (GGA1, GGA2, GGA4, GGA5 and GGA23) were detected for five shank growth periods, weeks 2–3, 4–5, 5–6, 10–11 and 11–12. A static QTL and a developmental QTL ( SQSL1 and DQSL2) were identified at GGA2 (between ADL0190 and ADL0152). SQSL1 explained 2.87–5.30% of the phenotypic variation in shank length from 3 to 7 weeks. DQSL2 explained 2.70% of the phenotypic variance of shank growth between 2 and 3 weeks. Two static and two developmental QTL were involved chromosome 4 and chromosome 23. Two chromosomes (GGA7 and GGA9) had static QTL but no developmental QTL and another two chromosomes (GGA1 and GGA5) had developmental QTL but no static QTL. The results of this study show that shank length and shank growth at different developmental stages involve different QTL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two sequence variants of the aldolase C ( ALDOC) gene were discovered based on comparison of the sequences from an altiplano chicken breed (Tibetan chicken) and two lowland breeds (White Leghorn and ShouGuang). Gel-shift results indicated that one of these variants, L25375:c.310-258G>A, was able to bind hypoxia-induced factor-l (HIF1A), therefore, functioning as a hypoxia response element (HRE). The combined activity of the HRE and HIF1A could increase under the influence of a hypoxic stimulus. Hypoxia leads to increased death rates of chicken embryos, while the L25375:c.310-258G>A described herein is prevalent in healthy embryos grown under hypoxic conditions. Fluorescence quantitative real-time PCR results revealed that HIF1A upregulated the transcript level of the glycolytic enzyme ALDOC in the brain and skeletal muscle of animals subjected to hypoxia. Thus, a large amount of ATP is produced by increased glycolysis, allowing the organism to meet energy metabolism demands. As such, we believe this sequence variant is an adaptation to external anoxic environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we show an obvious evidence of nondestructive Raman spectra for the structural transition, i.e., the existence of a charge density wave (CDW) in monolayer 2H-TaS2, which can exhibit a much higher transition temperature than bulk and results in additional vibrational modes, indicating strong interactions with light. Furthermore, we reveal that the degenerate breath and wiggle modes of 2H-TaS2 originated from the periodic lattice distortion can be probed using the optical methods. Since recently several light-tunable devices have been proposed based on the CDW phase transition of 1 T-TaS2, our study and in particular, the theoretical results will be very helpful for understanding and designing electronic devices based on the CDW of 2H-TaS2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genome scans were conducted on an F2 resource population derived from intercross of the White Plymouth Rock with the Silkies Fowl to detect QTL affecting chicken body composition traits. The population was genotyped with 129 microsatellite markers and phenotyped for 12 body composition traits on 238 F2 individuals from 15 full-sib families. In total, 21 genome-wide QTL were found to be responsible for 11 traits, including two newly studied traits of proventriculus weight and shank girth. Three QTL were genome-wide significant: at 499 cm on GGA1 (explained 3.6% of phenotypic variance, P < 0.01) and 51 cm on GGA5 (explained 3.3% of phenotypic variance, P < 0.05) for the shank & claw weight and 502 cm on GGA1 (explained 1.4% of phenotypic variance, P < 0.05) for wing weight. The QTL on GGA1 seemed to have pleiotropic effects, also affecting gizzard weight at 490 cm, shank girth at 489 cm and intestine length at 481 cm. It is suggested that further efforts be made to understand the possible pleiotropic effects of the QTL on GGA1 and that on GGA5 for two shank-related traits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses Nanog mapping in chromosome 5 in swine. Homeoprotein Nanog is a transcription factor expressed specifically in pluripotent cells, and it can maintain self-renewal of embryonic stem (ES) cells even when they lack LIF/Stat 3. The Nanog-deficient ES cells cannot self-renew and differentiate into extraembryonic endoderm lineage, inner cell mass cells that lack Nanog failed to produce epiblast and only generated parietal endoderm-like cells. Thus, Nanog is an important factor for maintaining the pluripotency of pluripotent cells. Authors conclude that they had identified the pig orthologue of the human Nanog gene on the basis of DNA sequence similarity and homologous map locations in human and pig.