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Background and Aims Effects of elevated CO2 (E) within a generation on photosynthesis and stomatal features have been well documented in crops; however, long-term responses to gradually elevated CO2 (Eg) and abruptly elevated CO2 (Ea) over multiple generations remain scarce. Methods Japonica rice plants grown in open-top chambers were tested in the first generation (F1) under Ea and in the fifth generation (F5) under Eg and Ea, as follows: Ea in F1: ambient CO2 (A) + 200 μmol mol−1; Eg in F5: an increase of A + 40 μmol mol−1 year−1 until A + 200 μmol mol−1 from 2016 to 2020; Ea in F5: A + 200 μmol mol−1 from 2016 to 2020. For multigenerational tests, the harvested seeds were grown continuously in the following year in the respective CO2 environments. Key Results The responses to Ea in F1 were consistent with the previous consensus, such as the occurrence of photosynthetic acclimation, stimulation of photosynthesis, and downregulation of photosynthetic physiological parameters and stomatal area. In contrast, multigenerational exposure to both Eg and Ea did not induce photosynthetic acclimation, but stimulated greater photosynthesis and had little effect on the photosynthetic physiology and stomatal traits. This suggests that E retained intergenerational effects on photosynthesis and stomatal features and that there were no multigenerational differences in the effects of Eg and Ea. Conclusions The present study demonstrated that projecting future changes induced by E based on the physiological responses of contemporary plants could be misleading. Thus, responses of plants to large and rapid environmental changes within a generation cannot predict the long-term response of plants to natural environmental changes over multiple generations, especially in annual herbs with short life cycles.

Pectin with various esterification degrees showed differential effects on the metabolic disorder and inflammation induced by a long-term high-fat diet and low-dose antibiotic exposure, which were possibly related to the enrichment of Lactobacillus.

Colitis is generally affected by multiple factors, including the dysbiosis of intestinal microbiota, and may affect organs outside colon through circulation. Pectin, which is an edible polysaccharide widely present in plant cell walls, has been proved in our previous study to possess preventive potentials against acute ulcerative colitis, especially when the esterification degree is less than 50%. This study aimed to clarify the underlying correlations of gut microbiome and serum metabolites with the preventive effects of pectin with different esterification degrees (H121, L13, and L102) against colitis in mice. MiSeq sequencing data showed that symbiotic bacteria especially beneficial Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium were enriched by pectin intake. Fiber consumers such as Prevotella and Bacteroides actively responded to L13 pectin, particularly under high dosage (L13-H). In addition, the abnormal abundance of Akkermansia associated with colitis would not appear in mice who had been provided with any of the three pectins before dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) treatment. Furthermore, pre-treatment of H121 and L13 pectins could improve the serum glycerophospholipids such as phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE). In contrast, lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) contributing to the glycerophospholipid metabolism pathway was enriched only in the L13-H group, which has been previously proved to be associated with the epithelial barrier and intestinal homeostasis. Positive relationships between the glycerophospholipids and the dominant candidates of intestinal bacteria such as Lactobacillus indicated the joint actions of intestinal microbes and serum metabolites as well as the underlying crosstalks among gut microbiome. Therefore, the results of this research suggested that the preventive effects of low-esterified pectin on DSS-induced colitis were likely to be initiated by the enrichment of probiotics in the gut and serum glycerophospholipids. KEY POINTS: • L13 pectin remarkably improved the diversity of the gut microbiome in healthy mice. • Probiotics were enriched and abnormal Akkermansia was restored by L13 and L102 pectins. • Glycerophospholipid metabolism was significantly enriched by H121 and L13 pectins.

BackgroundWhile the contralateral seventh cervical nerve (CC7) cross transfer was designed to reconstruct paralyzed arm function after stroke, improvement in language function was found in patients combined with aphasia.ObjectiveTo evaluate the effect of improvement in language function after CC7 cross transfer in stroke patients with chronic aphasia and explore its potential mechanism.MethodsIn a prospective observative cohort, patients diagnosed with hemiplegia combined with aphasia were included. The language function was evaluated through the changes of Aphasia Quotient evaluated by Western Aphasia Battery (WAB-AQ) as well as its four subtests from baseline to 1 week and 6 months after the surgery. Patients also received oral agility test by Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination (BDAE-OA). Resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) was scanned before and over 6 months after the surgery to explore the potential central mechanism in language improvements.ResultsThe average increase of WAB-AQ was 8.08 points from baseline to 1 week post-operatively (PConclusionsImmediate and stable improvement in language function was detected after CC7 cross transfer in hemiplegic patients combined with aphasia, which may be realized through enhanced function of language network in the bilateral hemisphere.

BackgroundPost-stroke aphasia is a common but intractable sequela which still needs new and more effective treatments. Evidence from follow-ups after contralateral seventh cervical nerve transfer surgery indicated that nerve transection leads to immediate language improvements in patients with right post-stroke aphasia.ObjectiveThrough a prospective cohort design, this study aims to prove that C7 neurotomy at the intervertebral foramen (NC7) combined with a 3-week intensive speech and language therapy (iSLT) can improve the language function in post-stroke aphasia patients.MethodsIn this study, patients aged over 18 years old and had been diagnosed with post-stroke aphasia for 1 year or longer were included. Primary outcomes were the change in the ability to retrieve personally relevant words in Boston Naming Test (BNT) with follow-up assessment after three-weeks’ iSLT post-operatively. As well as several secondary outcome measures including the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB), daily communication abilities (measured by the Communication Activities of Daily Living Third Edition [CADL-3]) and Fugl-Meyer of upper limb part (UEFM).ResultsThe average increase of BNT score was 11.2 points from baseline to 3 weeks post-operatively (P=0.001, 95%CI: 8.1-14.1). The WAB and CADL-3 assessment showed 9.4, 10.4 points increasing in average (PConclusionsNC7 plus iSLT significantly improved the language function in patients with post-stroke aphasia, and did not significantly affect the motor function of the right limb. The mechanism of this surgery needs to be further explored.

The prognostic implications and physiological effect of LINC02875 are unknown in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We sought to examine the prognostic value of LINC02875 in HCC and assessed its role in HCC cellular function. LINC02875 expression was evaluated by RT-qPCR in HCC specimens and cell lines. LINC02875 expression was subjected to assess the correlation with clinical parameters by Chi-squared test and overall survival by Kaplan – Meier curve and Cox regression analysis. The effects of LINC02875 on the biological characteristics of HCC cells were studied by MTS and Transwell assay. LINC02875 was high-expressed in HCC, and this was associated with unfavorable clinical features and poor prognosis of HCC, especially HBV-related HCC. Knockdown of LINC02875 inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of HCC cells. miR-485–5p was a downstream microRNA of LINC02875. LINC02875 affects the prognosis of HCC patients, especially HBV-related ones. LINC02875 represents a suitable therapeutic target for HCC.

Photosynthetic acclimation to prolonged elevated CO

Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) is a latent and malignant tumor with a dismal prognosis. This study was to evaluate the clinical relevance and therapeutic potential of SOX9-AS1 expression in ICC.The cancerous tissues and adjacent normal tissues were collected from ICC patients. Blood samples from ICC, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) group, the extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ECC) group and the healthy controls were collected. SOX9-AS1 levels were evaluated in tissues (versus normal tissues) and plasma samples (versus plasma from HCC and ECC by quantitative real-time RT-PCR. The diagnostic value of SOX9-AS1 for ICC was estimated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The relevancy between SOX9-AS1 expression and overall survival or recurrence-free survival was assessed by Kaplan-Meier curves multivariate analyses. The overexpression and knockdown of SOX9-AS1 on cell behavior were assessed by CCK-8 and transwell assay.SOX9-AS1 levels were increased in ICC, both in the tissues and the cell lines. The upregulation of SOX9-AS1 showed a highly discriminative profile, distinguishing ICC patients from healthy subjects or HCC or ECC patients. Upregulation of SOX9-AS1 was related to shorter overall survival and recurrence-free survival. Muli-variate analysis revealed that SOX9-AS1 expression was an independent prognostic purpose factor of worst overall survival and recurrence-free survival.SOX9-AS1 drives tumor growth and metastasis in ICC. SOX9-AS1 may be applied as a new diagnostic and prognostic purposed marker, in addition to a promising therapeutic target in ICC.

In our previous study, two crude polysaccharides from red kidney bean and small black soybean (RK, SB) have shown the alleviative effect on type 2 diabetic mice. Meanwhile, hepatic dysfunction usually accompanied with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and closely related to glucose and lipid homeostasis. Therefore, this time we further investigated the protective effect on hepatic dysfunction of RK and SB. Results found that both crude polysaccharides had the protective effects. In addition, investigation on purified polysaccharides identified that the polysaccharide was the biofunctional component basis in crude RK and SB. Subsequently, further research investigated the regulating mechanism of two pure polysaccharides (RKPH and SBPH) on hepatic metabolism and lipid metabolism. The results showed the improved different metabolites of phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) by RKPH and SBPH to affect glycerophospholipid metabolism pathway might be involved in the improvement of the glucose, lipids homeostasis and liver function in T2DM.

Purpose This study aimed to determine the outcome of pancreatic metastatic renal cell carcinoma (PmRCC) after treatment and share the relevent results. Methods In total, 13 patients with PmRCC were diagnosed and treated in our institution from December 2013 to October 2017. We retrospectively reviewed the records and analyzed the patient demographics, perioperative outcomes, and overall survival. Simultaneously, our experience including treatment and misdiagnosis was shared. Results The median time between nephrectomy and reoperation for pancreatic recurrence was 11 years (range 1–20 years). Four patients had multiple tumors and nine patients had solitary tumor. Five patients accepted distal pancreatectomy, and five patients underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy. One patient underwent total pancreatectomy, one patient underwent duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection plus distal pancreatectomy, and one patient underwent exploratory laparotomy and gastrointestinal bypass due to widespread metastasis with clear obstructive symptoms. The misdiagnosis rate of preoperative diagnosis at our center was 69.2% (9/13). The median follow-up duration was 26 months (range 7–53 months, until June 2018). By the end of follow-up, 12 patients were alive and one patient died of gastrointestinal bleeding within 1 month after surgery. Conclusions PmRCCs are uncommon, but pancreatic metastasectomy has a relatively good prognosis and may, therefore, be a good therapeutic choice for patients with PmRCCs. Because PmRCC occurs long after the primary tumor resection, long-term follow-up is necessary. Besides, detailed medical history and specific manifestation in imaging features could contribute to avoiding misdiagnosis.

NuScale is a small nuclear reactor that relies on natural circulation. Its modular production and inherent safety can not only be used to generate electricity in some remote areas, but also provide energy for water desalination and regional heating. However, the dynamic characteristics of the NuScale are different from those of the traditional PWRs because of its passive characteristic. Therefore, it is necessary to study and analyze the system dynamic characteristics of NuScale. The NuScale PWR model is established based on MATLAB&Simulink. It includes point-reactor kinetics model with six groups delayed neutrons, coolant system and steam generator system. The model is established based on the conservation equations of mass, energy and momentum. And the correctness of the model is verified by the comparison between the steady-state calculation results and the design parameters. Transient calculation results are verified by mechanism analysis. To evaluate the dynamic characteristics of NuScale, the sine function changes with different frequencies in reactor reactivity and feedwater mass flow rate are introduced. The amplitude and phase responses of reactor power, secondary loop steam pressure, secondary loop mass flow rate, secondary loop steam temperature, and coolant average temperature are recorded. Then the Bode plot can be drawn with amplitude and phase responses in different frequencies. To evaluate the NuScale dynamic characteristics, frequency domain analysis is performed.

The response of crop photosystem activity to a certain level of [CO2] elevation have been widely concerned. However, long-term effects of elevated [CO2] over multi-generations of crops received little attention. Using open-top chambers, we set up two treatments of elevated [CO2] from 2016 to 2019 in rice (Oryza sativa) growing seasons. One treatment was stepwise increase (SI) of +40 µmol mol-1 per season, the other was constant increase (CI) of +200 µmol mol-1. Rice seeds harvested in each [CO2] environment was planted successively. Seeds from ambient [CO2] were also planted in SI and CI OTCs in next year to study the short-term effect. We measured the diurnal change in PSII functionality of leaf in 2019. Results showed that both SI and CI promoted PSII function. SI was more beneficial to improve efficiency of electron trapping and transporting in PSII and performance index of leaf. The maximal photochemical efficiency of PSII decreased linearly with increasing photosynthetic photon flux density throughout the day. Predawn efficiency decreased dramatically with the development of growth stages. Together, we found PSII efficiency benefit from multi-year [CO2] elevation, which could help to better understand the response of electron transport to elevated [CO2].

Non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) play an important role in yield formation. In this paper, the relationships of NSC accumulation and translocation with yield formation were investigated under elevated CO2 concentrations ([CO2]) and nitrogen (N) application rates. A japonica rice (Oryza sativa L.) cultivar, &ldquo, Nanjing 9108,&rdquo, was grown at three [CO2]&mdash, Ambient (T0), ambient + 160 &mu, mol&middot, mol&minus, 1 (T1), and ambient + 200 &mu, 1 (T2)&mdash, in open-top chambers (OTC), with three levels of N fertilizer application rates&mdash, 10 gN&middot, m&minus, 2 (N1), 20 gN&middot, 2 (N2), and 30 gN&middot, 2 (N3)&mdash, Which were set in OTCs using pot experiments. The results showed that the concentration of NSC (CNSC) and the total mass of NSC stored in stems (TMNSC) under T1 and T2 were higher than those in the T0 treatment, and the CNSC and TMNSC of N3 were lower than those of N1 and N2 at the heading stage. The CNSC and the TMNSC were significantly positively correlated with the stem biomass during the growth period and were notably negatively correlated with the N content in leaves (Nleaf) at the heading and filling stages. The seed setting rate was significantly positively related to the apparent transferred mass of NSC from stems to grains (ATMNSC) at the filling stage, while the relationship between yield and the ATMNSC was not statistically significant. Although there was no difference in the apparent contribution of transferred NSC to grain yield (ACNSC) between treatments, NSC stored in stems further accumulated obviously during the late filling stage, implying that the grain yield of &ldquo, Nanjing 9108&rdquo, was predominantly sink-limited. We concluded that elevated [CO2] improved the concentration of NSC at the rice heading stage. The interaction between elevated [CO2] and N fertilizer rates significantly influenced the concentration of NSC at the filling stage. Rice stems NSC reaccumulated at the late grain filling stage, which implies a restriction on NSC transference to grain.

A simple, rapid, and environmentally friendly approach was introduced to determine triazole fungicides in water samples by air-assisted ionic liquid dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction based on solidification of the aqueous phase using high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection. Ionic liquid was applied as the extraction solvent rather than a high-toxicity extraction solvent. The air-assisted dispersion method induced a trace amount of the ionic liquid to disperse as small droplets in the water sample, which significantly increased the contact area between the organic phase and the aqueous phase for the rapid transfer of target fungicides without using a dispersion solvent or auxiliary extraction devices. The solidification of the aqueous phase facilitated the collection of extraction solvent. The type of extraction solvent, the volume ratio of the extraction solvent to the water sample, the number of extraction cycles, the addition of NaCl, and pH values were evaluated. The recoveries were 72.65–100.13% with a relative standard deviation of 0.92% to 5.99%. The limits of quantification varied from 0.65 ng mL−1 to 1.83 ng mL−1. This approach can be used to determine fungicides in ground, river, and lake water samples.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a complicated endocrine metabolic disease, accompanied with oxidative stress injury and low-grade inflammation. The effects of polysaccharide extracted from Dendrobium officinale stem (DOP) on oxidative stress, inflammation and dysregulated metabolism in the liver of type 2 diabetic rats and its potential mechanism were evaluated in the study. Here, ultra performance liquid chromatography - quadrupole - time - of - flight (UPLC-Q-TOF) mass spectrometry-based lipidomics and metabolomics analysis were carried out to study the amelioration of DOP on the liver metabolism disorders of type 2 diabetic rats. Lipidomics analysis indicated that the disturbed degree of fatty acid, glycerolipid (diacylglycerol and triacylglycerol), and glycerophospholipid (phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine) metabolism were mitigated by the DOP treatment. Metabolomics analysis revealed that the DOP treatment balanced the metabolism of ceramide and bile acids, including deoxycholic acid, taurocholic acid, and cholic acid. In addition, the symptoms of oxidative stress, inflammation, and hepatic lipid accumulation of liver were ameliorated by DOP administration. The above results suggest that the study of functional ingredient application of DOP might be meaningful for the management of T2D.

The foliar photosynthetic acclimation to prolonged elevated CO2 has been studied in many ways, but the quantification of photosynthetic acclimation through the limitation of stomatal conductance (gs), mesophyll conductance (gm) and biochemical capacity (Vcamx) is scarce. To quantify photosynthetic acclimation under elevated CO2, a japonica rice cultivar ‘Nanjing 9108’ was grown at two CO2 levels—ambient CO2 (a[CO2]) and a[CO2] +200 μmol mol−1 (e[CO2]) using open top chamber facility. We measured the response of net photosynthetic rate (An) to CO2 at Rubisco (Cc) at jointing, flowering and filling stages based a biochemical C3‐photosynthesis model. Measurements at the same CO2 concentration showed that the An under e[CO2] was significantly lower than that under a[CO2] at three developmental stages, suggesting the occurrence of acclimation of photosynthesis. The photosynthetic acclimation is associated with the decrease in gm, gs and Vcmax, and gm mainly limits photosynthesis. The contribution of gm, gs and Vcamx limitation to photosynthetic acclimation averaged 65 %, 25 % and 10 % of the total reduction in An. Our findings demonstrate gm is the major driver of photosynthetic acclimation and highlight the role of gm under e[CO2] in rice.

Aims Rational design of protein scaffolds with specific biological functions/activities has attracted much attention over the past decades. In the present study, we systematically examine the trimer-of-hairpins (TOH) motif of human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) F protein, which plays a central role in viral membrane fusion and is a coiled-coil six-helix bundle formed by the antiparallel intermolecular interaction between three N-terminal heptad-repeat (HRN) helices and three C-terminal heptad-repeat (HRC) helices. Main methods A rational strategy that integrates dynamics simulation, thermodynamics calculation, fluorescence polarization and circular dichroism is proposed to design HRC-targeted α-helical hairpin traps based on the crystal template of HRN core. Key findings The designed hairpin traps possess a typical helix-turn-helix scaffold that can be stabilized by stapling a disulfide bridge across its helical arms, which are highly structured (helicity >60%) and can mimic the native spatial arrangement of HRN helices in TOH motif to trap the hotspot sites of HRC with effective affinity (Kd is up to 6.4 μM). Significance The designed α-helical hairpin traps can be used as lead entities for further developing TOH-disrupting agents to target RSV membrane fusion event and the proposed rational design strategy can be readily modified to apply for other type I viruses.

The major carbohydrate in pulse is starch. The structure and physicochemical properties of starches from adzuki bean (AS) and dolichos bean (DS) were systematically compared in this work. Results showed that the differences in morphology (oval to kidney), crystal type (CA-type) and sugar linkage between AS and DS were minor. However, AS had lower amylose content (26.64%) and larger granule size than DS (31.85%). AS showed higher relative crystallinity, ratio of 1047/1022 cm−1, single helix and double helix content (26.27, 0.95, 4.55 and 37.61%) than those of DS (24.08, 0.92, 4.76 and 27.49%, correspondingly), while AS may have loss of molecular order. Moreover, two kinds of anomalous linkages were detected by methylation analysis in AS and DS. These features contributed to higher swelling power, solubility, light transmittance and freeze-thaw stability of AS. Meanwhile, AS exhibited lower pasting and gelatinization temperatures, enthalpy and better pasting stability. The study indicated that amylose content, granular and crystalline structure of AS and DS may be responsible to their different properties. Hence, the study will improve the scientific basis on starches from adzuki bean and dolichos bean, and facilitate their utilization.

This paper investigates the power allocation scheme to maximize the sum-rate of a two-way full-duplex (FD) AF relay system under residual self-interference. The variance of self-interference is proportional to the λth power of transmitted power (λ denotes the self-interference level and 0 ≤ λ ≤ 1). The optimization problem under joint power constraint is proved to be quasi-concave and we convert it to a quasi-convex problem with its convenient derivation. The closed-form expressions of optimal power allocation factor are intractable with the exponent λ. Thus, we take two sub-optimal schemes into consideration in the sense of asymmetric and symmetric two-way structure. Bisection is introduced to allocate power when 0 < λ < 1. All the simulation results have demonstrated that the performance of proposed schemes outperforms the uniform power allocation scheme.