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Molecular hydrogen (H2) is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas which displays non-toxic features at high concentrations. H2 can alleviate oxidative damage, reduce inflammatory reactions and inhibit apoptosis cascades, thereby inducing protective and repairing effects on cells. H2 can be transported into the body in the form of H2 gas, hydrogen-rich water (HRW), hydrogen-rich saline (HRS) or H2 produced by intestinal bacteria. Accumulating evidence suggest that H2 is protective against multiple ophthalmic diseases, including cataracts, dry eye disease, diabetic retinopathy (DR) and other fields. In particular, H2 has been tested in the treatment of dry eye disease and corneal endothelial injury in clinical practice. This medical gas has brought hope to patients suffering from blindness. Although H2 has demonstrated promising therapeutic potentials and broad application prospects, further large-scale studies involving more patients are still needed to determine its optimal application mode and dosage. In this paper, we have reviewed the basic characteristics of H2, and its therapeutic effects in ophthalmic diseases. We also focus on the latest progress in the administration approaches and mechanisms underlying these benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polysaccharides present in grapes interact with wine sensory-active compounds (polyphenols and volatile compounds) via different mechanisms and can affect wine organoleptic qualities such as astringency, color and aroma. Studies on the role that grape polysaccharides play in wines are reviewed in this paper. First, the composition of grape polysaccharides and their changes during grape ripening, winemaking and aging are introduced. Second, different interaction mechanisms of grape polysaccharides and wine sensory-active compounds (flavanols, anthocyanins and volatiles) are introduced, and the possible effects on wine astringency, color and aroma caused by these interactions are illustrated. Finally, the control of the grape polysaccharide content in practice is discussed, including classical winemaking methods (applying different maceration enzymes, temperature control, co-fermentation, blending), modern vinification technologies (pulsed electric field, ultrasound treatment), and the development of new grape polysaccharide products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The g -restricted edge connectivity is an important measurement to assess the reliability of networks. The g -restricted edge connectivity of a connected graph G is the minimum size of a set of edges in G , if it exists, whose deletion separates G and leaves every vertex in the remaining components with at least g neighbors. The k -ary n -cube is an extension of the hypercube network and has many desirable properties. It has been used to build the architecture of the Supercomputer Fugaku. This paper establishes that for g ≤ n , the g -restricted edge connectivity of 3-ary n -cubes is 3 ⌊ g / 2 ⌋ (1 + (g mod 2)) (2 n − g) , and the g -restricted edge connectivity of k -ary n -cubes with k ≥ 4 is 2 g (2 n − g). These results imply that in Q n 3 with at most 3 ⌊ g / 2 ⌋ (1 + (g mod 2)) (2 n − g) − 1 faulty edges, or Q n k (k ≥ 4) with at most 2 g (2 n − g) − 1 faulty edges, if each vertex is incident with at least g fault-free edges, then the remaining network is connected. • We study a generalized edge reliability of k -ary n -cubes. • We concentrate on an edge fault-tolerant ability, the g -restricted edge connectivity λ g of the k -ary n -cube Q n k. • For g ≤ n and k ≥ 3 , we determine the values of λ g (Q n k). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Antibiotic resistance is the main cause of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) treatment failure. This study aimed to explore the characteristics of antibiotic resistance of H. pylori isolates in Beijing in the last 8 years and to estimate the impact of previous eradication failure on resistance patterns. Materials and methods: This retrospective study included data from a single center in Beijing from 2013 to 2020. Antibiotic susceptibility of 365 clinical H. pylori isolates was tested for amoxicillin, clarithromycin, metronidazole, levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, and tetracycline. The characteristics of the included patients and their previous eradication history were collected. Primary and secondary resistance rates of H. pylori to the six antibiotics and the impact of previous eradication failure on antibiotic resistance patterns were analyzed. Results: The overall primary resistance rates of amoxicillin, clarithromycin, metronidazole, levofloxacin, moxifloxacin, and tetracycline were 0.7%, 55.2%, 68.0%, 49.7%, 64.5%, and 0%, with no significant increase during the observed period; while the secondary resistance rates were 3.2%, 96.7%, 90.7%, 93.1%, 80.0%, and 0%, respectively. The secondary resistance rate of clarithromycin (p <.001), metronidazole (p =.001), and levofloxacin (p <.001) significantly increased to 100% as the number of previous eradication therapies increased and exhibited a linear association. For strains naive to eradication, only 6.8% were susceptible to all the antibiotics, while 32.4% were single resistant, and 60.8% dual or multiple resistant. Clarithromycin+metronidazole+fluoroquinolone multiple resistance was the predominant pattern (0 course: 21.6%, 1 course: 37.5%, 2 courses: 56.1%, ≥3 courses: 71.1%; p <.001) for patients with treatment failure. The prevalence of dual or multiple‐resistance patterns increased significantly as the number of previous therapies increased. Conclusions: The prevalence of primary and secondary resistance rates of clarithromycin, metronidazole, moxifloxacin, and levofloxacin were high in Beijing. Multiple‐resistance patterns were common after treatment failure. Resistance rates of amoxicillin and tetracycline remained low and stable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ageing retina is prone to ferroptosis due to the iron accumulation and impaired efficiency of intracellular antioxidant defense system. Ferroptosis acts as a cell death modality that is characterized by the iron-dependent accumulation of lipid peroxidation. Ferroptosis is distinctively different from other types of regulated cell death (RCD) at the morphological, biochemical, and genetic levels. Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a common microvascular complication of diabetes. Its prevalence and severity increase progressively with age. Recent reports have shown that ferroptosis is implicated in the pathophysiology of DR. Under hyperglycemia condition, the endothelial cell and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cell will undergo ferroptosis, which contributes to the increased vascular permeability and the disrupted blood retinal barrier (BRB). The underlying etiology of DR can be attributed to the impaired BRB integrity and subsequent damages of the neurovascular units. In the absence of timely intervention, the compromised BRB can ultimately cause profound visual impairments. In particular, the ageing retina is vulnerable to ferroptosis, and hyperglycemia will accelerate the progression of this pathological process. In this article, we discuss the contributory role of ferroptosis in DR pathogenesis, and summarize recent therapeutic trials that targeting the ferroptosis. Further study on the ferroptosis mediated damage would enrich our knowledge of DR pathology, and promote the development of clinical treatment for this degenerative retinopathy. • Ageing retina is prone to ferroptosis due to iron accumulation and impaired antioxidant defense system. • Diabetic retinopathy (DR) acts as a common microvascular complication of diabetes with its prevalence increases with age. • The paper reviews the contributor role of ferroptosis in DR, and summarizes therapeutic trials that targeting ferroptosis. • Exploration of ferroptosis will enrich our knowledge of DR pathogenesis and promote the development of clinical treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers often measure the flight initiation distance (FID) of a selected individual to represent the FID of the whole groups which may vary with their flight order (the sequence to flee) and their spatial position within a group. In this study, we examined FID of all individuals in small bird flocks in urban environments when approached by an investigator. We found that individuals' FID did not vary with their flight orders within these flocks. Moreover, the FID of the nearest individual, often used as a proxy for the entire flock, did not differ from the average FID of all flock members. This suggests that the conventional method of measuring the nearest individual's FID to represent is a valid approximation for representing the behaviour of the entire flock in similar contexts. These results have important implications for understanding anti-predator strategies in group-living animals and can inform future studies in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key message: EgMADS21 regulates PUFA accumulation in oil palm. Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) is the most productive world oil crop, accounting for 36% of world plant oil production. However, the molecular mechanism of the transcriptional regulation of fatty acid accumulation and lipid synthesis in the mesocarp of oil palm by up- or downregulating the expression of genes involved in related pathways remains largely unknown. Here, an oil palm MADS-box gene, EgMADS21, was screened in a yeast one-hybrid assay using the EgDGAT2 promoter sequence as bait. EgMADS21 is preferentially expressed in early mesocarp developmental stages in oil palm fruit and presents a negative correlation with EgDGAT2 expression. The direct binding of EgMADS21 to the EgDGAT2 promoter was confirmed by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. Subsequently, transient expression of EgMADS21 in oil palm protoplasts revealed that EgMADS21 not only binds to the EgDGAT2 promoter but also negatively regulates the expression of EgDGAT2. Furthermore, EgMADS21 was stably overexpressed in transgenic oil palm embryoids by Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. In three independent transgenic lines, EgDGAT2 expression was significantly suppressed by the expression of EgMADS21. The content of linoleic acid (C18:2) in the three transgenic embryoids was significantly decreased, while that of oleic acid (C18:1) was significantly increased. Combined with the substrate preference of EgDGAT2 identified in previous research, the results demonstrate the molecular mechanism by which EgMADS21 regulates EgDGAT2 expression and ultimately affects fatty acid accumulation in the mesocarp of oil palm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand effects of using oak barrels on the astringency, bitterness and color of dry red wines, phenolic reactions in wines before and after barrel aging are reviewed in this paper, which has been divided into three sections. The first section includes an introduction to chemical reactivities of grape-derived phenolic compounds, a summary of the phenolic reactions that occur in dry red wines before barrel aging, and a discussion of the effects of these reactions on wine astringency, bitterness and color. The second section introduces barrel types that determine the oak barrel constituents in wines (primarily oak aldehydes and ellagitannins) and presents reactions between the oak constituents and grape-derived phenolic compounds that may modulate wine astringency, bitterness and color. The final section illustrates the chemical differences between basic oxidation and over-oxidation in wines, discusses oxygen consumption kinetics in wines during barrel aging by comparing different oxygen consumption kinetics observed previously by others, and speculates on the possible preliminary phenolic reactions that occur in dry red wines during oak barrel aging that soften tannins and stabilize pigments via basic oxidation. Additionally, sulfur dioxide (SO2) addition during barrel aging and suitability of adopting oak barrels for aging wines are briefly discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A novel method of combinatorics-based chemical characterization was proposed. • A total of 131 compounds were characterized from Marsdenia tenacissima. • PCA and OPLS-DA were applied to compare different parts of Marsdenia tenacissima. • Tenacissoside H was discovered as a differential component between stems and roots. • The DPPH-scavenging activity and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity were compared. Marsdenia tenacissima is a traditional Chinese medicinal plant used for treating cancer, and its main medicinal part is the stem. Considering the resource shortage of M. tenacissima , it is of great significance to improve its utilization efficiency. Steroids and caffeoylquinic acids, the two main components of M. tenacissima , are composed of several basic structures. Based on this rule, a novel strategy of combinatorics-based chemical characterization was proposed to analyze the constituents of roots, stems and leaves of M. tenacissima. Combinatorics was used to generate a compound library for structure alignment, which has the advantages of wide coverage and high specificity. Steroids are composed of four basic parts: core skeleton (C), substituent at position 11 (A), substituent at position 12 (B) and sugar moiety (S). Based on combinatorics, a compound library consisting of 1080 steroids was generated. Diagnostic neutral loss has been used to effectively predict the substituents at position 11 and 12 of steroids, including acetyl, 2-methylpropionyl, tigloyl, 2-methylbutyryl and benzoyl. As a result, 131, 131 and 99 components were detected from the roots, stems and leaves of M. tenacissima , respectively. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to analyze the differences of roots, stems and leaves, and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) was further applied to find differential components. Tenacissoside H, a critical indicator component for quality evaluation of the stem, has been proved to be a differential component between roots and stems. Notably, the relative content of tenacissoside H in the roots was significantly higher than that in the stems. The bioactivity comparison showed that roots, stems and leaves of M. tenacissima had similar scavenging activity on 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical. However, their α-glucosidase inhibitory activity was ranked as leaves > stems > roots. Therefore, besides stems, the other parts of M. tenacissima have potential medicinal value. This study not only helps to develop the resource of M. tenacissima , but also provides a paradigm for the research of other similar medicinal plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delivery of drugs to special locations of ocular lesions, while minimizing systemic and local toxic effects, is recognized as a critical challenge in the ophthalmic practice. The special anatomy and physiology barriers within the eyeball entail effective drug delivery systems. Emerging attempts in drug delivery has led to developments in ocular iontophoresis, which acts as a noninvasive technology to enhance drug penetration using a small electric current. This technique offers greater flexibility to deliver desired drug dose in a controlled and tolerable manner. In previous studies, this technique has been testified to deliver antibiotics, corticoid, proteins and other gene drugs into the eye with the potency of treating or alleviating diverse ophthalmological diseases including uveitis, cataract, retinoblastoma, herpes simplex and cytomegalovirus retinitis (CMVR), etc. In this review, we will introduce the recent developments in iontophoresis device. We also summarize the latest progress in coulomb controlled iontophoresis (CCI), hydrogel ionic circuit (HIC) and EyeGate II delivery system (EGDS), as well as overview the potential toxicity of iontophoresis. We will discuss these factors that affect the efficacy of iontophoresis experiments, and focus on the latest progress in its clinical application in the treatment of eye diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we will give a general introduction to the Ali CMB Polarization Telescope (AliCPT) project, which is a Sino–US joint project led by the Institute of High Energy Physics and involves many different institutes in China. It is the first ground-based Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) polarization experiment in China and an integral part of China's Gravitational-wave Program. The main scientific goal of the AliCPT project is to probe the primordial gravitational waves (PGWs) originating from the very early Universe. The AliCPT project includes two stages. The first stage, referred to as AliCPT-1, is to build a telescope in the Ali region of Tibet at an altitude of 5250 meters. Once completed, it will be the highest ground-based CMB observatory in the world and will open a new window for probing PGWs in the northern hemisphere. The AliCPT-1 telescope is designed to have about 7000 transition-edge sensor detectors at 95 GHz and 150 GHz. The second stage is to have a more sensitive telescope (AliCPT-2) with more than 20 000 detectors. Our simulations show that AliCPT will improve the current constraint on the tensor-to-scalar ratio r by one order of magnitude with three years' observation. Besides the PGWs, AliCPT will also enable a precise measurement of the CMB rotation angle and provide a precise test of the CPT symmetry. We show that three years' observation will improve the current limit by two orders of magnitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

P 3 O 10 5− intercalated Mg/Al hydrotalcite (LDH-P) was successfully prepared by impregnation-reconstruction, and its microstructure and surface chemical properties were characterized. It was found that P 3 O 10 5− anion has completely intercalated into the interlayer space of the LDH-P. And the LDH-P exhibited a higher dispersity and weaker hydrophobicity than the CO 3 2– intercalated Mg/Al hydrotalcite (LDH-C). The LDH-P was investigated as a potential flame retardant for polypropylene (PP) matrix, then the LDH-P and PP composite (PP/LDH-P) was characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) as well as the limited oxygen index (LOI), vertical burning UL94 and mechanical test, the results revealed that the introduction of LDH-P into PP not only increased the char residue, but also formed compact and folded morphology of char residue providing more effective protection for underlying materials against heat and oxygen compare with LDH-C. The morphological structures and component observed by digital photos, scanning electron micrograph (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) of fire residues demonstrated that P-C vibration between LDH-P and PP was generated by intercalating LDH-P with P 3 O 10 5− anion. Compared with the LDH-C, the LDH-P promoted the formation of a more continuous and compact char layer during the burning process. Thus, the LDH-P intercalating with P 3 O 10 5− anion enhanced the flame retardancy of PP matrix. Promising developments for use of LDH-P in flame retardant formulations were expected in future applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The grey wolf optimizer (GWO) is a novel bionics algorithm inspired by the social rank and prey-seeking behaviors of grey wolves. The GWO algorithm is easy to implement because of its basic concept, simple formula, and small number of parameters. This paper develops a GWO algorithm with a nonlinear convergence factor and an adaptive location updating strategy and applies this improved grey wolf optimizer (improved grey wolf optimizer, IGWO) algorithm to geophysical inversion problems using magnetotelluric (MT), DC resistivity and induced polarization (IP) methods. Numerical tests in MATLAB 2010b for the forward modeling data and the observed data show that the IGWO algorithm can find the global minimum and rarely sinks to the local minima. For further study, inverted results using the IGWO are contrasted with particle swarm optimization (PSO) and the simulated annealing (SA) algorithm. The outcomes of the comparison reveal that the IGWO and PSO similarly perform better in counterpoising exploration and exploitation with a given number of iterations than the SA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A sec-type protein secretion is an alternative approach to recombinant protein production, where protein expression and purification are simultaneously achieved. In this study, uricase (urate oxidase, EC 1.7.3.3) was fused with a sec-type Epr signal peptide to achieve the extra-cellular uricase production in Escherichia coli MG1655. In shake-flask experiments, the enzyme activity and the specific activity in the extra-cellular fraction reached 0.73 ± 0.05 U/mL and 3.17 ± 0.22 U/mg-protein, respectively. When a 3-L bioreactor was used, the extra-cellular fraction exhibited the enzyme activity of 0.74 ± 0.00 U/mL and the specific activity of 2.75 ± 0.35 U/mg-protein. It was estimated that 89 % and 72 % of total enzyme activity as produced were found in the extra-cellular fraction in the shake flask and the 3-L bioreactor, respectively. The uricase secretion in E. coli was further supported by SDS-PAGE. In contrast, no uricase activity was found when Bacillus subtilis 168 was used as the host. This study demonstrates the efficacy of protein secretion using the Epr signal peptide in E. coli MG1655. Finally, this study presents that acidic pH results from the acetate production could be detrimental to extra-cellular uricase production. [Display omitted] • Epr signal peptide from B. subtilis was used for the uricase secretion in E. coli. • A 3.17 ± 0.22 U/mg-protein (extra-cellular part) was achieved in a shake flask. • A 2.75 ± 0.35 U/mg-protein (extra-cellular part) was achieved in a 3-L bioreactor. • The secretion efficiency is 89 % and 72 % in a shake flask and a 3-L bioreactor. • SDS-PAGE shows a uricase purity that is > 80 % in the extra-cellular fraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: To develop a robust tool for Chinese commercial wines’ varietal, regional, and vintage authentication, phenolic compounds in 121 Chinese commercial dry red wines were detected and quantified by using high‐performance liquid chromatography triple‐quadrupole mass spectrometry (HPLC‐QqQ‐MS/MS), and differentiation abilities of principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS‐DA), and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS‐DA) were compared. Better than PCA and PLS‐DA, OPLS‐DA models used to differentiate wines according to their varieties (Cabernet Sauvignon or other varieties), regions (east or west Cabernet Sauvignon wines), and vintages (young or old Cabernet Sauvignon wines) were ideally established. The S‐plot provided in OPLS‐DA models showed the key phenolic compounds which were both statistically and biochemically significant in sample differentiation. Besides, the potential of the OPLS‐DA models in deeper sample differentiating of more detailed regional and vintage information of wines was proved optimistic. On the basis of our results, a promising theoretic design for wine authentication was further proposed for the first time, which might be helpful in practical authentication of more commercial wines. Practical Application: The phenolic data of 121 Chinese commercial dry red wines was processed with different statistical tools for varietal, regional, and vintage differentiation. A promising theoretical design was summarized, which might be helpful for wine authentication in practical situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theoretic conjecture and mathematical models used for classifying wines into different chromatic levels were examined, based on a comprehensive chromatic database of 237 dry red wines. Similar mathematical models were also built for 79 Chinese Cabernet Sauvignon dry red wines from different regions and vintages, which could be set as chromatic reference for other Chinese Cabernet Sauvignon dry red wines. The reliability of these models and relationships between different chromatic parameters were further validated by statistical tools. Such methodology can be adopted to build chromatic references for wines from different backgrounds, thus to classify wine color more extensively and objectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phenolic and chromatic characteristics of dry red wines made from native Chinese species (Vitis amurensisand its hybrids, andV. davidii) andV. viniferawere evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography/triple-quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry and spectrophotometer, respectively.V. amurensisand its hybrids wines had higher phenolic percentage of non-coumaroylated 3, 5-O-diglucosidic anthocyanins,V. davidiiwines had higher phenolic percentage of coumaroylated 3, 5-O-diglucosidic anthocyanins, kaempferol-3-O-glucoside, and quercetin-3-O-rhamnoside,V. viniferawines had higher phenolic percentage offlavan-3-ols and 3-O-monoglucosidic anthocyanins. Wines of native Chinese species had relatively higher blue % value and lower red % value. By the use of principal component analysis and Pearson correlation analysis, specific phenolic compounds could be recognized as phenolic fingerprints of different wines, which not only play an important role in wine differentiation, but also explain their chromatic differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Compositional/structural characteristics of wine polysaccharides are introduced. • Enological factors affect the wine polysaccharide composition are discussed. • Polysaccharides affect wine organoleptic qualities via different mechanisms. • Analytical procedures for further researching wine polysaccharides are summarized. Wine quality is closely related to various compounds including polysaccharides, a class of crucial macromolecules that affect its chemical and physical properties by influencing the colloidal state or interacting with other compounds via non-covalent bonds. Herein, the composition and structural characteristics of the major polysaccharides identified in wine and the factors influencing their contents are briefly described. An improved understanding of the molecular mechanisms of wine polysaccharides and their practical applications on wine stability and organoleptic qualities is thoroughly discussed. The effects of polysaccharides on wine quality are significantly correlated with their structure and composition as well as wine matrix composition. Thus, to better understand the chemical complexity of polysaccharides, relevant analytical methods are systematically summarized and highlighted, which may ultimately lead to the development of novel winery guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lensing effect of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) is a powerful tool for our study of the distribution of matter in the universe. The quadratic estimator (QE) method, which is widely used to reconstruct lensing potential, has been known to be suboptimal for the low noise level polarization data from next-generation CMB experiments. To improve the performance of the reconstruction, other methods, such as the maximum-likelihood estimator and machine-learning algorithms, have been developed. In this work, we present a deep convolutional neural network model named the Residual Dense Local Feature U-net (RDLFUnet) for reconstructing the CMB lensing convergence field. By simulating lensed CMB data with different noise levels to train and test network models, we find that for noise levels less than 5 μ K-arcmin, RDLFUnet can recover the input gravitational potential with a higher signal-to-noise ratio than the previous deep-learning and traditional QE methods at almost the entire observation scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

RATIONALE: To develop a reliable and accurate method for the identification of anthocyanins and their subsequent derivatives formed during red grape fermentation and wine maturation. METHODS: By using a Poroshell 120 EC-C18 column in a high-performance liquid chromatography/triple-quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/QqQ-MS/MS) system, combined with multiple reaction monitoring (MRM), it was possible to establish and validate a method for the determination of anthocyanin and a range of complex reaction products. A selected range of six 3-O-glucosidic anthocyanins were used as standards. A database was established from these results. Then various red wines were examined and quantified by this method. RESULTS: With the range of accuracy and precision being 86.97-111.39% and 0.09-4.32%, respectively, the HPLC/Qq-QMS/MS method was found to be a reliable method for anthocyanin detection. By using this HPLC/QqQ-MS/MS method combined with the inclusive database, accurate identification of 95 anthocyanin compounds of different families from various wine samples was systematically achieved in 29 min. CONCLUSIONS: By combining this analytical system with an inclusive database, it was possible to determine a wide range of anthocyanins and related complex derivatives for the first time. We consider that it should be possible to extend this method further to include more complex anthocyanins, and to other complex compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (AGP), which consists of two large subunits (AGP-L) and two small subunits (AGP-S), controls the rate-limiting step in the starch biosynthetic pathway. In this study, a full-length open reading frame (ORF) of AGP-L gene (named as Agp2) in wheat and a series of Agp2 gene sequences in wheat relatives were isolated. The coding region of Agp2 contained 15 exons and 14 introns including a full-length ORF of 1566 nucleotides, and the deduced protein contained 522 amino acids (57.8 kDa). Generally, the phylogenetic tree of Agp2 indicated that sequences from A- and D-genome donor species were most similar to each other and sequences from B-genome donor species contained more variation. Starch accumulation and Agp2 expression in wheat grains reached their peak at 21 and 15 days post anthesis (DPA), respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phenolic and chromatic characteristics of a special red ice wine made from a Vitis amurensis × V. vinifera hybrid cultivar Beibinghong were studied. Results from two different vintages (2013 and 2014) showed that during vinification, the phenolic acid content increased, while the level of flavonoids (flavonols, flavan-3-ols, and anthocyanins) reduced by a variable extent. The color intensity and red % decreased together with a decrease in anthocyanin content. This was accompanied by an increase in hue as well as yellow %. The final phenolic content was found to be between 119.54 and 180.93 mg/L, with anthocyanins as the predominant phenolic group (92.06%–93.03%), of which 3,5-O-diglucosidic anthocyanins made up 53.55%–79.04%. Phenolic acids were the primary non-anthocyanin phenolics at about 6.64%–7.5%. The phenolic contents and color parameters of Beibinghong dry red wine and several V. vinifera dry red wines of superior color quality were also used in an attempt to clarify the relationship between phenolics and color in the Beibinghong red ice wine. By using Pearson correlation analysis and principal component analysis (PCA), it was found that 3,5-O-diglucosidic anthocyanins and protocatechuic acid were the only characteristic phenolics that differentiated Beibinghong wines from the other selected red wines from more traditional varieties. They were also the main phenolics to be positively correlated with the hue and yellow % of the wine at the early stages leading into maturation. Their presence might, therefore, explain the relatively high hue and yellow % of Beibinghong ice wine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Searching for the signal of primordial gravitational waves in the B-modes (BB) power spectrum is one of the key scientific aims of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization experiments. However, this could be easily contaminated by several foreground issues, such as the interstellar dust grains and the galactic cyclotron electrons. In this paper we study another mechanism, the cosmic birefringence, which can be introduced by a CPT-violating interaction between CMB photons and an external scalar field. Such kind of interaction could give rise to the rotation of the linear polarization state of CMB photons, and consequently induce the CMB BB power spectrum, which could mimic the signal of primordial gravitational waves at large scales. With the recently released polarization data of BICEP2 and the joint analysis data of BICEP2/Keck Array and Planck, we perform a global fitting analysis on constraining the tensor-to-scalar ratio r by considering the polarization rotation angle [ α ( n ˆ ) ] which can be separated into a background isotropic part [ α ¯ ] and a small anisotropic part [ Δ α ( n ˆ ) ]. Since the data of BICEP2 and Keck Array experiments have already been corrected by using the “self-calibration” method, here we mainly focus on the effects from the anisotropies of CMB polarization rotation angle. We find that including Δ α ( n ˆ ) in the analysis could slightly weaken the constraints on the tensor-to-scalar ratio r , when using current CMB polarization measurements. We also simulate the mock CMB data with the BICEP3-like sensitivity. Very interestingly, we find that if the effects of the anisotropic polarization rotation angle could not be taken into account properly in the analysis, the constraints on r will be dramatically biased. This implies that we need to break the degeneracy between the anisotropies of the CMB polarization rotation angle and the CMB primordial tensor perturbations, in order to measure the signal of primordial gravitational waves accurately. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To solve the problem of wine color instability in western China, different additives (the maceration enzymes Vinozym G and Ex-color, yeasts VR5 and Red Star, and commercial tannins) were added during alcoholic fermentation of Syrah ( Vitis vinifera L.). The phenolic profile and color characteristics of wine were examined using high performance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry and CIELAB, respectively. The results showed that the combination of the enzyme Ex-color with the Red Star yeast eased the release of non-anthocyanins from grape berries into wine, whereas the use of enzyme Vinozym G and VR5 yeast enhanced the concentration of anthocyanins and achieved a higher red hue ( a* value) and a lower yellow hue ( b* value) in the wine. The addition of commercial tannins greatly promoted the level of gallic acid in the wine and led to a relatively higher concentration of anthocyanins. Partial least-squares regression analysis was used to find out the major phenolics, which were in close relation with color parameters; principal component analysis was used to evaluate the contribution of different winemaking techniques to wine color. The combination of these 2 analytic methods indicated that Vinozym G and VR5 yeast together with commercial tannins should be an appropriate combination to enhance the stability of wine color during alcohol fermentation, which was related to a significant increase in cyanidin-3- O-(6- O-acetyl)-glucoside, cyanidin-3- O-(6- O-coumaryl)-glucoside, trans-peonidin-3- O-(6- O-coumaryl)-glucoside, trans-malvidin-3- O-(6- O-coumaryl)-glucoside, and malvidin-3- O-(6- O-acetyl)-glucoside-pyruvic acid, all of which played an important role in stabilizing wine color. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate)/organo-modified Mg-Al layered double hydroxide (PHBV/m-LDH) nanocomposites and poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB)/m-LDH were synthesized and characterized as a new material for green material usages. The m-LDH was firstly prepared with oleate, magnesium nitrate hexahydrote and aluminum nitrate-9-hydrate by a novel one-step co-precipitation method to intercalate oleate into the interlayer of LDH. The m-LDH was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and a high interlayer spacing of 34.0 Å was obtained. To fabricate PHB/m-LDH and PHBV/m-LDH nanocomposites, the solution mixing process was investigated and shown to be an efficient method in this study. The structure, morphology and physical properties of PHB/m-LDH and PHBV/m-LDH nanocomposites were characterized using XRD, transmission electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and dynamic mechanical analysis. It has been shown that mechanical properties of PHB/m-LDH and PHBV/m-LDH nanocomposites have improved with the increasing m-LDH content up to tested 5 wt%. Finally, the biodegradability of PHB/m-LDH and PHBV/m-LDH nanocomposites is tested by using Caldimonas manganoxidans as a microbial catalyst. It has been shown that while the addition of m-LDH in each PHB-based nanocomposite enhances their mechanical properties, the addition of m-LDH up to 5% shows insignificant difference in terms of the biodegradability. Meanwhile, it is suggested that the PHB depolymerase of C. manganoxidans is dominated by the exo-type hydrolysis activity, where the degradation of PHB polymer starts from both ends of polymer chains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) and phosphoribulokinase (PrkA) were overexpressed individually and in combination in Escherichia coli under different fermentation conditions. While wild-type E. coli produced 0.731 mol of CO 2 per consumption of one mole of arabinose, engineered E. coli JB, containing both heterologous Rubisco and PrkA, produced only 0.621 mol of CO 2 per consumption of one mole of arabinose. This represents a 15% reduction in CO 2 emission and achieves 38% of theoretical CO 2 reduction. The CO 2 fixation rate of Rubisco-based engineered E. coli JB is 67 mg-CO 2 ·mole-arabinose −1 L −1 h −1 , which is comparable to the performance of microalgae and cyanobacteria. It has been found that overexpressing Rubisco dramatically elevates the bacteria growth and sugar consumptions in the presence of oxygen and L -arabinose. It has been also found that overexpressing PrkA could demolish the balance of ATP regeneration, yet can be recovered simply by controlling the pH at 7.0 ± 0.1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Batch, fed-batch, and continuous A–B–E fermentations were conducted and compared with pH controlled at 4.5, the optimal range for solvent production. While the batch mode provides the highest solvent yield, the continuous mode was preferred in terms of butanol yield and productivity. The highest butanol yield and productivity found in the continuous fermentation at dilution rate of 0.1h−1 were 0.21g-butanol/g-glucose and 0.81g/L/h, respectively. In the continuous and fed-batch fermentation, the time needed for passing acidogenesis to solventogenesis was an intrinsic hindrance to higher butanol productivity. Therefore, a low dilution rate is suggested for the continuous A–B–E fermentation, while the fed-batch mode is not suggested for solvent production. While 3:6:1 ratio of acetone, butanol, and ethanol is commonly observed from A–B–E batch fermentation by Clostridium acetobutylicum when the pH is uncontrolled, up to 94% of the produced solvent was butanol in the chemostat with pH controlled at 4.5. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Cannabis sativa Linn, known as industrial hemp, was utilized for biodiesel production in this study. Oil from hemp seed was converted to biodiesel through base-catalyzed transesterification. The conversion is greater than 99.5% while the product yield is 97%. Several ASTM tests for biodiesel quality were implemented on the biodiesel product, including acid number, sulfur content, flash point, kinematic viscosity, and free and total glycerin content. In addition, the biodiesel has a low cloud point (−5°C) and kinematic viscosity (3.48mm2/s). This may be attributed to the high content of poly-unsaturated fatty acid of hemp seed oil and its unique 3:1 ratio of linoleic to α-linolenic acid. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A novel tri-layer composite membrane consisting of the active layer polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS, Sylgard® 184) and dual support layers of high porosity polyethylene (PE) and high mechanical stiffness perforated metal was investigated for the separation of 1-butanol from aqueous solution by means of pervaporation. The experimental data show that total flux and separation factor are both increased by placing a layer of hydrophobic PE between the PDMS and the metal support. The enhancement is especially obvious at low temperatures. With the feed solution of 2% 1-butanol at 37°C, the PDMS/PE/Brass support composite membrane confers a total flux of 132g/h/m2 and a separation factor of 32. With the increase of the PDMS thickness, the separation factor increases as the total flux declines. It is suggested that while the water flux remains stable, the 1-butanol flux has linear relationship with respect to the feed concentration of 1-butanol. The overall mass transfer coefficient for butanol was determined to be 6.9E−7m/s using the resistance-in-series model. Using a semi-empirical Sherwood number correlation, the mass transfer coefficient of 1-butanol through the liquid side boundary layer was estimated to be 25.5E−7m/s. This is more than 3 times higher than the overall mass transfer coefficient, indicating that the membrane dominates the mass transfer of the pervaporation process. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Biocatalysis refers to the utilization of enzymes, either in purified form, or existed as part of crude cell lysate or intact cells, to catalyze single- or multi-step chemical reactions, converting synthetic molecules or natural metabolites into high-value products. Immobilization of enzymes shows superior effects on, for example, enzyme stability in reaction, enzyme reusability, and bioproducts separation [[14]]. The advantages of using of MOFs to entrap enzymes within their micropores, including minimal enzyme leaching, high enzyme loading, and activity preservation, are exploited by one-pot synthesis of the biocatalysts. Therefore, the information on the preparation of these composites using mild synthesis conditions, as well as their performance in trapping active enzymes are crucial for one-step enzyme immobilization applications using MOFs. [Extracted from the article]

Abstract: Twin-arginine translocation (Tat) pathway is capable of secreting fully folded proteins into the periplasm of Gram-negative bacteria and may thus be an ideal system for the expression of active cofactor-containing proteins. However, the applications of Tat system for such purpose have been plagued by low translocation efficiencies. In this study, we demonstrate that the coexpression of a soluble chaperone, TorD, in conjunction with the TorA signal peptide, the translocation efficiency of GFP can be enhanced by more than three-fold. The enhancement in translocation efficiency is believed to be a result of reduced proteolysis mediated by the binding of TorD toward the TorA signal peptide. We believe this approach can be further exploited for the expression and secretion of other heterologous proteins as well as traditional Tat substrate proteins. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Silica-based immobilized metal affinity chromatography adsorbents with various ligand densities were prepared for the purification and immobilization of poly(His)-tagged d-hydantoinase (DHTase). An adsorbent with a ligand density of 13.0 μmol Cu2+/g gel exhibiting the optimal selectivity and a capacity of 1.4 mg/g gel toward the poly(His)-tagged enzyme was identified. The adsorbent was used for the one-step purification of His-tagged enzymes from crude cell lysate with a purity above 90%. The silica-based affinity adsorbents are particularly well suited for industrial scale operations due to their robustness. A packed-bed bioreactor with the DHTase-loaded adsorbents was used for the continuous conversion of d,l-p-hydroxyphenylhydantoin (d,l-HPH) to N-carbamoyl-d-hydroxyphenylglycine, an intermediate for the production of d-hydroxylphenylglycine. Under optimal conditions, 60 °C and pH 8.0, a conversion of 60% was obtained at a residence time of 30 min. Upon extended operation, the catalytic activity of the biocatalysts declined significantly due to enzyme leakage and enzyme denaturation. The extent of enzyme leakage can be attenuated by crosslinking with glutaraldehyde. In this study, we successfully demonstrate that a packed-bed bioreactor containing silica-based IMAC adsorbents can be used for the direct purification and immobilization of poly(His)-tagged enzymes for biotransformation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Subtle perturbations in interlayer twist angles offer a novel investigational avenue for revealing intriguing optical characteristics within the domain of 2D materials. In this study, a homogeneous bilayer structure featuring precisely defined interlayer twist angles is meticulously engineered by stacking monolayer single‐crystal MoS2 in a controlled, layer‐by‐layer manner. Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) reveals an unexpected lattice reconstruction, particularly at twist angles of ≤ 2°, which induces the emergence of expansive rhombohedral‐stacked large triangular domains. Furthermore, a second‐harmonic generation (SHG) is utilized as a sensitive modality to demonstrate profound transformations in the local electron band structures. By combining the linear spectra with SHG, the change in the C‐exciton optical response in the band‐nesting region of the small‐angle twisted bilayer MoS2 before and after crossing a critical twist angle of 2° is discussed. The study shows that SHG can be used as a nondestructive method to characterize the lattice structure of small‐angle twisted bilayer samples. Furthermore, determining the potential relationship between the lattice reconstruction and the linear and nonlinear spectra further demonstrates the regulatory effect of the interlayer twist angle on the nonlinear optical effects of 2D materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new column layered MOF with (3,6)-connected nets, namely [Co(pysa)(H 2 O)] n (YAU-7), was synthesized by using Co(NO 3) 2 ·6H 2 O and organic ligand 2-(pyrid-4′-yl)-benzimidazole-5-carboxylic acid (H 2 pysa) as flexible linkers. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction evidences the 3D YAU-7 MOF with (3,6)-connected nodes, a binuclear cluster [Co 2 (COO) 2 ] structure and 1D tunnel feature. The weak interactions of π---π stacking enhances chemical stability of YAU-7 3D structure. Interestingly, the YAU-7 presents high chemical/thermodynamic stability, superior adsorption performance for CO 2 , CH 4 , C 2 H 2 and C 2 H 4 , and high IAST selectivities for mixed gas systems of C 2 H 2 /CO 2 , C 2 H 4 /CO 2 , and CH 4 /CO 2 (50/50). In contrast, YAU-7 exhibits higher uptake of CO 2 (55.70 ​cm3 ​g−1) compared with CH 4 , C 2 H 2 , and C 2 H 4 (27.39, 23.36, and 9.04 ​cm3 ​g−1) at 273 ​K. YAU-7 takes separation values for C 2 H 2 /CO 2 , C 2 H 4 /CO 2 , and CH 4 /CO 2 mixture (37.6, 22.7, and 31.2) significantly higher than the C 2 H 2 /C 2 H 4 , C 2 H 2 /CH 4 , C 2 H 2 /CO 2 , C 2 H 4 /CH 4 mixture gas (1.30, 1.83, 1.67). The YAU-7 MOF is a promising material for CO 2 separation under ambient conditions. Mesoporous MOFs modified by 1D channels and column layer structure have been designed and synthesized as adsorption materials with excellent adsorption and separation properties. Image 1 • Design and prepare mesoporous MOF materials. • Column layer MOF possess 1D channel with dimensionality of 8.583 ​Å ​× ​12.593 ​Å. • YAU-7 MOF with excellent gas separation properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The strong transcriptional activity of the virulent gene pagA in Bacillus anthracis has been proven to be anthrax toxin activator (AtxA)-regulated. However, the obscure pagA transcription mechanism hinders practical applications of this strong promoter. In this study, a 509-bp DNA fragment [termed 509sequence, (−508)-(+1) relative to the P2 transcription start site] was cloned upstream of rbs-GFPuv as pTOL02B to elucidate the AtxA-regulated transcription. The 509sequence was dissected into the −10 sequence, −35 sequence, ATrich tract, SLI/SLII and upstream site. In conjunction with the heterologous co-expression of AtxA (under the control of the T7 promoter), the −10 sequence (TATACT) was sufficient for the AtxA-regulated transcription. Integration of pTOL02F + pTOLAtxA as pTOL03F showed that the AtxA-regulated transcription exhibited a strong specific fluorescence intensity/common analytical chemistry term (OD600) of 40 597 ± 446 and an induction/repression ratio of 122. An improved induction/repression ratio of 276 was achieved by cultivating Escherichia coli /pTOL03F in M9 minimal medium. The newly developed promoter system termed PAtxA consists of AtxA, the −10 sequence and Escherichia RNA polymerase. These three elements synergistically and cooperatively formed a previously undiscovered transcription system, which exhibited a tight-control, high-level, modulable and stationary-phase-specific transcription. The PAtxA was used for phaCAB expression for the stationary-phase polyhydroxybutyrate production, and the results showed that a PHB yield, content and titer of 0.20 ± 0.27 g/g-glucose, 68 ± 11% and 1.5 ± 0.4 g/l can be obtained. The positive inducible PAtxA, in contrast to negative inducible, should be a useful tool to diversify the gene information flow in synthetic biology. Graphical Abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is the most important tropical oil-bearing crop species worldwide. MADS-box proteins, which play crucial roles in plant growth and development and are involved in various physiological and biochemical processes, compose one of the largest families of plant transcription factors. In this study, 42 MADS-box genes were screened from the mesocarp transcriptome database of oil palm fruit, and their phylogenetic relationships with Arabidopsis thaliana MADS-box genes were analyzed. Based on the results, MADS-box genes from oil palm mesocarp were classified into four groups: MIKCc-type, MIKC*-type, Mα-type, and Mγ-type MADS-box genes. Members of the subfamilies were classified according to the presence of three specific protein motifs. To explore the differential expression of the MADS-box genes, the dynamic expression of all selected MADS-box genes in oil palm was measured by RNA-seq. The high expression of specific MADS-box genes in the mesocarp of oil palm during different developmental stages indicates that those genes may play important roles in the cell division of and metabolite accumulation in the fruit and could become important targets for fruit development and oil accumulation research in oil palm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A metabolomic targeted method for profiling anthocyanin derivatives was developed. • Mass spectral and chromatographic database for anthocyanin derivatives were built. • Total of 37 anthocyanins derivatives were simultaneously profiling analyzed. • Linearity, sensitivity and repeatability were excellent compared to the literature. • PLSDA showed great discrimination on different vintage red wine. Anthocyanin derivatives are critical components that impart color to aging red wine. In this study, we developed a targeted metabolomic method for the simultaneously profiling of the primary thirty-seven malvidin-derived anthocyanin derivatives in red wine, including various pyranoanthocyanins and flavanols-related condensation products. First, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) tandem ion trap and triple-quadrupole (QqQ) mass spectrometry were used to construct the mass spectral and chromatographic database of the anthocyanin derivatives that were formed in a model wine solution. Next, the targeted profiling analysis of these compounds was achieved on a QqQ mass spectrometer in the multiple reaction monitoring mode (MRM). The method displayed excellent linearity (R2 0.9391–0.9998), sensitivity (0.221–0.604 μg/L of limit of detection (LOD) and 0.274–1.157 μg/L of limit of quantification (LOQ) equivalent to malvidin-3- O -glucoside (Mv-glc)), and repeatability (less than 10% and 15% for intra-day and inter-day relative standard deviation (RSD) respectively). Partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) based on this method showed great discrimination over different vintage wines, thereby promising to be an effective tool in wine anthocyanin and aging related study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An efficient and bio-based alginate pillared layered double hydroxides (SA@LDHs) was successfully prepared. • LOI value of PP/30 % SA@LDHs reached 30.9 % and samples can pass UL-94 V-0 rating. • Synergistic flame-retarding effect of alginate and layered double hydroxides was found. An efficient and bio-based alginate pillared hydrotalcite (SA@LDHs) was fabricated via calcination-reconstruction manner with sodium alginate (SA) and hydrotalcite (LDHs-C), and used as novel flame retardant for polypropylene (PP). The morphologies and combustion properties of SA@LDHs and its hybrid with PP composites (PP/SA@LDHs) had been characterized by SEM, TGA, cone calorimetry, LOI and UL-94 measurements. With 30 wt% loading, the SA@LDHs achieved a LOI value of 30.9 % and a UL-94 V-0 rating, whereas the LDHs-C exhibited only LOI value of 27.6 % and a UL-94 V-1 rating. The peak heat release rate, total heat release and total smoke production of PP/SA@LDHs were 260.8 kW m−2, 61.3 MJ m−2 and 8.2 m2, respectively, which presented declines of 69.2 %, 42.8 % and 32.2 % compared with those of Neat PP. These improvements could be attributed to the presence of the radical-trapping effect of SA, which leading to promote PP chains to participate in the carbonization process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Blending for wine color improvement can be realized under different oxygen exposure. • The contribution of modifier wines can be anthocyanins, flavonols, or flavan-3-ols. • Modifier wine contributed flavan-3-ols lead to more color improvement visually. • Base wine with weak phenolic profile was more easily to be chromatically modified. Limited oxygenation and over-oxidation experiments were designed to compare the phenolic and chromatic characters of base wines Cabernet Franc (CF), Cabernet Sauvignon (CS), and their counterparts that blended with modifier wines Marselan (MA) and Petit Verdot (PV). In both limited oxygenation and over-oxidation conditions, all blend wines generally contained higher C* ab , a* and Red%, and lower h ab , b* and Yellow% than their base wine counterparts, because MA contributed flavonols (copigments) and anthocyanins, and PV contributed flavanols (anthocyanin derived pigments precursors). Chromatic changes that can be perceived by human eye (ΔE* ab) in CF based blend wines were more obvious than that of CS based blend wines, which indicate that base wine with lower phenolic concentrations and weak phenolic profiles (CF) might be more prone to be chromatically modified than base wine with higher phenolic concentrations and distinct phenolic profiles (CS). Chemical influences of different blending strategies on anthocyanin derivatives' formations were depending on phenolic profiles of the modifier wines and base wines, and also on the oxygen exposure. The results suggest that the chromatic improvement of base wines could be realized by blending modifier wines under different oxygen exposures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cosmological CPT violation will rotate the polarized direction of CMB photons, convert partial CMB E mode into B mode and vice versa. It will generate non-zero EB, TB spectra and change the EE, BB, TE spectra. This phenomenon gives us a way to detect the CPT-violation signature from CMB observations, and also provides a new mechanism to produce B mode polarization. In this paper, we perform a global analysis on tensor-to-scalar ratio r and polarization rotation angles based on current CMB datasets with both low ℓ (Planck, BICEP2/Keck Array) and high ℓ (POLARBEAR, SPTpol, ACTPol). Benefited from the high precision of CMB data, we obtain the isotropic rotation angle α ¯ = 0.0 ∘ ± 0.37 ∘ at 68% CL, the variance of the anisotropic rotation angles C α (0) < 0.0032 rad 2 , the scale invariant power spectrum D ℓ ∈ [ 2 , 350 ] α α < 4.65 × 10 − 5 rad 2 and r < 0.059 at 95% CL. Our result shows that with the polarization rotation effect, the 95% upper limit on r gets tightened by 14%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, genetic engineering was applied to the overexpression of the antimicrobial peptide (AMP) cecropin B2 (cecB2). pTWIN1 vector with a chitin-binding domain (CBD) and an auto-cleavage Ssp DnaB intein (INT) was coupled to the cecB2 to form a fusion protein construct and expressed via Escherichia coli ER2566. The cecB2 was obtained via the INT cleavage reaction, which was highly related to its adjacent amino acids. Three oligopeptide cleavage variants (OCVs), i.e., GRA, CRA, and SRA, were used as the inserts located at the C-terminus of the INT to facilitate the cleavage reaction. SRA showed the most efficient performance in accelerating the INT self-cleavage reaction. In addition, in order to treat the INT as a biocatalyst, a first-order rate equation was applied to fit the INT cleavage reaction. A possible inference was proposed for the INT cleavage promotion with varied OCVs using a molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. The production and purification via the CBD-INT-SRA-cecB2 fusion protein resulted in a cecB2 yield of 58.7 mg/L with antimicrobial activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Non-enzymatic browning widely occurs in wine during and after vinification. • Mechanisms of non-enzymatic browning induced by monomeric flavan-3-ols are reviewed. • Chromatic features and contribution of various xanthylium derivatives are discussed. • Factors that influence non-enzymatic browning in wine are summarized. • Insights into the complete reaction pathways of non-enzymatic browning are still lacking. Non-enzymatic browning occurs widely in both white and red wines, and it has a huge impact on the color evolution and aging potential. Previous studies have proved that phenolic compounds, especially those with catechol groups, are the most important substrates involved in browning reactions of wine. This review focus on the current knowledge of non-enzymatic browning in wine resulting from monomeric flavan-3-ols. First, some relevant aspects of monomeric flavan-3-ols are introduced, including their structures, origins, chemical reactivities, as well as potential impacts on the organoleptic properties of wine. Second, the mechanism for non-enzymatic browning induced by monomeric flavan-3-ols is discussed, with an emphasis on the formation of yellow xanthylium derivatives, followed by their spectral properties and effects on the color change of wine. Finally, attentions are also be given to the factors that influence non-enzymatic browning, such as metal ions, light exposure, additives in winemaking, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Observational studies demonstrated that the relationship between bone mineral density and oral diseases is mixed. To access the association between heel bone mineral density and various oral diseases, we conducted the Mendelian randomization analysis to explore the association. Materials and Methods: Two-sample bidirectional Mendelian analysis was used to explore the relationship between heel bone mineral density and various oral diseases. The inverse-variance weighted (IVW) was used as the primary effect estimate, and various methods were applied to test the reliability and stability of the results, namely MR-Egger, weighted median, simple mode, and weighted mode. Results: This study showed that there was a negative relationship between heel BMD and periodontitis when heel BMD was used as an exposure factor and periodontitis as an outcome factor (IVW OR = 0.85; 95% CI, 0.75–0.95; p = 0.005). Bidirectional Mendelian randomization showed that there was no statistically significant association between periodontitis and heel bone mineral density when chronic periodontitis was the exposure factor (p > 0.05). And there was no significant relationship between heel bone mineral density and other oral diseases (dental caries, diseases of pulp and periapical tissues, impacted teeth, cleft lip, and cleft palate, oral and oropharyngeal cancer) (p > 0.05). Conclusion: This study showed that there was a negative relationship between heel bone density and periodontitis, and the decrease in heel bone density could promote the occurrence of periodontitis. In addition, there was no statistically significant relationship between heel bone density and other oral diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Anxious behaviors often occur in individuals who have experienced early adversity. Anxious behaviors can bring many hazards, such as social withdrawal, eating disorders, negative self‐efficacy, self‐injurious thoughts and behaviors, anxiety disorders, and even depression. Abnormal behavior are is closely related to changes in corresponding circuit functions in the brain. This study investigated the relationship between brain circuits and anxious behaviors in maternal‐deprived rhesus monkey animal model, which mimic early adversity in human. Methods: Twenty‐five rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) were grouped by two different rearing conditions: 11 normal control and mother‐reared (MR) monkeys and 14 maternally deprived and peer‐reared (MD) monkeys. After obtaining images of the brain areas with significant differences in maternal separation and normal control macaque function, the relationship between functional junction intensity and stereotypical behaviors was determined by correlation analysis. Results: The correlation analysis revealed that stereotypical behaviors were negatively correlated with the coupling between the left lateral amygdala subregion and the left inferior frontal gyrus in both MD and MR macaques. Conclusion: This study suggests that early adversity‐induced anxious behaviors are associated with changes in the strength of the amygdala–prefrontal connection. The normalization of the regions involved in the functional connection might reverse the behavioral abnormality. It provides a solid foundation for effective intervention in human early adversity. Significance Statement: This study suggests that early adversity‐induced anxious behaviors are associated with changes in the strength of the amygdala–prefrontal connection. The higher the amygdala–prefrontal connection strength, the less stereotyped behaviors exhibited by monkeys experiencing early adversity. Thus, in the future, changing the strength of the amygdala–prefrontal connection may reverse the behavioral abnormalities of individuals who experience early adversity. This study provides a solid foundation for effective intervention in humans' early adversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To mitigate the climate change caused by CO2 emission, the global incentive to the low-carbon alternatives as replacement of fossil fuel-derived products continuously expands the need for renewable feedstock. There will be accompanied by the generation of enormous protein waste as a result. The economical viability of the biorefinery platform can be realized once the surplus protein waste is recycled in a circular economy scenario. In this context, the present review focuses on the current development of biotechnology with the emphasis on biotransformation and metabolic engineering to refine protein-derived amino acids for production of fuels and chemicals. Its scope starts with the explosion of potential feedstock sources rich in protein waste. The availability of techniques is applied for purification and hydrolysis of various feedstock proteins to amino acids. Useful lessons are leaned from the microbial catabolism of amino acids and lay a foundation for the development of the protein-based biotechnology. At last, the future perspective of the biorefinery scheme based on protein waste is discussed associated with remarks on possible solutions to overcome the technical bottlenecks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract P 3 O 10 5− pillared Mg/Al hydrotalcite (HTs P) was successfully prepared by impregnation-reconstruction, and then the HTs-P was modification by rare-earth coupling agent (WOT) to obtain the flame retardant (W-HTs-P) as the filler for polypropylene (PP) matrix. The HTs-P and W-HTs-P samples were characterized using XRD, FT-IR, contact angle measurement, SEM and TG-DTG. The results revealed that W-HTs-P was coated by WOT with smaller particle sizes and their surface property was inverted from hydrophilic to hydrophobic nature. For the W-HTs-P and PP composite (PP/W-HTs-P), the XRD and SEM results indicated that the compatibility between W-HTs-P and PP matrix has been improved. The TGA analysis shown that the char residue rate at 600 °C of PP/W-HTs-P (12.5%) was higher than that of PP/HTs-P (5.3%), and W-HTs-P has proven to enhance the thermal stability of the PP matrix. Besides, W-HTs-P had gained better flammability and mechanical properties for PP matrix. Considering the fact that both the HTs-P and W-HTs-P had a similar layered structure and chemical composition, the improvement of the both physical and mechanical performances of the PP/W-HTs-P composites are due to the slight difference of size distributions resulting from the modification by the WOT. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • The P 3 O 10 5− pillared Mg/Al hydrotalcite (HTs P) was prepared and characterized. • HTs-P was modified by rare-earth coupling agent to obtain W-HTs-P. • The W-HTs-P played an excellent effect on the flame retardancy of PP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we use the current and future cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiments to test the Charge-Parity-Time Reversal (CPT) symmetry. We consider a CPT-violating interaction in the photon sector , which gives rise to a rotation of the polarization vectors of the propagating CMB photons. By combining the 9 yr WMAP, BOOMERanG 2003, and BICEP1 observations, we obtain the current constraint on the isotropic rotation angle (1σ), indicating that the significance of the CPT violation is about 2σ. Here, we particularly take the systematic errors of CMB measurements into account. Then, we study the effects of the anisotropies of the rotation angle [] on the CMB polarization power spectra in detail. Due to the small effects, the current CMB polarization data cannot constrain the related parameters very well. We obtain the 95% C.L. upper limit of the variance of the anisotropies of the rotation angle Cα(0) < 0.035 from all of the CMB data sets. More interestingly, including the anisotropies of rotation angle could lower the best-fit value of r and relax the tension on the constraints of r between BICEP2 and Planck. Finally, we investigate the capabilities of future Planck polarization measurements on and . Benefited from the high precision of Planck data, the constraints of the rotation angle can be significantly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Napier grass is a potential feedstock for biofuel production because of its strong adaptability and wide availability. Compositional analysis has been done on Napier grass which was collected from a local area of Taiwan. By comparing acid- and alkali-pretreatment, it was found that the alkali-pretreatment process is favorable for Napier grass. An overall glucose yield of 0.82 g/g-glucose total can be obtained with the combination of alkali-pretreatment (2.5 wt% NaOH, 8 wt% sample loading, 121 °C, and a reaction time of 40 min) and enzymatic hydrolysis (40 FPU/g-substrate). Semi-simultaneous saccharification fermentation (sSSF) was carried out, where enzymatic hydrolysis and ABE fermentation were operated in the same batch. It was found that after 24-h hydrolysis, followed by 96-h fermentation, the butanol and acetone concentrations reached 9.45 and 4.85 g/L, respectively. The butanol yield reached 0.22 g/g-sugar glucose+xylose . Finally, the efficiency of butanol production from Napier grass was calculated at 31%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • phaG and phaC1 genes were heterologously expressed in E. coli. • The recombinant E. coli was able to produce poly(3-hydroxydecanoate). • A gene, PSEEN0908, was found to increase the performance of mcl-PHA production. • FabR substantially increased the mcl-PHA production by an order of magnitude. • The microbial catalysis of mcl-PHA can be derived from various bioresources. The fatty acid metabolism in Escherichia coli has served as a basic metabolic chassis for medium-chain-length polyhydroxyalkanoate (mcl-PHA) production. In this study, the phaG and phaC1 genes from Pseudomonas entomophila L48 were first cloned as pGRN08. E. coli BL21P (E. coli BL21(DE3) Δ ptsG) containing pGRN08 was able to produce 23 ± 3 and 7 ± 0 mg/L homopolymer poly(3-hydroxydecanoate)(P(3HD)) from glucose and xylose, respectively. Next, a gene, PSEEN0908 (encoding a putative 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA ligase), from P. entomophila L48 was found to increase the performance of mcl-PHA production. The induction of the fatty acid biosynthesis repressor (FabR), a transcription regulator that represses UFA biosynthesis, in E. coli substantially increased the mcl-PHA production by an order of magnitude from both unrelated and related carbon source conversion. A mcl-PHA concentration of 179 ± 1 mg/L and a content of 5.79 ± 0.16 % were obtained, where 31 mol% was 3-hydroxyoctanoate (3HO) and 69 mol% was 3HD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, effects of the agitation speed, the flow rate, and type of non-polar gases on the performance of gas stripping was systematically investigated. Macroscopically, the stripping rate of butanol is linearly proportional to the concentration of butanol in the feed solution. Nevertheless, a decrease in butanol selectivity was observed with the increasing butanol concentrations up to 0.01 g/cm 3 . This can be attributed to the thermodynamics reason that with increasing butanol concentrations in the feed, more stripping gas will dissolve in the feed solution that decrease the activity of butanol for mass transfer from liquids to gas bubbles. This can be supported by the use of highly soluble gas of carbon dioxide as the stripping gas where the K s a dropped 48% compared to the nitrogen stripping. By the parameter sensitivity analysis, it has been shown that the dominant variable is the flow rate. The best strategy of maximizing the performance of 1-butanol gas stripping at a given flow rate is to bubble the gases at a high superficial velocity, which leads to a less resistance on the liquid side for mass transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]