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Background Several surveys have reported that patients treated with gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist (GnRH-ant) protocol showed a significantly lower rate of implantation and clinical pregnancy compared to GnRH agonist (GnRH-a) protocol during in vitro fertilization-fresh embryo transfer. Subsequent studies imputed this poor outcome to the negative effects of GnRH-ant on endometrial receptive. However, the mechanisms were not fully understood. Methods The clinical data of 2815 patients undergoing fresh embryo transfer in our center were analyzed. Human endometrial stromal cells (ESCs) from healthy women undergoing elective pregnancy termination of a normal pregnancy at 8–10 weeks gestation were treated with GnRH-analogs or imatinib (c-kit receptor inhibitor). CCK8 and Flow cytometry were used to investigated the growth ability of ESCs. Immunofluorescence staining and western blot was used to detected the target proteins. Results The clinical data showed that the endometrial thickness on HCG Day were significantly lower in GnRH-ant group. Although no difference of embryo quality in these two groups, GnRH-ant group showed remarkably decreased rate of HCG positive, embryo implantation and pregnancy. Moreover, GnRH-ant significantly reduced the proliferation and induced the apoptosis of ESCs. Furthermore, the expression and activation of c-kit receptor, which played pivotal roles during embryo implantation, were observably decreased by GnRH-ant. Inhibiting the activation of c-kit by imatinib remarkably suppressed the proliferation and promoted the apoptosis of ESCs. Additionally, the phosphorylation of AKT and expression of Cyclin D1, which were closely related with cellular growth, were distinctly lessened after treating with imatinib. Conclusions In summary, our study showed that GnRH-ant weakened the activization of c-kit receptor by decreasing its expression, causing the impaired growth ability of ESCs. Our findings provided a new insight into the effects of GnRH-ant on endometrium.

Cervical cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-associated mortality among females; however, the underlying molecular mechanisms of its carcinogenesis remain largely unclear. Previous comprehensive genomic studies have revealed prevalent estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) mutations in breast cancer, which are rare in certain other types of cancer. To the best of our knowledge, it is unknown whether ESR1 mutations also exist in cervical cancer. Considering the evidence that cervical cancer shares certain genetic aberrations with breast cancer, and that the progression of both breast and cervical cancers can be affected by estrogen, it is possible that cervical cancer may also harbor ESR1 mutations. In the present study, a total of 260 Chinese cervical cancer samples with distinct subtypes were tested for the presence of ESR1 mutations. A total of three heterozygous missense ESR1 mutations, p.K303R (c.908A>G), p.T311M (c.932C>T) and p.Y537C (c.1610A>G), were identified in 3/207 (1.4%) cervical squamous cell carcinoma samples, which were absent in 27 adenosquamous carcinomas and 26 adenocarcinomas samples. Of the three individuals with an ESR1mutation, 1 patient was also diagnosed with ovarian endometriosis and the other 2 patients were diagnosed with a uterine fibroid. A bioinformatics analysis suggested that these ESR1 mutations may be pathogenic by promoting the development of cervical cancer. Furthermore, a previous comprehensive study confirmed that individuals with cervical squamous cell carcinoma possessed ESR1 mutations. These combined studies indicate that ESR1 mutations may participate in the carcinogenesis of cervical squamous cell carcinoma, albeit at a low frequency. In conclusion, the present study identified three potentially pathogenic ESR1 mutations in Chinese cervical squamous cell carcinoma samples, but not in other subtypes.

In this study, the problem of positive filtering is investigated for positive two-dimensional (2D) Roesser T-S fuzzy systems under l 1 -induced performance. Error-bounding positive filters are constructed to estimate the output of positive 2D T-S fuzzy systems. Firstly, a novel characterisation for asymptotic stability of the filtering error system with l 1 -induced performance is derived. Then, based on that characterisation, sufficient conditions are derived to design the required filters expressed by linear programming problems. Finally, the theoretical results are illustrated through a numerical example.

To study the effect of mahogunin ring finger-1 (MGRN1) on the autophagy of Sertoli cells in mice.Using RNA interference, we down-regulated the expression of MGRN1 in the mouse TM4 Sertoli cells cultured in vitro, determined the expressions of the autophagy-related proteins LC3-II/I, ATG-5 and ATG-7 by Western blot, and detected the autophagosomes in the TM4 cells by immunofluorescence and electron microscopy.Western blot showed increased expressions of LC3-II/I, ATG-5 and ATG-7 in the mouse TM4 Sertoli cells after knockdown of MGRN1. Fluorescence microscopy revealed significantly more autophagosomes in the TM4 cells than in the control group (P0.05).MGRN1 affects the autophagy of mouse Sertoli cells, and its specific molecular mechanism needs to be further studied.

To provide a scientific evaluation of the food safety of the rice biofortified with β-glucan.The acute toxicity and genotoxicity of the rice were evaluated by 14-day feeding experiment, Ames experiment, erythrocyte micronucleus test and mouse lymphoma thymidine kinase gene (In the acute toxicity test, there was no obvious toxicity of rice biofortified with β-glucan, and no abnormality was found in anatomical observation. The median lethal dose (LDUnder the current experimental conditions, β-glucan biofortified rice showed no obvious acute toxicity and genotoxicity.

Temperature-sensitive hydrogels with mild gel-forming process, good biocompatibility and biodegradability have been widely studied as bioinks and biomaterial inks for 3D bioprinting. However, the hydrogels synthesized via copolymerization of aliphatic polyesters and polyethylene glycols have low mechanical strength and cannot meet the needs of 3D printing. In this paper, we propose a strategy of enhancing the strength of hydrogels by introducing crystallization between blocks to meet the requirements of 3D bioprinting inks. A series of polycaprolactone-polyethylene glycol-polycaprolactone (PCL-PEG-PCL) triblock polymers were prepared by ring-opening polymerization, of which the strong crystallinity of polycaprolactone blocks improved the printability and enhanced the mechanical properties of the ink. It was found that the resulted hydrogels were temperature-responsive, and the PCL blocks could form a crystalline phase in the state of the hydrogel, thereby significantly increasing the modulus of the hydrogel. Moreover, the mechanical strength of the hydrogel could be adjusted by changing the composition ratio of each block of the copolymer. The 3D printing results showed that the PCL-PEG-PCL hydrogel with crystallinity can not only be extruded and printed via temperature adjustment, but also the three-dimensional structure can be effectively maintained after 3D printing. The gels demonstrated good cell compatibility, and the cell survival rate was maintained at a high level.

Background: Taenia pisiformis is one of the most common intestinal parasites in canines, and leads to serious economic losses in the rabbit breeding industry. Exosome-like vesicles from parasites play crucial roles in host-parasite interactions by transferring cargo from parasites to host cells and by modulating host immunological response through inducing production of host-derived cytokines. Nevertheless, the mechanism by which exosome-like vesicles from Cysticercus pisiformis regulate macrophage immune response remains unknown. Methods: Using ultracentrifugation, we isolated exosome-like vesicles from excretory/secretory products (ESP) of C. pisiformis. The morphology and size of purified vesicles were confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA). The components of proteins and miRNA within these vesicles were identified by proteomic analysis and high-throughput small RNA sequencing. The biological function of targets of exosomal miRNAs was predicted by Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis. Moreover, the expression of Th1- and Th2-type immune response associated cytokines in RAW264.7 macrophages were evaluated by qRT-PCR and ELISA. We found that exosome-like vesicles were typical cup-shaped vesicles with diameters from 30 to 150 nm. A total of 87 proteins were identified by proteomic analysis, including proteins prominently associated with exosome-like vesicles biogenesis and vesicle trafficking. 41 known miRNAs and 18 novel miRNAs were identified in the exosome-like vesicles. 11 selected miRNAs, including 7 known miRNAs (miR-71-5p, miR-10a-5p, miR-let-7-5p, miR-745-3p, miR-219-5p, miR-124-3p, and miR-4989-3p) and 4 novel miRNAs (novel-mir-3, novel-mir-7, novel-mir-8, and novel-mir-11) were validated to exist in metacestiodes and exosome-like vesicles of C. pisiformis by qRT-PCR. The functions of most targets of exosomal miRNAs were mainly associated with signal transduction and the immune system. Additionally, C. pisiformis-derived vesicles induced the production of IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-13 and Arg-1, but downregulated the expression of IL-12, IFN-γ and iNOS in RAW264.7 macrophages.Conclusions: We demonstrated that proteins and miRNAs enclosed within exosome-like vesicles from C. pisiformis have immunomodulatory functions. Furthermore, exosome-like vesicles were shown to induce the macrophage Th2-type immune response in vitro. Our study suggests that exosome-like vesicles play an important role in the interaction between cysticerci and their hosts.

Giardia duodenalis is a zoonotic enteric parasite that can infect humans and a number of animal species including rabbits with a worldwide distribution. Infection with G. duodenalis can cause serious public health problems and significant economic losses to animal husbandry. So accurate understanding of the prevalence and genotype distribution of G. duodenalis in rabbits is necessary. In the present study, a total of 616 fecal samples were collected from rabbits in Shandong province, eastern China, and examined in G. duodenalis prevalence and genotypes by nested PCR amplification of β-giardin (bg), glutamate dehydrogenase (gdh), and triosephosphate isomerase (tpi) gene loci of G. duodenalis. Sixty-nine (11.2%) of the examined rabbit fecal samples were G. duodenalis-positive. Of them, the prevalence of G. duodenalis is 8.4% (41/490) in Rizhao city and 22.2% (28/126) in Weihai city. Breeds, region, and feeding modes were highly correlated with G. duodenalis infection in rabbits. Moreover, three genotypes (assemblages A, B, and E) were identified in rabbits at three gene loci, and the assemblage E was the dominant genotype, while the assemblage A was reported in rabbits in China for the first time. It is noticeable that two rabbits were found to be infected with two different G. duodenalis assemblages (assemblages A and E, assemblages B and E, respectively). These findings enrich the genotype distribution of G. duodenalis in rabbits and provide baseline data for preventing and controlling G. duodenalis infection in rabbits in eastern China.

It is of great significance to efficiently prepare core-shell nanoparticles. In this study, we directly and efficiently prepared core-shell structured PCL/PEG nanoparticles based on shell insertion strategy by using coaxial electrospray. The key points to ensure the success of this new strategy include: the preparation of PCL particles with size less than 100 nm which worked as core structure; the insertion of PEG into PCL surface which worked as shell structure. We directly fabricated PCL particles with size less than 100 nm by using shell evaporation coaxial electrospray method. It means that PCL nanoparticles could be prepared and used as core structure through coaxial electrospray method. PEG solution worked as shell layer, PCL solution worked as core layer, PCL/PEG core shell structured microparticles were obtained through coaxial electrospray technique. Because of the solvent diffusion during the coaxial electrospray process, PEG could insert into PCL when TFE was used as the solvent of both core and shell layer. Then, after removing uninserted PEG, PCL/PEG nanoparticles with core-shell structure were fabricated successfully. The core-shell structured nanoparticles were stored at 4 °C and were stable without changing size for at least 7 days. This method can easily prepare core-shell structured nanoparticle with different size by changing the injection speed of PCL solution.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has emerged as a promising therapeutic option for various cancers. During the photosensitizer-mediated PDT procedure, oxygen is activated as a reactive oxygen species (ROS) upon light irradiation to induce vascular damage and cancer cell death directly. However, PDT efficiency can be seriously reduced in the hypoxic environment of the tumour. Even worse, the oxygen consumption of PDT aggravates the hypoxia, which leads to further PDT inefficiency and other negative consequences. Herein, a new kind of hemoglobin–polymer conjugate (HbTcMs) was prepared as the carrier for both oxygen and the photosensitizer to enhance photodynamic therapy. The conjugated Hb exhibited an improved tolerance to the oxidation and trypsin digestion while retaining its O2 binding capacity compared with free Hb. The HbTcMs conjugate showed little toxicity in the dark and could be effectively internalized by 4T1 cells. More importantly, the HbTcMs conjugate could readily produce singlet oxygen (1O2) and kill 4T1 cells in vitro under irradiation, exerting better phototoxicity with the oxygen supply of Hb. Therefore, it is expected that the HbTcMs conjugate can be a potential oxygen carrier for application in photodynamic therapy.

Tumour hypoxia, which has a negative effect on most anti-cancer treatments, has caused extensive concern over recent years. Concerned with this issue, this paper reports a hemoglobin-based oxygen nanocarrier (HBOC) functionalized with oxygen carrying and cancer cell recognition ability. First, the triblock copolymer poly[2-(methacrylamido) glucopyranose]-b-poly(methacrylicacid)-b-poly(butylmethacrylate) (PMAG-b-PMAA-b-PBMA), in which the first block consists of glucose units, was synthesized and characterized. Following the self-assembly of the amphiphilic copolymer into micelles in phosphate buffer solution, hemoglobin was conjugated onto the micelles through a condensation reaction between the carboxyl groups on PMAA and the amino groups on Hb. The HBOC, with a mean diameter of around 147 nm, is stable and disperses homogeneously in phosphate buffer solution. In addition, an in vitro cytotoxicity study revealed that the HBOC is biocompatible. More importantly, this HBOC was demonstrated to hold excellent capacity for oxygen binding. Moreover, cellular uptake indicated that the HBOC was internalized more easily by cancer cells than normal cells, which means that the HBOC shows specific recognition of cancer cells. Therefore, the hemoglobin-conjugated polymer that we prepared could be a promising nanocarrier for tumour therapy.

Li-Qun Wang,1 Wai Tong Chien,2 Lai King Yip,2 Thanos Karatzias3 1School of Nursing, Jilin Medical College, Jilin, 2School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China; 3Faculty of Health, Life and Social Sciences, Edinburgh Napier University, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK Abstract: Mindfulness-based interventions have been increasingly evidenced to be effective in different mental illnesses but limited in schizophrenia. This single-blind, multisite randomized controlled trial tested the effects of a mindfulness-based psychoeducation group program (MPGP in addition to usual care) versus a conventional psychoeducation group program (CPGP) versus treatment-as-usual (TAU) alone, in schizophrenia spectrum disorders over a 6-month follow-up. In each of the two study sites (outpatient clinics), 69 outpatients with schizophrenia or its subtypes (N=138) were randomly allocated to one of the three study groups (n=46) after baseline measurements and underwent 6 months of intervention. Primary outcomes including patients’ mental state and rehospitalization rate and other secondary outcomes were assessed at entry and at 1 week and 6 months. One hundred and thirty-one (95%) participants completed the interventions assigned and one to two post-tests. Multivariate analyses of variance (followed by univariate contrast tests) indicated that the MPGP participants reported greater reductions in their psychotic symptoms (P=0.003) and length/duration of rehospitalizations (P=0.005) at 6-month follow-up. Patients in the MPGP group also reported greater improvements in their insight into illness/treatment (P=0.0008) and level of functioning (P=0.002) than the CPGP and TAU alone at the 1-week and 6-month follow-up. Overall, the findings suggest that MPGP can be useful in improving the short- to medium-term clinical outcomes of outpatients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders, not only in terms of their mental state and risk of relapse but also their insight into illness/treatment and psychosocial functioning. Keywords: mindfulness intervention, psychoeducation, functioning, insight into illness, psychotic symptoms, rehospitalization, schizophrenia

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising singlet oxygen ((1)O2) mediated clinical treatment for many tumors. As the source of (1)O2, oxygen plays an important role in the curative effect of PDT. However, the facts of photochemical depletion of oxygen and the intrinsic hypoxic microenvironment of tumors remain the major challenges. In this work, a novel photosensitizer carrier with oxygen self-compensating ability was designed for PDT. It was synthesized via chemical conjugation of hemoglobin (Hb) to polymeric micelles formed by triblock copolymers of poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(acrylic acid)-block-polystyrene (PEG-b-PAA-b-PS). The PEG-b-PAA-b-PS and resultant micelles in aqueous solution were comprehensively characterized by means of FTIR, (1)H NMR, GPC, DLS, TEM, and fluorescence spectroscopy. The oxygen-binding capacity and antioxidative activity of the Hb conjugated micelles were evaluated via UV-vis spectroscopy. In addition, compared with the control micelles without Hb, the Hb conjugated photosensitizer carrier was able to generate more (1)O2 and exert greater photocytotoxicity on Hela cells in vitro.

Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) has been shown to reduce lesion volume and improve functional outcome in experimental stroke models. However, whether G-CSF plays a role currently in patients with stroke remains uncertain. Our study aimed at examining the efficacy and safety of G-CSF in patients with acute ischemic stroke.A comprehensive search was conducted in 5 online databases up to April 2014, and 10 studies with 711 patients met the criteria.The results showed that G-CSF was beneficial in improving the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (standardized mean difference [SMD], .43; 95% confidence interval [CI], .03-.82; P = .04) and modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores (SMD, .72; 95% CI, .51-.93; P = .01), and elevating CD34(+) count (P.001). No treatment effects were found in Barthel Index scores (SMD, -.13; 95% CI, -.61 to .35; P = .59), serious adverse events (relative ratio [RR], 1.12; 95% CI, .91-1.38; P = .28), or the death of serious adverse events (RR, 1.25; 95% CI, .82-1.91; P = .30) between groups at day 90. Adverse effect on vascular complications was not detected to be increased although G-CSF produced a marked elevation in the total leukocyte count (SMD, 3.52; 95% CI, 2.54-4.49; P.001).In conclusion, G-CSF is effective at mobilizing bone marrow-derived CD34(+) stem cells to the peripheral blood. It also seems to improve the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale and mRS scores. The administration of G-CSF appears to be safe and well tolerated. Further studies need to be done on a large sample to verify or fully characterize the results.

An NADH-dependent reductase (ClCR) was discovered by genome data mining. After ClCR was overexpressed in E. coli BL21, recombinant E. coli CCZU-T15 with high reductase activity and excellent stereoselectivity for the reduction of ethyl 4-chloro-3-oxobutanoate (COBE) into ethyl (S)-4-chloro-3-hydroxybutanoate [(S)-CHBE] was screened using a modified high-throughput colorimetric screening strategy. After the reaction optimization, a highly stereoselective bioreduction of COBE into (S)-CHBE (>99% ee) with the resting cells of E. coli CCZU-T15 was successfully demonstrated in toluene-water (50:50, v/v) biphasic system. Biotransformation of 1000 mM COBE for 24 h in the biphasic system, (S)-CHBE (>99% ee) could be obtained in the high yield of 96.4%. Significantly, E. coli CCZU-T15 shows high potential in the industrial production of (S)-CHBE (>99% ee).

An amphiphilic hyperbranched polymer containing large amounts of pH sensitive bonds was synthesized by our group. The hydrophobic chains are hyperbranched polyacetals (HBPAs) and the hydrophilic chains are polyethylene glycols. Polyethylene glycols are attached to the hyperbranched polyacetals by the hydrazone bonds. The amphiphilic hyperbranched polymer could be assembled into micelles easily by the dialysis method. The micelles containing large amounts of pH sensitive bonds were quite fragile in pH 5.0 buffer solution but very stable in pH 7.4 buffer solution. DOX-loaded micelles were also prepared by the dialysis method. The sizes of the blanked micelle and DOX-loaded micelle were 30 nm and 35 nm, respectively. The increase of the diameter confirmed that DOX was successfully loaded into the micelle. Drug loading content and drug loading efficiencies were 2.34% and 23.4%, respectively, which was detected by the UV-VIS at the wavelength of 482 nm. The drug release behavior demonstrated that DOX was released faster in pH 5.0 buffer solution than in pH 7.4 buffer solution.

Coaxial electrospinning is a robust technique for one-step encapsulation of fragile, water-soluble bioactive agents, including growth factors, DNA and even living organisms, into core-shell nanofibers. The coaxial electrospinning process eliminates the damaging effects due to direct contact of the agents with organic solvents or harsh conditions during emulsification. The shell layer serves as a barrier to prevent the premature release of the water-soluble core contents. By varying the structure and composition of the nanofibers, it is possible to precisely modulate the release of the encapsulated agents. Promising work has been done with coaxially electrospun non-woven mats integrated with bioactive agents for use in tissue engineering, in local delivery and in wound healing, etc. This paper reviews the origins of the coaxial electrospinning method, its updated status and potential future developments for controlled release of the class of fragile, water-soluble bioactive agents.

LiFePO 4 samples with preferred facets on the ac plane were prepared by the solvothermal method with or without well-dispersed amphiphilic carbonaceous material (ACM). The effects of ACM on the particle morphology, crystal orientation and electrochemical reactivity of the prepared LiFePO 4 nanoparticles were investigated in detail. ACM serves a dual purpose. One purpose is facilitating the plate-like morphologies of LiFePO 4 nanoparticles parallel to the b Pnma axis by decreasing the surface energy of (010) facets of newly created LiFePO 4 nuclei. The other purpose is suppressing crystal growth along the [010] direction by adhering onto the (010) surface of LiFePO 4 nanoplates. Furthermore, ACM coating was performed and optimized using a carbon coating precursor. The electrochemical properties of the prepared LiFePO 4 particles were characterized by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge–discharge cycling tests. After the optimized coating of ACM, the ACM-intervened LiFePO 4 composite was observed to deliver discharge capacities of 151.3 mAh g −1 at 1C and 132.2 mAh g −1 at 10C. Even after 1000 cycles at a high rate of 10C, the LiFePO 4 cathode could maintain 80% of its initial capacity.

A novel approach to design pH-sensitive and disintegrable polyelectrolyte nanogels composed of citraconic-based N-(carboxyacyl) chitosan (polyanion) and quaternary chitosan (polycation) was reported. Firstly, the hydrolysis of citraconic-modified chitosan was monitored using fluorescamine assay and it could selectively dissociate in acidic media (e.g., pH ∼5.0) due to the isomerization during the addition of citraconic anhydride to chitosan. Secondly, the self-assembly behaviors of different polyelectrolyte pairs between citraconic-based chitosan and quaternary chitosan were investigated via colloidal titration assay. It was indicated that the difference in molecular weight (MW) of opposite charged polyelectrolytes played an important role on the formation of polyelectrolyte nanogels. Results showed that polyelectrolyte nanogels (ca. 300nm in size) only formed when polyanion and polycation had a very large difference in MW. The pH-sensitive behavior of polyelectrolyte nanogels was comprehensively investigated by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The incorporation of charge-conversional citraconic-based chitosan into polyelectrolyte complexes has provided an effective approach to prepare polyelectrolyte nanogels which were very stable at neutral pH but disintegrated quickly in acidic media.

Wai-Tong Chien,1 Isabella Yuet-Ming Lee,2 Li-Qun Wang3 1School of Nursing, Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China; 2Central Nursing Division, Ruttonjee Tang Shiu King Hospital, Wan Chai, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China; 3School of Nursing, Jilin Medical College, Jilin City, Jilin Province, People’s Republic of China Abstract: The purpose of this study was to test the reliability, validity, and factor structure of a Chinese version of the Psychotic Symptom Rating Scale (PSYRATS) in 198 and 202 adult patients with recent-onset and chronic psychosis, respectively. The PSYRATS has been translated into different language versions and has been validated for clinical and research use mainly in chronic psychotic patients but not in recent-onset psychosis patients or in Chinese populations. The psychometric analysis of the translated Chinese version included assessment of its content validity, semantic equivalence, interrater and test–retest reliability, reproducibility, sensitivity to changes in psychotic symptoms, internal consistency, concurrent validity (compared to a valid psychotic symptom scale), and factor structure. The Chinese version demonstrated very satisfactory content validity as rated by an expert panel, good semantic equivalence with the original version, and high interrater and test–retest (at 2-week interval) reliability. It also indicated very good reproducibility of and sensitivity to changes in psychotic symptoms in line with the symptom severity measured with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). The scale consisted of four factors for the hallucination subscale and two factors for the delusion subscale, explaining about 80% of the total variance of the construct, indicating satisfactory correlations between the hallucination and delusion factors themselves, between items, factors, subscales, and overall scale, and between factors and relevant item and subscale scores of the PANSS. The Chinese version of the PSYRATS is a reliable and valid instrument to measure symptom severity in Chinese psychotic patients complementary to other existing measures mainly in English language. Keywords: delusion, hallucination, psychosis, PSYRATS, reliability, validity

An amphiphilic carbonaceous material (called CP-A5) derived from coal tar pitch has been introduced to synthesize a hollow MnO2/CP-A5 hybrid on the meso- or microscale in a poly(ethylene glycol) 400–water mixture using a self-template method. In the presence of CP-A5, the MnCO3 precursors change from cubes of approximately 450 nm to spheres of approximately 300 nm, and their basic building blocks vary from two-dimensional nanosheets to nanoflakes. The derived two types of hollow MnO2 preserve the morphologies of their own precursors well and inherit the basic building blocks. The electrochemical data indicate that MnO2/CP-A5 hollow spheres exhibit not only higher specific capacitance and lower resistance, including the intrinsic resistance of the electrode, Faradaic reaction resistance, and ion-diffusion/-transport resistance, but also better electrochemical stability than MnO2 hollow cubes because of their reduced particle size, induced morphology, and modified electrode/electrolyte interface.

This research team proposes a network survivability evaluation method (Survivability Algorithm based on Immune Clonal Simulated Annealing, SAICSA), is used to solve the problem of network congestion due to link failure in communication network. The method by establishing the clone variation and the clone crossover operation rules, combined with the simulated annealing acceptance criteria to obtain the optimal annealing temperature tends to zero. At the same time, simulation experiment is carried out to the actual data, in-depth study of the relationship between network validity and effect the number of edges, the initial temperature and other factors. The results show that, compared to the immunization program of simulated annealing algorithm and genetic simulated annealing algorithm, SAICSA algorithm shows good adaptability.

Aimed at improving the utilization of pulverized coal, high-temperature heat pipe technology was introduced into lignite carbonization.Under the design of power of 10kw semi-industrial pulverized coal carbonization test equipment, Fugu lignite coal as raw material to investigate the operating characteristics of the device and carbonization characteristics. Experimental result shows that the high temperature heat pipes heat steadily and meet the temperature requirement of low-temperature carbonization. With the extension of the holding time, the semi-coke fixed carbon content increasing, but volatile matter vice versa, however, holding time above 60 minutes, the effect of carbonization is not obvious, and the best carbonization time is 30 ~ 60 minutes. The length of the holding time has little effect on gas composition, the content of H2 and CH4 are relatively higher than the rest gas, (H2 + CH4) gas accounted for 70% of the total, the heating value remains at 18.76 ~ 19.22MJ/m3, belongs to medium-high value gas, could provide for industrial and civilian use.

Brevibacterium sp. CCZU12-1 with high nitrilase activity could effectively hydrolyze benzoyl cyanide into benzoylformic acid. After the culture optimization, the preferred carbon sources, nitrogen sources, and inducer were glucose (10 g/L), a composite of peptone (10 g/L) plus yeast extract (2.5 g/L), and ε-caprolactam (2.0 mM), respectively. After the reaction optimization, the optimum reaction temperature, reaction pH, organic cosolvent, and metal ion were 30 °C, 7.0, ethanol (2%, v/v), and Ca(2+) (0.1 mM), respectively. At biotransformation of 120-mM benzoyl cyanide for 24 h, the yield of benzoylformic acid reached 91.8%. Moreover, the microbial nitrilase from Brevibacterium sp. CCZU12-1 could hydrolyze various nitriles, and it significantly exhibited high nitrilase activity against benzoyl cyanide, 3-cyanopyridine, and α-cyclohexyl-mandelonitrile.

A horizontal plates flock like Lotus leaves can attenuate incident surface water waves. This paper tries to simulate a numerical wave tank by FLUENT CFD software using k-ω turbulence model in a two-dimensional domain. And a 2nd-order Stokes wave is made by the boundary wave-making method, and attenuated by three kinds of horizontal plates flocks with different relative lengths (flock length/wave length). A flock of horizontal plates consists of multiple plates interspersed with gaps. However the leaves have both movement and deformation in waves, giving rise to a difficult fluid-structure interaction problem. Here a simpler case is studied, involving rigid, infinitely thin plates fixed at the still water level. The Four time steps are tried to find such appropriate time step-not only to make satisfied wave contour but also to decrease computing time. The simulations show that the amplitude of the transient wave decreases while the relative breadth increases. The velocity vectors of water partical near the attenuator are showed, and the velocities behind the attenuator do not follow a perfect wave velocity distribution.

We reported the preparation of surface modified poly(butylene terephthalate)-co-poly(butylene succinate)-b-poly(ethylene glycol) (i.e. PBT-co-PBS/PEG) films by three methods: silk fibroin coating, SO2 plasma treatment and silk fibroin anchoring. The obtained composite films were named SF/(PBT-co-PBS/PEG), SO2/(PBT-co-PBS/PEG) and SF/SO2/(PBT-co-PBS/PEG), respectively. Their surface properties were characterized by contact angles, surface energies and XPS. The biocompatibility of the films were further evaluated by the morphology, attachment, proliferation and viability of human salivary epithelial cells (HSG cells). Results revealed that SF/SO2/(PBT-co-PBS/PEG) possessed the high surface free energy (59.67 mJ/m2) and could immobilize a great amount of fibroin (SF surface coverage: 26.39 wt%), which attributed to the formation of such polar groups as hydrosulfide group, sulfonic group, carboxyl and carbonyl ones in the process of SO2 plasma treatment. The cell tests suggested that the silk fibroin anchoring could significantly enhance the biocompatibility of PBT-co-PBS/PEG, which implied the potential application of fibroin modified PBT-co-PBS/PEG for clinical HSG cells transplantation in artificial salivary gland constructs.

In this study, thermochemical biomass and coal co-gasification were performed on an autothermal fluidized bed gasifier, with air and steam as oxidizing and gasifying media. The experiments were completed at reaction temperatures of 875 °C–975 °C, steam-to-biomass ratio of 1.2, and biomass-to-coal ratio of 4. This research aims to determine the effects of reaction temperature on gas composition, lower heating value (LHV), as well as energy and exergy efficiencies, of the product gas. Over the ranges of the test conditions used, the product gas LHV varies between 12 and 13.8 MJ/Nm 3 , and the exergy and energy efficiencies of the product gas are in the ranges of 50.7%–60.8% and 60.3%–85.1%, respectively. The results show that high reaction temperature leads to higher H 2 and CO contents, as well as higher exergy and energy efficiencies of the product gas. In addition, gas LHV decreases with temperature. The molar ratio of H 2 /CO is larger than 1 at temperatures above 925 °C. Our experimental analysis shows that co-gasification of biomass and coal in an autothermal fluidized bed gasifier for gas production is feasible and promising.