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Introduction: Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is an autoimmune disease characterized by inflammatory infiltration, and dysfunction of the salivary and lacrimal glands. This research aimed to explore the disease pathogenesis and improve the diagnosis and treatment of pSS by mining inflammation-associated biomarkers. Methods: Five pSS-related datasets were retrieved from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Inflammation-associated biomarkers were determined by the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and support vector machines recursive feature elimination (SVM-RFE). Single sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) was implemented to profile the infiltration levels of immune cells. Real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) verified the expression of biomarkers in clinical samples. Results: Four genes (LY6E, EIF2AK2, IL15, and CXCL10) were screened as inflammation-associated biomarkers in pSS, the predictive performance of which were determined among three pSS-related datasets (AUC > 0.7). Functional enrichment results suggested that the biomarkers were involved in immune and inflammation-related pathways. Immune infiltration analysis revealed that biomarkers were notably connected with type 2 T helper cells, regulatory T cells which were significantly expressed between pSS and control. TESTOSTERONE and CYCLOSPORINE were predicted to take effect by targeting CXCL10 and IL15 in pSS, respectively. Conclusion: Four inflammation-associated biomarkers (LY6E, EIF2AK2, IL15, and CXCL10) were explored, and the underlying regulatory mechanisms and targeted drugs associated with these biomarkers were preliminarily investigated according to a series of bioinformatics methods based on the online datasets of pSS, which provided a reference for understanding the pathogenesis of pSS. Key Points • Inflammation-associated biomarkers (LY6E, EIF2AK2, IL15, and CXCL10) were firstly identified in Sjögren's syndrome based on LASSO and SVM-RFE analyses. • CXCL10, EIF2AK2 and LY6E were prominently positively correlated with immature B cells, while IL15 were significantly negatively correlated with memory B cells in Sjögren's syndrome. • LY6E, EIF2AK2, IL15, and CXCL10 were significantly more highly expressed in clinical Sjögren's syndrome samples compared to healthy control samples, which was consistent with the analysis results of the GEO database. •LY6E, EIF2AK2, IL15, and CXCL10 might be used as the biomarkers for the treatment and diagnosis of Sjögren's syndrome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the nucleation mechanism and boiling heat transfer characteristics of liquid hydrogen is a key issue in the development of liquid hydrogen storage systems. However, the current methods of experimental and mesoscopic or macroscopic scale continuous flow simulations suffer from the problems of large study scales and undetermined initial boundary conditions. The purpose of this study is to reveal the bubble nucleation mechanism and bubble development process of liquid hydrogen on the surface of heating plate at the molecular scale, and to investigate the effect of different heating plate temperature on bubble growth, during thin film boiling. In this research, molecular dynamics simulation is used to combine molecular position distribution with energy analysis and explain the molecular behavior. The effect of heating temperature on different phase transition stages of liquid hydrogen is also investigated by varying the heating surface temperature. In this study, the bubble nucleation, bubble development and merging of liquid hydrogen on the heating surface were successfully observed. It is shown that increasing the heating temperature has a small effect on the bubble growth rate and liquid layer thickness in the nucleation boiling stage, and mainly affects the gas film growth rate in the film boiling stage. The bubbles are extremely unstable at the initial stage of generation. Within 1 fs of the first appearance of bubbles, which are associated with random micro-pits caused by thermal motion of solid atoms, bubbles move on the surface of the heating plate. This study found a phenomenon that bubbles firstly generated and then disappeared. This paper provides a new idea for the nucleation mechanism and boiling heat transfer study of liquid hydrogen. Moreover, it provides a solution to the problems of liquid hydrogen phase change research. • Liquid hydrogen phase transition was observed by molecular dynamics methods. • The effect of wall temperature on film boiling was significant. • Micro-pits on the wall surface promote bubble nucleation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemically defined media (CDM) can eliminate or lessen the interference that occurs in complex culture media (CCM) caused by the undefined substrate pools, and various CDM have been designed and employed for investigating microbial physiology and multiomics. Herein, using the measured amount of total amino acids in CCM and combined with the in vivo and in vitro amino acid content of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis YF11, new enriched CDM were designed and then optimized using a statistical design-of-experiment method coupling with fed-batch fermentation to eliminate or lessen the influence of hyperosmotic pressure. Cell volume was introduced as a target index to assess the performance of CDM, and average osmotic pressure (AOP) was employed to describe the osmotic pressure of CDM. The AOP was significantly decreased from 610 mOsm/kg·H2O in the initial CDM (I-CDM) to 360 mOsm/kg·H2O in fed-batch CDM (F-CDM), and the cell volume was increased from 0.142 ± 0.004 μm3 in I-CDM to 0.198 ± 0.008 μm3 in F-CDM, which was close to 0.206 ± 0.005 μm3 found in CCM, indicating that the strategy of designing and improving CDM followed by a statistical design-of-experiment coupling with fed-batch cultivation presented a promising pathway for extensive utilization of CDM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is an infrequent form malignant tumor with a poor prognosis. Because of the influence of competitive risk, there may suffer from bias in the analysis of prognostic factors of MTC. Methods: By extracting the data of patients diagnosed with MTC registered in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database from 1998 to 2016, we established the Cox proportional-hazards and competing-risks model to retrospectively analyze the impact of related factors on lymph nodes statistically. Results: A total of 2,435 patients were included in the analysis, of which 198 died of MTC. The results of the multifactor competing-risk model showed that the number of total lymph nodes (19–89), positive lymph nodes (1–10,11–75) and positive lymph node ratio (25%-53%,>54%), age (46–60,>61), chemotherapy, mode of radiotherapy (others), tumor size(2-4cm,>4cm), number of lesions greater than 1 were poor prognostic factors for MTC. For the number of total lymph nodes, unlike the multivariate Cox proportional-hazards model results, we found that it became an independent risk factor after excluding competitive risk factors. Competitive risk factors have little effect on the number of positive lymph nodes. For the proportion of positive lymph nodes, we found that after excluding competitive risk factors, the Cox proportional-hazards model overestimates its impact on prognosis. The competitive risk model is often more accurate in analyzing the effects of prognostic factors. Conclusions: After excluding the competitive risk, the number of lymph nodes, the number of positive and the positive proportion are the poor prognostic factors of medullary thyroid cancer, which can help clinicians more accurately evaluate the prognosis of patients with medullary thyroid cancer and provide a reference for treatment decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Promoting energy-saving behavior among college students in dormitories is conducive to improving the energy efficiency of college buildings. As students in the same dormitory need to share the energy-using equipment and expenses, they will inevitably influence each other by their energy-use behaviors, and this interaction process will gradually reach a certain stable state with the passing of the time spent with roommates. However, the existing research on the influencing factors of energy-use behaviors often focuses on individual subjective characteristics while overlooking the influence of group and time factors. Therefore, this paper incorporates interpersonal relationship and group identity into the theory of planned behavior, and considers the time spent with roommates as the moderating variable to build a model of factors influencing college students' energy-use behaviors in their dormitories. Empirical data were collected by a questionnaire survey with 768 respondents, and generalized ordered logit regression was used to analyze the research model. The results reveal that the factors that influence students' energy-use behaviors will change with the time spent with roommates. When the time spent with roommates is 0–1 year, interpersonal relationships, group identity, comfort, individual norms, and environmental concerns are significant influences. When the time spent with roommates is 1–2 years, environmental concerns will no longer have an effect; however, energy-use costs and energy-use habits will be added. When the time spent with roommates is 2–3 years, interpersonal relationships, individual norms, group identity, and energy-use costs will no longer have any influence, but subjective norm will be added. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The histone demethylase JMJD1C is associated with human platelet counts. The JMJD1C knockout in zebrafish and mice leads to the ablation of megakaryocyte–erythroid lineage anemia. However, the specific expression, function, and mechanism of JMJD1C in megakaryopoiesis remain unknown. Here, we used cell line models, cord blood cells, and thrombocytopenia samples, to detect the JMJD1C expression. ShRNA of JMJD1C and a specific peptide agonist of JMJD1C, SAH-JZ3, were used to explore the JMJD1C function in the cell line models. The actin ratio in megakaryopoiesis for the JMJDC modulation was also measured. Mass spectrometry was used to identify the JMJD1C-interacting proteins. We first show the JMJD1C expression difference in the PMA-induced cell line models, the thrombopoietin (TPO)-induced megakaryocyte differentiation of the cord blood cells, and also the thrombocytopenia patients, compared to the normal controls. The ShRNA of JMJD1C and SAH-JZ3 showed different effects, which were consistent with the expression of JMJD1C in the cell line models. The effort to find the underlying mechanism of JMJD1C in megakaryopoiesis, led to the discovery that SAH-JZ3 decreases F-actin in K562 cells and increases F-actin in MEG-01 cells. We further performed mass spectrometry to identify the potential JMJD1C-interacting proteins and found that the important Ran GTPase interacts with JMJD1C. To sum up, JMJD1C probably regulates megakaryopoiesis by influencing the actin network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For high-resolution range profile (HRRP) radar target recognition in a low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) scenario, traditional methods frequently perform denoising and recognition separately. In addition, they assume equivalent contributions of the target and the noise regions during feature extraction and fail to capture the global dependency. To tackle these issues, an integrated denoising and recognition network, namely, IDR-Net, is proposed. The IDR-Net achieves denoising through the denoising module after adversarial training, and learns the global relationship of the generated HRRP sequence using the attention-augmented temporal encoder. Furthermore, a hybrid loss is proposed to integrate the denoising module and the recognition module, which enables end-to-end training, reduces the information loss during denoising, and boosts the recognition performance. The experimental results on the measured HRRPs of three types of aircraft demonstrate that IDR-Net obtains higher recognition accuracy and more robustness to noise than traditional methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interferon-stimulated gene 15 (ISG15) regulates cellular life processes, including defense responses against infection by a variety of viral pathogens, by binding to target proteins. At present, various fish ISG15s have been identified, but the biological function of ISG15 in snakehead fish is still unclear. In this study, total RNA was extracted from snakehead fish cell line E11, ds cDNA was synthesized and purified using SMART technology, and the resulting cDNA library was screened by co-transforming yeast cells. The library titer was 4.28 × 109 CFU/mL. Using snakehead ISG15 as the bait protein, the recombinant bait vector pGBKT7-ISG15 was constructed and transformed into the yeast strain Y2HGold. The toxicity and self-activation activity of the bait vector were detected on the deficient medium, and the prey proteins interacting with ISG15 were screened. In total, 19 interacting proteins of ISG15 were identified, including mitotic checkpoint protein BUB3, hypothetical protein SnRVgp6, elongation factor 1-beta, 60S ribosomal protein L9, dual specificity protein phosphatase 5-like, eukaryotic translation initiation factor 3 subunit I and ferritin. A yeast spotting assay further probed the interaction between ISG15 and DUSP5. These results increase our understanding of the interaction network of snakehead ISG15 and will aid in exploring the underlying mechanisms of snakehead ISG15 functions in the future. • The yeast two-hybrid cDNA library were constructed from E11 cells. • Nineteen ISG15-interacting proteins were identified in E11 cDNA yeast library. • Yeast spotting assay confirmed DUSP5 interacting with ISG15. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Estimation of micron-sized microplastics in tea infusion by Raman imaging. • Detection of submicron- and nano-sized microplastics in tea infusion by Py-GC/MS. • Woven tea bags release far fewer microplastics than nonwoven tea bags. • Pre-washing reduced 76–94% micron- and 80–87% submicron-sized microplastic. Microplastics released from plastic-based filter bags during tea brewing have attracted widespread attention. Laser confocal micro-Raman and direct classical least squares were used to identify and estimate micron-sized microplastics. Characteristic peaks from pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry of polyethylene terephthalate, polypropylene, and nylon 6 were selected to construct curves for quantification submicron-sized microplastics. The results showed that microplastics released from tea bags in the tea infusions ranged from 80 to 1288 pieces (micron-sized) and 0 to 63.755 μg (submicron-sized) per filter bag. Nylon 6 woven tea bags released far fewer microplastics than nonwoven filter bags. In particular, a simple strategy of three pre-washes with room temperature water significantly reduced microplastic residues with removal rates of 76 %–94 % (micron-sized) and 80 %–87 % (submicron-sized), respectively. The developed assay can be used for the quantitative evaluation of microplastics in tea infusions, and the pre-washing reduced the risk of human exposure to microplastics during tea consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• miR-200b-5p is up-regulated and c-myc and SIRT1 are down-regulated in MCAO mice. • c-myc or SIRT1 protects mice from MCAO-induced brain damage. • c-myc binds to the miR-200b-5p promoter to inhibit miR-200b-5p expression. • miR-200b-5p targets and regulates SIRT1 expression. • Down-regulating miR-200b-5p reduces brain damage in MCAO mice. c-myc has been reported to attenuate ischemia stroke (IS). We initiated the research to uncover the molecular mechanism of c-myc with regard to microRNA (miR)-200b-5p/Sirtuin1 (SIRT1) axis. An IS mouse model was prepared by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Measurements of c-myc, miR-200b-5p and SIRT1 levels in MCAO mice were conducted. c-myc, miR-200b-5p and SIRT1 expression levels in MCAO mice were detected. The neurological function, production of inflammatory cytokines, neuronal apoptosis, brain tissue pathology and neuronal survival of MCAO mice were observed. c-myc and SIRT1 levels went downward while miR-200b-5p expression went upward in MCAO mice. Elevation of c-myc or suppression of miR-200b-5p improved neurological function, reduced inflammation and neuronal apoptosis, and attenuated brain tissue pathology and neuronal survival of MCAO mice. Enhancement of miR-200b-5p or knockdown of SIRT1 weakened c-myc-induced protection against MCAO-induced brain injury in mice. Overall, c-myc protects mice from IS through elevating miR-200b-5p-targeted SIRT1 expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) constitute a family of transcripts with unique structures and have been confirmed to be critical in tumorigenesis and to be potential biomarkers or therapeutic targets. However, only a few circRNAs have been functionally characterized in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Methods: Here, we investigated the expression pattern of circRNAs in pediatric AML using a circRNA microarray. The characteristics, potential diagnostic value, and prognostic significance of circRNF220 were evaluated. A series of functional experiments were performed to investigate the role of circRNF220 in primary pediatric AML cells. Then we investigated the aberrant transcriptional networks regulated by circRNF220 in primary AML cells by RNA-seq. Furthermore, biotin RNA pulldown assays were implemented to verify the relationship between circRNF220 and miR-30a. Results: We identified a circRNA, circRNF220, which was specifically abundant in and accumulated in the peripheral blood and bone marrow of pediatric patients with AML. It could distinguish AML from ALL and other hematological malignancies with high sensitivity and specificity. Significantly, circRNF220 expression independently predicted prognosis, while high expression of circRNF220 was an unfavorable prognostic marker for relapse. Furthermore, we characterized the function of circRNF220 and found that circRNF220 knockdown specifically inhibited proliferation and promoted apoptosis in AML cell lines and primary cells. Mechanistically, circRNF220 may act as an endogenous sponge of miR-30a to sequester miR-30a and inhibit its activity, which increases the expression of its targets MYSM1 and IER2 and implicated in AML relapse. Conclusions: Collectively, these findings demonstrated that circRNF220 could be highly efficient and specific for the accurate diagnosis of pediatric AML, with implications for relapse prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This study was conducted to investigate the effect of water‐based Liuzijue exercise on peak exercise capacity, functional exercise capacity, and quality of life in people with COPD. Methods: The study included 50 participants randomly divided into three groups: a control group (CG = 17), a land‐based Liuzijue exercise group (LG = 17), and a water‐based Liuzijue exercise group (WG = 16). The LG and WG performed Liuzijue exercise in different environments, and the CG had no exercise intervention. All participants received prescribed medical treatment. Liuzijue exercise was performed according to the description of Health Qigong Liuzijue compiled by Chinese Health Qigong Association for 60 minutes, two times per week, for 12 weeks. Results: After intervention, peak oxygen uptake and peak working rate were significantly improved in WG (P =.02). The results of the 6 minutes walking test (6MWT) and 30 seconds sit‐to‐stand test were significantly improved in both WG and LG (P <.05), and significant difference was found between WG and CG in 6MWT (P =.03). The St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) activity score increased significantly in the CG (P =.03), while all domains of SGRQ significantly decreased in both training groups (P <.01). All SGRQ scores showed a significant difference between LG and CG (P <.05) and, except for the activity score, between WG and CG (P <.05). Conclusions: Water‐based Liuzijue exercise can effectively improve peak exercise capacity, functional exercise capacity, and quality of life in people with COPD, especially with respect to increasing peak VO2 and 6MWD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peripheral biomarkers indicative of brain pathology are critically needed for early detection of Parkinson's disease (PD). In this study, using NanoString and digital PCR technologies, we began by screening for alterations in genes associated with PD or atypical Parkinsonism in erythrocytes of PD patients, in which PD-related changes have been reported, and which contain ~ 99% of blood α-synuclein. Erythrocytic CHCHD2 mRNA was significantly reduced even at the early stages of the disease. A significant reduction in protein and/or mRNA expression of CHCHD2 was confirmed in PD brains collected at autopsy as well as in the brains of a PD animal model overexpressing α-synuclein, in addition to seeing a reduction of CHCHD2 in erythrocytes of the same animals. Overexpression of α-synuclein in cellular models of PD also resulted in reduced CHCHD2, via mechanisms likely involving altered subcellular localization of p300 histone acetyltransferase. Finally, the utility of reduced CHCHD2 mRNA as a biomarker for detecting PD, including early-stage PD, was validated in a larger cohort of 205 PD patients and 135 normal controls, with a receiver operating characteristic analysis demonstrating > 80% sensitivity and specificity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global demand for food continues to grow as a result of rising incomes and population growth. Meanwhile, the sustainability of food production is affected by climate change and agricultural soil degradation. The objective of this study was to evaluate the dynamic changes of maize/soybean yield, yield stability and soil fertility under mono-cropping and intercropping systems with different nitrogen application rates. The yield stability and sustainability of maize and soybeans were studied from 2017 to 2020 (Northeast Agricultural University, Acheng Experimental Site) according to the changes in crop yield, actual yield loss index, soil fertility over time as well as the differences in coefficient of variation and sustainable yield index under different cropping patterns in the maize/soybean intercropping system. This study established three cropping patterns (maize monoculture, soybean monoculture, and maize/soybean intercropping) with four nitrogen application rates (0/0 kg N ha–1, N0; 180/40 kg N ha–1, N1; 240/80 kg N ha–1, N2; 300/120 kg N ha–1, N3) based on the two-factor split block design. The maize and system yield indicated that intercropping was superior to the corresponding monoculture throughout the four-year experiment. With the extension of planting season, the yield from intercropping with nitrogen treatment (N1, N2 and N3) was higher than that without nitrogen treatment (N0). The yield stability of the intercropping system was also higher than that of the matched monoculture system. The coefficient of variation of the intercropping system was 18.83 % on average, which was lower than that of the matched monoculture system. In four years, the average contribution rate of soil fertility in intercropping treatment was higher than that in monoculture treatment. The structural equation model results suggested that the effect of nitrogen application rate on yield and yield stability was greater than that of cropping pattern. The yield and yield stability of maize/soybean intercropping over time was higher than matched monoculture under different nitrogen application rates due to higher soil fertility contribution in intercropping. This study provides theoretical evidence for maintaining the sustainability of legume and cereal intercropping and improving food security in the increasingly intensive global cropping systems. • Maize/soybean intercropping over time improved stability of crop yields. • Soil fertility contribution rate in intercropping was higher compared to monoculture. • Contribution rate of N fertilizer to maize yield stability was greater than soybean. • Influence of fertilizer on yield stability was greater than that of cropping pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Co-infections with pathogenic microorganisms are common in aquaculture, resulting in more serious economic losses than single-pathogen infection. Infection of Aeromonas hydrophila (A. hydrophila) often occurs together with infectious spleen and kidney necrosis virus (ISKNV) in Chinese perch (Siniperca chuatsi) culture ponds. In this study, A. hydrophila and ISKNV were inoculated into Chinese perch to mimic individual infection, secondary infection, and mixed infection. The effects of concurrent infections on the susceptibility and the immune response of the host and changes in bacterial and viral load were studied. The results showed relatively complex interaction between ISKNV and A. hydrophila for different infection modes, acting in an antagonistic or synergistic manner. The experimental groups infected with a mixture of ISKNV and A. hydrophila showed higher mortality rate than groups infected with single-pathogen or secondary infection groups, suggesting a synergistic lethal effect of A. hydrophila and ISKNV co-infection. Serious clinical symptoms and obvious histopathological changes were observed in moribund fish under the mixed-infection condition. In addition, obviously higher mortalities were caused by secondary bacterial infections than the number caused by secondary viral infections. ISKNV-primary infection increased the mortality caused by secondary bacterial infections, but A. hydrophila -primary infection did not significantly increase the mortality caused by secondary viral infections. Co-infected fish showed high expression levels of IRF1, Mx, Viperin, Hepcidin, TNFα, and IL-1β mRNAs relative to the levels in healthy fish, which suggested that the co-infection of these two pathogens activated the host immune system and caused host inflammation. These results of infection with A. hydrophila and ISKNV provided the theoretical basis to analyze the pathogenic effects and interaction between pathogens, and could facilitate design of strategies for clinical prevention and control measures of outbreak of fulminant hemorrhagic disease and bacterial sepsis in Chinese perch. • Antagonistic effects show up in double infections when fish are infected first with ISKNV and secondly with AH. • Serious clinical symptoms and obvious histopathological changes were observed in moribund fish under the mixed-infection condition. • Obviously higher mortalities were caused by secondary bacterial infections than the number caused by secondary viral infections. • When fish are infected with ISKNV first, followed by AH, they exhibit an antagonistic effect in double infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy consumption monitoring technology plays a very important role in the realization of intelligent building energy saving, but it is not accepted widely in China. The main reasons for this are the low public energy-saving awareness and incomplete informational policy instruments; thus, studying how informational policy instruments affect the adoption of energy consumption monitoring technology and the impact of energy-saving awareness is of great significance to the widespread acceptance of energy consumption monitoring technology and its role in the realization of intelligent building energy saving. This paper introduces informational policy instruments and energy-saving awareness into technology acceptance model and builds an extended technology acceptance model. A questionnaire survey of 298 respondents who related to the operation and management of public buildings was used to explore the effect mechanism of informational policy instruments on adopting energy consumption monitoring technology. The results show that (1) informational policy instruments have no direct impact on the acceptance of energy consumption monitoring technology (2) and energy-saving awareness, attitudes, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use can mediate the relationship between informational policy instruments and behavioral intention of adopting energy consumption monitoring technology, namely, informational policy instruments can affect behavioral intention through six paths which are informational policy instruments ➔ energy-saving awareness ➔ behavioral intention, informational policy instruments ➔ energy-saving awareness ➔ attitudes ➔ behavioral intention, informational policy instruments ➔ attitudes ➔ behavioral intention, informational policy instruments ➔ perceived ease of use ➔ behavioral intention, informational policy instruments ➔ perceived ease of use ➔ perceived usefulness ➔ behavioral intention, informational policy instruments ➔ perceived usefulness ➔ behavioral intention. Finally, relevant policies and suggestions are put forward based on the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microblogs are revolutionising the way users produce, consume and distribute short content. The continuous content contributions of users are crucial for the sustainable development of microblogs. Knowledge regarding this user behaviour is scarce. Based on the uses and gratifications theory (U&G) and the social influence theory (SIT), this paper proposes an integrated research model with the aim of understanding the factors that affect users' continuous content contribution behaviours (CCCB) on microblogs. The data were collected from 379 microblog users in China. The empirical results indicate that perceived gratification had a positive but surprisingly trivial effect on continuous content contribution behaviours. Social influence had a strong and significantly positive effect on users' CCCB, it also had a positive moderating effect on the relationship between perceived gratification and CCCB. Users' perceived gratification was positively affected by the antecedents of self-expression, anticipated extrinsic rewards and anticipated reciprocity but negatively affected by privacy concerns. The platform attributes of microblogs (i.e. accessibility and interactivity) also influenced users' perceived gratification. This research contributes to social media research with regards to the theory of users' CCCB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How can command-and-control instruments (CACs) influence consumers' adoption of energy consumption monitoring technology (ECMT) in public buildings? We attempt to answer this question in an extended theory of planned behaviour in which CACs and energy-saving awareness (ESA) are introduced. Empirical data are collected by a questionnaire survey with 298 respondents, and structural equation modelling (SEM) is used to analyse the research model. The results indicate that ESA has a direct impact on consumers' adoption of ECMT. The CACs have no direct effect on consumers' adoption of ECMT but can indirectly affect consumers' adoption of ECMT through three paths: CAC → ATT (attitudes) → BI (behavioural intention), CAC → ESA → BI and CAC → SN (subjective norm) → BI. Finally, suggestions are proposed, such as optimising the selection and combination of policy instruments, promoting the operation manager's attitude towards ECMT to a more positive orientation, improving the ESA of the operation manager and providing more support for and pressure on the operation manager who has not adopted ECMT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Radiation damage to normal tissues is a serious concern. P53 is a well-known transcription factor which is closely associated with radiation-induced cell damage. Increasing evidence has indicated that regulation of metabolism by p53 represents a reviving mechanism vital to protect cell survival. We aimed to explore the interactions of radiation-induced transcripts with the cellular metabolism regulated by p53. Methods: Human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cell line was used to knockout p53 using CRISPR/cas9. Transcriptomic analysis was conducted by microarray and metabolomic analysis was conducted by GC–MS. Integrative omics was performed using MetaboAnalyst. Results: 326 mRNAs showed significantly altered expression in HBE p53-/- cells post-radiation, of which 269 were upregulated and 57 were downregulated. A total of 147 metabolites were altered, including 45 that increased and 102 that decreased. By integrated analysis of both omic data, we found that in response to radiation insult, nitrogen metabolism, glutathione metabolism, arachidonic acid metabolism, and glycolysis or gluconeogenesis may be dysregulated due to p53. Conclusions: Our study provided a pilot comprehensive view of the metabolism regulated by p53 in response to radiation exposure. Detailed evaluation of these important p53-regulated metabolic pathways, including their roles in the response to radiation of cells, is essential to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of radiation-induced damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mounting evidence suggests that alternative splicing is one of the ways for cells to adapt to environmental stress insults. The aim of this study was firstly to examine the effect of silica on the alternative splicing of lung fibrosis–associated genes. Methods: Microarray analysis was used to construct the alternative splicing profile. Functional experiments were conducted using Cell Counting Kit-8, cell cycle, apoptosis, and epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) analyses. Alternative splicing variants were verified by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) polymerase chain reaction method. Results: A total of 1850 genes that have alternative splices in response to silica insult were identified. PCDHB11, MALAT1, MT2A, RP11-126D17.1, and RP11-415I12.2 are the top 5 upregulated genes with occurrence of alternative splice, whereas NDE1, RNPEPL1, TREML2, CSF2RB, and PRKCSH are the top 5 downregulated genes with occurrence of alternative splice. Bioinformatic analysis showed these genes with the occurrence of alternative splice mainly are associated with EMT pathway, N-Glycan biosynthesis, and leukocyte transendothelial migration. Further study indicated that PRKCSH-2 knockdown promotes A549 cell proliferation potential by partially promoting EMT signals. Conclusions: Significant changes in alternative splicing of silicosis-associated genes occur in patients with silicosis in silica conditions. Our study provides basic founding for further investigation into the detail molecular mechanisms underlying silica-induced silicosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Computed tomography (CT) is used worldwide; however, recent studies suggest that CT radiation exposure during childhood may be a risk factor for cancer, although the data are inconsistent. Methods: A comprehensive search of electronic databases including PubMed, SpringerLink, Embase, Cochrane Library, Elsevier/ScienceDirect, Medline, Orbis, and Web of Science databases from January 1990 to November 2018 for observational epidemiologic studies reporting associations between radiation exposure from CT in childhood and the subsequent risk of cancer was conducted. A linear model was used to explore the dose–response relationship. Results: Seven studies with 1180 987 children enrolled were included. The risk of later cancer was 1.32-fold higher for children exposed to CT than those without exposure. Compared to those not exposed to pediatric CT, the relative risk (RRs) were larger for the higher doses but with wider CIs (RR for 5-10 mGy: 0.90, 95% CI: 0.69-1.12; RR for 10-15 mGy: 1.02, 95% CI: 0.86-1.18; RR for >15 mGy: 1.13, 95% CI: 0.97-1.30), the leukemia risk was higher in exposed children (RR: 1.23, 95% CI: 1.10-1.36), and brain cancer risk was higher in exposed children (RR: 1.54, 95% CI: 0.84-2.45). Conclusions: Our analysis suggested that radiation exposure from CT during childhood is associated with a subsequently elevated risk of cancer. However, caution is needed when interpreting these results because of the heterogeneity among the studies. The findings should be confirmed in further studies with longer follow-up periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vibrio harveyi is a pathogen of various aquatic organisms that has been recently associated with massive mortality episodes in the aquaculture industry. Recurrent outbreaks of vibriosis are closely correlated with the capacity of this bacterial species to survive long-term starvation conditions. To study the regulation mechanism of gene expression at the transcriptional level in V. harveyi under starvation conditions, the transcriptomic response profiles were determined of the Portunus trituberculatus pathogen V. harveyi strain DY1 under normal conditions and after four weeks of starvation. A total of 4 679 and 4 661 genes were expressed in the non-starved and starved cells, respectively. The significantly differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between non-starved and starved groups were identified, in which 255 genes were up-regulated and 411 genes were down-regulated. GO analysis and KEGG enrichment analysis were used to analyze the DEGs and revealed the involvement of these DEGs in many pathways, including ABC transporters, flagellum assembly, and fatty acid metabolism. Several DEGs were randomly selected and their expression levels were confirmed by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). This is the first comprehensive transcriptomic analysis of starvation effects in V. harveyi. Our findings will facilitate future study on stress adaptation and survival mechanisms of V. harveyi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a renewable energy alternative to fossil fuels, biomass pellets have attracted much attention due to its promising advantages of convenient use and easy combustion. Rapid discrimination of different biomass pellets and selecting the one with better combustion performance are of great significance to improve the energy utilization. In this study, laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) coupled with chemometrics methods were used to discriminate biomass pellets. Lignocellulose components were firstly determined and further analyzed according to LIBS spectra. Principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares discrimination analysis (PLS-DA), support vector machines (SVM), radial basis function neural network (RBFNN) and extreme learning machine (ELM) were applied to quantitatively distinguish biomass pellets. The RBFNN model showed a reliable discrimination power, with 100% and 96.88% average recognition accuracy in calibration and prediction sets respectively. Visualization analysis based on the RBFNN model was applied to intuitively discriminate the biomass pellets with different colors. In addition, rice husk with relatively poor combustion performance could be accurately distinguished from wood biomass pellets by all discrimination models. The results indicated that LIBS combined with chemometrics methods could be a novel and reliable approach to discriminate biomass pellets and select the category with better combustion performance. • LIBS and chemometrics methods were used to quickly discriminate biomass pellets. • Robust and simple models were constructed for discrimination of biomass pellets. • Different Biomass pellets can be visualized with different colors. • This approach has potential for on-line and in-situ application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of the era of deep Internet, the huge scientific and economic value of big data is gradually highlighted. However, there are high technical barriers in its data analysis methods. In order to explore the value space of large data, we need to abandon the traditional scheme and adopt new analysis methods. Strategies such as strengthening the overall framework of intelligent traffic standard system, the development and use of key technologies, and breaking down information barriers are of reference value for other cities to build intelligent traffic. The deep neural network algorithm integrates huge heterogeneous data with bionic learning algorithm, supports multi-source information screening, and achieves dynamic capture of time series, thus building a bridge between large data and value information. The article analyzes the current situation of traffic in multiple cities, and starts with the traffic under big data and cloud computing, and studies the application of big data and cloud computing in intelligent transportation system, in order to provide some reference for the development of smart Wuhan. With reference. The analysis results show that the infinite neural network has more powerful computational efficiency and performance advantages in data processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the importance of the gut microbiota in the maintenance of human health has been well established, little is known about the impact of low-dose ionizing radiation ([LDR]; exposure to a dose of less than 0.5 Gy of low linear energy transfer radiation such as γ- or X-rays) on the composition and functional role of the gut microbiota. The aim of the present study was to investigate and compare the composition of the gut microbiota in mice exposed to LDR. Male BALB/c mice were exposed to low-dose Co60 radiation. Fecal samples taken prior to and after irradiation were used for high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA gene sequence amplicons. We observed substantial changes in the composition of the gut microbiota, including alpha diversity and beta diversity, in mice exposed to LDR compared with the nonradiated control group. Moreover, at the genus level, the abundance of Clostridium , Helicobacter , and Oscilibacter increased, and those of Bacteroides and Barnesiella decreased, in a time-dependent manner in the radiated groups compared with the nonradiated control group. The functional metabolic pathway analysis indicated that Bacteroides spp. and members of the other genera that were found are predicted to play roles in bacterial toxin production, DNA repair, and Type II diabetes. Furthermore, these alterations in the gut microbiota were accompanied by changes in the abundance of multiple metabolites, which were predicted to be involved in multiple signaling pathways, including glucagon, central carbon metabolism, and type II diabetes. The possibility of microbiota-mediated pathophysiology resulting from LDR may be an as yet unrecognized hazard that merits further experimental examination. This study provides a conceptual and analytical foundation for further research into the chronic effects of LDR on human health, and points to potential novel targets for intervention to prevent the adverse effects of radiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrical characterization indicates that the nonvolatile write once read many (WORM) times/volatile static random access memory (SRAM) conversion was triggered by the composite of the oxadiazole small molecule. FTO/PMMA/Ag device possesses nonvolatile WORM memory behavior, while the FTO/PMMA+oxadiazole/Ag device shows vastly different volatile SRAM feature. The FTO/PMMA/Ag and FTO/PMMA+oxadiazole/Ag memory devices both exhibit high ON/OFF ratio nearly 104. The additive oxadiazole small molecule in the polymethyl methacrylate was suggested to form an internal electrode and serve as a channel during the charge transfer process, which is easy to both the charge transfer and back charge transfer, as a consequence, the WORM/SRAM conversion upon oxadiazole small molecule complexation was triggered. The results observed in this work manifest the significance of oxadiazole small molecule to the memory effects and will arouse the research interest about small molecule composite applied in memory devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to create a binder-free electrode with 3D on 2D hierarchical structure, Co(OH) 2 nanosheet arrays were firstly electrodeposited on nickel foam (NF), and ZIF-67 polyhedral structural material was then grown in situ on the nanosheets to obtain the ZCo@NF electrode. The maximum areal specific capacitance of A-ZCo@NF electrode was 5603 mF cm−2 at 5 mA cm−2, and the capacitance retention rate was 89.18% after 10000 cycles. The 3D on 2D hierarchical structure can simultaneously increase the electrochemically active area and modulate the electronic structure through heterostructural interface coupling to illustrate such excellent capacitive performance. Furthermore, the electrode without binders decreased the resistance of contact, thereby promoting the transportation of electrons/ions. Therefore, the asymmetric supercapacitor, which was assembled of A-ZCo@NF and activated carbon (AC), delivered the areal specific capacitance of 1169.6 mF cm−2 at 1 mA cm−2, the areal energy density of 365.5 μWh·cm−2 at the power density facilitateof 753 μW cm−2. After 10000 cycles, the capacitance retention rate remained 80.86%, which showed good cycling stability. The high-performance illustrated that as-prepared sample was a promising positive electrode material for asymmetric supercapacitor. • Three binder-free electrodes were constructed by electrodeposition method and subsequent immersing process. • The 3D on 2D hierarchical structure contributed to enhance electron transfer and facilitate ion diffusion. • The A-ZCo@NF presented a high areal specific capacitance of 5603 mF cm−2 at a current density of 5 mA cm−2. • The device of A-ZCo@NF//AC@GF exhibited an areal specific capacitance of 1169.6 mF cm−2 at a current density of 1 mA cm−2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the real physical model and operating environment of the spacecraft tank, the numerical model of the tank is established and the sloshing behavior of liquid hydrogen in the tank under different longitudinal excitations is studied in this work. The Realizable k- ε model is used to predict the fluid turbulence, and the mixture model is used to analyze the phase transitions and flows. The harmonic external excitation is loaded by the user-defined function (UDF). Based on the CFD sloshing model verified through comparison with experimental results, the influences of different longitudinal external excitation frequencies and amplitudes on the liquid hydrogen volume fraction in the tank are firstly analyzed. On this basis, including pressure and other physical quantities of the monitoring points and whole internal fluid domain during the sloshing simulation process are studied quantitatively. In addition, the relationship between the carrier amplitude of the sloshing curves and the external excitation amplitude is discussed. The simulation results show that in microgravity environment, compared with large amplitude excitation, high-frequency longitudinal harmonic excitation has a significant effect on the variation of physical parameters in the tank, which may become a negative factor for the safety of liquid hydrogen storage and supply systems. Meanwhile, the traditional baffle design has a limited influence on the liquid hydrogen motion under the high-frequency longitudinal excitation which may occur during the spacecraft changing load process. The results provide valuable information for the understanding of sloshing behavior and safety evaluation of the tank under longitudinal excitation. • Longitudinal harmonic excitations are applied to a LH 2 tank in microgravity. • Excitation frequencies over 20 Hz significantly effect on the sloshing behavior. • The shape of the gas-liquid interface is insensitive to the excitation amplitude. • Baffles limit sloshing better at high amplitude excitations than at high frequency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Cerebral small vessel disease(s) (SVD) results from pathological changes of the small blood vessels in the brain and is common in older people. The diagnostic features by which SVD manifests in brain includes white matter hyperintensities, lacunes, dilated perivascular spaces, microbleeds, and atrophy. In the present study, we use in vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to characterize brain morphometry and longitudinal relaxation time (T1) of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) to study the contribution of chronic hypertension to SVD relevant pathology. Male SHR and Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats underwent 3D variable flip angle spoiled gradient echo brain MRI at 9.4 T at early (seven weeks old) and established (19 weeks old) stages of hypertension. The derived proton density weighted and T1 images were utilized for morphometry and to characterize T1 properties in gray matter (GM), white matter (WM) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Custom tissue probability maps were constructed for accurate computerized whole brain tissue segmentations and voxel-wise analyses. Characteristic morphological differences between the two strains included enlarged ventricles, smaller corpus callosum (CC) volumes and general 'thinning' of CC in SHR compared to WKY rats at both age groups. While we did not observe parenchymal T1 differences, the T1 of CSF was elevated in SHR compared to controls. Collectively these findings indicate that SHRs develop WM atrophy which is a clinically robust MRI biomarker associated with WM degeneration. Highlights • VFA-SPGR MRI technique was applied in studying both morphology and longitudinal relaxation time. • SHRs exhibit enlarged ventricles and reduced corpus callosum volumes. • The longitudinal relaxation times in SHR and WKY rats were not significantly different in the brain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Snakehead vesiculovirus (SHVV) has caused great economic loss in snakehead fish culture in China. However, there is no effective strategy to prevent the epidemic of the virus. Understanding the host factors in response to virus infection is the basis for the prevention of viral disease. In this study, the transcriptomic profiles of SHVV-infected and mock-infected SSN-1 cells (derived from striped snakehead, Channa striatus) at 3 and 24 h (h) post of infection (poi) were obtained using high-throughput sequencing technique. A total of 93,372 unigenes were obtained. The differently expressed genes (DEGs) of SSN-1 cells upon SHVV infection were thereby identified, including 3668 and 3536 DEGs at 3 and 24 h poi, respectively. These DEGs were involved in many pathways of viral pathogenesis, including retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I) like receptors pathway, Toll-like receptor signaling pathway, NF-kappa B signaling pathway, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway and MAPK signaling pathway. Therefore, several immune-related DEGs were randomly selected and confirmed by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). In addition, the effects of the interferon inducible protein 35 (IFI35) on SHVV replication were further investigated. Over-expression or inhibition of IFI35 significantly promoted or reduced SHVV replication at the level of viral gene expression, which indicated that IFI35 might be a positive factor for SHVV replication in SSN-1 cells. Our findings presented some valuable information, which will benefit for future study on SHVV-host interactions. Highlights • The first report of transcriptomic analysis of striped snakehead cells infected with snakehead vesiculovirus. • 3668 and 3536 differentially expressed genes at 3 and 24 h poi were obtained. • Interferon inducible protein 35 is a positive factor for SHVV replication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The glymphatic system is a glial-dependent waste clearance pathway in the brain, in place of lymphatic vessels, dedicated to drain away soluble waste proteins and metabolic products. Specifically, the glymphatic network serves as a "front end" for waste clearance, and is connected downstream to an authentic lymphatic network, associated with dura covering the brain as well as cranial nerves and large vessels at the skull exits. The anatomical and functional interconnections between these two networks are not completely understood. Several key physiological processes have been identified that control glymphatic transport function and waste clearance from brain. In this review, we aim to provide an overview and discussion of the concept behind the glymphatic system, current evidence, and controversies, while specifically focusing on the consequences of aging and evidence of its existence in human brain. Discovering novel strategies for optimizing and maintaining efficient brain waste clearance across the lifespan may in the future prove to be important for preventing cognitive decline and sustaining healthy aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The safety of genetically modified (GM) food has attracted worldwide attention with a high-frequency appearance in people's daily life. It is increasingly urgent to find a fast and efficient method to detect GM products to provide reference for safety evaluation. In the current study, we used laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy coupled with chemometrics methods to identify transgenic maize from their non-transgenic parent. One-hundred and twenty GM maize and 120 non-GM maize samples were firstly examined by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) system. After obtaining the LIBS spectra, principal component analysis (PCA) was introduced to explore the separability of two kinds of samples, and 32 and 30 characteristic emission lines were selected using PCA loadings and weighted regression coefficients (BW), respectively. Classification models based on full spectra and characteristic emission lines were further built by applying partial least squares discrimination analysis (PLS-DA), soft independent modeling of class analogy (SIMCA), and extreme learning machine (ELM). The overall results demonstrated that all models achieved an excellent identification rate, especially the PCA loading-ELM model showed the best performance in the identification of GM maize, with 100% identification accuracy in both calibration and prediction sets. It can be concluded that LIBS combined with chemometrics methods provide a promising way for identification of transgenic maize. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Endometrial dedifferentiated carcinoma is a rare, malignant tumor whose molecular alterations have not been clarified yet. We report a novel case of a 61-year old woman who presented with irregular vaginal bleeding after menopause and a 3 cm uterus mass. Histology revealed endometrial dedifferentiated adenocarcinoma, a rare subtype comprised of undifferentiated adenocarcinoma. The patient still survived 1 year after surgery without chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Immunohistochemistry revealed loss of MLH1/PMS2 expression and retained MSH2/MSH6 expression. Consistently, microsatellite instability was detected indicative of high microsatellite instability (MSI-H). No BRAF V600E, KRAS and POLE mutations were identified. Remarkably, the promoter regions of mutL homolog 1(MLH1) were methylated. Furthermore, several tumor cells were PD-L1 positive in this case with a concentration at the infiltrating tumor edge indicating MSI-H in endometrial dedifferentiated adenocarcinoma is a potential predictive factor for response to immunotherapy targeting the PD-1 or its ligand PD-L1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The largemouth bass virus (LMBV) isolate of Santee-Cooper ranavirus showed evidence of widespread infection in adult fish, but disease presentation caused by different viral strains exhibited considerable difference. In this study, a highly pathogenic LMBV-like resembling Santee-Cooper ranavirus was isolated and identified from juvenile largemouth bass. The pathogenicity and dynamic distribution of LMBV-like strain, histopathological analysis and host immune response of juvenile largemouth bass infected with LMBV-like were investigated. The results show that LMBV-like was highly pathogenic to juvenile fish, and the infected fish showed typical signs of acute haemorrhages and visceral enlargement. LMBV-like positive cells were found in the liver, spleen, kidney, gills, and intestinal tissue, and the virus content in spleen was the highest. Histopathological analysis showed different pathological changes in major tissues of diseased fish, mostly manifested as infiltration of inflammatory cell and histiocyte necrosis. In addition, humoral immune factors such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and acid phosphatase (ACP) were used as serum indicators to evaluate the immune response of juvenile fish after infection. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to evaluate the expression patterns of immune-related genes (CD40, IFN-γ, IgM, IL-1β, IL-8, IL-12a, Mxd3, TGF-β, and TNFα) in liver, spleen, and head kidney tissues. The results showed that immunological activity of the juvenile largemouth bass was significantly enhanced by LMBV-like infection. This research comprehensively systematically revealed the pathogenic characteristics of LMBV-like separated from juvenile largemouth bass and properties of the host's immune response caused by the virus infection, which providing a basis for further exploring the interaction between the virus and the host, and prevention and treatment of disease caused by Santee-Cooper ranavirus. • The isolated LMBV-like strain was highly pathogenic to juvenile largemouth bass. • Spleen is the main target organ of LMBV-Like infected with juvenile fish. • LMBV-like infection triggers a broad immune response in diseased juvenile fish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. This study aimed to investigate the effect of Liuzijue exercise combined with elastic band resistance exercise on patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to provide a convenient, safe, and cost-effective exercise. Methods. Subjects were randomly divided into the control group (CG), the Liuzijue exercise group (LG), and the Liuzijue exercise combined with elastic band resistance exercise group (LEG), with 20 patients in each group. The LG performed Liuzijue exercise six times a week (two exercise sessions in the hospital and four exercise sessions at home). The LEG includes Liuzijue exercise similar to the LG and elastic band resistance exercise three times a week, with elastic band exercise implemented after Liuzijue exercise. Spirometry, 6-minute walking test (6MWT), 30-second sit-to-stand test (30 s SST), handgrip strength test, and St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) were performed at baseline and at the end of intervention. Results. After six-month intervention, the forced expiratory volume in 1 second (% predicted), 6-minute walking distance (6MWD), 6MWD%pred, 30 s SST, and SGRQ were significantly improved in the intervention groups (p < 0.01) and handgrip strength was increased significantly in the LG and LEG (p = 0.03 and p = 0.001, respectively). Furthermore, improvements in 6MWD and SGRQ were distinguished in the intervention groups compared with the CG (p < 0.01). No difference was significant in all of the outcomes between the LG and the LEG. Conclusions. The intervention program of Liuzijue exercise combined with elastic band resistance exercise and Liuzijue exercise only has beneficial effects on COPD patients especially in the aspect of exercise capacity and quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common inherited cause of intellectual disability and the leading monogenic cause of autism spectrum disorder. It has previously been demonstrated that prenatal genetic diagnosis is efficient for the diagnosis of FXS. The present study investigated the diagnostic effects of nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for fragile X mental retardation 1 (FMR1) and expanded CGG repeats. It was demonstrated that the nested PCR assay rapidly measured the multi-copies of the FMR1 gene in individual samples. The nested PCR assay detected normal CGG repeat lengths and expanded CGG repeat lengths with a low occurrence of false positives. In addition, the nested PCR assay resulted in increased sensitivity and specificity for patients with FXS. Furthermore, the nested PCR assay identified the mutation and generated conclusive cases for FXS, indicating that this assay is beneficial for the diagnosis of FXS patients. In conclusion, these outcomes indicate that nested PCR assay is a reliable and easier method for diagnosis of FXS, which may be used for the diagnosis of FXS patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, magnetic graphene/mesoporous silica composites with carbon-functionalized pore-walls (denoted as MG@mSiO 2 -C composites) were synthesized and applied as restricted access matrix solid phase extraction (RAM-SPE) adsorbents for the determination of miglitol and voglibose in rat plasma by LC-MS/MS. The MG@mSiO 2 -C composites were synthesized by using the template (Cetyltrimethyl Ammonium Bromide, CTAB) as carbon source with sulfuric acid pretreated. The obtained nano-composites were proven to have many unique properties such as large specific surface area of 277.1 cm 2 g −1 , uniform mesopores with average pore size of 3.35 nm, and carbon-functionalized pore-walls. Taking advantage of the hydrophilic interaction between carbon and glycans, α-glucosidase inhibitors (miglitol and voglibose) could be directly extracted from rat plasma with no need of other pre-treatment procedures. The SPE conditions such as the adsorbent amount, elution solvent type, adsorption time and elution time were optimized. For both miglitol and voglibose, good linearities of 10–2000 ng mL −1 were obtained with determination coefficients ( R 2 ) > 0.99. The intra-day and inter-day RSDs were 3.3–6.9% ( n = 6) and 6.0–8.0% ( n = 6), respectively. The recoveries were in the range of 99.9–100.4% and the sensitivities were as low as 2–2.5 ng mL −1 (LOD). This MG@mSiO 2 -C composites-based RAM-SPE method offers high extraction efficiency for the determination of α-glucosidase inhibitor in plasma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Red Sea bream iridovirus (RSIV) was initially isolated from marine fish, which belongs to Megalocytivirus , Iridoviridae . It can cause great economic losses in fish culture with high morbidity and mortality. In the present study, the pathogenicity and immune response associated with a RSIV genotype megalocytivirus infection were determined in mandarin fish ( Siniperca chuatsi ). Fish challenged showed typical clinical signs of iridovirus infection, including acute haemorrhages and enlarged visceral organs. Histopathological analysis revealed that extensive necrosis, vacuolization and inflammation were presented in the stomach, spleen, kidney and liver of the diseased fish. Blood cells counting and phagocytic assay indicated that the numbers of the red and white blood cells in the peripheral blood of infected fish increased significantly compared to the control group and the phagocytic percentage of leukocytes peaked at day 6 post infection. Quantitive real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was also undertaken to analyse the host defensive response in mandarin fish challenged with RSIV. The expression level of ten genes including interferon-related factors (IRFs) IRF1 and IRF7 , Mx , Viperin , JAK1 , STAT1 , TCRα , TNFα , IL-1β and IL-8 during experimental infection were monitored at different point of time in liver, spleen and head kidney. Results revealed varying expression profiles and clear transcriptional activation of these immune related genes in different tissues, which will contribute to better understand the pathogenesis and host defensive system in iridovirus invasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dolphins are marine mammals with unique anatomical structures in their airways. These particular respiratory structures make dolphins very sensitive to microorganisms in the air, and the habitats of dolphins in captivity and in the wild are quite different. This causes captive dolphins to suffer from illnesses, especially respiratory diseases. Previous studies have shown that the respiratory flora plays an essential role in the health of humans and animals. Therefore, by comparative analysis of the respiratory flora of wild dolphins and dolphins in captivity, we want to find the flora related to dolphins' respiratory diseases, and try to improve dolphin health through flora homeostasis. For this purpose, we performed 16S rRNA gene sequencing and analyses. We found that Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, Campilobacterota, Paracoccus , and other flora differed between wild and healthy and sub-healthy captive dolphins. Some of them are the dominant flora for promoting health, and the others may be essential pathogenic bacteria in the sub-healthy state of dolphins in captivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed a novel, simple and fast method for the determination of glucocorticoids residues in liver tissue by combining microwave-assisted enzymatic hydrolysis and restricted access matrix dispersive solid phase extraction (RAM-dSPE) followed with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) analysis. Firstly, microwave-assisted enzymatic hydrolysis was introduced in order to obtain a maximum amount of unconjugated parent drug in a short time (8 s), while the traditional method commonly needs 4–12 h. Secondly, further cleanup was carried out by RAM-dSPE based on the graphene@mSiO 2 -C8 nanomaterials which were synthesized by coating mesoporous silica onto hydrophilic graphene nano-sheets through a surfactant-mediated co-condensation sol-gel process. The enzymatic hydrolysis influencing factors (pH of the buffer, microwave radiation power, incubation time) and the experimental conditions of RAM-dSPE (sorbents amount, type and volume of the elution solvent, adsorption and desorption time) were optimized. Three glucocorticoids (prednisolone (PREL), betamethasone (BE) and dexamethasone (DE)) were selected as models to evaluate the feasibility of the method. According to the results, the developed method provided low detection limit (S/N=3) of 0.01–0.05 μg kg −1 and good linearity range of 0.25–800 μg kg −1 (R 2 >0.996) for glucocorticoids. The limit of quantification (S/N=10) range from 0.03 to 0.19 μg kg −1 . Compared with other traditional methods, the developed method could provide similar or even better results in a greatly reduced analysis time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A potent and selective inhibitor of platelet-activating factor acetylhydrolase 1B2 (PAFAH1B2) is described. The compound was derived by improvement of a modest affinity primary hit isolated from the screening of a bead-displayed peptoid–azapeptoid hybrid library tethered to an oxadiazolone ‘warhead’. The oxadiazolone moiety of the inhibitors was found to react covalently with the active site serine residue of PAFAH1B2. This screening strategy may be useful for the identification of many selective, covalent inhibitors of serine hydrolases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Visualization of microplastics in crayfish using LCM-Raman imaging. • Microplastics were detected in the gills, intestines, and ovaries of crayfish. • Crayfish exposed to 9 mg/L of microplastics accumulated 13,000 particles in 28 days. • RPV values can quantitatively evaluate the contamination level of microplastics. Crayfish is one of the most important freshwater aquaculture species in China. The potential risks of crayfish consumption caused by environmental microplastic pollution have attracted much attention. In this study, a total of 72 crayfish samples were exposed to the microplastic concentrations of 1 mg/L, 3 mg/L, and 9 mg/L for 7, 14, and 28 days, and microplastic contamination levels in crayfish were then explored by laser confocal micro-Raman (LCM-Raman) imaging and scanning electron microscope (SEM). LCM-Raman imaging showed better performance in microplastics identification. Besides, the average percentage of the contaminated area in visualized LCM-Raman images was used to quantitatively assess contamination levels. Following 28 days of exposure to 9 mg/L microplastics, microplastic accumulation reached about 13,000 particles per crayfish. The results confirmed that LCM-Raman imaging combined with image processing technology could be used to construct a high-performance analytical strategy for the assessment of microplastic contamination in crayfish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Abnormal expression of miRNAs is intimately related to a variety of human cancers. The purpose of this study is to confirm the expression of miR-181a and elucidate its physiological function and mechanism in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Methods: Pediatric AML patients and healthy controls were enrolled, and the expression of miR-181a and ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) in tissues were examined using quantitative PCR. Moreover, cell proliferation and cell cycle were evaluated in several cell lines (HL60, NB4 and K562) by using flow cytometry after transfected with miR-181a mimics and inhibitors, or ATM siRNA and control siRNA. Finally, ATM as the potential target protein of miR-181a was examined. Results: We found that miR-181a was significantly increased in pediatric AML, which showed an inverse association with ATM expression. Overexpressed miR-181a in cell lines significantly enhanced cell proliferation, as well as increased the ratio of S-phase cells by miR-181a mimics transfection in vitro. Luciferase activity of the reporter construct identified ATM as the direct molecular target of miR-181a. ATM siRNA transfection significantly enhanced cell proliferation and increased the ratio of S-phase cells in vitro. Conclusion: The results revealed novel mechanism through which miR-181a regulates G1/S transition and cell proliferation in pediatric AML by regulating the tumor suppressor ATM, providing insights into the molecular mechanism in pediatric AML. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective In major depressive disorder (MDD) patients, higher morning cortisol levels due to a hyperactive hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis have been reported. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between cortical thinning and the serum cortisol levels during the first depressive episode in drug-naïve MDD patients using an automated surface-based morphometry (SBM) method. Methods The institutional review board approved this prospective study. MR imaging data were obtained using a 3T scanner by a three-dimensional fast-spoiled gradient recalled acquisition with steady state (3D-FSPGR). Thirty drug-naïve patients with MDD and 41 age- and gender-matched healthy subjects (controls) were enrolled. We then used the SBM method (Freesurfer) to generate cortical thickness maps, and measured the cortical thickness in each subject. Morning blood samples were drawn from all participants for cortisol measurements. Results We found the serum cortisol levels were significantly higher in the MDD patients than in the controls. The MDD patients manifested significant thinning of the left lateral orbitofrontal cortex compared with the controls. There was a significant negative linear correlation between the thickness of the left lateral orbitofrontal cortex and the serum cortisol levels in the MDD patients. Conclusions In the early stage of MDD, the thickness of the lateral orbitofrontal cortex was significantly reduced, and also showed a significant inverse correlation with the serum cortisol levels. Since the lateral orbitofrontal cortex contains a high concentration of glucocorticoid receptor, glucocorticoid receptor-mediated signaling transductions could contribute to neurotoxicity, which might occur when there are high cortisol levels in patients with MDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three-layer structure graphene/mesoporous silica composites incorporated with C8-modified interior pore-walls (graphene@mSiO 2 -C8) were prepared and applied for efficient extraction of glucocorticoid residuals in milk followed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) analysis. The graphene@mSiO 2 -C8 nanocomposites were synthesized by coating C8-modified mesoporous silica onto hydrophilic graphene nanosheets through a simple surfactant-mediated co-condensation sol–gel process. The obtained nanosheets possess unique properties of large surface area (632 m 2 /g), extended plate-like morphology in the exterior surface, highly open pore structure with uniform pore size (2.8 nm), numerous C8-modified interior pore-walls, as well as good water dispersibility. The performance of the prepared graphene@mSiO 2 -C8 materials for extracting small hydrophobic molecules directly from complex protein-rich samples was evaluated by analysis of glucocorticoids in milk. Extraction conditions such as sorbents amount, type and volume of eluting solvent, time of adsorption and desorption were investigated and optimized to achieve the best efficiency. Method validations including linearity, recovery, repeatability, and limit of detection (LOD) were also studied. The results indicated that this methodology provided low LOD (S/N = 3, 0.0075–0.03 ng mL −1 ) and good linearity (0.03–60 ng mL −1 , R 2 > 0.996) for glucocorticoids. Satisfactory reusability and stability were also obtained during the extraction. Finally, the graphene@mSiO 2 -C8 composites were successfully applied to the extraction and residue analysis of glucocorticoids in real milk samples. The experimental results showed that this novel approach offered an attractive choice for convenient, efficient and rapid solid-phase extraction of targeted hydrophobic compounds in biological samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High yields and low carbon emissions are new challenges for modern crop production. Balancing the crop yield and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has become a new field of agronomic technology innovation. Cereal–legume intercropping is a typical diversification planting system, which has been expected to achieve the dual goals of high production and low GHG emissions. However, the synergistic effect of integrating various technologies in an intercropping system on GHG emissions and whether it will achieve the high yield and low emissions goal remains to be determined. Therefore, bibliometric analysis has investigated the worldwide development trend of cereal–legume intercropping designs. The literature on the GHG emissions of the cereal–legume intercropping system was summarized. Additionally, the effects and mechanisms of different agricultural management methods regarding soil nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide emissions in the cereal–legume intercropping system were summarized. The research on GHG emissions of cereal–legume intercropping systems in non-growing seasons must be revised. In situ observations of GHG emissions from intercropping systems in different regions should be strengthened. This work is valuable in supporting and evaluating the potential of GHG reduction in a cereal–legume intercropping system in various farming areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study aimed to investigate the function of the long non-coding RNA nuclear paraspeckle assembly transcript 1 (NEAT1) in the pathogenesis of recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) and to examine its potential mechanism. The expression of NEAT1, microRNA (miR)-125b and Bcl-2 in the villi of patients with RSAs and women with normal pregnancies was measured by reverse transcription-quantitative PCR. Cell viability was detected by the MTT assay and cell apoptosis was evaluated by flow cytometry. A dual-luciferase reporter assay was performed to verify the associations between NEAT1 and miR-125b. The protein expression of Bcl-2 was detected by western blot analysis. In the present study, the expression of NEAT1 and Bcl-2 was reduced and that of miR-125b was increased in clinical samples of villus tissues from patients with RSAs. In vitro, overexpression of NEAT1 enhanced the viability and suppressed the apoptosis of JEG-3 cells. It was demonstrated that miR-125b acts as a molecular sponge of NEAT1 and its expression was negatively regulated by NEAT1. miR-125b overexpression reduced the viability and promoted the apoptosis of JEG-3 cells. The expression of BCL-2, a target gene of miR-125b, was inversely correlated with that of miR-125b. Overexpression of miR-125b and inhibition of BCL-2 partially reversed the effect of NEAT1 overexpression on the viability and apoptosis of JEG-3 cells. Collectively, it was demonstrated that the NEAT1/miR-125b/BCL-2 axis plays a pivotal role in regulating the viability and apoptosis of JEG-3 cells. The findings of the present study offer new insights into the pathogenesis of RSA and may provide information on RSA treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid and selective enrichment of phosphopeptides from complex biological samples is essential and challenging in phosphorylated proteomics. In this work, for the first time, niobium ions were directly immobilized on the surface of polydopamine-coated magnetic microspheres through a facile and effective synthetic route. The Fe 3 O 4 @polydopamine-Nb 5+ (denoted as Fe 3 O 4 @PD-Nb 5+ ) microspheres possess merits of high hydrophilicity and good biological compatibility, and demonstrated low limit of detection (2 fmol). The selectivity was also basically satisfactory (β-casein:BSA = 1:500) to capture phosphopeptides. They were also successfully applied for enrichment of phosphopeptides from real biological samples such as human serum and nonfat milk. Compared with Fe 3 O 4 @PD-Ti 4+ microspheres, the Fe 3 O 4 @PD-Nb 5+ microspheres exhibit superior selectivity to multi-phosphorylated peptides, and thus may be complementary to the conventional IMAC materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report herein an extraction method for the analysis of perfluorinated compounds in human serum based on magnetic core–mesoporous shell microspheres with decyl-perfluorinated interior pore-walls (Fe 3 O 4 @mSiO 2 -F 17 ). Thanks to the unique properties of the Fe 3 O 4 @mSiO 2 -F 17 microspheres, macromolecules like proteins could be easily excluded from the mesoporous channels due to size exclusion effect, and perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in protein-rich biosamples such as serum could thus be directly extracted with the fluorocarbon modified on the channel wall without any other pretreatment procedure. The PFCs adsorbed Fe 3 O 4 @mSiO 2 -F 17 microspheres could then be simply and rapidly isolated by using a magnet, followed by being identified and quantified by LC–MS/MS (high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry). Five perfluorinatedcarboxylic acids (C6, C8–C11) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) were selected as model analytes. In order to achieve the best extraction efficiency, some important factors including the amount of Fe 3 O 4 @mSiO 2 -F 17 microspheres added, adsorption time, type of elution solvent, eluting solvent volume and elution time were investigated. The ranges of the LOD were 0.02–0.05 ng mL −1 for the six PFCs. The recovery of the optimized method varies from 83.13% to 92.42% for human serum samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virus-like particle (VLP) of murinepolyomavirus (MPV) is a T= 7d icosahedral capsidthat self-assembles from 72 capsomeres(Caps), each of which is a pentamer of major coat protein VP1. VLPhas great potential in vaccinology, gene therapy, drug delivery, andmaterials science. However, its application is hindered by high costdownstream processes, leading to an urgent demand of a highly efficientaffinity ligand for the separation and purification of Cap by affinitychromatography. Herein a biomimetic design strategy of an affinitypeptide ligand of Cap has been developed on the basis of the bindingstructure of the C-terminus of minor coat protein (VP2-C) on the innersurface of Cap. The molecular interactions between VP2-C and Cap werefirst examined using all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulationscoupled with the molecular mechanics/Poisson–Boltzmann surfacearea (MM/PBSA) method, where V283, P285, D286, W287, L289, and Y296of VP2-C were identified as the hot spots. An affinity peptide library(DWXLXLXY, X denotes arbitrary amino acids except cysteine) was thenconstructed for virtual screening sequently by docking with AUTODOCKVINA, binding structure comparison, and final docking with ROSETTAFlexPepDock. Ten peptide candidates were selected and further confirmedby MD simulations and MM/PBSA, where DWDLRLLY was found to have thehighest affinity to Cap. In DWDLRLLY, six residues are favorable forthe binding, including W2, L4, L6 and Y8 inheriting from VP2-C, andR5 and L7 selected in the virtual screening. This confirms the highefficiency and accuracy of the biomimetic design strategy. DWDLRLLYwas then experimentally validated by a one-step purification of Capfrom crude cell lysate using affinity chromatography with the octapeptideimmobilized on Sepharose gel. The purified Caps were observed to self-assembleinto VLP with consistent structure of authentic MPV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]