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Background The cell wall plays crucial roles in establishing the morphology of plant cells and defense response to biotic and abiotic stresses. The plant COBRA protein family plays an important role in secondary cell wall biosynthesis and the orientation of cell expansion, which have been extensively studied in Arabidopsis thaliana, maize, rice, etc., but no systematic studies were conducted in wheat. Methods and Results In this study, the full-length sequence of TaCOBLs was obtained by homology cloning from wheat, and a conserved motif analysis confirmed that TaCOBLs belonged to the COBRA protein family. qRT-PCR results showed that the TaCOBL transcripts were induced by abiotic stresses, including cold, drought, salinity, and abscisic acid (ABA). Two haplotypes of TaCOBL-5B (Hap5B-a and Hap5B-b), harboring one indel (----/TATA) in the 5’ flanking region (-550 bp), were found on chromosome 5BS. A co-dominant marker, Ta5BF/Ta5BR, was developed based on the polymorphism of the two TaCOBL-5B haplotypes. Significant correlations between the two TaCOBL-5B haplotypes and cold resistance were observed under four environmental conditions. Conclusion Hap5B-a, a favored haplotype acquired during wheat polyploidization, may positively contribute to enhanced cold resistance in wheat. Based on the promoter activity analysis, the Hap5B-a promoter containing a TATA-box was more active than that of Hap5B-b without the TATA-box under low temperature. Our study provides valuable information indicating that the TaCOBL genes are associated with cold response in wheat.

Stroke seriously affects human health. Many studies have shown that enriched environment (EE) can promote functional recovery after stroke, but the intrinsic mechanisms remain unclear. In order to study the internal mechanisms of EE involved in functional recovery after ischemic stroke and which mechanism plays a leading role in the recovery of limb function after cerebral infarction, key proteins potentially involved in neuronal protection and synaptic remodeling in the ischemic penumbra have been investigated. In this study, adult C57BL/6 mice after permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) were assigned to the EE and standard housing (SH) groups 3 days after operation. The EE house was spacious that contained a large variety of small toys; the SH was a normal sized cage. Sham-operated mice without artery occlusion were housed under standard conditions and were fed a normal diet. On days 3, 7, 14, and 21, postoperative motor functional recovery was tested using the modified neurological severity score (mNSS) and the Rotarod test. The expression of B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2), Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax), growth-associated protein-43 (GAP-43), and synaptophysin (SYN) was examined by western blotting and immunofluorescence staining. The motor functional recovery (based on the mNSS and Rotarod test 3, 7, 14, and 21 days post operation) of mice in the EE group improved significantly compared to the SH group. The expression of GAP-43 and SYN and the ratio of Bcl-2/Bax were all upregulated in the EE group compared to the SH group. In addition, we also explored the relationship between neuronal protection and synaptic remodeling in the EE-mediated recovery of limb function after cerebral infarction by correlation analysis. Correlation analysis showed that compared with the increase of Bcl-2/Bax ratio, the increased expression of GAP-43 and SYN was more closely related to the recovery of limb function in ischemic mice. These data support the hypothesis that EE can promote the process of improvement of limb dysfunction induced by ischemic stroke, and this behavior restoration may, via promoting neuroprotection in the ischemic penumbra, be dependent on the regulation of the expression of GAP-43, SYN, Bcl-2, and Bax. A limitation of the study was that we only observed several representative key indicators of synaptic remodeling and neuronal apoptosis, without an in-depth study of the potential mechanisms involved.

To analyze relationship of debilitating and nutritional risk on complications of primary hip replacement, and risk factors of influence of complications of primary hip replacement.Totally 100 patients who underwent hip replacement from January 2019 to January 2021 were retrospectively analyzed, including 36 males and 64 females, aged from 18 to 85 years old with an average of (73.82±4.04) years old. Postoperative frailty status was evaluated by modified frailty index, and nutritional status was evaluated by clinical biochemical indexes and NRS2002 nutritional risk assessment scale. One hundred patients were divided into frailty group and non-frailty group according to modified frailty index, 100 patients were divided into normal nutrition group and nutritional risk group according to nutritional status, and relationship between frailty, nutritional risk and complications after primary hip replacement was analyzed.There were significant differences in age, body mass index (BMI), complications and ASA grade between frailty group and non-frailty group(Patients with comorbidities, frailty and nutritional risk could increase the incidence of complications. Timely assessment and identification of these patients in time, and formulation of targeted intervention measures have great clinical significance.

Background: The prevalence of obesity is increasing worldwide, causing a global health issue. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) used in treating overweight/obesity has been widely implemented in clinical practice, but its overall efficacy and safety remain unclear. This review aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of TCM based on randomized controlled trials (RCTs).Methods: A systematic review was conducted by searching PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Embase, and Clinical Trails from their inception to March 2021. Two reviewers screened studies, extracted the data, and assessed the risk of bias independently. The data were pooled for meta-analysis or presented narratively.Results: Twenty-five RCTs involving 1,947 participants were included. Compared with placebo or blank control, TCM preparations reduced Body Mass Index (BMI) [MD = −1.16; 95% confidence interval (CI) = −1.44, −0.89; I2 = 34%], reduced weight (MD = −2.53; 95% CI = −3.08, −1.99; I2 = 34%), reduced waist circumference (MD = −2.64; 95% CI = −3.42, −1.87; I2 = 0%), reduced hip circumference (MD = −3.48; 95% CI = −4.13, −2.83; I2 = 0%), reduced total cholesterol (TCHO) (MD = −10.45; 95% CI = −18.92, −1.98; I2 = 63%), reduced triglycerides (TG) (MD = −4.19; 95% CI = −6.35, −2.03; I2 = 25%), increased high-density lipoprotein (HDL) (MD = −3.60; 95% CI = −6.73, −0.47; I2 = 81%), reduced fasting blood glucose (FBG) (MD = −0.77; 95% CI = −1.24, −0.29; I2 = 91%). Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c)、body fat rate、low-density lipoprotein (LDL) were not statistically significant. For people with hypertension, decreased systolic blood pressure (SBP) (MD = −5.27; 95% CI = −8.35, −2.19; I2 = 58%), decreased diastolic blood pressure (DBP) (MD = −4.30; 95% CI = −5.90, −2.69; I2 = 0%). For people with normal blood pressure, there was no significant change. There was no significant difference in liver function.Conclusion: It has been demonstrated that TCM preparations have good clinical efficacy and safety for overweight/obesity. TCM may be suitable for overweight/obesity in adult populations for its efficacy and safety of long-term treatment.

The synthesis of borylated organofluorines is of great interest due to their potential values as synthons in modular construction of fluorine-containing molecules. Reported herein is a rhodium-catalyzed hydroboration of aryl gem-difluoroalkenes leading to a series of α-difluoromethylated benzylborons. The use of cationic rhodium catalyst and a biphosphine ligand with large bite angle was crucial for reactivity by offering good regioselectivity and diminishing the undesired β-F elimination. Preliminary derivatizations of the products were conducted to showcase the utility of this protocol.

The formation of lateral branches has an important and fundamental contribution to the remarkable developmental plasticity of plants, which allows plants to alter their architecture to adapt to the challenging environment conditions. The Gibberellin (GA) phytohormones have been known to regulate the outgrowth of axillary meristems (AMs), but the specific molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Here we show that DELLA proteins regulate axillary bud formation by interacting and regulating the DNA-binding ability of SQUAMOSA-PROMOTER BINDING PROTEIN LIKE 9 (SPL9), a microRNA156-targeted squamosa promoter binding protein-like transcription factor. SPL9 participates in the initial regulation of axillary buds by repressing the expression of LATERAL SUPPRESSOR (LAS), a key regulator in the initiation of AMs, and LAS contributes to the specific expression pattern of the GA deactivation enzyme GA2ox4, which is specifically expressed in the axils of leaves to form a low-GA cell niche in this anatomical region. Nevertheless, increasing GA levels in leaf axils by ectopically expressing the GA-biosynthesis enzyme GA20ox2 significantly impaired axillary meristem initiation. Our study demonstrates that DELLA-SPL9-LAS-GA2ox4 defines a core feedback regulatory module that spatially pattern GA content in the leaf axil and precisely control the axillary bud formation in different spatial and temporal.

Neonatal exposure to propofol has been reported to cause neurotoxicity and neurocognitive decline in adulthood; however, the underlying mechanism has not been established.SD rats were exposed to propofol on postnatal day 7 (PND-7). Double-immunofluorescence staining was used to assess neurogenesis in the hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG). The expression of p-Akt and p27 were measured by western blotting. The Morris water maze, novel object recognition test, and object location test were used to evaluate neurocognitive function 2-month-old rats.Phosphorylation of Akt was inhibited, while p27 expression was enhanced after neonatal exposure to propofol. Propofol also inhibited proliferation of neural stem cells (NSCs) and decreased differentiation to neurons and astroglia. Moreover, the neurocognitive function in 2-month-old rats was weakened. Of significance, intra-hippocampal injection of the Akt activator, SC79, attenuated the inhibition of p-AKT and increase of p27 expression. SC79 also rescued the propofol-induced inhibition of NSC proliferation and differentiation. The propofol-induced neurocognition deficit was also partially reversed by SC79.Taken together, these results suggest that neurogenesis is hindered by neonatal propofol exposure. Specifically, neonatal propofol exposure was shown to suppress the proliferation and differentiation of NSCs by inhibiting Akt/p27 signaling pathway.

A regio- and stereoselective synthesis of fluorinated 1,4-enynes bearing an all-carbon quaternary center at the propargylic position is developed. The synthesis starts from readily available allenoates and gem-difluoroalkenes and proceeds via a key alkynylenolate intermediate following a nucleophilic addition/β-F elimination. This reaction occurs under mild reaction conditions with good tolerance to a variety of functional groups. Synthetic utility is demonstrated by further transformations of the products. Furthermore, the reaction can also be applied for the synthesis of α-alkenyl allenoates by using 3,3-disubstituted allenoates.

Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is one of the most common lifelong anxiety disorders. Although cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) has proven to be effective in treating people with SAD, it may not be available for a considerable proportion of patients. Internet-based CBT (ICBT) is more accessible than face-to-face treatment. This meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy of ICBT in patients with SAD. We searched five databases, PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Health Management Information Consortium, Ovid MEDLINE and EMBASE, and identified 20 eligible randomized controlled trials published from inception to 25 July 2020, with the outcome data from 1,743 participants. The results indicated that ICBT had a significant positive effect on patients with SAD compared with the control groups (g = -0.55). A subgroup analysis revealed that ICBT and CBT had an equal effect on treating patients with SAD (g = -0.18). There was also no difference between ICBT and ICBT plus other therapies in the treatment of patients with SAD (g = -0.07). The effect size of ICBT on patients with SAD was maintained at the 6-month follow-up (g = -0.08) and at the 12-month follow-up (g = -0.17). The findings of this review demonstrated that ICBT can significantly reduce SAD symptoms and that ICBT and face-to-face CBT produce equivalent effects. The results of this meta-analysis contributed to the literature on ICBT for the treatment of patients with SAD, although numerous aspects of ICBT were identified for future investigations.

BACKGROUND Recently, there has been a range of studies about smartphone-based interventions and monitoring for reducing symptoms of bipolar disorder (BD). However, their efficacy for BD remains unclear. AIM To compare the effect of smartphone-based interventions and monitoring with control methods in treating patients with BD. METHODS A systematic literature search was performed on PubMed, Embase, Clinical trials, psycINFO, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library. Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) or single-group trials in which smartphone-based interventions and monitoring were compared with control methods or baseline in patients with symptoms of BD were included. Data were synthesized using a random-effects or a fixed-effects model to analyze the effects of psychological interventions and monitoring delivered via smartphone on psychiatric symptoms in patients with BD. The primary outcome measures were set for mania and depression symptoms. Subgroups were created to explore which aspects of smartphone interventions are relevant to the greater or lesser efficacy of treating symptoms. RESULTS We identified ten articles, including seven RCTs (985 participants) and three single-group trials (169 participants). Analysis of the between-group study showed that smartphone-based interventions were effective in reducing manic [g = -0.19, 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.33 to -0.04, P = 0.01] and depressive (g = -0.28, 95%CI: -0.55 to -0.01, P < 0.05) symptoms. In within-group analysis, smartphone-based interventions significantly reduced manic (g = 0.17, 95%CI: 0.04 to 0.30, P < 0.01) and depressive (g = 0.48, 95%CI: 0.18 to 0.78) symptoms compared to the baseline. Nevertheless, smartphone-based monitoring systems significantly reduced manic (g = 0.27, 95%CI: 0.02 to 0.51, P < 0.05) but not depressive symptoms. Subgroup analysis indicated that the interventions with psychoeducation had positive effects on depressive (g = -0.62, 95%CI: -0.81 to -0.43, P < 0.01) and manic (g = -0.24, 95%CI: -0.43 to -0.06, P = 0.01) symptoms compared to the controlled conditions, while the interventions without psychoeducation did not (P > 0.05). The contacts between therapists and patients that contributed to the implementation of psychological therapy reduced depression symptoms (g = -0.47, 95%CI: -0.75 to -0.18, P = 0.01). CONCLUSION Smartphone-based interventions and monitoring have a significant positive impact on depressive and manic symptoms of BD patients in between-group and within-group analysis.

EsxA has long been recognized as an important virulence factor of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) that plays an essential role in Mtb cytosolic translocation presumably by penetrating phagosomal membranes with its acidic pH-dependent membrane permeabilizing activity (MPA). However, current data suggest that the observed cytolytic activity of EsxA at neutral pH is due to contamination of ASB-14, a detergent used in EsxA protein purification, and the role of EsxA MPA in Mtb cytosolic translocation is also questionable. Here, we have obtained evidence that it is ASB-14, not EsxA that causes cytolysis at neutral pH. Quantitative liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry showed that even after gel filtration, dialysis, or passing through detergent removal column, the remaining ASB-14 in the EsxA protein solution was still at a concentration enough to kill cultured lung epithelial cells. When treated with trypsin or proteinase K, the digested EsxA protein solution with ASB-14 was still cytotoxic. Interestingly, however, we have found that the exogenously added EsxA is endocytosed into lung epithelial cells and inserts into the host membranes within acidic subcellular compartments, which can be blocked by cytochalasin D and bafilomycin A. It is for the first time EsxA is found to insert into the host membranes within acidic subcellular compartments.ImportanceEsxA has long been recognized as an important virulence factor of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) that plays an essential role in Mtb virulence. However, current data regarding to its role in Mtb virulence are controversial. Here, we have obtained evidence showing that the cytolytic activity of EsxA at neutral pH is due to contamination of ASB-14, a detergent used in EsxA preparation. Moreover, it is for the first time we have found that EsxA protein is endocytosed into lung epithelial cells and inserts into the host membranes within acidic subcellular compartments, implicating an important role of the acidic pH-dependent membrane permeabilizing activity of EsxA in Mtb virulence.

Some Devonian magmatic rocks have been identified from the northern margin of the North China Block (NCB) in recent years. However, their petrogenesis and tectonic setting are still highly controversial. Here we present new geochronological, Sr-Nd-Hf isotopic and whole-rock chemical data on several newly identified and previously reported Devonian alkaline complexes, including mafic-ultramafic rocks (pyroxenites and gabbros), alkaline rocks (syenites, monzonites) and alkaline granites in the northern NCB. We firstly identified some mafic-ultramafic rocks coeval with monzonite and quartz monzonite in the Sandaogou and Wulanhada alkaline intrusions. New zircon U-Pb dating of 16 samples from the Baicaigou, Gaojiacun, Sandaogou, Wulanhada and Chifeng alkaline intrusions combined with previous geochronological results indicate that the Devonian alkaline rocks emplaced during the early-middle Devonian at around 400–380 Ma and constitute an E–W-trending alkaline magmatic belt that extend ca. 900 km long along the northern margin of the NCB. Whole-rock geochemical and Sr-Nd-Hf isotopic data reveal that the Devonian alkaline rocks were mainly originated from partial melting of a variably enriched lithospheric mantle with different involvement of ancient lower crustal component and fractional crystallization. The Devonian alkaline magmatic belt rocks in the northern NCB are characterized by very weak or no deformations and were most likely related to post-collision extension after arc-continent collision between the Bainaimiao island arc and the northern margin of North China Craton during the latest Silurian. Partial melting of subcontinental lithospheric mantle to produce the Devonian alkaline magmatic rocks suggests that the northern North China Craton has an inhomogeneous, variably enriched subcontinental lithospheric mantle and was characterized by significant vertical crustal growth during the Devonian period.

The production process of nature graphite anode material is divided into four stages, namely mining, beneficiation, purification and processing. Carbon emission and energy consumption during the whole process were quantified and analyzed in this study. The energy consumption and pollutant emissions in the production process were calculated in accordance with the method of life cycle assessment, and the carbon emission analysis was conducted by IPCC method. The life cycle energy consumption of 1 ton natural graphite anode material is 112.48GJ, and the processing stage contributes 41.71%. The results show that coke oven gas and raw coal are the main energy consumption in the whole life cycle of natural graphite anode material, which account for 32.33% and 23.41% of the total energy consumption, respectively. Furthermore, the carbon emission of 1 ton of natural graphite anode material is 5315.91kgCO2-eq, and mainly comes from raw coal and electricity which contribute 23.98% and 20.99% to the total carbon emission respectively, and CO2 is the largest carbon emission contributed 98.69% to total carbon emission. Finally, the carbon emissions are sensitive to the coke oven gas, raw coal, diesel and electricity, and insensitive to fuel oil.

A quantitative analysis on the environment impact of natural graphite anode material is carried out based on life cycle assessment (LCA) method in this paper. The results show that, the main environment impact categories are human toxicity potential, particulate matter formation potential and marine ecotoxicity potential, which account for 26%, 19% and 15% of total environment impacts, respectively. The processes of production, purification and surface modification cause the strongest impact on the environment, because they consume a large number of electricity. Under the current electricity structure of China, improving the production technology and reducing the energy consumptions of purification and surface modification, are the effective methods of environment impact reduction for LIB anode materials.

The Great Oxidation Event (GOE) and Lomagundi-Jatuli Event (LJE) during Paleoprterozoic Era represent significant global environmental changes in Earth’s history and their geological records have been identified from many ancient cratons. However, reliable records of GOE and LJE are rare in the North China Craton (NCC) due to high-grade metamorphism on Paleoproterozoic strata during Orosirian Period and poor age constraints. Weakly metamorphosed to unmetamorphosed Proterozoic strata termed as Fanhe Group of around 8 km thick are well preserved in Fanhe Basin in the Archean Longgang Block in northeastern NCC and the Guanmenshan Formation from the lower part of the Fanhe Group is characterized by positive δ13Ccarb excursion of around +5‰. Since the Fanhe Group was usually considered as Meso-Neoproterozoic in ages, the reasons for positive δ13Ccarb excursions in the lower Fanhe Group are unclear. Our new LA-(MC-)ICP-MS U-Pb dating on a dolerite sill intruding into the Guanmenshan Formation yields two upper intercept 207Pb/206Pb ages of 2065 ± 20 Ma (95% confidence, MSWD = 1.4, N = 26) and 2062 ± 22 Ma (95% confidence, MSWD = 1.05, N = 22), respectively. Combined with the weighted mean 207Pb/206Pb age of the youngest detrital zircon population of the Daposhan Formation (2199 ± 19 Ma, 95% confidence, N = 8, MSWD = 0.47) and their contact relations, the deposition ages of the Daposhan, Kangzhaungzi, Guanmenshan and Tongjiajie formations from the lower part of Fanhe Group were constrained to be Rhyacian Period from ca. 2200 Ma to ca. 2060 Ma, not Mesoproterozoic Era as previously regarded. These new age constraints provide solid evidence for the existence of weakly metamorphosed stratigraphic records of GOE and LJE in lower part of Fanhe Group in the NCC. Stratigraphic correlations with other ancient cratons show that the Guanmenshan Formation in Fanhe Basin in the northeastern NCC can be correlated with the Dashiling Formation of the Hutuo Group in the central NCC, the Lucknow Formation in West Australia, the Upper Pretoria Formation in South Africa, the Gordon Lake Formation in North America and the Tulomozero and Kuetsjarvi formations in Fennoscandia, and therefore the Fanhe Group provides excellent stratigraphic records to study GOE and LJE in the NCC.

The substituent effect prevalent in organic compounds has been applied to adjusting the photochromism of viologen-bearing coordination polymers, which enable the isoreticular compounds, {[Cd(Bpybc)0.5(mip)(H2O)]·2H2O}n (Cd-mip) and {[Cd(Bpybc)0.5(nip)(H2O)]·H2O}n (Cd-nip), to display different photoresponse behaviors owing to the contribution from the electron-donating/withdrawing group on the auxiliary ligand. The present work demonstrates a practical way to regulate photochromism of target coordination polymer.

The Bayan Obo-Duolun-Chifeng-Kaiyuan fault is considered as the craton-orogen boundary between the northern North China Craton (NCC) and the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB). However, locations of this boundary from Duolun, Chifeng to Kaiyuan have not been well constrained. The Jiefangyingzi area northeast to Chifeng is located at the junction of the Bainaimiao arc belt and northern NCC, and has long been regarded as part of the Bainaimiao arc belt of the CAOB. This paper presents new LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb geochronological, whole-rocks geochemical and Nd-Hf isotopic data of some recently identified Neoarchean magmatic rocks from the Jiefangyingzi area. These rocks consist mainly of amphibolites, dioritic gneisses, quartz dioritic gneisses, tonalitic gneisses and trondhjemitic gneisses formed at 2569–2536 Ma and minor amphibole plagioclase gneisses formed at ca. 2640 Ma, and are distributed in an east–west belt that is about 13 km long and 1.5 km wide. Geochemical and Nd-Hf isotopic compositions suggest that the amphibolites were derived from partial melting of a depleted mantle that was metasomatized by subduction-derived fluids with significant crustal contamination, and the dioritic gneisses were generated by partial melting of mantle peridotite metasomatized by slab-melts. The quartz dioritic and tonalitic gneisses originated from high degree partial melting of the subducted oceanic crust with garnet-bearing amphibolite facies in the residue, while the trondhjemitic gneisses originated from low degree partial melting of the thickened mafic lower crust with eclogite facies in the residue due to underplating of mafic magmas. The occurrences of Neoarchean basement rocks, combined with previous Nd-Hf isotopic data of the late Paleozoic magmatic rocks, suggest that the Jiefangyingzi area has a tectonic affinity with the Eastern Block of the NCC rather than the CAOB, and the craton-orogen boundary between the northern NCC and the CAOB should be situated in places north to the Jiefangyingzi area. Our results support that the late Neoarchean (2.6–2.5 Ga) is also a period of crustal growth as well as extensive reworking of the 2.9–2.7 Ga ancient crust in the northwestern margin of the Eastern Block of the NCC. In addition, the transition from tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite (TTG) and other potassium-poor granitoid gneisses to crustal-derived potassium-rich granitoid gneisses at the end of Neoarchean (ca. 2.53 Ga) marked the initial cratonization of the NCC and ca. 2.53 Ga is a critical transformation period of maturation of the continental crust in the NCC.

Based on the analysis of big data, this paper designs the intelligent control model of sports athletes’ training progress. By constructing the evaluation system of sports athletes’ training intensity, it improves the intelligent control algorithm of sports athletes’ training intensity, and ensures the operation effect of the intelligent control model of sports athletes’ training intensity. In order to verify the effect of the model, simulation experiments are carried out, and the results show that most of the models are effective. From the perspective of analysis, the intelligent model of athletes’ training progress has outstanding practical value. The model can quickly and accurately formulate training plans, solve the data fluctuation phenomenon under the trend of big data division, and realize intelligent operation. Moreover, the fluency and accuracy are very high, which is worth promoting and applying.

In situ sediment remediation technique is commonly used to control the release of pollutants from sediment. Addition of calcium nitrate to sediment has been applied to control the release of phosphorus from sediments. In this study, laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of water quality improvement on the remediation of river sediment with the addition of calcium nitrate. The results demonstrated that the redox-potential of sediments increased from -282mV to -130mV after 28days of calcium nitrate treatment. The acid volatile sulphide in the sediments significantly decreased (by 54.9% to 57.1%), whereas the total organic carbon decreased by 9.7% to 10.2%. However, the difference between these and water quality improvement was not significant. Due to the addition of calcium nitrate, low phosphate concentration in the water column and interstitial phosphate in the sediment were observed, indicating that the calcium nitrate was beneficial to controlling the release of phosphorus from river sediment. The decrease in phosphorus release could be attributed to the fixation of iron-phosphorus and calcium-phosphorus due to the addition of calcium nitrate. The addition of calcium nitrate to sediment caused the oxidation of sulphide to sulphate, hence resulting in high nitrate and sulphate concentrations in the water column, and high interstitial nitrate and sulphate concentrations in the sediment. The results also showed that only the water quality improvement had a significant effect on the interstitial nitrate and sulphate concentrations in the sediment.

Two bipyridinium-bearing Cu(II) coordination polymers, [Cu(BCbpy)(ox)(H 2 O)]·H 2 O ( 1 ) and [Cu 2 (BCbpy) 2 (ox) 2 ]·3H 2 O·DMF ( 2 ), have been synthesized and structurally characterized. Upon solvent modulation, the structure transformation from a closely-packed 1D chain to a 2D laminar network with parallelogram-shaped channels can be achieved. More interestingly, the charge separated skeleton of BCbpy ligand incorporated in compound 2 makes the pore space polarized, endowing it with different adsorption abilities for methanol, water and ethanol vapors.

As 1,2-benzisothiazol-3(2H)-one (BIT) has been widely used in high concentrations for microbial growth control in many domestic and industrial processes, its potential eco-risk should be assessed. This study investigated the interaction between BIT and microalgae in aquatic environment as the mechanism of BIT lethal effect on microalgae was unclear and whether microalgae could efficiently remove BIT was unknown. It was found that Chlorella vulgaris could be killed by high concentrations of BIT, and this lethal effect was strongly enhanced when exposed to light. Inhibition of photosystem II electron transport followed by a decrease in cellular chlorophyll led to serious damage to algal photosynthesis. The excess accumulation of reactive oxygen species caused by the photosynthetic damage under light further increased the oxidative damage and promoted cell death. Under dark condition, however, the algae could tolerate higher BIT concentrations. BIT could be efficiently removed when the growth of Scenedesmus sp. LX1 was not completely inhibited. With an initial concentration of 4.5 mg/L, over 99% of BIT was removed during 168 hour cultivation. Microalgal biodegradation was the primary reason for this removal, and the contributions of BIT hydrolytic/photolytic degradation, microalgal growth, photosynthesis and sorption were negligibly small. These results pointed to the potential application of microalgae for efficient BIT removal from wastewater.

Based on slab location and discharge decision, this paper researches the solution of transportation scheduling in the Slab Warehouse, builds up a mathematical model with an objective of minimize the total transportation time considering the location and discharge task at the same time. Moreover, decentralizes this objective to different Agents to form a Multi-Agent system. And reconciles the conflicts among Agents based on a biding-arbitration mechanism. The simulation results show that the system could be performed efficiently and balanced.

Grouting fill is one of the main methods of coal gob treatment. The grouting properties directly affect the effect of grouting treatment. Cement-fly ash grout is widely used in the treatment of coal gob. But in many gob grouting fill projects, due to the lack of fly ash, we need to look for other low-cost grouting materials. Study was made through laboratory experiment on the properties of cement-coal gangue materials used for the gob grouting. In this paper, the correlation of water-solid ratio, cement content, admixture, concretion compression strength, setting time, viscosity, water segregation rate and hardening rate is discussed in the case of use of large gangue content cement. The test results show that compared with the grout not go through the activation process, the blended cement grout mixed with coal gangue powder activated by low temperature and mechanical crushing has high concretion compression strength. Water glass has a great effect on the viscosity, initial setting time and final setting time, which can be used to adjust the grout properties to accommodate grouting environment requirements. This grout has the advantage of wide range sources of raw materials, and can be used to solve the lack of fly ash and gangue resource utilization problems.

Basing on the Chinese Badminton Team’s eighth final game in 2015, the 14th Sudirman Cup, through summarizing and analyze on video observation, mathematical statistics, comparative analysis and other research methods to find out the key causes of the victory, providing the theoretical basis for our country to continue to maintain a high level in badminton games.

The distributed collaboration based on process knowledge has become a main mode for manufacturing. Making good use of the manufacturing process knowledge is becoming more and more critical. In this paper, the manufacturing process knowledge is firstly defined and organized. A knowledge base construction method based on ontology is introduced. A three-tier system architecture of the manufacturing process knowledge base system is then illustrated with detailed main functions. Afterwards, a manufacturing process knowledge base system based on ontology is presented with respect to multi-technology fields. The implementation shows that the effective management and reuse of the knowledge can be realized.

Although accumulating evidence has confirmed that adjuvant Tamoxifen (TAM) treatment is able to sensitize glioblastoma cells to radiotherapy and inhibit their proliferation, TAM is not a suitable treatment for all types of glioblastoma cells; furthermore, long-term TAM usage may lead to TAM resistance. Therefore, understanding the underlying molecular mechanism of TAM resistance is necessary in order to improve TAM clinical therapy and the quality of life of patients suffering from glioblastomas. In this study, the significance of ER-α36 to TAM resistance in glioblastoma cells was examined. First, an analysis of ER-α36 expression in two glioblastoma cell lines U87-MG and U251, showed that ER-α36 was anchored to the cytoplasmic membrane of these cells via Caveolin-1. Subsequent experiments investigating the mechanism of TAM-induced inhibition of U87-MG cell growth showed that TAM exerts its effect by inducing apoptosis via a down-regulation of Survivin expression and an up-regulation of Caspase-3 expression. Furthermore, TAM also arrested the cell cycle at S-phase. However, when U87-MG cells were preconditioned with an ER-α36-specific agonist, IC162, this neutralized TAM-induced inhibition of cell growth. This contrasted with the effect of ER-α36 depletion by RNAi, which enhanced TAM-induced inhibition of cell growth. These findings suggest that resistance to TAM involves ER-α36, which probably acts as a negative regulator of TAM-induced inhibition of glioblastoma cell growth. These findings provide a novel insight into the basis of TAM resistance during glioblastoma therapy and a further study is underway to reveal more about the specific molecular mechanisms associated with ER-α36-mediated TAM resistance.

The neuroprotection by estrogen (E2) and tamoxifen is well documented in experimental stroke models; however, the exact mechanism is unclear. A membrane-based estrogen receptor, ER-α36, has been identified. Postmenopausal-levels of E2 act through ER-α36 to induce osteoclast apoptosis due to a prolonged activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)/extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK) signaling. We hypothesized that ER-α36 may play a role in the neuroprotective activities of estrogen and tamoxifen. Here, we studied ER-α36 expression in the brain, as well as its neuroprotective effects against oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD) in PC12 cells. We found that ER-α36 was expressed in both rat and human brain. In addition, OGD-induced cell death was prevented by l nmol/L 17β-estradiol (E2β). E2β activates the MAPK/ERK signaling pathway in PC12 cells under basal and OGD conditions by interacting with ER-α36 and also induces ER-α36 expression. Low-dose of tamoxifen up-regulated ER-α36 expression and enhanced neuronal survival in an ovariectomized ischemic stroke model. Furthermore, low-dose of tamoxifen enhanced neuroprotective effects by modulating activates or suppress ER-α36. Our results thus demonstrated that ER-α36 is involved in neuroprotective activities mediated by both estrogen and tamoxifen.

Recent evidence suggests that caveolin-1 (Cav-1), the major protein constituent of caveolae, plays a prominent role in neuronal nutritional availability with cellular fate regulation besides in several cellular processes such as cholesterol homeostasis, regulation of signal transduction, integrin signaling and cell growth. Here, we aimed to investigate the function of Cav-1 and glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) upon glucose deprivation (GD) in PC12 cells. The results demonstrated firstly that both Cav-1 and GLUT4 were up-regulated by glucose withdrawal in PC12 cells by using Western blot and laser confocal technology. Also, we found that the cell death rate, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and intracellular free Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+)]i) were also respectively changed followed the GD stress tested by CCK8 and flow cytometry. After knocking down of Cav-1 in the cells by siRNA, the level of [Ca(2+)]i was increased, and MMP was reduced further in GD-treated PC12 cells. Knockdown of Cav-1 or methylated-β-Cyclodextrin (M-β-CD) treatment inhibited the expression of GLUT4 protein upon GD. Additionally, we found that GLUT4 could translocate from cytoplasm to cell membrane upon GD. These findings might suggest a neuroprotective role for Cav-1, through coordination of GLUT4 in GD.

C15H16N2O4S, triclinic, P1̅ (no. 2), a = 7.3024(6) Å, b = 10.7115(7) Å, c = 11.2743(6) Å, α = 109.491(5)°, β = 100.496(5)°, γ = 107.860(5)°, V = 750.44(9) Å3, Z = 2, R gt (F) = 0.0691, wR ref (F 2 ) = 0.2136, T = 296 K.

The treatment of concentrated landfill leachate from membrane process is a troublesome issue due to high concentrations of biorecalcitrant pollutants. In this study, the effect of Fenton process on dissolved organic matter (DOM) distribution (i.e. humic acid (HA), fulvic acid (FA) and hydrophilic fraction (HyI)), chemical forms of toxic organic compounds and metals, and their biotoxicity were investigated. In the concentrated leachate, toluene, ethylbenzene and chlorobenzene predominated in the HyI fraction, while phthalate esters (PAEs) were mainly absorbed on the HA and FA fractions. PAEs were more readily removed from the HA and FA fractions than that from the HyI fraction in the Fenton process. The complexing abilities of DOM varied with types of metal in the concentrated leachate. The biotoxicities of the DOM fractions to luminescent bacteria (Photobacterium phosphoreum T3 mutation) were HA > FA > HyI. The biotoxicities of the hydrophobic organic contaminants to luminescent bacteria were not obvious in the concentrated leachate due to their low concentrations. Metals might be the main contributor to the biotoxicity to luminous bacteria in the concentrated leachate. These results indicated that Fenton process could influence the pollutants distribution in DOM and their biotoxicities through the breakdown of HA and FA in the concentrated leachate.

This paper proposes an optimization model of multi-inventory matching and order planning of the iron-steel factories based on the mixed strategy of MTO-MTS. The model considers the multiple objectives, i.e., the total cost of earliness/tardiness penalty, tardiness penalty in delivery time window, production penalty; inventory matching, order cancellation penalty and machine capacity penalty. An improved PSO algorithm is designed along with the strategy of the initial feasible solution's construction and repair of infeasible solutions. In the computational experiments, parameters of PSO are also analyzed. Three sets of real data from a steel manufacturing company are used to perform computational experiments for PSO, local search, and improved PSO. Numerical results show the validity of the model and efficacy of the improved PSO method.

C13H10AgBF4N2O3, orthorhombic, Pbca (no. 61), a = 13.2751(5) Å, b = 14.6212(5) Å, c = 15.5573(6) Å, V = 3019.6 Å3, Z = 8, Rgt(F) = 0.0498, wRref(F2) = 0.1423, T = 296 K.