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BACKGROUND Eukaryotic initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) has been reported to act as a prognostic biomarker in various cancers, but its actual effect on basal cell cancer (BCC) of the skin is rarely reported. Our research measured eIF4E levels and discussed its consequence in BCC of the skin. MATERIAL AND METHODS Semi-quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and western blotting analysis were used to detect relative expression level of eIF4E in specimens at both mRNA and protein levels. The relationship of eIF4E level with clinical profiles was analyzed via chi-square test. Additionally, prognostic value of eIF4E was analyzed via Kaplan-Meier and cox regression analysis. RESULTS We found that eIF4E was over-expressed in tumor tissues, in comparison to bordering cancer-free tissue samples. Besides, elevated eIF4E level exhibited a strong relation to metastasis, TNM stage, and differentiation. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed cases harboring high eIF4E levels faced shortened overall survival compared to cases of low levels (log rank test, P=0.018). Moreover, eIF4E could act as an independent biomarker for the prognosis of BCC of the skin, according to Cox regression analysis. CONCLUSIONS The level of eIF4E was upregulated and significantly correlated with the development of BCC of the skin. Thus, it might be a promising prognostic biomarker and therapy target for BCC of the skin.

FeNbO4@ZrSiO4 ceramic pigments have been successfully synthesized with MgO as mineralizer by an environment-friendly solid-state reaction method at low temperature. The formation of ZrSiO4 has been investigated by X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimeter analysis, respectively. The reflectance spectrum and color properties of the FeNbO4@ZrSiO4 pigments have been measured and analyzed. Results illustrate that MgO together with Fe2O3–Nb2O5 can promote the formation of ZrSiO4 and decrease the synthesis temperature to 1050 °C that is 400–500 °C lower than the characteristic temperature of ZrSiO4 formation. A series of FeNbO4@ZrSiO4 pigments with high thermostability present color changing from bud yellow to earthy yellow as a function of Fe2O3–Nb2O5 content. The preparation method used in this work possesses many advantages of safety, simplicity of processing and is free of gas phases, indicating a more favorable method to synthesize ZrSiO4-based pigments. The new yellowish brown FeNbO4@ZrSiO4 pigments are promising for high-temperature ceramic pigments applications.

In this study, a solution chemical route for the synthesis of ultrafine WC-15 wt %Co cemented carbides was proposed with WC-6Co aggregates as raw materials. The chemical Co was uniformly distributed around the WC-6Co aggregates and the Co layers in the raw materials had been well preserved. During sintering, the chemical Co could diffuse along the Co layers and thus avoid the aggregation and growth of WC grains. Additionally, the homogeneous distribution of Co phase and the existent of Co layers promoted the WC reprecipitations on the same crystal during the solution/re-precipitation process. The fine WC grains and the homogeneous of WC and Co phases resulted in the high hardness and transverse rupture strength.

High content Er3+ doped (Y0.9La0.1)2O3 transparent ceramics have been prepared by conventional ceramic process. Absorption spectra, mid-infrared, up-conversion and near-infrared emission spectra of Er3+ pumped at 980 nm have been investigated. The mechanisms of energy transfer processes have been discussed. Large values of Judd–Ofelt parameter Ω2 (5.73 × 10–20 cm2) and spectral quality factor X (3.71) have been obtained. The greatly enhanced green up-conversion emission in the high Er3+ doped sample is considered important for the applications in up-converters. The much enhanced mid-infrared 2.7 µm and up-conversion emissions, as well as the depressed near-infrared 1.5 µm emission demonstrate the efficient population inversion of Er3+:4I11/2 → 4I13/2 in high Er3+-doped ceramics for the 2.7 µm emission. These results suggest that high Er3+-doped (Y0.9La0.1)2O3 transparent ceramics are promising host materials for the applications of mid-infrared lasers and infrared-to-visible up-converters.

The ZrSiO4 has been synthesized with MgO as mineralizer by a simple solid-state route at low temperature. The effect of particle size of raw materials on the ZrSiO4 formation has been studied. The formation of ZrSiO4 with and without MgO has been investigated by X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimeter analysis, respectively. The Fe2O3–ZrSiO4 pigments have been fully synthesized with MgO mineralizer at 1200 °C. The reflectance spectrum and color property of the Fe2O3–ZrSiO4 pigments have been measured and analyzed. Results reveal that nanopowders have a higher reactivity in synthesizing ZrSiO4, and that MgO can efficiently decrease the formation temperature of ZrSiO4 by reacting with SiO2 to 1100–1200 °C which is 200–300 °C lower than the characteristic temperature of ZrSiO4 formation. The prepared samples have most similar color properties to the commercially available pigment and the literature pigment. The method used in this work exhibits many advantages such as being free of volatile phases, safety and security, simplicity of process, low cost, environmental friendliness, indicating a more suitable method to synthesize Fe2O3–ZrSiO4 pigments for the potential applications in high-temperature ceramic pigments.

Ultra-coarse grained WC–6Co cemented carbides with 1.2 wt% (Ni and/or Cu) additions were investigated and compared with a focus on microstructure, mechanical properties and wear resistance using scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffraction, mechanical properties tests and wear test. The results reveal that Ni and/or Cu play a definite role in inhibiting the growth of WC grain and stabilizing fcc-Co. Moreover, Cu exhibits a stronger inhibition effect on the WC grain growth compared to Ni. In addition, Ni promotes WC grains to evolve towards the plate-like shape, while Cu retards the evolution of WC grains from round shape to facetted shape. Therefore, the addition of 1.2 wt% Ni can improve simultaneously hardness and fracture toughness, resulting in an approximate 50% improvement in wear resistance. However, Cu is proven to improve hardness at the expense of fracture toughness, and deteriorate wear resistance. Instead of Cu, in this regard, Ni is a promising addition to strength ultra-coarse grained WC–Co cemented carbides used for rock-drilling applications.

CoCrCuFeNiMox (x values in molar ratio, x = 0, 0.2, 0.4 and 0.8) high-entropy alloys were prepared by mechanical alloying and spark plasma sintering method. The effects of Mo addition on microstruc...

Genes essential for gametophyte development and fertilization have been identified and studied in detail; however, genes that fine-tune these processes are largely unknown. Here, we characterized an unknown Arabidopsis gene, GTP-BINDING PROTEIN RELATED1 (GPR1). GPR1 is specifically expressed in ovule, pollen, and pollen tube. Enhanced green fluorescent protein-tagged GPR1 localizes to both nucleus and cytoplasm, and it also presents in punctate and ring-like structures. gpr1 mutants exhibit no defect in gametogenesis and seed setting, except that their pollen grains are pale in color. Scanning electron microscopy analyses revealed a normal patterned but thinner exine on gpr1 pollen surface. This may explain why gpr1 pollen grains are pale. We next examined whether GPR1 mutation affects post gametogenesis processes including pollen germination, pollen tube growth, and ovule senescence. We found that gpr1 pollen grains germinated earlier, and their pollen tubes elongated faster. Emasculation assay revealed that unfertilized gpr1 pistil expressed the senescence marker PBFN1:GUS (GUS: a reporter gene that encodes β-glucuronidase) one-day earlier than the wild type pistil. Consistently, ovules and pollen grains of gpr1 mutants showed lower viability than those of the wild type at 4 to 5 days post anthesis. Together, these data suggest that GPR1 functions as a negative regulator of pollen germination, pollen tube growth, and gametophyte senescence to fine-tune the fertilization process.

Three kinds of hierarchical porous carbon were successfully fabricated in the absence of any templates by carbonizing kenaf-nickel ion stems complex and subsequently etching nickel-doped carbon composites with hydrochloric acid. The pore size was easily controllable by changing the concentration of nickel ion solution. The unique porous structure of the products resulted in high specific surface area of 1480 m2 g−1. The creation of mesopores and macropores and construction of hierarchical pores not only improve the accessibility of the active centers, but also provide highways for reaction species, which result in an enhanced performance in a supercapacitor. The resulting porous carbon electrode materials showed improved specific capacitance of 327 F g−1 at a scan rate of 2 mV s−1 in 1.0 M H2SO4. Furthermore, the electrode showed a super-long cycle life with 95.6% retention of the initial specific capacitance after 5000 cycles at a current of 1 A g−1. This research demonstrated that the hierarchical porous carbon derived from kenaf stems was a good potential material in energy conversion and storage devices.

A protocol for in vitro induction of crape myrtle tetraploids using nodes from in vitro-grown shoots (2n = 48) was established. Nodal buds were excised from in vitro-grown shoots, maintained on proliferation medium containing Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with 4.44 μM 6-benzyladenine , 0.54 μM α-naphthaleneacetic acid, and treated with a range of concentrations of colchicine under three different conditions. Nodal bud explants treated in liquid proliferation medium supplemented with either 15 or 20 mM colchicine for 24 h turned necrotic and died; whereas, those cultured on solid proliferation medium supplemented with either 125 or 250 μM colchicine for 30 days survived, but no tetraploid plants were obtained. However, when explants were cultured in liquid proliferation medium containing 250, 500 or 750 μM colchicine for 10 days, tetraploid plants (2n = 96) were obtained. Incubation of explants in medium containing 750 μM colchicine promoted the highest frequency of survival (40%) of explants and of recovered tetraploids (60%). Morphological and anatomical characteristics of leaves, including leaf index, stomata size and number, stomata index (length/width), and number of chloroplasts in guard cells correlated with ploidy of crape myrtle plants. The number of chloroplasts in guard cells of stomata was a stable and reliable marker in discriminating plants of different ploidy levels. Chromosome counts and flow cytometry confirmed these findings.

A three-dimensional (3D) macroporous carbon (3D-KSCs) derived from kenaf stem (KS) is proposed as a novel supporting material for electrochemical sensing and a biosensing platform. A series of 3D-KSCs/inorganic nanocomposites such as Prussian blue (PB) nanoparticles (NPs)-carboxylic group-functionalized 3D-KSCs (PBNPs-3D-FKSCs), CuNiNPs-3D-KSCs, and CoNPs-3D-KSCs were prepared by a facile two-step route consisting of carbonization and subsequent chemical synthesis or one-step carbonization of KS-metal ion complex. The obtained 3D-KSCs/inorganic nanocomposites were characterized by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy. A whole piece of 3D-KSCs/nanocomposites was used to prepare an integrated 3D-KSCs/nanocomposite electrode. Compared to the electrode modified by graphene, carbon nanotubes and their derivatives, which can form close-packed structure after assembled on electrode surface, the integrated 3D-KSCs/nanocomposite electrode shows a 3D honeycomb porous structure. Such structure provides a large specific surface area, effectively supports a large number of electro-active species, and greatly enhances the mass and electron transfer. The electrochemical behaviors and electrocatalytic performances of the integrated 3D-KSCs/inorganic nanocomposite electrode were evaluated by cyclic voltammetry and the amperometric method. The resulted PBNPs-3D-FKSCs, CuNiNPs-3D-KSCs, and CoNPs-3D-KSCs electrode show good electrocatalytic performances toward the reduction of H2O2, the oxidation of glucose and amino acid, respectively. Therefore, the low-cost, renewable, and environmentally friendly 3D-KSCs should be promising supporting materials for an electrochemical sensor and biosensor.

As a typical low-carbon transportation mode, inland navigation requires less land, produces less pollution, and consumes less energy, but carries more goods. To scientifically evaluate the green performance of inland navigation using the method of LCIA to analyze input and output inventories, the paper constructs a green degree evaluation index system of inland navigation, quantifies the indexes with the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (F-AHP), and uses a linear weighted sum method to calculate the final comprehensive evaluation. The results show that inland navigation has some green properties but cannot meet the requirements of China's low-carbon society. The paper puts forward some advanced measures on basic attributes and environmental attributes.

To pursue the greatest time benefit and the least cost in emergency logistics, an improved emergency logistics system is designed and an operation process in emergency logistics system is proposed by comparing the differences between emergency logistics and common commercial logistics. A multi-material dispatching model is constructed, based on the double objective of the earliest emergency start time and the least cost of emergency logistics. The optimal solution for the model is obtained by an adaptive genetic algorithm (AGA), which has proven to be an effective algorithm. An application example simulated by MATLAB is presented, which shows that AGA has better optimizing resistance than GA; thus, the emergency material dispatching model can be effectively used in the emergency logistics field.