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To determine whether curcumin (Cur) can treat mice with experimentally-induced colitis by regulating follicular helper T cells (Tfh) and follicular regulatory T cells (Tfr) by inhibiting interleukin (IL)-21. In this study, 40 male C57BL/6 mice were randomly grouped into four groups, i.e., normal, trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS), TNBS + curcumin, and TNBS + anti- IL-21. Mice with experimental colitis were induced by 100 mg/kg TNBS. The mice in the TNBS + Cur group were treated with 100 mg/kg curcumin for seven days, and mice in the TNBS + anti-IL-21 group were treated with anti-IL-21 (150 μg/mouse) once per week, intraperitoneally, starting on the second day after establishing the experimental colitis model. On day eight, the therapeutic effect of curcumin was evaluated by colon mucosa damage index (CMDI), histological examination, and disease activity index (DAI). Furthermore, the number of CD4 + CXCR5 + PD-1 + Tfh and CD4 + CXCR5 + FoxP3 + Tfr cells were measured by flow cytometry. The mRNA and protein expression of IL-21, Bcl-6, FOXP3, ICOS, and PD-1 in colonic mucosa was detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and the Western blot technique. Compared with the TNBS group, the DAI, CMDI, histological score, the number of CD4 + CXCR5 + PD-1 + Tfh cells, the expression of IL-21, Bcl-6, ICOS, and PD-1 were significantly decreased in the TNBS + curcumin group and TNBS + anti- IL-21 group; body weight, number of CD4 + CXCR5 + FoxP3 + Tfr cells, and the expression of FoxP3 were observably elevated in the TNBS + curcumin group (all P < 0.05). Curcumin may have a potential therapeutic effect on mice with colitis treated experimentally through regulation of the balance of Tfh and Tfr cells via inhibiting the synthesis of IL-21. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to reveal the role of sucrose (Suc) in early drought response in plants, transgenic rice (Oryza sativa L.) plants overexpressing the maize (Zea mays L.) C4-phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC, EC 4.1.1.31) gene (C4-pepc) (PC) and their untransformed wild type (WT) were used under 12 % (m/v) polyethylene glycol 6000 to simulate drought conditions. The results showed that PC has higher relative water content, the increased Suc content, and anthocyanin accumulation than WT during PEG treatment. By spraying 1 % Suc and 1 % Suc non-metabolic analog, turanose, on these plants, Suc in PC leaves increased anthocyanin content and Ca2+ content. Further experiments using the Ca2+ chelator (EGTA), Ca2+ channel antagonist (ruthenium red), and abscisic acid inhibitor (nordihydroguaiaretic acid), showed that, in PC plants, Suc content is closely related to the expression of sucrose nonfermenting-1-related protein kinases 2 (SnRK2s) such as SAPK8, SAPK9, and SAPK10 via abscisic acid, and the SnRK3 such as SnRK3.1, SnRK 3.4, and SnRK3.21 via Ca2+ and calcineurin B-like as well. Furthermore, the target genes associated with anthocyanin synthesis phenylalanine ammonia lyase, chalcone isomerase, chalcone synthase, flavonoid-3-hydrogenase, flavonoid-3'-hydrogenase, dihydroflavonone reductase, and anthocyanin synthase, their regulated genes basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proteins OsB1 and OsB2, R2R3- MYB transcription factor OsC1, and some transcription factors (constitutively photomorphogenic 1, elongated hypocotyl 5, and purple acid phosphatase gene 2) in PC plants also increased via Suc and Ca2+ during the PEG treatment. Some Suc tranporter genes OsSUT1 and OsSUT5 in PC lines during PEG treatment further showed an enhancement for the function of the signal of Suc. Thereby, increasing anthocyanin biosynthesis via Suc and Ca2+ signaling cascade is one of the important mechanisms on drought tolerance in the PC lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the main functions of the piwi‐interacting RNA pathway is the post‐transcriptional silencing of transposable elements in the germline of many species. In insects, proteins belonging to the Tudor superfamily proteins belonging to the Tudor superfamily play an important role in to play an important role in this mechanism. In this study, we identified the tudor gene in the oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis, investigated the spatiotemporal expressional profile of the gene, and performed a functional analysis using RNA interference. We identified one transcript for a tudor homologue in the B. dorsalis transcriptome, which encodes a protein containing the typical 10 Tudor domains and an Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) synthase delta subunit signature. Phylogenetic analysis confirmed the identity of this transcript as a tudor homologue in this species. The expression profile indicated a much higher expression in the adult and pupal stages compared to the larval stages (up to a 60‐fold increase), and that the gene was mostly expressed in the ovaries, Malpighian tubules and fat body. Finally, gene knockdown of tudor in B. dorsalis led to clearly underdeveloped ovaries in the female adult and reductions in copulation rate and amount of oviposition, indicating its important role in reproduction. The results of this study shed more light on the role of tudor in ovary development and reproduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The molten iron temperature in the taphole of a blast furnace (BF) is an important variable which reflects the internal heat of the BF. However, there is no method to detect the temperature directly. To solve this difficulty, an approach to measure the temperature of molten iron in taphole is proposed in this paper. First, during the stable tapping period, a heat transfer model is established according to the principle of equal heat flux of the trench walls, which is used to calculate the molten iron temperature at different positions in the main pipeline according to the temperature measured by thermocouples buried in trench walls. Next, a main pipeline temperature drop model is established based on the pipe temperature drop theory. Finally, the output of heat transfer model is used as the data source for parameter identification in the temperature drop model. The least-squares method is adopted to identify the molten iron temperature in the taphole. The proposed approach was validated in a practical industrial experiment at the #2 BF in an iron making plant. The results illustrate the effectiveness and rationality of the proposed approach and provides credible temperature data for the control of the BF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corrosion of steel reinforcement bars is a common problem for high-pile wharf in service, with the aim of solving this problem, a method to calculate the actual bearing capacity of corroded beam-slabs is proposed, in which the rate of loss of area and the reduction in strength of steel bars due to corrosion are considered. Taking Zhanjiang Port as an example, the actual bearing capacity of corroded beam slabs is calculated and is compared with that found under normal service conditions. For repair of corroded beam-slabs, a method in which fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) bars partly replace the steel bars is proposed, and the basic assumptions and method of calculation for this mixed-reinforcement components are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An optimal decentralised fault detection (FD) system is proposed for a class of discrete-time large-scale systems, where limited information exchange among subsystems is enabled with communication networks. Such an FD system consists of two parts in each subsystem: a residual generator (RG) and a residual evaluator. By taking the advantages of network communications, the RGs are designed to match a proper reference model in a stochastic sense such that a best trade-off between the robustness against disturbances and the sensitivity to faults can be achieved. In each residual evaluator, a norm-based evaluation function is selected for evaluating residual signals and a corresponding threshold is calculated for detecting the occurrences of faults. All the solutions are presented in the form of linear matrix inequalities. Finally, a numerical example is given to illustrate the results and the improvement achieved by applying network communications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The problem of delay-dependent stabilisation for singular linear continuous-time systems with multiple internal incommensurate constant point delays is investigated. The condition when a singular system subject to point delays is regular independent of time delays is given and it can be easily tested with numerical or algebraic methods. Based on the Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional approach and the descriptor integral-inequality lemma, a sufficient condition for delay-dependent stability is obtained. The main idea is to design multiple memory state feedback control laws such that the resulting closed-loop system is regular independent of time delays, impulse free and stable via solving matrix inequality problem. An explicit expression for the desired memory state feedback control law is also given. Finally, a numerical example is presented to illustrate the effectiveness and the availability for the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the future of neurosurgery in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The author mentions that the main health priorities for the country are to reduce poverty, improve nutrition and prevent infectious diseases and despite these priorities, surgical services are also important. However, the author sees that neurosurgery is like a private, technology-hungry, highly expensive luxury needed by only very few people. He added that PNG has only one neurosurgeon, clearly far below the ratio.