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Ammonia nitrogen （NH 4 + -N） and total phosphorus （TP） were the major control pollutants in the Yangtze River Basin. Based on measured data from 2003 to 2020, the temporal and spatial variations in concentrations and fluxes of NH 4 + -N and TP in the Jianli to Hankou （JL-HK） reach of the Middle Yangtze River were studied, and the impacts of flow-sediment factors, tributary inflows, and others on variations in NH 4 + -N and TP fluxes were discussed. The results showed that： ① In recent years, NH 4 + -N and TP concentrations in the mainstream have declined significantly, with annual NH 4 + -N and TP concentrations at each monitoring station in 2020 averagely decreasing by 41% and 34% compared to those in 2003, respectively. Spatially, NH 4 + -N and TP concentrations decreased and then increased along the mainstream. NH 4 + -N and TP concentrations of tributary inflows, which include the Dongting Lake and Han River, were generally lower than that of the mainstream. The multi-year average values of NH 4 + -N and TP concentrations were both averaged at 0.12 mg·L -1 in the mainstream and were averaged at 0.11 mg·L -1 and 0.09 mg·L -1 in the tributary inflows. ② The flux differences between the upper and lower sections net of tributary confluences showed that NH 4 + -N and TP fluxes were lost in the Jianli to Luoshan （JL-LS） sub-reach and increased in the Luoshan to Hankou （LS-HK） sub-reach in most years. NH 4 + -N and TP fluxes decreased in the JL-LS sub-reach, which was related to the lower NH 4 + -N and TP concentrations in lateral inflows, such as Dongting Lake, and thus lowered the NH 4 + -N and TP concentrations in the mainstream. The LS-HK sub-reach showed the opposite trends, and the water and sediment loads increased in this sub-reach. Across the whole JL-HK reach, TP flux as well as water and sediment loads were recharged along the reach, whereas NH 4 + -N flux was reduced greatly, which could be attributed to the pollution abatement conducted in the Yangtze River Basin, which mainly focused on NH 4 + -N. ③ The correlation analysis results showed that NH 4 + -N fluxes had the strongest correlation with NH 4 + -N concentrations but not significantly correlated with discharges and sediment transport rates, indicating that NH 4 + -N was mainly controlled by point source pollution in the study reach. TP fluxes had higher correlations with discharges and sediment transport rates in high flow level periods, and the correlations between TP fluxes and TP concentrations were better in low flow level periods, reflecting that point source pollution contributed more to TP in dry seasons compared to flood seasons.

Drought is a major adverse environmental factor that plants face in nature but the molecular mechanism by which plants transduce stress signals and further endow themselves with tolerance remains unclear. Malectin/malectin-like domains containing receptor-like kinases (MRLKs) have been proposed to act as receptors in multiple biological signaling pathways, but limited studies show their roles in drought-stress signaling and tolerance. In this study, we demonstrate OsMRLK63 in rice (Oryza sativa L.) functions in drought tolerance by acting as the receptor of 2 rapid alkalization factors, OsRALF45 and OsRALF46. We show OsMRLK63 is a typical receptor-like kinase that positively regulates drought tolerance and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. OsMRLK63 interacts with and phosphorylates several nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidases with the primarily phosphorylated site at Ser26 in the N-terminal of RESPIRATORY BURST OXIDASE HOMOLOGUE A (OsRbohA). The application of the 2 small signal peptides (OsRALF45/46) on rice can greatly alleviate the dehydration of plants induced by mimic drought. This function depends on the existence of OsMRLK63 and the NADPH oxidase-dependent ROS production. The 2 RALFs interact with OsMRLK63 by binding to its extracellular domain, suggesting they may act as drought/dehydration signal sensors for the OsMRLK63-mediated process. Our study reveals a OsRALF45/46-OsMRLK63-OsRbohs module which contributes to drought-stress signaling and tolerance in rice., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest statement. None declared., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of American Society of Plant Biologists. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Background: Although socioeconomic support is recommended for frailty management, its association with the prognosis of frailty is unclear., Methods: Using data from participants aged ≥65 years in the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (2008-2018), the associations between socioeconomic support (source of income, medical insurance, community support, living status), onset of prefrailty/frailty, and worsening of prefrailty, were analyzed using multinominal logistic regression models. The associations between self-reported low quality of life (QoL) and reversion of prefrailty/frailty were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression models. Associations with mortality risk were analyzed using Cox proportional hazard regression models., Results: A total of 13,859 participants (mean age: 85.8 ± 11.1 years) containing 2056 centenarians were included. Financial dependence was a risk factor for low QoL among prefrail/frail individuals, but not among robust individuals. Having commercial or other insurance, and receiving social support from the community were protective factors for low QoL among prefrail/frail individuals and for the worsening of prefrailty. Continuing to work was a risk factor for low QoL, but a protective factor for worsening of prefrailty. A negative association between continuing to work and mortality existed in prefrail individuals aged <85 years and ≥85 years. Living alone was a risk factor for low QoL, but was not significantly associated with frailty prognosis., Conclusions: Prefrail and frail individuals were vulnerable to changes in socioeconomic support and more sensitive to it compared with robust individuals. Preferential policies regarding financial support, social support, and medical insurance should be developed for individuals with frailty., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (© 2024 The Authors. Health Care Science published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd on behalf of Tsinghua University Press.)

Metal sulfides have attracted much attentions as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) because of the high theoretical capacity. However, the poor electronic conductivity and large volume variation usually give rise to the rapid capacity decay and undesirable rate performance, severely hampering their practical application. Herein, a gradient selenium-doped hollow sandwich structured zinc sulfide/carbon (ZnS/C) composite (Se-HSZC) is designed and fabricated as long life-span and stable anode material for LIBs. The gradient Se-doping enhances the interfacial charge transfer in Se-HSZC, while the unique double carbon shell sandwich structure further greatly reduces the volume expansion and ensures the electron fast transportation. Consequently, the Se-HSZC anode presents outstanding rate capability (654 mAh g -1 at 2 A g -1 ) with remarkable reversible capacity (567 mAh g -1 after 1500 cycles at 4 A g -1 ) for the half battery. In particular, a reversible capacity of 457 mAh g -1 at 0.5 A g -1 is achieved after 50 cycles for the full battery with LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 as cathode. This work offers a promising design route of novel metal sulfides nanostructures for high performance LIBs., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Bislangduoids A and B, a novel class of dimeric diterpenoids based on ent-abietanes tethered by C-17-C-15' bridge, were identified as trace components from a traditional Chinese medicine Euphorbia fischeriana (Langdu). Bislangduoid A features a highly oxidized scaffold incorporating a cage-like pentacyclic core. Their structures were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic techniques, electronic circular dichroism, and NMR calculations. The biosynthetic pathway for the dimeric skeleton and the unique caged moiety via Michael and acetal-formation reactions was proposed. Bislangduoid A showed pronounced cytotoxicity against HepG2 cells through the mitochondria-dependent apoptosis pathway., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a malignant proliferative disease of myeloid hematopoietic origin and cannot be treated appropriately at present. This is due to the fact that leukemia cells are not sensitive to some of the traditional chemotherapy drugs. Or some chemotherapeutic drugs are too toxic to normal cells, affecting their wide clinical application. In this study, we identified BAM15 as a novel mitochondrial uncoupling agent by screening a library of small molecule compounds that inhibit AML cell activity. BAM15 significantly inhibited proliferation and promoted apoptosis in AML cells while at the same time being less cytotoxic to normal cells. The mechanism may be related to the disturbance of the ROS production balance. In vivo investigations revealed that BAM15 effectively suppressed AML progression and prolonged the survival time of mice. In addition, we found that BAM15 can be used in combination with cytarabine to enhance its anti-cancer activity and inhibit the activity of primary cells in AML. Therefore, we identified BAM15 as a potential drug candidate for the treatment of AML., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Aim: To compare the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of osteoblasts between newborn rats (1d group) and two-week-old rats (14d group) and to clarify the mechanism underlying these effects., Method: The endogenous expression of osteogenic marker genes was detected by qPCR, including ALP, OCN, Col1a1, and Runx2. The osteoblasts proliferation was evaluated by EdU assay and Western Blotting [PCNA and Cyclin D1]. ALP activities in osteoblasts were detected using a PNPP kit, ALP staining and qPCR. Mineralized nodule formation and intracellular calcium levels were assessed by Alizarin Red staining and calcium colorimetric assay respectively while OCN, Col1a1 and Runx2 levels in osteoblasts were analyzed by immunostaining. Osteogenesis-associated pathways including Wnt/β-Catenin, Akt/PPAR and Smad were analyzed via Western Blotting., Result: Endogenous ALP, OCN, Col1a1, and Runx2 expression levels were significantly higher in osteoblasts from 14d group than those from 1d group. After treatment with osteogenic induction medium, osteoblast proliferation, ALP activity, mineralized nodule formation, and intracellular calcium levels were markedly increased in osteoblasts from 1d group, with similar results also being observed for the expression of OCN, Col1a1, and Runx2. Wnt3a, β-catenin, p-Akt, p-Smad1/5/8, and p-Smad5 protein levels were also higher in osteoblasts from 1d group relative to those from 14d group, while the expression of PPARγ was lower., Conclusion: The superior osteogenic differentiation capacity in osteoblasts was associated with the higher activation levels of Wnt/β-Catenin, Akt/PPAR and Smad signaling pathways, and the enhanced proliferative activity in osteoblasts from 1d group., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.)

Carbohydrate-binding malectin/malectin-like domain-containing proteins (CBMs) are a recently identified protein subfamily of lectins that participates various functional bioprocesses in the animal, bacterial, and plant kingdoms. However, little is known the roles of CBMs in rice development and stress response. In this study, OsCBM1, which encodes a protein containing only one malectin-like domain, was cloned and characterized. OsCBM1 is localized in both the endoplasmic reticulum and plasma membrane. Its transcripts are dominantly expressed in leaves and could be significantly stimulated by a number of phytohormone applications and abiotic stress treatments. Overexpression of OsCBM1 increased drought tolerance and reactive oxygen species production in rice, whereas the knockdown of the gene decreased them. OsCBM1 physically interacts with OsRbohA, a NADPH oxidase, and the expression of OsCBM1 in osrbohA, an OsRbohA-knockout mutant, is significantly downregulated under both normal growth and drought stress conditions. Meanwhile, OsCBM1 can also physically interacts with OsRacGEF1, a specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor for the Rop/Rac GTPase OsRac1, and transient coexpression of OsCBM1 with OaRacGEF1 significantly enhanced ROS production. Further transcriptome analysis showed that multiple signaling regulatory mechanisms are involved in the OsCBM1-mediated processes. All these results suggest that OsCBM1 participates in NADPH oxidase-mediated ROS production by interacting with OsRbohA and OsRacGEF1, contributing to drought stress tolerance of rice. Multiple signaling pathways are likely involved in the OsCBM1-mediated stress tolerance in rice., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

According to the decibel level of noise detection in the working environment, the research objects were divided into high noise group (more than 85 dB), low noise group (55 to 85 dB), and control group (less than 55 dB), the neurobehavioral core test battery (NCTB) was used to systematic tests all workers, radioimmunoassay was used to detect plasma catecholamine levels, and the relationship between noise intensities and the levels of plasma catecholamine was analyzed by canonical correlation. The result shows noise exposure will affect workers' neurological function and the influence of noise on neurobehavioral function may be related to the increase of the levels of norepinephrine and dopamine in the plasma and the inhibition of the synthesis of epinephrine of noise-exposed workers., Competing Interests: There is no conflicts of interest between the authors., (Copyright © 2021 American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.)

Inhibition of soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) is considered to be an effective treatment for inflammation-related diseases, and small molecules origin from natural products show promising activity against sEH. Two undescribed protostanes, 3β-hydroxy-25-anhydro-alisol F (1) and 3β-hydroxy-alisol G (2) were isolated from Alisma orientale and identified as new sEH inhibitors with IC 50 values of 10.06 and 30.45 μM, respectively. Potential lead compound 1 was determined as an uncompetitive inhibitor against sEH, which had a K i value of 5.13 μM. In-depth molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations revealed that amino acid residue Ser374 plays an important role in the inhibition of 1, which also provides an idea for the development of sEH inhibitors based on protostane-type triterpenoids., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The GASA (GA-stimulated Arabidopsis) gene family is highly specific to plants, signifying a crucial role in plant growth and development. Herein, we retrieved 119 GASA genes in 10 different plant species in two major lineages (monocots and eudicots). Further, in the phylogenetic tree we classified these genes into four well-conserved subgroups. All the proteins contain a conserved GASA domain with similar characteristics and a highly specific 12-cysteine residue of the C-terminus position. According to the global microarray data and qRT-PCR based analysis, the OsGASA gene family was dominantly expressed in the seedling and transition phase of floral stages. Despite this, OsGASA genes profoundly contribute to rice grain size and length, whereas the highest abundance of transcript level was noticed in stage-2 (Inf 6, 3.0-cm-long spikelet) and stage-3 (Inf 7, 5.0-cm-long spikelet) under GA treatment during panicle formation. Additionally, the maximum expression level of these genes was recorded in response to GA and ABA in young seedlings. Further, in response to abiotic stresses, OsGASA1/8/10 was up- regulated by salt, OsGASA2/5/7 by drought, OsGASA3/6 by cold, and OsGASA4/9 by heat stress. With the exception of OsGASA4, the higher transcription levels of all the other GASA genes were induced by Cd and Cr metal stresses (8-10 fold changes) at various time points. Finally, the GO ontology analysis of GASAs revealed the biological involvement in the GA-mediated signaling pathway and abiotic stresses. Prominently, most of these proteins are localized in cellular components such as the cell wall and extracellular region, where the molecular functions such as ATP binding and protein binding were observed. These results imply that GASAs are significantly involved in rice panicle developmental stages, responses to external stimuli, and hormones., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.)

Background: B-box (BBX) proteins play important roles in plant growth regulation and development including photomorphogenesis, photoperiodic regulation of flowering, and responses to biotic and abiotic stresses., Results: In the present study we retrieved total 131 BBX members from five Poaceae species including 36 from maize, 30 from rice, 24 from sorghum, 22 from stiff brome, and 19 from Millet. All the BBX genes were grouped into five subfamilies on the basis of their phylogenetic relationships and structural features. The expression profiles of 12 OsBBX genes in different tissues were evaluated through qRT-PCR, and we found that most rice BBX members showed high expression level in the heading stage compared to seedling and booting stages. The expression of OsBBX1, OsBBX2, OsBBX8, OsBBX19, and OsBBX24 was strongly induced by abiotic stresses such as drought, cold and salt stresses. Furthermore, the expression of OsBBX2, OsBBX7, OsBBX17, OsBBX19, and OsBBX24 genes was up-regulated under GA, SA and MeJA hormones at different time points. Similarly, the transcripts level of OsBBX1, OsBBX7, OsBBX8, OsBBX17, and OsBBX19 genes were significantly affected by heavy metals such as Fe, Ni, Cr and Cd., Conclusion: Change in the expression pattern of BBX members in response to abiotic, hormone and heavy metal stresses signifies their potential roles in plant growth and development and in response to multivariate stresses. The findings suggest that BBX genes could be used as potential genetic markers for the plants, particularly in functional analysis and determining their roles under multivariate stresses.

Objective: To investigate the role of NLRP12 in regulating Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) keratitis., Materials and Methods: Real-Time-PCR and Western blot were performed to measure the NLRP12 level in corneas and bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) of C57BL/6 (B6) mice. B6 mice received a subconjunctival injection of lentivirus expressing active NLRP12 (NLRP12-lentivirus) or Ctl-lentivirus (as control), followed by infection of P. aeruginosa. The clinical score, slit lamp and bacterial plate count of mice were evaluated. In addition, myeloperoxidase (MPO) was detected to assess the infiltration of polymorphonuclear neutrophil (PMN). Cytokine levels were measured by Real Time-PCR and ELISA. Meanwhile, the bacterial burden was also evaluated. The activation of NF-κB signaling was determined by pIκBα/IκBα levels based on Western blot and NF-κB-dependent Luciferase activity on the basis of Luciferase assays using 293T cells., Results: NLRP12 mRNA and protein levels were decreased in B6 corneas and BMDMs after P. aeruginosa infection. The over-expression of NLRP12 in B6 corneas significantly ameliorated the severity of corneal disease, bacterial burden, PMN infiltration and pro-inflammatory cytokine expression. In vitro analysis demonstrated that the up-regulation of NLRP12 suppressed pro-inflammatory cytokine production and enhanced bacterial clearance in RAW264.7 cells. The protein levels of pIκBα and IκBα were significantly decreased after NLRP12-lentivirus treatment compared with that of Ctl-lentivirus. NF-κB-dependent Luciferase activity was potently inhibited by NLRP12 infected with P. aeruginosa or cotransfected with the downstream signaling molecules including IKKα and IKKβ in 293T cells., Conclusions: NLRP12 decreases the severity of P. aeruginosa keratitis, reduces corneal inflammation and bacterial burden through the down-regulation of the NF-κB signaling pathway.

Objective: Breast cancer cell infiltration, migration, and proliferation significantly affect its curative effect. Stemness gene octamer-binding transcription factor 4 (OCT4) upregulated in breast cancer tissue compared with normal control. MiRNA exhibits regulatory role in gene expression. This study adopted bioinformatics to predict the miRNA to regulate OCT4 gene and investigated its impact on breast cancer cell infiltration, migration, and proliferation., Materials and Methods: MirBase database was analyzed to explore the potential miRNA in regulating OCT4 based on human OCT4 gene sequence. MiRNA mimics and inhibitor were synthetized and transfected to BS524 cells. qRT-PCR was applied to test miRNA and OCT4 mRNA expressions in cells at 12 h, 24 h, and 48 h after transfection. Western blot was selected to detect OCT4 protein expression. 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was selected to determine cell proliferation. Scratch assay was adopted to evaluate cell migration. Transwell assay was used to analyze cell infiltration., Results: MiR-145 may regulate OCT4 gene with score 82. OCT4 mRNA and protein increased at 12 h after transfection (p > 0.05). OCR4 gene significantly upregulated, cell proliferation, migration, and infiltration enhanced by miR-145 transfection compared with control (p < 0.05). OCT4 gene downregulated, while cell proliferation, infiltration, and migration markedly weakened in miR-145 inhibitor group compared with control (p < 0.05)., Conclusions: MiR-145 affects breast cancer BS524 cell proliferation, infiltration, and migration via positively regulating OCT4 gene expression.

The water inrush should been rapidly and accurately identified during preventing coalmine water inrush. The laser induced fluorescent (LIF) spectrum technology provides a new method to identify water inrush with the characteristics of high sensitivity, quick and accurate monitoring. In order to identify water inrush, this paper introduces the spectrum technology of LIF to obtain water inrush fluorescence spectra data. The spectral preprocessing methods of Savitzky-Golay(SG) and Multiplicative Scatter Correction (MSC) have been used to eliminate noise spectra in collecting process. Principal component analysis (PCA) extracts feature information, for SG reprocessing data, when the number of principal component is 3, the cumulative contribution rate can reach 99.76 percent. This method has largely retained the information of original data. This paper chooses the classification model with 3 layers BP neural network, constructing by different training and testing sets. The classification model with SG preprocessing has achieved accurate identification, however, appeared few false identification for MSC and original data. The result shows that SG preprocessing is better than MSC. Research results show that the classification model with PCA and BP neural network can effectively identify coalmine water inrush, and have the strong self-organizing, self-learning ability.

MUC1 is a transmembrane mucin that has been related to tumor progression and outcome in various malignancies. GLUT1 is a member of the mammalian facilitative glucose transporter (GLUT) family of passive carriers that functions as an energy-independent system for transporting glucose. Both of them are useful markers for the diagnosis, progression, and prognosis of various tumors, especially those that are cancerous. However, the clinical significance of MUC1 and GLUT1 in thymic epithelial tumors remains uncertain due to a lack of quality specimen and studies at sufficient scale, both owing, in part, to the rarity of the tumors. The aim of this article is to study the expression patterns of MUC1 and GLUT1 in thymic carcinoma and type B3 thymoma, and to evaluate their diagnostic value for these two types of tumors via immunohistochemistry. Forty-three patients were included in the study, including twenty-two with thymic carcinoma and twenty-one with type B3 thymoma. Tumor tissue sections were immunohistochemically stained for MUC1 and GLUT1; meanwhile, some tumors were also stained with CKpan, TDT, CD5, and CD117. MUC1 was expressed in a total of 17 cases, with a positive rate of 77.27% (17/22) in thymic carcinoma and 9.52% (2/21) in type B3 thymoma, revealing a significant difference (p<0.0001). A significant difference (p<0.0001) was also shown for GLUT1, where the positive rates for thymic carcinoma and type B3 thymoma were 100% (22/22) and 42.86% (9/21), respectively. The expression of MUC1 was significantly correlated with GLUT1 (p<0.0001). Furthermore, GLUT1 staining sensitivity and specificity for thymic carcinoma were 100% (22/22) and 70.97% (22/31), respectively, while MUC1 staining sensitivity and specificity were 77.27% (17/22) and 89.47% (17/19), respectively. In conclusion, our study shows that MUC1 and GLUT1 staining may play a useful role in differentiating thymic carcinoma from type B3 thymoma, with high sensitivity and specificity., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.)

Rapid source identification of mine water inrush has great significance for early warning and rescuing after the mine water inrush. Conventional method taking the concentration of ions as the discriminant factor takes such a long time that a method of rapid source identification of mine water inrush is in urgent need. This method is combined with Laser induced fluorescence (LIF) technology and Partial Least Squares-Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) algorithm. In the experiment, 405 nm laser was used to excite the water and 100 groups of fluorescence spectrum from 5 different aquifer of the mine were obtained. According to the spectra curve features, the data was compressed to obtain proper spectral data. 15 groups of spectrum of each water inrush samples were applied, with a total of 75 groups of spectrum as the prediction set while the rest of 25 groups of spectrum as the test set. To verify the experimental result, an experimental model was built with soft independent modeling of class analogy (SIMCA) to compare with PLS-DA. The result shows that the fluorescence spectra of different aquifer water samples is of great difference, without any pre-treatment, the PLS-DA algorithm based on the PLS model has higher modeling accuracy compared with SIMCA algorithm, which reaches to 100%, the validation results and the correlation of separation of variables are both more than 0.951, the RMSECV and RMSEP are both less than 0.123, using the model to identify the 5 water samples of test set, the accuracy are up to 100%.

Rapid identification and classification of mine water inrush is important for flood prevention work underground. This paper proposed a method of KNN combined with PCA identification of water inrush in mine with the laser induced fluorescence spectrum with an immersion probe laser into water samples. The fluorescence spectra of 4 kinds of water samples were obtained. For each set of data preprocessing, the processed data in each sample from 15 sets of data as the training setwith a total of 60 groups. The other 20 groups were used as the prediction set. The data were processed by principal component analysis (PCA), and then the KNN algorithm was used to classify and identify the principal component analysis. During the experiment, the pretreatment method in the principal component number is 2 while the correct rate has reached 100% by KNN classification algorithm.

Phasic dopamine (DA) release is believed to guide associative learning. Most studies have focused on projections from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) to the striatum, and the action of DA in other VTA target regions remains unclear. Using optogenetic activation of VTA projections, we examined DA function in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). We found that mice perceived optogenetically induced DA release in mPFC as neither rewarding nor aversive, and did not change their previously learned behavior in response to DA transients. However, repetitive temporal pairing of an auditory conditioned stimulus (CS) with mPFC DA release resulted in faster learning of a subsequent task involving discrimination of the same CS against unpaired stimuli. Similar results were obtained using both appetitive and aversive unconditioned stimuli, supporting the notion that DA transients in mPFC do not represent valence. Using extracellular recordings, we found that CS-DA pairings increased firing of mPFC neurons in response to CSs, and administration of D1 or D2 DA-receptor antagonists in mPFC during learning impaired stimulus discrimination. We conclude that DA transients tune mPFC neurons for the recognition of behaviorally relevant events during learning.

Rapid source identification of mine water inrush is of great significance for early warning and prevention in mine water hazard. According to the problem that traditional chemical methods to identify source takes a long time, put forward a method for rapid source identification of mine water inrush with laser induced fluorescence (LIF) technology and soft independent modeling of class analogy (SIMCA) algorithm. Laser induced fluorescence technology has the characteristics of fast analysis, high sensitivity and so on. With the laser assisted, fluorescence spectrums can be collected real-time by the fluorescence spectrometer. According to the fluorescence spectrums, the type of water samples can be identified. If the database is completed, it takes a few seconds for coal mine water source identification, so it is of great significance for early warning and post-disaster relief in coal mine water disaster. The experiment uses 405 nm laser emission laser into the 5 kinds of water inrush samples and get 100 groups of fluorescence spectrum, and then put all fluorescence spectrums into preprocessing. Use 15 group spectrums of each water inrush samples, a total of 75 group spectrums, as the prediction set, the rest of 25 groups spectrums as the test set. Using principal component analysis (PCA) to modeling the 5 kinds of water samples respectively, and then classify the water samples with SIMCA on the basis of the PCA model. It was found that the fluorescence spectrum are obvious different of different water inrush samples. The fluorescence spectrums after preprocessing of Gaussian-Filter, under the condition of the principal component number is 2 and the significant level α = 5%, the accuracy of prediction set and testing set are all 100% with the SIMCA to classify the water inrush samples.

Purpose: This study aims to analyze the clinical-pathological characteristics of multifocal and multicentric breast cancer (MMBC) in Chinese women., Methods: Sixty-seven cases with MMBC were randomly collected and reviewed at seven hospitals in representative districts of China during 1999 to 2008., Results: The incidence of MMBC in breast cancer in China was 1.75%. Compared to those with unifocal breast cancer, women with MMBC were more likely to have larger tumor size, lymph node metastasis (59.70% vs. 45.62%) and stage III to IV (46.26% vs. 21.10%). The peak age at onset of MMBC was 40 to 49 years old and has been gradually increasing during 1999 to 2008. Most of the MMBC women were treated with surgery and adjuvant therapy., Conclusion: In China, the incidence of MMBC in breast cancer is significantly lower than that in Western countries. Compared to unifocal breast cancer, MMBC is biologically more aggressive. Most MMBC women underwent mastectomy, instead of breast conservation surgery.

Objective: The purpose of the study was to understand the epidemiological tendency and distribution of the disease across Qinghai province, so as to serve for the development of a scientific system for prevention and treatment., Methods: Multi-stage lamination stochastic group sampling was applied in the study, with 6 counties randomly selected. The total sample size was 19 201 while the study was conducted in the format of indoor visit. For residents younger than 18 years of age, a questionnaire was distributed to them to obtain related basic information. While for those older than 18, an in-depth survey was conducted. In addition to the measurement of height, weight, blood pressure, 10% of the samples underwent a testing on blood sugar. A database was then developed via Epi Data 3.02 and all the data was processed and classified via Foxpro and SPSS 13.0 software., Results: The overall morbidity rate was 67.76%, with females significantly higher than males. The morbidity rate was fixed at 65.85% after weighted by region. The morbidity rate increased significantly with age. The top 5 diseases identified would include those from digestive system (28.74%), heart cranial vascular (27.27%), rheumatism and bone joint (19.97%), respiratory system (12.46%), biography reproductive system (8.64%) and urinary system (7.39%). Data from by-region analysis showed that the morbidity rate was the highest in pastoral area (70.17%), followed by villages (66.32%) and cities (61.86%), while the kinds of top diseases in those regions were also different. Data from unhealthy lifestyle showed that 22.16% of the provincial population smoked cigarettes, 17.16% drank alcohol, and the rate of obesity was 3.41%., Conclusion: Significant differences in morbidity rates among different regions and different genders were found while the prevalence rates of disease significantly increased along with age.

Raman lidar is an important tool for the detection of atmosphere pollution, and inversion for lidar returns is an important process. The key for inversion is to get transmission exponential function exp [integral of 0 (R) [alpha(lambda1, z) - alpha(lambda2, z)]]. Three methods with extinction coefficient as the center are presented. First, 532 nm atmospheric extinction coefficient was used to indirectly obtain alpha(lambda1, z) and alpha(lambda2, z). This method has been used generally by people. Two new methods were proposed: 1, reference gas with approximate Raman wavelength is used so that alpha(lambda1, z) = alpha(lambda2, z). 2, Mie-Rayleigh scattered return with wavelength lambda1 or lambda2 is used to compute exp [integral of 0 (R) [alpha(lambda1, z) - alpha(lambda2, z)]].

The fluorescence spectra of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in several types of water samples in combination with laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) measurements were measured in the laboratory, and the spectral characteristics of DOM were analysed. The curve of normalized fluorescence intensity against corresponding concentration of humic acid is showed. The results demonstrate the possibilities of water quality monitoring based upon fluorescence spectral characteristics of DOM by means of LIF method.

Objective: To isolate and clone the differentially expressed genes induced by epithelial growth factor (EGF) with inhibiting dosage in cultured glioma BT325 cells and understand the molecular mechanism that inhibits glioma cells growth., Methods: Using differential display reversed transcription polymerase chain reaction (DDRT-PCR) method to analyze the differentially expressed cDNA in BT325 cells induced by EGF with inhibiting dosage. After sequencing and homology research, the differentially expressed cDNA fragments were further confirmed by Dot blot analysis and one of them by Northern blot., Results: Up-regulated genes cDNA fragments were isolated in growth inhibited BT325 cells. It was found that five cDNA fragments were highly homologous to the known human genes, while one was a fragment of a novel genes. Among these genes, one has coding sequence homology with transaldolase (TAL), which has been proved to be associated with apoptosis in recently research., Conclusions: High-dose EGF could change the expression of many genes in BT325 cells. EGF can inhibit the growth of BT325 cell growth, which may be resulted from its potential role in promoting TAL gene expression and thus inducing cell apoptosis.

Qi-gong relaxation exercise was used for treatment of pregnancy induced hypertension(PIH). Patients exercised 3 times a day until labor. In this study, there were two groups with 60 cases of PIH who had delivered in each group, they were treated by Qi-gong for one group and by medicine for another used as control. The clinical efficacy was evaluated according to PIH combined scores showed effective for 54 cases (90.0%) in Qi-gong group and 33 cases (55.0%) for the control group (P less than 0.01). Meconium stain in amniotic fluid was present in 12 cases (20.0%) in Qi-gong group and 29 cases (48.3%) in the control group (P less than 0.05). The incidence of abnormal hematocrit (greater than 35%) before treatment was 52.4% and decreased to 23.8% (P less than 0.05) in Qi-gong, while in the control group was 35.7% before treatment and 45.2% after treatment (P greater than 0.05). The mean value of blood E2 by RIA showed increased from 22.97 +/- 13.16 micrograms/ml to 33.74 +/- 34.01 micrograms/ml after Qi-gong treatment in 29 cases. The microscopical observation of finger nail capillaries showed various degrees of improvement of microcirculation after Qi-gong exercise for 17 cases and after a course of Qi-gong treatment for 11 cases in Qi-gong group. While for the control group, there was no changes after sit-still for some time.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Cell suspensions were prepared from human corpora lutea obtained during the mid-luteal phase. Progesterone production was assessed after short-term incubation of luteal cell suspensions. Luteal cells were very sensitive to hCG, the concentration required for 50% maximum response being 0.01 i.u./ml, and the response was 5 times higher than the basal production. Oestradiol (1-100 microM) induced a significant dose-related decrease in both basal and hCG-stimulated progesterone production. The A-nor steroidal compounds anordrin and AF-45 reduced hCG-stimulated progesterone production only at the high concentration of 100 microM. The ED50 values were approximately 3 microM, 75 microM and 100 microM for oestradiol, AF-45 and anordrin respectively. Anordrin showed no significant effects on basal progesterone production. In addition, oestradiol markedly inhibited the activity of 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase in luteal cells, expressed by the conversion of pregnenolone to progesterone, but the inhibitory effects of anordrin and AF-45 were negligible or relatively low. The effects of anordrin and AF-45 were different from those of oestradiol on progesterone production by human luteal cells in vitro, indicating that neither substance is likely to be a useful luteolytic agent in women.