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Here we introduce a metal‐free, catalytic and enantioselective strategy from α,β‐unsaturated 2‐acyl imidazoles to the chiral phosphorous 2‐acyl imidazoles. Interestingly, this methodology was catalyzed by the classical and commercial oxazaborolidine under mild conditions. This strategy features a wide range of substrates scope with good yields and excellent enantioselectivities. The possible mechanism further suggests the key of this reaction through the cleavage of diarylphosphine oxides using Frustrated Lewis Pairs theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Forkhead box (FOX) family proteins regulate transcription and DNA repair and are involved in cell growth, differentiation, embryogenesis, and lifespan. The transcription factor FOXE1 is a member of the FOX family. The relationship between the expression level of FOXE1 and colorectal cancer (CRC) prognosis remains controversial. It is vital to verify the relationship between FOXE1 expression and the prognosis of patients with CRC. Methods We constructed a tissue microarray containing 879 primary colorectal cancer tissues and 203 normal mucosa samples. The tumor and normal mucosa tissues were stained with FOXE1 by immunohistochemistry, and the staining results were divided into two groups: high expression group and low expression group. Chi-square test was performed for the classification variable of the difference between FOXE1 expression levels and clinicopathological parameters. The survival curve was calculated according to the Kaplan–Meier method and the logarithmic rank test. The Cox proportional risk regression model was used for multivariate analysis of prognostic factors in patients with CRC.Results The expression level of FOXE1 in colorectal cancer was higher than that in the normal mucosa adjacent to cancer, although the difference was not significant. However, the expression of FOXE1 was correlated with tumor size, T stage, N stage, M stage, and pTNM stage. Univariate and multivariate analyses suggested that FOXE1 could be used as an independent prognostic factor in patients with CRC. Conclusions FOXE1 may be a potential independent prognostic factor for colorectal cancer patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(1) Background--The separation of enterprises from administration and the continuous promotion of the policy of total ban on logging forced the state-owned forest industry enterprises to implement strategic transformation. However, due to the long-term backward management system caused by historical tradition and the positioning problem of resource-based enterprises with dual attributes of economy and public welfare, the state-owned forest industry enterprises are faced with multiple resource constraints such as proprietary technology, talents, brands and funds during the strategic transformation. (2) Methods--This paper obtains the data and proof materials needed by the research through in-depth interviews, field investigations and collection of documents, and discusses the process mechanism of value transition of the state-owned forest industry enterprises under resource constraints from the perspective of resource bricolage. (3) Results--First, multi-dimensional resource constraints such as technology, talents and brands have stimulated the cognitive change of senior managers of the state-owned forest industry enterprises and promoted the formation of new strategic cognition. The improvement of senior managers' cognition accelerates the focus of corporate strategy, and then gradually promotes the success of corporate strategic transformation. This process of strategic transformation is the logical process of the path of "strategic cognition, resource action and value realization", and also the microprocess of interaction, matching and dynamic adaptation among "strategic cognition, resource action and value realization". Second, in the process of enterprises breaking through resource constraints to achieve value transition, resource bricolage can make up for the disadvantages of enterprises' resources and break the constraints of their own resources, which is an effective means for enterprises to break through the resource dilemma. However, the speed and quality of resource bricolage are affected by the cooperative consciousness of enterprise alliance and the strategies of their own resources. Third, resource bricolage does not necessarily lead to resource empowerment and value transition, which depends on the integration and absorption ability of the enterprises to the bricolage resources. Effective resource integration ability can achieve systematic empowerment achievements in the aspects of technology, products and business models, which is a prerequisite for enterprises to realize value transition. In addition, organizational learning ability and communication ability can significantly inhibit the conflicts in resource integration, form a conflict suppression mechanism, and thus improve the empowerment effect of resource integration. (4) Conclusions and Discussions--Conclusions and Discussions--First, in the face of resource constraints, the senior managers of the state-owned forest industry enterprises should actively respond, fully face up to and effectively play their positive roles in promoting strategic change with an open mind. Second, pay attention to the matching of resource action strategies and strategic cognition to ensure that the internal resource strategies, external resource strategies and internal and external resource integration strategies of the enterprises can support the realization of the enterprises' strategic vision. Third, actively create the conditions to promote "from resource bricolage to the realization of value transition" through the construction of open corporate culture, the utilization strategy of its own advantageous resources and the construction of a learning organization, so as to shorten the cycle of "from resource bricolage to the realization of value transition". Fourth, attach great importance to the choice of differentiation focus strategy in the process of pursuing value transition, especially focus on concentrating all available resources inside and outside the enterprises to provide differentiated products with distinctive industry characteristics in the market segments. Fifth, promote the high quality development of industrial economy of the state-owned forest industry enterprises with the whole process management thought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The association between diabetes mellitus (DM) and risk of osteoarthritis (OA) is inconsistent based on published observational studies. This study aimed to conduct a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to explore the causal link between glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level and OA risk. Methods: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) summary statistics were obtained from the publicly available Integrative Epidemiology Unit (IEU) OpenGWAS database. A series of screening processes were performed to select qualified instrumental single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) strongly related to exposure. The inverse-variance-weighted method, weighted-median method, and MR–Egger method were performed to ensure robust and reliable results. The MR–Egger intercept test, Cochran's Q test, and the leave-one-out sensitivity analysis were utilized to assess the horizontal pleiotropy, heterogeneities, and stability of these genetic variants for OA. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated. Results: MR analyses found a robust causal association of genetically determined HbA1c with knee OA (OR = 1.561; 95% CI 1.110–2.197; P = 0.011), but not with hip OA (OR = 1.073; 95% CI 0.674–1.710; P = 0.766) or overall OA (OR = 1.141; 95% CI 0.904–1.441; P = 0.804). Sensitivity analyses showed that there was a strong association between SNPs and HbA1c (F = 21.138), no evidence of heterogeneity (Q = 150.625, P = 0.402), and no potential SNPs affecting the causal link. Conclusion: Our MR study supported a causal effect of genetically increased HbA1c on knee OA risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Response time (τ, defined as the time required for 90% change in the full transmittance modulation, including coloring time τ c and bleaching time τ b) is an important evaluation index for the performance of electrochromic (EC) materials, and it can directly reflect the microscopic rate of EC process. However, the research on the internal relationship between the response time and the process of electrochemical dynamics is rare. Herein, by controlling the thickness of the WO 3-x EC film, a complete reversal of the response time (from τ c > τ b in the thinner film to τ b > τ c in the thicker film) is observed. Based on the detailed analysis of the characteristics presented in electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), especially focusing on the changing trend about the arc of different frequency ranges and the slope value of the linear part, it can be found that this reversal is due to the change of the main dynamics process from surface capacitive-controlled to bulk diffusion-controlled with the increase of WO 3-x film thickness. Meanwhile, this change with obvious film thickness dependence requires a "trigger", which is reflected by the bleaching threshold potential. Besides, this study reveals the three stages of the EC coloring process from the perspective of dynamics, including the lithium-ions (Li-ions) adsorption charge layer, surface Faraday process, and bulk Faraday process, which also show significant film thickness dependence. The result of this work is beneficial to modulate the balance of response time and to improve the performance of EC films. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Periodontitis is featured as the periodontium's pathologic destruction caused by the host's overwhelmed inflammation. Omentin-1 has been reported to be aberrantly downregulated in patients with periodontitis, but the specific regulation of Omentin-1 during the pathogenesis of periodontitis remains unclear. In this study, human periodontal ligament stem cells (hPDLSCs) were stimulated by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from Porphyromonas gingivalis to establish an in vitro inflammatory periodontitis model. hPDLSCs were treated with recombinant human Omentin-1 (250, 500 and 750 ng/mL) for 3 h before LPS stimulation. Results revealed that Omentin-1 significantly inhibited LPS-induced inflammation in hPDLSCs through reducing the production of proinflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6) and downregulating the expression of Cox2 and iNOS. Meanwhile, Omentin-1 significantly enhanced alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and Alizarin red-stained area, accompanied by increasing expression osteogenic markers BMP2, OCN and Runx2, confirming that Omentin-1 restores osteogenic differentiation in LPS-induced hPDLSCs. In addition, the conditioned medium (CM) from LPS-induced hPDLSCs was harvested to culture macrophages, which resulted in macrophage polarization towards M1, while CM from Omentin-1-treated hPDLSCs reduced M1 macrophages polarization and elevated M2 polarization. Furthermore, Omentin-1 also inhibited LPS-triggered endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in hPDLSCs, and additional treatment of the ER stress activator tunicamycin (TM) partially reversed the functions of Omentin-1 on inflammation, osteogenic differentiation and macrophages polarization. In summary, Omentin-1 exerted a protective role against periodontitis through inhibiting inflammation and enhancing osteogenic differentiation of hPDLSCs, providing a novelty treatment option for periodontitis. • Omentin-1 inhibits LPS-induced inflammatory response in hPDLSCs. • Omentin-1 restores osteogenic differentiation in LPS-induced hPDLSCs. • Omentin-1 reduces M1 macrophages polarization caused by LPS-induced hPDLSCs. • Omentin-1 represses endoplasmic reticulum (EM) stress in LPS-induced hPDLSCs. • Tunicamycin partially reverses the impacts of Omentin-1 on LPS-induced hPDLSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Premenstrual syndrome is associated with altered spontaneous brain activity in the late luteal phase, but the fluctuation patterns of brain activity throughout the menstrual cycle have not been revealed. Furthermore, it is also unknown whether the altered spontaneous brain activity during the whole menstrual cycle is further associated with their habitual use of maladaptive emotion regulation strategies. Based on the two reasons, electroencephalogram data and cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire from 32 women with high premenstrual symptoms (HPMS) and 33 women with low premenstrual symptoms (LPMS) were measured in the late luteal and follicular phases. Delta power, theta power, beta power, and the slow/fast wave ratios (SW/FW, including theta/beta power ratio [TBR] and delta/beta power ratio [DBR]) were calculated using both fixed frequency bands and individually adjusted frequency bands (based on the individual alpha peak frequency). The results showed that for the frontal and central DBR, as assessed both with fixed and individualized frequency bands, there was no difference between the two phases of the LPMS group, whereas there was a difference between the two phases of the HPMS group with a higher DBR in the late luteal phase than in the follicular phase. Further correlation results revealed that for women with HPMS in the late luteal phase, the frontal and central DBR values, as assessed both with fixed and individualized frequency bands, were positively correlated with self-blame and rumination. Consequently, HPMS was characterized by a fluctuation across the menstrual cycle in the DBR, which was further associated with maladaptive emotion regulation. • The relationship between PMS and SW/FW across the menstrual cycle was explored. • The SW/FW includes theta/beta power ratio (TBR) and delta/beta power ratio (DBR). • The HPMS group had a higher DBR in the late luteal than in the follicular phase. • There was no difference for the DBR between the two phases for the LPMS group. • The DBR was correlated with self-blame and rumination for the HPMS group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deep autoencoder (AE) networks show a powerful ability for geochemical anomaly identification. Because of little contribution to the AE network, small probability samples (again, please check this) having comparatively high reconstructed errors can be recognized by the trained model as anomalous samples. However, different autoencoder networks have different abilities for anomaly identification. To test these methods for geochemical anomaly identification, we based our study on stream sediment data of the Cu‐Zn‐Ag metallogenic area in southwest Fujian province as samples. Three unsupervised deep learning models: the autoencoder (AE), multi‐convolutional autoencoder (MCAE), and fusion convolutional autoencoder (FCAE), were used to extract the combined structural, spatial distribution, and mixed features of multiple‐elements. The results showed that the anomalous area delineated by the FCAE model had the best consistency with the known copper mineral occurrences, followed by the MCAE and AE models, with area under the curve values (AUC) of 0.80, 0.78, and 0.61, respectively. FCAE and AE were insensitive to changes in convolution window size, while MCAE extracted more spatial distribution or mixed features. Overall, FCAE focused more on structural distribution or mixed features, combining the advantages of both MCAE and AE. Therefore, FCAE performed best among the three deep learning methods. This study provides a practical basis for selecting and constructing geochemical anomaly recognition models based on deep learning algorithms. Plain Language Summary: The recognition of abnormal geochemical concentrations of elements is important for mineral exploration, and deep learning method is a novel way to accomplish this task. Deep learning methods can extract multifeature information from the geological environment, which effectively improves the efficiency of mineral prospecting. Here, we employed three unsupervised deep learning models to extract the integrated structure, spatial distribution, and mixed features of multiple elements. This study analyzes the characteristics of deep learning models with different network structures, thus it provides a practical basis for selecting a method to recognize abnormal geochemical concentrations of elements. Key Points: The combined structural features extracted by deep learning algorithms have a strong anti‐interference ability for noiseProvides a practical approach for constructing geochemical anomaly recognition models based on deep learning algorithmsComprehensively analyzes the characteristics of three deep learning models for geochemical anomaly identification [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In urban environmental management and public health evaluation efforts, there is an urgent need for fine-grained urban air quality monitoring. However, the high price and sparse distribution of air quality monitoring equipment make it difficult to develop effective and comprehensive fine-scale monitoring at the city scale. This has also led to air quality estimation methods based on incomplete monitoring data, which lack the ability to detect urban air quality differences within a neighborhood. To address this problem, this study proposes a refined urban air quality estimation method that fuses multisource spatio-temporal data. Based on the fact that urban air quality is easily affected by social activities, this method integrates meteorological data with urban social activity data to form a comprehensive environmental data set. It uses the spatio-temporal feature extraction model to extract the multi-source spatio-temporal features of the comprehensive environmental data set. Finally, the improved cascade forest algorithm is used to fit the relationship between the multisource spatio-temporal features and the air quality index (AQI) to construct an air quality estimation model, and the model is used to estimate the hourly PM2.5 index in Beijing on a 1 km × 1 km grid. The results show that the estimation model has excellent performance, and its goodness-of-fit (R2) and root mean square error (RMSE) reach 0.961 and 17.47, respectively. This method effectively achieves the assessment of urban air quality differences within a neighborhood and provides a new strategy for preventing information fragmentation and improving the effectiveness of information representation in the data fusion process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document is a correction notice for an article titled "The high expression of FOXE1 in colorectal cancer predicts a promising prognosis: a retrospective study." The correction states that there was an error in Table 1 of the original article, and provides the corrected version of the table. The corrected table shows the relationship between FOXE1 expression and various clinicopathological parameters. The correction also mentions that there was no significant correlation between sex, age, location, and overall survival in the univariate survival analysis of clinicopathological parameters. The publisher remains neutral regarding jurisdictional claims and institutional affiliations. [Extracted from the article]

The polyphenol distribution in fresh waxy corns of different color varieties and their functional activities, which may be useful for treating various chronic diseases, were investigated. The in vitro antioxidant activity, and hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic effects of the free and bound corn phenolics were determined to evaluate the edible value of fresh waxy corn. The colored varieties contained more phenols than the common varieties (white and/or yellow). The total free phenolic acid content of the six varieties was 6637.73 µg/g DW (dry weight), which was slightly higher (P > 0.05) than that of the total bound form (6276.65 µg/g DW). The total free flavonoid content was 5850.09 µg/g DW, which was higher (P < 0.05) than that of the total bound form (4874.51µg/g DW). No bound anthocyanin was detected in the methanol extracts of the tested varieties. For all the varieties, free polyphenols contributed 86−100 % and 70−78 % of the 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and hydroxyl radical scavenging abilities, respectively, and 100 % of the ferric reducing capacity. The free phenolics in fresh waxy corn showed better (P < 0.05) hypoglycemic effect than the bound form in terms of inhibition of α-amylase activity, whereas the bound phenolics of most varieties showed higher α-glucosidase inhibitory activity than the free forms. The free phenolics showed better (P < 0.05) glycocholesterol binding than the bound form for all varieties. The bound polyphenols showed better sodium cholate and taurocholate binding than the free form for most varieties. In conclusion, the difference between free and bound polyphenol content and functional activities indicates that fresh waxy corn can be potentially used for the development of functional food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our previous report described that high-pressure microfluidization (HPM) treatment can disaggregate peanut protein isolates (PPIs) to prepare antihypertensive peptide fractions. In the present study, we investigated the driving forces of disaggregation and reaggregation of PPIs in aqueous dispersion induced by HPM treatment and discussed the mechanism. The driving forces of hydrogen bonds, surface hydrophobicity, sulfhydryl/disulfide bonds (SH/SS) and ζ-potential, which are responsible for disaggregation and reaggregation, were studied. HPM treatment changed the polar environment and promoted surface hydrophobicity and the formation of disulfide bonds (SS), while the free sulfhydryl (SH) group content was decreased. The magnitude of the ζ-potential and β -sheet content increased when the pressure was ≤120 MPa. However, the magnitude of those values decreased when the pressure was >120 MPa. Hydrophobic interactions, SH/SS interchange reactions, hydrogen bonds and electrostatic interactions cannot individually induce changes in PPIs. Combination of the applied forces drove the disaggregation and reaggregation of PPIs in aqueous dispersion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In this work, a strain-gradient crystal plasticity theory with irradiation effect is proposed for the surface nano-indentation of ion-irradiated FCC metals. In order to characterize the indentation size effect and irradiation hardening of ion-irradiated materials indented by the Berkovich indenter, the hardening contributions of geometrically necessary dislocations and non-uniformly distributed defects are incorporated into the classical crystal plasticity theory. The constitutive equations are implemented into ABAQUS through the user material subroutine VUMAT to numerically simulate the surface nano-indentation of ion-irradiated single crystal copper. The theoretical model is calibrated by comparing the numerical results with experimental data. Both the simulated force-depth relationship without irradiation effect and hardness-depth relationship with/without irradiation effect can match well with corresponding experimental data. The dominant features as observed in the nano-indentation of ion-irradiated materials can be effectively characterized by the proposed theoretical framework, which include the indentation size effect, depth-dependent irradiation hardening, and unirradiated substrate softening effect. Moreover, the evolution of different hardening mechanisms during the surface nano-indentation is systematically analyzed to help understand the macroscopic deformation behavior. Highlights • A strain-gradient crystal plasticity theory with irradiation effect is proposed. • Surface nano-indentation of ion-irradiated FCC metals is simulated by ABAQUS. • Indentation size effect and depth-dependent irradiation hardening can be characterized. • Numerical results can match well with corresponding experimental data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The spatial heterogeneity of geochemical background is often ignored in geochemical anomaly recognition, leading to ineffective recognition of valuable anomalies for geochemical prospecting. In this paper, a Spatially Constrained Multi-Autoencoder (SCMA) approach is proposed to deal with such an issue in multivariate geochemical anomaly recognition, which includes two unique steps: (1) with the consideration of both chemical similarity and spatial continuity of geochemical samples, a region is divided into multiple sub-domains to discriminate the various backgrounds over space, through multivariate clustering, spatial filtering, and spatial fusion; and (2) the geochemical background of each sub-domain is learned and reconstructed by a multi-autoencoder structure, which is designed to reduce the effects of random initialization of weights in an autoencoder neural network. Finally, the anomaly score is calculated as the difference between the observed geochemical features and the reconstructed features. The performance of SCMA was demonstrated by a case study involving Cu, Mn, Pb, Zn and Fe 2 O 3 in stream sediment samples from the Chinese National Geochemical Mapping Project, in the southwestern Fujian province of China. The results showed that the spatial domain constraining greatly improved the quality of anomaly recognition, and SCMA outperformed several existing methods in all aspects. In particular, the anomalies from SCMA were the most consistent with the known Fe deposits in the area, achieving an AUC of 0.89. Highlights • Spatial partitioning discriminates spatial heterogeneity of geochemical background. • Multi-autoencoders reduce effects of random weight initialization of autoencoder. • SCMA outperformed other methods in experiments, achieving an AUC of 0.89. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To evaluate the hypoglycemic effect of Picris japonica Thunb (Asteraceae) on KK-Ay mice. Methods. The hypoglycemic effect of Picris japonica aqueous extract (PJE) in a spontaneous type 2 diabetic model (KK-Ay mice) was studied in the present research. PJE was administrated at doses of 700 mg/kg and 350 mg/kg (calculated as crude herb) for 14 days and blood glucose, oral glucose tolerance test, plasma insulin level, and blood lipid were evaluated. Meanwhile, Rosiglitazone was used for the positive control. Results. It was found the PJE treatment significantly reduced blood glucose level and improved oral glucose tolerance ability (p < 0.01 or p < 0.05) in a dose-dependent manner compared to the control diabetic mice. The blood insulin levels were significantly reduced in PJE-treated mice (700 mg/kg) and Rosiglitazone compared with the diabetic control (p < 0.01). Compared with the control diabetic group, the serum total cholesterol, triglyceride, and low density lipoprotein cholesterol were reduced by PJE (700 mg/kg) and Rosiglitazone (p < 0.05), and the serum high density lipoprotein cholesterol was significantly increased only by Rosiglitazone (p < 0.01). Conclusions. The findings demonstrate that Picris japonica has remarkable antidiabetic effect in diabetic KK-Ay mice, which suggests that Picris japonica may be beneficial to the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract A combination of germination and extrusion was applied to whole grain corn to increase its nutritional composition, functional properties and non-anthocyanin polyphenol profile, especially related to in vitro hypoglycemic effects. Individual germination and extrusion both led to an increase in soluble dietary fiber and lysine, methionine, tryptophan content, while insoluble dietary fiber content decreased. Extruded germinated whole corn flour (EGWCF) had a higher water absorption and solubility index, showing 103 and 575% increases over untreated ones, respectively. Germination increased free, bound phenolic acid and bound flavonoid content to 169, 230 and 311%, respectively. The total phenolic acid and flavonoid content of EGWCF was 260 and 249% of WCF, respectively. Germination increased the polyphenol composition from 12 to 15 species. Phenolic profiles of EGWCF exhibited collective effects, showing three new phenolic compounds. Polyphenol extracts showed more potent activity against α -glucosidase rather than α -amylase. Free form polyphenols had stronger inhibitory activity than the bound forms. Compared with WCF, free and bound polyphenol extracts from EGWCF increased the anti- α -glucosidase activity by 221 and 40%, and increased the anti- α -amylase activity by 105 and 108%. Highlights • Germination and extrusion enhanced functional properties of whole grain corn. • Germination and extrusion showed synergistic effect in nutritional composition. • Germination increased polyphenol content and composition but extrusion improved less. • Germination and extrusion improved anti- α -glucosidase activity due to free polyphenol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lignification and changes in the enzymes involved in lignin biosynthesis were investigated in relation to the reduced tenderness occurring during the postharvest storage of fresh waxy corn at 20 °C. The firmness of the corn and its lignin and polyphenol contents increased as storage time increased. The lignin content was significantly correlated ( p < .05) with the polyphenol content and firmness. Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase was not the rate-limiting enzyme in polyphenol biosynthesis, whereas the cinnamate 4-hydroxylase activity was significantly correlated ( p < .05) with the polyphenol content. The activity of coenzyme A ligase (4CL) had a limited effect on the polyphenol content. Peroxidase was significantly correlated ( p < .05) with the lignin content, while no significant ( p > .05) effect of polyphenol oxidase or cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD) on the lignin content was observed. Practical applications Tenderness is a main factor in sensory quality of fresh waxy corn. Secondary cell wall lignifications induced by phenylpropanoid pathway is the main reason of tenderness decline for postharvest fresh waxy corn. But little information of lignin accumulation of fresh waxy corn is obtained from the present studies. Analyzing the changes of lignin and related precursor materials, enzyme activities will help to comprehensively understand the regulatory mechanism of postharvest lignification of fresh waxy corn, which can provide suitable methods to delay postharvest lignin accumulation, and maintain the eating quality of fresh waxy corn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • The 3%MnCeOx-300 showed the best toluene catalytic activity with T 90 only at 215 °C. • After the anti-chlorine poisoning reaction, >90 % toluene conversion was maintained. • High Ce3+, Mn3+ content, and O latt /O ratio were the keys to the high activity, and stability. The MnCeOx catalysts were successfully prepared using a two-step hydrothermal method with Ce-MOF as a template for the complete catalytic oxidation of toluene. The effects of different Mn additions, calcination temperatures, and preparation methods on the material properties were investigated. In addition, the resistance of the catalysts to chlorosis was investigated. The results demonstrated that the 3%MnCeOx-300 showed the best catalytic activity with T 90 only at 215 °C. Furthermore, after 2 h of 1, 2-dichloroethane toxicosis, the catalyst still converted >90% of the toluene, demonstrating good activity and anti-chlorine poisoning ability. Characterization results proved that the high activity and stability of the 3%MnCeOx-300 catalyst are attributed to the highest specific surface area and the highest Ce3+/Ce4+, Mn3+/Mn4+, and O latt /O ratios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In colorectal cancer (CRC), despite the complex inducing and regulating mechanism in necrosis progress, the prognostic value of tumor necrosis has been reported. It is generally recognized that necrosis is associated with many process involving severe hypoxia, inflammatory responses and angiogenesis, all of which contribute to promote tumor growth and poor prognosis. In addition to local hypoxia, regulation by RIP kinase and the conversion from apoptosis to necrosis can result in necrosis also. Recent studies showed necrosis can be a histopathologic characteristic for special molecular phenotype of CRC. A novel and attractive complementary treatment, tumor necrosis therapy, using radiolabelled compounds avid for necrosis has emerged. However, the complicated regulatory mechanisms of tumor necrosis were rarely reported in CRC, and we collected and reviewed these effect and relevance in CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a common feature observed in irradiated metallic materials, the formation of dislocation channels has been extensively studied and is considered to play a key role in irradiation embrittlement. However, modeling dislocation channels with the conventional crystal plasticity theory has been a theoretical challenge due to the difficulty of capturing microstructural inhomogeneities. Here a continuum crystal plasticity framework incorporating a stochastic distribution model of critical resolved shear stress (CRSS) is developed to describe the formation of dislocation channels and further plastic flow localization in irradiated materials. We show that the stochastic model is capable of capturing the heterogeneity of microscale plastic strain, which is an inherent feature of metallic materials during plastic deformation. It acts as an important microscale perturbation to trigger the dislocation channel nucleation in irradiated metals, especially for single crystals that lack mesoscale perturbations such as intergranular incompatibility and grain anisotropy. Without predetermining the potential nucleation position of dislocation channels, the stochastic irradiation crystal plasticity framework successfully simulates the dislocation channel formation and plasticity localization in both irradiated single- and polycrystalline copper (Cu), and further indicates the irradiation defect density threshold for the dislocation channel formation. This stochastic model broadens the application of the conventional crystal plasticity framework, and might provide new insights for other studies on plasticity localization, including shear bands formation of metals, mechanical behaviors with heterogeneous deformation and so on. • We develop a stochastic crystal plasticity model based on inhomogeneous microscale plasticity. • The continuum model successfully simulates the dislocation channel formation in irradiated single- and polycrystalline Cu. • The distribution profile of plastic strain is 'elongated' with deformation in irradiated materials prior to dislocation channeling • The nucleation of the dislocation channel strongly depends on the microscale and mesoscale inhomogeneities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) refers to a group of symptoms linked to the menstrual cycle. Women with PMS have cognitive mode of rumination, which leads to their attention bias to emotional stimuli. This study investigated the biases for emotional information in women with high premenstrual symptoms (HPMS) compared with women with low premenstrual symptoms (LPMS).Methods: A total of 38 women with HPMS and 44 women with LPMS completed self-report questionnaires and a free viewing task with eye-tracking technology.Results: The questionnaire results indicate that women in the HPMS group had higher levels of rumination than those in the LPMS group. The eye-tracking results show that women in the HPMS group had an orientation bias towards negative emotional stimuli in the early cognitive process. In the late cognitive process, women in the HPMS group had accelerated attentional disengagement to positive emotional stimuli and difficult attentional disengagement to negative emotional stimuli. Further correlation analysis revealed positive relationships between the scores of initial fixation latency bias of positive pictures in premenstrual phase and the scores of symptom rumination in both groups and between the scores of initial fixation latency bias of positive pictures in premenstrual phase and the scores of brooding in HPMS group.Limitations: This study used a retrospective questionnaire to assess the symptoms of PMS.Conclusions: Women with HPMS had impaired attentional engagement and disengagement to emotional stimuli compared with women with LPMS, and it may be related to their cognitive mode of rumination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbohydrates and their metabolizing enzymes related to sweetness and glutinosity were measured in the fresh waxy corn of ' Zhongnuo 1' and ' Jingkenuo 2000' cultivars during storage for 4 days at 20C. The contents of sugars decreased to a lesser degree in 'Jingkenuo 2000' compared to those of ' Zhongnuo 1,' and both cultivars exhibited similar trends in starch content. The amylopectin and total starch contents both increased significantly and then gradually decreased, whereas the amylose content significantly increased. Furthermore, the activities of both uridine diphosphate glucose pyrophosphorylase ( UGPase) and starch debranched enzyme exhibited a similar pattern with a single peak curve. The activities of adenosine diphosphate glucose pyrophosphorylase ( AGPase) and soluble starch synthase decreased, whereas the activity of granule-bound starch synthase ( GBSS) increased significantly. The activity of the starch-branching enzyme was mostly constant. Correlation analysis between carbohydrates and metabolizing enzymes indicates that UGPase, AGPase and GBSS may be important enzymes. Practical Applications Fresh waxy corn is widely eaten because of its sweetness and glutinosity, which are the eternal behaviors of related carbohydrate character. Contrary to other fruits and vegetables with high soluble sugar and water content, fresh waxy corn shows high starch content and low water content. Thus, the physiological basis for changes in eating quality may differ between fresh waxy corn and other fruits and vegetables. That means the postharvest changes in carbohydrates of common fruits and vegetables are not applicable to instruct the storage and retail of fresh waxy corn. In this study, we report the changes of related carbohydrates and associated enzyme activities and the correlations between them. The research realizes the reason for eating quality changing and controlling factors. These results can promote the quality of fresh waxy corn in the processing, storage and retail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) prepared by ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) for bisphenol A (BPA) was reported in this article. The resulting MIPs have high imprinting and adsorption capacities, and can be used for separation and determination of BPA in environmental water samples. The successful application of ROMP in the molecular imprinting field is described here. For the first time, two cross-linkers (dicyclopentadiene and 2,5-norbornadiene) and two Grubbs catalysts (first and second generation) were investigated to compare their effects on the binding performance of MIPs. The ROMP technique is able to create the imprinted polymers within 1 h under mild conditions. Furthermore, it can provide MIPs with obvious imprinting effects towards the template, very fast template rebinding kinetics, high binding capacity and appreciable selectivity over structurally related compounds. The adsorption process for MIPs in this study can be completed within 45 min, which is much faster than that of bulk MIPs synthesized by traditional free-radical polymerization. The resulting imprinting polymer was evaluated for its use as a sorbent support in an off-line solid-phase extraction approach to recover BPA from diluted aqueous samples. The optimized extraction protocol resulted in a reliable MISPE method suitable for selective extraction and preconcentration of BPA from tap water, human urine and liquid milk samples. This article demonstrates the practical feasibility of the MIPs prepared via ROMP as solid-phase extraction materials. [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A multi-dataset (MDS) data-collection strategy is proposed and analyzed for macromolecular crystal diffraction data acquisition. The theoretical analysis indicated that the MDS strategy can reduce the standard deviation (background noise) of diffraction data compared with the commonly used single-dataset strategy for a fixed X-ray dose. In order to validate the hypothesis experimentally, a data-quality evaluation process, termed a readiness test of the X-ray data-collection system, was developed. The anomalous signals of sulfur atoms in zinc-free insulin crystals were used as the probe to differentiate the quality of data collected using different data-collection strategies. The data-collection results using home-laboratory-based rotating-anode X-ray and synchrotron X-ray systems indicate that the diffraction data collected with the MDS strategy contain more accurate anomalous signals from sulfur atoms than the data collected with a regular data-collection strategy. In addition, the MDS strategy offered more advantages with respect to radiation-damage-sensitive crystals and better usage of rotating-anode as well as synchrotron X-rays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulmonary epithelioid hemangioendothelioma (PEH) is a rare vascular tumor. It can present either as one solitary nodule or bilateral multiple nodules, usually without calcification. We describe here an unusual case of PEH in a 42-year-old female with a 6.0 cm dominant mass along with bilateral multiple calcified small nodules measuring 0.2-1.0 cm in diameter with a 25-year plus followup history. Overall histologic findings of the solitary tumor accorded with conventional PEH. While multiple calcified small nodules were composed predominantly of intraalveolar homogeneously eosinophilic matrix, and only a few bland small cells were embedded in it. This lesion has never been reported in the literature. After comprehensive analysis of morphology, radiography, histochemistry, immunohistochemistry and differential diagnoses, PEH presenting multiple calcified small nodules was confirmed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) stem from alterations in the intestinal immune system and microbial dysbiosis, but the precise interactions between bacteria and IBD remain obscure. The commensal microbiota have a profound impact on human health and diseases. Here, we developed a selective culture medium for lactate-utilizing bacteria (LUB) that function as candidate probiotics to ameliorate IBD using a mouse model. Firstly, LUB, including Megasphaera , were enriched from human faeces using a selective medium with lactate. LUB efficiently attenuated the pathology of colitis induced by dextran sulphate sodium (DSS). Next, LUB administration counteracted the dysbiosis associated with the intestinal inflammatory process, and elevated the proportion of Escherichia-Shigella in intestines. Moreover, E. coli isolated from healthy faeces downstream recapitulated lactate-utilizing bacterial community to ameliorate the severity of DSS-induced acute colitis. In conclusion, our finding revealed that LUB were sufficient to exert inflammatory protection against colitis in mice, highlighting a novel therapeutic strategy to use LUB as potentially curable probiotics for therapeutic manipulation for IBD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The degree of deacetylation (DD) is one of the most important properties of chitosan. Therefore, a simple, rapid and reliable method for the determination of DD of chitosan is essential. In this report, two new potentiometric titration functions are derived for the determination of DD of chitosan. The effects of the precipitation and the errors induced in pH measurement are discussed in detail. To make this method more simple and reliable, two universal pH regions for the accurate plotting of different DD chitosan samples are proposed for the new potentiometric titration functions. The DD values of three chitosan samples obtained with this new method show good agreement with those yielded from elemental analysis and 1H-NMR. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Fiftysix samples of nannofossil ooze were collected from Core PC5794 in the northern equatorial Pacific at 5 cm intervals. With the methods of mass spectrometer (VG354) and ICP, the Nd isotopic compositions (εNd(t)), Mn contents and Mg/Sr ratios of carbonate phase have been analyzed. CaCO3 contents of bulk sediments were obtained by dissolution of 0.5 mol/L HCl. Based on these data, the high-resolution εNd(t) profile of seawater in early Miocene with core depth(or time) have been established. The values of εNd(t) range from -6.2 to -2.97 and 4 fluctuation cycles existed during 24.06-22.02 Ma. 4 low εNd(t) values (about-6.4) correspond to high CaCO3 contents, which implicates that there were 4 cold epochs or 4 times of Antarctic Bottom Water activity. They occurred at the time of 24.06 Ma, 23.85 Ma, 22.88 Ma and 22.26 Ma, respectively. High εNd(t) values correspond to the high Mn contents and high values of Mg/Sr ratio, which indicates the existence of 4 intense hydrothermal activity periods during 24.06-22 Ma, the durations of them are 4.05-23.98 Ma, 23.69-23.15 Ma, 22.74-22.37 Ma and 22.06-22.02 Ma, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To make molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) solid-phase extraction (SPE) capable of direct clean-up of aqueous biological samples, an anti-quercetin MIP with evident hydrophobic matrix was synthesized using acrylamide (AA) as the functional monomer and 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)butanol trimethacrylate (TRIM) as the crosslinker. The affinity and selectivity were evaluated by liquid chromatography, and the binding sites and the dissolution constants were measured by frontal chromatography. Compared with the AA–co-ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) MIP, the anti-quercetin AA–co-TRIM MIP exhibited stronger binding and possessed improved column efficacy. A linear plot of the peak area versus sample size (in the range of 0.4–2.2 μg) was obtained, which made it promising for the MIP columns to be directly used for analysis. Before MIP-SPE of the sample of plasma, several washing solvents were tested and it was shown that the careful choice of the right washing solvent is the key step to successful sample extraction. The anti-quercetin AA–co-TRIM polymer selectively extracted quercetin, the effective component in the plasma of rats fed the hydrolyzed extract of Gingko biloba L. The recovery (67%) for MIP-SPE was calculated using spiked plasma. The results of the present work showed that the properties of MIP could be improved by modifying the polymerization and that MIP-SPE could be used for direct clean-up of biological samples for the analysis of functional components in vivo originating from an extract of medicinal herbs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Simple Summary: The metabolic heterogeneity complicates the clinical treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. In this study, we classified hepatocellular carcinoma into two clusters based on their energy metabolic pathways' activities. We found this classification system correlated with several clinical characteristics and molecular profiles of liver cancer patients. We also proposed and validated targeted metabolic therapy by exploiting human liver cancer cell lines. Additionally, we revealed that cancer cells might impair the anti-tumor function of cytotoxic T cells through metabolic competition. Metabolic heterogeneity plays a key role in poor outcomes in malignant tumors, but its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains largely unknown. In the present study, we aim to disentangle the metabolic heterogeneity features of HCC by developing a classification system based on metabolism pathway activities in high-throughput sequencing datasets. As a result, HCC samples were classified into two distinct clusters: cluster 1 showed high levels of glycolysis and pentose phosphate pathway activity, while cluster 2 exhibited high fatty acid oxidation and glutaminolysis status. This metabolic reprogramming-based classifier was found to be highly correlated with several clinical variables, including overall survival, prognosis, TNM stage, and -fetoprotein (AFP) expression. Of note, activated oncogenic pathways, a higher TP53 mutation rate, and increased stemness were also observed in cluster 1, indicating a causal relationship between metabolic reprogramming and carcinogenesis. Subsequently, distinct metabolism-targeted therapeutic strategies were proven in human HCC cell lines, which exhibit the same metabolic properties as corresponding patient samples based on this classification system. Furthermore, the metabolic patterns and effects of different types of cells in the tumor immune microenvironment were explored by referring to both bulk and single-cell data. It was found that malignant cells had the highest overall metabolic activities, which may impair the anti-tumor capacity of CD8+ T cells through metabolic competition, and this provided a potential explanation for why immunosuppressive cells had higher overall metabolic activities than those with anti-tumor functions. Collectively, this study established an HCC classification system based on the gene expression of energy metabolism pathways. Its prognostic and therapeutic value may provide novel insights into personalized clinical practice in patients with metabolic heterogeneity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to evaluate the probiotic effects of insoluble crude and fine fibers of wheat bran on the intestine after simulated in vitro digestion. It was found that the particle size distribution of modified fine wheat bran (MWB) was significantly smaller than that of natural crude wheat bran (NWB). MWB had a looser texture and more porous structure. The dry matter digestibility and organic matter digestibility of MWB were 58.60 % and 59.05 %, which were significantly higher than that of NWB (53.64 % and 54.13 %). More SDF and free polyphenol were released from the MWB. At 12 h of fermentation, the SDF content of the MWB was 3.76 g/100 g, significantly higher than NWB (3.40 g/100 g), and the free polyphenol was 9.43 mg/g, significantly higher than NWB (9.01 mg/g). The content of short-chain fatty acids including formic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, butyrate acid and valerate acid in the samples were significantly higher in MWB than in NWB. Analysis of the microbial flora structure and diversity of the fermentation samples revealed that the relative abundance of Lactobacillus was higher in the MWB group, and was closer to the oligofructose group (FOS) in terms of functional predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following sustained development, numerous palaeontology databases and datasets of various types have been created. However, the lack of a unified standard language to describe knowledge and unclear sharing mechanisms between different databases and datasets has limited the large‐scale integration and application of paleontological data. The knowledge graph, as a key technology for semantic translation and data fusion, offers a possible solution to these challenges. Given the potential of knowledge graphs to overcome these obstacles, this paper presents a practical approach to express paleontological knowledge in a knowledge graph via the resource description framework language. By delving into the structured data associated with calcareous nannofossil biozones (the UC zone, CC zone and NC zone), we propose an ontology to describe the semantic units and logical relationships of paleontological biozones and species and then integrate relevant species records from unstructured research reports to construct a knowledge graph for calcareous nannofossils, that integrates multisource paleobiological data and knowledge reconstruction. Our focus lies in detailing the technical aspects of constructing a paleontological knowledge graph. The results demonstrate that knowledge graphs can integrate semistructured and unstructured paleontological data from various sources. This work aims to assist palaeontologists in building and utilizing knowledge graphs, serving as an initial effort for future paleontological knowledge reasoning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY: Xylan is one of the major hemicelluloses in plant cell walls and its xylosyl backbone is often decorated at O‐2 with glucuronic acid (GlcA) and/or methylglucuronic acid (MeGlcA) residues. The GlcA/MeGlcA side chains may be further substituted with 2‐O‐arabinopyranose (Arap) or 2‐O‐galactopyranose (Gal) residues in some plant species, but the enzymes responsible for these substitutions remain unknown. During our endeavor to investigate the enzymatic activities of Arabidopsis MUR3‐clade members of the GT47 glycosyltransferase family, we found that one of them was able to transfer Arap from UDP‐Arap onto O‐2 of GlcA side chains of xylan, and thus it was named xylan 2‐O‐arabinopyranosyltransferase 1 (AtXAPT1). The function of AtXAPT1 was verified in planta by its T‐DNA knockout mutation showing a loss of the Arap substitution on xylan GlcA side chains. Further biochemical characterization of XAPT close homologs from other plant species demonstrated that while the poplar ones had the same catalytic activity as AtXAPT1, those from Eucalyptus, lemon‐scented gum, sea apple, 'Ohi'a lehua, duckweed and purple yam were capable of catalyzing both 2‐O‐Arap and 2‐O‐Gal substitutions of xylan GlcA side chains albeit with differential activities. Sequential reactions with XAPTs and glucuronoxylan methyltransferase 3 (GXM3) showed that XAPTs acted poorly on MeGlcA side chains, whereas GXM3 could efficiently methylate arabinosylated or galactosylated GlcA side chains of xylan. Furthermore, molecular docking and site‐directed mutagenesis analyses of Eucalyptus XAPT1 revealed critical roles of several amino acid residues at the putative active site in its activity. Together, these findings establish that XAPTs residing in the MUR3 clade of family GT47 are responsible for 2‐O‐arabinopyranosylation and 2‐O‐galactosylation of GlcA side chains of xylan. Significance Statement: Xylan is one of the major hemicelluloses in plant cell walls and its GlcA side chains may be further substituted with 2‐O‐Arap or 2‐O‐Gal residues. We have uncovered the functions of a subgroup of MUR3‐clade GT47 members in catalyzing the transfer of 2‐O‐Arap and/or 2‐O‐Gal onto GlcA side chains of xylan, which expands our understanding of glycosyltransferases involved in xylan substitutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies a floating dust weather occurrence over the Qingdao region in China. Atmospheric dust concentration; Source and formation mechanism; Elemental comparison of the air-borne floating dust; Satellite photos of the cloud.

• AgNPs adsorption well followed Langmuir model and pseudo-second-order model. • The adsorption of AgNPs by activated sludge is a spontaneous and endothermic reaction. • The adsorption mechanism includes electrostatic adsorption, agglomeration precipitation, oxidation and sulfurization. • Increasing the concentration of MLSS, DO and NOM in the mixed liquid enhanced the removal rate. The increasing production and use of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have attracted more and more attention due to their environmental and health risks. Municipal sewage biological treatment unit has been playing an important role in the removal of AgNPs. This study investigated the mechanism and characteristics of AgNPs and their removal from aqueous solution by activated sludge. Results from Scanning Electron Microscope and Energy Dispersive Spectrometer (SEM/EDS) showed that mixed AgNPs were immobilized by activated sludge. It was shown by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) that the fixed AgNPs had an oxidation state of +1. It was inferred by fourier transform infra-red (FTIR) spectra that AgNPs were adsorbed by activated sludge via binding with its primary amino (R-NH 2) radical groups on the surface. These results revealed that the major mechanism for the removal of AgNPs by activated sludge was adsorption. The experiment data were in agreement with the Langmuir and Redlich-Peterson isotherms. The maximum adsorption capacity ranged from 12–32 mg g−1 at temperatures of 10–30 °C. Thermodynamic experiment showed that the adsorption of AgNPs by activated sludge was a spontaneous and endothermic reaction. The adsorption kinetics data were in good agreement with the pseudo-second-order model. The factor results indicated that the adsorption of AgNPs onto activated sludge was influenced by electrostatic repulsion, agglomeration, and the process of oxidation and sulfurization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spatial structural patterns of geochemical backgrounds are often ignored in geochemical anomaly recognition, leading to the ineffective recognition of valuable anomalies in geochemical prospecting. In this contribution, a multi-convolutional autoencoder (MCAE) approach is proposed to deal with this issue, which includes three unique steps: (1) a whitening process is used to minimize the correlations among geochemical elements, avoiding the diluting of effective background information embedded in redundant data; (2) the Global Moran's I index is used to determine the recognition domain of the background spatial structure for each element, and then the domain is used for convolution window size setting in MCAE; and (3) a multi-convolutional autoencoder framework is designed to learn the spatial structural pattern and reconstruct the geochemical background of each element. Finally, the anomaly score at each sampling location is calculated as the difference between the whitened geochemical features and the reconstructed features. This method was applied to the southwestern Fujian Province metalorganic belt in China, using the concentrations of Cu, Mn, Pb, Zn, and Fe2O3 measured from stream sediment samples. The results showed that the recognition domain determination greatly improved the quality of anomaly recognition, and MCAE outperformed several existing methods in all aspects. In particular, the anomalies from MCAE were the most consistent with the known Fe deposits in the area, achieving an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.89 and a forecast area of 17%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Making low GI of the Chinese steamed bread (CSB) with acceptable eating quality is a challenge. A CSB prepared from wheat flour partially substituted by lotus root powder (LRP) showed good prospects. RVA profile and texture profile were determined to evaluate the texture, while animal test were used to confirm the bio-functional attributes. The addition of LRP effectively changed the RVA profile of lotus-wheat incorporated flour (LWIF). CSB prepared from 30% LWIF showed acceptable eating quality with higher springiness, cohesiveness, and recovery while lower hardness. After 12 weeks of 30% LWIF administrating, the fast blood glucose of diabetic rat decreased from 17.6 to 5.8 mmol/L together with the reduction of serum TC, TG and LDL-C. The hepatic histopathological examination and serum levels changes of SOD, CAT and FFA confirmed LWIF could effectively protect the liver of the diabetic rats from damage caused by oxidative stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proximate composition, molecular weight distribution and main processing properties of waxy corn flour (WCF) were investigated. Furthermore, waxy corn starch (WCS) and waxy rice flour (WRF) were also determined to discuss the applications of WCF. WCS contained more low-molecular-weight fraction (<5 × 105 g/mol) and had higher polydispesity than waxy rice starch (WRS). The water hydration capacity of WCF was the lowest, whereas it had the highest swelling power at 70 and 80 °C. WCF had the highest pasting temperature of 74.85 °C, whereas that of WRF was 68.40 °C and WCS was 73.25 °C. WRF exhibited the lowest melting enthalpy change with a value of 2.54 ± 0.11 (J/g). The retrogradation resistance of WCF was better than that of WRF and WCS. The degree of retrogradation (DR) of WCF was 9.58 ± 0.59% at 14 d, corresponding to WCS of 25.08 ± 0.44% and WRF of 15.68 ± 0.71%. WRF had the lowest glass transition temperature of −27.4 versus −26.2 °C for WCF and −26.0 °C for WCS. It was found that WCF could be used to directly prepare quick-frozen viscous foods. It could also be used as a stabilizer to improve the quality of staple foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Lath martensitic steels possess excellent mechanical properties because of the special microstructure, i.e. laths, blocks and packets with particular crystallography in a prior austenite grain. To theoretically analyze the mechanical behavior of lath martensitic steels, a hierarchical model is proposed combining the crystal plasticity theory and micromechanical method. Within the crystal plasticity theory, an interfacial dislocation model is proposed at the block level to physically describe the effect of lath boundary on the deformation behavior. Furthermore, The scale transition among block, prior austenite grain and lath martensitic steel is accomplished by the elastic-viscoplastic self consistent theory. Based on the proposed model, the deformation behavior of lath martensitic steel with hierarchical structures has been theoretically analyzed. It is revealed that the deformation anisotropy of prior austenite grain is weak due to the particular crystallography of microstructures, and the influence of temperature on yield stress is dominated by the thermally related intrinsic lattice friction and elastic modulus. Moreover, the hierarchical model is generalized to study the mechanical behavior of irradiated lath martensitic steel, and it is found that the change of temperature has a limited effect on the irradiation hardening behavior, and the increase of yield stress induced by irradiation-induced defects can accelerate the evolution rate of dislocation density. Numerical results with/without irradiation effect can both match well with corresponding experimental data, indicating the good accuracy and rationality of the proposed model. Highlights • An interfacial dislocation model is proposed to describe the effect of lath boundary on the deformation behaviors. • A hierarchical theoretical model is proposed to study the hierarchical mechanical behavior of lath martensitic steel. • Based on the proposed model, the mechanical behaviors of unirradiated/irradiated lath martensitic steel are analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gastric cancer (GC) remains a global challenge due to its high morbidity and mortality rates especially in Asia as well as poor response to treatment. As a member of the adhesion protein family and transmembrane glycoprotein, EpCAM expressed excessively in cancer cells including GC cells. The database assay showed that EpCAM is excessively expressed and easily mutated in cancers, especially in early stage of GC. Methods: To explore the roles EpCAM plays in oncogenesis and progression of GC, the expression of EpCAM was deleted in GC cells with CRISPR/Cas9 method, and then the changes of cell proliferation, apoptosis, motility and motility associated microstructures in EpCAM-deleted GC cells (EpCAM-/-SGC7901) were detected to evaluate the rules EpCAM played. Results: The results showed that EpCAM deletion caused cell proliferation, motility and the development of motility-relevant microstructures inhibited significantly, apoptotic trend and contact inhibition enhanced in EpCAM-deleted GC cells. The results of western blot suggested that EpCAM modulates the expression of epithelial/endothelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) correlated genes. All results as above indicated that EpCAM plays important roles to enhance the oncogenesis, malignancy and progression as a GC enhancer. Conclusions: Combining our results and published data together, the interaction of EpCAM with other proteins was also discussed and concluded in the discussion. Our results support that EpCAM can be considered as a novel target for the diagnosis and therapy of GC in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Silver nanowires electrode fabricated by ordered alignment reached 86.6% in transmittance with 18.3 Ω/sq in sheet resistance. • Electrochromic films fabricated by the ordered alignment electrode obtained significant improvement in response times (24.5%/ 44.2% shorter in coloration/ bleaching) with excellent cycling duration (4000 s). • Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) test unveiled that the source of the improvement is indeed the optimized conductivity of electrode. Transparent conductive electrode fabricated by ordered alignment sliver nanowires (AgNWs) has been proved keeping an excellent performance in optics-electricity balance, which allows reaching lower resistance with the similar transmittance comparing with the general arrangement electrode. This is expected to bring positive benefits to the electrochromic process. This work introduces a simple spraying assistant method to obtain an ordered alignment of AgNWs. The ordered alignment electrode show significant improvement comparing with the general AgNWs electrode (86.6% in transmittance with 18.3 Ω/sq for the former versus 85%@ 63 Ω/sq for the latter), then the optimized electrode is used as the bottom electrode of the electrochromic films to improve response time (24.5% shorter in coloration and 44.2% shorter in bleaching) as well as cycling duration (maintaining 98% of initial optical modulation within 4000 s). Finally, the Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) test has been conducted in both coloration and bleaching processes to verify that the source of the improvement is indeed the optimized conductivity of electrode. We suggest the ordered alignment AgNWs electrode having obvious advantage as the bottom electrode of electrochromic device, and this work is aiming to predict the role of it, and unveiling the boosting function as well as the mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nano-metallic-multilayers (NMMs) have attractive irradiation-tolerant properties due to the high ratio of interfaces acting as effective sinks for irradiation-induced defects, like helium bubbles. The mechanical behaviour of NMMs can be affected by both interfaces and He bubbles, which is closely related to the layer thickness. In this work, the macroscopic mechanical behaviours of Cu/Nb multilayers with irradiation-induced He bubbles are explored by the crystal plasticity model (CPM) coupled with the elastic-viscoplastic self-consistent (EVPSC) method. At the microscale, hardening effects of He bubbles, interfaces and forest dislocations are evaluated by considering their influences on the critical shear resistance of dislocation movement. At the grain level, the equivalent mechanical properties of a composite grain consisting of different individual grains and interfaces are obtained by the Mori–Tanaka method. At the macroscale, the self-consistent scheme is adopted to predict the macroscopic mechanical behavior of NMMs which are made of composite grains. Numerical results of the proposed model match well with corresponding experimental data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a total of 33 key differential metabolites related to phenolic synthesis were obtained in the fresh-eating and maturity stages by LC-MS analysis using UNIFY with a self-constructed database. Based on KEGG pathway analysis, three pathways related to phenolic metabolite synthesis were identified. The differential genes selected from the transcriptome and the differential metabolites selected from the target metabolism were correlated in the analysis, revealing the existence of 7 enzymes involved in the synthesis of phenolic compounds in secondary metabolism. Among which the fresh-eating stage promotes phenolics synthesis by up-regulation of the activities of the two enzymes, CCoAOMT and 4CL, and the enzymes, DFR, C3H, DFR, CHI , REF1 and F3H were expressed at higher levels during the maturity stage than fresh-eating stage, thus improving the tolerance and stress resistance of the plant itself and its ability to respond to the external environment, which has an important impact on the regulation of phenolic accumulation. [Display omitted] • The content of different metabolites in free phenol was higher at the maturity stage. • Expression of phenolic-related differential genes was higher at the maturity stage. • Three KEGG pathways related to phenolic metabolite synthesis were identified. • Enzyme activity may be a cause for the higher metabolism of maize in the fresh stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structures of several Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) insecticidal crystal proteins have been determined by crystallographic methods and a close relationship has been explicated between specific toxicities and conserved three-dimensional architectures. In this study, as a representative of the coleopteran- and hemipteran-specific Cry51A group, the complete structure of Cry51Aa1 protoxin has been determined by X-ray crystallography at 1.65 Å resolution. This is the first report of a coleopteran-active Bt insecticidal toxin with high structural similarity to the aerolysin-type β-pore forming toxins (β-PFTs). Moreover, study of featured residues and structural elements reveal their possible roles in receptor binding and pore formation events. This study provides new insights into the action of aerolysin-type β-PFTs from a structural perspective, and could be useful for the control of coleopteran and hemipteran insect pests in agricultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Former single center studies indicated that HER2 assessment with two primary tumor blocks (dual block HER2 assessment) could be an efficient and practical approach to overcome the adverse impact of heterogeneity and acquire a HER2 positive rate in gastric cancer (GC). This multicenter prospective clinical trial (NCT 02843412) was launched to verify its value and generality. Methods: A total of 3806 participants with primary GCs have been enrolled from 8 hospitals in China. Two primary tumor blocks were selected and recorded as block 1 and block 2 after histological evaluation. An HER2 (4B5) rabbit monoclonal antibody was used for the immunohistochemistry (IHC) analysis. Results: In total patients, HER2 IHC positive (3+) rate with dual block assessment (9.4%) was higher than that with single block assessment (block 1: 7.8%, block 2: 7.8%) (P < 0.001). Compared with single-block assessment, dual-block assessment increased the positive rate by approximate 20%. Similarly, HER2 equivocal (2+) rate was increased in dual block assessment (25.8%), which was higher than that in single block assessment (block 1: 20.3%, block 2: 20.9%) (P < 0.001). Conversely, dual block assessment demonstrated a lower HER2 negative (0/1+) rate (64.8%) than single block assessment (block1: 71.9%, block 2: 71.3%) (P < 0.001). These findings were also confirmed in individual hospitals. Conclusions: Dual block HER2 assessment effectively increased HER2 IHC positive rate in resected specimens of GC. We recommended dual block HER2 assessment be promoted in routine clinical practice in GC. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT 02843412. Registered 1 July 2016 - Retrospectively registered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Frequency noise is a key limitation factor for frequency sensitive ultra-high precision measurement. An excellent methodology for its calibration is the error signal extracting from a cavity length locking process via Pound–Drever–Hall (PDH) technique, and also can be applied as a noise discriminator for active feedback control. However, the stabilized laser frequency noise performance was poor to meet the applications for ultra-high precision measurement, and no literature has analyzed the cause in detail. In this Letter, we found that various of noise floors in the in-loop sensing and modulation depth in the PDH error signal should be responsible for the poor noise performance. Meanwhile, differing from the theoretical prediction (1.08), the modulation depth in frequency noise feedback controlling should be optimized by simultaneously considering the detector's gain and saturation power, cavity impedance matching, and control loop gain. In our case, it was fixed to be 0.17. The experimental results confirm our theoretical analysis well. Finally, the stabilized laser frequency noises are reduced to 10 − 1 Hz / Hz for out-of-loop and 3 × 10 − 2 Hz / Hz for in-loop. The results demonstrate an efficient settlement solution for active frequency noise feedback control. • Optimizing modulation depth for frequency noise suppression is modelled. • Difference in frequency noise between in-loop and out-of-loop is demonstrated. • In-loop noise is observed on-line with the performance of out-of-loop. • Under optimal parameters, a minimum out-of-loop noise of 10 − 1 Hz / Hz so far is demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]