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We have designed and engineered an environmentally sustainable ternary polymer blend with the mechanical properties comparable to high impact resistant conventional polymers under the guidance of the lattice self-consistent field model. In this blend system, poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) was used as the compatibilizer for the poly(lactic acid) (PLA)/poly(butylene adipate-co-butylene terephthalate) (PBAT) blend. We characterized the compatibility of those components and found PMMA was miscible with PLA and partially compatible with PBAT, which allowed it to self-assemble to a nanoscale interfacial layer on the PLA/PBAT interface. This PMMA layer can significantly decrease the interfacial energy and strongly entangle with either PLA or PBAT, resulting in the strengthening of the interface and dramatically enhancement of the impact resistance of the ternary blend. The optimal mechanical performance was achieved when the total PMMA concentration was less than 10 wt %. Higher PMMA content embrittled the blend since the additional PMMA did not contribute to the minimization of the interfacial energy but remained in the PLA phase, increasing the glass transition temperature of the matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to identify the mechanisms underlying the development of post-myocardial infarction (post-MI) heart failure. The left anterior descending coronary artery of rats was occluded to mimic human ischemic heart disease. Linear Trap Quadropole OrbiTrap mass spectrometry was used to profile the expressions of energy metabolism-associated and calcium-binding proteins in the post-MI and control groups. Using the online Protein Analysis Through Evolutionary Relationships classification system, 78 differentially expressed proteins were identified, including 50 downregulated proteins and 28 upregulated proteins in post-MI group when compared with the control group. The differentially expressed proteins were closely associated with energy metabolism, contractile function, calcium handling, pathological hypertrophy and cardiac remodeling. These results were further validated using western blotting. At different postoperative time points (1st and 14th day following surgery) during the progression of advanced heart failure post-MI, dynamic alterations in differential protein expression were identified. The expression of the vitamin D protein was significantly upregulated on the 1st day post-MI however, was then downregulated with progression of the disease on the 14th day post-MI. These results identified various target proteins associated with the disease, which may be used as diagnostic markers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

S100 Ca2+-binding protein A1 (S100A1) is an important regulator of myocardial contractility. The aim of the present study was to identify the underlying mechanisms of S100A1 activity via profiling the protein expression in rats administered with an S100A1 adenovirus (Ad-S100A1-EGFP) following acute myocardial infarction (AMI). LTQ OrbiTrap mass spectrometry was used to profile the protein expression in the Ad0S100A1-EGFP and control groups post-AMI. Using Protein Analysis Through Evolutionary Relationships (PANTHER) analysis, 134 energy metabolism-associated proteins, which comprised 20 carbohydrate metabolism-associated and 27 lipid metabolism associated proteins, were identified as differentially expressed in the Ad-S100A1-EGFP hearts compared with controls. The majority of the differentially expressed proteins identified were important enzymes involved in energy metabolism. The present study identified 12 Ca2+-binding proteins and 22 cytoskeletal proteins. The majority of the proteins expressed in the Ad-S100A1-EGFP group were upregulated compared with the control group. These results were further validated using western blot analysis. Following AMI, Ca2+ is crucial for the recovery of myocardial function in S100A1 transgenic rats as indicated by the upregulation of proteins associated with energy metabolism and Ca2+-binding. Thus, the current study ascertained that energy production and contractile ability were enhanced after AMI in the ventricular myocardium of the Ad-S100A1-EGFP group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Purpose: the study aims to assess the gustatory function of healthy Chinese adults with the whole-mouth test based on five basic tastants, including umami taste. Methods: the study recruited 464 participants reporting a normal sense of smell/taste (227 females and 237 males with an age range of 19-65 years). A drop (approximately 0.1 mL) of liquid tastant was applied on the anterior third of the extended tongue of each subject. The taste solutions involved 5 tastants (sour, sweet, salty, umami, and bitter) and 7 concentrations. Taste perception scores and recognition scores of the five basic tastants were obtained with this whole-mouth taste method. Results: total taste score of recognition showed a significant negative correlation with age. The elder group (51-65 years) had the lowest scores. The 10th percentile of total taste score of recognition in the group of 36 to 50 years was used to distinguish normogeusic subjects from hypogeusic subjects. The perception scores and recognition scores of females were higher than those of males. The perception and recognition scores of salty, umami, and bitter for females were high than those for males. Total taste score of recognition for non-smokers was significantly higher than that of smokers. The whole-mouth method showed a high test-retest reliability with an intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) from 0.774 to 0.833. Conclusion: this whole-mouth method is simple and time-saving and can be easily adjusted to obtain reliable data. The gustatory function was significantly negatively correlated with age. Females were more sensitive to the sour, salty, umami and bitter tastes than males. The gustatory function of non-smokers was more sensitive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The origin of polarization fatigue is one of the most important long-standing problems in ferroelectric studies. In bismuth-layered Aurivillius ferroelectrics, no consensus between fatigue models and experimental results has been reached. In this study, polarization fatigue in Bi3.15Nd0.85Ti3O12 was investigated using polycrystalline thin films with different orientations. We demonstrated that polarization fatigue strongly depends on film orientation. The (1 0 0)pc films are vulnerable to fatigue, (0 0 l)pc films are fatigue-resistant, whereas (1 1 7)pc films show moderate fatigue behaviour. Our analysis suggests that the physical mechanisms responsible for the fatigue-free phenomenon in (0 0 l)pc films, the low-frequency fatigue phenomenon in (1 0 0)pc films, and slow fatigue in (1 1 7)pc films were bismuth-layered structures, space charge accumulation, and domain wall pinning, respectively. This study provides a reference for understanding electric fatigue and its anisotropy in bismuth-layered ferroelectric films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Increasing evidence suggests that welding fume exposure is associated with systemic inflammation. Although celluar metabolites may be associated with inflammation, there is limited information on metabolomic changes during welding fume exposure. Such changes may play an important role in the occurrence, development, and prevention of metal-associated diseases. We aim to investigate human metabolomics changes pre- and post-welding fume exposure.Methods: This study included 52 boilermakers totally. We collected plasma samples pre- and post-shift welding fume exposure and prepared samples using the automated MicroLab STAR® system. Metabolite concentrations were measured using ultra performance liquid chromatography - tandem mass spectrometer (UPLC-MS/MS) methods. Two-way analysis of variance was used to test the significance of metabolite changes with false discovery rate correction.Results: Analysis detected several metabolic changes after welding fume exposure, mainly involved in the lipid pathway [glucocorticoid class (cortisol, corticosterone, and cortisone), acylcarnitine class, and DiHOME species (9,10-DiHOME and 12,13-DiHOME)], amino acid utilization (isoleucine, proline and phenylalanine), and S-(3-hydroxypropyl) mercapturic acid (3-HPMA). These compounds are all associated with inflammation according to previous studies. Further, additive interaction effects linked smoking and 3-HPMA levels. In the metabolite set enrichment analysis for diseases, the top two disease-associated metabolite pathways were systemic inflammation-related diseases including rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus.Conclusions: This global metabolomics study shows evidence that metabolite changes during welding fume exposure are closely associated with systemic inflammation. The altered metabolites detected may be potential health monitoring biomarkers for boilermakers, especially for inflammation-related disease prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute exposure to fine particle (PM2.5) induces DNA methylation changes implicated in inflammation and oxidative stress. We conducted a crossover trial to determine whether B-vitamin supplementation averts such changes. Ten healthy adults blindly received a 2-h, controlled-exposure experiment to sham under placebo, PM2.5 (250 μg/m3) under placebo, and PM2.5 (250 μg/m3) under B-vitamin supplementation (2.5 mg/d folic acid, 50 mg/d vitamin B6, and 1 mg/d vitamin B12), respectively. We profiled epigenome-wide methylation before and after each experiment using the Infinium HumanMethylation450 BeadChip in peripheral CD4+ T-helper cells. PM2.5 induced methylation changes in genes involved in mitochondrial oxidative energy metabolism. B-vitamin supplementation prevented these changes. Likewise, PM2.5 depleted 11.1% [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.4%, 21.7%; P = 0.04] of mitochondrial DNA content compared with sham, and B-vitamin supplementation attenuated the PM2.5 effect by 102% (Pinteraction = 0.01). Our study indicates that individual-level prevention may be used to complement regulations and control potential mechanistic pathways underlying the adverse PM2.5 effects, with possible significant public health benefit in areas with frequent PM2.5 peaks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction The prevalence of obsessive-compulsive disorder ( OCD), risk factors, and comorbidity rates of Chinese outpatients in Lanzhou general hospitals are unknown. Method The prevalence rate of OCD was estimated in a representative sample of outpatients in three classes of general hospitals in Lanzhou, China. The rate of OCD within the sample, which was composed of 1,576 individuals aged 16 years or older, was assessed using the World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview Version 3.0. Results The weighted prevalence of OCD were 4.31% (lifetime), 2.86% (12-month), and 1.97% (30-day). Multivariate logistic regression identified the following independent predictors of having lifetime OCD: having a higher level of education, being unemployed, an internal medicine outpatient, a female, 16-35 years old, divorced/widowed/separated, and having a low family income. OCD had a significant comorbid association with neuroses, based on the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems-10th Revision. Discussion These findings show a lower prevalence rate of OCD in Lanzhou general hospitals than that reported for some specialized outpatient clinics in Western countries. Further investigations are required to explore the relationships between OCD and the risk factors identified in the current study. Resolving methodological problems may lead to more accurate prevalence estimates in future epidemiological studies. Our findings suggest that there is an urgent need to improve the ability of clinicians to detect OCD in outpatients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]