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Globally, liver cancer ranks among the most lethal cancers, with chemotherapy being one of its primary treatments. However, poor selectivity, systemic toxicity, a narrow treatment window, low response rate and multidrug resistance limit its clinical application. Liver-targeted nanoparticles (NPs) exhibit excellent targeted delivery ability and promising effectivity in treating liver cancer. The present study aimed to investigate the liver-targeting and anti-liver cancer effect of artesunate (ART)-loaded and glycyrrhetinic acid (GA)-decorated polyethylene glycol (PEG)-poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) (ART/GA-PEG-PLGA) NPs. GA-coated NPs significantly increased hepatoma-targeted cellular uptake, with micropinocytosis and caveolae-mediated endocytosis as its chief internalization pathways. Moreover, ART/GA-PEG-PLGA NPs exhibited pro-apoptotic effects on HepG2 cells, mainly via the induction of a high level of reactive oxygen species, decline in mitochondrial membrane potential and induction of cell cycle arrest. Additionally, ART/GA-PEG-PLGA NPs induced internal apoptosis pathways by upregulating the activity of cleaved caspase-3/7 and expression of cleaved poly (ADP-Ribose)-polymerase and Phos-p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase in HepG2 cells. Furthermore, ART/GA-PEG-PLGA NPs exhibited higher liver accumulation and longer mean retention time, resulting in increased bioavailability. Finally, ART/GA-PEG-PLGA NPs promoted the liver-targeting distribution of ART, increased the retention time and promoted its antitumour effects in vivo. Therefore, ART/GA-PEG-PLGA NPs afforded excellent hepatoma-targeted delivery and anti-liver cancer efficacy, and thus, they may be a promising strategy for treating liver cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This correction notice is related to a journal article titled "Identification of five hub genes as monitoring biomarkers for breast cancer metastasis in silico." The authors of the article, Yun Cai, Jie Mei, and Zhuang Xiao, should be considered co-first authors. The correction addresses an error in the original article, where Figures 6B and 6C were repeated. The correct figure has been included in the updated version of the article. The article discusses the diagnostic value of five hub genes in identifying normal and breast cancer tissues, showing that these genes have excellent diagnostic efficiency for breast cancer and adjacent tissues. The publisher, Springer Nature, remains neutral regarding jurisdictional claims and institutional affiliations. [Extracted from the article]

The function of natural killer (NK) cells has previously been implicated in hematopoietic-related diseases. Killer immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR) play an important role in NK cells after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. To explore the immunogenetic predisposition of hematological-related diseases, herein, a multi-center retrospective study in China was conducted, analyzing and comparing 2519 patients with hematopathy (mainly, acute lymphoblastic leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia, aplastic anemia, and myelodysplastic syndrome) to 18,108 individuals without known pathology. Genotyping was performed by polymerase chain reaction with specific sequence primers (PCR-SSP). As a result, we discovered four genes including KIR2DL5 (OR: 0.74, 95% CI 0.59–0.93; Pc = 0.0405), 2DS1 (OR: 0.74, 95% CI 0.59–0.93; Pc = 0.0405), 2DS3 (OR: 0.58, 95% CI 0.41–0.81; Pc = 0.0180), and 3DS1 (OR: 0.74, 95% CI 0.58–0.94; Pc = 0.0405) to be protective factors that significantly reduce the risk of aplastic anemia. Our findings offer new approaches to immunotherapy for hematological-related diseases. As these therapies mature, they are promising to be used alone or in combination with current treatments to help to make blood disorders a manageable disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Continuous risky decisions refer to decisions that involve trade-offs among options with persistent risks. People can use the probability of occurrence per unit time (e.g., 'the probability of occurrence is 1% per month') or the average time of risk occurrence (e.g., 'the average occurrence time is 100 months') to represent continuous risky options. In this study, we examined the effect of the presentation format (i.e., the probability of occurrence per unit time vs. the average time of risk occurrence) on continuous risky decisions in the gain domain and further explored the underlying mechanism. In Study 1 (N = 122), we demonstrated the effect of presentation format on continuous risky decisions and the moderating effect of the magnitude of probabilities. Specifically, when the probabilities were relatively low, compared with the probability of occurrence per unit time, using the average time of risk occurrence to present the continuous risky options led to more risk-averse decisions. However, when the probabilities were relatively high, compared with the probability of occurrence per unit time, the presentation format of the average time occurrence led to more risk-seeking decisions. In Study 2 (N = 136), we found that the moderating effect of the option probabilities on continuous risky decisions wasmediated by the subjective attributewise difference judgment. In Study 3 (N = 221), we replicated the effect of presentation format on continuous risky decisions in more natural scenarios. The study offered a deep understanding of the mechanism of continuous risky decision-making, and the results were conducive to further developing theories in relevant fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HLA‐DPB1*05:01:20 differs from HLA‐DPB1*05:01:01:01 by one nucleotide in exon 3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HLA‐C*03:652 differs from the HLA‐C*03:04:01:01 by one nucleotide in exon 3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various transgressions and crimes can be accomplished by individuals, but are also committed by groups. A similar transgression may have varying punishment intensities for individuals and groups, and this difference may also vary between the American and Chinese cultures. Using a questionnaire on bribery scenarios, two studies were carried out to examine the differences in punishment intensities for individuals and groups in the aforementioned two cultures. Results confirm that punishment intensities on individuals are harsher than those on groups in the American culture. In contrast, punishment intensities on individuals and groups are equally harsh in the Chinese culture. Further evidence indicates that the underlying mechanism can be attributed to the construal of agency, which mediates the moderating effect of cultural group (American vs. Chinese) on the relationship between transgression type (group vs. individual) and punishment intensity. Findings provide an in‐depth understanding of the cultural differences in the punishment of individuals and groups and their underlying mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is one of the most harmful mycotoxins, raising serious global health and economic problems. Searching for biological approaches for effective and safe AFB1 degradation is imminent. In our study, Microbacterium proteolyticum B204 isolated from bovine faeces degraded 77% of AFB1 after 24 h, becoming the first reported bacteria from the Microbacterium family to possess AFB1 degradation characteristics. Temperature variation showed little effect on its degradation ratio, demonstrating high thermostability of 75% and 79% after boiling and sterilization, respectively. We suppose that the components playing a key role during this process were proteins, considering the decreased degradation rate caused by Proteinase K. Cell viability detection on HepG2 cells indicated that the degradation products were much less toxic than pure AFB1. Furthermore, B204 cell-free culture supernatant also degraded AFB1-contaminated food, such as peanuts, corn and cheese. These results suggested that this strain with AFB1 degradation properties could be a prospective candidate for application in the food and feed industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HLA‐B*46:01:42 differs from HLA‐B*46:01:01:01 by one nucleotide in exon 5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HLA‐C*08:273 differs from HLA‐C*08:01:01:01 by one nucleotide in exon 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HLA‐B*38:103N differs from HLA‐B*38:02:01:01 by one nucleotide in exon 3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HLA‐B*48:01:13 differs from HLA‐B*48:01:01:01 by one nucleotide in exon 5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HLA‐A*11:448 differs from HLA‐A*11:01:01:01 by one nucleotide in exon 5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the relations between the social support network of mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), perceived social support, and their subjective wellbeing. The participants were mothers of children with ASD in Shanghai. Their social support network structure was explored via the nomination method. Perceived social support was measured using the Revised Social Provisions Scale for Autism (R-SPS-A), and the mothers' subjective wellbeing was assessed using the Index of Wellbeing, Index of General Affect. A significant correlation was observed between the subjective wellbeing of mothers of children with ASD and perceived social support. Meanwhile, perceived social support was significantly correlated with the effectiveness of overall social support. Finally, perceived social support was also significantly correlated with the network size of social support. Moreover, the effectiveness of social support was significantly associated with the network size of social support and was highly significantly associated with the degree of intimacy of social support. Furthermore, the network size of instrumental support has a significant influence on all perceived social support subdimensions. Overall, social support effectiveness plays an important role in the social support network mechanism on perceived social support and subjective wellbeing in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a selected train journey with multiple trains in the same traction power system, the given driving strategies of other trains can be abstracted as available external power flow. Aims at reducing the energy consumption of the multi‐train system, this paper presents an analytical solution for optimising the selected train trajectory to maximise the utilisation of the external power flow. Specifically, a spatial‐temporal area which combine the track grade along space and the external power over time is constructed and the problem is converted into the energy‐efficient control of a train travels in the spatial‐temporal area. Classical methods of constrained optimisation is used to show that the set of the optimal control modes and the optimal driving speed for the proposed problem are in a state of change. In order to obtain the optimal driving strategy, the spatial‐temporal area is divided into grids, and the evolution of a key adjoint variable when the external power changes is discussed. The authors illustrate our results by finding optimal control sequences and associated speed profile for the freight train in some elementary but realistic examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A tram with an on-board energy storage system is a promising candidate for urban traffic systems. The co-optimization of speed and voltage trajectories for a catenary-supercapacitors hybrid electric tram to minimize energy consumption from traction substations is presented in this article. A source-catenary-load-storage integrated optimization model is proposed to reflect the coupling performance between vehicle dynamics and power sources. Two different methods are designed to address this problem. First, a hierarchical method based on dynamic programming is proposed, and the optimal control problem is recast into two subproblems of speed trajectories optimization and supercapacitors voltage trajectories optimization. Efforts are made to reduce the computation burden. To further investigate the optimality of the hierarchical method, a coupling optimization method is designed using the three-dimensional dynamic programming. The performances of the two methods are evaluated by different track conditions and compared with the only optimizing speed profiles based method, which shows that the proposed methods can improve energy efficiency and reduce the fluctuation of catenary voltage. Meanwhile, the coupling method has lower energy consumption than the hierarchical method, but suffers from more considerable computation time. Finally, the influences of tram weight and dynamic traffic constraints are investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The composites comprised of polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS) and hybrid nanofillers were prepared by a novel eccentric rotor extruder based on elongation flow. The morphology, thermal behavior and rheological properties were investigated. The morphology of the PS dispersed phase changed from circular shape of PP70/PS30 blend to microfiber shape of PP/PS/MWCNTs/MMT composite with an increase of the number of the hybrid nanofillers dimensions. The nano‐TiO2 and MWCNTs were mainly located at the interface, did not change the shape of the PS dispersed phase but reduce the size of the dispersed phase. The hybrid nanofillers containing MWCNTs had better modification effect on the improvement of the crystalline ability of PP compared with the hybrid nanofillers without MWCNTs. The introduction of the hybrid nanofillers did not affect the crystal type of PP, but influence the perfection of crystallization of PP. The hybrid nanofillers had a nice enhancement on the thermal stability of the PP/PS blend. Compared with PP, the low frequency G′ of the hybrid nanofillers filled PP70/PS30 composites increased by two orders of magnitude. With an increase of the dimensionality of the hybrid nanofillers, the restriction of the molecular chains relaxation caused by the hybrid nanofillers was enhanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The "solid-liquid" behavior of vitrimers have not been systematically investigated. Herein, a series of "solid-liquid" vitrimers bearing varying contents of dynamic boronic ester bonds were synthesized via thiol-ene click reactions. These vitrimers allow for flexibile modulation of their network structures and thus show a range of intriguing properties including high stretchability, flexible transition from elasticity to plasticity, strong strain rate dependence, and solid-liquid performance. The dynamic association rate of boronic ester bonds within these vitrimers could be apparently accelerated via increasing the content of boronic ester, which could be used to shape-program the flat vitrimer films into various complex 3D structures just with external force. Materials with such versatile dynamic behavior may open up a range of new applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HLA‐B*27:267 differs from HLA‐B*27:04:01 by one nucleotide in exon 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From a biodiversity survey of a subterranean habitat near Sinan County, Guizhou Province, southwestern China, a new atyid shrimp of the genus Caridina H. Milne Edwards, 1837, C. sinanensis sp. nov. was discovered. The new species can be separated from other congeners based on a combination of characters including depigmentation in body and reduction of eyes, small pigment spot at the centre of the cornea, the shape of rostrum and the endopod of the 1st male pleopod, and the relatively longer appendix interna on the appendix masculina of the 2nd pleopod. Mitochondrial COI and 16S rRNA gene sequences also support the establishment of the new species. Information on the habitat, and the levels of threat are discussed to guide the conservation of C. sinanensis sp. nov. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: With the advent of the web computing era, the transmission mode of the Internet of Everything has caused an explosion in data volume, which has brought severe challenges to traditional routing protocols. The limitations of the existing routing protocols under the condition of rapid data growth are elaborated, and the routing problem is remodeled as a Markov decision process. this paper aims to solve the problem of high blocking probability due to the increase in data volume by combining deep reinforcement learning. Finally, the correctness of the proposed algorithm in this paper is verified by simulation. Design/methodology/approach: The limitations of the existing routing protocols under the condition of rapid data growth are elaborated and the routing problem is remodeled as a Markov decision process. Based on this, a deep reinforcement learning method is used to select the next-hop router for each data transmission task, thereby minimizing the length of the data transmission path while avoiding data congestion. Findings: Simulation results show that the proposed method can significantly reduce the probability of data congestion and increase network throughput. Originality/value: This paper proposes an intelligent routing algorithm for the network congestion caused by the explosive growth of data volume in the future of the big data era. With the help of deep reinforcement learning, it is possible to dynamically select the transmission jump router according to the current network state, thereby reducing the probability of congestion and improving network throughput. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A faunistic and ecological survey was conducted to document the diversity of freshwater atyid shrimps of Dawanshan Island. Two species of Caridina that occur on this island were documented and discussed. One of these, Caridina tetrazona sp. nov. is described and illustrated as new to science. It can be easily distinguished from its congeners based on a combination of characters, which includes a short rostrum, the shape of the endopod of the male first pleopod, the segmental ratios of antennular peduncle and third maxilliped, the slender scaphocerite, and the absence of a median projection on the posterior margin. Live individuals of the new species display a unique coloration pattern with four dark blue transverse bands on the body, and can be easily recognized in the field. So far, despite considerable surveying efforts made on neighboring islands, this species has only been found from a small stream on Dawanshan Island, which suggests that it may have a very limited range, probably endemic to Dawanshan Island. Molecular characteristics of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) demonstrate that this species shows sufficient interspecific divergence from its congeners, including C. serrata Stimpson, 1860, which was found in four streams on Dawanshan Island, and has been previously reported on the neighboring islands of Hong Kong, Dong'ao, Wailingding, and Guishan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modular multilevel converter (MMC) has great prospects in voltage source converter‐based high‐voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission. Although the typical half‐bridge MMC can bring huge economic benefits, it is unable to clear dc fault. An MMC based on arm transfer (AT‐MMC) and corresponding timing control are presented to effectively solve this drawback. Compared with the half‐bridge MMC, the AT‐MMC adds the arm‐transferring branch to the each phase unit of the converter and adds the current‐breaking branch and the energy‐absorbing branch to the dc line. Through these branches cooperating with each other, the fault current is cleared. Referring to the half‐bridge MMC with the same voltage grade, the AT‐MMC has a good economy and its additional device cost is low and additional conduction loss is very small. A model of 51‐level MMC–HVDC system is built in RT‐LAB OP5600 to verify the effectiveness of the proposed solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim was to evaluate in vitro the feasibility of using three silane coupling agents/blends: (I) 1.0 vol % 3-acryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (ACPS), (II) a novel silane system: 1.0 vol % 3-acryloxypropyl trimethoxysilane + 0.5 vol % bis-1,2-(triethoxysilyl)-ethane (ACPS + BTSE), and (III) a novel silane system: 1.0 vol % 3-acryloxypropyl trimethoxysilane + 0.5 vol % bis[3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl]amine (ACPS + BTMA), as adhesion promoters on the repair of dental silver amalgam with a resin composite with respect to various artificial ageing conditions. Two hundred and forty flowable composite resin stubs were bonded to freshly prepared dental silver amalgam discs. The discs were silica-coated and silanized with the 3 silanes. Another 20 resin stubs were bonded to the amalgam surface without any silica-coating or treated with silica-coating only. Then, the specimens were randomly distributed into 8 sub-groups for initial (control), thermal cycling (1000, 3000 and 6000) and DI water storage (1 day, 1 week, 1 month and 3 months). Shear bond strength (SBS) test was measured using a universal testing machine with a 1 mm/min cross-head speed. Failure modes were classified and SEM images were obtained. Two-way ANOVA was used to detect statistical differences. The initial SBS of the control groups were (Mean/SD) 20.2 ± 3.3 MPa for ACPS only, 16.6 ± 3.9 MPa for ACPS + BTMA, and 19.5 ± 3.3 MPa for ACPS + BTSE. A decreasing trend of SBS was observed by using the current artificial ageing methods, and ACPS and ACPS + BTSE produced statistically higher bond strengths compared to ACPS + BTMA under thermal cycling (p<0.05). An acrylate silane alone or blended with a cross-linking silane may effectively promote bonding of a dental flowable resin composite to dental amalgam, which could be a new method to repair the restoration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence-based information is the foundation for addressing urgent global challenges in conservation and sustainable management of the freshwater biodiversity. The present study expands current knowledge of the genus Macrobrachium in Zaomu Mountain Forest Park, Guangdong Province based on the morphology, colouration, distribution, and molecular characteristics of Macrobrachium maculatum, M. inflatum, M. nipponense, and an undescribed new species, M. laevis. Macrobrachium laevis sp. nov. can be distinguished from its congeners by a combination of characters, which includes the shape of rostrum, smooth carapace, and male second pereiopod. Macrobrachium laevis sp. nov. displays striking colour pattern, which could help to distinguish this species from other congeneric species in living specimen. Furthermore, the molecular characteristics of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) showed that this species has a sufficient interspecific divergence from its congeners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The three-dimensional (3D) coordinate measurement of radio frequency identification (RFID) multi-tag networks is one of the important issues in the field of RFID, which affects the reading performance of RFID multi-tag networks. In this paper, a novel method for 3D coordinate measurement of RFID multitag networks is proposed. A dual-CCD system (vertical and horizontal cameras) is used to obtain images of RFID multi-tag networks from different angles. The iterative threshold segmentation and the morphological filtering method are used to process the images. The template matching method is respectively used to determine the two-dimensional (2D) coordinate and the vertical coordinate of each tag. After that, the 3D coordinate of each tag is obtained. Finally, a back-propagation (BP) neural network is used to model the nonlinear relationship between the RFID multi-tag network and the corresponding reading distance. The BP neural network can predict the reading distances of unknown tag groups and find out the optimal distribution structure of the tag groups corresponding to the maximum reading distance. In the future work, the corresponding in-depth research on the neural network to adjust the distribution of tags will be done. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the high similarity in their requirements for space and food, close bacterial relatives may be each other's strongest competitors. Close bacterial relatives often form visible boundaries to separate their swarming colonies, a phenomenon termed colony-merger incompatibility. While bacterial species are known to have many incompatible strains, it is largely unclear which traits lead to multiple incompatibilities and the interactions between multiple incompatible siblings. To investigate the competitive interactions of closely related incompatible strains, we mutated Myxococcus xanthus DK1622, a predatory bacterium with complex social behavior. From 3392 random transposon mutations, we obtained 11 self-identification (SI) deficient mutants that formed unmerged colony boundaries with the ancestral strain. The mutations were at nine loci with unknown functions and formed nine independent SI mutants. Compared with their ancestral strain, most of the SI mutants showed reduced growth, swarming and development abilities, but some remained unchanged from their monocultures. When pairwise mixed with their ancestral strain for co-cultivation, these mutants exhibited improved, reduced or unchanged competitive abilities compared with the ancestral strain. The sporulation efficiencies were affected by the DK1622 partner, ranging from almost complete inhibition to 360% stimulation. The differences in competitive growth between the SI mutants and DK1622 were highly correlated with the differences in their sporulation efficiencies. However, the competitive efficiencies of the mutants in mixture were inconsistent with their growth or sporulation abilities in monocultures. We propose that the colony-merger incompatibility in M. xanthus is associated with multiple independent genetic loci, and the incompatible strains hold competitive interaction abilities, which probably determine the complex relationships between multiple incompatible M. xanthus strains and their co-existence strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fat-tail financial data and cyclical financial market makes it difficult for the fixed structure model based on Gaussian distribution to characterize the dynamics of corporate bonds spreads. Using a flexible structure model based on generalized error distribution, this paper focuses on the impact of macro-level factors on the spreads of corporate bonds in China. It is found that in China's corporate bonds market, macroeconomic conditions have obvious structural transformational effects on bonds spreads, and their structural features remain stable with the downgrade of bonds ratings. The impact of macroeconomic conditions on spreads is significant for different structures, and the differences between the structures increase as ratings decline. For different structures, the persistent characteristics of bonds spreads are obviously stronger than those of recursive ones, which suggest an obvious speculation in bonds market. It is also found that the structure switching of bonds with different ratings is not synchronous, which indicates the shift of investment between different grades of bonds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A tram with on-board hybrid energy storage systems based on batteries and supercapacitors is a new option for the urban traffic system. This configuration enables the tram to operate in both catenary zones and catenary-free zones, and the storage of regenerative braking energy for later usage. This paper presents a multiple phases integrated optimization (MPIO) method for the coordination of speed profiles and power split considering the signal control strategy. The objective is to minimize the equivalent total energy consumption of all the power sources, which includes both the energy from the traction substation and energy storage systems. The constraints contain running time, variable gradients and curves, speed limits, power balance and signal time at some intersections. The integrated optimization problem is formulated as a multiple phases model based on the characters of the signalized route. An integrated calculation framework, using hp-adaptive pseudospectral method, is proposed for the integrated optimization problem. The effectiveness of the method is verified under fixed time signal (FTS) control strategy and tram priority signal (TPS) control strategy. Illustrative results show that this method can be successfully applied for trams with hybrid energy storage systems to improve their energy efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The CRISPR/dCas9 system is a powerful tool to activate the transcription of target genes in eukaryotic or prokaryotic cells, but lacks assays in complex conditions, such as the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. Results: In this study, to improve the transcription of the heterologously expressed biosynthetic genes for the production of epothilones, we established the CRISPR/dCas9-mediated activation technique in Myxococcus xanthus and analyzed some key factors involving in the CRISPR/dCas9 activation. We firstly optimized the cas9 codon to fit the M. xanthus cells, mutated the gene to inactivate the nuclease activity, and constructed the dCas9-activator system in an epothilone producer. We compared the improvement efficiency of different sgRNAs on the production of epothilones and the expression of the biosynthetic genes. We also compared the improvement effects of different activator proteins, the ω and α subunits of RNA polymerase, and the sigma factors σ54 and CarQ. By using a copper-inducible promoter, we determined that higher expressions of dCas9-activator improved the activation effects. Conclusions: Our results showed that the CRISPR/dCas-mediated transcription activation is a simple and broadly applicable technique to improve the transcriptional efficiency for the production of secondary metabolites in micro-organisms. This is the first time to construct the CRISPR/dCas9 activation system in myxobacteria and the first time to assay the CRISPR/dCas9 activations for the biosynthesis of microbial secondary metabolites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to examine the correlation between KCNJ11 gene polymorphism and metabolic syndrome in elderly patients. From January 2014 to January 2015, 54 elderly patients with metabolic syndrome were enrolled in this study as the observation group. During the same period, 46 healthy elderly individuals were enrolled in this study as the control group. KCNJ11 gene polymorphism (rs28502) was analyzed using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. The expression levels of mRNA in different genotypes were detected using FQ-PCR. ELISA was used to evaluate the KCNJ11 protein expression in different genotypes. KCNJ11 gene polymorphism and metabolic syndrome was studied by measuring the blood pressure levels in patients with different genotypes. Three genotypes of KCNJ11 gene in rs28502 were CC, CT and TT. The CC, CT and TT genotype frequencies in healthy population were 8.5, 9.2 and 82.2%, respectively, while the genotype frequencies in patients with metabolic syndrome were 42.4, 49.8 and 7.8%, respectively. There were significant differences between groups (P≤0.05). However, the genotype frequencies of C/T in healthy individuals and metabolic syndrome patients were 35.3 and 38.3%, respectively. There were no significant differences between groups (P>0.05). FQ-PCR results showed that the KCNJ11 mRNA expression levels in the control and observation groups had no significant differences (P>0.05). However, the results obtained from ELISA analysis revealed that KCNJ11 protein expression level in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group (P<0.05). In conclusion, KCNJ11 gene polymorphism is associated with metabolic syndrome in the elderly. Elderly patients with the CC and TT genotypes are more likely to develop metabolic syndrome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The T-shaped radial spoke (RS) is a protein complex attached to the A microtubule of the outer doublet microtubules, and it extends toward the central pair (CP). It modulates the beat frequency, amplitude, and waveform of the flagella and cilia by serving as a mechanochemical signal transducer between the CP and dyneins. In humans, RS defects cause primary ciliary dyskinesia, but the structural components of triple RSs (RS1, RS2, and RS3) in mammals remain to be elucidated in detail. Here, we introduce a mouse model that lacked the entire RS1 in sperm flagella, due to the deletion of Iqub , while the tracheal cilia possessed intact triple RSs. Furthermore, the absence of IQUB only resulted in male infertility, owing to the sperm motility defect. Based on the mouse model, the RS1 compositions are identified in sperm flagella. In summary, this study elucidates the RS1 components and function in mammalian flagella. [Display omitted] • Identification and characterization of an RS1-specific adaptor, IQUB, in mouse flagella • Identification of the RS1 complex components in mouse flagella • Lack of the RS1 complex results in asthenospermia and male infertility • The RS1 complex assembly is different in the cilia and flagella The radial spoke (RS) is attached to doublet microtubules and modulates movement of flagella/cilia. This study identifies and characterizes a RS1-specific adaptor, IQUB. Via Iqub KO mice, this work identifies the RS1 complex components of mouse flagella. Iqub deletion only affects beating of sperm flagella, but not respiratory cilia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Neoproterozoic Kaijianqiao Formation is one of the most important pre-Sturtian rift successions in South China and there has long been a lack of reliable geochronological constraints for its minimum depositional age. In this study, new zircon U-Pb ages of volcaniclastic rocks from the topmost Kaijianqiao Formation are presented. The youngest SHRIMP and LA-ICP-MS zircon206Pb/238U weighted mean ages of the tuff sample are 715.0 ± 9.8 and 718.8 ± 9.4 Ma, respectively. The youngest LA-ICP-MS zircon206Pb/238U weighted mean age of the tuffaceous siltstone sample is 720.8 ± 7.4 Ma and represents the maximum depositional age of the topmost Kaijianqiao Formation. The results show that the minimum depositional age of the Kaijianqiao Formation in the western Yangtze Block should be ca. 715 Ma, consistent with other pre-Sturtian rift successions in South China, such as the Banxi Group, Chengjiang, and Liantuo formations. Together with the published zircon U-Pb ages, it is demonstrated that the Sturtian glaciation in South China (Jiangkou glaciation) most likely initiated around 715 Ma. In other Rodinia blocks, like Laurentia and Arabia, the Sturtian glaciation probably started between 712 and 717 Ma, thus our new results further support that the Sturtian glaciation was a rapid and globally synchronous event. Other206Pb/238U zircon ages display five distinct peaks at ca. 751, 780, 799, 819, and 848 Ma, which corresponded to the tectonic-magmatic events related to the break-up of Rodinia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During plasma spray-physical vapor deposition (PS-PVD) of yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) coatings, evaporation of the YSZ powder is essential, but quite difficult when using a commercial <80 kW plasma torch. In this study, a shrouded plasma torch was examined to improve the YSZ evaporation. The plasma characteristics were diagnosed using optical emission spectroscopy. Results showed that the electron number density in the plasma jet was maintained at an order of magnitude of 10 cm, indicating local thermal equilibrium of the plasma jet. Compared with a conventional torch, the shrouded torch resulted in much higher plasma temperature and much lower electron number density. With the shrouded torch, more energy of the plasma was transferred to the YSZ material, leading to more evaporation of the YSZ powder and thereby a much higher deposition rate of the YSZ coating. These results show that use of a shrouded torch is a simple and effective approach to improve the evaporation of feedstock material during PS-PVD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Massively parallel sequencing (MPS) of cell-free fetal DNA from maternal plasma has revolutionized our ability to perform noninvasive prenatal diagnosis. This approach avoids the risk of fetal loss associated with more invasive diagnostic procedures. The present study developed an effective method for noninvasive prenatal diagnosis of common chromosomai aneupioidies using a benchtop semiconductor sequencing platform (SSP), which relies on the MPS platform but offers advantages over existing noninvasive screening techniques. A total of 2,275 pregnant subjects was included in the study; of these, 515 subjects who had full karyotyping results were used in a retrospective analysis, and 1,760 subjects without karyotyping were analyzed in a prospective study. In the retrospective study, all 55 fetal trisomy 21 cases were identified using the SSP with a sensitivity and specificity of 99.94% and 99.46%, respectively. The SSP also detected 16 trisomy 18 cases with 100% sensitivity and 99.24% specificity and 3 trisomy 13 cases with 100% sensitivity and 100% specificity. Furthermore, 15 fetuses with sex chromosome aneuploidies (10 45,X, 2 47,XYY, 2 47,XXX, and 1 47,XXY) were detected. In the prospective study, nine fetuses with trisomy 21, three with trisomy 18, three with trisomy 13, and one with 45,X were detected. To our knowledge, this is the first large-scale clinical study to systematically identify chromosomal aneupioidies based on cell-free fetal DNA using the SSP and provides an effective strategy for large-scale noninvasive screening for chromosomal aneuploidies in a clinical setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is generally accepted that Neoproterozoic extension and dispersal of the supercontinent Rodinia was associated with mantle plume or superplume activities. However, plume-generated contemporaneous continental flood basalts (CFBs) have rarely been identified. In this study, we present geochronological and geochemical evidence for the basalts from the Liufangzui Formation of the Huashan Group in the Dahongshan region of east-central China. A representative sample yields a SHRIMP U–Pb zircon age of 824 ± 9 Ma, interpreted as the crystallization age of the rocks. Geochemically, these basalts belong to the subalkaline tholeiite series and display slight enrichments in light rare earth elements (LREE) and varying degrees of deficiency of high field strength elements (HFSE) such as Nb, Ta, and Ti. This pattern is very similar to that of CFBs from the Bikou Group and Tiechuanshan Formation in the northwestern Yangtze block in China and Siberia in Russia. The basaltic magmas underwent partially-fractional crystallization during ascent, but were not intensely influenced by crustal contamination. The characteristic element ratios and negative Hf isotopic analyses (ϵHf(t) = −6.6–2.6) in zircons indicate that the parental magmas of the basalts might have been derived from an enriched lithospheric mantle rather than from the depleted mantle such as normal mid-ocean ridge basalts (N-MORBs). The geochemical signatures and regional geological characteristics show that these basalts were formed along intraplate continental rifts rather than in island arcs or ocean basins. Considering the coeval basic volcanic rocks in South China, we propose that these Huashan Group basalts represent the remnants of plume-generated CFBs and have close spatiotemporal ties with a coeval basic igneous province in Australia. Our results support the Neoproterozoic location of the South China block adjacent to southeastern Australia in the reconstruction model of the supercontinent Rodinia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to accurately estimate the anti-penetration capacity of yaw-inducing bursting layer with irregular barriers on surface impacted by projectile, the theoretical model of attack angle and angular velocity for projectile impacting on irregular barrier was achieved according to the macroscopic relation of contact force versus contact time, in which the main factors such as the relative geometrical characteristics of projectile and irregular barrier, material property and impact velocity of projectile influencing on yaw-inducing effectiveness were considered. On the basis of considering synthetically the influences of attack angle, impact velocity, impact angle of projectile and uncontrolled free surface of target, the theoretical formulation of penetration depth for bursting layer with irregular barriers on surface impacted by projectile was presented by expressing the stress of an optional point on the nose of projectile according to the relation of stress versus velocity. The theoretical results indicate that in the case of oblique impact embodying effect of attack angle, the penetration depth is reduced with the increase of impact angle, attack angle or angular velocity, and penetration trajectory is also deflected obviously. The effectiveness of angular velocity influencing on penetration depth is increased with impact velocity increasing. The theoretical results are in good agreement with test data for low impact velocity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to accurately estimate the anti-penetration capacity of yaw-inducing bursting layer with irregular barriers on surface impacted by projectile, the theoretical model of attack angle and angular velocity for projectile impacting on irregular barrier was achieved according to the macroscopic relation of contact force versus contact time, in which the main factors such as the relative geometrical characteristics of projectile and irregular barrier, material property and impact velocity of projectile influencing on yaw-inducing effectiveness were considered. On the basis of considering synthetically the influences of attack angle, impact velocity, impact angle of projectile and uncontrolled free surface of target, the theoretical formulation of penetration depth for bursting layer with irregular barriers on surface impacted by projectile was presented by expressing the stress of an optional point on the nose of projectile according to the relation of stress versus velocity. The theoretical results indicate that in the case of oblique impact embodying effect of attack angle, the penetration depth is reduced with the increase of impact angle, attack angle or angular velocity, and penetration trajectory is also deflected obviously. The effectiveness of angular velocity influencing on penetration depth is increased with impact velocity increasing. The theoretical results are in good agreement with test data for low impact velocity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To date, the crystal structures of at least 12 human CYPs (1A2, 2A6, 2A13, 2C8, 2C9, 2D6, 2E1, 2R1, 3A4, 7A1, 8A1, and 46A1) have been determined. CYP2D6 accounts for only a small percentage of all hepatic CYPs (< 2%), but it metabolises ~25% of clinically used drugs with significant polymorphisms. CYP2D6 also metabolizes procarcinogens and neurotoxins, such as 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine, 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoline, and indolealkylamines. Moreover, the enzyme utilizes hydroxytryptamines and neurosteroids as endogenous substrates. Typical CYP2D6 substrates are usually lipophilic bases with an aromatic ring and a nitrogen atom, which can be protonated at physiological pH. Substrate binding is generally followed by oxidation (5–7 å) from the proposed nitrogen-Asp301 interaction. A number of homology models have been constructed to explore the structural features of CYP2D6, while antibody studies also provide useful structural information. Site-directed mutagenesis studies have demonstrated that Glu216, Asp301, Phe120, Phe481, and Phe483 play important roles in determining the binding of ligands to CYP2D6. The structure of human CYP2D6 has been recently determined and shows the characteristic CYP fold observed for other members of the CYP superfamily. The lengths and orientations of the individual secondary structural elements in the CYP2D6 structure are similar to those seen in other human CYP2 members, such as CYP2C9 and 2C8. The 2D6 structure has a well-defined active-site cavity located above the heme group with a volume of ~540 å3, which is larger than equivalent cavities in CYP2A6 (260 å3), 1A2 (375 å3), and 2E1 (190 å3), but smaller than those in CYP3A4 (1385 å3) and 2C8 (1438 å3). Further studies are required to delineate the molecular mechanisms involved in CYP2D6 ligand interactions and their implications for drug development and clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]