Search

The colour of a star is a critical feature to reflect its physical property such as the temperature. The colour index is usually obtained via absolute photometry, which is demanding for weather conditions and instruments. In this work, we present an astrometric method to measure the catalogue-matched colour index of an object based on the effect of differential colour refraction (DCR). Specifically, we can observe an object using only one filter or alternately using two different filters. Through the difference of the DCR effect compared with reference stars, the catalogue-matched colour index of an object can be conveniently derived. Hence, we can perform DCR calibration and obtain its accurate and precise positions even if observed with Null filter during a large range of zenith distances, by which the limiting magnitude and observational efficiency of the telescope can be significantly improved. This method takes advantage of the DCR effect and builds a link between astrometry and photometry. In practice, we measure the colour indices and positions of Himalia (the sixth satellite of Jupiter) using 857 CCD frames over 8 nights by two telescopes. Totally, the mean colour index BP − RP (Gaia photometric system) of Himalia is 0.750 ± 0.004 mag. Through the rotational phased colour index analysis, we find two places with their colour indices exceeding the mean ± 3σ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The release of Gaia catalogue is revolutionary to the astronomy of Solar system objects. After some effects such as atmospheric refraction and CCD geometric distortion have been taken into account, the astrometric precision for ground-based telescopes can reach the level of tens of milli-arcseconds (mas). If an object approaches a reference star in a small relative angular distance (less than 100 arcsec), which is called close approach event in this work, the relative positional precision between the object and reference star will be further improved since the systematic effects of atmospheric turbulence and local telescope optics can be reduced. To obtain the precise position of a main-belt asteroid in an close approach event, a second-order angular velocity model with time is supposed in the sky plane. By fitting the relationship between the relative angular distance and observed time, we can derive the time of maximum approximation and calculate the corresponding position of the asteroid. In practice, five nights' CCD observations including 15 close approach events of main-belt asteroid (702) Alauda are taken for testing by the 1 m telescope at Yunnan Observatory, China. Compared with conventional solutions, our results show that the positional precision significantly improves, which reaches better than 4 mas, and 1 mas in the best case when referenced for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) ephemeris in both right ascension and declination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Explore the mental health status and its influencing factors of local community residents under the post-epidemic era of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in China. Methods The basic information scale, self-rating depression scale and self-rating anxiety scale were used to carry out an online questionnaire survey among community residents in Jiangsu Province, China, and the influencing factors of depression and anxiety were analyzed by multivariate logistic regression. Results A total of 993 residents completed the mental health survey. It was found that the incidence of depressive and anxiety symptoms was 37.06% and 22.86%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that women [odds ratio (OR) 95% confidence interval (95% CI) = 26.239 (14.743–46.698)], college degree and above [OR (95% CI) = 1.843 (1.085–3.130)] and ordinary residents [OR (95% CI) = 2.222 (1.441–3.425)] were risk factors for depressive symptoms, urban residents had lower risk [OR (95% CI) = 0.655 (0.394–0.829)]. Women [OR (95% CI) = 33.595 (15.812–71.381)] and ordinary residents [OR (95% CI) = 3.017 (1.602–5.680)] were risk factors for anxiety symptoms while the incidence was reduced in professional and technical personnel [OR (95% CI) = 0.271 (0.123–0.597)], workers [OR (95% CI) = 0.383 (0.168–0.876)], soldiers or policemen [OR (95% CI) = 0.200 (0.042–0.961)], married residents [OR (95% CI) = 0.463 (0.230–0.931)] and urban residents [OR (95% CI) = 0.531 (0.251–0.824)]. Conclusion The incidence of symptoms of depression and anxiety among residents was relatively high under the post-epidemic era of COVID-19, which could be affected by various factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To explore the factors associated with depression in residents in the post-epidemic era of COVID-19. Methods A multi-stage stratified random sampling method was used to conduct a questionnaire survey among community residents through self-designed questionnaires and self-rating depression scale (SDS). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed on the influencing factors of depressive symptoms. Results A total of 1993 residues completed the survey of depression status. The incidence of depressive symptoms was 27.04%. The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that female (odds ratio (OR): 6.239, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.743–10.698), body mass index (BMI) > 24 (OR: 2.684, 95% CI: 1.059–3.759) and drinking (OR: 1.730, 95% CI: 1.480–3.153) were the risk factors for developing depressive symptoms. Married (OR: 0.417, 95% CI: 0.240–0.652), monthly income (3001–5000 yuan, OR: 0.624, 95% CI: 0.280–0.756; >5000 yuan, OR: 0.348, 95% CI: 0.117–0.625), ordinary residents (OR: 0.722, 95% CI: 0.248–0.924) and urban residents (OR: 0.655, 95% CI: 0.394–0.829) were the protective factors of depressive symptoms. Conclusions Under the post-epidemic era of COVID-19, depressive symptoms are still common among community residents in China. Gender, BMI, drinking, marriage, monthly income and nature of personnel and residential area are associated with the incidence of depressive symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The genomics era has led to an explosion in the study of gene expression in production animals. Intramuscular fat (IMF) content (both high and low) and composition are major quality attributes of meat, and more than 90 transcriptomic studies of IMF deposition have been undertaken in the ruminants and pigs since 2001, with the majority since 2008. The studies have implicated many genes involved in the control of adipogenesis, lipogenesis, and deposition of IMF, but there is relatively little consistency between the different studies. However, the genes encoding the synthesis enzymes acetyl-CoA carboxylase a, fatty acid synthase, and stearoyl-CoA desaturase; the fatty acid binding protein 4; the potential signaling protein thyroid hormone responsive; and the regulators C/EBPα, PPARγ, and sterol regulatory element binding transcription factor 1 are supported by 5 or more of the 90 studies. By combining the results of all the studies, complete pathways for long-chain fatty acid (LCFA) and triacylglyceride (TAG) synthesis are identified, as are a number of genes encoding proteins probably associated with the storage of TAG and genes encoding a number of known and potential adipokines. In contrast, support for the association of lipolytic pathways with IMF percentage is less strong. Differences in experimental design--in particular, the age of the animals, the rate of IMF deposition at sampling, the past nutritional history of the animals used, and the complexities of using a tissue with mixed cell types--have contributed to the differences in results and interpretation. Biomarkers predictive of future IMF percentage, facilitating reaching optimal IMF content at slaughter, may have industry utility, but to be useful in animal biopsy and postslaughter samples, where multiple cell types are present, genes must be carefully chosen to ensure that they are informative about the expected processes. Despite these problems, candidate biomarkers for estimation of de novo intramuscular adipocyte LCFA synthesis, LCFA uptake rate by intramuscular adipocytes, and IMF deposition rate have been identified and examples of their utility have been published. However, further work is required to demonstrate how best to apply the assays for the benefit of the relevant livestock production industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The prevalence of bla(KPC) among gram-negative bacteria continues to increase worldwide. Limited treatment options exist for this multidrug-resistant phenotype, often necessitating combination therapy. We investigated the in vitro and in vivo efficacy of multiple antimicrobial combinations. Methods. Two clinical strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing K. pneumoniae were studied. The killing activities of six 2-agent combinations of amikacin, doripenem, levofloxacin, and rifampin were quantitatively assessed using a validated mathematical model. Combination time-kill studies were conducted using clinically relevant concentrations; observed bacterial burdens were modeled using 3-dimensional response surfaces. Selected combinations were further validated in a neutropenic murine pneumonia model, using human-like dosing exposures. Results. The most enhanced killing effect in time-kill studies was seen with amikacin plus doripenem. Compared with placebo controls, this combination resulted in significant reduction of the bacterial burden in tissue at 24 hours, along with prolonged animal survival. In contrast, amikacin plus levofloxacin was found to be antagonistic in time-kill studies, showing inferior animal survival, as predicted. Conclusions. Our modeling approach appeared to be robust in assessing the effectiveness of various combinations for KPC-producing isolates. Amikacin plus doripenem was the most effective combination in both in vitro and in vivo infection models. Empirical selection of combinations against KPCs may result in antagonism and should be avoided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study on the genetic analysis of two Chinese families with inherited autosomal progressive symmetrical erythrokeratoderma (PSEK). The researchers assessed the oricrin, connexin 30.3 and connexin 31 genes of the two families and revealed no mutations of these genes. It suggests that more than one genetic locus is responsible for the development of PSEK.

Aims: To determine the cause of an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis that occurred on a cruise ship sailing along the Yangzi River from Chongqing to Nanjing, China. Methods and Results: Noroviruses were identified by reverse transcription- PCR (RT-PCR) in rectal swabs from 34 of 54 subjects tested (63-0%). Sequencing and genotyping showed that noroviruses of up to seven different genotypes circulated in this outbreak: noroviruses GI.1, GI.2, GI.3, GI.4, GI.8, GI.9 and an uncommon strain GII.17. Common genotypes were not identified in this event. None of the food or water samples were tested positive for noroviruses. Significance and Impact of the Study: In this study, we presented the molecular investigation of a norovirus outbreak on a cruise in China. We revealed that the outbreak was caused by several different norovirus genotypes and analysed the possible source of infection as well, thus facilitating the evaluation of epidemiological issues regarding noroviruses in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lactobacillus casei LC2W is an exopolysaccharide(EPS)-producing strain with probiotic effects. The low efficiency and unclear regulation mechanism of EPS biosynthesis have become main constraints for its application in food industry. To investigate the major rate-limiting factors of EPS biosynthesis and to improve its yield, metabolic engineering was applied to this strain. Eight relevant genes related to central metabolism, sugar-nucleotides supply, glycosyltransferase and cofactor engineering were cloned and overexpressed. The results suggested that nox, pfk, rfbB and galT genes were the largest contributors to EPS biosynthesis in this study, which elevated EPS yield by 46·0, 20, 17·4 and 19·6% respectively. Notably, under aerobic condition which was not a suitable condition for lactobacilli to grow in, recombinant strain LC-nox achieved the highest EPS yield of 263·7 mg l–1, which was increased by 75% compared to that of the starting strain. The oxygen stress was excluded since the phenomenon was not observed in the control strain under the same condition. Therefore, it was probably that higher NADH oxidase activity led to a decreased NADH availability and reduced lactate concentration, which resulted in the elevation of EPS yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was to investigate the differences in protein modifications between pale, soft, and exudative (PSE) and red, firm, and nonexudative (REN) pork during postmortem (PM) aging. Lon-gissimus dorsi (LD) including 8 PSE and 8 RFN muscles were individually removed from 16 carcasses. These 16 LD muscles were vacuum packaged at 24 h after slaughter and stored at 4°C for 1,3, and 5 d. The centrifugation loss, drip loss, color, protein solubility, protein oxidation, protein degradation including desmin, troponin T, and integrin, and µ-calpain activation were determined. The pH of PSE samples was significantly lower than that of RFN samples at both 1 and 24 h PM (P < 0.05). The L* values of PSE pork were significantly greater than that of RFN pork at different time point during PM storage (P < 0.01). The centrifugation loss of PSE samples at d 1 was extremely greater than samples from RFN pork (P < 0.01). The cumulative drip loss for d 0 to 1, d 0 to 3, and d 0 to 5 in PSE pork were significantly greater than that from RFN pork (P < 0.05). The carbonyl content of myofibrillar proteins was not significantly different between PSE and RFN pork samples (P > 0.05). In addition, PSE pork presented a lower solubility of sarcoplasmic protein, myofibrillar protein, and total protein than RFN pork except the solubility of myofibrillar protein at d 1 (P < 0.05). The intensity of intact desmin and troponin T 2 in PSE pork at d 3 and 5 were significantly greater than that in RFN pork (P < 0.05), whereas no significant difference was detected at d 1. The intensity of intact troponin T 1 in PSE pork at d 5 was greater than that in RFN pork (P < 0.05). However, more degradation products of integrin were detected in PSE pork compared to that of RFN pork at d 1 (P < 0.05). Red, firm, and nonexudative pork presented lower intensity of intact 80 kDa calpain and greater intensity of autolyzed 76 kDa product compared to PSE pork (P < 0.01). The results indicate that the degree of p-calpain activation, the extent of protein degradation including desmin and integrin, and the level of protein solubility in PSE pork could contribute to its low water holding capacity during PM storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Punctate palmoplantar keratoderma ( PPPK, OMIM 148600) is a rare hereditary disorder characterized by multiple punctate keratoses on the palms and soles. Recently, mutations in the genes α- and γ-adaptin-binding protein p34 ( AAGAB) and collagen, type XIV, α1 ( COL14 A1) have been reported to cause PPPK. Objectives To identify mutations in the genes AAGAB and COL14 A1 in three Chinese families with PPPK. Methods Genomic DNA of the family members and 100 healthy individuals was isolated. Direct sequencing of all polymerase chain reaction products of the whole coding regions of AAGAB and COL14 A1 was performed to identify the mutation. Results A heterozygous nonsense mutation c.61 C> T (p. Q21 X) was identified in AAGAB in two Chinese families with PPPK. We failed to detect any mutations in AAGAB or COL14 A1 in family 3. Conclusions A novel loss-of-function mutation within AAGAB associated with PPPK was identified from two Chinese pedigrees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the role of apoptosis in the differentiation failure of B cells from a selected subpopulation of patients with CVID delineated by B cell surface marker analysis, in vitro IgE response, and molecular markers of B cell VH gene repertoire. These patients had altered display of B cell surface molecules that play a role in apoptosis. The patients' B cells had a 4.5-250-fold increase in CD95 (Apo-I, fas) expression and increased CD95 display on their T cells. CD38, a molecule important in preventing germinal centre B cell apoptosis, was reduced on the patients' B cells. The expression of this molecule was inducible on the CVID lymphocytes with retinoic acid. Increased spontaneous apoptosis in vitro was observed with the patients' B (23%) and T cells (10%) compared with normal cells (13% and 3%, respectively). Stimulation in vitro with IL-4 and CD40 rescued the B cells from apoptosis and allowed for their differentiation. However, IL-4 plus αCD40-driven immunoglobulin production was not quantitatively or qualitatively normal. Failure to overcome apoptosis, a normal step in germinal centre B cell development, may be involved in the lack of differentiation seen in this subset of CVID patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]