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Investigation shows that concrete corrosion is a common problem for ocean reinforced concrete (R.C.) structures along China’s coast. A discussion of the corrosion characteristics, based on real project cases and field surveys, is presented in this paper. These factors that might affect corrosion, such as environmental effects, construction quality, cover thickness, property of the concrete material and structure type, are evaluated. Based on the analysis of these corrosion characteristics and affecting factors, the approaches available to improve the durability of ocean R.C. structures are proposed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Essential oil profiles were obtained from four Hypericum species. • H. bellum and H. perforatum demonstrated neuroprotective activity. • H. hookerianum and H. bellum oil showed strong antibacterial activity. • H. perforatum collected in Wushan showed tyrosinase inhibition activity. • The study provided a scientific basis for future exploration of Hypericum species. St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum) is a well-known medicinal plant often used to treat mild to moderate mental depression. In southwest China, four species of Hypericum including H. perforatum , H. hookerianum , H. bellum and H. pseudohenryi have been used as traditional medicines for skin care, such as healing wounds, burns, and snake bites by local people. Hypericum volatile oils of these four species were obtained by supercritical CO 2 extraction and analyzed by GC–MS. From H. perforatum , 56 compounds were identified, the amounts of marker components are different between two collection sites. From H. hookerianum , 71 compounds were identified, mainly comprised of alkanes. From H. bellum , 43 compounds were identified, and its essential oil contains mainly oxygenated sesquiterpenoids. From H. pseudohenryi , 57 compounds were identified, and the essential oil has relatively high levels of alkanes. Because Hypericum species are used traditionally to treat depression, wounds, and other skin problems, their volatile oils were evaluated in vitro for neurite outgrowth-promoting, neuroprotective, antimicrobial, and enzyme inhibitory activities. H. bellum and H. perforatum from Wushan demonstrated significant neurite-promoting and neuroprotective activity. The Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus ssp. aureus was inhibited by most of the tested oils. Sesquiterpenoids and alkanols are the most abundant constituents of H. hookerianum and H. bellum oils which showed strong antibacterial activity and help to explain the observed antimicrobial activity of the oil. H. perforatum collected in Wushan showed tyrosinase inhibition activity. Based on the current results, three Asian Hypericum species and two Chinese H. perforatum populations may be promising ingredients for cosmetics, foods, and pharmaceuticals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An RRS assay has been developed for the detection of Eca109 cell. • Antibody and aptamer multifunctional gold nanoparticles are used as cell probe. • The sensor has been successfully applied in serum samples. Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most common cancers in China. Early and accurate diagnosis is the key to effective treatment of this disease. In this work, a resonance Rayleigh scattering (RRS) strategy was established to determine the concentration of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) over-expressed ESCC cancer cells, which based on the selective binding of the anti-EGFR aptamer (Apt) and anti-EGFR antibody (Ab) multi-functionalized gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) probe (Apt-AuNPs-Ab) to the EGFR-positive cancer cell. When the probe was mixed with the Eca109 ESCC cancer cell, a distinct RRS intensity increase was observed. The probe possesses a dynamic range from 1.0 × 102-5.0 × 105 cell·mL−1 for Eca109 cells, and the detection limit is 20 cell·mL−1. Experimental results with the A2780 ovarian cancer cells line, as well as with the Eca109 ESCC cancer cell line, clearly demonstrated that the RRS assay was sensitive and selective to Eca109 than the other cancer cell lines that express a low level of EGFR. The proposed RRS assay provided a novel platform for detection of EGFR-positive cancer cells and shown the good potential for clinical diagnostics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]