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Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder of unknown cause, although one hypothesis suggests a potential imbalance between excitation and inhibition that leads to changes in neuronal activity and a disturbance in the brain network. However, the mechanisms through which neuronal activity contributes to the development of ASD remain largely unexplained. In this study, we described that neuronal activity at the transcriptional and translational levels regulated the expression of Auts2 isoforms. The prolonged stimulation of cultured cortical neurons significantly reduced the auts2 transcripts, accompanied by the decrease of FL-Auts2 protein, as well as one of the short isoforms (S-Auts2 var.1). Blocking neuronal activity increased the number of auts2 transcripts but not protein levels. Furthermore, blocking the NMDA receptors during stimulation could partially restore the FL-Auts2 and S-Auts2 var.1 at protein level, but not at mRNA level. Finally, Auts2 expression in the hippocampus was reduced in mice exposed to an enriched environment, a behavior paradigm designed to increase the brain activity through abundant sensory and social stimulations. Thus, our study revealed a novel regulatory effect of neuronal activity on the transcription and translation of ASD-risk gene auts2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maize amylose is a type of high value-added starch used for medical, food, and chemical applications. Mutations in the starch branching enzyme (SBEIIb), with recessive ae (amylose extender) and dominant Ae1-5180 alleles, are the primary way to improve maize endosperm amylose content (AC). However, studies on Ae1-5180 mutation are scarce, and its roles in starch synthesis and breeding potential are unclear. We found that the AC of the Ae1-5180 mutant was 47.23%, and its kernels were tarnished and glassy and are easily distinguished from those of the wild type (WT), indicating that the dominant mutant has the classical characteristics of the ae mutant. Starch granules of Ae1-5180 became smaller, and higher in amount with irregular shape. The degree of amylopectin polymerisation changed to induce an increase in starch thermal stability. Compared with WT, the activity of granule-bound starch synthase and starch synthase was higher in early stages and lower in later stages, and other starch synthesis enzymes decreased during kernel development in the Ae1-5180 mutant. We successfully developed a marker (mu406) for the assisted selection of 17 Ae1-5180 near isogenic lines (NILs) according to the position of insertion of the Mu1 transposon in the SBEIIb promoter of Ae1-5180. JH214/Ae1-5180, CANS-1/Ae1-5180, CA240/Ae1-5180, and Z1698/Ae1-5180 have high breeding application potential with their higher AC (> 40%) and their 100-kernel weight decreased to < 25% compared to respective recurrent parents. Therefore, using the dominant Ae1-5180 mutant as a donor can detect the kernel phenotype and AC of Ae1-5180-NILs in advance, thereby accelerating the high-amylose breeding process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The single-valued neutrosophic set (SVNS) performs well in retrieving indeterminate cognitive information for decision makers to solve problems from the perspective of multiple attribute decision making (MADM). Preference relation is used in decision-making as a fundamental tool for decision makers to express their preference. In this context, the SVNS-based preference relation is one of the most useful extensions in that it quantitatively reflects the preference degree. However, the previous studies have paid little attention to the preference degree between alternatives, making the outcomes of decision making inaccurate. Therefore, it is necessary and meaningful to propose the MADM method with SVNS based on the preference relation which takes into account preference information between alternatives. A neutrosophic preference relation is proposed by means of the full of utilization decision information to combine SVNS with preference relation. With respect to the proposed MADM method, the evaluation decision matrix is provided by decision makers and the weights of attribute are gained by using the entropy of SVNS. Then, the neutrosophic preference relation is utilized to obtain evaluation preference matrix. Finally, through full-order relation formed by aggregating the preference relation, the ranking order of all alternatives is obtained and the most desirable alternative is readily determined. By an illustrative example, the proposed method is validated, and its advantages are analyzed by comparison and contrast with the other methods. This method makes full use of decision makers' cognitve information and takes into account the preference information between alternatives. The outcomes of decision-making demonstrate that the proposed method has the capacity to handle MADM issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A one-pot method based on cyclic voltammetric scan was used to fabricate a glassy carbon electrode modified with nanocomposites consisting of poly(thionine) and amino-functionalized graphene quantum dots (afGQDs). Under near-neutral conditions, the dye polymer was effectively oxidized by hydroxyl radicals (·OH) that were derived from the copper-catalyzed Fenton-like reaction, and the cathodic peak current on the modified electrode greatly increased. The reaction of Cu2+ with thiourea (TU) and the generation of a complex, CuTU2+, led to the decrease of Cu2+/Cu+ species, which inhibited the Fenton-like reaction and reduced the electrochemical response change. Due to a displacement reaction, the addition of Hg2+ into the H2O2-Cu2+-TU system resulted in the release of cuprous ions that benefited the Fenton-like reaction. Under the following optimal conditions: 6 mg mL−1 afGQDs and the 25-cycle potential cycling for the fabrication of the modified electrode, pH 6.5, and the c Cu 2 + / c TU ratio of 1.0, the increasing extent of the cathodic peak current exhibited a good linear response to the logarithm of the Hg2+ concentration in the range of 1 pM–1 μM with a detection limit of 0.6 pM. Mercury ions in a water sample were determined with good recovery, ranging from 97 to 103%. The investigation on the uptake of Hg2+ into human vascular endothelial cells, HUVEC, shows that the cells incubated in the high-concentration glucose medium absorbed more mercury ions than HUVEC incubated in the normal medium. As a result, Hg2+ could lead to the greater damage to the former. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copper is an important trace element involved in several physiological processes. The deficiency or excess of Cu in the human body may cause some serious diseases. EDTA has been widely employed in many industry fields owing to its excellent chelating ability. The poor biodegradability of EDTA makes itself a persistent substance in the natural environment. This work provided a fluorescence "on–off–on" strategy for the sequential determination of trace Cu2+ and EDTA. Amino-functionalized graphene quantum dots (afGQDs) were synthetized via the thermal pyrolysis of citric acid. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between afGQDs and 1-(2-pyridylazo)-2-naphthol (PAN) effectively quenched the fluorescence of this carbon-based nanomaterial. The generation of the Cu2+-PAN complex caused the increased FRET efficiency and the further fluorescence decline. The change of the fluorescence intensity sensitively responded to copper ions. The linear range and the limit of detection (LOD) were 1 nM-10 μM and 0.87 nM, respectively. EDTA could decompose the Cu2+-PAN complex and liberate PAN, which weakened the FRET efficiency and led to the fluorescence recovery. The increasing degree of the fluorescence intensity was closely related to EDTA within a concentration range from 10 nM to 10 μM with a LOD at 4 nM. Copper ions in the water and human serum samples and EDTA in the trypsin-EDTA sample were successfully detected based on the proposed fluorescence method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

NaCl induced PeJ3 (a DnaJ homolog) expression in Populus euphratica cell cultures. In contrast, salt treatment inhibited transcription of a J3-interacting protein kinase gene, PePKS5 (Salt Overly Sensitive 2-Like Protein Kinase 5). To clarify the mechanism by which PeJ3 conferred salinity tolerance, we isolated PeJ3 from P. euphratica and transformed it into Arabidopsis. PeJ3 overexpression inhibited AtPKS5 expression, but had no effect on AtJ3 transcripts. After 10-day exposures to 100 mM NaCl, PeJ3-transgenic lines showed prolonged survival (40-54.4%) and longer roots (43.8-51.1%) compared to wild-type (WT) and vector control (VC) plants. The observed differences in salt acclimation between transgenic and WT depended on their ability to exclude Na and maintain intracellular K. PeJ3-transgenic Arabidopsis accumulated less Na in root cells, due at least in part, to the high Na efflux in roots. K flux recordings revealed that PeJ3-transgenic lines lost less K than WT and VC under salt stress. In vitro and in vivo activity assays revealed that PeJ3-overexpression upregulated plasma membrane H-ATPase activity and enhanced HO signaling in salt-stressed Arabidopsis. Consequently, PeJ3-transgenic plants retained high H-pumping activity under NaCl salinity, which contributed to K/Na homeostasis in roots. In conclusion, PeJ3 overexpression resulted in H-ATPase activation through transcriptional AtPKS5 suppression and/or interactions with AtPKS5 kinase. Under salinity stress, upregulated H-pumps (i) promoted Na/H exchange across the Arabidopsis plasma membrane, (ii) reduced K efflux mediated by depolarization-activated plasma membrane channels, and (iii) stimulated HO signaling, which increased cytosolic free Ca and stimulated Na extrusion through Salt Overly Sensitive signaling in Arabidopsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to examine the epidemiological profiles of hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) activity in Suzhou, China, and the relationship between meteorological factors and enterovirus71 (EV71) and coxsackievirus A16 (CoxA16) infection. Children < 14 years old with probable HFMD at Soochow University Affiliated Children's Hospital were enrolled during January 2008 to December 2013. Samples from hospitalized children with HFMD were collected and tested using real-time reverse transcription PCR. Correlations between probable HFMD, laboratory-confirmed HFMD, and meteorological factors were analyzed using bivariate correlation, stepwise regression and time series analysis. A total of 29,530 probable cases were diagnosed with HFMD, and 1090 hospitalized cases were confirmed in the laboratory. The median age of individuals with HFMD was 28.6 months (interquartile range, 18-46.9 months), and the incidence was highest in children aged 12-36 months. Children infected with other enteroviruses were younger than those infected with EV71 and CoxA16. Mean temperature and total rainfall were strongly correlated with probable HFMD. In terms of the specific pathogen, only EV71 cases were associated with mean temperature during the study period of 2012-2013. Based on a simple seasonal model with a good fit, a seasonal pattern of HFMD activity could be predicted. This study provides quantitative evidence that probable HFMD was associated with mean temperature and total rainfall. Furthermore, a seasonal model could be used as an early and reliable monitoring system to predict seasonal pattern of HFMD in Suzhou, China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transcriptional responses of a heat-shock transcription factor from the salt-resistant Populus euphratica, PeHSF, were assessed in transgenic tobacco seedlings subjected to salinity stress. Moreover, their relevance to NaCl-induced anti-oxidative defense responses in higher plants was also explored. Expression of PeHSF was induced by high-salinity (150 mM NaCl) in leaves and callus cultures of P. euphratica. The salt-stimulated PeHSF expression in P. euphratica callus cultures was markedly inhibited by DPI (an inhibitor of plasma membrane NADPH oxidase) and LaCl 3 (an inhibitor of plasma membrane Ca 2+-permeable channels), indicating the involvement of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and Ca 2+ in HSF activation under NaCl stress. Sequence analysis showed that PeHSF is a typical class A HSF in higher plants. PeHSF overexpression in tobacco significantly improved the salt tolerance of transgenic plants, in term of seed germination and root growth. Compared to the wild-type plants, the PeHSF-transgenic lines exhibited an increased capacity to control ROS homeostasis, but not an enhanced capacity to retain ionic homeostasis under salt stress. PeHSF expression in tobacco enhanced the activities of ascorbate peroxidase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione reductase, due to upregulated transcriptional levels. We conclude that PeHSF plays a crucial role in ROS detoxification under salt stress, rather than in maintenance of the K +/Na +. It is likely that the salt-induced H 2O 2 and cytosolic Ca 2+ led to transcriptional activation of HSF, which initiated the transcription of genes encoding antioxidant enzymes in P. euphratica, thus contributing to ROS homeostasis control under saline conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Populus euphratica is a plant model intensively studied for elucidating physiological and molecular mechanisms of salt tolerance in woody species. Several studies have shown that vacuolar potassium (K) ion channels of the two-pore K (TPK) family play an important role in maintaining K homeostasis. Here, we cloned a putative TPK channel gene from P. euphratica, termed PeTPK. Sequence analysis of PeTPK1 identified the universal K-channel-specific pore signature, TXGYGD. Over-expression of PeTPK1 in tobacco BY-2 cells improved salt tolerance, but did not enhance tolerance to hyperosmotic stress caused by mannitol (200-600 mM). After 3 weeks of NaCl stress (100 and 150 mM), PeTPK1-transgenic cells had higher fresh and dry weights than wild-type cells. Salt treatment caused significantly higher Na accumulation and K loss in wild-type cells compared to transgenic cells. During short-term salt stress (100 mM NaCl, 24-h), PeTPK1-transgenic cells showed higher cell viability and reduced membrane permeabilization compared to wild-type cells. Scanning ion-selective electrode data revealed that salt-shock elicited a significantly higher transient K efflux from PeTPK1-transgenic callus cells and protoplasts compared to that observed in wild-type cells and protoplasts. We concluded that salt tolerance in P. euphratica is most likely mediated through PeTPK1. We propose that, under salt stress, PeTPK1 functions as an outward-rectifying, K efflux channel in the vacuole that transfers K to the cytosol to maintain K homeostasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using callus cells of a salt-tolerant Populus euphratica Oliver and a salt-sensitive P. popularis 35-44 ( P. popularis), the effects of NaCl stress on hydrogen peroxide (HO) and nitric oxide (NO) production and the relevance to ionic homeostasis and antioxidant defense were investigated. Results show that P. euphratica exhibited a greater capacity to tolerate NaCl stress in terms of cell viability, membrane permeability and K/Na relations. NaCl salinity (150 mM) caused a rapid increase of HO and NO in P. euphratica cells, but not in P. popularis. Moreover, salinised P. euphratica cells retained a high and stable level of HO and NO during the period of 24-h salt stress. Noteworthy, P. eupratica cells increased activities of superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase, catalase and glutathione reductase under salinity stress, but these antioxidant enzymes were significantly inhibited by the salt treatment in P. popularis cells. Pharmacological experiments proved that the NaCl-induced HO and NO was interdependent and contributed to the mediation of K/Na homeostasis and antioxidant defense in P. euphratica cells. Given these results, we conclude that the increased HO and NO enable P. euphratica cells to regulate ionic and ROS (reactive oxygen species) homeostasis under salinity stress in the longer term. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two families of Liapunov functions are employed to study the global stability and boundedness of functional differential systems. New stability and boundedness theorems are obtained. Applications of these theorems to some nonlinear differential systems with infinite delay are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

B7-H3, a new member of the B7 superfamily, acts as both a T cell costimulator and coinhibitor. Recent studies identified B7-H3 plays a critical role in the development of asthma. But the definitive mechanism is not clear. In this study, we further report that B7-H3 participates in the development of OVA-induced asthma in a murine model. And study its mechanism through the vitro and vivo experiment. Exogenous administration of B7-H3 strongly amplified the inflammatory response and augmented proinflammatory cytokines in vitro and vivo. These B7-H3-associated proinflammatory effects were not dependent on TLR2 signaling, as airway inflammation, eosinophils infiltration and cytokins (IL-4, IL-5, IL-13 and IFN-gamma) augment were still amplified in TLR2-deficient mice after administrated recombinant mouse B7-H3. These results indicated an important role for B7-H3 in the development of Th1 and Th2 cells in a murine model of asthma and its proinflammatory effects are not dependent on TLR2 signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protracted bacterial bronchitis (PBB) is the common cause of chronic cough in children worldwide, but its etiology has not been fully recognized in China. We retrospectively investigated a total of 66 hospitalized infants under the age of three years with chronic wet cough enrolled in the Affiliated Children's Hospital of Soochow University from October 2010 to March 2014. All patients underwent bronchoscopy and broncho-alveolar lavage (BAL) samples were processed for microbiological and cytological analysis. Of 66 patients with wet cough, 50 (75.8%) were diagnosed with PBB. In the PBB group, wet cough was accompanied by wheezing (90%). Airway malacia were identified in 22 cases (44%). The clinical manifestations of PBB with airway malacia did not differ from those without malacia. Haemophilus influenzae (47.4%) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (36.8%) were the most commonly identified pathogens. Furthermore, CD3+ and CD3+CD4+ cells were significantly lower in the PBB group (p < 0.01), while CD19+, CD16+CD56+ and CD23+ cells were elevated (p < 0.01) in the PBB group. Our study revealed PBB is an important cause of chronic wet cough in Chinese infants, and that changes of lymphocyte subsets are observed in children with PBB. Airway malacia frequently co-existed with PBB, but did not exacerbate the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sleep deprivation (SD) has been associated with several adverse effects, including cognitive deficit. Emerging evidence suggests microglia-associated neuroinflammation is a potential trigger of cognitive deficit after SD. Stimulator of interferon genes (STING) constitutes an important factor in host immune response to pathogenic organisms and is found in multiple cells, including microglia. STING is involved in neuroinflammation during neuronal degeneration, although how STING signaling affects SD-induced neuroinflammation remains unexplored. In the present study, the chronic sleep restriction (CSR) model was applied to examine the effects of STING signaling on cognition. The results revealed that cGAMP, a high-affinity and selective STING agonist, significantly improved cognitive deficit, alleviated neural injury, and relieved neuroinflammation in CSR mice by activating the STING-TBK1-IRF3 pathway. Moreover, triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) was upregulated in CSR mice treated with cGAMP, and this effect was abolished by STING knockout. TREM2 upregulation induced by cGAMP regulated the microglia from pro-inflammatory state to anti-inflammatory state, thereby relieving neuroinflammation in CSR mice. These findings indicate cGAMP-induced STING signaling activation alleviates SD-associated neuroinflammation and cognitive deficit by upregulating TREM2, providing a novel approach for the treatment of SD-related nerve injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]