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Background and objectives A2A adenosine receptor (A2AAR)-mediated signaling in adipose tissues has been investigated as a potential target for obesity-related metabolic diseases. LJ-4378 has been developed as a dual-acting ligand with A2AAR agonist and A3 adenosine receptor (A3AR) antagonist activity. The current study aimed to investigate the anti-obesity effects of LJ-4378 and its underlying molecular mechanisms. Methods Immortalized brown adipocytes were used for in vitro analysis. A high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity and cell death-inducing DFFA-like effector A reporter mouse models were used for in vivo experiments. The effects of LJ-4378 on lipolysis and mitochondrial metabolism were evaluated using immunoblotting, mitochondrial staining, and oxygen consumption rate analyses. The in vivo anti-obesity effects of LJ-4378 were evaluated using indirect calorimetry, body composition analyses, glucose tolerance tests, and histochemical analyses. Results In vitro LJ-4378 treatment increased the levels of brown adipocyte markers and mitochondrial proteins, including uncoupling protein 1. The effects of LJ-4378 on lipolysis of adipocytes were more potent than those of the A2AAR agonist or A3AR antagonist. In vivo, LJ-4378 treatment increased energy expenditure by 17.0% (P value P value P value = 0.0044), respectively, and improved glucose tolerance in the HFD-fed mice. LJ-4378 increased the expression levels of brown adipocyte markers and mitochondrial proteins in interscapular brown and inguinal white adipose tissue. Conclusion These findings support the in vivo anti-obesity effects of LJ-4378, and suggest a novel therapeutic approach to combat obesity and related metabolic diseases.

Using two waves of data from the

In this study, an optimal-traction sheave is designed to prevent slip for a two-degrees-of-freedom facade-cleaning robot called Dual Ascender Robot (DAR). The DAR uses the length of the rope to estimate its position. Therefore, if a slip occurs, it becomes difficult to measure the length of the rope, thereby making it difficult to estimate position. Problems with position estimation may also cause difficulties in achieving control. The redesigned traction sheave was thoroughly evaluated by experiments. A well-known Taguchi method was used as the experimental procedure, and the optimal design parameters of the sheave were determined as hoop direction groove shape of 0.8, axial direction groove pitch of 6°, and axial direction groove depth of 2 mm. Verification experiments comparing the traction sheave with the optimal condition to that used in DAR showed improved performance. Therefore, it is expected that applying the optimal traction sheave to a DAR in further studies would help achieve better position estimation by preventing slips.

Plant residues decomposing within the soil matrix are known to serve as hotspots of N2O production. However, the lack of technical tools for microscale in-situ N2O measurements limits understanding of hotspot functioning. Our aim was to assess performance of microsensor technology for evaluating the temporal patterns of N2O production in immediate vicinity to decomposing plant residues. We incorporated intact switchgrass leaves and roots into soil matrix and monitored O2 depletion and N2O production using electrochemical microsensors along with N2O emission from the soil. We also measured residue’s water absorption and b-glucosidase activity on the surface of the residue - the characteristics related to microenvironmental conditions and biological activity near the residue. N2O production in the vicinity of switchgrass residues began within 0–12 h after the wetting, reached peak at ~0.6 day and decreased by day 2. N2O was higher near leaf than near root residues due to greater leaf N contents and water absorption by the leaves. However, N2O production near the roots started sooner than near the leaves, in part due to high initial enzyme levels on root surfaces. Electrochemical microsensor is a useful tool for in-situ micro-scale N2O monitoring in immediate vicinity of soil incorporated plant residues. Monitoring provided valuable information on N2O production near leaves and roots, its temporal dynamic, and the factors affecting it. The N2O production from residues measured by microsensors was consistent with the N2O emission from the whole soil, demonstrating the validity of the microsensors for N2O hotspot studies.

This study examined discrepancies in aging parents’ and middle-aged children’s evaluations of aging parents’ problems and how these discrepancies were associated with relationship characteristics. Using data from the Family Exchanges Study (dyad N = 331), discrepancies in the parents’ disabilities and life problems reported by parents and their offspring were examined. Children reported a greater number of disabilities and life problems in their parents’ lives than parents did. The discrepancy in the number of disabilities was associated with the frequency of phone contact, but not the frequency of in-person contact between generations. Findings confirm the gap in the evaluations of parents’ problems between generations, indicating that children may overestimate their parents’ problems, whereas parents may underreport their own problems. Frequent phone calls between aging parents and middle-aged children seem to play a positive role in conveying aging parents’ problems. The gap in knowledge of parents’ problems may lead to unmet needs and/or undesirable support exchanges between parents and offspring. Future research needs to consider both generations’ reports and to develop reliable methods to assess parents’ problems. This study was supported by grants from the National Institute on Aging (NIA), R01AG027769, Family Exchanges Study II (Karen L. Fingerman, Principal investigator) and R03AG048879, Generational Family Patterns and Well-Being (Kyungmin Kim, Principal investigator). The MacArthur Network on an Aging Society (John W. Rowe, Network director) provided funds. This research also was supported by grant, 5 R24 HD042849 awarded to the Population Research Center (PRC) at The University of Texas at Austin by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).

In this study, the reaction of NF3 gas plasma with cobalt oxide (Co3O4) film grown on the Inconel base metal surface was investigated. Experimental results showed the plasma etching rate as high as 3.36 μm/min at 350 °C under 220 W of plasma power with negative 300 DC bias voltage. AES and XPS analyses revealed that reaction product is CoF2, demonstrating that the plasma processing is a fluorination reaction. Based on the linear kinetics law, the activation energy of the etching reaction was derived to be 66.93 kJ/mol. This study demonstrates that the plasma decontamination technique can be applied to efficiently and effectively remove radioactive surface contaminants such as 60Co hiding in the oxide film on the surfaces of the metallic waste generated during decommissioning of old nuclear power plants.

To limit the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), Britain enforced a strict national lockdown, which is affecting the lives of millions, including dental professionals. As a result, all routine dental work has been suspended and general dental practitioners (GDPs) are inevitably faced with financial difficulties, as well as an impending strain on dental services once the lockdown is lifted. In contrast, South Korea (SK) has effectively managed to keep the virus at bay without a lockdown and continues to deliver routine dental care throughout this period. This article compares the current status of primary dental care in the UK and SK under COVID-19, in order to explore how the dental profession can better mitigate the repercussions of a future epidemic crisis.

Pt electrocatalysts in high-temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cells (HT-PEMFCs) containing phosphoric acid (PA)-doped polymer membranes are prone to poisoning by leaked PA. We performed a preliminary density functional theory (DFT) study to investigate the relationship between the electronic structure of Pt surfaces and their adsorption of PA. Excess charge on Pt was found to weaken its bonding with the oxygen in PA, thus presenting a strategy for the fabrication of PA-resistant catalyst materials. Consequently, PtCu-alloy catalysts with various compositions were prepared by electrodeposition. The morphologies and crystalline structures of the alloys were strongly dependent on alloy composition. Moreover, the Pt atoms in the PtCu-alloy catalysts were found to be in an electron-rich state, similar to that of the excessively charged Pt simulated in the DFT study. As a result, the oxygen reduction reaction activities of the PtCu-alloy catalysts were superior to that of a Pt-only catalyst, regardless of the presence of PA. In the absence of PA, the higher activity of the PtCu-alloy catalysts was ascribable to conventional alloying effects, while the increased activity in the presence of PA was largely due to the enhanced resistance to PA poisoning. Therefore, PtCu-alloy catalysts easily prepared by electrodeposition were found to be strong candidate materials for HT-PEMFC electrodes.

Insulin regulates blood glucose levels by binding its receptor and stimulating downstream proteins through the insulin receptor substrate (IRS). Impaired insulin signalling leads to metabolic syndrome, but the regulation of this process is not well understood. Here, we describe a novel insulin signalling regulatory pathway involving TAZ. TAZ upregulates IRS1 and stimulates Akt- and Glut4-mediated glucose uptake in muscle cells. Muscle-specific TAZ-knockout mice shows significantly decreased Irs1 expression and insulin sensitivity. Furthermore, TAZ is required for Wnt signalling-induced Irs1 expression, as observed by decreased Irs1 expression and insulin sensitivity in muscle-specific APC- and TAZ-double-knockout mice. TAZ physically interacts with c-Jun and Tead4 to induce Irs1 transcription. Finally, statin administration decreases TAZ, IRS1 level and insulin sensitivity. However, in myoblasts, the statin-mediated decrease in insulin sensitivity is counteracted by the expression of a constitutively active TAZ mutant. These results suggest that TAZ is a novel insulin signalling activator that increases insulin sensitivity and couples Hippo/Wnt signalling and insulin sensitivity., Insulin resistance is associated with development of type 2 diabetes. Here the authors show that TAZ interacts with c-Jun and Tead4, inducing expression of the insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1) leading to increased glucose uptake in muscle, and that its activity is counteracted by statin administration.

We report an enhancement in the coercivity of sintered Dy free Nd-Fe-B magnets from 11.84 to 14.26 kOe by the grain-boundary diffusion of electrochemically deposited Cu-Nd. In the optimized electrochemical deposition and heat treatment conditions, a distinct Nd-rich grain-boundary phase was observed after the diffusion process; distributions of each element was carefully mapped by scanning electron microscopy equipped with backscattered electron detector. X-ray diffraction patterns indicated that Nd2Fe14B was oxidized by the inward diffusion of oxygen, which might be formed during the electrodeposition of Cu-Nd, forming antiferromagnetic Fe2O3 that might degrade the overall coercivity. A mechanism underlying the enhancement of coercivity is basically the same as the well-known proposed mechanism, distribution of a thin Nd-rich phase by grain-boundary diffusion process. In this study, electrochemical deposition process has been extensively investigated, and then the process was demonstrated to be successful and economically useful method to improve coercivity of the magnet.

After publication of the article [1], it has been brought to our attention that several of the authors’ names were formatted incorrectly in the original version of the article. The corrections are listed below – “Byungok Kwak” should be “Byung Ok Kwak”“Soojin Kim” should be “Soo-Jin Kim”“Sunwhan Bae” should be “Sun Whan Bae”“Jaesung Son” should be “Jae Sung Son”“Soonyung Kim” should be “Soo-Nyung Kim” The original version of the article has now been revised.

The topographical environment, which mimics the stem cell niche, provides mechanical cues to regulate the differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC). Diverse topographical variations have been engineered to investigate cellular responses; however, the types of mechanical parameters that affect cells, and their underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. In this study, we screened nanotopological pillars with size gradient to activate transcriptional coactivator with PDZ binding motif (TAZ), which stimulates osteogenesis of MSC. We observed that a nanotopological plate, 70 nm in diameter, significantly induces osteogenic differentiation with the activation of TAZ. TAZ activation via the nanotopological plate was mediated by actin polymerization and Rho signaling, as evidenced by the cytosolic localization of TAZ under F-actin or Rho kinase inhibitor. The FAK and MAPK pathways also play a role in TAZ activation by the nanotopological plate because the inhibitor of ERK and JNK blocked nanopattern plate induced osteogenic differentiation. Taken together, these results indicate that nanotopology regulates cell differentiation through TAZ activation.

Contractors tout the use of organic acids for soil improvement even though the underlying stabilization mechanism is not well understood. Strength, stiffness, and chemical tests were conducted on two sandy materials treated with a commercial organic acid mixture to evaluate the effectiveness and stabilization mechanism involved. After curing for 28 days, tests show a moderate increase in unconfined compressive strength, approximately two-fold, and a large increase in constrained modulus, approximately one order of magnitude. X-ray diffraction and chemical analyses do not suggest traditional pozzolanic reactions as the source of improvements in the treated specimens. Test results suggest the organic acid solution promotes microbe growth and thus an increase in organic matter within the sand skeleton. This reduction in void space increases relative density to levels above the maximum unit weight of the host sand, resulting in higher soil strength and stiffness.