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BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease associated with both innate and adaptive immune responses. The stimulator of interferon genes (STING) protein engages in sensing of cytosolic DNA to initiate dsDNA-driven immune responses. In vitro and in vivo anti-psoriasis effects of STING antagonist H-151 were explored. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH We analysed the gene expression profile of STING and related downstream targets in the skin samples of healthy people and psoriasis patients from the GEO database. Cellular inhibitory activity of H-151 on STING pathway was confirmed via qPCR and western blotting. The preventive effect of topical application of H-151 on imiquimod-induced psoriatic mice was examined through histological, immunohistochemical, immunofluorescent, flow cytometric analysis, ELISA Kits and other approaches. Preliminary mechanistic studies were also performed. KEY RESULTS Gene expressions of STING and its downstream target were up-regulated in lesional skin samples from psoriasis patients. Topical administration of H-151 attenuated the skin lesions in imiquimod-induced psoriatic mouse model, while the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-17, IL-23 and IL-6), infiltration of M1 macrophages and differentiation of Th17 cells were significantly suppressed by H-151 treatment. Mechanistically, H-151 inhibited STING/NF-κB signalling in both keratinocytes and immune cells. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS H-151 displayed anti-inflammatory activity in both keratinocytes and immune cells, and decreased the severity of psoriatic response in vivo. Inhibition of STING signalling pathway may represent a novel therapeutic approach to psoriasis and related complications.

BACKGROUND Although climate change and agricultural practices have non-negligible impacts on crop yields, their quantitative contributions to soybean yields remain unclear. First-order difference multiple regression was used to determine the respective contributions of climate change and agricultural practice to changes in soybean yields at station level from 1981 to 2010 in northeast China. RESULTS From 1981 to 2010, the soybean yields at 87% of the stations were increasing with an average 41.18 kg ha year-1 change trend in northeast China. The individual impacts of climate change and agricultural practice on soybean yield were -0.33% to 0.58% year-1 and -3.3% to 7.89% year-1 , respectively. The sensitivity of the soybean yield to climatic factors was related to latitude, and yields at high-latitude stations were positively correlated with temperature but negatively correlated with accumulated sunshine hours. Climate change contributed -24% to 38% to the trend in soybean yield, and the temperature had the greatest effect of all the climatic factors. CONCLUSION The contribution of agricultural practices was greater than that of climate change, counteracting the adverse effects of climate change and even affecting the direction of soybean yield changes. In adaptive decision making, priority should be given to management measures that have less impact on the environment, such as breeding new varieties adapted to specific latitudes, thus promoting the sustainable production of soybeans. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Background Surgery is an important component in the treatment of esophageal cancer. For patients not eligible for R0 resection, defined as locally advanced unresectable esophageal cancer, a new approach is to transform the cancer into a resectable state by preoperative treatment. However, preoperative chemo/radiation is unsatisfactory. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the safety and efficacy of chemo/radiotherapy combined with a programmed cell death protein 1 (PD‐1) inhibitor in the preoperative transformation of unresectable esophageal cancer. Methods Patients were evaluated as having unresectable, locally advanced esophageal cancer at baseline and were re‐evaluated as possible R0 resection candidates after PD‐1 inhibitor treatment. Patient data were derived from the prospective database of Peking University Cancer Hospital Thoracic Surgery I. Preoperative chemotherapy plus PD‐1 inhibitor treatment was defined as “transformation treatment.” The objective response rate, operation rate (proportion of patients who underwent surgery), R0 rate, and treatment safety were analyzed retrospectively. Results A total of 36 patients were enrolled into the study, and 94.4% (34/36) completed the planned transformation treatment. The objective response rate was 71.4% (25/35), and 75% (27/36) of the patients who completed transformation treatment underwent surgery. For these surgical patients, 81.5% (22/27) obtained R0 resection, and 22.2% (6/22) had pathological complete response (pCR). During transformation treatment, 22.2% (8/36) patients had ≥ grade 3 complications. There were no reoperations or perioperative deaths. After surgery, 29.6% (8/27) had ≥ grade 3 complications. Conclusions Esophagectomy after immunotherapy is safe with acceptable complications. Compared with chemotherapy alone, chemotherapy combined with immunotherapy had a more favorable transformation effect for patients with unresectable esophageal cancer., Thirty‐six patients were enrolled. All patients received preoperative immunotherapy and 94.4% (34/36) completed the planned transformation treatment. The objective response rate was 71.4% (25/35), and 75% (27/36) of the patients who completed transformation treatment underwent surgery. For these surgical patients, 81.5% (22/27) obtained R0 resection, and 22.2% (6/22) had pathological complete response (pCR) as confirmed by postoperative pathological report.

A pioneering boat-based survey was conducted in 2019, to gather baseline information regarding the presence, composition, relative abundance, and spatial distribution of deep-diving and off-shore cetaceans in the northern South China Sea (SCS). A total of 27 sightings comprising at least 8 cetacean species were recorded during the 13-day survey, including 5 deep-diving species (i.e. Risso's dolphin [Grampus griseus], short-finned pilot whale [Globicephala macrorhynchus], sperm whale [Physeter macrocephalus], Cuvier's beaked whale [Ziphius cavirostris], and an unidentified beaked whale [either the ginkgo-toothed beaked whale, Mesoplodon ginkgodens, or Deraniyagala's beaked whale, Mesoplodon hotaula]), as well as 3 off-shore dolphins (i.e. pantropical spotted dolphin [Stenella attenuate], striped dolphin [Stenella coeruleoalba], and Fraser's dolphin [Lagenodelphis hosei]). With the exception of pantropical spotted dolphins, all other species were sighted and recorded at sea in the northern SCS for the first time. The pantropical spotted dolphin was the most frequently sighted species, comprising 30% of the total sightings. Deep-diving cetaceans were mainly sighted in the northern Xisha Archipelago, whereas off-shore dolphins were distributed across the survey area. The pantropical spotted dolphin was observed in aggregations of more than 100 individuals and nearly all encountered species included calves; these findings suggested that the survey area functions as an important feeding and calving ground for various cetacean species. This pioneering survey provides fundamental information regarding cetacean fauna in the northern SCS and highlights the need to strengthen research and conservation efforts concerning these species.

Objective Whether cervical disc arthroplasty (CDA) is superior to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) remains controversial, especially in relation to long‐term results. The present study aimed to evaluate the long‐term safety and efficiency of CDA and ACDF for cervical disc disease. Methods We performed this study according to the Cochrane methodology. An extensive search was undertaken in PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane databases up to 1 June 2019 using the following key words: “anterior cervical fusion,” “arthroplasty,” “replacement” and “artificial disc”. RevMan 5.3 (Cochrane, London, UK) was used to analyze data. Safety and efficiency outcome measures included the success rate, functional outcome measures, adverse events (AE), adjacent segment degeneration (ASD), secondary surgery, and patients’ satisfaction and recommendation rates. The OR and MD with 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to evaluate discontinuous and continuous variables, respectively. The statistically significant level was set at P

Background DNA damage repair is an important mechanism of platinum resistance. HOXB7 is one member of HOX family genes, which are essential developmental regulators and frequently dysregulated in cancer. Recently, its relevance in chemotherapy resistance and DNA damage repair has also been addressed. However, little is known regarding the association between HOXB7 and chemotherapy resistance in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Methods The association between HOXB7 expression detected by immunohistochemisty and tumor regression grade (TRG) and long-term survival was analyzed in 143 ESCC patients who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy. CCK8 assay was used to examine the effect of cisplatin in a panel of four ESCC cell lines. A stable cell strain with HOXB7 knockdown of KYSE150 and KYSE450 was established to explore the effect on cisplatin sensitivity. The interaction of HOXB7 with Ku70, Ku80 and DNA-PKcs was determined by GST-pull down, coimmunoprecipitation and immunofluorescent colocalization. Finally, we investigated whether disrupting HOXB7 function by a synthetic peptide HXR9 blocking the formation of HOXB7/PBX could enhance cisplatin sensitivity in vitro and in vivo. Results High expression of HOXB7 was associated with cisplatin resistance and worse chemotherapy efficacy. HOXB7 knockdown reinforced cisplatin sensitivity. It was identified that HOXB7 interacts with Ku70, Ku80 and DNA-PKcs. HOXB7 knockdown was related to the downregulation of Ku70, Ku80 and DNA-PKcs as well as arrested cell cycle in S phase. HOXB7 inhibition by HXR9 had a synergistic effect to improve cisplatin sensitivity. Conclusion HOXB7 may be a biomarker for the prediction of chemoresistance of ESCC and serves as a promising therapeutic target.

Objectives It is imperative to develop efficient strategies on the treatment of prostate cancer. Here, we constructed multifunctional nanoparticles, namely AS1411@MPDA‐DTX (AMD) for targeted and synergistic chemotherapy/photothermal therapy of prostate cancer. Materials and Methods Mesoporous polydopamine (MPDA) nanoparticles were prepared by a one‐pot synthesis method, DTX was loaded through incubation, and AS1411 aptamer was modified onto MPDA by the covalent reaction. The prepared nanoparticles were characterized by ultra‐micro spectrophotometer, Fourier transform infrared spectra, transmission electron microscope, and so on. The targeting ability was detected by selective uptake and cell killing. The mechanism of AMD‐mediated synergistic therapy was detected by Western blot and immunofluorescence. Results The prepared nanoparticles can be easily synthesized and possessed excellent water solubility, stability, and controlled drug release ability, preferentially in acidic context. Based on in vitro and in vivo results, the nanoparticles can efficiently target prostate cancer cells, promote DTX internalization, and enhance the antitumor effects of chemo‐photothermal therapy strategies under the NIR laser irradiation. Conclusions As a multifunctional nanoplatform, AS1411@MPDA‐DTX could efficiently target prostate cancer cells, promote DTX internalization, and synergistically enhance the antiprostate cancer efficiency by combining with NIR irradiation., Schematic diagram of AS1411@MPDA‐DTX‐mediated synergistic therapy for prostate cancer and the underlying mechanism.

Background Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are more apt to experience lower availability of nutritious foods, lack opportunities to exercise, and lack access to recreational facilities, and thus, are more likely to be obese and at greater risk for developing chronic diseases. We review school health education programs' impact on physical activity behaviors among disadvantaged students. Methods The inclusion criteria of the study were articles: published in English with full text between 2011 and 2017; focused on school health education programs for disadvantaged school-aged students; assessed programs including a physical activity component; examined school-aged children and adolescents' physical activity behaviors; and assessed programs with comparison groups. Results There were 13 studies matching inclusion criteria in this review. The results of this review indicated that school-based health education programs which included culturally appropriate physical activity, parent involvement, and enhanced student motivation and choice of activities appeared to increase physical activity levels among disadvantaged school-aged students. Health education programs should also emphasize behavioral change skills, such as goal setting and self-motivation, to positively impact on students' physical activity behaviors. Conclusions School-based health education programs may help increase access to physical activity among disadvantaged populations.

Background The current study aimed to determine the oncological efficacy and surgical safety of multiple pulmonary resections (MPRs) after prior curative surgery for local regional recurrent or second primary lung cancers. Methods All cases of lung cancer included in our prospective database between January 2000 and July 2015 were retrospectively reviewed. The oncological efficacy endpoints for synchronous and metachronous MPR were five-year overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and progression-free survival (PFS) rates after the second surgery. The surgical safety endpoints were postoperative mortality and complications (Clavien-Dindo classification) within 30 days. Results In total, 67 MPR cases were identified. There were no significant differences in the five-year OS and DFS between the synchronous MPR group (n = 50) and the propensity score-matched solitary major pulmonary resection group (n = 250) (5-year OS 84.5% vs. 69.0%, log rank P = 0.112; DFS 64.4% vs. 58.0%, log rank P = 0.278). The five-year OS and PFS of the metachronous MPR group (n = 17) were significantly better than those in the non-surgical control group (n = 19) (5-year OS 94.1% vs. 50.7%, log rank P = 0.005; 5-year PFS 53.9% vs. 10.5%, log rank P = 0.020). No postoperative mortality or severe complications occurred in the MPR group. Conclusion The oncological efficacy of MPR is superior to the non-surgical approach for the management of local regional recurrent or second primary lung cancer, with comparable postoperative mortality and complications.

The [1,5]-hydride shift/cyclization process as a new Csp³–H bond functionalization has made tremendous advances over the past decades. Herein, we describe reaction pathways for a [1,5]-hydride shift that is triggered by acid. In these transformations, the diene isoindoles are generated in situ and undergo a reaction with different dienophiles to provide access to a series of bridged-ring heterocycles and polycycles in good yields (up to 94 %). In addition, we found that the choice of acid played a critical role and could be used to control the structure of the final product.

A rapid and high sensitive ultra high performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry method for the simultaneous determination of notoginsenoside R1 and ginsenoside Re in rat plasma was developed. The analytes and internal standard, digoxin, were extracted from rat plasma via protein precipitation with methanol and separated on an Phenomenex Gemini C18 column within 2 min. Quantitation was performed on a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer employing electrospray ionization technique, operating in multiple reaction monitoring and positive ion mode. The precursor to product ion transitions monitored for notoginsenoside R1, ginsenoside Re, and internal standard were m/z 955.5→775.5, 969.6→789.1, and 803.6→283.1, respectively. The assay was validated with linear range of 1.9-380 ng/mL for notoginsenoside R1 and 0.5-100 ng/mL for ginsenoside Re. The intra- and interday precisions (RSD%) were within 8.96% for each analyte. The absolute recoveries were greater than 93% for R1 and 96% for Re. Each analyte was stable during all sample storage, preparation, and analytic procedures. The method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic study of Xuesaitong dispersible tablets in eight rats.

By analyzing the breakage of composites from a new perspective, the tensile strength of composites filled with spherical particles is studied in this article. A large number of experimental data are summed up, and a novel form of formula that can predict the tensile strength of composites is put forward. This form of formula focuses on the composites that possess strong adhesion strength between particles and polymer matrix. High particle volume fraction results in a phenomenon that the particles in composites have a tendency to aggregate. So, the influence of the particle aggregation is also studied in this article. A critical particle volume fraction is proposed to describe that at what value of particle volume fraction the clusters begin to form. And an aggregation factor is put forward to describe the extent that the clusters diminish the composite's tensile strength. A good agreement between the results of the prediction by this article and the experimental data in many references has been found, which validates the accuracy of the theory. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2016. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers

BACKGROUND: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 80% of lung cancers, and lung squamous cell carcinoma (SQCC) is one of the main types. Advances in the treatment of lung SQCC are lacking when compared to lung adenocarcinoma. The main treatment for early-stage SQCC is surgery. However, factors affecting the efficacy of surgical treatments for early-stage lung SQCC remain unclear. In this study, we examined the significance of commonly used lung SQCC diagnostic markers p63, p40, and cytokeratin (CK)5/6 in prognosis. METHODS: Seventy-six cases of early-stage lung SQCC (N0) were obtained from our lung cancer database (January 2000 to December 2009). Tissue microarray and immunohistochemical (IHC) staining were used to detect the expression of p63, p40, and CK5/6. The effect of the expression level of each marker on patients' survival was examined. RESULTS: Sensitivity and specificity of each marker for detecting lung SQCC was 87.0% and 81.0% for p63, 75.9% and 97.9% for p40, and 78.9% and 97.7% for CK5/6. Survival rates of patients with high expression levels of p63 or CK5/6 or both were higher than in patients with low expression levels (P 0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that high levels of p63 expression p63+CK5/6 co-expression were independent prognostic factors for good survival. CONCLUSION: IHC staining detection of p63 and CK5/6 in specimens should be routinely performed in postoperative early-stage lung SQCC patients. Its significance lies not only in differential diagnosis, but also in determining prognosis.

Hybrid composites reinforced by short fibers and particles (HCRSFPs) have been widely used in many fields, and more and more scholars are paying attention to hybrid composites. In this study, the elastic moduli of HCRSFPs in arbitrarily chosen directions were investigated with respect to their porosities. A material model was built with the assumption of a compound of particles and polymer matrix containing voids as an effective matrix, and the HCRSFPs were treated as the compound of short fibers and the effective matrix. With consideration of the three-dimensional spatial orientation distribution and the length distribution of the short fibers, the laminate analog approach and the Halpin–Tsai model were used to predict the elastic moduli of the HCRSFPs. Numerical examples and analyses showed that the fiber orientation distribution, reinforcement volume fraction, and porosity had great effects on the elastic moduli of the HCRSFPs. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43708.

In this paper, we propose a novel task scheduling algorithm Divisible Task scheduling Algorithm for Wireless sensor networks DTAW based on divisible load theory in heterogeneous wireless sensor networks to complete the tasks within the shortest possible time and reduce the sensors' energy-consuming. In DTAW, the tasks are distributed to the wireless sensor network by the SINK on the basis of the processing and communication capacity of each sensor. After receiving the subtasks, the intracluster sensors carry out its tasks simultaneously and send the results to cluster head sequentially. By removing communication interference between each sensor, reduced task completion time and improved network resource utilization are achieved. Each cluster head simultaneously finishes sending fused data to the SINK after fusing the data obtained from intracluster sensors. In this way, the overlap between the task performing and communication phase would be much better. Simulation results are presented to demonstrate the impacts of different network parameters on the makespan and energy consumption. The results show that the algorithm enables to reasonably distribute tasks to each sensor and then effectively reduces the time-consuming and energy-consuming. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Four manganese-based carbazol-9-ylacetato complexes [Mn2(cabo)4(2,2′-bpy)2] (1), [Mn2(cabo)2(2,2′-bpy)4](ClO4)2 (2), [Mn(cabo)2(CH3OH)2]n (3), and [Mn(cabo)2(4,4′-bpy)2]n (4) (cabo– = carbazol-9-ylacetate, 2,2′-bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine, 4,4′-bpy = 4,4′-bipyridine) have been synthesized and characterized. The crystal structure of 1 consists of a symmetrical dimeric MnII carboxylato paddle-wheel unit, whereas dinuclear 2 consists of a dimeric unit with two MnII ions bridged by two carboxylato ligands. Compounds 3 and 4 present comparable 1D structures with MnII ions bridged by carboxylato ligands. Magnetic-property studies show that antiferromagnetic exchange interactions propagate among the MnII ions in 1, 2, and 3.

The mechanism of the title reactions have been studied by using the DFT (B3LYP/ECP/6-311+G*) level of theory. Both ground and excited state potential energy surfaces are discussed. It is found the reaction mechanism is insertion mechanism both along the CS and CO bond activation branches, but the CS bond activation is much more favorable in energy than the CO bond activation. The reaction of Y atom with SCO was shown to occur preferentially on the ground state (doublet) PES throughout the reaction process, and the experimentally observed species, have been explained according to the mechanism revealed in this work. Different from that of Y + SCO system, the reaction between Y+ cation and SCO involves potential energy curve-crossing which dramatically affects reaction mechanism. Due to the intersystem crossing existing in the reaction process of Y+ with SCO, the intermediates SY+(η2CO) and OY+(η2CS) may not form. All our theoretical results not only support the existing conclusions inferred from early experiment, but also complement the pathway and mechanism for this reaction. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2010

Density functional theory calculations have been performed to explore the potential energy surfaces of CO bond activation in CO2 molecule by gas-phase Nb atom and Nb+ cation for better understanding the reaction mechanism of second-row metal with CO2. The minimum-energy reaction path is found to involve the spin inversion in the different reaction steps. This potential energy curve-crossing dramatically affects the reaction energetic. The present results show that the mechanism is insertion-elimination mechanism along the CO bond activation reaction. All theoretical results not only support the existing conclusions inferred from early experiment but also complement the pathway and mechanism for this reaction. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2011

Designing a protein sequence that will fold into a predefined structure is of both practical and fundamental interest. Many successful, computational designs in the last decade resulted from improved understanding of hydrophobic and polar interactions between side chains of amino acid residues in stabilizing protein tertiary structures. However, the coupling between main-chain backbone structure and local sequence has yet to be fully addressed. Here, we attempt to account for such coupling by using a sequence profile derived from the sequences of five residue fragments in a fragment library that are structurally matched to the five-residue segments contained in a target structure. We further introduced a term to reduce low complexity regions of designed sequences. These two terms together with optimized reference states for amino-acid residues were implemented in the RosettaDesign program. The new method, called RosettaDesign-SR, makes a 12% increase (from 34 to 46%) in fraction of proteins whose designed sequences are more than 35% identical to wild-type sequences. Meanwhile, it reduces 8% (from 22% to 14%) to the number of designed sequences that are not homologous to any known protein sequences according to psi-blast. More importantly, the sequences designed by RosettaDesign-SR have 2–3% more polar residues at the surface and core regions of proteins and these surface and core polar residues have about 4% higher sequence identity to wild-type sequences than by RosettaDesign. Thus, the proteins designed by RosettaDesign-SR should be less likely to aggregate and more likely to have unique structures due to more specific polar interactions.

In this work, we attempted to modify the Activated Sludge Model No.3 and to simulate the performance of a full-scale sequencing batch reactor (SBR) plant,for municipal wastewater treatment. The long-term dynamic data from the continuous operation of this SBR plant were simulated. The influent wastewater composition was characterized using batch measurements. After incorporating all the relevant processes, the sensitivity of the stoichiometric and kinetic coefficients for the model was thoroughly analyzed prior to the model calibration. The modified model was calibrated and validated with the data from both batch- and full-scale experiments. Model predictions were compared with routine data in terms of chemical oxygen demand, NH4+-N and mixed liquid volatile suspended solids in the SBR, combined with batch experimental data under different conditions. The model predictions match the experimental results well, demonstrating that the model is appropriate to simulate the performance of a full-scale wastewater treatment plant even operated under perturbation conditions. (C) 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 55: 2186-2196, 2009

A theoretical study of the reaction path for the photo-ring-open mechanism for a model system 2H-pyran has been carried out using a CASSCF method. To monitor the electronic rearrangements along the minimum energy pathway (MEP), the electronic structures were analyzed using valence bond (VB) theory and natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis. Calculated results show that the S0-Min, the absorption of the initial excitation, promotes the system to the S1 excited state with a (π-π∗) character. From the S1-Min, a low-barrier path leads to an S1/S0 conical intersection. The energy of the S1/S0 crossing is located 0.63 eV below the S1-Min. Thus, the initial movement of the nuclei will lead the system through the S1/S0 crossing to the ground state of the S0-Prod in a very efficient nonadiabatic path along the MEP.

Atomic and electronic structures of liquid and amorphous Ni81B19 and Ni80P20 alloys were simulated by ab initio molecular dynamics. Pair correlation function, bond pair analysis, electronic population analysis, and density of states were calculated. It was found that amorphous Ni81B19 and Ni80P20 alloys can be prepared by rapid quenching, and their structures are similar to those of liquid alloys. Bond pair analysis indicated that the environment of each atom in Ni81B19 system is dominated by icosahedral and distorted icosahedral inherent structures; however, in Ni80P20 system, the tetrahedral order is preponderant. Strong interactions occur between the d-electrons of Ni and the p-electrons of B (or P), which leads to the covalent interactions between Ni and B (or P) atoms. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2008

To elucidate the mechanism of reaction M+ + SCO, the reaction of Cr+ + SCO has been investigated using density functional theory (DFT) with the popular hybrid functional, B3LYP, in conjunction with 6-311+G* basis set on both the sextet and quartet potential energy surfaces (PESs). To obtain an accurate evaluation of the activation barrier and reaction energy, the coupled cluster single-point calculations using the B3LYP structures is performed. The crossing points (CPs) of the different PESs have been localized with the approach suggested by Yoshizawa and colleagues. The involving potential energy curve-crossing dramatically affects reaction mechanism. The present results show that the reaction mechanism is insertion-elimination mechanism both along the CS and CO bond activation branches, but the CS bond activation is much more favorable than the CO bond activation in energy. All theoretical results not only support the existing conclusions inferred from early experiment study, but also complement the pathway and mechanism for this reaction. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2007

O-Alkylated quinone methides are used as hydride acceptors in the [1,5]-hydride shift reaction of N-aryl pyrrolines (I) to the corresponding pyrrole derivatives (II).

This article describes a micro-mirror array fabricated using the commercial 0.35μm CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) process and a simple maskless post-process. The material of the micro-mirror is aluminum and the sacrificial layer is silicon dioxide. The fabrication of the micro-mirror array is compatible with the CMOS process, so the mirror array has a potential to integrate with circuitry on a chip. The post-process utilize the BOE (buffered oxide etching) to remove the sacrificial layer and to suspend the micro mirror. The micro-mirror contains a circular membrane and has four fixed beam. There are four fan- shaped electrodes below the micro mirror which is utilized to drive the micro mirror tilted. Each micro mirror has four rotatable directions and each direction is independent. Experimental results show the mirror has a tilting angle of about 0.93 ° at a driving voltage of 30 V.