Search

The C677T polymorphism in the MTHFR gene and its role in folate metabolism, impacting serum folate metabolites like THF and 5‐MTHF, is a critical but underexplored area in cancer research. This nested case–control study utilized data from CHHRS, involving 87,492 hypertensive adults without prior cancer. During a median of 2.02 years, we identified 1332 cancer cases and matched controls based on age, sex, and residency. Serum levels of folate, THF, and 5‐MTHF were measured, and the MTHFR C677T gene polymorphism was considered. Statistical analyses included restricted cubic spline regression and conditional logistic regression models. Serum THF levels were inversely associated with overall cancer risk (ORper SD = 0.90, 95% CI = 0.82–0.99), while 5‐MTHF levels showed a negative association in the general cohort (ORQ3 vs. Q1 = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.60–0.96; ORQ4 vs. Q1 = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.58–0.98) and in individuals with MTHFR C677T (CC + CT) polymorphism (ORper SD = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.77–0.99; ORQ4 VS. Q1 = 0.79, 95% CI = 0.61–0.98), but a positive association in the MTHFR C677T (TT) subgroup (ORper SD = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.02–3.72; ORQ4 VS. Q1 = 2.17, 95% CI = 1.06–8.21). The impact of folate, THF, and 5‐MTHF on cancer risk varied significantly across different cancer types and MTHFR C677T genotypes. This study provides novel insights into the variable effects of folate and its metabolites on cancer risk, influenced by genetic factors like the MTHFR C677T polymorphism and cancer type. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Offspring phenotype at birth is determined by its genotype and the prenatal environment including exposure to maternal hormones. Variation in both maternal glucocorticoids and thyroid hormones can affect offspring phenotype, but the underlying molecular mechanisms, especially those contributing to long‐lasting effects, remain unclear. Epigenetic changes (such as DNA methylation) have been postulated as mediators of long‐lasting effects of early‐life environment. In this study, we determined the effects of elevated prenatal glucocorticoid and thyroid hormones on handling stress response (breath rate) as well as DNA methylation and gene expression of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and thyroid hormone receptor (THR) in great tits (Parus major). Eggs were injected before incubation onset with corticosterone (the main avian glucocorticoid) and/or thyroid hormones (thyroxine and triiodothyronine) to simulate variation in maternal hormone deposition. Breath rate during handling and gene expression of GR and THR were evaluated 14 days after hatching. Methylation status of GR and THR genes was analyzed from the longitudinal blood cells sampled 7 and 14 days after hatching, as well as the following autumn. Elevated prenatal corticosterone level significantly increased the breath rate during handling, indicating an enhanced metabolic stress response. Prenatal corticosterone manipulation had CpG‐site‐specific effects on DNA methylation at the GR putative promoter region, while it did not significantly affect GR gene expression. GR expression was negatively associated with earlier hatching date and chick size. THR methylation or expression did not exhibit any significant relationship with the hormonal treatments or the examined covariates, suggesting that TH signaling may be more robust due to its crucial role in development. This study provides some support to the hypothesis suggesting that maternal corticosterone may influence offspring metabolic stress response via epigenetic alterations, yet their possible adaptive role in optimizing offspring phenotype to the prevailing conditions, context‐dependency, and the underlying molecular interplay needs further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Doxorubicin (DOX) has been used to treat various types of cancer, but its application is limited due to its heart toxicity as well as other drawbacks. Chronic inhibition of Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE1) reduces heart failure and reduces the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS); vitamin B6 (VitB6) has been demonstrated to have a crucial role in antioxidant mechanism. So, this study was designed to explore the effect of VitB6 supplement on the DOX‐induced cardiotoxicity and to imply whether NHE1 is involved. Ultrasonic cardiogram analysis revealed that VitB6 supplement could alleviate DOX‐induced cardiotoxicity; hematoxylin and eosin (HE) and Masson's staining further confirmed this effect. Furthermore, VitB6 supplement exhibited significant antioxidative stress and antiapoptosis effect, which was evidenced by decreased serum malondialdehyde (MDA) content and increased serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) content, and decreased Bcl‐2‐associated X protein/B‐cell lymphoma‐2 ratio, respectively. Collectively, VitB6 supplement may exert antioxidative and antiapoptosis effects to improve cardiac function by decreasing NHE1 expression and improve DOX‐induced cardiotoxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of executive resume information disclosure on corporate innovation in China. Text analysis is used to measure executive resume information disclosure by constructing three indicators of completeness, readability, and detail from the form and content. The results show that executive resume information disclosure promotes corporate innovation. Moreover, executive resume information disclosure is incrementally informative on corporate innovation by attracting high‐educated employees or alleviating financing constraints. Further analyses show that the innovation motivation of executive resume information disclosure is enhanced when firms have a better information environment as represented by greater media coverage and higher audit quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Insects produce pheromones to serve a range of ecological functions throughout their lifetime. The chemical composition, production pattern, and interspecies specificity provide information for carrying out their function and biological significance. Several species of Drosophila produce a class of volatile esters considered as "fruity smells"; however, the production pattern and ecological functions of these "fruity smell" volatiles in genus Drosophila are poorly understood. Here, using the headspace solid‐phase microextraction (SPME) method, we tested the production pattern of volatile pheromones in Drosophila immigrans and factors that possibly affected pheromone production, including mating, feeding conditions, age of adult flies, and geographical distribution. We also explored the evolution and production pattern of volatile pheromones in 14 species of genus Drosophila. Our result showed that male D. immigrans adult flies produce three male‐specific volatile ester pheromones, which are also considered as "fruity smell" chemicals, in a relatively stable pattern. In addition, a series of "fruity smell" ester pheromones with similar structure and chemical properties were found to appear in the species of D. virilis and D. immigrans species group, but not in the species of D. melanogaster species group. The ester volatile pheromone production of male flies has a correspondence with the female's demand for host plants. Integrating the production and evolution pattern of these volatile chemicals, we inferred the interaction between insects and host plants reflected in the Drosophila "fruity smell" pheromones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early-life food conditions can have profound impact on adult behavioural performance. In song birds, early-life food conditions affect adult physiology and cognitive performance such as song learning and spatial learning. However, effects on reproductive behaviour other than song, such as visual courtship display, pair formation, and egg laying, which are all important determinants of fitness, received hardly any attention. In this study, rock pigeons Columba livia were raised either in a food ad-libitum or at impoverished (quality) and restricted (quantity) food conditions, in which the latter was applied for either 26 or 8 d after hatching and in slightly different severity. Their growth and reproductive behaviour in adulthood was analysed under semi-natural conditions. Impoverished and restricted food (IRF) negatively affected adult body mass, pair-bonding behaviour, courtship (males) and being courted (females), and induced incomplete compensatory growth. Further analyses suggest that the effects of IRF on behaviour could result from the strong effects on body mass, and perhaps also from detrimental effects of compensatory growth. These results provide evidence that adverse early-life condition can negatively impact on reproductive success, as suggested by the significant effect on egg production, which will very likely lead to a lower life-time fitness. The detrimental effects on male courtship indicate that IRF can affect sexual displays via other pathways than by impaired cognition as has been suggested for bird song, since courtship in the pigeons is not learned. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In oviparous species like birds, eggs provide the direct environment in which embryos are developing. Mothers may adjust different egg components in different ways in reaction to environmental cues either to adjust offspring development or because of constraints. In this study, we investigated the effects of food quality and quantity before and during egg laying on three different aspects of egg quality: macro-nutrients (egg and yolk mass), androgens (testosterone and androstenedione), and thyroid hormones (3,5,3′-triiodothyronine, T3 and l-thyroxine, T4), using the rock pigeon ( Columba livia). As expected, egg and yolk mass were significantly reduced for the eggs laid under the poor-food condition, indicating a maternal trade-off between offspring and self in allocating important resources. We did not find any significant change in yolk testosterone or their within-clutch pattern over the laying sequence. This is consistent with the fact that, in contrast with nutrients, these hormones are not costly to produce, but does not support the hypothesis that they play a role in adjusting brood size to food conditions. In contrast, we found that T3 levels were higher in the egg yolks under the poor-food condition whereas the total T4 content was lower. This change could be related to the fact that iodine, the critical constituent of thyroid hormones, might be a limiting factor in the production of this hormone. Given the knowledge that food restriction usually lead to reduction of circulating T3 levels, our results suggested that avian mothers can independently regulate its concentrations in their eggs from their own circulation. The study demonstrates that environmentally induced maternal effects via the egg can be a result of a combination of constrained resources and unconstrained signals and that thyroid hormones might be an interesting case of both. Therefore, this hormone and the interplay of different maternal effects on the offspring phenotype deserve much more attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Macro reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) agents, i.e. RAFT polystyrene (RAFT-PS) and RAFT poly( n-butyl acrylate) (RAFT-PBA), were mixed. Polymer-dispersed liquid crystals (PDLCs) were prepared using the mixture together with methyl acrylate and liquid crystal E7. The electro-optical properties of the PDLCs obtained were investigated. The results showed that the advantages of the electro-optical properties of RAFT-PS- and RAFT-PBA-dependent PDLCs could be combined in RAFT agent mixture-dependent PDLCs. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry A reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer agent mixture can greatly improve the electro-optical performance of polymer-dispersed liquid crystals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have demonstrated that mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotype has a significant impact on the efficiency of bovine somatic cell nuclear transfer. Conventional methods for detecting mtDNA variations and haplotypes, such as restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), temporal temperature gradient gel electrophoresis, dHPLC and sequencing, are labor intensive or expensive and have low sensitivity. High-resolution melting (HRM) analysis is a new technique for mutation detection and has the advantages of speed, cost, and accuracy. Here, we describe the genotyping of bovine mtDNA using HRM analysis. DNA samples containing mtDNA were extracted from 75 Holstein cows and subjected to rapid-cycle (<20 min) PCR of small amplicons (<120 bp) using specific primer sets. Capillaries containing the PCR products were then subjected to HRM analysis; data were acquired in 2 min and analyzed using the instrument's software. Five common bovine mtDNA single nucleotide polymorphisms were identified: 9602 G>A, 169 A>G, 166A>G with 173A>G, and 363C>G. These results agree with both sequencing and RFLP analysis. In addition, a very small amount of heteroplasmic variants (<5%) was sufficiently to be distinguished by HRM analysis that would be very useful to differentiate heteroplasmy vs. homoplasmy. HRM analysis thus provides a new approach to genotyping bovine mtDNA sequence variations and has many advantages over other methods, including speed of analysis, cost, and accuracy. We believe this will be a valuable technique for determining the efficiency of nuclear transfer in cloned embryos and for studying maternal effects on nuclear-cytoplasm interactions. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2011 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To explore the association of brain-derived neurotrophic-factor (BDNF) Val66Met polymorphism with both baseline health related quality of life (HRQOL) scores and improvement in HRQOL scores in Chinese major depressive patients treated with fluoxetine. Methods Patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) took fluoxetine (20 mg/day) for 6 weeks. The HRQOL was measured with the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form-36 (SF-36) at baseline and at 6th week. Patients were genotyped for Val66Met polymorphism of BDNF gene. Results There was a significant association between social function (SF) and BDNF Val66Met polymorphism, and patients with Met/Met genotype had better SF (compared with Val/Val P = 0.004; compared with Val/Met P = 0.005). A significant association was found between improvement in SF and BDNF Val66Met polymorphism, and patients with Met/Met genotype had poorer improvement in SF (compared with Val/Val P = 0.010; compared with Val/Met P = 0.001). Similar association was found between improvement in mental component summary (MCS) and BDNF Val66Met polymorphism, and patients with Met/Met genotype had poorer improvement in MCS (compared with Val/Val P = 0.066; compared with Val/Met P = 0.006). Conclusions These results indicate that there may be association between BDNF Val66Met polymorphism and both baseline HRQOL (SF) scores and improvement in HRQOL (SF, MCS) scores in Chinese major depressive patients treated with fluoxetine. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poly(A)-specific ribonuclease (PARN) specifically catalyzes the degradation of the poly(A) tails of single-stranded mRNAs in a highly processive mode. PARN participates in diverse and important intracellular processes by acting as a regulator of mRNA stability and translational efficiency. In this article, the equilibrium unfolding of PARN was studied using both guanidine hydrochloride and urea as chemical denaturants. The unfolding of PARN was characterized as a multistate process, but involving dissimilar equilibrium intermediates when denatured by the two denaturants. A comparison of the spectral characteristics of these intermediates indicated that the conformational changes at low concentrations of the chemical denaturants were more likely to be rearrangements of the tertiary and quaternary structures. In particular, an inactive molten globule-like intermediate was identified to exist as soluble non-native oligomers, and the formation of the oligomers was modulated by electrostatic interactions. An active dimeric intermediate unique to urea-induced unfolding was characterized to have increased regular secondary structures and modified tertiary structures, implying that additional regular structures could be induced by environmental stresses. The dissimilarity in the unfolding pathways induced by guanidine hydrochloride and urea suggest that electrostatic interactions play an important role in PARN stability and regulation. The appearance of multiple intermediates with distinct properties provides the structural basis for the multilevel regulation of PARN by conformational changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ϕC31 integrase, a site‐specific recombinase, can effectively mediate foreign genes bearing an attB sequence integrated into pseudo attP sites. We have previously identified two pseudo attP sites, BpsF1 and BpsM1 from the bovine genome. In this study, two new pseudo attP sites, BF4 and BF10, were discovered using half‐nested inverse PCR from cow fibroblasts. The genomic locations of these two pseudo attP sites were identified by direct sequencing and a BLAST search, and it was confirmed that they reside at positions 4q31 and 10q35 by fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis. Subsequently, the distinct integration frequencies of the four pseudo attP sites were examined. The BF4 site was identified as a hotspot where site‐specific integration occurred in most of the cell clones examined, accounting for 74% (42/57) of the integration; much more than the integration frequency for BF10 (7%; 4/57), BpsF1 (7%; 4/57) and BpsM1 (0/57). Interestingly, similar to other hotspots identified in the human and mouse genomes, in which transgenes integrated at hotspots result in high expression, the GFP gene integrated at hotspot BF4 was expressed at high levels in cow fibroblasts, as confirmed by fluorescence microscopy and FACS analysis. Furthermore, ELISA showed that the expression level of the GFP gene integrated at the BF4 site averaged ∼ 328 μg·mg−1, which is more than twofold higher than that integrated at the BF10 site. This study suggests that somatic cells carrying a desired gene integrated at the BF4 site can be used as nuclear donors to generate valuable transgenic animals by nuclear transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have shown that quetiapine, a new antipsychotic drug, protects cultured cells against oxidative stress-related cytotoxicities induced by amyloid β (Aβ)25-35, and that quetiapine prevents memory impairment and decreases Aβ plaques in the brains of amyloid precursor protein (APP)/presenilin-1 (PS-1) double-mutant mice. The aim of this study was to understand why quetiapine has these protective effects. Because the cytotoxicity of both Aβ(25-35) and Aβ(1-40) requires fibril formation, our first experiments determined the effect of quetiapine on Aβ(25-35) aggregation. Quetiapine inhibited Aβ(25-35) aggregation in cell-free aqueous solutions and blocked the fibrillar aggregation of Aβ(25-35), as observed under an electron microscope. We then investigated why quetiapine inhibits Aβ(25-35) aggregation. During the aggregation of Aβ(25-35), a hydroxyl radical (OH•) was released, which in turn amplified Aβ(25-35) aggregation. Quetiapine blocked OH•-induced Aβ(25-35) aggregation and scavenged the OH• produced in the Fenton system and in the Aβ(25-35) solution, as analyzed using electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. Furthermore, new compounds formed by quetiapine and OH• were observed in MS analysis. Finally, we applied Aβ(25-35) to PC12 cells to observe the effect of quetiapine on living cells. Aβ(25-35) increased levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species and calcium in PC12 cells and caused cell death, but these toxic effects were prevented by quetiapine. These results demonstrate an anti-oxidative stress mechanism of quetiapine, which contributes to its protective effects observed in our previous studies and explains the effectiveness of this drug for Alzheimer’s disease patients with psychiatric and behavioral complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The study was to reflect and forecast the evolutive tendency and influence factors of secondary failure of sulphonylurea (SFS) changing with time by using a Markov (MKV) model in the elderly diabetic population in Shanghai. Methods A total of 549 patients with elderly diabetes mellitus (DM) were enrolled and grouped in the study. A door-to-door retrospective epidemiological survey was used to collect data. The MKV model was used to assess the process and influence factors of SFS and the MKV process decision support system was adopted to calculate state probability of the MKV process. Results The rate of SFS in the group of all cases, FPG ≤ 10 mmol · L−1 before treatment and FPG > 10 mmol · L−1 before treatment, taking single type of sulphonylurea (SU) and taking two types of SU and over respectively was 9.11%, 3.55%, 11.03%, 8.54% and 11.21%. The years of changing into the state of secondary failure in half patients was 5 years, 11-12 years, 4 years, 5 years, 4 years, respectively in the following groups: all cases, FPG ≤ 10 mmol · L−1 before treatment and FPG > 10 mmol · L−1 before treatment, taking single type of SU and taking two types of SU and over. Conclusions A MKV model could predict the long-term evolutive process of SFS by a short-term observation; the speed of SFS was related to the degree of DM patients' condition, patients with higher glucose levels prior to treatment would develop SFS faster; but we cannot postpone the development of secondary failure by exchanging SU types. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Human natural killer (NK) cells are one major component of lymphocytes that mediate early protection against viruses and tumor cells, and play an important role in immune regulatory functions. In this study, we demonstrated that human NK cells could be divided into four subsets, CD56hiCD16−, CD56loCD16−, CD56+CD16+ and CD56−CD16+, based on the expression of cell surface CD56 and CD16 molecules. Phenotypic analysis of NK cell subsets indicated that the expression of activation markers, adhesion molecules, memory cell markers, inhibitory and activating receptors, and intracellular proteins (granzyme B and perforin) were heterogeneous. Following interleukin (IL)-2 stimulation, interferon-γ was preferentially produced by CD56+CD16− NK cells and this subset showed more proliferative capacity. The cytolytic activity of both CD56+CD16− and CD56+/−CD16+ subsets could be augmented in response to IL-2. The data provided a new definition for NK cell subsets demonstrating their phenotypic and functional diversity and possible stage of NK cell differentiation in peripheral blood. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Copolythiophenes (Co‐PTs), poly(3‐hexylthiophene‐co‐3‐thiophene carboxylic acid) (P3HT‐TCa), poly(3‐hexyloxylthiophene‐co‐3‐thiophene carboxylic acid) (P3HOT‐TCa), and poly(3‐phenylthiophene‐co‐3‐thiophene carboxylic acid) (P3PhT‐TCa), were synthesized by chemical oxidized polymerization to investigate the effect of copolymerization on the properties of polythiophenes (PTs). Gel permeation chromatography showed that the molecular weight (MW) of Co‐PT was lower than that of homopolythiophene. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra indicated that the copolymerization was successful between the monomers. The λmax of Co‐PTs gave a “blue shift” in ultraviolet‐visible (UV‐VIS) spectra. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra showed that the PL intensity of Co‐PT became weaker than that of homopolythiophene and the disappearance of PL had been observed in P3HOT‐TCa. The thermal stability of Co‐PT was influenced by the carboxyl for its low decomposition temperature. Furthermore, the copolymerization between multi‐wall carbon nanotube containing thiophene ring (MWNT‐Th) and 3‐hexyloxylthiphene could also take place successfully. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 2007 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The study was to assess the quality of life (QOL) of the elderly diabetes mellitus (DM) in Shanghai community and to screen the possible risk factors. Methods A total of 951 patients with elderly DM and 1007 elderly subjects with normal glucose tolerance from the same community as control group were enrolled in the study. A door-to-door retrospectively epidemiological survey was used to collect data of QOL, demographic, and diabetic information. The SF-36 instrument (Chinese edition) was used to assess QOL. Multiple stepwise linear regression analysis was also used to identify possible risk factors of QOL in elder DM. Results In subjects with elderly DM, the general assessment of perceived health was worse, compared with the normal elderly people; the mean score of multi-item dimensions assessment had been decreased, the lowest and highest scores of which on SF-36, respectively, were general health and body pain (ranged from 42.08 to 77.00). Based on the multiple stepwise regression analysis, 23 risk factors entered 9 multiple regressive models (9 dependent variables of which stand for the scores of 8 dimensions and the total score on SF-36) with different amount ultimately. Within the 13 risk factors that affect QOL of the elderly diabetic patients, the negative correlated factors were gender, age, payment ability of medical treatment, tumor, level of fasting plasma glucose (FPG), medicines purchasing channels, diabetic microvascular complications, diabetic macrovascular complications, acute complications, while the positive correlated factors were occupation, income, exercises, knowledge of DM. The multiple correlation coefficient square ( R2) represented the above 13 risk factors had a totally 30.5% impact on the entire QOL. Conclusions QOL of elderly DM population had significantly been decreased; QOL of the elderly patients in Shanghai community had many risk factors, which on one hand stated the complexity of elderly DM, and on the other hand gave us many useful and practical methods to improve QOL of elderly DM. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of elevated ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B, 280-320 nm) on membrane systems and lipid peroxidation. and possible involvement of active oxygen radicals was investigated in leaves of two UV-B susceptible rice cultivars (Oryza sativa L. cvs IR74 and Dular). Rice seedlings were grown in a greenhouse for 10 days and then treated with biologically effective UV-B (UV-BBE) radiation for 28 days. Oxidative stress effects were evaluated by measuring superoxide anion (O2•-) generation rate, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) content, malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration and relative electrolyte conductivity (EC) for IR74 and Dular at 0 (control), 6 or 13 kJ m-2 day-1 UV-BBE. Significant increases in these parameters were found in rice plants grown at 13 vs 0 kJ m-2 day-1 UV-BBE after 28 days; indicating that disruption of membrane sys- tems may be an eventual reason for UV-B-induced injury in rice plants. There was a positive correlation between O2•- generation and increases in EC or MDA in leaves. Activities of enzymatic and nonenzymatic free radical scavengers were measured for IR74 after 7, 14, 21 and 28 days of exposure to 13 or 0 UV-BBE to evaluate dynamics of these responses over time. Activities of catalase and superoxide dismutase (but not ascorbate peroxidase) and concentrations of ascorbic acid and glutathione were enhanced by 13 vs 0 UV-BBE after 14 days of UV-B exposure. Further exposure to 28 days of UV-B was associated with a decline in enzyme activities and ascorbic acid, but not glutathione. It is suggested that UV-B-induced injury may be associated with disturbance of active oxygen metabolism through the destruction and alteration of both enzymatic and nonenzymatic defense systems in rice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maternal thyroid hormones (THs) have been proven crucial for embryonic development in humans, but their influence within the natural variation on wild animals remains unknown. So far the only two studies that experimentally investigated the potential fitness consequences of maternal THs in birds found inconsistent results. More studies are thus required to assess the general effects of maternal THs and their influences on more behavioral and physiological parameters. In this study, we experimentally elevated yolk TH content in a wild migratory passerine species, the collared flycatcher Ficedula albicollis, to investigate the effects on hatching success, nestling growth and oxidative stress. We found that TH‐injected eggs had a higher hatching success, and the nestlings hatched from TH‐injected eggs were heavier and larger than control nestlings, but only during the early postnatal period. These differences vanished by fledging. Nestlings from TH‐injected eggs exhibited lower activity of the glutathione‐s‐transferase, a major antioxidant enzyme, than control nestlings at day 12, a few days before fledging, but they did not differ in oxidative damage and overall intracellular oxidative state. These results suggest that the early growth‐enhancing effects incurred no observable oxidative stress. We hypothesize that such a transient growth‐enhancing effect might be adaptive in advancing the development and maturation of the offspring so they are well‐prepared in time for the upcoming migration. Further studies investigating whether such advancing effects can influence long‐term fitness, will be more than valuable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The title complex, [Cu(C10H12NO2)2], was obtained by the reaction of 5-butylpyridyl-2-carboxylic acid (fusaric acid), extracted from blasted leaves of Rhizophora stylosa, with copper(II) chloride in aqueous solution. The metal atom lies on a center of symmetry. The CuII atom is coordinated by two carboxylate O atoms and two N atoms from two different fusaric acid ligands, and displays a square-planar geometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the title compound, [Mn(C7H3N2O7)(C12H8N2)2(H2O)](C7H2N2O7), the MnII ion is chelated by two phenanthroline ligands, a water molecule and a carboxylate group in an octahedral geometry; the two O atoms involved in bonding are cis to each other. The coordinated water molecule links the cation and the carboxylate anion into a linear chain through hydrogen bonds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the centrosymmetric title complex, [Cd2(C7H4ClO2)4(C3H4N2)4]·2H2O, each CdII atom is coordinated by five carboxylate O atoms from three 4-chlorobenzoate ligands and two N atoms from two imidazole ligands, displaying a distorted pentagonal–bipyramidal geometry. The dinuclear molecules, with a Cd...Cd separation of 3.868 (3) Å, form a supramolecular network via intermolecular hydrogen bonds and π–π stacking interactions. The face-to-face distance between parallel 4-chlorobenzoic acids of neighboring complexes [ at ( )] is 3.563 (3) Å. There are also π–π stacking interactions of imidazoles [at ( )], with a centroid-centroid distance of 3.623 (3) Å. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the title compound, [Ag(C4H4N2)]ClO4, pyrazine ligands bridge two symmetry-related Ag atoms [Ag—N = 2.222 (3) Å] to form linear polycationic chains which run along the c axis of the orthorhombic unit cell. The AgI ion has m2 m site symmetry. The N atoms of the pyrazine ligand lie on a crystallographic mirror plane and each C atom of this ligand possesses crystallographically imposed disorder with two components of equal occupancy. The Cl atom of the perchlorate anion has m2 m site symmetry and the two unique O atoms of this anion lie on a mirror plane. In addition, in the crystal structure, one-dimensional chains are linked through weak interactions involving perchlorate anions [Ag...O = 2.726 (2) Å] into a motif that can be described as a 4(4).6(2) sheet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mol­ecular structure of the title compound, [Zn(C8H7O2)2(C7H6N2)2]·2C8H8O2, is composed of a mononuclear ZnII complex, which possesses twofold rotation symmetry, and two uncoordinated 4-methyl­benzoic acid mol­ecules. The ZnII atom displays a four-coordinate distorted tetra­hedral configuration, formed by two carboxylate O atoms of two monodentate 4-methyl­benzoate ligands and two N atoms of two benzimidazole mol­ecules. In the crystal structure, complex mol­ecules are linked by the 4-methyl­benzoic acid mol­ecules via N—H⋯O and O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds, giving rise to the formation of a supra­molecular structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]