Search

Background. Transforming growth factor beta-induced protein (TGFBI, encoded by TGFBI gene), is an extracellular matrix protein, widely expressed in variety of tissues. It binds to collagens type I, II, and IV and plays important roles in the interactions of cell with cell, collagen, and matrix. It has been reported to be associated with myocardial fibrosis, and the latter is an important pathophysiologyical basis of atrial fibrillation (AF). However, the mechanism of TGFBI in AF remains unclear. We aimed to detect the potential mechanism of TGFBI in AF via bioinformatics analysis. Methods. The microarray dataset of GSE115574 was examined to detect the genes coexpressed with TGFBI from 14 left atrial tissue samples of AF patients. TGFBI coexpression genes were then screened using the R package. Using online analytical tools, we determined the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis, Gene Ontology (GO) annotation, and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network of TGFBI and its coexpression genes. The modules and hub genes of the PPI-network were then identified. Another dataset, GSE79768 was examined to verify the hub genes. DrugBank was used to detect the potential target drugs. Results. In GSE115574 dataset, a total of 1818 coexpression genes (769 positive and 1049 negative) were identified, enriched in 120 biological processes (BP), 38 cellular components (CC), 36 molecular functions (MF), and 39 KEGG pathways. A PPI-network with average 12.2-degree nodes was constructed. The genes clustered in the top module constructed from this network mainly play a role in PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, viral myocarditis, inflammatory bowel disease, and platelet activation. CXCL12, C3, FN1, COL1A2, ACTB, VCAM1, and MMP2 were identified and finally verified as the hub genes, mainly enriched in pathways like leukocyte transendothelial migration, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, viral myocarditis, rheumatoid arthritis, and platelet activation. Pegcetacoplan, ocriplasmin, and carvedilol were the potential target drugs. Conclusions. We used microdataset to identify the potential functions and mechanisms of the TGFBI and its coexpression genes in AF patients. Our findings suggest that CXCL12, C3, FN1, COL1A2, ACTB, VCAM1, and MMP2 may be the hub genes.

The products of the SuFEx reaction between sulfonimidoyl fluorides and phenols, sulfonimidates, are shown to display dynamic covalent chemistry with other phenols. This reaction was shown to be enantiospecific, finished in minutes at room temperature in high yields, and useful for both asymmetric synthesis and sustainable polymer production. Its wide scope further extends the usefulness of SuFEx and related click chemistries.

In this study, we investigated the distribution and chemical speciation of Se in Se-rich soil by using micro-focused X-ray absorption near-edge structure (μ-XANES) spectroscopy coupling with X-ray fluorescence (μ-XRF) mapping. The microscale distribution showed that Se is heterogeneously distributed in the soil from seleniferous areas in Enshi, China. Se K-edge μ-XANES analysis suggested that Se is mainly present as Se(IV), organic Se(-II) or Se(0) species in Se-rich agricultural soil. The findings from this study would help improve the understanding of the fate, mobility, bioavailability, and biogeochemical cycling of Se in the seleniferous soil environment.

Novel methods to make synthetic chiral polymers are highly desirable given their potential in a rapidly increasing number of bio-inspired applications. The enantiospecific sulfur–fluorine exchange (SuFEx) reaction of chiral di-sulfonimidoyl fluorides (di-SFs) with diphenols, was used to produce high-molecular-weight chiral polymers with configurational backbone chirality. The resulting new class of polymers, polysulfonimidates, can be efficiently produced via this step-growth mechanism for a wide range of di-SFs and diphenols, yielding MnPS up to 283 kDa with a typical dispersity Đ around 1.6. The optical activity of the resulting chiral polymers is largely due to the intrinsic asymmetry of the S atoms (configurational chirality). Finally, the enantiospecificity (ee>98 %) of the polymerization reaction was demonstrated by the degradation of a disulfide-containing polysulfonimidate. This novel route towards configurational main-chain chirality opens up new approaches towards tailor-made chiral polymers with precisely defined properties.

The effect of the novel composite material LiNbO3@Fe3O4 on the nitrate removal, and Mn2+ oxidation efficiency by autotrophic denitrification strain Achromobacter sp. A14 was investigated in this st...

This is the first phytochemical investigation of Schisandra tomentella A. C. Smith. 11 lignans and 8 sesquiterpenoids, were isolated from the stems of S. tomentella, including two undescribed lignans, tomentaschinins A-B (1-2), and two new sesquiterpenoids, tomentaschinnes A-B (3-4). Their structures were elucidated based on the interpretation of their spectroscopic data. Cytotoxicity and MDR reversal effect of these compounds were screened on multidrug resistance cancer cell line MCF-7/ADR, and results showed gomisin M

Little information is known about the relationships of in-situ generated BioMnOx and sulfamethoxazole (SMX) degradation. In this study, a novel efficient bioremediation technology was presented for simultaneous remove the nitrogen-N, SMX, and Mn(II) from water. Mn(II) can be completely oxidized with a oxidized rate of 0.071 mg/(L·h), the SMX and nitrogen-N removal ratios were 97.43% and 85.61%, respectively. The Ratkowsky kinetic models were established for described the SMX degradation influence by temperature. Furthermore, the microbial degradation, Mn(III) trapping, and intermediates identified experiments were used to explore the mechanisms of SMX and nitrogen-N removal. These results indicated that microbial activity play a decisive role in SMX and nitrogen-N removal, and the catalytic character of sediment could enhanced the SMX degradation. Furthermore, proposed the possible SMX degradation pathway based on the intermediates and microbial metabolism theory, the environmental toxicity of SMX and each intermediates were calculated via ECOSAR program.

Objectives This study aimed to investigate the factors affecting the quantity of DNA and RNA extractable from human formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues stored for different lengths of time. Methods We randomly selected 20 FFPE specimens harvested from hysteromyoma patients with uterine fibroids during 2010, 2015, and 2017 at the Department of Pathology, Jiading District Central Hospital Affiliated Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences. DNA and RNA extractions were performed using a DNA/RNA FFPE kit. DNA and RNA concentrations and their OD260/OD280 ratios were determined by a NanoDrop 2000 spectrophotometer. The human β-globin gene and aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH2) gene were amplified from nucleic acids using a LightCycler 480 Real-Time PCR System, and PCR amplification products were electrophoresed on 1% agarose gels. Results Specimens that were stored for longer showed more degradation and a reduced concentration of DNA and RNA after nucleic acid extraction. However, there was no significant difference in DNA or RNA purity. β-globin and ALDH2 genes could be amplified from more than 99% of specimens. Conclusion We found that FFPE tissues stored for longer had a reduced quantity of extractable DNA and RNA. However, these tissues could be used for the analysis of some small target genes.

Objectives The purpose of this paper was to synthesize 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative and to evaluate its antitumor activity. Methods 2,4,6-Tris (4-formylphenoxy)-1,3,5-triazine was synthesized by nucleophilic substitution with reaction of p -hydroxybenzaldehyde with cyanuric chloride. Then, the intermediate was reacted with 1,2,4-triazole to form 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative by reduction and ammonification of aldehydes. The 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative was characterized by infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance, and elemental analyses. Finally, the anticancer effect of 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative was evaluated by MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] assay on a lung adenocarcinoma cell line (A549) and a human hepatoma cell line (Bel7402). Results The product synthesized in this study was confirmed to be 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative, and it significantly suppressed the proliferation of cancer cell lines in a dose-dependent manner. Conclusions We successfully prepared 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative and verified its antitumor activity.

SuFEx reactions, in which an S−F moiety reacts with a silyl‐protected phenol, have been developed as powerful click reactions. In the current paper we open up the potential of SuFEx reactions as enantioselective reactions, analyze the role of Si and outline the mechanism of this reaction. As a result, fast, high‐yielding, “Si‐free” and enantiospecific SuFEx reactions of sulfonimidoyl fluorides have been developed, and their mechanism shown, by both experimental and theoretical methods, to yield chiral products., The SuFEx reaction is shown to proceed quantitatively and fast with wide scope without silyl protection of the phenol. Mechanistic studies reveal a stereospecific bimolecular nucleophilic substitution.

In this study, immobilization technique was employed to improve simultaneous algicidal and denitrification of immobilized Acinetobacter sp. J25 with magnetic Fe3O4 in eutrophic landscape water. After 7 days of operation, the maximum superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity (54.43 U mg-1), nitrate removal efficiency (100% (0.2127 mg L-1 h-1)), and chlorophyll-a removal efficiency (89.71%) were obtained from the immobilized J25 with magnetic Fe3O4. The results suggest that immobilized J25 with magnetic Fe3O4 had better nitrogen removal efficiency and algicidal activity in eutrophic landscape water. High-throughput sequencing data profiled the strain J25 that was immobilized with magnetic Fe3O4 which changed the composition of the microbial community. The results indicated a novel concept of enhancing the algicidal and denitrification property of immobilized bacteria with magnetic Fe3O4 in eutrophic landscape water.

Background Sepsis causes nutritional substrate malabsorption; hence, preventing gut barrier problems and improving the nutritional status in sepsis is a compelling issue. Aims We tested whether ghrelin administration affects peptide transporter 1 (PepT1) activity in the intestinal epithelium of rats with sepsis. Methods Sixty male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham-operated, sepsis, and ghrelin-treated groups. The cecum of sham-operated rats was separated after laparotomy without ligation and perforation. Sepsis group rats underwent cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). Mucosal specimens were used for immunohistochemstry, real-time PCR, and western blotting to detect PepT1 distribution, and mRNA and protein expression levels, respectively. TNF-α, IL-1β, and ghrelin levels were estimated in serum and intestinal mucosal tissue by ELISA. High-performance liquid chromatography was used to measure PepT1 uptake by the epithelial cells. Moreover, survival, body weight, and food intake of the rats were recorded during the 7-day treatment period. Results All rats in the sham-operated group survived, and 80% of rats in the sepsis group died within 7d of CLP. Treatment with ghrelin attenuated the CLP-induced body weight loss, intestine mucosa damage, and the survival rate was better. In addition, ghrelin attenuated increases in TNF-α and IL-1β production. The expressions of PepT1 mRNA and protein were higher in ghrelin-treated group rats than in sepsis rats. Moreover, the uptake function of PepT1 was better in ghrelin-treated group rats. Conclusion Ghrelin treatment can reduce the inflammatory response and greatly upregulate the physiological function of PepT1 in intestinal epithelial cells of rats with sepsis.

This study investigated sulfamethoxazole (SMX) biodegradation and nitrogen conversion by Achromobacter sp. JL9 using different carbon and nitrogen sources. Results showed that SMX and sodium acetate could be co-metabolized as carbon sources for bacterial growth and nitrogen conversion with highest removal efficiencies of 82.44%, 80.2%, and 79.45% for NH4+-N, NO3--N, and SMX, respectively. Strain JL9 was able to utilize SMX as its sole nitrogen source for growth, with an SMX biodegradation efficiency of 63.10%. In addition, carbon and nitrogen balance analyses showed that approximately 35.31% and 63.22% of carbon and nitrogen, respectively, were lost as gaseous products. Finally, medium toxicity gradually decreased during the carbon and nitrogen dependence experiments. This study, thus, suggests that carbon and nitrogen play vital roles in SMX biodegradation and biotoxicity reduction.

An immobilized biofilm reactor (IBR) was established to treat nitrate using different electron donors. A novel material, Fe3O4@Cu/PVA, was synthesized as an adsorbent and bacterial immobilized carrier in the reactor. The optimum condition of nitrate removal were pH 7.0, hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 10 h under autotrophic and mixotrophic conditions. Strain H-117 in the mixotrophic reactor had better adaptability to changes in the initial pH. The metabolism in the mixotrophic reactor was more vigorous than that in autotrophic reactor. The microbial communities and structures were evaluated to determine the nitrate removal mechanisms in this system. Microbial analyses demonstrated that different electron donor could influence the bacterial abundance and species in the IBR system. Proteobacteria was the most dominant phylum in all IBRs and accounted for more than 50% of the total phyla. Pseudomonas and Rhizobium were the dominant contributor to the effective removal of nitrate in the IBRs.

The simultaneous partial nitrification, anammox and denitrification (SNAD) process for treating mainstream wastewater was investigated under different intermittent aeration modes. By controlling the aeration time of 20, 60 and 180 min during the intermittent modes, the oxygen concentration remained 3.50, 1.45 and 0.70 mg·L−1. Correspondingly, the reactor achieved the nitrogen removal rate of 0.17, 0.29 and 0.30 kg N·m−3·d−1. Meanwhile, the average total inorganic nitrogen (TIN) removal efficiency reached 93.4%, 87.5% and 92.7%. The effluent NO3−-N concentration was very low. High-throughput sequencing analysis indicated that the proportion of nitrite oxidization bacteria (NOB), anammox bacteria and denitrification bacteria was 0.15%, 0.33% and 8.78%. Candidatus Anammoxoglobus was the abundant anammox bacteria genus. Further study on the unclassified sequences revealed the possibility of the high relative abundance of Nitrosomonas-related genus and Candidatus Kuenenia-related genus on the SNAD biofilm.

In this study, zero-valent iron (ZVI), nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI), Fe(II), and Mn(II) were investigated for their effects on mixotrophic denitrification coupled with cadmium (Cd(II)) adsorption process by Acinetobacter sp. SZ28. The removal rates of nitrate were 0.228 mg L−1 h−1 (ZVI), 0.133 mg L−1 h−1 (nZVI), 0.309 mg L−1 h−1 (Fe(II)) and 0.234 mg L−1 h−1 (Mn(II)), respectively. The Cd(II) removal efficiencies were 97.23% (ZVI), 95.79% (nZVI), 80.63% (Fe(II)), and 84.58% (Mn(II)), respectively. Meteorological chromatography analysis indicated that the characteristics of gas composition were different under different electron donor conditions. Moreover, characterization of bacterial metabolites produced by strain SZ28 under different conditions was analyzed. Sequence amplification identified the presence of the nitrate reductase gene (napA) and Mn(II)-oxide gene (cumA) in strain SZ28. The results of XRD and SEM indicated that ZVI, nZVI, Fe(II), and Mn(II) were oxidized into corresponding oxides. XPS spectra indicated that the Cd(II) was adsorbed onto biogenic precipitation.

This study investigated whether bioaugmentation improves sulfamethoxazole (SMX) degradation and nitrogen removal in the Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) system. The effects of the C/N ratio on SMX degradation and nitrogen removal were also evaluated. Using MBBR system operation experiments, the bioaugmented reactor was found to perform more effectively than the non-bioaugmentation reactor, with the highest SMX, nitrate-N, and ammonia-N removal efficiencies of 80.49, 94.70, and 96.09%, respectively. The changes in the sulfonamide resistance genes and bacterial communities were detected at various operating conditions. The results indicate that the diversity of the bacterial communities and the abundance of resistance genes were markedly influenced by bioaugmentation and the C/N ratio, with Achromobacter among the dominant genera in the MBBR system. The bio-toxicity of samples, calculated as the inhibition percentage (IP) toward Escherichia coli, was found to decrease to non-toxic ranges after treatment.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs or miRs) are small, non-coding RNA molecules that play significant roles in numerous diseases. However, there is limited information regarding the plasma expression of miRNAs in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) as well as the potential role of miRNAs in the development of PBC. miRNA microarray analysis was performed using plasma obtaind from three patients with PBC and three healthy controls. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was performed to confirm the differential expression of miRNAs in the plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) isolated from 20 patients with PBC, 20 patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and 20 healthy controls. These miRNAs in PBMCs and plasma were validated by linear regression analyses. The T cell subset frequency was analyzed by flow cytometry. Correlations between altered miRNA expression and the frequency of the T cell subsets were determined by linear regression analyses. The co-expression of miRNAs and IL-17A was examined using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and immunohistochemistry. The microarray analysis identified sixteen miRNAs that were differentially expressed. Four miRNAs were validated by RT-qPCR. The expression pattern of miR-572 and miR-92a in the PBMCs correlated with the expression pattern in plasma. We also found that miR-92a expression closely correlated with the frequency of a subset of IL-17-producing T helper cells (Th17), and that miR-92a was co-expressed with IL-17A in patients with PBC. Taken together, these findings revealed that plasma from patients with PBC has a unique miRNA expression profile. Moreover, miR-92a may play an important role in the pathogenesis of PBC by regulating Th17 cell differentiation.

The aim of this study was to identify algicidal bacteria J25 against the Microcystis aeruginosa (90.14%), Chlorella (78.75%), Scenedesmus (not inhibited), and Oscillatoria (90.12%). Meanwhile, we evaluate the SOD activity and efficiency of denitrification characteristics with Acinetobacter sp. J25. A novel hybrid bioreactor combined biological floating bed with bio-contact oxidation (BFBO) was designed for treating the landscape water, and the average removal efficiencies of nitrate-N, ammonia-N, nitrite-N, TN, TP, TOC, and algal cells were 91.14, 50, 87.86, 88.83, 33.07, 53.95, and 53.43%, respectively. A 454-pyrosequencing technology was employed to investigate the microbial communities of the BFBO reactor samples. The results showed that Acinetobacter sp. J25 was the dominant contributor for effective removal of N, algal cells, and TOC in the BFBO reactor. And the relative abundance of Acinetobacter showed increase trend with the delay of reaction time. Graphical abstract Biological floating bed and bio-contact oxidation (BFBO) as a novel hybrid bioreactor designed for simultaneous removal Microcystis aeruginosa, TOC, nitrogen, and phosphorus. And high-throughput sequencing data demonstrated that Acinetobacter sp. J25 was the dominate species in the reactor and played key roles in the removal of N, TOC, and M. aeruginosa. Proposed reaction mechanism of the BFBO.

Lanostane-type triterpenoids, inotolactones A and B, a drimane-type sesquiterpenoid, inotolactone C, and five known terpenoids 6β-hydroxy-trans-dihydroconfertifolin, inotodiol, 3β,22-dihydroxyanosta-7,9(11),24-triene, 3β-hydroxycinnamolide, and 17-hydroxy-ent-atisan-19-oic acid, were isolated from the submerged culture of chaga mushroom, Inonotus obliquus. Their structures were characterized by spectroscopic methods, including MS and NMR (1D and 2D) spectroscopic techniques. Inotolactones A and B, examples of lanostane-type triterpenoids bearing α,β-dimethyl, α,β-unsaturated δ-lactone side chains, exhibited more potent alpha-glucosidase inhibitory activities than the positive control acarbose. This finding might be related to the anti-hyperglycemic properties of the fungus and to its popular role as a diabetes treatment. In addition, a drimane-type sesquiterpenoid and an atisane-type diterpenoid were isolated from I. obliquus.

This study aimed to determine the clinical, psychological features, and quality of life in Chinese fibromyalgia (FM) patients who fulfilled the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 2010 FM classification criteria at initial diagnosis. A cross-sectional study was carried out in the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) General Hospital. A hundred and seven Chinese FM patients (86 females, 21 males) were included. Eighty-six patients completed the questionnaires. Descriptive, differences, and correlation analyses were performed. The results showed that Chinese FM patients started their diseases at a median age of 37 years, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:4.1. Most patients were diagnosed about 2 years after symptoms onset. Nearly 60 % (59.81%) patients had less than college education, 58.88% did not have a full-time job, and 41.12% had low-back pain. Out of 86 patients, 58 (67.4%) had anxiety and 75 (87.2%) had depression. FM patients had poor quality of life in each aspect and deficient social support. The level of pain for the past 7 days was strongly correlated with patient global impression of severity (PGI-S; r = 0.651, p

Web application has been widely used. So it is urgent to test the security of Web application efficiently to resist various attacks. In this paper, key technologies (detecting framework with plugin, discovering unknown vulnerability and building detection tools integrated by user-defined) are absolutely researched. No matter Web application is running or not, the platform can be dramatically able to discover the vulnerability efficiently to insure their security.

Charged water mist has been widely used in industrial dust controlling due to its charged characteristics. But the study for controlling fire is less. Therefore, in this paper, extinguishing experiments of kerosene fire was carried out with water mist which was charged by a corona discharge in a small-scale and confined space. Water mists with different charge-to-mass ratios was obtained by changing the voltage. The effects on extinguishing time, flame temperature and flame image changes were analyzed. The experiments show that the charged water mist can effectively reduce the extinguishing time, flame temperature and inhibit flame compared with the ordinary water mist. Additionally, the extinguishing efficiency significantly increases with the increase of charge-to-mass ratio.

Based on the establishment of the geometry and equations of non-contact vortex gripper, the numerical analysis of the internal flow field characteristics and the key parameters affecting the adsorption performance was carried out. The results showed that: for the single air-entrance gripper, the negative pressure center not coincides at the geometric center of the gripper. Besides, with the movement of swirling flow, the position of the negative pressure center transformed; When the geometric parameters and working conditions are fixed, there is the most suitable air gap making the maximum value of negative pressure and adsorption force; Compared to single air-entrance gripper, double air-entrance gripper have better adsorption stability.

In this paper, three types of urban sewage treatment cost model, Oxidation ditch, ICEAS and A2/O are established respectively. The cost model and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) were applied to sewage treatment plant for process optimization. It provides guidance for urban sewage treatment process decision-making.

A finite-element mechanical model is established aiming at the features of telescopic suspension arm of dirt-removing crane in practice, such as that there exist many compound modes, the range of variation in lifting weight is big, etc. The strength, stiffness and stability of suspension arm is calculated and optimized based on ANSYS (software). The result of conventional design, which is checked and revised, tallies with the measured value relatively and may provide valuable reference for the design of suspension arm, which is to some extent significant to prolonging the fatigue life of cranes.

Chronic infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) plays a significant role in hepatocellular carcinoma development. To investigate the effect of hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) on inflammatory cytokines of human T cell, a eukaryotic expression vector, HBx-pEGFP-C1, was constructed and transfected into the Jurkat human T-cell line. Jurkat cells were transfected transiently using Lipofectamine 2000 and activated by phytohemagglutinin (PHA). Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), IL-4, IL-10, IL-13, and IL-14 mRNA was measured. The results showed that the vector HBx-pEGFP-C1 was successfully constructed, and HBx was expressed in Jurkat cells. Compared with a control group, mRNA of IL-1β and TNF-α was significantly elevated in the HBx-pEGFP-C1 group (p < 0.05), while IL-4, IL-10, IL-13, and IL-14 mRNA was decreased (p < 0.05). Therefore, transient overexpression of HBx promoted PHA-induced pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion and repressed anti-inflammatory cytokine secretion in human T cells.

A kind of intelligent EOD manipulator with five DOF has been designed against the EOD sites with the complicated cases and many obstacles unstructured. In this paper a general solution for the intelligent EOD manipulator with five DOF has been summarized, and a system analysis based on the following five parts has been performed further: Design for structure of the hand, design for structure of the wrist, design for structure of the arm, design for body of the manipulator, design for the hydraulic driving system. In view of the above, utilizing software such as CATIA and AUTOCAD, etc, a relative three-dimensional solid model has been modeled in the design to improve it in efficiency and quality, accordingly, and shorting development period for the intelligent EOD manipulator with five DOF.

The construction industry is a pillar industry of Chinese national economy, but also one of the industries with high accident rates. This paper analyzed Chinese construction industry in recent years, production safety situation, which indicated that the building production safety accidents and deaths continued to decline, construction safety production and the overall situation was getting better and better. After management analysis of safety production in construction industry, strengthening the government functions, truly serving people oriented from government to business, and enhancing the safety culture were real solutions of construction management.

This paper summarized the actual situation and problems of domestic sewage treatment in small towns in Yunnan province, and recommended four suitable sewage treatment technologies combining with its domestic sewage treatment process for water treatment, project investment, land allocation and operating cost analysis.

First, this paper estimates all kinds of non-point source pollutant emissions in the source areas of Liao river, then calculates the pollutant quantity discharged into the river from rural living sources, planting pollution sources, livestock and poultry breeding pollution sources and aquaculture pollution sources in detail in the source areas. The results of the paper could provide a scientific basis for making a far-reaching significant watershed management scheme.

Natural fiber reinforced composites have become excellent candidates for automotive applications and civil engineering facilities. The design procedures will require precisely evaluating the toughness of the materials, which demand accurate measurements of strain or displacement that are difficult to obtain for ductile materials. The primary objectives of this paper were to develop reliable experimental approaches which can effectively evaluate the fracture behaviors of random short natural fiber reinforced polypropylene (PP) composites. The digital image correlation method (DICM) was applied to compute the deformation fields around the crack tip of a compact-tension specimen in a process of loading. An experimental and numerical hybrid method was used to describe the fracture behaviors of the composites. The relationship between the micro-structure of random fibers and the macroscopic mechanical properties of the composites can also be understood.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a global public health problem, because patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) may progress to liver cirrhosis and eventually evolve into hepatocellular carcinoma. Decoy receptor 3 (DcR3) is a soluble receptor of the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily, and has been implicated in anti-apoptotic and anti-inflammatory pathways. In this study, we explored the clinical value of serum DcR3 in predicting the active status of CHB in hepatitis B e antigen-negative patients (active HBeAg (-) CHB), which was determined with ELISA. The serum level of DcR3 in active HBeAg (-) CHB patients (1.92 ± 0.68 ng/ml) was higher than that in healthy controls (0.80 ± 0.25 ng/ml, p < 0.0001) and that in inactive status of HBeAg (-) CHB (inactive hepatitis B surface antigen carrier, HBsAg-IaC) patients (0.95 ± 0.26 ng/ml, p < 0.0001). DcR3 level was correlated with HBV DNA level (r = 0.819, p < 0.0001) and alanine transaminase level (ALT, r = 0.704, p < 0.0001) in active HBeAg (-) CHB patients. The area under the Receiver Operating Characteristics curve of DcR3 for detecting the active status of HBeAg (-) CHB patients was 0.914 (95% confidence interval, 0.851-0.977). The optimal cut-off value for DcR3 to predict active HBeAg (-) CHB was 1.22 ng/ml, which had a sensitivity of 87.5% and a specificity of 84.4%. These results suggest that serum DcR3 level may be useful for detecting HBeAg (-) CHB in the active stage, which requires medical treatment.

Natural short fiber reinforced polypropylene (PP) composite has great significance both in commercial and environmental and is widely used in motor industry. Its local inhomogeneity and interphase both affect the macroscopic properties of the composite. These phenomena are still difficult to observe and study accurately in the experiment. A cohesive zone model (CZM) based numerical simulation method is presented in this paper. The three-phase (matrix-interphase-fiber) model considering some different factors was developed to study the effects of interphase parameters on the mechanical properties of the composite.

Most of the methods for ontology merging need participation of domain experts and provide only partial automation with low efficiency. It is time-consuming and laborious especially when large amount of data are to be merged. In this paper, a method based on semantic is designed for ontology merging according to the case of ontologies to be merged. In this method, first the ontologies to be merged are conversed into a unified format. Then a secondary file is generated. After that semantic analysis is applied to secondary file and a dynamic SQL statements is generated automatically. At last the SQL statements are executed to finish ontology merging. It has been proved by the experiment that using this method would get good precision and high efficiency. Using this method, two ontologies Chinese Agricultural Thesaurus and AGROVOC of the Food and Agriculture Organization are merged successfully.

For better design and control of the space turntable, a model for measuring its angular velocity was built. The model utilized a two-axis space turntable to perform the simulation basing on the coordinate conversion theory. The measuring simulation went on with the help of MATLAB software using different carrier attitude angles. It shows the maximal error in the sub astral point longitude and/or latitude is 0.00785 degrees when comparing with the STK results, certifying the validity of the models. The satellite attitude angles have influence on the angular velocity, the maximal azimuth angular velocity is 3.784 deg per sec, yet the elevation's is 0.6945 deg per sec when the attitude angles are all 20 degrees. This simulation process provides some guidance for designing, controlling and calibrating the space turntable.

Background Ghrelin is a hormone that protects against hypoxic injury of cardiac cells by inducing autophagy, but the role of autophagy in sepsis remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate whether ghrelin could enhance autophagy in rats with intestinal sepsis. Methods The cecal ligation and perforation (CLP) method was used to induce sepsis in Sprague-Dawley rats. The rats were assigned to four groups: normal group, sham-operated group, sepsis group, and Ghrelin-treated group. Sera and small intestinal tissues were collected from all groups. The sepsis was evaluated by histological analysis, and autophagy of small intestinal epithelial cells was assessed by electron microscopy, immunofluorescence, and biochemical methods. Results The expression of autophagy-associated proteins such as LC3, Atg 7 and Beclin 1 increased by 8 h post-CLP and declined to basal levels by 12 h post-CLP. The expression of LC3, Atg 7 and Beclin 1 in Ghrelin-treated rats was higher than that in rats with sepsis. Furthermore, compared to rats with sepsis, Ghrelin-treated rats showed significantly reduced intestinal mucosa injury at 20 h post-CLP. Conclusion Autophagy is induced in the early stages of sepsis. Ghrelin could enhance the autophagy of intestinal epithelial cells in rats with sepsis and protect the small intestinal epithelium against sepsis-induced injury.

This paper puts forward an agent genetic algorithm based on bacteria foraging strategy (BFOA-L) as the feature selection method. The algorithm introduces the bacteria foraging (BF) behavior, and integrates the neural network and link agent structure to achieve fuzzy logic reasoning, so that the weights with no definite physical meaning in traditional neural network are endowed with the physical meaning of fuzzy logic reasoning parameters. The algorithm can maintain the diversity of the agent, so as to achieve satisfactory global optimization precision. The test result shows that this algorithm has good stability, little time complexity and high recognition accuracy.

Inspired by the human vision system, a new image representation and analysis model based on Gaussian multiscale multivariate image analysis (MIA) is proposed. The multiscale color texture representations for the original image are used to constitute the multivariate image, each channel of which represents a perceptual observation from different scales. Then the MIA decomposes this multivariate image into multiscale color texture perceptual features (the principal component score images). These score images could be interpreted as 1) the output of three color opponent channels: black versus white, red versus green and blue versus yellow, and 2) the edge information, and 3) higher-order Gaussian derivatives. Finally the color image denoising approach based on the models is presented. Experiments show that this denoising method against Gaussian filters significantly improves the denoising effect by preserving more edge information.

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text, Background: Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is a frequent complication in postoperative period. The aim of this article was to evaluate the effect of dexmedetomidine on PONV. Method: RevMan 5.3 software was applied for performing statistic analysis. Twenty-four trials with 2046 patients were included. Results: The PONV of the dexmedetomidine group was significantly lower compared with the placebo group (0.56, 95% CI: 0.46, 0.69). Subgroup analysis further confirmed the effect of dexmedetomidine (irrespective of administration mode) (P

AIM: To investigate urotensin-II (UII) and its effects on tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin (IL)-1β in early acute liver failure (ALF). METHODS: We investigated the time-dependent alteration in UII levels and its effects on TNF-α and IL-1β in liver and blood in the early stage of lipopolysaccharide/D-galactosamine-induced ALF. RESULTS: After lipopolysaccharide/D-galactosamine challenge, UII rose very rapidly and reached a maximal level 0.5 h, and the level remained significantly elevated after 2 h (P < 0.05). Six hours after challenge, UII began to degrade, but remained higher than at 0 h (P < 0.05). Pretreatment with urantide, an inhibitor of the UII receptor, suppressed the degree of UII increase in liver and blood at 6 h after challenge (P < 0.05 vs paired controls). In addition, liver and blood TNF-α increased from 1 to 6 h, and reached a peak at 1 and 2 h, respectively; however, IL-1β did not rise until 6 h after challenge. Urantide pretreatment inhibited the degree of TNF-α and IL-1β increase following downregulation of UII post-challenge (all P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: UII plays a role in the pathogenesis and priming of ALF by triggering an inflammatory cascade and driving the early release of cytokines in mice.

In the present study, we aimed to develop and validate a rapid and sensitive, Alu-based real-time PCR method for the detection of circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA). This method targeted repetitive elements of the Alu reduplicative elements in the human genome, followed by signal amplification using fluorescence quantification. Standard Alu-puc57 vectors were constructed and 5 pairs of specific primers were designed. Valuation was conducted concerning linearity, variation and recovery. We found 5 linear responses (R1–5=0.998–0.999). The average intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variance were 12.98 and 10.75%, respectively. The recovery was 82.33–114.01%, with a mean recovery index of 101.26%. This Alu-based assay was reliable, accurate and sensitive for the quantitative detection of cfDNA. Plasma from normal controls and patients with myocardial infarction (MI) were analyzed, and the baseline levels of cfDNA were higher in the MI group. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for Alu1, Alu2, Alu3, Alu4, Alu5 and Alu (Alu1 + Alu2 + Alu3 + Alu4 + Alu5) was 0.887, 0.758, 0.857, 0.940, 0.968 and 0.933, respectively. The optimal cut-off value for Alu1, Alu2, Alu3, Alu4, Alu5 and Alu to predict MI was 3.71, 1.93, 0.22, 3.73, 6.13 and 6.40 log copies/ml. We demonstrate that this new method is a reliable, accurate and sensitive method for the quantitative detection of cfDNA and that it is useful for studying the regulation of cfDNA in certain pathological conditions. Alu4, Alu5 and Alu showed better sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of MI compared with cardiac troponin I (cTnI), creatine kinase MB (CK-MB) isoenzyme and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). Alu5 had the best prognostic ability.

We present a case report of a patient with Sjogren’s syndrome accompanied with interstitial cystitis. A 64-year-old woman complained of dry mouth for 21 years, recurrent swelling and pain on the right parotid in 2000, and urinary irritation symptoms in the past 2 years. Several courses of different types of antibiotics could not relieve her urinary irritation symptoms. Bladder hydraulic dilatation had only transient effects. Urine sediment contained neither erythrocytes nor leukocytes, and urine cultures yielded no growth. However, increased γ-globulin, positive antinuclear antibodies, and anti-SS-A and anti-SS-B antibodies were detected. Histopathological data of labial salivary glands showed three foci of numerous mononuclear cells. Cystoscopy revealed redness, edema, angiectasis, and extensive ecchymosis of the mucosal surface and several small floating cruor entities in the bladder. Urinary bladder biopsy specimens revealed the absence of urothelium and edematous lamina propria and submucosa, with diffuse or multiple focal chronic inflammatory cell infiltration. Based on these findings, she was diagnosed with Sjogren’s syndrome accompanied with interstitial cystitis. Therapy with corticosteroids relieved the symptoms significantly.

To explore the relationship of Pi-deficiency syndrome in TCM with the change of serum high density lipoprotein (HDL) in blood lipid metabolic disorder.Sixty-eight patients with confirmed coronary heart disease (CHD) were selected for TCM syndrome typing into Pi-deficiency (PD) group and non-Pi-deficiency (NPD) group. Routine blood lipids and serum lipoprotein electrophoretogram (SLPG) were determined in all patients to analyze the total content of HDL and its relative contents of sub-components HDL(1-5), as well as their relation with PD syndrome. Besides, a healthy control group (62 cases) was set up.The level of serum HDL-C was lowered, SLPG abnormality rate increased in the patients with CHD, with total HDL and the relative contents of subcomponent HDL(1) and HDL(3) significantly lower than those in the healthy control group (P0.01). The total HDL, HDL(1) and HDL(3) in the PD group were also lower than those in the NPD group (P0.05, P0.01).Serum HDL and its sub-components showed a definite relation with TCM PD syndrome type, therefore, further exploring the granular specificity of HDL and its sub-components as well as their influence on reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) may hopefully provide clues for developing RCT regulatory Chinese new drugs and for CHD prevention and treatment.

Crystal structures of the AHL-lactonase AidH in complex with substrate and product are reported at high resolution and a catalytic mechanism is proposed for the metal-independent AHL-lactonase., Many pathogenic bacteria that infect humans, animals and plants rely on a quorum-sensing (QS) system to produce virulence factors. N-Acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs) are the best-characterized cell–cell communication signals in QS. The concentration of AHL plays a key role in regulating the virulence-gene expression and essential biological functions of pathogenic bacteria. N-Acyl homoserine lactonases (AHL-lactonases) have important functions in decreasing pathogenicity by degrading AHLs. Here, structures of the AHL-lactonase from Ochrobactrum sp. (AidH) in complex with N-­hexanoyl homoserine lactone, N-hexanoyl homoserine and N-­butanoyl homoserine are reported. The high-resolution structures together with biochemical analyses reveal convincing details of AHL degradation. No metal ion is bound in the active site, which is different from other AHL-lactonases, which have a dual Lewis acid catalysis mechanism. AidH contains a substrate-binding tunnel between the core domain and the cap domain. The conformation of the tunnel entrance varies with the AHL acyl-chain length, which contributes to the binding promiscuity of AHL molecules in the active site. It also supports the biochemical result that AidH is a broad catalytic spectrum AHL-lactonase. Taken together, the present results reveal the catalytic mechanism of the metal-independent AHL-lactonase, which is a typical acid–base covalent catalysis.

Pyridoxal kinase (ATP:pyridoxal 5'-phosphotransferase; EC 2.7.1.35) is a key enzyme in the transformation of vitamin B(6) to pyridoxal-5'-phosphate. Pyridoxal-5'-phosphate is the crucial cofactor required by numerous enzymes involved in the metabolism of amino acids and the synthesis of many neurotransmitters. Pyridoxal kinase from sheep brain was crystallized in an orthorhombic form using the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method with sodium citrate as the precipitant. The crystals belong to space group P2(1)2(1)2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 59.8, b = 94.4, c = 128.2 A, and diffract to a resolution of 2.1 A. Crystals were transferred into a soaking liquid without citrate and two heavy-atom derivatives were prepared.