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The impact of information technology on the education industry is revolutionary. Universities should improve the level of information technology, update concepts, and further improve the training capabilities of foreign students. Taking Dalian University of Technology as an example, this paper uses citespace software to visually analyze the training of Chinese students abroad, and analyzes the problems existing in the training of Chinese students abroad, and puts forward suggestions to further improve their training ability.

Due to breakthroughs in the Lower Silurian Longmaxi Formation in the Sichuan Basin and multiple strata around the basin, the northern part of Guizhou adjacent to the Sichuan Basin has become a key area for shale gas exploration. Compared with the Longmaxi Formation, the Niutitang Formation displays greater TOC (total organic carbon) content, depositional thickness and distribution area, but the details remain undetermined. In the study area, the Lower Cambrian Niutitang Formation typically has high TOC content, maturity and brittle mineral content. The study area has experienced multiple periods of tectonic movement, which have great influence on the fracture and pore characteristics. The fractures are mainly structural fractures and have obvious zoning. The primary types of pores are intraparticle pores, organic matter pores, and interparticle pores. Further, macropores and mesopores less than 50 nm contribute most of the pore volume, while pores less than 2 nm contribute most of the specific surface area. Many factors affect the pore-fracture system, such as tectonism, TOC content, mineral composition, and sedimentary environment. Tectonic movements produce fractures based on the changing stress field, but the degree of fracture development does not agree well with the degree of pore development. The TOC content has good positive correlations with the development of fractures and micropores, especially for nanoporosity, while clay minerals show a negative correlation with the development of fractures but a strong positive correlation with the growth of micropores. Quartz displays a positive correlation with the development of fractures but no good correlation with pore development. Finally, the lithofacies, lithologies and mineral compositions under the control of sedimentary environments are internal factors that can impact the development of pore-fracture systems.

Shales are widely developed in the strata of the Carboniferous-Permian coal measures in the Qinshui Basin, and these shales have great potential for shale gas exploration. In this paper, the shales of the Taiyuan Formation in the eastern Qinshui Basin are studied. The shales of the Taiyuan Formation in the study area are investigated through field investigation, organic geochemical testing, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, high pressure mercury injection, low temperature liquid nitrogen adsorption and PetroMod simulation and through other tests to study the reservoir characteristics, such as organic geochemistry, mineralogy, petrology, pore permeability, and gas burial history. The results show that the shales of the Taiyuan Formation are well developed over the whole area with a thickness of more than 60 m. The average organic matter content is 2.95%, and the kerogen type is type III. The shale maturity (average value is 2.45%) corresponds to the stage of high maturity evolution, indicating that a large amount of shale gas has been generated in this area. A high content of quartz and clay minerals indicates a high fracturability. The nanopores in the shale reservoir are well developed at pore sizes between 2˜10 nm and greater than 1000 nm; however, the pores at the other pore sizes are poorly developed, resulting in weak pore connectivity in the reservoir. According to the results of the PetroMod simulation, the shale of the Taiyuan Formation has undergone two subsidence and two uplift processes. The Yanshanian magmatic intrusion is the key factor for the rapid increase in gas production. In addition, the geological structure of the area is relatively simple, and the burial history and caprock thickness are also the main controlling factors of gas generation and preservation. The shale-sandstone-shale combination and shale-coal-shale combination are the main models of shale gas preservation. This comprehensive study suggests that the shale gas of the Taiyuan Formation in the eastern Qinshui Bain has good potential for exploration and development.

The microenvironment in the seminiferous tubules of buffalo changes with age, which affects the self-renewal and growth of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) and the process of spermatogenesis, but the mechanism remains to be elucidated. RNA-seq was performed to compare the transcript profiles of pre-pubertal buffalo (PUB) and adult buffalo (ADU) seminiferous tubules. In total, 17,299 genes from PUB and ADU seminiferous tubules identified through RNA-seq, among which 12,271 were expressed in PUB and ADU seminiferous tubules, 4,027 were expressed in only ADU seminiferous tubules, and 956 were expressed in only PUB seminiferous tubules. Of the 17,299 genes, we identified 13,714 genes that had significant differences in expression levels between PUB and ADU through GO enrichment analysis. Among these genes, 5,342 were significantly upregulated and possibly related to the formation or identity of the surface antigen on SSCs during self-renewal; 7,832 genes were significantly downregulated, indicating that genes in PUB seminiferous tubules do not participate in the biological processes of sperm differentiation or formation in this phase compared with those in ADU seminiferous tubules. Subsequently, through the combination with KEGG analysis, we detected enrichment in a number of genes related to the development of spermatogonial stem cells, providing a reference for study of the development mechanism of buffalo spermatogonial stem cells in the future. In conclusion, our data provide detailed information on the mRNA transcriptomes in PUB and ADU seminiferous tubules, revealing the crucial factors involved in maintaining the microenvironment and providing a reference for further in vitro cultivation of SSCs.

The utilization of biomass pyrolysis volatile-derived water-dissolved organic matter (WOM, often called wood vinegar) determines sustainable recycling of biomass. Further, pyrolysis temperature significantly controls the cracking of biomass components, resulting in various molecular compositions and biological responses of WOM. Although it has been widely used in the agriculture, the relationship between molecular compositions and biological responses affected by heating temperature is still unclear. Here, it was observed that the WOM concentration increased with increasing temperatures and the pyrolysis of 1 g biomass can generate ~ WOM with 36.24 mg C. Moreover, with increasing pyrolysis temperatures, the generated WOM consisted of more phenols but fewer alcohols, furans, acids, and ketones, and demonstrated characteristics of higher aromaticity and lower m/z molecular weight. Due to the enhanced polarity, high temperatures promoted the solubility of WOM. Germination tests show that low pyrolysis temperatures-derived WOM ( 400 °C) with small-molecular-weight and high oxygen-containing (high O/Cwa) inhibited growth. These results suggest that WOM can be separately collected at different pyrolysis temperatures to achieve sustainable recycling of pyrolysis volatile.

Background: Lymphoid polyps are rare benign lesions, mainly in the intestinal tract. But misdiagnosis always happen, because it is difficult to distinguish lymphoid polyp and lymphoma and laterally spreading tumour (LST) solely relying on endoscopic examination. Generally speaking, pathology can help us make a correct diagnosis, but in few cases advanced methods is necessary for diagnosis, such as immunohistochemistry and gene rearrangement. Case presentation: A 56-year-old female patient was admitted to the ward for endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) treatment. She was diagnosed with laterally spreading tumour (LST) in another hospital. Before ESD treatment, we performed a colonoscopy examination on the patient. The result pointed towards rectal lymphoma and did not support the diagnosis of LSTs of the rectum, so we did not perform ESD. Because of the possibility of missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis of common endoscopic biopsy, we performed endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) biopsy. The results of postoperative pathology, immunohistochemistry and gene rearrangement supported the diagnosis of lymphoid polyps. Conclusions: The diagnosis of lymphoid polyps always depends on endoscopic examination and pathology. If necessary, advanced methods such as immunohistochemistry and gene rearrangement may be helpful.

With the aim to develop optimized biochar with minimal contaminants, it is important significance to broaden the understanding of biochar. Here, we disclose for the first time, a highly toxic substance (metal cyanide, MCN, such as KCN or NaCN) in biochar. The cyanide ion (CN−) content in biochar can be up to 85,870 mg/kg, which is determined by the inherent metal content and type in the biomass with K and Na increasing and Ca, Mg and Fe decreasing its formation. Density functional theory (DFT) analysis shows that unstable alkali oxygen-containing metal salts such as K2CO3 can induce an N rearrangement reaction to produce for example, KOCN. The strong reducing character of the carbon matrix further converts KOCN to KCN, thus resulting biochar with high risk. However, the stable Mg, Ca and Fe salts in biomass cannot induce an N rearrangement reaction due to their high binding energies. We therefore propose that high valent metal chloride salts such as FeCl3 and MgCl2 could be used to inhibit the production of cyanide via metal interactive reaction. These findings open a new point of view on the potential risk of biochar and provide a mitigation solution for biochar’s sustainable application.

Ethnopharmacological relevance Alstonia scholaris (L.) R. Br. (Apocynaceae) is a medicinal plant in China traditionally used to treat pulmonary diseases, including bronchitis, whooping cough, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Aim of the study To provide experimental data supporting clinical adaptation of total indole alkaloids ( TA) from A. scholaris leaves for treating emphysema. Materials and methods An emphysema model was induced by a single intratracheal instillation of porcine pancreatic elastase followed by administration of TA and four main alkaloid components (scholaricine, 19-epischolaricine, vallesamine, and picrinine) for 30 consecutive days. Cytokine levels, histopathological parameters and protein expression in lung tissues were examined. Results Administering the TA, picrinine, scholaricine, 19-epischolaricine and vallesamine for 30 days effectively inhibited inflammatory cell accumulation and invasion in the lung tissue and relieved pulmonary tissue injury. Oxygen saturation was enhanced, and interleukin (IL)-1β, monocyte-chemo attractive peptide 1, IL-11, matrix metalloproteinase-12, transforming growth factor-β and vascular endothelial growth factor levels were significantly reduced, likely by suppressing overactivation of alveolar macrophages and pulmonary fibrosis. The elastin content was markedly elevated, and fibronectin was reduced. Bcl-2 expression was significantly increased, and nuclear factor-κB and β-catenin levels were decreased. Conclusions TA can be potentially used as an effective novel drug for pulmonary emphysema and exerts its effects through not only inhibiting inflammation of the airway wall and airflow resistance but also promoting lung elastic recoil and protease/anti-protease balance.

Introducing a hybrid xanthene as a fluorophore, an ‘ensemble’-based fluorescent sensor (E)-2-(6-(diethylamino)-2-((2-hydroxyphenylimino)methyl)-3-oxo-3H-xanthen-9-yl)benzoic acid (a) was designed and synthesised for detection of cysteine. Cysteine can release CuII ion from the non-fluorescent a-CuII complex. Then hydrolytic cleavage of Schiff base a produces a pink fluorescent compound 2-(6-(diethylamino)-2-formyl-3-oxo-3H-xanthen-9-yl)benzoic acid (2). We call this process a fluorescence off-on change. An obvious color change from purple a to pink 2 can be easily observed by the naked-eye. The calibration curve showed that the fluorescence intensity at 560 nm linearly increased over the cysteine concentration range of 0.379-100 µmol L-1 with a limit of detection of 0.379 µmol L-1. Sensor a-CuII displayed excellent selectivity for cysteine, even homocysteine and glutathione did not show influence. The sensor was also used for detecting cysteine in human breast adenocarcinoma cells, which illustrates the practical value. Overall, the sensor appears to be useful for rapid, convenient and selective cysteine detection in living tissues.

COVID-19 pandemic caused a significant increase in medical and infected domestic waste, greatly increasing risk of human infected with SARS-CoV-2. To control pandemic and restore social order, there is a great of importance to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2 from solid waste to humans. Here, we prepared a renewable wheat straw-based bio-liquid that can damage SARS-CoV-2 RNA and protein. The wet thermochemical extraction (WTE) bio-liquid, with total organic carbon concentration exceeding 1,892 mg/L, could effectively damage the virus. However, dry thermochemical extraction (DTE) samples were not efficient due to their low content of effective compounds. The life cycle assessment showed that WTE bio-liquid production implies lower energy and environmental impacts than DTE. Moreover, the process by-product, char, can simultaneously reduce 3.1 million tonnes of CO2 emissions while used as coal substitute. Yield of antiviral bio-liquid extremely exceed commercial disinfectant with just 1% wheat straw utilisation, which meet the demand of processing solid waste. Further, their costs are significantly lower than commercial disinfectant s. Therefore, the antiviral bio-liquid produced from agricultural straw can meet the needs of preventing the spread of SARS-CoV-2 from solid waste to humans to control the epidemic and resume the sustainable development of society.

Brevicaudosaurus jiyangshanensis, gen. et sp. nov., a new nothosauroid, is established on the basis of two nearly complete skeletons from the Middle Triassic (Ladinian) of China. Its skull is diagnostic in having a wide and constricted snout, a large supratemporal fossa slightly larger than the orbit, and a parietal table strongly constricted posteriorly. Postcranial specializations include a short trunk with 14 dorsal vertebrae, a short tail shorter than the skull-neck region in length, a stout anterolateral process on the clavicle, an extremely massive and broadened mid-diaphysis of the humerus, a strongly expanded proximal head of the ulna, seven ossified carpals, and a phalangeal reduction in the pes. In addition, the strongly pachyostotic postcranial skeleton may indicate a slow mode of swimming underwater and a benthic carnivorous feeding habit for B. jiyangshanensis. Phylogenetically, it is the sister taxon of the Nothosaurus-Lariosaurus clade within Nothosauroidea. The discovery of this new nothosauroid not only contributes to local faunal diversity and expands the known range of sauropterygian life styles during the late Middle Triassic, but also provides a chance to test the phylogenetic relationships of the Eosauropterygia hypothesized by previous studies. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:026D8680-CC71-47BD-A681-F5B6F140B84

We report the “Bi-drifting” subpulses observed in PSR J0815+0939 using the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). The observation at band from 1050 to 1450 MHz is evenly divided into two bands, i.e., the bands at center frequencies of 1150 and 1350 MHz. The mean pulse profiles and the “Bi-drifting” subpulses at these two bands are investigated. It is found that the pulse profiles at these two frequencies show four emission components, and the peak separations between four emission components decrease with the increase of frequency. In addition, the ratio of peak intensity of each component to the intensity of component IV at 1150 MHz is larger than that at 1350 MHz. We carry out an analysis of the longitude-resolved fluctuation spectrum and two-dimensional fluctuation spectrum for each emission component, and find that the P3 of components I, II and III is about 10.56, 10.57 and 10.59 s at 1150 and 1350 MHz. However, the reliable measurements of P3 of component IV and P2 for these four components were not obtained due to the low signal-to-noise ratio of observation data. The pulse energy distributions at frequencies 1150 and 1350 MHz are presented, and it is found that no nulling phenomenon has been found in this pulsar. With our observation from the FAST, the “Bi-drifting” subpulse phenomenon of PSR J0815+0939 is expanded from 400 to 1350 MHz, which is helpful for the relevant researchers to test and constrain the pulsar emission model, especially the model of “Bi-drifting” subpulse.

Reconfigurable robots have excellent reconfigurability and environmental adaptability, but the configuration design method to select appropriate configuration with different environments has not been fully studied. Most of the existing work is based on the known global environment information, or only focus on the structure design. How to effectively obtain rich terrain information for subsequent configuration design is the subject of this paper. In our work, a comprehensive method of obtaining robotic configuration is proposed which considering geometric information and semantic information of unstructured terrain. And it provides new possibilities for reconfigurable robots to perform autonomous tasks in complex scenarios. Results of simulation experiments prove the availability of the mentioned method.

Natural gas purification by economic and low-energy adsorptive separation processes is important. However, as a difficult global problem, N2 removal from N2/CH4 mixtures is challenging because of their similar physical properties. In this study, the separation of N2/CH4 by Cr-metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) (MIL-100Cr, MIL-101Cr and TYUT-96Cr) with various open Cr site densities was studied. Gas sorption isotherms showed that TYUT-96Cr exhibited the highest N2/CH4 uptake ratio (13.67 at 0.01 bar and 298 K) of the selected Cr-MOFs, which was consistent with the highest density of Cr (III) sites. This material provided the highest CH4 productivity (0.716 mmol/cm3) per cycle for N2 removal from a 5:95 N2/CH4 mixture to produce 99.99% pure CH4, as shown by the breakthrough experiments. Pressure-swing adsorption simulations indicated that, by a two-bed six-step method, pristine 95% methane was enriched to 98.9% by TYUT-96Cr. The largest CH4 productivity, high breakthrough selectivity and thermal stability of TYUT-96Cr among the Cr-MOFs, made it a promising adsorbent in trace N2 removal for practical industrial application.

Future climate warming is expected to have a significant effect on the operation of Earth and Ecological systems. A key concern in the future is water resource availability. In regions such as the Tibet Plateau (TP) lakes and glaciers appear to be highly sensitive to climate forcing and variations in the size and extent of these system will have profound socio-economic and environmental consequences in South and Central Asia. Although the variety of glaciers and lake son the TP is a heavily researched and discussed topic the interaction between glaciers/lakes and climate change has not be thoroughly investigated. Here we present, through a review of existing studies and original remote sensing analysis, a reconstruction of changes in the spatial coverage of glaciers and lakes on the TP from 1990 to 2015 along with an analysis of climate data for the same period. The results revealed that these systems responded to changes in both temperature and precipitation but the nature of this response, and the controlling factor, was spatially diverse. During this interval the total number of lakes increased from 868 to 1207, thus a large number of new lakes (n = 339) formed. The total water surface area of the lakes increase from 38,823.3 km(2) in 1990 to 48,793.0 km(2) in 2015, at a rate of 383.5 km(2) yr(-1). Over this period intensive glacial shrinkage occurred, primarily driven by increasing average temperature, except in the Karakoram Mountains where a slight increase in glacier extent was explained by low and stable temperatures along with increasing precipitation. The expansion of lakes in the central and northeastern TP can, therefore, be explained by a trend of increasing precipitation and the accelerated melting of glaciers associated with rising temperatures, both of which contributed to the enhanced total basin runoff. The shrinkage of lake areas along the Himalayan Mountains is accounted for by low precipitation coupled with high evaporation and limited basin space. The lakes within the Qaidam Basin express a complex pattern of response in association with fluctuating precipitation and strong evaporation. The pattern of shrinking glaciers and expanding lakes indicate that water cycle processes on the TP have been accelerating during the past 25 years. Under current climates, and future climate change, the shrinkage of glaciers and the enlargement of lakes may be expected to continue to accelerate until a "tipping point" is reached when the meltwater of declining glaciers can no longer sustain the enhanced lake levels. Such a scenario would have severe socio-economic and ecological consequences for this region making the continued study of water-cycle activity across the TP an urgent priority.

The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the developmental competence of buffalo denuded oocytes (DOs) cocultured with cumulus cells (CCs) during in vitro maturation, and to investigate the mechanisms by which CCs promote oocyte maturation and development. Buffalo oocytes were matured in vitro for 24 h in three groups: (1) intact cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) (2) DOs cocultured with CCs (DOsCC), and (3) DOs cultured alone (DOs). Matured oocytes were used to determine the relative mRNA abundance of Gdf-9, Bmp15, Zar1, Caspase-3, Bcl-2, Zp2, Zp3, Cd9 and Pde3a by Rt-qPCR and CASPASE-3 protein expression by immunofluorescence. The intracellular content of cGMP, cAMP and MPF activity and the rate of embryonic development were also assessed. Results of the present study showed that in DOs, the relative mRNA abundance of Gdf-9, Bmp15, and Cd9 significantly (P 0.05) decreased, whereas Caspase-3 (mRNA and protein levels), Bcl-2, and Pde3a exhibited higher expression than DOsCC and COCs. However, there was no significant difference among the groups in the expression level of Zar-1, Zp2, and Zp3. The intracellular content of cAMP and MPF activity was notably higher (P 0.05) in DOs compared to COCs and DOsCC. There was no significant difference between COCs and DOsCC in cGMP content, which was significantly lower (P 0.05) in DOs. Moreover, the cleavage and blastocyst rates were 58.4 ± 1.8%, 43.7 ± 1.1%, 18.4 ± 0.9% and 18.0 ± 1.3%, 11.0 ± 0.9% and 4.5 ± 0.6% in COCs, DOsCC and DOs groups, respectively. In conclusion, the presence of CCs protects buffalo DOs from apoptosis and promotes maturation through regulation of the intracellular content of cAMP and MPF activity and improves the fertilizing capacity of oocytes through modulation of the gamete fusion gene, Cd9.

For the capture of CO2 from flue gas and decarbonization of natural gas streams, an ideal adsorbent should have a high selectivity for CO2 over N2 and CH4. In this work, through adjusting the proportions of extra-framework K+ and Cs+ cations and varying the Si/Al ratios of the zeolite ZK-5, the small “molecular gate” adsorbent ZK-5-n-K has been prepared. An increase in the number of K+ cations prevents the ingress of the larger molecules CH4 and N2, while allowing entry of the smaller CO2; the net result is that CO2 capture from CH4 or N2 is achieved with unusually high selectivity, of the order of 1 × 105. Grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations show that the extra-framework K+ and Cs+ cations are positioned at different locations in the ZK-5; K+ locates near the 8-ring window, whereas Cs+ resides in the interior regions. The separation performances of 12 different K+- and Cs+-doped ZK-5 structures (with four different Si/Al ratios of 3.17, 3.36, 3.46, and 3.57) have been investigated. Transient breakthrough simulations have been used to quantify the CO2 capture performances in four sets of separations: 30%/70%, 5%/95%, and 2%/98% CO2/CH4 mixtures at a total pressure of 1 MPa, and a 15%/85% CO2/N2 mixture at a total pressure of 100 kPa. In all cases, the selectivities were sufficiently high to ensure that the separation performance was primarily governed by the CO2 uptake capacity. The overall conclusion to be drawn from this work is that ZK-5 is a suitable adsorbent for the decarbonization of natural gas.

Ethnopharmacological relevance Leaf of Alstonia scholaris (L.) R. Br. (Apocynaceae), a wide used ethic-medicine in many Asia and Africa counties, has also been recorded as the common traditional Chinese medicine for treatment of illnesses in respiratory system by Dai people. Aim of the study To provide experimental data of clinical adaption of total indole alkaloids (TA) from leaf of A. scholaris for treating post-infectious cough in phase II clinical trial. Materials and methods To model post-infectious cough, all animals except control group were instilled intra-tracheal with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (80 μg/50 µL/mouse), followed by subsequent exposure to cigarette smoke (CS) for 30 min per day for a total of 30 days. Mice were orally given TA at dose of 10, 25, 50 mg/kg, and four main alkaloids (Sch: scholaricine, Epi: 19-epischolaricine, Val: vallesamine, Pic: picrinine) once daily. Cellular infiltration was assessed in the broncho-alveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Expression of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP) in the serum was determined, the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity as well as malondialdehyde (MDA) content in the serum and homogenate were examined. Finally, histopathological examination in the lungs was assessed by H. E. staining. Results After administration of TA and four major alkaloids respectively, the symptoms of cough in mice were obviously attenuated. Total white blood cells (WBC) and neutrophils (NEU) amounts in BALF were reduced obviously and the pathological damage of lung was also attenuated. There was also significant reduction in IL-6, CRP, MDA and a marked improvement in SOD. Conclusions The efficacy of indole alkaloids against post-infectious cough (PIC) was shown in the down-regulation of inflammatory cells, cytokines, and the balance of antioxidants. What's more, the pharmacological effects of TA were better than single indole alkaloid, which might be related to the synergic effect of four major alkaloids., Graphical abstract fx1

Given the increased risk of incident diabetes and the side effects on glycemic control with statin treatment, statin and ezetimibe combination therapy has been widely used. However, whether the same concern exists in ezetimibe remains uncertain. This meta-analysis aimed to investigate the influence of ezetimibe treatment on glycemic control. Articles were searched from PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included if they compared the effects of ezetimibe with placebo, ezetimibe plus statin with the same statin, or low-dose stain plus ezetimibe with high-dose statin on FBG and glycosylated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). Of the 2440 articles retrieved, 16 RCTs were included. Ezetimibe did not cause side effects on FBG (WMD −0.62, 95% CI: −3.13 to 1.90) and HbA1c (WMD 0.07, 95% CI: −0.07 to 0.20%). No significant changes in FBG (WMD −1.78, 95% CI: −6.33 to 2.77%) and HbA1c (WMD −0.05, 95% CI: −0.14 to 0.05%) were observed in ezetimibe plus low-dose statin treatment compared with high-dose statin. According to subgroup analysis, in comparison with high-dose statin, ezetimibe plus low-dose statin taken for more than 3 months showed a significant decrease in FBG (WMD −7.12, 95% CI: −13.86 to −0.38%) compared with that taken for less than 3 months (WMD 0.90, 95% CI: −2.91 to 4.71%). Nevertheless, this difference was invalid when the study conducted by Dagli et al. was removed. Compared with high-dose statin therapy, ezetimibe with low-dose statin for more than 3 months may have a beneficial tendency of effects on glycemic control.

As a special policy area under China’s new normal economic background, the National New District plays a key role in the realization of economic and social development and green growth. This paper constructs an evaluation index system for green growth capacity from five aspects: government support capabilities, corporate green capabilities, NGO supervision and guidance, public participation capabilities, and park output benefits. Various methods are used to measure green growth capacities of these four National New Districts including the Jinpu, Pudong, Binhai, and Nansha. The results show that government support capability has the greatest impact on the green growth capacity of the state-level new district and Pudong has the largest green growth capacity, followed by Binhai, Nansha and Jinpu.

Nano-MgO carbon composites (MCs) demonstrated great potential in phosphate immobilization to resolve phosphorus reuse and eutrophication problems, but the mechanisms of phosphate immobilization are still unclear. In this study, MCs were fabricated via CO2 activation of hydrochar materials, and the activation mechanisms were first investigated through analysis of pyrolysis gases and porosity. The results indicate that MgO particles (pyrolysis products of MgCl2) catalyzed the consumption of the carbon matrix but blocked the development of carbon matrix pores. Furthermore, phosphate immobilization by MCs increased with the increase of MgO loading content. More importantly, XPS and TEM-EDX profiles demonstrate that solution and surface precipitations regulated phosphate immobilization by MCs. Solution precipitation mainly contributed to a MgHPO4 precipitate, while in surface precipitation the carbon matrix served as a bridge for H2PO4− transmission to MgO particles to produce a Mg(H2PO4)2 precipitate. Also, with the decrease of carbon content, surface precipitation became dominant due to the shortened distance. This contributes to the improvement of phosphate immobilization by MCs, which was found to be even higher than pure MgO. Compared with N2 activated MC, CO2 activated MC showed much higher phosphate immobilization potential attributed to the surface precipitation reaction. The results of this study will guide the development of more efficient MC materials for phosphate recovery.

The Si/Al ratio in zeolite will be altered and the porous structure will be diluted by the traditional silica/aluminum-based binder in the granulation process. Here, a novel zeolite/activated carbon monolith (Z/AC) was prepared by adding coal-tar pitch in silicalite-1 (Si/Al greater than 400), where the pure silica characteristic is well maintained and the coal-tar pitch transforms to porous carbon with a uniform pore structure, in comparison, the aluminum-based bonded silicalite-1 pellet (ABSP) shows a much lower Si/Al ratio of 4.1. As a result, the Z/AC-600 monolith demonstrates a competitive CH4 adsorption capacity of 23.45 cm3/g, outperforming silicalite-1 powder and ABSP pellet, and the CH4/N2 selectivity is higher than 4.0 at 298 K and 1 bar. The gas-mixture breakthrough experiments demonstrated that Z/AC-600 can effectively separate the CH4/N2 mixtures (20/80 and 50/50; v/v) with dynamic selectivity of 4.2 and 3.9, respectively. Pressure swing adsorption (PSA) simulations further indicate that, by one step enrichment, pristine 50% methane can be enriched to 80% with a recovery of 85%.

The removal of low concentration N2 is of great significance and challenging in the industrial production of high-purity O2 . Herein, a chromium-based metal-organic framework, namely, TYUT-96Cr, is reported, which has an unprecedented N2 capture capacity of 37.46 cm3 cm-3 and N2 /O2 (5:95, v/v) selectivity up to 26.95 (298 K and 1 bar), thus setting new benchmarks for all reported metal-organic frameworks and commercially used ones (Li-LSX and 13X). Breakthrough experiments reveal that N2 can be directly extracted from various N2 /O2 (79:21, 50:50, 5:95, and 1:99, v/v) mixtures by this material, affording a record-high O2 -production scale with 99.99% purity. Density functional theory calculations and in situ infrared spectroscopy studies demonstrate that the high-density open Cr (III) sites in TYUT-96Cr can behave as effective Lewis acidic sites, thus resulting in a strong affinity toward N2 . The high N2 adsorption selectivity, exceptional separation performance, and ultrahigh structural stability render this porous material with great potential for this important industrial application.

The formed Fe oxides (minerals) in the magnetic biochar production process can facilitate its recovery and carbon retention rate. However, the influence of Fe oxides on pyrolysis volatile-derived water-soluble organic matter (PVWSOM, also called wood vinegar) has been largely overlooked. Results demonstrated that in-situ formed Fe oxides (α-Fe2O3 and Fe3O4) could obviously inhibit biomass cracking and accordingly reduce PVWSOM emissions, as indicated by decreased PVWSOM concentrations from 28.7 to 6.8 mg C/g biomass. FT-ICR MS results further indicated that Fe oxides suppressed the formation of large-molecular-weight PVWSOM compounds with high degree of unsaturation (DBE value > 5) and oxygen content (oxygen number > 5), leading to lower polarity and aromaticity. Therefore, the changes in PVWSOM molecular structures caused by Fe oxides relieved its toxicity on wheat seed growth, and reduced negative impact on soil microbial diversity and promoted soil bacterial Proteobacteria and Acidobacteria. These results indicate that molecular structures of PVWSOM from biomass pyrolysis also can be changed by Fe oxides to affect its application.

The role of the financial system, especially the credit market, in productivity enhancement has interested many researchers. However, how credit allocation affects firms’ productivity in emerging e...

Background Alstonia scholaris (L.) R. Br. (Apocynaceae), an important herbal medicine, has been widely used to treat respiratory tract diseases, such as cough, asthma, phlegm, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Purpose To evaluate pharmacological effect of alkaloids from A. scholaris on ovalbumin induced airways allergic inflammatory model, and explore whether the dosing frequency is related to pharmacokinetics. Study design After oral administration of total alkaloids, the pharmacokinetic study of it was investigated. In addition, anti-allergic studies were carried out on ovalbumin-sensitized airways allergic inflammatory model of mice. Methods The pharmacokinetics of total alkaloids (TA) was investigated in SD rat plasma by a fully-validated LC-MS/MS method. Then, an ovalbumin (OVA)-sensitized airways allergic inflammatory model was established, in which mice were intra-gastrically administrated by 3 times a day (8.3 and 16.7 mg/kg) based on the pharmacokinetic behavior of TA) and single (25, 50 mg/kg) treatment regimen. Dexamethasone was used as a positive control for corticosteroid drugs. Cellular infiltration was assessed in the broncho-alveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Expressions of interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) in the BALF were determined, levels of immunoglobulin E (IgE) and eotaxin in serum were measured, and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities as well as malondialdehyde (MDA) content in the serum and BALF were examined. Finally, histopathological examination in the lung was assessed by H. E. staining. Results The time course of plasma concentration of 4 bioactive indole alkaloids fitted an open two-compartment model after oral administration of total alkaloids at doses of 10, 25, and 50 mg/kg. The area under the curve and the maximum concentration values of four major alkaloids increased dose-dependently, and half-life suggested a short-lasting pharmacological effect. Then, an ovalbumin-provoked airways allergic inflammatory model indicated that the pharmacological effect of administration of total alkaloids 3 times a day was a little better than that of single dose daily. The percentage of eosinophils in BALF was reduced obviously and the pathological damage of lung was also attenuated. There was also a significant reduction in IL-4 and promotion in IL-10 in the BALF. Serum IgE and eotaxin expression also significantly decreased in treated animals. Furthermore, the activity of SOD elevated remarkably and lipid peroxidation product (MDA) decreased in the administrated mice. Conclusion The pharmacological effects administrated for 3 times a day had precedence over single dose daily, which was related to the prolonged retention time and the maintained plasma concentration. Moreover, scholaricine and vallesamine might be responsible for the treatment of allergic asthma, mainly in total alkaloids.

Organometal trihalide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) based on multiple-site alloyed perovskite currently attract a surge of research interests owing to their extreme high solar-to-electric power conversion efficiency (PCE). Additionally, perovskite single crystals, proven to possess lower defect density, are highly anticipated to realize the full potential of perovskite materials. Herein, we for the first time proposes a facile and operable cooling-induced crystallization method to fabricate dual-site alloyed FA x MA 1−x Pb(I x Br 1−x ) 3 single microcrystals with tunable bandgaps, which will later be employed as encouraging precursors to form high quality perovskite films with extended grain sizes and less grain boundaries. The corresponding solar cells showcase advanced charge transport and retarded recombination, leading to satisfying photovoltaic performance and heartening device stability (a champion PCE of 18.3% and a satisfying maintenance of ~83% initial PCE after 2000 h aging without encapsulation), indicating a promising protocol of fabricating miscellaneous single microcrystal perovskite precursors for highly efficient PSCs.

ABX3-type organic-inorganic hybrid halide perovskite materials have been recognized as promising candidates for optoelectronic applications. However, poor stability of organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite hinders their forward long-term utilization and hence an effective strategy is needed to replace the organic part with an inorganic cation. Herein, all inorganic CsPbI3 nanowires with a diameter of 50–100 nm are synthesized on fluorine-doped tin oxide glass via a simple solution-dipping process, which are further transformed into CsPbBr3 nanowires through a solution-phase halide exchange method. A phase change from non-perovskite to perovskite structure is observed during the ion substitution process of I− by Br−, which is elaborated by X-ray diffraction, absorption and photoluminescence spectra. We for the first time apply the as-formed CsPbI3 and CsPbBr3 nanowires into perovskite solar cells, yielding power conversion efficiency of 0.11% and 1.21%, respectively. The inorganic CsPbBr3 nanowire solar cell shows impressive stability which still remains 99% of the initial power conversion efficiency even after 5500 h aging.

A novel Al(III)-4-tert-butylpyridine (TBP) gel electrolyte is successfully achieved by a simple and facile in situ gelation method and applied as quasi-solid-state electrolyte for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Through directly adding Al3+ into the TBP solution, the induced hydrolysis of Al3+ and the coordination interaction between Al3+ and TBP facilitates the formation of metal-organic gels(MOGs), in which such bi-functional TBP molecules will act as both gelators and active additives to tailor the performance of electrolytes. In addition, the gel electrolytes can largely preserve the properties of liquid electrolyte and penetrate well into the TiO2 photoanode film. Both Al3+ and TBP in the gel electrolytes affect the performance of cells. The Jsc of gel electrolytes decrease with the increasing concentration of gelators due to the enhanced strength and viscosity of the gel electrolytes, while the competition between Al3+ and TBP causes conduction band edge shift and electron recombination, leading to a variation of Voc. Herein, by tuning the molar ratio of Al3+/TBP, an impressive conversion efficiency of 8.25% is obtained, indicating a promising protocol of preparing MOGs not only to achieve high performance in solar cells, but also opens up extended scopes in other energy-related fields such as catalysis.

Cesium lead iodide perovskite (CsPbI3) has been proposed as an efficient alternative to modify the instability of methylammonium lead iodide (MAPbI3) under thermal and humidity stress. However, three-dimensional (3D) cesium lead iodide forms an undesirable non-perovskite structure with a wide bandgap at ambient atmosphere. Herein, dimension engineering is employed by introducing a bulky ammonium cation to form stable 2D cesium lead iodide perovskite BA2CsPb2I7 (BA = CH3(CH2)3NH3), which not only exhibits prominent optoelectronic properties, but also possesses superior structural and compositional stability to 3D CsPbI3 and MAPbI3 under the pressure of heat and humidity. The current 2D BA2CsPb2I7 shows excellent stability after exposure to 30% relative humidity for 30 days or upon heating at 85 °C for 3 days. In addition, the corresponding BA2CsPb2I7 based planar perovskite solar cells retain 92% of the initial power conversion efficiency (PCE) after aging for over 30 days without any encapsulation, demonstrating the up-scalability of 2D perovskite compounds as stable and efficient light-absorbing materials for perovskite solar cells and other optoelectronic applications.

Objective(s): The aim of this study was to explore the effects of Squid ink polysaccharide (SIP) on prevention of autophagy and oxidative stress induced by cyclophosphamide (CP) in Leydig cells of mice. Materials and Methods: Examination of reproductive organ exponents, abnormal sperm rate, activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), contents of malondialdehyde (MDA), and histological structure were performed to detect the optimal dose of SIP against oxidative stress damage in vivo, and autophagy-associated protein LC3 and Beclin-1 were examined by immunofluorescence, and their expression was detected by Western blot analysis. Leydig cells ultrastructural changes were observed by transmission fluorescent microscope. Results: SIP significantly inhibited sperm aberration, histological structure and injury of seminiferous tubules caused by CP, as well as the antioxidant activity of SOD and CAT were increased; contents of MDA were decreased. The optimal dose of SIP for prevention of oxidative stress injury by CP was 80 mg/kg. In addition, LC3 and Beclin-1 fluorescent granules were much less in the Leydig cell layer after treatment via SIP compared with the CP-treated group, and the expression levels of LC3 and Beclin-1 were also decreased. Furthermore, characteristics of cell autophagy such as mitochondrial swelling, autophagic vacuoles, and chromatin pyknosis were observed in CP-treated Leydig cells, but SIP could effectively weaken injury of Leydig cell ultrastructure by CP. Conclusion: SIP, as an antioxidant, prevents the cytoskeleton damage through up-regulation antioxidant capacity and inhibition autophagy caused by CP.

Nowadays, obtaining a thin and large-area perovskite single-crystal (SC) is still challenging. Herein, we report a novel strategy to prepare a laminar MAPbBr3 SC with a controllable thickness of 16 μm and a size of 6 × 8 mm. Additionally, the SC solar cell achieves an intriguing efficiency of 7.11% with an impressive stability, maintaining 93% initial PCE after aging for 1000 h.

Halide perovskite single crystal of cubic HC(NH2)2PbI3 (FAPbI3) having excellent optoelectronic properties, such as narrow bandgap, large absorption coefficient and superior thermal stability has caught a surge of attention as a promising material for production of high-performance optoelectronic devices. However, at room temperature, the self-transformation of cubic FAPbI3 perovskite phase to non-perovskite phase leaves a critical roadblock to its practical viability. Herein, a simple alloying strategy by mixing methylammonium with formamidinium is developed to stabilize the FAPbI3 perovskite phase, hence achieving a highly stable mixed cation MA0.45FA0.55PbI3 perovskite single crystal over a span of 14 months. The MA0.45FA0.55PbI3 single crystal exhibits exceptional optoelectronic properties like high carrier mobility of 271 ± 60 cm2 s−1 V−1 and long diffusion length up to 254 μm, which are twice the values for sole MAPbI3 or FAPbI3 crystals. In addition, the photodetector based on MA0.45FA0.55PbI3 single crystal exhibits low detection limit of about 1 nW cm−2, high ON–OFF ratio of ∼1000, short response time of less than 200 μs, and impressive stability under aging in dark for 4 months or continuous photo-switching test for 1000 s.

Designing and exploring efficient and stable non-noble bifunctional catalysts by nanostructure modification and chemical composition tuning for water splitting is of critical importance for sustainable resources. Herein, pure phase nickel molybdenum phosphide (NiMoP2) nanowires on carbon cloth are successfully synthesized through a simple and highly reproducible in situ P/O exchange process. Such a NiMoP2 nanowire catalyst requires low overpotentials of 199 and 330 mV to obtain a high current density of 100 mA cm−2 towards the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER), respectively, and is among the most active HER and OER electrocatalysts yet reported. The bifunctional NiMoP2 is used as both anode and cathode catalysts in a two-electrode water electrolysis configuration, which delivers a current density of 10 mA cm−2 under a potential of 1.67 V. Furthermore, the overall water-splitting of the bifunctional NiMoP2 nanowire catalyst is further driven by a dry battery with a nominal voltage of 1.5 V which exhibits excellent performance and durability in a strong alkaline electrolyte.

Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is a valuable technology tool with various uses in transgenic animals, regenerative medicine, and stem cell research. However, the efficiency of SCNT embryos appears to have poor developmental competency. Environmental issues may adversely affect SCNT embryos in buffalo. Thereafter, the present study aimed to explore the effect of season on the maturation of buffalo oocytes and subsequent developmental capability after parthenogenetic activation and SCNT in buffalo. Buffalo oocytes (n = 6353) were collected from local slaughterhouse at various seasons; spring (March-April), summer (May-August), autumn (September-November), and winter (December-January). A significant increase (p 0.05) was recorded in the maturation rate (57.07%) at autumn compared with spring, summer, and winter (50.46, 50.93, and 50.66%, respectively). No significant differences were recorded in the fusion and the cleavage rates among all seasons. Blastocyst development rate was higher (p 0.05) in autumn and winter (16.52 ± 8.45% and 15.98 ± 7.17%, respectively) than in spring and summer (9.47 ± 6.71% and 10.84 ± 6.58%, respectively) seasons. It could be concluded that the season had a significant effect on oocyte development competence which can be used for SCNT in buffalo.

PurposeTo compare T2-weighted image (T2WI) and conventional Diffusion-weighted image (cDWI) of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for sensitivity of qualitative diagnosis and accuracy of tumor size (TS) measurement in endometrial cancer (EC). Meanwhile, the effect of the lesion size itself and tumor grade on the ability of T2WI and cDWI of TS assessment was explored. Ultimately, the reason of deviation on size evaluation was studied.Materials and methods34 patients with EC were enrolled. They were all treated with radical hysterectomy and performed MR examinations before operation. Firstly, the sensitivity of T2WI alone and T2WI–DWI in qualitative diagnosis of EC were compared according to pathology. Secondly, TS on T2WI and cDWI described with longitudinal (LD) and horizontal diameter (HD) were compared to macroscopic surgical specimen (MSS) quantitatively in the entire lesions and the subgroup lesions which grouped by postoperative tumor size itself and tumor grade. Thirdly, the discrepancy of mean ADC values (ADC mean) and range ADC values (ADC range) between different zones of EC were explored.ResultsFor qualitative diagnosis, the sensitivity of T2WI–DWI (97%) was higher than T2WI alone (85%) (p = 0.046).For TS estimation, no significant difference (PLD = 0.579; PHD = 0.261) was observed between T2WI (LDT2WI = 3.90 cm; HDT2WI = 2.88 cm) and MSS (LD = 4.00 cm; HD = 3.06 cm), whereas TS of cDWI (LDDWI = 3.01 cm; HDDWI = 2.54 cm) were smaller than MSS (PLD = 0.002; PHD = 0.002) in all lesions. In subgroup of tumor with G1 (grade 1) and small lesion (defined as maximum diameter ConclusioncDWI can detect EC very sensitively. The TS on cDWI was smaller than the fact for the ECs with G2/3 and big size. The TS of T2WI was in accordance with the actual size for all ECs. The heterogeneity may be responsible for the inaccuracy of cDWI.

A phosphate solubilizing fungus was isolated from the rhizosphere of tomato in greenhouse in Liaozhong County, Liaoning Province, Northeast China. The strain was identified as a new strain of Penicillium oxalicum by morphological characteristics and ITS rDNA sequence comparison, and then was named PSF1. Strain PSF1 could utilize various carbon sources such as glucose, sucrose, lactose, galactose, soluble starch and nitrogen sources such as ammonium sulfate, ammonium chloride, ammonium nitrate, potassium nitrate, urea for growth and metabolism, with an efficient phosphate solubilizing capacity. It grew well and had a high ability of phosphate solubilization under the conditions of C/N 10:1-60:1 and initial pH 7-8. Strain PSF1 had strong acid production ability, with the pH of culture mediums decreasing from 7.00-7.50 to 2.06-4.87 during the culture process. The highest phosphate solubilizing capacity in four phosphorus sources mediums was tricalcium phosphate (869.62 mg·L从辽宁省辽中县多年耕种的日光温室番茄根际土壤中筛选出一株解磷真菌,通过菌落形态特征和ITS rDNA序列对比,鉴定该菌株为草酸青霉菌的一株新菌株,将其命名为PSF1.该菌株能利用葡萄糖、蔗糖、乳糖、半乳糖、可溶性淀粉等多种碳源和硫酸铵、氯化铵、硝酸铵、硝酸钾、尿素等多种氮源进行生长代谢并表现出较强的解磷能力,在C/N 10∶1～60∶1、初始pH 7～8的条件下生长情况较好且解磷能力较高.该菌株有很强的产酸能力,在培养过程中培养液pH由7.00～7.50下降至2.06～4.87;在4种磷源培养液中的最高解磷量分别为磷酸三钙(869.62 mg·L

Citrus grandis (L.) Osbeck is a popular fruit cultivated around the world, and its peels are sometimes used for the treatment of cough, abdominal pain, and indigestion in China. However, the peel is discarded after fruit consumption in most cases, and its chemical constituents and biological activities have not been validated before. The present study focused on evaluation of the chemical and pharmacological profile of coumarins from peels of C. grandis against inflammation. The extracts and phytochemicals from peels of C. grandis were prepared, and anti-inflammatory activities were carried out in vivo and in vitro, including inhibiting xylene-induced ear edema and carrageenan-induced paw edema in mice and the production of inflammatory cytokines (interleukin 1β, prostaglandin 2, and tumor-necrosis factor α) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW 264.7 cells. Results indicated that methanolic extract, ethyl acetate fraction, and four major coumarins (compounds 7, 8, 13, and 16) inhibited swelling induced by xylene and carrageenan, separately, in vivo. Furthermore, 18 coumarins inhibited inflammatory factor secretion in macrophages primed by LPS, in which compounds 4, 6, 7, 10, 17 showed the most pronounced change, which were comparable to dexamethasone. In summary, peel of C. grandis showed an anti-inflammatory effect and coumarin compounds were responsible for regulating inflammatory mediators and cytokines, which might provide a novel nutritional strategy for inflammatory diseases.

Laparoscopic pancreatoduodenectomy(LPD)is one of the most challenging abdominal procedures.It has been developed for nearly 25 years since the first report in 1994.During the first 10 years,LPD has developed slowly due to widespread controversy and opposition.In the past 10 years,a number of breakthroughs have been made in LPD with the introduction of high-definition laparoscopy,improvements in laparoscopic instruments,advances in minimally invasive surgery,improved selections of patients,and accumulation of experiences in open pancreaticoduodenectomy(OPD).However,many controversies still exist.This review summarizes the strength and weakness of LPD versus OPD in terms of indications,learning curve,complications,short-term benefits,long-term oncology results,and cost and proposes its future directions.

The objectives of this study were to investigate whether blastocoel collapse before vitrification induced by laser improves the cryo-survivability of buffalo in-vitro-fertilized (IVF) blastocysts and whether laser assisted hatching (LAH) promotes hatchability of fresh and frozen-thawed IVF blastocysts. The expanded blastocysts were harvested on Days 6-9 and randomly allocated into five groups as follows: (1) blastocysts were vitrified and thawed without any treatment; (2) blastocysts were vitrified after 15-20 μm zona pellucida (ZP) thinning opposite to the inner cell mass, and blastocoels were also blotted in order to outflow the blastocoelic fluid before vitrification; (3) ZP thinning was made immediately after thawing; (4) fresh blastocysts underwent LAH; and (5) as a control, fresh blastocysts without treatment. Results of the present study showed that the cryosurvival rates of vitrified Day 8 and Day 9 blastocysts in Group 2 were significantly (P 0.01) higher in Group 2 than Group 1. The hatching rates of Day 8 and Day 9 blastocysts in Group 2 and Group 3 were also significantly (P 0.01) higher compared with Group 1. Moreover, the hatching rate of Day 9 blastocysts in Group 4 was notably (P 0.05) higher than Group 5. In conclusion, LAH promotes the hatching rates of Day 9 fresh and Days 8-9 vitrified blastocysts, and artificial blastocoel collapse before vitrification improves the cryosurvival rate of Days 8-9 IVF buffalo blastocysts.

This chapter introduces the hydrothermal carbonization of biomass for hydrochar production and its applications. It starts from production of hydrochar with the influence parameters of feedstock, reaction temperature, reaction time, and catalyst. Hydrochar properties, such as heating value, chemical properties, microcrystalline structure, and surface morphology, have been discussed. Following that, the environmental impact of hydrochar on soil physical characteristics, chemical characteristics, biological characteristics, and the plant growth were reviewed. Modification of hydrochar and its further application for climate change mitigation, pollution control, and remediation, and energy storage were also discussed.

This work aimed to investigate the effect of fucoidan (FPS) on urate transporters induced by uric acid (UA). The results showed that UA stimulated the expression of glucose transporter 9 (GLUT9) and urate transporter 1 (URAT1) in HK-2 cells, and FPS could reverse the effect. Moreover, UA could activate NF-κB, JNK and PI3K/Akt pathways, but both pathway inhibitors and FPS inhibited the UA-induced activation of these three pathways. These data suggested that FPS effectively inhibited the expression induction of reabsorption transporters URAT1 and GLUT9 by UA, through repressing the activation of NF-κB, JNK and PI3K/Akt signal pathways in HK-2 cells. The in vitro research findings support the in vivo results that FPS reduces serum uric acid content in hyperuricemia mice and rats through inhibiting the expression of URAT1 and GLUT9 in renal tubular epithelial cells. This study provides a theoretical basis for the application of FPS in the treatment of hyperuricemia.

Ethnopharmacological relevance Alstonia scholaris (L.) R. Br. (Apocynaceae) is a Dai folk medicine for the treatment of lung diseases in China. Aim of the study: The present study investigated the anti-pulmonary fibrosis effects of total alkaloids (TA) and the potential active ingredients and its possible mechanism. Materials and methods After intratracheal instillation of bleomycin (BLM, 5 mg/kg), mice were divided into ten groups, and orally treated with the corresponding samples once daily for 28 days. The effect of indole alkaloids was determined through analysis of cytokines, as well as histopathological examinations and gene expressions. Results Severe lung fibrosis was observed in the BLM-treated mice on day 28. However, the administration of TA significantly ameliorated the pathological changes in the lungs, decreased the content of Krebs von den Lungen-6, lactate dehydrogenase, transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), hydroxyproline, type I collagen, and malonaldehyde, and enhanced the activity of superoxide dismutase in the serum and lung tissues. In addition, the enhanced TGF-β and matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) expressions in BLM-induced mice were obviously weakened by indole alkaloids, as well as the ratio of matrix metalloproteinase-1 to tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 was decreased. Moreover, picrinine and scholaricine yielded markedly better values in the aforementioned indices than those in other samples, indicating that they may be the active ingredients of alkaloids. Conclusions TA exerted protective effects against BLM-induced pulmonary fibrosis by reducing collagen deposition through TGF-β/MMP-1 pathway.

PSR J0742−2822 is known for its quasi-periodic changes in the observed pulse profile and spindown rate. In this paper, we analyzed 13 years of timing data obtained with the Nanshan 25-m radio telescope and the Parkes 64-m radio telescope. We found that the average values of the spin-down rate ( 〈 ν ˙ 〉 ) of this pulsar changed in four different states. We investigated the correlation between ν ˙ and W 50, and ascertained that the correlation changed in different 〈 ν ˙ 〉 states. Moreover, not all the changes in 〈 ν ˙ 〉 states and correlation can be associated with glitch activities. We examined the long term evolution of γ-ray flux (0.1–300 GeV) and the pulse profiles corresponding to the four different states using Fermi-LAT Pass 8 (P8R3) data from 2008 August 5 to 2019 October 1. We did not detect a significant change in γ-ray flux or the pulse profile. Our results suggest that the connection between pulsar rotation and emission is more complex than previously reported for this pulsar.

The performance of a zeolite is often related to its crystal morphology. In this work, the relationship between the crystal morphology of zeolite L and its gas separation performance was evaluated. Cylindrical-L (C-L: 3 × 2 μm), disk-shaped-L (D-L: 0.2 × 1.2 μm), and nanosized-L (N-L: 40 × 25 nm) were synthesized. Various characterization methods, including X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and N2 adsorption–desorption isotherms at 77 K (BET), were employed to obtain complementary information. Due to its small crystal size, the BET specific surface area (427.2 m2/g) and total pore volume (0.382 cm3/g) of N-L are significantly higher than those of D-L (339.6 m2/g and 0.116 cm3/g) and C-L (279.8 m2/g and 0.098 cm3/g). The CO2 adsorption capacity on N-L (70.7 cm3/g) increases 20.9% than that on C-L (58.5 cm3/g). The shorter channel paths in N-L permit faster diffusion and mass transfer than in C-L or D-L, as confirmed by kinetic experiments. Furthermore, breakthrough experiments indicate that N-L has great application potential for separating and capturing CO2 from power-plant flue gas, biogas, or landfill gas.