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Background:There have been few studies regarding the results of the Korean standard patch test. Objectives:The purpose of this study was to analyze the type and frequency of common contact allergens in Korea and to compare the results with those of previous reports. Methods:From June 2009 to June 2014, 330 patients with suspected allergic contact dermatitis who visited our clinic were tested using the Korean standard patch test. Results:The highest sensitization rate was found for nickel sulfate (47.58%). There was a significant gender difference in the prevalence of sensitization to nickel sulfate (OR = 2.41,p = .0004) and wool alcohol (OR = 2.85,p = .0358). Higher sensitization to nickel sulfate (OR = 1.18,p = .0159), 4-phenylenediamine (OR = 1.23,p= .003), tixocortol-21-pivalte (OR 1.48,p = .0212) and lower sensitization to thimerosal (OR = 0.77,p = .0023) were associated with increasing age. Patients with allergic contact dermatitis on the scalp had a significantly higher risk of sensitization to 4-phenylenediamine (OR = 3.07,p = .0013). Patients with allergic contact dermatitis on the hands had significantly higher risks of sensitization to wool alcohol (OR = 3.44,p = .0083), formaldehyde (OR = 2.52,p = .0178), and colophony (OR = 2.05,p = .0499). Conclusions:These results demonstrate trends in patch test results in Korea and the basis for the presumption of the route of allergen exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toluene is the major volatile organic compound found in glue and is often used as a hallucinogenic for abusers. Use with alcohol increases the risk of adverse effects from toluene exposure. In this study, a headspace and cryotrapping gas chromatography–mass spectrometry method was developed and validated for the determination of toluene and ethanol in urine. Experimental and instrumental variables were investigated to optimize the method for sensitivity. Excess sodium sulfate was used as the salting-out reagent before the headspace protocol. Linear least squares regression with a 1/xweighting factor was used to construct calibration curves from 0.002 to 0.4 µg mL−1for toluene and 10 to 2000 µg mL−1for ethanol. The correlation coefficients exceeded 0.9993. The limits of detection were 0.0005 µg mL−1for toluene and 0.21 µg mL−1for ethanol. Intraday and interday precisions were within 5.4 and 11.5%, while intraday and interday accuracies were between −11.3 to −4.0% and −11.0 to 1.2%, respectively. The method validation results for selectivity and stability were satisfactory. The validation results were used to estimate the expanded uncertainty and the contribution of individual steps in the method for the quantification of toluene and ethanol. The relative expanded uncertainties were 14.1% for toluene and 4.6% for ethanol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selaginella guihaia sp. nov. (Selaginellaceae), a new species of spikemoss from southern China and northern Vietnam around the Gulf of Tonkin (Beibu Gulf ), is described and illustrated. Morphological and molecular comparisons of the new species with other similar species (S. doederleinii, S. ornata and S. trachyphylla) are provided. The morphological and molecular evidence clearly indicates S. guihaia is a distinct species. Morphologically S. guihaia differs from other species by its obviously white-margined leaves, the ventral leaves scabrous on upper surfaces throughout the basiscopic or also rarely present on upper halves, and the ovate axillary leaves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced oxidative stress has been demonstrated to induce afterdepolarizations and triggered activities in isolated myocytes, but the underlying mechanisms remain not fully understood. We aimed to explore whether protein kinase C (PKC) activation plays an important role in oxidative stress-induced afterdepolarizations. Methods: Action potentials and ion currents of isolated rabbit cardiomyocytes were recorded using the patch clamp technique. H2O2 (1 mM) was perfused to induce oxidative stress and the specific classical PKC inhibitor, Gö 6983 (1 μM), was applied to test the involvement of PKC. Results: H2O2 perfusion prolonged the action potential duration and induced afterdepolarizations. Pretreatment with Gö 6983 prevented the emergence of H2O2-induced afterdepolarizations. Additional application of Gö 6983 with H2O2 effectively suppressed H2O2-induced afterdepolarizations. H2O2 increased the late sodium current (INa,L) (n = 7, p < 0.01) and the L-type calcium current (ICa,L) (n = 5, p < 0.01), which were significantly reversed by Gö 6983 (p < 0.01). H2O2 also increased the transient outward potassium current (Ito) (n = 6, p < 0.05). However, Gö 6983 showed little effect on H2O2-induced enhancement of Ito. Conclusions: H2O2 induced afterdepolarizations via the activation of PKC and the enhancement of ICa,L and INa,L. These results provide evidence of a link between oxidative stress, PKC activation and afterdepolarizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Morphological control has been efficiently used to improve the properties of polymer blends/composites. Here we introduce a non-invasive approach to regulate the morphologies of isotactic polypropylene (iPP)/linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) blends via magnetic self-organization. First, ferric oxide (Fe 3 O 4 ) particles are added into LLDPE melts to form an LLDPE + Fe 3 O 4 master batch. Second, the master batch is melt-mixed with iPP to form the iPP/(LLDPE + Fe 3 O 4 ) composites with a random distribution of LLDPE + Fe 3 O 4 droplets. Finally, the randomly distributed Fe 3 O 4 particles self-organize into particle chains in a magnetic field, which induce LLDPE droplets to coalesce with each other to form a strip morphology. The composites with a parallel strip morphology exhibited mechanical enhancement in comparison to the composites with the droplet morphology. For example, the Young's modulus and storage moduli (at − 30 °C) of the 80/20–10 composites, where the iPP/(LLDPE + Fe 3 O 4 ) ratio is 80/20, and the content of Fe 3 O 4 particles in LLDPE is 10 wt%, with a parallel strip morphology along the tensile direction being 12 and 36% higher than that of the samples with the droplet morphology, respectively. Complex viscosity of the samples with the strip morphology is lower than that of the samples with the droplet morphology because of interfacial slip. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arc melting was utilized in this study to produce Zr55Cu30Ni5Al10 alloys under mixed atmospheres with various ratios of high-purity hydrogen to argon. The influences of hydrogen addition on the solidification structure and glass-forming ability of Zr55Cu30Ni5Al10 alloy were determined by examining microstructures in different parts of the cast ingots. The results showed that different degrees of crystallization structures were obtained in the ascast button ingots after arc melting in high-purity Ar, and the cross-sectional solidification morphology of arcmelted ingots was found to consist of crystals with varying from the bottom up. By contrast, there were completely amorphous structures in the middle and upper areas of the as-cast button ingots fabricated by adding 10% H2 to the high-purity Ar atmosphere. A clear solidification interface was found between the crystal and glass in the ascast button ingots, which indicates that hydrogen addition can enhance the Zr55Cu30Ni5Al10 alloy's glass-forming ability. The precise mechanism responsible for this was also investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Stroke is a major public health concern with high rates of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Cerebral ischemia and infarction are commonly associated with stroke. Currently used medications, though effective, are also associated with adverse effects. Development of effective neuroprotective agents with fewer side effects would be of clinical value. We evaluated the effects of Withaferin A (WA), a steroidal lactone derived from the plant Withania somnifera , on experimentally induced cerebral infarction. Materials and methods The ability of WA to inhibit neuroapoptosis and modulate vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) migration and PI3K/Akt signaling was assessed. Separate groups of Sprague Dawley rats were subjected to cerebral occlusion and reperfused for 24 h. Results WA treatment (25, 50 or 100 mg/kg bodyweight) significantly reduced the infarct area in a carotid ligation model; WA reduced intimal hyperplasia and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)-positive cell counts. Western blotting analysis revealed significantly suppressed PI3K/Akt signaling following cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury. WA supplementation was found to downregulate apoptotic pathway proteins. WA suppressed PTEN and enhanced p-Akt and GSK-3β levels and elevated mTORc1, cyclinD1 and NF-κB p65 expression, suggesting activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway. In vitro studies with PDGF-stimulated A7r5 cells revealed that WA exposure severely downregulated matrix metalloproteinases (MMP)-2 and -9 and inhibited migration of A7r5 cells. Additionally, WA reduced the proliferation of A7r5 cells significantly. Conclusions WA exerted neuroprotective effects by activating the PI3K/Akt pathway, modulating the expression of MMPs, and inhibiting the migration of VSMCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) is a major clinical problem in allergic asthma mainly caused by the hypercontractility of airway smooth muscles (ASM). S100A8 is an important member of the S100 calcium-binding protein family with a potential to regulate cell contractility. Here, we analyze the potential of S100A8 to regulate allergen-induced AHR and ASM contraction. Treatment with recombinant S100A8 (rS100A8) diminished airway hyperresponsiveness in OVA-sensitized rats. ASM contraction assays showed that rS100A8 reduced hypercontractility in both isolated tracheal rings and primary ASM cells treated by acetylcholine. rS100A8 markedly rescued the phosphorylation level of myosin light chain induced by acetylcholine in ASM cells. These results show that rS100A8 plays a protective role in regulating AHR in asthma by inhibiting ASM contraction. These results support S100A8 as a novel therapeutic target to control ASM contraction in asthma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cancer is a disease that involves abnormal cell growth and can invade or metastasize to other tissues. It is known that several factors are related to its initiation, proliferation, and invasiveness. Recently, it has been reported that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) can participate in specific functional pathways and further regulate the biological function of cancer cells. Studies on lncRNAs are therefore helpful for uncovering the underlying mechanisms of cancer biological processes.Methods: We investigated cancer-related lncRNAs using gene ontology (GO) terms and KEGG pathway enrichment scores of neighboring genes that are co-expressed with the lncRNAs by extracting important GO terms and KEGG pathways that can help us identify cancer-related lncRNAs. The enrichment theory of GO terms and KEGG pathways was adopted to encode each lncRNA. Then, feature selection methods were employed to analyze these features and obtain the key GO terms and KEGG pathways.Results: The analysis indicated that the extracted GO terms and KEGG pathways are closely related to several cancer associated processes, such as hormone associated pathways, energy associated pathways, and ribosome associated pathways. And they can accurately predict cancer-related lncRNAs.Conclusions: This study provided novel insight of how lncRNAs may affect tumorigenesis and which pathways may play important roles during it. These results could help understanding the biological mechanisms of lncRNAs and treating cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farming domesticated millets, tending pigs, and hunting constituted the core of human subsistence strategies during Neolithic Yangshao (5000-2900 BC). Introduction of wheat and barley as well as the addition of domesticated herbivores during the Late Neolithic (~2600-1900 BC) led to restructuring of ancient Chinese subsistence strategies. This study documents a dietary shift from indigenous millets to the newly introduced cereals in northcentral China during the Bronze Age Eastern Zhou Dynasty (771-221 BC) based on stable isotope analysis of human and animal bone samples. Our results show that this change affected females to a greater degree than males. We find that consumption of the newly introduced cereals was associated with less consumption of animal products and a higher rate of skeletal stress markers among females. We hypothesized that the observed separation of dietary signatures between males and females marks the rise of male-biased inequality in early China. We test this hypothesis by comparing Eastern Zhou human skeletal data with those from Neolithic Yangshao archaeological contexts. We find no evidence of male-female inequality in early farming communities. The presence of male-biased inequality in Eastern Zhou society is supported by increased body height difference between the sexes as well as the greater wealth of male burials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To investigate whether triphasic CT with a simplified Patlak plot can be used in clinical practice for the estimate of split kidney glomerular filtration rate (SKGFR). Materials and methods: The animal experiment included 15 rabbits that underwent 40 dynamic contrast-enhanced CT scans of the kidneys with 1.5 s time interval. Patlak-derived SKGFR was obtained using standard forty-point, two-point (unenhanced phase, arterial phase t and portovenous phase t ), and a modified two-point (MTP) (unenhanced, t , t , and a virtual t [ t = ( t + t )/2]) image data, respectively. The MTP-Patlak plot approach was then validated in 13 patients who underwent a triphasic renal contrast-enhanced CT examination. SKGFR measured by 99Tc-DTPA clearance was as a standard reference. Results: MTP-Patlak significantly reduced input function errors than two-point Patlak (21.1 ± 16.2 % vs 30.8 ± 15.2 %, p < 0.01) and showed good concordance with standard Patlak for measurement of SKGFR in animal experiment (1.20 ± 0.38 mL/g/min vs 1.51 ± 0.43 mL/g/min; linear correlation coefficient r = 0.87, p < 0.001). Human study showed that mean SKGFR was 45.7 mL/min (range, 26.5-86.2 mL/min) obtained from 99Tc-DTPA, and 38.2 mL/min (range, 18.6-79.3 mL/min) obtained from triphasic CT using MTP-Patlak plot. Linear correlation between the two methods was r = 0.75 ( p < 0.01). The mean difference between SKGFRs as determined with the two methods was 7.4 ± 9.0 mL/min. Conclusion: The MTP-Patlak approach, featured with simplicity, is feasible in a clinically indicated CT examination for the evaluation of split renal function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the vibration band gap characteristics of a liquid-filled composite pipeline. The transfer matrix method is used to create a one-dimensional fluid–structure interaction model of the composite pipeline from the constitutive equation, physical equations, and boundary conditions of the anisotropic material. A phononic crystal pipeline is designed with a periodic arrangement on the axial pipe wall. The method used to analyze the fluid–structure interaction of liquid-filled composite and phononic crystal pipelines is verified by comparing responses with finite-element method results. The results' agreement demonstrates the method's and calculation code's correctness. Furthermore, the band gaps for an empty composite phononic crystal pipe, water hammer, and a liquid-filled pipe are calculated by Bloch vector theory, and the effects of fluid–structure interaction and the composite parameters on the three band gap characteristics are analyzed. The numerical results show that Poisson's coupling affects the band gap at some frequency points, while the laying angle and fiber volume fraction in the composite pipe influence the band gap length and amplitude change. The research results of this paper provide a reference for the design and vibration control of liquid-filled composite pipelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Angiotensin-I-converting enzyme (ACE) is a key regulator of blood pressure as its critical role in the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone and kallikrein-kinin systems. Although a variety of natural and food peptides have been discovered to possess ACE-inhibitory activity over the past decades, they cannot be directly used as drugs due to their low efficiency and bad bioavailability. In this study, the intermolecular interaction of ACE with a snake venom inhibitor of bradykinin potentiating peptide b (BPPb) was investigated systematically at structural and energetic levels. The C-terminal region of the peptide can tightly pack against the enzyme active site and is primarily responsible for the enzyme inhibition. A tetrapeptide that covers the C-terminal region of BPPb exhibited a satisfactory ACE-inhibitory profile, which was used as start to generate a number of phenylalanine (Phe)-containing antihypertensive peptide inhibitors. The ortho -, meta - and para -positions of peptide Phe−2 phenyl moiety were systematically substituted with halogen atoms. It is revealed that bromine substitution separately at the meta - and para -positions can considerably improve the peptide inhibitory activity by 7.6-fold and 3.7-fold by forming a bifurcated halogen-bonding system with ACE His513 and Val518 residues as well as a binary halogen-bonding system with ACE Glu384 residue, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information transmission delays are inherent in neuronal systems and significantly influence their dynamic properties. Recent studies have shown that delay-induced multiple resonances occur when delays in synaptic transmission are taken into account. We reveal the influence of topology on the delay-induced multiple resonances phenomenon in locally driven systems in this paper. It is expressed as the maximum value of the Fourier coefficient, which occurs at an integer multiple of T / N , where T is the external signal period or the neuronal intrinsic oscillation period, N is determined by the topology of the network. We briefly discuss the obtained results with the underlying reasons in terms of the network's topology. The emergence of delay-induced multiple resonances depends on the interaction of the delay enhancement effect and the delay inhibition effect. In the case of weak coupling, the signal response performance is enhanced over a wider range of delay windows, which is dominated by delay enhancement effects. These results may provide a novel perspective on weak signal response and transmission in delay-coupled neural networks. • The weak signal detection and transmission performance of neuronal systems is enhanced by chaotic activity. • The signal detection performance of the system as a function of delay demonstrated both high and low. • Signal detection performance is enhanced when the N times the delay matches the signal period, with N related to the topology of the system. • Resonance peaks occur when the N times the delay matches the signal period, with N related to the topology of the system. • Appropriate coupling strengths can be selected to broaden the delay range of the resonance enhancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The strain rate effect of reinforcing steel bars is generally indispensable for modeling the dynamic responses of reinforced concrete structures in blast and impact events. A systematic experimental investigation was conducted on the strain rate behavior of reinforcing steel bar grades HPB235, HRB335, HRB400, and HRB500 which are widely used in the field of civil engineering in China. The dynamic testing was performed using a servo-hydraulic Instron VHS160/100-20 in a strain rate range from 2 to 75 s-1. Stress-strain curves at preset strain rates were obtained. The test data were then used to derive the parameters in a model based on the dynamic increase factors (DIFs) of strengths and the Johnson-Cook constitutive model. Results indicated that a significant strain rate effect was observed for the four rebar grades. The dynamic yield strengths increased from 13% to 41% and their ultimate strengths improved from 9% to 19% in the strain rate range during testing. The strain rate behavior of the four rebar grades could be appropriately predicted using the parameters in the model based on the DIFs of strengths and the Johnson-Cook model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) contributes to intimal hyperplasia and other vascular diseases. Caveolin-1 (Cav-1) has been recognized as a proliferative inhibitor of VSMCs and is likely to be an important regulator of VSMC migration. The underlying mechanism of pyrogallol on the VSMC migration is not fully understood. This study attempted to dissect the role of Cav-1 and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) in VSMC migration and to investigate the effect of pyrogallol on VSMC mobility during carotid artery ligation mice. The mRNA expression of MMP-3 and MMP-13 was down-regulated in cultured VSMC prepared from Cav-1-deficient (Cav-1 KO) mice whereas MMP-14 expression was up-regulated. Pyrogallol effectively inhibited the migration of Cav-1 KO VSMC by promoting the expression of tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-2. Pyrogallol also inhibited the migration of Cav-1 wild type (WT) VSMC, however, by increasing TIMP-1 expression and repressing MMP-2 activity. In a parallel in vivo study, intra-peritoneal (ip) of pyrogallol to carotid artery ligated mice significantly suppressed intima formation in mice carotid artery. Furthermore, the proMMP-9 activity in pyrogallol-treated mice serum significantly increased from Day 0 to Day 2 and decreased from Day 2 to Day 7 in a time-dependent manner. In addition, WT mice treated with pyrogallol had significantly reduced neointima formation, whereas no differences were observed in Cav-1 knock out (KO) mice. These results suggest that pyrogallol not only inhibited VSMC migration but also effectively diminishes the severity of neointima hyperplasia, implying that pyrogallol possesses potential anti-atherogenic effects for the treatment of vascular diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autophagy is an important defense mechanism targeting intracellular bacteria to restrict their survival and growth. On the other hand, several intracellular pathogens have developed an antiautophagy mechanism to facilitate their own replication or intracellular survival. Up to now, no information about the origin or evolution of the antiautophagic genes in bacteria is available. BopA is an effector protein secreted by Burkholderia pseudomallei via the type three secretion system, and it has been shown to play a pivotal role in their escape from autophagy.  The evolutionary origin of bopA was examined in this work. Sequence similarity searches for BopA showed that no homolog of BopA was detected in eukaryotes. However, eukaryotic linear motifs were detected in BopA. The phylogenetic tree of the BopA proteins in our analysis is congruent with the species phylogeny derived from housekeeping genes. Moreover, there was no obvious difference in GC content values of bopA gene and their respective genomes. Integrated information on the taxonomic distribution, phylogenetic relationships, and GC content of the bopA gene of Burkholderia revealed that this gene was acquired via convergent evolution, not from eukaryotic host through horizontal gene transfer (HGT) event. This work has, for the first time, characterized the evolutionary mechanism of bacterial evasion of autophagy. The results of this study clearly demonstrated the role of convergent evolution in the evolution of how bacteria evade autophagy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polydnaviruses (PDVs) play a critical role in altering host gene expression to induce immunosuppression. However, it remains largely unclear how PDV genes affect host genes. Here, the complete genome sequence of Microplitis bicoloratus bracovirus (MbBV), which is known to be an apoptosis inducer, was determined. The MbBV genome consisted of 17 putative double-stranded DNA circles and 179 fragments with a total size of 336,336 bp and contained 116 open reading frames (ORFs). Based on conserved domains, nine gene families were identified, of which the IκB-like viral ankyrin ( vank) family included 28 members and was one of the largest families. Among the 116 ORFs, 13 MbBV genes were expressed in hemocytes undergoing MbBV-induced apoptosis and further analyzed. Three vank genes ( vank86, vank92, vank101) were expressed in hemocytes collected from Spodoptera litura larvae parasitized by M. bicoloratus, in which host NF-κB/IκBs, including relish, dorsal, and cactus, were also persistently expressed. When Spli221 cells were infected with MbBV viral particles, mRNA levels of host and viral NF-κB/IκB genes were persistent and also varied in Spli221 cells undergoing virus-induced pre-apoptosis cell from 1 to 5 hours postinfection. Both were then expressed in a time-dependent expression in virus-induced apoptotic cells. These data show that viral IκB-like transcription does not inhibit host NF-κB/IκB expression, suggesting that transcription of these genes might be regulated by different mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a high incidence metabolic disease. Glimepiride, metformin, and their combination are the most commonly used therapeutics for T2DM in the clinic, but little is known about the metabolic responses of these therapies. In this study, ultrahigh-pressure liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC/ESI-QTOF-MS)-based metabolomics was applied to detect changes in the urinary metabolomic profile of Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rats in response to these treatments. Additionally, standard biochemical parameters (e.g., fasting plasma glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin, oral glucose tolerance, urinary glucose, triglyceride, total cholesterol, and insulin) and liver histopathology were monitored and observed. Six metabolites, including 3-galactosyl lactose, citric acid, sphingosine, phytosphingosine, ribothymidine, and succinoadenosine, were found significantly reverted to the normal level after these therapies. The present study is the first to present citric acid and sphinganine as the potential markers of T2DM, which could be used as indicators to observe the anti-diabetic effects of glimepiride, metformin, and their combination treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The CO 2 adsorption performance of MgO in the presence of water vapor is of great importance for CO 2 capture and was studied in a fixed bed in this work. With the relative humidity at 50 °C increased from 30% to 70%, the CO 2 adsorption capacity of MgO increased from 0.82 mol/kg to 3.42 mol/kg correspondingly. The CO 2 adsorption capacity could reach as high as 3.54 mol/kg at adsorption temperature of 75 °C and a concentration of water vapor of 8.547% v/v. But the time to equilibrium increased due to the restrained CO 2 diffusion caused by the condensation of water vapor. Results on cycle experiments implied that condensed water would accelerate the aggregation of MgO particles. It was also found that when the temperature was higher than 100 °C, the condensation of water vapor would not happen and the porous structure would keep stable in the cycling adsorption. When the adsorption temperature is between 100 °C and 110 °C, the degradation of porous structure could be eliminated and the increase of CO 2 adsorption capacity could be achieved at the same time. This work indicates that MgO is a promising candidate for CO 2 capture from wet flue gas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article we consider the boundary value problems for differential equations in fractal heat transfer. The exact solutions of non-differentiable type are obtained by using the local fractional differential transform method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an analytical impedance synthesis method (ISM) is proposed to analyze the vibration characteristics of a pipe-hull coupled system, in which the hull of a submarine can be simplified to a combined conical-stiffened cylindrical-hemisphere shell. Wave solution and power series solution are used to describe the displacement of cylindrical and conical shell respectively. Rib stiffened and bulkhead are modeled as annular plate and circular plate. Based on exact general solutions, the impedance matrix of each segment is established separately and assembled in the global coordinate by displacement continuity and force balance boundary conditions. Natural frequency and forced responses are compared with open literature and FEM results to verify the correctness of the method. In the numerical examples, the effects of direction of external force and stiffness of support on the forced vibration characteristics are discussed, which can provide some guides for acoustic design of pipe in submarine. • Fluid structure interaction model of three dimensional fluid filled pipe system is established by impedance synthesis method. • Vibration analysis of conical-stiffened cylindrical shells by analytical method. • Three dimensional pipe system is coupled with hull, which is simplified as combined shell. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • It is proposed that the effect of synaptic formation in hippocampus on cognitive function after traumatic brain injury. • It is proposed for the first time that resveratrol regulates synaptophysin through SIRT1 / PGC-1 pathway, changes synapses and affects cognitive function. • SIRT1 inhibitor ex-527 and agonist srt1720 were introduced into the study and verified in many aspects. • Resveratrol may improve cognition by protecting synapses. Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the most common form of craniocerebral injury. Post-TBI neurological impairment is often accompanied by cognitive dysfunction. The potential molecular mechanisms of post-TBI cognitive impairment are not well characterized. Resveratrol, a natural polyphenolic agent, has been shown to improve cognitive function in neurological disorders and aging models through its anti-inflammatory activity. However, whether it can affect synapses to improve cognitive function and the potential mechanisms are not clear. Synapse plays an important role in cognitive function, and synaptophysin(SYN) is one of the important factors involved in synapse formation. Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) has a neuroprotective effect via its effect on various biological processes, such as inflammation, metabolism, apoptosis, and autophagy. The results of this research suggest that resveratrol increases synaptophysin by activating the SIRT1/PGC-1 pathway and improves post-TBI cognitive function. Use of SIRT1 inhibitor (EX-527) and agonist (SRT1720) in the mice experiments verified the effect and mechanism of action of resveratrol in improving cognitive function. Our study identifies potential therapeutic targets for post-TBI cognitive dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We use CWF to decompose the image into base and detail layers, which enables the target edges of the fused image to be more clearly. • We use gamma correction for IR image salient target extraction and propose a method to calculate parameters adaptively according to the image content to make it more suitable for base layer fusion. • We propose an optimization model for synchronous fusion and noise reduction in the detail layer and solve it with the alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM). A new saliency-based multi-band image synchronous fusion method is proposed. First, combined window filtering is used to decompose the image into base and detail layers to better protect the edges of the image. Second, gamma correction is used for infrared image salient region extraction. To make it more applicable to the base layer fusion, we propose a method to calculate the parameters adaptively according to the image content. Consequently, the fusion result can better retain the thermal radiation information of the target. We then consider both the image quality and the amount of information contained in the image and construct an optimization model for synchronous fusion and noise reduction of detail layers to reduce the influence of noisy images on the fusion results. Finally, the fused base and detail layers are combined to obtain the final image. Our proposed method is evaluated and compared with representative methods, both qualitatively and quantitatively, applied to the TNO dataset. The results demonstrate that the proposed method aligns with human visual observation in highlighting salient targets and retaining valid detail information. The quality metrics are better than the comparison methods on the whole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Specify the significance of multimodality data fusion in neuroimaging. • Summarize the challenges of multimodality data fusion in neuroimaging. • Provide recent research advances in multimodality data fusion in neuroimaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This prospective study aimed to compare the diagnostic accuracy of shear wave elastography (SWE) with that of shear wave dispersion (SWD) in evaluation of hepatic fibrosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma before resection.Method: A total of 210 consecutive patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who were scheduled to undergo hepatectomy were prospectively enrolled, pre-operative SWE and SWD examinations were performed. Fibrosis staging and necroinflammatory activity were determined histopathologically according to the Scheuer standard. Multivariate linear regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with SWE and SWD values. The performance of SWE and SWD were determined by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.Results: Both SWE and SWD values of liver were highly correlated with liver fibrosis stage and necroinflammatory activity (p < 0.05). Both SWE and SWD values were significantly different among the patients with different stages of liver fibrosis (p < 0.001). ROC analysis revealed that SWE that predicted substantial fibrosis (S ≥ 2), severe fibrosis (S ≥ 3) and cirrhosis (S = 4) were 0.895, 0.877 and 0.854, the SWD that predicted substantial fibrosis (S ≥ 2), severe fibrosis (S ≥ 3) and cirrhosis (S = 4) were 0.857, 0.815 and 0.791. SWE had better diagnostic performance than SWD in predicting severe fibrosis (S ≥ 3) and cirrhosis (S = 4).Conclusions: Both SWE and SWD are useful, accurate and non-invasive methods for evaluating hepatic fibrosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma adapted to hepatectomy, SWE is a more accurate imaging modality than SWD in predicting severe fibrosis (S ≥ 3) and cirrhosis (S = 4). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Domain adaptation is crucial for transferring the knowledge from the source labeled CT dataset to the target unlabeled MR dataset in abdominal multi-organ segmentation. Meanwhile, it is highly desirable to avoid the high annotation cost related to the target dataset and protect the source dataset privacy. Therefore, we propose an effective source-free unsupervised domain adaptation method for cross-modality abdominal multi-organ segmentation without source dataset access. The proposed framework comprises two stages. In the first stage, the feature map statistics-guided model adaptation combined with entropy minimization is developed to help the top segmentation network reliably segment the target images. The pseudo-labels output from the top segmentation network are used to guide the style compensation network to generate source-like images. The pseudo-labels output from the middle segmentation network is used to supervise the learning progress of the desired model (bottom segmentation network). In the second stage, the circular learning and pixel-adaptive mask refinement are used to further improve the desired model performance. With this approach, we achieved satisfactory abdominal multi-organ segmentation performance, outperforming the existing state-of-the-art domain adaptation methods. The proposed approach can be easily extended to situations in which target annotation data exist. With only one labeled MR volume, the performance can be leveled with that of supervised learning. Furthermore, the proposed approach is proven to be effective for source-free unsupervised domain adaptation in reverse direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: There are currently no clear conclusions about whether major depression (MD) and bipolar disorder (BD) increase the risk of erectile dysfunction (ED). In our study, we used a Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to discover the causal associations between MD, BD and ED. Methods: We got single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) related to MD, BD and ED from the MRC IEU Open genome-wide association study (GWAS) datasets. After a series of selection, SNPs left were selected as instrumental variables (IVs) of MD and BD for the following MR test to evaluate the relationship of genetically predicted MD or BD with the incidence of ED. Among them, we used the random-effects inverse-variance weighted (IVW) method as the main analysis. Finally, sensitivity analyses were further performed using Cochran's Q test, funnel plots, MR-Egger regression, Leave-one-out method and MR- pleiotropy residual sum and outlier (PRESSO). Results: Genetically-predicted MD was causally related to the incidence of ED in the IVW methods (odds ratio (OR), 1.53; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.19–1.96; p = 0.001), while no causal impact of BD on the risk of ED (OR = 0.95, 95% CI 0.87–1.04; p = 0.306). The results of sensitivity analyses supported our conclusion, and no directional pleiotropy were found. Conclusion: The findings of this research found evidence of a causal relationship between MD and ED. However, we did not find a causal relationship between BD and ED in European populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intelligent composite structures with self-aware functions are preferable for future aircrafts. The real-time location of damaged areas of composites is a key step. In this study, deep transfer learning was used to achieve the real-time location of damaged areas. The sensor network obtained acoustic emission signals from different damaged areas of the aluminum alloy plate. The acoustic emission time-domain signal is transformed into the input image by continuous wavelet transform. The convolutional neural network-based model automatically localized the damaged area by extracting features from the input image. A small amount of composite acoustic emission data was used to fine-tune some network parameters of the basic model through transfer learning. This enabled the model to classify the damaged area of composites. The accuracy of the transfer learning model trained with 900 samples is 96.38%, which is comparable to the accuracy of the model trained directly with 1800 samples; the training time of the former is only 17.68% of that of the latter. The proposed method can be easily adapted to new composite structures using transfer learning and a small dataset, providing a new idea for structural health monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biofilms are known to be a great challenge for their anti-bacterial activity as they obstruct drug action for deeper and more thorough bacteria-killing effects. Therefore, developing highly effective antibacterial agents to destroy biofilms and eradicate bacteria is of great significance. Herein, a new type of nanocomposites (denoted as poly(4-cyanostyrene)@silver@polylysine) is proposed, in which polylysine (PLL) could rapidly capture the biofilms and exhibit excellent antibacterial efficacy together with decorated silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) through the charge effect and Ag+ release. Notably, nearly 100% antibacterial rates against Gram-positive bacterium (Staphylococcus aureus, S. aureus) and Gram-negative bacterium (Escherichia coli, E. coli) were achieved. More importantly, poly(4-cyanostyrene) with biological silent Raman imaging capacity is able to illustrate the relationship between antibacterial efficiency and biofilm breakage. In short, such novel nanocomposites can improve the bioavailability of each component and display tremendous potential in antibacterial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In prostate radiotherapy, the influence of bladder volume variation on the dose absorbed by the target volume and organs at risk is significant and difficult to predict. In addition, the resolution of a typical medical image is insufficient for visualizing the bladder wall, which makes it more difficult to precisely evaluate the dose to the bladder wall. This simulation study aimed to quantitatively investigate the relationship between the dose received by organs at risk and the intravesical volume in prostate radiotherapy. The high-resolution Visible Chinese Human phantom and the finite element method were used to construct 10 pelvic models with specific intravesical volumes ranging from 100 ml to 700 ml to represent bladders of patients with different bladder filling capacities during radiotherapy. This series of models was utilized in six-field coplanar 3D conformal radiotherapy simulations with different planning target volume (PTV) margins. Each organ’s absorbed dose was calculated using the Monte Carlo method. The obtained bladder wall displacements during bladder filling were consistent with reported clinical measurements. The radiotherapy simulation revealed a linear relationship between the dose to non-targeted organs and the intravesical volume and indicated that a 10-mm PTV margin for a large bladder and a 5-mm PTV margin for a small bladder reduce the effective dose to the bladder wall to similar degrees. However, larger bladders were associated with evident protection of the intestines. Detailed dosimetry results can be used by radiation oncologists to create more accurate, individual water preload protocols according to the patient’s anatomy and bladder capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reactivity of lignite could be potentially improved by adding with biomass such as lowering the gaseous pollutant emissions. The combustion behavior of lignite/eucalyptus bark blends and their individuals were studied by simultaneous TG–MS technique. The influences of heating rates and blending ratios on combustion performances and gaseous pollutant emissions were assessed. The combustion kinetics were also evaluated in conjunction with volatile matter and fixed carbon burning periods. The ignition and comprehensive combustion indices increased with increasing blending ratios or heating rates. Adding the eucalyptus bark to the lignite was an effective way in reducing the CO 2 , NO 2 and SO 2 emissions. The dominant mechanisms associated with combustion kinetics of volatile matters and char in the eucalyptus bark and most eucalyptus bark/lignite blends around maximum burning rates were mainly dominated by the three dimension diffusion, while the combustion mechanisms of char in the lignite were mainly described by reaction order models. Blending ratios of 20–40% eucalyptus bark were proposed as optimum values for improving the combustion behavior of the lignite. There were certain synergistic effects between lignite and eucalyptus bark during their co-combustion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Galactomannan in industrial Gleditsia microphylla and guar gum was successfully fractionated by gradual precipitation in an aqueous solution with increasing ethanol concentrations. The molecular properties of each fraction were characterized, and the galactomannans were added to photopolymerized hydrogels to test their effects on mechanical properties and swelling capacity. In the series fractions of guar gum, the sample precipitated from 20% EtOH solution had the highest yield, mannose to galactose ratio, and viscosity, and it had a slightly lower molecular weight than that precipitated by 30% EtOH. Correspondingly, the best tensile property of its photopolymerized hydrogel was finally detected. In terms of G. microphylla gum, the precipitation in 30% EtOH solution achieved the highest yield, M/G ratio, and molecular weight value, and it exhibited the best rheological property of all the samples. The hydrogel with the addition of this sample also had the best mechanical properties despite its lower hydroscopicity than the blank hydrogel. The unique properties of each fraction could probably lead to their use as biodegradable alternatives in different applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The oxy-fuel co-combustion behavior of two herbaceous biomass species (Bermuda grass and cornstalk) with bituminous coal was investigated by thermal gravimetric analysis (40°C/min). The incorporation of Bermuda grass or cornstalk could improve combustion indices of the bituminous coal. Once blending the biomass with bituminous coal, ignition temperatures of blends could be advanced by about 100–170°C. With increasing the oxygen concentration or blending ratio, the comprehensive performance index of the most blends and their parent samples increased. For the 80%grass/20%coal blend, there was a strong synergistic effect in its parent samples at 60% oxygen concentration. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), caused by various mutations in a spectrum of cancer driver genes, may have distinct pathological characteristics and drug responses. Extensive genetic screening and pathological characterization is required for the design of customized therapies to improve patient outcomes. Notably, NSCLC in never-smokers exhibits distinctive clinicopathological features, which are frequently associated with tumorigenic mutations, and thus may be treated as a unique disease entity. However, to the best of our knowledge, these mutations have not been extensively and accurately characterized in an NSCLC study with a large sample size. Therefore, the present study enrolled a large cohort of NSCLC patients, which consisted of 358 never-smokers, for the screening of genetic alterations in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), ret proto-oncogene (RET), anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK), Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRAS) and B-Raf proto-oncogene serine/threonine kinase (BRAF) tumorigenic genes. It was identified that the mutation rate was 47.8, 7.5, 3.6, 1.4 and 0.3% for EGFR, ALK, KRAS, RET and BRAF, respectively. In addition, clinicopathological features associated with these mutations were characterized. EGFR mutations were more frequently observed in female and older patients. By contrast, KRAS mutations were more frequently detected in male patients, and ALK and RET translocations in younger patients. The cancer cells were frequently well-differentiated in carcinoma cases exhibiting EGFR mutations, however, were less differentiated in those with ALK translocations. In conclusion, the present study determined the frequency of oncogenic alterations and associated clinicopathological features in NSCLC exhibited by never-smokers using a large sample size. The results of the present study may enrich our knowledge of NSCLC in never-smokers and provide useful insights for improvement of the outcome of molecularly targeted therapies for the treatment of NSCLC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

S100A8 is an important member of the S100 protein family, which is involved in intracellular and extracellular regulatory activities. We previously reported that the S100A8 protein was differentially expressed in the asthmatic respiratory tracts. To understand the potential role of S100A8 in asthma, we investigated the effect of recombinant S100A8 protein on the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-induced migration of airway smooth muscle cells (ASMCs) and the underlying molecular mechanism by using multiple methods, such as impedance-based xCELLigence migration assay, transwell migration assays and wound-healing assays. We found that exogenous S100A8 protein significantly inhibited PDGF-induced ASMC migration. Furthermore, the migration inhibition effect of S100A8 was blocked by neutralizing antibody against the receptor for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE), a potential receptor for the S100A8 protein. These findings provide direct evidence that exogenous S100A8 protein inhibits the PDGF-induced migration of ASMCs through the membrane receptor RAGE. Our study highlights a novel role of S100A8 as a potential means of counteracting airway remodeling in chronic airway diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indirect biophotolysis hydrogen production by microalgae is vigorously studied due to both hydrogen production and CO 2 fixation. CO 2 capture and fixation by microalgae as the first and most important step greatly affects microalgae growth, organics accumulating and then hydrogen production. In this process, CO 2 gas is always pumped into photobioreactors in the form of bubbles whose dynamic behaviors CO 2 transmission greatly affect the distribution and growth of microalgae. In this work, therefore, the dynamic behaviors of CO 2 bubbles in bubble column photobioreactor were visually studied and the effect of inlet CO 2 concentration, blast orifice size and gas flow rate on the microalgal distribution and growth were also analyzed. It was found that abundant microalgal cells and cells community were adsorbed on the bubble surface and rose with the rising bubble because of the bubble carrying, resulting in the enrichment of microalgae at the top of the microalgae suspension. Moreover, the non-uniform distributions of microalgal cells along the photobioreactor became more serious with the growth of microalgae. In addition, parametric study indicated that higher inlet CO 2 concentration, smaller blast orifice size and larger gas flow rate gave rise to more serious bubble carrying, leading to higher microalgae cell density at the top of the microalgae suspension. The optimal operational conditions for the microalgae growth were 5% (V/V) in the inlet CO 2 concentration, 20 μm in the blast orifice size and 20 ml/min in the gas flow rate. These findings will be a helpful for the optimized design and operation of photobioreactors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An aerodynamic shape optimization framework of two modules is developed for improving the aerodynamic performance of wind turbine rotor blades. The first module conducts CFD-based aeroelastic analysis for the complete blade configuration to evaluate the turbine performance and to extract the sectional flow conditions at selected blade sections. The second module performs 2-D shape optimization of blade sections to maximize the lift-to-drag ratio under given sectional flow conditions. When the optimization is completed for all selected blade sections, the performance and sectional flow characteristics of the new blade reconfigured from the optimized sections are evaluated again by the CFD-based aeroelastic analysis. The above procedure is repeated until the solution converges satisfactorily. Applications were made for the NREL phase VI and the NREL 5MW reference wind turbines. The results showed that the optimization framework can be effectively utilized in enhancing the aerodynamic performance of wind turbine blades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Choriocarcinoma is an aggressive obstetric or gynecological neoplasm with a high malignant potential. It is a form of gestational trophoblastic disease and often secondary to hydatidiform mole, and intrauterine or ectopic pregnancy. Choriocarcinoma has a proclivity to metastasize to the lung, vagina, pelvis or liver in over 50% of patients, which always occurs in the early stage of the disease. With an appropriate amount of chemotherapy, the tumor may be treated effectively. However, pituitary metastasis of choriocarcinoma is extremely rare. To the best of our knowledge, no cases of choriocarcinoma metastasizing to the pituitary have been cited previously. Here, we report a case of choriocarcinoma that presented with pituitary metastasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Topological crystalline insulators define a new class of topological insulator phases with gapless surface states protected by crystalline symmetries. In this work, we present a general theory to classify topological crystalline insulator phases based on the representation theory of space groups. Our approach is to directly identify possible nontrivial surface states in a semi-infinite system with a specific surface, of which the symmetry property can be described by 17 two-dimensional space groups. We reproduce the existing results of topological crystalline insulators, such as mirror Chern insulators in the pm or pmm groups, Cnv topological insulators in the p4m, p31m, and p6m groups, and topological nonsymmorphic crystalline insulators in the pg and pmg groups. Aside from these existing results, we also obtain the following results: (1) there are two integer mirror Chern numbers (Z²) in the pm group but only one (Z) in the cm or p3m1 group for both the spinless and spinful cases; (2) for the pmm (cmm) groups, there is no topological classification in the spinless case but Z4 (Z²) classifications in the spinful case; (3) we show how topological crystalline insulator phase in the pg group is related to that in the pm group; (4) we identify topological classification of the p4m, p31m, and p6m for the spinful case; (5) we find topological nonsymmorphic crystalline insulators also existing in pgg and p4g groups, which exhibit new features compared to those in pg and pmg groups. We emphasize the importance of the irreducible representations for the states at some specific high-symmetry momenta in the classification of topological crystalline phases. Our theory can serve as a guide for the search of topological crystalline insulator phases in realistic materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most crucial problems in using biomass fuel is the amount of solid wastes produced, which will cause serious deposition and corrosion. This work is mainly focused on an evaluation of ash fusion characteristics of eucalyptus bark, lignite and their blends by using thermal analysis technique. The ash deformation temperatures of eucalyptus bark and lignite were 1181 °C and 1320 °C. The differences between ash softening temperature and hemispherical temperature were 31 °C and 13 °C for biomass/lignite blends with biomass blending ratios of 20% and 80%. Also, the influences of blending ratio and heating rate on the co-fusion kinetics of eucalyptus bark and lignite were revealed based on two-stage scheme, which referred to pre-peak and post-peak around maximum reaction rate point in the main ash fusion region. The activation energy of ash fusion for eucalyptus bark/lignite blends in the pre-peak stage and the post-peak stage was in the range of 419–828 kJ/mol, and 322–702 kJ/mol, respectively. The biomass blending ratio should be controlled within 40% in order to reduce the possibility of sintering for eucalyptus bark/lignite blends. The ash fusion kinetic characteristics of mixture samples had no linear relation with blend ratios due to interaction between biomass and coal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT To classify brain images into pathological or healthy is a key pre-clinical state for patients. Manual classification is tiresome, expensive, time-consuming, and irreproducible. In this study, we aimed to present an automatic computer-aided system for brain-image classification. We used 90 T2-weighted images obtained by magnetic resonance images. First, we used weighted-type fractional Fourier transform (WFRFT) to extract spectrums from each magnetic resonance image. Second, we used principal component analysis (PCA) to reduce spectrum features to only 26. Third, those reduced spectral features of different samples were combined and were fed into support vector machine (SVM) and its two variants: generalized eigenvalue proximal SVM and twin SVM. A 5 × 5-fold cross-validation results showed that this proposed 'WFRFT + PCA + generalized eigenvalue proximal SVM' yielded sensitivity of 99.53%, specificity of 92.00%, precision of 99.53%, and accuracy of 99.11%, which are comparable with the proposed 'WFRFT + PCA + twin SVM' and better than the proposed 'WFRFT + PCA + SVM.' Besides, all three proposed methods were superior to eight state-of-the-art algorithms. Thus, WFRFT is effective, and the proposed methods can be used in practical. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 25, 317-327, 2015 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a new critical heat flux (CHF) triggering mechanism for explaining the CHF enhancements of micro-structured surfaces. Differentiating the existing vapor recoil mechanism and hydrodynamic instability theory, this model focuses on the phenomenological observations of the boiling phenomena in which a number of small bubbles are generated, which then merge and coalesce into a large bubble. According to this model, the CHF phenomenon is governed by the frequency of the coalesced bubble departure and the liquid furnishing capability into a thin liquid–vapor layer (macrolayer). The microstructures on the surface change the evaporative mass flow rate owing to the liquid–vapor interface deformation near the triple contact line of the macrolayer, leading to a change in the coalesced bubble departure frequency. The liquid flow resistance, which increased owing to the microstructures, can affect the liquid volume flow rate available for evaporation in the macrolayer; thus, it directly alters the CHF behavior. The liquid flow resistance induced by the microstructures could contribute to the relative deterioration of the CHF value at the surface. The CHF can be directly modeled by means of the summation of the mean velocity of liquid flowing into the macrolayer due to the pressure potential induced from capillary and disjoining pressure effects, as well as the coalesced bubble departure frequency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Benzodiazepines and zolpidem are generally prescribed as sedative, hypnotics, anxiolytics or anticonvulsants. These drugs, however, are frequently misused in drug-facilitated crime. Therefore, a rapid and simple liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric (LC-MS/MS) method was developed for identification and quantification of benzodiazepines, zolpidem and their metabolites in urine using deuterium labeled internal standards (IS). Urine samples (120 μL) mixed with 80 μL of the IS solution were centrifuged. An aliquot (5 μL) of the sample solution was directly injected into the LC-MS/MS system for analysis. The mobile phases consisted of water and acetonitrile containing 2mM ammonium trifluoroacetate and 0.2% acetic acid. The analytical column was a Zorbax SB-C18 (100 mm × 2.1 mm i.d., 3.5 μm, Agilent). The separation and detection of 18 analytes were achieved within 10 min. Calibration curves were linear over the concentration ranges of 0.5-20 ng/mL (zolpidem), 1.0-40 ng/mL (flurazepam and temazepam), 2.5-100 ng/mL (7-aminoclonazepam, 1-hydroxymidazolam, midazolam, flunitrazepam and alprazolam), 5.0-200 ng/mL (zolpidem phenyl-4-carboxylic acid, α-hydroxyalprazolam, oxazepam, nordiazepam, triazolam, diazepam and α-hydroxytriazolam), 10-400 ng/mL (lorazepam and desalkylflurazepam) and 10-100 ng/mL (N-desmethylflunitrazepam) with the coefficients of determination (r(2)) above 0.9971. The dilution integrity of the analytes was examined for supplementation of short linear range. Dilution precision and accuracy were tested using two, four and ten-folds dilutions and they ranged from 3.7 to 14.4% and -12.8 to 12.5%, respectively. The process efficiency for this method was 63.0-104.6%. Intra- and inter-day precisions were less than 11.8% and 9.1%, while intra- and inter-day accuracies were less than -10.0 to 8.2%, respectively. The lower limits of quantification were lower than 10 ng/mL for each analyte. The applicability of the developed method was successfully verified with human urine samples from drug users (n=21). Direct urine sample injection and optimized mobile phases were introduced for simple sample preparation and high-sensitivity with the desired separation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When water droplets are placed on a surface, the contact angle depends on the surface conditions, and the subsequent evaporation of the droplets depends on the wetting phenomena. In this study, we investigated the wetting and evaporation of droplets of deionized water from surfaces with various intrinsic contact angles and surface morphologies ( θ 0 = 34°, 58° and 109°, 1.00 < f W < 2.00, 0.02 < f C–B < 1.00). For each droplet, the apparent contact angle and radius of the contact line were measured, and the wetting state was visualized with synchrotron X-ray radiography. Comparing between the experimental data and the results of a number of wetting models, the models were experimentally validated. On the basis of the wetting phenomena, the evaporation rate depending on the surface condition is clarified in the experimental ranges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the microalgae cultivation process, CO 2 in the bubble form is supplied into photobioreactors as carbon source for microalgae growth. The coalescence of CO 2 bubbles greatly affects the mass transport and thus the biomass production rate. In this work, therefore, the dynamic behaviors of CO 2 bubbles coalescing at two parallel capillary orifices in microalgae suspension were visually studied and compared with pure water. The movement and distribution of microalgae at gas–liquid interface were also observed. The effects of the center distance of capillary orifices and gas flow rate were also analyzed. It was found that many microalgae and microalgae aggregation adsorbed on the surface of the bubble and tended to distribute between the two bubbles when two bubbles coalesced. Besides, it was also found that in microalgae suspension more time was needed for the coalescence of bubbles, and the coalesced bubbles were more easily detached as a result of low surface tension but with lower terminal velocity after detachment than that in pure water. When the center distance of capillary orifices was 1.5 mm ( S = 3 d 0 ), the coalesced bubbles had less growth time and smaller detachment diameter. A critical gas flow rate of 15 mL/min was obtained, at which the minimum detachment diameter and terminal velocity of coalesced bubble was achieved. These findings will be beneficial for the design of aeration system of photobioreactors for microalgae cultivation to enhance the mass transport at the interface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

TheBrucella abortusstrain 104M, a spontaneously attenuated strain, has been used as a vaccine strain in humans against brucellosis for 6 decades in China. Despite many studies, the molecular mechanisms that cause the attenuation are still unclear. Here, we determined the whole-genome sequence of 104M and conducted a comprehensive comparative analysis against the whole genome sequences of the virulent strain, A13334, and other reference strains. This analysis revealed a highly similar genome structure between 104M and A13334. The further comparative genomic analysis between 104M and A13334 revealed a set of genes missing in 104M. Some of these genes were identified to be directly or indirectly associated with virulence. Similarly, a set of mutations in the virulence-related genes was also identified, which may be related to virulence alteration. This study provides a set of candidate genes associated with virulence attenuation in B.abortus vaccine strain 104M. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the structural properties and ionized spin electrons of an Fe–graphene system, in which the time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) within the generalized gradient approximation is used. The electron dynamics, including electron ionization and ionized electron spin polarization, is described for Fe atom adsorbed graphene under femtosecond laser irradiation. The theoretical results show that the electron ionization and ionized electron spin polarization are sensitive to the laser parameters, such as the incident angle and the peak intensity. The spin polarization presents the maximum value under certain laser parameters, which may be used as a source of spin-polarized electrons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A set of environmentally responsive metal-organic [3]rotaxanes is described. These mechanically interlocked macromolecules may be prepared in quantitative yield via a one-pot procedure involving treatment of a flexible tetracationic macrocycle, known as the Texas-sized molecular box, with tri-1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylate anion and silver cations (Ag+). The use of this three-component mixture gives rise to a metal-organic [3]rotaxane via a self-assembly process that occurs under ambient conditions in DMSO-d6 solution. The complex is stable in the presence of excess TFA. However, disassembly of the [3]rotaxane to produce anion-box associated entities may be triggered by adding a competitive counteranionic species (e.g., I-). Adding excess Ag+ serves to reverse this decomplexation process. The nature of the [3]rotaxane complex could be fine-tuned via application of an external stimulus. Increasing the temperature or adding small molecules (e.g., D2O, methanol-d4, acetonitrile-d3, DMF-d7, acetone-d6, or THF-d8) to the initial DMSO-d6 solution induces conformational flipping of the macrocycle within the overall complex (e.g., from limiting chair to chairlike forms). Support for the molecular stimuli responsive nature of the various structures came from solution-phase one- and two-dimensional (¹H, 1D and 2D NOESY) NMR spectroscopic studies carried out in DMSO-d6. The core metal-linked rotaxane unit was characterized via single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Initial evidence that the present self-assembly process is not limited to the use of the Ag+ cation came from studies involving Cd2+; this replacement results in formation of 2D metal-organic rotaxane-containing frameworks (MORFs). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]