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Background The hard-shelled mussel (Mytilus coruscus) is widely distributed in the temperate seas of East Asia and is an important commercial bivalve in China. Chromosome-level genome information of this species will contribute not only to the development of hard-shelled mussel genetic breeding but also to studies on larval ecology, climate change biology, marine biology, aquaculture, biofouling, and antifouling. Findings We applied a combination of Illumina sequencing, Oxford Nanopore Technologies sequencing, and high-throughput chromosome conformation capture technologies to construct a chromosome-level genome of the hard-shelled mussel, with a total length of 1.57 Gb and a median contig length of 1.49 Mb. Approximately 90.9% of the assemblies were anchored to 14 linkage groups. We assayed the genome completeness using BUSCO. In the metazoan dataset, the present assemblies have 89.4% complete, 1.9% incomplete, and 8.7% missing BUSCOs. Gene modeling enabled the annotation of 37,478 protein-coding genes and 26,917 non-coding RNA loci. Phylogenetic analysis showed that M. coruscus is the sister taxon to the clade including Modiolus philippinarum and Bathymodiolus platifrons. Conserved chromosome synteny was observed between hard-shelled mussel and king scallop, suggesting that this is shared ancestrally. Transcriptomic profiling indicated that the pathways of catecholamine biosynthesis and adrenergic signaling in cardiomyocytes might be involved in metamorphosis. Conclusions The chromosome-level assembly of the hard-shelled mussel genome will provide novel insights into mussel genome evolution and serve as a fundamental platform for studies regarding the planktonic-sessile transition, genetic diversity, and genomic breeding of this bivalve.

Due to the cheap price and decent performance of used cars, the second-hand vehicle market is quite active in Taiwan. However, the vehicle information in the market of second-hand vehicles is centralized at present. In other words, the vehicle information is still provided by the second-hand vehicle dealers, which are not transparent and have no tampering cost. As the result, the authenticity, accuracy, and fairness of these second-hand vehicle data are worth discussing. To solve the above problems, this paper proposed a trusted vehicle data source system based on blockchain technology. The system is built on the Ethereum platform with the private chain structure. With the help of our platform, a trusted third party (e.g., maintenance plant and government branch) can record vehicle information into Blockchain so the integrity of vehicle information can be maintained. Customers can easily query the relevant vehicle information through our system interface and avoid receiving fake vehicle information. This system is a Proof of Concept (PoC), and the feasibility is examined by evaluating transactions per second (TPS) of the proposed system.

In order to develop a new type of power supply mode for the modern tram, this paper proposes and builds a 600kW wireless power transfer system. A 500m-long test line has been being built. The basic information of the tram is firstly introduced. Then, the configuration of the WPT system and electric schematic diagram of the modern tram is introduced briefly before the compensation circuit and converters of the wireless power transfer system are illustrated.

Bacteria of the genus Shewanella have been studied for their versatile electron-accepting abilities, particularly for extracellular electron transfer via minerals. Shewanella marisflavi ECSMB14101 was isolated from naturally formed biofilms in the East China Sea. The genome of S. marisflavi ECSMB14101 encodes 3891 genes with a total size of 4,343,492 bp in one chromosome. Its GC content is 49.89%. S. marisflavi ECSMB14101 is able to synthesize a red pigment, which may be achieved through Cytochrome c3 and electron transfer to reduce Fe(III) oxide. The genomic data presented here could provide fundamental insights to better understand the physiological characteristics of S. marisflavi, the ecological significance of red pigment synthesis, and its inductive effects on the settlement of marine invertebrate larvae.

Background: This study investigated the effects of dietary licorice extract (LE) on antioxidant capacity and immunity in weaned piglets. A total of 96 DLY (Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire) weaned piglets were randomly assigned to four treatments. The control group were fed a corn–soybean meal-based diet (basal diet, BD), and three LE level groups were fed on BD supplied with 50、150 and 250 mg/kg LE. The trial lasted 5 weeks. At day 35, six piglets per treatment were killed and blood, liver, spleen, and thymus were collected.Results: The result showed that: 1)Dietary LE increased (P < 0.05) activity of the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and reduced (P < 0.05) the activity of glutamic oxalacetic transaminase (AST), 50 mg / kg LE reduced (P < 0.05) total cholesterol (TC) and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in serum. 2) The addition of 150 and 250 mg / kg LE increased (P < 0.05) glutathion peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity in liver and spleen, increased (P < 0.05) the total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) in serum and spleen . 50 mg / kg LE increased (P < 0.05) the total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) activity in serum. Three doses of LE reduced (P < 0.05) serum malondialdehyde content (MDA). 3) 150 mg / kg LE increased (P < 0.05) serum IgG level. 4) Dietary LE down-regulated (P < 0.05) the mRNA levels of 7 immune-related genes (IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-1β, TNF-α, MCP-1, ICAM-1) in the thymus; 50 mg / kg LE and 150 mg / kg LE down-regulated (P < 0.05) the mRNA levels of TNF-α, while 250 mg / kg LE up-regulated the mRNA levels of 2 inflammatory genes (IL-1β, and ICAM-1) in the spleen; three levels of LE down-regulated (P < 0.05 the mRNA levels of 3 inflammatory genes (IL-6, TNF-α, ICAM-1) in the liver.Conclusions: In summary, LE supplementation regulates the activity of serum biochemical enzyme, improves the antioxidant capacity and immune function of in serum, liver, spleen and thymus, those improvement may contributes to the promotion of growth performance of weaned piglets. In general, 150 mg / kg LE exhibits better effect.

Background: Heart failure (HF) is a common presentation in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Previous studies revealed that HbA1c level is significantly associated with HF. However, little is known about the association between HbA1c variability and HF. We aimed to evaluate the association of HbA1c variability and mean HbA1c with HF in patients with T2DM. Methods: Using Diabetes Share Care Program data, patients with T2DM had mean HbA1c (HbA1c-Mean), HbA1c variability (tertiles of HbA1c-SD and HbA1c-adjSD) within 12-24 months during 2001-2008 were included. The cutoffs of HbA1c-Mean were set at Results: A total of 3824 patients were included, of whom 315 patients developed HF during the 11.72 years observation period. The associated risk of HF increased with tertiles of HbA1c variability and cutoffs of HbA1c-Mean. In mutually adjusted models, HbA1c-Mean showed a consistent dose-response association with HF, while the association of HbA1c variability with HF disappeared. Among patients with HbA1c-Mean < 7%, the associated risk of HF in patients with HbA1c variability in tertile 3 was comparable to patients with HbA1c-Mean ≥8%. Conclusions: Mean HbA1c was an independent predictor of HF and not explained by HbA1c variability. In addition to absolute HbA1c level, targeting on stability of HbA1c in patients with well glycemic control was also important for the development of HF in patients with T2DM.

Che-Ming Jack Hu,1,2,* You-Ting Chen,3,* Zih-Syun Fang,1,3 Wei-Shan Chang,3 Hui-Wen Chen2,3 1Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan; 2Research Center for Nanotechnology and Infectious Diseases, Taipei, Taiwan; 3Department of Veterinary Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan *These authors contributed equally to this work Background: Influenza virus infections are a major public health concern worldwide. Conventional treatments against the disease are designed to target viral proteins. However, the emergence of viral variants carrying drug-resistant mutations can outpace the development of pathogen-targeting antivirals. Diphyllin and bafilomycin are potent vacuolar ATPase (V-ATPase) inhibitors previously shown to have broad-spectrum antiviral activity. However, their poor water solubility and potential off-target effect limit their clinical application. Methods: In this study, we report that nanoparticle encapsulation of diphyllin and bafilomycin improves the drugs’ anti-influenza applicability. Results: Using PEG-PLGA diblock copolymers, sub-200 nm diphyllin and bafilomycin nanoparticles were prepared, with encapsulation efficiency of 42% and 100%, respectively. The drug-loaded nanoparticles have sustained drug release kinetics beyond 72 hours and facilitate intracellular drug delivery to two different influenza virus-permissive cell lines. As compared to free drugs, the nanoparticulate V-ATPase inhibitors exhibited lower cytotoxicity and greater in vitro antiviral activity, improving the therapeutic index of diphyllin and bafilomycin by approximately 3 and 5-fold, respectively. In a mouse model of sublethal influenza challenge, treatment with diphyllin nanoparticles resulted in reduced body weight loss and viral titer in the lungs. In addition, following a lethal influenza viral challenge, diphyllin nanoparticle treatment conferred a survival advantage of 33%. Conclusions: These results demonstrate the potential of the nanoparticulate V-ATPase inhibitors for host-targeted treatment against influenza. Keywords: influenza virus, vacuolar ATPase inhibitor, diphyllin, bafilomycin, nanoparticles

Tan Re Qing (TRQ), a traditional Chinese medicine formula, is composed of Scutellariae Radix and other four herbs (bear bile powder, Caprae Hircus Cornu, Lonicerae japonicae Flos and Forsythiae Fru...

An ultraviolet-enhanced (UV-enhanced) nitric oxide (NO) sensor based on silver-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoflowers is developed using a low-cost hydrothermal method. The results indicate that silver (Ag) ions were doped into the ZnO nanostructure successfully, thus changing the morphology. In the high-resolution transmission electron microscopy images, we also found that some Ag ions were separated out onto the surface of the ZnO nanoflowers and that the Ag-doped and Ag nanoparticles improved the sensing property. The NO sensing property increased from 73.91 to 89.04% through the use of a UV light-emitting diode (UV-LED). The response time was approximately 120 s without the UV-LED, and the UV-enhanced Ag-doped ZnO nanoflower sensor exhibited a reduced response time (60 s). The best working temperature could be reduced from 200 to 150 °C using UV light illumination, and it was found that the NO response increased by 15.13% at 150 °C. The UV photoresponse of the Ag-doped ZnO nanoflowers and the mechanisms by which the improvement of NO sensing property occurred through the use of UV light illumination are discussed. The property of the gas sensor can be calibrated using a self-photoelectric effect under UV light illumination. These interesting UV-enhanced Ag-doped ZnO nanoflowers are viable candidates for practical applications.

High-density porous zinc oxide (ZnO) nanosheets (NSs) are grown on an aluminum (Al) substrate, and a porous ZnO NS-based microelectromechanical systems technology gas sensor is fabricated for ozone (O3) detection. The height of this new ZnO nanostructure can be controlled by using different thicknesses of an Al seedlayer ranging from 25 to 100 nm. Additionally, the results indicate that an increase in the ozone response depends on oxygen vacancy adsorption, as measured by photoluminescence emission. This paper resulted in a low-temperature, hydrothermally grown novel porous ZnO NS ozone gas sensor that measured O3 responses of 96.1% at 300 °C and 53.4% at 150 °C. The response of this sensor compared with the responses of other semiconductor metal oxide materials is also very significant, with the porous ZnO NSs showing potential applications in gas sensing devices used for environmental monitoring.

Here we report the growth of high-density novel morphology fire-like zinc oxide (ZnO) nanosheets grown on aluminum (Al) substrate. The fire-like ZnO nanosheets based MEMS technology gas sensors using zinc nitrate hexahydrate, and hexamethylenetetramine by using a low-temperature hydrothermal method. The structure and optical characteristics of fire-like ZnO nanosheets were measured by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The FE-SEM images show that the new morphology and high of the ZnO nanosheets can be controlled by the different thickness of Al substrates, it was found that measured high of the ZnO nanosheets increased from 733.3 nm to 2000 nm and the response of ethanol was increased due to the high surface area nanosheet.