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[Display omitted] • The flower-like nickel phosphide catalysts were prepared by a hydrotalcite strategy. • Ni 2 P/Al 2 O 3 catalyst showed excellent catalytic activity and desulfurization ability. • The outstanding performance ascribed to the rich active Niδ+ species. • The enhanced stability was due to strong interaction between active sites and support. The catalytic hydrogenation of petroleum resin (PR) to high value-added hydrogenated PR (HPR) represents a forward-looking technology for upgrading the pyrolysis petroleum by-product. Herein, flower-like and pure-phase supported nickel phosphide catalysts were controllably fabricated through a hydrotalcite strategy with red phosphorous as the P source. The PR hydrogenation activity of the catalysts followed the order of Ni 2 P/Al 2 O 3 > NiP 2 /Al 2 O 3 > Ni/Al 2 O 3 > imp-Ni 2 P/Al 2 O 3 catalysts (prepared by the impregnation method). Such enhanced performance of Ni 2 P/Al 2 O 3 could be ascribed to small nickel phosphide particle size and rich active Niδ+ species. Notably, the sulfur contents of PR were effectively reduced from 55.4 (C 5 PR) and 72.3 ppm (C 9 PR) to 3.8 and 7.9 ppm after hydrogenation by Ni 2 P/Al 2 O 3. Meanwhile, Ni 2 P/Al 2 O 3 also exhibited good stability with the hydrogenation degree of HC 5 PR maintaining at 94.39 % after 100 h. Our work provides a promising nickel phosphide catalyst with outstanding hydrogenation activity, hydrodesulfurization ability, and stability toward PR hydrogenation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact dynamics of water drops on porous surfaces wetted by a hygroscopic ionic liquid aqueous solution are investigated. Firstly, to better illustrate the different dynamic characteristics of water drops on ionic liquid-wetted porous surfaces, it is compared with that on the dry and water-wetted porous surfaces. The results indicate that, the water drop barely penetrates on the dry porous surface at ambient temperature, but penetrate when the surface temperature is raised or the surface is pre-wetted. The maximum spreading and penetration of the droplet on the ionic liquid-wetted surface is larger and faster than that on the water-wetted surface. Then, the effect of the mass fraction of aqueous ionic liquid, impact velocity, porosity on the spreading and penetration is explored. The larger the mass fraction of aqueous ionic liquid on the porous surface, the faster the droplet spreading factor, height, and residual volume decrease. The effect of impact velocity is even more pronounced for the water droplets impacting on pure ionic liquid-wetted porous surfaces. A higher porosity contributes to a smaller spreading diameter but a larger volume decreasing rate on the wetted porous surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molecular dynamics simulations were applied to characterize the dissolution of subcritical water (Sub-CW) in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The phase equilibria of Sub-CW/PAHs are characterized by the dissolution of Sub-CW in PAHs. The solubility of Sub-CW increases with temperature but is relatively insensitive to pressure changes. Furthermore, an increase in PAH scale leads to a decrease in Sub-CW solubility. The PAH-rich phase can be divided into an interface region and a bulk region, and the water concentrations in the two regions differ greatly. The Hansen solubility parameters of PAHs and Sub-CW exhibit opposite distributions, hindering the mutual solubility between the two. The dissolution of Sub-CW is promoted by the destruction of intermolecular hydrogen bonds of water at increasing temperature, but is ultimately inhibited by the difference in dispersion properties between PAHs and Sub-CW. According to the Gibbs solvation free energy, the electrostatic interaction between PAHs and Sub-CW favors the dissolution of Sub-CW. Meanwhile, the van der Waals interaction shows different effects. • Phase equilibria of PAHs and Sub-CW were studied by MD simulation. • Phase equilibria of PAHs and Sub-CW feature dissolution of Sub-CW in PAHs. • Solubility of Sub-CW in PAHs is sensitive to temperature change. • Opposite distributions of Hansen HSP hinder dissolution of Sub-CW in PAHs. • Electrostatic interaction promotes dissolution of Sub-CW in PAHs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phase equilibria of subcritical water (Sub-CW) and four-ring N-, S-containing heterocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (hetero-PAHs) were investigated by molecular dynamics simulation. In a temperature range of 250–350 °C and a pressure range of 4.2–21 MPa, the mixture of hetero-PAHs and Sub-CW shows an equilibrium between water-rich and oil-rich liquid phases, characterized by a significant dissolution of water in the oil phase. The solubility of Sub-CW is 1.9–3.8 wt% in N-containing hetero-PAHs and 1.0 to 2.7 wt% in S-containing hetero-PAHs. Compared with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with the same ring number, the presence of the thiophenic ring in hetero-PAHs leads to a decrease in the solubility of Sub-CW. The particularity of N-containing hetero-PAHs lies in the hydrogen bond between the pyridinic ring and water molecules, which increases the solubility of Sub-CW at temperatures below 300 °C. The solubility of Sub-CW in hetero-PAHs/PAHs can be correlated with the Gibbs solvation free energy of water dissolved in the oil phase and the cohesive energy density of the oil phase as parameters. • Phase equilibria of hetero-PAHs and Sub-CW were studied by MD simulation. • Phase equilibria feature dissolution of Sub-CW in hetero-PAHs rich phase. • The presence of thiophenic rings in hetero-PAHs decreases Sub-CW solubility. • The presence of pyridinic rings in hetero-PAHs increases Sub-CW solubility. • Hydrogen bonds play vital roles in Sub-CW solubility in N-containing hetero-PAHs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• ASA with the different Al/Si ratio were synthesized by a simple co-precipitation method. • The Al/Si ratio affects the Al coordination state, pore structure, acidity and surface properties of ASA. • Mo/ASA-4 with the largest amount of Mo atoms located at edge sites can provide the most amount of exposure Mo active sites. • Mo/ASA-4 catalyst achieves the highest yield of value light oil and the lowest yield of gas and coke due to its excellent hydrogenation activity. To deeply illuminate the effect of ASA composition on its corresponding Mo catalyst properties and performance for the slurry-phase hydrocracking of vacuum residue, the amorphous silica-alumina (ASA) samples with the various ratios of Al to Si were successfully synthesized by a simple co-precipitation method, which have the different acid properties and pore structure, especially ASA-1 with lowest ratio of Al to Si owning the largest number of B acid sites and the highest volume of mesoporous. Additionally, the Mo catalyst supported on ASA-4 possesses the highest dispersion of MoS 2 slabs and largest amount of Mo atoms located at the edge sites among all the catalyst, possibly due to the appropriate surface properties of ASA-4 derived from the ratio of Al to Si, it demonstrates that the most exposure Mo active sites are present on Mo/ASA-4 catalyst. The hydrocracking evaluation results show that the VR conversion over the different catalysts are similar, it may be ascribed to the variation of acid properties and pore structure insufficient to change VR cracking pathway because of the low catalyst dosage. Furthermore, the Mo/ASA-4 catalyst exhibits the higher yield of naphtha and middle distillate and inversely the lower yield of gas and coke in comparison with other catalysts, it should be attributed that the higher hydrogenation activity derived from the more exposure Mo active sites can efficiently restrain the over-cracking of the intermediate product and aggregation of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon in the hydrocracking process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Ball-milling process is used to prepare optimal NiP-Hβ/KL catalyst. • Modified Kaolin acts as a spacer to dilute the strong acidity of NiP-Hβ. • Mesopores in KL provides more activity sites for producing di-branched products. • NiP-Hβ/KL exhibits high conversion, high selectivity, and liquid yield. Isomerization of alkane is one of the most important catalytic processes for producing environmentally friendly gasoline fraction with high octane number. However, the development of non-noble metal based catalysts with high conversion and selectivity towards multi-branched isomerized products is still challenging. Herein, we report that a NiP-Hβ/modified Kaolin catalyst was successfully prepared by ball-milling of amorphous NiP nanoparticles with Hβ/modified Kaolin composites and applied for n-hexane isomerization. The introduction of chemically modified Kaolin with abundant weak-medium acid sites and mesopores not only alleviates the cracking of isomerized products on the strong acid sites on Hβ, but also provides more active sites for the formation of di-branched isomerized products with high octane number. As a result, the NiP-Hβ/modified Kaolin catalyst shows an excellent catalytic performance for n-hexane isomerization in terms of good conversion (78.1%), high selectivity towards mono-branched (75.4%) and di-branched (21.4%) i-C 6 products, and high liquid yield (99.9%). This work paves the way to the development of high performance non-noble metal based catalysts for large scale production of clean gasoline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The performance of introducing a free radical initiator into dealkylation-based visbreaking of heavy oil in the N 2 or supercritical benzene (SC benzene) medium was investigated. Calculations based on density functional theory show that the introduction of di-tert-butyl peroxide (DTBP) into heavy oil visbreaking results in the formation of alkyl C radicals similar to those naturally formed in high temperature initiation. The visbreaking in SC benzene environment is sensitive to the introduction of DTBP, which is different from the visbreaking in N 2 environment. According to reaction kinetics analysis, the presence of SC benzene solvent and the introduction of DTBP greatly accelerate the dealkylation related lumped reactions. Benefiting from improved diffusion environment, the superimposed radicals resulting from DTBP introduction effectively participate in visbreaking and selectively accelerate dealkylation. After only 10–20 min of reaction at 380 °C, visbreaking products with satisfactory viscosity reduction, reduced asphaltene content and improved light component yield can be obtained. • Initiator-introduced heavy oil visbreaking in supercritical benzene was examined. • DTBP introduction results in rapid superposition of alkyl C radicals. • The presence of supercritical benzene accelerates visbreaking. • Superimposed radicals effectively participate in visbreaking in SC benzene. • Best upgrading is obtained in DTBP-introduced visbreaking in SC benzene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To improve the understanding of the condensation of asphaltenes in supercritical water (SCW), the solvation of asphaltenes under SCW environments was investigated with molecular dynamics simulation. The simulation results indicate that the repulsive van der Waals interaction has a primary influence on the nature and the magnitude of the interaction between asphaltenes and SCW. A cavity short-range solvent structure surrounding asphaltenes thus is formed, and the solvation free energy ( G sol ) of asphaltenes in SCW has a positive sign in most cases. The scale of cavities and the value of G sol both are determined mainly by the bulk density of water. By the repulsive asphaltenes/SCW interaction and the attractive π–π aromatic interaction, the aggregation of asphaltenes in SCW occurs spontaneously. The asphaltene clusters formed, containing asphaltene monomers and nanoaggregates, present a coke-like supramolecular structure. Benefiting from excellent diffusivity in SCW, the aggregation of asphaltenes in SCW can be accomplished rapidly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Acemannan is a bioactive polysaccharides promoting tissue repair. However, the roles of acemannan in skin wound healing and the underlying molecular mechanisms are largely unclear. Objective The goal of this study is to investigate the positive role of acemannan in cutaneous wound healing and its mechanism. Methods Mouse skin wound model and skin primary fibroblasts were used to demonstrate the positive effect of acemannan on cutaneous wound healing. The expressions of cell proliferation nuclear antigen ki-67, cyclin D1 and activity of AKT/mTOR signaling were analyzed in acemannan-treated fibroblasts and mice. Rapamycin and AKT inhibitor VIII were used to determine the key role of AKT/mTOR signaling in acemannan-promoting cutaneous wound healing. Results We found that acemannan significantly accelerated skin wound closure and cell proliferation. Acemannan promoted the expression of cyclin D1 in cultured fibroblasts, which was mediated by AKT/mTOR signal pathway leading to enhanced activity of the eukaryotic translation initiation factor-4F (eIF4F) and increased translation of cyclin D1. In contrast, pharmaceutical blockade of AKT/mTOR signaling by mTOR inhibitor rapamycin or AKT inhibitor VIII abolished acemannan-induced cyclin D1 translation and cell proliferation. In vivo studies confirmed that the activation of AKT/mTOR by acemannan played a key role in wound healing, which could be reversed by rapamycin. Conclusion Acemannan promoted skin wound healing partly through activating AKT/mTOR-mediated protein translation mechanism, which may represent an alternative therapy approach for cutaneous wound. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A multi-scale approach has been formulated in a previous work. The influence of HVAC system in supermarket on the performance of vertical open refrigerated display cabinet (VORDC) is considered. The influence is evaluated by varying the supply air temperature and velocity at the diffusers of HVAC. The computational results show that there is a direct interaction between the HVAC system and VORDC in supermarket. When the supply air temperature of HVAC system decreases from 19 °C to 16 °C, the electricity energy input in VORDC system decreases by 6.36%, and the highest products temperature is reduced by 0.18 °C. When the diffuser supply air velocity of HVAC system increases from 2.0 m/s to 3.5 m/s, the energy input in VORDC system decreases by 23.4%, and the highest product temperature reduces by 0.4 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A multi-scale approach is presented to investigate the characteristics of fluid flow and heat transfer of vertical open refrigerated display cabinet (VORDC) coupled with heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system in supermarket. It includes three different scale models: supermarket-scale, cabinet-scale and shelf-scale. The results of temperature, velocity and relative humidity from these three length scale models are compared, and demonstrate that the deviations of temperature and relative humidity at return air grille are 13.46% and 0.20% with the supermarket-scale and cabinet-scale models, respectively. The average deviations of temperature and velocity for the second shelf are 1.3 °C and 0.084 m s −1 among the three scale models, respectively. The temperature and velocity fields are both in a good agreement. It means that this multi-scale method can predict the temperature and velocity distribution from the supermarket-scale to the shelf-scale correctly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that Down syndrome (DS) is a condition in which extra genetic material causes delays in the way a child develops, both mentally and physically. Intellectual disability is the foremost and most debilitating trait, which caused loss of cognitive abilities and the development of early onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Ts65Dn mice were used in this study. We isolated the hippocampus. First, we used transmission scanning electron microscopy to directly observe the hippocampus and confirm if apoptosis had occurred. Second, we customized a PCR array with 53 genes, including several important genes related to cell apoptosis. Gene expression was detected by RT-PCR. There were varying degrees of changes characteristic of apoptosis in the hippocampus of Ts65Dn mice, which mainly included the following: nuclear membrane thinning, unevenly distributed chromosomes, the production of chromatin crescents, and pyknosis of the nuclei with some nuclear fragmentation. Meanwhile, three genes (API5, AIFM1, and NFκB1) showed changes of expression in the hippocampus of Ts65Dn mice compared with normal mice. Only NFκB1 expression was significantly increased, while the expressions of API5 and AIFM1 were notably decreased. The fold changes in the expression of API5, AIFM1, and NFκB1 were 11.55, 5.94, and 3.11, respectively. However, some well-known genes related to cell apoptosis, such as the caspase family, Bcl-2, Bad, Bid, Fas, and TNF, did not show changes in expression levels. The genes we found which were differentially expressed in the hippocampus of Ts65Dn mice may be closely related to cell apoptosis. PCR array technology can assist in the screening and identification of genes involved in apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MicroRNA 122 (miR-122) is a tumor suppressor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) but is lowly expressed in HCC cells. MiR-151 is aberrantly overexpressed in HCC cells and promotes HCC metastasis yet its roles on HCC tumorigenicity are unknown. To combat HCC tumorigenicity/metastasis, we developed Sleeping Beauty (SB)-based hybrid baculovirus (BV) vectors that expressed (i) miR-122 precursors (pre-miR-122), (ii) miR-151 sponges, or (iii) pre-miR-122 and miR-151 sponges. Transduction of aggressive HCC cells (Mahlavu) with the pre-miR-122-expressing BV tremendously enhanced miR-122 levels for >6 weeks, suppressed the levels of downstream effectors (e.g., ADAM10 and Bcl-w), proliferation, anchorage-independent growth, motility and migration/invasion in vitro. Intratumoral injection of the pre-miR-122-expressing BV attenuated the HCC growth/metastasis. The miR-151 sponges-expressing BV diminished the miR-151 levels for 6 weeks, enhanced RhoGDIA expression, suppressed RhoGTPases, as well as motility and migration/invasion of Mahlavu cells. Intratumoral injection of the miR-151 sponge-expressing BV impeded not only HCC metastasis but also cell proliferation, MMP expression and tumor growth in vivo. The BV co-expressing pre-miR-122 and miR-151 sponges also simultaneously enhanced miR-122 expression and inhibited miR-151, and conferred antitumor/anti-metastasis effects albeit lack of synergism. These data implicate the potentials of the SB-based hybrid BV for persistently modulating miRNA and suppressing HCC tumorigenicity/metastasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iron-modified ZSM-5 zeolites (FeZSM-5s) have been considered to be a promising catalyst system to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions, one of the most important global environmental issues, but their synthesis faces enormous economic and environmental challenges. Herein we report a cheap and green strategy to fabricate hierarchical FeZSM-5 zeolites from natural aluminosilicate minerals via a nanoscale depolymerization-reorganization method. Our strategy is featured by neither using any aluminum-, silicon-, or iron-containing inorganic chemical nor involving any mesoscale template and any post-synthetic modification. Compared with the conventional FeZSM-5 synthesized from inorganic chemicals with the similar Fe content, the resulting hierarchical FeZSM-5 with highly-dispersed iron species showed superior catalytic activity in the selective catalytic reduction of NO by NH3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Carbon nanomaterials with delicate structures are synthesized via a facile method. • Morphologies and structures of carbon are controlled by tuning experimental conditions. • Bowl-like carbon particles exhibit highest adsorption capacity towards toluene. • The carbon-based adsorbents show excellent reusability for toluene removal. Mesoporous hollow carbon spheres have been considered as promising adsorbents for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) removal. However, the influence of the morphologies and structures on the adsorption performance of VOCs is still unclear. Herein, we developed a novel strategy for the controllable synthesis of nitrogen-doped mesoporous hollow carbon nanomaterials with adjustable morphologies and structures. By simply tuning tetraethyl orthosilicate addition time and ammonia amount in Stöber system, bowl-like, hollow, and yolk-shell carbon nanomaterials can be obtained. When used as toluene adsorbents, the bowl-like materials exhibited a capacity of 190 mg/g, higher than other carbon materials with different morphologies. The high adsorption capacity and fast adsorption rate of the bowl-like structures can be attributed to the high surface area, rich microporous/mesoporous structure and unique morphology. Our work provides a new strategy for the designed synthesis of novel VOCs adsorbents with advanced adsorption performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports the effects of thermal treatment temperature on the physicochemical properties of a rectorite mineral and the chemical reactivity and crystallization behavior of the activated rectorite products for zeolite synthesis purposes. The raw rectorite mineral and its thermal activation products were systematically characterized by XRF, XRD, FTIR and 29Si and 27Al MAS NMR techniques and the resultant zeolites were characterized by XRD technique. The results showed that after being thermally treated in the temperature range of 25–1300°C, the rectorite experienced the following four stages: dehydration at 150–300°C, dehydroxylation at 600–700°C, structure collapse at 1000°C, and new phase formation at above 1100°C. Moreover, it was found that after being thermally treated at ca. 1000°C, the SiO4 tetrahedral units in the rectorite mineral are distorted, while the AlO6 octahedral units are decomposed and thus the maximum contents of active SiO2 and Al2O3 can be simultaneously achieved, and as a result, zeolite P is obtained when using the rectorite calcined at 1000°C as the starting material for fabricating zeolites. Our results further revealed that like kaolin rectorite after thermal activation at a suitable temperature can be used for zeolite synthesis and thus demonstrates itself a promising feedstock for the green synthesis of zeolites directly from natural aluminosilicates without experiencing intermediate chemicals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: At 693K and water density of 0.30g/cm3, the co-pyrolysis of heavy oil and low density polyethylene (LDPE) in the presence of supercritical water (SCW) was investigated with the emphasis on the coking mechanism involved. The co-pyrolysis in SCW was found to have the significant advantages of the decreasing yield of coke and the increasing yield of aromatics over the pyrolysis of heavy oil alone in SCW. With the increase in the loading of LDPE, the suppression of condensation in co-pyrolysis is gradually intensified, suggesting the essential role of LDPE as an external H-source in co-pyrolysis. Only in the continuous SCW phase can the H-donation between the pyrolysis networks of heavy oil and LDPE be effectively accomplished, by which the condensation of light oil fractions to heavy oil fractions and the deep condensation of asphaltenes to coke are partly suppressed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The initiated pyrolysis of heavy oil in the presence of near-critical water (near-CW) was investigated with density functional theory (DFT) calculation and experimental characterization. Theoretical calculation indicated the thermodynamic feasibility of forming hydrocarbon radicals in heavy oil with the aid of appropriate radical initiators. By introducing ditertbutyl peroxide (DTBP) into heavy oil, the H-abstraction of Hβ atoms distributed mainly in the fractions of saturates, resins, and asphaltenes occurs, forming hydrocarbon radicals located on aliphatic chains with priority. At the temperature of 653K and water density of 0.30g/cm3, it was experimentally confirmed that the introduced DTBP was capable of initiating the pyrolysis of heavy oil. After 15min''s reaction, the pyrolysis products centered toward the fraction of aromatics whose weight proportion in the liquid product increased drastically by ca. 25.0wt.%. Meanwhile, only a negligible coke yield of 0.5wt.% was collected. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

To achieve low-power convolutional neural networks, we develop a photoelectric hybrid neural network (PHNN), which consists of the optical interference unit (OIU) and field-programmable gate array (FPGA). The OIU composed of Mach–Zehnder interferometers (MZI) arrays, used as convolution kernels, performs multiplication and accumulation operations. The convolution kernel is split and reorganized, forming a new unitary matrix, which reduces MZI quantity. FPGA realizes nonlinear calculation, data scheduling and storage, and phase encoding and modulation. Our PHNN has an accuracy rate of 88.79%, and the energy efficiency ratio is 1.73 times that of traditional electronic products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, brain natriuretic peptide (BNP-32) is fundamental to early cardiovascular clinical diagnosis, whose accurate assay is of significance by photoelectrochemistry (PEC) for the low background and high precision. Herein, a novel enhanced PEC platform was built by successive deposition of N-doped ZnO nanopolyhedra (N–ZnO NP) and protoporphyrin IX (PPIX). Specifically, the N–ZnO NP with a narrow bandgap of 2.60 eV was synthesized by direct calcination of zeolitic imidazole framework-8 (ZIF-8), and performed as the substrate to enhance the photocurrents of PPIX (as photosensitizer) whose photoelectron transfer pathway and enhanced PEC mechanism were studied in detail. Under such foundation, a label-free PEC aptasensor was developed by deposition of DNA aptamer onto the PEC platform and then ultrasensitive assay of BNP-32 based on a "signal off" model. The biosensor showed a wide linear range (1 pg mL−1- 0.1 μg mL−1) with a limit of detection (LOD) as low as 0.14 pg mL−1. This doping technique of ZnO nanomaterials provides some valuable guidelines for synthesis of advanced PEC probes in bioanalysis. [Display omitted] • The N–ZnO NP was prepared by directly calcining the ZIF-8 and adopted to enhance the photocurrent of PPIX. • The PEC platform was constructed by successive deposition of PPIX and N–ZnO NP to largely promote the photoelectron transfer. • A label-free PEC aptasensor was built for ultrasensitive assay of BNP-32 protein. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DNA methyltransferase, a key enzyme mediating DNA methylation, is involved in numerous processes including genomic imprinting, X chromosome inactivation, transposable element suppression, and immune defense in vertebrates. In the present study, a DNA cytosine-5-methyltransferase 3 was identified from oyster Crassostrea gigas (designed as Cg DNMT3). There were a PWWP domain, a PHD domain and a DNA-methylase domain in the deduced amino acid sequences of Cg DNMT3, and the conserved motifs I, IV, VI, Ⅷ, IX and X were identified in its C-terminal catalytic DNA-methylase domain. The mRNA transcripts of Cg DNMT3 were detected in haemocytes, mantle, gill, adductor muscle, digestive gland and labial palp, with higher expression level in haemocytes (6.54 folds of those in gill, p < 0.01). The expression level of Cg DNMT3 mRNA in haemocytes increased significantly after LPS primed (2.87 folds of that in control group, p < 0.05) in vitro or Vibrio splendidus challenging (1.94 folds of that in control group, p < 0.05) in vivo. Immunocytochemical analysis revealed that Cg DNMT3 protein was distributed mainly in cytoplasm and partial in nucleus of oyster haemocytes. After Cg DNMT3 was transfected and expressed in HEK293T cells, the DNA 5-methylcytosine (5-mc) level in the transfected group was significantly increased, which was 1.22 folds (p < 0.05) of the pcDNA-3.1 group. The expressions of oyster Cg IL17-1, Cg IL17-2 and Cg IL17-5 in haemocytes increased (13.05 folds, 4.78 folds and 9.41 folds of that in control group, respectively) at 12 h after V. splendidus challenging, but the increase were significantly inhibited when the oysters were pre-treated with DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-Azacytidine, which were 9 folds, 1.93 folds and 3.22 folds of that in control group, respectively. These results collectively suggested that Cg DNMT3 was a conserved member of DNA methyltransferase 3 family in oyster, and participated in regulating the expression of cytokines during immune response. • Cg DNMT3 is a conserved member of DNMT3 family in oysters. • Cg DNMT3 is constitutively expressed in adult tissues with slightly higher level in haemocyets. • LPS stimulation and Vibrio splendidus challenge up-regulated the expression of Cg DNMT3. • Cg DNMT3 was involved in the regulation of Cg IL17 expressions during immune response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Visbreaking of heavy oil with high metal and asphaltene content was investigated. • Coupling of porphyrin metals with asphaltenes promotes asphaltene aggregation. • Asphaltene condensation is accelerated by high content and aggregation. • Asphaltenes with highest metal content participate in condensation to coke first. The visbreaking of Canadian oil sands bitumen (OSB) and Tahe atmospheric residue (AR) with high metal and asphaltene content was studied to deepen the understanding of the utilization of ultra-inferior heavy oil. The total content of nickel and vanadium in the asphaltenes contained in Canadian OSB reaches 1300 ppm, promoting large-scale aggregation of asphaltenes. Driven by high asphaltene content of 19.3 wt% and large-scale aggregation of asphaltenes, Canadian OSB with an initial boiling point (IBP) of 500 °C exhibits rapid condensation during visbreaking. Furthermore, those asphaltenes with the highest metal content participate in condensation first, producing metallic nickel in the formed coke. By changing cutting strategy, the group composition and metal distribution of Canadian OSB can be adjusted. A viscosity reduction rate above 99 % is obtained during the visbreaking of Canadian OSB with an IBP of 350 °C, similar to the visbreaking of Tahe AR with an asphaltene content of 15.4 wt% and a total metal content of 300 ppm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Reaction kinetics analysis of heavy oil visbreaking in SC benzene was applied. • SCF visbreaking features low reaction temperature and shortened reaction time. • Competition between dealkylation and condensation exists throughout visbreaking. • Dealkylation-based visbreaking is accelerated by reducing diffusion limitation. • Condensation-based lumped reactions respond sensitively to temperature variation. To understand the reaction behavior of heavy oil visbreaking with reduced diffusion limitation, the visbreaking of an atmospheric residual oil in the solvent of supercritical benzene (SC benzene) was applied, followed by a reaction kinetics analysis based on a hybrid lumping with combination of boiling point distribution and group composition of oil components. The visbreaking under SC benzene environment was found to be much faster than that under nitrogen environment, proceeding effectively even at a temperature lower to 350 °C. Although the dealkylation-based lumped reactions responsible for light component production and viscosity reduction are supposed to dominate the visbreaking, a competition between dealkylation and condensation exists throughout the visbreaking. Because of the reduced diffusion limitation to reaction kinetics, the condensation-based lumped reactions with a higher activation energy up to 306 kJ.mol−1 respond more sensitively to the variation of reaction temperature, greatly shortening the reaction time window for the visbreaking at high temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • The Zn-Bp-MOFs were utilized as effective nanocarrior to enhance the catalytic of K 2 S 2 O 8 and excited electron amount. • The Zn-Bp-MOFs was linked with Zn(II) meso-tetra(4-sulfonatophenyl)porphine) via sulfonamide bond. • The Zn-Bp-MOFs increased the ECL responses effectively. • The label-free ECL biosensor were fabricated to ultrasensitive detect MUC-1. Mucin-1, an essential transmembrane glycoprotein, was regarded as a promising biomarker for colon, breast, ovarian and lung cancers. Thus, its highly sensitive and selective detection is important to develop new analytical strategies. In this work, Zn-based metal organic frameworks with pyridine (Zn-Bp-MOFs) were synthetized via coordination to enhance the ECL responses of zinc meso-tetra(4-sulfonatophenyl) porphine (Zn-TP). The synthesized Zn-Bp-MOFs substantially accelerated the electrocatalytic reduction of K 2 S 2 O 8 and excited electron amount of Zn-TP. For that, the Zn-TP linked Zn-Bp-MOFs (terminated as Zn-TP@Zn-Bp-MOFs) displayed 32-fold magnification in the ECL efficiency relative to free Zn-TP. By assembly of capture DNA (cDNA), functional luminophore effectively captured the released linked DNA (L-DNA) from double-stranded DNA (dsDNA, hybridization of aptamer DNA (aptDNA) and L-DNA) via the strong interactions between the aptDNA and mucin-1. Consequently, thionine was implanted into the groove of newly-formed dsDNA and severely quenched the ECL intensity of the emitter. The resulting biosensor showed wide linear range from 1 pg mL-1 to 10 ng mL-1 with a limit of detection (LOD) as low as 0.23 pg mL-1. Hence, such MOFs hold substantial promise to broaden their applications in photoelectric detection field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Schistosomiasis transmission is typically focal. Understanding spatial variations of Schistosoma infections and their associated factors is important to help to invent site-specific intervention strategies. Methods: A five-year longitudinal study was carried out prospectively in 12 natural villages, Guichi district of Anhui province. A GIS-based spatial analysis was conducted to identify geographic distribution patterns of schistosomiasis infections at the household scale. Results: The results of the spatial autocorrelation analysis for 2005 showed that there were significant spatial clusters of human infections at the household level, and these results were in agreement with that of the spatial scan statistic. As prevalence of infections in humans decreased over the course of control, the spatial distribution of these infections became less heterogeneous. Conclusions: The findings imply that it may be necessary to re-assess risk factors of S. japonicum transmission over the course of control and to adjust accordingly control measures in the communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air-core pulsed alternators greatly enhance the power density capabilities of pulsed power supply for electromagnetic launchers. Compared with iron-core electric machines, they require very high-excitation currents. Usually, the self-excitation mode is adopted in these systems. However, the self-excitation mode is a positive feedback process that should be precisely controlled to avoid the system being destroyed. The excitation losses are very large during the process of establishing the large field current. To solve these problems, a new excitation mode, the pulse-excitation mode, is presented in this paper. The main idea is that a pulsed current charges the field coil so that the field coil and the armature coil conduct only for a short time around the main discharge pulse. This will avoid the machine being overheated and the risk of positive feedback process. Compared with the self-excitation mode, the pulsed alternator can be operated in a higher discharge frequency and the circuit schematic of the system is simpler. A larger field capacitor is used that charges the field coil to the desired current just by a pulse. As the energy density of pulse capacitor is enhanced rapidly, the volume and mass of the field capacitor are acceptable. The pulse-excitation mode is a combination of pulsed alternator and pulsed capacitor. In this paper, the characteristics of self-excitation and pulse-excitation are analyzed, respectively. The performances of both systems are simulated, and the main waveforms are presented. Finally, there is a practical comparison between them. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: To increase the understanding of the reaction behavior of heavy hydrocarbons in the presence of sub- and supercritical water, upgrading of residual oil was applied in a batch reactor at temperatures of 653 to 713K and water densities of 0.05 to 0.20g/cm3. It is confirmed that upgrading of residual oil in sub- and supercritical water is still dominated by the free radical mechanism based thermal cracking. The ion mechanism based hydrolysis only has an extremely limited influence on the upgrading performance. With the increase in water density, the upgrading system may evolve from a partially miscible two-phase structure to a pseudo single-phase structure in which asphaltenes are highly dispersed in the continuous water phase. Prompt diffusion of aromatic radicals from asphaltenes into the water phase both depresses the coke formation and improves the liquid product distribution. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: At the temperature of 693K and water densities from 0.10 to 0.30g/cm3, co-pyrolysis of residual oil and polyethylene in sub- and supercritical water (sub-CW and SCW) was experimentally investigated. With the increase in water density, the phase structure of the co-pyrolysis system may evolve from a liquid/liquid/solid three-phase structure to a liquid/solid two-phase one. By co-pyrolysis of polyethylene with residual oil, H-rich paraffins, the main pyrolysis product of polyethylene, are released continuously into the reaction system. At higher water densities with the favorable liquid/solid two-phase structure, the contact of aromatic radicals from the pyrolysis of residual oil and paraffins from that of polyethylene is promoted, ensuring the coupling between pyrolysis networks of residual oil and polyethylene. Consequently, dealkylation of aromatic radicals may follow the desired mechanism by which the production of coke-inducing components is effectively depressed. A significantly reduced coke yield is observed in the co-pyrolysis of residual oil and polyethylene in sub-CW and SCW. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

An energy-saving and environmentally friendly approach to synthesize zeolite Y from natural aluminosilicate minerals without the involvement of aluminum- and silicon-containing inorganic chemicals was developed. When used as a fluid catalytic cracking catalyst, the resulting zeolite Y exhibited an outstanding catalytic cracking performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Homer proteins are associated with both dopaminergic and glutamatergic function. In addition, these proteins are implicated in many signal transduction pathways that are also putative targets of the mood stabilizers lithium and valproate (VPA). This study investigated the effect of in vivo chronic administration of therapeutically-relevant doses of lithium and VPA on the expression of the inducible (Homer1a and ania-3) and constitutive (Homer1b/c) isoforms of the Homer1 gene in rat brain, and of two other Homer-related genes: Inositol 1,4,5 trisphosphate receptor (IP3R) and Shank. Homer1b/c was significantly decreased in cortex by VPA, and in striatal and accumbal subregions by both lithium and VPA. Both mood stabilizers reduced Homer1b/c expression in the dorsolateral caudate-putamen, while only VPA decreased gene expression in all other striatal subregions. Shank and IP3R were downregulated by both mood stabilizers in the cortex. Neither chronic lithium nor VPA affected Homer immediate-early genes. These results suggest that lithium and VPA similarly modulate the expression of structural postsynaptic genes with topographic specificity in cortical and subcortical regions. Thus, Homer may represent an additional molecular substrate for mood stabilizers, and a potential link with dopaminergic function. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A new and facile approach has been developed to prepare monodisperse mesoporous silica nanospheres (MMSNs) with controlled particle sizes and pore structures. In our approach, MMSNs were synthesized simply in a sodium acetate solution without adding any other alkali or alcohol additives. MMSNs have a spherical shape and uniform particle sizes, which can be adjusted from 50 to 110nm by increasing the reaction temperature from 40 to 80°C. By performing a subsequent hydrothermal treatment (HT) under basic condition (pH=∼11.5) at 130°C, the mesoporous pore volume and surface area can be enhanced, while keeping the mono-dispersion characteristics and the mesopore size almost unchanged. The pore sizes of MMSNs can be adjusted from 2.8 to 4.0nm under acidic solutions by changing the HT temperature from 100 to 130°C. The formation process of MMSNs has been investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) techniques. A spherical micelle templating mechanism is proposed to explain the formation of MMSNs in our system, which is different from that of traditional highly ordered mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MCM-41). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Fetal exposure to excess glucocorticoid is one of the critical factors for the fetal origins of adult diseases. However, the mechanism of the local regulation of glucocorticoid activity in the human placenta of pregnancies complicated with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) has not been fully understood. We investigated placental 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (11β-HSDs) expression, and analyzed their relationship with cortisol levels in maternal and umbilical vein. Pregnant women with GDM after diet intervention (n =23) or normal glucose tolerance (NGT, n =22) were studied at the community-based hospital. We collected maternal and umbilical venous cord blood and placental tissues from both groups. Explanted placentas from NGT were cultured with palmitic acid, dexamethasone, insulin or their mixture for 24-h. We examined plasma cortisol, cortisone to cortisol ratio, insulin, the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) and the insulin secretion index. Quantitative real-time PCR, Western blot and immunohistochemical assay were applied for the measurement of 11β-HSD1 and 11β-HSD2 mRNA and protein. GDM had higher maternal cortisol levels, HOMA-IR, insulin secretion index and higher cortisone to cortisol ratio in umbilical vein. No significant change in cortisol levels in umbilical vein and newborn weight was found. GDM placental 11β-HSD1 levels decreased while 11β-HSD2 increased. Treatment of placenta explants from NGT with palmitic acid, dexamethasone, insulin or their combination resulted in a significant drop of 11β-HSD1 and increase in 11β-HSD2. Differential expression of 11β-HSDs in diet-treated GDM placenta provides a protective mechanism for the fetus throughout the adverse environment of pregnancy by limiting excessive exposure of the fetus to glucocorticoid. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The subchronic toxicity and toxicokinetics of Bencycloquidium bromide (BCQB) were evaluated after 91-day intranasal administration in dogs at daily dose levels of 2.5, 5.0, and 10.0mg/kg. Following repeated exposure to medium- or high-dose of BCQB, apparent changes were observed in the levels of blood glucose, creatinine or blood urea nitrogen in both male and female dogs. The no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) of BCQB was considered to be 2.5mg/kg/day under the present study conditions. There were no significant gender differences in most indexes of subchronic toxicity throughout the experimental period with the exception of food consumption and body weight, or in the parameters of plasma toxicokinetics after either single-dose or repeated administrations of BCQB at each dosage. In dog, BCQB did not accumulate in blood plasma, while much higher concentrations of BCQB residues were found in most tissues examined (especially the kidney) following 91-day repeated exposure relative to a single dose. In all tissues except the reproductive organs, BCQB concentrations reverted to low levels by 2weeks post-dosing. The results indicate that blood glucose levels and renal function should be closely monitored when BCQB is used in long-term therapy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Methyltransf_FA domain is well-known as a key protein domain of enzyme synthesizing juvenile hormone, and Methyltransf_FA domain containing proteins (MFCPs) are widely existed in vertebrates and invertebrates. In the present study, a Cg MFCP with a single Methyltransf_FA domain was screened from oyster Crassostrea gigas , and its open reading frame of Cg MFCP was of 1128 bp, encoding a polypeptide of 376 amino acids with a signal peptide, a Methyltransf_FA domain and a transmembrane region. Cg MFCP was clustered with FAMeTs from insecta and crustacea of arthropod. The mRNA transcripts of Cg MFCP were detected in different tissues, with the extremely high expression level in haemocytes, which was 131.36-fold (p < 0.05) of that in gills. The expression level of Cg MFCP protein was verified to be highly expressed in haemocytes. The expression level of Cg MFCP mRNA in primarily cultured haemocytes significantly up-regulated at 3 h, 24 h and 48 h post LPS stimulation, which was 3.25-fold (p < 0.01), 2.04-fold (p < 0.05) and 3.59-fold (p < 0.01) compared to that in blank group. After the oysters were stimulated with Vibrio splendidus in vivo , the expression level of Cg MFCP mRNA in haemocytes was also significantly up-regulated at 3 h, 12 h, and 24 h, which was 4.22-fold (p < 0.05), 4.39-fold (p < 0.05) and 6.35-fold (p < 0.01) of that in control group, respectively. By flow cytometry analysis, anti-r Cg MFCP can label 95% of oyster haemocytes. And by fluorescence microscope analysis, Cg MFCP was mainly distributed in cytomembrane of haemocytes. The recombinant Cg MFCP (r Cg MFCP) exhibited higher affinity towards MAN and LPS in a dose-dependent manner, while relatively lower affinity to PGN and poly (I:C). r Cg MFCP also displayed binding activities towards Gram-negative bacteria (Vibrio anguillarum and V. splendidus), Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcu aureu) and fungi (Pichia pastoris). These results collectively indicated that Cg MFCP specifically expressed in haemocytes and functioned as a pattern recognition receptor by binding to various microbes in oyster C. gigas , which provided insight into the function of Methyltransf_FA domain containing proteins. • Cg MFCP with a single Methyltransf_FA domain was identified from C. gigas. • The anti-r Cg MFCP can label 95% of oyster haemocytes by flow cytometry analysis. • Cg MFCP mRNA expression in haemocytes was induced by LPS and V. splendidus stimulation. • r Cg MFCP exhibited recognition and binding activity towards various PAMPs and microbes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the further development of the automotive industry, the traditional vibration isolation method is difficult to meet the requirements for wide frequency bands under multiple operating conditions, the active control mount (ACM) is gradually paid attentions, and the control algorithm plays a decisive role. In this paper, the ACM with oscillating coil actuator (OCA) is taken as the object, and the comparative study of the control algorithms is performed to select the optimal one for ACM. Through the modelling of ACM, the design of controller and the system simulations, the force transmission rate is used to compare the vibration isolation performance of the nine control algorithms, which are least mean square (LMS) adaptive feedforward control, recursive least square (RLS) adaptive feedforward control, filtered reference signal LMS (FxLMS) adaptive control, linear quadratic regulator (LQR) optimal control, H2 control, H∞ control, proportional integral derivative (PID) feedback control, fuzzy control and fuzzy PID control. In summary, the FxLMS adaptive control algorithm has the better performance and the advantage of easier hardware implementation, and it can apply in ACMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Synthesis of quaternary ammonium salt type Gemini surfactants with rosin groups. • Used in the field of Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) cleaning. • Density functional theory studies cleaning mechanism. Novel rosin-based Gemini surfactants (RGS- n) are synthesized from dehydroabietylamine and four different N, N -dimethyl long-chain aliphatic amines. Compared with traditional surfactants, the critical micelle concentration (CMC) of RGS- n is reduced by 2 to 3 orders of magnitude. The three-ring skeleton of dehydrogenated rosin can improve the emulsification of RGS- n. Besides, the Kraff points of RGS- n are less than 0 °C, indicating the availability of RGS- n at low temperature. RGS- n exhibits a better cleaning effect through the combination of electrostatic interaction with carboxyl groups of rosin and the emulsification of RGS- n. The smaller presence of residual rosin on printed circuit boards (PCBs) after cleaning with RGS- n indicates higher cleaning performance of RGS- n. The effect of the length of the hydrophobic chain on cleaning efficacy is analyzed for PCBs. Higher cleaning efficacy is observed at RGS-14. This work has specific research significance for Gemini surfactant application as a cleaning agent in industrial circuit board cleaning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Various new morphologies of CeCO 3 OH were synthesized by a facile hydrothermal route. • Ce 2 (CO 3) 3 ⋅6H 2 O was found as an intermediate product in studied synthetic process. • Decomposition behaviors of CeCO 3 OH in H 2 /Ar atmosphere are revealed. • Ceria with higher photocatalytic activity was obtained by decomposing CeCO 3 OH in H 2. The novel tactic that shape-controlled CeO 2- x with excellent photocatalytic activity by designing morphology of CeCO 3 OH and decomposing in hydrogen was proved. [Display omitted] In this work, various new-observed structured CeCO 3 OH were synthesized by a self-assembly hydrothermal method, and a novel tactic to produce CeO 2- x with excellent photocatalytic activity by decomposing CeCO 3 OH in H 2 was proposed and identified. By controlling the synthetic conditions, almond-like, subglobose shape and hollow-sphere of CeCO 3 OH, 3D-broom-like of Ce 2 O 3 · 2CO 2 · nH 2 O (n = (1–2)), and sheet-like of Ce 2 (CO 3) 3 · 6H 2 O were synthesized. The crystal growth and formation of the cerium carbonate compounds were carefully studied using XRD, SEM and TEM. TG, thermodynamic calculation and in-situ XRD were employed to reveal the decomposition behavior of almond-like CeCO 3 OH in air, Ar and H 2. The results show that the decomposition temperatures of CeCO 3 OH in Ar and H 2 are higher than that of in air, and suggest that Ce 2 O 3 has a low thermodynamic stability during the decomposition of CeCO 3 OH in Ar and H 2 , and Ce3+ will be mostly oxidized by H 2 O firstly and then by both of H 2 O and CO 2. The ceria samples obtained by decomposing from CeCO 3 OH in different atmosphere maintain indistinguishable shape and particle size. The XPS, Raman spectra and ESR results indicate that the one obtained in H 2 has the richest surface oxygen vacancies (OVs), narrowest band gap of 3.12 eV, lowest intensity in PL spectra and a significantly enhanced photodegradation ratio of methylene blue. The MB photodegradation ratio after 120 min reaction with the catalysts of CeO 2 -Air, CeO 2 -Ar and CeO 2 -H 2 is 43.14%, 54.43% and 73.41%, with a calculated reaction rate constant of 0.00539, 0.00652 and 0.01097 min-1, respectively. The offered novel tactic of decomposing CeCO 3 OH in H 2 is an efficient and facile technique for active CeO 2- x production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the tautomerism of glycinamide that is induced by proton transfer, we present detailed theoretical studies on the reaction mechanism of both the isolated gas phase and H2O‐assisted proton transfer process of glycinamide, using density functional theory calculations by means of the B3LYP hybrid functional. Twenty‐six geometries, including 10 significant transition states, were optimized, and these geometrical parameters are discussed in detail. The relative order of the activation energy for hydrogen atom transfer of all the conformers has been systematically explored in this essay. For the amido hydrogen atom transfer process, the relative order of the activation energy is: IV < II < III < I, while in the carbonic hydrogen atom transfer process, the relative order is IV > II > III > I. Meanwhile, the most favorable structure for both the amido hydrogen atom transfer and the carbonic hydrogen atom transfer has been found. The involvement of the water molecule not only can stabilize the transition states and the ground states, but can also reduce the activation energy greatly. The superior catalytic effect of H2O has been discussed in detail. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2006 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Mottled Tohoku (Atp7a Mo-Tohm or Mo Tohm ) is an X-linked mutation with mottled pigmentation in heterozygous (Mo Tohm /+) females and is embryonic lethal at E11 in hemizygous (Mo Tohm /Y) males. Copper levels were low in the brain and high in the intestine of Mo Tohm mice. Two congenic strains with ICR or C57BL/6 (B6) background were produced for genetic and phenotypic analyses and revealed that Mo Tohm /+ females with ICR background survived until adulthood, while most with B6 background died within 2 days after birth. The Mo Tohm /Y males with both backgrounds died at around E11. Massive hemorrhage was shown in the yolk sac cavity with irregular attachment between the mesoderm and the endothelial cells of blood vessels in the embryos at E10.5, suggesting that this irregular attachment causes embryonic lethality. The Mo Tohm mutant had a 1440-bp deletion between intron 22 and exon 23 of the Atp7a gene. Mo Tohm /Y males with the wild-type Atp7a cDNA transgene were rescued from embryonic lethality, confirming that the Mo Tohm mutant is caused by the defect in the Atp7a gene. This mutant mouse is the most severe model of human Menkes disease in mottled mice established to date and one of the useful models for understanding the gene function of Menkes disease. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Interleukin-1 (IL-1) F5 is a novel member of the IL-1 family. The IL-1 family are involved in innate immune responses to infection and injury. These cytokines bind to specific receptors and cause activation of NFκB and MAP kinase. IL-IF5 has a sequence identity of 44% to IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra), a natural antagonist of the IL-1 system. Here we report the crystal structure of IL-1F5 to a resolution of 1.6 Å. It has the same β-trefoil fold as other IL-1 family members, and the hydrophobic core is well conserved. However, there are substantial differences in the loop conformations, structures that confer binding specificity for the cognate receptor to IL-lβ and the antagonist IL-1Ra. Docking and superimposition of the IL-1F5 structure suggest that is unlikely to bind to the interleukin1 receptor, consistent with biochemical studies. The structure IL-1F5 lacks features that confer antagonist properties on IL-1Ra, and we predict that like IL-1β it will act as an agonist. These studies give insights into how distinct receptor specificities can evolve within related cytokine families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The molecular machinery required for autophagy is highly conserved in all eukaryotes as seen by the high degree of conservation of proteins involved in the formation of the autophagosome membranes. Recently, both yeast Apg8p and its rat homologue Map1lc3 were identified as essential constituents of autophagosome membrane as a processed form. In addition, both the yeast and human proteins exist in two modified forms produced by a series of post-translational modifications including a critical C-terminal cleavage after a conserved Gly residue, and the smaller processed form is associated with the autophagosome membranes. Herein, we report the identification and characterization of three human orthologs of the rat Map1LC3, named MAP1LC3A, MAP1LC3B, and MAP1LC3C. We show that the three isoforms of human MAP1LC3 exhibit distinct expression patterns in different human tissues. Importantly, we found that the three isoforms of MAP1LC3 differ in their post-translation modifications. Although MAP1LC3A and MAP1LC3C are produced by the proteolytic cleavage after the conserved C-terminal Gly residue, like their rat counterpart, MAP1LC3B does not undergo C-terminal cleavage and exists in a single modified form. The essential site for the distinct posttranslation modification of MAP1LC3B is Lys-122 rather than the conserved Gly-120. Subcellular localization by cell fractionation and immunofluorescence revealed that three human isoforms are associated with membranes involved in the autophagic pathway. These results revealed different regulation of the three human isoforms of MAP1LC3 and implicate that the three isoforms may have different physiological functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diabetes is a chronic noncommunicable disease with high incidence rate. Diabetics without early diagnosis or standard treatment may contribute to serious multisystem complications, which can be life threatening. Timely detection and intervention of prediabetes is very important to prevent diabetes, because it is inevitable in the development and progress of the disease.Objective: Our objective was to establish the predictive model that can be applied to evaluate people with blood glucose in high and critical state.Methods: We established the diabetes risk prediction model formed by a combined TCM tongue diagnosis with machine learning techniques. 1512 subjects were recruited from the hospital. After data preprocessing, we got the dataset 1 and dataset 2. Dataset 1 was used to train classical machine learning model, while dataset 2 was used to train deep learning model. To evaluate the performance of the prediction model, we used Classification Accuracy(CA), Precision, Recall, F1-score, Precision-Recall curve(P-R curve), Area Under the Precision-Recall curve(AUPRC), Receiver Operating Characteristic curve(ROC curve), Area Under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve(AUROC), then selected the best diabetes risk prediction model.Results: On the test set of dataset 1, the CA of non-invasive Stacking model was 71 %, micro average AUROC was 0.87, macro average AUROC was 0.84, and micro average AUPRC was 0.77. In the critical blood glucose group, the AUROC was 0.84, AUPRC was 0.67. In the high blood glucose group, AUROC was 0.87, AUPRC was 0.83. On the validation set of dataset 2, the CA of ResNet50 model was 69 %, micro average AUROC was 0.84, macro average AUROC was 0.83, and micro average AUPRC was 0.73. In the critical blood glucose group, AUROC was 0.88, AUPRC was 0.71. In the high blood glucose group, AUROC was 0.80, AUPRC was 0.76. On the test set of dataset 2, the CA of ResNet50 model was 65 %, micro average AUROC was 0.83, macro average AUROC was 0.82, and micro average AUPRC was 0.71. In the critical blood glucose group, the prediction of AUROC was 0.84, AUPRC was 0.60. In the high blood glucose group, AUROC was 0.87, AUPRC was 0.71.Conclusions: Tongue features can improve the prediction accuracy of the diabetes risk prediction model formed by classical machine learning model significantly. In addition to the excellent performance, Stacking model and ResNet50 model which were recommended had non-invasive operation and were easy to use. Stacking model and ResNet50 model had high precision, low false positive rate and low misdiagnosis rate on detecting hyperglycemia. While on detecting blood glucose value in critical state, Stacking model and ResNet50 model had a high sensitivity, a low false negative rate and a low missed diagnosis rate. The study had proved that the differential changes of tongue features reflected the abnormal glucose metabolism, thus the diabetes risk prediction model formed by a combined TCM tongue diagnosis and machine learning technique was feasible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • The core of MPDA endowed nanoparticles with high drug loading characteristics. • The PDA shell of nanoparticles can achieve local and controlled drug release. • Surface-modified HA can mediate active tumor targeting of nanoparticles. • It realized the synergistic treatment of photothermal-chemotherapy. The combination of photothermal therapy (PTT) and chemotherapy is a promising strategy to overcome the shortcomings of monotherapy. For the first time, we designed a self-coated nanoparticle formed by mesoporous polydopamine (MPDA) core and polydopamine (PDA) shell, which was used to load docetaxel and modified with hyaluronic acid (HA). The obtained nanoparticle can achieve targeted drug delivery and further exert the synergistic effect of PTT and chemotherapy. The MPDA core has high drug loading due to mesopores, and the PDA shell can prevent the drug from releasing in the non-target-site because of the pH-sensitivity of the PDA. Compared with other PDA coated nanoparticle, self-coated nanoparticle has a simpler composition and can avoid the potential toxicity caused by the introduction of other materials. Experimental results showed that it had good photothermal conversion ability both in vivo and in vitro, and could be actively targeted into tumor cells through HA-mediated targeting. Under laser irradiation, it ablated the tumors. Simple ingredient and preparation, good compatibility and obvious therapeutic effect make it have a broad application prospect in tumor therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The difficulty of the H-abstraction of alkyl radicals from PAHs or hetero-PAHs follows the order: S-containing heterocycles > PAHs > N-containing heterocycles. • H-abstraction of CH 3 or C 2 H 5 from PAHs or hetero-PAHs was investigated. • CH 3 instead of C 2 H 5 is responsible for aromatic C radical formation on PAHs. • Activation entropy determines the difference in k T S T of H-abstraction on PAHs. • H-abstraction difficulty: S-containing heterocycles > PAHs > N-containing heterocycles. To understand the condensation during heavy oil thermal processing, the formation of aromatic carbon radicals by H-abstraction of methyl radicals (CH 3) or ethyl radicals (C 2 H 5) from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) or heterocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (hetero-PAHs) was studied by density functional calculation. The H-abstraction from different PAHs all has a positive standard state Gibbs free energy change, while increasing reaction temperature or radical concentration promotes the reaction to proceed spontaneously. CH 3 mainly contributes to the formation of aromatic carbon radicals on PAHs, and the activation entropy of H-abstraction determines the difference in reaction rate constants. The particularity of H-abstraction from hetero-PAHs is reflected at the α-site of heterocycles. The H-abstraction from N-containing hetero-PAHs occurs preferentially at the α-site of heterocycles, and both CH 3 and C 2 H 5 could participate in abstracting the α-H. The H-abstraction from S-containing hetero-PAHs occurs preferentially on coupled aromatic rings, showing reaction behavior similar to the H-abstraction on PAHs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Hollow Ni@PtNi yolk-shell nanocages were prepared by the solvothermal and subsequent etching treatment. • The incorporation of rich Thi into Ni@PtNi HNCs greatly enhanced the detection signals. • FcBA was efficiently grafted on PDA via covalent linkage between boracic acid of FcBA and vicinal diol of PDA. • The rGO-PDA-Fc functionalized with Au@Ag NSs demonstrated the outstanding analytical performance in immunoassay of HER2. Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) is believed as a clinically important breast cancer marker, and thereby it is extremely imperative to develop a highly sensitive and effective strategy for specific recognition and assay of HER2. In this work, a facile ratiometric electrochemical immunosensor was fabricated for sensitively monitoring HER2 as a model analyte, in which reduced graphene oxide-polydopamine-grafted-ferrocene/Au@Ag nanoshuttles (Au@Ag NSs) performed as electrode material and hollow Ni@PtNi yolk-shell nanocages-thionine (Ni@PtNi HNCs) as signal tags, which provided two distinct electrochemical signals from Fc and Thi, respectively. The Au@Ag NSs endowed the rGO-PDA-Fc with improved biocompatibility and dramatic magnification of the Fc signals upon sensing interface. Also, by integration of the hollow structure, enlarged specific surface area and superior catalytic ability together, the Ni@PtNi HNCs-Thi achieved substantial amplification in the detection signals from Thi. Benefiting from the above, the as-developed immunosensor exhibited a broad linear range (0.01 ∼ 100 ng mL–1) and a low detection limit (3.3 pg mL–1) for HER2 (S / N = 3), followed by exploring its application in actual serum samples with acceptable results. It holds great potential for clinical screening of cancer biomarkers and point of-care assays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DM9 domain containing protein (DM9CP) is a recently identified pattern recognition molecules exiting in most organisms except plants. In the present study, a novel DM9-containing protein (Cg DM9CP-3) was identified from Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas with an open reading frame of 438 bp, encoding a polypeptide of 145 amino acids containing two tandem DM9 repeats. The deduced amino acid sequence of Cg DM9CP-3 shared 52.4% and 58.6% identity with Cg DM9CP-1 and Cg DM9CP-2, respectively. The mRNA transcripts of Cg DM9CP-3 were highest expressed in oyster gills and its protein was mainly distributed in cytomembrane of haemocytes. After the stimulations with Vibrio splendidus and mannose, the mRNA expression of Cg DM9CP-3 in oyster gills was significantly up-regulated and reached the peak level at 12 h and 24 h (p < 0.05), which was 7.80-fold (p < 0.05) and 42.82-fold (p < 0.05) of that in the control group, respectively. The recombinant Cg DM9CP-3 protein (r Cg DM9CP-3) was able to bind LPS, PGN and d -Mannose, fungi Pichia pastoris and Yarrowia lipolytica , as well as gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli , Vibrio anguillarum and V. splendidus in a Ca2+-dependent manner. Moreover, it could enhance the encapsulation of haemocytes and exhibited agglutination activity towards fungi P. pastoris and Y. lipolytica in vitro with Ca2+. These results suggested that Cg DM9CP-3 not only acted as a PRR involved in the pathogen recognition, but also enhanced cellular encapsulation in oyster C. gigas. • A novel DM9-containing protein (Cg DM9CP-3) was identified from Crassostrea gigas. • The mRNA expression of Cg DM9CP-3 mRNA in gills was up-regulated after the stimulation with mannose or V. splendidus. • r Cg DM9CP-3 exhibited significant activities to bind and aggregate fungi and Gram-negative bacteria. • r Cg DM9CP-3 was able to enhance the encapsulation activity of haemocytes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A facile strategy to regulate the structural and electronic state of Pd active sites on silica supports via Zr incorporation with different introduction sequences has been demonstrated. Pd-Zr/N-SiO 2 prepared with Zr incorporation then Pd loading exhibits superior catalytic activity for the hydrogenation of nitrile butadiene rubber. • PdZr/SiO 2 catalysts were prepared via different methods and utilized for NBR hydrogenation. • The geometric and electronic effects of Zr component on Pd active sites were revealed. • Zr can improve the catalytic activity but the sequence of Zr introduction affects the performance. Three PdZr bi-component catalysts supported on modified silica have been successfully synthesized via different Zr introduction methods and utilized for the hydrogenation of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) to produce high value-added hydrogenated NBR. It is demonstrated that the introduction of Zr can lead to the formation of small-sized and electron-rich Pd nanoparticles and the order of adding Zr can significantly affect the catalytic activity. In particular, the PdZr bi-component catalyst obtained by introducing Zr followed by adding Pd is found to be more stable on the silica support, which exhibits a high hydrogenation degree of 90.9% with 100% selectivity to C C bond, close to the single Pd catalyst with double Pd contents. The electronic structure and reaction mechanism analysis from density functional theory calculations further reveal that the addition of Zr component leads to negatively charged Pd species with lower energy barrier for the hydrogenation of C C bond. Our findings provide a useful guidance for the design of efficient and low-cost bi-component catalysts for the selective hydrogenation of unsaturated polymers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Breast cancer, one of common malignant tumors, is threatening woman's health and life with high mortality rate to this day, and thereby its early screening and detection are of significance in medical diagnosis and follow-up treatment. In view of the low sensitivity, cost-effectiveness and invasive procedures, conventional approaches generally exhibit limited applications in practice. Such oncologic diseases have close correlation with the tumor markers usually situated in tumor cells or secreted by tumor cells. The biomarkers can work as good indicators for developing highly sensitive and specific immmunoassays towards detecting breast cancer. This work provides an overview of recent researches to screen and detect the benchmarked biomarkers of breast cancer, and discuss the developed immunosensing strategies on selected works published early in the past five years. Particular emphasis is focused on remarkable amplification approaches of detection signals to improve the sensitivity. Concretely, the paper introduces the design, fabrication, and applications of such sensors mainly by electrochemistry, electrochemiluminescence, and photoelectrochemistry, coupled with improved stability and selectivity. For developing such high-efficiency biosensors, recent challenges and opportunities are finally discussed towards early diagnosis of breast cancer. Unlabelled Image • New advances of immunosensors were outlined for detecting breast cancer biomarkers. • The electrochemical, ECL, and PEC immunosensors were summarized. • Challenges and perspectives for cancer biomarkers are presented and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of varying the initial pH from 5 to 9 on Maillard reaction-induced whey protein gel formation and structural and rheological properties were determined. The molecular mass of whey protein and reducing sugar conjugates increased according to SDS-PAGE determination. Amino and surface sulphydryl groups were decreased, contributing to gel network formation. The amide I and II bands at 1640 cm−1 and 1550 cm−1, respectively, were decreased and the amide III peak at 1200–1300 cm−1 increased, indicating the amino groups were participating in complex cascade reactions and the Maillard reaction during gel formation. Fluorescence measurements revealed that exposed tryptophan residues could increase the hydrophilic properties of the glycosylated protein. Gels formed from whey protein + glucose and from whey protein + xylose at an initial pH of 5 and 7, respectively, had a higher elastic modulus (G′), which was related to increased β-sheet and random coil formation after the Maillard reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]