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The aim of this study was to validate the preventive effects of koumine (KM), a monoterpene indole alkaloid, on gouty arthritis (GA) and to explore its possible mechanisms. C57BL/6 mice were intraperitoneally administered KM (0.8, 2.4 or 7.2 mg/kg), colchicine (3.0 mg/kg) or sterile saline. One hour later, a monosodium urate (MSU) suspension was injected into the right hind paws of the mice to establish an acute gout model. Inflammation symptoms were evaluated at 0, 3, 6, 12 and 24 h, and the mechanical withdrawal threshold was evaluated at 0, 6 and 24 h. After 24 h, the mice were euthanized, and the joint tissue, kidney and blood were collected for subsequent experiments. Histological examination and antioxidant enzyme, kidney index and serum uric acid (UA) measurements were taken. The expression levels of the signalling pathway components were determined. KM effectively alleviated the symptoms of redness, swelling and pain; counteracted inflammatory cell infiltration; and increased antioxidant enzyme levels, reduced kidney index and serum UA levels through regulating UA excretion in MSU‐induced mice. The expression of toll‐like receptor 4 (TLR4)/nuclear factor kappa‐B (NF‐κB)/nucleotide‐binding oligomerization domain, leucine‐rich repeat and pyrin domain‐containing 3 (NLRP3) signalling pathway proteins and mRNA were reduced in the KM group. These results suggest that KM may be effective in alleviating GA through the TLR4/NF‐κB/NLRP3 pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To search age-correlated facial features and construct an age estimation model based on the three-dimensional （3D） facial images of Xinjiang Uygur males, and to structure individual face images of old age and young age. Methods Pretreatment was performed to collect 105 3D facial images of Xingjiang Uygur males aged between 17-57 years by Artec Studio software. The facial images were transferred to high-density 3D dot matrix data by FaceAnalysis software, and each image could be represented with 32 251 vertexes. Central correction of the facial images was done and all the data were aligned to a standard coordinate frame by generalized Procrustes analysis （GPA）. The age estimation model was established by partial least square regression （PLSR）. Furthermore, the changes of age-correlated facial features were presented on the heat map of average face, and the reconstruction of facial images at different ages was performed based on this model. Results With age, the average faces showed a series of changes including the nasolabial sulcus deepening, cheek sinking, cheekbone protruding and eye corner drooping. The Pearson correlation coefficient （r） between estimated age and chronological age was 0.71. The mean absolute deviation （MAD） of age estimation was 6.37 years. The results of age estimation in >30-40 years group showed a best accuracy （MAD=4.27 years）, and the deviations increased with age after 40 years. The composite facial images represented a significant result with age on facial morphological features and aging. Conclusion The results of this study reveal the age-correlated facial features and aging markers in Uygur population, which help to construct a reliable age estimation model.

In this study, idealized cloud-resolving simulations are performed for horizontally uniform and steady southwesterly flow at fixed direction/speed combinations to investigate rainfall characteristics and the role of the complex topography in Taiwan during the Mei-yu season, without the influence of a front or other disturbances. Eight directions (180° to 285°, every 15°) and eight speeds (5 to 22.5 m s-1, every 2.5 m s-1) are considered, and near-surface relative humidity (RH) is also altered (from 55-100 %) in a subset of these tests to further investigate the effects of moisture content, yielding a total 109 experiments each having a integration length of 50 h. Three rainfall regimes that correspond to different ranges of the wet Froude number (Frw) are identified from the idealized simulations (with a grid size of 2 km). The low-Frw regime (Frw ≤ ~0.3) where the island circulation from thermodynamic effects during daytime is the main cause of rainfall in local afternoon. The lower the wind speed (and Frw), the more widespread and amount of rainfall. On the other hand, the high-Frw regime (Frw ≥ ~0.4) occurs when the flow at least 12.5 m s-1 impinges on Taiwan terrain at a large angle to favor the flow-over scenario. Thus, topographic rainfall production becomes dominant through mechanical uplift of unstable air. In this scenario, the faster and wetter the flow, the heavier the rainfall on the windward slopes, with the most favorable direction from 240°-255°. Between the two regimes above, a third and mixed regime also exists. The idealized results are discussed for their applicability to the real atmosphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]