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Objective To investigate whether miR-203a-3p can regulate the biological behaviors of ovarian cancer cells by targeting ATM to affect the Akt/GSK-3β/Snail signaling pathway. Methods The expression levels of miR-203a-3p and ATM were detected by qRT-PCR, immunohistochemical staining and Western blotting in ovarian cancer tissues and adjacent normal tissues obtained from 152 subjects. A dual-luciferase reporter gene assay was performed to verify the relationship between miR-203a-3p and ATM. Human ovarian cancer cell lines (A2780 and SKOV3) were used to generate the Blank, miR-NC, miR-203a-3p mimic, Control siRNA, ATM siRNA, and miR-203a-3p inhibitor + ATM siRNA groups. The biological behaviors of ovarian cancer cells were evaluated by CCK-8, wound healing, and Transwell invasion assays, annexin V-FITC/PI staining and flow cytometry. The levels of Akt/GSK-3β/Snail pathway-related proteins were assessed by Western blotting. Results Ovarian cancer tissues showed lower miR-203a-3p levels and higher ATM levels than adjacent normal tissues, both of which were associated with the FIGO stage, grade and prognosis of ovarian cancer. As confirmed by a dual-luciferase reporter gene assay, miR-203a-3p could target ATM. Furthermore, the miR-203a-3p mimic had multiple effects, including the inhibition of the proliferation, invasion and migration of A2780 and SKOV3 cells, the promotion of cell apoptosis, the arrest of the cell cycle at the G1 phase, and the blockage of the Akt/GSK-3β/Snail signaling pathway. ATM siRNA had similar effects on the biological behaviors of ovarian cancer cells, and these effects could be reversed by a miR-203a-3p inhibitor. Conclusion miR-203a-3p was capable of hindering proliferation, migration, and invasion and facilitating the apoptosis of ovarian cancer cells through its modulation of the Akt/GSK-3β/Snail signaling pathway by targeting ATM, and therefore it could serve as a potential therapeutic option for ovarian cancer.

A multiresidue immunoassay method for determination of Fluoroquinolones (FQs) residues has been developed. For this purpose, NHS ester technology was employed to synthesize the immunogen and coating antigen of Norfloxacin (NFLX). SDS-PAGE, UV-visible spectra and Infrared spectra identification showed that the artificial antigen was conjugated successfully. Based on the square matrix titration, an icELISA method was established. The dynamic range in assay buffer was from 0.038 to 112.8 ng/mL, with LOD and IC50 value of 0.02 ng/mL and 1.2 ng/mL, respectively. This assay showed a high cross-reactivity to Ciprofloxacin (86%), Enrofloxacin (75%), Difloxacin (63%), Sarafloxacin (57%) and Pefloxacin (33.8%). The chemical effects on assay performance showed that the physiological pH (7.4) in assay buffer pursued the maximum absorbance (Amax) and the most sensitive IC50 values. The results suggest the artificial antigen was synthesized successfully, and the established immunoassay could be used for simultaneous detecting of Norfloxacin, Ciprofloxacin, Enrofloxacin, Difloxacin, Sarafloxacin and Pefloxacin residues in animal-original food samples.

In this paper we compared growth performance, growth hormone (GH) pulsatile secretion and serum metabolites in growing Taihu and Landrace gilts at the same age. The results showed that compared with Landrace gilts, Taihu gilts decreased by 45.48% (P0.05). Serum urea nitrogen concentration in Taihu gilts was 32.04% (P

A rapid indirect competitive ELISA (icELISA) format has been developed for the determination of enrofloxacin (ENR) residues in chicken. For this purpose, carbodiimide active ester method was employed to synthesize the artificial antigen of ENR-BSA, and anti- serum produced from the immunized rabbits was tested by indirect ELISA and icELISA. By the square matrix titration, the icELISA method was developed for the quantitative detection of ENR, based on the pAb. The Linear range was from 0.006 to 31.5 ng/mL, with LOD and IC50 value of 0.003 ng/mL and 0.45 ng/mL, respectively. Except for a high cross-reactivity (105.2%) to Ciprofloxacin, negligible cross-reactivity to the other compounds was observed. The recoveries of ENR were in the range of 98.3-127.5%, 85.7-112.5% and 97.4-103.8% for chicken muscle, liver and kidney, respectively. After optimization, 0.03 mol/L of HCl was used in the assay buffer and this ELISA system can tolerate acetonitrile not higher than 10%. The correlation coefficients (R2) of the ELISA and LC-MS data were 0.9472 in muscle, 0.9843 in liver, and 0.9382 in kidney. Therefore, this assay has the potential to be incorporated into a quantitative monitoring program for the rapid screening of ENR residue in food.

This paper presents the generation of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) with high specificity against enrofloxacin (ENR) through cell fusion procedures, and the development of a mAb-based indirect competitive ELISA (icELISA) method to detect ENR residue using one of these Hybridomas (clone 4B5-D6). Under the optimal experimental conditions, this assay exhibited a working range of 0.004-38 ng/mL with IC50 and LOD values of 0.4 and 0.002 ng/mL, respectively. Except for a high cross-reactivity (105.2%) to Ciprofloxacin, negligible cross-reactivity to the other compounds was observed. After optimization, 10% of methanol was used in the assay buffer and this ELISA system can tolerate acetonitrile not higher than 10%. Recovery studies indicate that an excellent correlation between concentration spiked and concentration determined was found, and the results also suggest this assay has the potential to be incorporated into a quantitative monitoring program for the rapid screening of ENR residue in poultry tissues.

Ultrafine β-sialon powder is synthesized by citrate sol-gel and carbothermal reduction and nitridation (CRN) process. The presence of small amounts of β-sialon as crystal seed can obviously accelerate the formation of final β-sialon product and lower its formation temperature. The effects of nitriding temperature on the formation of the final β-sialon are investigated. The mean particle size of the prepared β-sialon powder is 100 ~ 150 nm. The β-sialon precursor gel and the ultrafine β-sialon powder are characterized by XRD, TG-DTA and SEM. The isoelectric point of ultrafine β-sialon is pH 2.46.

Clopidol is mainly used for the prevention and treatment of coccidiosis, which poses a serious potential hazard to public health, in veterinary medicine. The aim of this study was to prepare monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against clopidol (CLOP) and develop an immunoassay for detecting CLOP residues in chicken tissues. After derivation, CLOP hapten was conjugated to carrier proteins to synthesize the artificial antigen, and immunized Balb/C mice were employed to screen mAbs.A sensitive hybridoma named C1G3 was screened out and two indirect competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (icELISA) standard curves were established. For the traditional two-step assay the linear range was from 0.06 to 98 ng mL(-1) , with half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50 ) and limit of detection (LOD) values of 2.76 ng mL(-1) and 0.03 ng mL(-1) respectively, while the rapid one-step icELISA had a working range from 0.08 to 102 ng mL(-1) , with IC50 and LOD values of 3.52 ng mL(-1) and 0.03 ng mL(-1) respectively. It was also indicated that a 10-fold dilution in chicken muscles gave an inhibition curve almost the same as that obtained in phosphate-buffered saline. When applied to spiking tests in chicken samples, the correlation coefficient (R(2) ) between concentrations added and measured was 0.9534.The results of this study suggest that the immunoassay described is a promising alternative for screening CLOP residues in biological matrices and is suitable for routine diagnostics.

The photophysical and electrochemical properties of four novel donor-accepter (D-A) conjugated oligomers a-d based on 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) and electrondeficient heterocycle rings were investigated. The UV-vis absorption spectroscopy, fluorescence emission spectroscopy and cyclic voltammertry studies suggest that the oligomers are expected to provide enhanced charge-transporting properties for the development of efficient electroluminescent materials. Furthermore, the third-order nonlinear optical (NLO) measurements made by Z-scan technique indicate that they have good third-order NLO response and are desired materias for fabricating nonlinear photonic devices. In the solid state of these oligomers, a strong tendency of self-assembled structure was also revealed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns in powder.

With positively charged chitosan as an intermediary, herring sperm DNA was intercalated into the interlayer galleries of negatively charged alpha-ZrP to form DNA/chitosan/alpha-ZrP ternary hybrids at pH 5.5. Fourier-transform IR, x-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy confirmed not only the coexistence of DNA, chitosan and alpha-ZrP in the composite but also the layered composite structure with an interlayer distance of 4.25 nm. Circular dichroism (CD) and UV spectroscopic studies disclosed that the restraint of DNA by the layered alpha-ZrP favors stabilization of the double-helical conformation of DNA and enhances the denaturation temperature. The intercalated DNA can be effectively released from the ternary nanocomposites at pHs higher than 6.5, and the released DNA displayed a similar CD spectrum to that of free DNA. The current research displays the promising potential to obtain a non-viral gene vector by intercalating DNA into negatively charged inorganic layered materials in the presence of a positively charged intermediary.