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RNA harbored by mammalian sperm is increasingly considered to be an additional source of paternal hereditary information, beyond DNA. Recent studies have demonstrated the role of sperm small noncoding RNAs (sncRNAs) in modulating early embryonic development and offspring phenotype. The biogenesis of the sperm sRNA payload of mammalian sperm has been explored in many studies.To summarize the possible mechanisms underpinning sperm sncRNAs regulating embryonic development and offspring phenotypes.PubMed database (papers published from 2002 to 2022) was searched for studies reporting the impact of sperm sncRNAs on early embryonic development and offspring phenotype.The sncRNAs categories and source (such as tRNA-derived small RNAs, ribosomal RNA-derived small RNAs, microRNAs, and PIWI-interacting RNAs), and RNA modification upon different types of environmental exposure or by paternally-acquired factors were summarized. The potential mechanisms whereby the modifications of sperm sncRNAs modulate embryonic development and offspring phenotype under normal and pathological conditions (such as obesity, altered glucose metabolism, and psychological stress) were discussed.Sperm sncRNAs modulate embryo development and offspring phenotype, and the resulting modifications may be transgenerationally inherited.

The titanium-enriched slag was obtained via atmospheric hydrochloric acid leaching of mechanically activated vanadium titanomagnetite concentrates (VTMCs). Under the influence of mechanical activation, specific physicochemical changes were observed via X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy, and granulometric laser diffraction analysis. Experimental findings revealed that the mechanical activation of VTMCs resulted in a decrease in the median volume particle diameter (d50) and an increase in the specific surface area (SA) with an increased milling time. The results of the leaching experiment revealed that the mechanical activation treatment favors the extraction of iron (Fe) and titanium dioxide (TiO2) from the VTMCs. The Fe and TiO2 extractions from the mechanically activated sample after 10 h compared with the unactivated sample were increased by 12.82% and 4.73%, respectively. The presence of the ilmenite phase in the titanium-enriched slag was confirmed by X-ray diffractometry and EDS patterns, and the content of the TiO2 in the enriched slag can get as high as 43.75%.

Objective To explore the expression profile and role of hepatic long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in acetaminophen-induced liver injury mouse model by analyzing lncRNA-mRNA co-expression. Methods Serum aminotransferase, liver pathology and inflammatory cells were analyzed in mice model at different time points after treated with acetaminophen 300 mg/kg. High-throughput RNA sequencing was performed to investigate hepatic expression profiles of messenger RNA (mRNA) and lncRNA. The relationship between the lncRNA and mRNA was delineated by the co-expression network using Cytoscape software. Differential mRNAs co-expressed with lncRNAs were analyzed using Gene Ontology and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment. Differential mRNAs and lncRNAs were selected for quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction validation, and the conservation of lncRNA between human and mouse was analyzed. Results Liver injury was more severe at 24 hours than at 6 hours. There was a substantial infiltration of monocytes instead of neutrophil and Kupffer cells at 24 hours compared with 6 hours. The mRNAs co-expressed with the differential lncRNAs at 24 vs 6 hours were mainly enriched in protein processing in endoplasmic reticulum, MAPK and PPAR signaling pathways. The co-expression network delineated with four lncRNAs and 94 mRNAs presented the core position of lncRNA in the network. A conservation analysis indicated that four differential mouse lncRNAs (NONMMUT023651.2, NONMMUT029382.2, NONMMUT029383.2 and NONMMUT102053.1) could all be mapped to the relevant human lncRNAs. Conclusion Four lncRNAs may play regulatory roles through metabolic and apoptosis-related pathways during hepatic homeostasis maintenance and repair progress.

Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD) is a lethal complication after pediatric liver transplantation, but information regarding risk factors for the development of PTLD remains unclear. This study was to identify characteristics and risk factors of PTLD.A total of 705 pediatric patients who underwent liver transplantation between January 2017 and October 2018 were studied. Impact of clinical characteristics and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection on the development of PTLD was evaluated. In addition, ImmuKnow assay was adopted in partial patients to analyze the immune status.Twenty-five (3.5%) patients suffered from PLTD with a median time of 6 months (3-14 months) after transplantation. Extremely high tacrolimus (TAC) level was found in 2 fatal cases at PTLD onset. EBV infection was found in 468 (66.4%) patients. A higher peak EBV DNA loads (9590 copies/mL) within 3 months was a significant indicator for the onset of PTLD. In addition, the ImmuKnow assay demonstrated that overall immune response was significantly lower in patients with EBV infection and PTLD (P0.0001). The cumulative incidence of PTLD was also higher in patients with lower ATP value (≤187 ng/mL, P0.05).A careful monitoring of EBV DNA loads and tacrolimus concentration might be supportive in prevention of PTLD in pediatric patients after liver transplantation. In addition, application of the ImmuKnow assay may provide guidance in reducing immunosuppressive agents in treatment of PTLD.

An efficient Selectfluor-oxidative protocol was developed for the direct C2-arylacylation of 2H-benzothiazoles via the radical reaction of 2H-benzothiazoles with methyl arenes. Selectfluor can effectively promote the oxidative cross-coupling without an external catalyst. This arylacylation reaction tolerates a wide range of functional groups affording 28 examples of the arylacylated products in 39–81% yield.

To explore the relationship between occupational stressors and the incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus among police officers. Baseline data were collected from policemen who completed the Occupational Stress Inventory-Revised (OSI-R) questionnaire, a self-designed questionnaire, and underwent free clinical measurements at the Medical Center of Police Hospital in Tianjin, China, in April 2007. A total of 5811 policemen participated in follow-up with the dynamic observation of new-onset diabetes (NOD) events occurring annually between 2008 and 2011. Occupational stress was measured by the OSI-R questionnaire, which contains 14 different scales. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to calculate the hazard ratios (HR) of the incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) by occupational stressors. A total of 3.1 % of the participants (n = 179) developed NOD in the follow-up period from 2008 to 2011, and the incidence rates of NOD were 0.58 % in 2008, 0.98 % in 2009, 0.52 % in 2010, and 1.01 % in 2011. Role overload (RO), role boundary (RB), physical environment (PE), interpersonal strain (IS), and physical strain (PHS) were associated with the incidence of T2DM (RO: HR = 1.574, 95 % CI = 1.071–2.372; RB: HR = 1.645, 95 % CI = 1.144–2.365; PE: HR = 2.292, 95 % CI = 1.545–3.400; IS: HR = 1.537, 95 % CI = 1.079–2.191; and PHS: HR = 1.680, 95 % CI = 1.167–2.006) after adjustment for confounding factors. A subgroup Cox regression analysis among traffic control police officers showed the specific work stressors remained robust except RO. Several aspects of stressors were independent predictors of T2DM in a prospective cohort study in Tianjin, China. This practical information can be applied to the development of psychological interventions against T2DM.

The single strand nucleic acid based aptamer could bound to targets with high sensitivity and specificity. Gold nanoparticles have strong particle space optical effects and could take a color change from red to blue when the dispersed nanoparticles were aggregated. Aptamer could be immobilized through covalent coupling or direct adsorption to the surface of gold nanoparticle. Various approaches have been designed for biosensing based on the target induced aptamer-gold nanoparticle system color changes. The recent developments in the gold nanoparticle-aptamer based colorimetric biosensing assays were reviewed and the directions for future research were discussed and proposed.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and occupational stress have been recognized as major public health concerns. We aimed to explore whether occupational stress was associated with NAFLD in a police population. A total of 6559 male police officers were recruited for this prospective study in April 2007. Among them, 2367 eligible subjects participated in follow-up from 2008 to 2011. NAFLD was diagnosed based on standard criteria. Occupational stress was evaluated by Occupational Stress Inventory-Revised scores. The incidence of NAFLD was 31.2% in the entire police. After adjusting for traditional risk factors, moderate occupational stress (MOS), high occupational stress (HOS), and high personal strain (HPS) were risk factors (MOS: hazard ratio [HR] = 1.237, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.049–1.460; HOS: HR = 1.727, 95% CI = 1.405–2.124; HPS: HR = 3.602, 95% CI = 1.912–6.787); and low occupational stress (LOS) and low personal strain (LPS) were protective factors (LOS: HR = 0.366, 95% CI = 0.173–0.776; LPS: HR = 0.490, 95% CI = 0.262–0.919) for NAFLD in the entire police cohort. HOS and HPS remained robust among traffic police. HOS and HPS were independent predictors for the development of NAFLD in a Chinese police population. Additional future prospective investigations are warranted to validate our findings.

This Technical Note proposes an extended power function for modeling one-dimensional compression of normally consolidated and overconsolidated soils. The function has 3 parameters, and a single set of these parameters is sufficient for representing void ratio-effective stress relations from zero effective stress to any desired stress level. The model proposed by Hardin (1989) is discussed, and it is noted that both models have problems in fitting data of highly sensitive clays, but from the limited comparison presented in the paper, it appears that for these cases Hardin's model is more suitable.