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[Display omitted] • HIGD1A and ZG16, lower expressed in COAD than in READ, are both associated with poor prognosis in COAD, but not in READ. • Compared with ZG16, HIGD1A showed more efficiency in suppressing tumor growth and metastasis in CRC cells. • miR-501-3p, higher expressed in COAD than in READ, promoted CRC cells proliferation, invasion, and migration through suppressing HIGD1A expression. • High leveled miR-501-3p inhibited HIGD1A expression in COAD, which promoted tumor growth and metastasis, and eventually caused poor prognosis in COAD. • Procyanidin C1 (PCC1), a kind of natural polyphenol has been verified as a potential miR-501-3p inhibitor, which modulated miR-501-3p/HIGD1A axis and inhibited tumor growth and metastasis in vivo and in vitro. Although colon (COAD) and rectal adenocarcinoma (READ) combined to refer to colorectal cancer (CRC), substantial clinical evidence urged that CRC should be treated as two different cancers due to compared with READ, COAD showed higher morbidity and worse 5-year survival. This study has tried to screen for the crucial gene that caused the worse prognosis and investigate its mechanism for mediating tumor growth and metastases in COAD. Meanwhile, the potential anti-COAD compound implicated in this mechanism was identified and testified from 1,855 food-borne chemical kits. This study aims to bring a new perspective to the development of new anti-COAD drugs and personalized medicine for patients with COAD. The survival-related hub genes in COAD and READ were screened out from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and the results showed that HIGD1A , lower expressed in COAD than in READ, was associated with poor prognosis in COAD patients, but not in READ. Over-expressed HIGD1A suppressed CRC cell proliferation, invasion, and migration in vitro and in vivo. Meanwhile, the different expressed microRNA profiles between COAD and READ showed that miR-501-3p was highly expressed in COAD and inhibited HIGD1A expression by targeting 3′UTR of HIGD1A. MiR-501-3p mimics promoted cell proliferation and metastasis in CRC cells. In addition, Procyanidin C1 (PCC1), a kind of natural polyphenol has been verified as a potential miR-501-3p inhibitor. In vitro and in vivo , PCC1 promoted HIGD1A expression by suppressing miR-501-3p and resulted in inhibited tumor growth and metastasis. The present study verified that miR-501-3p/HIGD1A axis mediated tumor growth and metastasis in COAD. PCC1, a flavonoid that riched in food exerts anti-COAD effects by inhibiting miR-501-3p and results in the latter losing the ability to suppress HIGD1A expression. Subsequently, unfettered HIGD1A inhibited tumor growth and metastasis in COAD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bosma arhinia microphthalmia syndrome (BAMS; MIM603457) is a rare genetic disorder, predominantly autosomal dominant. It is a multi-system developmental disorder characterized by severe hypoplasia of the nose and eyes, and reproductive system defects. BAMS is extremely rare in the world and no cases have been reported in Chinese population so far. Pathogenic variants in the SMCHD1 gene (MIM614982) cause BAMS, while the underlying molecular mechanisms requires further investigation. Case presentation: In this study, a Chinese girl who has suffered from congenital absence of nose and microphthalmia was enrolled and subsequently submitted to a comprehensive clinical and genetic evaluation. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was employed to identify the genetic entity of thisgirl. A heterozygous pathogenic variant, NM_015295, c.1025G > C; p. (Trp342Ser) of SMCHD1 was identified. By performing very detailed physical and genetic examinations, the patient was diagnosed as BAMS. Conclusion: This report is the first description of a variant in SMCHD1 in a Chinese patient affected with BAMS.Our study not only furnished valuable genetic data for counseling of BAMS, but also confirmed the diagnosis of BAMS, which may help the management and prognosis for this patient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Searching over a sorted list is a classical problem in computer science. Binary Search takes at most log 2 ⁡ n + 1 tries to find an item in a sorted list of size n. Interpolation Search achieves an average time complexity of O (log ⁡ log ⁡ n ) for uniformly distributed data. Hybrids of Binary Search and Interpolation Search are also available to handle data with unknown distributions. This paper analyzes the computation cost of these methods and shows that interpolation can significantly affect their performance—accordingly, a new method, Interpolation Once Binary Search (IOBS), is proposed. The experimental results show that IOBS outperforms the hybrids of Binary Search and Interpolation Search for nonuniformly distributed data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, the emergence of all-organic perovskites with three-dimensional (3D) structures has expanded the potential applications of perovskite materials. However, the synthesis and utilization of all-organic perovskites in 2D form remain largely unexplored because the design principle has not been developed. We present the successful synthesis of a metal-free 2D layered perovskite, denoted as the Choi-Loh van der Waals phase (CL-v phase), with the chemical formula A2B2X4, where A represents a larger-sized cation compared to B and X denotes an anion. The CL-v phase exhibits a van der Waals gap enabled by interlayer hydrogen bonding and can be exfoliated or grown as molecularly thin 2D organic crystals. The dielectric constants of the CL-v phase range from 4.8 to 5.5 and we demonstrate their potential as gate dielectrics for thin-film transistors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The distribution of velocity and temperature field inside the granary can be used to evaluate ventilation quality. A well-ventilated system with uniform air-flow and cooling can effectively prevent moisture accumulation. To address the issue of poor uniformity in ventilation and cooling, this research introduces two new ventilation systems: the non-fractal ventilation system and the fractal ventilation system. The fractal structure was designed based on optimized parameters obtained from rectangular elements with minimum flow resistance. Numerical simulation methods were employed to verify the effectiveness of these ventilation systems. A comparative analysis was conducted, examining the velocity field, temperature field, and velocity uniformity of the two systems. The results demonstrated that the presence of a sand packing zone helped the grain pile zone avoid most of the areas with poor ventilation. The discontinuous pores at the interface between the sand packing zone and the grain pile zone significantly increased flow resistance, effectively reducing the velocity of high speed ventilation into the grain pile zone and decreasing the permeability of the grain pile zone towards the poorly ventilated areas of the sand pile zone. Furthermore, the fractal structure greatly enhanced ventilation intensity in areas with poor ventilation in the velocity field, while also improving the uniformity of cooling in the temperature field. This research presents an innovative solution for ventilation in room-type warehouses, offering a new option for effective and efficient ventilation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Typical rockfall analysis requires detailed discontinuity measurements; however, the use of conventional contact approaches can be challenging on cliffs. In this study, a novel automatic method for rockfall susceptibility is proposed to identify potential rockfall areas by topographic information on steep slopes generated by a terrestrial laser scanner (TLS). The rockfall susceptibility can be determined using the proposed method via the following four steps: first, automatic spatial information of discontinuity extraction based on high-resolution point clouds; second, defining the spatial intersection areas of discontinuities with different statistical properties; third, evaluating the contribution of discontinuity intersections to rockfalls and estimating potential rockfall hazardous blocks based on kinematic analysis; and finally, mapping the rockfall susceptibility through the overall index. Our method can be used to expedite discontinuity measurements from high-resolution point clouds, optimize the processing of discontinuity statistics for the analysis of rockfall source areas, and permit users to visualize and intuitively access potential rockfall areas to facilitate effective measures to control rockfall hazards or implementation. The method was implemented in MATLAB for excavated slopes, and the credibility of our computational results was verified by visual inspection and a comparison to the source locations of rock detachment events. The results showed that the areas in case 1 with a high susceptibility were in line with the geometry of the discontinuities, and the predicted potential failure areas in case 2 were consistent with the rockfall events. This automated process allows rapid acquisition of potential rockfall areas over a broad-scale survey area, which helps to reduce the time of investigation and the uncertainty in further treatment. Highlights: An automatic mapping method based on high-resolution point clouds was utilized for rockfall susceptibility evaluation. An evaluation method was proposed for potential hazardous rockfall blocks based on discontinuity extraction and kinematic analysis. The method was implemented in MATLAB and validated by actual rockfall events on an excavated slope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Primary frontal sinus malignancies (FSMs) are the rarest sinonasal cancers. This study aimed to determine clinicopathologic characteristics of primary FSMs and provide long-term survival outcomes. Design This study is a retrospective review. Setting The study was conducted at a tertiary medical center. Participants Patients who participated in this study were diagnosed with primary FSMs. Main Outcome Measures Median survival time is the primary outcome measure of this study. Results In this series, the median age was 48 years (30–53 years) and all patients were male. There were five cases with squamous cell carcinoma and one with osteosarcoma. All cases presented with locally advanced disease without regional lymphatic metastasis, including five cases of stage III and one case of stage II. The two most common pathways of tumor invasion were as follows: local tumor broke posteriorly through bone wall and invaded dura mater, followed by frontal lobe; local tumor infiltrated downward through the floor of frontal sinus into ethmoid sinus, thereafter invaded laterally orbit and orbital contents. All patients received surgery followed by postoperative radiotherapy at the total doses of 50 to 75.95 Gy. Among them, only one patient underwent R0 resection, the rest of patients underwent R1/R2 resection. With a median survival time of 56 months (32–76 months), two patients receiving R1/R2 resection developed treatment failure and died within 5 years, including one case with local recurrence and one with local recurrence, thereafter distant metastasis. Conclusion The majority of FSMs presented with peripherally invasive progression lesions which led to a high ratio of R1/R2 resection. Surgery combined with postoperative radiotherapy might result in satisfactory efficacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The geochemistry of Ba is commonly used to study igneous processes and fluid-melt interaction in subduction zone and granitic environments. Recent advances in analytical techniques have also indicated that Ba isotope geochemistry has the potential to significantly augment these studies. Understanding the Ba isotope fractionation mechanisms is thus critical if this potential is to be fully realized. Hence, we have used the first-principles calculations based on the density functional theory (DFT) and long-time ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulation to calculate Ba isotope fractionation during felsic magma evolution. In fluids, the reduced partition function ratio (β factor) of aqueous Ba2+ is highly variable, depending on the coordination number (n) of H 2 O in the first hydration shell. At ambient surface conditions on the Earth, n = 8 best represents the aqueous Ba2+ species in natural fluid, and the temperature-dependent equilibrium Ba isotope fractionation between barite/witherite and fluids can be described by the relationships: 103ln α witherite-fluid = −0.00009×(106/T2) 2 + 0.0603×(106/T2) + 0.0003 and 103ln α barite-fluid = −0.0001×(106/T2) 2 + 0.0648×(106/T2) + 0.0004, which is consistent with previous theoretical and experimental studies. In hydrothermal fluids, the hydration number of Ba2+ varies from 4 to 6 at high P-T, and the cumulative average of 103lnβ is derived to be 0.0798 ± 0.005‰ in 923.15 K and 0.2 GPa. In silicate minerals, the enrichment of heavy Ba isotopes decreases in the sequence of muscovite > microcline ≈ celsian ≈ sanbornite > barylite > phlogopite. Variations in Ba concentrations and the degree of Al-Si disordering only induce limited Ba isotope fractionation, which would be hard to distinguish analytically. At high temperatures (> 600 °C), the melt phase is enriched in heavy Ba isotopes relative to any coexisting aqueous fluid and crystallizing minerals. During the early stages of felsic magma differentiation involving plagioclase crystallization as the main mineral, the δ138/134Ba and concentration in the residual melt remain close to their initial values, but any fluid exsolved from the melt will have light δ138/134Ba values. The high Ba distribution coefficient of K-feldspar means that the resultant K-feldspar granite inherits > 90% of the Ba contained in the initial magma reservoir. Hence, the δ138/134Ba of K-feldspar is close to that of the initial melt. During the final stage of felsic magma evolution, mixing of exsolved fluids from deeper reservoirs may significantly reduce the δ138/134Ba of the now Ba-depleted melt, and can account for the low δ138/134Ba values measured in highly differentiated leucogranites and pegmatites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In addition to the direct use of corn as energy feed, about 30% of the annual output is used to produce corn starch, sugar and ethanol and other deep processing products in China, while producing corn husk, corn pulp, corn embryo meal, corn protein meal, DDGS and other by-products. These by-products generally have problems such as high crude fiber content, low available energy, mycotoxin pollution, etc. If the quality and efficiency of these by-products are improved by processing technology, their feeding value can be significantly improved. In the paper, the nutritional characteristics, value-added processing and utilization technology of corn processing by-products and their application in animal production are reviewed, which can provide reference for the effective improvement of feed value, and also have important significance for alleviating the contradiction of feed resource shortage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: A Hoffa fracture is an unstable intra-articular break that is generally treated with surgery. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the feasibility and clinical outcomes of using a suture anchor combined with auxiliary fixation for the treatment of a lateral femoral condyle Hoffa fracture. METHODS: The study retrospectively reviewed 8 patients (5 males and 3 females) with a lateral femoral condyle Hoffa fracture who had been treated by combining a suture anchor with auxiliary fixation between January 2016 and April 2020. The mean age of patients was 37.5 years (ranging from 23 to 45). According to Letenneur's classification, there were 4 cases of type I, 2 cases of type II, and 2 cases of type III fractures. The clinical outcomes were assessed using Letenneur's functional assessment. RESULTS: The follow-up duration ranged between 14–24 months. All patients achieved primary healing of the incision and fracture union, as well as normal flexion and extension of the knee joint, with 7 cases showing excellent outcomes and 1 case showing a good outcome. No postoperative complications, such as fracture displacement, anchor loosening, or fracture malunion, occurred in this series. CONCLUSION: Our results indicated that a suture anchor, combined with external fixation, was an effective treatment for a lateral femoral condyle Hoffa fracture. Accordingly, this procedure is worthy of wider clinical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Choosing an unsuitable bicycle saddle increases the saddle pressure and discomfort during cycling. Women contract sports injuries more easily than men during cycling owing to their anatomy. To investigate the effect of saddle widths on the saddle pressure in female cyclists. Ten healthy women with an average age of 20.7 ± 1.3 years, height of 162 ± and 5.9 cm, weight of 56.1 ± 7.5 kg, and a sciatic bone width of 15.5 ± 1.4 cm were recruited for this study. The distributions of saddle pressure for four different saddle widths (i.e., narrow, moderate, wide, and self-chosen) were recorded using a saddle pressure mat. Participants were instructed to pedal steadily with a frequency of 90 RPM and a load of 150 watts. Thirty seconds of riding data was randomly retrieved for analysis. The trials were conducted with a counter-balanced design to minimize random errors. One-way repeated measures ANOVA was used to compare the saddle pressure of different saddle widths, and the significance level was set at α = 0.05. When wide saddles were used, the maximum and average pressure on the right surface of the posterior ischium were lower than those with narrow (p = 0.001, p = 0.012) and moderate (p = 0.016, p = 0.019) saddles. The area of pressure on the pubic bone was smaller when using a wide saddle than when using narrow (p = 0.005) and moderate (p = 0.018) saddles, and the area of pressure on the right posterior sciatic bone was larger under the wide saddle than under the narrow (p = 0.017) and moderate (p = 0.036) saddles. The average force was greater with the moderate saddle than with the wide (p = 0.008) and self-chosen (p = 0.025) saddles. Using a saddle with a width that is longer than the width of the cyclist's ischium by 1 cm can effectively improve the distribution of saddle pressure during riding, while providing better comfort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study investigated the efficacy of the integrated blood purification mode of early haemoperfusion (HP) combined with continuous venovenous haemodiafiltration (CVVHDF) in children with severe viral encephalitis, and evaluated the correlation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) neopterin (NPT) levels with prognosis. Methods: The records of children with viral encephalitis who received blood purification treatment in the authors' hospital from September 2019 to February 2022 were retrospectively analysed. According to the blood purification treatment mode, they were divided into the experimental group (HP + CVVHDF, 18 cases), control group A (CVVHDF only, 14 cases), and control group B (16 children with mild viral encephalitis who did not receive blood purification treatment). The correlation between the clinical features, severity of the disease and the extent of lesions on brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the CSF NPT levels was analysed. Results: The experimental group and control group A were comparable with respect to age, gender and hospital course (P > 0.05). There was no significant difference in speech and swallowing functions between the two groups after treatment (P > 0.05) and no significant difference in 7 and 14-day mortality (P > 0.05). The CSF NPT levels in the experimental group before treatment were significantly higher compared with control group B (P < 0.05). The extent of brain MRI lesions correlated positively with CSF NPT levels (P < 0.05). In the experimental group (14 cases), the serum NPT levels decreased after treatment, whereas the CSF NPT levels increased after treatment, and the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). Dysphagia and motor dysfunction correlated positively with CSF NPT levels (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Early HP combined with CVVHDF in the treatment of severe viral encephalitis in children may be a better approach than CVVHDF only for improving prognosis. Higher CSF NPT levels indicated the likelihood of a more severe brain injury and a greater possibility of residual neurological dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Baseline drift widely exists in the spectral measurements due to instrumental nonlinearity. It negatively affects the qualitative or quantitative analysis of chemical and physical parameters, thus, an accurate baseline estimation is needed. An improved algorithm, optimized asymmetric least squares smoothing (O-ALS), is designed based on the traditional ALS algorithm to achieve effective estimation. First, an appropriate smooth factor is selected according to the number of second-order concave points (NSCP) of a measured spectrum. Then, the asymmetric penalty factor is adaptively optimized in each iteration based on the differences between the estimated baseline and the measured spectrum. Various simulated and real measured data, including Fourier Transform Spectrometer spectrum, chromatogram, and ion mobility spectroscopy, have been used for evaluation. All results achieve a high precision, which suggests that our algorithm is effective, flexible, and robust. [Display omitted] • A high-precise and robust spectral baseline estimation algorithm. • Adaptive asymmetric penalty weight function and proper selection of the smooth factor. • Applicable to a variety of spectra, including Fourier Transform Spectrometer spectrum, chromatogram, ion migration spectrometry, and so on. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Basic principles of commonly used deep learning architectures. • Drug–target interactions based deep learning approaches for drug repositioning. • Heterogeneous networks based deep learning approaches for drug repositioning. • Current challenges of deep learning in drug repositioning. • Possible ways to improve deep learning methods for drug repositioning. Drug repositioning is an attractive strategy for discovering new therapeutic uses for approved or investigational drugs, with potentially shorter development timelines and lower development costs. Various computational methods have been used in drug repositioning, promoting the efficiency and success rates of this approach. Recently, deep learning (DL) has attracted wide attention for its potential in target prediction and drug repositioning. Here, we provide an overview of the basic principles of commonly used DL architectures and their applications in target prediction and drug repositioning, and discuss possible ways of dealing with current challenges to help achieve its expected potential for drug repositioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Boltzmann model equation (kinetic model) involving the chemical reaction of a multicomponent gaseous mixture is derived based on Groppi's work ["A Bhatnagar–Gross–Krook-type approach for chemically reacting gas mixtures," Phys. Fluids 16, 4273 (2004)], in which the relaxation parameters of elastic collision frequency for rigid elastic spheres are obtained based on the collision term, and the pivotal collision frequency of the chemical reaction is deduced from the chemical reaction rate that is determined by the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method. This kinetic model is shown to be conservative, and the H theorem for an endothermic reaction is proven. In the framework of the gas-kinetic unified algorithm, the discrete velocity method, finite volume method, and implicit scheme are applied to solve the proposed kinetic model by introducing a suitable boundary condition at the wall surface. For hypersonic flows around a cylinder, the proposed kinetic model and the corresponding numerical methods are verified for both endothermic and exothermic reactions by comparison of the model's results with results from the DSMC method. The different influences of endothermic and exothermic reactions are also given. Finally, the proposed kinetic model is also used to simulate an exothermic reaction-driven flow in a square cavity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deoxynivalenol (DON) and zearalenone (ZEA), which are commonly found in feed products, exhibit serious negative effects on the reproductive systems of domestic animals. However, the toxicity of mycotoxins on the uterine function of donkey (Equus asinus) remains unclear. This study investigated the biological effects of DON and ZEA exposure on donkey endometrial epithelial cells (EECs). It was administered 10 μM and 30 μM DON and ZEA to cells cultured in vitro. The results showed that 10 μM DON exposure markedly changed the expression levels of pyroptosis-associated genes and that 30 μM ZEA exposure changed the expression levels of inflammation-associated genes in EECs. The mRNA expression of cancer-promoting genes was markedly upregulated in cells exposed to DON and 30 μM ZEA; in particular, 10 μM and 30 μM DON and ZEA markedly disturbed the expression of androgen and estrogen secretion-related genes. Furthermore, Q-PCR, Western blot, and immunofluorescence analyses verified the different expression patterns of related genes in DON- and ZEA-exposed EECs. Collectively, these results illustrated the impact of exposure to different toxins and concrete toxicity on the mRNA expression of EECs from donkey in vitro. • DON and ZEA exhibit negative impact on donkey EECs. • DON may have stronger toxicity than ZEA in the EECs. • Different gene expression patterns exist in EECs exposed to DON and ZEA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is to introduce a proposed deep space mission, which aims to perform in situ detection of the central structure, namely the magnetic reconnection current sheet, which drives the large-scale eruption on a star. The main focus of this mission is on the fine physical characteristics of the large-scale magnetic reconnection taking place on the Sun, our nearest star, revealing the secret of the most violent energy release process, also known as the solar storm, in the solar system. The scientific goal of this mission, magnetic reconnection, is a kernel process of energy conversion occurring in the magnetized plasma in the universe, and has long been a fairly important research topic or even research area in solar physics, space science, plasma physics, and the related fields. The in situ detection with a 5 ∼ 20 times enhanced spatial resolution of the instruments used on the Earth will provide us with the extra-clear images of the Sun and the related information. We are thus able to study, to learn, and to understand the Sun on an unprecedented platform, and further resolve the longstanding puzzle in the solar community regarding the fine physical property of the kernel process driving the solar eruption, as well as that of the coronal heating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To use image registration techniques to study the clavicular rotation of the shoulders in the sagittal plane. Methods: From 28 April 2019 to 20 May 2019, 13 healthy adults (7 males and 6 females) with no history of shoulder trauma surgery or chronic pain were recruited. Patients' ages ranged from 22 to 42 years, with a mean age of 26.5 years. Three‐dimensional composite images of the sternum–clavicle–humerus were taken using CT images of upper limb movement in the sagittal plane in the 13 healthy adults. Four different postures were registered: (i) anatomical supine position; (ii) elbow joints lifted anteriorly in the supine position; (iii) posterosuperior hyperextension of the elbow joints in the prone position; and (iv) posteroinferior hyperextension of the elbow joints in the prone position. Image data from the humerus and clavicle in three of the postures were processed to calculate Euler angles for movements in the sagittal plane. SPSS 19 was used to perform statistical analyses. Results: There was no significant difference in the angles of change in the clavicle and humerus between the dominant and non‐dominant sides under different movement patterns. For upper limb movements in the sagittal plane, the clavicle displayed different Euler angles in different postures. The rotation angle from the anatomical to the horizontal position was the smallest angle, with an average value of 7.1°, whereas the rotation angle from horizontal to posterosuperior hyperextension was the largest, with an average value of 37.2°. When the upper limb moved from anterior protraction to a posterosuperior extension, the intrinsic rotation angle of the clavicle reached its maximum, with an average value of 27.9°; when moved from the anatomical to the horizontal position, 9.1% of the sagittal rotation was executed by the clavicle. During rotation from the horizontal position to posterosuperior hyperextension and from the anatomical to posterior extension, the clavicle showed relatively higher weights at 29.5% and 37.0%, respectively. Conclusion: Our results showed that dominance was not a consideration when studying clavicular rotation. Image registration is an effective method that can be used to study upper limb scapular movements. Through comparing and analyzing the data, two postures had relatively large changes in the rotation angle. This can help improve indicators of clavicular rotational function during physical examinations and postoperative functional evaluations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Genetic resources are important natural assets. Discovery of new enzyme gene sequences has been an ongoing effort in biotechnology industry. In the genomic age, genomes of microorganisms from various environments have been deciphered. Increasingly, it has become more and more difficult to find novel enzyme genes. In this work, we attempted to use the easily accessible banknotes to search for novel microbial gene sequences. Results: We used high-throughput genomic sequencing technology to comprehensively characterize the diversity of microorganisms on the US dollars and Chinese Renminbis (RMBs). In addition to finding a vast diversity of microbes, we found a significant number of novel gene sequences, including an unreported superoxide dismutase (SOD) gene, whose catalytic activity was further verified by experiments. Conclusions: We demonstrated that banknotes could be a good and convenient genetic resource for finding economically valuable biologicals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

e23sFv is a HER2-targeted single-chain variable fragment (scFV) that was characterized as the targeting portion of a HER2-targeted tumour proapoptotic molecule in our previous study. In vitro antibody affinity maturation is a method to enhance antibody affinity either by complementarity-determining region (CDR) mutagenesis or by framework region (FR) engraftment. In the present study, the affinity of e23sFv was enhanced using two strategies. In one approach, site-directed mutations were introduced into the FRs of e23sFv (designated EMEY), and in the other approach e23sFv FRs were substituted with FRs from the most homologous screened antibodies (designated EX1 and EX2). Notably, EX1 derived from the FR engraftment strategy demonstrated a 4-fold higher affinity for HER2 compared with e23sFv and was internalized into HER2-overexpressing cells; however, EMEY and EX2 exhibited reduced affinity for HER2 and decreased internalization potential compared with EX1. The 3D structure of EX1 and the HER2-EX1 complex was acquired using molecular homology modelling and docking and the HER2 epitopes of EX1 and the molecular interaction energy of the EX1-HER2 complex were predicted. In the present study, it was demonstrated that scFv affinity improvement based on sequence alignment was feasible and effective. Moreover, the FR grafting strategy was indicated to be more effective and simple compared with site-directed mutagenesis to improve e23sFv affinity. In conclusion, it was indicated that the affinity-improved candidate EX1 may present a great potential for the diagnosis and treatment of HER2-overexpressing tumours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forest trees face many abiotic stressors during their lifetime, including drought, heavy metals, high salinity, and chills, affecting their quality and yield. The RING-type ubiquitin ligase E3 is an invaluable component of the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) and participates in plant growth and environmental interactions. Interestingly, only a few studies have explored the RING ZINC FINGER PROTEIN (RZFP) gene family. This study identified eight PtrRZFPs genes in the Populus genome, and their molecular features were analyzed. Gene structure analysis revealed that all PtrRZFPs genes contained >10 introns. Evolutionarily, the RZFP s were separated into four categories, and segmental replication events facilitated their amplification. Notably, many stress-related elements have been identified in the promoters of PtrRZFPs using Cis -acting element analysis. Moreover, some PtrRZFPs were significantly induced by drought and sorbitol, revealing their potential roles in regulating stress responses. Particularly, overexpression of the PtrRZFP1 gene in poplars conferred excellent drought tolerance; however, PtrRZFP1 knockdown plants were drought-sensitive. We identified the potential upstream transcription factors of PtrRZFPs and revealed the possible biological functions of RZFP1/4/7 in resisting osmotic and salt stress, laying the foundation for subsequent biological function studies and providing genetic resources for genetic engineering breeding for drought resistance in forest trees. This study offers crucial information for the further exploration of the functions of RZFPs in poplars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forest trees face many abiotic stressors during their lifetime, including drought, heavy metals, high salinity, and chills, affecting their quality and yield. The RING-type ubiquitin ligase E3 is an invaluable component of the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) and participates in plant growth and environmental interactions. Interestingly, only a few studies have explored the RING ZINC FINGER PROTEIN (RZFP) gene family. This study identified eight PtrRZFPs genes in the Populus genome, and their molecular features were analyzed. Gene structure analysis revealed that all PtrRZFPs genes contained >10 introns. Evolutionarily, the RZFP s were separated into four categories, and segmental replication events facilitated their amplification. Notably, many stress-related elements have been identified in the promoters of PtrRZFPs using Cis -acting element analysis. Moreover, some PtrRZFPs were significantly induced by drought and sorbitol, revealing their potential roles in regulating stress responses. Particularly, overexpression of the PtrRZFP1 gene in poplars conferred excellent drought tolerance; however, PtrRZFP1 knockdown plants were drought-sensitive. We identified the potential upstream transcription factors of PtrRZFPs and revealed the possible biological functions of RZFP1/4/7 in resisting osmotic and salt stress, laying the foundation for subsequent biological function studies and providing genetic resources for genetic engineering breeding for drought resistance in forest trees. This study offers crucial information for the further exploration of the functions of RZFPs in poplars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, non-contact measurement methods such as laser scanning, have gained popularity in collecting discontinuous data due to their ability to generate high-resolution point clouds containing detailed information about rock surface. However, quickly and accurately extracting discontinuities from massive point clouds faces challenges. In this study, we propose an optimization algorithm based on fuzzy clustering and region growth that enables swift extraction of discontinuity information from point clouds. The proposed method employed a composite indicator to evaluate the similarity and dissimilarity of the points in a clustering group basing on the membership function matrix and the optimal clustering number could be estimated without predefining. Additionally, region growing is difficult to deal with increasingly enormous point clouds, a faster way is estimating a possible range as a search radius to avoid meaningless time-consuming in region growing. Further, the proposed methodology was implemented in Matlab to extract discontinuities from high-resolution point cloud, includes data pre-processing, optimized fuzzy clustering, and optimized region growing. Finally, particular attention was given to the sensitivity of automatic extraction in point cloud resolution and cluster number, these parameters are always special in different objects. The results showed that the optimized method performed excellent in clustering without a priori assumption of cluster number, and provided optional range of resolutions without losses of accuracy to cater to diverse requirements. The proposed method gave a new way to estimate the optimal clustering number as same as manually separated without predefining, to collect all orientations of discontinuity quickly, and to meet different needs with appropriate resolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared with purely electrical neuromorphic devices, those stimulated by optical signals have gained increasing attention due to their realistic sensory simulation. In this work, an optoelectronic neuromorphic device based on a photoelectric memristor with a Bi2FeCrO6/Al-doped ZnO (BFCO/AZO) heterostructure is fabricated that can respond to both electrical and optical signals and successfully simulate a variety of synaptic behaviors, such as STP, LTP, and PPF. In addition, the photomemory mechanism was identified by analyzing the energy band structures of AZO and BFCO. A convolutional neural network (CNN) architecture for pattern classification at the Mixed National Institute of Standards and Technology (MNIST) was used and improved the recognition accuracy of the MNIST and Fashion-MNIST datasets to 95.21% and 74.19%, respectively, by implementing an improved stochastic adaptive algorithm. These results provide a feasible approach for future implementation of optoelectronic synapses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Treatment with Panax notoginseng saponin (PNS) can prevent neurological damage in middle cerebral artery occlusion model rats to promote recovery after a stroke. However, the exact molecular mechanisms are unknown and require further study. In the present study, mRNA sequencing was employed to investigate differential gene expression between model and sham groups, and between model and PNS‑treated groups. Enrichment of gene data was performed using Gene Ontology analysis and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes database. Hub genes were identified and networks were constructed using Cytoscape that were further verified by reverse transcription‑quantitative PCR. A total of 1,104 genes of interest were found, which included 690 upregulated and 414 downregulated genes that were identified when the model was compared with the sham group. Additionally, 817 genes of interest, which included 390 upregulated and 427 downregulated genes, were identified when the PNS‑treated group was compared with the model group. There were 303 overlapping genes of interest between the analysis of model to sham groups, and the analysis of model to PNS‑treated groups. The top 10 genes from the 303 aberrantly expressed genes of interest included ubiquitin conjugating enzyme E2 variant 2, small ubiquitin‑related modifier 1, small RNA binding exonuclease protection factor La, Finkel‑Biskis‑Reilly murine sarcoma virus (FBR‑MuSV) ubiquitously expressed, centrosomal protein 290 kDa, DNA‑directed RNA polymerase II subunit K, cullin‑4B, matrin‑3 and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2. In conclusion, these genes may be important in the underlying mechanism of PNS treatment in ischemic stroke. Additionally, the present data provided novel insight into the pathogenesis of ischemic stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intravesical instillation therapy is the mainstay of prophylaxis of tumor recurrence and progression in non‐muscle‐invasive bladder cancer. However, there is no study evaluating the superiority of monotherapy. The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy of preventing recurrence and progression of intravesical monotherapies via network meta‐analysis (NMA) of randomized controlled trials. Database searches were conducted on Embase, Ovid Medline, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Library, and ClinicalTrials.com from the time of establishment to February 6, 2020. The monotherapies included Bacille Calmette‐Guérin (BCG), mitomycin C (MMC), interferon (IFN), adriamycin, epirubicin, gemcitabine (GEM), and thiotepa (THP). A Bayesian consistency network model was generated under a random‐effects model. The superiority of therapy was identified based on the surface under the cumulative ranking curve (SUCRA). Fifty‐seven studies with 12462 patients are included. NMA shows that GEM (SUCRA = 0.92), BCG (SUCRA = 0.82), and IFN (SUCRA = 0.78) are the top three effective drugs to reduce recurrence. GEM (SUCRA = 0.87) is the most effective therapy to prevent progress, followed by BCG, MMC, THP, and IFN with similar efficacy. Subgroup analysis of pairwise meta‐analysis and NMA was performed on publication year, trial initiation year, study origin, center involvement, sample size, drug schedule, tumor characteristics, and trial quality to address confounding factors, which suggests the robustness of the results with stable effect sizes. Network meta‐regression also indicates consistent rank by analyzing year, sample size, and quality. Compared with BCG, GEM is also a promising therapy with favorable efficacy to reduce tumor recurrence and progression. IFN and MMC could be alternative therapies for BCG with slightly inferior efficacy in recurrence prevention and similar efficacy in progression prevention. However, the results of this study should be treated with caution since most of the included studies are of moderate to high risk of bias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Failure of steam-side oxide scales on boiler tubes can seriously influence the safety of coal-fired power plants. Uniaxial tensile tests employing acoustic emission (AE) monitoring were performed, in this work, to investigate the failure behavior of steam-side oxide scales on T22 alloy boiler superheater tubes. The characteristic frequency spectra of the captured AE signals were obtained by performing fast Fourier transform. Three distinct peak frequency bands, 100-170, 175-250, and 280-390 kHz, encountered in different testing stages were identified in the frequency spectra, which were confirmed to, respectively, correspond to substrate plastic deformation, oxide vertical cracking, and oxide spalling with the aid of scanning electronic microscopy observations, and can thus be used for distinguishing different oxide failure mechanisms. Finally, the critical cracking strain of the oxide scale and the interfacial shear strength of the oxide/substrate interface were estimated, which are the critical parameters urgently desired for modeling the failure behavior of steam-side oxide scales on boiler tubes of coal-fired power plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Capacitance-Voltage (C-V) characterization and hard x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (HAXPES) measurements have been used to study metal/Al2O3/In0.53Ga0.47As capacitor structures with high (Ni) and low (Al) work function metals. The HAXPES measurements observe a band bending occurring prior to metal deposition, which is attributed to a combination of fixed oxide charges and interface states of donor-type. Following metal deposition, the Fermi level positions at the Al2O3/In0.53Ga0.47As interface move towards the expected direction as observed from HAXPES measurements. The In0.53Ga0.47As surface Fermi level positions determined from both the C-V analysis at zero gate bias and HAXPES measurements are in reasonable agreement. The results are consistent with the presence of electrically active interface states at the Al2O3/In0.53Ga0.47As interface and suggest an interface state density increasing towards the In0.53Ga0.47As valence band edge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work investigated the performance of thrust vectoring with a secondary injection in a convergent–divergent nozzle. Analytical modeling was conducted to determine the shock location and shock angle, providing a guideline for system design and performance. Thereafter, numerical simulation was performed to understand the effects of the injection pressure, injection location, injection angle, and injectant on thrust vectoring performance. Satisfactory agreement between the analytical modeling and numerical simulation suggests that shock reflection within the nozzle must be avoided to produce efficient thrust vectoring. Numerical results showed that both the injection pressure and the injection location have significant impacts on the thrust angle. The lateral thrust, and hence the thrust angle, was found to increase with the injection pressure and to be larger when the injection was situated closer to the nozzle exit. Impacts of the injection angle and the injectant on the thrust angle were found to be insignificant. However, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) can be more effective at producing a side thrust than can air. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on surface magnetic resonance sounding (MRS), a relationship is proposed to express the MRS response signal with a vertical coil for the MRS method for a whole underground space model. Firstly, the declination and inclination characteristics of the Earth's magnetic field and the coil normal angle are studied by deriving the angle rotation matrix. Surprisingly, the results indicate that the MRS signal can be effectively improved by changing the normal direction of the coil perpendicular to that of the Earth's magnetic field. The advanced detection distance of the underground MRS method is closely related to the exciting pulse moment and the receiving sensitivity. Hence, a larger pulse moment and high receiving sensitivity correspond to a longer advanced detection distance. However, the limited transmitting moment will reduce the advanced detection distance. In the research coincident loop with the coil 2 m by 2 m square is employed. In order to overcome the noises with 1 nV and 100 nV level, the turns of loop should be 100 turns and 400 turns, respectively. Finally, the numerical simulation results verify the feasibility of underground whole MRS theory and resolution analysis method for the advanced detection of water-inrush disasters in mines and tunnels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. The deuterium fractionation in starless cores gives us a clue to estimate their lifetime scales, thus allowing us to distinguish between dynamical theories of core formation. Cores also seem to be subject to a differential N2 and CO depletion, which was not expected from the models. Aims. We aim to create a survey of ten cores to estimate their lifetime scales and depletion profiles in detail. After describing L 183, located in Serpens, we present the second cloud of the series, L 1512, from the star-forming region Auriga. Methods. To constrain the lifetime scale, we performed chemical modeling of the deuteration profiles across L 1512 based on dust extinction measurements from near-infrared observations and nonlocal thermal equilibrium radiative transfer with multiple line observations of N2H+, N2D+, DCO+, C18O, and 13CO, plus H2D+(110-111). Results. We find a peak density of 1.1 × 105 cm-3 and a central temperature of 7.5 ± 1 K, which are higher and lower, respectively, compared with previous dust emission studies. The depletion factors of N2H+ and N2D+ are 27+17 -13 and 4+2 -1 in L 1512, which are intermediate between the two other more advanced and denser starless core cases, L 183 and L 1544. These factors also indicate a similar freeze-out of N2 in L 1512, compared to the two others despite a peak density one to two orders of magnitude lower. Retrieving CO and N2 abundance profiles with the chemical model, we find that CO has a depletion factor of ~430-870 and the N2 profile is similar to that of CO unlike that toward L 183. Therefore, L 1512 has probably been living long enough so that N2 chemistry has reached steady state. Conclusions. N2H+ modeling is necessary to assess the precise physical conditions in the center of cold starless cores, rather than dust emission. L 1512 is presumably older than 1.4 Myr. Therefore, the dominating core formation mechanism should be ambipolar diffusion for this source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we extend the single-step pseudo-spectral method for nonlinear Volterra integral equations of the second kind to the multistep pseudo-spectral method. We also analyze the convergence of the hp-version of the multistep pseudo-spectral method under the L2-norm, and the result shows that the scheme enjoys high order accuracy and can be implemented in a stable and efficient manner. In addition, it is very suitable for long time calculations and large step size situations. Numerical experiments confirm the theoretical expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bama miniature pig (BM) as the inbreed pigs is considered to be a potential donor for xenotransplantation. However, porcine endogenous retrovirus (PERV) integrated in pig's genome, is likely to infect human cells in vitro. PERV infection from BM remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate PERV infection in BM in comparison with that of PK15 cells and further to identify the integration sites of PERV from BM (PERV-BM) in human genome. Two full-length PERV-BMs were cloned from 15 isolates of PERV from Bama miniature pigs and sequence analysis indicated that PERV-BM had limited infection to human cells. Subsequently, PBMC from the BM and PK15 cells were co-cultured with HEK293 cells, respectively. Using nested RT-PCR assay and TEM observation, one PERV-BM was observed to infect HEK293 cells with lower transcriptional level than PERV from PK15 cells (PERV-PK) did, while the others showed no sign of transmission of PERV to human cells. Furthermore, 4 and 157 integration sites were identified from PERV-BM-infected HEK293 cells (HEK293-PERV-BM) and PERV-PK- infected HEK293 cells (HEK293-PERV-PK), respectively, which displayed variations of PERV integration. For further verification of the PERV-BM integration, the expression level of cyclin D1, c-myc, p53 and p16 genes of HEK293-PERV-BM decreased significantly while the CDK4 genes were upregulated dramatically in comparison with those of the HEK293-PERV-PK. It is the first time that PERV-BM has been confirmed to be low infection to human cells and highly integration into the PK15 cells. Therefore, BM is a potential xenograft donor due to less PERV transmission to human beings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: This study's aim is to present the specific ultrasonography (US) findings of a series of urachus anomalies.Material and Methods: Seven patients with suspected urachal anomalies underwent US scanning initially prior to the surgery and the features of images were reviewed respectively. The clinical data and pathologic results were collected also.Results: US successfully diagnosed urachal anomalies in 5 patients (5/7, 71.4%) and failed to diagnose in 2 patients (2/7, 28.6%). Patent urachus showed a tubule between the umbilicus and bladder; urachal sinus was a blind focal dilatation at the umbilical end, while vesicourachal diverticulum was an outpouching at the vesical end and urachal cyst was identified as an anechoic structure along the urachus. Non-enhancement in the base and centre was the distinct features of urachus carcinoma by contrastenhanced ultrasonography (CEUS). Using a high frequency probe and CEUS the diagnostic ability of US may be improved.Conclusion: US showed good diagnostic ability in urachal anomalies and combined with CEUS could improve the differential diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The management of residual nonfunctional pituitary tumors after surgical resection remains controversial. In this study, we compared the prognosis of postoperative radiation therapy and observation only in patients with residual nonfunctional pituitary adenoma and reviewed the long-term complications after radiation therapy. We retrospectively analyzed 90 patients who underwent surgery for nonfunctional pituitary adenomas from January 2008 to April 2012. Residual tumors were classified by size, location, and pathologic staining. Tumor progression was defined as volume progression ≥15% with or without clinical symptoms. Postoperative radiation therapy was performed <1 year after the last surgery. We compared the progression and 3-year and 5-year progression-free survival between the observation group and postoperative radiation therapy group. Postradiation complications including hypopituitarism, diabetes insipidus, deterioration in visual field or acuity, cranial nerve palsy, and hydrocephalus were also analyzed. More of the patients who received postoperative radiation therapy had a tumor progression-free survival of ≥3 years than did those who did not receive postoperative radiation therapy. Postoperative radiation therapy was significantly beneficial for the patients with a tumor size ≥3 cm or with tumors in the cavernous sinus. The most frequent complication after radiation therapy was hypopituitarism and a few cases had third cranial nerve palsy; however, there were no significant relationships with radiation therapy. In this study, immediate radiation therapy after tumor resection was an effective and relatively safe treatment for residual or progressive nonfunctional pituitary adenomas. Moreover, the long-term complications of radiation therapy were mild. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Population health, social development and the environment are important elements of sustainable development. This article uses the China People's Daily message board to collect environmental public opinion data, visualizes the public opinion hotspots of environmental based on word frequency statistics, and applies the Latent Dirichlet Allocations (LDA) topic model to analyze the spatial distribution of environmental risk perception dimensions. The conclusions are as follows: (1) in terms of the hotspots of environmental public opinion, the most frequent occurrences are the living environment, interest demands and noise pollution. (2) There is heterogeneity in the topic of environmental risk perception. The perception of pollution source types has the highest weight in environmental risk perception in the eastern, central, and western regions. Specifically, the types of pollution sources in the eastern that receive the most attention are garbage and noise pollution. In addition to paying attention to noise pollution, the central and western also have a higher perceived weight on the polluters. Residents in northeast are most concerned about changes in residents' health and living environment quality. (3) From the perspective of environmental risk perception, health perception has the highest proportion in northeast, followed by the eastern, and finally the central and western. Proportion of perception of interest demands is highest in the central region, perception of residential environment quality is highest in the northeast region, perception of pollution source types is highest in the eastern, central, and western regions, and lowest in the northeast region. Finally, some practical and feasible policy recommendations were proposed for different regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the prognostic value and correlation between the risk of lymph node metastasis (LNM) and Guanylate-binding Protein 1 (GBP1) in breast cancer (BC) patients. Methods: In this retrospective study, the clinical data of 150 patients with BC who were surgically resected in The Affiliated Qingdao Central Hospital of Qingdao University from January 2019 to December 2021 were included. Patients were divided into metastasis group (n=110) or non-metastasis group (n=40) according to whether there was LNM post-surgery. Logistic regression was used to analyze the risk factors for LNM in BC, and Kaplan-Meier was used to assess the risk of disease progression 12 months post-operation in both groups. Patients were divided into a GBP1 low expression-group (n=75) or a GBP1 high expression-group (n=75). The risk of disease progression, one-year post-surgery was analyzed, and the predictive value of GBP1 in BC tissue was assessed by the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve. Results: Independent risk factors for BC with LNM were GBP1, CEA and TNM stage (P<0.05). There is a linear relationship between GBP1 expression and LNM risk in BC (χ2 =0.88, P<0.05). Patients with high expression of GBP1 had a higher risk of LNM (χ2 =3.204, P<0.001) and early postoperative progression (χ2 =7.412, P<0.05). The AUC of GBP1 in predicting the risk of LNM was 0.840. Conclusions: Patients with BC and a higher expression of GBP1 could be at an increased risk of LNM. Elevations in GBP1 expression can also suggest a poor prognosis for patients with BC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Borax, ulexite, and colemanite minerals are by far the most important economic source of boron and occur almost exclusively in nonmarine evaporite deposits. While much is known about the geological setting in which they are found, surprisingly little is known about the chemical and physical properties of the brines from which they are formed. Oxygen isotope studies have the potential to reveal important new information regarding borate formation, but unlike most other common oxygen-bearing salts precipitated from brines, there are no experimental data regarding the oxygen isotope fractionation factors between borates and brines. As a first attempt to address this gap in our understanding we have determined Δ18Oborate-water values between 0 and 100 °C using density functional theory calculations (DFT). These results predicted Δ18Oborate-water values of 12.87, 22.32, and 17.5‰ at 25 °C for borax, colemanite and ulexite, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The human SLC25A13 gene encodes the liver type aspartate/glutamate carrier isoform 2 (AGC2, commonly named as citrin), which plays a key role in the main NADH-shuttle of human hepatocyte. Biallelic SLC25A13 mutations result in Citrin deficiency (CD). In order to identify the important regulatory region of SLC25A13 gene and elucidate the way how potential promoter mutations affect the citrin expression, we performed promoter deletion analysis and established the reporter constructs of luciferase gene-carrying SLC25A13 promoter containing several mutations located in putative transcription factor-binding sites. The luciferase activities of all promoter constructs were measured using a Dual-Luciferase Reporter Assay System. Bioinformatic analysis showed that the promoter of SLC25A13 gene lacks TATA box and obviously typical initiator element, but contains a CCAAT box and two GC box. Promoter deletion analysis confirmed the region from −221 to −1 upstream ATG was essential for SLC25A13 to maintain the promoter activity. We utilized dual-luciferase reporter system as function analytical model to tentatively assess the effect of artificially constructed promoter mutations on citrin expression, and our analysis revealed that mutated putative CCAAT box and GC box could significantly affect the citrin expression. Our study confirmed the important SLC25A13 promoter regions that influenced citrin expression in HL7702 cells, and constructed a function analytical model. This work may be useful to further identify the pathogenic mutations leading to CD in the promoter region. Highlights • Human SLC25A13 gene promoter is GC-rich and TATA-less with a dispersed transcription pattern. • A GC box and a CCAAT box were predicted in the region upstream of the translational start site. • The region from −221 to −1 upstream of translation initiation codon was essential for SLC25A13 transcription. • A function analytical model of SLC25A13 gene promoter was established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, a novel heterozygous missense mutation c.T1421G (p. L474R) in the PODXL gene encoding podocalyxin was identified in an autosomal dominant focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (AD-FSGS) pedigree. However, this PODXL mutation appeared not to impair podocalyxin function, and it is necessary to identify new PODXL mutations and determine their causative role for FSGS. In the present study, we report the identification of a heterozygous nonsense PODXL mutation (c.C976T; p. Arg326X) in a Chinese pedigree featured by proteinuria and renal insufficiency with AD inheritance by whole exome sequencing (WES). Total mRNA and PODXL protein abundance were decreased in available peripheral blood cell samples of two affected patients undergoing hemodialysis, compared with those in healthy controls and hemodialysis controls without PODXL mutation. We identified another novel PODXL heterozygous nonsense mutation (c.C1133G; p.Ser378X) in a British-Indian pedigree of AD-FSGS by WES. In vitro study showed that, human embryonic kidney 293T cells transfected with the pEGFP-PODXL-Arg326X or pEGFP-PODXL-Ser378X plasmid expressed significantly lower mRNA and PODXL protein compared with cells transfected with the wild-type plasmid. Blocking nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) significantly restored the amount of mutant mRNA and PODXL proteins, which indicated that the pathogenic effect of PODXL nonsense mutations is likely due to NMD, resulting in podocalyxin deficiency. Functional consequences caused by the PODXL nonsense mutations were inferred by siRNA knockdown in cultured podocytes and podocalyxin down-regulation by siRNA resulted in decreased RhoA and ezrin activities, cell migration and stress fiber formation. Our results provided new data implicating heterozygous PODXL nonsense mutations in the development of FSGS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Terpenes play an important role in plant–insect relationships, and these relationships can potentially be modified by altering the profile of terpenes emitted from plants using metabolic engineering methods. Transgenic plants generated by employing such methods offer the prospect of low-cost sustainable pest management; in this regard, we used chloroplast targeting and cytosolic mevalonic acid pathway enhancement in this study to investigate the interaction of santalenes and bergamotene with insects. The santalene- and bergamotene-emitting transgenic tobacco plants thus generated were utilized to study host preference in the green peach aphid (Myzus persicae (Sulzer)). The results showed that co-expression of either 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGR) or truncated HMGR with santalene synthase led to the production of higher amounts of santalenes and bergamotene in transgenic tobacco plants, and that these santalene- and bergamotene-emitting plants were attractive to green peach aphids. We accordingly propose that such transgenic plants may have potential application in pest management as a trap crop to prevent green peach aphid infestation of wild-type tobacco plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the design of the interferometric spectrometer, if the spectral range of filters in the instrument is not significantly greater than the output spectral range of the spectrometer, there exists a problem of mismatch between the spectral range of the filter and the spectrometer, resulting in a significant weakening of the edge spectral response and affecting the spectral accuracy of the edge spectrum. This paper makes a theoretical analysis of the weakening of the edge spectral response, and proposes a method to reduce this phenomenon. The core idea of this method is to simulate the interference data of the edge spectrum through the spectrum and phase data, overlapped with the interference information of the spectrometer to obtain the interference data, which is compensated by the edge spectrum. The data of HJ-1A satellite hyperspectral imager are processed and analyzed by this method. As a result, the image quality of the edge bands improved. In the end, the interference simulation data of the spectrometer are generated and they are analyzed and processed by this method. The results prove that the method can make the edge spectral quality significantly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Six new Zn/Cd coordination polymers (CPs) based on a new terpyridine derivative ligand, namely, [ZnLCl] n · n H 2 O ( 1 ), [ZnL 2 ] n ( 2 ), [CdL 2 (H 2 O) 2 ] n ( 3 ), [CdL 2 (H 2 O)] n ( 4 ), [Cd 2 L 2 ( m -bdc)(H 2 O) 2 ] n ( 5 ), [Cd 2 L 2 ( m -bdc)(H 2 O)] n ( 6 ), (H 2 ( m -bdc) = benzene-1,3-dicarboxylic acid, HL = 4′-(2-carboxyphenyl)-3,2′:6′,3″-terpyridine), have been synthesized under hydrothermal conditions and characterized by elemental analyses, infrared spectra, single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Compound 1 displays a 3D utp topology based on left- and right-handed helical chains. Compounds 2 , 3 and 4 are three kinds of 1D loop chain structures. Compound 5 features a (3,6)-connected 3D topology with point symbol of {4 2 ·6} 2 {4 4 ·6 2 ·8 8 ·10}. Compound 6 reveals a (3,6,8)-connected 3D framework with point symbol of {4·5 2 } 2 {4 8 ·5 6 ·6 8 ·7 4 ·8·9}{4 8 ·6 6 ·7}. Luminescent properties of compounds 1 – 6 at room temperature were investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jet mill is an apparatus that produces superfine powder and is widely used in various industries. In this work, a new supersonic target jet mill based on aerodynamic theory is presented according to the flow field of a traditional jet mill. An annular supersonic flow produced by an annular converging- diverging nozzle is used to entrain the central particle flow by the shear mechanism in this new supersonic target jet mill. Then, the particle beam concentrating in the flow center impacts the target with high kinetic energy after the entrainment of the supersonic flow. An apparatus of the annular supersonic target jet mill was created to validate the theoretical design. Two types of experiments were implemented to estimate its performance. The validation experiments confirmed that the gas speed in the collision chamber was approximately 600 m/s and the supersonic flow could deliver a kinetic energy of approximately 180 J/s to the particles. The particle size reduction of boroncarbide (B4C) and silica (Si) in the collision tests showed that the accelerated particles concentrated in the supersonic flow center collided on the targets precisely with high collision energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of apatinib on the formation of vasculogenic mimicry (VM) was studied in a malignant melanoma cell line. MUM-2B cells cultured in three-dimensional Matrigel were treated with varying concentrations (0, 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.5 μmol/L) of apatinib to test its effect on VM in vitro, followed by MTT proliferation and transwell invasion assays to determine the effect of apatinib on cell proliferation and invasion of MUM-2B cells. In vivo, we used a melanoma cancer model to test the effect of short-term apatinib (100, 200, 300 mg/kg) treatment on VM. Western blotting, immunohistochemistry staining, and CD31-PAS dual staining were performed to assess the expression of VEGFR-2, ERK-1/2, PI3K, and MMP-2, and formation of VM. The results showed apatinib-treated groups formed a lesser number of VM in 3D matrigel, while the cell viability in MTT proliferation assay and the number of migration cells in transwell invasion assay were significantly lower in apatinib-treated groups. In addition, short-term apatinib treatment inhibited angiogenesis, VM formation, and tumor growth in models of melanoma cancer. Mice in apatinib-treated groups showed a markedly reduced expression of VEGFR-2, ERK-1/2, PI3K, and MMP-2. In summary, apatinib could inhibit the expression of VEGFR-2, and downregulate the ERK1/2/PI3K/MMP-2 signaling cascade, which may be one of the underlying mechanisms by which apatinib inhibits angiogenesis and the development of VM in models of melanoma cancer, and restrains the formation of VM by MUM-2B cells. Apatinib shows inhibitory effects on cell proliferation and invasion of MUM-2B cells, which is a close relationship with the VM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zearalenone (ZEA), a natural contaminant found in feed, has been shown to have a negative impact on domestic animal reproduction, particularly in pigs. There are species-specific differences in the ZEA-induced toxicity pattern. Here, we investigated the different biological effects of ZEA exposure on porcine and mouse granulosa cells, using RNA-seq analysis. We treated murine and porcine granulosa cells with 10 μM and 30 μM ZEA during 72 h of culturing, in vitro . The results showed that 10 μM ZEA exposure significantly altered mitosis associated genes in porcine granulosa cells, while the same treatment significantly altered the steroidogenesis associated genes in mouse granulosa cells. Exposure to 30 μM ZEA resulted in significantly up-regulated expression of inflammatory related genes in porcine granulosa cells as well as the cancer related genes in mouse granulosa cells. Similarly, 30 μM ZEA exposure significantly decreased the expression of tumor suppressor factors in the mouse granulosa cells. Furthermore, immunofluorescence, RT-qPCR as well as western-blot analysis verified the different expression of related genes in ZEA exposed porcine and mouse granulosa cells. Collectively, these results illustrate the presence of species differences with regards to ZEA effects between porcine and mouse ovarian granulosa cells, in vitro . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Begonia versicolor Irmscher, a narrow endemic Begonia species in southeast Yunnan of China, is a wonderful ornamental plant with huge diversity in colored foliage. To investigate its variations, the genetic diversity and population structure were studied based on 56 individuals sampled from four localities using 12 polymorphic microsatellite loci transferred from other species of Begonia. The results showed a relatively low level of genetic diversity in B. versicolor comparing with other species of Begonia using microsatellite. Positive inbreeding coefficient (FIS) values were found in three populations (SWC, XPZ and DSD). AMOVA analysis indicated that genetic variations occurred mainly within populations (55.9%) rather than among populations (9.7%) and among groups (34.4%). Four populations were grouped into two clusters based on STRUCTURE. AMOVA and STRUCTURE analysis showed a high level and significant genetic differentiation in the populations of B. versicolor. Based on its genetic status and rarity in the wild, the sustainable in-situ and ex-situ conservation strategies should be urgently carried out to protect this species with high horticultural and scientific values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]