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For a steel factory production of BTW1 continuous casting slab is taken as the research object， and high temperature thermoplastic test is carried out by Gleeble 3800 thermal simulation testing machine.The tensile fracture is observed and the microstructure is analyzed by metallographic microscope and scanning electron microscope.The test results show that the reduction of area of BTW1 steel decreases first， then increases and again decreases with the increase of heating temperature. The reduction of area reaches the highest value of 68.3% at 1 000 ℃ and only 29.23% at 950 ℃. The reduction of area of BTW1 steel is lower than 40% in several temperature ranges， and the high temperature thermoplasticity is very poor， the crack sensitivity is strong.When the heating temperature is lower than 800 ℃， the thermoplasticity is poor due to the absence of MBIP and DRX， and the fracture morphology shows the coexistence of plastic deformation and brittle fracture. When the heating temperature is lower than 800 ℃， there is no microband induced plasticity and dynamic recrystallization， resulting in poor thermoplasticity， plastic deformation and brittle fracture coexist；When the heating temperature is 950 ℃， the DRX phenomenon increases， but the mixed crystal structure leads to a decrease in plasticity， and the fracture morphology is typical brittle fracture. When the heating temperature is 1 000 ℃， the DRX process is obvious， and the uniform fine grain region is formed， and the fracture is typical dimble morphology. When the heating temperature is 1 100 ℃， a melting zone appears in the fracture， but part of the dimpled structure remains at high temperature.

Abstract In the face of an infectious disease, a key epidemiological measure is the basic reproduction number, which quantifies the average secondary infections caused by a single case in a susceptible population. In practice, the effective reproduction number, denoted as $$R_t$$ R t , is widely used to assess the transmissibility of the disease at a given time t. Real-time estimating this metric is vital for understanding and managing disease outbreaks. Traditional statistical inference often relies on two assumptions. One is that samples are assumed to be drawn from a homogeneous population distribution, neglecting significant variations in individual transmission rates. The other is the ideal case reporting assumption, disregarding time delays between infection and reporting. In this paper, we thoroughly investigate these critical factors and assess their impact on estimating $$R_t$$ R t . We first introduce negative binomial and Weibull distributions to characterize transmission rates and reporting delays, respectively, based on which observation and state equations are formulated. Then, we employ a Bayesian filtering for estimating $$R_t$$ R t . Finally, validation using synthetic and empirical data demonstrates a significant improvement in estimation accuracy compared to conventional methods that ignore these factors.

Abstract Callosobruchus maculatus is one of the most competitive stored grain pests, which causes a great loss to agricultural economy. However, due to an inadequacy of high-quality reference genome, the molecular mechanisms for olfactory and hypoxic adaptations to stored environments are unknown and require to be revealed urgently, which will contribute to the detection and prevention of the invasive pests C. maculatus. Here, we presented a high-quality chromosome-level genome of C. maculatus based on Illumina, Nanopore and Hi-C sequencing data. The total size was 1.2 Gb, and 65.17% (797.47 Mb) of it was identified to be repeat sequences. Among assembled chromosomes, chromosome 10 was considered the X chromosome according to the evidence of reads coverage and homologous genes among species. The current version of high-quality genome provides preferable data resources for the adaptive evolution research of C. maculatus.

Objective To investigate the role and mechanism of lysine acetyltransferase 8(KAT8) on the proliferation of colorectal cancer cells. Methods The expression of KAT8 in cancerous tissues and adjacent tissues of colorectal cancer patients was analyzed by RNA-seq data of TCGA database. Cell proliferation was detected by colony-forming unit assays and CCK8. The GEO database was used to analyze the differential genes of KAT8 knockdown cells and control cells and perform functional pathway enrichment analysis. In the colorectal cancer database hosted on cBioPortal, that conducted an analysis examining the correlation between KAT8 and genes in the regulation of N6-methyladenosine(m6A) modification. Western blot technique was employed to assess the protein expression levels of KAT8 and METTL3. Results Compared to human normal colorectal tissue, KAT8 was highly expressed in colorectal cancer(P＜0.05). Knockdown or selective inactivation of KAT8 inhibited colorectal cancer cells proliferation (P＜0.05). In colorectal cancer cell lines, knocking down KAT8 reduced m6A modification levels (P＜0.05). Knocking down KAT8 inhibited METTL3 expression (P＜0.05). Over-expression of METTL3 reversed cell proliferation which was inhibited by knockdown KAT8(P＜0.05). Conclusions KAT8 facilitates the proliferation of colorectal cancer cell lines through regulation of METTL3-mediated m6A modifications.

For a steel factory production of 55SiCr spring steel，the reduction of area of the oil quenched and tempered treatment wire rod after processing is less than 40%， which affects the subsequent spring coiling process and the service life of the spring. The casting billet and wire rod were evaluated by methods of low-magnification pickling test， tensile test， oil quenched and tempered treatment， drill cuttings test， etc， it was found that the center segregation of the casting billet was the main cause of poor drawing performance. Through the optimization test study of continuous casting process， the results showed that high superheat had a significant effect on the segregation of billet and the drawing performance of wire rod.When the superheat was 35 ℃ compared with 18 ℃， the reduction of area and elongation increased by 2% and 0. 8% respectively. The electromagnetic stirring current of the mold was increased from 150 A to 320 A， and the center equiaxed grain rate was increased from 8%-8. 5% to 10. 5%， but the average center carbon segregation index also increased. When using the same mould electromagnetic stirring technology， reducing the electromagnetic stirring intensity at the solidified end was beneficial to improve the center segregation. When the average center carbon segregation index of the slab decreased from 1. 10 to 1. 02， the reduction of area of the oil quenched and tempered treatment wire rod increased from 39% to 47%.

Abstract Radix Astragali is one of the most famous and frequently used health food supplements and herbal medicines. Among more than 227 components of Radix Astragali, Astragaloside IV (AG IV) is famous functional compound and is commonly used as a quality marker for Radix Astragali. However, the relatively low content of AG IV in Radix Astragali (

Liver fibrosis is the initial pathological process of many chronic liver diseases. Targeting hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation is an available strategy for the therapy of liver fibrosis. We aimed to explore the anti-liver fibrosis activity and potential mechanism of phomopsterone B (PB) in human HSCs. The results showed that PB effectively attenuated the proliferation of TGF-β1-stimulated LX-2 cells in a concentration-dependent manner at doses of 1, 2, and 4 μM. Quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot assays displayed that PB significantly reduced the expression levels of α-SMA and collagen I/III. AO/EB and Hoechst33342 staining and flow cytometry assays exhibited that PB promoted the cells’ apoptosis. Meanwhile, PB diminished the number of autophagic vesicles and vacuolated structures, and the LC3B fluorescent spots indicated that PB could effectively inhibit the accretion of autophagosomes in LX-2 cells. Moreover, rapamycin and MHY1485 were utilized to further investigate the effect of mTOR in autophagy and apoptosis. The results demonstrated that PB regulated autophagy and apoptosis via the mTOR-dependent pathway in LX-2 cells. In summary, this is the first evidence that PB effectively alleviates liver fibrosis in TGF-β1-stimulated LX-2 cells, and PB may be a promising candidate for the prevention of liver fibrosis.

Abstract Background Dysregulation of T cells mediated immune responses is a hallmark in the development of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Recent genome wide association study (GWAS) revealed the genetic contribution of variants located in the cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein-4 (CTLA4)-inducible T cell co-stimulator (ICOS) intergenic region to SLE susceptibility. Our aim is to find a functional variant in this region. Methods The genetic association results in the CTLA4-ICOS region from previous GWAS were adopted to select the potential variant which was further replicated in two independent cohorts (Henan cohort 2053 SLE patients and 1845 healthy controls, Beijing cohort 2303 SLE patients and 19,262 healthy). In order to explore the functional significance in SLE, bioinformatics with validation experiments (including electrophoretic mobility shift assay and luciferase reporter assay) and mRNA expression analysis were also performed. Results A variant located in the CTLA4-ICOS intergenic region, rs17268364, was associated with susceptibility to SLE patients in Chinese populations (risk allele, p meta = 7.02×10−11, OR 1.19, 95%CI 1.13–1.26). The bioinformatics suggested that rs17268364 might affect the expression of CTLA4, not ICOS. The rs17268364 risk G allele containing sequence reduced the expression of the reporter gene by binding transcriptional repressor Ewing sarcoma breakpoint region 1 (EWSR1). Following genotype-mRNA expression, the analysis also showed the risk allele of rs17268364 was associated with low CTLA4 expression in lupus nephritis (LN) patients. Healthy individuals carrying rs17268364 risk G allele was significantly correlated with higher levels of IFN-α signature including increased lymphocyte antigen 6E (LY6E) (p=0.031), interferon-stimulated gene 15 (ISG15) (p=0.038), interferon regulatory factor 9 (IRF9) (p=0.028), and interferon regulatory factor 5 (IRF5) (p=0.040) mRNA expression. Conclusions The present study confirmed the functional role of rs17268364 in the CTLA4-ICOS intergenic region that increased SLE susceptibility in the Chinese population.

Abstract As a common chronic metabolic disease, the development of diabetes mellitus (DM) may also be accompanied by liver damage and inflammatory disorders. Sitagliptin is an inhibitor of dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4, also known as CD26), which is clinically used for DM treatment. However, the mechanism of sitagliptin’s efficiency in liver diseases is largely unknown. In this study, mice suffering from streptozotocin (STZ) exhibit elevated liver DPP4 expression and activity, as well as inflammatory and chronic liver injury phenotype, whereas specifically inhibiting the activity of DPP4 in mouse liver tissues and hepatocytes by sitagliptin contributes to decreased cytokines, oxidative stress, cell apoptosis, and inflammation in STZ-induced diabetic mice. Moreover, sitagliptin reduced TNFα or LPS-induced cellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) level, cell apoptosis, and protein expression in the NFκB signaling pathway in HepG2 cells or primary mouse hepatocytes. Altogether, our study confirms that sitagliptin may protect liver tissue by alleviating ROS production and NFκB signaling activation, providing a putative mechanism for preventing the development of diabetic liver disease.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), which lack protein-coding ability, can regulate cancer cell growth, proliferation, invasion, and metastasis. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are key components of the tumor microenvironment that have a significant impact on cancer progression. Small extracellular vesicles (sEV) are crucial mediators of intercellular communications. Cancer cell and macrophage-derived sEV can carry lncRNAs that influence the onset and progression of cancer. Dysregulation of lncRNAs, TAMs, and sEV is widely observed in tumors which makes them valuable targets for cancer immunotherapy. In this review, we summarize current updates on the interactions among sEV, lncRNAs, and TAMs in tumors and provide new perspectives on cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Abstract Background Given the context of rapid technological change and COIVD-19 pandemics, E-learning may provide a unique opportunity for addressing the challenges in traditional face-to-face continuing medical education (CME). However, the effectiveness of E-learning in CME interventions remains unclear. This study aims to evaluate whether E-learning training program can improve TB health personnel’s knowledge and behaviour in China. Methods This study used a convergent mixed method research design to evaluate the impact of E-learning programs for tuberculosis (TB) health workers in terms of knowledge improvement and behaviour change during the China-Gates TB Project (add the time span). Quantitative data was collected by staff surveys (baseline n = 555; final n = 757) and management information systems to measure the demographic characteristics, training participation, and TB knowledge. Difference-in-difference (DID) and multiple linear regression models were employed to capture the effectiveness of knowledge improvement. Qualitative data was collected by interviews (n = 30) and focus group discussions (n = 44) with managers, teachers, and learners to explore their learning experience. Results Synchronous E-learning improved the knowledge of TB clinicians (average treatment effect, ATE: 7.3 scores/100, P = 0.026). Asynchronous E-learning has a significant impact on knowledge among primary care workers (ATE: 10.9/100, P

Abstract Background World Health Organization recommends countries introducing new drug and short treatment regimen for drug resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) should develop and implement a system for active pharmacovigilance that allows for detection, reporting and management of adverse events. The aim of the study is to evaluate the frequency and severity of adverse events (AEs) of bedaquiline-containing regimen in a cohort of Chinese patients with multidrug-resistant (MDR)/extensively drug-resistant (XDR)-TB based on active drug safety monitoring (aDSM) system of New Drug Introduction and Protection Program (NDIP). Methods AEs were prospectively collected with demographic, bacteriological, radiological and clinical data from 54 sites throughout China at patient enrollment and during treatment between February, 2018 and December, 2019. This is an interim analysis including patients who are still on treatment and those that have completed treatment. A descriptive analysis was performed on the patients evaluated in the cohort. Results By December 31, 2019, a total of 1162 patients received bedaquiline-containing anti-TB treatment. Overall, 1563 AEs were reported, 66.9% were classified as minor (Grade 1–2) and 33.1% as serious (Grade 3–5). The median duration of bedaquiline treatment was 167.0 [interquartile range (IQR): 75–169] days. 86 (7.4%) patients received 36-week prolonged treatment with bedaquiline. The incidence of AEs and serious AEs was 47.1% and 7.8%, respectively. The most frequently reported AEs were QT prolongation (24.7%) and hepatotoxicity (16.4%). There were 14 (1.2%) AEs leading to death. Out of patients with available corrected QT interval by Fridericia's formula (QTcF) data, 3.1% (32/1044) experienced a post-baseline QTcF ≥ 500 ms, and 15.7% (132/839) had at least one change of QTcF ≥ 60 ms from baseline. 49 (4.2%) patients had QT prolonged AEs leading to bedaquiline withdrawal. One hundred and ninety patients reported 361 AEs with hepatotoxicity ranking the second with high occurrence. Thirty-four patients reported 43 AEs of hepatic injury referred to bedaquiline, much lower than that referred to protionamide, pyrazinamide and para-aminosalicylic acid individually. Conclusions Bedaquiline was generally well-tolerated with few safety concerns in this clinical patient population without any new safety signal identified. The mortality rate was generally low. These data inform significant positive effect to support the WHO recent recommendations for the wide use of bedaquiline.

Abstract Background E-learning is a growing phenomenon which provides a unique opportunity to address the challenges in continuing medical education (CME). The China-Gates Foundation Tuberculosis (TB) Control Program implemented online training for TB health workers in three provinces of China. We aim to evaluate the implementation of E-learning CME programs, analyse the barriers and facilitators during the implementation process, and to provide policy recommendations. Methods Routine monitoring data were collected through the project office from December 2017 to June 2019. In-depth interviews, focus group discussion with project management personnel, teachers, and trainees (n = 78), and staff survey (baseline n = 555, final n = 757) were conducted in selected pilot areas at the provincial, municipal, and county/district levels in the three project provinces (Zhejiang, Jilin, and Ningxia). Descriptive analysis of quantitative data summarized the participation, registration, and certification rates for training activities. Thematic approach was used for qualitative data analysis. Results By the end of June 2019, the national and provincial remote training platforms had organized 98 synchronous learning activities, with an average of 173.2 people [standard deviation (SD) = 49.8] per online training session, 163.3 people (SD = 41.2) per online case discussion. In the pilot area, 64.5% of TB health workforce registered the asynchronous learning platform, and 50.1% obtained their professional certifications. Participants agreed that E-learning CME was more economical, has better content as well as more flexible work schedules. However, the project still faced challenges in terms of unmet learning needs, disorganized governance, insufficient hardware and software, unsupported environment, and lack of incentive mechanisms. Conclusions Our results suggested that it’s feasible to conduct large scale E-learning CME activities in the three project provinces of China. Training content and format are key facilitators of the program implementation, while the matching of training supply and demand, organizational coordination, internet technology, motivations, and sustainability are key barriers.

Four novel triterpene glycosides, taimordisins A–D (1–4), were discovered from fresh fruits of Taiwanese Momordica charantia. The chemical framework and relative stereochemistry of these four natural products were isolated, purified, and determined by using various separation and spectroscopy techniques. Each of them features a unique bicyclic-fused or trifuso-centro-fused ring system. Notably, 1 and 2 are cucurbitane-based compounds possessing a new C-24 and C-2″ carbon–carbon linkage with 5-hydroxy-2-(hydroxymethyl)tetrahydro-4H-pyran-4-one and 6-(hydroxymethyl)tetrahydro-4H-pyran-3,4,4-triol units, respectively, and represented an unprecedented molecular skeleton. In terms of biosynthesis, they all originate from a common precursor 3-hydroxycucurbita-5,24-dien-19-al-7,23-di-O-β-glucopyranoside. Of two sugar moieties, the one at 23-O-β-glucopyranoside grants each individual congener uniqueness likely through microbial symbiont-mediated intramolecular transformation into two major types of furo[2,3-b]pyranone and furo[3,2-c]pyranone derivatives. These new products possess desirable anti-inflammatory biological activities in addition to being generally regarded as safe.

BackgroundUterine cervical neoplasms is widely concerned due to its high incidence rate. Early diagnosis is extremely important for prognosis. The purpose of this article is evaluating the efficacy of Raman spectroscopy in the diagnosis of suspected uterine cervical neoplasms.MethodsWe searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and Web of science up to September 1, 2021. By analyzing the true positive (TP), false positive (FP), true negative (TN) and false negative (FN) of six included study, we evaluated the pooled and grouping sensitivity, specificity, positive, and negative likelihood ratios (LR), and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), with 95% confidence intervals (CI), based on random effects models. The overall diagnostic accuracy of Raman spectrum was evaluated by SROC curve analysis and AUC.ResultsAfter screening with inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of six study were included in the study. The pooled sensitivity and specificity was 0.98 (95% Cl, 0.93–0.99) and 0.95 (95% Cl, 0.89–0.98). The total PLR and NLR were 21.05 (95% CI, 8.23–53.86) and 0.03 (95% CI, 0.01–0.07), respectively. And the AUC of the SROC curve which show the overall diagnostic accuracy was 0.99 (0.98–1.00).ConclusionThrough analysis, we confirmed the role of Raman spectroscopy (RS) in the diagnosis of suspected uterine cervical tumors.Systematic Review Registration[https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/], identifier [CRD42021284966].

A stable narrow range of extracellular calcium concentration in the blood is essential for life. The calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR), a member of the G protein-coupled receptors family, is required to adjust the set point of blood extracellular calcium concentration, thus regulate parathyroid hormone (PTH) secretion and renal calcium excretion. Loss or gain function of CaSR mutations may result in either hyper- or hypocalcaemia. The CaSR activating mutations increase its sensitivity to extracellular ionized calcium (Ca2+). As consequence, PTH synthesis and secretion are suppressed continuously at normal ionized calcium concentrations. Patients display hypocalcaemia, hyperphosphatemia and lower levels of PTH. Urinary calcium excretion is increased due to the decreased circulating inappropriately PTH level and the activation of the renal tubular CaSR. Therefore, CaSR becomes a good potential clinical therapeutic target for hypoparathyroidism treatment. In order to define new drugs and improve medical management of hypoparathyroidism patients, this study attempts to identify new CaSR variants and analyse in detail the functional change of these CaSR variants, thus better understand the molecular mechanism involved. The study is based on collected hypoparathyroidism patients in our clinical site. In the study we enrolled in 10 patients, obtained all their clinical results and DNA results from seven patients. Our results indicated that the effect of serum intact PTH level correlated to change of serum Ca2+ and phosphate level. The CaSR carrying newly identified DNA variants displayed strong phosphorylation of phospholipase C and mitogen-activated protein kinases. Although the size of clinical cases need to be accumulated, current cases have showed a tendency that the identified multiple DNA variants in CaSR gene revealed an effect on the diagnostic criterion of the hypocalcaemic syndrome. It is undeniable that our research has certain limitations. So far, we tested several DNA variants at the same time, further functional examination for individual DNA variant would largely help to be better understand the mechanisms of CaSR regulation on extracellular calcium concentration.

Two groups of numerical tests were carried out in the mountainous area adjacent to the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) in order to test the wind field simulation capability of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) over realistic complex terrain. The first group of tests was carried out for a typhoon case and the simulation results were used to compare the performance of different turbulence models. The comparison between the simulation results and the observational data from a Terminal Doppler Weather Radar (TDWR) shows that the unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (URANS) method cannot describe the fluctuating airflow triggered by mountains, while the Large Eddy Simulation (LES) method can effectively reproduce the cyclical fluctuations triggered by the mountains, showing a better simulation capability on realistic terrain than URANS. The second group of tests was conducted for a vortex/wave shedding process under stable stratification to test different density models. The comparison between the simulation results and the observed data from the Doppler Light Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) system in HKIA shows that the simulation results using the incompressible ideal gas model were closer to the observational ones than those obtained by using the Boussinesq model. In particular, the incompressible ideal gas model has certain advantages because it was able to give a more detailed description of several weak perturbations than the Boussinesq model in the current study.

The complete chloroplast genome of Cypripedium calceolus, a rare species in the family Orchidaceae was reported in this study. The genome size is 175,122 bp in length, and contains four sub-regions: 97,486 bp of large single copy (LSC) and 22,260 bp of small copy (SSC) regions, separated by 27,688 bp of inverted repeat (IR) regions. A total of 133 genes were annotated, including 87 protein-coding genes, 38 tRNA genes and 8 rRNA genes. The GC content of this cp genome is 34.36%. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a close relationship between C. calceolus with C. japonicum and C. formosanum. This is the first complete cp genome for C. calceolus that would be useful for conservation and phylogenetic studies of this species.

The aims of this study are to observe irisin and urotensin II (UII) levels in serum and placenta in normal pregnant and preeclamptic women and investigate the relationship between expressions irisin and UII, and their association with blood pressure. A total of 67 pregnant subjects were recruited, including 31 healthy and 36 preeclamptic pregnant women. Serum irisin and UII concentrations were measured. Expressions of fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 (FNDC5) (irisin precursor) and UII in placenta specimens were performed. There was no significant difference of serum irisin levels between severe preeclamptic (SPE)) patients, mild preeclamptic (MPE) patients and normal controls, while serum UII was significantly higher in preeclamptic women than normal pregnancy. There was no relationship between serum UII and irisin levels. In patients with preeclampsia, serum irisin was negatively associated with systolic and diastolic blood pressure(r = −0.350, P = 0.004, r = −0.307, P = 0.011), while serum UII was positively associated with systolic blood pressure (r = 0.291, P = 0.031). Serum irisin, UII, urinary protein level, BMI and serum creatinine were the independent determinants of blood pressure in preeclampsia by multiple regression analysis. Protein expression of FNDC5 and UII was upregulated in placenta of patients with SPE and positively correlated with systolic blood pressure and urinary protein level. We firstly verify that serum irisin and placental irisin precursor expressions have differently correlated with blood pressure. Expressions of irisin and urotensin II have relationships with blood pressure in patients with preeclampsia

In this study, the complete 17,809 bp mitochondrial genome of Callosobruchus maculates (F.) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Bruchinae) was sequenced using Illumina’s HiSeq2000 platform. The mitogenome is a double-stranded circular molecule of 17,809 bp in length with 21 transfer RNA genes, 13 protein-coding genes, and two ribosomal RNA genes as in other insects. Specially, there is a 2008 bp-inserted segment between ND2 and tRNA-Trp from 1180 to 3187, which cannot be aligned to any known gene of mitogenomes. To estimate the taxonomic status of Bruchinae, total 17 species from eight subfamilies of Chrysomelidae were selected as ingroups and three species of Lamiinae as outgroups for phylogenetic analysis based on mitogenome. The results showed that three major lineages were formed, including a basal ‘Eumolpine’ clade (Cassidinae, Eumolpinae, Cryptocephalinae, Clytrinae), ‘'Criocerine’ clade (Criocerinae, Bruchinae) and ‘Chrysomeline’ clade (Chrysomelinae, Galerucinae s. l.). Bruchinae showed more closed relationship with Criocerinae than other subfamilies. More thorough taxon sampling will be needed to well understand the relationship in Chrysomelidae.

Eleven compounds, including nine known flavonoid glycosides (1–4, 6–8, and 10–11), one isoflavone glycoside (5), and a glansreginic acid (9), were isolated from the 80% ethanol extract of commercial Astragali Complanati Semen (ACS). All chemical structures were determined by spectroscopic analyses, including 1D and 2D NMR. Compounds 2, 4, 5, 6, 9, and 10 were isolated and identified from the title plant for the first time. Biological evaluation revealed that all the isolates showed promising anti-NO production, and 1, 2, 3, and 8 were more potent in antioxidant activity than vitamin E. The major peaks in the UPLC and HPLC profiles identified their chemical structures by comparing their retention time and UV spectra with those of the reference substances. Furthermore, nine of the eleven samples collected from North, Middle, and South regions of Taiwan possessed similar HPLC fingerprints and were identified as Astragali Complanati Semen, whereas the other two samples from southern Taiwan would be the adulterants due to the different fingerprinting patterns. In addition, an HPLC-UV method was employed to determine the content of target compound complanatuside (11) with good linear regression (R2 = 0.9998) for ACS in the Taiwanese market. Of the isolates, flavonol glycosides 1 and 3 were the major peaks in HPLC/UPLC, and showed more potent antioxidant and anti-NO production activities than that of 11, revealing that these compounds can be the available agents for the quality control of ACS.

In this study, the complete 15,892 bp mitochondrial genome of Bruchidius uberatus (Fåhraeus) was sequenced using Illumina NovaSeq6000 platform. The mitogenome is a double-stranded circular molecule of 15,892 bp in length with 22 transfer RNA genes, 13 protein-coding genes and two ribosomal RNA genes as in other insects. Twenty-five species from 8 subfamilies of Chrysomelidae were selected as ingroups and 3 species of Lamiinae as outgroups for phylogenetic analysis based on mitogenome. The results showed that the subfamily Bruchinae was monophyly. Genus Bruchidius had more closed relationship with Acanthoscelides than Callosobruchus in Bruchinae with high support values.

BackgroundANGPTL4 (angiopoietin‐like protein 4) is a LPL (lipoprotein lipase) inhibitor and is present in high‐density lipoprotein (HDL). However, it is not defined whether ANGPTL4 in HDLs could affect HDL metabolism and function in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods and ResultsANGPTL4 levels in the circulation and HDLs were quantified in nondiabetic participants (n=201, 68.7% females) and T2DM patients (n=185, 66.5% females). HDLs were isolated from nondiabetic controls and T2DM patients to assess cholesterol efflux or subjected to endothelial lipase (EL)‐overexpressed HEK293 cells for EL hydrolysis in vitro. The association between ANGPTL4 in HDLs and HDL components and function was analyzed in nondiabetic participants or diabetic patients, respectively. Plasma or HDLs of ANGPTL4+/+ and ANGPTL4−/− mice was subjected for cholesterol efflux or EL hydrolysis, respectively. ANGPTL4 levels in the plasma and HDLs were 1.7‐ and 2.0‐fold higher in T2DM patients than nondiabetic controls, respectively (P

Six new dammarane-type saponins, gypenosides CP1-6 (1–6), along with 19 known compounds 7–25, were isolated and characterized from the aerial parts of Gynostemma pentaphyllum. Among these compounds, eight dammarane-type saponins, 2, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, and 15, exhibited the greatest antiproliferative effects against two human tumor cell lines (A549 and HepG2).

Eight new cucurbitane-type glycosides, kuguasaponins A–H (1–8), and six known compounds (9–14), were isolated by the bioassay-directed fractionation of the fruits of Momordica charantia. The structures of the compounds were established via spectroscopic analyses, including NMR, IR, and MS techniques. The stereochemistry of the isolated cucurbitanes was further determined using X-ray crystallographic analysis, NOESY experiments, and acid hydrolysis, as well as comparison with the cucurbitanes reported in the literature. The HPLC profiles of the active fraction by an ELSD detector were established and used to identify the 7 main peaks of the isolated cucurbitanes. Pharmacological studies on the anti-hyperglycaemic effects revealed that compounds 2, 3, 7, 8, and 13 exhibited strong bioactivities at 10 μM based on the glucose uptake assay. In addition, compounds 2–5, and 14 exhibited moderate cytotoxicity against MCF-7, Doay, HEp-2, and WiDr human tumour cell lines and no activity against the M10 cell line.

Individual decision to accept a new idea or product is often driven by both self-adoption and others' persuasion, which has been simulated using a double threshold model [Huang et al., Scientific Reports 6, 23766 (2016)]. We extend the study to consider the case with limited persuasion. That is, a set of individuals is chosen from the population to be equipped with persuasion capabilities, who may succeed in persuading their friends to take the new entity when certain conditions are satisfied. Network node centrality is adopted to characterize each node's influence, based on which three heuristic strategies are applied to pick out persuaders. We compare these strategies for persuader selection on both homogeneous and heterogeneous networks. Two regimes of the underline networks are identified in which the system exhibits distinct behaviors: when networks are sufficiently sparse, selecting persuader nodes in descending order of node centrality achieves the best performance; when networks are sufficiently dense, however, selecting nodes with medium centralities to serve as the persuaders performs the best. Under respective optimal strategies for different types of networks, we further probe which centrality measure is most suitable for persuader selection. It turns out that for the first regime, degree centrality offers the best measure for picking out persuaders from homogeneous networks; while in heterogeneous networks, betweenness centrality takes its place. In the second regime, there is no significant difference caused by centrality measures in persuader selection for homogeneous network; while for heterogeneous networks, closeness centrality offers the best measure.

Seventeen compounds, quercetin-3-O-α-l-rhamnoside (1), kaempferol-3-O-α-l-rhamnoside (2), apigenin-7-O-β-d-glucuronide (3), apigenin 7-O-β-d-glucuronide methyl ester (4), apigenin 7-O-β-d-glucuronide ethyl ester (5), chrysoeriol (6), apigenin (7), kaempferol (8), luteolin (9), quercetin (10), methyl 3,4-dihydroxybenzoate (11), p-coumaric acid (12), 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (13), hydroquinone (14), protocathehuic acid (15), gallic acid (16), and indole-3-carboxylic acid (17), were isolated from the ethanol extract of Taiwanese Cardiospermum halicabum. All chemical structures were determined by physical and extensive spectroscopic analyses such as 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy (NMR), 13C NMR, 1H-1H Correlation spectroscopy (1H-1H COSY), Heteronuclear Multiple Quantum Coherence spectroscopy (HMQC), Heteronuclear Multiple-bond Correlation spectroscopy (HMBC), and Nuclear Overhauser Effect spectroscopy (NOESY), as well as comparison with literature values. Furthermore, the High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Photodiode Array Detector (HPLC-DAD) fingerprint profile was established for the determination of major constituents in the EtOAc extract and retention times of the isolated compounds. All isolated compounds were also evaluated for antiinflammatory and antioxidant activities.

One new phenylpropanoid, turformosin A (1), and one new triterpene, turformosinic acid (2), together with 16 known compounds, were isolated from the stems of Turpinia formosana Nakai. All structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis, including 1D- and 2D-NMR techniques and MS analysis. Selected isolated compounds were evaluated for in vitro cytotoxicity against four human cancer cell lines and antioxidant scavenging effects on DPPH. (−)-(7′S,8′S)-threo-carolignan X (3) exhibited cytotoxicity against Hep2, WiDr, Daoy, and MCF-7 cell lines with ED50 values of 3.60, 4.45, 6.07, and 13.7 μg/mL, respectively. Turformosin A (1), (−)-(7′S,8′S)- threo-carolignan X (3), methoxyhydroquinone-4-β-d-glucopyranoside (5), and methoxy-hydroquinone-1-β-d-glucopyranoside (6), exhibited similar anti-oxidative activity. Hep2 cells treated with 10 μg/mL of 3 showed elevation of sub-G1 population (from 20% at 8 h to 60% at 48 h), and activation of caspase-9/caspase-3/PARP cascade. Compound 3 induced intrinsic apoptotic pathway in Hep2 cells with dose and time dependence (10 μg/mL for 8 h).

Two new flavonol glucuronides, quercetin 3-O-β-d-2″-acetylglucuronide (1) and quercetin 3-O-β-d-2″-acetylglucuronide methyl ester (2), along with four known flavonoids (3-6) were isolated from the whole parts of Rotala rotundifolia. The structures of 1 and 2 were elucidated by application of various spectroscopic methods, including 1D and 2D NMR techniques. Biological evaluation showed that all of isolated flavonoid compounds have potent anti-oxidative activities by DPPH and superoxide anion methods, and kaempferol (3) and quercetin (4) exhibited significant anti-HBV activity assayed by anti-HBsAg production. The HPLC fingerprint with photodiode array detection (HPLC-DAD) for quality control of R. rotundifolia partitioned EtOAc layer was also established.