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Objective. To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of Gegen Qinlian decoction in the treatment of pediatric diarrhea. Methods. A search for relevant RCTs was performed from which a systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted. This meta-analysis was registered at INPLASY (reference number ID: INPLASY202180105). Results. (1) Eleven trials involving 1126 patients were included in the meta-analysis. (2) Two trials recorded the adverse events. (3) The meta-analysis showed that compared with the control group, the experimental group has a significantly shorter duration of diarrhea in children (MD = −18.64, 95% CI (−23.76, −13.52), P < 0.00001 ), duration of fever (MD = −19.43, 95% CI (−25.76, −13.11), P < 0.00001 ), duration of vomiting [MD = −22.51, 95% CI (−29.92, −15.09), P < 0.00001 ], duration of correcting dehydration (MD = −23.35, 95% CI (−35.48, −11.22), P = 0.0002 ), and the effective rate (OR = 4.64, 95% CI (3.12, 6.90), P < 0.00001 ). Conclusion. There were significant differences in the clinical efficacy in the treatment of pediatric diarrhea between the experimental and control groups. Thus, Gegen Qinlian decoction may have certain advantages in the treatment of pediatric diarrhea. In addition, we conclude the following: (1) the application of Gegen Qinlian decoction to treat this disease is recommended for >5 days. (2) We recommend conducting multicenter RCTs to avoid the impact of regional differences on the results. (3) We recommend using the unmodified Gegen Qinlian decoction, which may have better efficacy.

To investigate whether nano-CaCO3 occupational exposure could induce adverse health effects in workers.A cross-sectional study was conducted in a nano-CaCO3 manufacturing plant in China. Then we have studied the dynamic distribution of nano-CaCO3 in nude mice and examined the oxidative damage biomarkers of sub-chronic administrated nano-CaCO3 on Sprague-Dawley rats.The FVC (%) and FEV1.0 (%) of workers were significantly decreased than unexposed individuals. Dynamic imaging in mice of fluorescence labeled nano-CaCO3 showed relatively high uptake and slow washout in lung. Similar to population data, the decline in serum GSH level and elevation in serum MDA were observed in nano-CaCO3 infected Sprague-Dawley rats.We found that nano-CaCO3 exposure may result in the poor pulmonary function in workers and lead to the changes of oxidative stress indexes.

Excessive accumulation of copper could decrease growth and quality of crops, and little information was currently available on the role of exopolysaccharides (EPS) from Lactobacillus plantarum in inducing copper stress resistance in plants. The main objective of this work was to purify and characterize the EPS produced by our isolated L. plantarum LPC-1, and evaluate its potential protection for rice against copper stress. Firstly, two fractions (EPS-1 and EPS-2) were separated and purified from L. plantarum LPC-1 by DEAE-52 cellulose and Sephadex G-100 cellulose column chromatography. According to the further scanning electron microscope (SEM), ultraviolet–visible (UV), fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectroscopy and gas chromatography (GC) analyses, it was observed that EPS-1 and EPS-2 were heteropolysaccharides that were composed of mannose and glucose with molar ratio of 2.40:15.01 and 3.02:11.63, respectively. Additionally, the two fractions possessed considerable antioxidant activities, and EPS-1 had a stronger antioxidant activity than EPS-2 in vitro. Furthermore, exogenous addition of EPS significantly alleviated the toxic effects by copper on rice seedlings. In conclusion, this study provided evidence of the EPS-mediated reduction of copper toxicity in rice seedlings at physiological and biochemical levels, suggesting that EPS could be considered as novel and effective plant immune inducers in crops.

In recent years, diesel engine is developing rapidly in the direction of high power and super long stroke, which requires higher strength of its key moving parts. Connecting rod is one of the key moving parts of diesel engine which is subjected to complex alternating load during the working process. This loading condition has a great influence on its structural strength and reliability. In the proposed study, the strength and fatigue of a low-speed diesel engine con-rod made of 42CrMoA are analyzed. The 3-D model of the con-rod assembly built in the proposed study. The stress distribution and deformation of the con-rod assembly under the maximum explosive pressure are presented and studied. In the present paper, fatigue safety factor of all parts of con-rod assembly under the maximum explosive pressure condition is checked. According to the results carried out from the proposed work, the corresponding alternating stress is 340MPa, while the fatigue limit of 42CrMo material is above 430-540MPa, which means that the con-rod parts work under the alternating stress far below the fatigue limit. The kirasushvili method is adopted in the present paper as the standard of safety factor evaluation of con-rod. According to the allowable safety factor table of kirasushvili method, the minimum safety factor of the big and small ends of the con-rod and rod body can meet the requirements without fatigue damage.

AIM This study aimed to investigate the influence of single-nucleotide polymorphism in exon 26 (C3435T) of multidrug resistance 1 (MDR1) transporter gene on the concentration of methotrexate (MTX) in Chinese childhood patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) receiving intravenous (IV) and intrathecal (IT) high-dose methotrexate (HDMTX) chemotherapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS MDR1 C3435T polymorphism was investigated in 60 patients with Chinese childhood ALL. The study also compared the MDR1; polymorphism between the patients with Chinese childhood ALL and the published data on Americans, Mexicans, Caucasians, and Thais. The C3435T polymorphism was identified using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and direct sequence analysis. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma concentrations of MTX were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). MTX concentrations were compared according to MDR1 C3435T genotypes. RESULTS The frequencies of MDR1 C3435T genotype in male and female patients with Chinese childhood ALL were significantly different (p = 0.001). For the frequencies of MDR1 C3435T genotype in Hui and Han patients with Chinese childhood ALL there was no difference (p = 0.188). The distribution of allele frequencies in patients with Chinese childhood ALL was similar to the published data on Americans, Mexican, Caucasians, and Thais (p > 0.05). The CSF concentrations of MTX were found to be significantly different between the C allele (CC + CT) carriers and TT homozygous group (p = 0.04). The plasma concentrations of MTX had no significant difference between the C allele (CC + CT) carriers and TT homozygous group (p > 0.1). CONCLUSION This study showed that the polymorphism of MDR1 C3435T influenced the CSF concentration of MTX in patients with Chinese childhood ALL receiving IV and IT HDMTX treatment.

To investigate whether high body mass index (BMI) had adverse effects on the postoperative outcomes for patients who underwent anterior or posterior cervical fusion procedures. A literature search were conducted in PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science. Comparative or controlled studies that examined the influences of high BMI on postoperative outcomes after cervical fusion procedures were included. Using a fixed‐effect model or random‐effect model, the effects of high BMI were determined by weight mean difference (WMD) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) or risk ratio (RR) with 95% CI. A total of seven studies were included in this meta‐analysis. The pooled estimate showed that high BMI was associated with longer hospital stay (WMD = 1.61 days, 95% CI: 0.51, 2.71; P = 0.004), longer surgical time (WMD = 4.55, 95% CI: 1.04, 8.07; P = 0.011), higher mortality rate (RR = 3.01, 95% CI: 2.75, 3.29; P

To explore the pollution characteristics, potential sources, and ecological and health risk of organophosphate eaters (OPEs) in the surface water of Taihu Lake, water samples from 18 surrounding rivers were collected, as well as 11 water samples from Taihu Lake. The concentrations of 13 OPEs in the water were determined using UPLC-MS/MS, and the spatial distribution of the OPEs in surface water of Taihu Lake basin was further analyzed. The results indicate that, in addition to tripropyl phosphate (TPrP), 2-ethylhexyl diphenyl phosphate (EHDPP), and tricresyl phosphate (TCrP), ten OPEs were detected in all the water samples, the total concentration (ΣOPEs) ranged from 152.5 ng·L

Aims To provide evidence for the clinically rational administration of bupropion (BUP), the effects of high-fat diet and CYP2B6 mutants on BUP and hydroxybupropion (HBUP) among 44 healthy Chinese subjects. Methods The concentrations of BUP and HBUP in plasma were determined with a high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) analysis. Genotypes were ascertained after amplified by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Results The maximum plasma concentration (Cmax) and time to Cmax (tmax) of BUP as well as the concentration–time curve (AUC(0→96)) and Cmax of HBUP all increased by 1.18-, 1.41-, 1.38-, and 1.33-fold in the feeding group relative to the fasting group, respectively. Interestingly, the Cmax and terminal half-life (t1/2) of BUP increased by 1.33- and 1.39-fold among those subjects carrying the CYP2B6*1/*1 genotype in the feeding group relative to those in the fasting group. Similarly, the apparent volume of distribution (Vd) and clearance (CL) of HBUP increased by 1.38- and 1.59-fold, respectively, while the Cmax and AUC(0→96) of HBUP decreased by 1.44- and 1.49-fold among those subjects carrying the CYP2B6*1/*1 genotype in the feeding group relative to those in the fasting group. Concliusion These data suggest that high-fat diet and CYP2B6 mutants can influence the pharmacokinetic parameters of BUP and HBUP, thereby offering clear evidence for the rational administration of BUP among Chinese subjects in clinical settings.

Background: Many studies have been performed to explore the combined effects of glutathione-S-transferase M1 (GSTM1) present/null and cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1) MspI polymorphisms with lung cancer (LC) risk, but the results are contradictory. Two previous meta-analyses have been reported on the issue in 2011 and 2014. However, several new articles since then have been published. In addition, their meta-analyses did not valuate the credibility of significantly positive results. Objectives: We performed an updated meta-analysis to solve the controversy following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Methods: False-positive report probability (FPRP), Bayesian false discovery probability (BFDP), and the Venice criteria were used to verify the credibility of meta-analyses. Results: Twenty-three publications including 5734 LC cases and 7066 controls met the inclusion criteria in the present study. A significantly increased risk of LC was found in overall analysis, Asians and Indians. However, all positive results were considered as ‘less-credible’ when we used the Venice criteria, FPRP, and BFDP test to assess the credibility of the positive results. Conclusion: These positive findings should be interpreted with caution and results indicate that significant associations may be less-credible, there are no significantly increased LC risk between the combined effects of GSTM1 present/null and CYP1A1 MspI polymorphisms.

This study aimed to investigate the influence of single-nucleotide polymorphism in exon 26 (C3435T) of multidrug resistance 1 (The frequencies ofThis study showed that the polymorphism of

Objective To compare and rank the efficacy and acceptability of new antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) for patients with focal drug-resistant epilepsy. Methods PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane databases and Clinicaltrials.gov were systematically searched from their inception through January 1, 2020, to identify trials evaluating AEDs for focal drug-resistant epilepsy. We included randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) comparing new AEDs with placebo or with other AEDs as adjunctive therapy for focal drug-resistant epilepsy. A Bayesian network meta-analysis was performed to determine efficacy and acceptability, as reflected by odds ratios (ORs), 95 % credible intervals (CrIs) with random-effects and consistent models. Results Sixty-two RCTs were included, involving 12,739 patients with focal drug-resistant epilepsy. Regarding the seizure-free rate (40 RCTs involving 9,136 patients), 8 AEDs were more efficacious than placebo, with lnORs ranging between 1.69 for brivaracetam (95 % CrI, 0.56–2.81) and 0.72 for pregabalin (95 % CrI, 0.12–1.32). Regarding the responder rate, all AEDs except oxcarbazepine were more efficacious than placebo, with lnORs ranging between 1.31 for levetiracetam (95 % CrI, 0.92–1.71) and 0.66 for carisbamate (95 % CrI, 0.17–1.14). Regarding acceptability (60 RCTs comprising 12,139 patients), 9 AEDs were inferior to placebo. Estimated from seizure-free rate, brivaracetam was ranked as the most efficacious AED based on cumulative probability plots and SUCRAs, with fatigue as the main adverse event. Conclusion The results indicate that, based on seizure-free rate and all-cause discontinuation rate, brivaracetam is the most efficacious and acceptable AED, with mild adverse events and acknowledgement of potential publication bias.

Molybdenite and talc were selected as research object in paper and crystal structure, interaction between H2O molecule and minerals surfaces, surface wettability, flotation behavior were studied by density functional theory method and flotation experiments. The results showed that molybdenite and talc were layered minerals which exhibited similar surface wettability. H2O molecule had hardly effect with molybdenite or talc and H2O molecule prefers to stay with water rather than the minerals surfaces. The reason why talc interferes with the flotation molybdenite has been revealed. The flotation results showed that good floatability of talc was the key factor causing a low grade of concentrate in alkaline solution. Thus, it is the key factor to enlarge floatability difference between molybdenite and talc.

Thirty-five previous meta-analyses have been reported on the individual glutathione S-transferase M1 (GSTM1) present/null, glutathione S-transferase T1 (GSTT1) present/null, and glutathione S-transferase P1 (GSTP1) IIe105Val polymorphisms with lung cancer (LC) risk. However, they did not appraise the credibility and explore the combined effects between the 3 genes and LC risk. We performed a meta-analysis and re-analysis of systematic previous meta-analyses to solve the above problems. Meta-analyses of Observational Studies in Epidemiology guidelines were used. Moreover, we employed false-positive report probability (FPRP), Bayesian false discovery probability (BFDP), and the Venice criteria to verify the credibility of current and previous meta-analyses. Significantly increased LC risk was considered as “highly credible” or “positive” for GSTM1 null genotype in Japanese (odds ratio (OR) = 1.30, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.17–1.44, I2 = 0.0%, statistical power = 0.997, FPRP = 0.008, BFDP = 0.037, and Venice criteria: AAB), for GSTT1 null genotype in Asians (OR = 1.23, 95% CI = 1.12–1.36, I2 = 49.1%, statistical power = 1.000, FPRP = 0.051, BFDP = 0.771, and Venice criteria: ABB), especially Chinese populations (OR = 1.31, 95% CI = 1.16–1.49, I2 = 48.9%, Statistical power = 0.980, FPRP = 0.039, BFDP = 0.673, and Venice criteria: ABB), and for GSTP1 IIe105Val polymorphism in Asians (Val vs IIe: OR = 1.28, 95% CI = 1.17–1.42, I2 = 30.3%, statistical power = 0.999, FPRP = 0.003, BFDP = 0.183, and Venice criteria: ABB). Significantly increased lung adenocarcinoma (AC) risk was also considered as “highly credible” or “positive” in Asians for the GSTM1 (OR = 1.35, 95% CI = 1.22–1.48, I2 = 25.5%, statistical power = 0.988, FPRP

The aggregation behavior of cyclic rod-coil (RC) diblock copolymers in dilute solutions is investigated through dissipative particle dynamics simulation. By varying the rod length and coil length, cyclic RC copolymers in selective solvents exhibit various morphologies, including spherical micelle, vesicle, bilayer disc, and ribbon bundle structure. Compared with the equivalent linear RC copolymer, only spherical micelle and barrel bundle phase are observed. Rod length is the major factor that controls the liquid-crystalline behavior of RC copolymer systems, while the coil length has a secondary effect on the aggregate morphology. The size of rod bundle varies with the coil length, especially for the end-toend ribbon bundle and side-by-side barrel bundle, which are assembled by cyclic and linear RC copolymer solutions. This finding indicates that the ribbon bundle or nanofiber-like structure in cyclic RC copolymers can be obtained by controlling the rod length and coil length, and thus the optical and electrical properties of RC copolymer would be further controlled and optimized. Results illustrate that cyclization of a linear RC copolymer induces remarkable differences in the rod arrangement and aggregation behavior, thereby indicating the competition between interfacial energy, rod orientational entropy, coil stretching entropy, and packing constraints.

The present study aimed to detect miR‑29a expression in the plasma of patients with lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) and to investigate the clinical significance. A total of 30 patients with LSS, 27 patients with lumbar intervertebral disc herniation (LDH), 27 healthy people and 7 patients that had succumbed to mortality were involved in the present study for specimen collection. Expression levels of miR‑29a in plasma and intervertebral disc tissue were detected by reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. Plasma expression levels of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) and a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 5 (ADAMTS5) were detected ELISA. The expression levels of MMP9 and ADAMTS5 protein were detected by western blotting. Pearson correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlations between the expression levels of microRNA (miR)‑29a, MMP9 and ADAMTS5. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to analyze the possibility of the use of miR‑29a as a biomarker of LSS. The expression levels of miR‑29a in plasma and intervertebral disc tissue of patients with LSS were significantly lower in patients with LSS compared with in patients with LDH, as well as healthy controls. Conversely, the protein expression levels of MMP9 and ADAMTS5 were significantly higher in patients with LSS compared with patients with LDH, as well as healthy controls. The expression levels of miR‑29a was negatively correlated with the expression levels of MMP9 and ADAMTS5. In addition, miR‑29a demonstrated low temperature sensitivity and high freeze‑thaw stability, and may be used to accurately diagnose LSS. Therefore, miR‑29a may be considered to be a potential biomarker of LSS.

The present paper focused on both turbulent flow and laminar flow at low Reynolds number in a curved duct. The finite volume method on unstructured grid and SIMPLEC algorithm were adopted here and the computation program was design with these methods. Good agreement was achieved between the numerical result and experimental data in the literature, and it shows that the method is reasonable and the program works well. The numerical method was also used to flow simulation with different attack angle and side angle, and numerical results were consistent with conclusion in the literature. Finally, the numerical method used for cases with different Reynolds number at the inlet. Secondary flow phenomena have been researched in the curved duct and some conclusions were derived.

In order to visualize pronunciation teaching and explore the law of articulation evolution in TCFL (Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language), we proposed an approach to design a physiology Mandarin speech corpus for the international preparatory students in China. Preparatory students are usually beginners to learn Mandarin, so they are selected as testers to gain the most real law of Mandarin articulation evolution. The corpus was different from an ordinary speech corpus. It consisted of not only text information (such as age, gender, nationality, mother language, Mandarin learning experience, etc.) and audio information, but also the physiological data (such as speech organs’ moving morphology). When the corpus was constructed, data were gathered by a supersonic collecting system because of its safety and low cost. In the initial experiment, 21 initial consonants, 36 simple or compound vowels and tones were tested. The results showed the corpus was significant in Mandarin teaching.

In this work, both steady and unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) simulations have been used via FLUENT software to calculate the induced 3-D hydrodynamic forces and moments of marine propeller. Marine propeller is excited by variation of hydrodynamic loading due to its operation in non-uniform wake field. The induced hydrodynamic forces and moments are calculated for single blade and for all blades at low Reynolds number under two operating conditions. The first one, uniform inflow is considered at the inlet. The second one, non-uniform inflow is considered at the inlet (under the wake effect of the ship) to represent the propeller-ship interaction. Unsteady results show that, due to non-uniform inflow every single blade is suffering from periodic forces and moments with fluctuation amplitude and harmonies higher than that applied on the propeller shaft but with lower frequency. The moments in vertical and transversal directionsMyandMzare higher than the axial momentMx. This study shows that, using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) to solve RANS equation is a reliable tool for calculating the hydrodynamic characteristics and estimating the excited hydrodynamic forces due to propeller-ship interaction.

In general, marine propellers have complicated geometries and as a consequence complicated flow around propeller. The aim of this work is to find an appropriate method and assess the turbulence model to approach the open water hydrodynamic characteristics of the marine propellers. In this work, a numerical modeling using a finite volume commercial code (FVM) for different turbulence models has been applied on the well known conventional screw propeller DTRC P4119. The 3-D solid model of P4119 is established using pro/E software and for the mesh generation ANSYS-ICEM has been used. Steady Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) simulations are accomplished using FLUENT software with unstructured mesh in the rotating computational domain and structured mesh for the rest of the domain. The open water performance coefficients, thrust (KT), torque (KQ) and efficiency (η) have been calculated and compared with available experimental data to assess the applicability of different turbulence models for the open water study of propeller. This paper shows that, the accuracy of the CFD based on RANS equations is dependent on the used turbulence model and the RNG K-epsilon turbulence model yields to provide the most accurate results. Also, all the turbulence models via FLUENT software behave the same behavior for the total span of the advance coefficient (J) with two types of result accuracy. All the turbulence models shows high accuracy at low advance coefficient and this accuracy decreases but with an acceptable error till it decreases suddenly at the maximum advance coefficient.

In this paper, technology implementation, resource construction, content design and features of the network teaching platform of medical microbiology in this university are introduced and the prospects of teaching platform based on the campus network are looked ahead to. This teaching platform is an auxiliary way of classroom teaching with high operability and feasibility, playing an significant role in discipline construction. It is an important auxiliary as well as a supplementary of traditional teaching.

Grasping the transmission of side thrust of piston is one of the effective methods to control engine vibration and noise. The paper uses time-domain FEM to study engine vibration. Firstly the finite element model is established after simplifications and modal analysis is conducted. Then the side thrust of piston is calculated and applied to cylinder liner using equivalent nodal load. The surface vibration is gained, from which it can be concluded that the displacements of upper block and top cylinder head reflect changes in cylinder pressure, while the vibration of observation window is complex. Finally, the vibration in a variety of engine working conditions is analyzed. Under load characteristics, the amplitude of engine surface vibration changes with loading; under propulsion characteristics, the surface vibration is essentially the same.

Sterol methyltransferase 1 (STE1) catalyzes ∆7 sterol C-5 desaturation in the conversion of 24-methylenecholesterol to campestral in brassinosteroid (BR) biosynthesis, and STE1 has been proven to influence plant architecture by controlling the BR levels in Arabidopsis. In the present study, TaSTE (wheat), the ortholog of AtSTE1 (Arabidopsis), was cloned and mapped to wheat chromosome homologous group 3 in the interval between simple sequence repeats (SSRs) markers CWM48.1 and WMC532, with genetic distances of 17.7 and 7.6 cM, respectively. Both linkage and association analyses revealed that TaSTE-A1 was significantly associated with plant height in bread wheat. In silico expression results showed similar expression patterns among TaSTE, HvSTE1 (barley), OsSTE1 (also known as OsDWF7 in rice), and AtSTE1, suggesting that these orthologs might share common functions among wheat, barley, rice, and Arabidopsis. The haplotype frequencies in wild species, landraces, and modern cultivars indicated that haplotype II (Hap II) was associated with reduced plant height and positively selected during modern breeding improvement. One pair of complementary allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) markers can distinguish haplotype I (Hap I) and Hap II and could be developed to assist selection in wheat architecture breeding.

To investigate the efficacy of the compound preparation named KZY-2 which include the effective group formula of anemarrhena asphodeloides bunge and rhizoma coptidis on the fluconazole and ifraconazo resistant strains of Candida albicans respectively in vitro. The fluconazole and ifraconazo resistant strains of Candida albicans were sieved by drug sensitive scrip test and the diameter of inhibition zone was measured adopting the method of agar plate diffusion, reference to the M27-A recommended by the United States National Laboratory Standards Committee (NCCLS), the minimal inhibitive concentration(MIC,mg/m1) of KZY-2 against the the standard strain(ATCC32354) and the fluconazole and ifraconazo resistant strains of candida albicans was measured respectively. Results showed that the 12 fluconazole and ifraconazo resistant strains which named RC1 to RC12 were sieved from the 20 strains Candida albicans isolated from clinic, the diameters of inhibited zone of KZY-2 against ATCC32354 was 32mm and against RC1～RC12 was between 12mm and 28mm, the MIC of KZY-2 against ATCC32354 was 312.5μg/m1 and against RC1～RC12 was between 625μg /m1 and 5000μg /m1. These results indicate that KZY-2 has good antifungi efficacy on the standard strain and the fluconazole and ifraconazo resistant strains of Candida albicans in vitro.

Aristoyunnolin H is a novel aristophyllene sesquiterpenoid isolated from the traditional Chinese medicine Aristolochia yunnanensis Franch. The present research was designed to explore the anti-fibrotic effects of aristoyunnolin H in adult rat cardiac fibroblasts (CFs) stimulated with angiotensin II (Ang II). Western blot analysis data showed that aristoyunnolin H reduced the upregulation of fibronectin (FN), connective tissue growth factor and collagen I(Col I) production induced by Ang II in CFs. By studying the dynamic intracellular changes of Ca2+, we further found that while aristoyunnolin H relieved the calcium influx, it has no effect on intracellular calcium store release. Meanwhile, aristoyunnolin H also inhibited the Ang II-stimulated phosphorylation of Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II. In conclusion, aristoyunnolin H may attenuate extracellular matrix secretion in vitro by inhibiting Ang II-induced calcium signaling.

Background: 1-[4-[2-(4-Bromobenzene-sulfonamino)ethyl]phenylsulfonyl]-3-(trans-4-methylcyclohexyl)urea (I 4 , CAS 865483-06-3), a totally synthetic new sulfonylurea compound, incorporating part of the hypoglycemic structure of glimepiride (CAS 93479-97-1) and having anti-TXA 2 receptor properties, was designed and synthesized. Its hypoglycemic property had not been reported yet. Aim: To study the hypoglycemic effects of I 4 and its primary mechanisms of action. Methods: A rat model of type 2 diabetes was established by intraperitoneal injection of small doses of streptozotocin combined with high calorie feeding. Normal fasted mice and type 2 diabetic rats were used to assay the hypoglycemic actions of I 4 . Blood glucose and immunoreactive insulin concentrations were measured and the effects of I 4 on insulin release from rat isolated pancreatic islets were examined. A liver cell line, Hep G2, was used to examine effects on glucose consumption, glycogen synthesis and glucokinase activity. Results: Oral administration of I 4 (1-10 mg/kg) produced a marked, dose-dependent reduction in blood glucose in normal mice and type 2 diabetic rats and improved oral glucose tolerance. Plasma insulin concentrations were increased, and I 4 increased insulin release from rat isolated pancreatic islets and from the isolated perfused rat pancreas. I 4 (1-100 μmol · L -1 ) also produced an insulin-independent increase in glucose consumption by Hep G2 cells, increased glycogen synthesis and glucokinase activity of these cells. Glimepiride produced similar effects on glucose consumption and glycogen synthesis but did not facilitate glucokinase activity of Hep G2 cells. Conclusion: I 4 markedly improved glucose metabolism in normal animals and type 2 diabetic rats, probably by increasing insulin secretion and stimulating hepatic glucose uptake and glycogen synthesis.

A Cartesian grid based on Immersed Boundary Method (IBM), proposed by the present authors, is extended to unstructured grids. The advantages of IBM and Body Fitted Grid (BFG) are taken to enhance the computation efficiency of the fluid structure interaction in a complex domain. There are many methods to generate the BFG, among which the unstructured grid method is the most popular. The concept of Volume Of Solid (VOS) is used to deal with the multi rigid body and fluid interaction. Each body surface is represented by a set of points which can be traced in an anti-clockwise order with the solid area on the left side of surface. An efficient Lagrange point tracking algorithm on the fixed grid is applied to search the moving boundary grid points. This method is verified by low Reynolds number flows in the range from Re = 100 to 1 000 in the cavity with a moving lid. The results are in a good agreement with experimental data in literature. Finally, the flow past two moving cylinders is simulated to test the capability of the method.

The most potential method of selective catalytic reduction (SCR) to remove NOx from diesel engine emissions is very effective in NOx reduction with an efficiency up to 95%. However, the current SCRs have a limitation on operation temperature and a narrow operation temperature window. In this paper, the V-W based catalysts were used in the investigation to improve the low temperature performance of NOx conversion by doping Cu and Mn into V-W based catalyst. The temperature range studied was between 150 °C and 550 °C with an interval of 50 °C. The honeycomb catalysts were prepared by an impregnation method. The study also included characterization of catalysts by BET, XRD, TPD and XPS methods.It is found that NOx conversion performance of the V-W based catalyst increases with the increase of reaction temperature. After the metal Cu or Mn doped into the catalyst, it offers an improvement in the catalytic performance. Among all the catalysts studied, the mixed metal catalyst of Cu-Mn-V-W catalyst is found the most potential one, not only because of its higher NOx conversion rate at a low temperature, but also because of its wider operation temperature window.

The analysis of underwater structure vibration and noise control has been paid more attention now. The problem about propeller exciting force transfers from shafting, the bearing supporting to structure, causing structure radiated noise is less studied. It is necessary to study the characteristic of coupled system for solving such problem. In this paper, the characteristic of shafting and underwater structure coupled system vibration power flow is analyzed by numerical method and experimental method. The finite element method was adopted to build the analysis model. The force transfer ratio at each bearing supporting are calculated. The transfer function from propeller force to structure response are studied. The vibration characteristics of coupled system are got by numerical method and experimental method. The results show that the coupling vibration effect of shafting and shell are significantly especially at low frequency. The whole coupled system can be excited by propeller force. Some methods should be proposed to reduce this kind of vibration.

This paper presents an improved unstructured grid immersed boundary method. The advantages of both immersed boundary method and body fitted grids which are generated by unstructured grid technology are used to enhance the computation efficiency of fluid structure interaction in complex domain. The Navier-Stokes equation was discretized spacially with collocated finite volume method and Euler implicit method in time domain. The rigid body motion was simulated by immersed boundary method in which the fluid and rigid body interface interaction was dealt with VOS (volume of solid) method. A new VOS calculation method based on graph was presented in which both immersed boundary points and cross points were collected in arbitrary order to form a graph. The method is verified with flow past oscillating cylinder.

We report the first self-Q-switched Yb-doped GdYSiO5 (Yb:GYSO) laser operating at 1080 nm. Stable Q-switched pulses with a repetition rate of 18.1 kHz and pulse duration of are obtained. A maximum average output power of 452.6 mW is achieved with a 1% transmission output coupler. With a 3% transmission output coupler, the shortest pulse width of is obtained. It demonstrates that Yb:GYSO crystal can be simultaneously employed as a saturable absorber and a gain medium to generate microsecond Q-switched pulses in the near infrared region.

We demonstrated the noise-like pulse (NLP) generation in an ytterbium-doped fiber (YDF) laser with tungsten disulphide (WS2). Stable fundamental mode locking and second-order harmonic mode locking were observed. The saturable absorber (SA) was a WS2-polyvinyl alcohol film. The modulation depth of the WS2 film was 2.4%, and the saturable optical intensity was 155 MW cm−2. Based on this SA, the fundamental NLP with a pulse width of 20 ns and repetition rate of 7 MHz were observed. The autocorrelation trace of output pulses had a coherent spike, which came from NLP. The average pulse width of the spike was 550 fs on the top of a broad pedestal. The second-order harmonic NLP had a spectral bandwidth of 1.3 nm and pulse width of 10 ns. With the pump power of 400 mW, the maximum output power was 22.2 mW. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time a noise-like mode locking in an YDF laser based on WS2-SA in an all normal dispersion regime was obtained.