Background:
Cardiovascular disorders pose great threat to public health. As a common type of cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis is characterized by high morbidity and mortality/recurrence rate. ...However, the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis is complex and not fully understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the influences of hsa_circRNA_102541 (circ_102541) on proliferation and apoptosis of HUVEC cells and to identify the underlying mechanisms.
Methods:
RT-PCR was used to determine the expression levels of circ_102541, miR-296-5p, and PLK1 in atherosclerosis and healthy blood samples. Following the transfection with sh-circ_102541, LV-circ_102541, miR-296-5p mimics, miR-296-5p inhibitors, and si-PLK1, cell proliferation was evaluated using CCK8 assay; cell apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry; dual luciferase assay was performed to examine the interaction between abovementioned molecules. The levels of associated markers including PCNA and caspase-3 were assessed by western blotting and RT-qPCR.
Results:
The expression of circRNA_102541 and PLK1 were significantly elevated in atherosclerosis specimens, where the level of miR-296-5p was reduced. Furthermore, circRNA_102541 could bind miR-296-5p and subsequently target PLK1. Following treatment with sh-circRNA_102541 or miR-296-5p mimics, proliferative ability and levels of PCNA were remarkably reduced in HUVEC cells, while apoptosis was significantly enhanced. Co-transfection with miR-296-5p mimics abrogated the effects induced by the overexpressed circ_102541. Additionally, treatment with si-PLK1 attenuated the biological behavior changes caused by miR-296-5p inhibitors in HUVEC cells. Moreover, transfection with LV-PLK1 reversed the effects triggered by miR-296-5p mimics.
Conclusion:
Taken together, circRNA_102541 was upregulated in atherosclerosis, and knockdown of circRNA_102541 suppressed cell proliferation while promoted apoptosis of HUVEC cells via miR-296-5p/PLK1. This novel pathway may serve essential roles on the development of atherosclerosis, and circRNA_102541 could be a promising therapeutic candidate for the treatment of atherosclerosis.
The formation of keloid scars is normally induced by cutaneous injuries, however, the detailed mechanisms underlying keloid formation remain largely unknown. The present study aimed to investigate ...the effects of circular RNA_101238 (circ_101238) on the proliferation and apoptosis of keloid fibroblasts and to identify the underlying molecular mechanisms of these effects. Reverse transcription-quantitative (RT-q)PCR was performed to determine the expression levels of circ_101238, microRNA (miRNA/miR)-138-5p and cyclin-dependent kinase 6 (CDK6) in keloids and normal skin tissues. Following transfection with short hairpin (sh)-circ_101238, LV-circ_101238, miR-138-5p mimics, miR-138-5p inhibitors and small interfering (si)-CDK6, cell proliferation was assessed using a cell counting kit-8 assay. Furthermore, cell apoptosis was evaluated via flow cytometric analysis, while a dual-luciferase assay was performed to confirm interactions between circ_101238, miR-138-5p and CDK6. The expression levels of the proliferation marker, CDK6 and apoptosis marker, caspase-3 were determined via RT-qPCR and western blot analyses. The results demonstrated that expression levels of circ_101238 and CDK6 were significantly increased in keloid samples, while miR-138-5p expression was reduced in comparison to normal skin. Furthermore, circ_101238 was demonstrated to bind miR-138-5p, which subsequently targeted CDK6. Proliferative activity and CDK6 expression were significantly decreased in keloid fibroblasts following transfection with sh-circ_101238 or miR-138-5p mimics, while cell apoptosis was markedly increased. Furthermore, co-transfection with miR-138-5p mimics reversed the effects caused by overexpression of circ_101238. Treatment of keloid fibroblasts with si-CDK6 counteracted the biological behavior changes induced by miR-138-5p inhibitors. Additionally, transfection with LV-CDK6 reversed the effects caused by miR-138-5p mimics. Taken together, the results of the present study demonstrated that circ_101238 was upregulated in keloid tissues in comparison with normal tissues and that circ_101238 knockdown inhibited cell proliferation, while promoting apoptosis of keloid fibroblasts via the miR-138-5p/CDK6 axis. These results suggest that circ_101238 may serve as a promising therapeutic candidate for keloid therapy and that circ_101238/miR-138-5p/CDK6 signaling has the potential to regulate the growth of keloid fibroblasts.
The insufficient tightening due to workmanship and bolt loosen during the life cycle of spatial structures are common safety hazards in the installation process and the use stage of spatial ...structures. To tackle these problems, in this paper, a new type of bolt-ball joint with octagonal high-strength bolt is developed for conventional spatial structures. For this new type of node, the force was transmitted through the contact between the high-strength bolt and the inner wall of the octagonal sleeve, and the bolt is screwed into the bolt ball to avoid the shear forces on the pins. After installation, by checking whether the tail of the pin is flush with the outer surface of the sleeve, it will be easy to judge whether the high-strength bolt is properly tightened. To investigate the behavior of this new type of nodes, an experimental study on the tensile performance of octagonal high-strength bolts was performed. It is found that, the tensile strength of the octagonal high-strength bolts for this new type meets the requirements of the Chinese specification. Further detailed experimental studies and numerical simulations were carried out to investigate other nodes, namely steel-pipe, cone head/sealing plate nodes. The results show that the stress distribution and dimensions of the whole joints and the bearing capacity of the cone head are similar between the two nodes. The compressive test of the proposed new type of sleeve is also carried out, and the results show that the failure load is more than 3 times the required design value. Finally, the torsion bearing capacity test of this new type of node is carried out. The results show that the torsional bearing capacity of the new nodes during installation is much greater than that of the traditional ones.
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•A new type of joint system for space structure is first time invented•Load resisting mechanisms of this new joint was assessed via experimental studies•An analytical model was proposed to predict the load resistance of the new joint.•The behavior this new joint was assessed through the experimental test and numerical analysis
The infusion color and taste serve as pivotal benchmarks reflecting the quality of tea, yet the specific compounds responsible for the distinctive color and taste of the NanLuShuiXian (NLSX) tea ...infusion remain unknown. In this study, colorimetry, spectroscopy, and quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA) were employed to quantify the color and taste of 10 NLSX tea infusions. Furthermore, metabolomics techniques combined with correlation analysis were used to identify the key color and taste compounds and explore the relationship among color, taste, and compounds in NLSX tea infusion. The results showed that a total of 78 compounds were identified. It was observed that both the color and taste features of NLSX tea infusion and its metabolites exhibited certain patterns of variation. Within a certain range, heightened concentrations of carthamidin diglucoside isomer 2, theanine, and quercetin 3-O-caffeyl-glucoside within NLSX correlate inversely with the levels of 4′-methyl-epigallocatechin (4′-methyl-EGC), ellagic acid, quercetin, camellikaempferoside C isomer 1, and chicoric acid. This competitive relationship among metabolites corresponded to a lighter infusion color and a fresher and sweeter taste. Conversely, decreased carthamidin diglucoside isomer 2, theanine, and quercetin 3-O-caffeyl-glucoside in NLSX will lead to a deeper infusion color and diminish taste quality.
•Ten key compounds affect the color of NanLuShuiXian tea infusion.•Theanine affects the color of tea infusion by affecting polyphenol levels.•Eight compounds dominate the color and taste of NanLuShuiXian tea infusion.•There is a correlation between the color and taste of NanLuShuiXian tea infusion.
GEA-1 and its successor GEA-2 are two stream ciphers, designed to protect against eavesdropping General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) between the phone and the base station. They were widely used for ...GPRS encryption in the late 1990s and during the 2000s, and are surprisingly still supported in a range of current mobile phones. In this paper, new key recovery attacks on GEA-1 and GEA-2 are proposed by combining with the time-memory trade-off technique. The new attacks significantly reduce the time and memory costs of the previous attacks on GEA-1, and show that GEA-1 only offers 32-bit (out of 64) security. Furthermore, the slide properties of GEA-1 and GEA-2 are first found and used to explore practical related key attacks. The results show that GEA-1 and GEA-2 can be broken on a common PC within about 0.81 and 6.2 seconds in the multiple related key setting, respectively. Finally, an improved variant of GEA-2 called GEA-2a is proposed. The reasons for making the changes from GEA-2 are explained in detail, which indicates that GEA-2a has significantly better resistance than GEA-2 against all known attacks and can offer 64-bit security.
•Developed an electrochemical accelerated corrosion device with water pressure exerted on the water side of segment.•Corrosion of segment reinforcement was discovered under low-oxygen ...environment.•Performance deterioration laws of segment were revealed under high water pressure.
This study investigated a high water pressure erosion mechanism and its influence on the mechanical performance deterioration of submarine shield tunnel concrete segments using a series of tests. First, a chloride ion pressure penetration test was conducted to reveal the impermeability performance and chloride ion permeability of the tunnel lining concrete. Then, given the environmental and mechanical characteristics of the lining segment structure of a submarine shield tunnel, a cofferdam-type electrochemically accelerated corrosion method was proposed to simulate the simultaneous application of unilateral water pressure and compression-bending loads on the segment. The effects of water pressure on the strain, deformation, crack propagation, and failure mode of the segment components were investigated. In addition, the damage caused by high water pressure on the segment components was explored using acoustic emission. This study lays the foundation for further research on the durability of shield tunnel structures under high water pressures.
The fresh leaves were processed into beauty tea from the Camellia sinensis “Jinxuan” cultivar, which were punctured by tea green leafhoppers to different extents. Low-puncturing dry tea (LPDT) ...exhibited a superior quality. Altogether, 101 and 129 differential metabolites, including tea polyphenols, lipids, and saccharides, were identified from the fresh leaves and dry beauty tea, respectively. Most metabolite levels increased in the fresh leaves punctured by leafhoppers, but the opposite was observed for the dry beauty tea. According to relative odor activity values (rOAVs) and partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), four characteristic volatiles, including linalool, geraniol, benzeneacetaldehyde, and dihydrolinalool, were selected. Mechanical injury to leaves caused by leafhoppers, watery saliva secreted by the leafhopper, and different water contents of the fresh leaves in different puncturing degrees are the possible reasons for the difference in the quality of the beauty tea with different levels of puncturing. Overall, this study identified a wide range of chemicals that are affected by the degrees of leafhopper puncturing.
The intelligent construction of non‐noble metal materials that exhibit reversible oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) with bifunctional electrocatalytic performance is ...greatly coveted in the realm of zinc‐air batteries (ZABs). Herein, a crafted structure‐amorphous MnO2 lamellae encapsulated covalent triazine polymer‐derived N, S, P co‐doped carbon sphere (A‐MnO2/NSPC) is designed using a self‐doped pyrolysis coupled with an in situ encapsulation strategy. The customized A‐MnO2/NSPC‐2 demonstrates a superior bifunctional electrocatalytic performance, confirmed by a small ΔE index of 0.64 V for ORR/OER. Experimental investigations, along with density functional theory calculations validate that predesigned amorphous MnO2 surface defects and abundant heteroatom catalytic active sites collectively enhance the oxygen electrocatalytic performance. Impressively, the A‐MnO2/NSPC‐based rechargeable liquid ZABs show a large open‐circuit potential of 1.54 V, an ultrahigh peak power density of 181 mW cm−2, an enormous capacity of 816 mAh g−1, and a remarkable stability for more than 1720 discharging/charging cycles. Additionally, the assembled flexible all‐solid‐state ZABs also demonstrate outstanding cycle stability, surpassing 140 discharging/charging cycles. Therefore, this highly operable synthetic strategy offers substantial understanding in the development of magnificent bifunctional electrocatalysts for various sustainable energy conversions and beyond.
An amorphous MnO2 lamellae encapsulated N, S, P co‐doped carbon sphere (A‐MnO2/NSPC) is fabricated through a self‐doping process coupled with in situ encapsulating strategy. Due to the predesigned amorphous MnO2 surface defects and the abundance of multi‐heteroatom catalytic active sites, the as‐developed A‐MnO2/NSPC can readily work as an oxygen reduction reaction/oxygen evolution reaction dual‐functional electrocatalyst for both liquid and solid rechargeable zinc‐air battery.
It is highly desirable to fabricate transition bimetallic alloy-embedded porous nanocarbons with a unique nanoarchitecture for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) ...in rechargeable zinc-air batteries. In this work, we introduce a template-assisted in situ alloying synthesis of FeNi alloy nanoparticle-decorated coral-like nanocarbons (FeNi-CNCs) as efficient OER/ORR dual-functional electrocatalysts. The present materials are produced through polycondensation of a covalent triazine framework (CTF), the coordination of Ni and Fe ions, and sequential pyrolytic treatment. Through the pyrolysis process, the nanolamellar FeNi-CTF precursors can be facilely converted into FeNi alloy nanoparticle-decorated nanocarbons. These nanocarbons possess a distinctive three-dimensional (3D) coral-like nanostructure, which is favorable for the transport of oxygen and the diffusion of electrolyte. As a result, FeNi-CNC-800 with the highest efficiency exhibited remarkable electrocatalytic performance and great durability. Additionally, it also can be assembled into rechargeable zinc-air batteries that can be assembled in both liquid and solid forms, offering a superior peak power density, large specific capacity, and outstanding reusability during charging/discharging cycles (e.g., 5160 charging-and-discharging cycles at 10 mA cm–2 for the liquid forms). These traits make it a highly promising option in the burgeoning field of wearable energy conversion.
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