Chiral tertiary alcohols are an important class of organic compounds which have found wide applications in both academia and industry. Therefore, various synthetic strategies towards these compounds ...have already been developed. Among them, the catalytic asymmetric addition of carbon nucleophiles to ketones is the most desirable route owing to its straightforwardness as well as its economic, efficient and versatile advantages. This review summarizes and discusses the recent achievements in this field classified according to the reaction types. Special attention is paid to the mechanisms, advantages and limitations of each reaction. In addition, the applications of these catalytic processes in the synthesis of related natural products, pharmaceuticals or their analogues are briefly discussed as well.
Recently, manifold learning has been widely exploited in pattern recognition, data analysis, and machine learning. This paper presents a novel framework, called Riemannian manifold learning (RML), ...based on the assumption that the input high-dimensional data lie on an intrinsically low-dimensional Riemannian manifold. The main idea is to formulate the dimensionality reduction problem as a classical problem in Riemannian geometry, that is, how to construct coordinate charts for a given Riemannian manifold? We implement the Riemannian normal coordinate chart, which has been the most widely used in Riemannian geometry, for a set of unorganized data points. First, two input parameters (the neighborhood size k and the intrinsic dimension d) are estimated based on an efficient simplicial reconstruction of the underlying manifold. Then, the normal coordinates are computed to map the input high-dimensional data into a low- dimensional space. Experiments on synthetic data, as well as real-world images, demonstrate that our algorithm can learn intrinsic geometric structures of the data, preserve radial geodesic distances, and yield regular embeddings.
Spatial stratified heterogeneity, referring to the within-strata variance less than the between strata-variance, is ubiquitous in ecological phenomena, such as ecological zones and many ecological ...variables. Spatial stratified heterogeneity reflects the essence of nature, implies potential distinct mechanisms by strata, suggests possible determinants of the observed process, allows the representativeness of observations of the earth, and enforces the applicability of statistical inferences. In this paper, we propose a q-statistic method to measure the degree of spatial stratified heterogeneity and to test its significance. The q value is within 0,1 (0 if a spatial stratification of heterogeneity is not significant, and 1 if there is a perfect spatial stratification of heterogeneity). The exact probability density function is derived. The q-statistic is illustrated by two examples, wherein we assess the spatial stratified heterogeneities of a hand map and the distribution of the annual NDVI in China.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in cystic fibrosis patients and immunocompromised individuals. Eradication of P. aeruginosa has ...become increasingly difficult due to its remarkable capacity to resist antibiotics. Strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa are known to utilize their high levels of intrinsic and acquired resistance mechanisms to counter most antibiotics. In addition, adaptive antibiotic resistance of P. aeruginosa is a recently characterized mechanism, which includes biofilm-mediated resistance and formation of multidrug-tolerant persister cells, and is responsible for recalcitrance and relapse of infections. The discovery and development of alternative therapeutic strategies that present novel avenues against P. aeruginosa infections are increasingly demanded and gaining more and more attention. Although mostly at the preclinical stages, many recent studies have reported several innovative therapeutic technologies that have demonstrated pronounced effectiveness in fighting against drug-resistant P. aeruginosa strains. This review highlights the mechanisms of antibiotic resistance in P. aeruginosa and discusses the current state of some novel therapeutic approaches for treatment of P. aeruginosa infections that can be further explored in clinical practice.
Directional fluid motion driven by the surface property of solid substrate is highly desirable for manipulating microfluidic liquid and collecting water from humid air. Studies on such liquid motion ...have been confined to dense material surfaces such as flat panels and single filaments. Recently, directional fluid transport through the thickness of thin porous materials has been reported by several research groups. Their studies not only attract fundamental, experimental and theoretical interest but also open novel application opportunities. This review article summarizes research progress in directional fluid transport across thin porous materials. It focuses on the materials preparation, basic properties associated with directional fluid transport in thin porous media, and their application development. The porous substrates, type of transporting fluids, structure‐property attributes, and possible directional fluid transport mechanism are discussed. A perspective for future development in this field is proposed.
A summary of research progress in directional fluid transport across thin porous materials is presented, with a focus on the materials preparation, basic properties associated with directional fluid transport in thin porous media and their application development. The porous substrates, type of transporting fluids, structure‐property attributes, and possible directional fluid transport mechanism are discussed. A perspective for future development in this field is proposed.
Phosphorus (P) is an essential macronutrient for plant growth, development and production. However, little is known about the effects of P deficiency on nutrient absorption, photosynthetic apparatus ...performance and antioxidant metabolism in citrus. Seedlings of 'sour pummelo' (Citrus grandis) were irrigated with a nutrient solution containing 0.2 mM (Control) or 0 mM (P deficiency) KH2PO4 until saturated every other day for 16 weeks. P deficiency significantly decreased the dry weight (DW) of leaves and stems, and increased the root/shoot ratio in C. grandis but did not affect the DW of roots. The decreased DW of leaves and stems might be induced by the decreased chlorophyll (Chl) contents and CO2 assimilation in P deficient seedlings. P deficiency heterogeneously affected the nutrient contents of leaves, stems and roots. The analysis of Chl a fluorescence transients showed that P deficiency impaired electron transport from the donor side of photosystem II (PSII) to the end acceptor side of PSI, which showed a greater impact on the performance of the donor side of PSII than that of the acceptor side of PSII and photosystem I (PSI). P deficiency increased the contents of ascorbate (ASC), H2O2 and malondialdehyde (MDA) as well as the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), dehydroascorbate reductase (DHAR) and glutathione reductase (GR) in leaves. In contrast, P deficiency increased the ASC content, reduced the glutathione (GSH) content and the activities of SOD, CAT, APX and monodehydroascorbate reductase (MDHAR), but did not increase H2O2 production, anthocyanins and MDA content in roots. Taking these results together, we conclude that P deficiency affects nutrient absorption and lowers photosynthetic performance, leading to ROS production, which might be a crucial cause of the inhibited growth of C. grandis.
Aerobic glycolysis is an important metabolic rewiring in cancer cells to promote glucose uptake and lactate production, and targeting aerobic glycolysis becomes a promising therapeutic approach for ...cancer. Here we reported that a small polyphenol resveratrol exhibited profound anti‐tumor efficacy on human ovarian cancer. Resveratrol markedly inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of A2780 and SKOV3 ovarian cancer cells, while impaired glycolysis, and induced apoptosis in these cells. Exposure to resveratrol increased the expression and activation of AMPK and Caspase 3, and decreased the expression and activation of AMPK downstream kinase mTOR. Moreover, AMPK inhibitor Compound C significantly abolished the effects of resveratrol on the activation of AMPK and Caspase 3 and the inhibition of mTOR. In addition, in vivo data indicated that resveratrol suppressed ovarian cancer growth and liver metastasis in xenograft mouse model. In conclusion, our findings provide new insight into the mechanism underlying anticancer efficacy of resveratrol and help the utilization of resveratrol as a novel agent for the treatment of ovarian cancer.
Resveratrol inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of A2780 and SKOV3 ovarian cancer cells; resveratrol impaired glycolysis and induced apoptosis in ovarian cancer cells by activating AMPK/mTOR axis; resveratrol suppressed ovarian cancer growth and liver metastasis in xenograft mouse model.
Considerable interest has been devoted to converting mechanical energy into electricity using polymer nanofibres. In particular, piezoelectric nanofibres produced by electrospinning have shown ...remarkable mechanical energy-to-electricity conversion ability. However, there is little data for the acoustic-to-electric conversion of electrospun nanofibres. Here we show that electrospun piezoelectric nanofibre webs have a strong acoustic-to-electric conversion ability. Using poly(vinylidene fluoride) as a model polymer and a sensor device that transfers sound directly to the nanofibre layer, we show that the sensor devices can detect low-frequency sound with a sensitivity as high as 266 mV Pa(-1). They can precisely distinguish sound waves in low to middle frequency region. These features make them especially suitable for noise detection. Our nanofibre device has more than five times higher sensitivity than a commercial piezoelectric poly(vinylidene fluoride) film device. Electrospun piezoelectric nanofibres may be useful for developing high-performance acoustic sensors.
Existing coating systems for preparing superamphiphobic surfaces are predominantly confined to small‐scale uses due to the heavy use of organic solvents. Waterborne coating treatment is highly ...desirable for the high safety, low cost, and nonenvironmental impact, but it remains difficult to develop due to the problems in forming durable, homogeneous coating from an aqueous dispersion of amphiphobic substances. In this study, the authors have proved that lyophobic nanoparticles, fluorinated alkyl silane (FAS), and fluorocarbon surfactant can form a stable dispersion in water, suitable for preparing durable superamphiphobic surfaces on various solid substrates. A series of substrates including fabrics, sponge, wood, glass, and metal, after being coated with this ternary coating system, shows superamphiphobicity with low contact angle hysteresis. The coating is durable enough against physical abrasion, repeated washing, boiling in water, and strong acid/base attacks. Benefiting from FAS, the coating also has a self‐healing ability against both physical and chemical damages. The unexpected stability of the ternary dispersion is a result of the synergistic interaction of the three ingredients. Results from this study may promote the wide development of safe and cost‐efficient superamphiphobic techniques for diverse applications.
A waterborne coating system consisting of lyophobic nanoparticles, fluorinated alkyl silane, and fluorocarbon surfactant is developed to make various substrates having a superamphiphobic surface with low contact angle hysteresis. The coating is durable against physical abrasion, repeated washing, boiling in water, and strong acid/base attacks. It also has a self‐healing ability against both physical and chemical damages.
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