Fecal calprotectin (FC) is a promising biomarker for diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, the utility of FC for assessment of IBD activity has yet to be clearly demonstrated. The ...aim of our study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of FC for differentiating between patients with active IBD and those in remission.
We systematically searched the databases Medline, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and EMBASE for eligible studies from December 2013 or earlier that evaluated activity in ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). A hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristic model was performed to calculate the area under the curve to evaluate the overall diagnostic accuracy. The sensitivities and specificities of each commonly applied cutoff value were pooled using a random effects model.
We included 13 studies (744 patients with UC and 727 with CD) in the final analysis. The area under the curve values were 0.89 (95% confidence interval, 0.86-0.92), 0.93 (0.89-0.97), and 0.88 (0.83-0.93) in the IBD, UC, and CD groups, respectively. For the IBD group at a cutoff value of 50 μg/g, the pooled sensitivity was 0.92 (0.90-0.94) and specificity 0.60 (0.52-0.67). For a cutoff value at 100 μg/g, the pooled sensitivity was 0.84 (0.80-0.88) and specificity was 0.66 (0.59-0.73). For a cutoff value at 250 μg/g, the pooled sensitivity was 0.80 (0.76-0.84) and specificity was 0.82 (0.77-0.86).
The FC test is a reliable marker for assessing IBD disease activity and may have greater ability to evaluate disease activity in UC than CD.
Hydrogen‐terminated diamond (H‐diamond) metal–oxide–semiconductor field‐effect transistors (MOSFETs) are fabricated, and a partial C–O channel is formed by UV‐ozone treatment of the H‐diamond surface ...to help realize normally off devices. The first parameterization of the vertical‐field (Feff)‐dependent effective hole mobility (μeff) in a normally off diamond FET is conducted using the fabricated MOSFETs with a gate length of 40 μm fat field‐effect transistors (FATFET). The FATFET with a threshold voltage of −0.69 V shows a low on‐resistance of 475.1 Ω mm and a record high drain current of −3.8 mA mm−1 for normally off H‐diamond MOSFETs with gate lengths over 20 μm. The extracted μeff ranges from 127 cm2(V s)−1 (at VGS = −4.5 V) to 276 cm2(V s)−1 (at VGS = −1.5 V). Both μeff versus Feff and μeff versus VGS relations can be well fitted by the semiempirical formulas used for silicon counterparts. The resulting low‐field mobility without vertical‐field degradation for the two relations is 376 cm2(V s)−1 and 418 cm2(V s)−1, respectively. The origin of this difference is also given.
Hydrogen‐terminated diamond (H‐diamond) metal–oxide–semiconductor field‐effect transistors (MOSFETs) are fabricated, and a partial C–O channel is formed by UV‐ozone treatment of the H‐diamond surface to help realize normally off devices. The first parameterization of the vertical‐field (Feff)‐dependent effective hole mobility (μeff) in a normally off diamond FET is conducted using the fabricated MOSFETs.
TIR1-like proteins act as auxin receptors and play essential roles in auxin-mediated plant development processes. The number of auxin receptor family members varies among species. While the functions ...of auxin receptor genes have been widely studied in Arabidopsis, the distinct functions of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) auxin receptors remains poorly understood. To further our understanding of their potential role in cucumber development, two TIR1-like genes were identified and designated CsTIR1 and CsAFB2. In the present study, tomato (Sonanum lycopersicum) was used as a model to investigate the phenotypic and molecular changes associated with the overexpression of CsTIR1 and CsAFB2.
Differences in the subcellular localizations of CsTIR1 and CsAFB2 were identified and both genes were actively expressed in leaf, female flower and young fruit tissues of cucumber. Moreover, CsTIR1- and CsAFB2-overexpressing lines exhibited pleotropic phenotypes ranging from leaf abnormalities to seed germination and parthenocarpic fruit compared with the wild-type plants. To further elucidate the regulation of CsTIR1 and CsAFB2, the role of the miR393/TIR1 module in regulating cucumber fruit set were investigated. Activation of miR393-mediated mRNA cleavage of CsTIR1 and CsAFB2 was revealed by qPCR and semi-qPCR, which highlighted the critical role of the miR393/TIR1 module in mediating fruit set development in cucumber.
Our results provide new insights into the involvement of CsTIR1 and CsAFB2 in regulating various phenotype alterations, and suggest that post-transcriptional regulation of CsTIR1 and CsAFB2 mediated by miR393 is essential for cucumber fruit set initiation. Collectively, these results further clarify the roles of cucumber TIR1 homologs and miR393 in regulating fruit/seed set development and leaf morphogenesis.
The cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) exhibits extensive variations in fruit size and shape. Fruit length is an important agronomic and domesticated trait controlled by quantitative trait loci (QTLs). ...Nonetheless, the underlying molecular and genetic mechanisms that determine cucumber fruit length remain unclear. QTL-seq is an efficient strategy for QTL identification that takes advantage of bulked-segregant analysis (BSA) and next-generation sequencing (NGS). In the present study, we conducted QTL mapping and QTL-seq of cucumber fruit length. QTL mapping identified 8 QTLs for immature and mature fruit length. A major-effect QTL fl3.2, which explained a maximum of 38.87% of the phenotypic variation, was detected. A genome-wide comparison of SNP profiles between two DNA bulks identified 6 QTLs for ovary length. QTLs ovl3.1 and ovl3.2 both had major effects on ovary length with a △ (SNP-index) of 0.80 (P < 0.01) and 0.74 (P < 0.01), respectively. Quantitative RT-PCR of fruit size-related homologous genes localized in the consensus QTL FL3.2 was conducted. Four candidate genes exhibited increased expression levels in long fruit genotypes. Our results demonstrated the power of the QTL-seq method in rapid QTL detection and provided reliable QTL regions for fine mapping of fruit length-related loci and for identifying candidate genes.
Mice lacking MHC class-I (MHC-I) display severe defects in natural killer (NK) cell functional maturation, a process designated as "education". Whether self-MHC-I specific Ly49 family receptors and ...NKG2A, which are closely linked within the NK gene complex (NKC) locus, are essential for NK cell education is still unclear. Here we show, using CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene deletion, that mice lacking all members of the Ly49 family exhibit a moderate defect in NK cell activity, while mice lacking only two inhibitory Ly49 members, Ly49C and Ly49I, have comparable phenotypes. Furthermore, the deficiency of NKG2A, which recognizes non-classical MHC-Ib molecules, mildly impairs NK cell function. Notably, the combined deletion of NKG2A and the Ly49 family severely compromises the ability of NK cells to mediate "missing-self" and "induced-self" recognition. Therefore, our data provide genetic evidence supporting that NKG2A and the inhibitory members of Ly49 family receptors synergize to regulate NK cell education.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are known to fine‐tune growth, development, and stress‐induced responses. Osa‐miR1873 is a rice‐specific miRNA targeting LOC_Os05g01790. Here, we show that Osa‐miR1873 fine‐tunes ...rice immunity against Magnaporthe oryzae and yield traits via LOC_Os05g01790. Osa‐miR1873 was significantly upregulated in a susceptible accession but downregulated in a resistance accession at 24 h post‐inoculation (hpi) of M. oryzae. Overexpressing Osa‐miR1873 enhanced susceptibility to M. oryzae and compromised induction of defense responses. In contrast, blocking Osa‐miR1873 through target mimicry compromised susceptibility to M. oryzae and enhanced induction of defense responses. Altered expression of Osa‐miR1873 also resulted in some defects in yield traits, including grain numbers and seed setting rate. Moreover, overexpression of the target gene LOC_Os05g01790 increased rice blast disease resistance but severely penalized growth and yield. Taken together, we demonstrate that Osa‐miR1873 fine‐tunes the rice immunity‐growth trade‐off via LOC_Os05g01790, and blocking Osa‐miR1873 could improve blast disease resistance without significant yield penalty. Thus, the Osa‐miR1873‐LOC_Os05g01790 regulatory module is valuable in balancing yield traits and blast resistance.
MicroRNAs fine‐tune growth, development, and stress‐induced responses. Herein, we demonstrate that the rice‐specific microRNA Osa‐miR1873 negatively regulates rice immunity against Magnaporthe oryzae, and its proper accumulation plays essential roles in the tradeoffs between blast disease resistance and yield traits via fine‐tuning the expression of LOC_Os05g01790.
Lead halide perovskite (PVK) has been deemed as a promising photocatalyst alternative because of its remarkable photoelectrical properties; however, the severe charge recombination has limited its ...catalytic activity. Herein, we report a PVK-based Z-scheme heterojunction, α-Fe2O3/Amine-RGO/CsPbBr3, for high-efficiency CO2 reduction in the presence of H2O. By delicately controlling the interfacial interaction, effective Z-scheme electron transfer from α-Fe2O3 to CsPbBr3 is built, leading to boosted charge separation and prolonged carrier lifetime, as confirmed by electron spin resonance (ESR), transient absorption (TA) spectra, etc. The impactful spatial separation of photo-generated carriers in Z-scheme system finally enables an 8.3-fold enhancement in photocatalytic performance as compared to CsPbBr3. A stable product yield of 469.16 μmol g−1 and an electron consumption yield of 3,132.46 μmol g−1 are achieved. This work is expected to provide deep insights into boosting the photocatalytic performance of PVK by modulating the charge carrier dynamics.
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•All-solid-state Z-scheme α-Fe2O3/Amine-RGO/CsPbBr3 photocatalyst is designed•Boosted charge separation is achieved by controlling the interfacial interaction•Visible-light-driven overall conversion of CO2 and H2O to CH4 and O2 is achieved•The charge-carrier dynamics of Z-scheme heterojunction are investigated in detail
Although lead halide perovskite (PVK) has been deemed as a promising photocatalyst alternative because of its remarkable photoelectrical properties, the severe charge recombination has limited its catalytic activity. To solve this problem, previous scientific efforts have been widely laid on the fabrication of PVK-based type II heterojunctions or Schottky-junctions. Unfortunately, this was at the cost of the weakened reduction ability of the photo-generated electrons due to the electron transfer. Herein, a PVK-based Z-scheme photocatalyst is delicately designed to not only boost the charge separation but also preserve the high redox potential of semiconductors. By delicately controlling the interfacial interaction, effective Z-scheme electron transfer is built, which enables the largely enhanced visible-light-driven overall conversion of CO2 and H2O to CH4 and O2. This work is expected to provide a new way to rational design-effective PVK-based photocatalyst.
A halide perovskite-based Z-scheme photocatalyst is fabricated by anchoring CsPbBr3 nanocrystals on a core/shell nanorod array of amine-functionalized reduced graphene oxide-coated α-Fe2O3. Thanks to the timely and spatially separated photo-generated electrons and holes with high redox ability, it demonstrates largely enhanced photocatalytic conversion of CO2 and H2O to CH4 and O2.
The interaction between soil and geotextile is essential for the performance of reinforced soil. This study reveals the microscopic mechanism of interface shear between sand and geotextile based on ...the discrete element method (DEM). The surface characteristics of geotextile are simulated by overlapped particles. The micromechanical parameters of sand, geotextile, and interface are calibrated effectively using laboratory test results. Three types of shear tests on the sand–geotextile interface are simulated; namely, interface direct shear test (IDST), double-sided interface shear test (D_IST), and interface direct shear test with periodic boundary (PBST). For IDST, the results show that the thickness of shear band is 2.4∼3.0 times the average particle diameter (D
50
); the contact force, percentage of sliding contact, and contact normal anisotropy inside the shear band are larger than those outside the shear band, whereas the coordination number is smaller inside the shear band. The mechanical response of D_IST is similar to that of IDST. However, D_IST has a shear band thickness of 3.0D
50
, and greater coordination number, percentage of sliding contact, and contact normal anisotropy. The results of PBST indicate that the peak stress and the shear band no longer appear without boundary constraint and the contact distribution is uniform.
The aim of this study is to assess the three-dimensional (3D) stability of the tunnel face with considering the possibility of the upper partial failure in layered rock masses. The failure ...characteristic of the rock material is denoted by the nonlinear Hoek–Brown failure criterion, and a multi-tangent method is introduced and adopted to determine the equivalent Mohr–Coulomb parameters. Based on the traditional 3D rotational failure model, the whole failure model and the upper partial failure model are developed with considering layered rock masses and possibility of upper partial failure at the tunnel face. The upper-bound limit analysis approach is adopted to determine the limit support pressure and failure surface. The proposed method is validated by comparison with existing solutions and numerical results. Parametrical analysis is then conducted to investigate the influence of analytical parameters on the face stability. Finally, the effect of seepage forces on the tunnel face stability is presented. The results show that, the upper partial failure is likely to happen when a soft layer in the upper section of tunnel face. This possibility increases as properties of lower layer increase, the tunnel diameter decreases, and the layered position moves down. The presence of underground water delays the occurrence of upper partial failure at the tunnel face.
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