Objective: To explore the relationship between the level of fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4) and reversion from prediabetes to normal glucose tolerance (NGT). Methods: A two-year retrospective ...cohort study was conducted on 398 participants with complete information. These 398 participants were divided into an NGT group and an abnormal glucose metabolism (AGM) group after 2 years of follow-up. The baseline level of FABP4 was determined, and the role of FABP4 in predicting reversion from prediabetes to NGT was investigated using an unconditional logistic regression model. Results: Over the two-year follow-up period, 37.4% (149/398) of the participants reverted from prediabetes to NGT. The participants with AGM had a higher baseline level of FABP4 than those with NGT. The baseline level of FABP4 was significantly negatively correlated with reversion from prediabetes to NGT. After adjusting for age, sex, body mass index and waist-to-hip ratio, the level of fasting blood glucose (FBG) odds ratio (OR) 0.336, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.196-0.576), 2-h post-challenge blood glucose (2hBG) OR 0.697, 95% CI (0.581-0.837), and FABP4 OR 0.960, 95% CI (0.928-0.993) at baseline were significant independent predictors of reversion from prediabetes to NGT. The area under the curve (AUC) value of the receiver operating characteristic curve for FABP4 was 0.605 (95% CI: 0.546-0.665), and the AUC for FABP4 combined with FBG and 2hBG was 0.716 (95% CI: 0.663-0.769). Conclusion: A higher baseline level of FABP4 was positively correlated with an adverse profile of diabetes risk factors and negatively correlated with reversion from prediabetes to NGT. FABP4, FBG and 2hBG were predictors of reversion from prediabetes to NGT. Keywords: fatty acid-binding protein 4, FABP4, prediabetes, normal glucose tolerance, abnormal glucose metabolism
This study was conducted to investigate the effects of powdered activated carbon (PAC) with immersed flat sheet membrane on the efficiencies of operation and treatment and to evaluate the performance ...of the system. The experiments were carried out under operating conditions of an average filtration rate of 0.65 m/d, water temperature of 22–26°C, and PAC dose of 0 g/L (System A) and 20 g/L (System B). The regular influent concentrations of total organic carbon (TOC) and UV absorbance at 254 nm (UV
254) were 3.186 mg/L and 1.7 1/m, respectively. TOC removal of 66.2 and 69.8%, and UV
254 removal of 70.6 and 82.4% were obtained from System A and System B, respectively. During an experimental period of 65 days, the value of TMP (trans-membrane pressure) in System B increased by 16 kPa, but the value of TMP in System B reached 61 kPa after 48 days. As a result, continuous filtration time was extended by using PAC. Bacteria count in the reactor of System B showed one hundred times higher than that of System A and most of the bacteria existed in the adsorbed state on the PAC. Higher biological activity can be expected by holding PAC in the filtration reactor. This study revealed that the filtrate quality and the performance efficiency were enhanced when PAC was introduced into the filtration system.
The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) on the growth performance, creatine and energy metabolism, and carcass characteristics ...in growing-finishing pigs. In Exp. 1, Duroc X Landrace X Yorkshire pigs (n = 180, 33.61 ± 3.91 kg average BW) were blocked by weight and sex, and allotted to 5 treatments with 6 replicates (3 gilts and 3 barrows per replicate pen). Diets were corn-soybean meal-basal diets supplemented with 0, 300, 600, 900, and 1,200 mg/kg of GAA and fed to the pigs for 98 d. From days 1 to 98, G:F increased (linear, P < 0.05) with increasing addition of dietary GAA. Using a broken-line model, the optimum level of dietary GAA was 300 mg/kg during the overall experimental period (days 1 to 98) to maximize G:F. Hot carcass weight, carcass length, and lean percentage showed a tendency to increase (quadratic, 0.05 < P < 0.10) with increasing addition of dietary GAA. On day 98, serum GAA and liver creatine tended to increase (linear, P = 0.10, 0.07) as dietary GAA increased. In addition, serum ATP on day 98 increased linearly (linear, P < 0.01), and muscle ATP and adenosine monophosphate increased quadratically (quadratic, P = 0.05) with incremental GAA supplementation. In Exp. 2, Duroc X Landrace X Yorkshire pigs (n = 180, 53.19 ± 5.63 kg average BW) were blocked by weight and sex, and allotted to 5 treatments with 6 replicates (3 gilts and 3 barrows per replicate pen). Diets were corn-soybean meal-basal diets supplemented with 0, 150, 300, 600, and 1,200 mg/kg of GAA for 35 d. As dietary GAA increased, final BW, ADG, and G:F increased quadratically (quadratic, P < 0.01), and 300 mg/ kg of GAA maximized ADG and final BW (P < 0.05).The results indicate that dietary GAA could increase the creatine and ATP load in the tissues of pigs and accordingly improve growth performance. Dietary supplementation with 300 mg/kg of GAA was suitable to maximize the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs.
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) on the growth performance, creatine and energy metabolism, and carcass ...characteristics in growing-finishing pigs. In Exp. 1, Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire pigs (n = 180, 33.61 ± 3.91 kg average BW) were blocked by weight and sex, and allotted to 5 treatments with 6 replicates (3 gilts and 3 barrows per replicate pen). Diets were corn-soybean meal–basal diets supplemented with 0, 300, 600, 900, and 1,200 mg/kg of GAA and fed to the pigs for 98 d. From days 1 to 98, G:F increased (linear, P < 0.05) with increasing addition of dietary GAA. Using a broken-line model, the optimum level of dietary GAA was 300 mg/kg during the overall experimental period (days 1 to 98) to maximize G:F. Hot carcass weight, carcass length, and lean percentage showed a tendency to increase (quadratic, 0.05 < P < 0.10) with increasing addition of dietary GAA. On day 98, serum GAA and liver creatine tended to increase (linear, P = 0.10, 0.07) as dietary GAA increased. In addition, serum ATP on day 98 increased linearly (linear, P < 0.01), and muscle ATP and adenosine monophosphate increased quadratically (quadratic, P = 0.05) with incremental GAA supplementation. In Exp. 2, Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire pigs (n = 180, 53.19 ± 5.63 kg average BW) were blocked by weight and sex, and allotted to 5 treatments with 6 replicates (3 gilts and 3 barrows per replicate pen). Diets were corn-soybean meal–basal diets supplemented with 0, 150, 300, 600, and 1,200 mg/kg of GAA for 35 d. As dietary GAA increased, final BW, ADG, and G:F increased quadratically (quadratic, P < 0.01), and 300 mg/kg of GAA maximized ADG and final BW (P < 0.05).The results indicate that dietary GAA could increase the creatine and ATP load in the tissues of pigs and accordingly improve growth performance. Dietary supplementation with 300 mg/kg of GAA was suitable to maximize the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs.
It has been reported that a disintegrin and metalloproteinase 9 (ADAM9) is involved in the pathogenesis of cigarette smoke (CS)-associated chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). But how CS ...exposure leads to upregulation of ADAM9 remains unknown.
Patients who underwent lobectomy for a solitary pulmonary nodule were enrolled and divided into three groups: non-smokers with normal lung function, smokers without COPD and smoker patients with COPD. Immunoreactivity of interleukin (IL)-17A and ADAM9 in small airways and alveolar walls was measured by immunohistochemistry. Wild-type and
C57BL/6 mice were exposed to CS for six months, and ADAM9 expression in the airway epithelia was measured by immunoreactivity. In addition, the protein and mRNA expression levels of IL-17A and ADAM9 were assessed in CS extract (CSE) and/or IL-17A-treated human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cells.
The immunoreactivity of ADAM9 was increased in the airway epithelia and alveolar walls of patients with COPD compared to that of the controls. The expression of IL-17A was also upregulated in airway epithelial cells of patients with COPD and correlated positively with the level of ADAM9. The results from the animal model showed that
mice were protected from emphysema induced by CS exposure, together with a reduced level of ADAM9 expression in the airway epithelia, suggesting a possible link between ADAM9 and IL-17A. Consistently, our in vitro cell model showed that CSE stimulated the expression of ADAM9 and IL-17A in HBE cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Recombinant IL-17A induced ADAM9 upregulation in HBE cells and had a synergistic effect with CSE, whereas blocking IL-17A inhibited CSE-induced ADAM9 expression. Further analysis revealed that IL-17A induced c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) phosphorylation, thereby increasing ADAM9 expression.
Our results revealed a novel role of IL-17A in CS-related COPD, where IL-17A contributes to ADAM9 expression by activating JNK signaling.
Synthesis of 2,6,8,12-tetraacetyl-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (TAIW) by catalytic hydrogenolysis of 2,6,8,12-tetraacetyl-4,10-dibenzyl-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (TADBIW), a key step ...for the synthesis of 2,4,6,8,10,12-hexanitro-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (HNIW), has been first implemented under continuous flow conditions using the commercially available H-Cube Pro reactor. Several variables (i.e., reaction temperature, flow rate, and pressure) and the stability of the system have been investigated to optimize the operating conditions. The results show that a continuous flow system provides a better yield than a batch system. For instance, the yield is 99% at the optimized conditions, while the best yield from batch reactions is 92%. Continuous flow synthesis of TAIW has potential applications in improving the production technologies of HNIW for its many advantages over batch reactions.
The aim of this study was to simultaneously introduce pH sensitivity and folic acid (FA) targeting into a micelle system to achieve quick drug release and to enhance its accumulation in tumor cells. ...Paclitaxel-(+)-α-tocopherol (PTX-VE)-loaded mixed micelles (PHIS/FA/PM) fabricated by poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether-poly(histidine) (MPEG-PHIS) and folic acid-poly(ethylene glycol)-(+)-α-tocopherol (FA-PEG-VE) were characterized by dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The mixed micelles had a spherical morphology with an average diameter of 137.0±6.70 nm and a zeta potential of -48.7±4.25 mV. The drug encapsulation and loading efficiencies were 91.06%±2.45% and 5.28%±0.30%, respectively. The pH sensitivity was confirmed by changes in particle size, critical micelle concentration, and transmittance as a function of pH. MTT assay showed that PHIS/FA/PM had higher cytotoxicity at pH 6.0 than at pH 7.4, and lower cytotoxicity in the presence of free FA. Confocal laser scanning microscope images demonstrated a time-dependent and FA-inhibited cellular uptake. In vivo imaging confirmed that the mixed micelles targeted accumulation at tumor sites and the tumor inhibition rate was 85.97%. The results proved that the mixed micelle system fabricated by MPEG-PHIS and FA-PEG-VE is a promising approach to improve antitumor efficacy.
Many retrotransposons and retroviruses are thought to select integration sites through interactions with specific chromosomal proteins. In yeast, the Ty5 retrotransposon integrates preferentially ...within regions bound by silent chromatin, namely the telomeres and the
HMR and
HML mating loci. A Ty5 mutant (M3) was identified with an approximately 20-fold decrease in targeted integration as measured by a plasmid-based targeting assay. Of ten chromosomal insertions generated by M3, none were located at the telomeres or silent mating loci. A single amino acid change at the boundary of integrase and reverse transcriptase is responsible for the mutant phenotype. We predict that this mutation lies within a targeting domain that mediates Ty5 target choice by interacting with a component of silent chromatin.
The pore habits of gas hydrate in natural sediment matrices provide essential clues for understanding physical (mechanical, thermal, hydraulic, and electrical) properties of hydrate-bearing ...sediments, yet there are no tools that can directly visualize the pore habits of natural gas hydrate other than indirect interpretation based on core-scale or field-scale observations. A significant challenge is to obtain a mini-core from pressure cores retrieved from natural reservoirs for high-resolution micro-CT (computed tomography) scans while maintaining pressure and temperature conditions required for stability of gas hydrate during all operational steps including manipulation, cutting, transferring, sub-coring and CT scanning. We present a new set of tools for pore-scale micro-CT imaging of natural hydrate-bearing sediments while maintaining pressure and temperature control. The tests with laboratory-prepared cores and pressure cores successfully demonstrate the capability of this set of tools to subsample a mini-core from pressure cores, transfer the mini-core to an X-ray transparent core holder, and conduct micro-CT scans. Successfully obtained CT images prove the functionality of this set of tools.
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