Straw return is an important management tool for tackling and promoting soil nutrient conservation and improving crop yield in Huang-Huai-Hai Plain, China. Although the incorporation of maize straw ...with deep plowing and rotary tillage practices are widespread in the region, only few studies have focused on rotation tillage. To determine the effects of maize straw return on the nitrogen （N） efficiency and grain yield of winter wheat （Triticum aestivum L.）, we conducted experiments in this region for 3 years. Five treatments were tested： （i） rotary tillage without straw return （RT）; （ii） deep plowing tillage without straw return （DT）; （iii） rotary tillage with total straw return （RS）; （iv） deep plowing tillage with total straw return （DS）; （v） rotary tillage of 2 years and deep plowing tillage in the 3rd year with total straw return （TS）. Treatments with straw return increased kernels no. ear-1, thousand-kernel weight （TKW）, grain yields, ratio of dry matter accumulation post-anthesis, and nitrogen （N） efficiency whereas reduced the ears no. ha-1 in the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 growing seasons. Compared with the rotary tillage, deep plowing tillage significantly increased the grain yield, yield components, total dry matter accumulation, and N efficiency in 2013-2014. RS had significantly higher straw N distribution, soil inorganic nitrogen content, and soil enzymes activities in the 0-10 cm soil layer compared with the DS and TS. However, significantly lower values were ob- served in the 10-20 and 20-30 cm soil layers. TS obtained approximately equal grain yield as DS, and it also reduced the resource costs. Therefore, we conclude that TS is the most economical method for increasing grain yield and N efficiency of winter wheat in Huang-Huai-Hai Plain.
Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) land use changes are primarily influenced by agriculture and its population. The region faces various challenges ranging from rainfall variabilities to poverty and ...insecurities, which further hampered food supply and production. The spatial analysis identified six land uses—agriculture, forest, grassland, wetland, urban, and others (i.e., bare land, water, and sparse vegetation), showing relative percentage changes. Additionally, information collected and analyzed shows that the Millennium Development Goals period witnessed increased agricultural land use changes in the environment to improve food supply, and farmers adopted local methods and native experiences to mitigate environmental particularities facing the region. Farmers’ landholdings are fragmented, and food supply per capita is low albeit rich in calories, and nutrition is still unbalanced, while bushmeat consumption is popular and serves as an alternative to animal-sourced protein. Concerted efforts should be made to improve food security and edge closer to the sustainable development goal during this decade.
Lenvatinib was a multi-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) used for treating advanced renal cell carcinoma and differentiated thyroid cancer. Multiple fluorescence spectroscopy including SSF, SF, 3DF, ...UV, FTIR, and molecular modeling were utilized for better understanding the binding interaction between lenvatinib and bovine serum albumin (BSA). SSF spectroscopy results showed lenvatinib quenched the intrinsic fluorescence of BSA in the form of the mixed mechanism. The binding constants (Kb) of lenvatinib on BSA were about 104 M−1, indicating the affinity on BSA was moderate. Based on the analysis of the thermodynamic parameters, it can be inferred that lenvatinib spontaneously binds onto BSA and the hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interactions are responsible for both bindings. The outcomes of UV, SF spectroscopy and FTIR showed the conformational change of BSA was caused due to binding lenvatinib. The outcomes of the molecular docking revealed that lenvatinib inserted into the hydrophobic groove between sub-domain IIA, IIB and IIIA, which further demonstrated the competition experiments result of ibuprofen and phenylbutazone markers. Furthermore, molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were performed to investigate the binding behavior of lenvatinib with BSA. The effect of some ions such as K+, Cu 2+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Ni2+, Zn2+ and Fe3+ on the binding affinity was also discussed.
Display omitted
•Lenvatinib binding onto BSA was explored through spectroscopic, docking and MD simulation.•Affinity of lenvatinib on BSA was moderate with the Kb of about 104 M−1 order.•Lenvatinib bound to the hydrophobic groove between sub-domain IIA, IIB and IIIA.•Alteration in the conformation of BSA occurred after interaction between two.•The contribution of residues to forming the stable lenvatinib-BSA complex was analyzed.
Liposomes are spherical vesicles enclosed by phospholipid bilayers. Nanoscale liposomes are widely employed for drug delivery in the pharmaceutical industry. In this study, nanoscale liposomes are ...fabricated using the microfluidic hydrodynamic focusing (MHF) approach, and the effects of flow rate ratio (FRR) on liposome size and drug loading efficiency are studied. Fluorescein isothiocyanate modified dextran is used as a hydrophilic drug simulant and Nile red is used as a hydrophobic drug simulant. The experiment results show that hydrophilic drug simulant loading efficiency increases as FRR increases and eventually plateaues at around 90% loading efficiency. The hydrophobic drug simulant loading efficiency and FRR have a positive linear correlation when FRR varies from 10 to 50. Concurrent loading of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic drug simulants maintains the same loading efficiencies as those of loading each drug simulant alone. A negative correlation between liposome size and FRR is also confirmed. Unloaded liposomes and hydrophilic drug-loaded liposomes are of the same sizes, and are smaller than the ones loaded with the hydrophobic drug simulants alone or combined. The results suggest tunable liposome size and drug loading efficiency with the MHF technique. This provides evidence to encourage further studies of microfluidic liposome fabrication in the pharmaceutical industry.
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been reported to dysregulate and involve in the pathology of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Nonetheless, the functional role of lncRNA T cell leukemia/lymphoma 6 ...(TCL6) and its underlying mechanism in HCC remain unclear. Herein, we analyzed the expression of TCL6 and elucidated its mechanistic involvement in HCC. Bioinformatics analyses indicated TCL6 was evidently downregulated in HCC tissues compared with normal controls. TCL6 was downregulated while microRNA‐106a‐5p (miR‐106a‐5p) was upregulated in HCC cell lines. Moreover, knockdown or overexpression of TCL6 significantly raised or diminished the expression level of miR‐106a‐5p in HCC cells, similar to the effect of miR‐106a‐5p on TCL6 expression. Functionally, TCL6 inhibited the proliferative, migratory, and invasive potentials of HCC cells as analyzed by cell counting kit‐8, scratch wound healing, and transwell assays, respectively. Conversely, miR‐106a‐5p exerted an opposite effect on the proliferative, migratory, and invasive potentials of HCC. RNA immune precipitation and luciferase reporter assays revealed TCL6 directly bound to miR‐106a‐5p and luciferase reporter assay verified phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) was a target gene of miR‐106a‐5p. Mechanistically, TCL6 knockdown evidently reduced PTEN expression at both messenger RNA and protein levels, and miR‐106a‐5p inhibitor partially rescued this reduction effect in HCC cells. Additionally, western blot assays demonstrated miR‐106a‐5p downregulation or TCL6 overexpression promoted the protein level of PTEN, and suppressed the phosphorylation level of AKT, the protein level of phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase (PI3K). Collectively, these results revealed TCL6 as a tumor‐suppressive lncRNA regulates PI3K/AKT signaling pathway via directly binding to miR‐106a‐5p in HCC. This mechanism provides a theoretical basis for HCC pathogenesis and a potential therapeutic strategy for HCC treatment.
Long noncoding RNA T cell leukemia/lymphoma 6 (TCL6) was found to directly bind to microRNA‐106a‐5p (miR‐106a‐5p) to suppress the proliferation, migration, and invasion via phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase/AKT signaling pathway in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This work not only provides a theoretical basis for a better understanding of the mechanism of TCL6 in HCC but also indicated that TCL6 or miR‐106a might be considered as a biomarker in HCC.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a primary liver malignancy with a high global prevalence and a dismal prognosis. Studies are urgently needed to examine the molecular pathogenesis and biological ...characteristics of HCC. Chromatin remodelling, an integral component of the DNA damage response, protects against DNA damage‐induced genome instability and tumorigenesis by triggering the signalling events that activate the interconnected DNA repair pathways. The SWI/SNF complexes are one of the most extensively investigated adenosine triphosphate‐dependent chromatin remodelling complexes, and mutations in genes encoding SWI/SNF subunits are frequently observed in various human cancers, including HCC. The mutated SWI/SNF complex subunits exert dual functions by accelerating or inhibiting HCC initiation and progression. Furthermore, the abnormal SWI/SNF complexes influence the transcription of interferon‐stimulated genes, as well as the differentiation, activation and recruitment of several immune cell types. In addition, they exhibit synergistic effects with immune checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of diverse tumour types. Therefore, understanding the mutations and deficiencies of the SMI/SNF complexes, together with the associated functional mechanisms, may provide a novel strategy to treat HCC through targeting the related genes or modulating the tumour microenvironment.
Summary
Aims
Intravenous transplantation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) had been documented to improve functional outcome after ischemic stroke. However, the timing and appropriate ...cell number of transplantation to achieve better outcome after an episode of stroke remain further to be optimized.
Methods
To determine the optimal conditions, we transplanted different concentrations of BMSCs at different time points in a rat model of ischemic stroke. Infarction volume and neurological behavioral tests were performed after ischemia.
Results
We found that transplantation of BMSCs at 3 and 24 h, but not 7 days after focal ischemia, significantly reduced the lesion volume and improved motor deficits. We also found that transplanted cells at 1 × 106 to 107, but not at 1 × 104 to 105, significantly improved functional outcome after stroke. In addition to inhibiting macrophages/microglia activation in the ischemic brain, BMSC transplantation profoundly reduced infiltration of gamma delta T (γδT) cells, which are detrimental to the ischemic brain, and significantly increased regulatory T cells (Tregs), along with altered Treg‐associated cytokines in the ischemic brain.
Conclusions
Our data suggest that timing and cell dose of transplantation determine the therapeutic effects after focal ischemia by modulating poststroke neuroinflammation.
There is a lack of large-scale studies on vitamin D status and its relationship to parathyroid hormone (PTH) and bone turnover markers in adults living in Shanghai. The objectives were to determine ...the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency in Shanghai and to investigate the relationship of 25(OH)D with parathyroid function and bone turnover markers. This cross-sectional study involved 649 men and 1939 women aged 20-89 years who were randomly sampled in Shanghai. Serum concentrations of 25(OH)D, PTH, albumin, and bone turnover markers were measured. During the winter season, the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency (<30 ng/mL) was 84% in males and 89% in females. The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency (<20 ng/mL) was 30% in males and 46% in females. With increasing serum 25(OH)D concentrations categorized as <10, 10-20, 20-30, and ≥30 ng/mL, the mean PTH and bone turnover markers levels gradually decreasd in both sexes (p<0.001). There was an inverse relationship between the serum 25(OH)D and PTH concentrations in both genders, but no threshold of 25(OH)D at which PTH levels plateaued was observed. There were modest but significantly inverse relationships between the levels of 25(OH)D and bone turnover markers, but no plateau was observed for serum 25(OH)D levels up to 40 ng/mL.
Coastal concrete structures, such as cross-sea bridges and tunnels, are susceptible to the penetration of chloride ions, which can lead to the deterioration of the passive film on the rebar surface, ...consequently accelerating the corrosion process. Conventional methods for monitoring chloride ions typically require in situ drilling for sample collection, thereby compromising efficiency and accuracy. Additionally, real-time monitoring and early warning cannot be achieved. To address these challenges, this work introduces a fluorescent-probe-based fiber optic sensor for monitoring chloride levels in concrete structures. Quinine sulfate was chosen as the fluorescent material due to its exceptional sensitivity to chloride ions and its stability in concrete environments. The proposed sensor was manufactured using sol–gel and 3D-printing techniques. Tests were conducted using concrete simulation fluid and cement mortar specimens. The results demonstrate that the sensitivity of the proposed sensor is greater than 0.01 M, and its accuracy in penetration depth measurement is better than 3 mm. The findings confirm that the designed fiber optic sensor based on quinine sulfate enables real-time monitoring of chloride ions in concrete structures, offering high sensitivity (0.1% in concentration and 2.7 mm in terms of penetration depth), unique selectivity (as it is immune to other ions whose concentrations are 10 times higher than those of Cl−), and a compact size (10 × 20 mm). These attributes render it promising for practical engineering applications.
Bowl inversion is a unique property of buckybowls. The polarity and assembly configuration of buckybowls are reversed after bowl inversion. So far, this unique phenomenon has been studied in solution ...and on surface, but not in solid state due to spatial constraint. Now a series of exo‐type supramolecular assemblies of trithiasumanene and nanographene are investigated. Tuning the electron density of the nanogaphene component was found to directly affect the binding constant of the complex. Reversible bowl inversion in the solid state was then successfully achieved by subjecting the trithiasumanene–nanographene assembly with the weakest binding strength to repeated heating–cooling cycles, which was unambiguously observed by single crystal X‐ray diffraction.
Bowl inversion: A series of exo‐type buckybowl‐supramolecules are obtained using a concave nanographene acceptor. The reversible bowl inversion in the solid state is realized in the complex with the weakest binding strength by heating and cooling cycles and is unambiguously observed by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction.
PDF
