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•We investigated the sensing behaviors of ultrathin agaric-like ZnO with Pd dopant.•The sensing response of Pd-ZnO to 100 ppm aniline is two orders of magnitude higher than that of ...pure ZnO.•The main sensing mechanism of Pd-ZnO materials was attributed to the increasing adsorbed oxygen and tunable band alignment.
Aniline detection is of great importance in many industries, but most of the aniline sensors suffers from tedious and time consuming process. Herein, we present an efficient aniline sensor based on Pd decorated ZnO nanomaterials. Ultrathin ZnO nanosheets were synthesized by a facile one-step hydrothermal method. The nanosheets were corrugated into a unique agaric morphology, endorsing the nanomaterials with high surface area that is ideal for gas sensing applications. The obtained ZnO nanosheets were then uniformly decorated with uniform Pd nanoparticles (Pd NPs) around 5 nm in diameter. Gas sensing experiment on the ZnO decorate with different amount of Pd nanoparticles were systematically evaluated. The sample decorated with 0.3 % Pd NPs (Pd-ZnO-0.3) exhibited the highest sensitivity to aniline, which is about two orders higher than that of the pure ZnO nanosheet. The gas sensor based on Pd-ZnO-0.3 has a detection limit to aniline down to 0.5 ppm, with very short response and recovery times of 29 s and 23 s, respectively to 100 ppm aniline. First-principles DFT study was employed to provide the sensing mechanism. The improved sensing performance could be attributed to the increasing adsorbed oxygen and tunable band alignment for Pd-ZnO materials. This work provides new insights to the design strategy of Pd-decorated ZnO nanomaterials for high performance gas sensors.
A rhodium(I)‐catalyzed decarboxylative hydroacylation of readily available vinylethylene carbonates with salicylaldehydes for regioselective preparation of esters was developed. Reaction optimization ...revealed that methacrylamide might promote the hydroacylation by bidentate chelation assistance to the cationic rhodium. Mechanistic findings suggested that this one‐pot coupling reaction proceeds via Markovnikov hydrorhodation‐initiated site‐selective β‐C−O bond cleavage with concurrent release of CO2.
Severe asthenozoospermia is a common cause of male infertility. Recent studies have revealed that
SPEF2
mutations lead to multiple morphological abnormalities of the sperm flagella (MMAF) without ...primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) symptoms in males, but PCD phenotype was also found in one female individual. Therefore, whether there is a phenotypic continuum ranging from infertile patients with PCD to MMAF patients with no or low noise PCD manifestations remains elusive. Here, we performed whole-exome sequencing in 47 patients with severe asthenozoospermia from 45 unrelated Chinese families. We identified four novel biallelic mutations in
SPEF2
(8.9%, 4/45) in six affected individuals (12.8%, 6/47), while no deleterious biallelic variants in
SPEF2
were detected in 637 controls, including 219 with oligoasthenospermia, 195 with non-obstructive azoospermia, and 223 fertile controls. Notably, all six patients exhibited PCD-like symptoms, including recurrent airway infections, bronchitis, and rhinosinusitis. Ultrastructural analysis revealed normal 9 + 2 axonemes of respiratory cilia but consistently abnormal 9 + 0 axoneme or disordered accessory structures of sperm flagella, indicating different roles of SPEF2 in sperm flagella and respiratory cilia. Subsequently, a
Spef2
knockout mouse model was used to validate the PCD-like phenotype and male infertility, where the subfertility of female
Spef2
−/−
mice was found unexpectedly. Overall, our data bridge the link between MMAF and PCD based on the association of
SPEF2
mutations with both infertility and PCD in males and provide basis for further exploring the molecular mechanism of SPEF2 during spermiogenesis and ciliogenesis.
Background
Ibrutinib is associated with atrial fibrillation (AF), though echocardiographic predictors of AF have not been studied in this population. We sought to determine whether left atrial (LA) ...strain on transthoracic echocardiography could identify patients at risk for developing ibrutinib‐related atrial fibrillation (IRAF).
Methods
We performed a retrospective review of 66 patients who had an echocardiogram prior to ibrutinib treatment. LA strain was measured with TOMTEC Imaging Systems, obtaining peak atrial longitudinal strain (PALS) and peak atrial contraction strain (PACS) on 4‐chamber and 2‐chamber views. Statistical analysis was performed with chi‐square analysis, t test, or binomial regression analysis, with a P‐value < .05 considered statistically significant.
Results
Twenty‐two patients developed IRAF (33%). Age at initiation of ibrutinib was significantly associated with IRAF (65.1 years vs 74.1 years, P = .002). Mean ibrutinib dose was lower among patients who developed IRAF (388.2 ± 121.7 vs 448.6 ± 88.4, P = .025). E/e′ was significantly higher among patients who developed IRAF (11.5 vs 9.3, P = .04). PALS was significantly lower in patients who developed AF (30.3% vs 36.3%, P = .01). On multivariate regression analysis, age, PALS, and PACS were significantly associated with IRAF. On multivariate regression analysis, only PACS remained significantly associated with IRAF while accounting for age.
Conclusions
Age, ibrutinib dose, E/e′, and PALS on pre‐treatment echocardiogram were significantly associated with development of IRAF. On multivariate regression analyses, age, PALS, and PACS remained significantly associated with IRAF. Impaired LA mechanics add to the assessment of patients at risk for IRAF.
Oxidative stress leads to chondrocyte apoptosis and extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation, thus contributing to the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA). Herein, curcumin with remarkable antioxidant ...and anti-inflammatory activities has been employed as an organic ligand to coordinate ferric ions for enhancing the water-solubility and biocompatibility of natural product curcumin. The obtained iron-curcumin-based coordination nanoparticles (Fe-Cur NPs) exhibit great water-solubility and efficient reactive oxygen/nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) scavenging ability.
In vitro
chondrocyte evaluation experiments indicated that the intracellular ROS/RNS induced by interleukin 1β (IL-1β) could be efficiently scavenged by these Fe-Cur NPs and oxidative-stress-induced cell death could be preserved as well. In addition, post intra-articular (i.a.) injection into OA rat joints, Fe-Cur NPs could greatly inhibit OA progression via activating the nuclear factor-erythroid 2 related factor-2 (Nrf2) and inhibiting nod-like receptor protein-3 (NLRP3) inflammasome activation in primary rat chondrocytes, as well as decrease the production of matrix degrading proteases and other inflammatory mediators. The efficient antioxidation and anti-inflammation performance of Fe-Cur NPs endow them as a promising nanoplatform for treatment of various inflammatory diseases, and more detailed researches will be conducted in the future.
In avian species, liver is the main site of de novo lipogenesis, and hepatic lipid metabolism relates closely to adipose fat deposition. Using our fat and lean chicken lines of striking differences ...in abdominal fat content, post-hatch lipid metabolism in both liver and adipose tissues has been studied extensively. However, whether molecular discrepancy for hepatic lipid metabolism exists in chicken embryos remains obscure.
We performed transcriptome and proteome profiling on chicken livers at five embryonic stages (E7, E12, E14, E17 and E21) between the fat and lean chicken lines. At each stage, 521, 141, 882, 979 and 169 differentially expressed genes were found by the digital gene expression, respectively, which were significantly enriched in the metabolic, PPAR signaling and fatty acid metabolism pathways. Quantitative proteomics analysis found 20 differentially expressed proteins related to lipid metabolism, PPAR signaling, fat digestion and absorption, and oxidative phosphorylation pathways. Combined analysis showed that genes and proteins related to lipid transport (intestinal fatty acid-binding protein, nucleoside diphosphate kinase, and apolipoprotein A-I), lipid clearance (heat shock protein beta-1) and energy metabolism (NADH dehydrogenase ubiquinone 1 beta subcomplex subunit 10 and succinate dehydrogenase flavoprotein subunit) were significantly differentially expressed between the two lines.
For hepatic lipid metabolism at embryonic stages, molecular differences related to lipid transport, lipid clearance and energy metabolism exist between the fat and lean chicken lines, which might contribute to the striking differences of abdominal fat deposition at post-hatch stages.
Purpose
To investigate the pathogenesis of the recurrent preimplantation embryonic arrest characterized by direct cleavage.
Methods
Two affected individuals underwent time-lapse imaging to observe ...the cleavage behaviors in their final ICSI attempts. In addition, both patients were subjected to whole-exome sequencing. After the identification of possible causative genes, molecular modeling analyses were used to evaluate the possible effects of candidate mutations on protein secondary structure.
Results
All the bipronucleated (2PN) zygotes from both individuals presented multiple abnormal cleavage behaviors, particularly direct cleavage (DC) and subsequent cleavage arrest. Mutation analysis identified one new frameshift mutation c.1521dupC (p.S508Qfs*5) and two missense mutations c.A1117C and c.C1708T (p.T373P and p.R570C, respectively) of the
PADI6
gene, which were in the protein-arginine deiminase (PAD) domain and highly conserved.
Conclusion
This study expands the mutation spectrum of
PADI6
and is the first to propose that the preimplantation embryonic arrest with concomitant abnormal cleavage behaviors, especially DC, maybe associated with
PADI6
mutations.
•Characteristics of CUE in desert/grassland biome transition zone were studied.•CUE varies with the ecosystem types even in the same climatic zone.•Rescaled range analysis was used to study if CUEs ...have Hurst phenomenon.•Drought could increase CUE of ecosystem.
Terrestrial ecosystems play a critical role in the global carbon cycle and the feedbacks of carbon cycle will significantly impact future climate change. It's worth noting that semi-arid biomes in the Southern Hemisphere have driven the global carbon sink anomaly over the past 30 years. However, how does the desert/grassland biome transition zone, a part of arid and semi-arid biomes, respond to climate change and anthropogenic activities in carbon use efficiency (CUE) is still unclear. Therefore, based on the CUE of terrestrial ecosystem estimated by the moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) data from 2001 to 2017, the spatial and temporal characteristics of CUE in Ningxia province, a typical desert/grassland biome transition zone, were studied. The main driving factors in climate and ecosystem were also investigated by partial correlation analysis. Results showed that the CUE of terrestrial ecosystems in desert/grassland biome transition zone is higher than 0.5, a constant value of CUE defined in many ecological models. However, the CUE varies with the ecosystem types even when they are located in the same climatic zone. There is a decreasing trend of annual CUE in the period of 2001–2017 and most of them will persistently decrease in future at pixels scales, which could be mainly caused by the land use change. Comparing the habitat conditions, we found the lower canopy density and water stress could increase the CUE in the same ecosystem, which indicates the plant could increase their efficiency of transforming carbon from the atmosphere to terrestrial biomass in adverse environment. Finally, the CUE significantly correlated to net primary productivity (NPP) and autotrophic respiration (Ra) in ecosystem processes, meanwhile water stress (lower precipitation) and heat stress (higher temperature) could increase the CUE, but the temperature has variable impacts in different ecosystem.
In vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI) is associated with an increased risk of preterm (33rd-37th gestational week) and early preterm birth (20th-32nd gestational week). ...The underlying general and procedure related risk factors are not well understood so far. 4328 infertile women undergoing IVF/ICSI were entered into this study. The study population was divided into three groups: (a) early preterm birth group (n = 66), (b) preterm birth group (n = 675) and (c) full-term birth group (n = 3653). Odds for preterm birth were calculated by stepwise multivariate logistic regression analysis. We identified seven independent risk factors for preterm birth and four independent risk factors for early preterm birth. Older (> 39) or younger (< 25) maternal age (OR: 1.504, 95% CI 1.108-2.042, P = 0.009; OR: 2.125, 95% CI 1.049-4.304, P = 0.036, respectively), multiple pregnancy (OR: 9.780, 95% CI 8.014-11.935, P < 0.001; OR: 8.588, 95% CI 4.866-15.157, P < 0.001, respectively), placenta previa (OR: 14.954, 95% CI 8.053-27.767, P < 0.001; OR: 16.479, 95% CI 4.381-61.976, P < 0.001, respectively), and embryo reduction (OR: 3.547, 95% CI 1.736-7.249, P = 0.001; OR: 7.145, 95% CI 1.990-25.663, P = 0.003, respectively) were associated with preterm birth and early preterm birth, whereas gestational hypertension (OR: 2.494, 95% CI 1.770-3.514, P < 0.001), elevated triglycerides (OR: 1.120, 95% CI 1.011-1.240, P = 0.030) and shorter activated partial thromboplastin time (OR: 0.967, 95% CI 0.949-0.985, P < 0.001) were associated only with preterm birth. In conclusion, preterm and early preterm birth risk factors in patients undergoing assisted IVF/ICSI are in general similar to those in natural pregnancy. The lack of some associations in the early preterm group was most likely due to the lower number of early preterm birth cases. Only embryo reduction represents an IVF/ICSI specific risk factor.
Anti-angiogenic therapy has been successfully applied to treat colorectal cancer (CRC). Ginsenoside Rg3, derived from the Chinese herb ginseng, has anti-vascularization effects and can inhibit tumor ...growth and metastasis, and can sensitize cancer cells to chemotherapy. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated whether Rg3 could be appropriate for CRC treatment. Growth of CRC cells was assessed by an MTT (methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium) assay in vitro and using orthotopic xenograft models in vivo. mRNA expression was evaluated using real-time PCR. Protein levels were tested by western blotting, flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry. Migration was determined using a wound-healing assay. Stemness was further confirmed using a plate clone formation assay. We found that Rg3 repressed the growth and stemness of CRC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Rg3 also impaired the migration of CRC cells in vitro. Rg3 downregulated the expressions of angiogenesis-related genes, and repressed the vascularization of CRC xenografts. In addition, Rg3 strengthened the cytotoxicity of 5-Fluorouracil and oxaliplatin against orthotopic xenografts in vivo. Moreover, Rg3 downregulated the expressions of B7-H1 and B7-H3, high expressions of which were associated with reduced overall survival (OS) of CRC patients. Hence, Rg3 not only repressed the growth and stemness of CRC cells, but could also remodel the tumor microenvironment through repressing angiogenesis and promoting antitumor immunity. Therefore, Rg3 could be a novel therapeutic for the CRC treatment.
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