A facile approach to prepare monodisperse polystyrene (PS) particles containing quaternary ammonium salts with long alkyl chain was reported. The PS particles containing quaternary ammonium salts are ...prepared by two-stage dispersion polymerization in ethanol/water (80/20
w
/w) mixture with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) as a steric stabilizer and fatty alcohol polyoxyethylene ether (AEO-9) as a co-stabilizer. Polymerizations are conducted using N′-dimethyl-N-n-dodecyl-N-2-methacryloyloxyethylammonium bromide (QDMDB) as a comonomer added in the second stage. We identify reaction conditions where one can obtain the functional polystyrene microspheres with a size distribution less than 3%. The influence of the initiator concentration, the styrene monomer concentration, the stabilizer concentration, and QDMDB comonomer concentration on the average particle size and the efficient of variation are investigated comprehensively. The novel particles are examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), gel permeation chromatography (GPC), zeta potential, and nuclear magnetic resonance (
1
H NMR). QDMDB comonomer not only functionalized the polystyrene particles but also proved to be effective in controlling the particle size and size distribution. According to these results, we show that two-stage dispersion polymerization is an effective pathway for the structure design of the functional microspheres.
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This study is based on a sample of 116 languages from the Mainland East and Southeast Asian linguistic area. Its first objective is to examine four distinct synchronic patterns of areal polysemy, ...created by the semantic domains of copular, locative, existential and possessive verbs and the constructions they form. As a consequence, its second objective is to model the diachronic change underlying four language types identified on this basis from the data. We argue that there are three grammaticalization pathways which motivate the four synchronic patterns: Type III languages are distinguished by the grammaticalization chain: (P
while the other two types, Type II and Type IV, show an opposing pathway: (
. Type I and Type II languages additionally reveal a recurrent polysemy between
and
verbs. On this basis, an implicational universal is adduced to the effect that no diachronic adjacency exists between
and
constructions. Crucially, the intervening stage of an
construction provides the necessary bridging context for
reanalysis in this first pathway, while
verbs are formally distinct from
in the second, bearing no diachronic relationship to them. The findings on the patterns of polysemy sharing reinforce the notion of a clear typological split between Tibeto-Burman languages on the one hand, and Sinitic, Kra–Dai, Hmong–Mien, and Austroasiatic on the other.
•Baicalin promotes the expressions of Nestin and NSE.•Ginsenoside Rb1 promotes the expressions of Nestin, NSE and GFAP.•Baicalin accelerates the proliferation and differentiation of NSCs.•Ginsenoside ...Rb1 stimulates the differentiation of NSCs.
This study aimed to explore the effects of ginsenoside Rb1 and baicalin on the proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells (NSC) in Alzheimer’s disease model rats.
The healthy Sprague Dawley male rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: control group, model group, ginsenoside Rb1 group and baicalin group. Besides, the animal model of dementia was induced by the injection of Aβ1-40. 2 weeks later, the rats in the baicalin and ginsenoside Rb1 groups were injected with baicalin and ginsenoside Rb1, respectively. The contents, expression sites of Nestin, GFAP and NSE and the percentage of viable cells were detected by immunohistochemistry. In addition, the expression levels of Nestin, GFAP and NSE in hippocampus of rats were detected by western-blot and metrology analysis was performed using quantity.
Injection of Aβ1-40 significantly reduced the number of neuronal cells (p < .05). In addition, compared with the control group, the percentages of positive cells of NSCs, astrocytes and neuronal were increased. Besides, compared with the model group, the percentage of positive neural cells was improved by ginsenoside Rb1 (p < .05), and the percentages of astrocytes and neuronal were increased by ginsenoside Rb1 and baicalin (p < .05). Moreover, the expressions of Nestin and NSE were enhanced by ginsenoside Rb1 and baicalin (p < .05), while the GFAP level was only affected by ginsenoside Rb1 (p < .05) when compared with the model group.
Ginsenoside Rb1 and baicalin might promote the proliferation and differentiation of endogenous NSCs in AD rat model.
Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC), a type of bile duct cancer, has a high mortality rate. Gut microbiota, bile acid (BA) metabolism, and cytokines have not been characterized in patients with ...ICC, and better noninvasive diagnostic approaches for ICC are essential to be established. Therefore, in this study we aimed to improve our understanding of changes in gut microbiota, BA metabolism, and cytokines in patients with ICC. We found that the α‐diversities and β‐diversities of ICC were highest and that the abundances of four genera (Lactobacillus, Actinomyces, Peptostreptococcaceae, and Alloscardovia) were increased in patients with ICC compared with those in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma or liver cirrhosis and in healthy individuals. The glycoursodeoxycholic acid and tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) plasma‐stool ratios were obviously increased in patients with ICC. Furthermore, the genera Lactobacillus and Alloscardovia that were positively correlated with TUDCA plasma‐stool ratios were combined to discriminate ICC from the other three diseases. Vascular invasion (VI) frequently led to a poor prognosis in patients with ICC. Compared with patients with ICC without VI, patients with VI had a greater abundance of the family Ruminococcaceae, increased levels of plasma interleukin (IL)‐4 and six conjugated BAs, and decreased levels of plasma IL‐6 and chenodeoxycholic acid. A positive correlation between plasma taurocholic acid and IL‐4 was observed in patients with ICC. Plasma TUDCA was negatively correlated with the abundance of the genus Pseudoramibacter and the survival time of patients with ICC, but had no effect on tumor size, as determined in two murine tumor models. Conclusion: In this study, we identified some biomarkers, including gut microbiota, BAs and inflammatory cytokines, for the diagnosis of ICC and prediction of VI in patients with ICC.
•An automatic oxygen supply method was put forward to improve cell catalysis performance of xylonic acid.•586.3g/L xylonic acid was obtained from 600g/L xylose.•We could produce 143.9g/L xylonic acid ...directly from crude lignocellulosic pre-hydrolysates.
Xylonic acid is useful and producing it in bacteria cost-effectively would be good because of potential applications and high yield. Production in bacteria like Gluconobacter oxydans is hampered by low xylose utilization and poor bacterial tolerance to contaminants. Here we exploited the oxygen-dependence of NAD+ regeneration and the lack of gas release during xylose metabolism in G. oxydans to develop a high-oxygen tension bioreactor with increased productivity. In this design we maintained gas outlets closed, which eliminated all bubbling and media foaming, and added a compressed pure oxygen inlet, which increased oxygen tension. Biocatalysis of xylose in this bioreactor yielded 3 times higher (586.3g/L xylonic acid) than the best previous output. Moreover, we directly produced 143.9g/L of xylonic acid from the diluted sulfuric acid pre-hydrolysates of corn stover without a detoxification process and at 1.0g/L/h volumetric productivity. The central features of this bioreactor design are scalable and thus would enable cost-competitive bacterial xylonic acid production.
The nucleus accumbens (NAc) is critical in mediating reward seeking and is also involved in negative emotion processing, but the cellular and circuitry mechanisms underlying such opposing behaviors ...remain elusive. Here, using the recently developed AAV1-mediated anterograde transsynaptic tagging technique in mice, we show that NAc neurons receiving basolateral amygdala inputs (NAc
) promote positive reinforcement via disinhibiting dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA). In contrast, NAc neurons receiving paraventricular thalamic inputs (NAc
) innervate GABAergic neurons in the lateral hypothalamus (LH) and mediate aversion. Silencing the synaptic output of NAc
neurons impairs reward seeking behavior, while silencing of NAc
or NAc
→LH pathway abolishes aversive symptoms of opiate withdrawal. Our results elucidate the afferent-specific circuit architecture of the NAc in controlling reward and aversion.
The traditional synthesis of syngas, a mixture of CO and H2, relies on the reverse water gas shift reaction at high temperature and thus consumes considerable energy and resources. In this regard, ...the electrochemical conversion of CO2-H2O to CO-H2 provides an emerging alternative technique to conquer these shortages. This short review highlights the recent advances and future trends in the electrocatalytic transformation of CO2 and H2O to syngas with a tunable H2:CO ratio. We summarize the latest advances in metals, metal oxides and chalcogenides, metal complex catalysts, single-atom catalysts, and metal-free catalysts with an emphasis on controlling the CO:H2 ratio, which is vital for downstream Fischer-Tropsch process synthesis. Then we introduce versatile methods to improve the production efficiency of syngas by alternative anode reactions and advanced technologies (e.g., gas diffusion electrode-based, flow, solid oxide electrolytic cells). Finally, we provide an outlook on the current challenges and promising opportunities in the field of syngas synthesis.
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The traditional synthesis of syngas relies on the reverse water gas shift reaction at high temperatures and thus consumes considerable energy and resources. As such, the electrochemical conversion of CO2-H2O to CO-H2 is an attractive alternative technique. This short review highlights the recent advances and future trends in the electrocatalytic transformation of CO2 and H2O to syngas with a tunable H2:CO ratio.
Events boost the economy and generate tourist interest in host cities. Organizations involved in tourism will benefit from understanding how best to implement events which impact host cities' ...development. This paper explores the impact on host cities of sponsoring an event portfolio, comprising many different types of events. An empirical study analysed 230 tourism events hosted in mainland China. A multiple regression analysis was performed to test various hypotheses. The findings show that event 'strength' (i.e. the level of internationalization, number of participants, and continuity of events) can increase event attractiveness. Consequently, such events promote economic development in host cities. However, levels of government support were found to have negative impacts on host cities' economies. It is worth mentioning that the duration of tourism events has an inverted U-shaped relationship to economic development. As for spatial distribution of events, we found that locating them in provincial capitals had stronger positive impacts on host cities' economic development and attractiveness. Marketing strategies are proposed to meet target goals.
The Na+/K+-ATPase (NKA), has been proposed as a signal transducer involving various pathobiological processes, including tumorigenesis. However, the clinical relevance of NKA in hepatocellular ...carcinoma (HCC) has not been well studied. This study revealed the upregulation of mRNA of ATP1A1, ATP1B1, and ATP1B3 in HCC using TCGA, ICGC, and GEO database. Subsequently, ATP1B3 was demonstrated as an independent prognostic factor of overall survival (OS) of HCC. To investigate the potential mechanisms of ATP1B3 in HCC, we analyzed the co-expression network using LinkedOmics and found that ATP1B3 co-expressed genes were associated with immune-related biological processes. Furthermore, we found that ATP1B3 was correlated immune cell infiltration and immune-related cytokines expression in HCC. The protein level of ATP1B3 was also validated as a prognostic significance and was correlated with immune infiltration in HCC using two proteomics datasets. Finally, functional analysis revealed that ATP1B3 was increased in HCC cells and tissues, silenced ATP1B3 repressed HCC cell proliferation, migration, and promoted HCC cell apoptosis and epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). In conclusion, these findings proved that ATP1B3 could be an oncogene and it was demonstrated as an independent prognostic factor and correlated with immune infiltration in HCC, revealing new insights into the prognostic role and potential immune regulation of ATP1B3 in HCC progression and provide a novel possible therapeutic strategy for HCC.
A two-stage synthesis of surface-functionalized monodisperse polystyrene (PS) microspheres in ethanol/water medium by introducing methacryloyloxyethyl dodecyl dimethyl ammonium bromide (QDMDB) to ...dispersion polymerization of styrene is reported. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and fatty alcohol polyoxyethylene ether (AEO-9) are used as dispersion stabilizers. The novel microspheres are characterized by FT-IR, SEM, GPC, TGA, water contact angle (WCA), etc. The dispersion polymerization goes through successfully with the solid content up to 58.75%, in which the water content in the medium is 20%. The water content in the medium has a certain effect on the particle size and molecular weight of microspheres. Under the experimental conditions, the average diameters of the obtained microspheres are approximately 550–1200 nm with the number average molecular weight of up to 5.8 × 10
5
. The introduction of QDMDB improves the wettability and thermal stability of the poly(St-co-QDMDB) microspheres. A mechanism of dispersion copolymerization based on XPS and
1
H NMR is proposed.
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