Tissue expression of Toll-like receptors 2, 3, 4 and 7 in swine in response to the Shimen strain of classical swine fever virus.

The Toll-like receptors (TLRs) of the innate immune system provide the host with the ability to detect and respond to viral infections. The present study aimed to investigate the mRNA and protein expression levels of TLR2, 3, 4 and 7 in porcine tissues upon infection with the highly virulent Shimen strain of classical swine fever virus (CSFV). Reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the mRNA expression levels of CSFV and TLR, whereas western blotting was used to detect the expression levels of TLR proteins.

Chelating N-Heterocyclic Carbene Ligands Enable Tuning of Electrocatalytic CO Reduction to Formate and Carbon Monoxide: Surface Organometallic Chemistry.

Reported here is the chelate effect as a design principle for tuning heterogeneous catalysts for electrochemical CO reduction. Palladium functionalized with a chelating tris-N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligand (Pd-timtmb ) exhibits a 32-fold increase in activity for electrochemical reduction of CO to C1 products with high Faradaic efficiency (FE =86 %) compared to the parent unfunctionalized Pd foil (FE=23 %), and with sustained activity relative to a monodentate NHC-ligated Pd electrode (Pd-mimtmb ). The results highlight the contributions of the chelate effect for tailoring and maintaining reactivity at molecular-materials interfaces enabled by surface organometallic chemistry.

Elaborating the History of Our Cementing Societies: An in-Use Stock Perspective.

Modern cities and societies are built fundamentally based on cement and concrete. The global cement production has risen sharply in the past decades due largely to urbanization and construction. Here we deployed a top-down dynamic material flow analysis (MFA) model to quantify the historical development of cement in-use stocks in residential, nonresidential, and civil engineering sectors of all world countries.

TRAF6 is a novel NS3-interacting protein that inhibits classical swine fever virus replication.

Classical swine fever virus (CSFV) non-structural protein 3 (NS3) is a multifunctional non-structural protein that plays a major role in viral replication. However, how exactly NS3 exerts these functions remains unknown. Here, we identified tumour necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) as a novel NS3-interacting protein via yeast two-hybrid analysis, co-immunoprecipitation, and glutathione S-transferase pull-down assays.

uS10, a novel Npro-interacting protein, inhibits classical swine fever virus replication.

Classical swine fever (CSF) is a severe, febrile and highly contagious disease caused by classical swine fever virus (CSFV) that has resulted in huge economic losses in the pig industry worldwide. CSFV Npro has been actively studied but remains incompletely understood. Few studies have investigated the cellular proteins that interact with Npro and their participation in viral replication.

Preparing the Gut with Antibiotics Enhances Gut Microbiota Reprogramming Efficiency by Promoting Xenomicrobiota Colonization.

Gut microbiota plays multiple important roles in intestinal and physiological homeostasis, and using fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) to reprogram gut microbiota has demonstrated promise for redressing intestinal and physiological disorders. This study tested the alterations in reprogramming efficiency caused by different gut preparation procedures and explored the associated underlying mechanisms. We prepared the guts of mice for FMT by administering one of the three most-clinically used pretreatments [antibiotics, bowel cleansing (BC) solution, or no pretreatment], and we found that preparing the gut with antibiotics induced a more efficient modification of the gut bacterial community than was induced by either of the other two pretreatment types.

Probing the specificity of polyurethane foam as a 'solid-phase extractant': Extractability-governing molecular attributes of lipophilic phenolic compounds.

The long-proposed use of open-cell polyurethane foam (PUF) as a convenient 'solid-phase extractant' for aqueous organic compounds has been hindered by a critical lack of understanding on the underlying specificity of its extraction mechanism. In this work, we tasked ourselves to understand the hierarchy of molecular structure, properties, and partitioning characteristics of compounds in PUF and aqueous phase by targeting lipophilic phenolic compounds (LPCs) as a group of primary targets for PUF extraction. Using six structurally related bisphenol analogs as comparative probes, we identified molecular lipophilicity and H-bond acidity as key molecular attributes that governed their extractability by PUF.

Neutralization of interleukin-17 suppresses allergic rhinitis symptoms by downregulating Th2 and Th17 responses and upregulating the Treg response.

Allergic rhinitis (AR) has long been considered to predominantly involve the actions of Th2 cells, with relatively small contributions from Th1 cells. In recent years, the discovery of Th17 and regulatory T (Treg) cells has rendered the Th1/Th2 balance paradigm more complex and expanded our understanding of the pathogenesis of AR. IL-17, a key cytokine produced by Th17 cells, is known to induce allergen-specific Th2 cell activation, eosinophil and neutrophil accumulation, and serum IgE production in asthma; all of these features may play important roles in AR.

Neutralization of interleukin-9 ameliorates symptoms of allergic rhinitis by reducing Th2, Th9, and Th17 responses and increasing the Treg response in a murine model.

A novel independent Th-cell subset, characterized by high expression of interleukin (IL)-9, has been recognized as the "Th9" subset. Although Th9 cells are important in many diseases, their contribution to allergic rhinitis (AR) remains unclear. We therefore first determined whether Th9 cells were present in a mouse model of AR.

What is the association of hypothyroidism with risks of cardiovascular events and mortality? A meta-analysis of 55 cohort studies involving 1,898,314 participants.

Background: Whether hypothyroidism is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular events is still disputed. We aimed to assess the association between hypothyroidism and risks of cardiovascular events and mortality.

Methods: We searched PubMed and Embase from inception to 29 February 2016.

Radiation-induced SOD2 overexpression sensitizes colorectal cancer to radiation while protecting normal tissue.

This study investigated whether radiation-induced overexpression of superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) exerts radio-sensitizing effects on tumor cells while having radio-protective effects on normal cells during radio-activated gene therapy for human colorectal cancer. A chimeric promoter, C9BC, was generated by directly linking nine tandem CArG boxes to a CMV basic promoter, after which lentiviral vectors containing GFP and SOD2 gene driven by the C9BC promoter were constructed. Stably transfected HT-29 colorectal cancer cells and CCD 841 CoN normal colorectal cells were irradiated to a dose of 6-Gy, and cell proliferation and apoptosis were observed.

Gremlin1 promotes carcinogenesis of glioma in vitro.

As the most prevalent and lethal type of brain tumours, gliomas, especially malignant ones, are relatively resistant to conventional therapies. Gremlin 1 (GREM1) is a secreted glycoprotein that is implicated in the maintenance of cancer stem cells in tumour hierarchy. In the current study, the role of GREM1 in the carcinogenesis of glioma was studied using a knockdown approach.

Gastrodin protects against chronic inflammatory pain by inhibiting spinal synaptic potentiation.

Tissue injury is known to produce inflammation and pain. Synaptic potentiation between peripheral nociceptors and spinal lamina I neurons has been proposed to serve as a trigger for chronic inflammatory pain. Gastrodin is a main bioactive constituent of the traditional Chinese herbal medicine Gastrodia elata Blume, which has been widely used as an analgesic since ancient times.

MiRNA-Embedded ShRNAs for Radiation-Inducible LGMN Knockdown and the Antitumor Effects on Breast Cancer.

Legumain (LGMN) is highly expressed in breast cancer (BC) and other solid tumors and is a potential anticancer target. Here we investigate the anti-tumor effects of short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) targeting LGMN embedded in a microRNA-155 (miR-155) architecture, which is driven by a radiation-inducible chimeric RNA polymerase II (Pol II) promoter. Lentiviral vectors were generated with the chimeric promoter which controlled the expression of downstream shRNA-miR-155 cassette.

Protein Metabolism and Signal Pathway Regulation in Rumen and Mammary Gland.

Protein is an important yet the most expensive dietary component for farm ruminant animals. Understanding the mechanism behind protein utilization in animals for maintenance and milk production is critical for raising animals efficiently. Once the protein has been ingested, it undergoes various transformations in the gut before it is absorbed into blood and its precursors are harnessed by the mammary gland for milk protein synthesis in lactating animals.

A Molecular Surface Functionalization Approach to Tuning Nanoparticle Electrocatalysts for Carbon Dioxide Reduction.

Conversion of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) to value-added products is an important challenge for sustainable energy research, and nanomaterials offer a broad class of heterogeneous catalysts for such transformations. Here we report a molecular surface functionalization approach to tuning gold nanoparticle (Au NP) electrocatalysts for reduction of CO2 to CO. The N-heterocyclic (NHC) carbene-functionalized Au NP catalyst exhibits improved faradaic efficiency (FE = 83%) for reduction of CO2 to CO in water at neutral pH at an overpotential of 0.

[Growth characteristics of Porites lutea skeleton in east sea area of Hainan Island, China and main affecting environmental factors.].

The growth characteristics of Porites lutea skeleton in east sea area of Hainan Island were studied by CoralXDS software based on X-ray chronology. The growth parameters obtained included extension rate (ER), skeleton density (D), and calcification rate (CR). The results showed that ER varied from 0.

Phosphoramidate protides of five flavones and their antiproliferative activity against HepG2 and L-O2 cell lines.

A series of flavone-7-phosphoramidate derivatives were synthesized and tested for their antiproliferative activity in vitro against human hepatoma cell line HepG2 and human normal hepatic cell line L-O2. Compound 8d, 16d and 17d, incorporating the amino acid alanine, exhibited high inhibitory activity on HepG2 cell line with IC50 values of 9.0 μmol/L, 5.

Chlorine and temperature directed self-assembly of Mg-Ru2(ii,iii) carbonates and particle size dependent magnetic properties.

A series of heterometallic magnesium diruthenium(ii,iii) carbonates, namely K{Mg(H2O)6}2[Ru2(CO3)4Cl2]·4H2O (1), K2[{Mg(H2O)4}2Ru2(CO3)4(H2O)Cl]Cl2·2H2O (2), K[Mg(H2O)5Ru2(CO3)4]·5H2O (3) and K[Mg(H2O)4Ru2(CO3)4]·H2O (4), were synthesized from the reaction of Ru2(CO3)4(3-) and Mg(2+) in aqueous solution. Compound 1 is composed of ionic crystals with the Ru2(CO3)4Cl2(5-) : Mg(H2O)6(2+) : K(+) ratio of 1 : 2 : 1. Compound 2 consists of two dimensional layer structures, in which each octahedral environment Mg(H2O)4(2+) bonds to two [Ru2(CO3)4(H2O)Cl](4-) units in a cis manner forming a neutral square-grid layer {Mg(H2O)4Ru2(CO3)4(H2O)Cl}n.

Size effect of anaerobic granular sludge on biogas production: A micro scale study.

This study investigated the influence of anaerobic granular sludge size on its bioactivity at COD concentration of 1000, 3000 and 6000 mg/L. Based on size, granules were categorized as large (3-3.5 mm), medium (1.

A Hierarchical Clustering Method of Selecting Kernel SNP to Unify Informative SNP and Tag SNP.

Various strategies can be used to select representative single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from a large number of SNPs, such as tag SNP for haplotype coverage and informative SNP for haplotype reconstruction, respectively. Representative SNPs are not only instrumental in reducing the cost of genotyping, but also serve an important function in narrowing the combinatorial space in epistasis analysis. The capacity of kernel SNPs to unify informative SNP and tag SNP is explored, and inconsistencies are minimized in further studies.

Gene Selection Using Locality Sensitive Laplacian Score.

Gene selection based on microarray data, is highly important for classifying tumors accurately. Existing gene selection schemes are mainly based on ranking statistics. From manifold learning standpoint, local geometrical structure is more essential to characterize features compared with global information.

T-Helper Type 9 Cells Play a Central Role in the Pathogenesis of Respiratory Epithelial Adenomatoid Hamartoma.

The etiology and pathogenesis of respiratory epithelial adenomatoid hamartoma (REAH) remain poorly understood, although some reports have suggested that REAH features an inflammatory process. T-helper type 9 (Th9) cells are a newly identified subset of CD4 T-helper cells characterized by the expression of high levels of interleukin (IL)-9, which may promote inflammation. As REAH may involve an inflammatory process, we evaluated whether IL-9 and/or Th9 cells were present in REAH and compared the levels thereof to those of normal nasal mucosa.