Comparative studies of two methods for miRNA isolation from milk whey.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) from milk whey have been considered for their potential as noninvasive biomarkers for milk quality control and disease diagnosis. However, standard protocols for miRNA isolation and quantification from milk whey are not well established. The objective of this study was to compare two methods for the isolation of miRNAs from milk whey.

Functional diversity of jasmonates in rice.

Phytohormone jasmonates (JA) play essential roles in plants, such as regulating development and growth, responding to environmental changes, and resisting abiotic and biotic stresses. During signaling, JA interacts, either synergistically or antagonistically, with other hormones, such as salicylic acid (SA), gibberellin (GA), ethylene (ET), auxin, brassinosteroid (BR), and abscisic acid (ABA), to regulate gene expression in regulatory networks, conferring physiological and metabolic adjustments in plants. As an important staple crop, rice is a major nutritional source for human beings and feeds one third of the world's population.

[Research on influence of different syringe types on quality control of syringe pump].

To evaluate the influence of different brands of syringes on performance parameters and application quality of syringe pump, we carried out matching experiment of infusion/syringe pump analyzer Rigel Multi-Flo, made by ALK Co. in Sweden, for 3 different types of syringes to measure the flow rate, occlusion alarm pressure, occlusion time and bolus volume of 26 syringe pumps. Data of quality control were analyzed with statistical method.

Multiple-stimuli responsive bioelectrocatalysis based on reduced graphene oxide/poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) composite films and its application in the fabrication of logic gates.

In the present work, reduced graphene oxide (rGO)/poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAA) composite films were electrodeposited onto the surface of Au electrodes in a fast and one-step manner from an aqueous mixture of a graphene oxide (GO) dispersion and N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAA) monomer solutions. Reflection-absorption infrared (IR) and Raman spectroscopies were employed to characterize the successful construction of the rGO/PNIPAA composite films. The rGO/PNIPAA composite films exhibited reversible potential-, pH-, temperature-, and sulfate-sensitive cyclic voltammetric (CV) on-off behavior to the electroactive probe ferrocenedicarboxylic acid (Fc(COOH)2).

Metabolomics of four biofluids from dairy cows: potential biomarkers for milk production and quality.

The fundamental understanding of the mechanisms regulating milk protein synthesis is limited. This study aimed to elucidate the metabolic mechanisms of milk production affected by forage quality through studying metabolites from four biofluids (rumen fluid, milk, serum, and urine) collected from 16 lactating cows fed alfalfa hay (AH, high-quality, n = 8) and corn stover (CS, low-quality, n = 8) using gas chromatography-time-of-flight/mass spectrometry. The cows fed AH exhibited higher milk yield (P < 0.

[The application of Hilbert-Huang transform in speech coding algorithm for cochlear implants].

To enhance speech recognition in realistic listening environment, as well as tonal language and music perception, a new speech coding strategy based on Hilbert Huang transform was presented. Instantaneous frequency and instantaneous amplitude which reflect speech contents, speech rhythms and tones are derived from original speech signal through empirical mode decomposition and the Hilbert transform to synthesize stimulating pulses. The presented new speech coding algorithm, continuous interleaved sampling, and frequency amplitude modulation encoding strategies were simulated by Matlab and synthesized signals of 50 Mandarin speech test materials are correlation analyzed between original signals.

Logic gate system with three outputs and three inputs based on switchable electrocatalysis of glucose by glucose oxidase entrapped in chitosan films.

A logic-gate system with three outputs and three inputs was developed based on the bioelectrocatalysis of glucose by glucose oxidase (GOx) entrapped in chitosan films on the electrode surface by means of ferrocenedicarboxylic acid (Fc(COOH)2 ). Cyclic voltammetric (CV) signals of Fc(COOH)2 exhibited pH-triggered on/off behavior owing to electrostatic interactions between the film and the probe at different pH levels. The addition of glucose greatly increased the oxidation peak current (Ipa ) through the electrocatalytic reaction.

Epithelioid angiosarcoma of the kidney: A case report and literature review.

Epithelioid angiosarcoma (EAS) is a rare disease which presents a great diagnostic challenge. The present study reports a case of EAS in the kidney in a 75-year-old male who presented with gross hematuria. An abdominal computed tomography scan revealed space-occupying lesions of the right kidney and renal cell carcinoma was suspected.

Live cell integrated surface plasmon resonance biosensing approach to mimic the regulation of angiogenic switch upon anti-cancer drug exposure.

In this work, we report a novel surface plasmon resonance (SPR) based live-cell biosensing platform to measure and compare the binding affinity of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) to vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) and VEGF to bevacizumab. Results have shown that bevacizumab binds VEGF with a higher association rate and affinity compared to VEGFR. Further, this platform has been employed to mimic the in vivo condition of the VEGF-VEGFR angiogenic switch.

Tracing children's vocabulary development from preschool through the school-age years: an 8-year longitudinal study.

In this 8-year longitudinal study, we traced the vocabulary growth of Chinese children, explored potential precursors of vocabulary knowledge, and investigated how vocabulary growth predicted future reading skills. Two hundred and sixty-four (264) native Chinese children from Beijing were measured on a variety of reading and language tasks over 8 years. Between the ages of 4 to 10 years, they were administered tasks of vocabulary and related cognitive skills.

Amiodarone-induced epididymitis: a pathologically confirmed case report and review of the literature.

We report a case of amiodarone-induced epididymitis and review the pertinent literature. This disease is currently a diagnosis of exclusion and is believed to be self-limiting. We found new evidence for the pathological diagnosis and identified amiodarone-like crystals in the epididymis as a pathological mechanism of this disease.

Thermo- and sulfate-controllable bioelectrocatalysis of glucose based on horseradish peroxidase and glucose oxidase embedded in poly(N,N-diethylacrylamide) hydrogel films.

Dual-responsive poly(N,N-diethylacrylamide) (PDEA) hydrogel films with entrapped horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and glucose oxidase (GOD) were successfully prepared on electrode surface with a simple one-step polymerization procedure under mild conditions, designated as PDEA-HRP-GOD. Cyclic voltammetric (CV) response of electroactive probe K3Fe(CN)6 at the film electrodes displayed reversible thermo- and sulfate-responsive switching behavior. For example, at 25 °C, the K3Fe(CN)6 demonstrated a well-defined CV peak pair with large peak currents for the films, showing the on state, while at 40 °C, the CV response was greatly suppressed and the system was at the off state.

Multiple stimuli-switchable bioelectrocatalysis under physiological conditions based on copolymer films with entrapped enzyme.

In the present work, N,N-diethylacrylamide (DEA) and methyl acrylic acid (MAA) monomers were copolymerized into P(DEA-co-MAA) thin films on the electrode surface with a simple one-step polymerization method at ambient temperature and pressure, and the enzyme glucose oxidase (GOD) was entrapped in the films, designed as P(DEA-co-MAA)-GOD. The cyclic voltammetric (CV) response of ferrocene dicarboxylic acid (Fc(COOH)2) at the film electrodes was very sensitive to environmental stimuli, such as temperature, pH, the identity and concentration of anions, and the concentration of CO2 in solution. This multiresponsive CV behavior of the system could be further employed to switch the electrochemical oxidation of glucose catalyzed by GOD entrapped in the films with Fc(COOH)2 as the mediator in solution, demonstrating the amplification effect.

Effect of dietary phosphorus content on milk production and phosphorus excretion in dairy cows.

Background: Phosphorus (P) supplementation is costly and can result in excess P excretion. This study investigated the effects of reducing dietary P on milk production and P excretion in dairy cows over a full lactation.

Method: Forty-five multiparous Holstein dairy cows were divided into 15 blocks according to expected calving date and previous milk yield, and assigned randomly to one of the three dietary treatments: 0.

High-level exogenous trans10, cis12 conjugated linoleic acid plays an anti-lipogenesis role in bovine mammary epithelial cells.

Primary bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMECs) were treated by 0, 37.5, 75, 112.5, 150 μmol/L trans10, cis12 conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) to evaluate the effects of different level trans10, cis12 CLA on lipogenesis in BMEC.

Motion artifact removal from photoplethysmographic signals by combining temporally constrained independent component analysis and adaptive filter.

Background: The calculation of arterial oxygen saturation (SpO2) relies heavily on the amplitude information of the high-quality photoplethysmographic (PPG) signals, which could be contaminated by motion artifacts (MA) during monitoring.

Methods: A new method combining temporally constrained independent component analysis (cICA) and adaptive filters is presented here to extract the clean PPG signals from the MA corrupted PPG signals with the amplitude information reserved. The underlying PPG signal could be extracted from the MA contaminated PPG signals automatically by using cICA algorithm.

A paper electrode integrated lateral flow immunosensor for quantitative analysis of oxidative stress induced DNA damage.

A novel device combining electrochemical and colorimetric detection is developed for the rapid measurement of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), a DNA oxidative damage biomarker. The device takes advantage of the speed and low cost of the conventional strip test as well as the high reliability and accuracy of the electrochemical assay. Competitive immunoreactions were performed on the lateral flow strip, and the captured 8-OHdG on the control line was determined by chronoamperometric measurement with carbon nanotube paper as the working electrode.

A novel peptide to disrupt the interaction of BST-2 and Vpu.

Bone marrow stromal cell antigen 2 (BST-2) inhibits the release of HIV-1 and other enveloped viruses from the cell surface. HIV-1 Vpu binds to BST-2 through an interaction between transmembrane domains (TMD) of the two proteins and induces the downregulation of cell surface BST-2, thereby counteracting its antiviral activity. In this study, we designed and prepared a modified peptide BST2-TM-P1, which include the sequence of BST-2 TMD, keeping its property competing with BST-2 to bind with Vpu.

Establishment and characterization of an omasal epithelial cell model derived from dairy calves for the study of small peptide absorption.

The objective of this study was to establish a primary culture of omasal epithelial cells (OECs) derived from dairy calves and to characterize its function in small peptide absorption. Bovine omasal tissues were obtained from newborn Chinese Holstein calves and digested with a 2.5% trypsin solution to obtain OECs.

Assessing DNA Damage from Enzyme-Oxidized Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes.

Peroxidase enzyme digests of oxidized single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) were shown to damage DNA in potentially genotoxic reactions for the first time using an electro-optical array with and without metabolic activation.

Left ventricular systolic strain of the cardiac allograft evaluated with three-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography.

Three-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography was employed to evaluate the changes of left ventricular systolic strain in 23 heart transplant recipients at 1st, 3rd, 6th and 12th month after heart transplantation, and 23 healthy subjects served as controls. The three-dimensional full-volume echocardiographic images of left ventricle were recorded and then were analyzed using EchoPAC software. The strain curves and peak systolic strain values for each segment and overall left ventricular wall were obtained.

Total 4EBP1 Is Elevated in Liver of Rats in Response to Low Sulfur Amino Acid Intake.

Translation initiation is known to be regulated by the binding of eukaryotic initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) by binding proteins (4EBPs), and there is evidence that amino acid deprivation and other cellular stresses upregulate 4EBP1 expression. To pursue the question of whether diets limited in an essential amino acid lead to induction of 4EBP1 expression in vivo, diets that varied in methionine and cystine content were fed to rats for 7 days, and 4EBP1 mRNA and protein levels and 4EBP1 phosphorylation state were determined. Total 4EBP1 mRNA and protein abundance increased in liver of rats with severely deficient intakes of sulfur amino acids (0.

Development of adaptive pneumatic tourniquet systems based on minimal inflation pressure for upper limb surgeries.

Background: Pneumatic tourniquets are medical devices that occlude blood flow to distal part of extremities and are commonly used in upper limb surgeries to provide a dry, clean and bloodless field. To decrease pressure-related injuries and potential risk of complications subjected to the high inflation pressure of pneumatic tourniquet, minimal inflation pressures are recommended.

Methods: A new occlusion pressure mathematical model for the upper limb was established based on the correlation analysis between several possible influencing parameters and the minimal pneumatic tourniquet pressure at which the peripheral pulse disappeared was recorded using a digital plethysmograph.

A simplified two-stitch sleeve technique for arterial anastomosis of cervical heterotopic cardiac transplantation in mice.

Although cervical cardiac transplantation is a well recognized useful model in diverse experimental settings, its widespread use, however, has been significantly hampered by the technical challenges relevant to small vessel anastomosis. We herein introduced a simplified two-stitch sleeve technique into arterial anastomosis during the course of cervical cardiac transplantation in mice. Cervical transplantation of allogenic and syngeneic cardiac grafts was conducted to assess the feasibility of this two-stitch sleeve technique in arterial anastomosis.