Deapioplatycodin D inhibits glioblastoma cell proliferation by inducing BNIP3L-mediated incomplete mitophagy.

Deapioplatycodin D (DPD) is a triterpenoid saponin natural compound isolated from the Chinese herb Platycodon grandiflorum that has antiviral and antitumor properties. This study aimed to investigate the effects of DPD on glioblastoma (GBM) cells and to determine its intrinsic mechanism of action. Using a CCK8 assay, it was found that DPD significantly inhibited the growth of GBM cells.

A comprehensive evaluation on the associations between hearing and vision impairments and risk of all-cause and cause-specific dementia: results from cohort study, meta-analysis and Mendelian randomization study.

Background: Epidemiological studies show inconsistent links between hearing/vision impairment and dementia risk. Using multisource data, we investigated how single or combined sensory impairments relate to risks of all-cause and specific types of dementia.

Methods: We employed a triangulation approach combining three methodologies.

An injectable, self-healing, electroconductive hydrogel loaded with neural stem cells and donepezil for enhancing local therapy effect of spinal cord injury.

Background: Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a serious injury with high mortality and disability rates, and there is no effective treatment at present. It has been reported that some treatments, such as drug intervention and stem cell transplantation have positive effects in promoting neurological recovery. Although those treatments are effective for nerve regeneration, many drawbacks, such as low stem cell survival rates and side effects caused by systemic medication, have limited their development.

Prenatal diagnosis of fetomaternal hemorrhage by a novel hydrogel fluoroimmunoassay that accurately quantifies fetal haemoglobin.

Fetomaternal hemorrhage (FMH) is an alloimmunization resulting caused by the incompatibility between fetal and maternal blood. For the prevention of newborn haemolytic disease (HDN), it is crucial to quantify the amount of fetomaternal hemorrhage. However, the classical Kleihauer-Betke test (K-B test) for detecting fetomaternal hemorrhage is limited by experimental tools and conditions and is not suitable for routine clinical use.

A novel enzyme-linked immunostaining technique based on silk membrane for the prenatal detection of fetomaternal haemorrhage.

Developing a simple, rapid, reliable, sensitive, and cost-effective method for prenatal detection of fetomaternal haemorrhage by combining multi-aperture silk membrane with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), which does not require any complicated instruments and can be visually colored, so as to provide a new method for clinical detection of fetomaternal haemorrhage. As a carrier, a chemically treated silk membrane was used to immobilize anti-A/anti-B antibody reagent. PBS washed slowly after vertically dropping red blood cells.

The development and application of a novel reagent for fixing red blood cells with glutaraldehyde and paraformaldehyde.

Objective: The currently employed red blood cell reagents have a short shelf life. Some hospitals with a small number of specimens will be unable to utilize them within the validity period, resulting in a substantial increase in the purchase price. Therefore, the method of developing long-term red blood cell reagents is a problem worthy of further study.

Transcription Factor MafB Suppresses Type I Interferon Production by CD14 Monocytes in Patients With Chronic Hepatitis C.

Transcription factor MafB regulates differentiation and activity of monocytes/macrophage and is associated with the development of atherosclerosis and cancers. However, the role of MafB in modulation of CD14 monocytes in chronic viral hepatitis was not fully elucidated. Thus, the aim of current study was to investigate the immunoregulatory function of MafB to type I interferon (IFN) secretion by CD14 monocytes and its contribution to pathogenesis of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

Gastrin promotes angiogenesis by activating HIF-1α/β-catenin/VEGF signaling in gastric cancer.

Angiogenesis is recognized as a sign of cancer and facilitates cancer progression and metastasis. Suppression of angiogenesis is a desirable strategy for gastric cancer (GC) management. In this study, we showed a novel role of gastrin in angiogenesis of GC.

Identification and functional characterization of intermediate-size non-coding RNAs in maize.

Background: The majority of eukaryote genomes can be actively transcribed into non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), which are functionally important in development and evolution. In the study of maize, an important crop for both humans and animals, aside from microRNAs and long non-coding RNAs, few studies have been conducted on intermediate-size ncRNAs.

Results: We constructed a homogenized cDNA library of 50-500 nt RNAs in the maize inbred line Chang 7-2.

Neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia caused by anti-HPA antibodies in pregnant Chinese women: a study protocol for a multicentre, prospective cohort trial.

Background: Neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (NAIT), caused by maternal antibodies raised against alloantigens carried on foetal platelets, is a very common haematological abnormality in newborns worldwide. However, baseline data on NAIT in China are lacking. Therefore, this study seeks to explore the incidence of alloantibody against the human platelet antigen (HPA) in pregnant women and its associations with NAIT in China.

Screening glioma stem cells in U251 cells based on the P1 promoter of the CD133 gene.

Cluster of differentiation (CD)133 is an important cell surface marker of glioma stem cells (GSCs). The transcription of the CD133 gene is controlled by five alternative promoters (P1, P2, P3, P4 and P5), which are expressed in a tissue-specific manner. In the present study, gene recombination technology was used to construct two types of gene expression vectors that contained the P1 promoter of the CD133 gene, which regulated either the neomycin-resistance gene or the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSV-TK) gene.

Effect of chitosan/type I collagen/gelatin composites in biocompatibility and nerve repair.

Chitosan, collagen I and gelatin were mixed in appropriate quantities to develop a new nerve repair material, with good arrangement and structure, as well as even aperture size. The composite material was sterilized by (60)Co irradiation for 24 hours prior to implantation in the right thigh of rats following sciatic nerve damage. Results showed that the material was nontoxic to the kidneys and the liver, and did not induce an inflammatory response in the muscles.

(Z)-N-{(E)-10-[(2,6-Diisopropyl-phen-yl)-imino]-9,10-dihydro-phenanthren-9-yl-idene}-2,6-dimethyl-aniline.

The title compound, C(34)H(34)N(2), adopts a Z,E configuration with respect to the N=C-C=N backbone, with an N-C-C-N torsion angle of 41.1 (4)° The dihedral angle between the benzene rings in the 9,10-dihydro-phenanthrene moiety is 18.0 (1)°.

[Simulation model of barley leaf area index].

To simulate leaf area index (LAI) accurately is the key for the prediction of crop growth and yield in a crop growth model. Based on the analysis of the dynamic changes in the LAI of high-yielding barley cultivars in Wuhan and Yangzhou, a simulation model of barley LAI was established, in which, the LAI was the function of expansion coefficient of LAI for cultivar genetic property, climatic factors such as daily air temperature difference, sunshine hours, and accumulation of photosynthetic available radiation after sowing (sigma PAR), and limitation indices of water and nutrients. It was indicated that the maximum LAI and optimal LAI at the stages of booting and heading were not the same conception, but differed significantly.

[Individual and interactive effects of aluminum, selenium, silicon and phosphorus on rice seedlings growth].

By using quadratic orthogonal rotation combinatorial design, and taking aluminum (Al), selenium (Se), silicon (Si), and phosphorus (P) as test factors, the regression models of test factors and the survival rate (SR), shoot mass per hundred plants (SMHP), root mass per one hundred plant seedlings (RMHP), and proline contents (PC) of rice seedlings were established, with the individual and interactive effects of the factors analyzed. The individual effects of test factors on the SR, SMHP, RMHP, and PC of rice seedlings decreased in the order of Al > P > Se > Si. Al showed negative effect, while Se, Si, and P showed positive effect.

[Simulation model on barley yield formation].

By the method of yield component, a simulation model on barley yield formation was established, which could be available for different barley cultivars in different areas. The establishment process of the model was as the following. With the yield components of different cultivars under optimal conditions in Wuhan, Yangzhou, and Kunming as the bases, the regression equations of the relative values of ears per plant, kernels per ears, and thousand-grain weight with the accumulated photosynthetic effective radiation (SigmaPAR) were established, and the functional relations between the ears per plant, kernels per ears, and thousand-grain weight under actual conditions as well as their potential values under optimal conditions and the variables soil moisture regime and nutrient contents under actual conditions were formed.