Selectivity of hexaphenylbenzene-based hydrocarbon stationary phase with propeller-like conformation for aromatic and aliphatic isomers.

Herein we report a propeller-like hexaphenylbenzene-based hydrocarbon material (denoted as BT) as the stationary phase for capillary gas chromatography (GC). The statically-coated BT capillary column showed a high column efficiency of 4340 plates m and weak polarity. Owing to its unique conformation, π-electron toroidal delocalization and intrinsic microporosity, the BT stationary phase exhibited interesting selectivity for aromatic compounds over alkanes.

Author Correction: Grape seed proanthocyanidins prevent irradiation-induced differentiation of human lung fibroblasts by ameliorating mitochondrial dysfunction.

A correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML and PDF versions of this paper. The error has not been fixed in the paper.

Effect of Qinghuang Powder () Combined with Bupi Yishen Decoction () in Treating Patients with Refractory Cytopenia with Multilineage Dysplasia through Regulating DNA Methylation.

Objective: To explore the effect of Qinghuang Powder (QHP,()combined with Bupi Yishen Decoction (BPYS, ) on myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) patients with refractory cytopenia with multilineage dysplasia (RCMD) and determine the change of DNA methylation in MDS-RCMD patients after the treatment of Chinese medicine formula.

Methods: All 308 MDS-RCMD patients were treated with QHP combined with BPYS for 2 months at least, absolute neutrophil count (ANC), hemoglobin (Hb), platelets (PLT), primitive bone marrow cells and chromosome karyotype were chosen as the main evaluation indexes to analyze the treatment effect according to criteria from the MDS International Working Group. Then 43 bone marrow samples from 15 MDS-RCMD patients and 28 healthy donors were obtained for the examination of DNA methylation.

Patterns of genomic variation in Chinese maize inbred lines and implications for genetic improvement.

Genetic relationships among Chinese maize germplasms reveal historical trends in heterotic patterns from Chinese breeding programs and identify line Dan340 as a potential genome donor for elite inbred line Zheng58. The characterization of the genetic relationships, heterotic patterns and breeding history of lines in maize breeding programs allows breeders to efficiently use maize germplasm for line improvement over time. In this study, 269 temperate inbred lines, most of which have been widely used in Chinese maize breeding programs since the 1970s, were genotyped using the Illumina MaizeSNP50 BeadChip, which contains 56,110 single-nucleotide polymorphisms.

Breast cancer risk factors and mammographic density among high-risk women in urban China.

Elevated mammographic density (MD) is an established breast cancer risk factor. Studies examining relationships between MD and breast cancer risk factors are limited in China, where established breast cancer risk factors are less prevalent but dense breasts are more prevalent than Western countries. This study included 11,478 women (45-69 years; 36% premenopausal) participating in an ongoing national cancer screening program in 11 urban provinces in China and predicted as having high-risk for breast cancer.

Risks of Melanoma and Other Cancers in Melanoma-Prone Families over 4 Decades.

Unlabelled: Since 1976, melanoma-prone families have been followed at the National Cancer Institute to identify etiologic factors for melanoma. We compared risks of melanoma and other cancers in 1,226 members of 56 families followed for up to 4 decades with population rates in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program. All families were tested for mutations in CDKN2A and CDK4; 29 were mutation-positive and 27 mutation-negative.

Neural correlates of three cognitive processes involved in theory of mind and discourse comprehension.

Neuroimaging studies have found that theory of mind (ToM) and discourse comprehension involve similar brain regions. These brain regions may be associated with three cognitive components that are necessarily or frequently involved in ToM and discourse comprehension, including social concept representation and retrieval, domain-general semantic integration, and domain-specific integration of social semantic contents. Using fMRI, we investigated the neural correlates of these three cognitive components by exploring how discourse topic (social/nonsocial) and discourse processing period (ending/beginning) modulate brain activation in a discourse comprehension (and also ToM) task.

Beyond pathways: genetic dissection of tocopherol content in maize kernels by combining linkage and association analyses.

Although tocopherols play an important role in plants and animals, the genetic architecture of tocopherol content in maize kernels has remained largely unknown. In this study, linkage and association analyses were conducted to examine the genetic architecture of tocopherol content in maize kernels. Forty-one unique quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were identified by linkage mapping in six populations of recombinant inbred lines (RILs).

Association of D-dimer with Plaque Characteristics and Plasma Biomarkers of Oxidation-Specific Epitopes in Stable Subjects with Coronary Artery Disease.

D-dimer has emerged as a biomarker of cardiovascular event risk, yet pathophysiological factors associated with plasma D-dimer levels in stable coronary artery disease (CAD) subjects are poorly understood. In 106 stable CAD subjects undergoing intravascular ultrasound with virtual histology (IVUS-VH), we measured D-dimer, lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)), plasminogen, biomarkers reflecting oxidation-specific epitopes (OSE) such as oxidized phospholipids on apolipoprotein B-100 (OxPL-apoB), OxPL on plasminogen (OxPL-PLG), and autoantibodies to phosphorylcholine-BSA [PC-BSA] and a malondialdehyde [MDA] mimotope. In univariate analysis, D-dimer was positively associated with Lp(a), OxPL-apoB, OxPL-PLG, and coronary artery calcium, and inversely associated with autoantibodies to OSE and plaque fibrosis.

How context features modulate the involvement of the working memory system during discourse comprehension.

Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we investigated the effects of context features on the involvement of the working memory (WM) system during discourse comprehension. During the fMRI scan, participants were asked to read two-sentence discourses in which the topic of the second sentence was either maintained, or was shifted from, the topic of the first. Changes in the level of coherence between the two sentences as well as context length were also investigated across discourse items.

enhances maize adaptation to higher latitudes.

From its tropical origin in southwestern Mexico, maize spread over a wide latitudinal cline in the Americas. This feat defies the rule that crops are inhibited from spreading easily across latitudes. How the widespread latitudinal adaptation of maize was accomplished is largely unknown.

The Interplay between Topic Shift and Focus in the Dynamic Construction of Discourse Representations.

Previous studies have suggested that focusing an element can enhance the activation of the focused element and bring about a number of processing benefits. However, whether and how this local prominence of information interacts with global discourse organization remains unclear. In the present study, we addressed this issue in two experiments.

Phenocopies in melanoma-prone families with germ-line CDKN2A mutations.

Purpose: Carriers of CDKN2A mutations have high risks of melanoma and certain other cancers. In this study we examined the occurrence of tumors among CDKN2A wild type (wt) members of melanoma-prone families with CDKN2A mutations.

Methods: Swedish and US melanoma-prone families with CDKN2A mutations were included.

Species selection under long-term experimental warming and drought explained by climatic distributions.

Global warming and reduced precipitation may trigger large-scale species losses and vegetation shifts in ecosystems around the world. However, currently lacking are practical ways to quantify the sensitivity of species and community composition to these often-confounded climatic forces. Here we conducted long-term (16 yr) nocturnal-warming (+0.

Interaction Effects of AFB1 and MC-LR Co-exposure with Polymorphism of Metabolic Genes on Liver Damage: focusing on SLCO1B1 and GSTP1.

AFB1 and MC-LR are two major environmental risk factors for liver damage worldwide, especially in warm and humid areas, but there are individual differences in health response of the toxin-exposed populations. Therefore, we intended to identify the susceptible genes in transport and metabolic process of AFB1 and MC-LR and find their effects on liver damage. We selected eight related SNPs that may affect liver damage outcomes in AFB1 and MC-LR exposed persons, and enrolled 475 cases with liver damage and 475 controls of healthy people in rural areas of China.

Comparative analysis of molecular activity in dermal mesenchymal stem cells from different passages.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are used for tissue regeneration in several pathological conditions, including autoimmune diseases. However, the optimal sources and culture requirements for these cells are still under investigation. Here, we compared mRNA expression in dermal MSCs (DMSCs) at passage (P) 3 and P5 to provide a reference for future studies related to DMSCs expansion.

Lipoprotein(a) Associated Molecules are Prominent Components in Plasma and Valve Leaflets in Calcific Aortic Valve Stenosis.

The gene is the only monogenetic risk factor for calcific aortic valve stenosis (CAVS). Oxidized phospholipids (OxPL) and lysophosphatidic acid generated by autotaxin (ATX) from OxPL are pro-inflammatory. Aortic valve leaflets were categorized pathologically from Both ATX-apoB and ATX-apo(a) were measureable in plasma.

A comprehensive analysis of polymorphic variants in steroid hormone and insulin-like growth factor-1 metabolism and risk of in situ breast cancer: Results from the Breast and Prostate Cancer Cohort Consortium.

We assessed the association between 1,414 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes involved in synthesis and metabolism of steroid hormones and insulin-like growth factor 1, and risk of breast cancer in situ (BCIS), with the aim of determining whether any of these were disease specific. This was carried out using 1,062 BCIS cases and 10,126 controls as well as 6,113 invasive breast cancer cases from the Breast and Prostate Cancer Cohort Consortium (BPC3). Three SNPs showed at least one nominally significant association in homozygous minor versus homozygous major models.

Association between gene polymorphisms and IgA nephropathy risk in a Chinese Han population.

Multiple genetic and environmental factors together contribute to the risk of IgA nephropathy (IgAN). play an important role in the recruitment of the exosome to the pre-rRNA. However, to date, little information is found about the association between polymorphisms and the IgAN risk.

Determination of (rs16944) and (rs1800796) genetic polymorphisms in IgA nephropathy in a northwest Chinese Han population.

IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common form of primary glomerulonephritis worldwide, but etiology and pathogenesis continue to be poorly understood. Polymorphisms in the cytokine genes may play a role in the etiology and pathogenesis of IgAN. The incidence of different between diverse ethnic groups suggested important genetic influences on its pathogenesis.

Association analysis identifies 65 new breast cancer risk loci.

Breast cancer risk is influenced by rare coding variants in susceptibility genes, such as BRCA1, and many common, mostly non-coding variants. However, much of the genetic contribution to breast cancer risk remains unknown. Here we report the results of a genome-wide association study of breast cancer in 122,977 cases and 105,974 controls of European ancestry and 14,068 cases and 13,104 controls of East Asian ancestry.

Identification of ten variants associated with risk of estrogen-receptor-negative breast cancer.

Most common breast cancer susceptibility variants have been identified through genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of predominantly estrogen receptor (ER)-positive disease. We conducted a GWAS using 21,468 ER-negative cases and 100,594 controls combined with 18,908 BRCA1 mutation carriers (9,414 with breast cancer), all of European origin. We identified independent associations at P < 5 × 10 with ten variants at nine new loci.

Rare germline variants in known melanoma susceptibility genes in familial melanoma.

Known high-risk cutaneous malignant melanoma (CMM) genes account for melanoma risk in <40% of melanoma-prone families, suggesting the existence of additional high-risk genes or perhaps a polygenic mechanism involving multiple genetic modifiers. The goal of this study was to systematically characterize rare germline variants in 42 established melanoma genes among 144 CMM patients in 76 American CMM families without known mutations using data from whole-exome sequencing. We identified 68 rare (<0.