Ecological risk assessment of landscape in arid area watersheds under ecological water conveyance: A case study of Taitema Lake.

The Taitema Lake Basin serves as an ecological barrier in the south of the Tarim Basin, connecting with the Qiemo, Ruoqiang, and Milan oases, collectively preventing the expansion and merging of the desert, specifically inhibiting the convergence of the Taklamakan Desert and Lop Nur. In recent years, with changes in the natural environment and an increase in water usage, the downstream flow of the Tarim River has decreased, leading to the gradual drying up of Taitema Lake and exacerbating desertification, resulting in frequent sandstorms. Subsequently, under the influence of ecological water transfer projects, Taitema Lake has gradually recovered, and the ecological environment has improved.

Effect of Lignin Structure Characteristics on the Performance of Lignin Based Phenol Formaldehyde Adhesives.

As the second most abundant biopolymer, lignin remains underutilized in various industrial applications. Various forms of lignin generated from different methods affect its physical and chemical properties to a certain extent. To promote the broader commercial utilization of currently available industrial lignins, lignin sulfonate (SL), kraft lignin (KL), and organosolv lignin (OL) are utilized to partially replace phenol in the synthesis of phenol formaldehyde (PF) adhesives.

Bioequivalence and Safety Assessment of 2 Formulations of Low-Dose Metformin Hydrochloride under Fasting Conditions in Healthy Chinese Participants: A Randomized Phase 1 Clinical Trial.

The incidence of type 2 diabetes is high, and the existing metformin hydrochloride (MH) tablets of 250 mg cannot meet the demands of the Chinese drug market. This study aimed to evaluate the bioequivalence and safety of generic formulations of MH tablets (test formulation [T], 250 mg/tablet) and innovative products (reference formulation [R], 250 mg/tablet) under fasting conditions. This was an open-label, single-dose, 2-period, 2-sequence crossover, single-center, randomized phase I clinical trial.

Green syntheses of silk fibroin/wool keratin-protected AuAg nanoclusters with enhanced fluorescence for multicolor and patterned anti-counterfeiting.

Counterfeiting is a serious worldwide issue that threatens human health and economic security. How to apply anti-counterfeiting techniques to textile materials remains a great challenge. Herein, we report bimetallic AuAg nanoclusters (NCs) synthesized by one-step reduction of chloroauric acid (HAuCl) and silver nitrate (AgNO) with wool keratin (WK) as reducer and silk fibroin (SF) as stabilizer.

A nomogram based on clinical factors to predict calendar year readmission in patients with ulcerative colitis.

Background: Readmission shortly after discharge is indicative of an increased disease severity for patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) and ineffectiveness to medical therapy, which may contribute to a dismal prognosis.

Objectives: This study aimed to explore prognostic variables with a nomogram to predict unplanned UC-related readmission within 1 year after discharge.

Design: A retrospective cohort study.

EM-2, a natural sesquiterpene lactone from Elephantopus mollis H.B.K., enhanced the sensitivity of breast cancer cells to epirubicin by blocking protective autophagy.

Background: EM-2, a natural sesquiterpene lactone isolated from Elephantopus mollis H.B.K.

Knockdown of the SELENOK gene induces ferroptosis in cervical cancer cells.

Selenoprotein K (SELENOK) is one of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) proteins that mainly functions in the regulation of ER stress, calcium flux, and antioxidant defense. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) is one of the key indicators of ferroptosis, and SELENOK inhibition could disrupt ROS balance, and consequently might cause ferroptosis. However, there are no previous studies about the mechanism of SELENOK in ferroptosis by regulating ROS.

Borana rangeland of southern Ethiopia: Estimating biomass production and carrying capacity using field and remote sensing data.

Assessing rangeland productivity is critical to reduce ecological degradation and promote sustainable livestock management. Here, we estimated biomass productivity and carrying capacity dynamics in the Borana rangeland of southern Ethiopia by using field-based data and remote sensing data (i.e.

Corrigendum: Selenomethionine Improves Mitochondrial Function by Upregulating Mitochondrial Selenoprotein in a Model of Alzheimer's Disease.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2021.

Effects of grazing intensity on forage nutritive value of dominant grass species in Borana rangelands of Southern Ethiopia.

Background: Forage nutritive value analysis is an essential indicator of rangeland status regarding degradation and livestock nutrient demand. Thus, it is used to maintain healthy and sustainable rangelands that can provide the livestock with sufficient quantity and quality of forage. This study is conducted with the aim of investigating the effects of grazing intensity combined with seasonal variation on the nutritive values of dominant grass species in the Teltele rangeland.

Selenomethionine Improves Mitochondrial Function by Upregulating Mitochondrial Selenoprotein in a Model of Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most common neurodegenerative disease in elderly humans, is pathologically characterized by amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. Mitochondrial dysfunction that occurs in the early stages of AD, which includes dysfunction in mitochondrial generation and energy metabolism, is considered to be closely associated with AD pathology. Selenomethionine (Se-Met) has been reported to improve cognitive impairment and reduce amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in 3xTg-AD mice.

Selenoprotein K deficiency-induced apoptosis: A role for calpain and the ERS pathway.

Selenoprotein K (SELENOK), an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) resident protein, is regulated by dietary selenium and expressed at a relatively high level in neurons. SELENOK has been shown to participate in oxidation resistance, calcium (Ca) flux regulation, and the ER-associated degradation (ERAD) pathway in immune cells. However, its role in neurons has not been elucidated.

Atherosclerotic lesion-specific copper delivery suppresses atherosclerosis in high-cholesterol-fed rabbits.

Dietary cholesterol supplements cause hypercholesterolemia and atherosclerosis along with a reduction of copper concentrations in the atherosclerotic wall in animal models. This study was to determine if target-specific copper delivery to the copper-deficient atherosclerotic wall can block the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Male New Zealand white rabbits, 10-weeks-old and averaged 2.

Effect of Elevation on the Density and Species Composition of Encroacher Woody Plants in Borana Rangeland, Southern Ethiopia.

Woody plant encroachments are major concerns across the grasslands biome, while the patterns of individual species existence at a landscape level can be limited locally and regionally. The paper assesses the species composition, community structure, and density of individual and combined encroacher woody species in terms of tree equivalent per hectare (TE ha) within five different height classes at four elevation levels in Borana arid thorn bush savanna grasslands in Southern Ethiopia. At each elevation class, a grid of 20 × 20 m main plot was placed, and samples were collected randomly from three 100 m sub-plot within the main plot.

Dynamics of forage and land cover changes in Teltele district of Borana rangelands, southern Ethiopia: using geospatial and field survey data.

Background: The gradual conversion of rangelands into other land use types is one of the main challenges affecting the sustainable management of rangelands in Teltele. This study aimed to examine the changes, drivers, trends in land use and land cover (LULC), to determine the link between the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and forage biomass and the associated impacts of forage biomass production dynamics on the Teltele rangelands in Southern Ethiopia. A Combination of remote sensing data, field interviews, discussion and observations data were used to examine the dynamics of LULC between 1992 and 2019 and forage biomass production.

Lead exposure results in defective behavior as well as alteration of gut microbiota composition in flies and their offsprings.

Background: Lead (Pb) has become one of the most dangerous metals to human health, especially to the nervous system as its persistent accumulation and high toxicity. However, how the gut microbiota influence the Pb-related neurotoxicity remains unclear. The aim of our study was to explore the link among Pb exposure, behavior changes, and gut microbiota.

Do Herbaceous Species Functional Groups Have a Uniform Pattern along an Elevation Gradient? The Case of a Semi-Arid Savanna Grasslands in Southern Ethiopia.

Knowledge of the total (overall) and individual herbaceous vegetation species relating to a distinctive site might help in the development of management strategies for a large number of threatened herbaceous species. This paper assesses the total and functional group herbaceous biomass, species richness, evenness, and diversity at four elevation classes in Borana rangelands of arid thorn bush savanna grasslands in Southern Ethiopia. At each elevation class, a grid of 20 × 20 m main plot was placed, and individual herbaceous species samples were collected randomly from five 1 m quadrants within the main plot.

Rock magnetic and environmental magnetic data of lacustrine sediments from the Heqing basin.

This data article associated with the manuscript "Magnetic mineral dissolution recorded in a lacustrine sequence from the Heqing Basin, SW China, and its relationship with changes in the Indian monsoon". Through detailed rock magnetic measurements, magnetic properties of the lacustrine sediments (magnetic mineralogy, their concentration and domain state) were clarified. Then, analyzing the relationship between magnetic property and paleoenvironmental proxies can reveal the paleoenvironmental implications of magnetic parameters of lacustrine sediments from the Heqing basin.

The Effect of Consistency on Short-Term Memory for Scenes.

Which is more detectable, the change of a consistent or an inconsistent object in a scene? This question has been debated for decades. We noted that the change of objects in scenes might simultaneously be accompanied with gist changes. In the present study we aimed to examine how the alteration of gist, as well as the consistency of the changed objects, modulated change detection.

Moderate irrigation intervals facilitate establishment of two desert shrubs in the Taklimakan Desert Highway Shelterbelt in China.

Background: Water influences various physiological and ecological processes of plants in different ecosystems, especially in desert ecosystems. The purpose of this study is to investigate the response of physiological and morphological acclimation of two shrubs Haloxylon ammodendron and Calligonum mongolicunl to variations in irrigation intervals.

Methodology/principal Findings: The irrigation frequency was set as 1-, 2-, 4-, 8- and 12-week intervals respectively from March to October during 2012-2014 to investigate the response of physiological and morphological acclimation of two desert shrubs Haloxylon ammodendron and Calligonum mongolicunl to variations in the irrigation system.

An updated age for the Xujiayao hominin from the Nihewan Basin, North China: Implications for Middle Pleistocene human evolution in East Asia.

The Xujiayao site in the Nihewan Basin (North China) is one of the most important Paleolithic sites in East Asia. Twenty Homo fossils, which were previously assigned to an archaic Homo sapiens group, have been excavated along with more than 30,000 lithic artifacts and ∼5000 mammalian fossil specimens. Dating of the Xujiayao hominin has been pursued since its excavation in the 1970s, but its age has remained controversial because of limitations of the dating techniques that have been applied to available materials.

Variations in the patterns of soil organic carbon mineralization and microbial communities in response to exogenous application of rice straw and calcium carbonate.

The addition of exogenous inorganic carbon (CaCO3) and organic carbon has an important influence on soil organic carbon (SOC) mineralization in karst soil, but the microbial mechanisms underlying the SOC priming effect are poorly understood. We conducted a 100-day incubation experiment involving four treatments of the calcareous soil in southwestern China's karst region: control, (14)C-labeled rice straw addition, (14)C-labeled CaCO3 addition, and a combination of (14)C-labeled rice straw and CaCO3. Changes in soil microbial communities were characterized using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis with polymerase chain reaction (PCR-DGGE) and real-time quantitative PCR (q-PCR).

[Efficacy of the Sentinel Mouse Method in Monitoring Schistosoma japonicum Infection in Key #br# Water Areas of Hanchuan City].

Objective: To understand the water infectivity of schistosomes in key water areas of Hanchuan City, and explore the use of sentinel mice in surveillance and forecast of schistosomiasis.

Methods: Surveillance and forecast sites were set up in North Han River, Diaocha Lake, and Miaowu Ditch in 2014. Sentinel mice （male Kunming mice, n=20 in each site） were placed there within the first ten-day period of June and September, respectively.