Molecular biomarkers of diffuse axonal injury: recent advances and future perspectives.

Introduction: Diffuse axonal injury (DAI), with high mortality and morbidity both in children and adults, is one of the most severe pathological consequences of traumatic brain injury. Currently, clinical diagnosis, disease assessment, disability identification, and postmortem diagnosis of DAI is mainly limited by the absent of specific molecular biomarkers.

Areas Covered: In this review, we first introduce the pathophysiology of DAI, summarized the reported biomarkers in previous animal and human studies, and then the molecular biomarkers such as β-Amyloid precursor protein, neurofilaments, S-100β, myelin basic protein, tau protein, neuron-specific enolase, Peripherin and Hemopexin for DAI diagnosis is summarized.

Comparison of various chemometric methods on visible and near-infrared spectral analysis for wood density prediction among different tree species and geographical origins.

Visible and near-infrared (Vis-NIR) spectroscopy has been widely applied in many fields for the qualitative and quantitative analysis. Chemometric techniques including pre-processing, variable selection, and multivariate calibration models play an important role to better extract useful information from spectral data. In this study, a new de-noising method (lifting wavelet transform, LWT), four variable selection methods, as well as two non-linear machine learning models were simultaneously analyzed to compare the impact of chemometric approaches on wood density determination among various tree species and geographical locations.

Comprehensive growth index monitoring of desert steppe grassland vegetation based on UAV hyperspectral.

The goal of this study was to establish a comprehensive growth index (CGI) of grassland vegetation for monitor the overall condition of the grassland. Taking the desert grassland in Otuoke Banner, Ordos City, Inner Mongolia as the research object, this study integrates five indicators. First, the optimal band of the unmanned aerial vehicle hyperspectral data is optimized using the correlation analysis, successive projection algorithm (SPA), optimum index factor method, and band combination index method.

New Diagnostic Model for the Differentiation of Diabetic Nephropathy From Non-Diabetic Nephropathy in Chinese Patients.

Background: The disease pathology for diabetes mellitus patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) may be diabetic nephropathy (DN), non-diabetic renal disease (NDRD), or DN combined with NDRD. Considering that the prognosis and treatment of DN and NDRD differ, their differential diagnosis is of significance. Renal pathological biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosing DN and NDRD.

Risk assessment of type 2 diabetes in northern China based on the logistic regression model.

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a complex disease with high incidence and serious harm associated with polygenic determination. This study aimed to develop a predictive model so as to assess the risk of T2DM and apply it to health care and disease prevention in northern China.

Objective: Based on genotyping results, a risk warning model for type 2 diabetes was established.

Sap flow of Salix psammophila and its principal influencing factors at different slope positions in the Mu Us desert.

The changes in sap flow of Salix psammophila growing on a gentle slope (lower slope, P1), a middle slope (P2), and an upper slope (P3), and the response of sap flow to meteorological factors at the different slope positions were studied using the continuous and synchronized observations, the instrument were wrapped stem flowmeter EMS 62 sap-flow heat-balance-based system and the LSI-LASTEM automatic weather station. The results revealed that the soil moisture content was the highest and the growth conditions of Salix psammophila were the best at P1, followed by P2. At P3, however, although good apical dominance was observed, the proportion of dead branches was the highest.

Risk HLA class II alleles and amino acid residues in myeloperoxidase-ANCA-associated vasculitis.

A genome-wide association study (GWAS) indicated that myeloperoxidase-ANCA associated vasculitis (AAV) is associated with HLA-DQ. However, susceptibility alleles in these loci have been under-investigated. Here we genotyped 258 Chinese patients with myeloperoxidase-AAV and 597 healthy control individuals at HLA DRB1, DQA1, DQB1 and DPB1, and extracted the encoded amino acid sequences from the IMGT/HLA database.

HLA class II alleles differing by a single amino acid associate with clinical phenotype and outcome in patients with primary membranous nephropathy.

Genome-wide associations and HLA genotyping have revealed associations between HLA alleles and susceptibility to primary membranous nephropathy. However, associations with clinical phenotypes and kidney outcome are poorly defined. We previously identified DRB1*1501 and DRB1*0301 as independent risk alleles for primary membranous nephropathy.

Risk-Predicting Model for Incident of Essential Hypertension Based on Environmental and Genetic Factors with Support Vector Machine.

Essential hypertension (EH) has become a major chronic disease around the world. To build a risk-predicting model for EH can help to interpose people's lifestyle and dietary habit to decrease the risk of getting EH. In this study, we constructed a EH risk-predicting model considering both environmental and genetic factors with support vector machine (SVM).

The susceptible HLA class II alleles and their presenting epitope(s) in Goodpasture's disease.

Goodpasture's disease is closely associated with HLA, particularly DRB1*1501. Other susceptible or protective HLA alleles are not clearly elucidated. The presentation models of epitopes by susceptible HLA alleles are also unclear.

MHC Class II Risk Alleles and Amino Acid Residues in Idiopathic Membranous Nephropathy.

Epitopes of phospholipase A2 receptor (PLA2R), the target antigen in idiopathic membranous nephropathy (iMN), must be presented by the HLA-encoded MHC class II molecules to stimulate autoantibody production. A genome-wide association study identified risk alleles at HLA and PLA2R loci, with the top variant rs2187668 within HLA-DQA1 showing a risk effect greater than that of the top variant rs4664308 within PLA2R1. How the HLA risk alleles affect epitope presentation by MHC class II molecules in iMN is unknown.

[Strategies of genome-wide association study based on high-throughput sequencing].

Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have been playing an important role on human complex diseases. Generally speaking, GWAS tries to detect the relationship between genome-wide genetic variants and measurable traits in the population level. Although fruitful, array-based GWASs still exist some problems, for example, the so-called missing heritability--significantly associated SNPs can only explain a small part of phenotypic variation.

Optimization of the genotyping-by-sequencing strategy for population genomic analysis in conifers.

Flexibility and low cost make genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) an ideal tool for population genomic studies of nonmodel species. However, to utilize the potential of the method fully, many parameters affecting library quality and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) discovery require optimization, especially for conifer genomes with a high repetitive DNA content. In this study, we explored strategies for effective GBS analysis in pine species.

Cyclosporine A-nanoparticles enhance the therapeutic benefit of adipose tissue-derived stem cell transplantation in a swine myocardial infarction model.

Treatment of myocardial infarction (MI) with adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) has produced promising results. Cyclosporine A (CsA) inhibits apoptosis by preventing the opening of mitochondrial permeability transition pores. A CsA nanoparticle emulsion (CsA-NP) has lower toxicity and higher efficiency as compared to CsA.

[Pretreatment with cyclosporin A nanoparticles emulsion protects apoptosis of swine adipose tissue-derived stem cells].

Objective: To investigate the effect of cyclosporine A-nanoparticles emulsion (CsA-NP) on protecting apoptosis of swine adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ASC ) and related mechanisms.

Methods: ASC were randomized to six groups: control group,single H2O2 group,CsA or CsA-NP 0.1 mg/ml+H2O2 group,CsA or CsA-NP 1.

[Efficacy of cyclosporine A-nanoparticles emulsion combined with stem cell transplantation therapy for acute myocardial infarction].

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of cyclosporine A-nanoparticles emulsion (CsA-NP) combined with adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ASCs)transplantation therapy for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in a miniswine model.

Methods: CsA-NP emulsion was prepared by the high-pressure homogenization method. Models were performed by coronary angioplasty for percutaneous balloon occlusion of left anterior descending artery (LAD).

[Delayed-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging for assessing a minipig myocardial infarction model established by percutaneous balloon occlusion].

Objective: To assess a minipig model of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) established by percutaneous balloon occlusion using delayed-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DE-MRI).

Methods: A minipig model of AMI was established by placement of a 2.0 mm×15.

[Fifteen-year evolving trends of etiology and prognosis in hospitalized patients with heart failure].

Objective: To investigate the etiological and prognostic changes of hospitalized patients with chronic heart failure.

Methods: This retrospective study analyzed 7319 hospitalized patients (male 62.07%) with validated primary discharge diagnosis of chronic heart failure in Chinese PLA General Hospital in Beijing from January 1, 1993 to December 31, 2007.

Prediction of nucleosome DNA formation potential and nucleosome positioning using increment of diversity combined with quadratic discriminant analysis.

In this work, a novel method was developed to distinguish nucleosome DNA and linker DNA based on increment of diversity combined with quadratic discriminant analysis (IDQD), using k-mer frequency of nucleotides in genome. When used to predict DNA potential for forming nucleosomes, the model achieved a high accuracy of 94.94%, 77.

Carbon balance in an alpine steppe in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau.

Carbon fluxes were measured using a static chamber technique in an alpine steppe in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau from July 2000 to July 2001. It was shown that carbon emissions decreased in autumn and increased in spring of the next year, with higher values in growth seasons than in winters. An exponential correlation (E(carbon)= 0.

[Estimation of net primary productivity in middle reaches of Yarlung Zangbo River and its two tributaries].

Based on the MODIS data and field measurement, the net primary production (NPP) in 2000 and 2006 in the middle reaches of Yarlung Zangbo River and its two tributaries in Tibet were estimated by using a mathematic model. The results showed that in study area, the NPP decreased gradually from valley to ridge, which was accorded with the gradients of precipitation and temperature. The annul NPP per unit area was averagely 86.