Morphological Control of Multihollow Polymer Latex Particles through a Controlled Phase Separation in the Seeded Emulsion Polymerization

In this work, we first reported that the phase separation can take place both inside and outside of a multihollow-structured cross-linked seed microspheres swollen by styrene monomers in water during the radiation-induced seeded emulsion polymerization. The phase separation process in these two opposite directions will determine the morphology of final latex particles. First, sulfonated cross-linked polystyrene (SCPS) seed microspheres were swollen by styrene in water. Water will permeate into the SCPS seed microspheres during the swelling process, forced by the osmotic pressure produced by the strong hydrophilicity of the sulfonic acid groups. New aqueous phases are created and stabilized by the hydrophilic −SO₃H groups, resulting in a multihollow structure of swollen SCPS seed microspheres. When the polymerization of styrene is induced by ⁶⁰Co γ-ray radiation, the phase separation of newly formed polystyrene phase will occur at the seed microsphere-water interface inside and/or outside of the SCPS seed microspheres through adjusting the diameter of seed microsphere, the content of cross-link agent, and the sulfonation degree of SCPS seed microspheres. As a result, SCPS latex particles with a variety of special morphologies, such as spherical multihollow, plum-like, and walnut-like latex particles were obtained. The results of this study provide not only a simple and interesting way to design and synthesize multihollow polymer latex particles with controllable surface morphologies but also a better understanding on phase separation mechanism during the swelling and polymerization of monomers in cross-linked amphiphilic polymer networks

Data_Sheet_1_Target-Response Associations Can Produce Response-Congruency Effects Without Task-Switching Costs.ZIP

In task-switching experiments with bivalent target stimuli, conflicts during response selection give rise to response-congruency effects. Typically, participants respond more slowly and make more errors in trials with incongruent targets that require different responses in the two tasks, compared to trials with congruent targets that are associated with the same response in both tasks. Here we investigate whether participants show response-congruency effects when task rules are not made explicit. In two experiments, we assigned task-irrelevant features to each bivalent target. When participants were instructed to apply the task rules, they showed significant task-switching costs as well as response-congruency effects. Importantly, when the same participants did not know the task rules and responded without applying the task rules, they showed response-congruency effects but no switch costs. The significant congruency effects suggest that associations between bivalent target features and responses can be formed passively, even when participants do not follow the task rules and use task-irrelevant target features to make a response.</p

Data_Sheet_1_Development and Application of a Triplex TaqMan Quantitative Real-Time PCR Assay for Simultaneous Detection of Feline Calicivirus, Feline Parvovirus, and Feline Herpesvirus 1.docx

As companion animals, felines play an important role in human's family life, and their healthcare has attracted great attention. Viruses such as feline calicivirus (FCV), feline herpesvirus 1 (FHV-1), and feline parvovirus virus (FPV) are the most common pathogens that cause severe infectious disease in baby cats. Thus, preclinical detection and intervention of these three viruses is an effective means to prevent diseases and minimize their danger condition. In this study, a triplex TaqMan quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) assay was developed to detect these three viruses simultaneously. The detection limit of FPV, FCV, and FHV-1 was 5 × 101 copies/assay, which exhibited higher sensitivity (about 10- to100-fold) than conventional PCR. The coefficients of variation (CVs) of the intra-assay variability were lower than 1.86%, and that of inter-assay variability were lower than 3.19%, indicating the excellent repeatability and reproducibility of the triplex assay. Additionally, the assay showed good specificity. Finally, samples from 48 cats were analyzed using the established assay and commercial kits. As a result, the total positive rates for these viruses were 70.83 or 62.5%, respectively, which demonstrated that the developed qRT-PCR assay was more accurate than the commercial kits and could be used in clinical diagnosis.</p

Overcoming C₆₀-Induced Nonradiative Recombination via Interfacial Embedding of BiOBr Flakes in Inverted Perovskite Solar Cells

The presence of C60-induced nonradiative recombination tends to deteriorate the overall efficiency of inverted perovskite solar cells (PSCs). To alleviate this problem, ultrathin BiOBr flakes possessing a unique self-induced internal electric field (SIEF) are embedded at the interface between perovskite and C60. SIEF, originating from the nonuniform charge distribution within the BiOBr lattice, tends to be perpendicular to the heterointerface of perovskite/C60 because of the designed special (001) facet. This precise arrangement facilitates electron extraction and hole blocking, yielding a field-effect mediated passivation. Also, the desired surface atomic structure on the BiOBr(001) facet can chemically passivate the perovskite surface defects via the formation of a Pb–O bond. Combining these dual passivation effects with favorable band bending, the application of BiOBr boosts the efficiency of inverted PSCs up to 24.36% with a substantially improved long-term stability. This work demonstrates an effective way to overcome efficiency and stability limits of inverted PSCs

MOESM1 of Screening differentially expressed proteins from co-cultured hematopoietic cells and bone marrow-derived stromal cells by quantitative proteomics (SILAC) method

Additional file 1. Functional annotations of dysregulated proteins in either KG1a or HS5 after co-cultured. Some verification assays for CKAP4 and CD44 in CD34+ primary cells. And the lists of significant regulated proteins in either KG1a or HS5 after co-culture

sj-docx-1-qjp-10.1177_17470218211069484 – Supplemental material for Using relative-speed-of-processing to explain the shielding function of task rules

Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-qjp-10.1177_17470218211069484 for Using relative-speed-of-processing to explain the shielding function of task rules by Liang Huang, Bingxin Li, Panjie Yan, Chen Xu, Xueyin Tian, Chengyang Han and Xiangqian Li in Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology</p

DataSheet1_Non-coding RNA regulation of Magang geese skeletal muscle maturation via the MAPK signaling pathway.ZIP

Skeletal muscle is a critical component of goose meat and a significant economic trait of geese. The regulatory roles of miRNAs and lncRNAs in the maturation stage of goose skeletal muscle are still unclear. Therefore, this study conducted experiments on the leg muscles of Magang geese at two stages: 3-day post-hatch (P3) and 3 months (M3). Morphological observations revealed that from P3 to M3, muscle fibers mainly underwent hypertrophy and maturation. The muscle fibers became thicker, nuclear density decreased, and nuclei moved towards the fiber edges. Additionally, this study analyzed the expression profiles of lncRNAs, miRNAs, and mRNAs during the skeletal muscle fiber maturation stage, identifying 1,949 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEMs), 21 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMIs), and 172 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DELs). Furthermore, we performed enrichment analyses on DEMs, cis-regulatory genes of DELs, and target DEMs of DEMIs, revealing significant enrichment of signaling pathways including MAPK, PPAR, and mTOR signaling pathways. Among these, the MAPK signaling pathway was the only pathway enriched across all three types of differentially expressed RNAs, indicating its potentially more significant role in skeletal muscle maturation. Finally, this study integrated the targeting relationships between DELs, DEMs, and DEMIs from these two stages to construct a ceRNA regulatory network. These findings unveil the potential functions and mechanisms of lncRNAs and miRNAs in the growth and development of goose skeletal muscle and provide valuable references for further exploration of the mechanism underlying the maturation of Magang geese leg muscle.</p

DataSheet_3_Identification of SERPINA1 promoting better prognosis in papillary thyroid carcinoma along with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis through WGCNA analysis.csv

BackgroundHashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT) is an autoimmune thyroid disease. Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is the most common endocrine cancer. In recent years the rate of coexistence between PTC and HT has increased but the relationship between them remains unclear, meaning it is necessary to find potential biomarkers for PTC coexistence with HT to predict its potential pathways.MethodA co-expression network was constructed using the weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) in the R package. The modules of PTC associated with HT (PTC-W) were identified from the GSE138198 dataset. Protein-protein interaction network (PPI) was used to screen the hub genes. Immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis was performed to validate the expression of the hub genes in tissues. Clinical data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) datasets were used to analyse the prognosis of the hub genes. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was used to screen potential pathways of PTC-W.ResultThe MEbrown module representing the most significant module, with 958 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), was screened in PTC-W, based on WGCNA analysis. Through PPI, SERPINA1 was identified as a hub gene. Immunostaining validated that SERPINA1 was highly expressed in PTC-W. Moreover, PTC-W expressing SERPINA1 exhibits a better prognosis than PTC without HT (PTC-WO).ConclusionOur study demonstrates that SERPINA1 promotes the occurrence of PTC-W, and its prognosis is better than PTC-WO. SERPINA1 promotes a better prognosis for PTC-W, possibly through a tumour inhibition signalling pathway.</p

DataSheet_5_Identification of SERPINA1 promoting better prognosis in papillary thyroid carcinoma along with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis through WGCNA analysis.xls

BackgroundHashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT) is an autoimmune thyroid disease. Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is the most common endocrine cancer. In recent years the rate of coexistence between PTC and HT has increased but the relationship between them remains unclear, meaning it is necessary to find potential biomarkers for PTC coexistence with HT to predict its potential pathways.MethodA co-expression network was constructed using the weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) in the R package. The modules of PTC associated with HT (PTC-W) were identified from the GSE138198 dataset. Protein-protein interaction network (PPI) was used to screen the hub genes. Immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis was performed to validate the expression of the hub genes in tissues. Clinical data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) datasets were used to analyse the prognosis of the hub genes. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was used to screen potential pathways of PTC-W.ResultThe MEbrown module representing the most significant module, with 958 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), was screened in PTC-W, based on WGCNA analysis. Through PPI, SERPINA1 was identified as a hub gene. Immunostaining validated that SERPINA1 was highly expressed in PTC-W. Moreover, PTC-W expressing SERPINA1 exhibits a better prognosis than PTC without HT (PTC-WO).ConclusionOur study demonstrates that SERPINA1 promotes the occurrence of PTC-W, and its prognosis is better than PTC-WO. SERPINA1 promotes a better prognosis for PTC-W, possibly through a tumour inhibition signalling pathway.</p

Table_4_The Fungal-Specific Transcription Factor VpFSTF1 Is Required for Virulence in Valsa pyri.xlsx

Valsa pyri is the causal agent of pear canker disease, which leads to enormous losses of pear production in eastern Asian, especially China. In this study, we identified a fungal-specific transcription factor 1 (termed as VpFSTF1) from V. pyri, which is highly conserved in fungi. To characterize its functions, we generated mutant and complementation strains in V. pyri and found that ΔVpFSTF1 mutants lost the ability to form fruiting bodies along with the reduced virulence. The radial growth of ΔVpFSTF1 mutant was sensitive to increasing concentrations of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and salicylic acid (SA). Moreover, RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq) analysis of wild-type (WT) and ΔVpFSTF1 mutant strains was performed, and the results revealed 1,993 upregulated, and 2006 downregulated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the mutant. The DEGs were corresponding to the genes that are involved in amino acid metabolism, starch, and sucrose metabolism, gluconeogenesis, citrate cycle, and carbon metabolism. Interestingly, pathogen host interaction (PHI) analysis showed that 69 downregulated genes were related to virulence, suggesting that they might function downstream of VpFSTF1. Nine DEGs were further validated by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), and the results were consistent with RNA-seq analysis. Furthermore, promoter regions were predicted, and VpFSTF1 binding activity was assessed. We demonstrated that five promoters are directly or indirectly targeted by VpFSTF1, including catalase-related peroxidase (VPIG_01209) and P450 family genes. Taken together, these findings indicate that VpFSTF1 is crucial for the virulence of V. pyri via direct or indirect regulation of downstream genes expression and lay an important foundation for understanding the molecular mechanism of V. pyri infection.</p