Enhanced critical current density of MgB2 superconductor synthesized in high magnetic fields

The effect of high magnetic fields on the current carrying properties of both MgB2 bulks and Fe-sheathed tapes was investigated following different thermal sequences. It is found that application of a large magnetic field during processing results in the quite uniform microstructure and the better connectivity between the MgB2 grains. As a result, the Jc of these samples has shown much higher value than that of the MgB2 samples in the absence of magnetic field. The possible mechanism of the Jc enhancement under an external magnetic field is also discussed.Comment: Presented at ISS2005, Tsukuba, 24-26 Oct., 2005; Revised versio

Circ_0008234 regulates the biological process of gallbladder carcinoma by targeting the miR-204-5p/FGFR2 axis

Background. Gallbladder carcinoma (GBC) is a common cancer disease with high mortality. Circular RNA_0008234 (circ_0008234) has been shown to play a key role in many tumors, including GBC. However, the function between circ_0008234 and microRNA-204-5p (miR-204-5p) in the progression of GBC has not been clarified. Methods. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expressions of circ_0008234, miR-204-5p and fibroblast growth factor receptor-2 (FGFR2) in GBC cells and tissues. Western blot was used to detect the expression of relative proteins. Cell proliferation, apoptosis, invasion and migration were detected by 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, thymidine analog 5-ethynyl-2’-deoxyuridine (EdU) assay, flow cytometry, transwell assay and wound healing assay. Mechanically, the interaction of miR-2045p with circ_0008234/FGFR2 was notarized by dualluciferase reporter assay. A xenotransplantation model was established to study the role of circ_0008234 in vivo. Results. Circ_0008234 and FGFR2 were highly expressed in GBC tissues and cells. Silencing circ_0008234 down-regulated cell proliferation, migration and invasion of NOZ and SGC-996 cells, while miR-204-5p inhibitors reversed these effects. In addition, overexpression of FGFR2 restored the cell malignant behavior of GBC cells inhibited by miR-2045p mimic. Animal experiments confirmed the anti-tumor effect of silenced circ_0008234 in vivo. Conclusion: Circ_0008234 mediated GBC via the miR-204-5p/FGFR2 axis, providing a novel targeted therapy for gallbladder carcinom

Coronary heart disease and mortality following a breast cancer diagnosis

BACKGROUND: Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality for breast cancer survivors, yet the joint effect of adverse cardiovascular health (CVH) and cardiotoxic cancer treatments on post-treatment CHD and death has not been quantified. METHODS: We conducted statistical and machine learning approaches to evaluate 10-year risk of these outcomes among 1934 women diagnosed with breast cancer during 2006 and 2007. Overall CVH scores were classified as poor, intermediate, or ideal for 5 factors, smoking, body mass index, blood pressure, glucose/hemoglobin A1c, and cholesterol from clinical data within 5 years prior to the breast cancer diagnosis. The receipt of potentially cardiotoxic breast cancer treatments was indicated if the patient received anthracyclines or hormone therapies. We modeled the outcomes of post-cancer diagnosis CHD and death, respectively. RESULTS: Results of these approaches indicated that the joint effect of poor CVH and receipt of cardiotoxic treatments on CHD (75.9%) and death (39.5%) was significantly higher than their independent effects [poor CVH (55.9%) and cardiotoxic treatments (43.6%) for CHD, and poor CVH (29.4%) and cardiotoxic treatments (35.8%) for death]. CONCLUSIONS: Better CVH appears to be protective against the development of CHD even among women who had received potentially cardiotoxic treatments. This study determined the extent to which attainment of ideal CVH is important not only for CHD and mortality outcomes among women diagnosed with breast cancer

An antibody-based microarray assay for small RNA detection

Detection of RNAs on microarrays is rapidly becoming a standard approach for molecular biologists. However, current methods frequently discriminate against structured and/or small RNA species. Here we present an approach that bypasses these problems. Unmodified RNA is hybridized directly to DNA microarrays and detected with the high-affinity, nucleotide sequence-independent, DNA/RNA hybrid-specific mouse monoclonal antibody S9.6. Subsequent reactions with a fluorescently-labeled anti-mouse IgG antibody or biotin-labeled anti-mouse IgG together with fluorescently labeled streptavidin produces a signal that can be measured in a standard microarray scanner. The antibody-based method was able to detect low abundance small RNAs of Escherichia coli much more efficiently than the commonly-used cDNA-based method. A specific small RNA was detected in amounts of 0.25 fmol (i.e. concentration of 10 pM in a 25 µl reaction). The method is an efficient, robust and inexpensive technique that allows quantitative analysis of gene expression and does not discriminate against short or structured RNAs

Bis(chloro­acetato-κ2 O,O′)bis­(2-fluoro­benzyl-κC 1)tin(IV)

In the title complex, [Sn(C2H2ClO2)2(C7H6F)2], the SnIV atom is located on a twofold rotation axis and forms a strongly distorted trans-octa­hedral geometry. The equatorial plane is defined by two chelating chloro­acetate ligands with asymmetrical Sn—O bond lengths, while the axial positions are occupied by the C atoms of two 2-fluoro­benzyl groups. In the crystal, infinite chains in the [010] direction are formed through inter­molecular Sn⋯O inter­actions [Sn⋯O separation = 3.682 (3) Å]

Study on vibration characteristics of ship mining system under composite load

The load that borne by ship mining system is very complex. The vibration of lifting pipe can be significantly affected by ocean current and wind load, which has a key impact on material lifting, ore bin storage and ship towing. Considering the composite load condition, the vibration control equation of mining ship is established based on the transverse swing mechanism of ship hull, and the variation law of transverse disturbance is obtained. The dynamic equation is constructed according to the bearing characteristics of the lifting system and the D’Alembert principle. The Wilson method is used to analyze and obtain the transverse vibration spectrum response of the lifting pipe under different wind loads, hull disturbance velocity and water depth. Based on the analogy method and hammering method, the vibration feedback test-bed of the lifting system is built, and the time-domain and frequency-domain vibration characteristics of the lifting pipe model under different water depths are obtained. The results show that in shallow water, the disturbance of mining ship and the composite load of ocean current are the key factors affecting the vibration amplitude of lifting pipe respectively. With the increase of water depth, the characteristic frequency and amplitude of the system decrease, and the amplitude gradually presents a discontinuous phenomenon

The Role of Amygdala in Patients With Euthymic Bipolar Disorder During Resting State

The current study aims to explore the functional changes of the amygdala in patients with euthymic Bipolar Disorder (BD) using resting state fMRI (rs-fMRI). Twenty-one euthymic patients with bipolar disorder and 28 healthy controls participated in this study. Two of the euthymic patients with BD and three of the healthy controls were excluded due to excessive head motion. We found that patients with euthymia (38.79 ± 12.03) show higher fALFF (fractional Amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation) value of the amygdala (t = 2.076, P = 0.044), and lower functional connectivity between the amygdala and supplementary motor area (p < 0.01, GRF corrected) than healthy controls (33.40 ± 8.21). However, euthymic patients did not show a differential activity in ReHo (Regional Homogeneity) and gray matter of the amygdala region as compared to healthy controls. Thus, despite the absence of clinical symptoms in euthymic patients with BD, the amygdala functional activity and its connectivity to other brain regions remain altered. Further investigation of negative emotions and social functioning in euthymic patients with BD are needed and can help pave the way for a better understanding of BD psychopathology

A population of deletion mutants and an integrated mapping and exome-seq pipeline for gene discovery in maize

To better understand maize endosperm filling and maturation, we used gamma irradiation of the B73 maize reference line to generate mutants with opaque endosperm and reduced kernel fill phenotypes, and created a population of 1788 lines including 47 Mo17 × F2s showing stable, segregating and viable kernel phenotypes. For molecular characterization of the mutants, we developed a novel functional genomics platform that combined Bulked Segregant RNA and Exome sequencing (BSREx-seq) to map causative mutations and identify candidate genes within mapping intervals. To exemplify the utility of the mutants and provide proof-ofconcept for the bioinformatics platform, we present detailed characterization of line 937; an opaque mutant harboring a 6203-bp in-frame deletion covering six exons within the Opaque-1 gene. In addition, we describe mutant line 146 which contains a 4.8 Kb intra-gene deletion within the Sugary-1 gene and line 916 in which an 8.6 Kb deletion knocks out a Cyclin A2 gene. The publically available algorithm developed in this work improves the identification of causative deletions and its corresponding gaps within mapping peaks. This study demonstrates the utility of gamma irradiation for forward genetics in large non-dense genomes such as maize since deletions often affect single genes. Furthermore, we show how this classical mutagenesis method becomes applicable for functional genomics when combined with state-of-the-art genomics tools

A population of deletion mutants and an integrated mapping and exome-seq pipeline for gene discovery in maize

To better understand maize endosperm filling and maturation, we used gamma irradiation of the B73 maize reference line to generate mutants with opaque endosperm and reduced kernel fill phenotypes, and created a population of 1788 lines including 47 Mo17 × F2s showing stable, segregating and viable kernel phenotypes. For molecular characterization of the mutants, we developed a novel functional genomics platform that combined Bulked Segregant RNA and Exome sequencing (BSREx-seq) to map causative mutations and identify candidate genes within mapping intervals. To exemplify the utility of the mutants and provide proof-ofconcept for the bioinformatics platform, we present detailed characterization of line 937; an opaque mutant harboring a 6203-bp in-frame deletion covering six exons within the Opaque-1 gene. In addition, we describe mutant line 146 which contains a 4.8 Kb intra-gene deletion within the Sugary-1 gene and line 916 in which an 8.6 Kb deletion knocks out a Cyclin A2 gene. The publically available algorithm developed in this work improves the identification of causative deletions and its corresponding gaps within mapping peaks. This study demonstrates the utility of gamma irradiation for forward genetics in large non-dense genomes such as maize since deletions often affect single genes. Furthermore, we show how this classical mutagenesis method becomes applicable for functional genomics when combined with state-of-the-art genomics tools