Ghrelin attenuates avascular necrosis of the femoral head induced by steroids in rabbits

Purpose: Ghrelin is an endogenous ligand for growth hormone secretagogue receptor. The current study was aimed at examining the effect of ghrelin on avascular necrosis of the femoral head (ANFH) induced by steroids in a rabbit model and also exploring the underlying mechanism. Methods: Experimental rabbits were separated into three groups: Control, Vehicle and Ghrelin. We established a steroid-induced ANFH model in rabbits. Then, MRI scanning and hematoxylin-eosin staining (HE) were conducted to see ANFH. The mRNA levels of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) and Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2 (BMP-2) were evaluated using real-time qRT-PCR. Results: Rabbits in the Vehicle group showed increased empty bone lacunae, reduced bone trabecula in femoral head; the number of hematopoietic cells in the bone marrow was reduced, whereas number of adipocytes increased with evident fusion phenomenon in comparison with the Control group. All of the changes induced in Vehicle group were attenuated in Ghrelin group. MRI scanning showed obvious necrosis of femoral head in the Vehicle group and less in the Ghrelin group. The mRNA levels of VEGF and BMP-2 were raised in Vehicle group and further enhanced in Ghrelin group. Conclusion: Ghrelin attenuates steroid-induced avascular necrosis in femoral head in rabbit model. A possible mechanism may be through VEGF/BMP-2 axis. Keywords: ANFH, BMP-2, Ghrelin, VEG

BmILF and I-motif Structure Are Involved in Transcriptional Regulation of \u3cem\u3eBmPOUM2\u3c/em\u3e in \u3cem\u3eBombyx mori\u3c/em\u3e

Guanine-rich and cytosine-rich DNA can form four-stranded DNA secondary structures called G-quadruplex (G4) and i-motif, respectively. These structures widely exist in genomes and play important roles in transcription, replication, translation and protection of telomeres. In this study, G4 and i-motif structures were identified in the promoter of the transcription factor gene BmPOUM2, which regulates the expression of the wing disc cuticle protein gene (BmWCP4) during metamorphosis. Disruption of the i-motif structure by base mutation, anti-sense oligonucleotides (ASOs) or inhibitory ligands resulted in significant decrease in the activity of the BmPOUM2 promoter. A novel i-motif binding protein (BmILF) was identified by pull-down experiment. BmILF specifically bound to the i-motif and activated the transcription of BmPOUM2. The promoter activity of BmPOUM2 was enhanced when BmILF was over-expressed and decreased when BmILF was knocked-down by RNA interference. This study for the first time demonstrated that BmILF and the i-motif structure participated in the regulation of gene transcription in insect metamorphosis and provides new insights into the molecular mechanism of the secondary structures in epigenetic regulation of gene transcription

EVERYBODY GET ON BOARD! A case study of two perspectives on onboarding process

Abstract Essay/Thesis: 30 hp Program and/or course Strategic Human Resource Management and Labour Relations Level: Second Cycle Semester/year: St 2017 Supervisor: Ulla Eriksson-Zetterquist Examiner: xx Report No: xx (not to be filled in by the student/students) Keyword: New employees onboarding socialization Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to study the two perspectives on onboarding. On one side the perspectives of managers/HR professionals who conduct onboarding, and on the other the perspectives of new employees. The study aims to discover what aspects of onboarding play a critical role. Theory: Onboarding, or organizational socialization, is a branch of socialization theory that seeks to explain the ways in which new employees acquire the skills, knowledge and dispositions required to become effective members of a workplace environment. Therefore, the authors primarily use organizational socialization theory. Method: This thesis depended greatly upon primary data. 25 semi-structured interviews were conducted, including new employees, HR professionals, and managers of an automotive engineering company in Sweden. Hence, the thesis is considered as a qualitative research. Result: Despite that the company has an onboarding plan, it is not thoroughly carried out by managers and HR professionals. The lack of cooperation, motivation and resources to fully implement the onboarding plan, caused frustration between HR professionals and managers. Therefore, a number of new employees experienced the onboarding as insufficient. Yet, new employees valued interpersonal connections, such as having a mentor for guidance and supportive colleagues

<p>Evolution behavior and active oxygen quantification of reaction mechanism on cube Cu2O for CO self-sustained catalytic combustion and chemical-looping combustion</p>

Catalytic combustion (CC) and chemical looping combustion (CLC) are promising technologies for energy saving and emission reduction of CO2 in treatment of steelmaking off-gas. This work firstly reports and compares the evolution behavior and quantitative reaction mechanisms of cube Cu2O model catalyst for CC and CLC reactions. The Cu2O-CC exhibited the higher activity and stability than Cu2O-CLC. The typical characterization results suggested that the only surface unstable Cu2O was oxidized to CuO, and the excellent synergistic effect of metal oxide interface (100) between Cu+/Cu2+ and active lattice oxygen species for Cu2O-CC reaction. But, for CLC reaction, Cu2O structure was collapsed, which caused the agglomeration of CuOx species and gradual decrease of reaction stability. Three different active oxygen species (surface cycle lattice oxygen, bulk lattice oxygen, and adsorbed oxygen) and the detailed reaction pathways were proposed by the in situ IR spectroscopy, isotopic (O-18(2)) transient exchange experiments and DFT simulation. The intrinsic activity of surface cycle lattice oxygen was higher in terms of TOF (13.5 x 10(-3) s(-1)) and facile formation of (COO)-O-16-O-18 on the cubic interface of Cu2O-CC through adsorbed CO during CC process. The contribution degrees of Mars-van-Krevelen (M-K) and Langmuir-Hinshelwood (L-H) mechanisms for CC and CLC reactions were 76.6% and 23.4% for CC, and 89.7% and 10.3% for CLC on Cu2O catalyst, respectively

The impulsive online shopper: effects of COVID-19 burnout, uncertainty, self-control, and online shopping trust

Abstract Consumerism during the COVID-19 pandemic has been characterized by impulsive buying. Using the theoretical lens of uncertainty avoidance and ego-depletion to identify the mediating mechanisms and moderating factors for online impulse buying, we surveyed young consumers across two relevant periods for high consumerism—the week preceding the 2021 Chinese Spring Festival (Study 1; February 4–9, 2021, n = 1495) and the weeks during and after the festival (Study 2; February 12 to March 2, 2021, n = 923). Perception of COVID-19 variant uncertainty was both directly and indirectly (via online shopping trust) positively associated with online impulse buying. COVID-19 burnout was consistently indirectly associated with online impulse buying via self-regulation and self-appraised impulsivity but inconsistently directly associated. Self-regulation was surprisingly positively associated with online impulse buying, possibly reflecting evidence of already depleted resources from prolonged regulatory exertion among high self-regulators. Self-appraised impulsivity negatively interacted with perception of COVID-19 variant uncertainty, suggesting that as trait impulsivity increases, individuals are less incentivized by peripheral drivers of online impulse buying

Catalytic oxidation of high-concentration CO over La0.9M0.1CoO3 (M = Ce, Sr) facilely promoted by glucose

Glucose-free and glucose-containing LaCoO3(-G), La0.9Sr0.1CoO3(-G), and La0.9Ce0.1CoO3(-G) perovskite catalysts were synthesized via the sol-gel method, over which the oxidation performance of high-concentration CO was investigated. The experimental results indicate that the catalytic activity can be improved by facilely adding glucose during the preparation where glucose creates a reducing atmosphere and takes away the oxygen atoms of perovskites to form more oxygen vacancies and Co3+. CO self-sustained combustion is favorably achieved and La0.9Ce0.1CoO3-G shows the best catalytic performance. Combining the XPS, H-2-TPR, O-2-TPD and CO-TPD results, the outstanding performance of La0.9Ce0.1CoO3-G is mainly ascribed to the relatively higher concentrations of Co3+, Ce3+ and oxygen vacancies. The reaction was found to follow the Langmuir-Hinshelwood (L-H) mechanism by in situ IR spectroscopy and kinetic results. Furthermore, La0.9Ce0.1CoO3-G exhibits good high-temperature durability with unchanged CO conversion of 100% at 760 degrees C. It is suggested that the addition of glucose and the impregnation of Sr or Ce in perovskites is a feasible strategy to design industrial catalysts for CO self-sustained combustion