Facile control of nanoporosity in Cellulose Acetate using Nickel(II) nitrate additive and water pressure treatment for highly efficient battery gel separators

We succeed in fabricating nearly straight nanopores in cellulose acetate (CA) polymers for use as battery gel separators by utilizing an inorganic hexahydrate (Ni(NO3)2??6H2O) complex and isostatic water pressure treatment. The continuous nanopores are generated when the polymer film is exposed to isostatic water pressure after complexing the nickel(II) nitrate hexahydrate (Ni(NO3)2??6H2O) with the CA. These results can be attributed to the manner in which the polymer chains are weakened because of the plasticization effect of the Ni(NO3)2??6H2O that is incorporated into the CA. Furthermore, we performed extensive molecular dynamics simulation for confirming the interaction between electrolyte and CA separator. The well controlled CA membrane after water pressure treatment enables fabrication of highly reliable cell by utilizing 2032-type coin cell structure. The resulting cell performance exhibits not only the effect of the physical morphology of CA separator, but also the chemical interaction of electrolyte with CA polymer which facilitates the Li-ion in the cell.ope

Resistance to autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease in an APOE3 Christchurch homozygote: a case report.

We identified a PSEN1 (presenilin 1) mutation carrier from the world's largest autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease kindred, who did not develop mild cognitive impairment until her seventies, three decades after the expected age of clinical onset. The individual had two copies of the APOE3 Christchurch (R136S) mutation, unusually high brain amyloid levels and limited tau and neurodegenerative measurements. Our findings have implications for the role of APOE in the pathogenesis, treatment and prevention of Alzheimer's disease

High resolution mapping and positional cloning of ENU-induced mutations in the Rw region of mouse chromosome 5

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Forward genetic screens in mice provide an unbiased means to identify genes and other functional genetic elements in the genome. Previously, a large scale ENU mutagenesis screen was conducted to query the functional content of a ~50 Mb region of the mouse genome on proximal Chr 5. The majority of phenotypic mutants recovered were embryonic lethals.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We report the high resolution genetic mapping, complementation analyses, and positional cloning of mutations in the target region. The collection of identified alleles include several with known or presumed functions for which no mutant models have been reported (<it>Tbc1d14</it>, <it>Nol14</it>, <it>Tyms</it>, <it>Cad</it>, <it>Fbxl5</it>, <it>Haus3</it>), and mutations in genes we or others previously reported (<it>Tapt1</it>, <it>Rest</it>, <it>Ugdh</it>, <it>Paxip1</it>, <it>Hmx1, Otoe, Nsun7</it>). We also confirmed the causative nature of a homeotic mutation with a targeted allele, mapped a lethal mutation to a large gene desert, and localized a spermiogenesis mutation to a region in which no annotated genes have coding mutations. The mutation in <it>Tbc1d14 </it>provides the first implication of a critical developmental role for RAB-GAP-mediated protein transport in early embryogenesis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This collection of alleles contributes to the goal of assigning biological functions to all known genes, as well as identifying novel functional elements that would be missed by reverse genetic approaches.</p

Ginger Stimulates Hematopoiesis via Bmp Pathway in Zebrafish

) has been widely used in traditional medicine; however, to date there is no scientific research documenting the potential of ginger to stimulate hematopoiesis. expression in the caudal hematopoietic tissue area. We further confirmed that Bmp/Smad pathway mediates this hematopoiesis promoting effect of ginger by using the Bmp-activated Bmp type I receptor kinase inhibitors dorsomorphin, LND193189 and DMH1.Our study provides a strong foundation to further evaluate the molecular mechanism of ginger and its bioactive components during hematopoiesis and to investigate their effects in adults. Our results will provide the basis for future research into the effect of ginger during mammalian hematopoiesis to develop novel erythropoiesis promoting agents

Over-expression of <i>bmp2b</i> specifically localized in the CHT area at 79 hpf upon ginger or 10-G exposure in normal and in anemic zebrafish embryos.

<p>Whole-mount in situ hybridization of <i>bmp2b.</i> (A–C, left) Normal non-anemic control embryos or embryos treated with ginger/10-G. (D–F, right) Anemic control embryos or anemic embryos treated with ginger/10-G. Anemic groups were treated with 0.5 µM PHZ from 33 to 48 hpf. Embryos express <i>bmp2b</i> in the CHT region (arrows) following exposure to ginger (B, E) or 10-G (C, F). (G) A table shows the percentage of embryos with <i>bmp2b</i> expression in the CHT area at 79 hpf. Scale bars = 420 µm.</p

Ginger/10-G treatment increases hematopoietic progenitor markers expression.

<p>Zebrafish embryos were treated with ginger or 10-G from 9 to 21 hpf. (A) <i>Tg(gata1:dsRed)</i> for erythrocyte and <i>Tg(flk1:GFP)</i> for blood vessels, double-fluorescent overlay pictures of embryos at 22 hpf after exposure to ginger or 10-G. Hypertrophy of the PBI vascular plexus in <i>Tg(flk1:GFP)</i> after ginger or 10-G treatment, with <i>Tg(gata1:dsRed)</i> red fluorescent erythrocytes accumulated inside the honeycomb-like vasculature (arrows). Scale bars = 500 µm. Whole-mount in situ hybridization of <i>c-myb</i> (B) and <i>scl</i> (C) in zebrafish embryos at 22 hpf. Both hematopoietic progenitor markers were up-regulated in primitive hematopoietic tissues (ICM+PBI) upon ginger (arrow head) or 10-G (arrow) exposure. Scale bar = 350 µm.</p

Ginger or 10-G exposure promotes erythrocyte recovery from anemia via a Bmp/Smad signal-dependent mechanism.

<p>Bmp/Smad inhibition abolishes the hematopoiesis promoting effect of ginger and 10-G. (A–B) The effect of ginger on hematopoiesis was quantitated in zebrafish embryos after phenylhydrazine (PHZ) induced acute hemolytic anemia, followed by extensive washes and treatments with ginger extract (A) or 10-G (B) with or without dorsomorphin (DMP; 0.1 µM). Ginger and 10-G promote hematopoietic recovery in PHZ treated embryos. Videos of circulating erythrocytes were analyzed and erythrocyte numbers for “PHZ+ginger” and “PHZ+ginger+DMP” assays were calculated and normalized with blood flow (velocity) using the PHZ control value as a reference. Tables summarize the results of one representative experiment. Experiments were repeated 3 times. n = number of embryos analyzed per group. <i>p</i> values were determined by using the Student’s t-test. (C) Regions of erythropoiesis promoted by ginger and 10-G are indicated on cartoons of zebrafish embryos at 22 hpf (primitive wave; before circulation), and at 5–6 dpf during the definitive wave of hematopoiesis. DMP-mediated inhibition of Bmp/Smad signal refers to <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone.0039327.s005" target="_blank">Figures S5</a>, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone.0039327.s006" target="_blank">S6</a>, 6 and <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone.0039327.s007" target="_blank">S7</a> data. DMH1-mediated inhibition of Bmp/Smad signaling refers to <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone.0039327.s005" target="_blank">Figures S5</a>, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone.0039327.s006" target="_blank">S6</a> and <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone.0039327.s008" target="_blank">S8</a> data. During the primitive wave of hematopoiesis, expression of <i>gata1</i> and <i>Tg(gata1:dsRed)</i> were increased in the ICM and PBI, as shown in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone-0039327-g001" target="_blank">Figure 1</a>, and the hematopoietic progenitor markers <i>cmyb</i> and <i>scl</i> were up-regulated in the same hematopoietic tissues, as shown in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone-0039327-g002" target="_blank">Figure 2</a>. During the definitive wave, <i>Tg(gata1:dsRed)</i> circulating cells were promoted at 5/6 dpf upon ginger/10-G exposure (<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone-0039327-g005" target="_blank">Figures 5</a> and <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone-0039327-g006" target="_blank">6</a>), and the hematopoietic progenitor markers <i>cmyb</i>, <i>scl</i> and <i>lmo2</i> were up-regulated in the CHT/hemogenic endothelium at 6 dpf (<i>cmyb, </i><a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone-0039327-g007" target="_blank">Figure 7</a>) or in the CHT only at 5 dpf (<i>scl</i> and <i>lmo2, </i><a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0039327#pone.0039327.s009" target="_blank">Figure S9</a>).</p

Effect of ginger and 10-G treatments on <i>c-myb</i> expression in zebrafish embryos at 6 dpf.

<p>(A–C) Ginger (B) or 10-G (C) treatment from 2 dpf to 6 dpf promotes <i>cmyb</i> expression in the CHT (black arrows) and the hemogenic endothelium (white arrows) along the ventral wall of the dorsal aorta (AGM equivalent) in the trunk and tail regions of normal embryos. (D–F) In phenylhydrazine-induced anemic embryos, ginger (E) or 10-G (F) treatment similarly promotes <i>cmyb</i> expression both in the CHT (black arrows) and the hemogenic endothelium (white arrows). (G–H) Graphical representation of the percentage of embryos showing <i>cmyb</i> expression in the CHT (G) and in the hemogenic endothelium (H). CTRL: control; PHZ: phenylhydrazine; n = number of embryos. Scale bar = 500 µm.</p