4-(Phenyl­sulfan­yl)benzene-1,2-dicarbonitrile

In the title compound, C14H8N2S, the dicyano-substituted aromatic ring and the phenyl ring attached to the central S atom adopt an angular V-shaped configuration. The dihedral angle between the rings is 103.6°

Tetra­methyl 5,5′-[4,5-dicyano-1,2-phenyl­enebis(­oxy)]diisophthalate chloro­form monosolvate

In the title compound, C28H20N2O10·CHCl3, the phen­oxy rings are inclined to the central phenyl ring at dihedral angles of 84.71 (13) and 80.56 (13)°. In the crystal, pairs of weak inter­molecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link mol­ecules related by an inversion center, forming dimers. There are also C—H⋯π inter­actions present

Hierarchical Co2P microspheres assembled from nanorods grown on reduced graphene oxide as anode material for Lithium-ion batteries

Transition metal phosphides (TMPs) have been studied as promising electrodes for energy storage and conversion due to their large theoretical capacities and high activities. Herein, a hierarchically structured Co2P coupling with the reduced graphene oxide (RGO) composite (Co2P/RGO) was synthesized by a simple solid state method for Li storage. The Co2P/RGO hybrid composite exhibits a high reversible capacity of 61 mAh g−1 at 60 mA g−1, good rate capability of 327 mAh g−1 at 3000 mA g−1 and long cycle life (397 mAh g−1 at 500 mA g−1 for after 1000 cycles). The excellent electrochemical performance can be attributed to the synergistic effect of Co2P micro/nano architecture and graphene modulation, which provide more activity sites for Li+-ions and maintain the structural integrity of active material. This work may provide a new path for preparation of other metal phosphides as potential electrode materials for application in energy storage fields

Matrix metalloproteinase proteolysis after stroke : a surrogate indicator for early diagnosis and validation of treatment

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are a family of endoproteaseses that have various functions from development to disease. They are also believed to play critical roles in the central nerve system for the pathogenesis of stroke. In ischemic stroke, MMP 9 is involved in neuronal apoptosis, edema, and hemorrhagic transformation. In stroke models, MMPs degrade ECM components and disrupt neurovascular integrity, resulting in blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption and hemorrhage which further damage to the ischemic area. There are experimental pharmacological treatments with MMP inhibitors that decrease the extent of neuronal apoptosis and hemorrhage. Recently we tested a new class of mechanism-based MMP-9 specific inhibitors SB-3CT. Our hypothesis is that MMP-9 causes proteolytic changes resulting in neurovascular damage after focal cerebral ischemia in mice. Inhibition of MMP proteolysis with SB-3CT, should result in decreased apoptosis of neurons and improved behavioral outcomes."Supported in part by the grants of NIH/NIEHS&NCCAM, Dana Foundation, AHA to Z.G.

Successful treatment discontinuation in CML patients with full-dose and low-dose TKI: Results from real-world practice

Background: In clinical studies, some patients who achieve deep molecular response (DMR) can successfully discontinue tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI). TKI dose reduction is also an important aspect of alleviating adverse effects and improving quality of life. This study aimed to explore the outcome after drug withdrawal in Chinese CML patients.Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of the outcome of 190 patients who stopped TKI. 27 patients experienced dose reduction before TKI discontinuation. The median duration of TKI treatment and MR4 before discontinuation was 82 months and 61 months.Results: With median follow-up after stopping TKI treatment of 17 months, the estimated TFR (Treatment Free Remission) were 76.9% (95%CI, 70.2%–82.4%), 68.8% (95%CI, 61.3%–75.2%), and 65.5% (95%CI, 57.4%–72.5%) at 6, 12 and 24 months. For full-dose and low-dose TKI groups, the TFR at 24 months was 66.7% and 55.8% (p = 0.320, log-rank). Most patients (56/57) quickly achieved MMR after restarting TKI treatment. Multivariable analysis showed that patients with TKI resistance had a higher risk of molecular relapse than patients without TKI resistance (p < 0.001).Conclusion: TFR rates were not impaired in patients experiencing dose reduction before TKI discontinuation compared to patients with full-dose TKI. Our data on Chinese population may provide a basis for the safety and feasibility of TKI discontinuation, including discontinuation after dose reduction, in clinical practice

Mechanism-based Inhibitor of Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 Rescues Brain from Focal Cerebral Ischemia-induced Damage and Improve Neurological Outcomes in Mice [abstract]

Neuroscience - Vision & Functional Brain Imaging Poster SessionStroke is the third leading cause of death in the US and the primary cause of long-term disability. Acute ischemic stroke, the most common form of stroke, is caused by clotting in the cerebral arteries leading to brain oxygen deprivation and cerebral infarction. The events involved in stroke include brain cell injury or death, breakdown of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), edema, and hemorrhage, which are associated with the expression and activation of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), particularly MMP-9. In two focal cerebral ischemia paradigms - the filament-induced transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAo) and the embolus-induced permanent MCAo in mice, we examined MMP-9 proteolysis of extracellular matrix (ECM) components and the neuroprotective effects of the highly selective mechanism-based inhibitor of MMP-9, SB-3CT, which is activated by MMP-9 under pathological conditions. We demonstrated that MMP-9 degrades the ECM protein laminin and that this degradation induces neuronal apoptosis in a transient focal cerebral ischemia model in mice. SB-3CT dramatically blocks MMP-9 activity and decreases MMP-9-mediated laminin cleavage, thus rescuing neurons from apoptosis and ameliorating neurobehavioral outcomes. Significant therapeutic activity of SB-3CT is seen up to 6 h after initial brain damage. Moreover, treatment with SB-3CT attenuates brain MMP-9 activity and protects against delayed neuronal cell death in the embolus-induced permanent MCAo in mice. We conclude that MMP-9 is a highly promising drug target and that SB-3CT has significant therapeutic potential in stroke patients

Polymorphisms in Epigenetic and Meat Quality Related Genes in Fourteen Cattle Breeds and Association with Beef Quality and Carcass Traits

Improvement for carcass traits related to beef quality is the key concern in beef production. Recent reports found that epigenetics mediates the interaction of individuals with environment and nutrition. The present study was designed to analyze the genetic effect of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in seven epigenetic-related genes (DNMT1, DNMT3a, DNMT3b, DNMT3L, Ago1, Ago2, and HDAC5) and two meat quality candidate genes (CAPN1 and PRKAG3) on fourteen carcass traits related to beef quality in a Snow Dragon beef population, and also to identify SNPs in a total of fourteen cattle populations. Sixteen SNPs were identified and genotyped in 383 individuals sampled from the 14 cattle breeds, which included 147 samples from the Snow Dragon beef population. Data analysis showed significant association of 8 SNPs within 4 genes related to carcass and/or meat quality traits in the beef populations. SNP1 (13154420A>G) in exon 17 of DNMT1 was significantly associated with rib-eye width and lean meat color score (pG) of DNMT3a was significantly associated with six beef quality traits. Those individuals with the wild-type genotype AA of DNMT3a showed an increase in carcass weight, chilled carcass weight, flank thicknesses, chuck short rib thickness, chuck short rib score and in chuck flap weight in contrast to the GG genotype. Five out of six SNPs in DNMT3b gene were significantly associated with three beef quality traits. SNP15 (45219258C>T) in CAPN1 was significantly associated with chuck short rib thickness and lean meat color score (p<0.05). The significant effect of SNP15 on lean meat color score individually and in combination with each of other 14 SNPs qualify this SNP to be used as potential marker for improving the trait. In addition, the frequencies of most wild-type alleles were higher than those of the mutant alleles in the native and foreign cattle breeds. Seven SNPs were identified in the epigenetic-related genes. The SNP15 in CAPN1 could be used as a powerful genetic marker in selection programs for beef quality improvement in the Snow Dragon Beef population

A method for detecting and locating the gross error of tidal based on wavelet analysis

Tidal harmonic constants are necessary data for the evaluation of tidal model, tidal prediction and chart datum. Compared with the wavelet multi-scale analysis model, a new method is put forward to detect and locate tidal discrete and continuous gross error. Based on the properties of the wavelets, the wavelet suitable for detecting the gross error of tidal is selected. And taking db6 wavelet as an example, the feasibility and effectiveness of this method are proved by experiments. The results show that the method can not only simultaneously detect and locate discrete gross error and continuous gross based on high frequency information, and can detect and locate the systematic deviation caused by the zero drift according to the low frequency information. Experimental result shows that the method is more simple, the efficiency and accuracy of detecting and locating gross error are improved