Co- and post-seismic vertical displacements of Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake near Beichuan

Co- and post-seismic vertical displacements of the Wenchuan earthquake derived from two measurements in 2008 and 2010 along two partly-damaged leveling lines near the epicenter show the following features: Co-seismic displacement at Beichuan-Yingxiu fault was as large as 4.711 m near Beichuan, where the maximum observed fault offset was 5.1 m. In contrast, the observed co-seismic offset of the Qingchuan fault in Pingwu County was only 0.064 m. During 2008–2010, the post-seismic displacement rate was 5–27 mm/a near Beichuan-Yingxiu fault in Beichuan area, 20.6 mm/a at Jiangyou-Guangyuan fault near Dakang, and only 0.2–1.3 mm/a at Qingchuan fault near Gucheng

Study on the optimal antagonistic effect of a bacterial complex against Monilinia fructicola in peach

Peach brown rot caused by Monilinia fructicola is one of the most economically destructive diseases of peach (Prunus persica L.) in some orchards of China. Biocontrol is a significant strategy that exhibits strong levels of control and ecologically sound concepts in disease management. The purpose of this study was to investigate the combined suppressive effects of three endophytic bacterial strains (xj-14, xj-15, and xj-16) and two soil rhizosphere bacterial strains (xj-A and xj-C) that were shown to have strong inhibitory activity toward M. fructicola in our previous study. The optimal strains and the optimized combination of strains were determined. The combination of strains xj-15 and xj-C inhibited M. fructicola more intensively for a longer period of time. Following the application of 1 × 109 CFU/mL bacterial complex to the fruits, leaves, and shoots of peach trees infected with M. fructicola, the rate of inhibition reached 73.80%, 83.33%, and 90.43%, respectively. A pot experiment using lettuce (Lactuca sativa) showed that inoculation with the bacterial complex significantly increased the growth of seedlings. In this study, some compound bacteria were more effective than those in previous study in suppressing disease and promoting growth, which have the potential to be further applied in the field

Several problems about strain calculation and analysis and correction of related deviation*

There exists many kinds of calculation models of plane and spherical strain fields, but the results of these models are different. The representative models was analyzed, and got some useful conclusions, in which some models are unbiased, some have deviations that can be corrected, some can only be used to compute strain in a uniform medium and can not be extended, and some can be used in the calculation and analysis of continuous strain field as well. Meanwhile, the correction relationship for spherical difference movement (displacement) computed from strain results was given, and the meaning of the non – differential term in spherical strain model was demonstrated

Lico A Causes ER Stress and Apoptosis via Up-Regulating miR-144-3p in Human Lung Cancer Cell Line H292

During our study on the bioactivities of natural flavonoids, we found that the total flavonoids (TFs) and the main constituent of it, licochalcone A (lico A), activated unfolded protein response (UPR) and induced autophagy and thereby apoptosis in H292 cells. MicroRNAs, such as the tumor repressor miR-144-3p, were reported to be differentially expressed in lung cancer cells and were linked to ER stress, autophagy, and apoptosis. However, the underlying miRNA-based mechanism for lico A modulating proliferation, autophagy and apoptosis in lung cancer cells is elusive. In this study, we found that miR-144-3p was down-regulated in H292 cells comparing to normal embryonic lung cells WI-38, and lico A (10 μM) could increase miR-144-3p level in H292 cells. Knockdown of miR-144-3p significantly abrogated the apoptosis and proliferation-inhibiting effects of lico A, and lico A could enhance the proliferation-inhibiting effect and apoptosis induced by miR-144-3p overexpression. Moreover, overexpression miR-144-3p could induce ER stress by down-regulating Nrf2, and lico A enhanced the Nrf2 down-regulation caused by miR-144-3p overexpression. Co-transfection experiments showed that lico A potentially increased the dicing of pre-miR-144 so as to increase the mature miR-144-3p level. Interestingly, high level of lico A (40 μM) up-regulated CHOP protein, but failed to increase the downstream genes levels of CHOP, including Bim and Bcl-2 in H292 cells. Docking studies indicated that CHOP-mediated pathway was potentially blocked by high dose of lico A. Our results suggested that lico A could cause UPR, autophagy and apoptosis, and the underlying mechanism involved up-regulation of miR-144-3p, and increased lico A level would also increase the potential for lico A inhibiting CHOP-dependent apoptosis in H292 cells

Novel risk prediction models, involving coagulation, thromboelastography, stress response, and immune function indicators, for deep vein thrombosis after radical resection of cervical cancer and ovarian cancer

This study aimed to investigate the predictive value of coagulation, thromboelastography, stress response, and immune function indicators for the occurrence of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) following radical resection of cervical cancer and ovarian cancer. We conducted a prospective, single-centre, case-control study that included 230 cervical cancer patients and 230 ovarian cancer patients. In the testing cohort, the final predictive model for cervical cancer patients was: Logit(P)=9.365–0.063(R-value)−0.112(K value) +0.386(α angle)+0.415(MA)+0.276(FIB)+0.423(D-D)+0.195(IL-6)+0.092(SOD). For ovarian cancer patients, the final model was: Logit(P)= −2.846–0.036(R-value)-0.157(K value) +0.426(α angle) +0.172(MA) +0.221(FIB)+0.375(CRP) −0.126(CD4+/CD8+). In the validation cohort, these models exhibited good predictive efficiency, with a false-positive rate of 12.5% and a false-negative rate of 2.9% for cervical cancer patients, and a false-positive rate of 14.3% and a false-negative rate of 0% for ovarian cancer patients. In conclusion, the risk prediction models developed in this study effectively improve the predictive accuracy of DVT following radical resection of cervical and ovarian cancer

Optimization of the Monitoring of Coal Spontaneous Combustion Degree Using a Distributed Fiber Optic Temperature Measurement System: Field Application and Evaluation

Coal spontaneous combustion (CSC) in gob not only leads to wasted resources and casualties, but also produces a lot of waste gas that pollutes the underground environment. Mastering the degree of CSC helps ensure that timely and effective control measures are taken. The real-time and accurate monitoring of temperature, as the primary indicator of the extent of CSC, is difficult due to the harsh and hidden environment of gob, resulting in a reduced ability to anticipate and prevent CSC. In this work, a complete distributed optical fiber temperature sensing system (DTSS) set with strong anti-damage ability was developed. The optical cable is protected by internal parallel steel cables and external protective pipes, which greatly improve the system’s reliability and integrity when used in gob. During its application in the Wangyun Coal Mine, an abnormal temperature rise in gob was discovered in time, and the effect of inhibitor spraying was monitored and evaluated. The degree of CSC in the gob was accurately identified, which shows that the work of coal mining can be targeted. This work is expected to improve early warning capability to prevent the risk of CSC in gob, and has promising applications

Trivalent chromium removal from tannery wastewater with low cost bare magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles

In this work, a new method is proposed to remove Cr (III) in tanning wastewater with low cost bare magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles. It has achieved ultra-high chromium capture capacity under high selectivity. The maximum capture capacity of magnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles for Cr (III) in chromium containing tanning wastewater is 456.20 mg/g at optimal pH 8. In a pilot scale apparatus running continuously at 18 L/h for 8 h, the chromium removal efficiency could be stabilized above 98.5% with chromium concentration reduced from 1065 mg/L to about 15 mg/L at the primary treatment. After secondary treatment, the outlet chromium concentration drops to 0.2 mg/L (lower than 0.5 mg/L, the maximum allowable concentration of Cr-total in tanning wastewater determined by China), and the chromium removal efficiency is steadily above 97.8%. The results revealed that the method could be used economically as an efficient technique for removal of Cr (III) in chromium containing leather tanning wastewater and has great potential in heavy metal wastewater treatment