1,1′-Dimethyl-1,1′-(butane-1,4-di­yl)dipyrrolidinium dibromide methanol disolvate

In the title compound, C14H30N2 2+·2Br−·2CH3OH, two terminal C atoms of the butane chain are connected to two N atoms of the 1-methyl­pyrollidines, forming a linear diquaternary ammonium cation. The cation lies across a centre of inversion located between the two central C atoms of the butane chain. The asymmetric unit therefore comprises one half-cation, a bromide anion and a methanol solvent mol­ecule. In the crystal structure, the bromide anions are linked to the methanol solvent mol­ecules by O—H⋯Br hydrogen bonds

Development and characterization of a core set of SSR markers for fingerprinting analysis of Chinese maize varieties

A core set of 60 SSRs was selected and modified using 231 Chinese and USA maize (Zea mays L.) inbred lines from more than 2000 SSRs for DNA fingerprinting analysis. All 60 SSR markers met the following criteria: (1) amplification of a single locus; (2) distinct amplification products; (3) adequate intervals between adjacent alleles; (4) suitable PCR fragment size; (5) reasonable discrimination power (DP); and (6) even distribution across the maize genome. Furthermore, the 60 SSR primers were re-designed to adjust the PCR product size. Together with the application of four different fluorescent dyes, a high-throughput 10-plex capillary electrophoresis platform was explored. The 60 core SSR markers were further divided into three groups (20 SSRs per group) according to peak morphology and DP value. Groups I, II and III were used in DNA fingerprinting analysis as a basic core, an expanded core and a candidate core set respectively. The allele number per locus varied from three to 22 with an average of 8.95; the average number of alleles per group I, II and III was a respective 7.35, 7.8 and 11.4. The DP values ranged from 0.366 to 0.913, with an average of 0.718 among all loci; the average group DP values were 0.697, 0.718 and 0.737 for groups I, II and III respectively; and the cumulative values of discrimination power (CDP) approached 1 for all groups. Cluster analysis results using 60 selected loci divided the Chinese inbred lines into six groups, including Luda Red Cob, P, Improved Reid, Tang-si-ping-tou, Waxy and Lancaster. The USA inbred lines were segregated into four groups, including SSS, Lancaster, Iodent and Oh43/Oh07Mid mixed

Continuous extremal optimization for Lennard-Jones Clusters

In this paper, we explore a general-purpose heuristic algorithm for finding high-quality solutions to continuous optimization problems. The method, called continuous extremal optimization(CEO), can be considered as an extension of extremal optimization(EO) and is consisted of two components, one is with responsibility for global searching and the other is with responsibility for local searching. With only one adjustable parameter, the CEO's performance proves competitive with more elaborate stochastic optimization procedures. We demonstrate it on a well known continuous optimization problem: the Lennerd-Jones clusters optimization problem.Comment: 5 pages and 3 figure

Oral administration of a select mixture of Bacillus probiotics generates Tr1 cells in weaned F4ab/acR− pigs challenged with an F4+ ETEC/VTEC/EPEC strain

Dose effect of oral administration of BLS-mix on the growth of newly weaned pigs before and after F4 + ETEC/VTEC/EPEC challenge. The table shows the growth of newly weaned pigs before and after F4+ ETEC/VTEC/EPEC challenge. In the first 2 weeks following the challenge, average daily weight gain and feed intake were lower in ETEC pigs compared with CONT pigs (P = 0.011 and P = 0.018, respectively), but there were no differences relative to the CONT pigs in these parameters in the LDBE or HDBE groups

Green tea polyphenol induces significant cell death in human lung cancer cells

Purpose: To investigate the dose–response relationship of green tea polyphenol in an animal model of lung cancer.Methods: The effects of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) on the inhibition of xenograft tumor growth, the accumulation of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), and apoptosis based on 3-(4,5- dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay were evaluated in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cell lines, namely, H1155, H661, and A427 (a human lung carcinoma-derived cell line). The dose-dependent effects of EGCG on H1155 xenograft tumor growth, as well as the levels of EGCG in plasma and tissue, were also determined in male nude mice.Results: EGCG inhibited the growth of NSCLC-derived cell lines (H1155) over a 45-day period. There was a significant reduction (57 %) in tumor weight in EGCG-fed (0.5 %) animals compared with the control group (p < 0.05). Linear regression analysis revealed a dose-dependent reduction in tumor size. MTT assay results revealed inhibition of H1155 cell growth (25 %, p < 0.05) after 24 h treatment with EGCG. The addition of superoxide dismutase (5 U/mL) and catalase (30 U/mL) reduced the inhibitory effect of EGCG. Mice administered 30 mg/kg EGCG via intraperitoneal injection exhibited the least amount of oxidative stress.Conclusion: The results demonstrate the concentration-dependent inhibitory effects of EGCG on lung cancer cells, including H1155 cells, both in vitro and in vivo. The induction of reactive oxygen species, oxidative DNA damage, and apoptosis were evident following EGCG treatment.Keywords: Green tea, Lung cancer, Catechins, Epigallocatechin-3-gallate, Oxidative stress, Oxidative DNA damag

Lactobacillus rhamnosus GR-1 Ameliorates Escherichia coli-Induced Activation of NLRP3 and NLRC4 Inflammasomes With Differential Requirement for ASC

Escherichia coli is a common cause of mastitis in dairy cows. The adaptor protein apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a caspase recruitment domain (ASC) synergizes with caspase-1 to regulate inflammasome activation during pathogen infection. Here, the ASC gene was knocked out in bovine mammary epithelial (MAC-T) cells using clustered, regularly interspaced, short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated (Cas)-9 technology. MAC-T cells were pre-incubated with and without Lactobacillus rhamnosus GR-1 and then exposed to E. coli. Western blot analysis demonstrated increased expression of NLRP3 and NLRC4 following E. coli infection, but this increase was attenuated by pre-incubation with L. rhamnosus GR-1, regardless of ASC knockout. Western blot and immunofluorescence analyses revealed that pre-incubation with L. rhamnosus GR-1 decreased E. coli-induced caspase-1 activation at 6 h after E. coli infection, as also observed in ASC-knockout MAC-T cells. The E. coli-induced increase in caspase-4 mRNA expression was inhibited by pre-incubation with L. rhamnosus GR-1. ASC knockout diminished, but did not completely prevent, increased production of IL-1β and IL-18 and cell pyroptosis associated with E. coli infection, whereas pre-incubation with L. rhamnosus GR-1 inhibited this increase. Our data indicate that L. rhamnosus GR-1 suppresses activation of ASC-dependent NLRP3 and NLRC4 inflammasomes and production of downstream IL-lβ and IL-18 during E. coli infection. L. rhamnosus GR-1 also inhibited E. coli-induced cell pyroptosis, in part through attenuation of NLRC4 and non-canonical caspase-4 activation independently of ASC

Uterine Microbiota of Dairy Cows With Clinical and Subclinical Endometritis

The objective of this study was to characterize the uterine microbiota of dairy cows with clinical and subclinical endometritis and to identify the potential bacterial genera as well as their interactions associated with uterine disease. Uterine flush samples (n = 27) were collected from 13 healthy, 5 subclinical endometritic (SE), and 9 clinical endometritic (CE) cows at 30 days postpartum. Microbial DNA from uterine flush samples was subjected to sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene on the Illumina MiSeq platform. The uterine microbiota of healthy, SE, and CE cows had similarly complex microbial diversity, and shared 293 of 445 operational taxonomic units. However, endometritic and healthy cows could be discriminated by the relative abundance of bacterial genera. In CE cows, the uterine microbiota was characterized by increased abundance of Fusobacterium and unique presence of Trueperella and Peptoniphilus. For SE cows, known intrauterine pathogens were almost absent and the uterine microbiota was characterized by enrichment of Lactobacillus and Acinetobacter. Analysis of correlations between bacterial genera showed that the uterine microbiota exhibited two co-occurrence groups (i.e., the Lactococcus and the Fusobacterium COGs), indicating that the synergistic effect by co-occurred bacteria may be an important aspect of pathogenesis. Our findings support that common uterine pathogens are not associated with subclinical endometritis at 30 days postpartum and indicate the need of investigating the role of commensal bacteria such as Lactobacillus, and Acinetobacter in the inflammatory process of uterine endometrium

Magnesium Lithospermate B Protects Cardiomyocytes from Ischemic Injury Via Inhibition of TAB1–p38 Apoptosis Signaling

Danshen has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for hundreds of years to treat cardiovascular diseases. However, its precise cardioprotective components and the underlying mechanism are still unclear. In the present study, we demonstrated that in a rat model of acute myocardial infarction, the treatment with magnesium lithospermate B (MLB), the representative component of phenolic acids in Danshen, significantly reduced the infarct size and the blood lactate dehydrogenase level. In contrast, tanshinone IIA, the representative component of lipophilic tanshinones in Danshen, had no such protective effects. Moreover, in the simulated ischemia cell model, MLB treatment considerably increased the cell viability and reduced the sub-G1 population and the apoptotic nuclei, indicating its anti-apoptotic effect. Further mechanism study revealed that the ischemia-induced p38 phosphorylation was abolished by MLB treatment. Interestingly, MLB specifically inhibited the TGFβ-activated protein kinase 1-binding protein 1 (TAB1) mediated p38 phosphorylation through disrupting the interaction between TAB1 and p38, but it did not affect the mitogen-activated protein kinase 3/6 mediated p38 phosphorylation. In conclusion, the present study identifies MLB as an active component of Danshen in protecting cardiomyocytes from ischemic injury through specific inhibition of TAB1–p38 apoptosis signaling. These results indicate TAB1–p38 interaction as a putative drug target in treating ischemic heart diseases

Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Induced Protein 8 Polymorphism and Risk of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in a Chinese Population: A Case-Control Study

BACKGROUND: Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) has been reported to be associated with autoimmune and pro-inflammatory response, and genetic polymorphisms of candidate genes involved in autoimmune and pro-inflammatory response may influence the susceptibility to NHL. To evaluate the role of such genetic variations in risk of NHL, we conducted a case-control study of 514 NHL patients and 557 cancer-free controls in a Chinese population. METHOD: We used the Taqman assay to genotype six potentially functional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in six previously reported inflammation and immune-related genes (TNF rs1799964T>C, LTA rs1800683G>A, IL-10 rs1800872T>G, LEP rs2167270G>A, LEPR rs1327118C>G, TNFAIP8 rs1045241C>T). Logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). RESULTS: We observed a significantly increased risk of NHL associated with the TNFAIP8 rs1045241C>T polymorphism (adjusted OR = 3.03; 95% CI = 1.68-5.45 for TT vs. CC and adjusted OR = 2.03; 95% CI = 1.53-2.69 for CT/TT vs. CC). The risk associated with the T allele was more evident in subgroups of 40-60 year-old, non-smokers or light-smokers (less than 25 pack-years), and subjects with normal weight or overweight. Risk for both B and T cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was elevated for CT/TT genotypes (adjusted OR = 1.95, 95% CI = 1.41-2.70 for B cell NHL and adjusted OR = 2.22, 95% CI = 1.49-3.30 for T cell NHL), particularly for DLBCL (adjusted OR = 2.01, 95%CI = 1.41-2.85) and FL (adjusted OR = 2.53, 95% CI = 1.17-5.45). These risks were not observed for variant genotypes of other five SNPs compared with their common homozygous genotypes. CONCLUSIONS: The polymorphism of TNFAIP8 rs1045241C>T may contribute to NHL susceptibility in a Chinese population. Further large-scale and well-designed studies are needed to confirm these results