(E)-3,3′-(Diazene-1,2-di­yl)bis­(1-methyl-1,4,5,6-tetra­hydro­pyrrolo­[3,4-c]pyrazol-5-ium) dinitrate dihydrate

The title compound, C12H18N8 2+·2NO3 −·2H2O, was synthesized unexpectedly from 3-amino-1-methyl-1,4,5,6-tetra­hydro­pyrrolo­[3,4-c]pyrazol-5-ium chloride and cerium(IV) ammonium nitrate. The cation has a crystallographically imposed centre of symmetry. In the crystal, the ions and water mol­ecules are linked via O—H⋯N, N—H⋯O and O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds into a three-dimensional network

Molecular Imaging in Tracking Tumor Stem-Like Cells

Cancer remains a major public health problem in many countries. It was found to contain a subset of cancer stem cells (CSCs) that are capable of proliferation and self-renewal, and differentiation into various types of cancer cells. CSCs often display characteristics of chemotherapy resistance and radiotherapy resistance. Numerous putative biomarkers of CSCs are currently identified including CD133, CD44, CD24, ALDH (aldehyde dehydrogenase), and ABCG2. Interestingly, no single marker is exclusively expressed by CSCs. Thus, the various combinations of different biomarkers will be possible to identify CSCs, and considerable work is being done to recognize new ones. In order to demonstrate the mechanisms of resistance and response to therapy and predict the outcome as well as prognosis, the ways to track and identify CSCs will be extremely important. The technologies of molecular imaging will reveal mechanisms of cancer progression and provide visual targets for novel therapeutics. Limited studies were investigated on the detection of various types of CSCs by molecular imaging. Although the tracking of circulating CSCs is still hampered by technological challenges, personalized diagnosis and therapies of cancers are expected to be established based on increased understanding of molecular imaging of cancer stem-like cells biomarkers

Transversus abdominis plane block reduces remifentanil and propofol consumption, evaluated by closed-loop titration guided by bispectral index.

The present prospective, randomized, double-blind study aimed to determine the impact of transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block on propofol and remifentanil consumption, when administered by closed-loop titration guided by processed electroencephalography, i.e., bispectral index (BIS) values. Following institutional review board approval, 60 patients were scheduled for laparoscopic colectomy under general anesthesia. Patients were randomly assigned to receive bilateral TAP block with 20 ml 0.375% ropivacaine (TAP group) or 20 ml 0.9% saline [control (CON) group]. General anesthesia was maintained with propofol and remifentanil administration using closed-loop titration guided by BIS values. The primary outcome was perioperative propofol and remifentanil consumption. The secondary outcomes were hypertensive or hypotensive events requiring treatment, recovery time in PACU and time to first rescue analgesia following surgery. A total of 58 patients participated in the present study. At similar depths of anesthesia, as measured by BIS during the maintenance phase (45-55), patients who received TAP blocks required less propofol (4.2±1.3 vs. 5.5±1.6 mg/kg/h; P<0.001) and remifentanil (0.16±0.05 vs. 0.21±0.05 µg/kg/min; P<0.001). Time to extubation was significantly shorter in the TAP group (9.8±3.2 min) than in the CON group (14.2±4.9 min) (P<0.05). The requirement to treat hemodynamic change was also significantly lower (P<0.05). Pain score at 2 h after surgery was also significantly reduced in the TAP group compared with the CON group (P<0.05), whereas the time to first rescue analgesia was delayed in patients who received TAP block (P<0.05). Postoperative nausea and vomiting occurred at comparable rates in each group (P>0.05). In conclusion, TAP block combined with general anesthesia reduced propofol and remifentanil consumption, shortened time to tracheal extubation and promoted hemodynamic stability in laparoscopic colectomy

Ethyl 2-methyl-6-(propan-2-yl­amino)-4-sulfanyl­idene-3H,11H-pyrimido[1,6-c]quinazoline-1-carboxyl­ate

The title compound, C18H22N4O2S, contains a substituted pyrimidine ring fused to both a benzene ring and a substituted thioxopyrimidine ring. The pyrimidine and thioxopyrimidine rings adopt distorted chair conformations. In the crystal, adjacent mol­ecules are linked by pairs of N—H⋯S and N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds to generate centrosymmetric R 2 2(8) and R 2 2(16) loops, respectively. This combination leads to [100] chains of mol­ecules

Assessment of Long-Term Watershed Management on Reservoir Phosphorus Concentrations and Export Fluxes.

Source water nutrient management to prevent eutrophication requires critical strategies to reduce watershed phosphorus (P) loadings. Shanxi Drinking-Water Source Area (SDWSA) in eastern China experienced severe water quality deterioration before 2010, but showed considerable improvement following application of several watershed management actions to reduce P. This paper assessed the changes in total phosphorus (TP) concentrations and fluxes at the SDWSA outlet relative to watershed anthropogenic P sources during 2005⁻2016. Overall anthropogenic P inputs decreased by 21.5% over the study period. Domestic sewage, livestock, and fertilizer accounted for (mean ± SD) 18.4 ± 0.6%, 30.1 ± 1.9%, and 51.5 ± 1.5% of total anthropogenic P inputs during 2005⁻2010, compared to 24.3 ± 2.7%, 8.8 ± 10.7%, and 66.9 ± 8.0% for the 2011⁻2016 period, respectively. Annual average TP concentrations in SDWSA decreased from 0.041 ± 0.019 mg/L in 2009 to 0.025 ± 0.013 mg/L in 2016, a total decrease of 38.2%. Annual P flux exported from SDWSA decreased from 0.46 ± 0.04 kg P/(ha·a) in 2010 to 0.25 ± 0.02 kg P/(ha·a) in 2016, a decrease of 44.9%. The success in reducing TP concentrations was mainly due to the development of domestic sewage/refuse collection/treatment and improved livestock management. These P management practices have prevented harmful algal blooms, providing for safe drinking water

Routing Optimization of Intelligent Vehicle in Automated Warehouse

Routing optimization is a key technology in the intelligent warehouse logistics. In order to get an optimal route for warehouse intelligent vehicle, routing optimization in complex global dynamic environment is studied. A new evolutionary ant colony algorithm based on RFID and knowledge-refinement is proposed. The new algorithm gets environmental information timely through the RFID technology and updates the environment map at the same time. It adopts elite ant kept, fallback, and pheromones limitation adjustment strategy. The current optimal route in population space is optimized based on experiential knowledge. The experimental results show that the new algorithm has higher convergence speed and can jump out the U-type or V-type obstacle traps easily. It can also find the global optimal route or approximate optimal one with higher probability in the complex dynamic environment. The new algorithm is proved feasible and effective by simulation results

Analysis on the Risk and Supervision of P2P Online Financing Platforms in China

Microcredit is a vital breakthrough to solve the financial problems of low-income groups and small and medium-sized enterprises, while traditional microfinance providers can only meet a small proportion of their capital needs. By using internet technology, P2P online financing extends the innovative development of microcredit with the aim of solving traditional micro-credit problems. This paper mainly explores the existing online financing operation model of P2P in China, and summarizes the relevant problems, such as low entry barriers for P2P online financing enterprises and lack of supervision, Lack of verification on the qualification of borrowers and poor management of the platform, imperfect information revealed or providing false information by platform, etc. Finally, the article put forward some suggestions concerning the healthy development for the P2P online financing platform, including the establishing entry audit system and strengthening the supervision of the P2P platform, strengthening the management of borrowers and improving the credit collection system, and strengthening the disclosure of information by platform

A Redox-Sensitive Luciferase Assay for Determining the Localization and Topology of Endoplasmic Reticulum Proteins

Correct localization and transmembrane topology are crucial for the proteins residing and functioning in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). We have developed a rapid and convenient assay, based on the redox-sensitive luciferase from Gaussia princeps (Gluc) and green fluorescence protein (GFP), to determine the localization or topology of ER proteins. Using the tandem Gluc-GFP reporter fused to different positions of a target protein, we successfully characterized the topologies of two ER transmembrane proteins Herp and HRD1 that are involved in the ER quality control system. This assay method may also be applicable to the proteins in secretory pathway, plasma membrane, and other compartments of cells