The Protective Effects of Bushen Daozhuo Granule on Chronic Non-bacterial Prostatitis

Background: Chronic non-bacterial prostatitis (CNP), one of the most common chronic diseases in urology, leads to pain in the prostate and dysuria, critically affecting the physical or mental health of patients. However, there are no standard treatment approaches for the treatment of CNP in the clinic. Although the clinical application of Bushen Daozhuo granule (BSDZG) offers hope to CNP patients in China, the mechanisms of BSDZG in treating CNP are still not entirely clear. Hence, we aimed to investigate the novel therapeutic mechanisms of BSDZG on CNP.Methods: In this study, we first assayed the prostate index of rats and then determined the anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic effects of BSDZG on CNP in vivo and in vitro by employing ELISA kits and TUNEL staining. Next, we investigated whether the anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic mechanisms of BSDZG on prostate protein-induced rats and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced RWPE-1 cells were related to the AKT, p38 MAPK, and NF-κB pathways with the help of Western blot. Finally, the influence of BSDZG on the interaction between the p38 MAPK and NF-κB pathway in LPS-induced RWPE-1 cells was explored by adopting dehydrocorydaline (DHC, p38 MAPK activator) with the help of ELISA kits and Western blot.Results:In vivo, BSDZG effectively reduced the prostate index. In vivo and in vitro, BSDZG dramatically declined the level of two pro-inflammatory cytokines, TNF-α and IL-1β, as well as the apoptosis rate. Moreover, in vivo and in vitro, BSDZG memorably upregulated the expression level of p-AKT, and substantially downregulated the expression level of p-p38 MAPK and NF-κB2. The activation of p38 MAPK significantly reversed the moderation effects of BSDZG on the level of TNF-α and IL-1β, as well as the expression level of p-p38 MAPK and NF-κB2 in vitro.Conclusion: To sum up, the in vivo and in vitro therapeutic mechanisms of BSDZG on CNP were reflected as the anti-inflammation and anti-apoptosis that was formed by inhibiting the level of pro-inflammatory cytokines, TNF-α and IL-1β, to regulate the AKT, p38 MAPK, and NF-κB pathways, and the anti-inflammatory effect of BSDZG was realized by suppressing the p38 MAPK pathway to inhibit the downstream NF-κB pathway

Leaf trichomes and foliar chemistry mediate defence against glasshouse thrips; Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis (Bouché) in Rhododendron simsii

Herbivore defence mechanisms are a costly diversion of resources away from growth and reproduction. Thus time-limited and tissue specific expression in critical plant parts is more efficient as defined by optimal defence theory. Surprisingly little is known about Rhododendron herbivore defence but it may be mediated by combined chemical and physical mechanisms. Rhododendron simsii Planch. survives cyclic infestations of a leaf-feeding thrips, Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis, which severely damage mature leaves but avoid terminal young leaves suggesting specific, localised defence expression. We examined correlations between the distribution of thrips and feeding damage with density of trichomes and the concentration of the diterpenoid, grayanotoxin I, a compound implicated in but not previously reported to meditate invertebrate defence in Rhododendron. Our data show that as leaves matured the number of thrips and area of feeding damage increased as trichome density and grayanotoxin I concentration decreased, this inverse correlation 10 suggesting trichomes and grayanotoxin I mediate defence in younger leaf tissue. Grayanotoxin I was tested against H. haemorrhoidalis and was toxic to immature life stages and repellent to the adult thrips, reducing numbers of first instars emerging on leaves when applied at ecologically relevant concentrations. This work demonstrates that the pattern of defensive traits in foliage of a species of Rhododendron is key to its ability to tolerate cyclic infestations of a generalist herbivore, effectively conserving vital tissues required for growth and reproduction

Upper ocean biogeochemistry of the oligotrophic North Pacific Subtropical Gyre : from nutrient sources to carbon export

Subtropical gyres cover 26–29% of the world’s surface ocean and are conventionally regarded as ocean deserts due to their permanent stratification, depleted surface nutrients, and low biological productivity. Despite tremendous advances over the past three decades, particularly through the Hawaii Ocean Time-series and the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study, which have revolutionized our understanding of the biogeochemistry in oligotrophic marine ecosystems, the gyres remain understudied. We review current understanding of upper ocean biogeochemistry in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, considering other subtropical gyres for comparison. We focus our synthesis on spatial variability, which shows larger than expected dynamic ranges of properties such as nutrient concentrations, rates of N2 fixation, and biological production. This review provides new insights into how nutrient sources drive community structure and export in upper subtropical gyres. We examine the euphotic zone in subtropical gyres as a two-layered vertically structured system: a nutrient-depleted layer above the top of the nutricline in the well-lit upper ocean and a nutrient-replete layer below in the dimly lit waters. These layers vary in nutrient supply and stoichiometries and physical forcing, promoting differences in community structure and food webs, with direct impacts on the magnitude and composition of export production. We evaluate long-term variations in key biogeochemical parameters in both of these euphotic zone layers. Finally, we identify major knowledge gaps and research challenges in these vast and unique systems that offer opportunities for future studies

Energetic particle influence on the Earth's atmosphere

This manuscript gives an up-to-date and comprehensive overview of the effects of energetic particle precipitation (EPP) onto the whole atmosphere, from the lower thermosphere/mesosphere through the stratosphere and troposphere, to the surface. The paper summarizes the different sources and energies of particles, principally galactic cosmic rays (GCRs), solar energetic particles (SEPs) and energetic electron precipitation (EEP). All the proposed mechanisms by which EPP can affect the atmosphere are discussed, including chemical changes in the upper atmosphere and lower thermosphere, chemistry-dynamics feedbacks, the global electric circuit and cloud formation. The role of energetic particles in Earth’s atmosphere is a multi-disciplinary problem that requires expertise from a range of scientific backgrounds. To assist with this synergy, summary tables are provided, which are intended to evaluate the level of current knowledge of the effects of energetic particles on processes in the entire atmosphere

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Health Risk Assessment for Inhalation Exposure to Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether at Petrol Stations in Southern China

Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), a well known gasoline additive, is used in China nationwide to enhance the octane number of gasoline and reduce harmful exhaust emissions, yet little is known regarding the potential health risk associated with occupational exposure to MTBE in petrol stations. In this study, 97 petrol station attendants (PSAs) in southern China were recruited for an assessment of the health risk associated with inhalation exposure to MTBE. The personal exposure levels of MTBE were analyzed by Head Space Solid Phase Microextraction GC/MS, and the demographic characteristics of the PSAs were investigated. Cancer and non-cancer risks were calculated with the methods recommended by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The results showed that the exposure levels of MTBE in operating workers were much higher than among support staff (p < 0.01) and both were lower than 50 ppm (an occupational threshold limit value). The calculated cancer risks (CRs) at the investigated petrol stations was 0.170 to 0.240 per 106 for operating workers, and 0.026 to 0.049 per 106 for support staff, which are below the typical target range for risk management of 1 × 10−6 to 1 × 10−4; The hazard quotients (HQs) for all subjects were <1. In conclusion, our study indicates that the MTBE exposure of PSAs in southern China is in a low range which does not seem to be a significant health risk

The temperature and load stresses of elastic layer system

Paper presented at the South African Transport Conference 17 - 20 July 2000 "Action in transport for the new millennium", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa. ABSTRACT: Strength and deformation behave of layer system is important to road engineering. According to thermo-elastic theory, expressions of stress and displacement of homogeneous layer system under both temperature change and static load are presented in this paper. The static loads enclodes single or poly circular loads and Fourier-Hankel transformation is used in study. The results of this study can be easily used in road engineering.This paper was transferred from the original CD ROM created for this conference. The material on the CD ROM was published using Adobe Acrobat technology. The original CD ROM was produced by Document Transformation Technologies Postal Address: PO Box 560 Irene 0062 South Africa. Tel.: +27 12 667 2074 Fax: +27 12 667 2766 E-mail: [email protected] URL: http://www.doctech.co.z

Heavy vehicle over bridges on the route to transport coal in Shaanxi, Northwest China

Paper presented at the 23rd Annual Southern African Transport Conference 12 - 15 July 2004 "Getting recognition for the importance of transport", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa. This paper describes numerous overweight and overloaded vehicles on the Fu-Dian Highway, Shaanxi, China. On the base of investigation, 9 types of load models are sorted. Taking gross weight and axle–load as abscissa, and proportion of corresponding load range vehicles to total vehicles as ordinate, gross weight and axle-load histograms are drawn out. According to the above results, various assessment load models are carried out. The bearing capacity of reinforced bridges and load effect of overweight vehicles are calculated. The paper also raises suggestions for the road management authority. * This paper is part of the results from the China-South Africa S&T Co-operative project: 'Innovation and Promotion on Infrastructure Information Management Systems for Highway Authorities in South Africa and the Great Western Area of China'.This paper was transferred from the original CD ROM created for this conference. The material on the CD ROM was published using Adobe Acrobat technology. The original CD ROM was produced by Document Transformation Technologies Postal Address: PO Box 560 Irene 0062 South Africa. Tel.: +27 12 667 2074 Fax: +27 12 667 2766 E-mail: [email protected] URL: http://www.doctech.co.z

Frequency stability control method considering limited EDCPS

Aiming at the problem of frequency stability of the asynchronous AC/DC hybrid power grid, a prediction model of post-disturbance steady frequency is proposed, which considers the emergency DC power support (EDCPS) and the frequency response of AC grids on both sides of the high-voltage DC (HVDC) link. This post-disturbance steady frequency of both AC grids can be predicted quickly by utilising the wide area measurement system data, and the desired amount of EDCPS can be calculated directly by using the setting value of the steady frequency for the disturbed AC grid. Then this study considers the fact that the voltage level of the AC buses at both ends of the HVDC system will affect the operation modes of the HVDC system, resulting in the limited EDCPS. Therefore, a calculation method of the actual EDCPS command for steady frequency control is proposed. It can automatically identify the actual operation mode of the post-disturbance HVDC system and calculate the actual EDCPS command corresponding to the desired EDCPS value. Simulations of a typical two-area AC/DC hybrid power grid are carried out to validate the effectiveness of the proposed method