Sea Ranching Feasibility of the Hatchery-Reared Tropical Sea Cucumber Stichopus monotuberculatus in an Inshore Coral Reef Island Area in South China Sea (Sanya, China)

Sea ranching of tropical edible sea cucumbers is an effective way to relieve the overfishing stress on their natural resources and protect the coral reef ecosystem, yet only a few species have been applied in the sea ranching practice based on hatchery-reared juveniles around the world. In this study, an 8-month (April to December) sea ranching study for hatchery-reared edible sea cucumber Stichopus monotuberculatus juveniles was carried out at a tropical coral reef island area in Sanya, China. Several growth performance indexes and basal nutritional components were monitored. Results revealed that the sea cucumbers had a growth rate of 0.35~0.78 mm day-1 during the experimental period, reaching 15.9 cm long before winter. The weight gain reached 491.13% at the end, and most sea cucumbers were able to grow to the commercial size (over 150 g WW) in the first year of sea ranching. The overall specific growth rate (SGR) and survival rates were 0.73 and 27.5%. Most of the death occurred in the first month after release (25.0%–37.5%), and this is probably due to inadaptation to the sudden change of the environment from the hatchery to the wild, which is proved by the remarkable decrease in nutritional indexes (amino acids, total lipid, and crude protein). Stable isotope and lipid biomarkers revealed that the food source mainly comes from water deposits (with microbes), Sargassum sanyaense seaweed debris, phytoplankton, and coral mucus-derived organics. The study proved the feasibility of the sea ranching of the hatchery-reared S. monotuberculatus juveniles in the tropical coral reef island area. Also, it is highly recommended that appropriate acclimation operation before release should be carried out to improve the survival rate of this species

A Combined Approach of High-Throughput Sequencing and Degradome Analysis Reveals Tissue Specific Expression of MicroRNAs and Their Targets in Cucumber

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous small RNAs playing an important regulatory function in plant development and stress responses. Among them, some are evolutionally conserved in plant and others are only expressed in certain species, tissue or developmental stages. Cucumber is among the most important greenhouse species in the world, but only a limited number of miRNAs from cucumber have been identified and the experimental validation of the related miRNA targets is still lacking. In this study, two independent small RNA libraries from cucumber leaves and roots were constructed, respectively, and sequenced with the high-throughput Illumina Solexa system. Based on sequence similarity and hairpin structure prediction, a total of 29 known miRNA families and 2 novel miRNA families containing a total of 64 miRNA were identified. QRT-PCR analysis revealed that some of the cucumber miRNAs were preferentially expressed in certain tissues. With the recently developed ‘high throughput degradome sequencing’ approach, 21 target mRNAs of known miRNAs were identified for the first time in cucumber. These targets were associated with development, reactive oxygen species scavenging, signaling transduction and transcriptional regulation. Our study provides an overview of miRNA expression profile and interaction between miRNA and target, which will help further understanding of the important roles of miRNAs in cucumber plants

Essential Oil Derived From Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng. Mediates Anticancer Effect by Inhibiting STAT3 and AKT Activation to Induce Apoptosis in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng. (EA) is a well-known noxious invasive species. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis revealed that the essential oil derived from EA (EAEO) is mainly composed of sesquiterpenes. However, the pharmacological value of EAEO in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains largely unexplored. Herein, we investigated the anti-HCC activities of EAEO, and explored the potential mechanisms of EAEO-induced apoptosis. An MTT assay showed that EAEO inhibited HCC cell proliferation with little toxicity on normal liver cells. Wound healing and FACS assays revealed that EAEO suppressed HCC cell migration and arrested cell cycle, respectively. Moreover, EAEO promoted in vitro HCC cell apoptosis, and EAEO treatment inhibited HepG2 xenografts growth and enhanced apoptotic nucleus of xenografts in HepG2-bearing nude mice. Mechanistically, EAEO significantly decreased the ratio of Bcl-2/Bax and resulted in the activation of caspase-9 and -3. EAEO also reduced the expression of Grp78, which in turn relieved the inhibition of caspase-12 and -7. Meanwhile, EAEO suppressed the phosphorylation of STAT3 and AKT, indicative of its anti-HCC potential. In summary, we determined that EAEO treatment promoted HCC apoptosis via activation of the apoptotic signaling pathway in mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum, as well as repressed the activity of STAT3 and AKT in HCC cells

Tribological Behavior of 3D-Printed Nanometer SiC and SiO₂ Particle-Reinforced Polyamide 12 Composites by Selective Laser Sintering under Seawater Lubrication Condition

Polymeric matrix composites have been widely used in the marine field. In this study, the tribological behavior under seawater-lubricated conditions of pure Polyamide 12 (PA12), micron-SiC and nanometer SiC and SiO2 particle-reinforced PA12 composites, which are prepared by selective laser sintering (SLS), were studied. The seawater absorption, hardness, contact angle and tribology performance were investigated. The results show that the addition of micron- and nano-SiC particles and nano-SiO2 particles could decrease the seawater adsorption and contact angle, and increase the hardness. Under seawater conditions, the addition of micro SiC particles can reduce the friction coefficient and wear loss, whereas the addition of nano-SiC and -SiO2 particles increases the corresponding values. The specimen printed with recycled powder has a higher friction coefficient, while having a better wear resistance. However, it increases the width and depth of the wear track in some locations. The wear mechanisms of the composite specimens are also analyzed. This was the result of the combined effects of fatigue wear and abrasive wear under seawater conditions. The latter plays a dominant role under seawater conditions. This study may provide a valuable reference for the further research and application of polymeric matrix composites in marine engineering equipment

Mechanical and Tribological Properties of 3D Printed Polyamide 12 and SiC/PA12 Composite by Selective Laser Sintering

Polymeric matrix composites are important to the advancement of industries such as the automobile and medicine industries. In this study, the silicon carbide (SiC) particle-reinforced polyamide12 (PA12) matrix composites were fabricated by selective laser sintering system as well as the pure PA12. The surface topographies, mechanical, and tribological properties were further examined. The results indicated that the friction and wear resistance of the composite were improved compared with the PA12 matrix. The compressive strength increased about 8.5%, shore D hardness increased about 6%. The friction coefficient decreased about 10%, the specific wear rate decreased 20% after adding silicon carbide 10% weight to PA12. The wear mechanisms were also discussed. The deformed asperities on the worn surface can withstand more tangential load, and therefore resulted in lower specific wear rate. It was found that the content of SiC particles on the surface were reduced after friction tests. According to the analysis of SEM, EDS, and FTIR results, the wear mechanisms were considered to be the abrasive and fatigue mode. This type of PA12 matrix composite might be a promising potential in marine and energy applications

Ultrathin Wood‐Derived Conductive Carbon Composite Film for Electromagnetic Shielding and Electric Heating Management

Recently, wood-based composites have absorbed widespread concern in the field of electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding due to their sustainability and inherent layered porous structure. The channel structure of wood is often used to load highly conductive materials to improve the EMI shielding performance of wood-based composites. However, there is little research on how to use pure wood to prepare ultrathin EMI shielding materials. Herein, ultrathin veneer is obtained by cutting wood in parallel to the annual rings. Then, carbonized wood film (CWF) is prepared by a simple two-step compressing and carbonization. The specific EMI shielding effectiveness (SSE/t) of CWF-1200 with an ultrathin thickness (140 µm) and high electrical conductivity (58 S cm−1) can reach 9861.41 dB cm2 g−1, which is much higher than other reported wood-based materials. In addition, the zeolitie imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) nanocrystals are grown in situ on the surface of the CWF to obtain CWF/ZIF-8. CWF/ZIF-8 exhibits an EMI shielding effectiveness (SE) of up to 46 dB and an ultrahigh SSE/t value of 11 330.04 dB cm2 g−1 in X band. In addition, the ultrathin CWF also shows an excellent Joule heating effect. Therefore, the development of ultrathin wood-based film provides a research basis for wood biomass to replace traditional non-renewable and expensive electromagnetic (EM) shielding materials.China Scholarship Council https://doi.org/10.13039/50110000454

The Role of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT Integrated Imaging in Distinguishing Malignant from Benign Pleural Effusion

<div><p>Objective</p><p>The aim of our study was to evaluate the role of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging in differentiating malignant from benign pleural effusion.</p><p>Methods</p><p>A total of 176 patients with pleural effusion who underwent ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT examination to differentiate malignancy from benignancy were retrospectively researched. The images of CT imaging, ¹⁸F-FDG PET imaging and ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging were visually analyzed. The suspected malignant effusion was characterized by the presence of nodular or irregular pleural thickening on CT imaging. Whereas on PET imaging, pleural ¹⁸F-FDG uptake higher than mediastinal activity was interpreted as malignant effusion. Images of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging were interpreted by combining the morphologic feature of pleura on CT imaging with the degree and form of pleural ¹⁸F-FDG uptake on PET imaging.</p><p>Results</p><p>One hundred and eight patients had malignant effusion, including 86 with pleural metastasis and 22 with pleural mesothelioma, whereas 68 patients had benign effusion. The sensitivities of CT imaging, ¹⁸F-FDG PET imaging and ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging in detecting malignant effusion were 75.0%, 91.7% and 93.5%, respectively, which were 69.8%, 91.9% and 93.0% in distinguishing metastatic effusion. The sensitivity of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging in detecting malignant effusion was higher than that of CT imaging (p = 0.000). For metastatic effusion, ¹⁸F-FDG PET imaging had higher sensitivity (p = 0.000) and better diagnostic consistency with ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging compared with CT imaging (Kappa = 0.917 and Kappa = 0.295, respectively). The specificities of CT imaging, ¹⁸F-FDG PET imaging and ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging were 94.1%, 63.2% and 92.6% in detecting benign effusion. The specificities of CT imaging and ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging were higher than that of ¹⁸F-FDG PET imaging (p = 0.000 and p = 0.000, respectively), and CT imaging had better diagnostic consistency with ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging compared with ¹⁸F-FDG PET imaging (Kappa = 0.881 and Kappa = 0.240, respectively).</p><p>Conclusion</p><p>¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging is a more reliable modality in distinguishing malignant from benign pleural effusion than ¹⁸F-FDG PET imaging and CT imaging alone. For image interpretation of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging, the PET and CT portions play a major diagnostic role in identifying metastatic effusion and benign effusion, respectively.</p></div

The diagnostic criteria of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging in the differential diagnosis of pleural effusion.

<p>The diagnostic criteria of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT integrated imaging in the differential diagnosis of pleural effusion.</p