New advances in catalysts for polystyrene hydrogenation

Polystyrene is one of the most widely used plastics, and could be catalytic hydrogenated to polycyclohexylethylene with improved physical properties. The research progress in the efficiency palladium catalyst for polystyrene hydrogenation was illustrated and reviewed, further development was discussed

Wild relatives of pigeonpea in China

Wild relatives play an important role in the genetic improvement of cultivated crops. Breeders turn their attention to the wild relatives of crops after unsuccessful search for some unique trait in the cultivated germplasm. According to van der Maesen (1986) the genus Cajanus has 32 species. Of these, the Indian subcontinent harbors 18 species. ICRISAT has the global responsibility of collection, maintenance, and evaluation of germplasm of the wild relatives of pigeonpea. At present a total of 213 accessions, representing 20 Cajanus species are conserved for use in the breeding programs

Performance of ICRISAT pigeonpeas in China

Results of the experiments on pigeon pea biomass production conducted in Guangxi Province, and on soil conservation potential of pigeon pea conducted in Kunming, China, are presented and discussed. Tabulated data on the performance of short-duration determinate ICRISAT pigeon pea lines tested in Guangzhou, China, during 1998 is given

Pigeonpea: A potential fodder crop for Guangxi province of China

The progress of pigeon pea as a major fodder crop in Guangxi, China is reviewed. The potential of pigeon pea as a source of good quality fodder for the growing livestock industry in the province is discussed

PRIMA-1Met suppresses colorectal cancer independent of p53 by targeting MEK

This work was supported by Grant No. 81201779 (Hua Xiong) from the National Natural Science Youth Foundation; Grant No. 81502118 (Yanmei Zou) from the National Natural Science Youth Foundation; Grant No. 2014CFB250 (Yanmei Zou) from the Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province; Grant No. 81372434 (Huihua Xiong) from the National Natural Science Foundation.PRIMA-1Met is the methylated PRIMA-1 (p53 reactivation and induction of massive apoptosis) and could restore tumor suppressor function of mutant p53 and induce p53 dependent apoptosis in cancer cells harboring mutant p53. However, p53 independent activity of PRIMA-1Met remains elusive. Here we reported that PRIMA-1Met attenuated colorectal cancer cell growth irrespective of p53 status. Kinase profiling revealed that mitogen-activated or extracellular signal-related protein kinase (MEK) might be a potential target of PRIMA-1Met. Pull-down binding and ATP competitive assay showed that PRIMA-1Met directly bound MEK in vitro and in cells. Furthermore, the direct binding sites of PRIMA-1Met were explored by using a computational docking model. Treatment of colorectal cancer cells with PRIMA-1Met inhibited p53-independent phosphorylation of MEK, which in turn impaired anchorage-independent cell growth in vitro. Moreover, PRIMA-1Met suppressed colorectal cancer growth in xenograft mouse model by inhibiting MEK1 activity. Taken together, our findings demonstrate a novel p53-independent activity of PRIMA-1Met to inhibit MEK and suppress colorectal cancer growth.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

ISCEV Standard for full-field clinical electroretinography (2022 update).

The full-field electroretinogram (ERG) is a mass electrophysiological response to diffuse flashes of light and is used widely to assess generalized retinal function. This document, from the International Society for Clinical Electrophysiology of Vision (ISCEV), presents an updated and revised ISCEV Standard for clinical ERG testing. Minimum protocols for basic ERG stimuli, recording methods and reporting are specified, to promote consistency of methods for diagnosis, monitoring and inter-laboratory comparisons, while also responding to evolving clinical practices and technology. The main changes in this updated ISCEV Standard for clinical ERGs include specifying that ERGs may meet the Standard without mydriasis, providing stimuli adequately compensate for non-dilated pupils. There is more detail about analysis of dark-adapted oscillatory potentials (OPs) and the document format has been updated and supplementary content reduced. There is a more detailed review of the origins of the major ERG components. Several tests previously tabulated as additional ERG protocols are now cited as published ISCEV extended protocols. A non-standard abbreviated ERG protocol is described, for use when patient age, compliance or other circumstances preclude ISCEV Standard ERG testing

Diagnostic accuracy of the aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index for the prediction of hepatitis B-related fibrosis: a leading meta-analysis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI), a tool with limited expense and widespread availability, is a promising noninvasive alternative to liver biopsy for detecting hepatic fibrosis. The objective of this study was to systematically review the performance of the APRI in predicting significant fibrosis and cirrhosis in hepatitis B-related fibrosis.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Areas under summary receiver operating characteristic curves (AUROC), sensitivity and specificity were used to examine the accuracy of the APRI for the diagnosis of hepatitis B-related significant fibrosis and cirrhosis. Heterogeneity was explored using meta-regression.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Nine studies were included in this meta-analysis (n = 1,798). Prevalence of significant fibrosis and cirrhosis were 53.1% and 13.5%, respectively. The summary AUCs of the APRI for significant fibrosis and cirrhosis were 0.79 and 0.75, respectively. For significant fibrosis, an APRI threshold of 0.5 was 84% sensitive and 41% specific. At the cutoff of 1.5, the summary sensitivity and specificity were 49% and 84%, respectively. For cirrhosis, an APRI threshold of 1.0-1.5 was 54% sensitive and 78% specific. At the cutoff of 2.0, the summary sensitivity and specificity were 28% and 87%, respectively. Meta-regression analysis indicated that the APRI accuracy for both significant fibrosis and cirrhosis was affected by histological classification systems, but not influenced by the interval between Biopsy & APRI or blind biopsy.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our meta-analysis suggests that APRI show limited value in identifying hepatitis B-related significant fibrosis and cirrhosis.</p

Fluorescence Modified Chitosan-Coated Magnetic Nanoparticles for High-Efficient Cellular Imaging

Labeling of cells with nanoparticles for living detection is of interest to various biomedical applications. In this study, novel fluorescent/magnetic nanoparticles were prepared and used in high-efficient cellular imaging. The nanoparticles coated with the modified chitosan possessed a magnetic oxide core and a covalently attached fluorescent dye. We evaluated the feasibility and efficiency in labeling cancer cells (SMMC-7721) with the nanoparticles. The nanoparticles exhibited a high affinity to cells, which was demonstrated by flow cytometry and magnetic resonance imaging. The results showed that cell-labeling efficiency of the nanoparticles was dependent on the incubation time and nanoparticles’ concentration. The minimum detected number of labeled cells was around 104by using a clinical 1.5-T MRI imager. Fluorescence and transmission electron microscopy instruments were used to monitor the localization patterns of the magnetic nanoparticles in cells. These new magneto-fluorescent nanoagents have demonstrated the potential for future medical use

Exosome-Related Multi-Pass Transmembrane Protein TSAP6 Is a Target of Rhomboid Protease RHBDD1-Induced Proteolysis

We have previously reported that rhomboid domain containing 1 (RHBDD1), a mammalian rhomboid protease highly expressed in the testis, can cleave the Bcl-2 protein Bik. In this study, we identified a multi-pass transmembrane protein, tumor suppressor activated pathway-6 (TSAP6) as a potential substrate of RHBDD1. RHBDD1 was found to induce the proteolysis of TSAP6 in a dose- and activity-dependent manner. The cleavage of TSAP6 was not restricted to its glycosylated form and occurred in three different regions. In addition, mass spectrometry and mutagenesis analyses both indicated that the major cleavage site laid in the C-terminal of the third transmembrane domain of TSAP6. A somatic cell knock-in approach was used to genetically inactivate the endogenous RHBDD1 in HCT116 and RKO colon cancer cells. Exosome secretion was significantly elevated when RHBDD1 was inactivated in the two cells lines. The increased exosome secretion was verfied through the detection of certain exosomal components, including Tsg101, Tf-R, FasL and Trail. In addition, the elevation of exosome secretion by RHBDD1 inactivation was reduced when TSAP6 was knocked down, indicating that the role of RHBDD1 in regulating exosomal trafficking is very likely to be TSAP6-dependent. We found that the increase in FasL and Trail increased exosome-induced apoptosis in Jurkat cells. Taken together, our findings suggest that RHBDD1 is involved in the regulation of a nonclassical exosomal secretion pathway through the restriction of TSAP6

Prevalence of sexual dimorphism in mammalian phenotypic traits.

The role of sex in biomedical studies has often been overlooked, despite evidence of sexually dimorphic effects in some biological studies. Here, we used high-throughput phenotype data from 14,250 wildtype and 40,192 mutant mice (representing 2,186 knockout lines), analysed for up to 234 traits, and found a large proportion of mammalian traits both in wildtype and mutants are influenced by sex. This result has implications for interpreting disease phenotypes in animal models and humans