Variations of Particle Size Distribution, Black Carbon, and Brown Carbon during a Severe Winter Pollution Event over Xi'an, China

Real-time particulate matter (PM) size distributions, 4-hour time resolution, PM2.5, carbonaceous materials, and their optical properties were measured during a severe pollution event in Xi'an, China High PM2.5 /PM10 ratios were observed on both pollution (0.83) and non-pollution (0.73) days, emphasizing the abundance of fine particles during sampling days. The particle number (PN) first peaked with a wide size range (30-100 nm) before morning rush hours (approximately 01:00-05:00) on pollution and non-pollution days, demonstrating that PN was governed by the accumulation of freshly emitted diesel particles and characterized by distinct aerosol condensation growth. By contrast, the second peak time and size range differed between pollution and non-pollution days because of different formation mechanisms The light-absorbing coefficients of both black carbon (BC, b(abs-880nm,BC)) and brown carbon (BrC, b(abs-370nm, BrC)) were high on pollution days and decreased to approximately half of those values on non-pollution days, indicating that the degree of light absorption is reduced by rain. The diurnal variation in b(abs-880nm, BC) pollution peaked with traffic on January 1 and 2. By contrast, it remained in relatively stable and high ranges (120-160 Mm(-1)) in the second period (January 3-5) without traffic peaks, illustrating that the dominant sources changed even during the same pollution period. High values of both b(abs-370nm, BrC) and b(abs-880nm,) (BC )coincided in the afternoon and evening due to emissions from primary sources, and abundant aqueous secondary organic carbon, respectively. A highly variable mass absorption coefficient of BrC also indicated the variety of fuel combustion sources of primary BrC in Xi'an

Linkage Mapping of Stem Saccharification Digestibility in Rice

Rice is the staple food of almost half of the world population, and in excess 90% of it is grown and consumed in Asia, but the disposal of rice straw poses a problem for farmers, who often burn it in the fields, causing health and environmental problems. However, with increased focus on the development of sustainable biofuel production, rice straw has been recognized as a potential feedstock for non-food derived biofuel production. Currently, the commercial realization of rice as a biofuel feedstock is constrained by the high cost of industrial saccharification processes needed to release sugar for fermentation. This study is focused on the alteration of lignin content, and cell wall chemotypes and structures, and their effects on the saccharification potential of rice lignocellulosic biomass. A recombinant inbred lines (RILs) population derived from a cross between the lowland rice variety IR1552 and the upland rice variety Azucena with 271 molecular markers for quantitative trait SNP (QTS) analyses was used. After association analysis of 271 markers for saccharification potential, 1 locus and 4 pairs of epistatic loci were found to contribute to the enzymatic digestibility phenotype, and an inverse relationship between reducing sugar and lignin content in these recombinant inbred lines was identified. As a result of QTS analyses, several cell-wall associated candidate genes are proposed that may be useful for marker-assisted breeding and may aid breeders to produce potential high saccharification rice varieties

Adverse Effects of Alfentanil versus Nalbuphine in Decompensated Cirrhotic Patients Undergoing Painless Gastroscopy: A Double-Blind, Randomized Controlled Trial

Xiao-Yu Gu, Jin-Feng Cao, Xin-Yang Zhang, Yao Cheng, Liu-Qin Jiang Department of Anesthesiology, NO.215 Hospital of Shaanxi Nuclear Industry, Xianyang, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Liu-Qin Jiang, Department of Anesthesiology, NO.215 Hospital of Shaanxi Nuclear Industry, No. 35 Wei-Yang West Road, Xianyang, 712000, People’s Republic of China, Email [email protected]: To compare nalbuphine versus alfentanil combined with etomidate-propofol for safety and efficacy during painless gastroscopy in decompensated cirrhosis patients.Methods: One hundred and seventy-five advanced cirrhosis patients were randomized to receive Nalbuphine (0.1 to 0.15 mg·kg−¹ IV bolus) or Alfentanil (5 to 6 μg·kg−¹ IV bolus). The primary outcome was the incidence of adverse events during and within 48 hours after gastroscopy. Other outcomes included hemodynamic parameters, BIS, adverse events and time during the PACU, first-attempt induction success, etomidate-propofol dosage, induction time, duration of gastroscopy, awakening time, along with the Aldrete score. Additionally, blood samples for ALT, AST, creatinine, and urea nitrogen were drawn within the first 24 hours after gastroscopy.Results: The complication rates were 37.21% for nalbuphine and 11.24% for alfentanil group within 48 hours, exhibited a significantly difference (P = 0.00). Compared to the nalbuphine group, the RR of the alfentanil group was lower at T1 (post-induction stabilization, P = 0.03) and T2 (the end of procedure, P = 0.03). The SpO2 of the alfentanil group were lower at T1 (P = 0.01). The recovery time in alfentanil group was shorter (P = 0.01). Additionally, compared to pre-gastroscopy levels, the nalbuphine group showed significant decreases in serum ALT (P = 0.00) and AST levels (P = 0.00) postoperatively while alfentanil group exhibited significant reductions in ALT (P = 0.00) and BUN (P = 0.01) levels, along with a significant increase in Cr (P = 0.00). However, no significant differences existed in intraoperative or PACU complications, first-attempt induction success, dosage of etomidate-propofol, Aldrete score, induction time, operation time and awakening time (P > 0.05).Conclusion: Alfentanil demonstrates fewer postoperative complications and faster recovery than nalbuphine, potentially making it preferable for painless gastroscopy in decompensated cirrhosis.Keywords: complication, alfentanil, nalbuphine, decompensated cirrhotic patients, painless gastroscop

Giant schwannoma of thoracic vertebra: A case report

BACKGROUND,It is relatively rare for schwannomas to invade bone, but it is very rare for a large,mass to form concurrently in the paravertebral region. Surgical resection is the,only effective treatment. Because of the extensive tumor involvement and the,many important surrounding structures, the tumor needs to be fully exposed.,Most of the tumors are completely removed by posterior combined open-heart,surgery to relieve spinal cord compression, restore the stability of the spine and,maximize the recovery of nerve and spinal cord function. The main objective of,this article is to present a schwannoma that had invaded the T5 and T6 vertebral,bodies and formed a large paravertebral mass with simultaneous invasion of the,spinal canal and compression of the spinal cord.,CASE SUMMARY,A 40-year-old female suffered from intermittent chest and back pain for 8 years.,Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging scans showed a,paravertebral tumor of approximately 86 mm × 109 mm × 116 mm, where the,adjacent T5 and T6 vertebral bodies were invaded by the tumor, the right intervertebral,foramen was enlarged, and the tumor had invaded the spinal canal to,compress the thoracic medulla. The preoperative puncture biopsy diagnosed a,benign schwannoma. Complete resection of the tumor was achieved by a two-step,operation. In the first step, the thoracic surgeon adopted a lateral approach to,separate the thoracic tumor from the lung. In the second step, a spine surgeon,performed a posterior midline approach to dissect the tumor from the vertebral,junction through removal of the tumor from the posterior side and further,resection of the entire T5 and T6 vertebral bodies. The large bone defect was,reconstructed with titanium mesh, and the posterior root arch was nail-fixed. Due,to the large amount of intraoperative bleeding, we performed tumor angioembolization,before surgery to reduce and avoid large intraoperative bleeding. The,postoperative diagnosis of benign schwannoma was confirmed by histochemical,examination. There was no sign of tumor recurrence or spinal instability during,the 2-year follow-up.,CONCLUSION,Giant schwannoma is uncommon. In this case, a complete surgical resection of a,giant thoracic nerve sheath tumor that invaded part of the vertebral body and,compressed the spinal cord was safe and effective

Tumour antigen expression in hepatocellular carcinoma in a low-endemic western area

Background: Identification of tumour antigens is crucial for the development of vaccination strategies against hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Most studies come from eastern-Asia, where hepatitis-B is the main cause of HCC. However, tumour antigen expression is poorly studied in low-endemic, western areas where the aetiology of HCC differs. Methods: We constructed tissue microarrays from resected HCC tissue of 133 patients. Expression of a comprehensive panel of cancer-testis (MAGE-A1, MAGE-A3/4, MAGE-A10, MAGE-C1, MAGE-C2, NY-ESO-1, SSX-2, sperm protein 17), onco-fetal (AFP, Glypican-3) and overexpressed tumour antigens (Annexin-A2, Wilms tumor-1, Survivin, Midkine, MUC-1) was determined by immunohistochemistry. Results: A higher prevalence of MAGE antigens was observed in patients with hepatitis-B. Patients with expression of more tumour antigens in general had better HCC-specific survival (P=0.022). The four tumour antigens with high expression in HCC and no, or weak, expression in surrounding tumour-free-liver tissue, were Annexin-A2, GPC-3, MAGE-C1 and MAGE-C2, expressed in 90, 39, 17 and 20% of HCCs, respectively. Ninety-five percent of HCCs expressed at least one of these four tumour antigens. Interestingly, GPC-3 was associated with SALL-4 expression (P=0.001), an oncofetal transcription factor highly expressed in embryonal stem cells. SALL-4 and GPC-3 expression levels were correlated with vascular invasion, poor differentiation and higher AFP levels before surgery. Moreover, patients who co-expressed higher levels of both GPC-3 and SALL-4 had worse HCC-specific survival (P=0.018). Conclusions: We describe a panel of four tumour antigens with excellent coverage and good tumour specificity in a western area, low-endemic for hepatitis-B. The association between GPC-3 and SALL-4 is a novel finding and suggests that GPC-3 targeting may specifically attack the tumour stem-cell compartment

Search for a Light Sterile Neutrino at Daya Bay

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Long-term outcomes of early childhood science education: insight from a cross-national comparative case study on conceptual understanding of science

The purpose of this research was to explore the long term outcomes of either participating or not participating in early childhood science education on Grade 6 students’ conceptual understanding of science. The research is situated in a conceptual framework that evokes Piagetian developmental levels as both potential curriculum constraints and potential models of efficacy. The research design was a multiple case study of Grade 6 children from three schools in China (n=140) who started formal science education in the third grade, and Grade 6 children from three matched schools in Australia (n=105) who started learning science in kindergarten. The students’ understanding was assessed by a science quiz and in-depth interview. The data showed that participating children from the high socio-economic schools in China and Australia had similar understandings of science. Divergence between the medium and low socio-economic schools, however, indicated that the grounding in early childhood science education in Australia may have placed these children at an advantage. Alternative explanations for the divergence including the nature of classroom instruction in the two countries are discussed

The muon system of the Daya Bay Reactor antineutrino experiment

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A chromosome conformation capture ordered sequence of the barley genome

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