Comparative proteomics study on liver mitochondria of primary biliary cirrhosis mouse model

BACKGROUND: Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a liver specific chronic disease with unclear pathogenesis, especially for the early stage molecular events. The mitochondrion is a multi-functional organelle associated with various diseases including PBC. The purpose of this study was to discover the alterations in the mitochondria proteome using an early stage PBC mouse model for revealing the possible pathogenesis mechanisms in the early stages of PBC. METHODS: Mouse model of early stage of PBC was constructed by consecutive administration of poly I:C. Mitochondria of mouse models and controls were purified and comparative proteomics was performed by iTRAQ technology. Then, differentially expressed proteins were validated by western blotting. RESULTS: In total 354 proteins that satisfied the criteria for comparative proteomics study were identified. Of them, nine proteins were downregulated and 20 were up-regulated in liver mitochondria of PBC mouse model. Most differentially expressed proteins are associated with oxidation-reduction and lipid metabolism, and some are involved in the biosynthesis of steroid hormone and primary bile acid. Interestingly, four proteins (HCDH, CPT I, DECR, ECHDC2) involved in the fatty acid beta-oxidation were all upregulated. CONCLUSIONS: iTRAQ is a powerful tool for comparative proteomics study of PBC mouse model and differentially expressed proteins in mitochondria proteome of PBC mouse model provide insights for the pathogenesis mechanism at early stage of PBC

Correction to: Emergence of robust anthropogenic increase of heat stress-related variables projected from CORDEX-CORE climate simulations

n/

Aesthetic Patterns with Symmetries of the Regular Polyhedron

A fast algorithm is established to transform points of the unit sphere into fundamental region symmetrically. With the resulting algorithm, a flexible form of invariant mappings is achieved to generate aesthetic patterns with symmetries of the regular polyhedra

Effect of annealing on microstructure and tensile properties of as-extruded Mg-5Gd-4Y-0.5Zn-0.5Zr alloy

In order to investigate the effect of heat treatment on the microstructure and tensile properties of an Mg-5Gd-4Y-0.5Zn-0.5Zr alloy, the phase diagram was calculated by Pandat software, and accordingly the as-extruded alloy was annealed at 450, 510 and 550 °C followed by water quenching. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the specimens were analyzed subsequently by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and tensile testing. The results showed that the average grain size of the as-extruded specimen was about 4 μm, in which Mg24Y5 was detected, and fine-grain strip was formed during the extrusion process. The grain size of the specimen annealed at 450 °C for 24 h was about 11 μm, and the main secondary phases were 14H-LPSO, δ-Zr3Zn2, β1-Mg3Gd and (HCP)Zr particles. The plate-like 14H-LPSO and cubic β1- Mg3Gd phases were coherent with the matrix, and the surface layer of (HCP)Zr was enriched with Zn atoms. When the annealing temperature reached 510 °C and 550 °C, the grain size increased to about 83 and 151 μm, respectively. The 14H-LPSO phases were gradually dissolved while the other secondary phases still existed. It was shown by uniaxial tensile testing that the ultimate tensile strength (UTS), yield tensile strength (YTS) and elongation (EL) of the as-extruded specimen were 291 MPa, 236 MPa and 24.7%, respectively. Increase of UTS, EL and decrease of YTS was resulted after annealed at 450 °C. However, both the strength and ductility dropped obviously after annealed at 510 °C and 550 °C. Ductile fracture features were found on the fracture surface of the as-extruded and 450 °C annealed specimens, whereas brittle topology, such as cleavage, was the main feature on the fracture surfaces of the specimens annealed at higher temperatures. Based on the strength analysis, it was concluded that the fine-grain strengthening was more important than solution strengthening and precipitation strengthening in this work

Development on a Hammer Mill with Separate Sieving Device

Hammer mills are widely used for material size reduction in food and feed industries. In this paper, a new hammer mill with separate sieving device has been designed and fabricated, in which the so-called material-circulation layer can not be formed and material being ground passes through the sieve by rotor throwing and air blowing without direct rubbing with the sieve. Thus the new machine has the advantages in high productivity, low energy consumption, low sieve wearing, and especially,  the low product temperature increase, which is favorable to  feed quality and feed preserving. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.11591/telkomnika.v10i6.140

Efficiency Evaluation of Green Technology Innovation of China’s Industrial Enterprises Based on SBM Model and EBM Model

The industrial revolution has brought a leap in productivity; however, some severe ecological environment and resource problems are coming out with the development of industrialization. To achieve sustainable development of social economy, green technology innovation emerges in response to the proper time and conditions. In this context, the correct approach to measure the efficiency of green technology innovation in China’s industrial enterprises is an important research topic. Based on existing studies, this paper divides innovation activities into two stages based on the innovation value chain and constructs a two-stage evaluation index system including all kinds of undesirable outputs transferred from negative externalities of the ecological environment. To evaluate green technology innovation efficiency, SBM and EBM network DEA models are applied to conduct empirical analysis from the perspective of time and space. This paper also calculates the efficiency values based on the SBM model and the EBM model, respectively, and compares the differences between them. The results show that the efficiency value of the achievement transformation stage is significantly higher than that of technology development stage; there are noticeable gaps in the efficiency of green technology innovation between different regions of China. Besides, the eastern region has a better performance in green technology innovation than the western region and Qinghai has the best green technology innovation performance. Combining the empirical results, the corresponding policy recommendations are put forward

Development of a Melting Curve-Based Triple Eva Green Real-Time PCR Assay for Simultaneous Detection of Three Shrimp Pathogens

Infections with Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP), infectious hypodermal and hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHHNV), and Decapod iridescent virus 1 (DIV1) pose significant challenges to the shrimp industry. Here, a melting curve-based triple real-time PCR assay based on the fluorescent dye Eva Green was established for the simultaneous detection of EHP, IHHNV, and DIV1. The assay showed high specificity, sensitivity, and reproducibility. A total of 190 clinical samples from Shandong, Jiangsu, Sichuan, Guangdong, and Hainan provinces in China were evaluated by the triple Eva Green real-time PCR assay. The positive rates of EHP, IHHNV, and DIV1 were 10.5%, 18.9%, and 44.2%, respectively. The samples were also evaluated by TaqMan qPCR assays for EHP, DIV1, and IHHNV, and the concordance rate was 100%. This illustrated that the newly developed triple Eva Green real-time PCR assay can provide an accurate method for the simultaneous detection of three shrimp pathogens

Sensitivity of Summer Precipitation over Korea to Convective Parameterizations in the RegCM4: An Updated Assessment

This study investigates the performance of the latest version of RegCM4 in simulating summer precipitation over South Korea, comparing nine sensitivity experiments with different combinations of convective parameterization schemes (CPSs) between land and ocean. In addition to the gross pattern of seasonal and monthly mean precipitation, the northward propagation of the intense precipitation band and statistics from extreme daily precipitation are thoroughly evaluated against gridded and in situ station observations. The comparative analysis of 10-year simulations demonstrates that no CPS shows superiority in both quantitative and qualitative aspects. Furthermore, a nontrivial discrepancy among the different observation datasets makes a robust assessment of model performance difficult. Regardless of the CPS over the ocean, the simulations with the Kain–Fritsch scheme over land show a severe dry bias, whereas the simulations with the Tiedtke scheme over land suffer from a limited accuracy in reproducing spatial distributions due to the excessive orographic precipitation. In general, the simulations with the Emanuel scheme over land are better at capturing the major characteristics of summer precipitation over South Korea, despite not all statistical metrics showing the best performance. When applying the Emanuel scheme to both land and the ocean, precipitation tends to be slightly overestimated. This deficiency can be alleviated by using either the Tiedtke or Kain–Fritsch schemes over the ocean instead. As few studies have applied and evaluated the Tiedtke and Kain–Fritsch schemes to the Korean region within the RegCM framework, and this study introduces the potential of these new CPSs compared with the more frequently selected Emanuel scheme, which is particularly beneficial to RegCM users

Emergence of robust anthropogenic increase of heat stress-related variables projected from CORDEX-CORE climate simulations

The information of when and where region-specific patterns in both mean and extreme temperatures leading to heat stress will emerge from the present-day climate variability is important to plan adaptation options, but to date studies on this issue still remain limited and fragmented. Here, we estimate the time of emergence (TOE) of temperature and wet-bulb temperature (Tw), a better indication of heat stress, using fine-scale, long-term regional climate model projections under the RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 scenarios across six different domains. Differently from previous studies, the TOE is determined using three methods applied on impact-relevant variables: two different signal-to-noise frameworks based on summer mean temperature and Tw and a statistical test to identify significant differences in daily extreme distributions. The TOE response to RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 with respect to the end of 20th century variability differs significantly regardless of which TOE metric is applied. For summer mean temperature, the land fraction reaching TOE is expected to exceed 90% by the 2050s under the RCP8.5, whereas the increase rate of land exposure to TOE tends to stagnate over time under the RCP2.6 so that more than 40% of land will not experience TOE by the end of the 21st century. Compared to temperature, the TOE of Tw is reached earlier in most of the wet tropics but is delayed in hot and dry regions because of the nonlinear response of Tw to humidity. For both temperature and Tw, the TOE appears earlier in regions with low baseline variability, such as in the tropics. Despite the uncertainties arising from the choice of TOE metrics, the vast majority of regions in Africa and southeast Asia experience TOE in the early 21st century under both the RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 scenarios, which stresses the urgent need for developing adequate adaptation strategies in these regions