The effects of UV-C on the total polyphenol contents and antioxidant activity of New Zealand grown green asparagus : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Human Nutrition at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand

Background: Asparagus is favoured by global consumers for its exceptional nutritional value. New Zealand has a long history of asparagus cultivation and a considerable domestic market. Recently, several technologies such as UV and gamma irradiation have been used to increase the bioactive compounds in plants, resulting in improved plant quality and human health. The main aim of the present study was to study the hoemetic effects of UV-C (0.45- 2.27 kJ/m²) on the total polyphenol contents and antioxidant activity of New Zealand grown asparagus. Methodology: A three-factor-three-level Box Behnken Design (BBD) was used to determine the optimum condition for ultrasonication-assisted extraction (UAE). Three doses of UV-C radiation (0.45, 1.13, and 2.27 kJ/m²) were applied to study the effects of UV-C light on the antioxidant activity of asparagus. The antioxidant assays were evaluated by total polyphenol contents (TPC), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging ability, and peroxidase (POD) activity. The leading flavonoid of asparagus extracts was analyzed by High-Performance Chromatography (liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry; HPLC-MS). Results: The optimum conditions for extracting asparagus TPC were 60% ethanol (v/v), 20 min extraction time, and a solid to liquid ratio of 1:30 (w/v). Overall, the UV-C irradiated samples showed significantly higher TPC than unirradiated samples (p< 0.05). The highest TPC value (131.37 ± 2.05 mg GAE/g; dry weight) was obtained at 1.13 kJ/m² UV-C exposure, and the TPC started to decrease as UV-C irradiation surpassed 1.13 kJ/m². The DPPH activity showed a similar trend as the TPC assay. The lowest IC50 of DPPH assay was found in the 1.13 kJ/m² group (36.84 µM), followed by the 0.45 kJ/m² group (49.20 µM), 2.27 kJ/m² group (99.21 µM), and unirradiated group (115.01 µM). The effects of UV-C irradiation on POD activity exhibited an opposite trend as that of TPC. The HPLC-MS results showed that rutin was the main flavonoid in asparagus with a content of 14.095 mg/100 g (dry weight). Conclusion: Ultrasonication-assisted extraction (UAE) was more effective than traditional maceration on extracting asparagus TPC. The hormetic effects of UV-C were seen in this study as promoting the plant bioactivity at an optimum UV dose and decreasing such activity when the dose continued to increase. Rutin contains o‐diphenol, benzene ring, and keto functional group (-C=O) and might be the reason for the high antioxidant activity of asparagus

Ubiquitous Robotic Technology for Smart Manufacturing System

As the manufacturing tasks become more individualized and more flexible, the machines in smart factory are required to do variable tasks collaboratively without reprogramming. This paper for the first time discusses the similarity between smart manufacturing systems and the ubiquitous robotic systems and makes an effort on deploying ubiquitous robotic technology to the smart factory. Specifically, a component based framework is proposed in order to enable the communication and cooperation of the heterogeneous robotic devices. Further, compared to the service robotic domain, the smart manufacturing systems are often in larger size. So a hierarchical planning method was implemented to improve the planning efficiency. A test bed of smart factory is developed. It demonstrates that the proposed framework is suitable for industrial domain, and the hierarchical planning method is able to solve large problems intractable with flat methods

Up-regulation of Grb2-associated binder 1 promotes hepatocyte growth factor-induced endothelial progenitor cell proliferation and migration

Objectives Grb2-associated binder 1 (Gab1), a scaffolding adaptor protein, plays an important role in transmitting key signals that control cell growth, migration, and function from multiple tyrosine kinase receptors. This study was designed to investigate the influence of upregulation of Gab1 in endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) stimulated with hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), and the underlying molecular mechanisms. Materials and Methods Endothelial progenitor cells isolated from human umbilical cord blood were identified and divided into four groups. EPCs in the Control group were cultured normally; those in the Control+HGF group were treated with HGF stimulation; those in the AD-Gab1 group were transfected with adenovirus containing the Gab1 gene but not treated with HGF stimulation; and, those in the AD-Gab1+HGF group were treated with both HGF stimulation and transfection with adenovirus containing the Gab1 gene. Subsequently, Gab1 expression and proliferation and migration ability were compared for EPCs grown under different conditions. Furthermore, we measured phosphorylation levels of three key proteins Gab1, SHP2, and ERK1/2. Results The AD-Gab1+HGF group had the highest expression of Gab1 and higher proliferation and migration than the other three groups. Conclusions Upregulation of Gab1 promoted HGF-induced EPC proliferation and migration. Mechanistically, HGF stimulated Gab1 tyrosine phosphorylation in EPCs, thus leading to activation of extracellular regulated MAP kinase 1/2, which is involved in proliferation and migration signaling

Genetic characterization and linkage disequilibrium mapping of resistance to gray leaf spot in maize (Zea mays L.)

AbstractGray leaf spot (GLS), caused by Cercospora zeae-maydis, is an important foliar disease of maize (Zea mays L.) worldwide, resistance to which is controlled by multiple quantitative trait loci (QTL). To gain insights into the genetic architecture underlying the resistance to this disease, an association mapping population consisting of 161 inbred lines was evaluated for resistance to GLS in a plant pathology nursery at Shenyang in 2010 and 2011. Subsequently, a genome-wide association study, using 41,101 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), identified 51 SNPs significantly (P<0.001) associated with GLS resistance, which could be converted into 31 QTL. In addition, three candidate genes related to plant defense were identified, including nucleotide-binding-site/leucine-rich repeat, receptor-like kinase genes similar to those involved in basal defense. Two genic SNPs, PZE-103142893 and PZE-109119001, associated with GLS resistance in chromosome bins 3.07 and 9.07, can be used for marker-assisted selection (MAS) of GLS resistance. These results provide an important resource for developing molecular markers closely linked with the target trait, enhancing breeding efficiency

Abnormal Liver Function Tests Were Associated With Adverse Clinical Outcomes: An Observational Cohort Study of 2,912 Patients With COVID-19

Background and Aim: The impact of liver function test (LFTs) abnormality on adverse clinical outcomes in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients remains controversial. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of abnormal LFTs on clinical outcomes in a large cohort of hospitalized patients with COVID-19.Methods: We retrospectively collected data on 2,912 consecutive patients with COVID-19 who were admitted to a makeshift hospital in China between 5 February and 23 March 2020. The association between LFTs abnormalities (baseline and peak values) and clinical outcomes was measured by using Cox regression models.Results: On admission 1,414 patients (48.6%) had abnormal LFTs, with alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin (TBIL), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) elevation in 662 (22.7%), 221 (7.6%), 52 (1.8%), 135 (4.6%), and 536 (18.5%) patients, respectively, and hypoalbuminemia in 737 (25.3%) patients. During a median 13 (IQR: 8–19) days of hospitalization, 61 patients (2.1%) died, 106 patients (3.6%) admitted to intensive care unit (ICU), and 75 patients (2.6%) required mechanical ventilation. After adjustment for confounders, baseline abnormal LFTs were independently associated with increased risks of mortality (adjusted HR 3.66, 95%CI 1.64–8.19, p = 0.002), ICU admission (adjusted HR 3.12 95%CI 1.86–5.23, p &lt; 0.001), and mechanical ventilation (adjusted HR 3.00, 95%CI 1.63–5.52, p &lt; 0.001), which was homogeneous across the severity of COVID-19 infection. Among the parameters of LTFs, the associations with the outcomes were more pronounced for AST and albumin abnormality. In contrast, ALT elevation was not significantly associated with those outcomes. Similar results were observed for peak values of LFTs during hospitalization.Conclusions: Abnormality of AST, albumin, TBIL, ALP, and GGT but not ALT were independently associated with adverse outcomes

Prediction of ESRD in IgA Nephropathy Patients from an Asian Cohort: A Random Forest Model

Background/Aims: There is an increasing risk of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) among Asian people with immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN). A computer-aided system for ESRD prediction in Asian IgAN patients has not been well studied. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed biopsy-proven IgAN patients treated at the Department of Nephrology of the Second Xiangya Hospital from January 2009 to November 2013. Demographic and clinicopathological data were obtained within 1 month of renal biopsy. A random forest (RF) model was employed to predict the ESRD status in IgAN patients. All cases were initially trained and validated, taking advantage of the out-of-bagging(OOB) error. Predictors used in the model were selected according to the Gini impurity index in the RF model and verified by logistic regression analysis. The area under the receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curve (AUC) and F-measure were used to evaluate the RF model. Results: A total of 262 IgAN patients were enrolled in this study with a median follow-up time of 4.66 years. The importance rankings of predictors of ESRD in the RF model were first obtained, indicating some of the most important predictors. Logistic regression also showed that these factors were statistically associated with ESRD status. We first trained an initial RF model using gender, age, hypertension, serum creatinine, 24-hour proteinuria and histological grading suggested by the Clinical Decision Support System for IgAN (CDSS, www.IgAN.net). This 6-predictor model achieved a F-measure of 0.8 and an AUC of 92.57%. By adding Oxford-MEST scores, this model outperformed the initial model with an improved AUC (96.1%) and F-measure (0.823). When C3 staining was incorporated, the AUC was 97.29% and F-measure increased to 0.83. Adding the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) improved the AUC to 95.45%. We also observed improved performance of the model with additional inputs of blood urea nitrogen (BUN), uric acid, hemoglobin and albumin. Conclusion: In addition to the predictors in the CDSS, Oxford-MEST scores, C3 staining and eGFR conveyed additional information for ESRD prediction in Chinese IgAN patients using a RF model

Dental resin monomer enables unique NbO2/carbon lithium‐ion battery negative electrode with exceptional performance

Niobium dioxide (NbO2) features a high theoretical capacity and an outstanding electron conductivity, which makes it a promising alternative to the commercial graphite negative electrode. However, studies on NbO2 based lithium-ion battery negative electrodes have been rarely reported. In the present work, NbO2 nanoparticles homogeneously embedded in a carbon matrix are synthesized through calcination using a dental resin monomer (bisphenol A glycidyl dimethacrylate, Bis-GMA) as the solvent and a carbon source and niobium ethoxide (NbETO) as the precursor. It is revealed that a low Bis-GMA/NbETO mass ratio (from 1:1 to 1:2) enables the conversion of Nb (V) to Nb (IV) due to increased porosity induced by an alcoholysis reaction between the NbETO and Bis-GMA. The as-prepared NbO2/carbon nanohybrid delivers a reversible capacity of 225 mAh g−1 after 500 cycles at a 1 C rate with a Coulombic efficiency of more than 99.4% in the cycles. Various experimental and theoretical approaches including solid state nuclear magnetic resonance, ex situ X-ray diffraction, differential electrochemical mass spectrometry, and density functional theory are utilized to understand the fundamental lithiation/delithiation mechanisms of the NbO2/carbon nanohybrid. The results suggest that the NbO2/carbon nanohybrid bearing high capacity, long cycle life, and low gas evolution is promising for lithium storage applications

Discrete Brand Choice Models: Analysis and Applications

In this thesis, we study brand choice problem via the following three perspectives: a company's market share management, introduction of customers with different perspectives, and an analysis of an application domain which is illustrative of these issues. Our contributions following these perspectives include: (1) development of a stochastic differential-jump game (SDJG) model for brand competition in a specific situation wherein market share is modeled by a jump-diffusion process, (2) a robust hierarchical logit/probit model for market heterogeneity, and (3) applications of logit/probit model to the dynamic pricing problem occurring in production-inventory systems with jump events. Our research explores the use of quantitative method of operations research to control the dynamics of market share and provides a precise estimation method to integrate more detail information in discrete brand choice models.Ph.D.Committee Chair: Esogbue, Augustine; Committee Member: Griffin, Paul; Committee Member: Li, MinQiang; Committee Member: Lu, Jye-Chyi (JC); Committee Member: McCarthy, Patric