Monomial Hopf Algebras

Let $K$ be a field of characteristic 0 containing all roots of unity. We classify all the Hopf structures on monomial $K$-coalgebras, or, in dual version, on monomial $K$-algebras.Comment: 24 page

Penicillamine Increases Free Copper and Enhances Oxidative Stress in the Brain of Toxic Milk Mice

Wilson disease (WD) is characterized by the accumulation of copper arising from a mutation in the ATP7B gene. Penicillamine (PA) makes 10–50% of the patients with neurologic symptoms neurologically worse at the early stage of administration. The aim of this study was to determine how the copper metabolism changes and whether the change impairs the brain of toxic milk (tx) mice, an animal model of WD, during the PA administration. The free copper and protein-bound copper concentrations in the serum, cortex and basal ganglia of tx mice with PA administration for 3 days, 10 days and 14 days, respectively, were investigated. The expression of copper transporters, ATP7A and CTR1,was analyzed by real-time quantitative PCR, immunofluorescence and Western blot. Then SOD, MDA and GSH/GSSG were detected to determine whether the oxidative stress changed correspondingly. The results revealed the elevated free copper concentrations in the serum and brain, and declined protein-bound copper concentrations in the brain of tx mice during PA administration. Meanwhile, transiently increased expression of ATP7A and CTR1 was observed generally in the brain parenchyma by immunofluorescence, real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot. Additionally, ATP7A and CTR1 were observed to locate mainly at Golgi apparatus and cellular membrane respectively. Intense staining of ATP7A in the choroid plexus was found in tx mice on the 3rd and 10th day of PA treatment, but rare staining of ATP7A and CTR1 in the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Decreased GSH/GSSG and increased MDA concentrations were also viewed in the cortex and basal ganglia. Our results suggested the elevated free copper concentrations in the brain might lead to the enhanced oxidative stress during PA administration. The increased free copper in the brain might come from the copper mobilized from brain parenchyma cells but not from the serum according to the ATP7A and CTR1 expression analysis

Electroshock treatment dependent microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of near-β titanium alloy manufactured by directed energy deposition

Effects of electroshock treatment (EST) on the microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of near-β titanium alloy (Ti-55531) formed by directed energy deposition (DED) was studied in this work. With the increase in EST time, the average hardness of specimen decreased from 426 HV to 316 HV, and the fracture strain increased significantly, which was attributed to the uniform dispersion of α phase along grain boundaries and inside the β grains. After EST, the texture intensity decreased in terms of the orientation distribution function (ODF), which was ascribed to the redistribution of α phase. Moreover, more atomic vacancies and lattice distortion were formed near the α/β interfaces, which were verified by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observation and ascribed to the migration of atoms near the interface under EST. External loadings facilitated the dislocation motion and lattice distortions near the interfaces, which resulted in the reduction in hardness and the improvement in ductility. The above results indicated that EST can quickly alter the microstructure and mechanical properties of DED titanium alloys as a simple and energy-saving method

Population Size, Genetic Diversity and Molecular Evidence of a Recent Population Bottleneck in Hynobius chinensis, an Endangered Salamander Species

Severe population declines can reduce species to small populations, offering permissive conditions for deleterious processes. For example, following such events, species can become prone to inbreeding and genetic drift which can lead to a loss of genetic diversity and evolutionary potentials. Hynobius chinensis is a poorly studied very rare and declining endangered amphibian species endemic to China in Changyang County. We investigated adult census population size by monitoring breeding populations from 2015 to 2018, developed microsatellite markers from the transcriptome and used them to investigate genetic diversity, and a population bottleneck in this species. We found H. chinensis in 4 different localities in a total area of 2.18 km2 and estimated the overall adult census population size at 386–404 individuals. The adult census size (mean ± SE) per breeding pond ranged from 44 ± 6 to 141 ± 8 individuals and appeared smaller than that reported in closely related species in undisturbed habitats. We developed and characterized 13 microsatellite markers in total. Analysis of data at 7 loci (N = 118) in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium gathered from the largest population showed that genetic diversity level was low. The average number of alleles per locus was 2.14. The observed and expected heterozygosities averaged 0.38 and 0.40, respectively. The inbreeding coefficient was –0.06. All tests performed to investigate a population bottleneck, i.e. The Garza-Williamson test, Heterozygosity excess test, Mode shift test of allele frequency, and effective population size estimates detected a population bottleneck. The contemporary and the historical effective population sizes were estimated at 36 and 234 individuals, respectively. We argue that as bottleneck effects, the studied population may have become prone to genetic drift and inbreeding, losing microsatellite alleles and heterozygosity. Our results suggest that populations of H. chinensis may have been extirpated in the study area

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) with right ventricular sense triggered left ventricular pacing benefits for the hemodynamics compared with standard CRT for chronic congestive heart failure: A cross-over study

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) with right ventricular (RV) sense triggered left ventricular (LV) pacing for chronic heart failure (CHF). Methods: Thirty patients who were eligible for the Class I indication of CRT were enrolled and the informed consents were signed. Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), diastolic mitral flow velocity time integral (VTI), mitral regurgitation flow VTI, and aortic valve flow VTI were measured with GE Vivid 7 (GE Medical, Milwaukee, WI, USA) before and after CRT. The echocardiographic measurements and the average annual costs of the device use were compared. Results: The duration of QRS complex, the length of time used for optimization, and the average annual cost of the device use under RV sense triggered LV pacing were significantly less than that under standard biventricular (BiV) pacing (p < 0.01), while the average battery lifetime was longer. Subgroup analysis showed that LVEF, diastolic mitral flow VTI, and aortic valve flow VTI under RV sense triggered LV pacing were greater than that under standard BiV pacing with right or LV pre-activation. The average battery lifetime was significantly longer and the average annual cost of the device use was less. The mitral regurgitation flow VTI under RV sense triggered LV pacing was less than that under standard BiV pacing with RV pre-activation. Conclusions: RV sense triggered LV provides benefits for CHF patients over standard CRT in terms of maintaining the physiological atrio-ventricular delay of atrio-ventricular node and improving the acute hemodynamic effects