Efficient gene editing in adult mouse livers via adenoviral delivery of CRISPR/Cas9

AbstractWe developed an adenovirus-based CRISPR/Cas9 system for gene editing in vivo. In the liver, we demonstrated that the system could reach the level of tissue-specific gene knockout, resulting in phenotypic changes. Given the wide spectrum of cell types susceptible to adenoviral infection, and the fact that adenoviral genome rarely integrates into its host cell genome, we believe the adenovirus-based CRISPR/Cas9 system will find applications in a variety of experimental settings

Comprehensive Analysis of lncRNA and miRNA Regulatory Network Reveals Potential Prognostic Non-coding RNA Involved in Breast Cancer Progression

Breast cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors in women and is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women. The tumorigenesis and progression of breast cancer are not well understood. The existing researches have indicated that non-coding RNAs, which mainly include long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) and microRNA (miRNA), have gradually become important regulators of breast cancer. We aimed to screen the differential expression of miRNA and lncRNA in the different breast cancer stages and identify the key non-coding RNA using TCGA data. Based on series test of cluster (STC) analysis, bioinformatics analysis, and negatively correlated relationships, 122 lncRNAs, 67 miRNAs, and 119 mRNAs were selected to construct the regulatory network of lncRNA and miRNA. It was shown that the miR-93/20b/106a/106b family was at the center of the regulatory network. Furthermore, 6 miRNAs, 10 lncRNAs, and 15 mRNAs were significantly associated with the overall survival (OS, log-rank P < 0.05) of patients with breast cancer. Overexpressed miR-93 in MCF-7 breast cancer cells was associated with suppressed expression of multiple lncRNAs, and these downregulated lncRNAs (MESTIT1, LOC100128164, and DNMBP-AS1) were significantly associated with poor overall survival in breast cancer patients. Therefore, the miR-93/20b/106a/106b family at the core of the regulatory network discovered by our analysis above may be extremely important for the regulation of lncRNA expression and the progression of breast cancer. The identified key miRNA and lncRNA will enhance the understanding of molecular mechanisms of breast cancer progression. Targeting these key non-coding RNA may provide new therapeutic strategies for breast cancer treatment and may prevent the progression of breast cancer from an early stage to an advanced stage

MXene (Ti3C2Tx) and Carbon Nanotube Hybrid-Supported Platinum Catalysts for the High-Performance Oxygen Reduction Reaction in PEMFC

The metal–support interaction offers electronic, compositional, and geometric effects that could enhance catalytic activity and stability. Herein, a high corrosion resistance and an excellent electrical conductivity MXene (Ti3C2Tx) hybrid with a carbon nanotube (CNT) composite material is developed as a support for Pt. Such a composite catalyst enhances durability and improved oxygen reduction reaction activity compared to the commercial Pt/C catalyst. The mass activity of Pt/CNT-MXene demonstrates a 3.4-fold improvement over that of Pt/C. The electrochemical surface area of Pt/CNT–Ti3C2Tx (1:1) catalysts shows only 6% drop with respect to that in Pt/C of 27% after 2000 cycle potential sweeping. Furthermore, the Pt/CNT–Ti3C2Tx (1:1) is used as a cathode catalyst for single cell and stack, and the maximum power density of the stack reaches 138 W. The structure distortion of the Pt cluster induced by MXene is disadvantageous to the desorption of O atoms. This issue can be solved by adding CNT on MXene to stabilize the Pt cluster. These remarkable catalytic performances could be attributed to the synergistic effect between Pt and CNT–Ti3C2Tx

How Can Design Strategies Be Used to Promote Traditional Nanjing Yun Brocade in an Accessible Way to Engage with a Contemporary Audience?

Nanjing Yun brocade is the eminent representative of Chinese traditional culture. It had been used as tributes to the royal families in the three dynasties of Yuan, Ming and Qing. Due to its rich cultural and scientific context, it is honoured by experts as “the last milestone in the technological history of Chinese ancient silk fabrics” (Yan, 2005). It is acknowledged by the public as ‘oriental treasure’, and ‘China’s wonder’, and is a rare historical cultural tradition in China and the world. The purpose of passing on traditions is to make new creations, to make practical use of it and to make tradition serve the material and cultural needs of the people in modern times. With this point of view in mind, the researcher applied a modern marketing strategy and modern design technology to bring the new Yun brocade products up-to-date with a new look. The project is divided into the following six chapters. The first part is the introduction of the project and the second discusses the definition, the origins, the variety and the craft of Yun brocade, and its further development. The third section describes which methodologies and methods the researcher has adopted to study this project. The fourth chapter analyses information about the Chinese consumers, and the strategy for promoting Yun brocade. The fifth chapter discusses some findings about Yun brocade. The last part is the conclusion of the project

Pinning Synchronization of Complex Dynamical Networks with Variable-Delayed Coupling by Periodically Intermittent Control

This paper studied the adaptive pinning synchronization in complex networks with variable-delay coupling via periodically intermittent control. Theoretical analysis is included by means of Lyapunov functions and linear matrix inequalities (LMI) to make all nodes reach complete synchronization. Moreover, the synchronization criteria do not impose any restriction on the size of time delay. Numerical examples including the regular, Watts–Strogatz and scale-free BA random topological architecture are provided to illustrate the importance of our theoretical analysis

The Plasma Soluble Urokinase Plasminogen Activator Receptor Is Related to Disease Activity of Patients with ANCA-Associated Vasculitis

Objective. The soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) is associated with kidney diseases and is used as a prognostic factor of renal function progression. The aim of this study was to explore whether circulating suPAR was associated with antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody- (ANCA-) associated vasculitis (AAV) disease activity. Methods. We evaluated 90 AAV patients with follow-up data and 35 normal controls; their plasma suPAR and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were measured by ELISA. Associations between these levels, clinical parameters, and prognosis were analyzed. Results. Plasma suPAR levels in AAV patients were significantly higher than in healthy controls (5,920.08±3,447.17 vs. 1,441.97±835.04 pg/mL, P5683.3 pg/mL showed poorer survival than patients with lower levels (log-rank, P=0.001). Besides, multivariate analyses confirmed that plasma suPAR levels were an independent adverse prognostic factor for a composite outcome of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or death, after adjusting for age and gender (HR 1.05, 95% CI=1.01−1.11, P=0.043). Receiver operating characteristic curves showed a suPAR cutoff value >6662.2 pg/mL for composite outcome with 68% sensitivity and 88% specificity, with an AUC=0.82, (95% CI=0.68−0.96, P<0.001). Conclusion. Circulating suPAR levels might be a marker of activity correlated with disease activity in AAV patients, and, to some extent, could be a factor of poor prognosis