Identity Switching for Teaching Reflection — Example from Waikato Institute of Technology

The purpose of reflective teaching is to examine teaching process and improve teacher’s teaching ability. The reflective teaching course of Waikato Institute of Technology offers teachers an experience to learn a second language as fresh students. Through the process of a new foreign language learning practice, personal reflection, group discussion, personal reflective writing and teacher’s guidance, the teacher trainees are hoped to get a better understanding of students’ learning process, which can inspire college English teaching in China

Applications of radiotracer in plant biology

A radioactive tracer (radiotracer) is generally defined as a radioactive isotope that is used as a tracer, which can be followed or tracked within a system of interest. The use of radiotracers involves the substitution of a radioactive isotope for one of the naturally occurring isotopes of a particular element. Radiotracers have a wide range of application due to two unique features: a high level of detection sensitivity, and an ability to integrate into living systems. These features make the use of radiotracers particularly useful for studying the dynamic processes that comprise metabolic activity. This work focuses on the use of radiotracers to identify and follow specific biological pathways to facilitate our understanding of plant biology. All of the plants used in this work are Arabidopsis thaliana plants (wild type, col-0 and its different mutants). Plants are the most common living organisms on earth and have critical roles for the global environment, including human societies. Plants are able to reduce the problem of pollutions, such as uptake contaminants from soils and waters. Also, plants are the basic food producers for other living organisms, which are not only the ones above ground, but also below ground in the rhizosphere (microorganisms). Therefore, if the plant systems are disturbed, it could affect the ecosystem dramatically. In this dissertation, we are trying to use radiotracers to explore the mechanisms of the basic physiology and metabolisms in plants. In Chapter 2, heavy metal uptake and accumulation in one of the Arabidopsis mutant, opt3-2 mutant, was investigated in order to understand the possible mechanisms of phytoremediation. The results showed that the opt3-2 mutant plants accumulate Pb2+ in both influorescence stems and rosette leaves compared to the wild type (WT). In addition, the results from the radioactive 203Pb uptake assays indicated that the heavy metal accumulation phenotype in the opt3-2 mutant plants is not due to a kinetic rapid uptake, but to a long-term regulation. In Chapter 3, the carbon metabolism and translocation in Arabidopsis plants were investigated using both 12C and 11C methods to explore the dynamics of carbon flux in plants, as well as diurnal effects on carbon flux. Three starch mutants (sex1-1, adg1-1 and pgm-1) and the WT Arabidopsis were used in this study. The results showed that starch regulation is essential not only for plant growth, but also affects sugar metabolism (fructose, glucose and sucrose), carbon allocation to plant roots, and root exudation. In Chapter 4, the relationship between Fe status and carbon metabolism was discussed. Both 12C and 11C methods were used in this study to investigate the carbon metabolism and translocation in Arabidopsis plants. Two iron-transport mutants (opt3-2 and irt1-1 mutants) and the WT Arabidopsis were used for this study. The results showed that the Fe status in plants affects the carbon fixation ability in plant leaves, and also alters carbon partitioning (possibly through the production of more organic acids under Fe deficient stress), carbon allocation, and root exudation in plants. Diurnal effects on carbon metabolism and allocation were observed in this study, as well.Includes bibliographical references

Analysis of Dynamic Variation Characteristics and Influential Factors of PM2.5 on Subway Platforms under Air-Conditioning Condition and Ventilation Condition

The purpose of this study is to investigate the main influential factors of the subway Particulate Matter (PM) pollutants under the air-conditioning condition and ventilation condition, by an on-site field measurement in a subway station in Shanghai. It is found that the dust accumulation at fresh air shaft was the secondary dusting action under the influence of fresh air flow, leading to a higher concentration of the PM in the subway station than in the outdoor air even when the outdoor air quality was good. In addition, in the morning rush hour the PM 2.5 value near the platform screen door our is highest of the day

OPT3 is a component of the iron-signaling network between leaves and roots and misregulation of OPT3 leads to an over-accumulation of cadmium in seeds.

Plants and seeds are the main dietary sources of zinc, iron, manganese, and copper, but are also the main entry point for toxic elements such as cadmium into the food chain. We report here that an Arabidopsis oligopeptide transporter mutant, opt3-2, over-accumulates cadmium (Cd) in seeds and roots but, unexpectedly, under-accumulates Cd in leaves. The cadmium distribution in opt3-2 differs from iron, zinc, and manganese, suggesting a metal-specific mechanism for metal partitioning within the plant. The opt3-2 mutant constitutively up-regulates the Fe/Zn/Cd transporter IRT1 and FRO2 in roots, indicative of an iron-deficiency response. No genetic mutants that impair the shoot-to-root signaling of iron status in leaves have been identified. Interestingly, shoot-specific expression of OPT3 rescues the Cd sensitivity and complements the aberrant expression of IRT1 in opt3-2 roots, suggesting that OPT3 is required to relay the iron status from leaves to roots. OPT3 expression was found in the vasculature with preferential expression in the phloem at the plasma membrane. Using radioisotope experiments, we found that mobilization of Fe from leaves is severely affected in opt3-2, suggesting that Fe mobilization out of leaves is required for proper trace-metal homeostasis. When expressed in yeast, OPT3 does not localize to the plasma membrane, precluding the identification of the OPT3 substrate. Our in planta results show that OPT3 is important for leaf phloem-loading of iron and plays a key role regulating Fe, Zn, and Cd distribution within the plant. Furthermore, ferric chelate reductase activity analyses provide evidence that iron is not the sole signal transferred from leaves to roots in leaf iron status signaling

Synthetic Datasets for Autonomous Driving: A Survey

Autonomous driving techniques have been flourishing in recent years while thirsting for huge amounts of high-quality data. However, it is difficult for real-world datasets to keep up with the pace of changing requirements due to their expensive and time-consuming experimental and labeling costs. Therefore, more and more researchers are turning to synthetic datasets to easily generate rich and changeable data as an effective complement to the real world and to improve the performance of algorithms. In this paper, we summarize the evolution of synthetic dataset generation methods and review the work to date in synthetic datasets related to single and multi-task categories for to autonomous driving study. We also discuss the role that synthetic dataset plays the evaluation, gap test, and positive effect in autonomous driving related algorithm testing, especially on trustworthiness and safety aspects. Finally, we discuss general trends and possible development directions. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first survey focusing on the application of synthetic datasets in autonomous driving. This survey also raises awareness of the problems of real-world deployment of autonomous driving technology and provides researchers with a possible solution.Comment: 19 pages, 5 figure

PO-127 Research progresses of exercise intervention methods in non- alcoholic fatty liver disease

Objective This review summarizes the effects of aerobic exercise (AE), resistance exercise (RE), and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).Discuss The main differences of intervention methods, intervention time, and intervention effects among the NAFLD people, To explore the targeting and dose-response relationship of different exercise models intervention in NAFLD.  Methods This paper uses the keywords such as Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, NAFLD, NASH, NAFLD and aerobic training, aerobic exercise, resistance training, resistance exercise, high-intensity interval training, high-intensity interval exercise, high-intensity aerobic exercise, HIAT, HIIT, HIT, etc to search in the web of science、Pubmed database, the deadline is March 1, 2018. Inclusion criteria: (1) study design: randomized controlled trials; (2) study questions: effects of exercise on hepatic steatosis in patients with NAFLD; (3) type of exercise: AE, RE, and HIIT; (4) subjects: biochemical examination liver biopsy or ultrasound examination includes a combination of abdominal imaging and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) imaging of the NAFLD population. Exclusion criteria: (1) non-original studies (2) meeting abstracts (3) did not provide sufficient experimental data (4) animal experiments (5) non-English literature. The search results showed that a total of 16 studies reported the effects of exercise on NAFLD populations.  Results (1) AE, RE and HIIT can reduce hepatic steatosis and improve liver histology in NAFLD people, but their intervention effects are different. AE stands out in reduce body weight,decreases insulin resistance (IR); RE stands out in reduce hepatic fat and increases muscle strength; HIIT has a significant effect in reducing hepatic fat and enhancing cardiovascular fitness. (2) the frequency, duration, and intervention period of AE and RE are similar; achieve the same or better intervention effect, HIIT only requires the 1/3 exercise time of the previous two. Conclusions RE may be more effective than AE in patients with poor cardiovascular fitness, sarcopenia, and NAFLD who are unable to tolerate or participate in AE; HIIT has certain advantages in the time-effect and dose-effect due to less exercise time and smaller amount of exercise, This is easy for the NAFLD people to accept, and it will facilitate long-term adherence in the future

Study of andrographolide bioactivity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa based on computational methodology and biochemical analysis

Andrographolide is one of the main biologically active molecules isolated from Andrographis paniculata (A. paniculata), which is a traditional Chinese herb used extensively throughout Eastern Asia, India, and China. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, often known as P. aeruginosa, is a common clinical opportunistic pathogen with remarkable adaptability to harsh settings and resistance to antibiotics. P. aeruginosa possesses a wide array of virulence traits, one of which is biofilm formation, which contributes to its pathogenicity. One of the main modulators of the P. aeruginosa-controlled intramembrane proteolysis pathway is AlgW, a membrane-bound periplasmic serine protease. In this work, we have used a set of density functional theory (DFT) calculations to understand the variety of chemical parameters in detail between andrographolide and levofloxacin, which show strong bactericidal activity against P. aeruginosa. Additionally, the stability and interaction of andrographolide and levofloxacin with the protein AlgW have been investigated by molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations . Moreover, the growth and inhibition of biofilm production by P. aeruginosa experiments were also investigated, providing insight that andrographolide could be a potential natural product to inhibit P. aeruginosa

Changes in the Flavor Quality of Flower and Fruit Scented Black Tea Stored at Room Temperature

To explore the effect of room temperature storage on the flavor quality and biochemical composition of flower and fruit scented black tea, this study compared the sensory flavor quality of flower and fruit scented black tea produced in the years 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 and stored at room temperature, and it detected volatile and non-volatile compounds in the tea by headspace solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) and ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to orbitrap high resolution mass spectrometry (UPLC-Orbitrap-MS). The results showed that the sensory quality of flower and fruit scented black tea was significantly affected by storage at room temperature, and the tea lost its floral and fruity aroma characteristics after three years of storage at room temperature; its quality characteristic was mature sour taste. The tea samples were divided into four groups of age by principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA). Totally 15 volatile differential compounds such as linalool, cis-β-ocimene, and hexanoic acid (VIP > 1 and P 2 and P < 0.05) were selected by partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The content of volatile compounds such as linalool, hexanal, cis-β-ocimene, and 2-pentylfuran decreased with increasing storage time, while the contents of hexanoic acid, dihydroactinidolide 1-ethyl-2-formyl-1H-pyrrole, and β-ionone increased. The contents of non-volatile compounds such as most amino acids, nucleotides, sugars, tea polyphenols tended to decrease with increasing storage time, while the contents of organic acids and lipids showed an increasing trend. The results obtained from this study can provide a scientific basis for elucidating the quality changes of flower and fruit scented black tea during storage and help guide its rational storage and scientific consumption

Predictors for unfavorable prognosis after stroke with perforator artery disease

Background and purposePerforator artery disease (PAD) is an important subtype of ischemic stroke. The risk factors affecting the prognosis of patients with PAD are unclear. This study aimed to investigate the risk factors affecting the unfavorable prognosis of PAD.MethodsPatients with PAD were enrolled from Dushu Lake Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University and diagnosed as stroke with PAD during the period from September 2021 to July 2023 and followed up with a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) after 90 days, defining the mRS of 0–2 as a group with favorable prognosis, and 3–6 as a group with unfavorable functional outcome. Logistic regression was used to identify predictors for PAD. Multiple logistic regression analysis and receiver operating characteristics (ROC) were used to identify predictors of unfavorable prognosis.ResultsOf the 181 enrolled patients, 48 (26.5%) were identified with unfavorable prognosis. On multivariate analysis, increased age (OR = 1.076, 95% CI: 1.012 ~ 1.144, p = 0.019), higher National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score at admission (OR = 2.930, 95% CI: 1. 905 ~ 4.508, p &lt; 0.001), and increased neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) (OR = 3.028, 95% CI: 1.615 ~ 5.675, p = 0.001) were independent risk factors for unfavorable prognosis in patients with PAD, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.590, 0.905, and 0.798, and the multi-factor diagnostic model (Model 2) showed reliable diagnostic specificity and sensitivity (area under the curve = 0.956, p &lt; 0.001, specificity 0.805, sensitivity 0.958, accuracy 0.845).ConclusionIncreased baseline NLR and NIHSS score and aging may be independent risk factors for unfavorable prognosis of patients with PAD. NLR can be used as a potential biological indicator to predict the prognosis of stroke with PAD