Large-gap quantum anomalous Hall states induced by functionalizing buckled Bi-III monolayer/Al2_{2}O3_{3}

Chiral edge modes inherent to the topological quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) effect are a pivotal topic of contemporary condensed matter research aiming at future quantum technology and application in spintronics. A large topological gap is vital to protecting against thermal fluctuations and thus enabling a higher operating temperature. From first-principle calculations, we propose Al$_{2}$O$_{3}$ as an ideal substrate for atomic monolayers consisting of Bi and group-III elements, in which a large-gap quantum spin Hall effect can be realized. Additional half-passivation with nitrogen then suggests a topological phase transition to a large-gap QAH insulator. By effective tight-binding modelling, we demonstrate that Bi-III monolayer/Al$_{2}$O$_{3}$ is dominated by $p_{x}, p_{y}$ orbitals, with subdominant $p_z$ orbital contributions. The topological phase transition into the QAH is induced by Zeeman splitting, where the off-diagonal spin exchange does not play a significant role. The effective model analysis promises utility far beyond Bi-III monolayer/Al$_{2}$O$_{3}$, as it should generically apply to systems dominated by $p_{x}, p_{y}$ orbitals with a band inversion at $\Gamma$.Comment: 9 pages with 4 figure

Petroleum geological conditions and exploration potential of the Permian Qixia Formation in the middle segment of Western Depression, Sichuan Basin

In recent years, great breakthroughs have been achieved for the exploration in the Permian Qixia Formation of the Shuangyushi structure in the north and the Pingluoba structure in the south of the Western Depression of the Sichuan Basin (Chuanxi Depression), while the exploration of the same formation in the middle segment of the Chuanxi Depression has not been carried out. In order to accelerate the ultra-deep marine natural gas exploration of the Qixia Formation, based on a large number of outcrops around the middle segment of the Chuanxi Depression, combined with seismic and drilling data and previous research results, this study systematically combed the oil and gas geological conditions of the Qixia Formation and comprehensively analyzed its exploration potential. Results show that the Qixia Formation in the study area has comparable sedimentary background as the north and south segments of the Chuanxi Depression, and is a platform margin sedimentary facies with superior reservoir conditions. Moreover, the Qixia Formation in the study area is connected with the hydrocarbon generation center of the Cambrian Qiongzhusi Formation by source faults. The tight limestone and shale of Permian and the gypsolyte of Triassic can be potential excellent cap rocks. Therefore, the source-reservoir-cap assemblage of the Qixia Formation in this area is preferential for large-scale hydrocarbon accumulation

Different multi-scale structural features of oat resistant starch prepared by ultrasound combined enzymatic hydrolysis affect its digestive properties

In this research, oat resistant starch (ORS) was prepared by autoclaving-retrogradation cycle (ORS-A), enzymatic hydrolysis (ORS-B), and ultrasound combined enzymatic hydrolysis (ORS-C). Differences in their structural features, physicochemical properties and digestive properties were studied. Results of particle size distribution, XRD, DSC, FTIR, SEM and in vitro digestion showed that ORS-C was a B + C-crystal, and ORS-C had a larger particle size, the smallest span value, the highest relative crystallinity, the most ordered and stable double helix structure, the roughest surface shape and strongest digestion resistance compared to ORS-A and ORS-B. Correlation analysis revealed that the digestion resistance of ORS-C was strongly positively correlated with RS content, amylose content, relative crystallinity and absorption peak intensity ratio of 1047/1022 cm−1 (R1047/1022), and weakly positively correlated with average particle size. These results provided theoretical support for the application of ORS-C with strong digestion resistance prepared by ultrasound combined enzymatic hydrolysis in the low GI food application

Genetic investigation and phylogenetic analysis of three Chinese ethnic groups using 16 X chromosome STR loci

Background: The value of using X-chromosomal short tandem repeats (X-STRs) as genetic markers in human genetics has been widely recognised. However, the 16 X-STRs in the Goldeneye® DNA ID System 17X kit have not been thoroughly applied. Aim: To investigate the genetic polymorphisms of 16 X-STRs in three main ethnic minorities (Tibetan, Mongolian and Kazakh) in China and to reveal the phylogenetic relationships of different populations. Subjects and methods: A total of 245 Tibetan, 168 Mongolian and 105 Kazakh individuals were genotyped using this 17X kit. The allelic frequencies and other parameters were calculated. An additional eight Chinese populations and nine global populations were included in genetic comparisons based on 16 or 8 overlapped X-STRs. Results: A total of 147 alleles were observed from 16 X-STRs with allelic frequencies ranging from 0.0024 to 0.7952 in the three studied groups. Based on 16 X-STRs, Tibetans, Kazakhs and Mongolians showed more similarity to each other and were genetically distinct from the Shanghai Han group; based on 8 X-STRs, only the genetic relationships between different nations could be clarified. Conclusions: Our study presents an extensive report on a novel X-STR assay in three Chinese ethnic groups and a comprehensive genetic comparison between different populations based on these X-STRs

B7-H3 confers stemness characteristics to gastric cancer cells by promoting glutathione metabolism through AKT/pAKT/Nrf2 pathway

Abstract. Background:. Cancer stem-like cells (CSCs) are a small subset of cells in tumors that exhibit self-renewal and differentiation properties. CSCs play a vital role in tumor formation, progression, relapse, and therapeutic resistance. B7-H3, an immunoregulatory protein, has many protumor functions. However, little is known about the mechanism underlying the role of B7-H3 in regulating gastric cancer (GC) stemness. Our study aimed to explore the impacts of B7-H3 on GC stemness and its underlying mechanism. Methods:. GC stemness influenced by B7-H3 was detected both in vitro and in vivo. The expression of stemness-related markers was examined by reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Western blotting, and flow cytometry. Sphere formation assay was used to detect the sphere-forming ability. The underlying regulatory mechanism of B7-H3 on the stemness of GC was investigated by mass spectrometry and subsequent validation experiments. The signaling pathway (Protein kinase B [Akt]/Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 [Nrf2] pathway) of B7-H3 on the regulation of glutathione (GSH) metabolism was examined by Western blotting assay. Multi-color immunohistochemistry (mIHC) was used to detect the expression of B7-H3, cluster of differentiation 44 (CD44), and Nrf2 on human GC tissues. Student's t-test was used to compare the difference between two groups. Pearson correlation analysis was used to analyze the relationship between two molecules. The Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis. Results:. B7-H3 knockdown suppressed the stemness of GC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Mass spectrometric analysis showed the downregulation of GSH metabolism in short hairpin B7-H3 GC cells, which was further confirmed by the experimental results. Meanwhile, stemness characteristics in B7-H3 overexpressing cells were suppressed after the inhibition of GSH metabolism. Furthermore, Western blotting suggested that B7-H3-induced activation of GSH metabolism occurred through the AKT/Nrf2 pathway, and inhibition of AKT signaling pathway could suppress not only GSH metabolism but also GC stemness. mIHC showed that B7-H3 was highly expressed in GC tissues and was positively correlated with the expression of CD44 and Nrf2. Importantly, GC patients with high expression of B7-H3, CD44, and Nrf2 had worse prognosis (P = 0.02). Conclusions:. B7-H3 has a regulatory effect on GC stemness and the regulatory effect is achieved through the AKT/Nrf2/GSH pathway. Inhibiting B7-H3 expression may be a new therapeutic strategy against GC

Effect of self-made cooling Chinese medicine spray on relieving thirst in postoperative patients with esophageal cancer (自制中药清凉喷雾剂缓解食管癌术后患者口渴的效果观察)

Objective To explore the effect of self-made cooling Chinese medicine spray on relieving thirst in postoperative patients with esophageal cancer. Methods A total of 212 patients undergoing elective surgery for esophageal cancer were selected as the study subjects. According to the principle of comparability of basic characteristics between groups, they were divided into control group and observation group, with 106 patients in each group. In the control group, the cotton swabs moistened with water were used to moisturize the mouth and lips of patients. In the observation group, the 5 mL transparent spray bottle containing self-made cooling Chinese medicine solution was used for relieving thirst in the observation group. The degree of thirst, thirst-induced discomfort, oral mucosa moistness and the number of additional intervention were compared between the two groups 1h, 2h, 4h and 6h after tracheal intubation removal. Results At each time point, the degree of thirst, thirst-induced discomfort and oral mucosa moistness score in the two groups decreased gradually with time(P＜0. 01), and it was lower in the observation group than in the control group(P＜0. 01). There is an interaction between groups and time(P＜0. 01). The number of additional interventions per patient in the observation group was lower than that in the control group within 6h after extubation, and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0. 01). Conclusion Self-made cooling Chinese medicine spray can effectively relieve the thirst of postoperative patients with esophageal cancer, improve the comfort and save nursing time. (目的 探讨自制中药清凉喷雾剂缓解食管癌术后患者口渴症状的效果。方法 便利抽取2021年1月—2022年12月确诊并行择期手术治疗的食管癌患者212例为研究对象, 按照组间基本特征具有可比性的原则分为对照组和观察组, 各106例。对照组采用棉签蘸水湿润口唇, 观察组采用盛有自制中药清凉喷雾剂的5 mL透明喷雾瓶喷洒解渴。比较两组患者拔除气管插管后1 h、2 h、4 h、6 h的口渴程度、口渴不适感、口腔黏膜湿润程度及6 h内额外干预次数。结果 两组在各时间点的口渴程度、口渴不适感、口腔黏膜评分均随时间呈逐渐降低的趋势(P时间＜0. 01), 且观察组均低于对照组(P组间＜0. 01), 组别与时间存在交互作用(P交互＜0. 01)。拔管后6 h内观察组每例患者额外干预次数低于对照组, 差异有统计学意义(P＜0. 01)。结论 自制中药清凉喷雾剂可有效缓解食管癌术后患者的口渴程度, 提升患者舒适度, 节省护理时间。

A Forensic Detection Method for Hallucinogenic Mushrooms via High-Resolution Melting (HRM) Analysis

In recent years, trafficking and abuse of hallucinogenic mushrooms have become a serious social problem. It is therefore imperative to identify hallucinogenic mushrooms of the genus Psilocybe for national drug control legislation. An internal transcribed spacer (ITS) is a DNA barcoding tool utilized for species identification. Many methods have been used to discriminate the ITS region, but they are often limited by having a low resolution. In this study, we sought to analyze the ITS and its fragments, ITS1 and ITS2, by using high-resolution melting (HRM) analysis, which is a rapid and sensitive method for evaluating sequence variation within PCR amplicons. The ITS HRM assay was tested for specificity, reproducibility, sensitivity, and the capacity to analyze mixture samples. It was shown that the melting temperatures of the ITS, ITS1, and ITS2 of Psilocybe cubensis were 83.72 ± 0.01, 80.98 ± 0.06, and 83.46 ± 0.08 °C, and for other species, we also obtained species-specific results. Finally, we performed ITS sequencing to validate the presumptive taxonomic identity of our samples, and the sequencing output significantly supported our HRM data. Taken together, these results indicate that the HRM method can quickly distinguish the DNA barcoding of Psilocybe cubensis and other fungi, which can be utilized for drug trafficking cases and forensic science