In vitro expanded human CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells suppress effector T cell proliferation.

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) have been shown to be critical in the balance between autoimmunity and tolerance and have been implicated in several human autoimmune diseases. However, the small number of Tregs in peripheral blood limits their therapeutic potential. Therefore, we developed a protocol that would allow for the expansion of Tregs while retaining their suppressive activity. We isolated CD4+CD25 hi cells from human peripheral blood and expanded them in vitro in the presence of anti-CD3 and anti-CD28 magnetic Xcyte Dynabeads and high concentrations of exogenous Interleukin (IL)-2. Tregs were effectively expanded up to 200-fold while maintaining surface expression of CD25 and other markers of Tregs: CD62L, HLA-DR, CCR6, and FOXP3. The expanded Tregs suppressed proliferation and cytokine secretion of responder PBMCs in co-cultures stimulated with anti-CD3 or alloantigen. Treg expansion is a critical first step before consideration of Tregs as a therapeutic intervention in patients with autoimmune or graft-versus-host disease

Effects of fermented wheat-rice distillers dried grains with solubles on meat quality and amino acid profile in broilers

The aim of this experiment was to evaluate the effects of replacing distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) with fermented DDGS (FDDGS) on meat quality and serum amino acid profiles in Chinese yellow broilers. Forty-eight 42-day-old male Chinese yellow broilers were randomly allotted to the treatments. Each treatment was replicated six times with four birds per replicate. Both groups received a basal corn-soybean diet that was supplemented with either 20% DDGS or 20% FDDGS. Broilers were euthanized at 70 days old. The right half of each breast was evaluated for meat quality. Both breast and thigh meats were evaluated for proximate and fatty acid composition. Serum from blood samples was analysed to quantify relative amounts of free amino acids. Breast meat from broilers supplemented with FDDGS had a lower pH and less drip loss than those supplemented with DDGS (P <0.05). No differences were detected between treatments in the proximate composition of breast and thigh meat (P >0.05). Myristic acid (C14:0) concentration of thigh muscles was reduced for broilers supplemented with FDDGS compared with those supplemented with DDGS (P＜0.05). Concentrations of lysine, taurine, alpha-aminoadipic acid, glycine, and 3-methylhistidine in serum were all lower for broilers supplemented with FDDGS than for those supplemented with DDGS (P＜ 0.05). Meanwhile, the serum phosphoserine concentration of the FFDS-supplemented broilers was greater than those supplemented with DDGS (P＜0.05). In conclusion, replacing 20% DDGS with a like amount of FDDGS can be recommended for diets of growing broiler chickens.Keywords: fatty acids, meat quality, shear forc

Study on utilization of carboxyl group decorated carbon nanotubes and carbonation reaction for improving strengths and microstructures of cement paste

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have excellent mechanical properties and can be used to reinforce cement-based materials. On the other hand, the reaction product of carbonation with hydroxides in hydrated cement paste can reduce the porosity of cement-based materials. In this study, a novel method to improve the strength of cement paste was developed through a synergy of carbon nanotubes decorated with carboxyl group and carbonation reactions. The experimental results showed that the carboxyl group (–COOH) of decorated carbon nanotubes and the surfactant can control the morphology of the calcium carbonate crystal of carbonation products in hydrated cement paste. The spindle-like calcium carbonate crystals showed great morphological differences from those observed in the conventional carbonation of cement paste. The spindle-like calcium carbonate crystals can serve as fiber-like reinforcements to reinforce the cement paste. By the synergy of the carbon nanotubes and carbonation reactions, the compressive and flexural strengths of cement paste were significantly improved and increased by 14% and 55%, respectively, when compared to those of plain cement paste

Does high-quality financial reporting mitigate the negative impact of global financial crises on firm performance? Evidence from the United Kingdom

© 2015 Australasian Accounting Business and Finance Journal and Authors. Prior literature has claimed that accounting plays a negative role in a financial crisis. The current study sought to determine whether this effect is dependent on the quality of financial reporting. Specifically, this study examined the impact of the quality of financial reporting (as measured via earnings quality) on liquidity (measured by the bid-ask spread) in the equity market during the 2008–2009 global financial crisis in the United Kingdom. We found, as expected, that market liquidity was much lower during the crisis than prior to the crisis; however, firms with high-quality financial reporting suffered fewer negative effects as a result of the financial crisis. The results were robust after controlling for other influences, such as return volatility, loss making, market value of equity, and other potential endogeneity problems. In addition, adopting alternative models for earnings quality did not alter our inferences. Our results support the notion that high-quality accounting information can reduce information asymmetry and hence enhance investor confidence during a financial crisis. The results suggest that a stable financial reporting system is an important part of that overall economic fabric. Our findings will help build a framework on which an overall financial crisis risk-management strategy can be developed to avoid future crises

Influence of Honey-Roasting on the Main Pharmacological Activities and the Water-Soluble Active Glycosides of Licorice

In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), licorice is usually processed with honey and traditionally used in decoction form. However, the influence of honey-roasting on the main pharmacological activities and the water-soluble active constituents of licorice has not been reported. The aim of the present study is to determine whether honey-roasting can modify the main pharmacological activities and the active constituents of licorice. According to licorice clinical application and processing method, the mainly related pharmacological activities of crude licorice, processed licorice and refined honey, such as enhancing immune function, relieving cough, eliminating phlegm and detoxication, were compared. The results showed that honey-roasting obviously reinforced the licorice activity of enhancing Pi-deficiency mice’s immune function, and significantly weaken the licorice activity of relieving cough, removing phlegm and detoxication. However, honey didn’t show the significant activity of relieving cough, removing phlegm and detoxication. The influence of honey-roasting on the chemical compositions in licorice slice and licorice decoction was investigated by using HPLC. The results showed that the content and the decocting quantity of mainly 5 active glycosides in licorice, i.e. liquiritin apioside, liquiritin, licuraside, isoliquiritin and glycyrrhizin, obviously changed after processing; glycyrrhizin and liquiritin obviously decomposed during honey-roasting. In conclusion, honey-roasting obviously modified the main pharmacological activities and the water-soluble compositions of licorice. The modification was not cause by honey only. This finding may shed some light on understanding the differences in the therapeutic values of crude and processed licorice.Key words: crude licorice, processed licorice, honey-roasting,  pharmacological activity, active glycosides, modification

Ru and RuOx decorated carbon nitride for efficient ammonia photosynthesis

Photocatalytic ammonia synthesis is a promising strategy for sustainable development compared to the energy-intensive industrial Haber-Bosch approach. Herein, a ternary heterostructure that consists of ruthenium species and carbon nitride (C3N4) was rationally explored for ammonia photosynthesis. Compared to the small ammonia yield from the g-C3N4 and Ru/g-C3N4 system, the Ru/RuO2/g-C3N4 system represents 6 times higher activity with excellent stability under full-spectrum irradiation. Such an enhancement is not only due to efficient transfer of electrons and holes to Ru and RuO2, respectively, facilitating both the reduction and oxidation reaction, but also taking advantage of Ru for N[triple bond, length as m-dash]N activation

The cumulative effects of known susceptibility variants to predict primary biliary cirrhosis risk.

Multiple genetic variants influence the risk for development of primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). To explore the cumulative effects of known susceptibility loci on risk, we utilized a weighted genetic risk score (wGRS) to evaluate whether genetic information can predict susceptibility. The wGRS was created using 26 known susceptibility loci and investigated in 1840 UK PBC and 5164 controls. Our data indicate that the wGRS was significantly different between PBC and controls (P=1.61E-142). Moreover, we assessed predictive performance of wGRS on disease status by calculating the area under the receiver operator characteristic curve. The area under curve for the purely genetic model was 0.72 and for gender plus genetic model was 0.82, with confidence limits substantially above random predictions. The risk of PBC using logistic regression was estimated after dividing individuals into quartiles. Individuals in the highest disclosed risk group demonstrated a substantially increased risk for PBC compared with the lowest risk group (odds ratio: 9.3, P=1.91E-084). Finally, we validated our findings in an analysis of an Italian PBC cohort. Our data suggested that the wGRS, utilizing genetic variants, was significantly associated with increased risk for PBC with consistent discriminant ability. Our study is a first step toward risk prediction for PBC