Green tea catechin prevents oxidative stress-regulated autophagy and apoptosis signaling, and inhibits tenderness in postmortem bovine longissimus thoracis et lumborum muscle

Although green tea catechin has been reported to be an antioxidant and preservative in meat, the extent to which it affects the tenderization of bovine muscle remains largely unknown. This study seeks to evaluate the effect of catechin on the interplay between apoptosis and autophagy, and subsequently, the development of bovine muscle tenderness. The results indicate that catechin significantly alleviated oxidative stress. A concomitant reduction of autophagic markers LC3-II/LC3-I ratio, Beclin-1, and Atg7 levels were caused by catechin. Besides, aforementioned autophagy inhibition was further augmented by PI3K/Akt/mTOR activation. Additionally, catechin protected against mitochondrial dysfunction and inhibited mitochondria-dependent caspase apoptosis pathway. Furthermore, there was a reciprocal inhibition between autophagy and apoptosis. Ultimately, tenderness at 24 and 120 h, an increase in the gap between muscle fiber bundles, and disintegration of myofibrillar architectures were all inhibited by catechin. Therefore, despite alleviating oxidative stress, catechin may hamper tenderization pattern of postmortem bovine muscle

Alteration of the number and percentage of innate immune cells in preschool children from an e-waste recycling area

Heavy metal lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) are widespread environmental contaminants and exert detrimental effects on the immune system. We evaluated the association between Pb/Cd exposures and innate immune cells in children from an electronic waste (e-waste) recycling area. A total number of 294 preschool children were recruited, including 153 children from Guiyu (e-waste exposed group), and 141 from Haojiang (reference group). Pb and Cd levels in peripheral blood were measured by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometer, NK cell percentages were detected by flow cytometer, and other innate immune cells including monocytes, eosinophils, neutrophils and basophils were immediately measured by automated hematology analyzer. Results showed children in Guiyu had significantly higher Pb and Cd levels than in reference group. Absolute counts of monocytes, eosinophils, neutrophils and basophils, as well as percentages of eosinophils and neutrophils were significantly higher in the Guiyu group. In contrast, NK cell percentages were significantly lower in Guiyu group. Pb elicited significant escalation in counts of monocytes, eosinophils and basophils, as well as percentages of monocytes, but decline in percentages of neutrophils in different quintiles with respect to the first quintile of Pb concentrations. Cd induced significant increase in counts and percentages of neutrophils in the highest quintile compared with the first quintile of Cd concentrations. We concluded alteration of the number and percentage of innate immune cells are linked to higher levels of Pb and Cd, which indicates Pb and Cd exposures might affect the innate and adaptive immune response in Guiyu children

An empirical study on environmental impact of natural draft cooling tower with flue gas injection

In order to understand the influences of natural draft cooling tower (NDCT) with flue gas injection on pollutant concentrations of the theoretical plume downwash area, an automatic air quality monitoring station was set in the theoretical plume downwash area of NDCT in Qinling power plant to get hourly SO2 and NO2 concentrations over a year. The results show that: 100% 1h average concentrations of SO2 and 99.64% NO2 observations satisfied the requirements of Chinese ambient air quality standard. High pollutant concentrations caused by plume downwash of NDCT with flue gas injection are not observed during the monitoring period, and there are no significant differences (P > 0.05) between pollutant concentrations in the theoretical plume downwash area under the prevailing westerly wind conditions (37.2 ± 24.8 μg/m3) and easterly wind conditions (36.9 ± 22.3 μg/m3), while the concentrations under conditions of west wind speed > 5m/s are significantly lower (P < 0.01) than those under conditions of west wind speed < 1.2m/s. The observations of this study indicate that ground pollutants at high concentration owing to plume downwash would not occur in the theoretical plume downwash area of NDCT with flue gas injection

Multishell Precursors Facilitated Synthesis of Concentration-Gradient Nickel-Rich Cathodes for Long-Life and High-Rate Lithium-Ion Batteries

The rational design of concentration-gradient (CG) structure is demonstrated as an available approach to improve the electrochemical performances of high-energy nickel-rich cathodes for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). However, the complicated preparing processes, especially the CG-precursors, generally result in the less-than-ideal repeatability and consistency that is regarded as an extreme challenge for the widespread commercialization. Thus, the innovative strategy with facile steps and the feasibility of large-scale preparation for commercialized applications should be urgently developed. Herein, through the temperature-tunable cation diffusion, the feasibility of controllable preparation of nickel-rich CG-LiNi_0.7Co_0.15Mn_0.15O₂ (NCM) from multishell precursors is first demonstrated. As expected, the Li/CG-NCM half cells show much enhanced cycle-life, rate property, and safety because of the mitigated side-reactions and fast Li⁺ kinetics. Besides, the Li₄Ti₅O₁₂/CG-NCM full cells also exhibit long-term lifespan, 95% capacity retention even after 2000 cycles, and high-rate behaviors. Importantly, by contrast with the conventional techniques that prepare CG cathodes from CG precursors, the proposed new synthesis strategy from multishell precursors is suitable for large-scale preparation. Overall, this multishell precursor-facilitated synthesis probably promotes the practical applications of CG cathodes for state-of-the-art LIBs and also can be easily expanded to controllably preparing spinel- and olive-type CG cathodes

Investigation of the Transcriptome of Prairie Cord Grass, a New Cellulosic Biomass Crop

Prairie cordgrass (Spartina pectinata Bosc ex Link) is being developed as a cellulosic biomass crop. Development of this species will require numerous steps, including breeding, agronomy, and characterization of the species genome. The research in this paper describes the first investigation of the transcriptome of prairie cordgrass via Next Generation Sequencing Technology, 454 GS FLX. A total of 556,198 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were produced from four prairie cordgrass tissues: roots, rhizomes, immature inflorescence, and hooks. These ESTs were assembled into 26,302 contigs and 71,103 singletons. From these data were identified, EST–SSR (simple sequence repeat) regions and cell wall biosynthetic pathway genes suitable for the development of molecular markers which can aid the breeding process of prairie cordgrass by means of marker assisted selection

Cellulose Fibers Constructed Convenient Recyclable 3D Graphene-Formicary-like δ‑Bi₂O₃ Aerogels for the Selective Capture of Iodide

Radioiodine is highly radioactive and acutely toxic, which can be a serious health threat, and requires effective control. To fully utilize an adsorbent and reduce the overall production cost, successive recycling applications become necessary. Here, 3D formicary-like δ-Bi₂O₃ (FL-δ-Bi₂O₃) aerogel adsorbents were synthesized using a one-pot hydrothermal method. In this hybrid structure, abundant flowerlike δ-Bi₂O₃ (MR-δ-Bi₂O₃) microspheres were inlaid into the interconnected ant nest channel, forming a 3D hierarchical structure, which is applied as an efficient adsorbent with easy recovery for radioiodine removal. Notably, the FL-δ-Bi₂O₃ aerogel adsorbent exhibited a very high uptake capacity of 2.04 mmol/g by forming an insoluble Bi₄I₂O₅ phase. Moreover, the FL-δ-Bi₂O₃ worked in a wide pH range of 4–10 and displayed fast uptake kinetics and excellent selectivity due to the 3D porous interconnected network and larger specific surface area. Importantly, the recycling process is easy, using only tweezers to directly move the 3D aerogel adsorbents from one reaction system to another. Therefore, the FL-δ-Bi₂O₃ aerogel may be a promising practical adsorbent for the selective capture of radioactive iodide

Improving Li⁺ Kinetics and Structural Stability of Nickel-Rich Layered Cathodes by Heterogeneous Inactive-Al³⁺ Doping

To improve the Li⁺ kinetics and structural stability of high-capacity nickel-rich layered oxides, but not at the cost of reducing reversible capacity, a heterogeneous inactive-Al³⁺ doping strategy is proposed to build an Al³⁺-rich surface within a low doping amount. As anticipated, the heterogeneous inactive-Al³⁺ doped nickel-rich LiNi_0.7Co_0.15Mn_0.15O₂ shows a large reversible capacity of ∼215 mAh g^–1, corresponding to a high energy density of ∼850 Wh kg^–1. Moreover, it also exhibits long-term cycle lifespan, capacity retention of ∼90% after 200 cycles even at a high upper cutoff voltage of 4.5 V (vs Li/Li⁺), and improved thermal stability. Surprisingly, the heterogeneous inactive-Al³⁺ doped electrode shows a high capacity of ∼145 mAh g^–1 even at a high rate of 10C, which corresponds to ∼70% capacity retention at 0.1C, due to the enhanced Li⁺ kinetics. Also this heterogeneous inactive-ion doped approach is capable of being readily expanded to other types of layered, spinel and olivine cathodes to enhance their structural stability and Li⁺ kinetics

Blood Lead Levels and Associated Factors among Children in Guiyu of China: A Population-Based Study

<div><p>Objectives</p><p>Children's health problems caused by the electronic waste (e-waste) lead exposure in China remains. To assess children's blood lead levels (BLLs) in Guiyu of China and investigate risk factors of children's elevated BLLs in Guiyu.</p><p>Material and Methods</p><p>842 children under 11 years of age from Guiyu and Haojiang were enrolled in this population-based study during 2011–2013. Participants completed a lifestyle and residential environment questionnaire and their physical growth indices were measured, and blood samples taken. Blood samples were tested to assess BLLs. Children's BLLs between the two groups were compared and factors associated with elevated BLLs among Guiyu children were analyzed by group Lasso logistic regression model.</p><p>Results</p><p>Children living in Guiyu had significant higher BLLs (7.06 µg/dL) than the quantity (5.89 µg/dL) of Haojiang children (<i>P</i><0.05). Subgroup analyses of BLLs exceeding 10 µg/dL showed the proportion (24.80%) of high-level BLLs for Guiyu children was greater than that (12.84%) in Haojiang (<i>P</i><0.05). Boys had greater BLLs than girls, irrespectively of areas (<i>P</i><0.05). The number of e-waste piles or recycling workshops around the house (odds ratio, 2.28; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.37 to 3.87) significantly contributed to the elevated BLLs of children in Guiyu, and girls had less risk (odds ratio, 0.51; 95% CI, 0.31 to 0.83) of e-waste lead exposure than boys.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>This analysis reinforces the importance of shifting e-waste recycling piles or workshops to non-populated areas as part of a comprehensive response to e-waste lead exposure control in Guiyu. To correct the problem of lead poisoning in children in Guiyu should be a long-term mission.</p></div