VLBI Technology Development at SHAO

VLBI technology development made significant progress at SHAO in the last few years. The development status of the Chinese DBBC, the software and FPGA-based correlators, and the new VLBI antenna, as well as VLBI applications are summarized in this paper

Transcriptomic analysis of bovine endometrial epithelial cells in response to interferon tau and hormone stimulation

The embryonic loss during early stage of gestation is one of the major causes of infertility for domestic ruminants, causing huge economic losses to pasture. Maternal recognition of pregnancy and implantation are the crucial process for determining the successful establishment and development of pregnancy in cattle. The research on molecular mechanisms of pregnancy recognition will facilitate illustrating the complex process of pregnancy establishment and help to improve pregnancy outcomes. In this study, we performed transcriptomic analysis of primary bovine endometrial epithelial cells (BEND) with or without IFNT and hormones intervention through RNA sequencing. We eventually identified 608 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) including 409 up-regulated genes and 199 down-regulated genes in IFNT and hormones-treated group compared with control group. Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis demonstrated that the majority of DEGs were implicated in immune system process, response to external stimulus, response to cytokine, regulation of response to stress. Results from KEGG analysis showed a significant enrichment of NOD-like receptor signaling pathway, antigen processing and presentation, necroptosis, oxidative phosphorylation, RIG-I-like receptor signaling pathway. Additionally, a set of promising candidate genes, including (USP18, STAT1, PSMB8, IFIH1, MX2, IFI44, DHX58, CASP8, DRAM1, CXCR4), were characterized by constructing an integrated interaction network. Specifically, the mRNA expression of HOXA11, PTGS1 and PTGS2 were remarkably suppressed by silencing DRAM1 under IFNT and hormone administration, thus speculating that DRAM1 might play a crucial role in early pregnancy by regulating endometrial function. The results of this study depicted a relatively comprehensive transcriptional profiles of BEND in response to IFNT and hormones, which contributes to a better understanding of gene interaction network and underlying regulatory mechanisms in endometrium of ruminants during early pregnancy

The Progress of CDAS

The Chinese Data Acquisition System (CDAS) based on FPGA techniques has been developed in China for the purpose of replacing the traditional analog baseband converter. CDAS is a high speed data acquisition and processing system with 1024 Msps sample rate for 512M bandwidth input and up to 16 channels (both USB and LSB) output with VSI interface compatible. The instrument is a flexible environment which can be updated easily. In this paper, the construction, the performance, the experiment results, and the future plans of CDAS will be reported

Circulating Fibroblast Growth Factor 21 Levels Are Closely Associated with Hepatic Fat Content: A Cross-Sectional Study

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Fibroblasts growth factor 21 (FGF21), a liver-secreted endocrine factor involved in regulating glucose and lipid metabolism, has been shown to be elevated in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This study aimed to evaluate the quantitative correlation between serum FGF21 level and hepatic fat content. METHODS: A total of 138 subjects (72 male and 66 female) aged from 18 to 65 years with abnormal glucose metabolism and B-ultrasonography diagnosed fatty liver were enrolled in the study. Serum FGF21 levels were determined by an in-house chemiluminescence immunoassay and hepatic fat contents were measured by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy. RESULTS: Serum FGF21 increased progressively with the increase of hepatic fat content, but when hepatic fat content increased to the fourth quartile, FGF21 tended to decline. Serum FGF21 concentrations were positively correlated with hepatic fat content especially in subjects with mild/moderate hepatic steatosis (r = 0.276, p = 0.009). Within the range of hepatic steatosis from the first to third quartile, FGF21 was superior to any other traditional clinical markers including ALT to reflect hepatic fat content. When the patients with severe hepatic steatosis (the fourth quartile) were included, the quantitative correlation between FGF21 and hepatic fat content was weakened. CONCLUSIONS: Serum FGF21 was a potential biomarker to reflect the hepatic fat content in patients with mild or moderate NAFLD. In severe NAFLD patients, FGF21 concentration might decrease due to liver inflammation or injury

Study on Comprehensive Risk Assessment of Marine Environment Safety Based on Public Safety Triangle Theory

With the continuous improvement of marine strategic status, the degree of emphasis on marine environmental security incidents has increased. In order to effectively prevent and manage marine environmental events, we need to work through risk assessments to prevent the occurrence of events or reduce the impact of events. Based on the theory of public safety triangle, this paper studies and analyzes the comprehensive risk assessment of marine environmental safety. Based on the historical disaster situation investigation and the existing disaster risk assessment research results, a comprehensive risk assessment framework was established. According to the development process of the marine environmental safety incident and the influence of the incident, the comprehensive risk evaluation index system is constructed from three aspects: event risk, disaster tolerance and emergency management. According to the expert experience and judgment matrix, considering the acceptable level of risk, the risk assessment grading standard is established, which provides theoretical support for the comprehensive risk assessment of marine environmental safety

Methane Dry Reforming over Ni/NiO Supported on Ce-, Zr-, and Al-Modified Y₂O₃ for Hydrogen Production

In this work, Ce, Zr, and Al are used to promote Y2O3 as supports for Ni/NiO, with the expectation to obtain more efficient catalysts for DRM reaction. XRD and Raman results have testified that all the three cations have been doped into the lattice of Y2O3 to form a solid solution structure, thus obtaining supports with decreased crystallinity and improved surface areas. As a result, all the modified catalysts display evidently improved reaction performance. The Ni–support interaction of the modified catalysts is enhanced in comparison with the unmodified catalyst, thus having improved Ni dispersion. Moreover, the modified catalysts have improved alkalinity, which is beneficial to activate CO2 and enhance the activity. In addition, it is found that all the modified catalysts possess a richer amount of surface active oxygen species (O2δ− and O2−), which is critical to eliminate carbon depositions. It is believed that the interaction of these factors is responsible for the enhanced DRM performance of the modified catalysts. In situ DRIFTS results have confirmed that the addition of the secondary metals can improve the DRM activity of the catalyst by accelerating the conversion of formate intermediate species