209 research outputs found

    Isotopic dynamics of precipitation and its regional and local drivers in a plateau inland lake basin, Southwest China

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    Shrinkage of plateau lakes under climate strength has drawn growing attention. Because of its intricate implication to hydro-meteorological condition and climate system, stable isotopes in precipitation (e.g. delta H-2(p) and delta O-18(p)) provide us a powerful tool to understand the climate-hydrologic dynamics in shrinking lakes. However, how the regional atmospheric circulation, moisture sources and local fractionation processes drive isotopic variability from temporal to spatial scale has rarely been reported for remote plateau lakes. Hence, we collected a total of 98 rainfall samples at the south and the north shores of Chenghai lake, Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau to study the potential driving forces of precipitation isotope variability during the wet season of 2019. Based on backward trajectories of air masses obtained from HYSPLIT model, 68% of moisture came from delta O-18 depleted ocean (Indian Ocean, Bay of Bengal, South China Sea and Pacific Ocean), and the rainout process promoted the isotopic depletion when moisture arrived at the study basin. Evapotranspiration increased the heavy isotope ratios in precipitation originated from continents (northern China inland and western continents). The temporal dynamics of delta O-18(p) and delta H-2(p) were in phase with the convection activities intensity underlined the influence from large-scale atmospheric circulation. Local meteorological factors played a secondary role in isotope variability. Precipitation amount-effect strongly affected isotope ratios while mild anti-temperature effect was observed at daily scale. Interestingly, the rainfall isotope ratios showed different mechanisms in govern at lake south shore and north shore, with a distance of 19 km in between. This south-to-north difference can be explained by either lower 1.03% sub-evaporation in the south shore or 7% of recycled moisture contributing to precipitation in the north shore. Our findings discover the driving forces for delta O-18(p) variation and provide solid interpretations for hydro-climate change in Southwest China. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

    NaoXinTong Inhibits the Development of Diabetic Retinopathy in d

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    Buchang NaoXinTong capsule (NXT) is a Chinese Materia Medica standardized product extracted from 16 Chinese traditional medical herbs and widely used for treatment of patients with cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases in China. Formation of microaneurysms plays an important role in the development of diabetic retinopathy. In this study, we investigated if  NXT can protect diabetic mice against the development of diabetic retinopathy. The db/db mice (~6 weeks old), a diabetic animal model, were divided into two groups and fed normal chow or plus NXT for 14 weeks. During the treatment, fasting blood glucose levels were monthly determined. After treatment, retinas were collected to determine retinal thickness, accumulation of carbohydrate macromolecules, and caspase-3 (CAS-3) expression. Our results demonstrate that administration of NXT decreased fasting blood glucose levels. Associated with the decreased glucose levels, NXT blocked the diabetes-induced shrink of multiple layers, such as photoreceptor layer and outer nuclear/plexiform layers, in the retina. NXT also inhibited the diabetes-induced expression of CAS-3 protein and mRNA, MMP-2/9 and TNFα mRNA, accumulation of carbohydrate macromolecules, and formation of acellular capillaries in the retina. Taken together, our study shows that NXT can inhibit the development of diabetic retinopathy and suggests a new potential application of NXT in clinic

    Novel peptide–dendrimer conjugates as drug carriers for targeting nonsmall cell lung cancer

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    Phage display technology has been demonstrated to be a powerful tool for screening useful ligands that are capable of specifically binding to biomarkers on the surface of tumor cells. The ligands found by this technique, such as peptides, have been successfully applied in the fields of early cancer diagnostics and chemotherapy. In this study, a novel nonsmall cell lung cancer-targeting peptide (LCTP, sequence RCPLSHSLICY) was screened in vivo using a Ph.D.-C7C™ phage display library. In order to develop a universal tumor-targeting drug carrier, the LCTP and fluorescence-labeled molecule (FITC) were conjugated to an acetylated polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimer of generation 4 (G4) to form a PAMAM–Ac–FITC–LCTP conjugate. The performance of the conjugate was first tested in vitro. In vitro results of cell experiments analyzed by flow cytometry and inverted fluorescence microscopy indicated that PAMAM–Ac–FITC–LCTP was enriched more in NCI-H460 cells than in 293T cells, and cellular uptake was both time- and dose-dependent. The tissue distribution of the conjugate in athymic mice with lung cancer xenografts was also investigated to test the targeting efficiency of PAMAM–Ac–FITC–LCTP in vivo. The results showed that LCTP can effectively facilitate the targeting of PAMAM–Ac–FITC–LCTP to nonsmall cell lung cancer cells and tumors. These results suggest that the LCTP-conjugated PAMAM dendrimer might be a promising drug carrier for targeted cancer diagnosis and treatment

    Studi Pengetahuan Tentang Menstruasi Dengan Upaya Penanganan Dismenore Pada Mahasiswa Pendidikan Biologi

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    . Dysmenorrhea is a condition of pain during menstruation experienced by women. There are heavy and light of menstruation pain, knowledge of menstruation disorder will determine of the dysmenorrhea holding efforts. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of knowledge about menstruation and dysmenorrhea holding efforts. The population of this study was all students of Biology Education 6th semester who are taking the course of Human Anatomy and Physiology, while samples were taken by purposive sampling, with the criteria of female students who experience dysmenorrhea. Data of knowledge about menstruation collected by a multiple choice test, whereas the holding of dysmenorrhea collected using questionnaires. Furthermore, the relationship of knowledge of menstruation and the holding of dysmenorrhea was analyzed by Product Moment. The results showed that the students with good knowledge of menstruation were 72.7%, insufficient knowledge were 27.3% and less knowledge were 0%. Dysmenorrhea treatment efforts are chosen by the students are varied, students who choose to pharmacological and non-pharmacological simultaneously is 2 ( 6.06% ) , non-pharmacological means only 31 people ( 93.94 % ) . Product moment correlation test results obtained rcount = 0.014 < rtable 0.05: 33 = 0.344, meaning there is no relationship between student knowledge about menstruation and preventing dysmenorrhea . The conclusion of this study are : a) the student\u27s knowledge about menstruation mostly categorized as good , b ) The handling of dysmenorrhea by students mostly by way of non-pharmacological; c ). Student knowledge about menstruation does not specify the handling of dysmenorrhe

    Structural and Functional Alterations in Visual Pathway After Optic Neuritis in MOG Antibody Disease: A Comparative Study With AQP4 Seropositive NMOSD

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    Background: Optic neuritis (ON) is an important clinical manifestation of neuromyelitis optic spectrum disease (NMOSD). Myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibody-related and aquaporin 4 (AQP4) antibody-related ON show different disease patterns. The aim of this study was to explore the differences in structure and function of the visual pathway in patients with ON associated with MOG and AQP4 antibodies.Methods: In this prospective study, we recruited 52 subjects at Beijing Tiantan Hospital, including 11 with MOG Ig+ ON (MOG-ON), 13 with AQP4 Ig+ ON (AQP4-ON), and 28 healthy controls (HCs). Fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD) of optic radiation (OR), primary visual cortex volume (V1), brain volume, and visual acuity (VA) were compared among groups. A multiple linear regression was used to explore associations between VA and predicted factors. In addition, we used optical coherence tomography (OCT) to examine thickness of the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL) and retinal ganglion cell complex (GCC) in a separate cohort consisting of 15 patients with ON (8 MOG-ON and 7 AQP4-ON) and 28 HCs.Results: Diffusion tensor imaging showed that the FA of OR was lower than controls in patients with AQP4-ON (p = 0.001) but not those with MOG-ON (p = 0.329) and was significantly different between the latter two groups (p = 0.005), while V1 was similar in patients with MOG-ON and AQP4-ON (p = 0.122), but was lower than controls in AQP4-ON (p = 0.002) but not those with MOG-ON (p = 0.210). The VA outcomes were better in MOG-ON than AQP4-ON, and linear regression analysis revealed that VA in MOG-ON and AQP4-ON was both predicted by the FA of OR (standard β = −0.467 and −0.521, p = 0.036 and 0.034). Both patients of MOG-ON and AQP4-ON showed neuroaxonal damage in the form of pRNFL and GCC thinning but showed no statistically significant difference (p = 0.556, 0.817).Conclusion: The structural integrity of OR in patients with MOG-ON, which is different from the imaging manifestations of AQP4-ON, may be a reason for the better visual outcomes of patients with MOG-ON

    Authenticity Identification of Meat Products Using Multienzyme Isothermal Rapid Amplification-Lateral Flow Dipstick

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    Purpose: To address the issue that laboratory methods cannot meet the need foron-site rapid testingat the grassroot level, a quick method for detecting the authenticity of meat products was established based on multienzyme isothermal rapid amplification (MIRA) coupled with lateral flow dipstick (LFD). Methods: Pig, cattle, sheep, chicken, and duck-specific mitochondrial gene sequences were selected through GenBank, and intra-species conserved and inter-species specific target fragments were compared using the DNAStar Megalign software. According to the design principles of MIRA primers and probes, target gene-specific primer and probe sets were designed and screened systematically through positive, negative and blank controls to determine the species-specific primers and probes. The reaction system, temperature, and time were optimized. Analytical figures of merit of the method including DNA extraction, sensitivity, detection limit, false positive rate and false negative rate were evaluated to verify its validity. Results: Compared with real-time fluorescent polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the average false positive rate of this method was 3.49%, and the false negative rate was 3.54%, which meets the requirements of on-site rapid testing. Conclusion: In this study, the MIRA-LFD technique was established for 5 common meats, namely, cattle, sheep, pig, chicken and duck, and its validity and feasibility were confirmed, realizing on-site rapid testing of the authenticity of meat products

    Epstein-Barr Virus-Associated T-Cell Lymphoproliferative Disorder Presenting as Chronic Diarrhea and Intestinal Bleeding: A Case Report

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    Systemic Epstein-Barr virus-positive T-cell lymphoproliferative childhood disease (EBV+ T-LPD) is extremely rare. Primary acute or chronic active Epstein-Barr virus infection triggers EBV+ T-LPD's onset and the disease involves clonal proliferation of infected T-cells with activated cytotoxic phenotype. The adult-onset EBV+ T-LPD (ASEBV+ T-LPD) is even rarer and needs to be extensively studied. Further, according to literature review, it is a challenge to find patients who are immunocompetent and diagnosed with ASEBV+ T-LPD involving gastrointestinal tract. This case report discusses a previously healthy middle aged woman who presented with unique symptoms mimicking inflammatory bowel disease, and required a total colectomy and terminal ileum rectomy, as reveled by endoscopic examinations, due to severe gastrointestinal bleeding. Post-surgery histopathological findings were confirmatory for the diagnosis of ASEBV+ T-LPD (II: Borderline). This patient died 7 months after the diagnosis
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