Inhibition mechanism of compound ethanol extracts from Wuweizi (Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis) on renal interstitial fibrosis in diabetic nephropathy model mice

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate inhibition effect and mechanism of compound ethanol extracts from Wuweizi (Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis), Chuanxiong (Rhizoma Chuanxiong) and Muli (Cocha Ostreae) (FRC) on glomerular and tubular interstitial fibrosis in streptozocin (STZ)-induced diabetic nephropathy (ND) model mice.MethodsTwenty-seven male C57BL/6 mice were divided randomly into 3 groups: nondibetic (ND), STZ-induced diabetic (D), and STZ-induced diabetic that were treated with 5 g · kg−1 · day−1of FRC by oral gavage (DFRC), with 9 in each group. The protein expressions of E-cadherin, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) in renal tissues were investigated by Western blotting. The expressions of fibronectin (FN) and α-SMA were detected by immunohistochemical method. The morphological changes of renal tissues were observed under a microscope.ResultsRenal tissues in the DFRC group showed a lessened degree of fibrosis. Meanwhile, the expressions of FN, α-SMA and PAI-1 were significantly lower in the DFRC group than those in the D group (all P<0.05).ConclusionFRC can ameliorate the DN in the C57BL/6 mice, and its mechanism may relate to inhibition on the epithelial to mesenchymal transdifferentiation, endothelial-myofibroblast transition and PAI-1 expression

Two new species of the genus Pholcus (Araneae: Pholcidae) from Taihang Mountains, China, with first report of the female of Pholcus oculosus

Two new species of the genus Pholcus from Taihang Mountains, China, are reported: Pholcus papilionis sp. n. and P. suboculosus sp. n. The female P. oculosus Zhang &amp; Zhang, 2000 is reported for the first time

A Resource-Based Model of IT Usage in Shanghai Higher Education Institutions

On the basis of resource-based view, this paper analyzes the impacts of IT resource on different levels of IT usage in Shanghai higher education institutions. By analyzing the survey data from 40 Shanghai institutions, the study contributes several insights to China-context IT usage research and practice in higher education system. First of all, this study sheds lights on the impacts of IT resource on deep IT usage in Shanghai higher education system. Second, the findings suggest that organizational support has significant positive impact on higher education institutions’ managerial IT usage. The study is the first few attempts to explore the process model of IT usage in China higher education institutions

Linguocultural Features of Russian and Chinese Proverbs with Component ‘Dream’

This study examines Russian and Chinese proverbs with the component ‘dream’ that have not been previously described in a comparative aspect. Linguocultural characteristics of proverbs in both languages are identified, which indicate common or different cultural-national attitudes. The relevance of the research is determined by the development of intercultural relations between Russian and Chinese societies, their interest in studying foreign languages. It is established that the proverbs with the component ‘dream’ recorded in Russian and Chinese lexicographic sources differ in quantitative and substantive terms. It is revealed that authoritative Chinese dictionaries present 10 proverbs with the component ‘dream’, while Russian dictionaries present 43. A common semantic is found among 3 Russian and 3 Chinese proverbs, which interpret dreams as reflections of people’s thoughts and desires. It is shown that the rest of the proverbs verbalize different cultural attitudes. Russian proverbs are characterized by an attitude towards sleep as a physical state that is necessary, beneficial, and pleasant. In addition, dreams are contrasted with reality, in which their fulfillment may or may not be possible. In Chinese proverbs, individuals are recommended to seize the moment and act in a timely manner to achieve their goals, as well as to be cautious with their words

SCALE method for single-cell ATAC-seq analysis via latent feature extraction.

Single-cell ATAC-seq (scATAC-seq) profiles the chromatin accessibility landscape at single cell level, thus revealing cell-to-cell variability in gene regulation. However, the high dimensionality and sparsity of scATAC-seq data often complicate the analysis. Here, we introduce a method for analyzing scATAC-seq data, called Single-Cell ATAC-seq analysis via Latent feature Extraction (SCALE). SCALE combines a deep generative framework and a probabilistic Gaussian Mixture Model to learn latent features that accurately characterize scATAC-seq data. We validate SCALE on datasets generated on different platforms with different protocols, and having different overall data qualities. SCALE substantially outperforms the other tools in all aspects of scATAC-seq data analysis, including visualization, clustering, and denoising and imputation. Importantly, SCALE also generates interpretable features that directly link to cell populations, and can potentially reveal batch effects in scATAC-seq experiments

Effect of rosuvastatin and benazepril on matrix metalloproteinase-2, matrix metalloproteinase-9 and leukotriene B4 of patients with acute myocardial infarction

Purpose: To investigate the effects of rosuvastatin and benazepril on matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2), MMP-9 and leukotriene B4 (LTB4) of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods: Fifty-six patients with AMI were selected. They were randomly divided into control and study groups. Thirty healthy people were used in the normal group. On the basis of conventional therapy, patients in the control group were given rosuvastatin orally, while those in the study group received rosuvastatin and benazepril orally. The duration of treatment in both groups was 3 months. Serum levels of MMP-2, MMP-9 and LTB4, and incidence of left ventricular remodelling and recurrence of cardiovascular events were determined before and after treatment for both groups. Results: MMP-2, MMP-9 and LTB4 levels in serum were significantly lower for the two groups after treatment, when compared to pre-treatment values, and significantly lower in the study group (p &lt; 0.05). Left ventricular remodelling was lower in the study group than in the control group (p &lt; 0.05). Recurrence of cardiovascular events declined significantly in the study group, relative to control (p &gt; 0.05). Conclusion: Rosuvastatin and benazepril significantly reduce serum levels of MMP-2, MMP-9 and LTB4 in AMI patients, and thus can potentially prevent ventricular remodelling, improve prognosis and reduce recurrence rate

Vocabulary of Fear in N. V. Gogol’s Play “The Inspector” and Its Chinese Translation by Jiang Xiaomo

The issue of language representation of emotions in the text of literary work is considered by the example of the emotion of fear in N. V. Gogol’s play “The Inspector”. The relevance of the research is determined by complexity of perception, which foreign readers have during understanding of text pieces that show variously apprehensible in different linguocultures emotions of characters. The most well-known translator of Gogol in China Jiang Xiaomo is noted to use three kinds of translation: equivalent, partially equivalent and non-equivalent. The appeal to non-equivalent translation is emphasized to be contingent on the difference in perception of the emotion of fear by Russians and Chinese and, consequently, the need for a translation adapted for the Chinese reader. The lexical means of conveying the emotion of fear and its description in the play "The Inspector" are analyzed as different ways of representing emotions. The lexical means of conveying the emotion of fear in the play are shown to be interjections, and the description of fear experienced by the characters is created by nouns and verbs in the characters’ speech or verbs and participles in the author's remarks. Based on comparison of the play "The Inspector" and Gogol’s stories the authors conclude that the lexical means of conveying the emotion of fear are presented only in the play, since a stylization of live speech is created within the genre

An arbitrary order locking-free weak Galerkin method for linear elasticity problems based on a reconstruction operator

The weak Galerkin (WG) finite element method has shown great potential in solving various type of partial differential equations. In this paper, we propose an arbitrary order locking-free WG method for solving linear elasticity problems, with the aid of an appropriate $H(div)$-conforming displacement reconstruction operator. Optimal order locking-free error estimates in both the $H^1$-norm and the $L^2$-norm are proved, i.e., the error is independent of the $Lam\acute{e}$ constant $\lambda$. Moreover, the term $\lambda\|\nabla\cdot \mathbf{u}\|_k$ does not need to be bounded in order to achieve these estimates. We validate the accuracy and the robustness of the proposed locking-free WG algorithm by numerical experiments

A Locking-Free Weak Galerkin Finite Element Method for Linear Elasticity Problems

In this paper, we introduce and analyze a lowest-order locking-free weak Galerkin (WG) finite element scheme for the grad-div formulation of linear elasticity problems. The scheme uses linear functions in the interior of mesh elements and constants on edges (2D) or faces (3D), respectively, to approximate the displacement. An $H(div)$-conforming displacement reconstruction operator is employed to modify test functions in the right-hand side of the discrete form, in order to eliminate the dependence of the $Lam\acute{e}$ parameter $\lambda$ in error estimates, i.e., making the scheme locking-free. The method works without requiring $\lambda \|\nabla\cdot \mathbf{u}\|_1$ to be bounded. We prove optimal error estimates, independent of $\lambda$, in both the $H^1$-norm and the $L^2$-norm. Numerical experiments validate that the method is effective and locking-free