Measure Words in Learning and Teaching Chinese as a Second Language

Chinese measure words (CMW) are obligatorily used between numerals/demonstratives and nouns/verbs to count the items and actions. Comparing with Chinese, strictly speaking, there are no measure words in English. This cross lingual difference causes difficulties in the English native speakers’ application of CMW when learning Chinese as a second language according to Lado‘s (1957) Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis (CAH), i.e. the language elements that are different from learners’ native language will be difficult for them. This study adopted an empirical study to find out how L2 learners’ application of CMW is and what the problems are. Before the empirical study, a new categorisation was generated based on the existing studies on CMW categories, and a comparative study was carried out to underpin the study. A questionnaire and a proficiency test were adopted to gather information about the participants of the empirical study. A CMW test was designed to collect data on the English native speakers’ application of different CMW categories and usages. The results of the empirical study suggested that CMW are difficult for the English native speakers who are learning Chinese as a second language. The results also indicated that even though English native speakers have difficulties in the application of most of the CMW categories, some are easier than others. The English native speakers are better at weights and measures, collective nominal measure words and container measure words than standard verbal measure words, borrowed verbal measure words, individual nominal measure words and temporary nominal measure words. Although the cross lingual difference between Chinese and English count for the difficulties, the complexity of some CMW is also the reason. After revealing the difficulties in the English native speakers’ difficulties, some suggestions on teaching CMW in second language learning and application were tentatively proposed

Effect of Phellodendron chinense Schneid Extract on Chronic Bacterial Prostatitis Induced by Chlamydia in Rats

Purpose: To explore the effects of Phellodendron chinense Schneid (PCS) extract on chlamydiainduced chronic bacterial prostatitis (CBP).Methods: Sixty 8-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. Prostate index (PI) and prostate specific antigen (PSA) were determined after 4 weeks of oral administration of PCS extract (80, 160 or 320 mg/kg) or tetracycline (80 mg/kg) and compared to PI and PSA in untreated rats with CBP and healthy control rats (n = 10). Chronic inflammatory cell infiltrates, acinar changes, and interstitial fibrosis were evaluated by histopathological examination. In addition, pertinent inflammatory factors, including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), prostaglandin E2 (PEG2), transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1), and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), were measured in prostate tissues using ELISA kits.Results: High doses of PCS (160 and 320 mg/kg) significantly decreased PI and PSA relative to model group (p < 0.01). PCS treatment also significantly reduced chronic inflammatory cell infiltrates and interstitial fibrosis in prostate tissue of CBP rats. In addition, TNF-α, IL-1β, COX-2, PEG2, TGF-β1, and CTGF decreased in PCS-treated rats compared to untreated control (p < 0.01).Conclusion: PCS extract has significant anti-inflammatory effects on chlamydia-induced CBP.Keywords: Phellodendron chinense Schneid, Bacterial prostatitis, Inflammatory factors, Morphometric analysis, Interstitial fibrosis, Prostate specific antigen, Prostate inde

X-ray absorption of liquid water by advanced ab initio methods

Oxygen K-edge X-ray absorption spectra of liquid water are computed based on the configurations from advanced ab initio molecular dynamics simulations, as well as an electron excitation theory from the GW method. One one hand, the molecular structures of liquid water are accurately predicted by including both van der Waals interactions and hybrid functional (PBE0). On the other hand, the dynamic screening effects on electron excitation are approximately described by the recently developed enhanced static Coulomb hole and screened exchange approximation by Kang and Hybertsen [Phys. Rev. B 82, 195108 (2010)]. The resulting spectra of liquid water are in better quantitative agreement with the experimental spectra due to the softened hydrogen bonds and the slightly broadened spectra originating from the better screening model.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, accepted by Phys. Rev.

Proof-of-Concept, Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial of Bacillus-Calmette-Guerin for Treatment of Long-Term Type 1 Diabetes

Background: No targeted immunotherapies reverse type 1 diabetes in humans. However, in a rodent model of type 1 diabetes, Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) reverses disease by restoring insulin secretion. Specifically, it stimulates innate immunity by inducing the host to produce tumor necrosis factor (TNF), which, in turn, kills disease-causing autoimmune cells and restores pancreatic beta-cell function through regeneration. Methodology/Principal Findings Translating these findings to humans, we administered BCG, a generic vaccine, in a proof-of-principle, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of adults with long-term type 1 diabetes (mean: 15.3 years) at one clinical center in North America. Six subjects were randomly assigned to BCG or placebo and compared to self, healthy paired controls (n = 6) or reference subjects with (n = 57) or without (n = 16) type 1 diabetes, depending upon the outcome measure. We monitored weekly blood samples for 20 weeks for insulin-autoreactive T cells, regulatory T cells (Tregs), glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) and other autoantibodies, and C-peptide, a marker of insulin secretion. BCG-treated patients and one placebo-treated patient who, after enrollment, unexpectedly developed acute Epstein-Barr virus infection, a known TNF inducer, exclusively showed increases in dead insulin-autoreactive T cells and induction of Tregs. C-peptide levels (pmol/L) significantly rose transiently in two BCG-treated subjects (means: 3.49 pmol/L [95% CI 2.95–3.8], 2.57 [95% CI 1.65–3.49]) and the EBV-infected subject (3.16 [95% CI 2.54–3.69]) vs.1.65 [95% CI 1.55–3.2] in reference diabetic subjects. BCG-treated subjects each had more than 50% of their C-peptide values above the 95th percentile of the reference subjects. The EBV-infected subject had 18% of C-peptide values above this level. Conclusions/Significance: We conclude that BCG treatment or EBV infection transiently modified the autoimmunity that underlies type 1 diabetes by stimulating the host innate immune response. This suggests that BCG or other stimulators of host innate immunity may have value in the treatment of long-term diabetes. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT0060723

Novi VP2/VP3 rekombinantni senekavirus A izoliran u sjevernoj Kini

Senecavirus A (SVA), previously called the Seneca Valley virus, is the only member of the genus Senecavirus within the family Picornaviridae. This virus was discovered as a serendipitous finding in 2002 and named Seneca Valley virus 001 (SVV-001). SVA is an emerging pathogen that can cause vesicular lesions and epidemic transient neonatal a sharp decline in swine. In this study, an SVA strain was isolated from a pig herd in Shandong Province in China and identified as SVA-CH-SDFX-2022. The full-length genome was 7282 nucleotides (nt) in length and contained a single open reading frame (ORF), excluding the poly (A) tails of the SVA isolates. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the isolate shares its genomic organization, resembling and sharing high nucleotide identities of 90.5% to 99.6%, with other previously reported SVA isolates. The strain was proved by in vitro characterization and the results demonstrate that the virus has robust growth ability in vitro. The recombination event of the SVA-CH-SDFX-2022 isolate was found and occurred between nts 1836 and 2710, which included the region of the VP2 (partial), and VP3 (partial) genes. It shows the importance of faster vaccine development and a better understanding of virus infection and spread because of increased infection rates and huge economic losses. This novel incursion has substantial implications for the regional control of vesicular transboundary diseases, and will be available for further study of the epidemiology of porcine SVA. Our findings provide useful data for studying SVA in pigs.Senekavirus A (SVA), prije nazivan virusom doline Seneca Valley, jedini je pripadnik roda senekavirusa u porodici Picornaviridae. Virus je slučajno otkriven 2002. i nazvan virusom doline Seneca 001 (SVV-001). SVA je novi patogen koji može uzrokovati vezikularne lezije i prolaznu epidemiju novorođene prasadi s naglim gubicima u proizvodnji. U ovom je istraživanju soj SVA izoliran u populaciji svinja iz provincije Shandong u Kini i identificiran kao SVA-CHSDFX-2022. Kompletni genom izolata SVA imao je 7282 nukleotida (nt) u dužini i sadržavao je jedan otvoreni okvir za očitavanje (ORF), bez poli-A repova. Filogenetska je analiza pokazala da izolat u velikoj mjeri sadržava genomsku organizaciju i nukleotidne identitete, od 90,5 % do 99,6 %, s drugim poznatim SVA izolatima. Karakterizacija virusa je pokazala da ima veliku sposobnost rasta in vitro. Pronađena je rekombinacija izolata SVA-CH-SDFX-između nukleotida 1836 i 2710 što je uključilo regiju gena VP2 (parcijalno) i gena VP3 (parcijalno). Zbog visoke stope infektivnosti i golemih ekonomskih gubitaka važan je brži razvoj cjepiva i bolje razumijevanje zaraze. Rezultati ovog istraživanja pružaju korisne podatke za proučavanje SVA virusa, posebno s obzirom na njegovu epidemiologiju u svinja i regionalnu prekograničnu kontrolu vezikularnih bolesti

Generalist taxa shape fungal community structure in cropping ecosystems

Fungi regulate nutrient cycling, decomposition, symbiosis, and pathogenicity in cropland soils. However, the relative importance of generalist and specialist taxa in structuring soil fungal community remains largely unresolved. We hypothesized that generalist fungi, which are adaptable to various environmental conditions, could potentially dominate the community and become the basis for fungal coexisting networks in cropping systems. In this study, we identified the generalist and habitat specialist fungi in cropland soils across a 2,200 kms environmental gradient, including three bioclimatic regions (subtropical, warm temperate, and temperate). A few fungal taxa in our database were classified as generalist taxa (~1%). These generalists accounted for >35% of the relative abundance of all fungal populations, and most of them are Ascomycota and potentially pathotrophic. Compared to the specialist taxa (5–17% of all phylotypes in three regions), generalists had a higher degree of connectivity and were often identified as hub within the network. Structural equation modeling provided further evidence that after accounting for spatial and climatic/ edaphic factors, generalists had larger contributions to the fungal coexistence pattern than habitat specialists. Taken together, our study provided evidence that generalist taxa are crucial components for fungal community structure. The knowledge of generalists can provide important implication for understanding the ecological preference of fungal groups in cropland systems

Plant developmental stage drives the differentiation in ecological role of the maize microbiome

Background: Plants live with diverse microbial communities which profoundly affect multiple facets of host performance, but if and how host development impacts the assembly, functions and microbial interactions of crop microbiomes are poorly understood. Here we examined both bacterial and fungal communities across soils, epiphytic and endophytic niches of leaf and root, and plastic leaf of fake plant (representing environment-originating microbes) at three developmental stages of maize at two contrasting sites, and further explored the potential function of phylloplane microbiomes based on metagenomics. Results: Our results suggested that plant developmental stage had a much stronger influence on the microbial diversity, composition and interkingdom networks in plant compartments than in soils, with the strongest effect in the phylloplane. Phylloplane microbiomes were co-shaped by both plant growth and seasonal environmental factors, with the air (represented by fake plants) as its important source. Further, we found that bacterial communities in plant compartments were more strongly driven by deterministic processes at the early stage but a similar pattern was for fungal communities at the late stage. Moreover, bacterial taxa played a more important role in microbial interkingdom network and crop yield prediction at the early stage, while fungal taxa did so at the late stage. Metagenomic analyses further indicated that phylloplane microbiomes possessed higher functional diversity at the early stage than the late stage, with functional genes related to nutrient provision enriched at the early stage and N assimilation and C degradation enriched at the late stage. Coincidently, more abundant beneficial bacterial taxa like Actinobacteria, Burkholderiaceae and Rhizobiaceae in plant microbiomes were observed at the early stage, but more saprophytic fungi at the late stage. Conclusions: Our results suggest that host developmental stage profoundly influences plant microbiome assembly and functions, and the bacterial and fungal microbiomes take a differentiated ecological role at different stages of plant development. This study provides empirical evidence for host exerting strong effect on plant microbiomes by deterministic selection during plant growth and development. These findings have implications for the development of future tools to manipulate microbiome for sustainable increase in primary productivity

Analiza genskih varijacija rekombinantnog soja dobivenog iz triju linija virusa-2 reproduktivnog i respiratornog sindroma svinja

Since the rise of the porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) in China, gene mutations have frequently occurred. To understand the current prevalence and evolution of PRRSV in Shandong Province, 1,528 samples suspected of PRRSV were collected from local pig farms of different sizes. The complete genome sequence of the PRRSV strain SDLY-27 was determined by next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology. The genomic sequence of SDLY-27 was 15,363 nucleotides (nt) in length, comparative analysis of the whole genome sequence suggested that the homology between SDLY 27 and 81 PRRSV strains from China and other countries in genbank was 61.9 ~ 96.4%. This study is the first to detect recombinants from multiple recombination events among the Lineage 8 (JXA1-like strains), Lineage 5 (RespPRRSV-MLV and VR2332 strains) and Sublineage 1.5 (NADC34-like strains) in Shandong, China, and provides new data for the epidemiological study of PRRSV in China. This study enriches the epidemiological data on PRRSV in Shandong Province, China. It provides an important reference for the development of new vaccines and for the prevention and control of PRRSV in China.Usporedno sa širenjem virusa reproduktivnog i respiratornog sindroma svinja (PRRSV) u Kini, sve su češće bile i njegove genske mutacije. Kako bi se ustanovila trenutačna prevalencija i evolucija PRRSV-a u pokrajini Shandong, s lokalnih farmi prikupljeno je 1528 uzoraka svinja različitih kategorija za koje je postojala sumnja na zarazu PRRSVom. Kompletan genomski slijed soja SDLY-27 PRRSV-a određen je tehnologijom sekvenciranja sljedeće generacije (NGS). Slijed je imao dužinu od 15 363 nukleotida (nt), a komparativna analiza cijeloga genomskog slijeda uputila je na to da je homolognost između sojeva SDLY 27 i 81 PRRSV-a iz Kine i uzoraka u banci gena iz drugih zemalja 61,9~96,4%. Ovo je prvo istraživanje koje je otkrilo rekombinantne sojeve iz višestrukih rekombinacija među linijama 8 (sojevi nalik na JXA1), 5 (sojevi RespPRRSV-MLV i VR2332) i podlinije 1,5 (sojevi nalik na NADC34) u Shandongu, Kina.Kao takvo, istraživanje pruža nove podatke o epidemiologiji PRRSV-a u Kini, posebno u pokrajini Shandong, a ujedno predstavlja i važnu referenciju za razvoj novih cjepiva te prevenciju i kontrolu bolesti uzrokovane navedenim virusom

High-performance neuromorphic computing based on ferroelectric synapses with excellent conductance linearity and symmetry

Artificial synapses can boost neuromorphic computing to overcome the inherent limitations of von Neumann architecture. As a promising memristor candidate, ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJ) enable the authors to successfully emulate spike-timing-dependent synapses. However, the nonlinear and asymmetric synaptic weight update under repeated presynaptic stimulation hampers neuromorphic computing by favoring the runaway of synaptic weights during learning. Here, the authors demonstrate an FTJ whose conductivity varies linearly and symmetrically by judiciously combining ferroelectric domain switching and oxygen vacancy migration. The artificial neural network based on this FTJ-synapse achieves classification accuracy of 96.7% during supervised learning, which is the closest to the maximum theoretical value of 98% achieved to date. This artificial synapse also demonstrates stable unsupervised learning in a noisy environment for its well-balanced spike-timing-dependent plasticity response. The novel concept of controlling ionic migration in ferroelectric materials paves the way toward highly reliable and reproducible supervised and unsupervised learning strategies.</p