Grand canonical Monte Carlo simulation on adsorption of aniline on the ice surface

Aniline has been found to have frequent environmental occurrence and high toxicity. However, little study has been performed on its environmental fate. Here, we employed Grand Canonical Monte Carlo simulations (GCMC) to investigate the adsorption behavior of aniline on hexagonal ice surface at 200 K using our modified force field of aniline and TIP5P force field of water. The results indicate that the adsorption isotherm of aniline exhibits a “monolayer saturation plateau”, starting with a rapid increase, then a plateau, and finally a condensed phase. Under very low surface coverage, the adsorption isotherm apparently follows Langmuir type adsorption isotherm although anilines can be adsorbed to various sites. Within the range of the apparent Langmuir-type adsorption isotherm, adsorbed anilines are independent from each other and most anilines are almost parallel to the ice surface and form two N−H•••O hydrogen bonds. With the increase of coverage, the adsorbed anilines can interact with each other, resulting in the deviation from the apparent Langmuir-type adsorption isotherm. In addition, the adsorption energy from GCMC simulation (−65.91 kJ mol−1) is well consistent that from our validating quantum chemistry calculation (−69.34 kJ mol−1), further confirming the reliability of our GCMC simulation results.Peer reviewe

N-Hydr­oxy-N-o-tolyl­acetamide

In the mol­ecule of the title compound, C9H11NO2, the methyl C atom bonded to the ring and the N atom lie in the benzene ring plane. An intra­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond results in the formation of a five-membered planar ring, which is oriented at a dihedral angle of 81.37 (3)° with respect to the benzene ring. In the crystal structure, inter­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the mol­ecules stacked along the b axis. There are also π–π inter­actions between benzene rings with a face-to-face stacking distance of 3.434 Å

Antifungal effects of sisal leaf juice on Lasiodiplodia theobromae, the causal agent of mulberry root rot

This study was carried out to evaluate the antifungal activities of leaf juices (fresh juice, fermented juice, boiled juice and sterile juice) of nine sisal varieties on Lasiodiplodia theobromae, the causal agent of mulberry root rot. Results show that all the leaf juices could inhibit the mycelial growth in different degrees (the inhibitory rates ranged from 63.3 to 100%), due to different varieties and treatments. Among the nine varieties, the inhibition effects of hybrid 76416 and Agave americana were the best with absolute inhibition of all the leaf juice treatments against the mycelial growth, followed by Agave Amaniensis, Agave virdis, Agave angustifolia and Hybrid 11648. The inhibitory effect of some fresh juices would be cut down after being fermented, boiled and sterilized. The treated mycelia of L.theobromae were malformed, enlarged, broken and plasma leaked when observed under the microscope. Most of the leaf juices could inhibit the conidial germination absolutely, except A.amaniensis, H.11648 and A. angustifolia. The average germination rate of A. amaniensis, H.11648 and A. angustifolia was 72.4, 16.6 and 13%, respectively. The control efficiency of the fresh juice of H. 11648 against mulberry root rot in the field reached 73.1%.Key words: Sisal, leaf juice, anti-fungi, anti-fungal activities, mulberry root rot, Lasiodiplodia theobromae

Low-energy Scattering of (D∗Dˉ∗)±(D^{*}\bar{D}^{*})^\pm System and the Resonance-like Structure Zc(4025)Z_c(4025)

In this paper, low-energy scattering of the $(D^{*}\bar{D}^{*})^\pm$ meson system is studied within L\"uscher's finite-size formalism using $N_{f}=2$ twisted mass gauge field configurations. With three different pion mass values, the $s$-wave threshold scattering parameters, namely the scattering length $a_0$ and the effective range $r_0$, are extracted in $J^P=1^+$ channel. Our results indicate that, in this particular channel, the interaction between the two vector charmed mesons is weakly repulsive in nature hence do not support the possibility of a shallow bound state for the two mesons, at least for the pion mass values being studied. This study provides some useful information on the nature of the newly discovered resonance-like structure $Z_c(4025)$ observed in various experiments.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1403.131

Downregulation of connective tissue growth factor inhibits the growth and invasion of gastric cancer cells and attenuates peritoneal dissemination

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) has been shown to be implicated in tumor development and progression. However, the role of CTGF in gastric cancer remains largely unknown.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In this study, we showed that CTGF was highly expressed in gastric cancer tissues compared with matched normal gastric tissues. The CTGF expression in tumor tissue was associated with histologic grade, lymph node metastasis and peritoneal dissemination (P < 0.05). Patients with positive CTGF expression had significantly lower cumulative postoperative 5 year survival rate than those with negative CTGF expression (22.9% versus 48.1%, P < 0.001). We demonstrated that knockdown of CTGF expression significantly inhibited cell growth of gastric cancer cells and decreased cyclin D₁expression. Moreover, knockdown of CTGF expression also markedly reduced the migration and invasion of gastric cancer cells and decreased the expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and MMP-9. Animal studies revealed that nude mice injected with the CTGF knockdown stable cell lines featured a smaller number of peritoneal seeding nodules than the control cell lines.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These data suggest that CTGF plays an important role in cell growth and invasion in human gastric cancer and it appears to be a potential prognostic marker for patients with gastric cancer.</p

Endoscopic Ultrasonography in the Diagnosis and Treatment Strategy Choice of Esophageal Leiomyoma

OBJECTIVES: Esophageal leiomyoma is the most common benign tumor of the esophagus, and it originates from mesenchymal tissue. This study analyzed the clinicopathological characteristics of esophageal leiomyoma and aimed to evaluate the role of endoscopic ultrasonography in the diagnosis and treatment selection for these lesions. METHODS: Two hundred and twenty-five patients who had suspected esophageal leiomyomas in endoscopic ultrasonography were enrolled at the Endoscopy Center of The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University from January 1st, 2009 to May 31th, 2015. The main outcomes included the demographic and morphological characteristics, symptoms, comparisons of diagnosis and treatment methods, adverse events, and prognosis. RESULTS: One hundred and sixty-seven patients were diagnosed as having an esophageal leiomyoma by pathological examination. The mean patient age was 50.57±9.983 years. In total, 62.9% of the lesions originated from the muscularis mucosa, and the others originated from the muscularis propria. The median distance to the incisors was 30±12 cm. The median diameter was 0.72±0.99 cm. As determined by endoscopic ultrasonography, most existing leiomyomas were homogeneous, endophytic, and spherical. The leiomyomas from the muscularis mucosa were smaller than those from the muscularis propria and much closer to the incisors (

A novel FBN2 mutation in a Chinese family with congenital contractural arachnodactyly

AbstractCongenital contractural arachnodactyly (CCA, OMIM: 121050) is an autosomal dominant condition that shares skeletal features with Marfan syndrome (MFS, OMIM: 154700), including contractures, arachnodactyly, dolichostenomelia, scoliosis, crumpled ears and pectus deformities but excluding the ocular and cardiovascular complications that characterize MFS. These two similar syndromes result from mutations in two genes belonging to the fibrillin family, FBN1 and FBN2, respectively. We successfully identified a novel FBN2 mutation (C1406R) in a Chinese family with CCA for over five generations. This mutation was detected in the patients of this family but not in the seven unaffected family members or 100 normal individuals. SIFT and PolyPhen analyses suggested that the mutation was pathogenic. We identified a missense mutation in the calcium binding-epidermal growth factor (cbEGF)-like domain. Our study extends the mutation spectrum of CCA and confirms a relationship between mutations in the FBN2 gene and the clinical findings of CCA

Effects of two Lactobacillus strains on lipid metabolism and intestinal microflora in rats fed a high-cholesterol diet

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The hypocholesterolemic effects of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have now become an area of great interest and controversy for many scientists. In this study, we evaluated the effects of <it>Lactobacillus plantarum </it>9-41-A and <it>Lactobacillus fermentum </it>M1-16 on body weight, lipid metabolism and intestinal microflora of rats fed a high-cholesterol diet.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Forty rats were assigned to four groups and fed either a normal or a high-cholesterol diet. The LAB-treated groups received the high-cholesterol diet supplemented with <it>Lactobacillus plantarum </it>9-41-A or <it>Lactobacillus fermentum </it>M1-16. The rats were sacrificed after a 6-week feeding period. Body weights, visceral organ and fat pad weights, serum and liver cholesterol and lipid levels, and fecal cholesterol and bile acid concentrations were measured. Liver lipid deposition and adipocyte size were evaluated histologically.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Compared with rats fed a high-cholesterol diet but without LAB supplementation, serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides levels were significantly decreased in LAB-treated rats (p < 0.05), with no significant change in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Hepatic cholesterol and triglyceride levels and liver lipid deposition were significantly decreased in the LAB-treated groups (p < 0.05). Accordingly, both fecal cholesterol and bile acids levels were significantly increased after LAB administration (p < 0.05). Intestinal <it>Lactobacillus </it>and <it>Bifidobacterium </it>colonies were increased while <it>Escherichia coli </it>colonies were decreased in the LAB-treated groups. Fecal water content was higher in the LAB-treated groups. Compared with rats fed a high-cholesterol diet, administration of <it>Lactobacillus plantarum </it>9-41-A resulted in decreases in the body weight gain, liver and fat pad weight, and adipocytes size (p < 0.05).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study suggests that LAB supplementation has hypocholesterolemic effects in rats fed a high-cholesterol diet. The ability to lower serum cholesterol varies among LAB strains. Our strains might be able to improve the intestinal microbial balance and potentially improve intestinal transit time. Although the mechanism is largely unknown, <it>L. plantarum </it>9-41-A may play a role in fat metabolism.</p