Value of brain tissue oxygen saturation in neonatal respiratory distress syndrome: a clinical study

Neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (NRDS) is one of the major causes of pre-term mortality and morbidity among very-low-birth-weight infants (VLBWI) in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). Some of the neonates pass away despite admission and care in intensive care units (ICUs). The present clinical trial seeks the application value of elevating oxygen saturation in the brain cells of pre-term neonates born with NRDS. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) was used to monitor the neonates’ microscopic cerebral oxygenation levels do determine hemoglobin concentration in brain tissues, whereas the pulse oximetry was used to measure oxygenation levels among the patients. In statistical analyses, the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), and descriptive statistics was deployed in the Jupyter Notebook environment using Python language. High saturation of oxygen in the brain tissues result in important biological and physiological processes, including enhanced oxygen supply to cells, reduced severity of NRDS, and balancing oxygen demand and supply. The correlations of oxygen saturation with systemic saturation of oxygen, the saturation of oxygen in brain tissues, the association between brain-specific and systemic saturation, and the impact of these outcomes on clinical practices were deliberated. Also, the pH gas values, the saturation of oxygen in neonates’ brain tissues, metabolic acidosis, the effect of acid-base balance and cerebral oxygen supply, and the oxygenation of brain tissues and the pH values emerged as important variables of oxygenation of brain tissues in pre-term neonates. Oxygen saturation in brain cells influence vital physiological and biological processes. Balancing acid-base saturation or levels is needed despite the challenging achievement. Oxygenation of brain tissues improve the brain’s overall functioning

Application of a novel strong promoter from Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolate) in the CRISPR/Cas mediated genome editing of its protoplasts and transgenesis of rice and poplar

Novel constitutive promoters are essential for plant biotechnology. Although in angiosperms, a number of promoters were applied in monocots or dicots genetic engineering, only a few promoters were used in gymnosperm. Here we identified two strong promoters (Cula11 and Cula08) from Chinese fir (C. lanceolate) by screening the transcriptomic data and preliminary promoter activity assays in tobacco. By using the newly established Chinese fir protoplast transient expression technology that enables in vivo molecular biology studies in its homologous system, we compared the activities of Cula11 and Cula08 with that of the commonly used promoters in genetic engineering of monocots or dicots, such as CaM35S, CmYLCV, and ZmUbi, and our results revealed that Cula11 and Cula08 promoters have stronger activities in Chinese fir protoplasts. Furthermore, the vector containing Cas gene driven by Cula11 promoter and sgRNA driven by the newly isolated CulaU6b polyIII promoters were introduced into Chinese fir protoplasts, and CRISPR/Cas mediated gene knock-out event was successfully achieved. More importantly, compared with the commonly used promoters in the genetic engineering in angiosperms, Cula11 promoter has much stronger activity than CaM35S promoter in transgenic poplar, and ZmUbi promoter in transgenic rice, respectively, indicating its potential application in poplar and rice genetic engineering. Overall, the novel putative constitutive gene promoters reported here will have great potential application in gymnosperm and angiosperm biotechnology, and the transient gene expression system established here will serve as a useful tool for the molecular and genetic analyses of Chinese fir genes

Evaluation of the antitumor effects of c-Myc-Max heterodimerization inhibitor 100258-F4 in ovarian cancer cells

Abstract Epithelial ovarian carcinoma is the most lethal gynecological cancer due to its silent onset and recurrence with resistance to chemotherapy. Overexpression of oncogene c-Myc is one of the most frequently encountered events present in ovarian carcinoma. Disrupting the function of c-Myc and its downstream target genes is a promising strategy for cancer therapy. Our objective was to evaluate the potential effects of small-molecule c-Myc inhibitor, 10058-F4, on ovarian carcinoma cells and the underlying mechanisms by which 10058-F4 exerts its actions. Using MTT assay, colony formation, flow cytometry and Annexin V FITC assays, we found that 10058-F4 significantly inhibited cell proliferation of both SKOV3 and Hey ovarian cancer cells in a dose dependent manner through induction of apoptosis and cell cycle G1 arrest. Treatment with 10058-F4 reduced cellular ATP production and ROS levels in SKOV3 and Hey cells. Consistently, primary cultures of ovarian cancer treated with 10058-F4 showed induction of caspase-3 activity and inhibition of cell proliferation in 15 of 18 cases. The response to 10058-F4 was independent the level of c-Myc protein over-expression in primary cultures of ovarian carcinoma. These novel findings suggest that the growth of ovarian cancer cells is dependent upon c-MYC activity and that targeting c-Myc-Max heterodimerization could be a potential therapeutic strategy for ovarian cancer

Pollen tube emergence is mediated by ovary-expressed ALCATRAZ in cucumber

Pollen tube guidance within female tissues of flowering plants can be divided into preovular guidance, ovular guidance and a connecting stage called pollen tube emergence. As yet, no female factor has been identified to positively regulate this transition process. In this study, we show that an ovary-expressed bHLH transcription factor Cucumis sativus ALCATRAZ (CsALC) functions in pollen tube emergence in cucumber. CsALC knockout mutants showed diminished pollen tube emergence, extremely reduced entry into ovules, and a 95% reduction in female fertility. Further examination showed two rapid alkalinization factors CsRALF4 and CsRALF19 were less expressed in Csalc ovaries compared to WT. Besides the loss of male fertility derived from precocious pollen tube rupture as in Arabidopsis, Csralf4 Csralf19 double mutants exhibited a 60% decrease in female fertility due to reduced pollen tube distribution and decreased ovule targeting efficiency. In brief, CsALC regulates female fertility and promotes CsRALF4/19 expression in the ovary during pollen tube guidance in cucumber. Pollen tube growth is guided towards ovules. Here the authors show that a bHLH transcriptional factor CsALC functions in pollen tube emergence towards ovules to regulate female fertility in cucumber and promotes the expression of two rapid alkalinization factors CsRALF4/19 in the ovary

Prevalence of the Cryptosporidium Pig Genotype II in Pigs from the Yangtze River Delta, China

Background: Cryptosporidium spp. is prevalent globally, pigs are an important Cryptosporidium reservoir. In China, little data regarding rates of Cryptosporidium infections in pigs are available. The present study was therefore aimed at characterizing the distribution of Cryptosporidium species in pigs from two different cities, Shaoxing and Shanghai, from the Yangtze River delta. Methodology/Principal Findings: Nested PCR to amplify the 18S rRNA locus on DNA extracted from fecal samples (n = 94) revealed the positive rate of Cryptosporidium in pigs from two cities was approximately 17.0%. The positive rates in Shanghai and Shaoxing were 14.3 % and 25.0 % respectively. Amplified sequences were verified by sequencing. The identified strain belonged to the C. pig genotype II using BLAST analysis in the NCBI database. Conclusion/Significance: Our finding of Cryptosporidium pig genotype II in pigs in the Yangtze River delta area suggests that pig farms in this region must be considered a public health threat and proper control measures be introduced

Shear banding analysis of geomaterials by strain gradient enhanced damage model

Shear band localization is investigated by a strain-gradient-enhanced damage model for quasi-brittle geomaterials. This model introduces the strain gradients and their higher-order conjugate stresses into the framework of continuum damage mechanics. The influence of the strain gradients on the constitutive behaviour is taken into account through a generalized damage evolutionary law. A weak-form variational principle is employed to address the additional boundary conditions introduced by the incorporation of the strain gradients and the conjugate higher-order stresses. Damage localization under simple shear condition is analytically investigated by using the theory of discontinuous bifurcation and the concept of the second-order characteristic surface. Analytical solutions for the distributions of strain rates and strain gradient rates, as well as the band width of localised damage are found. Numerical analysis demonstrates the shear band width is proportionally related to the internal length scale through a coefficient function of Poisson’s ratio and a parameter representing the shape of uniaxial stress–strain curve. It is also shown that the obtained distributions of strains and strain gradients are well in accordance with the underlying assumptions for the second-order discontinuous shear band boundary and the weak discontinuous bifurcation theory

Multiple fracture network seepage model for fractured media

The multiple fracture network seepage model for fractured media is put forward. Faults, fractures and matrices are divided into 3 different groups according to their dimensions: (1) the trunk network composed of faults and fractures, which dominates the seepage field, (2) the branch network composed of comparatively smaller fractures, and (3) the equivalent network composed of the smallest fractures and rock matrices, which provides space to store fluid. The branch network connects the other two network systems. A joint element is presented to represent the trunk and branch networks and used to derive the continuity equation for these two network systems. An example is given to show the difference between the classic model and the new model

Model and Approach of Solid Line Setting Based on Merge Safety and Merge Probability

To improve the safety of merging vehicles and reduce the possibility of accidents, the easiest and most effective way is to adjust the existing traffic facilities. This study examines the requirements and approach of setting a new merge marking. First, a marking calculation model for the acceleration lane was constructed by taking the vehicle-merging probability as the limiting condition and combining the acceptable gap theory. Second, considering the limitation of ramp speed and acceleration lane length, the length of the solid merge line under different volumes and speeds was determined, and the value under different cases was given. Third, the safe change clearance and the length of the solid merge line under different scenarios were analyzed with numerical simulations using MATLAB. Finally, VISSIM was used for the simulation verification of the actual merging zone. The calculation results are that at the same probability, the increase of the volume outside the mainline, the longer the length of the solid merge line. When the volume of the outer lane is 100 pcu/h and 500 pcu/h, the actual gap value is greater than the minimum gap value, and vehicles can safely merge into the mainline. When the volume is 1000 pcu/h, the gap value is less than the minimum safe gap and cannot meet the safe merging, and control measures need to be taken for the lane. The results of the TTC conflict analysis show that it is recommended to set the solid merge line at service level two and above and that the service level three can be set in some cases. The setting of the solid merge line can further increase the vehicle acceleration space, improve the merge speed, and enhance the safety of the merge