Downregulation of DLGAP1-Antisense RNA 1 Alleviates Vascular Endothelial Cell Injury Via Activation of the Phosphoinositide 3-kinase/Akt Pathway Results from an Acute Limb Ischemia Rat Model.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the effect of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) DLGAP1 antisense RNA 1 (DLGAP1-AS1) on vascular endothelial cell (VEC) injury via the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway in rat models of acute lower limb ischaemia-reperfusion (I/R). METHODS: Differentially expressed lncRNAs related to I/R were screened using the gene expression omnibus database. Acute lower limb I/R models were induced in male Wistar rats, in which the regulatory mechanisms of DLGAP1-AS1 silencing were analysed after the treatment of small interfering RNA (siRNA) against DLGAP1-AS1 or an inhibitor of the PI3K/Akt pathway. The relationship between DLGAP1-AS1 and the PI3K/Akt pathway was analysed. The levels of tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), as well as malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration and creatine kinase (CK) activity, were measured. The number of circulating endothelial cells (CECs) and apoptosis of VECs were identified. RESULTS: Microarray based analysis indicated that DLGAP1-AS1 was highly expressed in I/R, which was further confirmed by detection of expression in rat models of acute lower limb I/R. Notably, the treatment of siRNA against DLGAP1-AS1 led to the activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway. In response to siRNA against DLGAP1-AS1, the levels of TNF-α and VCAM-1 were decreased, and MDA concentration and CK activity was downregulated. Reduced CEC numbers and suppressed VEC apoptosis were also observed. CONCLUSION: DLGAP1-AS1 silencing could further suppress the oxidative stress, exert an anti-apoptosis effect, and reduce inflammatory reaction, whereby VEC injury is alleviated by activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway in rats with acute lower limb I/R.

Dynamic random access memory devices based on bismuth sulfide nanoplates prepared from a single source precursor.

Semiconducting bismuth sulfide (Bi2S3) nanoplates with unique highly oriented {001} surfaces were prepared on a large scale using a novel organic precursor Bi(DTCA)3 (DTCA = carbazole-9-carbodithioic acid). The as-prepared Bi2S3 nanoplates were dispersed in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and spin-coated onto an indium tin oxide (ITO) coated glass substrate. With a simple ITO/Bi2S3/Al stacked structure, the fabricated sandwich-like memory device demonstrates dynamic random access memory (DRAM) characteristics with a maximum ON/OFF current ratio up to 10(6) and a long retention time. It is suggested that the volatile nature of the memory device comes from the Schottky contact between the Bi2S3 nanoplates and the Al electrodes.

A new V-shaped organic fluorescent compound integrated with crystallization-induced emission enhancement and intramolecular charge transfer.

The emission behavior of a new V-shaped organic fluorescent compound (p,p'-bis(2-aryl-1,3,4-oxadiazol-5-yl)diphenyl sulfone (OZA-SO)), consisting of diethylamino (donor) and sulfone (acceptor) units, has been studied in various polar solvents and with different morphologies. As expected, there is the gradual transition from the locally excited state to the intramolecular charge-transfer (ICT) state with the increasing solvent polarity. The photoluminescence intensity of OZA-SO initially decreases with a low water fraction (f(w)), owing to ICT effect, and then increases with a high f(w), owing to crystallization-induced emission enhancement. At the same time, the fluorescence lifetime of OZA-SO increases from 0.062 ns in dimethylformamide (DMF) to 5.80 ns in a solution containing 90 % water, and then to 7.49 ns in a solution containing 60 % water. Furthermore, the solid-state emission of OZA-SO can be tuned reversibly from green to yellow by fuming/grinding or fuming/heating owing to morphological changes. This color-switchable feature of OZA-SO may have potential applications in optical-recording and temperature-sensing materials.