Physiological and transcriptomic analyses of leaves from Gardenia jasminoides Ellis under waterlogging stress.

Gardenia jasminoides Ellis is a Chinese herbal medicine with medicinal and economic value, but its mechanism of response to waterlogging stress remains unclear. In this study, the "double pots method" was used to simulate the waterlogging stress of Gardenia jasminoides Ellis to explore its physiological and transcriptomic response mechanism. We found no significant damage to Gardenia jasminoides Ellis membrane lipid during stress. POD played a vital antioxidant role, KEGG enrichment showed that secondary metabolites such as flavonoids might also play an antioxidant role, and PRO played a significant osmotic adjustment. Endogenous hormones regulate the Gardenia jasminoides Ellis's growth and development and play a role in signal transduction. Among them, light waterlogging stress is delayed. At the same time, there were 19631, 23693, and 15045 differentially expressed genes on the 5th, 10d, and 15d of Gardenia jasminoides Ellis under waterlogging stress. These genes were closely associated with the proteasome, endopeptidase, ribosome, MAPK signal transduction, and endogenous hormone signal transduction, plant-pathogen interaction and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis and other physiological and metabolic pathways, which regulate the turnover and transportation of protein, the reinforcement and adhesion of cell walls, the induction of stomatal closure, allergic reactions, defense reactions, leaf movements and others. It also can absorb ultraviolet rays to reduce the generation of oxygen free radicals, change the way of energy utilization and adjust the osmotic pressure of plant cells.

[Analysis of the diagnotic results and complications of pneumoconiosis patients with different insurance types].

Objective: By comparing the diagnotic results and complications of pneumoconiosis patients with work-related injury insurance and non-work-related injury insurance, to provide reference for improving the medical insurance of pneumoconiosis patients. Methods: In May 2019, the diagnotic results and complications of 3204 patients with pneumoconiosis who were hospitalized in the second department of Hunan Prevention and Treatment Institute for Occupational Diseases from January 2017 to March 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. Results: Among the 3204 patients, 896 cases (28.0%) were in stage I, 790 cases (24.6%) were in stage II, and 1518 cases (47.4%) were in stage III. 1490 cases (46.5%) of pneumoconiosis patients have complications, mainly chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (42.3%, 1354/3204) and lung infection (23.6%, 755/3204) . 584 cases (18.2%) were covered by work-related injury insurance, and the diagnosis of pneumoconiosis patients was mainly in the stage I (61.0%, 356/584) . 2620 cases (81.8%) were covered by non-work-related injury insurance, and the diagnosis of pneumoconiosis patients was mainly in the stage III (56.0%, 1466/2620) . The complication rate of non-work-related injury insurance patients (50.1%, 1312/2620) was higher than that of work-related injury insurance patients (30.5%, 178/584) (χ(2)=73.72, P<0.01) . Conclusion: The inpatients with pneumoconiosis in Hunan Province are still mainly covered by non-work-related injury insurance, and the diagnotic period and complication rate are significantly higher than those of work-related injury insurance patients. Therefore, pneumoconiosis patients should be provided with medical security, early diagnosis and early intervention, to prevent and delay the occurrence of complications.

ESR studies on reaction of saccharide with the free radicals generated from the xanthine oxidase/hypoxanthine system containing iron.

The free radicals generated from the iron containing system of xanthine oxidase and hypoxanthine (Fe-XO/HX) were directly detected by using spin trapping. It was found that not only superoxide anion (O(2)*-) and hydroxyl radical (OH*), but also alkyl or alkoxyl radicals (R*) were formed when saccharides such as glucose, fructose and sucrose were added into the Fe-XO/HX system. The generated amount of R* was dependent on the kind and concentration of saccharides added into the Fe-XO/HX system and no R* were detected in the absence of saccharides, indicating that there is an interaction between the saccharide molecules and the free radicals generated from the Fe-XO/HX system and saccharide molecules are essential for generating R* in the Fe-XO/HX system. It is expected that the toxicity of R* would be greater than of hydrophilic O(2)*- and OH* because they are liposoluble and their lives are longer and the active sites of biomolecules are closely related with lipophilic phase, thus they can damage cells more seriously than O(2)*- and OH*. The R* generated from the saccharide containing Fe-XO/HX can be effectively scavenged by selenium containing abzyme (Se-abzyme), indicating Se-abzyme is a promising antioxidant.

Protection of myocardial mitochondria against oxidative damage by selenium-containing abzyme m4G3.

Selenium-containing abzyme (m4G3) was prepared and its protection of myocardial mitochondria against oxidative damage was studied using the swelling of mitochondria, quantity of lipid peroxidation products, and change in cytochrome-c oxidase activity as a measure of mitochondrial damage. The results showed that m4G3 could inhibit mitochondrial damage caused by the hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system in vitro. Electronic spin resonance (ESR) studies demonstrated that m4G3 could decrease the amount of free radicals generated in the damage system.

Artificial imitation of glutathione peroxidase with 6-selenium-bridged beta-cyclodextrin.

On the basis of cyclodextrin, 6-selenium bridged beta-cyclodextrin (6-beta-CD-Se-Se-beta-CD, known as 6-SeCD) was synthesized by the selective tosylation of beta-cyclodextrin and nucleophilic displacement by sodium hydroselenide to imitate glutathione peroxidase (GPX). The GPX activity of diselenide 6-SeCD is 4.3 times that of PZ51. The structure of the mimic 6-SeCD was characterized by means of laser mass spectroscopy, elemental analysis, IR and 1H NMR. The selenium content and its valence in 6-SeCD were determined by means of X-ray photoelectron spectra. Kinetics of the mimic showed that its enzymatic behavior was similar to that of native GPX.

Dynamic relationships of trabecular bone density, architecture, and strength in a computational model of osteopenia.

A computational model was developed to study the effects of short- and long-term periods of disuse osteopenia and repair to elucidate the interrelationships between bone mass, architecture, and strength. The model is one in which the sequence of structural change events is followed in time. This temporal feature contrasts with studies of real trabecular tissue which are necessarily cross-sectional in nature and do not lend themselves to insights into the dynamic nature of the structural changes with time. In the model it was assumed that the stimulus for bone adaptation to mechanical load is the local mechanical strain rate, according to which the trabecular surfaces are differentially formed and resorbed. The effects of mechanical loading and unloading (disuse) on the cancelous bone properties were studied. The bone mass, architecture, and elastic stiffness were shown to be strongly dependent upon the period of the unloading phase, as well as the period of the reloading phase. Mechanical stiffness is demonstrated computationally to be a multivalued function of bone mass, if architecture is not accounted for. The model shows how the same value of trabecular bone mass can be associated with two or more distinct values of biomechanical stiffness. This result is the first explicit demonstration of how bone mass, architecture, and strength are related under dynamical load-bearing conditions. The results explain the empirical observation that bone mass can account for about 65% of the observed variation in bone strength, but that by incorporating measures of bony architecture into the analysis, the predictability is increased to 94%. The computational model may be used to explore the effects of different loading regimes on mass, architecture, and strength, and potentially for assistance in designing both animal and clinical bone loss studies.

Some physicochemical and enzymic properties of selenium-containing abzyme.

We successfully prepared the Se-containing abzyme (Se-abzyme) with glutathione peroxidase (GPX) activity and further studied its physicochemical and enzymic properties and stabilities. Data showed that the isoelectric point of the abzyme was 6.95-7.08, and its molecular weight was 158 KD. The ranges of optimum pH and temperature of the Se-abzyme were wider than the native GPX. The store stability of the abzyme was higher than the native GPX. The Se content in the abzyme was found to be 5 mol Se/mol abzyme by X-ray photoelectron spectrum, and binding constant 1.11 x 10(7)M-1 by using ELISA method. The Se-abzyme was inhibited competitively by dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB), and inhibition constant was determined to be 1.25 x 10(-3)M-1.

Generation of selenium-containing abzyme by using chemical mutation.

A new strategy for generating abzyme was developed. Glutathione peroxidase (GPX, EC 1.11.1.9) is one of the important members of antioxidation enzyme system; it catalyzes the reductions of a variety of hydroperoxides in presence of glutathione(GSH). We have first prepared the monoclonal antibody (McAb) with GSH binding sites, then incorporated GPX catalytic group selenocystein (SeCys) into the antibody combining sites by using chemical mutation. Thus the mutated antibody displays high GPX activity, which approaches the magnitude level of native GPX, exhibits the kinetic behavior similar to native GPX, and has some advantages over native GPX.

On the sufficiency conditions for the stability of bone remodeling equilibrium.

In this technical note a sufficiency condition is established for the stability of a strain-energy-based bone remodeling theory in the special case of a beam loaded by an axial force and a bending moment. In a previous report the same condition was shown to be a necessary condition for stability in the same situation. The remodeling scheme is one characterized by a remodeling stimulus equal to the strain energy density divided by the bulk or apparent density raised to an exponent m as well an elastic modulus proportional to bulk or apparent density raised to an exponent n. In order for a remodeling scheme to be stable for an elastic beam loaded by an axial force and a bending moment, it is established that the condition that m must be greater than n is not only necessary, but also sufficient.

Chaos in the discrete-time algorithm for bone-density remodeling rate equations.

We compare the predictions of the differential equation form of a class of bone-density stress adaptation models with their associated discrete-time computational algorithms. Although our considerations apply to the class of adaptation models based on bulk or apparent bone-density remodeling, we focus attention on a particular model in this class, a model employed by Weinans et al. [Trans. Orthop. Res. Soc. 14, 310 (1989); Trans. First World Congress of Biomechanics, Vol. II, p. 75 (1990)]. We show that the discrete-time computational algorithm of that stress adaptation model has a well-known chaos mechanism for stress values of practical interest. Further, we obtain a condition on the discrete-time step that prevents the transition to chaos, and conditions that insure monotonic convergence. This chaos mechanism is only present in the discrete-time computational algorithm; we show that the corresponding differential equation form of the bone-density stress adaptation model is smooth, monotonic and nonchaotic.

Bone ingrowth: an application of the boundary element method to bone remodeling at the implant interface.

Surface bone remodeling theory and the boundary element method are employed to investigate the microstructural remodeling of bone at the bone-implant interface. Three situations are considered: remodeling-induced penetration between the screw threads of an implanted screw, penetration of bone tissue into a slot or cavity in an implant, and the interaction of individual trabeculae in the remodeling processes near an implant. For each case the bone ingrowth is determined as a function of the geometry and the applied load.

An evolutionary Wolff's law for trabecular architecture.

A continuum model is proposed to describe the temporal evolution of both the density changes and the reorientation of the trabecular architecture given the applied stress state in the bone and certain material parameters of the bone. The data upon which the proposed model is to be based consist of experimentally determined remodeling rate coefficients and quantitative stereological and anisotropic elastic constant measurements of cancellous bone. The model shows that the system of differential equations governing the temporal changes in architecture is necessarily nonlinear. This nonlinearity is fundamental in that it stems from the fact that, during remodeling, the relationship between stress and strain is changing as the stress and strain variables themselves are changing. In order to preserve the remodeling property of the model, terms that are of the order strain times the changes in density and/or microstructural properties must be retained. If these terms were dropped, there would be no feedback mechanism for architectural adaptation and no adaptation of the trabecular architecture. There is, therefore, no linearized version of the model of the temporal evolution of trabecular architecture. An application of the model is illustrated by an example problem in which the temporal evolution of homogeneous trabecular architecture is predicted. A limitation of the proposed continuum model is the length scale below which it cannot be applied. The model cannot be applied in regions of cancellous bone where the trabecular bone architecture is relatively inhomogeneous or at a bone-implant interface.

Correction formulae for the misalignment of axes in the measurement of the orthotropic elastic constants.

In the experimental determination of the orthotropic elastic constants, one often encounters the situation in which the symmetry axes of the material are not coincident with specimen axes along which the material testing is accomplished. The problem of calculating the compliance coefficients in the symmetry coordinate system from measurements of the compliance coefficients made in an arbitrary, specimen fixed, coordinate system is considered here.

Reactivation of inactivated enzyme superoxide dismutase by using the conformation rebuilding method.

We believe that the activities of reactivated and reconstituted enzymes can be completely recovered if optimum conditions of reactivation and reconstitution are found.