In vivo transgenic studies confirm the critical acylation function of LeBAHD56 for shikonin in Lithospermum erythrorhizon.

KEY MESSAGE: LeBAHD56 is preferentially expressed in tissues where shikonin and its derivatives are biosynthesized, and it confers shikonin acylation in vivo. Two WRKY transcriptional factors might regulate LeBAHD56's expression. Shikonin and its derivatives, found in the roots of Lithospermum erythrorhizon, have extensive application in the field of medicine, cosmetics, and other industries. Prior research has demonstrated that LeBAHD1(LeSAT1) is responsible for the biochemical process of shikonin acylation both in vitro and in vivo. However, with the exception of its documented in vitro biochemical function, there is no in vivo genetic evidence supporting the acylation function of the highly homologous gene of LeSAT1, LeBAHD56(LeSAT2), apart from its reported role. Here, we validated the critical acylation function of LeBAHD56 for shikonin using overexpression (OE) and CRISPR/Cas9-based knockout (KO) strategies. The results showed that the OE lines had a significantly higher ratio of acetylshikonin, isobutyrylshikonin or isovalerylshikonin to shikonin than the control. In contrast, the KO lines had a significantly lower ratio of acetylshikonin, isobutyrylshikonin or isovalerylshikonin to shikonin than controls. As for its detailed expression patterns, we found that LeBAHD56 is preferentially expressed in roots and callus cells, which are the biosynthesis sites for shikonin and its derivatives. In addition, we anticipated that a wide range of putative transcription factors might control its transcription and verified the direct binding of two crucial WRKY members to the LeBAHD56 promoter's W-box. Our results not only confirmed the in vivo function of LeBAHD56 in shikonin acylation, but also shed light on its transcriptional regulation.

How to choose a point-of-care testing for troponin.

BACKGROUND: Point-of-care (POC) cTn assays are needed when the central laboratory is unable to provide timely results to the emergency department. Many POC devices are available. The prospect of choosing them is daunting. In order to provide a quick decision-making reference for POC cTn device selection comparing them to the central laboratory, seven POC devices commonly employed by emergency department were evaluated. METHODS: Firstly, we reviewed all devices package inserts. Secondly, we evaluated several POC cTn assays for imprecision, linearity, and correlation with central laboratory assays according to CLSI EP protocols. The linear regression analyses were performed only for the detectable concentrations. Five cTnI devices (Alere Triage, BioMerieux Vidas, Mitsubishi Pathfast, ReLIA TZ-301, and Radiometer AQT90) were evaluated against a contemporary cTnI assay (Beckman Access II Accu TnI). Two cTnT assays (Radiometer AQT90 and Roche Cobas h232) were compared to a high-sensitivity (hs) cTnT method (Roche Cobas e601). RESULTS: For cTn levels around the 99th percentile upper reference limits (URLs) of the comparator assays, imprecision could not be assessed for the Alere, BioMerieux, and Cobas h232 as they gave undetectable readings due to a lack of assay sensitivity. Imprecision (CV) was unacceptably high for the ReLIA (33.3%). On account of this precision metric, these four assays were deemed unsuitable. Regression analyses showed acceptable linearity for all the POC devices. The correlation coefficients for ReLIA, BioMerieux, Cobas h232, and Radiometer cTnT were >0.95. Unlike the cTnT devices, the cTnI assays employ different capture and detection antibodies leading to non-commutable results. The POC cTn results were concordant with their comparator-Radiometer cTnT 90%, Pathfast cTnI 85%, and Radiometer cTnI 75%. CONCLUSION: Our study provides the procedure and essential data to guide selection of a POC cTn device. Of the point-of-care devices, methods evaluated Radiometer AQT90 (cTnI and cTnT) and Pathfast might be considered.

Simultaneous removal of Cd2+, NO3-N and hardness by the bacterium Acinetobacter sp. CN86 in aerobic conditions.

This study investigated the factors influencing the simultaneous removal of Cd2+, NO3-N and hardness from water by the bacterial strain CN86. Optimum conditions were determined experimentally by varying the type of organic matter used, initial Cd2+ concentration, and pH. Under the optimum conditions, the maximum removal ratios of Cd2+, NO3-N and hardness were 100.00, 89.85 and 71.63%, respectively. The mechanism of Cd2+ removal is a combination of co-precipitation with calcium carbonate and pH. Further confirmation that Cd2+ can be removed by strain CN86 was provided by XRD and XPS analyses. Meteorological chromatography analysis showed that N2 was produced as an end product. These results demonstrate that the bacterial strain CN86 is a suitable candidate for simultaneously removing Cd2+, NO3-N, and hardness during in wastewater treatment.

Effect of nitrate concentration, pH, and hydraulic retention time on autotrophic denitrification efficiency with Fe(II) and Mn(II) as electron donors.

The role of electron donors (Fe(2+) and Mn(2+)) in the autotrophic denitrification of contaminated groundwater by bacterial strain SY6 was characterized based on empirical laboratory-scale analysis. Strain SY6 can utilize Fe(2+) more efficiently than Mn(2+) as an electron donor. This study has shown that the highest nitrate removal ratio, observed with Fe(2+) as the electron donor, was approximately 88.89%. An immobilized biological filter reactor was tested by using three levels of influent nitrate (10, 30, and 50 mg/L), three pH levels (6, 7, and 8), and three levels of hydraulic retention time (HRT; 6, 8, and 12 h), respectively. An optimal nitrate removal ratio of about 95% was achieved at pH 6.0 using a nitrate concentration of 50 mg/L and HRT of 12 h with Fe(2+) as an electron donor. The study showed that 90% of Fe(2+) and 75.52% removal of Mn(2+) were achieved at pH 8.0 with a nitrate concentration of 50 mg/L and a HRT of 12 h. Removal ratio of Fe(2+) and Mn(2+) is higher with higher influent nitrate and HRT. A weakly alkaline environment assisted the removal of Fe(2+) and Mn(2+).

[Investigation on Oxygen Gas-liquid Mass Transfer in Sewage Pipelines Under Enhanced Ventilation].

The anaerobic environment of sewers is the main cause of the production of toxic and harmful gases such as hydrogen sulfide and methane. The installation of septic-tanks between the drainage standpipes and municipal sewage pipes has aggravated the current situation of poor ventilation in sewage pipes. A system of enhanced ventilation has been formed. By connecting the drainage standpipes and sewage pipes, the system of enhanced ventilation can ameliorate the ventilation of sewage pipes and improve the gas-phase space environment. The experimental and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation methods were established to explore the law of oxygen gas-liquid mass transfer under the different sewage flow rates or wind speeds. This study aimed to seek a method to enhance the oxygen mass transfer, suppress the anaerobic environment, and achieve the purpose of long-term control of harmful gases. The results showed that increasing the gas-liquid flow rates can accelerate the oxygen mass transfer, and the volumetric mass transfer coefficient increased by 3.5×10-4 min-1 for every increase of 0.1 m·s-1. However, the faster sewage reduced hydraulic retention time. The mass transfer time of oxygen was also shortened, and the promotion effect was not as good as that by enhancing the gas velocity in the pipelines. At the same time, when the average gas velocity increased by 0.1 m·s-1, the lengths of pipes where dissolved oxygen could effectively inhibit H2S increased by 25 m.

Effect of minocycline on the changes in the sewage chemical index and microbial communities in sewage pipes.

With the increasing use of drugs in cities, the sewer is becoming the most suitable place for antibiotic accumulation and transfer. In order to reveal the occurrence and fate of antibiotic sewage during pipeline migration, we used an anaerobic reactor device to simulate the concentration change of minocycline in the sewer and its impact on the sewage quality. The results showed that 90.8 % of minocycline was removed during sewer transportation. In the presence of minocycline, although the consumption of Chemical Oxygen Demand and total nitrogen in the sewage did not change significantly, the consumption rate of total phosphorus, nitrate nitrogen and the growth rate of ammonia nitrogen at the front end of the pipeline were decreased from 29.4 %, 86.3 %, 60.3 % to 3.7 %, 81.5 %, 18.3 % respectively. Minocycline inhibited the reduction of SO42-, while also reducing the production of H2S gas and increasing the release of CH4 gas. Moreover, the decline in the abundance of functional bacteria such as phosphorus accumulating organisms was consistent with the consumption of sewage nutrients. This experiment provides data support for the risk of wastewater leakage of medical and pharmaceutical wastewater into domestic sewage, and will helps to maintain the safe operation of actual sewage pipes.

Evaluation of a novel high sensitivity cardiac troponin I assay with whole blood.

BACKGROUND: High-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTn) assays provide high sensitivity detection of myocardial injury. Although an assay using whole blood can reduce turn-around-time and labour, hs-cTn assays using whole blood samples are novel requiring characterization of their analytical performance. METHODS: The imprecision of Pylon hs-cTnI assay was evaluated with whole blood, plasma and commercial quality control samples. The limit of quantitation (LOQ) of whole blood samples and plasma were determined for the Pylon hs-cTnI assay. The correlation between the Pylon hs-cTnI assay and the Abbott Architect hs-cTnI assay was evaluated using whole blood samples and plasma. RESULTS: The average concentrations of pooled patient plasma were 8.3, 15.0 and 396.9 ng/l, while the corresponding CVs of repeatability and within-laboratory CVs were calculated respectively as 7.6% and 9.9%, 4.3% and 4.5%, and 3.3% and 4.5%. LOQ (20% CV) was 1.2 ng/l in plasma and 2.0 ng/l in whole blood. The lowest concentrations to reach 10% CV were 4.8 ng/l with plasma and 9.4 ng/l with whole blood. Quantification of whole blood and corresponding plasma samples correlated with no effect by hematocrits ranging from 25 to 44%. CONCLUSION: The analytical performance of the Pylon hs-cTnI assay with whole blood is comparable to that of a clinical lab instrument.

Dysregulation of p53-RBM25-mediated circAMOTL1L biogenesis contributes to prostate cancer progression through the circAMOTL1L-miR-193a-5p-Pcdha pathway.

p53, circRNAs and miRNAs are important components of the regulatory network that activates the EMT program in cancer metastasis. In prostate cancer (PCa), however, it has not been investigated whether and how p53 regulates EMT by circRNAs and miRNAs. Here we show that a Amotl1-derived circRNA, termed circAMOTL1L, is downregulated in human PCa, and that decreased circAMOTL1L facilitates PCa cell migration and invasion through downregulating E-cadherin and upregulating vimentin, thus leading to EMT and PCa progression. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that circAMOTL1L serves as a sponge for binding miR-193a-5p in PCa cells, relieving miR-193a-5p repression of Pcdha gene cluster (a subset of the cadherin superfamily members). Accordingly, dysregulation of the circAMOTL1L-miR-193a-5p-Pcdha8 regulatory pathway mediated by circAMOTL1L downregulation contributes to PCa growth in vivo. Further, we show that RBM25 binds directly to circAMOTL1L and induces its biogenesis, whereas p53 regulates EMT via direct activation of RBM25 gene. These findings have linked p53/RBM25-mediated circAMOTL1L-miR-193a-5p-Pcdha regulatory axis to EMT in metastatic progression of PCa. Targeting this newly identified regulatory axis provides a potential therapeutic strategy for aggressive PCa.

[In silico identification, molecular cloning and verification of a novel pig gene homologous to human BCL10 of innate immunity and its preliminary expression profiles in pigs].

We identified and characterized a novel swine gene Bcl10 with GenBank (Accession No. EU088132) which was homologous to human BCL10 (B-cell CLL/lymphoma 10) gene. The full-length cDNA of 925 bp for swine BCL10 was in silico cloned, and then its ORF of 702 bp coding 233 amino acid residues was verified by RT-PCR and DNA sequencing. NCBI BLAST assay indicated that this cDNA contained three extrons with a length of 57, 289 and 356 bp respectively, and it was located on the chromosome 4 of pig genome. Using semi-quantitative PCR, preliminary expression profiles of swine BCL10 were verified in different swine tissues. The expression of swine BCL10 was verified by GFP marker and RT-PCR assay. We found that, BCL10 expressed in high level in swine spleen, and with a modest level in thymus, brain and lymph node; low level mRNA was expressed in liver and not detectable level in kidney. The swine BCL10 gene was cloned to the GFP-containing eukaryotic expression vector pEGFP-C1 and transfected to PK-15 cell line by lipofectin. BCL10 was ex-pressed effectively in PK-15 cells. In summary, we cloned a novel swine BCL10 gene, and investigated its expression char-acters. This will be the fundament of the future research on its function.

Evaluation of root-knot nematode disease control and plant growth promotion potential of biofertilizer Ning shield on Trichosanthes kirilowii in the field.

Biofertilizer Ning shield was composed of different strains of plant growth promotion bacteria. In this study, the plant growth promotion and root-knot nematode disease control potential on Trichosanthes kirilowii in the field were evaluated. The application of Ning shield significantly reduced the diseases severity caused by Meloidogyne incognita, the biocontrol efficacy could reached up to 51.08%. Ning shield could also promote the growth of T. kirilowii in the field by increasing seedling emergence, height and the root weight. The results showed that the Ning shield could enhance the production yield up to 36.26%. Ning shield could also promote the plant growth by increasing the contents of available nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and organic matter, and increasing the contents of leaf chlorophyll and carotenoid pigment. Moreover, Ning shield could efficiently enhance the medicinal compositions of Trichosanthes, referring to the polysaccharides and trichosanthin. Therefore, Ning shield is a promising biofertilizer, which can offer beneficial effects to T. kirilowii growers, including the plant growth promotion, the biological control of root-knot disease and enhancement of the yield and the medicinal quality.

[Seasonal Succession Characteristics of the Morphologically-based Functional Groups (MBFG) in Deep-water Reservoir].

Morphologically-based functional groups (MBFG) is the basis for a simple way of distinguishing the phytoplankon to cluster species according to their similar morphological traits observed by optical microscope.In order to understand the application of morphologically-based functional groups (MBFG) in the research on phytoplankton community structure and variation of deep-water reservoir,as well as the succession characteristics of algae,the Jinpen Reservoir was studied from August 2011 to July 2013.Using morphologically-based functional groups (MBFG),the phytoplankton communities found in the reservoir were classified to functional groups,and the relations between the morphologically-based functional groups succession and environment cases were explored with redundancy analysis (RDA) method.The results suggested that five morphologically-based functional groups were found in the reservoir,namely Ⅱ,Ⅳ,Ⅴ,Ⅵ,Ⅶ;The succession of reservoir algal functional groups had seasonal characteristics,a variety of Morphologically-based functional groups coexisted in spring and summer,while reservoir algal functional groups were relatively simple in autumn and winter;meanwhile,the density of each morphologically-based functional group decreased with the increase of water depth among the environmental factors,morphologically-based functional groups Ⅳ and Ⅵ were respectively affected by temperature;the other water layers of the reservoir morphologically-based functional groups Ⅵ was significantly affected by TN content.

[Redox Transformation of Arsenic and Antimony in Soils Mediated by Pantoea sp. IMH].

Soil contamination with co-existing arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb) has become a serious environmental problem worldwide. Microorganisms play a dominant role in the redox transformation and mobilization of As and Sb. As and Sb belong to the same family; they are alike in nature and have related microbial oxidation-reduction mechanisms. However, limited knowledge is available about the impact of As-reducing bacteria on the fate of As and Sb in their co-existing soils. The purpose of this study was to explore the redox transformation and release of As and Sb in the presence of an arsC carrier, Pantoea sp. IMH, which has high As(Ⅴ)-reducing capability. In addition to the IMH incubation system, the dead cell system and abiotic control experiments were conducted. The results showed that the IMH incubation reduced all soluble As(Ⅴ) (72.7 µg·L-1) to As(Ⅲ) form, whereas soluble Sb(Ⅴ) (364.8 µg·L-1) was not reduced, indicating that the As (V)-reducing pathway mediated by arsC genesis was not able to reduce Sb(Ⅴ). The amounts of total As (506.8 µg·L-1) and total Sb (821.1 µg·L-1) in the dead cell system were approximately four times higher than in the living cell system (As=155.2 µg·L-1; Sb=364.8 µg·L-1) and the abiotic control (As=57.6 µg·L-1; Sb=271.1 µg·L-1) because of the biomolecules released from the dead cells which enhanced the release of As and Sb. The correlation analysis of dissolved As and Sb showed that the release of total As and Sb was correlated (P<0.05) in three systems. Our study shed new light on the impact of bacteria on the fate of As and Sb in soils.

Silencing of miR-193a-5p increases the chemosensitivity of prostate cancer cells to docetaxel.

BACKGROUND: Docetaxel-based chemotherapy failure in advanced prostate carcinoma has partly been attributed to the resistance of prostate cancer (PC) cells to docetaxel-induced apoptosis. Hence, there is an urgent need to identify mechanisms of docetaxel chemoresistance and to develop new combination therapies. METHODS: miR-193a-5p level was evaluated by qPCR in prostate tissues and cell lines, and its expression in the tissues was also examined by in situ hybridization. PC cell line (PC3 cell) was transfected with miR-193a-5p mimic or its inhibitor, and then cell apoptosis and the expression of its downstream genes Bach2 and HO-1 were detected by TUNEL staining and Western blotting. Luciferase reporter assay was used to detect the effect of miR-193a-5p and Bach2 on HO-1 expression. Xenograft animal model was used to test the effect of miR-193a-5p and docetaxel on PC3 xenograft growth. RESULTS: miR-193a-5p was upregulated in PC tissues and PC cell lines, with significant suppression of PC3 cell apoptosis induced by oxidative stress. Mechanistically, miR-193a-5p suppressed the expression of Bach2, a repressor of the HO-1 gene, by directly targeting the Bach2 mRNA 3'-UTR. Docetaxel treatment modestly decreased Bach2 expression and increased HO-1 level in PC3 cells, whereas a modest increase of HO-1 facilitated docetaxel-induced apoptosis. Notably, docetaxel-induced miR-193a-5p upregulation, which in turn inhibits Bach2 expression and thus relieves Bach2 repression of HO-1 expression, partly counteracted docetaxel-induced apoptosis, as evidenced by the increased Bcl-2 and decreased Bax expression. Accordingly, silencing of miR-193a-5p enhanced sensitization of PC3 cells to docetaxel-induced apoptosis. Finally, depletion of miR-193a-5p significantly reduced PC xenograft growth in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: Silencing of miR-193a-5p or blockade of the miR-193a-5p-Bach2-HO-1 pathway may be a novel therapeutic approach for castration-resistant PC.

Algicidal and denitrification characterization of Acinetobacter sp. J25 against Microcystis aeruginosa and microbial community in eutrophic landscape water.

Acinetobacter sp. J25 exhibited good denitrification and high algicidal activity against toxic Microcystis aeruginosa. Response surface methodology (RSM) experiments showed that the maximum algicidal ratio occurred under the following conditions: temperature, 30.46°C; M. aeruginosa density, 960,000cellsmL(-1); and inoculum, 23.75% (v/v). Of these, inoculum produced the maximum effect. In the eutrophic landscape water experiment, 10% bacterial culture was infected with M. aeruginosa cells in the landscape water. After 24days, the removal ratios of nitrate and chlorophyll-a were high, 100% and 87.86%, respectively. The denitrification rate was approximately 0.118mgNO3(-)-N·L(-1)·h(-1). Moreover, the high-throughput sequencing result showed that Acinetobacter sp. J25 was obviously beneficial for chlorophyll-a and nitrate removal performance in the eutrophic landscape water treatment. Therefore, strain J25 is promising for the simultaneous removal of chlorophyll-a and nitrate in the eutrophic landscape water treatment.

Distribution and clinical association of plasma soluble ST2 during the development of type 2 diabetes.

AIM: ST2 plays important roles in diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. However, the distribution and changes in plasma soluble ST2 during the development of type 2 diabetes remain unclear. METHODS: In the present study, 525 subjects were recruited and divided into three groups: normal, prediabetic and diabetic subjects. The sST2 levels of all subjects were measured using a high-sensitivity assay. RESULTS: sST2 levels were modestly but significantly elevated in patients with diabetes (26.1ng/ml) compared with normal subjects (19.3ng/ml, P<0.001) and persons with prediabetes (20.3ng/ml, P<0.001). The third and fourth quartiles (21.3 and 29.1ng/ml, respectively) of the sST2 levels were associated with a 2.31- and 4.00-fold increased risk of having diabetes. With the prediabetic group as a reference population, patients with sST2 levels in the fourth quartiles had a higher increased risk of having diabetes mellitus (odds ratios=2.19, P<0.05). Furthermore, each SD log sST2 was associated with a 1.57-fold increased risk of atherosclerosis when all relevant variables was added to the multivariable logistic regression models. After adjustment for age and sex, all markers of liver and renal function, HDL-cholesterol, total cholesterol and smoking status showed a significant association with sST2 levels. CONCLUSION: Elevated sST2 levels were not only associated with metabolic characteristics of diabetes but also with a significantly increased risk of having diabetes.

Six Zn(II) and Cd(II) coordination polymers assembled from a similar binuclear building unit: tunable structures and luminescence properties.

Six Zn(ii) and Cd(ii) coordination polymers were constructed by treating a 2-substituted 8-hydroxyquinolinate ligand containing a pyridyl group with zinc or cadmium salts, and characterized by a variety of techniques. Interestingly, based on a similar binuclear Zn(ii) or Cd(ii) building unit, the supramolecular structures of the six coordination polymers () exhibit an unprecedented structural diversification due to the different choices of metal salts. and represent a novel 2D framework containing 1D infinite right- and left-handed helical chains. and are 2D coordination frameworks based on binuclear Cd(ii) building units. For and , the L ligands can bridge binuclear building units forming a 1D infinite chain. Interestingly, the adjacent Cd2O2 planes of the 1D chain in are in parallel with each other, while the dihedral angle between the two Zn2O2 planes in is 83.43°. Photoluminescence properties revealed that the six coordination polymers exhibit redshifted emission maximum compared with the free ligand HL, which can be ascribed to an increased conformational rigidity and the fabrication of coplanar binuclear building units M2L2 in . Coordination polymers also display distinct fluorescence lifetimes and quantum yields because of their different metal centers and supramolecular structures.

Structural and luminescence modulation in 8-hydroxyquinolinate-based coordination polymers by varying the dicarboxylic acid.

Two Zn(ii) and Cd(ii) coordination polymers [ZnL2·2DMF] (1) and [CdL(OAc)] (2) were first synthesized by treating a novel 2-substituted 8-hydroxyquinolinate ligand HL involving a pyridyl group with zinc or cadmium salts. Two dicarboxylic acid ligands (H2BDC = 1,4-benzenedicarboxylic acid; H2BPDC = 4,4'-biphenyldicarboxylic acid) are employed as secondary auxiliary ligands to perform a systematic study on the structural diversities in the M(ii)-quinolinate frameworks. By introducing two dicarboxylate anions in the reaction system, four new polymers [Zn2L2(BDC)] (3), [Zn3L2I2(BPDC)·2MeOH·8H2O] (4), [Cd2L2(BDC)] (5) and [Cd2L2(BPDC)·2MeOH·4H2O] (6) were obtained. Complex 1 possesses a two-dimensional (2D) square grid containing meso-helical chains. Complex 2 is a 2D network fabricated by binuclear {Zn2} secondary building units (SBUs). Complexes 3 and 5 show a kind of 2D structure constructed by cyclic hexamers Zn6L4, which are divided into half by the coordinated BDC. In complex 4, the BPDC ligands bridge the 1D M(ii)-L chains into a 2D layered structure. Complex 6 presents an interesting 3D structure, in which the BPDC ligands link the binuclear Cd(ii) units into many meso-helical chains along the a and b axes. The diverse structures of complexes 1-6 indicate that the skeletons of dicarboxylate anions play an important role in the assembly of such different frameworks. Moreover, distinct fluorescence properties (emission wavelength and lifetime) of the complexes 1-6 were observed in the solid state.

Differences in the predictive value of red cell distribution width for the mortality of patients with heart failure due to various heart diseases.

BACKGROUND: Increased red blood cell distribution width (RDW) is associated with adverse outcomes in patients with heart failure (HF). The objective of this study was to compare the differences in the predictive value of RDW in patients with HF due to different causes. METHODS: We retrospectively investigated 1,021 HF patients from October 2009 to December 2011 at Fuwai Hospital (Beijing, China). HF in these patients was caused by three diseases; coronary heart disease (CHD), dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and valvular heart disease (VHD). Patients were followed-up for 21 ± 9 months. RESULTS: The RDW, mortality and survival duration were significantly different among the three groups. Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the cumulative survival decreased significantly with increased RDW in patients with HF caused by CHD and DCM, but not in those with HF patients caused by VHD. In a multivariable model, RDW was identified as an independent predictor for the mortality of HF patients with CHD (P < 0.001, HR 1.315, 95% CI 1.122-1.543). The group with higher N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and higher RDW than median had the lowest cumulative survival in patients with HF due to CHD, but not in patients with HF due to DCM. CONCLUSIONS: RDW is a prognostic indicator for patients with HF caused by CHD and DCM; thus, RDW adds important information to NT-proBNP in CHD caused HF patients.

[Spatiotemporal succession of algae functional groups and the influence of environment change in a deep-water reservoir].

Algae functional group has become an important theory and method of algae research in recent years. In order to explore the spatiotemporal succession of algae functional groups and the influence of environment change, water samples were collected in August, 2011 from a deep-water reservoir in Northwest China. The research combined the methods of on-line monitoring and laboratory analysis. The results showed that there were 10 functional groups of algae in the reservoir. They were designated as B, D, P, X1, X3, F, G, J, L(M) and MP. Wherein, the groups B, P, F, X1, MP, D and J were comparatively common functional groups, and the groups X3, G and L(M) were less common. The populations of groups B, D, P, X1 and X3 were larger than those of the others. Besides, the analysis of changes in the environment factors suggested that temperature was the most important factor influencing the spatiotemporal succession of algae functional groups. The strategy of algal growth followed the law: R/CR in spring --> CR/C in late spring and early summer C/CR/R/CS/S in late summer and early autumn --> CR/R in late autumn and winter. The purpose of this article is to provide theoretical support for water withdrawal safety in deep-water reservoirs.

Evaluation of root-knot nematode disease control and plant growth promotion potential of biofertilizer Ning shield on Trichosanthes kirilowii in the field

Abstract Biofertilizer Ning shield was composed of different strains of plant growth promotion bacteria. In this study, the plant growth promotion and root-knot nematode disease control potential on Trichosanthes kirilowii in the field were evaluated. The application of Ning shield significantly reduced the diseases severity caused by Meloidogyne incognita, the biocontrol efficacy could reached up to 51.08%. Ning shield could also promote the growth of T. kirilowii in the field by increasing seedling emergence, height and the root weight. The results showed that the Ning shield could enhance the production yield up to 36.26%. Ning shield could also promote the plant growth by increasing the contents of available nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and organic matter, and increasing the contents of leaf chlorophyll and carotenoid pigment. Moreover, Ning shield could efficiently enhance the medicinal compositions of Trichosanthes, referring to the polysaccharides and trichosanthin. Therefore, Ning shield is a promising biofertilizer, which can offer beneficial effects to T. kirilowii growers, including the plant growth promotion, the biological control of root-knot disease and enhancement of the yield and the medicinal quality.