Multi-Omics Analysis of the Effects of Soil Amendment on Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) Photosynthesis under Drip Irrigation with Brackish Water.

Drip irrigation with brackish water increases the risk of soil salinization while alleviating water shortage in arid areas. In order to alleviate soil salinity stress on crops, polymer soil amendments are increasingly used. But the regulation mechanism of a polymer soil amendment composed of polyacrylamide polyvinyl alcohol, and manganese sulfate (PPM) on rapeseed photosynthesis under drip irrigation with different types of brackish water is still unclear. In this field study, PPM was applied to study the responses of the rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) phenotype, photosynthetic physiology, transcriptomics, and metabolomics at the peak flowering stage under drip irrigation with water containing 6 g·L-1 NaCl (S) and Na2CO3 (A). The results showed that the inhibitory effect of the A treatment on rapeseed photosynthesis was greater than that of the S treatment, which was reflected in the higher Na+ content (73.30%) and lower photosynthetic-fluorescence parameters (6.30-61.54%) and antioxidant enzyme activity (53.13-77.10%) of the A-treated plants. The application of PPM increased the biomass (63.03-75.91%), photosynthetic parameters (10.55-34.06%), chlorophyll fluorescence parameters (33.83-62.52%), leaf pigment content (10.30-187.73%), and antioxidant enzyme activity (28.37-198.57%) under S and A treatments. However, the difference is that under the S treatment, PPM regulated the sulfur metabolism, carbon fixation and carbon metabolism pathways in rapeseed leaves. And it also regulated the photosynthesis-, oxidative phosphorylation-, and TCA cycle-related metabolic pathways in rapeseed leaves under A treatment. This study will provide new insights for the application of polymer materials to tackle the salinity stress on crops caused by drip irrigation with brackish water, and solve the difficulty in brackish water utilization.

Influence of Temperatures on Physicochemical Properties and Structural Features of Tamarind Seed Polysaccharide.

Due to the high content of impurities such as proteins in tamarind seed polysaccharide (TSP), they must be separated and purified before it can be used. TSP can disperse in cold water, but a solution can only be obtained by heating the mixture. Therefore, it is important to understand the dispersion and dissolution process of TSP at different temperatures to expand the application of TSP. In this study, pasting behavior and rheological properties as a function of temperature were characterized in comparison with potato starch (PS), and their relationship with TSP molecular features and microstructure was revealed. Pasting behavior showed that TSP had higher peak viscosity and stronger thermal stability than PS. Rheological properties exhibited that G' and G'' of TSP gradually increased with the increase in temperature, without exhibiting typical starch gelatinization behavior. The crystalline or amorphous structure of TSP and starch was disrupted under different temperature treatment conditions. The SEM results show that TSP particles directly transformed into fragments with the temperature increase, while PS granules first expanded and then broken down into fragments. Therefore, TSP and PS underwent different dispersion mechanisms during the dissolution process: As the temperature gradually increased, TSP possibly underwent a straightforward dispersion and was then dissolved in aqueous solution, while PS granules initially expanded, followed by disintegration and dispersion.

[Clinicopathological characteristics of the CD8+ T lymphocytes infiltration and its mechanism in distinct molecular subtype of medulloblastoma].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the characteristics of the CD8+ T cells infiltration from the 4 subtypes in medulloblastoma (MB), to analyze the relationship between CD8+ T cells infiltration and prognosis, to study the function of C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 11 (CXCL11) and its receptor in CD8+ T cells infiltration into tumors and to explore the potential mechanism, and to provide the necessary clinicopathological basis for exploring the immunotherapy of MB. METHODS: In the study, 48 clinical MB samples (12 cases in each of 4 subtypes) were selected from the multiple medical center from 2012 to 2019. The transcriptomics analysis for the tumor of 48 clinical samples was conducted on the NanoString PanCancer IO360TM Panel (NanoString Technologies). Immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded sections from MB was carried out using CD8 primary antibody to analyze diffe-rential quantities of CD8+ T cells in the MB four subtypes. Through bioinformatics analysis, the relationship between CD8+T cells infiltration and prognosis of the patients and the expression differences of various chemokines in the different subtypes of MB were investigated. The expression of CXCR3 receptor on the surface of CD8+T cells in MB was verified by double immunofluorescence staining, and the underlying molecular mechanism of CD8+T cells infiltration into the tumor was explored. RESULTS: The characteristic index of CD8+T cells in the WNT subtype of MB was relatively high, suggesting that the number of CD8+T cells in the WNT subtype was significantly higher than that in the other three subtypes, which was confirmed by CD8 immunohistochemical staining and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database analysis by using R2 online data analysis platform. And the increase of CD8+T cells infiltration was positively correlated with the patient survival. The expression level of CXCL11 in the WNT subtype MB was significantly higher than that of the other three subtypes. Immunofluorescence staining showed the presence of CXCL11 receptor, CXCR3, on the surface of CD8+T cells, suggesting that the CD8+T cells might be attracted to the MB microenvironment by CXCL11 through CXCR3. CONCLUSION: The CD8+T cells infiltrate more in the WNT subtype MB than other subtypes. The mechanism may be related to the activation of CXCL11-CXCR3 chemokine system, and the patients with more infiltration of CD8+T cells in tumor have better prognosis. This finding may provide the necessary clinicopathological basis for the regulatory mechanism of CD8+T cells infiltration in MB, and give a new potential therapeutic target for the future immunotherapy of MB.

Comparative Transcriptome Analyses Provide New Insights into the Evolution of Divergent Thermal Resistance in Two Eel Gobies.

Adaptation to thermal conditions in tidal mudflats always involves tolerating frequent fluctuations and often extreme environmental temperatures. Regulation of gene expression plays a fundamental role in the evolution of these thermal adaptations. To identify the key gene regulatory networks associated with the thermal adaptation, we investigated the capability of cold tolerance, as well as the transcriptomic changes under cold stress in two mudflat inhabitants (Odontamblyopus lacepedii and O. rebecca) with contrasting latitude affinity. Our results revealed a remarkable divergent capacity of cold tolerance (CTmin: 0.61 °C vs. 9.57 °C) between the two gobies. Analysis of transcriptomic changes under cold stress unveiled 193 differentially expressed genes exhibiting similar expression profiles across all tissues and species, including several classic metabolic and circadian rhythm molecules such as ACOD and CIART that may represent the core cold response machinery in eel gobies. Meanwhile, some genes show a unique expression spectrum in the more cold-tolerant O. lacepedii suggesting their roles in the enhanced cold tolerance and hence the extreme thermal adaptations. In addition, a weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) revealed a subset of metabolic hub genes including MYH11 and LIPT2 showing distinct down-regulation in O. lacepedii when exposed to cold stress which highlights the role of reduced energy consumption in the enhanced cold tolerance of eel gobies. These findings not only provide new insights into how mudflat teleosts could cope with cold stress and their potential evolutionary strategies for adapting to their thermal environment, but also have important implications for sound management and conservation of their fishery resources in a scenario of global climate warming in the marine realm.

Diet supplementation of organic zinc positively affects growth, antioxidant capacity, immune response and lipid metabolism in juvenile largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides.

Zn is an important trace element involved in various biochemical processes in aquatic species. An 8-week rearing trial was thus conducted to investigate the effects of Zn on juvenile largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) by feeding seven diets, respectively, supplemented with no Zn (Con), 60 and 120 mg/kg inorganic Zn (Sul60 and Sul120), and 30, 60, 90 and 120 mg/kg organic Zn (Bio30, Bio60, Bio90 and Bio120). Sul120 and Bio120 groups showed significantly higher weight gain and specific growth rate than Con group, with Bio60 group obtaining the lowest viscerosomatic index and hepatosomatic index. 60 or 90 mg/kg organic Zn significantly facilitated whole body Zn retention. Up-regulation of hepatic superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase activities and decline of malondialdehyde contents indicated augmented antioxidant capacities by organic Zn. Zn treatment also lowered plasma aminotransferase levels while promoting acid phosphatase activity and hepatic transcription levels of alp1, acp1 and lyz-c than deprivation of Zn. The alterations in whole body and liver crude lipid and plasma TAG contents illustrated the regulatory effect of Zn on lipid metabolism, which could be possibly attributed to the changes in hepatic expressions of acc1, pparγ, atgl and cpt1. These findings demonstrated the capabilities of Zn in potentiating growth and morphological performance, antioxidant capacity, immunity as well as regulating lipid metabolism in M. salmoides. Organic Zn could perform comparable effects at same or lower supplementation levels than inorganic Zn, suggesting its higher efficiency. 60 mg/kg supplementation of organic Zn could effectively cover the requirements of M. salmoides.

Genome Sequencing Provides Novel Insights into Mudflat Burrowing Adaptations in Eel Goby Taenioides sp. (Teleost: Amblyopinae).

Amblyopinae is one of the lineage of bony fish that preserves amphibious traits living in tidal mudflat habitats. In contrast to other active amphibious fish, Amblyopinae species adopt a seemly more passive lifestyle by living in deep burrows of mudflat to circumvent the typical negative effects associated with terrestriality. However, little is known about the genetic origin of these mudflat deep-burrowing adaptations in Amblyopinae. Here we sequenced the first genome of Amblyopinae species, Taenioides sp., to elucidate their mudflat deep-burrowing adaptations. Our results revealed an assembled genome size of 774.06 Mb with 23 pseudochromosomes anchored, which predicted 22,399 protein-coding genes. Phylogenetic analyses indicated that Taenioides sp. diverged from the active amphibious fish of mudskipper approximately 28.3 Ma ago. In addition, 185 and 977 putative gene families were identified to be under expansion, contraction and 172 genes were undergone positive selection in Taenioides sp., respectively. Enrichment categories of top candidate genes under significant expansion and selection were mainly associated with hematopoiesis or angiogenesis, DNA repairs and the immune response, possibly suggesting their involvement in the adaptation to the hypoxia and diverse pathogens typically observed in mudflat burrowing environments. Some carbohydrate/lipid metabolism, and insulin signaling genes were also remarkably alterated, illustrating physiological remolding associated with nutrient-limited subterranean environments. Interestingly, several genes related to visual perception (e.g., crystallins) have undergone apparent gene losses, pointing to their role in the small vestigial eyes development in Taenioides sp. Our work provide valuable resources for understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying mudflat deep-burrowing adaptations in Amblyopinae, as well as in other tidal burrowing teleosts.

Amblyopinae Mitogenomes Provide Novel Insights into the Paraphyletic Origin of Their Adaptation to Mudflat Habitats.

The water-to-land transition is one of the most important events in evolutionary history of vertebrates. However, the genetic basis underlying many of the adaptations during this transition remains unclear. Mud-dwelling gobies in the subfamily Amblyopinae are one of the teleosts lineages that show terrestriality and provide a useful system for clarifying the genetic changes underlying adaptations to terrestrial life. Here, we sequenced the mitogenome of six species in the subfamily Amblyopinae. Our results revealed a paraphyletic origin of Amblyopinae with respect to Oxudercinae, which are the most terrestrial fishes and lead an amphibious life in mudflats. This partly explains the terrestriality of Amblyopinae. We also detected unique tandemly repeated sequences in the mitochondrial control region in Amblyopinae, as well as in Oxudercinae, which mitigate oxidative DNA damage stemming from terrestrial environmental stress. Several genes, such as ND2, ND4, ND6 and COIII, have experienced positive selection, suggesting their important roles in enhancing the efficiency of ATP production to cope with the increased energy requirements for life in terrestrial environments. These results strongly suggest that the adaptive evolution of mitochondrial genes has played a key role in terrestrial adaptions in Amblyopinae, as well as in Oxudercinae, and provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the water-to-land transition in vertebrates.

Nonlinear dilatational rheology of different protein aggregates at the oil-water interface.

Proteins tend to self-assemble into different morphological aggregates such as nanoparticles or fibrils during heat treatment depending on the processing conditions. The protein aggregates exhibit excellent interfacial activity and even better ability to stabilize emulsions than native proteins. The interfacial rheological properties at the oil-water interface play a very important role in emulsion stability, among which the interfacial nonlinear rheology is closely related to their ability to resist large perturbation. However, there are very few studies reporting the nonlinear interfacial rheological behavior of protein aggregates at the oil-water interface. In this study, ß-lactoglobulin fibrous aggregates (F) and nanoparticle aggregates (NP) were prepared, and the adsorption kinetics and dilatational nonlinear rheological behavior of ß-lactoglobulin aggregates at the oil-water interface under large amplitude deformation were studied using a pendant drop tensiometer, and compared with those of native proteins. From the adsorption experiments, the adsorption of protein aggregates, especially fibrils, was faster than that of native proteins in the early stage, while in the late stage, the native proteins displayed a significantly higher degree of rearrangement than the fibrils. The surface hydrophobicity and the short fibrils present mainly determine the properties of the fibril interface, while the behavior of the nanoparticle interface was significantly influenced by the size and charge properties of the nanoparticles. From the dilatational experiment, the Lissajous plots revealed that the F interface at all pHs evaluated and the ßlg interface at pH 5.8 displayed strain softening in both expansion and compression processes, while the NP interface at all pHs and ßlg interface at pH 2 and pH 7 displayed strain softening in expansion and strain hardening in compression processes. The nonlinear response of the protein aggregates at the oil-water interface was more obvious at pH 5.8. The modulus change from frequency sweeps revealed that the fibril interface was strong but not very structured in contrast to that formed by the native proteins which displays high structuration although weak in strength, whereas the strength of the interface formed by protein nanoparticles is in between, but more sensitive to the surface charge.

Curcumin and Its Analogs as Potential Epigenetic Modulators: Prevention of Diabetes and Its Complications.

BACKGROUND: The pathobiology of diabetes and associated complications has been widely researched in various countries, but effective prevention and treatment methods are still insufficient. Diabetes is a metabolic disorder of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins caused by an absence of insulin or insulin resistance, which mediates an increase of oxidative stress, release of inflammatory factors, and macro- or micro-circulation dysfunctions, ultimately developing into diverse complications. SUMMARY: In the last decade through pathogenesis research, epigenetics has been found to affect metabolic diseases. Particularly, DNA methylation, histone acetylation, and miRNAs promote or inhibit diabetes and complications by regulating the expression of related factors. Curcumin has a wide range of beneficial pharmacological activities, including anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidation, anticancer, anti-diabetes, anti-rheumatism, and increased immunity. Key Messages: In this review, we discuss the effects of curcumin and analogs on diabetes and associated complications through epigenetics, and we summarize the preclinical and clinical researches for curcumin and its analogs in terms of management of diabetes and associated complications, which may provide an insight into the development of targeted therapy of endocrine diseases.

Role of myo-inositol supplementation against toxicity of excessive dietary copper in Pacific white shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei.

Raw materials for making dried shrimp (a type of foodstuff) are mostly from farmed shrimp and preliminary findings indicated that head copper (Cu) concentrations in some commercial dried shrimp products exceeded the safe limit specified in pollution-free aquatic products (50 mg/kg), which may influence food safety. Therefore, a 63-day feeding trial was conducted to explore effects of dietary Cu concentrations on accumulation of Cu in tissues, growth performance, immune response and antioxidant status of Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei). Moderating effect of myo-inositol (MI, adding 200 mg/kg diet) on the adverse impacts caused by excessive dietary Cu was also investigated. 600 shrimp (initial weight: 0.89 ± 0.00 g) were divided into five groups: 37.08 mg Cu/kg diet group (control group), 62.57 mg Cu/kg diet group, 125.99 mg Cu/kg diet group, 63.41 mg Cu/kg diet group (supplemented with MI) and 119.19 mg Cu/kg diet group (supplemented with MI). The results showed that dietary Cu concentrations increased from 37.08 to over 62.57 mg/kg, hepatopancreas Cu concentrations raised from 29.04 to 233.43-263.65 mg/kg, and muscle Cu concentrations only increased from 6.22 to 6.99-8.39 mg/kg. Report to control group, excessive Cu concentration (125.99 mg/kg) didn't significantly affect growth performance, but it notably reduced whole body lipid content and immune response, induced oxidative stress and damaged the hepatopancreas structure, which was ameliorated by MI supplementation. The results suggested that consuming shrimp head and its processed products weren't recommended. Cu concentrations of commercial feeds for Pacific white shrimp should be controlled below 62.57 mg/kg. Additionally, MI supplementation mitigated the negative impacts induced by excessive dietary Cu.

Insulin-like Peptide Receptor (ILPR) in the Cuttlefish Sepiella japonica: Characterization, Expression, and Regulation of Reproduction.

Insulin-like peptide receptor (ILPR) can effectively regulate ovarian development in invertebrates, but its effect in cuttlefish has not been reported. We isolated and characterized a ILPR gene from Sepiella japonica, referred to as SjILPR. This gene displayed significant homologies to Octopus bimaculoides ILPR, and contained all typical features of insulin receptors and tyrosine kinase domain structure. SjILPR is expressed in all detected tissues, with the highest expression in the ovary. During ovarian development stages, its expression levels in the ovary, pancreas, and liver were correlated to the female reproductive cycle. After the silencing of SjILPR in vivo, comparative transcriptome analysis identified 4314 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the injected group, including 2586 down-regulated genes and 1728 up-regulated genes. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analyses revealed that 832 DEGs were assigned to 222 pathways, many pathways of which were related to gonadal development. Four down-regulated genes relevant to ovarian development (Vitellogenin 1, Vitellogenin 2, Cathepsin L1-like, and Follistatin) were selected to confirm the accuracy of RNA-seq data by qRT-PCR. These results showed that SjILPR might regulate ovarian development to control reproduction by affecting the expression of the relevant genes in female S. japonica.

RNA m6A methylation promotes the formation of vasculogenic mimicry in hepatocellular carcinoma via Hippo pathway.

Vasculogenic mimicry (VM) formed by aggressive tumor cells to mimic vasculogenic networks plays an important role in the tumor malignancy of HCC. However, the pathogenesis underlying VM is complex and has not been fully defined. m6A is a common mRNA modification and has many biological effects. However, the relationship between m6A and VM remains unclear. In this research, we found that m6A methyltransferase METTL3 in HCC tissues was positively correlated with VM. The m6A level of mRNA significantly increased in 3D cultured cells treated with VEGFa and was related to VM formation. Transcriptome sequencing analysis of 3D cultured cells with knockdown Mettl3 showed that the Hippo pathway was involved in m6A-mediated VM formation. Further mechanism research indicated that the m6A modification of YAP1 mRNA affected the translation of YAP1 mRNA. In conclusion, m6A methylation plays a key role in VM formation in HCC. METTL3 and YAP1 could be potential therapeutic targets via impairing VM formation in anti-metastatic strategies.

LncRNA ASAP1-IT1 enhances cancer cell stemness via regulating miR-509-3p/YAP1 axis in NSCLC.

BACKGROUND: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a major cause of cancer-related death worldwide, and cancer stem cell is responsible for the poor clinical outcome of NSCLC. Previous reports indicated that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles in maintaining cancer stemness, however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This study investigates the role of ASAP1 Intronic Transcript 1 (ASAP1-IT1) in cancer cell stemness of NSCLC. METHODS: The expression of ASAP1-IT1, microRNA-509-3p (miR-509-3p) and apoptosis-/stemness-related genes was analyzed by qRT-PCR in NSCLC tissues, cancer cells and spheres of cancer stem cells. Knockdown of ASAP1-IT1 or overexpression of miR-509-3p in NSCLC cells by infection or transfection of respective plasmids. Sphere formation and colony formation were used to detect NSCLC stem cell-like properties and tumor growth in vitro. Luciferase reporter assays, RNA immunoprecitation (RIP) and qRT-PCR assays were used to analyze the interaction between lncRNA and miRNA. The expression of expression of regulated genes of ASAP1-IT1/miR-509-3p axis was evaluated by qRT-PCR and Western blot. The NSCLC xenograft mouse model was used to validate the role of ASAP1-IT1 in NSCLC stemness and tumor growth in vivo. RESULTS: ASAP1-IT1 was up-regulated in NSCLC tissues, cancer cells, and in spheres of A549-derived cancer stem cells. Downregulation of ASAP1-IT1 or overexpression of miR-509-3p significantly decreased cell colony formation and stem cell-like properties of A549-dereived stem cells with decreased expression of stem cell biomarkers SOX2, CD34, and CD133, and suppressing the expression of cell growth-related genes, Cyclin A1, Cyclin B1, and PCNA. Furthermore, knockdown of ASAP1-IT1 or overexpression of miR-509-3p repressed tumor growth in nude mice via reducing expression of tumorigenic genes. ASAP1-IT1 was found to interact with miR-509-3p. Moreover, overexpression of ASAP1-IT1 blocked the inhibition by miR-509-3p on stem cell-like properties and cell growth of A549-dereived stem cells both in vitro and in vivo. Finally, the level of YAP1 was regulated by ASAP1-IT1 and miR-509-3p. CONCLUSIONS: YAP1-involved ASAP1-IT1/miR-509-3p axis promoted NSCLC progression by regulating cancer cell stemness, and targeting this signaling pathway could be is a promising therapeutic strategy to overcome NSCLC stemness.

Merging Gold/Copper Catalysis and Copper/Photoredox Catalysis: An Approach to Alkyl Oxazoles from N-Propargylamides.

Here, we report a mild and highly efficient approach to alkyl oxazoles through merging gold/copper catalysis and copper/photoredox catalysis. Various alkyl oxazoles are synthesized from N-propargylamides with alkyl halides in good to excellent yields with wide functional-group compatibility under blue-light irradiation. Significantly, a copper catalyst plays a dual role in this transformation: as a powerful cocatalyst to accelerate protodeauration of vinyl gold intermediates and improve photoredox catalysis.

Engineered endomorphin-2 gene: A novel therapy for improving morphine reinstatement in CPP model of rats by using deficient adenovirus as the vector.

Optimal therapeutics to deal with high relapse rates when discontinued is urgent for opioid dependence treatments. Endogenous endomorphin-2 (EM2) level in the central nervous system (CNS) down-regulates obviously after sustained morphine exposure, which suggested that to up-regulate the EM2 level could be a novel method for reinstatement. But the clinical applications of EM2 through conventional administration are limited owing to its short half-life. In our study, we engineered an EM2 gene to achieve the sustained release of EM-2 in CNS by utilizing a signal peptide of mouse growth factor for out-secreting EM2 and a deficient adenovirus as the vector. By intrathecally injecting engineering EM2 gene, a sustained increase of EM2 concentration in the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) was observed along with a reduction of CPP scores. Also, the activation of astrocytes was suppressed in the hippocampus. In summary, this study provides evidence and reference for using intraspinal gene therapy with a combination of mouse growth factor and EM2 to treat morphine reinstatement.

Distributed measurements of external force induced local birefringence in spun highly birefringent optical fibers using polarimetric OFDR.

We develop a local birefringence determination method of measuring the distribution of external force-induced birefringence in spun high-birefringence (HiBi) fiber (spun HiBi fiber) using polarimetric optical frequency domain reflectometry (P-OFDR). By constructing the similarity between the measured Mueller matrices and fiber under test (FUT) matrices using two input states of polarization, the total phase retardance caused by the local birefringence of FUT can be determined from the trace of the measured matrices. We measure the local birefringence of spun HiBi fibers from two different manufacturers and telecom SMF (G652.D) caused by bending, twist, and transverse stress using our presented P-OFDR system. From the experimental results, we find that bending- and twist-induced birefringences of spun HiBi fiber are much lower than those of standard SMF. More remarkably, the coating package influences the transverse stress induced birefringence of spun HiBi fibers significantly. These experimental results verify that our presented method is beneficial to evaluating and improving spun HiBi fibers' quality.

Metabolomics revealed decreased level of omega-3 PUFA-derived protective eicosanoids in pregnant women with pre-eclampsia.

Pre-eclampsia (PE) is considered a leading cause of mortality and morbidity in pregnant women worldwide. Eicosanoids derived from polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) might play an important role in the occurrence and development of PE. Omega-3 PUFAs are nutrients that are popular supplements for pregnant women and can reduce blood pressure. However, the levels of eicosanoids derived from omega-3 PUFAs in women with PE is not clear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the eicosanoid metabolic signature of PE. We performed a case-control study using data for pregnant women (n = 10) with PE and normotensive pregnant women (n = 10). We investigated the difference in eicosanoid profile between the groups by LC-MS/MS-based metabolomics. The plasma levels of arachidonic acid metabolites and some of the lipoxygenase metabolites of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) showed an increasing trend, and those of the cytochrome P450 metabolites of EPA and DHA were decreased in women with PE. Levels of leukotriene B4, 14,15-dihydroxy-eicosatetraenoate, 16-hydroxydocosahexaenoic acid and 8,9-epoxy eicosatetraenoic acid were significantly correlated with PE occurrence. These eicosanoids might take part in the progression of PE in pregnant women.

Team-based learning pedagogy enhances the quality of Chinese pharmacy education: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Recent years have witnessed the wide application of team-based learning(TBL) pedagogy in Chinese pharmacy education. However, the relevant systematic review evaluating the effects of such new pedagogical approach has not been established. The present study was designed to examine systematically the effect of using TBL approach in pharmacy education in China. METHODS: Six databases were searched from the inception to January 2019. The studies reporting the performance of pharmacy students in Chinese university or college receiving TBL pedagogy compared to those receiving traditional lecture-based learning (LBL) were enrolled to be analyzed. Scores of the objective theoretical test were considered as the primary outcome, and the results from questionnaires about the number of students who approved the effects of TBL pedagogy on improving their learning enthusiasm, self-study ability, thinking ability, and communication skills were considered as the secondary outcome. A meta-analysis was conducted following the guidelines of the Cochrane Reviewer's Handbook and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analyses statement. RESULTS: A total of 1271 students in 12 studies published from 2013 to 2018 were enrolled in present analysis. Compared with traditional LBL pedagogy, TBL pedagogy exhibited more effectiveness in developing the objective tests scores of pharmacy students from both universities (SMD = 1.69, 95% CI [1.10, 2.28], p < 0.00001) and colleges (SMD = 4.37, 95% CI [1.33, 7.40], p < 0.00001), and such pedagogy applied well in experiments-oriented courses (SMD = 2.14, 95% CI [0.86, 3.43], p < 0.00001) and theory-oriented courses (SMD = 2.77, 95% CI [1.41, 4.14], p < 0.00001). In addition, it developed students' learning enthusiasm, students' self-study ability, thinking ability, and enhanced students' communication skills. CONCLUSIONS: TBL pedagogy has developed rapidly and applied widely in Chinese pharmacy education during the last decade. The results indicated that such novel pedagogy is compatible with the present situation of Chinese pharmacy education. And it could be considered as an effective method to enhance both the theoretical test scores and various abilities of Chinese pharmacy students.

Fabrication and Characterization of High-Frequency Ultrasound Transducers Based on Lead-Free BNT-BT Tape-Casting Thick Film.

A lead-free 0.94(Na0.5Bi0.5) TiO3-0.06 BaTiO3 (BNT-BT) thick film, with a thickness of 60 µm, has been fabricated using a tape-casting method. The longitudinal piezoelectric constant, clamped dielectric permittivity constant, remnant polarization and coercive field of the BNT-BT thick film were measured to be 150 pC/N, 1928, 13.6 µC/cm², and 33.6 kV/cm, respectively. The electromechanical coupling coefficient kt was calculated to be 0.55 according to the measured electrical impedance spectrum. A high-frequency plane ultrasound transducer was successfully fabricated using a BNT-BT thick film. The performance of the transducer was characterized and evaluated by the pulse-echo testing and wire phantom imaging operations. The BNT-BT thick film transducer exhibits a center frequency of 34 MHz, a -6 dB bandwidth of 26%, an axial resolution of 77 µm and a lateral resolution of 484 µm. The results suggest that lead-free BNT-BT thick film fabricated by tape-casting method is a promising lead-free candidate for high-frequency ultrasonic transducer applications.