Feasibility of anaerobic ammonium oxidation process for treatment of pretreated printed circuit board wastewater.

The treatment of pretreated printed circuit board (PCB) wastewater by anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) process has been rarely reported. This study sought to investigate the performance of the anammox process during various phases of pretreated PCB wastewater treatment. The nitrogen removal efficiency (NRE) reached 90 ± 10% at a Cu2+ concentration of 2.5 mg·L-1, but declined to 22 ± 11% as the Cu2+ level increased to 10.3  mg·L-1. During phase III, there was a 38% increase in the relative abundance of Candidatus Kuenenia compared to phase I. By adjusting the substrate concentration and introducing synthetic wastewater into the reactor, the anammox performance was nearly restored to that of phase I. These findings underscore the potential of the anammox process for treating pretreated PCB wastewater and expanding its practical applications to industrial wastewater treatment.

Nickel-Catalyzed Direct Cross-Coupling of Unactivated Aryl Fluorides with Aryl Bromides.

A nickel-catalyzed direct cross-coupling of unactivated aryl fluorides with aryl bromides is realized. The one-pot reaction, which avoids the use of preformed and sensitive organometallic reagents, proceeds effectively via C-F bond cleavage at room temperature in THF in the presence of the phosphine ligand and magnesium powder (with or without TMSCl) to produce the desired biaryls in modest to good yields.

The role of the cd99l2 gene on leukocyte interstitial migration in zebrafish.

Leukocytes play an essential role in ontogeny, tissue regeneration, and innate and adaptive immunity. The migration of leukocytes to the infected or traumatized areas is necessary for their immune response function. As an adhesion molecule, CD99L2 is crucial in the extravasation of leukocytes, however, its role in the interstitial migration of leukocytes remains unclear. In this study, the cd99l2 gene was knock-out by TALEN (transcription activator-like effector nuclease) in zebrafish and discovered that the deletion had no effect on zebrafish development. The number of granulocytes and macrophages recruited to the wounded tissue was significantly reduced in the cd99l2 mutants following caudal fin damage. Further research revealed that the expression of mfap4 was drastically decreased in the cd99l2 mutants, which may be one of the reasons that affect the migration of macrophages to the wound site. Moreover,transgenic lines with labeled vasculature, neutrophils and macrophages demonstrated that neutrophils and macrophages migrate throughout the interstitial space to the wound tissue in both wild-type and mutant zebrafish at 60 hours post-fertilization, indicating that the cd99l2 gene is involved in the interstitial migration of leukocytes. Finally, RNA transcription, protein folding, and the P450 pathway were enriched in cd99l2 mutants by RNA-seq analysis. Previous research had demonstrated that the regulation of transcription and signal transduction could be affected by adhesion molecules, which may suggest that the cd99l2 gene is involved in the cascade signaling pathway of leukocyte migration as an adhesion molecule. In conclusion, this study uncovered a novel function of the cd99l2 gene in the process of leukocyte migration in zebrafish, which is expected to provide a theoretical foundation for inflammatory and immune-related diseases.

Longitudinal association of maternal dietary patterns with antenatal depression: Evidence from the Chinese Pregnant Women Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Limited evidence to show the longitudinal associations between maternal dietary patterns and antenatal depression (AD) from cohort studies across the entire gestation period. METHODS: Data came from the Chinese Pregnant Women Cohort Study. The qualitative food frequency questionnaire (Q-FFQ) and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) were used to collect diet and depression data. Dietary patterns were derived by using factor analysis. Generalized estimating equation models were used to analyze the association between diet and AD. RESULTS: A total of 4139 participants finishing 3-wave of follow-up were finally included. Four constant diets were identified, namely plant-based, animal-protein, vitamin-rich and oily-fatty patterns. The prevalence of depression was 23.89%, 21.12% and 22.42% for the first, second and third trimesters. There were reverse associations of plant-based pattern (OR:0.85, 95%CI:0.75-0.97), animal-protein pattern (OR:0.85, 95%CI:0.74-0.99) and vitamin-rich pattern (OR:0.58, 95%CI:0.50-0.67) with AD, while a positive association between oily-fatty pattern and AD (OR:1.47, 95%CI:1.29-1.68). Except for the plant-based pattern, other patterns had linear trend relationships with AD (Ptrend < 0.05). Moreover, a 1-SD increase in vitamin-rich pattern scores was associated with a 20% lower AD risk (OR:0.80, 95%CI:0.76-0.84), while a 1-SD increase in oily-fatty pattern scores was associated with a 19% higher risk (OR:1.19, 95%CI:1.13-1.24). Interactions between dietary patterns and lifestyle habits were observed. LIMITATIONS: The self-reported Q-FFQ and EPDS may cause recall bias. CONCLUSIONS: There are longitudinal associations between maternal dietary patterns and antenatal depression. Our findings are expected to provide evidence for a dietary therapy strategy to improve or prevent depression during pregnancy.

Nickel-Catalyzed Direct Cross-Coupling of Aryl Sulfonium Salt with Aryl Bromide.

The direct cross-couplings of aryl sulfonium salts with aryl halides could be achieved by using nickel as a reaction catalyst. The reactions proceeded efficiently via C-S bond activation in the presence of magnesium turnings and lithium chloride in THF at ambient temperature to afford the corresponding biaryls in moderate to good yields, potentially serving as an attractive alternative to conventional cross-coupling reactions employing preprepared organometallic reagents.

Cohort profile: the Chinese Pregnant Women Cohort Study and Offspring Follow-up (CPWCSaOF).

PURPOSE: A multicentre prospective cohort study, known as the Chinese Pregnant Women Cohort Study (CPWCS), was established in 2017 to collect exposure data during pregnancy (except environmental exposure) and analyse the relationship between lifestyle during pregnancy and obstetric outcomes. Data about mothers and their children's life and health as well as children's laboratory testing will be collected during the offspring follow-up of CPWCS, which will enable us to further investigate the longitudinal relationship between exposure in different periods (during pregnancy and childhood) and children's development. PARTICIPANTS: 9193 pregnant women in 24 hospitals in China who were in their first trimester (5-13 weeks gestational age) from 25 July 2017 to 26 November 2018 were included in CPWCS by convenience sampling. Five hospitals in China which participated in CPWCS with good cooperation will be selected as the sample source for the Chinese Pregnant Women Cohort Study (Offspring Follow-up) (CPWCS-OF). FINDINGS TO DATE: Some factors affecting pregnancy outcomes and health problems during pregnancy have been discovered through data analysis. The details are discussed in the 'Findings to date' section. FUTURE PLANS: Infants and children and their mothers who meet the criteria will be enrolled in the study and will be followed up every 2 years. The longitudinal relationship between exposure (questionnaire data, physical examination and biospecimens, medical records, and objective environmental data collected through geographical information system and remote sensing technology) in different periods (during pregnancy and childhood) and children's health (such as sleeping problem, oral health, bowel health and allergy-related health problems) will be analysed. TRAIL REGISTRATION NUMBER: CPWCS was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov on 18 January 2018: NCT03403543. CPWCS-OF was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov on 24 June 2020: NCT04444791.

Lycopene protects against atrazine-induced hepatotoxicity through modifications of cytochrome P450 enzyme system in microsomes.

Atrazine (ATR) is primarily distributed in liver and hazardous to animal health. Cytochrome P450 enzyme system (CYP450s) is responsible for the biotransformation of toxic substances. Lycopene (LYC) prevents the herbicide-induced toxicity. However, it is unclear that LYC protects against ATR-induced hepatotoxicity via modifying CYP450s. To ascertain the chemoprevention of LYC on ATR-induced hepatotoxicity, male Kunming mice were treated with LYC (5mg/kg) and/or ATR (50mg/kg or 200mg/kg) by gavage administration for 21 days. These results showed that ATR induced the increase of total CYP450 and Cytochrome b5 (Cyt b5) contents and stimulated the activities of CYP450s enzymes (erythromycin N-demethylase (ERND), aminopyrin N-demethylase (APND), aniline-4-hydeoxylase (AH) and NADPH-cytochrome c reductase (NCR)) in hepatic microsomes. The mRNA expressions of six CYP450s genes (increase: CYP1a1, CYP2a4, CYP3a57 and decrease: CYP2f2, CYP3a11, CYP4a31) were significantly influenced by ATR. LYC modulated the contents and activities of CYP450s and normalized the expressions of four CYP450s genes (CYP1b1, CYP2a4, CYP2e1, and 4A14). These findings suggested that ATR induced hepatic CYP450s disturbance and influenced the gene expression of CYP450s. Lycopene protected against hepatic CYP450s disturbance induced by ATR via modifying the hepatic CYP450s activities and transcription in mice.

Atrazine triggers developmental abnormality of ovary and oviduct in quails (Coturnix Coturnix coturnix) via disruption of hypothalamo-pituitary-ovarian axis.

There has been a gradual increase in production and consumption of atrazine (ATR) in agriculture to meet the population rising demands. Female reproduction is necessary for growth and maintenance of population. However, ATR impact on females and particularly ovarian developmental toxicity is less clear. The aim of this study was to define the pathways by which ATR exerted toxic effects on ovarian development of ovary and hypothalamo-pituitary-ovarian (HPO) axis. Female quails were dosed by oral gavage from sexual immaturity to maturity with 0, 50, 250 and 500 mg ATR/kg/d for 45 days. ATR had no effect on mortality but depressed feed intake and growth and influenced the biochemical parameters. Notably, the arrested development of ovaries and oviducts were observed in ATR-exposed quails. The circulating concentrations of E2, P, LH and PRL were unregulated and FSH and T was downregulated in ATR-treated quails. The mRNA expression of GnRH in hypothalamo and LH in pituitary and FSH in ovary was downregulated significantly by ATR exposure and FSH and PRL in pituitary were upregulated. ATR exposure upregulated the level of P450scc, P450arom, 3ß-HSD and 17ß-HSD in ovary and downregulated ERß expression in female quails. However, ATR did not change ERα expression in ovary. This study provides new insights regarding female productive toxicology of ATR exposure. Ovary and oviduct in sexually maturing females were target organs of ATR-induced developmental toxicity. We propose that ATR-induced developmental abnormality of ovary and oviduct is associated with disruption of gonadal hormone balance and HPO axis in female quails.

[CO2 absorption and regeneration performance of a natural amino acid and its potassium salt].

In order to decrease the solvent loss due to amine volatilization and oxidative degradation and reduce the risk of environmental pollution resulting from amine volatilization, amino acid salts with negligible volatility and better resistance to oxidative degradation may be considered as the alternative during the course of CO2 capture. So, experimental study on CO2 absorption and regeneration characteristics of L-arginine and potassium argininate (PA) was put forward in this study based on the CO2 absorption rate and heating regeneration rate at ambient pressure. And the influences of absorbent mass concentration, reaction temperature and absorption-regeneration cycles on CO2 absorption performance of L-arginine and PA were also investigated, which were used to compare with the typical absorbents including monoethanolamine (MEA), diethanolamine (DEA) and triethanolamine (TEA). Results showed that among all the five absorbents, PA had the highest CO2 absorption rate of 24.5 x 10(-3) mol x (L x min)(-1) and CO2 loading capacity of 1.99 mol x mol(-1), which were 2.1% and 290.2% higher than MEA with the same mass concentration, respectively. The results also showed that CO2 absorption rate of PA and MEA at 40 degrees C was the highest compared to other temperatures. In addition, although CO2 loading of lean PA solution was slightly higher than that of MEA under the same regeneration conditions, 72.8% CO2 in the rich PA solution can be released, which is 19% higher than that of MEA. After three absorption-regeneration cycles, CO2 absorption capacity of 10% PA was found to be approximate 1.03 mol x mol(-1), which is 255.2% higher than MEA. Furthermore, L-arginine was found to have the stronger CO2 absorption capacity, and its CO2 absorption rate may be comparable to DEA with the same mass concentration.

[Analysis on competitive interaction between arenobufagin and verapamil hydrochloride with serum albumin].

OBJECTIVE: The present study was performed to investigate competitive interaction between arenobufagin and verapamil hydrochloride with serum albumin. METHODS: Equilibrium dialysis and high-performance liquid chromatography were used to analyze the binding rates of the two medicines to serum protein. The interactions based on bovine serum albumin (BSA) and human serum albumin (HSA) were investigated by using spectrofluorimetry. The interaction mode of arenobufagin and verapamil hydrochloride binding to serum proteins was simulated by molecular docking. RESULTS: The rate of arenobufagin (0.1µg/mL) binding to bovine serum was (61.1±0.2)%. Verapamil hydrochloride (0.025 to 0.1µg/mL) significantly reduced the bovine serum binding rate of arenobufagin, from (60.2±3.7)% to (36.9±3.4)%. However, arenobufagin at the tested doses had no marked effects on the binding rate of verapamil hydrochloride. Furthermore, the verapamil hydrochloride had an active effect on the arenobufagin-induced fluorescence quenching of BSA and HSA. The molecular docking results showed that verapamil hydrochloride and arenobufagin binded to HSA at site I. Molecular interaction energy of verapamil hydrochloride binding to site I was stronger than that of arenobufagin. CONCLUSION: Verapamil hydrochloride reduces the binding of arenobufagin to bovine serum. The mechanism may be a competitive interaction of arenobufagin and verapamil hydrochloride at site I on HSA.

Dammarane triterpenes from Ligustrum lucidum.

Two new dammarane triterpenes 3beta-acetyl-20S,24R-dammarane-25-ene-24-hydroperoxy-20-ol (1), 20S,24R-dammarane-25-ene-24-hydroperoxy-3beta,20-diol (2), as well as three known dammarane triterpenes, 3beta-acetyl-20S,25-epoxydammarane-24alpha-ol (3), 20S,25-epoxydammarane-3beta,24alpha-diol (4), 20S-dammarane-23-ene-3beta,20,25-triol (5) were isolated from the fruits of Ligustrum lucidum. Compounds 3-5 were isolated from the fruits of L. lucidum for the first time. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods.