Identification of immune-related biomarkers in peripheral blood of schizophrenia using bioinformatic methods and machine learning algorithms.

Schizophrenia is a group of severe neurodevelopmental disorders. Identification of peripheral diagnostic biomarkers is an effective approach to improving diagnosis of schizophrenia. In this study, four datasets of schizophrenia patients' blood or serum samples were downloaded from the GEO database and merged and de-batched for the analyses of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WCGNA). The WGCNA analysis showed that the cyan module, among 9 modules, was significantly related to schizophrenia, which subsequently yielded 317 schizophrenia-related key genes by comparing with the DEGs. The enrichment analyses on these key genes indicated a strong correlation with immune-related processes. The CIBERSORT algorithm was adopted to analyze immune cell infiltration, which revealed differences in eosinophils, M0 macrophages, resting mast cells, and gamma delta T cells. Furthermore, by comparing with the immune genes obtained from online databases, 95 immune-related key genes for schizophrenia were screened out. Moreover, machine learning algorithms including Random Forest, LASSO, and SVM-RFE were used to further screen immune-related hub genes of schizophrenia. Finally, CLIC3 was found as an immune-related hub gene of schizophrenia by the three machine learning algorithms. A schizophrenia rat model was established to validate CLIC3 expression and found that CLIC3 levels were reduced in the model rat plasma and brains in a brain-regional dependent manner, but can be reversed by an antipsychotic drug risperidone. In conclusion, using various bioinformatic and biological methods, this study found an immune-related hub gene of schizophrenia - CLIC3 that might be a potential diagnostic biomarker and therapeutic target for schizophrenia.

Genetic population structure and demographic history of the endemic fish Paralichthys olivaceus of the Northwest Pacific Ocean.

The Northwest Pacific marginal waters comprising the South China Sea, East China Sea, Yellow Sea, and the Sea of Japan have unique geomorphic features. The Japanese flounder Paralichthys olivaceus, which is endemic to the Northwest Pacific, has high nutritional, economic, and ecological value. To allow the examination of the demographic history and population structure of the most common P. olivaceus species range over the five marginal seas (East China Sea, Yellow Sea, Bohai Sea, Northwest Pacific Ocean, and the Sea of Japan), the mitochondrial DNA control region of 91 individuals from six populations in China was sequenced. These sequences were combined with 233 sequences from four populations distributed in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean for analysis. Higher levels of nucleotide diversity (0.032 ± 0.016) and haplotype diversity (0.996 ± 0.001) were observed. The peripheral Fuqing population in the East China Sea had the relatively lowest genetic diversity and highest differentiation. Furthermore, when the results of the isolation by distance test, spatial analysis of molecular variation and geographic barrier analysis are also considered, there is a clear need to prioritize resource conservation and enhancement measures in this area. The phylogenetic trees, structure assignment test, and haplotypes network revealed no significant differences in the genealogical structure among ten populations. Mismatch distribution analysis, Bayesian skyline plots, and neutrality tests suggested that P. olivaceus experienced population expansion during the Pleistocene. Ocean currents and climate change play important roles in shaping the geographical distribution and genetic population structure of P. olivaceus.

Digital single-operator cholangioscopy for biliary stricture after cadaveric liver transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Biliary strictures after liver transplantation (LT) remain clinically arduous and challenging situations, and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) has been considered as the gold standard for the management of biliary strictures after LT. Nevertheless, in the treatment of biliary strictures after LT with ERCP, many studies show that there is a large variation in diagnostic accuracy and therapeutic success rate. Digital single-operator peroral cholangioscopy (DSOC) is considered a valuable diagnostic modality for indeterminate biliary strictures. AIM: To evaluate DSOC in addition to ERCP for management of biliary strictures after LT. METHODS: Nineteen patients with duct-to-duct biliary reconstruction who underwent ERCP for suspected biliary complications between March 2019 and March 2020 at Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, Capital Medical University, were consecutively enrolled in this observational study. After evaluating bile ducts using fluoroscopy, cholangioscopy using a modern digital single-operator cholangioscopy system (SpyGlass DS™) was performed during the same procedure with patients under conscious sedation. All patients received peri-interventional antibiotic prophylaxis. Biliary strictures after LT were classified according to the manifestations of choledochoscopic strictures and the manifestations of transplanted hepatobiliary ducts. RESULTS: Twenty-one biliary strictures were found in a total of 19 patients, among which anastomotic strictures were evident in 18 (94.7%) patients, while non-anastomotic strictures in 2 (10.5%), and space-occupying lesions in 1 (5.3%). Stones were found in 11 (57.9%) and loose sutures in 8 (42.1%). A benefit of cholangioscopy was seen in 15 (78.9%) patients. Cholangioscopy was crucial for selective guidewire placement prior to planned intervention in 4 patients. It was instrumental in identifying biliary stone and/or loose sutures in 9 patients in whom ERCP failed. It also provided a direct vision for laser lithotripsy. A space-occupying lesion in the bile duct was diagnosed by cholangioscopy in one patient. Patients with biliary stricture after LT displayed four types: (A) mild inflammatory change (n = 9); (B) acute inflammatory change edema, ulceration, and sloughing (n = 3); (C) chronic inflammatory change; and (D) acute suppurative change. Complications were seen in three patients with post-interventional cholangitis and another three with hyperamylasemia. CONCLUSION: DSOC can provide important diagnostic information, helping plan and perform interventional procedures in LT-related biliary strictures.

Boosting oxygen evolution by nickel nitrate hydroxide with abundant grain boundaries via segregated high-valence molybdenum.

High-valence metal doping and abundant grain boundaries (GBs) have been proved to be effective strategies to promote the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, the reasonable design of the two to facilitate OER collaboratively is challenging. Herein, a convenient and novel one-step molten salt decomposition strategy is proposed to fabricate segregated-Mo doped nickle nitrate hydroxide with substantial GBs on MoNi foam (Mo-NNOH@MNF). When processed in molten salt, the Mo species on the conductive substrate migrates unevenly to the surface of Mo-NNOH@MNF, which not only induces the formation of abundant GBs to modulate electronic structure, but also improves the intrinsic activity as high-valence dopants, synergistically elevating OER activity. As verification, the optimized Mo-NNOH@MNF-10h exhibits low overpotential of 150 mV at 10 mA cm-2, which can be attributed to the reduced valence charge transition energy of Ni by high-valence Mo dopant, coupled with the fine-tuning of d-band center bond and corresponding local electron density by induced GBs and Mo doping, as DFT calculations revealed. Moreover, the intrinsic robustness and strong adhesion ensure the long-term stability of 6 h at 500 mA cm-2. This work provides a promising molten salt decomposition approach to synthesize advanced materials with unique structures.

[Preliminary experimental study on the influence of different tidal volume and frequency of normal minute ventilation on the dynamic changes of carotid blood oxygen in living goats].

Objective: On the basis of preliminarily verifying the use of ultra-fast reaction polymer matrix optical fiber oxygen sensor and its measuring system to record the continuous and dynamic changes of carotid artery oxygen partial pressure (PaO2), in order to analyze and discuss the influence of lung ventilation on the continuous and dynamic changes of PaO2, we designed a whole animal experimental study in vivo. Methods: Four hybrid goats were selected, and the skin was cut and exposed directly under general anesthesia and tracheal intubation. The oxygen sensor, connected with the measuring system, was inserted directly into the left carotid artery to continuously record the dynamic changes of PaO2. With normal minute ventilation,mechanical ventilation is implemented through three tidal volumes: normal tidal volume (VT=15 ml/kg, Rf=20 bpm), half tidal volume (halved VT, doubled Rf) and double tidal volume (doubled VT, halved Rf). Each tidal volume was stable for 10~15 min respectively. We analyzed and calculated the average values of PaO2, the fluctuation magnitudes of PaO2 changes between breaths of last 180 s and the delay times of lung-carotid artery were. We analyzed the effects of different tidal volumes. Results: The heart rate and blood pressure of living goats were maintained stable during the mechanical ventilation experiment with normal ventilation volume Lung-carotid artery delay time is 1.4~1.8 s (about 3 heartbeats at this time). Under normal tidal volume of mechanical ventilation, the average value of PaO2 was (102.94±2.40, 99.38~106.16) mmHg, and the fluctuation range was (21.43±1.65, 19.21~23.59) mmHg, accounting for (20.80± 1.34, 18.65~22.22)% of the average value. Under the condition of halving tidal volume, the average value of PaO2 was maintained at (101.01±4.25, 94.09~105.66) mmHg, which was slightly decreased but not significant (P>0.05 compared with normal mechanical ventilation), but the fluctuation range of PaO2 was significantly reduced to (18.14±1.43, 16.46~20.05) mmHg, accounting for 17.5% of the average value. Under double tidal volume mechanical ventilation, although the average value of PaO2 increased slightly remained at (106.42±4.74, 101.19~114.08) mmHg (P>0.05 compared with normal mechanical ventilation and P<0.05 compared with half tidal volume mechanical ventilation), the fluctuation magnitude of PaO2 increased significantly to (26.58±1.88, 23.46~28.46)mmHg. Conclusion: Inspiration and expiration of normal lung ventilation are the initial factors for the increase and decrease of PaO2 in carotid artery. Under normal ventilation, halving tidal volume and doubling tidal volume significantly changed the fluctuation magnitude of PaO2, but the average value of PaO2 changed only slightly, while the lung-carotid delay time was similar.

[Ultra-fast response polymer optical fiber oxygen measurement device and its preliminary experimental report on continuous dynamic change of arterial oxygen partial pressure under mechanical ventilation in living animals].

Objective: We tried to implant the ultra-fast polymer optical fiber chemical oxygen sensor （POFCOS） into arterial blood vessel,connect with photoelectric conversion measurement system to record the continuous dynamic rapid changes of arterial PO2(PaO2) in whole living animals. It should be the experimental evidence for the new theory of holistic integrative physiology and medicine(HIPM) forexplain the mechanism of respiratory control and regulation in whole circusof respiration-circulation-metabolism. Methods: ①Fabrication of ultrafast POFCOS, calibration and its measuring system: The distal part of 2 m optical fiber was heated and pulled until it became a tapered tip. After cleaning and drying, the tip of 1 mm tapered optical fiber was dip-coated into the luminophore doped polymer solution, then was slowly pumped out while solvent was quickly evaporated to form an oxygen sensing tip, which was dried at room temperature for 24 hours. ②Animal experiments: Under general anesthesia and intubation, goatwas mechanically ventilated with 40%~60% oxygen. We exposed both right and left carotid arteries and the left femoral artery by skin cutting, and inserted the POFCOS directly into the arteries via indwelling catheter. The end of POFCOS were connected to the personal computer through optical fiber, excitation and detection Y-type optical fiber coupler through photoelectric conversion, so as we can realize the continuous dynamic response of living goat carotid PaO2 under mechanical ventilation. We mainly analyzed the intra-breath wave-form alternate increase and decrease of PaO2 and their time delay between lung and carotid arteries.We completes breathing control whole loop to explain the mechanism of mutual breathing and the switching of inspiration and exhalation. Results: The POFCOS has a very fast T90 response time was set 100 ms for liquid. When the heart rate of 40%~60% oxygen mechanical ventilated living goat was ~110 bpm, the PaO2 of left and right carotid artery showed a same wave-sizeup and down following with the inspiration and expiration of ventilator, with a range of up to 15 mmHg. There weresignificant noises of PaO2 change recorded in the left femoral artery. The lung-carotid artery time delay is 1.5~1.7 s after inhalation and exhalation, PaO2 at both left and right carotid arteries starts toincrease and decrease. After two-three heartbeats after the start of lung ventilation, thealternate up-down wave-form information of the arterialized pulmonary vein blood after pulmonary capillaries waspumpedby left ventricle to the position of peripheral chemoreceptors,thus realizing the whole cycle of inhalation and exhalation. It alternately interrupted inhalation, i.e. switching inhalation to exhalation, and then interrupted exhalation,i.e. switching exhalation to inhalation. Conclusion: The ultra-fast reactive implantableoxygen sensor and its measuring system can measure the physiological waveform changes of PaO2 in living animals, which can provide experimental evidence for explaining the mechanism of switching of inspiration-expiration in HIPM.

Oriented and robust anchoring of Fe via anodic interfacial coordination assembly on ultrathin Co hydroxides for efficient water oxidation.

The oriented distribution and strong bonding of Fe active sites in multiple metal hydroxides are crucial to modulate activity and stability for efficient oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, the dispersion and inevitable dissolution of Fe species still need to be addressed through deliberate design. Here, trace amounts of Fe chelated with tannic acid (TA) are precisely anchored to ultrathin Co hydroxides (TF@Co(OH)2-t) through a new anodic interfacial coordination assembly strategy: firstly, the ZIF-67@Co(OH)2 precursor with ultrathin Co(OH)2 nanosheets vertically grown on the shell, provides abundant active sites and sufficient anchoring regions for subsequent TA-Fe coating; secondly, the TA-Fe ligand network quickly and robustly coats the surface of the Co(OH)2via positive potential-driven chronopotentiometry, yielding TF@Co(OH)2-t with good dispersion and controllable Fe species. The TA-Fe network efficiently activates Co species and prevents the dissolution of Fe ions. Physical characterization and DFT simulations reveal that the optimized OER activity with 317 mV at 10 mA cm-2 for TF@Co(OH)2-500 can be attributed to the accelerated electron transfer, increased active sites, and the moderate fall in d-band center levels due to Fe integration. Moreover, prolonged stability is realized benefiting from the robust TA-Fe coating protecting the actives sites.

Promoting Oxygen Evolution by Deep Reconstruction via Dynamic Migration of Fluorine Anions.

Promoting the reconstruction of electrocatalysts during the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is generally regarded as a promising strategy for enhanced activity. F anions with strong electronegativity are predicted to enhance this transformation. Herein, a fluorine-anion doping route is proposed to convert the well-latticed NiMoO4@MNF to amorphous F-NiMoO4@MNF by a facile and versatile molten salt strategy. The well-defined nanorod arrays guarantee abundant exposed active sites, rapid mass transfer, and fast gas bubble release. Moreover, the emerged loose amorphous structure is conducive to the dynamic migration of F species and effective penetration of the electrolyte; therefore, the resulting exchange between F and hydroxide anions induces the formation of an active oxy(hydroxide) layer, thus finally optimizing the electronic structure and absorption/desorption energy on the surface of F-NiMoO4@MNF. The boosted OER performance of reconstructed F-NiMoO4@MNF is reliably confirmed by a low overpotential of 188 mV at 50 mA cm-2, a small Tafel slope of 33.8 mV dec-1, and favorable long-term stability. In addition, accelerated hydrogen evolution is observed, which is ascribed to the finely tuned electron distribution. This work would provide a new reconstruction route assisted by F-anion doping to the development of high-performance catalysts.

Ultrahigh activity of molybdenum/vanadium-doped Ni-Co phosphides nanoneedles based on ion-exchange for hydrogen evolution at large current density.

Heteroatom doping is a promising strategy to optimize the electronic structure of transition metal phosphides so enhancing the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). However, complex and harsh experimental design is often required to achieve homogeneous doping of corresponding elements while achieving the best regulating effect. Herein, a facile ion-exchange (IE) strategy is applied to dope Mo/V species evenly into Ni-Co phosphides under mild conditions while maintaining the nanoneedle morphology. The electrochemical characterization verifies Mo dopants have a better electronic regulation effect on NiCoP crystal than V dopants, corresponding to the better hydrogen evolution performance of Mo-NiCoP/NF. Notably, due to the highly dispersed nanoneedle morphology, the synergistic effect of Ni-Co phosphides, and the optimized electronic structure, Mo-NiCoP/NF demonstrates a higher activity than that of the noble metal Pt/C at the high current density (>99 mA cm-2). The present work is supposed to open new sights for the development of high-performance catalysts by ion-exchange strategy.

Optimized bimetallic nickel-iron phosphides with rich defects as enhanced electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction.

Exploring low-cost and outstanding bimetallic phosphides to substitute noble metals as electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline media is essential for renewable energy technologies. Herein, bimetallic nickel-iron phosphides nanoparticles (P-NiFe-800 NPs) with rich defects have been synthesized through gas annealing at 800 °C and phosphorization using uniform nickel-iron nanocubes (NiFe NCs) as precursor. At optimized calcination temperature, the obtained P-NiFe-800 NPs are composed of uniform nanoparticles with the rough surface, which suggests the larger surface area and more exposed rich active sites than other samples for OER. The introduction of P element to binary nickel-iron metals can optimize the crystalline and electronic structures of NiFe NCs and thus enhance electrocatalytic properties. Owing to the distinct morphological structure and synergistic effect between nickel-iron and phosphorus, P-NiFe-800 NPs demonstrate superior electrocatalytic activities for OER with lower overpotential of 270.1 mV to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm-2, smaller Tafel slope of 39 mV dec-1, lower electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) value, bigger determined double-layer capacitance (Cdl) of 2130 uF cm-2 and prominent stability than NiFe NCs, NiFe-600 NPs, NiFe-700 NPs, NiFe-800 NPs, NiFe-900 NPs, P-NiFe NCs, P-NiFe-600 NPs, P-NiFe-700 NPs and P-NiFe-900 NPs. The optimized phosphorization is helpful for fabricating the bimetallic phosphides as efficient catalysts for OER.

Recycling of rare earth particle by mini-hydrocyclones.

Mini-hydrocyclones were applied to separate the fine rare earth particles from the suspensions. The effects of the flow rate, split ratio, and feed concentration on the total separation efficiency and grade separation efficiency were studied. The combined effects of the flow rate (1200-1600L/h), split ratio (20-60%) and concentration (0.6-1.0wt%) on the total separation efficiency in mini-hydrocyclones were investigated using a response surface methodology. The optimum operating parameters for a total separation efficiency of 92.5% were: feed flow rate=1406L/h, split ratio=20%, and feed concentration=1wt%.

[Polypyrrole Functionalized Gold Nanorods as Novel Contrast Agents for Optical Coherence Tomography].

Polypyrrole (PPy) is easy-prepared with good biocompatibility and strong absorption in near-infrared (NIR) region which can serve as both the photothermal therapeutic agent and contrast agent of optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging. Herein, gold nanorod (GNR) modified with PPy (GNR-PPy) as contrast agent for optical coherence tomography imaging was investigated. GNR-PPy was synthesized via one-pot facile oxidative polymerization by using pyrrole and GNR as starting materials. Nanoparticles were characterized using ultraviolet-visible absorbance spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A xenograft tumor mouse model was fabricated to study the OCT contrast effect of GNR-PPy on breast tumor. An OCT system equipped with an 840 nm SLED was used for OCT imaging of the tumors injected with gold nanostructures. The experimental results indicated that the penetration depth of the OCT signals from tumors injected with GNR-PPy was lower than that from tumors injected with gold nanorods, which could be ascribed to the stronger light activity of GNR-PPy in NIR region. To quantitatively analyze the contrast effect, the attenuation coefficients were extracted from the OCT images of tumors injected with the nanostructures. In comparison with the attenuation coefficient extracted from the OCT images containing GNR, the attenuation coefficient of tumors injected with GNR-PPy was significant higher. It was concluded that gold nanorods modified with polypyrrole can enhance the light absorption in near-infrared much better, which would provide a possible detection means for enhancing the contrast effect of tumor tissues.

Au@Ag core/shell nanoparticles as colorimetric probes for cyanide sensing.

We synthesize Au@Ag core/shell nanoparticles (NPs) using a Au NP assisted Tollens reaction. The as-synthesized NPs are used for the colorimetric cyanide sensing with a detection limit of 0.4 µM. The bimetallic NPs are immobilized into agarose gels as portable "test strips".

MicroRNA-126 expression is decreased in cultured primary chicken hepatocytes and targets the sprouty-related EVH1 domain containing 1 mRNA.

The microRNA-126 (miR-126) is a miRNA expressed in highly vascularized tissues, and it is believed to play a role in angiogenesis by repressing sprouty-related EVH1 domain containing 1 (Spred1). In the current study, we determined the expression pattern of chicken miR-126 (gga-miR-126) and predicted and validated its target genes. The quantitative reverse-transcription (qRT) PCR analysis showed that miR-126 was expressed in various chicken tissues with the highest level in lung. In liver, the expression level of miR-126 increased from 0 to 7 wk of age. The expression of miR-126 in primary chicken hepatocytes decreased with culturing. A miR-126 binding site was predicted in the 3' UTR (untranslated region) of chicken Spred1. Dual-luciferase reporter assays indicated that miR-126 could bind to the predicted site to repress the expression of Spred1. These data validate Spred1 as a target gene of chicken miR-126. These results will help further understand the function and regulation of miR-126 and Spred1 in chickens.

[The influence of positive end-expiratory pressure on stroke volume variation for the accuracy of evaluating volume].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the influence of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) on hemodynamic and the ability of stroke volume variation (SVV) to predict cardiac preload. METHODS: Thirty healthy anesthetized pigs were given tracheal intubation and ventilated. With the envelope method, they were all randomly divided into control group(n = 10), hypovolemia group (n = 10) and hypervolemia group (n = 10). Hypovolemia group were exsanguinated 20% blood volume within 5 minutes, hypervolemia group: additional infusion of hydroxyethyl starch equal to 20% blood volume,and control group: no intervention. In each group, ventilator settings were changed in a randomized order by changing PEEP [0, 5, 10 and 15 cm H(2)O, PEEP0, PEEP5, PEEP10, PEEP15, 1 cm H(2)O = 0.098 kPa]. The changes in hemodynamic parameters, including heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP), central venous pressure (CVP), cardiac index (CI), stroke volume index (SVI), systemic vascular resistance index (SVRI), intrathoracic blood volume index (ITBVI) and SVV, were monitored with a pulse-indicated continuous cardiac output (PiCCO). RESULTS: In the control group, HR, CVP, SVRI and SVV were evaluated accompanying with the increasing of PEEP, but CI, SVI and ITBVI submitted decreasing tendency. The value reached peaking or valley on the level of PEEP15, and there was significance compared with PEEP0 [HR (bpm): 124 ± 18 vs. 88 ± 12, CVP (mm Hg, 1 mm Hg = 0.133 kPa): 11 ± 1 vs. 8 ± 3, SVRI [kPa×s×L(-1)×m(-2)]: 289.6 ± 81.5 vs. 215.0 ± 79.1, SVV: (23 ± 6)% vs. (11 ± 2)%, CI [L×min(-1)×m(-2)]: 3.1 ± 0.8 vs. 4.3 ± 1.4, SVI [ml×min(-1)×m(-2)]: 26 ± 7 vs. 41 ± 4, ITBVI [ml/m(2)]: 440 ± 43 vs. 491 ± 47, all P < 0.05]. There was no change in MAP. In the hypovolemia group, HR, CVP and SVV were evaluated accompanying with the increasing of PEEP, but MAP, CI, SVI and ITBVI submitted decreasing tendency. The value reached peaking or valley on the level of PEEP15, and there was significance compared with PEEP0 [HR (bpm): 146 ± 31 vs. 115 ± 27, CVP (mm Hg): 11 ± 2 vs. 5 ± 1, SVV: (28 ± 4)% vs. (20 ± 5)%, MAP(mm Hg): 90 ± 26 vs. 115 ± 19, CI [L×min(-1)×m(-2)]: 2.3 ± 0.6 vs. 3.4 ± 1.1, SVI [ml×min(-1)×m(-2)]: 20 ± 6 vs. 31 ± 9, ITBVI [ml/m(2)]: 355 ± 34 vs. 396 ± 53, all P < 0.05]. There was no change in SVRI. In the hypervolemia group, SVV submitted increasing tendency with the increasing of PEEP, but CI, SVI and ITBVI were in the tendency of decreasing, the value reached peaking or valley on the level of PEEP15, and there was significance compared with PEEP0 [SVV: (18 ± 4)% vs. (6 ± 2)%, CI [L×min(-1)×m(-2)]: 4.5 ± 0.9 vs. 5.0 ± 1.2, SVI [ml×min(-1)×m(-2)]: 37 ± 9 vs. 49 ± 7, ITBVI [ml/m(2)]: 473 ± 71 vs. 565 ± 94, all P < 0.05]. There was no change in HR, MAP, CVP and SVRI. SVV was increased in the hypovolemia group compared with control group, and decreased in the hypervolemia group. In the control group, SVV was negatively related to CI on different level of PEEP [r(PEEP0) = -0.831, r(PEEP5) = -0.790, r(PEEP10) = -0.875, r(PEEP15) = -0.560, P < 0.05 or P < 0.01]. CONCLUSION: SVV was a precise indicator of cardiac preload, however high PEEP may influence hemodynamic and the accuracy of SVV.

[Cloning and characterization of Caveolin-1 gene in pigeon, Columba livia domestica].

Caveolins, a class of principal proteins forming the structure of caveolae in plasmalemma, were encoded by caveolins gene family. Caveolin-1 gene is a member of caveolins gene family. In the present study, a full-length of 2605 bp caveolin-1 cDNA sequence in Columba livia domestica, which included a 537 bp complete ORF encoding a 178 amino acids long putative peptide, were obtained by using RT-PCR and RACE technique. The Columba livia domestica caveolin-1 CDS shared 80.1% - 93.4% homology with Bos taurus, Canis lupus familiaris, Gallus gallus and Rattus norvegicus. Meanwhile, the putative amino acid sequence of Columba livia domestica caveolin-1 shared 85.4% - 97.2% homology with the above species. The semi-quantity RT-PCR revealed that Caveolin-1 expressions were detectable in all the Columba livia domestica tissues and the expressional level of caveolin-1 gene was high in adipose, medium in various muscles, low in liver. These results demonstrated that Caveolin-1 gene was potentially involved in some metabolic pathways in adipose and muscle.

[Identification and genetic analysis of SNPs in duck adiponectin gene].

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the duck adiponectin gene were detected by single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) using 5 pairs of primers to amplify an area spanning the open reading frame. Eight duck breeds, including Kunshan Sheldrake, Cherry Valley Meat duck, Gaoyou duck, Shanma duck, Jinding duck, Longbai duck, Jingjiang Sheldrake and White feather Muscovy duck, were used. Seven nucleotide variations were found, of which G430A, A457G, and T523C resulted in amino acid changes of A144T, I153V, and Y175H, respectively. The remaining 4 SNPs were C507T, T540C, C576T and C597T. Eight genotypes (AA, AB, AC, BB, BC, CC, DD, and DE) were detected in the 8 breeds. Chi(2) analysis showed that the distribution of the eight genotypes was very different among the different breeds (P < 0.01). Ex-cept for the Jingding duck, all breeds were in accordance with the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Genetic analysis indicated that homozygosity was highest in the Jinding duck, lowest in the Gaoyou duck and similar in other breeds. Polymorphism information content (PIC) was low in the Jinding, high in the Gaoyou and intermediate in other breeds. These results showed that the adiponectin gene had a high level of polymorphism in different duck breeds, and could be used as a candidate gene to analyze the correlation between its polymorphism and fat traits in duck.

[High level expression of recombinant human sCD40L-IZ and identification of its biological activation].

AIM: To clone and express the recombinant human soluble CD40 ligand(CD40L) with biological activation. METHODS: The isoleucine zipper (IZ) gene was fused at N-terminal of CD40L gene coding E107-L261 contributing to form trimer. The gene coding hexahistidine was fused at the N-terminal of IZ because the sCD40L-IZ fusion protein could be purified by affinity chromatography. Then the fusion gene was amplified and cloned into expression plasmid pET30a. RESULTS: The protein sCD40L-IZ with His-tag at the N-terminal was effectively expressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3) as inclusion bodies and a denaturation and refolding procedure was performed to acquire soluble sCD40L-IZ. The fusion protein sCD40L-IZ was conveniently purified using HiTrap affinity column with above 95% purity. The gel filtration chromatography and non-reduced SDS-PAGE identified the trimeric structure of the recombinant protein. The microscope analysis showed the sCD40L-IZ interacted with the membrane CD40 on XG2, a multiple myeloma cell line. CONCLUSION: The recombinant human trimeric CD40L-IZ was expressed in prokaryotic cells successfully, which has provided a basis for further study of the relationship between CD40L and apoptosis, CD40L and pathogenesis of illness. It is also useful to clinical treatment.

[Plant scale test of a new efficient poly-aluminum chloride].

To meet the requirement of improved water quality, the economic water treatment process could be achieved by systematic coagulant selection and optimization of coagulation process. The experimental results show that the new coagulant developed has significantly improved the water quality, with marked modification of the particle size distribution feature after sediment and improved filtration efficiency. The organic removal ability, as shown by low TOC and UV254 in the finished water, is also significantly improved and also verified by using resin absorption characterization method. The TTHMFP for the source water is 20.98 microg/L and 11.01 microg/L for the traditional process. By using the new coagulant the TTHMFP is further decreased to 6.40 microg/L. With application of the new coagulant, the treatment costs are significantly decreased with further improved and simplified treatment process.

Recombinant human B7-H4 expressed in Escherichia coli inhibits T lymphocyte proliferation and IL-2 secretion in vitro.

AIM: To explore the biofunctions of human B7-H4 generated from prokaryotic system. METHODS: The gene of human B7-H4 extracellular region (IgV-like and IgC-like domains) was obtained by PCR from human cDNA FLJ22418 and then inserted into the prokaryotic expression vector pGEX-5X-3 expressing glutathione s-transferase (GST) fusion protein. After being identified by restriction enzyme digestion and sequencing, the recombinant vector was transferred into host strain E coli BL21-RIL(DE3). A 47 kDa fusion protein (GST/hB7-H4) was induced by isopropyl-beta-D-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) and purified by standard methods reported in the prokaryotic system. The inhibitory effect of GST/hB7-H4 on proliferation of T cells was observed in vitro by CD3mAb activated T-cell culturing system and [(3)H]-thymidine incorporation assay. The concentrations of interleukin-2 and iterferon-g in the supernatants of T cells were determined by ELISA. RESULTS: We successfully constructed the method for high-level expression and purification of the hB7-H4 extracellular domain as GST fusion protein from E coli. The GST/hB7-H4 fusion protein produced in bacteria had obvious biological activity to inhibit T-lymphocyte proliferation and IL-2 secretion. CONCLUSION: The prokaryote expression system could be used to generate hB7-H4 protein with natural spatial conformations and biological functions, which provided an efficient and economical way for the preparation of this target protein.