Asymmetric magnesium catalysis for important chiral scaffold synthesis.

Magnesium catalysts are widely used in catalytic asymmetric reactions, and a series of catalytic strategies have been developed in recent years. Herein, in this review, we have tried to summarize asymmetric magnesium catalysis for the synthesis of important chiral scaffolds. Several important optically active motifs that are present in classic chiral ligands or natural products synthesized by Mg(II) catalytic methods are briefly discussed. Moreover, the representative mechanisms for different magnesium catalytic strategies, including in situ generated magnesium catalysts, are also shown in relation to synthetic routes for obtaining these important chiral scaffolds.

Association of LDLR rs1433099 with the Risk of NAFLD and CVD in Chinese Han Population.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Recent genome-wide association studies have shown that low-density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) rs1433099 polymorphism is associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in many countries. However, the association of LDLR rs1433099 with CVD in China has not been reported yet. There are no studies on LDLR rs1433099 and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) as well. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether LDLR rs1433099 is related to CVD or NAFLD in the Chinese population. METHODS: LDLR rs1433099 polymorphism was genotyped in 507 individuals, including 140 healthy controls, 79 NAFLD patients, 185 CVD patients, and 103 patients with NAFLD combined with CVD. The expression of LDLR was tested by the sequence detection system, and clinical parameters were assessed by biochemical tests and physical examination. RESULTS: The genotype distribution of LDLR rs1433099 was not statistically different among the NAFLD group, the CVD group, the combined group, and the healthy control group (p>0.05). There was no significant correlation of LDLR rs1433099 genotypic distribution or allele frequency and the risk of NAFLD, CVD or NAFLD combined with CVD (p>0.05). In the CVD group, T allele carriers had higher alkaline phosphatase and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase than non-carriers (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrated that the LDLR rs1433099 polymorphism is not a risk factor of NAFLD. The LDLR rs1433099 polymorphism may increase the risk of CVD through a mechanism involving alkaline phosphatase and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase.

Modeling of the neural mechanism underlying the terrestrial turning of the salamander.

In order to explore the neural mechanism underlying salamander terrestrial turning, an improved biomechanical model is proposed by modifying the forelimb structure of the existing biomechanical model. Based on the proposed improved biomechanical model, a new spinal locomotor network model is constructed which contains the interneuron networks and motoneuron pool. Control methods are also developed for the new model which increase its transient response speed, control the initial swing order of the forelimbs, and generate different walking turning gait and turning on the spot (turning without moving forward). The simulation results show that the biomechanical model controlled by the new spinal locomotor network model can generate different walking turning and turning on the spot, and can control posture and the initial swing order of the forelimbs. Moreover, the transient response speed of the proposed model is very rapid. This paper thus provides a useful tool for exploring the operational mechanism of the spinal circuitry of the salamander. In addition, the research results presented here may inspire the construction of artificial spinal control networks for bionic robots.