Astrocytic connexin 43 deletion ameliorates SNI-induced neuropathic pain by reducing microglia activation.

Neuropathic pain (NP) is a chronic disease caused by damage to the peripheral or central nervous system. Connexin 43 (Cx43), the primary connexin expressed by astrocytes, has been reported to be significantly increased in NP. However, the roles and mechanisms of Cx43 in the development and maintenance of NP remain largely unknown, while microglia activation has been commonly regarded as a key factor of NP. In the present study, we found that Cx43 deletion significantly ameliorated spared nerve injury (SNI)-induced NP and suppressed SNI induced c-Fos expression in the spinal cord. Notably, Cx43 deletion led to much less SNI-induced microglia activation in the spinal cord. These results suggest that astrocyte Cx43 may play a significant role in regulating microglial activation and NP.

Intravesical IR-780 instillation prevents radiation cystitis by protecting urothelial integrity.

PURPOSE: To explore an efficient preventive strategy for radiation cystitis. METHODS: We instilled IR-780 into the bladders of rats 1 h before bladder irradiation, and its bio-distribution was observed at different times. Bladders were then examined for pathogenic alterations and inflammation levels by day 3 and week 12 postirradiation, and the functional characteristics of the bladder were tested via cystometry by week 12. Human uroepithelial sv-huc-1 cells were used to determine the effect of IR-780 on cell viability, regardless of irradiation. We measured the intracellular levels of oxidative stress, DNA damage, apoptosis proportion, and the expression of antioxidant proteases and apoptotic caspases in IR-780 pretreated cells after radiation. RESULTS: IR-780 is localized in the urothelium after intravesical instillation in vivo. Ionizing radiation could induce acute impairment of the bladder urothelium and inflammation in the bladder on day 3. Fibrosis of the irradiated bladder progressed and eventually affected voiding function at 12 weeks. Treatment with IR-780 before irradiation ameliorated these changes. In vitro, IR-780 protected against cell viability and apoptosis of sv-huc-1 cells after irradiation. Additionally, IR-780 may assist in eliminating reactive oxygen species and repairing irradiation-induced DNA damage. CONCLUSION: Our data indicate that IR-780 can be used before irradiation to prevent acute urinary mucosal injury and late bladder dysfunction. Moreover, early urothelial impairment plays a significant role in radiation cystitis development.

MFGM components promote gut Bifidobacterium growth in infant and in vitro.

PURPOSE: Infant gut microbiota which plays an important role in long-term health is mainly shaped by early life nutrition. However, the effect of nutrients on infants gut microbiota is less researched. Here, we present a study aiming to investigate in vitro a modified formula that is supplemented with milk fat globule membrane (MFGM) that were missing in common formulas when compared with human milk and to assess the impact of feeding scheme on microbiota and metabolism. METHODS: A total of 44 infants including 16 from breast milk feeding, 13 from common formula feeding and 15 from modified formula feeding were analyzed, and A cross-sectional sampling of fecal and urine was done at 1 month-of-age. Stool microbiota composition was characterized using high-throughput DNA sequencing, and urinary metabolome was profiled by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). In vitro growth experiment of Bifidobacterium with key components from MFGM was performed and analyzed by both DNA and RNA. RESULTS: Stool samples from the infants who were breastfed had a higher relative abundance of Bifidobacterium and a lower relative abundance of Escherichia than the formula-fed infants. The stool microbiome shifts were associated with urine metabolites changes. Three substances including lactadherin, sialic acid and phospholipid, key components of MFGM were significantly positively correlated to Bifidobacterium of stool samples from infants, and stimulated the growth rate of Bifidobacterium significantly by provided energy in vitro growth experiment with RNA analysis. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that the key components from MFGM could improve infants' health by modulating the gut microbiome, and possibly supporting the growth of Bifidobacterium. REGISTRATION: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT02658500 (registered on January 20, 2016).

Qualitative-quantitative analysis of multi-mycotoxin in milk using the high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry coupled with the quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe method.

High-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry coupled with the quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe method was established for the qualitative and quantitative detections of 20 mycotoxins in milk. The linear range of this method was 0.01-10 µg/L and the correlation coefficients were all greater than or equal to 0.9933. At three levels of addition, the spiked recoveries ranged from 80.00 to 112.50%, relative standard deviations were 2.67-14.97%, limits of quantitation were 0.02-4.00 µg/kg, and limits of detection were 0.007-1.300 µg/kg. This developed procedure for the identification and quantitation of mycotoxins provided prospective support for quality regulation.

Detection of multiple endocrine-disrupting chemicals in milk: Improved and safe high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method.

Herein, an improved method for detecting the endocrine-disrupting chemicals in milk is presented, which is based on high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, coupled with a quick, effective, and safe method. The linearity of the proposed method was in the range of 0.05-100 µg/L, and all correlation coefficients were ≥0.9973. At three concentration levels, the spiked recoveries ranged from 77.7 to 107.5%, relative standard deviations ranged from 0.2 to 14.6%, limits of quantitation ranged from 0.1 to 40 µg/kg, limits of detection ranged from 0.03 to 13.3 µg/kg. The proposed method for the identification and quantitation of 26 endocrine disruptors present in milk is not only easy, fast, and cost-efficient but also provides a reference for the detection of various endocrine disruptors in milk and other dairy products.

Spectral Diagnostic Model for Agricultural Robot System Based on Binary Wavelet Algorithm.

The application of agricultural robots can liberate labor. The improvement of robot sensing systems is the premise of making it work. At present, more research is being conducted on weeding and harvesting systems of field robot, but less research is being conducted on crop disease and insect pest perception, nutritional element diagnosis and precision fertilizer spraying systems. In this study, the effects of the nitrogen application rate on the absorption and accumulation of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in sweet maize were determined. Firstly, linear, parabolic, exponential and logarithmic diagnostic models of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium contents were constructed by spectral characteristic variables. Secondly, the partial least squares regression and neural network nonlinear diagnosis model of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium contents were constructed by the high-frequency wavelet sensitivity coefficient of binary wavelet decomposition. The results show that the neural network nonlinear diagnosis model of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium content based on the high-frequency wavelet sensitivity coefficient of binary wavelet decomposition is better. The R2, MRE and NRMSE of nn of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium were 0.974, 1.65% and 0.0198; 0.969, 9.02% and 0.1041; and 0.821, 2.16% and 0.0301, respectively. The model can provide growth monitoring for sweet corn and a perception model for the nutrient element perception system of an agricultural robot, while making preliminary preparations for the realization of intelligent and accurate field fertilization.

Effects of Nitrogen Supply on Induced Defense in Maize (Zea mays) against Fall Armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda).

How nitrogen (N) supply affects the induced defense of plants remains poorly understood. Here, we investigated the impacts of N supply on the defense induced in maize (Zea mays) against the fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda). In the absence of herbivore attack or exogenous jasmonic acid (JA) application, N supply increased plant biomass and enhanced maize nutrient (soluble sugar and amino acid) contents and leaf area fed by S. frugiperda (the feeding leaf area of S. frugiperda larvae in maize supplemented with 52.2 and 156.6 mg/kg of N was 4.08 and 3.83 times that of the control, respectively). When coupled with herbivore attack or JA application, maize supplemented with 52.2 mg/kg of N showed an increased susceptibility to pests, while the maize supplemented with 156.6 mg/kg of N showed an improved defense against pests. The changes in the levels of nutrients, and the emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) caused by N supply could explain the above opposite induced defense in maize. Compared with herbivore attack treatment, JA application enhanced the insect resistance in maize supplemented with 156.6 mg/kg of N more intensely, mainly reflecting a smaller feeding leaf area, which was due to indole emission and two upregulated defensive genes, MPI (maize proteinase inhibitor) and PAL (phenylalanine ammonia-lyase). Hence, the optimal N level and appropriate JA application can enhance plant-induced defense against pests.

The fate of diclofenac in anaerobic fermentation of waste activated sludge.

Diclofenac (DCF), a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, is one of the most commonly detected pharmaceuticals in wastewater treatment plants. However, the fate of DCF in waste activated sludge (WAS) anaerobic fermentation has not been well-understood so far. This work therefore aims to comprehensively reveal whether and how DCF is transformed in WAS mesophilic anaerobic fermentation through both experimental investigation and density functional theory (DFT) calculation. Experimental results showed that ∼28.8% and 45.8% of DCF were respectively degraded during the batch and long-term fermentation processes. Based on the detected intermediates and DFT-predicted active sites, three metabolic pathways, i.e., chlorination, hydroxylation, and dichlorination, responsible for DCF transformation were proposed. DFT calculation also showed that the Gibbs free energy (ΔG) of the three transformation pathways was respectively 19.0, -4.3, and -19.3 kcal/mol, suggesting that the latter two reactions (i.e., hydroxylation and dichlorination) were thermodynamically favorable. Illumina MiSeq sequencing analyses revealed that DCF improved the populations of complex organic degradation microbes such as Proteiniclasticum and Tissierellales, which was in accord with the chemical analyses above. This work updates the fundamental understanding of the degradation of DCF in WAS anaerobic fermentation process and enlightens engineers to apply theoretical calculation to the field of sludge treatment or other complex microbial ecosystems.

Effects of Salicylic Acid Concentration and Post-Treatment Time on the Direct and Systemic Chemical Defense Responses in Maize (Zea mays L.) Following Exogenous Foliar Application.

Salicylic acid (SA) plays a critical role in allergic reactions of plants to pathogens and acquired systemic resistance. Thus far, although some research has been conducted on the direct effects of different concentrations of SA on the chemical defense response of treated plant parts (leaves) after at multiple post-treatments times, few research has reported on the systematic effects of non-treated parts (roots). Therefore, we examined direct and systemic effects of SA concentration and time following foliar application on chemical defense responses in maize variety 5422 with two fully expanded leaves. In the experiments, maize leaves were treated with different SA concentrations of 0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 2.5, 5.0 mM, and then, the presence of defense chemicals and enzymes in treated leaves and non-treated roots was measured at different time points of 3, 12, 24, 48, 72 h following SA foliar application. The results showed that direct and systemic effects of SA treatment to the leaf on chemical defense responses were related to SA concentration and time of measurement after spraying SA. In treated leaves, total phenolics content increased directly by 28.65% at the time point of 12 h following foliar application of 0.5 mM SA. DIMBOA (2,4-dihydroxy-7-methoxy-2H, 1, 4-benzoxazin-3 (4H)-one) content was directly enhanced by 80.56~551.05% after 3~72 h following 0.5~5.0 mM SA treatments. Polyphenol oxidase and superoxide dismutase activities were directly enhanced after 12~72 h following 0.5~5.0 mM SA treatments, whereas peroxidase and catalase activities were increased after 3~24 h following application of 1.0~5.0 mM SA. In non-treated roots, DIMBOA content and polyphenol oxidase activity were enhanced systematically after 3~48 h following 1.0~5.0 mM SA foliar treatments. Superoxide dismutase activities were enhanced after 3~24 h following 0.5~2.5 mM SA applications, but total phenolics content, peroxidase and catalase activity decreased in some particular concentrations or at the different times of measurement in the SA treatment. It can be concluded that SA foliar application at 1.0 and 2.5 mM produces strong chemical defense responses in maize, with the optimal induction time being 24 h following the foliar application.

Analysis of child mortality under 5 years old in Liuyang City from 2013 to 2020. / 浏阳市2013至2020年5岁以下儿童死亡状况分析.

OBJECTIVES: To provide reference basis for reducing the mortality for children under 5 years old and promote the healthy development, the mortality for children under 5 years old and the main causes for death in Liuyang City from 2013 to 2020 are analyzed. METHODS: The data of 725 cases of death for children under 5 years old in Liuyang City from 2013 to 2020 were collected.The causes and difference of death among the children were analyzed retrospectively by descriptive statistic methods. RESULTS: There were a total of 144 516 live births in Liuyang City from 2013 to 2020. The mortality for children under 5 years old was 5.01‰, for infants was 3.39‰, and for newborns was 1.63‰. The male child mortality was 5.28‰, and the female child mortality rate was 4.72‰, with significant difference (P>0.05). The mortality for children under 5 years old was seasonal fluctuation, without significant difference among seasons (P>0.05). For the past 5 years, the top 3 causes for death among children under 5 years old were preterm birth and low birth weight, congenital heart disease, and pneumonia. Before death, 341 cases (47.04%) were treated in provincial hospitals, 198 cases (27.31%) in county-level hospitals, 56 cases (7.72%) in village-level hospitals, and 130 cases (17.93%) were not treated. CONCLUSIONS: The mortality for children under 5 years old in Liuyang City is gradually reduced in the past 5 years. The main causes for death are premature birth and low birth weight, congenital heart disease and pneumonia. We should develop healthy education, improve the rate of prenatal diagnosis, promote the construction of obstetrics and paediatrics, and fundamentally reduce the mortality for children under 5 years old.

Cabbage cultivars influence transfer and toxicity of cadmium in soil-Chinese flowering cabbage Brassica campestris-cutworm Spodoptera litura larvae.

We executed a pot experiment to examine the differences of absorption, chemical forms, subcellular distribution, and toxicity of Cd between two cultivars of Chinese flowering cabbage Brassica campestris [Lvbao701 (low-Cd cultivar) and Chicaixin No.4 (high-Cd cultivar)]. Compared to Chicaixin No.4, the presence of Lvbao701 enhanced the proportion of insoluble Cd forms in soil, Lvbao701 roots and leaves had higher proportion of Cd converted into insoluble phosphate precipitates and pectate-or protein-bound forms and lower proportion of inorganic Cd, which result in low accumulation and toxicity of Cd to Lvbao701 and cutworm Spodoptera litura fed on Lvbao701 leaves. Instead of total Cd, Cd transfer and toxicity in B. campestris-S. litura system depend on chemical Cd forms in soil and cabbages and subcellular Cd distributions in cabbages and insects, and the proportions of them were not the highest among all chemical forms and subcellular distributions of Cd. Although exchangeable Cd was major Cd chemical form in cabbage planted soil, Cd bound to iron and manganese oxides and to organic matter were significantly correlated with growth indices and photosynthesis parameters of cabbages. Despite major part of Cd was precipitated in cell wall of roots, Cd in organelle fraction was closely associated with the fitness of cabbages. Metal-rich granules, not cytosolic fraction (the major subcellular Cd distribution), affected the food utilization of S. litura. Therefore, cabbage cultivars significantly affected Cd transfer and toxicity in B. campestris-S. litura system, and the use of Lvbao701 in Cd polluted soil could reduce potential risks for Cd entering food chains.

A review on the removal of heavy metals and metalloids by constructed wetlands: bibliometric, removal pathways, and key factors.

Heavy metals and metalloids (HMMs) pose a serious threat to both environmental and human health. The unique characteristics and environmental toxicity of HMMs make their removal from the environment a major challenge. Constructed wetlands (CWs) are increasingly being used as an eco-friendly system for the removal of HMMs from aqueous environments. In this review, bibliometric analysis was performed using the Scopus database using VOSviewer software to assess the developing use of CWs in recent years. Heavy metal and metalloid (HMM) removal pathways were reviewed (such as precipitation, co-precipitation, adsorption and ion exchange, plant action and microbial action) along with the impact of key factors (pH, chemical oxygen demand, dissolved oxygen, HMM concentration, and temperature). This review aimed to establish the connections between published results, to help effectively optimize the use of CWs for the removal of HMMs and identify the most critical factors for their effective removal. Important aspects that require further research include assessing the synergistic toxicity between different pollutants and combining the use of CWs with other technologies to optimize pollutant remediation efficiency.

MiR-216a-3p regulates the proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion of lung cancer cells via targeting COPB2.

Effect of miR-216a-3p on lung cancer hasn't been investigated. Here, we explored its effects on lung cancer. MiR-216a-3p expression in lung cancer tissues and cells was detected by RT-qPCR. The target gene of miR-216a-3p was predicted by bioinformatics and confirmed by luciferase-reporter assay. After transfection, cell viability, migration, invasion, proliferation, and apoptosis were detected by MTT, scratch, transwell, colony formation, and flow cytometry. The expressions of COPB2 and apoptosis-related factors were detected by RT-qPCR or western blot. MiR-216a-3p was low-expressed and COPB2 was high-expressed in lung cancer tissues and cells. MiR-216a-3p targeted COPB2 and regulated its expression. MiR-216a-3p inhibited lung cancer cell viability, migration, invasion, and proliferation, while promoted apoptosis. Effect of miR-216a-3p on lung cancer was reversed by COPB2. MiR-216a-3p regulated proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion of lung cancer cells via targeting COPB2.

Accumulation and excretion of zinc and their effects on growth and food utilization of Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae).

By exposing larvae of the holometabolous insect Spodoptera litura to the artificial diets supplemented with a range of Zinc (Zn) contents, we investigated Zn ingestion, excretion and accumulation in the insect throughout its life cycle. The effects of Zn stress on the survival, growth and food utilization of S. litura were also determined. Zn concentrations in the body (larvae, pupae, and adults), faeces, exuviates, puparium, eggs increased with the increasing Zn concentrations in the diets, while Zn excretion and accumulation by S. litura in 750 mg/kg Zn treatments was lower than the 600 mg/kg Zn treatment. In the 450 mg/kg Zn treatment, the Zn accumulation in S. litura at different developmental stages differed as follows: larvae > pupa > adult. S. litura ingested Zn via feeding and could excrete most of the Zn via faeces (compared with Zn excretion via exuviates) to reduce its internal Zn accumulation (compared with Zn ingestion). Survival and weight were significantly inhibited, and the prolonged period of development (larvae, pupae) and shortened longevity of adults were found in S. litura exposed to Zn stress greater than 450 mg Zn/kg. In the 150-450 mg/kg Zn treatments, the 6th instar larvae increased their relative consumption rate (RCR) and approximate digestibility (AD) (namely, food eaten) to gain weight, which resulted in greater Zn accumulation in the body. Therefore, below the threshold level (being close to 450 mg/kg Zn), S. litura seemed to have a strong homeostatic adjustment ability (increase the amount of food eaten, thereby increasing AD, RCR and Zn excretion via faeces and exuviates) to sustain their weight, and Zn was beneficial and harmless. Although larvae treated with 750 mg/kg Zn had a similar RCR and AD as the control, a reduced weight gain and prolonged larval period resulted in significantly lower relative growth rate (RGR), which indicated surviving insects may allocate more energy from foods for detoxification than for growth.

A repeat region from the Brassica juncea HMA4 gene BjHMA4R is specifically involved in Cd2+ binding in the cytosol under low heavy metal concentrations.

BACKGROUND: HMA4 transporters are involved in the transport and binding of divalent heavy metals (Cd, Zn, Pb [lead] and Co [cobalt]). In general, as efflux pumps, HMA4 transporters can increase the heavy metal tolerance of yeast and Escherichia coli. Additional research has shown that the C-terminus of HMA4 contains a heavy metal-binding domain and that heterologous expression of a portion of peptides from this C-terminal domain in yeast provides a high level of Cd tolerance and Cd hyperaccumulation. RESULTS: We cloned BjHMA4 from Brassica juncea, and quantitative real-time PCR analysis revealed that BjHMA4 was upregulated by Zn and Cd in the roots, stems and leaves. Overexpression of BjHMA4 dramatically affects Zn/Cd distribution in rice and wheat seedlings. Interestingly, BjHMA4 contains a repeat region named BjHMA4R within the C-terminal region; this repeat region is not far from the last transmembrane domain. We further characterized the detailed function of BjHMA4R via yeast and E. coli experiments. Notably, BjHMA4R greatly and specifically improved Cd tolerance, and BjHMA4R transformants both grew on solid media that contained 500 µM CdCl2 and presented improved Cd accumulation (approximately twice that of wild-type [WT] strains). Additionally, visualization via fluorescence microscopy indicated that BjHMA4R clearly localizes in the cytosol of yeast. Overall, these findings suggest that BjHMA4R specifically improves Cd tolerance and Cd accumulation in yeast by specifically binding Cd2+ in the cytosol under low heavy metal concentrations. Moreover, similar results in E. coli experiments corroborate this postulation. CONCLUSION: BjHMA4R can specifically bind Cd2+ in the cytosol, thereby substantially and specifically improving Cd tolerance and accumulation under low heavy metal concentrations.

Real-time measurement of a probabilistic-shaped 200Gb/s DP-16QAM transceiver.

Continuous real-time measurements are demonstrated from a 200Gb/s format configurable CFP transceiver that uses dual-polarization probabilistic-shaped 16QAM (DP-PS16QAM) modulation. Placed in a 50GHz coherent DWDM transmission system, DP-PS16QAM achieves a back-to-back 1.8dB OSNR gain over uniform DP-16QAM. It also transports over 1940km with EDFA-only amplification, thus doubling propagation distance of uniform DP-16QAM. Furthermore, a 1Tb/s super-channel consisting of five 200Gb/s DP-PS16QAM sub-carriers is placed in a 200GHz grid, and it achieves over 1600km transmission and 5b/s/Hz SE with a raw SE at 6.86b/s/Hz.

Effects of Cry1Ab-expressing Bt rice straw return on juvenile and adult Eisenia fetida.

A 90 day experiment was conducted in the laboratory to investigate the potential effects of transgenic Cry1Ab-expressing rice (Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) rice: T775 and its F1 hybrid) straw return on earthworm Eisenia fetida, compared to non-Bt rice (TYHZ) straw. Juvenile E. fetida could survive, grow up, mature and reproduce offspring well in a Bt rice treated test during the whole experiment. The significantly higher relative growth rate (RGR) was found in earthworms from Bt rice treatment than from non-Bt rice treatment on the 7th day. The period of sexual maturity for earthworms from Bt rice treatments was shortened significantly, compared to non-Bt rice treatments. Adult E. fetida survived with weight loss under Bt rice treatments. On the 7th and 15th day, earthworm RGR decreased and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) activity increased under Bt rice straw treatments. Significantly fewer offspring were produced by earthworms from Bt rice than non-Bt rice treatments on the 60th and 75th day. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) determined a sharp decrease of Cry1Ab in straw mixed soil along with the experimental time, regardless of juvenile or adult earthworm treatments. Cry1Ab concentration in the earthworms from the juvenile group was significantly higher than those from the adult group. Bt rice straw return had significant effects on soil nutrients, especially on the content of total and available phosphorus. In view of two bioassays, Bt rice (T775 and its F1 hybrid) straw return presented different effects on E. fetida from the juvenile (no deleterious effect) and adult (a little negative effect) groups, that were not directly related to Cry1Ab presence and nutrient differences among the three rice variety treatments.

PEnBayes: A Multi-Layered Ensemble Approach for Learning Bayesian Network Structure from Big Data.

Discovering the Bayesian network (BN) structure from big datasets containing rich causal relationships is becoming increasingly valuable for modeling and reasoning under uncertainties in many areas with big data gathered from sensors due to high volume and fast veracity. Most of the current BN structure learning algorithms have shortcomings facing big data. First, learning a BN structure from the entire big dataset is an expensive task which often ends in failure due to memory constraints. Second, it is quite difficult to select a learner from numerous BN structure learning algorithms to consistently achieve good learning accuracy. Lastly, there is a lack of an intelligent method that merges separately learned BN structures into a well structured BN network. To address these shortcomings, we introduce a novel parallel learning approach called PEnBayes (Parallel Ensemble-based Bayesian network learning). PEnBayes starts with an adaptive data preprocessing phase that calculates the Appropriate Learning Size and intelligently divides a big dataset for fast distributed local structure learning. Then, PEnBayes learns a collection of local BN Structures in parallel using a two-layered weighted adjacent matrix-based structure ensemble method. Lastly, PEnBayes merges the local BN Structures into a global network structure using the structure ensemble method at the global layer. For the experiment, we generate big data sets by simulating sensor data from patient monitoring, transportation, and disease diagnosis domains. The Experimental results show that PEnBayes achieves a significantly improved execution performance with more consistent and stable results compared with three baseline learning algorithms.

Reactive Amphiphilic Conjugated Polymers for Inhibiting Amyloid ß Assembly.

Protein misfolding and aberrant aggregations are associated with multiple prevalent and intractable diseases. Inhibition of amyloid assembly is a promising strategy for the treatment of amyloidosis. Reported here is the design and synthesis of a reactive conjugated polymer, a poly(p-phenylene vinylene) derivative, functionalized with p-nitrophenyl esters (PPV-NP) and it inhibits the assembly of amyloid proteins, degrades preformed fibrils, and reduces the cytotoxicity of amyloid aggregations in living cells. PPV-NP is attached to the proteins through hydrophobic interactions and irreversible covalent linkage. PPV-NP also exhibited the capacity to eliminate Aß plaques in brain slices in ex vivo assays. This work represents an innovative attempt to inhibit protein pathogenic aggregates, and may offer insights into the development of therapeutic strategies for amyloidosis.

Qualitative analysis of flavors and fragrances added to tea by using GC-MS.

A precise identification method was developed to identify the flavors and fragrances added to tea matrix artificially using gas chromatography with mass spectrometry and gas chromatography with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry. The proposed method was based on the corresponding "three-column retention indices, two exact mass numbers, one mass spectrum matching degree" database of 40 kinds of common flavors and fragrances. The intraday and the interday relative standard deviation of the retention indices were less than 0.048 and 0.093%, respectively. The accuracy of exact mass was between 0.15 and 6.22 ppm. And the validation of the created database was performed by analyzing the tea samples. Thus, the proposed method is suitable for the precise identification of the flavors and fragrances added to tea matrix artificially without standard substances as a reference.