Study on the accelerated biodegradation of PAHs in subsurface soil via coupled low-temperature thermally treatment and electron acceptor stimulation based on metagenomic sequencing.

In situ anoxic bioremediation is a sustainable technology to remediate PAHs contaminated soils. However, the limited degradation rate of PAHs under anoxic conditions has become the primary bottleneck hindering the application of this technology. In this study, coupled low-temperature thermally treatment (<50 °C) and EA biostimulation was used to enhance PAH removal. Anoxic biodegradation of PAHs in soil was explored in microcosms in the absence and presence of added EAs at 3 temperatures (15 °C, 30 °C, and 45 °C). The influence of temperature, EA, and their interaction on the removal of PAHs were identified. A PAH degradation model based on PLSR analysis identified the importance and the positive/negative role of parameters on PAH removal. Soil archaeal and bacterial communities showed similar succession patterns, the impact of temperature was greater than that of EA. Soil microbial community and function were more influenced by temperature than EAs. Close and frequent interactions were observed among soil bacteria, archaea, PAH-degrading genes and methanogenic genes. A total of 15 bacterial OTUs, 1 PAH-degrading gene and 2 methanogenic genes were identified as keystones in the network. Coupled low-temperature thermally treatment and EA stimulation resulted in higher PAH removal efficiencies than EA stimulation alone and low-temperature thermally treatment alone.

Landscape Characteristics Affecting Spatial Patterns of Water Quality Variation in a Highly Disturbed Region.

Spatial patterns of water quality trends for 45 stations in control units of the Shandong Province, China during 2009-2017 were examined by a non-parametric seasonal Mann-Kendall's test (SMK) for dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), permanganate index (CODMn), total phosphorus (TP) and ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N). The DO concentration showed significant upward trends at approximately half of the stations, while other parameters showed significant downward trends at more than 40% of stations. The stations with downward trends presented significant spatial autocorrelation, and were mainly concentrated in the northwest and southwest regions. The relationship between the landscape characteristics and water quality was explored using stepwise multiple regression models, which indicated the water quality was better explained using landscape pattern metrics compared to the percentage of land use types. Decreased mean patch area and connectedness of farmland will promote the control of BOD, COD and CODMn, whereas the increased landscape percentage of urban areas were not conducive to the water quality improvement, which suggested the sprawling of farmland and urban land was not beneficial to pollution control. Increasing the grassland area was conducive to the reduction of pollutants, while the effect of grassland fragmentation was reversed.

Anti-metastasis activity of curcumin against breast cancer via the inhibition of stem cell-like properties and EMT.

BACKGROUND: Curcumin is a polyphenolic compound with potent chemopreventive and anti-cancer efficacy. PURPOSE: To explore the potential anti-metastasis efficacy of curcumin in breast cancer stem-like cells (BCSCs), which are increasingly considered to be the origin of the recurrence and metastasis of breast cancer. METHODS: A CCK8 assay was performed to evaluate cell viability, and a colony formation assay was conducted to determine cell proliferation in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 adherent cells. Transwell and wound healing assays were used to detect the effect of curcumin on cell migration and invasion in MDA-MB-231 cells. Mammospheres were cultured with serum free medium (SFM) for three generations and the BCSC surface marker CD44+CD24-/low subpopulation was measured by flow cytometry. Mammosphere formation and differentiation abilities were determined after cell treatment with curcumin. Then, a reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction assay was conducted to detect the relative mRNA level of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) marker genes and western blot analysis was performed to determine the protein expression of stem cell genes in mammospheres treated with curcumin. RESULTS: Curcumin exhibited anti-proliferative and colony formation inhibiting activities in both the MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cell lines. It also suppressed the migration and invasion of MDA-MB-231 cells. The CD44+CD24-/low subpopulation was larger in mammospheres when MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 adherent cells were cultured with SFM. Further studies revealed that curcumin inhibited mammosphere formation and differentiation abilities. Moreover, curcumin down-regulated the mRNA expression of Vimentin, Fibronectin, and ß-catenin, and up-regulated E-cadherin mRNA expression levels. Western blot analysis demonstrated that curcumin decreased the protein expression of stem cell genes including Oct4, Nanog and Sox2. CONCLUSION: The results of the present study suggest that the inhibitor effects of curcumin on breast cancer cells may be related to resistance to cancer stem-like characters and the EMT process. These data indicate that curcumin could function as a type of anti-metastasis agent for breast cancer.

Dihydro-Resveratrol Ameliorates Lung Injury in Rats with Cerulein-Induced Acute Pancreatitis.

Acute pancreatitis is an inflammatory process originated in the pancreas; however, it often leads to systemic complications that affect distant organs. Acute respiratory distress syndrome is indeed the predominant cause of death in patients with severe acute pancreatitis. In this study, we aimed to delineate the ameliorative effect of dihydro-resveratrol, a prominent analog of trans-resveratrol, against acute pancreatitis-associated lung injury and the underlying molecular actions. Acute pancreatitis was induced in rats with repetitive injections of cerulein (50 µg/kg/h) and a shot of lipopolysaccharide (7.5 mg/kg). By means of histological examination and biochemical assays, the severity of lung injury was assessed in the aspects of tissue damages, myeloperoxidase activity, and levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. When treated with dihydro-resveratrol, pulmonary architectural distortion, hemorrhage, interstitial edema, and alveolar thickening were significantly reduced in rats with acute pancreatitis. In addition, the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and the activity of myeloperoxidase in pulmonary tissues were notably repressed. Importantly, nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) activation was attenuated. This study is the first to report the oral administration of dihydro-resveratrol ameliorated acute pancreatitis-associated lung injury via an inhibitory modulation of pro-inflammatory response, which was associated with a suppression of the NF-κB signaling pathway.

[Preliminary exploration on educational reform of general western medical history in medical colleges and universities under new situations and circumstances].

With the appearance of the "biological-psychological-social" medical model, the purpose, value and significance of medicine are reviewed and reconsidered by the people, and the history of medicine becomes one of the core subjects in the medical humanist education, along with change of the teaching of general western medical history. Medical history is no longer the accumulation of the achievements of human knowledge and medical experience, the intellectual history of theorytransformation, and the history of reformation of medical technologies, but a concrete and colorful living situation, displayed by the scientists, physicians and normal peoplecommunity during the process of their consistent recognition and transformation on medicine. Therefore, the teaching of generalwestern medical history should adjust the compilation of teaching materials, update the educational concept, change the contents, methods of teaching and examination in order to lay stress on the cultural viewpoint and the function of humanity and quality of education.

[Retrospect of the history of recognition on the mechanism of heart failure and its research in the 19(th) century].

There were the records of heart failure in the 6(th) century B.C. At that time, clinical observation was the main approach. The combination of observation and anatomy in the 18(th) century rendered the application of pathological anatomy in the research of etiology and pathogenesis of heart failure possible. Up to the 19(th) century, with the upsurge of modern science, the laboratory became the center of medicine. The introduction of experiment into the clinic was used in the exploration of clinical significance of changes of the diseased heart's size and shape, and the difference between cardiac hypertrophy and cardiectasis was found. The pathogenesis of these two diseases was analyzed, and the significance of compensation in cardiac hypertrophy was revealed, then the relationship of cardiovalvular disease, cardiac hypertrophy and cardiac dilatation was demonstrated.

[Historical review of heart transplantation].

In 1905, Carrel and Guthrie reported the heterotopic heart transplantation on dogs for the first time. In the same year, Shone advanced the transplantation immunity theory which provided a basis for organ transplantation. In 1964, Hardy and his colleagues performed the first human chimpanzee heart transplantation. In 1967, Barnard performed the first human-to-human orthotopic heart transplantation in the world. In 1968 - 1971, 56 hospitals performed 180 heart transplantations world-wide. But because of the poor survival rate after operation, heart transplantations became less frequent. In 1972, Castaneda and Reitz summed up the experiences of heart-lung experimental transplantation, which laid a foundation for human heart-lung transplantation. In 1973, Caves invented myocardium biopsy for rejection surveillance after heart transplantation, which solved the problem of diagnosis for early rejection. In 1981, Stanford University first took cyclosporin A into clinical practice. The acute rejection after heart transplantation was effectively controlled and the long-term survival rate was significantly increased. Heart transplantation entered the second peak period. The launching of Asian heart transplantation began in 1968. Juro·Wada with his medical team performed the first heart transplantation in Japan. In 1978, Zhang Shize in Shanghai performed the first heart transplantation in China.

[Expression of HSP70 and P53 in malignant tumor tissues and its relationship to heat syndrome of TCM].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expression of HSP70 and P53 in malignant tumor tissues of patients with TCM Heat-Syndrome (HS) or with non-Heat-Syndrome (NHS). METHODS: S-P immunohistochemical method was used to detect the gene expression, and ELISA and RT-PCR were adopted to determine the content of HSP70 and P53 mRNA expression in different malignant tumor tissues. RESULTS: (1) Positive ratio of HSP70 and P53 in the colorectal cancer of HS was significantly higher than that in colorectal cancer of NHS respectively, and the total positive ratio of the two genes in all tumors of HS was higher than those of NHS (P<0.05); (2) HSP70 expression content in colorectal, nasopharyngeal and lung cancers of HS was higher than in those of NHS respectively, and the total HSP70 expression content in tumors of HS was higher than in those of NHS (P<0.01); (3) HSP70 mRNA expression content in colorectal and lung cancers of HS was higher than in those of NHS respectively, and the total HSP70 mRNA expression content in tumors of HS was higher than in those of NHS (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: HSP70 and P53 positive ratio and HSP70 expression content in patients of malignant tumor with HS was higher than in those with NHS.

Experimental analysis of a nitrogen removal process simulation of wastewater land treatment under three different wheat planting densities.

Nitrogen contaminant transport, transformation and uptake simulation experiments were conducted in green house under three different planting density of winter wheat. They were Group A, planting density of 0.0208 plants/cm2, Group B, 0.1042 plants/cm2, and Group C, 0.1415 plants/cm2. The capacity and ratio of nitrogen removal were different on three kinds of conditions of wastewater land treatment. From analysis of wastewater treatment capacity, wastewater concentration and irrigation intensity for Group C were suitable and nitrogen quantity added was 2 times of that for Group B, 2.6 times for Group A while nitrogen residue was only 7.06%. Hence, wastewater irrigation and treatment design with purpose of waste water treatment should select the design with maximum capacity, optimal removal ratio and least residue in soil, which was closely related to crop planting density, crop growth status and also background nitrogen quantity in soil.