Proteomic study on CUMS-induced senile depression mice's frontal lobe cortex and the regulating effect of KTLD formula.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the protein expression of chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS)-induced senile depression in SAMP-8 mice's frontal lobe cortex and the regulating effect of the kidney tonifying and liver dispersing (KTLD) formula. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 15 male SAMP-8 mice were randomly divided into control, CUMS, and KTLD groups. CUMS and KTLD mice were subjected to CUMS for 21 days. Control group mice were kept to normal feeding. At the same time as molding, the herbal gavage (KTLD formula, 19.5 g/kg/d) was given from the beginning of the stress stimulation, while the control group and the CUMS group mice were given the same volume of saline for 21 days. Open-field testing (OFT) was used to assess the mice's depression levels. Isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ) were used to identify differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) in mice's frontal lobe cortex. Bioinformatics analysis including Gene Ontology (GO); Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment, and protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were utilized to study the DEPs connections. RESULTS: Results revealed that mice with senile depression experienced more anxiety and depression than control mice, whereas KTLD mice had the opposite experience. Biological processes including transport, regulation of transcription, and DNA-templated were identified in both KTLD and CUMS. The KEGG enrichment study of the DEPs in KTLD revealed their involvement in the MAPK signaling pathway, glutamatergic synapse, dopaminergic synapse, axon guidance, and ribosome. KEGG pathway enrichment showed that the mechanism of senile depression and the pathway of KTLD are closely related to axonal conductance and ribosomes. According to the PPI analysis, disease-related proteins regulated by KTLD revealed that some proteins, such as GLOI1 and TRRAP, have potential interactions. This provides fresh insight into how KTLD works to cue senile depression. CONCLUSIONS: KTLD treats senile depression via multiple targets and pathways, which may include regulations of 467 DEPs. Proteomics showed significant changes in protein levels in geriatric depression and after KTLD intervention. Senile depression involves the cross-linking and modulation of signal pathways, presenting a pattern of multiple pathways and multiple targets. According to a protein pathway enrichment and protein interaction model of KTLD in senile depression, KTLD is capable of treating senile depression via multiple pathways and targets.

Effects of a combination of fibrolytic and amylolytic enzymes on ruminal enzyme activities, bacterial diversity, blood profile and milk production in dairy cows.

We hypothesised that adding a combination of fibrolytic and amylolytic enzymes to the diet of early-lactation dairy cows would improve rumen enzyme activity and bacterial diversity, promote energy metabolism, and benefit milk production in cows. Twenty multiparous early-lactation (90 ±â€¯5 d) Holstein cows with similar body conditions were randomly allocated to control (CON, n = 10) and experimental (EXP, n = 10) groups in a completely randomised single-factor design. The CON was fed only a basal total mixed ration diet, and the diet of the EXP was supplemented with a combination of fibrolytic and amylolytic enzymes at 70 g/cow/d (cellulase 3 500 CU/g, xylanase 2 000 XU/g, ß-glucanase 17 500 GU/g, and amylase 37 000 AU/g). The experiment lasted 28 days, with 21 days for adaptation and 7 days for sampling. Enzyme addition increased the activity levels of α-amylase and xylanase, and the ammonia-N concentration (P < 0.05) tended to increase the activity of ß-glucanase (P = 0.08) in rumen fluid. However, there was no significant difference in the rumen bacterial richness and diversity, phylum (richness > 0.1%) or genus (richness > 1%) composition between the CON and EXP groups (P > 0.05). A tendency of difference was found between CON and EXP (R = 0.22, P = 0.098) in principal component analysis. Ten genera showed different abundances across the CON and EXP groups (linear discriminant analysis effect size, linear discriminant analysis > 2). EXP increased the ratio of albumin to globulin and the concentrations of total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P < 0.05) and tended to increase triglycerides (P = 0.09) in blood. Milk yield, 3.5% fat-corrected milk yield and energy-corrected milk yield increased with enzyme supplementation (P < 0.05). The production levels of milk fat and lactose increased, but the percentage of solids, not fat and protein, decreased in EXP (P < 0.05). Although the DM intake was not affected, the feed efficiency tended to increase (P = 0.07) in EXP. In conclusion, dietary supplementation with a mixture of fibrolytic and amylolytic enzymes on multiparous early-lactation dairy cows increased α-amylase and xylanase activity levels in rumen fluid, enhanced milk performance and tended to improve the feed efficiency in cows.

Effect of alfalfa hay and starter feed supplementation on caecal microbiota and fermentation, growth, and health of yak calves.

The caecum is the primary site where microbial fermentation and acidosis occurred. The supplementation of starter feed and alfalfa hay has the potential to influence caecal microbiota and then affect caecal fermentation. This study aims to investigate the effect of starter feed and alfalfa hay supplementation on caecal microbiota, immune homeostasis, and growth of preweaning yaks. Twenty 30-day-old male yak calves were randomly assigned to four groups, which separately fed with milk replacer (CON group), milk replacer with alfalfa hay (A group), milk replacer with starter feed (S group), and milk replacer with starter feed plus alfalfa hay (SA group) throughout the trial. Growth performance and plasma physiological and biochemical indicators were measured every 30 days. Calves were sacrificed at 120 days of age. The caecal contents were collected for measuring pH and contents of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and for characterizing caecal microbiota. The results indicated that individual or simultaneous supplementation with alfalfa hay and starter feed all significantly increased the BW, body height, body length, and chest girth of yak calves. However, supplementation with starter feed significantly increased plasma cortisol, nitric oxide, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interferon-γ concentrations and the ratio of aspartate aminotransferase to alanine aminotransferase of yak calves when compared with the control and alfalfa hay feeding groups, while the co-supplementation of starter feed and alfalfa hay could significantly decrease these inflammation-related indices when compared with the starter feeding group. Sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene showed that starter feed and alfalfa hay separately stimulated the proliferation of starch-decomposing and cellulose- or hemicellulose-decomposing bacteria. This also significantly increased the levels of acetate, propionate, butyrate, valerate, isobutyrate, and isovalerate in the caecal contents. Furthermore, compared with the S and CON groups, the significantly increased genera of Desulfobulbus, Olsenella, Pseudoflavonifractor, and Stomatobaculum in the SA and A groups were beneficial to the immune homeostasis, and the significantly decreased Blautia, Clostridium IV, Bacteroides, Eubacterium, Clostridium XVIII, and Mogibacterium in the SA and A groups were related to the reduced caecal lactate and LPS contents, the decreased inflammatory reaction, and the improved healthy hepatic condition of yak calves. In conclusion, milk replacer supplemented with alfalfa hay and starter feed is recommended during preweaning to improve yak calf health and growth because this regimen promotes the growth and maintains the immune homeostasis of yak calves.

The Effect of Maternal Diet with Fish Oil on Oxidative Stress and Inflammatory Response in Sow and New-Born Piglets.

Pregnancy is an oxidative stress and immune challenge for the mother. Fish oil is rich in EPA and DHA, which can partly inhibit aspects of inflammation and restore antioxidant capacity. In the present study, we investigated the effect of maternal diet with fish oil during the late gestation period on oxidative stress and inflammatory response in sows and their progenies. Twelve second-parity sows were allocated equally into two groups. Sows were fed either the soybean oil diet (SD) or soybean oil+fish oil diet (FD) during the gestation period. The plasma of sows, cord blood, and new-born piglets were collected. Full-term placentas and livers of new-born piglets were also sampled. The activities of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) in the plasma of sows on farrowing day were higher, and the concentrations of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PGE2) in the plasma of sows on farrowing day and interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) in the plasma of cord blood were lower in the FD group than those in the SD group (P < 0.05). The FD downregulated the expression of SOD, IL-1ß, IL-6, and transforming growth factor-ß-activated kinase 1 binding protein 1 (TAB1) mRNA but upregulated the expression of lipoxygenase enzyme 5 (ALOX5) and interleukin-10 (IL-10) mRNA in placentas (P < 0.05). The FD downregulated the protein expression level of p-JNK/JNK in placentas (P < 0.05). In the livers of new-born piglets, the FD upregulated the expression of ALOX5 (P < 0.05) and G-protein-coupled receptor 120 (GPR120) (P < 0.05) mRNA. Our results suggest that the maternal diet with fish oil might alleviate oxidative stress in sows on farrowing day and modulate inflammatory response in full-term placentas by inhibiting the JNK signal pathway. Moreover, the maternal diet with fish oil might partly regulate the neonatal immune response of their progenies.

Randomised clinical trial: Tong-Xie-Yao-Fang granules versus placebo for patients with diarrhoea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Tong-Xie-Yao-Fang (TXYF) is a Chinese herbal formula for treating chronic diarrhoea accompanied by abdominal pain. The results were inconsistent in previous trials examining its effect. AIM: To study the efficacy of TXYF granules for treating diarrhoea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D). METHODS: We performed a double-blind, placebo-controlled randomised trial and enrolled 160 participants with IBS-D. The participants had VAS scores ≥3 cm in IBS-D global symptoms and ≥2 days in a week with abdominal pain and loose stools (Bristol score 5, 6 or 7). They were randomly assigned to received TXYF or placebo during a treatment period of 4 weeks, and they were followed up for 8 weeks after treatment. The primary outcome was adequate relief of IBS-D global symptoms for at least 2 of 4 weeks during weeks 1-4. Secondary outcomes included mean weekly VAS scores of IBS-D major symptoms, mean weekly stool frequency, mean weekly Bristol score, and adverse events. RESULTS: 155 of 160 patients completed the trial. We found a significantly higher rate of adequate relief of global symptoms in TXFY group during weeks 1 to 4 (57.5% vs 37.5%, χ2 = 5.6391, P = 0.017); logistic regression analysis showed a similar result (OR 2.2, 95% CI 1.2-4.4, P = 0.016). Most of the secondary outcomes showed superiority of TXYF over placebo in weekly assessment from week 3 to week 7. The adverse event rate was low in both groups (3.8% vs 3.8%, P = 1.000). CONCLUSION: During a 4 week trial, TXFY granules were superior to placebo in controlling symptoms of IBS-D.

Effects of dietary leucine and phenylalanine on pancreas development, enzyme activity, and relative gene expression in milk-fed Holstein dairy calves.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of dietary supplementation with leucine and phenylalanine on pancreas development, enzyme activity, and related gene expression in male Holstein calves. Twenty male Holstein calves [1 d of age, 38 ± 3 kg of body weight (BW)] were randomly assigned to 1 of the following 4 treatment groups with 5 calves in each group: control, leucine supplementation (1.435 g/L of milk), phenylalanine supplementation (0.725 g/L of milk), and leucine and phenylalanine (1.435 + 0.725 g/L of milk). The diets were made isonitrogenous with the inclusion of alanine in each respective treatment. The feeding trial lasted for 8 wk, including 1 wk for adaption and 7 wk for the feeding experiment. Leucine tended to increase the concentration of total pancreatic protein (mg/kg of BW). Phenylalanine increased the concentrations of plasma insulin, cholecystokinin, and pancreatic DNA (mg/g) and the expression of trypsin gene but decreased the pancreatic protein:DNA ratio and tended to decrease the pancreas weight (g/kg of BW). No differences were observed in total pancreatic DNA (mg/pancreas and mg/kg of BW), pancreatic protein (mg/pancreas), or activities of α-amylase, trypsin, and lipase. The relative expression levels of the genes encoding α-amylase and lipase did not differ among the 4 groups. The supplementation of both leucine and phenylalanine showed an interaction on the pancreas weight (g and g/kg of BW) and a tendency of an interaction on the pancreatic protein concentration (mg/g of pancreas and mg/kg of BW) and the plasma glucose concentration. Leucine tended to increase the size of the pancreatic cells, whereas phenylalanine tended to increase the number of pancreatic cells. However, neither AA affected the activities of the pancreatic enzymes of the calves. These results indicate that leucine and phenylalanine supplementation in milk-fed Holstein calves differentially affect pancreatic growth and development.

Therapeutic efficacy of atypical antipsychotic drugs by targeting multiple stress-related metabolic pathways.

Schizophrenia (SZ) is considered to be a multifactorial brain disorder with defects involving many biochemical pathways. Patients with SZ show variable responses to current pharmacological treatments of SZ because of the heterogeneity of this disorder. Stress has a significant role in the pathophysiological pathways and therapeutic responses of SZ. Atypical antipsychotic drugs (AAPDs) can modulate the stress response of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and exert therapeutic effects on stress by targeting the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and hippocampus. To evaluate the effects of AAPDs (such as clozapine, risperidone and aripiprazole) on stress, we compared neurochemical profile variations in the PFC and hippocampus between rat models of chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) for HPA axis activation and of long-term dexamethasone exposure (LTDE) for HPA axis inhibition, using an ultraperformance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS)-based metabolomic approach and a multicriteria assessment. We identified a number of stress-induced biomarkers comprising creatine, choline, inosine, hypoxanthine, uric acid, allantoic acid, lysophosphatidylcholines (LysoPCs), phosphatidylethanolamines (PEs), corticosterone and progesterone. Specifically, pathway enrichment and correlation analyses suggested that stress induces oxidative damage by disturbing the creatine-phosphocreatine circuit and purine pathway, leading to excessive membrane breakdown. Moreover, our data suggested that the AAPDs tested partially restore stress-induced deficits by increasing the levels of creatine, progesterone and PEs. Thus, the present findings provide a theoretical basis for the hypothesis that a combined therapy using adenosine triphosphate fuel, antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids as supplements may have synergistic effects on the therapeutic outcome following AAPD treatment.

Tiaogan Qingxin Granule treatment increases myocardial connexin 43 expression in a rat model of arrhythmia.

Myocardial ischemia-induced arrhythmia, especially ventricular arrhythmia, is the main reason for sudden cardiac death. Therefore, ischemic ventricular arrhythmia-targeted treatments are urgently needed. The mechanism of Tiaogan Qingxin Granule in premature ventricular beat (PVB) treatment was explored in arrhythmic rats pretreated with Tiaogan Qingxin Granule. Sprague-Dawley rats (N = 40) were randomly divided into 4 groups: sham-operated, arrhythmia model, Wenxin Granule, and Tiaogan Qingxin Granule. The ischemic arrhythmia model was established by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery. The Tiaogan Qingxin Granule group was treated intragastrically for 7 days before surgery. Sham-operated rats underwent thoracotomy without coronary artery ligation. Myocardial infarction rate was measured using the triphenyltetrazolium chloride method and Cx43 expression was quantified by western blotting. Compared to the arrhythmia model group, the Tiaogan Qingxin Granule group showed a significant reduction in the myocardial infarct size and myocardial infarction rate (P < 0.01). Cx43 expression in the left ventricular myocardial tissues was significantly lower in the arrhythmia model group than in the sham-operated group (P < 0.01), but significantly higher in the Tiaogan Qingxin Granule group (P < 0.01). Intergroup difference in the relative Cx43 expression between the Tiaogan Qingxin Granule and Wenxin Granule groups was not significant (P > 0.05). Thus, Tiaogan Qingxin Granule reduced the myocardial infarct size, lowered the myocardial infarction rate, and increased Cx43 expression, possibly by increasing blood supply to the cardiac muscles. In conclusion, Tiaogan Qingxin Granule may be useful for treating ischemic PVB.

Dietary L-arginine supplementation reduces abdominal fat content by modulating lipid metabolism in broiler chickens.

This study investigated the effects of different levels of dietary L-arginine (L-Arg) supplementation on the abdominal fat pad, circulating lipids, hepatic fatty acid synthase (FAS) gene expression, gene expression related to fatty acid ß-oxidation, and the performance of broiler chickens. We tested whether the dietary L-Arg levels affected the expression of genes related to lipid metabolism in order to reduce body fat deposition. A total of 192 broiler chickens (Cobb 500) aged 21 days with an average BW of 920 ± 15 g were randomly assigned to four groups (six broilers per replicate and eight replicates per treatment). The control group was fed a basal diet, whereas the treatment groups were fed basal diets supplemented with 0.25%, 0.50%, or 1.00% L-Arg for 3 weeks. The average daily feed intake, average daily gain and feed : gain ratio were not affected by the dietary L-Arg levels. However, chickens supplemented with L-Arg had lower abdominal fat content, plasma triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC) concentrations, hepatic FAS mRNA expression and increased heart carnitine palmitoyl transferase1 (CPT1) and 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase (3HADH) mRNA expression. These findings suggest that the addition of 0.25% L-Arg may reduce the plasma TC concentration by decreasing hepatic 3-hydroxyl-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase mRNA expression. This may lower the plasma TG and abdominal fat content by suppressing hepatic FAS mRNA expression and enhancing CPT1 and 3HADH (genes related to fatty acid ß-oxidation) mRNA expression in the hearts of broiler chickens.

Isolation and identification of metabolites of osthole in rats.

Osthole (Ost), one of the major components of Cnidium monnieri (L.) Cusson, is had the structure of an isopentenoxy-coumarin with a range of pharmacological activities. In the present study, the metabolism of Ost in male Sprague-Dawley rats was investigated by identifying Ost metabolites excreted in rat urine. Following an oral dose of 40 mg/kg Ost, 10 phase I and 3 phase II metabolites were isolated from the urine of rats, and their structures identified on the basis of a range of spectroscopic data, including 2D-NMR techniques. These metabolites were fully characterized as 5'-hydroxyl-osthole (M-1), osthenol (M-2), 4'-hydroxyl-osthole (M-3), 3, 5'-dihydroxyl-osthole (M-4), 5'-hydroxyl-osthenol (M-5), 4'-hydroxyl-2', 3'-dihydro-osthenol (M-6), 4'-hydroxyl-osthenol (M-7), 3, 4'-dihydroxyl-osthole (M-8), 2', 3'-dihydroxyl-osthole (M-9), 5'-hydroxyl-2', 3'-dihydroosthole (M-10), osthenol-7-O-ß-D-glucuronide (M-11), osthole-4'-O-ß-D-glucuronide (M-12) and osthole-5'-O-ß-D-glycuronate (M-13). This is the first identification of M-1, M-3 to M-13 in vivo. On the basis of the metabolites profile, a possible metabolic pathway for Ost metabolism in rats has been proposed. This is the first systematic study on the phases I and II metabolites of 8-isopentenoxy-coumarin derivative.

Improved production of transgenic Dioscorea zingiberensis (Dioscoreaceae) by Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation.

The establishment of high-efficiency Agrobacterium-mediated transformation techniques could improve the production of Dioscorea zingiberensis, a medicinal species with a high diosgenin content. We co-cultivated embryogenic calli induced from mature seeds with A. tumefaciens strain EHA105. A binary vector, pCAMBIA1381, which contains the gfp and hpt genes under the control of the ubiquitin promoter and the CaMV 35S promoter, respectively, was used for transformation. Pre-culture, basic medium, acetosyringone, and bacterial density were evaluated to establish the most efficient protocol. The optimal conditions consisted of MS medium without CaCl(2) for pre- and co-cultivation, three days for pre-culture, addition of 200 µM AS, and an OD(600) of 0.5. The transgenic plants grown under selection were confirmed by PCR analysis and Southern blot analysis. This protocol produced transgenic D. zingiberensis plants in seven months, with a transformation efficiency of 6%.

Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid levels in US donor human milk: meeting the needs of premature infants?

OBJECTIVE: To determine fatty acid levels in the US donor milk supply. STUDY DESIGN: Donor human milk samples from Iowa (n=62), Texas (n=5), North Carolina (n=5) and California (n=5) were analyzed by gas chromatography. Levels in the Iowa donor milk were compared before and after pasteurization using Student's t-test. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (ARA) levels were compared among all milk banks using analysis of variance. RESULT: ARA (0.4 pre, 0.4 post, P=0.18) and DHA (0.073 pre, 0.073 post, P=0.84) were not affected by pasteurization. DHA varied between banks (P<0.0001), whereas ARA did not (P=0.3). DHA levels from all banks were lower than published values for maternal milk and infant formula (P<0.0001). CONCLUSION: Pasteurization of breastmilk does not affect DHA or ARA levels. However, DHA content in US donor milk varies with bank location and may not meet the recommended provision for preterm infants.

Comparaison du mecanisme de l'action cardiotonique de la fraction 3 de mai- boa et de la digoxine sur le cour isole de rat

MAI-BAO est une boisson issue de la fermentation du the Camela sinensis sucre par le Champignon The-tresor. La fraction chromatographique no3 de MAI-BAO (MB-F3 ou F3) exerce un effet cardiotonique.But gomparaison du mecanisme d'activite cardiotonique de MB-F3 et de la Digoxine (Dx) chez le rat. Materiels et Methodes : MB-F3 obtenue par chromatographie sur gel sephadex G-50 et la digoxine sont utilisees pour perfuser le coeur isole de rat dont les contractions sont enregistrees avec le dispositif de Langendhorff. Le mecanisme biochimique de l'action cardiaque de MB-F3 et Dx est determine par dosage du phosphore selon la methode de Sumner. Resultats : MB-F3 exerce un effet cardiotonique inferieur a celui de Dx (P0;05) avec des Doses efficaces 50respectives de 1mg/ml et 10-6mg/ml. Par ailleurs; MB-F3 exerce une inhibition competitive inferieure a celle de Dx (P0;05) sur l'ATPase-Na+/K+.Conclusion : MB-F3 exerce une action digitalique-like inferieure a celle de Dx sur le coeur de rat

Effects of 1alpha-hydroxycholecalciferol on growth performance, parameters of tibia and plasma, meat quality, and type IIb sodium phosphate cotransporter gene expression of one- to twenty-one-day-old broilers.

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of 1alpha-hydroxycholecalciferol (1alpha-OH D3) on the growth performance, tibia and plasma parameters, nutrient utilization, meat quality of the breast and thigh, and type IIb sodium phosphate cotranspoter gene expression of broilers. A total of 96 males of 1-d-old Arbor Acres broilers were randomly assigned to 8 cages of 12 birds each. Two dietary treatments were applied to 4 cages each. Diet 1 was prepared as the basal diet (nonphytate phosphorus, 0.21%), whereas diet 2 was the basal diet supplemented with 5 microg/kg of 1alpha-OH D3. Results showed that supplementation of the basal diet with 1alpha-OH D3 increased growth performance, tibia ash and strength, plasma inorganic phosphate concentration, utilization of total phosphorus and nonphytate phosphorus, lightness and yellowness of the breast and thigh meat, and intestinal type IIb sodium phosphate cotranspoter mRNA expression, whereas it decreased the shear force and water-holding capacity of the thigh meat. These data suggest that the addition of 1alpha-OH D3 might improve growth performance, tibia development, and meat quality in 1- to 21-d-old broilers by increasing the absorption and retention of phosphorus.

Generation of 3.5W high efficiency blue-violet laser by intracavity frequency-doubling of an all-solid-state tunable Ti:sapphire laser.

In this paper, we report a high power, high efficiency blue-violet laser obtained by intracavity frequency-doubling of an all-solid-state Q-switched tunable Ti:sapphire laser, which was pumped by a 532 nm intracavity frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser. A beta-BaB2O4 (BBO) crystal was used for frequency-doubling of the Ti:sapphire laser and a V-shape folded three-mirror cavity was optimized to obtain high power high efficiency second harmonic generation (SHG). At an incident pump power of 22 W, the tunable output from 355 nm to 475 nm was achieved, involving the maximum average output of 3.5 W at 400 nm with an optical conversion efficiency of 16% from the 532 nm pump laser to the blue-violet output. The beam quality factor M(2) was measured to be Mx(2)=2.15, My(2)=2.38 for characterizing the tunable blue laser.

Signal and noise transfer properties of photoelectric interactions in diagnostic x-ray imaging detectors.

Image quality in diagnostic x-ray imaging is ultimately limited by the statistical properties governing how, and where, x-ray energy is deposited in a detector. This in turn depends on the physics of the underlying x-ray interactions. In the diagnostic energy range (10-100 keV), most of the energy deposited in a detector is through photoelectric interactions. We present a theoretical model of the photoelectric effect that specifically addresses the statistical nature of energy absorption by photoelectrons, K and L characteristic x rays, and Auger electrons. A cascaded-systems approach is used that employs a complex structure of parallel cascades to describe signal and noise transfer through the photoelectric effect in terms of the modulation transfer function, Wiener noise power spectrum, and detective quantum efficiency (DQE). The model was evaluated by comparing results with Monte Carlo calculations for x-ray converters based on amorphous selenium (a-Se) and lead (Pb), representing both low and high-Z materials. When electron transport considerations can be neglected, excellent agreement (within 3%) is obtained for each metric over the entire diagnostic energy range in both a-Se and Pb detectors up to 30 cycles/mm, the highest frequency tested. The cascaded model overstates the DQE when the electron range cannot be ignored. This occurs at approximately two cycles/mm in a-Se at an incident photon energy of 80 keV, whereas in Pb, excellent agreement is obtained for the DQE over the entire diagnostic energy range. However, within the context of mammography (20 keV) and micro-computed tomography (40 keV), the effects of electron transport on the DQE are negligible compared to fluorescence reabsorption, which can lead to decreases of up to 30% and 20% in a-Se and Pb, respectively, at 20 keV; and 10% and 5%, respectively, at 40 keV. It is shown that when Swank noise is identified in a Fourier model, the Swank factor must be frequency dependent. This factor decreases quickly with frequency, and in the case of a-Se and Pb, decreases by up to a factor of 3 at five cycles/mm immediately above the K edge. The frequency-dependent Swank factor is also equivalent to what we call the "photoelectric DQE," which describes signal and noise transfer through photoelectric interactions.

Changes in chemical composition of Alxa bactrian camel milk during lactation.

Changes in chemical composition of Alxa bactrian camels reared in Inner Mongolia (China) during lactation were investigated. Colostrum and milk samples from 10 nomadic female camels in their first season of lactation were collected periodically from parturition until 90 d postpartum (PP). The average contents of gross composition were 14.23% protein, 4.44% lactose, 0.27% fat, 0.77% ash, and 20.16% total solids in colostrum at 2 h PP, and the respective mean values were 3.55, 4.24, 5.65, 0.87, and 14.31% for regular milk on d 90. A 15-fold increase was shown in fat content during the first 24 h, whereas a sharp decrease was shown during the first 12 h of lactation in protein, ash, and total solids contents. Variation in lactose content was small (4.24 to 4.71%) throughout the study period. Total N, nonprotein N, casein N, and whey protein N were found to be 2.23, 0.06, 0.86, and 1.31 g/100 mL for the colostrum at 2 h PP; and 0.56, 0.04, 0.45, and 0.07 g/100 mL for the milk at 90 d PP. Percentages of caseins increased steadily, whereas whey proteins declined gradually until 3 mo of lactation. Gas liquid chromatography analysis of milk fat showed that the content of even-numbered saturated fatty acids (C12:0-C18:0) in camel colostrum (2 h to 7 d PP) was lower than that of regular milk (15 to 90 d PP). The predominant saturated fatty acids were C14:0, C16:0, and C18:0, regardless of the stage of lactation. There was a considerable level of polyunsaturated fatty acids (mainly C18:1) in Alxa camel's milk fat. The levels of Ca, P, Na, K, and Cl were 222.58, 153.74, 65.0, 136.5, and 141.1 mg/100 g, respectively, at 2 h PP; the values of the minerals were 154.57, 116.82, 72.0, 191.0, and 152.0 mg/100 g, respectively, for the regular milk on d 90. The levels of vitamins A, C, E, B1, B2, B6, and D were 0.97, 29.60, 1.45, 0.12, 1.24, 0.54 mg/L, and 640 IU/L, respectively, in Alxa camel milk at 90 d PP. Vitamin A and C contents were higher and vitamins E and B1 were lower than those in colostrum. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-PAGE and densitometry results demonstrated that Alxa camel colostrum is rich in immunoglobulins, serum albumin, and 2 unknown fractions, which are reduced in amount (%) within 2 d of lactation. It seems that there is lack of beta-lactoglobulin in Alxa camel milk, whereas casein and -lactalbumin start at a low level and increase gradually until they reach their regular levels in the milk.

Differentially expressed cellular genes following HBV: potential targets of anti-HBV drugs?

The aim of the study was to screen for cellular genes that are differentially expressed following hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, in an attempt to identify potential targets of anti-HBV drugs. An oligonucleotide microarray containing 231 virus-infection-associated genes was prepared. Differential gene expression in HepG2.2.15 cells compared to control with HepG2 cells was analysed by this in-house microarray. The change in gene expression in HepG2.2.15 cells treated by lamivudine on days 4 and 8 after exposure was also studied. Semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to comfirm the differentially expressed genes induced by HBV and lamivudine. There were 31 upregulated and four downregulated genes in HepG2.2.15 cells compared with the HepG2 control cells. Eleven genes were consistently altered by lamivudine at both time points. Of the 31 genes that were upregulated in HepG2.2.15 cells, there were seven genes which were downregulated by lamivudine. Of the four downregulated genes, there was one gene which was upregulated by lamivudine. Of the differentially expressed genes induced by HBV and lamivudine, the expression of five genes was confirmed by semi-quantitative RT-PCR. These results shed new light on the effects of HBV and lamivudine on cellular gene expression. Differentially expressed genes induced by HBV and lamivudine could potentially become new anti-HBV drug targets in novel therapies.

Effects of dietary sources of vegetable oils on performance of high-yielding lactating cows and conjugated linoleic acids in milk.

This study was conducted to examine the effects of dietary supplementation with vegetable oils on performance of high-yielding lactating cows and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) content in milk fat. Twelve lactating Holstein cows in early lactation (30 to 45 d postpartum) were used in a triple 4 x 4 Latin square design. In each period, the cows in each group were fed the same basal diet and received one of the following treatments: 1) control (without oil), 2) 500 g of cottonseed oil, 3) 500 g of soybean oil, and 4) 500 g of corn oil. Each experimental period lasted for 3 wk, with the first 2 wk used for adaptation to the diet. Supplementation with vegetable oils tended to increase milk yield, with the highest milk yield in the cottonseed oil group (35.0 kg/d), compared with the control (34.4 kg/d). Milk fat percentage was decreased, but there were few effects on percentage and yield of milk protein as well as milk fat yield. The cows fed added soybean oil produced milk with the highest content of trans-11 C(18:1) (23.8 mg/g of fat), which was twice that of the control (12.6 mg/g of fat). Content of cis-9, trans-11 CLA in milk fat increased from 3.5 mg/g in the control to 6.0, 7.1, and 10.3 mg/g for the cows fed oils from cottonseed, corn, and soybean, respectively. A significant linear relationship existed between trans-11 C(18:1) and cis-9, trans-11 CLA. Supplementation with oils doubled the content of total fatty acids in blood plasma, with little difference between different vegetable oil sources. Octadecenoic acid content was significantly higher in blood plasma of animals fed added oils from cottonseed and soybean than those fed with corn oil and control. The plasma trans-11 C(18:1) content was significantly higher in the oil-added animals than in control. Supplementation of vegetable oils tended to improve milk production of lactating cows, and the CLA content in milk fat was significantly increased. Soybean oil seemed to be the optimal source to increase CLA production.

CISOC-PSCT: a predictive system for carcinogenic toxicity.

A SAR based carcinogenic toxicity prediction system, CISOC-PSCT, was developed. It consisted of two principal phases: the construction of relationships between structural descriptors and carcinogenic toxicity indices, and prediction of the toxicity from the SAR model. The training set included 2738 carcinogenic and 4130 non-carcinogenic compounds. Three predefined topological types of substructures termed Star, Path and Ring were used to generate the descriptors for each structure in the training set. In this system, the defined carcinogenic toxicity index (CTI) was obtained from the probability of a structural descriptor to either belong to the carcinogenic or non-carcinogenic compounds. Based on these structural descriptors and their CTI, a SAR model was derived. Then the carcinogenic possibility (CP) and the carcinogenic impossibility (CIP) of compounds were predicted. The model was tested from a testing set of 304 carcinogenic compounds (MDL toxicity database), 460 non-carcinogenic compounds (CMC database) and 94 compounds extracted from two traditional Chinese medicine herbs.