[Effects of Biochar-loaded Ammonia Nitrogen on Soil Carbon Emissions, Enzyme Activity, and Microbial Communities].

The form of soil nitrogen input significantly affects soil CO2 emission. As a new form of nitrogen input, biochar-loaded ammonia nitrogen not only reduces the input of chemical nitrogen fertilizer in farmland but also reduces the cost of environmental treatment. It is of great significance to promote the zero growth of national chemical fertilizer, the prevention and control of farmland non-point source pollution, and the realization of the national goal of "carbon peak" and "carbon neutralization." Through an indoor culture experiment, the effects of different nitrogen input forms on soil carbon emission, enzyme activity, and microbial community were studied through four treatments:no fertilization (CK), single application of chemical nitrogen fertilizer (CF), biochar combined application of chemical nitrogen fertilizer (BF), and biochar-loaded ammonia nitrogen (BN). The results showed that compared with that in CF, BF significantly increased cumulative carbon emissions (66.24 %), whereas BN had no significant difference. It is worth noting that the cumulative carbon emissions were significantly reduced by 35.28 % compared with that in BF and BN. Compared with those in CF and BF, the activities of ß-glucosidase, peroxidase, and polyphenol oxidase treated with BN significantly increased by 20.25 % and 5.20 %, respectively. Compared with that in CF, the BF treatment increased microbial community richness and community diversity, whereas the BN treatment decreased microbial community richness. Compared with that in BF, the relative abundance of Proteobacteria decreased by 11.16 %, and the relative abundance of Actinobacteria and Bacteroidota increased by 8.12 % and 5.83 %, respectively, in which xylosidase activity was the most important soil factor affecting microbial community structure. The relative abundance of Chloroflexi was significantly correlated with cellobiose hydrolase activity, and the relative abundance of Gemmatimonadetes was significantly correlated with ß-glucosidase activity. There was a very significant correlation between the relative abundance of Proteobacteria and cumulative carbon emissions. To summarize, compared with those under biochar combined with chemical nitrogen fertilizer, biochar loaded with ammonia nitrogen significantly reduced cumulative carbon emissions, and its emission reduction effect was better. The results of this study will be beneficial to the landing of the national "double carbon strategy," the healthy development of the biological natural gas industry, the construction of the national green cultivation circular agriculture system, and the realization of the national zero growth strategy of chemical fertilizer.

[Gaseous Nitrogen Emission from Soil After Application of NH4+-N Loaded Biochar].

To safely and effectively transfer NH4+-N from eutrophic water to soil, biochar was applied to adsorb NH4+-N from wastewater, and this NH4+-N loaded biochar (N-BC) was subsequently used as a soil amendment. Understanding the influence of N-BC on N2O-N emission and NH3-N volatilization is important for both decreasing the application of chemical fertilizers and reducing gaseous nitrogen loss from soil. In this study, experiments were conducted in soil columns with four treatments, namely CK (no fertilizer), NPK (chemical fertilizer), N-BC+PK (NH4+-N loaded biochar+chemical fertilizer), and BC+NPK (biochar+chemical fertilizer). Compared to both the NPK and BC+NPK treatments, N-BC+PK significantly reduced the cumulative N2O-N emissions and NH3-N volatilization, as well as the total gaseous nitrogen loss from the soil (P<0.05). Relative to NPK and BC+NPK, cumulative N2O-N emissions decreased by 33.62% and 24.64%, cumulative NH3-N volatilization decreased 70.64% and 79.29%, and the cumulative total gaseous nitrogen loss decreased by 64.97% and 73.75%. In particular, BC+NPK significantly enhanced the cumulative NH3-N volatilization. Furthermore, the N2O-N emission flux and NH3-N volatilization rate were significantly positively correlated with the NH4+-N concentration, NO3--N concentration, and pH of soil (P<0.01). Overall, using NH4+-N loaded biochar can significantly decrease N2O-N emissions and NH3-N volatilization, relative to the traditional application combining biochar and chemical fertilizer. This research provides solid theoretical support and data for the application of NH4+-N loaded biochar in soil, to reduce gaseous nitrogen loss.

Expression of matrix metalloproteinase-9 and its substrate level in patients with premature rupture of membranes.

In this study, 30 case of patients with full-term premature membrane rupture and another 30 cases of full-term delivered subject without premature rupture of membranes (PROM) were selected to explore the relationship between premature membrane rupture with matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) and its substrate level. Results showed the plasma zinc, MMP-9 in serum and amniotic fluid increased in patients with PROM; their type IV collagen in serum and foetal membrane decreased. Increased Zinc ion concentration results in increased concentration of MMP-9, a zinc-dependent enzyme; the degradation of type IV collagen by MMP-9 might be the potential mechanism of premature rupture of membranes in full-term pregnant women.

Local and Remote Postconditioning Decrease Intestinal Injury in a Rabbit Ischemia/Reperfusion Model.

Intestinal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is a significant problem that is associated with high morbidity and mortality in critical settings. This injury may be ameliorated using postconditioning protocol. In our study, we created a rabbit intestinal I/R injury model to analyze the effects of local ischemia postconditioning (LIPo) and remote ischemia postconditioning (RIPo) on intestinal I/R injury. We concluded that LIPo affords protection in intestinal I/R injury in a comparable fashion with RIPo by decreasing oxidative stress, neutrophil activation, and apoptosis.

Immune-related gene expression in response to H5N1 avian influenza virus infection in chicken and duck embryonic fibroblasts.

Chicken and ducks are important hosts in responses to highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) H5N1 infection. In ducks, avian influenza (AI) generally causes an asymptomatic and long-lasting infection, whereas clinical apparent and transient disease is often observed in chickens. Using real-time quantitative PCR, we examined the expression of immune-related genes in response to H5N1 infection in chicken embryo fibroblasts (CEF) and duck embryo fibroblasts (DEF). While in CEF IL-6 expressed at high levels similar to mammalian species, in DEF expression levels were minimal. Similarly, duck IFN-ß expression were slightly upregulated, whereas chicken expressions were highly upregulated. Chronologically, the mRNA levels of both IFN-alpha and IFN-gamma, which belong to type I and type II interferon, respectively, were unregulated in a similar fashion in chickens than in ducks. IL-2 and TLR-7 were elevated from the beginning of the infection in both CEF and DEF to the end of the experiment. Chicken MHC class I expression was almost unaffected while duck expression were downregulated. DEF and CEF MHC class II expression were downregulated. Chemokine IL-8 expression was upregulated in both species. The IL-8 levels closely parallel the IL-1ß induced IL-6 levels in the same samples. These results show distinct embryo fibroblasts expression patterns of pro-inflammatory cytokines and IFNs between species.