Two new constituents from the endophyte of Alternaria alternata and its anti-neuroinflammatory activity guided by molecular docking.

Two new compounds, 3-hydroxy-1-(3-hydroxy-5-methoxyphenyl)-2-methyl propan-1-one (1) and 1,2,6-trihydroxy-8-methoxy-2,3,3a,9b-tetrahydrocyclopenta[c] isochromen-5(1H)-one (2), along with nine known compounds 3-11, involving pyranones, phenylpropenoids and alkaloids, were obtained from Alternaria alternata, an endophyte isolated from Hypericum perforatum L. The structures were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic analyses, including 1D NMR, 2D NMR, HRESIMS, IR, UV spectroscopy. The absolute configuration was established via spectroscopy techniques and X-ray crystallisation method. Furthermore, guided by molecular docking, compounds 1 and 3 exhibited promising anti-neuroinflammatory activity in LPS-induced BV-2 microglial cells, with IC50 values of 0.9 ± 0.3 µM and 3.0 ± 0.4 µM respectively. Moreover, they effectively attenuated the LPS-induced elevation of NO, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1ß production in BV-2 microglial cells. These findings diversify the metabolite of A. alternata and highlight their potential as leading compounds against neuroinflammatory-related diseases.

Magnetic Relaxation Switching Immunosensors via a Click Chemistry-Mediated Controllable Aggregation Strategy for Direct Detection of Chlorpyrifos.

Chlorpyrifos (CPF) is the most frequently found organophosphate pesticide residue in solid food samples and can cause increasing public concerns about potential risks to human health. Traditional detection signals of such small molecules are mostly generated by target-mediated indirect conversion, which tends to be detrimental to sensitivity and accuracy. Herein, a novel magnetic relaxation switching detection platform was developed for target-mediated direct and sensitive detection of CPF with a controllable aggregation strategy based on a bioorthogonal ligation reaction between tetrazine (Tz) and trans-cyclooctene (TCO) ligands. Under optimal conditions, this sensor can achieve a detection limit of 37 pg/mL with a broad linear range of 0.1-500 ng/mL in 45 min, which is approximately 51-fold lower than that of the gas chromatography analysis and 13-fold lower than that of the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The proposed click chemistry-mediated controllable aggregation strategy is direct, rapid, and sensitive, indicating great potential for residue screening in food matrices.

Effect of multiple spatial scale characterization of land use on water quality.

Land use in uplands is an important factor affecting water quality in its respective catchment, and its influences at the different spatial scales and configurations warrant further investigation. Here, we selected 26 catchments in the upper Han River (China) and sampled the surface water at the outlet of each catchment in four seasons during 2019. Multivariate statistics were used to identify the relationships between land use characteristics in uplands and water quality in river system. The results indicated that chemical oxygen demand (CODMn); pH; dissolved oxygen; electrical conductivity; nutrient, i.e., NH4+-N, NO3--N; and dissolved phosphorus (DP) in rivers displayed significant seasonal variations. Stepwise regression revealed that landscape metrics such as patch density, landscape shape index, and splitting index were important factors influencing water quality in rivers regardless of their spatiality and seasonality. Urban was the most frequently chosen land-use type in the best prediction models, and forest area showed a negative correlation with water quality parameters in most cases for example, DP. Overall, the influence of land use on river water quality was slightly stronger at reach scale than at catchment and riparian scales. Also, nutrients (i.e., NH4+-N, NO3--N, and DP) in rivers were primarily impacted by the land use characteristic at catchment and riparian scales. Our results suggested that multi-scale explorations would help to achieve a fully understanding on the impacts of land use on river water quality.

GTAD: Graph and Temporal Neural Network for Multivariate Time Series Anomaly Detection.

The rapid development of smart factories, combined with the increasing complexity of production equipment, has resulted in a large number of multivariate time series that can be recorded using sensors during the manufacturing process. The anomalous patterns of industrial production may be hidden by these time series. Previous LSTM-based and machine-learning-based approaches have made fruitful progress in anomaly detection. However, these multivariate time series anomaly detection algorithms do not take into account the correlation and time dependence between the sequences. In this study, we proposed a new algorithm framework, namely, graph attention network and temporal convolutional network for multivariate time series anomaly detection (GTAD), to address this problem. Specifically, we first utilized temporal convolutional networks, including causal convolution and dilated convolution, to capture temporal dependencies, and then used graph neural networks to obtain correlations between sensors. Finally, we conducted sufficient experiments on three public benchmark datasets, and the results showed that the proposed method outperformed the baseline method, achieving detection results with F1 scores higher than 95% on all datasets.

Comprehensive analysis of TAMs marker genes in glioma for predicting prognosis and immunotherapy response.

Glioma is one of the most frequent types of primary tumors in central nervous system. Previous studies deomostrated that tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and their marker genes were significantly associated with immunologic suppression and immune escape of cancer. However, the molecular mechanism between glioma and TAM marker genes is still rarely reported. In this research, we performed a comprehensive analysis of the prognostic prediction value of TAM marker genes in multiple glioma cohorts. Further investigation indicated that the increased expression of TAM marker genes resulted in the immune suppressive microenvironment in glioma through regulating tumor-infiltrating immune cells and Cancer-Immunity Cycle. To better forecast the survival of glioma patients, we then developed gene risk models in four glioma datasets (CGGA, TCGA, Rembrandt and Gravendeel). Univariate and multivariate Cox analysis exhibited the good survival prediction ability and prognostic discrimination ability of our models. The results of immunotherapy prediction indicated that glioma patients with low risk were more likely to benefit from ICB (immune checkpoint blockade) treatment. Altogether, our research provided a comprehensive analysis of TAM marker genes and explored their value for predicting prognosis and immunotherapy response in glioma.

Dissimilatory nitrate reduction and functional genes in two subtropical rivers, China.

Dissimilatory nitrate reduction processes, including denitrification, anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox), and dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA), are important pathways of nitrate transformation in the aquatic environments. In this study, we investigated potential rates of denitrification, anammox, and DNRA in the sediments of two subtropical rivers, Jinshui River and Qi River, with different intensities of human activities in their respective catchment, China. Our objectives were to assess the seasonality of dissimilatory nitrate reduction rates, quantify their respective contributions to nitrate reduction, and reveal the relationship between dissimilatory nitrate reduction rates, functional gene abundances, and physicochemicals in the river ecosystems. Our results showed higher rates of denitrification and anammox in the intensively disturbed areas in autumn and spring, and higher potential DNRA in the slightly disturbed areas in summer. Generally, denitrification, anammox, and DNRA were higher in summer, autumn, and spring, respectively. Relative contributions of nitrate reduction from denitrification, anammox, and DNRA were quite different in different seasons. Dissimilatory nitrate reduction rates and gene abundances correlated significantly with water temperature, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), sediment total organic carbon (SOC), NO3-, NH4+, DOC/NO3-, iron ions, and sulfide. Understanding dissimilatory nitrate reduction is essential for restoring nitrate reduction capacity and improving and sustaining ecohealth of the river ecosystems.

[Retracted] Dracorhodin perchlorate induces the apoptosis of glioma cells.

Following the publication of the above paper, a concerned reader drew to the Editor's attention that certain of the western blotting data appeared to have been duplicated, comparing Fig. 2B with Fig. 4A; furthermore, the flow cytometric data panels featured in Fig. 3A appeared to contain repeated patternings of data within those data panels.  After having conducted an independent investigation in the Editorial Office, the Editor of Oncology Reports has determined that this paper should be retracted from the Journal on account of a lack of confidence concerning the originality and the authenticity of the data. The authors were asked for an explanation to account for these concerns, but the Editorial Office never received any reply. The Editor regrets any inconvenience that has been caused to the readership of the Journal. [the original article was published in Oncology Reports 35: 2364­2372, 2016; DOI: 10.3892/or.2016.4612].

[Structure Characteristics and Driving Variables of Epilithic Algae Community in Lhasa River Basin of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau].

In order to explore the characteristics and driving factors of the epilithic algae community in the middle and lower reaches of the Lhasa River, epilithic algae was collected and identified in September 2019, the species composition and spatial distribution were analyzed, and the key environmental factors affecting the epilithic algae community were identified through redundancy analysis. The results indicated that 31 genera of epilithic algae belonging to six phyla were identified, and the average cell density of the epilithic algae was 1.92×106 cells·m-2. The number of species and cell density of the diatom phylum were the largest at each sampling point. The species number and cell density of the epilithic algae were significantly different between the main stream and tributaries. The main stream and tributaries contained relatively small differences in the dominant algae genera, which were Gomphonema, Fragilaria, Cymbella, and Planktolyngbya in the main stream and Gomphonema, Fragilaria, Cymbella, and Oscillatoria in the tributaries. The redundancy analysis revealed that temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen were the main driving factors affecting the community structure of the dominant genus in the main stream, while HCO3- and flow velocity controlled the community structure of the dominant genus in the tributaries. This study provides basic data and the theoretical basis for the conservation of aquatic ecosystems and water quality management in the middle and lower reaches of the Lhasa River.

[Influence Factors of Potential Nitrification Rates and Functional Genes Abundance in the Jinshui River and the Qihe River of the Hanjiang River Basin].

In the context of increasing nitrogen loading in river systems worldwide, it is critically important to understand nitrification to maintain river ecosystem health. This comparative study was conducted to explore the relationships among the intensity of human disturbance, environmental factors, potential nitrification rate, and functional gene abundance in the Jinshui River (slightly disturbed basin) and the Qihe River (intensely disturbed basin). The results showed that AOA-amoA gene abundance was higher than that of AOB-amoA. The potential nitrification rate in the Qihe River was higher than that in the Jinshui River. There was no significant difference in AOA-amoA gene abundance between the two rivers; however, the AOB-amoA gene abundance in the Qihe River was significantly higher than that in the Jinshui River in the low flow season. The abundance of nitrification functional genes was significantly correlated with water temperature, pH, NO3-, NH4+, and organic carbon. The potential nitrification rate was positively correlated with water temperature, pH, and NO3-, and negatively correlated with AOB-amoA gene abundance. These results showed that the intensely disturbed sites had higher potential nitrification rates and nitrification functional genes abundances, and potential nitrification rates and abundances of nitrification function genes were significantly related to physical and chemical water and sediment factors. This study will be important for nitrogen pollution control in the river systems.

Flexible endoscope visualization to assist in the removal of a string of 10 schwannomas at the cauda equina: technical case report.

Bead-like schwannomas at the cauda equina are rare but benign intraspinal tumors. They can involve multiple nerve roots and spread within the spinal canal, and open resection would cause significant trauma. The authors have successfully applied a novel minimally invasive technique for the total removal of such schwannomas. A 68-year-old woman presented with a 1-month history of left waist and leg pain. MRI demonstrated multiple intraspinal lesions located from L1 to S1. The diagnosis was bead-like schwannomas at the cauda equina. Two incisions were made at the T12 and L5 levels. A flexible endoscope was introduced into the spinal canal following hemisemilaminectomy under a microscope to identify the relationship between the tumors and the carrying nerves. After dissecting both cranial and caudal ends of the carrying nerve, the string of bead-like tumors was gently pulled out from the caudal end as a whole. The endoscope was reintroduced into the spinal canal to ensure complete tumor removal. The patient recovered quickly, and no tumor residual was found at postoperative MRI. Flexible endoscope-assisted visualization plus microscopic hemisemilaminectomy via 2 incisions is a feasible minimally invasive approach for selected patients with bead-like schwannomas at the cauda equina.

Transformation and source identification of N in the upper reaches of the Han River basin, China: evaluated by a stable isotope approach.

Given the spatial and temporal variability in hydrological conditions and nitrogen (N) processes, it is of great uncertainty to identify the N sources and evaluate N transformation processes in the upper Han River. Investigations were conducted in November 2015 and January, April, and July 2016, using an isotopic method and water quality monitoring. The significant and positive correlation between NO3- concentrations and Cl- (p < 0.01) in most sampling months suggested that the great influence of human activities and sewage or manure was the dominant NO3- source. The δ15NO3- values and NO3-/Cl- variations indicated that riverine N mainly came from soil organic N and sewage in November. Fertilizer and sewage were the major N sources in January and April, respectively. In July, water was influenced by various N inputs. The nitrification process played an important role in the low δ15NO3- values in January, while both nitrification and plant uptake resulted in the increase in δ15NH4+ values in April. The simultaneous effect of N fixation and plant uptake maintained the stabilization of δ15NH4+ concentrations. Our study provides theoretical basis on N sources and transformations for controlling N pollution and improving water quality in the upper Han River in the near future.

Predictors of hematoma expansion predictors after intracerebral hemorrhage.

Despite years of effort, intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) remains the most devastating form of stroke with more than 40% 30-day mortality worldwide. Hematoma expansion (HE), which occurs in one third of ICH patients, is strongly predictive of worse prognosis and potentially preventable if high-risk patients were identified in the early phase of ICH. In this review, we summarize data from recent studies on HE prediction and classify those potential indicators into four categories: clinical (severity of consciousness disturbance; blood pressure; blood glucose at and after admission); laboratory (hematologic parameters of coagulation, inflammation and microvascular integrity status), radiographic (interval time from ICH onset; baseline volume, shape and density of hematoma; intraventricular hemorrhage; especially the spot sign and modified spot sign) and integrated predictors (9-point or 24-point clinical prediction algorithm and PREDICT A/B). We discuss those predictors' underlying pathophysiology in HE and present opportunities to develop future therapeutic strategies.

Dracorhodin perchlorate induces the apoptosis of glioma cells.

Dracorhodin perchlorate (Dp), a synthetic analogue of the antimicrobial anthocyanin red pigment, has recently been shown to induce apoptotic cell death in various types of cancer cells. Yet, the inhibitory effect of Dp on human glioma cells remains uninvestigated. Therefore, in the present study, 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and flow cytometry were used to detect cell viability and cell cycle progression in glioma U87MG and T98G cells, respectively. Annexin V-FITC/propidium iodide double staining and JC-1 staining were separately applied to determine cellular apoptosis and mitochondrial membrane potential damage in the cells. The expression levels of associated proteins involved in cell cycle progression and apoptosis were measured by western blotting. The activities of caspase­9/-3 were determined by Caspase-Glo-9/3 assay. The results indicated that Dp treatment significantly inhibited cell proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner, and blocked cell cycle progression at the G1/S phase in the U87MG and T98G cells via the upregulation of p53 and p21 protein expression, and simultaneous downregulation of Cdc25A, Cdc2 and P-Cdc2 protein expression. Additionally, Dp treatment led to the loss of cellular mitochondrial membrane potential, and the release of cytochrome c, and strongly induced the occurence of apoptosis. Increased expression levels of Bim and Bax protein and the downregulated expression of Bcl-2 protein were observed. Caspase-9/-3 were activated and their activities were elevated after Dp treatment. These findings indicate that Dp inhibits cell proliferation, induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in glioma cells, and is a possible candidate for glioma treatment.