Aerobic Oxidative Desulfurization by Supported Polyoxometalate Ionic Liquid Hybrid Materials via Facile Ball Milling.

With the increasingly strict limitations on emission standards of vehicles, deep desulfurization in fuel is indispensable for social development worldwide. In this study, a series of hybrid materials based on SiO2-supported polyoxometalate ionic liquid were successfully prepared via a facile ball milling method and employed as catalysts in the aerobic oxidative desulfurization process. The composition and structure of prepared samples were studied by various techniques, including FT-IR, UV-vis DRS, wide-angle XRD, BET, XPS, and SEM images. The experimental results indicated that the synthesized polyoxometalate ionic liquids were successfully loaded on SiO2 with a highly uniform dispersion. The prepared catalyst (C16PMoV/10SiO2) exhibited good desulfurization activity on different sulfur compounds. Moreover, the oxidation product and active species in the ODS process were respectively investigated via GC-MS and ESR analysis, indicating that the catalyst can activate oxygen to superoxide radicals during the reaction to convert DBT to its corresponding sulfone in the fuel.

Antiferromagnetic Semiconductor BaMnO3 Hexagonal Perovskite with a Direct Bandgap.

The unique properties of direct bandgap semiconductors make it important to search for semiconductors exhibiting this phenomenon in perovskite materials. In this study, we employed first-principles calculations to investigate the crystal structures, magnetic configurations, and electronic properties of hexagonal perovskite BaMnO3 in its 4H and 6H phases. The results indicate that both structures exhibit antiferromagnetic characteristics, in which the Mn-O-Mn superexchange plays the dominant role in the 4H phase, although there is a competition between the Mn-Mn direct exchange interaction and the Mn-O-Mn superexchange interaction. In contrast, these two interactions exhibit harmonious coexistence in the 6H phase, and the two antiferromagnetic transitions occurring in the experimental phase should be related to the synergistic effect between them. Despite their different internal arrangements, they exhibit the same charge combination of Ba2+Mn4+O2-3. More importantly, both phases exhibit semiconductor properties with a direct bandgap, making it suitable to serve as an alternative material for photovoltaic and optoelectronic devices. In particular, the band gap of the 4H phase is just the right size to absorb visible light, and the 6H phase should be a potential candidate to absorb light in the ultraviolet region.

A review of chemotherapeutic drugs-induced arrhythmia and potential intervention with traditional Chinese medicines.

Significant advances in chemotherapy drugs have reduced mortality in patients with malignant tumors. However, chemotherapy-related cardiotoxicity increases the morbidity and mortality of patients, and has become the second leading cause of death after tumor recurrence, which has received more and more attention in recent years. Arrhythmia is one of the common types of chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity, and has become a new risk related to chemotherapy treatment, which seriously affects the therapeutic outcome in patients. Traditional Chinese medicine has experienced thousands of years of clinical practice in China, and has accumulated a wealth of medical theories and treatment formulas, which has unique advantages in the prevention and treatment of malignant diseases. Traditional Chinese medicine may reduce the arrhythmic toxicity caused by chemotherapy without affecting the anti-cancer effect. This paper mainly discussed the types and pathogenesis of secondary chemotherapeutic drug-induced arrhythmia (CDIA), and summarized the studies on Chinese medicine compounds, Chinese medicine Combination Formula and Chinese medicine injection that may be beneficial in intervention with secondary CDIA including atrial fibrillation, ventricular arrhythmia and sinus bradycardia, in order to provide reference for clinical prevention and treatment of chemotherapy-induced arrhythmias.

Completely Inorganic Deep Eutectic Solvents for Efficient and Recyclable Liquid-Liquid Interface Catalysis.

Organic acid-based deep eutectic solvents (DESs) as catalysts always suffer from weak stability and low recyclability due to the accumulation of organic oxidative products in the DES phase. Herein, a completely inorganic deep eutectic solvent (IDES) ZnCl2/PA with zinc chloride (ZnCl2) and phosphoric acid (PA) as precursors is constructed to realize liquid-liquid interface catalysis for desulfurization of fuel and product self-separation for the first time. Owing to the inorganic nature, the organic oxidative products are accumulated at the interface between the IDES and fuel rather than the IDES phase. With this unique feature, the IDES can be reused for at least 15 times without any further treatment in oxidative desulfurization process, showing a state-of-the-art cycle-regeneration stability. Moreover, compared with the reported organic DESs, the IDES also reveals more attractive catalytic oxidative desulfurization performance. Experimental and theoretical studies indicate that the strong coordination Zn···O═P and the strong adsorption energy between IDES and sulfides enhance the activation of H2O2 to reactive oxygen species, leading to the superior catalytic performance in oxidative desulfurization of fuel.

Early detection of dark-affected plant mechanical responses using enhanced electrical signals.

BACKGROUND: Mechanical damage to plants triggers local and systemic electrical signals that are eventually decoded into plant defense responses. These responses are constantly affected by other environmental stimuli in nature, for instance, light fluctuation. In recent years, studies on decoding plant electrical signals powered by various machine learning models are increasing in a sense of early prediction or detection of different environmental stresses that threaten plant growth or crop yields. However, the main bottleneck is the low-throughput nature of plant electrical signals, making it challenging to obtain a substantial amount of training data. Consequently, training these models with small datasets often leads to unsatisfactory performance. RESULTS: In the present work, we set out to decode wound-induced electrical signals (also termed slow wave potentials, SWPs) from plants that are deprived of light to different extents. Using non-invasive electrophysiology, we separately collected sets of local and distal SWPs from the treated plants. Then, we proposed a workflow based on few-shot learning to automatically identify SWPs. This workflow incorporates data preprocessing, feature extraction, data augmentation and classifier training. We established the integral and the first-order derivative as features for efficiently classifying SWPs. We then proposed an Adversarial Autoencoder (AAE) structure to augment the SWP samples. Combining them, the Random Forest classifier allowed remarkable classification accuracies of 0.99 for both local and systemic SWPs. In addition, in comparison to two other reported methods, our proposed AAE structure enabled better classification results using our tested features and classifiers. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study establish new features for efficiently classifying wound-induced electrical signals, which allow for distinguishing dark-affected local and systemic plant wound responses. We also propose a new data augmentation structure to generate virtual plant electrical signals. The methods proposed in this study could be further applied to build models for crop plants using electrical signals as inputs, and also to process other small-scale signals.

Spaced Double Hydrogen Bonding in an Imidazole Poly Ionic Liquid Composite for Highly Efficient and Selective Photocatalytic Air Reductive H2O2 Synthesis.

Photocatalytic oxygen reductive H2O2 production is a promising approach to alternative industrial anthraquinone processes while suffering from the requirement of pure O2 feedstock for practical application. Herein, we report a spaced double hydrogen bond (IC-H-bond) through multi-component Radziszewski reaction in an imidazole poly-ionic-liquid composite (SI-PIL-TiO2) and levofloxacin hydrochloride (LEV) electron donor for highly efficient and selective photocatalytic air reductive H2O2 production. It is found that the IC-H-bond formed by spaced imino (-NH-) group of SI-PIL-TiO2 and carbonyl (-C=O) group of LEV can switch the imidazole active sites characteristic from a covered state to a fully exposed one to shield the strong adsorption of electron donor and N2 in the air, and propel an intenser positive potential and more efficient orbitals binding patterns of SI-PIL-TiO2 surface to establish competitive active sites for selectivity O2 chemisorption. Moreover, the high electron enrichment of imidazole as an active site for the 2e- oxygen reduction ensures the rapid reduction of O2. Therefore, the IC-H-bond enables a total O2 utilization and conversion efficiency of 94.8 % from direct photocatalytic air reduction, achieving a H2O2 production rate of 1518 µmol/g/h that is 16 and 23 times compared to poly-ionic-liquid composite without spaced imino groups (PIL-TiO2) and TiO2, respectively.

Porous ionic liquids for oxidative desulfurization influenced by electrostatic solvent effect.

Developing a highly efficient strategy for the stabilization of the solid-liquid interface is a persistent pursuit for researchers. Herein, porous ionic liquids based on UiO-66 (Zr) porous materials were synthesized and applied to the selective desulfurization catalysis, which integrates the permanent pores of porous solids with the exceptional properties of ionic liquids. Results show that porous ionic liquids possess high activity and selectivity for dibenzothiophene. Experimental analysis and density functional theory calculations revealed that the ionic liquids moiety served as an extractant to enrich dibenzothiophene into the porous ionic liquids phase through the π···π and CH···π interactions. Additionally, the electrostatic solvent effect in the porous ionic liquids contributes to the stabilization solid-liquid interface, which was favorable for UiO-66 moiety to catalytically activate hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) to generate ·OH radicals, and subsequently oxidized dibenzothiophene to the corresponding sulfone. It is hoped that the development of porous ionic liquids could pave a new route to the stabilization of the solid-liquid interface for catalytic oxidation.

Electrocatalytic Activity of CO2 Reduction to CO on Cadmium Sulfide Enhanced by Chloride Anion Doping.

The electrocatalytic CO2 reduction (ECR) to produce valuable fuel is a promising process for addressing atmospheric CO2 emissions and energy shortages. In this study, Cl-anion doped cadmium sulfide structures were directly fabricated on a nickel foam surface (Cl/CdS-NF) using an in situ hydrothermal method. The Cl-anion doping could significantly improve ECR activity for CO production in ionic liquid and acetonitrile mixed solution, compared to pristine CdS. The highest Faradaic efficiency of CO is 98.1 % on a Cl/CdS-NF-2 cathode with an excellent current density of 137.0 mA cm-2 at -2.25 V versus ferrocene/ferrocenium (Fc/Fc+ , all potentials are versus Fc/Fc+ in this study). In particular, CO Faradaic efficiencies remained above 80 % in a wide potential range of -2.05 V to -2.45 V and a maximum partial current density (192.6 mA cm-2 ) was achieved at -2.35 V. The Cl/CdS-NF-2, with appropriate Cl anions, displayed abundant active sites and a suitable electronic structure, resulting in outstanding ECR activity. Density functional theory calculations further demonstrated that Cl/CdS is beneficial for increasing the adsorption capacities of *COOH and *H, which can enhance the activity of the ECR toward CO and suppress the hydrogen evolution reaction.

The single metal atom (Ni, Pd, Pt) anchored on defective hexagonal boron nitride for oxidative desulfurization.

Single-atom catalysts (SACs) have attracted great attention for various chemical reactions because of their strong activity, high metal utilization ratio, and low cost. Here, by using the density functional theory (DFT) method, the stability of a single VIII-group metal atom (M = Ni, Pd, Pt) anchored on the defective hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) sheet and its possible application in oxidative desulfurization (ODS) are investigated. Calculations show that the stability of the single M atom embedded in the h-BN surface with B and N vacancies is strikingly enhanced compared to that on the perfect h-BN surface. The catalytic activities of the defective h-BN-supported single metal atom are further studied by the activation of molecular oxygen and subsequent oxidation of dibenzothiophene (DBT). O2 is activated to the super-oxo state with large interaction energies on three M/VN surfaces. However, among the three M/VB surfaces, only Pt/VB performs efficient activation of O2. The oxidation of DBT proceeds in two steps; the rate-determining step is the initial step, in which activated O2 oxidizes DBT to produce sulfoxide. By comparing the energy barrier in the first reaction step, both Ni/VN and Pt/VB are revealed as promising candidates for the ODS reaction.

Pancreatic pseudoaneurysm mimicking pancreatic tumor: A case report and review of literature.

BACKGROUND: Pancreatic pseudoaneurysm is a rare vascular complication of chronic pancreatitis (CP) or necrotizing pancreatitis with an incidence of 4% to 17%, but it is potentially life-threatening. It is well known that most pancreatic pseudoaneurysms are clinically associated with pancreatic pseudocysts and are usually in the peripancreatic body-tail. A minority of intrapancreatic pseudoaneurysms occur in the absence of pseudocyst formation. Noninvasive computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are most commonly used examinations for screening pancreatic pseudoaneurysms. Notably, the rare intrapancreatic pseudoaneurysm in the pancreatic head can mimic a hypervascular solid mass and be misdiagnosed as a pancreatic tumor. CASE SUMMARY: We report the case of a 67-year-old man who had been admitted to our hospital due to recurrent abdominal pain for 1 mo that was aggravated for 5 d. CT and MRI revealed a mass in the pancreatic head with significant expansion of the main pancreatic duct and mild atrophy of the pancreatic body-tail. He was admitted to the department of hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery due to the possibility of a pancreatic tumor. The patient was then referred for endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) with possible EUS-FNA. However, EUS showed a cystic lesion in the pancreatic head with wall thickness and enhancing nodules, which was doubtful because it was inconsistent with the imaging findings. Subsequently, color doppler flow imaging demonstrated turbulent arterial blood flow in the cystic lesion and connection with the surrounding vessel. Therefore, we highly suspected the possibility of CP complicated with intrapancreatic pseudoaneurysm, combined with the patient's long-term drinking history and the sonographic features of CP. Indeed, angiography revealed an oval area of contrast medium extravasation (size: 1.0 cm × 1.5 cm) at the far-end branch of the superior pancreaticoduodenal artery, and angiographic embolization was given immediately at the same time. CONCLUSION: EUS is an important differential diagnostic tool when pancreatic pseudoaneurysm mimics the imaging appearance of a hypervascular pancreatic tumor.

Designing Inorganic-Organic Dual-Acid Deep Eutectic Solvents for Synergistically Enhanced Extractive and Oxidative Desulfurization.

Acidic deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have been considered desirable extractants and catalysts for desulfurization. However, their hydrogen bond donors (HBDs) are usually sole organic acids, which are not conducive to efficient green catalysis. Herein, a novel inorganic-organic dual-acid DES (DADES) was reported for efficient extractive and oxidative desulfurization. Benefiting from the physical interaction among the three components in a DADES, a transparent homogeneous liquid can be obtained even though inorganic acid (boric acid, BA) and organic acid (acetic acid, AA) can be immiscible. Furthermore, the dual-acid HBD can increase the acidity of the DADES and reduce its viscosity, accelerating its mass transfer efficiency and enhancing its catalytic activity. With 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([Bmim]Cl) as the hydrogen bond acceptor, [Bmim]Cl/BA/0.3AA effectively activated hydrogen peroxide and achieved sulfur removal of 96.6% at 40 °C. Furthermore, the universality of the synergistic effect in various DADESs was confirmed by the modulation of the types of organic acids. This study not only motivates the construction of more intriguing novel DESs based on the DADES concept but also highlights their potential in clean fuel production.

Association between vaginal microbiome alteration and povidone iodine use during delivery.

BACKGROUND: The vaginal microbiome is a dynamic community of microorganisms in the vagina. Its alteration may be influenced by multiple factors, including gestational status, menstrual cycle, sexual intercourse, hormone levels, hormonal contraceptives, and vaginal drug administration. Povidone iodine has been used before delivery to reduce infection that may be caused by the ascendance of pathogenic and opportunistic bacteria from the vagina to the uterus. This study aimed to elucidate the impact of povidone iodine use during delivery on the vaginal microbiome. METHODS: This study enrolled a total of 67 women from maternity services in three hospitals. During the delivery process, we have applied povidone iodine in three doses such as low dose, medium dose, and high dose based on the amount of povidone iodine administered, thus, we studied the three groups of women based on the doses applied. Vaginal swab samples were collected both before and immediately after delivery, and the microbial communities were characterized using 16 S rRNA sequencing. The identification of differentially abundant microbial taxa was performed using ZicoSeq software. RESULTS: Before delivery, the vaginal microbiome was dominated by the genus Lactobacillus, with different percentage observed (86.06%, 85.24%, and 73.42% for the low, medium, and high dose groups, respectively). After delivery, the vaginal microbial community was restructured, with a significant decrease in the relative abundance of Lactobacillus in all three groups (68.06%, 50.08%, and 25.89%), and a significant increase in alpha diversity across all 3 groups (P < 0.01). Furthermore, as the dose of povidone iodine used during delivery increased, there was a corresponding decrease in the relative abundance of Lactobacillus (P < 0.01). Contrary, there was an increase in microbial diversity and the relative abundances of Pseudomonas (0.13%, 0.26%, and 13.04%, P < 0.01) and Ralstonia (0.01%, 0.02%, and 16.07%, P < 0.01) across the groups. Notably, some functional metabolic pathways related to sugar degradation were observed to have significant change with increasing use of povidone iodine. CONCLUSION: Povidone iodine was associated with the vaginal microbiome alterations after parturition, and its significant change was associated to the dosage of povidone iodine administered. The escalation in iodine dosage was linked to a decrease in Lactobacilli abundance, and elevated prevalence of Pseudomonas and Ralstonia. There is a need for longitudinal studies to clearly understanding the effect of povidone iodine use on maternal and infant microbiome.

Atomically Dispersed Aluminum Sites in Hexagonal Boron Nitride Nanofibers for Boosting Adsorptive Desulfurization Performance.

The exploitation of highly efficient and cost-effective selective adsorbents for adsorptive desulfurization (ADS) remains a challenge. Fortunately, single-atom adsorbents (SAAs) characterized by maximized atom utilization and atomically dispersed adsorption sites have great potential to solve this problem as an emerging class of adsorption materials. Herein, aiming at improving the efficiency of ADS performance via the economical and feasible strategy, the desirable SAAs have been fabricated by uniformly anchoring aluminum (Al) atoms on hexagonal boron nitride nanofibers (BNNF) via an in situ pyrolysis method. Remarkably, Al-BN-1.0 exhibited a superior adsorption capacity of 46.1 mg S/g adsorbent for dibenzothiophene, with a 45% increase in adsorption capacity compared to the pristine BNNF. Additionally, it demonstrated excellent adsorption of other thiophene sulfides. Moreover, the ADS mechanisms have been investigated through special adsorption experiments combined with density functional theory (DFT) calculations. It was demonstrated that the superior ADS performance and selectivity of Al-BN-1.0 originate from the sulfur-aluminum (S-Al) and π-π interactions cooperating synergistically. This work would cast light on a novel fabrication strategy for the SAAs based on the two-dimensional material with a tunable metal site configurations and densities for varied selective adsorption and separation.

Constructing protic porous ionic liquids via one-step coupling neutralization reaction for extraction-adsorption coupled desulfurization.

Porous ionic liquids (PILs) offer a distinctive combination of liquid-like fluidity and solid porosity, making them well-suited for various applications including separation, catalysis, and energy storage. Nevertheless, the design limitations and complex synthesis processes have hindered the development of PILs. Here, the one-step coupling neutralization reaction (OCNR) method has been first proposed for the controllable synthesis of functionalized protic porous ionic liquids (PPILs). Specifically, three types of PPILs have been synthesized based on tuning the position of the corona amino functional groups. The results indicate the crucial role of protic ion pairs in the formation of pure liquid PPILs with low viscosity. The extraction efficiency has obviously increased after introducing the porous materials from 38.5% to 51.9%. The results showed PPILs play good extraction-adsorption coupled desulfurization (EADS) performance. The density functional theory (DFT) results show that both the protic ion pairs and the porous structure have significant roles in EADS, with the former offering CH···π interactions, while the latter provides hydrogen bonding (CH···O) interactions. Ultimately, the strategy simplifies the synthesis process, providing a new idea for the directional design of low-viscosity PILs with specific functions.

Ni-derived electronic/ionic engineering on NiSe/Ni@C for ultrafast and stable sodium storage.

Atomic-level structure engineering has proven indispensable for fast ion transport kinetics. Herein, a unique framework of NiSe/Ni heterostructure with abundant heterointerface encapsulated hollow carbon spheres, namely NiSe/Ni@C, is synthesized as an anode for SIBs. The NiSe/Ni@C electrode delivers enhanced Na+ storage performance in terms of high specific capacity (490 mA h g-1) and excellent rate capability (546 mA h g-1) at a current of 5.0 A g-1 over 2000 cycles. This study can provide in-depth insights into the interface effect in hybrid structures and shed light on designing energy storage materials.

Multi-stage adsorption of methyl orange on the nitrogen-rich biomass-derived carbon adsorbent: DFT and MD evaluation.

Dyes that are released into the environment may have negative effects on living organisms. To address this issue, a biomass-derived carbon adsorbent made from Enteromorpha was tested for its ability to remove methyl orange (MO) from wastewater. The adsorbent was found to be effective in removing MO, with a 1:4 impregnation ratio producing an adsorbent that could remove 96.34% of MO from a 200 mg/L solution using only 0.1 g of adsorbent. At higher concentrations, the adsorption capacity increased up to 269.58 mg/g. Through molecular dynamics simulations, it was discovered that after mono-layer adsorption reached saturation, the remaining MO molecules in solution formed hydrogen bonds with the adsorbed MO, which led to further aggregation on the adsorbent surface and increased adsorption capacity. Additionally, theoretical investigations revealed that the adsorption energy of anionic dyes increased with Nitrogen-doped carbon materials, with the pyrrolic-N site having the highest adsorption energy for MO. The carbon material derived from Enteromorpha showed promise in treating wastewater containing anionic dyes, thanks to its high adsorption capacity and strong electrostatic interaction with the sulfonic acid groups of MO.

[Research progress and thinking of acupuncture in anti-inflammation by regulating autonomic nerve system].

The nervous system is the necessary condition for inducing the curative effect of acupuncture. Both the sympathetic and vagal nerve systems are widely distributed throughout the body and organically connect various systems and organs of the human body. In maintaining the coordination and unity of human physiological activities, it is in line with the holistic view and bidirectional regulation of acupuncture, and fits in with the meridian theory of "internally belonging to the Zang-fu organs and externally connecting with the limbs and joints". Acupuncture, one of the body surface stimulation therapies, can inhibit the inflammatory response via activating sympathetic/vagus nerve mediated anti-inflammatory pathways. The peripheral nerve innervating diffe-rent acupoints determines the different anti-inflammatory pathways of the autonomic nerve, and different acupuncture methods (stimulation form and stimulation amount) are important factors affecting the anti-inflammatory mechanism of the autonomic nerve. In the future, we should analyze the central integration mechanism between sympathetic nerve and vagus nerve regulated by acupuncture at the level of brain neural circuits, and clarify the "multi-target" advantage of acupuncture, so as to provide inspiration and reference for the study of neuroimmunological effects of acupuncture.

Enhanced the Efficiency of Electrocatalytic CO2 -to-CO Conversion by Cd Species Anchored into Metal-Organic Framework.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as a promising platform for electrocatalytic CO2 conversion are still restricted by the low efficiency or unsatisfied selectivity for desired products. Herein, zirconium-based porphyrinic MOF hollow nanotubes with Cd sites (Cd-PCN-222HTs) are reported for electrocatalytic CO2 -to-CO conversion. The dispersed Cd species are anchored in PCN-222HTs and coordinated by N atoms of porphyrin structures. It is discovered that Cd-PCN-222HTs have glorious electrocatalytic activity for selective CO production in ionic liquid-water (H2 O)-acetonitrile (MeCN) electrolyte. The CO Faradaic efficiency (FECO ) of >80% could be maintained in a wide potential range from -2.0 to -2.4 V versus Ag/Ag+ , and the maximum current density could reach 68.0 mA cm-2 at -2.4 V versus Ag/Ag+ with a satisfied turnover frequency of 26 220 h-1 . The enhanced efficiency of electrocatalytic CO2 conversion of Cd-PCN-222HTs is closely related to its hollow structure, anchored Cd species, and good synergistic effect with electrolyte. The density functional theory calculations indicate that the dispersed Cd sites anchored in PCN-222HTs not only favor the formation of *COOH intermediate but also hinder the hydrogen evolution reaction, resulting in high activity of electrocatalytic CO2 -to-CO conversion.

Immunogenicity and protective efficacy of OmpA subunit vaccine against Aeromonas hydrophila infection in Megalobrama amblycephala: An effective alternative to the inactivated vaccine.

Aeromonas hydrophila is a kind of zoonotic pathogen, which can cause bacterial septicemia in fish and bring huge economic losses to global aquaculture. Outer membrane proteins (Omps) are conserved antigens of Aeromonas hydrophila, which can be developed as subunit vaccines. To evaluate the protective efficacy of inactivated vaccine and recombinant outer membrane protein A (OmpA) subunit vaccine against A. hydrophila in juvenile Megalobrama amblycephala, the present study investigated the immunogenicity and protective effects of both vaccines, as well as the non-specific and specific immune response of M. amblycephala. Compared with the non-vaccinated group, both inactivated and OmpA subunit vaccines improved the survival rate of M. amblycephala upon infection. The protective effects of OmpA vaccine groups were better than that of the inactivated vaccine groups, which should be attributed to the reduced bacterial load and enhanced host immunity in the vaccinated fish. ELISA assay showed that the titer of serum immunoglobulin M (IgM) specific to A. hydrophila up-regulated significantly in the OmpA subunit vaccine groups at 14 d post infection (dpi), which should contribute to better immune protective effects. In addition, vaccination enhanced host bactericidal abilities might also attribute to the regulation of the activities of hepatic and serum antimicrobial enzymes. Moreover, the expression of immune-related genes (SAA, iNOS, IL-1 ß, IL-6, IL-10, TNF α, C3, MHC I, MHC II, CD4, CD8, TCR α, IgM, IgD and IgZ) increased in all groups post infection, which was more significant in the vaccinated groups. Furthermore, the number of immunopositive cells exhibiting different epitopes (CD8, IgM, IgD and IgZ) that were detected by immunohistochemical assay had increased in the vaccinated groups post infection. These results show that vaccination effectively stimulated host immune response (especially OmpA vaccine groups). In conclusion, these results indicated that both the inactivated vaccine and OmpA subunit vaccine could protect juvenile M. amblycephala against A. hydrophila infection, of which OmpA subunit vaccine provided more effective immune protection and can be used as an ideal candidate for the A. hydrophila vaccine.

On correlation between canopy vegetation and growth indexes of maize varieties with different nitrogen efficiencies.

Studying the canopy spectral reflection characteristics of different N-efficient maize varieties and analyzing the relationship between their growth indicators and spectral vegetation indices can help the breeding and application of N-efficient maize varieties. To achieve the optimal management of N fertilizer resources, developing N-efficient maize varieties is necessary. In this research, maize varieties, i.e., the low-N-efficient (Zhengdan 958, ZD958), the high-N efficient (Xianyu 335, XY335), the double-high varieties (Qiule 368, QL368), and the double inefficient-type varieties (Yudan 606 YD606), were used as materials. Results indicate that nitrogen fertilization significantly increased the vegetation indices NDVI, GNDVI, GOSAVI, and RVI of maize varieties with different nitrogen efficiencies. These findings were consistent with the performance of yield, dry matter mass, and leaf nitrogen content and were also found highest under both medium and high nitrogen conditions in the double-high variety QL368. The correlations of dry matter quality, leaf nitrogen content, yield, and vegetation indices (NDVI, GNDVI, RVI, and GOSAVI) at the filling stage of different N-efficient maize varieties were all highly significant and positive. In this relationship, the best effect was found at the filling stages, with correlation coefficients reaching 0.772-0.942, 0.774-0.970, 0754-0.960, and 0.800-0.960. The results showed that the yield, dry matter weight, and leaf nitrogen content of maize varieties with different nitrogen efficiencies increased first and then stabilized with the increase in the nitrogen application level in different periods, and the highest nitrogen application level of maize yield should be between 270 and 360 kg/hm2. At the filling stage, canopy vegetation index of maize varieties with different nitrogen efficiencies was positively correlated with yield, dry matter weight, and leaf nitrogen content, especially GNDVI and GOSAVI on the leaf nitrogen content. It can be used as a means to predict its growth index.