Weakly-Supervised RGBD Video Object Segmentation.

Depth information opens up new opportunities for video object segmentation (VOS) to be more accurate and robust in complex scenes. However, the RGBD VOS task is largely unexplored due to the expensive collection of RGBD data and time-consuming annotation of segmentation. In this work, we first introduce a new benchmark for RGBD VOS, named DepthVOS, which contains 350 videos (over 55k frames in total) annotated with masks and bounding boxes. We futher propose a novel, strong baseline model - Fused Color-Depth Network (FusedCDNet), which can be trained solely under the supervision of bounding boxes, while being used to generate masks with a bounding box guideline only in the first frame. Thereby, the model possesses three major advantages: a weakly-supervised training strategy to overcome the high-cost annotation, a cross-modal fusion module to handle complex scenes, and weakly-supervised inference to promote ease of use. Extensive experiments demonstrate that our proposed method performs on par with top fully-supervised algorithms. We will open-source our project on https://github.com/yjybuaa/depthvos/ to facilitate the development of RGBD VOS.

Research Progress on the Antidepressant Effects of Baicalin and Its Aglycone Baicalein: A Systematic Review of the Biological Mechanisms.

Depression is the most prevalent mental disorder, affecting more than 300 million adults worldwide each year, which can lead to serious economic and social problems. Antidepressants are usually the first-line treatment for depression, however, traditional antidepressants on the market have the disadvantage of low remission rates and may cause side effects to patients, therefore, the current focus in the field of depression is to develop novel therapeutic agents with high remission rates and few side effects. In this context, the antidepressant effects of natural compounds have received attention. Baicalin (baicalein-7-O-glucuronide) and its aglycone baicalein (5,6,7-trihydroxyflavone) are flavonoid compounds extracted from the root of Scutellaria baicalensis. Although lacking the support of clinical data, they have been shown to have significantly promising antidepressant activity in many preclinical studies through various rodent models of depression. This paper reviews the antidepressant effects of baicalin and baicalein in experimental animal models, with emphasis on summarizing the molecular mechanisms of their antidepressant effects including regulation of the HPA axis, inhibition of inflammation and oxidative stress, reduction of neuronal apoptosis and promotion of neurogenesis, as well as amelioration of mitochondrial dysfunction. Controlled clinical trials should be conducted in the future to examine the effects of baicalin and baicalein on depression in humans.

Human Endogenous Retrovirus, SARS-CoV-2, and HIV Promote PAH via Inflammation and Growth Stimulation.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a pulmonary vascular disease characterized by the progressive elevation of pulmonary arterial pressures. It is becoming increasingly apparent that inflammation contributes to the pathogenesis and progression of PAH. Several viruses are known to cause PAH, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), human endogenous retrovirus K(HERV-K), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), in part due to acute and chronic inflammation. In this review, we discuss the connections between HERV-K, HIV, SARS-CoV-2, and PAH, to stimulate research regarding new therapeutic options and provide new targets for the treatment of the disease.

Antidepressant-like effect of CP-101,606: Evidence of mTOR pathway activation.

BACKGROUND: As a non-competitive N-methyl d-aspartate receptor antagonist, ketamine exerts rapid-onset and long-lasting antidepressant effects on depression, but some side effects limit its use. To identify a safer compound that may provide similar antidepressant effects, here we investigated whether CP-101,606, a selective NR2B receptor inhibitor, provides similar antidepressant effects and explored its underlying mechanisms. METHODS: To mimic depressive-like behavior, mice were subjected to chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) for 21 days. Mice were treated with CP-101,606 at 10, 20, and 40 mg/kg doses for 7, 14, and 21 days, respectively, followed by a sucrose preference test (SPT), tail suspension test (TST), and forced swimming test (FST). Western blot analysis was performed on several targets (mTOR, p-mTOR, p70S6K, p-p70S6K, PSD-95, and GluA1), along with immunohistochemistry (GluA1) and immunofluorescence (p-mTOR) assays, using hippocampal tissue. RESULTS: CP-101,606 at 20 and 40 mg/kg doses for 7 and 14 days and fluoxetine 10 mg/kg and CP-101606 20 mg/kg for 21 days ameliorated depression-like behaviors in the SPT, TST, and FST. The effects of CP-101,606 were associated with a reversal of the CUMS-induced decrease in mTOR (Ser2448) and p70S6K (Thr389) phosphorylation and increasing PSD95 and GluA1 synthesis in the hippocampus. CONCLUSIONS: Our results demonstrate that CP-101,606 produces antidepressant effects in CUMS mice, which may be mediated by mTOR signaling cascade upregulation. Our findings suggest the possible utility of CP-101,606 as a treatment for depression.

Traxoprodil Produces Antidepressant-Like Behaviors in Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress Mice through BDNF/ERK/CREB and AKT/FOXO/Bim Signaling Pathway.

Traxoprodil is a selective N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor subunit 2B (NR2B) receptor inhibitor with rapid and long-lasting antidepressant effects. However, the appropriate dosage, duration of administration, and underlying mechanism of traxoprodil's antidepressant effects remain unclear. The purpose of this study is to compare the antidepressant effects of traxoprodil in different doses and different durations of administration and to explore whether traxoprodil exerts antidepressant effects via the brain-derived neurotrophic factor/extracellular signal-regulated kinase/cAMP-response element binding protein (BDNF/ERK/CREB) and protein kinase B/Forkhead box O/building information modelling (AKT/FOXO/Bim) signaling pathway. Mice were randomly divided into control group, chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) + vehicle group, CUMS + traxoprodil (10 mg/kg, 20 mg/kg, and 40 mg/kg) groups, and CUMS + fluoxetine (5 mg/kg) group, followed by a forced swimming test, tail suspension test, and sucrose preference test. Western blotting and immunohistochemistry were used to measure the protein expression of BDNF, p-ERK1/2, p-CREB, NR2B, AKT, FOXO1, FOXO3a, and Bim. Compared with the control group, CUMS treatment increased immobility time; decreased sucrose preference; reduced expression of BDNF, p-ERK1/2, and p-CREB; and increased expression of AKT, FOXO, and Bim in the hippocampus. These alterations were ameliorated by administration of 20 mg/kg or 40 mg/kg of traxoprodil after 7 or 14 days of administration and with 10 mg/kg of traxoprodil or 5 mg/kg of fluoxetine after 21 days of administration. At the 7-day and 14-day timepoints, traxoprodil displayed dose-dependent antidepressant effects, with 20 and 40 mg/kg doses of traxoprodil producing rapid and strong antidepressant effects. However, at 21 days of administration, 10 and 20 mg/kg doses of traxoprodil exerted more pronounced antidepressant effects. The mechanism of traxoprodil's antidepressant effects may be closely related to the BDNF/ERK/CREB and AKT/FOXO/Bim signaling pathway.

Loss-induced switching between electromagnetically induced transparency and critical coupling in a chalcogenide waveguide.

Optical loss is generally perceived to be an adverse effect in integrated optics. Herein, in contrast, we propose a mechanism to harness the loss in a coupled ${\rm {high-}}{\! Q}$ resonators system to realize on-chip electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT). The increasing loss of one of the coupled resonators results in a difference in ${Q}$ factor, leading to EIT generation. This optical loss-induced EIT is studied analytically using the coupled-mode theory and demonstrated experimentally in chalcogenide coupled microring resonators. By taking advantage of the chalcogenide phase change materials that feature exceptional optical property contrasts, we further demonstrate the loss-induced mechanism to realize fast and nonvolatile responses between the EIT state and the critical coupling state in a monolithically integrated chip. Our results provide a new perspective to harvest the negative loss effect of coupled resonators for tunable photonic devices, which might shed new light on the design ideology for on-chip slow-light optical components.

Corticosterone-induced Hippocampal 5-HT Responses were Muted in Depressive-like State.

Interactions between the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the central 5-HT system in the depressive state remain largely unknown. The present study investigated corticosterone (CORT) regulations of extracellular 5-HT in the hippocampal CA3 in a mouse model of depression. Basal dialysate 5-HT, true extracellular 5-HT, 5-HT reuptake efficiency, and time courses of dialysate 5-HT following CORT injections at 10, 20, and 40 mg/kg were determined at baseline, depressive-like state and after subsequent fluoxetine (FLX) treatment using in vivo microdialysis in male C57BL/6 mice. Behavioral tests were used to determine behavioral phenotypes and therapeutic responses to FLX. Depressed mice showed decreased extracellular 5-HT, increased 5-HT reuptake efficiency, and absence of the increase in dialysate 5-HT response to CORT injections, which were all reversed in FLX-responsive mice. Surprisingly, the FLX nonresponsive mice continued to worsen behaviorally and exhibited lower extracellular 5-HT and higher 5-HT reuptake efficiency. Our study indicates that abolished-CORT induced 5-HT response, decreased extracellular 5-HT, and increased 5-HT reuptake efficiency might be the signature features associated with depressive-like state. Increased 5-HT reuptake efficiency was one of the underlying mechanisms, with target effectors remaining to be explored. The findings in the FLX nonresponsive mice suggest distinct neuromechanisms, which might be genetically predetermined.

A simple boronic acid-based fluorescent probe for selective detection of hydrogen peroxide in solutions and living cells.

An approach of high sensitivity and selectivity for hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) detection is highly demanded due to its important roles in regulating diverse biological process. In this work, we introduced an easily synthesized fluorescent "turn off" probe, BNBD. It is designed based on the core structure of 4-chloro-7-nitrobenzofurazan as a fluorophore and incorporated with a specific H2O2-reactive group, aryl boronate, for sensitive and selective detection of H2O2. We demonstrated its selectivity by incubating the probe with other types of ROS, and measured the limit of detection of BNBD as 1.8 nM. BNBD is also conducive to H2O2 detection at physiological conditions. We thus applied it to detect both exogenous and endogenous changes of H2O2 in living cells by confocal microscopy, supporting its future applications to selectively monitor H2O2 levels and identify H2O2-related physiological or pathological responses from live cells or tissues in the near future.

Role of Noncoding RNA in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension and Potential Drug Therapeutic Target.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a devastating disease without effective drugs available for its treatment. An in-depth exploration of the pathogenesis of PAH, as well as inquiry into potential therapeutic targets, remains an urgent issue. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have arisen as key players in malignant tumors, cardiovascular diseases and more recently in PAH progression and development. Network pharmacology is a new discipline based on system biology, which can predict potential therapeutic targets in diseases regulated by multiple genes. In this review, we discuss the current knowledge of ncRNAs and network pharmacology regulated genes involved in PAH, as well as the search for potential drug targets for PAH.

Cobalt-Catalyzed Aerobic Cross-Dehydrogenative Coupling of C-H and Thiols in Water for C-S Formation.

Organosulfides have great significance and value in synthetic and biological chemistry. To establish a versatile and green methodology for C-S bond generation, we successfully developed a new aerobic cross-dehydrogenative coupling of C-H and S-H to synthesize aryl sulfides in water, utilizing CoPcS as the catalyst and O2 as the oxidant. This protocol shows great tolerance of a wide range of substrates. A large variety of organosulfur compounds were produced in modest to excellent yields.

Molecular Characterization of Two Polysaccharides from Phellinus vaninii Ljup and their Cytotoxicity to Cancer Cell Lines.

BACKGROUND: Phellinus vaninii, a medicinal basidiomycete fungus, is often confused with Phellinus igniarius and Phellinus linteus. Polysaccharides extract from P. igniarius and P. linteus are reported to stimulate humoral immunity and inhibit tumor growth However, available literature reviewed no information on the relationship between bioactivities and structures of polysaccharides from the fruit body of P. vaninii. METHODS: Two water-soluble polysaccharides (PV-W, PV-B) were isolated and purified from fruiting bodies of P. vaninii by hot water and sodium hydroxide solution, respectively. The chemical structures of PV-W, PV-B were analyzed by FT-IR, GC-MS analysis and 13C NMR spectra. And, their molecular conformations were analyzed by viscosity method and SEC-MALLS-RI. Finally, their inhibition of cancer cells was investigated using MTT assay. RESULTS: The results illustrated that PV-W was a heteropolysaccharide, mainly composed of mannose, glucose, arabinose and galactose. PV-B was a ß-1, 3-D-glucan branched with ß-1, 6-D-glucose. The results of viscometry proved that PV-W and PV-B could be molecularly dispersed in water without aggregation. The results of SECMALLS- RI indicated that the two polysaccharides had the similar Mw but different molecular conformation. That is, PV-W existed as a stable globular shape, while PV-B presented a more expanded flexible random coils conformation. MTT assay indicated that PV-B showed higher inhibition effect on HepG2 and HeLa cells than PV-W in vitro. CONCLUSION: This work provided the important information of active components from P. vaninii and its potential applications in the food and medicine industry.

A variational approach to liver segmentation using statistics from multiple sources.

Medical image segmentation plays an important role in digital medical research, and therapy planning and delivery. However, the presence of noise and low contrast renders automatic liver segmentation an extremely challenging task. In this study, we focus on a variational approach to liver segmentation in computed tomography scan volumes in a semiautomatic and slice-by-slice manner. In this method, one slice is selected and its connected component liver region is determined manually to initialize the subsequent automatic segmentation process. From this guiding slice, we execute the proposed method downward to the last one and upward to the first one, respectively. A segmentation energy function is proposed by combining the statistical shape prior, global Gaussian intensity analysis, and enforced local statistical feature under the level set framework. During segmentation, the shape of the liver shape is estimated by minimization of this function. The improved Chan-Vese model is used to refine the shape to capture the long and narrow regions of the liver. The proposed method was verified on two independent public databases, the 3D-IRCADb and the SLIVER07. Among all the tested methods, our method yielded the best volumetric overlap error (VOE) of [Formula: see text], the best root mean square symmetric surface distance (RMSD) of [Formula: see text] mm, the best maximum symmetric surface distance (MSD) of [Formula: see text] mm in 3D-IRCADb dataset, and the best average symmetric surface distance (ASD) of [Formula: see text] mm, the best RMSD of [Formula: see text] mm in SLIVER07 dataset, respectively. The results of the quantitative comparison show that the proposed liver segmentation method achieves competitive segmentation performance with state-of-the-art techniques.

Cyromazine imprinted polymers for selective stir bar sorptive extraction of melamine in animal feed and milk samples.

In this work, a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) coated stir bar was prepared using a self-designed polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) mold and in situ polymerization, with cyromazine as the dummy template for the target melamine. The prepared MIP coated stir bar presented a uniform and porous surface as well as good chemical stability and selectivity for melamine. Based on it, a method of MIP coated stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) combined with high performance liquid chromatography-ultraviolet detection (HPLC-UV) was developed for the quantification of melamine in food samples. Significant factors affecting the extraction efficiency of melamine by MIP-SBSE, such as the extraction solvent and time, stirring rate, desorption solvent and time, were investigated thoroughly. Under the optimal conditions, the analytical performance of this method was evaluated. The detection limit of the developed method was 0.54 µg L(-1) for melamine with an enrichment factor of 42-fold and the relative standard deviation (RSD) of 6.1% (c = 5 µg L(-1), n = 7), and the linear range was 2-200 µg L(-1). The established method was applied for the determination of melamine in a variety of real samples including cat food, dog food, chicken feed A, chicken feed B and milk powder, and the recoveries for melamine in the spiked samples were in the range of 76.2-98.2%, 80.0-85.5%, 89.5-113%, 85.0-95.5% and 65.0-111%, respectively. The proposed method presented a good specific recognition ability and matrix interference resistance, and was demonstrated to be effective and sensitive for the analysis of melamine in animal food and milk samples.

Theoretical derivation of anodizing current and comparison between fitted curves and measured curves under different conditions.

Anodic TiO2 nanotubes have been studied extensively for many years. However, the growth kinetics still remains unclear. The systematic study of the current transient under constant anodizing voltage has not been mentioned in the original literature. Here, a derivation and its corresponding theoretical formula are proposed to overcome this challenge. In this paper, the theoretical expressions for the time dependent ionic current and electronic current are derived to explore the anodizing process of Ti. The anodizing current-time curves under different anodizing voltages and different temperatures are experimentally investigated in the anodization of Ti. Furthermore, the quantitative relationship between the thickness of the barrier layer and anodizing time, and the relationships between the ionic/electronic current and temperatures are proposed in this paper. All of the current-transient plots can be fitted consistently by the proposed theoretical expressions. Additionally, it is the first time that the coefficient A of the exponential relationship (ionic current j(ion) = A exp(BE)) has been determined under various temperatures and voltages. And the results indicate that as temperature and voltage increase, ionic current and electronic current both increase. The temperature has a larger effect on electronic current than ionic current. These results can promote the research of kinetics from a qualitative to quantitative level.

Interface effect on the electropolymerized polypyrrole films with hollow micro/nanohorn arrays.

Polypyrrole (PPy) films with hollow micro/nanohorn arrays were controllably synthesized in p-toluenesulfonate aqueous solutions by template-free electrochemical methods. The micelles which consist of pyrrole monomers and the surfactants provided the soft templates during the polymerization process. The polymerization potential and pH value of the solutions cooperatively influenced the shape of the micelles at the substrate/electrolyte interface and further controlled the morphologies of PPy films. PPy grew along the soft templates during the high potential periods of a pulse potentiostatic (PPS) method, while the pH value and the low potential were varied to modulate the shape of the soft templates. It has been shown to be most appropriate to fabricate hollow micro/nanohorn PPy films with the highest electrical conductivity (190 S cm(-1)) via PPS at pH ∼1.5. A diagram was also introduced in order to illustrate the polymerization potential and pH value dependence of nanohorn PPy morphologies. This work proposed a potential method to the in situ growth of conducting polymers with high conductivity and high specific surface area.

Nb, F-codoped TiO2 hollow spheres with high visible light photocatalytic activity.

Nb, F-codoped TiO2 hollow spheres (NFTSs) were successfully synthesized via a hydrothermal method with niobium oxide, hydrofluoric acid, and tetrabutyl titanate. The obtained spheres were hollow, with a diameter of about 2 µm, and the sphere wall was made up of nanorods arranged close together. The NFTSs presented anatase phase with more {001} facets exposed, which could be mainly attributed to F ions which were preferentially adsorbed on the {001} facets during the crystal growth process. Ti3+ states in NFTSs were increased due to Nb, F-codoping, resulting in the decrease of the band gap and the red shift of the absorption edge of the NFTSs. The NFTSs exhibited 20.1% higher photocatalytic speed compared to P25 on the degradation of methylene orange.

[Effect of lead on learn and memory and release of intracellular free Ca2+ from calcium pool in dissociated mouse hippocampal neurons].

OBJECTIVE: To study effect of lead on learn and memory and the release of intracellular free Ca2+ from calcium pool in dissociated mouse hippocampal neurons. METHODS: Using a water maze we measured the ability of spatial learning of mouses. Digesting with low concentration of trypsin and gently triturating mode were used to dissociate hippocampal neurons. Using inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate (IP3) sensitive calcium store antagonist-heparine and non-IP3 sensitive calcium store (ryanodine) antagonist-procaine to stimulate hippocampal neurons, and observed the effect of Pb2+ on [Ca2+]i of hippocampal neurons by Fura-2 double wavelength fluoremetry. RESULTS: In the Morris water maze task, results indicated that mouses having drink lead water displayed significant impairment in their performance, and this extent of impairment showed in lead concentration dependent manner. Compared with control group, in condition of none of extracellular free calcium, 25 micromol x L(-1) of Pb2+ induced markedly increase of intracellular free calcium of hippocampal neurons in mouse. Heparin (IP3 sensitive calcium store antagonist) of 30 microg x ml(-1) and procaine (non-IP3 sensitive calcium store atagonist) of 0.1 mg x ml(-1) blocked the increases of [Ca2+]i in mouse hippocampal neurons elicited by 25 micromol x L(-1) of Pb2+. CONCLUSION: Chronic exposure to lead (Pb2+) reduces the ability of spatial learing and memory of mice. High level of Pb2+ facilitated release of intracellular free calcium from IP3 sensitive and non-IP3 sensitive calcium store and induced the increases of intracellular free calcium in mouse hippocampal neurons.

Gastric mucosal injury due to hemorrhagic reperfusion and efficacy of Salvia miltiorrhizae extract F and cimetidine.

AIM: To observe the gastric mucosal injury caused by hemorrhagic shock and reperfusion and to compare the effect between Salvia miltiorrhizae extract F (SEF) and cimetidine (CI) on it. METHODS: A model of hemorrhage/reperfusion injury was produced by Itoh method. Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups: 0.9% sodium chloride treatment group (NS group), SEF treatment group (SEF group), and CI treatment group (CI group). Saline, SEF and CI were injected respectively. The index of gastric mucosal lesions (IGML) was expressed as the percentage of lesion area in the gastric mucosa. The degree of gastric mucosal lesions was categorized into grades 0, 1, 2, 3. Atom absorption method was used to measure the intracellular calcium content. Radioimmunoassay was used to measure the concentrations of prostaglandins. RESULTS: IGML (%) and grade 3 (%) were 23.18+/-6.82, 58.44+/-9.07 in NS group, 4.42+/-1.39, 20.32+/-6.95 in SEF group and 3.74+/-1.56, 23.12+/-5.09 in CI group, and the above parameters in SEF group and CI group decreased significantly (IGML: SEF vs NS, t = 6.712, P = 0.000<0.01; CI vs NS, t = 6.943, P = 0.000<0.01; grade 3: SEF vs NS, t = 8.386, P = 0.000; CI vs NS, t = 8.411, P = 0.000), but the grade 0 and grade 1 damage in SEF group (22.05+/-5.96, 34.12+/-8.12) and CI group (18.54+/-4.82, 30.15+/-7.12) were markedly higher than those in NS group (3.01+/-1.01, 8.35+/-1.95; grade 0: SEF vs NS, t = 8.434, P = 0.000<0.01; CI vs NS, t = 7.950, P = 0.000<0.01; grade 1: SEF vs NS, t = 8.422, P = 0.000<0.01; CI vs NS, t = 8.448, P = 0.000<0.01). The intracellular calcium content (microg/mg) in SEF group (0.104+/-0.015) and CI group (0.102+/-0.010) was markedly lower than that in NS group (0.131+/-0.019, SEF vs NS, t = 2.463, P = 0.038<0.05; CI vs NS, t = 3.056, P = 0.017<0.05). The levels (pg/mg) of PGE(2), 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) and 6-keto-PGF(1alpha)/TXB(2) were 540+/-183, 714+/-124, 17.38+/-5.93 in NS group and 581+/-168, 737+/-102, 19.04+/-8.03 in CI group, 760+/-192, 1 248+/-158, 33.42+/-9.24 in SEF group, and the above parameters in SEF group markedly raised (PGE(2): SEF vs NS, t = 2.282, P = 0.046<0.05; SEF vs CI, t = 2.265, P = 0.047<0.05; 6-keto-PGF(1alpha): SEF vs NS, t = 6.583, P = 0.000<0.000; SEF vs CI, t = 6.708, P = 0.000<0.01; 6-keto-PGF(1alpha)/TXB(2): SEF vs NS, t = 3.963, P = 0.003<0.001; SEF vs CI, t = 3.243, P = 0.009<0.01), whereas TXB(2) level in SEF group (45.37+/-7.54) was obviously lower than that in NS group (58.28+/-6.74, t = 3.086, P = 0.014<0.05) and CI group (54.32+/-6.89, t = 2.265, P = 0.047<0.05). No significant difference was shown between NS group and CI group (PGE(2): t = 0.414, P = 0.688>0.05; 6-keto-PGF(1alpha): t = 0.310, P = 0.763>0.05; TXB(2): t = 1.099, P = 0.298>0.05; 6-keto-PGF(1alpha)/TXB(2): t = 0.372, P = 0.718>0.05). CONCLUSION: Both SEF and CI could inhibit reperfusion-induced injury in gastric mucosa, but with different mechanisms. SEF could not only enhance the protective effect of gastric mucosa, but also abate the injury factors, while CI can only abate the injury factors.