Formation, stability, and adiabatic excitation of peakons and double-hump solitons in parity-time-symmetric Dirac-δ(x)-Scarf-II optical potentials.

We introduce a class of physically intriguing PT-symmetric Dirac-δ-Scarf-II optical potentials. We find the parameter region making the corresponding non-Hermitian Hamiltonian admit the fully real spectra, and present the stable parameter domains for these obtained peakons, smooth solitons, and double-hump solitons in the self-focusing nonlinear Kerr media with PT-symmetric δ-Scarf-II potentials. In particular, the stable wave propagations are exhibited for the peakon solutions and double-hump solitons from some given parameters even if the corresponding parameters belong to the linear PT-phase broken region. Moreover, we also find the stable wave propagations of exact and numerical peakons and double-hump solitons in the interplay between the power-law nonlinearity and PT-symmetric potentials. Finally, we examine the interactions of the nonlinear modes with exotic waves, and the stable adiabatic excitations of peakons and double-hump solitons in the PT-symmetric Kerr nonlinear media. These results provide the theoretical basis for the design of related physical experiments and applications in PT-symmetric nonlinear optics, Bose-Einstein condensates, and other relevant physical fields.

MicroRNA-195 promotes apoptosis in mouse podocytes via enhanced caspase activity driven by BCL2 insufficiency.

BACKGROUND: The apoptosis of podocytes is a characteristic event in diabetic nephropathy. The aim of this study was to investigate whether microRNAs (miRNAs) affect podocyte apoptosis in diabetic circumstances. METHODS: Diabetic nephropathy was induced in DBA/2 mice by intraperitoneal injections of streptozotocin, and the levels of proteinuria were measured with ELISA. Apoptosis-related miRNAs were screened in isolated glomeruli. A conditionally immortalized mouse podocyte cell line was cultured in 25 mMD-glucose and either transfected with miRNA-195 (miR-195) mimics or inhibitors. The levels of BCL2 and caspase expression were determined using real-time RT-PCR and Western blot analysis, respectively. We also measured WT-1 and synaptopodin in podocytes. Apoptosis of podocytes was assessed with Hoechst 33258 nuclear staining, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL), and flow cytometry. RESULTS: The expression of miR-195 was elevated in both diabetic mice with proteinuria and podocytes that were cultured in high glucose. Transfection with miR-195 reduced the protein levels of BCL2 and contributed to podocyte apoptosis via an increase in caspase-3. miR-195-treated podocytes underwent actin rearrangement and failed to synthesize sufficient levels of WT-1 and synaptopodin proteins, which suggests that the cells had suffered injuries similar to those observed in diabetic nephropathy in both humans and animal models. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, our findings demonstrate that miR-195 promotes apoptosis of podocytes under high-glucose conditions via enhanced caspase cascades for BCL2 insufficiency. This work thus presents a meaningful approach for deciphering mechanisms, by which miRNAs participate in diabetic renal injury.

Effect of Equiguard in treating patients with Shen-yang deficiency syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: To observe the therapeutic effect of Equiguard in old patients with Shen-yang deficiency syndrome (SYDS). METHODS: Twenty old patients with diagnosis matching the criteria of SYDS selected from out-patients were administered with Equiguard capsule 3 times per day, 0.70 g each time for 3 successive months. The changes in general condition, peripheral blood picture, function of the liver and kidney, and sex hormones before and after treatment were observed. The changes in the American Urinary Surgery Association (AUA) score of prostatism, urosis and residue urine in the urinary bladder were also estimated. RESULTS: After the 3-month treatment, no significant change was found in the patients' general condition, peripheral blood picture, liver and kidney function and sex hormones, while the symptoms of prostatism and urosis were markedly improved (P<0.01), and the volume of residue urine in the urinary bladder was obviously reduced. CONCLUSION: Equiguard shows a significant therapeutic effect in treating old patients with SYDS, which could effectively improve the symptoms of prostatism and urosis in patients and is highly safe.

An efficient method for measuring the internal parameters of optical cameras based on optical fibres.

In this work, we report an expedient auto-collimating method for self-measuring the internal parameters (IPs) of optical cameras. Several key optical components, including the thin optical fibre (TOF), reflecting prism, and receiver, are introduced into optical cameras. The TOF outgoing end and area-array image receiver are integrated onto the focal-plane assembly of optical cameras. Different wavelengths of light, which are emitted by external sources, are transmitted to the focal plane through optical fibres. Because one optical fibre can transmit different wavelengths of light, the same position on the focal plane can obtain point light sources (PLSs) with different wavelengths. Then, the optical system of the cameras spontaneously transforms the PLSs into auto-collimating lights. The auto-collimating lights are reflected by a two-plane prism, return to the camera optical system, reach the focal plane and are received by the area-array sensor. Finally, the IPs are calculated based on a mathematical model of the imaging relation between fibre light sources and images. The experiment confirms that this method is efficient and has a level of precision of dozens of micrometres for an optical camera with a short focal length and small field of view. Our method is suitable for on-orbit IP measurements for cameras without spatial or temporal limitations.

Human urine-derived stem cells contribute to the repair of ischemic acute kidney injury in rats.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a clinical syndrome associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. It has previously been reported that stem cells may be considered a potential therapeutic strategy for the treatment of AKI. The present study aimed to determine whether administration of urine­derived stem cells (USCs) to rats with ischemia/reperfusion (I/R)­induced AKI could improve renal function. USCs were isolated and cultured from 8 healthy men. Subsequently, USCs transduced with green fluorescent protein were mixed with hydrogel and were injected into rats with renal I/R injury. Renal tubular injury, proliferation and apoptosis were detected in the I/R model. Hematoxylin and eosin staining was used to detect the morphological of kidney injury. Immunohistochemistry and TUNEL kits used to evaluate the proliferation and apoptosis of the I/R model. The results demonstrated that USCs could be detected in the tubular epithelial lining of the rats and administration of USCs was able to improve renal function in the I/R model. The USCs­treated group exhibited significantly reduced serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen levels, decreased tubular injury score, an increased number of proliferating cells and a decreased number of apoptotic cells. Compared with the control group, the mRNA expression levels of the anti­inflammatory factors interleukin (IL)­10 and transforming growth factor­ß1 were significantly upregulated, whereas the expression levels of the proinflammatory factors interferon­Î³ and IL­1ß were significantly reduced in the USCs­treated group. These findings suggested that USCs may promote kidney repair and improve function following ischemic AKI, which may be useful in treating human kidney disease.

The mixed coupled nonlinear Schrödinger equation on the half-line via the Fokas method.

In this paper, we implement the Fokas method to study initial-boundary value problems of the mixed coupled nonlinear Schrödinger equation formulated on the half-line with Lax pairs involving 3×3 matrices. The solution can be written in terms of the solution to a 3×3 Riemann-Hilbert problem. The relevant jump matrices are explicitly expressed in terms of the matrix-value spectral functions s(k) and S(k), which are determined by the initial values and boundary values at x=0, respectively. Some of these boundary values are unknown; however, using the fact that these specific functions satisfy a certain global relation, the unknown boundary values can be expressed in terms of the given initial and boundary data.

Transplantation of induced pluripotent stem cell-derived renal stem cells improved acute kidney injury.

BACKGROUND: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a severe disease with high morbidity and mortality. Methods that promote repair of the injured kidney have been extensively investigated. Cell-based therapy with mesenchymal stem cells or renal progenitor cells (RPCs) resident in the kidney has appeared to be an effective strategy for the treatment of AKI. Embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are also utilized for AKI recovery. However, the therapeutic effect of iPSC-derived RPCs for AKI has yet to be determined. METHODS: In this study, we induced iPSCs differentiation into RPCs using a nephrogenic cocktail of factors combined with the renal epithelial cell growth medium. We then established the rat ischemia-reperfusion injury (IR) model and transplanted the iPSC-derived RPCs into the injured rats in combination with the hydrogel. Next, we examined the renal function-related markers and renal histology to assess the therapeutic effect of the injected cells. Moreover, we investigated the mechanism by which iPSC-derived RPCs affect AKI caused by IR. RESULTS: We showed that the differentiation efficiency of iPSCs to RPCs increased when cultured with renal epithelial cell growth medium after stimulation with a nephrogenic cocktail of factors. The transplantation of iPSC-derived RPCs decreased the levels of biomarkers indicative of renal injury and attenuated the necrosis and apoptosis of renal tissues, but resulted in the up-regulation of renal tubules formation, cell proliferation, and the expression of pro-renal factors. CONCLUSION: Our results revealed that iPSC-derived RPCs can protect AKI rat from renal function impairment and severe tubular injury by up-regulating the renal tubules formation, promoting cell proliferation, reducing apoptosis, and regulating the microenvironment in the injured kidney.