[Clinical effectiveness of Subjective Global Nutritional Assessment in hospitalized children with cerebral palsy].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the nutritional status of children with cerebral palsy (CP) and the clinical effectiveness of Subjective Global Nutritional Assessment (SGNA) in nutritional assessment of hospitalized children with CP. METHODS: A total of 208 children with CP, aged 1-5 years, who were hospitalized from April to October 2019 were enrolled as subjects. SGNA was used to investigate nutritional status, and the Z-score method recommended by the World Health Organization was used as a reference standard to validate the clinical effectiveness of SGNA. RESULTS: The detection rate of malnutrition in children with CP was 42.3% by SGNA and 39.4% by the Z-score method (P>0.05). The application of SGNA showed high consistency between different evaluators (κ=0.621, P<0.001). With the Z-score method as the reference standard, SGNA had a sensitivity of 80.5%, a specificity of 82.5%, a positive predictive value of 75.0%, and a negative predictive value of 86.7%, and high consistency was observed between the two evaluation methods (κ=0.622, P<0.001). SGNA was moderately consistent with weight-for-age Z-score and height-for-age Z-score (κ=0.495 and 0.478 respectively, P<0.001) and was poorly consistent with weight-for-height Z-score (κ=0.197, P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: There is a relatively high incidence rate of malnutrition in children with CP. SGNA can be used as a tool to assess the nutritional status of children with CP.

Clinical effect and safety of dendritic cell-cytokine-induced killer cell immunotherapy for pancreatic cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Although promising results have recently been reported using dendritic cells (DCs) and cytokine-induced killer cells (CIKs) to treat pancreatic cancer (PC), its clinical effect and safety are associated with some controversy, and lack sufficient evidence. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis of 21 clinical trials to better evaluate the efficacy of DC-CIK immunotherapy in clinical practice to treat PC. METHODS: PubMed, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and Wanfang Data Knowledge Service Platform (WANFANG Data) were searched to identify clinical trials that used DC-CIK immunotherapy for PC. Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 and Stata 12.0. RESULTS: A total of 21 clinical trials involving 1549 patients were included. Compared with traditional treatment, DC-CIK immunotherapy improved and increased the clinical indices such as complete remission, partial remission, overall response rate, disease control rate, overall survival (0.5-y OS, 1-y OS, 1.5-y OS, 2-y OS and 3-y OS), interferon γ and CD3+, CD4+, CD4+/CD8+ and CD3+CD56+ lymphocyte. Additionally, DC-CIK immunotherapy reduced stable disease, progression disease, mortality, CD8+, CD4+CD25+CD127 low lymphocyte and interleukin-4. Furthermore, it showed a low incidence of adverse reactions (22%). CONCLUSION: In contrast to traditional therapy, DC-CIK immunotherapy not only shows improved short-term effect, long-term effect and immunologic function, but also reduces mortality and negative immunoregulatory index, and shows mild adverse reactions. This is the first study to evaluate the clinical effect and safety of DC-CIK immunotherapy for PC, and it indicated that DC-CIK immunotherapy may be suitable for patients with advanced PC or intolerance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

Single phonon source based on a giant polariton nonlinear effect.

We propose a single phonon source based on nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers, which are located in a diamond phononic crystal resonator. The strain in the lattice would induce the coupling between the NV centers and the phonon mode. The strong coupling between the excited state of the NV centers and the phonon is realized by adding an optical laser driving. This four-level NV center system exhibits coherent population trapping and yields giant resonantly enhanced acoustic nonlinearities, with zero linear susceptibility. Based on this nonlinearity, the single phonon source can be realized. We numerically calculate g(2)(0) of the single phonon source. We discuss the effects of the thermal noise and the external driving strength.

Quantum memory and non-demolition measurement of single phonon state with nitrogen-vacancy centers ensemble.

In a diamond, the mechanical vibration-induced strain can lead to interaction between the mechanical mode and the nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers. In this work, we propose to utilize the strain-induced coupling for the quantum non-demolition (QND) single phonon measurement and memory in a diamond. The single phonon in a diamond mechanical resonator can be perfectly absorbed and emitted by the NV centers ensemble (NVE) with adiabatically tuning the microwave driving. An optical laser drives the NVE to the excited states, which have much larger coupling strength to the mechanical mode. By adiabatically eliminating the excited states under large detuning limit, the effective coupling between the mechanical mode and the NVE can be used for QND measurement of the single phonon state. Under realistic experimental conditions, we numerically simulate the scheme. It is found that the fidelity of the absorbing and emitting process can reach a much high value. The overlap between the input and the output phonon shapes can reach 98.57%.

First report of Rahnella aquatilis infection in crucian carp Carassius auratus in China.

Rahnella aquatilis infection is rare in aquaculture. Here, a Gram-negative rod-shaped bacterium was isolated from diseased crucian carp Carassius auratus in Xuzhou City, Jiangsu Province, eastern China. The isolate was tentatively named strain KCL-5, and subsequently identified as R. aquatilis by biochemical properties and molecular techniques. The results showed that the isolate KCL-5 was most closely related to the type strain ATCC33071 (= DSM4594) of R. aquatilis, which shared 99.67, 96.26 and 99.58% nucleotide sequence identities for 16S rDNA, gyrB and toxin yhaV genes, respectively. Experimental challenges were conducted which demonstrated pathogenicity of the isolate in crucian carp. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing showed that the isolated strain was susceptible to piperacillin, gentamicin, kanamycin, nalidixic acid, norfloxacin, ofloxacin, azithromycin and erythromycin. To our knowledge, this is the first report on R. aquatilis infection in crucian carp, and the first evidence of pathogenicity in fish.

Characterization and functional analysis of a c-type lysozyme gene from obscure puffer Takifugu obscurus.

Lysozyme (Lyz) is an alkaline enzyme that hydrolyzes mucopolysaccharides in bacteria and is highly conserved vertebrates and invertebrates. In this study, a c-type lysozyme gene (named ToLyzC) from the obscure puffer Takifugu obscurus was cloned and characterized. The full-length cDNA of ToLyzC was 432 bp, encoding 143 amino acids, with a predicted molecular mass of 16.2 kDa and a theoretical pI of 8.86. The depicted protein sequence contained a LYZ1 domain from 16 to 142 amino acids, seven conserved cysteine residues. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that ToLyzC clustered with Lyzs from other teleost fishes. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis revealed that ToLyzC mRNA was mainly expressed in the liver. The transcript level of ToLyzC gene was significantly upregulated after Staphylococcus aureus and Vibrio harveyi challenge. The optimal pH and temperature of recombinant ToLyzC protein (rToLyzC) lytic activity was detected to be 7.5 and 35 °C, respectively. rToLyzC exhibited significant antibacterial and bacterial binding activities against S. aureus, Aeromonas hydrophila, V. harveyi, and Edwardsiella tarda at different time points. In addition, the morphological changes of V. harveyi cells treated with rToLyzC were observed under scanning electron microscope, which further confirmed the antibacterial and bacteriolytic activity of rToLyzC. Taken together, our current study indicated that ToLyzC is involved in the immune response to bacterial infection in obscure puffers.

A new calnexin modulates antibacterial immune response in obscure puffer Takifugu obscurus.

Calnexin (Cnx) is a membrane-bound lectin chaperone of the endoplasmic reticulum. In this study, a novel Cnx homologue from the obscure puffer Takifugu obscurus was characterized, tentatively named ToCnx. The cDNA of ToCnx was 1803 bp, and it contained an open reading frame encoding a polypeptide of 600 amino acid residues with a calculated molecular weight of 67.5 kDa. Multiple alignment of the deduced amino acid sequences of ToCnx and other related fish Cnxs revealed that ToCnx had typical characteristics of fish Cnxs. Sequence comparison and phylogenetic tree analysis showed that ToCnx had the closest relationship with Cnxs from Takifugu flavidus and Takifugu rubripes. ToCnx transcripts were detected in all the tissues examined, and they were mainly expressed in the liver, kidney, and intestine. Upon Vibrio harveyi, Edwardsiella tarda, and Aeromonas hydrophila infection, ToCnx transcripts were all significantly upregulated in the kidneys. The recombinant calreticulin domain of ToCnx (rToCnx) was prepared by prokaryotic expression. In the absence of calcium, rToCnx was able to bind three Gram-negative bacteria (V. harveyi, E. tarda, and A. hydrophila) and two bacterial saccharides, such as lipopolysaccharide and peptidoglycan. In the presence of calcium, rToCnx could agglutinate all the detected microorganisms. In addition, rToCnx possessed the effect of inhibiting the growth of three microbe strains. These observations suggested that ToCnx is an important participant in host immune defense against bacteria.

Calreticulin functions in antimicrobial immunity of obscure puffer Takifugu obscurus.

Calreticulin (Crt) is a highly conserved and multi-functional protein with lectin-like properties and important immunological activities. In this study, a Crt homolog, namely, ToCrt, was cloned and characterized from the obscure puffer Takifugu obscurus with an open reading frame of 1278 bp encoding a putative protein of 425 amino acids. The deduced amino acid sequence of ToCrt consisted of three conserved structural domains: N-domain, P-domain, and C-terminal domain. In the phylogenetic tree, ToCrt formed a separate cluster with three Crts from other pufferfish species (Takifugu rubripes, Takifugu flavidus, and Takifugu bimaculatus). The mRNA transcript of ToCrt was ubiquitously expressed in all the examined tissues in a decreasing order: liver, spleen, kidney, gills, intestine, and heart. After Vibrio harveyi, Edwardsiella tarda, and Aeromonas hydrophila stimulations, the levels of ToCrt mRNA in the kidney and spleen were significantly upregulated compared with that in the control group. The recombinant calreticulin domain of ToCrt (rToCrt) could bind three Gram-negative bacteria (V. harveyi, E. tarda, and A. hydrophila) and polysaccharides from bacterial cell walls such as lipopolysaccharide and peptidoglycan. Meanwhile, rToCrt could agglutinate different kinds of microorganisms and exhibit antimicrobial activity. These results suggested that T. obscurus ToCrt could serve as an antimicrobial effector in the host immune response against invading microorganisms.

A controlled release system of superoxide dismutase by electrospun fiber and its antioxidant activity in vitro.

In this paper, a new controlled release system of superoxide dismutase was developed by electrospun composite fibers. Highly loading efficacy of sod from 85.6 to 98.0% was achieved. The superoxide dismutase can be released from the system for 234 h, and obvious initial burst release of superoxide dismutase in vitro was not observed. In vitro release rate of superoxide dismutase in the first 66 h basically is faster than the corresponding rate at a later stage. Antioxidant activity of the released superoxide dismutase was still high, and it remained stable during the preparation by electrospinning and release experiment. We hope this composite system be used as an implanted form, in the treatment for several disease involved with the superoxide radical in the future.

[Effects of water-nitrogen combination on dry matter, nitrogen accumulation and yield of winter wheat]. / æ°´æ°®ç»„åˆå¯¹å†¬å°éº¦å¹²ç‰©è´¨åŠæ°®ç´ ç§¯ç´¯å’Œäº§é‡çš„å½±å“.

In two growing seasons of wheat (2015-2017), we conducted a field trial with Taishan 28 in Tai'an Academy of Agricultural Science Feicheng experimental base, Tai'an City, Shandong Province. There were four irrigation levels of 150 (A1), 300 (A2), 450 (A3), and 600 (A4) m3·hm-2, and four nitrogen application levels of 90 (B1), 135 (B2), 180 (B3), and 225 (B4) kg·hm-2. We examined the effects of the combination effects of irrigation and nitrogen on dry matter accumulation and transport, nitrogen accumulation and transport, water consumption and utilization, photosynthetic characteristics, wheat grain yield and yield components of wheat. The results showed that dry matter accumulation, nitrogen accumulation, vegetative organs production, storage and the transportation volume to grains of the dry matter and nitrogen, and dry matter and nitrogen accumulation of grain in the mature stage of wheat all reached the maximum in A3B3 treatment, which were significantly different from other treatments. Under all the nitrogen treatments, soil water consumption in the 60-200 cm soil layer was A3>A4>A2>A1. Water use efficiency and nitrogen use efficiency in A3B3 treatment were higher than that under A3B4, A4B3 and A4B4. The net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance and transpiration rate of flag leaves from 7 to 28 days after flowe-ring were all significantly higher in A3B3 treatment, which was conducive to the photosynthetic synthesis of carbohydrates in wheat. The interaction effect of water and nitrogen addition significantly affected grain yield and yield components. Wheat yield was the highest in A3B3 treatment which reached at 9400 kg·hm-2. In conclusion, the treatment with irrigation of 450 m3·hm-2 and nitrogen of 180 kg·hm-2 could significantly improve dry matter and nitrogen accumulation, and promote transportation volume of the dry matter and nitrogen to grain. Compared with the high water and nitrogen treatment, it could effectively increase water use efficiency and nitrogen use efficiency, enhance photosynthetic capacity of flag leaf, produce more carbohydrate, and increase grain yield.

[Primary culture and morphologic observation of eutopic and ectopic endometrial cells from patients with endometriosis].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the method of primary culture for endometriotic cells and to find out the differences in morphological manifestations among endometriotic cells and eutopic endometrial cells sampled from patients with endometriosis and endometriosis-free women. METHODS: Endometriotic and eutopic endometrial cells were cultured by modified method of primary culture. The endometriotic cell types were observed and differentiated under optical and electron microscopes. RESULTS: The success rates for culture of eutopic endometrial cells from endometriosis-free women and patients with endometriosis were 91.67% and 93.75% respectively. The success rate for culture of endometriotic cells was 75.00%. The size of endometriotic glandular cells was similar to those of eutopic endometrial glandular cells from endometriosis-free women and patients with endometriosis. The chromatin was manifold and the nucleus was augmented in the endometriotic glandular cells. The endometriotic stromal cells were smaller than the eutopic endometrial stromal cells from endometriosis-free women and patients with endometriosis. Many tiny villi and protuberances on plasma membrane could be seen in the endometriotic stromal cells. CONCLUSION: The success rate for culture of endometriotic cells can be elevated through improving the method of primary culture. The ultrastructures of endometriotic glandular and stromal cells are obviously different from those of eutopic endometrial glandular and stromal cells from endometriosis-free women and patients with endometriosis.

Proteomics analysis reveals distinct involvement of embryo and endosperm proteins during seed germination in dormant and non-dormant rice seeds.

Seed germination is a complex trait which is influenced by many genetic, endogenous and environmental factors, but the key event(s) associated with seed germination are still poorly understood. In present study, the non-dormant cultivated rice Yannong S and the dormant Dongxiang wild rice seeds were used as experimental materials, we comparatively investigated the water uptake, germination time course, and the differential proteome of the effect of embryo and endosperm on germination of these two types of seeds. A total of 231 and 180 protein spots in embryo and endosperm, respectively, showed a significant change in abundance during germination. We observed that the important proteins associated with seed germination included those involved in metabolism, energy production, protein synthesis and destination, storage protein, cell growth and division, signal transduction, cell defense and rescue. The contribution of embryo and endosperm to seed germination is different. In embryo, the proteins involved in amino acid activation, sucrose cleavage, glycolysis, fermentation and protein synthesis increased; in endosperm, the proteins involved in sucrose cleavage and glycolysis decreased, and those with ATP and CoQ synthesis and proteolysis increased. Our results provide some new knowledge to understand further the mechanism of seed germination.

Heterostructured Ag3PO4/AgBr/Ag plasmonic photocatalyst with enhanced photocatalytic activity and stability under visible light.

A heterostructured Ag3PO4/AgBr/Ag plasmonic photocatalyst was prepared by a rational in situ ion exchange reaction between Ag3PO4 micro-cubes and Br(-) in aqueous solution followed by photoreduction. The photocatalytic activities of obtained photocatalysts were measured by the degradation of methyl orange (MO) and methylene blue (MB) under visible light irradiation (λ≥ 400 nm). Compared to AgBr/Ag, Ag3PO4/AgBr heterocrystals and pure Ag3PO4 crystals, the heterostructured Ag3PO4/AgBr/Ag plasmonic photocatalysts exhibit much higher photocatalytic activity and stability. This enhanced photocatalytic activity suggests that the synergetic effects of the heterostructured Ag3PO4/AgBr/Ag and the strong SPR of Ag NPs on the surface result in the high efficiencies of the photocatalytic activity and the improved stability. With the assistance of Ag3PO4/AgBr/Ag heterostructures, only 8 min and 12 min are taken to completely decompose MO and MB molecules under visible-light irradiation, respectively. Furthermore, the photodegradation rate does not show an obvious decrease during ten successive cycles, indicating that our heterostructured Ag3PO4/AgBr/Ag plasmonic photocatalysts are extremely stable under visible-light irradiation.

A new QTL for resistance to Fusarium ear rot in maize.

Understanding the inheritance of resistance to Fusarium ear rot is a basic prerequisite for an efficient resistance breeding in maize. In this study, 250 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) along with their resistant (BT-1) and susceptible (N6) parents were planted in Zhengzhou with three replications in 2007 and 2008. Each line was artificially inoculated using the nail-punch method. Significant genotypic variation in response to Fusarium ear rot was detected in both years. Based on a genetic map containing 207 polymorphic simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers with average genetic distances of 8.83 cM, the ear rot resistance quantitative trait loci (QTL) were analyzed by composite interval mapping with a mixed model (MCIM) across the environments. In total, four QTL were detected on chromosomes 3, 4, 5, and 6. The resistance allele at each of these four QTL was contributed by resistant parent BT-1, and accounted for 2.5-10.2% of the phenotypic variation. However, no significant epistasis interaction effect was detected after a two-dimensional genome scan. Among the four QTL, one QTL with the largest effect on chromosome 4 (bin 4.06) can be suggested to be a new locus for resistance to Fusarium ear rot, which broadens the genetic base for resistance to the disease and can be used for further genetic improvement in maize-breeding programs.