Detection of a mud volcano in the Weitan Banks area of the northern South China Sea

Situated between the petroliferous Cenozoic Zhujiang(Pearl)River Mouth Basin and the mud volcano-rich Mesozoic Dongsha Basin in the middle sector of the northern South China Sea,the Weitan Banks area has been previously mapped as a basement high that is composed of Mesozoic magmatic rocks.In this study,we present several favorable indicators for petroleum geology that were detected from geophysical profiling and benthic sampling in the area.A conspicuous hill was discovered,named“Zhongwei Hill”,~80 m high above the~340 m deep seafloor and~1 km broad,in a depression with more than 7 km thick sedimentary strata.The Zhongwei Hill was seismically imaged with a mushroom-shaped structure and containing a cake-like crown,fluid flow pipes,and an~10 km broad anticline at depth.Thus,the hill represents a source-plumbing-eruption system.Shallow gas zones linked to deep fracture were found at or near the hill.Stratigraphic correlation indicates that the deep strata comprise the Jurassic and Paleogene strata,the major hosts of hydrocarbon source rocks.In addition to the hill,there are number of mounds from which three bottom water samples were collected and the samples are rich in dissolved methane with concentrations high up to~900 nmol/L,much higher than the background level(0.5–2 nmol/L).The benthic samples are rich in coarse sediment clastics,authigenic carbonate nodules,and deep-water habitats likely feeding on methanotrophic community.Given these observations and the context,we propose that the Zhongwei Hill represents a mud volcano,likely thermally driven,that seeps methane from Jurassic and Paleogene source layers,thus poses a favorable clue for significant hydrocarbon generation capacity in transitional zone of the Zhujiang River Mouth Basin and the Dongsha Basin.

Predicting carbon storage of mixed broadleaf forests based on the finite mixture model incorporating stand factors,site quality,and aridity index

The diameter distribution function(DDF)is a crucial tool for accurately predicting stand carbon storage(CS).The current key issue,however,is how to construct a high-precision DDF based on stand factors,site quality,and aridity index to predict stand CS in multi-species mixed forests with complex structures.This study used data from70 survey plots for mixed broadleaf Populus davidiana and Betula platyphylla forests in the Mulan Rangeland State Forest,Hebei Province,China,to construct the DDF based on maximum likelihood estimation and finite mixture model(FMM).Ordinary least squares(OLS),linear seemingly unrelated regression(LSUR),and back propagation neural network(BPNN)were used to investigate the influences of stand factors,site quality,and aridity index on the shape and scale parameters of DDF and predicted stand CS of mixed broadleaf forests.The results showed that FMM accurately described the stand-level diameter distribution of the mixed P.davidiana and B.platyphylla forests;whereas the Weibull function constructed by MLE was more accurate in describing species-level diameter distribution.The combined variable of quadratic mean diameter(Dq),stand basal area(BA),and site quality improved the accuracy of the shape parameter models of FMM;the combined variable of Dq,BA,and De Martonne aridity index improved the accuracy of the scale parameter models.Compared to OLS and LSUR,the BPNN had higher accuracy in the re-parameterization process of FMM.OLS,LSUR,and BPNN overestimated the CS of P.davidiana but underestimated the CS of B.platyphylla in the large diameter classes(DBH≥18 cm).BPNN accurately estimated stand-and species-level CS,but it was more suitable for estimating stand-level CS compared to species-level CS,thereby providing a scientific basis for the optimization of stand structure and assessment of carbon sequestration capacity in mixed broadleaf forests.

科学可视化应用于药物分析实验教学——以葡萄糖的鉴别为例

以葡萄糖鉴别为例,讲述了将科学可视化引入药物分析实验的教学设计和视频制作流程。以图片和视频的方式,形象生动地展示了实验原理、操作过程和实验现象,增加了课程的趣味性和吸引力。拍摄制作的一系列相关视频已应用于课堂教学并发布于视频网站,取得了较好的教学效果,并实现了更大范围的共享和交流。

Discovery of pockmarks in the Zengmu Basin,southern South China Sea and the implication

The Zengmu Basin located in the shallow water area of the southern South China Sea,is rich in oil and gas resources,within which faults and mud-diapir are developed,but it is unknown whether oil and gas migrate to the seafloor surface.The newly collected multibeam data across the Zengmu Basin reveal a large number of depressions,with depths of 2-4 m,widths of several tens of meters,large distribution range of 1.8-8 km along survey line,up to~50 km,and their backscatter intensity(-26 dB)is much greater than that of the surrounding area(-38 dB).Combined with the developed mud-diapir and fracture structures,and abundant oil and gas resources within this basin,these depressions are presumed to be pockmarks.Furthermore,more than 110 mono-sized small circular pockmarks,with a depth of less than 1 m and a width of 5 m,are observed in an area of less than 0.03 km2,which are not obliterated by sediment infilling with high sedimentation rate,implying an existence of unit-pockmarks that are or recently were active.In addition,seismic profiles across the Zengmu Basin show characterization of upward migration of hydrocarbons,expressed as mud-diapir structures,bright spots in the shallow formation with characteristics of“low frequency increase and high frequency attenuation”.The subbottom profiles show the mud-diapir structures,as well as the gas-bearing blank zones beneath the seafloor.These features suggest large gas leaking and occurrence of large amounts of carbonate nodules on the seafloor.This indicates the complex and variable substrate type in the Zengmu Basin,while the area was once thought to be mainly silty sand and find sand.This is the first report on the discovery of pockmarks in the Zengmu Basin;it will provide basic information for submarine stability and marine engineering in China’s maritime boundaries.

Origin of a giant fuzzy reflection zone and its implication for natural gas exploration in the southwestern Qiongdongnan Basin of the South China Sea

The southwestern depression of the Qiongdongnan Basin(QDNB)hosts thick Cenozoic sediments and awaits major hydrocarbon discovery.Multichannel seismic(MCS)profile CFT2011 across the southwestern QDNB reveals a~60-km-wide fuzzy reflection zone(FRZ)within the sediments,but its origin and distribution remain unclear.Here ocean bottom seismometer(OBS)data of Line CFT2011 are processed with focus on the velocity structures by traveltime tomography inversion and analyzed together with the coincident and adjacent MCS profiles.The OBS velocity results show that the giant FRZ features lower velocity with difference up to 1.5 km/s and smaller vertical velocity gradient than the surrounding sedimentary sequences at the same depth,likely resulting from enhanced fluid infilling.The MCS profile exhibits that the giant FRZ is about 3-9-km thick and extends from the Paleogene strata rich in organic matters upward to the lower Pleistocene sediments.Within the shallow overlying sediments,multiple bright spots with reverse polarity are imaged and their reflection amplitudes increase with offset,consistent with the features of gas-charged sediments.They are probably shallow gas reservoirs with gases sourced from the deep FRZ.Therefore,the FRZ is proposed to be a giant gas-charged zone,which probably contains lots of hydrocarbon gases migrated vertically from the deep Paleogene source rocks through the boundary faults of the depressions and the minor fractures generated under overpressure.This FRZ is also imaged on the adjacent MCS profiles MCS-L1 and MCS-L2 with the width of about 40 km and 68 km,respectively.It is roughly estimated to cover an area of~1900 km2 and host a volume of~11400 km3 assuming an average thickness of 6 km,implying huge natural gas potential in the sedimentary depression of the southwestern QDNB of the South China Sea.

Effect of Carbides and γ/γ' Eutectic on Crack Initiation and Propagation in Ni-based Superalloy

The Ni-based Udemit720Li superalloy tends to form largeγ/γ'eutectic on grain boundaries(GBs)during solidification due to the addition of excessive Al and Ti elements,which provides convenience to study the effect of carbide andγ/γ'eutectic on crack initiation and propagation during tensile process.In this paper,Udemit720Li superalloy samples were prepared by induction melting casting method,arc melting and suction casting method.The microstructure,tensile properties and mechanism of crack initiation and propagation in Ni-based superalloy fabricated by two methods are investigated.The results exhibitγ/γ'eutectic accelerates the stress concentration at GB and thus leads to premature fracture failure.The samples with grain-boundary eutectic have higher strain hardening rate,but their cumulative and local misorientations are lower.For samples without eutectic at GB,the primary crack initiates at grain-boundary carbide along GB and extends along GB or into grain matrix,and exhibits better deformation performance and dislocation storage capacity within grains.

Biallelic variants in RBM42 cause a multisystem disorder with neurological,facial,cardiac,and musculoskeletal involvement

Here,we report a previously unrecognized syndromic neurodevelopmental disorder associated with biallelic loss-of-function variants in the RBM42 gene.The patient is a 2-year-old female with severe central nervous system(CNs)abnormalities,hypotonia,hearing loss,congenital heart defects,and dysmorphic facial features.Familial whole-exome sequencing(WEs)reveals that the patient has two compound heterozygous variants,c.304C>T(p.R102*)and c.1312G>A(p.A438T),in the RBM42 gene which encodes an integral component of splicing complex in the RNA-binding motif protein family.The p.A438T variant is in the RRM domain which impairs RBM42 pro-tein stability in vivo.Additionally,p.A438T disrupts the interaction of RBM42 with hnRNP K,which is the causa-tive gene for Au-Kline syndrome with overlapping disease characteristics seen in the index patient.The human R102*or A438T mutant protein failed to fully rescue the growth defects of RBM42 ortholog knockout△FgRbp1 in Fusarium while it was rescued by the wild-type(WT)human RBM42.A mouse model carying Rbm42 compound heterozygous variants,c.280C>T(p.Q94*)and c.1306_1308delinsACA(p.A436T),demonstrated gross fetal develop-mental defects and most of the double mutant animals died by E13.5.RNA-seq data confirmed that Rbm42 was involved in neurological and myocardial functions with an essential role in alternative splicing(As).Overall,we present clinical,genetic,and functional data to demonstrate that defects in RBM42 constitute the underlying etiology of a new neurodevelopmental disease which links the dysregulation of global AS to abnormal embryonic development.

An overview of Web3 technology:Infrastructure,applications,and popularity

Web3,the next generation of the Internet,represents a decentralized and democratized web.Although it has garnered significant public interest and found numerous real-world applications,there is a limited understanding of people’s perceptions and experiences with Web3.In this study,we conducted an empirical study to investigate the categories of Web3 applications and their popularity,as well as the potential challenges and opportunities within this emerging landscape.Our research was carried out in two phases.In the first phase,we analyzed 200 popular Web3 projects associated with 10 leading Web3 venture capital firms.In the second phase,we collected and examined code-related data from GitHub and market-related data from blockchain browsers(e.g.,Etherscan)for these projects.Our analysis revealed that the Web3 ecosystem can be categorized into two groups,i.e.,Web3 infrastructure and Web3 applications,with each consisting of several subcategories or subdomains.We also gained insights into the popularity of these Web3 projects at both the code and market levels and pointed out the challenges in the Web3 ecosystem at the system,developer,and user levels,as well as the opportunities it presents.Our findings contribute to a better understanding of Web3 for researchers and developers,which in turn promotes further exploration and advancement in this innovative field.

DZNep诱导HL-60细胞凋亡和生长抑制

[目的]研究S-腺苷同型半胱氨酸水解酶抑制剂DZNep(3-Deazaneplanocin A)对人早幼粒白血病细胞HL-60增殖的影响。[方法]细胞计数法分析DZNep(10~500 nmol/L)处理对HL-60细胞增殖的影响;以DNA片段化、Annexin-V/PI法和线粒体膜电位法检测DZNep处理对HL-60细胞凋亡的影响。Western Blot检测细胞凋亡相关基因Bax和细胞色素C的表达。[结果]50 nmol/L DZNep对HL-60细胞的24、48、72h增殖抑制率达18%、44.5%、81.7%。Annexin-V/PI法显示DZNep能诱导HL-60细胞发生剂量依赖性的细胞凋亡。进一步研究发现,DZNep(50nmol/L)处理24 h诱导23.8%的HL-60细胞发生线粒体途径介导的细胞凋亡,表现为细胞DNA片段化、线粒体膜电位下降和Bax基因表达上调,同时伴有细胞浆内细胞色素C增加。[结论]DZNep能在较低浓度下抑制HL-60细胞增殖并通过激发线粒体凋亡途径诱导HL-60细胞凋亡,具有抗人早幼粒细胞白血病治疗的潜在应用前景。

Mitoxantrone-Mediated Apoptotic B16-F1 Cells Induce Specific Anti-tumor Immune Response

In the process of cell apoptosis induced by specific reagents,calreticulin(CRT)in endoplasmic reticulum is transferred and coated onto the cell membrane.As a sort of specific ligand,the CRT on the surface of apoptotic cells could mediate recognition and clearance of apoptotic cells by phagocytes.In this research we discovered that mitoxantrone could induce apoptosis of mouse melonoma B16-F1 tumor cells,accompanied by the membrane translocation and coating of CRT.When mitoxantrone-treated B16-F1 cells were used as antigen to inoculate mice,the mice acquired an ability to suppress proliferation of homologous tumor cells.Splenocytes from these mice showed an increased cytolytic effect on homologous B16-F1 cells but no such effect on non-homologous H22 tumor cells.All these results suggested that mitoxantrone-treated apoptotic B16-F1 cells could be used as a sort of cell vaccine to initiate effective anti-tumor immunoresponse in mice.

基于FSH激素的中国男性生育能力诊断meta分析

目的:系统评价FSH激素水平是否可以作为判断中国男性生育能力的诊断指标.方法:通过网络检索PubMed、EMBASE、Cohrance、中国知网、万方数据库、维普数据库和中国生物医学文献数据库,收集国内外正常生育力和不育中国男性有关FSH激素水平的研究,并采用Stata16、RevMan 5.3软件进行Meta分析.结果:共计纳入文献46篇,其中包括不育症男性患者组9442例(95%CI:6.83-8.06,P<0.00001),少精子症男性患者组2473例(95%CI:3.33-4.89,P<0.00001),无精子症男性患者组2205例(95%CI:11.58-15.75,P<0.00001),精子异常症患者组(运动能力弱、存活率低及畸形精子症)(95%CI:0.67-2.98,P<0.01)1489例,唯支持细胞综合征患者组58例(95%CI:9.76-11.34,P<0.00001),结果均发现生育组的血清FSH水平值低于不育组.结论:男性FSH血清水平过高将会导致男性的不育,这提示我们以FSH激素水平为指标,能在一定程度上诊断男性是否不育.

深海来源篮状菌Talaromyces indigoticus FS688中聚酮化合物及其细胞毒性

对深海来源真菌Talaromyces indigoticus FS688进行化学成分研究,从中发现了3个新的聚酮类化合物以及5个已知化合物,其化学结构是通过综合的波谱分析得以确定,同时其绝对构型是通过理论电子圆二色谱(ECD)计算确定.其中,5-甲基六氢呋喃[2,3-b]呋喃-2-基-乙烷-1-醇(2)对所测试的4株人体肿瘤细胞株(SF-268,MCF-7,Hep G-2和A549)表现出显著的细胞毒活性, IC_(50)介于0.18~0.53μmol/L之间.

Development of a quantitative RT-PCR system for the specific detection of human heat shock mRNA expression

Heat shock proteins (HSPs), as molecular chaperones, play an important role under physiological condition and in the course of many diseases. It would therefore be valuable to determine the expression of cellular hsp gene quantitatively. Using DNA recombinant technique and in vitro transcription system, a complex internal control RNA has been prepared. After opti-

Autologous Transplantation for Parkinson's Disease Patients:Feasibility and Challenge

Parkinson’s Disease(PD),second only to Alzheimer’s disease,is a neurodegenerative disease,most commonly occurring in people over the age of 65 years and is mostly caused by loss of dopamine neurons[1].Clinically,motor symptoms such as resting tremor,motor retardation,muscular rigidity,and disturbance of postural balance are the main symptoms,followed by non-motor symptoms such as cognitive impairment,autonomic nervous system dysfunction,depression,and sleep disorder[2].In 2016,>6.1 million people were affected with PD globally,2.4 times the number in 1990.The large number of affected people,coupled with the high mortality and disability rates,has placed a great burden on society[3].Traditional treatment methods mainly include drugs and surgery and are supplemented by physical therapy.