New Exact Solutions for the Generalized （2 ＋ 1）-dimensional Nonlinear Schroedinger Equation with Variable Coefficients

With the help of the variable-coefficient generalized projected Ricatti equation expansion method, we present exact solutions for the generalized （2＋1）-dimensional nonlinear SchrSdinger equation with variable coefficients. These solutions include solitary wave solutions, soliton-like solutions and trigonometric function solutions. Among these solutions, some are found for the first time.

Effect of Yiguanjian decoction on cell differentiation and proliferation in CCl_4-treated mice

AIM： To investigate the cellular mechanisms of action of Yiguanjian （YGJ） decoction in treatment of chronic hepatic injury. METHODS： One group of mice was irradiated, and received enhanced green fluorescent protein （EGFP）- positive bone marrow transplants followed by 13 wk of CCh injection and 6 wk of oral YGJ administration. A second group of Institute for Cancer Research mice was treated with 13 wk of CCI4 injection and 6 wk of oral YGJadministration. Liver function, histological changes in the liver, and Hyp content were analyzed. The expres- sion of m-smooth muscle actin （α-SMA）, F4/80, albumin （AIb）, EGFP, mitogen-activated protein kinase-2 （PKM2）, Ki-67, fetoprotein （AFP）, monocyte chemotaxis pro- tein-1 and CC chemokine receptor 2 were assayed. RESULTS： As hepatic damage progressed, EGFP-po- sitive marrow cells migrated into the liver and were mainly distributed along the fibrous septa. They showed a conspicuous coexpression of EGFP with ^-SMA and F4/80 but no coexpression with AIb. Moreover, the expression of PKM2, AFP and Ki-67 was enhanced dy- namically and steadily over the course of liver injury. YGJ abrogated the increases in the number of bone marrow-derived fibrogenic cells in the liver, inhibited expression of both progenitor and mature hepatocyte markers, and reduced fibrogenesis. CONCLUSION： YGJ decoction improves liver fibrosis by inhibiting the migration of bone marrow cells into the liver as well as inhibiting their differentiation and suppressing the proliferation of both progenitors and hepatocytes in the injured liver.

Use of siRNA molecular beacons to detect and attenuate mycobacterial infection in macrophages

Tuberculosis is one of the leading infectious diseases plaguing mankind and is mediated by the facultative pathogen, Mycobacterium tuberculosis(MTB). Once the pathogen enters the body, it subverts the host immune defenses and thrives for extended periods of time within the host macrophages in the lung granulomas, a condition called latent tuberculosis(LTB). Persons with LTB are prone to reactivation of the disease when the body's immunity is compromised. Currently there are no reliable and effective diagnosis and treatment options for LTB, which necessitates new research in this area. The mycobacterial proteins and genes mediating the adaptive responses inside the macrophage is largely yet to be determined. Recently, it has been shown that the mce operon genes are critical for host cell invasion by the mycobacterium and for establishing a persistent infection in both in vitro and in mouse models of tuberculosis. The Yrb E and Mce proteins which are encoded by the MTB mce operons display high degrees of homology to the permeases and the surface binding protein of the ABC transports, respectively. Similarities in structure and cell surface location impute a role in cell invasion at cholesterol rich regions and immunomodulation. The mce4 operon is also thought to encode a cholesterol transport system that enables the mycobacterium to derive both energy and carbon from the host membrane lipids and possibly generating virulence mediating metabolites, thus enabling the bacteria in its long term survival within the granuloma. Various deletion mutation studies involving individual or whole mce operon genes have shown to be conferring varying degrees of attenuation of infectivity or at times hypervirulence to the host MTB, with the deletion of mce4 A operon gene conferring the greatest degree of attenuation of virulence. Antisense technology using synthetic si RNAs has been used in knocking down genes in bacteria and over the years this has evolvedinto a powerful tool for elucidating the roles of various genes mediating infectivity and survival in mycobacteria. Molecular beacons are a newer class of antisense RNA tagged with a fluorophore/quencher pair and their use for in vivo detection and knockdown of mR NA is rapidly gaining popularity.

Relationship between Self-Perceived Age and Social Activity in Older Japanese Adults: The KAGUYA Study

Youthful feelings were shown to have a positive effect on the mental and physical conditions of the elderly. On the contrary, elderly people whose self-perceived age is older than their chronological age were shown to experience negative health outcomes. This study investigated whether the self-perceived age (younger or older) relative to chronological age promotes social activity. The baseline data acquired from 3094 older adults as part of the Keeping Active across Generations Uniting the Youth and the Aged study was used in the current study. The participants completed a questionnaire that solicits information pertaining to sociodemographic factors, felt age, self-rated health, physical activity, depression, disease burden, fall history, fear of falling, level of instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) and social activity. The discrepancy between felt age and chronological age was defined as the self-perceived age. Self-perceived age was calculated by subtracting the participant’s chronological age from the felt age, and the score for the difference was divided by the chronological age. The Japan Science and Technology Agency Index of Competence was used to evaluate social activity. Regression analysis results revealed that a younger self-perceived age was associated with higher social activity after controlling for sociodemographic factors, self-rated health, depression, physical activity, disease burden, level of IADL, fall history and fear of falling. Fall history was significantly associated with higher social activity in young-old participants (65 - 74 years) (p = 0.014) but not in old-old participants (>75 years). This study suggests that a younger self-perceived age in older adults would lead to a high-level living function. This finding may provide useful information for interventions aimed at the promotion of health and/or the prevention of frailty.

Investigation on the sleep quality of military retired cadres

Objective: To investigate the insomnia incidence and treatment status of military retired cadres and offer an instruction for their health care. Methods: We designed a questionnaires composed of general information, health-related factors, diseases, etc. Insomnia manifestations included regular sleep time, shorten sleep time and extent, time of falling asleep, sleep quality, difficultly returning to sleep after awakening at mid-night, insomnia time, etc. Results: A total of 4759 questionnaires (94.2%) were reclaimed. Dyssomnia was found in 1843 persons (38.7%), including 1006 cases of transient insomnia (44.0%) and 837 cases of acute insomnia (36.6%). Conclusion: About one third of the examined military retired cadres have sleep problems, so they should enhance the health care consciousness and receive proper nurse and treatment.

The Importance of Auditory Discrimination in the Acquisition of Mental Lexicon and Reading Automation in Arabic-Speaking Students in Kenitra (Morocco)

Auditory discrimination is the ability to discriminate between words and sounds. Auditory discrimination can affect reading, spelling and writing. Several studies examined the correlation between auditory discrimination and reading performance. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the importance of auditory discrimination in the acquisition of mental lexicon and consequently the automation of reading in a sample of 101 students in their fourth year of primary education coming from four different schools in Kenitra (Morocco). The results analysis shows that reading scores correlated significantly with the auditory discrimination scores (r = 0.30, p 0.01). This proves that the inability to discriminate words causes a disability to store them in the mental lexicon, which makes it difficult to identify these words at a later encounter. This conclusion is supported by the significant correlation between reading and auditory and visual lexical decision tasks. In this study we were able to emphasize the importance of having good acoustic discrimination capacities for language development. Students who were successful at the auditory discrimination task are more successful at reading. A remediation program based on improving auditory discrimination capacities using the language assessment battery LABBEL could see reading performance improvement in these students.

Aicardi syndrome:Neonatal diagnosis by means of transfontanellar ultrasound

Aicardi syndrome is a rare genetic disease characterized by a characteristic classical trio of neurological clinical abnormalities(spasms),agenesis of the corpus callosum and ophthalmological abnormalities(chorioretinal lacunae).The diagnosis can be suspected by prenatal ultrasound with color Doppler identifying the agenesis of the corpus callosum.Usually,the diagnosis is confirmed in the neonate period by transfontanellar ultrasound and ophthalmological examination.We present a case of newborn with Aicardi syndrome,being the transfontanellar identified partial dysgenesis of the corpus callosum and a cyst in the inter-hemispheric fissure.Ophthalmological examination showed bilateral chorioretinal lacunae.

SHRIMP single zircon U-Pb dating of the Kongling high-grade metamorphic terrain: Evidence for >3.2 Ga old continental crust in the Yangtze craton

Single zircons from two trondhjemitic gneisses and two clastic metasedimentary rocks without Eu anomaly of the Kongling high-grade metamorphic terrain are dated by the in situ SHRIMP U-Pb method. The results show that the trondhjemitic magma emplaced at 2947-2903 Ma. Concordant age of as old as 3.3 Ga is present in the detrital zircons from the clastic metasedimentary rocks. Together with the depleted mantle Nd model age (TDM =3.2-3.3 Ga) of the clastic metasedimentary rocks, this documents the presence of Paleoarchean continental crust in the Yangtze craton.

Formulation development and evaluation of gastroretentive floating beads with Brucea javanica oil using ionotropic gelation technology

In the present study, a gastric retention floating system for Brucea javanica oil, composed of alginate and carrageenan, was prepared using ionotropic gelation. Parameters for floatability, drug load, encapsulation efficiency, bead morphology, in vitro release, and in vivo gastric retention were evaluated. The optimized formulation via Box–Behnken design consisted of 1.7% alginate(W/V), 1.02% carrageenan(W/V), 1.4% CaCO_3(W/V), and a gelling bath of pH 0.8. The alginate–carrageenan–Brucea javanica oil beads had a porous structure and exhibited up to 24 h of in vitro floatability with a load capacity of 45%–55% and an encapsulation efficiency of 70%–80%. A 6-h sustained release was observed in vitro. The beads had a prolonged gastric retention(> 60% at 6 h) in fasted rats, compared to non-floating beads(15% at 6 h), as measured by gamma scintigraphy with single-photon emission tomography/computed tomography(SPET/CT). In conclusion, the alginate–carrageenan–Brucea javanica oil system showed enhanced oil encapsulation efficiency, excellent floating and gastric retention abilities, and a favorable release behavior.

A simplified and miniaturized glucometer-based assay for the detection of β-glucosidase activity

β-Glucosidase activity assays constitute an important indicator for the early diagnosis of neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis and qualitative changes in medicinal plants.The drawbacks of the existing methods are high consumption of both time and reagents,complexity in operation,and requirement of expensive instruments and highly trained personnel.The present study provides a simplified,highly selective,and miniaturized glucometer-based strategy for the detection ofβ-glucosidase activity.Single-factor experiments showed that optimumβ-glucosidase activity was exhibited at 50°C and pH 5.0 in a citric acid-sodium citrate buffer when reacting with 0.03 g/mL salicin for 30 min.The procedure for detection was simplified without the need of a chromogenic reaction.Validation of the analytical method demonstrated that the accuracy,precision,repeatability,stability,and durability were good.The linear ranges ofβ-glucosidase in a buffer solution and rat serum were 0.0873–1.5498 U/mL and 0.4076–2.9019 U/mL,respectively.The proposed method was free from interference fromβ-dextranase,snailase,β-galactosidase,hemicellulase,and glucuronic acid released by baicalin.This demonstrated that the proposed assay had a higher selectivity than the conventional dinitrosalicylic acid(DNS)assay because of the specificity for salicin and unique recognition of glucose by a personal glucose meter.Miniaturization of the method resulted in a microassay forβ-glucosidase activity.The easy-to-operate method was successfully used to detect a series ofβ-glucosidases extracted from bitter almonds and cultured by Aspergillus niger.In addition,the simplified and miniaturized glucometer-based assay has potential application in the point-of-care testing ofβ-glucosidase in many fields,including medical diagnostics,food safety,and environmental monitoring.

Effect of Yanggan Jiedu Sanjie formula on human hepatocellular carcinoma Bel-7402 cells

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of Yanggan Jiedu Sanjie(YGJDSJ) formula on human hepatocellular carcinoma Bel-7402 cells.METHODS: Bel-7402 cells were treated with YGJDSJ. Cell proliferation was detected by cell counting kit-8 assay. Cell apoptosis was identified by Hoechst 33258 staining and flow cytometric analysis. Cell cycle distribution was quantified by flow cytometric analysis. Caspase activities were measured by commercial kit. Cell senescence was detected by senescence-associated β-galactosidase(SA-β-gal)staining. Protein expression and phosphorylation were identified by Western blot. Protein expression was knocked-down by siRNA.RESULTS: YGJDSJ inhibited proliferation of Bel-7402 cells in a dose-and time-dependent manner.YGJDSJ induced apoptosis and activated caspase-3, 8, and 9 in Bel-7402 cells. YGJDSJ-induced apoptosis was completely abrogated by a pan caspase inhibitor, Z-VAD-FMK. YGJDSJ also induced cell senescence, up-regulated cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1 a(CDKN1 a) and CDKN2 a expression and down-regulated retinoblastoma protein(RB) phosphorylation in Bel-7402 cells. Specific knockdown of CDKN1 a and CDKN2 a significantly reduced YGJDSJ-induce cell senescence in Bel-7402 cells.CONCLUSION: YGJDSJ inhibited cell proliferation,induced caspase-dependent apoptosis and CDKN1 a/CDKN2 a-RB signalling mediated cell senescence in Bel-7402 cells. Our findings suggest that YGJDSJ might be potential for hepatocellular carcinoma treatment.

Asperuloside Promotes Apoptosis of Cervical Cancer Cells through Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-Mitochondrial Pathway

Objective: To investigate the effects of asperuloside on cervical cancer based on endoplasmic reticulum(ER) stress and mitochondrial pathway. Methods: Different doses(12.5–800 μg/mL) of asperuloside were used to treat cervical cancer cell lines Hela and CaSki to calculate the half maximal inhibitory concentration(IC_(50)) of asperuloside. The cell proliferation was analyzed by clone formation assay. Cell apoptosis, intracellular reactive oxygen species(ROS) and mitochondrial membrane potential were determined by flow cytometry. The protein expressions of cleaved-caspase-3, Bcl-2, Bax, Cyt-c, cleaved-caspase-4 and glucose-regulated protein 78(GRP78) were analyzed by Western blot. And the inhibitor of ER stress, 4-phenyl butyric acid(4-PBA) was used to treat cervical cancer cells to further verify the role of ER stress in the apoptosis of cervical cancer cells induced by asperuloside. Results: Asperuloside of 325, 650, and 1300 μg/mL significantly inhibited the proliferation and promoted apoptosis of Hela and CaSki cells(P<0.01). All doses of asperuloside significantly increased intracellular ROS levels, reduced mitochondrial membrane potential, significantly reduced Bcl-2 protein expression level, and increased Bax, Cyt-c, GRP78 and cleaved-caspase-4 expressions(P<0.01). In addition, 10 mmol/L 4-PBA treatment significantly promoted cell proliferation and reduced apoptosis(P<0.05), and 650 μg/mL asperuloside could reverse 4-PBA-induced increased cell proliferation, decreased apoptosis and cleaved-caspase-3,-4 and GRP78 protein expressions(P<0.05). Conclusion: Our study revealed the role of asperuloside in cervical cancer, suggesting that asperuloside promotes apoptosis of cervical cancer cells through ER stress-mitochondrial pathway.

崆岭高级变质地体单颗粒锆石SHRIMP U-Pb年代学研究──扬子克拉通>3.2Ga陆壳物质的发现

对崆岭高级变质地体主体奥长花岗片麻岩２个样品和不具Ｅｕ异常的变碎屑沉积岩 ２个样品单颗粒锆石 ＳＨＲＩＭＰ Ｕ－Ｐｂ原位（ｉｎ－ｓｉｔｕ）定年结果，揭示出奥长花岗岩浆的侵入年龄为 ２ ９４７～２ ９０３ Ｍａ在变沉积岩中发现了年龄为 ３．３ Ｇａ的碎屑锆石，直接证明扬子克拉通曾存在古太古代陆壳物质．不具Ｅｕ异常变碎屑沉积岩的亏损地慢Ｎｄ模式年龄（ＴＤＭ＝ ３．２－３．３ Ｇａ）进一步证明了这一点．

Progress in active compounds effective on ulcerative colitis from Chinese medicines

Ulcerative colitis(UC), a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the colon, has a rising incidence worldwide. The known pathogenesis is multifactorial and involves genetic predisposition, epithelial barrier defects, dysregulated immune responses, and environmental factors. Nowadays, the drugs for UC include 5-aminosalicylic acid, steroids, and immunosuppressants. Long-term use of these drugs, however, may cause several side effects, such as hepatic and renal toxicity, drug resistance and allergic reactions. Moreover, the use of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) in the treatment of UC shows significantly positive effects, low recurrence rate, few side effects and other obvious advantages. This paper summarizes several kinds of active compounds used in the experimental research of anti-UC effects extracted from TCM, mainly including flavonoids, acids, terpenoids, phenols, alkaloids, quinones, and bile acids from some animal medicines. It is found that the anti-UC activities are mainly focused on targeting inflammation or oxidative stress, which is associated with increasing the levels of anti-inflammatory cytokine(IL-4, IL-10, SOD), suppressing the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines(TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-23, NF-κB, NO), reducing the activity of MPO, MDA, IFN-γ, and iNOS. This review may offer valuable reference for UC-related studies on the compounds from natural medicines.

30-W supercontinuum generation based on ZBLAN fiber in an all-fiber configuration

We report an all-fiberized 30-W supercontinuum(SC) generation in a piece of ZrF4-BaF2-LaF3-AlF3-NaF(ZBLAN) fiber. The pump source is a thulium-doped fiber amplifier(TDFA) with broadband output spectrum spanning the 1.9 to 2.6 μm region. The used ZBLAN fiber has a core diameter of 10 μm, and was directly fusion-spliced to the pigtail of the TDFA without using a traditional mode field adapter(MFA) or a piece of transition fiber. Such a low-loss and robust fusion splice joint, together with a robust AlF3-fiber-based endcap,enables efficient and high-power SC generation in the ZBLAN fiber. An SC with an average power up to 30.0 W and a spectral coverage of 1.9–3.35 μm with 20-dB bandwidth of 1.92–3.20 μm was obtained. Moreover, an SC with a broader spectrum was achieved by raising the pump pulse peak power(via reducing the duty ratio of the pump laser pulse). An SC with an output power of 27.4 W and a spectral coverage of 1.9–3.63 μm(with 20-dB bandwidth of 1.92–3.47 μm) was obtained, as well as an SC with output power of 24.8 W and a spectral coverage of 1.9–3.70 μm(with 20-dB bandwidth of 1.93–3.56 μm). The power conversion efficiency was measured as>69%. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research demonstrates the record output power of SC lasers based on ZBLAN fibers, paving the way for broadband and efficient multi-tens-of-watts SC generation in softglass fibers.

L‑Tyrosine Metabolic Pathway in Microorganisms and Its Application in the Biosynthesis of Plant‑Derived Natural Products

L-tyrosine,an aromatic amino acid,is an important upstream precursor for the synthesis of a series of valuable natural products such as flavonoids and phenolic acids.In recent years,regulation of the L‑tyrosine metabolic pathway has been devoted to enhancing the production of L-tyrosine and the derived bioactive compounds in microorganisms,usually by increasing the supply of precursors,blocking competitive routes,and modulating the transport system.Here,we reviewed the strategies to promote L-tyrosine production in microbial hosts and the common strategies to produce bioactive compounds in engineered Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae to better understand and utilize the L-tyrosine metabolic pathway for microbial overproduction of diverse valuable aromatic compounds in the future.

Long-Time Behavior of a Stochastic Turbidostat Model Under Degenerate Diffusion

Due to many uncertain factors,parameter values in many microorganism cultivation systems are affected to a greater or lesser extent by environmental fluctuation.In this paper,the authors develop a stochastic turbidostat model that considers white noise,formulate and analyze dynamical behavior for the stochastic model.The authors obtain the existence and uniqueness of globally positive equilibrium.Sufficient conditions of the extinction for the system are established.Since the uniformly elliptic condition can fail to satisfy,the existence of the stationary distribution of the system is proved by using Markov semigroups theory.Biologically speaking,the existence of stationary distribution suggests that microorganism will exist for a long time.The analytical results are tested and verified by numerical simulations,which evaluate the influence of white noise on the dynamics of microorganism.