Effect of gravel on rock failure in glutenite reservoirs under different confining pressures

Due to the existence of gravel,glutenite is heterogeneous and different from fine-grained rocks such as sandstone and shale in structure.To fully understand the effect of gravel on failure mode in glutenite,we performed triaxial compression tests on different glutenites.The results indicate that failure modes of glutenite are complex due to the existence of gravel.Under different confining pressures,three failure modes were observed.The first failure mode,a tensile failure under uniaxial compression,produces multiple tortuous longitudinal cracks.In this failure mode,the interaction between gravels provides the lateral tensile stress for rock splitting.The second failure mode occurs under low and medium confining pressure and produces a crack band composed of micro-cracks around gravels.This failure mode conforms to the Mohr-Coulomb criterion and is generated by shear failure.In this failure mode,shear dilatancy and shear compaction may occur under different confining pressures to produce different crack band types.In the second failure mode,gravel-induced stress concentration produces masses of initial micro-cracks for shear cracking,and gravels deflect the fracture surfaces.As a result,the fracture is characterized by crack bands that are far broader than in fine-grained rocks.The third failure mode requires high confining pressure and produces disconnected cracks around gravels without apparent crack bands.In this failure mode,the gravel rarely breaks,indicating that the formation of these fractures is related to the deformation of the matrix.The third failure mode requires lower confining pressure in glutenite with weak cement and matrix support.Generally,unlike fine-grained rocks,the failure mode of glutenite is not only controlled by confining pressure but also by the gravel.The failure of glutenite is characterized by producing cracks around gravels.These cracks are produced by different mechanisms and distributed in different manners under different confining pressures to form different fracture patterns.Therefore,understanding the rock microstructure and formation stress state is essential in guiding glutenite reservoir development.

MicroRNA-126 inhibits the proliferation of lung cancer cell line A549

Objective:To study the role of microRNA-126 in the development of lung cancer.Methods:The biological function of microRNA-126 was delected using EdU assay and CCK-8 assay:the target gene of microRNA-126 was analyzed using real time RT-PCR and Western blot assay.Results:In A549 cell line,overexpression of microRNA-126 inhibils the prolileralion rate:VEGF is the target gene of microRNA-126:microRNA-126 exerts its function via regulating VEGF protein level.Conclusions:microRNA-126 inhibits the proliferation in A549 cell line.

Latest therapeutic target for gastric cancer:Anthrax toxin receptor 1

Anthrax toxin receptor 1(ANTXR1),also known as tumor endothelial marker 8,is a highly conserved cell surface protein overexpressed in tumor-infiltrating vessels.It was first found in vascular endothelial cells of human colorectal cancer.Although our understanding of its physiological function is limited,it has been found that ANTXR1 binds collagen and promotes migration of endothelial cells in vitro.ANTXR1 is upregulated in vessels of different tumor types in mice and humans,and is also expressed by tumor cells themselves in some tumors,such as gastric,lung,intestinal and breast cancer.Developmental angiogenesis and wound healing were not disturbed in ANTXR1 knockout mice,but compared with wild-type mice,growth of melanoma was impaired after ANTXR1 knockout,indicating that host-derived ANTXR1 can promote tumor growth on the basis of immune activity.Previous studies have shown that ANTXR1 vaccines or sublethal doses of anthrax toxin can inhibit angiogenesis,slow tumor growth and prolong survival.These studies suggest that ANTXR1 is necessary for tumor rather than physiological angiogenesis.It has been found that ANTXR1 plays an important role in tumor angiogenesisas well as in the growth and metastasis of many kinds of tumors.This article reviews the physiological function of ANTXR1 and its role in different kinds of cancer.

Sinistral portal hypertension associated with pancreatic pseudocysts - ultrasonography findings: A case report

BACKGROUND Sinistral portal hypertension associated with pancreatic pseudocysts is rare,often caused by extrinsic compression of splenic vein,the follow-up examinations by ultrasonography for early diagnosis are quietly necessary since haematemesis,a life-threatening condition.Few studies have reported the ultrasonography findings of sinistral portal hypertension.CASE SUMMARY A 52-year-old man presented with acute abdominal pain after drinking,steatorrhea,weight loss and accidentally melena in the past 2 mo.He underwent ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration in other hospital and diagnosed with pancreatic pseudocysts.Ultrasonography imaging,in our department,appeared as cystic heterogeneous hypoechoic area with the size of 4.7 cm×3.8 cm that located posterior to the body and tail of pancreas,adjacent to splenic vein associated with thrombosis resulted from compression.Spleen incrassated to approximately 7.3 cm,but no dilation of main portal vein was presented.Color Doppler Flow Imaging demonstrated the formation of splenic venous collateral,nevertheless no significantly flow signals was observed in splenic vein.Pulsed Doppler revealed that the peak velocity of splenic venous collateral was 18.4 cm/s with continuous waveform.Laparotomy confirmed sinistral portal hypertension associated with pancreatic pseudocysts,subsequently distal pancreatectomy combined with splenectomy and partial gastrectomy was performed.CONCLUSION It’s important clinically to know the ultrasound appearance of sinistral portal hypertension associated with pancreatic pseudocysts for sonographer and physician.

Ion exchange coupled biomineral self-sacrificial template synthesis of N-enriched porous carbon as robust electrocatalyst for rechargeable Zn-air battery

To realize the commercialize of rechargeable Zn-air battery(RZAB),developing metal-free bifunctional electrocatalysts with satisfactory activity for oxygen reduction reaction(ORR)and oxygen evolution reaction(OER)is one of the emerging issues.Herein,a prawn shells-derived N-enriched porous carbon(PSNC)is synthesized via an ion exchange coupled biomimetic selfsacrificing template strategy.The resulting PSNC displays unique functional components,including the interconnected macro-meso-micropores structure to shorten charge and mass transfer pathway,high content of pyridinic and graphitic nitrogen to construct rich catalytic active site and improve conductivity.As electrocatalysts in alkaline condition,the optimized PSNC-0.8 achieves excellent bifunctional catalytic propriety with a narrow potential gap(ΔE)value of 0.80 V.Meanwhile,PSNC-0.8-based RZAB displays a high peak power density of 176.5 mW·cm^(-2)and considerable cycling durability with a small battery efficiency delay of 6.5%after 480 cycles(320 h).This study enlightens a simple and effective conception to design high-performance metal-free bifunctional electrocatalysts from seafood waste.

Analysis of cyclin E co-expression genes reveals nuclear transcription factor Y subunit alpha is an oncogene in gastric cancer

Objective: To explore genes potentially co-expressed with cyclin E in gastric cancer and discover possible targets for gastric cancer treatment. Methods: The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) stomach adenocarcinoma sequencing data were used to predict genes co-expressed with cyclin E. Co-expression genes predicted by cBioPortal online analysis with Pearson correlation coefficient ≥0.4 were analyzed by gene ontology (GO) enrichment annotation using the PANTHER online platform (Ver. 7). Interactions between proteins encoded by these genes were analyzed using the STRING online platform (Ver. 10.5) and Cytoscape software (Ver. 3.5.1). Genes displaying a high degree of connection were analyzed by transcription factor enrichment prediction using FunRich software (Ver. 3). The significant transcription factor and cyclin E expression levels and their impact on gastric cancer progression were analyzed by Western blotting and Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis. Results: After filtering the co-expression gene prediction results, 78 predicted genes that included 73 protein coding genes and 5 non-coding genes with Pearson correlation coefficient ≥0.4 were selected. The expressions of the genes were considered to be correlated with cyclin E expression. Among the 78 genes co-expressed with cyclin E, 19 genes at the central of the regulatory network associated with cyclin E were discovered. Nuclear transcription factor Y subunit alpha (NF-YA) was identified as a significant transcription factor associated with cyclin E co-expressing genes. Analysis of specimen donors’ clinical records revealed that high expression of NF-YA tended to be associated with increased cyclin E expression. The expression of both was associated with progression of gastric cancer. Western blotting results showed that compared with normal tissues, NF-YA and cyclin E were highly expressed in tumor tissues (P < 0.001). Survival curve analysis clearly demonstrated relatively poor overall survival of gastric cancer patients with high cyclin E or high NF-YA expression level, compared to patients with low cyclin E or NF-YA expression (P < 0.05). Conclusions: NF-YA may promote gastric cancer progression by increasing the transcription of cyclin E and other cell cycle regulatory genes. NF-YA might be a potential therapeutically useful prognostic factor for gastric cancer.

Tribological properties of Cu-based composites with S-doped NbSe_2

In this study, S-doped NbSea （NbSo.aSel.8） powders were fabricated, and the corresponding Cu-based composites （Cu/NbSo.eSe1.8） were obtained by powder metallurgy technique. The phase compositions, physical, and tribological properties of Cu-based composites were investigated systematically. The results show that Cu matrix reacts with NbSo.2Sel.8 to produce Cu2Se and Cu0.38NbSo.2Se1.8 during sintering process, which influences the physical and tribological properties of Cu-based composites significantly. Specially, with NbS0.2Se1.8 content increasing, the density of Cu/ NbSo.2Se1.8 composites decreases, and the hardness increases firstly and then decreases, while the electric resistivity in- creases slightly. In addition, the incorporation of NbSo.2Se1.8 enhances the tribological properties of Cu greatly, which is attributed to the lubricating effect of Cuo,38NbSo.2Se1.8 and the reinforcement effect of Cu2Se. In particular, when the content of NbSo.2Sel.8 is 6 wt%, the Cu-based composite has the best tribological properties.

Preclinical studies of the triazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine derivative WS-716 as a highly potent,specific and orally active P-glycoprotein(P-gp)inhibitor

Multidrug resistance(MDR) is the main cause of clinical treatment failure and poor prognosis in cancer. Targeting P-glycoprotein(P-gp) has been regarded as an effective strategy to overcome MDR. In this work, we reported our preclinical studies of the triazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine-based compound WS-716 as a highly potent, specific, and orally active P-gp inhibitor. Through direct binding to P-gp,WS-716 inhibited efflux function of P-gp and specifically reversed P-gp-mediated MDR to paclitaxel(PTX) in multiple resistant cell lines, without changing its expression or subcellular localization. WS-716 and PTX synergistically inhibited formation of colony and 3D spheroid, induced apoptosis and cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase in resistant SW620/Ad300 cells. In addition, WS-716 displayed minimal effect on the drug-metabolizing enzyme cytochrome P4503A4(CYP3A4). Importantly, WS-716 increased sensitivity of both pre-clinically and clinically derived MDR tumors to PTX in vivo with the T/C value of 29.7% in patient-derived xenograft(PDX) models. Relative to PTX treatment alone, combination of WS-716 and PTX caused no obvious adverse reactions. Taken together, our preclinical studies revealed therapeutic promise of WS-716 against MDR cancer, the promising data warrant its further development for cancer therapy.