Two new species of Polyalthiopsis(Annonaceae) based on morphological characters and phylogenetic evidence,with a supplementary description of P.chinensis from China

Two new species of Polyalthiopsis(Annonaceae),P.nigra Y.H.Tan & Bin Yang from Guangxi and Yunnan Provinces and P.xui Y.H.Tan & Bin Yang from Yunnan Province,are described and illustrated.P.nigra is morphologically similar to P.chinensis in having narrowly elliptic-oblong,lemon to yellowish green petals,but differs by having obovoid monocarps,a higher number of leaf secondary veins,leaf blades usually widest above the middle,and a lower ratio of leaf blade length to width.P.xui is morphologically similar to P.floribunda in having axillary inflorescences,1-3(-4) flowers,elliptic leaves,and ellipticovate petals,but differs in the numbers of carpels per flower and ovules per carpel.The molecular phylogenetic analysis using five plastid markers confirm that the two new species belong to the genus Polyalthiopsis and show clear interspecific divergences between P.nigra and P.xui and between them and other species in the genus.Detailed descriptions,colored photographs,and habitat and distribution data for the two new species are provided.In addition,the fruit morphology of P.chinensis is described for the first time,based on living collections.Geographical distributions and a diagnostic key for all Polyalthiopsis species are also presented.

Therapeutic potential of dental pulp stem cell transplantation in a rat model of Alzheimer’s disease

Dental pulp stem cells are dental pulp-derived mesenchymal stem cells that originate from the neural crest.They exhibit greater potential for the treatment of nervous system diseases than other types of stem cells because of their neurogenic differentiation capability and their ability to secrete multiple neurotrophic factors.Few studies have reported Alzheimer’s disease treatment using dental pulp stem cells.Rat models of Alzheimer’s disease were established by injecting amyloid-β1–42 into the hippocampus.Fourteen days later,5×106 dental pulp stem cells were injected into the hippocampus.Immunohistochemistry and western blot assays showed that dental pulp stem cell transplantation increased the expression of neuron-related doublecortin,NeuN,and neurofilament 200 in the hippocampus,while the expression of amyloid-βwas decreased.Moreover,cognitive and behavioral abilities were improved.These findings indicate that dental pulp stem cell transplantation in rats can improve cognitive function by regulating the secretion of neuron-related proteins,which indicates a potential therapeutic effect for Alzheimer’s disease.This study was approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of Harbin Medical University,China(approval No.KY2017-132)on February 21,2017.

Therapeutic effects of dental pulp stem cells on vascular dementia in rat models

Dental pulp stem cells are a type of adult stem cells with strong proliferative ability and multi-differentiation potential. There are no studies on treatment of vascular dementia with dental pulp stem cells. In the present study, rat models of vascular dementia were established by two-vessel occlusion, and 30 days later, rats were injected with 2 × 10^(7) dental pulp stem cells via the tail vein. At 70 days after vascular dementia induction, dental pulp stem cells had migrated to the brain tissue of rat vascular dementia models and differentiated into neuronlike cells. At the same time, doublecortin, neurofilament 200, and Neu N m RNA and protein expression levels in the brain tissue were increased, and glial fibrillary acidic protein m RNA and protein expression levels were decreased. Behavioral testing also revealed that dental pulp stem cell transplantation improved the cognitive function of rat vascular dementia models. These findings suggest that dental pulp stem cell transplantation is effective in treating vascular dementia possibly through a paracrine mechanism. The study was approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of Harbin Medical University(approval No. KY2017-132) in 2017.

Correlation of renal arterial ultrasound parameters with renal damage and placental hypoxia in patients with preeclampsia

Objective:To study the correlation of renal arterial ultrasound parameters with renal damage and placental hypoxia in patients with preeclampsia.Methods: A total of 56 cases of pregnant women who were diagnosed with preeclampsia in Mianyang People's Hospital between May 2014 and October 2016 were selected as the PE group of the research, and healthy pregnant women who received antenatal care during the same period were selected as the control group. Color Doppler diasonograph was used to determine renal arterial blood flow parameters, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits were used to determine the contents of renal damage and endothelial injury indexes in serum as well as the contents of apoptosis molecules caused by hypoxia in placenta.Results: Renal interlobar arterial Vs, Vd and AT levels in PE group were significantly higher than those in control group;CysC,β2-MG, sFlt-1, sEng, ET-1, AnnexinV and vWF contents in serum as well as KIM-1 and NGAL contents in urine of PE group were significantly higher than those of control group and positively correlated with renal interlobar arterial Vs, Vd and AT levels, and the ROS, CytC, Caspase-3 and Caspase-9 contents in placenta were significantly higher than those of control group and positively correlated with renal interlobar arterial Vs, Vd and AT levels.Conclusion: The change of renal arterial blood flow parameters in patients with preeclampsia can assess the extent of renal damage and placental hypoxia.

Leaching behavior and microstructure of phosphorus in converter slag

Converter slag is a by-product of the steelmaking process and contains a large amount of Ca,Fe,P and other elements.If the phosphorus in the converter slag can be effectively extracted,the resulting phosphorus can be used as a phosphate fertilizer.Phosphorus in converter slag is mainly enriched in 2CaO·SiO_(2)-3CaO·P_(2)O_(5)(C_(2)S-C_(3)P)solid solution and is easily dissolved in water.Therefore,acid leaching method was used to dissolve the solid solution to extract phosphorus in converter slag,so as to realize the recycling of phosphorus resources in converter slag.The leaching behavior of three actual converter slags from different steel mills in acid leaching solutions composed of citric acid,sodium hydroxide,hydrochloric acid and deionized water was studied by X-ray diffraction,scanning electron microscopy combined with energy dispersive spectrometry,Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy to reveal the change in object image structure as well as SiO_(4) and PO_(4) tetrahedron before and after acid leaching.The results show that only a small amount of phosphorus in converter slag with too low basicity is enriched in C_(2)S-C_(3)P solid solution,resulting in poor leaching effect.When the converter slag has a high basicity,the removal effect of phosphorus is 70.64%-81.88%.In addition,when the basicity of converter slag is roughly the same,the dephosphorization effect of slag with high FeO content is relatively poor.And acid leaching will cause depolymerization behavior of SiO_(4) and PO_(4) tetrahedron,so that the mole fraction of Q0(Si)(asymmetric stretching vibration of Si-O bond in SiO_(4) tetrahedron with bridge oxygen number of 0)and NBO/Si(non-bridging oxygen in silicate tetrahedra)will increase.Phosphate-containing solids can be obtained from the solution after acid leaching through static precipitation,and the solids have the potential to make phosphate fertilizers.