Cerebrospinal fluid flow in empty sella syndrome and normal sellar regions measured by phase-contrast quantitative magnetic resonance

We used MRI to examine 38 healthy females and 38 female patients with empty sella syndrome. Cerebrospinal fluid flow was examined in six regions of interest, including the anterior clinoid processes, posterior clinoid processes, and 1.0 mm, 1.0 mm, 2.0 mm, --2.0 mm from the midpoint of the line between the anterior and posterior clinoid processes. The results revealed no significant differences in cerebrospinal fluid flow velocity and discharge in a single cardiac cycle, or indicators of cardiac cycles in the control group, indicating that the cerebrospinal fluid flow was relatively steady in the saddle area of the normal brain. In the empty sella syndrome group, cerebrospinal fluid hernia into the saddle area triggered a fluctuation of the anterior and posterior clinoid processes in the saddle area, while the flow in other regions in the saddle area was relatively steady this resulted in significant differences in cerebrospinal fluid flow velocity and discharge, as well as the cardiac cycle.

Ecological Assessment of Oxygen Balance:A Case Study of China’s Natural Oxygen Bars

Ecological assessment plays a vital role in sustainable development of the environment,and thus exploration of specific and integrated ecological assessment methods has become a critical task.In this study,based on the concept of oxygen balance and by accommodating both natural factors and socioeconomic elements,we establish an oxygen(O_(2))balance index(OBI),i.e.,the ratio of the O_(2)production from the ecosystem to the O_(2)consumption by human behavior,based on the net primary productivity(NPP),fuel consumption,gross domestic production(GDP),population data,and so on.The results show that the spatial distributions of OBI in China are intimately correlated to the regional vegetation and socioeconomic development.The estimated OBI values are then validated by statistical data from 27 counties in China,and it is found that the OBI reflects the ecological environment status well.Moreover,the average OBI values derived from 190 natural oxygen bars in China reveal extreme imbalance between O_(2)production and consumption in highly developed regions,especially in the cities,in contrast to good O_(2)balance in areas with high-quality ecological status and less industrialization.The findings from this study have quantitatively captured the regional ecological quality,providing guidance for sustainable natural and socioeconomic developments in local areas of China.

Effects of transgenic soybean on growth and phosphorus acquisition in mixed culture system

Transgenic soybean plants overexpressing the Arabidopsis purple acid phosphatase gene AtPAP15 （OXp） or the soybean expansin gene GmEXPB2 （OXe） can improve phosphorous （P） efficiency in pure culture by increasing Apase secretion or changing root morphology. In this study, soybean‐soybean mixed cultures were employed to il uminate P acquisition among plants in mixed stands of transgenic and wild‐type soybean. Our results showed that transgenic soybean plants were much more competitive, and had greater growth and P uptake than wild‐type soybean in mixed culture in both low P calcareous and acid soils. Furthermore, OXe plants had an advantage in calcareous soils when mixed with OXp, whereas the latter performed much better in acid soils. In soybean‐maize mixed culture, transgenic soybean had no impact on maize growth compared to controls in both acid and calcareous soils with different P conditions. As for soybean in＆amp;nbsp;mixed culture, OXp plants had no significant advantages regardless of P availability or soil type, while P efficiency improved in OXe in calcareous soils compared to controls. These results imply that physiological traits could be easily affected by the mixed maize. Transgenic soybean plants with enhanced root traits had more competitive advantages than those with improved root physiology in mixed culture.