FPR1 Antagonist (BOC-MLF) Inhibits Amniotic Epithelial-mesenchymal Transition

Objective:Premature rupture of membranes(PROM)is a common pregnancy disorder that is closely associated with structural weakening of fetal membranes.Studies have found that formyl peptide receptor 1(FPR1)activates inflammatory pathways and amniotic epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT),stimulates collagen degradation,and leads to membrane weakening and membrane rupture.The purpose of this study was to investigate the anti-inflammatory and EMT inhibitory effects of FPR1 antagonist(BOC-MLF)to provide a basis for clinical prevention of PROM.Methods:The relationship between PROM,FPR1,and EMT was analyzed in human fetal membrane tissue and plasma samples using Western blotting,PCR,Masson staining,and ELISA assays.Lipopolysaccharide(LPS)was used to establish a fetal membrane inflammation model in pregnant rats,and BOC-MLF was used to treat the LPS rat model.We detected interleukin(IL)-6 in blood from the rat hearts to determine whether the inflammatory model was successful and whether the anti-inflammatory treatment was effective.We used electron microscopy to analyze the structure and collagen expression of rat fetal membrane.Results:Western blotting,PCR and Masson staining indicated that the expression of FPR1 was significantly increased,the expression of collagen was decreased,and EMT appeared in PROM.The rat model indicated that LPS caused the collapse of fetal membrane epithelial cells,increased intercellular gaps,and decreased collagen.BOC-MLF promoted an increase in fetal membrane collagen,inhibited EMT,and reduced the weakening of fetal membranes.Conclusion:The expression of FPR1 in the fetal membrane of PROM was significantly increased,and EMT of the amniotic membrane was obvious.BOC-MLF can treat inflammation and inhibit amniotic EMT.

Harvesting the fruits of the first stage of the Primate Genome Project

Primates are highly successful mammals with significant morphological,behavioral,and physiological diversity.Studying the genomes of non-human primates,as the closest relative of humans,can provide insights into human evolution,genetic structure,and potential drug targets relevant to human health,thus making important contributions to medical research.Additionally,primate genome research can support ecological balance and resource conservation and promote sustainable development and human well-being.Despite the existence of more than 500 primate species belonging to 80 genera and 16 families worldwide,with new species still being discovered in recent years(Fan et al.,2017;Khanal et al.,2021;Roos et al.,2020),genome sequencing efforts have been limited to a relatively small number of species from only 22 genera(Ensembl v103).Notably,approximately 72%of primate genera remain unsequenced,leading to significant knowledge gaps in our understanding of their evolutionary history.This situation presents considerable challenges for the development,utilization,and protection of primate genetic resources.It is for these compelling reasons that we initiated the Primate Genome Project(PGP)(Wu et al.,2022).

背钻技术的能力提升研究

背钻是通过二次机械钻孔的方式,将不利于信号传输的孔铜去除,背钻后残留的Stub长度越短,对信号传输的完整性越有利。文章主要研究了小孔背钻的过程能力优化以及高对准度背钻控制方法,实现背钻孔的堵孔改善及对准度提升。

Emerging evidence of the physiological role of hypoxia in mammary development and lactation

Hypoxia is a physiological or pathological condition of a deficiency of oxygen supply in the body as a whole or within a tissue.During hypoxia,tissues undergo a series of physiological responses to defend themselves against a low oxygen supply,including increased angiogenesis,erythropoiesis,and glucose uptake.The effects of hypoxia are mainly mediated by hypoxia-inducible factor 1(HIF-1),which is a heterodimeric transcription factor consisting of a and |3 subunits.HIF-1β is constantly expressed,whereas HIF-1 a is degraded under normal oxygen conditions.Hypoxia stabilizes HIF-1 a and the HIF complex,and HIF then translocates into the nucleus to initiate the expression of target genes.Hypoxia has been extensively studied for its role in promoting tumor progression,and emerging evidence also indicates that hypoxia may play important roles in physiological processes,including mammary development and lactation.The mammary gland exhibits an increasing metabolic rate from pregnancy to lactation to support mammary growth,lactogenesis,and lactation.This process requires increasing amounts of oxygen consumption and results in localized chronic hypoxia as confirmed by the binding of the hypoxia marker pimonidazole HCI in mouse mammary gland.We hypothesized that this hypoxic condition promotes mammary development and lactation,a hypothesis that is supported by the following several lines of evidence:i) Mice with an HIF-1 a deletion selective for the mammary gland have impaired mammary differentiation and lipid secretion,resulting in lactation failure and striking changes in milk compositions;ii) We recently observed that hypoxia significantly induces HIF-1α-dependent glucose uptake and GLUT1 expression in mammary epithelial cells,which may be responsible for the dramatic increases in glucose uptake and GLUT1 expression in the mammary gland during the transition period from late pregnancy to early lactation;and iii) Hypoxia and HIF-1 a increase the phosphorylation of signal transducers and activators of transcription 5a(5TAT5a) in mammary epithelial cells,whereas STAT5 phosphorylation plays important roles in the regulation of milk protein gene expression and mammary development.Based on these observations,hypoxia effects emerge as a new frontier for studying the regulation of mammary development and lactation.

Conserved sequences identify the closest living relatives of primates

Elucidating the closest living relatives of extant primates is essential for fully understanding important biological processes related to the genomic and phenotypic evolution of primates, especially of humans. However, the phylogenetic placement of these primate relatives remains controversial, with three primary hypotheses currently espoused based on morphological and molecular evidence. In the present study, we used two algorithms to analyze differently partitioned genomic datasets consisting of 45.4 Mb of conserved non-coding elements and 393 kb of concatenated coding sequences to test these hypotheses. We assessed different genomic histories and compared with other molecular studies found solid support for colugos being the closest living relatives of primates. Our phylogeny showed Cercopithecinae to have low levels of nucleotide divergence, especially for Papionini, and gibbons to have a high rate of divergence. The MCMCtree comprehensively updated divergence dates of early evolution of Primatomorpha and Primates.

Are There Magnetars in High-mass X-Ray Binaries?

Magnetars form a special population of neutron stars with strong magnetic fields and long spin periods. About 30 magnetars and magnetar candidates known currently are probably isolated, but the possibility that magnetars are in binaries has not been excluded. In this work, we perform spin evolution of neutron stars with different magnetic fields in wind-fed high-mass X-ray binaries and compare the spin period distribution with observations, aiming to find magnetars in binaries. Our simulation shows that some of the neutron stars, which have long spin periods or are in widely-separated systems, need strong magnetic fields to explain their spin evolution. This implies that there are probably magnetars in high-mass X-ray binaries. Moreover, this can further provide a theoretical basis for some unclear astronomical phenomena, such as the possible origin of periodic fast radio bursts from magnetars in binary systems.

On the Neutron Star/Black Hole Mass Gap and Black Hole Searches

Mass distribution of black holes in low-mass X-ray binaries previously suggested the existence of a ~2–5 M⊙mass gap between the most massive neutron stars and the least massive black holes, while some recent evidence appears to support that this mass gap is being populated. Whether there is a mass gap or not can potentially shed light on the physics of supernova explosions that form neutron stars and black holes, although significant mass accretion of neutron stars including binary mergers may lead to the formation of mass-gap objects. In this review, I collect the compact objects that are probable black holes with masses being in the gap. Most of them are in binaries, their mass measurements are obviously subject to some uncertainties. Current observations are still unable to confidently infer an absence or presence of the mass gap. Ongoing and future surveys are expected to build the mass spectrum of black holes which can be used to constrain the process of their formation especially in binaries. I describe the theoretical predictions for the formation of black holes in various types of binaries, and present some prospects of searching for black holes via electromagnetic and gravitational wave observations.

Chondroid syringoma of the lower back simulating lipoma:A case report

BACKGROUND Chondroid syringoma(CS)is a rare tumor of the apocrine or eccrine glands.CS of the lower back is rare,and its clinical manifestations are similar to those of lipoma,which is a common misdiagnosis for this disease.CASE SUMMARY A 39-year-old woman presented with a 2-year history of an asymptomatic subcutaneous mass on the lower back.The lesions increased progressively over time.The patient denied any history.Dermatological examination showed that there was a subcutaneous mass,ranging from 3-4 cm in diameter,with a clear boundary on the lower back.The surface of the skin was smooth without ulceration or scaling.Histopathologic examination was consistent with the diagnosis of CS.CONCLUSION CS is a rare tumor of the apocrine or eccrine glands.It usually presents as a wellcircumscribed and single subcutaneous masses.Histopathology showed the tumor was located in the dermis,with nests,sheets,and cords of basal-like cells,mucin deposition,and chondroid structures.We herein report a case of CS located in the lower back.CS of the lower back is rare,and its clinical manifestations are similar to those of lipoma,for which it is commonly misdiagnosed.

Effects of lipid emulsion (SMOF) intervention on stress hormones, inflammatory mediators and immune function after esophagus cancer operation

Objective: To study the effects of lipid emulsion (SMOF) intervention on stress hormones, inflammatory mediators and immune function after esophagus cancer operation. Methods:A total of 84 patients who received radical operation for esophageal cancer in West China Hospital, Sichuan University between June 2015 and March 2017 were selected and randomly divided into two groups, SMOF group received parenteral nutrition configured by SMOF lipid emulsion, and control group received parenteral nutrition configured by long chain lipid emulsion. Before intervention as well as 3 d and 7 d after intervention, the levels of stress hormones and inflammatory mediators in serum and the mRNA expression of immune transcription factors in peripheral blood mononuclear cells were detected. Results: Serum NE, E, DA, Cor, SP-D, MIP-2 and TNF-α levels as well as peripheral blood GATA3 and Foxp3 mRNA expression of both groups of patients after intervention were higher than those before intervention while peripheral blood T-bet and RORγt mRNA expression were lower than those before intervention;serum NE, E, DA, Cor, SP-D, MIP-2 and TNF-α levels as well as peripheral blood GATA3 and Foxp3 mRNA expression of SMOF group after intervention were lower than those of control group while peripheral blood T-bet and RORγt mRNA expression were higher than those of control group. Conclusion: Lipid emulsion (SMOF) intervention can reduce the stress response and inflammatory response after esophageal cancer operation, and improve the immune response.

The nearest neutron star candidate in a binary revealed by optical time-domain surveys

The near-Earth(within~100 pc)supernova explosions in the past several million years can cause the global deposition of radioactive elements(e.g.,60Fe)on Earth.The remnants of such supernovae are too old to be easily identified.It is therefore of great interest to search for million-year-old near-Earth neutron stars or black holes,the products of supernovae.However,neutron stars and black holes are challenging to find even in our Solar neighbourhood if they are not radio pulsars or X-ray/γ-ray emitters.Here we report the discovery of one of the nearest(127.7±0.3 pc)neutron star candidates in a detached single-lined spectroscopic binary LAMOST J235456.73+335625.9(hereafter J2354).Utilizing the time-resolved ground-based spectroscopy and space photometry,we find that J2354 hosts an unseen compact object with M_(inv)being 1.4-1.6 M_(⊙).The follow-up Swift ultraviolet(UV)and X-ray observations suggest that the UV and X-ray emission is produced by the visible star rather than the compact object.Hence,J2354 probably harbours a neutron star rather than a hot ultramassive white dwarf.Two-hour exceptionally sensitive radio follow-up observations with Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope fail to reveal any pulsating radio signals at the 6σflux upper limit of 12.5μJy.Therefore,the neutron star candidate in J2354 can only be revealed via our time-resolved observations.Interestingly,the distance between J2354 and our Earth can be as close as~50 pc around 2.5 million years(Myrs)ago,as revealed by the Gaia kinematics.Our discovery demonstrates a promising way to unveil the hidden near-Earth neutron stars in binaries by exploring the optical time domain,thereby facilitating understanding of the metal-enrichment history in our Solar neighbourhood.

Annotation and Joint Extraction of Scientific Entities and Relationships in NSFC Project Texts

Aiming at the lack of classification and good standard corpus in the task of joint entity and relationship extraction in the current Chinese academic field, this paper builds a dataset in management science that can be used for joint entity and relationship extraction, and establishes a deep learning model to extract entity and relationship information from scientific texts. With the definition of entity and relation classification, we build a Chinese scientific text corpus dataset based on the abstract texts of projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC) in 2018–2019. By combining the word2vec features with the clue word feature which is a kind of special style in scientific documents, we establish a joint entity relationship extraction model based on the Bi LSTM-CNN-CRF model for scientific information extraction. The dataset we constructed contains 13060 entities(not duplicated) and 9728 entity relation labels. In terms of entity prediction effect, the accuracy rate of the constructed model reaches 69.15%, the recall rate reaches 61.03%, and the F1 value reaches 64.83%. In terms of relationship prediction effect, the accuracy rate is higher than that of entity prediction, which reflects the effectiveness of the input mixed features and the integration of local features with CNN layer in the model.

Targeted metabolomics of sulfated bile acids in urine for the diagnosis and grading of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy

Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy(ICP)is related to cholestatic disorder in pregnancy.Total urinary sulfated bile acids(SBAs)were found increased in ICP.We distinguished the metabolic profiling of urinary SBAs in ICP to find potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and grading of ICP.The targeted metabolomics based on high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(HPLC-MS/MS)was used to analyze urinary SBAs profiling in mild and severe ICP cases,as well as healthy controls.16 kinds of urinary SBAs were determined by HPLC-MS/MS.Sulfated dihydroxy glycine bile acid(di-GBA-S),glycine cholic acid 3-sulfate(GCA-3S),sulfated dihydroxy taurine bile acid(di-TBA-S)and taurine cholic acid 3-sulfate(TCA-3S)increased significantly in ICP group compared with the control group.Seven kinds of SBAs were significantly different(p<0.05)between the ICP group and the control group,with the variable importance in the projection(VIP)value more than one by the orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA).GCA-3S was well-suited to be used as the biomarker for the diagnosis of ICP with the sensitivity of 100%and specificity of 95.5%.A multi-variable logistic regression containing GCA-3S and di-GBA-S-1 was constructed to distinguish severe ICP from mild ICP,with the sensitivity of 94.4%and specificity of 100%.The developed HPLC-MS/MS method is suitable for the measurement of urinary SBAs profiling.Moreover,the urinary SBAs in the metabolomic profiling have the potential to be used as non-intrusive biomarkers for the diagnosis and grading of ICP.

Conservation and Sustainable Development of Human-inhabited World Heritage Site: Case of World Heritage Lijiang Old Town

Many studies on Lijiang Old Town,the World Heritage Site in China,criticise the negative impact that the rapid tourism development caused on its‘outstanding universal value’.However,tourism is a very important driving force for the local development of heritage sites in poverty areas of developing countries.So how to bal­ance the relationship between‘heritage’,‘community’and‘tourism’is an important issue for human-inhabited World Heritage Sites in developing countries.The paper takes Lijiang as a case,introducing the huge changes of the‘heritage’and‘community’with the rapid tourism development since it was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997.It points out that since 2002,according to the social and economic development status then,Lijiang has redefined its general goals to protect its authenticity and integrity as a World Heritage Site,to improve the living condition,to guarantee the interests of local people,and to enhance harmonious social development.A series of public policies have been designed and implemented to integrate heritage conservation with local development.Based on data analysis,field investigation and questionnaire survey,the paper analyses this intervention process and the experience and lessons of it,providing certain reference for the conservation and sustainable development of human-inhabited World Heritage Sites.

The Historical Value and Contemporary Role of Vernacular Wisdom: The Case of Zengchong Village

Vernacular heritage embodies the great wisdom used by the ancients over thousands of years to create their habitats.By adhering to vernacular wisdom,the unique production modes and lifestyles shown in vernacular heritage created an ideal harmonious living environment in consensus with nature using orderly and rational methods for using natural resources.This study analyses the value of vernacular wisdom,establishes a content system based on three factors,i.e.,human needs,productivity and nature from the perspective of the human-nature relationship,and observes that the value of vernacular wisdom is to co-ordinate responses to human-nature conflicts.The representative vernacular wisdom of Zengchong Village,a Dong village in Guizhou Province,China can be summarised into three types:wisdom about physiological needs reflected in the combination of agricultural production with highly intensive living space systems and survival skills to make the best use of everything;wisdom about security needs reflected in the barn,fire-prevention and flood-control systems;and wisdom about selfactualisation,esteem,love or belonging reflected in social interaction and self-management,religious beliefs and identity.In addition to the conservation of the built vernacular heritage,vernacular wisdom should be emphasised in village planning and management to co-ordinate responses to new human-nature conflicts.Thus,a state of balance between human needs,productivity and nature can be achieved to realise the goal of sustainable rural heritage development.

Electromagnetic effects on the biological tissue surrounding a transcutaneous transformer for an artificial anal sphincter system

This paper reports on the electromagnetic effects on the biological tissue surrounding a transcutaneous transformer for an artificial anal sphincter.The coupling coils and human tissues,including the skin,fat,muscle,liver,and blood,were considered.Specific absorption rate (SAR) and current density were analyzed by a finite-length solenoid model.First,SAR and current density as a function of frequency (10–107 Hz) for an emission current of 1.5 A were calculated under different tissue thickness.Then relations between SAR,current density,and five types of tissues under each frequency were deduced.As a result,both the SAR and current density were below the basic restrictions of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP).The results show that the analysis of these data is very important for developing the artificial anal sphincter system.

A paratlei mechanism underlying frizzle in domestic chickens

Dear Editor,The feather,a highly keratinized tissue with variations in the shape,distribution,pigmentation,and structure,is an attractive topic in developmental and evolutionary biology (Boer et al.,2017).

Understanding of the settlements with coexisting water and earth under the background of climate change—the case of Liang Village in Pingyao County,China

Global climate change has caused general and serious damage to cultural heritage sites,and earthen settlements and buildings are particularly vulnerable to water-afected disasters.Thus,this paper uses Liang Village in Pingyao County,China,as a case study,linking the human–land study in the Liang Village Sino-French workshop of 2009/2010 to a disaster assessment completed after the devastating rainstorm in October 2021.We found that the village’s rain disaster resulted from the vulnerability of earthen material to rainstorms and from the earthen settlement’s evolution from a culture emphasising the coexistence of‘water and earth’to a technic fostering the disintegration of‘water and earth’.The latter is the main cause of the village’s decrease in its capacity for disaster prevention and damage reduction.Therefore,in the context of global climate change,we fnd that the reestablishment of the harmonious relationship of water and earth is critical to both rural heritage conservation and village sustainable development.In addition to repairing their relation from the technical perspective of‘planning and design’by planners and architects,it is more crucial for local people to understand and enhance their contemporary appreciation for the traditional‘coexistence of water and earth’concept.