Activated Protein C Resistance in Patients with Pre-Eclampsia in Lagos, Nigeria

Background: Preeclampsia is reported to complicate 2% - 8% of pregnancies globally and is an important cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. The aetiology and pathogenesis are still poorly understood and substantial improvement has not been made in the prediction, prevention and treatment of the disease. Objective: To compare the frequency of activated protein C resistance (APC-R) in patients with pre-eclampsia to that of normotensive pregnant women and to determine the correlation between activated protein ratio (APC-ratio) and the severity of pre-eclampsia. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was carried out in 100 pre-eclamptic patients and 100 normotensive pregnant controls. The APC-ratio was determined using the modified activated partial thromboplastin time. Study participants with APC-ratio of less than 2.0 were defined as having APC-R. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 22.0. Results: Mean APC-ratio was significantly lower in pre-eclamptics (2.89 ± 1.70) compared to normotensive pregnant women (3.57 ± 1.06) (p = 0.0008) and the levels were also higher in mild (2.95 ± 1.15) compared to severe pre-eclamptics (2.62 ± 1.14). The frequency of APC-R was 26% among women with pre-eclampsia compared to 4% among normotensive controls (p = 0.000). Among 100 pre-eclamptic women 7 (21.2%) out of 33 with mild pre–eclampsia had APC-R, while 19 (28.4%) out of 67 with severe pre-eclampsia had APC-R. APC-ratio had a significant negative correlation with mean arterial blood pressure (r = −0.324;p = 0.000) and proteinuria (r = −0.379;p = 0.000) among study participants. Conclusion: The frequency of activated protein c resistance is significantly higher in pre-eclamptics compared to normotensive pregnant women and this is more pronounced in those with severe pre-eclampsia compared with those with mild disease. APC-R may therefore be used as a marker of severity in the disease.

Effect of Lanthanum on Disease Resistance Related Enzymes of Rape

The effects of lanthanum on the protective enzymes of rape ( Brassica juncea ) were studied in hydroponics experiment. Results show that when treated with 0.3 mg·kg -1 La, the content of chlorophyll and the activities of peroxidase(POD), catalase(CAT), superoxide dismutase(SOD) and polyphenoloxidase(PPO) in rape increase, but the content of malondialdehyde(MDA) in rape decreases. However, the treatments do not change the content of soluble protein in rape significantly.

Properties of Al/Conductive Coating/α-PbO2-CeO2-TiO2/β-PbO2-WC-ZrO2 Composite Anode for Zinc Electrowinning

The properties of Al/conductive coating/α-PbO2-CeO2-TiO2/β-PbO2-WC-ZrO2 composite anode for zinc electrowinning were investigated. The electrochemical performance was studied by Tafel polarization curves（Tafel）, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy（EIS） and corrosion rate obtained in an acidic zinc sulfate electrolyte solution. Scanning electron microscopy（SEM）, X-ray diffraction（XRD）, and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy（EDXS） were used to observe the microstructural features of coating. Anodes of Al/conductive coating/α-PbO2-CeO2-TiO2/β-PbO2, Al/conductive coating/α-PbO2-CeO2-TiO2/β-PbO2-WC, Al/conductive coating/α-PbO2-CeO2-TiO2/β-PbO2-ZrO2, and Pb-1%Ag anodes were also researched. The results indicated that the Al/conductive coating/α-PbO2-CeO2-TiO2/β-PbO2-WC-ZrO2 showed the best catalytic activity and corrosion resistant performance; the intensity of diffraction peak exhibited the highest value as well as a new PbWO4 phase; the content of WC and ZrO2 in coating showed the highest value as well as the finest grain size.

Novel plant activators with thieno[2,3-d]-1,2,3-thiadiazole-6-carboxylate scaffold: Synthesis and bioactivity

The 1,2,3-thiadiazole-carboxylate moiety was reported to be an important pharmacophore of plant activators.In this study,a series of novel plant activators based on thieno[2,3-d]-1,2,3-thiadiazole-6-carboxylate were designed and synthesized and their biological activity as plant activators was studied.The structures of the novel compounds were identifed by1H NMR,19F NMR and HRMS.The in vivo bioassay showed that these novel compounds had good effcacy against seven plant diseases.Especially,compounds 1a and 1c were more potent than the commercialized plant activator BTH.Almost no fungicidal activity was observed for the active compounds in the in vitro assay,which matched the requirements as plant activators.

Hypermonones A-I,New Polyprenylated Acylphloroglucinols from Hypericum monogynum with Multidrug Resistance Reversal Activity

Eleven biogenetically related polyprenylated acylphloroglucinols(PPAPs),including four novel skeletons(1-4)and five new com-pounds(5-9),were isolated from the flowers of Hypericum monogynum.Hypermonones A-D(1-4)represented the first example of a unique dilactone structure containing carbonyl bonded single 5-lactone and tricyclic γ-lactone moieties.Their structures were elucidated by NMR analysis,X-ray crystallography,and ECD calculations.Moreover,we revised the structure of hyperibrin B to hy perm on one I(9)via NMR an alysis,a qua ntum computational chemistry method,and hypothetic bios yn thetic con siderations.Three compounds(5,6,and 9)with significant MDR reversal activity(RF ranging from 61 to 223)were superior to the positive control verapamil(MCF-7/ADR,RF:53;HepG2/ADRz RF:124).Mechanism study for compound 5 indicated that this compound could inhibit the function of P-gp tran sport rather tha n its expressi on,and the possible recog nition mechanism betwee n compo und 5 and P-gp was predicted by molecular docking.

Achieving anti-corrosion and anti-biofouling dual-function self-healing coating by natural carrier attapulgite loading with 2-Undecylimidazoline

In the marine environment,the protective coatings face serious corrosion and biofouling problem,lim-itations,and challenges that made self-healing coatings unable to perform both anti-corrosion and anti-biofouling dual-function at the same time.Here we constructed the corrosion resistance and anti-biofouling self-healing coating by integrating nano-containers into the coating matrix,the 2-Undecylimidazoline(ULM)acted as a corrosion inhibitor and anti-biofouling dual-functional agent which was loaded on the natural container attapulgite(ATP).To obtain high healing efficiency,a fluidity-driven self-healing silicone oil coating was thickened by fibrous ATP to enhance its stability,which played a key role in the self-healing and long-term corrosion resistance.The self-healing time of ULM@ATP rein-forced oil coating was 4 s at least in the air and up to 30 s in the 1 M HCl solution.Meanwhile,the ULM@ATP can significantly enhance the corrosion resistance of the self-healing coating,with the best effect achieved when the content of ULM@ATP was 5 wt.%.The impedance modulus of ULM@ATP-2 still reached 1.62×10^(8)Ωcm^(2) after 480 immersion in 3.5 wt.%NaCl solution,which is 3 orders of magnitude high than pure Oil coating(2.17×10^(5)Ωcm^(2)).The restructure of the ATP network and the release of ULM could largely inhibit the corrosion of metal.The continuous open circuit potential of the compos-ite coating performed the potentially infinite self-healing capacity.The self-healing performances of the composite coating in strong acid and base solutions exhibited high environmental suitability.This anti-corrosion and anti-biofouling(the surface coverage of adhered chlorella decreased 96.88%)dual-function strategy of self-healing coatings could be also realized by many other porous nano-materials or function modifications.The self-healing performances of the composite coating in strong acid and base solutions exhibited high environmental suitability.This anti-corrosion and anti-biofouling dual-function strategy of self-healing coatings could be also realized by many other porous nano-materials or function modifica-tions.The rapid response self-healing coating possessed anti-biofouling and active self-healing functions and showed wide application under more service environments.

A substitution mutation in OsPELOTA confers bacterial blight resistance by activating the salicylic acid pathway

We previously reported a spotted-leaf mutant pelota（originally termed HM_（47）） in rice displaying arrested growth and enhanced resistance to multiple races of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae. Here, we report the mapbased cloning of the causal gene OsPELOTA（originally termed spl^（HM47））. We identified a single base substitution from T to A at position 556 in the coding sequence of OsPELOTA, effectively mutating phenylalanine to isoleucine at position 186 in the translated protein sequence. Both functional complementation and over-expression could rescue the spotted-leaf phenotype. OsPELOTA, a paralogue to eukaryotic release factor 1（eRF_1）, shows high sequence similarity to Drosophila Pelota and also localizes to the endoplasmic reticulum and plasma membrane.OsPELOTA is constitutively expressed in roots, leaves,sheaths, stems, and panicles. Elevated levels of salicylic acid and decreased level of jasmonate were detected in the pelota mutant. RNA-seq analysis confirmed that genes responding to salicylic acid were upregulated in the mutant. Our results indicate that the rice PELOTA protein is involved in bacterial leaf blight resistance by activating the salicylic acid metabolic pathway.

Effects of SO2 on the low temperature selective catalytic reduction of NO by NH3 over CeO2-V2O5-WO3/TiO2 catalysts

The CeO2-V2O5-WO3/TiO2 （CeO2-VWT） catalysts were prepared by one-step and two-step impregnation methods. The effects of different loading of CeO2 and different preparation methods on De-NOx activity of catalysts had been investigated. CeO2 helped to improve the De-NOx activity and sulfur resistance. The optimal loading of CeO2 was 3% with the De-NOx efficiency reached 89.9% at 140℃. The results showed that the De-NOx activity of 3% CeO2-VWT catalysts by one-step method was the same as two-step method basically and reached the level of industrial applications, the N2 selectivity of catalysts was more than 99.2% between 110℃ and 320℃. In addition, CeO2 promoted the oxidation of NO to NO2, which adsorbed on the Lewis acid site （V5＋-O） to form V5＋-NO3 and inspired the fast SCR reaction. Not only the thermal stability but also the De-NOx activity of catalysts decreased with excess CeO2 competed with V2O5. Characterizations of catalysts were carried out by XRF, BET, XRD, TG and FT-IR. BET showed that the specific surface area of catalysts decreased with the loading of CeO2 increased, the active components content and specific surface area of catalysts decreased slightly after entering SO2. Ammonium sulfate species were formed in poisoned catalyst which had been investigated by XRF, BET, TG and FT-IR. The largest loss rate of weight fraction was 0.024%.℃-1 at 380℃ 390℃, which was in accordance with the decomposition temperature of NH4HSO4 and （NH4）2SO4,

Anomalous Resistivity in Vanadium-Doped Semi-Insulating 4H-SiC Wafers

The resistivities of vanadium-doped semi-insulating 4H-SiC wafers were measured by a contactless resistivity measurement system. Anomalous resistivity was found in semi-insulating 4H-SiC wafer. Raman spectra of semi-insulating4H-SiC wafer indicated that the anomalous resistivity was caused by polytype inclusion. Based on the activation energies of different SiC polytypes calculated from resistivity versus temperature data measured by COREMA-VT, the resistivities in the vanadium-doped semi-insulating 4H-SiC wafer with 6H polytype inclusion were calculated. The calculated resistivities are quite consistent with the measured resistivities. Furthermore, the compensation mechanism for the formation of anomalous resistivity was proposed.

Synthesis and insecticidal activities of novel bridged-neonicotinoids

A series of novel bridged-neonicotinoid analogues were designed and synthesized, which were constructed by starting material 8 with cyclopentenone or cyclohexenone in the presence of catalyst aluminium chloride. All of the compounds were characterized and confirmed by^1H NMR,^（13）C NMR, HRMS and IR. The bioassay tests showed that compounds 5 and 6a showed higher bioactivities than imidacloprid against Aphis craccivora.

The discovery of new scaffold of plant activators：From salicylic acid to benzotriazole

Started from salicylic acid（SA） and related commercialized plant activators,based on molecular threedimensional shape and pharmacophore similarity comparison（SHAFTS）,a new lead compound benzotriazole was predicted and a series of benzotriazole derivatives were designed and synthesized.The bioassay showed that benzotriazole had high activity against a broad spectrum of diseases including fungi and oomycetes in vivo,but no activity in vitro.And the introduction of proper groups at the1＇-position and 5＇-position was beneficial to the activity.So,they had the potential to be exploited as novel plant activators.

Remembering Student Activities in Hong Kong During the War of Resistance Against Japan (Ⅰ)

COMPATRIOTS in Hong Kong share a revolutionary tradition. Early in 1922 and 1925, the Seamen’s Strike and Guangdong-Hong Kong Strike were taking place in Hong Kong, shocking the country and the world. During the one-year-long Guangdong-Hong Kong Strike, many family members of workers also fought. Late in 1936, influenced by the upsurge of resistance against Japanese aggression in the country, people in Hong Kong rose up to help save the nation. Save-the-nation associations of women, students and literary and art circles went up one after another. When the news that

Remembering Student Activities in Hong Kong During the War of Resistance Against Japan(Ⅱ)

SINCE its foundation, the Hong Kong Student Association (HKSA) was productive, achieving much success and gaing public support."The students have been organized and shown the power of the collective. It is an ordinary thing on the Mainland, bu is a miracle in Hong Kong...," Shen Pao newspaper read. "The Hong Kong student movement seems promising for Hong Kong youth. The future is bright as the Chinese nation has such promising young people." In 1940, we ended the HKSA’s work. The female students’ work shifted to schools. Female student leaders went