CIDE gene expression in adipose tissue,liver, and skeletal muscle from obese and lean pigs

The expression of the cell death-inducing DNA fragmentation factor α-like effector (CIDE) family including Cidea, Cideb, and Cidec was significantly increased in mouse and human models of obesity. However, there was less information on these genes’ expression in pigs. Here, we hypothesized that different fat accumulation between lean (Duroc×Landrace×Yorkshire gilts, DLY) and obese (Lantang) pigs was attributed to porcine CIDE-modulating lipid metabolism. Our data showed that Cidea and Cidec were expressed at a high level in adipose tissue, and at a relatively high level in skeletal muscle, whereas Cideb was mainly expressed in the liver in both breeds of pig. Lantang pigs had higher white adipose and skeletal muscle Cidea and Cidec mRNA abundance, and hepatic and muscle Cideb mRNA than DLY pigs. Lipid metabolism-related genes including sterol regulatory element binding protein 1c (SREBP-1c), hepatocyte nuclear factor-4α (HNF-4α), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator-1α (PGC-1α), fatty acid synthase (FASN), diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1), and DGAT2 showed a higher expression level in adipose tissue from obese pigs than in that from lean pigs. Lantang pigs exhibited higher mRNA abundance for liver SREBP-1c, HNF-4α, and PGC-1α, and higher skeletal muscle SREBP-1c, HNF-4α, PGC-1α, and DGAT2 expression, as compared with DLY pigs. However, the perlipin2 mRNA levels in adipose tissues, liver, and skeletal muscle were significantly lower in obese pigs than in their lean counterparts. Furthermore, plasma non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA), glucose, and triacylglycerol (TAG) levels were greater in obese pigs than in lean pigs. Finally, data from correlation analysis further found that CIDE mRNA expression was positively correlated with back fat thickness (BFT), abdominal fat mass (AFM), and the levels of NEFA, TAG, and glucose in the two breeds. Collectively, these data revealed that the porcine CIDEs possibly modulated lipid metabolism and contributed to the development of fat deposition and obesity in Lantang pigs.     

Characterization of the mean velocity of a circular jet in a bounded basin

A circular jet has broad and important applications in practical engineering. Most research in this area has focused on a free jet, a wall jet or a vertical jet in a bounded domain. In this study, the mean velocities of circular offset jets were studied for four jet exit Froude numbers (Fr), three offset heights (S) (S/d=1, 2, 3) and three submergence ratios (ht/S) (surface jet, mixed jet, and submerged jet) in a bounded basin. Based on the results, we propose a velocity decay formula for a circular jet. The lateral velocity spread was more consistent with Gaussian and Cauchy–Lorentz distributions than the vertical velocity. Moreover, Fr had little effect on the decay of the mean velocity for a circular jet when Re>1×10⁴. The lateral and vertical spreads showed a quadratic relationship with the streamwise distance for different values of Fr at X/d<10. The positions of maximum mean velocity decay were independent of Fr and S/d when X/d<10. The spread rate was more uniform in the lateral direction than that in the vertical direction in a certain region for different S/d and ht/S. Therefore, the decay, spread, and maximum velocity position of the mean velocity for a circular offset jet can remain stable under different values of Fr, offset height, and submergence ratio.     

Visualization of the formation and features of soil arching within a piled embankment by discrete element method simulation

Piled embankments are widely used in highway and railway engineering due to their economy and efficiency in overcoming several issues encountered in constructing embankments over weak soils. Soil arching, caused by the pile-subsoil relative displacement (Δs), plays an important role in reducing the embankment load falling on weak soil, however, the fundamental characteristics (e.g., formation and features) of soil arching remain poorly understood. In this study, a series of discrete element method (DEM) modellings are performed to study the formation and features of soil arching with the variation of Δs in piled embankments with or without geosynthetic reinforcement. Firstly, calibration for the modelling parameters is carried out by comparing the DEM results with the experimental data obtained from the existing literature. Secondly, the analysis of the macroand micro-behaviours is performed in detail. Finally, a parametric study is conducted in an effort to identify the influences of three key factors on soil arching: the friction coefficient of the embankment fill (f), the embankment height (h), and the pile clear spacing (s?a). Numerical results indicate that Δs is a key factor governing the formation and features of soil arching in embankments. To be specific, soil arching gradually evolves from two inclined shear planes at a small Δs to a hemispherical arch at a relatively large Δs. Then, with a continuous increase in Δs, the soil arching height gradually increases and finally approaches a constant value of 0.8(s?a) (i.e., the maximum soil arching height). For a given case, the higher the soil arching height, the greater the degree of soil arching effect. The parametric study shows that the friction coefficient of the embankment fill has a negligible influence on the formation and features of soil arching. However, embankment height is a key factor governing the formation and features of soil arching. In addition, pile clear spacing has a significant effect on the formation of soil arching, but not on its features.     

Glycyrrhizic acid activates chicken macrophages and enhances their <Emphasis Type="Italic">Salmonella</Emphasis>-killing capacity in vitro

Objective

Salmonella enterica remains a major cause of food-borne disease in humans, and Salmonella Typhimurium (ST) contamination of poultry products is a worldwide problem. Since macrophages play an essential role in controlling Salmonella infection, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of glycyrrhizic acid (GA) on immune function of chicken HD11 macrophages.

Methods

Chicken HD11 macrophages were treated with GA (0, 12.5, 25, 50, 100, 200, 400, or 800 μg/ml) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 500 ng/ml) for 3, 6, 12, 24, or 48 h. Evaluated responses included phagocytosis, bacteria-killing, gene expression of cell surface molecules (cluster of differentiation 40 (CD40), CD80, CD83, and CD197) and antimicrobial effectors (inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), NADPH oxidase-1 (NOX-1), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), LPS-induced tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α factor (LITAF), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and IL-10), and production of nitric oxide (NO) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂).

Results

GA increased the internalization of both fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-dextran and ST by HD11 cells and markedly decreased the intracellular survival of ST. We found that the messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of cell surface molecules (CD40, CD80, CD83, and CD197) and cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-6, and IL-10) of HD11 cells was up-regulated following GA exposure. The expression of iNOS and NOX-1 was induced by GA and thereby the productions of NO and H₂O₂ in HD11 cells were enhanced. Notably, it was verified that nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathways were responsible for GA-induced synthesis of NO and IFN-γ gene expression.

Conclusions

Taken together, these results suggested that GA exhibits a potent immune regulatory effect to activate chicken macrophages and enhances Salmonella-killing capacity.

     

Follicle-stimulating hormone increases the intramuscular fat content and expression of lipid biosynthesis genes in chicken breast muscle

Intramuscular fat (IMF) is a crucial factor in the quality of chicken meat. The genetic basis underlying it is complex. Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), well-known as an effector in reproductive tissues, was recently discovered to stimulate abdominal fat accumulation in chicken. The effect of FSH on IMF accumulation and the underlying molecular regulatory mechanisms controlling both IMF and abdominal fat deposition in vivo are largely unknown. In this study, two groups of chickens were treated with chicken FSH or a placebo. The lipid content of breast muscle, abdominal fat volume, and serum concentrations of FSH were examined. Related genes implicated in breast muscle and abdominal fat accumulation were also investigated. Compared to the control group, the triglyceride (TG) content of breast muscle and the percentage of abdominal fat in FSH-treated chickens were significantly increased by 64.9% and 56.5% (P<0.01), respectively. The FSH content in the serum of FSH-treated chickens was 2.1 times than that of control chickens (P<0.01). Results from quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) assays showed that relative expression levels of fatty acid synthase (FAS), lipoprotein lipase (LPL), diacylglycerol acyltransferase 2 (DGAT2), adipocyte fatty acid binding protein (A-FABP), and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) were significantly upregulated in breast muscle following FSH treatment (P<0.01). Treatment with FSH also significantly increased relative expression levels of FAS, LPL, DGAT2, A-FABP, and PPARγ in abdominal fat tissue (P<0.05). The results of principal component analysis (PCA) for gene expression (breast muscle and abdominal fat) showed that the control and FSH treatment groups were well separated, which indicated the reliability of the data. This study demonstrates that FSH plays an important role in IMF accumulation in female chickens, which likely involves the regulation of biosynthesis genes related to lipid metabolism.     

Green Fluorescent Protein Recombinant Nisin as a Probe for Detection of Gram-Positive Bacteria

A great amount of foodborne pathogens were Gram-positive(G+) bacteria, a threat to public health. In this study, considering the binding ability of nisin towards G+ bacteria and the stable fluorescent ability of EGFP protein, a fluorescent nisin–EGFP protein probe was constructed by a gene engineering method. Nisin and EGFP were used as the receptor and fluorophore, respectively, to detect G+ bacteria. The nisin and egfp gene were amplified separately according to the sequence published in Gen Bank using unique primers. The two genes were cloned into a pET-28b(+) vector resulting in apET-28b(+)–nisin–egfp vector. The vector was transferred into Escherichia coli(E. coli) BL21(DE3) for expression. The expressed protein was extracted, purified by a Ni–NTA column, and then tested by the SDS-PAGE method to confirm its molecular weight. Listeria monocytogenes(L.monocytogenes), Staphylococcus aureus(S. aureus), and Micrococcus luteus(M. luteus) were used as the representations of G+ bacteria. E. coli O157, representing the gram-negative(G-) bacteria, was used as a negative control. The binding specificity of the recombinant protein was performed on two types of bacteria and then detected through fluorescent microscopy. The results indicated that the nisin–EGFP probe could detect G+ bacteria at 10~8CFU/mL.     

Assessments of tear meniscus height,tear film thickness,and corneal epithelial thickness after deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty

Objective

To assess the lower tear meniscus height (LTMH), central tear film thickness (CTFT), and central corneal epithelial thickness (CCET) after deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK).

Methods

This was a retrospective cross-sectional study of 20 patients who had DALK in one eye over a three-month period. LTMH, CTFT, and CCET of the operated eyes and the unoperated fellow eyes were measured using high-definition optical coherence tomography (HD-OCT). Correlations between three OCT assessments and age, time following surgery, graft size, bed size, and the number of residual sutures were analyzed.

Results

Compared to patients with keratoconus, patients with other corneal conditions had significantly higher CCET in the fellow eye (P=0.024). For all patients, CCET in the operated eye was significantly negatively correlated with the number of residual sutures (R=?0.579, P=0.008), and was significantly positively correlated with time following surgery (R=0.636, P=0.003). In the fellow eye, a significant positive correlation was found between age and CCET (R=0.551, P=0.012), and a significant negative correlation between age and CTFT (R=?0.491, P=0.028). LTMH was found to be significantly correlated between operated and fellow eyes (R=0.554, P=0.011). There was no significant correlation between LTMH and age, bed/graft size, time following surgery, or residual sutures (all possible correlations, P>0.05).

Conclusions

Patients with keratoconus tend to have a thinner central corneal epithelium. Corneal epithelium keeps regenerating over time after DALK. DALK did not induce a significant change in tear volume compared with the fellow eye. Postoperative tear function might depend on an individual’s general condition, rather than on age, gender, bed/graft size, time following surgery, or residual sutures.

     

匹伐他汀钙对高胆固醇血症患者动脉粥样硬化的影响（英文）

目的:观察匹伐他汀钙对高胆固醇血症患者外周血管的影响。创新点:首次在国内发现匹伐他汀钙能够改善高胆固醇血症患者肱动脉和颈动脉血管内皮功能而且延缓其动脉粥样硬化发展,并首次证实改善内皮功能是匹伐他汀钙延缓其动脉粥样硬化发展的重要原因。方法:按照入选排除标准,选取本院高胆固醇血症患者(HC),完成超声心动图检查的40例。根据剂量不同,分为两个剂量组:1 mg剂量组20例(男性5例,女性15例,平均年龄(55.20±8.35)岁),2 mg剂量组20例(男性9例,女性11例,平均年龄(57.56±6.09)岁)。访视结束后完成超声心动图检查的HC组36例,两个剂量组分别有2人失访。治疗后1 mg剂量组18例(男性3例,女性15例,平均年龄(56.00±7.85)岁),2 mg剂量组18例(男性7例,女性11例,平均年龄(57.79±6.46)岁)。选择本院同期体检中心30例正常人作为对照(年龄和性别均与病例组匹配,男性14例,女性16例,平均年龄(54.94±6.90)岁)。所有研究对象,均经隔夜禁食12~14小时,次日清晨抽取空腹肘静脉血,测定临床生化指标。采用Sequia512彩色多普勒超声诊断仪,应用高分辩率外周血管超声技术,检测HC治疗前后肱动脉血流介导性舒张功能(FMD)、颈动脉结构和功能。结论:经匹伐他汀钙治疗8周后,高胆固醇血症患者血管功能明显改善,表现为FMD升高,僵硬度减小;颈动脉僵硬度和内中膜厚度(IMT)延缓进展与其内皮功能改善密切相关。     

A problem on extremal quasiconformal extensions

In this paper we give a short survey on a problem on extremal quasiconformal extensions. It had been a conjecture for a long time that the dilatations K₀(h) and K₁(h) are equal before Anderson and Hinkkanen disproved this by constructing concrete examples of a family of affine mappings of some parallelograms. The problem also engendered many interesting results. At the end of the current paper, we discuss relationships among K₀(h), H(h) and K₁(h) as a concluding remark.     

The Influence of Afrocentric Spirituality on Counselling Stigma and Help-Seeking Perceptions among Nigerian Americans

This empirical study examined the relations between Afrocentric spirituality and psychological help-seeking attitudes, intentions, and stigma among Nigerian adults living in the United States of America (N = 122). Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, the Spirituality Scale (Jagers and Smith in Journal of Black Psychology, 22, 429–442, 1996), the Perception of Stigmatization by Others for Seeking Psychological Help Scale (Vogel et al. in Journal of Counseling Psychiatry, 56, 301–308, 2009), the Self-Stigma of Seeking Help Scale (Vogel et al. in Journal of Counseling Psychology, 53, 325–337, 2006), the Intention to Seek Counselling Inventory (Cash et al. in Journal of Counseling Psychology, 6, 111–112, 1975), and the Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale-Short Form (Fischer and Turner in Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1, 79–90, 1970). Results from multiple regression analyses indicated that there was no relation between Afrocentric spirituality and help-seeking attitudes or self-stigma about seeking counselling. However, there was a positive correlation between Afrocentric spirituality and other-perceived stigma, demonstrating that increased Afrocentric spirituality predicted increased perceived stigma from others about seeking counselling services. Contrary to expectations, there was a positive correlation between Afrocentric spirituality and intentions to seek counselling. Implications for counselling practice and theory are presented.     

Effects of corneal thickness distribution and apex position on postoperative refractive status after full-bed deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty

Objective

To investigate the effects of corneal thickness distribution and apex position on postoperative refractive status after full-bed deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (FBDALK).

Methods

This is a retrospective analysis of patients who were diagnosed with advanced keratoconus between 2011 and 2014 in our hospital. The base of the cone in all patients did not exceed the central cornea at a 6-mm range. The FBDALK was performed by a same surgeon. All patients had a complete corneal suture removal and the follow-up records were intact. Patients who had graft-bed misalignment or who were complicated with a cataract or glaucoma were excluded. Uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA), best spectacle corrected visual acuity (BSCVA), and Pentacam examination data were recorded at two years postoperatively. The recorded data included the superior-inferior (S-I) and nasal-temporal (N-T) corneal thickness differences in 2, 4, 6, and 8 mm diameter concentric circles with the corneal apex as the center (S-I_{2 mm}, S-I_{4 mm}, S-I_{6 mm}, S-I_{8 mm}, N-T_{2 mm}, N-T_{4 mm}, N-T_{6 mm}, and N-T_{8 mm}), the linear, X-axis, and Y-axis distance between the corneal pupillary center and the cornea apex, total corneal astigmatism at a zone of 3 mm diameter from the corneal apex (TA_{3 mm}), the astigmatic vector values J₀ and J₄₅, and the corneal total higher-order aberration for 3 and 6 mm pupil diameters (HOA_{3 mm} and HOA_{6 mm}). Statistical analysis was performed by SPSS 15.0.

Results

A total of 47 eyes of 46 patients met the criteria and were included in this study. The mean follow-up time was (28±7) months. The mean UCVA was 0.45±0.23 (logMAR) (MAR: minimum angle of resolution) and the mean BSCVA was 0.19±0.15 (logMAR), which were all significantly positively correlated with postoperative TA_{3 mm} and HOA_{3 mm}. The mean S-I corneal thickness differences were (44.62±37.74) μm, and the mean N-T was (38.57±32.29) μm. S-I_{2 mm} was significantly positively correlated with J₀ (r=0.31), J₄₅ (r=0.42), HOA_{3 mm} (r=0.37), and HOA6 mm (r=0.48). S-I4 mm and S-I_{8 mm} were significantly positively correlated with HOA_{3 mm} (r=0.30, r=0.40) and HOA_{6 mm} (r=0.46, r=0.35). The X-axis distance between corneal pupillary center and corneal apex was significantly positively correlated with J₄₅ (r=0.29).

Conclusions

In patients with advanced keratoconus after FBDALK, the unevenly distributed thickness at corneal pupillary area and the misalignment of corneal apex and pupillary center might cause significant regular and irregular astigmatism, which affected the postoperative visual quality.

     

Encouraging Students with Different Profiles of Perceptions to Pursue Science by Choosing Appropriate Teaching Methods for Each Age Group

This research aimed at identifying student profiles of perceptions by means of a clustering method using a validated questionnaire. These profiles describe students’ attraction to science and technology (S&T) studies and careers as a variable driven by school S&T self-concept and interest in school S&T. In addition to three rather predictable student profiles (confident enthusiast, average ambitious, and pessimistic dropout), the fourth fairly well-populated profile called confident indifferent was produced. Our second and third research questions allowed us to describe each profile in terms of the instructional methods to which their population was exposed (including the degree to which they were actively involved) and the instructional methods to which they would like more exposure. An analysis of the evolution of the profiles’ population over time is also presented. The results suggest that pedagogical variety and active involvement in the decision to pursue S&T are important. The perception of the utility and importance of S&T both in and out of school may also play an important role in these decisions. Minor pedagogical preferences were also found in certain age groups.     

From resource to document: scaffolding content and organising student learning in teachers’ documentation work on the teaching of series

We examine teachers’ use of resources as they prepare to teach the topic of numerical series of real numbers, in order to identify how their personal relationship with mathematical content—and its teaching—interacts with their use of a commonly used textbook. We describe this interplay between textbook and personal relationship, a term coined in the Anthropological Theory of the Didactic (ATD, Chevallard, 2003), in terms of documentation work (resources, aims, rules of action, operational invariants), a key construct from the documentational approach (DA, Gueudet & Trouche, in Educational Studies in Mathematics, 71, 199–218, 2009). We do so in the case of five post-secondary teachers who use the same textbook as a main resource for teaching the topic. Documentational analysis of interviews with the teachers led to the identification of their aims and rules of action (the what and how of their resource use as they organise their teaching of the topic) as well as the operational invariants (the why for this organisation of their teaching). We describe the teachers’ documentation work in two sets of aims/rules of action: scaffolding mathematical content (series as a stepping stone to learning about Taylor polynomials and Maclaurin series), and organising student learning about series through drill exercises, visualisation, examples, and applications. Our bridging (networking) of theoretical constructs originating in one theoretical framework (personal relationship, ATD) with the constructs of a different, yet compatible, framework (documentation work, DA) aims to enrich the latter (teachers’ documentation work) with the individual agency (teachers’ personal relationships with the topic) provided by the former.     

The Cartographic Eye in Children’s Picturebooks: Between Maps and Narratives

This article examines the place occupied by maps in children’s picturebooks. After a brief overview of the different roles that are assigned to maps in children’s books, the article considers five French picturebooks—Warja Lavater’s Le petit chaperon rouge (1965), Olivier Douzou and Isabelle Simon’s L’autobus numéro 33 (1996), Véronique Vernette’s Cocorico poulet Piga (1999), Rebecca Dautremer and Arthur Leboeuf’s Le loup de la 135 ^ème (2008) and Kochka and Fabienne Cinquin’s Dans ma ville, il y a… (2011)—in order to focus on how the narrative, whether enclosed, superimposed or linked to the text in some other way, is evoked by the geographic shape of the maps. It is argued that the particular use and function of a map depends on its shape or placement in a book, distinguishing between the incorporation of maps only as a significant picture (its use) from the subject within the whole narrative (its function). Thus the article articulates what uses a map can have within a narrative. It also explores the mechanics of the iconotext, showing that a cartographic picture fulfils a precise, rather than a general, function of spatialisation. Hence three main functions of spatialisation in maps and mapping are distinguished, whereby an author could use maps to help a character discover, conquer, or organise a space.     

关于中心厄米特矩阵的广义反特征值问题

1　Introduction　AmatrixA∈Cn×missaidtobecentrohermitianifA =Jn AJm,andskewcentrohermitianifA =-Jn AJm,where Adenotetheconjugateofthema trixAandJlisthepermutationmatrixoforderlwithonesonthecrossdiagonal(bottomlefttotopright)andzeroselsewhere .ThehermitianToeplitzmatricesformanimportantsubclassofcentrohermi tianmatriceswhichoccurnaturallyindigitalsignalprocessingandotherareas ,seeforinstance[1] andreferencetherein .Thecentrohermitianandrelatedmatricesrecentlyplayanimportantroleinthesolu…     

Points at Which Continuous Functions Have the Same Height

As an easy application of the intermediate value theorem, one can show that for any continuous function f: [0, 1] → ? with f (0) = f (1), there are points a, a + 1/2 both in [0, 1] such that f (a) = f (a + 1/2). In this note, we show that this property holds with 1/2 replaced by any number of the form 1/n for a positive integer n. More interestingly, we show that this is false for every number not of the form 1/n.     

Making Space for Consuming Practices

This empirically driven paper is about workplace learning with specific focus on the ‘work’ of consuming practices. By consuming we refer to the eating, and the drinking, and (at times) to the smoking that workers, in most organisations, do on a daily basis. Indeed, it is the quotidian nature of consuming, coupled with its absence from workplace learning research that make them noteworthy practices to explore. In using the term practice we draw on the recent tranche of practice based theorisations: notably Schatzki (1996, Organization Studies, 26(3), 465-484, 2005, Organization Studies, 27(12), 1863-1873, 2006) and Gherardi (Human Relations, 54(1), 131-139, 2001, 2006, Learning Organization, 16(5), 352-359, 2009). The paper frames consuming practices as ‘dispersed’ (general) practices and, illustrated through empirical data from multiple projects, we progressively outline how these contribute to the learning of ‘integrative’ (specialized work) practices. Our overall aim is to (re)position consuming practices from prosaic, to having much relevance for research on workplace learning.     

Fecal Microbiota Succession of Piglets from Birth to Post-weaning by 454 Pyrosequencing Analysis

The objective of this study was to describe the fecal microbiota succession of piglets from birth to post-weaning by pyrosequencing. The dominant bacterial phyla were Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, and Fusobacteria, although the composition of the fecal microbiota changed as the piglets grew. Bacteroides, Parabacteroides, Prevotella, Lactobacillus, unclassified Lachnospiraceae, Ruminococcus, Oscillospira, Phascolarctobacterium, and Desulfovibrio were the core genera in the feces of piglets and existed from birth to post-weaning. Bacteroides was the most abundant at birth; however, the proportion of Bacteroides decreased as the piglets aged, while the proportion of Prevotella increased until it became the most abundant genus at the post-weaning stage. Principal coordinate analysis indicated that the microbial communities of piglet fecal samples from birth to post-weaning could be separated into four groups according to the similarity of community composition. These corresponded to time points on day 0 (birth); day 7; days 14, 21, and 28 (pre-weaning); and day 35 (post-weaning). This study suggests that the development of the intestinal microbiota in the piglet is a gradual and sequential process. This methodology establishes a basis for broader studies to investigate the microbiota of the piglet intestinal tract.