keggin型支撑桥联多酸化合物的合成及晶体结构

利用水热方法合成了一个Keggin型支撑桥联多酸化合物[Cu(4,4'-bipy)]_3PW_(12)O_(40),并通过X-射线单晶衍射对其进行了结构表征。该化合物属于三斜晶系,P-1空间群,a=12.7232(2),b=13.6414(3),c=18.5539(4),α=89.2712(17)°,β=85.5836(15)°,γ=8 75.5301(17)°,V=3108.79(11)3,Z=2。结果表明,化合物由Keggin型[PW_(12)O_(40)]~(3-)的端氧支撑与Cu+相连,同时Cu~+和4,4'-bipy形成桥连的一维链。     

螯合配体构建多酸配合物的合成及晶体结构

利用水热合成技术合成了一个螯合配体构建的多酸配合物[Ni(2,2'-bipy)_3][Mo_6O_(19)],并通过X-射线单晶衍射对其进行了结构表征。化合物由Lindqvist型多钼酸阴离子[Mo_6O_(19)]~(2-)和[Ni(2,2'-bipy)_3]~(2+)配阳离子组成。该化合物属于单斜晶系,P 2_(1/n)空间群,a=12.3451(6)?,b=18.9835(10)?,c=17.2109(10)?,α=90°,β=101.166(5),γ=90°,V=3957.1(4)?~3,Z=4。     

苯基取代的六元碳链双烯酮阴离子自由基的分子内环加成反应的理论研究

摘 要 用密度泛函理论B3LYP方法,结合6-31G(d,p)和6-311 +G(d,p)基组,研究苯基取代的六元碳链双烯酮阴离子自由基的分子内环加成反应.探讨反应物分别通过[4+2]和[2+2]环加成反应生成六元环产物(i)和四元环产物(ii)的反应机理.结果表明,2个反应都是分步进行的,都先经过第1个过渡态得到中间体.然后从该中间体出发,反应(i)经过第2个过渡态得到六元环产物;反应(ii)经过另外一个过渡态得到四元环产物.计算表明反应(i)是主反应通道.     

溶液中高分子链尺寸的研究

在高分子构象统计中,表征分子尺寸的参数有和。对于无规行走链,_0/_0值仅与P有关,与高分子链本身的结构无关。对于自避无规行走链,采用Monte Carlo模拟方法计算了/值,发现/也仅与P有关,并可用经验公式/     

云南松居群核型变异及其分化研究

在分析研究6个云南松居群核型变异的基础上,应用常规统计方法和巢式分析方法,在常规染 色体水平上探讨云南松居群间、个体间和细胞间的变异式样及其分化。结果如下:(1)云南松居群核型 变异不显著,6个居群的核型公式均为2n=24m(6～10SAT),核型类型均为1A。(2)云南松居群仅相 对长度系数、臂比和次缢痕数目及其分布有小的变化。6个居群染色体相对长度系数(I．R．L)分别为: 滇中居群P1=16M2+6M1+2S;滇东南居群P2=14M2+8M1+2S;滇西居群P3=12M2+10M1+2S; 地盘松居群P4=14M2+8M1+2S;细叶云南松居群P5=14M2+8M1+2S;云南松与思茅松渗入杂交 居群P6=10M2+12M1+2S。(3)巢式方差等级分析表明,云南松染色体结构变异有10％左右来源于居群间,有90％左右来源于居群内个体间或细胞间。     

[C6H14N2][Mo8O26]·3H2O的溶液合成、表征及晶体结构

由Na2MoO4·6H2O和C6H8N2合成了分子组成为[C6H14N2][Mo8O26]·3H2O的晶体化合物,并通过单晶X衍射、元素分析,IR光谱和差热分析确定了晶体结构.站果表明,晶体属单斜晶系,空问群P2(1)/n,晶胞参数:a=8.3400(2),b=21.4623(5) ,c=10.2739(2) ;alpha=90°,beta=99.44°,gamma=90°.最终偏差因子:R1=0.0207,wR2=0.0541..     

多金属氧酸盐[Cu(2,2'-bipy)_2]_2[Cu(2,2'-bipy)_3][PW_(12)O_(40)]_2的合成及晶体结构

利用水热方法合成了一个Keggin型多酸化合物[Cu(2,2'-bipy)_2]_2[Cu(2,2'-bipy)_3][PW_(12)O_(40)]_2,并通过X-射线单晶衍射对其进行了结构表征。该化合物属于正交晶系,Pcca空间群,a=42.8484(4),b=12.29820(13),c=23.0736(3),V=12158.8(2)~3,Z=4。结果表明,在化合物的制备过程中配体发生了脱羧反应。     

基于2-(2'-羟基苯)噁唑啉锌的双核及四核配合物的设计合成、晶体结构及荧光性质

利用2-(2'-羟基苯)噁唑啉作为配体,通过与不同的锌盐进行反应,得到结构新颖的双核及四核配合物.对该系列化合物用元素分析,红外光谱进行表征.X-射线衍射单晶结构分析发现在配合物1中2-(2'-羟基苯)噁唑啉配体的羟基氧作为单原子桥连接2个锌离子,配合物2中除配体的羟基氧桥之外还存在甲氧基的氧原子桥连3个锌离子.配合物1属于单斜晶系,空间群为P21,晶胞参数:α=9.384 2 (A)(19),b=13.584 0(A)(30),c=11.138 0(A)(20),β=96.250°(30).配合物2属于三斜晶系,空间群为P-1,晶胞参数为a=9.5517(A)(19),b=11.123 4 (A)(22),c=11.182 6 (A)(22),α=102.820°(30),β=114.988°(30),γ=100.806°(30).对配合物1的甲醇溶液中及固相荧光光谱进行研究,结果显示它有较好的荧光性质.     

拟鹅观草属6种2亚种和鹅观草属3种植物的核型研究

对拟鹅观草属Pseudoroegneria 6种2亚种和鹅观草属Roegneria 3种植物的核型进行了研究,核型公式如下：P. spicata (Pursh) A. Lve，2n=2x=14=12m (2sat)+2sm; P. strigosa ssp. aegilopoides (Drobov) A. Lve，2n=2x=14=12m (2sat)+2sm; P. libanotica (Hackel) A. Lve，2n=2x=14=10m+4sm (4sat); P. stipifolia     

金红石型结构的微变化几何学

根据金红石型结构中各离子的几何关系,从理想的等键长型结构开始,通过对各个方向的变形计算得出各个离子在不同变形情况下的几何关系。最后总结出在实际的晶体结构中c/a轴比与O~(2-)参数u的关系,并推导出在a、c已知的情况下,O~(2-)参数u的计算方法, u=0.353 6 c/[a·sin(2∠~1±δ)]或u=0.5-{(0.353 6 c)/[a·tan(2∠~1±δ)]}。     

一些配位过渡金属或稀土连结的多钼酸化合物的合成、结构及性能研究（英文）

利用简单的手性有机配体L-酒石酸成功地合成出了一系列类似DNA螺旋构型的左、右旋的一维链状聚合物：{A[Mo2VIO4LnIII(H2O)6(C4H2O6)2]·4H2O}n (Ln = Sm, Eu, Gd, Ho, Yb, Y; C4H2O6 = L- 或 D-酒石酸； A = NH4 或 H3O)。通过水热法，巧妙地把传统的钼氧单核{MoO4}、双核{Mo2O7}以及{Mo8O26}等结构单元，通过有机配体配位的过渡金属单元交错地连接成零、一、二、三维的一系列结构新颖的化合物，这类化合物大多数具有可以容纳客体小分子的隧道或空穴，如 [Cu(4,4’-bpy)]2MoO4·2H2O，[Cu(4,4’-bpy)]2Mo2O7，[Cu(4,4’-bpy)(Hnic)(H2O)]2Mo8O26等。首次利用水热法合成出了含稀土的杂多酸类化合物，[Gd(H2O)3]3[GdMo12O42]·3H2O。该化合物是由Silverton-型的 [GdMo12O42]9- 阴离子和配位的Gd3+ 阳离子组成的。在[GdMo12O42]9- 离子中首次把顺磁性的钆(III)离子引入到该构型的中心，并且通过九配位的钆(III)离子把它们连接成具有介孔结构的三维网状化合物。该化合物的获得为今后合成类似化合物提供了一个很好的范例。在水热法合成出的化合物，[Cu2(C8H6N2)2(C7H6N2)]2[Mo8O26] 中，首次捕捉到喹喔啉的氧化产物苯并咪唑，证明了在水热条件下含氮的芳香杂环类的有机配体可以被二价铜氧化，其氧化产物进而作为配体直接与铜原子配位，最终形成新颖的上述化合物。     

A case report of short-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (SCADD)

Background

Short-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (SCADD) is a rare inherited mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation disorder associated with variations in the ACADS (Acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, C-2 to C-3 short chain) gene. SCADD has highly variable biochemical, genetic and clinical characteristics. Phenotypes vary from fatal metabolic decompensation to asymptomatic individuals.

Subject and methods

A Romani boy presented at 3 days after birth with hypoglycaemia, hypotonia and respiratory pauses with brief generalized seizures. Afterwards the failure to thrive and developmental delay were present. Organic acids analysis with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GS/MS) in urine and acylcarnitines analysis with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in dried blood spot were measured. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was isolated from blood and polymerase chain reactions (PCRs) were performed for all exons. Sequence analysis of all exons and flanking intron sequences of ACADS gene was performed.

Results

Organic acids analysis revealed increased concentration of ethylmalonic acid. Acylcarnitines analysis showed increase of butyrylcarnitine, C4-carnitine. C4-carnitine was 3.5 times above the reference range (<0.68 µmol/L). Confirmation analysis for organic acids and acylcarnitine profile was performed on the second independent sample and showed the same pattern of increased metabolites. Sequence analysis revealed 3-bp deletion at position 310-312 in homozygous state (c.310_312delGAG). Mutation was previously described as pathogenic in heterozygous state, while it is in homozygous state in our patient.

Conclusions

In our case clinical features of a patient, biochemical parameters and genetic data were consistent and showed definitely SCAD deficiency.Key words: SCAD deficiency, short chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency, screening, acylcarnitine, polymorphism, genetic     

Increased plasma vaspin concentration in patients with sepsis: an exploratory examination

Introduction

Vaspin (visceral adipose tissue-derived serpin) was first described as an insulin-sensitizing adipose tissue hormone. Recently its anti-inflammatory function has been demonstrated. Since no appropriate data is available yet, we sought to investigate the plasma concentrations of vaspin in sepsis.

Materials and methods

57 patients in intensive care, fulfilling the ACCP/SCCM criteria for sepsis, were prospectively included in our exploratory study. The control group consisted of 48 critically ill patients, receiving intensive care after trauma or major surgery. Patients were matched by age, sex, weight and existence of diabetes before statistical analysis. Blood samples were collected on the day of diagnosis. Vaspin plasma concentrations were measured using a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Results

Vaspin concentrations were significantly higher in septic patients compared to the control group (0.3 (0.1-0.4) ng/mL vs. 0.1 (0.0-0.3) ng/mL, respectively; P < 0.001). Vaspin concentration showed weak positive correlation with concentration of C-reactive protein (CRP) (r = 0.31, P = 0.002) as well as with SAPS II (r = 0.34, P = 0.002) and maximum of SOFA (r = 0.39, P < 0.001) scoring systems, as tested for the overall study population.

Conclusion

In the sepsis group, vaspin plasma concentration was about three-fold as high as in the median surgical control group. We demonstrated a weak positive correlation between vaspin and CRP concentration, as well as with two scoring systems commonly used in intensive care settings. Although there seems to be some connection between vaspin and inflammation, its role in human sepsis needs to be evaluated further.Key words: adipocytokine, inflammation, vaspin, CRP, intensive care     

An efficient page ranking approach based on vector norms using sNorm(p) algorithm

In the whole world, the internet is exercised by millions of people every day for information retrieval. Even for a small to smaller task like fixing a fan, to cook food or even to iron clothes persons opt to search the web. To fulfill the information needs of people, there are billions of web pages, each having a different degree of relevance to the topic of interest (TOI), scattered throughout the web but this huge size makes manual information retrieval impossible. The page ranking algorithm is an integral part of search engines as it arranges web pages associated with a queried TOI in order of their relevance level. It, therefore, plays an important role in regulating the search quality and user experience for information retrieval. PageRank, HITS, and SALSA are well-known page ranking algorithm based on link structure analysis of a seed set, but ranking given by them has not yet been efficient. In this paper, we propose a variant of SALSA to give sNorm(p) for the efficient ranking of web pages. Our approach relies on a p-Norm from Vector Norm family in a novel way for the ranking of web pages as Vector Norms can reduce the impact of low authority weight in hub weight calculation in an efficient way. Our study, then compares the rankings given by PageRank, HITS, SALSA, and sNorm(p) to the same pages in the same query. The effectiveness of the proposed approach over state of the art methods has been shown using performance measurement technique, Mean Reciprocal Rank (MRR), Precision, Mean Average Precision (MAP), Discounted Cumulative Gain (DCG) and Normalized DCG (NDCG). The experimentation is performed on a dataset acquired after pre-processing of the results collected from initial few pages retrieved for a query by the Google search engine. Based on the type and amount of in-hand domain expertise 30 queries are designed. The extensive evaluation and result analysis are performed using MRR, [email protected], MAP, DCG, and NDCG as the performance measuring statistical metrics. Furthermore, results are statistically verified using a significance test. Findings show that our approach outperforms state of the art methods by attaining 0.8666 as MRR value, 0.7957 as MAP value. Thus contributing to the improvement in the ranking of web pages more efficiently as compared to its counterparts.     

Syringe-vacuum microfluidics: A portable technique to create monodisperse emulsions

We present a simple method for creating monodisperse emulsions with microfluidic devices. Unlike conventional approaches that require bulky pumps, control computers, and expertise with device physics to operate devices, our method requires only the microfluidic device and a hand-operated syringe. The fluids needed for the emulsion are loaded into the device inlets, while the syringe is used to create a vacuum at the device outlet; this sucks the fluids through the channels, generating the drops. By controlling the hydrodynamic resistances of the channels using hydrodynamic resistors and valves, we are able to control the properties of the drops. This provides a simple and highly portable method for creating monodisperse emulsions.Droplet-based microfluidic devices use micron-scale drops as “test tubes” for biological reactions.^{1, 2, 3} With the devices, the drops are loaded with cells, incubated to stimulate cell growth, picoinjected to introduce additional reagents, and sorted to extract rare specimens.^{4, 5, 6} This allows biological reactions to be performed with greatly enhanced speed and efficiency over conventional approaches: by reducing the drop volume, only picoliters of reagent are needed per reaction, while through the use of microfluidics, the reactions can be executed at rates exceeding hundreds of kilohertz. This combination of incredible speed and efficient reagent usage is attractive for a variety of applications in biology, particularly those that require high-throughput processing of reactions, including cell screening, directed evolution, and nucleic acid analysis.^{7, 8} The same advantages of speed and efficiency would also be beneficial for applications in the field, in which the amount of material available for testing is limited, and results are needed with short turnaround. However, a challenge to using these techniques in field applications is that the control systems developed to operate the devices are intended for use in the laboratory: to inject fluids, mechanical pumps are needed, while computers must adjust flow rates to maintain optimal conditions in the device.^{9, 10, 11, 12} In addition to significantly limiting the portability of the system, these qualities make them impractical for use outside the laboratory. For droplet-based microfluidic techniques to be useful for applications in the field, a general, robust, and portable system for operating them is needed.In this paper, we introduce a general, robust, and portable system for operating droplet-based microfluidic devices. In this system, which we call syringe-vacuum microfluidics (SVM), we load the reagents needed for the emulsion into the inlets of a microfluidic drop maker; using a standard plastic syringe, we generate a vacuum at the outlet of the drop maker,¹³ sucking the reagents through the channels, generating drops, and transporting them to different regions for visualization and analysis. By controlling the vacuum strength and channel resistances using hydrodynamic resistors^{14, 15, 16} and single-layer membrane valves,^{17, 18} we are able to specify the flow rates in different regions of the device and to adjust them in real time. No pumps, control computers, or electricity is needed for these operations, making the entire system portable and of potential use for field applications. To characterize the adjustability and precision of this system, we vary channel resistances and vacuum pressures while measuring the effects on drop size and production frequency. We also show how to use this to form drops of many distinct reagents simultaneously using only a single vacuum syringe.Monodisperse drop formation is the central operation in droplet-based microfluidics but can be quite challenging due to the need for precise, steady pumping of reagents; forming monodisperse drops with controlled properties is thus a stringent demonstration of the effectiveness of a control system. While there are many geometries available for microfluidic drop formation,¹⁹ in this discussion we use a simple cross-junction for its proven ability to form uniform emulsions at high rates of speed,^{20, 21} a schematic of which is shown in Fig. ​Fig.1.1. The devices are fabricated in poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) using soft lithography.²² The drop formation channels have dimensions of 25 μm in width and 25 μm in height. To enable production of aqueous drops in oil, which are the most useful for biological assays, we require hydrophobic devices, which we achieve using an Aquapel chemical treatment: we flow Aqualpel through the channels for a few seconds, flush with air, and then bake the devices for 20 min at 65 °C. After this treatment, the channels are permanently hydrophilic, as is needed for forming aqueous-in-oil emulsions. To introduce reagents into the device, we use 200 μl plastic pipette tips inserted into the channel inlets. To apply the suction, we use a 10 ml Bectin-Dickenson plastic syringe coupled to the device through a 16 G needle and PE∕5 tubing. The other end of the tubing is inserted into the outlet of the device.Open in a separate windowFigure 1Schematic of the microfluidic drop maker for use with SVM. To form water drops in oil, the device must be hydrophobic, which we achieve by treating the channels with Aquapel. The water and surfactant-containing oil are loaded into pipette tips inserted into the device inlets at the locations indicated. To pump the fluids through the drop maker, a syringe applies a vacuum to the outlet; this sucks the fluids through the drop maker, forming drops. The drops are collected into the suction syringe, where they can be stored, incubated, and reintroduced into a microfluidic device for additional processing.To begin forming drops, we fill the device with HFE-7500 fluorocarbon oil, displacing trapped air bubbles that could restrict flow and interfere with drop formation. Pipette tips containing reagents are then inserted into the device inlets, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.11 and pictured in Fig. ​Fig.2a;2a; during this step, care must be taken to not trap air bubbles under the pipette tips, as they would restrict flow. For the fluids, we use distilled water for the droplet phase and HFE-7500 with the ammonium salt of Krytox 157 FSL at 1.8 wt % for the continuous phase. The suction syringe is then connected to the device outlet; to initiate drop formation, the piston is pulled outward and locked in place with a 1 in. binder clip, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.2a.2a. This expands the air in the syringe, generating a vacuum that is transferred to the device through tubing. Since the inlet reagents are open to the atmosphere and thus maintained at a pressure of 1 atm, this creates a pressure differential through the device that pumps the fluids. As the fluids flow through the cross-channel, forces are generated that create drops, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.2b2b (enhanced online). Due to the very steady flow, the drops are highly monodisperse, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.2c.2c. After they are formed, the drops flow out of the device through the suction tube and are collected into the syringe. Depending on the emulsion formulation, drops may coalesce on the metal needle of the syringe; if so, an Upchurch fitting should be used to couple the tubing instead. The collected drops can be stored in the syringe, incubated, and reintroduced into additional microfluidic devices, as needed for the assay.Open in a separate windowFigure 2Photograph of the microfluidic drop formation device with pipette tips containing emulsion reagents and vacuum syringe for pumping (a). Distilled water is used for the droplet phase and HFE-7500 fluorocarbon oil with fluorinated surfactant for the continuous phase. The vacuum applies a pressure differential through the device that pumps the fluids through the drop maker (b) forming drops. The drops are monodisperse, due to the controlled properties of drop formation in microfluidics (c). The scale bars denote 50 μm (enhanced online).In many biological applications, drop size must be precisely controlled. This is essential, for example, when encapsulating molecules or cells in the drops, in which the number encapsulated depends on the drop size.^{3, 23, 24} With SVM, the drop size can be precisely controlled. Our strategy to accomplish this is motivated by the physics of microfluidic drop formation. In microfluidic devices, the capillary number of the flow is normally small, Ca<0.1; as a consequence, the drop formation physics follows a plugging∕squeezing mechanism, in which the drop size depends on the flow rate ratio of the dispersed-to-continuous phase.^{20, 25} By adjusting this ratio, we can thus control the drop size. To adjust this ratio, we use hydrodynamic resistor channels.^{14, 15, 16} These channels are analogous to electronic resistors in that for a fixed pressure drop (voltage) the flow rate through them (current) is inversely proportional to their resistance. By making the resistors longer or shorter, we adjust their resistance, thereby controlling the flow rate.To use resistors to control the drop size, we place three on the inlets of the cross-junction, at the locations indicated in Fig. ​Fig.3a.3a. In this configuration, the flow rate ratio depends on the resistances of the central and side resistors: shortening the side resistors increases the continuous phase flow rate with respect to the dispersed phase, thereby reducing the ratio and, consequently, the drop size, whereas lengthening it increases the drop size. By varying the ratio, we produce drops over a range of sizes, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.3b3b (enhanced online). The drop size is linear in the resistance ratio, indicating that it is linear in the flow rate ratio, as is expected for plugging∕squeezing drop formation [Fig. ​[Fig.3b3b].^{20, 25} This behavior is identical to that of pump-driven fluidics, demonstrating that SVM affords similar control.Open in a separate windowFigure 3Drop properties can be controlled using resistor channels. The resistors are placed on the inlets of the drop maker at the locations indicated in (a). The resistors enable the flow rates of the inner and continuous phases to be controlled. By varying the length ratio of the inlet resistors, we control the flow rate ratio in the drop maker. This allows the drop volume to be controlled, as shown by drop volume plotted as a function of inlet resistor length ratio in (b); varying this ratio does not significantly affect the drop formation frequency, as shown in (c). By varying the length of the outlet resistor, we control the total flow rate through the device; this allows us to form drops of constant volume, but at a different formation frequency, as shown by the plots of volume and frequency as a function of the inverse of the outlet resistor length in (d) and (e), respectively. The measured hydrodynamic resistance of a resistor channel with water as a function of length is shown as inset into (d) (enhanced online).We can also control the frequency of the drop formation using resistor channels. We place a resistor on the outlet of the device; this sets the total flow rate through the device, thereby adjusting drop frequency, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.3e3e (enhanced online). To confirm that the size and frequency control are independent, we plot size as a function of the outlet resistance and frequency as a function of the resistance ratio [Figs. ​[Figs.3c,3c, ​,3d];3d]; both are constant as a function of these parameters, again demonstrating independent control. Frequency can also be adjusted by changing the strength of the vacuum, which can be accomplished by loading a prescribed volume of air into the syringe before expansion. In this case, the vacuum pressure applied is P_fin=V_in∕V_fin×P_in, where V_in is the initial volume of air in the syringe, V_fin is the volume after expansion, and P_in is the initial pressure, which is 1 atm. By loading a prescribed volume of air into the syringe before connecting it to the device and pulling the piston, the expansion factor can be reduced, thereby lowering the vacuum strength.The flow rates through the microfluidic device depend on the applied pressure differential, which, in turn, depends on the value of the ambient pressure. Since ambient pressure may vary due to differences in altitude, the drop formation may also vary. However, since ambient pressure variations affect the inner and outer phase flows equally, this should alter the total flow rate but not the flow rate ratio. Consequently, we expect it to alter drop formation frequency but not drop size because while the frequency depends on absolute flow rate [as illustrated by Fig. ​Fig.3e],3e], drop size depends on the flow rate ratio [as illustrated in Fig. ​Fig.3b].3b]. Based on normal variations in atmospheric pressure on the surface of the Earth, we expect this to produce differences in the drop formation frequency of ∼25%, for example, when operating a device at sea level compared to at the top of a moderately sized mountain.Resistor channels allow drop properties to be controlled, equivalent to what is possible with pump-driven flow; however, they do not allow real-time control because their dimensions are fixed during the fabrication. Real-time control is often needed, for example, as it is when performing reactions in drops for the first time, in which the optimal drop size is not known. To enable real-time control, we must adjust flow rates, which can be achieved using the fluidic analog of electronic potentiometers. Single-layer membrane valves are analogous fluidic components, consisting of a control channel that abuts a flow channel.^{17, 18} By pressurizing the control channel, the thin PDMS membrane between these channels is deflected laterally, constricting the flow channel, thereby increasing its hydrodynamic resistance and reducing its flow rate.¹⁸ To use these membrane valves to vary drop size, we replace the inlet resistors with inlet valves, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.4a.4a. To set the flow rate through a path, we actuate the valve with a defined pressure. To actuate the valves, we use air-filled syringes: a 1 ml syringe is filled with air and connected to the valve control channel through tubing; an additional component, a three-way stopcock is inserted between the syringe and needle, allowing the pressure to be locked in after optimal actuation conditions are obtained. We use one syringe to control the dispersed phase valves and another to control the continuous phase valves. The valves are pressurized by compressing the air in the syringes to a defined degree using the marked graduations; this is achieved by pressing the piston to a defined graduation mark, compressing the air contained within it, thus increasing pressure. The stopcock is then switched to the off position, locking in the actuation. This simple scheme allows precise actuation of the valves, for accurate, defined flow rates in the drop maker, and controlled drop size, as shown in Figs. ​Figs.4b,4b, ​,4c4c (enhanced online). The drop size can be varied at a rate of several hertz without noticeable loss of control; moreover, changing the drop size does not affect the frequency, indicating that, again, these properties are independent, as shown by the constant drop frequency with varying pressure ratio in Fig. ​Fig.4d4d.Open in a separate windowFigure 4Single-layer membrane valves allow the drop size to be varied in real time to screen for optimal reaction conditions. The valves are positioned on the inner and side inlets, as indicated in (a). By adjusting the actuation pressures of the valves, we vary the flow rates in the drop maker, thereby changing the drop size (b), as shown by the plot of drop volume as a function of the actuation pressure ratio in (c). Varying the inlet resistance ratio does not significantly alter drop formation frequency, as shown by frequency as a function of the pressure ratio in (d). A movie of drop formation during actuation of the valves are available in the supplemental material (Ref. ²⁹). The scale bars denote 100 μm (enhanced online).Another useful attribute of SVM is that it readily lends itself to parallel drop formation²⁶ because the pressure that pumps the fluids through the channels is supplied by the atmosphere and is applied evenly over the whole outer surface of the device. This allows fluids to be introduced at equal pressures from different inlets, for forming drops with identical properties in different drop makers. To illustrate this, we use a parallel drop formation device to emulsify eight distinct reagents simultaneously; the product of this is an emulsion library, consisting of drops of identical size in which different drops encapsulate distinct reagents, useful for certain biological applications of droplet-based microfluidics.⁷ The microfluidic device consists of eight T-junction drop makers.²⁵ The drop makers share one oil inlet and outlet but each has its own inner-phase inlet, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.5.5. The oil and outlet channels are wide, ensuring negligible pressure drop through them, so that all T-junctions are operated under the same flow conditions. A distinct reagent fluid is introduced into the inner phase of each T-junction, for which we use eight concentrations of the dye Alexa Fluor 680 in water. After loading these solutions into the device through pipette tips, a syringe applies the vacuum to the outlet, sucking the reagents through the T-junctions, forming drops, as shown by the magnified images of the T-junctions during drop formation in Fig. ​Fig.5.5. Since the drop makers are identical and operated under the same flow conditions, the drops formed are of the same size, as shown in the magnified images in Fig. ​Fig.55 and in a movie available in the supplemental material.²⁹Open in a separate windowFigure 5Parallel drop formation device consisting of eight T-junction drop makers. The drop makers share a common oil inlet and outlet, both of which are wide to ensure even pressure distribution to all drop makers; support posts prevent these channels from collapsing under the suction. Each drop maker has its own inner-phase inlet, allowing emulsification of a distinct reagent. Since the drop maker dimensions and pressure differentials are constant through all drop makers, the drops formed are of the same size, as shown in the magnified images. The drops are ∼35 μm in diameter.To verify that the dye solutions are successfully encapsulated, we image a sample of the collected drops with a fluorescent microscope. The drops are confined in a monolayer between two glass plates so they can be individually imaged. They are of the same size but have distinct fluorescence intensities, as shown in Fig. ​Fig.6a.6a. To quantify these differences, we measure the intensity of each drop and plot the results as a histogram [see Fig. ​Fig.6b].6b]. There are eight peaks in the histogram, corresponding to the eight dye concentrations, demonstrating that all dyes are encapsulated successfully. The peak areas are also similar, demonstrating that drops of different types are formed in equal amounts due to the uniformity of the parallel drop formation.Open in a separate windowFigure 6Fluorescent microscope image of emulsion library created with parallel T-junction device (a). In this demonstration, eight concentrations of Alexa Fluor 680 dye are emulsified simultaneously, producing an emulsion library of eight elements. The drops are of the same size but encapsulate distinct concentrations of the dye solution, as demonstrated by the eight peaks in the intensity histograms in (b). The scale bar denotes 100 μm.SVM is a simple, accessible, and highly controlled way to form monodisperse emulsions for biological assays. It allows controlled amounts of different reagents to be encapsulated in individual drops, drop size to be precisely controlled, and the ability to form drops of different reagents at the same time, in a parallel drop formation device. These properties should make SVM useful for biological applications of monodisperse emulsions;^{1, 2, 3} the portability of SVM should also make it useful for applications in the field, particularly when no electrical power source is available. The parallel emulsification technique should also be useful for particle templating from drops, in which the particles must be of the same size but composed of distinct materials.^{26, 27, 28, 29}     

Diagnostic accuracy of urinary prostate protein glycosylation profiling in prostatitis diagnosis

Introduction

Although prostatitis is a common male urinary tract infection, clinical diagnosis of prostatitis is difficult. The developmental mechanism of prostatitis is not yet unraveled which led to the elaboration of various biomarkers. As changes in asparagine-linked-(N-)-glycosylation were observed between healthy volunteers (HV), patients with benign prostate hyperplasia and prostate cancer patients, a difference could exist in biochemical parameters and urinary N-glycosylation between HV and prostatitis patients. We therefore investigated if prostatic protein glycosylation could improve the diagnosis of prostatitis.

Materials and methods

Differences in serum and urine biochemical markers and in total urine N-glycosylation profile of prostatic proteins were determined between HV (N = 66) and prostatitis patients (N = 36). Additionally, diagnostic accuracy of significant biochemical markers and changes in N-glycosylation was assessed.

Results

Urinary white blood cell (WBC) count enabled discrimination of HV from prostatitis patients (P < 0.001). Urinary bacteria count allowed for discriminating prostatitis patients from HV (P < 0.001). Total amount of biantennary structures (urinary 2A/MA marker) was significantly lower in prostatitis patients compared to HV (P < 0.001). Combining the urinary 2A/MA marker and urinary WBC count resulted in an AUC of 0.79, 95% confidence interval (CI) = (0.70–0.89) which was significantly better than urinary WBC count (AUC = 0.70, 95% CI = [0.59–0.82], P = 0.042) as isolated test.

Conclusions

We have demonstrated the diagnostic value of urinary N-glycosylation profiling, which shows great potential as biomarker for prostatitis. Further research is required to unravel the developmental course of prostatic inflammation.Key words: diagnostic marker, prostatitis, urinary asparagine-linked glycosylation     

Do Croatian open access journals support ethical research? Content analysis of instructions to authors

Introduction

The aim of our study was to investigate the extent to which Instructions to authors of the Croatian open access (OA) journals are addressing ethical issues. Do biomedical journals differ from the journals from other disciplines in that respect? Our hypothesis was that biomedical journals maintain much higher publication ethics standards.

Materials and methods

This study looked at 197 Croatian OA journals Instructions to authors to address the following groups of ethical issues: general terms; guidelines and recommendations; research approval and registration; funding and conflict of interest; peer review; redundant publications, misconduct and retraction; copyright; timeliness; authorship; and data accessibility. We further compared a subset of 159 non-biomedical journals with a subset of 38 biomedical journals. Content analysis was used to discern the ethical issues representation in the instructions to authors.

Results

The groups of biomedical and non-biomedical journals were similar in terms of originality (χ² = 2.183, P = 0.140), peer review process (χ² = 0.296, P = 0.586), patent/grant statement (χ² = 2.184, P = 0.141), and timeliness of publication (χ² = 0.369, P = 0.544). We identified significant differences among categories including ethical issues typical for the field of biomedicine, like patients (χ² = 47.111, P < 0.001), and use of experimental animals (χ² = 42.543, P < 0.001). Biomedical journals also rely on international editorial guidelines formulated by relevant professional organizations heavily, compared with non-biomedical journals (χ² = 42.666, P < 0.001).

Conclusion

Low representation or absence of some key ethical issues in author guidelines calls for more attention to the structure and the content of Instructions to authors in Croatian OA journals.Key words: instructions to authors, publication ethics, publication standards, open access, OA, research integrity     

八种国产葱属植物染色体研究

本文对国产葱属Allium 8个种的14个居群的染色体进行了研究。其染色体基数均为x=8，其中7个居群为二倍体(2n=2x=16)，6个居群为四倍体(2n=4x=32)，1个居群为多倍体复合体(2n=4x=32，2n=6x=48，2n=8x=64和2n=9x=72)。并发现随体染色体十分活跃，在多倍体中其数目并不都与其倍性相对应，并有“串状随体”现象出现；在有些类群中其形态变异较大，而随体染色体杂合形式的多态现象也较普遍。本文重点讨论了随体染色体的数目、形态变异及杂合现象在葱属进化中的作用，认为随体染色体形态变异及杂合现象的出现是葱属中遗传变异的重要源泉之一。并对葱属中的染色体基数及种内多倍性问题进行了初步讨论。