An Analysis of the Function and Status of CAS in National Nanotechnology Research

NB I C, n a m e l y n a n o sc i e n ce &nano-technology, biotechnology & bio-medicine (including genetic engineering),information technology (including computing andcommunications) and cognitive science (includingcognitive neuroscience) are universally regarded asfour R&D disciplines to critically influence humanlife in the near future. Providing technological ground-work for the latter three’s healthy development,nanoscience and related technologies now becomethe most active S&T frontiers…     

Rewriting and the Original Work——An analysis of the adapted version of Outlaws of the Marsh

One of the best known and best loved of the ancientChinese novels to have come down through the ages, ShiNai’an’s Outlaws of the Marsh is based on a peasant up-rising which took place in the reign of Hui Zong, a SongDynasty emperor who ruled from 1101 t…     

An Epitome of Devotion and Moral Integrity——A Biographical Sketch of Prof. Ye Duzheng

Just as his name indicates, among Chi-nese scientists Prof. Ye Duzheng is anepitome of whole-hearted devotion toscience and moral integrity in personalcharacter. As one of the founders and pace-setters of Chinese atmospheric science, Prof.Ye was conferred with the highest prize ofthe WMO (World MeteorologicalOrganization) in its 48th session Conferenceon May 27, 2003. The event was not onlya special honor for all Chinesemeteorologists, but also a world-wide rec-ognition of his fruitful c…     

To Enhance Observation and Regional Study in a New Era of Global Change Science——An interview with Prof. FU Congbin

As one of the domestic pioneers and internationally renowned experts on global change science, Prof. FU Congbin has been strongly involved in the study of climate variability and dynamics since the early 1980s. His research ranges from air-sea interaction to the aridity trend of northern China and the monsoon-driven ecosystems in East Asia.     

How do men and women differ in research collaborations? An analysis of the collaborative motives and strategies of academic researchers

Do men and women academic faculty vary in their research collaboration patterns and strategies? This straightforward question does not lend itself to a straightforward answer. A great many sex-correlated variables could possibly mitigate the relationship of sex and collaboration. If one finds sex-correlated differences in the number of collaborators, can one infer that there is something intrinsic to men's and women's work strategies and preferences? Or would such differences owe instead to women's and men's different positions in work structures and hierarchies? The focus here is on two sets of research collaboration variables, numbers of collaborators and the collaboration strategies employed. The study uses questionnaire data from the U.S. National Survey of Academic Scientists (n = 1714) and tests several hypotheses about collaboration numbers and strategies. Regression results indicate, counter to the core hypotheses and almost all published literature, that in a properly specified model, one taking into account such factors as tenure, discipline, family status and doctoral cohort, women actually have somewhat more collaborators on average than do men. For both men and women, those with more industrial interactions and those affiliated with university research centers have more collaborators. Men and women differ in their collaborator choice strategies. Men are more likely to be oriented to “instrumental,” and “experience” strategies, while both men and women are motivated by “mentoring” strategies. Regression analyses show that for both men and women, having a coherent collaborator choice strategy predicts the number of collaborators.     

Distributive Characteristics of Metallic Nano-particlcs in China＇s Urban Water Bodies and their Ecological Risks

Engineering nano-materials ＆ their impact on human health or environmental security constitute a newly emerging R＆D hot spot and a key problem now urgently waiting for its solution in supporting the su...     

The Legend of LIGO——An Interview with David Reitze

<正>As the most expensive project ever funded by the U.S.National Science Foundation,the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory(LIGO)aims at fully testing the existence of gravitation waves predicted by Albert Einstein and opening a new gateway for astronomers and physicists alike to explore the universe.In April,2015,during his stay in Beijing for"The Next Detectors for Gravitational Wave Astronomy"     

Distributive Characteristics of Metallic Nano-particles in China’s Urban Water Bodies and their Ecological Risks

Engineering nano-materials & their impact on human health or environmental security constitute a newly emerging R&D hot spot and a key problem now urgently waiting for its solution in supporting the sustainability of China’s nano-science and related technology development. At present, water bodies in Chinese cities have been seriously polluted by metallic nano-particles (MNPs) while related monitoring data are found woefully lacking throughout the country. Based on the above understanding, this article gives a round-up explanation on distributive characteristics of MNPs in the river mouths or water bodies of Chinese cities, their ecological hazards as well as our research in this regard, providing some inspiring ideas and data for control over this scourge. In addition, our exploration probes the discharge traits of MNPs themselves and the mechanism underlying its impact on water pollution.     

Achieving Ambitions in Space Science:Bottom-up and Top-down Approaches——An Interview with Prof.Roger-Maurice Bonnet

<正>At the time when Chinese scientists are hailing the successful launch of the DAMPE,a satellite to detect possible dark matter particles in space,and meanwhile expecting the launch of further space missions,we have the honor to invite Prof.Roger-Maurice Bonnet,former Science Director of ESA(the European Space Agency)to glve comments and advice on project management in the field of space science.     

Phospholipid—polymer amphiphile hybrid assemblies and their interaction with macrophages

Recently, the combination of lipids and block copolymers has become an alternative to liposomes and polymersomes as nano-sized drug carriers. We synthesize novel block copolymers consisting of poly(cholesteryl acrylate) as the hydrophobic core and poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) as the hydrophilic extensions. Their successful phospholipid-assisted assembly into vesicles is demonstrated using the evaporation-hydration method. The preserved thermo-responsive property of the lipid-polymer hybrids is shown by a temperature dependent adsorption behaviour of the vesicles to poly(l lysine) coated surfaces. As expected, the vesicle adsorption is found to be higher at elevated temperatures. The cellular uptake efficiency of hybrids is assessed using macrophages with applied shear stress. The amount of adhering macrophages is affected by the time and level of applied shear stress. Further, it is found that shorter PNIPAAm extensions lead to higher uptake of the assemblies by the macrophages with applied shear stress. No inherent cytotoxicity is observed at the tested conditions. Taken together, this first example of responsive lipid-polymer hybrids, and their positive biological evaluation makes them promising nano-sized drug carrier candidates.     

Learn from Each Other in Friendship and Trust——An Interview with Prof.Herbert J(a)ckle, Vice President of MPG

BCAS:As Vice-President of MPG you got involved in the establishment of the CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology (PICB) very early and have witnessed its growth from a small seed of an idea to a thriving centre for science excellence.As we know,PICB,a "joint venture" of the MPG and CAS,is administered via some procedures and mechanisms typical for an institute of the Max Planck Society.How would you describe or evaluate the implications of setting up and running an MPG-style institute in the Chinese context?     

Biodiversity Is Life——An interview with WANG Song and XIE Yan

Prof. WANG Song （WANG Sung） with the CAS Institute of Zoology （IOZ） is among the first scholars to realize the prime importance of wildlife and biodiversity and to initiate early conservation efforts in China. To mark the UN International Year of Biodiversity, BCAS reporter SONG Jianlan invites Prof. Wang and his cooperator and IOZ colleague, Dr. XIE Yan to give a review of the past practice and offer advice to future conservation of wildlife and biodiversity in the country.     

Invest in the Future——An Interview with Particle Physicist WANG Liantao

正"The Higgs discovery has really opened the door to a circular electron positron collider,"said particle physicist WANG Liantao from the University of Chicago.Fifty years after it was first suspected to exist,the elusive Higgs particle was finally"caught"on the Large Hadron Collider(LHC)beneath the France-Switzerland     

Detection of acute kidney injury in premature asphyxiated neonates by serum neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (sNGAL) – sensitivity and specificity of a potential new biomarker

Introduction

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is common in neonatal intensive care units (NICU). In recent years, every effort is made for early detection of AKI. Our hypothesis was that serum neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (sNGAL) may be a reliable screening test for early diagnosis of AKI in premature neonates after perinatal asphyxia. Therefore, our aim was to assess the diagnostic accuracy of sNGAL for AKI in premature asphyxiated neonates.

Materials and methods

AKI was defined in the third day of life (DOL 3) as a serum creatinine (sCr) increase ≥ 26.5 μmol/L from baseline (the lowest previous sCr). According to the increase of sCr, AKI patients were divided in AKIN1 (sCr increase up to 1.9 baseline) and AKIN2 (sCr increase from 2.0 to 2.9 baseline). sNGAL levels were measured on DOL 1, 3 and 7.

Results

AKI was diagnosed in 73 (0.676) of 108 enrolled premature asphyxiated neonates. Sixty one patients (0.836) were classified in AKIN1 and 12 patients (0.164) in AKIN2. sNGAL reached the maximal concentrations on DOL 1 within 4 hours after admission to NICU, being higher in AKI compared with no-AKI group (160.8 ± 113.1 vs. 87.1 ± 81.6; P < 0.001) as well as in AKIN2 compared with AKIN1 group (222.8 ± 112.9 vs. 147.8 ± 109.9; P < 0.001). The best areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC) for prediction of AKI were 0.72 [95% (0.62-0.80) P < 0.001] on DOL1 at 2h and 0.72 [95% (0.63-0.80) P < 0.001] at 4th hour after admission respectively. The corresponding sNGAL cutoff concentrations were 84.87 ng/mL (sensitivity 69.0% and specificity 71.9%) and 89.43 ng/mL (sensitivity 65.7% and specificity 74.3%).

Conclusions

In premature asphyxiated neonates sNGAL measured within the first 4 hours of DOL 1 is predictive of the occurrence and severity of AKI. Therefore, plasma levels of NGAL may be used for early diagnosis of AKI in these patients.Key words: serum neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin, acute kidney injury, premature neonates, biomarker