[The neural basis underlying primary dysmenorrhea: evidence from neuroimaging and animal model studies].

Primary dysmenorrhea (PDM), cyclic menstrual pain in the absence of pelvic anomalies, is characterized by acute and chronic gynecological pain disorders in childbearing age women. PDM strongly affects the quality of life of patients and leads to economic losses. PDM generally do not receive radical treatment and often develop into other chronic pain disorders later in life. The clinical treatment status of PDM, the epidemiology of PDM and chronic pain comorbidities, and the abnormal physiological and psychological characteristics of patients with PDM suggest that PDM not only is related to the inflammation around the uterus, but also may be related to the abnormal pain processing and regulation function of patients' central system. Therefore, exploring the brain neural mechanism of PDM is indispensable and important to understand the pathological mechanism of PDM, and is also a hotspot of brain science research in recent years, which will bring new inspiration to explore the target of PDM intervention. Based on the progress of the neural mechanism of PDM, this paper systematically summarizes the evidence from neuroimaging and animal model studies.

A long waiting time from diagnosis to treatment decreases the survival of non-small cell lung cancer patients with stage IA1: A retrospective study.

Objective: The prognostic effect of delayed treatment on stage IA1 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients is still unclear. This study aimed to explore the association between the waiting time before treatment and the prognosis in stage IA1 NSCLC patients. Methods: Eligible patients diagnosed with pathological stage IA1 NSCLC were included in this study. The clinical endpoints were overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS). The Kaplan-Meier method, the Log-rank test, univariable, and multivariable Cox regression analyses were used in this study. Propensity score matching was used to reduce the bias of data distribution. Results: There were eligible 957 patients in the study. The length of waiting time before treatment stratified the survival in patients [<3 months vs. ≥3-months, unadjusted hazard ratio (HR) = 0.481, P = 0.007; <2 months vs. ≥2-months, unadjusted HR = 0.564, P = 0.006; <1 month vs. ≥1-month, unadjusted HR = 0.537, P = 0.001]. The 5-year CSS rates were 95.0% and 77.0% in patients of waiting time within 3 months and over 3 months, respectively. After adjusting for other confounders, the waiting time was identified as an independent prognostic factor. Conclusions: A long waiting time before treatment may decrease the survival of stage IA1 NSCLC patients. We propose that the waiting time for those patients preferably is less than one month and should not exceed two months.

CDC Like Kinase 2 plays an oncogenic role in colorectal cancer via modulating the Wnt/ß-catenin signaling.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignant tumor with high morbidity and mortality, and significant heterogeneity among patients. In this study, we aimed to explore the role and mechanism of CLK2 in CRC, a kinase that phosphorylates SR proteins involved in splicing. Based on the analysis from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset and tissue microarray, we found that CLK2 was upregulated in CRC tissues and associated with a higher tumor stage and poorer overall survival. Consistent with the bioinformatics analysis, the functional experiments validated that CLK2 acted as a tumor-promoting factor in CRC progression. CLK2 knockdown suppressed aggressive cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro, as well as restrained tumor growth in vivo. In terms of mechanism, we found that the Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway was responsible for the CLK2-induced CRC progression, based on the results of pathway enrichment analysis and subsequent experimental validation. Thus, our study, for the first time, identified the role of CLK2 in CRC development and provided a compelling biomarker for targeted therapy in CRC treatment.

Relationship of crop yield and soil organic carbon and nitrogen under long term fertilization in black loessial soil region on the Loess Plateau in China.

The feedbacks between crop yield and soil organic carbon and total nitrogen contents were examined in a long-term experiment, which was established on black loessial soil on the Loess Pla-teau in China. There were six treatments, including CK (no fertilizer), N (single nitrogen fertilizer), NP (chemical fertilizers NP), SNP (straw and chemical fertilizers NP), M (organic manure) and MNP (organic manure and chemical fertilizers NP). Results showed that balanced application of chemical fertilizers, single application of organic manure, the combined application of chemical fertilizers with organic manure and chemical fertilizers coupled with straw returning to the field all significantly increased crop yield and its stability compared with control (CK). The yields of maize and wheat in NP, SNP, M and MNP treatments increased by 92%, 97%, 93%, 141% and 147%, 164%, 139%, 214%, respectively, compared with the control. The annual mean yields of maize and wheat in NP treatment were equal to or higher than those of the local conventional fertilization practices and quite stable among different years, which indicated that the fertilization rates with N 90 kg·hm-2 and P2O5 75 kg·hm-2 were enough for crop growth in wheat-maize rotation system. Application of chemical fertilizer P every other year combined with straw returning to the field (SNP) had similar crop yield values with NP treatment, with the P application amount could be reduced by 50%. The balanced application of chemical fertilizers, organic manure application, the combined application of chemical fertilizers with organic manure, and chemical fertilizers coupled with straw returning to the field could significantly increase soil organic carbon content, whereas chemical fertilizer application had no significant influence on soil total nitrogen content. Across all treatments, the contents of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen were significantly and positively correlated. Under different fertilization treatments, organic carbon sequestration rate was between 15% and 41%. In SNP treatment, the soil organic carbon content enhanced 0.06 g·kg-1 when the amount of organic carbon input every increased 1 t·hm-2, while in CK, N, NP, M and MNP treatments, the increments was between 0.12 and 0.15 g·kg-1. The yields of both maize and wheat were positively correlated with soil total nitrogen content. Maize yield constantly increased with the increases of soil organic carbon content, but wheat yield increased at first and then kept stable with the increases of soil organic carbon content, with a threshold of 6.8 g·kg-1. In conclusion, long-term balanced application of chemical fertilizers, organic manure application, chemical fertilizers combined with manure and chemical fertilizers coupled with straw returning to the field could significantly increase soil organic carbon and total nitrogen contents, consequently resulted in higher crop yield and stubble amount returned to soil, the increase of stubble returned to soil further led to the increase of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen contents, which formed the mutual promotion feedback relationship each other in the black loessial soil region of Loess Plateau in China.

[Soil Olsen-P content changing trend and its relationship with phosphorus surplus and crop yield under long-term fertilization in loessial soil region on the Loess Plateau, China]. / é•¿æœŸæ–½è‚¥é»„ç»µåœŸæœ‰æ•ˆç£·å«é‡æ¼”å˜åŠå ¶ä¸Žç£·ç´ å¹³è¡¡å’Œä½œç‰©äº§é‡çš„å ³ç³».

The changing trend of soil available phosphorus (Olsen-P) content in soil and its relationship with soil phosphorus surplus and crop yield are fundamental when making appropriate phosphate fertilizer recommendations. In this paper, the influences of long-term fertilization on crops phosphorus uptake, soil phosphorus surplus, changing trend of soil available phosphorus content and relationships of soil available phosphorus content with soil phosphorus surplus and crop yield were investigated through 34 years (1981-2015) long-term trial in loessial soil region on the Loess Plateau. The experiment had a completely-randomized-block split-plot design in triplicate. Two main-plot treatments were no farmyard manure and farmyard manure (M), and four subplot treatments were CK (no fertilizer), N (application of chemical fertilizer N), NP (application of chemical fertilizer NP) and NPK (balanced application of chemical fertilizer NPK), respectively. The results showed that fertilization treatments and crop types significantly influenced uptake amount of phosphorus and soil phosphorus surplus. Averaged over time from 1981 to 2015, wheat mean phosphorus uptake amounts of CK, N, NP, NPK, M, MN, MNP and MNPK were 8.63, 10.64, 16.22, 16.21, 16.25, 17.83, 20.39 and 20.27 kg·hm-2, while rape phosphorus uptakeamounts of eight treatments were 4.40, 8.38, 15.08, 15.71, 10.52, 11.23, 17.96 and 17.66 kg·hm-2, respectively. The surplus amount of soil phosphorus significantly correlated with the amount of phosphorus applied to soil. When soil phosphorus surplus amount equal zero, wheat and rape phosphorus input amounts were 10.47 kg·hm-2 and 6.97 kg·hm-2, respectively. Soil phosphorus surplus amount significantly influenced the changing trend of available phosphorus content in soil. CK and N treatments had no phosphorus input, and soil available phosphorus content exhibited a declining trend, annually decreased by 0.16 mg·kg-1 and 0.15 mg·kg-1, respectively. In contrast, NP, NPK, M, MN, MNP and MNPK six treatments were applied with phosphate fertilizer every years, and available phosphorus content gradually increased along with the duration of trial, with annual increase by 0.02-0.33 mg·kg-1. Soil available phosphorus content significantly correlated with phosphorus accumulative surplus amount, and the linear models were y=0.012x+9.33 and y=0.009x+11.72 in manure and no manure treatments, respectively. In no manure treatments, wheat yields significantly positively correlated with soil available phosphorus content, however, in manure treatments, their relationships did not reach a significant level. The relationship of wheat grain yield with available phosphorus content could be significantly fitted by piecewise linear model, and available phosphorus agronomy threshold of wheat was 14.99 mg·kg-1. Rape grain yield also increased with increasing soil available phosphorus content, but the relationship was not significant. This indicated when soil available P content is higher than 14.99 mg·kg -1, application of phosphate fertili-zer should be reduced or even avoided for planting wheat in loessial soil region on the Loess Plateau.

[Effects of long-term fertilization on nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency in loessial soil region on the Loess Plateau, Northwest China]. / 长期施肥对黄土高原黄绵土氮肥利用率的影响.

Nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency is a key parameter to determine recommended nitrogen fertilizer amount and evaluate the effects of nitrogen fertilizer application. The effects of long-term fertilization on annual and accumulated nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency and the relationship between them were studied using a 34-year fertilization experiment (1981-2015) in loessial soil region. The results showed that fertilization had significant influence on annual and accumulated nitrogen ferti-lizer use efficiency of wheat, rape and flax in the period of 1983-2015. The highest mean annual nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency of wheat was achieved in N, P and K combination (NPK), thesecond was N combined with P (NP), 77.7% and 62.0% higher than N application alone respectively. The highest mean annual nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency of rape was achieved in NPK, the second was manure (M), N, P and K combination (MNPK), 93.7% and 65.6% higher than N application alone respectively. The annual nitrogenfertilizer use efficiency of M combined with N (MN) increased significantly compared with N application alone. The annual nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency of M, N and P combination (MNP) decreased significantly compared with NP. The annual nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency of MNPK decreased significantly compared with NPK.There was significant positive linear relationship between annual nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency and crop yield. The correlation between accumulated nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency and crop yield was not significant. It indicated that the annual nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency could be more effective in representing fertilizer use efficiency characteristics under given soil fertility levels, crop varieties and environmental conditions compared with accumulated nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency.

Pyrolysis temperature influences ameliorating effects of biochars on acidic soil.

The biochars were prepared from straws of canola, corn, soybean, and peanut at different temperatures of 300, 500, and 700 °C by means of oxygen-limited pyrolysis.Amelioration effects of these biochars on an acidic Ultisol were investigated with incubation experiments, and application rate of biochars was 10 g/kg. The incorporation of these biochars induced the increase in soil pH, soil exchangeable base cations, base saturation, and cation exchange capacity and the decrease in soil exchangeable acidity and exchangeable Al. The ameliorating effects of biochars on acidic soil increased with increase in their pyrolysis temperature. The contribution of oxygen-containing functional groups on the biochars to their ameliorating effects on the acidic soil decreased with the rise in pyrolysis temperature, while the contribution from carbonates in the biochars changed oppositely. The incorporation of the biochars led to the decrease in soil reactive Al extracted by 0.5mol/L CuCl2, and the content of reactive Al was decreased with the increase in pyrolysis temperature of incorporated biochars. The biochars generated at 300 °C increased soil organically complexed Al due to ample quantity of oxygen-containing functional groups such as carboxylic and phenolic groups on the biochars, while the biochars generated at 500 and 700 °C accelerated the transformation of soil exchangeable Al to hydroxyl-Al polymers due to hydrolysis of Al at higher pH. Therefore, the crop straw-derived biochars can be used as amendments for acidic soils and the biochars generated at relatively high temperature have great ameliorating effects on the soils.

[Ion chromatography for determination of ammonia sampled by silica gel in air of workplace].

OBJECTIVE: To establish an ion chromatography (IC) method for determination of ammonia in air of workplace. METHODS: Ammonia in workplace air was collected in silica gel tube, desorbed with 10 mmol/L methanesulfonic acid by ultrasonic for 10 min, determined by IC. RESULTS: The linearity range was 0.02-1.00 microg/ml. The linear equation was Y = 12041X-187 (r = 0.9997). The limit of quantification was 0.13 mg/m3 (the air volume was 1.5 L). Collection efficiency was 100%. Extraction efficiency was 99%. The relative standard deviation was 4.2%-6.3%. The penetration capacity was more than 264 microg. Sample could be stored for 14 days at least by ambient storage. CONCLUSION: This method is convenient, applicable and sensitive, suitable to determinate ammonia in air of workplace.

[Adsorption of methylene blue from water by the biochars generated from crop residues].

Biochars were prepared from straws of rice, peanut and soybean and rice hull using a low temperature pyrolysis method and adsorption of methylene blue by these biochars were investigated with batch and leaching experiments. Results indicated that biochars have high adsorption capacity for methylene blue and followed the order: rice straw char > soybean straw char > peanut straw char > rice hull char. This order is generally consistent with the amount of negative charge and specific surface area of these biochars. While methylene blue was mainly adsorbed specifically by the biochars, because the adsorption of methylene blue increased with the increase of ionic strength and the adsorption led to the shift of zeta potential of biochar particles to positive value direction. Langmuir equation fitted the adsorption isotherms well and can be used to describe the adsorption behaviors of methylene blue by the biochars. The maximum adsorption capacity of methylene blue predicted by langmuir equation was 196.1, 169.5, 129.9 and 89.3 mmol x kg(-1) for rice straw char, soybean straw char, peanut straw char and rice hull char, respectively. Leaching experiments show that rice hull char of 156 g can remove methylene blue from 30 L water containing 0.3 mmol x L(-1) of methylene blue completely and the cumulative amount of methylene blue absorbed by the biochar reaches 57.7 mmol x kg(-1). The biochars can be used as efficient adsorbents to remove methylene blue from waste water of dye.

Adsorption of methyl violet from aqueous solutions by the biochars derived from crop residues.

The adsorption of methyl violet by the biochars from crop residues was investigated with batch and leaching experiments--adsorption capacity varied with their feedstock in the following order: canola straw char>peanut straw char>soybean straw char>rice hull char. This order was generally consistent with the amount of negative charge of the biochars. Zeta potentials and Fourier transform infrared photoacoustic spectroscopy, combined with adsorption isotherms and effect of ionic strength, indicated that adsorption of methyl violet on biochars involved electrostatic attraction, specific interaction between the dye and carboxylate and phenolic hydroxyl groups on the biochars, and surface precipitation. Leaching experiments showed that 156 g of rice hull char almost completely removed methyl violet from 18.2 L of water containing 1.0 mmol/L of methyl violet. The biochars had high removal efficiency for methyl violet and could be effective adsorbents for removal of methyl violet from wastewater.

Multidisciplinary team meeting before therapeutic ERCP: A prospective study with 1,909 cases.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of multidisciplinary team meeting (MDTM) on the success rate and complications of therapeutic endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for hepato-pancreato-biliary diseases. METHODS: All patients undergoing their first therapeutic ERCP over a 21-month period of time in a tertiary care medical center were included. Generally, patients scheduled for ERCP on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday were subject to MDTM group, and those on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday were allocated to the control group. For each MDTM case, an MDTM was held on the Tuesday prior to the scheduled ERCP. At the meeting, the cases were discussed by a team consisting of chief physicians, radiologists, endoscopists, anesthetists, and surgeons, and a decision was made on the schedule of ERCP. For control cases, a clinical team of one chief physician and two attending physicians made the decision. RESULTS: From April 2006 to December 2007, 912 and 997 ERCP procedures were allocated to the MDTM and control groups, respectively. There was no significant difference in the baseline characteristics and indications between the two groups. Although the success rates were not significantly different between MDTM and control groups (82.9% vs. 84.8%, P=0.321), MDTM was significantly associated with a decreased overall complication rate of (6.9% vs. 12.0%, p<0.001) and severe complication rate (0.4% vs. 2.5%, p=0.035). CONCLUSIONS: Pre-ERCP MDTM decreases the frequency and severity of ERCP-related complications, with similar success rate, compared to routine practice.

The forms of alkalis in the biochar produced from crop residues at different temperatures.

The forms of alkalis of the biochars produced from the straws of canola, corn, soybean and peanut at different temperatures (300, 500 and 700°C) were studied by means of oxygen-limited pyrolysis. The alkalinity and pH of the biochars increased with increased pyrolysis temperature. The X-ray diffraction spectra and the content of carbonates of the biochars suggested that carbonates were the major alkaline components in the biochars generated at the high temperature; they were also responsible for the strong buffer plateau-regions on the acid-base titration curves at 500 and 700°C. The data of FTIR-PAS and zeta potentials indicated that the functional groups such as -COO(-) (-COOH) and -O(-) (-OH) contained by the biochars contributed greatly to the alkalinity of the biochar samples tested, especially for those generated at the lower temperature. These functional groups were also responsible for the negative charges of the biochars.

Determination, characterization and cytotoxicity on HELF cells of ZnO nanoparticles.

Three kinds of ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) with different size were characterized with transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD). The potential cytotoxicity of ZnO NPs with various concentrations has been investigated using human embryonic lung fibroblasts (HELF) cells. The cytotoxicity of ZnO NPs on the normal HELF cell was evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol)-2,5-diphenltetrazoliumhromide (MTT) assay and characterized with photo microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results indicated that ZnO NPs aqueous suspensions with concentrations varying from 2.5 to 150mgL(-1) were harmful to the HELF cells and the cytotoxicity to HELF showed obviously concentration dependence. With concentrations higher than 20mgL(-1), ZnO NPs led to the livability of the tested cells lower than 10%. These results highlighted the need for caution during the use of ZnO NPs above 1.2-1.6mgL(-1) for safety. Finally, an UV-vis spectroscopic approach was developed for the determination of ZnO NPs concentration in the linear range 2-50mgL(-1) (correlation coefficients more than 0.9990), and the detection limit was 1.0mgL(-1).

Characterization and manipulation of the electroosmotic flow in porous anodic alumina membranes.

Porous anodic alumina membranes (PAAMs) have uniform and high-density nanopores, and the dimension and interval of the pores can be easily controlled by varying the anodization conditions. The application of PAAMs could widely impact the cost and efficiency of the liquid-based nanoscale separations. We report here the property of electroosmotic flow in PAAMs, which plays a significant role in the mass transport across these membranes that have charged pore surfaces. By controlling the solution pH and the magnitude and sign of the applied current, the mass transport through these nanoporous membranes can be spatially and temporally manipulated. The effects of electrosurface properties and electrolyte ionic strength on electroosmotic flow were studied. The anion incorporation and adsorption cause the variation of the electrosurface properties of PAAMs, which in turn influence the rate and direction of the mass transport. As compared to the membrane with fixed surface charge, this diversity makes it possible for the PAAMs to be used in various conditions.

Electrokinetic control of fluid in plastified laser-printed poly(ethylene terephthalate)-toner microchips.

The application of plastified laser-printed poly(ethylene terephthalate)(PET)-toner microchips to capillary electrophoresis was investigated. Electroosmotic flow was observed in the direction of the cathode for the buffer system studied (phosphate, pH 3-10). Average electroosmotic mobilities of 1.71 x 10(-4) to 4.35 x 10(-4) cm(2) V(-1) s(-1) were observed from pH 3 to 10. This variation suggests that silica fillers in the toner and on the surface of the polymer dominate the zeta potential of the material, which is also confirmed by XPS measurements. Dopamine and catechol were used as model analytes for microchip electrophoresis in combination with electrochemical detection. Results show that these two analytes can be efficiently separated and detected electrochemically with the plastified laser-printed PET-toner microchips.