Explore the vast range of titles available.

Integrated constructed wetlands (ICWs) are regarded as one of the most important removal technology for pollutants in rural domestic wastewaters. This study investigated the efficiency of an ICW consisting of a regulating pool, four surface and subsurface flow-constructed wetlands, and a stabilization unit for removing antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) from rural domestic wastewaters. The results showed that antibiotics leucomycin, ofloxacin, lincomycin, and sulfamethazine, and ARGs sul 1, sul 2, tet M, and tet O were the predominant antibiotics and ARGs in the influent, respectively. The ICW system could significantly reduce most of the detected antibiotics and ARGs with their aqueous removal rates of 78 to 100 % and >99 %, respectively. Based on the measured concentrations, the total pollution loadings of antibiotics were 3,479 μg/day in the influent and 199 μg/day in the final effluent. Therefore, constructed wetlands could be a promising technology for rural wastewater in removing contaminants such as antibiotics and ARGs.

Anthropogenic activities are increasingly impacting the quality of urban surface water, particularly in regions undergoing intensive urbanization, such as Guangzhou of South China with a large urban stream network. To examine such impacts, we conducted field sampling on December 24, 2010, May 24, 2011, and August 28, 2011, representative of the low-, normal-, and high-flow periods, respectively. The first sampling was timed immediately after the closing of the 16th Asian Games (November 12–27, 2010) and the 10th Asian Para Games (December 12–19, 2010) held in Guangzhou. Assessments based on a pollution index method showed that the urban streams under investigation were extremely polluted, with direct discharge of untreated domestic sewage identified as the main pollution contributor. In addition, stream water quality around urban villages with high population densities was worse than that within business districts away from the urban villages. Pollution control measures implemented in preparation for the Asian Games were effective for urban streams within the business districts, but less effective for those adjacent to the urban villages. However, short-term efforts may not be able to achieve sustainable urban water quality improvements. In the case of Guangzhou, minimizing or even eliminating direct point-source inputs to the urban streams is perhaps the best option.

Recent studies have suggested an involvement of processing pathways for the initiation of cellular responses induced by topoisomerase-targeting drugs. Here, we showed that cellular exposure to camptothecin （CPT） induced formation of topoisomerase I cleavable complex （TOPlcc）, degradation of TOP1 and activation of DNA damage responses （DDR）. Transcription and proteasome-dependent proteolysis, but not replication, were involved in CPTo indneed TOPl degradation, while none of above three processing activities affected TOPlcc formation. Replication- and transcription-initiated proeessing （RIP and TIP） of TOPlee were identified as two independent pathways, which contribute distinctly to various CPT-activated DDR. Specifically, in cycling cells, RIP-processed TOPlec triggered the CPT-induced RPA pbosphorylation. At higher CPT dosages, the TIP pathway is required for other DDR activation, including ATM, p53 and Chkl/2 phosphorylation. The TIP pathway was further demonstrated to be S-phase independent by using three nonreplicating cell models. Furthermore, the effect of proteasome inhibitors mimicked that of transcription inhibition on the CPT-induced activation of DDR, suggesting the involvement of proteasome in the TIP pathway. Interestingly, the TIP pathway was important for TOPlcc-activated, but not ionization radiationactivated ATM, p53 and Chk2 phosphorylation. We have also found that pharmacological interferences of TIP and RIP pathways distinctively modulated the CPT-induced cell killing with treatments at low and high dosages, respec- tively. Together, our results support that both RIP and TIP pathways of TOPlcc are required for the activation of CPT-induced DDR and cytotoxicity.

Acupuncture is widely used to treat functional dyspepsia with satisfactory outcomes. Combination of the He and Mu acupoints is commonly used and has a synergistic effect on functional dyspepsia; however, its underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Therefore, a randomized controlled parallel clinical trial is currently underway at Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, China. This trial is designed to explore the efficacy of and central responses to the He-Mu point combination in patients with functional dyspepsia using functional magnetic resonance imaging. A total of 105 patients with functional dyspepsia will be allocated into 3 groups： the low-He point group（puncturing at Zusanli（ST36））, Mu point group（puncturing at Zhongwan（CV12））, and He-Mu point combination group（puncturing at ST36 and CV12）. Every participant will receive 20 sessions of manual acupuncture for 4 weeks. The needles will be inserted perpendicularly to a depth of 1 to 2 cun. The angle of rotation and twisting will range from 90 to 180 degrees, while lifting and thrusting will range from 0.3 to 0.5 cm. The various manipulations will be performed 60 to 90 times per minute. The needles will remain in place for 30 minutes, during which manipulation will be applied every 10 minutes. Magnetic resonance imaging will be performed before and after 20 sessions of acupuncture. The primary outcome is symptom improvement according to the Chinese version of the Nepean Dyspepsia Index. Secondary outcomes include the Leeds dyspepsia questionnaire, Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, Self-Rating Depression Scale, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, and visual analogue scale scores before and after 10 and 20 sessions of acupuncture. Needle sensation and adverse events will be used to assess the therapeutic effects. This study will promote more widespread awareness of the benefits of acupoint combination in the clinical setting and provide a further explanation of the neuromechanism by which acupuncture at the He-Mu point combination for functional dyspepsia. Registration： Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, Chi CTR-IOR-15006402.

With hot rolling in laboratory and Gleeble thermal simulator, the hot working of a high nitrogen austenitic stainless steel （HNASS） was researched. The results showed that dynamic recovery （DRV） and dynamic recrystalli- zation （DRX） in HNASS occurred during hot working, and both of them had well-defined stress peaks in flow curves under different conditions. During hot rolling experiment at temperature from 950 to 1 050 ℃, recrystallization phe- nomenon does not take place in test material until the deformation ratio is up to 40%. Recrystallization influences remarkably the strength and ductility of material, and the test HNASS possesses better combination of strength with ductility. According to the curve of θ--α （strain hardening rate-steady state stress）, the DRX critical strain of test material was determined. Also, the activation energy of hot working was calculated to be 746.5 kJ/mol and the equation of hot working was obtained.

Rainfall erosivity in Tibet from 2000 to 2OlO was estimated based on simplified erosion prediction model using daily rainfall data derived from the Tropical Rainfall Measurement Misssion （TRMM） 3B42 rainfall measurement algorithm. Semi- monthly erosive rainfall and rainfall erosivity were validated using weather station data. The spatial distribution of annual rainfall erosivity as well as its seasonal and annual variation in Tibet was also examined. Results showed that TRMM 3B42 data could serve as an alternative data source to estimate rainfall erosivity in the area where only data from sparsely distributed weather stations are available. The spatial distribution of rainfall erosivity in Tibet generally resembles the distribution of multi-year average of annual rainfall. Annual rainfall erosivity in Tibet decreased from the southeast to the northwest. The concentration degree of rainfall erosivity shows an increasing trend from the southeast to the northwest. High rainfall erosivity accompanies low rainfall erosivity concentration degree and vice versa. Rainfall erosivity increased in the middle and western Tibet and decreased in the southeastern Tibet during the 11 years of this study.

Waterlogging is a major abiotic stress limiting barley （Hordeum vulgare L.） yield and its stability in areas with excessive rainfall. Identification of genomic regions influencing the response of yield and its components to waterlogging stress will enhance our understanding of the genetics of waterlogging tolerance and the development of more tolerant barley cultivars. Quantitative trait loci （QTLs） for grain yield and its components were identified using 156 doubled haploid （DH） lines derived from a cross between the cultivars Yerong （waterlogging-tolerant） and Franklin （waterlogging-sensitive） grown under different conditions （waterlogged and well drained）. A total of 31 QTLs were identified for the measured characters from two experiments with two growth environments. The phenotypic variation explained by individual QTLs ranged from 4.74% to 55.34%. Several major QTLs determining kernel weight （KW）, grains per spike （GS）, spikes per plant （SP）, spike length （SL） and grain yield （GY） were detected on the same region of chromosome 2H, indicating close linkage or pleiotropy of the gene（s） controlling these traits. Some different QTLs were identified under waterlogging conditions, and thus different markers may have to be used in selecting cultivars suitable for high rainfall areas.

Pyruvate kinase M2 isoform （PKM2） catalyzes the last step of glycolysis and plays an important role in tumor cell proliferation. Recent studies have reported that PKM2 also regulates apoptosis. However, the mechanisms under- lying such a role of PKM2 remain elusive. Here we show that PKM2 translocates to mitochondria under oxidative stress. In the mitochondria, PKM2 interacts with and phosphorylates Bcl2 at threonine （T） 69. This phosphoryla- tion prevents the binding of Cul3-based E3 ligase to Bcl2 and subsequent degradation of Bcl2. A chaperone protein, HSP90al, is required for this function of PKM2. HSP90al＇s ATPase activity launches a conformational change of PKM2 and facilitates interaction between PKM2 and Bci2. Replacement of wild-type Bcl2 with phosphorylation-de- ficient Bcl2 T69A mutant sensitizes glioma cells to oxidative stress-induced apoptosis and impairs brain tumor for- mation in an orthotopic xenograft model. Notably, a peptide that is composed of the amino acid residues from 389 to 405 of PKM2, through which PKM2 binds to Bcl2, disrupts PKM2-BcI2 interaction, promotes Bcl2 degradation and impairs brain tumor growth. In addition, levels of Bcl2 T69 phosphorylation, conformation-altered PKM2 and Bcl2 protein correlate with one another in specimens of human glioblastoma patients. Moreover, levels of Bcl2 T69 phos- phorylation and conformation-altered PKM2 correlate with both grades and prognosis of glioma malignancy. Our findings uncover a novel mechanism through which mitochondrial PKM2 phosphorylates Bcl2 and inhibits apoptosis directly, highlight the essential role of PKM2 in ROS adaptation of cancer cells, and implicate HSP90-PKM2-Bcl2 axis as a potential target for therapeutic intervention in glioblastoma.

Catassembly is a new concept in molecular assembly that is analogous to catalysis in chemical synthesis. However, for most molecular-assembled processes, the catassembler contributions are rather inconspicuous due to the low activation barriers. As a result, few systems dealing with the catassembly are available until now. In this paper, we report that naphthalene diimide coordination networks are formed under the catassembly of lone-pair-bearing catassemblers（e.g., N,N-dimethylacetamide, N-methylpyrrolidin-2-one）. During such molecular assembly, a stable transition state between the electron-deficient naphthalene diimide tectons and catassemblers via the less common lone pair-π interactions was observed, which is supposed to play the key role in the enhancement of coordination abilities of organic tectons and thus formation of the final coordination networks.

Our previous study used regional homogeneity analysis and found that activity in some brain areas of patients with ischemic stroke changed significantly. In the current study, we examined structural changes in these brain regions by taking structural magnetic resonance imaging scans of 11 ischemic stroke patients and 15 healthy participants, and analyzing the data using voxel-based morphometry. Compared with healthy participants, patients exhibited higher gray matter density in the left inferior occipital gyrus and right anterior white matter tract. In contrast, gray matter density in the right cerebellum, left precentral gyrus, right middle frontal gyrus, and left middle temporal gyrus was less in ischemic stroke patients. The changes of gray matter density in the middle frontal gyrus were negatively associated with the clin- ical rating scales of the Fugl-Meyer Motor Assessment （r = -0.609, P = 0.047） and the left middle temporal gyrus was negatively correlated with the clinical rating scales of the nervous functional deficiency scale （r = -0.737, P = 0.010）. Our findings call objectively identify the functional abnormality in some brain regions of ischemic stroke patients.