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Men with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity are often characterised by low testosterone (T). We aimed to determine whether exenatide (EXE) combined metformin (MET) treatment has a better effect on serum total testosterone (TT) levels than glimepiride (GLI) combined MET treatment in men with T2D and obesity. In a multicentre, 12‐week observational study, 176 obese T2D men with failed glycaemic control were included in the study: ninety men (mean age, 43.00 ± 8.50 years) in EXE + MET group and 86 men (mean age, 44.00 ± 7.00 years) in GLI + MET group. Serum TT levels were more significantly increased in EXE + MET group than GLI + MET group (121.72 ± 56.73 ng/dl versus 34.67 ± 16.30 ng/dl). The increasement of TT levels in those patients who lost body weight ≥5% was significantly greater than those who lost weight <5% in the two groups. The changes in TT levels are closely related to the changes in waist circumference (r = −.443, p < .001). Sexual function assessment of EXE + MET group was more significantly improved than GLI + MET group (p < .001). No serious adverse events were observed. In conclusion, short‐term combined treatment with EXE and MET is superior to GLI combined MET treatment in the improvement of serum TT levels, which could lead to an improvement of sexual hypofunction in patients with obesity and T2D.

Allopolyploidy is a prominent mode of speciation in higher plants. Due to the coexistence of closely related genomes, a successful allopolyploid must have the ability to invoke and maintain diploid-like behavior, both cytologically and genetically. Recent studies on natural and synthetic allopolyploids have raised many discrepancies. Most species have displayed non-Mendelian behavior in the allopolyploids, but others have not. Some species have demonstrated rapid genome changes following allopolyploid formation, while others have conserved progenitor genomes. Some have displayed directed, non-random genome changes, whereas others have shown random changes. Some of the genomic changes have appeared in the F 1 hybrids, which have been attributed to the union of gametes from different progenitors, while other changes have occurred during or after genome doubling. Although these observations provide significant novel insights into the evolution of allopolyploids, the overall mechanisms of the event are still elusive. It appears that both genetic and epigenetic operations are involved in the diploidization process of allopolyploids. Overall, genetic and epigenetic variations are often associated with the activities of repetitive sequences and transposon elements. Specifically, genomic sequence elimination and chromosome rearrangement are probably the major forces guiding cytological diploidization. Gene non-functionalization, sub-functionalization, neo-functionalization, as well as other kinds of epigenetic modifications, are likely the leading factors promoting genetic diploidization.    

Environmental vibration caused by traffic can affect the normal operation of precision instruments, and vibration-isolation measures should be taken to reduce such negative effects. The engineering background of this paper is a hard-X-ray tunnel under construction in Shanghai, China. First, field vibration measurements are used to study the characteristics of the ground traffic, maglev, subway, and other vibration sources near the tunnel, as well as the laws governing the propagation of vibration waves in the surface and soil layer. The finite-element modelling is then used to establish a two-dimensional numerical model for the field conditions, and the numerical results are compared with the field vibration measurements to validate the applicability of the numerical model for assessing the effects of environmental vibration. Finally, how the parameters of a pile-barrier vibration-isolation system, a vibration-isolation measure used widely for tunnels, influence its performance is studied. The results show the following: with increasing distance from the vibration source, the amplitude of the vibration acceleration decreases gradually, and the high-frequency part of the vibration wave is attenuated rapidly, whereas the low-frequency part is attenuated very little. The vibration-isolation effect of the pile barrier is directly proportional to the elastic modulus of the pile body, the pile length, and the hollow ratio of the pile, and inversely proportional to the stiffness of the filling material. The pile diameter, pile row number, and row spacing have little influence on the vibration-isolation effect. Increasing the pile diameter attenuates the acceleration amplitude somewhat around 10 Hz but has no effect on it around 5 Hz. Overall, the present numerical method is well suited to evaluating environmental vibration problems.

AbstractWheat refers to a critical grain crop in China, and ensuring the stable, high quality, high yielding production of wheat is of significance to China’s food security. Chitosan oligosaccharide (COS), i.e., amino-oligosaccharide, is a bio-pesticide readily absorbed by crop plants, capable of improving nutrient absorption and reproductive growth. This study aimed to determine the effects of COS on promoting wheat growth and its effect on the accumulation of malondialdehyde (MDA), as well as common antioxidant enzymes frequently related to plant tolerance. As indicated from the results, COS treatment (50–800 μg/mL) led to the significant (P < 0.05) increase in the height, root length, fresh and dry weight of all the tested wheat cultivars (Bainong 4199, Zhengyu 11 and Bainong 207). Moreover, the physiological analysis indicated that the activity of four antioxidant enzymes, i.e., catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD) and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) in leaves, achieved the similar improvements, and MDA accumulation was reduced significantly (P < 0.05). The above results confirmed that COS can significantly promote the growth of wheat, and under the condition of increased antioxidant enzyme activity, it can reduce lipid peroxidation and may also improve stress resistance. Thus, using COS in commercial wheat production may be noticeably conducive to sustaining future wheat yields and food security in China.

Length–weight and length–length relationships were estimated for seven fish species belonging to four families from the Ili River and its tributaries, northwest China. From April to October 2013 and May to October 2014, specimens were collected monthly for a total of 783 specimens. This study presents the first references on LWRs for Diptychus maculates, Gymnodiptychu dybowskii, Perca schrenkii, Silurus meridionalis and Schizothorax pseudoaksaiensis pseudoaksaiensis, and LLRs for G. dybowskii, P. schrenkii, S. meridionalis, S. pseudoaksaiensis pseudoaksaiensis, Triplophysa strauchii and Triplophysa stoliczkai.

Two new coordination polymers Co(C9H7N7)(SO4)(H2O) (I) and Cd(C9H6N7)2·H2O (II), where C9H7N7 is 4-(5-(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl)-1,2,4-triazol-3-yl)pyridine, are synthesized through hydrothermal reactions and structurally determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. The results reveal that compound I belongs to the triclinic space group P-1 with a 1-D chain structure, whereas compound II belongs to the monoclinic space group C2 with a 2D layer structure. Hydrogen bonds play an important role in the construction of 3D structure of the two compounds.

Interferons (IFNs), type I (α/β) and type II γ, comprise a family of multifunctional cytokines with antiviral, antiproliferative and immunomodulating properties. Both type I and type II IFNs have been heavily implicated in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The biological effects of IFNs are mediated through the Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT) pathway in which both IFN-α/β and IFN-γ activate the transcription factor STAT1. However, little is known about the pathogenic significance of STAT1 in SLE. At this point, we examined the expression and activation of STAT1 in the kidney of MRL/lpr mice with lupus nephritis (LN) by immunohistochemistry, Western botting and real time quantitative RT-PCR. Increased levels of total STAT1 protein and its activated/phosphorylated form were detected in kidney samples from MRL/lpr mice with LN as compared to those from control mice. Phosphorylated STAT1 was predominantly detected in glomeruli cells. Gene expression of the STAT induced feedback inhibitors suppressor of cytokine signalling-1 (SOCS-1) and SOCS-3 was also enhanced in MRL/lpr mice. In MRL/lpr mesangial cells, both IFN-α and IFN-γ rapidly induced the phosphorylation of STAT1 in vitro. Our results demonstrate that expression and activation of STAT1 are significantly increased in murine lupus nephritis, and indicate that STAT1 signalling pathway may play an important role in the pathogenesis of kidney inflammation.

The deep cement mixing (DCM) method has been widely used in offshore geotechnical engineering. At present, the reinforcement form of pile has been researched widely, but there is a lack of understanding of the failure mode of DCM pile composite foundation reinforcement for bank slopes. In this paper, a series of unconfined compression tests was conducted to obtain necessary numerical analysis parameters. A series of study on the failure mechanism and stability control of DCM pile composite foundation reinforcement bank slope has been conducted through numerical analysis. The results of numerical analysis indicate that under different reinforcement conditions, there exists an optimal reinforcement depth, and the safety coefficient will gradually stabilize at 1.45; The bending moment of the piles under the bank slope the bending moment of the pile body under the road surface Under different overloads. The maximum bending moment of the pile body is located near one-third of the pile body, and the maximum bending moment of the pile body is located between the shoulder and foot of the slope.

To meet the increasing communication demands, the satellites need to be equipped with the high-accuracy and large-aperture antennas. One of the effective methods to construct the modular antennas with ultra-high accuracy and ultra-large aperture is on-orbit assembly technology. During the on-orbit assembly missions, the assembly error is a key factor to affect the surface accuracy of the modular antennas. This paper studies the node design of each module and the assembly error analysis of the modular antennas. A design method of the module nodes is presented with consideration of the assembly gap between two modules. Meanwhile, a soft connection mechanism is designed to ensure the mobility among the assembly modules. To investigate the transmission law of the assembly errors, an analytical model of assembly error is derived based on the exponential product method. In order to establish the deformation surface with rotation and displacement assembly errors, an error ball concept is proposed by the analytical model. To decrease the assembly errors, the actuators are installed among some modules. Moreover, an adjustment method is proposed to obtain the adjustment amounts of actuators. Finally, the correctness of analytical model and the effectiveness of the adjustment method are demonstrated by the numerical simulations.