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The accurate estimation of soil organic carbon (SOC) storage and determination of its pattern-controlling factors is critical to understanding the ecosystem carbon cycle and ensuring ecological security. The Sanjiang Plain, an important grain production base in China, is typical of ecosystems, yet its SOC storage and pattern has not been fully investigated because of insufficient soil investigation. In this study, 419 soil samples obtained in 2012 for each of the three soil depth ranges 0–30, 30–60, and 60–100 cm and a geostatistical method are used to estimate the total SOC storage and density (SOCD) of this region. The results give rise to 2.32 Pg C for the SOC storage and 21.20 kg m−2 for SOCD, which is higher than the mean value for the whole country. The SOCD shows notable changes in lateral and vertical distribution. In addition, vegetation, climate, and soil texture, as well as agricultural activities, are demonstrated to have remarkable impacts on the variation in SOCD of this region. Soil texture has stronger impacts on the distribution of SOCD than climate in the Sanjiang Plain. Specifically, clay content can explain the largest proportion of the SOC variations (21.2% in the top 30 cm) and is the most dominant environmental controlling factor. Additionally, the effects of both climate and soil texture on SOCD show a weakening with increasing soil layer depth. This study indicates that reducing the loss of SOC requires effective conservation and restoration efforts of wetlands and forestlands, as well as sensible fertilization. The results from this study provide the most up-to-date knowledge on the storage and pattern of SOC in the Sanjiang Plain and have important implications for the determination of ecosystem carbon budgets and understanding ecosystem services.

We describe a novel probabilistic framework for real-time tracking of multiple objects from combined depth-colour imagery. Object shape is represented implicitly using 3D signed distance functions. Probabilistic generative models based on these functions are developed to account for the observed RGB-D imagery, and tracking is posed as a maximum a posteriori problem. We present first a method suited to tracking a single rigid 3D object, and then generalise this to multiple objects by combining distance functions into a shape union in the frame of the camera. This second model accounts for similarity and proximity between objects, and leads to robust real-time tracking without recourse to bolt-on or ad-hoc collision detection.

Adenylyl cyclase 2 (ADCY2), a class B member of adenylyl cyclases, is important in accelerating phosphor-acidification as well as glycogen synthesis and breakdown. Given its distinct role in flesh tenderization after butchering, we cloned and sequenced the ADCY2 gene from Yanbian cattle and assessed its expression in bovine tissues. A 2947 bp nucleotide sequence representing the full-length cDNA of bovine ADCY2 gene was obtained by 5′ and 3′ remote analysis computations for gene expression. Analyses of the putative protein sequence showed that ADCY2 had high homology among species, except with the non-mammal Oreochromis niloticus. Gene structural domain analyses in humans and rats indicated that the ADCY2 protein had no flaw; only the transmembrane domain was reduced and the CYCc structure domain was shortened. Assessment of ADCY2 expression in bovine tissues by real-time PCR showed that the highest expression was in the testes, followed by the longissimus dorsi, tensor fasciae latae, and latissimus dorsi. These data will serve as a foundation for further insight into the cattle ADCY2 gene.

Bovine calpastatin (CAST) gene polymorphisms have been associated with meat tenderness traits; however, little is known about how the CAST gene affects beef quality traits. In this study, 25 single nucleotide polymorphisms were detected in the CAST gene using polymerase chain reaction with single-strand conformation polymorphism and gene sequencing. Different preponderant genotypes were found at the corresponding gene locus. The E1-1, E1-2, and C3-1 loci were correlated with meat tenderness height and highly correlated with the fatty acid content and the amino acid content. The E4-2 locus was not correlated with meat tenderness, but it was correlated with cooking loss, brightness, and yellowness, among others. The CAST gene is a potential marker for these meat quality traits, but further research is required.

This study explored the changes in the levels of IL-6, IL-17, TNF-α, and TNF-β, whether such changes were associated with anxiety and depression in diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), and what factors associated with the occurrence of DPN. Forty-four patients diagnosed with DPN comprised the DPN group, including DPN1 (mild diabetic peripheral neuropathy, 29 cases) and DPN2 groups (moderate-severe diabetic peripheral neuropathy, 15 cases). Thirty-seven individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus constituted the diabetes mellitus with no neuropathy (NDPN) group. Electromyography was applied to confirm DPN, and the Toronto clinical scoring system (TCSS) score was used to assess the severity of DPN. All subjects' emotions were evaluated using the self-rating anxiety scale (SAS) and self-rating depression scale (SDS). Triiodothyronine (T ), tetraiodothyronine (T ), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels were measured using chemiluminescent immunoassay. The relevant biochemical indicators were detected using an automatic biochemical analyzer. The plasma levels of cytokines were detected using quantitative sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Patients with DPN had elevated levels of anxiety, IL-6, IL-17, and TNF-α. There were some positive associations between negative emotions and cytokines. The TCSS score positively correlated with IL-17, SAS score, and T . DPN independently correlated with age, disease duration, fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and IL-17. The combination of IL-17 and TNF-α had higher diagnostic value for DPN than any single cytokine. Patients with DPN had elevated levels of inflammatory cytokines, which were associated with negative emotion, and IL-17 had independent correlation with DPN.

Overlapping expression patterns of epithelial mucins, MUC1-MUC6, and transcription factor GATA-5 were reported previously. However, the functional relationship between them is poorly understood. The aim of the current study is to elucidate whether or not expression of mucin genes is regulated by GATA-5. GATA-5 was transiently overexpressed in COS-7 and 293T cells by plasmid transfection and/or adenovirus infection. GATA-5 expression was confirmed by Western blot analysis. Expression of mucin genes was studied by reverse-transcription-PCR. Reporter gene assays were employed to analyze the effect of GATA-5 on the promoter activity of mucin genes. mRNA levels of MUC2, MUC3, and MUC4 were increased, whereas those of MUC1, MUC5AC, MUC5B, and MUC6 remained unchanged upon the overexpression of GATA-5 in both COS-7 and 293T cells. By means of luciferase assay, GATA-5 was found to activate the promoters of the human MUC2 and MUC4 genes. GATA-5 lacking the zinc finger domain impaired these functions. These findings indicate that GATA-5 may play important roles in the regulation of mucin expression and gastrointestinal epithelial cell differentiation.

The electrochemical determination of nitric oxide in seawater with microelectrodes is reported in this paper. Two electrodes, ISO-NOPMC microsensor and modified platinum microelectrode, are evaluated for their performance in seawater. The peak current is found to be linear with the NO concentration in the range 1×10-6-1.2×10-5 mol/l for both microelectrodes. The detection limit of ISO-NOPMC microsensor is 1.4×10-8 mol/l. Two methods for calibration of NO sensor, saturated NO solutions and decomposition of S-nitroso-acetyl-DL-penicillamine (SNAP), are discussed and compared. In addition, we examined the performance degradation of these microelectrodes in seawater due to complexation with seawater components.

The development of Web-based global 3D visual system has made progresses. However, there exist few mature and effective ways for managing, transmitting and visualizing massive spatial data. Based on the related work, the paper illustrates the ellipsoidal quadtree technique for rapid access multi-scale and multiple level geographical data, integrates the streaming with level-of-detail rendering method for transmitting the data on the network, and implements large-scale terrain surface simplification using M-band wavelet transforms and multiresolution triangulations. We fulfil a web-based global terrain visual system using COM components on the basis of the above techniques. The system has a good prospect in the military simulation and city plans.

The spin and orbital ordering in Dy\\(_{1-x}\\)Tb\\(_{x}\\)VO\\(_3\\) (x\\,=\\,0 and 0.2) was studied by measuring x-ray powder diffraction, magnetization, specific heat, and neutron single crystal diffraction. The results show that G-OO/C-AF and C-OO/G-AF phases coexist in Dy\\(_{0.8}\\)Tb\\(_{0.20}\\)VO\\(_3\\) in the temperature range 2\\,K\\(\\sim\\)60\\,K and the volume fraction of each phase is temperature and field dependent. The ordering of Dy moments at T*\\,=\\,12\\,K induces a transition from G-OO/C-AF to a C-OO/G-AF phase. Magnetic fields suppress the long range order of Dy moments and thus the C-OO/G-AF phase below T*. The polarized moments induced at the Dy sublattice by external magnetic fields couple to the V 3d moments and this coupling favors the G-OO/C-AF state. Also discussed is the effect of the Dy-V magnetic interaction and local structure distortion on the spin and orbital ordering in Dy\\(_{1-x}\\)Tb\\(_{x}\\)VO\\(_3\\).