Survival and Performance of Two Cellulose-Degrading Microbial Systems Inoculated into Wheat Straw-Amended Soil

( Pei Pei Li ),( Dong Dong Zhang ),( Xiao Juan Wang ),( Xiao Fen Wang ),( Zong Jun Cui1 ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2012 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.22 No.1

A cellulose-degrading composite microbial system containing a mixture of microbes was previously shown to demonstrate a high straw-degrading capacity. To estimate its potential utilization as an inoculant to accelerate straw biodegradation after returning straw to the field, two cellulose-degrading composite microbial systems named ADS3 and WSD5 were inoculated into wheat straw-amended soil in the laboratory. The microbial survival of the inoculant was confirmed by a denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis, whereas the enhancement of straw degradation in soil was assessed by measuring the mineralization of the soil organic matter and the soil cellulase activity. The results indicated that most of the DGGE bands from ADS3 were detected after inoculation into straw-amended autoclaved soil, yet only certain bands from ADS3 and WSD5 were detected after inoculation into straw-amended non-autoclaved soil during five weeks of incubation; some bands were detected during the first two weeks after inoculation, and then disappeared in later stages. Organic matter mineralization was significantly higher in the soil inoculants ADS3 and WSD5 than in the uninoculated controls during the first week, yet the enhanced degradation did not persist during the subsequent incubation. Similar to the increase in soil organic matter, the cellulase activity also increased during the first week in the ADS3 and WSD5 treatments, yet decreased during the remainder of the incubation period. Thus, it was concluded that, although the survival and performance of the two inoculants did not persist in the soil, a significant enhancement of degradation was present during the early stage of incubation.

Iron Oxide Coated Polymeric Beads to Control Membrane Fouling in Ultrafiltration for Water Treatment

( Xiao Jun Cui ),( Kwang Ho Choo ) 한국물환경학회 ( 구 한국수질보전학회 ) 2009 공동 추계학술발표회 Vol.2009 No.-

Natural Organic Matter Removal and Fouling Control in Low-Pressure Membrane Filtration for Water Treatment

Xiao Jun Cui,Kwang Ho Choo 대한환경공학회 2014 Environmental Engineering Research Vol.19 No.1

Natural organic matter (NOM) is a primary component of fouling in low-pressure membrane filtration, either solely, or in concert with colloidal particles. Various preventive measures to interfere with NOM fouling have been developed and extensively tested, such as coagulation, oxidation, ion exchange, carbon adsorption, and mineral oxide adsorption. Therefore, this article aims to conduct a literaturere view covering the topics of low-pressure membrane processes, NOM characteristics and fouling behaviors, and diverse fouling control strategies. In-depth explanations and discussion are made regarding why some treatment options are able to remove NOM from source water, but do not reduce fouling. This review provides insight for hybridized membrane processes with respect to NOM removal and fouling mitigation in water treatment.

Distinctive Slow β Relaxation and Its Impact on Mechanical Property of LaCe Based Bulk Metallic Glasses

Xiao Cui,Jing Guo,Qi‑dong Zhang,Xiao‑jun Meng,Bing‑chuan Bian,Ren‑gao Zhao,Yu‑bai Ma,Fang‑qiu Zu 대한금속·재료학회 2020 METALS AND MATERIALS International Vol.26 No.10

The slow β relaxation which occurring at temperatures far below glass transition temperature, typically playing importantroles in the plastic deformation behavior of metallic glasses. Compared with polymer glasses, most of the metallic glasses donot exhibit obvious β relaxation based on dynamic mechanical analysis. In the current work, prominent β relaxation behaviorsof a series (LaxCe100−x) Al10Co25(x = 50, 60, 70, 80) bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) at low temperature are observed usingdynamic mechanical analysis. Compared with other BMGs, the LaCe based BMGs show a pronounced β relaxation peak andrelative low peak temperature, the activation energy of the β relaxation based on Arrhenius equation are calculated around79.3 kJ/mol to 86.4 kJ/mol, which obey an empirical rule that Eβ ≈ (26 ± 4) RTg, with the coefficient of 23. Experimentalresults from room temperature compression tests for the LaCe based BMGs indicate that low temperature activated β relaxationbehaviors facilitate the good plasticity of the LaCe based BMGs.

Annual Financial Impact of Thyroidectomies for Nodular Thyroid Disease in China

Liu, Xiao-Yun,Zhu, Li-Jun,Cui, Dai,Wang, Zhi-Xiao,Chen, Huan-Huan,Duan, Yu,Shen, Mei-Ping,Zhang, Zhi-Hong,Wang, Xiao-Dong,Chen, Jia-Wei,Alexander, Erik Karl,Yang, Tao Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.14

A large proportion of patients with thyroid nodules in China undergo thyroidectomy in order to get confirmatory histology diagnosis. The financial impact of this modality remains to be investigated. To evaluate rationality of performing thyroidectomy without a routine FNA preoperatively from the economic perspective, we conducted a retrospective, observational study of all archival thyroidectomies with records of cost per stay (CPS), cost per day (CPD) and length of stay (LOS) from 2008 to 2013 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. We compared all the parameters between cancer and non-cancer thyroidectomies. We recruited 6, 140 thyroidectomies with valid records of CPS, CPD and LOS in this period. The CPS of cancer thyroidectomy was significantly higher than non-cancer thyroidectomy. The percentage of cancer thyroidectomy increased from 26.5% to 41.6%. The percentage of annual cost of cancer thyroidectomies rose from 30.2% to 45.2%. The LOS for cancer and non-cancer thyroidectomy decreased while the CPD increased in the past six years. The estimated national cost in 2012 for all thyroidectomies would be USD 1.86 billion with USD 1.09 billion for non-cancer thyroidectomies. We have witnessed great improvement in the healthcare for patients with thyroid nodules in China. However, given limited healthcare resources, currently thyroid FNA for more precise preoperative diagnosis may help to curb the rapidly increasing demand in healthcare costs in the future for nodular thyroid disease in China.

RALY RNA Binding Protein-like Reduced Expression is Associated with Poor Prognosis in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma

Cui, Zhi-Wen,Xia, Ye,Ye, Yi-Wang,Jiang, Zhi-Mao,Wang, Ya-Dong,Wu, Jian-Ting,Sun, Liang,Zhao, Jun,Fa, Ping-Ping,Sun, Xiao-Juan,Gui, Yao-Ting,Cai, Zhi-Ming Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.7

The molecular mechanisms involved in the progression of clear cell renal cell carcinomas (ccRCCs) are still unclear. The aim of this study was to analyse the relationships between expression of RALYL and clinical characteristics. In 41 paired samples of ccRCCs and adjacent normal tissues, we used real-time qPCR to evaluate the expression of RALYL mRNA. RALYL protein levels were determined in 146 samples of ccRCC and 37 adjacent normal tissues by immunohistochemistry. Statistical analysis was used to explore the relationships between expression of RALYL and the clinical characteristics (gender, age, tumor size, T stage, N stage, M stage, survival times and survival outcome) in ccRCC. In addition, these patients were follow-up period 64 months (range: 4~116months) to investigate the influence on prognosis. We found significantly differences between ccRCC tissues and normal tissues (p<0.001, paired-sample t test) in mRNA levels of RALYL. Immunohistochemistry analyses in 146 ccRCC samples and 37 adjacent normal tissues showed significantly lower RALYL protein levels in ccRCC samples (${\chi}^2$-test, p<0.001), inversely correlating with tumour size (p=0.024), T stage (0.005), N stage (p<0.001) as well as M stage (p=0.019), but not age (p=0.357) and gender (p=0.348). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis demonstrated that people with lower level of RALYL expression had a poorer survival rate than those with a higher level of RALYL expression, significantly different by the log-rank test (p=0.011). Cox regression analysis indicated that RALYL expression (p=0.039), N stage (p=0.008) and distant metastasis (p<0.001) were independent prognosis factors for the overall survival of ccRCC patients. We demonstrated that the expression of RALYL was significantly low in ccRCC and correlated with a poor prognosis in a large number of clinical samples. Our findings showed that RALYL may be a potential therapeutic target as well as a poor prognostic factor.

Oxidation behavior of C/C composites with B4C-SiCZrC-ZrB2 coating prepared by infiltration and pyrolysis

Xiao-Hua Zuo,Zhi-Jun Dong,Guan-Ming Yuan,Zheng-Wei Cui,Xuan-Ke Li 한양대학교 세라믹연구소 2021 Journal of Ceramic Processing Research Vol.22 No.1

Polycarbosilane, B-Si and B-Si-Zr modification coal tar pitch were used as impregnate agent for infiltration and pyrolysis formation of carbon/carbon (abbreviated as C/C) composites with B4C-SiC-ZrC-ZrB2 coating. The density of the composites was examined to be 1.0 g·cm-3, 1.4 g·cm-3 and 1.8 g·cm-3, respectively. The phase compositions, surface morphologies and element distributions of the coating were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispervive spectroscopy (EDS), respectively. The result showed that the two composites with a density of 1.4 g·cm-3 and 1.8 g·cm-3 displayed compact microstructures. The oxidation behavior of the composites was studied by oxidation in air at temperatures from 800 to 1,550 ℃ for 1 h. The composites with a density of 1.8 g·cm-3 exhibited a lower weight loss of 1.8 % after oxidation. B4C-SiC-ZrC-ZrB2 coating was found to provide the best protection by the precipitated B2O3, SiO2 and ZrO2 on the surface of the composites during the oxidation process, which were characterized by self-healing and antioxidation. The C/C composites with B4C-SiC-ZrC-ZrB2 coating performed well at high temperatures with the formation of complex oxides glass film that prevented oxygen from further spreading into the matrix.

Radiosensitivity Enhancement by Arsenic Trioxide in Conjunction with Hyperthermia in the EC-1 Esophageal Carcinoma Cell Line

Cui, Yan-Hui,Liang, Hai-Jun,Zhang, Qing-Qin,Li, Si-Qing,Li, Xiao-Rui,Huo, Xiao-Qing,Yang, Qing-Hui,Li, Wei-Wei,Gu, Jian-Fa,Hua, Qin-Liang,Lu, Ping,Miao, Zhan-Hui Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.4

Objective: To explore the effect on radiosensitivity of arsenic trioxide ($As_20_3$) in conjunction with hyperthermia on the esophageal carcinoma EC-1 cell line. Method: Inhibition of EC-1 cell proliferation at different concentrations of $As_20_3$ was assessed using the methyl thiazolyl blue colorimetric method (MTT method), with calculation of $IC_{50}$ value and choice of 20% of the $IC_{50}$ as the experimental drug concentration. Blank control, $As_20_3$, hyperthermia, radiotherapy group, $As_20_3$ + hyperthermia, $As_20_3$ + radiotherapy, hyperthermia + radiotherapy and $As_20_3$ + hyperthermia + radiotherapy groups were established, and the cell survival fraction (SF) was calculated from flat panel colony forming analysis, and fitted by the 'multitarget click mathematical model'. Flow cytometry (FCM) was used to detect changes in cell apoptosis and the cell cycle. Results: $As_20_3$ exerted inhibitory effects on proliferation of esophageal carcinoma EC-1 cells, with an $IC_{50}$ of 18.7 ${\mu}mol/L$. After joint therapy of $As_20_3$ + hyperthermia + radiotherapy, the results of FCM showed that cells could be arrested in the $G_2$/M phase, and as the ratio of cells in $G_0/G_1$ and S phases decreased, cell death became more pronounced. Conclusion: $As_20_3$ and hyperthermia exert radiosensitivity effects on esophageal carcinoma EC-1 cells, with synergy in combination. Mechanistically, $As_20_3$ and hyperthermia mainly influence the cell cycle distribution of EC-1 esophageal carcinoma cells, decreasing the repair of sublethal damage and inducing apoptosis, thereby enhancing the killing effects of radioactive rays.

Three 1-(4-Hydroxyphenyl)-1H-1,2,4-triazole-based Cd(II) Coordination Polymers Directed by Aromatic Polycarboxylate Coligands

Xiao-Jun Zhao,En-Cui Yang,Fang Jia, 대한화학회 2008 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.29 No.11

The reactions of 1-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-1H-1,2,4-triazole (hptrz) and inorganic Cd(II) salts with different aromatic polycarboxylic acids in mixed-solvent led to the formation of three new crystalline coordination polymers, {[Cd(H2O)2(hptrz)(Hbtc)]n·CH3OH·H2O} 1, [Cd2(H2O)2(hptrz)2(tp)2]n 2, and {[Cd(H2O)2(hptrz)- (OH-ip)]n·DMF·H2O} 3 (H3btc = 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylic acid, H2tp = terephthalic acid, and OH-H2ip = 5- hydroxyisophthalic acid), which were fully characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, single crystal X-ray crystallography, thermogravimertric analysis and luminescence spectra. Structure determination revealed that one-dimensional (1-D) polymeric chains for 1 and 3, and 2-D layered structure for 2 are significantly directed by the coordination mode of the carboxylate groups from aromatic coligands. In contrast, the terminal hptrz ligand affords its uncoordinated phenolic OH group to form classical H-bond interactions with coordinated water and/or carboxylate groups, which are responsible for the formation of 3-D supramolecular networks. In addition, the three solid coordination polymers with considerable thermal stability present strong hptrz-based fluorescence emissions at room temperature.

ODV-Associated Proteins of the <i>Pieris rapae</i> Granulovirus

Wang, Xiao-Feng,Zhang, Bao-Qin,Xu, Hai-Jun,Cui, Ying-Jun,Xu, Yi-Peng,Zhang, Min-Juan,Han, Yeon Soo,Lee, Yong Seok,Bao, Yan-Yuan,Zhang, Chuan-Xi American Chemical Society 2011 JOURNAL OF PROTEOME RESEARCH Vol.10 No.6

<P><I>Alphabaculovirus</I> (lepidopteran-specific nucleopolyhedroviruses, NPV) and <I>Betabaculovirus</I> (granuloviruses, GV) are two main genera of the family Baculoviridae. The virion proteomes of <I>Alphabaculovirus</I> have been well studied; however, the <I>Betabaculovirus</I> virion compositions remain unclear. <I>Pieris rapae</I> granulovirus (PrGV) can kill larvae of <I>P. rapae</I>, a worldwide and important pest of mustard family crops. In this study, the occlusion-derived virus (ODV)-associated proteins of PrGV were identified using three mass spectrometry (MS) approaches. The MS analyses demonstrated that 47 proteins were present in PrGV-ODV. Of the 47 PrGV-ODV proteins, 33 have homologues identified previously in other baculovirus ODV/BVs, whereas 14 (P10, Pr21, Pr29, Pr35, Pr42, Pr54, P45/48, Pr83, Pr84, Pr89, Pr92, Pr111, Pr114 and FGF3) were newly identified ODV proteins. Seven of the 14 newly identified ODV proteins are specific to <I>Betabaculovirus</I>, including Pr35, Pr42, Pr54, Pr83, Pr84, Pr111 and Pr114. Furthermore, the data derived from these MS approaches were validated by immunoblotting analysis using antisera prepared from 11 randomly selected recombinant PrGV-ODV proteins (including 5 <I>Betabaculovirus</I>-unique proteins). Comparison analyses revealed the similar and different compositions between <I>Betabaculovirus</I> and <I>Alphabaculovirus</I> virions, which deepen our understanding of the baculovirus virion structure and provide helpful information on <I>Betabaculovirus</I>–host interaction studies.</P><P>We used three mass spectrometry (MS) approaches to identify the occlusion-derived virus (ODV)-associated proteins of the <I>Pieris rapae</I> Granulovirus. A total of 47 proteins were identified; 14 of them were first identified in the ODV, and 7 are specific to Granulovirus.</P><P><B>Graphic Abstract</B> <IMG SRC='http://pubs.acs.org/appl/literatum/publisher/achs/journals/content/jprobs/2011/jprobs.2011.10.issue-6/pr2000804/production/images/medium/pr-2011-000804_0002.gif'></P>