Retinoic Acid Promotes Interleukin-4 Plasmid-Dimethylsulfoxide Topical Transdermal Delivery for Treatment of Psoriasis

( Zhong Wen Chen ),( Yin Bing Zhang ),( Xaing Jun Chen ),( Xiao Liu ),( Zhen Wang ),( Xi Kun Zhou ),( Ji Qiu ),( Nan Nan Zhang ),( Xiu Teng ),( Yong Qiu Mao ),( Chang Yong Liu ),( Yu Quan Wei ),( Jion 대한피부과학회 2015 Annals of Dermatology Vol.27 No.2

Background: Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease that is caused by a shift in the Th1/Th2 balance toward Th1- dominant immunity. It has been established as an effective treatment to counteract psoriasis by subcutaneous injection of recombinant interleukin (IL)-4, and IL-4 gene therapy by topical transdermal penetration has shown its antipsoriatic effect in mice. Retinoic acid (RA) and dimethylsulfoxide can increase the efficiency of gene transfection in the topical transdermal delivery system. Objective: We investigated whether RA could improve anti-psoriasis efficiency using IL-4 expression plasmid pORF-mIL-4 (pIL-4) via transdermal delivery system in K14-vascular endothelial growth (K14- VEGF) factor transgenic mice. Methods: After pretreatment with RA, plasmid pIL-4 in 10% dimethylsulfoxide was applied to the ear skin by topical transdermal penetration. Hematoxylin- eosin staining and immunohistochemistry were performed with ear samples to evaluate anti-psoriasis efficiency in mice. Results: The psoriasis pathological features were relieved and psoriasis-associated factors were significantly reduced. Conclusion: Our results reveal that topical application of pIL-4 in dimethylsulfoxide by transdermal delivery with RA pretreatment can improve psoriasis significantly.(Ann Dermatol 27(2) 121∼127, 2015)

Association between the XRCC3 Thr241Met Polymorphism and Breast Cancer Risk: an Updated Meta-analysis of 36 Case-control Studies

Mao, Chang-Fei,Qian, Wen-Yi,Wu, Jian-Zhong,Sun, Da-Wei,Tang, Jin-Hai Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.16

Background: The X-ray repair cross-complementing group 3 (XRCC3) is a highly suspected candidate gene for cancer susceptibility. Attention has been drawn upon associations of the XRCC3 Thr241Met polymorphism with breast cancer risk. However, the previous published findings remain controversial. Hence, we performed a meta-analysis to accurately evaluate any association between breast cancer and XRCC3 T241M (23, 812 cases and 25, 349 controls) in different inheritance models. Materials and Methods: PubMed and Web of Science databases were searched systematically until December 31, 2013 to obtain all the records evaluating the association between the XRCC3 Thr241Met polymorphism and breast cancer risk. Crude odds ratios (ORs) together with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to assess the strength of associations. Results: When all eligible studies were pooled into the meta analysis of XRCC3 T241M polymorphism, a significantly increased breast cancer risk was observed in heterozygote comparison (OR=1.06, 95%CI=1.01-1.12). No significant associations were found in other models. In subgroup analysis, this polymorphism seemed to be associated with elevated breast risk in Asians. No publication bias was detected. Conclusions: This meta-analysis suggests that the T241M polymorphism confers a weakly increased breast cancer risk. A study with the larger sample size is needed to further evaluate gene-gene and gene-environment interactions of the XRCC3 T241M polymorphism with breast cancer risk.

Fast Partial Shading Analysis of Large-scale Photovoltaic Arrays via Tearing Method

Mao Zhang,Sunan Zhong,Weiping Zhang 전력전자학회 2018 JOURNAL OF POWER ELECTRONICS Vol.18 No.5

Partial shading analysis of large-scale photovoltaic (PV) arrays has recently become a theoretically and numerically challenging issue, and it is necessary for PV system designers. The main contributions of this study are the following: 1) A PSIM-based macro-model was employed because it is remarkably fast, has high precision, and has no convergence issues. 2) Three types of equivalent macro-models were developed for the transformation of a small PV sub-array with uniform irradiance to a new macro-model. 3) On the basis of the proposed new macro-model, a tearing method was established, which can divide a large-scale PV array into several small sub-arrays to significantly improve the efficiency improvement of a simulation. 4) Three platforms, namely, PSIM, PSpice, and MATLAB, were applied to evaluate the proposed tearing method. The proposed models and methods were validated, and the value of this research was highlighted using an actual large-scale PV array with 2420 PV modules. Numerical simulation demonstrated that the tearing method can remarkably improve the simulation efficiency by approximately thousands of times, and the method obtained a precision of nearly 6.5%. It can provide a useful tool to design the optimal configuration of a PV array with a given shading pattern as much as possible.

Rational finite element method for plane orthotropic elastic problems

Mao, Ling,Yao, Weian,Gao, Qiang,Zhong, Wanxie Techno-Press 2014 Structural Engineering and Mechanics, An Int'l Jou Vol.51 No.6

The rational finite element method is different from the standard finite element method, which is constructed using basic solutions of the governing differential equations as interpolation functions in the elements. Therefore, it is superior to the isoparametric approach because of its obvious physical meaning and accuracy; it has successfully been applied to the isotropic elasticity problem. In this paper, the formulation of rational finite elements for plane orthotropic elasticity problems is deduced. This method is formulated directly in the physical domain with full consideration of the requirements of the patch test. Based on the number of element nodes and the interpolation functions, different approaches are applied with complete polynomial interpolation functions. Then, two special stiffness matrixes of elements with four and five nodes are deduced as a representative application. In addition, some typical numerical examples are considered to evaluate the performance of the elements. The numerical results demonstrate that the present method has a high level of accuracy and is an effective technique for solving plane orthotropic elasticity problems.

Genetic Polymorphism of Milk Protein and Their Relationships with Milking Traits in Chinese Yak

Mao, Y.J.,Zhong, G.H.,Zheng, Y.C.,Pen, X.W.,Yang, Z.P.,Wang, Y.,Jiang, M.F. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2004 Animal Bioscience Vol.17 No.11

Milk protein polymorphisms were genotyped by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) from 109 Maiwa and 100 Jiulong yaks. The relationships between milk protein polymorphisms and 3 milking traits were studied. The results showed that $\beta$-CN, $\kappa$-CN and $\alpha$-La were monomorphic, and ${\alpha}_{s1}$-CN and $\beta$-Lg were polymorphic, with ${\alpha}_{s1}$-CN D and $\beta$-Lg E as dominant genes, respectively. The frequencies of ${\alpha}_{s1}$-CN D were 0.8073 and 0.6000 in two populations and $\beta$-Lg E were 0.9770 and 0.9700. The mean heterozygosities were 0.1021 and 0.1867 in the two populations. No significant effects on milking traits and milk protein compositions were observed except for ${\alpha}_{s1}$-CN locus on fat percentage in Jiulong yak.

Retinoic Acid Promotes Interleukin-4 Plasmid-Dimethylsulfoxide Topical Transdermal Delivery for Treatment of Psoriasis

( Zhong Wen Chen ),( Yin Bing Zhang ),( Xaing Jun Chen ),( Xiao Liu ),( Zhen Wang ),( Xi Kun Zhou ),( Ji Qiu ),( Nan Nan Zhang ),( Xiu Teng ),( Yong Qiu Mao ),( Chang Yong Liu ),( Yu Quan Wei ),( Jion 대한피부과학회 2015 Annals of Dermatology Vol.27 No.3

Background: Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease that is caused by a shift in the Th1/Th2 balance toward Th1- dominant immunity. It has been established as an effective treatment to counteract psoriasis by subcutaneous injection of recombinant interleukin (IL)-4, and IL-4 gene therapy by topical transdermal penetration has shown its antipsoriatic effect in mice. Retinoic acid (RA) and dimethylsulfoxide can increase the efficiency of gene transfection in the topical transdermal delivery system. Objective: We investigated whether RA could improve anti-psoriasis efficiency using IL-4 expression plasmid pORF-mIL-4 (pIL-4) via transdermal delivery system in K14-vascular endothelial growth (K14- VEGF) factor transgenic mice. Methods: After pretreatment with RA, plasmid pIL-4 in 10% dimethylsulfoxide was applied to the ear skin by topical transdermal penetration. Hematoxylin- eosin staining and immunohistochemistry were performed with ear samples to evaluate anti-psoriasis efficiency in mice. Results: The psoriasis pathological features were relieved and psoriasis-associated factors were significantly reduced. Conclusion: Our results reveal that topical application of pIL-4 in dimethylsulfoxide by transdermal delivery with RA pretreatment can improve psoriasis significantly. (Ann Dermatol 27(2) 121∼127, 2015)

Knockdown of Ezrin by RNA Interference Reverses Malignant Behavior of Human Pancreatic Cancer Cells in Vitro

Zhong, Zhi-Qiang,Song, Mao-Min,He, Ying,Cheng, Shi,Yuan, Hui-Sheng Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.8

Background: Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive tumors with a dismal prognosis. The membrane cytoskeletal crosslinker Ezrin participates in several functions including cell proliferation, adhesion, motility and survival. There is increasing evidence that Ezrin is overexpressed in vast majority of malignant tumors and regulates tumor progression. However, its roles in pancreatic cancer remain elusive. Methods: Three pairs of specific Ezrin siRNAs were designed and synthetized and screened to determine the most efficient one for construction of a hairpin RNA plasmid targeting Ezrin. After transfection into the Panc-1 pancreatic cancer cell line, real-time quantitative PCR and Western blotting were performed to examine the expression of mRNA and protein. The MTT method was applied to examine the proliferation and the drug sensibility to Gemcitabine. Flow cytometry was used to assess the cycle and apoptosis, while capacity for invasion was determined with transwell chambers. Furthermore, we detected phosphorylated-Erk1/2 protein and phosphorylated-Akt protein by Western blotting. Results: Real-time quantitative PCR and Western blotting revealed that Ezrin expression was notably down-regulated at both mRNA and protein levels by RNA interference (P< 0.01). Proliferation was inhibited and drug resistance to gemcitabine was improved (P< 0.05). Flow cytometry showed that the proportion of cells in the G1/G0 phase increased (P< 0.01), and in G2/M and S phases decreased (P< 0.05), with no apparent differences in apoptosis (P> 0.05). The capacity for invasion was markedly reduced (P< 0.01). In addition, down-regulating Ezrin expression had no effect on phosphorylated-Akt protein (P>0.05), but could decrease the level of phosphorylated-Erk1/2 protein (P< 0.05). Conclusions: RNA interference of Ezrin could inhibit its expression in the pancreatic cancer cells line Panc-1, leading to a potent suppression of malignant behavior in vitro. Assessment of potential as a target for pancreatic cancer treatment is clearly warranted.

Tensile Behaviors of Laser-Discrete-Quenched Substrate/Nickel Coating of Electroplated Grinding Wheel

Cong Mao,Yujie Zhong,Yongle Hu,Weidong Tang,Z. M. Bi,Zhaohong Lei,Changchun Jiang,Aimin Tang 한국정밀공학회 2022 International Journal of Precision Engineering and Vol.9 No.5

Electroplated grinding wheel has significant advantages, such as longer service life, higher removal rate, reduction of preparation work, reapplication of the wheel bub. Then it is an efficient, green and eco-friendly abrasive tool. In order to reveal the mechanism that the service life of the electroplated grinding wheel is increased by pre-quenched substrate, the tensile behavior and interfacial stresses of the laser-discrete-quenched substrate/nickel coating were studied through tensile experiment and simulation. The results show that random initial cracks appear in the nickel coating over the unquenched zone before the tensile experiment. There is an inter-diffusion region at the interface of steel substrate and nickel coating; in comparison with the unquenched zone, the size of the inter-diffusion region in the laser-quenched zone was decreased significantly (e.g., 1.2 μm in comparison with 2.6 μm). In tensile testing, the coating over the pre-quenched specimen remains bonded with the substrate firmly even the fracture occurs. In contrast, the damages in the forms of blistering, stripping and exfoliating occurred in the coating over the unquenched specimen. When a fracture occurs, there is a significant difference of the ultimate strains of quenched and unquenched zones; the ultimate strain of quenched zone is 0.0714, while that of the unquenched zone is 0.1667. At the bonding interface, the pre-quenched specimen ensured the overall shear stress and the maximum normal stress, which are lower than those of unquenched specimen. The initial cracks in pre-quenched specimen propagate during stretching, the effect of the absorbed strain energy reduces strain mismatch between the substrate and coating at the interface, and this improves the bonding strength at the interface of the laser-discrete-quenched specimen significantly.

Rational finite element method for plane orthotropic elastic problems

Ling Mao,Weian Yao,Qiang Gao,Wanxie Zhong 국제구조공학회 2014 Structural Engineering and Mechanics, An Int'l Jou Vol.51 No.6

The rational finite element method is different from the standard finite element method, which is constructed using basic solutions of the governing differential equations as interpolation functions in the elements. Therefore, it is superior to the isoparametric approach because of its obvious physical meaning and accuracy; it has successfully been applied to the isotropic elasticity problem. In this paper, the formulation of rational finite elements for plane orthotropic elasticity problems is deduced. This method is formulated directly in the physical domain with full consideration of the requirements of the patch test. Based on the number of element nodes and the interpolation functions, different approaches are applied with complete polynomial interpolation functions. Then, two special stiffness matrixes of elements with four and five nodes are deduced as a representative application. In addition, some typical numerical examples are considered to evaluate the performance of the elements. The numerical results demonstrate that the present method has a high level of accuracy and is an effective technique for solving plane orthotropic elasticity problems.

Delay-Bounded Associated Tasks Scheduling Based on Hierarchical Graph Model in the Cloud

Yingchi Mao,Haishing Zhong,Longbao Wang,Xiaofang Li 보안공학연구지원센터 2016 International Journal of Hybrid Information Techno Vol.9 No.12

Cloud computing can provide the dynamic and elastic virtual resources for the users to execute the large-scale computing tasks. It has become the hot spot in the academic and industry fields. Task scheduling is one of the most important issues in the Cloud. In the Cloud systems, the goal of the tasks scheduling is to spread the workload among the computing nodes and maximize the utilization while the total execution time is within the specific delay bound. At present, almost scheduling algorithms focus on the single task dispatch in the Cloud. Unfortunately, there is little research on the associate tasks scheduling considering the deadline bound. In this paper, two hierarchical task models were discussed and the corresponding associated task scheduling algorithms based on delay-bound constraint (ATS-DB and SAH-DB) were proposed. The associated tasks and the task execution order were represented by one directed acyclic graph (DAG). The proposed hierarchical task models can improve the task execution concurrency. Extensive experimental results demonstrated that the proposed scheduling algorithms, ATS-DB and SAH-DB, can reduce the execution cost and improve the resource utilization within the user-expected delay bound.