Photocatalytic study of Zinc Oxide with bismuth doping prepared by spray pyrolysis

Lin, Tzu-Yang,Hsu, Yu-Ting,Lan, Wen-How,Huang, Chien-Jung,Chen, Lung-Chien,Huang, Yu-Hsuan,Lin, Jia-Ching,Chang, Kuo-Jen,Lin, Wen-Jen,Huang, Kai-Feng Techno-Press 2015 Advances in nano research Vol.3 No.3

The unintentionally doped and bismuth (Bi) doped zinc oxide (ZnO) films were prepared by spray pyrolysis at $450^{\circ}C$ with zinc acetate and bismuth nitrate precursor. The n-type conduction with concentration $6.13{\times}10^{16}cm^{-3}$ can be observed for the unintentionally doped ZnO. With the increasing of bismuth nitrate concentration in precursor, the p-type conduction can be observed. The p-type concentration $4.44{\times}10^{17}cm^{-3}$ can be achieved for the film with the Bi/Zn atomic ratio 5% in the precursor. The photoluminescence spectroscopy with HeCd laser light source was studied for films with different Bi doping. The photocatalytic activity for the unintentionally doped and Bi-doped ZnO films was studied through the photodegradation of Congo red under UV light illumination. The effects of different Bi contents on photocatalytic activity are studied and discussed. Results show that appropriate Bi doping in ZnO can increase photocatalytic activity.

The Expression of Carnosine and Its Effect on the Antioxidant Capacity of Longissimus dorsi Muscle in Finishing Pigs Exposed to Constant Heat Stress

Yang, Peige,Hao, Yue,Feng, Jinghai,Lin, Hai,Feng, Yuejin,Wu, Xin,Yang, Xin,Gu, Xianhong Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2014 Animal Bioscience Vol.27 No.12

The objective of this study was to assess the effects of constant high ambient temperatures on meat quality, antioxidant capacity, and carnosine expression in longissimus dorsi muscle of finishing pigs. Castrated 24 male DLY (crossbreeds between Landrace${\times}$Yorkshire sows and Duroc boars) pigs were allocated to one of three treatments: constant ambient temperature at $22^{\circ}C$ and ad libitum feeding (CON, n = 8); constant high ambient temperature at $30^{\circ}C$ and ad libitum feeding (H30, n = 8); and constant ambient temperature at $22^{\circ}C$ and pair-fed with H30 (PF, n = 8). Meat quality, malondialdehyde (MDA) content, antioxidant capacity, carnosine content, and carnosine synthetase (CARNS1) mRNA expression in longissimus dorsi muscle were measured after three weeks. The results revealed that H30 had lower $pH_{24h}$, redness at 45 min, and yellowness at 24 h post-mortem (p<0.05), and higher drip loss at 48 h and lightness at 24 h post-mortem (p<0.01). Constant heat stress disrupted the pro-oxidant/antioxidant balance in longissimus dorsi muscle with higher MDA content (p<0.01) and lower antioxidant capacity (p<0.01). Carnosine content and CARNS1 mRNA expression in longissimus dorsi muscle of H30 pigs were significantly decreased (p<0.01) after three weeks at $30^{\circ}C$. In conclusion, constant high ambient temperatures affect meat quality and antioxidant capacity negatively, and the reduction of muscle carnosine content is one of the probable reasons.

CK2 phosphorylates AP-2α and increases its transcriptional activity

( Kai Qun Ren ),( Shuang Lin Xiang ),( Fang Li He ),( Wen Feng Zhang ),( Xiao Feng Ding ),( Yan Yang Wu ),( Li Ping Yang ),( Jian Lin Zhou ),( Xiang Gao ),( Jian Zhang ) 생화학분자생물학회(구 한국생화학분자생물학회) 2011 BMB Reports Vol.44 No.7

Transcription factor AP-2α involves in the process of mammalian embryonic development and tumorigenesis. Many studies have shown that AP-2α functions in association with other interacting proteins. In a two-hybrid screening, the regulatory subunit β of protein casein kinase 2 (CK2β) was identified as an interacting protein of AP-2α; we confirmed this interaction using in-vitro GST pull-down and in-vivo co-immunoprecipitation assays; in an endogenous co-immunoprecipitation experiment, we further found the catalytic subunit α of protein casein kinase 2 (CK2α) also exists in the complex. Phosphorylation analysis revealed that AP-2α was phosphorylated by CK2 kinase majorly at the site of Ser429, and such phosphorylation could be blocked by CK2 specific inhibitor 4,5,6,7-tetrabromobenzotriazole (TBB) in a dose-dependent manner. Luciferase assays demonstrated that both CK2α and CK2β enhanced the transcription activity of AP-2α; moreover, CK2β increased the stability of AP-2α. Our data suggest a novel cellular function of CK-2 as a transcriptional co-activator of AP-2α.

A Method for Multiple Identification of Four β2-Agonists in Goat Muscle and Beef Muscle Meats Using LC-MS/MS Based on Deproteinization by Adjusting pH and SPE for Sample Cleanup

Lin Xiong,Ya-Qin Gao,Wei-Hong Li,Tian-Feng Guo,Xiao-Lin Yang 한국식품과학회 2015 Food Science and Biotechnology Vol.24 No.5

An LC-MS/MS method was established for simultaneous identification of levels of bilpaterol, cimbuterol, clenproperol, and bambuterol in goat and beef muscle. Meat samples were subjected to extraction using an aqueous acidic solution and cleansed using MCX solid phase extraction. β2-Agonists residues were extracted using an aqueous acidic solution. Proteins in extraction liquids was removed based on adjusting pH using perchloric acid and a sodium hydroxide solution, followed by SPE for clean-up. Linearity values of the method based on R2 values were 0.9976-0.9997 with 70.1-108.8% recovery and relative standard deviation values of 3.5-13.3%. Low limits of detection (LOD) and quantitation (LOQ) of 0.01-0.02 and 0.02-0.08 μg/kg, respectively, were achieved for spiked goat and spiked beef muscle. The method was sensitive and specific and is an improvement over other currently available technologies.

Polymorphisms of melatonin receptor genes and their associations with egg production traits in Shaoxing duck

Feng, Peishi,Zhao, Wanqiu,Xie, Qiang,Zeng, Tao,Lu, Lizhi,Yang, Lin Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2018 Animal Bioscience Vol.31 No.10

Objective: In birds, three types of melatonin receptors (MTNR1A, MTNR1B, and MTNR1C) have been cloned. Previous researches have showed that three melatonin receptors played an essential role in reproduction and ovarian physiology. However, the association of polymorphisms of the three receptors with duck reproduction traits and egg quality traits is still unknown. In this test, we chose MTNR1A, MTNR1B, and MTNR1C as candidate genes to detect novel sequence polymorphism and analyze their association with egg production traits in Shaoxing duck, and detected their mRNA expression level in ovaries. Methods: In this study, a total of 785 duck blood samples were collected to investigate the association of melatonin receptor genes with egg production traits and egg quality traits using a direct sequencing method. And 6 ducks representing two groups (3 of each) according to the age at first eggs (at 128 days of age or after 150 days of age) were carefully selected for quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results: Seven novel polymorphisms (MTNR1A: g. 268C>T, MTNR1B: g. 41C>T, and g. 161T>C, MTNR1C: g. 10C>T, g. 24A>G, g. 108C>T, g. 363 T>C) were detected. The single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of MTNR1A (g. 268C>T) was significantly linked with the age at first egg (p<0.05). And a statistically significant association (p<0.05) was found between MTNR1C g.108 C>T and egg production traits: total egg numbers at 34 weeks old of age and age at first egg. In addition, the mRNA expression level of MTNR1A in ovary was significantly higher in late-mature group than in early-mature group, while MTNR1C showed a contrary tendency (p<0.05). Conclusion: These results suggest that identified SNPs in MTNR1A and MTNR1C may influence the age at first egg and could be considered as the candidate molecular marker for identify early maturely traits in duck selection and improvement.

Long non-coding RNA RP11-6O2.4 indicates poor prognosis and suppresses cell cycle progression through the p38-MAPK signaling pathway in gastric cancer

Yang Feng,Zhiming Fu,Yajun Luo,Wang Tan,Zilin Liu,Pengcheng Ye,Fei Lu,Wanping Xiang,Linghan Tang,Lin Yao,Mengyun Song,Qingmei Huang,Yilun Liu,Jiangwei Xiao 대한독성 유전단백체 학회 2019 Molecular & cellular toxicology Vol.15 No.3

Backgrounds: The role of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) in gastric cancer (GC) has been highlighted in studies conducted over the past decade. However, the potential clinical value and the mechanisms of action of RP11-6O2.4 in GC have not been thoroughly elucidated to date. The specific aim of the present study was to assess RP11-6O2.4 and to explore its role in human GC. Methods: Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was performed to analyze the expression levels of RP11-6O2.4 in GC tissues, paired adjacent noncancerous tissues (ANTs) and GC cell lines. In addition, the correlation between RP11-6O2.4 expression and the clinical characteristics and prognosis of patients with GC was statistically analyzed. The effects of RP11- 6O2.4 on the GC cell cycle transformation through the p38-MAPK signaling pathway were explored by flow cytometry, qPCR and Western blot analysis after treatment with SB203580, a p38MAPK specific inhibitor, in vitro. Results: The expression levels of RP11-6O2.4 in GC tissues were significantly lower than the paired ANTs (P<0.05). In addition, RP11-6O2.4 expression was significantly lower in cases with older age, longer maximum tumor diameter, higher ASA grade and deeper invasive depth (P<0.05). RP11-6O2.4 expression was significantly higher in cases with well/middle differentiation than poor/no differentiation; higher in cases without lymph node metastasis than in lymph node metastasis; and higher in cases in stage Ⅰ/Ⅱ than in stage Ⅲ/Ⅳ. An in vitro assay showed that RP11-6O2.4 induced G0/ G1 phase cell cycle arrest, likely by regulating the p38- MAPK signaling pathway. Conclusion: The above mentioned data suggested that RP11-6O2.4 was a tumor-suppressor gene in GC. RP11- 6O2.4 might play an important role in the cell cycle transformation by regulating the p38-MAPK signaling pathway, thereby representing a specific biomarker and a potential molecular target for the treatment of GC.

Anatomic Variants on Computed Tomography in Congenital Aural Atresia and Stenosis

Feng-hua Qin,Tian-yu Zhang,Peidong Dai,Lin Yang 대한이비인후과학회 2015 Clinical and Experimental Otorhinolaryngology Vol.8 No.4

Objectives. To quantitatively analyzing the anatomic variants on temporal computed tomography (CT) in congenital external auditory canal stenosis (EACS), congenital aural atresia (CAA), and normal ear structure. Methods. Through a retrospective study, we analyzed 142 temporal high-resolution CT studies performed in 71 microtia patients. The following 6 parameters were compared among the three groups: Marx classification, medial canal diameter, vertical facial nerve (VFN) anterior displacement, tegmen mastoideum position, tympanic cavity volume, and malleus-incus joint or malleus-incus complex (MIC) area. Results. The results showed that the microtia distributions in the Marx classification in these three groups were significantly different, as 86% (31 of 35) of ears with major microtia (third-degree dysplasia) had an atresia, and in 54.8% (23 of 42) of the minor microtic (first-degree or second-degree) ears, the bony or cartilaginous part of the external auditory canal was stenotic. Measurement data also showed that the potential medial canal diameter of the atresia group was obviously shorter than that of the stenosis group. The VFN anterior displacement and temporomandibular joint backward-shift together lead to medial canal diameters in ears with atresic canals that is smaller than those with stenotic canals. The tegmen mastoideum position was not significantly different between the three groups. Conclusion. The mal-development of the external auditory canal is significantly associated with auricle and middle ear developmental anomalies. Compared with CAA ears, EACS have better development of the auricle, canal, tympanic cavity and MIC and relatively safer surgical operation except for the position of the tegmen mastoideum and the VFN.

Microstructure analysis of pressure resistance seal welding joint of zirconium alloy tube-plug structure

Feng Gang,Lin Jian,Yang Shuai,Zhang Boxuan,Wang Jiangang,Yang Jia,Xu Zhongfeng,Lei Yongping 한국원자력학회 2023 Nuclear Engineering and Technology Vol.55 No.11

Pressure resistance welding is usually used to seal the connection between the cladding tube and the end plug made of zirconium alloy. The seal welded joint has a direct effect on the service performance of the fuel rod cladding structure. In this paper, the pressure resistance welded joints of zirconium alloy tube-plug structure were obtained by thermal-mechanical simulation experiments. The microstructure and microhardness of the joints were both analyzed. The effect of processing parameters on the microstructure was studied in detail. The results showed that there was no β-Zr phase observed in the joint, and no obvious element segregation. There were different types of Widmanst¨atten structure in the thermo-mechanically affected zone (TMAZ) and heat affected zone (HAZ) of the cladding tube and the end plug joint because of the low cooling rate. Some part of the grains in the joint grew up due to overheating. Its size was about 2.8 times that of the base metal grains. Due to the high dislocation density and texture evolution, the microhardnesses of TMAZ and HAZ were both significantly higher than that of the base metal, and the microhardness of the TMAZ was the highest. With the increasing of welding temperature, the proportion of recrystallization in TMAZ decreased, which was caused by the increasing of strain rate and dislocation annihilation

Determination of the molar mass of argon from high-precision acoustic comparisons

Feng, X J,Zhang, J T,Moldover, M R,Yang, I,Plimmer, M D,Lin, H BUREAU INTERNATIONAL DES POIDS ET MESURES 2017 METROLOGIA -BERLIN- Vol.54 No.3

<P>This article describes the accurate determination of the molar mass <I>M</I> of a sample of argon gas used for the determination of the Boltzmann constant. The method of one of the authors (Moldover <I>et al</I> 1988 <I>J. Res. Natl. Bur. Stand</I>. <B>93</B> 85–144) uses the ratio of the square speed of sound in the gas under analysis and in a reference sample of known molar mass. A sample of argon that was isotopically-enriched in <SUP>40</SUP>Ar was used as the reference, whose unreactive impurities had been independently measured. The results for three gas samples are in good agreement with determinations by gravimetric mass spectrometry; (〈<I>M</I> <SUB>acoustic</SUB>/<I>M</I> <SUB>mass-spec</SUB>〉  −  1)  =  (−0.31  ±  0.69)  ×  10<SUP>−6</SUP>, where the indicated uncertainty is one standard deviation that does not account for the uncertainties from the acoustic and mass-spectroscopy references.</P>

An Agent Gaming and Genetic Algorithm Hybrid Method for Factory Location Setting and Factory/Supplier Selection Problems

Yang, Feng-Cheng,Kao, Shih-Lin Korean Institute of Industrial Engineers 2009 Industrial Engineeering & Management Systems Vol.8 No.4

This paper first presents two supply chain design problems: 1) a factory location setting and factory selection problem, and 2) a factory location setting and factory/supplier selection problem. The first involves a number of location known retailers choosing one factory to supply their demands from a number of factories whose locations are to be determined. The goal is to minimize the transportation and manufacturing cost to satisfy the demands. The problem is then augmented into the second problem, where the procurement cost of the raw materials from a chosen material supplier (from a number of suppliers) is considered for each factory. Economic beneficial is taken into account in the cost evaluation. Therefore, the partner selections will influence the cost of the supply chain significantly. To solve these problems, an agent gaming and genetic algorithm hybrid method (AGGAHM) is proposed. The AGGAHM consecutively and alternatively enable and disable the advancement of agent gaming and the evolution of genetic computation. Computation results on solving a number of examples by the AGGAHM were compared with those from methods of a general genetic algorithm and a mutual frozen genetic algorithm. Results showed that the AGGAHM outperforms the methods solely using genetic algorithms. In addition, various parameter settings are tested and discussed to facilitate the supply chain designs.