Enhanced electrical conductivity of nanocomposites containing hybrid fillers of carbon nanotubes and carbon black.

Ma, Peng-Cheng,Liu, Ming-Yang,Zhang, Hao,Wang, Sheng-Qi,Wang, Rui,Wang, Kai,Wong, Yiu-Kei,Tang, Ben-Zhong,Hong, Soon-Hyung,Paik, Kyung-Wook,Kim, Jang-Kyo American Chemical Society 2009 ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES Vol.1 No.5

<P>Nanocomposites reinforced with hybrid fillers of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and carbon black (CB) are developed, aiming at enhancing the electrical conductivity of composites with balanced mechanical properties while lowering the cost of the final product. Epoxy-based nanocomposites were prepared with varying combinations of CNTs and CB as conducting fillers, and their electrical and mechanical properties were evaluated. It was shown that the addition of CNTs in CB composites enhanced the electrical conductivity of composites: a low percolation threshold was achieved with 0.2 wt % CNTs and 0.2 wt % CB particles. The CB particles also enhanced the ductility and fracture toughness of nanocomposites, confirming the synergistic effect of CB as a multifunctional filler. The novelty of this work lies in the synergy arising from the combination of two conducting fillers with unique geometric shapes and aspect ratios as well as different dispersion characteristics, which have not been specifically considered previously.</P>

Prognostic Significance of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography (PET)-based Parameters in Neoadjuvant Chemoradiation Treatment of Esophageal Carcinoma

Ma, Jin-Bo,Chen, Er-Cheng,Song, Yi-Peng,Liu, Peng,Jiang, Wei,Li, Ming-Huan,Yu, Jin-Ming Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.4

Aims and Background: The purpose of the research was to study the prognostic value of tumor 18F-FDG PET-based parameters in neoadjuvant chemoradiation for patients with squamous esophageal carcinoma. Methods: Sixty patients received chemoradiation therapy followed by esophagectomy and two 18FDG-PET examinations at pre- and post-radiation therapy. PET-based metabolic-response parameters were calculated based on histopathologic response. Linear regression correlation and Cox proportional hazards models were used to determine prognostic value of all PET-based parameters with reference to overall survival. Results: Sensitivity (88.2%) and specificity (86.5%) of a percentage decrease of SUVmax were better than other PET-based parameters for prediction of histopathologic response. Only percentage decrease of SUVmax and tumor length correlated with overall survival time (linear regression coefficient ${\beta}$: 0.704 and 0.684, P<0.05). The Cox proportional hazards model indicated higher hazard ratio (HR=0.897, P=0.002) with decrease of SUVmax compared with decrease of tumor size (HR=0.813, P=0.009). Conclusion: Decrease of SUVmax and tumor size are significant prognostic factors in chemoradiation of esophageal carcinoma.

Moderately Hypofractionated Conformal Radiation Treatment of Thoracic Esophageal Carcinoma

Ma, Jin-Bo,Wei, Lin,Chen, Er-Cheng,Qin, Guang,Song, Yi-Peng,Chen, Xiang-Ming,Hao, Chuan-Guo Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.8

Aims: To prospectively assess the efficacy and safety of moderately hypofractionated conformal radiotherapy in patients with thoracic esophageal cancer. Methods and Materials: From Sept. 2002 to Oct, 2005, 150 eligible patients with T2-4N0-1M0 stage thoracic esophageal squamous cell cancers were enrolled to receive either conventional fractionated radiation (CFR) or moderately hypofractionated radiation (MHR) with a three-dimensional conformal radiation technique. Of the total, 74 received moderately hypofractionated radiation with total dose of 54-60Gy/18-20fractions for 3.5-4 weeks in the MHR arm, and 76 received conventional radiation with total dose of 60Gy/30 fractions for 6 weeks in the CFR arm. Concurrent chemotherapy comprised of paclitaxel and cisplatin. Safety was evaluated, and local control and overall survival rates were calculated. Results: Statistically significant differences between the CFR versus MHR arms were observed in local/regional failure rate (47.3% v 27.0%, P=0.034) and the percentage of patients with persistent local disease (26.3% v 10.8%, P=0.012). But 3 and 5-year overall survival rates (43.2%, 38.8% v 38.2%, 28.0%, respectively) were not different between the two arms (P=0.268). There were no significant differences in the incidences of grade 3 or higher acute toxicities (66.3% v 50.0%) and late complications rates (27.0% v 22.4%) between the MHR and CFR arms. Conclusions: Moderately hypofractionated, three-dimensional radiation treatment could improve the local control rate of esophageal cancer and potentially increase patients' survival.

Influence of lining materials on the detonation driving of fragments

Yue Ma,Yong He,Chuan Ting Wang,Yuan He,Cheng Ji,Lei Guo,Peng Chen 대한기계학회 2022 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.36 No.3

The shape and strength of prefabricated fragments changes to some extent after detonation loading. In this paper, detonation loading process of prefabricated fragments under two types of lining layers was studied and compared with no lining. By observing the recovered fragments, it was found that the inner part of the material was cracked and the shape of the fragments changed significantly. Comparing the two lining materials, the Kevlar/epoxy was better protective lining than polyurethane. The detonation process was analyzed qualitatively by using shock wave theory. In order to further explore the process, the simulation software LS-DYNA was used to carry out 3D simulation. The simulation results, in good agreement with the experimental results, showed that the Kevlar/Epoxy liner had a great influence on the initial velocity of the fragment. The experimental results and simulation results suggest that spherical fragments are better than cylindrical fragments in detonation drive application.

Study of the relationship between variants near CCNL1/LEKR1 and in ADCY5 with low birth weight in a Chinese population

Xuejin Fan,Qi Peng,Yanhua Chen,Zeke Ma,Xiaoguang He,Biying Deng,Hui Huang,Juan Zeng,Chuyun Cheng,Shaoji Liu,Xiaomei Lu 한국유전학회 2015 Genes & Genomics Vol.37 No.12

The aim of this study was to test the impact of variants rs900400 (located near LEKR1 and CCNL1) and rs9883204 (located in ADCY5) on birth weight in a Chinese population. We conducted a case–control study including 156 low-birth- weight infants as the case group and 100 normal-birth-weight infants as the control group. The rs900400 and rs9883204 variants were analyzed by gene sequencing in all the participants. Our results revealed a significant difference in the genotype distribution (v2 = 10.449, p = 0.005) and allele distribution (v2 = 9.277, p = 0.002) of rs900400 between the case group and the control group. The C allele of rs900400 was associated with lower birth weight (OR 1.771 [95 % CI 1.237–2.535]) in the Chinese population. However, the rs9883204 polymorphism was not informative in the Chinese population. Our study shows that the ‘‘birth weightlowering’’ variant rs900400 located near LEKR1 and CCNL1, which is strongly associated with birth weight in European cohorts, appears to have a similar association in Chinese cohorts. However, the rs9883204 variant located in ADCY5 does not appear to be correlated with low birth weight in the same population. Moreover, we found that the variant rs900400 may also be associated with premature birth, thereby supporting the need for further research in this area.

Aberrant methylation of the 16q23.1 tumor suppressor gene ADAMTS18 promotes tumorigenesis and progression of clear cell renal cell carcinoma

Ben Xu,Yi‑ji Peng,Bing‑lei Ma,Si‑da Cheng 한국유전학회 2021 Genes & Genomics Vol.43 No.2

Background The 16q23.1 tumor suppressor gene (TSG) of ADAMTS18 has been identifed to be aberrant methylated in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), and there still exists an unclear situation between its methylation and the progression of ccRCC. Objective To analyze the biological function and mechanism of ADAMTS18 gene in the tumorigenesis and progression of ccRCC. Methods We examined ADAMTS18 gene methylation using methylation- specifc polymerase chain reaction (MSP) in 92 ccRCC primary tumors from September 2017 to May 2018. Using reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) and immunohistochemical (IHC) assay, the relative expression level of ADAMTS18 was measured in the representative tumor samples with their adjacent normal tissues. Meanwhile, colony formation, cell viability, wound healing, transwell chamber, fow cytometry, and PI staining were performed to confrm the tumor-suppressive function and mechanism of ADAMTS18 gene. Results Aberrant methylation was further detected in 47 of the 92 (51.1%) primary tumors and in 8 of the 92 (8.7%) adjacent normal tissues (p<0.05). Due to the phenomenon of aberrant methylation, ectopic low-level expression of ADAMTS18 gene could result in the promotion of tumorigenesis and progression in ccRCC. Conclusion The aberrantly methylated ADAMTS18 gene may be involved in the tumorigenesis and progression of ccRCC.

Transcriptome analysis of flower colour reveals the correlation between SNP and differential expression genes in Phalaenopsis

Ding Yu,Wang Ma-Yin,Yang Ding-Hai,Hao Dai-Cheng,Li Wei-Shi,Ling Peng,Xie Shang-Qian 한국유전학회 2023 Genes & Genomics Vol.45 No.12

Background Phalaenopsis is an important ornamental plant that has great economic value in the world flower market as one of the most popular flower resources. Objective To investigate the flower colour formation of Phalaenopsis at the transcription level, the genes involved in flower color formation were identified from RNA-seq in this study. Methods In this study, white and purple petals of Phalaenopsis were collected and analyzed to obtained (1) differential expression genes (DEGs) between white and purple flower color and (2) the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) mutations and DEGs at the transcriptome level. Results The results indicated that a total of 1,175 DEGs were identified, and 718 and 457 of them were up- and down-regulated genes, respectively. Gene Ontology and pathway enrichment showed that the biosynthesis of the secondary metabolites pathway was key to color formation, and the expression of 12 crucial genes (C4H, CCoAOMT, F3’H, UA3’5’GT, PAL, 4CL, CCR, CAD, CALDH, bglx, SGTase, and E1.11.17) that are involved in the regulation of flower color in Phalaenopsis. Conclusion This study reported the association between the SNP mutations and DEGs for color formation at RNA level, and provides a new insight to further investigate the gene expression and its relationship with genetic variants from RNA-seq data in other species.

Heat-Shock Protein 70 as a Tumor Antigen for in vitro Dendritic Cell Pulsing in Renal Cell Carcinoma Cases

Meng, Fan-Dong,Sui, Cheng-Guang,Tian, Xin,Li, Yan,Yang, Chun-Ming,Ma, Ping,Liu, Yun-Peng,Jiang, You-Hong Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.20

Immunological functions of heat shock proteins (HSPs) have long been recognized. In this study we aimed to efficiently purify HSP70 from renal cell carcinoma and test it as a tumor antigen for pulsing dendritic cells in vitro. HSP70 was purified from renal cell carcinoma specimens by serial column chromatography on Con A-sepharose, PD-10, ADP-agarose and DEAE-cellulose, and finally subjected to fast protein liquid chromatography (FPLC). Dendritic cells derived from the adherent fraction of peripheral blood mononuclear cells were cultured in the presence of IL-4 and GM-CSF and exposed to tumor HSP70. After 24 hours, dendritic cells were phenotypically characterized by flow cytometry. T cells obtained from the non-adherent fraction of peripheral blood mononuclear cells were then co-cultured with HSP70-pulsed dendritic cells and after 3 days T cell cytotoxicity towards primary cultured renal cell carcinoma cells was examined by Cell Counting Kit-8 assay. Dendritic cells pulsed in vitro with tumor-derived HSP70 expressed higher levels of CD83, CD80, CD86 and HLA-DR maturation markers than those pulsed with tumor cell lysate and comparable to that of dendritic cells pulsed with tumor cell lysate plus TNF-${\alpha}$. Concomitantly, cytotoxic T-lymphocytes induced by HSP70-pulsed dendritic cells presented the highest cytotoxic activity. There were no significant differences when using homologous or autologous HSP70 as the tumor antigen. HSP70 can be efficiently purified by chromatography and induces in vitro dendritic cell maturation in the absence of TNF-${\alpha}$. Conspecific HSP70 may effectively be used as a tumor antigen to pulse dendritic cells in vitro.

Research on Dynamic Characteristics for Longwall Shearer Cutting Transmission System with Varying Cutting Speed

Yang Yang,Hao Fan,Peng-cheng Ma 한국정밀공학회 2017 International Journal of Precision Engineering and Vol.18 No.8

A new longwall shearer cutting transmission system with variable cutting speed (LSCT-V) is presented to overcome the weaknesses of the traditional longwall shearer cutting transmission system (LSCT) with constant cutting speed. The dynamic model of the LSCTV and LSCT, which includes a cutting-motor rotator and drum, are established in AMESim, and the dynamic response of each system is analyzed using AMESim. Simulation results show that the function of frequency control for the designed LSCT-V system can be achieved, compared with the dynamic behavior of LSCT system under step torque load. The dynamic characteristics of the LSCT-V system are very close when working in constant or varying cutting speeds.

Triptolide Inhibits Proliferation and Induces Apoptosis of Human Melanoma A375 Cells

Tao, Yue,Zhang, Meng-Li,Ma, Peng-Cheng,Sun, Jian-Fang,Zhou, Wu-Qing,Cao, Yu-Ping,Li, Ling-Jun Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.4

Triptolide, a diterpenoid obtained from Tripteryglum wilfordii Hook.f, has attracted interest for its antitumor activities against human tumor cell lines in recent years. This report focuses on anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic activities in human melanoma A375 cells assessed by CCK8 assay, Hoechst 33258 staining and flow cytometry. In addition, triptolide-induced arrest in the S phase was also observed. Caspase assays showed the apoptosis induced by triptolide was caspase-dependent and probably through intrinsic apoptotic pathways. Furthermore, expression of NF-${\kappa}B$ (p65) and its downstream factors such as Bcl-2, Bcl-$X_L$ was down-regulated. Taken together, the data indicate that triptolide inhibits A375 cells proliferation and induces apoptosis by a caspase-dependent pathway and through a NF-${\kappa}B$-mediated mechanism.