Optimizing Imaging Quality and Radiation Dose by the Age-Dependent Setting of Tube Voltage in Pediatric Chest Digital Radiography

Hui Guo,Wen-Ya Liu,Xiao-Ye He,Xiao-Shan Zhou,Qun-Li Zeng,Bai-Yan Li 대한영상의학회 2013 Korean Journal of Radiology Vol.14 No.1

Objective: The quality and radiation dose of different tube voltage sets for chest digital radiography (DR) were compared in a series of pediatric age groups. Materials and Methods: Forty-five hundred children aged 0-14 years (yr) were randomly divided into four groups according to the tube voltage protocols for chest DR: lower kilovoltage potential (kVp) (A), intermediate kVp (B), and higher kVp (C)groups, and the fixed high kVp group (controls). The results were analyzed among five different age groups (0-1 yr, 1-3 yr, 3-7 yr, 7-11 yr and 11-14 yr). The dose area product (DAP) and visual grading analysis score (VGAS) were determined and compared by using one-way analysis of variance. Results: The mean DAP of protocol C was significantly lower as compared with protocols A, B and controls (p < 0.05). DAP was higher in protocol A than the controls (p <0.001), but it was not statistically significantly different between B and the controls (p = 0.976). Mean VGAS was lower in the controls than all three protocols (p < 0.001 for all). Mean VGAS did not differ between protocols A and B (p = 0.334), but was lower in protocol C than A (p = 0.008) and B (p = 0.049). Conclusion: Protocol C (higher kVp) may help optimize the trade-off between radiation dose and image quality, and it may be acceptable for use in a pediatric age group from these results.

Safety evaluation of four entomopathogenic nematode species against two silkworm species

Hui Dong,Yu BI,Jia-Lin WANG,Yan-Qun Liu,Huan Wang 한국곤충학회 2020 Entomological Research Vol.50 No.3

Chinese oak silkworm(Antheraea pernyi) andmulberry silkworm(Bombyx mori) are economically important insects used for silk production and food resource. Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) from the families of Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae are beneficial organisms currently considered in biological control. In this paper, we evaluated survival of two silkworm species exposed to four Steinernema species which are widely applied in pest control. The results showed that among four Steinernema species, S. bicornutum and S. feltiae did not have an effect on the larval survival to the two silkworm species, whereas S. carpocapsae and S. glaseri did have an effect. Each Steinernema species poses no threat to hatchability of eggs, pupation rate, larval durations and cocoon shell ratio.

Isolation and molecular characterization of two novel HMW-GS genes from Chinese wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) landrace Banjiemang

Hui Shao,Tian-hong Liu,Cong-Fu Ran,Li-Qun Li,Jing Yu,Xin Gao,Xue-Jun Li 한국유전학회 2015 Genes & Genomics Vol.37 No.1

High molecular weight glutenin subunits(HMW-GS) play a significant role in determining breadmakingqualities of common wheat flour. The study presentedin the paper identified two novel HMW-GS (designatedas 1Bx14* and 1By15*) at the Glu-B1 locus inChinese wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) landrace Banjiemangby SDS-PAGE. The open reading frames (ORFs) of thegenes were amplified and cloned with designed specificprimers. Both of them had sequences highly similar tothose of other HMW-GS genes, but displayed minormodification. The ORF of 1Bx14* was 2367 bp long andencoded 789 aa with 4 cysteines, which included 25nanopeptides, 65 hexapeptides and 7 tripeptides motifs. The ORF of 1By15* was 2106 bp long and encoded 702 aawith 7 cysteines, which included 23 nanopeptides and 53hexapeptides motifs. The predicted molecular weights ofthe mature proteins encoded by 1Bx14* and 1By15* geneswere 83.1 and 73.2 k Da, respectively. The presence andauthenticity of the two genes in Banjiemang were confirmedby bacterial expression and liquid chromatographyelectrosprayionization mass spectrometry (LC–ESI–MS). By phylogenetic analysis, the 1Bx14* was clustered withx-type subunits but had a high divergence with other 1Bxsubunits, whereas the 1By15* was clustered with y-typesubunits and closely related to subunit 1By15. The studyconcluded that 1Bx14* and 1By15* from Banjiemang werenovel allelic variations of HMW-GS at Glu-B1 locus,which were probably exploitable as new resources forwheat quality improvement.

Optimizing Preparation Conditions for Angiotensin-I-Converting Enzyme Inhibitory Peptides Derived from Enzymatic Hydrolysates of Ovalbumin

Qun Huang,Shu-gang Li,Hui Teng,Yong-guo Jin,Mei-hu Ma,Hong-bo Song 한국식품과학회 2015 Food Science and Biotechnology Vol.24 No.6

Angiotensin-I-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory peptides were prepared from ovalbumin using enzyme hydrolysis with pepsin as an enzyme source. Effects of pH, enzyme dosage, substrate concentration, hydrolysis temperature, and time on the degree of hydrolysis and the ACE inhibition rate were investigated using single factor experiments. Preparation conditions for ACE inhibitory peptides were optimized using a response surface design on the base of single factor experiments. Optimum preparation conditions were a substrate concentration of 5.2 g/100 mL of D.W with a pH value of 2.5, an enzyme dosage of 14,000 U/g, and a hydrolysis time of 250 min at 30℃. The ACE inhibition rate was up to 70.55±1.13% under these conditions.

Performance and applications of flow-guided sieve trays for distillation of highly viscous mixtures

Hui Liu,Qun Shen Li,Chun Ying Song,Hai Long Wu,Yi Qiu Qian 한국화학공학회 2008 Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering Vol.25 No.6

With a particular focus on the distillation of highly viscous or self-polymerized mixtures, this study reports the hydrodynamic and mass transfer performance of two flow-guided sieve trays, including their pressure drop, entrainment, weeping and tray efficiency, obtained experimentally with an air-water/oxygen system in a Φ600 mm plexiglass column. The results show that the 8 mm hole flow-guided sieve tray tested shows better characteristics than the 7 mm flow-guided hole tray in terms of pressure drop and mass transfer. Then we present practical industrial examples of applications of the flow guided trays for distillation of viscous mixtures, i.e., the separation of vinyl acetate (VAC) from a polyvinyl acetate (PVAC) polymer solution with dynamic viscosity μ=50,000 mPas, the separation of highly unsaturated C5 mixtures by extractive distillation, and the distillation of thick, condensed and highly viscous fermentation mixtures made from fermented mash. It is demonstrated that flow-guided sieve trays with relatively large holes are an excellent candidate for distillation of mixtures with suspended solids, or concentrated/self-polymerized polymer solutions.

Optimization of Hydroxyl Radical Scavenging Activity of Exopolysaccharides from Inonotus obliquus in Submerged Fermentation Using Response Surface Methodology

( Hui Chen ),( Xiang Qun Xu ),( Yang Zhu ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2010 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.20 No.4

Association of Leptin Receptor Lys109Arg and Gln223Arg Polymorphisms with Increased Risk of Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma

Mu, Hui-Jun,Zou, Jian,Xie, Ping,Xu, Zhuo-Qun,Ruan, Jun,Yang, Shu-Dong,Yin, Ying Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.10

Background: Although roles of genetic polymorphisms of leptin receptor (LEPR) gene in several cancers have been documented, the association between polymorphisms of LEPR and clear cell renal cell carcinoma (CC-RCC) remains unknown. The aim of this study was to explore any relation. Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of 77 patients with CC-RCC and 161 healthy control subjects. Polymorphism analyses of Lys109Arg and Gln223Arg were performed by direct DNA sequencing and PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism approaches respectively. Results: Comparisons of allelic and genotypic frequencies in Lys109Arg and Gln223Arg showed no significant difference between the cases and controls. However, when evaluating the combined genotype of Lys109Arg and Gln223Arg, risk with GG/GG was increased (OR=1.85, 95%CI=1.04-3.30) and with GA/GG or GG/GA was decreased (OR=0.07, 95%CI=0.01-0.54; OR and 95%CI of the latter could not be calculated for a value of zero). Furthermore, the G-G haplotype frequency of Lys109Arg and Gln223Arg in the cases was higher (OR=1.68; 95%CI=1.02-2.76). In contrast, the A-G and G-A haplotype frequencies in the cases were lower than those in the controls (OR=0.06; 95%CI=0.01 to 0.47; OR and 95%CI of the latter could not be calculated for a value of zero). In addition, the Lys109Arg A allele was in LD with the Gln223Arg A allele (d'=0.9399) in the CC-RCC subjects, but not in the controls. Conclusions: Our data suggest that the GG/GG combined genotype and G-G haplotype of Lys109Arg and Gln223Arg can act as evaluating factors for CC-RCC risk.

Expression and Functional Role of ALDH1 in Cervical Carcinoma Cells

Rao, Qun-Xian,Yao, Ting-Ting,Zhang, Bing-Zhong,Lin, Rong-Chun,Chen, Zhi-Liao,Zhou, Hui,Wang, Li-Juan,Lu, Huai-Wu,Chen, Qin,Di, Na,Lin, Zhong-Qiu Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.4

Tumor formation and growth is dictated by a very small number of tumor cells, called cancer stem cells, which are capable of self-renewal. The genesis of cancer stem cells and their resistance to conventional chemotherapy and radiotherapy via mechanisms such as multidrug resistance, quiescence, enhanced DNA repair abilities and anti-apoptotic mechanisms, make it imperative to develop methods to identify and use these cells as diagnostic or therapeutic targets. Aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 (ALDH1) is used as a cancer stem cell marker. In this study, we evaluated ALDH1 expression in CaSki, HeLa and SiHa cervical cancer cells using the Aldefluor method to isolate ALDH1-positive cells. We showed that higher ALDH1 expression correlated with significantly higher rates of cell proliferation, microsphere formation and migration. We also could demonstrate that SiHa-ALDH1-positive cells were significantly more tumorigenic compared to SiHa-ALDH1-negative cells. Similarly, SiHa cells overexpressing ALDH1 were significantly more tumorigenic and showed higher rates of cell proliferation and migration compared to SiHa cells where ALDH1 expression was knocked down using a lentivirus vector. Our data suggested that ALDH1 is a marker of cervical cancer stem cells and expand our understanding of its functional role.

The Effect of Herb-Partition Moxibustion on Toll-like Receptor 4 in Rabbit Aorta during Atherosclerosis

Zeng-Hui Yue,Xin-Qun He,Xiao-Rong Chang,Jian-Ling Yuan,Bao-Sheng Yu,Mi Liu,Ling Fu,Liang Zhang,Li-Chao Shang 사단법인약침학회 2012 Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies Vol.5 No.2

Objective: To explore the mechanism of Toll-like receptor (TLR4) inhibition in the delay of formation of atherosclerosis by herb-partition moxibustion. Method: Seventy-five rabbits were randomly assigned to one of five groups: blank, atherosclerosis (AS) model, direct moxibustion, herb-partition moxibustion, and drug treatment. With the exception of the blank group, all rabbits were given a high-fat diet in addition to immunologic injury to create the AS model. The experiments were carried out for 16 weeks, at which time the aorta was removed from each rabbit. Immunohistochemical methods were used to detect the gray level of the aortic TLR4 to observe the immunologic competence of its antigens. Fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the expression of TLR4 messenger RNA (mRNA) in the aorta. Results: The gray-scale value of TLR4 and the TLR4 mRNA expression significantly decreased (p < 0.05) in the direct moxibustion, herb-partition moxibustion, and drug treatment groups. Furthermore, the effects of the herb-partition moxibustion and drug treatment were superior to those of the direct moxibustion. Conclusion: Herb-partition moxibustion inhibits aortic TLR4 activity and mRNA expression,showing that herb-partition moxibustion delays the formation of atherosclerosis through the inhibition of TLR4 expression.

Isolation, Identification, and Performance Studies of a Novel Paraffin-degrading Bacterium of Gordonia amicalis LH3

Dong-Hui Hao,Xin Song,Jian-Qiang Lin,Yu-Jie Su,Yin-Bo Qu,Jian-Qun Lin 한국생물공학회 2008 Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering Vol.13 No.1

In this study, we describe the isolation and identification of a novel long-chain n-alkane degrading strain, Gordonia amicalis LH3. Under aerobic conditions, it utilized approximately 18.0% of paraffin (2% w/v) after 10 day of incubation, and the paraffin compositions of C18C24 alkalines were utilized preferentially. Under anaerobic conditions, paraffin utilization was approximately 1/8 that seen under aerobic conditions, and the compositions of C34 and C36 alkalines were utilized preferentially. The effects of salinity, temperature, and biosurfactants on paraffin degradation were also evaluated. The strain was also demonstrated to grow on oil, and decreased oil viscosity by 44.7% and degraded oil by 10.4% under aerobic conditions. Our results indicated that G. amicalis LH3 has potential applications in paraffin control, microbial enhanced oil recovery (MEOR), and the bioremediation of hydrocarbon-polluted environments.