Traditional Chinese Medicine as a Remedy for Male Infertility: A Review

Shao Hu Zhou,Yu Fei Deng,Zhi Wei Weng,Hao Wei Weng,Zhi Dan Liu 대한남성과학회 2019 The World Journal of Men's Health Vol.37 No.2

Male infertility (MI) is a complex multifactorial disease, and idiopathic infertility accounts for 30% of cases of MI. At present, the evidence for the effectiveness of empirical drugs is limited, and in vitro fertilization is costly and may increase the risk of birth defects and childhood cancers. Therefore, affected individuals may feel obliged to pursue natural remedies. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) may represent a useful option for infertile men. It has been demonstrated that TCM can regulate the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis and boost the function of Sertoli cells and Leydig cells. TCM can also alleviate inflam-mation, prevent oxidative stress, reduce the DNA fragmentation index, and modulate the proliferation and apoptosis of germ cells. Furthermore, TCM can supply trace elements and vitamins, ameliorate the microcirculation of the testis, decrease the levels of serum anti-sperm antibody, and modify epigenetic markers. However, the evidence in favor of TCM is not compel-ling, which has hindered the development of TCM. This review attempts to elucidate the underlying therapeutic mechanisms of TCM. We also explore the advantages of TCM, differences between TCM and Western medicine, and problems in existing studies. Subsequently, we propose solutions to these problems and present perspectives for the future development of TCM.

Ternary Phase Diagram-Facilitated Rapid Screening of Double Perovskites As Electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Sun, Hainan,Hu, Zhiwei,Xu, Xiaomin,He, Juan,Dai, Jie,Lin, Hong-Ji,Chan, Ting-Shan,Chen, Chien-Te,Tjeng, Liu Hao,Zhou, Wei,Shao, Zongping American Chemical Society 2019 Chemistry of materials Vol.31 No.15

<P>The development of cost-effective, non-noble metal electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is of paramount importance for sustainable technologies. Efficient screening strategies for electrocatalysts can greatly increase the commercialization speed of these advanced technologies. Here, ternary phase diagrams with large-scale tuning and designated-scale tuning strategies are applied for the first time to provide a new method for screening perovskite oxide-based electrocatalysts for OERs. Specifically, the family of double perovskites (Sr<SUB>2</SUB>Fe<SUB>1.5-<I>x</I>-<I>y</I></SUB>Co<SUB><I>x</I></SUB>Ni<SUB><I>y</I></SUB>Mo<SUB>0.5</SUB>O<SUB>6−δ</SUB>, 0 ≤ <I>x</I>, <I>y</I> ≤ 1.5) was utilized to understand the role of transition metals in perovskite oxides. Ternary phase diagrams can facilitate a rapid screening process, provide a straightforward relationship between phase structures and catalytic activities, and help to confirm the effects of various combinations of transition metals on the OER activity. The Fe-Co system (Sr<SUB>2</SUB>Fe<SUB>1.5-<I>x</I></SUB>Co<SUB><I>x</I></SUB>Mo<SUB>0.5</SUB>O<SUB>6−δ</SUB>) improves the catalytic activities, as demonstrated by the reduced Tafel slope and enhanced stability, while the Fe-Ni system (Sr<SUB>2</SUB>Fe<SUB>1.5-<I>y</I></SUB>Ni<SUB><I>y</I></SUB>Mo<SUB>0.5</SUB>O<SUB>6−δ</SUB>) improves the surface kinetic properties of the OER, as demonstrated by its reduced overpotential. Significantly, the Co, Ni, and Fe ternary phase systems can serve as the synergistic coactive sites (Sr<SUB>2</SUB>Fe<SUB>1.5-<I>x</I>-<I>y</I></SUB>Co<SUB><I>x</I></SUB>Ni<SUB><I>y</I></SUB>Mo<SUB>0.5</SUB>O<SUB>6−δ</SUB>) to catalyze the OER, resulting in an improved overall OER performance. This systematic study not only demonstrates a new strategy to allow the rapid screening of double perovskite OER catalysts based on large-scale tuning and designated-scale tuning strategies but, more importantly, also provides an insightful understanding of the use of multitransition metal-based double perovskites for catalysis of the OER.</P> [FIG OMISSION]</BR>

A cohesive model for concrete mesostructure considering friction effect between cracks

Yi-qun Huang,Shao-wei Hu 사단법인 한국계산역학회 2019 Computers and Concrete, An International Journal Vol.24 No.1

Compressive ability is one of the most important mechanical properties of concrete material .The compressive failure process of concrete is pretty complex with internal tension, shear damage and friction between cracks. To simulate the complex fracture process of concrete at meso level, methodology for meso-structural analysis of concrete specimens is developed; the zero thickness cohesive elements are pre-inserted to simulate the crack initiation and propagation; the constitutive applied in cohesive element is established to describe the mechanism of crack separation, closure and friction behavior between the fracture surfaces. Aseries of simulations were carried out based on the model proposed in this paper. The results reproduced the main fracture and mechanical feature of concrete under compression condition. The effect of key material parameters, structure size, and aggregate content on the concrete fracture pattern and loading carrying capacities was investigated. It is found that the inner friction coefficient has a significant influence on the compression character of concrete, the compression strength raises linearly with the increase of the inner friction coefficient, and the fracture pattern is sensitive to the mesostructure of concrete.

Interactions between Filamin A and MMP-9 Regulate Proliferation and Invasion in Renal Cell Carcinoma

Sun, Guo-Gui,Wei, Cui-Da,Jing, Shao-Wu,Hu, Wan-Ning Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.8

This study aimed to analyze the expression, clinical significance of filamin A (FLNA) in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and biological effects in a cell line by regulating FLNA expression. Immunohistochemistry and Western blotting were used to analyze FLNA protein expression in 70 cases of RCC and normal tissues to study the relationship with clinical factors. FLNA lentiviral and empty vectors were transfected into RCC to study the influence of up-regulated expression of FLNA. FLNA siRNA was transiently transfected into ACHN kidney carcinoma cells by a liposome-mediated method and protein was detected by Western blotting. The level of expression was found to be significantly lower in RCC than normal tissues (p<0.05). No correlation was noted with gender, age, tumor size or pathological types (p>0.05), but links with lymph node metastasis, clinic stage and histological grade were noted (p<0.05). Loss of FLNA expression correlated significantly with poor overall survival time by Kaplan-Meier analysis (p<0.05). Results for biological function showed that ACHN cells transfected with FLNA had a lower survival fraction, significant decrease in migration and invasion, higher cell apoptosis, higher percentage of the G0/G1 phases, and lower MMP-9 protein expression compared with ACHN cells untransfected with FLNA (p<0.05). However, renal 786-0 cells transfected with FLNA siRNA had a higher survival fraction, significant increase in migration and invasion, and higher MMP-9 protein expression compared (p<0.05). In conclusion, FLNA expression was decreased in RCC and correlated significantly with lymph node metastasis, clinic stage, histological grade and poor overall survival, suggesting that FLNA may play important roles as a a tumor suppressor in RCC by promoting degradation of MMP-9.

Boosting the oxygen evolution reaction activity of a perovskite through introducing multi-element synergy and building an ordered structure

Sun, Hainan,Xu, Xiaomin,Hu, Zhiwei,Tjeng, Liu Hao,Zhao, Jie,Zhang, Qin,Lin, Hong-Ji,Chen, Chien-Te,Chan, Ting-Shan,Zhou, Wei,Shao, Zongping The Royal Society of Chemistry 2019 Journal of Materials Chemistry A Vol.7 No.16

<P>If different active sites in a catalyst have optimal binding to different reaction intermediates and short reaction paths among them, they may work cooperatively to enhance the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity. Based on this design principle, in this study, we start with a B-site ordered double perovskite Sr2FeMoO6−δ with poor OER activity as the host material to fulfill the requirement of a short pathway, and then, replace Mo with Ni and Fe with Co to optimize the synergistic interplay of the multi-active sites. Replacing Mo with Ni indeed dramatically enhances the OER activity and structural/operating stability. Further improvement in OER performance is realized by partial substitution of Fe with Co, leading to the development of a material with the nominal composition of Sr2Fe0.8Co0.2Mo0.65Ni0.35O6−δ, which outperforms the noble metal oxide IrO2 and is better than most of the electrocatalysts developed based on a single descriptor, such as Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3−δ (eg occupancy close to unity), PrBaCo2O5+δ (O 2p-band center relative to the Fermi level), and La0.5Sr0.5CoO3−δ (charge-transfer energy) in many aspects. As a universal method, combined structural and compositional tuning to create a cooperative effect among different active sites for intermediate adsorption and reaction in an ordered structure may provide a new way for the design of superior electrocatalysts for various applications.</P>

Molecular and Cellular Microbiology / Biomedical Sciences : Surface-Displayed IL-10 by Recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum Reduces Th1 Responses of RAW264.7 Cells Stimulated with Poly(I:C) or LPS

( Ruo Peng Cai ),( Yan Long Jiang ),( Wei Yang ),( Wen Tao Yang ),( Shao Hua Shi ),( Chun Wei Shi ),( Jing Tao Hu ),( Wei Gu ),( Li Ping Ye ),( Fang Yu Zhou ),( Qing Long Gong ),( Wen Yu Han ),( Guil 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2016 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.26 No.2

Recently, poly-γ-glutamic acid synthetase A (pgsA) has been applied to display exogenous proteins on the surface of Lactobacillus casei or Lactococcus lactis, which results in a surfacedisplayed component of bacteria. However, the ability of carrying genes encoded by plasmids and the expression efficiency of recombinant bacteria can be somewhat affected by the longer gene length of pgsA (1,143 bp); therefore, a truncated gene, pgsA, was generated based on the characteristics of pgsA by computational analysis. Using murine IL-10 as an exogenous gene, recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum was constructed and the capacity of the surface-displayed protein and functional differences between exogenous proteins expressed by these strains were evaluated. Surface expression of IL-10 on both recombinant bacteria with anchorins and the higher expression levels in L. plantarum-pgsA’-IL-10 were confirmed by western blot assay. Most importantly, up-regulation of IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, IFN-γ, and the nuclear transcription factor NF-κB p65 in RAW264.7 cells after stimulation with Poly(I:C) or LPS was exacerbated after co-culture with L. plantarum-pgsA. By contrast, IL-10 expressed by these recombinant strains could reduce these factors, and the expression of these factors was associated with recombinant strains that expressed anchorin (especially in L. plantarum-pgsA’-IL-10) and was significantly lower compared with the anchorin-free strains. These findings indicated that exogenous proteins could be successfully displayed on the surface of L. plantarum by pgsA or pgsA’, and the expression of recombinant bacteria with pgsA’ was superior compared with bacteria with pgsA.

Study on Grinding Characteristics of Different Crystal Surfaces of Sapphire

Yi-Qing Yu,Ming-Jian Shao,Chang-Cai Cui,Zhong-Wei Hu,Xi-Peng Xu 한국생산제조학회 2016 한국생산제조시스템학회 학술발표대회 논문집 Vol.2016 No.10

Improvement of energy storage performance in PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3/PbZrO3 multilayer thin films via regulating PbZrO3 thickness

Yang Fei,Shi Yu Jia,Lin Lin,Chen Jing Yao,Hou Meng Zhe,Yu Ke Xin,Zhang Yi Han,Yuan Zheng,Li Xiao Fang,Hu Yan Chun,Shang Jun,Yin Shao Qian,Wang Xian Wei 한국물리학회 2023 Current Applied Physics Vol.50 No.-

In this work, to prepare the PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3(PZT)/PbZrO3(PZ) multilayer films, PZ films and PZT films were spin-coated on LaNiO3/SiO2/Si substrates in sequence by the sol-gel method, and the PZ films were prepared using PZ precursor solution with different concentrations. After each spin-coating, PZ layer and PZT layer were annealed with rapid thermal annealing (RTA) technique at 650 ◦C and 550 ◦C, respectively. The crystal structures, microstructures and electrical properties of the films with different PZ film thickness were comprehensively investigated. The PZ films with different thickness showed perovskite phase. The PZT films on crystallized PZ films exhibited the coexistence of pyrochlore phase and perovskite phase at the annealing temperature of 550 ◦C. The PZT/PZ multilayer films with 0.2 M PZ precursor solution exhibit typical anti-ferroelectricity with double hysteresis loops, while other multilayer films exhibit nearly linear loops. In addition, the recoverable energy storage density increases with the increase of the film thickness and reaches the maximum value 32.4 J/ cm3 in the PZT/PZ multilayer films with 0.4 M PZ precursor solution. Therefore, the ferroelectric properties of the PZT/PZ multilayer films could be regulated by different PZ film thickness, which effectively further enhances the energy storage performance.