Local structure and magnetocaloric effect for La_0.7Sr_0.3Mn_1-xNi_xO₃

Zhang, Y.D.,Phan, T.L.,Yang, D.S.,Yu, S.C. Elsevier 2012 Current Applied Physics Vol.12 No.3

We have prepared polycrystalline La<SUB>0.7</SUB>Sr<SUB>0.3</SUB>Mn<SUB>1-x</SUB>Ni<SUB>x</SUB>O<SUB>3</SUB> (x = 0, 0.01, 0.02, 0.03) samples by conventional solid-state reaction. X-ray absorption studies reveal that Ni dopants in the compounds having an oxidation state of 2+. These Ni<SUP>2+</SUP> ions replace Mn on the octahedral site of the perovskite structure. An increase of the Ni content enhances the concentration of Mn<SUP>4+</SUP> ions. This reduces magnetization, and the ferromagnetic-paramagnetic phase transition temperature (T<SUB>C</SUB>) of La<SUB>0.7</SUB>Sr<SUB>0.3</SUB>Mn<SUB>1-x</SUB>Ni<SUB>x</SUB>O<SUB>3</SUB> from ∼365 K for x = 0 to ∼345 K for x = 0.03. The magnetocaloric effect has also been assessed by means of magnetic-entropy change, which is determined from field dependences of magnetization. We find a large magnetic-entropy change taking place around T<SUB>C</SUB> of the samples. Under an applied field interval of 15 kOe, the maximum magnetic-entropy changes |ΔS<SUB>M</SUB><SUP>max</SUP>| are about 2.33, 2.27, 2.26 and 2.21 J/kg K for x = 0, 0.01, 0.02, and 0.03, respectively. Interestingly, the doping of a small amount of Ni in La<SUB>0.7</SUB>Sr<SUB>0.3</SUB>Mn<SUB>1-x</SUB>Ni<SUB>x</SUB>O<SUB>3</SUB> does not make|ΔS<SUB>M</SUB><SUP>max</SUP>| changed very much, but causes the shift of this value towards room temperature. Such the feature is applicable to control the working temperature range of cooling systems based on the magnetocaloric effect.

Influence of the Novel Urease Inhibitor Hydroquinone on Growing Lamb Nitrogen Utilization

Zhang, Y.G.,Shan, A.S.,Bao, J. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2002 Animal Bioscience Vol.15 No.7

Two in vivo experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of novel urease inhibitor hydroquinone (HQ) on ammonia release rate from urea hydrolysis, nitrogen balance, nutrient digestibility and efficiency of microbial protein synthesis. In Exp. 1, twelve crossbred cannulated lambs were randomly assigned within initial body weight block to one of four HQ treatments, which included 0 (control), 30, 60 or 80 mg HQ/kg DM intake. Ammonia concentration and pH of ruminal fluid were immediately measured at 0, 2, 4, 6 and 8 h after feeding. Increasing the dose of HQ tended (p<0.15) to linearly decrease NH3 formation. The ammonia peak concentration (2 h post-feeding) in animals receiving HQ was approximately one-half of that in animals not receiving HQ (p<0.01), and a relatively sustained ammonia release could be obtained at the dose of 30 or 60 mg HQ/kg DM. In Exp. 2, sixteen intact crossbred lambs (weight $40{\pm}0.8kg$) were used in a $2{\times}2$ factorial design experiment. The four rations consisting of soybean meal-based (SBM) or urea-based (Urea) nitrogen source with or without HQ (S1, S0, U1 and U0) were fed in digestion and N balance trials. Apparent digestibility of major nutrients except that of ADF was not affected by either nitrogen source or addition of HQ. Regardless of nitrogen source, supplementation of HQ significantly improved ADF digestibility (p<0.05). The various ration had no effects on N metabolism in the presence of HQ. There was significant difference between total purine derivatives (PD), estimated efficiency of microbial N synthesis (p<0.05) and urea-N excretion (p<0.01) in the urine for the SBM ration and for the Urea ration. However, HQ had little influence on efficiency of microbial N synthesis as proportion of daily intake of total tract digestible OM (p>0.05). No interactions between main nitrogen source and HQ were measured throughout the trial. Results of this study suggest that addition of HQ to ration may improve ADF digestion with having no negative effect on N metabolism and microbial protein production.

Magnetic entropy change of V substituted Ni-Mn-Ga Heusler alloy

Min, S. G.,Zhang, Y. D.,Malkinski, L.,Yu, S. C.,Lee, K. W.,Kim, Y. C. American Institute of Physics 2009 JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSICS - Vol.105 No.7

<P>The magnetization behaviors have been analyzed for Ni54Mn21-xVxGa25 (x=0,2,4) alloys which were prepared by conventional arc melting method in argon atmosphere. The Curie temperature T-C was found to be 325, 300, and 265 K and the austenitic transition temperature T-A on heating was found to be 315, 217, and 124 K for x=0, 2, and 4, respectively. The magnetic characteristics were performed with a Quantum Design superconducting quantum interference device magnetometer in the field of up to 20 kOe. A large magnetic entropy change Delta S-M, which is calculated from H versus M curves associated with the ferromagnetic-paramagnetic transitions, has been observed. The maximum Delta S-M for an applied field of 2.0 T is 2.49, 1.92, and 1.81 J/kg K for x= 0, 2, and 4, respectively. (c) 2009 American Institute of Physics. [DOI: 10.1063/1.3072819]</P>

α-Cyperone Alleviates Lung Cell Injury Caused by Staphylococcus aureus via Attenuation of α-Hemolysin Expression

( Luo M ),( J Qiu ),( Y Zhang ),( J Dong ),( H Li ),( B Leng ),( Q Zhang ),( X Dai ),( X Niu ),( S Zhao ),( X Deng ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2012 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.22 No.8

In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effect of a-cyperone on S. aureus. We used a hemolysin test to examine the hemolytic activity in supernatants of S. aureus cultured with increasing concentrations of a-cyperone. In addition, we evaluated the production of a-hemolysin (Hla) by Western blotting. Real-time RT-PCR was performed to test the expression of hla (the gene encoding Hla) and agr (accessory gene regulator). Furthermore, we investigated the protective effect of a-cyperone on Hla-induced injury of A549 lung cells by live/dead and cytotoxicity assays. We showed that in the presence of subinhibitory concentrations of a-cyperone, Hla production was markedly inhibited. Moreover, a-cyperone protected lung cells from Hla-induced injury. These findings indicate that a-cyperone is a promising inhibitor of Hla production by S. aureus and protects lung cells from this bacterium. Thus, a-cyperone may provide the basis for a new strategy to combat S. aureus pneumonia.

Growth hormone and receptor gene mutations in Chinese Banna miniature pig

J.Z. Deng,L.L. Hao,M.T. Li,S. Lang,Y.Z. Zeng,S.C. Liu,Y.L. Zhang 한국통합생물학회 2011 Animal cells and systems Vol.15 No.4

The Banna miniature pig (BNMP) is a representative miniature pig breed in China. Even though BNMP dwarfism is obvious, its underlying causative mutations remain unknown. In this study, the BNMP and Large White pig (LWP)serum growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) levels were detected by ELISA and compared. BNMP serum IGF-1 levels were significantly lower than LWP levels (P<0.05). The miniature condition may arise from mutations in the GH and GH receptor (GHR) genes. Therefore, GH and GHR cDNA from the BNMP were cloned into a pMD18-T vector by RT-PCR using the total RNA obtained from the BNMP’s pituitary and liver tissues. Sequencing results indicated that the open reading frame of the BNMP GH gene is composed of a 26-residue signal peptide and a 191-residue mature peptide. The coding sequence of the BNMP GHR gene contained 639 amino acids, including a signal peptide that is 18 amino acids long. Two amino acid substitutions, A09V and R22Q, were found in the signal peptide of the GH gene. Additionally, the S104P mutation was found in the BNMP’s mature GH protein. Four mutations in the cytoplasmic domain of GHR may influence the downstream signal transduction of GHR, which needs further experimental evidence.

Growth hormone and receptor gene mutations in Chinese Banna miniature pig

Deng, J.Z.,Hao, L.L.,Li, M.T.,Lang, S.,Zeng, Y.Z.,Liu, S.C.,Zhang, Y.L. The Korean Society for Integrative Biology 2011 Animal cells and systems Vol.15 No.4

The Banna miniature pig (BNMP) is a representative miniature pig breed in China. Even though BNMP dwarfism is obvious, its underlying causative mutations remain unknown. In this study, the BNMP and Large White pig (LWP) serum growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) levels were detected by ELISA and compared. BNMP serum IGF-1 levels were significantly lower than LWP levels (P<0.05). The miniature condition may arise from mutations in the GH and GH receptor (GHR) genes. Therefore, GH and GHR cDNA from the BNMP were cloned into a pMD18-T vector by RT-PCR using the total RNA obtained from the BNMP's pituitary and liver tissues. Sequencing results indicated that the open reading frame of the BNMP GH gene is composed of a 26-residue signal peptide and a 191-residue mature peptide. The coding sequence of the BNMP GHR gene contained 639 amino acids, including a signal peptide that is 18 amino acids long. Two amino acid substitutions, A09V and R22Q, were found in the signal peptide of the GH gene. Additionally, the S104P mutation was found in the BNMP's mature GH protein. Four mutations in the cytoplasmic domain of GHR may influence the downstream signal transduction of GHR, which needs further experimental evidence.

The ameliorating effect of 1-palmitoyl-2-linoleoyl-3-acetylglycerol on scopolamine-induced memory impairment via acetylcholinesterase inhibition and LTP activation

Jeon, S.J.,Kim, B.,Park, H.J.,Zhang, J.,Kwon, Y.,Kim, D.H.,Ryu, J.H. Elsevier/North-Holland Biomedical Press 2017 Behavioural brain research Vol.324 No.-

In the present study, we investigated whether 1-palmitoyl-2-linoleoyl-3-acetylglycerol (PLAG), a component of antlers of Cervus nippon Temminck, would have memory-ameliorating properties against cholinergic blockade-induced memory impairment in mice. In the passive avoidance task to investigate the effects of PLAG on long-term memory, PLAG (10mg/kg, p.o.) administration ameliorated scopolamine-induced memory impairment. PLAG also reversed the impairments of working memory in the Y-maze task and spatial memory as shown in the Morris water maze. To identify the mechanism of the memory-ameliorating effect of PLAG, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibition assay and the Western blot analysis were conducted. In the AChE inhibition assay, PLAG inhibited the AChE activity in mice and PLAG increased the expression levels of phosphorylated CaMKII, ERK, and CREB in the hippocampus. Additionally, long-term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic strength occurred by PLAG treatment in the hippocampal cultures. Overall, the present study suggests that PLAG reversed memory deficits in an animal model and that it affects biochemical pathways related to learning and memory.

Evaluation of VIIRS, GOCI, and MODIS Collection 6 AOD retrievals against ground sunphotometer observations over East Asia

Xiao, Q.,Zhang, H.,Choi, M.,Li, S.,Kondragunta, S.,Kim, J.,Holben, B.,Levy, R. C.,Liu, Y. Copernicus GmbH 2016 Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Vol.16 No.3

<P>Abstract. Persistent high aerosol loadings together with extremely high population densities have raised serious air quality and public health concerns in many urban centers in East Asia. However, ground-based air quality monitoring is relatively limited in this area. Recently, satellite-retrieved Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) at high resolution has become a powerful tool to characterize aerosol patterns in space and time. Using ground AOD observations from the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) and the Distributed Regional Aerosol Gridded Observation Networks (DRAGON)-Asia Campaign, as well as from handheld sunphotometers, we evaluated emerging aerosol products from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) aboard the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP), the Geostationary Ocean Color Imager (GOCI) aboard the Communication, Ocean, and Meteorology Satellite (COMS), and Terra and Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) (Collection 6) in East Asia in 2012 and 2013. In the case study in Beijing, when compared with AOD observations from handheld sunphotometers, 51 % of VIIRS Environmental Data Record (EDR) AOD, 37 % of GOCI AOD, 33 % of VIIRS Intermediate Product (IP) AOD, 26 % of Terra MODIS C6 3 km AOD, and 16 % of Aqua MODIS C6 3 km AOD fell within the reference expected error (EE) envelope (±0.05 ± 0.15 AOD). Comparing against AERONET AOD over the Japan-South Korea region, 64 % of EDR, 37 % of IP, 61 % of GOCI, 39 % of Terra MODIS, and 56 % of Aqua MODIS C6 3 km AOD fell within the EE. In general, satellite aerosol products performed better in tracking the day-to-day variability than tracking the spatial variability at high resolutions. The VIIRS EDR and GOCI products provided the most accurate AOD retrievals, while VIIRS IP and MODIS C6 3 km products had positive biases. </P>

Cloning of Chicken Microsomal Glutathione S-transferase 1 Gene (MGST1) and Identification of Its Different Splice Variants

Wang, X.-T.,Zhang, H.,Zhao, C.-J.,Li, J.-Y.,Xu, G.-Y.,Lian, L.-S.,Wu, C.-X.,Deng, Xuemei Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2009 Animal Bioscience Vol.22 No.2

Mammal microsomal glutathione transferase 1 (MGST1) can conjugate many toxic or carcinogenic substances and depress oxidative stress. In this study, Chicken MGST1 and its variants were cloned for the first time and were composed of 956 or 944 nucleotides. The 12 nt deletion in the exon 2 did not alter the GT-AG rule and the ORFs for the two MGST1 variants were the same, which both comprised 465 nucletides and encoded a peptide with 155 amino acids. It was found that the two different splice variants identified using RT-PCR expressed in all three organs investigated of Dwarf Brown Chicken, namely liver, spleen and shell gland. Moreover, the expression level of MGST1 mRNA in the liver of Dwarf Brown chickens was the highest (p<0.01), and there were no significant differences between the spleen and the shell gland. These results provide a base for studying the biological function of Chicken MGST1.

Ferromagnetic Order in Rapidly Cooled Nd-Fe-Co-Al Alloy Ribbons

Phan, T. L.,Zhang, Y. D.,Dan, N. H.,Thang, D. D.,Thanh, T. D.,Zhang, P.,Yu, S. C. IEEE 2013 IEEE transactions on magnetics Vol.49 No.7

<P>We have studied the magnetic properties of Nd<SUB>45</SUB>Fe<SUB>30</SUB>Co<SUB>15</SUB>Al<SUB>10</SUB> alloy ribbons with various thicknesses of about 120 (N<SUB>1</SUB>) and 50 μm (N<SUB>2</SUB>) prepared by melt-spinning. Structural analyses based on an X-ray diffractometer and a high-resolution transmission electron microscope revealed an existence of nanocrystals with sizes of 10 ~ 20 nm surrounded by an amorphous host matrix. With decreasing ribbon thickness and nanocrystalline size, magnetic studies upon a vibrating sample magnetometer indicated the decrease of the Curie temperature (T<SUB>C</SUB>), coercive force (H<SUB>c</SUB>), and magnetic entropy change (ΔS<SUB>m</SUB>). In the ferromagnetic region, however, magnetization values determined for N<SUB>2</SUB> are greater than those determined for N<SUB>1</SUB>. These results are related to the differences in the critical exponents of N<SUB>1</SUB> (β=0.418 and γ=1.173), and N<SUB>2</SUB> (β=0.512 and γ=1.077), which are characteristic for the ferromagnetic nature existing in the alloy ribbons with different thicknesses.</P>