Depilatory creams increase the number of hair follicles, and dermal fibroblasts expressing interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, and tumor necrosis factor-β in mouse skin

Pi-Fen Tsai,Fen-Pi Chou,Ting-Shuan Yu,Huei-Jane Lee,Chun-Tang Chiu 대한생리학회-대한약리학회 2021 The Korean Journal of Physiology & Pharmacology Vol.25 No.6

Besides using for hair removal, depilatory agents have been considered to be used as a penetration enhancer for transepidermal drug delivery. To examine the effect in hair follicles (HFs), two commercially available depilatory creams were tested on the dorsal skin of mice to monitor the effect deep into the skin structure. Fifteen male BALB/c mice were used in this study. Depilatory creams were applied to the dorsal skin of the same animal using shaved and untouched treatments as controls to minimize individual differences. Skin samples were collected at three days, one week and two weeks (n = 5 for each) after the treatment, and subjected for hematoxylin-eosin staining, and immunohistochemical analysis for proinflammatory cytokines. The morphological examination showed an increase in the thickness of epidermal layer of the depilatory cream-treated skin at early time points and in the subcutis at two weeks. Depilatory cream promoted entry of anagen phase and increased the number of hair follicles in the subcutis at one and two weeks. Immunohistochemistry showed elevated percentages of dermal fibroblasts expressing interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, and tumor necrosis factor-β. Shaving process increased the thickness of epidermis and dermis as depilatory creams did, but did neither induce the expression of proinflammatory cytokines in the dermal fibroblasts nor the number of HFs. The results suggested that the commercially available depilatory creams caused a transient minor inflammatory response of the skin and increased the levels of cytokines that might subsequently affect hair growth.

Functional Characterization of the Genes tauO, tauK, and tauI in the Biosynthesis of Tautomycetin

Fen Wang,Rixiang Kong,Bo Liu,Jing Zhao,Rongguo Qiu,Li Tang 한국미생물학회 2012 The journal of microbiology Vol.50 No.5

Tautomycetin is a specific protein phosphatase I inhibitor. In an effort to elucidate the biosynthetic mechanism of tautomycetin,we inactivated genes of the tautomycetin biosynthetic gene cluster, tauI, tauO, and tauK, which encode for putative P450 oxidase, citryl-CoA lyase, and esterase enzymes,respectively. The mutant STQ0606 (ΔtauO) did not produce any detectable amount of tautomycetin intermediates but could convert dialkylmaleic anhydride to tautomycetin,strongly indicating that TauO was involved in dialkylmaleic anhydride biosynthesis. STQ1211 (ΔtauK) accumulated dialkylmaleic anhydride, whereas the cofermentation of STQ1211(ΔtauK) and STQ0606 (ΔtauO) restored the production of tautomycetin. Together, these results suggest that TauK was responsible for the conjugation of dialkylmaleic anhydride and the polyketide moiety in tautomycetin biosynthesis. The disruption of tauI resulted in the accumulation of 5-des-ketotautomycetin,revealing that TauI was responsible for the oxidation at C5 as the last step. Although the shunt pathways were involved in the biosynthesis of tautomycetin, the main post-polyketide synthase tailoring steps were dehydration,decarboxylation and oxidation, taking place consecutively. This study allowed us to predict the biosynthesis of tautomycetin more accurately and provided novel insights into the mechanism of the biosynthesis of tautomycetin.

Association analysis of polymorphisms of G protein-coupled receptor 54 gene exons with reproductive traits in Jiaxing Black sows

Fen Wu,Wei Zhang,Qian-Qian Song,Hai-Hong Li,Ming-Shu Xu,Guoliang Liu,Jin-Zhi Zhang 아세아·태평양축산학회 2019 Animal Bioscience Vol.32 No.8

Objective: The aim of this study was to detect single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of G protein-coupled receptor 54 (GPR54) gene and explore association of this candidate gene with reproductive traits in Jiaxing Black sows. Methods: Six pairs of primers of the gene were designed to amplify all exons thus sequences of which were detected by means of direct sequencing and then SNP loci were scanned. The effects of SNPs on total number of piglets born (TNB), number of piglets born alive (NBA), number of still born piglets (NSB), and litter weight at birth (LWB) of Jiaxing Black sows were analyzed. Results: Three SNP loci, including T3739C, C3878T and T6789C, were identified via comparison of sequencing and two genotypes (AB, BB) at each SNP site were observed. T3739C resulted in the change of amino acid (Leu→Pro) in corresponding protein, and C3878T resulted in synonymous mutation (Ile→Ile). Statistical results demonstrated that allele B was the preponderant allele at the three SNP loci and Genotype BB was the preponderant genotype. Meanwhile, Chi-Square test of these three SNPs indicated that all mutation sites fitted in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (p>0.05). For GPR54-T3739C locus, Jiaxing Black sows with genotype BB had 1.23 TNB and 1.28 NBA (p<0.01) that were more than those with genotype AB, respectively. Jiaxing Black sows that had the first two parities with genotype BB had additional 2.23 TNB, 2.27 NBA (p<0.01), and 1.94 LWB (p<0.05) compared to those with genotype AB, respectively. However, for other two loci, no significant difference was found between TNB, NBA, NSB, and LWB, and different genotypes of Jiaxing Black sows. Conclusion: In conclusion, the polymorphisms of GPR54-T3739C locus were significantly associated to TNB, NBA, and LWB and could be used as a potential genetic marker to improve reproductive function of Jiaxing black sows.

Comparative study of the microstructure of Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy sheets under quasi-static and high-velocity bulging

Fen-Qiang Li,Jun Zhao,Jian-Hua Mo,Jian-Jun Li,Liang Huang 대한기계학회 2017 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.31 No.3

In order to reveal the high-velocity deformation mechanisms of Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy sheets, the dynamic deformation behavior and the microstructure evolutions were compared with those under quasi-static case employing Scanning electron microscopy/Electron back-scattered diffraction (SEM/EBSD) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results indicated that the distribution of microhardness was uneven. The cause was determined to be the non-uniform material flow and dynamic loading. The grain sizes of the Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy sheet were nearly the same under two conditions, but the grains were elongated under the dynamic loading compared with that observed in quasi-static forming. In high-velocity bulging, dislocation slip was the principle mechanism of plastic deformation of Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy when deformation was small. As the strain increased, the twinning phenomenon was activated in addition to the dislocation cell structure. The twinning plane was determined to be the (10 11) plane.

Bayesian-theory-based Fast CU Size and Mode Decision Algorithm for 3D-HEVC Depth Video Inter-coding

( Fen Chen ),( Sheng Liu ),( Zongju Peng ),( Qingqing Hu ),( Gangyi Jiang ),( Mei Yu ) 한국인터넷정보학회 2018 KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Syst Vol.12 No.4

Multi-view video plus depth (MVD) is a mainstream format of 3D scene representation in free viewpoint video systems. The advanced 3D extension of the high efficiency video coding (3D-HEVC) standard introduces new prediction tools to improve the coding performance of depth video. However, the depth video in 3D-HEVC is time consuming. To reduce the complexity of the depth video inter coding, we propose a fast coding unit (CU) size and mode decision algorithm. First, an off-line trained Bayesian model is built which the feature vector contains the depth levels of the corresponding spatial, temporal, and inter-component (texture-depth) neighboring largest CUs (LCUs). Then, the model is used to predict the depth level of the current LCU, and terminate the CU recursive splitting process. Finally, the CU mode search process is early terminated by making use of the mode correlation of spatial, inter-component (texture-depth), and inter-view neighboring CUs. Compared to the 3D-HEVC reference software HTM-10.0, the proposed algorithm reduces the encoding time of depth video and the total encoding time by 65.03% and 41.04% on average, respectively, with negligible quality degradation of the synthesized virtual view.

Evaluating optimum tilt angle for PV modules using solar radiation models in Wuhan, China

Fen. Li,Nianjun. Ma,Jinbin. Zhao,Keqing. Qu,Xingwu. Yang,Zhenghong. Chen 전력전자학회 2015 ICPE(ISPE)논문집 Vol.2015 No.6

Four models are used to estimate the hourly solar radiation on 15 pieces of different tilted photovoltaic (PV) modules in Wuhan, China based on power and solar radiation data during a whole year. The optimum tilt angle (OTA) in Wuhan for yearly and semi-yearly adjustment was determined. Then it was determined that the best mode is the tilt angle of PV module adjusted every half a year. In semi-yearly adjustment, OTA in semi-year of winter and summer is found as 45°, 15°, respectively. Experimental results verify the theoretical calculated values of the OTA with high precision. Energy radio (ER) reveals PV modules with adjustment of tilt angle twice a year has a capability to improve nearly 7% in comparison with fixed type. The best model was chosen based on test results from statistical indicators. The statistical results demonstrate that among the studied models, Liu&Jordan model is the most accurate.

Sarcopenia and vertebral fracture

Fen Lee Hew,Siew Pheng Chan,Swan Sim Yeap 대한골다공증학회 2018 Osteoporosis and Sarcopenia Vol.4 No.4

We read with interest the article by Iida and colleagues looking at sarcopenia in patients with vertebral fractures [1]. Both these conditions are important issues, especially in Asia. Osteoporotic vertebral fractures are not uncommon in the elderly and are under recognised [2]. A recent review article on vertebral fracture found that the age-standardised incidence was highest in South Korea, followed by USA and Hong Kong, e.g., for women, the rates were 1377, 939, and 662 per 100,000 respectively, i.e., 2 of the top 3 countries with a high incidence of vertebral fractures are in Asia [3]. For sarcopenia, the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia estimated that between 4.1% and 11.5% of the over 65 year old age group would have sarcopenia [4]. Thus, rehabilitation after an osteoporotic fracture should obviously be seen as a musculoskeletal problem rather than just a skeletal problem. This study has highlighted several important issues that would have clinical implications. Sarcopenia assessment premorbid/ prior to, and at presentation, of a fracture is not universally comprehensive with a few exceptions. The fact that this study demonstrated the prognostic role of such assessment is important given the much poorer outcome in terms of ability to return home 1 year after the fracture. Healthcare resources could be directed to those at higher risk to improve outcomes. However, we have several queries and comments: The authors have defined sarcopenia based only on densitometric criteria i.e., muscle mass, rather than the suggested combination of muscle function and muscle mass. Although the authors stated that they could not evaluate walking speed in the patients following a fracture, could the patients have had their grip strength assessed? We are not clear as to why the subjects were divided into “Osteoporosis” and “Without osteoporosis” groups. Since if they have had “osteoporotic vertebral fractures,” shouldn’t they all be osteoporotic? There were 396 study subjects, but only “about” 336 subjects had a 1-year follow-up. Could the authors be more specific as to exactly how many patients had a 1-year follow-up? In addition, can they provide information on those who were not followed up? If the patients who dropped out were significantly different in any of the characteristics, then the conclusion of the study would be less robust. This study only looked at patients hospitalised for their vertebral fracture, presumably consecutive admissions without selection. Were there patients who did not require hospitalization? And were they studied in a similar manner? Almost all the male elderly subjects in this cohort have sarcopenia e 102 out of 111. Do the authors have any comments as to why this is so? Many studies, though not all, have shown higher rates of sarcopenia in men compared to women [4], but never by this much especially when there is no difference in the age between the genders. Or does this reflect the social background of men being less likely to be involved socially and thus less active which may have contributed to the higher rate of sarcopenia? We know that earlier and adequate pain control improves mobility and reduces bone loss. The inclusion criteria include subjects within a month of onset of symptoms. We do know that a month of inactivity can cause quite substantial skeletal muscle loss. Do the authors have data to look at the time of presentation fromonset of symptoms to see if this has any bearing on sarcopenia? As indicated by the authors, vitamin D (in particular) and bisphosphonate treatment may improve outcome, was there data to indicate the rate of treatment in this cohort? Table 3 is titled “Comparison between patients with and without osteoporosis,” but yet the table headings are “sarcopenia” and “without sarcopenia.” Is there a typographical error?

Experimental study and numerical simulation on springback of Ti-6Al-4V alloy under hot U-bending

Fen-Qiang Li,Jishuai Jiang,Juemei Wang,Jinguo Wang,Xinyu Chen 대한기계학회 2023 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.37 No.7

In this study, springback of Ti-6Al-4V sheet subjected to hot bending was investigated experimentally and by numerical simulation. The experiment determined the relative effects of forming temperature, forming speed and holding time on springback during hot bending of the alloy sheet. Distribution of temperature and equivalent stress fields experienced during hot bending were predicted by thermal-mechanical coupling numerical simulation. Analysis of the mutual influence of deformation and temperature was conducted using finite element modeling in DYNAFORM software. The results indicated that increased forming temperature, forming speed and holding time each reduced springback to a degree. Forming temperature had the greatest influence in limiting springback, followed by forming speed and holding time, the latter of which was of minor significance. The thermomechanical coupling numerical model is reliable and the predicted temperature field distribution was confirmed.

Parameter optimization of electromagnetic pulse compaction driven by aluminum tube for tungsten copper powder

Fen-Qiang Li,Juehao Ding,Miao Zheng,Jianlin Xu,Xiaohong Ge,Hui Li,Jun Zhao 대한기계학회 2023 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.37 No.7

A combination of multi-physics numerical simulation and experiment was conducted to study the magnetic pulse compaction technology driven by two aluminum tubes of tungsten copper powder. Then, the effects of different process parameters on the density and uniformity of the compact were studied by tuning the thickness of the pack and driver tubes and the gap between them. Results show that the density of compact is the highest when the thickness of the driver tube is 1.0 mm. More energy is consumed for force conduction as the thickness of the pack tube increases. Thus, the density of the compact is the highest when the thickness of the packer tube is 0.8 mm. The speed of the driver tube impacting the pack tube also increases with the rise in the gap. Accordingly, the compaction density with the gap of 1.5 mm is the highest under the same other parameters.

Privacy-Preserving Key-Updatable Public Key Encryption with Keyword Search Supporting Ciphertext Sharing Function

( Fen Wang ),( Yang Lu ),( Zhongqi Wang ),( Jinmei Tian ) 한국인터넷정보학회 2022 KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Syst Vol.16 No.1

Public key encryption with keyword search (PEKS) allows a user to make search on ciphertexts without disclosing the information of encrypted messages and keywords. In practice, cryptographic operations often occur on insecure devices or mobile devices. But, these devices face the risk of being lost or stolen. Therefore, the secret keys stored on these devices are likely to be exposed. To handle the key exposure problem in PEKS, the notion of key-updatable PEKS (KU-PEKS) was proposed recently. In KU-PEKS, the users’ keys can be updated as the system runs. Nevertheless, the existing KU-PEKS framework has some weaknesses. Firstly, it can’t update the keyword ciphertexts on the storage server without leaking keyword information. Secondly, it needs to send the search tokens to the storage server by secure channels. Thirdly, it does not consider the search token security. In this work, a new PEKS framework named key-updatable and ciphertext-sharable PEKS (KU-CS-PEKS) is devised. This novel framework effectively overcomes the weaknesses in KU-PEKS and has the ciphertext sharing function which is not supported by KU-PEKS. The security notions for KU-CS-PEKS are formally defined and then a concrete KU-CS-PEKS scheme is proposed. The security proofs demonstrate that the KU-CS-PEKS scheme guarantees both the keyword ciphertext privacy and the search token privacy. The experimental results and comparisons bear out that the proposed scheme is practicable.