Permeability Anisotropy of Columnar Jointed Rock Masses

Lifang Zou,Weiya Xu,Guotao Meng,Yu Ning,Huanling Wang 대한토목학회 2018 KSCE JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING Vol.22 No.10

This paper investigated the anisotropic permeability of columnar jointed rock masses at Baihetan hydropower station in Southwest China. Discrete element analysis is conducted to evaluate the hydraulic Representative Elemental Volume (REV) size of jointed rock masses. It is found to be 5m×5m and it is seven times of the column length. Research shows that permeability tensor of the jointed rocks exists. The maximum principle permeability is 3.47 × 10−14 m2 and the minimum principle permeability is 1.39 × 10−14 m2. The direction of maximum principle permeability is 72 degrees anticlockwise from the positive x- axis direction, which is along the same direction of the column length. A continuum hydro-mechanical coupling analysis is carried out on water infill of a tailrace tunnel in columnar basalt. An equivalent anisotropic mechanical model is applied in the numerical simulation. Anisotropic deformation and anisotropic permeability characteristics are investigated under the condition that the angle between maximum principle stress axis and maximum principle permeability axis is 72 degrees. Results show that anisotropic seepage field has an effort on anisotropic deformation field.

Ginsenoside Rb1 ameliorates liver fat accumulation by upregulating perilipin expression in adipose tissue of db/db obese mice

Yu, Xizhong,Ye, Lifang,Zhang, Hao,Zhao, Juan,Wang, Guoqiang,Guo, Chao,Shang, Wenbin The Korean Society of Ginseng 2015 Journal of Ginseng Research Vol.39 No.3

Background: Ginsenoside Rb1 (G-Rb1), the major active constituent of ginseng, improves insulin sensitivity and exerts antidiabetic effects. We tested whether the insulin-sensitizing and antidiabetic effects of G-Rb1 results from a reduction in ectopic fat accumulation, mediated by inhibition of lipolysis in adipocytes. Methods: Obese and diabetic db/db mice were treated with daily doses of 20 mg/kg G-Rb1 for 14 days. Hepatic fat accumulation was evaluated by measuring liver weight and triglyceride content. Levels of blood glucose and serum insulin were used to evaluate insulin sensitivity in db/db mice. Lipolysis in adipocytes was evaluated by measuring plasma-free fatty acids and glycerol release from 3T3-L1 adipocytes treated with G-Rb1. The expression of relevant genes was analyzed by western blotting, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Results: G-Rb1 increased insulin sensitivity and alleviated hepatic fat accumulation in obese diabetic db/db mice, and these effects were accompanied by reduced liver weight and hepatic triglyceride content. Furthermore, G-Rb1 lowered the levels of free fatty acids in obese mice, which may contribute to a decline in hepatic lipid accumulation. Corresponding to these results, G-Rb1 significantly suppressed lipolysis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and upregulated the perilipin expression in both 3T3-L1 adipocytes and mouse epididymal fat pads. Moreover, G-Rb1 increased the level of adiponectin and reduced that of tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ in obese mice, and these effects were confirmed in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Conclusion: G-Rb1 may improve insulin sensitivity in obese and diabetic db/db mice by reducing hepatic fat accumulation and suppressing adipocyte lipolysis; these effects may be mediated via the upregulation of perilipin expression in adipocytes.

Ginsenoside Rb1 ameliorates liver fat accumulation by upregulating perilipin expression in adipose tissue of db/db obese mice

Xizhong Yu,Lifang Ye,Hao Zhang,Juan Zhao,Guoqiang Wang,Chao Guo,Wenbin Shang 고려인삼학회 2015 Journal of Ginseng Research Vol.39 No.3

Background: Ginsenoside Rb1 (G-Rb1), the major active constituent of ginseng, improves insulin sensitivity and exerts antidiabetic effects. We tested whether the insulin-sensitizing and antidiabetic effects of G-Rb1 results from a reduction in ectopic fat accumulation, mediated by inhibition of lipolysis in adipocytes. Methods: Obese and diabetic db/db mice were treated with daily doses of 20 mg/kg G-Rb1 for 14 days. Hepatic fat accumulation was evaluated by measuring liver weight and triglyceride content. Levels of blood glucose and serum insulin were used to evaluate insulin sensitivity in db/db mice. Lipolysis in adipocytes was evaluated by measuring plasma-free fatty acids and glycerol release from 3T3-L1 adipocytes treated with G-Rb1. The expression of relevant genes was analyzed by western blotting, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Results: G-Rb1 increased insulin sensitivity and alleviated hepatic fat accumulation in obese diabetic db/ db mice, and these effects were accompanied by reduced liver weight and hepatic triglyceride content. Furthermore, G-Rb1 lowered the levels of free fatty acids in obese mice, which may contribute to a decline in hepatic lipid accumulation. Corresponding to these results, G-Rb1 significantly suppressed lipolysis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and upregulated the perilipin expression in both 3T3-L1 adipocytes and mouse epididymal fat pads. Moreover, G-Rb1 increased the level of adiponectin and reduced that of tumor necrosis factor-a in obese mice, and these effects were confirmed in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Conclusion: G-Rb1 may improve insulin sensitivity in obese and diabetic db/db mice by reducing hepatic fat accumulation and suppressing adipocyte lipolysis; these effects may be mediated via the upregulation of perilipin expression in adipocytes.

Simultaneous regulation of photoabsorption and ferromagnetism of NaTaO3 by Fe doping

Huan Yang,Liguo Zhang,Lifang Yu,Fang Wang,Zhenzhen Ma,Jie Zhou,Xiaohong Xu 한국물리학회 2018 Current Applied Physics Vol.18 No.11

NaTa1-xFexO3 (0≤x≤0.40) nanocubes were synthesized by a relatively low temperature hydrothermal method, using Ta2O5, FeCl3 and NaOH as the precursors. The UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectra showed that NaTa1-xFexO3 had significant visible-light-absorbing capability, and the absorption edge of NaTaO3 shifted to longer wavelength with the increase of Fe dopants. Moreover, NaTa1-xFexO3 exhibited room-temperature ferromagnetism when Fe3+ occupied Ta5+ sites in NaTaO3 crystal lattice. The ferromagnetism is mainly attributed to the superexchange interactions between doped Fe3+, rather than the contribution of oxygen vacancies caused by Fe doping. Therefore, Fe doping can simultaneously regulate the optical and magnetic properties of NaTaO3 semiconductor, which will enable its potential applications in multifunctional optical-electronics and opticalspintronics devices.

Down-regulation of microRNA-155 suppressed Candida albicans induced acute lung injury by activating SOCS1 and inhibiting inflammation response

Li Xiaohua,Gong Yuanzhong,Lin Xin,Lin Qiong,Luo Jianxiong,Yu Tianxing,Xu Junping,Chen Lifang,Xu Liyu,Hu Ying 한국미생물학회 2022 The journal of microbiology Vol.60 No.4

Acute lung injury caused by Candida albicans could result in high mortality and morbidity. MicroRNA-155 (miR-155) and suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1) have been believed to play a key in the regulation of inflammatory response. Whether miR-155/SOCS1 axis could regulate the acute lung injury caused by C. albicans has not been reported. The acute lung injury animal model was established with acute infection of C. albicans. miR-155 inhibitor, miR-155 mimic, and sh-SOCS1 were constructed. The binding site between miR- 155 and SOCS1 was identified with dual luciferase reporter assay. Knockdown of miR-155 markedly inhibited the germ tube formation of C. albicans. Knockdown of miR-155 significantly up-regulated the expression of SOCS1, and the binding site between miR-155 and SOCS1 was identified. Knockdown of miR-155 improved the acute lung injury, suppressed inflammatory factors and fungus loading through SOCS1. Knockdown of SOCS1 greatly reversed the influence of miR- 155 inhibitor on the cell apoptosis in vitro. The improvement of acute lung injury caused by C. albicans, suppression of inflammatory response and C. albicans infection, and inhibitor of cell apoptosis were achieved by knocking down miR-155 through SOCS1. This research might provide a new thought for the prevention and treatment of acute lung injury caused by C. albicans through targeting miR-155/SOCS1 axis.

Sex-related Differences in DNA Copy Number Alterations in Hepatitis B Virus-Associated Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Zhu, Zhong-Zheng,Wang, Dong,Cong, Wen-Ming,Jiang, Hongmei,Yu, Yue,Wen, Bing-Ji,Dong, Hui,Zhang, Xiao,Liu, Shu-Fang,Wang, Ai-Zhong,Zhu, Guanshan,Hou, Lifang Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.1

Background: Males have a higher prevalence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) than females in general, but the reasons for the sex disparity are still obscure. DNA copy number alteration (CNA) is a major feature of solid tumors including HCC, but whether CNA plays a role in sex-related differences in HCC development has never been evaluated. Methods: High-resolution array comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) was used to examine 17 female and 46 male HCC patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in Shanghai, China. Two-tailed Fisher's exact or ${\chi}^2$ tests was used to compare CNAs between females and males. Results: The overall frequencies and patterns of CNAs in female and male cases were similar. However, female HCC tumors presented more copy number gains compared to those in males on 1q21.3-q22 (76.5% vs. 37.0%, P = 0.009), 11q11 (35.3% vs. 0.0%, P = 0.0002) and 19q13.31-q13.32 (23.5% vs. 0.0%, P = 0.004), and loss on 16p11.2 (35.3% vs. 6.5%, P = 0.009). Relative to females, male cases had greater copy number loss on 11q11 (63.0% vs. 17.6%, P = 0.002). Further analyses showed that 11q11 gain correlated with 19q13.31-q13.32 gain (P = 0.042), 11q11 loss (P = 0.011) and 16p11.2 loss (P = 0.033), while 1q21.3-q22 gain correlated with 19q13.31-q13.32 gain (P = 0.046). Conclusions: These findings suggest that CNAs may play a role in sex-related differences in HBVassociated HCC development.

Association of microRNA-3144 variant with the susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma

Jun Zhang,Yi Liu,Jie Liu,Rui Wang,Min Cai,Shunji Yu,Yanyun Ma,Weihong Xu,Chunfang Gao,Jiucun Wang,Lifang Hou 한국유전학회 2014 Genes & Genomics Vol.36 No.6

Increasing studies suggest that microRNAs, anew group of small non-coding molecules, regulate theexpression of their target genes and play some roles in cancers. Thus, it is hypothesized that the genetic variants ofmicroRNAs could contribute to the susceptibility to cancers. In this study, the association between rs67106263 in microRNA-3144 and the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)was explored in a large-scaled case–control population basedon MassARRAY technology. It was discovered that comparedwith the carriers of wide-type GG genotype and heterozygoteGA genotype of microRNA-3144, thesignificantly increased risk of HCC was observed in thesubjects with the homozygote variant AA (adjusted oddsratio = 1.285, 95 % confidence interval = 1.004–1.643,P = 0.046). Additionally, the variant was also associatedwith the expression of alpha fetoprotein (AFP), which is thediagnostic marker for HCC. Our findings suggest for the firsttime that rs67106263 may play some roles in the risk of HCC,expecting future molecular researches to elucidate the possiblemechanisms behind these results.