Effects of near-fault loading and lateral bracing on the behavior of RBS moment connections

Qi-Song “Kent” Yu,Chia-Ming Uang 국제구조공학회 2001 Steel and Composite Structures, An International J Vol.1 No.1

An experimental study was conducted to evaluate the effects of loading sequence and lateral bracing on the behavior of reduced beam section (RBS) steel moment frame connections. Four full-scale moment connections were cyclically tested-two with a standard loading history and the other two with a near-fault loading history. All specimens reached at least 0.03 radian of plastic rotation without brittle fracture of the beam flange groove welds. Two specimens tested with the nearfault loading protocol reached at least 0.05 radian of plastic rotation, and both experienced smaller buckling amplitudes at comparable drift levels. Energy dissipation capacities were insensitive to the types of loading protocol used. Adding a lateral bracing near the RBS region produced a higher plastic rotation; the strength degradation and buckling amplitude were reduced. A non-linear finite element analysis of a one-and-a-half-bay beam-column subassembly was also conducted to study the system restraint effect. The study showed that the axial restraint of the beam could significantly reduce the strength degradation and buckling amplitude at higher deformation levels.

Antioxidant Effect of Grapevine Leaf Extract on the Oxidative Stress Induced by a High-fat Diet in Rats

Qi-Ming Yu,임은지,최수경,서정숙 한국식품과학회 2014 Food Science and Biotechnology Vol.23 No.3

This study was conducted to investigate theeffect of grapevine leaf extract (GLE) on the oxidativestress of rats fed a high-fat diet. Rats were divided into sixgroups: a normal diet with 0% (NC), 1.0% (NG1.0), and1.5% GLE (NG1.5); and a high-fat diet with 0% (HFC),1.0% (HFG1.0), and 1.5% GLE (HFG1.5). Treatment withGLE to the high-fat diet reduced lipid peroxide concentrationsin plasma and liver compared to those of HFC rats. Totalglutathione and GSH/GSSG of the groups with GLE werehigher than those of untreated groups. Hepatic glutathioneperoxidase, glutathione-S-transferase, and glutathionereductase activities along with catalase and glutathioneperoxidase activities in erythrocytes increased after GLEtreatment to high-fat diet compared with HFC rats. Hepaticretinol and tocopherol increased in HFG1.5 groupcompared to those of HFC group. These results indicatethat GLE can protect against oxidative stress induced by ahigh-fat diet in rats.

Genetic variations in the bitter taste receptor gene TAS2R38 are related to cigarette smoking behavior in Han Chinese smokers

Qi Fei-Yan,Zhu Zhou-Hai,Li Meng,Guan Ying,Peng Qi-Yuan,Lu She-Ming,Liu Zhi-Hua,Wang Ming-Feng,Miao Ming-Ming,Chen Zhang-Yu,Li Xue-Mei,Bai Jie,Yao Jian-Hua 한국유전학회 2022 Genes & Genomics Vol.44 No.11

Background: Smoking behavior is influenced by multiple genes, including the bitter taste gene TAS2R38. It has been reported that the correlation between TAS2R38 and smoking behavior has ethnicity-based differences. However, the TAS2R38 status in Chinese smokers is still unclear. Objective: This study aims to investigate the possible relationship between genetic variations in TAS2R38 (A49P, V262A and I296V) and smoking behaviors in the Han Chinese population. Methods: The haplotype analyses were performed and smoking behavior questionnaire was completed by 1271 individuals. Genetic association analyses for smoking behavior were analyzed using chi-square test. Further, for investigating the molecular mechanism of TAS2R38 variants effect on smoking behavior, we conducted TAS2R38-PAV and TAS2R38-AVI expression plasmids and tested the cellular calcium assay by cigarette smoke compounds stimulus in HEK293. Results: Significant associations of genetic variants within TAS2R38 were identified with smoking behavior. We found a higher PAV/PAV frequency than AVI/AVI in moderate and high nicotine dependence (FTND ≥ 4; X2 = 4.611, 1 df, p = 0.032) and strong cigarette smoke flavor intensity preference (X2 = 4.5383, 1 df, p = 0.033) in participants. Furthermore, in the in vitro cellular calcium assay, total particle matter (TPM), N-formylnornicotine and cotinine, existing in cigarette smoke, activated TAS2R38-PAV but not TAS2R38-AVI-transfected cells. Conclusion: Our data highlights that genetic variations in TAS2R38 are related to smoking behavior, especially nicotine dependence and cigarette smoke flavor intensity preference. Our findings may encourage further consideration of the taste process to identify individuals susceptible to nicotine dependence, particularly Han Chinese smokers.

Elevated Circulating CD19⁺ Lymphocytes Predict Survival Advantage in Patients with Gastric Cancer

Yu, Qi-Ming,Yu, Chuan-Ding,Ling, Zhi-Qiang Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.5

Background: Circulating lymphocyte subsets reflect the immunological status and might therefore be a prognostic indicator in cancer patients. Our aim was to evaluate the clinical significance of circulating lymphocyte subset in gastric cancer (GC) cases. Methods: A retrospective study on a prevalent cohort of 846 GC patients hospitalized at Hospital from Aug 2006 to Jul 2010 was conducted. We calculated the patient's disease free survival (DFS) after first hospital admission, and hazard ratios (HR) from the Cox proportional hazards model. Results: Our findings indicated a significantly decreased percentage of CD3+, and CD8+ cells, a significantly increased proportion of $CD4^+$, $CD19^+$, $CD44^+$, $CD25^+$, NK cells, and an increased $CD4^+/CD8^+$ ratio in GC patients as compared with healthy controls (all P < 0.05). Alteration of lymphocyte subsets was positively correlated with sex, age, smoking, tumor stage and distant metastasis of GC patients (all P<0.05). Follow-up analysis indicated significantly higher DFS for patients with high circulating $CD19^+$ lymphocytes compared to those with low $CD19^+$ lymphocytes (P=0.037), with $CD19^+$ showing an important cutoff of $7.91{\pm}2.98%$ Conclusion: Circulating lymphocyte subsets in GC patients are significantly changed, and elevated CD19+ cells may predict a favorable survival.

Function of Global Regulator CodY in Bacillus thuringiensis BMB171 by Comparative Proteomic Analysis

( Ming Xia Qi ),( Fei Mei ),( Hui Wang ),( Ming Sun ),( Ge Jiao Wang ),( Ziniu Yu ),( Yeon Ho Je ),( Ming Shun Li ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2015 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.25 No.2

CodY is a highly conserved protein in low G+C gram-positive bacteria that regulates genes involved in sporulation and stationary-phase adaptation. Bacillus thuringiensis is a grampositive bacterium that forms spores and parasporal crystals during the stationary phase. To our knowledge, the regulatory mechanism of CodY in B. thuringiensis is unknown. To study the function of CodY protein in B. thuringiensis, BMB171codY- was constructed in a BMB171 strain. A shuttle vector containing the ORF of cry1Ac10 was transformed into BMB171 and BMB171codY-, named BMB171cry1Ac and BMB171codY-cry1Ac, respectively. Some morphological and physiological changes of codY mutant BMB171codY-cry1Ac were observed. A comparative proteomic analysis was conducted for both BMB171codY-cry1Ac and BMB171cry1Ac through two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and MALDI-TOF-MS/MS analysis. The results showed that the proteins regulated by CodY are involved in microbial metabolism, including branched-chain amino acid metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, and energy metabolism. Furthermore, we found CodY to be involved in sporulation, biosynthesis of poly-β-hydroxybutyrate, growth, genetic competence, and translation. According to the analysis of differentially expressed proteins, and physiological characterization of the codY mutant, we performed bacterial one-hybrid and electrophoretic mobility shift assay experiments and confirmed the direct regulation of genes by CodY, specifically those involved in metabolism of branched-chain amino acids, ribosomal recycling factor FRR, and the late competence protein ComER. Our data establish the foundation for in-depth study of the regulation of CodY in B. thuringiensis, and also offer a potential biocatalyst for functions of CodY in other bacteria.

Impact of Refined Land Surface Properties on the Simulation of a Heavy Convective Rainfall Process in the Pearl River Delta Region, China

Ming Chang,Shaofen Fan,Qi Fan,Weihua Chen,Yiqiang Zhang,Yu Wang,Xuemei Wang 한국기상학회 2014 Asia-Pacific Journal of Atmospheric Sciences Vol.50 No.5

The location and occurrence time of convective rainfallshave attracted great public concern as they can lead to terribledisasters. However, the simulation results of convective rainfalls inthe Pearl River Delta region often show significant discrepanciesfrom the observations. One of the major causes lies in the inaccurategeographic distribution of land surface properties used in the modelsimulation of the heavy precipitation. In this study, we replaced thedefault soil and vegetation datasets of Weather Research andForecasting (WRF) model with two refined datasets, i.e. theGlobCover 2009 (GLC2009) land cover map and the HarmonizedWorld Soil Database (HWSD) soil texture, to investigate the impactof vegetation and soil on the rainfall patterns. The result showed thatthe simulation patterns of convective rainfalls obtained from thecoupled refined datasets are more consistent with the observationsthan those obtained from the default ones. By using the coupledrefined land surface datasets, the overlap ratio of high precipitationdistricts reached 36.3% with a variance of 28.5 km from theobserved maximum rainfall position, while those of the defaultUnited States Geological Survey (USGS) dataset and ModerateResolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) dataset are 17.0%/32.8 km and 24.9%/49.0 km, respectively. The simulated totalrainfall amount and occurrence time using the coupled refineddatasets are the closest to the observed peak values. In addition, theHWSD soil data has improved the accuracy of the simulatedprecipitation amount, and the GLC2009 land cover data also didbetter in catching the early peak time.

Preparation and properties of morphology controlled poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate)/poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) double networks for biomedical use

Qi Tang,Jun-Rong Yu,Lei Chen,Jing Zhu,Zu-Ming Hu 한국물리학회 2010 Current Applied Physics Vol.10 No.3

Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate)/poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) (PHEMA/PVP) double networks (DN) were prepared using a sequential method by incorporating a second network of crosslinked PVP into PHEMA. We found that the distributions of the two networks can be regulated just by modulating the morphology of the first network, thus giving expected high water content of these gels. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) were used to confirm the structure of the DN. The incorporation of more hydrophilic PVP enhanced swelling ability of these gels. Because of improved hydrophilicity, the PHEMA/PVP DN exhibited higher loading capability for water-soluble substance than that of pure PHEMA, while showed a slower release rate than corresponding HEMA/NVP copolymer hydrogel. It is suggested that the DN gels are potential biomaterials for wound dressing, medical implants and other drug delivery systems.

FORMATION OF II–VI SEMICONDUCTOR NANOCRYSTALS WITH TUNABLE VISIBLE EMISSION IN AQUEOUS SOLUTION PROMOTED BY HYDRAZINE

QI-HUI SHEN,YAN LIU,XI YU,XIAO-YANG LIU,MING-QIANG ZOU,JIN-FENG LI,JIAN-GUANG ZHOU 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2012 NANO Vol.7 No.6

II?VI Semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) with tunable visible emission, such as CdS, CdSe and CdTe, were synthesized in aqueous solution using thiols as capping molecules. Hydrazine was found to promote the growth of NCs through a special mechanism. In only a few hours, the synthesis process was completed at room temperature. Under moderate conditions, the capping molecules not only changed the growth rate of NCs simply by varying the concentration, but also altered the spectral properties of NCs. The capping molecules with amino groups were propitious to the growth of CdS NCs, whereas the kinetic growth of CdS NCs was more a®ected by the surface passivation e±ciency of NCs than by steric hindrance in the system. The fastest growth of the CdS NCs was achieved when glutathione was used as a capping molecule, while the emission of CdS and CdSe NCs were shown to remain steady and tunable using the same capping molecule. The growth rate of 3-mercaptopropionic acid-capped CdS and CdSe NCs slowed down signi¯-cantly, while CdTe NCs were obtained with excellent emission properties when capped with the same molecule. Furthermore, our approach will also be useful for the study of the kinetic growth of NCs in aqueous solution.

Poly (dimethyl siloxane)/poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) interpenetrating polymer network beads as potential capsules for biomedical use

Qi Tang,Jun-Rong Yu,Lei Chen,Jing Zhu,Zu-Ming Hu 한국물리학회 2011 Current Applied Physics Vol.11 No.3

Silicone hydrogels represent a series of novel materials designed for extensive applications especially in the biomedical field. In the current work, a method to obtain poly (dimethyl siloxane)/poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PDMS/PHEMA) interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) beads was developed. With further optimization, up to 43% PHEMA was incorporated into size controllable PDMS microspheres,offers an improved hydrophilicity and thus a reduced protein adsorption for long-term use. Furthermore, we found the PDMS/PHEMA IPN beads possess a hollow capsule-like structure, proposing their application as novel drug delivery vehicles. In vitro release studies have demonstrated two release patterns of these IPN beads for water-soluble drugs just by modulating the drug concentration, suggesting their possible applications in different delivery systems.

Influence of internal pores and graphene platelets on vibration of non-uniform functionally graded columns

Wen-qi Liu,Shan-jun Liu,Ming-yu Fan,Wei Tian,Ji-peng Wang,Vahid Tahouneh 국제구조공학회 2020 Steel and Composite Structures, An International J Vol.35 No.2

This paper deals with free vibration analysis of non-uniform column resting on elastic foundations and subjected to follower force at its free end. The internal pores and graphene platelets (GPLs) are distributed in the matrix according to different patterns. The model is proposed with material parameters varying in the thickness of column to achieve graded distributions in both porosity and nanofillers. The elastic modulus of the nanocomposite is obtained by using Halpin-Tsai micromechanics model. The differential quadrature method as an efficient and accurate numerical approach is used to discretize the governing equations and to implement the boundary conditions. It is observed that the maximum vibration frequency obtained in the case of symmetric porosity and GPL distribution, while the minimum vibration frequency is obtained using uniform porosity distribution. Results show that for better understanding of mechanical behavior of nanocomposite column, it is crucial to consider porosities inside the material structure.