Polyurethane Membrane with Temperature- and pH-Controllable Permeability for Amino-Acids

Hu Zhou,Ruiping Xun,Kejian Wu,Zhihua Zhou,Bin Yu,Youxin Tang,Ning Li 한국고분자학회 2015 Macromolecular Research Vol.23 No.1

This work was focused on the investigation of the temperature- and pH-responsive polyurethane (PU)membranes and their permeability to amino-acids in response to environmental stimuli. The PU membrane wasprepared from a wet phase inversion method and a two-step solution polymerization from polycaprolactone diols(PCL), 4,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI), dimethylol propionic acid (DMPA), etc. The chemical structure,phase state, morphology and surface wettability of the membrane were characterized with Fourier transform infrared(FTIR) spectrometer, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and contactangle tester, respectively. The temperature and pH responses of the membrane were investigated by means of anamino-acid permeate experiment. The L-phenylalanine (L-Phe) was chosen as model amino-acids. The permeation of theL-Phe was measured using a dead-end flow filtration at varied temperatures and pH, and characterized by the permeateflux (J) and rejection coefficient (R). J of the L-Phe across the PU membrane increased with increasingtemperature and showed a sharp increase when temperature was raised to the crystalline melting temperature (Tm)of the soft segment of PU, while decreased with increasing pH and having a sharp decrease when pH reached thedissociation constant (pKa) of DMPA contained in PU macromolecules. While, the R behavior of L-Phe was justopposite from the results of J, which decreased with increasing temperature and increased with increasing pH,also showing the temperature and pH responses. Hopefully, the PU membrane with temperature- and pH-controllablepermeability has promising prospects in water treatment, membrane separation, drug delivery system, etc.

Alginate-Coated Thiolated Chitosan Microspheres for an Oral Drug Delivery System In Vitro

Jiang, Hu Lin,Arote, Rohidas B.,Quan, Ji Shan,Yoo, Mi Kyong,Kim, You Kyoung,Kim, In Yong,Hong, Zhong Shan,Lee, Hong Gu,Jin, Xun,Choi, Yun Jaie,Cho, Chong Su Trans Tech Publications, Ltd. 2007 Key Engineering Materials Vol.342 No.-

<P>Thiolated polymers have been studied by many researchers because of the mucoadhesive properties of thiol group. Alginate is a natural and biocompatible polymer that has been widely used in drug delivery. In this study, thiolated chitosan microspheres (TCMs) were prepared by ionic gelation process with tripolyphosphate and then, the bovine growth hormone (BGH) was loaded as a model drug. Finally, the BGH-loaded TCMs (BTCMs) were coated with alginate to improve the stability in gastrointestinal (GI) track. The alginate-coated BTCMs (ABTCMs) were observed as spherical shapes. The average particle sizes of ABTCMs were 6.97±0.55 -m and the sizedistribution was shown uniformly. Release of BGH from ABTCMs was decreased by coating with alginate and increased rapidly with the change in medium pH from 1.2 to 7.4. Results indicate that the ABTCMs have a potential as a drug carrier for oral drug delivery.</P>

Neonicotinoid insecticide resistance in the field populations of Sogatella furcifera (Horváth) in Central China from 2011 to 2015

Xiaolei Zhang,Xun Liao,Kaikai Mao,Peng Yang,Dongyang Li,Ehsan Ali,Hu Wan,Jian Hong Li 한국응용곤충학회 2017 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.20 No.3

The whitebacked planthopper Sogatella furcifera (Horváth) is an important pest of rice throughout Asia. Application of chemical insecticide is the main approach to suppress the field populations of S. furcifera. In this study, neonicotinoid insecticide resistance in field populations of S. furcifera were evaluated. The results showed that some field populations of S. furcifera had developed moderate level of resistance to imidacloprid (RR =1.1–16.4), thiamethoxam (RR=0.8–14.9), dinotefuran (RR =1.2–16.6) and acetamiprid (RR =3.3–12.2), low level of resistance to nitenpyram (RR=1.1–9.5) and clothianidin (RR =1.3–8.7) in Central China. Moreover, there were an increasing trend in neonicotinoid insecticide resistance in the period 2011–2015. The results of current study may form the basis to identify and evaluate the resistance tendency of S. furcifera against neonicotinoid insecticides, which could make effective management recommendations to avoid further development of insecticide resistance in S. furcifera.

Rationally designed hybrids of NiCo₂O₄ and polymeric carbon nitride as faradaic electrodes with enhanced electrochemical performance

Wang, Zhonghao,Hu, Xun,Wang, Lina,Jin, Bingjun,Zou, Guojun,Huang, Zhiwei,Liu, Qing,Hu, Guangzhi,Zhang, Kan,Park, Jong Hyeok Elsevier 2019 ELECTROCHIMICA ACTA Vol.299 No.-

<P><B>Abstract</B></P> <P>Herein, electrochemically sluggish polymeric carbon nitride (PCN) is successfully introduced into NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> to form hybrids of NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> and PCN, in which PCN nanosheets are regarded as a substrate to promote the nucleation and subsequent in-situ growth of NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> nanosheets. The surface of as-prepared hybrids are rich in Ni and Co ions in low and high valence state, respectively. In addition, the hybrids exhibit more hydrophilic compared with that of pristine NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> due to its higher amounts of hydroxyl group. It has been found that the nitrogen species originated from PCN nanosheets tend to bond with the metal ions and electrolyte used, resulting in tuning the electronic structural states and coupling effects with NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> nanosheets. Owing to these structural characteristics, the electrochemical performance as faradaic electrode materials and long-term stability of optimized hybrid is much superior to the bare NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> nanosheets.</P> <P><B>Highlights</B></P> <P> <UL> <LI> NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB>-PCN samples were prepared via a facile and scalable strategy. </LI> <LI> The NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB>-PCN-40 exhibited much higher supercapacitor performance than that of pure NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB>. </LI> <LI> The PCN nanosheets can promote the nucleation and subsequent in-situ growth of NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> nanosheets in oriented way. </LI> <LI> The presence of PCN can tune the electronic structural states and coupling effects with NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> nanosheets. </LI> </UL> </P> <P><B>Graphical abstract</B></P> <P>The vertically growth of NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB> on PCN nanosheets substrate with 3D open frameworks synthesized here is beneficial for facilitating electrolyte ions transport and electron trapping, thus boosting the supercapacitor performance of NiCo<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB>.</P> <P>[DISPLAY OMISSION]</P>

Selection and evaluation of reference genes for quantitative gene expression studies in cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Muhammad Shakeel,Xun Zhu,Tinghao Kang,Hu Wan,Jian Hong Li 한국응용곤충학회 2015 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.18 No.2

An efficient technique for investigating gene expression is the real time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR). Despite the fact that this technique has been extensively used to explore the gene function in Helicoverpa armigera, stability of the reference genes still requires validation. This research aims to validate the stability of expression of nine potential reference genes under different experimental conditions including temperature, mechanical injury, starvation, photoperiod, and developmental stage. An exhaustive system (RefFinder), available online, was employed to evaluate and grade the studied genes. Appropriateness of the reference genes as endogenous controls was determined through four computational algorithms (ΔCt, NormFinder, BestKeeper, and geNorm). According to the findings of this study, RPL28 and RPS15 were found to be the most stable reference genes in case of starved larvae, temperature stressed larvae, and different developmental stages. On the other hand, HSP90 and TUBB proved to be highly stable in case of photoperiod stressed larvae. Finally, TUBB and GAPDH were the most stable reference genes in case of larvae subjected to mechanical injury. These results can facilitate development of a standardized qRT-PCR technique and can also prove to be helpful for standard RT-PCR method which need reference gene for normalization.

Meta-Analysis of the Association between H63D and C282Y Polymorphisms in HFE and Cancer Risk

Zhang, Meng,Xiong, Hu,Fang, Lu,Lu, Wei,Wu, Xun,Wang, Yong-Qiang,Cai, Zhi-Ming,Wu, Song Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.11

Background: Previous studies suggested that the H63D and C282Y polymorphisms in the HFE genes were susceptible to many cancer types, nevertheless, the present results were inconclusive. Thus, the present study was aimed to evaluate the association between the HFE polymorphisms (H63D and C282Y) and cancer risk via meta-analysis. Materials and Methods: We retrieved PubMed, Google Scholar, Embase and Web of Science databases for all eligible studies up to April 1, 2015. All the statistical analysis was conducted by STATA 12.0. Results: Finally, a total of 20 publications including 24 case-control studies, comprising 6,524 cases and 31,080 controls for HFE-C282Y polymorphism and 19 publications including 21 case control studies, comprising 5,648 cases and 14,257 controls for HFE-H63D polymorphism were enrolled in our analysis. An increased risk for overall cancer risk was identified in HFE-H63D polymorphism under allele contrast (D vs H: OR=1.153; 95%CI=1.031-1.289, Pheterogeneity=0.002), homozygotes vs wide type (DD vs HH: OR=1.449; 95%CI=1.182-1.777, Pheterogeneity=0.391), dominant model (DD+HD vs HH: OR=1.145; 95%CI=1.007-1.301, Pheterogeneity=0.002) and recessive model (DD vs HD+HH: OR=1.416 ; 95%CI=1.156-1.735, Pheterogeneity=0.549), as well as HFE-C282Y under homozygotes vs wide type (YY vs CC: OR=1.428, 95%CI=1.017-2.006, Pheterogeneity=0.220). In addition, in the stratified analysis by cancer type, an increased risk was identified in hepatocellular carcinoma and breast cancer in C282Y polymorphism, as well as pancreatic cancer in H63D polymorphism, whereas a decreased risk of colorectal cancer was identified in C282Y polymorphism. Conclusions: Present study suggested that H63D and C282Y polymorphisms associated with an increased risk of overall cancer. Nevertheless, well-designed study with large sample size will be continued on this issue of interest.

Associations among Genetic Variants and Intracranial Aneurysm in a Chinese Population

Bingyang Li,Chongyu Hu,Junyu Liu,Xin Liao,Jiayu Xun,Manqian Xiao,Junxia Yan 연세대학교의과대학 2019 Yonsei medical journal Vol.60 No.7

Purpose: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have revealed that common variants on or near EDNRA, HDAC9, SOX17,RP1, CDKN2B-AS1, and RBBP8 genes are associated with intracranial aneurysm (IA) in European or Japanese populations. However,due to population heterogeneity, whether these loci are associated with IA pathogenesis in Chinese individuals is still unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate associations among GWAS-identified loci and risk of IA in a Chinese population. Materials and Methods: A total of 765 individuals (including 230 IA patients and 535 controls) were involved in this study. Twelvesingle nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of candidate loci were genotyped using the Sequenom MassARRAY platform. Associationswere analyzed using univariate or multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results: SNPs in CDKN2B-AS1 (especially rs10757272) showed significant associations with IA in dominant and additive models[odds ratio (OR), 2.99 and 1.43; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.44–6.24 and 1.10–1.86, respectively]. A SNP near HDAC9 (rs10230207)was associated with IA in the dominant model (OR, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.01–1.99). One SNP near RP1 (rs1072737) showed a protectiveeffect on IA in the dominant model (OR, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.46–0.95), while another SNP in RP1 (rs9298506) showed a risk effect onIA in a recessive model (OR, 3.82; 95% CI, 1.84–7.91). No associations were observed among common variants near EDNRA,SOX17, or RBBP8 and IA. Conclusion: These data partially confirmed earlier results and showed that variants in CDKN2B-AS1, RP1, and HDAC9 could begenetic susceptibility factors for IA in a Chinese population.

Paraoxonase 1 (PON1) Q192R Gene Polymorphism and Cancer Risk: A Meta-Analysis Based on 30 Publications

Zhang, Meng,Xiong, Hu,Fang, Lu,Lu, Wei,Wu, Xun,Huang, Zhan-Sen,Wang, Yong-Qiang,Cai, Zhi-Ming,Wu, Song Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.10

Common genetic variation Q192R in the paraoxonase 1 (PON1) gene has been considered to be implicated in the development of many cancers. Nevertheless, results from the related studies were inconsistent. To elucidate the association, we performed a meta-analysis for 8,112 cases and 10,037 controls from 32 published case-control studies. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to assess the strength of the association by STATA 12.0 software. Overall, we revealed that the PON1-192R allele was associated with a reduced risk of the overall cancers. Moreover, in the stratified analysis by cancer types (breast cancer, prostate cancer, brain cancer etc.), the results showed that PON1-192R allele was associated with a decreased risk in breast cancer (R vs Q: OR=0.605, 95% CI=0.378-0.967, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.000$; RR vs QQ: OR=0.494, 95% CI=0.275-0.888, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.002$; RQ vs QQ: OR=0.465, 95% CI=0.259-0.835, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.000$; and RR+RQ vs QQ: OR=0.485, 95% CI=0.274-0.857, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.000$), and associated with prostate cancer in homozygote (RR vs QQ: OR=0.475, 95% CI=0.251-0.897, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.001$) and recessive models (RR vs RQ+QQ: OR=0.379, 95% CI=0.169-0.853, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.000$), while an increased risk was identified in lymphoma (R vs Q: OR=1.537, 95% CI=1.246-1.896, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.944$; RR vs QQ: OR=2.987, 95% CI=1.861-4.795, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.350$; RR+RQ vs QQ: OR=1.354, 95% CI=1.021-1.796, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.824$; and RR vs RQ+QQ: OR=2.934, 95% CI=1.869-4.605, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.433$), and an increased risk in prostate cancer under heterozygote comparison (RQ vs QQ: OR=1.782, 95% CI=1.077-2.950, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.000$) and dominant models (RR+RQ vs QQ: OR=1.281, 95% CI=1.044-1.573, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.056$). When subgroup analysis that performed by the control source (hospital based or population based), a decreased risk of the overall cancers was revealed by homozygote (RR vs QQ: OR=0.601, 95% CI=0.366-0.987, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.000$) and dominant models (RR vs RQ+QQ: OR= 0.611, 95% CI=0.384-0.973, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.000$) in hospital based group. Stratifying by ethnicity, a significantly reduced risk of the overall cancers under allele contrast model (R vs Q: OR=0.788, 95% CI=0.626-0.993, $P_{heterogeneity}=0.000$) was uncovered in Caucasian. In summary, these findings suggested that PON1 Q192R polymorphism was associated with a reduced risk of the overall cancers, nevertheless, it might increase cancer susceptibility of prostate and lymphoma risk. Large well-designed epidemiological studies will be continued on this issue of interest.

Biodiesel Production: Utilization of Loofah Sponge to Immobilize Rhizopus chinensis CGMCC #3.0232 Cells as a Whole-Cell Biocatalyst

( Qiyang He ),( Qianjun Xia ),( Yuejiao Wang ),( Xun Li ),( Yu Zhang ),( Bo Hu ),( Fei Wang ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2016 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.26 No.6

Rhizopus chinensis cells immobilized on loofah (Luffa cylindrica) sponges were used to produce biodiesel via the transesterification of soybean oil. In whole-cell immobilization, loofah sponge is considered to be a superior alternative to conventional biomass carriers because of its biodegradable and renewable properties. During cell cultivation, Rhizopus chinensis mycelia can spontaneously and firmly adhere to the surface of loofah sponge particles. The optimal conditions for processing 9.65 g soybean oil at 40°C and 180 rpm using a 3:1 methanol-to-oil molar ratio were found to be 8% cell addition and 3-10% water content (depending on the oil``s weight). Under optimal conditions, an over 90% methyl ester yield was achieved after the first reaction batch. The operational stability of immobilized Rhizopus chinensis cells was assayed utilizing a 1:1 methanol-to-oil molar ratio, thus resulting in a 16.5-fold increase in half-life when compared with immobilized cells of the widely studied Rhizopus oryzae. These results suggest that transesterification of vegetable oil using Rhizopus chinensis whole cells immobilized onto loofah sponge is an effective approach for biodiesel production.

Role of active and passive smoking in high-risk human papillomavirus infection and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or worse

Rui-Mei Feng,Shang-Ying Hu,Fang-Hui Zhao,Rong Zhang,Xun Zhang,Asya Izraelit Wallach,You-Lin Qiao 대한부인종양학회 2017 Journal of Gynecologic Oncology Vol.28 No.5

Objective: We performed a pooled analysis to examine cigarette smoking and householdpassive smoke exposure in relation to the risk of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection andcervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2+ (CIN2+). Methods: Data were pooled from 12 cross-sectional studies for cervical cancer screeningsfrom 10 provinces of China in 1999–2007. A total of 16,422 women were analyzed, alongwith 2,392 high-risk-HPV (hr-HPV) positive women and 381 CIN2+ cases. Pooled odds ratios(ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using logistic regression modelscontrolling for sexual and non-sexual confounding factors. Results: There was an excess risk between active smoking and hr-HPV infection and CIN2+. Adjusted OR for ever smokers vs. never smokers was 1.45 (95% CI=1.10–1.91), for hr-HPVinfection and 1.89 (95% CI=1.03–3.44), for CIN2+. Passive smoking had a slightly increasedrisk on the hr-HPV infection with adjusted OR 1.11 (1.00–1.24), but no statistical associationwas observed between passive smoke exposure and CIN2+. Compared with the neither activenor passive smokers, both active and passive smokers had a 1.57-fold (95% CI=1.14–2.15)increased risk of HPV infection and a 1.99-fold (95% CI=1.02–3.88) risk of CIN2+. Conclusion: Our large multi-center cross-sectional study found active smoking couldincrease the risk of overall hr-HPV infection and CIN2+ adjusted by passive smoking andother factors. Passive smoking mildly increased the risk of HPV infection but not the CIN2+. An interaction existed between passive tobacco exposure and active smoking for hr-HPVinfection and the CIN2+.