ALBERT

Description: Potassium (K) deficiency is one of the main limiting factors in cotton ( Gossypium hirsutum L.) production. To study the mechanism of high K-use efficiency of cotton, a pot experiment was conducted. The experiment consisted of two cotton genotypes differing in K-use efficiency (H103 and L122) and two K-application levels (K 0 : 0 g (kg soil) –1 ; K 1 : 0.40 g (kg soil) –1 ). Root-hair density and length, partitioning of biomass and K in various organs, as well as K-use efficiency of the two cotton genotypes were examined. The results show that there was no significant difference in K uptake between the two genotypes at both treatments, although the genotype H103 (high K-use efficiency) exhibited markedly higher root-hair density than genotype L122 in the K 1 treatment. Correlation analysis indicates that neither root-hair density nor root-hair length was correlated with plant K uptake. Furthermore, the boll biomass of genotype H103 was significantly higher than that of genotype L122 in both treatments, and the K accumulation in bolls of genotype H103 was 39%–48% higher than that of genotype L122. On the other hand, the litter index (LI) and the litter K-partitioning index (LKPI) of genotype H103 were 14%–21% and 22%–27% lower than that of genotype L122. Lastly, the K-use efficiency of total plant (KUE-P) of genotype H103 was comparable with that of genotype L122 in both treatments, but the K-use efficiency in boll yield (KUE-B) of genotype H103 was 24% and 41% higher than that of genotype L122 in K 0 and K 1 treatments. Pearson correlation analysis indicated that KUE-P was positively correlated with BKPI and negatively correlated with LKPI, while KUE-B was positively correlated with BKPI and boll-harvest index (HI B ), and negatively correlated with LKPI. It is concluded that there were no pronounced effects of root-hair traits on plant K uptake of the two genotypes. The difference in K-use efficiency was attributed to different patterns of biomass and K partitioning rather than difference in K uptake of the two genotypes.

Description: Potassium (K) deficiency is one of the main limiting factors in cotton ( Gossypium hirsutum L.) production. To study the mechanism of high K-use efficiency of cotton, a pot experiment was conducted. The experiment consisted of two cotton genotypes differing in K-use efficiency (H103 and L122) and two K-application levels (K 0 : 0 g (kg soil) –1 ; K 1 : 0.40 g (kg soil) –1 ). Root-hair density and length, partitioning of biomass and K in various organs, as well as K-use efficiency of the two cotton genotypes were examined. The results show that there was no significant difference in K uptake between the two genotypes at both treatments, although the genotype H103 (high K-use efficiency) exhibited markedly higher root-hair density than genotype L122 in the K 1 treatment. Correlation analysis indicates that neither root-hair density nor root-hair length was correlated with plant K uptake. Furthermore, the boll biomass of genotype H103 was significantly higher than that of genotype L122 in both treatments, and the K accumulation in bolls of genotype H103 was 39%–48% higher than that of genotype L122. On the other hand, the litter index (LI) and the litter K-partitioning index (LKPI) of genotype H103 were 14%–21% and 22%–27% lower than that of genotype L122. Lastly, the K-use efficiency of total plant (KUE-P) of genotype H103 was comparable with that of genotype L122 in both treatments, but the K-use efficiency in boll yield (KUE-B) of genotype H103 was 24% and 41% higher than that of genotype L122 in K 0 and K 1 treatments. Pearson correlation analysis indicated that KUE-P was positively correlated with BKPI and negatively correlated with LKPI, while KUE-B was positively correlated with BKPI and boll-harvest index (HI B ), and negatively correlated with LKPI. It is concluded that there were no pronounced effects of root-hair traits on plant K uptake of the two genotypes. The difference in K-use efficiency was attributed to different patterns of biomass and K partitioning rather than difference in K uptake of the two genotypes.

Description: Abstract In order to investigate how Fe was enriched from parental high‐Ti basaltic magma to form the stratigraphically thick Fe‐Ti oxide ore at the bottom layers, we present a systematic study for Fe isotopic compositions of whole rocks and mineral separates (clinopyroxene, magnetite, and ilmenite) throughout the Panzhihua intrusion. Whole rock δ56Fe ranges from 0 ± 0.02‰ to 0.15 ± 0.04‰, consistent with the range of clinopyroxene (0.01 ± 0.02‰ to 0.16 ± 0.05‰). On the contrary, magnetite (Mt) separates have δ56Fe ranging from 0.17 ± 0.05‰ to 0.62 ± 0.02‰, showing a strikingly complementary trend with coexisting ilmenite (Ilm) separates (−0.52 ± 0.03‰ to −0.09 ± 0.02‰) along the profile. The calculated bulk δ56Fe of Fe‐Ti oxides (Mt + Ilm), however, has a small range from 0.01‰ to 0.16‰, identical to those for clinopyroxene separates and whole rocks. The uniform δ56Fe of clinopyroxene may have resulted from the small Fe isotope fractionation between clinopyroxene and parental magma in early‐stage magma differentiation before substantial crystallization of Fe‐Ti oxides. The complementary trends of δ56Fe for Mt and Ilm along the profile and the uniform bulk δ56Fe of Fe‐Ti oxides are better interpreted as in situ crystallization of Fe‐Ti oxides from the interstitial liquid. Our Fe isotopic data and petrographic observations indicate that the thick Fe‐Ti oxide ore layers in the lower zone of the Panzhihua intrusion may be attributed to in situ crystallization of Mt and Ilm from the interstitial, immiscible Fe‐rich melt in the lower part of the magma chamber.

Description: Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSCs) and human adipose tissue mesenchymal stem cells (hATMSCs) have the potential to differentiate into cardiomyocytes, making them promising therapeutic candidates for treating damaged cardiac tissues. Currently, however, the differentiated cells induced from hUCMSCs or hATMSCs can hardly display functional characteristics similar to cardiomyocytes. In this study, we have investigated the effects of bioactive lipid sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) on cardiac differentiations of hUCMSCs and hATMSCs in condition medium composed of cardiac myocytes culture medium or 5-azacytidine. Cardiac differentiations were identified through immunofluorescence staining, and the results were observed with fluorescence microscopy and confocal microscopy. Synergistic effects of S1P and condition medium on cell viability were evaluated by MTT assays. Functional characteristics similar to cardiomyocytes were evaluated through detecting calcium transient. The differentiated hUCMSCs or hATMSCs in each group into cardiomyocytes showed positive expressions of cardiac specific proteins, including α-actin, connexin-43 and myosin heavy chain-6 (MYH-6). MTT assays showed that suitable differentiation time was 14 days and that the optimal concentration of S1P was 0.5 μM. Moreover, incorporation of S1P and cardiac myocytes culture medium gave rise to calcium transients, an important marker for displaying in vivo electrophysiological properties. This feature was not observed in the S1P-5-azacytidine group, indicating the possible lack of cellular stimuli such as transforming growth factor-beta, TGF-β. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Description: The spatial pattern of the semidiurnal M2 tidal currents in the East China Sea (ECS) is mapped from the Geostationary Ocean Color Imager (GOCI), taking advantage of the satellite's unique eight hourly local daytime sequential images. The GOCI-derived surface M2 tidal currents are validated with a comprehensive set of twenty-eight surface drifters and four mooring observations. The agreement is outstanding with the error variance less than 10% of the total variance. The gridded GOCI-derived tidal currents are also in good agreement with the Oregon State University (OSU) high-resolution regional tidal model of the China Seas. The detided mean flow shows a strong Changjiang plume extending hundreds of kilometers offshore, in agreement with the concurrent satellite sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface salinity (SSS) distributions. The observed surface currents are compared with the daily mean flows derived from the Japan Coastal Ocean Predictability Experiment (JCOPE2). The model results are consistent with the observations, showing the sensitivity of Changjiang plume to wind forcing. The study clearly demonstrates the utility of geostationary satellite in mapping the surface currents over a wide (∼ 400 km), tidally dominated continental shelf. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Description: LASS2/TMSG1 was a novel tumor metastasis suppressor gene which was firstly cloned by our laboratory from non-metastatic and metastatic cancer cell variants of human prostate carcinoma PC-3M using mRNA differential display in 1999. LASS2/TMSG1 could interact with the C subunit of vacuolar ATPase (V-ATPase, ATP6V0C) and regulate V-ATPase activity. In an attempt to provide molecular mechanism of the interaction between LASS2/TMSG1 and V-ATPase, we constructed four variant transfectants containing different functional domain of LASS2/TMSG1 and stably transfected the variants to human prostate cancer cell line PC-3M-1E8 cell with high metastatic potential. Results showed there were no obvious differences of V-ATPase expression among different transfected cells and the control. However, V-ATPase activity and Intracellular pH (pHi) was significantly higher in the variant transfectants with Homeodomain of LASS2/TMSG1 than that in the control using the pH-dependent fluorescence probe BECEF/AM. Immunoprecipitation, immunofluorescence and immuno-electron microscope alone or in combination demonstrated the direct interaction of Homeodomain of LASS2/TMSG1 and ATP6V0C. Loss of Homeodomain markedly enhanced the proliferation ability but weakened the apoptotic effect of LASS2/TMSG1 in PC-3M-1E8 cells. These lines of results for the first time contribute to the conclusion that LASS2/TMSG1 could regulate V-ATPase activity and intracellular pH through the direct interaction of its Homeodomain and the C subunit of V-ATPase. Their interaction could play impotant roles in the apoptosis of tumor cells. J. Cell. Biochem. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Description: Environment-friendly lead-free piezoelectric ceramics have been studied extensively in the past decade with great progress particularly in systems based on a niobate perovskite compound formulated as ( K , Na ) NbO 3 (abbreviated as KNN). A comprehensive review on the latest development of KNN-based piezoelectric ceramics is presented in this article, including the phase structure, property enhancement approaches, and sintering processes as well as the status of some promising applications. The phase structure of KNN was reexamined and associated with the effect of chemical modification on its tetragonal-to-orthorhombic transition. Then, a special focus is placed on the temperature dependence of piezoelectric properties of KNN-based ceramics, followed by reviewing the recent approaches devoted to the temperature-stability enhancement. The processing fundamentals related to the sintering of KNN-based ceramics are also presented with an emphasis on compositional and microstructural control. Finally, this review introduces several industrial attempts of traditional piezoceramic products using KNN-based ceramics and the studies on some promising application in authors' laboratory.

Description: Objectives : To gain insight into the effect of metformin on losing weight from peptidomic perspective and to screen potential active peptides for reducing fat lipid deposition. Methods : After determining the proper concentration of metformin on human primary visceral adipocytes, we constructed a comparative peptidomic profiling between control and metformin treatment group (n = 3) using a stable isobaric labeling strategy involving tandem mass tag reagents, followed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Results : We identified and quantified 3065 non-redundant peptides, 304 of which were differentially expressed after metformin treatment, 206 peptides were up regulated and 98 peptides were down regulated significantly. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment and pathway analysis were performed to study differentially peptides though their precursor proteins. Conclusions : We concluded three peptides located within the functional domains of their precursor proteins could be candidate bioactive peptides for obesity. On one hand, these results confirmed the versatile effects of metformin on adipocyte and advance our current understanding of metformin, on the other hand, these identified peptides might play putative roles in treatment of obesity. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Description: Alkaline volatilization during sintering in (K, Na ) NbO 3 (KNN)-based lead-free piezoceramics is a problem that causes non-stoichiometry and hence affects the phase structures and properties. This work investigated the depth-dependent distributions of alkaline elements in Li -modified KNN ceramics using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. It was found that Li evaporated more severely than Na and K, consequently almost no Li elements remained on the as-sintered surface, while its content became stable at the depth over 55 μm from the outmost surface. In addition, X-ray diffraction results suggested the phase structure might show discrepancy at the pellet surface and the interior part due to the textured surface grains.

Description: Transparent aluminum oxynitride ( AlON ) ceramics have been prepared through aqueous gelcasting forming technique starting from the raw materials of single phase AlON powders. The powder was specially treated for anti-hydrolysis in ethanol before the shaping technique. The surface-treated AlON powders could then be dispersed in an aqueous-organic solution to prepare stable slurries containing 35 vol% solids loading. The obtained stable slurries were subsequently casted, calcined, and pressureless sintered at 1950°C for 8 h in nitrogen atmosphere. High transparent AlON ceramics with an average grain size of 112 μm and the in-line transmittance of 81% at wavelength 1100 nm have been obtained.