Ethnic and gender specific life expectancies of the Singapore population, 1965 to 2009 - Converging, or diverging?

10.1186/1471-2458-13-1012BMC Public Health131

Inhibition of the CXCL12/CXCR4-axis as preventive therapy for radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis

Background: A devastating late injury caused by radiation is pulmonary fibrosis. This risk may limit the volume of irradiation and compromise potentially curative therapy. Therefore, development of a therapy to prevent this toxicity can be of great benefit for this patient population. Activation of the chemokine receptor CXCR4 by its ligand stromal cell-derived factor 1 (SDF-1/CXCL12) may be important in the development of radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis. Here, we tested whether MSX-122, a novel small molecule and partial CXCR4 antagonist, can block development of this fibrotic process. Methodology/Principal Findings: The radiation-induced lung fibrosis model used was C57BL/6 mice irradiated to the entire thorax or right hemithorax to 20 Gy. Our parabiotic model involved joining a transgenic C57BL/6 mouse expressing GFP with a wild-type mouse that was subsequently irradiated to assess for migration of GFP+ bone marrow-derived progenitor cells to the irradiated lung. CXCL12 levels in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and serum after irradiation were determined by ELISA. CXCR4 and CXCL12 mRNA in the irradiated lung was determined by RNase protection assay. Irradiated mice were treated daily with AMD3100, an established CXCR4 antagonist; MSX-122; and their corresponding vehicles to determine impact of drug treatment on fibrosis development. Fibrosis was assessed by serial CTs and histology. After irradiation, CXCL12 levels increased in BALF and serum with a corresponding rise in CXCR4 mRNA within irradiated lungs consistent with recruitment of a CXCR4+ cell population. Using our parabiotic model, we demonstrated recruitment of CXCR4+ bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells, identified based on marker expression, to irradiated lungs. Finally, irradiated mice that received MSX-122 had significant reductions in development of pulmonary fibrosis while AMD3100 did not significantly suppress this fibrotic process. Conclusions/Significance: CXCR4 inhibition by drugs such as MSX-122 may alleviate potential radiation-induced lung injury, presenting future therapeutic opportunities for patients requiring chest irradiation. © 2013 Shu et al

Observation of a ppb mass threshoud enhancement in \psi^\prime\to\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi(J/\psi\to\gamma p\bar{p}) decay

The decay channel $\psi^\prime\to\pi^+\pi^-J/\psi(J/\psi\to\gamma p\bar{p})$ is studied using a sample of $1.06\times 10^8$ $\psi^\prime$ events collected by the BESIII experiment at BEPCII. A strong enhancement at threshold is observed in the $p\bar{p}$ invariant mass spectrum. The enhancement can be fit with an $S$-wave Breit-Wigner resonance function with a resulting peak mass of $M=1861^{+6}_{-13} {\rm (stat)}^{+7}_{-26} {\rm (syst)} {\rm MeV/}c^2$ and a narrow width that is $\Gamma<38 {\rm MeV/}c^2$ at the 90% confidence level. These results are consistent with published BESII results. These mass and width values do not match with those of any known meson resonance.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Chinese Physics

Ordered-vacancy-induced cation intercalation into layered double hydroxides: A general approach for high-performance supercapacitors

New types of cation storage materials would show tremendous potential in the development of high-performance rechargeable energy storage devices. Herein, we develop layered double hydroxides (LDHs) as promising cation supercapacitor materials in aqueous and neutral operation, via an effective electrochemical activation strategy, for a reversible intercalation of a wide range of metal cations. These activated LDH materials exhibit overwhelming metal-ion storage capacities in aqueous electrolytes as a result of the phase transformation of LDH (repulsive to cations) to hydrogen-vacancy-enriched LDH (LDH-HV, attractive to cations) induced by the electrochemical activation process. The activated LDH-HV phase provides a two-dimensional open channel with abundant active sites (HV) for a reversible intercalation of metal ions, accounting for the significantly enhanced energy storage performance. This vacancy-induced cation intercalation into LDHs builds up a general approach for developing earth-abundant transition-metal resources as a prospective energy storage material toward a large variety of cation supercapacitors

Development of cordycepin formulations for preclinical and clinical studies

There is extensive literature on in vivo studies with cordycepin but these studies were generally conducted without validation of the various formulations, especially in terms of the solubility of cordycepin in the dosing vehicles used. Cordycepin is a promising drug candidate in multiple therapeutic areas and there is a growing interest in studies aimed at assessing the pharmacological activity of this compound in relevant animal disease models. It is likely that many reported in vivo studies used formulations in which cordycepin was incompletely soluble. This can potentially confound the interpretation of pharmacokinetics and efficacy results. Furthermore, the presence of particles in intravenously administered suspension can cause adverse effects and should be avoided. Here we present the results from our development of simple and readily applicable formulations of cordycepin based on quantitative solubility assessment. Homogeneous solutions of cordycepin were prepared in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) at different pH levels, suitable as formulations for both intravenously and oral administration. For the purpose of high-dose oral administration we also developed propylene glycol (PPG)-based vehicles in which cordycepin is completely soluble. The stability of the newly developed formulations was also assessed, as well the feasibility of their sterilisation by filtration. Additionally, an HPLC-UV method for the determination of cordycepin in the formulations, which may also be useful for other purposes, was developed and validated. Our study could provide useful information for improvement of future preclinical and clinical studies involving cordycepin

Controlled Cytoplast Arrest and Morula Aggregation Enhance Development, Cryoresilience, and In Vivo Survival of Cloned Sheep Embryos

Zona-free somatic cell transfer (SCT) and embryo aggregation increase throughput and efficiency of cloned embryo and offspring production, respectively, but both approaches have not been widely adopted. Cloning efficiency is further improved by cell cycle coordination between the interphase donor cell and metaphase-arrested recipient cytoplast. This commonly involves inclusion of caffeine and omission of calcium to maintain high mitotic cyclin-dependent kinase activity and low calcium levels, respectively, in the nonactivated cytoplast. The aim of our study was to integrate these various methodological improvements into a single work stream that increases sheep cloning success. We show that omitting calcium during zona-free SCT improved blastocyst development from 6% to 13%, while caffeine treatment reduced spontaneous oocyte activation from 17% to 8%. In a retrospective analysis, morula aggregation produced high morphological quality blastocysts with better in vivo survival to term than nonaggregated controls (15% vs. 9%), particularly after vitrification (14% vs. 0%). By combining cytoplast cell cycle control with zona-free embryo reconstruction and aggregation, this novel SCT protocol maximizes the benefits of vitrification by producing more cryoresilient blastocysts. The presented cloning methodology is relatively easy to operate and further increases throughput and efficiency of cloned embryo and offspring production. Integration of additional reprogramming steps or alternate donor cells is straightforward, providing a flexible workflow that can be adapted to changing experimental requirements.fals

Epstein-Barr virus-encoded microRNA BART1 induces tumour metastasis by regulating PTEN-dependent pathways in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), aetiologically linked to nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), is the first human virus found to encode many miRNAs. However, how these viral miRNAs precisely regulate the tumour metastasis in NPC remains obscure. Here we report that EBV-miR-BART1 is highly expressed in NPC and closely associated with pathological and advanced clinical stages of NPC. Alteration of EBV-miR-BART1 expression results in an increase in migration and invasion of NPC cells in vitro and causes tumour metastasis in vivo. Mechanistically, EBV-miR-BART1 directly targets the cellular tumour suppressor PTEN. Reduction of PTEN dosage by EBV-miR-BART1 activates PTEN-dependent pathways including PI3K-Akt, FAK-p130(Cas) and Shc-MAPK/ERK1/2 signalling, drives EMT, and consequently increases migration, invasion and metastasis of NPC cells. Reconstitution of PTEN rescues all phenotypes generated by EBV-miR-BART1, highlighting the role of PTEN in EBV-miR-BART-driven metastasis in NPC. Our findings provide new insights into the metastasis of NPC regulated by EBV and advocate for developing clinical intervention strategies against NPC

Experimental studies of e + e -→ some charmless processes containing K S0 at √s = 3.773 and 3.65 GeV

We measure the observed cross sections for the charmless processes e + e -→K S0 K - K - K + π ++ c.c., K S0 K - π + η+c.c., K S0 K - π + π + π - η+c.c., K S0 K - K - K + π + η+c.c., K S0 K - K - K + π + π 0+c.c., K S0 K - ρ ++c.c. and K S0 K - π + ρ 0+c.c. We also extract upper limits on the branching fractions for ψ(3770) decays into these final states at 90% C.L. Analyzed data samples correspond to 17.3 pb-1 and 6.5 pb-1 integrated luminosities registered, respectively, at √s = 3.773 and 3.65 GeV, with the BES-II detector at the BEPC collider. © 2009 Springer-Verlag / Società Italiana di Fisica.published_or_final_versionSpringer Open Choice, 21 Feb 201

The hemispheric difference of semantic processing of Chinese characters in two dimensions as revealed by ERPs

An experiment was conducted to examine the hemispheric dominance in semantic processing of Chinese characters. Results showed that NI is the earliest component that reflects the semantic processing of Chinese characters. Although NI of the left hemisphere is larger in amplitude, that of the right hemisphere is shorter in latency. Based on these findings, the authors propose that the left hemisphere does not start processing until the necessary information has been transferred from the right hemisphere. Once the left hemisphere starts processing, its intensity is stronger. Thus, it is more appropriate to differentiate hemispheric processing dominance into two dimensions: speed and intensity. Moreover, the semantic cognition onset of Chinese characters occurs from 100 ms to 160 ms in the posterior perceptual processing area of brain.An experiment was conducted to examine the hemispheric dominance in semantic processing of Chinese characters. Results showed that NI is the earliest component that reflects the semantic processing of Chinese characters. Although NI of the left hemisphere is larger in amplitude, that of the right hemisphere is shorter in latency. Based on these findings, the authors propose that the left hemisphere does not start processing until the necessary information has been transferred from the right hemisphere. Once the left hemisphere starts processing, its intensity is stronger. Thus, it is more appropriate to differentiate hemispheric processing dominance into two dimensions: speed and intensity. Moreover, the semantic cognition onset of Chinese characters occurs from 100 ms to 160 ms in the posterior perceptual processing area of brain. NeuroReport 12:3697-3701 (C) 2001 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Variation of structural vibration characteristics versus non-uniform temperature distribution

Author name used in this manuscript: You-Lin Xu2010-2011 > Academic research: refereed > Publication in refereed journalAccepted ManuscriptPublishe