Choline Acetyltransferase Induces the Functional Regeneration of the Salivary Gland in Aging SAMP1/Kl -/- Mice

Salivary gland dysfunction induces salivary flow reduction and a dry mouth, and commonly involves oral dysfunction, tooth structure deterioration, and infection through reduced salivation. This study aimed to investigate the impact of aging on the salivary gland by a metabolomics approach in an extensive aging mouse model, SAMP1/Klotho -/- mice. We found that the salivary secretion of SAMP1/Klotho -/- mice was dramatically decreased compared with that of SAMP1/Klotho WT (+/+) mice. Metabolomics profiling analysis showed that the level of acetylcholine was significantly decreased in SAMP1/Klotho -/- mice, although the corresponding levels of acetylcholine precursors, acetyl-CoA and choline, increased. Interestingly, the mRNA and protein expression of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), which is responsible for catalyzing acetylcholine synthesis, was significantly decreased in SAMP1/Klotho -/- mice. The overexpression of ChAT induced the expression of salivary gland functional markers (α–amylase, ZO-1, and Aqua5) in primary cultured salivary gland cells from SAMP1/Klotho +/+ and -/- mice. In an in vivo study, adeno-associated virus (AAV)-ChAT transduction significantly increased saliva secretion compared with the control in SAMP1/Klotho -/- mice. These results suggest that the dysfunction in acetylcholine biosynthesis induced by ChAT reduction may cause impaired salivary gland function     

碲铜系合金在饱和NH4Cl溶液中的腐蚀行为

用全浸失重法,研究了碲铜系合金在饱和NH4Cl溶液中的抗腐蚀性能,结合扫描电镜(SEM)、能谱仪(EDS)等测试方法,初步探讨了合金在饱和NH4Cl溶液中的腐蚀行为及腐蚀机制,结果表明碲铜系合金的抗腐蚀性优于纯铜,其腐蚀速率低于纯铜,原因在于碲、镁的加入,可降低纯铜中的非金属杂质含量,同时碲、镁的加入,可沿铜晶界以化合物的形式析出,有利地阻碍了纯铜的沿晶腐蚀.     

Soluble Prokaryotic Overexpression and Purification of Human GM-CSF Using the Protein Disulfide Isomerase b′a′ Domain

Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is a member of the colony-stimulating factor (CSF) family, which functions to enhance the proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic stem cells and other hematopoietic lineages such as neutrophils, dendritic cells, or macrophages. These proteins have thus generated considerable interest in clinical therapy research. A current obstacle to the prokaryotic production of human GM-CSF (hGM-CSF) is its low solubility when overexpressed and subsequent complex refolding processes. In our present study, the solubility of hGM-CSF was examined when combined with three N-terminal fusion tags in five E. coli strains at three different expression temperatures. In the five E. coli strains BL21 (DE3), ClearColi BL21 (DE3), LOBSTR, SHuffle T7 and Origami2 (DE3), the hexahistidine-tagged hGM-CSF showed the best expression but was insoluble in all cases at each examined temperature. Tagging with the maltose-binding protein (MBP) and the b′a′ domain of protein disulfide isomerase (PDIb′a′) greatly improved the soluble overexpression of hGM-CSF at 30 °C and 18 °C. The solubility was not improved using the Origami2 (DE3) and SHuffle T7 strains that have been engineered for disulfide bond formation. Two conventional chromatographic steps were used to purify hGM-CSF from the overexpressed PDIb′a′-hGM-CSF produced in ClearColi BL21 (DE3). In the experiment, 0.65 mg of hGM-CSF was isolated from a 0.5 L flask culture of these E. coli and showed a 98% purity by SDS-PAGE analysis and silver staining. The bioactivity of this purified hGM-CSF was measured at an EC₅₀ of 16.4 ± 2 pM by a CCK8 assay in TF-1 human erythroleukemia cells.     

Simulated Microgravity Inhibits the Proliferation of Chang Liver Cells by Attenuation of the Major Cell Cycle Regulators and Cytoskeletal Proteins

Simulated microgravity (SMG) induced the changes in cell proliferation and cytoskeleton organization, which plays an important factor in various cellular processes. The inhibition in cell cycle progression has been considered to be one of the main causes of proliferation inhibition in cells under SMG, but their mechanisms are still not fully understood. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of SMG on the proliferative ability and cytoskeleton changes of Chang Liver Cells (CCL-13). CCL-13 cells were induced SMG by 3D clinostat for 72 h, while the control group were treated in normal gravity at the same time. The results showed that SMG reduced CCL-13 cell proliferation by an increase in the number of CCL-13 cells in G0/G1 phase. This cell cycle phase arrest of CCL-13 cells was due to a downregulation of cell cycle-related proteins, such as cyclin A1 and A2, cyclin D1, and cyclin-dependent kinase 6 (Cdk6). SMG-exposed CCL-13 cells also exhibited a downregulation of α-tubulin 3 and β-actin which induced the cytoskeleton reorganization. These results suggested that the inhibited proliferation of SMG-exposed CCL-13 cells could be associate with the attenuation of major cell cycle regulators and main cytoskeletal proteins.     

Hygroresponsive Torsional Yarns and Actuators Based on Cascade Amplification of the Deformation

Fiber-based hygroresponsive torsional actuators provide desirable merits, such as light weight and shapeability, for developing smart systems to harvest energy from moisture which is a ubiquitous natural resource. A key challenge in this development is to realize moisture-triggered actuation combining large actuation and rapid responses. Here, a multiscale design strategy is explored to create high-performance hygroresponsive torsional actuators consisting of chitosan and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The superior actuation performance arises from the synergism of contributing factors at different scales, including 1) MWNCTs accelerate the water transport in primary twisted fibers (PTFs), fostering the rotation of PTFs upon moisture stimuli; 2) in situ-formed hierarchically-assembled twists realize cascade amplification of moisture-triggered actuation. Specifically, PTFs are self-twisted to generate secondary helical yarns, that are subsequently over-twisted to yield tertiary coiled yarn. The resultant yarn actuator can reach a maximum rotation speed of 11 400 rpm in 5 s, output gravitational potential energy of 2.4 J kg⁻¹ and gravitational potential power of 0.053 W kg⁻¹ during contraction. This work represents the first design of fiber-based actuators by virtue of moisture-triggered in situ formation of yarns. The established principles of multiscale design will enable high-performance fiber-based hygroresponsive actuators toward advanced intelligent textile and soft robotics.     

多孔钯的制备及其结构与性能

研究了以钯粉和碳酸钠为原料制备多孔钯的烧结-溶解新工艺，用FESEM分析了多孔钯的微观结构形貌，并进一步研究了制备的多孔钯的力学性能和氢同位素的交排换代性能。结果表明，烧结-溶解工艺能稳定地制备出孔隙率为85．29％-87．82％的多孔钯，其压缩强度大于2MPa。室温下孔隙率为87.30％的多孔钯对氘的单位质量吸收量为0．0767L／g，氢同位素排代交换率为86．2％。     

延缓与加速A1-Cu合金时效析出反应的研究

研究了溶质原子浓度、Si晶体第二相、残余形变、外加莫来石(Mullite)短纤维及其交互作用，对二元Al—Cu合金时效析出行为的影响。试验材料采用挤压铸造方法制备，复合材料中纤维体积分数为18％。实验结果表明：随溶质原子浓度的升高，A1-Cu二元合金中GP，θ″和θ′相的析出都得到了相应加快；Si含量超过一定值后，随Si含量增加，A1-Cu-Si合金中GP区形成受到抑制，而θ″和θ′相的析出得到加快；形变对GP区的抑制和对θ″，θ′和θ相的加速析出具有十分明显的作用；纤维本身除对GP区抑制和对θ″，θ′相的析出加速外，还会与溶质原子、合金元素或第二相以及残余形变交互作用，使GP区被抑制，而θ″，θ′甚至θ相被加速析出等现象进一步加强。用位错理论能较好地解释析出反应延缓与加速的微观机理。     

Grinding-hardening with liquid nitrogen: Mechanisms and technology

This paper studies an innovative development of a steel grinding–hardening technology using an inert cryogen—liquid nitrogen. It was found that phase transformations took place during grinding with the application of liquid nitrogen and resulted in hardened surface layer in a ground component. The layer had a fine laths martensite structure which gave rise to a remarkably high hardness. It was also shown that the treatment can produce superior surface integrity, with compressive surface residual stresses and without surface oxidation. Due to the inert nature of the liquid nitrogen, the grinding process becomes environmentally conscious.     

水下隧道穿越管道保护效果测试评价

本文通过对四川气田北干线涪江隧道穿越管道阴极保护电参数的现场测试，取得了实际可信的基础数据，验证了处于水下隧道洞内的穿越段管道，能得到陆上强制电流阴极保护系统的有效保护，保护电流所必经的岩石层和锚喷钢筋混凝土层对保护电流没有构成屏蔽的结论，对管道工程设计和运行管理具有指导作用。     

Microstructure and morphology of amine-cured epoxy coatings before and after outdoor exposures—An AFM study

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been used to study the morphology and microstructure of an amine-cured epoxy before and after outdoor exposure. Measurements were made from samples prepared in an essentially CO₂-free, H₂O-free glove box and from samples prepared in ambient conditions. For those prepared in a CO₂-free glove box, AFM imaging was conducted on (1) an unexposed air/coating surface, (2) an unexposed coating bulk, (3) an unexposed coating/substrate interface, and (4) a field exposed air/coating surface. For samples prepared in ambient conditions, only the unexposed air/coating surface was investigated. The same regions of the exposed samples were scanned periodically by the AFM to monitor changes in the surface morphology of the coating as UV exposure progressed. Small angle neutron scattering and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) studies were performed to verify the microstructure and to follow chemical changes during outdoor exposure, respectively. The results have shown that amine blushing, which occurs only under ambient conditions, had a significant effect on the surface morphology and microstructure of the epoxy. The surface morphology of the samples prepared under CO₂-free, dry conditions was generally smooth and homogeneous. However, the interface and the bulk samples clearly revealed a two-phase structure consisting of bright nodular domains and dark interstitial regions, indicating an inhomogeneous microstructure. Such heterogeneous structure of the bulk was in good agreement with results obtained by small angle neutron scattering of unexposed samples and by AFM phase imaging of the degraded sample surface. The relationship between submicrometer physical changes and molecular chemical degradation is discussed. Presented at the 82nd Annual Meeting of the Federation of Societies for Coatings Technology, October 27–29, 2004, in Chicago, IL.