Structural Studies of the Lipopolysaccharide of Aeromonas veronii bv. sobria Strain K133 Which Represents New Provisional Serogroup PGO1 Prevailing among Mesophilic Aeromonads on Polish Fish Farms

In the present work, we performed immunochemical studies of LPS, especially the O-specific polysaccharide (O-PS) of Aeromonas veronii bv. sobria strain K133, which was isolated from the kidney of carp (Cyprinus carpio L.) during an outbreak of motile aeromonad infection/motile aeromonad septicemia (MAI/MAS) on a Polish fish farm. The structural characterization of the O-PS, which was obtained by mild acid degradation of the LPS, was performed with chemical methods, MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry, and ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. It was revealed that the O-PS has a unique composition of a linear tetrasaccharide repeating unit and contains a rarely occurring sugar 2,4-diamino-2,4,6-trideoxy-D-glucose (bacillosamine), which may determine the specificity of the serogroup. Western blotting and ELISA confirmed that A. veronii bv. sobria strain K133 belongs to the new serogroup PGO1, which is one of the most commonly represented immunotypes among carp and trout isolates of Aeromonas sp. in Polish aquacultures. Considering the increase in the MAI/MAS incidences and their impact on freshwater species, also with economic importance, and in the absence of an effective immunoprophylaxis, studies of the Aeromonas O-antigens are relevant in the light of epidemiological data and monitoring emergent pathogens representing unknown antigenic variants and serotypes.     

The Effects of Insulin-Like Growth Factor I and BTP-2 on Acute Lung Injury

Acute lung injury (ALI) afflicts approximately 200,000 patients annually and has a 40% mortality rate. The COVID-19 pandemic has massively increased the rate of ALI incidence. The pathogenesis of ALI involves tissue damage from invading microbes and, in severe cases, the overexpression of inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β). This study aimed to develop a therapy to normalize the excess production of inflammatory cytokines and promote tissue repair in the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI. Based on our previous studies, we tested the insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) and BTP-2 therapies. IGF-I was selected, because we and others have shown that elevated inflammatory cytokines suppress the expression of growth hormone receptors in the liver, leading to a decrease in the circulating IGF-I. IGF-I is a growth factor that increases vascular protection, enhances tissue repair, and decreases pro-inflammatory cytokines. It is also required to produce anti-inflammatory 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D. BTP-2, an inhibitor of cytosolic calcium, was used to suppress the LPS-induced increase in cytosolic calcium, which otherwise leads to an increase in proinflammatory cytokines. We showed that LPS increased the expression of the primary inflammatory mediators such as toll like receptor-4 (TLR-4), IL-1β, interleukin-17 (IL-17), TNF-α, and interferon-γ (IFN-γ), which were normalized by the IGF-I + BTP-2 dual therapy in the lungs, along with improved vascular gene expression markers. The histologic lung injury score was markedly elevated by LPS and reduced to normal by the combination therapy. In conclusion, the LPS-induced increases in inflammatory cytokines, vascular injuries, and lung injuries were all improved by IGF-I + BTP-2 combination therapy.     

ERDAS LPS与TerraSolid软件相结合快速制作低空数码遥感正射影像图的方法

分析了ERDAS的LPS模块制作DOM的方法及其存在的缺点,介绍了一种结合ERDAS LPS与TerraSolid软件,快速处理超轻型飞机低空数码遥感系统获取的数码航摄影像,制作DOM的技术流程,并通过实验验证了此方法在超轻型飞机低空数码大比例尺航空正射影像图制作中的适应性.     

一种基于系数状态表的SPIHT图像编码算法

提出了一种新的基于系数状态表的SPIHT(LPS-SPIHT,list of p ixel stata-set partition ing in h ierarch icaltrees)图像压缩编码算法,该算法具有以下5个特点:第一,定义了一种扩展的空间方向树,使1个结点含有2×2相邻的4个系数,并将基本EZW(嵌入式小波零树)的符号定义应用于扩展树;第二,用1个廉价的系数状态表代替了SPIHT算法中的LIS(不重要集合表)、LIP(不重要像素表)、LSP(重要像素表)等3个数据表,节省了内存;第三,通过扫描系数状态表,可一次性完成对图像数据的编码,使分类过程与细化过程合二而一;第四,利用一种树指数避免了重复计算,提高了处理速度;第五,通过重新组织编码过程,省去了对大量可推知位的编码,提高了压缩效率。实践证明,与目前公认的最为有效的SPIHT算法相比,该算法不仅性能优越,而且计算简单,容易实现。     

Anti-Inflammatory Characteristics of Local Anesthetics: Inhibition of TNF-α Secretion of Lipopolysaccharide-Stimulated Leucocytes in Human Blood Samples

Background. Local anesthetics (LAs) have potent anti-inflammatory properties. Inflammatory down-regulation is crucial in diseases with overactive immune reactions, such as acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and chronic inflammation. We investigated the influence of four LAs, procaine, lidocaine, mepivacaine, and bupivacaine, on the reduction of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) secretion in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated human leucocytes. Methods. Blood samples of 28 individuals were stimulated with LPS. The reduction of TNF-α production by each of the four LAs added (0.5 mg/mL) was measured and correlated with biometric variables. A response was defined as reduction to <85% of initial levels. Results. All four LAs down-regulated the TNF-α secretion in 44–61%: Bupivacaine (44.4%), lidocaine (61.5%), mepivacaine (44.4%), and procaine (50% of the individuals, “responders”). The TNF-α secretion was reduced to 67.4, 68.0, 63.6, and 67.1% of the initial values in responders. The effects in both patients and healthy persons were the same. Interindividual responses to LAs were not correlated with the duration or type of complaints, basal TNF-α serum level, sex, BMI, or age of responders. Conclusions. Four clinically relevant LAs (amid-LA and ester-LA) attenuate the inflammatory response provoked by LPS. They are potential candidates for drug repositioning in treating overactive immune reactions and chronic inflammation.     

Involvement of HNP‐1 in different oxidation mechanisms in human endothelial cells

The objective of this study was to elucidate the different mechanisms of low‐density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation by human endothelial cells. High level of LDL stimulated human alpha‐defensin 1 (HNP‐1) expression strongly, activated myeloperoxidase (MPO), and accumulated malondialdehyde (MDA). In addition, lipopolysaccharides (LPS) had similar effect, however the cell response occurred even earlier. After 12 h of LDL co‐culture, the cells were washed and fresh LDL was added again. MPO activity and MDA generation were increased. Adding fresh LDL after the LPS co‐culture for 3 h, a similar trend, however weaker effect was observed. Culturing cells with LDL and adding various kinds of calcium antagonists at the same time did not make obvious changes to the expression of HNP‐1. In contrast, culturing cells with LPS, calcium antagonists increased HNP‐1 expression. Adding the anti‐radical drug sodium ferulate had no significant effect on oxidative function activated by LDL, but the oxidation activated by LPS was suppressed significantly and the HNP‐1 expression was not changed significantly. The endogenous irritant LDL and the exogenous irritant LPS activated human endothelial cells in different manners and HNP‐1 expression changes were involved.     

Q-Coder算术编码器的VHDL实现

现介绍了一种适合于硬件实现的二进制算术编码器Q-Coder，并使用VHDL语言实现了该算法。在Acfive-HDL软件中进行了功能仿真，并在Quartus Ⅱ软件中完成了综合以及后仿真。综合得到的最高时钟频率为36．3MHz。     

Liquid Phase Sintering （LPS） and Dielectric Constant of α-Silicon Nitride Ceramic

The spark plasma sintering （SPS） was applied to prepare α-Si3 N4 ceramics of different densities with magnesia, silicon dioxide, alumina as the sintering aids. The mechanism of liquid phase sintering （LPS） wus discussed and the factors influencing the density of the prepared samples were analyzed. The dielectric constant of sintered samples was tested. The experimental results show that the density can be controlled from 2.48 g/ cm^3 to 3.09 g/ cm^3 while the content of the sintering aids and the sintering temperature alter and the dielectric constant is closely dependent on the density of obtained samples.