Alternative Messenger RNA Splicing of Autophagic Gene Beclin 1 in Human B-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Cells

Niu, Yu-Na,Liu, Qing-Qing,Zhang, Su-Ping,Yuan, Na,Cao, Yan,Cai, Jin-Yang,Lin, Wei-Wei,Xu, Fei,Wang, Zhi-Jian,Chen, Bo,Wang, Jian-Rong Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.5

Beclin 1 is a key factor for initiation and regulation of autophagy, which is a cellular catabolic process involved in tumorigenesis. To investigate the role of alternative splicing of Beclin1 in the regulation of autophagy in leukemia cells, Beclin1 mRNA from 6 different types of cell lines and peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 2 healthy volunteers was reversely transcribed, subcloned, and screened for alternative splicing. New transcript variants were analyzed by DNA sequencing. A transcript variant of Beclin 1 gene carrying a deletion of exon 11, which encoded a C-terminal truncation of Beclin 1 isoform, was found. The alternative isoform was assessed by bioinformatics, immunoblotting and subcellular localization. The results showed that this variable transcript is generated by alternative 3' splicing, and its translational product displayed a reduced activity in induction of autophagy by starvation, indicating that the spliced isoform might function as a dominant negative modulator of autophagy. Our findings suggest that the alternative splicing of Beclin 1 might play important roles in leukemogenesis regulated by autophagy.

Effect of Water Content on Dynamic Fracture Characteristic of Rock under Impacts

Caoyuan Niu,Zheming Zhu,Fei Wang,Peng Ying,Shuai Deng 대한토목학회 2021 KSCE JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING Vol.25 No.1

Water contents in rocks vary with local hydrogeological conditions and may significantly affect the stability of rock mass engineering. For example, geological disasters are usually occurring after rainfall, such as landslides, karst collapse. In this paper, drop plate impact (DPI) tests were performed on single cleavage triangle (SCT) red sandstone specimens with dry, natural, absorbed and saturated conditions, which has a great guiding significance for deep understandingof dynamic failure of rock materials. The crack initiation time was obtained by crack propagation gauges (CPGs), and crack propagation speeds were computed by fractal method. The dynamic stress intensity factors (DSIFs) were calculated by ABAQUS code. Meanwhile, the microstructure of the fracture surface was scanned and was analyzed. The results show that the average critical DSIFs and crack propagation speeds vary with water content significantly. For the dry sandstone, the average critical DSIF is the highest, whereas the average crack speed is the lowest. For the natural sandstone, the average critical DSIF is the lowest, whereas the average crack speed is the highest. For the water-bearing sandstone, i.e., the natural, absorbed and saturated sandstone, the average critical DSIF increases with water content, whereas the crack speed decreases with increasing water content.

An ID-based Broadcast Encryption Scheme for Cloud-network Integration in Smart Grid

( Shufen Niu ),( Lizhi Fang ),( Mi Song Fei Yu ),( Song Han ) 한국인터넷정보학회 2021 KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Syst Vol.15 No.9

The rapid growth of data has successfully promoted the development of modern information and communication technologies, which are used to process data generated by public urban departments and citizens in modern cities. In specific application areas where the ciphertext of messages generated by different users’ needs to be transmitted, the concept of broadcast encryption is important. It can not only improve the transmission efficiency but also reduce the cost. However, the existing schemes cannot entirely ensure the privacy of receivers and dynamically adjust the user authorization. To mitigate these deficiencies, we propose an efficient, secure identity-based broadcast encryption scheme that achieves direct revocation and receiver anonymity, along with the analysis of smart grid solutions. Moreover, we constructed a security model to ensure wireless data transmission under cloud computing and internet of things integrated devices. The achieved results reveal that the proposed scheme is semantically secure in the random oracle model. The performance of the proposed scheme is evaluated through theoretical analysis and numerical experiments.

A novel fault diagnosis method based on EMD, cyclostationary, SK and TPTSR

Yijie Niu,Jiyou Fei,Yuanyuan Li,Deng Wu 대한기계학회 2020 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.34 No.5

A novel method based on empirical model decomposition (EMD), cyclostationary, spectral kurtosis (SK) and two-phase test sample sparse representation (TPTSR), called ECK-TPTSR is proposed for fault diagnosis in this paper. In the ECK-TPTSR method, the vibration signal is decomposed into several components by EMD. Then each component can be modelled as cyclostationary for noise reduction. Next, the proposed method computes the kurtosis of the unbiased autocorrelation on the squared envelope of each component, and extracts the component with the highest kurtosis. Finally, the extracted component is used to construct training samples and test samples, which are input into the TPTSR classifier to fulfill fault classification accurately. Moreover, the experimental results indicate that the ECK-TPTSR method can effectively achieve fault diagnosis of motor bearing and obtain higher classification accuracy.

Dielectric properties of silicon nitride ceramics prepared by low temperature spark plasma sintering technique

Jialiang Li,Fei Chen,Jinye Niu,Ying Yang,Zhihao Wang 한양대학교 세라믹연구소 2011 Journal of Ceramic Processing Research Vol.12 No.3

In this study, α-Si3N4 ceramics were successfully prepared using MgO and AlPO4 as the sintering additives and a low temperature spark plasma sintering (SPS) technique. The resultant α-Si3N4 ceramics sintered from 1300 oC to 1500 oC show a fine microstructure with nearly no grain growth and phase transformation. The dielectric properties of the sintered ceramics are investigated in detail. α-Si3N4 ceramics with a porosity of 5-36% show a dielectric constant of 4.5-7.4 and a dielectric loss of less than 10 × 10−3. The existence of AlPO4 performing as a binder not only contributes to the low temperature sintering of fully-dense α-Si3N4 ceramics, but also reduces the dielectric constant and loss.

A Putative Histone Deacetylase Modulates the Biosynthesis of Pestalotiollide B and Conidiation in Pestalotiopsis microspora

( Xue Liang Niu ),( Xiao Ran Hao ),( Zhang Yong Hong ),( Long Fei Chen ),( Xi Yu ),( Xu Dong Zhu ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2015 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.25 No.5

Fungi of the genus Pestalotiopsis have drawn attention for their capability to produce an array of bioactive secondary metabolites that have potential for drug development. Here, we report the determination of a polyketide derivative compound, pestalotiollide B, in the culture of the saprophytic fungus Pestalotiopsis microspora NK17. Structural information acquired by analyses with a set of spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques suggests that pestalotiollide B has the same skeleton as the penicillide derivatives, dibenzodioxocinones, which are inhibitors of cholesterol ester transfer protein (CETP), and as purpactins A and C’, inhibitors of acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT). Strain NK17 can make a fairly high yield of pestalotiollide B (i.e., up to 7.22 mg/l) in a constitutive manner in liquid culture. Moreover, we found that a putative histone deacetylase gene, designated as hid1, played a role in the biosynthesis of pestalotiollide B. In the hid1 null mutant, the yield of pestalotiollide B increased approximately 2-fold to 15.90 mg/l. In contrast, deletion of gene hid1 led to a dramatic decrease of conidia production of the fungus. These results suggest that hid1 is a modulator, concerting secondary metabolism and development such as conidiation in P. microspora. Our work may help with the investigation into the biosynthesis of pestalotiollide B and the development for new CETP and ACAT inhibitors.

Preservation of Simmental bull sperm at 0°C in Tris dilution: effect of dilution ratio and long-distance transport

Jiang Shouqing,Huang Fei,Niu Peng,Wang Jieru,He Xiaoxia,Han Chun-mei,Gao Qinghua 아세아·태평양축산학회 2024 Animal Bioscience Vol.37 No.2

Objective: This study aimed to assess the impact of the dilution ratio of Tris diluent, storage at 0°C, and long-distance transportation on the spermatozoa of Simmental cattle. It also validated the feasibility of the regional distribution of fresh semen. Methods: In experiment 1, semen was diluted at four dilution ratios (1:6, 1:9, 1:12, and 1:15) to determine the optimal dilution ratio of Tris diluent. In experiment 2, we assessed sperm viability, progressive motility (objectively assessed by computer-assisted sperm analyzer), and acrosome intactness in Tris dilutions kept at constant 0°C for 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 days. We compared them to Tianshan livestock dilutions (Commercial diluent). In experiment 3, semen was diluted using Tris diluent, and sperm quality was measured before and after long-distance transport. Artificial insemination of 177 Simmental heifers compared to 156 using Tianshan Livestock dilution. Results: The outcomes demonstrated that 1:9 was the ideal Tris diluent dilution ratio. The sperm viability, Progressive Motility, and acrosome integrity of both Tris and Tianshan dilutions preserved at 0°C gradually decreased over time. sperm viability was above 50% for both dilutions on d 9, with a flat rate of decline. The decrease in acrosome integrity rate was faster for Tianshan livestock dilutions than for Tris dilutions when stored at 0°C for 1 to 6 days. There was no significant difference (p>0.05) in sperm viability between semen preserved in Tris diluent after long-distance transportation and semen preserved in resting condition. The conception rates for Tris dilution and Tianshan livestock dilution were 49.15% and 46.15% respectively, with no significant difference (p>0.05). Conclusion: This shows that Tris diluent is a good long-term protectant. It has been observed that fresh semen can be successfully preserved for long-distance transport when stored under 0°C conditions. Additionally, it is feasible to distribute semen regionally.

Purple Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) Color Alleviates High-fat-diet-induced Obesity in SD Rat by Mediating Leptin’s Effect and Attenuating Oxidative Stress

Yi Zhang,FuXiang Niu,Jian Sun,Fei Xu,RuiXue Yue 한국식품과학회 2015 Food Science and Biotechnology Vol.24 No.4

Obesity and associated diseases are world-wide problems. The preventive effect of purple sweet potato color (PSPC) on high fat diet (HFD) induced obesity was investigated along with the mechanism underlying the effect. Eight-week-old male Sprague Dawley strain rats were grouped into 7 groups and intragastrically administered PSPC once a day. Obesity was prevented and abnormal glucose, triglyceride, and total cholesterol levels induced by the HFD for 6 weeks were restored to near-normal levels. PSPC significantly (p<0.05) reduced the level of reactive oxygen species and inhibited the receptor of advanced glycation end products and thioredoxin interacting protein in the hypothalamus, compared with controls. PSPC preserved the leptin signaling capability, leading to a decrease in hypothalamic adenosine 5'-monophosphate activated protein kinase activity. The anti-obesity effects of PSPC were mediated via attenuation of oxidative stress and regulation of leptin/AMPK signaling in the hypothalamus.

Belt-like VO2(M) with a rectangular cross section: A new route to prepare, the phase transition and the optical switching properties

Yifu Zhang,Meijuan Fan,Fei Niu,Weibing Wu,Chi Huang,Xinghai Liu,Houbin Li,Xin Liu 한국물리학회 2012 Current Applied Physics Vol.12 No.3

Belt-like VO2(M) with a rectangular cross section was first synthesized by the irreversible transformation of VO2(A) at the elevated temperatures under the inert atmosphere to the best of our knowledge. The asobtained samples were characterized by a combination of techniques including XRD, SEM and TEM. The processes of converting VO2(A) to VO2(M) were briefly discussed. The as-obtained VO2(M) has belt-like morphology with a rectangular cross section with typical lengths up to several tens of micrometers,widths ranging from tens of nanometers to several micrometers, and thicknesses about 60e150 nm. The morphology and size of the VO2(M) were dependent on that of the precursor VO2(A). The phase transition properties of VO2(M) were investigated by DSC, indicating that it exhibited a strong phase transition at 67.9 ℃ in the heating cycle and 61.1 ℃ in the cooling cycle. Furthermore, the optical switching property of VO2(M) was studied by the variable-temperature infrared spectra, and it was found that the as-obtained VO2(M) could be used as the optical switch.

An integrated strategy for production of four anthocyanin compounds from Ribes nigrum L. by deep eutectic solvents and flash chromatography

Ping Kou,Yu-Fei Kang,Li-Tao Wang,Li-Jun Niu,Ying Xiao,Na Guo,Qi Cui,Yanyan Liu,Yu-Jie Fu 한국공업화학회 2019 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.80 No.-

This study explored an integrated strategy for extraction and preparative separation of four anthocyaninsfrom Ribes nigrum L. using DES-based microwave assisted extraction andflash chromatography. Theextraction yield of anthocyanins reached 2.03 mg/g after optimization. An efficient preparativeseparation process of four main anthocyanins by macroporous resin andflash chromatography wasestablished afterwards. The yields of D3G, D3R, C3G and C3R reached 0.32 mg/g, 0.47 mg/g, 0.18 mg/g and0.43 mg/g with the purities of more than 95%, respectively. The developed procedure represents anefficient and convenient alternative for the systematic utilization of natural products from plantmaterials.