Melatonin and mitochondrial function during ischemia/reperfusion injury

Ischemia/reperfusion (IR) injury occurs in many organs and tissues, and contributes to morbidity and mortality worldwide. Melatonin, an endogenously produced indolamine, provides a strong defense against IR injury. Mitochondrion, an organelle for ATP production and a decider for cell fate, has been validated to be a crucial target for melatonin to exert its protection against IR injury. In this review, we first clarify the mechanisms underlying mitochondrial dysfunction during IR and melatonin’s protection of mitochondria under this condition. Thereafter, special focus is placed on the protective actions of melatonin against IR injury in brain, heart, liver, and others. Finally, we explore several potential future directions of research in this area. Collectively, the information compiled here will serve as a comprehensive reference for the actions of melatonin in IR injury identified to date and will hopefully aid in the design of future research and increase the potential of melatonin as a therapeutic agent.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Yersinia pseudotuberculosis</Emphasis> supports Th17 differentiation and limits de novo regulatory T cell induction by directly interfering with T cell receptor signaling

Adaptive immunity critically contributes to control acute infection with enteropathogenic Yersinia pseudotuberculosis; however, the role of CD4⁺ T cell subsets in establishing infection and allowing pathogen persistence remains elusive. Here, we assessed the modulatory capacity of Y. pseudotuberculosis on CD4⁺ T cell differentiation. Using in vivo assays, we report that infection with Y. pseudotuberculosis resulted in enhanced priming of IL-17-producing T cells (Th17 cells), whereas induction of Foxp3⁺ regulatory T cells (Tregs) was severely disrupted in gut-draining mesenteric lymph nodes (mLNs), in line with altered frequencies of tolerogenic and proinflammatory dendritic cell (DC) subsets within mLNs. Additionally, by using a DC-free in vitro system, we could demonstrate that Y. pseudotuberculosis can directly modulate T cell receptor (TCR) downstream signaling within naïve CD4⁺ T cells and Tregs via injection of effector molecules through the type III secretion system, thereby affecting their functional properties. Importantly, modulation of naïve CD4⁺ T cells by Y. pseudotuberculosis resulted in an enhanced Th17 differentiation and decreased induction of Foxp3⁺ Tregs in vitro. These findings shed light to the adjustment of the Th17-Treg axis in response to acute Y. pseudotuberculosis infection and highlight the direct modulation of CD4⁺ T cell subsets by altering their TCR downstream signaling.     

基于园林卓越人才培养的观赏植物组织培养课程实践改革

以园林专业卓越人才培养为目标,提出教学过程以应用与创新为导向,更新教学内容体系,探索引入项目式教学形式,调整考核方法.改革后的课程体系侧重学生实践动手能力与创新能力的培养,学生的学习主动性显著提高,在学生中反馈效果好,教学效果显著.     

Yersinia pestis genome sequencing identifies patterns of global phylogenetic diversity

Plague is a pandemic human invasive disease caused by the bacterial agent Yersinia pestis. We here report a comparison of 17 whole genomes of Y. pestis isolates from global sources. We also screened a global collection of 286 Y. pestis isolates for 933 SNPs using Sequenom MassArray SNP typing. We conducted phylogenetic analyses on this sequence variation dataset, assigned isolates to populations based on maximum parsimony and, from these results, made inferences regarding historical transmission routes. Our phylogenetic analysis suggests that Y. pestis evolved in or near China and spread through multiple radiations to Europe, South America, Africa and Southeast Asia, leading to country-specific lineages that can be traced by lineage-specific SNPs. All 626 current isolates from the United States reflect one radiation, and 82 isolates from Madagascar represent a second radiation. Subsequent local microevolution of Y. pestis is marked by sequential, geographically specific SNPs.     

体域网中基于特征组合的步态行为识别

物联网(internet of things,IOT)拥有无处不在的识别、传感和通信能力,体域网(body area network,BAN)属于物联网中和人体相关的领域,其应用广泛,可以在日常生活中对人们进行监测及提供帮助.行走是许多日常活动的基本环节,因而步态分析能为体域网应用提供重要的生理行为信息.现有的步态分析已取得一定的研究成果,但仍存在一些问题,例如大多数步态特征提取是对加速度信号进行6重以上的变换,使得特征达到了45维以上,最后需要通过降维或优化来简化特征,较为复杂.本文设计一种灵活便捷的数据采集系统,并利用小波变换、傅里叶变换和四分位差提取出加速度信号中比较简单、低维度但能反应运动特征的步态参数,之后通过模式识别算法进行步态行为识别验证.实验结果表明该系统使用方便,特征提取方法简单实用,识别精确度为97%,EER(equal error rate)最小可到0.9%.     

月地高速再入返回器热控设计及实现

针对月地高速再入返回器不同阶段大功率散热、小功率保温与高速返回过程中高温隔热之间的突出矛盾,以及狭小、局促空间内设备热量的收集、传输、排散与阻断等技术难题,首次构建一种基于柔性自适应"热开关"的小型再入返回类航天器热控体系,成功研制出一套基于异构式环路热管的一体化柔性、高效热管理系统.在轨飞行数据表明:核心热控产品环路热管控温运行模式下实际传热能力超过65 W,阻断模式下漏热量小于2 W,"热导比"大于30,能够很好地实现"热开关"功能,确保了返回器所有设备的温度水平优于指标要求.     

Dynamic Latent Class Model Averaging for Online Prediction

We consider the problem of online prediction when it is uncertain what the best prediction model to use is. We develop a method called dynamic latent class model averaging, which combines a state‐space model for the parameters of each of the candidate models of the system with a Markov chain model for the best model. We propose a polychotomous regression model for the transition weights to assume that the probability of a change in time depends on the past through the values of the most recent time periods and spatial correlation among the regions. The evolution of the parameters in each submodel is defined by exponential forgetting. This structure allows the ‘correct’ model to vary over both time and regions. In contrast to existing methods, the proposed model naturally incorporates clustering and prediction analysis in a single unified framework. We develop an efficient Gibbs algorithm for computation, and we demonstrate the value of our framework on simulated experiments and on a real‐world problem: forecasting IBM's corporate revenue. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.