Objective To compare the effectiveness of two kinds of defluorinating agents (bone char and modified clay) for removal of fluoride in drinking water,and to analyze their application feasibility in small towns.Methods Influencing factors on defluorinating efficiencies of the two kinds of defluorinating agents under the same conditions were studied,namely the effects of adsorption time,temperature,pH,common anions and cations,and solid-liquid ratio on defluorinating efficiencies were studied.The defluorinating efficiencies of the two kinds of defluorinating agents were validated by original groundwater in Jilin Province.The homemade bone char defluorinating agent and modified clay defluorinating agent were regenerated by NaOH and Al2(SO4)3,respectively,and their regeneration abilities were investigated.Results The adsorption data of the two kinds of defluorinating agents were fitted Langmuir model well,and the maximum adsorption capacities were 10.225 g/kg(bone char) and 0.587 g/kg(modified clay).The effect of temperature on defluorinating efficiencies was limited,with increasing temperature(10-35 ℃),the adsorption capacity of bone char and modified clay for fluoride ranged from 1.568 g/kg to 1.598 g/kg and 0.423 g/kg to 0.470 g/kg,respectively.Fluoride could be easily removed under low pH conditions,with increasing of pH(4-10),the adsorption capacity of bone char and modified clay for fluoride decreased from 1.598 g/kg to 1.523 g/kg and 0.724 g/kg to 0.320 g/kg,respectively.The defluorinating efficiencies were improved by common cations(Ca2+) in groundwater,and the adsorption capacity of bone char and modified clay for fluoride increased to 1.713 g/kg and 0.485 g/kg,respectively.Whereas,the defluorinating efficiencies were inhibited by common anions(HCO3-,SO42-) at a certain degree,and the adsorption capacities of bone char and modified clay for fluoride were decreased to 1.158 g/kg(HCO3-) and 0.237 g/kg(SO42),respectively.Defluoridation bone char could be regenerated by soaking in NaOH,and modified clay by immersion in Al2(SO4)3.The adsorption capacities of the two defluorinating agents that had been regenerated for three times still reached 94.6％ and 97.3％ of their original capacities.Conclusions Both of the homemade bone char defluorinating agent and modified clay defluorinating agent have good defluorinating efficiencies and can be regenerated for many times,which are perfectly suitable for application in small towns since they are simple and can be easily applied.The homemade bone char defluorinating agent is suitable for family drinking water and the homemade modified clay defluorinating agent would be more suitable for centralized drinking water.

AIM:To explore the depression-like behavior and cystathionine β-synthase (CBS)/hydrogen sulfide (H2S) levels of amygdala in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) rats and to study the effect of exogenous H2S on PTSD rats.METHODS:Single prolonged stress paradigm was adopted to prepare PTSD animal model.Forced swimming test and sucrose preference test were used to evaluate the depression-like behavior.The content of CBS/H2S in amygdala tissue was measured by Western blot and methylene blue method.In vivo extracellular single unit recordings was used to examine the frequency of spontaneous discharges of amygdala neurons.RESULTS:The immobility time in forced swimming test of PTSD group increased and sucrose preference in sucrose preference test of PTSD group decreased compare with normal group (P<0.01).CBS/H2S level in amygdala tissue of PTSD group decreased compared with normal group (P<0.01).The immobility time of the rats in forced swimming test of NaHS+PTSD group decreased and the sucrose prefe-rence in sucrose preference test of NaHS+PTSD group increased compare with PTSD group (P<0.01).L-cysteine increased the frequency of spontaneous discharges of amygdala neurons (P<0.01).CONCLUSION:Depression-like behavior is aggravated in PTSD model rats owing to the inhibition of CBS/H2S content in amygdala tissue.The mechanism of behavior-improving effect of H2S on PTSD model rats is possibly related to excitating amygdala neurons and increasing the frequency of spontaneous discharges.

Temporins are a kind of small,hydrophobic and C-terminus amidated antimicrobial peptides from Rana species.They are effective against bacteria,fungi,yeast,protozoa and viruses.Two novel temporins named as temporin-La(LLRHWKILEKYLanifc) and temporin-Lb(LFRHVVKIFEK.Ylamid.) were cloned from Lithobates catesbeianus.Synthetic peptides of temporin-La and temporin-Lb showed strong antimicrobial activities against bacteria tested,especially Gram-positive bacteria.Besides,temporin-La showed no haemolytic activity to rabbit erythrocytes at the concentration of 250 mg/L while temporin-Lb showed weak haemolytic activity(LC50≈ 230 μmol/L).Transmission electron microscopy showed that temporin-La and temporin-Lb induced different effects on bacterial structure of Staphylococcus aureus.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Tafamidis functions to delay the loss of function in transthyretin familial amyloid polyneuropathy (TTR-FAP), which is a rare inherited amyloidosis with progressive sensorimotor and autonomic polyneuropathy. This systematic literature review and meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy and safety of tafamidis in TTR-FAP patients, with the aim of improving the evidence-based medical evidence of this treatment option for TTP-FAP. METHODS: A systematic search of the English-language literature in five databases was performed through to May 31, 2018 by two reviewers who independently extracted data and assessed the risk of bias. We extracted efficacy and safety outcomes and performed a meta-analysis. Statistical tests were performed to check for heterogeneity and publication bias. RESULTS: The meta-analysis identified six relevant studies. The tafamidis group showed smaller changes from baseline in the Neuropathy Impairment Score–Lower Limbs [mean difference (MD)=−3.01, 95% confidence interval (CI)=−3.26 to −2.75, p < 0.001] and the Norfolk Quality of Life-Diabetic Neuropathy total quality of life score (MD=−6.67, 95% CI=−9.70 to −3.64, p < 0.001), and a higher modified body mass index (MD=72.45, 95% CI=69.41 to 75.49, p < 0.001), with no significant difference in total adverse events [odds ratio (OR)=0.69, 95% CI=0.35 to 1.35, p=0.27]. The incidence of adverse events did not differ between tafamidis and placebo treatment except for fatigue (OR=0.13, 95% CI=0.02 to 0.72, p=0.02) and hypesthesia (OR=0.16, 95% CI=0.03 to 0.92, p=0.04). CONCLUSIONS: This systematic review and meta-analysis has demonstrated that tafamidis delays neurologic progression and preserves a better nutritional status and the quality of life. The rates of adverse events did not differ between the patients in the tafamidis and placebo groups. Tafamidis might be a safer noninvasive option for patients with TTR-FAP.
Amyloid Neuropathies ; Amyloid Neuropathies, Familial* ; Amyloidosis ; Bias (Epidemiology) ; Body Mass Index ; Extremities ; Fatigue ; Humans ; Hypesthesia ; Incidence ; Nutritional Status ; Polyneuropathies ; Population Characteristics ; Prealbumin* ; Publication Bias ; Quality of Life

Objective To investigate the effects of intensive training for mimetic muscle on idiopathic facial paralysis. Methods 105 patients with idiopathic facial paralysis were divided into control group (n=53) and treatment group (n=52). All the patients received the routine treatment, including drugs, physical therapy, acupuncture and psychological support, while the treatment group was treated with intensive training for mimetic muscle in addition. Results 1 month after treatment, the muscle strength improved more in the treatment group than in the control group (P<0.01). The incidence of cure was 65.38% in the treatment group, more than 39.62% in the control group (P<0.01), as well the the total improvement of 96.15% and 83.02% respectively (P<0.05). Conclusion The intensive training for mimetic muscle can improve recovery of facial paralysis.

An increased level of reactive oxygen species is a key factor in neuronal apoptosis and epileptic seizures. Irisin reportedly attenuates the apoptosis and injury induced by oxidative stress. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of exogenous irisin in a kainic acid (KA)-induced chronic spontaneous epilepsy rat model. The results indicated that exogenous irisin significantly attenuated the KA-induced neuronal injury, learning and memory defects, and seizures. Irisin treatment also increased the levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2), which were initially reduced following KA administration. Furthermore, the specific inhibitor of UCP2 (genipin) was administered to evaluate the possible protective mechanism of irisin. The reduced apoptosis, neurodegeneration, and spontaneous seizures in rats treated with irisin were significantly reversed by genipin administration. Our findings indicated that neuronal injury in KA-induced chronic epilepsy might be related to reduced levels of BDNF and UCP2. Moreover, our results confirmed the inhibition of neuronal injury and epileptic seizures by exogenous irisin. The protective effects of irisin may be mediated through the BDNF-mediated UCP2 level. Our results thus highlight irisin as a valuable therapeutic strategy against neuronal injury and epileptic seizures.
Rats ; Animals ; Kainic Acid/toxicity* ; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor/metabolism* ; Fibronectins/metabolism* ; Hippocampus/metabolism* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Epilepsy/metabolism* ; Seizures/prevention & control*

RBM46 is a germ cell-specific RNA-binding protein required for gametogenesis, but the targets and molecular functions of RBM46 remain unknown. Here, we demonstrate that RBM46 binds at specific motifs in the 3'UTRs of mRNAs encoding multiple meiotic cohesin subunits and show that RBM46 is required for normal synaptonemal complex formation during meiosis initiation. Using a recently reported, high-resolution technique known as LACE-seq and working with low-input cells, we profiled the targets of RBM46 at single-nucleotide resolution in leptotene and zygotene stage gametes. We found that RBM46 preferentially binds target mRNAs containing GCCUAU/GUUCGA motifs in their 3'UTRs regions. In Rbm46 knockout mice, the RBM46-target cohesin subunits displayed unaltered mRNA levels but had reduced translation, resulting in the failed assembly of axial elements, synapsis disruption, and meiotic arrest. Our study thus provides mechanistic insights into the molecular functions of RBM46 in gametogenesis and illustrates the power of LACE-seq for investigations of RNA-binding protein functions when working with low-abundance input materials.
Animals ; Mice ; 3' Untranslated Regions/genetics* ; Cell Cycle Proteins/metabolism* ; Gametogenesis/genetics* ; Meiosis/genetics* ; Nuclear Proteins/genetics* ; RNA-Binding Proteins/genetics*