Showing papers by "Shanghai University published in 2009"
TL;DR: Li et al. as discussed by the authors reported that highly disordered graphene nanosheets can find promising applications in high-capacity Li ion batteries because of their exceptionally high reversible capacities and good cyclic stability.
Abstract: Graphene has aroused intensive interest because of its unique structure, superior properties, and various promising applications. Graphene nanostructures with significant disorder and defects have been considered to be poor materials because disorder and defects lower their electrical conductivity. In this paper, we report that highly disordered graphene nanosheets can find promising applications in high-capacity Li ion batteries because of their exceptionally high reversible capacities (794−1054 mA h/g) and good cyclic stability. To understand the Li storage mechanism of graphene nanosheets, we have prepared graphene nanosheets with structural parameters tunable via different reduction methods including hydrazine reduction, low-temperature pyrolysis, and electron beam irradiation. The effects of these parameters on Li storage properties were investigated systematically. A key structural parameter, Raman intensity ratio of D bands to G bands, has been identified to evaluate the reversible capacity. The gr...
944 citations
TL;DR: A simple and efficient approach to automatically determine the number of hidden nodes in generalized single-hidden-layer feedforward networks (SLFNs) which need not be neural alike which is much faster than other sequential/incremental/growing algorithms with good generalization performance.
Abstract: One of the open problems in neural network research is how to automatically determine network architectures for given applications. In this brief, we propose a simple and efficient approach to automatically determine the number of hidden nodes in generalized single-hidden-layer feedforward networks (SLFNs) which need not be neural alike. This approach referred to as error minimized extreme learning machine (EM-ELM) can add random hidden nodes to SLFNs one by one or group by group (with varying group size). During the growth of the networks, the output weights are updated incrementally. The convergence of this approach is proved in this brief as well. Simulation results demonstrate and verify that our new approach is much faster than other sequential/incremental/growing algorithms with good generalization performance.
600 citations
TL;DR: It is indicated that activation of β‐catenin signaling in articular chondrocytes in adult mice leads to the premature chONDrocyte differentiation and the development of an OA‐like phenotype.
Abstract: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease, and the mechanism of its pathogenesis is poorly understood. Recent human genetic association studies showed that mutations in the Frzb gene predispose patients to OA, suggesting that the Wnt/β-catenin signaling may be the key pathway to the development of OA. However, direct genetic evidence for β-catenin in this disease has not been reported. Because tissue-specific activation of the β-catenin gene (targeted by Col2a1-Cre) is embryonic lethal, we specifically activated the β-catenin gene in articular chondrocytes in adult mice by generating β-catenin conditional activation (cAct) mice through breeding of β-cateninfx(Ex3)/fx(Ex3) mice with Col2a1-CreERT2 transgenic mice. Deletion of exon 3 of the β-catenin gene results in the production of a stabilized fusion β-catenin protein that is resistant to phosphorylation by GSK-3β. In this study, tamoxifen was administered to the 3- and 6-mo-old Col2a1-CreERT2;β-cateninfx(Ex3)/wt mice, and tissues were harvested for histologic analysis 2 mo after tamoxifen induction. Overexpression of β-catenin protein was detected by immunostaining in articular cartilage tissues of β-catenin cAct mice. In 5-mo-old β-catenin cAct mice, reduction of Safranin O and Alcian blue staining in articular cartilage tissue and reduced articular cartilage area were observed. In 8-mo-old β-catenin cAct mice, cell cloning, surface fibrillation, vertical clefting, and chondrophyte/osteophyte formation were observed. Complete loss of articular cartilage layers and the formation of new woven bone in the subchondral bone area were also found in β-catenin cAct mice. Expression of chondrocyte marker genes, such as aggrecan, Mmp-9, Mmp-13, Alp, Oc, and colX, was significantly increased (3- to 6-fold) in articular chondrocytes derived from β-catenin cAct mice. Bmp2 but not Bmp4 expression was also significantly upregulated (6-fold increase) in these cells. In addition, we also observed overexpression of β-catenin protein in the knee joint samples from patients with OA. These findings indicate that activation of β-catenin signaling in articular chondrocytes in adult mice leads to the premature chondrocyte differentiation and the development of an OA-like phenotype. This study provides direct and definitive evidence about the role of β-catenin in the development of OA.
448 citations
TL;DR: The results support the viewpoint that the ZnO nanoparticle toxicity comes from the dissolved Zn(2+) in the culture medium or inside cells and highlight the need for caution during the use and disposal of ZNO manufactured nanomaterials.
Abstract: Given the intensive application of nanoscale zinc oxide (ZnO) materials in our life, growing concerns have arisen about its unintentional health and environmental impacts. In this study, the neurotoxicity of different sized ZnO nanoparticles in mouse neural stem cells (NSCs) was investigated. A cell viability assay indicated that ZnO nanoparticles manifested dose-dependent, but no size-dependent toxic effects on NSCs. Apoptotic cells were observed and analyzed by confocal microscopy, transmission electron microscopy examination, and flow cytometry. All the results support the viewpoint that the ZnO nanoparticle toxicity comes from the dissolved Zn(2+) in the culture medium or inside cells. Our results highlight the need for caution during the use and disposal of ZnO manufactured nanomaterials to prevent the unintended environmental and health impacts.
323 citations
TL;DR: In this study, HepG2.2.15 cells and duck hepatitis B virus infection model were used as in vitro and in vivo models to evaluate their anti-HBV activity and chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid inhibited HBV-DNA replication as well as HBsAg production.
315 citations
TL;DR: The outcome suggests that the DA model obtains a more accurate forecast than any individual model alone, suggesting that the aggregation strategy can offer substantial benefits in terms of improving operational forecasting.
Abstract: In this paper, an aggregation approach is proposed for traffic flow prediction that is based on the moving average (MA), exponential smoothing (ES), autoregressive MA (ARIMA), and neural network (NN) models. The aggregation approach assembles information from relevant time series. The source time series is the traffic flow volume that is collected 24 h/day over several years. The three relevant time series are a weekly similarity time series, a daily similarity time series, and an hourly time series, which can be directly generated from the source time series. The MA, ES, and ARIMA models are selected to give predictions of the three relevant time series. The predictions that result from the different models are used as the basis of the NN in the aggregation stage. The output of the trained NN serves as the final prediction. To assess the performance of the different models, the naive, ARIMA, nonparametric regression, NN, and data aggregation (DA) models are applied to the prediction of a real vehicle traffic flow, from which data have been collected at a data-collection point that is located on National Highway 107, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. The outcome suggests that the DA model obtains a more accurate forecast than any individual model alone. The aggregation strategy can offer substantial benefits in terms of improving operational forecasting.
310 citations
TL;DR: MicroRNA-125a-5p may partly provide post-transcriptional regulation of the proinflammatory response, lipid uptake, and expression of ORP9 in oxLDL-stimulated monocyte/macrophages.
Abstract: Aims The inflammatory responses of monocytes/macrophages and the stimulation of lipid uptake into these cells by oxidized low density lipoprotein (oxLDL) are critical to the initiation and development of atherosclerosis. Increasing evidence has demonstrated that many microRNAs play important roles in the cell proliferation, apoptosis, and differentiation that accompany inflammatory responses. However, whether microRNAs are associated with monocyte/macrophage inflammatory responses or oxLDL stimulation is not yet known. The aim of the present study is to investigate microRNAs in monocytes/macrophages and their potential role in oxLDL-stimulation of lipid uptake and other atherosclerotic responses. Methods and results Microarrays were used to analyse the global expression of microRNAs in oxLDLstimulated human primary peripheral blood monocytes. Expression profiles of the microRNAs were verified using TaqMan real-time PCR. Five microRNAs (microRNA-125a-5p, microRNA-9, microRNA-146a, microRNA-146b-5p, and microRNA-155) were aberrantly expressed after oxLDL treatment of human primary monocytes. Bioinformatics analysis suggested that microRNA-125a-5p is related to a protein similar to ORP9 (oxysterol binding protein-like 9) and this was confirmed by a luciferase reporter assay. MicroRNA-125a-5p was found to mediate lipid uptake and to decrease the secretion of some inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-2, interleukin-6, tumour necrosis factor-a, transforming growth factor-beta) in oxLDL-stimulated monocyte-derived macrophages. Conclusion MicroRNA-125a-5p may partly provide post-transcriptional regulation of the proinflammatory response, lipid uptake, and expression of ORP9 in oxLDL-stimulated monocyte/macrophages.
283 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, an activity-directed fractionation and purification process was used to isolate 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) scavenging components from Juglans regia kernels.
273 citations
TL;DR: A principal component analysis and PAHs isomeric ratios indicate thatPAHs in Shanghai urban soil mainly originated from combustion, and the toxic assessment suggested that soil PAhs exposure is medium carcinogenic at present level.
272 citations
TL;DR: The different compositions of DDT, HCH, chlordane and endosulfan indicated that the residues of these compounds in most soil samples originated from historical application, besides slight recent introduction at some sampling locations, and the quality of Shanghai agricultural soil was classified as low pollution by OCPs.
263 citations
26 Dec 2009
TL;DR: The characteristics, architectures and applications of several popular cloud computing platforms are analyzed and discussed in detail so that users can better understand the different cloud platforms and more reasonablely choose what they want.
Abstract: Cloud computing is the development of parallel computing, distributed computing and grid computing. It has been one of the most hot research topics. Now many corporations have involved in the cloud computing related techniques and many cloud computing platforms have been put forward. This is a favorable situation to study and application of cloud computing related techniques. Though interesting, there are also some problems for so many flatforms. For to a novice or user with little knowledge about cloud computing, it is still very hard to make a reasonable choice. What differences are there for different cloud computing platforms and what characteristics and advantages each has? To answer these problems, the characteristics, architectures and applications of several popular cloud computing platforms are analyzed and discussed in detail. From the comparison of these platforms, users can better understand the different cloud platforms and more reasonablely choose what they want.
TL;DR: The final results proved that this facile coating approach could significantly promote re-endothelialization and was safer compared with bare metal stents for its much improved anticoagulation property.
TL;DR: Wang et al. as mentioned in this paper analyzed surface sediment samples from a matrix of fifty-five sites covering virtually the entire Bohai Sea (Bohai), China were analyzed for total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN), n -alkanes, unresolved complex mixture (UCM), biomarkers and stable carbon isotopic composition ( δ 13 C), and principal component analysis was performed for source identification of organic matter (OM).
TL;DR: CD151 is positively associated with invasiveness of HCC, and CD151 or combination of CD151/c‐Met is a novel marker in predicting the prognosis of H CC and a potential therapeutic target.
TL;DR: A novel function of HBx in increasing autophagy through the up‐regulation of beclin1 expression is suggested, and this may provide an important mechanism in HBV‐infected hepatocytes growing under nutrient‐deficient conditions.
TL;DR: Wang et al. as discussed by the authors studied the abundance and seasonal characteristics of PM2.5, organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) at urban and suburban sites in Shanghai during four season-representative months in 2005-2006 year.
TL;DR: This review summarizes the recent advances in the chemical analysis of Danshen and its finished products, including the introduction of the identified bioactive components, analytical methods for quantitative determination of target analytes and fingerprinting authentication, quality criteria ofDanshen crude herb and its preparations, as well as the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies on the active components of DANShen andIts finished products.
TL;DR: In this article, a facile templated chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method was used to produce CNT-encapsulated Sn nanoparticles with ∼100% particle encapsulation and high filling uniformity.
Abstract: In this study we demonstrate a facile templated chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method to produce CNT-encapsulated Sn nanoparticles with ∼100% particle encapsulation and high filling uniformity. The encapsulated Sn particles were formed either as Sn or Sn@carbon core−shell particles with good control of size and morphology. The complete and uniform encapsulation of small, electrochemically active Sn particles within a CNT matrix with large free volume accommodated the volume excursion problem in repetitive lithium insertion and extraction reactions very well, showing good resilience in maintaining electrical connective and mechanical integrity. Consequently the completely filled Sn@CNT nanocomposite showed excellent reversible lithium ion storage properties.
TL;DR: The error analyses of the fractional Adams method for the fractionsal ordinary differential equations for the three cases (i)-(iii) are studied and numerical simulations are also included which are in line with the theoretical analysis.
Abstract: The generalized Adams-Bashforth-Moulton method, often simply called ''the fractional Adams method'', is a useful numerical algorithm for solving a fractional ordinary differential equation: D"*^@ay(t)=f(t,y(t)),y^(^k^)(0)=y"0^(^k^),k=0,1,...,n-1, where @a>0,[email protected][email protected]@? is the first integer not less than @a, and D"*^@ay(t) is the @ath-order fractional derivative of y(t) in the Caputo sense. Although error analyses for this fractional Adams method have been given for (a) 0 1, [email protected]?C^1^+^@?^@a^@?[0,T], (c) 0 1, [email protected]?C^3(G), there are still some unsolved problems-(i) the error estimates for @[email protected]?(0,1), [email protected]?C^3(G), (ii) the error estimates for @[email protected]?(0,1), [email protected]?C^2(G), (iii) the solution y(t) having some special forms. In this paper, we mainly study the error analyses of the fractional Adams method for the fractional ordinary differential equations for the three cases (i)-(iii). Numerical simulations are also included which are in line with the theoretical analysis.
TL;DR: Assessment of biochemical, bone mineral density, biomechanical, and histopathological parameters showed that ICA has a definite antiosteoporotic effect, similar to estrogen, especially effective for prevention bone fracture induced by estrogen deficiency.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors found that NDs with a diameter of around 50nm predominantly accumulated in liver after intravenous injection to mouse and Spleen and lung were also target organs for NDs.
TL;DR: In this paper, the effects of wood template, calcination temperature, and working temperature of gas flow on the gas sensitivity and selectivity in detail were investigated using H 2, CO, NH 3, Formaldehyde, Methanol, Ethanol, Acetone, and Isobutene.
Abstract: Hierarchical porous wood-templated ZnO has been successfully synthesized using Lauan and Fir woods as template through a simple hydrothermal bioinspired approach. The template type and calcination temperature in the preparation process have a large effect on the morphologies and porous structures of ZnO according to FESEM, TEM, mercury porosimetry and N 2 adsorption investigations. The gas sensing performances of wood-templated and non-templated ZnO were investigated using H 2 , CO, H 2 S, NH 3 , Formaldehyde, Methanol, Ethanol, Acetone, and Isobutene. The article studies the effects of wood template, calcination temperature, and working temperature of gas flow on the gas sensitivity and selectivity in detail. It is revealed that wood-templated ZnO has excellent sensitivity and selectivity to H 2 S due to inheritance of wood's hierarchical porous structure. The sensing response to H 2 S of Fir-templated ZnO is about 5.1 times higher than that of non-templated ZnO. Fir-templated ZnO calcined at 600 °C, has the best sensing properties including the highest gas sensing response, the highest selectivity coefficients of H 2 S and the shortest response and recovery time. The selective sensing mechanism has been discussed from some key aspects, such as gas properties, gas–solid reactions, grain size and hierarchical porous microstructures.
TL;DR: Diurnal air samples were collected from the E-waste dismantling region Guiyu and the underwear industry region Chendian for the first report to present the diurnal variation of PBDEs in the atmosphere.
TL;DR: Results obtained from cross-validation experiments and test on independent data sets suggest that BPB-PPMS presented here might facilitate the identification and annotation of protein methylation.
Abstract: Protein methylation is one type of reversible post-translational modifications (PTMs), which plays vital roles in many cellular processes such as transcription activity, DNA repair. Experimental identification of methylation sites on proteins without prior knowledge is costly and time-consuming. In silico prediction of methylation sites might not only provide researches with information on the candidate sites for further determination, but also facilitate to perform downstream characterizations and site-specific investigations. In the present study, a novel approach based on Bi-profile Bayes feature extraction combined with support vector machines (SVMs) was employed to develop the model for Prediction of Protein Methylation Sites (BPB-PPMS) from primary sequence. Methylation can occur at many residues including arginine, lysine, histidine, glutamine, and proline. For the present, BPB-PPMS is only designed to predict the methylation status for lysine and arginine residues on polypeptides due to the absence of enough experimentally verified data to build and train prediction models for other residues. The performance of BPB-PPMS is measured with a sensitivity of 74.71%, a specificity of 94.32% and an accuracy of 87.98% for arginine as well as a sensitivity of 70.05%, a specificity of 77.08% and an accuracy of 75.51% for lysine in 5-fold cross validation experiments. Results obtained from cross-validation experiments and test on independent data sets suggest that BPB-PPMS presented here might facilitate the identification and annotation of protein methylation. Besides, BPB-PPMS can be extended to build predictors for other types of PTM sites with ease. For public access, BPB-PPMS is available at http://www.bioinfo.bio.cuhk.edu.hk/bpbppms.
TL;DR: In this article, single-crystalline ZnO nanowires were synthesized and further modified with Pd nanoparticles through self-assemblies, showing that poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) plays a key role in loading nanoparticles onto the surfaces of ZnNOWires.
Abstract: Single-crystalline ZnO nanowires were synthesized, and further modified with Pd nanoparticles through self-assemblies. The self-assembly strategy shows advantages of tailoring the surface modification of ZnO nanowires with monodispersed Pd nanoparticles and further tuning of the functionalities of nano-architectures. It was found that poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) plays a key role in loading Pd nanoparticles onto the surfaces of ZnO nanowires. Having been turned into chemical sensors, the nano-architectures constructed from ZnO nanowires and Pd nanoparticles exhibit a highly enhanced response to H2S gas, compared to the devices from pure ZnO nanowires.
TL;DR: The ability to transport a large quantity of drug molecules into cytosolic compartments of cancer cells has powerful implications in modern molecular therapeutics because the sites of action of the drugs are often cytosol organelles.
Abstract: Dedicated to Professor Britton Chance on the occasion of his 96th birthdayThe ability to transport a large quantity of drug moleculesinto cytosolic compartments of cancer cells has powerfulimplications in modern molecular therapeutics because thesites of action of the drugs are often cytosolic organelles.
TL;DR: Findings indicate that lymphangiogenesis and lymphatic drainage are reciprocally related to the severity of joint lesions during the development of chronic arthritis.
Abstract: Lymphatic vessels are present in almost all tissues of the body. They are composed of an extensive network of thin-walled capillaries that drain protein-rich lymph from extracellular spaces (1). Under normal conditions, the major functions of the lymphatic system include maintenance of tissue fluid homeostasis, absorption of fatty acids, and mediation of the afferent immune response (2, 3). Recent studies show increasing evidence that the lymphatic system also plays key roles in disease processes such as cancer metastasis, lymphedema, obesity, and inflammation (4, 5).
Lymphatic endothelial cell proliferation and lymphatic hyperplasia are reported in psoriatic skin lesions in humans and in chronic skin inflammation in mice (6). Kidney transplant rejection is frequently accompanied by enhanced lymphangiogenesis and production of lymphatic endothelial cell-derived chemokines in grafted tissues (7). Synovial specimens from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and osteoarthritis have an increased number of lymphatic vessels and increased expression of the lymphatic growth factor, vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C) (8, 9). Furthermore, clinical reports have described larger lymph nodes (10) and increased lymphatic flow rates in lymphatic vessels draining arthritic joints in RA patients (11). Similarly, recent studies in animal models of RA demonstrated increased lymphatic vessel formation in inflamed joints and in draining popliteal lymph nodes (PLN) (12–14). These clinical and preclinical studies have demonstrated that inflammation stimulates proximal lymphangiogenesis in the joints and distal lymphangiogenesis in the draining lymph nodes. Thus, inflammation is the primary cause of lymphangiogenesis in arthritis. However, the effects of inflammation-induced lymphangiogenesis on joint inflammation in RA have yet to be determined.
VEGF-A- and VEGF-C-mediated signaling pathways are centrally involved in inflammatory lymphangiogenesis. VEGF-A signals through VEGF receptors (VEGFR)-1 and VEGFR-2. The effect of VEGF-A on lymphatics is mediated by VEGFR-2. Blockade of VEGF-A/VEGFR-2 interaction, using VEGFR-2 neutralizing antibody, reduces adjuvant-induced (15) and delayed-type hypersensitivity reaction-induced (16) lymphangiogenesis in lymph nodes. VEGF-C signals primarily through VEGFR-3 on lymphatic endothelial cells. VEGFR-3 blockade specifically inhibits the effects of VEGF-C, but not VEGF-A, on lymphatics. VEGFR-3 neutralizing antibody reduces bacterial infection associated-airway inflammation (17) and surgical blockade-induced lymphangiogenesis (18, 19). These studies have established a direct role for VEGF-C:VEGFR3 signaling in inflammation-induced lymphangiogenesis. However, most published studies have used acute inflammation models in which inflammation is triggered within hours to days. The effects of lymphangiogenesis on the natural course of chronic inflammation, such as that occurring in RA, have not been addressed. Specifically, it is not known how newly-generated lymphatic vessels affect drainage from inflamed joints, or if reduced lymphatics exacerbates inflammation. These questions are even more important in chronic inflammation where monocytes/macrophages are the major infiltrating cell type, given the fact that macrophages are the main source of VEGF-C in response to pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF and IL-1 (12, 20, 21)
In the current study, we used TNF transgenic (Tg) mice as a model of chronic inflammatory arthritis (22), and examined the effect of lymphatic inhibition by VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3 neutralizing antibodies on lymphatic drainage and the severity of joint inflammation. Contrast enhancement (CE) MRI (13, 23) and indocyanine green-near infrared (ICG-NIR) in vivo imaging technologies were used to monitor the changes of synovial and PLN volumes during the 8-week treatment period. We found that VEGFR-3 neutralizing antibody significantly decreased joint and PLN lymphangiogenesis, lymphatic drainage from inflamed paws to PLNs, and the number of VEGF-C expressing CD11b+ myeloid cells in the PLNs. However, it significantly exacerbated joint inflammation. In contrast, VEGFR-2 neutralization inhibited both joint inflammation and lymphangiogenesis. These data indicate that inflammation-induced lymphangiogenesis is an important compensatory mechanism to limit joint inflammation during the course of chronic arthritis, and that improving lymphatic drainage represents a new potential therapeutic strategy for chronic inflammatory disorders.
TL;DR: In this article, magnetic nanoparticles of Fe 3 O 4 were fabricated through hydrothermal reaction by using sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate (AOT) as a surfactant and hydrazine hydrate (N 2 H 4 ·H 2 O) as reductant.
TL;DR: An essential relation between synchronization dynamics and local dynamics is found by detailed analysis of dynamical networks without delay through the stage detection of cluster synchronization.
Abstract: In this paper dynamical networks with community structure and nonidentical nodes and with identical local dynamics for all individual nodes in each community are considered. The cluster synchronization of these networks with or without time delay is studied by using some feedback control schemes. Several sufficient conditions for achieving cluster synchronization are obtained analytically and are further verified numerically by some examples with chaotic or nonchaotic nodes. In addition, an essential relation between synchronization dynamics and local dynamics is found by detailed analysis of dynamical networks without delay through the stage detection of cluster synchronization.
TL;DR: Wang et al. as mentioned in this paper established a new expression of the general solution to the consistent system of linear quaternion matrix equations A1X1=C1, A2X2=C2, A3X1B1+A4X2B2 =C3.