Accurate predictions of the EPR parameters in planar cobalt(II) complexes by hybrid density functional theory

The hybrid density functional theory is applied to calculate the electron paramagnetic resonance parameters, i.e, the g- and A-tensors of some planar Cobalt(II) complexes with a C_2v symmetry. Calculations were done for four systems: Co(acacen), Co(tacacen), Co(seacacen) and Co(sacsac)₂. The following hybrid functionals were employed: B3LYP, B3PW91, mPW1PW91 and PBE0. The expected large deviation of the g- and A-tensors is well reproduced, and is in very good agreement with the experimental observations. Comparative study shows that the PBE0 hybrid model yields the best agreement with experimental data.     

Trypanosoma cruzi 5S rRNA arrays define five groups and indicate the geographic origins of an ancestor of the heterozygous hybrids

Isolates of the etiological agent of Chagas disease, Trypanosoma cruzi, have been subdivided into six subgroups referred to as discrete typing units. The subgroups are related through two distinct hybridisation events: representatives of homozygous discrete typing units I and IIb fused to form discrete typing units IIa and IIc, whose homozygous genotypes have features of both ancestral types; a second fusion between strains of homozygous discrete typing units IIb and IIc created the heterozygous hybrid strains discrete typing units IId and IIe. The intergenic region of the tandemly repeated 5S rRNA array displays four variant sequence classes, allowing the discrimination of five discrete typing units. The genome project reference strain, CL Brener, is a hybrid discrete typing unit IIe strain that contains both discrete typing unit IIb and IIc classes of 5S rRNA repeats in distinct arrays present on different chromosomes. The CL Brener discrete typing unit IIb-type array contains approximately 193 repeated units, of which about one-third contain a 129 bp sequence that replaces a majority of the 5S rRNA sequence. The 129 bp 'invader' sequence was detected within the arrays of all hybrid discrete typing unit IId and IIe strains and in a subset of discrete typing unit IIb strains. This array invader replaces the internal promoter elements conserved in 5S rRNA. The discrete typing unit IIb Esmeraldo strain contains approximately 135 repeats and shows a region of homology to the array invader in the 5' flank of the array, but no evidence of the invading sequence element within the array. A survey of additional discrete typing unit IIb strains revealed a split within the subgroup, in which some strains contained invaded arrays and others were homogeneous for the 5S rRNA. The putative discrete typing unit IIb ancestor of the hybrid discrete typing units IId and IIe more closely resembles the extant Bolivian/Chilean IIb isolates than the Brazilian IIb isolates based on the correlation with the array invader.     

Flexible modeling via a hybrid estimation scheme in generalized mixed models for longitudinal data

To circumvent the computational complexity of likelihood inference in generalized mixed models that assume linear or more general additive regression models of covariate effects, Laplace's approximations to multiple integrals in the likelihood have been commonly used without addressing the issue of adequacy of the approximations for individuals with sparse observations. In this article, we propose a hybrid estimation scheme to address this issue. The likelihoods for subjects with sparse observations use Monte Carlo approximations involving importance sampling, while Laplace's approximation is used for the likelihoods of other subjects that satisfy a certain diagnostic check on the adequacy of Laplace's approximation. Because of its computational tractability, the proposed approach allows flexible modeling of covariate effects by using regression splines and model selection procedures for knot and variable selection. Its computational and statistical advantages are illustrated by simulation and by application to longitudinal data from a fecundity study of fruit flies, for which overdispersion is modeled via a double exponential family.     

Covalently linked kanamycin – Ciprofloxacin hybrid antibiotics as a tool to fight bacterial resistance

To address the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, a set of 12 hybrid compounds that covalently link fluoroquinolone (ciprofloxacin) and aminoglycoside (kanamycin A) antibiotics were synthesized, and their activity was determined against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, including resistant strains. The hybrids were antagonistic relative to the ciprofloxacin, but were substantially more potent than the parent kanamycin against Gram-negative bacteria, and overcame most dominant resistance mechanisms to aminoglycosides. Selected hybrids were 42–640 fold poorer inhibitors of bacterial protein synthesis than the parent kanamycin, while they displayed similar inhibitory activity to that of ciprofloxacin against DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV enzymes. The hybrids showed significant delay of resistance development in both E. coli and B. subtilis in comparison to that of component drugs alone or their 1:1 mixture. More generally, the data suggest that an antagonistic combination of aminoglycoside-fluoroquinolone hybrids can lead to new compounds that slowdown/prevent the emergence of resistance.     

Comparative evaluation of biogas production from dairy manure and co‐digestion with maize silage by CSTR and new anaerobic hybrid reactor

This study aimed to investigate potential methane production through anaerobic digestion of dairy manure and co‐digestion with maize silage. Two different anaerobic reactor configurations (single‐stage continuously stirred tank reactor [CSTR] and hybrid anaerobic digester) were used and biogas production performances for each reactor were compared. The HR was planned to enable phase separation in order to improve process stability and biogas production under higher total solids loadings (≥4%). The systems were tested under six different organic loading rates increased steadily from 1.1 to 5.4 g VS/L.d. The CSTR exhibited lower system stability and biomass conversion efficiency than the HR. The specific biogas production of the hybrid system was between 440 and 320 mL/gVS with 81–65% volatile solids (VS) destruction. The hybrid system provided 116% increase in specific biogas production and VS destruction improved by more than 14%. When MS was co‐digested together with dairy manure, specific biogas production rates increased about 1.2‐fold. Co‐digestion was more beneficial than mono‐material digestion. The hybrid system allowed for generating methane enriched biogas (>75% methane) by enabling phase separation in the reactor. It was observed that acidogenic conditions prevailed in the first two compartments and the following two segments as methanogenic conditions were observed. The pH of the acidogenic part ranged between 4.7 and 5.5 and the methanogenic part was between 6.8 and 7.2.     

高粱穗部主要性状的配合力分析

以4个高粱不育系13163A、1358A、128A和407A,以及6个恢复系9.1R、213R、272R、381R、矮182R和早21R为试验材料,按照不完全双列杂交设计(NCII),对其F1的穗部主要性状进行配合力分析。结果表明:亲本穗部主要性状存在显著的遗传差异,主要表现为加性基因效应遗传的性状有:穗长、一级枝梗数、二级枝梗数、穗粒数;狭义遗传力大小顺序分别为:二级枝梗数一级枝梗数穗长穗粒数穗粒重千粒重。不同亲本的一般配合力(GCA)和特殊配合力(SCA)在不同穗部性状间存在较大差异。不育系407A和恢复系早21R、9.1R是综合性状较好的亲本材料,利用它们可组配出产量较高的杂交组合。恢复系272R组配的杂交种具有穗粒数较多、千粒重较小的特点,能满足市场上对小粒高粱的需求。深入分析高粱杂交亲本穗部主要性状表现,有利于对亲本材料的进一步了解和利用。     

一种滤除医学影像噪声的混合滤波算法

目的：医学影像在获取、存储、传输过程中会不同程度地受到噪声污染,这极大影像了其在临床诊疗中的应用。为了有效地滤除医学影像噪声,提出了一种混合滤波算法。方法：该算法首先将含有高斯和椒盐噪声的图像进行形态学开运算,然后对开运算后的图像进行二维小波分解,得到高频和低频小波分解系数。保留低频系数不变,将高频系数经过维纳滤波器进行滤波,最后进行小波系数重构。结果：采用该混合滤波算法、小波阚值去噪、中值滤波、维纳滤波分别对含有混合噪声的医学影像分别进行滤除噪声处理,该滤波算法去噪后影像的PSNR值明显高于其他三种方法。结论：该混合滤波算法是一种较为有效的医学影像噪声滤除方法。     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel carbazole-rhodanine conjugates as topoisomerase II inhibitors

In this study, a series of carbazole-rhodanine conjugates was synthesized and evaluated for their Topoisomerase II inhibition potency as well as cytotoxicity against a panel of four human cancer cell lines. Among these thirteen compounds, 3a, 3b, 3g, and 3h possessed Topoisomerase II inhibition potency at 20?μM. Mechanism study revealed that these compounds may function as Topo II catalytic inhibitors. It was found that the electron-withdrawing groups on the phenyl ring of compounds played an important role on enhancing both enzyme inhibition and cytotoxicity.     

Incorporation of histone deacetylase inhibitory activity into the core of tamoxifen – A new hybrid design paradigm

Hybrid antiestrogen/histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors were designed by appending zinc binding groups to the 4-hydroxystilbene core of 4-hydroxytamoxifen. The resulting hybrids were fully bifunctional, and displayed high nanomolar to low micromolar IC₅₀ values against both the estrogen receptor α (ERα) and HDACs in vitro and in cell-based assays. The hybrids were antiproliferative against ER+ MCF-7 breast cancer cells, with hybrid 28b possessing an improved activity profile compared to either 4-hydroxytamoxifen or SAHA. Hybrid 28b displayed gene expression patterns that reflected both ERα and HDAC inhibition.     

The molecular and evolutionary basis of reproductive isolation in plants

Reproductive isolation is defined as processes that prevent individuals of different populations from mating, survival or producing fertile offspring. Reproductive isolation is critical for driving speciation and maintaining species identity, which has been a fundamental concern in evolutionary biology. In plants, reproductive isolation can be divided into prezygotic and postzygotic reproductive barriers, according to its occurrence at different developmental stages. Postzygotic reproductive isolation caused by reduced fitness in hybrids is frequently observed in plants, which hinders gene flow between divergent populations and has substantial effects on genetic differentiation and speciation, and thus is a major obstacle for utilization of heterosis in hybrid crops. During the past decade, China has made tremendous progress in molecular and evolutionary basis of prezygotic and postzygotic reproductive barriers in plants. Present understandings in reproductive isolation especially with new data in the last several years well support three evolutionary genetic models, which represent a general mechanism underlying genomic differentiation and speciation. The updated understanding will offer new approaches for the development of wide-compatibility or neutral varieties, which facilitate breeding of hybrid rice as well as other hybrid crops.