Abstract: Biometric technology has transformed human biological characteristics into a new form of privacy, and the misuse of this technology poses challenges to protecting this new privacy. This article initially defines biometric technology and biometric characteristics, further demonstrating why biometric characteristics belong to personal privacy and how biometric technology poses challenges to its protection. Through analysis, this article argues that the essence of these challenges is the conflicts between the ethical principle of privacy protection and the ethical principle of maximizing social benefits. In order to address these challenges, it is necessary first to weigh the fundamental ethical principles. The two basic principles of privacy protection and maximizing social benefits are not mutual antagonism but hierarchy, and this hierarchy should be based on the principle of practical feasibility. That is, applying biometric technology should first meet the principle of practical feasibility and, on this premise, realize the principle of maximizing social benefits based on not infringing on the principle of privacy protection.

Resumen: La tecnología biométrica ha transformado las características biológicas humanas en una nueva forma de privacidad, y el uso indebido de esta tecnología plantea desafíos a su protección. En este artículo se define inicialmente la tecnología biométrica y las características biométricas; se demuestra además por qué las características biométricas pertenecen a la privacidad personal y cómo la tecnología biométrica plantea retos para su protección. Este artículo argumenta que la esencia de estos retos es el conflicto entre el principio ético de protección de la privacidad y el de maximización de los beneficios sociales. Para abordar estos retos es necesario sopesar primero los principios éticos fundamentales. Los dos principios básicos de protección de la privacidad y maximización de los beneficios sociales no son antagónicos, sino jerárquicos, y esta jerarquía debe basarse en el principio de viabilidad práctica. Es decir, la aplicación de la tecnología biométrica debe cumplir primero el principio de viabilidad práctica y, a partir de esta premisa, realizar el principio de maximización de los beneficios sociales sobre la base de no infringir el principio de protección de la intimidad.

Resumo: A tecnologia biométrica transformou as características biológicas humanas em uma nova forma de privacidade, e o mal uso dessa tecnologia apresenta desafios para proteger essa nova privacidade. Esse artigo inicialmente define tecnologia biométrica e características biométricas, demonstrando posteriormente por que características biométricas pertencem à privacidade pessoal e como tecnologia biométrica coloca desafios à sua proteção. Através de análise, esse artigo discute que a essência desses desafios é o conflito entre o princípio ético da proteção da privacidade e o princípio ético de maximizar benefícios sociais. De forma a visar esses desafios é necessário primeiro ponderar os princípios éticos fundamentais. Os dois princípios básicos de proteção da privacidade e de maximizar benefícios sociais não são mutuamente antagônicos mas hierárquicos, e essa hierarquia deve ser baseada no princípio da viabilidade prática. Isso é, aplicar tecnologia biométrica deve primeiro atender ao princípio da viabilidade prática e, nessa premissa, compreender o princípio de maximizar benefícios sociais com base em não infringir o princípio de proteção da privacidade.

Abstract Background Dexmedetomidine (Dex) is widely used, and its most common side effect is bradycardia. The complete mechanism through which Dex induces bradycardia has not been elucidated. This research investigates the expression of gap junction proteins Connexin30.2 (Cx30.2) and Connexin40 (Cx40) within the sinoatrial node of rats with Dex-induced sinus bradycardia. Methods Eighty rats were randomly assigned to five groups. Saline was administered to rats in Group C. In the other four groups, the rats were administered Dex to induce bradycardia. In groups D1and D2, the rats were administered Dex at a loading dose of 30 μg.kg−1 and 100 μg.kg−1 for 10 min, then at 15 μg.kg−1.h−1 and 50 μg.kg−1.h−1 for 120 min separately. The rats in group D1A and D2A were administered Dex in the same way as in group D1and D2; however, immediately after the administration of the loading dose, 0.5 mg atropine was administered intravenously, and then at 0.5 mg.kg−1.h−1 for 120 min. The sinoatrial node was acquired after intravenous infusion was completed. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and western blot analyses were performed to measure mRNA and protein expression of Cx30.2 and Cx40, respectively. Results The expression of Cx30.2 increased, whereas the expression of Cx40 decreased within the sinoatrial node of rats with Dex-induced sinus bradycardia. Atropine reversed the effects of Dex on the expression of gap junction proteins. Conclusion Dex possibly altered the expression of gap junction proteins to slow down cardiac conduction velocity in the sinoatrial node.

Abstract Proanthocyanidins were extracted and purified from grape seeds, and the protective effect and mechanism of proanthocyanidins on spinal cord injury were explored. After extraction optimization and purification, the proanthocyanidins with purity of 92.53% were obtained. The rats were divided into control, model and treatment groups. The spinal cord injury model was established in model and treatment groups. Then, the treatment group was treated with 40 mg/kg proanthocyanidins. On the 1st, 3rd and 7th day after modeling, compared with model group, in model group the Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan scores were significantly decreased (p < 0.05). On the 7th day after modeling, compared with model group, in treatment group the spinal cord tissue superoxide dismutaseand glutathione peroxidase levels were significantly increased (p < 0.05), the malondialdehyde level was significantly decreased (p < 0.05), the necrosis factor α and interleukin 1βlevels were significantly decreased (p < 0.05), and the interleukin 10 level was significantly increased (p < 0.05). In conclusion, proanthocyanidins have protective effect on spinal cord injury in rats. The mechanisms may be related to its reducing oxidative stress and inflammation in spinal cord tissue.

The single-layered paint-spraying paper based microfluidic devices (sp-μPADs) have been for the first time integrated with the colorimetric assay. The polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) board was applied as the mask instead of the iron mask, reducing the power requirement of the cutting machine. The paint was sprayed into the paper, which blocked the pores of the paper and constructed the hydrophobic barrier on the paper. The paint barrier was highly resistant to the various kind of chemicals and the minimum channel dimensions was 1.4 mm. By using the PMMA masks with different designs, the sp-μPADs with different designs have been fabricated and successfully applied to the single analyte assay of iron or bovine serum albumin (BSA) and the simultaneous assay of copper and nickel. Moreover, the feasibility of the multiplexed assay of eight analytes was also demonstrated. The analytical performances indicated that the fabricated sp-μPADs offered a promising platform in the colorimetric assays of either single or multiple analytes.

In this paper, we report the catalytic cracking of soybean oil for biofuel over γ-Al2O3/CaO composite catalysts. The influence of catalysts, cracking temperature and weight hourly space velocity (WHSV) on the products distribution were investigated. The maximum yield (70.0 wt.%) of biofuel with low acid value (6.7 mg KOH g-1) and oxygen content (5.6%), as well as high calorific value (44.2 MJ kg-1) was achieved over 35 wt.% γ-Al2O3/CaO at 480 ºC and 3.72 h-1. The paper focused on the variation of biofuel composition and cracking pathway caused by γ-Al2O3/CaO composite catalysts via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and thermogravimetric (TG) analysis. Calcium oxide would react with fatty acid to yield calcium carboxylates at 300-350 ºC, which were subsequently decomposed into hydrocarbons (57.9 wt.%) and ketones (22.6 wt.%) at 415-510 ºC. As for 35 wt.% γ-Al2O3/CaO, the addition of γ-Al2O3 was beneficial to generate alkenes (38.2 wt.%), arenes (10.6 wt.%) and alcohols (12.3 wt.%) with ketones decreasing (16.5 wt.%) via γ-hydrogen transfer reaction and disproportination.

ABSTRACT Objective To screen for and characterize lactic acid bacteria strains with the ability to produce fermented milk and reduce cholesterol levels. Methods The strains were isolated from traditional fermented milk in China. In vitro and in vivo evaluation of cholesterol-reduction were used to identify and verify strains of interest. Characteristics were analyzed using spectrophotometry and plate counting assays. Results The isolate HLX37 consistently produced fermented milk with strong cholesterol-reducing properties was identified as Lactobacillus plantarum (accession number: KR105940) and was thus selected for further study. The cholesterol reduction by strain HLX37 was 45.84%. The isolates were acid-tolerant at pH 2.5 and bile-tolerant at 0.5% (w/v) in simulated gastric juice (pH 2.5) for 2 h and in simulated intestinal fluid (pH 8.0) for 3 h. The auto-aggregation rate increased to 87.74% after 24 h, while the co-aggregation with Escherichia coli DH5 was 27.76%. Strain HLX37 was intrinsically resistant to antibiotics such as penicillin, tobramycin, kanamycin, streptomycin, vancomycin and amikacin. Compared with rats in the model hyperlipidemia group, the total cholesterol content in the serum and the liver as well as the atherogenic index of rats in the viable fermented milk group significantly decreased by 23.33%, 32.37% and 40.23%, respectively. Fewer fat vacuoles and other lesions in liver tissue were present in both the inactivated and viable fermented milk groups compared to the model group. Conclusion These studies indicate that strain HLX37 of L. plantarum demonstrates probiotic potential, potential for use as a candidate for commercial use for promoting health.

Abstract Streptococcus pneumoniae is one of the most frequent opportunistic pathogens worldwide. DNA processing protein A (DprA) is an important factor involved in bacterial uptake and DNA integration into bacterial genome, but its role in S. pneumoniae virulence remains unclear. The aim of this study was to characterize the effects of the pneumococcal dprA gene on the pathogenesis of S. pneumoniae. To construct a dprA-deficient pneumococcal strain, the dprA gene of the S. pneumoniae strain D39 was inactivated. The virulence of this dprA-deficient strain, designated ΔD39, was compared with that of the wild-type strain by evaluating their respective capabilities to adhere to human pulmonary epithelial cells (PEC-A549) and by analyzing their choline-binding protein expression levels. In addition, the expression profiles of genes associated with virulence and host survival assays were also conducted with the mutant and the wild-type strain. Our results indicate that the capability of ΔD39 to adhere to the PEC-A549 airway cells was significantly lower (p < 0.01) compared with D39. Additionally, the 100-KD choline-binding protein was not detected in ΔD39. The addition of competence-stimulating peptide (CSP) lead to a significantly reduction of psaA mRNA expression in the dprA-deficient mutant and an increased level of psaA transcripts in the wild-type strain (p < 0.01). The median survival time of mice intraperitoneally infected with ΔD39 was significantly higher (p < 0.01) than that of mice infected with D39. The results of this study suggest that DprA has a significant effect on virulence characteristics of S. pneumoniae by influencing the expression of choline-binding protein and PsaA.

Abstract Background This study aimed to investigate the gene expression changes associated with carcinoma-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) involving in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). Methods We downloaded the GEO series GSE22862, which contained matched gene expression values for 15 CAF and normal fibroblasts samples, and series GSE27289 containing SNP genotyping for four matched NSCLC samples. The differentially expressed genes in CAF samples were identified using the limma package in R. Then we performed gene ontology (GO) and pathway enrichment analysis and protein–protein interaction (PPI) network construction using the identified DEGs. Moreover, aberrant cell fraction, ploidy, allele-specific copy number, and loss of heterozygosity (LOH) within CAF cells were analyzed using the allele-specific copy number analysis. Results We obtained 545 differentially expressed genes between CAF and normal fibroblasts samples. The up-regulated genes are mainly involved in GO terms such as positive regulation of cell migration and extracellular region, while the down-regulated genes participate in the lung development and extracellular region. Multiple genes including bone morphogenetic protein 4 (BMP4) and transforming growth factor, beta 3 (TGFB3) are involved in the TGF-β signaling pathway. Genes including BMP4, TGFBI and matrix Gla protein (MGP) were hub genes. Moreover, no LOH event for BMP4 and MGP was found, that for sphingosine kinase 1 (SPHK1) was 70%, and for TGFBI was 40%. Conclusion Our data suggested that BMP4, MGP, TGFBI, and SPHK1 may be important in CAFs-associated NSCLC, and the abnormal expression and high LOH frequency of them may be used as the diagnosis targets of CAFs in NSCLC.

The purpose of this study is to clarify the association between serum Fe levels and Obesity using a meta-analysis approach. We searched eligible papers on the relevance published between 2006 and 2014 from the PubMed and the Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure. Review Manage software was used to collect and analysis the date cited in the papers.6 eligible articles with 934 subjects from 40 case-control studies were identified. Overall,polled analysis indicated that subjects with obesity had lower Fe levels than healthy controls [standardized mean difference (SMD) = -0.738,95%confidence interval (CI) = (-1.228,-0.247)]. Thus, dietary supplement of Fe is recommended to prevent obesity.

El objetivo de este estudio es determinar la asociación entre los niveles séricos de hierro y la obesidad mediante un metaanálisis. Hemos buscado los documentos sobre la pertinencia, publicados entre 2006 y 2014 por PubMed y China National Knowledge Infrastructure. El examen se utiliza para recoger y gestionar el software de análisis de la fecha citada en los documentos. Se eligieron seis artículos en los que se identificaron 934 sujetos de entre 40 estudios de casos y controles. En general, los encuestados indicaron que los sujetos con obesidad tenían menores niveles de hierro que los controles sanos [diferencia de promedios estandarizados (DPE) = - 0.738,95% intervalo de confianza (IC) = (-1.228,-0.247)]. Por lo tanto, se recomienda un suplemento dietético de hierro para prevenir la obesidad.

The association between T174M polymorphism of angiotensinogen gene and essential hypertension risk remains controversial. We herein performed a meta-analysis to achieve a reliable estimation of their relationship. All the studies published up to May 2013 on the association between T174M polymorphism and essential hypertension risk were identified by searching the electronic repositories PubMed, MEDLINE and EMBASE, Springer, Elsevier Science Direct, Cochrane Library and Google Scholar. Data were extracted and pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated. Ultimately, nine eligible studies, including 2188 essential hypertension cases and 2459 controls, were enrolled in this meta-analysis. No significant associations were found under the overall ORs for M-allele comparison (M vs. T, pooled OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.62-1.37), MM vs. TT (pooled OR 0.86, 95% CI 0.29-2.51), TM vs. TT n (pooled OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.63-1.32), recessive model (MM vs. TT+TM, pooled OR 0.89, 95% CI 0.35-2.30), dominant model (MM+TM vs. TT, pooled OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.60-1.38) between T174M polymorphism and risk for essential hypertension. This meta-analysis suggested that the T174M polymorphism of the angiotensinogen gene might not be associated with the susceptibility of essential hypertension in Asian or European populations.

For immobilization of puerarin glycosidase from Microbacterium oxydans CGMCC 1788 on DEAE-52 cellulose, the optimal amount of enzyme protein was 12 mg protein: 1 g DEAE-52 cellulose; the optimal pH was 6.5; and the optimal immobilization time was 6 hr. The specific activity of immobilized enzyme was 36.67 mU.g-1 carrier with an immobilization yield of 98.87% and an enzyme recovery yield of 92.43%. The molar transformation rates of puerarin by immobilized enzyme and by the relative bacterial cell amount equal to the same amount of enzyme were 53.3% and 2.2%, respectively, after 1 hr of transformation. The former molar transformation rate, which was similar to that for free enzyme, was more than 24-fold greater than the latter. The immobilized puerarin glycosidase showed improved enzymatic properties and stability. The immobilized puerarin glycosidase retained 88% of its initial activity after being reused 10 times.

In the present study, we investigated the application of 13 short tandem repeat (STR) loci (D13S317, D7S820, TH01, D16S539, CSFIPO, VWA, D8S1179, TPOX, FGA, D3S1358, D21S11, D18S51 and D5S818) routinely used in forensic analysis, for delineating population relationships among seven human populations representing the two major geographic groups, namely the southern and northern Chinese. The resulting single topology revealed pronounced geographic and population partitioning, consistent with the differences in geographic location, languages and eating habits. These findings suggest that forensic STR loci might be particularly powerful tools in providing the necessary fine resolution for reconstructing recent human evolutionary history.