The five miRNAs that were differentially expressed in GDM could serve as noninvasive biomarkers. The results also provide insights into the molecular mechanisms that underlie GDM, thereby contributing to the diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

Objective. Preeclampsia (PE) is a pregnancy-specific syndrome and one of the leading causes of maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality. The pathophysiological mechanisms of PE remain poorly known. Recently, circulating miRNAs are considered as potential useful noninvasive biomarkers. The aim of this study was to identify differentially expressed plasma miRNAs in preeclamptic pregnancies compared with normal pregnancies. Methods. Maternal plasma miRNA expression profiles were detected by SOLiD sequencing. Differential expressions between mPE/sPE and control group were found. Next, four differentially expressed plasma miRNAs were chosen to validate their expression in other large scale samples by real-time PCR. Results. In terms of sequencing results, we identified that 51 miRNAs were differentially expressed. Four differentially expressed plasma miRNAs (miR-141, miR-144, miR-221, and miR-29a) were selected to validate the sequencing results. RT-PCR data confirmed the reliability of sequencing results. The further statistical analysis showed that maternal plasma miR-141 and miR-29a are significantly overexpressed in mPE (P < 0.05). Maternal plasma miR-144 is significantly underexpressed in mPE and sPE (P < 0.05). Conclusions. Results showed that there were differentially expressed maternal plasma miRNAs in patients with preeclampsia. These plasma miRNAs might be used as notable biomarkers for diagnosis of preeclampsia.

Nanoscale textured silicon and its passivation are explored by simple low-cost metal-assisted chemical etching and thermal oxidation, and large-area black silicon was fabricated both on single-crystalline Si and multicrystalline Si for solar cell applications. When the Si surface was etched by HF/AgNO(3) solution for 4 or 5 min, nanopores formed in the Si surface, 50-100 nm in diameter and 200-300 nm deep. The nanoscale textured silicon surface turns into an effective medium with a gradually varying refractive index, which leads to the low reflectivity and black appearance of the samples. Mean reflectance was reduced to as low as 2% for crystalline Si and 4% for multicrystalline Si from 300 to 1000 nm, with no antireflective (AR) coating. A black-etched multicrystalline-Si of 156 mm × 156 mm was used to fabricate a primary solar cell with no surface passivation or AR coating. Its conversion efficiency (η) was 11.5%. The cell conversion efficiency was increased greatly by using surface passivation process, which proved very useful in suppressing excess carrier recombination on the nanostructured surface. Finally, a black m-Si cell with efficiency of 15.8% was achieved by using SiO(2) and SiN(X) bilayer passivation structure, indicating that passivation plays a key role in large-scale manufacture of black silicon solar cells.

Emerging evidence indicates that microRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding RNAs, are involved in a number of biological processes. The results of SOLiD™ sequencing were used to analyze differentially expressed miRNA profiles in the plasma and placenta of patients with preeclampsia (PE) and a subject who had had a pregnancy without complications. miRNAs were identified that were consistently expressed in the placenta, following normalization of the raw data. miRNAs that had increased and differential expression were selected, as defined by percentage >0.02% and a log2 fold change ≥ |1.2|, respectively. This process was repeated in the plasma. Twenty such miRNAs were identified. These were: miR-126, miR-126*, miR-130a, miR-135b, miR-142-3p, miR-149, miR-188-5p, miR-18a, miR-18b, miR-203, miR-205, miR-224, miR-27a, miR-29a, miR-301a, miR-517c, miR-518-3p, miR-518e, miR-519d and miR-93. These miRNAs belonged to 13 clusters or families. However, only four clusters or families involved two or more of these miRNAs. These were the mir-16 cluster, the mir-17 family, the mir-130 family and the mir-517 family. These abnormally-expressed miRNAs and miRNA gene clusters or families are known to be involved in a number of biological processes. Gene enrichment analysis was used to investigate the pathways involved in the development of PE. In conclusion, the miRNAs identified in this study as being abnormally expressed in PE, may be useful as non-invasive diagnostic biomarkers. Co-regulated mRNAs and possible causal pathways involved in the pathogenesis of PE were also identified.