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Vitiligo is an enigmatic pigmentary disorder of the skin. Factors potentially involved in the progressive loss of melanocytes from the basal layer of the epidermis include genetically determined aberrancies of the vitiligo melanocyte. It follows that analysis of melanocytes cultured from vitiligo donors can contribute to a further understanding of the etiopathomechanism. A setback for vitiligo research has been the limited availability of vitiligo-derived melanocytes. To overcome this limitation, we have generated a vitiligo melanocyte cell line according to a protocol established previously for the immortalization of normal human melanocytes. Vitiligo melanocytes Ma9308P4 were transfected with HPV16 E6 and E7 genes using the retroviral construct LXSN16E6E7. Successful transformants were selected using geneticin and subsequently cloned to ensure genetic homogeneity. The resulting cell line PIG3V has undergone more than 100 cell population doublings since its establishment as a confluent primary culture, whereas untransfected melanocytes derived from adult skin senesce after a maximum of 50 population doublings. Cells immortalized by this transfection procedure retain lineage-specific characteristics and proliferate significantly faster than parental cells. In this study, the phenotype of PIG3V resembled melanocytes rather than melanoma cells in culture. Tyrosinase was processed properly and melanosomes remained pigmented. Importantly, ultrastructural characterization of PIG3V cells revealed dilated endoplasmic reticulum profiles characteristic of vitiligo melanocytes. An explanation for this dilation may be found in the retention of proteins with molecular weight of 37.5. 47.5, and 56.5 kDa, as determined by gel electrophoresis of microsomal proteins isolated from radiolabeled cells.

Regional land use transitions driven by the adaptive reconciliation of existing land use conflict with socioeconomic development can lead to positive economic effects as well as new land use conflict. Although research on land use transition has progressed considerably, limited studies have explored the spatiotemporal dynamic pattern of land use conflict during the land use transition period. Previous evaluation approaches on land use conflict that mainly focus on status or potential conflict lack conflict intensity evaluation during the land use transition process. A new spatially explicit evaluation framework of land use conflict that directly examines three aspects of conflict, namely, ecological and agricultural (EAC), agricultural and construction (ACC), and ecological and construction (ECC) land conflicts based on ecological quality and agricultural suitability, is proposed in this study. The spatiotemporal dynamic pattern and driving factors of land use conflict in the Yangtze River Economic Belt of China in the period of 2000–2018 are evaluated. The results indicated that comprehensive land use conflict (CLUC) intensity slightly decreased by 9.91% and its barycenter showed a trend toward the west during 2000–2018. ACC is the most drastic conflict among the three aspects of conflict. The mean intensity of ACC reduced remarkably by 38.26%, while EAC increased by 33.15% and ECC increased by 28.28% during the research periods. The barycenter of EAC moved toward the east while the barycenter of ACC and ECC moved toward the west. The changes in the intensity and spreading pattern of land use conflict indices demonstrated the changes in the pattern of territorial space development. Total population, population density, per capita GDP, number of mobile phone users, and road density were strong drivers that influenced the land use conflict of territorial space. Multiple policy recommendations including improving territorial space planning and governance ability, and improving land use efficiency, were proposed to manage and resolve the land use conflict of territorial space. The results and conclusions of this study will help improve future regional land use policies and reduce land use conflict.

Three new minor dammarane saponins, quinquenosides L10 (1), L14 (2), and L16 (3), were isolated from the leaves and stems of Panax quinquefolium L. By the combination of one- and two-dimensional NMR techniques and MS spectroscopic analysis, their structures were established as 20-O-(alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl-(1-6)-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl)-3-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-dammar-24-ene-3,12, 20-triol (1), 20-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl-3-O-(beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-2)-O-beta-d-glucopyranosyl)-dammar-24-ene-3,12,20-triol (2), 3-O-(beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-2)-O-beta-d-glucopyranosyl)-20-O-(beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-6)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl)-dammarane-3,12,20,24,25-pentaol (3). The content of artemisinin was significantly enhanced by 3.0 mg l(- 1) of compounds 1, 2, and 3 in the callus of Artemisia annua.

Conventional wisdom indicates that economic specialization can promote growth, whereas economic stability is associated with diversified economies. This conflicting relationship between specialization and diversity has been questioned, as regional scientists have suggested that specialization and diversity can coexist in a regional economy and proposed the concept of diversified specializations. To test this proposition empirically, two Herfindahl–Hirschman Indices were used to examine the relationship between economic diversity and economic performance among 359 metropolitan statistical areas in the contiguous United States. The first index measures industry diversity across 87 three-digit North American Industry Classification Systems sectors, and the second index quantifies cluster diversity among 51 economic specializations. This analysis confirms that cluster diversity contributes to both stability and growth, and regions can simultaneously pursue both high and stable economic growth.