These findings demonstrated that the genetic architecture of ALS in Asian populations is distinct from that in European populations, which need to be given appropriate consideration when performing genetic testing of patients with ALS.

was prepared by the deposition-precipitation method and was found to be a novel visible light driven photocatalyst. The catalyst showed high efficiency for the degradation of nonbiodegradable azodyes and the killing of Escherichia coli under visible light irradiation (λ > 420 nm). The catalyst activity was maintained effectively after successive cyclic experiments under UV or visible light irradiation without the destruction of AgBr. On the basis of the characterization of X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Auger electron spectroscopy, the surface Ag species mainly exist as Ag 0 in the structure of all samples before and after reaction, and Ag 0 species scavenged h VB + and then trapped e CB -in the process of photocatalytic reaction, inhibiting the decomposition of AgBr. The studies of ESR and H 2 O 2 formation revealed that • OH and O 2•-were formed in visible light irradiated aqueous Ag/AgBr/TiO 2 suspension, while there was no reactive oxygen species in the visible light irradiated Ag 0 /TiO 2 system. The results indicate that AgBr is the main photoactive species for the destruction of azodyes and bacteria under visible light. In addition, the bactericidal efficiency and killing mechanism of Ag/AgBr/TiO 2 under visible light irradiation are illustrated and discussed.

Anthocyanins, present in fruits and vegetables as natural colorants, have been well characterized to possess bioactive properties. Anthocyanin components extracted from black rice (Oryza sativa L. indica) separated by gel filtration and identified using LC-MS were cyanidin 3-glucoside and peonidin 3-glucoside. A standardized extract of black rice pigmented fraction (BRE) containing known proportions of cyanidin 3-glucoside and peonidin 3-glucoside exhibited marked antioxidant activities and free radical scavenging capacities in a battery of in vitro model systems. Significant (p < 0.05) prevention of supercoiled DNA strand scission induced by reactive oxygen species (specifically, peroxyl radical and hydroxyl radicals) and suppression of the oxidative modification of human low-density lipoprotein was obtained with BRE. In addition, BRE reduced (p < 0.05) the formation of nitric oxide by suppressing inducible nitric oxide synthase expression in murine macrophage RAW264.7 cells, without introducing cell toxicity. The results of this study show that black rice contains anthocyanin pigments with notable antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties for potential use in nutraceutical or functional food formulations. Keywords: Black rice; anthocyanin; antioxidant; nitric oxide

Urgent development of effective and low-cost disinfecting technologies is needed to address the problems caused by an outbreak of harmful microorganisms. In this work, we report an effective photocatalytic disinfection of E. coli K-12 by using a AgBr-Ag-Bi(2)WO(6) nanojunction system as a catalyst under visible light (lambda >or= 400 nm) irradiation. The visible-light-driven (VLD) AgBr-Ag-Bi(2)WO(6) nanojunction could completely inactivate 5 x 10(7) cfu mL(-1) E. coli K-12 within 15 min, which was superior to other VLD photocatalysts such as Bi(2)WO(6) superstructure, Ag-Bi(2)WO(6) and AgBr-Ag-TiO(2) composite. Moreover, the photochemical mechanism of bactericidal action for the AgBr-Ag-Bi(2)WO(6) nanojunction was investigated by using different scavengers. It was found that the diffusing hydroxyl radicals generated both by the oxidative pathway and the reductive pathway play an important role in the photocatalytic disinfection. Moreover, direct contact between the AgBr-Ag-Bi(2)WO(6) nanojunction and bacterial cells was not necessary for the photocatalytic disinfection of E. coli K-12. Finally, the photocatalytic destruction of the bacterial cells was directly observed by TEM images and further confirmed by the determination of potassium ion (K(+)) leakage from the killed bacteria. This work provides a potential effective VLD photocatalyst to disinfect the bacterial cells, even to destruct the biofilm that can provide shelter and substratum for microorganisms and resist to disinfection.