Cadmium (Cd), which is a poisonous trace element, has been reported extensively to lead to morphological and biochemical abnormalities of the central nervous system, memory loss and mental retardation. We studied the Alzheimer's disease-related toxicity of Cd in a mouse model [amyloid precursor protein (APP)/ presenilin 1 (PS1) transgenic mice, dual transfection of APP695swe and mutated PS1 genes]. Behavioral changes were detected using the Morris water maze test. The β-amyloid protein (Aβ) levels were determined using immunohistochemistry and ELISA. The free zinc ion concentration in mouse brain was determined using autometallography. The protein expression of α-secretase, soluble APPα (sAPPα) and neutral endopeptidase (NEP) in the mouse cerebral cortex and hippocampus was detected using western blotting. We found that Cd treatment increased the latency and distance of the platform search and reduced the number of platform crossings. The number and size of senile plaques in the brains of Cd-treated mice were significantly increased. The levels of Aβ(1-42) and free zinc ions were increased. The expression of ADAM10, sAPPα and NEP protein was reduced. We speculated that Cd reduced the expression of ADAM10, sAPPα and NEP protein, which caused an increase in the levels of Aβ(1-42) and free zinc ions and led to the accelerated Aβ deposition found in the experimental animals and their abnormal behavior.

This study provides novel evidence that rs739837 is associated with lipid metabolism in T2DM patients. The rs739837 and rs2239179 SNPs were associated with the risk of T2DM in Han Chinese. The VDR SNPs had combined and additive effects on the risk of T2DM.

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The Ga-doped ZnO thin films (GZO) were deposited at room temperature by DC magnetron reactive sputtering. The influence of vacuum annealing temperature on the morphology, internal stress, optical and electrical properties were investigated. The results showed that with the rise of annealing temperature, the grain size increased, the preferred orientation and crystallization degree became better, the internal stress reduced, the resistivity firstly decreased slightly before 350°C and then increased sharply. The minimum resistivity of 1.32×10-3Ω•cm was obtained at 350°C. The annealing temperature had a very big influence on the transmittance, and the average transmittance was about 80% in the visible range.

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