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Objective: To investigate the effect of omentum reduction in laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) on the improvement of postoperative nausea and vomiting and gastroesophageal reflux symptoms. Methods: A retrospective study was performed on the case data of 198 obese patients who underwent LSG in the Department of Obesity and Metabolic Diseases of Xiaolan People's Hospital of Zhongshan from March 2021 to March 2022 and were divided into omentum reduction group and control group, with 99 cases in each group, and the preoperative body mass index (BMI) of the patients was recorded. Age, gender, comorbidities, and comparative analysis of operation time, blood loss, length of hospital stay, postoperative nausea and vomiting score, gastroesophageal reflux GerdQ score, postoperative pain score, weight, and postoperative complications were analyzed. Results: There were no significant differences in preoperative BMI, age, gender and comorbidities between the two groups (P > 0.05), but there were significant differences in intraoperative blood loss and operation time (P < 0.05). There were differences in postoperative nausea and vomiting scores and VAS pain scores between the two groups (P < 0.05). The GerdQ scores of the omental reduction group were 8.11 ± 2.84 points at 1 year, and those in the control group were 7.56 ± 2.67 points, which were 3.97 ± 4.09 points higher than those in the preoperative omentum reduction group and 3.42 ± 3.41 in the control group, with no significant difference (P > 0.05). There was no significant difference in the postoperative excess weight loss rate %EWL and postoperative complications (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Omentum reduction can improve short-term nausea and vomiting after LSG, but it cannot significantly improve long-term reflux symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: We evaluated the weight loss effect of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) and jejunal bypass (JJB) in treating obesity by analyzing and comparing the effects of LSG with or without JJB. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on the data of 150 patients with obesity who underwent bariatric metabolic surgery in Affiliated Xiaolan Hospital,Southern Medical University from October 2014 to April 2019. The patients were divided into two groups, LSG and LSG + JJB, according to the different surgical methods. The differences in the percentage of excess weight loss (%EWL) and total weight loss (TWL) between the two groups were statistically analyzed. Results: The %EWL of the patients in the LSG group reached the maximum value at one year and six months post-surgery and steadily decreased after two years post-surgery. In contrast, the %EWL of the patients in the LSG + JJB group gradually increased after two years post-surgery; however, no significant difference between the two groups was observed. The TWL in the LSG + JJB group was significantly greater than that in the LSG group at each follow-up point. Conclusion: Postoperative %EWL was similar in both groups. The TWL in the LSG + JJB group was greater than that in the LSG group, and the postoperative recurrent weight gain rate in the LSG + JJB group was lower than that in the LSG group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced higher education to enter into a phase of blended learning that combines in-person and mandatory online learning. This new combination has presented great challenges in promoting academic wellbeing. Anchored by the conservation of resources theory, this study undertakes to explore the contributions of personal resources to academic wellbeing. A total of 1934 undergraduates at a public university in China voluntarily participated in a survey during the 2022 spring semester. They were asked to rate their psychological capital (PsyCap) in general. They were also asked to rate their learning burnout, learning engagement, and academic buoyancy on the course level (namely through a course with English as a foreign language). Partial least squares structural equation modelling was used for the data analysis. The results confirm a direct positive association between PsyCap and students' learning engagement. In particular, the contribution of PsyCap to learning engagement is partially mediated by learning burnout. The moderation estimation reports that the positive effect of PsyCap on learning engagement is stronger for Chinese undergraduates with a higher academic buoyancy and that the negative link of learning burnout with either PsyCap or learning engagement is stronger for Chinese undergraduates with a lower academic buoyancy. This research is the first one to explore the beneficial joint roles of PsyCap and academic buoyancy in promoting academic wellbeing. The findings of this research offer novel and subtle insights into why and how PsyCap and academic buoyancy has contributed to easing learning burnout and boosting learning engagement in blended learning environments during the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The healthcare utilization inequality among middle-aged and older adults has been a serious concern shared in the aging process. Successful policy implementation regarding the supply of medical resources and the targeted welfare is an important means to alleviate the healthcare utilization inequalities. However, the effectiveness of the current efforts remains unclear. This study employed self-organizing map and concentration index to explore inequalities in healthcare utilization between age subgroups in similar healthcare settings. The results suggest that utilization inequalities in rich-medical resource regions are not necessarily smaller than those in poor-medical resource regions, which the inpatient and preventive care utilization support the idea. And inequalities of healthcare utilization in rich-medical resource regions show age-lag compared with that in poor-medical resource regions, which indicates a higher level of accessibility to rich medical resources. But rich medical resources still fail to better protect the adults aged 70 and above. The economy, education, and health status, as key contributing factors to the unequal utilization of healthcare, may exacerbate their contribution to inequality in rich-medical resource regions. So a rich supply of healthcare does not necessarily have a one-way positive impact on alleviating inequality in the healthcare utilization. It needs to be combined with other factors to better alleviate inequality. Welfare policy with targeted groups needs to be wary of whether it will lead to greater inequalities. It also called for popularizing free seminar, comprehensive outpatient health management, and serious illness insurance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence and adverse effects of learning burnout are a major concern in higher education. Based upon JD-R and COR theories, this study modeled the associations among social support that teachers and peers provide in class, academic buoyancy, learning burnout, and class level with respect to the degree of English proficiency. A sample of 1955 Chinese EFL learners in higher education participated in the cross-sectional survey. Structural equation modelling via partial least squares technique was utilized for statistical analysis. The results corroborated the protecting role that social support in class played against EFL students' learning burnout. In particular, the findings revealed that academic buoyancy both mediated and moderated the nexus between social support on EFL learners' burnout. Moreover, this study found that class level with respect to English proficiency moderated the relation between academic buoyancy and learning burnout and that the negative impact of academic buoyancy on burnout increased in classes in which students had lower English proficiency. Based upon the findings, certain targeted suggestions for educational practice were provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental regulation with spatial spillover effect is an important way to accelerate the transformation and upgrading of modern water resources structure, and then achieve sustainable development of China's water resources. How does environmental regulation affect the GWRE to alleviate or solve China's water shortage? In this paper, the GWRE is measured based on panel data from 31 provinces in China from 2000–2020, and the impact of high pressure (low suction) and heterogeneity on GWRE by environmental regulations is explored. The results revealed that the high pressure of environmental regulation significantly promoted the improvement of GWRE, but the improvement effect of low suction power was not significant. Similar conclusions are drawn under the tests of population size-economic distance and population size-technology distance. The high pressure of market-type and autonomous-type environmental regulation has a significant effect on GWRE, while the improvement effect of command-type environmental regulation is weak. The high pressure of environmental regulation in the eastern, central, western, and northeastern regions has a decreasing effect on GWRE. It is recommended to break the principle of GDP performance appraisal, establish and improve the "green performance" evaluation system, adopt regional differentiated environmental regulation policies, and establish a modern green water resources industrial structure system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, recombinant Escherichia coli that secretes the multifunctional ɑ-amylase Amy19 was constructed and the induction conditions were optimized. The optimal induction condition obtained by orthogonal experiment was addition of 1.5% glycine for 24 h at 10 ℃. The extracellular secreted multifunctional Amy19 showed the ability to degrade seaweed (Gracilaria verrucosa) waste directly. The reducing sugar concentration increased gradually with degradation time, reaching a maximum (1.047 ± 0.0058 mg mL−1) at 60 h. HPLC showed that the higher degree of polymerization of oligosaccharides decreased gradually, while the content of galactose and 3,6-anhydro-L-galactose gradually increased with time. In the cucumber seed germination experiments, root lengths and seed germination percentages after treatment with enzymatic hydrolysates of seaweed at 5% and 10% concentrations were much greater than after treatment with water or water extracts of seaweed. This may be due to the presence of polysaccharides and oligosaccharide in EHS. In addition, seeds treated with enzymatic hydrolysates of seaweed at lower concentrations showed higher germination indexes and germination energy levels, which were associated with lower mean germination times. Thus, the use of the lower concentrations of enzymatic hydrolysates of seaweed may result in more rapid germination of seeds. This study provides important information for the efficient preparation of recombinant enzyme extracellular secretion and the agricultural applications of seaweed waste. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a tentative constraint on cosmological parameters Ωm and σ8 from a joint analysis of galaxy clustering and galaxy-galaxy lensing from DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys Data Release 9 (DR9), covering approximately 10000 square degrees and spanning the redshift range of 0.1 to 0.9. To study the dependence of cosmological parameters on lens redshift, we divide lens galaxies into seven approximately volume-limited samples, each with an equal width in photometric redshift. To retrieve the intrinsic projected correlation function wp(rp) from the lens samples, we employ a novel method to account for redshift uncertainties. Additionally, we measured the galaxy-galaxy lensing signal ΔΣ(rp) for each lens sample, using source galaxies selected from the shear catalog by applying our Fourier_Quad pipeline to DR9 images. We model these observables within the flat ACDM framework, employing the minimal bias model. To ensure the reliability of the minimal bias model, we apply conservative scale cuts: rp > 8 and 12 h−1Mpc, for wp(rp) and ΔΣ(rp), respectively. Our findings suggest a mild tendency that S 8 ≡ σ 8 Ω m / 0.3 increases with lens redshift, although this trend is only marginally significant. When we combine low redshift samples, the value of S8 is determined to be 0.84 ± 0.02, consistent with the Planck results but significantly higher than the 3× 2pt analysis by 2–5σ. Despite the fact that further refinements in measurements and modeling could improve the accuracy of our results, the consistency with standard values demonstrates the potential of our method for more precise and accurate cosmology in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An alginate lyase gene aly644 encoding a member of polysaccharide lyase family 6 was obtained from a metagenome of Antarctic macroalgae-associated microbes. The gene was expressed heterologously in Escherichia coli, and the recombinant protein was purified using a Ni-NTA His Tag Kit. With sodium alginate as the substrate, recombinant Aly644 exhibited an optimum reaction temperature of 50°C and an optimum reaction pH of 7.0. The Vmax and Km values of Aly644 toward sodium alginate were 112.36 mg/mL·min and 16.75 mg/mL, respectively. Substrate specificity analysis showed that Aly644 was a bifunctional alginate lyase that hydrolyzed both polyguluronic acid and polymannuronic acid. The hydrolysis products of Aly644 with sodium alginate as the substrate were detected by thin-layer chromatography, and were mainly di- and trisaccharides. The oligosaccharides produced by degradation of sodium alginate by Aly644 inhibited the mycelial growth of the plant pathogens Phytophthora capsici and Fulvia fulva; the 50% maximal effective concentration (EC50) values were 297.45 and 452.89 mg/L, and the 90% maximal effective concentration (EC90) values were 1341.45 and 2693.83 mg/L, respectively. This highlights that Aly644 is a potential candidate enzyme for the industrial production of alginate oligosaccharides with low degree of polymerization. Enzyme-hydrolyzed alginate oligosaccharides could support the development of green agriculture as natural antimicrobial agents. Key points: • An alginate lyase was obtained from a metagenome of Antarctic macroalgae-associated microbes. • Aly644 is a bifunctional alginate lyase with excellent thermostability and pH stability. • The enzymatic hydrolysates of Aly644 directly inhibited Phytophthora capsici and Fulvia fulva. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prokaryotic diversity and community composition in the water column of eight stations (63 samples) around the Antarctic Peninsula of the Southern Ocean were investigated. Through pyrosequencing of the V3–V4 hypervariable regions of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene, we characterized 4 720 089 valid reads representing 48 188 operational taxonomic units (OTUs, 97% similarity). The community was dominated by the phyla Pseudomonadota (original name: Proteobacteria, 47%), Oxyphotobacteria (26%), and Bacteroidota (original name: Bacteroidetes, 18%), which comprised an average of 91% of the total OTUs in all samples. The prokaryotic community composition varied vertically within the water column. Water column prokaryotic communities exhibited a clear depth profile, with higher microbial richness and higher diversity observed with increasing water depth. Cluster analysis of the community composition of water column samples exhibited a similar trend with depth. Correlation with environmental factors suggested distinct variation in prokaryotic community composition with changes in depth, salinity, temperature and dissolved oxygen levels. Functional prediction showed presence of active nitrogen, sulphur and methane metabolic cycles along the vertical transect of the studied region. These results will improve our knowledge of prokaryotic diversity and community composition at different depth of water column for better understanding of the microbial ecology and nutrient cycles in Antarctic Peninsula region of the Southern Ocean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is the first to investigate the positive impact of a storytelling intervention based on the social information processing model in reducing reactive and proactive aggression among schoolchildren. The participants were 4,086 Grade 1 to 4 students from 15 randomly selected elementary schools in Hong Kong. Using the Reactive–Proactive Aggression Questionnaire, 371 schoolchildren at risk of aggression were identified based on scores of one standard deviation above the mean and randomly assigned to the experimental, placebo, and control groups. Children's anger, social communication skills, empathy, and forgiveness were examined using a qualitative method. Twelve children and 11 caregivers were randomly selected from the three groups to participate in qualitative interviews. Content analysis was adopted to analyze the interview data. We found that the intervention reduced reactive aggression by enhancing anger control, intent attribution, social communication skills, and forgiveness among reactive aggressors. However, the intervention did not improve empathy among proactive aggressors. Overall, the storytelling intervention had more encouraging results for schoolchildren with reactive aggression than those with proactive aggression. The current findings suggest that teachers and school counselors should adopt a social information processing-based storytelling intervention to reduce proactive and reactive aggression and bullying among schoolchildren. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ductal carcinoma in-situ (DCIS) accounts for 20–25% of all new breast cancer diagnoses. DCIS has an uncertain risk of progression to invasive breast cancer and a lack of predictive biomarkers may result in relatively high levels (~ 75%) of overtreatment. To identify unique prognostic biomarkers of invasive progression, crystallographic and chemical features of DCIS microcalcifications have been explored. Samples from patients with at least 5-years of follow up and no known recurrence (174 calcifications in 67 patients) or ipsilateral invasive breast cancer recurrence (179 microcalcifications in 57 patients) were studied. Significant differences were noted between the two groups including whitlockite relative mass, hydroxyapatite and whitlockite crystal maturity and, elementally, sodium to calcium ion ratio. A preliminary predictive model for DCIS to invasive cancer progression was developed from these parameters with an AUC of 0.797. These results provide insights into the differing DCIS tissue microenvironments, and how these impact microcalcification formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The clinical responses to the EGFR kinase inhibitors in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients are always followed by drug-resistance mutations, including the gatekeeper T790M mutation. Strategies targeting EGFRT790M are also limited by the toxicity due to the concurrent inhibition of wide-type (WT) EGFR. Here we employed splicing principle to design and synthesize a series of aminopyrimidine derivatives bearing dihydroquinoxalinone (8–15) as novel third-generation inhibitors against double mutant L858R/T790M in EGFR. It is worth noting that compound 10 presented remarkable inhibitory activity against EGFRL858R/T790M (IC50 = 15 ± 1.8 nM) and anti-proliferative effect against H1975 cells (IC50 = 166.43 ± 14.45 nM). Moreover, the obvious down-regulation effect of EGFR-mediated signaling pathways and the promotion of apoptosis in H1975 cells confirmed its potent efficacy. These results demonstrated that compound 10 deserves the further exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grounded in the conservation of resources (COR) theory, this research investigates the role of cultural intelligence (CQ) on the level of burnout experienced by Chinese expatriates working in Thailand. In particular, in light of the collectivist characteristics of Thai culture, the study proposes that coworker support of host country nationals (HCN) is the mediator that explains the association between CQ and burnout. Moreover, given the feminine and power distance characteristics of Thai culture, this research explores whether the effect of CQ on HCN coworker support is moderated by gender and job position of Chinese expatriates. Survey data was gathered from 413 Chinese expatriates working for 15 Chinese subsidiaries in Thailand. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was used for data analysis. The analysis supports the mediating effect of HCN coworker support on the link between CQ and burnout. Moreover, moderating effect analysis indicates that the positive association between CQ and HCN coworker support is stronger for male Chinese expatriates and those in lower job positions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In the Chinese population, the middle-aged and older adults are the two main segments that utilize a large portion of healthcare. With the fast growth of the two segments, the demands of healthcare services increases significantly. The issue related to inequality in utilization of healthcare emerges with the growth and it deserves more attention. Most existing studies discuss overall inequality. Less attention is paid to inequality among subdivisions, that is, relative inequality. This study focuses on the inequality of healthcare utilization among the homogeneous population and the inequality of the full samples in China. Methods: Data were obtained from four waves of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS): 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2018. First, the Concentration Index (CI) was used to measure the inequality of outpatient, inpatient and preventive care for the samples, and regression analysis was applied to decompose the contributing factors of inequality. Then SOM is introduced to identify homogeneous population through clustering and measure the inequality in three types of healthcare utilization among homogeneous population. Based on this, the difference between absolute inequalities and relative inequalities was discussed. Results: The preventive care is shown to have the highest degree of inequality inclined to the rich and has the largest increase (CI: 0.048 in 2011 ~ 0.086 in 2018); The inequality degree in outpatient care appears to be the smallest (CI: -0.028 in 2011 ~ 0.014 in 2018). The decomposition results show that age, education, income, chronic disease and self-reported health issues help explain a large portion of inequality in outpatient and inpatient care. And the contribution of socioeconomic factors and education to the inequality of preventive care is the largest. In regards to three types of healthcare among the homogeneous population, the degree of inequality seems to be higher among group with high socioeconomic status than those with lower socioeconomic status. In particular, for the people who are in the high socioeconomic group, the degree of inequality in preventive care is consistently higher than in outpatient and inpatient care. The inequality degree of preventive care in the low socioeconomic status group varies significantly with the flexibility of their response to policies. Conclusions: Key policy recommendations include establishing a health examination card and continuously improving the fit of free preventive care with the needs of the middle-aged and older adults; developing CCB activities to avoid people's excessive utilization in the high socioeconomic status group or insufficient utilization in the low socioeconomic status group; reasonable control of reimbursement and out-of-pocket payments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Radiotherapy (RT) following breast-conserving surgery (BCS) for ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) reduces ipsilateral breast event rates in clinical trials. This study assessed the impact of DCIS treatment on a 20-year risk of ipsilateral DCIS (iDCIS) and ipsilateral invasive breast cancer (iIBC) in a population-based cohort.Methods: The cohort comprised all women diagnosed with DCIS in the Netherlands during 1989-2004 with follow-up until 2017. Cumulative incidence of iDCIS and iIBC following BCS and BCS + RT were assessed. Associations of DCIS treatment with iDCIS and iIBC risk were estimated in multivariable Cox models.Results: The 20-year cumulative incidence of any ipsilateral breast event was 30.6% (95% confidence interval (CI): 28.9-32.6) after BCS compared to 18.2% (95% CI 16.3-20.3) following BCS  +  RT. Women treated with BCS compared to BCS + RT had higher risk of developing iDCIS and iIBC within 5 years after DCIS diagnosis (for iDCIS: hazard ratio (HR)age < 50 3.2 (95% CI 1.6-6.6); HRage ≥ 50 3.6 (95% CI 2.6-4.8) and for iIBC: HRage<50 2.1 (95% CI 1.4-3.2); HRage ≥ 50 4.3 (95% CI 3.0-6.0)). After 10 years, the risk of iDCIS and iIBC no longer differed for BCS versus BCS + RT (for iDCIS: HRage < 50 0.7 (95% CI 0.3-1.5); HRage ≥ 50 0.7 (95% CI 0.4-1.3) and for iIBC: HRage < 50 0.6 (95% CI 0.4-0.9); HRage ≥ 50 1.2 (95% CI 0.9-1.6)).Conclusion: RT is associated with lower iDCIS and iIBC risk up to 10 years after BCS, but this effect wanes thereafter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uncultured microbes are an important resource for the discovery of novel enzymes. In this study, an amylase gene (amy2587) that codes a protein with 587 amino acids (Amy2587) was obtained from the metagenomic library of macroalgae-associated bacteria. Recombinant Amy2587 was expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) and was found to simultaneously possess α-amylase, agarase, carrageenase, cellulase, and alginate lyase activities. Moreover, recombinant Amy2587 showed high thermostability and alkali resistance which are important characteristics for industrial application. To investigate the multifunctional mechanism of Amy2587, three motifs (functional domains) in the Amy2587 sequence were deleted to generate three truncated Amy2587 variants. The results showed that, even though these functional domains affected the multiple substrates degrading activity of Amy2587, they did not wholly explain its multifunctional characteristics. To apply the multifunctional activity of Amy2587, three seaweed substrates (Grateloupia filicina, Chondrus ocellatus, and Scagassum) were digested using Amy2587. After 2 h, 6 h, and 24 h of digestion, 121.2 ± 4 µg/ml, 134.8 ± 6 µg/ml, and 70.3 ± 3.5 µg/ml of reducing sugars were released, respectively. These results show that Amy2587 directly and effectively degraded three kinds of raw seaweeds. This finding provides a theoretical basis for one-step enzymatic digestion of raw seaweeds to obtain seaweed oligosaccharides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]