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Several guidelines do not recommend beta-blocker as the first-line treatment for hypertension because of its inferior efficacy in stroke prevention. Combination therapy with beta-blocker is commonly used for blood pressure control. We compared the clinical outcomes in patients treated with amlodipine plus bisoprolol (A + B), a ß1-selective beta-blocker and amlodipine plus valsartan (A + V). A population-based cohort study was performed using data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. From 2012 to 2019, newly diagnosed adult hypertensive patients who received initial amlodipine monotherapy and then switched to A + V or A + B were included. The efficacy outcomes included all-cause death, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) event (cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, and coronary revascularization), hemorrhagic stroke, and heart failure. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards model was used to evaluate the relationship between outcomes and different treatments. Overall, 4311 patients in A + B group and 10980 patients in A + V group were included. After a mean follow-up of 4.34 ± 1.79 years, the efficacy outcomes were similar between the A + V and A + B groups regarding all-cause death (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.99, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.83–1.18), ASCVD event (aHR 0.97, 95% CI 0.84–1.12), and heart failure (aHR 1.06, 95% CI 0.87–1.30). The risk of hemorrhagic stroke was lower in A + B group (aHR 0.70, 95% CI 0.52–0.94). The result was similar when taking death into consideration in competing risk analysis. The safety outcomes were similar between the 2 groups. There was no difference of all-cause death, ASCVD event, and heart failure in A + B vs. A + V users. But A + B users had a lower risk of hemorrhagic stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Matsu Islands Tern Refuge comprises eight reefs located at a relay station on the East Asian bird migration route, and it attracts many transiting, wintering, or breeding birds to inhabit and live on the reefs every year. In order to understand the compositions of plant communities as a breeding habitat for seabirds, we investigated the plant communities of the eight reefs. A total of 130 plots of 10 × 10 square meters were established, from which we found 107 species of plants in 102 genera and 51 families. Among this, we found one critically endangered (CR) species, four vulnerable (VU) species, and three near-threatened (NT) species. The result of two-way indicator species analysis (TWINSPAN) and indicator value (IndVal) showed 130 samples were divided into 11 vegetation types; most of the vegetation types had significant indicator species. We also use the two-way to present the plot of detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) by vegetation types and reefs. Moreover, this result reveals that these samples were more clearly cluster divided by islands. Our results reveal that the compositions and characteristics of plant communities were related clearly to the environmental factors for each reef in the Matsu Islands Tern Refuge. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) indicated that species composition of vegetation yielded high correlation with soil property, especially with soil pH. In addition, we found that the traces of bird activity is relevant to the characteristics and structures of plant communities. We found that the plant communities comprising low-grass shrubs would provide relatively soft nesting materials and sheltering effects for eggs or hatchlings for terns. Compared to low-grass shrubs, the traits of high-grass shrubs would not be beneficial to nest for breeding of terns on the ground, and no nested trace was found in these plant communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we utilized a mixture random effects model and pairwise comparisons to conduct our analysis. Furthermore, we employed visualization techniques, specifically line plots in Python, to illustrate the tonal variations in disyllabic words among Polish learners of Mandarin. Our findings indicate that Polish learners experience more difficulty with the tonal contours of Tone 1 (T1) and Tone 2 (T2) compared to Taiwanese Mandarin (TM) natives, particularly due to the lower pitch range required. We provide potential pedagogical recommendations based on these results. We suggest that integrating training on T1 and T2 accompanied with Tone 3 (T3) and Tone 4 (T4), because of their lower endpoint tones, may offer a more effective learning strategy for these learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lead (Pb) is nonbiodegradable and toxic to the lungs. To investigate the potential mechanisms of Pb‐induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and cell death in the lungs, human non‐small lung carcinoma H460 cells were stimulated with Pb(NO3)2 in this study. The results showed that Pb(NO3)2 stimulation increased cell death by inducing cell apoptosis which showed a reduced Bcl‐2 expression and an enhanced caspase 3 activation. Pb(NO3)2 also caused the production of H2O2 in H460 cells that triggering the buildup of ROS and mitochondrial membrane potential loss. We found that Pb(NO3)2 modulates oxidoreductive activity through reduced the glutathione‐disulfide reductase and glutathione levels in Pb(NO3)2‐exposed H460 cells. Furthermore, the superoxide dismutase (SOD) upstream molecule sirtuin 3 (SIRT3) was increased with Pb(NO3)2 dose. Collectively, these results demonstrate that Pb(NO3)2 promotes lung cell death through SIRT3/SOD‐mediated ROS accumulation and mitochondrial dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study considers the performance of tone pronunciation and morpheme intelligibility by L2 Polish Mandarin learners. A mixed-effects ordinal regression model and Tukey's HSD multiple test were used to examine the start-point, end-point, of syllables as a means of assessing their intelligibility by L2 Polish learners regarding the tones with the sequence T0, T1, T2, T4 > T3.and T0, T1> T2, T4 > T3, respectively. Students' tone pronunciation at different stages of learning was compared, i.e. first at less than A1 level of proficiency and then after achieving an A2 level of proficiency according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), with the interval of a 22-week intensive Chinese class. The results suggest that in the case of the steady pitch produced for T0 and T1, L2 Polish learners found it easy to control the vibration speed of the vocal folds over two stages. Additionally, progress in successfully producing T4 was exhibited with improving control over the individual tonal register span, implying that competent tonal production develops with time. It remains unclear whether the reason why the low-range T3 is acquired last is down to the habitually high pitched range of spoken Polish, or a more universally observable phenomenon where T3 is liable to be confused with other tones in production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Siraitia grosvenorii is a type of fruit used in traditional Chinese medicine. Previous studies have shown that the conversion of saponins was often carried out by chemical hydrolysis, which can be problematic because of the environmental hazards it may cause and the low yield it produces. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to establish a continuous bioreactor with immobilized enzymes to produce siamenoside I and mogroside IV. The results show that the immobilization process of β-glucosidase exhibited the best relative activity with a glutaraldehyde (GA) concentration of 1.5%, carrier activation time of 1 h and binding enzyme time of 12 h. After the immobilization through GA linkage, the highest relative activity of β-glucosidase was recorded through the reaction with the substrate at 60 °C and pH 5. Subsequently, the glass microspheres with immobilized β-glucosidase were filled into the reactor to maintain the optimal active environment, and the aqueous solution of Siraitia grosvenorii extract was introduced by controlling the flow rate. The highest concentration of siamenoside I and mogroside IV were obtained at a flow rate of 0.3 and 0.2 mL/min, respectively. By developing this immobilized enzyme system, siamenoside I and mogroside IV can be prepared in large quantities for industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coculturing non-Saccharomyces yeasts with Saccharomyces cerevisiae could enrich the aromatic complexity of alcoholic beverages during cider brewing. Therefore, the present study performed rapid strain screening via selective culture medium and aroma analysis and adopted a response surface methodology to optimize fermentation conditions to produce 2-phenylethyl acetate (PEA), which presents a rose and honey scent. The effects of coculturing yeasts on cider quality were evaluated through hedonic sensory analysis and the check-all-that-apply (CATA) method. Hanseniaspora vineae P5 and S. cerevisiae P1 produced ciders with high levels of PEA and 2-phenylethanol, respectively. The optimal fermentation process consisted of sequential inoculation with a 31 h delay between inoculations, followed by fermentation for 14.5 d at 18.7 °C, yielding 17.41 ± 0.51 mg/L of PEA, which was 4.6-fold higher than that obtained through the unoptimized fermentation process. Additionally, the CATA results revealed that the cider produced through coculturing was associated with descriptors such as "smooth taste", "honey", "pineapple", and "fruity", which can be attributed to the high ethyl acetate and PEA levels in the cider. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]