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Solid-state fermentation in mud pits is a typical brewing process for nongxiangxing baijiu and fuyuxiangxing baijiu. Pit mud is the functional carrier of mud pits, in which the abundance, diversity, metabolic activity and interaction of microorganisms could directly affect the quality of baijiu. This paper reviews the application of traditional culture and non-culture techniques in research on microorganisms in pit mud, the spatiotemporal differences in microbial community structure, the functional microorganisms and their interactions, the development and improvement of the methods for the quality evaluation of pit mud, and pit mud maintenance and aging focusing on the functional strains, and summarizes the development history and application status of different techniques in the field of research on microorganisms related to the production of Chinese baijiu, the growth and decline patterns of prokaryotic and eukaryotic microorganisms during pit mud aging, the spatial difference in the distribution of prokaryotic and eukaryotic microorganisms in the pit, and the functions and interdependence of the core functional microorganisms in pit mud such as caproic acid bacteria, butyric acid bacteria, lactic acid bacteria, acetic acid bacteria and methane bacteria, the reason for pit mud aging, the transformation of the criteria for quality evaluation pit mud from traditional sensory and physicochemical analysis to the comprehensive evaluation system, and studies on pit mud maintenance and aging based on the functional properties of core strains. The purpose of this review is to provide a reference for evaluating the microbial diversity, exploring the metabolic function of microbial community and improving the quality of pit mud.

Abstract Background The American Heart Association (AHA) has recently introduced the concept of Cardiovascular-Kidney-Metabolic (CKM) syndrome, which is the result of an increasing emphasis on the interplay of metabolic, renal and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Furthermore, there is substantial evidence of a correlation between the triglyceride glucose-body mass index (TyG-BMI ) and CVD as an assessment of insulin resistance (IR). However, it remains unknown whether this correlation exists in population with CKM syndrome. Methods All data for this study were obtained from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). The exposure was the participants’ TyG-BMI at baseline, which was calculated using a combination of triglycerides (TG), fasting blood glucose (FBG) and body mass index (BMI). The primary outcome was CVD, which were determined by the use of a standardised questionnaire during follow-up. To examine the relationship between TyG-BMI and CVD incidence in population with CKM syndrome, both Cox regression analyses and restricted cubic spline (RCS) regression analyses were performed. Results A total of 7376 participants were included in the final analysis. Of these, 1139, 1515, 1839, and 2883 were in CKM syndrome stages 0, 1, 2, and 3, respectively, at baseline. The gender distribution was 52.62% female, and the mean age was 59.17 ± 9.28 (years). The results of the fully adjusted COX regression analyses indicated that there was a 6.5% increase in the risk of developing CVD for each 10-unit increase in TyG-BMI,95% confidence interval (CI):1.041–1.090. The RCS regression analyses demonstrated a positive linear association between TyG-BMI and the incidence of CVD in the CKM syndrome population (P for overall

Abstract Sodium is crucial for maintaining cardiovascular health, especially in relation to heart failure. The impact of baseline serum sodium concentrations on the outcomes of newly diagnosed coronary heart disease (CHD) without heart failure remains unclear. This prospective cohort study included 681 patients who were newly diagnosed with CHD. Cox proportional hazards models and restricted cubic spline (RCS) analysis were used to assess the relationship between serum sodium concentrations and major adverse cardiovascular events. The improvement in traditional prediction models by the addition of serum sodium concentrations was assessed using changes in the C-statistic, net reclassification improvement (NRI), and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI). During a median follow-up of 51.04 months (IQR: 40.88–53.80 months), 131 events were recorded. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards models showed that the L2 group (136–138.9 mmol/L) had the highest MACE risk. Compared to L2, the hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the L1 (130–135.9 mmol/L), L3 (139–140.9 mmol/L), L4 (141–142.9 mmol/L), and L5 (143–147.0 mmol/L) groups were 0.31 (0.14–0.70, P = 0.005), 0.48 (030–0.78, P = 0.003), 0.56 (0.34–0.92, P = 0.022), and 0.37 (0.22–0.64, P

Abstract Background At present, research comparing the short-term postoperative outcomes of anatomical resection in lung cancer under different ports of da Vinci robot-assisted surgery is insufficient. This report aimed to compare the outcomes of three-port and four-port da Vinci robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery for radical dissection of lung cancer. Methods 171 consecutive patients who presented to our hospital from January 2020 to October 2021 with non-small cell lung cancer and treated with da Vinci robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery for radical resection of lung cancer were retrospectively collected and divided into the three-port group (n = 97) and the four-port group (n = 74). The general clinical data, perioperative data and life quality were individually compared between the two groups. Results All the 171 patients successfully underwent surgeries. Compared to the four-port group, the three-port group had comparable baseline characteristics in terms of age, sex, tumor location, tumor size, history of chronic disease, pathological type, and pathological staging. The three-port group also had shorter operation time, less intraoperative blood loss, lower chest tube drainage volume, shorter postoperative hospitalization stay durations, but showed no statistically significant difference (P > 0.05). Postoperative 24, 48 and 72 h visual analogue scale pain scores were lower in the three-port group (p 0.05) and postoperative respiratory complications (P > 0.05). Conclusions The three-port robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery is safe and effective and took better outcomes than the four-port robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery in non-small cell lung cancer.

Abstract The utilization and development of urban underground space play a crucial role in optimizing the layout of civic architecture and enhancing the urban ecological environment, which contributes toward increasing the overall carrying capacity and promoting sustainable development in megacities. To delve into the research progress of urban underground space, knowledge maps were created using the information visualization software VOSviewer. The literature was systematically extracted from three prominent databases, namely, Web of Science, Scopus, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure. According to the bibliometric analysis of the co‐citation and core words co‐occurrence, the trends and challenges of research on urban underground space were identified. As highlighted by the results obtained, it still remains highly challenging to achieve interdisciplinary collaboration in urban underground space research; the research trends of urban underground space consist of collaborative planning and whole life cycle sustainable development, multisource geological data informatization and resource evaluation, infrastructure design optimization, and intelligent construction. The knowledge map, drawn using bibliometric methods, offers a quantitative analysis of literature retrieval across various levels. It is recognized as an essential tool for exploring and identifying challenges and trends in urban underground space.

Abstract Background The association between bone fracture and cardiovascular diseases is examined in this study. While basic research has established a connection between fractures and heart attacks through the linkage between bones and arteries, population studies have not provided clear evidence. The aim of the present study is to investigate the association between bone fracture and the occurrence of myocardial infarction in a natural population during long-term follow-up. Methods A total of 13,196 adult participants with bone fracture history at baseline from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) prospective cohort were included in this study. Baseline investigation was performed in 1997–2009 and the outcome was followed up till 2015. Hazard ratios (HRs) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using Cox proportional hazards models. Results From 1997 to 2015, a total of 329 incident myocardial infarction cases were identified. In univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis, a history of bone fracture was associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction incidence in the total population (for the crude model: HR = 2.56, 95% CI 1.83–3.53, P

Based on the urban morphology theory of the Conzen School and the actual situation of the Tangjiawan Ancient Town, a morphological process analysis of the Tangjiawan Ancient Town was conducted. The end result is a visualization of the process of urban form evolution. The first objective is to describe the morphological framework of Tangjiawan Ancient Town and the morphological changes that occurred during its development. The current urban landscape is divided into units by superimposing morphological units, building types, and land use. The results of the division also reflect the morphological development, structure, and compositional characteristics of the ancient city of Tangjiawan. Using Tangjiawan Ancient Town in Zhuhai city as an example, on-site research, historical evidence, urban morphology analysis methods, and interviews were used to elaborate and analyze the spatial structure and evolution process of traditional ancient towns in South China. In particular, morphological units, building types, and land use are included. The morphological map of the Tangjiawan ancient town is inconsistent with the current economic-oriented development of ancient town planning. This shows that current planning is less concerned with the physical form of architectural heritage, which may lead to further damage to the landscape of the ancient town. This study provides a strong reference for the follow-up planning of ancient town protection of the same type from the perspective of morphology and area and provides ideas for the subsequent preparation of protection plans.

Abstract With the rapid development of machine learning technology, it has become possible to automatically identify cultural heritage elements in traditional buildings. This research aimed to develop a machine learning model based on the YOLOv4 architecture to identify the traditional Chinese porcelain inlay pattern in the Lingnan region. The researchers collected and annotated a large quantity of Lingnan Chinese porcelain inlay image data and then used these data to train the studied model. The research results show that (1) the model in this study was specifically adjusted to effectively identify a variety of Chinese porcelain inlay pattern types, including traditional patterns such as plum blossoms and camellias. (2) In the 116th epoch, the model showed excellent generalization ability, and the verification loss reached the lowest value of 0.88. The lowest training loss in the 195th epoch was 0.99, indicating that the model reached an optimal balance point for both recognition accuracy and processing speed. (3) By comparing different models for detecting Chinese porcelain inlay images across 581 pictures, our YOLOv4 model demonstrated greater accuracy in most classification tasks than did the YOLOv8 model, especially in the classification of chrysanthemums, where it achieved an accuracy rate of 87.5%, significantly outperforming YOLOv8 by 58.82%. However, the study also revealed that under certain conditions, such as detecting apples and pears in low-light environments, YOLOv8 showed a lower missing data rate, highlighting the limitations of our model in dealing with complex detection conditions.

In this paper, Macau Taipa Village, a historical district in an island-type city, is the research focus, and a parametric design-based method for designing historical districts is proposed. First, the shape and distribution of roads in historical districts is studied through on-the-spot investigation and measurement and data are collected on the width, depth, and area of street blocks, average street length and width, street orientation, building width, depth, acreage, and height, and building orientation. Second, the acquired data are transmitted to the Grasshopper parameterization platform, and an intelligently generated program produces calculations. Through multiple iterations and evaluations of genetic algorithms based on the needs of modern urban design and planning constraints, the building density is further reduced, and more landscape areas are added. The parametric model is optimized to gradually generate the urban spatial design that meets contemporary requirements. The research reveals that (1) the grasshopper algorithm’s generated block design inherits the characteristics of the conventional historical block. (2) The historical block where the data were collected on site and the block where Grasshopper is applied should maintain the consistency of the regional context. (3) This method can be applied to the design of new urban areas, and the scope of application can be further adjusted through collaboration and the needs of the owners at a later stage.

Recent research shows that China is experiencing significant greening, with afforestation initiatives being the main cause. Quantitative calculation of vegetation change influencing factors and evaluation of the contribution of afforestation to vegetation greening in China are critical to coping with climate change and improving the implementation and efficacy of forestry projects. We investigated the temporal and spatial dynamics of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) from 1982 to 2020, and quantified the contribution of afforestation initiatives, a typical human activity, to the dynamic changes of vegetation. The results showed that NDVI in China has primarily increased in the last 39 years. 57% of the pixels increased, 27% were stable and unchanged, and 16% decreased. Climate change was responsible for 72.34% of vegetation restoration, while human activities were responsible for 27.36% of vegetation restoration, according to residual analysis. In the future, only 14% of the regions showed continuous growth of the NDVI, while the remaining regions showed obvious antipersistence (59% will go from increasing to decreasing, and 22% will go from decreasing to increasing). The contribution of climate factors to vegetation change will decrease in the future, and human activities will become more complex. Except for Huaihe River and Taihu Lake (SPHRTL), other forestry projects showed an increasing trend of NDVI after the implementation of ecological engineering. However, due to differences in climate conditions and ecological engineering implementation, there are differences in the benefits of forestry projects. Some forestry project areas still have obvious vegetation degradation, and appropriate forestry management is necessary. This work provides a quantitative analysis of vegetation change and its driving factors in China, which will help to cope with future climate change and provide a reference for the implementation and management of ecological projects.

Abstract Background Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) hold a great promise for cell-based therapy in the field of regenerative medicine. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of intravenous infusion of human umbilical cord-derived MSCs (HUC-MSCs) in patients with aging frailty. Methods In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, participants diagnosed with aging frailty were randomly assigned to receive intravenous administrations of HUC-MSCs or placebo. All of serious adverse events and AEs were monitored to evaluate the safety of treatment during the 6-month follow-up. The primary efficacy endpoint was alteration of physical component scores (PCS) of SF-36 qualities of life at 6 months. The secondary outcomes including physical performance tests and pro-inflammatory cytokines, were also observed and compared at each follow-up visits. All evaluations were performed at 1 week, 1, 2, 3 and 6 months following the first intravenous infusion of HUC-MSCs. Results In the MSCs group, significant improvements in PCS of SF-36 were observed from first post-treatment visit and sustained throughout the follow-up period, with greater changes compared to the placebo group (p = 0.042). EQ-VAS scores of MSCs group improved significantly at 2 month (p = 0.023) and continued until the end of the 6-month visit (p = 0.002) in comparison to the placebo group. The timed up and go (TUG) physical performance test revealed significant group difference and showed continual enhancements over 6 months (p

Abstract Background Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum are closely related protozoan parasites that are considered important causes of abortion in livestock, causing huge economic losses. Hunan Province ranks 12th in the production of beef and mutton in China. However, limited data are available on the seroprevalence, risk factors and molecular characterization of T. gondii and N. caninum in beef cattle and goats in Hunan province, China. Methods Sera of 985 beef cattle and 1147 goats were examined for the presence of specific antibodies against T. gondii using indirect hemagglutination test (IHAT) and anti-N. caninum IgG using competitive-inhibition enzyme-linked immunoassay assay (cELISA). Statistical analysis of possible risk factors was performed using PASW Statistics. Muscle samples of 160 beef cattle and 160 goats were examined for the presence of T. gondii DNA (B1 gene) and N. caninum DNA (Nc-5 gene) by nested PCR. The B1 gene-positive samples were genotyped at 10 genetic markers using the multilocus nested PCR-RFLP (Mn-PCR-RFLP). Results Specific IgG against T. gondii were detected in 8.3% (82/985) and 13.3% (153/1147) and against N. caninum in 2.1% (21/985) and 2.0% (23/1147) of the beef cattle and goats, respectively. Based on statistical analysis, the presence of cats, semi-intensive management mode and gender were identified as significant risk factors for T. gondii infection in beef cattle. Age was a significant risk factor for T. gondii infection in goats (P 3 years was a significant risk factor for N. caninum infection in beef cattle (P

Abstract The association between high blood pressure and fracture showed obvious discrepancies and were mostly between hypertension with future fracture, but rarely between fracture and incident hypertension. The present study aims to investigate the associations of hypertension with future fracture, and fracture with incident hypertension. We included adult participants from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) prospective cohort in 1997–2015 (N = 10,227), 2000–2015 (N = 10,547), 2004–2015 (N = 10,909), and 2006–2015 (N = 11,121) (baseline in 1997, 2000, 2004, 2006 respectively and outcome in 2015). Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs. In the analysis of the association between hypertension and future fracture, the adjusted HRs (95% CIs) were 1.34 (0.95–1.90) in 1997–2015, 1.40 (1.04–1.88) in 2000–2015, 1.32 (0.98–1.78) in 2004–2015, and 1.38 (1.01–1.88) in 2006–2015. In the analysis of the association between fracture and incident hypertension, the adjusted HRs (95% CIs) were 1.28 (0.96–1.72) in 1997–2015, 1.18 (0.94–1.49) in 2000–2015, 1.12 (0.89–1.40) in 2004–2015, and 1.09 (0.85–1.38) in 2006–2015. The present study showed that hypertension history was associated with increased risk of future fracture, but not vice versa.

Atherosclerosis (AS) is a prevalent chronic vascular inflammatory disease globally, initiated by injury to vascular endothelial cells (VECs). Macrophages play a pivotal role in disease pathogenesis, involving lipid metabolism and inflammation. The application of nanomaterials has been hindered by their rapid clearance by the immune system. Utilizing macrophage cell membranes can mitigate abnormal immune responses and induce a ''homing'' effect. Here, M2 macrophage cell membranes (M2) were coated onto berberine polylactic-hydroxylase-polylactide (PLGA) nanoparticles (BBR NPs), employing M2 macrophage immune escape, ''homing'' ability, and membrane coating nanotechnology, and loaded with mannose (Man) to create bionic nanoparticles (BBR NPs@Man/M2). Subsequently, the physical properties of BBR NPs@Man/M2 were characterized. The biocompatibility and biological function of BBR NPs@Man/M2 were assessed in vitro. Finally, the targeting, therapeutic efficacy, and safety of BBR NPs@M2 were investigated in an AS mouse model. The newly developed BBR NPs@Man/M2 exhibited good biocompatibility. Owing to their M2 coating, the nanoparticles effectively targeted macrophages in vitro, inducing a shift from a pro-inflammatory to an anti-inflammatory state. This transition reduced inflammation in endothelial cells and facilitated the repair of damaged endothelial cells. Moreover, M2-coated nanoparticles efficiently targeted and accumulated in atherosclerotic lesions in vivo. Following four weeks of treatment, BBR NPs@Man/M2 significantly delayed AS progression. Furthermore, BBR NPs@Man/M2 demonstrated a good safety profile after long-term administration. In conclusion, BBR NPs@Man/M2 effectively and safely inhibited AS progression. Biomimetic nanoparticles represent a promising approach for the safe and effective delivery of anti-AS drugs.

To investigate the ability of sulfonated polyetheretherketone (SPEEK) to promote the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) and compare the effects of different degrees of sulfonation (DS), SPEEK was made with two different DS. The L-SPEEK group had a lower DS, while the H-SPEEK group had a higher DS. The physicochemical properties of both species were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), capitilize Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Then, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation between the two groups and with pure polyetheretherketone (PEEK) were compared after surface inoculation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that the surface of the PEEK substrates could be smooth or coarse, and the degree of roughness increased with increasing sulfonation. FTIR spectroscopy showed that both the L-SPEEK and H-SPEEK samples contained sulfonic acid. TGA and XRD revealed that the components in the two groups were the same, but the intensities were different. After BMSC inoculation, a CCK8 assay revealed that the cells proliferated more on the H-SPEEK surface and little on the L-SPEEK surface compared with the PEEK surface. Then, osteogenic differentiation was verified by immunofluorescence staining for OCN and Runx2, which indicated that H-SPEEK had the greatest effect on improving differentiation. The results of alizarin red staining (ARS) and alkaline phosphatase staining (APS) also revealed this trend. Sulfonation can change the microsurface of PEEK, which can improve both BMSC proliferation and osteogenic differentiation.

BackgroundProtein Energy Wasting (PEW) has high incidence in adult hemodialysis patients and refers to a state of decreased protein and energy substance. It has been demonstrated that PEW highly affects the quality of survival and increases the risk of death. Nevertheless, its diagnostic criteria are complex in clinic. To simplify the diagnosis method of PEW in adult hemodialysis patients, we previously established a novel clinical prediction model that was well-validated internally using bootstrapping. In this multicenter cross-sectional study, we aimed to externally validate this nomogram in a new cohort of adult hemodialysis patients.MethodsThe novel prediction model was built by combining four independent variables with part of the International Society of Renal Nutrition and Metabolism (ISRNM) diagnostic criteria including albumin, total cholesterol, and body mass index (BMI). We evaluated the performance of the new model using discrimination (Concordance Index), calibration plots, and Clinical Impact Curve to assess its predictive utility.ResultsFrom September 1st, 2022 to August 31st, 2023, 1,158 patients were screened in five medical centers in Shanghai. 622 (53.7%) hemodialysis patients were included for analysis. The PEW predictive model was acceptable discrimination with the area under the curve of 0.777 (95% CI 0.741–0.814). Additionally, the model revealed well-fitted calibration curves. The McNemar test showed the novel model had similar diagnostic efficacy with the gold standard diagnostic method (p > 0.05).ConclusionOur results from this cross-sectional external validation study further demonstrate that the novel model is a valid tool to identify PEW in adult hemodialysis patients effectively.