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Rapid advancements of genome sequencing (GS) technologies have enhanced our understanding of the relationship between genes and human disease. To incorporate genomic information into the practice of medicine, new processes for the analysis, reporting, and communication of GS data are needed. Blood samples were collected from adults with a PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) diagnosis (target N = 1500). GS was performed. Data were filtered and analyzed using custom pipelines and gene panels. We developed unique patient-facing materials, including an online intake survey, group counseling presentation, and consultation letters in addition to a comprehensive GS report. The final report includes results generated from GS data: (1) monogenic disease risks; (2) carrier status; (3) pharmacogenomic variants; (4) polygenic risk scores for common conditions; (5) HLA genotype; (6) genetic ancestry; (7) blood group; and, (8) COVID-19 viral lineage. Participants complete pre-test genetic counseling and confirm preferences for secondary findings before receiving results. Counseling and referrals are initiated for clinically significant findings. We developed a genetic counseling, reporting, and return of results framework that integrates GS information across multiple areas of human health, presenting possibilities for the clinical application of comprehensive GS data in healthy individuals.

Implementation of polygenic risk scores (PRS) may improve disease prevention and management but poses several challenges: the construction of clinically valid assays, interpretation for individual patients, and the development of clinical workflows and resources to support their use in patient care. For the ongoing Veterans Affairs Genomic Medicine at Veterans Affairs (GenoVA) Study we developed a clinical genotype array-based assay for six published PRS. We used data from 36,423 Mass General Brigham Biobank participants and adjustment for population structure to replicate known PRS–disease associations and published PRS thresholds for a disease odds ratio (OR) of 2 (ranging from 1.75 (95% CI: 1.57–1.95) for type 2 diabetes to 2.38 (95% CI: 2.07–2.73) for breast cancer). After confirming the high performance and robustness of the pipeline for use as a clinical assay for individual patients, we analyzed the first 227 prospective samples from the GenoVA Study and found that the frequency of PRS corresponding to published OR > 2 ranged from 13/227 (5.7%) for colorectal cancer to 23/150 (15.3%) for prostate cancer. In addition to the PRS laboratory report, we developed physician- and patient-oriented informational materials to support decision-making about PRS results. Our work illustrates the generalizable development of a clinical PRS assay for multiple conditions and the technical, reporting and clinical workflow challenges for implementing PRS information in the clinic.

This paper proposes two new radiant floor heating structures based on micro heat pipe array (MHPA), namely cement-tile floor and keel-wood floor. The numerical models for these different floor structures are established and verified by experiments. The temperature distribution and heat transfer process of each part are comprehensively obtained, and the structure is optimized. The results show that the cement-tile floor has the better heat transfer performance of the two. When under the same inlet water temperature and flow rate, the keel-wood floor’s surface temperature distribution is about 2 °C lower than that of the cement-tile floor. The inlet water temperature of cement-tile floor is about 10 °C lower than that of keel-wood structure when the floor surface temperature is the same. During a longitudinal heat transfer above MHPA, the floor surface temperature decreases by 0.5 °C for every 10 mm filling layer increase. In order to reduce the non-uniformity of the floor’s surface temperature and improve the thermal comfort of the heated room, the optimal structure for a floor is given, with the maximum surface temperature difference reduced by 3.35 °C. We used research focusing on new radiant floor heating, with advantages including high efficiency heat transfer, low water supply temperature, simple waterway structure, low resistance and leakage risk, to provide theory and data to support the application of an effective radiant floor heating based on MHPA.

In order to evaluate the quality of maca samples, 15 batches of maca hypocotyls from different geographical origins were analyzed by using HPLC and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Their glucosinolates (GLs) were identified, profiled, and quantified. Three aromatic GLs, glucosinalbin (GSB), glucotropaeolin (GTL), and glucolimnanthin (GLH), were identified from maca roots. It was found that the HPLC profiles of maca samples showed a similar qualitative pattern except for some differences in their contents. The amount ranges (μmol g−1, DW) of GSB, GTL, and GLH were 2.62–5.55, 12.99–57.12, and 3.15–12.12, respectively. Furthermore, a HCA (hierarchical clustering analysis) was used to classify the quality of maca samples according to their cultivated sources and GLs contents. The results showed that the combination of GSB, GTL, and GLH could be a marker for accurate determination and quality control of maca samples. It was concluded that the multi-component analysis in combination with HCA could be a supplement to assess the quality of maca materials.

In the Xiangxi region of western Hunan province, China, 335 taxa belonging to 87 families and 119 genera are utilised as wild vegetables. In order to take advantage of this naturally occurring resource we examined the horticultural and the associated socio-economic aspects of these taxa. Wild vegetables, as the mainstay of human diet and Chinese traditional medicines, have played an important role in the daily life and income of local ethnic groups for centuries. We examine candidate species for their prevalence and their potential to offer returns, for example in cereal production and tourism, and indicate horticultural management and processing technologies which may exploit wild vegetable availability.

This paper is concerned with the optimization of effect factors for mycelial growth and exopolysaccharide production by Schizophyllum commune by one-factor-at-a-time and orthogonal methods. The one-factor-at-a-time method was adopted to investigate the effects of six different compounds (sodium carboxymethylcellulose, L: -glutamic acid, V(B1), naphthalene acetic acid, oleic acid, and Tween 80) on mycelial growth and exopolysaccharide production. Among these factors, oleic acid, V(B1) and Tween 80 were identified to be the most important factors. Subsequently, the concentration of oleic acid, V(B1) and Tween 80 were optimized using the orthogonal matrix method. The effects of the factors on the mycelial growth of S. commune were in the order of oleic acidV(B1)Tween 80, and those on exopolysaccharide production were in the same order. The optimal concentration for mycelia and exopolysaccharide were determined as oleic acid 0.1% (v/v), V(B1) 0.5 mg/L, and Tween 80 6 mg/L. The subsequent verification experiments confirmed the validity of the models. Under this optimized conditions in shake flask culture, the mycelial yield and exo-biopolymer production were 25.93 and 2.79 g/L, respectively, which were considerably higher than those obtained in the preliminary studies. The result was further confirmed in a 7-L fermentor experiments.