Search

Neural machine translation (NMT), proven to be productively and qualitatively competitive, creates great challenges and opportunities for stakeholders in both the market and the education contexts. This paper explores how English-Chinese NMT post-editing (PE) is accepted in China from the perspectives of attitude, practice, and training, based on an integrative digital survey with role-specific popup questions for translators and clients in the market setting, and for translation teachers and students in the education setting. Descriptive statistics and correlation analyses of the survey data suggest Chinese stakeholders' generally moderate view of PE, with outsiders like clients being more optimistic about PE than are insiders like translators. In the market setting, most translators use PE to different degrees in translating primarily informative texts; here, affiliated translators report a more frequent usage, and employ more sophisticated tools than do part-time or freelance translators. Whereas translators, on the whole, fail to notify clients of their own PE usage, or to charge clients for PE and human translation (HT) differently, most clients express their willingness to accept high-quality PE output for the sake of saving cost and time. In the education setting, despite students' concealed usage of PE to do HT assignments to varying degrees, and their wish to learn PE out of concern for their future career, PE is generally not taught in translation classrooms of Chinese universities in the form of teaching PE as a course or integrating PE content into traditional translation course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The protective effects of sticky rice and lime composite are evaluated. • The relationship between macroscopic properties and microstructure is established. • The feasibility of protecting earthen sites with sticky rice and lime is discussed. Earthen sites have important historical, artistic, social, cultural, and scientific values. However, due to the extreme natural environment, they have suffered serious damage. The sticky rice and lime composite is one of the most important technological inventions in Chinese architectural history, which is an alternative material for the protection of earthen sites. In the past, the mechanical and microscopic properties of sticky rice and lime composite as binding material have been discussed. However, these properties are not sufficient to evaluate the feasibility of protecting earthen sites with sticky rice and lime composite. In this study, 25 groups of soil samples were prepared at five different lime contents (i.e. 0%, 3%, 6%, 9% and 12% by dry weight of sample) and five different sticky rice contents (i.e. 0.0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5% and 2.0% by dry weight of sample), and several important characteristics of the samples such as drying shrinkage, colour difference, surface hardness, unconfined compressive strength (UCS), and water vapour permeability are investigated comprehensively. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) were used to study the microstructure of samples. Then, the feasibility of protecting earthen sites with sticky rice and lime composite was systematically evaluated. The results indicate that the effectiveness of sticky rice and lime composite is better than that of their individual application. The optimal formula is 6% lime and 0.5% sticky rice for the protection of earthen sites when above indicators are compared. The surface fractal dimension builds bridges between microstructure and macroscopic properties of the soil with sticky rice and lime. Surface hardness and UCS are positively related to the surface fractal dimension, while water vapour permeability is negative related to the surface fractal dimension. This research further provides insights into the potential application of traditional Chinese inorganic–organic composite for protecting earthen sites in arid and semi-arid regions of northwest China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thallium (Tl) is a highly toxic metalloid and is considered a priority pollutant by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Currently, few studies have investigated the distribution patterns of bacterial and fungal microbiomes in Tl-impacted environments. In this study, we used high-throughput sequencing to assess the bacterial and fungal profiles along a gradient of Tl contents in Tl mine waste rocks in southwestern China. Our results showed that Tl had an important, but different influence on the bacterial and fungal diversity indices. Using linear regression analysis, we furtherly divided the dominant bacterial and fungal groups into three distinct microbial sub-communities thriving at high, moderate, and low levels of Tl. Furthermore, our results also showed that Tl is also an important environmental variable that regulates the distribution patterns of ecological clusters and indicator genera. Interestingly, the microbial groups enriched in the samples with high Tl levels were mainly involved in metal and nutrient cycling. Taken together, our results have provided useful information about the responses of bacterial and fungal groups to Tl contamination. Image 1 • Thallium(Tl) regulates the bacterial diversity but has little impact on fungi. • Three sub-microbial communities are identified across a Tl content gradient. • Tl predicts the distribution patterns of ecological clusters and indicator genera. • Microbial groups in high Tl samples are involved in metal and nutrient cycling. Thallium regulates the distribution patterns of bacterial and fungal groups which involved in metal(loid)s and nutrients cycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cryptosporidium spp., Giardia duodenalis, and Enterocytozoon bieneusi are important zoonotic pathogens. In Inner Mongolia, a single pathogen molecular epidemiological survey of these three protozoa was previously conducted on only 176 fecal samples donkeys. In this study, the purpose is to simultaneously evaluate the zoonotic potential of three protozoa., Methods: Small subunit ribosomal RNA (SSU rRNA) and gp60 from Cryptosporidium; SSU rRNA, gdh, tpi, and bg from G. duodenalis; and ITS of E. bieneusi were analyzed in 300 fecal samples collected from donkeys from two intensive farms in Inner Mongolia in 2022. Sample processing, nucleic acid extraction, polymerase chain reaction, sequencing, and sequence analysis were performed to determine the prevalence and genetic characteristics of the protozoans., Results: Our results revealed that 75.33% (226/300) of the samples were infected with at least one protozoan, whereas 2.33% (7/300) were simultaneously infected with all three genera. Mixed infection was observed in 20.67% (62/300; Cryptosporidium + G. duodenalis), 5.33% (16/300; Cryptosporidium + E. bieneusis), and 5.67% (17/300; G. duodenalis + E. bieneusis) of the samples. Overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium, G. duodenalis, and E. bieneusi was 56.33% (169/300), 36.33% (109/300), and 13.33% (40/300), respectively. Five Cryptosporidium species were identified, with C. andersoni being the predominant species. The C. parvum subtypes identified were IIdA20G1 (66.67%) and IIdA19G1 (33.33%). Three G. duodenalis assemblages were identified, with assemblage B being predominant. Seven isolates formed two different assemblage B MLGs, two different assemblage A MLGs, and two different assemblage B + E MLGs. Three known and eight novel sequences of E. bieneusis were identified in group 1 (including horse1 and NMG6-NMG8) and group 2 (including J, BEB6, and NMG1-NMG5), with horse1 being the predominant genotype., Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that donkeys can be infected with a combination of two or three protozoa, with C. andersoni being the most detected Cryptosporidium species. Meanwhile, assemblage B was predominant among G. duodenalis, whereas horse1 was the dominant genotype for E. bieneusi. Moreover, the prevalence of C. bovis, C. ryanae, C. suis, C. parvum subtype IIdA20G1 and eight novel sequences of E. bieneusis and new features of G. duodenalis assemblages were identified in donkeys for the first time. These findings reconfirmed that donkeys in Inner Mongolia are infected with these three protozoa, emphasizing the risk of disease transmission by these protozoans to humans., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of interest: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Ethical Approval: Our study was performed in strict accordance with the international standards published in the Guide to the Feeding, Management and Use of Experimental Animals (8th Edition) and followed the Regulations on the Management of Experimental Animals and other relevant laws and regulations. The study was approved by the Biomedical Research Ethics Committee of Inner Mongolia Agricultural University (approval no. 2020 [081]). Additionally, permission was obtained from the farm owners prior to specimen collection, and all efforts were made to minimize animal suffering. Consent to Participate: All authors consent to participate and consent to publish., (© 2025. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)

Background: Giardia duodenalis is an important intestinal parasitic protozoan that infects several vertebrates, including humans. Cattle are considered the major source of giardiasis outbreak in humans. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and multilocus genotype (MLG) of G. duodenalis in Shanxi, and lay the foundation for the prevention and control of Giardiosis., Methods and Results: DNA extraction, nested polymerase chain reaction, sequence analysis, MLG analysis, and statistical analysis were performed using 858 bovine fecal samples from Shanxi based on three gene loci: β-giardin (bg), glutamate dehydrogenase (gdh), and triosephosphate isomerase (tpi). The overall prevalence of G. duodenalis was 28.3%, while its prevalence in Yingxian and Lingqiu was 28.1% and 28.5%, respectively. The overall prevalence of G. duodenalis in dairy cattle and beef cattle was 28.0% and 28.5%, respectively. G. duodenalis infection was detected in all age groups evaluated in this study. The overall prevalence of G. duodenalis in diarrhea and nondiarrhea samples was 32.4% and 27.5%, respectively, whereas that in intensively farmed and free-range cattle was 35.0% and 19.9%, respectively. We obtained 83, 53, and 59 sequences of bg, gdh, and tpi in G. duodenalis, respectively. Moreover, assemblage A (n = 2) and assemblage E (n = 81) by bg, assemblage A (n = 1) and assemblage E (n = 52) by gdh, and assemblage A (n = 2) and assemblage E (n = 57) by tpi were identified. Multilocus genotyping yielded 29 assemblage E MLGs, which formed 10 subgroups., Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to report cattle infected with G. duodenalis in Shanxi, China. Livestock-specific G. duodenalis assemblage E was the dominant assemblage genotype, and zoonotic sub-assemblage AI was also detected in this region., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.)

Cryptosporidium spp. are key gastrointestinal protists in humans and animals worldwide. Infected cattle are considered the main source of cryptosporidiosis outbreaks in humans. However, little is known about the genetic makeup of Cryptosporidium populations in Shanxi province, China. We analyzed 858 fecal samples collected from farms in Shanxi. The presence of Cryptosporidium spp. was determined via polymerase chain reaction and subsequent sequence analysis of the small subunit rRNA gene as well as restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. Cryptosporidium parvum was subtyped following sequence analysis of the 60 kDa glycoprotein gene (gp60). The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium in cattle was 11.19%, with a prevalence of 13.30% and 8.67% in Lingqiu and Yingxian, respectively. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium in dairy and beef cattle was 10.78% and 11.50%, respectively. Cryptosporidium infection was detected across all analyzed age groups. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium in diarrhea and nondiarrhea samples was 18.24% and 9.72%, respectively, whereas that in intensively farmed and free-range cattle was 17.40% and 3.41%, respectively. We identified five Cryptosporidium species, with C. andersoni being the dominant species. Further, two cases of mixed infections of Cryptosporidium species were detected. All identified C. parvum isolates belonged to the subtype IIdA17G1., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Abstract: This study aimed to investigate the correlation between triglyceride glucose (TyG) index and coronary artery disease (CAD) with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and identify the risk associated TyG index in different subgroups.A total of 1665 eligible inpatients (CAD with T2DM group [n = 680], non-coronary artery disease without T2DM [n = 985]) were consecutively enrolled in this study. They were assigned into 4 subgroups: middle-aged, elderly, male, and female subgroups. Receiver operating characteristic curve diagnostic test and a logistic regression model was established to analyze the risk factors for CAD with T2DM.TyG index is an independent risk factor for patients with CAD with T2DM. The risk of increased TyG index is greater in the middle-aged and male subgroups than in the elderly and female subgroups, respectively (all P < .05). The specificity and the positive predictive value of the TyG index is greater than the sensitivity and the negative predictive value, respectively (all P < .05).Increased TyG index is a new independent risk factor for CAD with T2DM, and its risk is higher in the middle-aged and male subgroups than in the elderly and female subgroups, respectively. TyG index may be used as a clinical predictor of CAD with T2DM., (Copyright © 2021 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)