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Background and Purpose. Shorter door-to-needle time (DNT) is associated with a better outcome in acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients who accept intravenous thrombolysis. We aimed to explore whether triage nurse-activated emergency evaluation would reduce DNT compared with doctor-activated emergency evaluation in AIS patients treated with intravenous thrombolysis who failed to use emergency medical services (EMSs). Methods. This was a retrospective analysis in a general hospital emergency department in Beijing, China. 212 adult AIS patients treated with thrombolysis who failed to use EMSs were included. In addition to DNT, door-to-vein open time (DVT), door-to-blood sample deliver time (DBT), and 7-day NIHSS scores were evaluated. Results. 137 (64.6%) patients were in the triage nurse-activated group and 75 (35.4%) patients were in the doctor-activated group. The DNT of the triage nurse-activated group was significantly reduced compared with the doctor-activated group (28 (26, 32.5) min vs. 30 (28, 40) min, p = 0.001). DNT less than 45 min was seen in 95.6% of patients in the triage nurse-activated group and 84% of patients in the doctor-activated group (p = 0.011 , OR 3.972, 95% CI 1.375–11.477). In addition, DVT (7 (4, 10) min vs. 8 (5, 12) min, P = 0.025) and DBT (15 (13, 21) min vs. 19 (15, 26) min, p = 0.001) of the triage nurse-activated group were also shorter than those of the doctor-activated group (p < 0.05). The 7-day NIHSS scores were not statistically different between the two groups. Conclusions. Triage nurse-activated urgent emergency evaluation could reduce the door-to-needle time, which provides a feasible opportunity to optimize the emergency department service for AIS patients who failed to use emergency medical services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to prove the practical application of intelligent AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle) in port, the special requirements of port AGV are analyzed, BP (Back Propagation) network algorithm is improved, AGV road sign recognition system and AGV visual system are established, and finally the recognition accuracy and response speed of visual system are tested through experiments. The results show that the characteristics of AGV can meet the complex port conditions, and prove that the improved algorithm has good practical application value, as well as good recognition rate and accuracy of the visual system height. This will be of positive significance to the future research on the application of port AGV system in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are few studies on microplastics (MPs) in urban river sediments compared to oceans, soils, and even rivers. In this study, the seasonal abundance of MPs, as well as their influencing factors on heavy metal adsorption in river sediments of the Ancient Canal of Zhenjiang City, China, were investigated for the first time. Through on-site sampling, microscopic observation, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and high-temperature digestion, the abundance, shape, color, particle size, type, and surface characteristics of MPs in Ancient Canal sediments in different seasons, as well as the influencing factors of MPs as heavy metal carriers in different seasons, were analyzed. The results showed that the average abundance of MPs is 2049.09 ± 883.78 and 2216.36 ± 826.21 items kg -1 dry sediments in summer and winter, respectively, and different sites change significantly. In addition, particle sizes, types, colors, and shapes of MPs exhibited seasonal variations. Four MPs shapes were mainly observed: fibers, fragments, particles, and films. Among them, MPs in summer sediments are mainly fiber, and MPs in winter sediments are mainly particles. In the sediment in summer and winter, transparent MPs and small-size (<0.5 mm) MPs are the main ones, where the abundance of MPs decreased with increasing MPs size. The main MPs species are polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), and polyethylene (PE), with PP being the predominant MPs in the sediments in different seasons. Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM-EDS) revealed that the surfaces of the MPs were characterized by rough, porous, cracked, and torn, with the attachment of various heavy metal elements, and all of the heavy metal elements accumulated to different degrees on the MPs. There was a significant positive correlation (p < 0.05) between the Mn content in the MPs and the Mn content in the sediments in winter, suggesting that the Mn in the MPs in winter may be derived from the sediments. In addition, the type, shape, size, and color of MPs affect the adsorption capacity of heavy metals. Most of the adsorption of MPs on Pb showed a significant negative correlation, and the adsorption of MPs on Cr, Zn, Cu, Cd, and Mn showed a significant positive correlation. MPs can be used as carriers of heavy metals, which will further enhance the hazards of living organisms and pose a potential threat to the safety of the urban river environment., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Host immunogenetic setting is involved in the regulation of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and development of condyloma acuminatum (CA). We investigated the correlation of two common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (-607C/A and -137G/C) of IL-18 with the susceptibility of CA in a large Chinese cohort. Out of 408 CA patients analyzed, 300 had HPV infection transmitted through sexual contact (SC) and 108 through non-sexual contact (NSC). In addition, 360 healthy volunteers were enrolled as controls. SNPs at positions -607C/A and -137G/C in IL-18 promoter were analyzed. Comparing CA patients to healthy controls, no dominant relevance was found between the IL-18 promoter -607 C/A or -137G/C polymorphisms and the CA disease either identified genotypically (p > 0.05) or by allelically (p > 0.05). However, the IL-18 promoter -137G/C polymorphism genotype and allele frequencies in the NSC CA group, but not between in the SC group, were significantly higher than in the controls. There was no dominant relevance between IL-18-607C/A polymorphism genotype and allele frequencies among SC, NSC CA patients, and controls. Our study demonstrates that polymorphism -137G/C in IL-18 promoter is significantly correlated with risk of CA in NSC patients., (Copyright © 2019 Sociedade Brasileira de Infectologia. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Background: Human leukocyte antigens (HLAs) have been proposed to modulate the immune response to Mycobacterium leprae. The association of HLA-DRB1 with leprosy has been reported in several populations, but not in a Chinese population., Methods: The polymerase chain reaction-sequence-specific oligonucleotide probe with Luminex100 (PCR-SSOP-Luminex) method was used to genotype HLA-DRB1 alleles in 305 leprosy patients and 527 healthy control individuals., Results: The HLA-DRB1*15 allele was significantly more prevalent among leprosy patients than healthy controls, whereas the frequency of the HLA-DRB1*09 allele was lower among leprosy patients, especially those with early-onset disease., Conclusion: HLA-DRB1 alleles are associated with leprosy susceptibility in a Chinese population. The HLA-DRB1*09 allele was found to be protective exclusively in a subset of early-onset leprosy patients.

Background: Dyschromatosis symmetrica hereditaria (DSH) is a rare autosomal dominantly inherited dermatosis and characterized by a mixture of hyperpigmented and hypopigmented macules on the back of hands and feet. The DSH locus was mapped to chromosome 1q21 and subsequently pathogenic mutations were identified in the adenosine deaminase acting on RNA1 (ADAR1) gene in 2003., Objective: In this study, we performed a mutation analysis of the ADAR1 gene in eight Chinese families and one sporadic patient with typical DSH., Methods: PCR and direct sequencing of the ADAR1 gene were performed to identify and confirm the mutations in the eight families and the sporadic patient., Results: Six novel and one known mutations were identified, including four missense mutations (p.K1105N, p.G1047R, p.F1099L, p.G1068R), two frameshift mutations (p.Q779fs-792x, p.P441fs-463x) and one nonsense mutation (p.R1096x)., Conclusion: Six novel mutations were found in five unrelated families and one sporadic case, which have further improved our understanding on the role of ADAR1 in DSH. Interestingly, we failed to detect any mutations of ADAR1 in two families.

Background: Hailey-Hailey disease (HHD) is a rare autosomal dominantly inherited dermatosis, characterized by persistent blisters and erosions of the skin. It was recently discovered that HHD was caused by mutations in the ATP2C1 gene, a Ca2+ pump located in the Golgi apparatus., Observation: In this study, we sequenced the ATP2C1 gene from blood samples of 31 patients in 17 unrelated Chinese families and 120 healthy individuals. Eight novel mutations were identified in 9 families, including 3 insertion/deletions (nt 1464-1487/1462-1485 del, 1523 del AT, 2375 del TTGT), 3 splicing-site mutations [360(-2)a-->g, 1415(-2)a-->c, 2243(+2)t-->c], and 2 missense mutations (P307L, D648Y)., Conclusion: Eight mutations were found in 8 unrelated families and 1 sporadic case, and these new findings have further improved our understanding of the role of ATP2C1 in HHD., (2007 S. Karger AG, Basel)