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[Display omitted] • Case study was proposed: Resource utilization strategy of hematite tailings. • The SiO 2 grade and yield in concentrate respectively reached 95.26% and 42.45%. • High purity SiO 2 grade reached 99.961% after mixed acid leaching. • The mechanisms of S-HGMS and mixed acid leaching were elaborated. Hematite tailings (HTs) are rich in silica and are used as replacements for fine aggregates in the preparation of construction materials. However, there is scope for a more effective utilization of the valuable elements present in HTs. In this paper, a process for preparing high-purity SiO 2 using HTs procured from Ansteel (China) is proposed. HTs were treated using the superconducting high-gradient magnetic separation (S-HGMS) technology, where the silica as part of the nonmagnetic fraction was obtained in the form of a high-silica concentrate, which was then subjected to mixed-acid leaching to dissolve impurities to achieve refined purification. The optimum process conditions for S-HGMS were determined, and the response surface methodology was applied to optimize the process parameters of the mixed-acid leaching process. The process indicators of the mixed-acid leaching step included the leaching time, leaching temperature, and molar ratio of the mixed acids. The optimum process conditions for S-HGMS were as follows: the magnetic strength-to-velocity ratio in the weak magnetic separation stage was set to 0.034 T·s/m whereas it was maintained at 0.076 T·s/m in the strong magnetic separation stage; the pulp concentration was 40 g/L, the pulp velocity was 500 mL/min, and the dispersant concentration was 1 mg/g. Under these conditions, the high-silica pulp was processed. The corresponding SiO 2 grade increased from 71.788 % to 95.260 %, and its recovery and yield reached 56.330 % and 42.450 %, respectively. The SiO 2 content in the sample increased from 95.260 % to 99.961 %. Further, the mechanisms of the S-HGMS and mixed-acid leaching were revealed. The proposed process is environmentally friendly and operationally inexpensive. It can reduce the amount of HTs by 42.450 %, and the obtained high-purity silica product has high economic value and good industrialization prospects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigated the composition, abundance, and diversity of gut microbes in full-term and late-preterm infants from a medical center in eastern China. A total of 144 genomes of stool samples were captured for 16S rRNA metagenomic analyses. A high abundance of commensal intestinal bacteria was detected in these samples such as Phocaeicola vulgatus, Escherichia coli, and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, indicating a relatively consistent diversity of gut microbes in the present full-term infants aged 38–40 weeks. However, late preterm infants (n = 50) with mandatory antimicrobials feeding exhibited lower diversity but a higher composition of opportunistic pathogens such as Enterococcus species. Centralized on the situation, we explored the regulatory effect of Clostridium butyricum as probiotics on these late preterm infants. The consumption of C. butyricum did not restore the composition of gut microbes altered by antimicrobials to normal levels, although several opportunistic pathogens decreased significantly after probiotic therapy including Staphylococcus aureus, Sphingomonas echinoides, and Pseudomonas putida. We also compared the effects of day-fed versus night-fed probiotics. Intriguingly, the nighttime feeding showed a higher proportion of C. butyricum compared with probiotic day-feeding. Finally, fecal metabolome and metabolites were analyzed in late preterm infants with (n = 20) or without probiotic therapy (n = 20). The KEGG enrichment analysis demonstrated that vitamin digestion and absorption, synaptic vesicle cycle, and biotin metabolism were significantly increased in the probiotic-treated group, while MSEA indicated that a series of metabolism were significantly enriched in probiotic-treated infants including glycerolipid, biotin, and lysine, indicating the complex effects of probiotic therapy on glutathione metabolism and nutrients digestion and absorption in late preterm infants. Overall, this study provided metagenomic and metabolomic profile of the gut microbes in full-term newborns and late preterm infants in eastern China. Further studies are needed to support and elucidate the role of probiotic feeding in late preterm infants with mandatory antimicrobial treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The incidence and risk factors of low anterior resection syndrome (LARS) largely variate in different studies. In addition, there is lack of study on how patients evaluate the therapeutic effect of LARS. This single-center retrospective study aims to investigate the status of LARS in Chinese patients undergoing laparoscopic low anterior resection (LAR). Methods: Consequent patients undergoing laparoscopic LAR and free from disease recurrence from January 2015 to May 2021 were issued with both LARS questionnaire and satisfaction survey. Related data were collected and analyzed. Results: Both LARS questionnaires and self-made satisfaction survey were received from 261 eligible patients. The overall incidence of LARS was 47.1% (minor in 19.5%, major in 27.6%), decreased with the passage of postoperative time (64.7% within 12 months, and 41.7% within 12–36 months), and became stable 36 months later (39.7%). The most common symptoms were defecation clustering (n = 107/261, 41.0%) and defecation urgency (n = 101/261, 38.7%). According to the multivariable regression analysis, risk factors of major LARS were: 1 year increase in age (OR 1.035, 95% CI 1.004–1.068), protective stoma (OR 2.656, 95% CI 1.233–5.724) and T3 − 4 stage (OR 2.449, 95% CI 1.137–5.273). Most patients complained defecation disorder (87.3%) to doctors and 84.5% got suggestions or treatments for it. However, only 36.8% patients thought the treatments worked for them. Conclusions: LARS frequently occurs after laparoscopic LAR, while the therapeutic effect is not satisfying. Elder, advanced T-stage and protective stoma were risk factors for postoperative major LARS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accurate monitoring of soil moisture is critical for many environmental and hydrological applications, and commercial sensors have been used widely to detect the soil water content. However, the sensitivity of these sensors to the soil texture and bulk density demands calibration before conducting determinations. In the present study, we calibrated two soil moisture sensors (TDR‐315L and Diviner 2000) for six common soil types found on the Loess Plateau, China. The root mean square error (RMSE), ratio of the lack‐of‐fit mean square error and mean square pure error were calculated to compare the accuracies of the sensors and models. The results indicated that TDR‐315L was more accurate than Diviner 2000 for all of the samples. A new model that includes the bulk density and clay content obtained higher accuracy when calibrating the TDR‐315L sensor. And it is showed that the RMSE of volumetric water content (VWC) from the new model compared to the gravimetry are less than 0.039 m3 m−3. For the Diviner 2000 sensor, adjusting the parameters in the calibration model allowed the accurate estimation of the VWC, where the RMSE of VWC from the calibration model compared to the gravimetry are less than 0.033 m3 m−3. The results obtained in this study may facilitate the use of sensors in soil moisture observational networks and environmental and hydrological applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine disorder in women at reproductive age, which is characterized by obesity, hyperandrogenemia, and insulin resistance (IR). This study aimed to investigate the vitamin D status, and analyze the relationship between vitamin D deficiency and metabolic risk factors in PCOS women in Shaanxi China. Methods: A cross-sectional study included 169 women diagnosed with PCOS and 114 control women without PCOS. The serum 25(OH)D and metabolic markers were measured. Vitamin D deficiency was defined as serum 25(OH)D concentration less than 20 ng/mL. The primary outcome was the difference in vitamin D status between the PCOS and control groups, the secondary outcomes were correlations between serum 25(OH)D concentration and metabolic risk factors in women with PCOS. Results: The serum 25(OH)D concentration was significantly lower in women with PCOS than in controls (P < 0.05), and the prevalence rates of 25(OH)D deficiency and insufficiency were significantly higher in women with PCOS than in controls (P < 0.05). The serum 25(OH)D concentration was significantly lower in PCOS women with obesity or IR than in women without obesity or IR (P < 0.05), and the prevalence of 25(OH)D deficiency in PCOS women with obesity or IR was significantly higher than in women without obesity or IR (P < 0.05). Serum 25(OH)D concentration was significantly negatively correlated with body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), fasting insulin, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) (P < 0.05). In comparison, serum 25(OH)D concentration was significantly positively correlated with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (P < 0.05). Increased BMI and WHR, high levels of fasting insulin, HOMA-IR, total cholesterol, LDL-C and hs-CRP were regarded as risk factors, but high level of HDL-C was considered to be protective factor of vitamin D deficiency in PCOS women. Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in PCOS women in Shaanxi China, especially in those with obesity and IR. The serum 25(OH)D level was correlated with metabolic risk factors in PCOS women. Multi-center randomized controlled trials with large sample sizes are needed to probe the metabolic effect of vitamin D supplementation in PCOS women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microplastics are emerging pollutants which have been extensively detected in water environments. However, little is known about microplastic pollution in soil environments. In this study, we investigated microplastics and mesoplastics in farmland soils from twenty vegetable fields around the suburbs of Shanghai. In each site, three duplicate soil samples were collected from shallow (0–3 cm) and deep soils (3–6 cm), respectively. Microplastics (sizes of 20 μm - 5 mm) and mesoplastics (5 mm - 2 cm) were detected using methods of density extraction, 30% H 2 O 2 digestion and micro-fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The abundance of microplastics was 78.00 ± 12.91 and 62.50 ± 12.97 items kg −1 in shallow and deep soils, respectively. While, mesoplastics were found with abundance of 6.75 ± 1.51 and 3.25 ± 1.04 items kg −1 in shallow and deep soils. Among these micro(meso)plastics, 48.79% and 59.81% were in size of <1 mm in shallow and deep soils. The main morphotypes of microplastics included fiber, fragment and film, mostly in color of black or transparent. Moreover, we found that topsoil contained higher concentrations and larger sizes of micro(meso)plastics than deep soil. In addition, the vast majority of micro(meso)plastics were polypropylene (50.51%) and polyethylene (43.43%). This study reveals occurrence and characteristics of microplastic pollution in typical farmland soils. It provides important data for subsequent research on microplatics in the terrestrial ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since barrier lakes are affected by a highly changing and complex environment, it is always a great challenge to determine the proper actions that must be performed within a limited amount of time. Existing methods have some restrictions, such as the dispersed data resources and personnel, the loose model integration, and the complicated and unfriendly user interface, which results in low efficiency of dam-break risk assessment under emergency response conditions. These issues were addressed in this paper by constructing a collaborative virtual geographic environment (CVGE), which supports three levels of deeper applications including sharing of distributed resources, tightly geographic process simulation and visualisation analysis, and geographic collaboration. A virtual resource environment and mobile computing service were designed for the distributed resource sharing. A spatiotemporal process model based on cellular automata and parallel computing optimisation was proposed and integrated for real-time simulation and analysis of dam-break risk assessment of barrier lakes. A distributed virtual geographic scene and collaborative workflow were designed to improve the operational efficiency of the models with respect to initiation, computation, output visualisation and analysis. A prototype system was developed to support collaborative dam-break risk assessment of the Xiaojiaqiao barrier lake in Anxian County, Sichuan Province, China. The experimental results indicate that the proposed method could efficiently improve the efficiency of dam-break risk assessment on data supporting, model computation, and visualisation analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The microwave scatterometer on the Haiyang-2A (HY-2A) satellite is designed to provide global sea surface wind field data. The accuracy of HY-2A scatterometer wind retrievals is determined through various comparisons with moored buoys and the European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF) reanalysis data. These comparisons were made in wide regions, including open sea and coastal areas, over a four-month period from January to March 2012 and August 2012. The retrieved wind speed results agree well within situobservations and model data with respective biases −0.19 m s−1and 0.01 m s−1and root mean square error 2.02 m s−1and 1.81 m s−1. However, the wind direction errors are a little higher. The overall bias and root mean square deviation of wind direction are −2.24°, 1.74°, and 40.28°, 38.56°, respectively. The wind speed and direction residuals are higher in low- and high-wind speed ranges. In addition, the wind speed and direction are relatively more accurate for open sea than those in coastal regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xu, L.N.; Li, Y.N.; Chen, S.Z., and Yang, X.F., 2020. Analyzing impact factors of energy consumption in Yellow River Basin of China--Taking Shanxi Province as an example. In: Bai, X. and Zhou, H. (eds.), Advances in Water Resources, Environmental Protection, and Sustainable Development. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 115, pp. 539-542. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. This study selects population, GDP, industrial structure, urbanization rate and energy price as variables and analyses impact factors of the energy consumption using co-integration method during 1980-2018 period of Shanxi Province in Yellow River Basin of China. The results show that population, GDP, industrial structure and urbanization rate all promote the energy consumption, GDP is the most prominent factors, population has a smaller positive effect than GDP, and energy price could reduce energy consumption. Finally, some of policies such as improving energy using efficiency, optimizing industrial structure and promoting the process of energy price market reform are proposed to reduce energy consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate combining uterine artery embolization (UAE) with other treatments for cesarean scar pregnancy (CSP).Methods: A retrospective study included patients attending the First affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, China, between March 1, 2009 and March 31, 2014, who were diagnosed with CSP. Patients were classified by ultrasonography as having endogenous CSP (CSP type I [CSP-I]) or exogenous CSP (CSP type II [CSP-II]). Patient outcomes were compared between patients who underwent treatment that included or excluded UAE. Patient records were reviewed and patients were interviewed by telephone to report on recovery following treatment.Results: In total, 52 patients met the inclusion criteria. In patients with CSP-I, the blood loss, length of hospital stay, and time before restoration of normal β human chorionic gonadotropin levels were significantly higher in patients who were treated with methotrexate combined with dilatation and curettage compared with those treated with UAE combined with dilatation and curettage (P<0.05). In patients with CSP-II, blood loss was lower in patients treated with UAE combined with excision compared with excision alone (P<0.001).Conclusion: Incorporating UAE in the treatment of CSP-I and CSP-II was safe; CSP should be properly classified to select the appropriate treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The run-up velocity and jumping ground reaction force directly influence gymnasts' ability to perform more difficult manoeuvres and win competitions on vault. However, the variables influencing them among elite female gymnasts remain inadequately understood and warrant detailed investigation. This study aimed to analyse critical variables including run-up velocity and jumping ground reaction force, and to compare these factors across different vault types while further exploring the correlations among them. The study hypothesized that there are significant differences in run-up velocity and jumping ground reaction force across vaulting types, and that these differences will affect athletes' performance. To test this hypothesis, the study analyzed data from performance tests on 16 elite Chinese female gymnasts, focusing on vaulting run-up velocity and jumping ground reaction force. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data, and binary logistic regression analysis was employed to investigate the relationships between the variables. The study found significant differences in interval run-up velocities between the Front handspring vaults and the Tsukahara vaults, particularly before the last 10 m (p = 0.04) and the last 5 m (p = 0.03). Specifically, the Front handspring vaults had higher velocities before the last 10 m, while the Tsukahara vaults had higher velocities within the last 5 m. Differences were also noted in the lengths of the penultimate (p = 0.03), last (p = 0.01), and hurdle steps (p = 0.04). The jumping ground reaction force showed a strong negative correlation with run-up velocity before the last 10 m (ρ = -0.469, p < 0.01) and the last 5 m (ρ = - 0.604, p < 0.01). However, no significant associations were found with the 25 m run-up velocity (p = 0.346). Significant differences were observed in the hip joint angle (p = 0.001) and the trunk-to-ground angle (p = 0.001), but not in the landing angle (p = 0.435) and take-off angle (p = 0.594) during the take-off phase. These findings suggest that revising the run-up rhythm and improving pedaling techniques could contribute to the successful performance of more difficult vaulting maneuvers for female elite gymnasts in China., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Monkeypox virus (MPXV) poses a global health threat. Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) holds potential as an accurate diagnostic tool for clinical microbiology. However, there is limited literature on the applicability of ddPCR in clinical settings. In this study, the clinical features of patients with MPXV during the initial outbreak in China in June 2023 were reviewed, and an optimized ddPCR method with dilution and/or inhibitor removal was developed to enhance MPXV detection efficiency. Eighty-two MPXV samples were tested from nine different clinical specimen types, including feces, urine, pharyngeal swabs, anal swabs, saliva, herpes fluid, crust, and semen, and the viral load of each specimen was quantified. A comparative analysis was performed with qPCR to assess sensitivity and specificity and to investigate the characteristics of MPXV infection by analyzing viral loads in different clinical specimens. Consequently, common pharyngeal and gastrointestinal symptoms were observed in patients with MPXV. The optimized ddPCR method demonstrated relatively high sensitivity for MPXV quantification in the clinical materials, with a limit of detection of 0.1 copies/μL. This was particularly evident in low-concentration samples like whole blood, semen, and urine. The optimized ddPCR demonstrated greater detection accuracy compared with normal ddPCR and qPCR, with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.939. Except for crust samples, viral loads in the specimens gradually decreased as the disease progressed. Virus levels in feces and anal swabs kept a high detection rate at each stage of post-symptom onset, and feces and anal swabs samples may be suitable for clinical diagnosis and continuous monitoring of MPXV., Importance: The ddPCR technique proved to be a sensitive and valuable tool for accurately quantifying MPXV viral loads in various clinical specimen types. The findings provided valuable insights into the necessary pre-treatment protocols for MPXV diagnosis in ddPCR detection and the potentially suitable sample types for collection. Therefore, such results can aid in comprehending the potential characteristics of MPXV infection and the usage of ddPCR in clinical settings., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Objective: To assess the effects of COVID-19 pandemic on the epidemiology of neonatal sepsis and the antibiotic resistance profiles of pathogens involved., Methods: This retrospective cohort study analyzed infants diagnosed with culture-proven sepsis at the neonatal department of a tertiary children's hospital in East China from January 2016 to December 2022. We compared the clinical and microbiological characteristics of neonatal sepsis cases between the pre-pandemic Phase I (2016-2019) and during the COVID-19 pandemic Phase II (2020-2022)., Results: A total of 507 infants with 525 sepsis episodes were included, with 343 episodes in Phase I and 182 in Phase II. The incidence of early-onset sepsis (EOS) was significantly lower during Phase II (p < 0.05). Infants in Phase II had lower gestational ages and birth weights compared to Phase I. Clinical signs such as mottled skin, severe anemia, thrombocytopenia were more prevalent in Phase II, alongside a higher incidence of complications. Notably, necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) (p < 0.05) and meningitis (p < 0.1) occurred more frequently during Phase II. Escherichia coli ( E. coli ) and Klebsiella pneumoniae ( K. pneumoniae ) were the predominant pathogens isolated from infants of death and cases with complications. A significant decrease in the proportion of K. pneumoniae was observed in Phase II, alongside increased antibiotic resistance in both E. coli and K. pneumoniae . The period of the COVID-19 pandemic (Phase II) was identified as an independent risk factor for complications in infants with neonatal sepsis., Conclusion: COVID-19 pandemic response measures correlated with a decrease in EOS and an increase in neonatal sepsis complications and antibiotic resistance., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Yang, Ren, Gong, Lu and Ding.)

Rural settlements are the spatial carriers of rural multifunctionality, and various issues related to livability are the main manifestations and causes of unbalanced and insufficient rural development. In the new era, it is imperative to promote the livability of rural settlements with the implementation of rural revitalization. However, compared with urban settlements, there are still fewer studies on the livability of rural settlements, especially those in disaster-prone areas; thus, this paper takes the upper reaches of the Minjiang River as the study area. It adopts GIS spatial analysis and the model of minimum cumulative resistance, etc., to conduct a livability evaluation and construct an optimization model by innovatively taking five aspects into account including site security and resource endowment. The results show that: (1) The overall livability of the region is relatively good, and the main factors affecting the livability are site security and economic affluence; (2) The location of rural settlements was highly livability-oriented, and the area of rural settlements in the moderate- and high-livability zones accounted for more than 90%; and (3) The key to improving the livability of rural settlements lies in the construction of development synergy, disaster management, cultural preservation and industrial upgrading, and thus, four types of settlement livability enhancement are proposed. The research results provide theoretical support for the construction of livable villages in the upper reaches of the Minjiang River and similar mountainous areas.

Mountainous areas are susceptible to disasters; the frequent occurrence of disasters drives the changes in ecosystem service value (ESV) and also brings certain ecological risk, which further increases the incidence of disasters. However, few scholars have investigated the spatiotemporal correlation between the ESV of disaster-prone mountainous areas and ecological risk index (ERI) with basin as the unit. This paper aims to clarify the spatial relationship between ESV and ERI under the changes of land use. Taking the upper reaches of the Minjiang River as the study area, the authors collected the land use data of 2000-2020, estimated ESV by the value equivalent factor per unit area method, and constructed the ERI. On this basis, the relationship between ESV and ERI was investigated in details. The results show the following: (1) From 2000 to 2020, the total ESV exhibited a fluctuating upward trend. The spatial distribution of ESV was greatly affected by slope and altitude; an important reason for the rising ESV in the study area is the increase of forest area and water area. (2) The upper reaches of the Minjiang River had a generally low ERI and relatively good overall ecoenvironment. After 2010, however, the ecological risk continued to rise. Most of the strongly high risk areas are areas with frequent human activities, such as low-altitude areas and river banks. (3) There is a spatial correlation and coupling between ESV and ERI in the study area; i.e., the strongly high ESV areas generally had a low ecological risk. The correlation intensified with the elapse of time. The changes in the service value of regional ecosystems driven by unreasonable land use will have a great impact on the ecoenvironment. By clarifying the spatiotemporal relationship between ESV and ERI, this research provides theoretical basis and data support to the formulation of ecoenvironmental restoration and protection plans for the upper reaches of the Minjiang River and to the coordinated development between society, economy, and ecoenvironment in the region., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Linsen Duan et al.)

The mutations in the SARS-CoV-2 virus genome during COVID-19 dissemination are unclear. In 788 COVID-19 patients from Zhejiang province, we observed decreased rate of severe/critical cases compared with patients in Wuhan. For mechanisms exploration, we isolated one strain of SARS-CoV-2 (ZJ01) from a mild COVID-19 patient. Thirty-five specific gene mutations were identified. Phylogenetic and relative synonymous codon usage analysis suggested that ZJ01 may be a potential evolutionary branch of SARS-CoV-2. We classified 54 global virus strains based on the base (C or T) at positions 8824 and 28247 while ZJ01 has T at both sites. The prediction of the Furin cleavage site (FCS) and sequence alignment indicated that the FCS may be an important site of coronavirus evolution. ZJ01 mutations identified near the FCS (F1-2) caused changes in the structure and electrostatic distribution of the S surface protein, further affecting the binding capacity of Furin. Single-cell sequencing and ACE2-Furin co-expression results confirmed that the Furin expression was especially higher in glands, liver, kidneys, and colon. The evolutionary pattern of SARS-CoV-2 towards FCS formation may result in its clinical symptom becoming closer to HKU-1 and OC43 caused mild flu-like symptoms, further showing its potential in differentiating into mild COVID-19 subtypes.

Pelvic organ prolapses (POP) notably reduces the quality of life in elderly populations due to bladder and bowel dysfunction, incontinence, and coital problems. Extracellular matrix (ECM) disorder is a pivotal event in the progression of POP, but to date, its specific underlying mechanism remains unclear. The ligaments of patients with POP and healthy controls were collected to compare the expression of Homeobox11 (HOXA11) and transforming growth factor β (TGF‑β1) via immunohistochemical analysis. HOXA11 and TGF‑β1 were overexpressed or knocked down in fibroblast cells to explore their effects on the expression of collagen and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). HOXA11 and TGF‑β1 were greatly reduced in the ligaments of patients with POP. The overexpression and downregulation of HOXA11 and TGF‑β1 can mediate ECM disorder via regulating expression of collagen (Col) and MMPs. In addition, HOXA11 and TGF‑β1 exerted synergistic effect on the expression of Col and MMPs. The present study identified that HOXA11 and TGF‑β1 serve critical roles in mediating ECM disorders, which may be of clinical significance for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with POP.

Purpose: To survey the routine application of consumables and sterilized accessories of phacoemulsification in mainland China., Methods: This was a cross-sectional questionnaire-based study. A questionnaire link was sent to Chinese ophthalmologists via the most widely used social communication tool (WeChat platform)., Results: A total of 815 questionnaires were determined to be valid and were included in the final analysis. The majority of respondents were from Guangdong, Shandong, Zhejiang, Hebei, and Henan provinces. A number of hospitals (48.22%) reused the fluidics management system (FMS) after sterilization. Among the hospitals using disposable FMS, 38.03% reused tubing after sterilization. Most respondents' hospitals (70.43%) sterilized the handpiece for each operation. Only 38.77% of the respondents' hospitals adopted irrigation fluid antibiotics and/or intracameral antibiotics intraoperatively. Greater single usage of FMS was significantly associated with higher provincial gross domestic product (GDP), government hospitals, provincial hospitals, and disposable tubing (P < 0.05). The adoption of irrigation fluid/intracameral antibiotics was correlated with the financial type of the hospital, the daily volume of phacoemulsification, and the usage of silicone tubing (P < 0.05)., Conclusions: The results show a wide variation in the application of consumables and the sterilization of accessories in phacoemulsification in mainland China. Only half of the hospitals adopted interfusion/intracameral antibiotic prophylaxis, despite its efficacy having been confirmed. These data revealed potential safety issues of the sterilization of phacoemulsification instruments and the risk of intraocular infection.

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of patient body mass index (BMI) and estimated creatinine clearance (CrCl) on serum vancomycin concentrations to define a possible optimal dosage regimen in overweight patients based on data obtained during therapeutic drug monitoring., Methods: This retrospective study used data collected from January 2017 to January 2019. Adult patients (n = 204) received vancomycin treatment at a dose of 1000 mg every 12 h and underwent serum monitoring. Data collected included patient disease category, sex, age, height, weight, vancomycin concentrations, and serum creatinine. The CrCl values were estimated using the Cockcroft-Gault formula. In this study, statistical comparisons were performed on the results of patients according to serum vancomycin concentration., Results: Serum vancomycin concentration was significantly related to BMI (P <  0.001) and CrCl (P <  0.05) in adult patients. Furthermore, the trough serum vancomycin concentration showed a logarithmic correlation with BMI (R = - 0.5108, 95% CI: - 0.6082 to - 0.3982, P <  0.001) and CrCl (R = - 0.5739, 95% CI: - 0.6616 to - 0.4707, P <  0.001). The multivariate analysis showed that BMI and CrCl are independent contributors to the trough vancomycin concentration. Moreover, some of the patients with higher BMI (≥ 24 kg/m 2 ) met the goal trough concentration after an adjustment from 1000 mg every 12 h to 1000 mg every 8 h., Conclusions: Serum vancomycin concentration decreases progressively with increasing BMI and the augmentation in CrCl in adult patients. The trough concentration of vancomycin should be continuously monitored for patients with a BMI ≥ 24 kg/m 2 , and the dosage regimen should be adjusted to reach the target trough concentration in these patients to reduce the impact of BMI.

Background: Blood flow in the corpus luteum is associated with luteal function. However, the impact of luteal blood flow on methotrexate (MTX) treatment in women with unruptured tubal pregnancy has not been reported. The aim of the present study was to observe the impact of luteal blood flow on the therapeutic effect of MTX in women with unruptured tubal pregnancy., Methods: A prospective observational study recruited 129 women with unruptured tubal pregnancy in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from September 2016 to June 2018. One hundred and fifteen women were treated successfully with MTX, and women were divided into 2 groups according to luteal blood flow: the poor luteal blood flow group and the abundant luteal blood flow group. The therapeutic effects were compared between the two groups., Results: Women in the abundant luteal blood flow group had a significantly higher serum β-human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG) level 4 days, 1 week and 2 weeks after MTX treatment compared with women in the poor luteal blood flow group (P < 0.05). The average diameter of the ectopic mass 1 week, 2 weeks and 3 weeks after MTX treatment in women with abundant luteal blood flow was significantly larger (P < 0.05), and the time of serum β-hCG clearance and ectopic mass disappearance were significantly longer compared with those in women in the poor luteal blood flow group (P < 0.05)., Conclusions: Luteal blood flow might be a predictive factor for MTX treatment outcomes in women with unruptured tubal pregnancy, and those with abundant luteal blood flow need a longer recovery time.

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to retrospectively analyze the risk factors for venous thromboembolism (VTE) in gynecological patients and verify the validity of a fast-rating assessment table. MATERIAL AND METHODS From October 2015 to October 2017, 53 patients complicated with VTE after gynecological operations were analyzed, and a total of 106 patients with 2 adjacent operations were selected as the control group. Factors such as age, body mass index (BMI), and tumor type were analyzed by univariate and multivariate analysis. A fast-rating assessment table of VTE risk factors was constructed. This fast-rating assessment table and the Caprini score table were used to compare the scores of all patients. RESULTS In the univariate analysis, there were significant differences in BMI, tumor type, operation duration, blood loss, blood transfusion, bed rest time, and thrombus-related history between the 2 groups. In the multiple factor analysis, age >60 years old, BMI >28 kg/m², malignant tumors, operation duration ≥3 hours, laparoscopic surgery and thrombus-related history were independent risk factors for VTE in patients. Both the fast-rating assessment table and the Caprini score table identified 90% of VTE patients as high-risk and very high-risk, and there was no significant difference between the tables. CONCLUSIONS Patients with older age, high BMI, malignant tumors, longer operation duration, laparoscopic surgery, or history of thrombosis may be more prone to VTE after gynecologic surgery. The fast-rating assessment table is easy to operate and has a high recognition level for VTE. It can be applied widely.

To analyze the association between glutathione S-transferases polymorphisms and the risk of cervical lesions.Case-control studies focusing on the association between glutathione S-transferase polymorphisms and the risk of cervical lesions were collected from the PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Embase, Medline, CNKI, VIP and Wanfang databases from inception to August 2018. Pooled odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were employed to evaluate the strength of the association. Subgroup analysis and sensitivity analysis were used to test the potential discrepancy and robustness, respectively.A total of 30 studies comprising 3961 patients and 4726 healthy controls satisfied the inclusion criteria. Of these, 6 studies contained information about GSTP1, 27 studies contained information about GSTM1, and 22 studies contained information about GSTT1. Our results supported that there was no statistical association between GSTP1 polymorphism and the risk of cervical lesions (odds ratio [OR] = 1.08, P = .40). The GSTM1 null variant showed increased susceptibility to cervical lesions (OR = 1.45, P < .001). Subgroup analysis revealed that the GSTM1 null variant caused cervical lesions among HPV infection cases (OR = 1.69, P = .02) and among the Chinese and Indian populations (OR = 2.24 and OR = 1.87, respectively, P < .001). The GSTT1 null variant increased the risk of cervical lesions in smokers (OR = 1.52, P = .03). The GSTT1 null genotype was also related to high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia (HSIL) and cervical cancer risk (OR = 1.30 and OR = 1.78, respectively, P < .05).The GSTM1 null variant caused cervical lesions, especially among HPV infection cases and among the Chinese and Indian populations. The GSTT1 null variant increased the risk of cervical lesions in smokers and was also related to HISL and cervical cancer risk.

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide and the fourth most lethal cancer in China. However, although genomic studies have identified some mutations associated with ESCC, we know little of the mutational processes responsible. To identify genome-wide mutational signatures, we performed either whole-genome sequencing (WGS) or whole-exome sequencing (WES) on 104 ESCC individuals and combined our data with those of 88 previously reported samples. An APOBEC-mediated mutational signature in 47% of 192 tumors suggests that APOBEC-catalyzed deamination provides a source of DNA damage in ESCC. Moreover, PIK3CA hotspot mutations (c.1624G>A [p.Glu542Lys] and c.1633G>A [p.Glu545Lys]) were enriched in APOBEC-signature tumors, and no smoking-associated signature was observed in ESCC. In the samples analyzed by WGS, we identified focal (<100 kb) amplifications of CBX4 and CBX8. In our combined cohort, we identified frequent inactivating mutations in AJUBA, ZNF750, and PTCH1 and the chromatin-remodeling genes CREBBP and BAP1, in addition to known mutations. Functional analyses suggest roles for several genes (CBX4, CBX8, AJUBA, and ZNF750) in ESCC. Notably, high activity of hedgehog signaling and the PI3K pathway in approximately 60% of 104 ESCC tumors indicates that therapies targeting these pathways might be particularly promising strategies for ESCC. Collectively, our data provide comprehensive insights into the mutational signatures of ESCC and identify markers for early diagnosis and potential therapeutic targets., (Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

We announce the draft genome sequence of Borrelia garinii strain NMJW1, isolated from Ixodes persulcatus in northeastern China. The 902,789-bp linear chromosome (28.4% GC content) contains 813 open reading frames, 33 tRNAs, and 4 complete rRNAs.

Background and Objective: Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies are X-linked diseases caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene, which affect approximately 1 in 3,500 and 1 in 18,000 boys, respectively. The aim of this work was to develop a method to assist the diagnosis and classification of the disease., Materials and Methods: A large data set of dystrophin mutations was detected in 167 Chinese patients by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification and sequencing. Muscle biopsy, immunohistochemistry and STR analysis were also carried out in the patients and carriers., Results: One hundred and three deletions, 23 duplications and two-point mutations. The deletion of one or more exons was detected in 103 (61.7%) patients. The region spanning exons 44-55 was the most frequent deletion. The duplication was identified in 23 (13.8%) patients, which was more common than previously reported. Most duplications were found in exons 2-18. Six out of the 45 muscle biopsies analyzed showed the presence of other muscle diseases., Conclusions: This study may be important to enable comparisons of mutation type and the most appropriate analytical approach for samples from different geographical areas and ethnicities.

Unlabelled: Some new radiotracers might add useful information and improve diagnostic confidence of (18)F-FDG imaging in tumors. A multicenter clinical trial was designed to investigate the diagnostic performance of dual-tracer ((18)F-FDG and 3'-deoxy-3'-(18)F-fluorothymidine [(18)F-FLT]) PET/CT in pulmonary nodules., Methods: Fifty-five patients underwent dual-tracer imaging in 6 imaging centers using the same models of equipment and standardized protocols. The images were interpreted by a collective group of readers who were unaware of the clinical data. The diagnostic performance using either tracer alone or dual-tracers together, with or without CT, was compared. The histological diagnosis or clinical findings in a 12-mo follow-up period served as the standard of truth., Results: In 16 patients with malignant tumor, 16 with tuberculosis, and 23 with other benign lesions, the sensitivity and specificity of (18)F-FDG and (18)F-FLT were 87.5% and 58.97% and 68.75% and 76.92%, respectively. The combination of dual-tracer PET/CT improved the sensitivity and specificity up to 100% and 89.74%. The 3 subgroups of patients could be best separated when the (18)F-FLT/(18)F-FDG standardized uptake value ratio of 0.4-0.90 was used as the threshold., Conclusion: By reflecting different biologic features, the dual-tracer PET/CT using (18)F-FDG and (18)F-FLT favorably affected the diagnosis of lung nodules.