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The water yield of coal seam roof aquifers is the key factor for evaluating and controlling water disasters in coal seam roofs. To evaluate the water yield of the sandstone aquifer in the roof of the Carboniferous-Permian Damiaozhuang Formation no. 8 coal seam in the Donghuantuo Mine, North China, seven main controlling factors affecting the water yield of sandstone aquifers are determined, including the permeability coefficient, consumption of drilling fluid, core recovery, aquifer thickness, brittle-plastic rock thickness ratio, fault scale index, and fault point density. Further, the fuzzy Delphi analytic hierarchy process (FDAHP) and entropy weight method (EWM) are used to calculate the subjective and objective weights of each main factor, respectively, and a combination weight model (CWM) is proposed based on the least square method to compose the comprehensive weights. Then, an improved water yield property index (IWYPI) model is established, and the water yield zoning map of sandstone aquifers is acquired. Engineering practice shows that the evaluation accuracy of the water yield property index (IWYPI) model based on the CWM is as high as 93.75%, which is 18.75% and 12.5% higher than that of the water yield property index (WYPI) model based on the FDAHP and EWM, respectively. The research results propose a novel method for evaluating the water yield of coal seam roof aquifers and can provide scientific guidance for the prevention and control of water disasters in the no. 8 coal seam roof of the Donghuantuo Coal Mine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Colistin is considered a last resort for treatment of MDR gram-negative bacteria. • The mcr -1-positive isolate revealed a multidrug-resistant phenotype. • pJZ26 harbors many resistance genes and has a high potential to disseminate the mcr-1 gene. • pJZ26 contains an additional 4.6 kb fragment harboring the resistance gene tet(A). • The regulator tetR of tet(A) located on Tn As1 transposable element. Antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella enterica is a major global concern. Recent findings suggest that colistin as a last resort treatment for multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacteria is seriously threatened by the report of plasmid-mediated colistin resistance gene mcr-1 in China. A total of 827 S. Typhimurium isolates were recovered from 4 cities of China, including Henan, Shanghai, Zhejiang, and Hubei provinces. Subsequently, mcr-1 presence was identified by PCR screening. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed by broth microdilution using a 96-well microtiter plate. Plasmid conjugation transfer experiments were conducted using Escherichia coli J53 as the recipient. Only one mcr-1 positive strain from the stool sample of an infant with acute diarrhea was isolated. Apart from colistin, the mcr-1 -positive isolate showed co-resistance to the third-generation cephalosporins, ampicillin, nalidixic acid, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, sulfisoxazole, gentamicin, and cefotaxime revealing a multidrug-resistant phenotype. This strain harbored mcr-1 on a 227 kb IncHI2 plasmid, termed pJZ26, which could be transferred to E. coli J53. In addition to mcr-1 , pJZ26 coharbored other resistance genes, including aph(4)-Ia , aac(3)-IVa , fosA , floR , sul2 , and bla CTX-M-14. Compared with p2474-MCR1 and pHYEC7-IncHI2, pJZ26 contains an additional 4.6 kb fragment harboring the resistance gene tet(A) and its regulator tetR located on Tn As1 transposable element, which could mediate resistance to tetracycline. These findings highlight that the fact the mcr-1 –harboring plasmid pJZ26 has a high potential to disseminate the mcr-1 gene and further challenge the clinical treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine ecosystems are complex self-organized systems that generate natural capital stocks and vital ecosystem services (ES) for human well-being. However, the assessment of marine natural capital in coastal countries is often overlooked. In this study, we evaluated the value of marine natural capital in mainland China using existing ES classifications and the emergy method. China's marine natural capital was estimated at 3.29E+24 sej/yr, with coastal waters having 3.2 times higher emergy density than terrestrial ecosystems. The annual economic value of marine natural capital in China's coastal water was approximately 8817.42 billion yuan/yr, nearly equal to China's Gross Ocean Product (GOP) in 2019 (8941.5-billion-yuan). Southern China showed significantly higher natural capital values than northern China. These findings highlight regional disparities in marine resource utilization and socioeconomic status, posing challenges to sustainable ocean development. The results provide a reference for policy and strategy development for sustainable marine resource exploitation. • The first natural capital value assessment of China's coastal water ecosystem. • Contributing to understand the link between marine resource and human well-being. • Emergy accounting can be used to sustainable marine resource management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sterculia lanceolata, an important tropical woody plant, has high ornamental and medicinal value. To our knowledge, only brown root disease in this plant has been reported. In Nanning, Guangxi, China, an outbreak of leaf blight disease was observed on S. lanceolata in June 2019, with the leaf infection rate ranging from 80% to 100%. The disease seriously affected the leaves of trees and caused economic loss. Eight isolates were recovered from the infected leaves of different trees, and the pathogenicity was then determined by the methods of mycelial disc and conidial suspension, fulfilling Koch's postulates. According to the morphological and molecular biological characteristics of isolates, the pathogen causing leaf blight on S. lanceolata was identified as Colletotrichum siamense. Accurate identification of the pathogen provides a reliable basis for the control of the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Consumption demands are final drivers for the extraction and allocation of natural resources. This paper investigates demand-driven natural resource requirements and spatial outsourcing within China in 2012 by using the latest multi-regional input-output model. Exergy is adopted as a common metric for natural resources input. The total domestic resource exergy requirements amounted to 125.5 EJ, of which the eastern area contributed the largest share of 44.5%, followed by the western area (23.9%), the central area (23.0%) and the northeastern area (8.6%). Investment was the leading final demand category, accounting for 52.9% (66.4 EJ) of national total embodied resource use (ERU). The total trade volumes of embodied resource were equivalent to 69.6% of the total direct resource input (DRI), mostly transferred from the central and western regions such as Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Xinjiang to the eastern regions such as Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong and Shanghai. The northeastern and eastern areas had physical net imports of 1213.5 PJ and 38452.6 PJ, while the central and western inland areas had physical net exports of 6364.5 PJ and 33301.5 PJ, respectively. Shanghai, Beijing, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Guangdong had prominent ERUs which respectively were 101.6, 12.6, 11.7, 8.4 and 4.3 times of their DRIs. The ERUs of Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Ningxia and Guizhou were equal to only 17.6%, 25.3%, 27.9%, 46.0% and 50.2% of their DRIs, respectively. Regional uneven development resulted in imbalanced resource requirements across China. The findings can provide a deep understanding of China's resource-driven economic development mode, and contribute to reducing regional resource footprints and their environment outcomes under the "new normal economy". Highlights • Outsourcing resource requirements within China 2012 is systematically revealed. • Exergy is adopted as a common metric for various natural resources input. • 69.6% of national total resource requirements were transferred via domestic trade. • Regional resource use patterns under the "new normal economy" are identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Background Intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired pneumonia and ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) are associated with poor clinical and economic outcomes. Data regarding ICU-acquired pneumonia and VAP are not readily available from developing countries, including China. The objective of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the incidence, mortality rate, length of stay, and pathogens associated with ICU-acquired pneumonia in China. Methods A meta-analysis and systematic review of 334 publications published between January 2007 and May 2012 and retrieved from the Chinese BioMedical database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP Chinese Science and Technique Journals database, Wanfang database, and PubMed was conducted. Results The incidences of ICU-acquired pneumonia and VAP were 16.2% (95% confidence interval (CI) 12.8–20.4%) and 33.7% (95% CI 31.4–36.1%), respectively; mortality rates were 37.4% (95% CI 24.6–52.2%) and 34.5% (95% CI 29.2–40.1%), respectively. The durations of stay in the ICU and hospital were 12.4 (95% CI 9.6–15.3) and 17.7 (95% CI 15.6–19.7) days and 18.0 (95% CI 16.5–19.6) and 30.5 (95% CI 26.4–34.7) days for ICU-acquired pneumonia and VAP, respectively. Pseudomonas aeruginosa (19.9%) and Acinetobacter baumannii (13.9%) were the most frequently isolated pathogens, followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae (11.9%) and Staphylococcus aureus (10.4%); 82.9% of S. aureus isolates were reported to be methicillin-resistant. Conclusions ICU-acquired pneumonia/VAP remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients in the ICU in China. Data on organisms causing disease in this population could help guide appropriate prevention strategies and treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of precipitation variability on soil organic carbon (SOC) decomposition is vital in regulating the global carbon (C) cycle and climate change. However, the response of SOC decomposition to different magnitudes of precipitation variability and its dependence on moisture level are still controversial. In this study, we conducted a three-month incubation experiment that manipulated soil water levels and the intensity of water variability with a homogenized topsoil from a temperate grassland. Results showed that intensified water variability significantly reduced CO 2 emissions at the low-water level, but did not affect the SOC decomposition at the high-water level. Meanwhile, the microbial community was significantly altered by the intensified water variability, showing a decrease in microbial biomass and increases in the fungi: bacterial ratio and Gram-positive: Gram-negative bacteria ratio, which tended to suppress the SOC decomposition. However, the intensified water variability significantly stimulated the breakdown of macro-aggregates to micro-aggregates at the high-water level, which promoted the substrate availability in soil and compensated for the suppressed SOC decomposition by microbial community responses. The findings highlight that the response of SOC decomposition to intensified water variability is co-determined by the microbial community responses and aggregate instabilities. • Intensified water variability changes the microbial community and suppresses C release. • Suppressed C release is compensated by aggregates breakdown at the high-water level. • SOC response to water variability seems to be driven by microbial-physical interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to global warming and other climate changes, it is increasingly important to study the response of regional environmental changes and dynamic changes in vegetation to climate change. Based on meteorological data from the last 60 years, this paper calculates the humidity index of western China under a wide range of long time series in different regions and explores the cross-correlation effect between series by offering a comparison with NDVI data, to analyze the cross-correlation between wet and dry changes and changes in vegetation in western China on a spatial scale. The results show that the spatial distribution of the interdecadal humidity index is different between different regions in western China. For example, the semi-arid and the semi-humid zones of the Weihe River region exhibit significant changes, while the Xinjiang and Qinghai–Tibet regions show a trend of constant wetness, on the whole, and the Sichuan and Yunnan–Guizhou regions are relatively humid and the distribution of wetness and dryness is relatively stable. The distribution of high and low values of the humidity index is very obvious and consistent with that of the distribution of desert bare land and precipitation in western China. In common with the distribution in the humidity index, the maximum correlation number between the NDVI and the humidity index in the whole western region is also significantly different in spatial distribution. There is a positive correlation between the NDVI and the humidity index in 99% of the study area. However, the delay in response time of the NDVI to changes in the humidity index in each region is inconsistent. For example, changes in the NDVI lag changes in the humidity index in the Menggan region by generally either 2 months or 5 months, while in the Sichuan region the delay in response time is generally 3 months. The variation and trend in dry and wet areas are closely related to the geographical location, climate zone, and topographic terrain, which may be the reason for the differences in the distribution of vegetation types and the response time to dry and wet changes. There is significant interaction between the humidity index and the vegetation type or precipitation distribution in western China. The positive correlation between the NDVI and the humidity index means that the positive effect is more sensitive, and the response of grassland is the most sensitive in the ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diabetes is a common comorbidity among patients with exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD). Diabetes has been reported to be associated with length of stay (LOS), death, and cost among AECOPD patients. However, most studies are retrospective or have small sample sizes. The association for cost has not been researched using diabetes as a main analytic factor. This study aimed to fill gaps mentioned above, to compare basic characteristics between the diabetic and non-diabetic group, and to detect associations between diabetes and clinical outcomes among patients hospitalized with AECOPD.Methods: A total of 5334 AECOPD patients, classified into diabetic and non-diabetic group, were included from a prospective multicenter patient registry study. Generalized linear regression and logistic regression were separately used for the association between diabetes and direct hospitalization cost and the association between diabetes and LOS.Results: Generally, diabetic patients had a more severe profile, including being older, more overweight or obese, having more former smokers, more emergency room visits in the past 12 months, and more comorbidities occurrence. Diabetic patients also had worse clinical outcomes, including higher cost and longer LOS. Additionally, the generalized linear regression indicated that the marginal mean cost difference between diabetic and non-diabetic patients was RMB (¥) 775.7.Conclusions: AECOPD patients with comorbid diabetes had a more severe profile and higher direct hospitalization cost. Diabetes screening and integrated care programs might help reduce the heavy comorbidity and economic burden. Moreover, corticosteroids and metformin could be considered in the treatment of these patients. Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov with the identifier NCT0265752. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of healthcare-associated infection (HAI) in the China-Japan Friendship Hospital, a tertiary level hospital in Beijing, China.Methods: We defined HAI using the criteria established by the Ministry of Health of the People's Republic of China. Three cross-sectional surveys were conducted from 2012 to 2014. Inpatients who had been hospitalized for at least 48 h were surveyed. Information on HAI prevalence, isolated pathogens and use of antibiotics were collected. Logistic regression models were used to assess the associations between HAI and potential risk factors.Results: During three cross-sectional surveys, a total number of 4,029 patients were included (1,233 patients in 2012, 1,220 patients in 2013 and 1,576 patients in 2014). The overall prevalence of patients with HAI was 3.6 % (95 % confidence interval (CI) 3.1 %-4.2 %). Respiratory tract infections were the most common type (64.7 %) of HAIs, followed by urinary tract infections (12.6 %) and bloodstream infections (5.4 %). HAI occurrences were significantly associated with male sex (odds ratio (OR) = 2.25, 95 % CI 1.53-3.32), age over 85 years (OR = 4.74, 95 % CI 2.54-8.83), hospitalization in the intensive care units (ICUs) (OR = 2.42, 95 % CI 1.31-4.49), indwelling urinary catheter (OR = 4.21, 95 % CI 2.46-7.20) and mechanical ventilation (OR = 2.31, 95 % CI 1.30-4.09). Gram-negative bacteria were found to be the most isolated pathogens (67.1 %), with gram-positive bacteria and fungi accounted for 20.3 % and 10.5 %, respectively. Antibiotics were administered to 34.3 % of the included patients over the study period.Conclusions: The overall HAI prevalence in our hospital is similar to previous studies that were conducted in other areas of China, and the respiratory tract infection should be the priority in HAI reduction control within China. We should focus HAI reduction efforts on patients with advanced age, hospitalization in the ICU and indwelling devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to uneven development and unbalanced resource endowments within China, ensuring reliable energy, water and food supply is a core challenge to regional socio-economic development. This study makes a first attempt to examine and compare demand-driven energy, water and arable land (E-W-L) resource outsourcings within China based on the latest multi-regional input-output model. Results show that interprovincial trade reallocated 73.4%, 33.9% and 38.1% of the national total E-W-L resource inputs in 2012, respectively. Investment was the dominant final demand category for driving energy requirements, while consumption was the leading final demand category for water and arable land requirements. Important provincial regions and critical transmission sectors for the trade of embodied E-W-L resources are identified. Substantial E-W-L resources were transferred from the central and western regions to the eastern regions. Especially, Inner Mongolia was the top interregional net exporter of embodied energy, while Jiangsu topped the net importer list. Regarding virtual water transfer, Xinjiang and Shandong were the biggest interregional net exporters and net importers, respectively, while Heilongjiang and Guangdong stood out in the net trade of embodied arable land. Owing to the impact of interprovincial trade, the resource occupancy levels of the eastern developed area were much higher than those of the northeastern, central and western areas. The imbalances in the levels of socio-economic development amongst provincial regions are mirrored by their patterns of E-W-L uses and related trade transfer. Understanding the synchronal outsourcings of E-W-L resource requirements provides important implications for targeted resource management in Chinese interprovincial supply chains. • Energy, water and arable land resource outsourcings within China are examined. • Consumption-based accounting contributes to revealing resource inequality issue. • Eastern developed regions induce large amounts of resource transfers via trade. • Regional uneven development leads to the unequal access to resources. • Managing interprovincial supply chains can reduce resource footprint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]