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To study the factors determining spectacle-wear compliance and reasons for non-wear among students in rural China. This study was based on a spectacle intervention trial among 162 schools in rural China. Students with refractive errors were randomly assigned to either a free or voucher group to receive spectacles at baseline. Spectacle-wear compliance was assessed through an unannounced follow-up 7 months after spectacles were distributed. Students not wearing spectacles were also asked their reasons for non-wear. The collected data underwent descriptive, bivariate, and logistic regression analyses. A total of 1904 students received spectacles at baseline, 1826 (95.9%) of whom were present at the 7-month follow-up. Among those students, 41.7% wore their spectacles. There was no significant difference in compliance rates between the free and voucher groups. Predictors of wearing spectacles at follow-up included older age (Odds ratio = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.12–2.19), the severity of refractive error (3.68, 2.23–6.07), wearing spectacles before baseline (3.91, 2.53–6.04) and having friends who wore spectacles (1.87, 1.32–2.63). When students could see the blackboard from their seats (0.68, 0.51–0.89) and thought that wearing spectacles was bad looking (0.76, 0.57–1.00), they were reluctant to wear spectacles. The two main reasons for non-wear were the widespread perception that wearing spectacles would weaken eyesight (32.8%) and the inconvenience of wearing spectacles during activities (23.6%). The main reason that accounts for the low compliance of spectacle wear was misconceptions around spectacle. School-based spectacle programs should consider enhancing the compliance rates to maximize the benefits of spectacle wear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vegetation restoration is assumed to enhance carbon (C) sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems, where plant producers and microbial decomposers play key roles in soil C cycling. However, it is not clear how the nutrient limitation patterns of plants and soil microbes might change during vegetation restoration. We investigated the nutrient limitations of the plant and microbial communities along a natural vegetation restoration chronosequence (1, 8, 16, 31, and 50 years) following farmland abandonment in Qinling Mountains, China, and assessed their relationships with soil factors. The result showed that following natural vegetation restoration, the nitrogen (N) limitation of plant and microbial communities was alleviated significantly, and thereafter, it began to shift to phosphorus (P) limitation at a later stage. Plants showed P limitation 50 years after restoration, while microbial P limitation appeared 31 years later. The changes in plant nutrient limitation were consistent with those in microbial nutrient limitation, but soil microbes were limited by P earlier than plants. Random forest model and partial least squares path modeling revealed that soil nutrient stoichiometry, especially soil C:N ratio, explained more variations in plant and microbial nutrient limitation. Our study demonstrates that the imbalanced soil C:N ratio may determine the soil microbial metabolic limitation and further mediate the variation in plant nutrient limitation during natural vegetation restoration, which provides important insights into the link between metabolic limitation for microbes and nutrient limitation for plants during vegetation restoration to improve our understanding of soil C turnover in temperate forest ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Soil microbes were co-limited by the C and P during oak forest restoration, but these limitations tended to decrease gradually. • Rhizosphere soil microorganisms were subject to relatively strong C limitation and weak P limitation compared with those in bulk soil. • Microbial C and P limitation in the rhizosphere soil were mainly dependent on the DOC and Olsen−P. • An increase in the soil water content decreased the relative P limitation for the rhizosphere microbial community. Microbial metabolism changes in soil systems along a vegetation restoration gradient have attracted considerable attention; however, the differences in microbial metabolic limitations between the rhizosphere and bulk soil and their drivers during natural secondary forest restoration after disturbance have rarely been investigated. Here, we used multiple methods based on extracellular enzymatic stoichiometry to examine the microbial metabolic limitations in the rhizosphere and bulk soils along with a clear-cut oak (Quercus aliena var. acuteserrata) forest restoration over 58 years in the Qinling Mountains, China. Overall, the microbial metabolisms in both rhizosphere and bulk soils were co-limited by the availability of soil carbon (C) and phosphorus (P), and the limitations tended to decrease during restoration. Rhizosphere soil microorganisms were subject to relatively strong C limitation and weak P limitation compared with those in bulk soil. Microbial C and P limitations in the bulk soil were regulated by the nutrient ratios, and those in the rhizosphere soil were mainly dependent on the available nutrients mediated by soil moisture. Our results indicate that variations in the soil nutrients caused by oak forest restoration and water differences caused by the rhizosphere effect regulated microbial C and P metabolism in the rhizosphere and bulk soils. This study highlights the microbial metabolism difference between rhizosphere and bulk soil and its drivers during oak forest restoration and provides insights into the microbial resource limitation, nutrient cycling, and rhizosphere processes in the natural secondary forests after clear-cutting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The role of Guanxinshutong capsule in myocardial injury is investigated. • Myocardial injury-transverse aortic constriction causes ventricular remodeling. • Guanxinshutong capsule ameliorates cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis in rats. • This study provides a guidance for the treatment of myocardial injury in clinic. Guanxinshutong capsule (GXST), which consists of five traditional Chinese medicines, has been used for a long time in China for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, such as coronary artery disease and myocardial infarction. However, the effects on GXST on myocardial injury (MI) have not been studied in detail. In these experiments, we found that GXST administration decreased MI-associated ventricular remodeling (VR) with a reduction in interventricular septal thickness in diastole (IVSd), left ventricular posterior wall diameter in systole (LVPWs), and left ventricular posterior wall diameter in diastole (LVPWd) to ameliorate cardiac function and architecture, as measured by echocardiography. Furthermore, histological analysis showed that GXST could ameliorate pathological alterations in the myocardium. And Sirius red staining, wheat germ agglutinin staining and inflammation-related immunohistochemistry results showed that GXST ameliorated the fibrosis areas, cardiac hypertrophy and inflammation (IL-6 and TNF-α). In addition, GXST upregulated intercellular junction proteins (N-cad and Cx-43) and downregulated the angiogenesis-related proteins (PDGF and VEGFA), myocardial fibrosis-related proteins (TGF-β1), and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-2 and MMP-9). We also found that GXST medium-dose group (1 g/kg/d) dosage was the most efficacious. In conclusion, GXST protected cardiac tissues against MI by reducing VR, thus indicating the potential application of GXST in the treatment of MI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scale of tourism has continued to expand in recent years, and many associated activities cause damage to the natural environment. The tourism, economy and natural environment constitute a system: destruction of the natural environment reduces the value of tourism and a lack of tourism affects the development of the economy. To explore the relationship between the tourism, economy and natural environment, and to explore possibilities for sustainable development, this paper takes Hangzhou, a tourist city in China, as a research object. An analysis of time series data is carried out. First, the tourism, economy and natural environment subsystems are constructed by extracting time series data acquired between 2010 and 2020. Second, a tourism evaluation model with coupled economic and natural environment data is constructed and the coupling degree and coupling coordination level in Hangzhou are evaluated. Third, the time series of each subsystem and the coupling coordination level of the whole system are analyzed. Finally, an optimization strategy is proposed for the coupled coordinated development of the tourism, economy and natural environment in Hangzhou. A key result is that the tertiary industry represented by tourism has become the main source of local income. Hangzhou's tourism coupling coordination level has changed from slight disorder in 2010 to good in 2020. It is also found that the COVID-19 pandemic has become a major factor restricting the development of tourism. Before the outbreak of COVID-19, Hangzhou's tourism industry and economy were synchronized. After the outbreak of COVID-19, both the number of tourists and tourism revenue in Hangzhou fell by nearly 15%.