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Background The distribution characteristics of gender, age, and season and the influence of season on the length of hospitalization stay (LOS) were analyzed based on the information of inpatients about various diseases. Methods A total of 5575 patients’ basic information (gender, age, hospitalization time, season of onset) of five diseases was classified according to spring, summer, autumn, winter. Their distribution characteristics were analysed using T‐test, one‐way ANOVA, Chi‐square test. Then the data were incorporated into SPSS 21.0 for statistical analysis. Results Most cases of cranial chronic vascular disease (CCVD) were found in summer (53% of cases), less in spring, and no cases in winter. The LOS was longer for middle‐aged men, elderly men, and elderly women in the fall group than in the spring group (p < 0.05). The LOS was longer in the fall group than in the summer group for older men and older women (p < 0.05). Herpes zoster cases were more frequent in summer (43%) and autumn (56.30%), less frequent in spring (1.20%), and no cases in winter. Middle‐aged and elderly men in the summer group had longer LOS than the autumn group (p < 0.05). The most cases of cervical spondylosis were found in the spring (42.00%), the fewest were found in the fall (0.10%). Cases of knee osteoarthritis were the most in winter (53.40%) and fewer in summer (7%) and autumn (9.80%). Conclusion CCVD, herpes zoster, cervical spondylosis, and knee osteoarthritis have an obvious seasonal distribution, and seasons have a certain impact on the hospitalization time of patients with CCVD or herpes zoster, especially in older men.

Currently, there is a huge demand for medical biomaterials aimed to improve antibacterial effect and promote wound healing. In this work, a facile and single-step approach of synthesizing silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) composite material (namely, AgNPs@rGO) using high-voltage direct-current (DC) non-thermal plasma was proposed. Electron-beam (e-beam) from the DC-plasma discharge zone was implanted into the solution of AgNO3 and graphene oxide (GO), leading to the reduction of both GO and silver ions. As a result, AgNPs were formed and distributed homogeneously on the reduced graphene sheets. This composite material exhibits excellent antibacterial performance, being able to kill both Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli (E. coli) effectively. Furthermore, this composite material was utilized to prepare wound-healing band-aids. The in vitro assay on mice confirmed the satisfactory curing effect. The cytotoxicity for bio-compatibility and the mechanism for sterilization were also examined and clarified. As such, this work puts forward a facile and new route of preparing antibacterial biomaterial and demonstrates its promising prospect in wound-healing application.

Sympathetic innervation plays a crucial role in maintaining energy balance and contributes to metabolic pathophysiology. Recent evidence has begun to uncover the innervation landscape of sympathetic projections and sheds light on their important functions in metabolic activities. Additionally, the immune system has long been studied for its essential roles in metabolic health and diseases. In this review, the aim is to provide an overview of the current research progress on the sympathetic regulation of key metabolic organs, including the pancreas, liver, intestine, and adipose tissues. In particular, efforts are made to highlight the critical roles of the peripheral nervous system and its potential interplay with immune components. Overall, it is hoped to underscore the importance of studying metabolic organs from a comprehensive and interconnected perspective, which will provide valuable insights into the complex mechanisms underlying metabolic regulation and may lead to novel therapeutic strategies for metabolic diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to identify the influence of climatic conditions of different rice-growing seasons on cooking quality of the rice noodles, a field experiment was conducted in Liuyang, Hunan Province from 2020 to 2022. Five noodle rice cultivars (Guanglu'ai 4, Zhongjiazao 17, Xiangzaoxian 24, Zhongzao 39, and Zhuliangyou 729), were grown in the early and late seasons to compare the cooking quality of rice noodles and the grain quality of noodle rice. The results showed that the mean temperature and solar radiation at grain-filling stage were 18.7% and 12.7% lower in the late season than in the early season, respectively. The cooking loss rate of rice noodles was reduced by 7.4% in the late season compared to the early season. There were not significant differences in cooked break rate and water absorption rate between early and late seasons. The peak viscosity, through viscosity, breakdown viscosity, final viscosity, consistency viscosity, and pasting temperature were lower by 25.8%, 22.9%, 34.3%, 19.7%, 14.2%, and 2.0%, whereas the setback viscosity and peaking time were higher by 11.8% and 2.3% in the late season compared to the early season, respectively. Correlation analysis showed that the mean temperature at grain-filling stage was positively correlated with peak viscosity, through viscosity, breakdown viscosity, final viscosity, consistency viscosity, and pasting temperature, and negatively correlated with setback viscosity. The mean radiation at grain-filling stage was positively correlated with peak viscosity, through viscosity, final viscosity, and negatively correlated with setback viscosity. The cooking loss rate of rice noodles was positively correlated with the final viscosity, pasting temperature, and peaking time. Therefore, the cooking quality of rice noodles can be improved by growing noodle rice in the late season. The final viscosity and pasting temperature in the paste properties of noodle rice were the critical factors affecting the cooking loss rate of rice noodles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protein phosphatase magnesium‐dependent 1B (PPM1B) functions as IKKβ phosphatases to terminate nuclear factor kappa B (NF‐κB) signaling. NF‐κB signaling was constitutively activated in glioma cells. At present, little is known about the role of PPM1B in glioma. In the current study, we found that the expression of PPM1B was reduced in glioma tissues and cells, and decreased expression of PPM1B was related to poor overall survival of patients. Overexpression of PPM1B inhibited the proliferation and promoted apoptosis of glioma cells. Moreover, PPM1B overexpression reduced the phosphorylation of IKKβ and inhibited the nuclear localization of NF‐κBp65. PDTC, an inhibitor of NF‐κB signaling, reversed PPM1B‐knockdown‐induced cell proliferation. Furthermore, overexpression of PPM1B enhanced the sensitivity of glioma cells to temozolomide. In vivo experiments showed that overexpression of PPM1B could inhibit tumor growth, improve the survival rate of nude mice, and enhance the sensitivity to temozolomide. In conclusion, PPM1B suppressed glioma cell proliferation and the IKKβ‐NF‐κB signaling pathway, and enhanced temozolomide sensitivity of glioma cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The short‐tandem‐repeats (STR) profiles of MGc80‐3 and HeLa partially overlap, raising suspicion of contamination in the MGc80‐3 cell line. However, there has not been any relevant study demonstrating whether MGc80‐3 was fully replaced by HeLa cells, just mixed with HeLa cells (co‐existing), or was a somatic hybrid with HeLa cells. In addition to STR profiling, various approaches, including single nucleotide polymorphisms genotyping, polymerase chain reaction, screening for human papillomaviruses type 18 (HPV‐18) fragment, chromosome karyotyping, pathological examination of xenografts, tissue‐specific‐90‐gene expression signature and high‐throughput RNA sequencing were used to determine the nature of MGc80‐3. Our study found that the abnormal STR profile, partially overlapping with that of HeLa cells (64.62% to 71.64%), could not verify MGc80‐3 as a HeLa cell line. However, the STR 13.3 repeat allele in the D13S317 locus that seemed to be unique to HeLa cells was detected in MGc80‐3. Almost all the MGc80‐3 cells exhibited HPV‐18 fragments in the genome as well as certain HeLa marker chromosomes, such as M7 and M12. The molecular assay of the 90‐gene expression signature still considered MGc80‐3 as a stomach cancer using an algorithmic analysis. The expression pattern of multiple genes in MGc80‐3 was quite different from that in HeLa cells, which showed that certain characteristics belonged to gastric cancer cell lines. High throughput RNA sequencing showed the distinct patterns of gene expression in MGc80‐3. In conclusion, MGc80‐3 cell line is a somatic hybrid with HeLa cells rather than a pure gastric cancer cell line. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we evaluated the association between the PPAT volume and the prognosis of PCa patients after LRP. We retrospectively analysed data of 189 PCa patients who underwent LRP in Beijing Chaoyang Hospital. Volumes of PPAT and prostate were measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and normalized PPAT volume was computed (PPAT volume divided by prostate volume). Patients were then stratified into the high-PPAT group (n = 95) and low-PPAT group (n = 94) by the median of normalized PPAT volume (73%). The high-PPAT group had significantly higher Gleason score (total score 8 or more, 39.0% vs. 4.3%, p < 0.001) and pathological stage (stage T3b, 28.4% vs. 13.8%, p = 0.048). No significant correlation between normalized PPAT volume and body mass index (ρ = −0.012, p = 0.872) was observed. Kaplan-Meier curve analysis showed the high-PPAT group had significantly shorter biochemical recurrence (BCR) interval (median progression-free survival time 15.9 months vs. 32.7 months, p = 0.001). Univiarate and multivariate Cox regression analyses showed high normalized PPAT volume (>73%) (hazard ratio 1.787 [1.075–3.156], p = 0.002) were independent risk factors for BCR post-operatively. In conclusion, MRI-measured PPAT volume is of significant prognostic value for PCa patients undergoing LRP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phytoplankton distribution in macrotidal estuaries varies strongly due to highly dynamic conditions, contributing to the complexity of aquatic environments and marine ecosystems. Here the Changjiang River Estuary was analyzed as an example to explore this issue, based on field data collected through multiple cruises (including one covering a complete spring‐neap tidal cycle) and a fully coupled hydrodynamics‐sediment‐ecosystem numerical model. The composite analysis of all cruise data clearly showed that the chlorophyll concentrations were relatively low on lunar days 14–17 and 28–2, which corresponded to spring tides. Mechanistic analysis indicated that during spring tides, the river plume front retracts upstream with enhanced vertical mixing. This process restricts the transport of fluvial nutrients while increasing sediment resuspension, and therefore inhibiting net phytoplankton growth. During non‐spring tides, sediment resuspension was reduced but the river plume was further extended with slowed tidal currents, which enhanced the onshore light availability and offshore nutrient conditions and hence stimulated phytoplankton blooms in a larger area. The onshore shifting trend of the chlorophyll maximum region could last till the following neap tide with improved onshore light conditions and activate more conservative nutrients. The non‐conservation of nutrients augments the uncertainty of biomass variations during non‐spring periods. Besides in the spring‐neap tidal cycle, the phytoplankton variability between the perigean and apogean spring tides was also revealed. This study contributes to an improved understanding of intertidal variations of phytoplankton bloom and underlying physical‐sedimentological‐biological coupling mechanisms in tidal estuaries. Plain Language Summary: In macrotidal estuaries, the highly dynamic conditions lead to variations of phytoplankton distribution over multiple time scales, which prompts the complexity of aquatic environments and marine ecosystems. In this study, we explored the intertidal variability of phytoplankton adjacent to the Changjiang River Estuary through multiple observations and a fully coupled hydrodynamics‐sediment‐ecosystem numerical model. An inhibition of phytoplankton accumulation was observed during spring tide, especially during the perigean spring tide. The inhibition is altered during non‐spring tides due to the improvement of phytoplankton growth conditions. It also maintains an onshore shifting trend of chlorophyll maximum region from spring tide to neap tide. However, biomass variations remain uncertain due to the depletion of nutrients. This intertidal variability of phytoplankton is jointly determined by tide‐affected interactions between physical and biological processes. The results contribute to a better understanding of phytoplankton dynamics in global tidal estuaries. Key Points: Phytoplankton accumulation is inhibited during spring tides, especially during perigean spring tidesAn onshore extension trend of chlorophyll maximum regions could last from spring tides to neap tidesTide‐modulated biophysical interactions determine the intertidal variability of phytoplankton [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]