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Human health is deteriorating due to the effluent containing heavy metal ions and organic dyes. Hence, photoreduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) and degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) using a novel photocatalyst is particularly important. In this work, h-BN/NiS2/NiS composites were prepared via a simple solvothermal method and a double Z-scheme heterojunction was constructed for efficiently removing RhB and Cr(VI). The 7 wt-% h-BN/NiS2/NiS composites were characterized via a larger specific surface area (15.12 m2·g−1), stronger light absorption capacity, excellent chemical stability, and high yield of electrons and holes. The experimental result indicated that the photoreduction efficiency of the 7 wt-% h-BN/NiS2/NiS photocatalyst achieved 98.5% for Cr(VI) after 120 min, which was about 3 times higher than that of NiS2/NiS (34%). However, the removal rate of RhB by the 7 wt-% h-BN/NiS2/NiS photocatalyst reached 80%. This is due to the double Z-scheme heterojunction formed between NiS2/NiS and h-BN, which improved the charge separation efficiency and transmission efficiency. Besides, the influence of diverse photogenerated electron and hole scavengers upon the photoreduction of Cr(VI) was studied, the results indicated that graphene-like h-BN promoted transportation of photoinduced charges on the surface of the h-BN/NiS2/NiS photocatalyst via the interfacial effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between atmospheric precipitation and water vapor sources is close, so it is of great significance to carry out the identification of interaction region influenced by different summer monsoons of China. Based on the wind direction data of the Global Data Assimilation System, provided by the National Centers for Environmental Prediction, this study introduces the backward trajectory model of the Hybrid-Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory to track the source of rainy season precipitation in Southwest China. It not only quantifies the contribution rate of each geography direction in 16 sampling sites, but also simulates the water vapor transport path and tries to demarcate boundary between the moistures from the Bay of Bengal and the South China Sea. There are three main results. Firstly, the Bay of Bengal, the South China Sea, and the Northwestern Pacific Ocean are the water vapor sources. Secondly, the Bay of Bengal is the most in Yunnan while the South China Sea in Guangxi. Thirdly, the dividing region of different vapors in the rainy season is supposed to be in the eastern of Yunnan, which is nearby three sampling sites, Gejiu, Mengzi and Yanshan. The barrier function of Ailaoshan Mountain should be the major cause. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the DNA origami technique, we constructed a DNA nanodevice functionalized with small interfering RNA (siRNA) within its inner cavity and the chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin (DOX), intercalated in the DNA duplexes. The incorporation of disulfide bonds allows the triggered mechanical opening and release of siRNA in response to intracellular glutathione (GSH) in tumors to knockdown genes key to cancer progression. Combining RNA interference and chemotherapy, the nanodevice induced potent cytotoxicity and tumor growth inhibition, without observable systematic toxicity. Given its autonomous behavior, exceptional designability, potent antitumor activity and marked biocompatibility, this DNA nanodevice represents a promising strategy for precise drug design for cancer therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene-like boron nitride (h -BN) has the large surface area. The h -BN/CdS composite was successfully synthesized by one-step hydrothermal method. In this work, the physical structure, morphology, optic and electronic property of the h -BN/CdS photocatalyst were characterized and explored via XRD, SEM, TEM, XPS, UV–vis DRS, EIS and transient photocurrent. The heterojunction between h -BN and CdS could enhance the efficiency of charge transfer and significantly suppress the recombination of electrons and holes. The photocatalytic performance of the h -BN/CdS composite was evaluated by degrading rhodamine B (RhB) and photocatalytic reducing Cr (Ⅵ) ion, respectively. Moreover, 1.0 wt% h -BN/CdS composite could effectively inhibit the agglomeration of CdS nanospheres, which displayed the optimum photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation. Meanwhile, 1.0 wt% h -BN/CdS composite had outstanding feature in recycling stability. The results indicated that two-dimensional (2D) h -BN as a substrate of CdS nanospheres was beneficial to prolong photoexcited electrons lifetime. The heterostructure interfaces of the h -BN/CdS composites resulted in photocatalytic performance promotion. However, the excessive h-BN caused the serious aggregation of CdS nanospheres. This work showed a facile method for the rational design of photocatalyst via optimizing their structure and surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of the study is to compare the femoral triangle (FT) and adductor canal (AC) blocks in terms of the analgesic efficacy and ambulatory outcomes in the context of multimodal analgesia following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Methods: Patients presenting for TKA were assigned to a preoperative ultrasound-guided single-injection FT or AC block. Combined spinal and epidural anesthesia with bupivacaine was administered for TKA. Perioperatively a multimodal analgesic regimen was applied up to 48 h after surgery. The primary outcome was the average pain score during movement in the first 24 h postoperatively. The secondary outcomes included pain scores at rest and during movement at postoperative predetermined time points, cumulative opioid consumption in oral morphine equivalents, functional mobility measured by the timed "Up and Go" (TUG) test and muscle strength in the lower extremity. Results: Ninety-eight patients completed the study. Patients in the FT group had lower median pain scores during movement in the first 24 h postoperatively than those in the AC group (1.3 [1.0–3.3] vs. 3.0 [1.7–4.3]; median difference: − 1.0, adjusted 95% CI from − 1.7 to − 0.3, P = 0.010). There were significant differences in the pain scores at rest and during movement at 12 and 24 h postoperatively between the two groups (P = 0.008 and 0.005, respectively). Cumulative oral morphine equivalent consumption in the first and second 24 h postoperatively, Functional mobility reflected by the TUG test and muscle strength in the lower extremity showed no significantly statistically differences between the two groups. Conclusions: The preoperative FT block provided improved analgesic outcomes without compromising functional mobility in the context of multimodal analgesia following TKA compared with the AC block. Trial registration: https://www.chictr.org.cn. Identifier: ChiCTR-INR-17012716. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To study the epidemiology of myopia in school-aged children in Tianjin and the relationship between visual acuity-based screening and refraction-based screening. Method: This school-based prospective cohort study was performed on children from 42 elementary schools and 17 middle schools in Tianjin, China. Totally 14,551 children, ages ranging from 5 to 16 years, were included in this study. Uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) was determined by logarithmic tumbling E chart. Non-cycloplegic photorefraction was examined by the Spot (v2.1.4) photoscreener. The relationship between the UCVA and refractive error was investigated for different age groups. Results: The overall prevalence of myopia at this school based screen is 78.2%, ranged from 10% at age of 5 to 95% at age of 16. The most dramatic increase in prevalence is from age of 6 (14.8%) to age of 7 (38.5%). The overall prevalence of high myopia is 2.5%. UCVA is found corresponding to spherical equivalent refraction (SER) in a manner of normal distribution and is significantly affected by age. When using UCVA to estimate the prevalence of myopia, the overall sensitivity and specificity are 0.824 and 0.820, respectively. Age-dependent optimal cutoff points and 95% confident intervals of such estimation are reported. Conclusions: Myopia is heavily affecting school-aged children in Tianjin, China. The refraction screening is preferable for myopia screening, whereas the UCVA screening results need to be interpreted in an age-dependent manner for myopia estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Measuring the nitrogen isotope compositions (δ15N) of nitric oxide (NO) from different sources helps to quantify the relative contributions of atmospheric NOx. Soil is one of the most important sources of atmospheric NOx, but only limited measurements on the δ15N of soil‐emitted NO exist, hampering our ability to partition sources to air pollution. Here we conducted soil incubations to measure the δ15N‐NO under defined aerobic or anaerobic conditions, favoring either nitrification or denitrification. Soils were collected from seven sites spanning three ecosystems in northern China (two agricultural, two forest, and three grassland sites). We found that the δ15N‐NO and their associated N isotope fractionations were significantly different between anaerobic and aerobic conditions in seven soils. Under aerobic condition, the δ15N‐NO ranged from −62‰ to −50‰ (averaged −56 ± 4‰), being significantly more negative (by 23‰) than those under anaerobic condition (−45‰ to −23‰, averaged −33 ± 7‰). The apparent N isotope fractionation for NO production under aerobic condition (15εaerobic = 61 ± 3‰) was significantly higher (by 26‰) than under anaerobic condition (15εanaerobic = 35 ± 6‰), with a small variability among ecosystem types. Our study demonstrates that the δ15N‐NO from different soils are very different from fuel combustions (mainly from 0‰ to +20‰), supporting that measuring 15N is a useful tool to partition the contributions of soil NO to atmospheric NOx. Our results also imply δ15N‐NO produced by nitrification and denitrification distinctly different, as these two processes are dominant processes producing NO under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, respectively. Plain Language Summary: Nitric oxide (NO) affects the atmosphere chemistry and NO itself a key component of air pollution and a precursor to other air pollutants like particulate matter and ozone. To reduce the air pollution, it is crucial to identify the atmospheric NO sources. Measuring 15N natural abundance has been considered as a promising tool to identify different sources, but the measurement on δ15N for soil‐emitted NO is limited, adding to the large uncertainties on NO partitioning. Here we measured the δ15N‐NO emitted from three ecosystem types across seven sites (two agriculture, two forest, and three grassland sites) under defined anaerobic or aerobic conditions. We found that soil‐emitted NO was 15N‐depleted (−62‰ to −23‰) related to the source from fossil fuel combustion (0–20‰), suggesting that δ15N can be used to separate these two sources. We also found that the δ15N‐NO under aerobic condition (nitrification prevailing, −62‰ to −50‰) was much lower than under anaerobic condition (denitrification prevailing, −45‰ to −23‰), which provide a useful tool to better understand the relative contributions of different sources of NO. In sum, soil‐emitted NO has their own different isotope fingerprint, depending on the soil oxygen conditions, and can be used to partition sources. Key Points: The δ15N‐NO from soil (−62‰ to −23‰) is different from fuel combustion (0‰ to 20‰), allowing effective source partitionThe δ15N‐NO produced under aerobic condition (favor nitrification) was more negative than under anaerobic condition (favor denitrification)The 15ε for NO production under aerobic condition (61 ± 3‰) was significantly higher than under anaerobic condition (35 ± 6‰) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To discuss the effects of elastic band exercise on the frailty states in pre-frail elderly people. This study was a randomized controlled trial. Trial registration number is ChiCTR-IOC-17012579. Seventy pre-frail elderly people were randomly divided into elastic band group (n = 35) and control group (n = 35). Elastic band exercise was applied to elastic band group, 45–60 min per time for 8 weeks by 3 days a week; no exercise was applied to the control group. The frailty states, grip strength (female/male), walking speed, and physical activity were measured by the Fried frailty phenotype at pre-intervention, 4, and 8 weeks after intervention to assess the effects of exercise. The elastic band group showed significant improvements in the frailty states, grip strength (female) and walking speed both after 4-week and 8-week intervention (P< 0.001), and significant improvements in grip strength (male) and physical activity after 8-week intervention (P< 0.05). Within-group analysis (pre-intervention vs. after 4-week, after 4-week vs after 8-week, pre-intervention vs after 8-week) showed significant improvements (P< 0.001) in grip strength (female/male) and walking speed in the elastic band group over time, while no significant differences in the control group (P > 0.05). Elastic band exercise can improve frailty states in pre-frail elderly people, make them broke away from pre-frailty and restore them to non-frailty through improving the grip strength, walking speed and physical activity, and the effects after 8 weeks are better than those after 4 weeks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cervical cancer (CC) is a malignant tumor found in the lowermost part of the womb. Evolving studies on CC have reported that circRNA plays a crucial role in CC progression. In this study, we investigated the main function of a novel circRNA, circ_0084927, and its regulatory network in CC development. Methods: qRT-PCR was applied to evaluate the expression of circ_0084927, miR-1179, and CDK2 mRNA in CC tissues and cells. Dual-luciferase reporting experiments and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay were conducted to validate the target relationship of miR-1179 with circ_0084927 and CDK2 mRNA. CCK-8 and BrdU assays were also used to evaluate CC cell proliferation. The adhesion and apoptosis phenotypes of CC cells were measured using cell–matrix adhesion and caspase 3 activation assay. Flow cytometry was also employed to detect the CC cell cycle. Results: Our results indicated that circ_0084927 was up-regulated in CC tissues and cells. Findings also revealed that circ_0084927 silence inhibited CC cell proliferation and adhesion while facilitating apoptosis and triggering cell cycle arrest. However, miR-1179 down-regulation appeared in CC tissues. Apart from observing that circ_0084927 abolished miR-1179's inhibitory effects on cell proliferation and adhesion, it was found that CDK2 was up-regulated in CC tissues and was instrumental in cancer promotion. Also observed was that miR-1179 directly targeted CDK2, thereby inhibiting CDK2's promotion on the malignant phenotypes of CC cells. Lastly, results indicated that circ_0084927 revoked the inhibitory effect of miR-1179 on CDK2 by sponging miR-1179. Conclusion: circ_0084927 promoted cervical carcinogenesis by sequestering miR-1179, which directly targeted CDK2. Our results also provided novel candidate targets for CC treatment in that it revealed the circ_0084927/miR-1179/CDK2 regulatory network that strengthened CC aggressiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The frequency of thyroid nodules (TNs) has increased rapidly in recent decades. We established a simple, effective model to predict TN occurrence by a large-scale comparative analysis of the Chinese population. Subjects and methods: A total of 13,307 subjects were included to screen risk factors between the case group (TN+) and the control group (TN-) by univariate and multivariate analyses. A simple prediction model formed by a subset of five factors was established. The optimal index points for predicting the prevalence of TNs, the model discriminatory power and the association of the model with the size of TNs were assessed. Results: Age at diagnosis ≥45 years, female sex, body mass index (BMI) ≥24 kg/m2, hypertension, antithyroglobulin antibody (TGAB) ≥16.5 IU/mL were independently related to an increased risk of TNs. The cutoff value of 4 points was found to be the best prediction for the prevalence of TNs in the current study, and the model had better discriminatory power than other single independent predictors. In addition, a positive correlation was also found between the index points and the diameter of TNs. Conclusion: Based on our prediction model, thyroid high-resolution ultrasound and associated laboratory tests may be necessary for patients with index points ≥4 due to a higher prevalence of thyroid nodules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]