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Abstract To compare the clinical efficacy of ultrasound cycloplasty (UCP) and endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation (ECP) in the treatment of secondary glaucoma. In a 12-month prospective single-center study, 22 patients with secondary glaucoma were treated by high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU), and 23 patients with secondary glaucoma were treated by a semiconductor laser. At the final follow-up, the two groups’ surgical outcomes were compared. A complete success was defined as an intraocular pressure (IOP) reduction of at least 20% from baseline and an IOP of > 5 mmHg and ≦ 21 mmHg, while a qualified success was defined as an IOP reduction of at least 20% from baseline and an IOP of > 5 mmHg. The secondary outcome was the average IOP, number of drugs, and complications at each follow-up compared with the baseline. The average preoperative IOPs in the UCP and ECP groups were 36.4 ± 9.5 mmHg (n = 2.3 drops, n = 0.2 tablets) and 34.5 ± 11.7 mmHg (n = 2.0 drops, n = 0.3 tablets), respectively. In the last follow-up, the success rate of UCP was 54% (with a decrease of 32%) and that of ECP was 65% (with a decrease of 35%), and the P-value between the two groups was > 0.05. However, there was a difference in the average IOP between these two groups 1 day and 1 week after the operation, and the IOP reduction efficiency in the ECP group was better. However, the amount of drug used after these two surgeries was significantly reduced. There were fewer postoperative complications in the UCP group (18 cases) than in the ECP group (35 cases). Both UCP and ECP can effectively reduce IOP in secondary glaucoma, and ECP has a better effect at the early stages. However, UCP has higher safety and tolerance for patients.

The association of thyroid hormone antibodies and glycolipid metabolism indicators with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) was explored. As the disease worsens, the levels of thyroglobulin antibody (TGAb), thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) was increased, and the levels of total tri-iodothyronine (TT3) and total thyroxine (TT4) was decreased (P < 0.001). The severe, medium, and light group had higher level of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), lower level of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), triacylglycerol (TAG), and fasting blood sugar (FBG) than the control group (P ＜ 0.05). The level of HDL was lower in the severe group than the light group and the medium group, but the levels of TC, LDL, HbA1c, TAG, and FBG were increased with the progress of T2DM (P ＜ 0.001). The levels of TGAb, TPOAb, and TSH in patients with T2DM were positively correlated with the levels of TC, LDL, HbA1c, TAG, and FBG (P < 0.05), and were negatively correlated with HDL levels (P < 0.05). The life quality score was lower in the severe group than the light and the medium group (P < 0.001). Among the above indicators, the predictive value of TT3, TT4, and HbA1c in T2DM was better. Clinically, detecting the levels of thyroid hormone antibodies and glycolipid metabolism indicators had a certain predictive value for the severity of T2DM.

This study investigates the structure of soil bacterial communities in the brown mountain soils beneath the deciduous broadleaf forests of Dongling Mountain and their response to soil physicochemical properties. Aiming to provide a scientific basis for soil conservation and sustainable forest development under deciduous broadleaf forests, this research utilized high-throughput sequencing technology to examine the diversity and community structure of bacteria in soil under different tree species, alongside assessing soil physicochemical properties. The results revealed significant differences in nutrient content between the 0–20 cm and 20–40 cm soil layers. Additionally, the N:P in the brown mountain soils of Dongling Mountain was found to be below the national average, indicating potential nitrogen limitation. Dominant bacterial phylum included Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Acidobacteria. The study also found that soil bacterial community structure was similar under different tree species at the same depth but varied significantly with soil depth. Furthermore, redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that the available potassium (AK), total nitrogen (TN), and ammonium nitrogen (NH4+-N) significantly influenced the structural changes in the soil bacterial community. This research highlights the characteristics of soil bacterial community structure beneath deciduous broadleaf forests and its relationship with soil physicochemical properties, offering valuable insights for regional soil ecosystem conservation and forest management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reserve of litter is expected to be reduced on the forest floors of pine plantations dually for the prevention of high risks of forest fires and with a more practical probability of reuse. Lignin and cellulose are the two key constitutive components in litter residues that account for the highest proportion of carbon but are the last to be fully decomposed. The existing trials started examining the mechanisms behind decomposing these two components in response to the combined driving forces of microclimatic factors, forest structure, and stand properties. However, the results were mostly limited to a local-scale ecosystem, and the evidence was reported to be highly scattered across varied conditions globally. Awareness about the combined effects of the driving forces behind the lignin and cellulose contents in the litter of plantations on a large scale is still scarce. In this study, a total of 60 Pinus tabuliformis Carr. plantations (40-year-old) were investigated for their litter quality, regional meteorological factors, soil properties, and stand structure in a provincial area across Liaoning, northeast China. High lignin (40%–43%) and cellulose contents (15%–20%) were found to be located mainly in stands around the biggest city of Shenyang. Rainfall was a key factor that determined the decomposition, but neither the forest structure nor soil nutrient content generated direct effects on the two litter components. The combined factors of low soil pH (~5.8) and high rainfall (~3.0 mm per day) together mainly accounted for the promotion of natural litter decomposition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Objective] This study investigated the effects of two self-developed Bacillus solid inocula (B01 and B02) and their compound agent (SB012) on green waste compost to encourage the application of solid inocula. [Method] Five treatments including blank treatment without adding bacteria (CK), solid baceria B01, B02 and SB012 as well as liquid bacteria EM, which is widely regarded as the best on the market, were applied to the plant residues artificially pruned or naturally withered from Beijing Fragrant Hills Park as raw materials for composting. The solid bactericide SB012 was created by combining B01 and B02 with mass ratio of 3 : 1. After inoculation, heap temperature was measured at 12:00 once per day. The samples were collected every 7 days to determine pH, electrical conductivity (EC), germination index (Gl), humic extract, contents of humic acid and fulvic acid, ratio of humic acid to fulvic acid, and contents and relative degradation rates of lignin and cellulose in different compost treatments and the effects of B01, B02 and SB012 on composting process were evaluated. [Result] Over time, the temperature of compost under different treatments increased first and then decreased. Compared with CK, the addition of B01, B02, SB012 and EM romoted the green waste heaps to enter the high temperature stage in advance. The peak temperatures of B01 and SB012 composts reached 72.1 and 70.2 °C, both were higher than EM and CK. The EC decreased after initial increase, while the pH of the compost increased throughout all treatments. At the end of composting process, all treatments had a pH greater than 8.0 and their EC ranged from 0.76 to 1.04 mS/cm, all of which met the national standards for green waste compost products. The GI increased first and then dereased under different treatments, and the GI order of the three kinds of solid inocula at the end of composting was SB012>B01>B02, which will all higher than that of EM and CK, reaching the standard of no toxicity to plants (≥85 %). Among the five treatments, the highest relative degradation rates of lignin and cellulose were 56.85% and 79.84% in SB012 treatment, which were significantly higher than EM treatment and CK treatment. [Conclusion] The SB012 bactericide had the best promotion for cellulose and lignin components in landscaping waste compost with the advantages of excellent quality and safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]