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Doubly resonant sum frequency generation (DR-SFG) serves as a potent characteristic technique for probing the electronic spectra and vibronic coupling of molecules on surfaces. In this study, we successfully developed a novel infrared (IR)–white light (WL) DR-SFG spectroscopy based on narrowband IR and tunable broadband WL. This novel method was employed to explore the excitation spectrum and vibronic couplings of sub-monolayer Rhodamine 6G molecules. Our findings elucidate that the xanthene skeleton vibrational modes exhibit strong coupling with the S0–S1 electronic transition. Notably, we observed not only the 0–0 transition of the S0–S1 electronic continuum but also the 0–1 transition, a first time observation in the realm of DR-SFG spectroscopy. This advanced DR-SFG spectroscopy methodology facilitates a more sensitive examination of electronic spectra and the coupling between electronic transitions and vibrational modes, heralding a significant advancement in the understanding of molecular interactions on surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The equivalence of absorption rates and extents between generic drugs and their reference formulations is crucial for ensuring therapeutic comparability. Bioequivalence (BE) studies are widely utilized and play a pivotal role in substantiating the approval and promotional efforts for generic drugs. Virtual BE simulation is a valuable tool for mitigating risks and guiding clinical BE studies, thereby minimizing redundant in vivo BE assessments. Herein, we successfully developed a physiologically based absorption model for virtual BE simulations, which precisely predicts the BE of the apixaban test and reference formulations. The modeling results confirm that the test and reference formulations were bioequivalent under both fasted and fed conditions, consistent with clinical studies. This highlights the efficacy of physiologically based absorption modeling as a powerful tool for formulation screening and can be adopted as a methodological and risk assessment strategy to detect potential clinical BE risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Combining smoking with poor eating habits significantly elevates the risk of chronic illnesses and early death. Understanding of how dietary quality shifts post-smoking cessation remains limited. The objective of this study is to examine dietary quality – using Healthy Eating Index (HEI – 2020) and its 13 components, among current, former, and never smokers, and particularly the impact of quitting and the duration of cessation on dietary habits. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of 31,569 adults from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2005–2018 was conducted. Dietary quality was assessed using HEI-2020 scores, which were determined by NIH developed - simple HEI scoring algorithm per person. Smoking status was categorized into current, former, and never smokers, with further subdivisions for current (heavy/light smokers) and former smokers (duration post-cessation). Descriptive analysis and multiple regression models weighted to represent the US population were performed. Results: The current smoking rate was 19.4%, with a higher prevalence in males (22.5%) than females (17.5%). Current smokers reported statistically significantly lower HEI total score than both former and never smokers. Former smokers exhibited HEI scores similar to those of never smokers. The adjusted HEI total scores for current, former, and never smokers were 49.2, 54.0, and 53.3, respectively, with a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001). Moreover, light smokers had better total HEI score than heavy smokers (46.8 vs. 50.8, p < 0.001, respectively), but former and never smokers scored even higher. Quitting smoking immediately improved dietary quality, with former smokers reaching the dietary levels of never smokers within 5–10 years (53.8 vs. 53.3, p > 0.05, respectively). Compared to current smokers, former smokers tended to consume more beneficial foods (e.g., fruits, vegetables, greens and beans, whole grains, proteins, and fatty acids), while also consuming more sodium and less added sugar. Conclusions: Current smokers, particularly heavy smokers, exhibit poorer dietary habits than former and never smokers. The dietary quality of former smokers aligns with never smokers over time, highlighting the positive impact of smoking cessation on diet. This has implications for reducing chronic disease risks associated with poor diet and smoking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Fe 2 O 3 and TiO 2 NPs restrained As(V) release, and stimulated As(III) release. • The released As co-precipitated with Fe after Fe 2 O 3 NPs addition. • The released As adsorbed on TiO 2 NPs after TiO 2 NPs addition. • NPs additions changed the relative abundance of soil bacterial community. • NPs additions had a negative impact on soil microbial population in a long term. Environmental effects of nano remediation engineering of arsenic (As) pollution need to be considered. In this study, the roles of Fe 2 O 3 and TiO 2 nanoparticles (NPs) on the microbial mediated As mobilization from As contaminated soil were investigated. The addition of Fe 2 O 3 and TiO 2 NPs restrained As(V) release, and stimulated As(III) release. As(V) concentration decreased by 94% and 93% after Fe 2 O 3 addition, and decreased by 89% and 45% after TiO 2 addition compared to the Biotic and Biotic+Acetate (amended with sodium acetate) controls, respectively. The maximum values of As(III) were 20.5 and 27.1 µg/L at 48 d after Fe 2 O 3 and TiO 2 NPs addition, respectively, and were higher than that in Biotic+Acetate control (12.9 µg/L). The released As co-precipitated with Fe in soils in the presence of Fe 2 O 3 NPs, but adsorbed on TiO 2 NPs in the presence of TiO 2 NPs. Moreover, the addition of NPs amended with sodium acetate as the electron donor clearly promoted As(V) reduction induced by microbes. The NPs addition changed the relative abundance of soil bacterial community, while Proteobacteria (42.8%-70.4%), Planctomycetes (2.6%-14.3%), and Firmicutes (3.5%-25.4%) were the dominant microorganisms in soils. Several potential As/Fe reducing bacteria were related to Pseudomonas, Geobacter, Desulfuromonas , and Thiobacillus. The addition of Fe 2 O 3 and TiO 2 NPs induced to the decrease of arrA gene. The results indicated that the addition of NPs had a negative impact on soil microbial population in a long term. The findings offer a relatively comprehensive assessment of Fe 2 O 3 and TiO 2 NPs effects on As mobilization and soil bacterial communities. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: With the largest sample size to date, the authors' objective was to investigate the incidence of primary‐to‐metastatic human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2) conversion and the predictors for such conversion. Moreover, no previous studies have evaluated the prognosis of patients who have negative HER2 expression (HER2‐0) versus low HER2 expression (HER2‐low) when HER2 status was assessed based on all recurrent/metastatic lesions. Methods: The authors included 1299 patients who had available HER2 status of primary breast tumors and paired recurrent/metastatic lesions at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center and West China Hospital. Results: In total, 370 patients (28.5%) experienced primary‐to‐metastatic HER2 conversion. Intrapatient intermetastasis spatial heterogeneity and temporal heterogeneity of HER2 were detected. When assessing HER2 based on recurrent/metastatic tumors, patients who had HER2‐0 tumors had significantly shorter overall survival than those who had HER2‐low tumors in the overall population and in the estrogen receptor (ER)‐negative subgroup. However, when assessing HER2 based on primary tumors, there was no difference in overall survival between patients who had HER2‐0 versus HER2‐low tumors. Moreover, patients who had tumors that converted from HER2‐0 to HER2‐low had longer overall survival than those who had consistent HER2‐0 status in the ER‐negative subgroup. By combining four predictors (ER status, Ki67 index, biopsy site, and disease‐free interval), the authors established the first prediction tool to estimate the probability of HER2‐0 tumors converting to HER2‐low/positive tumors. Conclusions: Intrapatient primary‐to‐metastatic and intermetastatic HER2 heterogeneity were observed in this large‐scale cohort study. When evaluating HER2 based on recurrent/metastatic tumors, an overall survival difference was observed between patients who had HER2‐0 versus HER2‐low, recurrent/metastatic breast tumors. The developed prediction tool might help clinicians screen out patients with primary HER2‐0 tumors that have a high probability of HER2 status conversion and recommend them for re‐biopsy, thus helping to screen out candidate patients for trastuzumab deruxtecan treatment. Intrapatient primary‐to‐metastatic and intermetastatic HER2 heterogeneity was observed in this large‐scale cohort study. The prediction tool developed by the authors might help clinicians screen out patients with primary HER2‐negative tumors who have a high probability of HER2 status conversion and recommend them for re‐biopsy, thus helping to screen out candidate patients for trastuzumab deruxtecan treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to examine the associations between acculturation and dental floss, regular dental visits and unmet dental care needs among Asian Americans, as well as the moderating effects of these associations. Methods: This study analysed national representative samples from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2011–2018. A total of 2763 Asian Americans aged 20 and older were included in this analysis. The primary predictor, acculturation score, was determined by three questions: (i) language spoken at home (higher score for English), (ii) country of birth (higher score for United States) and (iii) length of time in the United States. Dental floss use, dental visits and unmet dental care needs were included as outcomes in this study. Descriptive statistics and logistic regressions were used to analyse the samples. Results: Acculturation was significantly associated with dental health behaviours: Individuals with higher levels of acculturation were more likely than less acculturated individuals to use dental floss (81.0% vs. 63.9%, respectively) and visit the dentist regularly (76.7% vs. 66.9% respectively). Insurance status moderated the association between acculturation and dental visits: Acculturation was significantly associated with dental visits in the past year among insured individuals (OR = 1.70, 95% CI: 1.29–2.23), but not among uninsured individuals. Unmet dental care needs were present in 11.1% of participants. While costs and insurance were the top two determinants of access to care, individuals with and without insurance differed with regard to their third major reason for unmet dental care needs: Being 'too busy' and not wanting to spend money on dental care. Conclusions: Among the Asian population in the United States, those with high acculturation scores were more likely to engage in dental flossing and visit the dentist regularly compared to those Asians with lower acculturation scores. To encourage dental flossing and regular dental visits among Asians with lower acculturation scores, cultural adaptation and language accessibility suggests being considered. Future research is necessary to confirm the moderating effect of insurance status on the association between acculturation and regular dental visits. Additionally, our findings emphasize the impact of costs and insurance on access to dental care among Asians in the United States, highlighting the importance of future public health programmes in addressing these barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the work described here was to investigate the relative contribution of subtotal ultrasound-guided percutaneous microwave ablation (MWA) to amplifying programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) inhibition in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Between April 2019 and December 2021, advanced HCC patient demographics, tumor response, survival data, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and peripheral lymphocyte profiles were retrospectively collected and analyzed. In hepa1–6 tumor-bearing C57BL/6J mice, RNA sequencing, flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry staining and cytokine tests were also performed. Twenty-nine HCC patients were enrolled, with a median follow-up duration of 15.1 mo. Compared with the ablation rate (AR) ≤50% group (n = 10), the AR >50% group (n = 19) had a higher disease control rate, a longer time to progression and a longer overall survival. More patients in the AR >50% group had an early decrease in NLR and better immune activation. RNA sequencing of murine tumors subjected to MWA >50% AR showed that immune-related gene expression upregulated. CD8+ T cells, interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were also increased, indicating that MWA >50% AR boosted the immunomodulatory effect of PD-1 inhibitors. More MWA could induce superior antitumor immunity by enhancing immune-related gene expression, priming CD8+ T cells and thereby boosting PD-1 inhibition. It is advisable that eradication of tumors to the degree possible should be considered within technical access to obtain a better prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractLung cancer remains one of the most common malignant cancers worldwide, and its survival rate is extremely low. Chemotherapy, the mainstay of lung cancer treatment, is not as effective as it could be due to the development of cellular resistance. The molecular mechanisms of drug resistance in lung cancer remain to be elucidated. Accumulating evidence suggests that ceRNAs are involved in various carcinogenesis and development. CeRNA is a transcript that regulates each other through competition with miRNA. However, the relationship between ceRNAs and chemoresistance in lung cancer remains unclear. In this narrative review, we provided a summary of treatment approaches that focus on ceRNA networks to overcome drug resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Food pantries have the potential to improve health outcomes and quality of life for individuals living with cancer. Gender has been linked to certain cancer symptoms and dietary patterns. Nevertheless, the extent of research on the utilization of food pantries among this population, particularly with regard to gender differences, remains limited. The objective of this study is to explore the demographic characteristics and gender differences in quality of life, as well as the impact of cancer on the lives of individuals who utilize food pantry services. Methods: Between February 26, 2019 and July 24, 2022, 400 people living with cancer were eligible to participate the University Medical Center New Orleans (UMC) food pantry. Participants were asked to provide demographic information and completed two health assessments related to the challenges in daily activities, nutrition, and mental health. Results: The study participants had a mean age of 54.1, and the majority of the participants were female. More than half of the participants did not have access to a vehicle or use public transportation to access grocery stores. People living with cancer reported several quality of life issues, with the most prevalent challenges being interference of cancer with work, lack of energy, difficulty affording food, pain, and sleep problems. Additionally, less than half of the patients reported consuming fruits and vegetables on a daily basis, and males were found to be less likely to consume them compared to females. Discussion: The current study sheds light on the characteristics and quality of life of individuals who utilize UMC food pantry services, as well as the impact of cancer on their lives. The findings reveal a gender disparity in fruit and vegetable consumption, with male individuals living with cancer reporting lower levels of consumption. Implications for research and practice: Identifying and addressing food insecurity among people living with cancer are necessary. Meanwhile, partnerships with community organizations may be valuable in finding ways to assist cancer survivors in returning to work. Future studies could also focus on encouraging fruit and vegetable consumption, particularly among male individuals living with cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life-threatening hyperinflammatory syndrome characterized by excessive activation of the immune system, along with uncontrolled proliferation of activated macrophages and lymphocytes. The clinical features of HLH often overlap with the clinical features of other severe inflammatory conditions such as sepsis, hindering accurate and timely diagnosis. In this study, we performed a data-independent acquisition mass spectrometry-based plasma proteomic analysis of 33 pediatric patients with HLH compared with four control groups: 39 healthy children, 43 children with sepsis, 39 children hospitalized in the pediatric intensive care unit without confirmed infections, and 21 children with acute Epstein-Barr virus infection. Proteomic comparisons between the HLH group and each of the control groups showed that HLH was characterized by alterations in complement and coagulation cascades, neutrophil extracellular trap formation, and platelet activation pathways. We identified eight differentially expressed proteins in patients with HLH, including plastin-2 (LCP1), vascular cell adhesion protein 1, fibrinogen beta chain, fibrinogen gamma chain, serum amyloid A-4 protein, extracellular matrix protein 1, apolipoprotein A-I, and albumin. LCP1 emerged as a candidate diagnostic marker for HLH with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.97 in the original cohort and an AUC of 0.90 (sensitivity = 0.83 and specificity = 1.0) in the validation cohort. Complement C1q subcomponent subunit B was associated with disease severity in patients with HLH. Based on comparisons with multiple control groups, this study provides a proteomic profile and candidate biomarkers of HLH, offering researchers novel information to improve the understanding of this condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To determine the contribution of a modified definition of markedly hypoechoic in the differential diagnosis of thyroid nodules. Methods: A total of 1031 thyroid nodules were included in this retrospective multicenter study. All of the nodules were examined with US before surgery. The US features of the nodules were evaluated, in particular, the classical markedly hypoechoic and modified markedly hypoechoic (decreased or similar echogenicity relative to the adjacent strap muscles). The sensitivity, specificity, and AUC of classical/modified markedly hypoechoic and the corresponding ACR-TIRADS, EU-TIRADS, and C-TIRADS categories were calculated and compared. The inter- and intraobserver variability in the evaluation of the main US features of the nodules was assessed. Results: There were 264 malignant nodules and 767 benign nodules. Compared with classical markedly hypoechoic as a diagnostic criterion for malignancy, using modified markedly hypoechoic as the criterion resulted in a significant increase in sensitivity (28.03% vs. 63.26%) and AUC (0.598 vs. 0.741), despite a significant decrease in specificity (91.53% vs. 84.88%) (p < 0.001 for all). Compared to the AUC of the C-TIRADS with the classical markedly hypoechoic, the AUC of the C-TIRADS with the modified markedly hypoechoic increased from 0.878 to 0.888 (p = 0.01); however, the AUCs of the ACR-TIRADS and EU-TIRADS did not change significantly (p > 0.05 for both). There was substantial interobserver agreement (κ = 0.624) and perfect intraobserver agreement (κ = 0.828) for the modified markedly hypoechoic. Conclusion: The modified definition of markedly hypoechoic resulted in a significantly improved diagnostic efficacy in determining malignant thyroid nodules and may improve the diagnostic performance of the C-TIRADS. Clinical relevance statement: Our study found that, compared with the original definition, modified markedly hypoechoic significantly improved the diagnostic performance in differentiating malignant from benign thyroid nodules and the predictive efficacy of the risk stratification systems. Key Points: • Compared with the classical markedly hypoechoic as a diagnostic criterion for malignancy, the modified markedly hypoechoic resulted in a significant increase in sensitivity and AUC. • The C-TIRADS with the modified markedly hypoechoic achieved higher AUC and specificity than that with the classical markedly hypoechoic (p = 0.01 and < 0.001, respectively). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Ultrathin BiNS decorated with monodispersed Pd NPs by two-step reconstruction was synthesized. • Near-unity formate selectivity over a broadscope low-potential window. • Breaking the limitation that Pd-site is easily poisoned by the generated CO at low overpotentials. • The capability of Pd-Bi interface for stabilizing and adsorbing *OCHO intermediate was revealed. • A new CO 2 RR mechanism with HCO 3 − participating as pre-proton donor for formate generation. A novel electrocatalyst for CO 2 -to-formate conversion at low overpotentials with abundant bimetallic interfaces aroused from Pd nanoparticles anchoring in the underlying Bi nanosheet (Pd-BiNS) was developed. This unique synthesis procedure undergoes a continuous reconstruction of Pd-BiOINS to Pd-Bi 2 O 2 CO 3 NS to Pd-BiNS, which was confirmed by in situ Raman spectra combined with quasi- in - situ electron microscopy. The optimized Pd 1 -BiNS exhibits a high Faradaic efficiency of 95 % for formate at only − 0.4 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode over 30 h electrolysis, breaking the limitation that metallic Pd-site is easily poisoned by the generated CO at low overpotentials. The in situ infrared spectroscopy indicates that Pd-BiNS has much suppressed *CO binding and enhanced *OCHO adsorption to inhibit the competing hydrogen evolution reaction by repelling surface water molecules, moreover, a systematic CO 2 RR mechanism with HCO 3 − participating as pre-proton donor for formate generation is unveiled. This work provides new insight into the multisite synergistic regulation at the atomic scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ferrochrome slag (FS) contains a large number of glass phase, which cannot be effectively transformed into crystalline phases during the reutilization for fabricating ceramic materials. In this study, cordierite with a low expansion coefficient was successfully prepared from FS and quartz. The composition and structural characteristics of FS were analyzed. The phase evolution, microstructure, coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), and material properties were studied. With 34 wt% quartz and maximum cordierite crystal content of 75.1 wt%, the glass phase decreased from 78.7 to 12.7 wt%. The melted quartz generated silica-rich microdomains with high viscosity during heating. Subsequently, the nuclear dynamic conditions were improved to promote the formation of cordierite crystals. Appropriate sintering temperature and holding time can boost the crystallization rate of the glass phase. Further, the diffusion of silica-rich microdomains was beneficial for the formation of cordierite crystals. Finally, the optimal cordierite ceramic material was obtained at 1300 °C for 2 h with a flexural strength of 38.3 MPa and CTE of 3.01 × 10−6/°C. These studies provide an effective way of re-utilizing large volumes of FS, and suggest a new method for preparing ceramic materials using high-temperature silicate waste residues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a special type of pulmonary parenchymal disease, with chronic, progressive, fibrosis, and high mortality. There is a lack of safe, effective, and affordable treatment methods. Qilongtian (QLT) is a traditional Chinese prescription that is composed of Panax notoginseng, Earthworm, and Rhodiola, and shows the remarkable clinical curative effect of PF. However, the mechanism of QLT remains to be clarified. Therefore, we studied the effectivity of QLT in treating Bleomycin (BLM) induced PF mice. 36 C57BL/6 J mice were randomized into the control group, the model group, the low-, medium- and high-dose QLT group, and Pirfenidone group. After establishing a model of pulmonary fibrosis in mice, the control and model groups were infused with a normal saline solution, and the delivery group was infused with QLT. Pulmonary function in the mice from each group was detected. Pulmonary tissue morphologies and collagen deposition were stained by HE and Masson. The content of hydroxyproline (HYP) was detected by alkaline hydrolysis and the mRNA and protein expression of related genes in pulmonary tissues were detected by using q-PCR, ELISA, and Western blot. Our studies have shown that QLT significantly reduced the inflammatory injury, hydroxy-proline content, and collagen deposition of pulmonary tissue in BLM-induced PF mice and down-regulated the cytokine related to inflammation and fibrosis and PF expression on the mRNA and protein level in PF mice. To identify the mechanism of QLT, the Transcriptome was measured and the IL-17 signal pathway was screened out for further research. Further studies indicated that QLT reduced the mRNAs and protein levels of interleukin 17 (IL-17), c–c motif chemokine ligand 12 (CCL12), c-x-c motif chemokine ligand 5 (CXCL5), fos-like antigen 1 (FOSL1), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP9), and amphiregulin (AREG), which are inflammation and fibrosis-related genes in the IL-17 signal pathway. The results indicated that the potential mechanism for QLT in the prevention of PF progression was by inhibiting inflammation resulting in the IL-17 signal pathway. Our study provides the novel scientific basis of QLT and represents new therapeutics for PF in clinical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a chronic, progressive, and fibrotic interstitial lung disease with a high mortality rate. Qi-Long-Tian (QLT) capsule is an herbal formula with great potential for antifibrotic effects, consisting of San Qi (Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma), Di Long [Pheretima aspergillum (E. Perrier)], and Hong Jingtian (Rhodiolae Crenulatae Radix et Rhizoma), and has been used in clinical practice for many years. To explore the relationship between the effects of Qi-Long-Tian capsule and gut microbiota of PF mice, pulmonary fibrosis model were established by tracheal drip injection of bleomycin. Thirty-six mice were randomly divided into 6 groups: control group (control), model group (model), QLT capsule low dose group (QL), QLT capsule medium dose group (QM), QLT capsule high dose group (QH), and pirfenidone group (PFD). After 21 days of treatment, after pulmonary function tests, the lung tissues, serums, and enterobacterial samples were collected for further analysis. HE staining and Masson’s staining were used to detect changes as the main indicators of PF in each group, and the expression of hydroxyproline (HYP) related to collagen metabolism was detected by and alkaline hydrolysis method. qRT-PCR and ELISA were used to detect the mRNA and protein expressions of pro-inflammatory factors include interleukin 1β (IL-1β), interleukin 6 (IL-6), transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) in lung tissues and serums, and the inflammation-mediating factors include tight junction protein (ZO-1, Claudin, Occludin). ELISA was used to detect the protein expressions of secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA), short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in colonic tissues. 16sRNA gene sequencing was used to detect changes in the abundance and diversity of intestinal flora in the control, model, and QM groups, to search for differential genera, and analyze the correlation with inflammatory factors. QLT capsule effectively improved the status of pulmonary fibrosis and reduced HYP. In addition, QLT capsule significantly reduced the abnormal levels of pro-inflammatory factors, including IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, and TGF-β in lung tissue and serum, while improving the levels of pro-inflammatory related factors ZO-1, Claudin, Occludin, sIgA, SCFAs, and reducing LPS in the colon. The comparison between the alpha diversity and beta diversity in enterobacteria suggested that the composition of the gut flora in the control, model, and QLT capsule groups were different. QLT capsule significantly increased the relative abundance of Bacteroidia (which might limit the onset of inflammation) and decreased the relative abundance of Clostridia (which might promote inflammation). In addition, these two enterobacteria were closely associated with pro-inflammatory-related indicators and pro-inflammatory factors in PF. All these results suggest that QLT capsule intervenes in pulmonary fibrosis by regulating the differential genera of intestinal flora, increasing immunoglobulin secretion, repairing the intestinal mucosal barrier, reducing LPS entry into the blood, and decreasing inflammatory factor secretion in the serum, which in turn alleviates pulmonary inflammation. This study clarifies the therapeutic mechanism of QLT capsule in PF and provides a theoretical basis for it. It provides a theoretical basis for its further clinical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese idol fans have been identified among the main forces in cyber nationalist activisms in recent years, acting as the nationalist fans protecting the state as an idol in response to external political shocks. Their skills in acknowledging, involving, and even reinventing the image of the state and national pride in cyber nationalist activisms do not emerge in a vacuum. This article examines how idol fans involve and reinvent the nationalist discourse in their everyday fan activities – idol promotion. We focus on the pandemic in 2020 as it provides a specific social and political context that allows us to understand better the interaction between idol fans and the state in their mundane fan activities. We construct our analysis under the computational grounded theory framework with over 6 million fan posts collected from Weibo and 11 in-depth interviews with active idol fans. Our findings show that when engaging in pandemic-related discussion, idol fans actively borrowed official discourse on nationalism and strategically responded to key political and social events in their idol promotion activities. The idol images they built are not only positive but also nationalist. Therefore, they play not only the commercial logic commonly seen in the Japanese and Korean K-pop/idol culture but also the political logic propagated by the state in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex disease with unclear etiology. Studies have shown that ferroptosis is also related to ASD progression, but the specific mechanism is still unclear. Valproic acid (VPA) induced neuronal ferroptosis in vitro. Mechanistic studies showed that both VPA and ferroptosis inducers promoted the expression of DDIT4 in neurons, thereby inhibiting the activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway. DDIT4 increased the accumulation of ROS, MDA and Fe2+, inhibited neuronal viability and downregulated GPX4 expression by inactivating the PI3K/Akt pathway. Ferroptosis inhibitors reversed the anti-survival effect of DDIT4, indicating that DDIT4 enhances ferroptosis through the PI3K/Akt pathway, thereby inhibiting neuronal viability. Further in vivo experiments found that autistic mice had high levels of ROS, MDA and Fe2+, increased DDIT4 expression, and downregulated expression levels of GPX4, p-PI3K and p-Akt; after downregulation of DDIT4 expression, the accumulation of ROS, MDA and Fe2+ was significantly reduced, while the expression levels of GPX4, p-PI3K and p-Akt were upregulated, indicating that DDIT4 knockdown reduces ferroptosis in autistic mice. In addition, DDIT4 downregulation, PI3K/Akt pathway activation, and ferroptosis inhibitors all improved social behavior deficits, repetitive stereotyped and compulsive behaviors, anxiety and exploratory behaviors in autistic mice, but PI3K/Akt pathway inhibitors significantly blocked the rescue of abnormal behaviors by DDIT4 downregulation in autistic mice. Therefore, downregulation of DDIT4 expression ameliorates abnormal behaviors in autism by inhibiting ferroptosis via the PI3K/Akt pathway, indicating that DDIT4, the PI3K/Akt pathway and ferroptosis have key roles in autism. • VPA induces DDIT4 expression to promote neuronal ferroptosis. • VPA promotes neuronal ferroptosis through the DDIT4/PI3K/Akt pathway. • Downregulation of DDIT4 expression activates the PI3K/Akt pathway to alleviate ferroptosis in autistic mice. • The DDIT4/PI3K/Akt pathway regulates ferroptosis to affect abnormal behaviors in autistic mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contextual information involves invariant properties that are critical in selective attention. There is no direct evidence showing the effect of contextual information on object-based selective attention. The current study aimed to investigate the role of contextual uncertainty on object-based effect using a flanker task and to clarify the contradictory results obtained in previous studies. Herein, contextual uncertainty specifically referred to the configurations of the stimuli presented randomly as vertical or horizontal displays (high contextual uncertainty) that was reduced by showing consistent configurations within a block, via implicit learning of configuration (low contextual uncertainty). In Experiment 1, the object-based effect was observed under the high uncertainty condition and disappeared under the low uncertainty condition, demonstrating that contextual uncertainty modulated object-based attention. Experiment 2 provided explicit knowledge of the configural orientations, which can be utilised to sufficiently guide subsequent perception with increase in cueing interval, and therefore, affected contextual uncertainty. Relative to a short cueing interval, the long cueing interval enabled the participants to utilise the contextual knowledge for guiding visual attention and reducing uncertainty. Consistent with the finding in Experiment 1, the explicit manipulation of contextual uncertainty affected the object-based effect. The results proved that the contextual uncertainty played an important role in prioritisation in the object-based attentional selection. The mechanism of the interplay between contextual uncertainty and object-based attention was discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a green and sustainable technology to relieve environmental pollution issues, semiconductor photocatalysis attracted great attention. However, most single-component semiconductors suffer from high carrier recombination rate and low reaction efficiency. Here, we constructed a novel visible-light-driven Z-scheme g-C3N4/AgBr-Ag photocatalyst (noted as CN-AA-0.05) using a hydrothermal method with KBr as the bromine source. The CN-AA-0.05 photocatalyst shows an excellent photocatalytic degradation performance, and a rhodamine B (RhB) degradation ratio of 96.3% in 40 min, and 2-mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT) degradation ratio of 99.2% in 18 min are achieved. Mechanistic studies show that the remarkable performance of CN-AA-0.05 is not only attributed to the enhanced light absorption caused by the Ag SPR effect, but also the efficient charge transfer and separation with Ag nanoparticles as the bridge. Our work provides a reference for the design and construction of efficient visible-light-responsive Z-scheme photocatalysts, and an in-depth understanding into the mechanism of Z-scheme photocatalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to protect the copyright of the high dynamic range (HDR) video, a robust HDR video watermarking method based on saliency extraction and tensor-singular value decomposition (T-SVD) is proposed. Since T-SVD can not only represent high-dimension data, but also remain its intrinsic structure, each frame of the HDR video is considered as the third-order tensor to be transformed by using T-SVD for preserving the main characteristics of the frame. Each frame is divided into non-overlapping blocks, and each block is decomposed by using T-SVD to obtain the orthogonal tensor U , which includes three orthogonal matrices and represents main energies of the frame. Since the second matrix has more correlations of the video frame than other two matrices, it is used to embed watermark for robustness. Moreover, to obtain the trade-off between watermarking robustness and the visual quality, the saliency map of each frame is extracted to predict the most relevant and important areas for determining the watermark embedding strength. The saliency map is computed based on fusing the spatial saliency and the temporal saliency, where the spatial saliency is built by calculating color, intensity and orientation features of the HDR video and the temporal saliency is obtained by using the optical flow. Experiment results show that the proposed watermarking method can resist a variety of tone mapping attacks and video attacks, and is more robust than existing watermarking methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the large-time behavior of solutions to the Navier–Stokes/Allen–Cahn system of compressible viscous gases in half space. We prove that the corresponding stationary solutions of the small amplitude to the inflow problem for the Navier–Stokes/Allen–Cahn system are time-asymptotically stable. The proof of asymptotic stability is based on the basic energy method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Whether vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy is beneficial to bone health and offspring growth remains controversial. Moreover, there is no universal agreement regarding the appropriate dose and the time of commencement of vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy. Objective: We aimed to systematically review the effects of vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy on bone development and offspring growth. Methods: A literature search for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was performed in 7 electronic databases to identify relevant studies about the effects of vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy on bone development and offspring growth from inception to May 22, 2022. A Cochrane Risk Assessment Tool was used for quality assessment. Vitamin D supplementation was compared with placebo or standard supplements. The effects are presented as the mean differences (MDs) with 95% CIs. The outcomes include bone mineral content (BMC), bone mineral density (BMD), bone area (BA), femur length (FL) and humeral length (HL); measurement indicators of growth, including length, weight and head circumference; and secondary outcome measures, including biochemical indicators of bone health, such as the serum 25(OH)D concentration. Additionally, subgroup analyses were carried out to evaluate the impact of different doses and different initiation times of supplementation with vitamin D. Results: Twenty-three studies with 5390 participants met our inclusion criteria. Vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy was associated with increased humeral length (HL) (MD 0.13, 95% CI 0.06, 0.21, I2 = 0, P = 0.0007) during the fetal period (third trimester). Vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy was associated with a significantly increased length at birth (MD 0.14, 95% CI 0.04, 0.24, I2 = 24%, P = 0.005) and was associated with a higher cord blood 25(OH)D concentration (MD 48.74, 95% CI 8.47, 89.01, I2 = 100%, P = 0.02). Additionally, subgroup analysis revealed that birth length was significantly higher in the vitamin D intervention groups of ≤1000 IU/day and ≥4001 IU/day compared with the control group. Prenatal (third trimester) vitamin D supplementation was associated with a significant increase in birth length, while prenatal (second trimester) vitamin D supplementation was associated with a significant increase in birth weight. Conclusion: Vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy may be associated with increased humeral length (HL) in the uterus, increased body length at birth and higher cord blood 25(OH)D concentration. Evidence of its effect on long-term growth in children is lacking. Additional rigorous high-quality, long-term and larger randomized trials are required to more fully investigate the effects of vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work unraveled the action of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells–released exosomes (huc-MSCs-EXO) transfer of miR-140-5p in preeclampsia (PE). miR-140-5p and follistatin-like 3 (FSTL3) expression in placental tissues of PE patients was tested. EXO were isolated from huc-MSCs. Hypoxic trophoblast cells were co-cultured with huc-MSCs-EXO. Cell biological functions, angiogenesis, and inflammation were evaluated. Suppressed miR-140-5p and induced FSTL3 levels were measured in PE. Huc-MSCs-EXO drove biological functions and angiogenesis while hindering inflammation in hypoxic trophoblast cells. Increasing miR-140-5p further improved the positive role of huc-MSCs-EXO for hypoxic trophoblast cells, but the miR-140-5p-mediated effect in hypoxic trophoblast cells was abrogated by overexpressing FSTL3. miR-140-5p from huc-MSCs-EXO suppresses PE through repressing FSTL3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Films featuring look-alikes with contrasting attributes played by the same actor or actress were prevalent in both Republican cinema before 1949 and contemporary Chinese-language cinema. This trope of doubling is a focal point of this article. To examine the distinctiveness of the Chinese cinematic double, this article looks back on the pictorial and conceptual paradigm of traditional Chinese painting, as well as the photographic technology of the late nineteenth century. The interaction between cultural and aesthetic conventions of Chinese painting and the imported modern technology played a significant role in configuring the double in Chinese photography. The uncanny magic of the mimetic technologies that created the perfect doubles of man, culminated in Chinese cinema in the 1920s and 1940s. While this article focuses primarily on the relationship between the trope of the double and the history of media, it also examines the themes, technologies, mimesis, and identity that were inextricably interwoven with the figure of the double. From painting to photography and on to film, the intermedial and historical journey of doubling reflects the emergence of visual regimes of modernity which changed the optical experience, transformed perceptions of the real, and challenged social ideas about class and gender. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Real-time optical sensing of mercury has been developed rapidly in recent years but remains challenging such as bearing background interference. Herein, a Hg2+ and base dual-activatable ultrasensitive chemiluminescent probe CL-Hg based on benzothiazole-phenoxyl-dioxetane with profits of excitation light-free and minimal interference is presented. The photophysical properties study and sensing performance verified CL-Hg is coupled with unique advantages of long-term detection (more than 400 min), ultrahigh sensitivity (LOD = 0.52 nM), and high specificity to Hg2+, and visualization detection by the paper-based test strips. More importantly, CL-Hg showed the qualitative and quantitative detection capability for Hg2+ with great recyclability in real samples of water, seafood, and beverages, holding great potential for on-site monitoring of Hg2+ levels in the actual samples. To our knowledge, this is the first work achieving the detection of Hg2+ by chemiluminescence. Overall, the Hg2+-activated visualization platform offers a practical method for detecting Hg2+ in various application scenarios. [Display omitted] • CL-Hg was designed to detect Hg2+ based on chemiluminescence. • CL-Hg showed an ultralong luminescence lifetime for Hg2+ more than 400 min. • CL-Hg was ultrasensitive for Hg2+ with a detection limit of 0.52 nM. • CL-Hg can be applied for the quantitative detection of Hg2+ in complex samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the as-quenched Mn 55 Fe 15 Si 20 B 7 EM 3 (EM = Zr, Nb, V) amorphous ribbons were produced by the melt spinning technique. The crystallization behavior, nanoprecipitate phase evolution, and magnetic properties of the Mn-Fe-Si-B-EM (EM = Zr, Nb, V) amorphous alloys were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and the quantum design dynacool-9 physical property measurement system (PPMS). The Mn 55 Fe 15 Si 20 B 7 EM 3 (EM = Zr, Nb, V) amorphous alloys show two-stage crystallization behavior. In the first stage, the primary crystallization results in the formation of α-Mn + Mn 6 Si/Mn 3 Si precipitates, while in the second stage, the secondary crystallization leads to the formation of the Mn 2 B phase. The Mn 55 Fe 15 Si 20 B 7 Zr 3 (FZ) amorphous sample shows a most significant two-stage phase transformation, which the onset temperature of the primary and that of the secondary crystallization are 625.7 °C and 681.2 °C, respectively. The FZ amorphous sample undergoes a magnetic phase transformation from the spin glass (SG) state to a paramagnetic (PM) state at approximately 28 K. As the temperature increases, the magnetic phase transition can be expressed as: SG → PM. The annealed FZ nanocrystalline sample with α-Mn + Mn 6 Si nano phases enters the ferromagnetic (FM) state at 27∼70 K after undergoing spin glass transformation, and the magnetic phase transition is: SG → FM → PM. The annealed Mn 55 Fe 15 Si 20 B 7 V 3 nanocrystalline sample containing nano α-Mn and Mn 3 Si phases shows two Curie transitions at 57 K and 130 K, respectively. The magnetic phase transition behavior can be expressed as: SG → FMΙ → FMΙΙ → PM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing soil erosion (SE) is crucial for achieving harmony between human society and the ecological environment. The cultivated land fragmentation (CLF), directly or indirectly, alters soil structure, diminishes its water-holding capacity, and escalates the risk of SE. Scientific assessment of the effect of CLF on SE can provide new insights into controlling of SE across watersheds in China. However, few studies have quantified the effect of CLF on SE. Therefore, we utilized land use change data in the Yangtze River basin from 2000 to 2020, measuring the levels of CLF and SE using Fragstats and InVEST models. The bivariate spatial autocorrelation model was employed to reveal the spatial relationship between CLF and SE. Additionally, we constructed a spatial Durbin model and introduced the geographically and temporally weighted regression model to analyze the role of CLF on SE. The south bank of the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River basin exhibited high CLF and SE. The bivariate spatial autocorrelation results showed a significant positive spatial correlation between CLF and SE. The spatial Durbin model results showed that CLF had a spatial spillover effect and time lag on SE, and the effect of CLF on SE had an inverted "N" curve. The study also confirmed that last SE and neighboring SE areas influenced local SE. Currently, CLF had a negative effect on SE in the Sichuan Basin, Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, and the middle and lower Yangtze River Plain, and positively in Qinghai, Hunan, and Jiangxi provinces. These findings suggest that the government should enhance cross-regional and cross-sectoral cooperation and monitoring of cultivated land changes to prevent and control SE effectively. • Cultivated land fragmentation and soil erosion are increasing. • Cultivated land fragmentation has a dual spatio-temporal effect on soil erosion. • A nonlinear relationship between cultivated land fragmentation and soil erosion. • Cultivated land fragmentation inhibits soil erosion in a specific period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Doxorubicin (DOX) is a commonly used anthracycline in cancer chemotherapy. The clinical application of DOX is constrained by its cardiotoxicity. Myricetin (MYR) is a natural flavonoid widely present in many plants with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. However, MYR's beneficial effects and mechanisms in alleviating DOX-induced cardiotoxicity (DIC) remain unknown. C57BL/6 mice were injected with 15 mg/kg of DOX to establish the DIC, and MYR solutions were administrated by gavage to investigate its cardioprotective potentials. Histopathological analysis, physiological indicators assessment, transcriptomics analysis, and RT-qPCR were used to elucidate the potential mechanism of MYR in DIC treatment. MYR reduced cardiac injury produced by DOX, decreased levels of cTnI, AST, LDH, and BNP, and improved myocardial injury and fibrosis. MYR effectively prevented DOX-induced oxidative stress, such as lowered MDA levels and elevated SOD, CAT, and GSH activities. MYR effectively suppressed NLRP3 and ASC gene expression levels to inhibit pyroptosis while regulating Caspase1 and Bax levels to reduce cardiac cell apoptosis. According to the transcriptomic analysis, glucose and fatty acid metabolism were associated with differential gene expression. KEGG pathway analysis revealed differential gene enrichment in PPAR and AMPK pathways, among others. Following validation, MYR was found to alleviate DIC by regulating glycolipid metabolism and AMPK pathway-related genes. Our findings demonstrated that MYR could mitigate DIC by regulating the processes of oxidative stress, apoptosis, and pyroptosis. MYR is critical in improving DOX-induced myocardial energy metabolism abnormalities mediated by the AMPK signaling pathway. In conclusion, MYR holds promise as a therapeutic strategy for DIC. [Display omitted] • MYR holds protective potentials for DOX-induced cardiotoxicity (DIC). • MYR improves the energy metabolism disorder of DIC. • MYR alleviates the DIC by regulating the AMPK signaling pathway • MYR may have therapeutic value for DIC treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) are a common complication of the central nervous system following surgery and anesthesia. The specific pathogenesis and effective therapeutics of POCD need to be further studied. Ginkgolide B (GB), a platelet-activating factor receptor-specific antagonist, has been suggested to have strong anti-inflammatory effects. Here we tested the effects and mechanism of GB on POCD of aged rats. Methods: Neurobehavioral tests were used to investigate the effect of GB pretreatment on POCD. The hippocampus were harvested to test the expression of proinflammatory cytokines by ELISA. The expression of the microglial marker ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule-1 (Iba-1) in the hippocampus was evaluated by western blot assay and immunohistochemistry. A Nissl staining experiment was used to detect the neuronal numbers in the hippocampus. Results: Surgery might result in the overexpression of platelet activating factor (PAF) in the plasma and hippocampus and might cause hippocampus-dependent memory impairment. GB pretreatment, inhibited the activation of microglia, reduced the levels of IL-1β and TNF-α, decreased the loss of neurons after surgery, and prevented POCD in aged rats. Conclusion: Our findings suggested that PAF was involved in the development of POCD. Improvement of POCD by PAF antagonist GB was associated with the inhibition of microgliosis-mediated neuroinflammation and neuronal apoptosis in aged rats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Rice grains were obtained from two Chinese provinces (Hubei and Guangxi) and then their rice bran was abraded into four equal fractions by weight from outside to inside. The component distributions in these four fractions were then investigated. The contents of total lipid‐soluble antioxidant showed no significant difference between rice bran from the Hubei province and the Guangxi province. But the content of total water‐soluble antioxidant was 1690.20 ± 86.40 mg kg−1 for rice bran from the Hubei province, significantly higher than those from the Guangxi province (1014.67 ± 71.09 mg kg−1). Obvious differences between four rice bran fractions or two provinces were proved by principal component analysis (PCA). Lipase activities decreased significantly from outer fractions to inner fractions, and lipids mainly distributed in three outer fractions. The essential element contents decreased significantly, but a main heavy metal element (Pb) in cereal increased significantly to 0.36 mg kg−1 from outer fractions to inner fractions, which was just slightly below the upper limit of Chinese Standard (0.40 mg kg−1). Although protein contents had no significant difference in four fractions, the amino acid compositions were quite different. In summary, different fractions of rice bran had different compositions, which could provide guidance for the classified processing of rice bran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To investigate the emotional response, stress and psychological changes of patients with breast cancer after surgery for psychological intervention-assisted comfort nursing based on the PERMA model. Methods. A total of 100 postoperative breast cancer patients admitted to our hospital from March 2019 to June 2021 were selected as prospective research objects. According to a random number table, they were divided into a control group and an observation group with 50 cases each. Among them, the control group implemented routine nursing care, and the observation group implemented psychological intervention-assisted comfort care based on the PERMA model on the basis of the control group. The differences in compliance behavior, self-care ability, emotional response, stress response changes, and pain scores of the two groups of breast cancer patients before and after nursing were compared. Results. After nursing, the mental behavior scores, exercise scores, medication scores, and balanced diet scores of the two groups of breast cancer patients after surgery were significantly improved. The observation group's compliance behavior scores were significantly higher than those of the control group. In the two groups of breast cancer patients, postoperative anxiety, depression, fatigue, and anger of the patients were significantly improved, and the emotional response score of the observation group was significantly lower than that of the control group. The self-care skill score, self-responsibility score, health knowledge score, and self-concept score of the observation group were excellent compared with those of the control group; the difference was significant by the above statistics (P < 0.05). The HR and MAP of the control group during the operation were higher than those 1 day before the start of the operation and decreased at the end of the operation, but still higher than the level 1 day before the start of the operation; the change trend of the observation group was the same as that of the control group, but there were differences between the time points. There was no significant significance (P > 0.05). The HR and MAP of the observation group during the operation were lower than those of the control group, and the MAP at the end of the operation was lower than that of the control group. This difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). In the control group, the values increased at the time point during the operation and decreased at the end of the operation, but still higher than the level 1 day before the operation. The difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). The change trend of the observation group was the same as that of the control group; and the values during and at the end of the operation were all lower than those of the control group. This difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). The pain scores of the two groups of patients at different time points were significantly improved, and the observation group was significantly less than the control group. This difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). Conclusion. Psychological intervention-assisted comfort nursing can effectively enhance the compliance behavior of patients after breast cancer surgery, improve the emotional response, stress response, and pain of patients, and have certain reference value for the nursing of patients after breast cancer surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers have begun to examine whether centralized or decentralized (or federal) political systems have better responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this article, we probe beneath the surface of China's political system to examine the balance between centralized and decentralized authority in China's handling of the pandemic. We focus not on the much-studied later response phase but on the detection and early response phases. We show that after the SARS epidemic of 2003, China sought to improve its systems by both centralizing early infectious disease reporting and decentralizing authority to respond to local health emergencies. But these adjustments in the central–local balance of authority after SARS did not change "normal times" authority relations and incentive structures in the political system—indeed they strengthened local authority. As a result, local leaders had both the enhanced authority and the incentives to prioritize tasks that determine their political advancement at the cost of containing the spread of COVID-19. China's efforts to balance central and local authority show just how difficult it is to get that balance right, especially in the early phases of a pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bacterial meningitis (BM) is a life-threatening infectious disease of the central nervous system in infants and children. To date, no diagnostic methods for the early and precise diagnosis of paediatric BM have been developed. Methods: A label-free cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) quantitative proteomic analysis of 8 patients with confirmed or suspected BM, 9 patients with confirmed or suspected viral meningitis (VM) and 6 non-CNS-infected hospital patients was performed via high-resolution LC–MS/MS. Results: Our CSF proteomic analysis allowed the identification of critical differences between the BM and non-BM groups. Compared to the proteomes of the non-BM groups, the proteome of the paediatric BM group was characterized by upregulation of complement and coagulation cascades, regulation of IGF transport, uptake by IGF-binding proteins and acute inflammatory response, downregulation of developmental growth, and metabolism of carbohydrates. Moreover, the levels of CD163, A2M and full-length APP in CSF showed excellent diagnostic performance for paediatric BM, with AUC values of 0.911 (95% CI: 0.839–0.984), 0.908 (95% CI: 0.816–1.000) and 0.944 (95% CI: 0.86, 1.000), respectively. Among them, A2M and full-length APP are reported here for the first time as potential diagnostic biomarkers of BM. The findings imply that peptidase regulator activity plays an important role in BM and provide potential novel targets for precision medicine in paediatric BM. Conclusions: CD163, A2M and full-length APP are validated as potential diagnostic biomarkers of paediatric BM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Ratoon sugarcane is susceptible to chlorosis, characterized by chlorophyll loss, poor growth, and a multitude of nutritional deficiency mainly occurring at young stage. Chlorosis would significantly reduce the cane production. The molecular mechanism underlying this phenomenon remains unknown. We analyzed the transcriptome and metabolome of chlorotic and non-chlorotic sugarcane leaves of the same age from the same field to gain molecular insights into this phenomenon. Results: The agronomic traits, such as plant height and the number of leaf, stalk node, and tillers declined in chlorotic sugarcane. Chlorotic leaves had substantially lower chlorophyll content than green leaves. A total of 11,776 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were discovered in transcriptome analysis. In the KEGG enriched chlorophyll metabolism pathway, sixteen DEGs were found, eleven of which were down-regulated. Two photosynthesis pathways were also enriched with 32 genes downregulated and four genes up-regulated. Among the 81 enriched GO biological processes, there were four categories related to metal ion homeostasis and three related to metal ion transport. Approximately 400 metabolites were identified in metabolome analysis. The thirteen differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs) were all found down-regulated. The phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathway was enriched in DEGs and DEMs, indicating a potentially vital role for phenylpropanoids in chlorosis. Conclusions: Chlorophyll production, metal ion metabolism, photosynthesis, and some metabolites in the phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathway were considerably altered in chlorotic ratoon sugarcane leaves. Our finding revealed the relation between chlorosis and these pathways, which will help expand our mechanistic understanding of ratoon sugarcane chlorosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with the large time behavior of solutions to the Cauchy problem for a one-dimensional compressible non-isentropic Navier-Stokes/Allen-Cahn system which is a combination of the classical Navier-Stokes system with an Allen-Cahn phase field description. Motivated by the relationship between Navier-Stokes/Allen-Cahn and Navier-Stokes, the author can prove that the solutions to the one dimensional compressible non-isentropic Navier-Stokes/Allen-Cahn system tend time-asymptotically to the rarefaction wave, where the strength of the rarefaction wave is not required to be small. The proof is mainly based on a basic energy method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

GRP75 (75-kDA glucose-regulated protein), defined as a major component of both the mitochondrial quality control system and mitochondria-associated membrane, plays a key role in mitochondrial homeostasis. In this study, we assessed the roles of GRP75, other than as a component, in insulin action in both in vitro and in vivo models with insulin resistance. We found that GRP75 was downregulated in mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) and that induction of Grp75 in mice could prevent HFD-induced obesity and insulin resistance. Mechanistically, GRP75 influenced insulin sensitivity by regulating mitochondrial function through its modulation of mitochondrial-supercomplex turnover rather than mitochondria-associated membrane communication: GRP75 was negatively associated with respiratory chain complex activity and was essential for mitochondrial-supercomplex assembly and stabilization. Moreover, mitochondrial dysfunction in Grp75-knockdown cells might further increase mitochondrial fragmentation, thus triggering cytosolic mtDNA release and activating the cGAS/STING-dependent proinflammatory response. Therefore, GRP75 can serve as a potential therapeutic target of insulin resistant-related diabetes or other metabolic diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous in vitro biofilm model systems are available to study oral biofilms. Over the past several decades, increased understanding of oral biology and advances in technology have facilitated more accurate simulation of intraoral conditions and have allowed for the increased generalizability of in vitro oral biofilm studies. The integration of contemporary systems with confocal microscopy and 16S rRNA community profiling has enhanced the capabilities of in vitro biofilm model systems to quantify biofilm architecture and analyse microbial community composition. In this review, we describe several model systems relevant to modern in vitro oral biofilm studies: the constant depth film fermenter, Sorbarod perfusion system, drip–flow reactor, modified Robbins device, flowcells and microfluidic systems. We highlight how combining these systems with confocal microscopy and community composition analysis tools aids exploration of oral biofilm development under different conditions and in response to antimicrobial/anti‐biofilm agents. The review closes with a discussion of future directions for the field of in vitro oral biofilm imaging and analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Periodic floods and ebb tides driven by seawater affect arsenic (As) behavior in coastal wetlands, which is not fully understood. In this study, we combined DGT, high-throughput sequencing, and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) techniques for the first time to investigate the effects of flood and ebb tide on As transformation and mobility in a typical coastal tidal flat wetland by laboratory experiments. In the flood-tide stage, more As was released into the water solution, and As(III) concentration in water solution was notably higher (51 μg/L) than in the ebb-tide stage, especially in SA (sodium acetate addition) treatment. As-methylation also occurred in this stage. The release of As was attributed to the reductive dissolution of amorphous and crystalline Fe oxides bound As induced by microbes. Fusibacter , Sva1033 , Bradyrhizobium , Ralstonia , and Desulfobacter were primarily involved in the reduction of As, Fe, and S. The copy numbers of arsC were 20–148 times higher than arrA , suggesting that the detoxification reduction pathway was the primary mechanism of direct As-reduction in the flood-tide stage. However, 2-D high-resolution DGT techniques revealed that the concentrations of As(III) and total As in pore water of sediments in the ebb-tide stage were higher than those in the flood-tide stage. The detected aioA gene indicated that As was oxidized in the sediment surface, resulting in As stabilization by crystalline iron minerals, whereas more As(III) were accumulated in pore water. The reduction pathway mediated by arrA may play a prominent role in the ebb-tide stage. This study provides new insights into As release processes in coastal wetlands in seawater environments, which further deepens our understanding of As biogeochemical cycling behavior in different natural environments. [Display omitted] • As Reduction and methylation occurred in coastal tidal flat sediments. • As(III) release in water solution was higher in the flood tide stage. • As Detoxification reduction was the primary mechanism in flood tide stage. • As(III) release in pore water of coastal sediments was higher in ebb tide stage. • As Reduction pathway mediated by arrA played a prominent role in the ebb tide stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibiotic residues and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in fruits and vegetables pose public health risks via the food chain, attracting increased attention. Antibiotics such as streptomycin, used directly on seedless grapes or introduced into vineyard soil through organic fertilizers. However, extensive data supporting the risk assessment of antibiotic residues and resistance in these produce remains lacking. Utilizing metagenomic sequencing, we characterized Shine Muscat grape antibiotic resistome and mobile genetic elements (MGEs). Abundant MGEs and ARGs were found in grapes, with 174 ARGs on the grape surface and 32 in the fruit. Furthermore, our data indicated that soil is not the primary source of these MGEs and ARGs. Escherichia was identified as an essential carrier and potential transmitter of ARGs. In our previous study, streptomycin residue was identified in grapes. Further short-term exposure experiments in mice revealed no severe physiological or histological damage at several environment-related concentrations. However, with increased exposure, some ARGs levels in mouse gut microbes increased, indicating a potential threat to animal health. Overall, this study provides comprehensive insights into the resistance genome and potential hosts in grapes, supporting the risk assessment of antibiotic resistance in fruits and vegetables. [Display omitted] • Diverse ARGs and MGEs were detected on the grape surface. • Soil is not a major source of ARGs and MGEs in grape fruits. • Escherichia primarily contribute to the antibiotic resistome of the grapes. • Streptomycin residue in grape had limited effect on the health of mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of iron, copper, and niobium alloying additions on crystallization, phase transformation, and magnetic properties of Mn–Si–B-based amorphous ribbons were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and physical property measurement system (PPMS). The DSC results show that Mn78Si13B9 amorphous sample presents one-stage crystallization reaction. When added the alloying elements of iron, copper, and niobium into Mn–Si–B alloy system, the alloys still exhibit one-stage crystallization behaviors, but the crystallization temperature (Tx) has changed. The alloying addition of iron in Mn–Si–B alloy makes a decrease in Tx, while making further microalloying additions of copper and niobium in Mn–Fe–Si–B alloy the Tx of the alloy elevates significantly. For Mn78Si13B9, Mn68Fe10Si13B9, and Mn64Fe10Si13B9Cu1Nb3 alloys, the crystallization of amorphous phase simultaneously forms α-Mn(Si), Mn6Si, and Mn2B phases upon heating above the glass transition temperature. Besides, the thermal-magnetization M(T) curves confirm that the amorphous Mn78Si13B9 and Mn68Fe10Si13B9 samples exhibit a characteristic spin-glass behavior. The spin-glass freezing temperatures of them are about 20 ~ 22 K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Invasion involves tumor cells altering their cell-matrix interactions and acquiring motility for metastatic spread. Invasive tumor cells exhibit dysregulated metabolism and enhanced aerobic glycolysis, leading to nutrient depletion, hypoxia, and lactic acid production. Lactic acid is a byproduct of glycolysis capable of promoting oncogenic progression, but its role in tumor invasion is unclear. A growing number of studies have demonstrated that lactic acid regulates the degradation of collagen Ⅳ, collagen Ⅶ, and glycoprotein; the synthesis of collagen Ⅰ; and multiple signaling pathways, including TGF-β/Smad, Wnt/β-catenin, IL-6/STAT3, and HGF/MET, which are associated with basement membrane (BM) remodeling and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), two hallmarks of the tumor invasive process. In the present review, we summarize BM remodeling and EMT in tumor invasion, discuss the emerging roles and molecular mechanisms of lactic acid in these processes, and provide insights for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. This study was aimed at exploring the diagnostic and prognostic value of long noncoding RNA LINC01554 (LINC01554) in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) patients. Patients and Methods. The expressions of LINC01554 in 161 EOC patients were analyzed using RT-PCR. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was used to estimate the effectiveness of LINC01554 for prediction. The chi-square test was performed to explore the association between LINC01554 expressions and clinical characteristics in EOC patients. Kaplan-Meier assays were conducted for the examination of the influence of LINC01554 expression on the overall survival of EOC patients. Multivariate analyses were carried out to further determine prognostic values of LINC01554 expression in EOC patients. Results. LINC01554 expressions were strongly downregulated in EOC specimens compared with matched nontumor specimens (p < 0.01). Importantly, LINC01554 provided a high diagnostic performance for the detection of EOC specimens (AUC = 0.7827 ; p < 0.001). Low expression of LINC01554 was distinctly associated with the FIGO stage (p = 0.034) and distant metastasis (p = 0.007). The assays of survival data (five years) revealed that the 5-year overall survival of the low LINC01554 expression group was distinctly shorter than that of the high LINC01554 expression group (p = 0.0017). Finally, in the multivariate Cox model, LINC01554 expression (RR = 2.863 , 95% CI: 1.185-4.421, p = 0.014) was demonstrated to be an independent prognostic factor for overall survival of EOC patients. Conclusions. Our findings suggested that LINC01554 is an important EOC-related lncRNA, providing a potential diagnostic, prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for EOC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hmong-Mien speaking Miao, also called Hmong, is the sixth largest ethnic group in mainland China. However, the fine-scale genetic profiles and population history of Miao populations in southwest China, especially in Guizhou province, remain uncharacterised due to a scarcity of samples of genome-wide data from different tribes. To further investigate the population substructure and admixture history of the Guizhou Miao minority. We collected 29 samples from three Miao tribes of Guizhou province in southwest China and genotyped about 700,000 genome-wide SNPs of each sample. We analysed newly generated data in together with published modern/ancient East Asian populations datasets via a series of population genetic methods, including principal component analysis (PCA), ADMIXTURE, Fst, TreeMix, f-statistics, qpWave, and qpAdm. PCA and ADMIXTURE results showed that the three studied Guizhou Miao groups consistently fell on the Hmong-Mien-related genetic cline and were relatively genetically homogeneous, displaying a genetic affinity with neighbouring Tai-Kadai speaking populations such as Dong. These results were further confirmed by the observed genetic clade in Fst, TreeMix, outgroup-f3-statistics, and f4-statistics. Furthermore, f4-based allele sharing patterns illustrated that compared with Hunan Miao in central China, Guizhou Miao shared more alleles with Hmong-Mien-speaking Vietnam Hmong and Tai-Kadai-speaking CoLao, Dong, while exhibiting less northeast Asian-related ancestry. Admixture-f3 and f4-statistics revealed the North-South admixture pattern for the studied Guizhou Miao. A qpAdm-based two-way admixture model further revealed that the studied Guizhou Miao harboured 44%–55.4% indigenous Austronesian-speaking Atayal-related ancestry and 44.6%–56% Late Neolithic Yellow River farmer-related ancestry. The population structure within Hmong-Mien-related populations showed a geographic correlation. Hmong-Mien speaking Hunan Miao, Guizhou Miao, and Vietnam Hmong presented close genetic relationships although they dwelt in different regions, suggesting the preservation of the original Hmong-related genetic diversity. The results based on genome-wide SNPs data generally matched the migration history for the Miao population. Our study contributes to a better knowledge of Miao populations and the population structure in southwest China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well-known that the presence of serial correlation may result in an inefficient or even biased estimation in time series analysis. In this paper, we consider testing serial correlation in a general d-factor model when the model errors follow the GARCH process, which is frequently used in modeling financial data. Two empirical likelihood-based testing statistics are suggested as a way to deal with problems that might come up with infinite variance. Both statistics are shown to be chi-squared distributed asymptotically under mild conditions. Simulations confirm the excellent finite-sample performance of both tests. Finally, to emphasize the importance of using our tests, we explore the impact of the exchange rate on the stock return using both monthly and daily data from eight countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the asymptotic stability of peaked solitons under H1 × H1-perturbations of the two-component Novikov equation involving interaction between two components. This system, as a two-component generalization of the Novikov equation, is a completely integrable system which has Lax pair and bi-Hamiltonian structure. Interestingly, it admits the two-component peaked solitons with different phases, which are the weak solutions in the sense of distribution and lie in the energy space H1 × H1. It is shown that the peakons are asymptotically stable in the energy space H1 × H1 with non-negative momentum density by establishing a rigidity theorem for H1 × H1-almost localized solutions. Our proof generalizes the arguments for studying the Camassa-Holm and Novikov equations. There are three new ingredients in our proof. One is a new characteristic describing interaction of the two-components; the second is new additional conserved densities for establishing the main inequalities; while the third one is a new Lyapunov functional used to overcome the difficulty caused by the loss of momentum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This prospective real‐world study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of eribulin in the clinical practice against advanced breast cancer (ABC) in China. Patients and Methods: In this study, eligible patients with inoperable locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer who had experienced prior neo−/adjuvant or failed the palliative treatment with anthracycline/taxanes were included. Eribulin (1.4 mg/m2) was infused intravenously on Day 1 and Day 8 every 3 weeks until disease progression or intolerable toxicity occurred. The progression‐free survival (PFS), overall response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), and safety of the treatment were assessed. Results: One hundred and thirty‐four patients were enrolled. The median PFS (mPFS) was 4.3 months (95% CI: 0.3–15.4). The ORR and DCR was 32.1% and 79.1%, respectively. The mPFS of patients who received eribulin as first‐ or second‐line treatment was significantly better than those who received eribulin as ≥3‐line treatment (6.9 months [95% CI: 3.2–8.8] vs. 4.0 months [95% CI: 3.4–4.6], p = 0.006). The mPFS of patients with triple‐negative, HER2‐positive, and HER2(−)/HR(+) was 3.4 (95% CI: 2.7–4.1), 6.2 (95% CI: 2.3–10.1) and 5.0 months (95% CI: 4.1–5.9), respectively. HER2(+) patients had significantly longer PFS than TNBC patients (p = 0.022). Patients received combination therapy had a significantly longer mPFS than those who received eribulin monotherapy (5.0 months [95% CI 3.6–6.3] vs. 4.0 months [95% CI: 3.3–4.7] [p = 0.016]). Multivariate analysis revealed that MBC patients with a molecular typing of non‐TNBC receiving eribulin as ≤2‐line therapy and combination therapy had a low risk of disease progression. Neutropenia (33.58%), leukopenia (11.94%), and thrombocytopenia (4.48%) were the most common treatment‐related adverse events. Conclusion: Eribulin demonstrated effective clinical activity and a favorable tolerability profile in Chinese patients with ABC in the real‐world. The efficacy and safety profile were consistent with those reported in previous randomized phase 3 trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The poor carrier mobility of polycrystalline Mg3Sb2 at low temperatures strongly degrades the thermoelectric performance. Ionized impurities are initially thought to dominate charge carrier scattering at low temperatures. Accordingly, the increased electrical conductivity by replacing Mg with metals such as Nb is also attributed to reduced ionized impurity scattering. Recent experimental and theoretical studies challenge this view and favor the grain boundary (GB) scattering mechanism. A reduction of GB scattering improves the low‐temperature performance of Mg3(Sb, Bi)2 alloys. However, it is still elusive how these metal additions reduce the GB resistivity. In this study, Nb‐free and Nb‐added Mg3Sb2 are studied through diffraction, X‐ray absorption spectroscopy, solid‐state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and atom probe tomography. It is shown that Nb does not enter the Mg3Sb2 matrix and remains in the metallic state. Besides, Nb diffuses along the GB forming a wetting layer, which modifies the interfacial energy and accelerates grain growth. The GB resistivity appears to be reduced by Nb‐enrichment, as evidenced by modeling the electrical transport properties. This study not only confirms the GB scattering in Mg3Sb2 but also reveals the hitherto hidden role of metallic additives on enhancing grain growth and reducing the GB resistivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, a kind of structured lipids, namely 1,3‐di‐oleic‐2‐medium chain (OMO) triacylglycerols, were synthesized through lipase‐catalyzed reactions using coconut oil and rapeseed acid as materials in a trace water‐in‐oil system. Experimental analysis and computational simulations were undertaken to compare the stability of four lipases including Lipozyme RMIM, Lipozyme TLIM, Novozym 435, and Aspergillus oryzae immobilized lipase (AOIM), and illustrate catalytic mechanism of Novozym 435 during the synthesis of OMO. Fourier transform infrared and molecular dynamics simulation results demonstrated that a decrease in ordered structure (α‐helix and β‐sheet) led to a reduction in enzyme activity. Compared with Lipozyme RMIM and Novozym 435, Lipozyme TLIM and AOIM exhibited better stability due to a short‐chain lid in TLIM, which covers activity sites, and hydrogen bonds formed between activity center of AOIM and water. Among four lipases, AOIM exhibited best catalytic performance: a OMO yield of 30.7% at 3 hr and a good stability of long term (48 hr). Density functional theory results demonstrated that specifically, during the synthesis of OMO triacylglycerol, the addition of Novozym 435 (derived from Candida antarctica lipase B, CALB) substantially lowered reaction barriers (64.4 KJ/mol with CALB vs. 332.7 KJ/mol with no lipase), aiding in the generation of OMO because of the formations of transitional tetrahedral intermediates. A trace water‐in‐oil system was a green and efficient alternative for lipase‐catalyzed production of OMO, and this study provided crucial insights into the stability/instability and catalytic mechanisms of lipase in the synthesis of structured lipids. Practical applications: We compared the stability of Lipozyme RMIM, Lipozyme 435, Lipozyme TLIM, and AOIM during the synthesis of the OMO triacylglycerols in a trace water‐in‐oil system, where exhibited a high catalytic activity of lipase in water–oil interface. AOIM had the highest stability and showed the best catalytic performance due to the formation of hydrogen bonds. Besides, for the first time, the transition tetrahedral structure was revealed in the enzymatic synthesis of medium‐ and long‐chain triacylglycerols. This study provides a rational approach to compare lipase stability and a possible hint to choose appropriate enzyme in a specific catalytic condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a highly heterogeneous disease with diverse genetic subsets, one hallmark of AML blasts is myeloid differentiation blockade. Extensive evidence has indicated that differentiation induction therapy represents a promising treatment strategy. Here, we identified that the pharmacological inhibition of the mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) complex III by antimycin A inhibits proliferation and promotes cellular differentiation of AML cells. Mechanistically, we showed that the inhibition of dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHODH), a rate-limiting enzyme in de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis, is involved in antimycin A-induced differentiation. The activity of antimycin A could be reversed by supplement of excessive amounts of exogenous uridine as well as orotic acid, the product of DHODH. Furthermore, we also found that complex III inhibition exerts a synergistic effect in differentiation induction combined with DHODH inhibitor brequinar as well as with the pyrimidine salvage pathway inhibitor dipyridamole. Collectively, our study uncovered the link between mitochondrial complex III and AML differentiation and may provide further insight into the potential application of mitochondrial complex III inhibitor as a mono or combination treatment in differentiation therapy of AML. • Our study uncovered the inhibition of mitochondrial complex III-induced AML cell differentiation as well as the underlying mechanisms. • The concomitant blockade of the complex III and pyrimidine biosynthesis pathways, including the de novo and salvage pathway, exerts a synergistic effect in inducing AML cell differentiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Immune aberrations in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) are characterized by systemic inflammation and immune deficiency. The mechanistic understanding of this phenomenon remains limited. Methods We generated 12 981 and 9578 single-cell transcriptomes of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) that were pooled from 10 healthy volunteers and 10 patients with ESRD by single-cell RNA sequencing. Unsupervised clustering and annotation analyses were performed to cluster and identify cell types. The analysis of hallmark pathway and regulon activity was performed in the main cell types. Results We identified 14 leukocytic clusters that corresponded to six known PBMC types. The comparison of cells from ESRD patients and healthy individuals revealed multiple changes in biological processes. We noticed an ESRD-related increase in inflammation response, complement cascade and cellular metabolism, as well as a strong decrease in activity related to cell cycle progression in relevant cell types in ESRD. Furthermore, a list of cell type-specific candidate transcription factors (TFs) driving the ESRD-associated transcriptome changes was identified. Conclusions We generated a distinctive, high-resolution map of ESRD-derived PBMCs. These results revealed cell type-specific ESRD-associated pathways and TFs. Notably, the pooled sample analysis limits the generalization of our results. The generation of larger single-cell datasets will complement the current map and drive advances in therapies that manipulate immune cell function in ESRD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]