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Abstract: Mg–14Li–1Al–0.1Ce alloy is immersed in NH4VO3 +K3(Fe(CN)6) solutions with different NH4VO3 and/or K3(Fe(CN)6) concentrations, and different immersion time. The surface morphology and composition of the vanadate coating are then characterized by scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersion spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and the corrosion behavior of the conversion coating is studied by polarization technique and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The experimental results indicate that the vanadate film with better corrosion resistance forms on Mg–Li–Al–Ce surface after the sample is immersed in 30gL−1 NH4VO3 +3.75gL−1 K3(Fe(CN)6) solution at 80°C for 10min. The coating consists of V2O5, Li2O and Mg(OH)2. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this research, a new Mg-air battery based on Mg–14Li–1Al–0.1Ce was prepared and the battery performance was investigated by constant current discharge test. The corrosion behavior of Mg, AZ31 and Mg–Li–Al–Ce were studied by self-corrosion rate measurement and potentiodynamic polarization measurement. The characteristics of Mg–Li–Al–Ce after discharge were investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that Mg–Li–Al–Ce is more active than Mg and AZ31. The self-corrosion rate is found to be in the order: Mg–Li–Al–Ce

Objective: To investigate the association between alcohol consumption and incidence of sleep disorder.Methods: PubMed, EMBASE and OVID were searched systematically until March 2020 for cohort studies quantitatively investigating the effect of alcohol on incident sleep disorder. We conducted a random-effects meta-analysis to calculate the summary ORs (odds ratios) and 95 %CIs (confidence intervals) on the incidence of sleep disorder in relation to alcohol consumption.Results: The pooled analysis of eleven included cohort studies demonstrated that general drinking was significantly associated with incidence of sleep disorder (OR:1.37, 95 %CI:1.22,1.54,I² = 0.0 %) while heavy drinking was not (OR:1.22, 95 %CI:0.94,1.60, I² = 81.1 %). (general drinking (women <24 g/day; men <48 g/day; < 4 times/week), heavy drinking (women ≥24 g/day; men ≥48 g/day; ≥ 4times/week)).Conclusions: Findings from the present systematic review and meta-analyses showed that there was no evidence that alcohol consumption diminished sleep problems, and some evidence that general drinking might increase the sleep problems, but further study is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In order to improve the corrosion resistance of Mg–Li–Al–Ce alloy. A new two-step surface treatment, combining fluoride pretreatment in hydrofluoric acid (HF) solution and anodic electrophoresis in waterborne acrylic resin solution, is developed for Mg–Li–Al–Ce alloy. The results of scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersion spectroscopy show that a 6μm thick fluoride film is formed on the Mg–Li–Al–Ce alloy. A compact, uniform and 56μm thick waterborne acrylic resin coating is formed on the fluoride-coated alloy. The results of electrochemical measurements show that the double-layer coating improves the corrosion resistance of Mg–Li–Al–Ce alloy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Three-dimensional graphene@Co 3 O 4 nanowire array grown on Ni foam as a binder-free supercapacitor electrode were prepared, in which the graphene was prepared by the facile Radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering method. The electrochemical properties were tested by the cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge/discharge and electrochemical impedance spectra in detail. The graphene@Co 3 O 4 nanowire array grown on Ni foam exhibited an higher pseudocapacitive behavior comparing to pure Co 3 O 4 nanowire array grown on Ni foam. The result was attributed to that the graphene prepared by RF magnetron sputtering method was high conductivity and high contact interaction between graphene and Co 3 O 4 array. This work provided a novel method to synthesize 3D porous array electrode materials based on graphene for application in electrochemical energy storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

5-Hydroxymethylfurfural was conveniently synthesized by dehydration of D-fructose in a good yield. To further build bioactive derivatives from 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, 2,3-unsaturated glycosides were directly obtained through the Ferrier-rearrangement reaction of various glycals. Noticeably, a solid acid catalyst was successfully applied in the preparation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural and then recycled to promote the Ferrier-rearrangement reaction, making it possible to achieve two steps of reaction in an eco-friendly manner through the simple process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA)-induced keratitis is characterized by inflammatory epithelial edema, stromal infiltration, corneal ulceration and can lead to vision loss. The present study aimed to study the effect of ubiquitin-specific protease 22 (USP22) on PA-induced keratitis. Using RT-qPCR and western blotting, significantly increased expression of USP22 was identified in mouse corneas and cultured RAW264.7 cells following PA stimulation. In addition, the results of in vivo experiments, western blot assay and ELISA suggested that the silencing of USP22 attenuated disease progression, downregulated the NF-κB pathway and suppressed the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines following PA stimulation. Notably, it was identified that the expression of tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) was decreased by silencing of USP22 and USP22 was found to remove lysine 48-linked poly-ubiquitination chains from TRAF6 to stabilize TRAF6 expression and these effects were clearly aggravated following PA infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The MATRICS consensus cognitive battery (MCCB) has been widely used to evaluate cognitive deficits in schizophrenia (SCZ), however, no study has formally examined the validity of the MCCB in Chinese SCZ. This study compared Chinese SCZ patients with healthy Chinese controls on the MCCB and some additional neurocognitive tests to determine if the Chinese MCCB is an optimal battery to assess the cognitive deficits in Chinese SCZ patients. The study enrolled and examined 230 patients met DSM-IV criteria for SCZ and 656 healthy controls matched for gender, age and education. Besides the MCCB, we also included some additional neurocognitive tests that have been widely used in patients with schizophrenia. We selected MCCB and non-MCCB tests with large effect size, to assemble a new "optimal battery" and compared its performance with that of the standard MCCB. Comparing the putative "optimal" battery with the original MCCB, more patients with SCZ were identified as cognitively impaired according to the criteria of GDS ≥ 0.50 for the optimal battery (166 vs 135, or 72.2% vs 58.7%). The rate of cognitive impairment according to MCCB GDS in patients with SCZ who were currently working, ever worked and never worked are 45.5%, 61.6% and 70.8% (p = 0.051), whereas the optimal battery GDS showed 56.4%, 74.8%, 91.7% (p = 0.003), respectively. Our study needs validation with independent samples but suggests that the current "optimal" cognitive battery could be more sensitive than the widely used MCCB in detecting SCZ related cognitive impairment in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study explores the efficacy of a one-week informed consent information training process for improving competence to provide consent in stable community patients with schizophrenia over a one-year follow-up period.Method: A one-week training session designed to enhance competence to provide informed consent for research was conducted. The training was guided by a research protocol that provided detailed explanations of each major conceptual unit. Participants were followed for one year, and comprised 50 stable community outpatients with schizophrenia who were randomly assigned to either an intervention group (IG, n=33) or a control group (CG, n=17) that did not receive any training. The Chinese Mandarin MacArthur Competence Assessment Tool-Clinical Research (MacCAT-CR) was used to assess competence for informed consent pre-training (baseline), post-training (one week later), and at the end of one year.Results: A repeated measures analysis comparing the IG and CG at pre-training, post-training and the one-year follow-up revealed significant improvements in the Understanding and Appreciation subscale following the one-week training. However, by the end of one year, scores returned to baseline levels, with the exception of the Appreciation subscale, which was below baseline. There were significant main effects across time on the Appreciation and Reasoning subscales, indicating considerable changes over time. The CG showed no significant changes from pre-training to one week later or at one-year follow-up for all subscales.Conclusions: The capacities of understanding and appreciation can be improved in stable community patients with schizophrenia after one week of training; however, this training effect is not sustained one year later. The results suggest that more intensive or periodic trainings may be needed to maintain long-term competence levels in patients with schizophrenia, particularly with regard to their capacity to appreciate the nature and consequences of study participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB), packaging 10 tests selected from more than 90 nominated tests, is a method developed by the Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (MATRICS) group to evaluate the efficacy of treatments targeting cognitive impairments in schizophrenia. MCCB had been translated into a number of languages, but only the US and Spain had normative data reported. Inconsistency in translation and cultural differences make direct application of MCCB in China problematic. In this study, we administered the battery to a representative community sample based on Chinese population census in 2005 and obtained normative data. The effects of age, gender, education level, and scale of residence area on test performance were examined. The sample included 656 healthy volunteers from six sites in China. At each site, sample was stratified according to age, gender, and educational level, and scale of the area one was born in, grew up in and currently living in was recorded. We found age, gender, and education had significant effects on the normative data for MCCB in China, which are comparable to those found for the original standardized English version in the U.S. and the Spanish version in Spain. Remarkably, the residence scale effects on neuropsychological performance were significant, which should be taking into account when calculating the standardized T score for each subject. The practice effects were minor and test-retest reliability of MCCB was good, which suggests MCCB as an appropriate measure for clinical and research usage in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The MATRICS consensus cognitive battery (MCCB) has been widely used to evaluate cognitive deficits in schizophrenia (SCZ), however, no study has formally examined the validity of the MCCB in Chinese SCZ. This study compared Chinese SCZ patients with healthy Chinese controls on the MCCB and some additional neurocognitive tests to determine if the Chinese MCCB is an optimal battery to assess the cognitive deficits in Chinese SCZ patients.Method: The study enrolled and examined 230 patients met DSM-IV criteria for SCZ and 656 healthy controls matched for gender, age and education. Besides the MCCB, we also included some additional neurocognitive tests that have been widely used in patients with schizophrenia. We selected MCCB and non-MCCB tests with large effect size, to assemble a new "optimal battery" and compared its performance with that of the standard MCCB.Results: Comparing the putative "optimal" battery with the original MCCB, more patients with SCZ were identified as cognitively impaired according to the criteria of GDS ≥ 0.50 for the optimal battery (166 vs 135, or 72.2% vs 58.7%). The rate of cognitive impairment according to MCCB GDS in patients with SCZ who were currently working, ever worked and never worked are 45.5%, 61.6% and 70.8% (p = 0.051), whereas the optimal battery GDS showed 56.4%, 74.8%, 91.7% (p = 0.003), respectively.Conclusions: Our study needs validation with independent samples but suggests that the current "optimal" cognitive battery could be more sensitive than the widely used MCCB in detecting SCZ related cognitive impairment in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]