Search

In order to develop textile reinforced concrete (TRC) with good flowability and strength, colloidal nano-SiO2 (CNS) is adopted to improve the performance of TRC. The flowability, compressive strength, flexural strength, and four-point bending tests of TRC matrix with CNS are carried out, and the changes of internal micromorphological characteristics of TRC matrix are analyzed by combining with scanning electron microscopy. The results show that the CNS has an inhibitory effect on the flowability of TRC matrix, and the greater the amount of admixture is, the smaller the slump expansion of TRC matrix is. The compressive strength and flexural strength of TRC matrix show a trend of increasing and then decreasing as the amount of CNS increases, and the compressive strength reaches the maximum at each age (7 d, 14 d, 28 d) when CNS and silica fume replace 5% cement by 1 : 4 equal mass. The flexural strength reaches the maximum at each age (7 d, 14 d, 28 d) when 5% cement is replaced by CNS and silica fume with 3 : 7 equal mass. The flexural strength increases with the increase of CNS admixture. It is found by electron microscope scanning that the incorporation of CNS consumes more Ca(OH)2, refines the Ca(OH)2 crystal size, and generates more C-S-H gels. These C-S-H gels are distributed in a net-like pattern inside the concrete, filling the internal pores, effectively densifying the interfacial transition zone between the cementitious material and the aggregates, and optimizing the internal structure.

Quasi-brittleness is an important factor affecting the size effect of concrete, and the addition of steel fiber can effectively change this effect in concrete. The size effect on the fracture energy of steel fiber reinforced high-strength concrete was investigated in this paper. A total of 156 concrete single-edge notched beams (SENB) of various span-to-depth ratios, crack-to-depth ratios and steel fiber contents were tested to study the size effect of fracture energy of the high-strength concrete added steel fibers. The parameters of fracture in the boundary effect model (BEM) and size effect law (SEL) were deeply analyzed. The results show that the addition of steel fiber will generate significant influence on the parameter values obtained from both BEM and SEL. Based on the BEM, the relationship among Gf (experimental test fracture energy), gf (local fracture energy), and GF (fracture energy unaffected by specimen boundary) could be obtained. Thus, a method for analyzing the influence of steel fiber on GF was proposed using small-size SENB specimens at laboratory. In addition, based on the SEL, the impact of size effect on the fracture energy was effectively mitigated by the addition of steel fibers in high-strength concrete to a certain extent.

Global change significantly influences plant leaf gas exchange, which affects the carbon-water cycle of terrestrial ecosystems. However, the magnitudes of the effects of multiple global change factors on leaf gas exchanges are currently lacking. Therefore, a global meta-analysis of 337 published articles was conducted to determine the effects of elevated CO2 (eCO2), elevated O3 (eO3), elevated temperature (eT), and drought on plant leaf gas exchanges. The results indicated that (1) the overall responses of photosynthesis rate (Pn) and instantaneous water use efficiency (WUEi) to eCO2 increased by 28.6% and 58.6%. But transpiration rate (Tr) and stomatal conductance (gs) responded negatively to eCO2 (- 17.5% and - 17.2%, respectively). Furthermore, all Pn, gs, and WUEi responded negatively to eO3 (- 32.7%, - 24.6%, and - 27.1%), eT (- 23.2%, - 10.8%, and - 28.9%), and drought (- 53.6%, - 59.3%, and - 4.6%, respectively), regardless of functional groups and various complex experimental conditions. (2) Elevated CO2 increased WUEi combined with eO3, eT, and drought (26.6%, 36.0%, and 58.6%, respectively, for eCO2 + eO3, eCO2 + eT, and eCO2 + drought) and mitigated their negative impacts on Pn to some extent. (3) Plant form and foliage type play an important role in the responses of leaf gas exchanges. Trees responded mostly to eCO2, but responded least to eT in Pn, Tr, gs, and WUEi compared with shrubs and herbs. Evergreen broad-leaved species were more responsive to eCO2 and drought. (4) The stress level of each factor can also significantly influence the responses of leaf gas exchanges to environment change. Hopefully, the quantitative results are helpful for the further assessments of the terrestrial carbon-water cycle.

Background Liposuction-curettage is a long-standing and effective treatment for axillary bromhidrosis. However, residual malodor and skin necrosis typically occur following this treatment. Therefore, we improved this method to ensure fewer complications and better outcomes. Here, we have presented our programmed 6-step approach of improved liposuction-curettage. Methods The programmed 6-step approach of improved liposuction-curettage was used to remove the axillary apocrine glands. We used pointed and obtuse cannulas designed for liposuction-curettage. Results Patients treated using the programmed 6-step approach of improved liposuction-curettage did not experience any serious complications or residual malodor. Conclusion The programmed 6-step approach of improved liposuction-curettage was more effective than traditional surgery with respect to the treatment of axillary bromhidrosis.

BACKGROUNDSince December 2019, an outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in Wuhan, and is now becoming a global threat. We aimed to delineate and compare the immunological features of severe and moderate COVID-19.METHODSIn this retrospective study, the clinical and immunological characteristics of 21 patients (17 male and 4 female) with COVID-19 were analyzed. These patients were classified as severe (11 cases) and moderate (10 cases) according to the guidelines released by the National Health Commission of China.RESULTSThe median age of severe and moderate cases was 61.0 and 52.0 years, respectively. Common clinical manifestations included fever, cough, and fatigue. Compared with moderate cases, severe cases more frequently had dyspnea, lymphopenia, and hypoalbuminemia, with higher levels of alanine aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase, C-reactive protein, ferritin, and D-dimer as well as markedly higher levels of IL-2R, IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α. Absolute numbers of T lymphocytes, CD4+ T cells, and CD8+ T cells decreased in nearly all the patients, and were markedly lower in severe cases (294.0, 177.5, and 89.0 × 106/L, respectively) than moderate cases (640.5, 381.5, and 254.0 × 106/L, respectively). The expression of IFN-γ by CD4+ T cells tended to be lower in severe cases (14.1%) than in moderate cases (22.8%).CONCLUSIONThe SARS-CoV-2 infection may affect primarily T lymphocytes, particularly CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, resulting in a decrease in numbers as well as IFN-γ production by CD4+ T cells. These potential immunological markers may be of importance because of their correlation with disease severity in COVID-19.TRIAL REGISTRATIONThis is a retrospective observational study without a trial registration number.FUNDINGThis work is funded by grants from Tongji Hospital for the Pilot Scheme Project, and partly supported by the Chinese National Thirteenth Five Years Project in Science and Technology for Infectious Disease (2017ZX10202201).

Textile-reinforced concrete (TRC), a new composite material commonly used for repair and reinforcement of engineered structural surfaces, is easily affected by high temperatures in the even...

BackgroundThis study aimed to assess the host immune signatures associated with EBV infection and its clinical value in indicating the severity of children with acute infectious mononucleosis (IM).MethodsTwenty-eight pediatric patients with IM aged 3–8 years were enrolled. The immune phenotypes and cytokine secretion capability of T cells were detected.ResultsThe percentages and absolute numbers of CD3+and CD8+T cells were significantly increased in IM patients compared with HCs. The percentages of Naïve CD4+and CD8+T cells were decreased but with increased percentages of memory CD4+and CD8+T subsets. Our results showed the upregulation of active marker HLA-DR, TCR-αβ, and inhibitory receptors PD-1, TIGIT in CD8+T cells from IM patients, which suggested that effective cytotoxic T cells were highly against EBV infection. However, EBV exposure impaired the cytokine (IFN-γ, IL-2, and TNF-α) secretion capability of CD4+and CD8+T cells after stimulation with PMA/ionomycinin vitro. Multivariate analysis revealed that the percentage of HLA-DR+CD8+T cells was an independent prognostic marker for IM. The percentage of HLA-DR+CD8+T cells was significantly correlated with high viral load and abnormal liver function results.ConclusionRobust expansion and upregulation of HLA-DR in CD8+T cells, accompanied with impaired cytokine secretion, were typical characteristics of children with acute IM. The percentage of HLA-DR+CD8+T cells might be used as a prominent marker not only for the early diagnosis but also for indicating the severity of IM.

The dust particles released during wind erosion of bare soil cause serious harm to the environmental air, human health and agricultural production. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of microbial consolidation of bare soil against wind erosion dust, and to investigate the mechanisms of improving wind erosion resistance of bare soil by microbial consolidation. Four or methods, microbial consolidation, watering, dust-proof net covered and original specimens, sprayed on four different particle sizes of river sand [A (d = 2.5–1.25 mm), B (d = 1.25–0.6 mm), C (d = 0.6–0.3 mm) and D (d = 0.3–0 mm)]. Then, the treated soil samples were tested wind erosion resistance, composition, strength and microstructure in topsoil. Test results show that microbial consolidation of bare soil samples has the strongest wind erosion resistance and dust suppression ability among the four methods. In addition, the particle sizes affect the degree of the microbial consolidation, which means the smaller the sand size and the better the consolidation effect. Compared with the original sample, the pH value and soluble salt content of microbial-consolidated soil have little change. Microbial consolidation of bare soil is a new and effective eco-friendly wind erosion and dust prevention technology.

Background Targeted therapy has revolutionized the treatment of patients with malignancies harboring mutations in driver genes and has brought a favorable survival benefit to the population with actionable oncogenic mutations. In recent years, the MET exon14 skipping mutation has been recognized as a potentially promising therapeutic target in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). These changes are mutually exclusive with molecular drivers such as EGFR, KRAS, HER-2, BRAF, ALK and ROS1. The prevalence rate of coexisting MET exon 14 mutations and EGFR sensitive mutations (L858R, exon 19 deletions) in Chinese population was reported to be 0.2% (3/1590). However, the coexistence of MET exon 14 mutations with EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations has never been reported and the management of this subtype is not identified. Case presentation A 69-year-old male with a right lung adenocarcinoma (T4N2M0, IIIB) was confirmed to be positive for MET exon 14 skipping (c.3028_3028+1delGGinsTT, 44.4%), MET amplification (copy number 4.4), and EGFR exon 20 insertion (p. N771_H773dup, 22.1%) mutations. After the progression of one cycle of chemotherapy (Pemetrexed 0.8 g d1), the patient was subsequently accepted treatment with Crizotinib (250 mg twice a day) and achieved an important clinical remission for six months until the development of brain metastases. Then, he was submitted to a cycle of anti-programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) therapy after failure of Crizotinib and eventually acquired resistance despite of the high expression of programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) and tumor mutational burden (TMB) status. Conclusion This case report provides treatment strategies for epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs)-untreated lung adenocarcinoma patients simultaneously carrying MET alterations and EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations. In addition, the signatures of PD-L1 or TMB expression were not the candidate for predicting the efficacy of immunotherapy in this context.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate the efficiency of combining tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) and autoantibodies in the diagnosis of lung cancer. METHODS: The serum levels of TAAs and seven autoantibodies (7-AABs) were detected from patients with lung cancer, benign lung disease and healthy controls. The performance of a new panel by combing TAAs and 7-AABs was evaluated for the early diagnosis of lung cancer. RESULTS: The positive rate of 7-AABs was higher than the single detection of antibody. The positive rate of the combined detection of 7-AABs in lung cancer group (30.2%) was significantly higher than that of healthy controls (16.8%), but had no statistical difference compared with that of benign lung disease group (20.8%). The positive rate of 7-AABs showed a tendency to increase in lung cancer patients with higher tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stages. For the pathological subtype analysis, the positive rate of 7-AABs was higher in patients with squamous cell carcinoma and small cell lung cancer than that of adenocarcinoma. The levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and cytokeratin 19 fragment 211 (CYFRA 21-1) were significantly higher than that of benign lung disease and healthy control groups. An optimal model was established (including 7-AABs, CEA and CYFRA21-1) to distinguish lung cancer from control groups. The performance of this model was superior than that of single markers, with a sensitivity of 52.26% and specificity of 77.46% in the training group. Further assessment was studied in another validation group, with a sensitivity of 44.02% and specificity of 83%. CONCLUSIONS: The diagnostic performance was enhanced by combining 7-AABs, CEA and CYFRA21-1, which has critical value for the screening and early detection of lung cancer.

In the process of underground resource exploitation, the induced surface subsidence easily leads to the deformation and failure of buried pipeline. And in the process of soil subsidence, the complex interaction between buried pipeline and surrounding soil occurs, which leads to deformation and additional stress in buried pipeline. In this paper, a laboratory test system is designed and developed to analyze the influence of buried depth, cohesion of soil, and angle of internal friction on stress, in order to obtain the deformation mechanism of pipe-soil and the pressure around the pipe and the distribution of additional axial stress along the pipeline. The research results show that in the process of subsidence, the synergistic deformation between the pipe and soil at both ends of the subsidence area is maintained, while there is a compressive nonsynergistic deformation zone in the soil at the top of the pipe, and the deformation zone in the cohesion-less soil and the cohesive soil presents a spire shape and an arch shape, respectively. Areas of maximum additional tensile and compressive stresses occur in the area of maximum curvature and the central position. In addition, the smaller the burial depth, the earlier the unloading phenomenon occurs; and the additional stress in buried pipe in cohesion-less soil is significantly less than that in cohesive soil, and the unloading phenomenon occurs earlier. The research results provide the basis for disaster prevention of buried petroleum transmission pipeline in subsidence process.

NS gene is generally considered to be related to the virulence of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (AIV). In recent years, the strains with five amino acids added to the 80-84 positions of the NS1 protein have become prevalent in H5N1 subtype AIVs isolated from mammals. However, the pathogenicity and mechanism of this pattern in mammals remain unclear. In this study, H5N1 subtype AIVs without 80-84 amino acids of the NS1 protein (rNSΔ5aa ) and a mutant virus (rNS5aa-R ) with no deletion of 80-84 amino acids of the NS1 protein were used to determine the pathogenicity in mice. Our results showed that rNS5aa-R possessed an enhanced pathogenicity compared with rNSΔ5aa in vivo and in vitro, which was accompanied by high expression of IL-6, MX1 and CXCL10 in murine lungs. Furthermore, we found that rNS5aa-R increased the infection ability to dendritic cells (DCs). Besides, rNS5aa-R enhanced the expression of phenotypic markers (CD80, CD86, CD40 and MHCII), activation marker CD69, inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, TNF-α and IL-10) and antagonized interferon (IFN-α) of DCs, in comparison to rNSΔ5aa . Moreover, rNS5aa-R induced DCs to quickly migrate into nearby cervical lymph nodes by highly upregulating CCR7, and CD86 showed a high expression on the migrated DCs. We also found that rNS5aa-R -infected DCs significantly promoted the allogeneic CD4+ T-cell proliferation. These findings suggested that rNS5aa-R strongly induced the innate immune response compared with the rNSΔ5aa , which is conducive to activate a wide immune response, resulting in a strong cytokine storm and causing an enhanced pathogenicity of H5N1 subtype AIVs in mammals.

Protopanaxatriol saponin (PPT) has excellent anti-cancer, anti-diabetes, and anti-anemia effects, but its effect on intestinal bacteria has rarely been studied. In this study, we investigated whether PPT has the ability to improve intestinal health in antibiotic-treated mice. Model mice were constructed using a broad-spectrum antibiotic, cephalosporin. The composition of the gut microbiota and relative concentration of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), short-chain fatty acid receptor proteins (GPR41, GPR43 and GPR109A), tight junction components (ZO-1 and occludin) and pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-6, IL-1β, IL-22 and IFN-γ) were determined. The results showed that PPT improved the composition of the gut microbiota, increased the concentration of SCFAs as well as receptor proteins and tight junction proteins, and decreased the pro-inflammatory cytokines. These findings indicate that PPT has a protective effect on intestinal microbes and enhances the integrity of the intestinal barrier as well as alleviates colonic inflammation in antibiotic-treated mice.

Global change significantly influences plant leaf gas exchange, which affects the carbon-water cycle of terrestrial ecosystems. However, the magnitudes of the effects of multiple global change factors on leaf gas exchanges are currently lacking. Therefore, a global meta-analysis of 337 published articles was conducted to determine the effects of elevated CO

BackgroundSince late December, 2019, an outbreak of pneumonia cases caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in Wuhan, and continued to spread throughout China and across the globe. To date, few data on immunologic features of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been reported.MethodsIn this single-centre retrospective study, a total of 21 patients with pneumonia who were laboratory-confirmed to be infected with SARS-CoV-2 in Wuhan Tongji hospital were included from Dec 19, 2019 to Jan 27, 2020. The immunologic characteristics as well as their clinical, laboratory, radiological features were compared between 11 severe cases and 10 moderate cases.ResultsOf the 21 patients with COVID-19, only 4 (19%) had a history of exposure to the Huanan seafood market. 7 (33.3%) patients had underlying conditions. The average age of severe and moderate cases was 63.9 and 51.4 years, 10 (90.9%) severe cases and 7 (70.0%) moderate cases were male. Common clinical manifestations including fever (100%, 100%), cough (70%, 90%), fatigue (100%, 70%) and myalgia (50%, 30%) in severe cases and moderate cases. PaO2/FiO2 ratio was significantly lower in severe cases (122.9) than moderate cases (366.2). Lymphocyte counts were significantly lower in severe cases (0.7 × 10□/L) than moderate cases (1.1 × 10□/L). Alanine aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase levels, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and ferritin were significantly higher in severe cases (41.4 U/L, 567.2 U/L, 135.2 mg/L and 1734.4 ug/L) than moderate cases (17.6 U/L, 234.4 U/L, 51.4 mg/L and 880.2 ug /L). IL-2R, TNF-α and IL-10 concentrations on admission were significantly higher in severe cases (1202.4 pg/mL, 10.9 pg/mL and 10.9 pg/mL) than moderate cases (441.7 pg/mL, 7.5 pg/mL and 6.6 pg/mL). Absolute number of total T lymphocytes, CD4+T cells and CD8+T cells decreased in nearly all the patients, and were significantly lower in severe cases (332.5, 185.6 and 124.3 × 106/L) than moderate cases (676.5, 359.2 and 272.0 × 106/L). The expressions of IFN-γ by CD4+T cells tended to be lower in severe cases (14.6%) than moderate cases (23.6%).ConclusionThe SARS-CoV-2 infection may affect primarily T lymphocytes, particularly CD4+T cells, resulting in significant decrease in number as well as IFN-γ production, which may be associated with disease severity. Together with clinical characteristics, early immunologic indicators including diminished T lymphocytes and elevated cytokines may serve as potential markers for prognosis in COVID-19.

Objective To investigate the expression profile of circular RNAs (circRNAs) and proposed circRNA-microRNA (miRNA) regulatory network in atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods Atrial tissues from patients with persistent AF with rheumatic heart disease and non-AF myocardium with normal hearts were collected for circRNA differential expression analyses by high-throughput sequencing. The Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses were performed to predict the potential functions of the differentially expressed genes and AF-related pathways. Co-expression networks of circRNA-miRNA were constructed based on the correlation analyses between the differentially expressed RNAs. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed to validate the results. Results A total of 108 circRNAs were found to be differentially expressed in AF. Among them, 51 were up-regulated, and 57 were down-regulated. Dysregulated circRNAs were validated by quantitative real-time PCR. The GO and KEGG pathway enrichment analyses were executed to determine the principal functions of the significantly deregulated genes. Furthermore, we constructed correlated expression networks between circRNAs and miRNAs. circRNA19591, circRNA19596, and circRNA16175 interacted with 36, 28, and 18 miRNAs, respectively; miR-29b-1-5p and miR-29b-2-5p were related to 12 down-regulated circRNAs, respectively. Conclusion Our findings provide a novel perspective on circRNAs involved in AF due to rheumatic heart disease and establish the foundation for future research of the potential roles of circRNAs in AF.

The method of determining concrete fracture energy recommended by RILEM has an obvious size effect, so determining fracture energy that is unaffected by size of the test specimen is difficult. In this study, 60 high-strength concrete single-edge notched beams (SENBs) of different sizes, crack length-to-depth ratios, and span-to-depth ratios were subjected to the three-point loading test as recommended by RILEM. Then, the influences of the boundary effect on the fracture energy were identified. Based on the SENB boundary effect model, a piecewise function of the interrelationships between the experimental test fracture energy Gf, the local fracture energy gf, and the fracture energy unaffected by specimen size GF was established. The applicability of the boundary effect model was verified using the test results from this study and from the previously published research. The results show that the local fracture energy distribution in the boundary influence region was nonuniform. The smaller the local fracture energy was, the closer it was to the rear boundary of the specimen. The influence length al∗ of the boundary increased with the increasing specimen size. Based on the bilinear distribution model of the local fracture energy gf, the fracture energy unaffected by beam size GF can be obtained according to the fracture energy Gf measured for laboratory-scale small-sized SENB specimens. Furthermore, the model predictions are in good agreement with experimental observations.

The subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (S-ICD) may provide comparable protection while avoiding the disadvantage of transvenous lead, but the abnormal features of the hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) electrocardiogram (ECG) make it a challenge for S-ICD template screening. We aimed to investigate S-ICD eligibility according to the S-ICD manufacturer's surface ECG screening template in China, and further analyze its corresponding ineligible predicting factors in 12-lead suface ECG. A total of 179 HCM patients (114 males; mean age: 45 ± 14 years) underwent S-ICD screening at rest and on exercise, among which 91 patients (50.8%) were eligible for S-ICD. Among the patients who passed screening, 43 (47.3%) had 3 vectors eligibility; 64 (70.3%) screening qualified on both sides; 10 patients (11.0%) passed the screening while the electrodes located only on the left parasternal line versus 17 patients (18.7%) moved to the right line. The secondary sensing vector (Lead III) was mostly appropriate (53.6%), followed by the primary sensing vector (lead II, 53.1%) and the alternate sensing vector (Lead I, 46.9%). Higher R wave was the major cause, accounted for 70.5%, for screening failure. There existed significant difference in T wave in lead II, aVF, V5 and V6, adds R/T ratio in lead V5 and V6, between the screening success group (group A) and screening failure group (group B) at rest and on exercise. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify that R/T ≤ 3.5 in lead V5 was the independent factor to predict the screening ineligibility, with odds ratio 3.648. S-ICD screening success is 50.8% in HCM patients, which is much lower than that in other studies. R/T ≤ 3.5 in lead V5 in 12-lead surface ECG was an independent predicting factor for screening failure.

Buried pipelines influenced by coal mining subsidence will deform and generate additional stress during surface deformation. On the basis of the coordinating deformation relationship between buried pipeline and its surrounding soils, a stress analysis method of a buried pipeline induced by mining was proposed. The buried pipeline additional stresses were analyzed; meanwhile, a corresponding analysis process of the pipeline stresses was also presented during mining subsidence. Furthermore, based on the ground subsidence along the pipeline predicted in advance by the probability integral method, the additional stresses and Von Mises equivalent stresses and their distributions along the buried pipeline induced by the exploitation of a coal mining working face named 14101 were obtained. Meanwhile, a comparative analysis of additional stresses between simulation and analytical calculation was performed for the deep analysis and reliability of the results presented by the proposed methodology in this paper. The proposed method provides references for analysis of the additional stress and safety of buried pipelines under the influence of mining subsidence.

Background/Aims The relationship between C-peptide levels and gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms in type 2 diabetic patients is not clear. The purpose of this study is to examine the association between fasting C-peptide and GI symptoms of gastroparesis in type 2 diabetic patients. Methods We recruited 333 type 2 diabetic patients into the present study. All patients filled out questionnaires of gastroparesis cardinal symptom index (GCSI) to evaluate GI symptoms. Hospital anxiety and depression scale were adopted to define anxiety and depression. Patients with GCSI scores ≥ 1.9 were regarded as having symptoms of gastroparesis. Results In our study, 71 (21.3%) type 2 diabetic patients had GCSI scores ≥ 1.9. In comparison to patients with scores < 1.9, those with scores ≥ 1.9 had significantly lower fasting c-peptide levels (1.49 ng/mL vs 1.94 ng/mL, P < 0.001), higher prevalence of depression (40.9% vs 18.3%, P < 0.001) and anxiety (28.2% vs 13.0%, P = 0.002). Multivariate logistic regression revealed that fasting C-peptide was still significantly associated with symptoms of gastroparesis (odds ratio, 0.67; 95% confidence intervals, 0.48–0.94; P = 0.021), even after adjustments for age, sex, body mass index, HbA1c, current smoking and drinking status, anxiety, and depression. Furthermore, linear regressions showed that fasting C-peptide was independently and negatively related to GCSI scores (standardized regression coefficient, −0.29; P < 0.001) in patients with at least one GI symptom. Conclusion GI symptoms of diabetic gastroparesis affect approximately 20% of type 2 diabetes patients and are associated with lower fasting C-peptide levels independent of depression and anxiety status.

Background Anti-dsDNA antibody is a specific antibody in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Indirect immunofluorescence test (IIFT) is a highly specific method in detecting anti-dsDNA antibody. The application of automated system has gained better consistency than manual operation. This study detected anti-dsDNA antibodies using EUROPattern Computer-aided immunofluorescence microscopy (EPA), and evaluated the performance of the automated system. Methods The sera of 96 patients with suspected SLE and 102 control patients were examined using IIFT. The consistency between the EPA and manual reading was analyzed. Results Analysis of 198 samples showed that the overall consistency of the negative/positive results between the EPA and manual reading was 94.95%. Based on the manual reading results, the sensitivity and specificity of EPA were 95.70% and 94.29%, respectively. The analysis of 57 samples with non-specific fluorescence showed that the overall consistency of the negative/positive results was 96.49%. The analysis of the antibody titer of 89 positive samples showed that the consistency between the EPA and manual reading was 97.75%. Conclusion EPA was consistent with the manual reading with regard to qualitative reading and antibody titer. With low-exposure function, EPA could read samples with non-specific fluorescence. EPA was superior to manual reading in automation and standardization.

The study of carbon sequestration capacity under intensive management (IM) 1 measures (such as cutting, thinning, plowing, and fertilization) has become a major issue of carbon budgets in the context of global climate change. Bamboo forest, also known as “the second largest forest in the world,” plays an important role in the carbon cycle. Due to its high economic value, IM practices have been widely used to manage bamboo forests, which in turn may affect the global carbon cycle and carbon budget balance of the ecosystem. However, due to a lack of long-term field experiments and suitable representative models for carbon cycle research in bamboo forests, there is little understanding of the effects of IM measures on carbon sources/sinks in bamboo forest ecosystems at large temporal scales. In this study, we used a representative Lei bamboo (Phyllostachys praecox C.D. Chu & C.S. Chao) forest occurring in Taihuyuan town, Zhejiang Province, China as the study object and a new generation Triplex-Flux model to simulate the net ecosystem productivity (NEP) and net primary productivity (NPP) of the Lei bamboo forest under IM and non­intensive management (NIM) in 2011–2013 and 2015. The aim was to reveal the impact of IM on the carbon cycle of a bamboo forest ecosystem. The results showed that the Triplex-Flux model was suitable for studying the carbon cycle in the Lei bamboo forest. On a 30 min time scale, R2 values ranged between 0.78–0.91 (p 0.42, p