Search

Abstract Precise synthesis of polyoxometalates (POMs) is important for the fundamental understanding of the relationship between the structure and function of each building motif. However, it is a great challenge to realize the atomic-level tailoring of specific sites in POMs without altering the major framework. Herein, we report the case of Ce-mediated molecular tailoring on gigantic {Mo132}, which has a closed structural motif involving a never seen {Mo110} decamer. Such capped wheel {Mo132} undergoes a quasi-isomerism with known {Mo132} ball displaying different optical behaviors. Experiencing an ‘Inner-On-Outer’ binding process with the substituent of {Mo2} reactive sites in {Mo132}, the site-specific Ce ions drive the dissociation of {Mo2 *} clipping sites and finally give rise to a predictable half-closed product {Ce11Mo96}. By virtue of the tailor-made open cavity, the {Ce11Mo96} achieves high proton conduction, nearly two orders of magnitude than that of {Mo132}. This work offers a significant step toward the controllable assembly of POM clusters through a Ce-mediated molecular tailoring process for desirable properties.

IntroductionThis study focuses on the cognitive development of rural children aged 10–15 who have been left behind, utilizing data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) datasets of 2016 and 2020. The primary objective is to investigate the correlation between Internet usage and the cognitive ability of these children.MethodsAn Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression model was initially employed to explore the potential influence of Internet use on the cognitive ability of rural left-behind children. To meticulously address potential endogeneity, we employed the instrumental variable (IV) method. Additionally, we performed robustness checks using Propensity Score Matching (PSM) to ensure the reliability of our findings.ResultsThe findings indicate a statistically significant positive correlation between Internet usage and the cognitive ability of left-behind rural children. Notably, the impact of Internet use is more pronounced in girls than in boys among this demographic. Furthermore, a significant influence of Internet usage on the cognitive ability is observed in rural children aged 10–12, whereas no significant correlation is found for those aged 13–15. Particularly noteworthy is the substantial impact of Internet use on the cognitive ability of left-behind children with an absent father. In addition, the cognitive benefits associated with Internet use were notably more pronounced among rural left-behind children, especially when considering factors such as attendance at a demonstration school and parental concern for the child’s education.ConclusionThis study underscores the importance of understanding the relationship between Internet usage and cognitive development in left-behind rural children. These findings highlight the need for targeted interventions and inclusive access to online resources for the development of rural left-behind children.

BackgroundDepression is a prevalent mental health disorder. Although Internet use has been associated with depression, there is limited data on the association between smartphone use and depressive symptoms. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between smartphone use and depressive symptoms among older individuals in China.Methods5,244 Chinese older individuals over the age of 60 were selected as the sample from the China Longitudinal Aging Social Survey (CLASS) 2018 dataset. The dependent variable “depression symptoms” was measured using the 9-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) scale. The study employed multiple linear regression to investigate the relationship between smartphone use (independent variable) and depressive symptoms in older people. Thorough analyses of robustness, sensitivity, and heterogeneity were conducted to ensure the robustness and sensitivity of the findings. Additionally, mediating effect analysis was performed to elucidate the mechanism through which the dependent and independent variables were related.ResultsEmpirical study indicated that smartphone use had a negative impact on depressive symptoms among older adults, specifically leading to a reduction in such symptoms. The above-mentioned result was verified through endogenous and robustness tests. The heterogeneity analysis revealed that older individuals aged 70 years and above, male, and residing in urban areas exhibited a stronger association between smartphone use and depressive symptoms. Furthermore, the mediating effect model indicated that political participation, voluntary participation, and active leisure participation mediated the relationship between smartphone use and lower levels of depression symptoms among the older adults. However, passive leisure participation had a suppressing effect on the relationship between smartphone use and reduced depressive symptoms among the older adults.LimitationsThe causal relationship between variables required further investigation with a longitudinal design.ConclusionThese findings suggested that smartphone use may be considered an intervention to reduce depression symptoms among older people by increasing levels of political participation, voluntary participation, and active leisure participation.

BackgroundAge-associated cognitive decline has become a major threat to both personal welfare and public health and can further develop into Dementia/Alzheimer’s disease. Sleep is significantly correlated with cognitive function, but both cognitive impairment and sleep problems increase with normal aging. This study explored how sleep duration affects cognitive performance among older adults in China.MethodsUsing data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) in 2014 and 2018, cognitive function was assessed via the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), which included five domains: orientation, registration, attention or calculation, recall, and language. Logistic regression was used to examine whether the change in sleep duration was a risk factor for cognitive impairment. We also used multinomial logistic regression to study the impact of sleep duration and the changes in sleep duration on cognitive changes during the follow-up period.ResultsThe empirical study showed a U-shaped relationship between sleep duration and increased risk of cognitive impairment. Short (< 6 hours) and long (> 8 hours) sleep durations were positively associated with cognitive impairment. Tests of interactions between sleep duration and sleep quality showed that short sleep durations with fair sleep quality had an increased risk of cognitive impairment. Further, the participants were divided into three groups: normal cognition (MMSE > 24), mild cognitive impairment (MCI, 18 ≤ MMSE score ≤ 24), and severe cognitive impairment (MMSE < 18). First, of the participants with normal cognition at baseline, those who sleeping > 7 h at follow-up and > 7 h at both baseline and 4-year follow-up assessments could increase the risk of cognitive impairment. Second, for individuals with MCI at baseline, those who transitioned to sleeping > 7 h at follow-up period and > 7 h at both baseline and 4-year follow-up assessments had a lower chance of reverting to normal cognition.ConclusionExcessive sleep may be a major risk for cognitive impairment among older adults. Furthermore, a moderate amount of sleep could be a possible strategy to prevent cognitive impairment.

With the rapid expansion of the Internet, it continuously penetrates the life of older adults around the world. This study aims to explore the effect of Internet use on the multi-dimensional health of the elderly with the mediating role of cultural engagement. Using data from the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) in 2015 and 2017, this study adopts logistic regression and a single-step multiple mediation model to investigate how Internet use affects the multi-dimensional health of older adults in China. The results show that Internet use has positive effects on the self-rated health, physical health, and mental health of the elderly. Endogenous tests, robustness analysis, and sensitivity analysis show that the above conclusions remain robust. Additionally, the mediating effect analysis shows that cultural engagement plays a mediating role in the relationship between Internet use and the three health-related responses. Therefore, to improve the elderly's health level, the government should not only cultivate the ability to use the Internet but also encourage greater cultural engagement amongst the aged.

Abstract Background Xenotropic and polytropic retrovirus receptor 1 (XPR1), a previously identified cellular receptor for several murine leukemia viruses, plays a role in many pathophysiological processes. However, the role of XPR1 in human cancers has not yet been characterized. Methods Real-time PCR and western blotting assay were used to measure the expression of XPR1 in tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC) tissues. Expression of XPR1 and p65 in clinical specimens was analyzed using immunohistochemical assay. The function of XPR1 on progression of TSCC was explored using in vitro and in vivo experiments. The molecular mechanism by which XPR1 helps to cancer progression was investigated by luciferase reporter activity, ELISA, PKA activity assay, immunofluorescence, western blotting and qPCR assay. Results Herein, we find that XPR1 is markedly upregulated in TSCC tissues compared to normal tongue tissues. High expression of XPR1 significantly correlates with the malignant features and poor patient survival in TSCC. Ectopic expression of XPR1 increases, while silencing of XPR1 reduces the proliferation, invasion and anti-apoptosis capacities of TSCC cells. Importantly, silencing of XPR1 effectively inhibits the tumorigenecity of TSCC cells. Moreover, we identified that XPR1 increased the concentration of intracellular cAMP and activated PKA. Thus, XPR1 promoted phosphorylation and activation of NF-κB signaling, which is required for XPR1-mediated oncogenic roles and significantly correlates with XPR1 expression in clinical specimens. Conclusions These findings uncover a critical role of XPR1 in TSCC progression via activation of NF-κB, and suggest that XPR1 might be a potential prognostic marker or therapeutic target.

BackgroundFew reports from China provide confirmed evidence of the effectiveness of the larynx preservation strategy compared with surgery on the treatment of laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers. This study assessed the clinical outcomes of patients with locally advanced laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers treated with larynx preservation and determined the optimal larynx preservation procedure.MethodsData of 1,494 patients treated with total laryngectomy or larynx preservation between 2006 and 2014 were retrieved from the database of Sun-Yat Sen University Cancer Center in Guangzhou, China, and 366 eligible patients were selected for final analysis. The clinical outcomes of 228 patients received total laryngectomy and 138 patients received larynx preservation treatments, which comprises induction followed by radiotherapy and concurrent radio-chemotherapy, were compared.ResultsThere was no statistical difference in the 3-, 5-, and 10-year PFS and OS in patients received larynx preservation compared with patients treated with laryngectomy. With respect to T stage, a better overall OS in T2-stage disease (P = 0.036) but poorer PFS (P = 0.005) in T3-stage disease was observed in the larynx preservation group compared with the surgery group in Univariate analysis. T3-stage disease had poorer PFS in multivariable analysis (P = 0.022). With larynx preservation intent, induction chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy showed no advantage in the control of disease progression and survival compared with concurrent chemoradiotherapy. The patient subpopulations who received efficacy assessment after induction chemotherapy exhibited significantly longer PFS and OS compared with those without efficacy assessment.ConclusionsThis is the largest sample size study on larynx preservation treatment for laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers in China. Our results indicated that larynx preservation treatments did not jeopardize the survival of patients with advanced resectable laryngeal or hypopharyngeal cancers. Efficacy assessment should be emphasized in induction chemotherapy.

Monodispersed magnetite nanoparticles were obtained by investigating the different synthesis parameters of the solvothermal method. The morphology and chemical structure of the Fe3O4 nanoparticles were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscope (SEM), Transmission electron microscope (TEM), Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) and Vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). Results indicated that without the addition of water, it forms the minor phase of iron instead of magnetite. Furthermore, the size of nanoparticles is tunable in the range of 117.7 to 217.6 nm by changing the amounts of water, PSSMA and NaOH. The amount of PSSMA restricts the growth of the nanoparticles and narrow the size distribution and a hydrophilic surface was obtained. Synthesized magnetite nanoparticles were successfully conjugated with carbon dots. The resulting nanoparticles exhibited good fluorescence characteristics. Cytotoxicity tests confirmed that nanoparticles are non-toxic. Both magnetite and C-dots/Fe3O4 nanoparticles are good potential candidates for biomedical applications specifically for bioimaging and biosensing in the future.