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High-fluorine groundwater is a potential threat to ecological environment and human health. The source and distribution of fluoride in groundwater in urbanized areas are complicated due to the double influence of geological background and human activities. It is of great significance to identify the characteristics of fluorine in groundwater to ensure the safety of groundwater.This study analyzed the environmental characteristics and main hydrogeochemical processes of high-fluorine groundwater in different urban functional areas of Lanzhou city, the largest industrial city in the arid region of Northwest China, based on the mathematical statistics, ion ratios and saturation index analysis. Then the influence of human activities on the migration and enrichment of fluoride was revealed. The results show that the ρ(F−) in the groundwater in the study area ranges from 0 to 4.8 mg/L, and 13 high-fluoride water samples exceeded the standard of groundwater quality Class III (1.0 mg/L), with an excess rate of 20.3%. Under the influence of intensity of human activity and sources of human input, the distribution characteristics of fluorine in groundwater in different urban functional areas are prominently different. The fluorine content of groundwater in the Xigu Petrochemical Industrial Zone is the highest, with the 47.4% of high-fluorine groundwater. While in commercial residential areas and new urban areas the fluorine content is relatively low, with the 7.1% and 9.7% of high-fluorine groundwater, respectively. The high-fluorine groundwater in the study area is mainly SO4•Cl—Na and Cl•SO4—Na type water, which is low in calcium, rich in sodium and weak in alkalinity. The dissolution of fluorinated minerals, precipitation/dissolution of calcite and dolomite, cation exchange between calcium and sodium on the surface of clay minerals, strong evaporation and salt effect are the main hydrogeochemical processes of fluoride enrichment in groundwater in the study area. Urbanization and industrialization lead to the further deterioration of natural high fluorine water, the industrial wastewater leakage from petrochemical leads to the further dissolution of fluoride in the formation, which is an important driving force for the enrichment of high fluorine groundwater in the Xigu Industrial Zone. The study provides basic information for the fluoride migration and enrichment in the high fluoride background area with human activities.

Abstract Background Patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) exhibit difficulties deficits in recognizing facial expressions with unambiguous valence. However, only a limited number of studies have examined how these patients fare in interpreting facial expressions with ambiguous valence (for example, surprise). Thus, we aimed to explore the influence of emotional background information on the recognition of ambiguous facial expressions in SCZ. Methods A 3 (emotion: negative, neutral, and positive) × 2 (group: healthy controls and SCZ) experimental design was adopted in the present study. The experimental materials consisted of 36 images of negative emotions, 36 images of neutral emotions, 36 images of positive emotions, and 36 images of surprised facial expressions. In each trial, a briefly presented surprised face was preceded by an affective image. Participants (36 SCZ and 36 healthy controls (HC)) were required to rate their emotional experience induced by the surprised facial expressions. Participants’ emotional experience was measured using the 9-point rating scale. The experimental data have been analyzed by conducting analyses of variances (ANOVAs) and correlation analysis. Results First, the SCZ group reported a more positive emotional experience under the positive cued condition compared to the negative cued condition. Meanwhile, the HC group reported the strongest positive emotional experience in the positive cued condition, a moderate experience in the neutral cued condition, and the weakest in the negative cue condition. Second, the SCZ (vs. HC) group showed longer reaction times (RTs) for recognizing surprised facial expressions. The severity of schizophrenia symptoms in the SCZ group was negatively correlated with their rating scores for emotional experience under neutral and positive cued condition. Conclusions Recognition of surprised facial expressions was influenced by background information in both SCZ and HC, and the negative symptoms in SCZ. The present study indicates that the role of background information should be fully considered when examining the ability of SCZ to recognize ambiguous facial expressions.

Abstract Objective Previous studies have shown that transcranial direct current stimulation(tDCS) led to an improvement of cognitive function in patients with schizophrenia, but rare study has explored the effect of tDCS on long-term hospitalized chronic schizophrenia with tardive dyskinesia (TD). The present research explored if cognitive function in patients with long-term hospitalized chronic schizophrenia with TD could be improved through tDCS. Methods This study is a randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled clinical trial. Of the 52 patients, 14 dropped out, and 38 completed the experiment. Thirty-eight patients on stable treatment regimens were randomly assigned to receive active tDCS(n = 21) or sham stimulation(n = 17) on weekdays of the first, third, and fifth weeks of treatment. Patients performed the Pattern Recognition Memory (PRM) and the Intra/Extradimensional Set Shift (IED) from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) at baseline and the end of week 3, week 5. Clinical symptoms were also measured at the baseline and the fifth week using the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) and the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Side effects of tDCS were assessed with an experimenter-administered open-ended questionnaire during the whole experiment. Results There were no significant differences in PRM and IED performance metrics, SANS total score and PANSS total score between active and sham tDCS groups at the end of week 5 (p > 0.05). Furthermore, there was a significant difference in the adverse effects of the tingling sensation between the two groups (p 0.05). Conclusion According to these findings, no evidence supports using anodal stimulation over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex to improve cognitive function in patients with long-term hospitalized chronic schizophrenia with TD.

Abstract Aim Our study aimed to evaluate the sleep status of psychiatric nurses in Chinese population and analyse the influencing factors. Design Cross‐sectional, correlation design with logistic regression analysis. Methods We investigated 1,044 psychiatric nurses from seven psychiatric hospitals in China. Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Maslach Burnout Inventory General Survey were used as main measures. Results The average Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score of 1,044 psychiatric nurses was 7.00 ± 3.59, and 38.63% of nurses had a total Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score >7. Our study found that middle‐night shift nurses had poor sleep quality and sleep disorders are positively correlated with emotional exhaustion and cynical disregard for job burnout. Middle‐night shift nurses showed 1.586 times more likely to suffer from sleep disorders than those non‐middle‐night shift. The higher the score of emotional exhaustion, the greater the risk of sleep disorders.

Previous studies have revealed that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels are inversely associated with the severity of depressive symptoms. In addition, serum BDNF levels tend to increase with improvement in depressive symptoms. There is also evidence that BDNF has a possible role in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine whether BDNF levels correlated with depressive symptoms in patients with first-episode and drug-naïve (FEDN) schizophrenia. In this study, 90 patients with FEDN schizophrenia and 60 healthy controls were recruited. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the 17-item Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD-17) were used to gage psychopathological and depressive symptoms, respectively. All participants had their BDNF levels measured using a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent test. Serum BDNF levels were lower in patients with FEDN schizophrenia compared with healthy controls. Moreover, patients with depressive symptoms exhibited a higher PANSS total score and a higher general psychopathology score than those without depressive symptoms (p < 0.05). For patients with depressive symptoms, serum BDNF levels were higher than in those without depressive symptoms (p < 0.05). An association between BDNF levels and the positive subscore was also observed (p < 0.01). However, there was no significant association between BDNF levels and HAMD scores (p > 0.05). In conclusion, BDNF levels were shown to be higher in the serum of patients with FEDN schizophrenia with depressive symptoms than in those without. Additionally, low levels of serum BDNF may contribute to the positive symptoms of FEDN schizophrenia but not to depressive symptoms.

BackgroundsSubclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) was reported to be associated with depression; however, its role in coexisting anxiety symptom in young patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) remains unclear. The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between SCH and anxiety symptom in young first-episode and drug-naïve (FEDN) MDD patients.MethodsA total of 520 outpatients diagnosed as FEDN MDD with SCH were recruited in this study. Their socio-demographic, clinical data and thyroid function parameters were collected. The Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA) and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) were employed to measure the severity of anxiety symptom and depressive symptom, respectively. Based on the HAMA scores, patients who scored ≥ 25 were defined as anxious major depressive disorder (A-MDD) while others as non-anxious major depressive disorder (NA-MDD).ResultsThe prevalence rate of A-MDD was 15.8% in young FEDN MDD patients with comorbid SCH. Moreover, serum thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels were significantly higher in patients with A-MDD compared with those with NA-MDD (p < 0.001). Multivariate binary logistic regression analysis indicated that A-MDD was associated with serum TSH levels with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.602. Serum TSH level of 6.17 mIU/L was the critical value to distinguish A-MDD and NA-MDD, with sensitivity of 0.805 and specificity of 0.539. There were no statistically significant differences between NA-MDD and A-MDD patients in terms of socio-demographic variables, serum free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4), thyroid peroxidases antibody (TPOAb) and anti-thyroglobulin (TgAb) levels.ConclusionsA-MDD patients presented higher serum TSH level. It is suggested that serum TSH level may be a potential biomarker for predicting moderate and severe anxiety symptoms in young FEDN MDD patients with SCH.

Background Thermal ablation is a potentially curative therapy for early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Early recurrence after thermal ablation necessitates our attention. Methods The invasion and migration abilities of NSCLC after sublethal heat stimulus were observed in vitro and in vivo. Sublethal thermal stimulus molecular changes were identified by RNA sequencing. A xenograft model of NSCLC with insufficient ablation was established to explore the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastasis-related phenotypes alteration of residual tumors. Results In vitro, the invasion and migration abilities of NSCLC cells were enhanced 72 h after 44 °C and 46 °C thermal stimulus. Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotypes were also upregulated under these conditions. RNA sequencing revealed that the expression of carboxypeptidase A4 (CPA4) was significantly upregulated after thermal stimulus. Significant upregulation of CPA4 and EMT phenotypes was also found in the xenograft model of insufficient NSCLC ablation. The EMT process and invasion and migration abilities can be reversed by silencing CPA4. Conclusions This study demonstrates that sublethal heat stimulus caused by insufficient ablation can promote EMT and enhance the metastatic capacity of NSCLC. CPA4 plays an important role in these biological processes. Inhibition of CPA4 might be of great significance for improving early-stage NSCLC survival after ablation.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are a group of oxygen-containing free radicals and peroxygenic compounds, which are important substances in the maintenance of normal physiological functions of the body. Excessive ROS destroy the REDOX balance of the body and cause oxidative damage. Ionizing radiation (IR) is an important source of exogenous ROS and an important pathway for endogenous ROS production in the body. The continuous activation and increase in endogenous and exogenous ROS destroys the body’s antioxidant system and stimulates the production of more ROS to form a cascade of amplified inflammatory responses, which ultimately lead to cell death. Pyroptosis is a programmed death process involved in natural immunity, and closely related to the ROS level of the body. Whether pyroptosis is related to IR is still unknown. The present paper reported the effects of IR and pyroptosis on the production and development of ROS to clarify the relationship between ROS, IR and pyroptosis and provide novel ideas for radiation damage, a potential direction for pyroptosis, and an updated connotation for oxidative stress.