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Objective: The goal of this study is to assess the clinical attributes exhibited by patients aged 85 years and older who present different manifestations of COVID-19, and to examine the factors influencing the classification of the disease severity., Method: This retrospective study was conducted at a single center, encompassing an analysis of clinical data obtained from patients with COVID-19 admitted to a general geriatric hospital in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China, during the period from December 20, 2022, to February 1, 2023. The study focused on 91 eligible patients whose disease severity was compared based on the imaging findings., Results: A total of 91 patients aged 85 years and older, with a median age of 92, including 46 males, 10 exhibiting mild symptoms, 48 moderate cases, and 33 severe cases met the inclusion criteria. Notably, disease severity displayed a significant correlation with age ( p < 0.011). All patients presented with complicated chronic underlying conditions and a history of prolonged medication use. Rheumatic immune diseases ( p = 0.040) and endocrine medications, primarily hypoglycemic agents ( p = 0.034), exhibited statistical significance. Additionally, markers such as lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) ( p = 0.030), interleukin 6 (IL-6) ( p = 0.014), and D-dimer ( p = 0.007) revealed significant associations with disease severity. Chest computed tomography scans predominantly revealed inflammatory features ( n = 81, 89.0%). Notably, patients classified as having mild or moderate conditions exhibited eventual improvement, while 13 patients (39.4%) among the severe cases succumbed to the disease., Conclusion: The classification of disease among patients aged 85 years or older old is correlated with advanced age, concurrent rheumatic immune diseases, and prolonged administration of endocrine medications. Furthermore, patients with elevated levels of LDH, IL-6, and D-dimer demonstrated a higher propensity for developing severe diseases., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Xu, Yang, Xin and Shou.)

Although most cognitive impairments induced by prolonged alcohol consumption tend to improve within the initial months of abstinence, there is evidence suggesting certain cognitive deficits may persist. This study aimed to investigate the impact of aerobic exercise on learning and memory in alcohol use disorder (AUD) mice following a period of abstinence from alcohol. We also sought to assess the levels of monoamine neurotransmitters in the hippocampus. To this end, we established an AUD mouse model through a two-bottle choice (sucrose fading mode and normal mode) and chronic intermittent alcohol vapor (combined with intraperitoneal injection) and randomly allocated mice into exercise groups to undergo treadmill training. Learning and memory abilities were assessed through the Morris water maze test and spontaneous activity was evaluated using the open field test. The levels of dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the hippocampus were quantified using enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) kits. The findings reveal that after cessation of alcohol consumption, learning and memory abilities in AUD mice did not completely return to normal levels. The observed enhancement of cognitive functions in AUD mice through aerobic exercise may be attributed to restoring levels of monoamine neurotransmitters in the hippocampus, boosting brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) concentrations, and facilitating an increase in hippocampal mass. These results offer empirical evidence to support aerobic exercise as a viable therapeutic strategy to alleviate cognitive deficits associated with AUD., (© 2024 The Author(s). FEBS Open Bio published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Federation of European Biochemical Societies.)

Coronary artery tortuosity (CAT) is frequently detected during coronary angiography or coronary electron-beam computed tomography angiography by cardiovascular interventionalists. In this article, we described the case of a 69-year-old female patient with recurrent chest discomfort for 1 month and recurrence 1 week ago, accompanied by emaciation, gastrointestinal discomfort, and low skin temperature at the extremities. After a series of tests, the patient was finally diagnosed with severe CAT and coexisting connective tissue disease. Accordingly, she was treated with conventional medications, and diet and lifestyle modifications. The symptoms of the patient resolved gradually after 1 year of follow-up. Although there is no unanimous conclusion on the pathogenesis and clinical characteristics of CAT, this disease may provide a clue to the diagnosis of connective tissue disease, and warrants exploration through further research., (© 2023 The Authors. Annals of Noninvasive Electrocardiology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

In the current research, the resist action of silver-doped polystyrene/polyethylene terephthalate (PET) solar thin film towards laser irradiation was observed. Moreover, silver-doped polystyrene nanoparticles were synthesized via a chemical technique while the PET film was purchased from the commercial market. Nd:YAG pulsed laser has been used to irradiate the samples at 2 minutes, 4 minutes, and 6 minutes respectively. The XRD (X-ray diffraction) pattern shows that silver-doped polystyrene peak at around angle θ = 26° tends to decrease after the bombardment of Nd:YAG pulsed laser. This indicates that the crystallinity of PET film decreased after laser irradiation. The Raman spectra have revealed the zwitter characteristics of silver-doped polystyrene are shifting of bands at 1380 cm -1 and 1560 cm -1 upon laser irradiation. For PET film, the Raman spectra showed that the exposed regions tend to change to cross-linking/chain-scissoring at 2 minutes and 4 minutes of irradiation. The surface roughness first increases and decreases upon irradiation. These results indicate that silver-doped polystyrene/polyethylene terephthalate (PET) thin film is appropriate for solar cell applications., Competing Interests: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Taken the grape cultivar 'Shine Muscat' as the material, the effect of the combination of GA3 and CPPU on the light-response curves in the fruit adjacent leaves and fruit quality were investigated two weeks after blossoming. The results showed that non-rectangular hyperbolic model was more suitable for grape fruit adjacent leaf light response curve-fitting. Pn and g(s) of fruit adjacent leaves among all treatments increased with the increasing light intensity under the combination treat-ments of 25 mg · L(-1) GA3 and 5, 10, 15, 20 mg · L(-1) CPPU, respectively, but Ci decreased. Fruit quality increased with the increasing CPPU concentration under the combination treatments of 25 mg · L(-1) GA3 and 5, 10, 15 mg · L(-1) CPPU, respectively. Grape fruit adjacent leaf photosynthesis under the 25 mg · L(-1) GA3 + 20 mg · L(-1) CPPU treatment was higher than the other treatments. The fruit quality under the 25 mg · L(-1) GA3 + 20 mg · L(-1) CPPU treatment was lower than the 25 mg · L(-1) GA3 + 15 mg · L(-1) CPPU treatment. It indicated that reasonable CPPU treatment concentration could improve fruit adjacent leaf photosynthetic ability and fruit quality. Too high concentration made the fruit quality lower instead. The 25 mg · L(-1) GA3 + 15 mg · L(-1) CPPU treatment was most appropriate in two weeks after blossoming.

The thermo-sensitive genic male sterility (TGMS) lines play a crucial role in two-line hybrid rice production. For a practical TGMS line, the stability of male sterility is one of the most important technical indicators. In this study, XianS, a spontaneous mutant with stable male sterility from an indica rice cultivar Xianhuangzhan, was classified as a non-pollen type TGMS line. The critical non-pollen sterility point temperature of XianS was determined as 27 degrees C. Genetic analysis demonstrated that the non-pollen sterility in XianS was controlled by a single recessive gene. Using SSR markers and bulked segregant analysis, the TGMS gene in XianS was fine mapped to a 183 kb interval between RMAN81 and RMX21 on chromosome 2. Two markers, 4039-1 and RMX14 completely cosegregated with this gene. Allelism test indicated that the non-pollen phenotype in seven non-pollen type TGMS lines from different sources, XianS, AnnongS-1, Q523S, Q524S, N28S, G421S, and Q527S is caused by the same TGMS gene. Although the location of TGMS gene in XianS is close to the gene OsNAC6, a previously identified candidate gene of tms5 in AnnongS-1, the sequence of OsNAC6 and its promoter region was identical in TGMS line XianS, AnnongS-1, and wild-type Xianhuangzhan. These results suggest that the non-pollen type TGMS trait probably be controlled by the same TGMS gene in different TGMS rice lines, but its real candidate gene still need to be further studied and identified.