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Abstract Since the Chinese government proposed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2013, Chinese firms have been actively investing in countries participating in BRI. What kinds of firms are willing to respond to this geopolitical policy? According to resource dependence theory and resource-based view, this study examines the impact of CEO political connections on outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) in the context of BRI and its boundary conditions. The results show that CEO political connections can promote firm OFDI under BRI. However, a good institutional environment in the home region and host country weakens the positive impact of CEO political connections. Furthermore, central state ownership has a substitute role for CEO political connections.

Abstract Background Family-centered empowerment programs have been widely used in the pediatric field. Therefore, the current study investigated the effectiveness of family empowerment programs on caregiving ability and adverse mood among caregivers of children with acute leukemia. Objective To evaluate the effect of a family empowerment program on the caregiving ability and adverse mood of caregivers of children with acute leukemia. Methods Sixty-eight children with acute leukemia and their family caregivers admitted to our hospital were selected for the study. The control group received routine care during hospitalization, and the family empowerment program was implemented in the intervention group to compare the changes in caregiving capacity (FCTI), illness uncertainty (PPUS) and anxiety(SAS)of the caregivers of the two groups. Results After 8 weeks of intervention, the FCTI score of the intervention group was significantly lower than that of the control group (P

The transformation of regional energy structures plays a pivotal role in enhancing ecological quality and advancing national green development efficiency. However, this transformation is characterized by dual externalities, necessitating governmental intervention to rectify market failures. Therefore, this study focuses on the critical influence and mechanisms through which local governments affect regional energy structure transformation, particularly within the context of China's unique fiscal decentralization. This study explores the impact of fiscal decentralization on the transformation of China's regional energy structures and its spatial correlations. Employing a bidirectional fixed-effect model and a spatial Durbin model, we analyze Chinese provincial panel data from 2002 to 2021 to explore the effects of fiscal decentralization on regional energy structure transformation and its spatial spillover. Findings reveal that fiscal decentralization significantly enhances the efficiency of regional energy structure transformation, with an effect coefficient of 0.127. Additionally, the fiscal decentralization mechanism positively influences spatial spillover effects on regional energy transformation, with these effects becoming more pronounced alongside higher degrees of economic agglomeration. Moreover, local governments are found to foster regional scientific and technological innovation, thereby facilitating adjustments in the regional industrial structure and promoting energy structure transformation. The intermediary effect test highlights the role of local governments in promoting scientific and technological advancements that drive industrial restructuring and energy transformation. The study recommends for a long-term strategy to balance central and local financial development, aiming to enhance the efficiency of regional energy structure transformation. These findings offer a theoretical foundation and policy recommendations for optimizing and transforming energy structures in pursuit of China's green and high-quality development goals. These findings offer globally relevant insights into leveraging fiscal decentralization for energy structure transformation, supporting sustainable development and green growth worldwide.

Iron is essential for many physiological processes, and the dysregulation of its metabolism is implicated in the pathogenesis of various diseases. Recent advances in iron metabolism research have revealed multiple complex pathways critical for maintaining iron homeostasis. Molecular imaging, an interdisciplinary imaging technique, has shown considerable promise in advancing research on iron metabolism. Here, we comprehensively review the multifaceted roles of iron at the cellular and systemic levels (along with the complex regulatory mechanisms of iron metabolism), elucidate appropriate imaging methods, and summarize their utility and fundamental principles in diagnosing and treating diseases related to iron metabolism. Utilizing molecular imaging technology to deeply understand the complexities of iron metabolism and its critical role in physiological and pathological processes offers new possibilities for early disease diagnosis, treatment monitoring, and the development of novel therapies. Despite technological limitations and the need to ensure the biological relevance and clinical applicability of imaging results, molecular imaging technology’s potential to reveal the iron metabolic process is unparalleled, providing new insights into the link between iron metabolism abnormalities and various diseases.

Popular fermented golden pomfret (Trachinotus ovatus) is prepared via spontaneous fermentation; however, the mechanisms underlying the regulation of its flavor development remain unclear. This study shows the roles of the complex microbiota and the dynamic changes in microbial community and flavor compounds during fish fermentation. Single-molecule real-time sequencing and molecular networking analysis revealed the correlations among different microbial genera and the relationships between microbial taxa and volatile compounds. Mechanisms underlying flavor development were also elucidated via KEGG based functional annotations. Clostridium, Shewanella, and Staphylococcus were the dominant microbial genera. Forty-nine volatile compounds were detected in the fermented fish samples, with thirteen identified as characteristic volatile compounds (ROAV > 1). Volatile profiles resulted from the interactions among the microorganisms and derived enzymes, with the main metabolic pathways being amino acid biosynthesis/metabolism, carbon metabolism, and glycolysis/gluconeogenesis. This study demonstrated the approaches for distinguishing key microbiota associated with volatile compounds and monitoring the industrial production of high-quality fermented fish products.

To obtain high-quality bovine oocytes, the effects of vitamin C (VC) on the IVM of bovine oocytes and early embryo development were investigated. The results showed the following. (1) The IVM medium containing 50 µg/mL VC improved the oocyte maturation rate but did not affect the parthenogenetic embryo development. (2) The IVC medium containing 20 µg/mL VC improved the cleavage rate of the IVF embryos and enhanced the mRNA transcriptions of pluripotency gene Oct4, Sox2, Cdx2, and Nanog in the blastocysts but had no effects on the blastocyst rate. (3) Combining supplementation of 50 µg/mL VC in IVM medium + 20 µg/mL VC in IVC medium (named as VC 50/20, similar hereinafter) elevated the cleavage rate of IVF embryos and enhanced the mRNA expressions of Oct4, Sox2, Cdx2, and Nanog in the blastocysts. (4) Combination of VC 0/20 and VC 50/20 enhanced the transcription of anti-apoptotic gene Bcl-2 and VC 50/0 weakened the transcription of pro-apoptotic gene Bax, while VC 0/40 and VC 0/60 increased Bax expression and diminished the Bcl-2/Bax ratio in blastocysts. Together, employing 50 µg/mL VC improves the IVM of bovine oocytes and combination of VC 50/20 potentially changes bovine embryo quality by enhancing the expressions of the pluripotency genes and regulating the expressions of apoptosis-related genes.

Organizational resilience is a company’s ability to quickly recover and adapt when it encounters sudden and unexpected challenges. Our study looks at how a company’s level of international involvement before such challenges can influence its resilience, particularly when faced with the global disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. We also examine whether a company’s prior investment in digital technologies can help soften any negative impacts. From January 20 to June 10, 2020, we analyzed data from 2,363 Chinese companies that are traded on stock exchanges. We assessed their organizational resilience based on how their stock prices fluctuated and how quickly they returned to their pre-shock performance levels. Our findings indicate that companies with more international activities before the pandemic were generally slower to recover. However, companies with advanced digital capabilities before the pandemic demonstrated greater resilience, overcoming the negative repercussions more effectively. This research contributes new insights to the understanding of how international business activities affect a company’s ability to withstand and bounce back from global crises. Additionally, it underscores the importance of digitalization in enhancing organizational resilience.

Serial correlations within temperature time series serve as indicators of the temporal consistency of climate events. This study delves into the serial correlations embedded in global surface air temperature (SAT) data. Initially, we preprocess the SAT time series to eradicate seasonal patterns and linear trends, resulting in the SAT anomaly time series, which encapsulates the inherent variability of Earth's climate system. Employing diverse statistical techniques, we identify three distinct types of serial correlations: short-term, long-term, and nonlinear. To identify short-term correlations, we utilize the first-order autoregressive model, AR(1), revealing a global pattern that can be partially attributed to atmospheric Rossby waves in extratropical regions and the Eastern Pacific warm pool. For long-term correlations, we adopt the standard detrended fluctuation analysis, finding that the global pattern aligns with long-term climate variability, such as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) over the Eastern Pacific. Furthermore, we apply the horizontal visibility graph (HVG) algorithm to transform the SAT anomaly time series into complex networks. The topological parameters of these networks aptly capture the long-term correlations present in the data. Additionally, we introduce a novel topological parameter, Δσ, to detect nonlinear correlations. The statistical significance of this parameter is rigorously tested using the Monte Carlo method, simulating fractional Brownian motion and fractional Gaussian noise processes with a predefined DFA exponent to estimate confidence intervals. In conclusion, serial correlations are universal in global SAT time series and the presence of these serial correlations should be considered carefully in climate sciences.

The observational and paleo-ecological records on some shelves (e.g., North Sea, Yellow Sea) have indicated that the proportion of Paralia sulcata in the diatom community has been increasing since the 1980s. Because of its heavily-silicified frustules, this species is considered as an important siliceous organism, which can impact the recycling efficiency of biogenic silicon in the ocean. However, the specific environmental factors driving the increase of P. sulcata remain unclear. In this study, based on seasonal in-situ observations and historical literature in the Yellow Sea, we statistically assessed the importance of different environmental factors in determining P. sulcata abundance. Further, we quantified its optimal realized niches, using the maximum entropy and generalized additive models to predict the fate of this species. P. sulcata indicates a preference for environments with cold temperatures and high nutrient levels. The contribution of sea temperature on cell abundance reaches up to 37.2 %, which is higher than that of the nutrient concentrations (∼ 20.5 %) and salinity (∼ 17.1 %). The optimal realized niches are defined as sea temperature at 6.25 ± 3.50 °C, salinity at 32.8 ± 0.52, the concentrations of dissolved inorganic nitrogen, phosphorus, and silicate at 8.38 ± 5.42 μM, 0.42 ± 0.29 μM, and 5.87 ± 3.53 μM, respectively, and ammonium/nitrate ratio at 1.32 ± 0.19. Based on the multivariate statistical methods, the optimal realized niches indicate that the increased sea temperatures in winter and spring, combined with nitrogen enrichment, especially ammonium enrichment, are key environmental drivers for P. sulcata proliferation in the Yellow Sea.

Abstract Porphyra dentata is widely cultivated for its rich nutritional value and superior palatability. However, its quality varies with harvest time and there is a lack of understanding of the molecular mechanism of quality differences. Photosynthesis is a key factor in human‐mediated plant development and quality formation and changes. To explore the quality impact of photosynthesis on P. dentata, we compared transcriptomic and proteogenomic data of the first and fifth harvests. Of the 53,580 genes detected in this study, 7073 were identified as differentally expressed genes by RNA‐seq, and 462 showed differential expression between genes and proteins in proteogenomics. The results show that quality differences between harvest periods were regulated by proteins and genes from the allophycocyanin, Lhca1, chloroplast processing enzyme, and phycocyanin families. Generated cell tissue passivated continuously, the blades gradually became thicker and darker and had an increased degree of lignification, decreased protein levels, increased carbohydrate levels, and decreased quality. Our results demonstrate the complementary power of transcriptomics and proteogenomics and provide a rich database for quality improvement or evolutionary function analysis of P. dentata.

Effective charge separation and migration pose a critical challenge in the field of solar-driven hydrogen production. In this work, a Z-scheme structured CuInS2/ZnIn2S4 heterojunction was successfully fabricated through a two-step hydrothermal synthesis method to significantly enhance the efficiency of solar-to-hydrogen energy conversion. Structural characterization revealed that the lattice-matched CuInS2/ZnIn2S4 heterojunction exhibits an enlarged interfacial contact area, which facilitates the transfer and separation of photogenerated charges. Microscopic analysis indicated that the CuInS2/ZnIn2S4 composite material has a tightly interwoven interface and a morphology resembling small sugar cubes. Photoelectrochemical spectroscopy analysis demonstrated that the heterojunction structure effectively enhances visible light absorption and charge separation efficiency, leading to an improvement in photocatalytic activity. Hydrogen production experimental data indicated that the CuInS2/ZnIn2S4 heterojunction photocatalyst prepared with a CuInS2 content of 20 wt% exhibits the highest hydrogen evolution rate, reaching 284.9 μmol·g−1·h−1. Moreover, this photocatalyst maintains robust photocatalytic stability even after three consecutive usage cycles. This study demonstrated that the Z-scheme CuInS2/ZnIn2S4 heterojunction photocatalyst exhibits enhanced hydrogen evolution efficiency, offering an effective structural design for harnessing solar energy to obtain hydrogen fuel. Therefore, this heterojunction photocatalyst is a promising candidate for practical applications in solar hydrogen production.

East Asia is a region that is highly vulnerable to drought disasters during the spring season, as this period is critical for planting, germinating, and growing staple crops such as wheat, maize, and rice. The climate in East Asia is significantly influenced by three large-scale climate variations: the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. In this study, the spring meteorological drought was quantified using the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) for March, April, and May. Initially, coupled climate networks were established for two climate variables: sea surface temperature (SST) and SPEI. The directed links from SST to SPEI were determined based on the Granger causality test. These coupled climate networks revealed the associations between climate variations and meteorological droughts, indicating that semi-arid areas are more sensitive to these climate variations. In the spring, PDO and ENSO do not cause extreme wetness or dryness in East Asia, whereas IOD does. The remote impacts of these climate variations on SPEI can be partially explained by atmospheric circulations, where the combined effects of air temperatures, winds, and air pressure fields determine the wet/dry conditions in East Asia.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of ultrasonic pretreatment on the quality of cured sea bass. Compared to static marination, ultrasonication significantly increased the rate of NaCl transfer, reduced the hardness and chewiness of fish, and improved water retention. Microstructural observations revealed that the sea bass muscle fibers were severely fragmented, with their borders becoming increasingly blurred with increasing ultrasonic intensity. In addition, ultrasound-assisted marination significantly increased the degradation of proteins, total free amino acid levels, and relative levels of volatile flavor substances such as aldehydes and esters. Therefore, the use of an appropriate ultrasound treatment for the salt curing of fish has a positive effect on the textural and flavor characteristics of sea bass, with the most optimal approach being 300.W ultrasound treatment for 60 min. Overall, the results of this study provide technical evidence for improving the quality of lightly cured low-salt content seafood.

Tea plants (Camellia sinensis) show discrepancies in selenium accumulation and transportation, the molecular mechanisms of which are not well understood. Hence, we aimed to conduct a systematic investigation of selenium accumulation and transportation mechanisms in different tea cultivars via transcriptome analysis. The Na2SeO3 and Na2SeO4 treatments improved selenium contents in the roots and leaves of three tea cultivars. The high selenium-enrichment ability (HSe) tea cultivars accumulated higher selenium contents in the leaves than did the low selenium-enrichment ability (LSe) tea cultivars. Transcriptome analysis revealed that differentially expressed genes (DEGs) under the Na2SeO3 and Na2SeO4 treatments were enriched in flavonoid biosynthesis in leaves. DEGs under the Na2SeO3 treatment were enriched in glutathione metabolism in the HSe tea cultivar roots compared to those of the LSe tea cultivar. More transporters and transcription factors involved in improving selenium accumulation and transportation were identified in the HSe tea cultivars under the Na2SeO3 treatment than in the Na2SeO4 treatment. In the HSe tea cultivar roots, the expression of sulfate transporter 1;2 (SULTR1;2) and SULTR3;4 increased in response to Na2SeO4 exposure. In contrast, ATP-binding cassette transporter genes (ABCs), glutathione S-transferase genes (GSTs), phosphate transporter 1;3 (PHT1;3), nitrate transporter 1 (NRT1), and 34 transcription factors were upregulated in the presence of Na2SeO3. In the HSe tea cultivar leaves, ATP-binding cassette subfamily B member 11 (ABCB11) and 14 transcription factors were upregulated under the Na2SeO3 treatment. Among them, WRKY75 was explored as a potential transcription factor that regulated the accumulation of Na2SeO3 in the roots of HSe tea cultivars. This study preliminary clarified the mechanism of selenium accumulation and transportation in tea cultivars, and the findings have important theoretical significance for the breeding and cultivation of selenium-enriched tea cultivars.

Abstract Peptides from oysters have several bioactive functions. In this study, we identified antioxidant peptides from oysters (Crassostrea rivularis) and investigated their structure–function relationship. We used an 8 kDa molecular‐weight (MW) cut‐off membrane and semiprep reversed‐phase liquid chromatography to collect five peptides (F1–F5) and identified the highest‐abundance ion‐peak sequences AWVDY (F1), MSFRFY(F2), EPLRY(F3), RKPPWPP(F4), and YAKRCFR(F5) having MWs of 652, 850, 676, 877, and 943 Da, respectively, using ultra‐performance liquid chromatography‐quadrupole/time‐of‐flight tandem mass spectrometry. These peptides exhibited high antioxidant activities, similar to butylated hydroxytoluene, reduced glutathione, and ascorbic acid. F5 demonstrated the highest scavenging activity for DPPH radicals (IC50 = 21.75 μg/ml), hydroxyl radicals (IC50 = 18.75 μg/ml), and superoxide radicals (IC50 = 11.00 μg/ml), while F3 demonstrated the highest reducing power. Furthermore, F5 significantly protected Caco‐2 cells from H2O2‐induced oxidative damage. These results suggest that the antioxidant peptide F5 is a promising food additive that protects against oxidative damage.

The fibrosis process after myocardial infarction (MI) results in a decline in cardiac function due to fibrotic collagen deposition and contrast agents’ metabolic disorders, posing a significant challenge to conventional imaging strategies in making heart damage clear in the fibrosis microenvironment. To address this issue, we developed an imaging strategy. Specifically, we pretreated myocardial fibrotic collagen with collagenase I combined with human serum albumin (HSA-C) and subsequently visualized the site of cardiac injury by near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence imaging using an optical contrast agent (CI, CRT-indocyanine green) targeting transferrin receptor 1 peptides (CRT). The key point of this strategy is that pretreatment with HSA-C can reduce background signal interference in the fibrotic tissue while enhancing CI uptake at the heart lesion site, making the boundary between the injured heart tissue and the normal myocardium clearer. Our results showed that compared to that in the untargeted group, the normalized fluorescence intensity of cardiac damage detected by NIR in the targeted group increased 1.28-fold. The normalized fluorescence intensity increased 1.21-fold in the pretreatment group of the targeted groups. These data demonstrate the feasibility of applying pretreated fibrotic collagen and NIR contrast agents targeting TfR1 to identify ferroptosis at sites of cardiac injury, and its clinical value in the management of patients with MI needs further study.

Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) can differentiate into three germ layers and diverse autologous cell lines. Since cattle are the most commonly used large domesticated animals, an important food source, and bioreactors, great efforts have been made to establish bovine PSCs (bPSCs). bPSCs have great potential in bovine breeding and reproduction, modeling in vitro differentiation, imitating cancer development, and modeling diseases. Currently, bPSCs mainly include bovine embryonic stem cells (bESCs), bovine induced pluripotent stem cells (biPSCs), and bovine expanded potential stem cells (bEPSCs). Establishing stable bPSCs in vitro is a critical scientific challenge, and researchers have made numerous efforts to this end. In this review, the category of PSC pluripotency; the establishment of bESCs, biPSCs, and bEPSCs and its challenges; and the application outlook of bPSCs are discussed, aiming to provide references for future research.

Hydrolyzed tannin 1,2,6-tri-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranose (1,2,6-TGGP) possesses significant medicinal properties. However, little is known about its underlying molecular mechanisms. In this study, the levels of 1,2,6-TGGP in tea materials from different cultivars and leaf positions were compared. Additionally, one leaf and one bud sample from six tea cultivars with significant variations in 1,2,6-TGGP levels were analyzed using transcriptome high-throughput sequencing to identify the genes that are responsible for 1,2,6-TGGP accumulation. The sequencing results were mapped to the reference tea genome, revealing a total of 2735 differentially expressed genes (DEGs). This set included four UDP glycosyltransferase (UGTs) and six serine carboxypeptidases-like (SCPLs) genes. Among them, the upregulated SCPLs (CSS0032817) may directly participate in the acylation reaction of 1,2,6-TGGP. In addition, several classes of DEGs, including cytochrome P450, were significantly associated with the 1,2,6-TGGP content, which is potentially involved in their regulation. Overall, these results provide new insights into the molecular mechanism of 1,2,6-TGGP accumulation.

Green industrial policy is an important means to achieve coordinated development of the environment and industry. Enterprises are the primary bodies involved in the green transformation of the market. Thus, it is important for governments and policymakers to recognize the micro-effects of policy implementation on enterprise innovation. From the perspective of the green-tech innovation motivation of enterprises, this study distinguishes green enterprises using text mining analysis methods. Based on propensity score matching (PSM) samples and using panel data from 1,391 listed enterprises in China for the period of 2008–2019, a log log survival analysis model was constructed, and the effectiveness of green industrial policy on the green-tech innovation constancy of enterprises was dynamically analyzed. The results demonstrate that enterprises supported by the green industrial policy can significantly reduce the risk rate of stopping green-tech innovation constancy. Green industrial policy can significantly improve the constancy of the green technological innovation capabilities of enterprises. The innovation constancy of state-owned enterprises is higher than that of private enterprises. Furthermore, intermediary effect tests indicate that different types of green industrial policies stimulate enterprises to generate different innovation motivations. Command-control policies can promote substantive innovation constancy through the industrial competition effect and exert a significantly positive effect. Market-oriented policies can induce enterprises to perform strategic innovation constancy through fiscal incentives and financial investment effects and can produce significant negative effects. Based on these findings, this study proposes improvements in the policy construction of a long-term mechanism to strengthen the substantive innovation of enterprises. This study provides a theoretical basis and policy reference for improving the incentive efficiency of green industrial policies and promoting constant enterprise innovation under the Green and High-Quality Development Goals of China.

Predicting the core temperature of a Li-ion battery is crucial for precise state estimation, but it is difficult to directly measure. Existing quick temperature-predicting approaches can hardly consider the thermal mass of complex structure that may cause time delays, particularly under high C-rate dynamic conditions. In this paper, we developed a quick temperature prediction algorithm based on a thermal convolution method (TCM) to calculate the core temperature of a flat heat pipe-based battery thermal management system (FHP-BTMS) under dynamic conditions. The model could predict the core temperature rapidly through convolution of the thermal response map which contains full physical information. Firstly, in order to obtain a high fidelity spatio-temporal temperature distribution, the thermal capacitance-resistance network (TCRN) of the FHP-BTMS is established and validated by constant and dynamic discharging experiments. Then, the response map of the core temperature motivated by various impulse heat sources and heat sinks is obtained. Specifically, the dynamic thermal characteristics of an FHP are discussed to correct the boundary conditions of the TCM. Afterwards, the temperature prediction performances of the TCM and a lumped model under different step operating conditions are compared. The TCM results show a 70–80% accuracy improvement and better dynamic adaptivity than the lumped model. Lastly, a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) profile is employed. The temperature prediction accuracy results show that the TCM can maintain a relative error below 5% throughout the entire prediction period.

ObjectiveThe study aimed to assess the value of physiological tests for evaluating inner ear function in predicting the short-term recurrence of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).Materials and methodsThe clinical information of all idiopathic BPPV patients who were treated in our clinic between February 2021 and December 2022 were reviewed. All patients included in the study had completed audiology examinations including pure tone audiometry, electrocochleography (EcochG), auditory brainstem response, and vestibular function examination such as the vestibular caloric test. The relationships between the results of the above tests and short-term recurrent BPPV were analyzed.ResultsA total of 96 patients with unilateral idiopathic BPPV were included for analysis. The numbers of non-recurrent patients and recurrent patients were 57 (59.4%) and 39 (40.6%), respectively. Only the results of EcochG and the caloric test showed significant differences between non-recurrent and recurrent patients (both P < 0.05). The results of these two tests were also found to be independently predictive of short-term recurrence (both P < 0.05). The non-recurrence rate for patients with normal results in both tests reached up to 78.3%, which was significantly higher than that for patients with abnormal results in both tests, 28.6% (P < 0.05).ConclusionEndolymphatic hydrops and canal paresis were independent risk factors for short-term recurrent BPPV. Additional treatments should be considered to reduce the recurrence rate, including dehydration treatment and vestibular rehabilitation.

Our understanding of human brain development in health and disease is limited. The authors generated human brain organoids from stem cell-derived isolated single neural rosettes to study human cortico-striatal development and deficits caused by an autism-associated genetic abnormality in SHANK3.

Objective: The objective of this meta-analysis was to study the diagnostic value of lung ultrasound (LUS) for transient tachypnea of the newborn (TTN). Methods: Embase, Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar were searched, and the last search date was October 31, 2020. Studies on the diagnostic accuracy of pulmonary ultrasound for transient tachypnea were included. The quality assessment of the included study was assessed using the Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 tool. A meta-analysis was performed using Meta-Disc 1.4. A random-effects model was used and subgroup analysis was carried out to identify possible sources of heterogeneity. Results: A total of 378 articles were retrieved and nine studies with 3239 patients were included in the present meta-analysis. The overall quality of the included studies was moderate to high. The result of threshold analysis shows that there was no threshold effect. However, there was a significant heterogeneity caused by non-threshold effects in the included studies. A random-effects model was used. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, PLR and NLR were 0.55 (95% CI: 0.51-0.58), 0.98 (95% CI: 0.98-0.99), 58.30 (95% CI: 14.05-241.88) and 0.28 (95% CI: 0.18-0.43). The pooled DOR and AUC were 689.12 (95% CI: 68.71 to 6911.79) and 0.994. The results of subgroup analysis showed that the LUS diagnostic criteria and gold standard might be responsible for heterogeneity. Choosing ''DLP combined with B line'' as the diagnostic standard of LUS and choosing CXR as the gold standard could significantly improve the diagnostic performance of LUS. Conclusion: LUS is a promising method to diagnose TTN. Only DLP is not enough to diagnose TTN, while DLP combined with B-line has good diagnostic performance.

The active substances derived from plants have received increasing attention owing to their wide range of pharmacological applications, including anti-tumor, anti-allergic, anti-viral, and anti-oxidative activities. The allergy epidemic is a growing global public health problem that threatens human health and safety. Polyphenols from plants have significant anti-allergic effects and are an important source of anti-allergic drug research and development. Here, we describe recent advances in the anti-allergic efficacy of plant polyphenols, including their comprehensive effects on cellular or animal models. The current issues and directions for future development in this field are discussed to provide a theoretical basis for the development and utilization of these active substances as anti-allergic products.

Background: Magnetic Particle Imaging (MPI) is an emerging molecular imaging technique. However, since X-space reconstruction ignores system properties, it can lead to blurring of the reconstructed image, posing challenges for accurate quantification. To address this issue, we propose the use of deep learning to remove the blurry artifacts; (2) Methods: Our network architecture consists of a combination of Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) and Transformer. The CNN utilizes convolutional layers to automatically extract pixel-level local features and reduces the size of feature maps through pooling layers, effectively capturing local information within the images. The Transformer module is responsible for extracting contextual features from the images and efficiently capturing long-range dependencies, enabling a more effective modeling of global features in the images. By combining the features extracted by both CNN and Transformer, we capture both global and local features simultaneously, thereby improving the quality of reconstructed images; (3) Results: Experimental results demonstrate that the network effectively removes blurry artifacts from the images, and it exhibits high accuracy in precise tumor quantification. The proposed method shows superior performance over the state-of-the-art methods; (4) Conclusions: This bears significant implications for the image quality improvement and clinical application of MPI technology.

Winds potentially affect primary production in shelf seas during the stratified season by enhancing upwelling and mixing. However, the exact extent and modalities of this effect in the Yellow Sea remain unclear. Here, based on the satellite and in situ observation data, statistical method, and wind-driven upwelling theory, we examined the wind effect on the chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) variability in the summer of 2002-2020 and the effect mechanism. The satellite data revealed a significantly positive correlation between anomalies of the monthly mean of the summer sea surface Chl-a and wind speed at the continental slope region (water depth of 20-60 m) in the southwestern Yellow Sea where strong wind-driven upwelling has been indicated by previous studies. The wind-driven upwelling along the continental slope was further verified using two summer in-situ observations. After a fortnight of southeasterly wind, the upwelling patterns of high salinity and rich nutrients from the Yellow Sea cold water mass were observed, and consequently, high Chl-a concentrations occurred in the upper layer of the slope region. The wind-driven upwelling occurred in the region at water depth of ~20-60 m, which is consistent with the result of the wind-driven coastal upwelling theory (0.5D < water depth < 1.25D, where D is the thickness of the Ekman layer). The dissolved inorganic nitrogen, phosphorus, and silicate fluxes contributed by wind-driven upwelling were estimated as 1345 ± 674 μmol/m2/d, 81 ± 45 μmol/m2/d and 1460 ± 899 μmol/m2/d, respectively, accounting for 30%-40% of total nutrient supply, and were several times larger than that contributed by the turbulent mixing, which can explain why the strong wind-Chl-a correlation only occurred at the upwelling region rather than the entire sea. In addition, in this region, the interannual variability of the summer mean Chl-a was negatively correlated to both the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) and El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) indexes, due to the opposite phase of the summer wind anomaly and the PDO/ENSO. This study revealed the wind effect on the shelf phytoplankton is regional and highlighted that wind could be a pivotal factor driving the climate variability of shelf primary production in the stratified season.

Improving the efficiency of mineral resource development is conducive to strengthening the ability to guarantee resources, and is of great practical significance to promoting the sustainable development of the region. In order to explore the improvement path of mineral resource development efficiency in Sichuan Province, this paper uses DEA-BCC model and Malmquist index model to measure and evaluate the mineral resource development efficiency of 21 cities and prefectures in Sichuan Province from 2010 to 2018 from static and dynamic perspectives. The results show that the development level of mineral resources in Sichuan Province is gradually improving, and technological progress is the main driving force for efficiency improvement, but there is still much room for improvement in pure technical efficiency and scale efficiency. Secondly, there are differences in the efficiency of mineral resource development between regions. The development efficiency of the Chengdu Plain and Panxi Region has improved the most, while the improvement of mineral resource development efficiency in southern and northeastern Sichuan has been relatively slow. At the end of this article, countermeasures and suggestions are put forward based on the evaluation results to provide references for improving the efficiency of mineral resource development.

Dipeptidyl peptidase-IV (DPP-IV) inhibitory peptides from fermented foods exhibit great potential to alleviate type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). In this study, the DPP-IV inhibition activity of peptide extract from Chouguiyu was obviously enhanced after 4–8 d fermentation. A total of 125 DPP-IV inhibitory peptides in Chouguiyu were identified by peptidomics and were obtained from 46 precursor proteins, mainly including nebulin, titin, muscle-type creatine kinase, hemoglobin, and actin. After molecular docking with DPP-IV, four novel DPP-IV inhibitory peptides possessing the lowest docking energy were selected, including EPAEAVGDWR (D37), IPHESVDVIK (D22), PDLSKHNNHM (D35), and PFGNTHNNFK (D1). The DPP-IV inhibition activity of D37, D22, D35, and D1 were further verified after synthesis with the IC50 of 0.10 mM, 2.69 mM, 3.88 mM, and 8.51 mM, respectively, in accordance with their docking energies. Energy interaction showed that the structures of EP-, IPH-, -NHM, and PF- in these peptides were easy to connect with DPP-IV enzyme through hydrogen bond, salt bridge, and alkyl. The surface force including the H-bond interaction, hydrophobicity, aromatic interaction, and SAS, played a major role in the interaction between DPP-IV enzyme and peptides. The peptides that possess high hydrophobicity and can form strong hydrogen bond and salt bridge are potential DPP-IV inhibitory peptides using for T2DM remission.

This study focuses on the development of heterojunction photocatalysts for the efficient utilization of solar energy to address the energy crisis and reduce environmental pollution. Cadmium sulfide (CdS)/graphite-type carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanocomposites were synthesized using a hydrothermal method, and their photoelectrochemical properties and photocatalytic performance for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) were characterized. Scanning electron microscope images showed the intimate interface and caviar-like nanoheterojunction of the CdS nanoparticles on g-C3N4 nanospheres, suggesting their potential involvement in the photocatalytic process. Electrochemical and spectroscopic analyses were conducted to confirm the roles of CdS in the nanoheterojunction. The results showed that 10 wt% CdS/g-C3N4 nanospheres exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than pure g-C3N4 under visible light irradiation. A HER rate of 655.5 μmol/g/h was achieved after three photocatalytic cycles, signifying good photocatalytic stability. The synergistic effect of the Z-scheme heterojunction formed by g-C3N4 and CdS was identified as the main factor responsible for the enhanced photocatalytic performance and stability. The interface engineering effect of CdS/g-C3N4 facilitated the separation of photogenerated electrons and holes. This study provides insights into the design and fabrication of efficient HER photocatalysts.

Spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) are the only primitive spermatogonial cells in males that can naturally transmit genetic information to their offspring and replicate throughout their lives. Phospholipase D family member 6 (PLD6) has recently been found to be a surface marker for SSCs in mice and boars; however, it has not been validated in cattle. The results of reversed transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) found that the relative expression of the PLD6 gene in the testicular tissues of two-year-old Simmental calves was significantly higher than that of six-month-old calves. Immunofluorescent staining further verified the expression of PLD6 protein in bovine spermatogenic cells like germ cell marker DEAD box helicase 4 (DDX4, also known as VASA). Based on multiple bioinformatic databases, PLD6 is a conservative protein which has high homology with mouse Q5SWZ9 protein. It is closely involved in the normal functioning of the reproductive system. Molecular dynamics simulation analyzed the binding of PLD6 as a phospholipase to cardiolipin (CL), and the PLD6-CL complex showed high stability. The protein interaction network analysis showed that there is a significant relationship between PLD6 and piwi-interacting RNA (piRNA) binding protein. PLD6 acts as an endonuclease and participates in piRNA production. In addition, PLD6 in bovine and mouse testes has a similar expression pattern with the spermatogonium-related genes VASA and piwi like RNA-mediated gene silencing 2 (PIWIL2). In conclusion, these analyses imply that PLD6 has a relatively high expression in bovine testes and could be used as a biomarker for spermatogenic cells including SSCs.

Abstract Background High-temperature bioethanol production benefits from yeast thermotolerance. Salt stress could induce obvious cross-protection against heat stress of Pichia kudriavzevii, contributing to the improvement of its thermotolerance and bioethanol fermentation. However, the underlying mechanisms of the cross-protection remain poorly understood. Results Salt stress showed obvious cross-protection for thermotolerance and high-temperature ethanol production of P. kudriavzevii observed by biomass, cell morphology and bioethanol production capacity. The biomass and ethanol production of P. kudriavzevii at 45 °C were, respectively, improved by 2.6 and 3.9 times by 300 mmol/L NaCl. Metabolic network map showed that salt stress obviously improved the key enzymes and intermediates in carbohydrate metabolism, contributing to the synthesis of bioethanol, ATP, amino acids, nucleotides, and unsaturated fatty acids, as well as subsequent intracellular metabolisms. The increasing trehalose, glycerol, HSPs, and ergosterol helped maintain the normal function of cell components. Heat stress induced serious oxidative stress that the ROS-positive cell rate and dead cell rate, respectively, rose from 0.5% and 2.4% to 28.2% and 69.2%, with the incubation temperature increasing from 30 to 45 °C. The heat-induced ROS outburst, oxidative damage, and cell death were obviously inhibited by salt stress, especially the dead cell rate which fell to only 20.3% at 300 mmol/L NaCl. The inhibiting oxidative damage mainly resulted from the abundant synthesis of GSH and GST, which, respectively, increased by 4.8 and 76.1 times after addition of 300 mmol/L NaCl. The improved bioethanol production was not only due to the improved thermotolerance, but resulted from the up-regulated alcohol dehydrogenases and down-regulated aldehyde dehydrogenases by salt stress. Conclusion The results provide a first insight into the mechanisms of the improved thermotolerance and high-temperature bioethanol production of P. kudriavzevii by salt stress, and provide important information to construct genetic engineering yeasts for high-temperature bioethanol production. Graphical Abstract

The quality of dried fish products differs based on the drying method employed owing to the different drying principles, with changes in protein affecting the quality of these products. Therefore, we investigated the differences in golden pompano (Trachinotus ovatus) fish tissue structure and protein physicochemical properties under different drying methods. Freeze drying (FD) induced less tissue damage, leaving more intact myofibrils, than that of hot air drying (HAD) and heat pump drying (HPD). The structural stability of myofibrillar protein was retained to a greater extent after FD, while myoglobin oxidation was lower, and fish meat color was well maintained. Our findings not only elucidated the effects of several drying methods on the physicochemical properties of fish protein, but also determined the mechanism underlying quality changes observed during the drying process. This provides a theoretical reference for the study of dried fish filet processing.

The combined effect of ε-polylysine (PL) and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP; 60% CO2/40% N2) on the bacterial community of greater amberjack filets and their physicochemical properties was evaluated at 4°C. The total viable counts (TVC), psychrotrophic bacterial count, sensory index, texture analysis, and total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) revealed that PL, MAP, and MAP + PL treatment delayed the deterioration of greater amberjack filets. These treatment groups also showed decreased accumulation of biogenic amines. High-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing results indicated that these treatments suppressed the growth of Pseudomonas in greater amberjack filets. Furthermore, the MAP + PL treatment group was observed to be more effective than the PL and MAP groups, extending the shelf life of greater amberjack filets by 6 days. This investigation showed that the combination of PL and MAP has the potential to retain the quality and extend the shelf life of greater amberjack.

Porphyra dentata is an edible red seaweed with high nutritional value. It is widely cultivated and consumed in East Asia and has vast economic benefits. Studies have found that P. dentata is rich in bioactive substances and is a potential natural resource. In this study, label-free shotgun proteomics was first applied to identify and characterize different harvest proteins in P. dentata. A total of 13,046 different peptides were identified and 419 co-expression target proteins were characterized. Bioinformatics was used to study protein characteristics, functional expression, and interaction of two important functional annotations, amino acid, and carbohydrate metabolism. Potential bioactive peptides, protein structure, and potential ligand conformations were predicted, and the results suggest that bioactive peptides may be utilized as high-quality active fermentation substances and potential targets for drug production. Our research integrated the global protein database, the first time bioinformatic analysis of the P. dentata proteome during different harvest periods, improves the information database construction and provides a framework for future research based on a comprehensive understanding.

BackgroundSubclinical hypothyroidism (SCH) is usually treated with levothyroxine, but there is controversy as to whether SCH should be treated, especially for older patients. The aim of the systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate whether levothyroxine has a beneficial or harmful effect on older patients with SCH.MethodsDatabases including PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Wanfang, Weipu and China National Knowledge Infrastructure were searched from inception until December 21, 2021. Subjects must be diagnosed with SCH, and older than or equal to 60 years of age. Interventions should be thyroid hormone therapy (e.g. levothyroxine). The literature was independently screened by 2 researchers. Statistical analysis was performed using RevMan5.3 software.ResultsA total of 13 articles were included. Meta-analysis results showed that in older SCH patients, levothyroxine can significantly reduce cholesterol (TC) (p < 0.00001), triglyceride (TG) (p < 0.00001), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (p = 0.03) and apolipoprotein B (ApoB) (p < 0.00001). In addition, levothyroxine had no significant effect on bone mineral density, fatigue, hypothyroidism symptoms, quality of life, BMI, cognitive function, depression, blood pressure, etc. in older SCH patients, and also did not significantly increase the incidence of adverse events.ConclusionsAmong older SCH patients, levothyroxine treatment may reduce TC, TG, LDL-C, and ApoB.

Complex microbial metabolism is key to taste formation in high-quality fish sauce during fermentation. To guide quality supervision and targeted regulation, we analyzed the function of microbial flora during fermentation based on a previously developed metagenomic database. The abundance of most identified genes involved in metabolic functions showed an upward trend in abundance during fermentation. In total, 571 proteins extracted from fish sauce at different fermentation stages were identified. These proteins were mainly derived from Halanaerobium, Psychrobacter, Photobacterium, and Tetragenococcus. Functional annotation revealed 15 pathways related to amino acid metabolism, including alanine, aspartate, glutamate, and histidine metabolism; lysine degradation; and arginine biosynthesis. This study demonstrated the approaches to identify microbiota functions and metabolic pathways, thereby providing a theoretical basis for taste formation mechanisms during traditional fish sauce fermentation.

In this study, we evaluated the effects of immersion freezing (IF) with coolant and air freezing (AF) techniques with different storage temperature (−18°C and −30°C) on the quality of groupers following frozen storage. Water loss rate, total volatile basic nitrogen, and the K-value, were positively correlated with storage time. The pH first decreased and then increased. Destruction of the muscle fiber structure led to changes in grouper texture characteristics including hardness, cohesiveness, springiness, and chewiness. IF-30°C samples retained the highest quality after frozen storage, followed by IF-18°C samples and AF-18°C samples. Immersion freezing limited protein denaturation, decreased water loss, and contributed to the formation of uniformly distributed ice crystals, decreasing microstructure damage. Immersion freezing is a promising technique for preserving the quality of groupers, and the immersion coolant (propylene glycol, oligosaccharides and salts) used in this study has potential applications in the grouper processing industry.

BackgroundRecent studies have confirmed that AT-rich interactive domain-containing protein 1A (ARID1A) plays a critical role in tumorigenesis, but its role in gallbladder cancer (GBC) remains unclear.MethodsIn total, 224 patients from Zhongshan Hospital were recruited for this retrospective study. The clinicopathological and baseline characteristics of the patients were collected. Bioinformatics analysis was performed to reveal variations in genes and signaling pathways, and ARID1A and PD-L1 expression and the number of PD1+ tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) were measured by immunohistochemical staining.ResultsARID1A expression was negatively correlated with overall survival in patients with GBC, and multivariate analysis identified ARID1A as an independent prognostic factor for overall survival. A heatmap and gene set enrichment analysis suggested that cytotoxic T lymphocyte signatures and immune-related signaling pathways were downregulated in ARID1A low tumors. Subsequent immunohistochemical staining confirmed that ARID1A expression was negatively correlated with PD-L1 expression and PD1+ TILs in the tumor microenvironment. The Kaplan–Meier analysis suggested that high ARID1A expression combined with low PD-L1 expression or low PD1+ TIL counts is associated with the best prognosis in patients with GBC.ConclusionARID1A inactivation can lead to a worse prognosis in patients with GBC, potentially by mediating immune evasion through the PD1/PD-L1 pathway.

Gallbladder carcinoma (GBC) is responsible for 80%–95% of biliary tract malignancies and has a dismal prognosis. Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) is a promising therapeutic target of GBC. Through immunohistochemistry (IHC) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) methods, HER2 expression and gene amplification were identified on high-output tissue microarrays (TMAs) developed in 306 GBC cases to investigate its relationship with GBC and clinicopathological characteristics. Adenocarcinomas accounted for 223 (72.9%) of the cases, with 62 (27.8%) being papillary adenocarcinoma or having partial papillary structure. HER2 positivity was studied in 16.1% (36/223) of patients with adenocarcinoma and 41.9% (26/62) in adenocarcinoma with papillary structures. For 143 radically resected primary GBC cases with 24 HER2-positive tumors, survival data were valid; the median survival time was not reached, and the 5-year survival rate was 52.9%. All patients in stages 0–I survived, and the results of the HER2-positive group and the stage II HER2-negative group were similar (p = 0.354). However, in stage III, the mortality rate in the HER2-positive group was reduced (p = 0.005) and that in stage IV was higher (p = 0.005). In conclusion, HER2 positivity was significantly higher in patients with papillary GBC. The predictive value of HER2 varies by clinical stage, with no prediction in the early stages, better in stage III, and worse in stage IV.

Purpose. To summarize the relevant evidence for nondrug nursing programs in neonatal operational pain management. Methods. Computer search for the literature on neonatal procedural pain from 2015 to 2020 in Up To Date, JBI, NICE, SIGN, RNAO, NGC, PubMed, Cochrane Library, CNKI, and Wanfang database was conducted. All literature works that may meet the inclusion criteria were independently evaluated by two researchers to determine the quality grade of the articles. Results. Finally, 9 literature works were extracted, including 4 guidelines, 3 systematic reviews, and 2 evidence summaries. The relevant contents of the literature were extracted and summarized, and 20 pieces of the best evidence were obtained. Conclusion. Breast feeding, sweetener, Kangaroo mother care, sensory stimulation, nonnutritive sucking, and other nondrug nursing programs can reduce the neonatal operational pain, which has guiding significance in neonatal operational pain management.

In this work, the lactoferrin (LF) was glycosylated by dextran (molecular weight 10, 40, and 70 kDa, LF 10K, LF 40K, and LF 70K) via Maillard reaction as a stabilizer to establish zein/glycosylated LF nanoparticles and encapsulate 7,8-dihydroxyflavone (7,8-DHF). Three zein/glycosylated LF nanoparticles (79.27–87.24 nm) with low turbidity (

Battery performance and lifespan are greatly dependent on its temperature, and a good battery thermal system (BTMS) can make the battery work at its favorable temperature range, improve its electrical performance, and extend its lifespan. Due to the high heat conductivity and large surface area of flat heat pipe (FHP), the FHP-based BTMS can quickly remove the heat produced by the battery and improve the temperature homogeneity among cells in the pack. In this study, the FHP is applied to the BTMS, and the influence of its structure on the battery thermal dynamics is studied. Firstly, a coupled thermal model for the FHP-based BTMS is established and verified by the experiment. This model integrates the resistance-based thermal model of the battery and FHP model based on the thermal resistance network. Then, the effect of the structure parameters of FHP such as the thickness, porosity, and particle diameter of sintered wick on the thermal performance of the battery is investigated. According to the results, the temperature variation among battery cells rises significantly when the dimensionless thickness of the wick is greater than 0.7. Moreover, the change of the porosity and particle diameter of the wick results in a nonlinear development of the wick thermal resistance which finally changes the heat conductivity of the FHP and battery temperature. Finally, a neural network model (NNM) is used to establish the relationship between the FHP parameters and battery thermal performance for optimizing the BTMS structure. According to optimization result, the optimized FHP can keep the maximum battery temperature below 40°C at a discharge rate of 2C and reduce the temperature variation in the battery by 7.4%.

Abstract Background The distant metastasis (DM) mode and treatment efficacies in the advanced biliary tract cancer (BTC) were obscure, and a credible evaluation is urgently needed. Method A total of 6348 advanced BTC patients (ICC, intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, n = 1762; PHCC, perihilar cholangiocarcinoma, n = 1103; GBC, gallbladder cancer, n = 2580; DCC, distal cholangiocarcinoma, n = 538; AVC, carcinoma of Vater ampulla, n = 365) were enrolled from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Propensity score matching (PSM) process was carried out for less bias. Result The proportion of M1 patients in each subtype at first diagnosis was 26.4% (ICC), 37.2% (PHCC), 41. 0% (GBC), 24.5% (DCC), and 12.7% (AVC), and the constitution of DM sites in different subtypes varied apparently. Moreover, the survival of metastasis sites was different (P

Chinese fermented mandarin fish (Siniperca chuatsi) have unique aroma characteristics that are appreciated by local consumers. In this study, electronic nose (E-nose) and gas chromatography–ion mobility spectrometry analyses were combined to establish a volatile fingerprint of fermented mandarin fish during fermentation. Clear separation of the data allowed mandarin fish samples at different fermentation stages to be distinguishing using E-nose analysis. Forty-three volatile organic compounds were identified during fermentation. Additionally, partial least squares discrimination analysis was performed to screen for different VOC metabolites in the fermented mandarin fish; the levels of six VOCs changed significantly during fermentation (variable importance in projection >1; p < 0.05). Three VOCs, i.e., hexanal-D, nonanal, and limonene were identified as potential biomarkers for fermentation. This study provided a theoretical basis for flavor real-time monitoring and quality control of traditional mandarin fish fermentation.

BackgroundCystic duct carcinoma (CDC) is a rare biliary malignancy with a low incidence and poor prognosis. However, the clinical landscape of the disease has not been clarified and no widely applicable classification system has been developed.MethodsSixty-two patients with CDC were included in this retrospective study, and a new classification system was established using imaging data. Blood indices, radiological characteristics, pathological features, surgical procedures, and overall survival data were collected. The efficacy of the new classification in predicting resectability was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, and K-means clustering and t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding were applied to verify the conclusion.ResultsThe pT stage of patients with type II CDC was significantly worse than that of type I. Patients with type II CDC were more likely to experience distant metastasis and invasion of the nervous system, vascular system, and liver. The resectability of patients with type II CDC was significantly worse than that of patients with type I CDC. Patients with type II CDC had worse prognoses. ROC curve analysis and K-means clustering revealed that the new classification could better categorize patients with CDC than currently available systems.ConclusionPatients with type II CDC have significantly worse clinicopathological outcomes. The new classification system has better accuracy in grouping patients with CDC.

Abstract Background Gallbladder cancer (GC) is a malignant disease characterized with highly cellular heterogeneity and poor prognosis. Determining the intratumoral heterogeneity and microenvironment (TME) can provide novel therapeutic strategies for GC. Methods We performed the single‐cell RNA sequencing on the primary and lymph node metastatic gallbladder tumors and the adjacent normal tissues of five patients. The transcriptomic atlas and ligand–receptor‐based intercellular communication networks of the single cells were characterized. Results The transcriptomic landscape of 24,887 single cells was obtained and characterized as 10 cellular clusters, including epithelial, neuroendocrine tumor cells, T&NK cells, B cells, RGS5+ fibroblasts, POSTN+ fibroblasts, PDGFRA+ fibroblasts, endothelial, myeloid cells, and mast cells. Different types of GC harbored distinct epithelial tumor subpopulations, and squamous cell carcinoma could be differentiated from adenocarcinoma cells. Abundant immune cells infiltrated into adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, rather than neuroendocrine neoplasms, which showed significant enrichment of stromal cells. CD4+/FOXP3+ T‐reg and CD4+/CXCL13+ T helper cells with higher exhausting biomarkers, as well as a dynamic lineage transition of tumor‐associated macrophages from CCL20hi/CD163lo, CCL20lo/CD163hi to APOE+, were identified in GC tissues, suggesting the immunosuppressive and tumor‐promoting status of immune cells in TME. Two distinct endothelial cells (KDR+ and ACKR1+), which were involved in angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis, showed remarkable ligand–receptor interactions with primary GC cells and macrophages in gallbladder tumors. Conclusions This study reveals a widespread reprogramming across multiple cell populations in GC progression, dissects the cellular heterogeneity and interactions in gallbladder TME, and provides potential therapeutic targets for GC.

Background Microsatellite instability (MSI) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-positive molecular subtypes exhibit complex immune responses in gastric cancer (GC), and PD-L1 has emerged as a prognostic biomarker associated with the cancer immune microenvironment. This study aimed to determine the prognostic value of molecular subtypes and whether the addition of PD-L1 would accurately predict the prognosis and guide postoperative chemotherapy for GC patients. Methods We performed molecular subtyping of tissue microarray slides from 226 GC patients who were treated with radical gastrectomy. The MSI status and PD-L1 expression were evaluated through immunohistochemistry (IHC) and EBV status through situ hybridization. Multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was also performed on 50 cases to validate the accuracy of IHC in defining MSI status. Differences in overall survival (OS) were assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method, log-rank test and Cox proportional hazards regression model. Results Among the 226 GC patients, 52 (23.2%) patients were classified as the MSI subtype, 11 (4.9%) were EBV+ subtype, and 161 (71.9%) were MSS (Microsatellite stable) /EBV− subtype according to TCGA analysis. Two patients were both positive for MSI and EBV infection. EBV+ cases showed higher PD-L1 positivity than MSI cases and MSS/EBV− cases (81.8% vs. 50.0% vs. 35.4%, P = 0.003). Compared with the non-MSS/EBV− (MSI or EBV+ cases) subgroup, GC patients with MSS/EBV− were associated with the worst outcomes (HR = 1.610, 95% CI [1.046–2.479], P = 0.031). MSS/EBV− GCs alone could benefit from postoperative chemotherapy (HR = 0.452, 95% CI [0.299–0.682], P

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to investigate parathyroid hormone (PTH), serum calcium, phosphorus, and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH-VD) changes before and after radioactive iodine (RAI) in differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) patients at different time points.MethodsA total of 259 DTC patients who received RAI were prospectively enrolled. We evaluated PTH, serum calcium, phosphorus, and 25-OH-VD levels at baseline pre-RAI, five days, six weeks, and six months post-RAI, respectively. We analyzed the risk factors of hypocalcemia at five days post-RAI.ResultsThe mean PTH, serum calcium and phosphorus values decreased five days post-RAI compared with pre-RAI (PTH 4.18 ± 1.23 pmol/L vs. 3.95 ± 1.41 pmol/L; calcium 2.27 ± 0.09 mmol/L vs. 2.20 ± 0.11 mmol/L; phosphorus 1.25 ± 0.17 vs. 0.98 ± 0.20 mmol/L, P < 0.05), and the differences were statistically significant. The mean 25-OH-VD levels did not significantly decrease at five days post-RAI. 21.2% (55/259) of patients had hypocalcemia at five days post-RAI, and all of them were given oral calcium supplements. At six weeks post-RAI, all of the above parameters were higher than those at five days post-RAI. Multivariate regression analysis showed that baseline pre-RAI serum calcium < 2.27 mmol/L, PTH < 4.18 pmol/L and negative 99mTcO4- thyroid imaging were risk factors for hypocalcemia at five days post-RAI.ConclusionFor DTC patients with normal PTH and serum calcium levels at pre-RAI, their PTH, serum calcium, and phosphorus levels decreased at five days post-RAI. About one-fifth of patients could have hypocalcemia at five days post-RAI. Lower baseline pre-RAI serum calcium and PTH levels and negative 99mTcO4- thyroid imaging were risk factors for hypocalcemia five days post-RAI.