Search

Utilizing observational data from the Xiamen radar station during the warm season of 2015-2018 (May to September), this study employs a convective storm identification algorithm to statistically analyze the spatiotemporal distribution, diurnal propagation, and seasonal variability of convective storms over the southeastern coast of China. Key findings include: (1) Significant monthly variations in convective storm frequency, with peaks in August over land areas of Zhangzhou and Xiamen's northwest, and offshore southeast of Xiamen. Seasonal circulation patterns, particularly the subtropical high and northern high-level troughs, drive these variations. (2) Large-scale convective storms are most frequent, while small-scale ones are less common. Mid-deep convective storms dominate, particularly in southern Zhangzhou and southwestern mountainous Quanzhou, whereas shallow convective storms are rare and scattered. High-frequency areas correlate with higher terrain, underscoring the influence of topography on storm occurrence and development. (3) Hovmöller plots reveal a bimodal diurnal pattern in propagation of storms for July and August, with peaks in the daytime and late night. Daytime storms propagate from coastal to higher terrain areas, while nighttime storms maybe driven by enhanced vertical wind shear. These findings enhance the understanding of convective storms in the region and highlight the crucial role of the circulation background, terrain, and prevailing wind directions in the spatiotemporal characteristics of warm season convective storms in southeastern China., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

The presence of cracks reduces egg quality and safety, and can easily cause food safety hazards to consumers. Machine vision-based methods for cracked egg detection have achieved significant success on in-domain egg data. However, the performance of deep learning models usually decreases under practical industrial scenarios, such as the different egg varieties, origins, and environmental changes. Existing researches that rely on improving network structures or increasing training data volumes cannot effectively solve the problem of model performance decline on unknown egg testing data in practical egg production. To address these challenges, a novel and robust detection method is proposed to extract max domain-invariant features to enhance the model performance on unknown test egg data. Firstly, multi-domain egg data are built on different egg origins and acquisition devices. Then, a multi-domain trained strategy is established by using Maximum Mean Discrepancy with Normalized Squared Feature Estimation (NSFE-MMD) to obtain the optimal matching egg training domain. With the NSFE-MMD method, the original deep learning model can be applied without network structure improvements, which reduces the extremely complex tuning process and hyperparameter adjustments. Finally, robust cracked egg detection experiments are carried out on several unknown testing egg domains. The YOLOV5 (You Only Look Once v5) model trained by the proposed multi-domain training method with NSFE-MMD has a detection mAP of 86.6% on the unknown test Domain 4, and the YOLOV8 (You Only Look Once v8) model has a detection mAP of 88.8% on Domain 4, which is an increase of 8% and 4.4% compared to the best performance of models trained on a single domain, and an increase of 4.7% and 3.7% compared to models trained on all domains. In addition, the YOLOV5 model trained by the proposed multi-domain training method has a detection mAP of 87.9% on egg data of the unknown testing Domain 5. The experimental results demonstrate the robustness and effectiveness of the proposed multi-domain training method, which can be more suitable for the large quantity and variety of egg detection production.

To robustly and adaptively reconstruct displacement, we propose the amplitude modulation integral reconstruction method (AM-IRM) for displacement sensing in a self-mixing interferometry (SMI) system. By algebraically multiplying the SMI signal with a high-frequency sinusoidal carrier, the frequency spectrum of the signal is shifted to that of the carrier. This operation overcomes the issue of frequency blurring in low-frequency signals associated with continuous wavelet transform (CWT), enabling the precise extraction of the Doppler frequency of the SMI signal. Furthermore, the synchrosqueezing wavelet transform (SSWT) is utilized to enhance the frequency resolution of the Doppler signal. Our experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method achieves a displacement reconstruction accuracy of 21.1 nm (0.89%). Additionally, our simulations demonstrated that this method can accurately reconstruct target displacement under the conditions of time-varying optical feedback intensity or a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 0 dB, with a maximum root mean square (RMS) error of 22.2 nm. These results highlight its applicability in real-world environments. This method eliminates the need to manually determine the window length for time-frequency conversion, calculate the parameters of the SMI system, or add additional optical devices, making it easy to implement.

Background: There is mounting evidence for the health benefits of aromatic scents for the older people with dementia. However, existing research has focused on indoor aromatherapy using essential oils. It is necessary to explore the health benefits of smellscapes in the outdoor environment for older people with dementia., Aims and Objectives: This scoping review aims to examine existing evidence for smellscape as a healing factor in institutional garden for older people with dementia, try to bridge the knowledge gaps between outdoor sensory garden scents and aromatherapy to develop green care techniques that incorporate outdoor activities., Methods: Seven databases (Scopus, PubMed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Embase and Web of Science) were searched with English language articles published between 1990 and 2022. The PRISMA-ScR Checklist was used., Results: Out of 1013 articles, 11 meet the inclusion criteria. The comprehensive health outcomes include five aspects: mental health; physical health; reduced agitation behaviour; improved cognitive function; and well-being. These aspects are part of the rehabilitation model comprising the person (older people with dementia), environment (garden smellscapes) and outdoor activities (active or passive interventions or a combination)., Conclusions: The smellscape, as a healing factor in the garden, not only benefits from evidence on indoor aromatherapy but also creates a sensory environment for older people with dementia by compensating for functional impairment, activity support and environmental creation, thereby promoting enhanced health and well-being., Relevance to Clinical Practice: The research on the healing effects of smellscapes presented in this review offers a novel environmental intervention technique for transferring evidence on essential oils to outdoor sensory gardens. This green care technique is suggested to assist in the creation of healing environments and interventions for people with dementia who cannot be cured., No Patient or Public Contribution: This scoping review did not directly involve patient or public contributions to the manuscript., (© 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Background: Preliminary clinical trials of adamgammadex, a new cyclodextrin-based selective reversal agent, have demonstrated its efficacy in reversing neuromuscular block by rocuronium., Methods: This multicentre, randomised, double-blind, positive-controlled, non-inferiority phase III clinical trial compared the efficacy and safety of adamgammadex and sugammadex. We randomised 310 subjects to receive adamgammadex (4 mg kg -1 ) or sugammadex (2 mg kg -1 ) at reappearance of the second twitch of the train-of-four (TOF), and standard safety data were collected., Results: For the primary outcome, the proportion of patients with TOF ratio ≥0.9 within 5 min was 98.7% in the adamgammadex group vs 100% in the sugammadex group, with a point estimate and 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.3% (-4.6%, +1.3%); the lower limit was greater than the non-inferiority margin of -10%. For the key secondary outcome, the median (inter quartile range) time from the start of administration of adamgammadex or sugammadex to recovery of TOF ratio to 0.9 was 2.25 (1.75, 2.75) min and 1.75 (1.50, 2.00) min, respectively. The difference was 0.50 (95% CI: 0.25, 0.50); the upper limit was lower than the non-inferiority margin of 5 min. In addition, there were no inferior results observed in secondary outcomes. Adamgammadex had a lower incidence of adverse drug reactions compared with sugammadex (anaphylactic reaction, recurarisation, decreased heart rate, and laryngospasm; P=0.047)., Conclusions: Adamgammadex was non-inferior to sugammadex with a possible lower incidence of adverse drug reactions compared with sugammadex. Adamgammadex may have a potential advantage in terms of its overall risk-benefit profile., Clinical Trial Registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR2000039525. Registered October 30, 2020. https://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.html?proj=56825., (Copyright © 2023 British Journal of Anaesthesia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Semaphorin3E (Sema3E) mediates reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton, and plays an important role in ensuring the specificity of synapse formation and angiogenesis. However, the role of Sema3E in allergic asthma (AS) and eosinophilic bronchitis (EB) is still elusive. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between Sema3E in vagal ganglion and lung tissue, airway reactivity, and eosinophilic inflammation., Methods: The frequency of coughs and airway reactivity as well as the airway inflammation were observed in ovalbumin- (OVA-) induced AS and EB mouse models. The expression of Sema3E was examined in the vagal ganglion and lung tissues by immunofluorescence staining and western blotting analyses. In the Sema3E treatment protocol, exogenous Sema3E was administrated intranasally before challenge in AS model to study the effect of Sema3E on airway hyperresponsiveness, airway inflammation, mucus production, and collagen deposition., Results: The similar higher frequency of coughs and airway eosinophilic inflammation could be seen in AS and EB groups compared with nasal saline (NS) and dexamethasone (DXM) groups. The absence of the airway hyperresponsiveness was observed in EB and DXM group, while AS group showed increase in airway reactivity to methacholine. The expression of Sema3E in vagal ganglion and lung tissue was remarkably decreased in AS and DXM group compared with EB group. Sema3E-treated asthma mice displayed ameliorated airway hyperresponsiveness, mucus production, and collagen deposition., Conclusion: Sema3E in lungs and vagal ganglia is related to eosinophilic inflammation and has a protective effect on OVA-induced AHR in asthma., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Liyan Chen et al.)

Ferroptosis is a new mode of cell death with major morphological changes in mitochondria, including structural shrinkage and increased membrane density, indicating the mitochondrial abnormality during this process. Viscosity, as one of the crucial microenvironmental parameters for characterizing the mitochondrial state, is thought to be highly involved in the ferroptosis. Herein, we present a single fluorescent probe (PPAC-C4) for the dual ratio and ultrahigh-accuracy quantification of mitochondrial viscosity. This probe is constructed by linking a mitochondria-targeting cation fragment on a vibration-based fluorescent scaffold whose fluorescence exhibits the rare triple emission (480, 533, and 628 nm) depending on the viscosity. The intensity ratios of 480 nm/628 nm and 533 nm/628 nm can be used to monitor the viscosity changes in a double self-calibration manner and finally afford an average viscosity value with improved precision. By virtue of this pattern, we reveal that the mitochondrial viscosity will increase from 43.58 to 152.05 cP in A549 cells during the ferroptosis. This dual-ratio probe with triemission not only shows great potential in the study of ferroptosis and ferroptosis-related diseases but also proposes a new concept for ultraprecision quantitative analysis.

Background: IPoC possesses a preventive effect against IR injury in healthy myocardium, but IPoC's protective effect on atherosclerotic myocardium is controversial. The current investigation aims to determine whether IPoC remains protective in atherosclerotic myocardium subjected to ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury; to explore the specific mechanisms by which IPoC exerts cardioprotection; to explore whether HIF-1 upregulation combined with IPoC could further the provide cardioprotection; and to gaze at the specific mechanism whereby combined treatment expert the cardioprotection., Methods: ApoE -/- mice fed with a high-fat diet (HFD) were used to develop a model of atherosclerosis. The myocardial IR model was induced by occlusion of the left anterior descending (LAD) artery for 45 min, followed by reperfusion for 120 min. The protection of IPoC in both healthy and atherosclerotic myocardium was evaluated by measuring oxidative stress, apoptosis, infarct size, pathology, mitochondrial dysfunction and morphology of myocardium. The specific mechanism by which IPoC exerts cardioprotection in healthy and atherosclerotic myocardium was observed by measuring the expression of proteins involved in HIF-1, APMK and RISK pathways. The effect of HIF-1α overexpression on the cardioprotection by IPoC was observed by intravenous AAV9 -HIF-1α injection., Results: In healthy ischemic myocardium, IPoC exerted myocardial protective effects (antioxidant, anti-apoptosis, and improved mitochondrial function) through the activation of HIF-1, AMPK and RISK pathways. In atherosclerotic ischemic myocardium, IPoC exerted cardioprotection only through the activation of HIF-1 pathway; however, HIF-1 overexpression combined IPoC restored the activation of AMPK and RISK pathways, thereby further alleviating the myocardial IR injury., Conclusions: In the atherosclerotic state, the HIF-1 pathway is the intrinsic mechanism by which IPoC exerts cardioprotective effects. The combination of HIF-1 upregulation and IPoC has a significant effect in reducing myocardial injury, which is worth being promoted and advocated. In addition, HIF-1-AMPK and HIF-1-RISK may be two endogenous cardioprotective signalling pathways with great value, which deserve to be thoroughly investigated in the future., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The corresponding author affirms, on behalf of all authors, that there are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

In response to the unprecedented pandemic in recent history, COVID-19 vaccination mandates in the U.S. caused significant changes and disruption in hospitality operations and customer experiences. The primary goal of this study is to examine whether and how customer incivility induced by the COVID-19 vaccine mandate in the U.S. affects employees' behavioral outcomes (i.e., stress spread between employees and turnover intention) via psychological mechanisms (i.e., stress and negative emotion) and when the relationship is moderated by personal (employee prosocial motivation) and organizational (supervisor support) characteristics. Findings show that customer incivility increases employee turnover intention as well as interpersonal conflicts at work via increased stress and negative emotions. These relationships are weakened when prosocial motivation of employees and the level of supervisor support is high. Findings expand the occupational stress model by specifically incorporating the context of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate and further provide implications for restaurant managers and policy makers., Competing Interests: None., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Objective: Dexmedetomidine (DEX) has been shown to have anti-apoptotic effects in diabetes mellitus, but its role in mitigating diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) through ferroptosis regulation is unclear., Methods: An in vitro DCM model was established using H9C2 cells induced with high glucose (HG) and treated with DEX at varying doses and a nuclear factor erythroid 2-realated factor 2 (Nrf2) specific inhibitor ML385. Cell viability was evaluated using the MTT method after treatment with DEX or mannitol (MAN), and the dosage of DEX used in subsequent experimentation was determined. The effects of HG-induced high osmotic pressure were assessed using MAN as a control. Cell apoptosis was evaluated using flow cytometry. Protein levels of Bcl2, Bax, nuclear Nrf2, and glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) were measured using Western blot. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, Fe 2+ concentration and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels were measured using corresponding kits and dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate, respectively., Results: Treatment with DEX or MAN had no effect on H9C2 cell viability. HG induction reduced H9C2 cell viability, increased cell apoptosis, upregulated levels of Bax, Fe 2+ , MDA, and ROS, and downregulated Bcl2 protein levels, SOD activity, and protein levels of nuclear Nrf2 and GPX4. DEX inhibited HG-induced H9C2 cell apoptosis, promoted Nrf2 nuclear translocation, and activated the Nrf2/GPX4 pathway. Inhibition of Nrf2 partially reversed the protective effects of DEX against HG-evoked H9C2 cell injury., Conclusion: Our findings demonstrate that DEX attenuates HG-induced cardiomyocyte injury by inhibiting ferroptosis through the Nrf2/GPX4 pathway, providing potential therapeutic targets for DCM treatment., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Reperfusion after acute myocardial infarction can cause ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, which not only impedes restoration of the functions of tissues and organs but may also aggravate structural tissue and organ damage and dysfunction, worsening the patient's condition. Thus, the mechanisms that underpin myocardial I/R injury need to be better understood. We aimed to examine the effect of dexmedetomidine on macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) in cardiomyocytes from mice with myocardial I/R injury and to explore the mechanistic role of adenosine 5'-monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling in this process. Myocardial I/R injury was induced in mice. The expression of serum inflammatory factors, reactive oxygen species (ROS), adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and AMPK pathway-related proteins, as well as myocardial tissue structure and cell apoptosis rate, were compared between mice with I/R injury only; mice with I/R injury treated with dexmedetomidine, ISO-1 (MIF inhibitor), or both; and sham-operated mice. Dexmedetomidine reduced serum interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α concentrations and increased IL-10 concentration in mice with I/R injury. Moreover, dexmedetomidine reduced myocardial tissue ROS content and apoptosis rate and increased ATP content and MIF expression. MIF inhibition using ISO-1 reversed the protective effect of dexmedetomidine on myocardial I/R injury and reduced AMPK phosphorylation. Dexmedetomidine reduces the inflammatory response in mice with I/R injury and improves adverse symptoms, and its mechanism of action may be related to the MIF-AMPK pathway., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for Immunology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Poor grain filling severely reduces rice yield. Fertilizers play a vital role in regulating grain filling, especially nitrogen (N) and potassium (K). In this field study we aimed to investigate the interactive effects of N and K on the asynchronous filling properties of superior and inferior spikelets of japonica rice. We looked at grain filling under three N rates (0, 90, and 180 kg N ha -1 ) and three K rates (0, 60, and 120 kg K 2 O ha -1 ) during 2020 and 2021. Across two years, the results showed that the combined use of N and K on superior and inferior spikelets significantly increased their weight by 1.29 mg and 2.31 mg, their maximum grain filling rate by 0.24 mg d -1 and 0.07 mg d -1 , and their average grain filling rate by 0.21 mg d -1 and 0.06 mg d -1 , respectively, in comparison with the control (N0K0) treatment. Likewise, K supply increased the average contribution rate of superior and inferior spikelets to yield by 9.1% and 10.0%, respectively. Correlation analysis showed that the grain filling rate of superior and inferior spikelets was an important factor in determining the spikelet weight, whereas the grain filling time was not. We also found that the 1,000-grain weight mainly increased after increasing the spikelets' maximum grain filling rate and average grain filling rate. Collectively, these results illustrate that the combined use of N and K can optimize the asynchronous filling of superior and inferior spikelets and, in particular, enhance inferior spikelet weight with higher rice yield., Competing Interests: The authors declare there are no competing interests., (©2022 Xu et al.)

Introduction: Asthma is a common respiratory disease. Theophylline combined with inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) is a promising therapy for asthma. This study explored the therapeutic effects of ICS combined with theophylline on moderate and severe asthma patients and T lymphocyte subsets (CD3 + CD8 + T cells) in peripheral blood., Material and Methods: A total of 202 moderate and severe asthma patients were selected, with 101 treated with theophylline combined with ICS and 101 treated with ICS alone as controls. Lung function [forced expiratory volume within 1 second (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), and peak expiratory flow (PEF)] were tested using a spirometer. Asthma symptom control was evaluated by asthma control tests (ACT). The life quality was evaluated using the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ). The number and percentage of CD3 + T, CD3 + CD4 + T and CD3 + CD8 + T cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells were assessed by flow cytometry. The correlation between CD3 + CD8 + T cells and lung function and asthma control of patients after combination therapy was analyzed by Pearson correlation analysis., Results: Compared with moderate and severe patients treated with ICS alone, theophylline improved the efficacy of ICS. Theophylline combined with ICS decreased IL-4 and IL-6 levels, and CD3 + T and CD3 + CD8 + T cell number and percentage. After combined treatment, CD3 + CD8 + T cells in peripheral blood of patients were positively correlated with lung function and negatively correlated with asthma control., Conclusions: The additional use of theophylline improved the efficacy of corticosteroids in asthma patient treatment and reduced inflammation level and CD3 + T and CD3 + CD8 + T cell contents in peripheral blood., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Termedia.)

This current phase II clinical trial was to compare the effect and safety of adamgammadex, a new cyclodextrin-based selective relaxant binding agent, with sugammadex to reverse rocuronium-induced neuromuscular block. Patients were randomised to receive adamgammadex (4 or 6 mg kg -1 ) or sugammadex (2 mg kg -1 , as a positive control group) at the reappearance of the second twitch (T 2 ) in response to TOF stimulation. The standard safety data were collected. The 4 mg kg -1 ( n = 16) and 6 mg kg -1 ( n = 20) adamgammadex- and 2 mg kg -1 ( n = 20) sugammadex-induced recovery time of TOF ratio to 0.9 were 2.3, 1.6, and 1.5 min, respectively ( p = 0.49). The 4 mg kg -1 adamgammadex-induced median recovery time was longer than that of 2 mg kg -1 sugammadex ( p = 0.01), and there was no difference between the 6 mg kg -1 adamgammadex group and 2 mg kg -1 sugammadex group ( p = 0.32). Then, the number of patients who experienced adverse events (AEs) was 6, 11, and 14 for adamgammadex at 4, 6 mg kg -1 and sugammadex at 2 mg kg -1 , respectively. The treatment emergent AEs that occurred more than twice were detailed as follows: incision site pain, hypotension, emesis, fever, throat pain, blood bilirubin increase, abnormal T-wave of ECG, dizziness, incision site swelling, postoperative fever, expectoration, and nausea. For drug-related AEs, the increased urine acetone bodies and first-degree atrioventricular block were observed in two patients from sugammadex group. Then, the previously reported AEs were not observed in this study, including anaphylaxis, haemorrhage, recurarization, abnormal basic vital signs, or lengthened QRS intervals and QT intervals. Adamgammadex was found to be effective for reversal of rocuronium-induced neuromuscular block as sugammadex.

Background: Reperfusion of ischemic tissue has adverse impact on the myocardium. Dexmedetomidine (Dex) is a α2-adrenergic receptor (α2-AR) agonist with sedative and analgesic effects. Macrophage migration inhibition factor (MIF) is a pressure-regulating cytokine and is responsible for inflammatory and immune diseases. This study aims to reveal the consequences of Dex on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) in young mice., Methods: Fifty mice were raised and examined. At the end of the experiment, all mice were euthanized. The anterior descending department of the left coronary artery in mice was under ischemia for 60 min, then the ligation line was released and reperfused for 120 min to establish the IRI model. Mice were randomly divided into Sham, control, treatment using 4,5-dihydro-3-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-5-isoxazoleacetic acid (ISO-1), Dex treatment, and Dex combined ISO-1 treatment groups. Interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and ATP levels were recorded. The expressions of MIF, P-adenosine monophosphate-activated kinase α (AMPKα), glucose transporter (GLUT)4, Bax and Bcl-2 were detected by Western Blot (WB). Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining was used to study cell morphology. Apoptosis was detected by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labelling (TUNEL) assay. Echocardiography was carried out at the end of reperfusion, and the infarct size was calculated by Electron microscopy., Results: I/R + Dex group showed significantly increased IL-6 and TNF-α levels and reduced myocardial cell necrosis and apoptosis. H&E staining showed alleviated myocardial disorder, myocardial cell swelling, myocardial fiber fracture, and inflammatory cell infiltration in I/R + Dex group. Myocardial cell necrosis and apoptosis were significantly reduced in I/R + Dex group. ATP level in myocardial tissue of mice in I/R group was substantially decreased, while that in Dex group was increased. WB results showed that MIF, P-AMPK α, GLUT4 and Bcl-2 levels were increased and Bax levels were decreased in I/R + Dex group., Conclusion: Dex may exert myocardial protection in young mice through MIF/AMPK/GLUT4 axis., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Cognitive dysfunction is a common disease in aging population. This study aims to compare the influence of different degrees of anemia on the cognitive function of patients undergo hysteromyoma surgery. Sixty-one patients aged 18-60 years who underwent uterine fibroid surgery in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College from March 2019 to December 2020 were selected for this study. Patients were divided into three groups: group normal (Group N, patients have no anemia), group of mild anemia (Group Mi, patients have mild anemia) and group of moderate anemia (Group Mo, patients had moderate anemia). Combined spinal and epidural anesthesia were administered. Cognitive function tests were performed 1 day before the surgery and repeated at the 5th and 30th days after surgery. Peripheral venous blood samples from patients were collected before the surgery, right after surgery and at the 24th and 72nd hours after surgery. The contents of S-100β, IL-6, TNF-α and IL-1β in serum samples were determined by ELISA. It was found that there were no significant differences in general characteristics of patients among Group N, Group Mi and Group Mo ( p > 0.05). Nine patients developed postoperative cognitive dysfunction after surgery, and the incidence was 14.75% (9/61). The incidence of postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) was 40% in Group Mo, which was higher than that in Group N and Group Mi. The difference was statistically significant ( p < 0.05). Inflammatory factors in patients with POCD were higher in post-surgery than before-surgery ( p < 0.05), while there was no statistical significance in the difference of inflammatory factors of patients without POCD before and after surgery ( p > 0.05). Taken together, this study suggested that moderate anemia could be a risk factor of POCD in patients undergoing hysteromyoma surgeries. This study will help surgeons developing measures for preventing the occurrence of POCD., 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 © 2021 You, Chen, Xu, Huang, Wu and Wu.)

Aim: This study is to establish a model for patients undergoing cardiac surgery under cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) to predict the length of intensive care., Methods: This is a single center retrospective study. A total of 265 patients admitted to the ICU after CPB from 2016 to 2017 were enrolled in the study. Preoperative indicators, intraoperative parameters, and postoperative data were collected. Each patient was scored for EuroSCORE II before surgery. According to the length of intensive care, all patients were divided into two groups: short stay (< 72 h) and long stay (≥ 72 h). A binary logistic regression analysis was performed to establish a regression model to evaluate the predictive performance of the indicators and the EuroSCORE II scoring system on the length of the intensive care., Results: Both troponin I and EuroSCORE II could predict the length of intensive care of patients undergoing cardiac surgery under CPB. After combing the two factors, the prediction efficiency was higher. Comparing the prediction results with the actual data, it showed that the method had high overall accuracy., Conclusions: The predictive model based on cTnI and EuroSCORE II can accurately predict the length of intensive care of patients undergoing cardiac surgery under CPB. This predictive model may help to improve ICU resource management.

Although considerable attention has been paid to the application of leadership in virtual communities, the field of live streaming has not been involved. This exploratory study aimed to explore how different broadcaster leadership traits (charismatic, authoritarian, and servant) influence audiences' loyalty (cognitive and conative). And audience self-construal was chosen as a key moderator. The top 15 broadcasters from the regional rankings were selected from each of the two popular live streaming platforms, Douyu and YouTube, for the study. And we used snowball sampling with a link to an online questionnaire as a recruitment procedure. 310 audiences with live streaming experience from the Chinese Mainland and Taiwan participated. Hierarchical linear modeling was adopted for the analysis. This study found that broadcasters with servant and charismatic leadership traits positively affected cognitive loyalty. Broadcasters with servant leadership traits also had a positive effect on conative loyalty. Additionally, independent self-construal negatively moderated the relationship between servant leadership and cognitive loyalty. Independent self-construal positively moderated the relationship between authoritarian leadership and conative loyalty. Furthermore, interdependent self-construal negatively moderated the relationship between charismatic leadership and conative loyalty. Interdependent self-construal positively moderated the relationship between authoritarian leadership and conative loyalty. These conclusions extend the understanding of broadcasters' traits and audiences' psychology concerning the booming phenomenon of live streaming and can help platform managers motivate audiences' loyalty on these platforms., 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 © 2021 Huang, Lee, Chang, Ma and Wang.)

Purpose: The Shenzhen ageing-related disorder cohort was designed to detect the associations of lifestyle, environmental and genetic factors with major ageing-related disorders, especially neurological and mental disorders., Participants: The cohort was a community-dwelling prospective study of 9411 elderly adults aged 60 to 92 years from 51 community health service centres in Luohu district of Shenzhen, China. The baseline data were collected between 2017 and 2018, including demographics and socioeconomics, lifestyles, medical history, family history of major non-communicable chronic disease, environmental exposures, clinical analysis of blood and urine, clinical imaging measurements, anthropometric measures and neurological function and mental health assessments. Blood and urinary samples were collected at baseline. All participants will be followed for physiological and psychological disorders and updated lifestyle and environmental exposures every 5 years., Findings to Date: The mean age of the participants was 67.73 years at baseline, and 42.74% were males. The prevalences of individuals with unhealthy conditions were as follows: overweight/obesity (54.38%), hypertension (58.24%), diabetes mellitus (22.30%), dyslipidaemia (75.69%), chronic bronchitis (1.45%), myocardial infarction (0.55%), coronary heart disease (5.69%), stroke (1.10%), cancer (2.18%), arthritis (5.04%), Alzheimer's disease (0.18%), Parkinson's disease (0.23%), brain injury (5.75%), cognitive impairment (5.39%) and depression status (3.28%). The mean scores for the Lawton-Brody Activities of Daily Living Scale and the Social Support Rate Scale were 14.15 and 39.54, respectively., Future Plans: 2000 new entrants from Luohu district will be recruited every year until 2028. The data collection is expected to be ended at the end of 2030. The data will be used to assess the causality of ageing-related disorders, especially neurological and mental disorders through integrating environmental, genetic and lifestyle factors. The data sets generated and/or analysed during the current study are not publicly available at this stage, but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Although polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and phthalates separately related to oxidative DNA damage have been reported, the joint effect of them on oxidative DNA damage need to be evaluated., Methods: In this pilot study, 106 participants were recruited from the community-dwelling residents (n=1240) of Wuhan city, China. Each individual provided three continuous days of spot urine samples for measuring the urinary monohydroxylated PAHs (OH-PAHs), phthalates metabolites and 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) levels in the two seasons. Linear mixed effect model and Bayesian Kernel Machine Regression (BKMR) were used to analyze joint effect of urinary PAHs and phthalates metabolites on urinary 8-OHdG levels. We measured cellular and mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS), malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) levels as well as IL-6 and IL-8 secretions by the corresponding commercial kits in HepG2 cells treated with di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP, 62.5, 125.00, 250.00, 500.00 or 1000.00μM) alone, benzo[a]pyrene (BaP, 50.00μM) alone or both DEHP and BaP., Results: Linear mixed effect model showed that each of urinary PAHs metabolite was positively associated with urinary 8-OHdG levels; urinary level of mono (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate or monoisononyl phthalate was positively associated with urinary 8-OHdG levels; BKMR model indicated that a positive association of eight OH-PAHs with urinary 8-OHdG levels, nine urinary phthalates metabolites enhanced the association. We found that DEHP at the indicated concentration plus 50.00μM BaP increased cellular and mitochondrial ROS levels, IL-6 and IL-8 secretions at 24 and 48h as well as MDA levels and GSH-Px activities at 48h, compared to the solvent control., Conclusions: Exposure to certain dose phthalates may attenuate the positive association of PAHs exposure with oxidative DNA damage in the body. DEHP at the certain concentrations enhanced BaP-induced mitochondrial ROS, pro-inflammatory response and the activation of the antioxidant defense system in HepG2 cells., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Since the surface immunogenic protein (Sip) of group B streptococcus was identified, it's immunogenicity and its potential as a universal vaccine candidate has been evaluated extensively. We developed recombinant Sip protein and used it for monoclonal antibody generation to develop immunochromatographic test kit for GBS detection. The test of bacteria and culture media revealed the correlation between Sip protein expression and diagnosis discrepancy, which has never been reported. Furthermore, not only the surface accessibility of the Sip protein may vary from strains or serotypes; the secretion level of Sip protein may also vary.

The universal mantra, "The customer is our king," has led to considerable focus on the servant-anthropomorphized brand. However, does your "king" want to be served as a "king"? This research aims to examine how anthropomorphic brand role, self-construals and consumer responses to brands interact. In this study, four sequential experiments show that consumers with an interdependent self-construal are likely to respond more favorably toward anthropomorphic brands playing superior 'master' roles than toward those playing subordinate 'servant' roles. Here we distinguish between two types of superior role (master and mentor) based on behavior and communications. We also explore the underlying psychological mechanism of followership, as demonstrated through blind followership of someone in a master role and rational followership of someone in a mentor role. Additionally, when a third-party (recipient) is involved in the relationship between a consumer and a brand, the giver-recipient relationship moderates the relationship between an anthropomorphised brand role and self-construals.

Background: Fecal occult bloodtest (FOBT) plays an important role in the diagnosis of gastrointestinal diseases. The sensitivities of current FOBT methods are still not satisfactory. The aim of this study is to develop a combined human transferrin (HTf)-hemoglobin (HHb) lateral flow assay (LFA) for accurate and rapid FOBT., Methods: Monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) targeting HTf were developed by conventional methods and paired using LFA strips. The best HTf MAb pair was chosen according to the overall performance on testing limit and specificity. Meanwhile, HHb LFA strips were prepared using previously developed HHb MAbs. The testing limit and specificity were characterized. Based on the selected HTf MAb pair and the verified HHb MAb pair, combined HTf-HHb strips were developed. The combined HTf-HHb strips were used for FOBT of 400 human fecal samples, including 200 gastrointestinal bleeding specimens and 200 healthy subjects. For comparison, the homemade individual HTf and HHb strips, as well as three kinds of commercial FOBT strips, were also used for the FOBT., Results: Two MAb pairs targeting HTf were developed for LFA. Two types of HTf strips were prepared accordingly. The type I was chosen due to its lower detection limit. Using the type I HTf MAb pair and the verified HHb- MAb pair, the combined HTf-HHb strips could detect the HTf at concentrations between 1 ng/mL and 1 x 106 ng/mL and the HHb between 10 ng/mL and 2.5 x 106 ng/mL. Compared to individual HTf and HHb strips and three kinds of commercial strips, the combined strips showed the highest diagnostic sensitivity in FOBT (96.0%). The specificity was a satisfactory 99%., Conclusions: Our combined HTf-HHb test strips are a very promising product for accurate and rapid FOBT.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is widely present in brackish water all over the world, causing infections in certain aquatic animals. It is also a foodborne pathogen that causes diarrhea in humans. The aim of this study is to develop an immunochromatographic lateral flow assay (LFA) for rapid detection of V. parahaemolyticus in both aquatic products and human feces of diarrheal patients. Two monoclonal antibody (MAb) pairs, GA1a-IC9 and IC9-KB4c, were developed and proven to be highly specific and sensitive to V. parahaemolyticus. Based on the two MAb pairs, two types of LFA strips were prepared. Their testing limits for V. parahaemolyticus culture were both 1.2×10 3 CFU/ml. The diagnostic sensitivities and specificities were both 100% for the 32 tested microbial species, including 6 Vibrio species. Subsequently, the LFA strips were used to test Whiteleg shrimps and human feces. The type II strip showed a higher diagnostic sensitivity. Its sensitivity and specificity for hepatopancreas and fecal samples from 13 Whiteleg shrimps and fecal samples from 146 human diarrheal patients were all 100%. In conclusion, our homemade type II LFA is a very promising testing device for rapid and convenient detection of V. parahaemolyticus infection not only in aquatic animals, but also in human diarrheal patients. This sensitive immunochromtographic LFA allows rapid detection of V. parahaemolyticus without requirement of culture enrichment., (Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Enteric redmouth disease (ERM), caused by Yersinia ruckeri, is among the most important infectious diseases in rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss aquaculture in Europe. Our aim was to analyse the persistence of Y. ruckeri strains in trout farms in northwest Germany and their dissemination between farms based on a detailed molecular and phenotypical characterisation scheme. The data on identification and characterisation of Y. ruckeri strains and examining the distribution of these strains in the field could serve as a basis for preventive disease monitoring plans. During the observation period from June 2011 until June 2012, we collected 48 Y. ruckeri isolates from 12 different rainbow trout hatcheries. In total, 44 (91.7%) of the isolates were non-motile; in particular, all isolates recovered during the sampling period in winter and early spring were non-motile. In several trout farms, characteristic farm-specific Y. ruckeri isolates from particular typing groups were isolated throughout the year, while in other farms, which had a trading relationship between each other, ERM outbreaks were caused by Y. ruckeri from the same typing group. Our data indicate that in some farms, the causative Y. ruckeri strains persisted in the respective trout farm. The presence of Y. ruckeri from the same typing group in farms with a trading relationship indicates a dissemination of the infection between the farms.

Enteric red-mouth disease, caused by Yersinia ruckeri, is an important disease in rainbow trout aquaculture. Antimicrobial agents are frequently used in aquaculture, thereby causing a selective pressure on bacteria from aquatic organisms under which they may develop resistance to antimicrobial agents. In this study, the distribution of minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of antimicrobial agents for 83 clinical and non-clinical epidemiologically unrelated Y. ruckeri isolates from north west Germany was determined. Antimicrobial susceptibility was conducted by broth microdilution at 22 ± 2°C for 24, 28 and 48 h. Incubation for 24h at 22 ± 2°C appeared to be suitable for susceptibility testing of Y. ruckeri. In contrast to other antimicrobial agents tested, enrofloxacin and nalidixic acid showed a bimodal distribution of MICs, with one subpopulation showing lower MICs for enrofloxacin (0.008-0.015 μg/mL) and nalidixic acid (0.25-0.5 μg/mL) and another subpopulation exhibiting elevated MICs of 0.06-0.25 and 8-64 μg/mL, respectively. Isolates showing elevated MICs revealed single amino acid substitutions in the quinolone resistance-determining region (QRDR) of the GyrA protein at positions 83 (Ser83-Arg or -Ile) or 87 (Asn87-Tyr), which raised the MIC values 8- to 32-fold for enrofloxacin or 32- to 128-fold for nalidixic acid. An isolate showing elevated MICs for sulfonamides and trimethoprim harbored a ∼ 8.9 kb plasmid, which carried the genes sul2, strB and a dfrA14 gene cassette integrated into the strA gene. These observations showed that Y. ruckeri isolates were able to develop mutations that reduce their susceptibility to (fluoro)quinolones and to acquire plasmid-borne resistance genes., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The aim of this study was to investigate differences in presence and expression of virulence factors between biotype 1 and 2 strains of 82 Yersinia (Y.) ruckeri isolates, collected from North West Germany during the period of 2004-2012, and to analyze the cytotoxicity of these strains to different fish cell lines. The common virulence factor genes, such as yhlA and yhlB encoding for hemolysin YhlA, rucC and rupG encoding for ruckerbactin, yrp1 and yrpDEF for ABC exporter protein system, and two flagellar genes, including flgA for flagellar secretion chaperones and flhA for flagellar secretion apparatus, were found present in both biotype 1 and 2 isolates of Y. ruckeri collected from North West Germany using multiplex PCR. mRNA expression of these genes was compared between the two biotypes of Y. ruckeri. There was no significant diversity (p > 0.05) in the expression of these genes between biotype 1 and 2 strains. 27 Y. ruckeri isolates from different typing groups were analysed in cytotoxicity tests to common carp brain (CCB), epithelioma papulosum cyprini (EPC), fathead minnow epithelial (FHM) and rainbow trout gonad-2 (RTG-2) cells, respectively. In vitro cytotoxicity of the isolates to CCB, EPC and FHM was higher than that to RTG-2 (p < 0.05). At 15 degrees C the maximum cytotoxicity to FHM and EPC was higher in non-motile strains than in motile stains after an incubation of 24 h (p < 0.05), however, after 48 h, there was no significant difference (p > 0.05) of cytotoxicity between those two biotypes. Our results suggest that biotype 2 strains from North West Germany are homogenous with biotype 1 strains on the basis of genetic virulence factor genes. At lower temperature non-motile Y. ruckeri isolates were found more active than motile strains, which could explain why in winter non-motile strains were found more often responsible for ERM outbreaks than motile strains.

Enteric Redmouth Disease (ERM), caused by Yersinia (Y.) ruckeri is one of the most important diseases in salmonid aquaculture. Outbreaks of ERM were controlled by vaccines directed against motile strains of the bacterium, until recently nonmotile vaccine-resistant strains evolved and caused severe outbreaks. Non-motile isolates were found widespread in aquaculture populations in north-western Germany. In the present study, 82 Y. ruckeri isolates were isolated from trout hatcheries in North Rhine Westfalia, Lower Saxony and Hessen and only 20% of them were motile. In order to further characterise the Y. ruckeri isolates from fish aquaculture populations in north-western Germany, the fatty acid compositions of 82 Y. ruckeri field isolates from this area and of the Y. ruckeri reference strain DSM 18506 were analysed by gas chromatography. All Y. ruckeri isolates exhibited 15 major fatty acids, including 12:0, 13:0, 13.957 (equivalent chain length, ECL unknown), 14:0, 14.502 (ECL unknown), 15:0, 16:1omega5c, 16:0, 17:1omega8c, 17:0 CYCLO, 17:0, 16:1 2OH, 18:1omega9c, 18:1omega7c and 18:0. From a dendrogram, all isolates were close to one another, clustering together; while slight differences were detected among the isolates and the reference strain DSM 18506. Compared to their epidemiological and biochemical characteristics, there was no relationship found between the fatty acid profiles, API 20E profiles, motility and geographic distribution. Our results show that the fatty acid composition of Y. ruckeri isolates from north-western Germany is highly homogenous.

Background: Enteric Redmouth Disease (ERM), caused by Yersinia ruckeri, is one of the most important infectious diseases in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) aquaculture in Europe. More recently, non-motile vaccine resistant isolates appear to have evolved and are causing disease problems throughout Europe, including Germany. The aim of this study was to analyse the variation of biochemical and molecular characteristics of Y. ruckeri isolates collected in north west Germany as a basis for strain differentiation. The isolates originated mainly from rainbow trout and were characterised by biochemical profiling, 16S rDNA sequencing, repetitive sequence-based PCRs, including (GTG)5-PCR, BOX-PCR, ERIC-PCR and REP-PCR, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE)., Results: In total, 83 isolates were characterised, including 48 isolates collected during a field study in north west Germany. All isolates were confirmed as Y. ruckeri by the API 20E system. Five isolates were additionally confirmed as Y. ruckeri by Y. ruckeri-specific PCR and 16S rDNA sequencing. Only 17 isolates hydrolyzed Tween 80/20. Sixty-six isolates (79.5%) were non-motile. Two different patterns were obtained by REP-PCR, five patterns by ERIC-PCR, four patterns by (GTG)5-PCR and three patterns by BOX-PCR. NotI-directed PFGE resulted in 17 patterns that differed from each other by 25-29 fragments. Isolates from the field study clustered together as PFGE type C. According to the results of API 20E, repetitive sequence-based PCRs and PFGE, these isolates could be subdivided into 27 different groups., Conclusions: The detailed molecular and phenotypic characterisation scheme developed in this study could be used to help trace the dissemination of Y. ruckeri isolates, and thus may represent part of improved disease monitoring plans in the future.

Plant pathogens secrete effector proteins to suppress plant immunity. However, the mechanism by which oomycete pathogens deliver effector proteins during plant infection remains unknown. In this report, we characterized a Phytophthora sojae vps1 gene. This gene encodes a homolog of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae vacuolar protein sorting gene vps1 that mediates budding of clathrin-coated vesicles from the late Golgi, which are diverted from the general secretory pathway to the vacuole. PsVPS1-silenced mutants were generated using polyethylene glycol-mediated protoplast stable transformation and were viable but had reduced extracellular protein activity. The PsVPS1-silenced mutants showed impaired hyphal growth, and the shapes of the vacuoles were highly fragmented. Silencing of PsVPS1 affected cyst germination as well as the polarized growth of germinated cysts. Silenced mutants showed impaired invasion of susceptible soybean plants regardless of wounding. These results suggest that PsVPS1 is involved in vacuole morphology and cyst development. Moreover, it is essential for the virulence of P. sojae and extracellular protein secretion.

Multilayered Ge nanocrystals embedded in Si and Ge oxide films have been fabricated on Si substrate by a (SiO(2)+Ge)/(SiO(2)+GeO(2)) superlattice approach, using an rf magnetron sputtering technique with a Ge+SiO(2) composite target and subsequent thermal annealing in N(2) ambient at 750 °C for 5 min. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements indicated the formation of Ge nanocrystals with an average size estimated to be 9.8 nm. Raman scattering spectra showed a peak of the Ge-Ge vibrational mode shifted downwards to 298.8 cm(-1), which was caused by quantum confinement of phonons in the Ge nanocrystals. X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) analysis demonstrated that the Ge chemical state is mainly Ge(0) in the (SiO(2)+Ge) layer and Ge(4+) in the (SiO(2)+GeO(2)) layer in the superlattice structure. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed that Ge nanocrystals were confined in (SiO(2)+Ge) layers, and had good crystallinity. This superlattice approach significantly improved both the size uniformity of Ge nanocrystals and their uniformity of spacing on the 'Z' growth direction compared with the conventional Ge-ncs fabrication method using a single and thick SiO(2) matrix film.