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Sulfated polysaccharides from sea cucumber Stichopus japonicus (SCSPsj) and Lactobacillus gasseri synergistically ameliorate the overweight in gut microbiota-altered mice through improving gut microbiota dysbiosis and metabolic disorders.

(+)-Valencene is a bioactive sesquiterpene that can be used for flavoring and fragrances, and microbial production provides an alternative sustainable access. However, the complexity of cellular metabolism makes it challenging for its high-level production. Here, we report the global rewiring cellular metabolism for

BACKGROUND: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) might be a feasible treatment option for more patients with bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) stenosis. However, long-term follow-up data in this population are scarce. AIMS: The aim of this study was to evaluate three-year outcomes after TAVI in patients with BAV. METHODS: A total of 246 consecutive patients who underwent TAVI at a single centre in China between March 2013 and February 2018 were enrolled in this study. Clinical outcomes, health status and echocardiography were followed and recorded for three years. RESULTS: Among 109 (44.3%) BAV patients, 61.5% were Type 0 and 36.7% were Type 1 BAV patients. BAV patients were younger (75 vs 77 years, p=0.041) and had a lower Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) score (5.09 vs 6.00, p=0.026) compared to tricuspid aortic valve (TAV) patients. There were no differences in three-year survival rates between bicuspid and tricuspid patients (87.1% vs 79.5%, log-rank p=0.126). Multivariate Cox regression analysis adjusting for confounding factors revealed a similar risk of all-cause mortality in the BAV population (hazard ratio [HR] 0.86, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.44-1.70, p=0.666). Except for the rate of permanent pacemaker implantation that was lower in BAV patients (11.9% vs 21.9%, p=0.041), the incidence of other clinical adverse events was comparable between the two groups. Both BAV and TAV patients showed an obvious improvement in valve haemodynamics, which was sustained for three years. In addition, similar left ventricular reverse remodelling was found during follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: BAV patients showed similar satisfactory three-year clinical outcomes, persistent valve haemodynamics improvement, and obvious cardiac reverse remodelling after TAVI compared to TAV patients.

Transcatheter mitral valve intervention treatment is a promising alternative therapy for patients with severe mitral regurgitation (MR). This is a multicenter, prospective, first-in-human study of transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (TEER) using a novel device for severe MR. Safety and efficacy were assessed immediately after the procedure and at 30-day follow-up. Twenty-three patients (age 70.0 ± 5.2 years) who were at high/prohibitive surgical risk underwent successful procedures without major periprocedural complications. All patients achieved residual MR ≤2+ at discharge, with 73.9% with 1+ residual MR. The left ventricular end-systolic diameter improved from 4.1 cm at baseline to 3.4 cm at 30-day follow-up. New York Heart Association functional class I/II after TEER was achieved in 87% of patients. This study demonstrated that TEER with the device was feasible and safe for the treatment of patients with severe MR. (Dragonfly-M Transcatheter Mitral Valve Repair System Early Feasibility Study; NCT04528576).

Sea cucumber sulfated polysaccharides (SCSPsj) enhance the relative abundance of Lactobacillus by promoting biofilm formation and mucus binding, and further regulate the metabolism in a humanized microbiota mice model.

It has been proposed that the proportions of the human face are crucial for facial aesthetics. If this is the case, we should describe the relationship among proportions of face components quantitatively. This study aims to develop a mathematical model of facial proportions to provide a quantitative description of facial attractiveness. Furthermore, we expect that plastic surgeons can use models in clinical work to enhance communication efficiency between doctors and patients. Face alignment technique was used to analyse 5500 frontal faces with diverse properties (male/female, Asian/Caucasian, ages) to obtain the ratios among the nose length ($ {N}_{L} $), the nasal base width ($ N $), and the inner canthus width ($ {E}_{I} $). A mathematical model ($ {N}_{L}^{2} = a{E}_{I}\mathrm{*}{N}_{L}+b{E}_{I}\mathrm{*}N+cN\mathrm{*}{N}_{L} $) was developed to describe the relationship among these proportions. To validate the effectiveness of this approach, we simulated the post-operative photos using Adobe Photoshop. Our findings show that the ratio of nose length to nose width, the ratio of inner canthus width to nose length and the ratio of inner canthus to nose width play a significant role in determining facial attractiveness. These results provide a possible strategy to quantitatively describe the relationship among human face proportions.

Parallel arrays with coprime subarrays have shown its potential advantages for two dimensional direction of arrival (DOA) estimation. In this paper, by introducing two flexible coprime factors to enlarge the inter-element spacing of parallel uniform subarrays, we propose a generalized parallel coprime array (GPCA) geometry. The proposed geometry enjoys flexible array layouts by the coprime factors and enables to extend the array aperture to achieve great improvement of estimation performance. Meanwhile, we verify that GPCA always can obtain M2 degrees of freedom (DOFs) in co-array domain via 2M sensors after optimization, which outperforms sparse parallel array geometries, such as parallel coprime array (PCA) and parallel augmented coprime array (PACA), and is the same as parallel nested array (PNA) with extended aperture. The superiority of GPCA geometry has been proved by numerical simulations with sparse representation methods.

Background The kidney function change after Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) in diabetes and/or hypertension patients is currently unknown. Methods A total of 242 severe Aortic Stenosis patients with diabetes mellitus and/or hypertension who underwent TAVR were analyzed. Patients were categorized into 3 groups based on the percent change [(discharge eGFR – baseline eGFR) x 100/baseline eGFR] in eGFR: improved ≥ 10%, no change, and declined ≥ 10%. Results Of these patients, 93 (38.4%) had an improvement in eGFR ≥ 10%, 117 (48.3%) had no changes, and 32 (13.2%) had a decline in eGFR of more than 10%. Patients with unchanged kidney function may be with lower STS scores (5.09 [3.58–8.34] % vs. 7.04 [4.52–9.91] % vs. 7.41 [3.52–10.97] %, p = 0.003), and lower perivascular disease (14.5% vs. 26.9% vs. 40.6%, p = 0.003) when compared with improved and declined kidney function patients, respectively. Patients with improved kidney function had lower eGFR (45.0 [33.9–60.3] mL/min/1.73 m2 vs. 57.4 [43.4–70.7] mL/min/1.73 m2 vs. 56.6 [44.2–76.8] mL/min/1.73 m2, p = 0.000), and lower LVEF (55.1 [40.9–62.0] % vs. 60.4 [53.4–66.1] % vs. 59.9 [52.9–67.8] %, p = 0.002) than the unchanged or declined group, respectively. Moreover, patients with worsening kidney function had higher rate of in-hospital (12.5% vs. 1.7% vs. 0%, p = 0.002) and 30-day (15.6% vs. 1.7% vs. 0%, p = 0.000) mortality. Independent predictors of eGFR changes were STS scores, LVEF, baseline eGFR, and unplanned cardiopulmonary bypass. Conclusions Nearly 40% of diabetic and/or hypertensive patients experience an intermediate improvement after TAVR. Patients with declining renal function suffer more terrible outcomes in mortality.

In this study, three Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, namely 3-14-LJ, M22, and MB1, with high acetate esterase activity, acid, salt, and high-temperature tolerance were selected from 708 strains isolated from fermented food. Then, L. plantarum strains MB1, M22, and 3-14-LJ were inoculated at 107 CFU/mL in the model and 107 CFU/g in actual Suanzhayu systems, and the effects during fermentation on the physicochemical properties, amino acid, and volatile substance were investigated. The results showed that the inoculated group had a faster pH decrease, lower protein content, higher TCA-soluble peptides, and total amino acid contents than the control group in both systems (p < 0.05). Inoculation was also found to increase the production of volatile compounds, particularly esters, improve the sour taste, and decrease the bitterness of the product (p < 0.05). L. plantarum M22 was more effective than the other two strains in stimulating the production of isoamyl acetate, ethyl hexanoate, and ethyl octanoate. However, differences were discovered between the strains as well as between the model and the actual systems. Overall, the isolated strains, particularly L. plantarum M22, have good fermentation characteristics and have the potential to become excellent Suanzhayu fermenters in the future.

Background and purposeFutile recanalization occurs in a significant proportion of patients with basilar artery occlusion (BAO) after endovascular thrombectomy (EVT). Therefore, our goal was to develop a visualized nomogram model to early identify patients with BAO who would be at high risk of futile recanalization, more importantly, to aid neurologists in selecting the most appropriate candidates for EVT.MethodsPatients with BAO with EVT and the Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction score of ≥2b were included in the National Advanced Stroke Center of Nanjing First Hospital (China) from October 2016 to June 2021. The exclusion criteria were lacking the 3-month Modified Rankin Scale (mRS), age 2, and unavailable baseline CT imaging. Potential predictors were selected for the construction of the nomogram model and the predictive and calibration capabilities of the model were assessed.ResultsA total of 84 patients with BAO were finally enrolled in this study, and patients with futile recanalization accounted for 50.0% (42). The area under the curve (AUC) of the nomogram model was 0.866 (95% CI, 0.786–0.946). The mean squared error, an indicator of the calibration ability of our prediction model, was 0.025. A web-based nomogram model for broader and easier access by clinicians is available online at https://trend.shinyapps.io/DynNomapp/.ConclusionWe constructed a visualized nomogram model to accurately and online predict the risk of futile recanalization for patients with BAO, as well as assist in the selection of appropriate candidates for EVT.

In this study, three

NLRP3 inflammasome activation is implicated in irradiation-induced cognitive dysfunction. Alternate-day fasting (ADF) has been demonstrated to improve neuroinflammation as a non-pharmacological intervention. However, the exact mechanism and the anti-inflammatory effect in irradiation-induced cognitive dysfunction still need further in-depth study. The present study examined the effects of eight-week ADF on the cognitive functions of mice as well as inflammasome-mediated hippocampal neuronal loss following irradiation in mouse models of irradiation-induced cognitive deficits using seven-week-old male C57BL/6J mice. The behavioral results of novel place recognition and object recognition tasks revealed that ADF ameliorated cognitive functions in irradiation-induced cognitive dysfunction mice. ADF inhibited the expression of components of the NLRP3 inflammasome (NLRP3, ASC, and Cl.caspase-1), the downstream inflammatory factor (IL-1β and IL-18), and apoptosis-related proteins (caspase-3) via western blotting. Furthermore, an increased number of neurons and activated astrocytes were observed in the hippocampus using immunohistochemistry and Sholl analysis, which was jointly confirmed by western blotting. According to our study, this is the first time we found that ADF improved cognitive dysfunction induced by irradiation, and the anti-inflammatory effect of ADF could be due to inhibition in NLRP3-mediated hippocampal neuronal loss by suppressing astrocyte activation.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) equipped with uniform linear array has been applied to multiple emitters localization. Meanwhile, nested linear array enables to enhance localization resolution and achieve under-determined Direction of Arrival (DOA) estimation. In this paper, we propose a new system structure for emitters localization that combines the UAV with nested linear array, which is capable of significantly increasing the positioning accuracy of interested targets. Specifically, a localization scheme is designed to obtain the paired two-dimensional DOA (2D-DOA, i.e. azimuth and elevation angles) estimates of emitters by nested linear array with UAV. Furthermore, we propose an improved DOA estimation algorithm for emitters localization that utilizes Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) method to obtain coarse DOA estimates, subsequently, achieve the fine DOA estimates by sparse representation. The proposed algorithm has lower computational complexity because the coarse DOA estimates enable to shrink the range of over-complete dictionary of sparse representation. In addition, compared to traditional uniform linear array, improved 2D-DOA estimation performance of emitters can be obtained with a nested linear array. Extensive simulation results testify the effectiveness of the proposed method.

A generalised nested array (GNA) configuration with large minimum inter-element spacing is attractive to alleviate mutual coupling. In this study, by decomposing and rearranging the sub-arrays of GNA, the authors propose a new nested array configuration named as widened nested array (WNA). The WNA enables to provide the reduced mutual coupling, enhanced degrees of freedom (DOFs), extended array aperture and improved direction of arrival (DOA) estimation performance compared to GNA. The closed-form expressions for sensor positions of WNA are given and the optimal array configuration for largest DOFs is derived. Meanwhile, the authors propose a partial angular compressed sensing(CS) based DOA estimation algorithm for WNA. Specifically, discrete Fourier transform method is first derived for consecutive DOFs of WNA to obtain initial DOA estimates. Subsequently, the initial estimates are utilised to compress the angular range of overcomplete dictionary of the CS algorithm, which is exploited to obtain the fine DOA estimates. Extensive simulation results testify that the proposed algorithm has the same estimation accuracy as CS algorithm with lower complexity.

A 68-year-old man presented with chest distress recurring for the past 10 years. An echocardiogram demonstrated bicuspid aortic valve malformation with severe aortic stenosis and ventricular septal thickness of 22 mm. The patient underwent successful transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Six months later, he complained of worsening dyspnea and chest distress (New York Heart Association Class III) on exertion. Besides a functional normal AV prosthesis, the echocardiography indicated the left ventricular outflow tract obstruction peak gradient of 122 mmHg at rest. Alcohol septal ablation was performed as the patient was unable to tolerate morrow procedure. His symptoms were relieved immediately after ablation, and no major cardiovascular events were observed during the 20-month follow-up. In conclusion, among patients with concomitant hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy and severe aortic valvular stenosis, consideration for TAVR and alcohol septal ablation should only be made for patients who are at high surgical risk or cannot tolerate thoracotomy.

Background and purposeFutile recanalization occurs when the endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) is a technical success but fails to achieve a favorable outcome. This study aimed to use machine learning (ML) algorithms to develop a pre-EVT model and a post-EVT model to predict the risk of futile recanalization and to provide meaningful insights to assess the prognostic factors associated with futile recanalization.MethodsConsecutive acute ischemic stroke patients with large vessel occlusion (LVO) undergoing EVT at the National Advanced Stroke Center of Nanjing First Hospital (China) between April 2017 and May 2021 were analyzed. The baseline characteristics and peri-interventional characteristics were assessed using four ML algorithms. The predictive performance was evaluated by the area under curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic and calibration curve. In addition, the SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) approach and partial dependence plot were introduced to understand the relative importance and the influence of a single feature.ResultsA total of 312 patients were included in this study. Of the four ML models that include baseline characteristics, the “Early” XGBoost had a better performance {AUC, 0.790 [95% confidence intervals (CI), 0.677–0.903]; Brier, 0.191}. Subsequent inclusion of peri-interventional characteristics into the “Early” XGBoost showed that the “Late” XGBoost performed better [AUC, 0.910 (95% CI, 0.837–0.984); Brier, 0.123]. NIHSS after 24 h, age, groin to recanalization, and the number of passages were the critical prognostic factors associated with futile recanalization, and the SHAP approach shows that NIHSS after 24 h ranks first in relative importance.ConclusionsThe “Early” XGBoost and the “Late” XGBoost allowed us to predict futile recanalization before and after EVT accurately. Our study suggests that including peri-interventional characteristics may lead to superior predictive performance compared to a model based on baseline characteristics only. In addition, NIHSS after 24 h was the most important prognostic factor for futile recanalization.

Background In the recent decades, the development of novel digital health technologies enables doctors to monitor ECG and vital signs remotely. But the data on applying the noninvasive wearable smartwatch on patients with transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) are unknown. Methods and Results We performed a prospective, observational cohort study to evaluate the feasibility of a novel, virtual, and remote health care strategy for patients with TAVR discharged to home with smart wearable devices. A total of 100 consecutive patients with severe aortic stenosis who underwent elective transfemoral TAVR were enrolled and received the Huawei smartwatch at least 1 day before TAVR. Vital signs, including heart rate, rhythm, oxygen saturation, and activity, were continuously recorded. Single‐lead ECG was recorded twice per day in the week following TAVR discharge and at least 2 days a week for the subsequent month after TAVR discharge. A designated heart team member provided remote health care with the data from the smartwatch when the patient had a need. Thirty‐eight cardiac events were reported in 34 patients after discharge, with most of the events (76.0%) detected and confirmed by the smartwatch. Six patients were advised and readmitted to the hospital for arrhythmia events detected by the smartwatch, of whom 4 patients received pacemaker implantation. The remaining 28 (82.4%) patients received telemedicine monitoring instead of face‐to‐face clinical visits, and 3 of them received new medication treatment under the online guidance of doctors. New‐onset left branch bundle block was found in 48 patients, with transient characteristics, and recovered spontaneously in 30 patients, and new‐onset atrial fibrillation was detected in 4 patients. There were no significant differences in the average weekly heart rates or the ratio of abnormal or low oxygen saturation when compared with the baseline. The average daily steps increased over time significantly (baseline, 870±1353 steps; first week, 1986±2406 steps; second week, 2707±2716 steps; third week, 3059±3036 steps; fourth week, 3678±3485 steps, P Conclusions Smartwatches can facilitate remote health care for patients discharged to home after undergoing TAVR and enable a novel remote follow‐up strategy. The majority of cardiac clinical events that occurred within 30‐day follow‐up were detected by the smartwatch, mainly because of the record of conduction abnormality. Registration URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov ; Unique identifier: NCT04454177.

Ethyl carbamate (EC), classified as a Group 2A carcinogen, is most abundant in the fermented foods, such as Cachaca, Shaoxing wine, and Chinese liquor (baijiu). Although biodegradation can reduce its concentration, a high ethanol concentration and acidic environment often limit its degradation. In the present study, a novel ethyl carbamate hydrolase (ECH) with high specificity to EC was isolated from Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, and its enzymatic properties and EC degradability were investigated. ECH was immobilized to resist extreme environmental conditions, and the flavor substance changes were explored by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The specific enzymatic activity of ECH was 68.31 U/mg. Notably, ECH exhibited excellent thermal stability and tolerance to sodium chloride and high ethanol concentration (remaining at 40% activity in 60% (v/v) ethanol, 1 h). The treatment of immobilized ECH for 12 h decreased the EC concentration in liquor by 71.6 μg/L. Furthermore, the immobilized ECH exerted less effect on its activity and on the flavor substances, which could be easily filtrated during industrial production.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae is commonly used as a starter culture for alcoholic beverages but is less applied in meat products. In this study, the effects of S. cerevisiae LXPSC1 on sour meat during fermentation were investigated. It was found that samples inoculated with S. cerevisiae LXPSC1 (Sc group) had better sensory characteristics and higher levels of pH, ethanol, free amino acids (FAAs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The bacterial communities of both groups were dominated by Lactobacillus sakei, Weissella hellenica, and Lactobacillus plantarum, which might play a role in reducing pH and a

Background and Purpose: Treatment for mild stroke remains an open question. We aim to develop a decision support tool based on machine learning (ML) algorithms, called DAMS (Disability After Mild Stroke), to identify mild stroke patients who would be at high risk of post-stroke disability (PSD) if they only received medical therapy and, more importantly, to aid neurologists in making individual clinical decisions in emergency contexts.Methods: Ischemic stroke patients were prospectively recorded in the National Advanced Stroke Center of Nanjing First Hospital (China) between July 2016 and September 2020. The exclusion criteria were patients who received thrombolytic therapy, age 5. The primary outcome was PSD, corresponding to 3-month mRS ≥ 2. We developed five ML models and assessed the area under curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic, calibration curve, and decision curve analysis. The optimal ML model was selected to be DAMS. In addition, SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) approach was introduced to rank the feature importance. Finally, rapid-DAMS (R-DAMS) was constructed for a more urgent situation based on DAMS.Results: A total of 1,905 mild stroke patients were enrolled in this study, and patients with PSD accounted for 23.4% (447). There was no difference in AUCs between the five models (ranged from 0.691 to 0.823). Although there was similar discriminative performance between ML models, the support vector machine model exhibited higher net benefit and better calibration (Brier score, 0.159, calibration slope, 0.935, calibration intercept, 0.035). Therefore, this model was selected for DAMS. In addition, SHAP approach showed that the most crucial feature was NIHSS on admission. Finally, R-DAMS was constructed and there was similar discriminative performance between R-DAMS and DAMS, but the former performed worse on calibration.Conclusions: DAMS and R-DAMS, as prediction-driven decision support tools, were designed to aid clinical decision-making for mild stroke patients in emergency contexts. In addition, even within a narrow range of baseline scores, NIHSS on admission is the strongest feature that contributed to the prediction.

This work investigated the effect of lipase addition on a Chinese traditional fermented fish product, Suanzhayu. The accumulation of lactic acid and the decrease of pH during the fermentation were mainly caused by the metabolism of Lactobacillus. The addition of lipase had little effect on pH and the bacterial community structure but promoted the growth of Proteus. The addition of lipase promotes the formation of volatile compounds, especially aldehydes and esters. The formation of volatile compounds is mainly divided into three stages, and lipase had accelerated the fermentation process. Lactobacillus, Enterococcus and Proteus played an important role not only in inhibition of the growth of Escherichia-Shigella, but also in the formation of flavor. This study provides a rapid fermentation method for the Suanzhayu process.

Biogenic amines (BA) are often present at high concentrations in fermented meat and cause foodborne illness. The aim of this work was to screen amine-degrading starters for Roucha (a fermented meat) to improve product safety and quality. Firstly, Weissella viridescens F2 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum His6 with multi-copper oxidase activity and high degradation rates towards histamine and tyramine were selected as single or mixed starters. Additionally, the effect of starters on bacterial community succession, acid production, BA accumulation, free amino acid profiles, and volatile compound profiles were evaluated during the fermentation of Roucha. Results indicated that all starters could effectively reduce the accumulation of BA in Roucha. At the end of fermentation, Lpb. plantarum His6 as a single starter reduced the histamine level (38.15 %), while mixed starters (Lpb. plantarum His6 + W. viridescens F2) possessed a high tyramine-reduction rate (54.95 %) and total BA-reduction rate (46.64 %). Bacterial succession analysis revealed that starters could help establish the dominance of lactobacilli or Weissella quickly, which contributed to the direct degradation of BA and inhibited the growth of amine-producing bacteria. Furthermore, Lpb. plantarum His6 could promote the accumulation of essential amino acids (leucine, phenylalanine, threonine, isoleucine), sweet and umami amino acids (glycine, threonine, glutamate), and volatile compounds of good odor, indicating that this strain greatly contributed to the development of good taste and aroma characteristics in Roucha. Overall, this work shows that the application of amine-degrading starters is an effective strategy to reduce the BA accumulation and improve the quality of Roucha. Thus, these findings can provide foundations for the industrial production of Roucha.

Membrane fouling and wetting limit the applications of membrane distillation (MD) for wastewater treatment, especially when treating the wastewater with a high concentration of low surface tension substances such as oil and surfactants. In this paper, virgin polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane was modified by polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to enhance anti-wetting ability. Then a thin polydopamine (PDA) layer was coated as a reaction platform for further modification. Polyethyleneimine (PEI) was cross-linked with PDA to form a uniform and stable layer, through hydrogen bonds and electrostatic interaction to immobilize hydrophilic MXene, which formed a Janus MXene-PVDF membrane. The MXene layer was the key for superoleophobicity and high liquid entry pressure (LEP) of membrane, capable of mitigating membrane fouling and wetting when dealing with low surface tension wastewater (LSTW). From the experiments results, pristine PVDF membrane showed severe fouling and wetting with flux decline and salt leakage during treatment of LSTW (surfactants containing water, oil-in-water emulsion and sodium dodecyl sulfate stabilized oil-in-water emulsion). However, under the same conditions, the Janus MXene-PVDF membrane exhibited remarkably stable flux (9.3 kg m

Biogenic amines (BAs) are produced by microbial decarboxylation in various foods. Histamine and tyramine are recognized as the most toxic of all BAs. Applying degrading amine enzymes such as multicopper oxidase (MCO) is considered an effective method to reduce BAs in food systems. This study analyzed the characterization of heterologously expressed MCO from L. sakei LS. Towards the typical substrate 2,2′-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), the optimal temperature and pH for recombinant MCO (rMCO) were 25 °C and 3.0, respectively, with the specific enzyme activity of 1.27 U/mg. Then, the effect of different environmental factors on the degrading activity of MCO towards two kinds of BAs was investigated. The degradation activity of rMCO is independent of exogenous copper and mediators. Additionally, the oxidation ability of rMCO was improved for histamine and tyramine with an increased NaCl concentration. Several food matrices could influence the amine-oxidizing activity of rMCO. Although the histamine-degrading activities of rMCO were affected, this enzyme reached a degradation rate of 28.1% in the presence of surimi. Grape juice improved the tyramine degradation activity of rMCO by up to 31.18%. These characteristics of rMCO indicate that this enzyme would be a good candidate for degrading toxic biogenic amines in food systems.

Decreased length of stay in the index hospitalization is a tendency in transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) era. In this study, we aim to evaluate the feasibility and safety of next-day discharge (NDD) in bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) patients following TAVR.The study analyzed patients who received TAVR in 2019 to 2022. Thirty-day mortality and readmission rate were compared between BAV and tricuspid aortic valve (TAV) patients.The proportion of NDD was similar between the BAV and TAV group (45.3 % vs 41.3 %, p = 0.487). In NDD patients, the lower age (72.0 [67.0, 77.0] yrs vs 74.0 [70.0, 80.0] yrs, p = 0.011) and STS score (2.33 [1.56, 3.54] % vs 3.82 [2.38, 5.70] %, p 0.001) were observed in the BAV group. The NDD BAV patients had higher proportion of post-dilatation (74.3 % vs 50.7 %, p = 0.003) when compared with the TAV patients. The NDD patients was safe with no death both in BAV and TAV patients at 30-day follow-up. Moreover, the readmission rate was comparable between BAV and TAV patients who discharged on the next day after TAVR (8.1 % vs 14.0 %, p = 0.397).NDD after TAVR was feasible and safe in both BAV and TAV patients. The younger BAV patients with fast recovery deserve the next-day discharge after TAVR.

Yucha is a home-made, fermented fish product in South China. The quality of yucha can vary depending on environmental factors. In order to determine the effects of temperature on bacterial ...

Nine transformants of Rhodosporidium toruloides with significant changes in the carotenoid profile were obtained by Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation, including a white, three red, and four yellow mutants. A red mutant A1-15-BRQ that showed a high torularhodin production was selected for culture condition optimization. Results indicated that the torularhodin yield was boosted with glucose as the carbon source, at a carbon/nitrogen ratio of 22, a loading volume of 75 mL, and 28 °C. The torularhodin yield of 21.3 mg/L consisting of 94.4% total carotenoids was obtained by Box-Behnken design experiments. The torularhodin yield was 17.0-fold higher than that of the wild type, with time shortened from 9 to 3 days. This study reports an effective strategy for improving torularhodin production and provides a candidate R. toruloides strain for highly selective production of torularhodin.

Intracranial aneurysms (IAs) remains a major public health concern and endovascular treatment (EVT) has become a major tool for managing IAs. However, the recurrence rate of IAs after EVT is relatively high, which may lead to the risk for aneurysm re-rupture and re-bleed. Thus, we aimed to develop and assess prediction models based on machine learning (ML) algorithms to predict recurrence risk among patients with IAs after EVT in 6 months. Patient population included patients with IAs after EVT between January 2016 and August 2019 in Hunan Provincial People's Hospital, and the data was randomly divided into a training set and a testing set. We developed five ML models and assessed the models. In addition, we used SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) and local interpretable model-agnostic explanation (LIME) algorithms to determine the importance of the selected features and interpret the ML models. A total of 425 IAs were enrolled into this study, and 66 (15.5%) of which recurred in 6 months. Among the five ML models, gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT) model performed best. The area under curve (AUC) of the GBDT model on the testing set was 0.842 (sensitivity: 81.2%; specificity: 70.4%). Our study firstly demonstrated that ML-based models can serve as a reliable tool for predicting recurrence risk in patients with IAs after EVT in 6 months and the GBDT model showed the optimal prediction performance.

BACKGROUNDThe novel coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19 Pandemic) has brought difficulties to the management of patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR).OBJECTIVESThis prospective, observational cohort study sought to evaluate the feasibility of a novel, virtual, and remote health care strategy for TAVR patients with smart wearable devices.METHODSA total of 100 consecutive severe aortic stenosis patients who underwent elective transfemoral TAVR were enrolled and each received a HUAWEI smartwatch at least one day before TAVR. Vital signs were continuously tracked and recorded. Single lead electrocardiogram (ECG) was recorded periodically after TAVR. A designated heart team member was to provide remote data-assisted health care to address the medical demand.RESULTSThirty-eight cardiac events were reported in 34 patients after discharge, with most of the events (76.0%) were detected and confirmed by the smartwatch. Six patients were advised and readmitted to the hospital for arrhythmia events, among whom, four received pacemaker implantations. The remaining 28 (82.4%) patients received telemedicine monitoring instead of face-to-face clinical visits, and three of them received new medication treatment under a doctor’s online guidance of doctors. New-onset LBBB was found in 48 patients with transient and recovered spontaneously in 30 patients, while new-onset atrial fibrillation in 4 patients. There were no significant differences in the average weekly heart rates, the ratio of abnormal or low oxygen saturation when compared with the baseline. The average daily steps increased over time significantly (baseline, 870±1353 steps; first week, 1986±2406 steps; second week, 2707±2716 steps; third week, 3059±3036 steps; fourth week, 3678±3485 steps, p < 0.001).CONCLUSIONSSmartwatch can facilitate remote health care for patients undergoing TAVR during COVID-19 and enables a novel remote follow-up strategy. The majority of cardiac clinical events that occurred within 30-day follow-up were detected by the smartwatch, mainly due to the record of conduction abnormality. (SMART Watch Facilitated Early Discharge in Patients undergoing Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement, NCT04454177).

BACKGROUND Paocai is a traditional Chinese fermented vegetable food. As the most important ingredient, salt has crucial effects on the bacterial community and volatile compounds of paocai. To demonstrate the effects of salt on the fermentation of paocai, the bacterial composition and volatile compounds were investigated using high-throughput sequencing and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). RESULTS The salt had no significant effects on the bacterial community at the phylum level. Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes gradually decreased during the fermentation, and Firmicutes gradually increased as the dominant bacteria in the late stage of fermentation. At the genus level, Lactobacillus and Lactococcus gradually increased in relative abundance during the fermentation and became the dominant bacteria in paocai. High salt levels can contribute to the growth of Lactobacillus, which became the dominant genus in paocai. The salt concentration affected the profiles of volatile compounds in paocai after fermentation. A total of 42 volatile components were detected by GC-MS, among which phenols, aldehydes, and nitriles were the main ones. A high salt concentration will increase the volatile compound content, mainly aldehydes and alcohols, and improve the flavor of paocai. At the same time, the electronic tongue analysis also showed that a high salt concentration made a major contribution to the flavor of paocai. CONCLUSIONS These data are helpful to elucidate the effects of salt on the quality of paocai and contribute to improving the quality and reducing the use of salt. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

The quality characteristics of Suancai fermented with Lactobacillus plantarum CGMCC No.20193 (Lb. plantarum) and Pediococcus pentosaceus CGMCC No. 20192 (P. pentosaceus) were investigated. Their inoculation affected the bacterial communities revealed by Pacbio Sequel platform. After fermentation, the dominant phylum and genus in inoculation and spontaneous fermented Suancai were Firmicutes and Lactobacillus. Compared with single inoculation, the co-inoculation of Lb. plantarum and P. pentosaceus had a higher bacterial diversity. The Suancai co-inoculated with Lb. plantarum and P. pentosaceus had a more similar VCs profile with spontaneous fermented Suancai. The inoculation of Lb. plantarum and P. pentosaceus increased the content of organic acids, such as lactate, acetate, citrate, succinate, malate and tartrate. The most amino acids content in Suancai fermented with Lb. plantarum and P. pentosaceus were higher than that in spontaneous fermented Suancai. Compared single inoculation, the Suancai co-inoculated with Lb. plantarum and P. pentosaceus had a higher similarity of organoleptic tastes with spontaneous fermented Suancai. These results may facilitate the understanding of the starters' effects on the Suancai fermentation and the selection of applicable starters to manipulate the flavor.

BackgroundsThe risk of brain injury in bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) patients following transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is currently unknown.Methods and ResultsA total of 204 consecutive severe aortic stenosis patients who underwent TAVR were enrolled. 83 (40.7%) patients were BAV patients and the other 121 patients were tricuspid aortic valve (TAV) patients. All patients received diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) at baseline, 2 to 7 days after TAVR. Mean ages (mean ± SD: 75.8 ± 6.7 years vs. 78.9 ± 6.6 years, p = 0.004) and STS scores (6.0 ± 3.7 vs. 7.1 ± 4.2, p = 0.044) of the BAV and TAV patients were significantly different, while the stroke rates (2.4% vs. 1.7%, p = 0.704) were comparable between two groups. BAV patients were associated with higher number of new lesions (5.69 ± 6.22 vs. 3.50 ± 4.16, p = 0.008), total lesion volume [median(interquartile range): 290(70-930) mm3 vs. 140(35-480) mm3, p = 0.008], and the volume per lesion [70.0(45.0-115.0) mm3 vs. 57.5(24.5-93.0) mm3, p = 0.037] in DW-MRI. Moreover, the proportion of patients with lesions larger than 1cm3 (28.6% vs. 10.9%, p = 0.005) and the number of new lesions in the middle cerebral arteries zone (1.46 ± 2.07 vs. 0.98 ± 1.84, p = 0.039) and intermediate zone between the anterior cerebral and middle cerebral arteries (ACA/MCA) (1.07 ± 1.68 vs. 0.50 ± 1.05, p = 0.007), and between the vertebral artery and basilar artery (VA/BA) (1.01 ± 1.35 vs. 0.77 ± 1.44, p = 0.033) were higher in BAV patients than in TAV patients.ConclusionsBAV patients may encounter more severe brain injuries not only due to greater number of lesions but also due to larger lesion size, especially in the ACA/MCA, MCA and VA/BA lesions zone.

Little is known about the relationship between the chemical and microbial properties of Chouguiyu, a traditional Chinese fermented fish with unique aroma and plentiful taste. Therefore, we explored this relationship by determining the bacterial and fungal distribution of 14 brands of Chouguiyu. The distribution of microorganism and their effect on product quality, such as volatile flavor compounds (VFCs), free amino acids (FAA), physicochemical features and organoleptic properties were evaluated. Five VFCs (2-ethyl-1-hexanol, eucalyptol, 1-octen-3-ol, nonanal and indole) and three FAAs (Glu, Vla and Ala) were considered as core components. LAB (Vagococcus and Lactococcus) were found to contribute greatly to critical aroma formation and inhibition of TVB-N, leading to a moderate fermentation and good quality. While excessive increases in TVB-N, VFCs and FAA contents were found to be related with Psychrilyobacter and Fusobacterium, leading to poor organoleptic properties. The addition of Sufu to these products may be associated with the accelerating the fermentation process. Moderate fermentation with LAB is beneficial to typical aroma and good organoleptic properties, while excessive fermentation related with Psychrilyobacter and Fusobacterium may lead to overpowering flavors and lowered organoleptic properties.

The red yeast Rhodosporidium toruloides is a known lipid producer capable of accumulating large amounts of triacylglycerols and carotenoids. However, it remains challenging to study its carotenoid production profiles owing to limited biochemical information and inefficient genetic tools. Here we used an Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation (ATMT) to change its carotenoid production and profiles. We constructed R. toruloides NP11 mutant libraries with ATMT, selected three mutants with different colours, characterized their carotenoid products by high-pressure liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) analysis and assured differences among those strains in terms of carotenoid production and its composition profiles. We then located T-DNA insertion sites using the genome walking technology and provided discussions in terms of the new phenotypes. This study is the first of its kind to change the carotenoid production profiles in R. toruloides. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

To target a carotenoid biosynthetic gene in the oleaginous yeast Rhodosporidium toruloides by using the Agrobacterium-mediated transformation (AMT) method.The RHTO_04602 locus of R. toruloides NP11, previously assigned to code the carotenoid biosynthetic gene CRTI, was amplified from genomic DNA and cloned into the binary plasmid pZPK-mcs, resulting in pZPK-CRT. A HYG-expression cassette was inserted into the CRTI sequence of pZPK-CRT by utilizing the restriction-free clone strategy. The resulted plasmid was used to transform R. toruloides cells according to the AMT method, leading to a few white transformants. Sequencing analysis of those transformants confirmed homologous recombination and insertional inactivation of CRTI. When the white variants were transformed with a CRTI-expression cassette, cells became red and produced carotenoids as did the wild-type strain NP11.Successful homologous targeting of the CrtI locus confirmed the function of RHTO_04602 in carotenoids biosynthesis in R. toruloides. It provided valuable information for metabolic engineering of this non-model yeast species.