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Hydrogels fabricated from top-down wood nanotechnology have attracted a lot of attention.

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Cancer has contributed to an increasing proportion of diabetes-related deaths, while lifestyle management is the cornerstone of both diabetes care and cancer prevention. We aimed to evaluate the associations of combined healthy lifestyles with total and site-specific cancer risks among individuals with diabetes.We included 92,239 individuals with diabetes but without cancer at baseline from five population-based cohorts in the USA (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and National Institutes of Health [NIH]-AARP Diet and Health Study), the UK (UK Biobank study) and China (Dongfeng-Tongji cohort and Kailuan study). Healthy lifestyle scores (range 0-5) were constructed based on current nonsmoking, low-to-moderate alcohol drinking, adequate physical activity, healthy diet and optimal bodyweight. Cox regressions were used to calculate HRs for cancer morbidity and mortality, adjusting for sociodemographic, medical and diabetes-related factors.During 376,354 person-years of follow-up from UK Biobank and the two Chinese cohorts, 3229 incident cancer cases were documented, and 6682 cancer deaths were documented during 1,089,987 person-years of follow-up in the five cohorts. The pooled multivariable-adjusted HRs (95% CIs) comparing participants with 4-5 vs 0-1 healthy lifestyle factors were 0.73 (0.61, 0.88) for incident cancer and 0.55 (0.46, 0.67) for cancer mortality, and ranged between 0.41 and 0.63 for oesophagus, lung, liver, colorectum, breast and kidney cancers. Findings remained consistent across different cohorts and subgroups.This international cohort study found that adherence to combined healthy lifestyles was associated with lower risks of total cancer morbidity and mortality as well as several subtypes (oesophagus, lung, liver, colorectum, breast and kidney cancers) among individuals with diabetes.

In this work, a series of derivatives with disulfide bonds containing pyridine, pyrimidine, thiophene, thiazole, benzothiazole, and quinoline were designed and synthesized based on the various biological activities of allicin disulfide bond functional groups. The antimicrobial activities of the target compounds were determined, and the structure-activity relationships were discussed. Among them, compound

It is still a challenge to find an effective solvent system that can simultaneously dissolve the cellulose and lignin in biomass residues to fabricate lignocellulose hydrogels (LHs). Herein, corncob residues from furfural production were pretreated with alkaline peroxide to regulate the lignin content. The lignin/cellulose composites with various lignin content were then dissolved and regenerated by a green and facile ZnCl

The study aimed to identify BMI-related lipids and to explore the role of lipids linking BMI and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM).Plasma lipidome, height, and weight were measured in early pregnancy among 1008 women. Pearson correlation analyses and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression (LASSO) were performed to identify BMI-associated lipids. Based on these lipids, a lipid score was created using LASSO, and its association with GDM risk was evaluated by conditional logistic regression. The causal relationships between BMI and lipids were tested by Mendelian randomization analysis with genotyping data. Mediation analysis was conducted to evaluate the mediating effect of lipids on the association of BMI with GDM.Of 366 measured lipids, BMI was correlated with 28 lipids, which mainly belong to glycerophospholipids and glycerolipids. A total of 10 lipid species were associated with BMI, and a lipid score was established. A causal relationship between BMI and lysophosphatidylcholine 14:0 was observed. The lipid score was associated with a 1.69-fold increased risk of GDM per 1-point increment (95% CI: 1.33-2.15). Furthermore, BMI-associated lipids might explain 66.4% of the relationship between BMI and GDM.Higher BMI in early pregnancy was associated with altered lipid metabolism that may contribute to the increased risk of GDM.

This study aimed to evaluate the associations between breast cancer risk and intake of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and/or n-3 PUFA subclasses in Chinese women, and determine whether these associations varied with menopausal status or clinical characteristics.A hospital-based case-control study including 1,589 cases and 1,621 age-frequency-matched controls was conducted. Dietary data were assessed by a validated food frequency questionnaire. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals were obtained using multiple unconditional logistic regression models after controlling for potential confounders.Higher intake of marine n-3 PUFAs and total n-3 PUFAs was associated with lower risk of breast cancer, with adjusted OR quartile 4 v.1 (95% confidence intervals) of 0.68 (0.55-0.84) and 0.56 (0.42-0.75), respectively. Dietary a-linolenic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, docosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid were also inversely associated with breast cancer risk, with adjusted ORs (95% confidence intervals) of 0.51 (0.38-0.70), 0.68 (0.55-0.84), 0.68 (0.55-0.85), and 0.76 (0.61-0.94), respectively. In stratified analyses, these inverse associations between risk and dietary n-3 PUFAs were more evident among premenopausal women and women with ER+, PR+ and ER+PR+ tumors. A decreased risk of breast cancer was significantly associated with increasing n-3 PUFA intake in obese/overweight women, but not in women of normal weight. There was a significant interaction between linoleic acid and marine n-3 PUFAs.High intake of n-3 PUFAs and n-3 PUFA subtypes was associated with a lower risk of breast cancer, especially among premenopausal women and women with ER+ and/or PR+ subtype breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Femoral neck fracture is an unsolved challenge in orthopedics. The complication rate in particular is high. There remains a lack of consensus on the optimal choice of internal fixation for unstable femoral neck fracture. OBJECTIVE: The study aimed to develop a new headless compression supporting screw (HCSS) for the treatment of unstable foemoral neck fracture. METHODS: We designed a new HCSS and used a femoral neck fracture (Pauwels III fracture) model (left, fourth-generation composite, Sawbones) and three-dimensional finite element analysis to compare the biomechanical performance of HCSSs with that of cannulated compression screws (CCSs) for treatment of unstable femoral neck fracture. RESULTS: Maximum displacement, peak von Mises stress, peak strain, and rotation for the HCSS were smaller than those for the CCS. The stress was more widely distributed for the HCSS, whereas the stress was concentrated for the CCS. CONCLUSIONS: The HCSS resulted in better biomechanical stability than that from the CCS. For Pauwels III fractures the HCSS exhibits better resistance to shear forces and better support, providing a new clinical treatment.

Background and ObjectivesAlthough the importance of healthy lifestyles for preventing Alzheimer disease and related dementias (ADRD) has been recognized, epidemiologic evidence remains limited for non-White or low-income individuals who bear disproportionate burdens of ADRD. This population-based cohort study aims to investigate associations of lifestyle factors, individually and together, with the risk of ADRD among socioeconomically disadvantaged Americans.MethodsIn the Southern Community Cohort Study, comprising two-thirds self-reported Black and primarily low-income Americans, we identified incident ADRD using claims data among participants enrolled in Medicare for at least 12 consecutive months after age 65 years. Five lifestyle factors—tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), sleep hours, and diet quality—were each scored 0 (unhealthy), 1 (intermediate), or 2 (healthy) based on the health guidelines. A composite lifestyle score was created by summing all scores. Cox regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs, 95% CIs) for incident ADRD, treating death as a competing risk.ResultsWe identified 1,694 patients with newly diagnosed ADRD among 17,209 participants during a median follow-up of 4.0 years in claims data; the mean age at ADRD diagnosis was 74.0 years. Healthy lifestyles were individually associated with an 11%–25% reduced risk of ADRD: multivariable-adjusted HR (95% CI) was 0.87 (0.76–0.99) for never vs current smoking, 0.81 (0.72–0.92) for low-to-moderate vs no alcohol consumption, 0.89 (0.77–1.03) for ≥150 minutes of moderate or ≥75 minutes of vigorous LTPA each week vs none, 0.75 (0.64–0.87) for 7–9 hours vs >9 hours of sleep, and 0.85 (0.75–0.96) for the highest vs lowest tertiles of the Healthy Eating Index. The composite lifestyle score showed a dose-response association with up to 36% reduced risk of ADRD: multivariable-adjusted HRs (95% CIs) across quartiles were 1 (ref), 0.88 (0.77–0.99), 0.79 (0.70–0.90), and 0.64 (0.55–0.74); p trend DiscussionOur findings support significant benefits of healthy lifestyles for ADRD prevention among socioeconomically disadvantaged Americans, suggesting that promoting healthy lifestyles and reducing barriers to lifestyle changes are crucial to tackling the growing burden and disparities posed by ADRD.

Background Liver plays an important role in maintaining glucose homeostasis. We aimed to examine the associations of liver enzymes and hepatic steatosis index (HSI, a reliable biomarker for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease) in early pregnancy with subsequent GDM risk, as well as the potential mediation effects of lipid metabolites on the association between HSI and GDM. Methods In a birth cohort, liver enzymes were measured in early pregnancy (6-15 gestational weeks, mean 10) among 6,860 Chinese women. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to examine the association between liver biomarkers and risk of GDM. Pearson partial correlation and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression were conducted to identify lipid metabolites that were significantly associated with HSI in a subset of 948 women. Mediation analyses were performed to estimate the mediating roles of lipid metabolites on the association of HSI with GDM. Results Liver enzymes and HSI were associated with higher risks of GDM after adjustment for potential confounders, with ORs ranging from 1.42 to 2.24 for extreme-quartile comparisons (false discovery rate-adjusted P-trend ≤0.005). On the natural log scale, each SD increment of alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, gamma-glutamyl transferase, alkaline phosphatase, and HSI was associated with a 1.15-fold (95% CI: 1.05, 1.26), 1.10-fold (1.01, 1.20), 1.21-fold (1.10, 1.32), 1.15-fold (1.04, 1.27), and 1.33-fold (1.18, 1.51) increased risk of GDM, respectively. Pearson partial correlation and LASSO regression identified 15 specific lipid metabolites in relation to HSI. Up to 52.6% of the association between HSI and GDM risk was attributed to the indirect effect of the HSI-related lipid score composed of lipid metabolites predominantly from phospholipids (e.g., lysophosphatidylcholine and ceramides) and triacylglycerol. Conclusions Elevated liver enzymes and HSI in early pregnancy, even within a normal range, were associated with higher risks of GDM among Chinese pregnant women. The association of HSI with GDM was largely mediated by altered lipid metabolism.

Using more reference frames can significantly improve the compression efficiency in neural video compression. However, in low-latency scenarios, most existing neural video compression frameworks usually use the previous one frame as reference. Or a few frameworks which use the previous multiple frames as reference only adopt a simple multi-reference frames propagation mechanism. In this paper, we present a more reasonable multi-reference frames propagation mechanism for neural video compression, called butterfly multi-reference frame propagation mechanism (Butterfly), which allows a more effective feature fusion of multi-reference frames. By this, we can generate more accurate temporal context conditional prior for Contextual Coding Module. Besides, when the number of decoded frames does not meet the required number of reference frames, we duplicate the nearest reference frame to achieve the requirement, which is better than duplicating the furthest one. Experiment results show that our method can significantly outperform the previous state-of-the-art (SOTA), and our neural codec can achieve -7.6% bitrate save on HEVC Class D dataset when compares with our base single-reference frame model with the same compression configuration., Comment: Accepted by DCC 2023

ObjectiveThe aim of the study was to evaluate the clinicopathological features, as well as the surgical prognosis, of epilepsy-associated gangliogliomas (GG) with CD34 expression and BRAFV600E mutation.MethodsClinical data of patients who underwent epilepsy surgery for GG were retrospectively studied. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate the correlations of clinical and pathological factors with molecular markers of CD34 expression and BRAFV600E mutation in GG.ResultsA total of 208 patients with GG had immunohistochemical detection of CD34 expression (positive/negative: 184/24), and among them, 89 patients had immunohistochemical detection of BRAFV600E mutation (positive/negative: 54/35). By univariate and multivariate analyses, seizure aura (p = 0.025), concordance of ictal electroencephalogram (EEG) findings (p = 0.045) and medial temporal tumor (p = 0.030) were found to be related to CD34 expression, but only hospitalization time (p = 0.042) was different for BRAF-mutated status. In addition, drug-resistant epilepsy (p = 0.040) and concordance of interictal EEG findings (p = 0.009) were found to be associated with tumor progression-free survival (PFS) in univariate analysis, but only concordance of interictal EEG findings was with significance in multivariate analysis. However, CD34 expression or BRAFV600E mutation in GG was not found to be associated with surgical outcomes of seizure control and tumor PFS.ConclusionThe CD34 expression or BRAFV600E mutation in GG may partly influence the distribution of clinicopathological features of patients with epilepsy, but they may be not able to predict the surgical prognosis of seizure outcome and tumor recurrence.

Predicting rock cracking is important for assessing the stability of underground engineering. The effects of the intersecting angle α and the distribution orientation angle β of intersecting fissures on the uniaxial compressive strength and the failure characteristics of sandstone containing intersecting fissures are investigated through laboratory experiments and two-dimensional particle flow code (PFC2D). The relationship between the mechanical properties of sandstone and the intersecting angle α and the distribution orientation angle β is analysed. Crack initiation forms and the final failure modes are then categorised and determined via empirical methods. In addition, the cracking processes of intersecting fissures with different α and β values are discussed. The results show that variations in the peak stress, peak strain, average modulus, and crack initiation stress of sandstone containing intersecting fissures show a "moth" shape in the space of the α-β-mechanical parameters. Two crack initiation forms are identified: inner tip cracking (usually accompanied by one outer tip cracking) and only outer tips cracking. Two failure modes are observed: (1) the main fracture planes are created at the inner tip and one outer tip, and (2) the main fracture planes are formed at the two outer tips. Two main crack evolution processes of sandstone containing intersecting fissures under uniaxial compression are found. Approaches for quickly determining the crack initiation form and the failure mode are proposed. The combination of the determination equations for the crack initiation form and the failure mode can be used to predict the crack evolution. The approach for determining the crack evolution processes is hence proposed with acceptable precision.

data_input.py is used to organize the input data of the neural network; Train_cnn.py is the code for training the model; Test_positive.py is used to determine positive samples in the testing set; Test_negative.py is used to determine negative samples in the testing set. The corresponding data set will be uploaded in the later version. &nbsp

Background Recent studies found associations between non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), but the causal nature of this association is still uncertain. Methods We performed a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to test for the causal association between NAFLD and PCOS using data from a large-scale biopsy-confirmed NAFLD genome-wide association study (GWAS) (1483 cases and 17,781 controls) and PCOS GWAS (10,074 cases and 103,164 controls) in European ancestries. Data from glycemic-related traits GWAS (in up to 200,622 individuals) and sex hormones GWAS (in 189,473 women) in the UK Biobank (UKB) were used in the MR mediation analysis to assess potential mediating roles of these molecules in the causal pathway between NAFLD and PCOS. Replication analysis was conducted using two independent datasets from NAFLD and PCOS GWASs in the UKB and a meta-analysis of data from FinnGen and the Estonian Biobank, respectively. A linkage disequilibrium score regression was conducted to assess genetic correlations between NAFLD, PCOS, glycemic-related traits, and sex hormones using full summary statistics. Results Individuals with higher genetic liability to NAFLD were more likely to develop PCOS (OR per one-unit log odds increase in NAFLD: 1.10, 95% CI: 1.02–1.18; P = 0.013). Indirect causal effects of NAFLD on PCOS via fasting insulin only (OR: 1.02, 95% CI: 1.01–1.03; P = 0.004) and further a suggestive indirect causal effect via fasting insulin in concert with androgen levels were revealed in MR mediation analyses. However, the conditional F statistics of NAFLD and fasting insulin were less than 10, suggesting likely weak instrument bias in the MVMR and MR mediation analyses. Conclusions Our study suggests that genetically predicted NAFLD was associated with a higher risk of developing PCOS but less evidence for vice versa. Fasting insulin and sex hormones might mediate the link between NAFLD and PCOS.

Peer reviewed: True, Funder: University of New South Wales; FundRef: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001773, OBJECTIVE: To assess the prospective associations of circulating levels of omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 PUFA) biomarkers (including plant derived α linolenic acid and seafood derived eicosapentaenoic acid, docosapentaenoic acid, and docosahexaenoic acid) with incident chronic kidney disease (CKD). DESIGN: Pooled analysis. DATA SOURCES: A consortium of 19 studies from 12 countries identified up to May 2020. STUDY SELECTION: Prospective studies with measured n-3 PUFA biomarker data and incident CKD based on estimated glomerular filtration rate. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Each participating cohort conducted de novo analysis with prespecified and consistent exposures, outcomes, covariates, and models. The results were pooled across cohorts using inverse variance weighted meta-analysis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary outcome of incident CKD was defined as new onset estimated glomerular filtration rate

Additional file 2: Additional information on data sources. Additional methods and results. Fig. S1. Causal effects of NAFLD on PCOS using specific variants. Fig. S2. Results of bidirectional MR analysis between NAFLD and PCOS using linear PDFF GWAS and binary NAFLD GWAS. Fig. S3. Leave-one-out analysis results of MR causal effects between NAFLD and PCOS. Fig. S4. Genetic correlations between NAFLD, FI, FG, SHBG, BT, and PCOS in LDSR analysis. Fig. S5. Results of step-wise MR mediation analysis for causal associations between NAFLD, glycemic-related traits, sex hormones, and PCOS using replication GWAS datasets. Fig. S6. The overview of the step-wise MR mediation analysis between NAFLD and PCOS via glycemic-related traits and sex hormones. Fig. S7. A schematic diagram of calculating the indirect causal effect of NAFLD on PCOS via fasting insulin and sex hormones. Fig. S8. Causal effect of NAFLD on PCOS using two-sample MR after excluding BMI-related IV and using MVMR.

Additional file 1: Table S1. Associations of liver biomarkers with blood glucose values in OGTT. Table S2. Joint associations of higher liver enzymes with risk of GDM. Table S3. Association of HSI with risk of GDM stratified by pre-pregnancy BMI and alcohol drinking status. Table S4. Associations of liver biomarkers with GDM after excluding participants with a history of GDM, current smokers, or current drinkers. Table S5. Associations of liver biomarkers with GDM among participants within relatively normal range of liver biomarkers. Table S6. Associations of liver biomarkers with GDM after multiple imputation. Table S7. Associations of liver biomarkers with GDM in Poisson regression. Table S8. Associations of liver biomarkers with GDM in a subset of 921 participants. Table S9. Association of HSI-related lipid score with GDM in a subset of 948 participants. Figure S1. Flowchart of the participant selection. Figure S2. Restricted cubic spline analyses for the associations of liver biomarkers with GDM risk. Figure S3. Spearman partial correlations between liver biomarkers and metabolic profiles.

Toxicological studies show that exposure to disinfection byproducts, including trihalomethanes (THMs), negatively affects thyroid function; however, few epidemiological studies have explored this link. This study included 2233 adults (ages ≥20 years) from the 2007-2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) who were measured for blood THM concentrations [chloroform (TCM), bromodichloromethane (BDCM), dibromochloromethane (DBCM), or bromoform (TBM)] and serum thyroid function biomarkers [thyroid-stimulating hormone, free thyroxine (FT4), total thyroxine (TT4), free triiodothyronine (FT3), total triiodothyronine (TT3), thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb), and thyroglobulin antibody (TgAb)]. Multivariable linear regression models showed positive associations between blood TCM, BDCM, and total THMs (the sum of all four THMs) concentrations and serum FT4, whereas inverse associations were found between blood DBCM and total brominated THM (Br-THM; the sum of BDCM, DBCM, and TBM) concentrations and serum TT3 (all p < 0.05). Besides, positive associations were observed between blood TCM concentrations and FT4/FT3 ratio, between BDCM, DBCM, and Br-THM concentrations and TT4/TT3 ratio, and between DBCM and Br-THM concentrations and FT3/TT3 ratio (all p < 0.05). Blood THM concentrations were unrelated to the serum levels of thyroid autoantibodies TgAb or TPOAb. In summary, exposure to THMs was associated with altered serum biomarkers of thyroid function but not with thyroid autoimmunity among U.S. adults.

Background We prospectively examined the association between serum uric acid (SUA) levels and chronic kidney disease (CKD) in China and updated the evidence through a comprehensive meta-analysis of prospective studies worldwide. Methods Our original analyses were based on data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. The primary exposure of interest was SUA at baseline, and the main outcome was incident CKD. Logistic regression models were used to examine the association between SUA levels and incident CKD. A meta-analysis was performed to pool our effect estimate and those from other cohort studies. Results During a 4-year follow-up, 180 participants developed incident CKD. Participants in the highest SUA quartile were 2.73 times as likely to develop incident CKD compared to those in the lowest quartile (multivariable-adjusted OR, 2.73; 95% CI, 1.65–4.50). Each 1 mg/dL increment in the SUA levels was associated with a 49% increased risk of incident CKD (multivariable-adjusted OR, 1.49; 95% CI, 1.28–1.74). In the meta-analysis of 30 cohort studies (including the current study), pooled relative risks (95% CIs) of incident CKD were 1.15 (1.10–1.21) for SUA each 1 mg/dL increment, 1.22 (1.14–1.30) for the highest versus lowest SUA group, and 1.17 (1.12–1.23) for hyperuricemia versus no hyperuricemia. Conclusions Baseline SUA levels were associated with higher risk of incident CKD in middle-aged and elderly Chinese adults, and this positive association was confirmed in the meta-analysis of multiple cohort studies. Our findings may imply that SUA levels need to be routinely monitored for future CKD risk.

Viruses can be transmitted from animals to humans (and vice versa) and across animal species. As such, host-virus interactions and transmission have attracted considerable attention. Non-human primates (NHPs), our closest evolutionary relatives, are susceptible to human viruses and certain pathogens are known to circulate between humans and NHPs. Here, we generated global statistics on virus infections in NHPs (VI-NHPs) based on a literature search and public data mining. In total, 140 NHP species from 12 families are reported to be infected by 186 DNA and RNA virus species, 68.8% of which are also found in humans, indicating high potential for crossing species boundaries. The top 10 NHP species with high centrality in the NHP-virus network include two great apes (Pan troglodytes, Pongo pygmaeus) and eight Old World monkeys (Macaca mulatta, M. fascicularis, M. leonina, Papio cynocephalus, Cercopithecus ascanius, C. erythrotis, Chlorocebus aethiops, and Allochrocebus lhoesti). Given the wide distribution of Old World monkeys and their frequent contact with humans, there is a high risk of virus circulation between humans and such species. Thus, we suggest recurring epidemiological surveillance of NHPs, specifically Old World monkeys that are in frequent contact with humans, and other effective measures to prevent potential circulation and transmission of viruses. Avoidance of false positives and sampling bias should also be a focus in future work.

Context While the associations between thyroid markers and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have been extensively studied, the results are inconclusive and the mechanisms remain unclear. Objective We aimed to investigate the prospective associations of thyroid markers in early gestation with GDM risk, and examine the mediating effects through lipid species. Methods This study included 6068 pregnant women from the Tongji-Shuangliu Birth Cohort. Maternal serum thyroid markers (free triiodothyronine (fT3), free thyroxine (fT4), thyroid-stimulating hormone, thyroid peroxidase antibody, and thyroglobulin antibody) were measured before 15 weeks. Deiodinase activity was assessed by fT3/fT4 ratio. Plasma lipidome were quantified in a subset of 883 participants. Results Mean age of the participants was 26.6 ± 3.7 years, and mean gestational age was 10.3 ± 2.0 weeks. Higher levels of fT4 were associated with a decreased risk of GDM (OR = 0.73 comparing the extreme quartiles; 95% CI 0.54, 0.98, Ptrend = .043), while higher fT3/fT4 ratio was associated with an increased risk of GDM (OR = 1.43 comparing the extreme quartiles; 95% CI 1.06, 1.93, Ptrend = .010) after adjusting for potential confounders. Multiple linear regression suggested that fT3/fT4 ratio was positively associated with alkylphosphatidylcholine 36:1, phosphatidylethanolamine plasmalogen 38:6, diacylglyceride 18:0/18:1, sphingomyelin 34:1, and phosphatidylcholine 40:7 (false discovery rate [FDR] adjusted P < .05). Mediation analysis indicated 67.9% of the association between fT3/fT4 ratio and GDM might be mediated through the composite effect of these lipids. Conclusion Lower concentration of serum fT4 or higher fT3/fT4 ratio in early pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of GDM. The association of fT3/fT4 ratio with GDM was largely mediated by specific lipid species.

The overhead power transmission line, as an important component of equipment for long-distance power transmission, is threatened by icing and galloping, which will lead to equipment troubles and cause huge economic loss. Thus, there is a great need for on-line monitoring for transmission lines. Because the photoelectric composite cable, such as optical fiber composite overhead ground wire (OPGW) is widely used, it is possible to introduce distributed optical fiber sensors (DOFS) into transmission line status monitoring. Common schemes based on DOFS usually offer low sensing density and are hard to realize global awareness, while phase sensitive optical time domain reflectometry (Φ-OTDR), as a DOFS that has the characteristic of distributed sensing, is hoping to address the limitation. In this paper, by establishing mathematical models, proposing analytical method, and building demonstration devices to analyze the dynamic strain characteristics of overhead power transmission line, an Φ-OTDR based on-line monitoring scheme of transmission line status is presented and experimentally proved for the first time. The estimation error of sag is less than 5.8% on centimeter scale, and the estimation error of ice thickness is no more than 10.84% on sub-millimeter scale, which gives an accurate description of transmission line status and provides strong support for early warning of transmission line failures.

Lignin is abundant and contains a large number of aromatic groups. Herein, CdxZn1-xS photocatalyst with tunable band gap energy was successfully synthesized by using 3-mercaptopropionic acid as a structure tuning additive. CdxZn1-xS can depolymerize alkaline lignin to vanillin by the photocatalytic process. Each gram of alkaline lignin can produce 46.5 mg of vanillin. 2-Phenoxy-1-phenylethanol (PP-ol) and other model compounds were used to understand the depolymerizing process of lignin. Fine tuned CdxZn1-xS can effectively cleave the Cβ-O-4 bond existed in PP-ol under simulated sunlight. The highest conversion of PP-ol was 89.5% with phenol and acetophenone yields of 66.2% and 33.5%, respectively. The mechanism studies confirm that the Cα-H in PP-ol and lignin is firstly dehydrogenated to form Cα radical intermediates, and then the photogenerated electrons break the adjacent Cβ-O bond. This research provides a new strategy to prepare valuable chemicals by virtue of renewable biomass and simulated sunlight.

The inhibitory effect of tavaborole on the invasion of

In animal and human studies, exposure to trihalomethanes (THMs) has been associated with reduced semen quality. However, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood.To investigate the associations of blood THM concentrations with sperm mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn) and telomere length (TL) among healthy men.We recruited 958 men who volunteered as potential sperm donors. A single blood sample was collected from each participant at recruitment and measured for chloroform (TCM), bromodichloromethane (BDCM), dibromochloromethane (DBCM), and bromoform (TBM) concentrations. Within a 90-day follow-up, the last semen sample provided by each participant was quantified for sperm mtDNAcn and TL. We used multivariable linear regression models to assess the associations between blood THM concentrations and sperm mtDNAcn and TL. We also performed stratified analyses according to the time intervals between baseline blood THM determinations and semen collection (i.e., 0-9, 10-14, 15-69, or69 days) to explore potential windows of susceptibility.After adjusting for potential confounders, we found inverse associations between quartiles (or categories) of blood TBM, brominated THM (Br-THM, the sum of BDCM, DBCM, and TBM), and total THM (TTHM, the sum of all four THMs) concentrations and sperm mtDNAcn (all P for trend≤0.03). Besides, we found inverse associations between quartiles of blood TCM, Br-THM, chlorinated THM (Cl-THM, the sum of TCM, BDCM, and DBCM), and TTHM concentrations and sperm TL (all P for trend0.10). Stratified analyses showed stronger associations between Br-THM concentrations and sperm mtDNAcn determined 15-69 days since baseline exposure determinations, and between blood TCM and TTHM concentrations and sperm TL determined69 days since baseline exposure determinations.Exposure to THMs may be associated with sperm mitochondrial and telomeric dysfunction.

Objective To examine the association of early-pregnancy serum C-peptide with incident gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and the predictive ability of maternal C-peptide for GDM. Methods A nested case–control study of 332 GDM cases and 664 controls was established based on the Tongji-Shuangliu Birth Cohort. The GDM cases and controls were matched at 1:2 on maternal age (± 3 years) and gestational age (± 4 weeks). Multivariable conditional logistic regression was applied to assess the association of C-peptide with risk of GDM. Partial Spearman’s correlation coefficients were estimated for the correlations between C-peptide and multiple metabolic biomarkers. C-statistics were calculated to assess the predictive ability of early-pregnancy C-peptide for GDM. Results Of 996 pregnant women, median maternal age was 28.0 years old and median gestational age was 11.0 weeks. After adjustment for potential confounders, the odds ratio of GDM comparing the extreme quartiles of C-peptide was 2.28 (95% confidence interval, 1.43, 3.62; P for trend P ≤ 0.025), and were − 0.11 and − 0.17 for high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and adiponectin (P P = 0.008). Conclusion While the predictive value for subsequent GDM should be validated, early-pregnancy serum C-peptide may be positively associated with risk of GDM.