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Microbial communities have been demonstrated to be essential for healthy and productive soil ecosystems. However, an understanding of the relationship between soil microbial community and soil productivity levels is remarkably limited. In this study, bulk soil (BS), rhizosphere soil (RS), and root (R) samples from the historical high-productive (H) and low-productive (L) soil types of wheat in Hebei province of China were collected and analyzed by high-throughput sequencing. The study highlighted the richness, diversity, and structure of bacterial communities, along with the correlation networks among different bacterial genera. Significant differences in the bacterial community structure between samples of different soil types were observed. Compared with the low-productive soil type, the bacterial communities of samples from the high-productive soil type possessed high species richness, low species diversity, complex and stable networks, and a higher relative abundance of beneficial microbes, such as Pseudoxanthomonas, unclassified Vicinamibacteraceae, Lysobacter, Massilia, Pseudomonas, and Bacillus. Further analysis indicated that the differences were mainly driven by soil organic matter (SOM), available nitrogen (AN), and electrical conductivity (EC). Overall, the soil bacterial community is an important factor affecting soil health and crop production, which provides a theoretical basis for the targeted regulation of microbes in low-productivity soil types.

AbstractObjective Increasing number of depression cases, drug tolerability and compliance issues have triggered researchers to actively seek potential alternative treatment modalities. Integrating traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and Western medicine (integrative medicine) has demonstrated favourable treatment outcomes for depression. However, most studies have focused on single-modality of TCM therapy, and its sustainability has rarely been evaluated. This protocol aims to describe a trial investigating the multi-modality integrative medicine effectiveness while measuring the post-intervention effect sustainability in treating liver stagnation and spleen deficiency in major depressive disorder (MDD).Methods/design A total of 318 eligible patients meeting the International Statistical Classification of Disease 10th Edition criteria for MDD and diagnosed with liver stagnation and spleen deficiency will be randomly allocated to receive Western medicine (Group A), Western medicine plus single-modality non-invasive TCM (Group B) or Western medicine plus comprehensive TCM (Group C). Each patient will receive a 6-week treatment; primary outcomes measured will be the overall response rate, changes in both Hamilton Depression Rating Scale 24 and Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale scores 18 weeks after randomisation. The secondary outcomes will include scores on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Beck Depression Inventory-II, Health-related Quality of Life scale and Family Burden Scale 0, 3, 6, 10 and 18 weeks post-randomisation. Intention-to-treat analysis will be conducted using repeated-measures analysis of variance and covariance.Discussion Because there are various manifestations of MDD from the perspective of TCM, this trial may recommend a customised evidence-based regimen with longer potency for treating liver stagnation and spleen deficiency in MDD.

Abstract Tumor‐infiltrating CD4+ T cells orchestrate the adaptive immune response through remarkable plasticity, and the expression patterns of exhaustion‐related inhibitory receptors in these cells differ significantly from those of CD8+ T cells. Thus, a better understanding of the molecular basis of CD4+ T cell exhaustion and their responses to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) is required. Here, we integrated multiomics approaches to define the phenotypic and molecular profiles of exhausted CD4+ T cells in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC). Two distinct immune‐promoting (Module 1) and immunosuppressive (Module 2) functional modules in tumor‐infiltrating CD4+ T cells were identified, and both the immune‐promoting function of Module 1 cells and immunosuppressive function of Module 2 cells were positively associated with their corresponding exhaustion states. Furthermore, the application of ICBs targeting effector CD4+ T cells in Module 1 (αPD‐1) and Treg cells in Module 2 (αCTLA‐4) in mouse models could help reinvigorate the effector function of Module 1‐exhausted CD4+ T cells and reduce the immunosuppressive function of Module 2‐exhausted CD4+ T cells, ultimately promoting OPSCC tumor regression. Taken together, our study provides a crucial cellular basis for the selection of optimal ICB in treating OPSCC.

IntroductionThis study explores the emotional impact of religion-related films through a “cinematherapy” lens. It aims to analyze the emotional patterns in a curated selection of religion-related films compared to a broader sample of acclaimed movies using facial recognition with YOLOv5 object detection. The study aims to uncover the potential therapeutic application of religion-related films.MethodsFacial recognition with YOLOv5 object detection was utilized in this study to analyze the emotional patterns in religion-related films. A curated selection of these films was compared to a broader sample of acclaimed movies to identify any distinct emotional trajectories.ResultsThe analysis of the emotional patterns revealed that religion-related films exhibited a subtler range of emotions compared to the broader film spectrum. This finding suggests that these films potentially create a safe space for contemplation, aligning with the profound themes often explored in religion-related films. Interestingly, the emotional arc observed in the films mirrored the spiritual journeys depicted in them. The films started with a low point of separation, transitioned through challenges, and culminated in a peak representing spiritual transformation.DiscussionThese findings suggest promise for the therapeutic application of religion-related films. The muted emotional expression in these films creates a safe space for self-reflection, enabling viewers to connect with the struggles of the characters and explore their own values when faced with complex religious ideas. This emotional engagement may contribute to therapeutic goals such as introspection and personal growth. The study unveils the unique emotional power of religion-related films and paves the way for further research on their potential as therapeutic tools. It emphasizes the need for continued exploration of the emotional impact of these films and their capacity to aid in therapeutic goals.

Summary: Exhausted CD8+ T cells (Texs) are characterized by the expression of various inhibitory receptors (IRs), whereas the functional attributes of these co-expressed IRs remain limited. Here, we systematically characterized the diversity of IR co-expression patterns in Texs from both human oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) tissues and syngeneic OPSCC model. Nearly 60% of the Texs population co-expressed two or more IRs, and the number of co-expressed IRs was positively associated with superior exhaustion and cytotoxicity phenotypes. In OPSCC patients, programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) blockade significantly enhanced PDCD1-based co-expression with other IR genes, whereas dual blockades of PD-1 and cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) significantly upregulated CTLA4-based co-expression with other IR genes. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that highly diverse IR co-expression is a leading feature of Texs and represents their functional states, which might provide essential clues for the rational selection of immune checkpoint inhibitors in treating OPSCC.

With the rapid growth of the number and scale of smart grid users, traditional data encryption transmission methods can no longer meet the performance requirements of data aggregation. In response, a power consumption information collection and management system based on SGX software protection extension is proposed. The system mainly consists of three parts: user electricity data acquisition terminal, SGX data security processing and distributed storage module on the chain, and data monitoring management display platform. The user electricity data collection terminal collects electricity data from various buildings, residences, rooms, and other smart meters, analyzes and uploads it. After calling the trusted function of SGX technology, it enters the security zone provided by SGX for data processing. Finally, the data security processing results and data are uploaded to the blockchain for storage. In order to visually display user electricity usage data, an intelligent monitoring platform for user electricity collection and management has been established. This system can reduce the workload of user electricity data collection, ensure the accuracy of data collection, and provide an efficient and highly reliable system platform for user electricity data management.

Background: The prognostic effects of different treatment modalities on patients with hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HPSCC) remain unclear. Methods: HPSCC patients diagnosed and treated at either West China Hospital or Sichuan Cancer Hospital between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2019, were enrolled in this retrospective, real-world study. Survival rates were presented using Kaplan–Meier curves and compared using log-rank tests. Univariable and multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to identify the predictors of overall survival (OS). Subgroup analyses were conducted for patients with advanced-stage HPSCC (stages III and IV and category T4). Results: A total of 527 patients with HPSCC were included. Patients receiving SRC (surgery, radiotherapy [RT], and chemotherapy) showed the best OS (p

Abstract Background Immense attention has been given to the outcome of COVID-19 infection. However, comprehensive studies based on large populational cohort with long-term follow-up are still lacking. This study aimed to investigate the risk of various short-term comorbidities (within one month) and long-term sequelae (above one month) after COVID-19 infection. Methods In this large prospective cohort study with 14 months follow-up information based on UK biobank, we included 16,776 COVID-19-positive participants and 58,281 COVID-19-negative participants matched for comparison. The risk of each comorbidity and sequela was evaluated by multivariable logistic regression analysis and presented as hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI). Results COVID-19-positive individuals had a higher risk of 47 types of comorbidities within one month following COVID-19 infection, especially those who were older, male, overweight/obese, ever-smoked, with more pre-existing comorbidities and hospitalized. About 70.37% of COVID-19 patients with comorbidities had more than one co-occurring comorbidities. Additionally, only 6 high-risk sequelae were observed after one month of COVID-19 infection, and the incidence was relatively low (

Abstract Although mRNA vaccines are known as potent activators of antigen-specific immune responses against infectious diseases, limited understanding of how they drive the functional commitment of CD8+ T cells in tumor microenvironment (TME) and secondary lymphoid organs hinders their broader application in cancer immunotherapy. Here, we systematically evaluated the immunological effects of a lipid nanoparticle (LNP)-encapsulated mRNA vaccine that encodes human papillomavirus E7 protein (HPV mRNA-LNP), a tumor-specific antigen of HPV-positive oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC). HPV mRNA-LNP vaccination activated overall and HPV-specific CD8+ T cells, as well as differentially drove the functional commitment of CD8+ T cells through distinct IFN-response and exhaustion trajectories in the spleen and TME, respectively. Combination therapies of HPV mRNA-LNP vaccination with immune checkpoint blockades boosted HPV-specific CD8+ T cells while maintaining their anti-tumor function, thus further promoting tumor regression. Our results showed that the HPV mRNA-LNP vaccination combined with immune checkpoint blockade is a promising approach for immunotherapy of HPV-positive OPSCC.

As a technical application in artificial intelligence, a social robot is one of the branches of robotic studies that emphasizes socially communicating and interacting with human beings. Although both robot and behavior research have realized the significance of social robot design for its market success and related emotional benefit to users, the specific design of the eye and mouth shape of a social robot in eliciting trustworthiness has received only limited attention. In order to address this research gap, our study conducted a 2 (eye shape) × 3 (mouth shape) full factorial between-subject experiment. A total of 211 participants were recruited and randomly assigned to the six scenarios in the study. After exposure to the stimuli, perceived trustworthiness and robot attitude were measured accordingly. The results showed that round eyes (vs. narrow eyes) and an upturned-shape mouth or neutral mouth (vs. downturned-shape mouth) for social robots could significantly improve people’s trustworthiness and attitude towards social robots. The effect of eye and mouth shape on robot attitude are all mediated by the perceived trustworthiness. Trustworthy human facial features could be applied to the robot’s face, eliciting a similar trustworthiness perception and attitude. In addition to empirical contributions to HRI, this finding could shed light on the design practice for a trustworthy-looking social robot.

Decision makers’ behavioral preferences have always been important in coordinating the supply chain. Decision makers need to choose a partner wisely to increase the profitability of the entire supply chain, especially in the competitive e-commerce environment. In this paper, we examine a two-echelon e-commerce supply chain with one retailer and one supplier using the most popular wholesale price contract to facilitate collaboration. Traditional research has shown that the classical expectation model cannot coordinate the supply chain. We apply the focus theory of choice to describe the retailer’s behavior as a follower, and we examine the impact of the retailer’s pricing decisions on the supplier under different focus preferences and the coordination for the entire supply chain. The lower the parameter φ, which represents the degree of positivity, and the higher the parameter κ, which represents the level of confidence, the closer the profit of the whole supply chain is to the coordination result—both are visualized through numerical experiments and images. In the case of φ determination, the lower the κ, the better the supply chain coordination. The finding implies that the retailer may be able to coordinate the supply chain and produce better results than the expectation model when he or she makes choices using a positive evaluation system that includes both higher levels of optimism and lower levels of confidence. The findings of the FTC model can simultaneously offer a theoretical foundation for expanding collaboration among supply chain participants and management insights for decision makers to choose cooperation partners.

Abstract Objectives This study aimed to investigate the survival outcomes and potential prognostic factors of patients with temporal bone squamous cell carcinoma (TBSCC) treated at our institution. Methods We retrospectively included patients who were diagnosed with TBSCC between 2008 and 2019. The Kaplan–Meier (KM) method was used to describe overall survival (OS), and the association between baseline characteristics and prognoses was examined using Cox proportional hazards models. Results Fifty consecutive patients with TBSCC were included in this study. The results showed that patients with advanced modified Pittsburgh (MPB)‐ T classifications had a poorer prognosis (T3 vs. T1‐2: HR: 2.81, 95% CI: 0.34–23.43; T4 vs. T1‐2: HR: 7.25, 95% CI: 0.95–55.41; p = 0.041). Meanwhile, middle ear squamous cell carcinoma (MESCC) showed a significantly worse prognosis than external auditory canal squamous cell carcinoma (EACSCC, HR: 2.65, 95% CI: 1.04–6.76, p = 0.04). Conclusions MESCC and advanced MPB‐T classifications might be considered predictors of unfavorable outcomes in patients with TBSCC, indicating that special attention should be paid to the original tumor subsite and tumor extension in the management of patients with TBSCC.

IntroductionBurkholderia is a rod-shaped aerobic Gram-negative bacteria with considerable genetic and metabolic diversity, which can beused for bioremediation and production applications, and has great biotechnology potential. However, there are few studies on the heavy metal resistance of the Burkholderia genus.MethodsIn this paper, the distribution, characteristics and evolution of heavy metal resistance genes in Burkholderia and the gene island of Tn7-like transposable element associated with heavy metal resistance genes in Burkholderia were studied by comparative genomic method based on the characteristics of heavy metal resistance.Results and discussionThe classification status of some species of the Burkholderia genus was improved, and it was found that Burkholderia dabaoshanensis and Burkholderia novacaledonica do not belong to the Burkholderia genus.Secondly, comparative genomics studies and pan-genome analysis found that the core genome of Burkholderia has alarger proportion of heavy metal resistance genes and a greater variety of heavy metalresistance genes than the subsidiary genome and strain specific genes. Heavy metal resistance genes are mostly distributed in the genome in the form of various gene clusters (for example, mer clusters, ars clusters, czc/cusABC clusters). At the same time, transposase, recombinase, integrase and other genes were foundupstream and downstream of heavy metal gene clusters, indicating that heavy metal resistance genes may beobtained through horizontal transfer. The analysis of natural selection pressure of heavy metal resistance genes showed that heavy metal resistance genes experienced strong purification selection under purification selection pressure in the genome.The Tn7 like transposable element of Burkholderia was associated with the heavy metal resistance gene island, and there were a large number of Tn7 transposable element insertion events in genomes. At the same time, BGI metal gene islands related to heavy metal resistance genes of Tn7 like transposable element were found, and these gene islands were only distributed in Burkholderia cepacia, Burkholderia polyvora, and Burkholderia contaminant.

Objectives To systematically assess the associations between various immune-mediated diseases (IMDs) and human papillomavirus (HPV)-associated diseases.Design Retrospective cohort study.Setting UK Biobank.Participants A total of 500 371 subjects aged 40–69 years were eligible for the analysis, after excluding those with prevalent HPV-associated diseases at baseline and those who had withdrawn their informed consent or lacked information on sex.Exposure Eighty IMDs (involving allergic/atopic diseases, autoimmune diseases, immunodeficiency diseases, etc) were identified in the UK Biobank.Primary and secondary outcome measures The main outcome was the incidence of HPV-associated diseases (including warts and malignancies of the cervix, oropharynx, anus, penis, vulva and vagina). Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate HRs and 95% CIs with particular adjustment for sexual behaviours. We also conducted subgroup analyses based on benign and malignant status, and anatomical sites of HPV-associated diseases, respectively.Results During a median of 12.0 years of follow-up, 2244 cases out of 500 371 subjects developed HPV-associated diseases. Overall, participants with IMDs had a higher risk of HPV-associated diseases than their controls after adjustment for sexual behaviours and other potential confounders (female: HR=1.90, 95% CI=1.66 to 2.17, p

Background Extended antithrombotic treatment is recommended for secondary prevention of unprovoked venous thromboembolism (VTE), however, there is no consensus on which antithrombotic strategy is preferable. Aim To compare the efficacy and safety of different antithrombotic strategies for secondary prevention unprovoked VTE. Methods Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Embase, and MEDLINE were systematically searched from inception to 22 July 2020 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared the efficacy and/or safety of extended antithrombotic strategies including aspirin, warfarin and direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) for secondary prevention of unprovoked VTE. The primary outcome was risk of major bleeding and the secondary outcomes were risks of recurrent VTE and all-cause death. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using pairwise and network meta-analysis with random effect. Possible ranking of extended antithrombotic strategies was plotted using the surface under the cumulative ranking curve and mean ranks. Results Seventeen RCTs met the inclusion criteria, and meta-analysis results showed that warfarin was associated with significantly higher risk of major bleeding than placebo/observation (OR 2.71, 95% CI 1.32–5.55) or apixaban (OR 10.65, 95% CI 1.06–107.13). Apixaban and low-apixaban were the top two strategies according to the ranking of major bleeding. Warfarin (OR 0.25, 95%CI 0.13–0.49), rivaroxaban (OR 0.18, 95%CI 0.03–0.90), apixaban (OR 0.18, 95%CI 0.04–0.85) and low-apixaban (OR 0.18, 95%CI 0.04–0.82) were related to significantly lower risk than placebo/observation; edoxaban was non-inferior to warfarin on the risk of recurrent VTE. Furthermore, apixaban was linked with significantly lower risk of all-cause death than placebo/observation (OR 0.29, 95% CI 0.09–0.88). Conclusion Apixaban showed superiority to other antithrombotic strategies on major bleeding and all-cause death for secondary prevention of unprovoked VTE. Further studies are warranted owing to the limited number of studies and positive cases.Key messages All antithrombotic strategies including warfarin, DOACs and aspirin were superior to placebo/observation on recurrent VTE for secondary prevention of unprovoked VTE. Apixaban demonstrated lower risk of major bleeding than warfarin, and lower risk of all-cause death than placebo/observation. Further research about the efficacy and safety of antithrombotic treatments for secondary prevention of unprovoked VTE is warranted.

The New Round of Review and Assessment on Undergraduate Education and Teaching & Learning has set requirements for the construction of quality assurance systems in universities. It emphasizes the focus on the university's teaching quality assurance system, the utilization of quality information in universities, and the improvement of quality and cultural development. This article takes the practice of Chengdu Neusoft University’s teaching quality management and assurance system as an example to explore the quality assurance system in private applied universities. It explains the connotation of the system and analyzes its support for evaluation and assessment, with the aim of providing reference and guidance for the construction of teaching quality assurance systems in private universities.

Abstract Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) infection is a common cause of community-acquired pneumonia in children. Furthermore, many children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (MPP) have recurrent wheezing and reduced small airway function after their clinical symptoms have resolved, eventually leading to asthma. MPP can trigger immune disorders and systemic inflammatory responses. Hence, the intestine is the largest immune organ of the body. Therefore, we sought to investigate whether the alteration of intestinal flora is correlated with the development of wheezing in children with MPP. We collected 30 healthy children as group A, 50 children with nonwheezing MPP as group B, and 50 children with wheezing MPP as group C. We found that the percentage of eosinophil cells (EC) was significantly higher in group C than that in group B for routine blood tests and serum inflammatory factors. The serum cytokines, including IL-4, IL-17, TNF-α, and TGF-β, were significantly higher in group C than in group B. In addition, the level of IL-10 was significantly lower in group C than in group B. The distribution characteristics of intestinal flora strains in children with MPP were detected by sequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. There were differences in the abundance of intestinal flora between children with MPP and healthy children, with lower abundance of Ruminococcus flavefaciens, Clostridium butyricum, Lactobacillus, and Bifidobacterium in the intestine of children with MPP compared to healthy children. The abundance of Ruminococcus flavefaciens and Clostridium butyricum was significantly lower in the intestine of children with wheezing MPP compared to children without wheezing MPP. In the correlation analysis between children with MPP and inflammatory factors, Ruminococcus flavefaciens was found to be negatively correlated with IL-17. Clostridium butyricum was negatively correlated with L-4, IL-17, TNF-α, and TGF-β; however, it positively correlated with IL-10. Thus, it was concluded that alterations in intestinal flora play a crucial role in the immune response to MPP, where a significant decline in intestinal Ruminococcus flavefaciens and Clostridium butyricum leads to an exacerbation of the inflammatory responses, which may promote the development of children with wheezing MPP.

In this paper, the damage initiation/propagation mechanisms and failure modes of open-hole carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites and thermosetting composites with tension, compression, and bearing loads are investigated, respectively, by experiments and finite element simulations. The experimental evaluations are performed on the specimens using the Combined Loading Compression (CLC) test method, the tensile test method, and the single-shear test method. The differences in macroscopic damage initiation, evolution mode, and damage characteristics between thermoplastic composite materials and thermosetting composite material open-hole structures are obtained and analyzed under compressive load. Based on scanning electron microscope SEM images, a comparative analysis is conducted on the micro-failure modes of fibers, matrices, and fiber/matrix interfaces in the open-hole structures of thermoplastic and thermosetting composites under compressive load. The differences between thermoplastic and thermosetting composites were analyzed from the micro-failure mechanism. Finally, based on continuum damage mechanics (CDM), a damage model is also developed for predicting the initiation and propagation of damage in thermoplastic composites. The model, which can capture fiber breakage and matrix crack, as well as the nonlinear response, is used to conduct virtual compression tests, tensile test, and single-shear test, respectively. Numerical simulation results are compared with the extracted experimental results. The displacement-load curve and failure modes match the experimental result, which indicates that the finite element model has good reliability.

Abstract Background Clinical education across the professions is challenged by a lack of recognition for faculty and pressure for patient throughput and revenue generation. These pressures may reduce direct observation of patient care provided by students, a requirement for both billing student-involved services and assessing competence. These same pressures may also limit opportunities for interprofessional education and collaboration. Methods An interprofessional group of faculty collaborated in a sequential quality improvement project to identify the best patients and physical location for a student teaching clinic. Patient chief complaint, use of resources, length of stay, estimated severity of illness and student participation and evaluation of the clinic was tracked. Results Clinic Optimization and Patient Care: Five hundred and thirty-two emergency department (ED) patients were seen in the first 19 months of the clinic. A clinic located near the ED allowed for patients with higher emergency severity index and greater utilization of imaging. Patients had similar or lower lengths of stay and higher satisfaction than patients who remained in the ED (p

The survival prognosis of human papillomavirus (HPV)-positive and HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is largely different, and little is known about the anti-tumor mechanism of tumor-infiltrated exhausted CD8+ T cells (Tex) in HNSCC. We performed cell-level multi-omics sequencing on human HNSCC samples to decipher the multi-dimensional characteristics of Tex cells. A proliferative exhausted CD8+ T cell cluster (P-Tex) which was beneficial to survival outcomes of patients with HPV-positive HNSCC was identified. Interestingly, P-Tex cells expressed CDK4 genes as high as cancer cells, which could be simultaneously inhibited by CDK4 inhibitors and might be a potential reason for the ineffectiveness of CDK4 inhibitors in treating HPV-positive HNSCC. P-Tex cells could aggregate in the antigen-presenting cell niches and activate certain signaling pathways. Together, our findings suggest a promising role for P-Tex cells in the prognosis of patients with HPV-positive HNSCC by providing modest but persistent anti-tumor effects.

In the protein nutrition strategy of middle-aged and elderly people, some believe that low protein is good for health, while others believe high protein is good for health. Facing the contradictory situation, the following hypothesis is proposed. There is a process of change from lower to higher ratio of protein nutritional requirements that are good for health in the human body after about 50 years of age, and the age at which the switch occurs is around 65 years of age. Hence, in this study, 50, 25-month-old male rats were randomly divided into five groups: Control (basal diet), LP (low-protein diet with a 30% decrease in protein content compared to the basal diet), HP (high-protein diet with a 30% increase in protein content compared to the basal diet), Model 1 (switched from LP to HP feed at week 4), and Model 2 (switched from LP to HP feed at week 7). After a total of 10 weeks intervention, the liver and serum samples were examined for aging-related indicators, and a newly comprehensive quantitative score was generated using principal component analysis (PCA). The effects of the five protein nutritional modalities were quantified in descending order: Model 1 > HP > LP > Control > Model 2. Furthermore, the differential metabolites in serum and feces were determined by orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis, and 15 differential metabolites, significantly associated with protein intake, were identified by Spearman’s correlation analysis (p < 0.05). Among the fecal metabolites, 10 were positively correlated and 3 were negatively correlated. In the serum, tyrosine and lactate levels were positively correlated, and acetate levels were negatively correlated. MetaboAnalyst analysis identified that the metabolic pathways influenced by protein intake were mainly related to amino acid and carbohydrate metabolism. The results of metabolomic analysis elucidate the mechanisms underlying the preceding effects to some degree. These efforts not only contribute to a unified protein nutrition strategy but also positively impact the building of a wiser approach to protein nutrition, thereby helping middle-aged and older populations achieve healthy aging.

Periapical lesions are infectious diseases that occur in the apical region of teeth. They result in the destruction of alveolar bone and are usually accompanied by swelling, pain, and possible systemic impacts. A complex interaction between pathogens and the host immune system determines the development, progression, and outcome of periapical lesions. The lesions, if not treated promptly, may cause resorption of bone tissue, destruction of the periodontal ligament, and loss of the affected teeth, all of which can severely worsen the quality of life of patients, often at considerable economic cost to both patients and medical organizations. Macrophages are a group of heterogeneous cells that have many roles in the development of infections, destruction and reconstruction of bone tissues, and microbe–host interactions. However, the differential and comprehensive polarization of macrophages complicates the understanding of the regulatory mechanism of periapical lesion progression. This report provides a comprehensive review of recent advances in our knowledge of the potential role of macrophages in determining the turnover of human periapical lesions. For example, macrophage differentiation might indicate whether the lesions are stable or progressing while the extent of bacteria invasion could regulate the differentiation and function of macrophages involved in the periapical lesion. In addition, alternative strategies for the treatment of apical periodontitis are discussed.

Typically, the formation of vesicles requires the addition of salts or other additives to surfactant micelles. However, in the case of catanionic surfactants, unilamellar vesicles can spontaneously form upon dilution of the micellar solutions. Our study explores the intriguing spontaneous vesicle-to-micelle transition in catanionic surfactant systems, specifically cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) and sodium octylsulfonate (SOS). To gain insights into the changes occurring at the interface, we employ a chemical trapping method to characterize variations in the molarities of sulfonate headgroups, water, and bromide ions during the transition. Our findings reveal the formation of ion pairs between the cationic component of CTAB and the anionic component of SOS, leading to tight interfacial packing in CTAB/SOS solutions. This interfacial packing promotes vesicle formation at low surfactant concentrations. Due to the significant difference in critical micelle concentration (cmc) between CTAB and SOS, an increase in the stoichiometric surfactant concentration results in a substantial rise in the SOS-to-CTAB ratio within the interfacial region. This enrichment of SOS in the aggregates triggers the transition from vesicles to micelles. Overall, our study may shed new light on the design of morphologies in catanionic and other surfactant systems.

Social robots serve as autonomous systems for performing social behaviors and assuming social roles. However, there is a lack of research focusing on the specific measurement of facial trustworthiness toward anthropomorphic robots, particularly during initial interactions. To address this research gap, a hybrid deep convolution approach was employed in this study, involving a crowdsourcing platform for data collection and deep convolution and factor analysis for data processing. The goal was to develop a scale, called Facial Anthropomorphic Trustworthiness towards Social Robots (FATSR-17), to measure the trustworthiness of a robot’s facial appearance. The final measurement scale comprised four dimensions, “ethics concern”, “capability”, “positive affect”, and “anthropomorphism”, consisting of 17 items. An iterative examination and a refinement process were conducted to ensure the scale’s reliability and validity. The study contributes to the field of robot design by providing designers with a structured toolkit to create robots that appear trustworthy to users.

ObjectiveThis study aims to compare the efficacy of plasma kinetic loop resection of the prostate (PKRP) and transurethral vaporization of the prostate (TUVP) for the treatment of high-risk benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), and analyze the influence of the related factors on the operation of BPH.MethodsA total of 108 high-risk BPH patients diagnosed in our hospital from March 2018 to September 2021 were selected and randomly divided into an observation group and a control group, with 54 cases in each group. The control group was treated with TUVP, and the observation group was treated with PKRP. The international prostate symptom score (IPSS), quality of life (QOL) index, maximum urine flow rate (Qmax), and residual urine volume (RU) were observed before and after treatment. The general information such as age, educational level, residence, and residence status of the patient, as well as clinical information such as surgical method, nocturia frequency, preoperative IPSS score, RU, medical history, and prostate texture, were also recorded. All patients were followed up for 1 month, and complications were recorded.ResultsThe IPSS score, QOL score, and RU of patients in the two groups were lower after treatment than those before treatment, and the Qmax was higher than that before treatment (P

Abstract Empirical interatomic potentials require optimization of force field parameters to tune interatomic interactions to mimic ones obtained by quantum chemistry-based methods. The optimization of the parameters is complex and requires the development of new techniques. Here, we propose an INitial-DEsign Enhanced Deep learning-based OPTimization (INDEEDopt) framework to accelerate and improve the quality of the ReaxFF parameterization. The procedure starts with a Latin Hypercube Design (LHD) algorithm that is used to explore the parameter landscape extensively. The LHD passes the information about explored regions to a deep learning model, which finds the minimum discrepancy regions and eliminates unfeasible regions, and constructs a more comprehensive understanding of physically meaningful parameter space. We demonstrate the procedure here for the parameterization of a nickel–chromium binary force field and a tungsten–sulfide–carbon–oxygen–hydrogen quinary force field. We show that INDEEDopt produces improved accuracies in shorter development time compared to the conventional optimization method.

With an ageing population, healthy longevity is becoming an important scientific concern. The longevity phenomenon is closely related to the intestinal microflora and is highly complicated; it is challenging to identify and define the core gut microbiota associated with longevity. Therefore, in this study, 16S rRNA sequencing data were obtained from a total of 135 faecal samples collected as part of the latest sampling and pre-collection initiative in the Guangxi longevity area, and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was used to find a mediumpurple3 network module significantly associated with the Guangxi longevity phenomenon. Five core genera, namely, Alistipes, Bacteroides, Blautia, Lachnospiraceae NK4A136 group, and Lactobacillus, were identified via network analysis and random forest (RF) in this module. Two potential probiotic strains, Lactobacillus fermentum and Bacteroides fragilis, were further isolated and screened from the above five core genera, and then combined and used as an intervention in naturally ageing mice. The results show a change in the key longevity gut microbiota in mice toward a healthy longevity state after the intervention. In addition, the results show that the probiotic combination effectively ameliorated anxiety and necrosis of hippocampal neuronal cells in senescent mice, improving their antioxidant capacity and reducing their inflammation levels. In conclusion, this longer-term study provides a new approach to the search for longevity hub microbiota. These results may also provide an important theoretical reference for the healthification of the intestinal microflora in the general population, and even the remodelling of the structure of the longevity-state intestinal microflora.

The phenomenon of longevity in Guangxi of China proved to be closely relevant to its specific dietary habits, but the exact effects of this diet on health remain to be explored. In this work, fourteen screened volunteers with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk followed a novel dietary pattern derived from centenarians of Guangxi, China for 2 weeks, then the effects of diet on human health were explored by measuring the health metrics and fecal metabolites. The results showed that the short-term dietary intervention significantly decreased the body weight, body mass index (BMI), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), mean systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) levels, while it significantly increased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) levels. Orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) indicated a distinct separation in the fecal metabolic profiles of volunteers before and after the intervention. Nine of these metabolites showed significant differences, including two metabolites increased (butyrate and citrulline), seven metabolites decreased (threonine, choline, glycine, aspartate, alanine, N-acetylglutamic acid and lysine). Pathway and enrichment analysis showed that the reduction in CVD risk by dietary intervention mainly affected five pathways, which include arginine biosynthesis; aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis; glycine, serine and threonine metabolism; alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism; and valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis. Herein, the Guangxi longevity dietary pattern can provide a feasible healthy diet strategy for reducing the CVD risk and human beings.Clinical Trial Registration[http://www.chictr.org.cn], identifier [ChiCTR220 0058216].

To increase public awareness and disseminate health information, the WHO and health departments worldwide have been visualizing the latest statistics on the spread of COVID-19 to increase awareness and thus reduce its spread. Within various sources, graphs are frequently used to illustrate COVID-19 datasets. Limited research has provided insights into the effect of different graphs on emotional stress and ineffective behavioral strategies from a cross-cultural perspective. The result of current research suggests a graph with a high proportion size of the colored area (e.g., stacked area graph) might increase people's anxiety and social distancing intentions; people in collectivist culture might have a high level of anxiety and social distancing intentions; the effect of different graphs on social distancing intentions is mediated by anxiety experienced. Theoretical contribution and practical implications on health communication were also discussed in this study.

Background and ObjectiveChronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) is a histamine-mediated inflammatory skin disease, and second-generation non-sedating H1-antihistamines (nsAH) at licensed doses have long been the first-line therapy in CSU. However, about 50% of patients are resistant to nsAH, and the precise pathogenesis remains largely unknown but seems to be associated with low-level systemic or intestinal inflammation. We aim to determine the fecal microbial composition and clarify its correlation with the clinical profiles og CSU with nsAH resistance.MethodsA total of 25 CSU patients with or 19 CSU patients without nsAH resistance and 19 healthy controls (HC) were enrolled in this study. The intestinal microbiome was detected by 16S rRNA sequencing. The data were analyzed using R language software.ResultsSignificantly higher urticarial activity score for 7 days, stool calprotectin, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, serum C-reactive protein, and interleukin-6, but much lower alpha-diversity and evenness of fecal bacterial community were observed in CSU patients with nsAH resistance than in those without (P

Skin-resident stromal cells, including keratinocytes, fibroblasts, adipocytes, and immune cells including Langerhans cells, dendritic cells, T cells, and innate lymphoid cells, and their functional products work in concert to ensure the realization of skin barrier immunity. However, aging-induced immunosenescence predisposes the elderly to pruritic dermatoses, including type 2 inflammation-mediated. Inflammaging, characterized by chronic low level of pro-inflammatory cytokines released from senescent cells with the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), may drive immunosenescence and tangle with type 2 inflammatory dermatoses. The present mini-review summarizes current evidence on immunosenescence and type 2 inflammation in the skin and further focuses on future needs from an inflammaging perspective to clarify their complexity.

With the development of material synthesis technology, many artificial materials imitating natural materials have emerged in the construction industry. The processing technology of these materials’ surface imitating natural texture is becoming more and more realistic. Some materials are not made of sustainable material but use natural textures to imitate natural materials, attempting to bring users a sense of being close to nature and ecology to attract consumers to use it. However, the intention of use still depends on the user’s other factors like health, aesthetics, and environmental friendliness of the material. Therefore, the challenge for material manufacturers and designers is to understand people’s perceptions of these materials to increase their acceptance by users. This paper aims to investigate the user’s perception of materials (sustainable-unsustainable) to evaluate their perception of naturalness, environmental friendliness, and aesthetics through the visual senses. A total of 112 participants participated in the experiment which was divided into two groups (professional architects and non-professionals). The judgment of non-professionals on the environmental protection of materials imitating natural skin is relatively accurate, which is almost consistent with the judgment of professionals. Results show the importance of maintaining the naturalness of the surface texture in the material, which can enhance the user’s demand for a natural aesthetic feeling. Therefore, it is important to maintain the naturalness of surface texture in the process of material surface treatment. Users’ natural perception of materials will affect their aesthetic perception of materials.

Light-harvesting chlorophyll a/b-binding (LHC) superfamily proteins play a vital role in photosynthesis. Although the physiological and biochemical functions of LHC genes have been well-characterized, the structural evolution and functional differentiation of the products need to be further studied. In this paper, we report the genome-wide identification and phylogenetic analysis of LHC genes in photosynthetic organisms. A total of 1222 non-redundant members of the LHC family were identified from 42 species. According to the phylogenetic clustering of their homologues with Arabidopsis thaliana, they can be divided into four subfamilies. In the subsequent evolution of land plants, a whole-genome replication (WGD) event was the driving force for the evolution and expansion of the LHC superfamily, with its copy numbers rapidly increasing in angiosperms. The selection pressure of photosystem II sub-unit S (PsbS) and ferrochelatase (FCII) families were higher than other subfamilies. In addition, the transcriptional expression profiles of LHC gene family members in different tissues and their expression patterns under exogenous abiotic stress conditions significantly differed, and the LHC genes are highly expressed in mature leaves, which is consistent with the conclusion that LHC is mainly involved in the capture and transmission of light energy in photosynthesis. According to the expression pattern and copy number of LHC genes in land plants, we propose different evolutionary trajectories in this gene family. This study provides a basis for understanding the molecular evolutionary characteristics and evolution patterns of plant LHCs.

BackgroundThe molecular mechanisms of acute otitis media (AOM) development, and the intercellular crosstalk within the multicellular ecosystem of AOM, are not clear.MethodsWe established a model of AOM in rats (with normal rats as controls) and undertook single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) for the middle-ear mucosa (MEM). Cell clustering and trajectory analyses were undertaken using Seurat and Monocle 2 packages in R software. Pathway analyses were done by gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). Cell–cell interactions were inferred by CellChat. Cell scores were calculated to identify cells with dual-feature.ResultsA total of 7023 cells from three samples of inflamed MEM and 5258 cells from three samples of healthy MEM underwent scRNA-seq, which identified 20 cell clusters belonging to eight major cell types. After exposure to lipopolysaccharide, the MEM underwent significant conversion of cell types characterized by rapid infiltration of macrophages and neutrophils. M2 macrophages seemed to play a key part in inflammatory intercellular crosstalk, which facilitated the maintenance and proliferation of macrophages, cell chemotaxis, and regulation of the proinflammatory activities of cytokines. Three rare cell clusters with phagocytosis-related dual-feature were also identified. They coexisted with professional phagocytes in the MEM, and displayed distinct immunoregulatory functions by maintaining a normal immune microenvironment or influencing inflammation progression.ConclusionsMacrophages might be the “master” initiators and regulators of the inflammatory response of the MEM to external stimuli. And their functions are fulfilled by a specific polarization status (M2) and sophisticated intercellular crosstalk via certain signaling pathways. Besides, the coexistence of professional phagocytes and non-professional phagocytes as well as their interplay in the MEM provides new clues for deciphering the underlying pathogenic mechanisms of AOM.

MicroRNAs have been proven to make remarkable differences in the clinical behaviors of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). This study aims to systematically analyze whether differential expression levels of microRNAs are related to recurrence or metastasis in patients with HNSCC. A comprehensive search of the PubMed, EMBASE, and CENTRAL was conducted up to July 24th, 2021. Data were collected and combined from studies reporting recurrence-free survival (RFS) of HNSCC patients with high microRNA expression compared to those with low expression. Besides, studies providing necessary data for evaluating the diagnostic value of microRNAs for detecting recurrence and metastasis based on their expression levels were also included and combined. The pooled hazard ratio (HR) value for the outcomes of RFS in 1,093 HNSCC samples from 10 studies was 2.51 (95%CI: 2.13–2.96). A sensitivity of 0.79 (95% CI: 0.72–0.85) and specificity of 0.77 (95%CI: 0.68–0.83) were observed in three studies, of which 93 patients with recurrence and 82 nonrecurrence controls were included, and the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.85 (95% CI: 0.81–0.88). Additionally, high diagnostic accuracy of microRNAs in detecting lymph node metastasis (LNM) was also reported. In conclusion, two panels of microRNAs showed the potential to predict recurrence or diagnose recurrence in HNSCC patients, respectively, which could facilitate prognosis prediction and diagnosis of clinical behaviors in HNSCC patients.Systematic Review RegistrationPROSPERO (https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero), identifier CRD42020161117.

Assessing individual aging has always been an important topic in aging research. Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) has a short lifespan and is a popular model organism widely utilized in aging research. Studying the differences in C. elegans life stages is of great significance for human health and aging. In order to study the differences in C. elegans lifespan stages, the classification of lifespan stages is the first task to be performed. In the past, biomarkers and physiological changes captured with imaging were commonly used to assess aging in isogenic C. elegans individuals. However, all of the current research has focused only on physiological changes or biomarkers for the assessment of aging, which affects the accuracy of assessment. In this paper, we combine two types of features for the assessment of lifespan stages to improve assessment accuracy. To fuse the two types of features, an improved high-efficiency network (Att-EfficientNet) is proposed. In the new EfficientNet, attention mechanisms are introduced so that accuracy can be further improved. In addition, in contrast to previous research, which divided the lifespan into three stages, we divide the lifespan into six stages. We compared the classification method with other CNN-based methods as well as other classic machine learning methods. The results indicate that the classification method has a higher accuracy rate (72%) than other CNN-based methods and some machine learning methods.

Games are consistently acknowledged as a powerful approach that can significantly impact people’s behavior towards living in a sustainable way. Sensory cues are regarded as influential factors in facilitating immersive experiences in gamified applications to foster sustainable behavior. As our perception of an environment is influenced not only by what we can see but also by additional sensory input such as sound and touch, additional sensory information can be part of the participant’s experience. This study systematically scrutinized game-based applications containing sensory cues to interpret current technology-assisted sustainable behavior development. This study provides a review of the impact of the sensory signals offered by video games, virtual reality, and augmented reality on pro-environmental behavioral intention. This research found that human senses can change the perception of immersion in multiple ways: visual (dimensions, angles, color), auditory (music, dialogue), and haptic, and these can affect sustainable behavior. Thus, we argue that multiple sensory modalities provide more opportunities to influence users to act sustainably. Based on the results, the theoretical contribution of this paper emphasizes the level of immersion, which is closely related to various sensory perceptions, and explains the correlation between them. In terms of industrial applications, it provides game designers, developers of VR and AR applications, and planners of sustainable education guidelines for the adoption of immersive scenarios.

Abstract Background In addition to providing free hepatitis B vaccine (HBvacc) series to all infants in China since 2005, the national programme on prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of hepatitis B virus (HBV) started providing free hepatitis B immunoglobulin for all new-borns born to hepatitis B surface-antigen (HBsAg) positive mothers in 2010. However, few studies have evaluated the effectiveness of the PMTCT programme. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the outcomes of the programme and identify associated factors. Method Using a cross-sectional study design, we collected data on 4112 pairs of HBsAg-positive mothers and their children aged 7–22 months in four representative provinces through interviews and medical record review. We tested HBsAg and hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs) of children by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay at designated maternal and child hospital laboratories. We used logistic regression to analyse factors associated with child HBsAg and anti-HBs positivity. Results Thirty-five children were HBsAg positive, indicating the mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) rate was 0.9% (0.6–1.1%). The anti-HBs positive rate was 96.8% (96.3-97.4%). Children receiving HBvacc between 12 and 24 h of birth were 2.9 times more likely to be infected than those vaccinated in less than 12 h (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 2.9, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.4–6.3, P = 0.01). Maternal hepatitis B e-antigen (HBeAg) positivity was associated with higher MTCT rate (aOR = 79.1, 95% CI: 10.8–580.2, P

Background: Automated segmentation of COVID-19 infection lesions and the assessment of the severity of the infections are critical in COVID-19 diagnosis and treatment. Based on a large amount of annotated data, deep learning approaches have been widely used in COVID-19 medical image analysis. However, the number of medical image samples is generally huge, and it is challenging to obtain enough annotated medical images for training a deep CNN model. Methods: To address these challenges, we propose a novel self-supervised deep learning method for automated segmentation of COVID-19 infection lesions and assessing the severity of infection, which can reduce the dependence on the annotation of the training samples. In the proposed method, first, many unlabeled data are used to pre-train an encoder-decoder model to learn rotation-dependent and rotation-invariant features. Then, a small amount of labeled data is used to fine-tune the pre-trained encoder-decoder for COVID-19 severity classification and lesion segmentation. Results: The proposed methods were tested on two public COVID-19 CT datasets and one self-built dataset. Accuracy, precision, recall, and F1-score were used to measure classification performance and Dice coefficient was used to measure segmentation performance. For COVID-19 severity classification, the proposed method outperformed other unsupervised feature learning methods by about 7.16% in accuracy. For segmentation, when the amount of labeled data was 100%, the Dice value of the proposed method was 5.58% higher than that of U-Net.; in 70% of the cases, our method was 8.02% higher than U-Net; in 30% of the cases, our method was 11.88% higher than U-Net; and in 10% of the cases, our method was 16.88% higher than U-Net. Conclusions: The proposed method provides better classification and segmentation performance under limited labeled data than other methods.

BackgroundThe Chinese government's early handling of COVID-19 has been perceived as aggressive and oppressive. Many of the most radical measures were adopted in Henan province, immediately north of Hubei, the pandemic's epicentre in China. However, little is known about how rural residents-a group systematically disadvantaged in Chinese society-responded to authorities' draconian restrictions.MethodsTo understand the lockdown measures and rural community responses at the grassroots level, face-to-face interviewers were conducted with both village cadres and villagers from two Henan villages in May and June 2020. The interviews were analysed with qualitative content analysis methods, with the coding process guided by the concepts of resilience, vulnerability and adaptability from the literature on disaster risk reduction.ResultsWe found that the lockdown measures were indeed radical and disproportionate relative to the level of risk presented; however, they were largely accepted by villagers. This contradiction can be explained by two key contributing factors: (i) shared interests of individual villagers and the converged goal of government and civil society, and (ii) tacit flexibility in COVID-19 adaption strategies to tackle conflict resulting from goal diversion between citizens and local governments.ConclusionsThese findings highlight the nuances of ground-level politics. Despite their 'radical' nature, the lockdown measures were not implemented as simple top-down coercion. Instead, they involved, importantly, the bottom-up, localised response of villagers, and they were negotiated and adapted according to local circumstances.

An excellent ecological environment is conducive for improving economic benefits and social benefits. The environmental pollution control requires the cooperation of governments at all levels and a large amount of capital investment. However, under the system with Chinese characteristics, the intergovernmental relations present complex and dynamic characteristics: the central government is authoritative, the local governments are obedient and self-interested, and the environmental pollution control usually involves multiple government departments, while it has strong externality, which makes it easy to breed “free rider” behavior in the process of environmental pollution control. Therefore, the cross-regional environmental pollution control cooperation model of governments at all levels is a complex and worthwhile research problem. Based on this, the paper studies a tripartite game problem of environmental pollution control from both horizontal and vertical intergovernmental relations. The Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman equation was used to obtain the optimal effort strategy, environmental pollution control level, and environmental pollution losses under the Nash game model, the Stackelberg game model, and the Cooperative game model. The results show the following: firstly, the governments’ environmental pollution control efforts are positively related to their own execution ability and influence ability and negatively related to the cost coefficient; secondly, from the perspectives of environmental pollution control level and environmental pollution losses, the Cooperative game model is superior to the Nash game model and the Stackelberg game; thirdly, this paper analyzes the relationship between the loss-bearing ratio, the special financial funds, the effort level of government, and the environmental pollution control level; finally, the conclusions are verified by numerical analysis, which proves the validity of the models.

Background Sinonasal teratocarcinosarcoma (SNTCS) is a highly invasive malignant tumor most frequently found in the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses. As a result, it can be confused with other sinonasal tumors. In addition, SNTCS progresses rapidly and often infiltrates other tissues or organs in the early phase, resulting in poor patient prognosis. The objective of this article was to report the case of a patient with SNTCS and discuss the management strategy. Furthermore, we conducted a literature review for SNTCS and summarized the findings from 107 cases. Case presentation: Here, we report a 47-year-old man diagnosed with SNTCS and treated with radiochemotherapy after an initial operation. After follow-up for 5 years, no tumor recurrence was observed. Conclusions As SNTCS progresses rapidly, early diagnosis and surgical treatment combined with radiochemotherapy can improve patient survival.

This study investigated the effect of sweet potato starch (SPS) and konjac glucomannan (KGM) on the textural, color, sensory, rheological properties, and microstructures of plant-based pork rinds. Plant-based gels were prepared using mixtures of soy protein isolate (SPI), soy oil, and NaHCO3 supplemented with different SPS and KGM concentrations. The texture profile analysis (TPA) results indicated that the hardness, cohesiveness, and chewiness of the samples improved significantly after appropriate SPS and KGM addition. The results obtained via a colorimeter showed no significant differences were found in lightness (L*) between the samples and natural pork rinds after adjusting the SPS and KGM concentrations. Furthermore, the rheological results showed that adding SPS and KGM increased both the storage modulus (G’) and loss modulus (G’’), indicating a firmer gel structure. The images obtained via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that the SPS and KGM contributed to the formation of a more compact gel structure. A mathematical model allowed for a more objective sensory evaluation, with the 40% SPS samples and the 0.4% KGM samples being considered the most similar to natural pork rinds, which provided a comparable texture, appearance, and mouthfeel. This study proposed a possible schematic model for the gelling mechanism of plant-based pork rinds: the three-dimensional network structures of the samples may result from the interaction between SPS, SPI, and soybean oil, while the addition of KGM and NaHCO3 enabled a more stable gel structure.