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Dysbiosis is a common status of intestinal microbiota in modern society and is associated with many diseases. Diarrhea is a kind of dysbiosis and is frequently caused by imbalanced gut microbiota due to misuse of antibiotics. A lot of evidence has shown that probiotics can exhibit potential to alleviate the effects of antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). In this study, Lincomycin was utilized to induce AAD in rats and then the effects of the multi-strain probiotic preparation BaciMix on this model were evaluated. The rat groups, including healthy control rats, AAD-induced rats, AAD rats with no treatment (self-healing rats), and AAD rats treated by BaciMix preparation, were analyzed regarding general health status, some immune indices, and intestinal microbiota changes. The results disclosed that the BaciMix preparation remarkably reduced the effects of the antibiotic regarding the diarrhea score and cecum thickness in the rats treated by BaciMix preparation. Additionally, the BaciMix preparation reduced pre-inflammatory cytokines, including TNF-α, and IL-6, while increasing the IgA in sera and intestinal mucosae. Moreover, the BaciMix preparation amended the compositions and differential abundance of intestinal bacteria of the rats to increase some beneficial bacteria like Lactobacillus, Bacillus, Hungatella, and Romboutsia, and to decrease some potentially harmful genera such as Bacteroides, Escherichia-Shigella, and Proteus. Generally, BaciMix preparation displayed helpful effects on the AAD rat model. [ J Adv Biotechnol Exp Ther 2024; 7(1.000): 53-64]

BackgroundDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, health care professionals experienced high levels of depression. However, extant research has not highlighted effective internet-based psychological interventions to improve the mental health in this population during the pandemic. It remains unclear whether self-guided, internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) programs are effective in improving the mental health of health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a smartphone-based iCBT stress management program for reducing the depression experienced by nurses in Vietnam and Thailand. MethodsFrom March to April 2022, a 2-arm, parallel-group randomized controlled trial was implemented. One arm offered a 7-week self-guided iCBT program, and the other offered treatment as usual as a control arm. Full-time nurses were recruited from 6 hospitals: 2 hospitals in Vietnam and 4 hospitals in Thailand. The primary outcome of this program was the severity of depression measured by the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 items. Follow-up surveys were conducted to measure the change in depression severity at 3 months (July-August 2022) and at 6 months (October-November 2022) after baseline. Mixed modeling for repeated measures was used to test the effects of the intervention compared with the control for the follow-up. ResultsA total of 1203 nurses were included in this study: 602 in the intervention group and 601 in the control group. The follow-up rate at 3 and 6 months ranged from 85.7% (515/601) to 87.5% (527/602). The completion rate for the program was 68.1% (410/602). The group difference in depression was significant at the 3-month follow-up (coefficient=–0.92, 95% CI –1.66 to –0.18; P=.02) and nonsignificant at the 6-month follow-up (coefficient=–0.33, 95% CI –1.11 to 0.45; P=.41). The estimated effect sizes were –0.15 and –0.06 at the 3- and 6-month follow-ups, respectively. ConclusionsOur study shows that the smartphone-based iCBT program was effective in reducing depression at the 3-month follow-up among hospital nurses in Vietnam and Thailand during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the effect size was small, and therefore, these results may not be clinically meaningful. Trial RegistrationUMIN Clinical Trials Registry UMIN000044145; https://center6.umin.ac.jp/cgi-open-bin/ctr/ctr_view.cgi?recptno=R000050128 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)RR2-10.20944/preprints202303.0450.v1

Abstract On May 27, 2022, the Asia Pacific Heart Rhythm Society and the Heart Rhythm Society convened a meeting of leaders from different professional societies of healthcare providers committed to arrhythmia care from the Asia Pacific region. The overriding goals of the meeting were to discuss clinical and health policy issues that face each country for providing care for patients with electrophysiologic issues, share experiences and best practices, and discuss potential future solutions. Participants were asked to address a series of questions in preparation for the meeting. The format of the meeting was a series of individual country reports presented by the leaders from each of the professional societies followed by open discussion. The recorded presentations from the Asia Summit can be accessed at https://www.heartrhythm365.org/URL/asiasummit‐22. Three major themes arose from the discussion. First, the major clinical problems faced by different countries vary. Although atrial fibrillation is common throughout the region, the most important issues also include more general issues such as hypertension, rheumatic heart disease, tobacco abuse, and management of potentially life‐threatening problems such as sudden cardiac arrest or profound bradycardia. Second, there is significant variability in the access to advanced arrhythmia care throughout the region because of differences in workforce availability, resources, drug availability, and national health policies. Third, collaboration in the area already occurs between individual countries, but no systematic regional method for working together is present.

In this paper, we investigate the impact of two pulse shapes on the performance of a real-time free-space optical communication link. The two candidate pulse shapes are the square-root raised cosine and Xia pulse, respectively which are tested as the basis function for multi-band carrier-less amplitude and phase modulation. We first develop a real-time system based on a Xilinx Zynq ZCU102 system-on-chip platform utilising a high-resolution analogue-to-digital-converter. We then generate multi-band carrier-less amplitude and phase modulation formats using it and test the error vector magnitude whilst varying parameters. We emulate the fog environment utilising neutral density filters and evaluate the error performance of the link under increasingly poor visibility conditions. We show that contrary to previous reports, the SRRC pulse shape offers superior performance over the first-order Xia pulse in the FSO environment operating at data rates exceeding 1 Gb/s.

Objective: This retrospective study aims to describe the disease patterns among patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) in a public provincial hospital in North Central Vietnam in 2020. Design: We conducted a retrospective descriptive study. Setting: The study was conducted in the Thanh Hoa General Hospital, Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. The study included all emergency and critical care admissions hospitalized from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020. Main outcome measures: Data on age, gender, hospital admission, and discharge dates, length of hospital stays, illness chapters (based on ICD-10 codes), and treatment results determined at the hospital discharge of 27,152 episodes of ICU admission were collected. Results: The three illness chapters of ICD-10 with the most patients were Chapter IX-Diseases of the Circulatory System, Chapter XI-Diseases of the Digestive System, and Chapter XIX-Injury, Poisoning, and Some Other Consequences of External Causes, with 21.6%, 21%, and 20.3% of patients, respectively. Most episodes (n = 21,999, 81.0%) showed improved health at the time of hospital discharge, with up to 87% of patients finding a cure. Conclusions: The insights gained from this study can inform healthcare strategies, resource planning, and policy decisions to enhance the delivery of critical care services in the region. Further research and ongoing surveillance will be essential to adapt healthcare systems to the evolving landscape of diseases and to ensure the continued improvement of patient outcomes in intensive care settings.

The working conditions for teachers in Vietnam were characterized by increased workload and pressure, burdening teachers' well-being. The study aims to investigate anxiety prevalence and identify some related factors among primary and secondary school teachers in Hanoi after the first COVID-19 outbreak in 2020. This paper analyzed data of 481 teachers working at ten primary and secondary schools in Hanoi city. Anxiety was measured using the anxiety component of the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress scale 42 items. Multivariable logistics regression was performed to examine anxiety-related factors using SPSS 20.0 at a significant level p less than 0.05. The prevalence of anxiety symptoms was 42.4% and similar between primary and secondary school teachers. More secondary teachers reported moderate to severe anxiety symptoms than primary teachers did (31.6% and 27.7%). Primary school teachers who felt discomfort with their supervisor's assessment, high responsibility for student safety, and ever thinking of leaving their current job were more likely to report anxiety symptoms (OR (95%CI) = 2.8 (1.2-6.5), 3.6 (1.0-12.8), and 2.6 (1.3-5.4), respectively). Meanwhile, the discomfort of caring for many students or problematic students, repetitive work, and disagreement with coworkers were risk factors of anxiety among secondary school teachers (OR (95%CI) = 2.6 (1.2-5.8), 3.2 (1.1-9.2), 3.4 (1.3-8.8), and 3.7 (1.1-12.6), respectively). In conclusion, the prevalence of teachers with anxiety symptoms is on the rise, caused by the characteristics of the job and professional relationships. Tailored support for teachers in different grades is necessary to improve and prevent teachers' anxiety.

Piglet lethality is one of the major concerns in pig breeding programs. Deletion of a 212-kb region within the Bardet-Biedl syndrome 9 ( BBS9 ) gene has been linked to a reduction in the number of piglets born alive per litter. The BBS9 mutant gene carrier-by-carrier mating scheme could result in mummification of piglets carrying 2 copies of the BBS9 mutant allele, which ultimately affects the reproductive performance of the sow. Our aim was to develop a simple, rapid, and cost-efficient method that could be applied in a BBS9 mutant gene carrier screening program in low- and middle-income countries within basic laboratory settings. Here, we report an optimized multiplex PCR assay that we have established successfully for detection of a 212-kb deletion within the BBS9 genomic sequence. We genotyped 420 animals from Yorkshire, Duroc, and Landrace purebred populations in Vietnam. We found that while the BBS9 mutant allele was not identified in Duroc pigs, the frequency of BBS9 carriers was 10% in both Yorkshire and Landrace populations. We subsequently validated our results using Sanger sequencing. Our multiplex PCR method could be utilized as a BBS9 screening test in pig breeding programs., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Osteoporosis arises from the disturbance of bone homeostasis, a process regulated by osteoblasts and osteoclasts. The treatment and prevention of bone metabolic disorders resulting from an imbalance in bone homeostasis require the use of agents that effectively promote both bone formation and anti-resorptive effects. Therefore, an investigation was carried out to determine the potential of the edible mushroom Auricularia auricula-judae in modulating bone remodeling by inhibiting RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis and enhancing BMP-2-stimulated osteoblast differentiation. Moreover, this study assessed the mode of action of the Auricularia auricula-judae extracts. The staining of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP), a marker for osteoclast activity, demonstrated that Auricularia auricula-judae water extract (AAJWE) inhibited the formation of multinucleated osteoclasts while exhibiting no cytotoxic effects. The study demonstrated that AAJWE reduced RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation by inhibiting c-Fos/NFATc1 through the inhibition of ERK and JNK phosphorylation during the RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation. Moreover, AAJWE exhibited a dose-dependent induction of ALP expression in the presence of BMP-2 during osteoblast differentiation. The AAJWE strengthened BMP-2-induced osteogenesis through the activation of Runx2 and Smad phosphorylation. Therefore, AAJWE emerges as a promising candidate for both prevention and therapy owing to its biphasic effect, which aids in the preservation of bone homeostasis.

The skin, recognized as the largest organ in the human body, serves a vital function in safeguarding against external threats. Severe damage to the skin can pose significant risks to human health. There is an urgent requirement for safe and effective therapies for wound healing. While phytotherapy has been widely utilized for various health conditions, the potential of Quercus glauca in promoting wound healing has not been thoroughly explored. Q. glauca is a cultivated crop known for its abundance of bioactive compounds. This study examined the wound-healing properties of Quercus glauca acorn seed coat water extract (QGASE). The findings from the study suggest that QGASE promotes wound closure in HF cells by upregulating essential markers related to the wound-healing process. Additionally, QGASE demonstrates antioxidant effects, mitigating oxidative stress and aiding in recovery from injuries induced by H 2 O 2 . In vivo experiments provide additional substantiation supporting the efficacy of QGASE in enhancing wound healing. The collective results indicate that QGASE may be a promising candidate for the development of innovative therapeutic strategies aimed at enhancing skin wound repair.

Tumor cells in hypoxic conditions control cancer metabolism and angiogenesis by expressing HIF-1α. Tanshinone is a traditional Chinese medicine that has been shown to possess antitumor properties and exerts a therapeutic impact on angiogenesis. However, the precise molecular mechanism responsible for the antitumor activity of 3-Hydroxytanshinone (3-HT), a type of tanshinone, has not been fully understood. Therefore, our study aimed to investigate the mechanism by which 3-HT regulates the expression of HIF-1α. Our findings demonstrate that 3-HT inhibits HIF-1α activity and expression under hypoxic conditions. Additionally, 3-HT inhibits hypoxia-induced angiogenesis by suppressing the expression of VEGF. Moreover, 3-HT was found to directly bind to α-enolase, an enzyme associated with glycolysis, resulting in the suppression of its activity. This inhibition of α-enolase activity by 3-HT leads to the blockade of the glycolytic pathway and a decrease in glycolysis products, ultimately altering HIF1-α expression. Furthermore, 3-HT negatively regulates the expression of HIF-1α by altering the phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). Our study's findings elucidate the mechanism by which 3-HT regulates HIF-1α through the inhibition of the glycolytic enzyme α-enolase and the phosphorylation of AMPK. These results suggest that 3-HT holds promise as a potential therapeutic agent for hypoxia-related angiogenesis and tumorigenesis.