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Nonadherence to physicians’ recommendations can have a detrimental impact on patient health, to say nothing of the financial cost to the already unsustainable Canadian healthcare system. This comparative study aimed at gaining a deeper understanding of the factors influencing adherence to prescribed medications and lifestyle change recommendations among First Nations patients and patients of European ancestry. In-depth, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 40 participants in Northern British Columbia, Canada. Interviews were transcribed and qualitatively analyzed. Results show that medical adherence derives from an interaction between personal factors and situational or external factors. A comparative analysis revealed that a disproportionate number of First Nations patients faced situational barriers that impeded with medical adherence. These factors include geographical isolation, lack of access to a regular doctor, negative healthcare experiences, and financial constraints. Analyzed through a postcolonial interpretive lens, the research findings highlight the need to reduce systemic barriers within the healthcare system and the wider social context, especially among First Nations patients living in remote communities.

Chao Chen,1,* Jing Duan,1,* Aifang Shen,2,* Wei Wang,1 Hao Song,1 Yanming Liu,1 Xianjie Lu,1 Xiaobing Wang,2 Zhiqing You,1 Zhongchao Han,3,4 Fabin Han1 1Center for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine, The Liaocheng People's Hospital, Affiliated Liaocheng Hospital, Taishan Medical University, Shandong, People's Republic of China; 2Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The Liaocheng People's Hospital, Affiliated Liaocheng Hospital, Taishan Medical University, Shandong, People's Republic of China; 3The State Key Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Institute of Hematology and Hospital of Blood Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union of Medical College, Tianjin, People's Republic of China; 4National Engineering Research Center of Cell Products, AmCellGene Co. Ltd., TEDA, Tianjin, People's Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workAbstract: Human umbilical cord blood-derived mononuclear cells (hUCB-MNCs) were reported to have neurorestorative capacity for neurological disorders such as stroke and traumatic brain injury. This study was performed to explore if hUCB-MNC transplantation plays any therapeutic effects for Parkinson's disease (PD) in a 6-OHDA-lesioned rat model of PD. hUCB-MNCs were isolated from umbilical cord blood and administered to the striatum of the 6-OHDA-lesioned rats. The apomorphine-induced locomotive turning-overs were measured to evaluate the improvement of motor dysfunctions of the rats after administration of hUCB-MNCs. We observed that transplanted hUCB-MNCs significantly improve the motor deficits of the PD rats and that grafted hUCB-MNCs integrated to the host brains and differentiated to neurons and dopamine neurons in vivo after 16 weeks of transplantation. Our study provided evidence that transplanted hUCB-MNCs play therapeutic effects in a rat PD model by differentiating to neurons and dopamine neurons. Keywords: hUCB-MNCs, Parkinson's disease, transplantation, differentiation, dopamine neurons

Elevated ammonium (NH 4 -N) contents in groundwater are a global concern, yet the mobilization and enrichment mechanisms controlling NH 4 -N within riverside aquifers (RAS) remain poorly understood. RAS are important zones for nitrogen cycling and play a vital role in regulating groundwater NH 4 -N contents. This study conducted an integrated assessment of a hydrochemistry dataset using a combination of hydrochemical analyses and multivariate geostatistical methods to identify hydrochemical compositions and NH 4 -N distribution in the riverside aquifer within Central Yangtze River Basin, ultimately elucidating potential NH 4 -N sources and factors controlling NH 4 -N enrichment in groundwater ammonium hotspots. Compared to rivers, these hotspots exhibited extremely high levels of NH 4 -N (5.26 mg/L on average), which were mainly geogenic in origin. The results indicated that N-containing organic matter (OM) mineralization, strong reducing condition in groundwater and release of exchangeable NH 4 -N in sediment are main factors controlling these high concentrations of NH 4 -N. The Eh representing redox state was the dominant variable affecting NH 4 -N contents (50.17 % feature importance), with Fe 2+ and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) representing OM mineralization as secondary but important variables (26 % and 5.11 % feature importance, respectively). This study proposes a possible causative mechanism for the formation of these groundwater ammonium hotspots in RAS. Larger NH 4 -N sources through OM mineralization and greater NH 4 -N storage under strong reducing condition collectively drive NH 4 -N enrichment in the riverside aquifer. The evolution of depositional environment driven by palaeoclimate and the unique local environment within the RAS likely play vital roles in this process., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This article delves into the principle, essence, definitions, classifications, fundamentals, and industrial applications of staged gasification for biomass, offering an insightful exploration into its multifaceted dimensions. By segmenting the gasification process based on its intricate reaction network into distinct sub-processes implemented in separate reactors or reaction zones, staged gasification facilitates nuanced reaction control and sub-process intensification. It aims to optimize the gasification process by minimizing inhibitory effects and maximizing promotional interactions among chemical reactions, intermediates, or targeted products. This approach has been extensively tested, yielding significant technical benefits such as in-situ tar component conversion and efficiency enhancements. A clear categorization of the diverse staged gasification processes documented in literature is presented, distinguishing them based on the nature of interactions among separated stages, namely, chemical interaction, thermal interaction, and sequential staging. Definitions are provided for key concepts such as decoupling gasification, dual-bed or twin-bed gasification, and gasification with in-situ tar removal. Core fundamentals discussed include the reaction characteristics and kinetics of sub-processes, in-situ conversion of heteroatomic components, reactor configuration, and reaction regulation strategies. The article also presents an analysis of several industrial applications to elucidate the technical characteristics of staged gasification. Concluding with a discussion on prospective research concerns, this review underscores the evolving landscape of staged gasification technology and its pivotal role in advancing biomass conversion efficiencies., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Understanding the dynamics of sedimentary organic carbon (SOC) in the productive continental marginal sea surrounding Antarctica is crucial for elucidating the effect of this sea on the global carbon cycle. We analyzed 31 surface sediment samples and eight sediment cores collected from Prydz Bay (PB) and the adjacent basin area. The element and stable isotope compositions, grain size compositions, and biogenic silica and lithogenic minerals of these samples were used to evaluate the spatial variations in the sources, transport mechanisms, and preservation patterns of SOC, with a particular focus on the efficiency of the biological carbon pump (BCP). Our findings reveal that the SOC originated from mixed marine/terrestrial sources. The δ 13 C values were higher in the Prydz Bay Gyre (PBG) region than in the open sea area. Biogenic matter-rich debris, associated with fine-grained particles (silt and clay), was concentrated in the PBG, while abiotic ice-rafted debris and coarse-grained particles were preferentially deposited in the bank and ice shelf front regions. Lithogenic matter predominated in the basin sediments. The annual accumulation rate of SOC in PB ranged from 1.6 to 6.2 g·m -2 ·yr -1 (mean 4.2 ± 1.9 g·m - 2 ·yr -1 ), and the rates were higher in the PBG than in the ice shelf front region. Estimates based on our tentative box model suggest that the efficiency of the BCP, which refers to the proportion of surface-produced organic carbon successfully transferred to deep waters, is approximately 5.7 % in PB, surpassing the global average (∼0.8 %) and the efficiencies reported for other polar environments. Furthermore, our calculations indicate that the SOC preservation efficiency (the ratio of preserved to initially deposited organic carbon in sediments) in PB is approximately 79 % ± 20 %, underscoring the significant carbon sequestration potential within PB. The results of this study have important implications for the effects of sediment dynamics on the carbon cycle in the sea surrounding Antarctica., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Endogenous ligands for alicarboxylic acid receptors are important metabolic intermediates that play a significant role in regulating body energy and maintaining homeostasis. However, the molecular mechanism of alicarboxylate ligand-mediated counterpart receptors is currently unclear. We resolve the active state structure of HCA2-niacin, and the structural analysis explains the mechanism of niacin selectivity in the alicarboxylic acid receptors family. Homology modeling, molecular dynamics simulation and mutagenesis experiments reveal different ligand recognition modes and activation mechanisms of the alicarboxylic acid receptors, analyze the flexibility of the binding pocket and elucidate the important role of disulfide bonds on receptor activation and ligand binding. These more detailed molecular mechanisms further elucidate the relevant mechanisms of human metabolism and provide key clues for subsequent drug development of alicarboxylic acid receptors., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Mid-infrared spectral analysis of glucose in subcutaneous interstitial fluid has been widely employed as a noninvasive alternative to the standard blood-glucose detection requiring blood-sampling via skin-puncturing, but improving the confidence level of such a replacement remains highly desirable. Here, we show that with an innovative metric of attributes in measurements and data-management, a high accuracy in correlating the test results of our improved spectral analysis to those of the standard detection is accomplished. First, our comparative laser speckle contrast imaging of subcutaneous interstitial fluid in fingertips, thenar and hypothenar reveal that spectral measurements from hypothenar, with an attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, give much stronger signals than the stereotype measurements from fingertips. Second, we demonstrate that discriminative selection of the spectral locations and ranges, to minimize spectral interference and maximize signal-to-noise, are critically important. The optimal band is pinned at that between 1000 ± 3 cm -1 and1040 ± 3 cm -1 . Third, we propose an individual exclusive prediction model by adopting the support vector regression analysis of the spectral data from four subjects. The average predicted coefficient of determination, root mean square error and mean absolute error of four subjects are 0.97, 0.21 mmol/L, 0.17 mmol/L, respectively, and the average probability of being in Zone A of the Clark error grid is 100.00 %. Additionally, we demonstrate with the Bland and Altman plot that our proposed model has the highest consistency with portable blood glucose meter detection method., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Anthocyanin biosynthesis in Eucalyptus plants can be flexibly and rapidly modulated in response to hormones or environmental stimuli, including nutrient deprivation (ND). However, the underlying mechanism of ND in inducing anthocyanin biosynthesis in plants remains largely elusive. In this study, we discovered that anthocyanin levels in leaves and stems could well reflect nitrogen availability in Eucalyptus. Supplementation with nitrogen, but not with phosphate or potassium, effectively inhibited ND-induced anthocyanin biosynthesis. To further investigate how nitrogen regulates this process, comprehensive time-resolved transcriptomic and targeted metabolomic analyses were conducted. The results revealed that 3405, 2706, and 3153 genes were differentially regulated by nitrogen treatment at 1, 2, and 3 d, respectively. Pathway analysis indicated the majority of the enriched KEGG pathways were associated with cellular metabolism, such as amino acid and flavonoid biosynthesis. Moreover, metabolomic analysis showed that the most abundantly accumulated anthocyanins, cyanidin-3-O-galactoside and cyanidin-3-O-glucoside, along with key intermediates in the flavonoid pathway, were downregulated by nitrogen treatment. Furthermore, nitrogen-responsive MYB-bHLH-WDR complex genes were identified, including six EgrMYB113 family members. Overexpression of one of the EgrMYB113-like genes induced anthocyanin biosynthesis in the transgenic hairy roots of Eucalyptus. Interestingly, mutation of AtMYB113 inhibited nitrogen deficiency-induced anthocyanin biosynthesis in Arabidopsis, suggesting that MYB113 is a novel N-responsive MYB transcriptional regulator of anthocyanin biosynthesis. Additionally, nitrogen treatment upregulated a few GA biosynthesis genes while simultaneously downregulated the expression of several GA2ox genes. Exogenous application of GA 3 decreased ND-induced anthocyanin biosynthesis. Conclusively, this study provides novel insights into the molecular mechanism of nitrogen in the regulation of anthocyanin biosynthesis in Eucalyptus., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest All the authors listed have agreed with the submission and declared no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

pH-induced and ultrasound treatment can both adjust spatial conformation to improve the interfacial stability, and fish oil oleogel could be used to enhance oil binding capacity. The relationship between stabilization mechanism and lipid digestion was revealed, considering the protein conformation and interfacial characteristics. The results showed that pH-ultrasonic-induced myofibrillar proteins (MPs) at pH 7.0 had higher interfacial adsorption capacity and surface hydrophobicity as well as more stable secondary structures, which lowered the particle size and enhanced the interfacial stability. In the stomach, the particle size increased along with the decrease in electrostatic repulsion, and β-sheets significantly increased, which promoted aggregation and flocculation. In the small intestine, the reduction of β-sheets favored the interfacial replacement and facilitated the lipid digestion. Therefore, pH-ultrasonic-modified method improved the structure and function of MPs, facilitated the interfacial stability and intestinal digestion., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is an inherited disease of the heart muscle that is dominated by variations in eight genes encoding sarcomere proteins. Although there are clinical or basic research reports that carrying double mutations can lead to more severe HCM phenotypes, there are also research reports that after reanalyzing the reported mutations, the severity of clinical symptoms in patients with double mutations did not significantly increase compared to patients with only one mutation. To determine whether double pathogenic mutations can aggravate the phenotype of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in mice, we constructed mice carrying single pathogenic heterozygous mutation Myh6-R453C or Tnnt2-R92W and mice carrying both pathogenic heterozygous mutations. Our results showed that mice with double heterozygous mutations exhibited significant hypertrophic cardiomyopathy phenotypes at 4 weeks of age, and the degree of hypertrophy was significantly higher than that of single heterozygous mutant mice of the same age. Our study suggests that carrying the two pathogenic heterozygous mutations simultaneously can aggravate the phenotype of HCM in mice, which provides experimental evidence for the genotype-phenotype relationship of double pathogenic mutations and provides reference significance for clinical risk stratification of HCM patients., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The accuracy of screening diabetes from non-diabetes is drastically enhanced by strategically upgrading the bench-marking infrared spectroscopy technique for non-invasive tests of blood-glucose, both with state-of-the-art instrumentation-retrofits and with intelligent spectral-datamining tools. First, the signal-to-noise performance of FTIR in measuring the spectral features of a glucose solution containing bovine serum albumin is improved by 2-3 times with the common single-pass attenuated total-reflection setup replaced by a multi-passes-reflections setup. Second, replacing the ordinary infrared lamp with a quantum cascade laser further improves the signal-to-noise by 3 times. The performance of the upgraded spectrometer in screening hyperglycemia is gauged by the accuracy of such screens derived from 100 repetitive spectral-measurements per glucose concentration, for 24 glucose concentrations spanning the range of 70-300 mg/dL, a range which covers the blood-glucose contents of all non-diabetic and diabetic human-subjects. Third, intelligent datamining methods are exploited to implement decision trees for screening hyperglycemia. Their decisions are mapped into a confusion matrix and the matrix-elements are used to calculate the accuracy merits of each method. Evidently, the accuracy of the multi-passes-FTIR with the standard principal-components datamining method is 80 %. The adoptions of the quantum cascade laser and two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy datamining technique raises this to 96.3 %. Finally, a novel machine learning method, which comprises three different decision-tree tools to generate trial screening decisions and a "majority-voting" datamining tool to reach a final screening decision, yields the best accuracy of 98.8 % ever reported in the literature., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

The demand for non-toxic, environmentally friendly, easily processable, water-resistant, flame-retardant and antimicrobial adhesives in the wood processing industry is becoming increasingly urgent. Few adhesives can possess these functions altogether while being synthesized easily. This paper presents a one-pot process utilizing corn starch, sodium hypochlorite, itaconic acid, and borax to synthesize a starch-based adhesive with dual crosslinking. Initial crosslinking takes place between the carboxyl groups of itaconic acid and hydroxyl groups on oxidized starch due to the formation of ester bonds. Secondary crosslinking by borate ester bonds occurs between starch hydroxyl groups and boric acid. The entire reaction process is environmentally benign, generating no waste, with all reactants converted into final products, aligning with "green" chemistry principles. When used to bond wooden boards, this adhesive achieved a dry shear strength of 5.34 ± 0.24 MPa, and a wet shear strength of 1.22 ± 0.06 MPa after soaking in water. Additionally, this starch-based adhesive exhibited antibacterial properties against Escherichia coli (ATCC 8739) and Staphylococcus aureus. Moreover, with borax incorporated, the adhesive demonstrated flame-retardancy. The limiting oxygen index for bonded wooden boards was 30.9 %, qualifying it as a flame-retardant material. These multiple functions render it promising for applications in the wood processing industry., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Zhong Han reports financial support was provided by National Natural Science Foundation of China. Peng Liu reports financial support was provided by National Natural Science Foundation of China. Zhong Han reports financial support was provided by Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Intelligent Food Manufacturing. Fengwei Xie reports financial support was provided by Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. Peng Liu reports financial support was provided by China Scholarship Council. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The present work describes the development of silk fibroin (SF)/chitosan (CS)-based porous composite anal fistula scaffold (SCAFS) with anti-inflammatory and healing functions. The SCAFS comprises an inner layer made from degummed silk fiber using a vertical braiding machine, and an outer layer created by freeze-drying a mixture of short SF fibers and curcumin (CUR)/5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) loaded SF/CS solution. Results revealed that the SCAFS has high porosity of 42.4 %, remarkable water absorption rate of 370.5 %, robust dry/wet compression resistance of 12.28 ± 2.61 N/3.08 ± 0.43 N. The in vitro & in vivo biocompatibility and anti-inflammatory effect of SCAFS were further examined. The expression of pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF-α, anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10, CD31 and CD68 was determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining, H&E staining, Immunofluorescence (IF) staining and Masson assay. The results showed that the scaffolds possess a sustainable drug release above 400 h, better biocompatibility and anti-inflammatory effect than the control groups (p < 0.05). Thus, the SCAFS has potential application in the treatment of Crohn's disease., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

It is a significant challenge to obtain hydrogels simultaneously with low tensile energy dissipation, high compressive resilience and long durability. Herein, the uniform dynamic nanospheres (Sil-4H 0.75 ) derived from 4-Hydroxybutyl acrylate glycidyl ether grafted silk fibroin is designed to overcome this issue. Due to its uniform and dynamic characteristic, Sil-4H 0.75 could endow hydrogel with homogeneous multiscale structure and produce unique framework effect. Thus, transparent Sil-4H 0.75 crosslinked acrylamide hydrogel doped with Ag nanowires APS 3.75% /AgNW 0.1 exhibits a high stretchability (1260 %) and outstanding elastic resilience. The tensile energy dissipation ratio maintains a low value of 9 % across a wide 800 % strain range. A high compression resilience ratio of 92.2 % is kept after ten compression cycles under 90 % compressive strain. The orderly AgNWs motion guided by framework effect also make it be used as both tensile and compressive sensors and exhibits high gauge factor of 7.35, outstanding compression sensitivity of 30.379 kPa -1 and excellent durability (up to 2000 cycles). The detection or other applications based on both two sensing modes are also demonstrated. In a word, this work affords a general strategy to achieve high-performance hydrogel based on uniform dynamic nanospheres which exhibits great potential in the applications of flexible wearable strain sensors., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The formation of sheep (Ovis aries) breeds is influenced by different ecological environments and populations with different living habits, resulting in the development of germplasm resources with stable genetic key agronomic traits. Thus, investigating the genetic mechanisms behind various agronomic traits can enhance the conservation and utilization of diverse sheep breeds. Here, we explored the sheep variome and selection signatures using the Ovine Infinium HD SNP BeadChip (600 K SNPs) from 23 sheep breeds, comprising a total of 1215 sheep. The genetic mechanisms of wool quality and tail morphology were analyzed by selective sweep and genome-wide association study. Based on the results of within-population selective sweep analysis, we performed gene network analysis and divided them into 6 gene communities. We identified genetic regions containing genes linked to sheep wool and tail, which have been and may continue to be important targets for breeding and selection. Furthermore, our results revealed the expression profiles of genes in these regions across different biological systems. Our study provides insights into categorizing sheep breeds into distinct gene communities, as well as references for constructing genetic network pathways related to key agronomic traits in sheep and other domestic animals., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, author- ship, and/or publication of this article., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Elevated blood sugar levels caused by starch digestion was a target for controlling diabetes mellitus. The in vitro and in vivo digestibility of wheat starch was evaluated to find that adding 15 % persimmon leaf extract (PLE) to starch reduced its digestibility by 69.50 % and the peak postprandial blood glucose by 23.63 %. Subsequently, we observed under scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy that the presence of PLE led to the destruction of starch structure and the aggregation of α-glucosidase so as to decrease starch digestion and hinder the binding of starch to α-glucosidase. Through multi-spectral analysis, PLE hindered the clathrate of iodine and starch, and also increased the crystallinity of starch by 48.58 %. For α-glucosidase inhibitory activity (IC 50  = 72.49 μg/mL), PLE preferentially occupied the active center of α-glucosidase, changed its fluorescence characteristics and secondary structure through hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interaction. Moreover, among the 23 potential α-glucosidase inhibitors screened from PLE, combined with molecular simulation, Procyanidin B2 had the strongest inhibitory effect (IC 50  = 33.22 μg/mL) and binding energy (-7.09 kcal/mol), which was most effectively inhibitory on digestion. These results indicated the potential of PLE in hypoglycemia targeting both starch and α-glucosidase., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declared that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Kuey teow is one of the delicacies of Guangdong, China and is a gluten-free noodle dish made from rice. It has a short storage period and extending the shelf life by quick freezing induces quality deterioration due to temperature fluctuations. To improve its freeze-thaw frozen storage quality, this paper examined the effects of hydroxypropyl corn starch (HCS), guar gum (GG), and compound phosphates (CP) on the quality of quick-frozen kuey teow during freeze-thaw cycles. The mechanism was investigated by identifying changes in the moisture status, aging degree of the starch, and textural and cooking characteristics. The results showed that all three additions improved the toughness, chewiness and steaming characteristics of the kuey teow, with CP significantly enhancing chewiness. XRD and FTIR results revealed that GG more significantly inhibited the decrease of starch crystallinity, while HCS inhibited starch aging. GG, HCS and CP all improved the hydration characteristics and water holding capacity of rice starch. GG enhances the ability of starch to bind more tightly with water, resulting in a more uniform water distribution and a more continuous and tight structure of the kuey teow. This study will provide a theoretical basis for compounding and optimizing the quick-freezing of kuey teow., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

The chelation reaction of soluble soybean polysaccharide (SSPS) with zinc was investigated. Using response surface methodology, the optimum parameters for SSPS-Zn synthesis were obtained: pH 5.3, SSPS-ZnCl 2 mass ratio of 9.44:1, reaction temperature 50.44 °C, and reaction time 1.5 h, with the highest zinc content of 24.73 %. Compared with SSPS, SSPS-Zn increased in rhamnogalacturonan content and decreased in that of neutral monosaccharides (Fuc, Ara, Gal, Glu and Xyl). UV-vis spectra indicated that SSPS-Zn was lower than SSPS in protein content. FTIR spectra indicated that CO group of SSPS was bonded to Zn 2+ . X-ray diffraction spectra demonstrated that SSPS-Zn had higher crystallinity. Congo red reactions showed that SSPS possessed a triple-helix conformation while SSPS-Zn formed an irregular free-coiled conformation. EDX confirmed SSPS-Zn synthesis successfully. TGA curves exhibited that SSPS-Zn required higher temperature to undergo degradation. AFM revealed that SSPS-Zn was clustered while SSPS was filamentous. SEM micrographs showed the cracked fragments on the surface of SSPS-Zn. By in vitro simulation of gastrointestinal digestion, Zn 2+ release reached 68.87 % after 2 h digestion. Consequently, the chelation of SSPS with zinc could change structure and provide a basis for research and application of novel zinc supplements., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: This study investigated the genotype-specific dynamics of molecular HIV clusters (MHCs) in Guangzhou, China, aiming to enhance HIV control., Methods: HIV pol sequences from people with HIV (PWH) in Guangzhou (2008-2020) were obtained for genotyping and molecular network creation. MHCs were identified and categorized into three types: emerging, growing, or stable. Clustering rates, proportions of cluster types, and members within each type were calculated and their trends were assessed using joinpoint regression., Results: Among 8395 PWH, the most prevalent HIV-1 genotypes were CRF07&#95;BC (39.7%) and CRF01&#95;AE (32.6%). The genotype composition has been stable since 2012 (Ps > 0.05). The overall clustering rate was 43.3%, with significant variations across genotypes (P < 0.001), indicating genotype-specific transmission fitness. Significant declines in overall and genotype-specific clustering rates toward the end of 2020 (Ps < 0.05), potentially offer support for HIV control efforts in reducing local infections. The continuously increasing proportions of stable clusters and the gradually decreasing proportions of emerging and growing clusters (either Ps < 0.05 or Ps > 0.05) suggest a trend toward stable molecular network structure. However, growing clusters exhibited CRF55&#95;01B, CRF07&#95;BC, and CRF59&#95;01B dominance that indicate their priority for interventions., Conclusion: The evolving MHCs highlight the genotype-specific cluster dynamics, providing fresh insights for enhanced prevention and control strategies., Competing Interests: Declarations of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this article., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Ovarian cancer (OC) is the deadliest malignancy of the female reproductive system. The standard first-line therapy for OC involves cytoreductive surgical debulking followed by chemotherapy based on platinum and paclitaxel. Despite these treatments, there remains a high rate of tumor recurrence and resistance to platinum. Recent studies have highlighted the potential anti-tumor properties of metformin (met), a traditional diabetes drug. In our study, we investigated the impact of met on the anticancer activities of cisplatin (cDDP) both in vitro and in vivo. Our findings revealed that combining met with cisplatin significantly reduced apoptosis in OC cells, decreased DNA damage, and induced resistance to cDDP. Furthermore, our mechanistic study indicated that the resistance induced by met is primarily driven by the inhibition of the ATM/CHK2 pathway and the upregulation of the Rad51 protein. Using an ATM inhibitor, KU55933, effectively reversed the cisplatin resistance phenotype. In conclusion, our results suggest that met can antagonize the effects of cDDP in specific types of OC cells, leading to a reduction in the chemotherapeutic efficacy of cDDP., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest We declare the manuscript is an original work which has not been previously published in whole or in part and is not under consideration for publication in any other journals. Its publication has been approved by all co-authors. All authors have contributed to this work and state no existing competing interests., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

The slow rate of anaerobic microbial dechlorination in natural environments limits the application of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) bioremediation. Anaerobic digested sludge (ADS), abundant in nutrients and microorganisms, could be an effective additive to improve microbial dechlorination. This research investigates the influence of ADS on Aroclor 1260 dechlorination performance, microbial community composition, and the abundance of functional genes. Moreover, further enrichment of organohalide-respiring bacteria (OHRB) was examined using tetrachloroethene (PCE) as the electron acceptor, followed by the serial dilution-to-extinction method in conjunction with resuscitation promoting factor (Rpf) supplementation. The results demonstrated that the addition of 5 g/L ADS achieved more extensive and efficient dechlorination of PCBs. ADS enhanced the removal of meta- and para-chlorine without significantly changing the dechlorination pathways. The abundances of dechlorinators, including Dehalobium and Dehalobacter within the Chloroflexi and Firmicutes phyla, as well as non-dechlorinators from the Desulfobacterota, Euryarchaeota, and Bacteroidetes phyla, were significantly increased with ADS amendment. Similarly, an increased abundance of bacteria, OHRB, reductive dehalogenase (RDase) genes, and archaeal 16S rRNA genes was observed. Additionally, obligate OHRB, such as Dehalobacter and Dehalobium, were further enriched. These findings indicate that ADS effectively enhances microbial reductive dechlorination and highlight the potential for enriching and isolating OHRB with Rpf., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The usage of biomass waste has aroused great concern in water purification. In this study, copper-doped orange peel biochar (Cu-OPB) prepared by one-step carbonization was firstly used to activate peroxydisulfate (PDS) to eliminate tetracycline (TC). The optimized Cu-OPB showed great activation ability for PDS and could degrade 93.7% of TC at pH 9.07. The presence of H 2 PO 4 - , Cl - , and HCO 3 - did not affect the degradation, while HA and SO 4 2- inhibited TC degradation. SO 4 •- , •OH and 1 O 2 were confirmed as the primary active oxygen species in the Cu-OPB/PDS system. Moreover, Cu and the C-OH functional groups on the surface of Cu-OPB played a critical role in the activation by accelerating the electronic migration between Cu-OPB and PDS in the catalytic system. 15 possible intermediate products were found and three feasible degradation pathways were proposed. The toxicity of aquatic organisms of TC was reduced. Furthermore, Cu-OPB could be used as an economically efficient and environmentally friendly catalyst for PDS activation to degrade organic pollutants., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Shipping is a major contributor to anthropogenic emissions, exerting complex effects on both the environment and climate. To improve the air quality of coastal areas, China adopted an upgraded policy on domestic emission control areas (DECA 2.0) for shipping in December 2018, which expanded the geographical scope of ECAs from three designated heavy-traffic coastal regions to the entire 12 nautical mile-territorial seas and also introduced more stringent ship emission requirements. Based on data from the Automatic Identification System, this study first evaluates the environmental effects of ship emissions' reduction brought by DECA policy 2.0. Results reveal that implementation of DECA policy 2.0 has resulted in a cumulative reduction (2019-2021) of 8.43 × 10 5 tons, 1.3 × 10 5 tons, and 1.49 × 10 5 tons of sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), particulate matter <2.5 μm diameter (PM 2.5 ) and PM <10 μm (PM 10 ) emissions, respectively. Based on the external cost method, we further monetize the environmental benefits arising from reduction of air pollution emissions, averaging $3.6 billion USD per year. This number equates to ca. 4 % of the total output value of China's marine transportation industry over the three-year period. Finally, we calculate the fuel replacement cost arising from the implementation of DECA policy 2.0, which is on average $1.23 billion USD. This indicates that the net environmental benefits of DECA policy 2.0 equate nearly double the associated costs., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Ovarian aging, characterized by a decline in ovarian reserve, is a critical concern in female reproductive health. However, the evidence linking ambient air pollution exposure with ovarian reserve impairment remains limited. We aimed to estimate the association between exposure to fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) and respirable particulate matter (PM 10 ) and key indicators of ovarian reserve, including antral follicle count (AFC), ovarian volume (OV), anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), estradiol (E2), luteinizing hormone (LH), FSH/LH ratio, and inhibin B (INHB). The cohort consisted of women attending an infertility clinic at the Tongji Reproductive and Environmental (TREE) study between 2018 and 2020. We used multivariate linear and Poisson regression models to estimate the association between PM 2.5 and PM 10 exposure and these ovarian reserve indicators. Our results showed that PM 2.5 and PM 10 exposure were associated with a reduction in AFC and an increase in E2 levels, highlighting the adverse effects of ambient air pollution on ovarian reserve. Our findings have important public health implications, emphasizing the urgent need for interventions to safeguard female reproductive health and reduce exposure to ambient air pollution., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

It is crucial to identify aberrant HClO levels in living things since they pose a major health risk and are a frequent reactive oxygen species (ROS) in living organisms. In order to detect HClO in various biological systems, we created and synthesized a near-infrared fluorescent probe with an oxime group (-C = N-OH) as a recognition unit. The probe DCMP1 has the advantages of fast response (10 min), near-infrared emission (660 nm), large Stokes shift (170 nm) and high selectivity. This probe DCMP1 not only detects endogenous HClO in living cells, but also enables further fluorescence detection of HClO in living zebrafish. More importantly, it can also be used for fluorescence imaging of HClO in an rheumatoid arthritis mouse model. This fluorescent probe DCMP1 is anticipated to be an effective tool for researching HClO., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Biosolids from municipal wastewater treatment contain many contaminants of emerging concern, including microplastics (MPs), per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), pharmaceuticals and chemicals from personal care products (PPCPs). Many of these contaminants have very slow biotic or abiotic degradation rates and have been shown to have human and ecological health impacts. Application of biosolids to agriculture, a common disposal method, can result in extended environmental contamination. An approach for eliminating the contaminants is pyrolysis, which can also generate biochar, enhancing carbon sequestration as a side-benefit. We pyrolyzed biosolid samples from an operating facility at various temperatures from 400 to 700 °C with a 2-hour residence time. We then evaluated contaminant removal, which in many cases was 100 %, with only a few residuals. No trace of PFAS was detectable even at 400 °C. Overall mass removal of PPCPs, including PFAS, was over 99.9 %. MP removal via pyrolysis ranged from 91 to 97 %. The biochar contains significant amounts of Fe and P, which make it a useful fertilizer amendment. The techno-economic analysis indicates that pyrolysis may generate significant cost savings, and revenue from the sale of biochar, sufficient to more than cover the investment and operating costs of the dryer and pyrolysis unit., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Suspended solids concentration (SSC) in a river is closely relevant to river water turbidity. Investigation of their relationship in this study is accompanied by observed turbidity and SSC values, which were obtained from the testing results of water samples and monitored conditions in streamflow. The water samples were collected from two observation stations with a broad range of sediment concentrations in the Lai Chi Wo catchment in Hong Kong, China. We classified the target rainfall events into single-peak event type and dual-peak event type for a distinguished discussion of the relationship between SSC and turbidity in this study. At a finer classification, each event is separated into defined processes for the analysis, where two main processes refer to the periods that SSC rises from a normal state to a peak state first and the followed periods that SSC recesses to ordinary status gradually. It is advised by the analysis results that the estimation of SSC through turbidity values should be based on the same rainfall types for the upstream station. However, the results show that the classification of rainfall types does not need to take downstream areas into consideration. Furthermore, current research implies that the individual established connections between SSC and turbidity value at different stages (particularly referring to the rising period and recessing period) could be applied to estimate SSC at the same station via continuous turbidity values for both this and other ungauged stations with similar topographical features in the future. Meanwhile, this research approach provides new insight exploring various behaviors of sediments at different stages during an integral rainfall event. A comparison of distinguished performances of sediment during corresponding stages in a rainfall event makes contributions to diverse relationship between SSC and turbidity in the mountainous river., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)