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Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) is the causative agent of bovine viral diarrhea, which causes significant economic loss to the global livestock industry. Despite the widespread use of inactivated BVDV vaccines, highly pathogenic strains continue to emerge. In China, regional variations in BVDV subtypes, morbidities, and symptoms, however, only the BVDV 1a subtype vaccine is currently approved. Therefore, this study is to gain insight into the biological characteristics and genetic variation of BVDV strains prevalent in Beijing. Meanwhile, this will provide a theoretical foundation and technical support for the prevention and control of BVDV, as well as raise awareness of the potential for virulence enhancement caused by the unregulated use of BVDV vaccines. In this study, A BVDV strain, BJ-11, was isolated from calves that died of diarrhea and vaccinated of BVDV. To evaluate its virulence, newborn calves were experimentally infected with the BJ-11. Clinical signs included fever, diarrhea, bloody stools, anorexia, and death in some cases. A marked reduction in leukocyte and lymphocyte counts were observed, accompanied by an increase in neutrophil counts. Histopathological changes manifested as severe lung lesions. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that BJ-11 belongs to the BVDV 1b subtype, genetically closest to the JL-1 strain. Analysis of the E2 glycosylation site disappeared (298SYT) in one of the four common glycosylation sites in the BVDV-1, which has been reported to affect the ability of the virus to infect and an additional glycosylation site (122NGS). These results indicate that BJ-11 is a highly pathogenic strain evolved from a low-virulence ancestor and should be served as a challenge strain. Simultaneously, these results contribute to a broader understanding of BVDV and whether imperfect vaccination strategies lead to reversal of immunosuppressive virulence., Competing Interests: YH, ZZ, and PW were employed by Beijing Centrebio Biological Co., Ltd. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2025 Zhang, Cheng, Guo, Hu, Zhao, Liu, Zhou, Wu, Cheng, Yang, Yang, Du and Li.)

Objectives: This study aimed to explore the rationality of the social networks-depression-cognitive impairment pathway and to provide recommendations for the development of mild cognitive impairment intervention strategies., Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2021. Sixteen urban communities in Xi 'an, Shaanxi China were selected as sample sites. The cognitive function, social networks and depression were measured by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), the Lubben Social Network Scale-6 (LSNS-6) and the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 (GDS-15), respectively. The generalized linear model was used to analysis the impact of social networks on cognitive impairment, and further analysis the mediating effect of depression., Results: A total of 745 elderly people aged 60 and above was included in this survey, with an average age of 68.90 ± 6.00 years. The prevalence of cognitive impairment was 18.52%, and the prevalence of cognitive impairment increased with age. According to the generalized linear model, poor social networks (relative network, friend network) was associated with higher risk of cognitive impairment (OR = 2.08, 95% CI: 1.27-3.41), and this association was more significant in women and older adults <70 years of age. Mediation analysis results showed that depression was the mediating path between social networks and cognitive impairment, with the indirect effects accounting for 34.44%., Conclusion: Social isolation increases the risk of cognitive impairment and depression has a significant mediating effect on the relationship between social isolation and cognitive impairment., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2025 Zhang and Bian.)

Background: Low load resistance training with blood flow restriction (LL-BFRT) has been shown to improve muscle strength and hypertrophic function. The effect of LL-BFRT on lower extremity muscle improvement has been widely discussed. However, no studies have discussed the effect of this training method on the upper extremity muscles until now. This systematic review and meta-analysis focused on the use of LL-BFRT in the upper extremity muscles., Methods: The relevant literature was searched in four major databases including Pubmed, Web of science, the Cochrane Library and Embase from 10 June 2024. The Cochrane Collaboration's tool and GRADE methodology were used to assess the risk of bias and quality in included studies., Results: The meta-analysis included a total of 11 articles with 220 participants. LL-BFRT and high load resistance training (HLRT) produced similar effects in improving upper extremity muscle strength (low certainty evidence, SMD: -0.35; 95%CI: -0.73 to 0.03; p : 0.07; I 2 : 2%) and hypertrophy (moderate certainty evidence, SMD: -0.36; 95%CI: -0.73 to 0.01; p : 0.05; I 2 : 0%). Compared with low load resistance training (LLRT), LL-BFRT showed greater advantages in improving upper extremity muscle strength (low certainty evidence, SMD: 0.67; 95%CI: 0.33 to 1.01; p : 0.0001; I 2 : 0%) and hypertrophy (low certainty evidence, SMD: 0.37; 95%CI: 0.06 to 0.67; p : 0.02; I 2 : 0%)., Conclusion: In general, LL-BFRT can be used as an alternative training method for HLRT to improve upper extremity muscle strength and hypertrophy. Our study shows that the effect of LL-BFRT on upper extremity muscle is limited by age and region. It is necessary to formulate reasonable exercise programs according to the characteristics of different demographic groups., Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, identifier CRD42024555514., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2025 Jing, Zheng, Dong, Wang, Wang, Fan and Xu.)

U-Net and its variants have been widely used in the field of image segmentation. In this paper, a lightweight multi-scale Ghost U-Net (MSGU-Net) network architecture is proposed. This can efficiently and quickly process image segmentation tasks while generating high-quality object masks for each object. The pyramid structure (SPP-Inception) module and ghost module are seamlessly integrated in a lightweight manner. Equipped with an efficient local attention (ELA) mechanism and an attention gate mechanism, they are designed to accurately identify the region of interest (ROI). The SPP-Inception module and ghost module work in tandem to effectively merge multi-scale information derived from low-level features, high-level features, and decoder masks at each stage. Comparative experiments were conducted between the proposed MSGU-Net and state-of-the-art networks on the ISIC2017 and ISIC2018 datasets. In short, compared to the baseline U-Net, our model achieves superior segmentation performance while reducing parameter and computation costs by 96.08 and 92.59%, respectively. Moreover, MSGU-Net can serve as a lightweight deep neural network suitable for deployment across a range of intelligent devices and mobile platforms, offering considerable potential for widespread adoption., Competing Interests: HC, YaZ, DL, ZZ, and YiZ were employed by the Chengdu Civil Aviation Information Technology Co., Ltd. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2025 Cheng, Zhang, Xu, Li, Zhong, Zhao and Yan.)

This study aims to explore various key factors influencing the academic performance of college students, including metacognitive awareness, learning motivation, participation in learning, environmental factors, time management, and mental health. By employing the chi-square test to identify features closely related to academic performance, this paper discussed the main influencing factors and utilized machine learning models (such as LOG, SVC, RFC, XGBoost) for prediction. Experimental results indicate that the XGBoost model performs the best in terms of recall and accuracy, providing a robust prediction for academic performance. Empirical analysis reveals that metacognitive awareness, learning motivation, and participation in learning are crucial factors influencing academic performance. Additionally, time management, environmental factors, and mental health are confirmed to have a significant impact on students' academic achievements. Furthermore, the positive influence of professional training on academic performance is validated, contributing to the integration of theoretical knowledge and practical application, enhancing students' overall comprehensive competence. The conclusions offer guidance for future educational management and guidance, emphasizing the importance of cultivating students' learning motivation, improving participation in learning, and addressing time management and mental health issues, as well as recognizing the positive role of professional training., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Lu, Liu, Liu, Yan, Zhao, Zhang, Yang, Zhang, Su and Zhao.)

Glucosinolates (GSLs) are important secondary metabolites abundantly distributed in Brassicaceae plants, whose degradation products benefit plant resistance but are regarded as disadvantageous factors for human health. Thus, reducing GSL content is an important goal in the breeding program in crops, such as Brassica napus . In this study, 1280 genes in the GSL pathway were identified from 14 land plant genomes, which are specifically distributed in Brassicaceae and are extensively expanded in B. napus . Most GSL pathway genes had many positive selection sites, especially the encoding genes of transcription factors (TFs) and structural genes involved in the GSL breakdown process. There are 344 genes in the GSL pathway in the B. napus genome, which are unequally distributed on the 19 chromosomes. Whole-genome duplication mainly contributed to the gene expansion of the GSL pathway in B. napus . The genes in GSL biosynthesis were regulated by various TFs and cis -elements in B. napus and mainly response to abiotic stress and hormone induction. A comparative transcriptome atlas of the roots, stems, leaves, flowers, siliques, and seeds of a high- (ZY821), and a low-GSL-content (ZS11) cultivar was constructed. The features of the two cultivars may be attributed to diverse expression differences in each organ at different stages, especially in seeds. In all, 65 differential expressed genes (DEGs) concentrated on the core structure pathway were inferred to mainly influence the GSL contents between ZY821 and ZS11. This study provides an important RNA-seq dataset and diverse gene resources for future manipulating GSLs biosynthesis and distribution in B. napus using molecular breeding methods., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Liu, Wu, Chen, Chen, Shen, Qadir, Wan, Zhao, Yin, Li, Qu and Du.)

Background: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. With the continuous development of neuromodulation technology, Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) has emerged as a potential non-invasive treatment for ADHD. However, there is a lack of research on the mechanism of rTMS for ADHD. Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is an optical imaging technique that reflects the brain function by measuring changes in blood oxygen concentration in brain tissue. Consequently, this research utilized fNIRS to examine the impact of rTMS on the core symptoms and prefrontal cortex activation in children with ADHD, which provides a reference for the clinical application of rTMS in the treatment of ADHD., Methods: Forty children with ADHD were chosen as research subjects and randomly assigned to two groups: a treatment group (20 subjects) and a control group (20 subjects). The control group received non-pharmacological interventions, whereas the treatment group was administered rTMS in conjunction with non-pharmacological interventions. Clinical symptom improvement was evaluated using SNAP-IV scale scores both before and after treatment. Additionally, fNIRS was utilized to monitor alterations in the relative concentrations of oxyhemoglobin (HbO 2 ) and deoxyhemoglobin (HbR) in the prefrontal cortex during resting state and during the Go/no-go task state, both pre- and post-treatment., Results: In conclusion, the study comprised 17 participants in the treatment group and 18 in the control group. Initially, the SNAP-scale scores were comparable between the groups, with no significant differences observed ( p  > 0.05). Post-treatment, a notable reduction in SNAP-scale scores was evident ( p  < 0.05), with the treatment group exhibiting a more pronounced decrease ( p  < 0.05). Following the intervention, both groups demonstrated enhanced Resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) in the prefrontal cortex, as indicated by a significant increase compared to pre-treatment levels ( p  < 0.05). Specifically, the treatment group showed superior RSFC in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, left medial prefrontal cortex, and right medial prefrontal cortex compared to the control group ( p  < 0.05). However, no significant differences were noted in RSFC of the left and right temporal lobes between the two groups ( p  > 0.05). In the Go/no-go task, the treatment group recorded higher mean HbO 2 concentrations in the aforementioned prefrontal cortical regions compared to the control group ( p  < 0.05). Conversely, no statistically significant disparities were observed in the left and right temporal lobes of both groups., Conclusion: rTMS shows promise as a treatment for ADHD by modulating prefrontal cortical activation. fNIRS provides a valuable method for assessing these effects, offering insights into the neurobiological mechanisms underlying rTMS therapy., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wang, Zou, Huang, Zhang, He, Su, Wang, Chen and Liu.)

Background: It is been noted that the expression levels of numerous genes undergo changes as individuals age, and aging stands as a primary factor contributing to age-related diseases. Nevertheless, it remains uncertain whether there are common aging genes across organs or tissues, and whether these aging genes play a pivotal role in the development of age-related diseases., Methods: In this study, we screened for aging genes using RNAseq data of 32 human tissues from GTEx. RNAseq datasets from GEO were used to study whether aging genes drives age-related diseases, or whether anti-aging solutions could reverse aging gene expression., Results: Aging transcriptome alterations showed that brain aging differ significantly from the rest of the body, furthermore, brain tissues were divided into four group according to their aging transcriptome alterations. Numerous genes were downregulated during brain aging, with functions enriched in synaptic function, ubiquitination, mitochondrial translation and autophagy. Transcriptome analysis of age-related diseases and retarding aging solutions showed that downregulated aging genes in the hippocampus further downregulation in Alzheimer's disease but were effectively reversed by high physical activity. Furthermore, the neuron loss observed during aging was reversed by high physical activity., Conclusion: The downregulation of many genes is a major contributor to brain aging and neurodegeneration. High levels of physical activity have been shown to effectively reactivate these genes, making it a promising strategy to slow brain aging., Competing Interests: Authors XN, PS were employed by Shenzhen Hujia Technology Co., Ltd. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Liu, Nie, Wang, Chen, Zeng, Shu and Huang.)

Background: Stroke is a neurological condition characterized by high rates of disability and mortality. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is widely used to examine the mechanisms of acupuncture in stroke treatment., Purpose: This review provides neuroimaging evidence for the efficacy of acupuncture in treating stroke using MRI., Method: We conducted a comprehensive search of databases, including PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wan Fang Data, Chinese BioMedical Literature Database (CBM), and Chonqing VIP (CQVIP), from inception to April 2024. Relevant neuroimaging studies on acupuncture for stroke were included, and the research findings were presented through charts and textual analyses., Results: A total of 158 studies were included, and the overall methodological quality of the included studies was moderate to high. The results were divided into three categories: basic characteristics, clinical characteristics, and quality assessment of the included literature., Conclusion: We elucidated the neural mechanisms underlying the effects of acupuncture on stroke; however, the evidence remains preliminary. There is a need for large-scale, well-designed, multimodal neuroimaging trials. This review represents the first active use of an evidence map to systematically review and illustrate the current state of neuroimaging research on the acupuncture treatment of stroke, thereby providing a valuable reference for future research., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Ke, Shi, Zhou, Xie, Sun, Yu, Shan and Zhang.)

Background and Purpose: Triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 (TREM-1) was reported to be critical for mediating the neurological function after stroke, while the impact of soluble TREM-1 (sTREM-1) on cognitive impairment after ischemic stroke is unclear. We aimed to explore the association between sTREM-1 and post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI)., Methods: We prospectively recruited consecutive ischemic stroke patients who admitted hospital within 7 days of onset. Serum sTREM-1 concentrations were measured after admission. Cognitive function was assessed at 90 days follow-up using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). PSCI was defined as a MMSE score of <27 or a MoCA score < 26., Results: A total of 291 patients (mean age, 66.6 years; 46.0% female) were enrolled for this study. Among these participants, the median sTREM-1 concentrations were 289.4 pg/mL. According to the MoCA score, 153 (52.6%) patients experienced PSCI at 3 months. After adjustment for confounding risk factors by multivariate regression analysis, patients with sTREM-1 levels in the fourth quartile were more likely to have increased risk 3-month PSCI (as compared with the first quartile, odds ratio 12.22, 95% confidence intervals, 5.20-28.71, P = 0.001). Restricted cubic spline further confirmed a dose-dependent relationship between sTREM-1 levels and PSCI ( P = 0.003 for linearity). Similar significant findings were observed when the cognitive impairment was diagnosed according to the MMSE criterion., Conclusion: Our study revealed that higher serum sTREM-1 levels at admission were associated with increased risk of 3-month PSCI., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Chen, Yi, Fu, Wu, Zhong, Fan, Jiang, Zhou, Peng, Liao, You and Tan.)

Background: The Sensory Organization Test condition 5 (SOT5) assesses an astronaut's vestibular function pre-/post-spaceflight but has a ceiling effect and mainly evaluates standing balance, neglecting the challenges of walking during space missions. A Locomotor Sensory Organization Test (LSOT) has been developed, mirroring the SOT concept but tailored to assess vestibular function during walking. This study aims to advance current knowledge by examining changes in ground reaction force (GRF) during normal walking (LSOT1) and walking in LSOT5 (vision blocked and treadmill speed varied), both with and without mastoid vibrations., Methods: Sixty healthy adults were recruited and divided into two groups: one with mastoid vibration and one without. GRF peaks and respective variabilities were analyzed in the vertical (V), anterior-posterior (AP), and medial-lateral (ML) directions during stance cycles. The effects of LSOTs and mastoid vibration on each dependent variable were assessed using Friedman's two-way analysis of variance by ranks., Results: The findings revealed that:1) Walking in LSOT5 increased the variabilities of GRFs regardless of the administration of mastoid vibration; 2) the application of mastoid vibration reduced the amplitude of GRF peaks; and 3) walking in LSOT5 while receiving mastoid vibration was the most challenging task compared to all other tasks in this study., Conclusion: The results indicated that analyzing GRF can detect changes in the strategy of balance control across different sensory-conflicted conditions. The findings could be beneficial for assessing the vestibular function pre- and post-space missions and planning for future sensorimotor training programs aimed at enhancing astronauts' abilities to navigate unpredictable sensory-conflicted conditions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wang, Xie and Chien.)

Background: Many patients experience persistent symptoms after COVID-19, a syndrome referred to as Long COVID (LC). The goal of this study was to identify novel new or worsening comorbidities self-reported in patients with LC., Methods: Patients diagnosed with LC ( n  = 732) at the Mayo Long COVID Care Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota and Jacksonville, Florida were sent questionnaires to assess the development of new or worsening comorbidities following COVID-19 compared to patients with SARS-CoV-2 that did not develop LC (controls). Both groups were also asked questions screening for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), generalized joint hypermobility (GJH) and orthostatic intolerance. 247 people with LC (33.7%) and 40 controls (50%) responded to the surveys., Results: In this study LC patients averaged 53 years of age and were predominantly White (95%) women (75%). The greatest prevalence of new or worsening comorbidities following SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with LC vs. controls reported in this study were pain (94.4% vs. 0%, p  < 0.001), neurological (92.4% vs. 15.4%, p  < 0.001), sleep (82.8% vs. 5.3%, p  < 0.001), skin (69.8% vs. 0%, p  < 0.001), and genitourinary (60.6% vs. 25.0%, p  = 0.029) issues. 58% of LC patients screened positive for ME/CFS vs. 0% of controls ( p  < 0.001), 27% positive for GJH compared to 10% of controls ( p  = 0.026), and a positive average score of 4.0 on orthostatic intolerance vs. 0 ( p  < 0.001). The majority of LC patients with ME/CFS were women (77%)., Conclusion: We found that comorbidities across 12 surveyed categories were increased in patients following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our data also support the overlap of LC with ME/CFS, GJH, and orthostatic intolerance. We discuss the pathophysiologic, research, and clinical implications of identifying these conditions with LC., Competing Interests: RTH is a consultant for Nestle Nutrition. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The author(s) declared that they were an editorial board member of Frontiers, at the time of submission. This had no impact on the peer review process and the final decision., (Copyright © 2024 Grach, Dudenkov, Pollack, Fairweather, Aakre, Munipalli, Croghan, Mueller, Overgaard, Bruno, Collins, Li, Hurt, Tal, Ganesh and Knight.)

The Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT) signaling pathway plays a crucial role in the viral immune processes of organisms, with STAT being a key transcription factor downstream in this pathway. The STAT gene of Bombyx mori has two splicing forms, named BmSTAT-S and BmSTAT-L . This study compared the effects of the two splicing forms on Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) infection through cell-level interference and further explored whether BmSTAT participates in the immune response to BmNPV infection via transgenic intervention at the individual level. Our research results indicated that BmNPV upregulates the expression of BmSTAT-S and BmSTAT-L in Bombyx mori BmE cells and larvae. Furthermore, BmE cells with interference of BmSTAT-S or BmSTAT-L displayed significantly higher expression levels of the viral gene GP41 and increased viral fluorescence compared to the control group after 48 h of infection with BmNPV. Then, we constructed transgenic silkworms with genetic interference, and the results showed that both the transgenic silkworms with systemic interference and midgut-specific interference of the two splice forms of BmSTAT exhibited significantly reduced survival rates and increased viral replication numbers after infection with BmNPV. The above results indicated that the BmSTAT gene is involved in the immune response of Bombyx mori to BmNPV and these findings lay the foundation for further research on the mechanism of JAK/STAT signaling pathway involvement in BmNPV infection., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Liang, Zhou, Dang, Wang, Zhao, Xia and Lu.)

Introduction: Multi-channel electrophysiology systems for recording of neuronal activity face significant data throughput limitations, hampering real-time, data-informed experiments. These limitations impact both experimental neurobiology research and next-generation neuroprosthetics., Methods: We present a novel solution that leverages the high integration density of 22nm fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator technology to address these challenges. The proposed highly integrated programmable System-on-Chip (SoC) comprises 68-channel 0.41 μW/Ch recording frontends, spike detectors, 16-channel 0.87-4.39 μW/Ch action potentials and 8-channel 0.32 μW/Ch local field potential codecs, as well as a multiply-accumulate-assisted power-efficient processor operating at 25 MHz (5.19 μW/MHz). The system supports on-chip training processes for compression, training, and inference for neural spike sorting. The spike sorting achieves an average accuracy of 91.48 or 94.12% depending on the utilized features. The proposed programmable SoC is optimized for reduced area (9 mm 2 ) and power. On-chip processing and compression capabilities free up the data bottlenecks in data transmission (up to 91% space saving ratio), and moreover enable a fully autonomous yet flexible processor-driven operation., Discussion: Combined, these design considerations overcome data-bottlenecks by allowing on-chip feature extraction and subsequent compression., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Guo, Weiße, Zeinolabedin, Schüffny, Stolba, Ma, Wang, Scholze, Dixius, Berthel, Partzsch, Walter, Ellguth, Höppner, George and Mayr.)

Age-related hearing loss (ARHL) is a prevalent sensory organ disorder among elderly individuals that significantly impacts their cognitive function, psychological well-being, and ability to perform activities of daily living. As the population ages, the number of ARHL patients is increasing. However, the Audiological rehabilitation (AR) status of patients is not promising. In recent years, there has been an increasing focus on the health and rehabilitation of elderly individuals, and significant progress has been made in researching various age-related disorders. However, a unified definition of ARHL in terms of etiology and rehabilitation treatment is still lacking. This study aims to provide a reference for future research on ARHL and the development of AR strategies by reviewing the classification, etiology, and rehabilitation of ARHL., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Zheng, Xu, Li, Wang, Zhang and Jing.)

Background: In previous observational studies and meta-analyses, childhood attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is found to have a significant association with screen time. However, the causal associations between them remain unclear., Method: This study performed a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to confirm the causality between screen time and childhood ADHD. Large-scale genome-wide association studies (GWAS) datasets derived from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium (PGC) and the UK Biobank were used to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with exposure and outcome. Four categories of datasets were selected to represent screen time. The SNPs that are significantly associated with exposure data (P < 5e-08) and have a strong correlation with the exposure in the F-statistic (F > 10) were selected as instrumental variables. This study also used the PhenoScanner V2 database and the LDlink webtool to exclude confounding factors, and the MR-PRESSO method (p < 0.05) was employed to eliminate outliers with bias. Five commonly used methods were employed to assess the interaction and the Inverse Variance Weighted (IVW) method was utilized as the primary basis for determining the MR estimates in this study., Results: The MR analysis revealed that the length of mobile phone use (OR, 1.848; 95% CI, 1.3360-2.5558; p=2.07e-4) and the time spent watching television (OR, 2.104; 95% CI, 1.3958-3.1703; p=3.8e-4) increased the risk of childhood ADHD. Although the causal relationships were exclusively identified through the IVW and weighted median methods, the results retained their statistical significance following correction. In the reverse analysis, no evidence was found to support an effect of childhood ADHD on screen time. The sensitivity analysis conducted on the significant findings revealed no evidence of horizontal pleiotropy or heterogeneity., Conclusion: This study provides some evidence for the causality of screen time and childhood ADHD. Given the limitations of our study, further research is required to comprehensively investigate this relationship., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Meng, Ao, Wang, Niu, Chen, Ma and Huang.)

Binomials have been relatively understudied compared to other types of multiword expressions (MWEs) in second language research, such as collocations and idioms. This study investigated English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners' processing of English binomials and how it is influenced by interlexical factors (L1-L2 congruency and L1-lexicalization) and intralexical factors (word and binomial frequency, binomial reversibility, and binomial predictability). Forty Chinese EFL learners participated in a phrase acceptability judgment task of 64 target binomials (16 congruent L1-lexicalized, 16 congruent L1-nonlexicalized, and 32 incongruent) and 64 non-binomial controls. Results revealed that learners experienced difficulty judging the formulaicity of binomials. They processed binomial stimuli significantly faster than non-binomial baselines, demonstrating a binomial phrase effect. They also processed L1-L2 congruent items faster and more accurately than incongruent items, showing a robust congruency effect. The congruent items which are lexicalized in the L1 showed further processing advantage than the non-lexicalized items, indicating a graded congruency effect. Moreover, binomial reversibility and binomial predictability (measured with cloze probability) also showed significant effects. These findings highlight the need to distinguish and investigate different types of congruency, explore appropriate measures for MWE predictability, and to examine binomials focusing on their unique features., Competing Interests: The authors declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Chen and Fang.)

Introduction: Wearable exoskeletons assist individuals with mobility impairments, enhancing their gait and quality of life. This study presents the iP3T model, designed to optimize gait phase prediction through the fusion of multimodal time-series data., Methods: The iP3T model integrates data from stretch sensors, inertial measurement units (IMUs), and surface electromyography (sEMG) to capture comprehensive biomechanical and neuromuscular signals. The model's architecture leverages transformer-based attention mechanisms to prioritize crucial data points. A series of experiments were conducted on a treadmill with five participants to validate the model's performance., Results: The iP3T model consistently outperformed traditional single-modality approaches. In the post-stance phase, the model achieved an RMSE of 1.073 and an R 2 of 0.985. The integration of multimodal data enhanced prediction accuracy and reduced metabolic cost during assisted treadmill walking., Discussion: The study highlights the critical role of each sensor type in providing a holistic understanding of the gait cycle. The attention mechanisms within the iP3T model contribute to its interpretability, allowing for effective optimization of sensor configurations and ultimately improving mobility and quality of life for individuals with gait impairments., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Chen, Wang, Xiao, Wu, Wang, Liu, Wang, Chen and Wu.)

Autophagy is a highly conserved process in eukaryotes that is used to recycle the cellular components from the cytoplasm. It plays a crucial function in responding to both biotic and abiotic stress, as well as in the growth and development of plants. Autophagy-related genes (ATG) and their functions have been identified in numerous crop species. However, their specific tasks in potatoes ( Solanum tuberosum L.), are still not well understood. This work is the first to identify and characterize the potato StATG18 subfamily gene at the whole-genome level, resulting in a total of 6 potential StATG18 subfamily genes. We analyzed the phylogenetic relationships, chromosome distribution and gene replication, conserved motifs and gene structure, interspecific collinearity relationship, and cis-regulatory elements of the ATG18 subfamily members using bioinformatics approaches. Furthermore, the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis suggested that StATG18 subfamily genes exhibit differential expression in various tissues and organs of potato plants. When exposed to heat stress, their expression pattern was observed in the root, stem, and leaf. Based on a higher expression profile, the StATG18a gene was further analyzed under heat stress in potatoes. The subcellular localization analysis of StATG18a revealed its presence in both the cytoplasm and nucleus. In addition, StATG18a altered the growth indicators, physiological characteristics, and photosynthesis of potato plants under heat stresses. In conclusion, this work offers a thorough assessment of StATG18 subfamily genes and provides essential recommendations for additional functional investigation of autophagy-associated genes in potato plants. Moreover, these results also contribute to our understanding of the potential mechanism and functional validation of the StATG18a gene's persistent tolerance to heat stress in potato plants., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Zhu, Li, Zhang, Duan, Jin, Chen, Chen, Zhou, Wang, Tang, Majeed, Zhang and Si.)

Introduction: The tumor microenvironment and IRGs are highly correlated with tumor occurrence, progression, and prognosis. However, their roles in grade II and III gliomas, termed LGGs in this study, remain to be fully elucidated. Our research aims to develop immune-related features for risk stratification and prognosis prediction in LGG., Methods: Using the ssGSEA method, we assessed the immune characteristics of the LGG population. We conducted differential analysis using LGG samples from the TCGA database and normal samples from GTEx, identifying 412 differentially expressed immune-related genes (DEIRGs). Subsequently, we utilized univariate Cox, LASSO, and multivariate Cox regression analyses to establish both a gene predictive model and a nomogram predictive model., Results: Here, we found that the ESTIMATE score, immune score and stromal score of high-immunity, high-grade and isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) wild-type glioma were higher than those of the corresponding group, and the tumor purity was lower. Higher ESTIMATE scores, stromal scores and immune scores indicated a poor prognosis in patients with LGG. Our four-gene prognostic model demonstrated superior accuracy compared to other molecular features. Validation using the CGGA as a testing set and the combined TCGA and CGGA cohort confirmed its robust prognostic value. Additionally, a nomogram integrating the prognostic model and clinical variables showed enhanced predictive capability., Discussion: Our study highlights the prognostic significance of the identified four DEIRGs (KLRC3, MR1, PDIA2, and RFXAP) in LGG patients. The predictive model and nomogram developed herein offer valuable tools for personalized treatment strategies in LGG. Future research should focus on further validating these findings and exploring the functional roles of these DEIRGs within the LGG tumor microenvironment., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wang, Wang, Liu and Wu.)

Objectives: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) among patients with ischemic stroke is relatively high. The visceral fat area (VFA) is a predictor of MetS. This study aimed to estimate sex-specific optimal cut-off values of VFA and MetS risk factors among patients with ischemic stroke., Methods: A cross-sectional study including 851 patients with ischemic stroke was conducted between March 2019 and January 2020 in a tertiary hospital in the northeast of China. VFA was measured using the dual bioelectrical impedance method. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to investigate MetS risk factors, and the VFA cut-off value was assessed using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis., Results: The overall prevalence of MetS was 43.4%. After adjusting for potential confounders, female sex (odds ratio [OR] = 2.86, p < 0.001), the presence of visceral obesity according to VFA (OR = 7.45, p < 0.001), being overweight (OR = 2.75, p < 0.001) or obesity (OR = 6.00, p < 0.001) were associated with an increased risk of MetS. The correlation between VFA and MetS in patients with ischemic stroke was strongest with cut-off values of 104.3 cm 2 (sensitivity 73.0%, specificity 83.1%) for men, and 94.1 cm 2 (sensitivity 70.9%, specificity 72.9%) for women., Conclusion: MetS affected approximately a half of patients with ischemic stroke. Female sex, visceral obesity, and body mass index were independent risk factors for the development of MetS. Sex-specific reference values for VFA are proposed for the prediction of incident MetS in patients with ischemic stroke., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Lu, Wang, Sun, Liu, Yan and Liu.)

The epiphytic bacteria in aquatic ecosystems, inhabiting a unique ecological niche with significant ecological function, have long been the subject of attention. Habitat characteristics and plant species are believed to be important in controlling the assembly of epiphytic bacteria. However, the underlying principle governing the assembly of the epiphytic bacterial community on macrophytes is far from clear. In this study, we systematically compared the diversity and community composition of epiphytic bacteria both in different habitats and on different species of macrophytes where they were attached. Results suggested that neither the plant species nor the habitat had a significant effect on the diversity and community of epiphytic bacteria independently, indicating that the epiphytic bacterial community composition was correlated to both geographical distance and individual species of macrophytes. Furthermore, almost all of the abundant taxa were shared between different lake regions or macrophyte species, and the most abundant bacteria belonged to Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. Our results demonstrated that the competitive lottery model may explain the pattern of epiphytic bacterial colonization of submerged macrophyte surfaces. This research could provide a new perspective for exploring plant-microbe interaction in aquatic systems and new evidence for the lottery model as the mechanism best explaining the assembly of epiphytic bacteria., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Fang, Zhen, Yang, Su and Wei.)

Fetal membrane providing mechanical support and immune protection for the growing fetus until it ruptures during parturition. The abnormalities of fetal membrane (thickening, separation, etc.) are related to adverse perinatal outcomes such as premature delivery, fetal deformities and fetal death. As a noninvasive method, imaging methods play an important role in prenatal examination. In this paper, we comprehensively reviewed the manuscripts on fetal membrane imaging method and their potential role in predicting adverse perinatal fetal prognosis. We also discussed the prospect of artificial intelligence in fetal membrane imaging in the future., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wu, Cao, Xu, Zhang, Wei, Li and Chang.)

Purpose: This study aimed to screen the genetic etiology for the high-risk families including those with an adverse pregnancy history, a history of consanguineous marriages, or a history of genetic diseases, but lack of proband via whole exome sequencing (WES)., Methods: 128 individuals from high-risk family were tested by WES. The candidate variants were analyzed according to the ACMG criteria to screen the potential carriers. At-risk couples (ARCs) who harbored the same causative gene were provided with precise fertility guidance to avoid the birth of children with birth defects., Results: The total detection rate was 36.72%, with pathogenic/likely pathogenic (P/LP) variants found in 47 individuals, and variants of uncertain significance (VUS) were found in 34. Among couples with adverse pregnancy history: P/LP variants were found in 38 individuals, and VUS were found in 26, for a detection rate of 34.55%; among members of family history of genetic disease or consanguineous marriages: P/LP variants were found in nine individuals, and VUS were found in 8, for a detection rate of 50.00%. Otherwise, we detected 19 ARCs who both carried P/LP variants in the same gene, with a theoretical offspring prevalence of up to 7.42%., Conclusion: In the absence of probands, carrier screening using WES can provide an efficient tool for screening the molecular etiology of high-risk families., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Huang, Wang, Teng, Zhang, Wen, Zhu, Liang, Wu and Li.)

Team sports athletes may encounter significant stress, leading to competitive anxiety. The anxiety levels can be influenced by team behaviors and achievement goals. This study aims to investigate the relationship between team behaviors (i.e., perceptions of controlling coaching behavior and team cohesion) and competitive anxiety, and to examine the mediation effects of achievement goals (i.e., task-oriented and ego-oriented) on the relationship. A total of 298 team-handball players were involved in the study, ages ranging from 16 to 24 years old ( M  = 18.44, SD = 3.09). A cross-sectional research design was adopted, and structural equation modeling was utilized to analyze path coefficients and mediating effects. Findings indicated that perceptions of controlling coaching behaviors had significant positive predictions for state and somatic anxiety ( β  = 0.22, 0.29) and negative predictions for self-confidence ( β  = -0.19). Team cohesion had significant negative predictions for state anxiety ( β  = -0.31) and positive predictions for self-confidence ( β  = 0.58). In addition, ego-oriented goals play a positive mediating role in the relationship between team behaviors and competitive anxiety ( β = 0.03-0.35), while task-oriented goals play a negative mediating role in the relationship between team behaviors and competitive anxiety (β = -0.18 - -0.03). In conclusion, team behaviors have a significant relationship with competitive anxiety, with achievement goals playing a mediating role among them. Therefore, to alleviate team sports athletes' competitive anxiety, it is recommended to reduce coach control behaviors, enhance team cohesion, and employ psychological training methods (e.g., mindfulness or meditation) to strengthen athletes' task-oriented goals., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wang, Sun, Yuan, Dong and Dong.)

Objective: Observational studies have reported that mental disorders are comorbid with temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD). However, the causal relationship remains uncertain. To clarify the causal relationship between three common mental illnesses and TMD, we conduct this Mendelian Randomization (MR) study., Methods: The large-scale genome-wide association studies data of major depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia were retrieved from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium. The summary data of TMD was obtained from the Finn-Gen consortium, including 211,023 subjects of European descent (5,668 cases and 205,355 controls). The main approach utilized was inverse variance weighting (IVW) to evaluate the causal association between the three mental disorders and TMD. Five sensitivity analyses including MR-Egger, Maximum Likelihood, Weighted median, MR. RAPS and MR-PRESSO were used as supplements. We conducted heterogeneity tests and pleiotropic tests to ensure the robustness., Results: As shown by the IVW method, genetically determined major depression was associated with a 1.65-fold risk of TMD (95% CI = 1.10-2.47, p < 0.05). The direction and effect size remained consistent with sensitivity analyses. The odds ratios (ORs) were 1.51 (95% CI = 0.24-9.41, p > 0.05) for MR-Egger, 1.60 (95% CI = 0.98-2.61, p > 0.05) for Weighted median, 1.68 (95% CI = 1.19-2.38, p < 0.05) for Maximum likelihood, 1.56 (95% CI = 1.05-2.33, p < 0.05) for MR. RAPS, and 1.65 (95% CI = 1.10-2.47, p < 0.05) for MR-PRESSO, respectively. No pleiotropy was observed (both P for MR-Egger intercept and Global test >0.05). In addition, the IVW method identified no significant correlation between bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and TMD., Conclusion: Genetic evidence supports a causal relationship between major depression and TMD, instead of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. These findings emphasize the importance of assessing a patient's depressive status in clinical settings., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wu, Chen, Zhao, He, Yin, Yao, Liu and Yan.)

Introduction: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder emerging in early childhood, with heterogeneous clinical outcomes across individuals. This study aims to recognize neuroimaging genetic factors associated with outcomes of ASD after a 4-year follow-up., Methods: A total of 104 ASD children were included in this study; they underwent clinical assessments, MRI data acquisition, and the whole exome sequencing (WES). Exome functional risk score (EFRS) was calculated based on WES; and two modalities of brain connectivity were constructed based on MRI data, that is functional connectivity (FC) for functional MRI (fMRI), and individual differential structural covariance network (IDSCN) for structural MRI (sMRI), to explore the neuroimaging genetic biomarker of outcomes of ASD children., Results: Regression analysis found EFRS predicts social adaptability at the 4-year follow-up (Y = -0.013X + 9.29, p = 0.003). We identified 19 pairs of FC associated with autism symptoms severity at follow-up, 10 pairs of FC and 4 pairs of IDSCN associated with social adaptability at follow-up, and 10 pairs of FC associated with ASD EFRS by support vector regression (SVR). Related brain regions with prognostic predictive effects are mainly distributed in superior frontal gyrus, occipital cortex, temporal cortex, parietal cortex, paracentral lobule, pallidum, and amygdala for FC, and temporal cortex, thalamus, and hippocampus for IDSCN. Mediation model showed that ASD EFRS affects the social communication of ASD children through the mediation of FC between left middle occipital gyrus and left pallidum (RMSEA=0.126, CMIN=80.66, DF=42, p < 0.001, CFI=0.867, AIC=152)., Discussion: Our findings underscore that both EFRS and brain connectivity can predict social adaptability, and that brain connectivity serving as mediator in the relationship of EFRS and behaviors of ASD, suggesting the intervention targets in the future clinical application., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Luo, Zhang, Li, Situ, Liu, Wang, Tao, Zhao, Wang, Yang and Huang.)

Backgrounds: As a conserved signaling pathway, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade regulates cellular signaling in response to abiotic stress. High temperature may contribute to a significant decrease in economic yield. However, research into the expression patterns of StMAPKK family genes under high temperature is limited and lacks experimental validation regarding their role in supporting potato plant growth., Methods: To trigger heat stress responses, potato plants were grown at 35°C. qRT-PCR was conducted to analyze the expression pattern of StMAPKK family genes in potato plants. Plant with StMAPKK5 loss-of-function and gain-of-function were developed. Potato growth and morphological features were assessed through measures of plant height, dry weight, and fresh weight. The antioxidant ability of StMAPKK5 was indicated by antioxidant enzyme activity and H 2 O 2 content. Cell membrane integrity and permeability were suggested by relative electrical conductivity (REC), and contents of MDA and proline. Photosynthetic capacity was next determined. Further, mRNA expression of heat stress-responsive genes and antioxidant enzyme genes was examined., Results: In reaction to heat stress, the expression profiles of StMAPKK family genes were changed. The StMAPKK5 protein is located to the nucleus, cytoplasm and cytomembrane, playing a role in controlling the height and weight of potato plants under heat stress conditions. StMAPKK5 over-expression promoted photosynthesis and maintained cell membrane integrity, while inhibited transpiration and stomatal conductance under heat stress. Overexpression of StMAPKK5 triggered biochemical defenses in potato plant against heat stress, modulating the levels of H 2 O 2 , MDA and proline, as well as the antioxidant activities of CAT, SOD and POD. Overexpression of StMAPKK5 elicited genetic responses in potato plants to heat stress, affecting heat stress-responsive genes and genes encoding antioxidant enzymes., Conclusion: StMAPKK5 can improve the resilience of potato plants to heat stress-induced damage, offering a promising approach for engineering potatoes with enhanced adaptability to challenging heat stress conditions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Zhu, Li, Zhang, Jin, Duan, Chen, Chen, Wang, Tang, Zhou, Zhang and Si.)

Introduction: Cryopreservation of semen can give full play to the reproductive advantages of male animals. However, in actual production, due to the poor frost resistance of sheep semen and the low conception rate, the promotion of sheep frozen semen is greatly hindered. Therefore, it is urgent to improve the frost resistance of semen to improve the quality of frozen semen. At present, most studies on improving the quality of frozen semen are based on the improvement of semen dilutions, and few studies on improving the freezing resistance of ram semen by feeding functional amino acids., Methods: Therefore, 24 Turpan black rams were divided into high antifreeze group (HF) and a low antifreeze group (LF) Each of these groups was further randomly divided into control and experimental subgroups. The control subgroup was fed a basal diet, while the experimental subgroup received an additional 12 g/d of L -Cit supplementation based on the control group for a duration of 90 days., Results: The results showed that Following L -Cit supplementation, the experimental group demonstrated significantly elevated sperm density and VSL (Velocity of straight line), T-AOC, GSH-Px, and NO levels in fresh semen compared to the control group ( P < 0.01). After thawing, the experimental group exhibited significantly higher levels of T-AOC, GSH-Px, and NO compared to the control group ( P < 0.01). Additionally, the HFT group, after thawing frozen semen, displayed significantly higher HK1 protein expression compared to the control group. The number of spermatogonia, spermatocytes, and sperm cells in the HFT group was significantly higher than that in the HFC group. Moreover, 16S rRNA sequence analysis showed that Candidatus&#95;Saccharimonas, Staphylococcus, Weissella, succinivbrionaceae&#95;UcG&#95;002 , and Quinella were significantly enriched in the rumen of the HFT group, while Ureaplasma was significantly enriched in the HFC group. In the duodenum, Clostridiales&#95;bacterium&#95;Firm&#95;14, Butyrivibrio , and Prevotellaceae&#95;NK3831&#95;group were significantly enriched in the HFT group, whereas Desulfovibrio and Quinella were significantly enriched in the HFC group., Discussion: Under the conditions employed in this study, L -Cit supplementation was found to enhance the intestinal flora composition in rams, thereby improving semen quality, enhancing the antifreeze performance of semen, and promoting the development of testicular spermatogenic cells., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Fan, Aihemaiti, Fan, Dilixiati, Zhao, Li, Chen and Zhao.)

The oral cavity stands as one of the pivotal interfaces facilitating the intricate interaction between the human body and the external environment. The impact of diverse oral microorganisms on the emergence and progression of various systemic cancers, typified by oral cancer, has garnered increasing attention. The potential pathogenicity of oral bacteria, notably the anaerobic Porphyromonas gingivalis and Fusobacterium nucleatum , has been extensively studied and exhibits obvious correlation with different carcinoma types. Furthermore, oral fungi and viruses are closely linked to oropharyngeal carcinoma. Multiple potential mechanisms of oral microbiota-induced carcinogenesis have been investigated, including heightened inflammatory responses, suppression of the host immune system, influence on the tumor microenvironment, anti-apoptotic activity, and promotion of malignant transformation. The disturbance of microbial equilibrium and the migration of oral microbiota play a pivotal role in facilitating oncogenic functions. This review aims to comprehensively outline the pathogenic mechanisms by which oral microbiota participate in carcinogenesis. Additionally, this review delves into their potential applications in cancer prevention, screening, and treatment. It proves to be a valuable resource for researchers investigating the intricate connection between oral microbiota and systemic cancers., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Su, Yang, Sheng, Ullah, Zhao, Shunjiayi, Zhao and Wang.)

Research on the microbiota associated with marine invertebrates is important for understanding host physiology and the relationship between the host and the environment. In this study, the microbiota of the green mussel Perna viridis was characterized at the tissue scale using 16S rRNA gene high-throughput sequencing and compared with the microbiota of the surrounding environment. Different mussel tissues were sampled, along with two environmental samples (the mussel's attachment substratum and seawater). The results showed that the phyla Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes , and Spirochaetae were dominant in mussel tissues. The bacterial community composition at the family level varied among the tissues of P. viridis . Although the microbiota of P. viridis clearly differed from that of the surrounding seawater, the composition and diversity of the microbial community of the foot and outer shell surface were similar to those of the substratum, indicating their close relationship with the substratum. KEGG prediction analysis indicated that the bacteria harbored by P. viridis were enriched in the degradation of aromatic compounds, osmoregulation, and carbohydrate oxidation and fermentation, processes that may be important in P. viridis physiology. Our study provides new insights into the tissue-scale characteristics of mussel microbiomes and the intricate connection between mussels and their environment., Competing Interests: DL and ZM are employed by the China Nuclear Power Engineering Co., Ltd. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Chen, Li, Shen, Li, Hao, Ke, Meng and Feng.)

Introduction: The Pathway for Eating disorders and Autism developed from Clinical Experience (PEACE pathway) is a clinical pathway of adapted treatment for individuals with eating disorders and autism in the UK. This study aims to investigate multidisciplinary clinicians' views of the strengths and challenges of PEACE pathway adaptations, while identifying areas where further improvement is needed., Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 clinicians who worked on the PEACE pathway. Themes relevant to the benefits, challenges and areas of improvement were identified, and a thematic map was produced., Results: PEACE Pathway brought clinical benefits such as improved understanding of patients' perspective, improved flexibility and individualisation in clinicians' approach, increased patient engagement, and provision of resources that are helpful to all patients with or without autism. Benefits to the service included increase in autism awareness, clinicians' confidence, and team collaboration. Challenges were also identified, including difficulties in incorporating autism adaptations into existing treatment protocol, implementing PEACE at different levels of care, staff schedule conflicts, and increased pressure to meet patients' needs. Overall, there is a need for systemic improvement in aftercare and community support for autism, more suitable autism screening tool, and more structured guidelines for making adaptations., Conclusions and Implications: PEACE Pathway has brought clinical and service benefits, while also bringing practical challenges rooted in the difficulty in distinguishing between autism and eating disorder in comorbid population. Future areas of improvement are highlighted for PEACE resources as well as in the national support system for autistic individuals., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The reviewer MS declared a shared affiliation with the authors ZL, SB, KT to the handling editor at the time of review., (Copyright © 2024 Li, Hutchings-Hay, Byford and Tchanturia.)

The GATA gene family belongs to a kind of transcriptional regulatory protein featuring a zinc finger motif, which is essential for plant growth and development. However, the identification of the GATA gene family in tetraploid potato is still not performed. In the present research, a total of 88 GATA genes in the tetraploid potato C88.v1 genome were identified by bioinformatics methods. These StGATA genes had an uneven distribution on 44 chromosomes, and the corresponding StGATA proteins were divided into four subfamilies (I-IV) based on phylogenetic analysis. The cis -elements of StGATA genes were identified, including multiple cis -elements related to light-responsive and hormone-responsive. The collinearity analysis indicates that segmental duplication is a key driving force for the expansion of GATA gene family in tetraploid potato, and that the GATA gene families of tetraploid potato and Arabidopsis share a closer evolutionary relationship than rice. The transcript profiling analysis showed that all 88 StGATA genes had tissue-specific expression, indicating that the StGATA gene family members participate in the development of multiple potato tissues. The RNA-seq analysis was also performed on the tuber flesh of two potato varieties with different color, and 18 differentially expressed GATA transcription factor genes were screened, of which eight genes were validated through qRT-PCR. In this study, we identified and characterized StGATA transcription factors in tetraploid potato for the first time, and screened differentially expressed genes in potato flesh with different color. It provides a theoretical basis for further understanding the StGATA gene family and its function in anthocyanin biosynthesis., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Zhang, Fan, Yu, Du, Yang, Wang, Xu and Yu.)

Introduction: Numerous studies have demonstrated that C57BL/6 mice exhibit superior growth rates and overall growth performance compared to DBA mice. To investigate whether this discrepancy in growth performance is linked to the composition of gut microorganisms, we conducted fecal microbiome transplantation (FMT) experiments., Methods: Specifically, we transplanted fecal fluids from adult C57BL/6 mice, high-fat C57BL/6 mice, and Wistar rats into weaned DBA mice (0.2mL/d), and subsequently analyzed their gut contents and gene expression through 16S rRNA sequencing and transcriptome sequencing. During the test period, C57BL/6 mice and Wistar rats were provided with a normal diet, and high-fat C57BL/6 mice were provided with a high-fat diet., Results: The results of our study revealed that mice receiving FMT from all three donor groups exhibited significantly higher daily weight gain and serum triglyceride (TG) levels compared to mice of CK group. 16S rRNA sequensing unveiled substantial differences in the abundance and function of the gut microbiota between the FMT groups and the CK group. Transcriptome analysis revealed a total of 988 differential genes, consisting of 759 up-regulated genes and 187 down-regulated genes, between the three experimental groups and the CK group. Functional Gene Ontology (GO) annotation suggested that these genes were primarily linked to lipid metabolism, coagulation, and immunity. Pearson correlation analysis was performed on the differential genes and clusters, and it revealed significant correlations, mainly related to processes such as fatty acid metabolism, fat digestion and absorption, and cholesterol metabolism., Discussion: In summary, FMT from dominant strains improved the growth performance of DBA mice, including body weight gain, institutional growth, and immune performance. This change may be due to the increase of probiotic content in the intestinal tract by FMT and subsequent alteration of intestinal gene expression. However, the effects of cross-species fecal transplantation on the intestinal flora and gene expression of recipient mice were not significant., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Ye, Fan, Wu, Chen, Huang and Qian.)

Introduction: Forage culture is a common way to restore degraded grasslands and soil functions, in which the reconstruction of the soil microbial community and its relationship with extracellular enzyme activity (EEAs) can characterize the recovery effects of degraded grasslands. However, the impacts of forage culture on the interaction between soil microbes and EEAs and whether the recovery effect of soil functions depends on the varying degradation statuses remain unclear., Methods: We conducted a plantation of a dominant grass, Leymus chinensis , in the soil collected from severe, moderate, light, and non-degradation statuses in the Songnen grassland in northeastern China. We measured soil microbial diversity and soil EEAs, and predicted microbial functional groups using FUNGuild., Results: The results showed that L. chinensis culture promoted soil bacterial alpha diversity and soil EEAs only in the moderate degradation status, indicating a dramatic dependence of the recovery effects of the grass culture on degradation status of the grassland. After planting L. chinensis for 10 weeks, a decreasing trend in the chemoheterotrophy and nitrate-reduction microbial functional groups was found. In contrast, the abundance of the nitrogen (N)-fixing microbial functional group tended to increase. The positive correlation between soil EEAs and the nitrate-reduction and N-fixing microbial functional groups was enhanced by planting L. chinensis , indicating that grass culture could promote soil N cycle functions., Conclusion: We illuminate that grass culture may promote the restoration of soil functions, especially soil N cycling in degraded grasslands, and the recovery effect may depend on the grassland degradation status. We emphasized that selection of the plant species for restoration of grasslands needs to consider the restoration effects of microbial functional groups and soil functions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Zhang, Li, Zhang, Zhang and Xing.)

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by neuroinflammation, which is frequently accompanied by immune system dysfunction. Although the mechanism of neurodegenerative lesions is unclear, various clinical trials have highlighted that early intervention in AD is crucial to the success of treatment. In order to explore the potential of immunotherapy in the early period of AD, the present study evaluated whether application of glatiramer acetate (GA), an immunomodulatory agent approved for remitting-relapsing multiple sclerosis (RRMS), in the early stages of AD prior to amyloid beta (Aβ) deposition altered the Aβ pathology and cognitive impairments in APPswe/PSEN1dE9 (APP/PS1) transgenic mice., Methods: We treated two cohorts of pre-depositing and amyloid-depositing (2- and 6-month-old) APP/PS1 mice with weekly-GA subcutaneous injection over a 12-week period. We then tested spatial learning and memory using the Morris water maze (MWM) and the Y maze. Immunohistochemistry staining was utilized to analyze Aβ burden in the brain as well as activated microglia. Furthermore, the inflammatory cytokine milieu within brains was estimated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, and the peripheral CD4 + CD25 + Foxp3 + regulatory T cells (Tregs) in the spleen were measured by flow cytometry., Results: We found that early GA administration reduced Aβ burden and ameliorated cognitive decline. Meanwhile, the immune microenvironment had changed in the brain, with an increase in the production of anti-inflammatory cytokines and a decrease in microglial activation. Interestingly, early GA administration also modulated the peripheral immune system through the amplification of Tregs in the spleen., Conclusion: Overall, our findings revealed that GA treatment might enhance the central and peripheral immune systems' protective capabilities in the early stages of AD, eventually improving cognitive deficits. Our research supports the advantages of immunomodulatory treatments for AD at an early stage., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Huang, Gong, Lin, Yang, Chen, Xiang, Huang, Xiao, Xu and Duan.)

Intracranial medulloepithelioma is a very rare and highly malignant tumor that is typically diagnosed in childhood and has an inferior prognosis. In the current report, we described a case of fetal intracranial medulloepithelioma that was detected during the third trimester by prenatal ultrasonography, which displayed homogenous echogenicity with well-circumscribed margins and abundant blood flow. On magnetic resonance imaging, it was hyperintense on both T1- and T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. The fetal intracranial tumor was progressive, with rapid expansion within 3 weeks. The report aimed to provide knowledge on the clinical characteristics of fetal intracranial medulloepithelioma in prenatal diagnosis, particularly the radiological features., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Meng, Chen, Chen, Fu, Yu and Chen.)

Introduction: African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious hemorrhagic fever disease in pigs caused by African swine fever virus (ASFV). It is very difficult to control and prevent ASF outbreaks due to the absence of safe and effective vaccines., Methods: In order to develop a safe and effective ASF vaccine for the control and prevention of ASF, two ASFV recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) live vector vaccine prototypes, containing the gene of p72, and a chimera of p30 and p54, were developed based on the replication-competent VSV, and named VSV-p72 and VSV-p35. The immune potency of VSV-p72 or VSV-p35 alone and in combination was evaluated in BALB/c mice via intramuscular and intranasal vaccination., Results: The results indicated that whether administered alone or in combination, the two vaccine prototypes showed acceptable safety in mice and, more importantly, induced high-level specific antibodies against p72, p30, and p54 of ASFV and a strong cellular immune response 28 days after vaccination. The sera from mice vaccinated with the vaccine prototypes significantly inhibited ASFV from infecting porcine alveolar macrophages (PAMs) in vitro . Most notably, the immunized sera from a mixture of VSV-p35 and VSV-p72 inhibited ASFV from infecting PAMs, with an inhibition rate of up to 78.58%., Conclusion: Overall, our findings suggest that ASFV recombinant VSV live vector vaccine prototypes may become a promising candidate vaccine for the control and prevention of ASF., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Ma, Shao, Liu, Gao, Peng, Miao, Yang, Hou, Zhou, Qi and Chang.)

Place attachment has been extensively studied in the field of tourism. However, it is important to recognize that place attachment alone may not fully capture the emotional expression of tourists' spiritual beliefs and their sense of belonging to a destination. Therefore, a more comprehensive attachment theory is needed to encompass higher dimensions. This article focuses on the ancient Chinese villages of Yantou, Cangpo, and Furong from a tourist perspective, and introduces genius loci in architectural phenomenology. We set out to expand the study of spiritual dimensions of place attachment on the basis of local attachment, redefining tourists' place connection and putting forward the new concept of place conversion. A qualitative analysis of online text using Rooting theory was conducted to condense 22 categories into 6 main categories and establish a model. The study shows that the mechanism of place conversion is composed of situational perception (place perception and place identity), physical and mental immersion (spatio-temporal immersion and place conversion), and behavioral willingness (tourists intention and conversion behavior). The study has implications for the conservation and development of traditional villages and future research on the spiritual experiences of tourists., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Xu, Shi, Wang, Wan and Fan.)

Introduction: Frequent resignation of young workers brings huge costs to the organizational management of enterprises. The frequent turnover behavior is a sign of low career identity, and exploring the paths that influence career identity behaviors is necessary. Previous studies have found that internship satisfaction and the psychological contract can influence career identity behavior. However, the dimensions of the psychological contract are unclear, and it is uncertain whether internship satisfaction can influence career identity behavior through the different dimensions of the psychological contract. This study attempts to expand the concept of psychological contract and construct a multiple mediation model. It aims to analyze the mediating role of different dimensions of the psychological contract between internship satisfaction and career identity behavior., Methods: A sample survey was conducted on Chinese fresh graduates by way of the questionnaire survey, and a total of 576 valid questionnaires were collected. Amos 26.0 was used to analyze the data and verify the multiple mediation model., Results: The results showed that psychological contract can be divided into three dimensions: transactional contract, relational contract, and developmental contract. Internship satisfaction can positively influence career identity behavior via the three dimensions of psychological contract, and there are differences in mediating effects among the dimensions. The mediating effect of developmental contract is the highest, relational contract is the second, and transactional contract is the lowest., Discussion: This article expands the dimensions of psychological contract, emphasizes the importance of developmental contract, contributes to the literature on organizational psychology, and provides scales and empirical evidence for future research. The analysis points out that fresh graduates with long-term development opportunities often show higher career identity behavior. This provides valuable insights for enhancing career identity behavior, improving career sustainability, and assisting organizations in managing human resource mobility., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Feng, Zhang, Zeng and Liu.)

Leaf growth initiates in the peripheral region of the meristem at the apex of the stem, eventually forming flat structures. Leaves are pivotal organs in plants, serving as the primary sites for photosynthesis, respiration, and transpiration. Their development is intricately governed by complex regulatory networks. Leaf development encompasses five processes: the leaf primordium initiation, the leaf polarity establishment, leaf size expansion, shaping of leaf, and leaf senescence. The leaf primordia starts from the side of the growth cone at the apex of the stem. Under the precise regulation of a series of genes, the leaf primordia establishes adaxial-abaxial axes, proximal-distal axes and medio-lateral axes polarity, guides the primordia cells to divide and differentiate in a specific direction, and finally develops into leaves of a certain shape and size. Leaf senescence is a kind of programmed cell death that occurs in plants, and as it is the last stage of leaf development. Each of these processes is meticulously coordinated through the intricate interplay among transcriptional regulatory factors, microRNAs, and plant hormones. This review is dedicated to examining the regulatory influences of major regulatory factors and plant hormones on these five developmental aspects of leaves., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Lv, Zhao, Kong, Li and Lin.)

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a global shift toward online education, which has increased the use of technology for communication, management, and remote teaching. This study aimed to investigate how primary school teachers in China used technology during the Pandemic and to what extent they experienced Technostress, as well as the impact of Technostress on work-family conflicts and technology-induced health issues. A survey was conducted among 1,172 primary school teachers, and the results revealed that teachers exhibited a moderate to a high level of Technostress during the Pandemic, with differences observed in gender, age, and headteacher duties. Furthermore, Technostress was positively correlated with work-family conflicts and technology-induced health issues. Technology use intensity was found to directly impact work-family conflicts and personal health and indirectly impact them via the agency effects of Technostress. School support moderated the indirect relationship between technology use intensity and work-family conflicts and health issues, with higher levels of school support leading to less apparent impacts of technology intensity on work-family conflicts and personal health via the agency effect of Technostress. These findings provide timely insights for post-pandemic teacher training and technology management and suggest the importance of school support in promoting sustainable educational development., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Wang, Zhang, Wang, Liu and Lv.)

Verticillium wilt is one of the most crucial diseases caused by Verticillium dahliae that threatens the cotton industry. Statistical results showed that the return of cotton plants infected with V. dahliae to the field might be an essential cause of the continuous aggravation of cotton Verticillium wilt. The correlation among the cotton plants infected with V. dahliae returning to the field, the occurrence of Verticillium wilt, and the number of microsclerotia in rhizosphere soil need further investigation. A potted experiment was carried out to explore the effects of the direct return of cotton plants infected with Verticillium dahliae to the field on the subsequent growth and Verticillium wilt occurrence in cotton. As a risk response plan, we investigated the feasibility of returning dung-sand (i.e., insect excreta) to the field, the dung-sand was from the larvae of Protaetia brevitarsis (Coleoptera: Cetoniidea) that were fed with the V. dahliae -infected cotton plants. The results demonstrated that the return of the entire cotton plants to the field presented a promotional effect on the growth and development of cotton, whereas the return of a single root stubble or cotton stalks had an inhibitive effect. The return of cotton stalks and root stubble infected with V. dahliae increased the risk and degree of Verticillium wilt occurrence. The disease index of Verticillium wilt occurrence in cotton was positively correlated with the number of microsclerotia in the rhizosphere soil. The disease index increased by 20.00%, and the number of soil microsclerotia increased by 8.37 fold in the treatment of returning root stubble infected with V. dahliae to the field. No Verticillium wilt microsclerotia were detected in the feed prepared from cotton stalks and root stubble fermented for more than 5 days or in the transformed dung-sand. There was no risk of inoculation with Verticillium wilt microsclerotia when the dung-sand was returned to the field. The indirect return of cotton plants infected with V. dahliae to the field by microorganism-insect systems is worthy of further exploration plan of the green prevention and control for Verticillium wilt and the sustainable development of the cotton industry., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Zhang, Meng, Ge, Yuan, Qiang, Jiang and Ma.)

The brain-computer interface (BCI)-mediated rehabilitation is emerging as a solution to restore motor skills in paretic patients after stroke. In the human brain, cortical motor neurons not only fire when actions are carried out but are also activated in a wired manner through many cognitive processes related to movement such as imagining, perceiving, and observing the actions. Moreover, the recruitment of motor cortexes can usually be regulated by environmental conditions, forming a closed-loop through neurofeedback. However, this cognitive-motor control loop is often interrupted by the impairment of stroke. The requirement to bridge the stroke-induced gap in the motor control loop is promoting the evolution of the BCI-based motor rehabilitation system and, notably posing many challenges regarding the disease-specific process of post stroke motor function recovery. This review aimed to map the current literature surrounding the new progress in BCI-mediated post stroke motor function recovery involved with cognitive aspect, particularly in how it refired and rewired the neural circuit of motor control through motor learning along with the BCI-centric closed-loop., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Mang, Xu, Qi and Zhang.)

Introduction: Motor-cognitive interactive interventions, such as action observation training (AOT), have shown great potential in restoring cognitive function and motor behaviors. It is expected that an advanced AOT incorporating specific Tai Chi movements with continuous and spiral characteristics can facilitate the shift from automatic to intentional actions and thus enhance motor control ability for early-stage PD. Nonetheless, the underlying neural mechanisms remain unclear. The study aimed to investigate changes in brain functional connectivity (FC) and clinical improvement after 12 weeks of Tai Chi-based action observation training (TC-AOT) compared to traditional physical therapy (TPT)., Methods: Thirty early-stage PD patients were recruited and randomly assigned to the TC-AOT group ( N  = 15) or TPT group ( N  = 15). All participants underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) scans before and after 12 weeks of training and clinical assessments. The FCs were evaluated by seed-based correlation analysis based on the default mode network (DMN). The rehabilitation effects of the two training methods were compared while the correlations between significant FC changes and clinical improvement were investigated., Results: The results showed that the TC-AOT group exhibited significantly increased FCs between the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex and cerebellum crus I, between the posterior inferior parietal lobe and supramarginal gyrus, and between the temporal parietal junction and clusters of middle occipital gyrus and superior temporal. Moreover, these FC changes had a positive relationship with patients' improved motor and cognitive performance., Discussion: The finding supported that the TC-AOT promotes early-stage PD rehabilitation outcomes by promoting brain neuroplasticity where the FCs involved in the integration of sensorimotor processing and motor learning were strengthened., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Meng, Wang, Shi, Li, Zhang, Lu, Zhu and Ming.)

Objective: To investigate the effects of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene polymorphism on cognitive function, neuroimaging and blood biological markers in patients with subcortical ischaemic vascular dementia (SIVD)., Methods: A total of 81 patients with SIVD were included. According to their BDNF gene polymorphism, the participants were divided into the Val/Val ( n  = 26), Val/Met ( n  = 35), and Met/Met ( n  = 20) groups. A comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation and multimodal brain MRI scan were performed. MRI markers for small vessel disease were visually rated or quantitatively analysed. Moreover, 52 patients were further evaluated with blood marker assays, including amyloid beta (Aβ), phosphorylated tau at threonine-181 (P-tau181), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), total tau (T-tau) and neurofilament light chain (NfL)., Results: There were no significant differences in demographics, disease duration or MRI markers of small vessel disease between the three groups. Compared with the Val/Val and Val/Met groups, the Met/Met group showed worse performance in the verbal fluency test and higher levels of plasma NfL., Conclusion: The rs6265 polymorphism of the BDNF gene is associated with semantic language fluency in patients with SIVD. The Met genotype may be a risk factor for cognitive impairment and neuronal injury., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Yao, Yang, Fang, Tian, Lu, Chen, Che, Chen and Zhang.)

5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate synthetase (MTHFS) deficiency is a folate metabolism disorder known as a rare autosomal recessive neurodevelopmental disorder (MIM: #618367). With central nervous system involvements, it is mainly characterized by developmental delay, epilepsy, microcephaly, hypertonia, and cranial nerves involvement. Here, we report three new cases with MTHFS deficiency from two non-consanguineous Chinese families. All patients showed white matter dysplasia and global developmental delay, of which only patient 1 and 2 manifested tonic-clonic seizures. Moreover, patient 2 had severe eczema and patient 3 had recurrent diarrhea. Both phenotypic features are firstly found in MTHFS deficiency. Trio whole-exome sequencing and sanger sequencing were used to identify four novel variants, p.Y169Tfs*17, p.S53F, c.117+1delG, and p.E61G in the MTHFS gene. The identification of four novel pathogenic variants and varied clinical features in three affected patients expands the genotype and phenotype spectrum of MTHFS deficiency. We also reviewed all cases of MTHFS deficiency that had previously been reported. The experience of diagnosis and treatment from these cases provides us a more comprehensive understanding of this rare disease., Competing Interests: Authors MP and GY were employed by Chigene (Beijing) Translational Medical Research Center Co, Ltd. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Xu, Zhu, Fang, Zou, Yuan, Peng, Yu, Wu, Liu and Tang.)

Bamboo has great economic values and is used extensively in many industries, and their natural distribution range was divided into 12 zones in China according to the temperature of their geographical distribution in previous works. Different bamboo species had significantly different abilities in low-temperature tolerance, which need to be considered carefully during ex-situ introduction. In this paper, we observed and evaluated the low-temperature damage of 19 bamboo species in winter, and measured the physiological changes of bamboo leaves. A total of 3060 leaf samples were obtained from 102 core collections in 34 bamboo species from the 5 regions of Chinese mainland for anatomical comparison, in order to screen out the key anatomical indicators related to their low-temperature tolerance and to establish a mathematical prediction model for bamboo introduction. The results showed that the low-temperature resistance of clustered bamboos was generally lower than that of the scattered bamboos. The decreased temperature led to the constant decrease of net photosynthetic rate and transpiration rate, but the increase of soluble sugar content in all bamboo species. There was no dormancy for all bamboo species in winter. The temperate bamboos showed lower photosynthesis as compared to tropical bamboos in winter. The leaf shape of bamboos was closely related to their distribution. A total of 13 leaf indicators were screened and more suitable to estimate the low-temperature tolerant abilities of bamboos and to predict their distribution. The MNLR (multiple nonlinear regression) mathematical model showed the highest fitting degree and the optimal prediction ability in the potential northernmost introduction range of bamboos. This study lay a foundation for bamboo introduction, and could also reduce the economic losses caused by the wrong introduction., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Wu, Li, Yu, Wang, Lv, Long, Zhai, Lin, Meng, Cao and Sun.)

Background: Although clinically, Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VaD) are the two major types of dementia, it is unclear whether the biophotonic activities associated with cognitive impairments in these diseases share common pathological features., Methods: We used the ultraweak biophoton imaging system (UBIS) and synaptosomes prepared by modified percoll method to directly evaluate the functional changes in synapses and neural circuits in AD and VaD model animals., Results: We found that biophotonic activities induced by glutamate were significantly reduced and spectral blueshifted in synaptosomes and brain slices. These changes could be partially reversed by pre-perfusion of the ifenprodil, a specific antagonist of the GluN2B subunit of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs)., Conclusion: Our findings suggest that AD and VaD pathology present similar but complex changes in biophotonic activities and transmission at synapses and neural circuits, implying that communications and information processing of biophotonic signals in the brain are crucial for advanced cognitive functions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Wang, Xu, Luo, Peng, Song, Li, Zheng, Liu, Wu, Zhang, Zhang, Hu, Liu, Lu, Dai and Zhang.)