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Simple Summary: Targeted therapy for malignant esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains a big challenge for our clinicians. In an effort to search for the vulnerability of ESCC, we applied a high-throughput drug-screening strategy and found that CuET, a copper chelation product of disulfiram, had a strong synergy effect with the JMJD3/UTX inhibitor GSK J4 in treating ESCC in vitro and in vivo. Interestingly, JMJD3/UTX's diagnostic and prognostic value, as well as the underlying mechanisms associated with endoplasmic reticulum stress were revealed. Targeting JMJD3 and UTX in combination with disulfiram has the potential to provide a new safe, effective, and available therapy for ESCC. The alcohol-averse drug disulfiram has been reported to have anti-tumor effects and is well suited for drug combinations. In order to identify potential drug combinations in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), we screened a bioactive compound library with the disulfiram copper chelation product CuET. The Jumonji domain-containing protein 3 (JMJD3) and the ubiquitously transcribed tetratricopeptide repeat protein X-linked (UTX) inhibitor GSK J4 were identified. To further understand the molecular mechanism underlying the efficient drug combination, we applied quantitative mass spectrometry to analyze the signaling pathway perturbation after drug treatment. The data revealed that the synergistic effect of GSK J4 and CuET was due to the interaction among JMJD3 and UTX, which may play important roles in maintaining endoplasmic reticulum (ER) homeostasis in tumor cells. Interestingly, our clinical data analysis showed that high expression of JMJD3 and UTX was associated with T stage and worse prognosis of ESCC patients, further supporting the importance of the above findings. In conclusion, our findings suggest that the combination of CuET and targeting JMJD3/UTX may be a safe, effective, and available treatment for ESCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ski industry in China has been entering into a phase of rapid development, since the beginning of Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, with the typical distribution characteristics of ski tourism in main snow-ice resources area. The North Slope region of the Tianshan Mountain contains the favorable endowment of ski resources in China and has become one of the best tourist destinations. However, ski tourism are facing a significant challenge in ecological and environmental protection. Few China Ski tourism studies considered the discussion of ecological footprint. Therefore, this study aims to explore an ecological accounting scheme for ski tourism, based on evaluating the local ecological carrying capacity and ecological pressure, and to examine the sustainability of the regional ski industry layout, took a representative Tianshan ski tourist city as the research case. It is indicated that the ecological footprint of ski resorts are considerably larger than that of other tourism activities, which highlights the urgent need to manage ecological issues of ski resorts. The regional tourist attractions cannot match ski tourism endowment. Nalati ski resorts presents a state of ecological deficit, as the largest tourism area in North Slope region of Tianshan Mountain. Ski tourism accommodations contribute to the largest proportion of the ecological footprint. Fundamentally, this study offers an industry ecological model consideration based on ski tourism sustainability assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The northward typhoon configuration along the southeast coast of China (TCN-SEC) is one of the key circulation patterns influencing the coastal cities in southeast China (CCSE). Here, we analyzed the air quality in CCSE during the high-incidence typhoon period from 2019 to 2021. Multi-source measurements were carried out to explore the impact of super typhoon 2114 'Chanthu' on the air quality in CCSE. The results showed that the TCN-SEC and its surrounding weather situation had a favorable impact on the increase in pollutant concentration in CCSE, especially on the increase in O3 concentration. From 13 September to 17 September 2021, affected by the cyclonic shear in the south of super typhoon 2114 'Chanthu,' the strong wind near the ground, stable relative humidity, strong precipitation, and the significantly reduced wind speed had a substantial effect on PM10, PM2.5, SO2, and NO2 concentrations. Calm and light air near the ground, weak precipitation, high daily maximum temperatures, and minimum relative humidity may provide favorable meteorological conditions for the accumulation of O3 precursors and photochemical reactions during the day, resulting in the daily peak values of O3 exceeding 160 μg/m3. The evolution of wind, relative humidity, and boundary layer height could play an important role in the variations in PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations by influencing pollutant accumulation or diffusion. It was suggested that the atmospheric structure of horizontal stability and vertical mixing below 1500 m could play a significant role in the accumulation and vertical distribution of ozone. The results highlight the important role of typhoons in the regional environment and provide a scientific basis for further application of multi-source observation data, as well as air pollution control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous palaeoenvironmental reconstructions have implied that East Asia was dominated by a zonal climate pattern during the Eocene, with an almost latitudinal arid/semiarid band at ~ 30° N. However, this long-standing model has recently been challenged by growing body of multidisciplinary evidence. Some studies indicated that central China was characterized by climatic fluctuations between humid and drier conditions during the Early Eocene, akin to the present East Asian monsoon (EAM) regime. Using palynological assemblages in the Tantou Basin, central China, we quantitatively reconstructed climate changes from the Late Palaeocene to Early Eocene to better understand climate change in central China. Palynological assemblages revealed that the coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forest in this area received no less than 800 mm of annual precipitation and experienced a climate change from warm and wet to relatively cool and dry. According to palaeoclimate curves, a sudden climate change occurred in the Early Eocene, with the mean annual temperature and precipitation decreasing by 5.1 °C and 214.8 mm, respectively, and the climate became very similar to the present climate, which is controlled by the monsoon. Therefore, this significant climate change during the Early Eocene may signal the emergence of the EAM in East Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mine roof water (water in the overlying aquifers of coal seam) seriously threatens the safe production of coal mines in the Ordos Basin in China. Transient electromagnetic (TEM) and seismic methods are the two key methods of mine roof water detection. To exploit the advantage of each method, the seismic-constrained TEM method is proposed. First, the seismic-constrained TEM inversion algorithm was constructed by adding a cross-gradient function to the pseudo-2D TEM inversion algorithm. The cross-gradient function makes the structures of the TEM and seismic models consistent in inversion. To match the seismic and TEM model grids, the interpolation of the seismic impedance model was proposed. Then, the proposed algorithm was successfully used in the Maiduoshan coal mine in the Ordos Basin. Data acquisition, seismic-constrained TEM inversion and interpretation were carried out. Seventeen boreholes were drilled to verify the interpretation results, and the drilling results are consistent with the detection results. Finally, the seismic-constrained and single TEM methods were compared. Results show that the seismic-constrained TEM method is superior to the single TEM method. The structural consistency of the resistivity and seismic impedance models increases in the seismic-constrained TEM inversion and decreases in the single TEM inversion. Seismic-constrained TEM inversion can add the stratigraphic structure information provided by the seismic method to the TEM inversion, thereby improving the inversion results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industrial transformation (IT) is the inevitable course for the sustainable development of resource-based cities, while digital inclusive finance (DIF) provides essential capital elements for industrial transformation. Based on the panel data of 115 resource-based cities in China from 2011 to 2019, this paper discusses the influence mechanism of digital inclusive finance on industrial transformation from the perspectives of the optimization of industrial structure (OIS) and the rationalization of industrial structure (RIS). The empirical results show that digital inclusive finance has a positive effect on both the optimization of industrial structure and the rationalization of industrial structure. Digital inclusive finance influences industrial transformation through residents' income and technological innovation. In addition, in the analysis of income gap and innovation gap, low-income regions have a better effect on the industrial transformation of industrial structure optimization, while high-income regions have a better effect in manufacturing upgrading, thus resulting in a more significant effect of industrial transformation on the rationalization of industrial structure. Obviously, the development of high-innovation regions has relative advantages with more channels for industrial transformation, which have significant effect of industrial transformation. Therefore, it is necessary to provide differentiated reform on the basis of unified development reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radon (222Rn) is a radioactive gas that occurs naturally in the soil and is harmful to the environment and health. However, the measuring the amount of radon flowing is challenging. This study reveals the mechanism responsible for radon transportation and concentration variation, the main driving forces acting, and the key factors operating in the vadose zone. In this study, two separate holes were used to monitor the amount of earth-air and radon flowing in and out of the soil in the extremely arid region in China where the Mogao Grottoes are located. Using a closed-system model, the quantity, characteristics, and regularity of the flow of earth-air and radon were thus determined on daily and yearly timescales. The same patterns of variation in earth-air flow and radon concentration were found at the two sites, both depending on the variation in the atmospheric pressure (AP). When the AP decreases, earth-air flows out from the soil with a high radon concentration. Conversely, when the AP increases, earth-air enters into the soil with a low radon concentration. Thus, radon is continuously emitted from the soil. The concentration of radon in the earth-air is proportional to the rate of flow of earth-air and therefore increases as the AP decreases. The radon emission also varies with the seasonal variation in temperature and AP, which is high in summer and low in winter. On a daily timescale, the radon varies in a bimodal manner. Therefore, the net amount of radon emitted from the soil is positively correlated with the amplitude of the AP fluctuation, temperature, soil porosity, and thickness of the vadose zone. The atmospheric pumping is the main driving force responsible for the radon emission. However, the surface closure, landform, cracks, faults, grain size, pore structure, soil adsorption, basal uranium/radium, salts, wind, lunar cycle, latitude and altitude have important effects on the number of radon emission. As such, it provides a scientific basis for the effective utilization of radon and prevention of its emission from soil. [Display omitted] • This study used a new measurement method to monitor the amount of Rn emitted. • The characteristics of radon flow was revealed by monitoring. • Rn in the vadose zone undergoes piston-like movement. • The key factors influencing the vertical transport of Rn were revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: China has a unique cotton planting pattern. Cotton is densely planted in alternating wide and narrow rows to increase yield in Xinjiang, China, causing the difficulty in the accurate estimation of cotton yield using remote sensing in such field with branches occluded and overlapped. Results: In this study, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imaging and deep convolutional neural networks (DCNN) were used to estimate densely planted cotton yield. Images of cotton fields were acquired by the UAV at an altitude of 5 m. Cotton bolls were manually harvested and weighed afterwards. Then, a modified DCNN model (CD-SegNet) was constructed for pixel-level segmentation of cotton boll images by reorganizing the encoder-decoder and adding dilated convolutions. Besides, linear regression analysis was employed to build up the relationship between cotton boll pixels ratio and cotton yield. Finally, the estimated yield for four cotton fields were verified by weighing harvested cotton. The results showed that CD-SegNet outperformed the other tested models, including SegNet, support vector machine (SVM), and random forest (RF). The average error in yield estimates of the cotton fields was as low as 6.2%. Conclusions: Overall, the estimation of densely planted cotton yields based on low-altitude UAV imaging is feasible. This study provides a methodological reference for cotton yield estimation in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a major source of carbon emissions, the civil aviation sector needs a feasible path for low-carbon transition. Owing to the dynamics of travel demand in China, the spatial patterns of aviation emissions are difficult to foresee or simulate in scenario analysis. To address this issue, we predicted the spatial patterns of aviation carbon emissions in China at the city level using projected gridded population data and power law model. The results show that China's civil aviation sector will have a cumulative emission abatement potential of 7027 million tons from 2020 to 2060 if all abatement measures can be implemented. The contribution of individual cities was quantified based on expected changes in population, airport planning, and economic development. Megacities and metropolitan cities will contribute to 58.1 % and 26.2 % of the total emission abatement, respectively. The eastern, central, and western regions of China will contribute to 64.2 %, 15.8 %, and 20.0 % of the total abatement, respectively. The abatement potentials before and after 2040 are expected to account for 20.0 % and 80.0 % of the whole from 2020 to 2060. Therefore, some regions and cities can be regarded as key or pilot areas to implement abatement measures. Finally, policy implications of the results are presented. [Display omitted] • Predict the spatial pattern of carbon emissions of China's civil aviation sector at the city level. • Use gridded population and economic development data, and power-law model. • Sustainable development scenario can abate 7027 Mt of emissions during 2020–2060. • Mega cities contribute to majority of the emissions abatement in future. • Eastern, central, and western cities contribute to 64 %, 16 %, and 20 % of the abatement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study aimed to explore the trend and risk indicators for dental caries of children aged 12 years in China based on national oral health survey data in 2005 and 2015.Methods: Research data were from the two latest national oral health surveys conducted in mainland China, including 30 and 31 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities in 2005 and 2015, respectively. Children aged 12 years were clinically examined for dental caries and dental fluorosis according to the World Health Organization criteria. Sociodemographic characteristics and oral health-related behaviours were collected using questionnaires. Multilevel zero-inflated negative binomial regression model was used to investigate the association between dental caries severity and dental fluorosis, sociodemographic characteristics, and oral health-related behaviours.Results: The final analyses included 12,350 and 27,818 children surveyed in 2005 and 2015, respectively. The standardized prevalence of dental caries increased from 27.05% (95% confidence interval [CI], 24.25-28.85) in 2005 to 37.92% (95% CI, 34.94-40.90) in 2015, and the respective standardized mean decayed, missing, filled teeth (DMFT) index scores increased from 0.50 (standard deviation [SD], 1.04) to 0.83 (SD, 1.45) (P < 0.001). Fujian province had the highest increase in dental caries, followed by Liaoning, Heilongjiang, Hainan, and Yunnan. Results revealed that children who were girls, more frequently experienced dental pain, and had more recent dental visits, had significantly higher DMFT scores after adjusting for the survey year and other variables (all P < 0.05).Conclusions: Dental caries of 12-year-old children in China deteriorated from 2005 to 2015, particularly in the northeast and southwest regions. Dental caries was associated with sex, dental pain, and dental service utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies on trace element (TE) pollution in abiotic matrices have typically focused on water, sediment, and soil, either separately or in pairs. The importance of multi-media connectivity has been ignored. This study analyzed the concentrations of 6 TEs in three connected environmental compartments of a 28-km section of the lower reach of the Jinsha River. The ecological risk posed by TEs was higher in soil than in sediment. The contribution of exposure pathways to human health risk were ranked as ingestion > dermal contact > inhalation. An improved regional environmental risk index (RERI) method was then developed to evaluate the comprehensive risk on both ecology and human health caused by TEs. The average RERI value was generally higher in the wet season (0.42) than in the dry (0.41) and dry-to-wet transition seasons (0.08) because of the combined effects of the high TE concentrations in riparian soil and the long exposure time. Source apportionment indicated that industrial activities, weathering of parent rock, and agricultural activities were possible sources of TEs in this region. The methods and results of this study could inform local environmental management and provide references for similar cases wherein multiple compartments of river systems should be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Psychosocial stress and stressful life events are known to aggravate allergic diseases. Less is known about the impact of stress management skills on allergies. Here we sought to determine whether stress management skills are associated with the allergies and to assess the combined effects of stress management skills and stressful events on allergy risk.Methods: A survey on risk factors for self-reported allergic diseases was carried out among 28,144 southern Chinese people; 14 stressful life events and 8 stress management skills were retrospectively recorded in a case-control setting with multivariate logistic regression analysis. Multiplicative and additive interactions between stressful events and stress management skills were evaluated.Results: Stressful events significantly increased allergy risk. The odds ratio (OR) for allergies was 1.65 (95% confidence interval CI, 1.41-1.93) for those reporting one or two stressful events and 3.10 (95% CI, 2.55-3.79) for those reporting more than three stressful events compared to participants without stressful events. Stress management skills were adversely associated with allergic risk for people experiencing stressful events (OR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.53-0.97) when adjusted demographically, particularly "concentrate on pleasant thoughts at bedtime" (OR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.51-0.89), "pace myself to prevent tiredness" (OR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.54-0.83), "get enough sleep" (OR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.32-0.72) and "take some time for relaxation each day" (OR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.37-0.80). But in people without stressful events, no association was observed. There was a significant linear trend for allergy risk from good stress management skills with no stressful events to poor stress management skills with stressful events (P < 0.001), with significant interaction in additive models (P = 0.006).Conclusions: There are independent and antagonistic combined associations of stressful life events and stress management skills with allergy risk. The data supports the use of stress management skills in managing allergic disease among people with stressful life events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a systematic study of the petrological, mineralogical, sedimentological, and elemental geochemical characteristics of Cambrian Stage 3 red beds in the Hannan-Micangshan area of South China. The results show that red beds in the study area were mainly deposited in shallow marine environments, including the littoral and deeper neritic zones. Hematite and ferric hydroxides are the major pigmentary minerals in the red beds, and their origin is related to the contribution of iron-bearing minerals in the terrestrial fine-grained fraction during diagenetic transformation, based on evidence from many co-occurring iron-bearing terrestrial and clay minerals (e.g., ilmenite, chamosite, and glauconite), distinct diagenetically-altered characteristics, and close relationships between total Fe and Al, Mg, and Ti. The data also provide compelling evidence for presence of seawater-derived ferric hydroxides in shallow marine environments through in-situ technique analysis. Distinct lithological and sedimentological features in the study area allow the conclusion that diagenetic and hydrogenic ferric oxides/hydroxides jointly promoted the formation of the red beds. The present study found that the combination of active tectono-magmatic events, enhanced terrestrial fluxes, and improved dissolved oxygen conditions may have provided abundant iron sources and iron availability during the sedimentary and diagenetic processes, and thus facilitating the occurrence of red beds globally in Cambrian Stage 3. • Red beds were deposited on a global scale during Cambrian Age 3. • Shallow marine red beds were mixed hydrogenetic-diagenetic. • A novel in-situ technique was used to distinguish the origin of pigmentary minerals. • Sedimentary processes controlled the distribution of shallow marine red beds. • Global tectonic and climatic changes facilitated iron availability in Cambrian Age 3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to analyze the metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs) genotype and oprD mutations of the β-lactam antibiotic-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) strains isolated from southern China. We collected 110 strains of β-lactam antibiotic-resistant PA from 2 hospitals during January 2016–December 2017 from Dongguan, South China. MBLs were detected, amplified, and typed using EDTA disc synergy test, PCR, and Sanger gene sequencing. The mutations and expression levels of oprD were detected using Sanger gene sequencing and qPCR. A total of 16.36% (18/110) β-lactam antibiotic-resistant PA strains produced MBLs, and the main genotypes of MBLs were IMP-25, VIM-2, and SIM-2. Sanger gene sequencing results showed that 107 of the 110 strains harbored mutations in oprD sequence, while 3 strains were negative for oprD amplification (2.73%). Among the 107 strains with positive amplification (97.27%), the rate of intentional mutations (including deletions, insertions, and premature stop codons) was 93.46% (100/107) and that of no disrupted mutation was 6.54% (7/107). qPCR analysis confirmed that the expression level of the OprD protein in the 7 strains of no disrupted mutation was significantly reduced. Among the β-lactam antibiotic-resistant PA strains in southern China, 16.36% were positive for MBLs. The loss rate of oprD was 2.73%, and almost all PA strains showed oprD amplification variation or transcription downregulation. Thus, impaired oprD expression and MBLs production may be some of the mechanisms of β-lactam antibiotic-resistance of PA strains in southern China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The limitations and misjudgment of the duplicate checking software are presented by analyzing the duplicate checking of typical manuscripts. Problems of the irresponsible editors were pointed out in the process of preliminary examination of manuscripts. The significance and strategy of contemporary editors to regain the principles of "Three-Fair" (openness, fairness and justice) are elaborated based on the "real genius" paper from Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology and the famous "Pan Chang war" in the last century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the past two decades, the in situ X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) technology has been developed rapidly in China, which is mainly due to the rapid development of China's economy and the great demand for rapid qualitative and quantitative analysis of elements in geological exploration, environmental protection, and industrial process analysis. In this article, the development of in situ XRF analysis technology in China is reviewed from three aspects, namely in situ XRF analyzers, in situ XRF analysis technology, and applications of in situ XRF analysis technology. The in situ XRF analyzers are divided into four generations, and the technical characteristics of each generation of analyzers are discussed from the perspectives of X‐ray excitation source, detector, electronic circuit unit, and digital signal processing. The progress of X‐ray spectrum analysis, matrix effect correction, and correction of uneven effect and humidity effect is reviewed. The representative applications of XRF analysis technology in geological and mineral survey, environmental pollution investigation, cultural relic identification, and alloy analysis are introduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While marine dolomites formed under near surface conditions have been considered to be potentially reliable archives of past oceanic conditions, this interpretation comes with significant challenges because diagenetic alteration frequently produces diverse fabrics with large geochemical variability. It has been suggested that the Ediacaran dolomites in South China (Hamajing Member, Dengying Formation) recorded the oceanic conditions present at the time they formed, yet these dolomites are composed of five different fabrics (stromatolitic, micritic, oolitic, saddle dolomites and fibrous–radial dolomite cements) and show large variations in multiple geochemical isotope proxies (carbon, oxygen, clumped, magnesium and the sulphur of carbonate‐associated sulphate). This study establishes a paragenetic sequence for these dolomites by combining the clumped and the oxygen isotopic compositions, thereby assessing whether they are geochemically representative of the original seawater. Using this diagenetic framework, the micritic and stromatolitic dolomites show a closed‐system behaviour (low water–rock ratios; <0.3) and are largely resistant to the hydrothermal alteration during late diagenesis. In contrast, the ooid and cement fabrics have been affected by the hydrothermal fluid precipitating saddle dolomite in the open‐system condition with the high stimulated water–rock ratios (>1). Furthermore, in a closed‐system environment, the elevated δ24Mg and δ34S values in the stromatolitic dolomite reflect the isotopic Rayleigh fractionation that enriches the 26Mg and 34S through rock‐buffered recrystallization, coupled with microbial sulphate reduction. These results demonstrate that the complex signals in early marine dolomite should be carefully evaluated when used as a palaeoproxy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The geogas field can reflect the deep-seated tectonic constructing information. Geogas method can be applied to the exploration of deep geothermal resources. In this paper, based on the advanced geogas model of metal ore, a set of simulation model of geogas transportation for hot spring is built. In the model, hot spring water collected from Wuning, JiangXi province, China is used to simulate hot spring reservoir, and the hot air flow formed by electric hot plate is used to simulate rising geogas flow. The transporting materials from hot spring reservoir are sampled in 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 d respectively. More than 30 elements in these samples are determined with ICP-MS. The experimental results confirm that many elements in hot spring can be transferred out by geogas flow, transportation rate and transportation ratio of different elements is of obvious differences. The migratory activity of most elements in hot spring is greater than that in concealed ore body, thus the transportation amount of the element is easily recognizable. The elements with high transportation ratio and high concentration, including Cd, Cu, Pb, Sc, Y, Zn, are most helpful to indicate towards hot springs, the result provides reference to application of geogas survey on geothermal resource exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Study Question: Is a maternal history of spontaneous abortion (SA) associated with an increased risk of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in offspring?Summary Answer: Our results suggest an association between maternal history of SA and ADHD in offspring, with the risk increasing with the number of maternal SA and highest in the firstborn children whose mothers had had recurrent SAs after adjusting for a number of potential confounders.What Is Known Already: A history of SA has been associated with more complications in next pregnancies and adverse childbirth outcomes, which are risk factors for ADHD in the offspring. However, no previous study has investigated whether maternal SA increases risk of ADHD in the offspring.Study Design, Size, Duration: This population-based study included all live-born children in Denmark from 1 January 1995 to 31 December 2012 (n = 1 062 667). All children were followed from 3 years of age until the day of ADHD diagnosis, death, emigration or 31 December 2016, whichever came first.Participants/materials, Setting, Methods: There were 130 206 (12.2%) children born to mothers who had at least one SA. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).Main Results and the Role Of Chance: During a median follow-up of 9.4 years (interquartile range, 5.4-14.3), 25 747 children were diagnosed with ADHD. Overall, children of mothers with a history of SA had an increased rate of ADHD (HR, 1.11; 95% CI, 1.07 to 1.15). The HRs increased with the number of maternal SA, 1.09 (95% CI, 1.05 to 1.13) for one SA and 1.22 (95% CI, 1.12 to 1.33) for at least two SAs, respectively. These findings were consistent when we took into consideration a number of factors, such as maternal socioeconomic status, type of SA, birth order, parental history of psychiatric disorders, pregnancy characteristics and adverse birth outcomes.Limitations, Reasons For Caution: Misclassification of SA was possible as we used population-based register data to capture maternal history of SA. However, any misclassification of maternal history of SA would be non-differential with regard to the diagnosis of ADHD in offspring, which generally leads to underestimation of the associations. Furthermore, probabilistic sensitivity analysis suggested that only 1% of change in the estimate may have been due to misclassification of SA.Wider Implications Of the Findings: SA is quite frequent (varying from 15 to 20%), and a small increase of neurodevelopmental problems in offspring could have major public health implications.Study Funding/competing Interest(s): This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 81703237, No. 81530086 and No. 81761128035), National Key Research and Development Program (2018YFC1002801, 2016YFC1000505), Shanghai Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning (No. 2017ZZ02026, No. 2017EKHWYX-02), the Novo Nordisk Foundation (NNF18OC0052029), the Danish Council for Independent Research (DFF-6110-00019), the Nordic Cancer Union (176673, 186200 and R217-A13234-18-S65), Karen Elise Jensens Fond (2016) and Xinhua Hospital of Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (2018YJRC03). All authors report no conflict of interest.Trial Registration Number: NA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: We aim to investigate how a specialization differentiation strategy impacts a physician's online economic rewards and the market conditions under which a specialization differentiation strategy has stronger effects. Methods: The study was performed using data from the health care system of the People's Republic of China. We used physician-based secondary data (data that were collected by someone other than the researcher) in an econometric analysis of transactions obtained from an e-consultation website (haodf.com) for four clinical specialties (pediatrics, endocrinology, gynecology, and oncology) from 2008 to 2015. Patient economics are not considered in this study. A total of 1,153 physicians were included in the analysis. Results: The specialization differentiation strategy has a significant positive impact on the physician's online income (β = 0.009, p < 0.001) and service price (β = 0.003, p < 0.001). Moreover, specialization will improve a physician's competitive advantage in terms of income (β = 0.129, p < 0.001) and service price (β = 0.024, p < 0.01) when market competition is more intense. Conclusions: Physicians whose expertise is different from that of the majority have higher online incomes and service prices, and this impact will be stronger when market competition is more intense. Our study indicates that e-consultations may accelerate the specialization trend observed in the health care industry because the online market favors more-specialized physicians, and competition in the online market is stronger than in the off-line market. The e-consultation impact may be positive for some complicated diseases but less positive or even negative for chronic diseases, and therefore, policy-makers should be cautious about unintended consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Located in the Yangtze River Valley and surrounded by mountains, South-Central China (SCC) frequently suffered from natural disasters such as torrential precipitation, landslide and debris flow. Here we provide corroborative evidence for a link between the late spring (May) snow water equivalent (SWE) over Siberia and the summer (July–August, abbr. JA) rainfall in SCC. We show that, in May, anomalously low SWE over Siberia is robustly related to a large warming from the surface to the mid-troposphere, and to a stationary Rossby wave train from Siberia eastward toward the North Atlantic. On the one hand, over the North Atlantic there exhibits a tripole pattern response of sea surface temperature anomalies in May. It persists to some extent in JA and in turn triggers a wave train propagating downstream across Eurasia and along the Asian jet, as the so-called Silk Road pattern (SRP). On the other hand, over northern Siberia the drier soil occurs in JA, accompanied by an overlying anomalous anticyclone through the positive feedback. This anomalous anticyclone favors the tropospheric cooling over southern Siberia, and the meridional (northward) displacement of the Asian jet (JMD) due to the change in the meridional temperature gradient. The combination of the SRP and the JMD facilitates less water vapor transport from the tropical oceans and anomalous descending motion over SCC, and thus suppresses the precipitation. These findings indicate that May Siberian SWE can be exploited for seasonal predictability of SCC precipitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The da Vinci robotic system was considered an effectively alternative treatment option for early gastric cancer patients in recent years. The aim of our study was to evaluate the safety and feasibility of robot-assisted gastrectomy in our center. Methods. This study included 33 patients who underwent robot-assisted gastrectomy (RAG) and 88 patients who underwent laparoscopic-assisted gastrectomy (LAG) between January 2016 and April 2018. Clinicopathological characteristics, surgical parameters, postoperative recovery, and the learning curves of RAG were evaluated. Results. Baseline characteristics between two groups were well balanced. The operation time of RAG was longer than that of LAG (333.1±61.4 min vs. 290.6±39.0 min, p=0.001), and the estimated blood loss was 62.4±41.2 ml in the RAG group and 77.7±32.3 ml in the LAG group (p=0.005), respectively. The mean number of examined lymph nodes in RAG was less than that in LAG (30.3±10.2 vs. 37.4±13.7, p=0.008). However, RAG had an advantage in the dissection of No. 9 lymph nodes (3.4±2.1 vs. 2.5±1.6, p=0.039). The incidence of postoperative complications was similar in both groups (p=0.735). There were no significant differences in terms of postoperative recovery between the two groups. The learning curve of RAG showed that the CUSUM value decreased from the 8th case, which suggested a rapid learning curve among experienced surgeons on LAG operations. Conclusions. RAG was safe and feasible for gastric cancer patients, with superiority in the dissection of No. 9 lymph nodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic variation and population structure may reflect important information for invasion success of exotic plant species and thus help improve management of invasive plants. Spartina alterniflora is an invasive plant that is a major threat to the economy and environment of the coastal regions in China. We analyzed the genetic structure and diversity of six populations of S. alterniflora differing in invasion histories in Guangxi, China. A total of 176 individuals from the six populations produced 348 AFLP fragments. The average heterozygosity was significantly lower than in the native population. And genetic bottlenecks were also detected in most populations. Standardized FST statistics (Φpt = 0.015) and AMOVA results indicated weak genetic differentiation. Genetic admixture and obviously isolation by distance indicated populations in Guangxi come from a pre-admixed population by a single introduction. High phenotypic variations of S. alterniflora in Guangxi influenced by soil salinity and temperature might be an important reason for the successful invasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. The objective of this study was to evaluate the change of the ratio of monocytes to lymphocytes in patients with active tuberculosis, such as to provide reference for clinical diagnosis and treatment. Methods. All data were collected from the clinical database of The Fifth People's Hospital of Taiyuan, China. A total of 151 patients who had newly diagnosed active tuberculosis with tuberculosis therapy in hospital and 129 healthy controls were selected. Results. Median ratio of monocytes to lymphocytes was 0.45 (IQR: 0.28–0.67) in patients before treatment and 0.32 (IQR: 0.25–0.46) on discharge (P<0.001). Conclusions. Ratio of monocytes to lymphocytes may be applied in diagnosis and the chemotherapeutic efficacy of active tuberculosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mortality factors affecting eggs, immatures (larvae and pupae combined), and adults of the Asian longhorned beetle, Anoplophora glabripennis , infesting Salix babylonica, Populus sp. (Section Aigeiros Duby), and P. gansuensis (Section Tacamahaca ) were investigated in four Chinese provinces between 2015 and 2017. Immature density varied by location and tree species; however, overall density was highest in Jilin province. When immature density was compared between host tree species from the same province, nearly four times the immature numbers were found infesting P. gansuensis than S. babylonica . Although there were variations in mortality factors affecting different A. glabripennis stages between location and year, eggs appeared to be the most susceptible life stages to mortality factors compared to other life stages. On average, 59.3% of eggs were killed by undetermined factors (likely host tree resistance and microbial pathogens) across all survey sites and years. In contrast, immature stages were least susceptible to mortality factors, where on average 8.3%, 15.6%, and 9.1% of these were killed, respectively, by undetermined factors, woodpeckers, and unidentified predators across all survey sites and years. Parasitoids, Dastarcus helophoroides and Sclerodermus guani, were recovered from immatures in Gansu and Shaanxi provinces and Beijing City, together accounting for around 6.0% mortality of these stages in these sites. Across all survey sites and years, most longhorned beetle adults had emerged from their host trees; of the remaining adults (pharate) that did not emerge, 10.1%, were killed by undetermined factors, 8.1% parasitized by D. helophoroides , and >1% removed by unidentified predators or woodpeckers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three species of otters are known from China; the Eurasian otter Lutra lutra is widespread throughout the country and the smooth-coated Lutrogale perspicillata and Asian small-clawed otters Aonyx cinereus occur in tropical and subtropical regions. We summarize the past status and distribution of otters in China, and provide an update based on a literature review, interviews and field surveys. Otter populations have undergone a dramatic countrywide decline, and are extirpated over much of their former ranges. Relict populations persist, however, in well-protected nature reserves, in sparsely populated headwaters of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, at remote sites along international borders, and in densely populated deltas and floodplains. Recent records were mostly of the Eurasian otter, and we could find no confirmed recent record of the smooth-coated otter. The otters that survive in certain well-protected sites could act as source populations for recolonization if adequate conservation interventions are implemented. Urgent, focused action is needed to protect the remaining populations, and to study the taxonomy and ecology of China's otters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Metal bioavailability estimated by simple bioavailability extraction test (SBET). • Probabilistic integrated ecological risk assessment method (PIERA) was developed. • PIERA integrated SBET and triangular fuzzy numbers into Hakanson's eco-risk index. • Cd and areas around S2 and S5 was identified to be priority pollutant and areas. • Cd originated from both non-point agricultural and industrial pollution sources. Heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd) concentrations and fractions in surface sediments from Honghu Lake were detected by an atomic absorption spectrophotometer and Simple Bioavailability Extraction Test (SBET) from 11 typical sites to explore their spatial distribution, bioavailability and sources. Results showed the mean I geo s and ecological risk degrees decreased in the order of Cd>Cu>Cr>Pb>Zn and Cd>Cu>Pb>Cr>Zn. The metals' bioavailability estimated by SBET decreased in the general order of Cu>Pb>Cd>Zn>Cr. Under integrated consideration of metal enrichment, ecological risk and bioavailability, it obviously made the decision-makers confused to identify final priority pollutants and priority areas. Thus, a probabilistic integrated ecological risk assessment method (PIERA) was formulated based on the potential ecological risk index (PER), SBET and triangular fuzzy numbers for synthetically assessing metal enrichment, ecotoxicity and bioavailability. With the help of PIERA, Cd was finally regarded as the risk priority metal due to the integrated potential eco-risk of Cd made the average contribution of 86.4% to the integrated RI s. Moreover, the areas around S5 and S2 were regarded as the risk priority areas. The case application of PIERA revealed that this improved method is of a better resolving ability which scientifically supplies the integrated information of enrichment, bioavailability and systematic uncertainty for decision-makers compared with the other prevalent indexes (SQGs, I geo , PER). The consequence of the Pearson correlation analysis, distribution analysis and field investigation indicated that Cd mainly originated from both non-point agricultural and industrial pollution sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we examine the match between resource relatedness and post-merger integration on technology innovation of acquiring firms to find the rationale behind technology-sourcing cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As) of Chinese multinational enterprises. Using a sample of 88 Chinese technology-sourcing cross-border M&As, we find that the acquirer will improve technology innovation when greater resource similarity between the acquirer and target firms is matched with a high integration degree and a low target autonomy level. Meanwhile, the acquirer can improve technology innovation when greater resource complementarity is matched with a low level of integration degree in technology-sourcing cross-border M&As. This paper provides the acquiring firms with fresh ideas of how to make the integration decisions of technology-sourcing overseas M&As. We hope to help multinational enterprises to achieve more outstanding technology innovation performance through technology-sourcing overseas M&As in an intense global competitive environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context Aconitum species are well-known for their medicinal value and high lethal toxicity in many Asian countries, notably China, India and Japan. The tubers are only used after processing in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). They can be used safely and effectively with the methods of decoction, rational compatibility, and correct processing based on traditional experiences and new technologies. However, high toxicological risks still remain due to improper preparation and usage in China and other countries. Therefore, there is a need to clarify the methods of processing and compatibility to ensure their effectiveness and minimize the potential risks. Object The aim of this paper is to provide a review of traditional and current methods used to potentially reduce toxicity of Aconitum roots in TCM. Materials and methods The use of Aconitum has been investigated and the methods of processing and compatibility throughout history, including recent research, have been reviewed. Results and conclusions Using of the methods of rational preparation, reasonable compatibility, and proper processing based on traditional experiences and new technologies, can enable Aconitum to be used safely and effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seawater desalination is largely presented as a last resort to address water scarcity in closed basins. The question of whether seawater desalination can substitute for other costly measures, specifically large-scale diversion, has not been adequately assessed. To this end the full unit cost of supplying water to Beijing from the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, the largest in the world, is compared to desalination. Desalination appears to be much more cost-efficient than diversion, even when the diversion’s environmental externalities are excluded. By implementing desalination and water management options, China could substantially reduce water costs; this suggests that desalination should not be viewed only as a last resort. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A typical contaminated land was spatially investigated and assessed based on Chinese guidelines to establish remediation strategy for exploring the shortcomings of the current guidelines to suggest improvements. Results showed that Cr, As, Pb, and Cd should be regarded as the priority pollutants under sensitive land use, while Cr and As should be regarded as the priority pollutants under insensitive land use. Ingestion of soil for each studied metal appeared to be the main exposure pathway under both the land uses. The calculated screening values of the priority metals were conservative to certain extent—even some were lower than their background values. Therefore, an integrated risk management strategy was suggested and the hierarchic clean-up values were proposed considering the health risk, local background value, land remediation cases, current remediation technology, and financial cost. Consequently, it was suggested the clean-up values of Cr(VI), Cr, As, Pb, and Cd, under future sensitive land use, should be 7.5, 1000, 30, 250, and 1.4 mg/kg in the first class control layer, respectively. For future insensitive land use, the clean-up values of Cr(VI), Cr, As, Pb, and Cd should be 20.4, 8000, 60, 580, and 4.3 mg/kg in the first class control layer, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studying the lacustrine microbialites in the Qaidam Basin may provide clues to the occurrence and mineralization processes of microbial communities in extremely harsh terrestrial environments. In the Eocene lacustrine systems of the Qaidam Basin, thick thrombolites (~0.4 to 1 m thick) generally formed in near-shore settings with rare to plentiful terrigenous admixtures and are characterized by four different clotted structures (i.e., maze-like, cortoid-like, tightly bound, and aggregated). In contrast, the small-scale stromatolitic, thrombolitic, and composite clotted-laminated microbialites (cm level) exhibit domical, columnar, and stratiform shapes, likely indicating that they developed in very shallow settings (e.g., a lagoon). The early lithification of the outer crusts and the internally laminated and clotted textures facilitated the preservation of the microbialites. The laminated and clotted textures of the Eocene microbialites analyzed in this study were composed of crypto- to micro-crystalline (mimetic) dolomite, which likely formed during the early mineralization process. This was likely caused by the strong evaporative lacustrine conditions on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau during the Eocene-Oligocene climate transition. The microbial mineralization process in dolomite-supersaturated pore fluids may also have contributed to early dolomitization. In contrast, the medium to coarsely crystalline components of the microbialites are composed of calcite minerals, implying that these components experienced cementation/recrystallization during diagenesis. In addition, large quantities of authigenic sulfate (celestite-barite) and sulfide (framboidal pyrite) minerals are exclusively distributed within the mimetically-dolomitized, laminated and clotted microbial structures. It is inferred that the saline lake conditions and the mineral dissolution (both carbonate and terrigenous particles) contributed to the SrSO 4 - and BaSO 4 -supersaturated fluid conditions and enabled the crystallization of celestite-barite. The development of Eocene lacustrine microbialites on the northeastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau provides a case for comparison with widely-distributed records of lake microbial carbonates, and the microstructural characteristics and analytical tools used in this study may offer a new perspective to explore the complex mineralization processes of microbialites. • The Eocene lacustrine microbialites on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau were studied. • We applied a novel, in-situ laser-ablation imaging technique to the microbialite. • Microbial laminated and clotted components experienced fabric-retentive dolomitization. • Plentiful authigenic sulfate and sulfide minerals are preserved in microbial structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Faced with the severe leakage and chaotic water management situation in developing countries, this research is committed to provide an appropriate and practical water audit calculation method for most water companies so as to guide their leakage control management. It prepares a recommended basic standard terminology for calculation of real and apparent losses, which can be consistent with practice in China. Due to more detailed subdivision of unmetered water along with water component analysis, the water consumption of SA city can be calculated more accurately. The proportion of water loss in SA is 18.02%, while unbilled authorized consumption contributes no more than 1% to the total water consumption. Meanwhile, the “Neighbourhood Metering Area (NMA)” project in SA city also suggests that metering inaccuracies and leakage on service connections up to the point of customer metering can be prioritized for active leakage control in China. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The southwestern Tianshan orogenic belt hosts one of the Earth’s rare occurrences of ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic rocks derived from subducted oceanic crust. To address its poorly constrained and controversial P-T-t evolution, for this study, three representative samples, two paragonite-epidote eclogites (H505-26 and H76-10) and one glaucophane-phengite eclogite (H711-1) are selected, and Sm-Nd geochronology and detailed phase equilibria modeling are combined. Garnet porphyroblasts from the three studied eclogites have well-preserved growth zoning with rim-ward increasing pyrope and decreasing spessartine contents. Phase equilibria modeling reveals that the investigated garnets grew in the lawsonite eclogite facies; in eclogite H505-26 during heating and burial, and in eclogites H76-10 and H711-1 during heating and decompression. Temperatures of 460–590°C derived for the three eclogites are below the closure temperature of the Sm-Nd system, and, thus, the garnet-omphacite-whole rock Sm-Nd isochron ages have the potential to reflect garnet growth, i.e., eclogite facies metamorphism. The three eclogites yield consistent Sm-Nd isochron ages of 309±4.6Ma (H505-26), 306±15Ma (H76-10) and 305±11Ma (H711-1), reflecting HP eclogite facies metamorphism. Based on the new geochronology, detailed investigation of phase equilibria and published data, a clockwise P-T-t path with post-P max heating – decompression, subsequent isothermal decompression and final cooling – decompression is predicted for the eclogites from Chinese southwestern Tianshan. We propose, subduction of the South Tianshan paleo-ocean began before 346Ma, the eclogite facies prograde metamorphism of the subducting oceanic crust occurred at 346–333Ma, peak eclogite facies metamorphism at 320–305Ma, and buoyancy-driven exhumation of the oceanic crust at 296–226Ma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Remotely and accurately quantifying the canopy nitrogen status in crops is essential for regional studies of N budgets and N balances. In this study, we optimised three-band spectral algorithms to estimate the N status of winter wheat. This study extends previous work to optimise the band combinations further and identifies the optimised central bands and suitable bandwidths of the three-band nitrogen planar domain index (NPDI) for estimating the aerial N uptake, N concentration and aboveground biomass. Analysis of the influence of bandwidth change on the accuracy of estimating the canopy N status and aboveground biomass indicated that the suitable bandwidths for optimised central bands were 37nm at 846nm, 13nm at 738nm and 57nm at 560nm for assessing the aerial N uptake and were 37nm at 958nm, 21nm at 696nm and 73nm at 578nm for the assessment of the aerial N concentration and were 49nm at 806nm, 17nm at 738nm and 57nm at 560nm for the estimation of aboveground biomass. The optimised three-band NPDI could consistently and stably estimate the aerial N uptake and aboveground biomass of winter wheat in the vegetative stage and the aerial N concentration in the reproductive stage compared to the fixed band combinations. With suitable bandwidths, the broadband NPDI demonstrated excellent performance in estimating the aerial N concentration, N uptake and biomass. We conclude that the band-optimised algorithm represents a promising tool to measure the improved performance of the NPDI in estimating the aerial N uptake and biomass in the vegetative stage and the aerial N concentration in the reproductive stage, which will be useful for designing improved nitrogen diagnosis systems and for enhancing the applications of ground- and satellite-based sensors. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The use of remotely sensed data to estimate and monitor the gross primary production (GPP) of an ecosystem on regional scales is an important method in climate change research. Under the unremitting efforts of scientists, many successful remote-sensing-based GPP models have been developed for various vegetation types and regions. However, in practice, some models have been applied to a wide variety of ecosystems, and the suitability of a particular model for the environment under consideration has seldom been taken into account. Due to ecosystem diversity and climatic and environmental variation, it is often difficult to find a model that is suitable for a specific vegetation region. In this article, a new method is proposed for estimating the GPP of alpine vegetation, known as the alpine vegetation model (AVM). The accuracy of the AVM in estimating the GPP was compared to that of four other models: the vegetation photosynthesis model (VPM), eddy covariance–light use efficiency (EC–LUE) model, temperature and greenness (TG) model, and vegetation index (VI) model. The results demonstrated that the AVM displays superior accuracy in estimating the GPP of alpine vegetation. We also found that there is information redundancy in the input variables of these four models, which may account for their lower accuracy in estimating the GPP. In addition, the GPP estimates using the enhanced vegetation index are affected more in the case of low rather than high GPP by the influence of senesced grass during the early and late grassland growing season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Hyperspectral indices obtained from algorithms designed to optimize a combination of wavebands were explored. [•] Multi-temporal winter wheat datasets of China and Germany were used to assess aerial N uptake. [•] Optimized hyperspectral indices were generally more robust than published indices. [•] Optimized waveband combinations provided a promising algorithm to improve the prediction of aerial N uptake. [•] Implementation for future aerial N uptake monitoring applications by hyperspectral sensors is possible. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The development of carbonate factories has potential importance in studies of paleoenvironment, sedimentology, and reservoir geology, but the mechanisms controlling the growth and demise of the large amount of carbonate sedimentation have not been broadly investigated, especially in terms of deep-time sedimentary records. Here, we provide a high-resolution study of the development and collapse of a series of tropical shallow-water carbonate factories distributed in the Hannan-Micangshan area of the South China Craton during the early Cambrian (Age 3). Unlike modern tropical shallow-water factories, the major carbonate producers in the early Cambrian factories contained ooids, benthic microbial communities (predominantly calcified microbes), and symbiotic microbial-skeletal organisms (i.e., calcimicrobial–archaeocyath bioherms). The ooid factories were mostly distributed in the tidal sand complexes around the Hannan-Micangshan massif; and some of the mixed quartz-ooid deposits may have been remodeled by terrigenous sands sourced from the adjacent fluviodeltaic delivery. The microbial carbonate factory was primarily characterized by thrombolites in terms of the lithological composition, with a small contribution of stromatolites and oncolites (grain sizes mostly of 2–4 cm). The thrombolites formed not only mound architectures individually (length of ~1–5 m, and height of ~0.5–2.5 m), but also small- to large-scale bioherms associated with reef-building skeletal organisms (i.e., archaeocyaths). Nutrient conditions may have played an essential role in regulating the distributions of the microbial and microbial-skeletal factories (mesotrophic conditions), but they did not have a significant effect on the ooid factories. These tropical shallow-water carbonate factories were located in oxygenated aqueous environments with some small transient low-oxygen intervals that corresponded to barrier microbial and microbial-skeletal factories in the study area. Hydrodynamic condition and other controls (e.g., wind) may have played roles in shaping the factory morphology and distribution features in the study area. The chemical index of alteration (CIA; values of 60–65) and petrological features (occurrence of large-scale ooid sand complexes) support a warm and dry climate during the development of these tropical shallow-water factories. Finally, the transition from carbonate-dominated to siliciclastic-dominated depositional systems driven by wetter climate conditions (CIA, close to 70) may have been responsible for the cessation of the shallow-water carbonate factories in the Hannan-Micangshan area, which resulted in a rapid drowning, and subsequently, continuous input of a high volume of siliciclastics in late Age 3 to early Age 4 (Yanwangbian Formation). This study provides clues to understanding the growth and demise of deep-time tropical carbonate factories and serves as a valuable reference for studies of other regions and time periods. • We present a high-resolution study of the tropical shallow-water carbonate factories. • These factories contained ooids, calcified microbes, and skeletal organisms. • Nutrient conditions may have played a key role in regulating factory distributions. • Hydrodynamic condition and wind shaped the factory morphology and distribution. • The shift of the depositional system was likely responsible for factory collapse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Widespread development of microbialites harbors a series of clues about microbial activity, environmental condition, and aquatic chemistry. The Ediacaran-Cambrian transition draws extensive attention on the co-evolution of complex life and Earth's environment but the associated microorganism development has been largely ignored. In this study, we present a high-resolution database with respect to the spatial and temporal distributions of microbialites in China through the terminal Ediacaran to the early Cambrian Period and describe morphological and petrological characteristics of stromatolites and thrombolites in detail to shed light on the evolutionary process of microbial carbonates. Microbialite development experienced two thriving intervals during the Ediacaran-Cambrian transition: latest Ediacaran to early Fortunian, and Cambrian Age 3 to middle Age 4. The columnar and domical stromatolites show no marked morphological changes in the Ediacaran-Cambrian transition, but stratiform stromatolites exhibit a notable decline in Cambrian time, likely caused by increasing bioturbation in the Cambrian shelf environments. Meanwhile, thrombolites evolved to form large and complicated structures in the early Cambrian featured by meter-level mound morphology and columnar-branching microbial forms (fan-like/dendritic structures), likely indicating an improved environmental adaptation (e.g., photosynthesis efficiency and hydrodynamic conditions). Another remarkable change in microbialites is the emergence of large numbers of calcified microbial microfossils preserved within the laminated/clotted mesostructures in Cambrian facies, compared with the Ediacaran forms that lack such unique structural features. For the main control over the Cambrian microbial calcification event, this study stresses again the essential role of seawater chemistry (Mg/Ca molar ratios and Ca2+ concentrations) in the formation and preservation of calcified microorganisms based on previous insights and elaborate characteristics of their occurrence and microstructures in China. The transition of the Neoproterozoic "aragonite-dolomite sea" to the Cambrian "calcite sea" (likely widely distributed in Age 3) may have promoted to the generation of an original calcite mineralogy in microbial fossils, which has a stronger ability to resist diagenetic dissolution and substitution (e.g., phosphatization and silicification) than that of the aragonite precursor. • We present a high-resolution database with respect to the development of microbialites in China through the E-C transition. • Detailed morphological and petrological characteristics of stromatolites and thrombolites are described. • Microbialite development experienced two thriving intervals in China during the E-C transition. • Thrombolites evolved to form large and complicated structures, likely indicating an improved environmental adaptation. • The primary calcite mineralogical composition is one potential reason for the preservation of the calcified microfossils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Hyperhomocysteinemia has been defined as an elevated serum concentration of homocysteine exceeding 15 μmol/L and has been proven to play an important role in the pathogenesis of cerebrovascular disease. The prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia in China has been outlined in a previous meta-analysis. Considering the key role of homocysteine in the process of vascular injury, more studies have been conducted to prevent hyperhomocysteinemia by nutritional supplements such as folic acid or other treatments. Additionally, studies have shown that the prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia increases over time; therefore, it was necessary to provide an update from the previous meta-analysis on homocysteine status in China. This was needed to understand the prevalence, the trend in changes over time, and its determinants. The results highlight that the prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia is increasing in China, especially among the elderly, men, and residents in the north, inland areas, and rural areas of China. We conducted a meta-analysis to systematically assess the prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) in China, its change over time, and its determinants. Literature searches were conducted using English databases (PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science) and Chinese databases (CNKI, CBM, VIP, and Wanfang). The time ranges were from Jan 2014 to Mar 2021 in China. We adopted the random effects model to estimate the pooled positive rates of HHcy and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). To find the sources of heterogeneity, we performed subgroup analysis and meta-regression. A total of 29 related articles were identified involving 338,660 participants with 128,147 HHcy cases. The estimated prevalence of HHcy in China was 37.2% (95% CI: 32.6–41.8%, I2 = 99.8%, p for heterogeneity < 0.001). The trend of HHcy prevalence was gradually upward over time, with increases during 2015–2016 (comparison to 2013–2014, p < 0.001), but steady between 2015–2016 and 2017–2018. Subgroup analysis showed that the prevalence was higher in the elderly over 55 years old, males, and residents in the north, inland, and rural China (for each comparison, p < 0.001). Meta-regression analysis revealed that age and area of study contributed to 42.3% of the heterogeneity between studies. The current meta-analysis provides strong evidence that the prevalence of HHcy is increasing in China, and varies substantially across different ages, genders, and geographic distribution. Accordingly, high-risk population groups should be focused on, and public health policies and strategies should be carried out to prevent and control HHcy in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Four new sesquiterpenes (1–4), together with four known compounds (5–8), were isolated from the stems of Pogostemon cablin (Blanco.) Benth. Their chemical structures were elucidated by means of spectroscopic methods, including 1D and 2D NMR, HRESIMS, IR, and UV. Hepatoprotective activities of these compounds were investigated, by studying the protective effect on HL-7702 cellular injury induced by dl-galactosamine. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Trace element LA–ICPMS analyses of rutile from eclogites and veins from southwestern Tianshan, China, are carried out for testing the validity of Zr-in-rutile thermometry in low-T/UHP eclogites. Mineral inclusions in rutile and time-resolved mass spectrometer data are carefully examined to identify and reject contaminated data. The Zr contents vary between individual grains from the same sample; rutile inclusions in garnet, amphibole, and paragonite have a narrower range of Zr contents than matrix rutiles that always show the highest Zr contents, which reflects the progressive rutile growth in the eclogites. Average Zr concentrations in rutile from all six investigated eclogite samples statistically belong to one well-defined population (34±5ppm; 33±11ppm; 26±7ppm; 36±17ppm; 22±6ppm; 40±17ppm), while average Zr concentration in rutile from the three veins belong to a second well-defined population (55±7ppm; 66±6ppm; 55±5ppm). The peak temperature of eclogite can be estimated as 535–570°C at a pressure of 2.7GPa inverted from the discovery of well preserved coesite in an increasing number of rocks from southwestern Tianshan. The mineral assemblage of the veins suggests their retrograde formation in the epidote–amphibolite facies; the growth temperature of vein rutile is 530–540°C at ∼1.0GPa. A robust P–T path constructed by Zr-in-rutile thermometry in eclogites and veins indicates that the rocks underwent a rapid uplift involving an early isothermal decompression from eclogite to epidote–amphibolite facies. Zr in rutile from eclogites and veins can serve as a pressure indicator in study area that suggests the pressure has a significant effect to the Zr-in-rutile thermometry. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Red light based broadband vegetation indices are widely applied to derive aerial nitrogen (N) status parameters. With the advance of growth stages, however, crop canopy structure and aerial biomass will vary greatly, which negatively influences the relationships between spectral indices and the crop canopy N status. The current research aimed to assess the performance of red edge based vegetation indices, derived from simulated broadband WorldView-2 data, to remotely sense aerial N concentration and uptake in winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Six experiments with different N rates for five German cultivars and four Chinese cultivars of winter wheat were conducted in southeast Germany and in the North China Plain from 2007 to 2010. The results showed that aerial biomass strongly affected the relationships between broadband vegetation indices and aerial N concentration before the heading stage. Normalising by using the planar domain index approach significantly improved the prediction power of red edge dependent broadband vegetation indices in estimating aerial N status. The two-dimensional broadband canopy chlorophyll content index (CCCI) and a newly proposed nitrogen planar domain index (NPDI) involving the WorldView-2 satellite red edge region were found to be more stable and better predictors than traditional red light based broadband vegetation indices in estimating aerial N concentration after the heading stage and in assessing aerial N uptake before the heading stage. The findings from this study may be useful for managing the application of N fertiliser for winter wheat in Zadoks growth stages 30–55 and in indirectly monitoring aerial N content in Zadoks growth stages 59–75 at landscape scales. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A combined study of zircon U–Pb ages and Lu–Hf isotopes, whole-rock elements and Sr–Nd isotopes was carried out for two granitic intrusions at Changawuzi and Alasan in Muzhaerte River of Southwest Tianshan (NW China). SHRIMP zircon U–Pb dating gave two 206Pb/238U ages of 333±3Ma and 326±3Ma for the Changawuzi pluton. LA-ICP-MS zircon U–Pb dating yielded two 206Pb/238U ages of 293±3Ma and 294±2.2Ma for the Alasan pluton. The two groups of ages predate and postdate the UHP metamorphic event at 320–305Ma in this region, respectively, registering to syn-subduction and post-collisional magmatism. The Changawuzi pluton is composed of gneissic porphyritic tonalite and garnet-bearing gneissic granitoids, having SiO2 of 55.1–64.5wt.%, K2O+Na2O of 2.58–5.07wt.%, MgO of 2.07–4.32wt.%, and Al2O3 of 17.4–19.9wt.% with A/CNK ratios of 0.99 to 1.27. They show arc-like geochemical affinity, with enrichment of LILE (K, Rb, Sr and Ba) and depletion of HFSE (Nb, Ta and Ti) and P, and moderate initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios of 0.7062–0.7071 and neutral εNd(t) values of −1.5 to 1.6. Except for one zircon with a negative εHf(t) value of −3.5, the others have positive εHf(t) values of 2.5–11.4 and single-stage Hf model ages of 509 to 869Ma. The Changawuzi pluton would be formed by partial melting of possible juvenile arc-derived rocks with minor involvement of ancient continental rocks during subduction of the paleo-South Tianshan oceanic crust and subsequent arc–continent collision. The Alasan pluton consists of medium-grained and porphyritic granitoids. The medium-grained granitoids are composed of granodiorite, quartz monzodiorite and quartz monzonite, displaying SiO2 of 59.37–65.49wt.%, K2O+Na2O of 6.24–8.2wt.% and MgO of 1.45–3.06wt.%, with A/CNK ratios of 0.87–1.04. They have relatively high initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios of 0.7082–0.7103, negative εNd(t) values of −5.9 to −5.6 and negative εHf(t) values of −4.5 to −1.1. The porphyritic granitoids consist of granite, granodiorite and quartz monzonite, with relatively high SiO2 (65.94–75.27wt.%) and K2O+Na2O (7.55–9.13wt.%), low MgO (0.18–1.22wt.%), and A/CNK ratios of 0.82–1.11. They also have relatively high initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios of 0.7073–0.7103, negative εNd(t) values of −6.0 to −0.5 and neutral εHf(t) values of −1.4 to 2.8. Both of them also display arc-like patterns of REE and trace element distribution. They belong to post-collisional granitoids and were produced by partial melting of the Paleo-Mesoproterozoic crust of obducted Central Tianshan block with minor involvement of juvenile crust. The geological occurrences of both the syn-subduction and post-collisional granitoids in this region suggest differential tectonic processes during the Late Paleozoic collision between the Tarim and Yili-Central Tianshan Blocks. It is inferred that slab breakoff occurred subsequent to the UHP metamorphism, resulting in partial melting of the subducted upper crust and the overlying lower crust and thus formation of voluminous granitoids like the Alasan pluton. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

On the basis of Chapman's (2003) model, as the seismic wave incidences angles vary from 0° to 45° while propagating in anisotropic media (HTI), the slow S-wave will sufferred by serious attenuation and dispersion and is sensitive to fluid viscosity but the P- and fast S-waves don't. For slow S waves propagating normal to fractures, the amplitudes are strongly affected by pore fluid. So, the slow S-wave can be used to detect fractured reservoir fluid information when the P-wave response is insensitive to the fluid. In this paper, 3D3C seismic data from the Ken 71 area of Shengli Oilfield are processed and analyzed. The travel time and amplitude anomalies of slow S-waves are detected and correlated with well log data. The S-wave splitting in a water-bearing zone is higher than in an oil-bearing zone. Thus, the slow S-wave amplitude change is more significant in water-bearing zones than in oil-bearing zones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with markers for allergy and asthma severity in children with asthma. However, its association with Chinese adult asthmatics has not been studied. Objective: To examine whether vitamin D status is associated with lung function and total serum IgE in Chinese adults with newly diagnosed asthma. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study including 435 Chinese patients aged >18 years with newly diagnosed asthma. Vitamin D status was assessed by measuring serum 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) concentrations. The primary outcomes included airflow limitation, as measured by the forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1), FEV1 % predicted, and FEV1/forced vital capacity (FVC), and serum total IgE concentration. Results: Vitamin D deficiency was prevalent in Chinese adults with asthma, with 88.9% of the subjects having 25OHD <50 nmol/l. Serum 25OHD concentration was positively correlated with FEV1 % predicted (p = 0.02, r = 0.12). After adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, smoking, month of blood collection, and symptom duration, we found significant positive associations between 25OHD concentrations and FEV1 (in liters), FEV1 % predicted, and FEV1/FVC (p for trend < 0.05 for all). The adjusted odds ratios for the highest versus the lowest 25OHD quartile were 0.50 (0.26-0.96) for FEV1 <75% predicted and 0.44 (0.20-0.95) for FEV1/FVC% <0.75. There was no significant association between 25OHD concentrations and total IgE. Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency was highly prevalent in Chinese asthma patients, and vitamin D status was associated with lung function. Copyright © 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Tianshan rodingite was formed from eclogite tectonically included in ultramafic rocks of the Changawuzi ophiolite in the southwestern Tianshan, China. Rodingites derived from eclogite contain a mineral assemblage of prehnite, clinozoisite, hydrogrossular, diopside, vesuvianite, chlorite and minor zircon. Pervasive rodingitization took place during exhumation of the subducted slab under conditions of 250–350°C and 2–10kbar. Cathodoluminescence imaging and geochronological characteristics allow the identification of two types of zircons in the rodingite. Type I zircon consists of sector-zoned grains, commonly with distinct rims and cores. A well-defined weighted mean 206Pb/238U age of 422±10Ma for the rims records an early metamorphic event that affected the Changawuzi ophiolite during the Silurian, and represents the emplacement of the ophiolite complexes along the South Tianshan Paleo-ocean coast. The type I zircon cores reflect variable degrees of alteration during subsequent serpentinization and rodingitization at ∼290Ma. The U–Pb ages of the cores vary from 416Ma to 301Ma, implying patchy and incomplete alteration. The type I zircon shows rather uniform, flat rare earth element (REE) patterns, but with a marked increase in total REE in the cores. Type II zircon has a weighted mean 206Pb/238U age at 291±15Ma, within error of the youngest ages obtained from the cores, and is therefore considered to define the time of pervasive rodingitization. This age is consistent with known regional geological events recorded from the magmatic arc along the southern margin of the Tarim–Yili suture zone and with low P–high T metamorphism to the north, attributed to dehydration of the subducted oceanic slab when the combined Tarim–North China block collided with the Yili–Central Tianshan micro-plate. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Perfluorinated acids (PFAs) have been recognized as emerging environmental pollutants because of their widespread occurrences, persistence, and bioaccumulative and toxicological effects. PFAs have been detected in aquatic environment and biota in China, but the occurrences of these chemicals have not been reported in solid matrices in China. In the present study, short- and long-chain PFAs (C2–C14) have been quantitatively determined in solid matrices including sediments, soils and sludge collected in Shanghai, China. The results indicate that sludge contains more PFAs than sediments and soils, and the total PFAs concentrations in sediments, soil and sludge are 62.5–276ngg−1, 141–237ngg−1 and 413–755ngg−1, respectively. In most cases, trifluoroacetic acid was the major PFA and accounted for 22–90% of the total PFAs. Although the levels of perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) were not only lower than trifluoroacetic acid, but also lower than some short-chain PFCAs (

• Identify optimized three-band spectral indices for estimating the canopy N uptake of corn and wheat. • The optimized NPDI estimated canopy N uptake of both corn and wheat alone and in combination. • Our algorithm may allow the design of improved N diagnosis systems. Nitrogen (N) fertilization management plays an important role in optimizing crop growth and yield. Concerns over environmental risk require a quick, accurate, non-destructive determination of the N status of crops. Hyperspectral remote sensing allows a timely monitoring of the in-season crop N status. Although many spectral indices for assessing the N status of crops have been proposed, it is still necessary to further optimize the central bands, since they often vary with plant cultivars and species. To improve this, we identified optimized three-band spectral indices for estimating the canopy N uptake of corn and wheat. Experiments were conducted from 2009 to 2011 by evaluating and testing optimized three-band spectral indices for estimating the N status of wheat cultivars grown in Germany and China and corn cultivars grown in China. The indices generally enabled more robust predictions compared to published indices. The central bands suitable for assessing the canopy N uptake were 768, 740, and 548 nm for corn; 876, 736 and 550 nm for wheat; and 846, 732 and 536 nm for corn and wheat combined. Both wheat and corn assessed individually as well as in combination where sharing similar wavebands reflected by the species-specific and interspecies-specific optimized three-band spectral indices, e.g. the wavelengths 740, 736 and 732 nm were identified as optimum for corn, wheat and their combination, respectively. The validation results suggest that predictions using the optimized three-band N planar domain index (NPDI) delivered the highest coefficient of determination (R2 = 0.86) and the lowest root mean square error (RMSE, 20.1 kg N ha–1) and relative error (RE, 18.7 %). The optimized NPDI consistently estimated canopy N uptake of both corn and wheat alone and in combination. Therefore, the optimized three-band algorithm is an attractive tool for optimizing and identifying central bands. Our algorithm may allow the design of improved N diagnosis systems and enhance the application of ground- and satellite-based sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the Chinese retailing industry since 1981. Three phases of development are identified. Phase I (1981-1990) was dominated by state-owned retailers and the system of planned economy was the key force driving the dynamics of the sector. Phase II (1991-2000) witnessed diversification in terms of ownership structure and format of operation. Market mechanism gained the central position in attracting investments from various sources and opening chain stores was the most popular practice in business expansion. Phase III (2001- 2005) featured the profound momentum for globalization. As domestic and international players became more active and aggressive, retailing in China experienced more concentration, with merger and acquisition applied as the primary means of expansion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]