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Objective This cross-sectional study examined environmental correlates of sedentary behavior (SB) and physical activity (PA) in preschool children in the urban area of Tianjin, China. Methods Data were collected from the Physical Activity and Health in Tianjin Chinese Children study, involving healthy children 3–6 years old and their families. In all children (n = 980), leisure-time SB (LTSB) and leisure-time PA (LTPA) were reported in min/day by parents. In a subgroup (n = 134), overall sedentary time, light PA, and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) were objectively measured using ActiGraph accelerometry (≥3 days, ≥10 h/day). Environmental correlates were collected using a questionnaire that included home and neighborhood characteristics (e.g., traffic safety, presence of physical activity facilities) and children's behaviors. Potential correlates were identified using linear regression analysis. Results Multiple linear regression analysis showed that “having grandparents as primary caregivers” (βs and 95% confidence interval (CI) for overall sedentary time: 29.7 (2.1 to 57.2); LTSB (ln): 0.19 (0.11 to 0.28)) and “having a television (for LTSB (ln): 0.13 (0.00 to 0.25)) or computer (for LTSB (ln): 0.13 (0.03 to 0.23)) in the child's bedroom” were both associated with higher SB. Furthermore, “having grandparents as primary caregivers” was associated with less MVPA (β (95%CI): −7.6 (−14.1 to −1.2)), and “active commuting to school by walking” correlated with more MVPA (β (95%CI): 9.8 (2.2 to 17.4)). The path model showed that “more neighborhood PA facilities close to home” was indirectly related to higher LTPA (ln), which was partly mediated by “outdoor play” (path coefficients (95%CI): 0.005 (0.002 to 0.008)) and “going to these facilities more often” (path coefficients (95%CI): 0.013 (0.008 to 0.018)). Traffic safety was not a correlate. Conclusion Family structure and media exposure in the home maybe important factors in shaping preschoolers’ PA patterns. Built environmental correlates could indirectly influence preschoolers’ LTPA through parental help with engaging in active behaviors.

Background Osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture (OVCF) is one of the most common fragile fractures, and percutaneous vertebroplasty provides considerable long-term benefits. At the same time, there are many reports of postoperative complications, among which fracture after percutaneous vertebroplasty is one of the complications after vertebroplasty (PVP). Although there are many reports on the risk factors of secondary fracture after PVP at home and abroad, there is no systematic analysis on the related factors of secondary fracture after PVP. Methods The databases, such as CNKI, Wan Fang Database and PubMed, were searched for documents on secondary fractures after percutaneous vertebroplasty published at home and abroad from January 2011 to March 2021. After strictly evaluating the quality of the included studies and extracting data, a meta-analysis was conducted by using Revman 5.3 software. Results A total of 9 articles were included, involving a total of 1882 patients, 340 of them diagnosed as secondary fractures after percutaneous vertebroplasty. Conclusion The additional history of fracture, age, bone mineral density (BMD), bone cement leakage, intravertebral fracture clefts and Cobb Angle might be risk factors related to secondary fractures after percutaneous vertebroplasty for osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures. The height of vertebral anterior and body mass index (BMI) were not correlated.

Background: Recent findings suggest a possible role of diet, particularly nutrient intakes and dietary patterns, in the prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI); few studies, however, have been explicitly devoted to the relationship between dietary habits and MCI. Objectives: We aimed to explore the association between dietary habits, including meal timing, and MCI among older Chinese adults. Methods: This cross-sectional study involved data collected at the baseline of the Tianjin Elderly Nutrition and Cognition Cohort (TENCC) study, in which 3,111 community-dwelling older adults (326 MCI patients and 2,785 non-MCIs) from a rural area of Tianjin, China, were recruited. In March 2018 to June 2019, all participants underwent a detailed neuropsychological evaluation that allowed for psychometric MCI classification. Information on self-reported dietary behaviors was gathered via face-to-face interviews. Crude and multivariable-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using logistic regression models. Results: In the multivariable-adjusted models, eating breakfast 4 to 6 times per week (vs. ≤3 times per week, OR: 0.45; 95% CI: 0.26, 0.75), drinking water before breakfast (yes vs. no, OR: 0.64; 95% CI: 0.51, 0.82), consuming water ≥1.5L per day (vs. Conclusion : This study suggests that dietary habits, including breakfast frequency, daily water consumption, cooking oil consumption, and meal timing, may be associated with the risk of MCI. If replicated, these findings would open new possibilities of dietary interventions for MCI.

With an aging population, late-life depression has been a major health problem in rural China. This study aims to explore the gender-specific prevalence of geriatric depression in rural Tianjin, its influencing factors, and to provide a scientific basis for the prevention and intervention of depression in the elderly.A cross-sectional study of 4,933 elderly individuals in rural Tianjin was conducted using the cluster sampling method. The independent samples t-test and chi-squared test were used to assess differences in participants' characteristics by depressive symptoms, while multiple linear regressions and multiple logistic regressions were used to analyze the potential influencing factors of depression.The prevalence of geriatric depression was found to be 12.2% in the study participants (9.5% in men and 14.5% in women). Gender, education, household income, employment, living alone, social activities, physical exercise and chronic diseases were associated with depression (P0.05). In addition to the above factors, sleep duration was also related with scores on self-rating depression scale (P0.05).The study used a cross-sectional approach, so causation cannot be concluded.Late-life depression is a serious mental health issue in rural China, highlighting the importance of appropriate diagnosis and treatment as a priority to improve the quality of mental health.

Few studies have been performed to investigate the effect of vitamin D supplementation and T2DM in type 2 diabetic animal models. The present study aimed to explore the relationship between early 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3] and the incidence of T2DM and determine whether early 1,25(OH)2D3 supplementation was associated with inflammation in KK-Ay mice. The KK-Ay mice were divided into 4 vitamin D treatment groups, the low-dose vitamin D supplementation group (VDS-L, 1.5 μg/kg 1,25(OH)2D3), moderate-dose vitamin D supplementation group (VDS-M, 3.0 μg/kg 1,25(OH)2D3), high-dose vitamin D supplementation group (VDS-H, 6.0 μg/kg 1,25(OH)2D3) and the model control group (MC). C57BL/6J mice were used as the controls. The treatment period lasted for 9 wk. During this treatment period, fasting blood glucose (FBG) level of the mice was measured on a weekly basis. The levels of lipid profile, insulin and inflammation biomarkers were determined after 9 wk of 1,25(OH)2D3 intragastric gavage. After 9 wk of 1,25(OH)2D3 intragastric gavage, FBG level was significantly decreased in the vitamin D treatment groups compared with the MC group. The number of T2DM incidence in the VDS-L group (n=7), VDS-M group (n=5) and VDS-H group (n=3) was lower than those in the MC group (n=10) on week 9. Moreover, serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the vitamin D treatment groups were significantly suppressed by 1,25(OH)2D3 administration compared with the MC group. Early 1,25(OH)2D3 supplementation could effectively lower the incidence of T2DM via ameliorating inflammation in KK-Ay mice.

Background: Handgrip strength (HGS) and serum folate and homocysteine (Hcy) levels were associated with cognitive function. However, little was known whether there were interactions between HGS and serum folate and Hcy levels on cognitive function. Objective: To examine the interactions between HGS and serum folate and Hcy levels on cognitive function. Methods: This study analyzed the baseline data of the Tianjin Elderly Nutrition and Cognition Cohort study. All participants aged ≥60 years were potential eligible. HGS was measured using a grip strength dynamometer. Serum folate and Hcy levels were assayed using standard laboratory protocol. A Mini-Mental State Examination was used to assess cognitive function. Linear regressions were employed to examine the interactions between HGS and serum folate and Hcy levels on cognitive function. Results: 4,484 participants were included in this study. There were interactions between HGS and serum folate and Hcy levels on cognitive function. Furthermore, subjects with strong HGS and sufficient folate level had the best cognitive function (β= 2.018), sequentially followed by those with strong HGS and insufficient folate level (β= 1.698) and with poor HGS and sufficient folate level (β= 0.873). Similarly, cognitive function was ranked in the descending order of subjects with strong HGS and normal Hcy level (β= 1.971), strong HGS and high Hcy level (β= 1.467), and poor HGS and normal Hcy level (β= 0.657). Conclusion: There were interactions between HGS and serum folate and Hcy levels on cognitive function. However, the temporal associations cannot be examined in a cross-sectional study. Further cohort study should be conducted to confirm these associations in the future.

Folic acid was investigated for decreased concentrations of the same type of cysteine (Hcy), which is considered a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease. However, the conclusions are inconsistent, while supplementing elders with different folic acid states.The PubMed, Science Network and EMBASE databases were searched for randomized controlled trials published over the past decade; The 11/485 study was included on the basis of pre-defined criteria. Cognitive-related results, including cognitive function and brain atrophy, were measured using cognitive scales and magnetic resonance imaging.Significant cognitive benefits were reported in individuals with incomplete folic acidBaseline folic acid status may be a potential factor affecting the results of cognitive function folic acid supplementation in older adults. Older people with insufficient folic acid will benefit from folic acid supplementation.

Background OPTION5 is a scale used to evaluate shared decision making (SDM) in health care from an observer’s perspective; however, to date, there is no simplified Chinese version of this scale. Objectives This study aims to produce a simplified Chinese version of the OPTION5 scale and to test its psychometric properties. Methods One rater observed and audio-recorded consultations between general practitioners (GPs) and chronically ill patients in a Beijing community health service center (CHSC) from May to June 2019. Meanwhile, demographic data of the patients and GPs were collected via information forms. Two raters assessed inter- and intra-rater reliability by calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and weighted Cohen’s Kappa values. Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach’s α value. Concurrent was calculated by Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient. Results A total of 209 consultations were recorded and evaluated. As concerns inter-rater reliability, the ICC of the OPTION5 was 0.859 on the total score level, with Cohen’s weighted k ranging from 0.376 (item 5) to 0.649 (item 2) on the single item level. With regard to intra-rater reliability, the ICC was 0.945 on the total score level, with Cohen’s weighted k ranging from 0.469 (item 5) to 0.883 (item1) on the single item level. Cronbach’s α value of all 5 items amounted to 0.746. Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient between OPTION5 and OPTION12 for Chinese versions was 0.660. Conclusions The simplified Chinese version of the OPTION5 scale, developed using stringent translation procedures, demonstrated satisfactory psychometric characteristics. Specifically, inter- and intra-rater reliabilities were excellent, while criterion validity was moderate. The simplified Chinese version of the OPTION5 scale can be implemented in clinical settings to evaluate SDM of treatment during consultations between GPs and chronically ill patients.

This study aimed to assess the effects of folic acid (FA) combined with a docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) intervention on the cognitive function and inflammatory cytokines in elderly subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial recruited 240 individuals with MCI in Tianjin, China, and randomly allocated into 4 groups: FA + DHA (FA 800 μg/d + DHA 800 mg/d), FA (FA 800 μg/d), DHA (DHA 800 mg/d), and placebo. Cognitive function, serum folate and homocysteine (Hcy), plasma DHA and inflammatory cytokines levels were measured at baseline and 6 months. Daily oral FA, DHA and their combined use for 6 months significantly improved the full-scale intelligence quotient (FSIQ) and some subtests of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale compared to the placebo. The increases of FSIQ, arithmetic, picture completion scores in the FA group and picture completion, block design scores in the DHA group were significantly less than that in the FA combined DHA group (P

A dual-frequency continuous-wave (DF-CW) radar is a cost-effective device for multiple target tracking in indoor environments. The traditional DF-CW radar adopts a quasi-monostatic structure to acquire the target range and direction of arrival (DOA), to position the target. However, the traditional DF-CW radar usually suffers from the drawbacks of low positioning accuracy, biased target information, and severe ambiguous frequency interference. For overcoming these drawbacks, the traditional DF-CW radar structure is modified, and an improved target tracking algorithm, which is based only on the range measurements, is proposed in this article. Compared with the traditional DF-CW radar-based detection, the proposed algorithm can achieve not only higher positioning accuracy, reveal more abundant and precise target information, but can also help to suppress the ambiguous frequency interference, which is of great importance in the multiple target tracking scenarios. Besides, the proposed DF-CW radar can also effectively reduce the coupling interference, thus contributing to the improvement of the dynamic range of the radar. A series of experiments are conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, and the obtained results illustrate a better performance of the proposed algorithm compared with the traditional algorithms.

Micro-Doppler frequency estimation is an important issue for radar target recognition and localization. In this paper, a novel approach is proposed to accurately estimate the micro-Doppler frequencies of specific target scattering parts, which can be very promising in real-time human sensing applications. For this approach, the Hough transform with a set of Bezier fitting models is first applied to extract the echo component of the human lower leg and accurately estimate their micro-Doppler frequencies. Then, the original echo is demodulated based on the result of micro Doppler frequency estimation, and the echo of leg component is obtained. Finally, the short-time Fourier transform (STFT) algorithm is used to extract the Doppler frequency of the lower leg, and the target trajectory is synthesized by Doppler processing. Compared with the traditional localization algorithm, the proposed approach can greatly improve both the estimation accuracy of the target movement trajectory and the robustness of the Doppler through-wall radar system, and further improve the recognition and tracking targets ability of the system in different situations. Therefore, a series of experiments are conducted to illustrate the performance of the proposed approach.

Background Postpartum depression, which has affected one in six women after giving birth, can exert detrimental effects on maternal, children and family well-being. This study investigated the association between dietary patterns and postpartum depression among Chinese women. Methods A total of 1659 participants were recruited and collected between July 2015 and June 2017 in Tianjin, China. The Chinese version of the Self-Rating Depression Scale was used to assess depressive symptoms at 6–12 weeks postpartum. Information about diet was obtained using an 81-item food frequency questionnaire. Logistic regression models were used to assess relationships between dietary patterns and the risk of postpartum depression. Results Six dietary patterns were identified by principal component analysis, including beverage, vegetable, cereal-meat, nut-fruit, egg and seafood patterns. The highest tertile (T3) of the nut-fruit pattern was significantly associated with a decreased risk of postpartum depression (OR: 0.740, 95% CI: 0.573–0.955, p = =0.020). Moreover, T3 of the seafood pattern was associated with a lower risk of postpartum depression than the lowest tertile (T1) of this pattern (OR: 0.753, 95% CI: 0.580–0.978, p = =0.033). No other associations were found. Limitations A retrospective study. Conclusions The nut-fruit pattern and seafood pattern were associated with a decreased risk of postpartum depression in Chinese women. The present findings reinforce the importance of an adequate diet of fruit, nuts, and seafood for postpartum women.

Bone regeneration in osteoporosis and fragility fractures which are highly associated with age remains a great challenge in the orthopedic field, even though the bone is subjected to a continuous process of remodeling which persists throughout lifelong. Regulation of osteoblast and osteoclast differentiation is recognized as effective therapeutic targets to accelerate bone regeneration in osteopenic conditions. Anthocyanins (ACNs), a class of naturally occurring compounds obtained from colored plants, have received increasing attention recently because of their well-documented biological effects, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammation, and anti-apoptosis in chronic diseases, like osteoporosis. Here, we summarized the detailed research progress on ACNs on bone regeneration and their molecular mechanisms on promoting osteoblast differentiation as well as inhibiting osteoclast formation and differentiation to explore their promising therapeutic application in repressing bone loss and helping fragility fracture healing. Better understanding the role and mechanisms of ACNs on bone regeneration is helpful for the prevention or treatment of osteoporosis and also for the exploration of new bone regenerative medicine.

Background The prevalence of dementia in China, particularly in rural areas, is consistently increasing; however, research on population-attributable fractions (PAFs) of risk factors for dementia is scarce. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey, namely, the China Multicentre Dementia Survey (CMDS) in selected rural and urban areas from 2018 to 2020. We performed face-to-face interviews and neuropsychological and clinical assessments to reach a consensus on dementia diagnosis. Prevalence and weighted PAFs of eight modifiable risk factors (six classical: less childhood education, hearing impairment, depression, physical inactivity, diabetes, and social isolation, and two novels: olfactory decline and being unmarried) for all-cause dementia were estimated. Results Overall, CMDS included 17,589 respondents aged ≥ 65 years, 55.6% of whom were rural residents. The age- and sex-adjusted prevalence for all-cause dementia was 9.11% (95% CI 8.96-9.26), 5.19% (5.07-5.31), and 11.98% (11.8-12.15) in the whole, urban, and rural areas of China, respectively. Further, the overall weighted PAFs of the eight potentially modifiable risk factors were 53.72% (95% CI 52.73-54.71), 50.64% (49.4-51.89), and 56.54% (55.62-57.46) in the whole, urban, and rural areas of China, respectively. The eight risk factors' prevalence differed between rural and urban areas. Lower childhood education (PAF: 13.92%) and physical inactivity (16.99%) were primary risk factors in rural and urban areas, respectively. Conclusions The substantial urban-rural disparities in the prevalence of dementia and its risk factors exist, suggesting the requirement of resident-specific dementia-prevention strategies.

Algorithms for constructing phylogenetic trees are fundamental to study the evolution of viruses, bacteria, and other microbes. Established multiple alignment-based algorithms are inefficient for large scale metagenomic sequence data because of their high requirement of inter-sequence correlation and high computational complexity. In this paper, we present SeqDistK, a novel tool for alignment-free phylogenetic analysis. SeqDistK computes the dissimilarity matrix for phylogenetic analysis, incorporating seven k-mer based dissimilarity measures, namely d2, d2S, d2star, Euclidean, Manhattan, CVTree, and Chebyshev. Based on these dissimilarities, SeqDistK constructs phylogenetic tree using the Unweighted Pair Group Method with Arithmetic Mean algorithm. Using a golden standard dataset of 16S rRNA and its associated phylogenetic tree, we compared SeqDistK to Muscle – a multi sequence aligner. We found SeqDistK was not only 38 times faster than Muscle in computational efficiency but also more accurate. SeqDistK achieved the smallest symmetric difference between the inferred and ground truth trees with a range between 13 to 18, while that of Muscle was 62. When measures d2, d2star, d2S, Euclidean, and k-mer size k=5 were used, SeqDistK consistently inferred phylogenetic tree almost identical to the ground truth tree. We also performed clustering of 16S rRNA sequences using SeqDistK and found the clustering was highly consistent with known biological taxonomy. Among all the measures, d2S (k=5, M=2) showed the best accuracy as it correctly clustered and classified all sample sequences. In summary, SeqDistK is a novel, fast and accurate alignment-free tool for large-scale phylogenetic analysis. SeqDistK software is freely available athttps://github.com/htczero/SeqDistK.

Marital status may have an impact on the elderly population's health, but few studies in China discussed about the association between marital status and cognitive impairment.To investigate the relationship between marital status and cognitive impairment. To compare the influences of marital status on dementia between men and women.This study was based on a representative national cross-sectional epidemiological survey in China. We randomly selected 13 provinces and municipalities and included 19,276 participants aged 65 years or older in our study. Data was collected by interviewing the participants about their sociodemographic characteristics, and neuropsychological testing was administered to the participants by neurologists. To analyze the association between marital status and cognitive impairment, multiple logistic regression was based on a series of models.Among the 19,276 subjects, about 77.2% were married, 1.6% were single, 21.2% were divorced/separated or widowed. The odds ratios (OR) of dementia were higher in single (OR: 2.13, CI: 1.53-2.97; p 0.001), divorced/separated/widowed when they were ≤55 years old (OR: 1.75, CI: 1.30-2.35; p 0.001), and divorced/separated/widowed when they were55 years old (OR: 1.16, CI: 1.03-1.31; p 0.001) participants than in married ones. Divorced/separated/widowed ≤55 men had about 2.75 times increase in dementia risk than married men.People with long-term divorced/separated/widowed status would be associated to cognitive impairment more than those with short-term divorced/separated/widowed status. Men may be affected by marriage disruption more than women in terms of increasing the risk of dementia.

The occurrence of telomere attrition in brain may cause senescence and death of neurons, leading to cognitive decline. Folic acid (FA) has been reported to improve cognitive performance in mild cognitive impairment; however, its association with telomere remains unclear. The study aimed to investigate if alleviation of telomere attrition by FA supplementation could act as a potential mechanism to delay age-related cognitive decline in senescence-accelerated mouse prone 8 (SAMP8). Aged SAMP8 mice were assigned to four treatment groups: FAdeficient diet (FA-D) group, FA-normal diet (FA-N) group, low FA-supplemented diet (FA-L) group and high FAsupplemented diet (FA-H) group. There was also an age-matched senescence-accelerated mouse resistant 1 (SAMR1) control group (Con-R), and a young SAMP8 control group (Con-Y). The results demonstrated that FA supplementation delayed age-related cognitive decline and neurodegeneration in SAMP8 mice. Importantly, this effect could be attributed to the alleviated telomere attrition, which might be interpreted by the decreased levels of reactive oxygen species. Additionally, improved telomere integrity stimulated mitochondrial function via telomere-p53-mithondria pathway, consequently delayed neuronal degeneration. In conclusion, we demonstrate that FA supplementation delays age-related neurodegeneration and cognitive decline in SAMP8 mice, in which alleviated telomere attrition could serve as one influential factor in the process.

Powered exoskeletons are used to assist human walking, but it is inconvenient for a user to carry a bulky energy-supply system. During walking, human lower limbs accelerate and decelerate alternatively, during which period the human body does positive and negative work, respectively. Therefore, if the negative work performed during deceleration can be harnessed using some assisting device to then assist the acceleration movement of the lower limb, the total metabolic cost of the human body during walking can be reduced. In this work, an unpowered flexible lower limb exoskeleton is proposed; it is worn in parallel to the lower limbs to assist human walking without consuming external electrical power. The flexible exoskeleton imitates the physiological structure of a human lower limb, consisting of elastic and damping components. When worn on the lower limb, the exoskeleton can partly replace the function of the lower limb muscles, which can scavenge kinetic energy during lower limb deceleration to assist the acceleration movement, so that the biomechanical power consumption can be reduced during walking. In addition to the walking assistance, the generator in the exoskeleton, serving as a damping component, can harvest kinetic energy to produce electricity for powering wearable electronics. A prototype of the flexible exoskeleton was developed, and experiments were conducted to validate the effectiveness. The experiments showed that the lower limb exoskeleton could reduce the metabolic cost by 3.12% at the walking speed of 4.5 km/h, and a maximum electrical power of 6.47 W was generated at the walking speed of 5.1 km/h.

Background: Folate and vitamin B12 are well-known as essential nutrients that play key roles in the normal functions of the brain. Inflammatory processes play at least some role in the pathology of AD. Effective nutritional intervention approaches for improving cognitive deficits that reduce the peripheral inflammatory cytokine levels have garnered special attention. Objective: The present study aimed to determine whether supplementation with folic acid and vitamin B12, alone and in combination improves cognitive performance via reducing levels of peripheral inflammatory cytokines. Methods: 240 participants with MCI were randomly assigned in equal proportion to four treatment groups: folic acid alone, vitamin B12 alone, folic acid plus vitamin B12 or control without treatment daily for 6 months. Cognition was measured with WAIS-RC. The levels of inflammatory cytokines were measured using ELISA. Changes in cognitive function or blood biomarkers were analyzed by repeatedmeasure analysis of variance or mixed-effects models. This trial has been registered with trial number ChiCTR-ROC-16008305. Results: Compared with control group, the folic acid plus vitamin B12 group had significantly greater improvements in serum folate, homocysteine, vitamin B12 and IL-6, TNF-α, MCP-1. The folic acid plus vitamin B12 supplementation significantly changed the Full Scale IQ (effect size d = 0.169; P = 0.024), verbal IQ (effect size d = 0.146; P = 0.033), Information (d = 0.172; P = 0.019) and Digit Span (d = 0.187; P = 0.009) scores. Post hoc Turkey tests found that folic acid and vitamin B12 supplementation was significantly more effective than folic acid alone for all endpoints. Conclusions: The combination of oral folic acid plus vitamin B12 in MCI elderly for six months can significantly improve cognitive performance and reduce the levels of inflammatory cytokines in human peripheral blood. The combination of folic acid and vitamin B12 was significantly superior to either folic acid or vitamin B12 alone.

Background The nutrition state plays an important role in the progress of aging. Folate may play a role in protecting mitochondrial (mt) DNA by reducing oxidative stress. Objective The primary aim of this study was to examine the association of mitochondrial oxidative damage with risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD), and to explore the possible role of folate metabolites in this association in a matched case-control study. Methods Serum folate metabolites and mitochondrial function in peripheral blood cells were determined in 82 AD cases and 82 healthy controls, individually matched by age, gender, and education. Results AD patients had lower serum levels of folate and higher homocysteine (Hcy) concentration. AD patients had a reduced mtDNA copy number, higher mtDNA deletions, and increased 8-OHdG content in mtDNA indicative of reduced mitochondrial function. The highest level of mtDNA copy number would decrease the risk of AD (OR = 0.157, 95% CI: 0.058-0.422) compared to the lowest level, independently of serum folate, and Hcy levels. Serum folate levels correlated with low 8-OHdG content in mtDNA both in AD patients and controls, independently of serum Hcy level. Moreover, serum Hcy levels correlated with low copy number in mtDNA both in AD patients and controls, independently of serum folate levels. Conclusion In conclusion, mitochondrial function in peripheral blood cells could be associated with risk of AD independent of multiple covariates. AD patients with a folate deficiency or hyperhomocysteinemia had low mitochondrial function in peripheral blood cells. However, further randomized controlled trials are need to determine a causal effect.

To explore the association between the levels of serum folate, vitamin B12, and homocysteine (Hcy), transaminase and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in Chinese elderly. A case-control study was imp...

In recent years, the increasing power requirement of wearable electronics and exoskeletons has made it very necessary to develop new methods of providing portable electrical power sources. In this paper, we present a knee-braced energy harvester to reclaim human kinetic energy and to assist human walking by redistributing the torque of the knee joint. The energy harvester is mounted at the knee and uses a spiral spring and generator to form a spring-damping mechanism. The spring-damping mechanism can partly replace the function of knee joint muscles during walking by reducing knee biomechanical torque and power; thus, the total metabolic energy used for walking can be reduced while electricity is generated at the same time. A prototype harvester was built to test the performance; the experimental results show that at the walking velocity of 4.2 km/h, the energy harvester can reduce the metabolic cost of walking by 3.6%, with a spring stiffness of 2 N·m/rad and an electrical damping coefficient of 0.5, and an average electrical power of 2.4 W is generated within the harvesting process.

Background Several studies have indicated that inflammatory markers were associated with the risk of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in type 2 diabetes (T2D). Serum folate was related to MCI as well as inflammation. However, no studies have investigated the association between inflammatory markers and MCI taking account of serum folate level in T2D patients. This study aimed to conduct a case-control study to evaluate the association between inflammatory markers and MCI taking account of serum folate level in Chinese patients with T2D. Methods This study consisted of 126 T2D patients (63 cases with MCI and 63 controls without MCI). Clinical parameters, serum folate, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were measured. Spearman correlation analysis and logistic regression analysis were used to analyze the association between the inflammatory markers and the risk of MCI in T2D patients. Results There were higher serum hs-CRP, IL-6 and TNF-α in T2D cases with MCI compared with the controls. Serum folate was negatively correlated with hs-CRP, TNF-α, and IL-6 (P

In this study, a easy-to-prepare biosensor for the sensitive detection of the antibody (Ab) protein was developed using a novel microgel photonic crystal (MPC). The MPC was fabricated by the spin-coated self-assembly method with the monodisperse Ab-sensitive poly (methyl methacrylate-acrylamide-glutaraldehyde-hapten) (P(MMA-AM-GA-HP)) microgels. Morphology characterization showed that the P(MMA-AM-GA-HP) microgels possessed round shapes and the large specific surface area, and the formed MPC had a highly ordered three dimensional (3D) periodically-ordered structure with the desired structural color. The Ab-response event of the P(MMA-AM-GA-HP) microgels can be directly transferred into a readable optical signal through a change in Bragg reflection of the periodic structure of the MPC. With the sensory system, the sensitive and selective detection of Ab was achieved without labeling techniques and expensive instruments. Therefore, this easy and sensitive detection system has great potential for next generation of the bioassay platform for clinical diagnosis and other applications.

To examine the association between blood cholesterol concentrations and Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the Chinese elderly. A case-control study was implemented between November 2011 and November 2017. Elderly patients aged ≥ 55 years with (n = 117) and without AD (control participants; n = 117) were recruited from the Neurology Central Hospital of Tianjin, China. The associations between AD and blood parameters were assessed using multiple binary logistic regression analyses adjusted for multiple covariates. Higher serum total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels and lower serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels associated with AD risk in the models adjusted for (1) age, sex and education; and (2) further adjusted for body mass index, smoking status, stroke, hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus and heart disease. Increased serum TC and LDL-C levels and lower HDL-C levels were independently associated with the risk of AD.

Background: Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is associated with the aging process and age-related degenerative diseases. The relation of peripheral blood LTL to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and the role of folate and homocysteine (Hcy) in this relation remain unclear. Objectives: We aimed to investigate the association between LTL and the risks of MCI/AD, and to explore whether folate and Hcy may play a role in this association. Methods: This case-control study included 129 MCI subjects, 131 AD patients and 134 healthy controls. LTL was assessed using real-time polymerase chain reaction assay. Serum folate levels were tested by chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay, and serum Hcy levels were measured using the enzymatic cycling method. Data were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression and multivariable linear regression with adjustment for potential confounders. Results: The mean LTL was 1.56 ± 0.25 in controls, 1.44 ± 0.23 in MCI, and 1.28 ± 0.28 in AD patients (p< 0.01). In multivariate logistic regression, subjects in the longest LTL tertile had lower OR for MCI (OR 0.246; 95% CI 0.101–0.597) and AD (OR 0.123; 95% CI 0.044–0.345) in comparison to subjects in the shortest tertile. Shorter LTL was dose-dependently related to the ORs of MCI and AD. Further, serum folate concentration was positively associated with LTL (p < 0.01), while serum Hcy level was negatively associated with LTL (p < 0.05). In stratified analyses, LTL-MCI/AD association varied by serum folate and Hcy level. Conclusions: Shorter LTL is associated with the risks of MCI/AD. Folate and Hcy might play an important role in this association.

BACKGROUND The neuroprotective benefits of combined folic acid and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on cognitive function in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients are suggested but unconfirmed. OBJECTIVE To explore the effects of 6-month folic acid + DHA on cognitive function in patients with MCI. METHODS Our randomized controlled trial (trial number ChiCTR-IOR-16008351) was conducted in Tianjin, China. We divided 160 MCI patients aged > 60 years into four regimen groups randomly: folic acid (0.8 mg/day) + DHA (800 mg/day), folic acid (0.8 mg/day), DHA (800 mg/day), and placebo, for 6 months. Cognitive function and blood amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) biomarker levels were measured at baseline and 6 months. Cognitive function was also measured at 12 months. RESULTS A total of 138 patients completed this trial. Folic acid improved the full-scale intelligence quotient (FSIQ), arithmetic, and picture complement scores; DHA improved the FSIQ, information, arithmetic, and digit span scores; folic acid + DHA improved the arithmetic (difference 1.67, 95% CI 1.02 to 2.31) and digital span (1.33, 0.24 to 2.43) scores compared to placebo. At 12 months, all scores declined in the intervention groups. Folic acid and folic acid + DHA increased blood folate (folic acid + DHA: 7.70, 3.81 to 11.59) and S-adenosylmethionine (23.93, 1.86 to 46.00) levels and reduced homocysteine levels (-6.51, -10.57 to -2.45) compared to placebo. DHA lower the Aβ40 levels (-40.57, -79.79 to -1.35) compared to placebo (p

Homocysteine (Hcy) and folate, involved in a common metabolic pathway supplying essential methyl groups for DNA and protein synthesis, have been found to be associated with cognitive function. Moreover, diet may influence methionine cycle metabolites (MCM) as well as mild cognitive impairment (MCI), but MCM-related dietary patterns are unclear in an older population.The study aimed to identify MCM-related dietary patterns of older Chinese adults, and examine their association with the prevalence of MCI in a large population-based study.This study included 4457 participants ≥ 60 years of age from the Tianjin Elderly Nutrition and Cognition Cohort study. Dietary data were collected using a valid self-administered food frequency questionnaire, and factor analysis was used to identify major dietary patterns in the population. MCM-based dietary patterns were derived using reduced rank regression (RRR) based on serum folate and Hcy as response variables.Compared with the participants in the lowest quartile of vegetarian pattern and processed foods pattern, the odds ratios (ORs) of MCI in the highest quartile were 0.72 (95% CI 0.53-0.98) and 1.39 (95% CI 1.03-1.88), respectively. In the MCM-based dietary patterns derived using RRR, the ORs for MCI for the highest quartile of MCM patterns I and II were 0.58 (95% CI 0.44-0.78) and 1.38 (95% CI 1.04-1.83), respectively, compared with participants in the lower quartile.Findings from this large population-based study suggested that adopting an MCM-related dietary pattern, especially avoiding processed foods, can decrease the occurrence of MCI.

Background: Globally and across China, dementia is a major disability and a public and economic health burden. Evidence suggests dementia prevalence in China is inconsistent and has probably been underestimated by previous studies. Methods: We conducted a population-based cross-sectional study from May 2019 to December 2019, which included 20438 participants who were ≥ 65 years old, from 36 communities and 52 villages from 14 selected centers. Dementia epidemiology and risk factors were then investigated and analyzed. Findings: Our data indicated the overall crude dementia prevalence in this population was 9·1%. The overall sex- and age-standardized prevalence was 8·8%. After stratifying by sex, age, education, location, marital status, and social activity, the prevalence was higher in females in rural areas; it not only increased significantly with increasing age, but it decreased with increased education levels. None-married and less socially active populations had a higher dementia prevalence. Not only being female, older age, rural living, lower education levels, and history of stroke were risk factors, but marital status and social activities were also probable risk factors. Interpretation: Our study indicated that dementia prevalence in China was higher in individuals aged ≥ 65 years. These findings will help policy-makers and practitioners improve treatment and management strategies to reduce dementia risk. Funding: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number: 81571057). Declaration of Interest: None to declare Ethical Approval: The study protocol was approved by the ethics committee of Tianjin Huanhu Hospital (2019-40). Written informed consent was obtained from participants or their guardians.

Stroke patients often suffer from strephenopodia, which seriously affects their walking ability and rehabilitation. However, lower limb rehabilitation robots lack the evaluation and automatic correction function of strephenopodia. There are practical demands for convenient, automatic, and quantitative assessments of the angle of strephenopodia to adjust the orthopedic strength in time to remind stroke patients to use their muscles to realize the movements. In this study, we proposed a novel methodology for automatically predicting the angles of strephenopodia based on a plantar pressure system using machine learning methods. Three machine learning methods were implemented to build stochastic function mapping from gait features to strephenopodia angles, showing good reliability and precision prediction of the strephenopodia angle [determination coefficient (R2) ≥ 0.80]. Results showed that our method is convenient to implement and outperforms previous methods in accuracy. Therefore, measurements derived from the plantar pressure system are proper estimators of the strephenopodia angle and are beneficial to lower limb rehabilitation exoskeleton for stroke population training.

Background: The prevalence of dementia in China, particularly in rural areas, is consistently increasing. Researchers have built upon the evidence that many dementia cases can be prevented, but most data came from high-income countries. Methods: A cross-sectional survey, named the China Multicentre Dementia Survey, was conducted. Face-to-face interviews, neuropsychological and clinical assessments were performed. Consensus dementia diagnoses were reached. Weighted population-attributable fractions (PAFs) were conducted for eight risk factors (six classical and two novels) in selected rural and urban areas, to identify potential dementia prevention targets. Findings: Overall, 17,589 respondents aged ≥ 65 years completed the survey between April 2018 and November 2020, 55.6% of whom were rural residents. The age and sex adjusted prevalence for all-cause dementia was 9.11% (95% CI 8.96–9.26), 5.19% (5.07–5.31), and 11.98% (11.8–12.15) in the whole, urban, and rural areas of China, respectively. And the overall weighted PAF of eight potentially modifiable risk factors was 53.72% (95% CI 52.73–54.71), 50.64% (49.4–51.89), and 56.54% (55.62–57.46), respectively. These eight risk factors’ profiles differed between rural and urban areas. Lower childhood education (PAF: 13.92%) and physical inactivity (16.99%) was the primary risk factor in rural and urban, respectively. Interpretation: The dementia prevalence has been increased in China over the past 5 years. The dementia prevention potential in China is greater than that reported worldwide. Resident-specific dementia prevention strategies should be developed. Funding: This work was financially supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Declaration of Interest: We declare no competing interests Ethical Approval: The protocol for this study was reviewed and approved by the Medical Ethics Committee at Wuhan University of Science and Technology (ID: 201845), and the Medical Ethics Committee at Tianjin Huanhu Hospital (ID: 2019-40). Please find the detailed ethical report from supplementary files. We confirm that the study was conducted in accordance with Helsinki Declaration as revised in 2013. We state that written informed consent was obtained from the participants of the study (and the relevant document(s) will be provided when requested by the journal). This study does not involving minor subjects/children/infants. We declare that personal details of patients in any part of the paper and in any supplementary materials (including illustrations) have been removed.

Background Minimal data are available on the prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in older Chinese adults. Moreover, the current information on MCI shows important geographical variations. Objective We aimed to assess the prevalence and risk factors for MCI by age and sex among older adults in a North Chinese population. Methods In this population-based cross-sectional study, we enrolled a random sample of 4,943 adults aged ≥ 60 years between March 2018 and June 2019 in Tianjin, China. Of these, 312 individuals were excluded due to a lack of data (e.g., fasting blood test). As a result, 4,631 subjects were assessed. Individuals with MCI were identified using neuropsychological assessments, including the Mini-Mental State Examination and Activities of Daily Living scale, based on a modified version of the Petersen’s criteria. Results The mean (SD) age of the 4,631 participants was 67.6 (4.89) years, and 2,579 (55.7%) were female. The overall age- and sex-standardized prevalence of MCI in our study population was 10.7%. There were significant associations of MCI with age [65–69 vs. 60–64 years, OR = 0.74; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.58, 0.96], physical activity (≥23.0 vs.

Aiming at the problem of invoice code identification, this article focuses on the embedded system for identifying invoice codes. FPGA has the characteristics of large data throughput, flexible development, and high real-time performance in image processing. Therefore, based on the DE10- LITE development board, this article mounts an FPGA hardware accelerator in the ARM soft core. An invoice code identification system was built through the method of software and hardware collaborative design. The hardware realizes image data acquisition, preprocessing and other functions, and the software part realizes the function of projection segmentation and recognition. Meanwhile, the different coupling modes of accelerator in the heterogeneous system are compared with each other. The verification results on the hardware development platform show that the system could quickly and accurately identify the invoice code.

To explore the demographic characteristics and main types of memory impairment in the Memory Clinic of China and to provide references for future research. Demographic, cognitive, and etiological data of 2,742 cognitive impairment (CI) patients who were in the Memory Clinic at Tianjin Huanhu Hospital from January 2011 to October 2018 were analyzed. The main subtypes of CI were AD (38.33%), MCI (19.55%), VaD (8.57%), FTLD (7.37%) and DLB/PDD (5.91%). The mean age was 68.5 ± 9.97, with 82.13% older than 60 years. There were slightly more females (50.58%) than males (49.42%). There were a relatively equal number of patients who were educated less than (55.12%) and more than nine years (44.88%). Most patients (82.91%) were married and only 23.63% patients had a family history of CI. CI occurred primarily in the elderly, namely those who were between 60 and 79 years old. More than half of those with AD, DLB, PDD, and FTLD were categorized at mild or moderate levels. The bvFTD (n = 127, 62.9%) was the primary subtype of FTLD. Standardized diagnostic procedures, detailed neuropsychological assessments, molecular biology tests, and follow-ups are important for the early diagnosis and treatment of cognitive impairment diseases.

Background/Aims: The mechanism, by which vitamin D influences inflammatory biomarkers in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), is not very well known. Thus, a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials was conducted to assess the effect of vitamin D supplementation on some inflammatory biomarkers in T2DM subjects. Methods: We searched randomized controlled trials from PubMed and the Cochrane Library in October 2017 and conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation on high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6). Either a fixed-effects or a random-effects model was used to calculate pooled effects. Results: We identified 13 studies that met our inclusion criteria. The results indicated that the vitamin D supplementation significant decreased the hs-CRP level by 0.45 μg/mL, whereas the vitamin D supplementation did not influence the TNF-α and IL-6. Subgroup analysis showed that vitamin D significantly lowered hs-CRP by 0.34 μg/mL among trials with a daily vitamin D dose ≤4,000 IU and by 0.31 μg/mL among trials with time of vitamin D supplementation > 12 weeks. Conclusions: Vitamin D supplementation is beneficial for the reduction of hs-CRP inT2DM subjects but does not have a significant influence on TNF-α and IL-6 in T2DM subjects.

Background The association of vitamin D status and inflammation prediabetes mellitus (PreDM) individuals has not been investigated. We investigated the association of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D 3 (25(OH) D 3 ) with adipokines and inflammatory markers in persons with PreDM. Methods In this cross-sectional study, we stratified 418 nondiabetic subjects as having PreDM or normal fasting glucose (NFG), and divided PreDM or NFG subjects into vitamin D sufficient, vitamin D insufficient and vitamin D deficient subgroups. 25(OH) D 3 concentrations were determined by HPLC. Serum tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleiukin-6 (IL-6) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), adiponectin, leptin and resistin were measured by ELISA. Results In the PreDM group, compared with those in the vitamin D sufficient subgroup, vitamin D insufficient subgroup and vitamin D deficient subgroup had higher concentrations of hs-CRP and leptin ( P P 3 concentrations were inversely associated with hs-CRP and leptin concentrations after adjusted the BMI only in the PreDM group ( P 3 concentration (β = − 0.174 and β = − 0.171, respectively). Conclusions 25(OH) D 3 status in PreDM individuals was inversely correlated with concentrations of hs-CRP and leptin, suggesting their involvement in the inflammation response between vitamin D status and PreDM.

Aim To comprehensively and exhaustively assess the relationship between serum ferritin levels and incidence of prediabetes in a prospective study. Methods This prospective cohort study ( n =7380) with a mean follow-up of 3.07 years (range: 1–7, 95% CI: 3.03–3.12) was conducted in Tianjin, China. Blood fasting glucose, oral glucose tolerance test, serum ferritin levels and other potentially confounding factors were measured at baseline and at each year of follow-up. Adjusted Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to assess the gender-specific relationship between baseline and mean serum ferritin quintiles and prediabetes. Results The incidence of prediabetes was 85 per 1000 person-years among men and 44 per 1000 person-years among women during follow-up (from 2007 to 2014). After adjusting for potential confounders, hazard ratios (95% CI) for prediabetes across baseline ferritin quintiles were: for men, 1.00, 1.13 (0.90–1.40), 1.20 (0.97–1.48), 1.41 (1.14–1.73) and 1.73 (1.41–2.11); and for women, 1.00, 1.01 (0.74–1.38), 0.68 (0.48–0.96), 0.84 (0.61–1.15) and 1.07 (0.80–1.45), respectively. Similar results were also observed for mean ferritin levels. Conclusion Both baseline and mean serum ferritin levels were significantly and linearly related to prediabetes in men, whereas U-shaped relationships were observed between baseline and mean serum ferritin and prediabetes in women. The relationship between prediabetes risk and mean serum ferritin levels may be more stable than one with baseline serum ferritin levels.

BACKGROUND In this study we investigated changes in the status of antibiotic use in Tianjin since the implementation of the Antibiotic Stewardship Program (ASP) (2011-2013), as well as existing problems, strategies, and outcomes to promote rational clinical antibiotic use. MATERIAL AND METHODS A quasi-experimental study was performed to investigate situations of antibiotic use in secondary and tertiary general hospitals in Tianjin from April 2011 to 2013. Five major indicators were analyzed: percentage of antibiotic use in inpatient cases (%), antibacterial use density (AUD), proportion of prophylactic antibiotic application for type I surgical incision, compliance rate of medication administration 0.5-2.0 h before such procedures, and antibiotic prophylaxis for ≤24 h in patients receiving these surgeries. RESULTS There was a decrease in the percentage of antibiotic use across general hospitals (60.38% to 46.88%), in AUD (51.60% to 35.37%), and in the proportion of prophylactic antibiotic applications for type I incisions (86.67% to 25.08%). For patients undergoing these procedures, there was an increased compliance rate of medication administration of 0.5-2.0 h prior to surgery (86.38% to 100%), and of antibiotic prophylactic use for ≤24 h (40.30% to 96.37%). CONCLUSIONS Implementation of the ASP campaign has reduced irrational antibiotic use, promoted rational antibiotic use, and delayed antibiotic resistance.

Prehypertension is a public health epidemic associated with various adverse outcomes, but can be reversed by timely intervention. However, little attention has been paid to prehypertension. Complement C3 is a central hub of complement-related immune system. We examined the association between C3 and prehypertension in an adult population for the first time, aiming to investigate whether pro-inflammatory immune response is involved in the prehypertensive state. About 7820 Tianjin residents without hypertension were categorized into sex-specific quintiles based on their serum concentration of complement C3. Adjusted logistic regression models were used separately by gender to assess the association between C3 quintiles and the prevalence of prehypertension. After multiple adjustment, the odds ratios (95% confidence interval) for prehypertension across increasing quintiles of C3 were 1.00 (reference), 1.02 (0.84, 1.25), 1.15 (0.94, 1.42), 1.25 (1.01, 1.54), and 1.71 (1.35, 2.17) (p for trend < 0.0001) among men and were 1.00 (reference), 1.17 (0.92, 1.49), 1.13 (0.88, 1.44), 1.15 (0.89, 1.48), and 1.40 (1.07, 1.84) (p for trend = 0.03) among women. The findings suggested that elevated serum C3 levels are associated with prehypertension. Reducing inflammation may be a potential therapeutic strategy for prehypertension and hypertension that is worthy of further studies and discussion.

Background: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) represents an intermediate and modifiable stage between normal aging and dementia. There is an urgent need for simple, non-invasive testing of MCI by blood biomarkers. Objective: This study aimed to retrospectively evaluate the association of red blood cell (RBC) indices with MCI, and select the best hematologic characteristic for detection of MCI in elderly Chinese. Methods: Matched case-control study was carried out with 85 pairs of MCI subjects and healthy controls. The matching criteria was age, gender and education attainment. All samples were analyzed for RBC indices, including hemoglobin (HGB), hematocrit (HCT), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) and red cell distribution width-standard deviation (RDW-SD). A conditional logistic regression model was used to evaluate the association between RBC indices and MCI. The diagnostic efficacy of the biomarkers was evaluated by receiver operating characteristics (ROC). Results: Among all RBC indices, there were significant differences in HGB (124.82 ± 7.89 vs. 133.93 ± 4.52, P < 0.001) and RDW-SD (45.29 ± 2.03 vs. 41.34 ± 4.41, P < 0.001) between two groups. In the logistic regression model, after adjustment for lifestyle factors and comorbidities, significant statistically associations have been found between higher HGB and lower risk of MCI (adjusted OR: 0.831; 95% CI: 0.773-0.893), higher RDW-SD and a higher risk of MCI (adjusted OR: 1.575; 95% CI: 1.326- 1.872). ROC analysis suggested that the largest area under the ROC curve (AUC) was found with the combination of HGB and RDW-SD (AUC = 0.842), followed by HGB(AUC = 0.795), and finally by modest RDW-SD (AUC = 0.777). Combination of HGB 43.4 fL yielded a sensitivity of 92% and a specificity of 89%, overall diagnosis efficiency of which were better than HBG and RDW-SD alone. Conclusion: Lower HGB and higher RDW-SD alone were significantly found to be associated with increased risk of MCI, and offered modest sensitivity and specificity as a diagnostic marker. The combination of HGB and RDW-SD was more sensitive and had higher classification accuracy for differentiating MCI from healthy controls. Further prospective research is needed to clarify whether HGB in combination with RDW-SD may be a potential diagnostic tool for early diagnosis of AD.

ObjectivesThis study examined the relationship between environmental correlates and children’s sedentary time (ST), light physical activity (LPA) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in preschool children.DesignCross-sectional studySettingA birth cohort in Drenthe, a northern province and relatively rural area of the Netherlands.ParticipantsValid data both for the ActiGraph and the questionnaire were obtained from 505 child–parent pairs.Primary and secondary outcome measuresST, LPA and MVPA of children were objectively measured by ActiGraph accelerometry (minimum three wearing days, more than 10 hours/day). Environmental correlates were collected using a questionnaire reported by parents that included household characteristics, parental and children’s PA behaviours and neighbourhood environment (eg, traffic safety, road network and presence of PA facilities). Potential correlates were identified using linear regression analysis, adjusted by age, gender, siblings, and maternal age and education level. Ordinary least square regression-based path analysis was used to estimate direct and indirect effects on activity outcomes in mediation models.ResultsLinear regression analysis showed that ‘parents taking children to play sports’ was related to less ST, more LPA and MVPA; more outdoor play was also related to less ST and more LPA, but not MVPA. Parents who perceived more PA facilities in their neighbourhood showed more support for ‘taking children to play sports’, and this was associated with less ST or more MVPA compared with children living with less PA facilities in their neighbourhood. No evidence was found for a relation between traffic safety or road network with ST, LPA and MVPA.ConclusionsThis study indicated that parental support and child outdoor play may influence children’s daily PA patterns. Convenient neighbourhood PA facilities, such as parks and playgrounds, had an indirect effect through parental support associated with lower children’s ST and higher MVPA, even in relatively rural areas.

This study aimed to explore effects of maternal folic acid (FA) supplementation during pregnancy on neurodevelopment in 1-month-old infants and to determine whether effects may be related to maternal circulating inflammatory cytokine concentrations.This birth cohort study recruited 1186 mother-infant pairs in Tianjin, China, between July 2015 and July 2017. The women completed interviewer-administered questionnaires on their lifestyles and FA supplementation during pregnancy. Neurodevelopment was assessed in 1-month-old infants using a standard neuropsychological examination table. In 192 women, serum homocysteine (Hcy) and inflammatory cytokine concentrations were measured at 16-18 weeks of gestation.The infants whose mothers took FA supplements during pregnancy had a significantly higher development quotient (DQ) compared with those whose mothers were non-users (P 0.05). After adjustment for maternal characteristics, supplementary FA use for 1-3 months, 3-6 months, and 6 months were associated with the increases of 7.7, 11.0, and 7.4 units in the scale of infant DQ score compared with women reporting no supplement use, respectively (P 0.05). FA supplementation was associated with a decreased serum concentration of Hcy (β = [Formula: see text] 0.19), which was correlated with women's serum inflammatory cytokine concentrations at 16-18 weeks of gestation (β = 0.57). Serum inflammatory cytokine concentrations were inversely related to DQ score in the 1-months-old offspring (β = [Formula: see text] 0.22).Maternal FA supplementation during pregnancy favors neurodevelopment in the offspring at 1-month-old. This association may be mediated by changes in serum Hcy and inflammatory cytokine concentrations throughout pregnancy.

The computer/mobile devices usage time (CMD-UT) is closely related to a sedentary lifestyle, which is an important risk factor for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). But their direct relationship remains unclear.We aimed to examine the relationship between CMD-UT and newly diagnosed non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in Chinese adults.This cross-sectional study was conducted on 7516 adults in Tianjin, China. The CMD-UT was collected via a questionnaire included five categories. NAFLD [with normal or elevated alanine transaminase (ALT) levels] was diagnosed by at least twice liver ultrasonography examinations and serum ALT concentrations (41 U/L in males and 33 U/L in females).The prevalence of overall NAFLD, NAFLD with normal or elevated ALT levels was 18.2, 14.2, and 4.0%, respectively. After adjustments for potential confounding factors, the odds ratios (95% confidence interval) of having overall NAFLD by increasing CMD-UT levels were 1.00 for 1 h/d, 1.58 (1.22-2.05) for 1-3 h/d, 1.58 (1.18-2.11) for 3-5 h/d, 1.65 (1.21-2.27) for 5-10 h/d, and 1.99 (1.29-3.05) for ≥10h/d (P-trend for CMD-UT levels = 0.02), respectively. Similar relations were observed with the use of NAFLD with normal or elevated ALT levels.The present study is the first to find that CMD-UT levels are independently associated with NAFLD. Key Messages The computer/mobile devices usage time levels are independently associated with the prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Although the prevalence of prehypertension is rapidly increasing in China, the medical community has paid little attention to its prevention. Prior studies have demonstrated that uric acid directly contributes to vascular remodelling and endothelial dysfunction. However, few prospective studies have assessed the relationship between serum uric acid and prehypertension. We therefore designed a larger-scale cohort study to examine whether uric acid level is a predictive factor for developing prehypertension in adults. Participants were recruited from Tianjin Medical University General Hospital-Health Management Centre. A prospective assessment (n=15 143) was performed. Participants without a history of hypertension or prehypertension were followed up for 2 to 6 years with a median follow-up duration of 2.8 years. Serum uric acid levels and blood pressure were assessed yearly during the follow-up. Adjusted Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to assess relationships between the quintiles of uric acid levels and the incidence of prehypertension. The incidence of prehypertension was 191 per 1000 person-years. In the final multivariate models, the hazard ratios (95% confidence interval) for prehypertension across uric acid quintiles were 1.00 (reference), 0.98 (0.90–1.07), 1.01 (0.93–1.10), 1.09 (1.001–1.20) and 1.17 (1.06–1.29) (P for trend

Background/Aims. Low serum folate levels can alter inflammatory reactions. Both phenomena have been linked to Alzheimer’s disease (AD), but the effect of folic acid on AD itself is unclear. We quantified folate supplementation’s effect on inflammation and cognitive function in patients with AD over the course of 6 months.Methods. Patients newly diagnosed with AD (age > 60 years;n=121; mild to severe; international criteria) and being treated with donepezil were randomly assigned into two groups with (intervention group) or without (control group) supplemental treatment with folic acid (1.25 mg/d) for 6 months. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was administered to all patients at baseline and follow-up, and blood samples were taken before and after treatment. We quantified serum folate, amyloid beta (Aβ), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factorα(TNFα), plasma homocysteine (Hcy), S-adenosylmethionine (SAM), S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH), and the mRNA levels of presenilin (PS), IL-6, and TNFαin leukocytes. Data were analyzed using a repeated-measures mixed model.Results. The mean MMSE was slightly increased in the intervention group compared to that in the control group (P<0.05). Posttreatment, plasma SAM and SAM/SAH levels were significantly higher (P<0.05), while Aβ40, PS1-mRNA, and TNFα-mRNA levels were lower in the intervention group than in the control group (P<0.05). The Aβ42/Aβ40ratio was also higher in the intervention group (P<0.05).Conclusions. Folic acid is beneficial in patients with AD. Inflammation may play an important role in the interaction between folic acid and AD. This trial is registered with clinical trial registration numberChiCTR-TRC-13003246.

Background/Aims: Our aim was to evaluate whether visceral adiposity index (VAI) could predict the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in different genders and to compare the predictive ability between VAI and other fatness indices. Methods: Four thousand seventy-eight participants including 1,817 men and 2,261 women, aged 18 and older and free of T2D at baseline were enrolled in 2010 and followed up for 4 years. New cases of T2D were identified via the annual medical examination. Cox regression analysis was used to assess the association between VAI and incidence of T2D. Receiver operating characteristic curve and area under the curves (AUC) were applied to compare the prediction ability of T2D between VAI and other fatness indices. Results: During the 4-year follow-up, 153 (8.42%) of 1,817 men and 88 (3.89%) of 2,261 women developed T2D. The multivariable-adjusted hazards ratios for developing T2D in the highest tertile of VAI scores were 2.854 (95% CI 1.815-4.487) in men and 3.551 (95% CI 1.586-7.955) in women. The AUC of VAI was not higher than that of other fatness indices. Conclusions: VAI could predict the risk of T2D among Chinese adults, especially in women. However, the prediction ability of T2D risk for VAI was not higher than that of the other fatness indices.

Little is known of the relationships between dietary patterns and cardiovascular risk factors in China. We therefore designed a 3-year longitudinal study to evaluate the impacts of dietary patterns on changes in these factors among Chinese women. A total of 1,028 subjects who received health examination in 2011 and 2014 were recruited. Three major dietary patterns ("vegetable pattern", "meat pattern", and "animal offal-dessert-and-alcohol pattern") were derived by principal component analysis based on validated food frequency questionnaires. Cardiovascular risk factors were standardized to create within-cohort z-scores and the changes in them were calculated as the differences between 2011 and 2014. Relationships between dietary patterns and changes in cardiovascular risk factors were assessed using general linear model. After adjustment for potential confounders, changes in total cholesterol and fasting blood glucose decreased across the tertiles of vegetable pattern (p for trend = 0.01 and 0.04, respectively). While, changes in diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol increased across the tertiles of animal offal-dessert-and-alcohol pattern (p for trend = 0.02, 0.01, and 0.02, respectively). The findings suggest that vegetable pattern was beneficially related to cardiovascular risk factors, whereas animal offal-dessert-and-alcohol pattern was detrimental related to these factors among apparently healthy Chinese women.

Background: Inflammation plays a significant role in the pathophysiology of cognitive impairment in previous studies. Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a reliable measure of systemic inflammation. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between NLR and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and further to explore the diagnostic potential of the inflammatory markers NLR for the diagnosis of MCI in elderly Chinese individuals. Methods: 186 MCI subjects and 153 subjects with normal cognitive function were evaluated consecutively in this study. Neutrophil (NEUT) count and Lymphocyte (LYM) count were measured in fasting blood samples. The NLR was calculated by dividing the absolute NEUT count by the absolute LYM count. Multivariable logistic regression was used to evaluate the potential association between NLR and MCI. NLR for predicting MCI was analyzed using Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Results: The NLR of MCI group was significantly higher than that of subjects with normal cognitive function (2.39 ± 0.55 vs. 1.94 ± 0.51, P < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that higher NLR was an independent risk factor for MCI (OR: 4.549, 95% CI: 2.623-7.889, P < 0.001). ROC analysis suggested that the optimum NLR cut-off point for MCI was 2.07 with 73.66% sensitivity, 69.28% specificity, 74.48% Positive Predictive Values (PPV) and 68.36% negative predictive values (NPV). Subjects with NLR ≥ 2.07 showed higher risk relative to NLR < 2.07 (OR: 5.933, 95% CI: 3.467-10.155, P < 0.001). Conclusion: The elevated NLR is significantly associated with increased risk of MCI. In particular, NLR level higher than the threshold of 2.07 was significantly associated with the probability of MCI.

Recent studies revealed that folic acid deficiency (FD) increased the likelihood of stroke and aggravated brain injury after focal cerebral ischaemia. The microglia‐mediated inflammatory response plays a crucial role in the complicated pathologies that lead to ischaemic brain injury. However, whether FD is involved in the activation of microglia and the neuroinflammation after experimental stroke and the underlying mechanism is still unclear. The aim of the present study was to assess whether FD modulates the Notch1/nuclear factor kappa B (NF‐κB) pathway and enhances microglial immune response in a rat middle cerebral artery occlusion‐reperfusion (MCAO) model and oxygen‐glucose deprivation (OGD)‐treated BV‐2 cells. Our results exhibited that FD worsened neuronal cell death and exaggerated microglia activation in the hippocampal CA1, CA3 and Dentate gyrus (DG) subregions after cerebral ischaemia/reperfusion. The hippocampal CA1 region was more sensitive to ischaemic injury and FD treatment. The protein expressions of proinflammatory cytokines such as tumour necrosis factor‐α, interleukin‐1β and interleukin‐6 were also augmented by FD treatment in microglial cells of the post‐ischaemic hippocampus and in vitro OGD‐stressed microglia model. Moreover, FD not only dramatically enhanced the protein expression levels of Notch1 and NF‐κB p65 but also promoted the phosphorylation of pIkBα and the nuclear translocation of NF‐κB p65. Blocking of Notch1 with N‐[N‐(3, 5‐difluorophenacetyl)‐l‐alanyl]‐S‐phenylglycine t‐butyl ester partly attenuated the nuclear translocation of NF‐κB p65 and the protein expression of neuroinflammatory cytokines in FD‐treated hypoxic BV‐2 microglia. These results suggested that Notch1/NF‐κB p65 pathway‐mediated microglial immune response may be a molecular mechanism underlying cerebral ischaemia‐reperfusion injury worsened by FD treatment.

Traffic classification and identification is the key part in network security industry. It can identify the types of the Internet traffic, and detect abnormal ones based on the features of network flows. Nowadays, due tothenon-transparency and complexity of the packets, machine learning methods are widely adopted to identify the abnormal traffic. As a classic supervised learning algorithm, SVM performed well in traffic identification, including the speed of training and predicting as well as the accuracy. However, with the amount of network traffic being larger, stand-alone SVM cannot meet the requirements and be difficult to deal with the large scale of network traffic. So, in this paper, we used parallel computing on spark to accelerate and fast deal with model training and predicting. At last, the comparison of training time, prediction time and accuracy with stand-alone SVM and SVM on spark will be given. Besides, the analysis in detail will be also presented.