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Abstract Evidence regarding the relationship between remnant cholesterol (RC) and hyperuricemia is limited. The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between RC and hyperuricemia in the middle aged and elderly Chinese. Information was extracted from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) survey 2011 and survey 2015. Four logistic regression models were established. Propensity score matching (PSM) and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) were applied to balance the baseline. Next, sensitivity analyses and restricted cubic spline (RCS) analysis were conducted to further explore the association. Cross-lagged panel model (CLPM) and mediation analysis were used to deduce the causal relationship between RC and hyperuricemia. This study contained 6,447 participants. A positive association between high RC and hyperuricemia was found in the full adjusted model (OR:1.80, P

Abstract. Background:. We have recently developed a new Coronary Artery Tree description and Lesion EvaluaTion (CatLet) angiographic scoring system. Our preliminary studies have demonstrated its superiority over the the Synergy between percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with Taxus and Cardiac Surgery (SYNTAX) score with respect to outcome predictions for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients. The current study hypothesized that the residual CatLet (rCatLet) score predicts clinical outcomes for AMI patients and that a combination with the three clinical variables (CVs)—age, creatinine, and ejection fraction, will enhance its predicting values. Methods:. The rCatLet score was calculated retrospectively in 308 consecutively enrolled patients with AMI. Primary endpoint, major adverse cardiac or cerebrovascular events (MACCE) including all-cause mortality, non-fatal AMI, transient ischemic attack/stroke, and ischemia-driven repeat revascularization, was stratified according to rCatLet score tertiles: rCatLet_low ≤3, rCatLet_mid 4-11, and rCatLet_top ≥12, respectively. Cross-validation confirmed a reasonably good agreement between the observed and predicted risks. Results:. Of 308 patients analyzed, the rates of MACCE, all-cause death, and cardiac death were 20.8%, 18.2%, and 15.3%, respectively. Kaplan-Meier curves for all endpoints showed increasing outcome events with the increasing tertiles of the rCatLet score, with P values

Abstract Despite being a clean and renewable energy source, photovoltaic (PV) power generation faces severe challenges in operation due to its strong intermittency and volatility compared to the traditional fossil fuel power generation. Accurate predictions are therefore crucial for PV’s grid connections and the system security. The existing methods often rely heavily on weather forecasts, the accuracy of which is hard to be guaranteed. This paper proposes a novel GBDT-BiLSTM day-ahead PV forecasting model, which leverages the Teacher Forcing mechanism to combine the strong time-series processing capabilities of BiLSTM with an enhanced GBDT model. Given the uncertainty and volatility inherent in solar energy and weather conditions, the gradient boosting method is employed to update the weak learner, while a decision tree is incorporated to update the strong learner. Additionally, to explore the correlation between photovoltaic power output and historical time-series data, the adaptive gradient descent-based Adam algorithm is utilized to train the bidirectional LSTM model, enhancing the accuracy and stability of mid- to long-term time-series predictions. A prediction experiment, conducting with the real data from a PV power station in Sichuan Province, China, was compared with other methods to verify the model’s effectiveness and robustness.

Objective To explore the research status, hot spots and trends of platelet rich plasma (PRP). Methods With "platelet rich plasma (PRP)" and its Chinese equivalent as the subject words, the PRP related articles during January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2022 from PubMed and CNKI database were retrieved. The bibliometric analysis was performed by Bicomb 2.0 software to extract the annual number of literature publications, authors, journals and high-frequency theme words/sub theme words. The gCLUTO software was used to evaluate and visualize the results, and strategic diagram was drawn according to the results of biclustering. Results A total of 9 066 PRP related articles were retrieved (7 027 from PubMed, 2 039 from CNKI), and the number of publications showed an increasing trend year by year. Papers have been published in 1 527 journals in PubMed, among which the journal with the highest number of publications was Arthroscopy: Journal of Arthroscopic & Related Surgery (175 articles), followed by American Journal of Sports Medicine (171 articles ) and Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology (121 articles) . PRP-related studies were published in 541 journals in CNKI, with the top 3 journals as Chinese Tissue Engineering Research (113 articles), Chinese Aesthetic Medicine (64 articles) and Chinese Journal of Blood Transfasion (45 articles) . In Pubmed, Anitua Eduardo (84 articles), Filardo Giuseppe (53 articles) and Cole Brian J (44 articles) were the top three productive authors on PRP; Cheng Biao from the General Hospital of Southern Theater Command of Chinese PLA was the most productive Chinese author (25 articles) . Shan Guiqiu from the General Hospital of the Southern Theater Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army published the most articles(29 articles) in CNKI. American journals published the most articles (2 745 articles ), accounting for 39.06% of the total articles, followed by British and Swiss journals, with 1 499 articles and 550 articles, respectively. A total of 42 high-frequency subject words/sub-subject words were selected from PubMed, and were classified into 6 roups, while 30 high-frequency subject words were selected from CNKI and grouped into 5 categories. The strategic coordinates show that the treatment of rotator cuff and tendon injury with PRP in PubMed, the study of PRP and tissue engineering materials in CNKI are the core themes of current PRP research. Conclusion The strategic coordinate map and bibliometrics can reveal the current research status of PRP and predict future research hotspots, but current research cores of PubMed and CNKI are not consistent, and further research is still needed.

The purpose of this retrospective study was to evaluate the clinicopathological features of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) and the lymph node metastasis of PTMC. We retrospectively reviewed a total of 1433 patients with PTMC. The analysis data including demographics, tumor size, multifocality, bilateral, invasion capsule and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis were collected from XinJiang, China. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify the clinicopathologic predictors of central lymph node metastasis: male gender [odds ratio (OR) = 2.358, p < 0.001], age ≤ 45 years (OR = 2.302, p 6.5 mm (OR = 2.388, p < 0.001), adjacent or invasion capsule (OR = 1.750, p = 0.002), Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (OR = 0.501, p < 0.001). The optimal critical value of the number of dissected lymph nodes was found to be 8.5 using ROC analysis, with a sensitivity and specificity of 41.8% and 75.5%, respectively. This study suggests that evaluation of nodal metastasis is required to guide the surgical treatment of PTMC patients.

Abstract Simulated hypobaric hypoxia (SHH) training has been used to enhance running performance. However, no studies have evaluated the effects of a single SHH exposure on healthy mice performance and analyzed the changes of mitochondria-related genes in the central nervous system. The current study used a mouse decompression chamber to simulate mild hypobaric hypoxia at the high altitude of 5000 m or severe hypobaric hypoxia at 8000 m for 16 h (SHH5000 & SHH8000, respectively). Then, the mouse behavioral tests were recorded by a modified Noldus video tracking. Third, the effects of SHH on 8 mitochondria-related genes of Drp1, Mfn1, Mfn2, Opa1, TFAM, SGK1, UCP2 and UCP4, were assessed in cerebellum, hippocampus and gastrocnemius muscles. The results have shown that a single mild or severe HH improves healthy mice performance. In cerebellum, 6 of all 8 detected genes (except Mfn2 and UCP4) did not change after SHH. In hippocampus, all detected genes did not change after SHH. In muscles, 7 of all 8 detected genes (except Opa1) did not change after SHH. The present study has indicated the benefit of a single SHH in healthy mice performance, which would due to the stabilized mitochondria against a mild stress state.

Background Markers of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) severity are based on measurements of forced vital capacity (FVC), diffusing capacity (DLCO) and CT. The pulmonary vessel volume (PVV) is a novel quantitative and independent prognostic structural indicator derived from automated CT analysis. The current prospective cross-sectional study investigated whether respiratory oscillometry provides complementary data to pulmonary function tests (PFTs) and is correlated with PVV.Methods From September 2019 to March 2020, we enrolled 89 patients with IPF diagnosed according to international guidelines. We performed standard spectral (5–37 Hz) and novel intrabreath tracking (10 Hz) oscillometry followed by PFTs. Patients were characterised with the gender-age-physiology (GAP) score. CT images within 6 months of oscillometry were analysed in a subgroup (26 patients) using automated lung texture analysis. Correlations between PFTs, oscillometry and imaging variables were investigated using different regression models.Findings The cohort (29F/60M; age=71.7±7.8 years) had mild IPF (%FVC=70±17, %DLCO=62±17). Spectral oscillometry revealed normal respiratory resistance, low reactance, especially during inspiration at 5 Hz (X5in), elevated reactance area and resonance frequency. Intrabreath oscillometry identified markedly low reactance at end-inspiration (XeI). XeI and X5in strongly correlated with FVC (r2=0.499 and 0.435) while XeI was highly (p=0.004) and uniquely correlated with the GAP score. XeI and PVV exhibited the strongest structural-functional relationship (r2=0.690), which remained significant after adjusting for %FVC, %DLCO and GAP score.Interpretation XeI is an independent marker of IPF severity that offers additional information to standard PFTs. The data provide a cogent rationale for adding oscillometry in IPF assessment.

Objectives To estimate the prevalence, ethnic differences and associated risk factors of myopic maculopathy in Han and Uygur adults in Xinjiang, China.Design and setting A cross-sectional study with multistage, stratified cluster sampling method was conducted in Xinjiang, China.Participants A total of 4023 Han and Uygur participants aged 40 years and older were eligible for the study.Outcome measures The association between myopic maculopathy and its risk factors was screened using the generalised estimating equation (GEE) model. We also investigated whether ethnic differences exist between Han and Uygur populations affected by myopic maculopathy. Myopic maculopathy was defined in accordance with International Photographic Classification and Grading System for Myopic Maculopathy.Results A total of 3044 subjects (5946 eyes) were included in our study (1736 Han and 1308 Uygur individuals). The participants consisted of 1256 (41.3%) men and 1788 (58.7%) women. The average age was 52.2±9.4 years, and the mean spherical equivalent (SE) was −0.18±2.31 dioptre (D). Myopic maculopathy was detected in 198 eyes of 138 participants. The age-adjusted prevalence of myopic maculopathy reached 5.8% (95% CI 4.8 to 6.8). In the GEE model, myopic maculopathy was significantly associated with old age (per year; OR: 1.16; 95% CI 1.13 to 1.19; p

Abstract Background There has been significant interest in investigating genome-wide and epigenome-wide associations with lipids. Testing at the gene or region level may improve power in such studies. Methods We analyze chromosome 11 cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG) methylation levels and single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes from the original Genetics of Lipid Lowering Drugs and Diet Network (GOLDN) study, aiming to explore the association between triglyceride levels and genetic/epigenetic factors. We apply region-based tests of association to methylation and genotype data, in turn, which seek to increase power by reducing the dimension of the gene-region variables. We also investigate whether integrating 2 omics data sets (methylation and genotype) into the triglyceride association analysis helps or hinders detection of candidate gene regions. Results Gene-region testing identified 1 CpG region that had been previously reported in the GOLDN study data and another 2 gene regions that are also associated with triglyceride levels. Testing on the combined genetic and epigenetic data detected the same genes as using epigenetic or genetic data alone. Conclusions Region-based testing can uncover additional association signals beyond those detected using single-variant testing.

OBJECTIVE:To investigate the potential for static upright balance function and brain-blood oxygen parameters to evaluate pilot workload. METHODS:Phase 1: The NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) was used to compare the workloads of real flights with flight simulator simulated flight tasks in 15 pilots (Cohort 1). Phase 2: To determine the effects of workload, 50 cadets were divided equally into simulated flight task load (experimental) and control groups (Cohort 2). The experimental group underwent 2 h of simulated flight tasks, while the control group rested for 2 h. Their static upright balance function was evaluated using balance index-1 (BI-1), before and after the tasks, with balance system posturography equipment and cerebral blood oxygen parameters monitored with near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in real time. Sternberg dual-task and reaction time tests were performed in the experimental and control groups before and after the simulated flight tasks. RESULTS:(Phase1) There was a significant correlation between the workload caused by real flight and simulated flight tasks (P

Rhesus macaque is an important animal model in biomedical research, especially human disease, developmental, translational, and pre-clinical research. Blood physiological and biochemical parameters are important markers for physiology, pathology, and toxicology research. However, these parameters have not been systematically reported for Chinese rhesus macaques. To characterize the reference for these parameters, this study collected 1805 Chinese rhesus macaques living in Southwestern China. A total of 24 blood physiological indexes and 27 biochemical parameters were determined. Sex and age were found to affect these parameters. In conclusion, a comprehensive and systematic reference of hematological and biochemical parameters for Chinese rhesus macaque was established in this work on the basis of a large cohort. Such reference will benefit biomedical research employing rhesus macaques as animal models.

OBJECTIVES:Admission rates have increased in China, despite the fact that accessibility to primary care is improving. Hospital care could be cost-inefficient, and little is currently known about the appropriateness of admissions to tertiary hospitals in China. This study aims to measure the extent of inappropriate admissions in the cardiology and orthopedics departments of a tertiary hospital in Shanghai, to explore the factors associated with inappropriateness for each department, and to identify the causes of inappropriate admissions. METHODS:The records of inpatients discharged on randomly sampled two days each week during March 2013 to February 2014 from the two departments were extracted. Two reviewers were recruited to assess the records according to the Chinese version of the Appropriateness Evaluation Protocol (C-AEP). Demographic, socio-economic, and other admissions-related variables were collected. Logistic regression analysis was adopted to determine the associated factors of inappropriateness. RESULTS:35.0% (N = 120) of the 343 admissions and 38.7% (N = 179) of the 463 admissions of the cardiology and orthopedics departments were not justified by the C-AEP, respectively. Age (OR = 0.717), self-pay (OR = 3.752), admission via outpatient sector (OR = 5.332), and readmission (OR = 2.501) were identified as factors affecting the appropriateness of admissions in the cardiology department. Age (OR = 0.930), self-pay (OR = 2.597), admission during 12:00-17:59 (OR = 3.211), and admission via outpatient sector (OR = 7.060) were determined to be associated with appropriateness of admission in the orthopedics department. The main reason for inappropriateness was premature admission for both departments. CONCLUSIONS:The magnitude of inappropriate admissions was considerable in the departments. To improve appropriateness, the results suggest that further interventions should be focused on both external and internal factors.

The uppermost internode is one of the fastest elongating organs in rice, and is expected to require an adequate supply of cell-wall materials and enzymes to the cell surface to enhance mechanical strength. Although it has been reported that the phenotype of shortened uppermost internode 1 (sui1) is caused by mutations in PHOSPHATIDYLSERINE SYNTHASE (OsPSS), the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Here we show that the OsPSS-1, as a gene expressed predominantly in elongating cells, regulates post-Golgi vesicle secretion to intercellular spaces. Mutation of OsPSS-1 leads to compromised delivery of CESA4 and secGFP towards the cell surface, resulting in weakened intercellular adhesion and disorganized cell arrangement in parenchyma. The phenotype of sui1-4 is caused largely by the reduction in cellulose contents in the whole plant and detrimental delivery of pectins in the uppermost internode. We found that OsPSS-1 and its potential product PS (phosphatidylserine) localized to organelles associated with exocytosis. These results together suggest that OsPSS-1 plays a potential role in mediating cell expansion by regulating secretion of cell wall components.

To investigate the prevalence of general and abdominal obesity and associated factors in Bouyei and Han peoples.A cross-sectional study was carried out in Guizhou province, southwest China in 2012, with multi-stage sampling to enroll 4551 participants aged 20 to 80 years. General and abdominal obesity were defined by World Health Organization (WHO) for Chinese. A design-based analysis was performed to evaluate prevalence of obesity and its related factors.Bouyei people had a significantly lower prevalence of general obesity (4.8% vs. 10.9%, p < 0.05) and abdominal obesity (13.6% vs. 26.8%, p < 0.05) than that in Han people. Prevalence of obesity increased with age until middle-age period and declined thereafter. Men aged 40-49 years group and women aged 50-59 years group have the highest prevalence of general obesity. Prevalence of abdominal obesity was higher than that of general obesity. Middle-age, Higher income, Han people were significantly associated with an increased risk of General/abdominal obesity.Bouyei people had a lower prevalence of general and abdominal obesity than the Han people. Etiological studies should be conducted to determine underlying genetic factors and dietary factors.

BackgroundSmoking among youths is a worldwide problem, particularly in China. Many endogenous and environmental factors influence smokers' intentions to smoke; therefore, a comprehensive model is needed to understand the significance and relationship of predictors. This study aimed to develop a prediction model based on problem-behavior theory (PBT) to interpret intentions to smoke among Chinese youths.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study of 26,675 adolescents from junior, senior, and vocational high schools in Shanghai, China. Data on smoking status, smoking knowledge, attitude toward smoking, parents' and peers' smoking, and media exposure to smoking were collected from students. A structural equation model was used to assess the developed prediction model.ResultsThe experimental smoking rate and current smoking rate among the students were 11.0% and 3%, respectively. Our constructed model showed an acceptable fit to the data (comparative fit index = 0.987, root-mean-square error of approximation = 0.034). Intention to smoke was predicted by perceived environment (β = 0.455, P < 0.001) system consisting of peer smoking (β = 0.599, P < 0.001), parent smoking (β = 0.152, P < 0.001), and media exposure to smoking (β = 0.226, P < 0.001), and behavior system (β = 0.487, P < 0.001) consisting of tobacco experimentation (β = 0.663, P < 0.001) and current smoking (β = 0.755, P < 0.001). Smoking intention was irrelevant for personality system in students (β = -0.113, P>0.05) which consisted of acceptance of tobacco use (β = 0.668, P < 0.001) and academic performance (β = 0.171, P < 0.001).ConclusionThe PBT-based model we developed provides a good understanding of the predictors of intentions to smoke and it suggests future interventions among youths should focus on components in perceived environment and behavior systems, and take into account the moderating effects of personality system.

To adapt the Appropriateness Evaluation Protocol (AEP) to the specific settings of health care in China and to validate the Chinese version AEP (C-AEP).Forward and backward translations were carried out to the original criteria. Twenty experts participated in the consultancy to form a preliminary version of the C-AEP. To ensure applicability, tests of reliability and validity were performed on 350 admissions and 3,226 hospital days of acute myocardial infraction patients and total hip replacement patients in two tertiary hospitals by two C-AEP reviewers and two physician reviewers. Overall agreement, specific agreement, and Cohen's Kappa were calculated to compare the concordance of decisions between pairs of reviewers to test inter-rater reliability and convergent validity. The use of "overrides" and opinions of experts were recorded as measurements of content validity. Face validity was tested through collecting perspectives of nonprofessionals. Sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values were also reported.There are 14 admission and 24 days of care criteria in the initial version of C-AEP. Kappa coefficients indicate substantial agreement between reviewers: with regard to inter-rater reliability, Kappa (κ) coefficients are 0.746 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.644-0.834) and 0.743 (95% CI 0.698-0.767) of admission and hospital days, respectively; for convergent validity, the κ statistics are 0.678 (95% CI 0.567-0.778) and 0.691 (95% CI 0.644-0.717), respectively. Overrides account for less than 2% of all judgments. Content validity and face validity were confirmed by experts and nonprofessionals, respectively. According to the C-AEP reviewers, 18.3% of admissions and 28.5% of inpatient days were deemed inappropriate.The C-AEP is a reliable and valid screening tool in China's tertiary hospitals. The prevalence of inappropriateness is substantial in our research. To reduce inappropriate utilization, further investigation is needed to elucidate the reasons and risk factors for this inappropriateness.

AIMS:The asymptomatic nature of early-stage esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) results in late presentation and consequent dismal prognosis This study characterized 14-3-3σ protein expression in the multi-stage development of ESCC and determined its correlation with clinical features and prognosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS:Western blot was used to examine 14-3-3σ protein expression in normal esophageal epithelium (NEE), low grade intraepithelial neoplasia (LGIN), high grade intraepithelial neoplasia (HGIN), ESCC of TNM I to IV stage and various esophageal epithelial cell lines with different biological behavior. Immunohistochemistry was used to estimate 14-3-3σ protein in 110 biopsy samples of NEE, LGIN or HGIN and in 168 ESCC samples all of whom had follow-up data. Support vector machine (SVM) was used to develop a classifier for prognosis. RESULTS:14-3-3σ decreased progressively from NEE to LGIN, to HGIN, and to ESCC. Chemoresistant sub-lines of EC9706/PTX and EC9706/CDDP showed high expression of 14-3-3σ protein compared with non-chemoresistant ESCC cell lines and immortalized NEC. Furthermore, the downregulation of 14-3-3σ correlated significantly with histological grade (P = 0.000) and worse prognosis (P = 0.004). Multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that 14-3-3σ protein (P = 0.016) and T stage (P = 0.000) were independent prognostic factors for ESCC. The SVM ESCC classifier comprising sex, age, T stage, histological grade, lymph node metastasis, clinical stage and 14-3-3σ, distinguished significantly lower- and higher-risk ESCC patients (91.67% vs. 3.62%, P = 0.000). CONCLUSIONS:Downregulation of 14-3-3σ arises early in the development of ESCC and predicts poor survival, suggesting that 14-3-3σ may be a biomarker for early detection of high-risk subjects and diagnosis of ESCC. Our seven-feature SVM classifier for ESCC prognosis may help to inform clinical decisions and tailor individual therapy.

Postprandial hyperglycemia induces inflammation and endothelial dysfunction resulting in vascular complications in patients with diabetes. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are central to the regulation of inflammatory responses through activation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-ĸB). This study examined the role of TLR2 and 4 in regulating inflammation and endothelial dysfunction when exposed to fluctuating glucose concentrations. HMEC-1 cells (a human microvascular endothelial cell line) were exposed to control (5 mM), 30 mM (high), fluctuating (5/30 mM) and 11.2 mM glucose (approximate glycaemic criteria for the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus) for 72 h. Cells were assessed for TLR2, 4, high mobility group box -1 (HMGB1), NF-ĸB, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), interleukin-8 (IL-8), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1). Fluctuating glucose concentrations maximally upregulated TLR4 but not TLR2 expression with increased NF-ĸB activation, IL-8 and ICAM-1 expression. HMGB1 was increased in the supernatants of cells exposed to 30 mM and 11.2 mM glucose compared to control. The addition of recombinant HMGB1 induced NF-ĸB activation and synthesis of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, which were prevented by TLR2 or 4 signalling inhibition. An additive effect when both TLR2 and 4 signalling pathways were inhibited was observed. However, only inhibition of TLR4 signalling suppressed the synthesis of MCP-1, IL-8 and ICAM-1. In vivo, streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice exhibited an increase in glomerular ICAM-1 which was not evident in TLR2(-/-) or TLR4(-/-) diabetic mice. Collectively, our results suggest that targeting the signalling pathway of TLR2 and 4 may be of therapeutic benefit in attenuating vascular inflammation in diabetic microangiopathy.

Toll like receptor (TLR) 4 has been reported to promote inflammation in diabetic nephropathy. However the role of TLR4 in the complicated pathophysiology of diabetic nephropathy is not understood. In this study, we report elevated expression of TLR4, its endogenous ligands and downstream cytokines, chemokines and fibrogenic genes in diabetic nephropathy in WT mice with streptozotocin (STZ) diabetes. Subsequently, we demonstrated that TLR4-/- mice were protected against the development of diabetic nephropathy, exhibiting less albuminuria, inflammation, glomerular hypertrophy and hypercellularity, podocyte and tubular injury as compared to diabetic wild-type controls. Marked reductions in interstitial collagen deposition, myofibroblast activation (α-SMA) and expression of fibrogenic genes (TGF-β and fibronectin) were also evident in TLR4 deficient mice. Consistent with our in vivo results, high glucose directly promoted TLR4 activation in podocytes and tubular epithelial cells in vitro, resulting in NF-κB activation and consequent inflammatory and fibrogenic responses. Our data indicate that TLR4 activation may promote inflammation, podocyte and tubular epithelial cell injury and interstitial fibrosis, suggesting TLR4 is a potential therapeutic target for diabetic nephropathy.

OBJECTIVE: We evaluated a variety of non-invasive physiological technologies and a series of test approaches for examination of aviator performances under conditions of mental workload in order to provide a standard real-time test for physiological and psychological pilot fatigue assessments. METHODS: Twenty-one male aviators were selected for a simulated flight in a hypobaric cabin with artificial altitude conditions of 2400 meter above sea level. The simulated flight lasted for 1.5 h, and was repeated for two times with an intervening 0.5 h rest period outside the hypobaric cabin. Subjective criteria (a fatigue assessment instrument [FAI]) and objective criteria (a standing-position balance test as well as a critical flicker fusion frequency (CFF) test) were used for fatigue evaluations. RESULTS: No significant change was observed in the FAI scores before and after the simulated flight, indicating that there was no subjective fatigue feeling among the participants. However, significant differences were observed in the standing-position balance and CFF tests among the subjects, suggesting that psychophysiological indexes can reflect mental changes caused by workload to a certain extent. The CFF test was the simplest and clearly indicated the occurrence of workload influences on pilot performances after a simulated flight. CONCLUSIONS: Results showed that the CFF test was the easiest way to detect workload caused mental changes after a simulated flight in a hypobaric cabin and reflected the psychophysiological state of aviators. We suggest that this test might be used as an effective routine method for evaluating the workload influences on mental conditions of aviators.

BACKGROUND: Due to the increase of premarital sex and the lack of reproductive health services, unmarried rural-to-urban female migrants experience more risks of sex and reproductive health (SRH). This study was designed to describe SRH related knowledge, attitude and risk behaviors among unmarried rural-to-urban female migrants and examine the predictors of reducing sexual and reproductive risk behaviors based on information-motivation-behavioral skills (IMB) model and to describe the relationships between the constructs. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study to assess SRH related information, motivation, behavioral skills and preventive behaviors among unmarried rural-to-urban female migrants in Shanghai, one of the largest importers of migrant laborers in China. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to assess the IMB model. RESULTS: A total of 944 subjects completed their questionnaires. The mean age was 21.2 years old (SD = 2.3; range 16 to 28). Over one-fourth of participants reported having had premarital sex (N = 261, 27.6%) and among whom 15.3% reported having had the experience of unintended pregnancy, 14.6% with the experience of abortion. The final IMB model provided acceptable fit to the data (CFI = 0.99, RMSEA = 0.034). Reducing sexual and reproductive risk behaviors was significantly predicted by SRH related information (β = 0.681, P

Adolescent smoking is a worldwide problem that is particularly severe in low- and middle-income countries. Many endogenous and environmental factors affect the intention to smoke, so a comprehensive model is needed to understand the significance and relationship of predictors. The study aimed to test the associations among information-motivation-behavioral skills (IMB) model constructs as predictors of intention to smoke in junior high school students in Shanghai, China.We conducted a cross-sectional study of 16,500 junior high school students in Shanghai, China. Data on tobacco-related information, motivation, behavioral skills, and behaviors were collected from students. Structural equation model (SEM) was used to assess the IMB model.The mean age of participants was 13.8 years old (standard deviation = 1.02; range 11-17). The experimental smoking rate among junior high school students was 6.6% and 8.7% of the participants expected that they would be smokers in 5 years. The IMB model provided acceptable fit to the data (comparative fit index = 0.984, root mean square error of approximation = 0.04). Intention to smoke was predicted by behavioral skills (β = 0.670, P < 0.001) and motivation (β = 0.095, P

BACKGROUND: The association of diabetes mellitus (DM) with nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) has been inconclusive. PURPOSE: To determine whether DM is associated with an increased risk of NAION. METHODS: A comprehensive literature search was performed for published studies reporting both DM and NAION based on PubMed and EMBASE. After reviewing characteristics of all the included studies systematically, meta-analytical method was employed to calculate the pooled odds ratio (OR) and associated 95% confidence interval (CI) from random-effects models. Heterogeneity was assessed by Q-statistic test. Funnel Plot, Begg's and Egger's linear regression test were applied to evaluate publication bias. A sensitivity analysis and meta-regression analysis were also performed to assess the robustness of results. RESULTS: 2,096 participants from 12 case-control studies were pooled for a meta-analysis. The result of meta-analysis of these studies indicated that DM is associated with increased risk of NAION (pooled OR = 1.64, 95% CI = 1.17-2.30; P = 0.004). Sensitivity analysis indicated our findings are robust, and meta-regression analysis revealed no significant effect in terms of geographical area, gender, age of patients with NAION, the year of the publication, source of the controls, and sample size (all p>0.05). Evidence of publication bias was not observed in our study. CONCLUSION: Meta-analysis suggests that DM might be associated with increased risk of NAION.

Lysosomal exocytosis and fusion to cellular membrane is critical in the oxidative stress formation of endothelium under apoptotic stimulus. We investigated the role therein of it in hyperglycaemia-induced endothelial dysfunction. The lysosome-membrane fusion was shown by the expression of lamp1, the lysosomal membrane marker, on cellular membrane and the transportation of lysosomal symbolic enzymes into cultural medium. We also examined the ceramide production, lipid rafts (LRs) clustering, colocalization of gp91(phox), a NADPH oxidase subunit (NOX) to LRs clusters, superoxide (O₂·⁻) formation and nitric oxide (NO) content in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) and the endothelium-dependent NO-mediated vasodilation in isolated rat aorta. As compared to normal glucose (5.6 mmol/l, Ctrl) incubation, high glucose (22 mmol/l, HG) exposure facilitated the lysosome-membrane fusion in HUVEC shown by significantly increased quantity of lamp1 protein on cellular membrane and enhanced activity of lysosomal symbolized enzymes in cultural medium. HG incubation also elicited ceramide generation, LRs clustering and gp91(phox) colocalization to LRs clusters which were proved to mediate the HG induced O₂·⁻ formation and NO depletion in HUVEC. Functionally, the endothelium-dependent NO-mediated vasodilation in aorta was blunted substantially after HG incubation. Moreover, the HG-induced effect including ceramide production, LRs clustering, gp91(phox) colocalization to LRs clusters, O₂·⁻ formation and endothelial dysfunction could be blocked significantly by the inhibition of lysosome-membrane fusion. We propose that hyperglycaemia-induced endothelial impairment is closely related to the lysosome-membrane fusion and the following LRs clustering, LRs-NOX platforms formation and O₂·⁻ production.

BACKGROUND: The differential adaptations of cerebrovasculature and small mesenteric arteries could be one of critical factors in postspaceflight orthostatic intolerance, but the cellular mechanisms remain unknown. We hypothesize that there is a differential regulation of intracellular Ca(2+) determined by the alterations in the functions of plasma membrane Ca(L) channels and ryanodine-sensitive Ca(2+) releases from sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) in cerebral and small mesenteric vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) of simulated microgravity rats, respectively. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to 28-day hindlimb unweighting to simulate microgravity. In addition, tail-suspended rats were submitted to a recovery period of 3 or 7 days after removal of suspension. The function of Ca(L) channels was evaluated by patch clamp and Western blotting. The function of ryanodine-sensitive Ca(2+) releases in response to caffeine were assessed by a laser confocal microscope. Our results indicated that simulated microgravity increased the functions of Ca(L) channels and ryanodine-sensitive Ca(2+) releases in cerebral VSMCs, whereas, simulated microgravity decreased the functions of Ca(L) channels and ryanodine-sensitive Ca(2+) releases in small mesenteric VSMCs. In addition, 3- or 7-day recovery after removal of suspension could restore the functions of Ca(L) channels and ryanodine-sensitive Ca(2+) releases to their control levels in cerebral and small mesenteric VSMCs, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The differential regulation of Ca(L) channels and ryanodine-sensitive Ca(2+) releases in cerebral and small mesenteric VSMCs may be responsible for the differential regulation of intracellular Ca(2+), which leads to the altered autoregulation of cerebral vasculature and the inability to adequately elevate peripheral vascular resistance in postspaceflight orthostatic intolerance.