Search

Background: The influence of native secondary succession associated with anthropogenic disturbance on the biodiversity of the forests in subtropical China remains uncertain. In particular, the evolutionary response of small understory shrubs, particularly pioneer species inhabiting continuously disturbed habitats, to topographic heterogeneity and climate change is poorly understood. This study aimed to address this knowledge gap by focusing on the Gaultheria crenulata group, a clade of small pioneer shrubs in subtropical China. Results: We examined the genetic structure and demographic history of all five species of the G. crenulata group with two maternally inherited chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) fragments and two biparentally inherited low-copy nuclear genes (LCG) over 89 natural populations. We found that the genetic differentiation of this group was influenced by the geomorphological boundary between different regions of China in association with Quaternary climatic events. Despite low overall genetic diversity, we observed an isolation-by-distance (IBD) pattern at a regional scale, rather than isolation-by-environment (IBE), which was attributed to ongoing human disturbance in the region. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the genetic structure of the G. crenulata group reflects the interplay of geological topography, historical climates, and anthropogenic disturbance during the Pliocene–Pleistocene-Holocene periods in subtropical China. The observed IBD pattern, particularly prominent in western China, highlights the role of limited dispersal and gene flow, possibly influenced by physical barriers or decreased connectivity over geographic distance. Furthermore, the east-to-west trend of gene flow, potentially facilitated by the East Asian monsoon system, underscores the complex interplay of biotic and abiotic factors shaping the genetic dynamics of pioneer species in subtropical China's secondary forests. These findings can be used to assess the impact of environmental changes on the adaptation and persistence of biodiversity in subtropical forest ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) are commonly used first-line drugs for treating cerebral thrombosis and stroke in China. However, the synchronized and targeted delivery of active ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) poses a significant challenge for modern TCM formulations. Methods: Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was modified using 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC), an analog of acetylcholine, and subsequently adsorbed the major PNS onto the modified albumin to produce MPC-BSA@PNS nanoparticles (NPs). This novel delivery system facilitated efficient and synchronized transport of PNS across the blood–brain barrier (BBB) through active transport mediated by nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Results: In vitro experiments demonstrated that the transport rates of R1, Rg1, Rb1, and Rd across the BBB were relatively synchronous in MPC-BSA@PNS NPs compared to those in the PNS solution. Additionally, animal experiments revealed that the brain-targeting efficiencies of R1 + Rg1 + Rb1 in MPC-BSA@PNS NPs were 2.02 and 7.73 times higher than those in BSA@PNS NPs and the free PNS group, respectively. Conclusions: This study presents a simple and feasible approach for achieving the targeted delivery of complex active ingredient clusters in TCM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subterranean karst caves are windows into the terrestrial subsurface to deconstruct the dimensions of mycobiome fingerprints. However, impeded by the constraints of remote locations, the inaccessibility of specimens and technical limitations, the mycobiome of subterranean karst caves has remained largely unknown. Weathered rock and sediment samples were collected from Luohandu cave (Guilin, Southern China) and subjected to Illumina Hiseq sequencing of ITS1 genes. A total of 267 known genera and 90 known orders in 15 phyla were revealed in the mycobiomes. Ascomycota dominated all samples, followed by Basidiomycota and Mortierellomycota. The sediments possessed the relatively highest alpha diversity and were significantly different from weathered rocks according to the diversity indices and richness metrics. Fifteen families and eight genera with significant differences were detected in the sediment samples. The Ca/Mg ratio appeared to significantly affect the structure of the mycobiome communities. Ascomycota appeared to exert a controlling influence on the mycobiome co-occurrence network of the sediments, while Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were found to be the main phyla in the mycobiome co-occurrence network of weathered rocks. Our results provide a more comprehensive dimension to the mycobiome fingerprints of Luohandu cave and a new window into the mycobiome communities and the ecology of subterranean karst cave ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plant species often show different taxonomic and functional characteristics between limestone forests (LFs) and non-limestone forests (NLFs) in tropical regions. Pteridophyte species are one of the major components in tropical rainforests; however, the morphological and physiological characteristics of pteridophytes occurring in LFs are poorly understood. We evaluated the differences in seven leaf functional traits between pteridophyte species in LFs and NLFs in southwest China. We measured leaf water content, morphological traits including leaf size, leaf thickness, stomatal length and stomatal density (SD), and physiological traits including stomatal conductance and photosynthetic rate from a total of 25 species. We found that pteridophytes had thicker and smaller leaves with lower SD and stomatal conductance in LFs compared with NLFs, probably reflecting their adaptations in water use strategies. These differences, however, became non-significant when phylogenetic relationships were taken into account, suggesting that phylogenetic conservatism shapes trait differences and ultimately species composition in LFs and NLFs. Some species that were commonly found in both LFs and NLFs exhibited intraspecific variation between forest types, with lower SD in LFs. Our findings suggest that only a handful of pteridophyte species can adapt to their water use strategies in both LFs and NLFs, and thus adaptative radiation is unlikely to occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: We aim to investigate the species composition of ticks and the pathogen characteristics they carry in the Argun port area of the China–Russia border. Materials and Methods: Ticks were collected in surrounding grassland, mixed forest land, and other different habitats around the Argun port area at the Sino-Russian Border of Inner Mongolia in China in April 2019. The presence of 16 potential pathogens, including Yersinia Pestis, Francisella tularensis, Coxiella burnetii (Cb), Anaplasma sp. (Ap), spotted fever group rickettsiae (SFG Rk), Borrelia sp. (Bl), Leptospira, Bartonella spp., Babesia, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus, tick-borne encephalitis virus, Bhanja virus, West Nile Virus, severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome bunyavirus, Hantaan virus, and bocavirus (boca) was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction. The DNA and amino acid sequences of tick-borne pathogens were compared for homology, and the phylogenetic trees were constructed by using Mega and Lasergene software. Results: A total of 210 ticks were collected and they belonged to three species: Dermacentor nuttalli, Ixodes persulcatus, and Haemaphysalis verticalis. Among them, 165 (78.57%) ticks tested positive for 5 pathogens, namely Ap, SFG Rk, Cb, Bl, and boca. Fifteen (7.14%) ticks were detected coinfection with two pathogens, and none were coinfected with three or more pathogens. Conclusion: This study shows the prevalence of at least five tick-borne pathogens in Argun, and there is a risk of coinfection by two pathogens in one tick. This study reveals the great importance of controlling tick-borne diseases in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Postgraduate fellowship training programs are expanding at Chinese universities. This growing cadre of advanced trainees calls for the development of new learning and training models wherein postgraduate fellows have an ample opportunity to teach more junior learners, thereby expanding their own knowledge base and competitiveness for future employment. Educational reform at Sun Yat-Sen University has recently allowed postgraduate fellows to act as teaching assistants for undergraduate anatomy courses. This model is common in western countries but is novel in China.

In winter 2020/2021, several episodes of cold air outbreaks have wreaked havoc across much of China, resulting in exceptionally low temperatures over northern‐to‐southeastern China. Our analysis shows that the anomalous circulation leading to the cold wave in China was characterized as: (a) a strengthening of the Siberian high, (b) a deepening of the East Asian trough, and (c) a weakening of the stratospheric polar vortex. Prior to the winter, in summer and autumn, the largest sea ice loss along the Siberian coast was observed. We therefore address the question whether the substantial sea ice loss has contributed to the cold wave. First, applying singular value decomposition (SVD) analysis, we find strong coherence between the autumn Arctic sea ice coverage and temperatures over the central‐to‐east Asian region with the sea ice component (SVD1_SIC) reaching a record high in 2020 and displaying a decadal shift around 2005. Associated with both the interannual and decadal variations of the SVD1_SIC, there are similar circulation anomalies as described in (a), (b) and (c) above. Second, applying self‐organizing maps, wintertime daily air temperatures are clustered into nine nodes with Node‐1 mostly resembling "warm Arctic, cold Eurasia" pattern. The frequency of Node‐1 shows a similar decadal shift as observed in SVD_SIC1 above, with a correlation of about 0.56. Associated with Node‐1, the circulation anomalies are consistent with features highlighted in (a), (b) and (c) above. Thus, taking all the evidence into account, we conclude that the substantial sea ice loss along the Siberian coast contributed significantly to the 2020/2021 winter cold wave in China. The mechanism behind the contribution in this study highlights that the Arctic sea ice loss is favourable for certain circulation patterns on climate timescale, reinforcing disruptive chain of reactions on weather timescale, and leading to severe cold events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid growth of railways in China, the focus has changed to the maintenance of large-scale rail structures. Multi-agent systems (MASs) based on wireless sensor network (WSNs) with soft multi-functional sensors (SMFS) are adopted cooperatively for the structural health monitoring of large-scale rail structures. An MAS framework with three layers, namely the sensing data acquisition layer, sensor data processing layer, and application layer, is built here for collaborative data collection and processing for a rail structure. WSN nodes with strain, temperature, and piezoelectric sensor units are developed for the continuous structural health monitoring of the rail structure. The feature data at different levels are extracted for the online monitoring of the rail structure. Experiments carried out at the Rail Transmit Base at East China Jiaotong University verify that the WSN nodes with SMFS are successfully assembled onto a 100-m-long track for damage detection. Based on the sensing data and feature data, a neural network data fusion agent (DFA) is applied to calculate the damage index value of the track for comprehensive decisions regarding rail damage. The use of WSNs with multi-functional sensors and intelligent algorithms is recommended for cooperative structural health monitoring in railways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aim: Patient deaths are common in the intensive care unit, and a nurse's perception of barriers to and supportive behaviors in end-of-life care varies widely depending upon their cultural background. The aim of this study was to describe the perceptions of intensive care nurses regarding barriers to and supportive behaviors in providing end-of-life care in a Chinese cultural context. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among intensive care nurses in 20 intensive care units in 11 general hospitals in central and eastern China. Instruments used in this study were general survey and Beckstrand's questionnaire. Data were collected via online survey platform. Descriptive analysis was used to describe general characteristics of participants and mean and standard deviations of the barriers and supportive behaviors. The mean and standard deviation were used to describe the intensity and frequency of each barrier or supportive behavior following Beckstrand's method to calculate the score of barriers and supportive behaviors. Content analysis was used to analyze the responses to open-ended questions. Results: The response rate was 53% (n = 368/700). Five of the top six barriers related to families and the other was the nurse's lack of time. Supportive behaviors included three related to families and three related to healthcare providers. Nurses in the intensive care unit felt that families should be present at the bedside of a dying patient, there is a need to provide a quiet, independent environment and psychological support should be provided to the patient and family. Nurses believe that if possible, families can be given flexibility to visit dying patients, such as increasing the number of visits, rather than limiting visiting hours altogether. Families need to be given enough time to perform the final rites on the dying patient. Moreover, it is remarkable that nurses' supportive behaviors almost all concern care after death. Conclusions: According to ICU-nurses family-related factors, such as accompany of the dying patients and acceptence of patient's imminent death, were found the major factors affecting the quality of end-of-life care. These findings identify the most prominent current barriers and supportive behaviors, which may provide a basis for addressing these issues in the future to improve the quality of end-of-life care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The prevalence of diabetes mellitus remains high in China, and more cardiovascular and cerebrovascular adverse events due to diabetes mellitus are likely to occur in the future. Objective: To analyze the gap between the current pharmacotherapy management and the guidelines for inpatients with type 2 diabetes mellitus from the perspective of pharmacists so as to provide a reference for optimal pharmacotherapy management methods and models for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods: The study was a cross-sectional observational study. The study was conducted by investigating and analyzing the use of glucose-lowering drugs, adjustment of blood pressure management strategy, lipid management, weight management, and application of antiplatelet drugs in type 2 diabetes inpatients. Results: A total of 1086 patients with type 2 diabetes were included. Metformin, glycosidase inhibitors, and basal insulin were the most used among type 2 diabetes inpatients. The use of SGLT-2, GLP-1 RAs, DPP-4, and metformin all showed significant increase. SGLT-2 inhibitors (SGLT-2i) showed the fastest increase from 2020 to 2021 (14.5% vs. 39.6%); However, the application rate of SGLT-2i was low among patients with combined ASCVD, renal insufficiency, and diabetic nephropathy (46.4%, 40.9%, and 45.8% respectively). For patients with substandard blood pressure at admission, the average rate of intervention by endocrinologists for adjusting the antihypertensive regimen during hospitalization was 55.6%, and the application rate of ACEI/ARB drugs reached 64.4%. The application rate of statins among patients with type 2 diabetes was still relatively high, at 78.8%. However, the overall intervention rate for patients with suboptimal LDL-c was only 24.1%. The application rate of antiplatelet agents for patients with ASCVD was 77.6%, which was higher than that for patients without ASCVD. Conclusion: There is still a gap between the practice of medication treatment management of Chinese inpatients with type 2 diabetes and the guidelines, especially in the application of GLP-1RAs and SGLT-2i in patients with concomitant ASCVD, diabetic nephropathy, and renal insufficiency. Meanwhile, physicians and pharmacists should pay more attention on achieving blood pressure and LDL-c standards in type 2 diabetic patients and provide timely interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in Wuhan, Hubei, China. Moreover, it has become a global pandemic. This is of great value in describing the clinical symptoms of COVID-19 patients in detail and looking for markers which are significant to predict the prognosis of COVID-19 patients.Methods: In this multicenter, retrospective study, 476 patients with COVID-19 were enrolled from a consecutive series. After screening, a total of 395 patients were included in this study. All-cause death was the primary endpoint. All patients were followed up from admission till discharge or death.Results: The main symptoms observed in the study included fever on admission, cough, fatigue, and shortness of breath. The most common comorbidities were hypertension and diabetes mellitus. Patients with lower CD4+T cell level were older and more often male compared to those with higher CD4+T cell level. Reduced CD8+T cell level was an indicator of the severity of COVID-19. Both decreased CD4+T [HR:13.659; 95%CI: 3.235-57.671] and CD8+T [HR: 10.883; 95%CI: 3.277-36.145] cell levels were associated with in-hospital death in COVID-19 patients, but only the decrease of CD4+T cell level was an independent predictor of in-hospital death in COVID-19 patients.Conclusions: Reductions in lymphocytes and lymphocyte subsets were common in COVID-19 patients, especially in severe cases of COVID-19. It was the CD8+T cell level, not the CD4+T cell level, that reflected the severity of the patient's disease. Only reduced CD4+T cell level was independently associated with increased in-hospital death in COVID-19 patients.Trial Registration: Prognostic Factors of Patients With COVID-19, NCT04292964 . Registered 03 March 2020. Retrospectively registered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: In this prospective cohort study, we aimed to evaluate the association between dietary habits and the risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)‐positive carriers in Qidong, an hepatitis B virus (HBV)‐epidemic area in China. Methods: A total of 3199 HBsAg carriers aged 30‐70 years in a prospective cohort in Qidong, China from 2007 to 2011 were included in the study. At baseline, all participants self‐reported their dietary habits in a questionnaire interview. A follow‐up check‐up was performed every 6 months to identify HCC cases until November 2017. Cox's regression analysis and an interaction analysis were performed to estimate the relative risks of HCC in terms of baseline diet. Results: Among 3199 HBsAg‐positive participants, 270 developed HCC (143.86/100 000 person‐years [PYs]). Compared with participants who rarely consume garlic, the risk of HCC in those who consumed it ≥ once per week decreased along with the increase in frequency (HR = 1.00, 0.90 and 0.62 in those who consumed it rarely vs those who consumed it 1‐6 times per week and ≥ 7 times per week, respectively). This study found a synergistic effect between garlic and tea consumption on the risk of HCC (P = 0.039 for a multiplicative interaction). Conclusions: HBsAg carriers should improve their diet. Regular consumption of garlic and tea drinking may reduce the HCC incidence in HBsAg carriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in China has been declared a public health emergency of international concern. The cardiac injury is a common condition among the hospitalized patients with COVID-19. However, whether N terminal pro B type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) predicted outcome of severe COVID-19 patients was unknown.Methods: The study initially enrolled 102 patients with severe COVID-19 from a continuous sample. After screening out the ineligible cases, 54 patients were analyzed in this study. The primary outcome was in-hospital death defined as the case fatality rate. Research information and following-up data were obtained from their medical records.Results: The best cut-off value of NT-proBNP for predicting in-hospital death was 88.64 pg/mL with the sensitivity for 100% and the specificity for 66.67%. Patients with high NT-proBNP values (> 88.64 pg/mL) had a significantly increased risk of death during the days of following-up compared with those with low values (≤88.64 pg/mL). After adjustment for potential risk factors, NT-proBNP was independently correlated with in-hospital death.Conclusion: NT-proBNP might be an independent risk factor for in-hospital death in patients with severe COVID-19.Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials, NCT04292964. Registered 03 March 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study developed and tested preliminary measurement properties of a Chinese scale specifically designed to measure HRQOL in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHBQOL).Methods: We conducted 94 individual interviews with CHB patients to solicit items and five hepatitis expert interviews along with three rounds of cognitive interviews to identify problems with relevance and understanding of content. A cross-sectional validation study was then conducted to evaluate measurement properties (n = 578). Factor analysis was used to determine the latent structure of the scale. Reliability was evaluated through Cronbach's alpha coefficients and intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs). Measurement model adequacy, convergent, discriminant, and known-groups validity were also examined.Results: A scale of 30 items was drafted. After item reduction, the remaining 23 items were assigned to the CHBQOL Somatic symptoms, Emotional symptoms, Belief and Social stigma domains, which had acceptable goodness of fit (χ2/df = 3.13, GFI = 0.90, AGFI = 0.88, RMSEA = 0.06, SRMR = 0.05). All the CHBQOL domains had satisfactory reliability with Cronbach's α coefficients ranging from 0.73 to 0.91 and ICCs were higher than 0.70 except for Belief domain (ICC = 0.54). Convergent and discriminant validity were acceptable as supported by significant item-domain correlations (0.64-0.90). In general, the correlations between CHBQOL and the SF-36 dimensions met hypotheses. Significant differences were found by mean scores in the subgroups of demographic and clinical variables, supporting the known-groups validity.Conclusions: The CHBQOL instrument proved to be an appropriate tool for assessing HRQOL among Chinese CHB patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compared with non-limestone forests, limestone forests tend to show lower pteridophyte diversity, yet they are known to harbor a unique set of species due to their substrate conditions and naturally fragmented habitat areas. Pteridophyte assemblage composition, however, has not been quantitatively investigated in Xishuangbanna, southwestern China, known as one of the most species-rich areas of China. Using a fully standardized sampling protocol, we tested the following hypotheses: (1) pteridophyte species composition is different between limestone forests (LF) and non-limestone forests (NLF); and the differences are attributable to (2) lower species richness in LF; (3) greater spatial and temporal turnovers (beta diversity) in LF; and (4) higher proportion of pteridophyte species restricted to LF. We found significant differences in pteridophyte assemblage compositions between LF and NLF. Average species richness per transect (alpha diversity) was lower in LF than in NLF, but we found no difference in overall species richness (gamma diversity) between LF and NLF at the scale of this study, because species turnover among samples (beta diversity) was higher in LF than in NLF. A total of 23 species were restricted to LF and 32 species restricted to NLF; however, geographic distribution of LF species was limited to certain habitat patches within this habitat. Our results suggest that LF pteridophyte biodiversity cannot be protected by conserving a limited number of habitat patches, because loss of one LF habitat patch may result in local extinction of species or extinction of endemic species that are yet to be discovered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to the continuous rainfall, a bedding rockslide occurred at a construction site on the San-Li highway (Sandu County to Libo County) at 18:05 (UTC+8) on September 23, 2017, in Libo County, Guizhou Province, China. This bedding rockslide caused three deaths, six injuries, and an accumulation zone of approximately 1.8 × 105 m3 of medium weathered limestone that blocked the main line of the M ramp. To explore the triggering factors of this rockslide, the engineering geological condition, hydrogeological condition, slope excavation scheme, and statistics of rainfall data were investigated based on field investigations and geophysical drilling. The blasting failure of the upper unstable and dangerous rock masses after the bedding rockslide was analyzed. Three instability behaviors characteristics are distinguished: (1) the bedding characteristics of the rock formation and weak interlayer, (2) the steep slope (the largest dip angle being 46°), and (3) the appearance of the free face induced by the slope excavation. The results indicate that the above conditions are objective factors, and continuous rainfall triggers the bedding rockslide. The landslide follows the step-path failure mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel heteroglycan TLH-G was successfully isolated from Tricholoma lobayense cultivated in south China. TLH-G was composed of five monosaccharides, namely, mannose, rhamnose, glucuronic acid, glucose and galactose, and consisted of →1)-β-D-Glcp-(6→ and →1)-α-D-Galp-(3→ motifs. TLH-G had excellent scavenging activities towards 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) radicals. Structure-activity relationship analysis demonstrated that glycosidic bond types, monosaccharide composition, and branching degree were more important for the antioxidant activity of polysaccharides from Tricholoma lobayense than other structural factors. All the above results showed that the growth environment played a crucial role in the structure and antioxidant activity of polysaccharides from Tricholoma lobayense. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To estimate the mortality and describe the causes of death in a large multicenter cohort of hospitalized patients with SLE in China. This was a retrospective study of a nationwide SLE cohort (10 centers, 29,510 hospitalized patients) from 2005 to 2014 in China. Standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) were calculated for all death and were stratified by sex and age. Chi-square test was used to determine whether the major causes of death vary in age, sex, duration of SLE, disease activity, or medications. Comparison between dead patients and survival controls was used to identify the risk factors for mortality. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the risk factors for mortality. A total of 360 patients died during the study period, accounting for 1.22%. The overall SMR was 2.13 (95% CI 1.96, 2.30), with a particularly high SMR seen in subgroups characterized by younger age. Infection (65.8%) was the most common cause of death, followed by lupus nephritis (48.6%), hematological abnormality (18.1%), neuropsychiatric lupus/NPSLE (15.8%), and interstitial pneumonia (13.1%). Cardiovascular disease and malignancy contributed little to the causes of death. Infection, in particular severe pulmonary infection, emerged as the foremost risk factor for mortality, followed by lupus encephalopathy. However, lupus nephritis and hematological abnormalities occurred more frequently in survival patients. SLE patients at a younger age of diagnosis have a poorer prognosis. Infection dominated the causes of death in recent China. Ethnicity and medications might account for the differences in causes of death compared with western populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To examine the association of metabolic syndrome (MetS) with carotid artery stenosis (CAS), especially in menopausal women in China.Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study of menopause women aged ≥40 years were enrolled from the Jidong community of Tangshan City between 2013 and 2014 to examine the association between MetS and CAS. Logistic regression analyses were performed to analyze the association between MetS and the presence of CAS.Results: A total of 762 menopause women with mean age 59.3±5.6 years were enrolled in our analysis. Of all the people, 111 participants in CAS group (n=159) and 297 participants in no CAS group (n=603) were diagnosed with MetS meantime. Menopausal women with MetS had increased risk of CAS (OR, 2.383; 95% CI, 1.639-3.464), and the association was further verified by adjusting for confounding factors (OR, 1.949; 95% CI, 1.269-2.994). In addition, age, physical activity (never or moderate), body mass index (>24 kg/m2), and family income (<3,000 RMB) were independent important factors to CAS development in those with MetS.Conclusion: MetS is associated with CAS especially in women after menopause. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: X-chromosomal short tandem repeat (X-STR) loci are playing an increasingly important role in some complex kinship cases in recent years. To investigate the forensic efficiency of X-STRs of Mongolian minority group from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, and further depict the genetic relationship among Xinjiang Mongolians and other populations, 267 blood samples from unrelated healthy Xinjiang Mongolians were amplified by an AGCU X-19 STR kit. Results: No deviations for all 19 X-STR loci were observed from the Hardy- Weinberg equilibrium after Bonferroni correction (p > 0.0026) in female samples. The most frequent allele was allele 10 at locus DXS10164 with the frequency 0.5663. The polymorphism information content values of the 19 X-STR loci were more than 0.5 with the highest polymorphism at the locus DXS10135. The cumulative power of discrimination were 0.99999999999999999999988761005481 in females and 0.999999999999903 in males, respectively; and the cumulative mean exclusion chances were 0.9999999969738068321121 in duos and 0.999999999998952 in trios, respectively. The seven linkage groups were extremely informative, with all the haplotype diversities greater than 0.9487. No linkage disequilibrium was observed for a significance level of 0.00029 (p = 0.05/171) after Bonferroni correction. The DA distances, multidimensional scaling plot and phylogenetic tree based on the 11 overlapping X-STR loci all presented that the Xinjiang Mongolian population was genetically different from other Asian populations, including the Mongolian population from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China. Conclusion: This study indicated that the 19 X-STR multiplex PCR system was of high utility value for both forensic practices and population genetic research in Xinjiang Mongolian group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the huge reserves and great commercial potential of No. A group coal seam, the study on its thermal properties and combustion kinetics have attracted much attention. Via thermogravimetric (TG) analysis, the combustion characteristics and kinetics of No. A 3 coal were studied with three types of coal samples, with the grain diameter less than 200 meshes, 200~100 meshes, 100~60meshes, seperately. Under three characteristic temperatures such as T t , T p and T b , the whole combustion process could be roughly divided into 4 stages. Combined with the T max and T i , these five characteristic temperatures increase with elevating heating rates. The Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose (KAS) method and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa (FWO) method as reliable methods were used to verify the results of activation energy ( E a ) determined by of model-fitting methods. As complementary, the Coats-Redfern method was used to calculate the pre-exponential factor ( A ) and the correlation coefficient ( R 2 ). According to the evaluation criteria of E a and R 2 , D1 mechanism was the most probable model to depict the combustion kinetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) in pregnant women may be a threat for both mothers and fetuses. This study was performed to explore the impact of maternal HBV carrier status on pregnancy outcomes.Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study at the Obstetrics & Gynecology Hospital of Nantong University between January 1, 2012 and September 30, 2015. A consecutive sample of 21,004 pregnant women, 513 asymptomatic HBV carriers and 20,491 non-HBV controls, was included in this study. The main outcomes of interest were selected pregnancy outcomes including miscarriage, stillbirth, preterm birth (PTB), gestational diabetes (GDM), intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP), preterm premature rupture of the membrane (PPROM), low birth weight (LBW), small for gestational age (SGA) and Apgar scores. The incidence of adverse pregnancy outcomes between asymptomatic HBV carriers and non-HBV controls were compared using the chi-square test and logistic regression. P values were two sided, and P <0.05 was considered to indicate statistical significance.Results: The incidences of stillbirth, PTB, GDM, ICP, PPROM, LBW, and SGA were similar between the HBV carrier and non-HBV groups. The proportion of miscarriage was significantly higher among the HBV carriers than the controls (9.36% vs 5.70%; P <0.001). After using multivariate modelling to adjust for possible socio-demographical variables and obstetric complications, women with HBV carrier status were still more likely to have miscarriage (adjusted OR 1.71, 95% CI 1.23-2.38). In addition, the incidences of other maternal and neonatal outcomes were similar between the two groups.Conclusion: Maternal HBV carrier status may be an independent risk factor for miscarriage and careful surveillance is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To determine the origin and evolution of goose parvovirus (GPV) and Muscovy duck parvovirus (MDPV) in the Mainland of China, phylogenetic and recombination analyses in the present study were performed on 32 complete VP1 gene sequences from China and other countries. Based on the phylogenetic analysis of the VP1 gene, GPV strains studied here from Mainland China (PRC) could be divided into three genotypes, namely PRC-I, PRC-II and PRC-III. Genotype PRC-I is indigenous to Mainland China. Only one GPV strain from Northeast China was of Genotype PRC-II and was thought to be imported from Europe. Genotype PRC-III, which was the most isolated genotype during 1999–2012, is related to GPVs in Taiwan and has been the predominant pathogen responsible for recent Derzy's disease outbreaks in Mainland China. Current vaccine strains used in Mainland China belong to Genotype PRC-I that is evolutionary distant from Genotypes PRC-II and PRC-III. In comparison, MDPV strains herein from Mainland China are clustered in a single group which is closely related to Taiwanese MDPV strains, and the full-length sequences of the VP1 gene of China MDPVs are phylogenetic closely related to the VP1 sequence of a Hungarian MDPV strain. Moreover, We also found that homologous recombination within VP1 gene plays a role in generating genetic diversity in GPV evolution. The GPV GDFSh from Guangdong Province appears to be the evolutionary product of a recombination event between parental GPV strains GD and B, while the major parent B proved to be a reference strain for virulent European GPVs. Our findings provide valuable information on waterfowl parvoviral evolution in Mainland China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conclusion: The hearing conditions of the centenarians were quite poor as regards hearing thresholds and speech detection ability. Objective: To investigate hearing conditions of centenarians. Methods: A total of 54 centenarians in Rizhao and Linyi Districts in Shandong Province were investigated to assess hearing conditions of centenerians comprehensively by questionnaire investigation, pure-tone audiometry, acoustic immitance, intelligence evaluation, and speech detection scores. Also, 135 individuals were recruited as controls and divided into four groups according to their age: 45-59 years, 60-69 years, 70-79 years, and 80-89 years. Results: The hearing thresholds of the centenarians were dramatically higher than those of the control group ( p < 0.05) and all centenarians suffered moderate to profound hearing loss according to the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. Few centenarians had normal level of speech detection scores. All centenarians showed descending hearing curve, and the hearing threshold of the male centenarians at 8000 Hz was higher than that of the females ( p = 0.047). There was a significant air-bone conduction gap in the centenarians ( p < 0.05). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effect of replacement of graded dietary fish meal ( FM) protein (0, 50%, 60%, 70% and 80%) with silkworm pupae meal ( SP) in juvenile Jian carp. Triplicate groups comprising 18 fish (15.96 ± 0.66 g) were fed one of five isonitrogenous and isocaloric diets (designated SP0, SP50, SP60, SP70 or SP80) for 8 weeks. The final body weight and specific growth rate of fish in the SP60, SP70 and SP80 groups were significantly lower than those for fish in the SP0 group ( P < 0.05). The muscle protein content in the SP50 group was significantly higher than in the SP80 group ( P < 0.05). With increasing FM replacement levels, the hepatic superoxide dismutase ( SOD) activity decreased and the malondialdehyde ( MDA) content increased among the groups, with the significant difference appeared in SP80 group. The gene expression level of heat shock protein 70 in the SP70 group was significantly higher than in the SP0 group ( P < 0.05), while that in the SP80 group was significantly less than in the SP70 group ( P < 0.05). Significantly decreased intestinal protease activity, increased serum ALT and AST activities, irregular-shaped hepatocytes and intestinal microvilli were found in the SP80 group. The study demonstrates that it is practical to replace 50% of the Jian carp dietary FM protein with SP, higher SP levels are not recommended and that oxidation status of the SP should be carefully assessed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moso bamboos ( Phyllostachys edulis) are important forestry plants in southern China, with substantial roles to play in regional economic and ecological systems. Mixing broad-leaved forests and moso bamboos is a common management practice in China, and it is fundamental to elucidate the interactions between broad-leaved trees and moso bamboos for ensuring the sustainable provision of ecosystem services. We examine how the proportion of broad-leaved forest in a mixed managed zone, topology, and soil profile affects the effective productivity of moso bamboos (i.e., those with significant economic value), using linear regression and generalized additive models. Bamboo's diameter at breast height follows a Weibull distribution. The importance of these variables to bamboo productivity is, respectively, slope (25.9%), the proportion of broad-leaved forest (24.8%), elevation (23.3%), gravel content by volume (16.6%), slope location (8.3%), and soil layer thickness (1.2%). Highest productivity is found on the 25° slope, with a 600-m elevation, and 30% broad-leaved forest. As such, broad-leaved forest in the upper slope can have a strong influence on the effective productivity of moso bamboo, ranking only after slope and before elevation. These factors can be considered in future management practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four new Lycopodium alkaloids (1–4), together with 15 known ones, were isolated from club moss Phlegmariurus squarrosus. Notably, 8α-hydroxylycojapodine A (1) was the first derivative of lycojapodine A (5) which was a novel C16N-type Lycopodium alkaloid with an unprecedented 6/6/6/7 tetracyclic ring system. Their structures were elucidated based on the spectroscopic data, including 1D and 2D NMR techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Influenza has been associated with heavy burden of mortality and morbidity in subtropical regions. However, timely forecast of influenza epidemic in these regions has been hindered by unclear seasonality of influenza viruses. In this study, we developed a forecasting model by integrating multiple sentinel surveillance data to predict influenza epidemics in a subtropical city Shenzhen, China. Methods: Dynamic linear models with the predictors of single or multiple surveillance data for influenza-like illness (ILI) were adopted to forecast influenza epidemics from 2006 to 2012 in Shenzhen. Temporal coherence of these surveillance data with laboratory-confirmed influenza cases was evaluated by wavelet analysis and only the coherent data streams were entered into the model. Timeliness, sensitivity and specificity of these models were also evaluated to compare their performance. Results: Both influenza virology data and ILI consultation rates in Shenzhen demonstrated a significant annual seasonal cycle (p<0.05) during the entire study period, with occasional deviations observed in some data streams. The forecasting models that combined multi-stream ILI surveillance data generally outperformed the models with single-stream ILI data, by providing more timely, sensitive and specific alerts. Conclusions: Forecasting models that combine multiple sentinel surveillance data can be considered to generate timely alerts for influenza epidemics in subtropical regions like Shenzhen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Quantifying regional evapotranspiration (ET) and environmental constraints are particularly important for understanding water and carbon cycles of terrestrial ecosystems. However, a large uncertainty in the regional estimation of ET still remains for the terrestrial ecosystems in China. This study used ET measurements of 34 eddy covariance sites within China and adjacent regions to examine the performance of the revised Remote Sensing-Penman Monteith (RS-PM) model over various ecosystem types including forests, grasslands, wetlands and croplands. No significant systematic error was found in the revised RS-PM model predictions, which explained 61% of the ET variations at all of the validation sites. Regional patterns of ET at a spatial resolution of 10 × 10 km were quantified using a meteorology dataset from 753 meteorological stations, Modern Era Retrospective-analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) reanalysis products and satellite data such as the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) leaf area index. ET decreased from the southeast of China toward the northwest. Relatively high ET values were found in the southern China such as Yunnan, Hainan, Fujian and Guangdong Provinces, whereas low ET values occurred in northwestern China such as in the Xinjiang autonomous region. On average, the annual ET presented an increasing trend during the 1982-2009, with relatively low ET in 1985, 1993, 1997, 2000 and 2009. We found that the mean annual ET was higher than world average, ranging spatially between 484 and 521 mm yr−1, with a mean value of 500 mm yr−1, which accounted for approximately 5·6-8·3% of the world's total land-surface ET. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence of regionalism was an important international political phenomenon after World War II. In the two-pole pattern under the cold war background, the European countries sought for an integration of regional economy and politics in order to eliminate the internal wars and realize the European Renaissance. Consequently, the European integration has become a paradigm of regionalism. Apart from Europe, there are different forms of regionalism in other areas and East Asian regionalism, another mode of regionalism, originated from the regional cooperation of Southeast Asia, and has developed rapidly since the end of the cold war. The historical experience of European regionalism and East Asian regionalism indicates that the built-in incentive for the emergence and evolution of regionalism is the interests beyond national boundaries, and the current dilemmas of regionalism are related to such underlying reasons as nationalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this study, an efficient strategy based on bioassay-guided fractionation, high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-Q/TOF-MS) and high-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) was established to screen and purify bioactive compounds from Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs). This screening system was efficient and successfully applied to reveal anti-prostate cancer candidates from Puerariae thomsonii Flos. As a result, an active fraction with strong in vitro anti-prostate cancer activity was obtained, and the main compounds in the fraction were purified by HSCCC, giving 82mg of tectoridin, 36mg of tectorigenin-7-O-[β-d-xylopyranosyl-(1→6)-β-d-glucopyranoside and 64mg of tectorigenin. Among them, tectorigenin, possessing the highest anti-prostate cancer activity with IC50 value of 0.08μM, has priority to be lead compound. The results of this work demonstrated that the developed method was efficient and could be employed for the rapid screening, identification and purification of active components from CHMs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In our precious study, the correlation between cold and hot patterns in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and gene expression profiles in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has been explored. Based on TCM theory, deficiency pattern is another key pattern diagnosis among RA patients, which leads to a specific treatment principle in clinical management. Therefore, a further analysis was performed aiming at exploring the characteristic gene expression profile of deficiency pattern and its correlation with cold and hot patterns in RA patients by bioinformatics analysis approach based on gene expression profiles data detected with microarray technology. The TCM deficiency pattern-related genes network comprises 7 significantly, highly connected regions which are mainly involved in protein transcription processes, protein ubiquitination, toll-like receptor activated NF-kB regulated gene transcription and apoptosis, RNA clipping, NF-kB signal, nucleotide metabolism-related apoptosis, and immune response processes. Toll-like receptor activated NF-kB regulated gene transcription and apoptosis pathways are potential specific pathways related to TCM deficiency patterns in RA patients; TCM deficiency pattern is probably related to immune response. Network analysis can be used as a powerful tool for detecting the characteristic mechanism related to specific TCM pattern and the correlations between different patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cerebral ischemia is the most common cerebrovascular disease worldwide. Recent studies have demonstrated that curcumin had beneficial effect to attenuate cerebral ischemic injury. However, it is unclear how curcumin protects against cerebral ischemic injury. In the present study, using rat middle cerebral artery occlusion model, we found that curcumin was a potent PPARy agonist in that it upregulated PPARγ expression and PPARγ-PPRE binding activity. Administration of curcumin markedly decreased the infarct volume, improved neurological deficits, and reduced neuronal damage of rats. In addition, curcumin suppressed neuroinflammatory response by decreasing inflammatory mediators, such as IL-1β, TNF-α, PGE2, NO, COX-2, and iNOS induced by cerebral ischemia of rats. Furthermore, curcumin suppressed IkB degradation that was caused by cerebral ischemia. The present data also showed that PPARγ interacted with NF-κB-p65 and thus inhibited NF-κB activation. All the above protective effects of curcumin on cerebral ischemic injury were markedly attenuated by GW9662, an inhibitor of PPARγ. Our results as described above suggested that PPARγ induced by curcumin may play a critical role in protecting against brain injury through suppression of inflammatory response. It also highlights the potential of curcumin as a therapeutic agent against cerebral ischemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the longitudinal effects of electroacupuncture (EA) on Zusanli (ST36) and Ashi acupoints in promoting skeletal muscle regeneration and inhibiting excessive fibrosis after contusion in rabbits. Sixty rabbits were randomly divided into four groups: normal, contusion, EA, and recombinant human insulin-like growth factor-I (rhIGF-I). An acute skeletal muscle contusion was produced on the right gastrocnemius (GM) by an instrument-based drop-mass technique. EA was performed for 15 minutes every two days with 0.4 mA (2 Hz), and GM injections were executed with rhIGF-I (0.25 mL once a week). Rabbits treated with EA had a higher T-SOD and T-AOC serum activities and lower MDA serum level, the blood perfusion of which was also significantly higher. In the EA group, the diameter of the myofibril was uniform and the arrangement was regular, contrary to the contusion group. The number and diameter of regenerative myofibers and MHC expression were increased in the EA group. EA treatment significantly decreased fibrosis formation and reduced both GDF-8 and p-Smad2/3 expressions in injured muscle. Our data indicate that EA may promote myofiber regeneration and reduce excessive fibrosis by improving blood flow and antioxidant capacities. Additionally, EA may regulate signaling factor expression after contusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Road-deposited sediment (RDS) is an important environmental medium for impacting the characteristics of pollutants in stormwater runoff; it is of critical importance to investigate the water quality of urban environments. The paper develops a rainfall simulator as an important research tool to ensure homogeneity and reduce the large number of variables that are usually inherent to urban water quality research. The rainfall simulator was used to experiment runoff samples from typical residential and traffic areas in the Zhenjiang. The data show that land use is one of the major factors contributing to the difference in the pollutants concentration in the RDS. The maximum mean EMC for TN, TDN, TP, and TDP at residential area was 5.52, 3.07, 1.65, and 0.36 mg/L, respectively. The intense traffic area displayed the highest metal concentrations. Concentrations of runoff pollutants varied greatly with land use and storm characteristics. The correlation of pollutant concentrations with runoff times was another predominant phenomenon. Peaks in pollutants concentration occurred at 1 and 10 min during the whole storm event. A concentration peak that correlates with a peak in runoff flowrate correlates with rainfall intensity. The pollutant loadings (kilograms per hectare) in the Zhenjiang were 11.39 and 55.28 for COD, 8.42 and 57.48 for SS, 0.11 and 0.88 for TN, 0.02 and 0.14 for TP, 0.02 and 0.09 for Zn, and 0.01 and 0.04 for Pb. The higher rainfall contribute to the higher pollutant loading at the residential and intense traffic areas, as a result of the pollutant loadings direct dependence on rainfall intensity. The results confirmed that the rainfall simulator is a reliable tool for urban water quality research and can be used to simulate pollutant wash-off. These findings provide invaluable information for the development of appropriate management strategies to decrease nonpoint source contamination loading to the water environment in urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on field and laboratory tests, physical and mechanical properties of 320 surface sediments and 12 gravity cores collected from the Zhejiang-Fujian coastal area were analyzed. The results showed that the fine-grained soil in this area was mainly composed of mud and muddy clay, with a small amount of clayey silt, silty clay and clay. They were generally characterized by high water content, high void ratio, high compressibility, high plasticity, and low shear strength. Furthermore, the factors that caused the poor physical and mechanical properties of the fine-grained soil have been analyzed for microscopic aspects (grain size distribution, mineral component, chemical composition, microstructure and macroscopic aspects (sediment source and hydrodynamic environment). The analytical results revealed that those microscopic and macroscopic factors had important relationships with the physical and mechanical properties of soil. If we can better understand those affecting factors in the forming process of the sediments, it would be beneficial for us in the study of their physical and mechanical properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we present an improved watershed segmentation algorithm for settlement mapping from medium resolution satellite data over plain areas in China. The algorithm can increase the computational efficiency of the fastest reported watershed segmentation algorithm by 30-40%. We apply this method to a selected study area in southern Hebei Province, China. We acquired a Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM + ) image over this area in May 2000, two Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) images in August 2004 and April 2005, and two Beijing-1 satellite images in May 2006 and May 2007. The three types of images have three similar spectral bands (green, red and near-infrared) with similar spatial resolution (30-32 m). Only the red and near-infrared bands were used in image segmentation for settlement area extraction. The extracted settlement results are compared with manual interpretation results by two people. We assumed the human interpretation results are of higher accuracy than the segmentation results. Our results indicated that our settlement area extraction method is effective. With high quality images, the overall accuracies are nearly 94%, the kappa coefficient can be greater than 0.85. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the existence and direction of Granger causality between economic growth, energy consumption, and carbon emissions in China, applying a multivariate model of economic growth, energy use, carbon emissions, capital and urban population. Empirical results for China over the period 1960–2007 suggest a unidirectional Granger causality running from GDP to energy consumption, and a unidirectional Granger causality running from energy consumption to carbon emissions in the long run. Evidence shows that neither carbon emissions nor energy consumption leads economic growth. Therefore, the government of China can purse conservative energy policy and carbon emissions reduction policy in the long run without impeding economic growth. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Our study surveyed age-related bone mineral density (BMD), bone loss rate, and prevalence of osteoporosis in women at multiple research centers in China. Survey results were used to establish a BMD reference database for the diagnosis of osteoporosis in Chinese women nationwide. We used dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry bone densitometers to measure BMD at posteroanterior (PA) lumbar spine (L1–L4; n=8142) and proximal femur (n=7290) in female subjects of age 20–89yr from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Nanjing, and Jiaxing. A cubic regression-fitting model was used to describe the change of BMD with age at various skeletal sites. Peak BMD occurred between 30 and 34yr of age for femur neck and total femur, and between 40 and 44yr for spine and trochanter measurement sites. Young adult (YA) BMD values (mean and standard deviation [SD], calculated as the average BMD in the age range of 20–39, were 1.116±0.12, 0.927±0.12, 0.756±0.11, and 0.963±0.13g/cm2 at PA spine, femoral neck, trochanter, and total femur, respectively. The BMD of 85-yr-old women reflected a loss of 32% at the spine and 30–35% at femur measurement sites. The prevalence of osteoporosis, defined as a BMD of ≤−2.5 SDs from YA values established in this study, in female subjects of age 50yr or older, was 28% for the spine, 15% for any femur site, and 31% for any spine or femur site. This study provides important information for formulating osteoporosis prevention and treatment strategies in Chinese women, and it establishes a reliable BMD reference database for the diagnosis of osteoporosis of Chinese women nationwide. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] • Cord blood lead levels in China are higher than in most developed countries. • Passive smoking during pregnancy was a major source of cord blood lead exposure. • Not only does DHA benefit fetal brain development, but it also prevents an increase of lead levels in cord blood. • Whole grains and beverage consumption may act as a protective factor against having cord blood lead levels ≥20 μg/L. Lead exposure all over the world has gradually declined. As fetuses are more prone to lead exposure, even to low levels of lead exposure, it is important to monitor blood lead levels (BLLs) in pregnancy. We obtained data on BLLs in the third trimester of pregnancy from medical records and measured cord BLLs obtained from 121 mother-child pairs in Shenyang, China from September 2019 to February 2020. We also estimated relationships between socio-demographic, lifestyle and dietary factors during pregnancy as well as cord BLLs to identify the source of lead exposure during pregnancy. BLLs was estimated by atomic absorption spectrometry through graphite furnace ionization techniques. The data which obtained by questionnaires during pregnancy included maternal sociodemographic, lifestyle, dietary factors. We have established three multivariate logistic regression models in which the dichotomous BLLs was used as the dependent variable (cord BLLs ≥20 μg/L vs <20 μg/L). The median and geometric mean of cord BLLs were 22.90 μg/L, 21.88 μg/L and BLLs in the third trimester of pregnancy were 25.29 μg/L, 24.66 μg/L, respectively. BLLs showed significant correlations between cord and the third trimester of pregnancy (r = 0.277, P = 0.012). Pregnant women who had not been exposed to passive smoking had lower OR (95 %) [0.43(0.19–0.94)] for cord BLLs ≥20 μg/L than pregnant women who had. Intake of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) during third trimester of pregnancy presented an OR (95 %) [0.23(0.08–0.61)] for cord BLLs ≥20 μg/L. Consuming more whole grains (>3 times/week) and beverage (≥1 times/week) showed an OR (95%CI) for cord BLLs ≥20 μg/L of 0.09(0.02–0.53) and 0.19(0.06–0.69), respectively. This study showed the cord BLLs of Chinese are still higher than most developed countries. Passive smoking is a risk factor for cord BLLs ≥20 μg/L and supplement of DHA, whole grains and beverage consumption during pregnancy may act as a beneficial factor against having cord BLLs ≥20 μg/L. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: China had taken strict measures for pandemic 2009 H1N1 infection with enhanced surveillance and hospital isolation since April 2009. In Shenzhen, over 1200 confirmed cases of H1N1 infection were identified. Three young patients died of severe pneumonia. Among them, two boys developed neurological complications. Cytokine storm seemed an important cause. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objective: To address the value of visual inspection where HPV‐based screening is not yet available, we evaluated the real‐world effectiveness of visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) and with Lugol's iodine (VILI) as a primary screening method for cervical cancer in rural China. Methods: A total of 206 133 women aged 30–59 years received two rounds of VIA/VILI screening for cervical cancer in 2006–2010. Women with positive screening results underwent colposcopy and direct biopsy, and were treated if cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or worse (CIN2+) was diagnosed. Clinical effectiveness of VIA/VILI was evaluated by process and outcome measures. Results: The VIA/VILI positivity rate, biopsy rate and detection rate of CIN2+ in the second round were significantly lower than in the first round. The 2‐year cumulative detection rate of CIN2+ varied from 0.53% to 0.90% among the four cohorts initiated in 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009. The first round of screening detected 60%–83% of CIN2, 70%–86% of CIN3, and 88%–100% of cervical cancer. Over 92% of CIN2+ were found at the early stage. Conclusion: Multiple rounds of visual inspection with continuous training and quality assurance could act as a temporary substitutional screening method for cervical cancer in resource‐restricted settings. Synopsis: Multiple rounds of visual inspection with quality assurance could act as a temporary substitutional method for cervical screening, where HPV DNA testing is not operational. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accurate estimation of reference evapotranspiration (ETo) is a fundamental requirement for precision irrigation and regional water resource planning. In this regard, the application of the standard model, FAO-56 Penman–Monteith, is limited because of insufficient meteorological data. This study aims to improve the accuracy of ETo calculations in regions with scarce meteorological data. A hybrid model integrating two data preprocessing methods (variational mode decomposition (VMD) and Box–Cox transformation (BC)) into a support vector machine (SVM) model (VMD–BC–SVM) is proposed. The model estimates the daily ETo based on the meteorological data (1980–2019) of 10 stations in the Wei River Basin of China. The VMD method was employed to extract multiple intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) and eliminate non-stationarity. This is achieved by decomposing meteorological factors, which are further transformed by BC to alleviate skewness characteristics. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression (LASSO) identifies the key driving modes from the transformed IMFs, which are used as the input of the SVM model. The VMD–BC–SVM estimation model framework based on decomposition–transformation–identification–estimation is proposed. The performance of each of the hybrid VMD–BC–SVM models was further compared with those of the standalone extreme learning machine (ELM) model and two empirical models (Hargreaves–Samani and Priestley–Taylor models). The results revealed that the hybrid models outperformed the single models. The VMD–BC–SVM model achieved higher accuracy compared with the other models. Specifically, the coefficient of correlation (R) and Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient (NSE) were both greater than 0.96. Furthermore, the mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) and root mean square error (RMSE) were less than 8.41% and 0.38 mm/d, respectively. In terms of the amount of information provided, the VMD–BC–SVM model is superior to empirical models in identifying high-dimensional and nonlinear information. Moreover, the estimation performance is more stable, and the level of uncertainty is lower. This study provides a novel approach for predicting ETo in regions with limited meteorological data. • A novel VMD-BC-SVM approach was proposed to estimate ETo. • VMD and Box-Cox were used to remove the non-stationarity and skewness of inputs. • LASSO regression was used to identify the key driving modes as optimal input. • VMD-BC-SVM model outperforms comparison models for estimation ETo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate estimation of PM 2.5 concentrations is critical to understanding and counteracting air pollution. In the past decade, various machine learning models, especially deep learning models, have been widely used in PM 2.5 remote sensing estimation and have achieved remarkable performance. However, a typical pitfall of deep learning models is the problem of high-value underestimation, i.e., the models often underestimate high-level PM 2.5 concentrations. Alleviating the problem of high-value underestimation and improving the estimation accuracy of high PM 2.5 concentrations are crucial. This study developed a new deep learning model that combines data augmentation and a particle size constraint to improve the high-level PM 2.5 estimation. Based on the residual neural network (ResNet), this study used random oversampling to construct a data-augmented deep residual learning model (AugResNet). In addition, a deep residual neural network model with a particle size constraint was established and called ConResNet. Then, the data augmentation and particle size constraint were incorporated into the deep residual neural network model (denoted as Aug_ConResNet). We evaluated the above four models across China with the 10-fold site-based cross-validation approach. In terms of the estimation accuracy for high PM 2.5 concentrations (>75 μg/m3), AugResNet (R2 = 0.813, RMSE = 19.152 μg/m3), ConResNet (R2 = 0.796, RMSE = 20.841 μg/m3) and Aug_ConResNet (R2 = 0.820, RMSE = 18.810 μg/m3) outperformed ResNet (R2 = 0.780, RMSE = 21.628 μg/m3). Results showed that the data augmentation and particle size constraint alleviated the problem of high-value underestimation and improved the estimation accuracy for high PM 2.5 concentrations. The accurate estimation of high PM 2.5 concentrations has important application potential for remote sensing monitoring of polluted weather. • A deep learning model was developed to alleviate high-value PM 2.5 underestimation. • The particle size constraint was incorporated into deep learning for the first time. • The data augmentation was introduced to improve high-value PM 2.5 estimation. • Cross-validation indicated improved results of the proposed model across China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China and Germany have a long history of collaborating in the Earth sciences. Collaboration is working through the development of research programs based on the strong scientific foundation of the national climate capacity of Germany and the climate science research network of China. China and Germany can contribute to the GFCS by developing and incorporating science-based climate information and prediction into planning, policy and practice at regional and national scales. [Extracted from the article]

A novel nor-lupane triterpenoid, 3-oxo-29 α -hydroxy-17 β ,20-epoxy-28-norlupane ( 1 ), and two new guaiane sesquiterpenoids, schvenols A–B ( 2 – 3 ), has been isolated from leaves of Schefflera venulosa . Structures of the new compounds were elucidated on the basis of their spectroscopic methods, including 1D and 2D NMR techniques. And the structure of 1 was further confirmed by the X-ray diffraction analysis. None of the compounds showed inhibitory effects on NO release in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophage cell line. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Water-level changes from 56 of the 100 largest lakes in China were derived from ICESat/GLAS data during the period of 2003 to 2009. An automated method for determining the trend of water-level change had been proposed in this study. Lake water footprints were first identified from the ICESat/GLAS GLA14 data product. Water level change was then determined from the footprints over lake water in each campaign. Trend of water-level changes was fitted with a line for each lake. Trends of water level changes from ICESat/GLAS matched well with gauge measurements in both Qinghai Lake and Nam Co. Our results showed that the trend of water-level change varied from −0.51m/a to 0.62m/a. Eighteen lakes showed a decreasing trend of water-level change and 38 lakes showed an increasing trend. Most lakes in Qinghai–Tibet Plateau showed an increasing trend which was probably caused by snow or glacier melts under climate warming. However, most lakes in the Yarlung Zangbu River basin showed a decreasing trend presumably resulting from intensified evaporation caused by climate warming and intensified western wind in the winter. Desertification and aggravated soil erosion in this region contributed to water level decrease. Lakes in northern Inner-Mongolia and Xinjiang and Northeast Plain of China showed decreasing trends with precipitation reduction and warming as the most probable reasons. Water consumption for agricultural use also contributed to water-level decrease in lakes of those regions. Lakes in East China Plain fluctuated presumably because most lakes were greatly affected by inflows of Yangtze River and human activities. Lakes in Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau also fluctuated. There were no obvious changes in climate warming or precipitation in this region. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Career exploration, a critical antecedent to college students' career choices and employment, offers essential guidance for their career development. However, existing research has not explored how changes in family economic stress impact career exploration. Drawing on social cognitive career theory, this study aims to deepen our understanding of the complex interplay between family economic stress and career exploration among vocational school students. We tested our hypotheses using three-time lagged data collected from 600 vocational school students studying in mainland China. As expected, family economic stress positively predicts career exploration via love of money. Additionally, both students' effective part-time behavior and teacher support were found to positively moderate the indirect relationship between family economic stress and career exploration through love of money. We attempt to highlight the broader implications of understanding the nuanced ways in which economic background shapes career exploration. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Cheng et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)