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Over‐harvesting, habitat loss and fragmentation, and biological invasions have led to a sharp decline in wild medicinal plants population in China, where they are an essential component of traditional medicine and used widely. The current national list of protected medicinal materials, the State Key‐protected Wild Medicinal Species List (SKPWMSL), which has not been revised for 30 years, is in urgent need of an update. This study proposes a new scoring system with seven indicators that set the conservation priorities of threatened medicinal plants. The advantages of our approach include: (i) quantitative methods with high repeatability and comparability; and (ii) consideration of the evolutionary history of medicinal species. After assessing 911 threatened medicinal angiosperms in China, we identified 112 species as key medicinal plants for conservation priority (KMPCP). We suggest promoting the SKPWMSL with KMPCP as a supplement and update. Meanwhile, our scoring system will improve the future setting of conservation priority and can be extended to other countries or regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's current agricultural policy includes a wide range of agricultural subsidies, but the overall effect and levels of protection are low. China's continued use of agricultural subsidies to ensure national food security is important in the context of global poverty alleviation. We examine the effect of agricultural insurance financial subsidy policies on food security using a difference-in-difference model with data from 285 Chinese cities from 1978 to 2019. These agricultural insurance subsidies have a significant positive effect on food security, with the most noticeable improvements in the northeast region. Reform and redesign of the subsidy system for greater flexibility and coverage are needed to safeguard China's food security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's urbanization process has entered a period of rapid development, and cities have become key to driving regional economic development. This paper uses data from 286 cities in China in the period 2005–2018 to construct an urban economic growth quality index system and examine the influence of spatial factors on the convergence trend of China's urban economic growth quality. It is found that there is a β absolute convergence trend of economic growth quality in Chinese cities across the whole country. After controlling for the initial conditions of individual economies, spatial factors strengthen the spatial convergence trend of urban economic growth quality and significantly increase the corresponding convergence rate. Among the areas studied, the western region has the fastest convergence rate, followed by the central and eastern regions, and the convergence rates of both the central and western regions are higher than the national average. Agglomeration economies and fiscal policy tools are important for the promotion of the urban economic growth quality. The agglomeration of productive service industries significantly improves the spatial convergence rate of urban economic growth quality. This effect is mainly due to the spatial spillover of industrial agglomeration. The expansion of government fiscal expenditure also contributes to the spatial convergence trend of urban economic growth quality. Local economic growth quality is also affected by government fiscal expenditure in neighboring cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most of the public-private partnership (PPP) projects have entered the operational period in China. Due to information asymmetry, opportunistic behavior exists in the operation period of PPP projects. The opportunistic behavior of the participating subjects is an obstacle to the success of PPP projects and one of the root causes of low project performance. To investigate the evolutionary law of this behavior, the payment matrix of the strategic interaction between the investors and the government is constructed based on evolutionary game theory. Using MATLAB to simulate the evolutionary state and through the analysis of the evolutionary behavior of the interaction process, the influence of individual strategy choice on group behavior is revealed. The results show that the path evolution system of opportunistic behavior during the operation period of PPP projects can converge in two states, "good" and "bad," and the determining factor is the relative returns of investors under various strategies. Reasonable incentives and penalties and reduced regulatory costs can effectively discourage opportunistic behavior. By regulating the parameters, the path evolution of opportunistic behavior can be optimized, and the group behavior can be induced to a good state. The research results can provide a reference for reducing the opportunistic behavior of participating subjects and improving the success rate of the PPP projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human brain bank is the foundation for neurology and neuroscience, which provides research materials for medical scientists to explore what happen in human brains. Through voluntary postmortem brain tissue donation, brain bank collects, classifies, stores and distributes brain tissue samples for researchers with appropriate research proposals, so as to facilitate researchers to conduct human brain research. History showed that the act of brain only autopsy distinguished neurology as a distinct discipline. The emerges of brain banking accompanied with the advances of neurology and neuroscience. It facilitates the development of neurology from neuropathological examination feedback about the clinical presentations of the brain donor, plays an important role in the definition of novel neurological diseases, and also makes an extraordinary contribution to the disease mechanisms and novel therapeutic discoveries. This manuscript elaborated the history, current situation, and the impacts of human brain banking on current neurology. Furthermore, we discussed about the opportunities and challenges of brain banking in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKP) has been increasingly reported over the past three decades and causes severe infections. To increase our understanding of hvKP at the genome level, genome sequencing and comparative genome analysis were performed on 6 hvKPs. The whole genome DNA from 6 hvKPs with different capsular serotypes isolated in China was extracted. The genome sequencing and assembly results showed the genome size of the six hvKPs and GC content. Comparative analyses of the genomes revealed the gene homology and genome rearrangement in the 6 hvKPs compared with Klebsiella pneumonia NTUH-K2044. The phylogenetic tree based on full-genome SNPs of the 7 hvKPs showed that NTUH-K2044 formed a single clade, showing distant evolutionary distances with the other six strains, and the non-K1 hvKP strains had a relatively closer phylogenetic relationship. BLAST comparison analysis found that some selected virulence genes had different degrees of deletion in the non-K1 hvKPs. SNP-based virulence gene mutation analysis showed that some virulence genes had different degrees of SNP mutations. The whole-genome sequencing and comparative genome analysis of six hvKP strains with NTUH-K2044 provide us with a basic understanding of the genome composition, genetic polymorphism, evolution and virulence genes of hvKP and a basis for further research on these genes and the pathogenesis of hvKP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous studies have demonstrated the benefits of thymosin alpha-1 (Tα1) in anti-virus, immunological enhancement and anti-inflammation. However, it is controversial about the efficacy and safety of entecavir (ETV) plus Tα1 combination therapy versus ETV monotherapy in cirrhotic patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection.Methods: The systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) were performed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ETV plus Tα1 combination therapy versus ETV monotherapy in HBV-related patients with cirrhosis. We performed a systematic literature search via PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), EMBASE, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Chinese Science and Technology Journals Database (VIP), and Chinese Biological Medicine database (CBM). Relative risk (RR) and standardized mean difference (SMD) with a fixed- or random- effect model were calculated. Heterogeneity was assessed through a Cochrane Q-test and I2 values.Results: Seven RCTs involving 1144 subjects were included in the systematic review and meta-analysis. Compared with ETV monotherapy, ETV plus Tα1 combination therapy led to a higher complete response (RR = 1.18; 95% CI, 1.07-1.30). In post treatment for 24 weeks, the HBV DNA undetectable rate and HBeAg loss rate were higher in ETV plus Tα1 group than in ETV alone group (RR = 1.91; 95% CI, 1.56-2.35; RR = 2.05; 95% CI, 1.62-2.60). However, after 48 and 52 weeks of treatment, there was no significant difference between the combination therapy and ETV monotherapy (RR = 1.07; 95% CI, 0.96-1.18; RR = 1.17; 95% CI, 0.89-1.55). At week 52 of treatment, the HBsAg loss rate of ETV plus Tα1 group was no significance with that of ETV alone group (RR = 1.03; 95% CI, 0.15-7.26). In comparison with ETV alone, the some biochemical parameters and liver fibrosis were obviously improved by ETV plus Tα1, and there was significant heterogeneity. In addition, the number of adverse events was significantly reduced by ETV plus Tα1, compared to ETV alone (RR = 0.48; 95% CI, 0.24-0.95).Conclusions: ETV plus Tα1 might lead to a higher clinical response and a lower comprehensive adverse reaction rate in HBV-related patients with cirrhosis, compared to ETV alone. However, the whole patients included in this meta-analysis were from Chinese mainland, so that more worldwide RCTs with a larger sample size are needed to verify the current findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to our paper on the evolutionary history of the Chinese flora, Qian suggests that certain features of the divergence time estimation employed might have led to biased conclusions in Lu et al (2018). Here, we consider Qian's specific criticisms, explore the extent of uncertainty in the data and demonstrate that (i) no systematic bias toward dates that are too young or too old is detected in Lu et al.; (ii) constraint of the crown age of angiosperms does not bias the generic ages estimated by Lu et al.; and (iii) ages derived from the Chinese regional phylogeny do not bias the conclusions reported by Lu et al. All these analyses confirm that the conclusions reported previously are robust. We argue that, like many large‐scale biodiversity analyses, sources of noise in divergence time estimation are to be expected, but these should not be confused with bias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guizhou province in southwest China has abundant genetic and cultural diversities, but the forensic features and genetic structure of Guizhou populations remain poorly understood due to the sparse sampling of present-day populations. Here, we present 30 insertion/deletion polymorphisms (InDels) data of 591 human individuals collected from four populations, Dong, Yi, Han, and Chuanqing residing in Guizhou. We calculated the forensic parameters of 30 InDel loci and found that this panel meets the efficiency of forensic personal identification based on the high combined power of discrimination, but it could only be used as a complementary tool in the parentage testing because of the lower combined probability of exclusion values. The studied populations are genetically closer related to geographically adjacent or linguistically related populations in southern China, such as the Tai-Kadai and Hmong-Mien speaking groups. The unrecognized ethnic Chuanqing people show an additional genetic affinity with Han Chinese, highlighting the role of possible military immigrations in their origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Both the Torghut and Jalaid Mongols have population-specific alleles. • The STRs and SNPs analyzed here could be employed in forensic applications. • The Torghut and Jalaid Mongols are closely related by their genetic background. • Interpopulation comparisons revealed genetic differences between the two populations. Mongolians played a pivotal role in shaping the culture and genetic architecture of modern Eurasia through the rapid expansion of the Mongol Empire in the 13th century. While the historical aspects of the Mongolian Empire are well documented, research on the genetic variations among Mongolian populations is still insufficient. In this study, we examined the genetic diversity of 70 Torghut Mongols residing in the Ili region of China compared with 88 Jalaid Mongols residing 3000 km away. Over 200 forensically relevant genetic markers, including autosomal short tandem repeats (A-STRs), X chromosomal STRs (X-STRs), Y chromosomal STRs (Y-STRs), identity-informative single nucleotide polymorphisms (iiSNPs), ancestry-informative SNPs (aiSNPs), and phenotype-informative SNPs (piSNPs), were genotyped to uncover the genetic polymorphism of the Torghut Mongols. The STR genotyping results showed that 80 alleles (39 A-STRs, 25 Y-STRs, and 16 X-STRs; 14.4% of 554 alleles) identified in Torghut Mongols were not identified in Jalaid Mongols, while 155 alleles (84 A-STRs, 59 Y-STRs and 12 X-STRs; 24.6% of 630 alleles) identified in Jalaid Mongols were not observed in Torghut Mongols. Calculation of the forensic parameters demonstrated that the STRs and SNPs analyzed here could be employed in forensic applications. Interpopulation comparisons via principal component analysis (PCA), phylogenetic tree, and STRUCTURE analysis showed that the two Mongolian populations were closely related by their genetic background, although genetic differences were also discovered. When both the sequence-based A-STRs and iiSNPs were included in the STRUCTURE analysis, the Torghut population was more similar to the Uyghur population than to Jalaid Mongols, indicating certain population structure differences between the two Mongolian populations. The Y-DNA haplogroup prediction showed that although haplogroup C (C2-M217) was dominant in both Mongolian populations, haplogroup O2-M122 was rarely presented in Torghut Mongols, which differentiated the Torghut Mongols from the other Mongolian populations. This study not only uncovered the genetic features of the two Mongolian tribes, providing valuable frequency data for forensic applications, but the genetic patterns of the two Mongolian populations also provide a genetic evidence that the Torghut Mongols may have developed via the gradual intermixing of nomadic groups of Mongol and Turkic origin, as recorded in historical records. This study also highlighted the importance of building regional reference databases that consider both ethnic and geographic location information, instead of a more universal reference database, for forensic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Phlegm and blood stasis syndrome (PBSS) is one of the main syndromes in coronary heart disease (CHD). Syndromes of Chinese medicine (CM) are lack of quantitative and easy-implementation diagnosis standards. To quantify and standardize the diagnosis of PBSS, scales are usually applied. Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of CM diagnosis scale of PBSS in CHD. Methods: Six hundred patients with stable angina pectoris of CHD, 300 in case group and 300 in control group, will be recruited from 5 hospitals across China. Diagnosis from 2 experts will be considered as the "gold standard". The study design consists of 2 phases: pilot test is used to evaluate the reliability and validity, and diagnostic test is used to assess the diagnostic accuracy of the scale, including sensitivity, specificity, likelihood ratio and area under the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve. Discussion: This study will evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of CM diagnosis scale of PBSS in CHD. The consensus of 2 experts may not be ideal as a "gold standard", and itself still requires further study. (No. ChiCTR-OOC-15006599). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, 90 autosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 34 Y chromosomal SNPs were sequenced simultaneously using HID-Ion AmpliSeq™ Identity Panel on the Ion PGM™ platform for 125 samples in a southern Chinese population. Raw data were analyzed and forensic parameters were calculated. Haplogrouping concordance was also assessed using alternative methods based on Y-SNP haplotypes and Y-STR haplotypes. The results showed that allelic imbalance occurred more frequently with low coverage while several SNPs with high coverage were also observed with poor allelic balance, including rs214955, rs430046, rs7520386, rs876724, rs9171188, rs16981290, and rs2032631. Totally, 21,261 miscalled reads (0.28%) were observed. The rate of allele-specific miscalled reads (ASMRs) was higher than that of allele nonspecific miscalled reads (ANMRs) and associated with genetic diversity of the SNP. The ASMRs of major allele were lower than that of minor allele while there was no difference for ANMRs. The combined discrimination power (CDP) was 1-4.81 × 10−34 and the combined power of exclusion (CPE) was 0.99989 and 0.99999992 for duo and trio paternity testing, respectively. No significant genetic difference was detected between southern and northern Chinese populations. For haplogroup study, O2 was the predominant haplogroup and 97.01% of samples were assigned consistent haplogoups with Y-SNP and Y-STR haplotypes. In conclusion, the AmpliSeq™ Identity Panel was powerful for individual identification and trio paternity testing. ASMRs were associated with the genetic diversity and allele frequency while neither was related for ANMRs. High concordance of haplogrouping assignment can be obtained with Y-STR and Y-SNP haplotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is a large developing and transitional economy with substantial regional gaps and high trade openness. However, to our knowledge, the existing studies do not capture the regional impacts of climate policies promoting non-fossil fuels in China. To fill this gap, this study develops a new multi-country multi-region computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, with detailed energy disaggregation. It compares the regional effects of alternative climate policies and discusses how to improve the performance. The main findings are as follows. Firstly, climate policies promoting low-carbon energy are not neutral, since different regions, sectors or countries are affected disproportionally. In this regard, this study provides detailed information about regional variations and effects, which is quite useful and important for policy makers in local governments. Secondly, there are sharp differences in effects between energy subsidy and carbon tax. These two policies produce differentiated effects on renewable energy, outputs, fiscal spending and cross-border externalities. Finally, goal settings are important for designing effective climate policies. There are considerable differences between absolute-emission-reduction goals and intensity-based emission goals. Looking ahead, the Chinese government should develop well-designed policy mix to promote non-fossil fuels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sapium sebiferum (L.) Roxb is one of the most important oil trees in China. Diacylglycerol acyltransferases (DGATs) esterify sn-1, 2-diacylglycerol with a long-chain fatty acyl-CoA, the last step and the rate-limiting step of triacylglycerol (TAG) biosynthesis in prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. At least 74 DGAT2 sequences from 61 organisms have been identified, but the SsDGAT2 gene had not been reported to date. To clarify the function of SsDGAT2, we cloned the CDS (rapid amplification of cDNA end) of SsDGAT2 by RACE technology. The full-length CDS of SsDGAT2 contains 1011 bp and encodes a protein of 336 amino acids. Recombinant SsDGAT2 restored TAG biosynthesis to the yeast strain Saccharomyces cerevisiae H1246 TAG-deficient mutant and preferentially incorporated unsaturated C18 fatty acids into lipids. To investigate the biotechnological potential of SsDGAT2, it was expressed under the control of the 35S promoter in Arabidopsis Col-4. The oleic acid content increased by 50 % in transgenic plants relative to the control. The results indicated that most of the oleic acid increase was at the expense of linolenic acid (18:3) content, which suggests that high-oleic-acid-content seeds can be created by the overexpression of SsDGAT2 in S. sebiferum (L.) Roxb. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The identification of population structure and genetic diversity is fundamentally important for effective management and conservation of species. This study used nine microsatellite loci to investigate the genetic diversity and structure of Forsythia suspensa. Our findings revealed that the genetic diversity of F. suspensa ( H = 0.721) was lower than that of other seed plants in China. Microsatellite data demonstrated a significant population differentiation within F. suspensa ( F = 0.113, P < 0.001). Mantel's test and redundancy analysis indicated that geographical distance, temperature, and latitude significantly correlated with the population genetic differentiation of F. suspensa. Bayesian analysis of the population structure supported that F. suspensa should be divided into two genetic groups. Ecological niche models indicated that the two groups might be isolated by the area with low climatic suitability. Based on the genetic information of F. suspensa, we propose that the populations with high levels of genetic diversity (P3, P7, P12, and P16) and high number of rare alleles (P2, P5, P6, P9, P11, P17, and P18) from the two subdivided 'gene pools' should be prioritized for conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Rapid growth of the Chinese urban population and the expansion of urban areas have led to changes in urban forest structure and composition, and consequently changes in vegetation carbon storage. The purpose of this study is to quantify the effects of urbanization on vegetation carbon storage in Xiamen, a city located in southern China. Data used for this study were collected from 39,723 sample plots managed according to the forest management planning inventory program. Data from these plots were collected in 4 non-consecutive years: 1972, 1988, 1996 and 2006. The study area was divided into three zones, which were defined according to their level of urbanization: the urban core, the suburban zone, and the exurban zone. Total vegetation carbon storage and the vegetation carbon density for each study period were calculated for each zone. Our results show that urban vegetation carbon storage has increased by 865,589.71t during the period from 1972 to 2006 (34 years) in Xiamen, with a rapid increase between 1972 and 1996, then relatively little change between 1996 and 2006. The increase in vegetation carbon storage is mainly due to the large percentages of the suburban and exurban areas which exist in Xiamen city, and the implementation of reforestation programs in these two zones. The percentage of total regional carbon storage in the city center (urban core), suburbs and exurbs was 5%, 23% and 72%, respectively. This demonstrates that the exurbs store the majority of vegetation carbon, and thus play a critical role in the vegetation carbon storage of the study area. The intensification of urbanization in the future will likely expand the urban core and reduce the area of the suburbs and exurbs, and thus potentially decrease total vegetation carbon storage. This article concludes with a discussion of the implications of these results for vegetation carbon management and urban landscape planning. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Mangrove forests are increasingly threatened by plant invasions worldwide, but some mangrove species are invasive and threaten salt marsh and native mangrove ecosystems. The southern coast of China is invaded by the cordgrass Spartina alterniflora, and the mangrove Sonneratia apetala, providing a model system for studying the processes and mechanisms through which non-native species establish and spread. We used a transplant experiment to test the overarching hypothesis that native herbivores and plants provided biotic resistance against invasion by S. apetala, and that the importance of these factors would vary geographically. Survival of transplanted mangrove seedlings was lower in Zhangjiang Estuary (23°55′ N) than in Leizhou Bay (20°56′ N), and varied with species and habitats. S. apetala had higher survival and growth rates than native mangroves at both sites, and S. apetala grew taller than the S. alterniflora canopy at Leizhou Bay in only two growing seasons. In contrast, native mangroves grew poorly in S. alterniflora. Grazing by rodents and insects suppressed the growth and survival of Kandelia obovata and Avicennia marina in Zhangjiang Estuary and Leizhou Bay, but had little effect on S. apetala. Competition with vegetation (S. alterniflora and native mangroves) exacerbated the reduced survival of native mangroves, and these effects varied across study sites. Low survival of non-native S. apetala in vegetated habitats at Zhangjiang Estuary was likely due to a synergistic effect of low winter temperatures and low light intensity. Escape from herbivory (the opposite to biotic resistance) and fast growth may drive the quick expansion of non-native S. apetala in China. Rapid encroachment of S. apetala may transform the native mangrove forests and monospecific intertidal Spartina grasslands into non-native mangrove forests in the southern coast of China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature on the influence of political and policy-related uncertainties on financial aspects has gained an impetus in the last two decades. This study adds to the existing literature by reviewing the impact of political uncertainty on initial public offerings (IPOs). We aim to provide a holistic overview of the past research in this domain, identify the potential research gaps, and explore them further. We performed a bibliometric analysis using VOSviewer to identify the major keywords used, the most cited papers, the authors, and the major countries where research in this domain has taken place. Our perspective on the current state of the literature has been threefold. First, considering the importance of market timing in the firm's decision to go public, it was seen that firms had shown an unwillingness to come up with an IPO during periods of high political uncertainty. Second, political uncertainty has shown its influence in all the phases of the IPO process; however, political connections and donations mitigate this effect. Third, the research in this domain is still at a very nascent stage and is mainly restricted to China and the US. Thus, we believe that there are several areas that are yet to be explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigated the association between the presence of periodontitis and aortic calcification (AC) risk among Chinese adults. A total of 6059 individuals who underwent regular health check-ups and received a diagnosis of periodontitis between 2009 and 2016 were included. The outcome was AC, assessed by a chest low-dose spiral CT scan. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to assess the association between periodontitis and AC risk after adjusting for several confounders. After a median follow-up period of 2.3 years (interquartile range: 1.03–4.97 years), 843 cases of AC were identified, with 532 (12.13%) and 311 (18.59%) patients in the non-periodontitis group and periodontitis group, respectively. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that, compared with those without periodontitis, the hazard ratio and 95% confidence interval for AC risk in participants with periodontitis was 1.18 (1.02–1.36) (P =.025) in the fully adjusted model. Stratified analyses showed that the positive relationship between periodontitis and AC was more evident in males and participants <65 years of age (pinteraction =.005 and.004, respectively). Our results show that the presence of periodontitis was positively associated with AC among Chinese adults, especially among males and younger participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Tourism Tribune / Lvyou Xuekan is the property of Tourism Institute of Beijing Union University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective: Fat, carbohydrates (mainly lactose) and protein in breast milk all provide indispensable benefits for the growth of newborns. The only source of nutrition in early infancy is breast milk, so the energy of breast milk is also crucial to the growth of infants. Some macronutrients composition in human breast milk varies greatly, which could affect its nutritional fulfillment to preterm infant needs. Therefore, rapid analysis of macronutrients (including lactose, fat and protein) and milk energy in breast milk is of clinical importance. This study compared the macronutrients results of a mid-infrared (MIR) analyzer and an ultrasound-based breast milk analyzer and unified the results by machine learning.Methods: This cross-sectional study included breastfeeding mothers aged 22-40 enrolled between November 2019 and February 2021. Breast milk samples (n = 546) were collected from 244 mothers (from Day 1 to Day 1086 postpartum). A MIR milk analyzer (BETTERREN Co., HMIR-05, SH, CHINA) and an ultrasonic milk analyzer (Honɡyanɡ Co,. HMA 3000, Hebei, CHINA) were used to determine the human milk macronutrient composition. A total of 465 samples completed the tests in both analyzers. The results of the ultrasonic method were mathematically converted using machine learning, while the Bland-Altman method was used to determine the limits of agreement (LOA) between the adjusted results of the ultrasonic method and MIR results.Results: The MIR and ultrasonic milk analyzer results were significantly different. The protein, fat, and energy determined using the MIR method were higher than those determined by the ultrasonic method, while lactose determined by the MIR method were lower (all p < 0.05). The consistency between the measured MIR and the adjusted ultrasound values was evaluated using the Bland-Altman analysis and the scatter diagram was generated to calculate the 95% LOA. After adjustments, 93.96% protein points (436 out of 465), 94.41% fat points (439 out of 465), 95.91% lactose points (446 out of 465) and 94.62% energy points (440 out of 465) were within the LOA range. The 95% LOA of protein, fat, lactose and energy were - 0.6 to 0.6 g/dl, -0.92 to 0.92 g/dl, -0.88 to 0.88 g/dl and - 40.2 to 40.4 kj/dl, respectively and clinically acceptable. The adjusted ultrasonic results were consistent with the MIR results, and LOA results were high (close to 95%).Conclusions: While the results of the breast milk rapid analyzers using the two methods varied significantly, they could still be considered comparable after data adjustments using linear regression algorithm in machine learning. Machine learning methods can play a role in data fitting using different analyzers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is important to understand the response of vegetation dynamics and surface water budget to the changing climate. To investigate the effects of vegetation and climate change on evapotranspiration and runoff on a basin scale, the SSiB4T/TRIFFID (SSiB4/TRIFFID coupled with TOPMODEL) is used to perform long-term dynamic simulations of vegetation succession and the water balance under different climate scenarios for a subalpine basin. The results of all experiments show that fraction of vegetation changes from a dominance of C3 grasses to tundra shrubs and then gradually approaches equilibrium with a dominance of forests. Change to evapotranspiration is very sensitive to temperature changes but is not sensitive to precipitation changes when the temperature remains unchanged. Runoff is very sensitive to changes in both temperature and precipitation. In the increase of temperature, evapotranspiration of forests increases the most among the three vegetation types. From the control run to the [T+5, (1+40%)P] run (A temperature increase of 5 °C, an increase in precipitation of 40%), the role of forests in increasing runoff changes to a reduction in runoff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the response of vegetation dynamics and surface water budget to climate change on a basin scale, the biophysical/dynamic vegetation model SSiB4/TRIFFID was coupled with TOPMODEL (hereinafter referred to as SSiB4T/TRIFFID). The effects of the integration on hydrological simulations were examined and long‐term dynamic simulations of vegetation succession and the water–carbon balance were performed under different climate scenarios for a subalpine basin of southwestern China using SSiB4T/TRIFFID. The coupled model SSiB4T/TRIFFID produces higher soil wetness and evapotranspiration, lower total run‐off and more realistic partitioning of discharges between surface run‐off and base flow. All long‐term simulations for the subalpine basin show that the fraction of vegetation changes from a dominance of C3 grasses to tundra shrubs and then to forests. Annual evapotranspiration in the control run is 388.5 mm year−1 (dominance of C3 grasses), 445.3 mm year−1 (dominance of tundra shrubs) and 388.1 mm year−1 (dominance of forests). Under an increase in temperature by 5°C and in precipitation by 40%, the evapotranspiration of forests is the highest among the three vegetation types. In the humid region, Forest evapotranspiration increases the most with increases in temperature, which results in the role of forests in increasing run‐off changing to having no significant effect on run‐off, and then to reducing run‐off. In regions with water limitation, forest evapotranspiration increases the most as precipitation increases. The effect of forests in reducing run‐off increases with increased precipitation. The spatial variation in the climate exerts an important impact on spatial changes in forest–run‐off relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes diplomatic relations between Malaysia and China during the Post-Cold War era from 1989 to 1996. The Post-Cold War era had seen the anomalies in diplomatic relations between Malaysia and the United States and China. Furthermore, during the Cold War era, a closer relation between Malaysia and the United States could be seen in balancing China’s power. However, the post-Cold War era had seen an increase in diplomatic relations between Malaysia and China and was cold towards the United States. The anomalies of bilateral diplomatic relations are argued through international political changes, domestic interests and the perception of leaders. The research also employs neoclassical realisme theory in analyzing Malaysia's foreign policy anomalies towards China during the Mahathir Mohamad era. This research applies a qualitative method of obtaining primary data through structured interviews with key informants from Malaysia and China; an analytical method based on chronology; and uses supportive empirical evidence from secondary data. Findings show that the anomalies of Malaysia's foreign policy change towards China is influenced by the U.S. pressure on Malaysia and from China's foreign policy change; economic slowdown and political elite crisis; and changes in Mahathir's perceptions and actions towards China. Analysis also found that there was an increase of Malaysia's trust towards China in the Post-Cold War despite the relations normalization have been established since 1974. Although Malaysia can enjoy China's booming economy in terms of trade and investment which did not occur in the previous era, Kuala Lumpur never compromises with Beijing on the issue in the South China Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is important to understand regional contributions to interannual and decadal variabilities of vegetation productivity. However, most studies of regional terrestrial carbon cycles focus on the contributions of regional ecosystems to the mean or trend of net primary production (NPP), rather than its interannual variability (IAV). In this study, the IAV of NPP is explored using the simulation of the Australian Community Atmospheric Biosphere Land Exchange model, version 2.1 (CABLE2.1), compared with an eight‐member Trends in Net Land–Atmosphere Carbon Exchanges (TRENDY) ensemble under present conditions (1951–2010). NPP IAV is also analyzed using only CABLE2.1 under future conditions (2041–2100). Under the present conditions, the Central China region (region CC) contributes the largest fraction (CABLE2.1, 28.2%; TRENDY, 33.3% ± 11.5%) of NPP IAV in China. Such an NPP IAV is strongly associated with circulation‐driven variations in precipitation in most of China (∼85%). During the future period, region CC still plays a key role in the national NPP IAV, at ∼24.6%. Although precipitation IAV is still the main driver regulating the NPP IAV for region CC under the future conditions, climate sensitivity of NPP IAV to precipitation IAV may weaken compared with those under the present conditions. Our results highlight the contribution of region CC to the NPP IAV of China as a whole. Key Points: China's interannual variability (IAV) of net primary production (NPP) is dominated by the Central China region (region CC) under present and future conditionsNPP IAV in China is strongly associated with the variability of precipitation rather than temperatureHigh precipitation IAV may be the largest contributor to the national NPP IAV for region CC [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Summary: Because of the frequent breakdown of major resistance (R) genes, identification of new partial R genes against rice blast disease is an important goal of rice breeding. In this study, we used a core collection of the Rice Diversity Panel II (C‐RDP‐II), which contains 584 rice accessions and are genotyped with 700 000 single‐nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. The C‐RDP‐II accessions were inoculated with three blast strains collected from different rice‐growing regions in China. Genome‐wide association study identified 27 loci associated with rice blast resistance (LABRs). Among them, 22 LABRs were not associated with any known blast R genes or QTLs. Interestingly, a nucleotide‐binding site leucine‐rich repeat (NLR) gene cluster exists in the LABR12 region on chromosome 4. One of the NLR genes is highly conserved in multiple partially resistant rice cultivars, and its expression is significantly up‐regulated at the early stages of rice blast infection. Knockout of this gene via CRISPR‐Cas9 in transgenic plants partially reduced blast resistance to four blast strains. The identification of this new non‐strain specific partial R gene, tentatively named rice blast Partial Resistance gene 1 (PiPR1), provides genetic material that will be useful for understanding the partial resistance mechanism and for breeding durably resistant cultivars against blast disease of rice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dredging sea mud produced during the coastal infrastructure construction has been gradually becoming an environmental problem in China. Making ceramsite is an attractive way to convert the waste sea mud to resources used for many industrial sectors. However, the imapct of preheating and sintering conditions on the ceramsite properties and the biofilm formation capacity of the ceramsite are still poorly understood. This study aims to fill these knowledge gaps. Results suggested the optimal conditions for the preheating temperature was 350°C, the preheating time was 15 min, the sintering temperature was 1040°C, and the sintering time was 9 min. The dredging sea mud-derived ceramsite showed better biofilm formation capacity with high COD and NH4+-N removal performance compared with the commercial ceramsites. The content of the chloride ion in the ceramist granules is close to zero, and the low cost of this material, implying this dredging sea mud-derived ceramsite, could be an engineering favorable material for using it as a biocarrier in the real application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Cloned the CDS of SsPDAT1 from Sapium sebiferum (L.) Roxb. • Identified the PDAT enzymatic activity of SsPDAT1 in yeast. • Overexpression of SsPDAT1 from Sapium sebiferum could result in a significant increase of oil and linoleic acid content in Brassica napus. Sapium sebiferum (L.) Roxb. plays an important role in traditional Chinese medicine and is one of major woody oil tree in China. Phospholipid: diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1 (PDAT1), as an important catalytic enzyme for the formation of triacylglycerol (TAG), is mainly responsible for the transfer of an acyl group from the sn-2 position of phospholipids to the sn-3 position of sn-1, 2-diacylglycerol (DAG) to produce TAG and sn-1 lysophospholipids. The importance of PDAT1 in triacylglycerol biosynthesis has been illustrated in previous research, and at least 67 PDAT1 sequences have been identified from 31 organisms. However, little is known about the gene encoding PDAT1 in S. sebiferum (SsPDAT1), which is involved in seed oil biosynthesis. To explore the functional characteristics of SsPDAT1 , we cloned and analyzed the full-length cDNA in the coding region of SsPDAT1, which consists of 2040 bp and encodes a putative protein of 680 amino acid (aa) residues. Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) analysis showed that recombinant SsPDAT1 could restore TAG accumulation in TAG-deficient mutant yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) H1246, which revealed the enzyme activity of SsPDAT1. Moreover, transgenic Brassica napus L. W10 plants overexpressing SsPDAT1 showed significant increases of 19.6–28.9 % in linoleic acid levels but decreases of 27.3–37.1 % in linolenic acid. Furthermore, the total oil content increased by 8.1 %–10.8 % in SsPDAT1 transgenic seeds. These results confirmed the role of SsPDAT1 in stabilizing oil biosynthesis and suggested that SsPDAT1 could be exploitable to specifically regulate the oil composition of plants. These experimental results provide a new concept that may enable the industrial development of plants with high-linoleic-acid oil through overexpression of SsPDAT1 in S. sebiferum L. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A novel heteropolysaccharide (CMSPB80-1) was isolated from Citrus medica L. var. sarcodactylis. • The structural features of CMSPB80-1 were speculated for the first time. • The microstructures of CMSPB80-1 were preliminarily investigated. • CMSPB80-1 enhanced macrophage phagocytiosis and splenocyte lymphocytes proliferation. Bergamot is an ornamental plant and important traditional Chinese herbal medicine of tremendous value in economic and medicinal applications, mainly distributed in southern and southeastern China. Polysaccharide is one of active components of bergamot. In this study, CMSPB80 was extracted from bergamot by alkali solution and purified by DEAE Sepharose fast flow and Sephadex G-75 column to obtain a homogeneous heteropolysaccharide (CMSPB80-1), with a molecular weight of 103 kDa. Ion chromatography analysis indicated that CMSPB80-1 was composed of →3)- α -L-Rha p -(1→, →5)- α -L-Ara f -(1→, →3,6)- α -D-Man p -(1→, →3)- β -D-Gal p -(1→, →4,6)- α -D-Glc p -(1→, →6)- β -D-Gal p -(1→ and a terminal α -D-Glc p. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) demonstrated that CMSPB80-1 was rough with a sheet-like and irregular structure. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) displayed CMSPB80-1 was branched and entangled with globular aggregates instead of a triple-helix structure. In addition, in vitro activity of CMSPB80-1 was evaluated by neutral red up-take assay and production of nitric oxide (NO) assay, which provided evidence that CMSPB80-1 could enhance macrophage phagocytiosis and promote splenocyte lymphocytes proliferation. The results proposed that CMSPB80-1 was suitable for health care and food/pharmaceutical industries as an immunoregulatory activity ingredient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]