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In this study, we aimed to test the hypothesis that KIR haplotypes (that interact with HLA class I molecules) are associated with susceptibility in patients with T1 DM in utero through maternal-foetal interaction of KIR and their HLA class I ligands in Han Chinese population. We determined the KIR genes and KIR/ligand gene combination frequencies in 59 Han Chinese children with T1D and their mothers and compared it with 159 healthy control children and their mothers. The absence of KIR-2 DS1 in the mother and the presence of HLA-C2 ligand in the child were negatively associated with type 1 diabetes in the child. Our results indicate that maternal KIR genes and their interaction with foetal HLA-C2 may contribute to the risk of type 1 diabetes among Han Chinese children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land-use changes (LUCs) strongly influence regional climates through both the biogeochemical and biogeophysical processes. However, many studies have ignored the biogeophysical processes, which in some cases can offset the biogeochemical impacts. We integrated the field observations, satellite-retrieved data, and a conceptual land surface energy balance model to provide new evidence to fill our knowledge gap concerning how regional warming or cooling is affected by the three main types of LUCs (afforestation, cropland expansion, and urbanization) in different climate zones of China. According to our analyses, similar LUCs presented varied, even reverse, biogeophysical forcing on local temperatures across different climate regimes. Afforestation in arid and semiarid regions has caused increased net radiation that has typically outweighed increased latent evapotranspiration, thus warming has been the net biogeophysical effect. However, it has resulted in cooling in subtropical zones because the increase in net radiation has been exceeded by the increase in latent evapotranspiration. Cropland expansion has decreased the net radiation more than latent evapotranspiration, which has resulted in biogeophysical cooling in arid and semiarid regions. Conversely, it has caused warming in subtropical zones as a result of increases in net radiation and decreases in latent evapotranspiration. In all climatic regions, the net biogeophysical effects of urbanization have generally resulted in more or less warming because urbanization has led to smaller net radiation decreases than latent evapotranspiration. This study reinforces the need to adjust land-use policies to consider biogeophysical effects across different climate regimes and to adapt to and mitigate climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. It is well known that thyroid hormones are important, being involved in affects the metabolism of carbohydrate, protein, lipids. The relationship between thyroid hormones and lipid metabolism is the focus of recent research. Objective. To investigate the relationship between subclinical hypothyroidism and lipid metabolism in women. Design. We conducted an epidemiological survey of thyroid diseases among women in Northeast China from September 2014 to December 2014. Subjects and Methods. A total of 1397 women underwent physical examinations and laboratory tests for thyroid function and lipid metabolism. Results. We found that the detection rate of subclinical hypothyroidism was 13.03%. Patients with subclinical hypothyroidism showed significantly higher levels of triglyceride (1.69±1.9 vs. 1.45±1.4) and the risk of hyper triglyceridemia in women with thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels ≥10mIU/L was 4.96-fold higher compared with that in the normal population (P<0.01). Conclusion. Disorders of lipid metabolism in women with subclinical hypothyroidism show a direct correlation with the level of TSH, and the risk of hyper triglyceridemia is significantly increased when the level of TSH ≥10mIU/L. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amanita exitialis is a lethal mushroom found in China. Knowledge regarding taxonomic characterization, toxin detection, general poisoning conditions, clinical manifestations, laboratory examinations, and clinical treatments for this species is currently lacking. We investigated three A. exitialis mushroom poisoning cohorts in Yunnan Province in 2014 and 2015, involving 10 patients. Mushroom samples were identified by morphological and molecular studies. Ultra performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry was used to detect the peptide toxins in the mushroom samples. Epidemiological information, clinical data, and results of laboratory examinations were collected and analyzed. The mushroom samples were all identified as A. exitialis. The average toxin concentration decreased from the cap to the stipe to the volva, and the average concentration of the peptide toxins decreased in the order of α-amanitin > phallacidin > β-amanitin > γ-amanitin. The latency period between ingestion and the onset of symptoms was 13.9 ± 2.1 h, and the time from ingestion to hospitalization was 49.6 ± 8.5 h. The most common symptoms were nausea and vomiting (100%). Four patients died from fulminant hepatic failure. Laboratory examinations showed that the alanine transaminase, aspartate transaminase, prothrombin time, and activated partial thromboplastin time levels peaked on the third day post-ingestion. Total bilirubin and direct bilirubin values peaked on day 7. The death group and the survival group had a similar variation trend of serological indexes, but the death group had a greater change. A. exitialis is an extremely dangerous mushroom and there is a need to educate the public to avoid picking and eating wild mushrooms that have not been definitively identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chapio is a spring wheat developed by CIMMYT in Mexico by a breeding program that focused on multigenic resistances to leaf rust and stripe rust. A population consisting of 277 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) was developed by crossing Chapio with Avocet. The RILs were genotyped with DArT markers (137 randomly selected RILs) and bulked segregant analysis conducted to supplement the map with informative SSR markers. The final map consisted of 264 markers. Phenotyping against stripe rust was conducted for three seasons in Toluca, Mexico and at three sites over two seasons (total of four environments) in Sichuan Province, China. Significant loci across the two inter-continental regions included Lr34/Yr18 on 7DS, Sr2/Yr30 on 3BS, and a QTL on 3D. There were significant genotype × environment interactions with resistance gene Yr31 on 2BS being effective in most of the Toluca environments; however, a late incursion of a virulent pathotype in 2009 rendered this gene ineffective. This locus also had no effect in China. Conversely, a 5BL locus was only effective in the Chinese environments. There were also complex additive interactions. In the Mexican environments, Yr31 suppressed the additive effect of Yr30 and the 3D locus, but not of Lr34/Yr18, while in China, the 3D and 5BL loci were generally not additive with each other, but were additive when combined with other loci. These results indicate the importance of maintaining diverse, multi-genic resistances as Chapio had stable inter-continental resistance despite the fact that there were QTLs that were not effective in either one or the other region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In China's largest city, Shanghai, dry deposition fluxes of Cd, Pb, As and Hg were 137, 19354, 2897 and 9.4μgm−2 a−1, respectively in an urban area, intermediate in a suburban area, and 51.7, 5311, 1703 and 7.3μgm−2 a−1, respectively in a rural area. Enrichment factors were Cd>Pb>As>Hg. Seasonal variations of metals differed: Pb and As were dominated by fossil fuel combustion, Cd was related to industrial pollution, and natural source controlled Hg levels. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Please cite this paper as: Bao C, Zhou Y, Jiang L, Sun C, Wang F, Xia W, Han F, Zhao Y, Wu L. Reasons for the increasing incidence of macrosomia in Harbin, China. BJOG 2011;118:93-98. A population-based retrospective study was conducted in Harbin, China. The medical records of 13 711 singleton infants born between 2001 and 2005 in 16 hospitals were reviewed. The incidence of macrosomia (birthweight ≥4000 g) was found to have increased from 8.31% in 2001 to 10.50% in 2005. Over this period, the ponderal index decreased and birth length increased in infants with macrosomia. In a multivariate analysis, risk factors for delivery of a newborn with macrosomia were found to be high prepartal body mass index (BMI), maternal height ≥165 cm, male gender of the newborn, gestational age of 40-41.9 weeks, maternal age ≥30 years and a maternal diagnosis of hypertension. The increase in the incidence of macrosomia in Harbin was attributable to increases in maternal prepartal BMI, height and age in the population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]