Search

(1) Background: This study investigated the effects of caffeinated chewing gum on the basketball-specific performance of trained basketball players. A double-blind, randomized crossover design was employed. (2) Methods: Fifteen participants (age: 20.9 ± 1.0 years; height: 180.9 ± 5.4 cm; mass: 77.2 ± 7.5 kg; training age: 8.2 ± 0.3 years) were recruited and divided into a caffeine trial (CAF) and placebo trial (PL). The participants in the CAF trial chewed gum containing 3 mg/kg of caffeine for 10 min, while those in the PL trial chewed a placebo gum without caffeine. Following a 15 min rest, all the participants completed basketball-specific performance tests. (3) Results: The free throw accuracy for the CAF trial was significantly higher than that for the PL trial (CAF: 79.0 ± 4.31%; PL: 73.0 ± 9.16%; p = 0.012; Cohen's d = 0.94). Additionally, the CAF trial demonstrated significantly better performance in the 20 m segmented dash (CAF: 2.94 ± 1.12 s; PL: 3.13 ± 0.10 s; p < 0.001; Cohen's d =1.8) and squats (p < 0.05), and exhibited lower fatigue indexes (CAF: 3.6 ± 1.6%; PL: 5.2 ± 1.6%; p = 0.009; Cohen's d =1.0). (4) Conclusions: These findings suggest that chewing gum containing 3 mg/kg of caffeine offers moderate-to-large improvements in key performance aspects relevant to professionally trained basketball players. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to study the extraction process by ethanol with the ultrasonic-assisted method of chlorogenic acid in Senecio scandens Buch-Ham. With the content of chlorogenic acid as the index, the effects of ethanol concentration, ultrasonic extraction temperature, extraction time, and material liquid ratio on the extraction rate of chlorogenic acid from Senecio scandens Buch-Ham. were investigated through a single factor experiment. On this basis, the process parameters of chlorogenic acid extraction were optimized by response surface methodology. The results showed that the optimal process parameters were as follows: Ethanol concentration of 50%, ultrasonic temperature of 47 °C, extraction time of 50 min, and liquid material ratio of 20 mL/g. Under these conditions, the extraction rate of chlorogenic acid could reach 1.01%. The study shows that the extraction process determined by the experiment is simple and efficient, which can provide a reference for further purification and extraction of chlorogenic acid in Senecio scandens Buch-Ham. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To study the distribution, drug resistance, and biofilm characteristics of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) isolated from hospitalized children, providing a reference for the prevention and treatment of CRAB infections in hospitalized children. Methods Forty-eight CRAB strains isolated from January 2019 to December 2022 were classified into epidemic and sporadic strains using repetitive extragenic palindromic sequence-based polymerase chain reaction. The drug resistance, biofilm phenotypes, and gene carriage of these two types of strains were compared. Results Both the 22 epidemic strains and the 26 sporadic strains were producers of Class D carbapenemases or extended-spectrum β-lactamases with downregulated outer membrane porins, harboring the VIM, OXA-23, and OXA-51 genes. The biofilm formation capability of the sporadic strains was stronger than that of the epidemic strains (P<0.05). Genes related to biofilm formation, including Bap, bfs, OmpA, CsuE, and intI1, were detected in both epidemic and sporadic strains, with a higher detection rate of the intI1 gene in epidemic strains (P<0.05). Conclusions CRAB strains are colonized in the hospital, with sporadic strains having a stronger ability to form biofilms, suggesting the potential for forming new clonal transmissions in the hospital. Continuous monitoring of the epidemic trends of CRAB and early warning of the distribution of epidemic strains are necessary to reduce the risk of CRAB infections in hospitalized children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Overgrowth diamond refers to the product of thick CVD synthetic diamond layer grown on a natural diamond with the whole appearance. Since overgrown diamonds contain information on the nitrogen impurities of natural diamonds, traditional synthetic diamond screening methods and testing procedures are no longer applicable to the detection of overgrown diamonds. OBJECTIVE To gemologically test an overgrowth diamond sample in order to investigate the full identification features and to propose the optimum detection strategy. METHODS Minspecting, screening instruments testing, UV-Vis/FTIR/PL spectra examinations, as well as fluorescence and phosphorescence observation under deep UV excitation are carried out. RESULTS The sample cannot be identified by traditional microscopic observation, diamond instrument screening, and infrared spectra measurement. The sample has a distinct boundary that is separated by different luminescence under DiamondViewTM. The upper layer displays red fluorescence and greenish blue phosphorescence, while the lower layer shows deep blue fluorescence and no phosphorescence. Infrared spectroscopic analysis shows that the upper layer is type Ⅱa and the lower layer is type Ⅰa diamond. The UV-Vis absorption and photoluminescence spectra confirmed the coexistence of N3 centers and a high level of[Si-V]- defects in the diamond. CONCLUSIONS It was confirmed that the lower part of the sample is natural and the upper part of the sample is CVD synthetic layer with a thickness around 740μm. The first overgrowth diamond reported domestically was compared to the same type of samples reported abroad. The existence of a boundary are missing and the thickness of the CVD layer increased significantly in this sample. The innovative application of the multidirectional luminescence imaging and spectroscopic analyses is the key to laboratory testing of overgrowth diamond.

Atrial septal defect (ASD) is one of the most prevalent types of congenital heart disease (CHD). The pathogenic role of miRNAs in the development of ASD has not yet been fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to examine the miRNA profile of ASD patients, and to identify the role of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of ASD. We performed a miRNA comparison between the atrial septa of three normal fetuses and three ASD patients by microarray, followed by chromosome clustering and bioinformatic analysis to identify the dysregulated miRNA clusters between these two groups. Furthermore, qRT-PCR in the mouse developing heart was used to exclude differences resulting from the use of unpaired stage patient samples. After normalization, 70 dysregulated miRNAs were detected between the two groups. Advanced chromosome clustering and bioinformatic analysis showed that two upregulated miRNA clusters (miR-29 and miR-143/145) and three downregulated miRNA clusters (miR-17-92, miR-106b-25 and miR-503/424) were associated with ASD. Further qRT-PCR in the mouse developing heart found that the dysregulated expression levels of all the clusters, except the miR-143/145 cluster, were associated with the occurrence of ASD. This study reveals four dysregulated miRNA clusters, which will enable further elucidation of the pathogenic mechanism of ASD.

The human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) line YAHKMUi001-A was derived from the dermal fibroblasts of a patient with Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF), with a mutation in the TBX1 gene (c.928G > A). The skin fibroblasts were obtained from a 4-year-old boy, and were infected with Sendai virus expressing the Yamanaka factors. The YAHKMUi001-A iPSC line expresses pluripotent stem cell markers, displays a normal karyotype, and has the capacity to differentiate into 3 germ layers. This cell line model can be a good tool to study the pathological mechanism of the TBX1 gene mutations associated with TOF.

Two double-stranded metallo-triangles, Dy9 and Dy24, with hexaple-C10H7PO32− bridges were constructed, and their magnetic properties were explored. Compared with the field-induced relaxation phenomenon of Dy9 templated with a chloride anion, Dy24 templated with a sodium cation exhibited zero-field single-molecule-magnet behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]