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Introduction Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia globally. It is associated with a fivefold risk in stroke, but early diagnosis and effective treatment can reduce this risk. AF is often underdiagnosed, particularly in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) where screening for AF is not always feasible or considered common practice in primary care settings. Epidemiological data on AF in LMICs is often incomplete particularly in vulnerable populations. This LMIC research collaborative aims to identify the prevalence of AF in the Northern Sri Lankan community.Methods and analysis A cross-sectional household survey piloted and codesigned through a series of community engagement events will be administered in all five districts in Northern Province, Sri Lanka. A multistage cluster sampling approach will be used starting at district level, then the Divisional Secretariats followed by Grama Niladhari divisions. Twenty households will be selected from each cluster. The study aims to recruit 10 000 participants aged 50 years or older, 1 participant per household. Demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, well-being and lifestyle and anthropometric measurements will be collected using a digital data platform (REDCap, Research Electronic Data Capture) by trained data collectors. Participants will be screened for AF using a fingertip single-lead ECG via a smartphone application (AliveCor) with rhythm strips reviewed by a consultant cardiologist. Prevalence of AF and risk factors will be established at province and district-levels. Adjusted ORs and population attributable fractions for AF risk factors will be determined.Ethics and dissemination This study was approved by the Ethics Review Committee of Faculty of Medicine at University of Jaffna. Written informed consent will be obtained from all participants. Findings will be disseminated through publication in a peer-reviewed journal and presentations at conferences. The findings will enable early treatment for new AF diagnoses and inform interventions to improve community-based management of AF in LMICs.

Increasing evidence suggests that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are closely related to the initialization and development of human diseases. lncRNA just proximal to XIST (JPX), as a newly identified lncRNA, has been reported to be aberrantly expressed and associated with pathophysiological traits in numerous diseases, particularly cancers. More importantly, JPX has been proven to play important roles in various biological functions, including cell proliferation, migration, invasion, apoptosis, chemoresistance, and differentiation. In addition, we discuss the diverse molecular mechanisms and correlation with RNA methylation of JPX in several cancers. In this Review, we summarize current studies on JPX's roles in diseases and its potential application as a biomarker for both diagnoses and prognoses and a therapeutic target in human diseases.

Animal farms have become one of the most important reservoirs of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella spp. (CRK) owing to the wide usage of veterinary antibiotics. “One Health”-studies observing animals, the environment, and humans are necessary to understand the dissemination of CRK in animal breeding areas. Based on the concept of “One-Health,” 263 samples of animal feces, wastewater, well water, and human feces from 60 livestock and poultry farms in Shandong province, China were screened for CRK. Five carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) and three carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella quasipneumoniae (CRKQ) strains were isolated from animal feces, human feces, and well water. The eight strains were characterized by antimicrobial susceptibility testing, plasmid conjugation assays, whole-genome sequencing, and bioinformatics analysis. All strains carried the carbapenemase-encoding gene blaNDM-5, which was flanked by the same core genetic structure (IS5-blaNDM-5-bleMBL-trpF-dsbD-IS26-ISKox3) and was located on highly related conjugative IncX3 plasmids. The colistin resistance gene mcr-8.1 was carried by three CRKP and located on self-transmissible IncFII(K)/IncFIA(HI1) and IncFII(pKP91)/IncFIA(HI1) plasmids. The genetic context of mcr-8.1 consisted of IS903-orf-mcr-8.1-copR-baeS-dgkA-orf-IS903 in three strains. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis confirmed the clonal spread of CRKP carrying-blaNDM-5 and mcr-8.1 between two human workers in the same chicken farm. Additionally, the SNP analysis showed clonal expansion of CRKP and CRKQ strains from well water in different farms, and the clonal CRKP was clonally related to isolates from animal farms and a wastewater treatment plant collected in other studies in the same province. These findings suggest that CRKP and CRKQ are capable of disseminating via horizontal gene transfer and clonal expansion and may pose a significant threat to public health unless preventative measures are taken.

Abstract Exploring the advanced techniques for protein detection facilitates cell fate investigation. However, it remains challenging to quantify and visualize the protein with one single probe. Here, a luminescent approach to detect hepatic cell fate marker albumin in vitro and living cell labeling with upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs), which are conjugated with antibody (Ab) and rose bengal hexanoic acid (RBHA) is reported. To guarantee the detection quality and accuracy, an “OFF–ON” strategy is adopted: in the presence of albumin, the luminescence of nanoparticles remains suppressed owing to energy transfer to the quencher. Upon albumin binding to the antibody, the luminescence is recovered under near‐infrared light. In various bio‐samples, the UCNPs‐Ab‐RBHA (UCAR) nanoprobe can sense albumin with a broad detection range (5–315 ng mL−1). When applied to liver ductal organoid culture medium, the UCAR can monitor hepatocyte differentiation in real time by sensing the secreted albumin. Further, UCAR enables live imaging of cellular albumin in cells, organoids, and tissues. In a CCl4‐induced liver injury model, UCAR detects reduced albumin in liver tissue and serum. Thus, a biocompatible nanoprobe for both quantification and imaging of protein in complex biological environment with superior stability and high sensitivity is provided.

An accurate estimation of carbon stocks in terrestrial ecosystem and their future changes in relation to land use and land cover change (LUCC) is important for regional territorial spatial optimization and low-carbon development. In this paper, we integrated the System Dynamics (SD) model, PLUS model and InVEST model to simulate land use dynamics and corresponding carbon stocks in Heilongjiang Province from 2030 to 2050 under three SSP-RCP scenarios proposed by the CMIP6. The findings revealed significant variations in land use demand projections across different SSP-RCP scenarios, with increases observed in farmland, construction land and unused land while decreases in woodland and grassland, and the SSP585 scenario showed the highest increment or decrease. Under the SSP126 scenario, the expansion of farmland was due to a reduction in construction land, with little change observed in woodland and grassland, which resulted in a carbon stock increase of 102.71 × 106 Mg at the highest rate; conversely, under the SSP585 scenario, rapid expansion of farmland, construction land and unused land came at the expense of forest and grassland, leading to a significant carbon stock decrease of 204.64 × 106 Mg. The increase in farmland and the decrease in woodland under the SSP245 scenario was relatively moderate with little change observed in construction, resulting in a carbon stock increase of 108.10 × 106 Mg. Regardless of any scenario considered here, forests remain an important carbon sink contributing significantly to carbon sequestration as well as other ecosystem services in Heilongjiang Province. Enhancing territorial spatial planning and ecological environment construction, while promoting an eco-economic development model, will significantly contribute to the achievement of carbon neutrality and regional sustainable development goals.

Titanium alloy has the advantages of low thermal conductivity, a small expansion coefficient and being non-magnetic, making it an ideal low-temperature structural material. In this paper, the typical TC4 titanium alloy in industrial titanium alloy is selected as the research object. The microstructure deformation law and mechanical behavior of TC4 titanium alloy at liquid nitrogen temperature are mainly investigated, and compared with the microstructure and properties at room temperature. The macroscopic and microscopic deformation mechanism of the simultaneous increase in elongation and hardening index of titanium alloy at low temperature is revealed, which provides a basic basis for the low-temperature deformation mechanism and strengthening and toughening design of titanium alloy. Based on the uniaxial tensile tests at room temperature (298 K) and low temperature (77 K), the effects of low temperature on the yield strength, elongation, tensile strength and work hardening curve of titanium alloy were compared and analyzed. The strength/plasticity synergistic improvement of TC4 titanium alloy under low-temperature deformation was found. At low temperature, the yield strength, tensile strength and elongation of TC4 titanium alloy are improved compared with room temperature. The tensile strength increases from 847.93 MPa at 298 K to 1318.70 MPa at 77 K, and the elongation increases from 21.8% at 298 K to 24.9% at 77 K. The grain morphology, grain orientation, dislocation density and fracture morphology of titanium alloy under room temperature and low-temperature tensile conditions were studied by SEM and EBSD. The results of fracture morphology characterization at room temperature and low temperature show that TC4 titanium alloy exhibits ductile fracture characteristics and a large number of dimples are formed on the fracture surface. The dimple depth at low temperature is shallower than that at room temperature and the overall surface is more flat. Compared with room temperature deformation, the deformation process of TC4 titanium alloy in a low-temperature environment produces stronger dislocation pile-up and forms a large number of twins, but the grain rotation is more significant, which effectively alleviates the stress concentration and delays the initiation and propagation of cracks at grain boundaries.

Background: The inflammatory response in the tumor immune microenvironment has implications for the progression and prognosis in glioma. However, few inflammatory response-related biomarkers for lower-grade glioma (LGG) prognosis and immune infiltration have been identified. We aimed to construct and identify the prognostic value of an inflammatory response-related signature, immune infiltration, and drug targets for LGG.Methods: The transcriptomic and clinical data of LGG samples and 200 inflammatory response genes were obtained from public databases. The LGG samples were separated into two inflammatory response-related subtypes based on differentially expressed inflammatory response genes between LGG and normal brain tissue. Next, inflammatory response-related genes (IRRGs) were determined through a difference analysis between the aforementioned two subtypes. An inflammatory response-related prognostic model was constructed using IRRGs by using univariate Cox regression and Lasso regression analyses and validated in an external database (CGGA database). ssGSEA and ESTIMATE algorithms were conducted to evaluate immune infiltration. Additionally, we performed integrated analyses to investigate the correlation between the prognostic signature and N 6-methyladenosine mRNA status, stemness index, and drug sensitivity. We finally selected MSR1 from the prognostic signature for further experimental validation.Results: A total of nine IRRGs were identified to construct the prognostic signature for LGG. LGG patients in the high-risk group presented significantly reduced overall survival than those in the low-risk group. An ROC analysis confirmed the predictive power of the prognostic model. Multivariate analyses identified the risk score as an independent predictor for the overall survival. ssGSEA revealed that the immune status was definitely disparate between two risk subgroups, and immune checkpoints such as PD-1, PD-L1, and CTLA4 were significantly expressed higher in the high-risk group. The risk score was strongly correlated with tumor stemness and m6A. The expression levels of the genes in the signature were significantly associated with the sensitivity of tumor cells to anti-tumor drugs. Finally, the knockdown of MSR1 suppressed LGG cell migration, invasion, epithelial–mesenchymal transition, and proliferation.Conclusion: The study constructed a novel signature composed of nine IRRGs to predict the prognosis, potential drug targets, and impact immune infiltration status in LGG, which hold promise for screening prognostic biomarkers and guiding immunotherapy for LGG.

BackgroundManagement of menopausal dyslipidemia is the main measure to reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease in postmenopausal women. Tonifying Kidney and Removing Dampness Formula (TKRDF) is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula that ameliorates dyslipidemia in postmenopausal women. This study applied network pharmacology, molecular docking, and in vitro and in vitro experiments to investigate the underlying mechanism of TKRDF against postmenopausal dyslipidemia.MethodsNetwork pharmacology research was first conducted, and the active compounds and targets of TKRDF, as well as the targets of postmenopausal dyslipidemia, were extracted from public databases. Protein–protein interaction (PPI), Gene Ontology (GO), and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis were used to identify the potential targets and signaling pathways of TKRDF in postmenopausal dyslipidemia. Molecular docking was then performed to evaluate the combination of active compounds with principal targets. Finally, an ovariectomized rat model was used for the in vivo experiment and alpha mouse liver 12 (AML12) cells treated with palmitic acid were used for the in vitro experiments to provide further evidence for the research.ResultsBased on network pharmacology analysis, we obtained 78 active compounds from TKRDF that acted on 222 targets of postmenopausal dyslipidemia. The analysis results indicated that IL6, TNF, VEGFA, AKT1, MAPK3, MAPK1, PPARG and PIK3CA, etc., were the potentially key targets, and the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway was the possibly crucial pathway for TKRDF to treat postmenopausal dyslipidemia. Molecular docking suggested that the active compounds have good binding activity with the core targets. The in vivo and in vitro experiments demonstrated that TKRDF ameliorates postmenopausal dyslipidemia by regulating hormone levels, inhibiting inflammation, promoting angiogenesis and inhibiting lipid synthesis, which appear to be related to TKRDF’s regulation of the ERK1/2 and PI3K/AKT signaling pathways.ConclusionThis study clarified the active ingredients, potential targets, and molecular mechanisms of TKRDF for treating postmenopausal dyslipidemia. It also provided a feasible method to uncover the scientific basis and therapeutic mechanism for prescribing TCM in the treatment of diseases.

Root border cells (RBCs) are a group of cells that originated from the root cap meristem, which are developed by genetic regulation and play a variety of biological functions. Being composed of a homologous single cell population with high metabolic activity and intact cell walls, RBCs represent a highly useful tool for studying various aspects of plant mineral absorption and utilization, as well as plant-soil-microbiome interactions in the rhizosphere. Research on RBCs also promise to become a hotspot in the context of understanding root adaptive responses to hostile environments. In order to take advantage of RBCs as an ideal single cell system in plant-environmental interactions, we summarized the production and function of RBCs and built-up the methodology for RBCs culturing, purification, and quantity control for plant research. The latter is done by using a case study of the application of RBCs to study mechanisms of Al toxicity in plants. This work offers plant scientists a new cognition of adopting RBCs as a convenient single cell system for the multidisciplinary research including (but not limited to) plant physiology, development and genetics, nutrition, and stress and adaptation. Root border cells (RBCs) are derived from the root cap and represent a population of living cells with special physiological activity and biological roles that are different from the root cap cells per se. After being separated from the root cap, RBCs become more active in metabolism than the progenitor root cap cells; for example, they incorporate labeled amino acids into protein 2.6-fold more efficiently than the cells of the root cap. In addition, mRNA and protein were differentially expressed between root cap cells and RBCs. Since the production of RBCs is genetically regulated and RBCs played a variety of biological functions in resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses occurred in the rhizosphere, RBCs were suggested as an ideal single cell system for the study the response of plant root cells to nutrient availability, environmental stresses, and in plant-microbial interactions. Some studies revealed that RBCs, which development is regulated by endogenous and exogenous signals, are biologically viable in the majority of higher plant species. This work reviews the research on RBCs in plant environment interaction and describes the case study of RBCs as a convenient single cell system to study plant responses to Al toxicity.

Ensemble learning combines base classifiers to improve the performance of the models and obtains a higher classification accuracy than a single classifier. We propose a multi-classification method to predict the level of grant for each college student based on feature integration and ensemble learning. It extracted from expense, score, in/out dormitory, book loan conditions of 10885 students’ daily behavior data and constructed a 21-dimensional feature. The ensemble learning method integrated gradient boosting decision tree, random forest, AdaBoost, and Support Vector Machine classifiers for college grant classification. The proposed method is evaluated with 10885 students set and experiments show that the proposed method has an average accuracy of 0.954 5 and can be used as an effective means of assisting decision-making for college student grants.

In this study, the microstructural evolution, distribution, morphology, and change mechanism of an as-rolled Ti2AlNb alloy were quantitatively analyzed by X-ray diffraction and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). The results show that after solution treatment at 900 °C, the content of the O phase alloy decreased by 2%, which provided space for the nucleation of the α2 phase, the content of which increased by 2%. After aging treatment at 760 °C, large quantities of acicular O phase and α2 phase were precipitated in the B2 matrix, and the content of the α2 phase increased. As the aging temperature increased to 840 °C, the elongated α2 phases were connected to each other at a specific angle along the grain boundary, extending to the interior of the grain. The hardness reached its maximum value of 402 HV at 760 °C. This study deepened our understanding of the formation of the α2 phase in the microstructure of rolled Ti2AlNb alloy, and investigates the effect of α2 phase content on the hardness of the alloy in more depth.

Importance: The incidence of dyslipidemia increases after menopause. Menopause hormone therapy (MHT) is recommended for menopause related disease. However, it is benefit for lipid profiles is inconclusive.Objective: To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials to evaluate the effects of MHT on lipid profile in postmenopausal women.Evidence Review: Related articles were searched on PubMed/Medline, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases from inception to December 2020. Data extraction and quality evaluation were performed independently by two reviewers. The methodological quality was assessed using the “Cochrane Risk of Bias checklist”.Results: Seventy-three eligible studies were selected. The results showed that MHT significantly decreased the levels of TC (WMD: −0.43, 95% CI: −0.53 to −0.33), LDL-C (WMD: −0.47, 95% CI: −0.55 to −0.40) and LP (a) (WMD: −49.46, 95% CI: −64.27 to −34.64) compared with placebo or no treatment. Oral MHT led to a significantly higher TG compared with transdermal MHT (WMD: 0.12, 95% CI: 0.04–0.21). The benefits of low dose MHT on TG was also concluded when comparing with conventional-dose estrogen (WMD: −0.18, 95% CI: −0.32 to −0.03). The results also showed that conventional MHT significantly decreased LDL-C (WMD: −0.35, 95% CI: −0.50 to −0.19), but increase TG (WMD: 0.42, 95%CI: 0.18–0.65) compared with tibolone. When comparing with the different MHT regimens, estrogen (E) + progesterone (P) regimen significantly increased TC (WMD: 0.15, 95% CI: 0.09 to 0.20), LDL-C (WMD: 0.12, 95% CI: 0.07–0.17) and Lp(a) (WMD: 44.58, 95% CI:28.09–61.06) compared with estrogen alone.Conclusion and Relevance: MHT plays a positive role in lipid profile in postmenopausal women, meanwhile for women with hypertriglyceridemia, low doses or transdermal MHT or tibolone would be a safer choice. Moreover, E + P regimen might blunt the benefit of estrogen on the lipid profile.Clinical Trial Registration: [https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42018092924], identifier [No. CRD42018092924].

Abstract Myocardial infarction is a clinical form of necrosis in the myocardium caused by an imbalance between the coronary blood supply and myocardial demand. Garcinol is a polyisoprenylated benzophenone found in the fruit of Garcinia indica, which is abundant in tropical regions. This fruit contains high levels of garcinol, isoxanthochymol, isogarcinol, hydroxycitric acid and xanthochymol. Garcinol and hydroxycitric acid have been shown to have antioxidant effects. In this study, rats were assigned to sham, control, low-dose, high-dose and positive control groups. Hemodynamic and apoptotic markers were evaluated, and histopathological analysis was conducted. The mRNA and protein levels of caspase-3, Bax, Bcl-2 and cleaved caspase-3 were quantified. Garcinol treatment increased the heart rate and improved the maximum rate of increase in left-ventricle (LV) pressure (+dp/dt max), maximum rate of decrease in LV pressure (–dp/dt max), LV ejection fraction and LV systolic pressure in rats with induced heart failure. Garcinol treatment reversed body, liver and heart weight changes, resulting in returns to near-normal levels. In the garcinol treatment group, the number of broken fibers, extent of inflammatory cell infiltration and rate of apoptosis remained within normal ranges. Garcinol reduced the cross-sectional areas of cardiomyocytes, and reduced interstitial fibrosis to a normal level. The mRNA and protein levels of cleaved caspase-3, caspase-3 and Bax were reduced, whereas those of Bcl-2 were increased, following high-dose (100 mg/kg) garcinol treatment. These findings suggest that garcinol effectively prevents apoptosis in rats with isoproterenol-induced heart failure and in cardiac H9C2 cells.

Farmland transfer is an inevitable approach to solving farmland fragmentation and the resulting low productivity in China. Although the central government has formulated various guidelines on farmland transfer, the traditional transfer model faces high transaction cost and thus hinders transfer. With e-commerce development in China, an alternative Jutudi model of farmland transfer with e-commerce has occurred in China. Although transaction cost is an important perspective for understanding reforms, few studies have been conducted to explore whether the transaction cost of the Jutudi model would be reduced compared with the traditional model of farmland transfer and why the Jutudi model succeeds. This study introduces the operation mechanism of the Jutudi model of farmland transfer and the context of the pilot project in Jixi County, Anhui Province. Changes in transaction cost in terms of information search cost, negotiation and contracting process costs, and contract supervision and execution costs are analyzed in the Jutudi model. It is found that the productivity of transferred farmlands significantly improved using the Jutudi model in Jixi County. Transaction cost is generally lowered in the Jutudi model compared with the traditional one. How the changes in transaction cost contribute to farmland transfer is also explained. Potential problems and relevant recommendations have also been discussed to promote the Jutudi model.

Background: The accumulation of fat in ducks is the main cause of low feed efficiency and metabolic diseases in ducks. Retinoic acid X receptor alpha (RXRA) is a member of the nuclear receptor superfamily involved in lipid, glucose, energy, and hormone metabolism. The effect of the RXRA gene on lipid metabolism in duck preadipocytes (DPACs) and the relationship between SNPs and the feed efficiency traits of ducks are unclear. Methods: qRT-PCR and Western blotting analyses were used to detect changes in mRNA and protein in cells. Intracellular triglycerides (TGs) were detected using an ELISA kit. A general linear model analysis was used to determine the association between RXRA SNPs and feed efficiency. Results: The duck RXRA gene was highly expressed on the fourth day of DPAC differentiation. The RXRA gene increased the content of fat and TG in DPACs and promoted the expression of cell differentiation genes; g.5,952,667 correlated with average daily feed intake (ADFI), residual feed intake (RFI), and feed conversion ratio (FCR). Conclusions: Duck RXRA can accelerate fat accumulation, and the polymorphism of the RXRA gene is closely related to feed efficiency, which provides basic data for breeding high feed efficiency ducks.

Plant viruses and entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) can both elicit immune responses in insects. This study was designed to clarify whether plant viruses could affect the efficacy of EPF and explore the immune responses of brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens, in response to different pathogen infections. In this study, a strain of Metarhizium anisopliae YTTR with high pathogenicity against BPH was selected and explored whether rice ragged stunt virus (RRSV) could affect its lethality against BPH. RNA-seq was used to detect the inner responses of BPH in response to RRSV and M. anisopliae YTTR infection. Results showed that M. anisopliae YTTR has strong lethality against BPH (RRSV-carrying and RRSV-free). RRSV invasion did not affect the susceptibility of BPH against M. anisopliae YTTR at all concentrations. At 1 × 108 spores/mL, M. anisopliae YTTR caused a cumulative mortality of 80% to BPH at 7 days post-treatment. The largest numbers of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) was obtained in BPH treated with the two pathogens than in other single pathogen treatment. In addition, KEGG enrichment analysis showed that the DEGs were mostly enriched in immune and physiological mechanisms-related pathways. Both RRSV and M. anisopliae YTTR could induce the expression changes of immune-related genes. However, most of the immune genes had varying expression patterns in different treatment. Our findings demonstrated that RRSV invasion did not have any significant effect on the pathogenicity of M. anisopliae YTTR, while the co-infection of M. anisopliae YTTR and RRSV induced more immune and physiological mechanisms -related genes’ responses. In addition, the presence of RRSV could render the interplay between BPH and M. anisopliae YTTR more intricate. These findings laid a basis for further elucidating the immune response mechanisms of RRSV-mediated BPH to M. anisopliae infection.

Retinoid X receptor alpha (RXRA) is a well-characterized factor that regulates lipid metabolism; however, the regulatory mechanism in muscle cells of poultry is still unknown. The overexpression and the knockdown of RXRA in myoblasts (CS2 cells), RT-PCR, and western blotting were used to detect the expression levels of genes and proteins related to PPAR-signaling pathways. Intracellular triglycerides (TGs), cholesterol (CHOL), and nonesterified free fatty acids (NEFAs) were detected by the Elisa kit. Fat droplets were stained with Oil Red O. The double-fluorescein reporter gene and chromatin immunoprecipitation (CHIP) were used to verify the relationship between RXRA and candidate target genes. The RXRA gene was highly expressed in duck breast muscle, and its mRNA and its protein were reduced during the differentiation of CS2 cells. The CS2 cells, with the overexpression of RXRA, showed reduced content in TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and lipid droplets and upregulated the mRNA expression of CD36, ACSL1, and PPARG genes and the protein expression of CD36 and PPARG. The knockdown of RXRA expression in CS2 cells enhanced the content of TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and lipid droplets and downregulated the mRNA and protein expression of CD36, ACLS1, ELOVL6, and PPARG. The overexpression of the RXRA gene, the activity of the double-luciferase reporter gene of the wild-type CD36 promoter was higher than that of the mutant type. RXRA bound to −860/−852 nt, −688/−680 nt, and −165/−157 nt at the promoter region of CD36. Moreover, the overexpression of CD36 in CS2 cells could suppress the content of TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and lipid droplets, while the knockdown expression of CD36 increased the content of TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and lipid droplets. In this study, the transcription factor, RXRA, inhibited the accumulation of TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and fat droplets in CS2 cells by promoting CD36 expression.

Abstract Background Several ECG criteria have been widely used for diagnosis of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in clinical practice. However, their performance in a general Chinese population is limited. Methods and results A multi‐stage, stratified cluster sampling across China was performed and 7415 representative Chinese adults aged 18–85 years were analyzed. ECG was collected by using GE MAC 5500 machine. The association between five ECG‐LVH criteria (i.e., Peguero–Lo Presti, Cornell, Cornell product, Sokolow–Lyon and Sokolow–Lyon product) and echocardiographic LVH (Echo‐LVH) was assessed by Pearson's correlation, diagnostic statistics like predictive values, and receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve. We found that the prevalence of the Echo‐LVH was 11% while ECG‐LVH ranged from 3% to 27%. All ECG‐LVH criteria had high negative predictive value (NPV) (89%) and specificity (73–96%) but low positive predictive value (PPV) (12–24%) and sensitivity (4–29%). The newly Peguero–Lo Presti criteria had higher sensitivity (29%) but lower specificity (73%) and accuracy (68%) compared with other criteria. Cornell product had the best diagnostic performance (AUC: 0.59), as well as the highest specificity (96%) and accuracy (86%) but lowest sensitivity (4%). Among single‐lead components of ECG criteria, RaVL voltage and QRS duration performed relatively better than others. Hypertensive and older individuals had higher sensitivity but lower specificity and accuracy than their counterparts. Conclusion ECG‐LVH criteria had high NPV to detect Echo‐LVH. Though with higher sensitivity, Peguero–Lo Presti criteria did not have better diagnostic performance to detect Echo‐LVH. RaVL and QRS duration had stronger association with Echo‐LVH among all single‐lead components.

Cadmium is one of the most toxic heavy metals and can be easily absorbed by plants, affecting root growth. Root border cells (RBCs), that are located in the periphery of the root cap and originate from the root cap meristem, represent a convenient tool to study the toxic effects of Cd on root performance. In this work, vegetables with contrasting types of root apical meristem (RAM) organizations were used. The open RAM organizations included pea and cucumber, and the closed RAM organizations included tomato, chili, and eggplant. The number of RBCs were significantly higher in the species possessing open RAM organization: pea (11,330 cells per root) > cucumber (8200) > tomato (2480) > eggplant (1830) > chili (1320). The same trend was observed for cell viability: pea (61%) > cucumber (59%) > tomato (49%) > eggplant (44%) > chili (42%). Pea and cucumber had higher relative radicle elongation rates and a lower increase in stress-induced accumulation of malondialdehyde (MDA), making them more resistant to Cd stress than the vegetables with close RAM organization. Under Cd treatment, the number and viability of RBCs in vegetables with both types of RAM organization were significantly decreased. However, the decreasing ratio of the number and viability of RBCs in pea and cucumber was higher than in tomato, chili, and eggplant. Taken together, the plants with the open-type RAM are more tolerant to Cd, and it can be speculated that the cadmium tolerance of the vegetables may be correlated with the number and viability of RBCs in response to cadmium stress.

Abstract Background Soil acidity (and associated Al toxicity) is a major factor limiting crop production worldwide and threatening global food security. Electrostatic layer-by-layer (LBL) self-assembly provides a convenient and versatile method to form an extracellular silica nanocoat, which possess the ability to protect cell from the damage of physical stress or toxic substances. In this work, we have tested a hypothesis that extracellular silica nanocoat formed by LBL self-assembly will protect root border cells (RBCs) and enhance their resistance to Al toxicity. Results Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to compare the properties of RBCs surface coated with nanoshells with those that were exposed to Al without coating. The accumulation of Al, reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, and the activity of mitochondria were detected by a laser-scanning confocal microscopy. We found that a crystal-like layer of silica nanoparticles on the surface of RBCs functions as an extracellular Al-proof coat by immobilizing Al in the apoplast and preventing its accumulation in the cytosol. The silica nanoshells on the RBCs had a positive impact on maintaining the integrity of the plasma and mitochondrial membranes, preventing ROS burst and ensuring higher mitochondria activity and cell viability under Al toxicity. Conclusions The study provides evidence that silica nanoshells confers RBCs Al resistance by restraining of Al in the silica-coat, suggesting that this method can be used an efficient tool to prevent multibillion-dollar losses caused by Al toxicity to agricultural crop production.

In this paper, the design of an ultra-wideband polarizer based on a metasurface with high-performance is reported and demonstrated. The polarizer is composed of a dielectric substrate with double semicircular gap patches and a metal film. Multiple strong resonance points enable the design to convert the incident linearly polarized waves into cross-polarized waves in the 14.8–28.0 GHz range, with a fractional bandwidth of 61.7% and a corresponding polarization conversion rate (PCR) above 95%. Further simulated results show that the PCR remains above 87% in the 14.37–24.75 GHz range when the incident angle of the electromagnetic (EM) waves is between 0–30°, and the physical mechanism is explained by the surface current distribution. In addition, the gradient metasurface is designed according to the Pancharatnam–Berry phase principle to achieve anomalous reflection, and the 1-bit metasurface is coded to reduce the Radar Cross Section (RCS). The EM waves reach an anomalous reflection of −23° at 15 GHz normal incidence, and the RCS is reduced by 10 dB in the range of 15.3–28.0 GHz. These findings have potential application value in stealth and antenna design.

Hydrodynamic cavitation is a promising technique for water disinfection. In the present paper, the disinfection characteristics of an advanced hydrodynamic cavitation reactor (ARHCR) in pilot scale were studied. The effects of various flow rates (1.4–2.6 m3/h) and rotational speeds (2600–4200 rpm) on the removal of Escherichia coli (E. coli) were revealed and analyzed. The variation regularities of the log reduction and reaction rate constant at various cavitation numbers were established. A disinfection rate of 100% was achieved in only 4 min for 15 L of simulated effluent under 4200 rpm and 1.4 m3/h, with energy efficiency at 0.0499 kWh/L. A comprehensive comparison with previously introduced HCRs demonstrates the superior performance of the presented ARHCR system. The morphological changes in E. coli were studied by scanning electron microscopy. The results indicate that the ARHCR can lead to serious cleavage and surface damages to E. coli, which cannot be obtained by conventional HCRs. Finally, a possible damage mechanism of the ARHCR, including both the hydrodynamical and sonochemical effects, was proposed. The findings of the present study can provide strong support to the fundamental understanding and applications of ARHCRs for water disinfection.

Aging is an important factor affecting function of smell, leading to the degeneration of mature olfactory sensory neurons and inducing the occurrence of smell loss. The mammalian olfactory epithelium (OE) can regenerate when subjected to chemical assaults. However, this capacity is not limitless. Inactivation of globose basal cells and failure to generate sensory neurons are the main obstacles to prevent the OE regeneration. Here, we found the significant attenuation in mature sensory neuronal generation and apparent transcriptional alternation in the OE from aged mice compared with young ones. The recruitment of leucine-rich repeat-containing G-protein coupled receptor 5 (Lgr5)-positive cells in injured OE was weakened in aged mice, and more Lgr5+ cells remained quiescence in aged OE postinjury. Lineage-traced progenies from Lgr5+ cells were significantly fewer in the OE with aging. Moreover, Notch activation enhanced the neuronal regeneration in aged OE, making the regenerative capacity of aged OE comparable with that of young animals after injury. The growth and morphology of three-dimensional (3D)-cultured organoids from the OE of young and aged mice varied and was modulated by small molecules regulating the Notch signaling pathway. Thus, we concluded that activation of Lgr5+ cells in injured OE was age dependent and Notch activation could enhance the capacity of neuronal generation from Lgr5+ cells in aged OE after injury.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a common malignant tumor in Southern China and Southeast Asia. In this study, we found that Leucine rich repeat containing G protein-coupled receptor 5 (Lgr5) was highly expressed in NPC tissues and marked NPC stem cells. Lgr5high tumors showed differential transcriptional landscape compared to Lgr5not high tumors. Lgr5 expression was associated with the clinicopathologic features in NPC and was able to regulate the stemness and viability of NPC cell line CNE1 and HNE1. Meanwhile, the migration, invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) was modulated by Lgr5 via Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Furthermore, Lgr5 could regulate the sensitivity of NPC cells to chemotherapy drugs. Xenografted tumors from Lgr5-overexpressed CNE1 cells showed stronger tumor forming capacity and higher expression level of stem cell markers. Thus, we characterized previously unidentified role of Lgr5 in NPC cells, potential serving as a NPC stem cell biomarker and a therapeutic target against NPC.

As a novel concept of responding to disease epidemics, Fangcang shelter hospitals were deployed to expand the health system's capacity and provide medical services for non-severe COVID-19 patients during the outbreak in Wuhan. To give insights on patient management within Fangcang hospitals, we conducted a retrospective analysis to: 1) describe the characteristics of the patients admitted to Fangcang hospitals and 2) explore risk factors for longer length of stay (LOS). We enrolled 136 confirmed COVID-19 patients, including asymptomatic patients and those with mild symptoms, who were hospitalized in the Wuti Fangcang Hospital. 58 patients completed the treatment and discharged before 1 March 2020. After describing patients' demographic and clinical characteristics, exposure history, treatment received and time course of the disease, we conducted linear regression analysis to identify factors influencing LOS. We found that patients having fever before admission were hospitalized 3.5 days (95%CI 1.39 to 5.63, p = 0.002) longer than those without fever and that patients having bilateral pneumonia were hospitalized 3.4 days (95%CI 0.49 to 6.25, p = 0.023) longer than those with normal CT scan results. We also found weak evidence suggesting that patients with diabetes were hospitalized 3.2 days longer than those without diabetes (95%CI -0.2 to 6.56, p = 0.065). However, we observed no significant differences in LOS between symptomatic and asymptomatic patients and between patients who received treatment and those without treatment. Longer duration of hospitalization among non-severe COVID-19 patients is associated with having fever, bilateral pneumonia on CT scan and diabetes. However, being asymptomatic and using supportive medications at the early stage of infection do not have significant influences on LOS. Our study is a single-centered study with relatively small sample size. The findings provide evidence for predicting hospital bed demand in a novel response scenario and may help decision-makers in preparing for ramping up the health system capacity.

We propose a water-based metamaterial to realize the broadband polarization insensitive negative refraction. The designed metamaterial exhibits the multiple resonances in broadband region and displays negative permittivity and permeability simultaneously with a broadband negative refractive index. Simulated result shows that two separated wide bandwidths of negative refractive index are formed at 12.5–22.7 GHz, and 26.2–28.0 GHz, and the relative bandwidths of which are 58.0%, and 6.7%, respectively. In addition, beam shifting simulation is carried out to verify the retrieved effective refractive index from the scatter parameters, and the calculated results based on beam shifting simulation are agreed well with the retrieved effective refractive indices. Finally, the microwave measurement is performed to exam the simulated and calculated results, and three results of simulation, calculation, and measurement are consistent with each other. The design using water-based metamaterial provides an alternative approach to realize a broadband negative refraction.

Objectives: To investigate the occurrence of antibiotic residues in different types of environmental samples including water samples in rural Shandong province, China. Further, to characterize the potential ecological risk for development of antibiotic resistance in the environment, and the potential direct human health risk of exposure to antibiotics via drinking water and vegetables. Methods: Environmental samples (n = 214) (river water, waste water, drinking water, sediments, manure, soil and edible parts of vegetables) were collected in twelve villages in Shandong province in eastern China. High performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS/MS) was used to determine the concentration of antibiotic residues. The ratio of the measured environmental concentrations (MEC) to the predicted no-effect concentrations (PNEC) was used to evaluate the ecological risk (risk quotient, RQ) for development of antibiotic resistance. The potential risks to human health through exposure to antibiotics in drinking water were assessed by comparing measured environmental concentrations (MEC) and predicted no-effect concentration in drinking water (PNECDW), and in vegetables by comparing estimated daily intake (EDI) to ADI. Results: Sulfapyridine, sulfamethoxazole, ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin, levofloxacin, norfloxacin, chloramphenicol, florfenicol, doxycycline, and metronidazole were detected at concentrations ranging between 0.3 and 3.9 ng/L in river water, 1.3 and 12.5 ng/L in waste water, 0.5 and 21.4 ng/L in drinking water, 0.31 and 1.21 μg/kg in river sediment, 0.82 and 1.91 μg/kg in pig manure, 0.1 and 11.68 μg/kg in outlet sediment, 0.5 and 2.5 μg/kg in soil, and 6.3 and 27.2 μg/kg in vegetables. The RQs for resistance development were >1 for enrofloxacin, levofloxacin, and ranged between 0.1 and 1 for ciprofloxacin. MECs/PNECDW ratios were

Conventional metamaterial absorbers eliminate the transmitted electromagnetic wave by attaching the metal plate with the unidirectional absorption performance; these absorbers limit the practical applications to a large extent. In this paper, we present a broadband bi-directional metamaterial absorber by etching chip resistors on the resonators for expanding the bandwidth, and two orthogonal I-shaped structures are pasted on the both sides of the ultra-thin substrate (FR-4) instead of the metal plate for enhancing absorptance of the absorber. Simulated results show that absorptance of the designed absorber is larger than 0.9 in 1.43–2.51 GHz along the forward and backward directions under both TE and TM polarizations. Microwave experiments in the chamber are performed to verify the simulations, and the experimental results exhibit the excellent agreement with the simulations. Additionally, two I-shaped structures are orthogonally pasted on an ultrathin substrate, leading to the impedance-matching of both forward and backward directions, and the absorptance can be tailed dynamically via the middle layer of the substrate. The physics of the absorption are visualized by using a transmission line based on equivalent circuits. We claim that the designed bi-directional metamaterial absorber can be a good candidate for electromagnetic stealth and energy harvesting.

In the rice-wheat rotation system, biochar (BC) can be applied at the initiation of the rice or wheat season. Here, we compared the effects of BC that were applied at two different crop seasons on wheat production, quality, and soil profile properties in a rice-wheat rotation system with nitrogen (N) fertilizer applied at 280 kg/ha rate. Results showed that both wheat grain production and N recovery use efficiency were influenced by BC applied at two crop seasons. Biochar application did not affect the total non-essential amino-acid, but when applied during wheat season, BC significantly (p < 0.05) increased total essential amino acid in grain by 12.3%, particularly for the valine (+48.2%), methionine (+43.8%), and isoleucine (+10.3%). We found that BC significantly (p < 0.05) decreased the pH of soil at 0-6 cm and 20-30 cm by 0.14-0.18 and 0.05-0.08 units, respectively. The NH4+-N content of the whole observed soil profile were reduced by BC application, however, the effect of BC on NO3--N content varied with the application season and profile depth. Interestingly, BC applied at wheat and rice season significantly (p < 0.05) improved topsoil N contents by 48.4% and 19.7%, respectively. In addition, data suggested that BC applied during wheat season performed better in enhancing soil available phosphorus, potassium, and organic matter contents. In conclusion, we suggest that the optimum application time of BC for enhancing crop production and quality (take amino-acid content for example) and improving soil fertility is at the initiation of the wheat season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Predicting users’ next behavior through learning users’ preferences according to the users’ historical behaviors is known as sequential recommendation. In this task, learning sequence representation by modeling the pairwise relationship between items in the sequence to capture their long-range dependencies is crucial. In this paper, we propose a novel deep neural network named graph convolutional network transformer recommender (GCNTRec). GCNTRec is capable of learning effective item representation in a user’s historical behaviors sequence, which involves extracting the correlation between the target node and multi-layer neighbor nodes on the graphs constructed under the heterogeneous information networks in an end-to-end fashion through a graph convolutional network (GCN) with degree encoding, while the capturing long-range dependencies of items in a sequence through the transformer encoder model. Using this multi-dimensional vector representation, items related to a user historical behavior sequence can be easily predicted. We empirically evaluated GCNTRec on multiple public datasets. The experimental results show that our approach can effectively predict subsequent relevant items and outperforms previous techniques.

Antibiotic resistance is a complex global health challenge. The recent Global Action Plan on antimicrobial resistance highlights the importance of adopting One Health approaches that can cross traditional disciplinary boundaries. We report on the early experiences of a multisectoral Sino-Swedish research project that aims to address gaps in our current knowledge and seeks to improve the situation through system-wide interventions. Our research project is investigating antibiotic use and resistance in a rural area of China through a combination of epidemiological, health systems and laboratory investigations. We reflect here on the challenges inherent in conducting long distance cross-disciplinary collaborations, having now completed data and sample collection for a baseline situation analysis. In particular, we recognise the importance of investing in aspects such as effective communication, shared conceptual frameworks and leadership. We suggest that our experiences will be instructive to others planning to develop similar international One Health collaborations.

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a gram-negative, opportunistic pathogen, and a common cause of healthcare-associated infections such as pneumonia, septicemia, and urinary tract infection. The purpose of this study was to survey the occurrence of and characterize K. pneumoniae in different environmental sources in a rural area of Shandong province, China. Two hundred and thirty-one samples from different environmental sources in 12 villages were screened for extended-spectrum β-lactamase-(ESBL)-producing K. pneumoniae, and 14 (6%) samples were positive. All isolates were multidrug-resistant and a few of them belonged to clinically relevant strains which are known to cause hospital outbreaks worldwide. Serotypes, virulence genes, serum survival, and phagocytosis survival were analyzed and the results showed the presence of virulence factors associated with highly virulent clones and a high degree of phagocytosis survivability, indicating the potential virulence of these isolates. These results emphasize the need for further studies designed to elucidate the role of the environment in transmission and dissemination of ESBL-producing K. pneumoniae and the potential risk posed to human and environmental health.