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Na metal batteries (NMBs) stand at the forefront of advancing energy storage technologies, but are severely hampered by Na dendrite issues, especially when using carbonate electrolytes. Suppressing the growth of Na dendrites through constructing NaF‐rich solid‐electrolyte‐interphase (SEI) is a commonly‐used strategy to prolong the lifespan of NMBs. In contrast, fluorinated organic SEI components are often underutilized. Inspired by unveiling the adsorption configuration of fluorinated organic compounds on the surface of Na metal, an optimized SEI architecture for stabilizing NMBs is proposed by investigating the C4H9SO2F‐/C4F9SO2F‐treated Na metal anodes. It is revealed that the SEI built on a fluorinated inorganic/organic hybrid layer exhibit favorable Na passivation capability, significantly improving Na deposition behavior. As a result, the NMB with a high‐loading cathode (15 mg cm−2) and a negative/positive capacity ratio (N/P) ratio of 4 shows a long‐term life span over 1000 cycles with 92.8% capacity retention at 2 C. This work opens a new pathway for developing robust and high‐energy‐density NMBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) is used to evaluate urban land use efficiency (ULUE). • The spatial and temporal characteristics of ULUE are analyzed. • Undesirable outputs cause a loss of ULUE. • The improvement potential of ULUE is revealed. • Targeted policy suggestions for ULUE improvement are further proposed. With economic growth facing increasing constraints of resource and environment, intensive land use becomes one of the effective ways to promote urban sustainable development. This paper aims to reveal the spatial and temporal differences in urban land use efficiency (ULUE) in provincial China, and examine the impact of undesirable output (e.g., industrial pollutant emissions) on ULUE using a one-stage stochastic frontier analysis (SFA). Furthermore, we analyze the improvement potential of ULUE. Results show that 1) ULUE in China is relatively low, and it shows a trend of slow growth at an annual growth rate of 0.34 %. 2) Undesirable output causes a loss of ULUE. The loss ratio in the western region is the highest (9.61 %), followed by the central region (8.41 %) and the eastern region (3.93 %). Estimation results of the technical inefficiency function also show that pollution intensity has a negative effect on ULUE. 3) ULUE varies significantly across the country. The mean efficiency values in the eastern, central, and western regions are 0.733, 0.535, and 0.507, respectively. ULUE levels in different provinces present a greater gap when undesirable output is considered. 4) The improvement potential analysis indicates a mismatch between the ULUE and the improvement potential. Areas with low efficiency does not necessarily have relatively high improvement potential (e.g., Ningxia and Xinjiang), or areas with relatively high efficiency may also have high improvement potential (e.g., Fujian and Shandong). Based on the difference in ULUE level and its improvement potential, targeted policy suggestions for ULUE improvement are further proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Automatic colorless floating hazardous and noxious substances (HNS) spill segmentation is an emerging research topic. Xylene is one of the priority HNSs since it poses a high risk of being involved in an HNS incident. This paper presents a novel algorithm for the target enhancement of xylene spills and their segmentation in ultraviolet (UV) images. To improve the contrast between targets and backgrounds (waves, sun reflections, and shadows), we developed a global background suppression (GBS) method to remove the irrelevant objects from the background, which is followed by an adaptive target enhancement (ATE) method to enhance the target. Based on the histogram information of the processed image, we designed an automatic algorithm to calculate the optimal number of clusters, which is usually manually determined in traditional cluster segmentation methods. In addition, necessary pre-segmentation processing and post-segmentation processing were adopted in order to improve the performance. Experimental results on our UV image datasets demonstrated that the proposed method can achieve good segmentation results for chemical spills from different backgrounds, especially for images with strong waves, uneven intensities, and low contrast. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whole grains and legumes are important sources of nutrients and have essential influences in the human diet. However, the consumption of whole grains and legumes faces many challenges, such as their poor edible and cooking qualities. Antinutritional factors and allergens also affect consumption of whole grains and legumes. High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatment is a recent non-thermal processing technology, which can improve the edible quality of whole grains and legumes. HHP also preserves the natural nutrition and freshness of food by lowering the concentration of antinutritional elements and sensitizing allergens while minimally altering the color and scent of the food components. This review summarized the principle of HHP treatment technology, the effects of HHP treatment on the nutritional components, antinutritional factors, and cooking qualities of whole grains and legumes. This review also described the potential effects of HHP-treated whole grains and legumes on some diseases. This review is expected to provide references for the application of HHP treatment in whole grains and legumes. • High hydrostatic pressure technology is a new kind of environment-friendly non-thermal technology. • The impacts of high hydrostatic pressure technology on whole grains and pulses were reviewed. • High hydrostatic pressure technology can well maintain and improve the nutritional composition of food. • Cooking and sensory properties of high hydrostatic pressure on whole grains and pulses were investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enhance the photocatalytic efficiency of ZIF-67 (Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework-67), we integrated it with Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene through in-situ synthesis and assessed the effects of different MXene concentrations on photocatalytic activity. We identified ZIF-67/Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene as the optimal catalyst (denoted as ZT-450), yielding CO, CH 4 , and H 2 at 62.7, 6.7, and 7.3 μmol g−1, respectively. The CO productive rate achieved by ZT-450 exhibits a substantial enhancement, outperforming both ZIF-67 and Ti 3 C 2 T x by factors of 16.1 and 4.8, respectively. After introducing Ti 3 C 2 T x in ZIF-67, CO 2 adsorption ability achieves 127.90 μmol g−1, much higher than those of pure ZIF-67 and Ti 3 C 2 T x. Combining Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations, we established that introducing Ti 3 C 2 T x in ZIF-67 facilitates rapid electron transfer and improves light absorption, CO 2 activation. In-situ DRIFTS measurements of photocatalytic CO 2 reduction reaction (CO 2 RR) on ZIF-67/Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene composite were employed to reveal the emergence of intermediates such as *COOH, *CHO, *OCH 3 , etc., and elucidate the mechanism accordingly. This research contributes to the advancement of photocatalytic CO 2 RR, offering insights into applying Ti 3 C 2 Tx MXene in photocatalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dietary fiber (DF), ferulic acid (FA) and DF+FA were added to wheat flour to explore their effects on dough characteristics and glutenin macropolymer (GMP) aggregation behavior during dough resting. In the dough system with DF or FA, results indicated a significant correlation between the elasticity/cohesiveness of dough and GMP content (p < 0.05). The GMP content and disulfide bond content reduced significantly if DF or/and FA was added when the dough was rested for 60 min (R60) (p < 0.05). The significant positive correlation between GMP content and disulfide bond content (p < 0.05) demonstrated that adding of DF or/and FA affected the GMP polymerization process during dough resting. Compared with the Flour group (R60), the surface hydrophobicity of the DF group (R60) increased by 34.3% and the FA group (R60) decreased by 9.8%, while the DF+FA group (R60) and the Flour group (H 0 = 2055) had a similar surface hydrophobicity (H 0 = 2030), showing that the influence of FA- or DF-generated hydrophobic and stereo structures decreased. The results indicate that the combined effects of DF and FA reduced the degree of change induced by DF or FA alone on dough texture and GMP molecular aggregation, and the dynamic change trend seems more similar to that of the Flour groups. • Dietary fiber and ferulic acid decreased the elasticity and cohesiveness of dough. • Dietary fiber and ferulic acid decreased the GMP content. • Dietary fiber and ferulic acid disturbed the connection of disulfide bond of GMP. • Dietary fiber increased the surface hydrophobicity of GMP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • An amine-functionalized photocatalyst f-TGO was designed for boosting CO 2 photoreduction. • Experimental results and calculation results elucidated that the amine is beneficial for CO 2 adsorption and the amide bond functions as an effective channel for electron transfer. • An in-depth study on the interfacial charge transfer mechanism of f-TGO was carried out by DFT calculation. • The in situ DRIFTS and Gibbs free energy calculation revealed the reaction intermediates and demonstrated the kinetic behaviors of the reaction pathway. The photocatalytic reduction of CO 2 is typically slow due to inert charge kinetics and low CO 2 affinity. This research aimed to enhance the photocarrier transfer/separation and CO 2 adsorption/activation process over amine-functionalized TiO 2 nanoparticles/GO (f-TGO). Density functional theory (DFT) calculations established models of TGO and f-TGO (with CO 2 adsorbed on the top, middle, and bottom), proving that the presence of the amino group fortifies the adsorption/activation of CO 2 , while the amido bond acts as a charge delivery channel to accelerate electron transfer in f-TGO. The optimized f-TGO demonstrated good performance in photocatalytic CO 2 RR under mild conditions, achieving a turnover frequency (TOF) of 40.9 and 19.9 μmol g−1h−1 for CO and CH 4 , respectively, outperforming most reported TiO 2 -based catalysts. In addition, in situ DRIFTS and theoretical calculation revealed the reaction intermediates, demonstrated the kinetic behaviors of the reaction pathway, and thus laid the groundwork for investigating the CO 2 RR mechanism. This study proposes a viable approach to modify the electronic structure of photocatalysts and provides new insight for designing high-performance photocatalysts, focusing particularly on how interfacial carrier transfer affects photoreduction CO 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effects of hydrothermal treatment, biological treatment and their combination on nutrients recovery from fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) and evaluated the feasibility of fruit and vegetable waste juice (FVWJ) from the combined treatment as liquid organic fertilizer. In this study, following conditions were determined suitable for FVW treatment: the temperature of 165 °C and retention time of 45 min for hydrothermal treatment, 20 h for biological treatment, and Weissella , as the dominant microbial genus present in FVW, was suggested as inoculum for biological treatment. In the combined treatment, based on the above conditions of hydrothermal and biological treatments, the yield of FVWJ was 93.03 g out of 100 g FVW, and concentrations of organic matter (1.45%, w/w), primary nutrients (0.51%, w/w), and toxic components in the FVWJ complied with the requirements for use concentration in both Chinese and European standards for liquid organic fertilizer. The economic analysis showed the net saving of 13.60 USD per ton FVW, indicating that it is an economical approach to valorize fruit and vegetable waste into liquid organic fertilizer through the combined treatment. [Display omitted] • A combined treatment was used for fruit and vegetable waste treatment. • Weissella was suggested as inoculum for biological treatment. • The severe damage of fruit and vegetable waste fiber structure was observed. • Hydrolyzed liquid met the requirements of fertilizing products regulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrodynamic cavitation has been a promising method and technology in wastewater treatment, while the principles based on the design of cavitational reactors to optimize cavitation yield and performance remains lacking. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD), a supplementation of experimental optimization, has become an essential tool for this issue, owing to the merits of low investment and operating costs. Nevertheless, researchers with a non-engineering background or few CFD fundamentals used straightforward numerical strategies to treat cavitating flows, and this might result in many misinterpretations and consequently poor computations. This review paper presents the rationale behind hydrodynamic cavitation and application of cavitation modeling specific to the reactors in wastewater treatment. In particular, the mathematical models of multiphase flow simulation, including turbulence closures and cavitation models, are comprehensively described, whilst the advantages and shortcomings of each model are also identified and discussed. Examples and methods of the coupling of CFD technology, with experimental observations to investigate into the hydrodynamic behavior of cavitating devices that feature linear and swirling flows, are also critically summarized. Modeling issues, which remain unaddressed, i.e., the implementation strategies of numerical models, and the definition of cavitation numbers are identified and discussed. Finally, the advantages of CFD modeling are discussed and the future of CFD applications in this research area is also outlined. It is expected that the present paper would provide decision-making support for CFD beginners to efficiently perform CFD modeling and promote the advancement of cavitation simulation of reactors in the field of wastewater treatment. • Computational models applied in reactors for wastewater treatment were summarized. • Numerical simulations contribute to the research of cavitational reactors. • Numerical research into rotating cavitational reactors needs advanced strategies. • A new parameter based on the flow is suggested for the study of cavitation yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationale: Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction and lack of effective measures in the current. Exosomes from mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) reported to alleviate inflammation during sepsis, and the preconditioning of MSCs could enhance their paracrine potential. Therefore, this study investigated whether exosomes secreted by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-pretreated MSCs exert superior antiseptic effects, and explored the underlying molecular mechanisms., Methods: Exosomes were isolated and characterized from the supernatants of MSCs. The therapeutic efficacy of normal exosomes (Exo) and LPS-pretreated exosomes (LPS-Exo) were evaluated in terms of survival rates, inflammatory response, and organ damage in an LPS-induced sepsis model. Macrophages were stimulated with LPS and treated with Exo or LPS-Exo to confirm the results of the in vivo studies, and to explain the potential mechanisms., Results: LPS-Exo were shown to inhibit aberrant pro-inflammatory cytokines, prevent organ damages, and improve survival rates of the septic mice to a greater extent than Exo. In vitro , LPS-Exo significantly promoted the M2 polarization of macrophages exposed to inflammation. miRNA sequencing and qRT-PCR analysis identified the remarkable expression of miR-150-5p in LPS-Exo compared to that in Exo, and exosomal miR-150-5p was transferred into recipient macrophages and mediated macrophage polarization. Further investigation demonstrated that miR-150-5p targets Irs1 in recipient macrophages and subsequently modulates macrophage plasticity by down-regulating the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway., Conclusion: The current findings highly suggest that exosomes derived from LPS pre-conditioned MSCs represent a promising cell-free therapeutic method and highlight miR-150-5p as a novel molecular target for regulating immune hyperactivation during sepsis., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Zheng, Li, Zhang, Fu, Liu, He, Wang and Ma.)

Presently, the hydroxyl radical oxidation mechanism is widely acknowledged for the degradation of organic pollutants based on hydrodynamic cavitation technology. The presence and production mechanism of other potential reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the cavitation systems are still unclear. In this paper, singlet oxygen ( 1 O 2 ) and superoxide radical (·O 2 - ) were selected as the target ROS, and their generation rules and mechanism in vortex-based hydrodynamic cavitation (VBHC) were analyzed. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) were used to simulate and analyze the intensity characteristics of VBHC, and the relationship between the generation of ROS and cavitation intensity was thoroughly revealed. The results show that the operating conditions of the device have a significant and complicated influence on the generation of 1 O 2 and ·O 2 - . When the inlet pressure reaches to 4.5 bar, it is more favorable for the generation of 1 O 2 and ·O 2 - comparing with those lower pressure. However, higher temperature (45 °C) and aeration rate (15 (L/min)/L) do not always have positive effect on the 1 O 2 and ·O 2 - productions, and their optimal parameters need to be analyzed in combination with the inlet pressure. Through quenching experiments, it is found that 1 O 2 is completely transformed from ·O 2 - , and ·O 2 - comes from the transformation of hydroxyl radicals and dissolved oxygen. Higher cavitation intensity is captured and shown more disperse in the vortex cavitation region, which is consistent with the larger production and stronger diffusion of 1 O 2 and ·O 2 - . This paper shed light to the generation mechanism of 1 O 2 and ·O 2 - in VBHC reactors and the relationship with cavitation intensity. The conclusion provides new ideas for the research of effective ROS in hydrodynamic cavitation process., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Fibular free flap necrosis (FFFN) is the most common complication in patients with osteoradionecrosis (ORN) after mandibular reconstruction surgery. However, there are no effective forecasting tools at present. This research is aimed to establish and verify a nomogram model to predict the risk of FFFN after mandibular reconstruction surgery in ORN patients., Methods: A total of 193 ORN patients with mandibular reconstruction using fibular free flap (150 cases in the model group and 43 cases in the validation group) were enrolled in this study. In the model group, the variables were optimized by lasso regression. Then the prediction model was established by binary logistic regression analysis, and the nomogram was drawn. The bootstrap self-sampling method was used for internal verification. Moreover, 43 cases in the validation group were used for external validation., Results: The results of lasso regression and binary logistic regression analysis showed that the radiotherapy interval (≤2 years), trismus, diabetes, without deep venous anastomoses, and American society of anesthesiologists (ASA) III were the independent risk factors for FFFN after mandibular reconstruction surgery in ORNJ patients (P<0.05). Based on the above-mentioned risk factors, the nomogram model was established. The AUC values of the model group and the validation group were 0.936 and 0.964, respectively. The curve analysis showed that when the probability thresholds of the model group and the validation group were 5.699%∼98.229% and 0.413%∼99.721%, respectively. So the patient's clinical net profit rate was the highest., Conclusion: A nomogram combining the factors of radiotherapy interval (≤2 years), trismus, diabetes, without deep venous anastomoses, and ASA III provided a comparatively effective way to predict the risk of FFFN after mandibular reconstruction surgery in ORN patients, which has distinct applied clinical value., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Background: The induction of intestinal inflammation as a result of abdominal surgery is an essential factor in postoperative ileus (POI) development. Electroacupuncture (EA) at ST36 has been demonstrated to relieve intestinal inflammation and restore gastrointestinal dysmotility in POI. This study aims to elucidate the neuroimmune pathway involved in the anti-inflammatory properties of EA in POI., Methods: After intestinal manipulation (IM) was performed to induce POI, intestinal inflammation and motility were assessed 24 h post-IM, by evaluating gastrointestinal transit (GIT), cytokines expression, and leukocyte infiltration. Experimental surgery, pharmacological intervention, and genetic knockout mice were used to elucidate the neuroimmune mechanisms of EA., Results: EA at ST36 significantly improved GIT and reduced the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and leukocyte infiltration in the intestinal muscularis following IM in mice. The anti-inflammatory effectiveness of EA treatment was abolished by sub-diaphragmatic vagotomy, whereas splenectomy did not hinder the anti-inflammatory benefits of EA treatment. The hexamethonium chloride (HEX) administration contributes to a notable reduction in the EA capacity to suppress inflammation and enhance motility dysfunction, and EA is ineffective in α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7nAChR) knockout mice., Conclusions: EA at ST36 prevents intestinal inflammation and dysmotility through a neural circuit that requires vagal innervation but is independent of the spleen. Further findings revealed that the process involves enteric neurons mediating the vagal signal and requires the presence of α7nAChR. These findings suggest that utilizing EA at ST36 may represent a possible therapeutic approach for POI and other immune-related gastrointestinal diseases., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.. All rights reserved.)

There has been a scarcity of evidence about iodine nutrition knowledge among women during pregnancy and lactation. The aim of this study was to determine women's iodine knowledge and the relationship between knowledge and iodine status during pregnancy and lactation. Women were recruited from a hospital in the western part of China in the third trimester of pregnancy and followed until the end of the first week of lactation. The women's iodine status was measured by their urinary iodine concentration (UIC) and an iodine-specific, validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Iodine nutrition knowledge was assessed using an iodine nutrition knowledge questionnaire. A total of 200 women (mean age of 29.0 ± 4.2 years) completed the whole study. The majority of the women did not consume enough iodine during both pregnancy and lactation (231.89 vs. 237.26 µg/day). The overall mean iodine knowledge scores in our sample of women during pregnancy and lactation were 4.77 and 4.87, indicating low iodine knowledge. The use of iodized salt and a higher education level were significantly associated with an increased iodine knowledge score. In conclusion, this study reported poor iodine nutrition knowledge in women, highlighting a public health concern. Therefore, the iodine knowledge of women should be improved, possibly via maternal health campaigns to avoid the consequences of iodine deficiency disorders in newborns.

Breast milk iodine concentration (BMIC) is a promising indicator of iodine status in lactating women. However, there are limited data on its usefulness to reflect maternal iodine deficiency. Therefore, the aim of our study was to assess iodine concentration in breast milk and urine samples in exclusively breast-feeding women. Eligible pregnant women undergoing routine antenatal care in a large hospital in Shaanxi Province, China, were followed up from the third trimester of pregnancy until the first week of lactation. Urine samples (20 ml) were collected during pregnancy and lactation. Iodine concentration in samples was measured based on Sandell-Kolthoff reaction. Breast milk samples (5 ml) were provided during lactation. A receiver operating curve (ROC) was constructed to determine the diagnostic performance of BMIC. An iodine-specific FFQ was completed twice during pregnancy and lactation. A total of 200 women completed the study. The overall median BMIC was 89 μg/l, indicating iodine sufficiency (i.e. BMIC reference range between 60 and 465 μg/l). Women reported similar median urinary iodine concentration (UIC) during pregnancy and lactation (112 and 113 μg/l, respectively), but their iodine status differed - mild-to-moderate iodine deficiency during pregnancy and iodine sufficiency during lactation. The ROC for BMIC using UIC as a reference standard was 0·755 (95 % CI: 0·644, 0·866). In conclusion, this study demonstrated that women were iodine sufficient in the first week of lactation as assessed by UIC, which was consistent with BMIC. These findings suggested that BMIC is a useful biomarker to assess iodine status in lactating women.

We developed a highly sensitive and stable SERS-active substrate of Au@Ag@Ag core/shell/shell nanorods, formed by encapsulating Au nanorods (Au NRs) into a bilayer silver shell with Raman reporter molecules (4-mercaptobenzoic acid (4-MBA) and thiram) in the shell-shell gap. The core/shell/shell nanostructures demonstrated a high SERS enhancement and easy assembly. The important role of the bilayer silver shell in boosting the SERS intensity and detection sensitivity was revealed by comparing the performances of the Au@Ag@4-MBA@Ag NRs, Au@Ag@4-MBA NRs, and Au@4-MBA NRs. The obtained Au@Ag@4-MBA@Ag NRs exhibited a significantly promoted SERS intensity, which could reach around 2.6 times and 240 times that of the Au@Ag@4-MBA NRs and Au@4-MBA NRs, where the enhancement factor was found to be strongly correlated with the shell thickness. The controllable plasma properties and SERS effect of the Au@Ag@4-MBA@Ag NRs could be optimized by adjusting the dose of silver nitrate. The SERS substrate comprising core/shell/shell nanorods was highly reproducible and stable (retaining 83% SERS intensity after one month). Moreover, the highly sensitive detection of the pesticide thiram with a detection limit as low as 1.74 × 10 -9 M was achieved by taking advantage of the great SERS response of the core/shell/shell nanostructures, which was 1-2 orders of magnitude lower than for other SERS substrates. The developed SERS substrate could be readily extended to embed other target analytes into the core/shell/shell nanostructure for novel and sensitive detection. This study could enable fresh approaches toward next-generation ultrasensitive analyte detection.

Due to a combination of lifestyle risk factors, the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been increasing in China, affecting an estimated 330 million people. Environmental risk factors can exacerbate these risks or independently contribute to CVD. Ozone is an overlooked and invisible risk factor, and it plays a significant role in the development of CVD. Our study provides a novel quantification of the ozone-attributable CVD mortality burden based on daily maximum 8-h average ozone concentration during May to October (6mDMA8) in Chinese adults in 2050, projected under Shared Socioeconomic Pathways 585 and 126, and using the updated WHO air quality guideline level. The study also considers the contributions made by changes in ozone exposure, population aging, population size, and baseline death rates of CVD between 2019 and 2050. While adopting a sustainable and green pathway (SSP 126) can reduce the projected magnitude of premature CVD deaths to 359,200 in 2050, it may not be sufficient to reduce the CVD mortality burden significantly. Therefore, it is crucial to implement strategies for stricter ozone control and reducing the baseline death rate of CVD to mitigate the impacts of ozone on Chinese adults.

The estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) signaling pathway is a crucial target for ERα-positive breast cancer therapeutic strategies. Co-regulators and other transcription factors cooperate for effective ERα-related enhancer activation. Recent studies demonstrate that the transcription factor CTCF is essential to participate in ERα/E2-induced enhancer transactivation. However, the mechanism of how CTCF is achieved remains unknown. Here, we provided evidence that BAP18 is required for CTCF recruitment on ERα-enriched enhancers, facilitating CTCF-mediated chromatin accessibility to promote enhancer RNAs transcription. Consistently, GRO-seq demonstrates that the enhancer activity is positively correlated with BAP18 enrichment. Furthermore, BAP18 interacts with SMARCA1/BPTF to accelerate the recruitment of CTCF to ERα-related enhancers. Interestingly, BAP18 is involved in chromatin accessibility within enhancer regions, thereby increasing enhancer transactivation and enhancer-promoter looping. BAP18 depletion increases the sensitivity of anti-estrogen and anti-enhancer treatment in MCF7 cells. Collectively, our study indicates that BAP18 coordinates with CTCF to enlarge the transactivation of ERα-related enhancers, providing a better understanding of BAP18/CTCF coupling chromatin remodeling and E-P looping in the regulation of enhancer transcription., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to ADMC Associazione Differenziamento e Morte Cellulare.)

A big gap exists between current air quality in China and the World Health Organization (WHO) global air quality guidelines (AQG) released in 2021. Previous studies on air pollution control have focused on emission reduction demand in China but ignored the influence of transboundary pollution, which has been proven to have a significant impact on air quality in China. Here, we develop an emission-concentration response surface model coupled with transboundary pollution to quantify the emission reduction demand for China to achieve WHO AQG. China cannot achieve WHO AQG by its own emission reduction for high transboundary pollution of both PM 2.5 and O 3 . Reducing transboundary pollution will loosen the reduction demand for NH 3 and VOCs emissions in China. However, to meet 10 μg·m -3 for PM 2.5 and 60 μg·m -3 for peak season O 3 , China still needs to reduce its emissions of SO 2 , NO x , NH 3 , VOCs, and primary PM 2.5 by more than 95, 95, 76, 62, and 96% respectively, on the basis of 2015. We highlight that both extreme emission reduction in China and great efforts in addressing transboundary air pollution are crucial to reach WHO AQG.

Hydrocolloids are among the most common components in the food industry, which are used for thickening, gel formation, emulsification, and stabilization. Previous studies have also found that hydrocolloids can affect the structures and properties of gluten proteins, dough, and flour products. In this review, hydrocolloids were separated into three categories: anionic, nonionic, and other hydrocolloids, and reviewed the effects of common hydrocolloids on gluten proteins, dough, and flour products. Hydrocolloids can affect the structures and properties of gluten proteins through gluten-hydrocolloids interaction, secondary structures, disulfide bonds, environment of aromatic amino acids, and chemical bonds. The properties of dough are affected by rheological, fermentation, and thermomechanical properties. Hydrocolloids are widely used in bread, Chinese steamed bread, noodles, yellow layer cake, and so on, which mainly affect their appearance, texture, and aging speed. This comprehensive review provides a scientific guide for the development and utilization of hydrocolloids and their applications in flour products, and provides a theoretical basis for improving the processing characteristics of products., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

USP14 deubiquitinates ERα to maintain its stability in ECEndometrial cancer (EC) is one of the common gynecological malignancies of which the incidence has been rising for decades. It is considered that continuously unopposed estrogen exposure is the main risk factor for EC initiation. Thus, exploring the modulation of estrogen/estrogen receptor α (ERα) signaling pathway in EC would be helpful to well understand the mechanism of EC development and find the potential target for EC therapy. Ubiquitin-specific peptidase 14 (USP14), a member of the proteasome-associated deubiquitinating enzyme family, plays a crucial role in a series of tumors. However, the function of USP14 in EC is still elusive. Here, our results have demonstrated that USP14 is highly expressed in EC tissues compared with that in normal endometrial tissues, and higher expression of USP14 is positively correlated with poor prognosis. Moreover, USP14 maintains ERα stability through its deubiquitination activity. Our results further demonstrate that USP14 depletion decreases the expression of ERα-regulated genes in EC-derived cell lines. Moreover, knockdown of USP14 or USP14-specific inhibitor treatment significantly suppresses cell growth and migration in EC cell lines or in mice. We further provide the evidence to show that the effect of USP14 on EC cell growth, if not all, at least is partially related to ERα pathway. Our study provides new sights for USP14 to be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of EC, especially for EC patients with fertility preservation needs., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest with the contents of this article., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Phenolic acids are antioxidant nutrients in cereals and affect the quality of wheat products and the properties of gluten protein. Gallic acid (GA), caffeic acid (CA), syringic acid (SA), and p-coumaric acid (p-CA) were selected to study the interaction mechanism between cereal phenolic acids and gluten protein., Results: The results showed that adding GA significantly (P < 0.05) decreased the content of free sulfhydryl in gluten proteins by 70-87.26% compared with the control group. The aggregates' behavior of gluten protein induced by adding the phenolic acids would produce oversized particles (>5000 nm). Adding the selected phenolic acids changed the hydrogen-bond linkage of protein secondary structure. Zeta potential values of gluten protein increased significantly (P < 0.05) by 14.41%, 26.49%, 30.77%, and 57.93% for CA, p-CA, GA, and SA respectively added at 0.03 g kg -1 . Moreover, the gluten protein surface hydrophobicity increased when the phenolic acids were added at 0.03 g kg -1 , displaying the effect of the phenolic acid on the hydrophobic interaction of protein. Molecular docking results showed that the selected phenolic acids could interact with glutenin and gliadin using hydrogen-bond formation, and SA had the strongest binding with glutenin and gliadin., Conclusion: The results demonstrated that the selected phenolic acids could interact with gluten protein via covalent cross-linking as well as by hydrogen bonding, thereby changing the structure of the gluten protein. This exploration is expected to provide theoretical support for the development and utilization of whole-grain foods. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry., (© 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.)

Background: Iodine is needed for the production of thyroid hormones, which are essential for infant growth and development. Given that there are wide variations in breast milk iodine concentration (BMIC) and urinary iodine concentration (UIC), it is unclear if BMIC is associated with UIC in populations residing in iodine sufficient or deficient areas. Aim: To investigate if BMIC can be used as a biomarker for iodine status in lactating women and children <2 years of age. Methods: Electronic databases; PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus were searched until year 2021, for studies investigating the relationship between BMIC and UIC. Studies were reviewed for eligibility, according to inclusion and exclusion criteria, followed by data extraction, according to the PRISMA guidelines. Results: Overall, 51 studies met the criteria for inclusion in the systematic review. BMIC ranged from 18 to 1153 µg/L. In iodine-deficient and iodine-sufficient lactating women, BMIC ranged from 26 to 185 µg/L and 15 to 1006 µg/L, respectively. In most studies, the categorisation of iodine status assessed by median UIC was consistent with the categorisation of iodine status assessed by median BMIC cut off of ≥100 µg/L, to determine iodine sufficiency in lactating women and children <2 years of age. Conclusions: The systematic review indicated that BMIC is a promising biomarker of iodine status in lactating women and children <2 years of age. However, these data need to be interpreted cautiously, given the study limitations in the included studies. Future studies should consider investigating the optimal median BMIC, as there is a lack of high-quality observational and intervention studies in lactating women and infants.

Serious ambient PM 2.5 and O 3 pollution is one of the most important environmental challenges of China, necessitating an urgent cost-effective cocontrol strategy. Herein, we introduced a novel integrated assessment system to optimize a NO x and volatile organic compound (VOC) control strategy for the synergistic reduction of ambient PM 2.5 and O 3 pollution. Focusing on the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cities and their surrounding regions, which are experiencing the most serious PM 2.5 and O 3 pollution in China, we found that NO x emission reduction (64-81%) is essential to attain the air quality standard no matter how much VOC emission is reduced. However, the synergistic VOC control is strongly recommended considering its substantially human health and crop production benefits, which are estimated up to 163 (PM 2.5 -related) and 101 (O 3 -related) billion CHY during the reduction of considerable emissions. Notably, such benefits will be greatly reduced if the synergistic VOC reduction is delayed. This study also highlights the necessity of simultaneous VOC and NO x emission control in winter while enhancing the NO x control in the summer, which is contrary to the current control strategy adopted in China. These findings point out the right pathways for future policy making on comitigating PM 2.5 and O 3 pollution in China and other countries.

Farmland consolidation is an effective tool to improve farmland infrastructures, soil quality, and sustain a healthy farmland ecosystem and rural population, generating contributions to food security and regional sustainable development. Previous studies showed that farmland consolidation regulates soil physical and chemical properties. Soil microorganisms also play an important role in soil health and crop performance; however, few studies reported how farmland consolidation influence soil microecology. Here, we used DNA sequencing technology to compare bacterial community structure in farmlands with and without consolidation. DNA sequencing technology is the most advanced technology used to obtain biological information in the world, and it has been widely used in the research of soil micro-ecological environment. In September 2018, we collected soil samples in Jiashan County, Zhejiang Province, China, and used DNA sequence technology to compare the bacterial community structure in farmlands with and without consolidation. Our results found that (1) farmland consolidation had significant impacts on soil microbial characteristics, which were mainly manifested as changes in microbial biomass, microbial diversity and community structure. Farmland consolidation can increase the relative abundance of the three dominant bacteria phyla and the three fungal dominant phyla, but it also negatively affects the relative abundance of the six dominant bacteria phyla and the three fungal dominant phyla. (2) Farmland consolidation had an indirect impact on soil bacterial community structure by adjusting the soil physical and chemical properties. (3) The impact of heavy metals on bacterial community structure varied significantly under different levels of heavy metal pollution in farmland consolidation areas. There were 6, 3, 3, and 5 bacterial genera that had significant correlations with heavy metal content in cultivated land with low pollution, light pollution, medium pollution, and heavy pollution, respectively. The number of heavy metal-tolerant bacteria in the soil generally increased first and then decreased under heavy metal polluted conditions. Our study untangled the relationship between varied farmland consolidation strategies and bacteria through soil physcicochemical properties and metal pollution conditions. Our results can guide farmland consolidation strategies and sustain soil health and ecological balance in agriculture.

Microplastic pollution in aquatic environment has raised concern and as a result a number of studies have recently been published to find solutions for its rapid increase. Different methods have been proposed for microplastic identification. Spectral imaging shows a lot of promise for polymer identification; however, the identification time needs to be improved. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) combined with chemometric analysis can reduce the identification times. In this study, we provide a review of recent studies related to polymer identification using HSI with a focus on the adopted classification algorithm and its factors for the online implementation of HSI. Furthermore, we review the limit of detection by HSI and the effect of particle size on classification accuracy. Additionally, performance of this method for various types of samples is also discussed. We conclude that HSI is possible to be a fast alternative for online microplastic detection., (© 2020. Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

With no lysine 4 (WNK4) is a serine/threonine kinase, which is expressed in the kidney and associated with salt-sensitive hypertension. However, how salt regulates WNK4 remains unclear. In the present study, the C57BL/6 mice and HEK293 cells were treated with high salt and the expression of WNK4 protein and its ubiquitination and phosphorylation levels were detected. Western blotting demonstrated that WNK4 expression was significantly increased in high salt-treated mice and cells. Meanwhile, co-immunoprecipitation analysis demonstrated that the ubiquitination of WNK4 was decreased under high-salt simulation. It was also identified that the Lys-1023 site was the most important ubiquitination site for WNK4, and it was found that phosphorylation at the Ser-1022 site was a prerequisite for ubiquitination. These results suggested that there was crosstalk between phosphorylation and ubiquitination in the WNK4 protein, and high salt may downregulate its phosphorylation and, in turn, decrease its ubiquitination, leading to a decrease in WNK4 degradation. This eventually resulted in an increase in the abundance of WNK4 protein., (Copyright © 2020, Spandidos Publications.)

The cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway (CAP) is an important neuroimmunomodulatory mechanism that innervates the spleen through vagus nerve efferent and splenic nerve relay, and acts on macrophages by transforming adrenergic stimulation into cholinergic signal by spleen T cells, which plays an anti-inflammatory effect, and maintains the balance of inflammatory response. Due to the critical role of the imbalance of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory responses in the physiological process of sepsis, regulating the activity of the CAP has become an important focus in the treatments of sepsis. Based on the understanding of the CAP, vagus nerve stimulation, drug agonists mimicking cholinergic signals, and acupuncture are currently applied in the research and exploration of sepsis treatment. This article summarizes the recent progress and prospects of the CAP mechanism, biological effects, and application in sepsis treatment.

We designed a self-administered 20-item questionnaire to determine changes in attitudes towards wildlife consumption in Chinese adults during the SARS epidemic in 2002-2003 and on-going COVID-19 pandemic that was first identified in December 2019. A total of 348 adults (177 males and 171 females) with a mean age of 29.4 ± 8.5 years participated, the majority (66.7%) from Hubei. The percentages of participants who had eaten wildlife significantly decreased from 27.0% during SARS to 17.8% during COVID-19 ( P  = 0.032). The most common reason participants provided for consuming wildlife was to try something novel (64.9% during SARS and 54.8% during COVID-19). More than half of participants (≥53.5%) reported that they had stopped eating wildlife meat because most species of wildlife are legally protected. Our study results indicate over the period between the SARS epidemic to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, attitudes towards the consumption of wildlife in China have changed significantly., Competing Interests: Conflict of InterestThe authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020.)

Long-range transport of air pollutants may cause significant health impacts in the receptor regions. In this study, we calculated the transboundary health impact from different foreign regions using a state-of-the-art air quality model at hemispheric scale. Our results reveal that transboundary PM 2.5 pollution from outside China was of great significance, causing 100 thousand (95% CI, 45 thousand-200 thousand) premature deaths in China in 2015, which accounted for 9.60% PM 2.5 related premature death in China. The impact of transboundary pollution in China was most significant in winter, in which the average PM 2.5 concentration increased by 3.7 μg/m 3 , and was least significant in summer, with the average PM 2.5 concentration increasing by 0.5 μg/m 3 . Liaoning and Yunnan provinces were extremely susceptible to transboundary pollution, whose annual average PM 2.5 concentrations were increased by 10.2 and 11.4 μg/m 3 respectively. Among all foreign regions, the impact from South Asia was most significant, causing 30 thousand (95% CI, 12 thousand-62 thousand) premature deaths annually in China. This study only reveals the transboundary impact under the integrated exposure-response (IER) model and fixed meteorology field in 2015. Further studies are needed to investigate how different exposure-response functions and meteorology affect the transboundary PM 2.5 pollution and its related death., (Copyright © 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Serine proteinases play important roles in innate immunity and insect development. We isolated a serine proteinase gene, designated AccSp10, from the Chinese honeybees (Apis cerana cerana). RT-qPCR and a Western blot analysis at different pupal development stages indicated that AccSp10 might be involved in melanin formation in pupae and promote pupal development. In adult workers, the expression of AccSp10 was upregulated by treatments mimicking harmful environments such as the presence of Bacillus bombysepticus, different temperatures (4, 24 and 42 °C), HgCl 2 , H 2 O 2 and paraquat; the exception was treatment with VC (vitamin C), which did not upregulate AccSp10 expression. Western blot confirmed the results. A disc diffusion assay indicated that recombinant AccSp10 accelerated E. coli cell death during stimulation with harmful substances (HgCl 2 , paraquat and cumene hydroperoxide). These findings suggest that AccSp10 may be involved in the pupal development of Chinese honeybees and protection against microorganisms and abiotic harms.

Vaccinia virus (VACV) is an established vector for vaccination and is beginning to prove effective as an oncolytic agent. Industrial production of VACV stands to benefit in future from advances made by synthetic biology in genome engineering and standardisation. The CV-1 cell line can be used for VACV propagation and has been used extensively with the CRISPR/Cas9 system for making precise edits of the VACV genome. Here we take first steps toward establishing a scalable synthetic biology platform for VACV production with CV-1 cells featuring standardised biological tools and serum free cell cultivation. We propose a new BioBrick™ plasmid backbone format for inserting transgenes into VACV. We then test the performance of CV-1 cells in propagation of a conventional recombinant Lister strain VACV, VACVL-15 RFP, in a serum-free process. CV-1 cells grown in 5% foetal bovine serum (FBS) Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM) were adapted to growth in OptiPRO and VP-SFM brands of serum-free media. Specific growth rates of 0.047 h -1 and 0.044 h -1 were observed for cells adapted to OptiPRO and VP-SFM respectively, compared to 0.035 h -1 in 5% FBS DMEM. Cells adapted to OptiPRO and to 5% FBS DMEM achieved recovery ratios of over 96%, an indication of their robustness to cryopreservation. Cells adapted to VP-SFM showed a recovery ratio of 82%. Virus productivity in static culture, measured as plaque forming units (PFU) per propagator cell, was 75 PFU/cell for cells in 5% FBS DMEM. VP-SFM and OptiPRO adaptation increased VACV production to 150 PFU/cell and 350 PFU/cell respectively. Boosted PFU/cell from OptiPRO-adapted cells persisted when 5% FBS DMEM or OptiPRO medium was observed during the infection step and when titre was measured using cells adapted to 5% FBS DMEM or OptiPRO medium. Finally, OptiPRO-adapted CV-1 cells were successfully cultivated using Cytodex-1 microcarriers to inform future scale up studies.

Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) are an important family of multifunctional enzymes in aerobic organisms. They play a crucial role in the detoxification of exogenous compounds, especially insecticides, and protection against oxidative stress. Most previous studies of GSTs in insects have largely focused on their role in insecticide resistance. Here, we isolated a theta class GST gene designated AccGSTT1 from Apis cerana cerana and aimed to explore its antioxidant and antibacterial attributes. Analyses of homology and phylogenetic relationships suggested that the predicted amino acid sequence of AccGSTT1 shares a high level of identity with the other hymenopteran GSTs and that it was conserved during evolution. Quantitative real-time PCR showed that AccGSTT1 is most highly expressed in adult stages and that the expression profile of this gene is significantly altered in response to various abiotic stresses. These results were confirmed using western blot analysis. Additionally, a disc diffusion assay showed that a recombinant AccGSTT1 protein may be roughly capable of inhibiting bacterial growth and that it reduces the resistance of Escherichia coli cells to multiple adverse stresses. Taken together, these data indicate that AccGSTT1 may play an important role in antioxidant processes under adverse stress conditions.