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This study was conducted using the data from 2015 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). Gender-specific association between nighttime sleep duration (NSD) and falls were evaluated through multiple logistic regression by adjusting for confounding variables. Of the 22,899 respondents, 18,446 were eligible and 3,144 (16.99%) had more than a single fall. Short and long NSD were associated with high occurrences of falls in the total and female population, but only a short NSD was associated with a high occurrence of falls in the male population. In conclusion, NSD was strongly and significantly associated with falls, but the association was gender-specific. Accordingly, increasing targeted, evidence-based and gender-specific preventions for NSD and sleep disturbance are necessary among primary care interventions to prevent falls.

Ischemia–reperfusion (IR) injury is a serious concern in the treatment of coronary heart disease. Recently, aerobic glycolysis has shown potential benefits against IR injury. Scutellarin (Scu), a flavonoid found in Erigeron breviscapus has multiple potentially cardio-protective properties. In this study, we used hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) injury to mimic IR injury in vitro. First, we evaluated the protective effects of Scu against HR in H9c2 cells, which included inflammation damage, apoptosis injury and oxidative stress. Then, we verified the effects of Scu on Warburg effect in H9c2 cells under HR injury. The results indicated that Scu increased aerobic glycolysis by reducing pH, increasing lac, enhancing phosphofructokinase (PFK) activity, and elevating p-PKM2/PKM2 levels. Next, we built a panel of six lncRNAs and seventeen miRNAs that were reported to mediate the Warburg effect. Based on the results, miR-34c-5p was selected as the entry point for further experiments. Then, we found Scu could alleviate HR-induced elevation of miR-34c-5p. Up-regulation of miR-34c-5p could weaken the protective effects of Scu in cell viability, inflammatory damage and oxidative stress. The facilitation of Warburg effect by Scu was also reversed by miR-34c-5p mimic in H9c2 cells. Next, we found the mRNA and protein of ALDOA were reduced after HR injury, and these could be reversed by Scu. Downregulation of ALDOA or Mimic of miR-34c-5p could reduce the effects of Scu that maintained mRNA and protein levels of ALDOA. SiRNA of ALDOA could decrease anti-HR effects of Scu in H9c2 cell. Summarily, our study demonstrated that Scu provides cardio-protective effects against IR-induced myocardial cell injury by upregulating Warburg effect via miR-34c-5p/ALDOA pathway in H9c2 cell model.

Background Intrinsic capacity can better reflects the physical functioning of older adults, however, few studies have been able to systematically and thoroughly examine its influencing factors and provide limited evidence for improvement of intrinsic capacity. This study aimed to describe the status of intrinsic capacity of older adults in the community, compare the decline rate of older adults, explore the its influencing factors, and analyze the correlation between each of the five domains of intrinsic capacity and the factors. Methods This was a cross-sectional study conducted in the Chinese community. The self-designed general characteristics questionnaire was created based on the healthy aging framework and a systematic review. Intrinsic capacity was assessed with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), self-reported visual and hearing status, Mini Nutritional Assessment Brief Form (MNA-SF), and Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB). The influencing factors of intrinsic capacity were investigated using stepwise logistic regression. The correlation between the five domains of intrinsic capacity and the factors using Spearman correlation. Results A total of 968 older adults with a mean age of 71.00 (68.00, 76.75) were examined, and 704 older adults (72.7%) showed a decline in intrinsic capacity. There was a decline in at least one domain in 39.3% of older adults, with declines in each domain ranging from 5.3% (psychological) to 52.4% (sensory). Older adults had a higher risk of intrinsic capacity decline if they were 75–89 years old (95% CI: 1.153–2.293), had a low education level (95% CI: 0.284–0.652), lived alone (95% CI: 1.130–3.210), smoked (95% CI: 0.307–0.858), high Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) (95% CI: 1.246–1.810) scores, did not regular exercise (95% CI: 0.324–0.869), with lower handgrip strength (95% CI: 0.946–0.983). All the above factors influenced most of the domains of intrinsic capacity except smoking, and CCI can negatively influenced all domains of intrinsic capacity. Conclusions We found a relatively high prevalence of intrinsic capacity; more attention should be paid to olde adults who are older, less educated, live alone, and have more comorbidities. A healthy lifestyle should be emphasized for older adults with smoking, no regular exercise, and low handgrip strength.

BackgroundThe present study aimed to investigate the prevalence status, physiological, psychological, and social participation status of the elderly with sarcopenia in the Urumqi community and provide a solid foundation for the later development of effective intervention strategies using the theory of healthy aging. MethodsFrom July 2019 to July 2020, a stratified random cluster sampling method was used to investigate the elderly aged 60 and above who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria in HongShiYue, RiYue XingGuang, and the leather factory community of Urumqi City, Xinjiang. The sarcopenia was assessed using the Ishii screening scale. The general information questionnaire, MNA nutritional status of the elderly in the community, PHQ-9 depression scale, GAD-7 anxiety scale, and Social Participation Questionnaire of the elderly were investigated.ResultsThe prevalence rate of sarcopenia was 38.8%. We found that nutritional status, depressive symptoms, and social participation status directly affected sarcopenia, with the corresponding effect values being -0.322, -0.096, and 0.093. This was done by creating a structural equation model of the effects of nutritional status, psychological status, and social participation status on sarcopenia.ConclusionCommunity health care professionals should evaluate the early active prevention and intervention of sarcopenia in the elderly. In order to provide psychological and social support for the elderly to achieve healthy aging and improve their quality of life in old age, the public should take more care of the elderly, pay attention to their mental health, and improve their physical condition.

Background Although several neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPSs) have been demonstrated to have value in the prediction of the progression of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to dementia, these symptoms are less studied for the prediction of the transition from normal cognition (NC) to MCI. Methods Prospective cohort studies were included if they reported on at least one NPS at baseline and had MCI as the outcome. Results We obtained 13 cohort studies with a total population of 33,066. Depression was the most common neuropsychiatric symptom and could significantly predict transition to MCI (RR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.13–1.86). However, depression was more capable of predicting amnestic MCI (RR=1.43, 95% CI: 1.04-1.83) than non-aMCI (RR= 0.96, 95% CI 95% CI: 0.60-1.33). Subgroup analysis suggested that the association between depression and MCI changed with depression severity, depression criteria, apolipoprotein-E-adjusted status, age, the percentage of females, and follow-up times, but some data were too sparse for a reliable estimate. Regarding other NPSs, there were insufficient data to assess their effect on the development of MCI. However, apathy, anxiety, sleep disturbances, irritability, and agitation might be risk factors for the prediction of NC-MCI transition with strong predictive value. Conclusions Depression was associated with an approximately 1.5-fold sincreased risk of the progression to MCI in the population with normal cognition. Other NPSs with underlying predictive value deserve more attention.

It is very important to control methane emissions to reduce global warming. In this study, a new attempt of one oxidant (potassium peroxymonosulfate (PMS)) was made to adjust the oxidation-reduction potential (Eh) by adding different mass of (0 g, 31.25 g, 62.5 g, 125 g, 250 g and 500 g) for the reduction of methane emissions from integrated vertical-flow constructed wetland (IVCW), where the IVCW system has been divided into the root-water system and the stem-leaf system of methane emissions. Results show that the reduced CH

It is very important to control methane emissions to reduce global warming. In this study, an attempt was made to adjust the oxidation-reduction potential (Eh) by adding different mass of potassium peroxymonosulfate (PMS) (0 g, 31.25 g, 62.5 g, 125 g, 250 g and 500 g) to reduce methane from integrated vertical-flow constructed wetlands (IVCW). Results show that the reduced CH4 emission from IVCW was the highest with decreased by 43.5% compared to blank group (PMS=0), when adding 125g PMS. Importantly, the reduced CH4 from the root-water system of IVCW was higher than that of the stem-leaf system of IVCW, when adding PMS. It’s found that Eh not only has a significant correlation with CH4 flux, but also has a significant relationship between PMS quality, DO, water temperature and sampling time (yEh= -0.44XPMS + 6.82XDO + 0.38t - 264.1, R2 = 0.99). It concludes that PMS, as an oxidant, is a very feasible method for controlling methane emissions from IVCW. Further research may combine other methods such as microbiology, physical control and hydrology control for mitigating the CH4 emissions from constructed wetlands.

Anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) mediated by microorganisms plays an important role in the global carbon cycle and methane emission control. This study demonstrated that simultaneous multi-electron acceptor-driven AOM existed in the electroactive constructed wetland environment of freshwater, which is crucial to global carbon, sulfur, nitrogen cycles and the manganese, iron, humics reduction. This biochemical process was mediated by two anaerobic methanotrophic archaea (ANME) jointly, ANME-2a and ANME-2d. Better removal efficiency of sulfate (45.65±3.47%), ammonium nitrogen (96.48±3.82%) and COD (94.83±5.89%) was observed in CW-MFC with AOM driven by multi-electron acceptor (CW-MFC_Mn). In addition, the methane emissions from CW-MFC with sulfate and nitrogen dependent AOM were reduced by 57.50% in presence of manganese ore, suggesting that multi-electron acceptors-driven AOM can effectively control methane emissions. The transformation of manganese oxide in wetland manganese ore was studied, and almost no Mn (Ⅱ) residue was detected in the effluent, indicating the potential role of Mn-dependent AOM in manganese pollution removal. This study also revealed the interactions of methanogenesis, electrogenesis, multi-electron acceptor-driven AOM and dissimilatory metal reduction (DMR) involved in CW-MFC, in which Geobacter played a crucial role in the association of various biological reactions. This study not only expands the understanding of AOM in nature, but also proposed a novel sight to simultaneously control wetland methane emissions, manganese, sulfur, and nitrogen pollution.

This paper aims to investigate the methane emissions from typical urban and rural constructed wetlands (CWs) associated with methanogen diversity using Illumina sequencing in microcosms from five different CWs planted with Cyperus alternifolius L. The results show that the average CH4 flux in summer in these five CWs was 0.33 gCH4 m−2 day−1, with a range of 0.01–1.52 g CH4 m−2 day−1 ((GWP: global warming potential) = 0.28–42.72 kg CO2eq m−2 year−1). Redundancy analysis (RDA) shows that methane fluxes were mostly impacted by local temperature (Ymethane = 4.66 Xtemp - 102.63, R2 = 0.81), which is considered to be a key environmental factor. The dissolved oxygen of all CWs showed a significantly negative correlation with CH4 emissions (R2 = −0.99, p = 0.01). Both the species richness index and species diversity index showed that Methanobacteria was the predominant class, with percentages ranging from 16.47% to 26.66% in the five CWs. The percentage of Methanomicrobia was 15.42–24.98% in the five CWs, and Methanococci was only found in the FengHuang constructed wetland. Other findings suggest that Methanomicrobiales in the Anlong Village constructed wetland was a dominant order and similar to a local paddy ecosystem in the Chengdu Plain.

Dyes and drugs with high toxicity and low biodegradability pose risk to human health and ecological security, and should be purified efficiently from effluents before discharge. Traditional adsorbents are limited by the insufficient active adsorption sites and low stability. In this study, a novel aminated magnetic adsorbent (MCTs) was fabricated via two cross-linking steps using chitosan and triethylenetetramine to fill the gaps between current adsorbent and performance requirements. The morphological and physicochemical characteristics of the as-prepared MCTs were determined and identified with the aid of several characterization techniques. The adsorption performance of dyes and drugs was also investigated and represented by their adsorption capacities. In particular, the adsorption capacities of Congo Red, Chicago Sky Blue, Reactive Brilliant Red, and Ibuprofen were 583.11, 465.01, 403.12, and 291.71 mg/g, respectively. They also remained at around 80% after four reuse cycles. MCTs were adsorbed via a monolayer spontaneous chemical reaction, and hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interaction were the dominant adsorption mechanisms. These results demonstrated that the preparation of MCTs via two cross-linking steps enhanced the adsorbents’ adsorption capacity, reusability, and stability. They provided a new perspective for the preparation of high-efficient adsorbents and the purification of dye- and drug-polluted wastewater.

Nitrogen removal from agricultural surface runoff is of great significance to protect the water quality and safety of groundwater and drinking water. The denitrification bioreactor uses wood-particle products and municipal sludge as solid carbon sources to treat agricultural surface runoff and the rule of total nitrogen produced by wood-particle products is still blank. In this study, a type of denitrification bioreactor with municipal sludge (MS) and Cunninghamia lanceolata sawdust (CLS) as solid carbon source to denitrify simulated agricultural surface runoff is designed. Results show that CLS can release approximately 0.86 ± 0.06 mg L−1 of nitrogen into the water, and the release process conforms to Non-Fickian transport (n = 0.46). The addition of MS is beneficial to increase the average degradation rate of NH4+-N (70.94%). Increasing the inflow rate is beneficial to increase the average degradation rate of NO2−-N, NO3−-N and TN. When the influent flow is 1.34 mL min−1, the average degradation rate of NO2−-N is as high as 61.61% while of TN is 86.04% in the CLS horizontal flow denitrification bioreactor. The average degradation rate of NO3−-N of CLS and MS (sludge-water volume ratio = 1:2) folded plate denitrification bioreactor is 95.72%, which is 17.46% higher than the horizontal flow type. Based on the principle of cleaner production, this study recycles waste CLS and MS as solid carbon sources in the bioreactor to continuously treat and simulate agricultural surface runoff. The device can not only degrade high-concentration nitrogen, but also prevent the generation of waste and waste of energy, which is a new surface runoff pollution control technology.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) produced by denitrification bioreactors in processing agricultural surface runoff have contributed to increasing proportion of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions. It is the first time to monitor and quantify the emission flux of CO2 and CH4 produced by laboratory-scale denitrification bioreactors which recycled waste Cunninghamia lanceolata sawdust (CLS) and industrial sludge (IS) as fillers to process simulated agricultural surface runoff. Sludge-water ratio, inflow rate and water flow direction are used as experimental factors to study the effect on the emission flux of CO2 and CH4. Results show that emission flux of CO2 from denitrification bioreactors with different sludge-water ratio approached 20 mg m−2h−1, simultaneously the average emission flux of CH4 produced by all bioreactors was 1.785 mg m−2h−1. The addition of sludge increased the emission flux of CH4 and had no significant effect on the emission flux of CO2. Increasing the inflow rate reduced the CO2 emission flux from 21.57 to 1.27 mg m−2h−1, and at the same time increased the CH4 emission flux from 0.007 to 9.54 mg m−2h−1. The gravity flow of wastewater reduced the emission flux of CO2 and CH4. The emissions of CO2 and CH4 from folded plate denitrification bioreactor with CLS and industrial sludge with a volume ratio of 1:2 can be reduced by 24.67% and 73.3%, respectively. There was no need to add special gas collection and treatment devices because CO2 and CH4 emission fluxes produced by the folded plate denitrification bioreactor and gravity denitrification bioreactor are not enough to increase the greenhouse effect. This study quantified the CO2 and CH4 produced by denitrification bioreactors filling CLS and IS, and provided a reference for future research on the gases produced by the denitrification process.

Green roof (GF) as an important role of urban ecosystem services is more and more focused on carbon sequestration for the mitigation of climate change, which there is still a gap of longer period of investigation on carbon sequestration on GF. This work aims to quantify the carbon sequestration on green roofs from 2012 to 2017 by measuring and calculating parameter on substrate organic carbon and plant organic carbon, when using waste building material substrate (WBMS) as GF substrate for the recycling of waste solid. Green roof group 2 (waste building material substrate (WBMS) as substrate) and green roof group 1 (local natural soil (LNS) as substrate), planting same three native plants (N. auriculata, L. spicata, and L. vicaryi), were both three substrate depth of 20 cm, 25 cm, and 30 cm, respectively. Results show that both innovative WBMS and LNS were a great capability of carbon sequestration and carbon storage on green roofs. Carbon storage of green roof group 1 and green roof group 2 was 65.6 kg C m−2 and 72.6 kg C m−2, respectively. Annual mean carbon sequestration of the WBMS was 1.8 times higher than LNS. The overall average carbon sequestration (12.8 kg C m−2 year−1) in green roof group 2 using WBMS was 1.1 times than corresponding in green roof group 1 (11.4 kg C m−2 year−1 using LNS). WBMS substrate and L. vicaryi could be considered as the most adaptable green roof configuration, which can be a recommendation to promote the carbon sequestration and the function of green roof for the better urban ecosystem services. Future work may focus on the GF carbon model, water interface, long-term monitoring, environmental impact, water quality and quantity, synthesized effect on GF ecosystem, low impact development (LID), management and simulation, and combination on intelligent urban system, based on LCA.

In the study, an activated carbon was prepared by co-pyrolyzing rice straw and sewage sludge with ZnCl2 activation (SS-RS AC) and used to remove Cr(VI) from wastewater. Firstly, for the preparation of SS-RS AC, the yield and iodine number were used to determine the appropriate addition percentage of rice straw. Then, a series of batch experiments including initial pH, adsorption kinetics and isotherms, and ionic strength as well as Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) analysis of SS-RS AC before and after adsorption were performed to explore the Cr(VI) adsorption removal behavior and mechanism of SS-RS AC prepared from sewage sludge with the appropriate rice straw addition percentage. The results showed that the appropriate addition percentage of rice straw was 20%. For the Cr(VI) adsorption removal with SS-RS AC, the initial pH of solution significantly influenced the removal efficient. The highest efficiency of Cr(VI) adsorption removal (97.7%) could be attained at pH 2.0. The adsorption kinetics and isotherm data were best fitted by the pseudo-second-order model and the Langmuir-Freundlich model, respectively. The prepared SS-RS AC had the maximum Cr(VI) adsorption removal capacity of 138.69 mg/g at 40 °C. The main mechanisms for the Cr(VI) removal with SS-RS AC involve the electrostatic attraction and the reduction of Cr(VI). Carboxy, amine, and hydroxyl groups were found to act as electron donor groups, contributing to the reduction of Cr(VI). The ionic strength had an adverse effect on the Cr(VI) removal. Overall, the prepared SS-RS AC can be used as an alternative and low-cost adsorbent for the removal of Cr(VI).

Green roofs which use sewage sludge to sequestrate urban carbon dioxide may represent a potential opportunity to evaluate carbon sequestration benefits for the urban development under increasing global climate change. In this study, green roofs composed of 6 small green segments with two different substrates, mixed-sewage-sludge substrate (MSSS, volume ratio of sewage sludge and local-natural soil 1:1), and local-natural soil (LNS), three different substrate depths (20 cm, 25 cm and 30 cm), and three types of native plants (Ligustrum vicaryi, Neottia auriculata, and Liriope spicata) in Chengdu City were established to determine carbon sequestration from July 2012 to July 2013 through assessment of the carbon storage and sequestration. Results show that the average carbon storage of MSSS and LNS on green roofs was respectively 13.15 kg C m−2 and 8.58 kg C m−2, and the average carbon sequestration followed the order of LNS (3.89 kg C m−2 yr−1) > MSSS (3.81 kg C m−2 yr−1). Thus MSSS could be considered as a potential material for carbon sequestration. The carbon storage and carbon sequestration by native plants on the green roofs followed the order of L. vicaryi > L. spicata > N. auriculata. The whole green roof had a mean carbon storage of 18.28 kg C m−2 and average carbon sequestration of 6.47 kg C m−2 yr−1 in the combined biomass and substrate organic matter. The best green roof configuration was L. vicaryi together with MSSS substrate, with a middle-high level of carbon sequestration. It will be feasible and worthwhile to scale-up the adaptable green roof configurations in Chengdu World Modern Garden City.

Ischemic stroke is related to a variety of physiological and pathological processes including autophagy and apoptosis. Growth arrest-specific 5 (GAS5), a long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), is known to negatively regulate cell survival and plays a key role in the pathogenesis of numerous diseases. However, the function and molecular mechanism of lncRNA GAS5 in ischemic stroke have not been reported. Real-time PCR was used to detect GAS5 and microRNA-137 (miR-137) expression in the brain tissues of mice underwent middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) surgery and oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD)-treated mouse primary brain neurons. Gain- or loss-of-function approaches were used to manipulate GAS5, miR-137, and Notch1. The mechanism of GAS5 in ischemic stroke was evaluated both in vivo and in vitro via bioinformatics analysis, MTT, flow cytometry, luciferase assay, RNA immunoprecipitation, and Western blot. GAS5 level was up-regulated and negatively correlated with miR-137 expression in MACO-injured brain and in OGR-stimulated primary brain neurons. GAS5 siRNA notably increased the cell viability, suppressed the activation of caspase-3 and cell apoptosis in neurons subjected to OGD. Furthermore, we also found that GAS5 functioned as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-137 to regulate the de-repression of its endogenous target Notch1 and decrease neuron survival through inactivation of the Notch1 signaling pathway. Taken together, these findings indicate that GAS5 may promote the progression of ischemic stroke through acting as a ceRNA for miR-137 to mediate the Notch1 signaling pathway, which contributes to an extensive understanding of ischemic stroke and may provide novel therapeutic options for this disease.

To investigate whether the variations of genes encoding pro-inflammatory cytokines is associated with longevity in Uyghurs in Xinjiang.A total of 240 individuals aged ≥90 years from Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region were enrolled between 1999 and 2012 as the longevity group, 92 unrelated individuals from the same area who died naturally at the age of 59-73 in the same period were selected as the control group. Seven single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of 4 genes (tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α(rs1800629), IL-6(rs1800796, rs10499563), C-reactive protein (CRP) (rs2808630, rs1205) and IL-1β(rs1143623, rs16944)) were genotyped. Logistic regression was applied to assess the association between each individual SNP and longevity in case-control analyses.The distribution of C allele of rs1800796 in the longevity group (0.298) was lower than that in the control group (0.435) with statistical significance (P=0.001). The distributions of the other 6 genetic variations between the longevity group and the control group showed no statistically significant differences (all P0.05). CT genotype of rs1800796 was positively associated with longevity (Padd=0.002, OR=1.983, 95%CI: 1.296-3.023), while no significant association was noted between other genotypes and longevity.SNP of rs1800796 of IL-6 gene may be significantly associated with longevity in Uyghurs in Xinjiang. CT genotype of rs1800796 is significantly associated with longevity. C allele of rs1800796 may be a negative factor for longevity.

In the study, the plant-mix cold recycling technology of foamed asphalt (PCRTFA) was applied to a reconstruction project of a highway in Hainan province, China. The mix proportions of the raw materials and related parameters of PCRTFA were analyzed firstly. Then, the pavement construction test was carried out. After that, the reconstruction project of the highway was performed. At last, the construction technology and quality control were expounded. The case study shows that the PCRTFB can achieve the purpose of reusing resources and save construction costs. This study can provide technical reference for other similar pavement reconstruction projects in Hainan province.

Introduction: The ‘desert people’ or Keriyans are able to maintain normal body functions whilst living in the hot, arid areas of Taklimakan Desert. However, little is known about the adaptive mechanisms in this extreme environment. We explored the relationship between polymorphism of C-344T in the promoter region of the aldosterone synthase gene (CYP11B2) and resting electrocardiogram (ECG) hypervoltage in this population. Materials and methods: The study recruited 503 Keriyans who were living in the Taklimakan Desert and 237 age/gendermatched controls from the Uighurs living in neighbouring villages. Parameters of physical fitness, ECGs, and biochemistry were compared between the two groups. The C-344T single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the promoter region of CYP11B2 was genotyped by polymerase chain reaction based restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and sequencing. Results: The incidence of ECG left ventricular hypervoltage in the Keriyans was significantly higher than that in the controls ( p < 0.001). The frequency of allele 344T was higher in this population than that in the controls (OR = 1.48; 95% CI:1.082—2.023). A higher OR for allele 344T was also seen in Keriyans with ECG left ventricular hypervoltage against those without this finding (OR = 1.557; 95% CI:1.032—2.349). Conclusion: The polymorphism of C-344T in the promoter region of the CYP11B2 gene was associated with ECG left ventricular hypervoltage in the Keriyan population.

Introduction: The Keriyans live in the hot, arid areas of Taklimakan Desert and maintain a primitive way of life. They have a low incidence of hypertension. However, little is known about the adaptive compensation in the organism. In the present study, we explored the the traditional risk factors of hypertension in the Keriyans. Materials and methods: We performed an epidemiological survey of Keriyans in a randomly selected natural popula- tion including 508 individuals aged 16 years or more, using the WHO MONICA scheme and 151 randomly selected age/ gender-matched controls, Uighurs, from the nearest villagers to the Keriyans. Results: The incidence of hypertension in the Keriyans was significantly lower than that in the controls(p

Estuaries have been described as one of the most difficult environments on Earth. It is difficult to know how to treat the combined wastewater in tidal rivers at the estuary, where the situation is very different from ordinary fresh water rivers. Waste oyster shell was used as the active filler in this study in a bio-contact oxidation tank to treat the combined wastewater at the Fengtang Tidal River. With a middle-experimental scale of 360 m3/day, the average removal efficiency of COD, BOD, NH3-N, TP and TSS was 80.05%, 85.02%, 86.59%, 50.58% and 85.32%, respectively, in this bio-contact oxidation process. The living microbes in the biofilms on the waste oyster shell in this bio-contact oxidation tank, which were mainly composed of zoogloea, protozoa and micro-metazoa species, revealed that waste oyster shell as the filler was suitable material for combined wastewater degradation. This treatment method using waste oyster shell as active filler was then applied in a mangrove demonstration area for water quality improvement near the experiment area, with a treatment volume of 5 x 10(3) m3/day. Another project was also successfully applied in a constructed wetland, with a wastewater treatment volume of 1 x 10(3) m3/day. This technology is therefore feasible and can easily be applied on a larger scale.

Objective To explore the sociodemographic patterning of risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in three isolated-based subgroups of the Uyghur population in Xinjiang, China. Design A cross-sectional study. Between 2005 and 2008, a non-probability sampling design method was used to select three specific groups of the Uyghur rural populations based on their potential socioeconomic status (ie, isolated, semi-isolated and open-environment status). Setting Three communities (named Desert, Turpan and Yuli Rob) in Southern Xinjiang autonomous region, China. Participants 1656 people were included in this study. The inclusion criteria were that all participants were 18 years or older, they were descendants of at least three generations living in the same region, and there was no history of intermarriage. Main outcome measures The prevalence of CVD risk factors (ie, tobacco use, alcohol use, obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, diabetes, etc) was assessed. Results Compared with the Desert and Turpan communities, Yuli Rob had the highest levels of obesity, dyslipidemia and hypertension, and the Desert had the lowest levels of CVD risk factors. Age standardisation slightly altered the estimates, though the patterns remained unchanged. Some unique characteristics were also found. For example, the Desert group displayed significantly lower high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC) level compared with Yuli Rob and Turpan groups. The mean values were 0.63, 1.06 and 1.45 mmol/l for men and 0.64, 1.22 and 1.51 mmol/l for women (p