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Abstract Background Pulmonary function tests (PFTs) are an important tool for assessing pulmonary diseases, although clinicians often find it challenging to accurately evaluate the pulmonary function of children. Methods We intend to investigate the association between serum albumin (SA) and lung function among U.S. adolescents. This cross-sectional study included 3,072 adolescents (aged 12 to 19) from 2007 to 2012National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). PFTs, including forced vital capacity (FVC)%predicted, forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1)%predicted, FEV1/FVC%predicted, and maximum mid-expiratory flow (FEF25-75) % predicted, were utilized to assess the association between serum albumin levels and lung function. To explore the potential associations between SA and pulmonary function, we employed multivariate linear regression, subgroup analysis, smoothing curve fitting and threshold effect. Results A positive correlation was observed between serum albumin levels and pulmonary function. In the model with a fully adjusted, each 1 g/dL serum albumin increase in SA corresponded to an increase of 2.69% in FVC%pred, 5.8% in FEV1%pred, 10.99% in FEF25–75%pred and 2.98% in FEV1/FVC%pred. This association between SA and FEV1%pred differed across gender subgroups. A non-linear relationship was observed between SA and FEV1/FVC%pred. Conclusion Our results demonstrated a positive correlation between SA and lung function, suggesting a novel modality for evaluating pulmonary function, specifically in children. Clinical trial number Not applicable.

Abstract Background Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common cancer that causes millions of deaths worldwide each year. At present, numerous studies have confirmed that intestinal microbes play a crucial role in the process of CRC. Additionally, studies have shown that CRC can be divided into several consensus molecular subtypes (CMS) based on tumor gene expression, and CRC microbiomes have been reported related to CMS. However, most previous studies on intestinal microbiome of CRC have only compared patients with healthy controls, without classifying of CRC patients based on intestinal microbial composition. Results In this study, a CRC cohort including 339 CRC samples and 333 healthy controls was selected as the discovery set, and the CRC samples were divided into two subgroups (234 Subgroup1 and 105 Subgroup2) using PAM clustering algorithm based on the intestinal microbial composition. We found that not only the microbial diversity was significantly different (Shannon index, p-value

The objective of this study was to examine the early serum proteomic and inflammatory profiles of weaned piglets subjected to iron deficiency. Twelve healthy piglets (Duroc × Landrace × Large Yorkshire, body weight: 4.96 ± 0.05 kg) were weaned at 21 days of age. Subsequently, these animals were randomly allocated to one of two groups, with six replicates in each group (maintaining a male-to-female ratio of 1:1), the control group (administered 100 mg/kg Fe as FeSO4·H2O) and L-Fe group (no additional Fe supplementation). The results showed that 42 days after initiating, compared with control group, routine blood analysis revealed a reduction in serum iron content, red blood cell (RBC) count, hemoglobin (HGB) content, hematocrit (HCT), and mean corpuscular volume (MCV) (P 0.05). During the early stages of iron deficiency, piglets exhibited increased villus height (VH) and the ratio of VH to crypt depth (CD) in the duodenum (P

Abstract Bitter gourd has numerous health-promoting effects on the human body. However, its use has been greatly limited due to its poor acceptance by consumers, resulting from its strong bitterness. This study investigated the effects of five wall materials, namely, soybean protein isolate, gum arabic, maltodextrin, resistant starch, and a soybean lecithin calcium caseinate mixture, on the physicochemical properties of spray-dried bitter gourd powders. The results showed that all five wall materials reduced the moisture content, water activity, browning degree, agglomeration, and bitterness of the spray-dried bitter gourd powder. Maltodextrin was found to be the most effective at reducing water activity, while soybean protein isolate was best at protecting the colour, and the soybean lecithin calcium caseinate mixture was best at reducing hygroscopicity and masking bitterness. Additionally, all five wall materials improved the preservation of flavonoids, saponins, and vitamin C, with soybean protein isolate being the most effective in improving the total flavonoid retention ratio and the soybean lecithin calcium caseinate mixture being the best in improving the retention ratios of total saponins and vitamin C. The spray-dried bitter gourd powder prepared with soybean protein isolate had the highest antioxidant activity and α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. These results are significant for understanding the relationship between wall materials and the physicochemical properties of spray-dried powder. Additionally, these materials provide bitter gourd product manufacturers with useful guidance for producing high-quality products. Furthermore, the results could provide useful insights for processing fruits with similar product characteristics, thus contributing to the enrichment of food processing knowledge.

Salt expansion and frost heave are the main diseases of salted frozen soil roadbeds. Salt swelling and frost heave disease are closely related to the salted soil water–salt migration, temperature variation, and salt crystallization amount change. This article establishes a coupled model of water, heat, and salt fields based on the capillary model and the unfrozen water characteristic curve. The study shows that the different initial moisture contents have minimal effects on the location of soil salt migration and aggregation. The different initial salt concentrations have a substantial effect on the soil water–salt migration aggregation position; when the concentration of sodium sulfate increases, different from chloride saline soils, the position of the freezing front fluctuates up and down over time. The water–salt migration and aggregation are smaller in the closed condition, where they are reduced by 38% and 20%, respectively.

BackgroundImmune checkpoint inhibitor-associated myocarditis (ICI myocarditis) is an infrequent but potentially fatal immune-related adverse event. This study aimed to identify valuable indicators for risk prediction and evaluation of disease severity and outcomes.MethodsA total of 79 patients with severe or mild ICI myocarditis and 158 controls without post-ICI immune-related adverse events were enrolled in this retrospective study. The clinical application value of a series of simple biomarkers were tested.ResultsHigher levels of the systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), neutrophil-to-eosinophil ratio (NER), aspartate transferase-to-albumin ratio (AAR), and lactic dehydrogenase-to-albumin ratio (LAR) at myocarditis onset were associated with severe disease conditions. In the receiver operating characteristic analysis, biomarkers areas under the curve (AUC) close to or greater than 0.8 were LAR (AUC: 0.810) and AAR (AUC: 0.806). Patients with higher SII, AAR, and LAR also exhibited poorer overall survival. The SII, NER, AAR, and LAR before the last ICI treatment increased relative to baseline in patients with ICI myocarditis, whereas no significant changes in the tested biomarkers were observed in the control group. For SII, AAR, and LAR, high ratios of the biomarker levels before the last ICI to baseline was associated with the incidence of myocarditis.ConclusionsSurveillance of these economical biomarkers during ICI therapy might contribute to the risk prediction of ICI myocarditis, as well as the assessment of disease severity and prognosis.

Abstract Rapid and accurate detection of respiratory virus aerosols is highlighted for virus surveillance and infection control. Here, we report a wireless immunoassay technology for fast (within 10 min), on-site (wireless and battery-free), and sensitive (limit of detection down to fg/L) detection of virus antigens in aerosols. The wireless immunoassay leverages the immuno-responsive hydrogel-modulated radio frequency resonant sensor to capture and amplify the recognition of virus antigen, and flexible readout network to transduce the immuno bindings into electrical signals. The wireless immunoassay achieves simultaneous detection of respiratory viruses such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, influenza A H1N1 virus, and respiratory syncytial virus for community infection surveillance. Direct detection of unpretreated clinical samples further demonstrates high accuracy for diagnosis of respiratory virus infection. This work provides a sensitive and accurate immunoassay technology for on-site virus detection and disease diagnosis compatible with wearable integration.

Remote sensing, particularly satellite-based, can play a valuable role in monitoring areas prone to geohazards. The high spatial and temporal coverage provided by satellite data can be used to reconstruct past events and continuously monitor sensitive areas for potential hazards. This paper presents a range of techniques and methods that were applied for in-depth analysis and utilization of Earth observation data, with a particular emphasis on: (1) detecting mining subsidence, where a novel approach is proposed by combining an improved U-Net model and Interferometry Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) technology. The results showed that the Efficient Channel Attention (ECA) U-Net model performed better than the U-Net (baseline) model in terms of Mean Intersection over Union (MIoU) and Intersection over Union (IoU) indicators; (2) monitoring water conservancy and hydropower engineering. The Xiaolangdi multipurpose dam complex was monitored using Small BAsline Subsets (SBAS) InSAR method on Sentinel-1 time series data and four small regions with high deformation rates were identified on the slope of the reservoir bank on the north side. The dam body also showed obvious deformation with a velocity exceeding 60 mm/a; (3) the evaluation of the potential of InSAR results to integrate monitoring and warning systems for valuable heritage and architectural preservation. The overall outcome of these methods showed that the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques in combination with InSAR data leads to more efficient analysis and interpretation, resulting in improved accuracy and prompt identification of potential hazards; and (4) finally, this study also presents a method for detecting landslides in mountainous regions, using optical imagery. The new temporal landslide detection method is evaluated over a 7-year analysis period and unlike conventional bi-temporal change detection methods, this approach does not depend on any prior-knowledge and can potentially detect landslides over extended periods of time such as decades.

Peas had high nutritional values and low allergenicity as a bulk pulse. However, whole pea milk was prone to flocculation instability, which limited its application in food. In this paper, peeling peas were used as raw material and treated with high pressure homogenization coupled biological double enzymatic hydrolysis (medium temperature α-amylase and cellulase), and the stability and nutritional characteristics of whole pea milk were revealed under the optimal process through centrifugation precipitation rate and Box-Behnken design. The results showed that the stability of whole pea milk prepared by simultaneous enzymatic hydrolysis of α-amylase and cellulase was better than the counterparts processed with traditional filtering, individual enzymatic hydrolysis, and step hydrolysis of double enzymes. The optimal parameters of simultaneous enzymatic hydrolysis was as follows: Medium temperature α-amylase:cellulase was 4.5:5.5 (enzyme activity ratio, U/g starch), with a total addition of 12 U/g and 65 minutes of enzymic hydrolysis. The centrifugal precipitation rate of whole pea milk processed under the optimal conditions was the lowest (27.70%), and no significant precipitation stratification during 60 days of storage without filtration and without stabilizer. Compared with the pea milk obtained by the traditional individual nutrients formulation, the whole pea milk prepared under the optimized simultaneous enzymatic hydrolysis showed significantly improved stability. The starch digestion extent showed a reduce of 12.74%, while the protein digestion extent was increased by 16.41%. The study provides the theoretical guidance for the development of concentrated plant based milk.

Abstract Continuous and effective hydrogen evolution under high current densities remains a challenge for water electrolysis owing to the rapid performance degradation under continuous large-current operation. In this study, theoretical calculations, operando Raman spectroscopy, and CO stripping experiments confirm that Ru nanocrystals have a high resistance against deactivation because of the synergistic adsorption of OH intermediates (OHad) on the Ru and single atoms. Based on this conceptual model, we design the Ni single atoms modifying ultra-small Ru nanoparticle with defect carbon bridging structure (UP-RuNiSAs/C) via a unique unipolar pulse electrodeposition (UPED) strategy. As a result, the UP-RuNiSAs/C is found capable of running steadily for 100 h at 3 A cm−2, and shows a low overpotential of 9 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm−2 under alkaline conditions. Moreover, the UP-RuNiSAs/C allows an anion exchange membrane (AEM) electrolyzer to operate stably at 1.95 Vcell for 250 h at 1 A cm−2.

Objective Aortic dissection (AD) is a severe emergency with high morbidity and mortality, necessitating strict monitoring and management. This retrospective study aimed to identify prognostic factors and establish predictive models for in-hospital mortality among AD patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). Methods We retrieved ICU admission records of AD patients from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care (MIMIC)-IV critical care data set and the eICU Collaborative Research Database. Functional data analysis was further applied to estimate continuous vital sign processes, and variables associated with in-hospital mortality were identified through univariate analyses. Subsequently, we employed multivariable logistic regression and machine learning techniques, including simple decision tree, random forest (RF), and eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) to develop prognostic models for in-hospital mortality. Results Given 643 ICU admissions from MIMIC-IV and 501 admissions from eICU, 29 and 28 prognostic factors were identified from each database through univariate analyses, respectively. For prognostic model construction, 507 MIMIC-IV admissions were divided into 406 (80%) for training and 101 (20%) for internal validation, and 87 eICU admissions were included as an external validation group. Of the four models tested, the RF consistently exhibited the best performance among different variable subsets, boasting area under the receiver operating characteristic curves of 0.870 and 0.850. The models highlighted the mean 24-h fluid intake as the most potent prognostic factor. Conclusions The current prognostic models effectively forecasted in-hospital mortality among AD patients, and they pinpointed noteworthy prognostic factors, including initial blood pressure upon ICU admission and mean 24-h fluid intake.

Abstract Designing and optimizing the pore structure of porous carbon electrodes is essential for diverse energy storage systems. In this study, an innovative approach spray phase‐inversion strategy was developed for the rapid and efficient fabrication of controlled porous carbon aerogel. Moreover, the aggregation structure of polyacrylonitrile is controlled by adjusting the Hansen's solubility parameter, thereby regulating the electrode material structure. Furthermore, the theoretical analysis of the spray phase‐inversion process revealed that this regulation process is jointly regulated by solvent hydrodynamic diameter and phase‐inversion kinetics. Through optimization, a novel porous carbon material was obtained that exhibited excellent performance as an electrode material. When utilized in supercapacitors for energy storage, it demonstrated a high specific capacitance of 373.1 F g−1 in a 6 M KOH electrolyte solution. Simultaneously, it has been observed that the preparation strategy for porous electrodes offers notable advantages in terms of excellent designability, broad universality, simplicity, and high efficiency, thereby holding promise for large‐scale fabrication of diverse porous electrode materials and various types of electrodes for diverse energy storage applications.

This study presents a novel refractive index sensor based on Fano resonance, incorporating a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) waveguide coupled with a circular ring structure (CRC). Using finite element method analysis, we investigated the propagation properties of the sensor. To evaluate their influence on sensor performance, we systematically varied the parameters of each Circular Resonant Cavity structure component, including the refractive index, employing a controlled variable approach. At its optimal configuration, the sensor achieves a maximum sensitivity of 3,240 nm/RIU and a figure of merit (FOM) of 57.9. With its high sensitivity, straightforward design, and suitability for temperature detection, the refractive index sensor holds promise for diverse applications.

A Moon-based Earth observation multispectral camera provides a unique perspective for observing large-scale Earth phenomena. This study focuses on the analysis of the field of view (FOV) for such a sensor. Unlike space-borne sensors, the analysis of the FOV for a Moon-based sensor takes into account not only Earth’s maximum apparent diameter as seen from the lunar surface but also the Earth’s and the solar trajectory in the lunar sky, as well as the pointing accuracy and pointing adjustment temporal intervals of the turntable. Three critical issues are analyzed: (1) The relationship between the Earth’s apparent diameter and the Earth’s phase angle is revealed. It is found that the Earth’s maximum apparent diameter encompasses the Earth’s full phase, suggesting the FOV should exceed this maximum. (2) Regardless of the location on the lunar surface, a sensor will suffer from solar intrusion every orbital period. Although the Earth’s trajectory forms an envelope during an 18.6-year cycle, the FOV should not be excessively large. (3) To design a reasonable FOV, it is necessary to consider both the pointing accuracy and pointing adjustment temporal interval comprehensively. All these insights will guide future Moon-based Earth observation multispectral camera design.

As a critical component of electrostatic capacitors, the polymer dielectric directly affects the performance of the capacitor. In this work, Polycarbonate (PC)/Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) asymmetric bilayer polymer dielectrics were prepared, and the influence of different polymer materials’ barrier characteristics on various electrical properties of composite dielectrics was studied by changing the direction of applied electric fields. Research has found that the dielectric constant of a composite dielectric is between PVDF and PC (approximately 4.8 at 10 Hz) and is independent of the relative position of PVDF and PC in the dielectric. However, the relative position of PC and PVDF has a significant impact on the energy-storage characteristics of composite dielectrics. When PVDF comes into contact with the negative electrode, even though PC has a higher hole barrier, the composite dielectric can only withstand a maximum electric-field strength of 400 MV/m, which is much lower than the maximum electric-field strength that pure PC can withstand (520 MV/m), and it only achieves an energy-storage density of 3.7 J/cm3. When the PC comes into contact with the negative electrode, the high electron barrier of the PC effectively suppresses the injection of electrons at the electrode. It can withstand the same electric-field strength as PC (520 MV/m), achieving an energy-storage density of 5.48 J/cm3, which is 1.46 times that of pure PC and 1.64 times that of PVDF. This experiment effectively combined the advantages of PC and PVDF by utilizing the electron/hole barrier of polymer materials to obtain a fully organic dielectric with excellent energy-storage performance.

In minimally invasive surgery, the tendency for human tissue to adhere to the electrosurgical scalpel can complicate procedures and elevate the risk of medical accidents. Consequently, the development of an electrosurgical scalpel with an anti-sticking coating is critically important. Drawing inspiration from nature, we identified that the leaves of Setaria Virids exhibit exceptional non-stick properties. Utilizing this natural surface texture as a model, we designed and fabricated a specialized anti-sticking surface for electrosurgical scalpels. Employing nanosecond laser direct writing ablation technology, we created a micro-nano textured surface on the high-frequency electrosurgical scalpel that mimics the structure found on Setaria Virids leaves. Subsequently, a TiO2 coating was deposited onto the ablated scalpel surface via magnetron sputtering, followed by plasma-induced hydrophobic modification and treatment with octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) to enhance the surface’s affinity for silicone oil, thereby constructing a self-lubricating and anti-sticking surface. The spreading behavior of deionized water, absolute ethanol, and dimethyl silicone oil on this textured surface is investigated to confirm the effectiveness of the self-lubrication mechanism. Furthermore, the sticking force and quality are compared between the anti-sticking electrosurgical scalpel and a standard high-frequency electrosurgical scalpel to demonstrate the efficacy of the nanosecond laser-ablated micro-nano texture in preventing sticking. The findings indicate that the self-lubricating anti-sticking surface fabricated using this texture exhibits superior anti-sticking properties.

This study analyzes the nonlinear seismic behavior of cluster-connected prefabricated shear walls under varying axial compression ratios. The investigation focuses on the connectivity of shear wall segments assembled using cluster connections rather than separate walls connected by beams. Using the finite element software ABAQUS, this study simulates monotonic horizontal displacement loading to evaluate the yield strength, peak strength, and deformation capacity of the shear walls. The results demonstrate that the horizontal load-bearing capacity of the shear wall significantly improves with an increase in axial compression ratio, while the axial compression ratio also influences ductility. The numerical simulations are validated against experimental data, confirming the accuracy of the model. These findings provide essential insights for optimizing the seismic design of precast shear walls.

Soft magnetic composites (SMCs) play a crucial role in modern electronics and electrical devices, for which challenges remain in maintaining magnetic performance and reducing loss at megahertz (MHz) frequencies. Here, CeFeCo/FeSiAl@ polyurethane (PU) SMCs have been rationally designed with the simultaneous achievement of large relative permeability, high domain-wall resonance frequency, and low power loss. As a rare-earth soft magnetic alloy, the CeFeCo is promising for high-frequency applications due to its easy-plane anisotropy, whereas FeSiAl is advantageous with increased electrical resistivity as well as approaching-zero magnetocrystalline anisotropy and magnetostriction. Hot pressing has been adopted to achieve a dense and homogeneous distribution of CeFeCo and FeSiAl powders in the PU for reduced magnetic dilution and eddy current loss. The resultant SMCs exhibit optional soft magnetic performance with large relative permeability of 21.0, low power loss of 3677.5 kW·m−3 at 5 MHz, and high domain-wall resonance frequency of 386.1 MHz. As such this work provides insights into the design of high-frequency SMCs incorporating novel rare-earth soft magnetic alloys.

As an effective particle measurement method, laser-based particle sensors combined with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be used for measuring air quality in near ground space. The Sniffer4D Mini2 features portability and real-time acquisition of accurate spatial distribution information on air pollution. Additionally, a new fine-grained analysis method called Co-KNN-DNN has been proposed to assess air quality between flight trajectories, allowing for a more detailed presentation of the continuous distribution of air quality. Therefore, this article introduces an unmanned aerial vehicle measurement fine-grained analysis method based on laser light scattering particle sensors. Firstly, the overall scheme was designed, M30T UAV was selected to carry the portable air quality monitoring equipment, with laser-based laser particulate matter sensor and Mini2, to collect AQI and related attributes of the near-ground layer in the selected research area, to do the necessary processing of the collected data, to build a data set suitable for model input, etc., to train and optimize the model, and to carry out practical application of the model. This article is based on the Co-KNN-DNN model for fine-grained analysis of air quality in spatial dimensions. Three experiments were conducted at different altitudes in the study area to investigate the practical application of fine-grained analysis of near-surface air quality. The experimental results show that the average R-squared value can reach 0.99. Choose to conduct experiments using the M30T UAV equipped with Sniffer4D Mini2 and a laser-based particulate matter sensor. The application research validates the effectiveness and practicality of the Co-KNN-DNN model.

The infill toolpath utilized in continuous fiber reinforced polymer composites via additive manufacturing (CFRPCs-AM) significantly influences the mechanical performance of printed structures. However, existing infill toolpath for CFRPCs-AM are primarily designed for 2D planar structures and do not account for 3D shell structures with complex shapes or load path dependent characteristics. To address these limitations, this paper proposes an explicit streamline tracing method to convert the stress field into adaptive infill toolpaths for CFRPCs-AM. The method leverages principal stress direction and value fields to control toolpath density and distribution while considering the minimum allowable bead width constraint. Additionally, the geodesic distance is employed to precisely represent the distance between adjacent infill toolpaths on shell structures. Experimental validation on 2D and 3D complex structures under varying conditions demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed method, which significantly improves stiffness and strength by 200–300% compared to traditional uniform toolpaths for CFRPCs-AM.

The two kinds of NiCr and NiCo superalloy coatings are deposited by high pressure cold sprayed (CS) technique, in this work. The emphasis is placed at the relation of formation mechanism, microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of the coatings. Compared with the NiCr powder, the NiCo powder needs higher spraying parameters to form the dense coating. The NiCr coating has a higher density and a lower hardness than the NiCo coating, but both of the coatings display better mechanical properties, and thus could play a protective role on the 316L stainless steel. However, there is a difference of formation mechanism between the NiCr and NiCo because of the particle sizes and chemical properties. The deformation of NiCr coating occurs mostly in the interior of particles, and that of NiCo coating is more prominent at the boundaries between the particles. The defects formed during deposition, including twins and dislocations, are benefit for the improvement of mechanical properties of the coatings.

Abstract Background This study aimed to assess the outcomes of thrombectomy with/without iliac vein stenting for young and transiently provoked DVT patients with iliac vein stenosis. Methods This is a retrospective analysis of a prospectively collected multicenter database. Acute, transiently provoked DVT patients between 18 and 45 years old with iliac vein stenosis were included. All patients underwent thrombectomy. Outcomes including the Villalta score, the VEINES-QOL score, and adverse events were evaluated. Results The data of 522 patients were collected of whom 75 were included, 58 underwent thrombectomy alone (nonstenting group) and 17 underwent thrombectomy and stenting (stenting group). Within 6 months, the Villalta score of patients in stenting group is lower than that of patients in nonstenting group (6 mo: 0.73 ± 0.77 vs. 1.41 ± 0.56, p = .0004), and the VEINES-QOL score of stenting group is higher than that of nonstenting group (6 mo: 89.00 ± 2.94 vs. 87.47 ± 3.72, p = .2141). At the following follow-ups, the Villalta score (12 mo: 0.56 ± 0.49 vs. 0.60 ± 0.58, p = .8266) and VEINES-QOL score (12 mo: 88.36 ± 2.29 vs. 88.31 ± 3.36, p = .9604) between the two groups are similar. Conclusion The stenting group had better efficacy within 6 months after intervention, while there was no significant difference in the symptom, signs, and quality of life between two groups after 6 months within a 2-year follow-up. Trial registration This study was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (Registration Number: ChiCTR2200056073).

In this text, rice bran protein (RBP) was extracted from rice bran using natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES), as well as the extraction processing of parameters were systemically optimized. RBP was characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Results showed that, the optimization extraction of RBP parameters were carried out as follows: Proline-glycerol (molar ratio 2:5), 4.7% of water in system, solid-liquid ratio of 9:30 g/g for rice bran to NADES, reaction temperature at 65 ℃ for 3.0 h. The maximum extraction efficiency of RBP was 82.69% under the aforementioned conditions. The new chemical compound in the extraction processing of RBP were not able to be observed in terms of FTIR. The micrograph structure of rice bran was effectively damaged as shown in SEM, which might be a reasonable answer for the better extraction efficiency of RBP in NADES. The results in the present work guided for extraction of plant-based proteins with a designed NADES.

Traditional drilling methods often face difficulty meeting the demand for efficient and accurate coring under complex geological conditions. Cordless coring is an advanced technology that uses hydraulic lifting to carry out coring, which can achieve automation and automated and intelligent drilling operations. In this research, a new type of hydraulic lifting cordless coring drilling tool is designed. Moreover, a numerical simulation model of the fluid flow in the annulus between the spearhead and spool of the cordless coring drilling tool was established. Orthogonal simulation tests are carried out, and according to the orthogonal test data, a numerical prediction model of the spool annulus fluid field based on the Backpropagation Neural Network (BP neural network) is established. The prediction of the flow rate of the drilling fluid and the spool back-pressure ratio was obtained when the structural parameters of the spearhead and the spool annulus were different. A multi-objective optimization of the annulus flow structure of the cordless core drilling tool has been carried out. The optimization objectives include deciding the back pressure ratio of the spool overcoming the spring and the flow rate of the drilling fluid. According to the established nonlinear optimization model and based on the improved Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) multi-objective optimization algorithm, it is verified that the convergence speed and diversity of the improved algorithm are better than those before the improvement. The simulation and experimental validation are carried out. It is verified that the flow rate of drilling fluid increased by 33.56% after optimization, and the force ratio was lowered by 5.825%. Finally, based on the simulation and optimization results, the φ96 cordless core drilling tool was manufactured on a trial basis, and on-site concrete drilling, coring, and hydraulic lifting operations were conducted for smooth coring and lifting. This study could provide an important scientific basis and technical support for the application and development of hydraulic lifting cordless coring technology.

This paper introduces a novel plasmon refractive index nanosensor structure based on Fano resonance. The structure comprises a metal–insulator–metal (MIM) waveguide with an inverted rectangular cavity and a circle minus a small internal circle plus a rectangular cavity (CMSICPRC). This study employs the finite element method (FEM) to analyze the sensing characteristics of the structure. The results demonstrate that the geometrical parameters of specific structures exert a considerable influence on the sensing characteristics. Simulated experimental data show that the maximum sensitivity of this structure is 3240 nm/RIU, with a figure of merit (FOM) of 52.25. Additionally, the sensor can be used in biology, for example, to detect the concentration of hemoglobin in blood. The sensitivity of the sensor in this application, according to our calculations, can be 0.82 nm∙g/L.

The bottle gourd [Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl.] is often utilized as a rootstock for watermelon grafting. This practice effectively mitigates the challenges associated with continuous cropping obstacles in watermelon cultivation. The lower ground temperature has a direct impact on the rootstocks’ root development and nutrient absorption, ultimately leading to slower growth and even the onset of yellowing. However, the mechanisms underlying the bottle gourd’s regulation of root growth in response to low root zone temperature (LRT) remain elusive. Understanding the dynamic response of bottle gourd roots to LRT stress is crucial for advancing research regarding its tolerance to low temperatures. In this study, we compared the physiological traits of bottle gourd roots under control and LRT treatments; root sample transcriptomic profiles were monitored after 0 h, 48 h and 72 h of LRT treatment. LRT stress increased the malondialdehyde (MDA) content, relative electrolyte permeability and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, especially H2O2 and O2−. Concurrently, LRT treatment enhanced the activities of antioxidant enzymes like superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD). RNA-Seq analysis revealed the presence of 2507 and 1326 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) after 48 h and 72 h of LRT treatment, respectively. Notably, 174 and 271 transcription factors (TFs) were identified as DEGs compared to the 0 h control. We utilized quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) to confirm the expression patterns of DEGs belonging to the WRKY, NAC, bHLH, AP2/ERF and MYB families. Collectively, our study provides a robust foundation for the functional characterization of LRT-responsive TFs in bottle gourd roots. Furthermore, these insights may contribute to the enhancement in cold tolerance in bottle gourd-type rootstocks, thereby advancing molecular breeding efforts.

We aimed to estimate the non-phytate phosphorus (NPP) requirements of Chinese Jing Tint 6 layer chicks. We randomly allocated 720 birds to five treatments with six cages of 24 birds each, feeding them a corn–soybean diet containing 0.36%, 0.41%, 0.46%, 0.51%, and 0.56% NNP. The results showed that the body weight gain (BWG), tibial length, and apparent total tract digestibility coefficients (ATTDC) of P were affected (p < 0.05) by dietary NPP level. A quadratic broken-line analysis (p < 0.05) of BWG indicated that the optimal NPP for birds aged 1–14 d was 0.411%. Similarly, 0.409% of NPP met tibial growth needs. However, 0.394% of NPP was optimal for P utilization according to the ATTDC criterion. For 15–42 d birds, 0.466% NPP, as estimated by the BWG criterion, was sufficient for optimal growth without decreasing P utilization. Using the factorial method, NPP requirements were calculated as 0.367% and 0.439%, based on the maintenance factors and BWG for 1–14 and 15–42 d birds, respectively, to maintain normal growth. Combining the non-linear model with the factorial method, this study recommends dietary NPP levels of 0.367% and 0.439% for 1–14 and 15–42 d birds, respectively, to optimize P utilization without affecting performance.

Reducing resistance to surface friction is challenging in the field of engineering. Natural biological systems have evolved unique functional surfaces or special physiological functions to adapt to their complex environments over centuries. Among these biological wonders, fish, one of the oldest in the vertebrate group, have garnered attention due to their exceptional fluid dynamics capabilities. Fish skin has inspired innovation in reducing surface friction due to its unique structures and material properties. Herein, drawing inspiration from the unique properties of fish scales, a periodic array of fish scales was fabricated by laser ablation on a polished aluminum template. The morphology of the biomimetic fish scale surface was characterized using scanning electron microscopy and a white-light interfering profilometer. Drag reduction performance was measured in a closed circulating water tunnel. The maximum drag reduction was 10.26% at a Reynolds number of 39,532, and the drag reduction performance gradually decreased with an increase in the distance between fish scales. The mechanism of the biomimetic drag reduction surface was analyzed using computational fluid dynamics. Streamwise vortices were generated at the valley of the biomimetic fish scale, replacing sliding friction with rolling friction. These results are expected to provide a foundation for in-depth analysis of the hydrodynamic performance of fish and serve as new inspiration for drag reduction and antifouling.

Epinephrine (EP) is a very important chemical transmitter in the transmission of nerve impulses in the central nervous system of mammals. Ascorbic acid (AA) is considered to be the most important extracellular fluid antioxidant and has important antioxidant properties in the cell. In this study, a series of transition metal–polyhistidine-carboxylated multi-wall carbon nanotube nanocomposites were synthesized, and their simultaneous catalytic effects on epinephrine and ascorbic acid were investigated. The results showed that nanocomposites based on iron ions had the highest catalytic activity. The prepared biosensor expressed high selectivity toward EP and AA with LOD values of 0.1 μΜ (AA) and 0.01 μΜ (EP), and sensitivity values of 4.18 μA mM−1 with a range of 0.001–5 mM (AA), 50.98 μA mM−1 with a range of 0.2–100 μM (EP), and 265.75 μA mM−1 with a range of 0.1–1.0 mM (EP). Moreover, it showed good stability, good repeatability and high selectivity in real sample detection. This work is a reference for the design of new electrochemical enzyme-free biosensors and the detection of biomarkers.

Effective development of digital finance is vital to closing the regional economic disparities. This study aims at investigating the efficiency of digital finance development in China and its implications for closing regional economic disparities. Using the stochastic frontier model, we estimate the development efficiency of digital finance in 31 provinces in China from 2011 to 2020, and reveal their characteristics of temporal evolution and spatial distribution. The results show that the efficiency of digital finance development in each province shows a tendency to increase quickly first and then slowly decline. The provinces with a higher level of digital finance development always have higher development efficiency at the beginning of the sample period, which then declines rapidly after reaching the maximum, and even less than the national average value at the end of the period, with significant regional disparities observed. The provinces with a higher level of digital finance development always have higher development efficiency at the beginning of the sample period, which then declines rapidly after reaching the maximum, and even less than the national average value at the end of the period. The imbalance of development efficiency among different provinces is increasing, and the potential for development efficiency in the central and western regions is relatively greater. These findings have important implications for promoting high-quality economic development and common prosperity in China. In the future, we should continually prevent the development efficiency of digital finance to decline rapidly in all provinces (especially in the eastern region), and strive constantly to bridge the gap of development efficiency among different province, so as to provide a better surrounding for promoting high-quality economic development and common prosperity.

With the consumption of fossil fuels and the deterioration of the ecological environment, the need for developing new, efficient, and sustainable sources of clean energy is urgent. The importance of “green hydrogen” in electrolytic water splitting has attracted worldwide attention not only from the scientific community but also from governments and industries. Hydrogen energy is considered an ideal alternative to fossil fuels because of its high energy density, environmental friendliness, and low pollution level. Hydrogen production from renewable energy sources using the electrolysis of water is the lowest carbon emission process of the many current hydrogen source options. The electrolytic water reaction is subdivided into two half-reactions, namely, the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) at the cathode and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the anode. The HER is a relatively simple two-electron reaction. Compared to the HER at the cathode, the OER at the anode is a four-electron transfer process with slower kinetics and higher energy barriers. It is the decisive step in the electrolytic water reaction, receiving considerable attention from scholars. Recently, considerable developments in the research of high-performance electrolytic water catalysts have been reported as successful; however, the catalysts have been tested on a very small scale, usually under laboratory conditions, and can rarely operate continuously for hundreds of hours, far from meeting the needs of practical applications. Industrial-level electrocatalytic hydrogen production requires catalysts that are highly active, cost-effective, and stable at high current densities; thus, a great deal of work has explored efficient and highly durable active electrocatalysts to overcome the kinetic barriers that inhibit the reaction, particularly for the complex four-electron reaction of the OER. In summary, catalysts for oxygen precipitation reactions at high current densities will be the focus of future research. This paper reviews the current status of hydrogen energy development and various hydrogen production methods at home and abroad, focusing on an analysis of electrolytic water hydrogen production technology and proposing the requirements under large-scale industrial applications. Studying the OER mechanism has revealed that the activity of catalysts at high current densities can be enhanced by the following strategies: heteroatom doping, defect engineering, interface engineering, in situ self-growth, etc. Finally, the challenges in the field of high-current oxygen analysis at this stage of industrial development and the future direction of development are presented.

Nucleic acid detection plays a key role in diverse diagnosis and disease control. Currently available nucleic acid detection techniques are challenged by trade-offs among speed, simplicity, precision and cost. Here, we described a novel method, designated SENSOR (Sulfur DNA mediated nucleic acid sensing platform), for rapid nucleic acid detection. SENSOR was developed from phosphorothioate (PT)-DNA and sulfur binding domain (SBD) which specifically binds double-stranded PT-modified DNA. SENSOR utilizes PT-DNA oligo and SBD as targeting module, which is linked with split luciferase reporter to generate luminescence signal within 10 min. We tested detection on synthesized nucleic acid and COVID-19 pseudovirus, achieving attomolar sensitivity combined with an amplification procedure. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) could also be discriminated. Indicating SENSOR a new promising nucleic acid detection technique.

ObjectiveThis study aims to investigate the relationship between skeletal muscle and left ventricular mass (LVM) in patients with hyperthyroidism, providing theoretical and data-based foundations for further research on the interaction between secondary muscle atrophy and cardiac remodeling.MethodsA retrospective data collection was conducted, including 136 patients with hyperthyroidism (Study group) and 50 healthy participants (control group). The Study group was further divided into Group A (high LVM) and Group B (low LVM) based on LVM size. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to examine the correlation between skeletal muscle and LVM, with model evaluation. Based on the results, further nonlinear regression analysis was conducted to explore the detailed relationship between skeletal muscle and LVM.ResultsCompared to the control group, the Study group exhibited significantly lower LVM, skeletal muscle mass index (SMI), and skeletal muscle mass (SMM) (P

In this work, a refractive index sensor structure is proposed, which consists of the met-al-insulator-metal (MIM) waveguide coupling with ring resonator with a rectangular cavity. Its sensing characteristics are analyzed by the finite element analysis method. SPPs is an electromagnetic wave mode excited by the oscillatory coupling of free electron-photon interactions on the surface region of a metal, whose field strength is maximum at the metal-dielectric partition interface and then decays exponentially to both sides The results show that the sensing characteristics of the ring resonator can be changed by introducing a stub, which can achieve the purpose of enhancing the coupling efficiency of SPPs. The structure has two Fano peaks, and each peak can be individually regulated by changing the size of the sensing structure. Sensitivity is the key performance indicator of the system, which is the shift in resonance wavelength caused by a change in refractive index when the ambient medium is changed. The best sensitivity of this structure can reach 2,300 nm/RIU with a figure of merit (FOM) value of 60 RIU−1. The proposed structure has great potential in nano-sensors.

【Objective】In order to analyze the effects of different types of food excipients on the dissolving ability and main carotenoid content of spray-dried sweet corn nutritional paste, and to screen the key excipients that are beneficial to improving the dissolving ability and carotenoid stability of spray-dried sweet corn nutritional paste, so as to provide a reference to producing high-quality spray-dried sweet corn nutritional paste.【Method】The water solubility index (WSI), dispersal time, caking rate, total content of lutein and zeaxanthin were used as evaluation indicators to select key additives for improving the dissolving ability and carotenoid stability of sweet corn paste by single-factor experiments. WSI, carotenoid (total lutein and zeaxanthin) content were used as evaluation indicators to optimize the slurry formula for preparing spray-dried sweet corn paste by response surface methodology. And practical applications verified the optimized formula.【Result】The additives such as maltodextrin, sucrose, and fructooligosaccharide which could significantly improve the dispersibility and carotenoids stability were defined as key excipients for spray-dried sweet corn paste. The optimal homogenate formula for preparation of sweet corn nutritional paste by spray drying obtained by response surface optimization was as follows: 25% maltodextrin, 1% fructooligosaccharide and 12% sucrose, calculated based on sweet corn dry base. Verification experiments of the the optimized slurry formula showed that the WSI of the spray-dried sweet corn flour was 70.67 (±1.24)%, and the total lutein and zeaxanthin content was 152.12 (±1.30) μg/g (dry weight). Compared with sweet corn flour without additives, the WSI increased by 34.84%, and the total lutein and zeaxanthin content increased by 11.37%.【Conclusion】Compared with protein and lipid, carbohydrate such as maltodextrin, sucrose, and fructooligosaccharide could significantly improve the dissolving ability and carotenoids stability of sweet corn paste and therefore could be used as key excipients for the preparation of sweet corn nutritional paste by spray drying. This study provided a feasible formulating way for producing high-quality sweet corn nutritional paste by spray drying, which could effectively improve the dissolving ability and the stability of carotenoids.

Chickpeas have attracted wide attention of researchers owing to their high nutritional value and low glycemic index. In present study, intact cells isolated from Desi chickpeas were set as the whole chickpea food model to reveal the structure and in vitro digestion kinetics changes of starches in Desi chickpeas subjected to different thermal treatments. The results showed that starch granules in all cell samples were not fully gelatinizatized with certain amounts of relative crystallinity remained, indicating the strong resistance of cells to the thermal treatment. With the temperature of thermal treatment increased, the gelatinization temperature of starches in cell samples enhanced and the enthalpy value decreased. And no significant changes was observed for the enthalpy value of cell samples treated with 100 ℃ including 100D and 70D-100 (ΔH

Objective: Rice bran esterase was extracted from rice bran using natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES) as media and the extraction processing of parameters was systematically optimized. The higher purity of rice bran esterase was obtained after purified with DEAE column and its enzyme properties were also investigated. Methods: Ten kinds of NADES including organic acids-based, polyols-based, amine-based and amino acids-based NADES were prepared. The extraction procedures including water bath agitation and ultrasonication were carried out. The effects of single factor such as the solid-to-liquid ratio, water content, extraction temperature and time on enzyme activity was studied. And then response surface methodology was used for optimization of the extraction processing. The crude enzyme solution was purified using DEAE column, as well as its enzyme characteristics were investigated. Results: The rice bran esterase activity of 2.96 U was obtained under the extraction conditions of proline-glycerol (molar ratio 1:2, contained 5% of water), 74.0 ℃, 3 h and a rice bran to NADES ratio of 9:30. The higher purity of rice bran esterase was obtained after purification with DEAE column. The purification efficiency and the recovery of rice bran esterase were 1.74 times, 69.40%, respectively. The molecular weight of rice bran esterase was approximately 35 kDa. The optimal substrate was a p-nitrophenyl acetate, and the optimal temperature and pH were 40.0 ℃, 8.0, respectively. The better stability of rice bran esterase could be maintained under 30.0~40.0 ℃ and pH7.0~9.0, as well as the similar performance in choline chloride-glycerol and proline-glycerol. Conclusion: Natural deep eutectic solvents used as a medium for extraction procedure is a simple and green extraction route, which would provide the understanding of extraction strategies for preparation of function compounds.

Rosa roxburghii Tratt pomace is rich in insoluble dietary fiber (IDF). This study aimed to investigate the influence of three modification methods on Rosa roxburghii Tratt pomace insoluble dietary fiber (RIDF). The three modified RIDFs, named U-RIDF, C-RIDF, and UC-RIDF, were prepared using ultrasound, cellulase, and a combination of ultrasound and cellulase methods, respectively. The structure, physicochemical characteristics, and functional properties of the raw RIDF and modified RIDF were comparatively analyzed. The results showed that all three modification methods, especially the ultrasound–cellulase combination treatment, increased the soluble dietary fiber (SDF) content of RIDF, while also causing a transition in surface morphology from smooth and dense to wrinkled and loose structures. Compared with the raw RIDF, the modified RIDF, particularly UC-RIDF, displayed significantly improved water-holding capacity (WHC), oil-binding capacity (OHC), and swelling capacity (SC), with increases of 12.0%, 84.7%, and 91.3%, respectively. Additionally, UC-RIDF demonstrated the highest nitrite ion adsorption capacity (NIAC), cholesterol adsorption capacity (CAC), and bile salt adsorption capacity (BSAC). In summary, the combination of ultrasound and cellulase treatment proved to be an efficient approach for modifying IDF from RRTP, with the potential for developing a functional food ingredient.

Oil bodies (OBs) are naturally occurring pre-emulsified oil droplets that have broad application prospects in emulsions and gels. The main purpose of this research was to examine the impact of the OB content on the structure and functional aspects of acid-mediated soy protein isolate (SPI) gel filled with OBs. The results indicated that the peanut oil body (POBs) content significantly affected the water holding capacity of the gel. The rheological and textural analyses showed that POBs reduced the gel strength and hardness. The scanning electron and confocal laser scanning microscopy analyses revealed that POBs aggregated during gel formation and reduced the gel network density. The Fourier transform infrared spectrum (FTIR) analysis demonstrated that POBs participated in protein gels through hydrogen bonds, steric hindrance and hydrophobic interactions. Therefore, OBs served as inactive filler in the acid-mediated protein gel, replaced traditional oils and provided alternative ingredients for the development of new emulsion-filled gels.

The development and integration of high-performance electronic devices are critical in advancing energy storage with dielectric capacitors. Poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene-chlorofluoroethylene) (PVTC), as an energy storage polymer, exhibits high-intensity polarization in low electric strength fields. However, a hysteresis effect can result in significant residual polarization, leading to a severe energy loss, which impacts the resultant energy storage density and charge/discharge efficiency. In order to modify the polarization properties of the polymer, a biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) film with linear characteristics has been selected as an insulating layer and combined with the PVTC ferroelectric polarization layer to construct PVTC/BOPP bilayer films. The hetero-structure and polarization characteristics of the bilayer film have been systematically studied. Adjusting the BOPP volume content to 67% resulted in a discharge energy density of 10.1 J/cm3 and an energy storage efficiency of 80.9%. The results of this study have established the mechanism for a composite structure regulation of macroscopic energy storage performance. These findings can provide a basis for the effective application of ferroelectric polymer-based composites in dielectric energy storage.

A higher efficient capital market and direct financing environment are key to excellent enterprise performance and high-quality economic development in China. In recent years, institutional investors have gradually significantly impacted market information efficiency, while the existing studies still offer different conclusions. Given this, firstly, we chose the social network analysis as the study method, taking the open-ended equity mutual funds in the A-share stock market from 2010 to 2019 as samples, constructing the shareholding networks by taking the top ten bulk-holding stocks in every sample fund’s annual report as the connection. Then, we chronologically reveal the characteristics of those networks, such as scale, density, centrality, and so on. Lastly, we empirically test the influence of the institutional investors embedded in the shareholding networks on the information efficiency, and so does the robustness check. The results show that the shareholding networks are gradually expanding in scale and increasing in density. Furthermore, institutional investors can improve stock price informativeness and promote market information efficiency through a shareholding network, and the higher the network location of institutional investors, the greater the information effect. The conclusions based on the systemic view not only enrich the research on the information function of institutional investors, broaden the field of social network theory, but also provide guidance for regulating institutional investors and improving market transparency.

BackgroundThe evidence for the effectiveness of electroacupuncture (EA) for post-stroke urinary incontinence (PSUI) patients remains unclear. Therefore, the purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to assess the efficacy of EA for PSUI.Methods and analysisEight English and Chinese databases were searched from their inception until 1 August 2023 to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that investigated the effect of EA on PSUI. Two reviewers independently selected studies that met the eligibility criteria, extracted the necessary data, and assessed the risk of bias for included studies using Cochrane Handbook version 5.1.0. Meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager software (version 5.4.1). Publication bias detection was conducted using STATA (version 16.0). Sequential analysis was performed using TSA 0.9.5.10 Beta. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation System (GRADE) was used for assessing the certainty of evidence.ResultsWe included 15 RCTs involving a total of 1,414 patients. The narrative analysis revealed that compared with sham EA, genuine EA exhibited greater efficacy in reducing occurrences of 24-h urinary incontinence while also enhancing maximum cystometric capacity (MCC). Moreover, this effect remained significant even during the 3-month follow-up period. Fourteen studies were encompassed within the quantitative analysis. In contrast to active interventions, EA did not yield an improvement in the responder rate (RR 1.53, 95% CI 0.61 to 3.80, p = 0.36). When compared with basic treatments, the combination of EA with them led to a reduction in 24-h urinary incontinence occurrences (MD −0.56, 95% CI −0.60 to −0.52, p

Introduction: Auricular acupressure (AA) has been widely utilized in the management of constipation, with several studies suggesting its efficacy in treating constipation patients. However, the safety and effectiveness of AA in constipation remain uncertain. Hence, the aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness and safety of AA for constipation.Methods and analysis: A total of eight electronic databases and three clinical trial registration platforms were searched from their inception to April 2023 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of AA for constipation. The included studies were appraised for quality using the Cochrane Collaboration’s Risk of Bias Assessment tool. The quality of evidence was assessed by two independent reviewers employing the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation System (GRADE) evaluation tool. Meta-analysis of data and assessment of publication bias were performed using RevMan 5.4 and STATA 13.0 software, respectively.Results: This review included 34 randomized controlled trials conducted between 2007 and 2023, involving 2,465 participants. The findings of the study indicate that overall, AA is significantly associated with improved CSBMs (MD = 1.22, 95% CI [0.68, 1.77], p < 0.0001, I2 = 0%), BSF (MD = 0.72, 95%CI: [0.15,1.28], p = 0.01, I2 = 82%), CAS (MD = -3.28, 95%CI: [−5.95, −0.60], p = 0.02, I2 = 80%), responder rate (RR = 1.27, 95%CI: [1.16, 1.38], p < 0.00001, I2 = 79%), cure rate (RR = 1.84, 95% CI [1.56, 2.15], p < 0.00001, I2 = 0%), and PAC-QOL (MD = −2.73, 95% CI: [−3.41, −2.04], p < 0.00001, I2 = 98%) compared to the control group. However, no difference in PAC-SYM (MD = −0.15, 95%CI: [−0.38,0.07], p = 0.19, I2 = 67%) was found between the two groups. Additionally, there was no significant difference in adverse events (RR = 0.53, 95% CI: [0.24, 1.21], p = 0.13, I2 = 38%).Conclusion: Based on the available evidence, auricular acupressure appears to be a potentially safe and effective intervention for managing constipation in adults. Nonetheless, the overall quality of evidence for the identified outcomes was assessed as low to very low, highlighting the need for additional high-quality randomized controlled trials to further validate these findings.Systematic Review Registration:https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero, identifier CRD42023425033.

Increased groundwater exploitation can cause severe groundwater depletion and may trigger geological hazards such as wetland degradation. The Xiong’an New Area is an important deployment of the national strategy to promote the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. The protection of wetlands will play an important ecological role in the socio-economic development of the Xiong’an New Area. This paper proposes an improved catastrophe theory (ICT) combined it with the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and the entropy weight method (EWM), labelled AHP-EWM-ICT method. This method was applied to evaluate the evolutionary trend of the wetland degradation risk in Xiong’an New Area from 2000 to 2020. Results showed that, first, the wetlands degradation risk in the Xiong’an New Area was fluctuating upward, with an increase of 80.17% in 2020 compared to 2000. The risk level increased from ‘Very low’ in 2000 to ‘Medium’ in 2020, and most years at ‘Medium’ level during 21 years. Second, Rongcheng County, which has the higher intensity of groundwater extraction as well as the higher per capita GDP compared with Xiong County and Anxin County, contributed most to wetland degradation. The stress degree values progressed from northwest to southeast. Third, due to the implementation of ecological recharge, the degradation risk of Baiyangdian wetland has shown a trend of first increasing and then decreasing. Fourth, the risk of wetland degradation in Xiong’an New Area may be more severe than in other wetlands in northern China. In addition to implementing ecological replenishment projects, the government should also pay more attention to the functional restoration of wetlands and the reduction of risk sources in areas surrounding wetlands.

Abstract Lactiplantibacillus plantarum X7022 is a novel strain isolated from stinky tofu brine. Its constipation amelioration potential was evaluated on two different constipation types (acute and subacute) in mice induced by loperamide hydrochloride in present work. L. plantarum X7022 could significantly decrease the first black stool defecation time, and increase black fecal weight, number, and the gastrointestinal transit ratio in both models. High‐dose treatment of L. plantarum X7022 (2 × 1010 CFU/kg BW) was more significant in improving constipation condition than low‐dose (2 × 107 CFU/kg BW). Furthermore, 16S rDNA sequencing of the intestinal flora showed that the treatment with the strain X7022 could increase the α diversity in both constipation models. Meanwhile, the abundance of Bacteroidetes increased, and Firmicutes decreased, which was more effective in acute constipated mice. In addition, X7022 treatment could enhance the relative abundance of beneficial flora, such as Bacteroides, Ruminococcus, and depressed Adlercreutzia and Odoribacter in acute model mice. In subacute constipated mice, X7022 treatment could enhance Alloprevotell, Rikenellaceae_RC9, and decreased Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136 and Desulfovibrio. Therefore, L. plantarum X7022 is a prospect probiotic strain for the amelioration of constipation.

Abstract Background Cystic angiomatosis is a rare benign disease manifesting as multiple lytic and sclerotic bone lesions, described as the proliferation of vascular and lymphatic channels lined by a single layer of endothelial cells. However, the potential pathogenetic mechanism of the disease still remains unknown. Here, we reported a case of cystic angiomatosis with multifocal bone lesion evaluated by whole exome sequencing. Case description In this presentation, we reported a case of an 11-year-old boy with pain in his chest. Computed tomography (CT) revealed the multiple lytic of the bone in the ribs, clavicle, vertebra thoracalis, skull, mandibula, shoulder blade, etc. The blood test showed ALP to be 393U/L and VEGF to be 287.26 pg/ml. The patient was performed with an open biopsy in the ribs and was diagnosed with cystic angiomatosis. Besides, the whole exome sequencing reported the single-nucleotide substitutions in the coding region of BRIP1, CHEK2, GRM4, and MUC16. Then, the upregulated genes involved CASC15, CENPF, ABCA13, ALK, BLM, and FGFR3. Conclusions In this article, we report a rare case of cystic angiomatosis in a child with abnormal VEGF and ALP reported by peripheral blood examination. The whole exome sequencing could provide the reference for the potential molecular mechanism in the diagnosis and treatment of cystic angiomatosis.

With the increasing demand for high-quality pork, more nutritional substances have been studied for the regulation of meat quality. Zero-dimensional fullerenes (C60) can modulate the biological behavior of a variety of cell lines and animals. In this study, we report the biological effects of C60 on finishing pigs at different concentrations. A total of 24 barrows (Duroc × Large White × Landrace), with an average body weight of 21.01 ± 0.98 kg, were divided into 3 groups and each treated daily with C60 (100 or 200 mg per kg feed) or a control diet until the end of the experiment. Our results showed that dietary C60 supplementation improved flesh color, marbling scores, and flavor amino acid contents of longissimus dorsi (LD) of growing-finishing pigs (P

Bizzare parosteal osteochondromatous proliferation (BPOP), first introduced by Nora et al., in 1983, s an uncommon benign bone disease that manifests as a parosteal bone mass that frequently develops in the location of short bones. In our study, we reported an 11-year-old child with BPOP in the second finger of the right hand and the bone lesion was gradually increasing after 14 months of follow-up. Radiographic imaging confirmed an osseous and lobulated mass from the proximal phalanx cortex without the connection with medullary canal of finger. Due to the aggressive nature of the imaging, bone biopsies were performed with ''blue bone'' pathological findings typical of BPOP, with complete resection of the bone exostosis and extended resection of the bone cortex to reduce the recurrence of the lesion. Then, the microarray data of GSE19357 in BPOP was downloaded and analyzed as a result of differentially expressed genes (DEGs), resulting in 11 up-regulated genes including HAPLN1, ACAN, FMOD, DKK3, and P4HA3 with the calculating criteria of P 2. STRING databases were performed to reveal the protein–protein interaction network (PPI) among DEGs. There were 21 nodes and 50 edges with an average local clustering coefficient of 0.624 and PPI enrichment p-value of 3.83e−13. The molecular function in Gene Ontology was highly enriched in Lipoprotein lipase activity, Phospholipase a1 activity, Phosphatidylserine 1-acylhydrolase activity, and Carboxylic acid binding. In Cytoscape, there were three sub-networks of genes with Plugin MCODE, including the relationship of PPARG, FABP4, PRKAR2B, TGFB3 FMOD and DKK3, SULF1, THBS3, HAPLN1 and P4HA3, and LIPG, LPL and PCK1. In this article, we reported a rare case of BPOP in a child with a bone lesion. The DEGs GSE19357 in BPOP were then analyzed and evaluated for the potential molecular mechanism in the diagnosis and treatment of BPOP.

Due to the worldwide attention of fossil fuel consumption and environment pollution, geothermal is recognized to be amongst the prospering alternative energy. Previous researches mainly focused on the shallow-depth geothermal heat pump systems (SD-GHPs), while medium-depth geothermal heat pump system (MD-GHPs) lacked of the experimental support especially in severely cold region. A field test of MD-GHPs using deep borehole heat exchanger (DBHE) was conducted and verified in terms of temperature variation, heat exchange and COP. The indoor temperature remained 20 °C around even though the outdoor temperature was as low as −25.10 °C. The water supply and return water temperature on the customer side performed steadfast heating characteristics that the averages were 35.13 °C and 30.97 °C. Moreover, flow rate and borehole depth are the essential influencing factors on DBHE outlet temperatures. This suggests that lifting flow rates is a fantastic option when only considering the enhancement of the thermal extraction. The DBHE average heat exchange per meter is 1000/1200 m for 61.1/84.9 W/m and 2000 m is 152.6 W/m respectively. Besides, the average heat exchange of DBHEs for working days was 485.4 kW while during Chinese New Year Holidays was 388.6 kW. Correspondingly, the average COPs for MD-GHPs ground side were 4.5 and 5.2, respectively. Results show that MD-GHPs can be extended to severely cold regions and obtain superior performance.

16S rRNA is the universal gene of microbes, and it is often used as a target gene to obtain profiles of microbial communities via next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology. Traditionally, sequences are clustered into operational taxonomic units (OTUs) at a 97% threshold based on the taxonomic standard using 16S rRNA, and methods for the reduction of sequencing errors are bypassed, which may lead to false classification units. Several denoising algorithms have been published to solve this problem, such as DADA2 and Deblur, which can correct sequencing errors at single-nucleotide resolution by generating amplicon sequence variants (ASVs). As high-resolution ASVs are becoming more popular than OTUs and only one analysis method is usually selected in a particular study, there is a need for a thorough comparison of OTU clustering and denoising pipelines. In this study, three of the most widely used 16S rRNA methods (two denoising algorithms, DADA2 and Deblur, along with de novo OTU clustering) were thoroughly compared using 16S rRNA amplification sequencing data generated from 358 clinical stool samples from the Colorectal Cancer (CRC) Screening Cohort. Our findings indicated that all approaches led to similar taxonomic profiles (with P > 0.05 in PERMNAOVA and P 0.05). In conclusion, this study demonstrates that DADA2, Deblur, and de novo OTU clustering display similar power levels in taxa assignment and can produce similar conclusions in the case of the CRC cohort.