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ObjectiveTo explore the compliance related factors of repeated screening for colorectal cancer in Jiading District, and to provide a scientific basis for the prevention and control of colorectal cancer.MethodsBased on the natural population cohort in Jiading District, and the screening situation in 2017‒2019 and 2020‒2022, the study subjects were divided into the groups of never participating in screening and participating in screening. Subjects in the participating group were further divided into participating in one round of screening or having repeated screening. SPSS 21.0 software was used to analyze the demographic characteristics of each group. χ2 test or Fisher precise probability test were used to conduct univariate analysis of the factors such as gender, age, education level, marital status, retirement status, and type of medical insurance. Factors with the significant difference (P

Chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) complicated with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is rare. This article reports the clinical data of a patient with CMML complicated with ITP treated with a combination of venetoclax, ripertamab (an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody), and hetrombopag. The coexistence mechanism of CMML and ITP needs to be further clarified. Venetoclax combined with anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody and thrombopoietin receptor agonist may be an effective strategy for the treatment of this complication.

Objective: In order to predict and control the hot air drying process of Mango. Methods: Using fresh Mangifera indica Linn as experimental material, the effects were studied in different hot air temperatures (60, 65, 70 ℃) and different thickness of Mango slices (0.8, 1.0, 1.2 cm) on the drying curve, drying characteristic curve and effective moisture diffusion coefficient of Mango. Selecting six commonly used drying models suitable for fruits and vegetables for fitting, analysis, and validation, the most suitable model for Mango hot air drying was selected. Results: With the increase of temperature and the decrease of slice thickness, the drying rate of Mango slices was accelerated, resulting in shorter drying times. The effective diffusion coefficient of water increases with the increase of temperature and thickness, in the range of 1.401 39×10-10 to 3.655 46×10-10 m2/s. R2 of Logarithmic model was the largest, and X2 and RMSE were the smallest, which were 0.998 87, 0.000 124 779 and 0.001 37 respectively. Conclusion: The predicted values are basically consistent with the experimental values, accord with Mango hot air drying, it can better reflect the changing law of moisture content of Mango slices during drying.

Nocardia disease is an opportunistic infection, the occurrence is rare and mostly occurs in patients with immune deficiency. Even if the patient is immunocompetent, it can still be life-threatening. This case report describes a previously healthy 78-year-old male farmer with lung lesions discovered on a computerized tomography scan. Combined with the patient’s history of fever and the results of elevated laboratory markers associated with inflammation, the patient was diagnosed with a lung infection. After escalating empirical broad-spectrum antibiotics, antiviral and antifungal therapy, the patient continued to deteriorate to septic shock. In the meanwhile, the patient’s sputum was cultured repeatedly, and no obvious positive pathogenic bacteria were found. Considering the patient was elderly and that these lesions were solid with burr signs, as well as the progression after antimicrobial therapy cancer was considered in the differential diagnosis. Artificial intelligence (YITU, Hangzhou Yitu Medical Technology Limited Company) was also applied, and it also calculated that these lesions were cancerous. The patient received a puncture biopsy of the largest lung lesion. During the puncture pus was withdrawn from largest lung lesion. Culture and metagenome next-generation sequencing (mNGS) detection performed on pus indicated Nocardia otitidiscaviarum. The test report of the mNGS is also attached with a susceptibility report of commonly used clinical antibiotics to this Nocardia spp. Using this result, the patient’s disease was quickly controlled after selecting the targeted drug compound sulfamethoxazole and intravenous meropenem for treatment. In view of the high misdiagnosis rate and poor sensitivity of culture for Nocardia spp., this case emphasized mNGS playing a key role in the diagnosis and selection of effective antibiotics for the treatment of Nocardia spp. lung infections.

Abstract Spinal cord injury (SCI) leads to massive cell death, disruption, and demyelination of axons, resulting in permanent motor and sensory dysfunctions. Stem cell transplantation is a promising therapy for SCI. However, owing to the poor microenvironment that develops following SCI, the bioactivities of these grafted stem cells are limited. Cell implantation combined with biomaterial therapies is widely studied for the development of tissue engineering technology. Herein, an insulin‐like growth factor‐1 (IGF‐1)‐bioactive supramolecular nanofiber hydrogel (IGF‐1 gel) is synthesized that can activate IGF‐1 downstream signaling, prevent the apoptosis of neural stem cells (NSCs), improve their proliferation, and induce their differentiation into neurons and oligodendrocytes. Moreover, implantation of NSCs carried out with IGF‐1 gels promotes neurite outgrowth and myelin sheath regeneration at lesion sites following SCI. In addition, IGF‐1 gels can enrich extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from NSCs or from nerve cells differentiated from these NSCs via miRNAs related to axonal regeneration and remyelination, even in an inflammatory environment. These EVs are taken up by autologous endogenous NSCs and regulate their differentiation. This study provides adequate evidence that combined treatment with NSCs and IGF‐1 gels is a potential therapeutic strategy for treating SCI.

BackgroundSleep disorder can adversely affect human physical and mental health， with important implications for socioeconomic development. And higher vocational college students are subject to various pressures and stimuli exerted by academic studies， job seeking and family socioeconomic status， which may contribute to the onset insomnia symptom or sleep disorder.ObjectiveTo discuss the sleep status and influencing factors among higher vocational college students， and to provide references for improving their sleep status.MethodsIn January and February， 2022， a stratified random sampling method was utilized to enroll 3 300 students from five higher vocational colleges in Wenjiang district of Chengdu city. All the participants were assessed using Insomnia Severity Index （ISI）， Patient Health Questionnaire Depression Scale-9 item （PHQ-9） and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7 （GAD-7）. Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to test the correlation of ISI with PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores， and the Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the influencing factors of insomnia symptom in higher vocational college students.ResultInsomnia symptom was detected in 81.90% （2 497 / 3 300） of higher vocational college students. The detection rate of insomnia symptom among vocational college students yielded statistical difference in terms of gender， family socioeconomic status， being an only child or having siblings， degree of psychological pressure exerted by academic studies or job seeking， amount of hours spent on Internet per day， frequency of physical exercise， and the presence or absence of anxiety symptom and depression symptom （χ2=21.032， 22.172， 8.983， 75.939， 36.781， 32.350， 54.512， 86.561， P7 h on Internet per day， inadequate physical exercise and presence of depressive symptom are the risk factors for insomnia symptom in higher vocational college students.［Funded by Sichuan Provincial Primary Health Development Research Center in 2022， North Sichuan Medical College （number， SWFZ22-C-89）］

To enhance the effectiveness and teaching quality of ideological and political education in colleges and universities, this study used a questionnaire survey method to collect data for teachers and students of X University. The collected data were validated and analyzed through structural equation modeling and Pearson’s correlation coefficient to ensure accuracy. The study constructed a multiple linear regression model of ideological and political education and estimated the model parameters with robustness. In particular, tutor involvement was introduced as a mediating variable to explore its mediating role between students’ personalized learning characteristics and the practical effects of ideological and political education. It was found that students’ customized learning characteristics had a significant positive impact on the functional quality of ideological and political education, with a standardized coefficient of more than 0.92. The mediating effect value of tutor involvement was 0.064, accounting for 0.703 of the total effect. Ideological and political education in colleges and universities should focus on the learning needs of students and broaden their knowledge horizons through the active participation of teachers, to effectively enhance the practical effect of ideological and political education.

BackgroundProkinetic agents are currently considered the first-line therapy to improve gastric emptying when feeding intolerance occurred in critically ill adults. In this study, we developed a technique to assess the feasibility of predicting prokinetic agent efficacy in critically ill patients.MethodsThe first images of each patient were obtained after EFI had occurred but before the first dose of prokinetic agents was administered and additional images were obtained every morning until the seventh day. The gastric antrum echodensity was recorded based on grayscale values (50th percentile, ED50; 85th percentile, ED85; mean, EDmean) and daily energy and protein intake was collected as the judgment for effective and ineffective group. A receiver operating characteristic curve was analyzed to distinguish the thresholds between the two groups and thus determine the ability of the gastric antrum echodensity to predict the efficacy of prokinetic agents.ResultsIn total, 83 patients were analyzed. Patients in the ineffective group had a higher ED50 (58.13 ± 14.48 vs. 49.88 ± 13.78, p

BACKGROUND With the analytical technique development, the precision of Si isotopes analysis increases rapidly.Silicon isotopes are widely used in geochemistry, cosmochemistry, environmental chemistry and so on, and can be used to trace the circulation of crust-mantle material, the source of subducting fluid, and constrain the origin and evolution of the moon and extraterrestrial materials.To compare the precision and accuracy of Si isotope analysis results in different laboratories, it is necessary to analyze Si isotopes of reference materials with published Si isotope data.As generally used USGS reference materials are currently unavailable, it is important to report Si isotopes of new reference materials. OBJECTIVES In order to continuously conduct research in various fields with high-precision silicon isotope data, by providing a supply of new reference materials.Silicon isotopes of 30 GBW reference materials with different compositions, including 11 igneous rocks, 2 sedimentary rocks, 2 metamorphic rocks, 6 river/marine sediments and 9 soils, were analyzed.The SiO2 content of these reference materials ranged from 32.69% to 90.36%, covering the variation range of most natural samples. METHODS Alkali fusion method was used for sample digestion.Approximately 3-5mg of sample powder and 200mg of powdery NaOH were weighed in a 10mL silver crucible and heated.The Si purification was obtained using cation exchange resin AG50W-X12.6mol/L HNO3 and ultrapure water were used to clean the resin before sample loading.Silicon isotopes were measured by multi-collector inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS, Neptune Plus) at the laboratory in the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), and the instrument mass bias was corrected by standard-sample-standard method, with a bracketing standard of NBS-28.The long-term reproducibility (over two years) of Si isotope analysis of one in-house standard (USTC-Si) and one international rock reference material (BHVO-2) were represented, with the δ30Si values of USTC-Si and BHVO-2 of-0.07‰±0.06‰(n=117, 2SD) and-0.29‰±0.06‰(n=320, 2SD), respectively.During Si isotope analysis, two rock reference materials BHVO-2 and AGV-2 were also analyzed to ensure the precision and accuracy of the data.The Si isotopic compositions of BHVO-2 and AGV-2 were consistent with the reported data in the previous literature (Figure 3), demonstrating the reliability of this measurement. RESULTS Except one sediment and two soil samples, the δ30Si values of most reference materials analyzed in this study range from-0.42‰ to-0.07‰, within the range of upper continental crust.The drainage sediment GBW07310 has the highest δ30Si value (0.85‰±0.01‰), while the yellow-red soil GBW07405 and the latosol GBW07407 have the lowest δ30Si values of-0.68‰±0.03‰ and-1.82‰±0.03‰, respectively. CONCLUSIONS The high-precision Si isotope data of 30 GBW reference materials helps replenish the database for Si isotope analysis.The Si isotope data of these standard materials show that the river sediment GBW07310 has a very high δ30Si value of-1.82‰±0.03‰, indicating that it may be formed by dissolved silicon precipitation, which are enriched in heavy Si isotopes; while highly weathered yellow-red soil GBW07405 and the latosol GBW07407 have the lowest δ30Si values of-0.68‰±0.03‰ and-1.82‰±0.03‰, respectively, indicating that the weathering and desiliconization process may lead to the loss of heavy Si isotopes.The δ30Si values of most remaining reference materials analyzed in this study vary from-0.42‰ to-0.07‰, within the variation range of the upper continental crust.There is no obvious correlation between δ30Si values and SiO2 contents of the 11 igneous rock reference materials, revealing that their Si isotopes were not controlled by partial melting or mineral crystallization processes, and there may be other processes which would affect the Si isotopic composition of these standards.In the case that generally used USGS reference materials have been sold out, these high-precision Si isotope data of GBW reference materials will supplement basic data for Si isotope testing in different laboratories and lay solid isotope research in various fields.

Given the high carbon emission level of the industrial park integrated energy system， a low-carbon economic dispatch model of the integrated energy system considering the time-varying carbon emission factor is proposed. Firstly， to improve the carbon emission model of the whole process of electric energy production， the carbon emission characteristics of tie-line and energy storage charging and discharging are studied. Secondly， the low-carbon potential of load-side dispatchable resources is explored， and a dispatch model of load-side dispatchable resources under the incentive of price signals and time-varying carbon emission factor curve is constructed； a low-carbon economic dispatch model of the industrial park integrated energy system considering the time-varying carbon emission factor curve is constructed to optimize the system operation with the objective of minimum operation cost and carbon emission. The simulation results show that the low-carbon economic dispatch model can effectively reduce the carbon emission level of the system and reduce the total operation cost of industrial park.

In the era of the digital economy, the continuous development of digital technology has had profound effects across various industries. The 20th National Congress report of the Party also emphasizes the need to “promote digitalization in education.” This paper aims to explore new approaches to teaching design in the context of digitization, addressing the needs and challenges of modern society. Starting from the issues encountered in the professional teaching process, it analyzes students’ psychology, the trends in different specialized directions, and industry demands such as visual communication design, product design, environmental design, and digital media art. Leveraging digital empowerment, the paper proposes several innovative teaching approaches, including interdisciplinary teaching, project-driven teaching, integrated teaching, and collaborative teaching. The exploration of these teaching design strategies aims to break down disciplinary barriers, providing a broader space for the art and design discipline. The goal is to cultivate professionals better suited to the demands of social development, contributing to the field of education.

Building Information Modelling(BIM) is the foundation of digital transformation in architecture, engineering, and construction(AEC)industry. BIM is the holistic process of creating and managing information for a built asset. A traditional CAD and 3D modelling technology is widely used in university’s architecture and landscape courses teaching today. Every single detail of traditional course education does not match the internationally market and BIM technology which is more common and popular today. Using BIM technology in university to teach architecture and landscape design will make changes to design education, and will improve the education practice in Environmental Design system. This article will introduce more detail about BIM technology, and how it changes and affects traditional architecture & landscape teaching, how this technology merged with professions, and how this technology brings comprehensive learning ways and new insight for students in their future career life.

To date, there is no clinical scoring system or laboratory indicator that can rule out cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) or provide diagnostic proof for evaluating post-treatment thrombosis recanalization during follow-up. We therefore explored an imaging method for quantitative assessment of CVT and assessed thrombotic changes during follow-up. A patient presented with severe posterior occipital distension extending to the top of the forehead and an elevated plasma D-dimer (DD2) level. Computed tomography and pre-contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging revealed only a small amount of cerebral hemorrhage. Three-dimensional (3D) T1-weighted (T1W) BrainVIEW pre-contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance scanning showed subacute thrombosis in the venous sinus, and the post-contrast-enhanced scan combined with volume rendering reconstruction showed cerebral thrombosis of the venous sinus and allowed for measurement of the thrombus volume. On days 30 and 60 of post-treatment follow-up, post-contrast-enhanced scans showed progressive reduction of the thrombus volume as well as recanalization and fibrotic flow voids in the chronic thrombosis. 3D T1W BrainVIEW was helpful to observe the size of the thrombi and the situation of venous sinus recanalization during the follow-up after clinical treatment of CVT. This technique can reflect the imaging manifestations of CVT throughout the whole process to guide clinical treatment decisions.

ObjectiveTo analyze the characteristics of sudden death associated with sexual activity to provide recommendations for forensic identification.MethodsA retrospective analysis was conducted on autopsy cases accepted by Forensic Identification Center of Huazhong University of Science and Technology from 1998 to 2018, and a total of 15 cases of sudden death associated with sexual activity were screened out. The general information, case data and pathological changes of 15 cases were collected to find the relationship between sexual activity and sudden death.ResultsThe ratio of male to female was 1.5∶1. The average age of males was 50.1 years and that of females was 35.0 years. Coronary artery diseases and brain diseases accounted for most of the cases （12/15）. Sexual partners were associated with locations of deaths and body dumping behaviors.ConclusionSudden death associated with sexual activity, although rare, may occur in people over 30 years old with pre-existing heart or brain diseases, which should be paid attention to in forensic practice.

Background: Patient-centred care is an important part of quality healthcare and patient satisfaction has been shown to be associated with improved clinical outcomes. We aim to explore the satisfaction of patients with diabetic kidney disease (DKD) with their visits to the TCM physician and its association with patients' socio-economic characteristics. Methods: A questionnaire survey was conducted among patients aged >21 years with DKD. Participants' demographic, socioeconomic characteristics and satisfaction scores measured with the self-administered Medical Interview Satisfaction Scale (MISS) were collected after they visited the TCM physician. MISS is a 26-item questionnaire consisting of three domains – cognitive, affective and behavioural which was developed to assess patient satisfaction with medical consultation. Independent samples t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to analyse the data. Results: 137 participants completed the questionnaires and were included in the analysis. The mean satisfaction score was 3.1 out of 5, with the cognitive domain being significantly higher compared to the affective and behavioural domains. The mean satisfaction score of the cognitive domain differed significantly among participants staying in different types of housing and those with previous TCM encounters. The mean satisfaction score of the behavioural domain differed significantly among participants of different ethnicities. The mean satisfaction scores of all the domains were also significantly different among participants with different duration of follow-up with their TCM physicians. Conclusion: We found that ethnicity, types of housing, previous TCM experience and the duration of follow-up with the TCM physician may affect the satisfaction scores of patients with DKD.

Objective To construct and verify a convolutional neural network model for early gastric cancer recognition in order to improve the detection rate of early gastric cancer. Methods We collected the gastroscopy stock photos and gastroscopy videos in the database of the Endoscopy Center of our hospital from January 2016 to August 2020. A total of 5 496 photos from 928 patients were subjected, including early gastric cancer, benign lesions and normal pictures. The photos were randomly divided into training set (662 patients, 4 167 photos), and validation set (259 patients, 1 329 photos). The model was identified with 4 endoscopists, and finally the relevant Results were counted. Then, 458 photos of early gastric cancer identified by the model were randomly selected for the analysis of the accuracy of model positioning, and the overlap between the area of the lesion framed by the model and the area marked by the endoscopy experts was analyzed. Thirty-four cases of gastric endoscopy videos were used for real-time identification of the model. After the video lesion photos identified by the model were reviewed by endoscopic experts, the sensitivity index for the model to identify early gastric cancer was obtained. Results The recognition sensitivity and positive predictive value (PPV) of the model for early gastric cancer were 90.33% and 95.41%, respectively. The sensitivity and PPV for identifying benign lesions such as chronic superficial gastritis, gastric polyps and gastric ulcers were both over 80%. The sheet recognition time was 0.040±0.005 s. In terms of the detection rate and diagnosis time of early cancer, the model was better than the endoscopist group; after Chi-square test, it was better than the endoscopist group in the identification of early cancer lesions. In terms of accurate positioning of the model, there were 380 photos with an overlap of more than 60% of the model recognition, accounting for 82.97% of the total. In terms of morphology, the model showed most accurate for positioning uplifted lesions, and the number of picture of the overlap of different specifications (coincidence ≥60 %, coincidence ≥70%) were larger than flat and depressed lesions. In the video verification experiment, the model correctly identified 17 of the 19 early gastric cancer lesions with a sensitivity of 89.5%. The detection rate of early cancer lesions was in good consistency with the early cancer detection rate confirmed by biopsy pathology. Conclusion Our constructed convolutional neural network model presents high sensitivity and positive predictive value in the identification of early gastric cancer and 3 benign lesions (chronic superficial gastritis, gastric polyps, and gastric ulcer), and can accurately identify the location and margin of early cancer lesions. At the same time, it can also dynamically identify early gastric cancer and benign lesions, which can assist endoscopists in the actual clinical examination to increase the detection rate of early gastric cancer and improve the level of diagnosis.

Abstract Background Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a debilitating condition which commonly affects cancer survivors. The management of CRF remains a challenge due to the lack of effective pharmacological interventions. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) could be a potential therapeutic option for CRF. The modified Xiang Bei Yang Rong Tang (XBYRT) is a TCM herbal decoction, formulated to improve fatigue symptoms in cancer survivors. This clinical trial aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of XBYRT in improving CRF and quality of life (QOL) of cancer survivors. Methods This is a single centre, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel trial. Eighty cancer survivors will be recruited and randomized to receive the XBYRT or placebo decoction, in a ratio of 1:1. Participants will consume the XBYRT/placebo decoction daily for 8 weeks and undergo assessments at baseline and 4, 8 and 10 weeks after baseline. The participants will be assessed for patient-reported outcomes (PRO), blood biomarkers and adverse events at each time point. The primary outcome is the overall health and QOL status, at 8 weeks follow-up. The secondary outcomes are the effects of XBYRT on fatigue levels, cancer-related cognitive impairment and QOL, as assessed by PRO. The incidence of adverse events and the effects of the XBYRT decoction on blood biomarkers associated with CRF will also be evaluated. Discussion Efficacy and safety outcomes from this trial will provide important clinical data to guide future large-scale randomized controlled trials, and the evaluation of the objective blood biomarkers can help to delineate the biological mechanisms of CRF. Trial registration number ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04104113 . Registered on 26 September 2019

Abstract Background Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have become a promising treatment for spinal cord injury (SCI) due to the fact that they provide a favorable environment. Treatment using MSCs results in a better neurological functional improvement through the promotion of nerve cell regeneration and the modulation of inflammation. Many studies have highlighted that the beneficial effects of MSCs are more likely associated with their secreted factors. However, the identity of the factor that plays a key role in the MSC-induced neurological functional recovery following SCI as well as its molecular mechanism still remains unclear. Methods A conditioned medium (collected from the MSCs) and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) were used to test the effects on the differentiation of neural stem cells (NSCS) in the presence of BMP4 with or without a c-Met antibody. In SCI rats, Western blot, ELISA, immunohistochemistry, and hematoxylin-eosin staining were used to investigate the biological effects of MSC-conditioned medium and HGF on nerve cell regeneration and inflammation with or without the pre-treatment using a c-Met antibody. In addition, the possible molecular mechanism (cross-talk between HGF/c-Met and the BMP/Smad 1/5/8 signaling pathway) was also detected by Western blot both in vivo and in vitro. Results The conditioned medium from bone marrow-derived MSCs (BMSCs) was able to promote the NSC differentiation into neurons in vitro and the neurite outgrowth in the scar boundary of SCI rats by inhibiting the BMP/Smad signaling pathway as well as reduces the secondary damage through the modulation of the inflammatory process. The supplementation of HGF showed similar biological effects to those of BMSC-CM, whereas a functional blocking of the c-Met antibody or HGF knockdown in BMSCs significantly reversed the functional improvement mediated by the BMSC-CM. Conclusions The MSC-associated biological effects on the recovery of SCI rats mainly depend on the secretion of HGF.

Oral fluid (OF) is a new safe, non-invasive, convenient, and efficient biological sample that can be used for virus nucleic acid and antibody detection. Because few studies have performed surveillance of multiple respiratory pathogens, this study sought to explore the application value of OF in this field. OF and throat swabs were collected from December 2020 to December 2021 in patients with acute respiratory tract infections in Beijing. Multiplex real-time PCR was performed, and the detection performance of two samples was compared. A total of 769 OF and throat swab samples were collected. The detection rates of respiratory pathogens in throat swabs and OF were 29.26% (225/769) and 20.81% (160/769), respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of the OF assay, compared with the throat swab assay, were 71.11% (160/225) and 100% (544/544), respectively. The two assays had excellent agreement (kappa = 0.78). The detection consistency varied among pathogens. For OF samples, the most common pathogen was the influenza B virus, and the highest detection rate was in the ≤5-year-old group. The highest positivity rate was observed in December 2021. OF samples have excellent potential for the epidemiological surveillance of respiratory pathogens, and may have application prospects in preventing and controlling infectious diseases.

The incidence of degenerative spinal diseases, such as cervical spondylosis and thoracic and lumbar disc herniation, is increasing. These health problems have adversely affected human life and work. Surgical intervention is effective when intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) causes nerve compression and/or severely limits daily activity. Early IDD patients generally do not require surgery. However, there is no effective method of impeding IDD progression. Thus, novel approaches to alleviating IDD deterioration are urgently required. Cystathionine-γ-lyase (CSE) and E-selectin (CD62E) are vital factors regulating vascular function and inflammation. However, their effects on IDD and vascular invasion in intervertebral discs (IVDs) are pending further exploration. Here, bioinformatics and human nucleus pulposus (NP) tissues analyses revealed that CSE was significantly downregulated and CD62E was upregulated in the NP tissues of IDD patients. We demonstrated that CSE overexpression, CD62E downregulation, and NF-κB (P65) inhibition mitigate inflammation and recover metabolic function in NP cells. Similarly, CSE attenuated vascular invasion induced by inflammatory irritation. Using a rat IDD model, we showed that CSE improved degeneration, inflammation, and microvascular invasion in NP tissue, whereas CD62E had the opposite effect. Taken together, our results indicated that the CSE/CD62E pathway could effectively improve the inflammatory environment and vascular invasion in IVD. Hence, the findings of this study propose a promising and valuable strategy for the treatment of patients with early IDD as well as postoperative adjuvant therapy in patients with severe IDD.

The accumulation of macrophages in degenerated discs is a common phenomenon. However, the roles and mechanisms of M2a macrophages in intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) have not been illuminated. This study investigated the expression of the M2a macrophage marker (CD206) in human and rat intervertebral disc tissues by immunohistochemistry. To explore the roles of M2a macrophages in IDD, nucleus pulposus (NP) cells were co-cultured with M2a macrophages in vitro. To clarify whether the CHI3L1 protein mediates the effect of M2a macrophages on NP cells, siRNA was used to knock down CHI3L1 transcription. To elucidate the underlying mechanisms, NP cells were incubated with recombinant CHI3L1 proteins, then subjected to western blotting analysis of the IL-13Rα2 receptor and MAPK pathway. CD206-positive cells were detected in degenerated human and rat intervertebral disc tissues. Notably, M2a macrophages promoted the expression of catabolism genes (MMP-3 and MMP-9) and suppressed the expression of anabolism genes (aggrecan and collagen II) in NP cells. These effects were abrogated by CHI3L1 knockdown in M2a macrophages. Exposure to recombinant CHI3L1 promoted an extracellular matrix metabolic imbalance in NP cells via the IL-13Rα2 receptor, along with activation of the ERK and JNK MAPK signaling pathways. This study elucidated the roles of M2a macrophages in IDD and identified potential mechanisms for these effects.

Abstract Background Flavonoids are a class of plant and fungus secondary metabolites and are the most common group of polyphenolic compounds in the human diet. In recent studies, flavonoids have been shown to induce browning of white adipocytes, increase energy consumption, inhibit high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity and improve metabolic status. Promoting the activity of brown adipose tissue (BAT) and inducing white adipose tissue (WAT) browning are promising means to increase energy expenditure and improve glucose and lipid metabolism. This review summarizes recent advances in the knowledge of flavonoid compounds and their metabolites. Methods We searched the following databases for all research related to flavonoids and WAT browning published through March 2019: PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Web of Science. All included studies are summarized and listed in Table 1. Result We summarized the effects of flavonoids on fat metabolism and the specific underlying mechanisms in sub-categories. Flavonoids activated the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), promoted the release of adrenaline and thyroid hormones to increase thermogenesis and induced WAT browning through the AMPK-PGC-1α/Sirt1 and PPAR signalling pathways. Flavonoids may also promote brown preadipocyte differentiation, inhibit apoptosis and produce inflammatory factors in BAT. Conclusion Flavonoids induced WAT browning and activated BAT to increase energy consumption and non-shivering thermogenesis, thus inhibiting weight gain and preventing metabolic diseases.

BACKGROUND When analyzing copper isotopes in soil samples, organic matter can cause serious interference on chemical purification and analysis processes. Therefore, the complete removal of organic matter from the soil is critical to obtain high-precision copper isotope data without changing the copper isotope composition of the sample. OBJECTIVES To carry out the condition experiments before using the dry-ashing method, because the method may influence the compositions of volatile elements, such as Cu, in soil samples. METHODS Soil samples containing organic matter were treated by dry-ashing and then digested by the high-pressure wet digestion method. The copper isotope composition was measured by Multi-collector Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry after purification. Through the comparison of the results of the two treatment methods, the extent of influence of the dry-ashing method on the copper isotopic composition of soil samples was investigated. RESULTS The results demonstrate that the wet-digestion method can provide more precise results, while the dry-ashing method can significantly fractionate Cu isotopes of soil samples. The deviation of δ 65Cu values varies from -0.61‰ to 3.46‰ for the dry-ashing method, which was caused by volatilization loss of Cu. Moreover, the degree of influence is controlled by a few factors such as sample nature and ashing temperature. CONCLUSIONS The dry-ashing method is not an appropriate method for soil sample digestion. The wet-digestion method is a better choice to prepare samples for Cu isotopic analysis.

C60H76N18O32Er2, monoclinic, P21/n (no. 14), a = 10.5441(4) Å, b = 31.1092(9) Å, c = 12.0993(4) Å, β = 114.398(4)°, V = 3614.4(2) Å3, Z = 2, Rgt(F) = 0.0431, wRref(F2) = 0.0805, T = 296(2) K.

Although Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have attracted extensive attention among educational stakeholders, the issue of the high dropout rate has yet to be solved. The current study aimed to unpack teacher influence on MOOCs learners' continuance learning intention, and to examine the mediating roles of students' perceived usefulness and satisfaction. Quantitative data were collected from 166 Chinese university students located in 18 provinces. Results indicated that teacher influence is significantly associated with learners' continuous learning intention, and when considering perceived usefulness and satisfaction, this relationship did not achieve significance but was mediated by students' perceived usefulness and satisfaction, in addition, teacher influence did not exert a direct and significant impact on students' satisfaction. The serial mediation model explained 65.8% of the variance of students' continuance intention. This study uncovered the important role of teacher influence on students' continuance learning intention in the Chinese MOOCs learning context. Results provided suggestions to policymakers, MOOCs platform and lecturers to promote MOOCs and design useful courses so as to engage students to learn continuously.

C60H76N18O32Gd2, monoclinic, P21/c (no. 14), a = 10.560(5) Å, b = 31.243(5) Å, c = 12.383(4) Å, β = 116.51(3)°, V = 3656(2) Å3, Z = 2, Rgt(F) = 0.0470, wRref(F2) = 0.1013, T = 293(2) K.

C22H18N7O5Pb, triclinic, P1̅ (no. 2), a = 7.7446(17) Å, b = 16.914(3) Å, c = 17.726(3) Å, α = 72.451(6)°, β = 86.900(6)°, γ = 88.098(7)°, V = 2210.3(7) Å3, Z = 4, Rgt(F) = 0.0379, wRref(F2) = 0.0751, T = 153 K.

Ecosystem functional types (EFTs) are the patches of land surface showing similar in carbon dynamics. EFTs are not defined by the structure and composition of vegetation and represent the spatial heterogeneity of ecosystem functions. Identifying EFTs based on low-resolution satellite remote sensing data cannot satisfy the needs of fine-scale characterization of regional ecosystem functional patterns. Here, taking Zhenlai County, Northeast China as an example, the heterogeneity in ecosystem functions was characterized by identifying EFTs from Sentinel-2 time series data using ISODATA algorithm. Ecosystem functional attributes derived from dynamics of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), the fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (FAPAR), and canopy water content (CWC) in the growing season were calculated. The correspondence analysis (CA) method was used to reveal relationships between the EFTs and land cover types. Our results showed that the nine selected remotely sensed variables indicating carbon and water flux of the regional ecosystems could be adopted in ecosystem functions classification. The obtained EFTs based on Sentinel-2 images reflected the internal structure of carbon balance well and the distribution pattern of ecosystem functional diversity a fine scale. This study helps to understand the functional heterogeneity pattern of temperate terrestrial ecosystems.

C60H76N18O32Nd2, monoclinic, P21/c (no. 14), a = 10.609(5) Å, b = 31.215(5) Å, c = 12.407(4) Å, β = 116.54(3)°, V = 3676(2) Å3, Z = 2, Rgt(F) = 0.0450, wRref(F2) = 0.0910, T = 293(2) K.