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BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic is associated with common mental health problems. However, evidence for the association between fear of COVID-19 and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is limited. ObjectiveThis study aimed to examine if fear of negative events affects Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) scores in the context of a COVID-19–fear-invoking environment. MethodsAll participants were medical university students and voluntarily completed three surveys via smartphone or computer. Survey 1 was conducted on February 8, 2020, following a 2-week-long quarantine period without classes; survey 2 was conducted on March 25, 2020, when participants had been taking online courses for 2 weeks; and survey 3 was conducted on April 28, 2020, when no new cases had been reported for 2 weeks. The surveys comprised the Y-BOCS and the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS); additional items included questions on demographics (age, gender, only child vs siblings, enrollment year, major), knowledge of COVID-19, and level of fear pertaining to COVID-19. ResultsIn survey 1, 11.3% of participants (1519/13,478) scored ≥16 on the Y-BOCS (defined as possible OCD). In surveys 2 and 3, 3.6% (305/8162) and 3.5% (305/8511) of participants had scores indicative of possible OCD, respectively. The Y-BOCS score, anxiety level, quarantine level, and intensity of fear were significantly lower at surveys 2 and 3 than at survey 1 (P

Dye wastewater is becoming one of the most significant sources of water pollution, and its impact on human survival is immeasurable. In this study, we successfully synthesized a nanofiber membrane with environmentally friendly and efficient properties using electrospinning of a mixture of sodium alginate (SA) and copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticles, aimed at effective dye removal. The adsorption performance of the SA/CuO nanofiber membrane was evaluated using the cationic dye methylene blue (MB). The maximum adsorption capacity of the nanofiber membrane was increased significantly with the addition of CuO nanoparticles, reaching a maximum value of 1633.4 mg g−1, almost twice as much as that of pure SA membrane. The adsorption kinetics follows the pseudo‐second‐order model, where chemisorption acts as the rate‐limiting step. The adsorption isotherm data indicate that the adsorption is monolayer. The nanofibrous membranes showed better dye removal under an alkaline environment. After four cycles of adsorption/desorption, the MB removal efficiency remained at 70.1% of the original adsorption capacity. The addition of CuO nanoparticles facilitated the adsorption of MB dyes, while the form of the nanofibrous membrane is easily recoverable and reusable. Therefore, the as‐prepared SA/CuO nanofibrous composite membrane is a potentially favorable adsorbent material for wastewater treatment applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) is a major nosocomial infectious pathogen with rapidly increasing prevalence. The genomic epidemiological characteristics of CRKP nationwide, especially the evolving trends within the predominant clones, should be evaluated clearly. Methods We collected 3415 K. pneumoniae strains from 28 hospitals across China. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing and WGS were performed. Subsequent genomic analyses, including sequence typing, K-locus (KL) identification, antimicrobial resistance gene screening, and virulence score assessment were performed. The phylogenetic relationship of clonal group 11 was determined based on core-genome analysis, and the presence of the pLVPK-like virulence plasmid in ST11 isolates was confirmed using plasmid core-gene analysis. Additionally, the trends of the ST11 lineage with different KL types on a global scale were investigated using Beast2. Results Of the K. pneumoniae strains, 708 were identified as CRKP isolates (20.7%), of which 97.7% were MDR. ST11 was the predominant clone, and KPC-2 was the prevalent carbapenemase in China, although the prevalence of specific clones and carbapenemases varied by geographic region. Among ST11 isolates, KL47 and KL64 were the predominant KL types, and KL64 gradually replaced KL47, with a higher percentage of KL64 isolates harbouring the pLVPK-like plasmid. Global genome data showed a significant increase in the effective population size of KL64 over the last 5 years. Conclusions The prevalence of CRKP was very high in certain regions in China. The increasing convergence of virulence and resistance, particularly in ST11-KL64 isolates, should be given more attention and further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigated the analytical solution of the bond strength between ribbed steel bar and engineered cementitious composites (ECC). In this method, ECC cover was regarded as a thick‐walled cylinder subjected to the uniform internal pressure which consisted of an elastic uncracked outer ring and a partially cracked inner ring. For the uncracked outer ring, it can be solved by the elastic mechanics theory. To solve the partially cracked inner ring, two key problems that had to be investigated were the crack width and the tensile stress–crack width relationship of ECC. According to the steady‐state cracking mode, the hoop deformation of ECC was expressed by the equal distribution and then the crack width can be determined. Besides, the fictitious crack model in fracture mechanic was introduced to describe the crack propagation process. Then a trilinear model was applied to reflect the tensile stress–crack width relationship of ECC materials, which considered the combined action of aggregate bridging and fiber bridging on the crack surface. Finally, the comparison between the calculation results and experimental results was carried out to prove the validity of the analytic method of bond strength proposed in this paper. Results indicated that the analytical solution and the experimental data fitted in well with each other. Then parameter analyses were conducted based on the analytical method proposed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]