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With the widespread application of carbon dots (CDs) in fluorescence imaging, their toxicity has become a focal point of concern. The potential toxicity of CDs synthesized from different raw materials remains an unresolved issue. Laver and wakame, which are commonly popular sea vegetable foods rich in nutrients, were utilized to investigate whether synthetic CDs derived from these alga sources retain medicinal value. Herein, two types of fluorescent alga-derived CDs were prepared through hydrothermal synthesis using laver and wakame respectively. Zebrafish were immersed in both types of CDs to observe their fluorescence imaging effects within the zebrafish bodies. It was observed that laver-derived CDs and wakame-derived CDs exhibited similar luminescence properties but differed in terms of fish egg imaging localization. Additionally, intestinal flora sequencing revealed varying degrees of influence on the zebrafish gut microbiota by the two types of CDs, suggesting that both alga-derived CDs could enhance the abundance of intestinal flora in zebrafish.

Objectives: This study aimed to analyze each myocardial segment's ischemic burden, scarring, function, and viability by late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) imaging and stress-MRI using adenosine. Materials and methods: Semi-quantitative and qualitative parameters of myocardial segments were obtained by stress-MRI. Moreover, segments without perfusion defect were defined as the no ischemic group, segments with a perfusion defect of ≤50% were defined as a low ischemic burden group, and segments with a perfusion defect of >50% were defined as a high ischemic burden group. “Segmental wall thickening (SWT)” was defined as the absolute difference between the end-diastolic and end-systolic wall thickness. Finally, viability was defined by dysfunctional myocardium (50%. Among the different ischemic burden groups, there were significant differences in LGE volume (p ​ ​0.05). Conclusions: Stress MRI parameters can accurately and detailly assess myocardial viability and function, so multi-parameter joint assessment of CTO patients by stress MRI may help in treatment decisions.

Abstract We used cardiac magnetic resonance tissue tracking (CMR-TT) to quantitatively analyze the global, regional and layer-specific strain of isolated left ventricular noncompaction (ILVNC). Combined with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE), we initially explored the effect of focal myocardial fibrosis on myocardial strain. CMR was performed in 63 patients with ILVNC and 52 patients without ILVNC (i.e., the control group). The ILVNC group was divided into an LGE(+) group (29 patients) and an LGE(−) group (34 patients) according to the presence or absence of late gadalinum enhancement (LGE). CVI42 software was used to measure global and regional (basal, middle, apical) radial strain (RS), circumferential strain (CS), longitudinal strain (LS), subendocardial LS and subepicardial LS. The basal–apical strain gradient was defined as the apical mean strain minus the basal mean strain. We then compared differences between these strain parameters. The subendocardial-subepicardial LS gradient was defined as the maximum subendocardial LS minus the subepicardial LS. Compared with the control group, the global and regional RS, CS, LS and the subendocardial, subepicardial LS of the ILVNC group were significantly diminished (P

One of the Millennium Development Goals is to ensure universal access to primary education by 2015. However, primary school dropout remains a challenge in many developing countries. While official statistics in China report aggregated primary school dropout of only 0.2 %, almost no independent, survey-based studies have sought to verify these dropout rates in rural areas. The primary objective of our study is to document the dropout rate in primary schools in rural China and compare the dropout rate of ethnic minorities and Han students. Using a first-hand dataset of 14,761 primary students in northwest China, we demonstrate that the annual dropout rate in poor rural areas is 2.5 %, suggesting a cumulative dropout of 8.2 %. Importantly, Hui and Salar minority students drop out at rates that are significantly higher than the official rates. Most noteworthy, 23 % of Hui girls and 22 % of Salar girls are dropping out by the end of grade 6. Our findings call for more attention to China's primary school dropout issue-especially in minority areas. Policymakers should begin to examine new ways to increase the chances for minority students to succeed in the educational system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]