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This analysis aimed to investigate the candidate biomarkers associated with overall survival (OS) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients.In the GSE14520 dataset, candidate parameters were selected and included in the Cox regression and Nomogram models through bioinformatic enrichment methods and LASSO analysis, survivor functions of candidate biomarkers were also assessed.Complement and coagulation cascades including 36 differential expressed genes (DEGs) and ribosome pathway including 27 DEGs were significantly enriched (both p0.05 and adjusted p0.05). LASSO model, Cox regression and nomogram analysis indicated that RPS3, together with BCLC and TNM staging, were significantly associated with OS in HCC patients. Validated in the GEO series, TCGA and Human Protein Atlas (HPA) datasets, RPS3 mRNA and RPS3 protein were significantly upregulated in tumor tissues compared to that in nontumor tissues (all p0.05). Upregulation of RPS3 has been linked to high alpha fetoprotein (AFP), advanced tumor stages and multinodular (all p0.05). After adjusting AFP, tumor stage and multinodular, log rank analysis revealed that HCC patients with high RPS3 had unfavorable OS compared to those with low RPS3 (all p0.05).RPS3 upregulation in tumors might contribute to unfavorable OS in HCC patients.

Etomidate-induced myoclonus is common in clinical anesthesia. Propofol and lidocaine, as other sedative hypnotic and anticonvulsant drugs, rarely induce myoclonus. The mechanism of the myoclonus remains unclear.Eighty-four adult male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats anesthetized intravenously with etomidate, propofol, or lidocaine plus etomidate were observed of the behavioral changes at 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 min after anesthesia. Five minutes later, glutamate levels were measured in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), neocortex and hippocampus. The mRNAs and proteins expression of EAAT1, EAAT2, and GFAP in the neocortex and hippocampus were analyzed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), Western blot and immunofluorescence staining.Etomidate increased the mean behavioral scores at different time points and the neocortical glutamate level compared with the propofol (p=0.0283) and the lidocaine plus etomidate group (p=0.0035); The correlation analysis revealed a strong correlation between the mean behavioral score and the neocortical glutamate content (Spearman's r=0.6638, p=0.0027). No significant difference was found in the EAAT1, EAAT2, or GFAP mRNAs in the neocortex and hippocampus among three groups; etomidate decreased EAAT1 (p=0.0416 and p=0.0127) and EAAT2 (p=0.0363 and p=0.0109) proteins but increased the GFAP (p=0.0145 and p=0.0149) protein in the neocortex compared to the propofol and lidocaine plus etomidate group. Furthermore, etomidate activated GFAP-positive cells in the neocortex, but conversely inhibited proteins of EAATs in motor cortex.Etomidate-induced myoclonus is associated with neocortical glutamate accumulation. Suppression of the astrogliosis in neocortex and promoting extracellular glutamate uptake by regulating glutamate transporters (EAATs) in the motor cortex may be the therapeutic target for prevention of etomidate-induced myoclonus.

The crosstalk between Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) accounts for liver fibrosis progression. This study aimed to investigate the predictive performance of altered genes induced by TLR-4 and LPS challenge for advanced liver fibrosis.The overlapping differentially expressed genes (DEGs) of TLR-4 and LPS challenge models from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were screened and included in the random forest analysis to identify potential candidates for predicting advanced liver fibrosis in the GSE84044 dataset. The roles of the identified candidates in liver injury development and activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) were also addressed.Among the overlapping DEGs in the GSE30485, GSE33446 and GSE166488 datasets, vimentin (VIM) was the most important gene for predicting advanced liver fibrosis (S ≥ 2) by the random forest model. In the GSE84044 dataset, VIM was positively correlated with liver fibrosis (r = 0.68, 95% CI = 0.57-0.76, p0.0001), and accurately predicted advanced liver fibrosis (AUC = 0.85, 95% CI = 0.78-0.91), both in males (AUC = 0.84, 95% CI = 0.76-0.92) and females (AUC = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.76-0.99). VIM was significantly upregulated in various liver diseases (cirrhosis, liver failure, chronic hepatitis B and fatty liver disease) and liver injury models (ANIT, BDL, CCl4 and DMN). Additionally, VIM was correlated with HSC regulators (TGFβ, PDGF, CTGF and BMP7) and overexpressed in activated HSCs (p0.05). Enrichment analysis indicated that VIM-induced gene alterations were involved in the cytosolic DNA-sensing pathway, Toll-like receptor signaling pathway, etc. CONCLUSIONS: VIM could predict advanced liver fibrosis in CHB patients and is mainly involved in the activation of HSCs and profibrotic signaling pathways.

One of the most promising approaches to reach a high gain in inertial confinement fusion is the fast ignition scheme. In this scheme, a relativistic electron beam is generated; this passes through the imploded plasma and deposits parts of its energy in the core. However, the large angular spread of the relativistic electron beam and the poorly controlled compression of the target affect realization of the fast ignition technique. Here, we demonstrate that indirectly driven (that is, driven by X-rays generated inside a gold hohlraum) implosions with a ‘high-foot’ and a short-coast time of less than 200 ps allow us to tightly compress the shell. Furthermore, we show the ability to optimize the symmetry of the imploding shell by changing the hohlraum length, successfully tuning a suitable tube-shaped shell to compensate for the large angular spread of the relativistic electron beam and to enhance the electron-to-core coupling efficiency via resistive magnetic fields. Benefiting from those experimental techniques, a significant enhancement in neutron yield was achieved in our indirectly driven fast ignition experiments. These results pave the way towards high-coupling fast ignition experiments with indirectly driven targets similar to those at the National Ignition Facility. Experiments realizing the indirect-drive fast ignition scheme for inertial confinement fusion are reported. Enabled by a tightly compressed target, an increase of neutron yield is observed.

This study proposes a novel method to mitigate stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) using multicolor alternating-polarization bundle light. The bundle light combines multiwavelength, spike trains of uneven duration and delay for a single beam to multicolor alternating polarization for bundle beams. SBS suppression is verified using a three-dimensional large-scale laser plasma code. The numerical results show that the SBS reflectivity can be decreased by nearly two orders in low density plasma. The proposed method can extend the repetition time of a single beam from several picoseconds to tens of picoseconds. Moreover, it has potential applications in inertial confinement fusion research.

A new evolution pattern for broadband laser excited stimulated Raman back-scattering (BSRS) in the kinetic regime is proposed by numerical simulations. It is found that the change of coherence of different frequency beamlets will cause the fluctuation of laser intensity, generating an ensemble of random intensity pulses and leading to an intermittent excitation of BSRS. The kinetic inflation and intense amplification of scattered light are observed due to the synergism between these pulses, which cause a burst of instantaneous reflectivity. The synergistic effect is highly bandwidth-dependent. Under the bandwidth similar to the existing broadband laser facilities, these bursts will generate over-expected scattered light and hot electrons. Fortunately, a large bandwidth laser can still inactivate the synergy mechanism and mitigate the scattering effectively. We formulated a theoretical model to predict the inactivate point, and the calculation [Formula: see text] is in good agreement with the numerical results.

The evolution of collisional planar plasma shocks is investigated by using a hybrid fluid-particle-in-cell code, which enables the analysis of the impact of ion kinetic effects. The structure and propagation of shocks in multi-component plasmas with moderate density ([Formula: see text]) are found to be strongly dependent on the electron thermal conduction and ion kinetic effects. In high electron heat flux cases, the electron thermal conduction creates a preheat layer ahead of the shock front, allowing the energetic ions to stream through the upstream plasma. It is found that the shock velocity drops by about 4.67% and the heatwave velocity increases about 47% when the electron flux limiter increases from [Formula: see text] to 0.15. Furthermore, the inhibiting effect of high electron heat flux on the species separation induced by the shock in multi-component plasmas is observed. These results provide a new dataset valuable for benchmarking and improving radiation hydrodynamic models.

To investigate the heterogeneity of decidual endothelial cells and their changes during delivery.Single-cell RNA sequencing was used to characterize the transcriptomes of decidual endothelial cells before and after the onset of labor.Decidual endothelial cells (9748 cells) were divided into five subgroups with different functions according to differences in the transcriptome. The functions of cluster 5 were enriched in vascular development and response to growth factors. After the onset of labor, the activities of each cluster were different, including the interleukin 17 pathway and regulation of ERK1 and ERK2 cascade. The downregulated genes were related to scavenger receptor (cluster 5), which may reflect the process of endothelial activation. In terms of genetic changes, cluster 5 may be more actively involved in labor than the other clusters.Peripartum decidual endothelial cells are heterogeneous and participate in labor to varying degrees. One of the five subtypes of endothelial cells may be more actively involved in labor onset. Our findings may enable the assessment of decidual endothelial cells and labor onset.

The radial sand ridges (hereafter indicated as “RSRs”) in the South Yellow Sea are famous for its complex bathymetry and tidal wave systems. As marine development increasingly expanding, the characteristics of storm surge are crucial to the nearshore installations and navigation channels. Therefore, the evolution law of storm surge along with the changes of tide and wind is of great importance to protect the shoreline that is increasingly prone to flooding and erosion. Depending on the meteorological record from 1949 to 2007, 54% of typhoons moved northward in the East China Sea directly without landing. For the sake of investigating the spatial-temporal features of the storm surge, the same type of super typhoon as above ones named “Muifa” was selected and a coupled numerical model of WRF, and Mike-Flow was established with verification by observations of wind and flow velocity. Because the storm surge is susceptible with the typhoon intensity, and the extent of damage mainly induced by storm surge has a sharp rise in the highest and lowest astronomical tides at four times, namely T1, T2, T3, and T4 (T1 and T3 are the lowest tides, and others are the highest tides), were selected as the idealized tidal conditions to investigate the effects of tidal variations on storm surge during typhoon Muifa. The results showed that the weight of storm surge moved from the north to the south, but always near the 10 m isobath. The maximum of storm surge was 1.39 m when the Muifa came from the south at T1, but then fell to 1.28 m with the stronger wind at T2, the reason was the negative effect of the lower tide. The value jumped to 1.63 m with the stronger wind and the higher tide at T3. Finally, the value at T4 became only 0.6 m as the location of Muifa was too far to keep wind intensity. Although the wind intensity had a positive effect on the evolution of the storm surge, the macromareal tide made the storm surge decrease at the lowest tide with the stronger wind. The results of ten observation points showed that the peak value of the storm surge was high in the center of RSRs and low in northern and southern parts with the effects of bathymetry. Therefore, the wind, tide, and bathymetry are vital factors to calculate the storm surge and the central coastal area is susceptible to flooding induced by storm surge.

We present the first experimental evidence supported by simulations of kinetic effects launched in the interpenetration layer between the laser-driven hohlraum plasma bubbles and the corona plasma of the compressed pellet at the Shenguang-III prototype laser facility. Solid plastic capsules were coated with carbon-deuterium layers; as the implosion neutron yield is quenched, DD fusion yield from the corona plasma provides a direct measure of the kinetic effects inside the hohlraum. An anomalous large energy spread of the DD neutron signal (∼282 keV) and anomalous scaling of the neutron yield with the thickness of the carbon-deuterium layers cannot be explained by the hydrodynamic mechanisms. Instead, these results can be attributed to kinetic shocks that arise in the hohlraum-wall-ablator interpenetration region, which result in efficient acceleration of the deuterons (∼28.8 J, 0.45% of the total input laser energy). These studies provide novel insight into the interactions and dynamics of a vacuum hohlraum and near-vacuum hohlraum.

Aim Whether different adiposity measures predict incident diabetes differentially in general Chinese populations is unclear. We investigated this in Chinese people aged 50+ years in the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study. Methods Waist circumference and BMI were measured at baseline, and fasting glucose was measured at both baseline and follow-up examinations. Incident diabetes was defined as fasting glucose ≥ 7.0 mmol/l, glucose after 2-h oral glucose tolerance test ≥ 11.1 mmol/l, and/or self-reported physician-diagnosed diabetes during the follow-up period. Results Of 15 752 people without diabetes at baseline from 2003 to 2008, 1779 (11.3%) developed incident diabetes during the follow-up from 2008 to 2012 (mean = 3.6 years, sd = 1.0). After mutually adjusting each other and adjusting for other potential confounders, waist circumference showed a higher predictive value than BMI. The odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval (CI) was 1.50 (95% CI 1.37–1.64) for a 1 sd increment in waist circumference and 1.21 (95% CI 1.11–1.33), for a 1 sd increment in BMI. Similarly, after mutual adjustment, abdominal obesity was associated with an almost twofold odds of incident diabetes (OR 1.93, 95% CI 1.71–2.17), which was higher than that for general obesity (OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.50–2.06). The area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for waist circumference was higher than that for BMI [AUC = 0.676 (95% CI 0.660–0.686) vs. 0.665 (95% CI 0.651–0.678), P = 0.02]. Conclusion Abdominal obesity predicted incident diabetes in older people better than general obesity. Our findings may be an early warning signal for local government or public health practitioners to develop and investigate more effective intervention programmes for diabetes, and should also be disseminated to the public to pay more attention to this important public health issue. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Permethrin, cypermethrin and cyfluthrin are three important pyrethroids with similar structures and contain four, eight and eight stereoisomers, respectively. All the stereoisomers were completely resolved by a combination of achiral and chiral high-performance liquid chromatography with hexane/isopropanol as the mobile phase. The absolute configurations for the stereoisomers were also assigned on the basis of enantioselective resolution of permethrinic acid. For cypermethrin and cyfluthrin, although there is the only difference being one F atom substitution in cyfluthrin, the cis-I diastereomer exhibited a reversal of enantiomer order. Three specific stereoisomers were further isolated to investigate the photolysis and chiral stability of synthetic pyrethroids at the enantiomeric level. The results clearly revealed that significant isomerization occurred along with the photolysis process. The isomerization occurred at chiral 1-C position, 3-C position or both in the cyclopropyl ring, and the chiral 3-C exhibited a higher inversion tendency.

Cross-sectional associations between white blood cell (WBC) count, lymphocyte and granulocyte numbers, and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (PWV) were examined in a novel older Chinese community sample. A total of 817 men and 760 women from a sub-study of the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study had a full blood count measured by an automated hematology analyzer, carotid IMT by B-mode ultrasonography and brachial-ankle PWV by a non-invasive automatic waveform analyzer. Following adjustment for confounders, WBC count (β=0.07, P

Experimental studies have been conducted on the tuned mass damper (TMD) – a passive control device. These studies investigate the feasibility that the TMD can mitigate the vibrations induced by ice forces on offshore steel jacket platforms. A TMD device was designed and manufactured with respect to an offshore oil platform. Large-scale testing is expensive and the requirements for model similarity in model-scale testing are hard to meet. Thus, an experimental technique that focuses on the control device itself and emulates the behaviour of the structure with a simulator is presented. This novel experimental system consists of a virtual part and an actual part called the semi-experimental testing system. The virtual parts include scaled external load and a scaled simplified platform model. The actual parts include the TMD device and a moving table, which is controlled by a hydraulic actuator. By introducing the interaction between the ice sheet and the structure, the performance of the device is investigated and reasons of effectiveness reduction are explained. The results show that an optimally tuned TMD can reduce the amplified response significantly under ice load action. Finally, the application possibilities of vibration absorption using TMD to other arctic offshore structures are discussed.

Genetic variability within and among 14 Chinese natural populations of Lespedeza Michx. Used mainly for wildlife food and cover and for erosion control was evaluated on the basis of morphological characteristics, allozyme markers and random amplified polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs). All methods disclosed a high degree of allelic heterogeneity among samples, also revealing a high degree of gene diversity. Genetic variation among populations was higher for RAPD than for enzyme loci. Correlation between morphological, allozyme and RAPD distance matrices were calculated by Mantel' tests. There was a little disparity between the three level's distances on population relationships. However, there is a weak significant correlation (P < 0.001) between morphology and allozyme distances as well as morphology and RAPD distances, and the test of this correlation is very high.

The field measurement results of the Tsing Ma suspension bridge under cross winds and running trains during Typhoon York have been presented in Part I of this study. The field measurement results are used in this paper (Paper II) to verify, to some extent, the finite element based framework developed by the writers in the time domain for predicting dynamic response of coupled train and bridge systems in cross winds. In this regard, a three-dimensional finite element model is used to model the Tsing Ma suspension bridge. Wind forces acting on the bridge are generated in the time domain using a fast spectral representation method and based on the field measurement results and wind tunnel test results. Each coach in a train running on the bridge is modeled by a 27 degree-of-freedom dynamic system. The dynamic interaction between the bridge and the train is realized through the contact forces between the wheels and the track. Track irregularity is simulated using a high-order multivariate autoregressive model, whereas wheel hunting is assumed to be a sinusoidal function with a random phase. The acceleration and displacement responses of the bridge under cross winds and running trains are computed and compared with the responses measured from the field for four cases. The comparison is found to be satisfactory in general. The dynamic response and performance of trains on the bridge is also computed and evaluated. The proposed framework is found to be feasible and practical.

The structure, magnetic properties and magnetoresistance (MR) effect of Co20NixCu80-x alloys produced by mechanical alloying and subsequent annealing have been investigated. After milling for 5 h, a supersaturated solid solution forms for all the alloys. Co20NixCu80-x alloys annealed at 973 K for 30 min segregated into two-phases of fcc-Co and fcc-Cu. The maximum value for MR ratio, at room temperature is 4.7% at a field of 1.2 T, and at 5 K is 15% at a field of 2 T for Co20Cu80 annealed at 718 K for 30 min. The MR ratio of Co-Ni-Cu alloys decreases monotonically with increasing Ni content. The MR and its dependence on particle size are discussed.

Background Impaired liver function has been shown to be associated with incident diabetes. The independent role of the different liver enzymes, including γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT), alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST), has not been addressed properly, taking into account their high collinearity. We used partial least squares (PLS) regression to identify the contribution of ALT, AST and GGT, which appears causally associated with diabetes as a validation factor, to incident diabetes in a South China population where liver impairment and diabetes are common. Methods Participants were from the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study recruited in 2003–2008, with follow-up re-examination up to the end of 2012. Multivariable generalised linear models and PLS were used to examine the adjusted associations of ALT, AST and GGT with diabetes. Incident diabetes was defined as self-reported diabetes, and/or initiation of hypoglycaemia medication or insulin during follow-up, or fasting glucose ≥7.0 mmol/L, or 2 h oral glucose tolerance test, glucose ≥11.1 mmol/L at follow-up examination. Results In 10 764 Chinese participants aged ≥50 years with no diabetes at baseline, 1228 (11.4%) developed diabetes during the median 4 years of follow-up. Using PLS, the risk for incident diabetes was higher by 18% (95% CI 8% to 27%) per 1 SD increment in log-ALT, and expectedly higher by 36% (95% CI 26% to 52%) for log-GGT, adjusted for age, sex, education, smoking, alcohol, physical activity, waist circumference and body mass index. Similarly adjusted, no association for log-AST (relative risk 0.92, 95% CI 0.85 to 1.01) was found. Conclusions ALT but not AST was associated with incident diabetes. Further experimental studies are needed to confirm the causal association and clarify the underlying mechanisms.

This paper derives a closed form solution for wind-induced response of actively controlled tall buildings with linear quadratic Gaussian (LQG) controllers to facilitate the real application of modern active control theory. The wind excitation acting on a tall building is decomposed into a number of component wind excitations in which any two component wind excitations are uncorrelated and each component wind excitation can be obtained as the output of a shaping filter with unit intensity white noise input. After the equations of motion of the system are established, the closed form solution for wind response of the system is then derived by combining the complex modal superposition method together with the pseudo-excitation method and the residue theorem. With the derived closed form solution, extensive parametric studies can be performed on wind-excited tall buildings with LQG controllers to seek beneficial weighting matrices so that the maximum wind response reduction can be achieved with reasonable control forces. The results from a numerical example demonstrate that if weighting matrices are selected appropriately, the modal damping ratios of the system can be significantly increased and the alongwind response of the building can be considerably reduced.

Closed-form solution for seismic response of adjacent buildings connected by hydraulic actuators with linear quadratic Gaussian (LQG) controllers is presented in this paper. The equations of motion of actively controlled adjacent buildings against earthquake are first established. The complex modal superposition method is then used to determine dynamic characteristics, including modal damping ratio, of actively controlled adjacent buildings. The closed-form solution for seismic response of the system is finally derived in terms of the complex dynamic characteristics, the pseudo-excitation method and the residue theorem. By using the closed-form solution, extensive parametric studies can be carried out for the system of many degrees of freedom. The beneficial parameters of LQG controllers for achieving the maximum response reduction of both buildings using reasonable control forces can be identified. The effectiveness of LQG controllers for this particular application is evaluated in this study. The results show that for the adjacent buildings of different dynamic properties, if the parameters of LQG controllers are selected appropriately, the modal damping ratios of the system can be significantly increased and the seismic responses of both buildings can be considerably reduced.

Fluid dampers that operate on the principle of fluid flow through orifices specially shaped and defined by the Maxwell model have found more and more applications in vibration mitigation of buildings and structures. This paper thus presents an accurate and effective procedure for determining dynamic characteristics and seismic response of adjacent buildings linked by fluid dampers. Dynamic characteristics of damper-linked adjacent buildings are obtained by solving the eigenvalue problem for real non-symmetric matrices. Random seismic response of adjacent buildings linked by dampers is determined by a combination of the state-space method and the pseudo-excitation method. Based on a derived formula, a computer program is written and extensive parametric studies are performed to assess the effectiveness of the fluid damper and to identify beneficial damper relaxation time and damping coefficient at zero frequency. It is shown that using the Maxwell model-defined fluid dampers of proper parameters to link adjacent buildings can increase the modal damping ratios and reduce the seismic responses of adjacent buildings significantly. It is also shown that the behaviour of the adjacent buildings linked by the Maxwell model-defined fluid dampers could be the same as that connected by the Voigt model-defined viscoelastic dampers.

The pseudo-excitation method, in which random excitations are mathematically represented by a series of harmonic loads, is developed for vibration analysis of wind-excited large civil engineering structures of closely spaced natural frequencies or equipped with discrete damping devices. By using this method, all cross-correlation terms between normal modes in a structural response can be retained naturally, and the non-orthogonal structural damping or stiffness properties can be handled accurately. The principle and algorithm of the pseudo-excitation method are introduced in this paper for structures with and without control devices. The accuracy of the method is validated through the comparison with the transfer matrix method. Two example buildings are presented to demonstrate the advantages of the suggested method.

Coupling adjacent buildings using discrete viscoelastic dampers for control of response to low and moderate seismic events is investigated in this paper. The complex modal superposition method is first used to determine dynamic characteristics, mainly modal damping ratio and modal frequency, of damper-linked linear adjacent buildings for practical use. Random seismic response of linear adjacent buildings linked by dampers is then determined by a combination of the complex modal superposition method and the pseudo-excitation method. This combined method can effectively and accurately determine random seismic response of non-classically damped systems in the frequency domain. Parametric studies are finally performed to identify optimal parameters of viscoelastic dampers for achieving the maximum modal damping ratio or the maximum response reduction of adjacent buildings. It is demonstrated that using discrete viscoelastic dampers of proper parameters to link adjacent buildings can reduce random seismic responses significantly.

Dynamic characteristic and harmonic response of adjacent buildings connected by fluid damper were experimentally investigated using model buildings and fluid damper. Two building models were constructed as two three-storey shear buildings of different natural frequencies. Model fluid damper connecting the two buildings was designed as linear viscous damper of which damping coefficient could be adjusted. The two buildings without fluid dampers connected were first tested to obtain their individual dynamic characteristics and responses to harmonic excitation. The tests were then carried out to determine modal damping ratios of the adjacent buildings connected by the fluid damper of different damping coefficients and at different locations. Optimal damper damping coefficient and location for achieving the maximum modal damping ratio were thus found. The measured modal damping ratios and harmonic responses of the building-fluid damper system were finally compared with those from the individual buildings. The comparison showed that the fluid damper of proper parameter could significantly increase the modal damping ratio and tremendously reduce the dynamic response of both buildings. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This cross-sectional study aimed to describe the pattern of smoking in relation to occupational hazard exposure in a working population in Guangzhou, China. In 1994, data on smoking and occupational hazard exposure from occupational health records of 8,304 subjects aged 35 years or older from 47 randomly selected factories were studied. About 49% of the men and 55% of the women were exposed to dust, chemicals or other hazards. The prevalence of smoking was 56.1% in men and 2.0% in women. The prevalence of smoking in men was higher in those who were younger, with primary education or who were workers. In women, those who were older, with primary education or in management jobs had higher smoking prevalence. In men and women, subjects who were exposed to occupational hazards had higher smoking prevalence: the highest (71.6%) was found in male workers exposed to dust. Urgent tobacco control measures are needed to prevent the epidemic of smoking-related and occupation-related diseases in the workplace in China.

We report the effects of lattice constants variation induced by oxygen stoichiometry on the photoresponse properties of La 0.4 Ca 0.6 MnO 3-δ epitaxial films grown on miscut MgO substrates. The oxygen content was changed by annealing the sample in oxygen and vacuum. With the decreases of oxygen deficiencies, the electrical conductivity and the diffraction peak [101] of the film increase. It is found that the photovoltage and photocurrent decrease monotonously as the oxygen contents decrease.

The incremental harmonic balance (IHB) method is extended to analyze the periodic vibrations of systems with a general form of piecewise-linear stiffness characteristics. An explicit formulation has been worked out. This development is of significance as many structural and mechanical systems of practical interest possess a piecewise-linear stiffness. Typical examples show that the IHB method is very effective for analyzing this kind of systems under steady-state vibrations.

Background: Infiltration of a long-lasting anaesthetic is helpful during the post-operative period. The recently developed local drug delivery system, biodegradable nanoparticles in a thermo-sensitive hydrogel (nanogel system), may possibly provide an extended duration of drugs. Therefore, we evaluated whether prolonged infiltration anaesthesia could be achieved by loading lidocaine into this delivery system. Methods: Thirty male rats were randomized into five groups of six rats each: saline; 2% hydrochloride lidocaine solution; lidocaine-loaded nanogel system and its compositing formulations, namely lido-nano gel; lido-nano; and lidogel. Durations of local anaesthesia with subcutaneously injected agents were measured by tail flick latency tests in a randomized, blind fashion. Results: Lido-nano gel produced effective anaesthesia for 360 ± 113 min, compared with 150 ± 33 min by lidogel, 180 ± 37 min by lido-nano, and 110 ± 45 min by lidocaine solution (P

In countries that have been industrialized for a long time, but not always elsewhere, low socioeconomic position (SEP) is associated with ischemic heart disease in men. The authors hypothesized that socioeconomic development could, via pubertal sex steroids, promote an atherogenic lipid profile and body shape in men but not in women. Therefore, they examined the associations of SEP with ischemic heart disease risk in a developingcountry population. The authors used multivariable regression to examine the associations of SEP with the metabolic syndrome and its components in 9,746 Chinese adults aged � 50 years from the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study, phase 2, recruited in 2005–2006. After adjustment for age, smoking, alcohol use, and physical activity, high SEP at each of three life stages, proxied by parental possessions in childhood, education, and longest held-occupation, was inversely associated with the metabolic syndrome in women but not in men. Higher SEP in men was associated with lower pulse pressure and fasting plasma glucose level but also with greater waist circumference and a lower high density lipoprotein cholesterol level. With socioeconomic development, diet-related hormonal changes at puberty may outweigh the usual protective effect of social advantage in men, with corresponding implications for boys currently undergoing the nutrition transition in the developing world. China; developing countries; gonadal steroid hormones; metabolism; myocardial ischemia; risk factors; social class

Objectives: Previous studies on drivers focused on the effect of their exposure to vehicle exhaust and there is little evidence of the effect of smoking. This cohort analytical study aimed to examine the mortality of drivers relative to smoking and professional driving in Guangzhou, China. Methods: Information on demographic characteristics, type of driver (professional and non-professional), smoking, and drinking were retrieved from medical records of drivers who applied for driving licences from March to December 1992. Vital status and causes of death of 81 344 men aged 30 or above were ascertained to the end of September 1999 (follow up, mean=7.14 years, median=7.17 years). Results: At baseline, the mean (SD) age was 40.8 (5.6) years. One third were professional drivers; 49.0% were daily smokers. 858 Deaths were identified. The relative risk of overall mortality for ever smoking was 1.24 (95% confidence interval (95% Cl) 1.07 to 1.44) after adjusting for age, alcohol drinking, education, and type of drivers. Compared with non-professional drivers, professional drivers had similar risks of death, and their relative risk of overall mortality for ever smoking was 1.35 (1.06 to 1.71). Conclusions: Smoking is a more important cause of death than professional driving itself. The results show serious public health problems in the early stage of the tobacco epidemic and support urgent measures to help drivers stop smoking., published_or_final_version

In China, occupational health professionals are mainly concerned with the control of occupational hazards, such as dust and chemical, biological and physical hazards, and with prevention and management of occupational diseases. Occupational health research is also focused on the effects of such exposure. Other lifestyle factors, such as smoking, drinking and dietary habits, which are important for workers’ health, are considered to be non-occupational factors and are usually ignored. Although smoking is a major health hazard among workers, it is neglected by many occupational physicians and other occupational health professionals.