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The purpose of this article is to investigate the efficacy of Sandplay Therapy (SPT) in reducing children's kindergarten entrance anxiety in an effort to provide front-line preschool teachers with insights and strategies for addressing the emotional distress of children in their first days of nursery school. As a case study, the application of SPT to a 3-year-old boy who struggled with his transition into kindergarten was cited. The differences in his emotions and behaviors before and after six sessions of SPT were evaluated, revealing that the intervention through SPT significantly decreased his anxiety level while increasing his willingness to attend nursery school and that he finally developed a sound adaptation to the school, according to the comments of the observers. Findings showed that SPT could help kids feel less nervous about starting kindergarten and adjust better to new situations.

Racial/ethnic minorities have experienced higher COVID-19 infection rates than whites, but it is unclear how individual-level housing, occupational, behavioral, and socioeconomic conditions contribute to these disparities in a nationally representative sample. In this study, we assess the extent to which social determinants of health contribute to racial/ethnic differences in COVID-19 infection. Data are from the Understanding America Study's Understanding Coronavirus in America survey (UAS COVID-19 waves 7-29). UAS COVID-19 is one of the only nationally representative longitudinal data sources that collects information on household, work, and social behavioral context during the pandemic. We analyze onset of COVID-19 cases, defined as a positive test or a diagnosis of COVID-19 from a healthcare provider since the previous survey wave, over a year of follow-up (June 2020-July 2021). We consider educational attainment, economic resources, work arrangements, household size, and social distancing as key social factors that may be structured by racism. Cox hazard models indicate that Hispanic people have 48% higher risk of experiencing a COVID-19 infection than whites after adjustment for age, sex, local infection rate, and comorbidities, but we do not observe a higher risk of COVID-19 among Black respondents. Controlling for engagement in any large or small social gathering increases the hazard ratio for Hispanics by 9%, suggesting that had Hispanics had the same social engagement patterns as whites, they may have had even higher risk of COVID-19. Other social determinants-lower educational attainment, working away from home, and number of coresidents-all independently predict higher risk of COVID-19, but do not explain why Hispanic Americans have higher COVID-19 infection risk than whites.

The effect of lactoferrin on skin was simulated using a recombinant human epidermal model. The anti-inflammatory and soothing effect of lactoferrin was verified using IL-1α and TSLP Elisa assay. The effects of lactoferrin on the expression of related genes and proteins were detected using qPCR and immunofluorescence staining. The results showed that lactoferrin can effectively enhance the Transepidermal Electrical Resistance (TEER) and inhibit the secretion of inflammatory cytokine IL-1α and TSLP. In addition, it was confirmed using qPCR that lactoferrin had high expression levels on AQP3, FLG, IVL, CLDN1 and HAS1 genes. Immunofluorescence staining confirmed that lactoferrin had high fluorescence intensity and expression in AQP3, Filaggrin and Involucrin. The results showed that lactoferrin improved the skin barrier at higher than 1.5 mg/mL. At the same time, it can have anti-inflammatory and moisturizing effects. This study provides a strong basis for the application of lactoferrin in cosmetics and daily chemical products.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a severe inflammatory skin disorder, characterized by elevated levels of proinflammatory cytokines that fuel a vicious cycle of inflammation. While inflammatory recombinant human epidermal (RHE) models relevant to AD have been established, comprehensive understanding remains limited. To illuminate changes and identify potential hub genes involved in AD-related inflammation, RHE models, stimulated by an inflammatory cocktail including polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin 4 (IL-4) and interleukin 13 (IL-13), were constructed and examined using tandem mass tags-proteomic coupled with RNA-seq transcriptomic analyses. Principal component analysis (PCA), Gene Ontology (GO), and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway functional enrichment were employed for the analysis of related genes and proteins. Protein-protein interaction networks helped identify hub genes, which were further confirmed by qPCR and western blot. We observed high expression of thymic stromal lymphopoietin in the inflammatory RHE. Our study identified 2369 differentially expressed genes and 880 differentially expressed proteins in the cocktail-induced group versus the normal control group. A total of 248 overlapping symbols were enriched in various biological processes and signaling pathways, including cornification envelope, cell-cell junction, calcium ion binding, extracellular matrix receptor, terpenoid backbone biosynthesis, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors signaling pathway, among others. Among the 248 overlapping symbols, CytoHubba identified 10 hub molecules, namely signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), integrin subunit beta 1 (ITGB1), filaggrin (FLG), involucrin (IVL), DEAD (Asp-Glu-Ala-Asp) box polypeptide 58 (DDX58), small proline rich protein 1B (SPRR1B), interferon induced with helicase C domain 1 (IFIH1), desmoglein 1 (DSG1), collagen type XVII alpha 1 chain (COL17A1), and integrin subunit alpha 6 (ITGA6), based on the degree. These integrated results offer valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms of AD and present potential tools for screening cosmetic formulations intended for the treatment of AD.