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In recent decades, path planning for unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) in complex environments, such as harbours and coastlines, has become an important concern. The existing algorithms for real-time path planning for USVs are either too slow at replanning or unreliable in changing environments with multiple dynamic obstacles. In this study, we developed a novel path planning method based on the D* lite algorithm for real-time path planning of USVs in complex environments. The proposed method has the following advantages: (1) the computational time for replanning is reduced significantly owing to the use of an incremental algorithm and a new method for modelling dynamic obstacles; (2) a constrained artificial potential field method is employed to enhance the safety of the planned paths; and (3) the method is practical in terms of vehicle performance. The performance of the proposed method was evaluated through simulations and compared with those of existing algorithms. The simulation results confirmed the efficiency of the method for real-time path planning of USVs in complex environments.

In this paper, to identify the order-disorder structure and performance of (Gd, Sm)2(Zr, Ce)2O7 ceramic as the host matrices for immobilizing actinides, various contents of Sm/Ce co-incorporated (Gd, Sm)2(Zr, Ce)2O7 ceramics were designed and fabricated. The influences of various Sm/Ce doping contents on the order-disorder structure of the samples were investigated systematically by XRD and Raman analysis. The microstructure, elemental composition and distribution of the samples were analyzed by SEM-EDX approach. The aqueous durability of the specimens was also evaluated by a static leaching experiment. The results showed that the Gd/Zr-sites of Gd2Zr2O7 pyrochlore could be concurrently substituted by various contents of Sm/Ce. The phase structure of the as-prepared (Gd, Sm)2(Zr, Ce)2O7 ceramics were transformed from the ordered pyrochlore phase to the disordered defect-fluorite phase with decreasing the average r[(Gd, Sm)3+]/r[(Zr, Ce)4+] radius ratio after substitution. And the ceramics fabricated in this study presented high densification and excellent aqueous durability.

Wave-piercing design is a revolution in hull design for small high-speed boats to operate in adverse sea conditions. To study hydrodynamics of the small high speed wave piercing monohull craft systematically, four typical small high-speed wave-piercing monohull crafts were developed, and validated CFD methods were adopted to calculate hull resistances and motions. The resistances and hull motions of these high-speed wave piercing monohull crafts in calm water and waves were obtained and compared. Obvious operating differences can be observed. High-speed wave piercing monohull crafts with slender and twisted planing hulls have smaller resistance at high speed, but the dynamic effects increase as sea conditions worsen. The high-speed wave-piercing monohull craft with a slim multi-chine hull maintains in waves for softer hull motions but suffers the disadvantages of larger resistance. The high-speed wave piercing monohull craft with a triangular hull shows no obvious advantages compared with the other types.

In order to ascertain the structural relationship of zirconolite and pyrochlore for their potential application in HLW immobilization, the Gd-doped zirconolite-pyrochlore composite ceramics (Ca 1- x Zr 1- x Gd 2 x Ti 2 O 7 ) were systematically synthesized with x = 0.0–1.0 by traditional solid-phase reaction method. The phase evolution and microstructure of the as-prepared samples have been elucidated by XRD and Rietveld refinement, Raman spectroscopy, BSE-EDS and HRTEM analysis. The results showed that zirconolite-2M, zirconolite-4M, perovskite and pyrochlore, four phases were identified in Ca 1- x Zr 1- x Gd 2 x Ti 2 O 7 system and could be coexisted at x = 0.4 composition. With the increase of Gd 3+ substitution, the phase evolution was followed by zirconolite-2M→zirconolite-4M→pyrochlore. It is illustrated that the phase transformation from zirconolite-2M to zirconolite-4M was promoted by the preferential substitution of Gd 3+ for Ca 2+ . And the solubility of Gd 3+ in zirconolite-2M, zirconolite-4M and pyrochlore increased in sequence. The chemical stability test was also measured by the PCT leaching method. The normalized elemental release rates of Ca, Zr, Ti and Gd in Ca 1- x Zr 1- x Gd 2 x Ti 2 O 7 system were fairly low and in the range of 10 −6 −10 −8 g m −2 d −1 , which indicated a potential ceramics composite ensemble of CaZrTi 2 O 7 -Gd 2 Ti 2 O 7 system for nuclear HLW immobilization.

The systematic implementation of reliability engineering is a necessary measure to improve warship reliability. In warship reliability engineering, reliability evaluation is a key step because it reveals whether warships feature an acceptable level of reliability. Current reliability evaluation methods, such as the analytic method, multilevel synthesis method and numerical simulation method, are all based on static logic. However, warships are typical dynamic systems, and their reliability cannot be evaluated using the aforementioned methods. On the basis of the characteristics of warships, including their small sample system and dynamic and multistage missions, this study proposed a new reliability evaluation method based on dynamic Bayesian networks and numerical simulation. The proposed method is the inheritance and development of current methods for reliability evaluation based on numerical simulation. Hence, it overcomes the limitations of the analytic method and multilevel synthesis method, as well as provides an effective means for the reliability evaluation of warships. The proposed method is suitable for the overall reliability evaluation not only of warships but also of other complex dynamic systems.

The sailing performance of an S-type small waterplane area twin hull (S-SWATH) vehicle, which has comparable total resistance at low and high speeds, in waves is investigated. A flapping foil stabiliser is proposed to enhance the seakeeping advantages of the vehicle in rough waves. The unsteady hydrodynamic characteristics of the flapping foil stabiliser are investigated, and its working mechanism is modelled based on the data generated using the computational fluid dynamics method with fixed-grid technology. Compared with a conventional fin, the results show the benefits of the flapping foil with relatively higher lift coefficients and lower drag coefficients. The vertical plane motion control model coupled with the mathematical force model of flapping foils is built. A controller combining the model predictive control scheme with input disturbance measurement is designed to compare the performance of the conventional fins and flapping foils in stabilising the heave–pitch motions of the vehicle. For the simulations, the hydrodynamic coefficients of the vehicle and the wave force–moment on S-SWATH are updated based on Salvesen, Tuck and Faltinsen strip theory, which is equivalent to measuring the approaching wave elevation directly. The flapping foil stabilisers show significant improvements in damping the heave–pitch motions of the vehicle in rough seas.

In warship design and development, reliability should be allocated from top-level requirements to subsystem and equipment levels using an effective allocation method. Mission reliability and inherent availability are top-level reliability parameters of a warship; these parameters do not only involve factors of reliability, but also those of maintainability. Therefore, extensively used reliability allocation methods cannot address the reliability allocation of warships. A warship is a typical repairable system. Based on warship characteristics, this study proposed an integrated reliability and maintainability allocation method for warships. In the comprehensive allocation process, reliability and maintainability factors that affect the top-level reliability parameters of a warship were measured quantitatively. The synergistic principle of the reliability and maintainability indexes was discussed to solve the synergistic problem between the reliability and maintainability parameters of a unit. The top-level reliability indexes of a warship were reasonably allocated to all levels using optimisation methods. The proposed method is not only suitable for warship reliability allocation but also for other complex repairable systems.

Organic UV filters continuously accumulate after entering the environment, thus posing potential ecological and health risks. The impact of five organic UV filters, namely BP-3, BP-4, OC, EHMC, and BM-DBM, on the multixenobiotic resistance (MXR) mechanism in human embryonic lung fibroblasts (MRC-5) was investigated to identify the toxic effects of inhaled UV filters on human health. Results showed that OC exerted a more significant inhibitory effect on the transport proteins of MRC-5 cells than the chemical sensitizer VER. Moreover, inhibition times significantly increased with the increasing exposure concentration of UV filters. BM-DBM exerted a significant inhibitory effect at exposure concentrations of 10 and 100μmol/L. The results of this study provide powerful scientific basis for the investigation of the impact of UV filters on the MXR mechanism of human cells at the molecular level.

The aim of this study was to describe changes in waist circumference (WC) and prevalence of abdominal obesity over a period of 10 years among Chinese adults in different socio-economic status (SES).Data derived from the China Nutrition and Health Surveillance during 2002 and 2010-2012. We calculated the mean WC and the prevalence of abdominal obesity by gender, place of residence, SES indicators (education, income, and marital status), and body mass index (BMI) categoriesand used pooled t-tests to assess the differences between the two time periods.26.0% of men and 25.3% of women had abdominal obesity in 2010-2012. The age-adjusted mean WC increased by 2.7 cm among men and 2.1 cm among women; the age-adjusted prevalence of abdominal obesity increased by 7.7% among men and 5.3% among women. The rising trends were observed in all subgroups except for a negative growth in high-income women. People living in rural areas with low education and income and with a BMI of 18.5 to 23.9 kg/m2 had a greater absolute and relative increase in WC. People living in rural areas with low income had a greater relative increase in abdominal obesity.The mean WC and prevalence of abdominal obesity among Chinese adults have increased during the past 10 years. Gender differences were noted using various SES indicators.

Objective To evaluate the impact of ‘China Healthy Lifestyle for All’ on levels of knowledge, taste and intentions to modify future consumption of salt and edible oil. Methods Between May and August 2012, a face-to-face survey carried out in all 31 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities in mainland China, achieved a 98.1% response. Intention-To-Treat analysis via multilevel logistic regression was used to examine differences in outcomes between 31,396 non-institutionalised individuals aged > 18 years from 31 ‘intervention’ (i.e. participating) and 26 ‘control’ (i.e. non-participating) counties respectively. Results Adjusting for socioeconomic confounders, participants in ‘intervention’ counties were more likely to know the limit of salt (Odds Ratio 3.14, 95% Confidence Interval (95% CI) 1.98, 4.96) and oil consumption (3.67, 95% CI 2.31, 5.82), and were more intent to modify their consumption (salt 1.98, 95% CI 1.41, 2.76; oil OR 1.99, 95% CI 1.41, 2.81) and to report a change in taste (salt 1.90, 95% CI 1.31, 2.75; oil 2.07, 95% CI 1.38, 3.10). ‘Intervention’ effects were consistent regardless of income or education, but women and older participants benefited disproportionately. Outcomes were 2.8 and 4.7 times more likely among those with better recall. Conclusion Place-based health promotion interventions have an important role to play in addressing non-communicable disease in China.

Wastewater treatment is a complicated dynamic process, the effectiveness of which is affected by microbial, chemical, and physical factors. At present, predicting the effluent quality of wastewater treatment systems is difficult because of complex biological reaction mechanisms that vary with both time and the physical attributes of the system. Bayesian networks are useful for addressing uncertainties in artificial intelligence applications. Their powerful inferential capability and convenient decision support mechanisms provide flexibility and applicability for describing and analyzing factors affecting wastewater treatment systems. In this study, a Bayesian network-based approach for modeling and predicting a wastewater treatment system based on Modified Sequencing Batch Reactor (MSBR) was proposed. Using the presented approach, a Bayesian network model for MSBR can be constructed using experiential information and physical data relating to influent loads, operating conditions, and effluent concentrations. Additionally, MSBR prediction analysis, wherein effluent concentration can be predicted from influent loads and operational conditions, can be performed. This approach can be applied, with minimal modifications, to other types of wastewater treatment plants.

The standardized hypertension management provided by primary health care workers is an important part of China's recent health care reform efforts. Investigating 5,116 hypertensive patients from a cross-sectional survey conducted by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention in 2012, this study found that adherence to standardized hypertension management is associated with positive effects on hypertension- related knowledge, healthy lifestyle behavior, antihypertensive medical treatments, and blood pressure control. It will be necessary to provide primary health care workers with sufficient training and reasonable incentives to ensure the implementation and effectiveness of hypertension management.

Reliability assessment is a key step to reveal whether ships feature an acceptable level of reliability. Ships are typical dynamic systems, and their reliability cannot be evaluated using the static logic based methods, such as the analytic method, multilevel synthesis method and numerical simulation method. Fully considering the characteristics of ships, we proposed a new reliability assessment method based on dynamic Bayesian networks and numerical simulation. The proposed method overcomes the limitations of the analytic method and multilevel synthesis method, as well as provides an effective means for the reliability assessment of ships. The proposed method is also suitable for the reliability assessment of other complex dynamic systems.

To describe the undernutrition status of children under 5-year in China, and study the trend between 2002 and 2013).The study was based on two national surveys. Undernutrition was determined against WHO's 2006 growth standards. The prevalence in 2013 and 2002 was weighted by China sixth National Population Census (2010). The relationship between undernutrition and gender/age groups/different areas use weighted logistic regression.The results indicated the overall prevalence of stunting, underweight, and wasting of Chinese children under 5-year was 8.1%, 2.4%, and 1.9% in 2013, respectively. The prevalence of stunting was higher for children aged 12-47 month, while underweight was higher for children aged 48-59 month. The prevalence of undernutrition was higher in rural areas than in urban areas, especially in poor rural areas. There was a decline of stunting, underweight, and wasting between 2002 and 2013 among the children, with greater reduction in rural areas than in urban areas.The prevalence of undernutrition of children under 5-year remains high in rural areas especially in poor rural areas in China. It is urgent to take action to control undernutrition in the vulnerable areas and subgroups.

The diagnosis analysis of MSBR has remained difficult due to the complexity of biological reaction mechanisms and the involvement of highly non-linearity and uncertainty. In this paper, the Bayesian network was used to modeling and diagnosis analysis of a MSBR. The suggested BN model for MSBR was evaluated using one-year of operation data. Results showed that the BN-based model for MSBR is reasonable and the prediction analysis algorithm is feasible. According to the framework of the diagnostic analysis, an example was given to illustrate the detailed information of diagnostic of a MSBR. Experimental results indicated that the corrective measures based on the diagnostic analysis were reasonable.

The inhibition effect of 2-Mercaptobenzothiazole (2-MB) against the corrosion of carbon steel in sulfuric acid solution was studied by weight loss measurement and electrochemical measurements(potentiodynamic polarization techniques). The results show that 2-MB acts as a good corrosion inhibitor in sulfuric acid solution. Adsorption of 2-MB is found to obey Langmuir isotherm. Polarization curves indicate 2-MB is a mixed-type inhibitor. The effects of temperature and sulfuric acid concentration were also studied.

Three reasons of the deviation of the fuel injection quantity for the electronic fuel injection (EFI) motorcycle engine during the transient conditions were analyzed, including the presence of fuel injection dead time, the engine load measurement deviation and the existence of fuel film attached to the inlet pipe wall. The control strategy of fuel film compensation was studied at conditions of starting, acceleration and deceleration, which was based on the changes of engine velocity, inlet air pressure and inlet air temperature. During the transient condition, the basic fuel film compensation and correction coefficient were calibrated at motorcycle dynamometer, and the modified fuel film compensation MAP were achieved correspondingly, in order to keep the excess air coefficient stable.

The life-span of asphalt pavement is influenced by the strength of subgrade , this paper has discussed the modulus of elasticity of subgrade under different compactness . a example of clay subgrade is gived, the pavement structures and traffic data highway are established according to currently asphalt pavement design specification, the pavement bearing abilitie of different subgrade strength is calculated under different compacting conditions, and also a conclusion has been made that a relation between life-span and strength , the calculating results show that the compactness of subgrade cutting down 1% will lead to pavement reducing 0.65 years, through quantitative analysis, it can be believed that improving compaction of subgrade can obviously prolong asphalt pavement life-span.

The microstructures of the Mg-3Sn-2Ca magnesium alloys with and without adding minor Sr were investigated and compared. The results indicate that adding 0.1 wt.% Sr to the Mg-3Sn-2Ca alloy can effectively refine the primary CaMgSn phases and grains. In addition, in the alloy containing minor Sr the volume fraction of the primary and eutectic CaMgSn phases appears to be decreased, whereas the volume fraction of the Mg2Ca precipitates seems to be increased. The mechanism for the microstructural change in the alloy containing minor Sr is possibly related to the effects of Sr additions on the onset crystallizing temperature and undercooling degree.

The effect of direct current on the semi-solid isothermal heat-treated microstructure of ZA84 alloy is investigated. The results indicate that it is possible to produce ZA84 alloy with non-dendritic microstructure by semi-solid isothermal treatment. Furthermore, imposing direct current during the semi-solid isothermal treatment of ZA84 alloy can accelerate the non-dendritic structure evolution of the alloy. Under the experimental conditions of this work, higher the current density, quicker is the rate of non-dendritic structure evolution for the semi-solid isothermal heat-treated ZA84 alloy. Further investigations need to be considered in order to optimize the current density, isothermal temperature and holding time.

Sixty-two new Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) isolates were obtained from mosquitoes, biting midges, human cerebrospinal fluid and human blood samples in China during 2002–2005. The E and prM genes were sequenced and phylogenetic analyses were performed with 38 JEV other isolates from China and 36 JEV strains from other countries. Phylogenetic trees based on the E and prM gene sequences were similar. The results indicate that: (i) recent JEV isolates from China are divided into two genotypes, genotype 1 and genotype 3; (ii) recent JEV isolates from China are grouped into the same clusters within genotypes 1 and 3; and (iii) genotype 1 JEV strains have been isolated in China since 1979, whilst genotype 3 JEV strains were isolated before the 1970s. The results suggest that genotype 1 JEV was introduced to China around 1979 and that JEV strains belonging to genotypes 1 and 3 circulate in China.

The neuroprotection by estrogen (E2) and tamoxifen is well documented in experimental stroke models; however, the exact mechanism is unclear. A membrane-based estrogen receptor, ER-α36, has been identified. Postmenopausal-levels of E2 act through ER-α36 to induce osteoclast apoptosis due to a prolonged activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)/extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK) signaling. We hypothesized that ER-α36 may play a role in the neuroprotective activities of estrogen and tamoxifen. Here, we studied ER-α36 expression in the brain, as well as its neuroprotective effects against oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD) in PC12 cells. We found that ER-α36 was expressed in both rat and human brain. In addition, OGD-induced cell death was prevented by l nmol/L 17β-estradiol (E2β). E2β activates the MAPK/ERK signaling pathway in PC12 cells under basal and OGD conditions by interacting with ER-α36 and also induces ER-α36 expression. Low-dose of tamoxifen up-regulated ER-α36 expression and enhanced neuronal survival in an ovariectomized ischemic stroke model. Furthermore, low-dose of tamoxifen enhanced neuroprotective effects by modulating activates or suppress ER-α36. Our results thus demonstrated that ER-α36 is involved in neuroprotective activities mediated by both estrogen and tamoxifen.

The Panlong river passes through Kunming City and receives a large quantity of municipal sewage and wastewater from industrial effluent. Along the river, 20 sites were selected to collect water samples to assess the genotoxicity using two Tradescantia assays, the micronucleus (Trad-MCN) and the stamen-hair-mutation (Trad-SHM) assays. The lowest frequencies in the Trad-MCN assay and the Trad-SHM assay are 3.19 MCN/100 tetrads and 1.32 M/1000 stamen hairs, respectively. In the water samples obtained from the Songhua Reservoir, the MCN frequencies and mutation rates are not statistically significantly different from the data found for the negative control (2.49 MCN/100 tetrads and 0.71 M/1000 stamen hairs). Among the other water samples, 19 in Trad-MCN assay and 17 in Trad-SHM assay show significantly higher genotoxicity than the control. The highest genotoxicity was in samples No. 19 for the MCN assay (8.73 MCN/100 cells), over three times higher than the negative control, and in sample No. 11 for the SHM assay (4.30 M/1000), six times higher than the negative control, and were about the same as for the positive control (10.0 mg/l NaN3, 9.28 MCN/100 tetrads and 7.44 SHM/1000 stamen hairs), respectively. The peak frequencies for the Trad-MCN assays were observed in the water samples obtained from the sites that were near industrial and municipal wastewater that ran into the river as effluent. In general, the frequency of MCN and SHM mutations increased where the river passed through Kunming. The Trad-MCN assay seemed more sensitive than that of the Trad-SHM assay in detecting genotoxicity of the river water pollution.

To the Editor: Japanese encephalitis (JE) epidemics have occurred only in Asia. More than 50,000 cases of JE with ≈10,000 deaths have been reported since 1998 (1,2). The People’s Republic of China reported 5,104 cases and 214 deaths in 2005. Most of these deaths occurred in infants (3,4). During July and August 2006, an outbreak of viral encephalitis occurred in Yuncheng, Shanxi Province, People’s Republic of China. A total of 66 cases (1.32/100,000 population) were reported, including 19 deaths (case-fatality rate 28.8%). The cases had a widespread distribution over 9 counties and involved 37 towns and 61 administrative villages. The ratio of male-to-female patients was 1:0.89. A distinct clinical feature of this outbreak was the age distribution. More than 86% of the patients were >30 years of age, with only 10% of patients 50 years of age (5). We report serologic and virologic findings for the 2006 outbreak of viral encephalitis. Forty-six clinical specimens collected from 34 patients who had a diagnosis of viral encephalitis, including 33 serum samples and 13 cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples, were studied. All serum samples were screened for immunoglobulin M (IgM) to West Nile virus (WNV) by using the WNV IgM-capture ELISA kit (PanBio, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia) and for IgM to dengue virus or Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) by using the JE-Dengue IgM Combination ELISA kit (PanBio). Results for JEV were confirmed by using the JE Virus IgM-Capture ELISA kit (Shanghai B & C Enterprise Development Co. Ltd, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China). WNV-specific or dengue virus–specific IgM was not detected in any samples. JEV-specific IgM was detected in 27 (80%) patients, which indicated recent JEV infections. The other 7 patients were negative for JEV by ELISA and reverse transcription–PCR (RT-PCR). Increases >4-fold in neutralizing antibodies were detected in acute- and convalescent-phase serum samples from 9 patients (10 serum pairs were collected during the outbreak). Attempts were made to detect virus in CSF of patients and in 2,400 mosquitoes. Mosquitoes (mainly Culex spp.) were collected in cow sheds and hog pens around houses and processed into pools of 100. Total RNA was extracted from CSF or mosquito homogenate by using the QIAamp viral RNA extraction kit (QIAGEN, Valencia, CA, USA) according to the manufacturer’s specifications. RT was performed by using Ready-To-Go-You Prime First Strand Beads (Amersham Pharmacia Biotech, Piscatawy, NJ, USA) and a seminested PCR to amplify 492-bp gene fragments of the premembrane (PrM) sequence of JEV by using the Takara LA Taq PCR kit (Takara Bio Inc., Shiga, Japan). The primers were derived from Ishikawa strain genome sequences (GenBank accession no. {"type":"entrez-nucleotide","attrs":{"text":"AB051292","term_id":"12082323","term_text":"AB051292"}}AB051292). Primers PrMF: 5′-CGT TCT TCA AGT TTA CAG CAT TAG C-3′ (251–275), PrMR1: 5′-CGY TTG GAA TGY CTR GTC CG-3′ (724–743), and PrMR2: 5′-CCY RTG TTY CTG CCA AGC ATC CAM CC-3′ (901–925) were used. JEV PrM gene was amplified from CSF of 6 (46%) of 13 patients and 10 of 24 pools of mosquitoes by using the same seminested RT-PCR. To identify JEV genotype(s) involved in this outbreak, PCR products were sequenced. Eleven sequences (GenBank accession nos. {"type":"entrez-nucleotide-range","attrs":{"text":"EF434264-EF434274","start_term":"EF434264","end_term":"EF434274","start_term_id":"148925198","end_term_id":"148925218"}}EF434264-EF434274) were obtained from 6 patients and 5 pools of mosquitoes. The 11 sequences were compared phylogenetically with17 known JEV strains of the 4 recognized genotypes (classified on the basis of a 240-nt region of the prM gene). As shown in the Figure, the 11 sequences were those of JEV. Figure Phylogenetic analysis of Japanese encephalitis virus strains predicted from premembrane gene sequences. Neighbor-joining tree was generated by using MEGA 3.1 software (www.megasoftware.net) and rooted with Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE) virus sequence ... Further analysis showed that these 11 sequences can be grouped into genotypes I and III. Both genotypes were found in patient and mosquito samples, indicating that these genotypes co-circulated during this JE outbreak. JE has been endemic in Yuncheng for many years (6). A vaccine against JE (SA14–14–2) has been used in this area in infants, but not in adults. This might be 1 reason why a higher adult incidence was found in this outbreak. JEV genotype III had been the predominant genotype in previous years, but genotype I has been recently detected at increased frequencies (7–10). Detection of 2 JEV genotypes in 1 epidemic has not been reported. Whether simultaneous circulation of >1 genotype during an outbreak indicates a new type of emergence of JEV or that this has occurred and not been detected is unknown.

To study the efficacy of 'China Healthy Lifestyle for All' (CHLA).Under similar GDP status, two counties(one with CHLA and one without)were randomly selected from each province of China. Cluster randomized sampling method was performed to select 500 over 18-year-olds from each county. Face-to-face questionnaire interview was used to collect data related to knowledge, awareness and behavior on healthy lifestyle. Generalized Estimated Equation was fitted for the multi-factor analysis.A total of 31 396 subjects were surveyed, with 11 871 urban and 6312 rural residents from counties that had under gone the CHLA. Another 3934 urban and 9279 rural subjects were from those counties that had not carried out the CHLA(as control group). In both urban and rural areas, the CHLA group seemed more likely to be aware of the Campaign itself and the knowledge on healthy lifestyle, than the control group as well as consciously limiting the salt and oil intake, after adjusting other factors such as county, gender, age and education. In the urban area, rates of awareness on the Campaign in both the CHLA and control groups were 57.1% and 31.7% (OR = 3.33, 95% CI:1.63-6.80, P = 0.001)respectively. And in the rural area, the rates of consciously limiting the salt intake in the CHLA group and in the control group were 51.5% and 38.8% (OR = 1.70, 95% CI:1.13-2.56, P = 0.011)respectively. In the urban area, subjects from the CHLA group were more likely to use the healthy supportive tools than the control group. Rates of using salt measuring spoons in both the CHLA group and control groups were 49.2% and 29.5% (OR = 2.46, 95% CI:1.45-4.17, P = 0.001) respectively. In the rural area, statistically significant difference was only found in the rate of using scaled oil pots(OR = 2.11, 95% CI:1.09-4.09, P = 0.028)between the CHLA group and the control group. In the rural area, the CHLA group was more likely to engage in more physical activities than the control group. No differences on the rates related to physical activities were found in the urban area. Some behavioral indicators such as the rates of consciously maintaining the body weight, daily intake of vegetables and fruits showed no statistically significant differences between the CHLA group and the control group either in the urban or in the rural areas.The 'China Healthy Lifestyle for All' seemed to have improved the knowledge on awareness and consciousness of healthy lifestyle. However, the effect of CHLA on the healthy behavior needs to be further evaluated.

In this study, we discussed the consistency and correlation of HBV serological indexes between neonates' venous blood and cord blood whose mothers had chronical HBV infection, as well as the correlation of thoses indexes with the mothers'.Chronically HBV infected mothers who were postive of both HBsAg and HBeAg and also had a HBV DNA virus load above 10(5) copies/ ml and their infants were enrolled. The mothers' venous blood were collected before delivery. The neonates' cord blood were collected at birth after removal of contaminants and disinfected with alcohol on the cord's surface, and the venous blood were collected before hepatitis B virus immune globin(HBIG) and hepatitis B vaccine were given. The levels of HBsAg, anti-HBs, HBeAg and anti-HBeAg were tested with Abbott microparticle chemiluminescence method (Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Architac i2000). HBV DNA quantification were tested by COBAS TagMan real-time PCR Assay.383 mothers and their infants were enrolled. The positive rates of HBsAg in cord blood and venous blood were 61.2% and 63.9%. The positive rates of HBeAg level in cord blood and venous blood were 83.2% and 83.5%. The positive rates of HBV DNA level in cord blood and venous blood were 56.0% and 59.4%. The state of HBsAg, HBeAg and HBV DNA in cord blood and venous blood were consistency, and significant correlation was observed in their levels with correlation coefficients of 0.766, 0.857, and 0.692, respectively (P0.000). Significant correlation of the HBeAg levels were observed between mothers' venous blood and neonates' venous blood, as well as neonates' cord blood with correlation coefficients of 0.362 and 0.352 (P0.000). However, there was no significant correlation of HBsAg levels between them (r = 0.023, P = 0.785; r = 0.04, P = 0.604).The HBV serological index of neonate's cord blood could reflect the HBV serological indexes in venous blood because of the good correlation and consistency between them.

Transient sublethal ischemia is known as ischemic preconditioning, which enables cells and tissues to survive subsequent prolonged lethal ischemic injury. Ischemic preconditioning exerts neuroprotection through phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway. Cbl-b belongs to the Casitas B-lineage lymphoma (Cbl) family, and it can regulate the cell signal transduction.The roles of ubiquitin ligase Cbl-b and PI3K/Akt pathway and the relationship between them in oxygen-glucose deprivation preconditioning (OGDPC) in PC12 cells were investigated in the present study.Oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD) model in PC12 cells was used in the present study. The 3-(4, 5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, nuclear staining with Hoechst 33258, and Western blotting were applied to explore the roles of Cbl-b and PI3K/Akt pathway and the relationship between them in OGDPC in PC12 cells.Cell viability was significantly changed by OGD and OGDPC. OGD significantly decreased cell viability compared with the control group (P0.05), and preconditioning could rescue this damage was demonstrated by the increase of cell viability (P0.05). The expression of Cbl-b was significantly increased after OGD treatment. However, the activation of Akt and GSK3β was greatly inhibited. Preconditioning could inhibit the increase of Cbl-b caused by OGD and increase the activation of Akt and GSK3β. LY294002, a specific inhibitor of PI3K, could effectively inhibit the increase of Akt and GSK3β after preconditioning treatment. It partly inhibited the decrease of Cbl-b expression after preconditioning treatment.Ubiquitin ligase Cbl-b and PI3K/Akt pathway are differently involved in OGDPC in PC12 cells.

Using the latest available data to estimate the direct economic burden of overweight and obesity in China.'Cost-of-illness' approach was used to calculate the costs of five major non-communicable diseases(NCDs)which were associated with overweight and obesity. National data from the 2010 Chinese Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance Survey and the 2008 National Health Service Survey were used to compute the Population Attributable Risks(PARs) of overweight and obesity for each major NCDs. Costs specific to overweight and obesity were obtained by multiplying costs of each disease by the PARs for each NCD.In 2010, overweight and obesity were imposing a substantial economic burden on China, responsible for 42.9% of the medical and non-medical yearly costs of the major NCDs in China, with the amount as 90.768 billion RMB.The economic costs of overweight and obesity increased over the years, accounting for 4.5% of the national health expenditure. The high economic burden of overweight and obesity implied the need to develop and implement policies that addressing the behavior-related risk factors and the obese-genic environment, in order to curb the NCDs epidemic in China.

ER-α36 is a novel 36-kDa variant of ER-α. A large of evidence demonstrated that ER-α36 responded to membrane-initiated estrogen signaling pathways which were involved in the physiological and pathological process in many kinds of cells. In this study, knock-down of ER-α36 expression in pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells (named as PC12-36L cells) by using the shRNA method was used to evaluate the relationship between ER-α36 and Akt in neurons under glucose deprivation. The effect of ER-α36 on outgrowth of PC12 cells, as well as the neuroprotective effect of ER-α36 on injured PC12 cells exposed to glucose deprivation was observed by using MTT assay, Western blot and Annexin V/PI staining et al. The results showed that, (1) Glucose deprivation induced by MEM treatment for 6 h reduced survival rate and increased apoptotic rate in PC12 cells significantly compared to control group (P0.01); and it produced a decrease in the expression of Glut-4 protein (P0.01); (2) The expression level of ER-α36 was decreased significantly at 3 h of glucose deprivation, and then increased, while phosphorylation of Akt participated in the glucose deprivation was increased at first and then reduced; LY294002 (PI3K inhibitor) contributed to decreased expression of ER-α36, and suppressed the activation of Akt; (3) The rate of apoptosis was significantly increased in PC12-36L cells after glucose deprivation compared with that in wild type PC12 cells (P0.01). Furthermore, phosphorylation of Akt was decreased and Caspase-3 was increased by glucose deprivation in PC12-36L cells compared with those in wild type PC12 cells. The study reveals that phosphorylation of Akt is associated with ER-α36 in PC12 cells exposed to glucose deprivation, and both are involved in the regulation of stress responses.

ER-α36, a novel variant of ER-α, is expressed in breast, uterus, digestive tract, respiratory tract etc. The aim of the present study was to investigate the distribution and expression of ER-α36 in the central nervous system (CNS). Here, we comparatively analyzed the expression pattern of ER-α36 in the hippocampus and cortex of neonatal (1-day-old) and adult (12-week-old) Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats by using immunohistochemistry/immunocytochemistry analysis and Western blot. The results showed that ER-α36 was expressed both in hippocampus and cortex of adult rats, but mainly distributed in pyramidal neurons. ER-α36 was mainly located on the cytomembrane of hippocampal and cortical neurons from neonatal rats. Compared with the cortical neurons, the hippocampal neurons showed lower ER-α36 protein expression in the neonatal rats, but exhibited higher level of ER-α36 in the adult rats. Furthermore, the adult rats showed higher levels of ER-α36 expression in both hippocampus and cortex compared with the neonatal rats. These results suggest that ER-α36 might be involved in the regulation of membrane-initiated estrogen signaling throughout the postnatal development of diverse brain regions, and thus will be a potential target for the treatment of degenerative diseases in nervous system.

To evaluate and compare the antibody to hepatitis B virus (HBV) surface antigen (anti-HBs) response and the influent factors of revaccination of 4 kinds of hepatitis B vaccine (HepB) among firstly low-response adults.A total of 11 590 adults who were 18 - 49 years old, never received HepB vaccination, without HBV infection history, HBs-Ag negative, and had been living at 3 towns of Zhangqiu county in Shandong province Ji'nan city for more than half a year, were selected in the study in July, 2009. Self-designed questionnaire was used to select the basic information of the subjects. The subjects were divided into 4 groups by cluster sampling, and were vaccinated according to the "0-1-6" immune procedure with 10 µg HepB made by recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid techniques in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae (HepB-SC), 10 µg HepB made by recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid techniques in Hansenula Polymorpha (HepB-HP), 20 µg HepB-SC and 20 µg HepB made by recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid techniques in Chinese hamster ovary cell (HepB-CHO), 3 doses respectively. The adults who were low-response to the primary hepatitis B vaccination (10 mU/ml ≤ anti-HBs100 mU/ml) were divided into four groups by cluster sampling. These groups were revaccinated with one-dose of above-mentioned four kinds of HepB respectively. Blood samples were drawn from each person one month after the revaccination. Anti-HBs was detected by chemiluminescence microparticle immunoassay and compared by the vaccine type. The influence factors about antibody response were also analyzed.Out of the 11 590 subjects, 8592 adults had accepted the primary vaccination of hepatitis B and been collected the blood samples; among whom, 1306 subjects showed low-response, at the rate of 15.20%. A total of 1034 low-response subjects accepted secondary strengthened vaccination and were collected blood samples; 55.13% of them showed anti-HBs seroconversion (anti-HBs ≥ 100 mU/ml); while the seroconversion rate in each group was 44.54% (106/238) in 10 µg HepB-SC group, 57.14% (156/273) in 10 µg HepB-HP group, 56.08% (143/255) in 20 µg HepB-SC group and 61.57% (165/268) in 20 µg HepB-CHO group, respectively. There was significant difference among the groups (χ² = 17.14, P0.01). The rates of anti-HBs seroconversion were significantly higher in 10 µg HepB-HP and 20 µg HepB-CHO groups than it in 10 µg HepB-SC group (χ² were 8.09 and 14.70 respectively, P0.01). The geometric mean concentration (GMC) of anti-HBs was 178.24 mU/ml among the low-responders after one dose of revaccination. The GMC was 109.77, 243.50, 144.98 and 242.83 mU/ml in 10 µg HepB-SC group, 10 µg HepB-HP group, 20 µg HepB-SC group and 20 µg HepB-CHO group, respectively. There was significant difference among groups (F = 9.52, P0.01).Anti-HBs response could be strengthened effectively after one-dose of HepB revaccination among the low-response adults. Many factors like the vaccine types could effect the immune effects to HepB. A better response could be achieved if the 20 µg HepB-CHO or 10 µg HepB-HP was used for revaccination.

Please cite this paper as: Li et al. (2012) Immunogenicity and safety of a 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) monovalent vaccine in Chinese infants aged 6–35 months: a randomized, double‐blind, controlled phase I clinical trial. Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses DOI: 10.1111/irv.12028. Objectives The goal of this double‐blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial was to assess the safety and immunogenicity of two different doses of a monovalent split‐virion 2009 pandemic influenza A/H1N1 vaccine without adjuvant in Chinese infants aged 6‐35 months. Design and setting Subjects were randomly assigned to receive either a 2009 pandemic (H1N1) vaccine containing 7.5 or 15 μg haemagglutinin (HA) or a seasonal influenza vaccine. 2 doses of the H1N1 vaccines or the seasonal influenza vaccine were given 21 days apart in younger infants aged 6‐23 months or older infants aged 24‐35 months. Sample Serum samples were collected immediately before the first injection and before and 21 days after the second injection. Main outcome measures Primary outcomes were haemagglutinin inhibition (HI) antibody responses 21 days following each vaccination. Safety was monitoring throughout the study. Results The first vaccination of 7.5 μg and 15 μg H1N1 vaccine induced seroprotective antibody titers (HI titers ≥ 1: 40) in 42.9‐57.4% of younger infants and 49.1‐61.0% older infants. Immune responses after completion of the two dose schedule were comparable in both age groups with seroprotective rates of 91‐98% in each vaccine and age group and GMTs of 173‐263. The H1N1 vaccine elicited similar rates of local and systemic adverse reactions as the seasonal influenza vaccine. Conclusions The 2009 pandemic influenza A /H1N1 vaccine were highly immunogenic in infants aged 6‐35 months, and displayed a safety and reactogenicity profile similar to the seasonal influenza vaccine. Trial registration ClinicalTrial.gov identifier: NCT01047202

ERα36 is a novel subtype of estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) known to play an important role in breast cancer development and widely expressed in normal tissues and cells including nerve cells. However, the expression and function of ERα36 in nerve cells have not been well elucidated. To examine whether ERα36 is involved in differentiation of nerve cells, the differentiated and undifferentiated PC12 (PC12D and PC12unD) cells were used. Transfection of ERα36-shRNA plasmid into PC12 cells was performed to establish the ERα36 gene knock-down cells model. Immunocytofluorescence and Western blot were used to analyze the expression of Nestin, β-tubulinIII and Neu-N in the PC12 cells. The results showed that ERα36 was expressed in both cell types. Compared with PC12D cells, PC12unD cells showed higher expression of Nestin and lower expression of β-tubulinIII. ERα36-shRNA-mediated knock-down of ERα36 expression enhanced the expression of β-tubulinIII and Neu-N, but attenuated Nestin expressions in PC12unD cells; ERα36 knock-down in PC12D cells mediated Nestin, β-tubulinIII and Neu-N in a contrary manner. These results indicate that ERα36 knock-down appear to be associated with inhibiting differentiation in differentiated cells and promoting differentiation in undifferentiated cells, suggesting that ERα36 is a dual regulator in nerve differentiation.

To compare the antibody response induced by primary immunization with 5 µg and 10 µg hepatitis B vaccine made by recombinant DNA techniques among the newborns.Healthy infants who had completed primary immunization with 5 µg hepatitis B vaccine made by recombinant dexyribonucleic acid techniques in Saccharomyces (Hep-SC) or 10 µg hepatitis B vaccine made by recombinant dexyribonucleic acid techniques in Hansenula polymorpha (HepB-HP) were included in the study. Kids under study were 7-12 months of age and had been on 0-1-6 schedule. Standardized questionnaire was used and blood samples were collected. The titer of antibody to hepatitis B surface antigen (anti-HBs) was detected by Chemiluminescence Microparticle Imunoassay (CMIA). If anti-HBs happened to be under 10 mIU/ml, HBV DNA was further detected by nested-PCR to distinguish occult hepatitis B virus infection. Sero-conversion rate and titer of anti-HBs were compared between the two kinds of hepatitis B vaccines. Multivariate analysis was used to find the relationship between the kind of hepatitis B vaccine as well as the antibody response after debugging the other influencing factors including month-age, gender, birth-weight, premature birth and mother's HBsAg status.8947 infants vaccinated with 5 µg HepB-SC and 4576 infants vaccinated with 10 µg HepB-HP were investigated. In the 5 µg group, the rates of non-, low-, normal- and high-response were 1.88%, 15.18%, 61.42% and 21.52% respectively. In the 10 µg group, the corresponding rates were 0.15%, 2.16%, 29.42% and 68.26% respectively. The non-, low-, normal-response rates were all higher in 5 µg group than in 10 µg group (P0.01), while the high-response rate was much higher in 10 µg group than in 5 µg group (P0.01). The geometric mean concentration (GMC) of anti-HBs were 354.81 mIU/ml (95%CI: 338.84-363.08 mIU/ml) and 1778.28 mIU/ml (95%CI: 1698.24-1819.70 mIU/ml) in the 5 µg group and 10 µg group respectively. The GMC was statistically higher in the 10 µg group than in the 5 µg group (P0.001). The sero-conversion rate and GMC were significantly different between the two groups even after debugging the other influencing factors.Better anti-HBs response could be achieved by primary immunization with 10 µg HepB-HP than with 5 µg HepB-SC among newborns.

To compare the antibody response between preterm and full-term infants after primary immunization of hepatitis B vaccine (HepB).Infants who were aged 7 - 12 months and had completed primary immunization with 5 µg HepB made by recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid techniques in saccharomyces cerevisiae (HepB-SC) or 10 µg HepB made by recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid techniques in Hansenula polymorpha (HepB-HP) on 0-1-6 schedule were investigated in four provinces (municipality) including Beijing, Shandong, Jiangsu and Guangxi of China. Among them, all preterm infants were selected to form the preterm group and the 1:1 matching full-term infants with the same month-age, gender and residence were randomly selected to form the full-term group. Their HepB history was determined by immunization certificate and all of their parents were interviewed with standard questionnaire to get their birth information. Blood samples were obtained from all anticipants and were tested for Anti-HBs by chemiluminescence microparticle immuno-assay (CMIA).Total anticipants were 648 pairs of infants. The rates of non-response, low-response, normal-response and high-response after the primary immunization were 1.39%, 8.64%, 45.83% and 44.14% in the preterm group, respectively. The corresponding rates were 1.08%, 9.26%, 44.91% and 44.75% in the full-term group. The above four rates did not show significant differences between the two groups (P0.05). The geometric mean concentrations (GMC) of anti-HBs in the pre-term and full-term group were 755.14 and 799.47 mIU/ml respectively. There was no significantly difference in the GMCs between the two groups (P0.05). Results from multivariable conditional logistic analysis showed that preterm was not an influencing factor to the antibody response after HepB primary immunization among newborns even after debugging the other influencing factors.The antibody response after HepB primary immunization were similar among the preterm and full-term infants. The preterm newborns could be immunized under the same HepB immunization strategy.