Search

Abstract Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide. To this end, human cardiac organoids (hCOs) have been developed for improved organotypic CVD modeling over conventional in vivo animal models. Utilizing human cells, hCOs hold great promise to bridge key gaps in CVD research pertaining to human-specific conditions. hCOs are multicellular 3D models which resemble heart structure and function. Varying hCOs fabrication techniques leads to functional and phenotypic differences. To investigate heterogeneity across hCO platforms, we performed a transcriptomic analysis utilizing bulk RNA-sequencing from four previously published unique hCO studies. We further compared selected hCOs to 2D and 3D hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs), as well as fetal and adult human myocardium bulk RNA-sequencing samples. Upon investigation utilizing Principal Component Analysis, K-means clustering analysis of key genes, and further downstream analyses such as Gene Set Enrichment (GSEA), Gene Set Variation (GSVA), and GO term enrichment, we found that hCO fabrication method influences maturity and cellular heterogeneity across models. Thus, we propose that adjustment of fabrication method will result in an hCO with a defined maturity and transcriptomic profile to facilitate its specified applications, in turn maximizing its modeling potential.

Abstract Cytokine release syndrome (CRS), commonly known as cytokine storm, is an acute systemic inflammatory response that is a significant global health threat. Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-1 (IL-1) are key pro-inflammatory cytokines involved in CRS and are hence critical therapeutic targets. Current antagonists, such as tocilizumab and anakinra, target IL-6R/IL-1R but have limitations due to their long half-life and systemic anti-inflammatory effects, making them less suitable for acute or localized treatments. Here we present the de novo design of small protein antagonists that prevent IL-1 and IL-6 from interacting with their receptors to activate signaling. The designed proteins bind to the IL-6R, GP130 (an IL-6 co-receptor), and IL-1R1 receptor subunits with binding affinities in the picomolar to low-nanomolar range. X-ray crystallography studies reveal that the structures of these antagonists closely match their computational design models. In a human cardiac organoid disease model, the IL-1R antagonists demonstrated protective effects against inflammation and cardiac damage induced by IL-1β. These minibinders show promise for administration via subcutaneous injection or intranasal/inhaled routes to mitigate acute cytokine storm effects.

Abstract Catalytic films work well in degradation of organic matters. However, catalytic activity and stability of films are challenging factors. A nanoscale zero-valent iron (NZVI) incorporated porous PAN fiber (Fe-PAN) film was thus developed through a one-step cryogenic auxiliary electrospinning method. The Fe-PAN film overcame the problem in the traditional multistep preparation process. The excellent intrinsic properties of the polymer in the film were maintained. It exhibited high catalytic activity (> 95% conversion in just 4 min) and excellent stability and reusability, due to the synergistic interaction between PAN and NZVI. The degradation process was optimized by the Box-Behnken design, leading to the optimal condition: pH = 2.8, temperature = 56 °C, and oxidant concentration = 4.2 mmol/L. The degradation followed the 2nd order kinetic equation and was due to the reactions by ·OH and O2 -· radicals. This study demonstrates the great potentials of the Fe-PAN film for industrial applications.

Abstract Ten-eleven translocation (TET) 2 is an enzyme that catalyzes DNA demethylation to regulate gene expression by oxidizing 5-methylcytosine to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine, functioning as an essential epigenetic regulator in various biological processes. However, the regulation and function of TET2 in adipocytes during obesity are poorly understood. In this study, we demonstrate that leptin, a key adipokine in mammalian energy homeostasis regulation, suppresses adipocyte TET2 levels via JAK2-STAT3 signaling. Adipocyte Tet2 deficiency protects against high-fat diet-induced weight gain by reducing leptin levels and further improving leptin sensitivity in obese male mice. By interacting with C/EBPα, adipocyte TET2 increases the hydroxymethylcytosine levels of the leptin gene promoter, thereby promoting leptin gene expression. A decrease in adipose TET2 is associated with obesity-related hyperleptinemia in humans. Inhibition of TET2 suppresses the production of leptin in mature human adipocytes. Our findings support the existence of a negative feedback loop between TET2 and leptin in adipocytes and reveal a compensatory mechanism for the body to counteract the metabolic dysfunction caused by obesity.

Aggressive adolescents tend to exhibit abnormal fear acquisition and extinction, and reactive aggressive adolescents are often more anxious. However, the relationship between fear generalization and reactive aggression (RA) remains unknown. According to Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire (RPQ) scores, 61 adolescents were divided into two groups, namely, a high RA group (N = 30) and a low aggression (LA) group (N = 31). All participants underwent three consecutive phases of the Pavlovian conditioning paradigm (i.e., habituation, acquisition, and generalization), and neural activation of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) was assessed by functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). The stimuli were ten circles with varying sizes, including two conditioned stimuli (CSs) and eight generalization stimuli (GSs). A scream at 85 dB served as the auditory unconditioned stimulus (US). The US expectancy ratings of both CSs and GSs were higher in the RA group than in the LA group. The fNIRS results showed that CSs and GSs evoked lower mPFC activation in the RA group compared to the LA group during fear generalization. These findings suggest that abnormalities in fear acquisition and generalization are prototypical dysregulations in adolescents with RA. They provide neurocognitive evidence for dysregulated fear learning in the mechanisms underlying adolescents with RA, highlighting the need to develop emotional regulation interventions for these individuals.

Human induced pluripotent stem cell derived cardiac fibroblasts (hiPSC-CFs) play a critical role in modeling human cardiovascular diseases in vitro. However, current culture substrates used for hiPSC-CF differentiation and expansion, such as Matrigel and tissue culture plastic (TCPs), are tissue mismatched and may provide pathogenic cues. Here, we report that hiPSC-CFs differentiated on Matrigel and expanded on tissue culture plastic (M-TCP-iCFs) exhibit transcriptomic hallmarks of activated fibroblasts limiting their translational potential. To alleviate pathogenic activation of hiPSC-CFs, we utilized decellularized extracellular matrix derived from porcine heart extracellular matrix (HEM) to provide a biomimetic substrate for improving hiPSC-CF phenotypes. We show that hiPSC-CFs differentiated and expanded on HEM (HEM-iCFs) exhibited reduced expression of hallmark activated fibroblast markers versus M-TCP-iCFs while retaining their cardiac fibroblast phenotype. HEM-iCFs also maintained a reduction in expression of hallmark genes associated with pathogenic fibroblasts when seeded onto TCPs. Further, HEM-iCFs more homogenously integrated into an hiPSC-derived cardiac organoid model, resulting in improved cardiomyocyte sarcomere development. In conclusion, HEM provides an improved substrate for the differentiation and propagation of hiPSC-CFs for disease modeling.

This paper introduces a new green decomposition model of carbon productivity that aims to further analyze the regional differences in carbon productivity and its interaction with regional industrial performance. We combine desired outputs and undesired outputs orientation, and multiple factor inputs to derive a new green decomposition theorem, establish a new green decomposition model of carbon productivity, and obtain nine effects of regional carbon productivity differences. Empirical analysis is conducted using input-output data from 29 provinces and 15 industries in China, comparing the differences in carbon productivity from both the provincial and industry perspectives and exploring the mechanism of action. This paper provides theoretical basis and empirical evidence for regional carbon productivity enhancement and economic and industrial optimization from the perspective of multi-factor inputs, as well as policy insights for regional low-carbon transition development.

Abstract Background Previous studies have primarily focused on the relationships among the health locus of control (HLC), healthy lifestyle and life satisfaction of college students. However, little is known about the mediating mechanism of healthy lifestyle on the other two aspects. This study aims to address this issue. Methods A total of 2394 students from six colleges in Hubei Province validly completed self-report questionnaires, including the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Healthy Lifestyle Questionnaire for college students and Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale (MHLC), which covered three dimensions: internal HLC, powerful others HLC and chance HLC. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyses the hypothesized relationships in the path model, and a mediation analysis was used to verify the indirect relationships. Results Healthy lifestyle and life satisfaction showed positive relations with both internal HLC and powerful others HLC, but a significant negative association with chance HLC. In addition, healthy lifestyle mediated the relationships of internal HLC, powerful others HLC and chance HLC with life satisfaction. Conclusions Healthy lifestyle mediates the impact of HLC on life satisfaction. Students with high IHLC tend to develop a healthier lifestyle and have higher LS. Powerful others also exert positive effects in collectivist cultural backgrounds. Thus, colleges should give full play to the positive role of psychological health and physical education courses in improving students’ IHLC. Meanwhile, the positive guiding effect of powerful others should be stressed. Further, particular emphasis should also be placed on the peer influence, new media publicity functions, community intervention, and college systematic appraisal, especially during and after public health emergencies.

BackgroundThe immune background of the overall population before and after the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 in China remains unexplored. And the level of neutralizing antibodies is a reliable indicator of individual immunity.ObjectivesThis study aimed to assess the immune levels of different population groups during a viral outbreak and identify the factors influencing these levels.MethodsWe measured the levels of neutralizing antibodies in 12,137 participants using the COVID19 Neutralizing Antibody Detection kit. The dynamics of neutralizing antibodies were analyzed using a generalized additive model, while a generalized linear model and multi-factor analysis of variance were employed to investigate the influencing factors. Additionally, statistical methods were used to compare neutralizing antibody levels among subgroups of the real-world population.ResultsParticipants who received booster doses exhibited significantly higher levels of neutralizing antibodies compared to those who received only one or two doses (p

Summary: Recently, the existence of ferroptosis has been confirmed in chronic pancreatitis. However, its role in acute pancreatitis (AP) process, especially in critical status, has not yet been mentioned. To verify this hypothesis, we included 873 AP patients (training set) and 1,188 NAFLD patients (internal validation set) selected from MIMIC-III (Medical Information Mark for Intensive Care) database and 218 AP patients (external validation set) in Linshui County People’s Hospital ICU data. We analyzed the correlation between mortality and ferroptosis associating factors (such as serum iron, ALP, lactate, etc.) in them through regression analysis. In addition, to test the significance of these factors, the nomogram, AUC, and DCA analysis were applied. The results showed that serum iron, IBC, ALP, and lactate (p

Inactivated COVID-19 vaccines have been widely used to vaccinate the Chinese population. However, limited literature exists to explore the effect of obesity on the humoral and cellular immune response to these vaccines. In this study, 132 high BMI (Body mass index) (obesity and overweight, BMI ≥ 24 kg/m2) and 82 normal BMI (BMI < 24 kg/m2) participants were enrolled. Adverse events (AEs), Spike receptor-binding domain IgG antibody (anti-RBD-IgG), neutralizing antibodies (NAbs), and specific B-cell and T-cell responses were evaluated 21–105 days after full-course inactivated COVID-19 vaccination. The overall incidence of AEs was similar in individuals with and without obesity/overweight. No serious vaccine-related AEs occurred. Individuals with obesity/overweight had a reduced seropositivity rate of NAbs compared to those with normal BMI. Anti-RBD-IgG and NAbs titers in the high BMI group were significantly lower than those in the normal BMI group. The frequencies of RBD-specific memory B cells (MBCs) and the numbers of spike-specific TNF-α+ spot-forming cells (SFCs) in individuals with obesity/overweight were reduced compared with those noted in individuals without obesity/overweight. A similar trend of weakened humoral responses was also observed in individuals with central obesity. Our study results suggested that inactivated COVID-19 vaccines were safe and well tolerated but induced poor humoral and cellular immune responses in Chinese individuals with obesity/overweight.

Abstract In this study, we explored whether satisfaction with government management, perception of risk, and gratitude influenced public anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. Using a cross-sectional, anonymous and confidential online survey, a nationwide sample of Chinese adults (N = 876) was targeted between March 25–March 30, 2020, a period in which newly confirmed cases significantly declined in China. The anxiety level was decreased as compared to that assessed during the peak period. Multiple parallel mediation modeling demonstrated that risk perception and gratitude partially mediated the relationship between satisfaction with government management and public anxiety. Increasing satisfaction and gratitude, as well as reducing risk perception contribute to the public’s mental health. The results may shed light on the positive factors for psychological well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic and may aid potential strategies for the policy maker, the public, and the clinic to regulate negative emotions or future emerging infectious diseases.

Abstract Straw returning is an effective management measure to improve or maintain soil fertility in agricultural ecosystems. This study investigated the effects of straw returning combined with compound fertilizer on the bacterial community, enzyme activities, and soil nutrients’ contents in a rape-rice rotation soil aggregates. To do so, a 5-year field trial (November 2016 to October 2021) was carried out in a paddy soil with three treatments: no straw + no fertilization (CK), compound fertilizer (F), and straw returning + compound fertilizer (SF). Soil aggregates were classified into mega-aggregates (> 2 mm), macro-aggregates (0.25–2 mm), micro-aggregates (0.053–0.25 mm), and silt–clay ( 2 mm aggregates by 3.17% and significantly decreased the content of 0.053–0.25 mm aggregates by 20.27%. The contents of organic carbon and total nitrogen in > 0.053 mm straw amended aggregates increased by 15.29 and 18.25%, respectively. Straw returning significantly increased the urease activity of > 0.053 mm aggregates with an average of 43.08%, while it decreased the phosphatase and invertase activities of soil aggregates by 7.71–40.66%. The Shannon indices of the bacterial community in each particle sizes soil aggregates decreased by an average of 1.16% and the Chao indices of the bacterial community in

In this study, whey protein (WPI-E+MA) modified with enzyme combined malic acid was added to set yoghurt in order to improve the texture and bile salt-binding ability. The effects of WPI-E+MA on quality, gel structure and cholate binding ability of set yoghurt were evaluated. The results showed that WPI-E+MA could improve the water holding capacity, apparent viscosity, shear stress and viscoelasticity of set yoghurt. And the optimal value was obtained at the addition amount of 8%. Besides, the gel mesh crosslinked structure of yogurt became more denser and had higher degree of polymerization with the addition of WPI-E+MA. The binding rate of sodium deoxycholate (SDC), sodium cholate (SC) and sodium taurocholate (STC) also reached the maximum value at 8%. WPI-E+MA could effectively improve the quality of set yoghurt and enhance the cholate binding ability.

Carbon stars play a crucial role in astronomical research and are significant for understanding stellar evolution, measuring cosmic distances, and studying galaxy kinematics. In recent years, identifying carbon stars using machine learning methods and traditional line-index methods has become a research hotspot, but there are still limitations regarding accuracy and automation. In this study, we propose to build a five-class model to identify carbon stars using spectral data from LAMOST DR9. The model achieved 99.45% precision and 91.21% recall on the carbon star testing set. We conducted independent tests using a sample of 1333 known carbon stars that were not used in the training and testing phases, and our model ultimately identified 1199 carbon stars. On this basis, we used this model to screen 11,226,252 spectra of LAMOST DR9 and identified 4383 carbon stars, including 1197 newly discovered carbon stars. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of the characteristics of the 4383 carbon stars obtained, further visual inspection of these spectra was performed to provide more detailed carbon star subtypes.

Young stellar objects (YSOs) represent the earliest stage in the process of star formation, offering insights that contribute to the development of models elucidating star formation and evolution. Recent advancements in deep-learning techniques have enabled significant strides in identifying special objects within vast data sets. In this paper, we present a YSO identification method based on deep-learning principles and spectra from the LAMOST. We designed a structure based on a long short-term memory network and a convolutional neural network and trained different models in two steps to identify YSO candidates. Initially, we trained a model to detect stellar spectra featuring the H α emission line, achieving an accuracy of 98.67%. Leveraging this model, we classified 10,495,781 stellar spectra from LAMOST, yielding 76,867 candidates displaying a H α emission line. Subsequently, we developed a YSO identification model, which achieved a recall rate of 95.81% for YSOs. Utilizing this model, we further identified 35,021 YSO candidates from the H α emission-line candidates. Following cross validation, 3204 samples were identified as previously reported YSO candidates. We eliminated samples with low signal-to-noise ratios and M dwarfs by using the equivalent widths of the N ii and He i emission lines and visual inspection, resulting in a catalog of 20,530 YSO candidates. To facilitate future research endeavors, we provide the obtained catalogs of H α emission-line star candidates and YSO candidates along with the code used for training the model.

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) exhibit a wide range of quasiperiodic variations and are crucial for our understanding of the cyclical evolution of large-scale magnetic fields. However, the mid-term periodicities of different types of CMEs associated with different processes at the source location need to be clearly understood. Based on the CDAW catalog released by the Large Angle and Spectroscopic Coronagraph mission on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, we investigated the period of CMEs based on the speeds and accelerations using the continuous wavelet transformation method. Our results revealed that the distribution of CMEs over time is quite distinctly different for different speeds, and there are Rieger-type periods and quasi-biennial oscillations of the CMEs. The two types of periodic signals show significant differences in solar cycles 23 and 24. Furthermore, the periodicity patterns for the northern hemisphere differ from those in the southern hemisphere. The potential mechanisms and explanations of the results are also discussed.

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope will achieve unparalleled sensitivity and angular resolution, substantially progressing our research into the formation and development of the early universe. Sensitivity is one of the most critical telescope metrics, often used to determine the observing mode and observing time of a radio source. It is also used to determine imaging parameters to balance imaging sensitivity and spatial resolution during data processing. In this paper, to meet the needs of continuum imaging pipeline data processing for the SKA1-LOW telescope, we derive equations for point-source-sensitivity (PSS) calculations under multichannel, multipolarization, discrete frequency sampling, discrete time sampling, and different weighting schemes. After validating the correctness of the equation, we improved and refined the sensitivity calculation application in the Radio Astronomy Simulation, Calibration, and Imaging Library, and further calculated the variation of the PSS versus angular resolution for the full-scale SKA1-LOW with different weighting schemes, and provided SKA1-LOW broadband image performance as functions of angular scale for four frequencies. These results can provide not only a theoretical basis for the construction and commissioning of the SKA1-LOW telescope but also guidance for imaging processing in future scientific data processing.

Identifying and classifying variable stars is essential to time-domain astronomy. The Large Area Multi-Object Fiber Optic Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) acquired a large amount of spectral data. However, there is no corresponding variable source-related information in the data, constraining LAMOST data utilization for scientific research. In this study, we systematically investigated variable source classification methods for LAMOST data. We constructed a 10-class classification model using three mainstream machine-learning methods. Through performance comparison, we chose the LightGBM and XGBoost models. We further identified variable source candidates in the r band in LAMOST DR9 and obtained 281,514 variable source candidates with probabilities greater than 95%. Subsequently, we filtered out the sources of periodic variable sources using the generalized Lomb–Scargle periodogram and classified these periodic variable sources using the classification model. Finally, we propose a reliable periodic variable star catalog containing 176,337 stars with specific types.

The hemispheric asymmetry of solar activity is one of the essential physical consequences of the interior dynamo process. However, the hemispheric distribution of halo coronal mass ejection (HCME) source locations has not been investigated in detail. Based on the HCME catalog identified from the Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph Experiment on board the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, we perform a hemispheric distribution analysis of the HCME source locations from 1996 April to 2022 June. The main results are as follows. (1) The HCME source locations are confined to the active region belt, and there is no “rush to the poles” phenomenon that is unique to large-scale magnetic activity. (2) The HCME source locations exhibit a general hemispheric asymmetry, and autoregressive moving-average model results show that the asymmetry of HCME source locations is significantly different from that of sunspot activity. (3) The hemispheric distribution of cycle 24 is different from that of cycle 23, potentially as a result of the heliospheric dynamic pressure having noticeably decreased after the polarity reversal of cycle 23. Our results contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the hemispheric asymmetry of energetic magnetic structures and give a new perspective on understanding the geoeffectiveness of HCMEs.

Chinese cabbage is the most widely consumed vegetable crop due to its high nutritional value and rock-bottom price. Notably, the presence of the physiological disease petiole spot significantly impacts the appearance quality and marketability of Chinese cabbage. It is well known that excessive nitrogen fertilizer is a crucial factor in the occurrence of petiole spots; however, the mechanism by which excessive nitrogen triggers the formation of petiole spots is not yet clear. In this study, we found that petiole spots initially gather in the intercellular or extracellular regions, then gradually extend into intracellular regions, and finally affect adjacent cells, accompanied by cell death. Transcriptomic and proteomic as well as physiology analyses revealed that the genes/proteins involved in nitrogen metabolism exhibited different expression patterns in resistant and susceptible Chinese cabbage lines. The resistant Chinese cabbage line has high assimilation ability of NH4+, whereas the susceptible one accumulates excessive NH4+, thus inducing a burst of reactive oxygen species (ROS). These results introduce a novel perspective to the investigation of petiole spot induced by the nitrogen metabolism pathway, offering a theoretical foundation for the development of resistant strains in the control of petiole spot.

BackgroundIn this study, we aimed to explore the antihypertensive effect of 23 and 52% concentrations of low-sodium salt combined with the Chinese Modified Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (CM-DASH) diet in patients with hypertension and type 2 diabetes.MethodsWe conducted a randomized controlled single-blind trial with a semi-open design. One hundred and thirty-two participants were randomly assigned into Group A (control group), Group B (52% low-sodium salt group), Group C (23% low-sodium salt group), and Group D (meal pack group) for 8 weeks of dietary intervention. All participants were followed weekly to collect data on blood pressure, salt use, and adverse events. Blood and 24-h urine samples were analyzed at baseline, 4 weeks, and the end of the intervention.ResultsAt the end of the intervention, the mean blood pressure decreased significantly by 10.81/5.03 mmHg, 14.32/6.32 mmHg, 14.20/6.59 mmHg, and 19.06/7.82 mmHg in Groups A–D, respectively, compared with baseline (p

BackgroundThe morbidity of thyroid cancer has been increasing in the last decades all over the world. In addition to the more sensitive thyroid nodule screening technology, several social and environmental factors might represent credible candidates for this increase. They include psychological stress, lifestyle-associated risk factors, nutritional deficiencies, and environmental pollutants. Foremost, psychological stress had gained high interest as a possible promoter and a modifiable risk factor for thyroid nodules in recent years. The present study was to investigate the clinical characteristics and psychological status of the population during the peak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and assessed the association of psychosocial determinants and the ultrasonic characteristics of thyroid nodules.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, 490 adult subjects who had received at least two doses of COVID-19 vaccine and were not infected with COVID-19, and did not know whether they had thyroid nodules, received thyroid color ultrasound examination and psychological questionnaire survey. Depression, anxiety, and stress were assessed using Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21). Sleep quality was rated using the Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PQSI). The characteristics of 243 subjects with thyroid nodules were described and recorded in detail by thyroid color ultrasound, and the correlations between anxiety, depression, sleep quality, clinical indicators, and thyroid nodule ultrasound characteristics were analyzed. Associations between psychological status (mutually adjusted predictors) and ultrasonic characteristics of thyroid nodules (outcome) were modeled using binary logistic regression controlling for sex, age, BMI, TSH, FT3, and FT4.ResultsDepression was positively correlated with thyroid hypoechoic nodule (OR = 3.720, 95%CI 1.615–8.570), microcalcification of thyroid nodule (OR = 3.638, 95%CI 1.476–8.966), the aspect ratio of thyroid nodule>1 (OR = 3.860, 95%CI 1.052–14.161), the unclear boundary of thyroid nodule (OR = 4.254, 95%CI 1.359–13.312), and the irregular edge of thyroid nodule (OR = 4.134, 95%CI 1.810–9.439). Anxiety was positively correlated with microcalcification of thyroid nodules (OR = 4.319, 95%CI 1.487–11.409). Stress was positively correlated with thyroid hypoechoic nodules (OR = 4.319, 95%CI 1.487–11.409), microcalcification of thyroid nodules (OR = 2.724, 95%CI 1.038–7.151), and the irregular edge of thyroid nodules (OR = 2.478, 95%CI 1.077–5.705).ConclusionThis study demonstrates that depression, anxiety, and stress were associated with the morbidity of thyroid nodules and thyroid ultrasound characteristics. During COVID-19, people’s negative emotions increased significantly compared to before. Negative emotions might be harmful to thyroid health. Therefore, during periods of high stress, strategies to prevent psychological problems should be implemented to improve thyroid health.

Objectives: Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) play a crucial role in the microenvironment of tumor. Evidences has been shown that chemokine receptor 9 (CCR9) is an important molecule that attracts pDCs homing to the digestive tract and the latter are involved in the formation of digestive tract immune tolerance. The aim of this study was to explore the role of CCR9-CCL25 interaction in pDC-mediated immunosuppression microenvironment of gastric cancer (GC). Materials and methods: Regulatory T cells (Tregs) and pDCs were detected by immunohistochemistry. CCR9, which expressed on pDC was visualized by immunofluorescence. Western Blot was applied to evaluate the expression of CCL-25. Total pDCs, CCR9+pDCs, CCR9−pDCs, total Tregs, inducible costimulator + (ICOS) Tregs and ICOS−Tregs in peripheral blood and draining lymph nodes were analyzed by flow cytometry. Plasma concentration of the cytokines were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay Results: Total Tregs, pDCs and CCR9+pDCs were higher in GC tissue. CCL-25 was over-expressed in carcinoma tissue. Peripheral total pDCs, CCR9−pDCs, total Tregs, ICOS+ Tregs, ICOS− Tregs were significantly increased in GC patients. More total pDCs, CCR9+ pDCs, total Tregs, ICOS+ Tregs were found in metastatic lymph nodes. Plasma concentrations of IL-6 and IL-10 were significantly higher in GC patients. More CCR9+ pDCs were found infiltrating carcinoma tissue in patients with later T staging and lymph node metastasis and conferred a poor prognosis. Conclusion: CCR9-CCL25 interaction might play an important role in mediating PDC homing to metastatic lymph nodes and carcinoma tissue, which contributed to the formation of tumor immunosuppressive microenvironment and poor prognosis.

Abstract Background Since the discovery of metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) in 2020, no report on the connection between the visceral fat area (VFA) and MAFLD has been published in China, and the ideal cutoffs of VFA for predicting MAFLD has not been determined so far. Thus, the purpose of this research was to clarify the relationship between VFA and MAFLD and the ideal cutoffs of VFA to predict MAFLD in the Chinese population. Methods Five thousand three hundred forty subjects were included in this research, with 30% randomly selected for the validation set (n = 1602) and 70% for the Training set (n = 3738). The association between VFA and MAFLD was determined by multiple logistic regression. ROC curves were used to evaluate the prediction effect of VFA on MAFLD. Results Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the VFA ORs (95% CIs) were 1.25 (1.20, 1.29) for women and 1.15 (1.12, 1.17) for men. Meanwhile, the VFA quartile OR (95% CI) were 3.07 (1.64, 5.75), 7.22 (3.97, 13.14), 18.91 (10.30, 34.71) for women and 3.07 (1.64, 5.75), 7.22 (3.97, 13.14),18.91 (10.30, 34.71) for men in the Q2, Q3, and Q4 groups compared with Q1. The ROC curve showed the VFA, WC, WHR, and WHtR to predict MAFLD, the AUC value of VFA was the highest and the prediction effect was the best. The ideal cutoffs of VFA to predict MAFLD was 115.55 cm2 for women and 178.35 cm2 for men, and the AUC was 0.788 and 0.795, respectively. Finally, the AUC was 0.773 for women and 0.800 for men in the validation set. Conclusion VFA was an independent predictive factor for MAFLD, and the ideal cutoff of VFA to predict MAFLD was 115.55 cm2 in women and 178.35 cm2 in men.

Objective Excessive salt intake is currently the foremost universal risk factor for controllable chronic disease. This study evaluated the short-term effects of a modest salt intake reduction combined with the Chinese Modified Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (CM-DASH) diet on sodium and potassium intake, mean arterial pressure (MAP), and pulse pressure (PP) in hypertensive patients with type II diabetes. Methods Sixty-one participants were randomized to the intervention group (52% low-sodium salt and DASH) and control group (normal salt and DASH). An 8-week dietary intervention was applied. Daily salt intake, blood pressure (BP), and drug use were recorded every week. Twenty-four-hour urine, casual urine, and blood samples were measured at baseline, the 4th week, and the end of the intervention. Results Fifty-nine patients (25 men) completed the entire study. Sodium intake decreased by 1259.66 (792.76, 1726.56)/705.80 (149.21, 1262.39) mg/day after 4 weeks (intervention: P

Abstract Isosteviol sodium (STVNa) is a beyerane diterpene synthesized via acid hydrolysis of stevioside, which can improve glucose and lipid metabolism in animals with diabetes. However, it remains unknown whether STVNa can exhibit a therapeutic effect on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its underlying mechanism. We hypothesize that autophagic initiation may play a key role in mediating the development of NAFLD. Herein, we assessed the effects of STVNa on NAFLD and its underlying mechanisms. The results demonstrated that STVNa treatment effectively ameliorated NAFLD in rats fed high-fat diet (HFD). Moreover, STVNa decreased the expression of inflammation-related genes and maintained a balance of pro-inflammatory cytokines in NAFLD rats. STVNa also reduced lipid accumulation in free fatty acid (FFA)-exposed LO2 cells. In addition, STVNa attenuated hepatic oxidative stress and fibrosis in NAFLD rats. Furthermore, STVNa enhanced autophagy and activated Sirtuin 1/adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (Sirt1/AMPK) pathway both in vivo and in vitro, thus attenuating intracellular lipid accumulation. In summary, STVNa could improve lipid metabolism in NAFLD by initiating autophagy via Sirt1/AMPK pathway. Therefore, STVNa may be an alternative therapeutic agent for treatment of NAFLD.

Abstract Biofilm formation is a major cause of hospital‐acquired infections. Research into biofilm‐resistant materials is therefore critical to reduce the frequency of these events. Polymer microarrays offer a high‐throughput approach to enable the efficient discovery of novel biofilm‐resistant polymers. Herein, bacterial attachment and surface chemistry are studied for a polymer microarray to improve the understanding of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm formation on a diverse set of polymeric surfaces. The relationships between time‐of‐flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF‐SIMS) data and biofilm formation are analyzed using linear multivariate analysis (partial least squares [PLS] regression) and a nonlinear self‐organizing map (SOM). The SOM models revealed several combinations of fragment ions that are positively or negatively associated with bacterial biofilm formation, which are not identified by PLS. With these insights, a second PLS model is calculated, in which interactions between key fragments (identified by the SOM) are explicitly considered. Inclusion of these terms improved the PLS model performance and shows that, without such terms, certain key fragment ions correlated with bacterial attachment may not be identified. The chemical insights provided by the combination of PLS regression and SOM will be useful for the design of materials that support negligible pathogen attachment.

In order to realize the multi-axis linkage machining of large slender integral structural parts，the new （（3-RPR+R） & UPS） + P hybrid machine tool mechanism with five degrees of freedom is proposed. The inverse kinematics model of the hybrid machine tool mechanism is established by using analytic vector method，and on this basis，the first-order and second-order kinematic influence coefficient matrices are obtained according to the kinematic influence coefficient method，and a more complete inverse kinematics model is established. Finally，the inverse kinematics model of the hybrid machine tool mechanism is solved by Matlab and simulated by Adams，and the results are basically consistent，which verifies the correctness of the inverse kinematics model of the hybrid machine tool mechanism.

Abstract Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) has a greater tendency to metastasize to the peritoneum, retroperitoneum, and gastrointestinal (GI) tract as compared to invasive carcinoma of no special type (NST). Like primary ILC in the breast, ILC metastases are frequently infiltrative and hypometabolic, rather than mass forming and hypermetabolic in nature. This renders them difficult to detect on conventional and metabolic imaging studies. As a result, intra-abdominal ILC metastases are often detected late, with patients presenting with clinical complications such as liver failure, hydronephrosis, or bowel obstruction. In patients with known history of ILC, certain imaging features are very suggestive of infiltrative metastatic ILC. These include retroperitoneal or peritoneal nodularity and linitis plastica appearance of the bowel. Recognition of linitis plastica on imaging should prompt deep or repeat biopsies. In this pictorial review, the authors aim to familiarize readers with imaging features and pitfalls for evaluation of intra-abdominal metastatic ILC. Awareness of these will allow the radiologist to assess these patients with a high index of suspicion and aid detection of metastatic disease. Also, this can direct histopathology and immunohistochemical staining to obtain the correct diagnosis in suspected metastatic disease.

Leukemia inhibitory factor receptor (LIFR) is frequently downregulated in liver cancer. Here the authors show that loss of LIFR promotes liver tumorigenesis and confers resistance to drug-induced ferroptosis through NF-κB-mediated upregulation of iron-sequestering cytokine LCN2.

ObjectiveTo assess the effect of a novel naturally cultured rice with high resistant starch (RS) on postprandial glycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes compared to ordinary rice.DesignThis study is a randomized, double-blinded controlled trial.MethodsPatients with type 2 diabetes were recruited, and postprandial glucose levels were measured at 5-time points after the ingestion of one of two types of cooked rice in random order. Paired t-tests were used to compare postprandial blood glucose changes and increment areas under the blood glucose curve between high-RS rice and ordinary rice.ResultsThe increments of the postprandial blood glucose levels for high-RS rice were significantly lower than that for ordinary rice, i.e., 2.80 ± 1.38 mmol/L vs. 3.04 ± 1.50 mmol/L (P = 0.043) and 3.94 ± 2.25 mmol/L vs. 4.25 ± 2.29 mmol/L (P = 0.036) at 30 min and 60 min, respectively. The incremental areas under the blood glucose curve for high-RS rice were also significantly lower than that for ordinary rice, i.e., 42.04 ± 20.65 [mmol/(L·min)] vs. 45.53 ± 22.45 [mmol/(L·min)] (P = 0.043), 143.54 ±69.63 [mmol/(L·min)] vs. 155.15 ± 73.53 [mmol/(L·min)] (P = 0.026), and 354.61 ± 191.96 [mmol/(L·min)] vs. 379.78 ± 195.30 [mmol/(L·min)] (P = 0.042) at 30, 60, and 120 min, respectively. Repeated-measures ANOVA showed that postprandial glucose levels were not affected by the test order.ConclusionThe novel high-RS rice as a staple food when substituting for widely consumed ordinary rice may provide potential health benefits by lowering blood glucose in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA) can quantify long-range correlation (LRC) and fractal scaling behavior of signal. We compared the results of variant DFA methods by varying the order of the polynomial and found that the order of 6 was relatively better than the others when both the accuracy and computational cost were taken into account. An alternative DFA method is proposed to quantify the LRC exponent by using best-fit polynomial algorithm in each segment instead of the polynomial of the same order in all of segments. In this study, the best-fit polynomial algorithm with the maximum order of 6 is used to fit the local trend in each segment to detrend the trend of a time series, and then the revised DFA is used to quantify the LRC in the time series. A series of numerical studies demonstrate that the best-fit DFA performs better than regular DFA, especially for the time series with scaling exponent smaller than 0.5. This may be attributed to the improvement of the fitted trend at the end of each segment. The estimation results of variant DFA methods reach stable when the time series length is greater than 1,000.

BackgroundThe prevalence of hyperuricemia (HUA) has been increasing in recent years. HUA is a crucial risk factor for gout and an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Identifying potentially modifiable factors of HUA is vital for preventing gout and even CVDs. This study aimed to explore the associations of fat distribution with HUA among middle-aged and elderly people in Chongqing, China.Materials and methodsA cross-sectional study was conducted between July 2020 and September 2021. People who underwent quantitative computed tomography (QCT) scans were invited to participate in the study. A total of 3,683 individuals whose clinical characteristics and QCT-based fat distribution measurements included visceral fat area (VFA), subcutaneous fat area (SFA), and liver fat content (LFC) were well-recorded were included. HUA was defined as having a serum uric acid level greater than 420.0 μmol/L. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association between these adipose variables and HUA prevalence.ResultsThe HUA prevalence was 25.6% (943/3,683), which was 39.6% (817/2,063) in men and 7.8% (126/1,620) in women. In the fully adjusted model (model 4), the comparison of the highest one with the lowest quartiles of adipose variables showed that the multivariable OR (95% confidence intervals) of HUA were 2.08 (1.36–3.16; P for trend = 0.001) for VFA, 0.89 (0.63–1.25; P for trend = 0.651) for SFA, and 1.83 (1.42–2.34; P for trend < 0.0001) for LFC. For VFA, the association was more evident in men than in women.ConclusionHigher VFA and LFC were significantly associated with the increased prevalence of HUA in middle-aged and elderly Chinese individuals. VFA and LFC may have a predictive effect on HUA. Controlling visceral and liver fat accumulation may be beneficial for middle-aged and older people. HUA can be prevented with specific effective healthy physical activity and balanced diet guidelines.

Approximate entropy (ApEn) can measure the regularity and complexity of a nonlinear system. We find that the results of ApEn are relatively stable when the sample size of a time series exceeds 100, which indicates that the estimation results of the ApEn algorithm are robust to small sample data. In this study, the complexity of the daily precipitation records in China from 1961 to 2015 was first analyzed by using ApEn, and then we further investigated the spatial and temporal variability of the dynamical characteristics of precipitation. The results show that the ApEn values of daily precipitation in China during 1961–2015 present the following characteristics: larger in southern and eastern China and smaller in northern and western China. In addition, ApEn in Northwest China and the Tibetan Plateau has been increasing since 1961. However, since the 1970s, ApEn in the south of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River shows a gradual decrease. The temporal instances of abrupt ApEn changes in daily precipitation occur from region to region. The number of stations with an abrupt ApEn shift has a statistically significant increase since 1984 at a significant level of α = 0.01, which means the complexity characteristic of daily precipitation in China has been more prone to abrupt shifts since 1984 than in the previous period.

Wearable physical activity trackers are getting popular for the self-management of weight despite limited evidence of their efficacy. Studies have proven that on-site supervised exercise is superior to unsupervised exercise for many health problems, there is no evidence comparing the effectiveness of remote supervision exercise with self-directed exercise based on mHealth. This study aims to compare the effects of mHealth-based supervised exercise to mHealth-based self-directed exercise on weight control in the overweight and obese population. A nonrandomized controlled clinical study was conducted. Overweight or obese volunteers were given personalized exercise prescriptions based on their HRR (Heart Rate Reserve), all patients were equipped with wearable heartbeat trackers to follow their exercise performance and additional remote supervisions were added to the intervention group. Exercise performances, weight losses, and health examinations were compared between 2 groups after 12 weeks of follow-up. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to determine any differences between study groups after intervention. Two groups had the same rate of attrition in 12 weeks of follow-up, but the exercising day, the effective exercising day and the rate of effective exercising day in the supervised group were higher than those in the control group. Weight loss was −2.7 ± 2.8 kg in the intervention group and −2.0 ± 2.9 kg in the control group (P = 0.23). Compared with the control group, participants in the intervention group improved their liver function, kidney function, fasting blood sugar, total cholesterol, and triglyceride. mHealth-based supervised exercise is more effective in health factors improvement than mHealth-based self-directed exercise among overweight and obesity participants.

The influx of COVID-19 infection and government-enforced lockdowns and social isolation changed people's lifestyles. Concerns regarding the health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic due to the new sedentary lifestyle. This study aims to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cardiovascular health factors. A retrospective observational study was conducted using historical medical records. The cohort consisted of healthy adults (without chronic non-communicable diseases) over 18 years of age who have undertaken a health examination at the Chongqing Medical University from 2019 to 2020. The analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) test was used to compare variables between 2019 and 2020. The effect of exposure time to COVID-19 on cardiometabolic markers was analyzed using multiple linear regression models. 29,773 participants took part in this study. The average age was 42.5 ± 13.44 years at baseline, and the average follow-up period was 12.7 ± 2.8 months. Analysis showed that weight, BMI, waist circumference, hip circumference, WHR, fasting blood glucose, TG, LDL, uric acid, and liver enzymes increased significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic (P < 0.05). This study showed evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic and its control measures negatively impacted cardiometabolic profiles.

Ying Mei et al. identify a four-gene tumor immune-relevant signature that predicts the overall survival of melanoma patients and their response to the CTLA4 antibody ipilimumab. This study suggests a potential utility of this four-gene signature in prognosis, risk assessment, and prediction of anti-CTLA4 response in melanoma patients.

Salinity gradient power (SGP) derived from sea and fresh water through reverse electrodialysis (RED) is an emerging discipline with huge potential for carbon-free energy harvesting. SGP technology is still in an infant stage and there is a need for accurate mathematical tools to study its energy harvesting process. Previous models assume a constant salinity gradient with a continuous flow of sea water with constant salinity. In the case of recycling used sea water, such assumption is no longer valid because the salinity gradient reduces with operating time. This paper presents a generalized RED model that covers both of the continuous and recycle modes. It combines an improved kinetic battery module (KiBaM) with an electrical circuit module (ECM), for capturing the behaviors of both RED stacks operating in continuous mode (C-mode) and those in recycle mode (R-mode). To intuitively describe the compound effects of salinity variation and concentration polarization on electrical performance of the R-mode RED stack, nonlinear capacity effects (i.e., recovery effect and rate capacity effect) and self-consumed effect are introduced into the proposed model. The derivation and extraction procedures of the proposed model are included. An RED stack prototype with 50 pairs of alternating membranes is constructed for model validation. Various pulsed and constant current discharge experimental tests are performed to validate the accuracy of the proposed model.

Studying the interaction between solar flares and sunspot groups (SGs) is crucial for understanding and predicting solar activity. We examined the distribution, correlation, and flaring rates in the northern and southern hemispheres to reveal the relationship between different classes of soft X-ray (SXR) flares and different magnetic classifications of SGs. We discovered a significant north–south asymmetry in SXR flares and SG distribution over Solar Cycles (SC) 21–25. In the rising phase of SC24, the northern hemisphere’s activity is significantly excessive. In the declining phase of SC24, the southern hemisphere’s activity becomes significantly excessive. The total numbers of various SXR flares and SGs vary between the northern and southern hemispheres over the solar cycle. B-class flares are negatively correlated with all SGs at maximum but positively correlated at minimum. C-class flares correlate best with α and β SGs. M-class flares correlate best with β γ δ and β SGs. X-class flares correlate highest with β γ δ SGs. The flaring rate of each flare class is lowest for α SGs and highest for β γ δ SGs. The flaring rates are higher in the southern hemisphere than in the northern hemisphere. Our results demonstrate that solar flares originate from different sources of solar active regions; the high-energy flares tend to be caused by more complex magnetic fields.

White dwarfs represent the ultimate stage of evolution for over 97% of stars and play a crucial role in studies of the Milky Way’s structure and evolution. Recent years have witnessed significant progress in using deep-learning methods for identifying unique objects in large-scale data. In this paper, we present a model based on transfer learning for identifying white dwarfs. We constructed a data set using the spectra released by LAMOST DR9 and trained a convolutional neural network model. The model was then further trained using a transfer-learning approach for a binary classification model. Our final model is comprised of a seven-class classification model and a binary classification model. The testing set yielded an accuracy rate of 96.08%. Our proposed model successfully identifies 4314 of the 4479 white dwarfs published in previous papers. We applied this model to filter the 1,121,128 spectral data from the LAMOST DR9 V1 catalog. Subsequently, we obtained 6317 white dwarf candidates, of which 5014 were cross-validated and found to be known white dwarfs. We finally identified 489 new white dwarfs out of the remaining 1303 candidates, containing 377 DAs, 1 DB, 4 DZs, 1 magnetic WD, 101 DA+M binaries, and 1 DB+M binary. Our study also compared transfer-learning methods with non-transfer-learning methods, and the results show that transfer learning provides faster training speed and a higher accuracy rate. We provide the trained model and a corresponding usage program for subsequent studies.

Double-line spectroscopic binaries (SB2s) are a vital class of spectroscopic binaries for studying star formation and evolution. Searching for SB2s has been a hot topic in astronomy. Although considerable efforts have been made with fruitful outcomes, limitations in automation and accuracy still persist. In this study, we developed a convolutional neural network model to search for SB2 candidates in LAMOST medium-resolution survey (MRS) data release (DR) 9 v1.0 by detecting double peaks in the cross-correlation function (CCF). We first generated a large number of spectra of single stars and binaries using the iSpec spectral synthesis software. The CCFs of these synthesized spectra were then calculated to form our training set. To efficiently detect the peaks of the CCFs, we applied a Softmax function-based noise reduction method. After testing and validation, the model achieved an accuracy of 97.76% in the testing set and was validated for more than 90% of the sample in several published SB2 catalogs. Finally, by applying the model to examine approximately 1.59 million LAMOST-MRS DR9 spectra, we identified 728 candidate SB2s, including 281 newly discovered ones.

Light variability is an essential attribute of young stellar objects (YSOs) at the pre-main-sequence (PMS) stage, which can be treated as an indicator to trace star formation. We present a statistical study on the infrared NEOWISE variability of new and large-sized PMS stars as well as Herbig Ae/Be (HAeBe) and classical Be (CBe) stars identified from Gaia Data Release 2. A total of 3792 (including 714 HAeBe), 417, and 473 NEOWISE variable sources were detected from the catalog of 8470 PMS (including 1361 HAeBe), 693 CBe, and 1309 uncertain (possibly belonging to either HAeBe or CBe) stars, respectively. We found that 80% of the PMS variables are dominated by irregular infrared variability, whereas variables in the CBe and uncertain categories exhibit comparable contributions from secular (linear, curved, and periodic) and stochastic (burst, drop, and irregular) variables. This, in combination with infrared W1–W2 colors, W4 luminosities, and the spectral energy distribution slope at near- and mid-infrared wavelengths, suggests different evolutionary stages of the PMS (including HAeBe), uncertain, and CBe stars, from less to more evolved. A statistical analysis of variable source properties (e.g., period and fractional amplitude) further reveals a potential sequence possibly associated with disk evolution for different types of light curves (from linear, to curved, periodic, stochastic, and nonvariable stars). Possible mechanisms for the variable sources are suggested to be related to either extinction via circumstellar matter, or contribution of multiple systems surrounding the YSOs, as opposed to variable accretion (e.g., episodic accretion or accretion burst).

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are energetic expulsions of organized magnetic features from the Sun. The study of CME quasiperiodicity helps establish a possible relationship between CMEs, solar flares, and geomagnetic disturbances. We used the angular width of CMEs as a criterion for classifying the CMEs in the study. Based on 25 yr of observational data, we systematically analyzed the quasiperiodic variations corresponding to the CME occurrence rate of different angular widths in the northern and southern hemispheres, using frequency and time–frequency analysis methods. There are various periods for CMEs of different angular widths: 9 months, 1.7 yr, and 3.3–4.3 yr. Compared with previous studies based on the occurrence rate of CMEs, we obtained the same periods of 1.2 (±0.01), 3.1 (±0.04), and ≈6.1 (±0.4) months, and 1.2 (±0.1) and 2.4 (±0.4) yr. We also found additional periods of all CMEs that appear only in one hemisphere or during a specific solar cycle. For example, 7.1 (±0.2) months and 4.1 (±0.2) yr in the northern hemisphere, 1 (±0.004) and 5.9 (±0.2) months and 1 (±0.1), 1.4 (±0.1), and 2.4 (±0.4) yr in the southern hemisphere, 6.1 (±0.4) months in solar cycle 23, and 6.1 (±0.4) months and 1.2 (±0.1) and 3.7 (±0.2) yr in solar cycle 24. The analysis shows that quasiperiodic variations of the CMEs are a link among oscillations in coronal magnetic activity, solar flare eruptions, and interplanetary space.

Traditional acid extraction or electrodialytic remediation (EDR) is inefficient to recover phosphorus (P) from incinerated sewage sludge ash (ISSA). This study used a hybrid process including acid extraction and EDR to extract P from ISSA and remove heavy metals/metals from the P extract sequentially. Specifically, the P extract was obtained by extracting ISSA with 0.2 M H2SO4 and a two-compartment cell was applied in the following EDR process. Constant currents of 15 mA, 35 mA and 50 mA were applied for the electromigration of the heavy metals/metals. Results showed that the efficiency of heavy metals/metals removal fluctuated and was relatively low (approximately 20%) under a current of 15 mA. Increasing the current to 35 mA significantly increased the removal efficiency and that of 50 mA was conspicuous, except Fe, Al and As (

In the nervous system, the trace metal ion zinc is required for normal mammalian brain development and physiology. Zinc homeostasis is essential for the control of physiological and pathophysiological brain functions. Synapses, the junctions between neurons, are the center of the brain’s information transmission. Zinc deficiency or excess leads to neurological disorders. However, it is still unclear whether and how zinc ion regulates synapse formation. Here, we investigated the effect of zinc on synapse formation in a cultured neuron system, and found that synapse formation and synaptic transmission were regulated by zinc ions. Finally, we identified that PTPRM is the key gene involved in synapse formation regulated by zinc ions. This study provides a new perspective to understanding the regulation of brain function by zinc ion.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide and bears an immense economic burden. Late-stage heart failure often requires total heart transplantation; however, due to donor shortages and lifelong immunosuppression, alternative cardiac regenerative therapies are in high demand. Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs), including human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells, have emerged as a viable source of human cardiomyocytes for transplantation. Recent developments in several mammalian models of cardiac injury have provided strong evidence of the therapeutic potential of hPSC-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CM), showing their ability to electromechanically integrate with host cardiac tissue and promote functional recovery. In this review, we will discuss recent developments in hPSC-CM differentiation and transplantation strategies for delivery to the heart. We will highlight the mechanisms through which hPSC-CMs contribute to heart repair, review major challenges in successful transplantation of hPSC-CMs, and present solutions that are being explored to address these limitations. We end with a discussion of the clinical use of hPSC-CMs, including hurdles to clinical translation, current clinical trials, and future perspectives on hPSC-CM transplantation.

Background: The relationship between urine output (UO) and in-hospital mortality in intensive care patients with septic shock is currently inconclusive.Methods: The baseline data, UO, and in-hospital prognosis of intensive care patients with septic shock were retrieved from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV (MIMIC-IV) database. By drawing receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and comparing the areas under the ROC curves (AUC) to determine the predictive value of UO for in-hospital mortality, and by drawing the Kaplan-Meier curves to compare the difference in in-hospital mortality between different groups of UO.Results: Before and after the propensity score matching (PSM) analysis, UO was always a risk factor for in-hospital mortality in patients with septic shock. The AUC of UO was comparable to the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scoring system, while the AUC of combining UO and SOFA was greater than that of SOFA. The median survival time of the high-UO group (UO > 0.39 ml/kg/h, before PSM; UO > 0.38 ml/kg/h, after PSM) was longer than that of the low-UO group. Compared with the high-UO group, the hazard ratios (HR) of the low-UO group were 2.6857 (before PSM) and 1.7879 (after PSM).Conclusions: UO is an independent risk factor for septic shock. Low levels of UO significantly increase the in-hospital mortality of intensive care patients with septic shock. The predictive value of UO is comparable to the SOFA scoring system, and the combined predictive value of the two surpasses SOFA alone.