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Xingtong Chen,1,&ast; Qian Chen,1– 3,&ast; Zhigang Qin,1,&ast; Azeem Alam,3 Hailin Zhao,3 Raha West,3 Xianzhe Liu,1 Jieyu Li,1 Xin Li,1 Bin Yi,1 Daqing Ma,2,3 Jianteng Gu1 1Department of Anesthesiology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 2Perioperative and Systems Medicine Laboratory, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health, Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 3Division of Anaesthetics, Pain Medicine and Intensive Care, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, London, UK&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jianteng Gu, Department of Anesthesiology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), 30 Gaotanyan Road, Chongqing, 400038, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 23 68766122, Fax +86 23 65463270, Email jiantenggu@hotmail.com Daqing Ma, Division of Anaesthetics, Pain Medicine and Intensive Care, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, London, UK, Email d.ma@imperial.ac.ukBackground: Dexmedetomidine (Dex) may have anti-inflammatory properties and potentially reduce the incidence of postoperative organ injury.Objective: To investigate whether Dex protects pulmonary and renal function via its anti-inflammatory effects in elderly patients undergoing prolonged major hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery.Design and Setting: Between October 2019 and December 2020, this randomized controlled trial was carried out at a tertiary hospital in Chongqing, China.Patients: 86 patients aged 60– 75 who underwent long-duration (> 4 hrs) hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery without significant comorbidities were enrolled and randomly assigned into two groups at a 1:1 ratio.Interventions: Patients were given either Dex or an equivalent volume of 0.9% saline (Placebo) with a loading dose of 1 μg kg− 1 for 10 min, followed by 0.5 μg kg− 1 hr− 1 for maintenance until the end of surgery.Main Outcome Measures: The changes in serum concentrations of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were primary outcomes.Results: At one hour postoperatively, serum IL-6 displayed a nine-fold increase (P< 0.05) in the Placebo group. Administration of Dex decreased IL-6 to 278.09 ± 45.43 pg/mL (95% CI: 187.75 to 368.43) compared to the Placebo group (P=0.019; 432.16 ± 45.43 pg/mL, 95% CI: 341.82 to 522.50). However, no significant differences in TNF-α were observed between the two groups. The incidence of postoperative acute kidney injury was twice as high in the Placebo group (9.30%) compared to the Dex group (4.65%), and the incidence of postoperative acute lung injury was 23.26% in the Dex group, lower than that in the Placebo group (30.23%), although there was no statistical significance between the two groups.Conclusion: Dex administration in elderly patients undergoing major hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery reduces inflammation and potentially protects kidneys and lungs.Registration: Chinese Clinical Trials Registry, identifier: ChiCTR1900024162, on 28 June 2019.Keywords: dexmedetomidine, elderly patients, long-duration hepatobiliary and pancreatic laparotomy, perioperative renal function, perioperative pulmonary function

Kun Wang,1 Wei Zhu,2 Wei Huang,3 Kangkang Huang,1 Huidan Luo,1 Lu Long,1 Bin Yi1 1Department of Clinical Laboratory, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Pathology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan Province, People’s Republic of China; 3Research Center of Carcinogenesis and Targeted Therapy, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan Province, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Bin Yi, Tel +86-13707495781, Email xyyibin@163.comObjective: Ubiquitination is an important post-translational modification. However, the significance of the TRIM family of E3 ubiquitin ligases in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) has not been determined. In this study, the roles of TRIM E3 ubiquitin ligases in lymphovascular invasion in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) were evaluated.Materials and Methods: TRIM expression and related parameters were obtained from UbiBrowser2.0, UALCAN, TIMER, TISIDB, LinkedOmics, STRING, and GeneMANIA databases. Immunohistochemistry was used to confirm their expression.Results: TRIM2, TRIM11, TRIM28, and TRIM56 were upregulated in HNSCC with lymphovascular invasion. TRIM expression was strongly associated with immune infiltration, including key treatment targets, like PD-1 and CTL4. Co-expressed genes and possible ubiquitination substrates included tumor-related factors. The TRIMs had predicted roles in ubiquitination-related pathways and vital signaling pathways, eg, MAPK, PI3K-Akt, and JAK-STAT signaling pathways.Conclusion: Ubiquitination mediated by four TRIMs might be involved in the regulation of tumor immunity, laying the foundation for future studies of the roles of the TRIM family on the prediction and personalized medicine in HNSCC. The four TRIMs might exert oncogenic effects by promoting lymphovascular invasion in HNSCC.Keywords: ubiquitination, TRIM, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, bioinformatic analysis, lymphovascular invasion

Runting Ma, Lianhong Zhou, Wenping Li, Yuanjin Li, Diewenjie Hu, Yi Lu, Cancan Zhang, Beixi Yi Department of Ophthalmology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Lianhong Zhou, Department of Ophthalmology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, No. 238 Jiefang Road, Wuhan, 430060, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 027-88041911-81219, Email zlh681102@aliyun.comPurpose: This study aimed to analyze myopia distribution in Hubei and the impact of regional Sunshine Duration on myopia in children and adolescents.Patients and Methods: The Cross-sectional study included students (kindergarten to grade 12) through multistage cluster stratified sampling in 17 cities (103 areas) of Hubei, China, who underwent ophthalmic examinations from September 2021 to November 2021. The association of sunshine duration with the prevalence and distribution of myopia was analyzed. Using Moran’s index to quantify the distribution relationship, a spatial analysis was constructed.Results: A total of 435,996 students (53.33% male; mean age, 12.16± 3.74 years) were included in the study. A negative association was identified between myopia prevalence and sunshine duration in the region, especially in population of primary students (r=− 0.316, p< 0.001). Each 1-unit increment in the sunshine duration was associated with a decreased risk of myopia prevalence (OR=0.996; 95% CI, 0.995– 0.998; P < 0.001). Regression showed a linear relationship between sunshine duration and myopia rates of primary school students [Prevalence%= (− 0.1331&ast;sunshine duration+47.73)%, p = 0.02]. Sunshine duration influenced the distribution of myopia rates among primary (Moran’s I=− 0.206, p< 0.001) and junior high school (Moran’s I=− 0.183, p=0.002). Local spatial analysis showed that areas with low sunshine duration had high myopia prevalence concentration.Conclusion: This study revealed sunshine duration associations with myopia prevalence at the regional and population levels. The results may emphasize the significance of promptly implementing myopia control in regions with poor sunshine. The effect of sunshine on myopia is pronounced in the early years of education, especially in primary students.Keywords: myopia, sunshine duration, children, Spatial Analysis, Moran’s Index, epidemiology

Jingyun Shi,1,&ast; Fangping Zhao,1,&ast; Wanyin Yang,2 Yuru Zhu,1 Min Wang,1 Bin Yi1 1Department of NICU, Gansu Provincial Maternal and Child Care Hospital (Gansu Provincial Central Hospital), Lanzhou City, Gansu, 730050, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of NICU, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou City, Gansu, 730050, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Min Wang; Bin Yi, Department of NICU, Gansu Provincial Maternal and Child care Hospital (Gansu Provincial Central Hospital), No. 143 of Qilihe North Street, Qilihe District, Lanzhou, 730050, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 13919819662, Email wangmin_wm23@126.com; yibin_bin001@tom.comObjective: To explore the status and influencing factors of COVID-19 vaccination for 3– 7-year-old children born prematurely.Methods: A questionnaire was administered to parents of preterm infants born between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2019 in Gansu Maternal and Child Health Hospital using convenience sampling.Results: It was found that 96.81% of 282 parents had known about COVID-19 vaccines and acquired COVID-19- and vaccine-related knowledge primarily through WeChat (104/282, 36.88%) and TikTok (91/282, 32.27%). Most parents of the group whose children were vaccinated with a COVID-19 vaccine believed that this approach was effective in preventing COVID-19 (49.75%), whereas most parents of the group whose children were not vaccinated were worried about the adverse reaction and safety of the vaccine (45.88%). According to the regression analysis, the risk factors of children born prematurely receiving a COVID-19 vaccine were no vaccination against COVID-19 in the mothers (odds ratio [OR]=48.489, 95% CI: 6.524– 360.406) and in younger children (OR=12.157, 95% CI: 6.388– 23.139). Previous history of referral (OR=0.229, 95% CI: 0.057– 0.920), history of diseases (OR=0.130, 95% CI: 0.034– 0.503) and high educational level of guardians (OR=0.142, 95% CI: 0.112– 0.557) were protective factors for children born prematurely to receive COVID-19 vaccination.Conclusion: There is a relatively high proportion of children born prematurely receiving COVID-19 vaccination, but some people still have concerns. Publicity in the later stage can be conducted through WeChat, TikTok and other social media platforms, with special attention paid to the populations with lower education levels.Keywords: COVID-19 vaccine, vaccination willingness, children born prematurely, influencing factors

Jiahui Wu,1,2 Huidan Luo,1,2 Kun Wang,1,2 Bin Yi1,2 1Department of Clinical Laboratory and Medical Research Center, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, People’s Republic of China; 2National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Bin Yi, Department of Clinical Laboratory and Medical Research Center, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410008, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-13707495781, Fax +86-73189753200, Email xyyibin@163.comPurpose: The mortality rate of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) remains high due to the absence of quick and accurate diagnostic approaches at its early stage. Our aim is to evaluate the diagnostic value of the elevated expression of Aurora kinase A (AURKA) and the oxidative stress markers (such as glutathione, superoxide dismutase and malondialdehyde) in serum of NPC patients and to establish a nomogram model for predicting NPC on the ground of these biomarkers.Patients and Methods: Serum samples from 93 NPC patients and 94 healthy subjects were collected. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was adopted to determine the AURKA level, while oxidative stress markers were measured by commercially available appropriate kits. Logistic regression was used for NPC predictor identification and nomogram construction. The training and validation cohorts (3:1) were randomly split up from the participants. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, calibration curves, and decision curve analyses (DCAs) were performed to validate the nomogram.Results: AURKA and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were significantly high in the NPC population compared to the healthy controls (P < 0.0001). The nomogram resulted in an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.897 (95% confidence interval: 0.848– 0.947) in the training set and AUC of 0.770 (0.628– 0.912) in the validation set. The predicted probability and the actual probability matched well in the nomogram (P > 0.05). DCAs showed good results too.Conclusion: Serum levels of AURKA, SOD, and MDA have diagnostic values in NPC. The nomogram based on the identified biomarkers is favorable for NPC prediction.Keywords: nasopharyngeal carcinoma, AURKA, SOD, MDA, nomogram

Junxian Quan1 &ast;, Xingtong Chen1 &ast;, Xi Tang,1 Xianzhe Liu,1 Jieyu Li,1 Bin Yi,1 Peng Li,2 Kaizhi Lu,1 Jianteng Gu1 1Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Pharmacognosy and Traditional Chinese Medicine, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jianteng Gu; Kaizhi Lu, Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), 30 Gao Tanyan Street, Chongqing, 400038, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 23 68766122, Fax +86 23 65463270, Email jiantenggu@hotmail.com; Lukaizhi@163.netObjective: To investigate the effects of different general anesthesia methods on the changes of serum hepatitis B virus deoxyribonucleic acid (HBV-DNA) levels in the hepatitis B virus (HBV) infected patients.Methods: This pilot prospective observational study was carried out from March 2021 to January 2022. Forty patients infected by HBV, who underwent non-hepatobiliary minimally invasive surgery, were allocated into an intravenous anesthesia group maintained with propofol (Group P, n = 20) and an inhalation anesthesia group maintained with sevoflurane (Group S, n = 20) by a random envelope method. Patient’s blood was drawn before operation (Tbaseline), at 24 hours (Tpost 24hrs) and 48 hours (Tpost 48hrs) after operation to detect the serum HBV-DNA levels and analyze the subset levels of T, B lymphocytes and NK cells (TBNK) in two groups. The serum HBV-DNA level was used as the major outcome, and it was analyzed by repeated-measures analysis of variance after natural logarithm transformation.Results: In Group P and Group S, compared with the baseline, the serum HBV-DNA levels decreased significantly at Tpost 24hrs and Tpost 48hrs, P< 0.05. The total ratio of CD4+T cells and the ratio of CD4+T to CD8+T cells (CD4+/CD8+) were lower at Tpost 24hrs, P< 0.05, and the total ratio of B cells was significantly increased at Tpost 24hrs, P< 0.05. Compared with the values at Tpost 24hrs, the total ratio of CD4+ T cells, CD4+/CD8+ T cells, and the total ratio of B cells were significantly increased at Tpost 48hrs in both groups, P< 0.05. However, there were no statistical differences between Group P and Group S.Conclusion: The levels of serum HBV-DNA decreased within 48 hours after general anesthesia. There were no significant differences between the effects of intravenous and inhalation anesthesia on the serum HBV-DNA levels.Trial Registration: This study has been prospectively registered in the Clinical Trials Registry (NCT02038088, 1/28/2015).Keywords: general anesthesia, hepatitis B virus deoxyribonucleic acid, lymphocyte subsets, immune function

Qian Chen,1,2,&ast; Zhigang Qin,1,&ast; Yibing Sun,3 Xiangfeng Liu,1 Aurelie Pac Soo,2 Enqiang Chang,2 Qizhe Sun,2 Bin Yi,1 Dong-Xin Wang,3 Hailin Zhao,2 Daqing Ma,2 Jianteng Gu1 1Department of Anaesthesiology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 2Division of Anaesthetics, Pain Medicine and Intensive Care, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, London, UK; 3Department of Anaesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Peking University First Hospital, Beijing, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jianteng Gu, Department of Anaesthesiology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, 30 Gaotanyan Road, Chongqing, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 23 68765366, Fax +86 2365463270, Email jiantenggu@hotmail.com Daqing Ma, Division of Anaesthetics, Pain Medicine and Intensive Care, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London, UK, Tel +44 020 3315 8495, Fax +44 020 3315 5109, Email d.ma@imperial.ac.ukPurpose: This study aims to investigate the cytoprotective and anti-inflammatory effects of an α2-adrenoreceptor (α2-AR) agonist, dexmedetomidine (Dex), on lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-induced acute lung injury and underlying mechanisms with focus on alveolar macrophage polarization modulation.Methods: C57BL/6 mice were intraperitoneally injected LPS (10 mg/kg) with or without Dex (25 μg/kg) and/or α2-AR antagonist atipamezole (Atip, 500 μg/kg). Lung tissues were then analysed to determine injuries. In vitro, human pulmonary epithelial cells (A549) and mice alveolar macrophages (MH-S) were exposed to LPS (10 ng/mL) with or without different concentrations of Dex (0.1– 100 nM). Alveolar macrophage polarization, NLRP3 inflammasome activation and inflammatory responses were determined. PTEN/Akt signaling and its downstream transcriptional factors as targets for macrophage polarization were assessed.Results: Dex treatment significantly reduced pro-inflammatory M1 macrophage polarization and NLRP3 inflammasome activation in the lungs relative to the mice treated with LPS. The similar pattern reduction of NLRP3 inflammasome activation by Dex was also found in A549 cells. Atip partly reversed the anti-inflammatory effects of Dex. In cultured alveolar macrophages, Dex reduced LPS-mediated expression of IL-1, − 6 and TNF-α receptors while promoting alveolar macrophages differentiation towards a M2 anti-inflammatory phenotype. Additionally, LPS increased Akt signaling activation in a time-dependent manner, which was further activated by Dex via inhibiting phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN). The action of Dex on Akt signaling shifted alveolar macrophages from M1 to M2 phenotype through increasing STAT6 and IRF4 transcriptional factors.Conclusion: Dex protected against LPS-induced lung injury and suppressed LPS-induced pulmonary inflammatory responses by attenuating the NLRP3 inflammasome activation and promoting anti-inflammatory M2 macrophage polarization.Keywords: sepsis, acute lung injury, macrophage polarization, dexmedetomidine, Akt signaling

Benhui Zhao,1,&ast; Xingtong Chen,1,&ast; Qian Chen,1,2 Gaoming Li,3 Zhe Chen,4 Ziheng Yang,1 Li Gu,1 Xudong Xiao,5 Zhen Wang,6 Jiaolin Ning,1 Bin Yi,1 Kaizhi Lu,1 Hongyan Zhang,7 Jianteng Gu1 1Department of Anesthesiology, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 2Anaesthetics, Pain Medicine and Intensive Care, Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, London, UK; 3Department of Health Statistics, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 4Quality Management and Control Department, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Anesthesiology, Xinqiao Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Anesthesiology; 7Hospital Office, Daping Hospital, Third Military Medical University (Army Medical University), Chongqing, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jianteng Gu; Hongyan Zhang Email jiantenggu@hotmail.com; etengyan@163.comBackground: Blood pressure fluctuation is very common during non-cardiac surgery in elderly. This retrospective study was to analyse whether intraoperative hypotension in elderly and other risk factors relate to the postoperative mortality.Methods: A total of 118 cases (Observational group), who underwent noncardiac surgery in three medical centers between September 2014 and March 2017, and died in the hospital after the noncardiac surgery. With 1:2 ratio of propensity matching, 236 survival cases (Control group) were selected for comparison analyses with the death cases. Intraoperative blood pressure and perioperative parameters from both groups were collected from electronic anaesthesia charts. Data were analysed with univariate logistic regression analysis where variables with p values less than 0.05 were analysed with multivariate logistic regression analysis. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was constructed.Results: There are five risk factors related to postoperative death in elderly patients: ASA grade, COPD, emergency surgery, general anesthesia, 60 < MAP ≤ 65mmHg (OR > 1), and one factor may reduce the risk of postoperative mortality, which is PACU therapy (OR < 1). Compared with the Control group, the Observational group had a higher proportion of cerebral hernia, kidney injury and trauma (p < 0.001). The intraoperative blood transfusion volume and intraoperative blood loss volume were higher in the Observational group than the Control group (p < 0.001). The proportion of using vasoactive drugs was higher in the Observational group (p < 0.001), and there was more urine output during the operation in the Observational group (p = 0.005).Conclusion: The intraoperative MAP of geriatric patients lower than 65mmHg is highly related to the postoperative mortality. Elderly patients with emergency surgery, high ASA grade and a history of COPD have an increased risk of postoperative mortality. General anesthesia is a risk factor for postoperative death in elderly patients, and the PACU therapy is a protective factor to avoid postoperative death.Trial Registration: This study has been retrospectively registered in the Chinese Clinical Trials Registry (ChiCTR2000038912, 10/10/2020).Keywords: intraoperative hypotension, geriatric patients, COPD, postoperative mortality, non-cardiac surgery

Luna Sun,1,2,&ast; Bin Yi,3,&ast; Xiao Pan,4,&ast; Lili Wu,1,2,&ast; Zhilei Shang,1,2,&ast; Yanpu Jia,1,2 Xiandong Tao,3 Feng Zhao,5 Weifen Xie,6 Zhuoer Sun,1,2 Yonghai Bai,4 Weizhi Liu1,2 1Lab for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Faculty of Psychology and Mental Health, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200433, People’s Republic of China; 2The Emotion & Cognition Lab, Faculty of Psychology and Mental Health, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200433, People’s Republic of China; 3Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Shanghai; Department II of Infectious Disease, Huoshenshan Hospital, Wuhan, 430100, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Medical Psychology, Changzheng Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200003, People’s Republic of China; 5Hongkou District of Changhai Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200081, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Gastroenterology, Changzheng Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200003, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Weizhi LiuLab for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Faculty of Psychology and Mental Health, Naval Medical University, 800 Xiangyin Road, Shanghai, 200433, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/Fax +86-21-81871671Email 13024141970@163.comYonghai BaiDepartment of Medical Psychology, Changzheng Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200003, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/Fax +86-21-81885057Email baiyonghai179@126.comBackground: The outbreak of COVID-19 has developed into a pandemic. Data are required that specifically address the psychological consequences in COVID-19 confirmed patients. This study mainly aimed to examine posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and sleep quality among COVID-19 confirmed patients during hospitalization.Methods: An observational study was conducted in two designated hospitals in Wuhan, China. Data were collected from 190 patients hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection between February 10, 2020 and March 13, 2020.Results: The mean age of the 190 confirmed patients was 55.7 years (SD = 13.7), of which 96 (50.5%) were female and 88 (46.3%) had family members or acquaintances infected with COVID-19. Lymphocytopenia was presented in 62 (32.6%) patients and 25 (13.2%) patients showed oxygen desaturation. The prevalence of high PTSD symptoms was 22.6% among the 190 patients. The median time from symptom onset to first medical visit and hospitalization was 2 days (IQR, 1– 5) and 16 days (IQR, 10– 27), respectively. Patients’ PTSD symptoms were positively related to the time from symptom onset to first medical visit (r = 0.156, p < 0.05) and hospitalization (r = 0.181, p < 0.01). There were significant correlations between sleep quality and PTSD symptoms (r = 0.312– 0.547, p < 0.01).Conclusion: The prevalence of high PTSD symptoms was 22.6% among hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Early diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 symptoms are beneficial to infected patients both physically and psychologically. With the recovery of physical symptoms, psychological intervention is desired to promote the trauma recovery in COVID-19 patients.Keywords: COVID-19, patients, psychological, PTSD, sleep quality

Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CM) are a promising platform for cardiac studies in vitro, and possibly for tissue repair in humans. However, hiPSC-CM cells tend to retain morphology, metabolism, patterns of gene expression, and electrophysiology similar to that of embryonic cardiomyocytes. We grew hiPSC-CM in patterned islands of different sizes and shapes, and measured the effect of island geometry on action potential waveform and calcium dynamics using optical recordings of voltage and calcium from 970 islands of different sizes. hiPSC-CM in larger islands showed electrical and calcium dynamics indicative of greater functional maturity. We then compared transcriptional signatures of the small and large islands against a developmental time course of cardiac differentiation. Although island size had little effect on expression of most genes whose levels differed between hiPSC-CM and adult primary CM, we identified a subset of genes for which island size drove the majority (58%) of the changes associated with functional maturation. Finally, we patterned hiPSC-CM on islands with a variety of shapes to probe the relative contributions of soluble factors, electrical coupling, and direct cell-cell contacts to the functional maturation. Collectively, our data show that optical electrophysiology is a powerful tool for assaying hiPSC-CM maturation, and that island size powerfully drives activation of a subset of genes involved in cardiac maturation.

Bin Wang,1 Junkai Lai,1 Xiaoyan Yan,2 Feifei Jin,1 Bin Yi,3 Caixia An,3 Yuanxiao Li,4 Chen Yao1,2 1Department of Biostatistics, Peking University First Hospital, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Peking University Clinical Research Institute, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 3Children’s Emergency Center, Gansu Provincial Maternity and Child-Care Hospital, Lanzhou, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Second Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Chen YaoPeking University First Hospital, Xicheng District, Beijing 100034, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 18610640562Email yaochen@hsc.pku.edu.cnObjective: This study aims to comprehensively evaluate the characteristics of clinical drug trials to facilitate the collection of evidence for COVID-19 drug treatments.Methods: A retrospective analysis of 910 trials retrieved on August 7, 2020.Results: A total of 910 registered clinical trials with at least one drug intervention were evaluated. The number of registrations (32.4%, 295) from the United States accounted for nearly one-third of the total and far exceeded that of other countries individually. Furthermore, the peak number of trials were registered in April (34.3%, 312). Over half of the trials (51.2%, 466) are in the recruitment phase, and only 4.2% (38) of the trials have been completed. The median (interquartile range) estimated enrollment is 127 (59, 365). In 39% (355) of trials, the estimated enrollment is less than 100 participants. A total of 94.5% (790) of the trials use randomization in the allocation, 82.7% (753) use a parallel intervention mode, and 52.2% (475) use masking. A total of 287 drug names have been standardized and mapped. “Hydroxychloroquine” is the leading drug among the registered trials (7.47%, 68). Among the main countries contributing to investigations on “hydroxychloroquine”, the United States ranks first with 36.76% (25) of the trials.Conclusion: The designs of COVID-19 clinical drug trials have greatly improved in terms of the implementation of randomization and, particularly, blinding methods. In terms of drug reuse, the number of drug types has greatly increased, and hundreds of drugs have been used for efficacy screening. The emergence of large-sample registration trials is expected to address the uncertainty regarding the current clinical efficacy of some drugs.Keywords: COVID-19, clinical trials, investigation, intervention, drug, treatment

The empirical analysis method of researching the influencing factors of road traffic accidents has significant importance in deepening the understanding of accident mechanisms, guiding traffic management, and improving traffic safety. In order to solve the problem of low accuracy in traditional methods of analysis, a new empirical analysis method of factors influencing road traffic accidents based on structural equation modeling is proposed. Road traffic accident data is collected, and an improved KNN algorithm is used to repair the collected data. Based on principles such as comprehensiveness, relevance, and representativeness, a preliminary index system for road traffic accident influencing factors is constructed, and grey relational degree is used to select the influencing factor indicators. Based on this, research hypotheses are proposed, and a structural equation model is constructed combining measurement models and structural models. The model is then subjected to procedures such as least squares estimation and correction, with the road traffic accident influencing factor indicators as variables of the structural equation model, to achieve empirical analysis of the structural equation model. The empirical analysis results show that factors such as personnel, vehicles, roads, environment, and management have a direct impact on the probability of road traffic accidents. The average accuracy of the analysis is 98.27%, indicating that it can be widely applied in the field of empirical analysis of road traffic accident influencing factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) image interpretation is a great scientific application challenge. The classification of SAR image targets has become one of the main research directions for SAR image interpretation. Therefore, achieving fast and accurate SAR image target classification has always been a research hotspot in this field. Here, the authors propose a classification method based on a regularised stochastic configuration network (SCN), which randomly assigns the input weights and biases with constraint and finds out the output weights all together by solving a global least squares problem. Experimental results on the moving and stationary target acquisition and recognition benchmark dataset illustrate that the regularised SCN classifies ten-class targets to achieve an accuracy of 94.6%. It is significantly superior to the traditional SCN model and effectively improves the generalisation ability of the network.

Recent experimental and theoretical studies have shown that a La-H system displays remarkable superconducting properties, and it is also possible to improve the superconducting state by introducing other elements into this system. In this study, we systematically investigated the crystal structures and physical properties of an H–S–La system by using first-principles calculations combined with the CALYPSO structure exploration technique. We predicted four stable stoichiometries containing H2SLa, H3SLa, H4Sla, and H6SLa. These compounds undergo a series of phase transitions under 50–300 GPa. The bonding characters and electronic properties were calculated. It was found that Cm-H2SLa, C2/c-H2SLa, and Cmcm-H6SLa exhibit good metallic nature, which stimulates us to further study their superconducting properties. The calculated superconducting transition temperatures (Tc) of Cm-H2SLa, C2/c-H2Sla, and Cmcm-H6SLa are 15.0 K at 200 GPa, 6.9 K at 300 GPa, and 23.6 K at 300 GPa, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis to compare the effectiveness and safety between titanium mesh cage (TMC) and nano-hydroxyapatite/polyamide 66 cage (n-HA/PA66) in the surgical treatment of cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) through anterior cervical corpectomy and fusion (ACCF). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We implemented a comprehensive search strategy across multiple databases, including Wanfang, China Knowledge Network, China Biomedical Literature Database, Wipu, PubMed, Cochran, Embase, and Web of Science. To ensure a thorough examination of available literature, the databases were searched from their inception to January 2023. Two independent researchers evaluated the quality of the included studies by using established criteria. We used RevMan 5.4 (Review Manager Web, The Cochrane Collaboration, Copenhagen, Denmark) to facilitate data extraction and analysis. RESULTS: This analysis included seven controlled clinical studies. The meta-analysis results showed no statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of operating time, intraoperative bleeding, preoperative Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) score, preoperative visual analog scale (VAS) score, preoperative and final follow-up C2-7 Cobb angles, and intervertebral fusion rate (p > 0.05). However, a significant difference was observed between the two groups in terms of the final follow-up JOA [MD = 0.77, 95% CI (0.58, 0.97), p < 0.00001], VAS [MD = -0.50, 95% CI (-0.71, -0.30), p < 0.00001], and sedimentation rate [RR = 0.30, 95% CI (0.18, 0.48), p < 0.00001]. CONCLUSIONS: The use of n-HA/PA66 in ACCF for treating CSM is safe and effective treatment with positive clinical efficacy. In addition, n-HA/PA66 has both effective clinical efficacy and significantly lower fusion settling rates compared to TMC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using meteorological and grassland fire data for Hulun Buir, China, from 1990 to 2019, we explored variation in meteorological factors, assessed the frequencies and areas of grassland fires, and used an autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model to investigate correlations between burned areas and meteorological factors. Fires in Hulun Buir grassland mainly occurred between 1990 and 1999; from 1990 to 2009, most fires occurred in Prairie Chenbarhu Banner, Xin Barag Right Banner and Xin Barag Left Banner. Grassland fires in Hulun Buir decreased significantly from 2010 to 2019. From 1990 to 2019, grassland fires mostly occurred in spring and autumn. Among the seven meteorological factors, wind speed, relative humidity and sunshine hours were most strongly correlated with burned areas. Regarding long-term and short-term effects, relative humidity had the biggest influence on burned area. The results demonstrated that ARDL models can reveal the long-term and short-term sensitivity of meteorological factors related to fire, and the ARDL econometrics method can be used effectively to study trends in grassland fire burning area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To clarify the influence of laser power density on the stability of laser welding 5083 Al alloy with 5183 Al alloy filler wire, experiments with different laser powers and levels of defocus, which are related to laser density, were carried out. A high speed camera, appearance inspection and macroscopic metallography were used to analyse the effects of laser power and defocus on the stability of welding wire melting, droplet transfer, molten pool fluctuation and weld solidification. The results showed that a small curvature curl would appear at the end of the wire if the laser power could evaporate the wire instantly. A large curvature curl would occur in the low power of the laser beam, which is too small to melt the wire. The droplet transition mode has gone through three stages of droplet transition liquid bridge transition-droplet transition, as the laser power was changed from 1600 to 2000 W, or the focus changed from -9 to +15 mm. Compared to the defocus, the laser power has a greater effect on the power density and the stability of the laser welding with filler wire. The droplet transition would occur when the diameter of the droplet exceeded the diameter of the wire. The weld metal surface had irregular flat areas periodically, while it was smooth during the liquid bridge transition. The violently fluctuating molten pool, splashes and holes would be appeared in the weld seam, when the molten pool had a high power density; however, when the molten pool had a low power density, asymmetric weld reinforcement would be found due to the small volume pool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0170450.].

Prevention of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a major goal of biomedical sciences. In previous studies we showed that high intake of the essential nutrient, choline, during gestation prevented age-related memory decline in a rat model. In this study we investigated the effects of a similar treatment on AD-related phenotypes in a mouse model of AD. We crossed wild type (WT) female mice with hemizygous APPswe/PS1dE9 (APP.PS1) AD model male mice and maintained the pregnant and lactating dams on a control AIN76A diet containing 1.1 g/kg of choline or a choline-supplemented (5 g/kg) diet. After weaning all offspring consumed the control diet. As compared to APP.PS1 mice reared on the control diet, the hippocampus of the perinatally choline-supplemented APP.PS1 mice exhibited: 1) altered levels of amyloid precursor protein (APP) metabolites-specifically elevated amounts of β-C-terminal fragment (β-CTF) and reduced levels of solubilized amyloid Aβ40 and Aβ42 peptides; 2) reduced number and total area of amyloid plaques; 3) preserved levels of choline acetyltransferase protein (CHAT) and insulin-like growth factor II (IGF2) and 4) absence of astrogliosis. The data suggest that dietary supplementation of choline during fetal development and early postnatal life may constitute a preventive strategy for AD.