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Objectives: Previous studies have widely demonstrated that inhibition of return (IOR) with audiovisual targets decreases due to audiovisual integration (AVI). It is currently unclear, however, whether the impaired AVI in children with ADHD has effects on IOR. The present study used the cue-target paradigm to explore differences between the IOR of audiovisual targets and the IOR of visual targets in ADHD and typically developing (TD) children. Method: A total of 81 native Chinese speakers aged 6 to 13 years were recruited, including 38 children with ADHD and 43 age- and sex-matched TD children. Results: The results showed that there was a smaller magnitude of IOR with audiovisual targets as compared with visual targets in the two groups. Importantly, the reduction of IOR in audiovisual conditions was significantly smaller in children with ADHD than in children with TD. Race model analyses further confirmed that differences in IOR between ADHD and TD are due to deficits of audiovisual integration in ADHD. Conclusion: The results indicated that children with ADHD have impaired audiovisual integration, which has a minimal impact on IOR.

Perlodinella microlobata Wu, 1938 is rediscovered in Qinghai and Sichuan provinces with a supplementary description in this paper. Another species collected from Qinghai at the same time, Tibetisoperla sclerotica Yan, Chen, Bozdogan & Li, 2022, is partially revised because the adult female belongs to the chloroperlid genus Sweltsa Ricker, 1943.

Gunawardena et al.'s (1997) Interaction Analysis Model (IAM) is one of the most frequently employed frameworks to guide the qualitative analysis of social construction of knowledge online. However, qualitative analysis is time consuming, and precludes immediate feedback to revise online courses while being delivered. To expedite analysis with a large dataset, this study explores how two neural network architectures--a feed-forward network (Doc2Vec) and a large language model transformer (BERT)--could automatically predict phases of knowledge construction using IAM. The methods interrogated the extent to which the artificial neural networks' predictions of IAM Phases approximated a human coder's qualitative analysis. Key results indicate an accuracy of 21.55% for Doc2Vec phases I-V, 43% for fine-tuning a pre-trained large language model (LLM), and 52.79% for prompt-engineering an LLM. Future studies for improving accuracy should consider either training the models with larger datasets or focusing on the design of prompts to improve classification accuracy. Grounded on social constructivism and IAM, this study has implications for designing and supporting online collaborative learning where the goal is social construction of knowledge. Moreover, it has teaching implications for guiding the design of AI tools that provide beneficial feedback for both students and course designers.

The pine moth, Dendrolimus houi (Lajonquiere), is a notorious insect pest of coniferous trees in South China. A gregarious egg parasitoid in the family Scelionidae shows great potential to be mass-reared for the biological control of D. houi. This parasitoid is identified as Telenomus dendrolimi (Matsumura) based on comparison to paratype specimens of Telenomus dendrolimusi Chu, a junior synonym of T. dendrolimi. Telenomus dendrolimi is redescribed and included in a molecular analysis. In addition to parasitizing D. houi, T. dendrolimi was found to successfully parasitize six other species under laboratory conditions, with Antheraea pernyi (Guérin-Méneville) the most suitable host for mass-rearing.

Abstract Background The body conformation traits of dairy cattle are closely related to their production performance and health. The present study aimed to identify gene variants associated with body conformation traits in Chinese Holstein cattle and provide marker loci for genomic selection in dairy cattle breeding. These findings could offer robust theoretical support for optimizing the health of dairy cattle and enhancing their production performance. Results This study involved 586 Chinese Holstein cattle and used the predicted transmitting abilities (PTAs) of 17 body conformation traits evaluated by the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding in the USA as phenotypic values. These traits were categorized into body size traits, rump traits, feet/legs traits, udder traits, and dairy characteristic traits. On the basis of the genomic profiling results from the Genomic Profiler Bovine 100 K SNP chip, genotype data were quality controlled via PLINK software, and 586 individuals and 80,713 SNPs were retained for further analysis. Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) were conducted via GEMMA software, which employs both univariate linear mixed models (LMMs) and multivariate linear mixed models (mvLMMs). The Bonferroni method was used to determine the significance threshold, identifying gene variants significantly associated with body conformation traits in Chinese Holstein cattle. The single-trait GWAS identified 24 SNPs significantly associated with body conformation traits (P

Abstract Pneumonia is a key criterion for the severity of COVID-19. Whether COVID-19 symptoms are indicators of pneumonia in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants is unclear. 6200 non-hospitalized patients with COVID-19 from three sites in three hospitals were divided into three cohorts: Cohort 1 (n = 1971, Outpatient Department), Cohort 2 (n = 1073, Emergency Department), and Cohort 3 (n = 3156, Fever Clinic). The association of COVID-19 symptoms with pneumonia in the patients were analysed. In Cohort 1, dry cough, expectoration, fever, muscle or body aches, sore throat, headache or dizziness, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing were associated with pneumonia. For Cohort 2, expectoration, fatigue, congestion or runny nose, sore throat, headache or dizziness, chills, chest stuffiness, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing were related to pneumonia. With Cohort 3, dry cough, expectoration, vomiting, chest stuffiness, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing had associations with pneumonia. Moreover, duration of symptoms > 7 days was associated with pneumonia in all three cohorts. In the study, expectoration, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, and duration of symptoms > 7 days were useful predictors of COVID-19 pneumonia in the patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants. Among these predictors, shortness of breath and difficulty breathing were high-risk early-warning factors for pneumonia, and duration of symptoms > 7 days was also a high-risk factor for pneumonia.

Abstract Renal ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is an important cause of acute kidney injury (AKI). However, the pathophysiological changes and mechanisms during IRI-AKI progression remain unclear. This study aims toinvestigate the potential mechanisms in the progression of IRI-AKI by integrating metabolomics and transcriptomics data, providing a reference for the subsequent identification of biomarkers and therapeutic targets. IRI-AKI rat models with 30 min of ischemia and 24–72 h of reperfusion surgery simulating the progression of AKI were established. Compared to the control group underwent sham surgery (NC group), most of the differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs) in IRI-AKI 24 h and IRI-AKI 72 h decreased, mainly including amino acids, organic acids, and carnitines. Additionally, we found that DEMs were mainly enriched in amino acid-related pathways, among which valine, leucine, and isoleucine biosynthesis were dramatically altered in all comparisons. Transcriptomics revealed that differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were primarily involved in amino acid, lipid, and fatty acid metabolism. By integrating metabolomics and transcriptomics, we found valine, leucine, and isoleucine biosynthesis play key roles in IRI-AKI development. Our findings concluded that valine, leucine, and isoleucine pathways are hubs that potentially connect transcriptomes to metabolomes, providing new insights regarding the pathogenesis of IRI-AKI and its potential biomarkers and therapeutic strategies.

Abstract Cardiovascular diseases claim over 10 million lives annually, highlighting the critical need for long-term monitoring and early detection of cardiac abnormalities. Existing techniques like electrocardiograms (ECG) and Holter are accurate but suffer from discomfort caused by body-attached electrodes. While wearable devices using photoplethysmography offer more convenience, they sacrifice accuracy and are susceptible to environmental interference. Here we present a radio frequency (RF)-based (60 to 64 GHz) sensing system that monitors long-term heart rate variability (HRV) with clinical-grade accuracy. Our system successfully overcomes the orders-larger interference from respiration motion in far-field conditions without any model training. By identifying previously undiscovered frequency ranges (beyond 10-order heartbeat harmonics) where heartbeat information predominates over other motions, we generate prominent heartbeat patterns with harmonics typically considered detrimental. Extensive evaluations, including a large-scale outpatient setting involving 6,222 eligible participants and a long-term daily life scenario, where sleep data was collected over 5 separate random nights over two months and a continuous 21-night period, demonstrate that our system can monitor HRV and identify abnormalities with comparable performance to clinical-grade ECG-based systems. This RF-based HRV sensing system has the potential to support active self-assessment and revolutionize medical prevention with long-term and precise health monitoring.

Abstract Background Nuclear receptor subfamily 5 group A member 1 (NR5A1) plays pivotal roles in steroidogenesis and gonadal development. 46, XY disorder of sexual development (DSD) caused by NR5A1 mutations is a rare genetic condition. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive analysis of the clinical characteristics and molecular defects observed in 19 Chinese patients with NR5A1 variants, including assessing the deleterious effects of novel variants in vitro and evaluating their functional impact on the gonad and adrenal glands in vivo. Materials and methods Subjects with NR5A1 variants were identified from 223 Chinese 46, XY DSD patients via next-generation sequencing. In-silico analysis and functional assays were performed to evaluate the transcriptional activity, expression levels and nuclear localization of novel NR5A1 variants. The histological structure of the gonads was evaluated via immunohistochemistry (IHC). Results Patients with NR5A1 gene variants presented with serious conditions, including micropenis, cryptorchidism, azoospermia, and radiological abnormalities of the spleen. Five novel NR5A1 variants were identified, including heterozygous p.Y5*, p.Q42E and p.L359_L363del, as well as copy number variation (CNV) of chr9:127213317–127570245_del and an exon 6 duplication. A total of 63.2% (12/19) of patients harbored additional variants other than NR5A1. Defective transcriptional regulatory activities and abnormal protein expression levels were observed in NR5A1 variants. The reduced levels of DHEA-S and 11-oxygenated steroids indicate a mild impairment in adrenal function among certain patients. The IHC analysis of the testis revealed intact expression levels of SOX9 in Sertoli cells, while significant differences were observed in the expression pattern of CYP17A1 in Leydig cells among patients. The preserved maturation of adult Leydig cells in the patients may trigger spontaneous puberty. Conclusions Patients with NR5A1 mutations exhibit complex phenotypes. The observed clinical heterogeneity may be attributed to oligogenic mutations, dysregulated Leydig cell function, as well as the impaired ability to modulate the transcription of target genes.

Pre-treatment processing technology plays a crucial role in the overall freshwater fish processing procedure, and automatic head and tail cutting stands out as a significant pre-treatment technique within the industry. The system for removing the head and tail of freshwater fish comprised a Cartesian coordinate manipulator, a fish transfer device, a control system, and an image acquisition device. In the vision system, five image segmentation methods were utilized for fish head and tail image segmentation comparison tests. These methods include U-Net (U-shaped Deep Neural Network), DeeplabV3, PSPNet (Pyramid Scene Parsing Network), FastSCNN (Fast Semantic Segmentation Network), and ICNet (Image Cascade Network), all of which were employed to evaluate their performance. Among the tested segmentation methods, the ICNet demonstrated the most excellent segmentation capability. The experimental results indicated a segmentation accuracy of 99.01%, a mean intersection over union (MIoU) of 82.50%, and an image processing time of 15.25 ms. The results showed that the fish head and tail were successfully cut off using this model for recognition with a circular knife. Consequently, the segmentation model employed in the machine vision system within this study has demonstrated successful applicability in automatically cutting the heads and tails of freshwater fish of various sizes.

Conger myriaster has a high price on the international market and occupies an important position in aquatic product export in China, and it is widely distributed in the Yellow Sea, the Bohai Sea, the East China Sea, the coastal waters of Japan from southern Hokkaido to northern Okinawa, and the sea near the Korean Peninsula. The experimental aquaculture techniques of C. myriaster include pond culture, industrialized open-flowing water culture, and industrialized recirculating aquaculture. No report has been published on the morphological characteristics or the effects of various morphological traits on the body weight and net body weight of C. myriaster in an industrialized open-flowing water culture. In this study, C. myriaster was collected under this industrialized culture mode and assessed using traditional measurement methods, statistical analysis, and other means to systematically measure and analyze morphological traits. A total of 90 C. myriaster were collected equally from three aquaculture companies along the coast of the Yellow Sea. The body weight (BW), net body weight (NW), total length (TL), body length (BL), body height (BH), soma width (SW), head length (HL), head height (HH), head width (HW), proboscis length (PL), proboscis width (PW), eye diameter (ED), vertical eye diameter (VED), and distance between eyes (DE) were measured individually using an electronic balance, a ruler, and a Vernier caliper. We analyzed the relationships between morphological traits and constructed a truss network diagram of morphological traits. The effects of the morphological traits on BW and NW were studied by correlation analysis, path analysis, multiple regression analysis, and curve fitting. The correlation analysis showed that the correlations of BW with TL, BL, BH, SW, HH, and HW were extremely significant (P < 0.01), with correlation coefficient values of 0.818, 0.829, 0.611, 0.697, 0.667, and 0.642, respectively. The correlations of NW with TL, BL, BH, SW, HH, HW, and VED were extremely significant (P < 0.01), with correlation coefficients of 0.848, 0.857, 0.574, 0.591, 0.617, 0.564, and 0.519, respectively. Path analysis revealed that the path coefficients between BW and three morphological traits (namely BL, BH, and SW) were larger than those for other morphological traits, at 0.631, 0.204, and 0.374, respectively. The path coefficients between NW and these three morphological traits (BL, BH, and SW) were larger than those for other morphological traits, at 0.703, 0.213, and 0.239, respectively. Through determination coefficient analysis, it was observed that the determination coefficient for BL to BW was the largest, with a value of 0.398. The combination of SW and BL had the largest determination coefficient for BW, with a value of 0.162. This indicated that BL was a core morphological trait to determine the BW, and the SW was an important morphological trait to determine the BW. The determination coefficient of BL to NW was the largest at 0.494. The combination of SW and TL had the largest coefficient of determination for NW, with a value of 0.116. This showed that the BL was the core morphological trait to determine the NW, and SW was an important morphological trait to determine the NW. A stepwise regression method was used to establish a regression equation in which the three morphological traits were independent variables and the BW or NW was the dependent variable. The multiple regression equation of the important morphological traits for BW was BW = –642.699 + 1.086 × BL + 3.874 × BH + 7.917 × SW (P < 0.01). The multiple regression equation of the important morphological traits for NW was NW = -526.995 + 1.033 × BL + 3.438 × BH + 4.317 × SW (P < 0.01). Further curve fitting was performed for each morphological trait with BW and NW in the equation. The best fitting models of BL, BH, and SW for BW were the logarithmic function, logarithmic function, and power function, respectively, and the model equations were BW = -3, 542.357 + 608.061lnBL (R2 = 0.929), BW = 14.313BH0.941 (R2 = 0.908), and BW = -1, 028.49 + 416.452lnSW (R2 = 0.920), respectively. The best-fitting models of BL, BH, and SW for NW were the logarithmic, linear, and logarithmic functions, respectively. The model equations were NW = -2, 983.881 + 516.411lnBL (R2 = 0.930), NW = -22.252 + 11.392BH (R2 = 0.914), and NW = -774.583 + 329.017lnSW (R2 = 0.921), respectively. In summary, BL was the core morphological trait affecting the BW and NW of C. myriaster in an industrialized culture model. BH and SW were important morphological traits affecting the BW and NW of C. myriaster in the industrialized culture model. These results provide a theoretical basis for the future identification of germplasm characteristics, genetic breeding, and healthy aquaculture of C. myriaster.

Abstract Background Genomic mating (GM) can effectively control the growth rate of inbreeding in population and achieve long-term sustainable genetic progress. However, the design of GM method and assessment of its effects during long-term selection have not been fully explored in beef cattle breeding. Results In this study, we constructed a simulated population based on the real genotypes of Huaxi cattle, where five generations of simulated breeding were carried out using the genomic optimal contribution selection (GOCS), genetic algorithms strategy and three traditional mating strategies. During the breeding process, genetic parameters including average genomic estimated breeding value (GEBV), genetic gain values ( $$\Delta G$$ Δ G ), the rate of inbreeding values ( $$\Delta F$$ Δ F ) were calculated and compared across generations. Our results showed that the GM method could significantly improve the genetic gain while effectively controlling the inbreeding accumulation within the population. When using the GM method, there was an increase in genetic gain for Huaxi cattle ranging from 1.1% to 25.6% compared to traditional mating strategy, with inbreeding decreasing in the range of 5.8% to 36.2%. Validation using the real dataset from Huaxi cattle further confirmed our findings from the simulated study, offspring populations using the GM strategy exhibited a 7.3% increase in genetic gain compared to positive assortative mating. Conclusions These findings suggest that the GM method shows potential for achieving sustainable genetic gain and could be utilized during long-term selection in beef cattle breeding.

Abstract Background Effective screening for colorectal cancer (CRC) enables earlier diagnosis and intervention to improve patient survival. Methods In this study, we prospectively conducted a blood-based CRC screening program for community residents in Hanjiang District, Yangzhou City, and evaluated the screening efficacy of a blood-based multi-locus DNA methylation assay (ColonAiQ). The ColonAiQ-positive rate and colonoscopy participation rate of the population, detection rate of intestinal lesions, and positive predictive value (PPV) of CRC and advanced adenoma (AA) were calculated, and the associated factors were explored. Results A total of 105,285 participants were enrolled from January 2021 to December 2022, all of whom completed the ColonAiQ assay, yielding a positive rate of 6.42% (6759/105,285). The colonoscopy compliance rate was 48.56% (3282/6759). Intestinal lesions were detected in 1773 individuals (54.02%), including 63 cases of CRCs (predominately early-stage), 1195 adenomas (441 cases of AAs), 327 polyps, and 188 other benign lesions. CRC patients exhibited higher ColonAiQ scores and more positive loci compared to healthy individuals. The PPVs were 1.92% for CRC and 13.44% for AA. Among participants, 66,121 (62.8%) completed questionnaires graded by the Asia–Pacific Colorectal Screening score, with 12,139 (18.36%) classified in the high-risk tier. High-risk participants had a higher ColonAiQ-positive rate (11.07%) and PPVs for CRC (3.46%) and AA (22.18%). Factors associated with increased detection rates for CRC and AA included male gender, older age, a history of alcohol consumption, and prior polyps. Conclusions Our study demonstrated that ColonAiQ assay effectively identifies high-risk population. These findings strongly suggest that the ColonAiQ assay represents a promising strategy for the early detection of CRC and AA in individuals at average risk. Trial registration Registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05336539).

Abstract The prevalence of obesity-associated precocious puberty is gradually increasing, but the relationship between gut flora and obesity-associated precocious puberty remains unclear.We analysed the gut flora characteristics of a clinical sample of 30 girls aged 5–8 years using 16s rRNA sequencing. An obesity rat model and a rat model of gut flora transplantation were also constructed. Body weight, body length, abdominal girth, food intake, vulva opening time, and gonadal index were monitored. The secretion levels of estradiol (E2), total cholesterol (TC), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), and thyroglobulin (Tg) were analyzed by ELISA. In addition, ovarian and uterine development was observed by HE staining. The mRNA and protein levels of kisspeptin-1 (Kiss-1) and gonadotropin-releasing.We found that the relative abundance of Dialister, Bacteroides, Bifidobacterium, Collinsella, and Romboutsia may be associated with obesity-associated precocious puberty. Obesity promotes gonadal development, and the gut flora of patients with obesity and obesity-associated precocious puberty regulated the gene and protein expression of Kiss-1 and GnRH, promoting precocious puberty and hypothalamic-gonadal axis hormone secretion in rats. In contrast, probiotic intervention slowed gonadal development, reduced hormone secretion, and attenuated hypothalamic-gonadal axis activity. Gut flora promoted obesity-associated precocious puberty by influencing the hypothalamic-gonadal axis, and probiotics have a therapeutic and preventive role in obesity-associated precocious puberty, which may be associated with the Kiss-1/GnRH pathway. These findings may provide some new strategies for clinical treatment and prevention of obesity-associated precocious puberty in girls.

Abstract Background Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is characterized by mitochondrial damage and increased inflammation. Circulating cell-free mitochondrial DNA (ccf-mtDNA), which originates from damaged mitochondria, is an endogenous damage-associated molecular pattern (DAMPs) molecule that may trigger inflammation and is recognized as a potential biomarker for various diseases. In this study, we investigated the potential association between plasma ccf-mtDNA content and its use as a diagnostic biomarker in patients with KOA. Methods We collected plasma samples from patients with KOA and healthy controls (HC). Subsequently, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect ccf-mtDNA content in the plasma samples. We used the Kellgren–Lawrence (K-L) classification criteria to classify patients with KOA into four grades: I-IV. Disease severity in patients with KOA was assessed using the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC). Next, Spearman analysis was performed to observe the correlation between ccf-mtDNA content and the K-L classification and WOMAC score. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the relationship between ccf-mtDNA and KOA risk. Results In total, we enrolled 60 patients with KOA and HC who were matched for age, sex, and body mass index (BMI). We found that plasma ccf-mtDNA contents were significantly higher in patients with KOA (median, 2.44; quartile range, 1.10–3.79) than in HC (median, 1.08; quartile range, 0.52–2.12) (P

Abstract To address the issues of node interaction power overrun and high carbon emissions that may arise during distributed optimization in multi‐energy parks (MEPs), this paper proposes a distributed low‐carbon and economic operation method for multi‐energy parks based on a cloud platform that considers network transmission capacity.The proposed method achieves maximun profit by designing a two layer collaborative architecture for distributed optimization operations. At the top level, cloud platform services are utilized to build a model for checking network transport capacity and carbon emission quotas, optimizing network node over‐limit inspection . The bottom layer constructs a distributed optimization model for multi‐energy complementation in each park, taking into account the information privacy and individual interests of each multi‐energy park. An improved alternating direction multiplier method (ADMM) is proposed to effectively solve the two‐layer framework. The case studies show that the distributed optimization method under cloud platform services proposed in this paper can achieve maximum revenue for integrated energy service provider while ensuring the safe operation of multi‐energy parks, and reasonably allocate the benefits of collaborative operation among various parks while promoting carbon emission reduction.