Responses of leaf functional traits of different grassland plants to desertification and their adaptation strategies.

We examined the responses of leaf functional traits and their adaptation strategies of four dominant species (, , , and ) to desertification in the Zhanggutai desertified grassland, Liaoning Province. We measured the morphological and chemical functional traits under five desertification levels (0%, 10%, 30%, 50%, and 70% of sand addition by mass). The results showed that desertification significantly affected leaf functional traits in the natural grasslands of northwestern Liao-ning, but with significant species-specific difference.

Obesity paradox in cognitive function: a longitudinal study of BMI and cognitive impairment in older adult Chinese population.

Objective: This study endeavored to investigate the correlation between body mass index (BMI) and cognitive impairment in the demographic of Chinese individuals who are 60 years of age and above.

Methods: We selected data from China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) 2015-2018 and 2,942 subjects aged ≥60 years were included. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was used to assess cognitive impairment.

Changes in the key odorants of loose-leaf dark tea fermented by Eurotium cristatum during aging for one year: Focus on the stale aroma.

Aging process has been recognized as one of the means to improve the quality of microbial fermented teas. The evolution of the characteristic stale aroma, a key odorant of microbial fermented tea, throughout the aging process remains unknown. To investigate the changes in key odorants of the fermented tea during aging, the loose-leaf dark tea (LDT) used in this study was prepared by solid-state fermentation using Eurotium cristatum and was aged for 0, 3, 6, 9, 12 months, producing varied aged LDT samples.

Insulin receptors in vascular smooth muscle cells regulate plaque stability of atherosclerosis.

Aims: Increased prevalence of acute myocardial infarction related to diabetes and insulin resistance is associated with an elevated risk of unstable atherosclerotic plaques, which are characterized by reduced vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and extracellular matrix (ECM) and increased inflammation. Thus, insulin resistance may reduce plaque stability, as deleting insulin receptors (IRs) in VSMCs decreases their proliferation and enhances apoptosis.

Methods And Results: Direct effects of insulin on VSMCs to alter plaque composition were studied using mice with double knockout of ApoE and IR genes in VSMCs with SMIRKO/ApoE-/-, Myh11-CreERT2EYFP+/ApoE-/-, and Myh11-CreERT2EYFP+IRKO/ApoE-/- mice, which were also used for lineage tracing studies.

Association of serum interleukin-6 with negative symptoms in stable early-onset schizophrenia.

Background: Accumulating evidence suggests that the inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) contributes to the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders. However, there was no study concerning the relationship between IL-6 concentrations and clinical features in the chronic phase of early-onset schizophrenia (EOS).

Aim: To investigate the relationship between serum IL-6 concentration and the clinical features of EOS.

Enhanced photocatalytic regeneration of carboxymethyl cellulose/lignin/ZnO complex hydrogel after methylene blue adsorption.

The biodegradable, nontoxic, and renewable carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) hydrogel has been developed into a green adsorbent. However, the weak chemical interaction limits its adsorption capability and reusability. This work incorporated lignin with complex structure and ZnO nanoparticles with photocatalytic properties into CMC hydrogel beads to improve the removal of methylene blue (MB) through chemical interaction.

Dynamics changes in metabolites and pancreatic lipase inhibitory ability of instant dark tea during liquid-state fermentation by Aspergillus niger.

Instant dark tea (IDT), prepared by liquid-state fermentation using Aspergillus niger, is known for its high theabrownins content and lipid-lowering effect. To explore the impact of fungal fermentation on IDT compositions and its pancreatic lipase inhibitory ability (PLIA), untargeted and targeted metabolomic analysis were applied to track the changes of metabolites over a 9-day fermentation period, and correlation analysis was then conducted between metabolites and PLIA of IDT. There were 54 differential metabolites exhibited significant changes from day 3 to day 5 of fermentation.

Sensomics-Assisted Characterization of Fungal-Flowery Aroma Components in Fermented Tea Using .

Fermented tea (FT) using a single strain can produce a pleasant fungal-flowery aroma, which is similar to the composite aroma characteristic of minty, flowery, and woody aromas, but its molecular basis is not yet clear. In this study, solvent-assisted flavor evaporation and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry/olfactometry were applied to isolate and identify volatiles from the FT by . The application of an aroma extract dilution analysis screened out 43 aroma-active compounds.

Aberrant degree centrality profiles during rumination in major depressive disorder.

Rumination is closely linked to the onset and maintenance of major depressive disorder (MDD). Prior neuroimaging studies have identified the association between self-reported rumination trait and the functional coupling among a network of brain regions using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). However, little is known about the underlying neural circuitry mechanism during active rumination in MDD.

Protective Factors and the Pathogenesis of Complications in Diabetes.

Chronic complications of diabetes are due to myriad disorders of numerous metabolic pathways that are responsible for most of the morbidity and mortality associated with the disease. Traditionally, diabetes complications are divided into those of microvascular and macrovascular origin. We suggest revising this antiquated classification into diabetes complications of vascular, parenchymal, and hybrid (both vascular and parenchymal) tissue origin, since the profile of diabetes complications ranges from those involving only vascular tissues to those involving mostly parenchymal organs.

High-Coverage Strategy for Multi-Subcellular Metabolome Analysis Using Dansyl-Labeling-Based LC-MS/MS.

Subcellular compartmentalization ensures orderly and efficient intracellular metabolic activities in eukaryotic life. Investigation of the subcellular metabolome could provide in-depth insight into cellular biological activities. However, the sensitive measurement of multi-subcellular metabolic profiles is still a significant challenge.

High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein, Its Change, and Cognitive Function: A National Population-Based Cohort Study.

This study aimed to evaluate the associations of baseline high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (Hs-CRP) and its change with subsequent cognitive decline and cognitive impairment. Data for this study were obtained from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, a national community-based prospective cohort study. Hs-CRP level and cognitive function were measured repeatedly over a 7-year follow-up.

Dysregulation of CXCL1 Expression and Neutrophil Recruitment in Insulin Resistance and Diabetes-Related Periodontitis in Male Mice.

Unlabelled: Insulin resistance and hyperglycemia are risk factors for periodontitis and poor wound healing in diabetes, which have been associated with selective loss of insulin activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway in the gingiva. This study showed that insulin resistance in the mouse gingiva due to selective deletion of smooth muscle and fibroblast insulin receptor (SMIRKO mice) or systemic metabolic changes induced by a high-fat diet (HFD) in HFD-fed mice exacerbated periodontitis-induced alveolar bone loss, preceded by delayed neutrophil and monocyte recruitment and impaired bacterial clearance compared with their respective controls. The immunocytokines, CXCL1, CXCL2, MCP-1, TNFα, IL-1β, and IL-17A, exhibited delayed maximal expression in the gingiva of male SMIRKO and HFD-fed mice compared with controls.

Impact of prenatal exposure to metallic elements on neural tube defects: Insights from human investigations.

Metallic elements play a pivotal role in maternal and fetal health. Metals can cross the placental barrier and be absorbed by fetuses, where they may affect closure of the neural tube during embryonic development. Neural tube defects (NTDs), which result from aberrant closure of the neural tube three to four weeks post-conception, have a multifactorial and complex etiology that combines genetic variants and environmental exposure.

How do risks and benefits affect user' privacy decisions? An event-related potential study on privacy calculus process.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine how risks and benefits affect users' privacy-related decision-making processes.

Design/methods/approach: This study collected and analyzed the neural activity processes of users' privacy-related decisions when faced with personalized services with different risks and benefits through an ERP experiment that included 40 participants.

Findings/results: The findings show that users subconsciously categorize personalized services based on benefit; Privacy calculus affects privacy decision by influencing the allocation of cognitive resources for personalized service, and the scarcity of cognitive resources increases the degree of privacy disclosure; Emotional change in privacy decision is the result of many factors, not the result of privacy risk alone.

Carboxymethyl cellulose/sodium alginate beads incorporated with calcium carbonate nanoparticles and bentonite for phosphate recovery.

Although anionic polyelectrolyte hydrogel beads offer attractive adsorption of cationic dyes, phosphate adsorption is limited by electrostatic interactions. In this work, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)/sodium alginate (SA) hydrogel beads were modified with calcium carbonate (CaCO) and/or bentonite (Be). The compatibility between CaCO and Be was proven by the homogeneous surface, as shown in the scanning electron microscopic images.

Temporal Trends in Incidence of Nutritional Deficiency among Older Adults in China: A Secondary Analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study 1990-2019.

Nutritional deficiency is prevalent among the elderly, and it is associated with many adverse health consequences. China is rapidly moving toward an aging society with a large population; however, evidence on the epidemiological trends in nutritional deficiency among the Chinese elderly is limited. Data on the incidence of nutritional deficiency among Chinese adults aged 65 years or above from 1990 to 2019 were extracted from the database.

Prevention of polycystic ovary syndrome and postmenopausal osteoporosis by inhibiting apoptosis with Shenling Baizhu powder compound.

Objective: Shenling Baizhu powder (SBP) has been shown to reverse the abnormal expression of the aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) mediated by air pollution. Our study aimed to understand the main ingredient of SBP and investigate its action mechanism in preventing polycystic ovary syndrome (POCS) and postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMO).

Methods: The active ingredients of SBP with the highest binding affinity to AHR were screened using a Chinese medicine database, and their binding mechanism was simulated using molecular dynamics simulation (MDS).

The experimental research on leaders and cooperative behavior.

Leaders are critical to a team or organization, their behavior affects employees' psychology and their work effort, and then affects the efficiency and innovation of the team or organization. Previous studies have focused on the role model of leaders, ignoring the guiding role of leaders with different efforts. This paper introduces leader decision-making into the game of public goods to investigate the exemplary role of leaders in behavior decision-making.

Parental Support Is Associated with Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity among Chinese Adolescents through the Availability of Physical Activity Resources in the Home Environment and Autonomous Motivation.

This study aimed to use a structural equation model (SEM) to determine the association between parental support and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among Chinese adolescents and whether the availability of physical activity (PA) resources in the home environment and autonomous motivation of adolescents mediated the association. Data were collected using questionnaires extracted from the Family Life, Activity, Sun, Health, and Eating (FLASHE) study. A final analytical sample of 3738 adolescents was enrolled.

Association of Body Mass Index and Plant-Based Diet with Cognitive Impairment among Older Chinese Adults: A Prospective, Nationwide Cohort Study.

To examine the association of body mass index (BMI) and a plant-based diet (PBD) with cognitive impairment in older adults, this cohort study used data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS), a national, community-based, longitudinal, prospective study in China. Cognitive function was evaluated via the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Diet was assessed using a simplified food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), and PBD patterns were estimated using the overall plant-based diet index (PDI), the healthful plant-based diet index (hPDI), and the unhealthful plant-based diet index (uPDI).

Endothelial Cells Induced Progenitors Into Brown Fat to Reduce Atherosclerosis.

Background: Insulin resistance (IR) can increase atherosclerotic and cardiovascular risk by inducing endothelial dysfunction, decreasing nitric oxide (NO) production, and accelerating arterial inflammation. The aim is to determine the mechanism by which insulin action and NO production in endothelial cells can improve systemic bioenergetics and decrease atherosclerosis via differentiation of perivascular progenitor cells (PPCs) into brown adipocytes (BAT).

Methods: Studies used various endothelial transgenic and deletion mutant mice of insulin receptors, eNOS (endothelial NO synthase) and ETBR (endothelin receptor type B) receptors for assessments of atherosclerosis.

How Does the Implicit Awareness of Consumers Influence the Effectiveness of Public Service Announcements? A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study.

A large number of scholars have conducted detailed studies on the effectiveness of commercial advertising by using neuroimaging methods, but only a few scholars have used this method to study the effectiveness of public service announcements (PSAs). To research the relationship between the effectiveness of PSAs and the audience's implicit awareness, functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) was employed to record the neural activity data of participants in this study. The results showed that there was a correlation between activation of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) and the effectiveness of PSAs; The activation of the dlPFC could also be used as an indicator to represent the appeal of advertising content.

Body Mass Index, Waist Circumference, and Cognitive Decline Among Chinese Older Adults: A Nationwide Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: The reported associations between body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and cognitive decline are not consistent, especially in older adults.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the longitudinal associations of BMI, WC, and their change values with cognitive decline among Chinese adults aged 60 years and older and to examine the potential moderating effect of sex on these relationships.

Methods: The participants in this study were from waves one to four (2011-2018) of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS).

Associations of Social Jetlag with Dietary Behavior, Physical Activity and Obesity among Chinese Adolescents.

This study aimed to investigate the associations between social jetlag (SJL), dietary behavior, physical activity, and weight status in Chinese youth. Data were derived from a cross-sectional survey in Wuhan, China in 2019. Information on SJL, the frequency of food and beverage consumption, physical activity, and BMI category were collected via a self-reported questionnaire.