NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation Restricts Viral Replication by Inducing Pyroptosis in Chicken HD11 Cells During Infectious Bronchitis Virus Infection.

IBV is a key pathogenic agent in poultry, causing significant respiratory and renal diseases. This study investigated NLRP3 inflammasome and pyroptosis involvement in IBV-infected chicken macrophage HD11 cells. IBV infection triggered a time-dependent increase in the release of IL-1β/IL-18, along with the upregulation of inflammasome-related genes.

Ketogenic diet ameliorates MASLD via balancing mitochondrial dynamics and improving mitochondrial dysfunction.

Background & Aims: Ketogenic diet (KD) is recognized as an effective lifestyle intervention for managing metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). This research aimed to assess the impact of KD on metabolic parameters in MASLD mice and elucidate the underlying mechanism.

Methods: High-fat diet (HFD)-induced MASLD mice were subjected to KD for 2 weeks.

Mapping the interactions of critical factors in China's first-contact healthcare systems using causal loop diagrams.

Background: Primary healthcare plays a pivotal role in optimizing healthcare resource allocation and ensuring equitable access to services. In China, first-contact care within the tiered medical care system is essential for alleviating pressure on large hospitals and enhancing healthcare equity. However, challenges such as uneven resource distribution and low patient trust in primary institutions limit the effectiveness of first-contact care.

Single-shot coded aperture polarization imaging system with fast momentum primal-dual hybrid gradient algorithm.

Conventional polarization imaging systems employing optical lenses encounter fundamental constraints in miniaturization due to the inherent bulkiness of lens components. We propose a computational polarization imaging system that synergistically combines a random mask with a division-of-focal-plane (DoFP) polarization sensor. The architecture enables single-exposure acquisition of four-channel polarization states while maintaining compact configuration and cost efficiency.

[Clinical phenotype and genotypic analysis of a four-generation Chinese pedigree affected with Stickler syndrome and a literature review].

Objective: To carry out genetic testing and clinical phenotypic characterization on a four-generation Chinese pedigree affected with Stickler syndrome type I and explore its genotype-phenotype correlation.

Methods: A child presented at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in February 2023 for micrognathia, glossoptosis and cleft palate and his family members were selected as the study subjects. Clinical data were collected from the affected members, and peripheral blood samples were obtained from 17 participants (including 4 patients and 13 asymptomatic individuals).

Improved Ionic Thermoelectric Performance of Adhesive and Self-Healing Cationic High-Entropy Gel Thermocell.

Gel thermocell can directly convert heat into electricity by ions as energy carriers, capable of low-grade heat harvesting. However, ionic thermoelectric performance, including ionic thermopower, output power density, and energy density, needs to be significantly improved to meet practical applications. To date, it still lacks an effective strategy to focus on gels to achieve the overall high performance.

Exploration of common pathogenic genes between cerebral amyloid angiopathy and insomnia based on bioinformatics and experimental validation.

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) and insomnia are age-related neurological disorders increasingly recognized as being closely associated. However, research on the shared genes and their biological mechanisms remains limited. This study aims to identify common genes between CAA and insomnia and explore their potential molecular mechanisms, offering new insights for diagnosis and treatment.

Imaging Characteristics and Clinical Outcomes in Gastric Cancer with Brain Metastasis: A Propensity Score-Matched Study.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the impact of brain metastasis (BM) on the clinical outcomes of gastric cancer (GC) and explored related imaging characteristics.

Methods: GC patients of tumor stage IV treated at Nanfang Hospital from October 2004 to September 2022 were included. The comparisons of non-BM and BM group were used by propensity score matching (PSM).

Effects of brackish water irrigation on biomass allocation and carbon, nitrogen stoichiometry in Lonicera japonica.

Cultivation of honeysuckle, Lonicera japonica, irrigated with brackish-water, represents a new way to exploit saline-alkali land in the Yellow River Delta. However, how L. japonica responds to brackish-water irrigation is not clear.

Effectiveness of pay it forward intervention compared to free and user-paid vaccinations on seasonal influenza vaccination among older adults across seven cities in China: study protocol of a three-arm cluster randomized controlled trial.

Background: Seasonal influenza poses an enormous burden worldwide, with older adults facing preventable morbidity and mortality. However, seasonal influenza vaccination coverage is poor among older populations in China. Pay-it-forward (giving a person a free vaccine and an opportunity to donate to support others) and financial incentives (e.

A fully automated paper-based smartphone-assisted microfluidic chemiluminescence sample to result immunoassay platform.

Background: In recent years, adapting immunoassay technologies for point-of-care testing (POCT) to enable low-cost, on-site diagnostics has gained great attention. Among the various approaches to achieving this goal, microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (μPADs) have emerged as a promising platform. These devices are particularly appealing due to their low cost, simple procedures, and minimal sample consumption.

Assessment of sanitation facilities in primary healthcare institutions across seven provinces in China: a cross-sectional study.

Objective: This study aims to assess the current status of sanitation facilities across primary healthcare institutions in China, offering valuable insights for improving sanitary facilities in middle-income settings.

Methods: Data were draw from the ACACIA project (March 2021-April 2023) across seven provinces in China. A total of 2139 visits were made to 1167 primary healthcare institutions.

Arctiin, a lignan compound, enhances adipose tissue browning and energy expenditure by activating the adenosine A receptor.

Background: The activation of brown adipose tissue (BAT) or the browning of white adipose tissue (WAT) represents a promising therapeutic strategy for obesity. Arctiin (ARC), a lignan compound known for its anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, and hypoglycemic properties, has not been fully elucidated regarding its effects and mechanisms on obesity.

Methods: In the present study, we established both high-fat diet-induced obese mouse models and mature adipocyte cultures to comprehensively investigate the therapeutic effects of ARC on obesity.

The Parameter-Optimized Recursive Sliding Variational Mode Decomposition Algorithm and Its Application in Sensor Signal Processing.

In industrial polishing, the sensor on the polishing motor needs to extract accurate signals in real time. Due to the insufficient real-time performance of Variational Mode Decomposition (VMD) for signal extraction, some studies have proposed the Recursive Sliding Variational Mode Decomposition (RSVMD) algorithm to address this limitation. However, RSVMD can exhibit unstable performance in strong-interference scenarios.

Immune-related gene expression with colorectal cancer risk: a Mendelian randomization analysis.

Background: The potential role of immune cells and the precise contributions of genes from various immune cells in the development of colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the potential causal relationships between specific immune cell genes and the development of CRC by performing Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis.

Methods: The cis-expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) data for type-specific immune cells were used to perform MR analysis.

Brief verbal intervention to address inappropriate prescriptions of chinese patent medicines among western practitioners in primary health care (BRAVERY): a study protocol for an unannounced standardized patient experiment with a factorial design randomized controlled trial in China.

Introduction: Chinese patent medicines, produced using advanced pharmaceutical techniques and available in various forms, including powders, granules, tablets, pills, and capsules, finds extensive utilization among Western medicine practitioners in primary healthcare (WMP-PHC). However, the inappropriate overprescribing of these medicines has led to significant resource waste and raised considerable concerns. Therefore, we aim to address related knowledge gaps by employing unannounced standardized patients (USPs) as a method, for both measurement and intervention research.

Development and Performance of a Large Language Model for the Quality Evaluation of Multi-Language Medical Imaging Guidelines and Consensus.

Aim: This study aimed to develop and evaluate an automated large language model (LLM)-based system for assessing the quality of medical imaging guidelines and consensus (GACS) in different languages, focusing on enhancing evaluation efficiency, consistency, and reducing manual workload.

Method: We developed the QPC-HASE-GuidelineEval algorithm, which integrates a Four-Quadrant Questions Classification Strategy and Hybrid Search Enhancement. The model was validated on 45 medical imaging guidelines (36 in Chinese and 9 in English) published in 2021 and 2022.

Synthesis and Preclinical Evaluation of Peptide Dimer-Based PET Tracers for Imaging VEGFR-2 Expression in Tumors.

The vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A)/VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR-2) signaling pathway is pivotal in regulating angiogenesis. We have synthesized a linear peptide-based VEGFR-2-targeted positron emission tomography (PET) tracer, but its target affinity and in vivo stability need further improvement. In this study, we developed two novel Cu-labeled VEGFR-2-targeted PET dimer tracer [Cu]VEGF and [Cu]VEGF modified with a pegylated linear and branched linker, respectively, to optimize its pharmacokinetic properties and conducted a comprehensive preclinical assessment.

Incorporation of Cu(I) Sites into Zeolite via a Controllable Reduction Strategy for Ethylene/Ethane Separation.

The development of effective adsorbents for efficient separation of ethylene (CH) and ethane (CH) is crucial for the petrochemical sector, yet this is still difficult because of their comparable molecule sizes and physical characteristics. Cu(I) could generate π-complexes with molecules containing unsaturated bonds, enabling Cu(I)-based adsorbents to selectively and efficiently separate CH from CH. However, the traditional autoreduction method typically requires extreme temperatures (≥700 °C) to convert Cu(II) to Cu(I), leading to high energy consumption.

An online survey among convalescents 5 months post SARS-CoV-2 infection in China.

The effects of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection persist months and years after recovery. We conducted an online survey to assess the health condition of convalescents approximately 5 months following the primary infection of SARS-CoV-2. The study recruited 5,510 individuals who were primary infected, 626 participants who had experienced reinfection, and 521 participants who were without infective history.

All-Optical Single-Longitudinal-Mode Forward Brillouin Microwave Oscillator with an Unbalanced Fiber Mach-Zehnder Interferometer.

An all-optical single-longitudinal-mode (SLM) forward Brillouin microwave oscillator (FB-MO) with an unbalanced Fiber Mach-Zehnder interferometer (UF-MZI) for microwave photonics (MWP) generation is proposed and experimentally investigated. UF-MZI consists of an optical coupler (OC), a polarization controller (PC), and two asymmetric length arms with 5 km and 500 m single-mode fibers (SMFs), which implements two unbalanced length feedback rings that are connected to one another. One long-length ring with a forward Brillouin gain cooperates with the other short-length ring to maintain a spectral Vernier effect and improve the effective free spectral range (FSR).

No toxic effects or interactions between aflatoxin B and zearalenone in broiler chickens fed diets at China's regulatory limits.

Currently, several countries such as China have established regulatory limits for six major mycotoxins in animal feed. However, these limits are primarily designed for single mycotoxin exposure. Co-contamination with multiple mycotoxins is increasingly common, and simultaneous exposure may lead to additive toxic effects.

Effects of Nighttime Noise Reduction by Using Earplugs on the Recovery of Burn Patients after Reconstructive Surgery.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the effects of postoperative noise reduction by using earplugs at night on the healing time and scar quality of burn patients who underwent reconstructive surgery.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study analyzed the clinical data of adult burn patients after they underwent reconstructive surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from January 2022 to June 2023. The patients were divided into the postoperative noise reduction group (n = 66) and the control group (n = 75) based on whether they received postoperative noise reduction.

Assessing Gut Microbiome Alterations in Children With Allergic Rhinitis: Associations With Allergen-Specific IgE Levels and Sensitization Patterns.

Background: The relationship between gut microbiota composition and allergen exposure in children with allergic rhinitis (AR) remains insufficiently explored, particularly concerning variations in gut microbiota at different allergen-specific IgE (sIgE) levels and the distinction between monosensitization and polysensitization to allergens.

Methods: We employed metagenomic shotgun sequencing to compare the fecal microbiota of 50 healthy controls (HC) to 88 children with AR induced by house dust mites (HDM-AR). We further examined differences in gut microbiota among HDM-AR subgroups with extremely high house dust mite-sIgE (EH-HDM), high HDM-sIgE (H-HDM), as well as between monosensitized (mono-HDM) and polysensitized (poly-HDM) individuals.

Exploring modifiable risk factors: insights from Mendelian randomization analyses of gastric cancer in East Asian populations.

Background: The incidence of gastric cancer (GC) shows strong geographic variation, with the highest incidence occurring in East Asia. Epidemiological studies have linked lifestyle, diet, and inflammatory factors to the risk of GC. However, their causal relationship is subject to debate due to the potential presence of bias.