Early-life indoor environmental exposures and COVID-19 outcomes in Chinese preschool children: A secondary analysis of a multicenter study.

Background: Indoor environmental factors during early life may influence susceptibility to respiratory infections, but their relationship with COVID-19 outcomes in children and parents remains unclear.

Objectives: This study investigates associations between early-life household exposures (fuel type, heating methods, ventilation patterns, redecoration, dampness/mold, incense, and mosquito coil use) and COVID-19 infection and sequelae in children and their parents.

Methods: We conducted a multicenter survey among 20,012 preschool children and their parents (total 60,036 participants) from nine cities in China between December 2019 and May 2023.

Role of Gut Microbiota and Metabolite Remodeling on the Development and Management of Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Narrative Review.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease that has a serious impact on both human health and animal production. The gut microbiota is a large and complex symbiotic ecosystem in animals, and the imbalance of gut microbiota is closely related to the pathogenesis of numerous diseases, including RA. The interactions among the gut microbiota, intestinal barrier, and immune system play key roles in maintaining intestinal homeostasis and affecting the development of RA.

Evaluating the feasibility of two-port laparoscopic cholecystectomy: A minimally invasive approach.

Objective: To establish a two-port minimally invasive laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) technique that minimises surgical scarring and alleviates post-operative pain.

Methods: A cohort study was conducted, enrolling patients meeting the inclusion criteria to undergo two-port minimally invasive LC. The outcomes were compared with those of patients who underwent conventional LC performed by other medical teams.

Structural Heart Abnormalities Are Prevalent on the 12-Lead Electrocardiogram Among Firefighters.

Objective: Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the leading cause of death among on-duty firefighters in the US. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of pathoanatomical substrates related to SCD in a cohort of firefighters over 9 years using 12-lead electrocardiograms (ECG).

Method: Twelve-lead ECGs were collected from 2011-2019 as part of a health program.

Rno-miR-130b Attenuates Lipid Accumulation Through Promoting Apoptosis and Inhibiting Differentiation in Rat Intramuscular Adipocytes.

Our previous studies have shown that miR-130b can significantly inhibit subcutaneous fat deposition in pigs. This study aims to further investigate its effect on lipid accumulation at early-stage (24 and 48 h) and late-stage (7 d) adipogenic differentiation and to clarify potential mechanisms using primary rat intramuscular preadipocytes (IMAs). Results showed that at 24 h and 48 h, miR-130b overexpression significantly reduced lipid deposition by inhibiting proliferation and inducing apoptosis.

Vapor-Assisted In Situ Synthesis of the NbCTNS/NbOF MXene Heterostructure for Enhanced Solar-Driven Photoelectrochemical Performance.

Photocatalytic water splitting holds great potential for transforming solar energy into valuable chemical products. However, obstacles such as the rapid recombination of electron-hole pairs and insufficiently active surface areas of photocatalysts remain significant challenges. In this study, we present the first demonstration that lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide vapor successfully etches aluminum from NbAlC MAX phase powders while concurrently forming NbOF anchors on NbCT nanosheet (NbCTNS) MXene, leading to the in situ formation of a NbCTNS/NbOF heterostructure composite.

Evaluating the benefits of adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with pancreatic cancer undergoing radical pancreatectomy after neoadjuvant therapy-a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: More and more patients with pancreatic cancer (PC) received neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) and then underwent radical pancreatectomy. However, the benefit of adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) for these patients is still controversial. This study is designed to determine the benefits of postoperative AC for patients with PC undergoing NAT and radical resection.

ETFDH mutation involves excessive apoptosis and neurite outgrowth defect via Bcl2 pathway.

The most common mutation in southern Chinese individuals with late-onset multiple acyl-coenzyme A dehydrogenase deficiency (MADD; a fatty acid metabolism disorder) is c.250G > A (p.Ala84Thr) in the electron transfer flavoprotein dehydrogenase gene (ETFDH).

Dietary curcumin supplementation enhances growth performance and anti-inflammatory functions by modulating gut microbiota, microbiota-derived metabolites, and expression of inflammation-related genes in broilers.

Curcumin (CUR) is a natural polyphenolic substance that has been widely used since ancient times for its multiple beneficial functions. However, whether CUR affects the growth performance of broilers by altering gut microbiota and metabolite and the underlying mechanism are largely unknown. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of dietary CUR supplementation on growth performance, anti-inflammatory function, intestinal morphology and barrier, cecum microbiota, and metabolite profile of broilers.

Alterations of intestinal mucosal barrier, cecal microbiota diversity, composition, and metabolites of yellow-feathered broilers under chronic corticosterone-induced stress: a possible mechanism underlying the anti-growth performance and glycolipid metabolism disorder.

Unlabelled: This study aimed to explore alterations in growth performance, glycolipid metabolism disorders, intestinal mucosal barrier, cecal microbiota community, and metabolites in a chronic corticosterone (CORT)-induced stress (CCIS) broiler model. Results showed that compared with control (CON) broilers, in CCIS broilers: (i) the final body weight (BW), BW gain, and average daily gain were significantly reduced. (ii) The glycolipid metabolism disorder and impairement of intestinal immune barrier and physical barrier function were observed.

Allosteric control of olefin isomerization kinetics via remote metal binding and its mechanochemical analysis.

Allosteric control of reaction thermodynamics is well understood, but the mechanisms by which changes in local geometries of receptor sites lower activation reaction barriers in electronically uncoupled, remote reaction moieties remain relatively unexplored. Here we report a molecular scaffold in which the rate of thermal E-to-Z isomerization of an alkene increases by a factor of as much as 10 in response to fast binding of a metal ion to a remote receptor site. A mechanochemical model of the olefin coupled to a compressive harmonic spring reproduces the observed acceleration quantitatively, adding the studied isomerization to the very few reactions demonstrated to be sensitive to extrinsic compressive force.

Elevated Expression of lncRNA Induces Endothelial Dysfunction on HUVECs of IVF Born Offspring via Epigenetic Regulation.

Cardiovascular dysfunction in children born after fertilization (IVF) has been of great concern, the potential molecular mechanisms for such long-term outcomes are still unknown. Here, we found that systolic blood pressure was a little higher in IVF born offspring at 2 years old compared to those born after being naturally conceived. Besides, the expression level of maternally expressed gene 3 () was higher in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) from IVF offspring than that in spontaneously born offspring.

Force-modulated reductive elimination from platinum(ii) diaryl complexes.

Coupled mechanical forces are known to drive a range of covalent chemical reactions, but the effect of mechanical force applied to a spectator ligand on transition metal reactivity is relatively unexplored. Here we quantify the rate of C(sp)-C(sp) reductive elimination from platinum(ii) diaryl complexes containing macrocyclic bis(phosphine) ligands as a function of mechanical force applied to these ligands. DFT computations reveal complex dependence of mechanochemical kinetics on the structure of the force-transducing ligand.

All-optical reversible single-photon isolation at room temperature.

Nonreciprocal devices operating at the single-photon level are fundamental elements for quantum technologies. Because magneto-optical nonreciprocal devices are incompatible for magnetic-sensitive or on-chip quantum information processing, all-optical nonreciprocal isolation is highly desired, but its realization at the quantum level is yet to be accomplished at room temperature. Here, we propose and experimentally demonstrate two regimes, using electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) or a Raman transition, for all-optical isolation with warm atoms.

Relationships among Affect, Hardiness and Self-Efficacy in First Aid Provision by Airline Cabin Crew.

Cabin crews being first responders, passengers' health assurance is also one of their main responsibilities. This study explored the association among first aid affect, work-related hardiness and self-efficacy of first aid, as well as the mediation role of work-related hardiness in airline cabin crews. Three self-reporting instruments were applied in this study: one was the first aid affect questionnaire, the second was a work-related hardiness questionnaire, the third was self-efficacy of the first aid questionnaire.

Mechanochemical Regulation of Oxidative Addition to a Palladium(0) Bisphosphine Complex.

Here, we report the effect of force applied to the biaryl backbone of a bisphosphine ligand on the rate of oxidative addition of bromobenzene to a ligand-coordinated palladium center. Local compressive and tensile forces on the order of 100 pN were generated using a stiff stilbene force probe. A compressive force increases the rate of oxidative addition, whereas a tensile force decreases the rate, relative to that of the parent complex of strain-free ligand.

Confounded by obesity and modulated by urinary uric acid excretion, sleep-disordered breathing indirectly relates to hyperuricaemia in males: A structural equation model.

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) causes hypoxic stress and can trigger uric acid (UA) overproduction. We comprehensively investigated whether SDB, interacting with components of metabolic syndrome, hepatic and renal dysfunctions, low physical fitness, sedentary lifestyle, disrupted sleep, and chronic systemic inflammation (CSI), is directly associated with hyperuricaemia. In 528 community-based males (mean [SD] age 46.

Experimental realization of optical storage of vector beams of light in warm atomic vapor.

Vector beams have drawn considerable interest recently because of their unique properties in the transverse plane. Here we experimentally realize optical storage of a vector beam of light in a warm cell. The vector beam is tailored using a Sagnac interferometer containing an internal vortex phase plate, and the light pulse is stored in warm rubidium vapor.

Hypermethylation of delta-like homolog 1/maternally expressed gene 3 loci in human umbilical veins: insights into offspring vascular dysfunction born after preeclampsia.

Background: Increasing epidemiological studies have confirmed the association between maternal preeclampsia and elevated blood pressure in their offspring. Though case-control or cohort studies have demonstrated long-term outcomes for the offspring of preeclampsia, it is still a question that how these changes were caused by genetic reasons or by preeclampsia itself.

Objective: In our study, we explored the potential epigenetic regulation of delta-like homolog 1-maternally expressed gene 3 (DLK1-MEG3) region in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), and its connection with endothelium-derived factors.

Intrauterine hyperglycemia induces intergenerational Dlk1-Gtl2 methylation changes in mouse placenta.

An intrauterine hyperglycemic environment has long-lasting effects on the offspring. Recent studies focused on fetal tissues, whereas we studied the development and molecular alteration of the placenta. By intercrossing male and female adult control (C) and first-generation offspring mice with gestational diabetes mellitus (F1-GDM), we obtained four groups of second generation (F2) offspring: 1) C♂-C♀, 2) C♂-GDM♀, 3) GDM♂-C♀, 4) GDM♂- GDM♀.

Experimental realization of narrowband four-photon Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger state in a single cold atomic ensemble.

Multi-photon entangled states not only play a crucial role in research on quantum physics but also have many applications in quantum information fields such as quantum computation, quantum communication, and quantum metrology. To fully exploit the multi-photon entangled states, it is important to establish the interaction between entangled photons and matter, which requires that photons have narrow bandwidth. Here, we report on the experimental generation of a narrowband four-photon Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger state with a fidelity of 64.

Construction of a Multi-Cage-Based MOF with a Unique Network for Efficient CO Capture.

As a kind of MOFs, cage-based MOFs usually carry large voids and small windows, which are advantageous to the storage of small molecules that remain kinetically trapped inside the cages (confinement effect). By adjusting the size of windows via reticular synthesis, the cage-based MOFs can selectively capture and separate the suitable size molecules. Here, considering angle-directed and face-directed strategies, a novel multicage-based MOF NUM-3 with a new (3,4,5)-connected topology was successfully constructed in the mixed-ligands assembly.

Early life exposure to traffic-related air pollution and allergic rhinitis in preschool children.

Background: Evidence linking long-term exposure to outdoor air pollution with allergic rhinitis (AR) in children is scare, and the role of components of air pollution and timing of exposure remains unclear.

Objective: To assess the association of pre- and post-natal exposure to air pollution with life-time prevalence of AR in preschool children.

Methods: We conducted a cohort study of 2598 children aged 3-6 years in Changsha, China.