Association of tuberculosis infection with the development of active tuberculosis and comorbidities in rural China: a 10-year follow-up results of a population-based, multicentre, prospective study.

Background: In China, there is limited research on the role of recent and long-term infection of in relation to the incidence of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB), as well as the impact of tuberculosis infection (TBI) on other diseases. A population-based, multicenter prospective study (LATENTTB-NSTM) was implemented since 2013 to assess the prevalence of TBI and to track the development of active disease in rural China. This cohort study provides an opportunity to address these gaps in knowledge.

Exosomes from small intestinal epithelium mediate cardiac fibrosis during aging.

Senescent cardiac fibroblasts (CFs), which are activated and acquire a pro-fibrotic phenotype, exacerbate age-related interstitial fibrosis and cardiac dysfunction by unclear mechanisms. Traditionally regarded as a central organ involved in regulating aging, the small intestine (SI) communicates with remote organs. However, the mechanisms underlying its role in CFs senescence remain undefined.

Advanced Heterogeneous Network-Based Graph Neural Network Framework for Predicting Anti-CRISPR Protein Sequences.

Anti-CRISPR proteins play a crucial role in bacterial-phage interactions by inhibiting the CRISPR/Cas system and thus enhancing phage survival. Accurately predicting these proteins is essential for understanding phage-host immune interactions and progressing CRISPR/ Cas-based technologies. Current approaches primarily analyze proteins individually, which may overlook the intrinsic similarities and potential connections among protein sequences.

Association of inactive pulmonary tuberculosis lesions with the risk of active disease development in the elderly: a population-based retrospective study.

Background: Individuals with inactive pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) lesions were found to be high-risk populations for active PTB development. This retrospective study evaluated the association between different types of inactive PTB lesions and the development of active PTB aiming to provide epidemiological evidence for developing precise intervention strategies.

Methods: Based on a population-based PTB active-case-finding project conducted on the elderly, 154 028 subjects who had participated in the 2020 baseline survey were included in the current analysis.

Application and validation of a newly developed lung donor (LUNDON) acceptability score for lung transplantation: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Organ shortage remains a considerable challenge in the field of lung transplantation. There is an urgent need now for a new standard that can include more donor lungs and expand the donor pool to benefit more patients. To increase lung utilization rates and facilitate the standardization of the lung donor evaluation process, Heiden .

Performance of Computer-Aided Detection Software in Tuberculosis Case Finding in Township Health Centers in China.

Background: Computer-aided detection (CAD) software has been introduced to automatically interpret digital chest X-rays. This study aimed to evaluate the performance of CAD software (JF CXR-1 v3.0, which was developed by a domestic Hi-tech enterprise) in tuberculosis (TB) case finding in China.

Satellites reveal hot spots of ocean changes in the early 21st century.

Ocean change leaves a potentially important imprint on ocean colorimetry. Here, we present an overview and current evaluation of the global ocean color variability from 1998 to 2022, and satellites observe that 36% of oceans (~122 million square kilometers, derived from valid observations) have experienced changes ( < 0.1).

Mefunidone treats pulmonary fibrosis by targeting SDH to regulate fibro-promoting macrophages.

Background And Objective: Pulmonary fibrosis, a pathological process where the extracellular matrix overly deposits in lung tissue because of various pathogenic factors, leads to lung structure damage and function decline. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) has a poor prognosis and high mortality, lacking effective drug treatments. Mefunidone (MFD), a new small-molecule compound, showed therapeutic effects on it in previous studies, but its specific molecular target is unknown.

The association between pulmonary tuberculosis recurrence and exposure to fine particulate matter and residential greenness: A population-based retrospective study.

Background And Objective: To assess the association of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) recurrence with fine particulate matter (PM) and residential greenness using a population-based retrospective study design.

Methods: All incident PTB patients, registered in Tuberculosis Information Management System (TBIMS) from 2015 to 2019 in Quzhou City, China, were included. The data on PM exposure was extracted from the China High Air Pollutants dataset and the level of greenness was estimated using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) values around the patient's residence.

The performance of computer-aided detection for chest radiography in tuberculosis screening: a population-based retrospective cohort study.

From 2020 to 2022, a pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) active case finding project based on chest X-ray (CXR) examination was conducted targeting individuals aged ≥65 years old in Jiangshan County, Quzhou City. The current study used computer-aided detection (CAD) software (JF CXR-1 v2) to retrospectively analyze the CXR images and to estimate its potential capacity for identifying PTB cases. The information of notified microbiologically confirmed PTB among the participants were exported from the Tuberculosis Information Management System.

The dynamic change of tuberculosis infection prevalence in rural residents: 10-year follow-up of a population-based, multicentre cohort study from China.

Background: The incidence of tuberculosis (TB) decreased significantly in recent years in China. However, the declining in the burden of tuberculosis infection (TBI) have not been systematically evaluated. The aim of this study was to elucidate the changes of TBI prevalence during the past decade.

Down-regulation of PCK2 enhanced the radioresistance phenotype of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Purpose: Radiotherapy is the main treatment for non-distant metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). However, about 15% of NPC patients still experience local tumor recurrence after radiotherapy. The mechanisms underlying the radioresistance of NPC have not been fully understood.

Anion vacancy engineered Cu/ZnInS-V/TiO-V S-scheme heterojunction for enhancing photocatalytic overall water splitting.

Heterojunction materials for photocatalytic overall water splitting (POWS) become popular in recent times. However, even in the superior S-scheme heterojunction, the two semiconductor materials still do not have an efficient activity to separate and migrate photogenerated carriers. To further improve the charge separation and enhance the activity of POWS, a novel S-scheme heterojunction photocatalyst, Cu/ZnInS-V/TiO-V, was synthesized using solvothermal and calcination methods.

Rhizosphere microbiome regulation: Unlocking the potential for plant growth.

Rhizosphere microbial communities are essential for plant growth and health maintenance, but their recruitment and functions are affected by their interactions with host plants. Finding ways to use the interaction to achieve specific production purposes, so as to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, is an important research approach in the development of green agriculture. To demonstrate the importance of rhizosphere microbial communities and guide practical production applications, this review summarizes the outstanding performance of rhizosphere microbial communities in promoting plant growth and stress tolerance.

Curcumin targets CXCL16-mediated podocyte injury and lipid accumulation in diabetic kidney disease treatment.

Among the complications of diabetes, diabetic kidney disease (DKD) frequently emerges, typified by the detrimental effects on renal function, manifesting through inflammation, dysregulated lipid metabolism, and harm to podocytes. Existing research underscores the significance of the soluble form of C-X-C chemokine ligand 16 (CXCL16) within the context of renal impairments. However, whether CXCL16 is involved in the pathogenesis of DKD remains elusive.

N × N MMI performance improvement method by suppressing propagation constant errors.

We propose a method to improve the performance of N × N(N⩾3) multimode interference couplers (MMIs) by suppressing propagation constant errors through controlling excited guided modes and the width of MMI, without increasing their fabrication complexity. 5 × 5 MMIs were fabricated on a commercial 220-nm silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform to verify the method. Measurement results show that insertion losses (ILs) and imbalances (Ims) are reduced from 2.

The performance of a new rapid interferon gamma release assay based on fluorescence immunochromatography for infection testing in village doctors in China.

The AIMTB rapid test assay is an emerging test, which adopted a fluorescence immunochromatographic assay to measure interferon-γ (IFN-γ) production following stimulation of effector memory T cells in whole blood by mycobacterial proteins. The aim of this article was to explore the ability of AIMTB rapid test assay in detecting (MTB) infection compared with the widely applied QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus) test among rural doctors in China. In total, 511 participants were included in the survey.

Agreement between Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigen-based skin test and interferon-gamma release assay in elderly individuals aged ≥65 years in China.

Objectives: To determine the agreement of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) antigen-based skin test (TBST) with interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA) in the elderly individuals aged ≥65 years beyond instruction for use in China.

Methods: Based on the baseline survey of a randomized controlled trial with the objective of exploring suitable regimens for tuberculosis(TB) preventive treatment, MTB infection was tested using TBST and IGRA in parallel in rural residents aged 50-70 years using a cross-sectional study design.

Results: A total of 21 219 participants with both TBST and IGRA results were included in this analysis.

Arthroscopic Anterior Cruciate Ligament Avulsion Fixation With a Knotless Suture Anchor: A Minimalistic Approach.

This technical note outlines a minimalist arthroscopic approach to anterior cruciate ligament avulsion fracture fixation using a bioabsorbable knotless suture anchor. This method represents a less invasive alternative to traditional techniques, catering specifically to fractures classified as Meyers and McKeever type II or III. The procedure is performed through standard anterolateral and anteromedial portals without the need for additional incisions or bone tunnel drilling, making it particularly suitable for children and adolescent patients with open physes.

Mefunidone alleviates silica-induced inflammation and fibrosis by inhibiting the TLR4-NF-κB/MAPK pathway and attenuating pyroptosis in murine macrophages.

Aims: Silicosis is the most common and severe type of pneumoconiosis, imposing a substantial disease burden and economic loss on patients and society. The pathogenesis and key targets of silicosis are not yet clear, and there are currently no effective treatments available. Therefore, we conducted research on mefunidone (MFD), a novel antifibrotic drug, to explore its efficacy and mechanism of action in murine silicosis.

Succinate promotes pulmonary fibrosis through GPR91 and predicts death in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is believed to be associated with a notable disruption of cellular energy metabolism. By detecting the changes of energy metabolites in the serum of patients with pulmonary fibrosis, we aimed to investigate the diagnostic and prognostic value of energy metabolites in IPF, and further elucidated the mechanism of their involvement in pulmonary fibrosis. Through metabolomics research, it was discovered that the TCA cycle intermediates changed dramatically in IPF patients.

In Situ Integration of a Flame Retardant Quasisolid Gel Polymer Electrolyte with a Si-Based Anode for High-Energy Li-Ion Batteries.

Silicon (Si) stands out as a promising high-capacity anode material for high-energy Li-ion batteries. However, a drastic volume change of Si during cycling leads to the electrode structure collapse and interfacial stability degradation. Herein, a multifunctional quasisolid gel polymer electrolyte (QSGPE) is designed, which is synthesized through the in situ polymerization of methylene bis(acrylamide) with silica-nanoresin composed of nanosilica and a trifunctional cross-linker in cells, leading to the creation of a "breathing" three-dimensional elastic Li-ion conducting framework that seamlessly integrates an electrode, a binder, and an electrolyte.