Electronic Structure Regulated Nickel-Cobalt Bimetal Phosphide Nanoneedles for Efficient Overall Water Splitting.

Transition metal phosphides (TMPs) have been widely studied for water decomposition for their monocatalytic property for anodic or cathodic reactions. However, their bifunctional catalytic activity still remains a major challenge. Herein, hexagonal nickel-cobalt bimetallic phosphide nanoneedles with 1-3 µm length and 15-30 nm diameter supported on NF (NixCo2-xP NDs/NF) with adjusted electron structure have been successfully prepared. The overall alkaline water electrolyzer composed of the optimal anode (Ni0.67Co1.33P NDs/NF) and cathode (Ni1.01Co0.99P NDs/NF) provide 100 mA cm-2 at 1.62 V. Gibbs Free Energy for reaction paths proves that the active site in the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is Ni and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is Co in NixCo2-xP, respectively. In the HER process, Co-doping can result in an apparent accumulation of charge around Ni active sites in favor of promoting HER activity of Ni sites, and ΔGH* of 0.19 eV is achieved. In the OER process, the abundant electron transfer around Co-active sites results in the excellent ability to adsorb and desorb *O and *OOH intermediates and an effectively reduced ∆GRDS of 0.37 eV. This research explains the regulation of electronic structure change on the active sites of bimetallic materials and provides an effective way to design a stable and effective electrocatalytic decomposition of alkaline water.

Polysomnographic features of insomnia occurring in major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and bipolar mania: Comparison with primary insomnia and association with metabolic indicators.

BACKGROUND: Insomnia is very common in psychiatric disorders, but the polysomnographic (PSG) characteristics of insomnia in various psychiatric disorders are still not agreed upon. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of PSG and its relationship with metabolic indicators in insomnia patients with affective disorders and primary insomnia (PI) patients. METHODS: A total of 38 patients with PI, 44 major depressive disorder patients with insomnia (DI), 49 generalized anxiety disorder patients with insomnia (GI), and 19 bipolar mania patients with insomnia (BI) were included. PSG was used to detect sleep problems in subjects, and biochemical indicators were also collected. RESULTS: The results of this study found that subjects with BI were lower on REM sleep latency (RL), awakenings number (AN), number of microarousals (NM), and apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) than those with DI and GI, and lower on RL and AN than those with PI. Subjects with PI had lower NM and AHI than those with DI and GI. Patients with DI had a higher RL than those with GI. All results passed Bonferroni correction (p < 0.00078). No differences in biochemical indices were found among the four groups of subjects. Also, AHI was found to be positively correlated with free triiodothyronine (FT3) and fasting blood glucose in subjects. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that various psychiatric disorders may have their characteristics in terms of PSG parameters, which prompted us to focus on the PSG characteristics of these disorders when assessing them, as well as to focus on their biochemical indicators.

The Role of Total White Blood Cell Count in Antipsychotic Treatment for Patients with Schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND: Total white blood cell count (TWBCc), an index of chronic and low-grade inflammation, is associated with clinical symptoms and metabolic alterations in patients with schizophrenia. The effect of antipsychotics on TWBCc, predictive values of TWBCc for drug response, and role of metabolic alterations require further study. METHODS: Patients with schizophrenia were randomized to monotherapy with risperidone, olanzapine, quetiapine, aripiprazole, ziprasidone, perphenazine or haloperidol in a 6-week pharmacological trial. We repeatedly measured clinical symptoms, TWBCc, and metabolic measures (body mass index, blood pressure, waist circumference, fasting blood lipids and glucose). We used mixed-effect linear regression models to test whether TWBCc can predict drug response. Mediation analysis to investigate metabolic alteration effects on drug response. RESULTS: At baseline, TWBCc was higher among patients previously medicated. After treatment with risperidone, olanzapine, quetiapine, perphenazine, and haloperidol, TWBCc decreased significantly (p < 0.05). Lower baseline TWBCc predicted greater reductions in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total and negative scores over time (p < 0.05). We found significant mediation of TWBCc for effects of waist circumference, fasting low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and glucose on reductions in PANSS total scores and PANSS negative subscale scores (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: TWBCc is affected by certain antipsychotics among patients with schizophrenia, with decreases observed following short-term, but increases following long-term treatment. TWBCc is predictive of drug response, with lower TWBCc predicting better responses to antipsychotics. It also mediates the effects of certain metabolic measures on improvement of negative symptoms. This indicates that the metabolic state may affect clinical manifestations through inflammation.

Risk factors for renal outcomes in children with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis: a nationwide retrospective study in China.

BACKGROUND: Pediatric antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis (AAV) is a life-threatening systemic vasculitis featured by liability to renal involvement. However, there are few studies on the risk factors and predictive models for renal outcomes of AAV in children. METHODS: Data from 179 AAV children in multiple centers between January 2012 and March 2020 were collected retrospectively. The risk factors and predictive model of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in AAV were explored. RESULTS: Renal involvement was the most typical manifestation (95.5%), and the crescent was the predominant pathological lesion (84.9%). The estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was evaluated in 114 patients, of whom 59.6% developed ESRD, and the median time to ESRD was 3.20 months. The eGFR [P = 0.006, odds ratio (OR) = 0.955, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.924-0.987] and the percentages of global glomerulosclerosis (pGGS; P = 0.018, OR = 1.060, 95% CI = 1.010-1.112) were independent risk factors for ESRD of renal biopsy. Based on the pGGS and eGFR at renal biopsy, we developed three risk grades of ESRD and one predictive model. The Kaplan‒Meier curve indicated that renal outcomes were significantly different in different risk grades (P < 0.001). Compared with serum creatinine at baseline, the predictive model had higher accuracy (0.86 versus 0.58, P < 0.001) and a lower coefficient of variation (0.07 versus 0.92) in external validation. CONCLUSIONS: Renal involvement is the most common manifestation of pediatric AAV in China, of which more than half deteriorates into ESRD. The predictive model based on eGFR at renal biopsy and the pGGS may be stable and accurate in speculating the risk of ESRD in AAV children. Supplementary file 2 (MP4 18937 KB).

Psychosocial crisis intervention for coronavirus disease 2019 patients and healthcare workers. / æ–°åž‹å† çŠ¶ç— æ¯’è‚ºç‚Žæ‚£è€ å’ŒåŒ»åŠ¡äººå‘˜çš„å¿ƒç†ç¤¾ä¼šå±æœºå¹²é¢„ï¼ˆè‹±æ–‡ï¼‰.

OBJECTIVES: Shelter hospital was an alternative way to provide large-scale medical isolation and treatment for people with mild coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Due to various reasons, patients admitted to the large shelter hospital was reported high level of psychological distress, so did the healthcare workers. This study aims to introduce a comprehensive and multifaceted psychosocial crisis intervention model. METHODS: The psychosocial crisis intervention model was provided to 200 patients and 240 healthcare workers in Wuhan Wuchang shelter hospital. Patient volunteers and organized peer support, client-centered culturally sensitive supportive care, timely delivery of scientific information about COVID-19 and its complications, mental health knowledge acquisition of non-psychiatric healthcare workers, group activities, counseling and education, virtualization of psychological intervention, consultation and liaison were exhibited respectively in the model. Pre-service survey was done in 38 patients and 49 healthcare workers using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire 2-item (PHQ-2) scale, and the Primary Care PTSD screen for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (PC-PTSD-5). Forty-eight healthcare workers gave feedback after the intervention. RESULTS: The psychosocial crisis intervention model was successfully implemented by 10 mental health professionals and was well-accepted by both patients and healthcare workers in the shelter hospital. In pre-service survey, 15.8% of 38 patients were with anxiety, 55.3% were with stress, and 15.8% were with depression; 16.3% of 49 healthcare workers were with anxiety, 26.5% were with stress, and 22.4% were with depression. In post-service survey, 62.5% of 48 healthcare workers thought it was very practical, 37.5% thought more practical; 37.5% of them thought it was very helpful to relief anxiety and insomnia, and 27.1% thought much helpful; 37.5% of them thought it was very helpful to recognize patients with anxiety and insomnia, and 29.2% thought much helpful; 35.4% of them thought it was very helpful to deal with patients' anxiety and insomnia, and 37.5% thought much helpful. CONCLUSIONS: Psychological crisis intervention is feasible, acceptable, and associated with positive outcomes. Future tastings of this model in larger population and different settings are warranted.

Backscattering enhancements by partially exposed spheres due to reflected subsonic Rayleigh waves at air-water interfaces.

Air-water interfaces can enable distinct target scattering mechanisms different from the mechanism under free field conditions. In this study, backscattering experiments are performed by lowering an acrylic or polymethylmethacrylate sphere through the air-water interface into the water and insonifying the sphere from below at grazing incidence. Pronounced backscattering enhancements associated with the subsonic Rayleigh wave propagation mechanism are observed before the specular reflection point of the sphere reaches the water. The results indicate that, for a partially exposed sphere, subsonic Rayleigh waves can pass through the air-water interface and circumnavigate the sphere multiple times. The phase velocities of Rayleigh waves are different when propagating above and below the air-water interface. Moreover, subsonic Rayleigh waves are partially reflected when passing through the air-water interface, generating wavefronts that propagate in the reverse direction.

Prevalence and factors associated with anxiety and depression among community-dwelling older adults in Hunan, China: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Older adults' psychological health is a public health issue that cannot be ignored, especially when these psychological health problems and related factors change across different social backgrounds because of rapid changes in traditions and family structures and the epidemic responses after the outbreak of COVID-19 in China. The aim of our study is to determine the prevalence of anxiety and depression and their associated factors among community-dwelling older adults in China. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to May 2021 with 1173 participants aged 65 years or above from three communities in Hunan Province, China who were selected using convenience sampling. A structured questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics, clinical characteristics, the Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS), the 7-Item Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7), and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 Item (PHQ-9) was used to collect relevant demographic and clinical data and to measure social support status, anxiety symptoms, and depressive symptoms, respectively. Bivariate analyses were conducted to explore the difference in anxiety and depression based on samples' different characteristics. The multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to test for significant predictors of anxiety and depression. RESULTS: The prevalence of anxiety and depression were 32.74% and 37.34%, respectively. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that being female, being unemployed before retirement age, lacking physical activity, having physical pain, and having three or more comorbidities were significant predictors for anxiety. Subjective social support and support utilization were significant protective factors. Regarding depression, religion, lacking physical activity, having physical pain, having three or more comorbidities were found to be significant predictors. Support utilization was a significant protective factor. CONCLUSIONS: The study group showed a high prevalence of anxiety and depression. Gender, employment status, physical activity, physical pain, comorbidities, and social support were associated with psychological health problems of older adults. These findings suggest that governments should focus on the psychological health problems of older adults by raising community awareness of issues related to older adults' psychological health. They should also screen for anxiety and depression among high-risk groups and encourage individuals to seek supportive counseling.

Prevalence and risk factors of thyroid dysfunction in outpatients with overweight or obese first-episode and drug-naïve major depressive disorder.

BACKGROUND: Thyroid dysfunction is common in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). However, few studies have examined risk factors for thyroid dysfunction in overweight or obese first-episode and drug-naïve (FEDN) MDD patients. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and risk factors of thyroid dysfunction in FEDN MDD patients with comorbid high body mass index (BMI). METHODS: A total of 1718 FEDN MDD patients were included. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA), and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) positive subscale were used to assess the clinical symptoms of the patients. In addition, metabolic parameters and thyroid hormone levels were measured. RESULTS: The prevalence of thyroid dysfunction was approximately 1.75 times higher in MDD patients with comorbid overweight or obesity (72.3 %) than in patients without high BMI (58.8 %). The HAMD score, HAMA score, systolic blood pressure (BP), fasting blood glucose (FBG), thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C), were risk factors for thyroid dysfunction in MDD patients with high BMI. The combination of HAMD, FBG, TC, LDL-C, and systolic BP had a high AUC value of 0.76 differentiating patients with and without thyroid dysfunction. LIMITATION: Causality cannot be drawn due to cross-sectional design. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated a high prevalence of thyroid dysfunction in FEDN MDD patients with high BMI. Severity of depression and anxiety, levels of systolic BP, FBG, TPOAb, TC, HDL-C and LDL-C appear to be associated with thyroid dysfunction in FEDN MDD patients with high BMI.

Convergent transcriptomic and genomic evidence supporting a dysregulation of CXCL16 and CCL5 in Alzheimer's disease.

BACKGROUND: Neuroinflammatory factors, especially chemokines, have been widely reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). It is unclear how chemokines are altered in AD, and whether dysregulation of chemokines is the cause, or the consequence, of the disease. METHODS: We initially screened the transcriptomic profiles of chemokines from publicly available datasets of brain tissues of AD patients and mouse models. Expression alteration of chemokines in the blood from AD patients was also measured to explore whether any chemokine might be used as a potential biomarker for AD. We further analyzed the association between the coding variants of chemokine genes and genetic susceptibility of AD by targeted sequencing of a Han Chinese case-control cohort. Mendelian randomization (MR) was performed to infer the causal association of chemokine dysregulation with AD development. RESULTS: Three chemokine genes (CCL5, CXCL1, and CXCL16) were consistently upregulated in brain tissues from AD patients and the mouse models and were positively correlated with Aß and tau pathology in AD mice. Peripheral blood mRNA expression of CXCL16 was upregulated in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD patients, indicating the potential of CXCL16 as a biomarker for AD development. None of the coding variants within any chemokine gene conferred a genetic risk to AD. MR analysis confirmed a causal role of CCL5 dysregulation in AD mediated by trans-regulatory variants. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, we have provided transcriptomic and genomic evidence supporting an active role of dysregulated CXCL16 and CCL5 during AD development.

Biotransformation of the saponins in Panax notoginseng leaves mediated by gut microbiota from insomniac patients.

Saponins extracted from Panax notoginseng leaves by methanol or water could be orally administrated for insomnia with very low bioavailability, which might be bio-converted by gut microbiota to generate potential bioactive products. Moreover, gut microbiota profiles from insomniac patients are very different from healthy subjects. We aimed to compare the metabolic characteristics and profiles of the two saponins extract by incubation with gut microbiota from insomniac patients. The ginsenosides, notoginsenosides, and metabolites were identified and relatively quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Gut microbiota was profiled by 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing. The results showed that saponins were very different between methanol or water extract groups, which were metabolized by gut microbiota to generate similar yields. The main metabolites included ginsenoside Rd, ginsenoside F2 , ginsenoside C-Mc or ginsenoside C-Y, ginsenoside C-Mx, ginsenoside compound K, and protopanaxadiol in both groups, while gypenoside XVII, notoginsenoside Fe, ginsenoside Rd2 , and notoginsenoside Fd were the intermediates in the methanol group. Moreover, the microbial, Faecalibacterium prausnitzi, could bio-convert the saponins to obtain the corresponding metabolites. Our study implied that saponins extracted from P. notoginseng leaves by methanol or water could be used for insomniac patients due to gut microbiota biotransformation.

Early Efficacy of Antipsychotic Medications at Week 2 Predicts Subsequent Responses at Week 6 in a Large-scale Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Since the early clinical efficacy of antipsychotics has not yet been well perceived, this study sought to decide whether the efficacy of antipsychotics at week 2 can predict subsequent responses at week 6 and identify how such predictive capacities vary among different antipsychotics and psychotic symptoms. METHODS: A total of 3010 patients with schizophrenia enrolled in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) and received a 6-week treatment with one antipsychotic drug randomly chosen from five atypical antipsychotics (risperidone 2-6 mg/d, olanzapine 5-20 mg/d, quetiapine 400-750 mg/d, aripiprazole 10-30 mg/d, and ziprasidone 80-160 mg/d) and two typical antipsychotics (perphenazine 20-60 mg/d and haloperidol 6-20 mg/d). Early efficacy was defined as the reduction rate using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score at week 2. With cut-offs at 50% reduction, logistic regression, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and random forests were adopted. RESULTS: The reduction rate of PANSS total score and improvement of psychotic symptoms at week 2 enabled subsequent responses to 7 antipsychotics to be predicted, in which improvements in delusions, lack of judgment and insight, unusual thought content, and suspiciousness/ persecution were endowed with the greatest weight. CONCLUSION: It is robust enough to clinically predict treatment responses to antipsychotics at week 6 using the reduction rate of PANSS total score and symptom relief at week 2. Psychiatric clinicians had better determine whether to switch the treatment plan by the first 2 weeks.

Common and rare variants of EGF increase the genetic risk of Alzheimer's disease as revealed by targeted sequencing of growth factors in Han Chinese.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disease with high heritability. Growth factors (GFs) might contribute to the development of AD due to their broad effects on neuronal system. We herein aimed to investigate the role of rare and common variants of GFs in genetic susceptibility of AD. We screened 23 GFs in 6324 individuals using targeted sequencing. A rare-variant-based burden test and common-variant-based single-site association analyses were performed to identify AD-associated GF genes and variants. The burden test showed an enrichment of rare missense variants (p = 6.08 × 10-4) in GF gene-set in AD patients. Among the GFs, EGF showed the strongest signal of enrichment, especially for loss-of-function variants (p = 0.0019). A common variant rs4698800 of EGF showed significant associations with AD risk (p = 3.24 × 10-5, OR = 1.26). The risk allele of rs4698800 was associated with an increased EGF expression, whereas EGF was indeed upregulated in AD brain. These findings suggested EGF as a novel risk gene for AD.

A novel FOXP3 mutation in a Chinese child with IPEX-associated membranous nephropathy.

BACKGROUND: Immune dysregulation, polyendocrinopathy, enteropathy, X-linked (IPEX) syndrome is a monogenic immunodeficiency disease caused by forkhead box protein3 (FOXP3) mutation. The kidney is commonly involved in IPEX syndrome, but there were few studies focusing on renal involvement. METHODS: Whole-exome sequencing was used to identify the novel FOXP3 mutation. We collected clinical manifestations, kidney pathology, and gene function of the proband. All the previously published studies with IPEX-associated renal involvement were reviewed. RESULTS: We report a late-onset Chinese child with IPEX-associated membranous nephropathy (MN). Type 1 diabetes mellitus and nephrotic-range proteinuria are the main clinical manifestations. Whole-exome sequencing shows a novel c.766A > G mutation in the FOXP3 gene. The literature review indicates that renal manifestations include proteinuria, microscopic hematuria, and renal insufficiency. MN is the most common pathological type in children with IPEX, followed by tubulointerstitial nephritis, interstitial nephritis, minimal change nephrotic syndrome, and membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis. CONCLUSION: In summary, we report a novel FOXP3 mutation (c.766A > G) with MN stage II in IPEX. In a literature review, MN is the most common pathological type in children with IPEX and proteinuria is the most prevalent clinical feature. IPEX should be considered in the differential diagnosis of MN patients with related endocrine diseases and immune disorders.

Abnormalities of Electroencephalography Microstates in Drug-Naïve, First-Episode Schizophrenia.

Objective: Microstate analysis is a powerful tool to probe the brain functions, and changes in microstates under electroencephalography (EEG) have been repeatedly reported in patients with schizophrenia. This study aimed to investigate the dynamics of EEG microstates in drug-naïve, first-episode schizophrenia (FE-SCH) and to test the relationship between EEG microstates and clinical symptoms. Methods: Resting-state EEG were recorded for 23 patients with FE-SCH and 23 healthy controls using a 64-channel cap. Three parameters, i.e., contribution, duration, and occurrence, of the four microstate classes were calculated. Group differences in EEG microstates and their clinical symptoms [assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS)] were analyzed. Results: Compared with healthy controls, patients with FE-SCH showed increased duration, occurrence and contribution of microstate class C and decreased contribution and occurrence of microstate class D. In addition, the score of positive symptoms in PANSS was negatively correlated with the occurrence of microstate D. Conclusion: Our findings showed abnormal patterns of EEG microstates in drug-naïve, first-episode schizophrenia, which might help distinguish individuals with schizophrenia in the early stage and develop early intervention strategies.

Full color 3D printing of anatomical models.

We propose an effective method for manufacturing human anatomical specimens in response to the shortage of cadaver specimens and the poor simulation results of anatomical specimen substitutes. Digital human data with high precision were used to create digital models and corresponding mapped textures. Different materials were chosen to print the digital models with full-color and multimaterial 3D-printing technology based on the histological characteristics of the anatomical structures. Anatomy experts and surgeons were then invited to compare the 3D printed models with authentic anatomical specimens in terms of morphological appearance, anatomical detail, and textural properties. The skull, brain, hand muscles, blood vessels and nerves of the hand, and the deep structure of the head and face were printed. The skull model used hard material, and the brain and hand muscles models used flexible and hard materials combined. The blood vessels, nerves of the hand, and the superficial and deep structure of the head and face used transparent materials, revealing the small vessels and nerves in the interior. In all the models, there were no significant differences from anatomical specimens in morphological appearance and anatomical detail. They also affected vision and touch in the same way as authentic specimens in the textural properties of color, roughness, smoothness, and fineness. Full-color and multi-material 3D printed anatomical models have the same visual and tactile properties as anatomical specimens and could serve to complement or supplement them in anatomy teaching to compensate for the shortage of cadavers.

Ultrastable and High-Rate 2D Siloxene Anode Enabled by Covalent Organic Framework Engineering for Advanced Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Siloxene as a new type of 2D material has wide potential applications due to its special structure. Especially, as anode for lithium-ion batteries, siloxene shows promising prospect due to its small volume change and low diffusion pathway. However, the unstable solid electrolyte interphase and low electronic conductivity lead to the low Coulombic efficiency, poor rate capability, and limited cycling performance. To settle the problems, a thin porous covalent organic framework (COF) coating layer is designed by in situ growth on micro-sized siloxene. With the inherent ionic conductive and electrolyte compatible advantages of COF, the engineered siloxene demonstrates superior electrochemical performance with 96% capacity retention at 8 A g-1 for 1500 cycles.

Mental Health Differences in Healthcare Workers Exposed to Different Risks During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic.

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused a significant impact on the physical and mental health of healthcare workers. This study assessed the psychological status of healthcare workers who were exposed to different risk-levels in China and explored the factors that affected their mental health. Methods: Demographic, occupational characteristics, and mental health measurements were collected from 810 workers in 41 hospitals in China, through online questionnaires from February 11 to March 3, 2020. The degree of symptoms for fatigue, anxiety, and insomnia were assessed using the Chinese versions of the Fatigue Severity Scale, 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, and Insomnia Severity Index, respectively. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with mental health symptoms. Results: All 810 participants completed the relevant questionnaires without missing data. The prevalence of fatigue, anxiety, and insomnia symptoms was 74.3, 73.7, and 61.7%, respectively. Nurses, women, and workers exposed to high-risk areas were more likely to report mental health problems (P < 0.05). After controlling for confounders, exposure to high-risk areas was independently associated with increased symptoms of fatigue, anxiety, and insomnia (fatigue among high-risk areas: OR, 3.87; 95% CI, 2.26-6.61; P < 0.001; anxiety among high-risk areas: OR, 2.66; 95% CI, 1.58-4.51; P < 0.001; insomnia among high-risk areas: OR, 2.83; 95% CI, 1.68-4.79, P < 0.001). Conclusion: The study demonstrated significant differences in psychological symptoms among healthcare workers exposed to different levels of risk, and those in high-risk areas were more vulnerable to experiencing mental health symptoms. These findings emphasize the importance of giving due attention to healthcare workers, especially women, nurses, and those working in high-risk settings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

MXene/Organics Heterostructures Enable Ultrastable and High-Rate Lithium/Sodium Batteries.

Organic electrode materials have shown potential for rechargeable batteries because they are environmentally friendly, earth-abundant sources, recyclable, high sustainable, designable, flexible, and lightweight. However, low electrical conductivity and dissolution in organic liquid electrolytes hinder their further development. Herein, MXene/organics heterostructures are designed to address the problems of organic electrodes via a scalable and simple electrostatic self-assembly strategy. Under the effect of the electrostatic interaction, organic cathode material, 3,4,9,10-perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride (PTCDA), is tightly attached to MXene nanosheets. Owing to the high electronic conductivity and special two-dimensional (2D) structure of MXene nanosheets, the issues of PTCDA cathode are effectively relieved. When applied in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and sodium-ion batteries (SIBs), the MXene@PTCDA heterostructure exhibits significantly enhanced rate capability and cycling performance than bare PTCDA. The heterostructures proposed here can be applied to other (K, Zn, Al, Mg, Ca, etc.) battery systems. In addition to energy storage and conversion, the heterostructures can be also extended to many fields such as catalysis, sensors, electronics, optics, membranes, semiconductors, biomedicines, etc.

A novel missense variant in ACAA1 contributes to early-onset Alzheimer's disease, impairs lysosomal function, and facilitates amyloid-ß pathology and cognitive decline.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by progressive synaptic dysfunction, neuronal death, and brain atrophy, with amyloid-ß (Aß) plaque deposits and hyperphosphorylated tau neurofibrillary tangle accumulation in the brain tissue, which all lead to loss of cognitive function. Pathogenic mutations in the well-known AD causal genes including APP, PSEN1, and PSEN2 impair a variety of pathways, including protein processing, axonal transport, and metabolic homeostasis. Here we identified a missense variant rs117916664 (c.896T>C, p.Asn299Ser [p.N299S]) of the acetyl-CoA acyltransferase 1 (ACAA1) gene in a Han Chinese AD family by whole-genome sequencing and validated its association with early-onset familial AD in an independent cohort. Further in vitro and in vivo evidence showed that ACAA1 p.N299S contributes to AD by disturbing its enzymatic activity, impairing lysosomal function, and aggravating the Aß pathology and neuronal loss, which finally caused cognitive impairment in a murine model. Our findings reveal a fundamental role of peroxisome-mediated lysosomal dysfunction in AD pathogenesis.