Regional Variations in Physical Fitness in Children and Adolescents in Shaanxi Province.

Objectives: This study aims to examine the geographical variation in physical fitness levels among Chinese children and adolescents in Shaanxi province. Methods: A total of 19,175 children from Shaanxi province with physical fitness data in 2019, participated in the study. Physical fitness was assessed using body mass index, force vital capacity, 50 m sprint, sit and reach, 1 min rope skipping, sit-ups, 50 m × 8 round-trip running, standing long jump, pull-ups, 800 m, and 1000 m running, and their standardized scores were aggregated to form a summary score. The total score is used to classify the physical fitness levels into four grades (excellence to failure). Results: The Guanzhong (GZ) region scored the highest, while Northern Shaanxi (NS) scored the lowest. The excellence rate for physical fitness was highest in GZ and lowest in NS, while the failure rate was highest in NS and lowest in GZ. Notably, children and adolescents in NS demonstrated the best endurance levels despite their overall lower fitness scores. The comprehensive physical fitness among Chinese children and adolescents in Shaanxi province showed significant regional disparities. GZ region exhibited the highest physical fitness levels, while Northern Shaanxi had the lowest. Conclusions: Region-specific interventions and targeted health policies are essential to address these disparities and improve the overall physical health status of children and adolescents in Shaanxi province.

Variability in the home-field advantage of litter decomposition mediates alterations in soil CO2 and CH4 fluxes: A transplantation experiment study.

The decomposition of litter is susceptible to the influence of climate change and soil conditions, which can subsequently impact the release of carbon dioxide (CO2) from forest soils and the absorption of methane (CH4). Ecological theory proposes the existence of a home-field advantage (HFA) in litter decomposition, suggesting that the decomposition rate of litter (such as fallen leaves, twigs, and roots) may be faster in their native habitat than in foreign environments. Therefore, we selected litter from Pinus tabuliformis (PT) and Quercus acutissima Carruth (QC) in the field and conducted a 439-day litter transplant experiment to test the magnitude and direction of the HFA of these two litter types in three forest stands. During this experiment, we monitored the changes in soil CO2 and CH4 fluxes associated with the decomposition of PT and QC leaf litter in their native and foreign sites. Furthermore, we measured various soil physical, chemical, and biological indicators. The results indicated that the decomposition rate of QC leaf litter was faster in its native habitat, demonstrating a clear HFA effect. Conversely, the decomposition of PT leaf litter was observed to be more rapid in away soil, suggesting a pronounced home-field disadvantage (HFD). The study found that PT leaf litter exhibited greater CO2 release when decomposing in away soil, demonstrating 43 % and 32 % increases compared to bare soil, respectively. Conversely, QC leaf litter was observed to release more CO2 in its home soil. Additionally, the bare soils of the PT and QC home sites were found to absorb more CH4 compared to leaf litter coverage, with increases of 37.8 % and 31.2 %, respectively. The partial least squares model indicated that the litter attributes had a significant direct effect on soil temperature and enzyme activity. Soil temperature and enzyme activity further directly influenced the soil CO2 and CH4 fluxes. The results of our study indicate that the HFA of litter is dependent on litter type, and that litter transplantation can impact soil greenhouse gas exchange. This research provides a theoretical foundation for forest management and conservation strategies, as well as valuable data for global carbon neutrality efforts.

Experimental Study of the Flexural Performance of GFRP-Reinforced Seawater Sea Sand Concrete Beams with Built-In GFRP Tubes.

The use of seawater sea sand concrete (SSSC) and fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) has broad application prospect in island and coastal areas. However, the elastic modulus of FRP reinforcement is obviously lower than that of ordinary steel reinforcement, and the properties of SSSC are different from that of ordinary concrete, which results in a limit in the bearing capacity and stiffness of structures. In order to improve the flexural performance of FRP-reinforced SSSC beams, a novel SSSC beam with built-in glass FRP (GFRP) tubes was proposed in this study. Referring to many large-scale beam experiments, one specimen was used for one situation to illustrate the study considering costs and feasibility. Firstly, flexural performance tests of SSSC beams with GFRP tubes were conducted. Then, the effects of the GFRP tubes' height, the strength grades of concrete inside and outside the GFRP tubes, and the GFRP reinforcement ratio on the flexural behaviors of the beams were investigated. In addition, the concept of capacity reserve was proposed to assess the ductility of the beams, and the interaction between the concrete outside the GFRP tube, the GFRP tube and concrete inside the tube was discussed. Finally, the formulas for the normal section bearing capacity of beams with built-in GFRP tubes were derived and verified. Compared to the beam without GFRP tubes, under the same conditions, the ultimate bearing capacities of the SSSC beam with 80 mm, 100, and 200 mm height GFRP tubes were increased by 17.67 kN, 24.52 kN, and 144.42 kN, respectively.

Determination of Azole Fungicide Residues in Fresh Juice by Magnetic Solid Phase Extraction Based on Fe3O4@ZnAl-LDH@MIL-53(Al) Sorbent in Combination with High-Performance Liquid Chromatograph.

In this work, a magnetic adsorption material based on metal-organic framework (Fe3O4@ZnAl-LDH@MIL-53(Al)) was synthesized and used as an adsorbent in the process of magnetic solid phase extraction. Then, a high-performance liquid chromatograph was used to quantitatively detect triazole fungicides in samples. In order to verify the successful preparation of the material, a series of characterization analyses were carried out. Besides, the key parameters that may affect the extraction efficiency have been optimized, and under optimal conditions the three triazole fungicides showed good linearity in the range of 10-1000 µg/L (R2 ≥ 0.9796); Limit of detections were ranged from 0.013 to 0.030 µg/mL. Finally, the established method was applied to the detection of triazole fungicides in four fresh juice samples. The results showed that the target analyte was not detected in all the test samples. By detecting the recoveries (73.3-104.3%) and coefficient variation (RSD ≤ 6.8%) of triazole fungicides in fortified samples, it proved that this established method meets the requirements of pesticide residue analysis and showed excellent application potential.

Multifunctional Oxidized Dextran-Metformin as a Tissue-Adhesive Hydrogel to Prevent Postoperative Peritoneal Adhesions in Patients with Metabolic Syndrome.

Patients with metabolic syndrome (MetS) undergoing surgery are at high risk of developing peritoneal adhesions and other severe postoperative complications. However, the single shielding function and absence of physiological activity render conventional methods less useful in preventing adhesions in patients with MetS. To address this challenge, a convenient method is introduced for developing a novel tissue-adhesive hydrogel called oxidized dextran-metformin (ODE-ME) via Schiff base linkages. This injectable ODE-ME hydrogel exhibits excellent tissue-adhesive properties and various physiological functions, particularly enhanced antibacterial effects. Furthermore, in vivo experiments demonstrate that the hydrogel can effectively alleviate hyperglycemia, reduce excessive inflammation, and improve fibrinolytic activity in MetS mice, thereby preventing adhesions and promoting incisional healing. The hydrogel concurrently isolates injured tissues and lowers the blood glucose levels immediately after surgery in mice. Therefore, the ODE-ME hydrogel functions as a multifunctional barrier material and has potential for preventing postoperative peritoneal adhesions in patients with MetS in clinical settings.

Study on Capillary Water Absorption of Waterborne-Polyurethane-Modified Recycled Coarse Aggregate Concrete.

The reuse of construction and demolition waste as a substitute for natural coarse aggregate in the production of recycled concrete has been widely used. In order to study the capillary water absorption performance of waterborne-polyurethane-modified recycled aggregate concrete (WPUMRC), the effects of different curing systems, polymer-cement ratios, and waterborne polyurethane addition methods on the cumulative water absorption and the rate of capillary water absorption of WPUMRC were analyzed, and through MIP tests, the micro modification mechanism of waterborne polyurethane in recycled concrete was analyzed. The results indicate that the optimal curing system for both DC (waterborne polyurethane is added separately from water) and HC (waterborne polyurethane is mixed with some effective water and then added) is the 14 d standard curing-14 d indoor natural drying curing system. Waterborne polyurethane can fill the pores and micro-cracks inside WPUMRC or interweave with the hydration products of cement to form a spatial network structure, reducing the porosity, and thereby improving the capillary water absorption performance of WPUMRC. Based on the MIP test results, the grey correlation method was used to establish the relationship between capillary water absorption and the pore structure of WPUMRC under the optimal curing system. In addition, the prediction model of capillary water absorption in recycled concrete was established according to the test results, which can be used to predict WPUMRC's capillary water absorption performance.

Effects of a Ganoderma lucidum Proteoglycan on Type 2 Diabetic Rats and the Recovery of Rat Pancreatic Islets.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) results from both insulin resistance and pancreatic ß-cell dysfunction. A natural proteoglycan extracted from Ganoderma lucidum, namely, FYGL, has been demonstrated to be capable of ameliorating insulin resistance in previous work. In this work, a T2D rat model induced by streptozocin (STZ) and a high-fat diet was used to investigate the effects of FYGL on pancreatic functions, and the transcriptomics of the rat pancreas was used to investigate the biological processes (BP) and signal pathways influenced by FYGL on the gene basis. Furthermore, the results of transcriptomics were verified both by histopathological analyses and protein expression. The studies showed that FYGL positively regulated T2D-related BP and signaling pathways and recovered the pancreatic function, therefore ameliorating hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia in vivo. Importantly, the recovery of the pancreatic function suggested a crucial strategy to radically treat T2D.

Ternary complexes of cyclodextrins with alkali earth cations and amino acids in gas phase investigated by mass spectrometry.

Noncovalent ternary complexes between cyclodextrins (CDs), small molecules and alkali earth cations drew growing attention due to their potential application in many chemical and pharmaceutical fields. To date, the main factors affect the formation mechanism of noncovalent ternary complexes in gas phase have not been fully investigated. In this study, ternary complexes of CDs, divalent metal cations and amino acids (AAs) were investigated by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), demonstrating the formation of 1:1:1 stoichiometric noncovalent ternary complex of [CD + cation(II)+AA]2+ in gas phase. The results revealed that only +2 valence cations can form stable ternary complexes in ESI-MS. The ratio of peak intensities for [ß-CD + Mg(II)+AA]2+ to those for [ß-CD + Mg(II)]2+ hydrophobicity of AAs was also determined to discuss the effect of hydrophobicity of AAs. Exceptions exist for Pro, Gly, and Val indicated that other factors such as side-chain structure and rigidity of AAs can also influence the binding strength for ternary complexes. Collision induced dissociations (CID) were performed to further confirm the formation of the ß-CD ternary complexes, revealing the binding strength of [CD + Mg(II)+Phe]2+ decreased in the order of γ-CD, ß-CD, and α-CD. Although Leu and Ile are isomers, the ESI-MS demonstrated the peak intensity for ternary complexe of [ß-CD + Mg(II)+Ile]2+ exhibited stronger than that of [ß-CD + Mg(II)+Leu]2+, DFT theoretical calculations were conducted to explain the phenomenon. The calculation indicated when Mg2+ existing, the conformations of the two ternary complexes could be affected due to the electrostatic force. In the complexes, the Leu and Ile turn a way round, inserting to the cavity with their carboxylic acid side into the large rim side of ß-CD and interacting with Mg2+. This work not only clearly explained the factors influencing the formation of [CD + cation(II)+AA]2+ in gas phase, but it also provides an insight in designing ternary complexes for areas such as drug design and chiral discrimination.

One-Step Construction of Tryptophan-Derived Small Molecule Hydrogels for Antibacterial Materials.

Amino acid-based hydrogels have received widespread attention because of their wide range of sources, biodegradability, and biocompatibility. Despite considerable progress, the development of such hydrogels has been limited by critical problems such as bacterial infection and complex preparation. Herein, by using the non-toxic gluconolactone (GDL) to adjust the pH of the solution to induce the rapid self-assembly of N-[(benzyloxy)carbonyl]-L-tryptophan (ZW) to form a three-dimensional (3D) gel network, we developed a stable and effective self-assembled small-molecule hydrogel. Characterization assays and molecular dynamics studies indicate that π-π stacking and hydrogen bonding are the main drivers of self-assembly between ZW molecules. In vitro experiments further confirmed this material's sustained release properties, low cytotoxicity, and excellent antibacterial activity, particularly against Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus. This study provides a different and innovative perspective for the further development of antibacterial materials based on amino acid derivatives.

Pitaya Virus X Coat Protein Acts as an RNA Silencing Suppressor and Can Be Used as a Specific Target for Detection Using RT-LAMP.

Selenicereus undatus (Haworth) D.R. Hunt (pitaya) is a tropical fruit that has been commonly cultivated in Guizhou Province, China, in recent years due to its good taste and high nutritional value. This planting area currently ranks third in China. Viral diseases have increasingly emerged in pitaya cultivation because of the expansion of the pitaya planting area and the characteristics of asexual propagation. The spread of pitaya virus X (PiVX; a Potexvirus) is among the most severe viruses threatening the quality and yield of pitaya fruit. To investigate the occurrence of PiVX in pitaya cultivations in Guizhou Province, we developed a reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) method that can detect PiVX with high sensitivity and specificity at a low cost and produce a visualized result. Our best RT-LAMP system was significantly more sensitive than RT-PCR and was highly specific to PiVX. Furthermore, PiVX coat protein (CP) can form a homodimer, and PiVX may use its CP as a plant RNA silencing suppressor to enhance infection. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of fast detection of PiVX and functional exploration of CP in a Potexvirus. These findings will provide an opportunity for early diagnosis and prevention of viruses in pitaya.