Analysis of the correlation mechanism between geometric parameters and the thermal environment of Xi'an's summer outdoor commercial pedestrian streets.

Intensive urban development has resulted in the degradation of the urban thermal environment in most regions. There is a growing consensus on the need to enhance urban thermal comfort through well-designed forms, especially in open spaces like urban canyons. To address this, our study focuses on Xi'an's commercial pedestrian streets, employing K-means clustering analysis to create 32 representative models based on actual scenes, capturing their textural characteristics. Simultaneously, 11 geometric indicators (2D/3D) were chosen to quantify the canyon's geometric form. We assessed the spatial and temporal distribution differences in the thermal environment across these models using Envi-met simulation. Finally, Spearman correlation analysis was employed to examine the correlation and significance of the two sets of indicators, culminating in formulating an ideal model. The findings reveal that (1) wind conditions are predominantly influenced by the canyon's geometric form, followed by solar radiation and temperature, with the lowest relative humidity change amplitude among the assessed thermal parameters. (2) Among the 11 geometric form indicators, 3D indicators correlate more significantly with thermal environment parameters than 2D indicators. Specifically, street orientation significantly impacts the thermal environment, Build-To-Line Rat holds greater significance than interface density, and both building shape coefficient and block surface ratio are significantly correlated with air temperature and wind speed, with a weaker correlation to solar radiation. (3) In the Xi'an region, courtyards oriented north-south demonstrate a more favorable trend in the thermal environment.

A simple fruit and vegetable score is a valid tool to assess actual fruit and vegetable intake.

With the recent growing interest in improving fruit and vegetable intake for better health and limited research resources in many settings, simple-to-administer and low-priced indicators are essential tools for monitoring fruit and vegetable intake at the population level. A potential candidate indicator is the fruit and vegetable component of the Global Dietary Recommendation score (FV-GDR) based on data collected using the Diet Quality Questionnaire (DQQ). We investigated the relative validity of FV-GDR collected with the DQQ to measure fruit and vegetable intake by comparison with a 24-h recall (24hR) as a reference collected from 620 Vietnamese and 630 Nigerian adults in 2021. We found proportional differences in the prevalence of intake of vitamin A-rich vegetables, other vegetables and other fruits in Vietnam and all vegetable food groups in Nigeria. In both countries, we found a small difference in the total FV-GDR from DQQ compared with the 24hR, and the percentage of agreement between the two methods was quite high for the majority of the food groups. The FV-GDR calculated from the DQQ correlated with the actual intake, although less strongly than the FV-GDR from 24hR. The DQQ is a promising low-burden, low-cost and simple tool to calculate FV-GDR and to monitor fruit and vegetable consumption at the population level. This provides the possibility of evaluating an important aspect of diet quality in low-resource settings.

Effects of autophagy inhibition by chloroquine on hepatic stellate cell activation in CCl4-induced acute liver injury mouse model.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) activation, a critical event in liver fibrosis, has been recently shown to be related to autophagy. Determine whether chloroquine (CQ) could affect (i) the activation of HSC in vivo and (ii) the hepatic damage in a mice acute liver injury model. METHODS: The acute liver injury was induced in BALB/c mice by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4 group); 24 h before and after CCl4 administration animals were treated by CQ (CCl4  + CQ group). As control, mice treated by olive oil were considered. After 48 h from CCl4 /olive oil administration, blood samples, liver tissues, and HSCs were harvested for analysis. RESULTS: In vivo, CQ attenuates CCl4 -induced acute liver damage as evidenced by (i) the reduction of liver enlargement, (ii) the reduction of liver swelling and necrosis also supported by a certain decrease of circulating transaminases level, and (iii) the reduction of liver fibrosis evaluated by collagen deposition and α-sma protein expression. In HSCs isolated from CQ treated group, we observed the inhibition of autophagy proved by the increase in p62 protein and the decrease of lc3 protein. In addition, CQ reduced the expression of the HSCs activation markers α-sma/collagen-I and down-regulated the expression of the proliferative marker ki67. CONCLUSION: The autophagy attenuation exerted by CQ together with the reduction of the expression of the proliferation marker in HSCs can lessen the acute liver damage potentially opening the way to novel therapeutic approaches for hepatic fibrosis.

Synthesis of stabilizer-free, homogeneous gold nanoparticles by cold atmospheric-pressure plasma jet and their optical sensing property.

Recently, cold atmospheric-pressure plasma has been studied extensively as an efficient and green method to synthesize gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). Although the characteristics of the AuNPs, especially their homogeneousness, depend very much on the plasma synthesis parameters, there is a lack of a study involving these parameters systematically. Moreover, most of AuNPs-cold-plasma synthesis reports so far either required organic capping agents or resulted in highly non-uniform AuNPs. In this work, we systematically study the effect of most important synthesis parameters- including distance from the plasma jet to the solution, gas flow rate, plasma frequency, volume and concentration of the precursor, plasma interaction time as well as the effect of the synthesis environment (humidity and temperature)-on the uniformity of the AuNPs. Through various characterization measurements, we show that homogeneous and highly stable intrinsic AuNPs with an average size of 45 nm can be obtained with optimized synthesis parameters and in the absence of a stabilizer. The synthesized AuNPs yield advanced optical sensing properties in comparison with commercial AuNPs and can be further applied in developing versatile and high-sensitivity biosensors.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis Is an Important Cause of Eosinophilic Meningitis in Southern Vietnam.

We utilized polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to demonstrate that Angiostrongylus cantonensis was responsible for 67.3% of 55 cases of eosinophilic meningitis from a cohort of 1,690 adult patients with CNS infection at a tertiary hospital in southern Vietnam. Longer duration of illness, depressed consciousness, and peripheral blood eosinophilia were associated with PCR positivity.

Factors associated with exposure to antismoking information among adults in Vietnam, Global Adult Tobacco Survey, 2010.

INTRODUCTION: The media play a critical role in tobacco control. Knowledge about the exposure of a population to antismoking information can provide information for planning communication activities in tobacco control. We examined exposure to antismoking information associated with socioeconomic and demographic factors among adults (≥15 years) in Vietnam. METHODS: The Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) is a nationally representative household survey of noninstitutionalized men and women aged 15 years or older and was conducted in Vietnam in 2010 (N = 9,925). We used GATS data on exposure to sources of antismoking information and analyzed associations among socioeconomic and demographic groups. RESULTS: An estimated 91.6% of the adult population was exposed to at least 1 source of antismoking information, and the mean number of sources of exposure was 3.7. Compared with their counterparts, respondents who were older, had higher education levels, higher economic status, and higher knowledge levels about the health consequences of smoking were more likely to be exposed to any source of antismoking information and to more informational sources. The most common source of exposure was television (85.9%). Respondents of higher social class (education, occupation, wealth) had more exposure through modern media sources (television), and respondents of lower social class were exposed to more traditional sources such as radio or loudspeakers. CONCLUSION: Exposure to at least 1 source of antismoking information is high in Vietnam, and the number and type of source varied by sociodemographic group. Use of multiple communication channels is recommended to reinforce antismoking messages and to reach different groups in the population.

Prevalence of waterpipe tobacco smoking among population aged 15 years or older, Vietnam, 2010.

INTRODUCTION: The prevalence of waterpipe tobacco smoking is increasing globally and is associated with adverse outcomes requiring tobacco control interventions. We estimated the prevalence of waterpipe tobacco use among adult populations in Vietnam in 2010 and examined its association with sociodemographic factors. METHODS: We used data from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) conducted in Vietnam in 2010. GATS surveyed a national representative sample of adults aged 15 years or older from 11,142 households by using a 2-phase sampling design analogous to a 3-stage stratified cluster sampling. Descriptive statistical analyses and multivariate logistic regression modeling were conducted. RESULTS: A total of 6.4% of Vietnamese aged 15 years or older (representing about 4.1 million adult waterpipe smokers) reported current waterpipe tobacco smoking. The prevalence of waterpipe tobacco smoking was significantly higher among men than women (13% vs 0.1%). Area of residence (rural or urban), age group, asset-based wealth quintile, and geographic region of residence were significantly associated with waterpipe tobacco smoking among men. The significant correlates of current waterpipe tobacco smoking among men were lower education levels, being middle-aged (45-54 years), lower asset-based wealth levels, living in rural areas, not living in the South East and the Mekong River Delta geographic regions, and the belief that smoking does not causes diseases. CONCLUSION: Rural dwellers who are poor should be targeted in tobacco control programs. Further studies are needed that examine perceptions of the adverse health effects and the cultural factors of waterpipe tobacco smoking.

Autophagy Inhibitor Chloroquine Downmodulates Hepatic Stellate Cell Activation and Liver Damage in Bile-Duct-Ligated Mice.

Hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation via the autophagy pathway is a critical factor in liver fibrogenesis. This study tests the hypothesis that chloroquine (CQ) treatment can prevent autophagy and HSC activation in vitro and in vivo in bile-duct-ligated (BDL) mice. Sham-operated and BDL mice were treated with either PBS or CQ in two 60 mg/kg doses the day (D) before and after surgery. On day 2 (2D), HSCs were isolated, and their biological activities were evaluated by measuring intracellular lipid content, α-sma/collagen, and expression of autophagy lc3, sqstm1/p62 markers. The treatment efficacy on liver function was evaluated with serum albumin, transaminases (AST/ALT), and hepatic histology. Primary HSCs were treated in vitro for 24 h with CQ at 0, 2.5, 5, 10, 30, and 50 µM. Autophagy and HSC activation were assessed after 2D of treatment. CQ treatment improved serum AST/ALT, albumin, and bile duct proliferation in 2D BDL mice. This is associated with a suppression of HSC activation, shown by higher HSC lipid content and collagen I staining, along with the blockage of HSC autophagy indicated by an increase in p62 level and reduction in lc3 staining. CQ 5 µM inhibited autophagy in primary HSCs in vitro by increasing p62 and lc3 accumulation, thereby suppressing their in vitro activation. The autophagy inhibitor CQ reduced HSC activation in vitro and in vivo. CQ improved liver function and reduced liver injury in BDL mice.

Exposure to second-hand smoke at home and its associated factors: findings from the Global Adult Tobacco Use survey in Vietnam, 2010.

OBJECTIVE: The paper describes the pattern of exposure to second-hand smoke (SHS) at home among the adult population of Vietnam and examines associated socio-demographic factors. METHODS: A total of 11,142 households were selected for this survey using a two-phase sampling design analogous with three-stage stratified cluster sampling. The dependent variable was the status of exposure to SHS at home. Independent variables included gender, age, occupation, asset-based wealth quintile, ethnicity, marital status, residence. Logistic regression modelling was performed to examine the association with relevant factors of patterns of exposure to second-hand smoke among non-smokers. RESULTS: Of adults aged 15 years and above (representing approximately 47 million people) 73.1% reported they were exposed to SHS at home at least monthly. Considering non-smokers only, the prevalence of exposure to SHS at home was 67.6% (equivalent to approximately 33 million non-smokers). The significant correlates of the status of exposure to SHS at home among non-smokers were female gender, ethnic minority, low education, and lack of smoking restriction at home. CONCLUSION: The study showed that a high percentage of people are exposed to second-hand smoke at home. Disadvantaged people were more likely than the better-off to be exposed to SHS at home.

Genome-Guided Investigation Provides New Insights into Secondary Metabolites of Streptomyces parvulus SX6 from Aegiceras corniculatum.

Whole-genome sequencing and genome mining are recently considered an efficient approach to shine more light on the underlying secondary metabolites of Streptomyces. The present study unearths the biosynthetic potential of endophytic SX6 as a promising source of biologically active substances and plant-derived compounds for the first time. Out of 38 isolates associated with Aegiceras corniculatum (L.) Blanco, Streptomyces parvulus SX6 was highly active against Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC® 9027™ and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis (MRSE) ATCC® 35984™. Additionally, S. parvulus SX6 culture extract showed strong cytotoxicity against Hep3B, MCF-7, and A549 cell lines at a concentration of 30 µg/ml, but not in non-cancerous HEK-293 cells. The genome contained 7.69 Mb in size with an average G + C content of 72.8% and consisted of 6,779 protein-coding genes. AntiSMASH analysis resulted in the identification of 29 biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) for secondary metabolites. Among them, 4 BGCs showed low similarity (28-67% of genes show similarity) to actinomycin, streptovaricin, and polyoxypeptin gene clusters, possibly attributed to antibacterial and anticancer activities observed. In addition, the complete biosynthetic pathways of plant-derived compounds, including daidzein and genistein were identified using genome mining and HPLC-DAD-MS analysis. These findings portray an exciting avenue for future characterization of promising secondary metabolites from mangrove endophytic S. parvulus.

Optimization of the isolation procedure and culturing conditions for hepatic stellate cells obtained from mouse.

Liver fibrosis (LF) mortality rate is approximately 2 million per year. Irrespective of the etiology of LF, a key element in its development is the transition of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) from a quiescent phenotype to a myofibroblast-like cell with the production of fibrotic proteins. It is necessary to define optimal isolation and culturing conditions for good HSCs yield and proper phenotype preservation for studying the activation of HSCs in vitro. In the present study, the optimal conditions of HSC isolation and culture were examined to maintain the HSC's undifferentiated phenotype. HSCs were isolated from Balb/c mice liver using Nycodenz, 8, 9.6, and 11%. The efficiency of the isolation procedure was evaluated by cell counting and purity determination by flow cytometry. Quiescent HSCs were cultured in test media supplemented with different combinations of fetal bovine serum (FBS), glutamine (GLN), vitamin A (vitA), insulin, and glucose. The cells were assessed at days 3 and 7 of culture by evaluating the morphology, proliferation using cell counting kit-8, lipid storage using Oil Red O (ORO) staining, expression of a-smooth muscle actin, collagen I, and lecithin-retinol acyltransferase by qRT-PCR and immunocytochemistry (ICC). The results showed that Nycodenz, at 9.6%, yielded the best purity and quantity of HSCs. Maintenance of HSC undifferentiated phenotype was achieved optimizing culturing conditions (serum-free Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's Medium (DMEM) supplemented with glucose (100 mg/dl), GLN (0.5 mM), vitA (100 µM), and insulin (50 ng/ml)) with a certain degree of proliferation allowing their perpetuation in culture. In conclusion, we have defined optimal conditions for HSCs isolation and culture.

Knowledge of Cervical Cancer and Human Papillomavirus Vaccines among Child-Bearing Aged Women in Hanoi, Vietnam.

OBJECTIVES: The study sought to examine knowledge of cervical cancer and human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines among child-bearing aged women in Hanoi, Vietnam. METHODS: In 2016, 807 women aged 18 to 49 years were recruited from one urban area and one rural area in 2016 and were examined through face-to-face paper-based interviews. Pearson's chi-square test and an independent t-test were utilized to compare awareness of cervical cancer and HPV vaccination among women according residential status. RESULTS: Overall, 83.8% and 71.3% women had heard about cervical cancer and HPV vaccination, respectively. Mean knowledge scores for cervical cancer and HPV vaccination were 4.60±1.43 out of 7 and 1.53±1.35 out of 5, respectively. Women living in an urban area were more likely to be aware of cervical cancer and to be more knowledgeable of HPV vaccination than women in a rural area. CONCLUSIONS: Despite strong awareness, we found knowledge on cervical cancer and HPV vaccination to be alarmingly insufficient among Vietnamese women.
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Successful Treatment of Intralesional Triamcilonon Acetonide Injection in Keloid Patients.

AIM: Evaluation the effect of intralesional corticosteroid injection on keloid, at the National Hospital of Dermatology and Venereology from 1/2009 to 12/2009. METHODS: A group of 65 patients with keloid were randomly assigned into three groups. In the studied group, 33 patients were intralesionally injected 7.5 mg/1 cm2 of TCA. In the control group, TAC 32 patients were intralesionally injected 15 mg/1 cm2 of TCA. The result was evaluated basing on the criteria of Henderson (1998) and El-Tonsy (1996). RESULTS: In comparison between 2 groups, good to excellent improvement in the studied group was statistically higher than the control group (90.7% versus 68.7%; p < 0.05). After each injection, the thickness of the scar was reduced 1.24 ± 0.53 mm in the studied group and 0.81 ± 0.39 mm in the control group. The disappearance of pain and itching after treatment were 86.6% and 95.5% in the studied group and 78.1% and 80% in the control group (p > 0.05). Ulceration, acne and troublesome with menstrual cycles were sometimes were noted more frequently in the control group than in the studied group. CONCLUSION: Intralesional triamcinolone acetonide injection had a good result, and 7.5 mg/1 cm2 scar is the best dose for treatment of keloid.

Successful Treatment of Intralesional Bleomycin in Keloids of Vietnamese Population.

BACKGROUND: Keloid is an overactive condition of the skin tissue to early lesions characterised by proliferation of fibroblasts, excessive collagen production in the lesion. Treatment of keloids is a big challenge because of the poor response rate and high risk of recurrence after treatment. We found that bleomycin offers promise in the treatment of keloids. AIM: To evaluate the efficacy of bleomycin injected in the injury for keloids treatment. METHODS: The treatment was carried out in 55 patients having 120 keloids of different sizes and locations. Average treatments were 4 times. RESULTS: Complete flattening was 70.8%, highly significant flattening was 8.3%, no patient of minimal flattening. Systemic side-effects of bleomycin were not evaluated, but local side-effects were mainly pains (100%), blisters (78.3%), ulceration (5.8%), and hyperpigmentation (56.7%). CONCLUSION: The percentage of patients recurring 6, 12, 15, 18 months after the last treatment were 3.8, 15.4, 45.5, 50%, respectively.

Genotoxic activity of organic contamination of the Songhua River in the north-eastern region of the People's Republic of China.

The Songhua River is one of the biggest rivers in China and is the major freshwater source for industry and agriculture, as well as the source of the drinking water for millions of residents living along it. Heavy contamination of the Songhua River is due to domestic sewage and industrial wastewater. Thus, we set out to determine the carcinogenic potential of water samples taken from drinking water source of Harbin city in the Songhua River. Short-term genotoxic bioassays using Ames, SCE, and cell transformation assays were employed to examine the genotoxic activity of the ether extracts of water samples taken from the Songhua River. The results of the Ames test indicated that there were frame shift mutagens in the water samples, which were both direct and indirect. A dose-response relationship for the SCE assay was obtained, and the SCE cumulative frequency moved obviously to the right with increasing doses of water samples. Typical transformed foci were formed in NIH3T3 cells induced by ether extracts of water samples and the transformation frequency showed a dose-response relationship. The transformed cells showed the characteristics of malignant cells. All of the results indicated that the ether extracts of water samples taken from the Songhua River showed genotoxic activity.

Cigarette Smoking among Adolescents aged 13-15 in Viet Nam and Correlates of Current Cigarette Smoking: Results from GYTS 2014 Data.

The aim of this paper is to report the rate of current and ever cigarette smoking and explore correlates of current cigarette smoking among adolescents aged 13-15 in Viet Nam. This analysis was derived from GYTS survey, which comprised of 3,430 adolescents aged 13-15, conducted in 2014 in 13 cities and provinces of Viet Nam. We calculated the weighted rates of current and ever cigarette smoking and reported patterns of smoking behavior. We also performed logistic regression to explore correlates of current cigarette smoking behavior. The weighted rate of ever cigarette smoking was 9.5% (95% confidence interval (CI): 8.5 %-10.5%), in which the weighted rate among males (15.4%; 95% CI: 13.6%-17.0%) was higher than that among females (4.2%; 95% CI: 3.3%-5.1%). The weighted rate of current cigarette smoking was relatively low at 2.5% (95%CI: 2.0%- 3.0%) with higher weighted rate among males (4.9%; 95% CI: 3.8%-5.9%) compared to the corresponding figure among females (0.2%; 95% CI: 0.0 %-0.5%). Current cigarette smoking was significantly higher among males than females, in students aged 15 versus 13 years old, and in students who had several or all close friends smoking and students with daily observation of smoking at school. For greater smoking reduction outcomes, we recommend that tobacco interventions for adolescents should consider targeting more male students at older ages, establish stricter adherence to school-based banning of cigarette smoking, engage both smoking and nonsmoking adolescents and empower adolescents to resist peer smoking influence as well as changing their norms or beliefs towards smoking benefits.

Cutaneous fascioliasis: a case report in Vietnam.

A 40 year-old woman living in Gialai, Kontum, Vietnam, developed a red solid mass in the epigastric region. From ultrasound investigation, liver abscess and myositis of the intercostal muscle was diagnosed. Two weeks after treatment with antibiotics, the mass disappeared, but a migratory track developed in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen. An aspiration of the vesicular end of the serpiginous track showed a light brown, living worm that was later identified as an immature Fasciola sp. This is the first case report of cutaneous fascioliasis in the form similar to creeping eruption.

Case report: intraocular gnathostomiasis in Vietnam.

This is the report of the first case of intraocular gnathostomiasis diagnosed in Vietnam. The disease progressed in two months in two distinct phases: in the first phase, the patient had swellings, which appeared at different times and in different locations, on his face--this phase lasted around one month; the second phase was the embedding of the parasite in the vitreous cavity of the right eye and uveitis. Surgical extraction of a living Gnathostoma larva was carried out. Based on morphological, histological criteria, the larva may have been an atypical third-stage of Gnathostoma spinigerum.

The first human infection with Bertiella studeri in Vietnam.

This is the first case report of Bertiella studeri infection in Vietnam. The patient was a 4 year old boy in Cai Lay district of Tien Giang Province, noting some proglottids in his feces. The time and mode of infection were unknown, but anorexia, weight loss, and intermittent diarrhea were noted. Niclosamide (Yomesan) 1 gram was prescribed, and then albendazole (Zentel) 400mg daily for 3 days. Proglottids were found in the feces three months after the first treatment, and 1 month after the second course.

Seasonality in mortality and its relationship to temperature among the older population in Hanoi, Vietnam.

BACKGROUND: Several studies have established a relationship between temperature and mortality. In particular, older populations have been shown to be vulnerable to temperature effects. However, little information exists on the temperature-mortality relationship in Vietnam. OBJECTIVES: This article aims to examine the monthly temperature-mortality relationship among older people in Hanoi, Vietnam, over the period between 2005 and 2010, and estimate seasonal patterns in mortality. METHODS: We employed Generalized Additive Models, including smooth functions, to model the temperature-mortality relationships. A quasi-Poisson distribution was used to model overdispersion of death counts. Temporal trends, seasonality, and population size were adjusted for while estimating changes in monthly mortality over the study period. A cold month was defined as a month with a mean temperature below 19°C. RESULTS: This study found that the high peak of mortality coincided with low temperatures in the month of February 2008, during which the mean temperature was the lowest in the whole study period. There was a significant relationship between mean monthly temperature and mortality among the older people (p<0.01). Overall, there was a significant decrease in the number of deaths in the year 2009 during the study period. There was a 21% increase in the number of deaths during the cold season compared to the warm season. The increase in mortality during the cold period was higher among females compared to males (female: IRR [incidence relative risk] =1.23; male: IRR=1.18). CONCLUSIONS: Cold temperatures substantially increased mortality among the older population in Hanoi, Vietnam, and there were gender differences. Necessary preventive measures are required to mitigate temperature effects with greater attention to vulnerable groups.