A metal-organic framework signaling probe-mediated immunosensor for the economical and rapid determination of enrofloxacin in milk.

Ensuring the safety of animal-derived foods requires the reliable and swift identification of enrofloxacin residues to monitor the presence of antibiotics. In this regard, we synthesized, tuned, and investigated the optical properties of a bimetallic metal-organic framework (Ce/Zr-UiO 66). The investigation was facilitated by employing a polydopamine-coated pipette tip with high adsorption efficiency, serving as an immunoreactive carrier. Subsequently, an immunofunctionalized variant of Ce/Zr-UiO 66, referred to as Ce/Zr-UiO 66@ Bovine serum albumin-enrofloxacin, was developed as an optical probe for the rapid and sensitive identification of enrofloxacin across a variety of samples. The method can accurately detect enrofloxacin at concentrations as low as 0.12 ng/mL, with a determination time of under 15 min; furthermore, it demonstrates exceptional efficacy when applied to food, environmental, and clinical samples. The implementation of this methodology offers a valuable means for cost-effective, rapid, and on-site enrofloxacin determination.

Association between health insurance cost-sharing and choice of hospital tier for cardiovascular diseases in China: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Hospitals in China are classified into tiers (1, 2 or 3), with the largest (tier 3) having more equipment and specialist staff. Differential health insurance cost-sharing by hospital tier (lower deductibles and higher reimbursement rates in lower tiers) was introduced to reduce overcrowding in higher tier hospitals, promote use of lower tier hospitals, and limit escalating healthcare costs. However, little is known about the effects of differential cost-sharing in health insurance schemes on choice of hospital tiers. Methods: In a 9-year follow-up of a prospective study of 0.5 M adults from 10 areas in China, we examined the associations between differential health insurance cost-sharing and choice of hospital tiers for patients with a first hospitalisation for stroke or ischaemic heart disease (IHD) in 2009-2017. Analyses were performed separately in urban areas (stroke: n = 20,302; IHD: n = 19,283) and rural areas (stroke: n = 21,130; IHD: n = 17,890), using conditional logit models and adjusting for individual socioeconomic and health characteristics. Findings: About 64-68% of stroke and IHD cases in urban areas and 27-29% in rural areas chose tier 3 hospitals. In urban areas, higher reimbursement rates in each tier and lower tier 3 deductibles were associated with a greater likelihood of choosing their respective hospital tiers. In rural areas, the effects of cost-sharing were modest, suggesting a greater contribution of other factors. Higher socioeconomic status and greater disease severity were associated with a greater likelihood of seeking care in higher tier hospitals in urban and rural areas. Interpretation: Patient choice of hospital tiers for treatment of stroke and IHD in China was influenced by differential cost-sharing in urban areas, but not in rural areas. Further strategies are required to incentivise appropriate health seeking behaviour and promote more efficient hospital use. Funding: Wellcome Trust, Medical Research Council, British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Kadoorie Charitable Foundation, China Ministry of Science and Technology, and National Natural Science Foundation of China.

Device-measured movement behaviours in over 20,000 China Kadoorie Biobank participants.

BACKGROUND: Movement behaviours, including physical activity, sedentary behaviour, and sleep have been shown to be associated with several chronic diseases. However, they have not been objectively measured in large-scale prospective cohort studies in low-and middle-income countries. We aim to describe the patterns of device-measured movement behaviours collected in the China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB) study. METHODS: During 2020 and 2021, a random subset of 25,087 surviving CKB individuals participated in the 3rd resurvey of the CKB. Among them, 22,511 (89.7%) agreed to wear an Axivity AX3 wrist-worn triaxial accelerometer for seven consecutive days to assess their habitual movement behaviours. We developed a machine-learning model to infer time spent in four movement behaviours [i.e. sleep, sedentary behaviour, light intensity physical activity (LIPA), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA)]. Descriptive analyses were performed for wear-time compliance and patterns of movement behaviours by different participant characteristics. RESULTS: Data from 21,897 participants (aged 65.4 ± 9.1 years; 35.4% men) were received for demographic and wear-time analysis, with a median wear-time of 6.9 days (IQR: 6.1-7.0). Among them, 20,370 eligible participants were included in movement behavior analyses. On average, they had 31.1 mg/day (total acceleration) overall activity level, accumulated 7.7 h/day (32.3%) of sleep time, 8.8 h/day (36.6%) sedentary, 5.7 h/day (23.9%) in light physical activity, and 104.4 min/day (7.2%) in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. There was an inverse relationship between age and overall acceleration with an observed decline of 5.4 mg/day (17.4%) per additional decade. Women showed a higher activity level than men (32.3 vs 28.8 mg/day) and there was a marked geographical disparity in the overall activity level and time allocation. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first large-scale accelerometer data collected among Chinese adults, which provides rich and comprehensive information about device-measured movement behaviour patterns. This resource will enhance our knowledge about the potential relevance of different movement behaviours for chronic disease in Chinese adults.

Sustainable development of urban agglomeration based on material metabolism: a case study on Fujian Delta, China.

As highly concentrated urbanized areas, urban agglomerations bear increasing resource depletion and environmental pressures, which threaten the regional sustainable development. Resource and environmental problems arising from the process of urbanization can be attributed to the dislocation or maladjustment of material metabolism in time or space. Conducting research on material metabolism at the level of urban agglomerations is helpful in finding the root causes of environmental problems to provide support for the reduction of regional resource consumption and pollution emissions. The material metabolism characteristics of the urban agglomeration and internal cities of the Fujian Delta Urban Agglomeration (FDUA) in China are evaluated using the material flow analysis. The following results are observed. (1) The economic development of the FDUA is still at risk of resource consumption, and a large proportion of hidden flow (HF > 80%) drags down the overall metabolic efficiency and sustainable development. (2) The discharge of various pollutants in the FDUA generally shows a downward trend. Improving metabolic efficiency, delayed MCI growth, and improved overall regional environmental quality are observed. (3) Cities that have relatively scarce land resources but are economically developed, such as Xiamen, still bear a relatively heavy ecological burden (ECdmc > 1). (4) Regional collaboration is conducive to the sustainable development of multiple regions. On the one hand, the results of this study provide decision-making basis for the sustainable development of the national ecological civilization demonstration area. On the other hand, this work guides the establishment of a comprehensive industrial linkage and cooperation mechanism for the same type of small- and medium-sized urban agglomerations.

Integrated Assessment of Water Environmental Health Risk through Drinking Water Ingestion in Lhasa River Basin: Quantitative Analysis and Environmental Significance.

An integrated assessment of water environmental health risk through drinking water ingestion in Lhasa River has been implemented. The health risks caused by different pollutants in different age groups (children, juvenile and adult groups) are in the order of 10-8 ~ 10-7, 10-7 ~ 10-5 and 10-13 ~ 10-8 a-1, respectively. The total health risks for all age groups are lower than the International Commission on Radiation Protection recommended value and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommended value at all points except LS4, LS12 and LS13. The total health risk levels in different age groups at most points are class III or II, which means that there are low or negligible negative effect in these points and age groups. It is more important to monitor the arsenic concentration. The water environment quality protecting in Lhasa River Basin must be consistent with the clear water and blue sky protecting in Tibet Autonomous Region and the national ecological security barrier construction on the Tibetan Plateau.

Development, validation, and evaluation of a risk assessment tool for personalized screening of gastric cancer in Chinese populations.

BACKGROUND: Effective risk prediction models are lacking for personalized endoscopic screening of gastric cancer (GC). We aimed to develop, validate, and evaluate a questionnaire-based GC risk assessment tool for risk prediction and stratification in the Chinese population. METHODS: In this three-stage multicenter study, we first selected eligible variables by Cox regression models and constructed a GC risk score (GCRS) based on regression coefficients in 416,343 subjects (aged 40-75 years) from the China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB, development cohort). In the same age range, we validated the GCRS effectiveness in 13,982 subjects from another independent Changzhou cohort (validation cohort) as well as in 5348 subjects from an endoscopy screening program in Yangzhou. Finally, we categorized participants into low (bottom 20%), intermediate (20-80%), and high risk (top 20%) groups by the GCRS distribution in the development cohort. RESULTS: The GCRS using 11 questionnaire-based variables demonstrated a Harrell's C-index of 0.754 (95% CI, 0.745-0.762) and 0.736 (95% CI, 0.710-0.761) in the two cohorts, respectively. In the validation cohort, the 10-year risk was 0.34%, 1.05%, and 4.32% for individuals with a low (≤ 13.6), intermediate (13.7~30.6), and high (≥ 30.7) GCRS, respectively. In the endoscopic screening program, the detection rate of GC varied from 0.00% in low-GCRS individuals, 0.27% with intermediate GCRS, to 2.59% with high GCRS. A proportion of 81.6% of all GC cases was identified from the high-GCRS group, which represented 28.9% of all the screened participants. CONCLUSIONS: The GCRS can be an effective risk assessment tool for tailored endoscopic screening of GC in China. Risk Evaluation for Stomach Cancer by Yourself (RESCUE), an online tool was developed to aid the use of GCRS.

Impacts of solid fuel use versus smoking on life expectancy at age 30 years in the rural and urban Chinese population: a prospective cohort study.

Background: The impact of solid fuel use on life expectancy (LE) in less-developed countries remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the potential impact of household solid fuel use on LE in the rural and urban Chinese population, with the effect of smoking as a reference. Methods: We used data from China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB) of 484,915 participants aged 30-79 free of coronary heart disease, stroke, or cancer at baseline. Analyses were performed separately for solid fuel use for cooking, solid fuel use for heating, and smoking, with participants exposed to the other two sources excluded. Solid fuels refer to coal and wood, and clean fuels refer to electricity, gas, and central heating. We used a flexible parametric Royston-Parmar model to estimate hazard ratios of all-cause mortality and predict LE at age 30. Findings: Totally, 185,077, 95,228, and 230,995 participants were included in cooking-, heating-, and smoking-related analyses, respectively. During a median follow-up of approximately 12.1 years, 12,725, 7,531, and 18,878 deaths were recorded in the respective analysis. Compared with clean fuel users who reported cooking with ventilation, participants who used solid fuels with ventilation and without ventilation had a difference in LE (95% confidence interval [CI]) at age 30 of -1.72 (-2.88, -0.57) and -2.62 (-4.16, -1.05) years for men and -1.33 (-1.85, -0.81) and -1.35 (-2.02, -0.67) years for women, respectively. The difference in LE (95% CI) for heating was -2.23 (-3.51, -0.95) years for men and -1.28 (-2.08, -0.48) years for women. In rural men, the LE reduction (95% CI) related to solid fuel use for cooking (-2.55; -4.51, -0.58) or heating (-3.26; -6.09, 0.44) was more than that related to smoking (-1.71; -2.54, -0.89). Conversely, in urban men, the LE reduction (95% CI) related to smoking (-3.06; -3.56, -2.56) was more than that related to solid fuel use for cooking (-1.28; -2.61, 0.05) and heating (-1.90; -3.16, -0.65). Similar results were observed in women but with a smaller magnitude. Interpretation: In this Chinese population, the harm to LE from household use of solid fuels was greater than that from smoking in rural residents. Conversely, the negative impact of smoking was greater than solid fuel use in urban residents. Our findings highlight the complexity and diversity of the factors affecting LE in less-developed populations. Funding: National Natural Science Foundation of China, National Key R&D Program of China, Kadoorie Charitable Foundation, UK Wellcome Trust.

Tobacco smoking and risks of more than 470 diseases in China: a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Tobacco smoking is estimated to account for more than 1 million annual deaths in China, and the epidemic continues to increase in men. Large nationwide prospective studies linked to different health records can help to periodically assess disease burden attributed to smoking. We aimed to examine associations of smoking with incidence of and mortality from an extensive range of diseases in China. METHODS: We analysed data from the prospective China Kadoorie Biobank, which recruited 512 726 adults aged 30-79 years, of whom 210 201 were men and 302 525 were women. Participants who had no major disabilities were identified through local residential records in 100-150 administrative units, which were randomly selected by use of multistage cluster sampling, from each of the ten diverse study areas of China. They were invited and recruited between June 25, 2004, and July 15, 2008. Upon study entry, trained health workers administered a questionnaire assessing detailed smoking behaviours and other key characteristics (eg, sociodemographics, lifestyle, and medical history). Participants were followed up via electronic record linkages to death and disease registries and health insurance databases, from baseline to Jan 1, 2018. During a median 11-year follow-up (IQR 10-12), 285 542 (55·7%) participants were ever hospitalised, 48 869 (9·5%) died, and 5252 (1·0%) were lost to follow-up during the age-at-risk of 35-84 years. Cox regression yielded hazard ratios (HRs) associating smoking with disease incidence and mortality, adjusting for multiple testing. FINDINGS: At baseline, 74·3% of men and 3·2% of women (overall 32·4%) ever smoked regularly. During follow-up, 1 137 603 International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision (ICD-10)-coded incident events occurred, involving 476 distinct conditions and 85 causes of death, each with at least 100 cases. Compared with never-regular smokers, ever-regular smokers had significantly higher risks for nine of 18 ICD-10 chapters examined at age-at-risk of 35-84 years. For individual conditions, smokers had significantly higher risks of 56 diseases (50 for men and 24 for women) and 22 causes of death (17 for men and nine for women). Among men, ever-regular smokers had an HR of 1·09 (95% CI 1·08-1·11) for any disease incidence when compared with never-regular smokers, and significantly more episodes and longer duration of hospitalisation, particularly those due to cancer and respiratory diseases. For overall mortality, the HRs were greater in men from urban areas than in men from rural areas (1·50 [1·42-1·58] vs 1·25 [1·20-1·30]). Among men from urban areas who began smoking at younger than 18 years, the HRs were 2·06 (1·89-2·24) for overall mortality and 1·32 (1·27-1·37) for any disease incidence. In this population, 19·6% of male (24·3% of men residing in urban settings and 16·2% of men residing in rural settings) and 2·8% of female deaths were attributed to ever-regular smoking. INTERPRETATION: Among Chinese adults, smoking was associated with higher risks of morbidity and mortality from a wide range of diseases. Among men, the future smoking-attributed disease burden will increase further, highlighting a pressing need for reducing consumption through widespread cessation and uptake prevention. FUNDING: British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology, Kadoorie Charitable Foundation, UK Medical Research Council, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Wellcome Trust.

Enzyme-free catalytic hairpin assembly reaction-mediated micro-orifice resistance assay for the ultrasensitive and low-cost detection of Listeria monocytogenes.

The rapid, reliable, ultra-sensitive, and cost-saving detection of Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) has substantial implications for food safety. Thus, we developed a novel, enzyme-free, dual-signal amplification approach to detect L. monocytogenes based on the micro-orifice resistance technique combined with the aggregation of polystyrene (PS) microspheres constructed by the catalytic hairpin assembly reaction (CHA). Both the detection probes (probe2) and trigger DNA (tDNA) were first modified on PS microspheres (probe2-PS-tDNA). The tDNA was enriched by PS microspheres for the first signal amplification. After the hybridization reaction (the capture probes (probe1), target DNA, and probe2), unreacted probe2-PS-tDNA was removed, and the complex triggered the CHA reaction for the second signal amplification. Additionally, the micro-orifice resistance technique can sensitively identify PS microsphere aggregation caused by the CHA reaction to analyze the target DNA quantitatively. The CHA-mediated micro-orifice resistance assay was constructed by combining cost-saving PS microsphere probes, the highly specific DNA hybridization reaction, and the enzyme-free signal amplification strategy, substantially reducing the cost and improving the detection sensitivity (the limit of detection is 4 CFU/mL). This study provides a superior means to detect L. monocytogenes in complex food samples.

Discovery and functional assessment of a novel adipocyte population driven by intracellular Wnt/ß-catenin signaling in mammals.

Wnt/ß-catenin signaling has been well established as a potent inhibitor of adipogenesis. Here, we identified a population of adipocytes that exhibit persistent activity of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling, as revealed by the Tcf/Lef-GFP reporter allele, in embryonic and adult mouse fat depots, named as Wnt+ adipocytes. We showed that this ß-catenin-mediated signaling activation in these cells is Wnt ligand- and receptor-independent but relies on AKT/mTOR pathway and is essential for cell survival. Such adipocytes are distinct from classical ones in transcriptomic and genomic signatures and can be induced from various sources of mesenchymal stromal cells including human cells. Genetic lineage-tracing and targeted cell ablation studies revealed that these adipocytes convert into beige adipocytes directly and are also required for beige fat recruitment under thermal challenge, demonstrating both cell autonomous and non-cell autonomous roles in adaptive thermogenesis. Furthermore, mice bearing targeted ablation of these adipocytes exhibited glucose intolerance, while mice receiving exogenously supplied such cells manifested enhanced glucose utilization. Our studies uncover a unique adipocyte population in regulating beiging in adipose tissues and systemic glucose homeostasis.

Sustainable Strategies for the Agricultural Development of Shaanxi Province Based on the Risk Assessment of Heavy Metal Pollution.

Heavy metal elements in farmland soil can be absorbed by crops and endanger food security. To assess the risk of heavy metal elements in farmland soil to crops in Shaanxi Province, we collected 693 soil samples and analyzed the concentrations of nine heavy metals (As, Hg, Pb, Cd, Cr, Mn, Cu, Zn, and Ni). According to the National Standard (GB 15619-2018) of the People's Republic of China, the proportions of soil sample points in which the concentration of heavy metals was higher than the risk screening value were 2.02% (Cd), 0.29% (Cr), 0.29% (Zn), 2.31% (Cu), 1.15% (Ni), and 0.14% (Pb). The proportions of areas in which the concentration of heavy metal was higher than the background value were as follows, from largest to smallest: Zn (53.20%) > Mn (49.86%) > Cd (29.51%) > Hg (26.77%) > As (26.58%) > Ni (14.95%) > Cu (13.90%) > Pb (6.49%) > Cr (1.40%). The assessment of the risk of heavy metal exposure (geo-accumulation index (Igeo), pollution load index (PLI), and potential ecological risk index (RI)) determined that Hg was the most concerning heavy metal in the farmland soil of Shaanxi Province. Moreover, 11.56% of these areas had Hg contamination, and they were mainly distributed in the western Guanzhong region. The farmland soil in the Guanzhong region was the most contaminated, followed by the southern Shaanxi region and then the northern Shaanxi region. The main sources of heavy metal contamination causing large-scale farmland soil pollution are agricultural production activities, transportation, and air pollution caused by coal combustion in Shaanxi Province. Therefore, sustainable strategies for the prevention and control of heavy metal pollution and agricultural development must be applied in different regions. Heavy metal pollution should be managed, and relevant policies should be created and enforced, such as the standardization of the use of qualified pesticides and fertilizers, improved treatment of livestock and poultry manure, development of the clean energy industry structure, and promotion of renewable energy vehicles. In terms of the high-quality development of agriculture, developing modern and local agriculture in different regions should be based on local geographical, climatic, and economic conditions.

Key mitigation regions and strategies for CO2 emission reduction in China based on STIRPAT and ARIMA models.

China is facing increasing pressure to reduce CO2 emissions from energy consumption. Given this issue, understanding the characteristics, influencing factors, and trends can provide adequate information for decision-makers to solve the CO2 emission problem. This study analyzes the characteristics of CO2 emissions from energy consumption in 30 regions of China from 2005 to 2018 and applies the STIRPAT model to identify the impact of the influencing factors. Combined with the CO2 emission trend in 2030 as predicted by the ARIMA model, the key mitigation regions and strategies reduction have been determined. Results indicate that CO2 emissions have been increasing from 2005 to 2018 in China, thus showing the characteristic of the east being larger than the west spatially. Under the baseline scenario, these emissions will continue to rise in 2030. Carbon emissions intensity is declining, and the gap between provinces with the highest and lowest per capita CO2 emissions is widening. Although per capita GDP is significantly positively correlated with provinces, population is the key factor influencing more provinces, followed by the proportion of the secondary industry and urbanization rate. To achieve low-carbon sustainable development, Shandong, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Guangdong, Shaanxi, Xinjiang, and Ningxia are considered the key regions of concern for emission reduction. The heterogeneity of CO2 emission characteristics and influencing factors among regions provides a direction for the development of targeted and differentiated regional emission reduction strategies.

Low-Cost and Convenient Microchannel Resistance Biosensing Platform by Directly Translating Biorecognition into a Current Signal.

We report a low-cost and convenient microchannel resistance (MCR) biosensing platform that uses current signal to report biorecognition. The biorecognition behavior between targets and biometric molecules (antigens, antibodies, or oligonucleotides) immobilized on magnetic beads and polystyrene (PS) microspheres induces a quantitative change in the unreacted PS microspheres. After magnetic separation, the unreacted PS microsphere solution is passed through the microchannel, leading to an obvious blocking effect, resulting in an increase in resistance, which can in turn be measured by monitoring the electric current. Thus, the biorecognition is directly converted into a detectable current signal without any bulky instruments or additional chemical reactions. The MCR biosensing platform is cost-effective and user-friendly with high accuracy. It can be an appropriate analysis technique for point-of-care testing in resource-poor settings.

Factors associated with suicide risk among Chinese adults: A prospective cohort study of 0.5 million individuals.

BACKGROUND: Suicide is a leading cause of death in China and accounts for about one-sixth of all suicides worldwide. The objective of this study was to examine the recent distribution of suicide and risk factors for death by suicide. Identifying underlying risk factors could benefit development of evidence-based prevention and intervention programs. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We conducted a prospective study, the China Kadoorie Biobank, of 512,715 individuals (41% men, mean age 52 years) from 10 (5 urban, 5 rural) areas which are diverse across China in geographic locations, social economic developmental stages, and prevalence of disease patterns. After the baseline measurements of risk factors during 2004 to 2008, participants were followed up for suicide outcomes including suicide and possible suicide deaths. Risk factors, such as sociodemographic factors and physical and mental health status, were assessed by semistructured interviews and self-report questionnaires. Suicide and possible suicide deaths were identified through linkage to the local death registries using ICD-10 codes. We conducted Cox regression to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) for suicide and for possible suicide in sensitivity analyses. During an average follow-up period of 9.9 years, 520 (101 per 100,000) people died from suicide (51.3% male), and 79.8% of them lived in rural areas. Sociodemographic factors associated with increased suicide risk were male gender (adjusted hazard ratios [aHR] = 1.6 [95% CI 1.4 to 2.0], p < 0.001), older age (1.3 [1.2 to 1.5] by each 10-yr increase, p < 0.001), rural residence (2.6 [2.1 to 3.3], p < 0.001), and single status (1.7 [1.4 to 2.2], p < 0.001). Increased hazards were found for family-related stressful life events (aHR = 1.8 [1.2 to 1.9], p < 0.001) and for major physical illnesses (1.5 [1.3 to 1.9], p < 0.001). There were strong associations of suicide with a history of lifetime mental disorders (aHR = 9.6 [5.9 to 15.6], p < 0.001) and lifetime schizophrenia-spectrum disorders (11.0 [7.1 to 17.0], p < 0.001). Links between suicide risk and depressive disorders (aHR = 2.6 [1.4 to 4.8], p = 0.002) and generalized anxiety disorders (2.6 [1.0 to 7.1], p = 0.056) in the last 12 months, and sleep disorders (1.4 [1.2 to 1.7], p < 0.001) in the past month were also found. All HRs were adjusted for sociodemographic factors including gender, age, residence, single status, education, and income. The associations with possible suicide deaths were mostly similar to those with suicide deaths, although there was no clear link between possible suicide deaths and psychiatric factors such as depression and generalized anxiety disorders. A limitation of the study is that there is likely underreporting of mental disorders due to the use of self-report information for some diagnostic categories. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, we observed that a range of sociodemographic, lifestyle, stressful life events, physical, and mental health factors were associated with suicide in China. High-risk groups identified were elderly men in rural settings and individuals with mental disorders. These findings could form the basis of targeted approaches to reduce suicide mortality in China.

Potential health risk assessment of HFRs, PCBs, and OCPs in the Yellow River basin.

The concentrations of PBDEs, NBFRs, DP, PCBs, and OCPs were analyzed in water samples of the Yellow River Basin (YRB) and in soil and maize samples collected from basin irrigation areas to understand the status of POPs and associated health risks. The results showed: (1) the congeners of eight PBDEs and seven NBFRs were detected in 10 tributaries, with average concentrations of 1575 and 4288 pg. L-1. Thirty-three congeners of PCBs were detected, and the average concentration of PCB was 232 pg. L-1. Five HCHs were the primary congeners among twenty-three congeners of OCPs in the ten tributaries, accounting for 79% of the total. The average concentration of OCPs was 8287 pg. L-1. (2) Similar congeners of HFRs, PCBs, and OCPs were found in the trunk water. The ranking based on the HFR concentration was upstream > downstream > midstream, and that of the PCB and OCP concentration was downstream > upstream > midstream. (3) PCBs and OCPs in the trunk water of the YRB and in the soil and maize irrigated with river water pose potential carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks. The results indicate considerable organic pollution in the YRB, suggesting that national emission standards for POPs should be implemented soon.

Gender Differences Influence Gender Equality Awareness, Self-Esteem, and Subjective Well-Being Among School-Age Children in China.

The objective of this study was to investigate and analyze the status and influential factors of gender equality awareness, self-esteem, and subjective well-being in school-age boys and girls. The results can help schools and teachers provide more effective gender equality and mental health education. In the study, 284 valid questionnaires were collected from a total of 323 school-age boys and girls in the Hunan Province, China (effective response rate of 87.93%). The questionnaire covered gender equality awareness, self-esteem, and subjective well-being, with the influencing factors analyzed through multiple linear regression. There was a significant correlation among children's gender equality awareness in all areas examined (family, occupation, and school), with both boys and girls having the lowest awareness of gender equality in occupational fields. The children's self-esteem and subjective well-being were significantly correlated as well. Gender equality awareness, self-esteem, and subjective well-being among boys and girls reflected different influential factors. Androgynous traits (neither feminine nor masculine) were conducive to the development of gender equality awareness and self-esteem among the children. Therefore, schools and teachers need to provide gender equality and mental health education according to the specific psychological characteristics of each boy and girl.

Regional industrial synergy: Potential and path crossing the "environmental mountain".

Regional cooperation and common development are the new normal strategies of regional sustainable development and important approaches that positively affect economic globalization. Breaking the "small island thinking" model of a region or a country that only relies on "self-development" in economic development, exploring new kinetic energy for regional economic growth, and tapping the new potential of coupling development of economy and environment are important tasks to promote regional coordinated development. Benefits of regional industrial synergy in terms of economic growth, energy conservation, and consumption reduction are discussed on the basis of the synergetic development of regional industries as the entry point. Modified spatial gravity model, location quotient (LQ), LQ ratio (LQR), Krugman regional division index, industrial structure similarity coefficient (S), time series analysis, and scenario analysis are applied. In addition, the "Xia-Zhang-Quan" Metropolitan Area is considered as a case. Results show that: (1) the three industrial development of Xiamen, Quanzhou, and Zhangzhou has evident gradient structure, but the industrial structure has serious isomorphism (Sxq = 0.94, Sxz = 0.96, Sqz = 0.98); (2) Xiamen and Zhangzhou can achieve synergetic development through intra-industry and industrial chain division (LQRxz = 1.214), and Xiamen and Quanzhou can further cooperate on inter-industry division (LQRxq = 0.566); (3) In 2025, compared with the unadjusted mode, the "Xia-Zhang-Quan" Metropolitan Area can achieve 35.21% of economic growth space and reduce energy consumption by 32.85% under the synergetic mode. Therefore, regional industrial synergy can not only release great economic growth potential, but also has important potential in promoting regional development to cross the "environmental mountain". This study aims to explore an effective regional synergetic development path and new driving forces to promote developing countries, especially China, to cross the "environmental mountain" and realize the coupling development of social economy, resources, and environment.

Ecotoxicity assessment of a molybdenum mining effluent using acute lethal, oxidative stress, and osmoregulatory endpoints in zebrafish (Danio rerio).

The present study investigated the ecotoxicity of raw mining effluent from the largest molybdenum (Mo) open-pit mine in the Qinling mountains, China, and the treated effluent with neutralization and coagulation/adsorption processes, using zebrafish (Danio rerio). The results showed the following: (1) the mining effluent is acid mine drainage (AMD) and is highly toxic to zebrafish with a 96-h median lethal concentration (LC50) of 3.80% (volume percentage) of the raw effluent; (2) sublethal concentrations of the raw effluent (1/50, 1/10, and 1/2 96-h LC50) induced oxidative stress and osmoregulatory impairment, as reflected by the alterations in activities of superoxide dismutase and catalase and contents of malondialdehyde, and inhibition of Na+, K+-ATPase activity in gills and muscle after 28 days of sub-chronic exposure when compared with the unexposed group; and (3) the treatment of the raw effluent with neutralizer (NaOH) and adsorbent activated carbon reduced the acute lethal effect of raw effluent. The used endpoints including acute lethal and biochemical parameters related to oxidative stress and osmoregulatory impairment in zebrafish are cost-effective for toxicity assessment of AMD like the studied Mo mining effluent. Mining effluent management strategies extended by these results, i.e., the restriction of discharging raw and diluted effluent to adjacent waterways and the introduction of bio-monitoring system across all mining drainages in this area, were also proposed and discussed.

Assessment of heavy metal(loid)s contamination risk and grain nutritional quality in organic waste-amended soil.

Studies that evaluate the human health risk of heavy metal(loid)s pollution have not been widely performed for organic waste-amended soils on the Loess Plateau of China. With this respect, we conducted a 3-year field trial to estimate the heavy metal(loid)s contamination of soil and maize, the resultant nutritional quality of maize grains and the health risk under treatments of conventional fertilizer (CF), traditional Chinese medicine residue (TCMR) and sheep manure (SM). We found that protein, amino acids and lysine in maize grains were increased by 12.3, 11.3 and 5.88 % under TCMR treatments relative to SM application, respectively. Meanwhile, this treatment reduced the levels of Cr, Pb, Cd, As and Hg in soil and maize grains. All fertilization regimens resulted in greater health risks for children, with HI values ranging from 1.06 to 1.52 and CR levels for Cr and As being ï¹¥1.0 × 10-4, especially higher in SM treatments. This presented the beneficial effect of TCMR than SM. The further investigated of toxic metal(loid)s level in SM and its application risks, based on meta-analysis and Monte Carlo simulation, indicated Cd, Hg and Pb were the most cautionary heavy metal(loid)s and contamination risk were greater on the southwest regions of China.

Effect of different cooking methods on sensory quality assessment and in vitro digestibility of sturgeon steak.

Sous vide can keep the nutritional properties and improve taste of food compared with other conventional methods. In addition, this method may reduce the risk of recontamination after cooking and during storage. The purpose of this paper was to study the effects of four cooking methods (steaming, microwaving, baking, and frying) on the sensory and digestibility on sturgeon steak pretreated by sous vide during the cold storage (0-25 days). The results showed that the digestibility of steaming and microwaving groups (range from 80.34% to 90.12%) significantly higher than that of the other treatment groups (p < .05); however, the overall acceptability of the two groups was lower. What more, the frying group has the highest acceptability and the lowest digestibility (range from 65.12% to 70.89%). The springiness (4.12-6.56 mm) and chewiness (1.75-3.12 mm) of the frying group were significantly higher than those of the other treatment groups, which was consistent with the results of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) that frying treatment group has a denser structure and smaller pores. With the prolonged refrigeration time, especially between 15 and 25 days, the volatile flavor components (nitrogen oxide, methane, and alcohol) and stagnant water (T21) were significantly decreased. Principal component analysis showed that the moisture content was the main factor affecting the overall acceptability and best consumption time of the sturgeon was within 15 days. Simulating the effects of home cooking conditions and refrigeration storage time on the quality of sturgeon steak provided a reference for consumers using similar products.