Spillover effects of urban form on urban land use efficiency: evidence from a comparison between the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers of China.

The contradiction between the basin's economic importance and its role as an ecological barrier impedes efficient urban land use. This study aims to propose an integrated approach to compare the urban land use of two representative basin areas of the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the Yellow River Basin and to investigate the impact of urban form on urban land use efficiency. Urban form was characterized by landscape indexes including Patch Density, Largest Patch Index, Edge Density, Patch Cohesion Index, and Agglomeration Index based on FRAGSTATS 4.0 software, and urban land use efficiency was measured by using Slack-Based Model-Undesirable, considering urban land becomes an emission source. Furthermore, spatial econometric models were adopted to explore direct effects and spatial spillover effects of urban form on urban land use efficiency. From 2000 to 2018, changes in urban form in both Yangtze River Economic Belt and Yellow River Basin showed increased fragmentation, enhanced heterogeneity, and more complex patch shapes. The high values of urban land use efficiency were concentrated in lower reaches of the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers. Spatial econometric models suggested that between different basins and various sized cities, the impact of urban form on urban land use efficiency had a spatial spillover effect and regional heterogeneity. Results indicated that input factors such as capital and labor should be more concentrated in metropolitan areas and urban agglomerations, thus promoting higher land use efficiency.

Urban expansion patterns and their driving forces analysis: a comparison between Chengdu-Chongqing and Middle Reaches of Yangtze River urban agglomerations.

Urban agglomerations have emerged as the primary drivers of high-quality economic growth in China. While recent studies have examined the urban expansion patterns of individual cities, a comparative study of the urban expansion patterns of urban agglomerations at two different scales is required for a more comprehensive understanding. Thus, in this study, we conduct a two-scale comparative analysis of urban expansion patterns and their driving factors of the two largest urban agglomerations in western and central China, i.e., Chengdu-Chongqing urban agglomeration (CCUA) and the Middle Reaches of Yangtze River urban agglomerations (MRYRUA) at both the urban agglomeration and city levels. We investigate the urban expansion patterns of CCUA and MRYRUA between 2000 and 2020 using various models, including the urban expansion rate, fractal dimension, modified compactness, and gravity-center method. Then we use multiple linear regression analysis and geographically weighted regression (GWR) to explore the magnitude and geographical differentiation of influences for economic, demographic, industrial structure, environmental conditions, and neighborhood factors on urban expansion patterns. Our findings indicate that CCUA experienced significantly faster urban growth compared to MRYRUA. There is an excessive concentration of resources to megacities within the CCUA, whereas there is a lack of sufficient collaboration among the three provinces within the MRYRUA. Additionally, we identify significant differences in the impacts of driving forces of CCUA and MRYRUA, as well as spatial heterogeneity and regional aggregation in the variation of their strength. Our two-scale comparative study of urban expansion patterns will not only provide essential reference points for CCUA and MRYRUA but also serve as valuable insights for other urban agglomerations in China, enabling them to promote sustainable urban management and foster integrated regional development.

Assessment of Autologous Blood marker localIzation and intraoperative coLonoscopy localIzation in laparoscopic colorecTal cancer surgery (ABILITY): a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic colorectal surgery has been proved to have similar oncological outcomes with open surgery. Due to the lack of tactile perception, surgeons may have misjudgments in laparoscopic colorectal surgery. Therefore, the accurate localization of a tumor before surgery is important, especially in the early stages of cancer. Autologous blood was thought a feasible and safe tattooing agent for preoperative endoscopic localization but its benefits remain controversial. We therefore proposed this randomized trial to the accuracy and safety of autogenous blood localization in small, serosa-negative lesion which will be resected by laparoscopic colectomy. METHODS: The current study is a single-center, open-label, non-inferiority, randomized controlled trial. Eligible participants would be aged 18-80 years and diagnosed with large lateral spreading tumors that could not be treated endoscopically, malignant polyps treated endoscopically that required additional colorectal resection, and serosa-negative malignant colorectal tumors (≤ cT3). A total of 220 patients would be randomly assigned (1:1) to autologous blood group or intraoperative colonoscopy group. The primary outcome is the localization accuracy. The secondary endpoint is adverse events related to endoscopic tattooing. DISCUSSION: This trial will investigate whether autologous blood marker achieves similar localization accuracy and safety in laparoscopic colorectal surgery compared to intraoperative colonoscopy. If our research hypothesis is statistically proved, the rational introduction of autologous blood tattooing in preoperative colonoscopy can help improve identification of the location of tumors for laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery, performing an optimal resection, and minimizing unnecessary resections of normal tissues, thereby improving the patient's quality of life. Our research data will also provide high quality clinical evidence and data support for the conduction of multicenter phase III clinical trials. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05597384. Registered 28 October 2022.

Multiscale ecosystem service synergies/trade-offs and their driving mechanisms in the Han River Basin, China: implications for watershed management.

The synergies and trade-offs between ecosystem services (ESs) and their driving mechanisms are hot topics in ecology and geography research. In recent years, the Han River Basin (HRB) has been continuously impacted by high-intensity urban sprawl and the Middle Route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, which have posed severe threats to the ecology and regional stability along the route. It is thus critical to study the ES synergies/trade-offs and their driving mechanisms. Based on the InVEST model and the value coefficient method, four vital types of ESs in the HRB, i.e., carbon sequestration (CS), food supply (FS), net primary productivity (NPP), and water yield (WY), were evaluated at town, county, and sub-watershed scales. Then, the Pearson correlation analysis was adopted to quantify the interrelationship among different ESs. Finally, the ordinary least squares (OLS) and geographical detector model (GDM) were applied to reveal the driving mechanisms of the ES synergies/trade-offs. The results showed that (1) apart from NPP, which increased at a rate of 7.54 gC·m-2·a-1 during 2000-2018, the other three types of ESs in the HRB deteriorated, with WY almost halving. (2) While CS, FS, and WY tended to exhibit high synergistic relationships, NPP showed mostly trade-off relationships, and the evaluation scale did not affect those main relationships. (3) Precipitation is the strongest driving force for the ES synergies/trade-offs in the HRB, and natural factors are generally more influential than socioeconomic factors on the ES synergies/trade-offs. This study warns of the deteriorating ecological condition of the HRB and provides empirical evidence for the synergistic enhancement of regional ESs and the optimization of ecological management policies.

A Simple, Robust, and Cost-effective Method for Genotyping Small-scale Mutations.

Background and objectives: Genotyping is an important tool for studying gene functions in animals or detecting genetic variants in humans. Various methods using low to high concentrations of agarose or polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis have been developed for genotyping. These methods rely on the detection of large-size differences (20-2,000 bp) of targeted PCR products between a wild-type gene and a mutant gene. Endonuclease digestion was introduced to identify heterozygous mutations, but it was not possible to differentiate the wild-type from the homozygous mutants with the same or similar size. This study thus developed a novel, simple, and reliable test for genotyping animals or cells following genetic modifications. Methods: We developed an improved and simple method that used 2% agarose gel electrophoresis following T7E1 or Surveyor endonuclease digestion to firstly separate the heterozygous mutations from the wild-type or homozygous mutations. By adding a wild-type PCR product to a potentially homozygous product, which would form heteroduplexes, we could then separate the wild-type from a homozygous mutation with a nearly identical size or only a single base pair substitution without Sanger sequencing. Results: We verified this method in genotyping zebrafish mutants with a 2-8-bp deletion or insertion and mouse mutants with a 1- or 8-bp substitution. The wild-type, heterozygous, and homozygous mutations ranged 1-8 bp were clearly differentiated on agarose gel. Sanger sequencing also confirmed our genotyping results. Conclusions: This novel and improved genotyping method may have a broad application in many clinical and research laboratories for rapid and economical genotyping of patients and animals with a small area deletion or single base pair substitution, particularly in the era of gene editing or in those with naturally occurring mutations.

Quantifying the Relationship between Land Use Intensity and Ecosystem Services' Value in the Hanjiang River Basin: A Case Study of the Hubei Section.

An increased land use intensity due to rapid urbanization and socio-economic development would alter the structure and function of regional ecosystems and cause prominent environmental problems. Revealing the impact of land use intensity on ecosystem services (ES) would provide guidance for more informed decision making to promote the sustainable development of human and natural systems. In this study, we selected the Hanjiang River Basin (HRB) in Hubei Province (China) as our study area, explored the correlation between land use intensity and ecosystem Services' Value (ESV), and investigated impacts of natural and socio-economic factors on ESV variations based on the Geographical Detector Model (GDM) and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR). The results show that (1) from 2000 to 2020, land use intensity in HRB generally showed an upward trend, with a high spatial agglomeration in the southeast and low in the northwest; (2) the total ESV increased from 295.56 billion CNY in 2000 to 296.93 billion CNY in 2010, and then decreased to 295.63 CNY in 2020, exhibiting an inverted U-shaped trend, with regulation services contributing the most to ESV; (3) land use intensity and ESV had a strong negative spatial correlation, with LH (low land use intensity vs. high ESV) aggregations mainly distributed in the northwest, whereas HL (high land use intensity vs. low ESV) aggregations were located in the southeast; (4) natural factors, including annual mean temperature, the percentage of forest land, and slope were positively associated with ESV, while socio-economic factors, including GDP and population density, were negatively associated with ESV. To achieve the coordinated development of the socio-economy and the environment, ES should be incorporated into spatial planning and socio-economic development policies.

A Novel Deep Framework for English Communication Based on Educational Psychology Perspective.

The impact of verbal reading practices on learning is examined from the perspective of educational psychology, using the motivation theory and the schema theory. This research intends to enhance learner's English communication abilities in response to the needs for national economic growth and scientific and technological development. To motivate students to improve their English, the research may address the issue of inadequate opportunities by adding an artificial intelligence (AI) conversation mechanism to the students speaking English exercise. First, cognitive psychology is analyzed in detail, and a model based on cognitive psychology is implemented to solve the problems existing in student's English communication. In addition, various measures are presented and used to increase student's oral English communication abilities. We used sixty students from North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power are separated into two classes: Class A and Class B. The experimental group is called Class A, while the control group is called Class B. Following a comparison of the outcomes obtained before and after training. The experimental group's reading comprehension, responding to questions, situational conversation, and subject description scores rose by 13.33, 15.19, 17.39, and 28.3 %, respectively. The overall average score of the class climbed by 17.75 %, whereas the scores of pupils in Class B improved just an undersized. The results reveal that following the vocalized reading exercise, the student's English grades, self-efficacy, and topic knowledge increased considerably in the experimental group. Moreover, the proposed model, employs computer simulation in the English communication teaching system and AI, which can aid in the creation of an interactive learning environment for students to improve their spoken English and English communication abilities.

Synthesized effects of medium-term exposure to seawater acidification and microplastics on the physiology and energy budget of the thick shell mussel Mytilus coruscus.

Ocean acidification (OA) and microplastics (MPs) contamination are two results of human excises. In regions like estuarine areas, OA and MPs exposure are happening at the same time. The current research investigated the synthesized effects of OA and MPs exposure for a medium-term duration on the physiology and energy budget of the thick shell mussel Mytilus coruscus. Mussels were treated by six combinations of three MPs levels (0, 10 and 1000 items L-1) × two pH levels (7.3, 8.1) for 21 d. As a result, under pH 7.3, clearance rate (CR), food absorption efficiency (AE), respiration rate (RR), and scope for growth (SFG) significantly decreased, while the fecal organic dry weight ratio (E) significantly increased. 1000 items L-1 MPs led to decrease of CR, E, SFG and increase of AE under pH 8.1. Interactive effects from combination of pH and MPs were found in terms of CR, AE, E and RR, but not for SFG of M. coruscus.

Health risk assessment of trace elements exposure through the soil-plant (maize)-human contamination pathway near a petrochemical industry complex, Northeast China.

The trace elements contamination of agricultural soils near petrochemical industry complexes is a concern due to the risk of accumulating in food systems and subsequently affecting human health. We measured representative trace elements (Cu, Ni, Cr, Pb, Zn, Pb, Hg and As) through the soil-plant (maize)-human contamination pathway near a petrochemical industry complexes in an agricultural region from September 20 to 28, 2016. We found that the soil was mildly to moderately polluted by multiple trace elements, which was also confirmed by the contamination factor and enrichment factor values. Cd (enrichment factor = 2.28), Cu (2.75), Zn (1.85) and Pb (1.70) should be given more attention and prioritized over the other trace elements due to their higher potential risks. Furthermore, the trace elements contamination in maize grains was lower than the corresponding limits. The sequence of the transfer coefficient values was Zn > Cd > Cu > Hg > Ni > As > Cr > Pb. Maize grain safety was threatened mainly by Zn, Cd and Cu. There was no risk to humans through soil ingestion, while a potential health risk from maize grain consumption existed. Children were more sensitive than adults to the non-carcinogenic risks of maize grain consumption. Trace element As was found to be the priority metal for risk control. For carcinogenic risk, adults were more sensitive than children; As, Cr and Cd were the priority metals for risk control, with CRmaize values exceeding the risk threshold (1 × 10-4). Overall, strict, intensive monitoring, especially of Cr and Cd, and soil protection measures are needed to prevent any furthertrace elements contamination and to ensure food safety. This study also provides a reference for similar studies worldwide.

In-vitro and in situ assessment of the efflux of five antidepressants by breast cancer resistance protein.

OBJECTIVES: Antidepressants need to penetrate the blood-brain barrier (BBB) to exert their functions in the central nervous system. Breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP), an efflux transporter abundantly expressed in the BBB, prevents the accumulation of many drugs in the brain. This study aimed to identify whether five commonly used antidepressants (sertraline, duloxetine, fluoxetine, amitriptyline and mirtazapine) are BCRP substrates. METHODS: A combination of bidirectional transport and intracellular accumulation experiments was conducted on BCRP-overexpressing MDCKII and wild-type (WT) cells, and in situ brain perfusion was conducted in rats. KEY FINDINGS: The bidirectional transport study revealed that the net efflux ratio (NER) of sertraline reached 2.08 but decreased to 1.06 when co-incubated with Ko143, a selective BCRP inhibitor. Conversely, the other four antidepressants did not appear to be BCRP substrates, due to their low NER values (<1.5). The accumulation of sertraline in MDCKII-BCRP cells was significantly lower than that in MDCKII-WT cells. The presence of Ko143 significantly increased the sertraline accumulation in MDCKII-BCRP cells but not in MDCKII-WT cells. Brain perfusion showed that the permeability of 1 and 5 µm sertraline was significantly higher in the presence of Ko143. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, BCRP is involved in sertraline efflux.

Comprehensive assessment of the association of WNK4 polymorphisms with hypertension: evidence from a meta-analysis.

The relationship between with-no-lysine [K] kinase 4 (WNK4) gene polymorphisms and hypertension has been widely investigated, However, the studies yielded contradictory results. To evaluate these inconclusive findings comprehensively, we therefore performed a meta-analysis. Ten articles encompassing 16 independent case-control studies with 6089 hypertensive cases and 4881 normotensive controls were selected for this meta-analysis. Four WNK4 gene polymorphisms were identified (G1155942T, G1156666A, T1155547C, and C6749T). The results showed statistically significant associations of G1155942T polymorphism (allelic genetic model: odds ration or OR = 1.62, 95% confidence interval or CI: 1.11-2.38, P = 0.01; dominant model: OR = 1.85, 95% CI: 1.07-3.19, P = 0.03) and C6749T polymorphism (allele contrast: OR = 2.04, 95% CI: 1.60-2.59, P<0.01; dominant model: OR = 2.04, 95%CI: 1.59-2.62, P<0.01; and homozygous model: OR = 5.01, 95% CI: 1.29-19.54, P = 0.02) with hypertension risk. However, neither C1155547T nor G1156666A was associated significantly with hypertension susceptibility. In conclusion, this meta-analysis suggested that WNK4 G1155942T and C6749T gene polymorphisms may contribute to the susceptibility and development of hypertension. Further well-designed studies with larger sample size are required to elucidate the association of WNK4 gene multiple polymorphisms with hypertension risk.

Study on the trend and disease burden of injury deaths in Chinese population, 2004-2010.

Injuries are a growing public health concern in China, accounting for more than 30% of all Person Years of Life Lost (PYLL) due to premature mortality. This study analyzes the trend and disease burden of injury deaths in Chinese population from 2004 to 2010, using data from the National Disease Surveillance Points (DSPs) system, as injury deaths are classified based on the International Classification of Disease-10(th) Revision (ICD-10). We observed that injury death accounted for nearly 10% of all deaths in China throughout the period 2004-2010, and the injury mortality rates were higher in males than those in females, and higher in rural areas than in urban areas. Traffic crashes (33.79-38.47% of all injury deaths) and suicides (16.20-22.01%) were the two leading causes of injury deaths. Alarmingly, suicide surpassed traffic crashes as the leading cause of injury mortality in rural females, yet adults aged 65 and older suffered the greatest number of fatal falls (20,701 deaths, 2004-2010). The burden of injury among men (72.11%) was about three times more than that of women's (28.89%). This study provides indispensible evidence that China Authority needs to improve the surveillance and deterrence of three major types of injuries: Traffic-related injury deaths should be targeted for injury prevention activities in all population, people aged 65+ should be encouraged to take individual fall precautions, and prevention of suicidal behavior in rural females should be another key priority for the government of China.

[Alprazolam use improves psychological status and reduces hospitalization costs in patients with paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia underwent radiofrequency catheter ablation].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of alprazolam use on psychological status and hospitalization cost in patient with paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia underwent electrophysiology studies or radiofrequency catheter ablation. METHODS: In this prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, 142 inpatients [77 males, mean age (43.1 +/- 14.5) years] were randomly assigned to receive alprazolam (0.4 mg qd at 10PM for 3 days, n = 72) or placebo (n = 70) 3 days before scheduled electrophysiology studies or radiofrequency catheter ablation. All patients were examined by the Chinese version of Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90) at 24 hours before the procedure. RESULTS: Compared with the placebo group, the scores of somatization (1.38 +/- 0.40 vs. 1.65 +/- 0.56, P < 0.01), anxiety (1.50 +/- 0.39 vs. 1.69 +/- 0.50, P < 0.05), phobic anxiety (1.24 +/- 0.36 vs. 1.47 +/- 0.57, P < 0.01), psychotism constructs (1.24 +/- 0.34 vs. 1.35 +/- 0.30, P < 0.05) and global severity index (1.36 +/- 0.35 vs. 1.49 +/- 0.37, P < 0.05) were significantly decreased in alprazolam group. The hospitalization costs were also significantly lower in alprazolam group (32 498 +/- 1170) yuan compared to placebo group (32 947 +/- 1096) yuan, P < 0.05. CONCLUSION: The alprazolam use before electrophysiology studies and radiofrequency catheter ablation can improve the patients' psychological status and reduce the hospitalization costs.