Ultra-high order mode-assisted optical differentiator for edge detection with high tunability.

An optical spatial differentiator based on the photonic spin Hall effect (PSHE) with high tunability is presented. By utilizing the characteristics of ultra-high order modes in the symmetrical metal cladding waveguide, the Fresnel reflection coefficient spectrum exhibits a narrow peak width and low trough at the resonant incident angles, resulting in high sensitivity to changes in the incident angle-induced spatial shift caused by the PSHE (the highest ∂(|r s/r p|)/∂ θ value can reach 107). After polarization transformation and extinction, the output field demonstrates differential operation with respect to the input field. When applied to edge detection, our differentiator can achieve tunable resolution edge images by adjusting the incident angle. Our proposed edge detection scheme has potential applications for cellular and molecular imaging through two-dimensional extension via the target rotation.

Stellate ganglion block ameliorated central post-stroke pain with comorbid anxiety and depression through inhibiting HIF-1α/NLRP3 signaling following thalamic hemorrhagic stroke.

BACKGROUND: Central post-stroke pain (CPSP) is an intractable and disabling central neuropathic pain that severely affects patients' lives, well-being, and socialization abilities. However, CPSP has been poorly studied mechanistically and its treatment remains challenging. Here, we used a rat model of CPSP induced by thalamic hemorrhage to investigate its underlying mechanisms and the effect of stellate ganglion block (SGB) on CPSP and emotional comorbidities. METHODS: Thalamic hemorrhage was produced by injecting collagenase IV into the ventral-posterolateral nucleus (VPL) of the right thalamus. The up-and-down method with von Frey hairs was used to measure the mechanical allodynia. Behavioral tests were carried out to examine depressive and anxiety-like behaviors including the open field test (OFT), elevated plus maze test (EPMT), novelty-suppressed feeding test (NSFT), and forced swim test (FST). The peri-thalamic lesion tissues were collected for immunofluorescence, western blotting, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Genetic knockdown of thalamic hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) and NOD-like receptor thermal protein domain associated protein 3 (NLRP3) with microinjection of HIF-1α siRNA and NLRP3 siRNA into the VPL of thalamus were performed 3 days before collagenase injection into the same regions. Microinjection of lificiguat (YC-1) and MCC950 into the VPL of thalamus were administrated 30 min before the collagenase injection in order to inhibited HIF-1α and NLRP3 pharmacologically. Repetitive right SGB was performed daily for 5 days and laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) was conducted to examine cerebral blood flow. RESULTS: Thalamic hemorrhage caused persistent mechanical allodynia and anxiety- and depression-like behaviors. Accompanying the persistent mechanical allodynia, the expression of HIF-1α and NLRP3, as well as the activities of microglia and astrocytes in the peri-thalamic lesion sites, were significantly increased. Genetic knockdown of thalamic HIF-1α and NLRP3 significantly attenuated mechanical allodynia and anxiety- and depression-like behaviors following thalamic hemorrhage. Further studies revealed that intra-thalamic injection of YC-1, or MCC950 significantly suppressed the activation of microglia and astrocytes, the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, the upregulation of malondialdehyde (MDA), and the downregulation of superoxide dismutase (SOD), as well as mechanical allodynia and anxiety- and depression-like behaviors following thalamic hemorrhage. In addition, repetitive ipsilateral SGB significantly restored the upregulated HIF-1α/NLRP3 signaling and the hyperactivated microglia and astrocytes following thalamic hemorrhage. The enhanced expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and the oxidative stress in the peri-thalamic lesion sites were also reversed by SGB. Moreover, LSCI showed that repetitive SGB significantly increased cerebral blood flow following thalamic hemorrhage. Most strikingly, SGB not only prevented, but also reversed the development of mechanical allodynia and anxiety- and depression-like behaviors induced by thalamic hemorrhage. However, pharmacological activation of thalamic HIF-1α and NLRP3 with specific agonists significantly eliminated the therapeutic effects of SGB on mechanical allodynia and anxiety- and depression-like behaviors following thalamic hemorrhage. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated for the first time that SGB could improve CPSP with comorbid anxiety and depression by increasing cerebral blood flow and inhibiting HIF-1α/NLRP3 inflammatory signaling.

[Nutrition status of pregnant women and lactating mothers in rural areas of four counties in Guizhou and Henan Provinces].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the levels of serum ferritin(SF), transferrin receptor(sTfR), vitamin D(VD), folate(FOL), vitamin B_(12)(VB_(12)) and homocysteine(Hcy) of pregnant women and lactating mothers in rural areas, aiming to evaluate the nutritional status of pregnant women and lactating mothers. METHODS: By using a cluster sampling method, the subjects were the pregnant women at 10-20 weeks& apos; gestation and lactating mothers at 42±7 days& apos; postpartum who have been to the maternal and children health hospital in the county for examination from August 2019 to March 2020. SF, VD, VB_(12) and FOL concentrations were determined using the chemiluminescence assay. Hypersensitive C-reactive protein(hsCRP) and sTfR levels were determined using the immunoturbidimetry assay. Hcy levels were determined using the enzymatic assay. The rates of iron, vitamin D, folic acid, VB_(12) deficiency and hyperhomocysteinemia(HHcy) were calculated. RESULTS: There were 1050 pregnant women and 309 lactating mothers involved. The levels of ferritin and sTfR were 49. 6(47. 1-52. 3) ng/mL and 2. 51(2. 46-2. 56) mg/L for the pregnant women, and 51. 0(46. 6-55. 9) ng/mL and 3. 53(3. 40-3. 67) mg/L for the lactating mother, respectively. The prevalence of iron deficiency in lactating mothers was significantly higher than the pregnant women(33. 0% vs. 24. 7%). The levels of VD were 17. 0(16. 6-17. 4) ng/mL for pregnant women and 16. 7(16. 0-17. 4) ng/mL for lactating mothers. The prevalence of VD deficiency was 64. 5% and 68. 9%, respectively. The level of FOL for pregnant women was significantly higher than the lactating mothers(11. 3(10. 9-11. 7)vs. 5. 7(5. 3-6. 1) ng/mL). The levels of VB_(12) for pregnant women was significantly lower than the lactating mother(282. 7(276. 1-289. 5) vs. 437. 7(418. 7-457. 6) pg/mL). The levels of Hcy for pregnant women was significantly lower than the lactating mother(7. 1(7. 0-7. 3) vs. 10. 5(10. 0-10. 9) µmol/L). The prevalence of FOL deficiency, VB_(12) deficiency and HHcy were 5. 0%, 17. 2% and 5. 0% for pregnant women and 29. 8%, 2. 3% and 27. 8% for lactating mothers, which were significant different between pregnant women and lactating mothers(P& lt; 0. 05). Among the four nutrients including iron, VD, folate and VB_(12), 75. 8% of pregnant women were deficient in at least one nutrient and 28. 1% were deficient in at least two nutrients. 81. 9% of lactating mothers were deficient in at least one nutrient and 41. 4% were deficient in at least two nutrients. CONCLUSION: There were various degrees of nutrient deficiency. Iron deficiency rates were high and VD deficiency were severe in both pregnant women and lactating mothers. In addition, the rates of folate deficiency and HHcy were high in lactating mothers in rural areas.

[Effect of Yingyangbao intervention in 6 to 23 months infants in six counties from Shanxi, Hubei and Yunnan Provinces].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of Yingyangbao(YYB) intervention in 6-23 months infants in six poor counties from Shanxi, Hubei and Yunnan Provinces. METHODS: Probability proportionate to size sampling method was used to extract townships and villages, and random isometric sampling was used to select monitored infants. A baseline survey was completed in 2012. Yingyangbao was delivered to all the infants in the counties through a registration system started in 2013 and then the delivering has been continuously conducted to the infants according to their age. The cross sectional sampled infants were monitored and evaluated of the effect in 2014 and 2015 respectively. Using synthetic clustering grouping method, the infants were divided into quasi-control group(YYB-NG), YYB intervention group(YYB-FG)for comparative analysis to eliminate the effect of YYB intervention. Multiple linear regression analysis were used to establish the dose-effect relationship between YYB intervention, other factors and main nutrition indices. RESULTS: A total of 4809 individuals were included in this study, among which data of 2273 individuals were included in the YYB-NG and 2536 data were included in the YYB-FG. The body length of YYB-FG and YYB-NG was 77.6 cm and 75.9 cm, respectively. Stunting rates of YYB-FG and YYB-NG were 6. 8% and 10. 3%, respectively. Hb levels and anemia rates of YYB-FG and YYB-NG were 121. 3 g/L, 117. 1 g/L and 21. 2%, 32. 1% respectively, with statistically significant difference(P& lt; 0.05). However, there was no significant difference in body weight between the groups. Multiple linear regression showed that YYB intervention has a significant quantitative relationship with body length, Hb, HAZ. The regression also implied that the influencing factor including month-age, gender, birth-height, birth-weight, minimum dietary diversity, caregiver educational background have a significant relationship with nutrition improvement. CONCLUSION: YYB intervention can effectively improve the body length, Hb and HAZ, while reduce stunting rate and anemia rate of IYC in the intervention area.

[Sugar and sugar alcohols in infants Ying Yang Bao based on derivatization and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry].

OBJECTIVE: To establish a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry(GC-MS) method for determination of seven sugars and sugar alcohols in infants Ying Yang Bao nutritional supplements. METHODS: The samples were extracted with pure water and diluted with 95% ethanol. After being dried by nitrogen, methoxyamine hydrochloride oxime was dissolved in pyridine and derivatized by MSTFA. The capillary column TG-5 Ms(30 m×0. 25 mm, 0. 25 µm) was used for determination by GC-MS. RESULTS: The limits of detection(LODs)were 1. 0-3. 0 mg/g and the limits of quantification(LOQs)were 3. 3-10. 0 mg/g. The average recoveries of seven kinds of sugar and sugar alcohols were 86. 7%-96. 7%, and the relative standard deviation was less than 5. 1%(n=6). The contents of seven sugars and sugar alcohols in soybean matrix nutritional supplements were determined in the range of 0. 25-13. 70 g/100 g, which was consistent with the nutrition label of the products. CONCLUSION: The method is convenient, mild and fit for batch sample analysis.

Existence and Uniqueness of the Local Smooth Solution to 3D Stochastic MHD Equations without Diffusion.

In this paper, we consider the existence of local smooth solution to stochastic magneto-hydrodynamic equations without diffusion forced by additive noise in R 3 . We first transform the system into a random system via a simple change of variable and borrow the result obtained for classical magneto-hydrodynamic equations, then we show that this random transformed system is measurable with respect to the stochastic element. Finally we extend the solution to the maximality solution. Due to the coupled construction of this system, we need more elaborate and complicated estimates with respect to stochastic Euler equation.

Stochastic Entropy Solutions for Stochastic Nonlinear Transport Equations.

This paper considers the existence and uniqueness of stochastic entropy solution for a nonlinear transport equation with a stochastic perturbation. The uniqueness is based on the doubling variable method. For the existence, we develop a new scheme of parabolic approximation motivated by the method of vanishing viscosity given by Feng and Nualart (J. Funct. Anal. 2008, 255, 313-373). Furthermore, we prove the continuous dependence of stochastic strong entropy solutions on the coefficient b and the nonlinear function f.

[Effects of the iron fortified soy sauce on improving students' anemia in boarding schools].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of iron fortified soy sauce on improving the anemia of boarding school students. METHODS: A total of 3029 students of the boarding schools in the 27 provinces in China including 1576 boys and 1453 girls were treat with the iron-fortified soy sauce for 12 months. The concentration of hemoglobin was detected before and after intervention. The statistical analysis was conducted to analyze the anemia rate and the hemoglobin concentration in boarding school students. RESULTS: After the intervention, the average hemoglobin of students were increased from 142.1 g/L to 146.5 g/L compared to the baseline. The boys average haemoglobin concentration increased 6.7 g/L, girls average haemoglobin concentration increased 1.9 g/L. They were significantly higher than those of the baseline (P < 0.001 ). The total anemia prevalence were significantly difference than the baseline (P < 0.001). Anemia among both boys and girls fell to 1.1% and 4.7% respectively. CONCLUSION: Iron-fortified soy sauce could be effective for the improvement the hemoglobin level of boarding school students, reduce anemia prevalence of students significantly.

[Iron status of first-year junior high school students in rural boarding school among nine provinces in China].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the iron status among boarding school students in a cross-sectional study performed in 9 provinces which were Beijing, Guangdong, Guangxi, Zhejiang, Tianjin, Ningxia, Sichuan, Shanghai and Shandong provinces. METHODS: A multi-stage cluster sampling survey on iron status of first-year junior high school students in rural boarding school in 9 provinces was used. Iron status was defined utilising biochemical indicators. Hemoglobin was measured by cyanmethemoglobin method. WS/T441-2013's hemoglobin thresholds used to define anemia. Immunoturbidimetric assay was used as analytical method for serum ferritin( SF), Serum soluble transferrin receptor( sTfR) and high sensitive C-reactive protein( hsCRP). BI was calculated by SF andsTfR. Storage iron depletion( SID) was defined as low SF( SF < 25 ng/mL) and low sTfR( sTfR < 4. 4 mg/L) without anemia. Iron deficient erythropoiesis( IDE) was defined as low SF( SF < 25 ng/mL) and high sTfR( sTfR > 4. 4 mg/L) without anemia. Iron deficiency anemia( IDA) was defined as low SF( SF < 25 ng/mL) with anemia. Subjects with indication of inflammation( hsCRP > 5 mg/L) were excluded from the analyses. RESULTS: A total of 1263 adolescents aged 10-18 years( 696 boys and 567 girls) were involved. The levels of hemoglobin, serum ferritin, sTfR and BI concentration were( 144. 6 ± 13. 2) g/L, 52. 2 ng/mL, 3. 34 mg/L and( 6. 72 ± 2. 61) mg/kg for students, respectively. The overall prevalence of anemia was 4. 8%. The percentage of iron deficiency was 10. 5%, significantly higher in girls compared with boys. The overall percentage of SID, IDE and IDA was 6. 6%, 2. 5% and 1. 4%, respectively, with significant differences between boys and girls. CONCLUSION: To ensure adequate iron stores, specific attention should be given to girls to ensure that their dietary intake of iron is adequate.

Genome sequence and transcriptome analyses of the thermophilic zygomycete fungus Rhizomucor miehei.

BACKGROUND: The zygomycete fungi like Rhizomucor miehei have been extensively exploited for the production of various enzymes. As a thermophilic fungus, R. miehei is capable of growing at temperatures that approach the upper limits for all eukaryotes. To date, over hundreds of fungal genomes are publicly available. However, Zygomycetes have been rarely investigated both genetically and genomically. RESULTS: Here, we report the genome of R. miehei CAU432 to explore the thermostable enzymatic repertoire of this fungus. The assembled genome size is 27.6-million-base (Mb) with 10,345 predicted protein-coding genes. Even being thermophilic, the G + C contents of fungal whole genome (43.8%) and coding genes (47.4%) are less than 50%. Phylogenetically, R. miehei is more closerly related to Phycomyces blakesleeanus than to Mucor circinelloides and Rhizopus oryzae. The genome of R. miehei harbors a large number of genes encoding secreted proteases, which is consistent with the characteristics of R. miehei being a rich producer of proteases. The transcriptome profile of R. miehei showed that the genes responsible for degrading starch, glucan, protein and lipid were highly expressed. CONCLUSIONS: The genome information of R. miehei will facilitate future studies to better understand the mechanisms of fungal thermophilic adaptation and the exploring of the potential of R. miehei in industrial-scale production of thermostable enzymes. Based on the existence of a large repertoire of amylolytic, proteolytic and lipolytic genes in the genome, R. miehei has potential in the production of a variety of such enzymes.

[Effects of the SNPs on rs855791 and rs3811647 on the levels of SF and sTfR in the group of 8 - 14].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate effects on the levels of SF and sTfR by the SNPs of rs855791 on TMPRSS6 and rs3811647 on TF in adolescent. METHODS: DNA was extracted from venous blood which were drawn from 50 subjects, and then the two SNPs of each sample were identified by Sequenom MassArray. T test and chi-square test were selected to identify the relationship between the levels of SF and sTfR in each allele carriers, and then the effects of each SNP on the levels of SF and sTfR would be assessed. RESULTS: The level of SF of A allele carriers on rs855791 (54.0 ± 28.2 ng/ml) was higher than GG carriers (33.1 ± 20.2 ng/ml) (P < 0.05), and the discrimination of the level of sTfR between each allele carrier was not observed. The discriminations of the different levels of SF and sTfR among each SNP on rs3811647 were not observed. CONCLUSIONS: The level of SF may be affected by the SNP of rs855791 on TMPRSS6, and the effect of rs3811647 on TF may be weakened by the former one.

Decadal changes of macrofauna community in a semi-enclosed Bay of Yueqing in East China Sea.

To reveal the long-term variation of macrofauna community in Yueqing Bay, an aquacultural bay famous for its shellfish culturing in the East China Sea, macrofauna samples were collected in three period from 2002 to 2003 and 2006-2007 to 2020-2021. The results show that macrofaunal community structure in this area has changed significantly (ANOSIM, p < 0.01) in nearly two decades with significant decreases in species number, biodiversity index and average biomass. Meanwhile, the taxa composition also changed significantly as the dominance of annelid increased while that of mollusks, echinoderms and vertebrates decreased. As a consequence of the variation of taxa composition and total biomass, macrofauna community showed a tendency of miniaturization as individuals with smaller body size and lower biomass dominated the community. According to the results of CCA analysis, temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen content were the main environmental factors that restricted the species composition of macrofauna community. Further studies still needed to reveal the main reasons that cause the variation of macrofauna community. Overall, the results of this study suggest that the present status of Yueqing Bay benthic ecosystem is concerning from a macrobenthos perspective, as the biodiversity index and biomass of macrofauna decreased significantly. Effective measures should be taken in urgently to restrain the safety and function of coastal ecosystems.

Characterization of two novel family 12 xyloglucanases from the thermophilic Rhizomucor miehei.

Two novel glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 12 xyloglucanase genes (designated RmXEG12A and RmXEG12B) were cloned from the thermophilic fungus Rhizomucor miehei. Both genes contained open reading frames of 729 bp encoding 242 amino acids. Their deduced amino acid sequences shared 68% identity with each other and less than 60% with other xyloglucanases. The two genes, without the sequences for the signal peptides, were cloned and successfully expressed in Escherichia coli as active xyloglucanases, designated RmXEG12A and RmXEG12B, with similar molecular masses--25.6 and 25.9 kDa, respectively. RmXEG12A showed optimal activity at pH 6.5 and 65 °C, RmXEG12B at pH 5.0 and 60 °C. Both recombinant xyloglucanases displayed very high specific activities, 6,681.4 and 3,092.2 U mg(-1), respectively, toward tamarind xyloglucan, but no activity toward carboxymethylcellulose, Avicel, or p-nitrophenyl derivatives. The main products of tamarind xyloglucan hydrolysis by the two xyloglucanases were XXXG, XXLG/XLXG, and XLLG (where G is an unsubstituted ß-D-Glc residue, X is a xylosylated ß-D-Glc residue, and L is a ß-D-Glc residue substituted by xylosyl-galactose).

Yingyangbao Reduced Anemia among Infants and Young Children Aged 6-23 Months When Delivered through a Large-Scale Nutrition Improvement Program for Children in Poor Areas in China from 2015 to 2020.

The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of intervention with Yingyangbao (YYB) on hemoglobin (Hb) and anemia status among infants and young children (IYC) aged 6-23 months (mo) through a large-scale Nutrition Improvement Program for Children in Poor Areas (NIPCPA) in China from 2015 to 2020. Five rounds of cross-sectional surveys were conducted using a stratified and multi-stage probability proportional to size sampling of IYC in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. Multivariable regression analyses were fitted to determine the effectiveness of the YYB intervention on Hb and anemia, respectively. A total of 36,325, 40,027, 43,831, 44,375 and 46,050 IYC aged 6-23 mo were included, and the prevalence of anemia was 29.7%, 26.9%, 24.1%, 21.2% and 18.1% in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively. Compared with the results in 2015, the Hb concentrations significantly improved and anemia prevalence significantly decreased among IYC in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020 (p < 0.001). Regression analysis showed that higher YYB consumption was significantly associated with the increment in Hb concentration and reduction in anemia stratified by age group (p < 0.001). The most significant increment in Hb concentration of 2.189 mg/L and the most significant reduction in odds of anemia were observed among IYC aged 12-17 mo who consumed 270 to 359 sachets of YYB (OR: 0.671; 95% CI: 0.627, 0.719; p < 0.001). This study suggests that YYB intervention is a successful public health strategy for reducing the risk of anemia among IYC when delivered through a large-scale NIPCPA in China. It is necessary to continue to advance the program and increase the adherence of YYB.

Esketamine is neuroprotective against traumatic brain injury through its modulation of autophagy and oxidative stress via AMPK/mTOR-dependent TFEB nuclear translocation.

Recent clinical studies highlight the neuroprotective effects of esketamine, but its benefits following traumatic brain injury (TBI) have not been defined. Here, we investigated the effects of esketamine following TBI and its associated neuroprotection mechanisms. In our study, controlled cortical impact injury on mice was utilized to induce the TBI model in vivo. TBI mice were randomized to receive vehicle or esketamine at 2 h post-injury for 7 consecutive days. Neurological deficits and brain water content in mice were detected, respectively. Cortical tissues surrounding focal trauma were obtained for Nissl staining, immunofluorescence, immunohistochemistry, and ELISA assay. In vitro, esketamine were added in culture medium after cortical neuronal cells induced by H2O2 (100µM). After exposed for 12h, neuronal cells were obtained for western blotting, immunofluorescence, ELISA and CO-IP assay. Following administration of 2-8 mg/kg esketamine, we observed that 8 mg/kg esketamine produced no additional recovery of neurological function and ability to alleviate brain edema in TBI mice model, so 4 mg/kg esketamine was selected for subsequent experiments. Additionally, esketamine can effectively reduce TBI-induced oxidative stress, the number of damaged neurons, and the number of TUNEL-positive cells in the cortex of TBI models. Meanwhile, the levels of Beclin 1, LC3 II, and the number of LC3-positive cells in injured cortex were also increased following esketamine exposure. Western blotting and immunofluorescence assays showed that esketamine accelerated the nuclear translocation of TFEB, increased the p-AMPKα level and decreased the p-mTOR level. Similar results including nuclear translocation of TFEB, the increases of autophagy-related markers, and influences of AMPK/mTOR pathway were observed in H2O2-induced cortical neuronal cells; however, BML-275 (AMPK inhibitor) can reverse these effects of esketamine. Furthermore, TFEB silencing not only decreased the Nrf2 level in H2O2-induced cortical neuronal cells, but also alleviated the oxidative stress. Importantly, CO-IP confirmed the interaction between TFEB and Nrf2 in cortical neuronal cells. These findings suggested that esketamine exerts the neuroprotective effects of esketamine in TBI mice model via enhancing autophagy and alleviating oxidative stress; its mechanism involves AMPK/mTOR-dependent TFEB nuclear translocation-induced autophagy and TFEB/Nrf2-induced antioxidant system.

Ecological risk assessment of trace metals in sediments and their effect on benthic organisms from the south coast of Zhejiang province, China.

To explore the ecological risks of trace metals in sediments and their relationship with benthic organisms, 12 trace metals were analyzed and the macrobenthos were identified in the sediments collected from the south coast of Zhejiang province which belongs to the East China Sea. Spatially, the concentrations of most trace metals were high in the estuary, except for Ba and Sr. There was no obvious enrichment for trace metals, except that the concentration of Cd slightly exceeded the coastal background. The ecological risks calculated by the concentrations of Cr, Cd, Cu, Zn, Pb, and Ni in sediments showed that the methods based on sediment quality guidelines could judge the ecological risk more intuitively than the methods based on background value (PN, PLI, RI). The significant correlations between ecological risks and benthos density and biomass revealed the negative impact of trace metals at high concentrations on macrobenthic survival in sediments.

Iron Status Among Children Aged 6-17 Years by Serum Ferritin - China, 2016-2017.

WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ON THIS TOPIC?: Iron deficiency (ID) is the most widespread micronutrient deficiency and have several adverse effects on health. Consequences of ID among children include delayed psychomotor development and impaired cognitive performance, which makes it important to monitor the iron status of children. WHAT IS ADDED BY THIS REPORT?: In this study, the serum ferritin (SF) level was 56.6 (95% CI: 56.0-57.2) ng/mL in 65,293 children aged 6-17 years old in the National Nutrition and Health Surveillance in China in 2016-2017. ID prevalence varied significantly in children stratified by sex, age, and regions ranging from 1.0% to 28.1% judged by the standard of SF<15 ng/mL and SF<25 ng/mL. ID prevalence in females aged 12-17 years was the highest among children aged 6-17 years. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE?: Understanding iron status of school children could provide evidence and data for developing policies and strategies for ID and iron deficiency anemia (IDA) control and prevention. Females aged 12-17 years showed high ID prevalence, and iron-rich food interventions are strongly recommended.

Accumulation of microplastics in typical commercial aquatic species: A case study at a productive aquaculture site in China.

The widespread occurrence of microplastics in the marine environment has drawn global attention because microplastics may impact the populations of marine organisms. As such, aquaculture industry may suffer from microplastic pollution, especially when plastic products are widely used for aquaculture. Here, we assessed the abundance and characteristics (type, size and composition) of microplastics in sediment and typical commercial species (fish, bivalves and shrimps) in an aquaculture site at Xiangshan Bay, which has been operated intensively for decades. Satellite remote sensing images revealed that aquaculture activities were associated with microplastic pollution in sediment, where the microplastics (51-88 items/kg dry weight) were mostly fibres (>94%) and between 500 and 2000 µm. Cellulose was the predominant polymer (60-88% of microplastic composition), followed by polypropylene. Microplastics accumulated in all the commercial species (0.95-2.1 items per individual), where shrimp (Parapenaeopsis hardwickii) had lower potential for microplastic accumulation than the other species. The predominance of fibres and cellulose in the commercial species implies their limited ability to recognize the type and composition of microplastics during ingestion. Given the limited accumulation of microplastics in these typical commercial species even at a productive aquaculture site, we suggest that microplastics may not increase the health risk of consuming seafood and their impacts on commercial species may be less deleterious than previously thought.

Hepatoprotective Potential of Partially Hydrolyzed Guar Gum against Acute Alcohol-Induced Liver Injury in Vitro and Vivo.

Natural polysaccharides, particularly galactomannans, are potential candidates for treatment of alcoholic liver diseases (ALD). However, applications are restricted due to the physicochemical properties associated with the high molecular weight. In this work, guar gum galactomannans were partially hydrolyzed by ß-mannanase, and the molecular mechanisms of hepatoprotective effects were elucidated both in vitro and in vivo. Release of lactate dehydrogenase and cytochrome C were attenuated by partially hydrolyzed guar gum (PHGG) in HepG2 cells, due to protected cell and mitochondrial membrane integrity. PHGG co-administration decreased serum amino transaminases and cholinesterase levels of acute alcohol intoxicated mice, while hepatic pathologic morphology was depleted. Activity of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase was recovered to 198.2, 34.5, 236.0 U/mg protein, respectively, while malondialdehyde level was decreased by 76.3% (PHGG, 1000 mg/kg∙day). Co-administration of PHGG induced a 4.4-fold increment of p-AMPK expression, and lipid metabolism was mediated. PHGG alleviated toll-like-receptor-4-mediated inflammation via the signaling cascade of MyD88 and IκBα, decreasing cytokine production. Moreover, mediated expression of Bcl-2 and Bax was responsible for inhibited acute alcohol-induced apoptosis with suppressed cleavage of caspase 3 and PARP. Findings gained suggest that PHGG can be used as functional food supplement for the treatment of acute alcohol-induced liver injury.

Heavy metal concentrations in commercial marine organisms from Xiangshan Bay, China, and the potential health risks.

Commercial marine organisms were collected from the coast of Xiangshan Bay to investigate the concentrations of eight heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn) and evaluate the potential health risks. The results indicated considerable variations in the heavy metal concentrations among six species groups, of them mollusks (seasnail, benthic bivalve, and oyster) generally contained relative high levels of most metals, followed by crustaceans (crab and shrimp), by contrast, fish had low concentrations of all metals, except Hg. Three heavy metal groups were identified to interpret the accumulative characteristics in the marine organisms. Spatial distributions illustrated the geographical variations of heavy metal concentrations in the sampling areas. Moreover, maricultured organisms demonstrated lower heavy metal concentrations than did the wild. Health risks of most heavy metals exposed from marine organism consumption were safe, except for As which is associated with the high target cancer risk values.