Comparison of Thyroglobulin and Thyroid Function in Pregnant Women between Counties with a Median Urinary Iodine Concentration of 100-149 µg/L and 150-249 µg/L.

Objective: This study explored whether thyroglobulin and thyroid disease prevalence rates were higher in pregnant Chinese women with a median urinary iodine concentration of 100-149 µg/L, compared with those with a median urinary iodine concentration of 150-249 µg/L maintained through sustainable universal salt iodization. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study in which 812 healthy pregnant women were enrolled to collect samples of their household edible salt, urine, and blood during their routine antenatal care in the 18 counties in Fujian Province, China. The levels of salt iodine concentration, urinary iodine concentration (UIC), free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroid hormone (FT4), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), thyroglobulin (Tg), thyroid peroxidase antibody and thyroglobulin antibody were assessed during the routine antenatal care visits. Results: The median UIC (mUIC) in pregnant women was 130.8 µg/L (interquartile range = 91.5-198.1 µg/L) in the counties with an mUIC of 100-149 µg/L (Group I), and 172.0 µg/L (interquartile range = 123.5-244.4 µg/L) in the counties with an mUIC of 150-249 µg/L (Group II). Goiter prevalence and thyroid nodule detection rates showed no difference between Group I and Group II ( P > 0.05). Except for FT4 values, the TSH, FT4, FT3, Tg and Tg values > 40 (µg/L) and the thyroid diseases prevalence rate (TDR) showed no significant differences between Group I and Group II ( P > 0.05), whether or not iodine supplementation measures were taken. Conclusion: Compared with an mUIC of 150-249 µg/L, not only there was no difference in thyroid morphology, but also the Tg value, rate of Tg values > 40 µg/L, and TDR were not higher in pregnant women in the counties with an mUIC of 100-149 µg/L achieved through sustainable universal salt iodization in Fujian Province, China.

Improvement of mild photoaged facial skin in middle-aged Chinese females by a supramolecular retinol plus acetyl hexapeptide-1 containing essence.

Background: The anti-ageing gold standard, retinol, has been widely recognized for its anti-wrinkle benefits in the Chinese population. Studies have shown that Asians are more sensitive to retinol compared to their Caucasian counterparts, and it is generally recommended to use retinol once a day in the evening. However, there are few reports on the most appropriate concentration and frequency of retinol use in the general Chinese population. Objectives: In this study, supramolecular retinol was prepared using cyclodextrin encapsulation technology, and the most appropriate concentration for the general Chinese population was investigated. Then, a cosmetic essence was developed by combining the classic supramolecular retinol, which promotes collagen regeneration, with acetyl hexapeptide-1, a popular ingredient known for reducing expression lines. The safety and efficacy of this cosmetic essence were studied through clinical tests. Methods: First, a patch test was conducted on 32 healthy Chinese subjects to compare the tolerance of supramolecular retinol to non-encapsulated retinol and to select the optimal concentration of retinol. Then, an 8-week clinical study was conducted using a twice-daily cosmetic essence containing 0.1% supramolecular retinol and 0.02% acetyl hexapeptide-1 to treat mild photoaging in 32 middle-aged Chinese women. Dermatological evaluations and instrument measurements were taken at baseline, 4 weeks, and 8 weeks. Efficacy was assessed using facial skin wrinkles, textures, elasticity, firmness, pores, gloss and stratum corneum hydration. Tolerability was assessed throughout the study. Results: Our patch test results showed that supramolecular retinol was better tolerated than non-encapsulated retinol, and our findings suggest that 0.1% was the approximate optimal retinol concentration for the general Chinese population. The cosmetic essence studied was effective in improving the appearance of photoaged skin in the Chinese population in all aspects studied and was well tolerated. Conclusions: 0.1% retinol is suitable for twice daily use in the general Chinese population. Data and records on efficacy dimensions of skin textures, elasticity, firmness, pores, gloss and stratum corneum hydration for retinol in the Chinese population are supplemented with our study. Cosmeceutical approaches targeting both static and dynamic wrinkles are of value for treating the photoaged Chinese population.

Targeting UBR5 in hepatocellular carcinoma cells and precise treatment via echinacoside nanodelivery.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the most common and malignant cancers with no effective therapeutic approaches. Echinacoside (ECH), a phenylethanoid glycoside isolated from Chinese herbal medicine, Cistanche salsa, can inhibit HCC progression; however, poor absorption and low bioavailability limit its biological applications. METHODS: To improve ECH sensitivity to HepG2 cells, we developed a mesoporous silica nanoparticle (MSN)-based drug delivery system to deliver ECH to HepG2 cells via galactose (GAL) and poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDE) conjugation (ECH@Au@MSN-PEGDE-GAL, or ECH@AMPG). Gain- and loss-of-function assays were conducted to assess the effects of UBR5 on HCC cell apoptosis and glycolysis. Moreover, the interactions among intermediate products were also investigated to elucidate the mechanisms by which UBR5 functions. RESULTS: The present study showed that ubiquitin protein ligase E3 component N-recognin 5 (UBR5) acted as an oncogene in HCC tissues and that its expression was inhibited by ECH. AMPG showed a high drug loading property and a slow and sustained release pattern over time. Moreover, owing to the valid drug accumulation, ECH@AMPG promoted apoptosis and inhibited glycolysis of HepG2 cells in vitro. In vivo experiments demonstrated that AMPG also enhanced the antitumor effects of ECH in HepG2 cell-bearing mice. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicated the clinical significance of UBR5 as a therapeutic target. On the basis of the nontoxic and high drug-loading capabilities of AMPG, ECH@AMPG presented better effects on HCC cells compared with free ECH, indicating its potential for the chemotherapy of HCC.

Eucarbwenstols A-H, eight novel compounds from Eucalyptus robusta prevents MPC-5 injury via ROS modulation and regulation of mitochondrial membrane potential.

BACKGROUND: The damage of podocytes is a primary hallmark of lupus nephritis (LN). Therefore, finding an effective way to inhibit the podocyte injury is important for improving the survival and development of patients with LN. Eucalyptus robusta exhibits anti-inflammatory properties. However, whether Formyl phloroglucinol meroterpenoids (FPMs), which are specialized metabolites of the genus Eucalyptus, is an anti-inflammatory active ingredient of E. robusta remains to be determined. PURPOSE: This study asimed to identify novel FPMs from E. robusta and investigated their anti-inflammatory effects. METHODS: Various separation methods were used to isolate and identify the compounds in the PE extract of E. robusta. The structures of the isolates were determined using 1D/2D NMR data and electron circular dichroism (ECD) calculations. The level of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) level and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) of the podocyte cell line, MPC-5, were assessed using a multifunctional microplate reader combined with flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy. RESULTS: Eight novel FPMs (1-8, Eucarbwenstols A-H, Fig. 1) and 15 known FPMs (9-23) were purified from the PE extract of E. robusta. It is noteworthy that compound 1 possesses an unprecedented FPM carbon skeleton. Among these compounds, compounds 1, 2, 4 and 5 showed the most promising potential for protecting MPC-5 cells because pretreatment with pro-inflammatory cytokines TGF-ß, IFN-α and IL-6 decreased ROS production and ameliorated the mitochondrial state. CONCLUSIONS: Our research contributes to the characterization of E. robusta constituents and highlights the anti-inflammatory effects of FPMs.

Exploring the Protective Effect and Mechanism of Buddlejae Flos on Sodium Selenite-Induced Cataract in Rats by Network Pharmacology, Molecular Docking, and Experimental Validation.

Objective: Buddlejae Flos has a long history of utilization by humans to treat ophthalmic diseases. Although in vitro study revealed that it can be used for treating cataract, the bioactive components and the mechanism of efficacy remained unclear. This study aims to discover the bioactive components and mode of efficacy of Buddlejae Flos in cataract treatment. Methods: Several databases were screened for bioactive components and corresponding targets, as well as cataract-related targets. Using the String database, common targets were determined and utilized to construct protein-protein interactions (PPI). The drug-component-target-disease network map was drawn using Cytoscape software. R language was utilized to execute Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and Gene Ontology (GO) pathway enrichment analysis. Molecular docking was done through Schrödinger Maestro software utilization. Luteolin's (LUT) effect on cataract induced by sodium selenite in rat pups was evaluated. Results: Six bioactive components with 38 common targets were identified as being associated with cataract. TP53, AKT1, EGFR, CASP3, TNF, ESR1, INS, IL6, HIF1A, and VEGFA were identified as core targets in PPI analysis, and the binding energy of LUT with AKT was the lowest. LUT has been demonstrated to significantly lower MDA levels, raise glutathione (GSH) levels, and boost the activity of antioxidant enzymes like GST, SOD, GPx, and CAT. After LUT treatment, TNF-a, IL-2, and IL-6 levels were significantly lowered. Bcl-2 mRNA expression levels and p-PI3K and p-AKT protein expression were significantly elevated. In contrast, caspase-3 and Bax mRNA expression levels were significantly decreased. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that LUT is a possible bioactive component that may be utilized for cataract treatment. Its mode of action includes oxidative stress suppression, reducing inflammation, and inhibiting apoptosis via regulating the PI3K/AKT single pathway.

Identification of Key Aroma Compounds Responsible for the Floral Ascents of Green and Black Teas from Different Tea Cultivars.

Chemicals underlying the floral aroma of dry teas needs multi-dimensional investigations. Green, black, and freeze-dried tea samples were produced from five tea cultivars, and only 'Chunyu2' and 'Jinguanyin' dry teas had floral scents. 'Chunyu2' green tea contained the highest content of total volatiles (134.75 µg/g) among green tea samples, while 'Jinguanyin' black tea contained the highest content of total volatiles (1908.05 µg/g) among black tea samples. The principal component analysis study showed that 'Chunyu2' and 'Jinguanyin' green teas and 'Chunyu2' black tea were characterized by the abundant presence of certain alcohols with floral aroma, while 'Jinguanyin' black tea was discriminated due to the high levels of certain alcohols, esters, and aldehydes. A total of 27 shared volatiles were present in different tea samples, and the contents of 7 floral odorants in dry teas had correlations with those in fresh tea leaves (p < 0.05). Thus, the tea cultivar is crucial to the floral scent of dry tea, and these seven volatiles could be promising breeding indices.

Information Extraction from the Text Data on Traditional Chinese Medicine: A Review on Tasks, Challenges, and Methods from 2010 to 2021.

Background: The practice of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) began several thousand years ago, and the knowledge of practitioners is recorded in paper and electronic versions of case notes, manuscripts, and books in multiple languages. Developing a method of information extraction (IE) from these sources to generate a cohesive data set would be a great contribution to the medical field. The goal of this study was to perform a systematic review of the status of IE from TCM sources over the last 10 years. Methods: We conducted a search of four literature databases for articles published from 2010 to 2021 that focused on the use of natural language processing (NLP) methods to extract information from unstructured TCM text data. Two reviewers and one adjudicator contributed to article search, article selection, data extraction, and synthesis processes. Results: We retrieved 1234 records, 49 of which met our inclusion criteria. We used the articles to (i) assess the key tasks of IE in the TCM domain, (ii) summarize the challenges to extracting information from TCM text data, and (iii) identify effective frameworks, models, and key findings of TCM IE through classification. Conclusions: Our analysis showed that IE from TCM text data has improved over the past decade. However, the extraction of TCM text still faces some challenges involving the lack of gold standard corpora, nonstandardized expressions, and multiple types of relations. In the future, IE work should be promoted by extracting more existing entities and relations, constructing gold standard data sets, and exploring IE methods based on a small amount of labeled data. Furthermore, fine-grained and interpretable IE technologies are necessary for further exploration.

The expanding role of chronic pain interventions in multimodal perioperative pain management: a narrative review.

Surgery is a risk factor for chronic pain and long-term opioid use. As perioperative pain management continues to evolve, treatment modalities traditionally used for chronic pain therapy may provide additional benefit to patients undergoing surgery. Interventions such as radiofrequency ablation, cryoneurolysis, and neuromodulation may potentially be used in conjunction with acute pain procedures such as nerve blocks and multimodal analgesia. Pharmacological agents associated with chronic pain medicine, including gabapentinoids, ketamine, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, may be useful adjuncts in perioperative pain management when indicated. There may also be a role for acupuncture, music therapy, and other integrative medicine therapies. A transitional pain service can help coordinate outpatient care with inpatient perioperative pain management and promote a more personalized and comprehensive approach that can improve postoperative outcomes.

Screening the Key Region of Sunlight Regulating the Flavonoid Profiles of Young Shoots in Tea Plants (Camellia sinensis L.) Based on a Field Experiment.

Both UV and blue light have been reported to regulate the biosynthesis of flavonoids in tea plants; however, the respective contributions of the corresponding regions of sunlight are unclear. Additionally, different tea cultivars may respond differently to altered light conditions. We investigated the responses of different cultivars ('Longjing 43', 'Zhongming 192', 'Wanghai 1', 'Jingning 1' and 'Zhonghuang 2') to the shade treatments (black and colored nets) regarding the biosynthesis of flavonoids. For all cultivars, flavonol glycosides showed higher sensitivity to light conditions compared with catechins. The levels of total flavonol glycosides in the young shoots of different tea cultivars decreased with the shade percentages of polyethylene nets increasing from 70% to 95%. Myricetin glycosides and quercetin glycosides were more sensitive to light conditions than kaempferol glycosides. The principal component analysis (PCA) result indicated that shade treatment greatly impacted the profiles of flavonoids in different tea samples based on the cultivar characteristics. UV is the crucial region of sunlight enhancing flavonol glycoside biosynthesis in tea shoots, which is also slight impacted by light quality according to the results of the weighted correlation network analysis (WGCNA). This study clarified the contributions of different wavelength regions of sunlight in a field experiment, providing a potential direction for slightly bitter and astringent tea cultivar breeding and instructive guidance for practical field production of premium teas based on light regimes.

Large-scale phenotypic drug screen identifies neuroprotectants in zebrafish and mouse models of retinitis pigmentosa.

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and associated inherited retinal diseases (IRDs) are caused by rod photoreceptor degeneration, necessitating therapeutics promoting rod photoreceptor survival. To address this, we tested compounds for neuroprotective effects in multiple zebrafish and mouse RP models, reasoning drugs effective across species and/or independent of disease mutation may translate better clinically. We first performed a large-scale phenotypic drug screen for compounds promoting rod cell survival in a larval zebrafish model of inducible RP. We tested 2934 compounds, mostly human-approved drugs, across six concentrations, resulting in 113 compounds being identified as hits. Secondary tests of 42 high-priority hits confirmed eleven lead candidates. Leads were then evaluated in a series of mouse RP models in an effort to identify compounds effective across species and RP models, that is, potential pan-disease therapeutics. Nine of 11 leads exhibited neuroprotective effects in mouse primary photoreceptor cultures, and three promoted photoreceptor survival in mouse rd1 retinal explants. Both shared and complementary mechanisms of action were implicated across leads. Shared target tests implicated parp1-dependent cell death in our zebrafish RP model. Complementation tests revealed enhanced and additive/synergistic neuroprotective effects of paired drug combinations in mouse photoreceptor cultures and zebrafish, respectively. These results highlight the value of cross-species/multi-model phenotypic drug discovery and suggest combinatorial drug therapies may provide enhanced therapeutic benefits for RP patients.

Photoreceptors are the cells responsible for vision. They are part of the retina: the light-sensing tissue at the back of the eye. They come in two types: rods and cones. Rods specialise in night vision, while cones specialise in daytime colour vision. The death of these cells can cause a disease, called retinitis pigmentosa, that leads to vision loss. Symptoms often start in childhood with a gradual loss of night vision. Later on, loss of cone photoreceptors can lead to total blindness. Unfortunately, there are no treatments available that protect photoreceptor cells from dying. Research has identified drugs that can protect photoreceptors in animal models, but these drugs have failed in humans. The classic way to look for new treatments is to find drugs that target molecules implicated in a disease, and then test them to see if they are effective. Unfortunately, many drugs identified in this way fail in later stages of testing, either because they are ineffective, or because they have unacceptable side effects. One way to reverse this trend is to first test whether a drug is effective at curing a disease in animals, and later determining what it does at a molecular level. This could reveal whether drugs can protect photoreceptors before research to discover their molecular targets begins. Tests like this across different species could maximise the chances of finding a drug that works in humans, because if a drug works in several species, it is more likely to have shared target molecules across species. Applying this reasoning, Zhang et al. tested around 3,000 drug candidates for treating retinitis pigmentosa in a strain of zebrafish that undergoes photoreceptor degeneration similar to the human disease. Most of these drug candidates already have approval for use in humans, meaning that if they were found to be effective for treating retinitis pigmentosa, they could be fast-tracked for use in people. Zhang et al. found three compounds that helped photoreceptors survive both in zebrafish and in retinas grown in the laboratory derived from a mouse strain with degeneration similar to retinitis pigmentosa. Tests to find out how these three compounds worked at the molecular level revealed that they interfered with a protein that can trigger cell death. The tests also found other promising compounds, many of which offered increased protection when combined in pairs. Worldwide there are between 1.5 and 2.5 million people with retinitis pigmentosa. With this disease, loss of vision happens slowly, so identifying drugs that could slow or stop the process could help many people. These results suggest that placing animal testing earlier in the drug discovery process could complement traditional target-based methods. The compounds identified here, and the information about how they work, could expand potential treatment research. The next step in this research is to test whether the drugs identified by Zhang et al. protect mammals other than mice from the degeneration seen in retinitis pigmentosa.

The oleaginous astaxanthin-producing alga Chromochloris zofingiensis: potential from production to an emerging model for studying lipid metabolism and carotenogenesis.

The algal lipids-based biodiesel, albeit having advantages over plant oils, still remains high in the production cost. Co-production of value-added products with lipids has the potential to add benefits and is thus believed to be a promising strategy to improve the production economics of algal biodiesel. Chromochloris zofingiensis, a unicellular green alga, has been considered as a promising feedstock for biodiesel production because of its robust growth and ability of accumulating high levels of triacylglycerol under multiple trophic conditions. This alga is also able to synthesize high-value keto-carotenoids and has been cited as a candidate producer of astaxanthin, the strongest antioxidant found in nature. The concurrent accumulation of triacylglycerol and astaxanthin enables C. zofingiensis an ideal cell factory for integrated production of the two compounds and has potential to improve algae-based production economics. Furthermore, with the advent of chromosome-level whole genome sequence and genetic tools, C. zofingiensis becomes an emerging model for studying lipid metabolism and carotenogenesis. In this review, we summarize recent progress on the production of triacylglycerol and astaxanthin by C. zofingiensis. We also update our understanding in the distinctive molecular mechanisms underlying lipid metabolism and carotenogenesis, with an emphasis on triacylglycerol and astaxanthin biosynthesis and crosstalk between the two pathways. Furthermore, strategies for trait improvements are discussed regarding triacylglycerol and astaxanthin synthesis in C. zofingiensis.

Purification, characterization, and bioactivity of Liupao tea polysaccharides before and after fermentation.

The raw tea polysaccharides (RLTPS) and the aged tea polysaccharides (ALTPS) from raw and aged Liupao tea were extracted and purified to afford five refined fractions. Component analysis revealed that the crude polysaccharide content from raw Liupao tea increased from 1.83 ± 0.09 g / 100 g to 3.44 ± 0.28 g / 100 g and the molecular weight decreased after fermentation. Structural analysis indicated that the molar ratio of rhamnose, galactose, and galacturonic acid increased in refined ALTPS. All the refined polysaccharides were glycoprotein complexes contained pyranose ring structure. The thermal stability and asymmetry of refined ALTPS were stronger than refined RLTPS. For activities in vitro, ALTPS had better anticoagulant activity and bile acid binding capacity than RLTPS. Although the activities of the refined ALTPS fractions were lower than ALTPS, they were still higher than the refined RLTPS. Fermentation plays an important role in improving the quality and biological activity of dark tea.

Chinese herbal medicine for immune infertility: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Infertility is a reproductive disorder caused by multiple causes and is an adverse event of reproductive health for couples in the reproductive period. Women who do not avoid sex for at least 12 months and are not pregnant are said to be infertile. 10% to 20% of infertility is caused by immune factors. At present, there is no unified diagnostic standard for immunological infertility. Clinically, it is considered that abnormal ovulation and reproductive system function of women are excluded, and no obvious pathogenic factors occur; routine examination of male semen is normal, but there is evidence of anti-reproductive immunity, thus causing infertility is immunological infertility. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has a long history of treating infertility and has remarkable curative effect. It plays an important role in the treatment of gynecological and obstetrical diseases in China. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of immune infertility. METHOD: we searched the literature from following databases: Cochrane Library, PubMed, China Biomedical Literature Database (CB), EMBASE, Chinese Journal of Science and Technology (VIP), China National Knowledge Infrastructure Database (CNKI) and Wanfang Database were searched. All the databases mentioned above will be searched from the start date to the latest version. A manual search of all references to the included trials, published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) whether blind or unblind, any languages and length of follow up were included. Treatments included Chinese medicinal herbs (single or compound). Controlls were placebo and western medicine, or no intervention. Key outcomes will include pregnancy rates, the efficiency of Chinese herbal medicine (at least one negative antibody for infertility), birth rates (the ratio of the number of pregnant women giving birth to their babies normally after herbal treatment to the total number of patients treated), recurrence rate and safety index. Two evaluators independently retrieved and extracted data and import it into Endnote X8. Then they conduct methodological evaluation on the quality of the included studies, and meta-analysis was conducted with RevMan 5.3 and Stata 13.0 software. We will use the Cochrane risk analysis tool to assess the risk of bias. Differences will be resolved by consensus or through the participation of third parties. All analysis will be performed based on the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. RESULTS: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of traditional Chinese herb medicine in the treatment of immune infertility. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis can provide evidence for clinicians to help patients make better choices. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: INPLASY2020120073.

Efficacy and safety evaluation of acupuncture therapy for patients with salpingitis in IVF-ET: A protocol of systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: As an alternative for salpingitis in IVF-ET, acupuncture has gradually attracted the attention of clinicians based on the theory of syndrome differentiation and treatment of Chinese traditional medicine. However, due to the lack of evidence-based medical evidence, the author designed the program to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture. METHODS: From the beginning to August 2020, 7 electronic databases will be searched. Two of our researchers will independently conduct research selection, data extraction, and risk assessment of bias. We will use Review Manager 5.3 software for meta-analysis and heterogeneity assessment. In addition, we will use the grading of recommendations assessment, development, and evaluation to evaluate the evidence quality. RESULTS: This study will demonstrate an evidence-based review of acupuncture for salpingitis in IVF-ET. CONCLUSION: The study will provide clear evidence to assess the effectiveness and side effects of acupuncture for salpingitis in IVF-ET. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: INPLASY2020110125.

Polyphenol oxidase dominates the conversions of flavonol glycosides in tea leaves.

Flavonol glycosides are associated with astringency and bitterness of teas. To clarify the dominant enzymatic reaction of flavonol glycosides in tea leaves, the catalytic effects of polyphenol oxidase (PPO), peroxidase (POD) and ß-glucosidase were studied, with the maintaining rates of total flavonol glycosides (TFG) being 73.0%, 99.8% and 94.3%. PPO was selected for further investigations, including the effects of pH value (3.5 ~ 6.5), temperature (25 °C ~ 55 °C) and dosage (39 ~ 72 U/mL PPO and 36 U/mL PPO, 3 ~ 36 U/mL POD). The oxidation of flavonol glycosides were intensified at pH 6.5, with 51.8% and 15.4% of TFG maintained after PPO and PPO + POD treatments, suggesting an enhancement from POD. The sensitivity ranking to PPO was: myricetin glycosides > quercetin glycosides > kaempferol glycosides. The inhibitor treatment testified the leading role of PPO in catalyzing flavonol glycosides in tea leaves. Sugar moiety enhanced the docking affinity of flavonol glycosides for PPO. PPO shows the potential of modifying flavonol glycoside composition.

Maternal periconceptional folate status and infant atopic dermatitis: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Maternal folate status is linked with the risk of allergic disorders including atopic dermatitis (AD) in children, but findings remain inconclusive. We aim to assess the relationship between maternal folate status in early gestation and early-onset infant AD, based on a prospective mother-child cohort study. METHODS: Pregnant women were recruited at 12-14 weeks of gestation. Red blood cell folate (RBC folate) and serum folate concentrations were examined at enrollment. Periconceptional folic acid supplementation was investigated through a self-administered questionnaire. The primary outcome was AD incidence before 6 months of age, diagnosed according to Williams' criteria. Multivariate logistic regression was used to evaluate associations of maternal folate status with infant AD by adjusting parental and child covariates. RESULTS: In total, 107 (23.4%) of 458 infants developed AD before 6 months, with more male infants affected (P = .002). Higher maternal RBC folate levels (per 100 ng/mL) were associated with an increased risk of AD (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.16, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.04-1.31). An RBC folate level ≥620 ng/mL was associated with increased infant AD by 91% (aOR 1.91, 95% CI 1.09-3.36). However, associations were not observed for maternal serum folate at early gestation or periconceptional folic acid supplement intakes. CONCLUSIONS: We provide the first evidence that higher maternal RBC folate concentrations during early gestation are associated with increased early-onset infant AD. Our findings support the importance of maintaining appropriate folate levels during the periconceptional period to reduce the risk of AD in infants.

Folic Acid Supplementation in Chinese Peri-conceptional Population: Results from the SPCC Study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence and determinants of folic acid (FA) supplementation in Chinese couples planning for pregnancy and in women during early pregnancy. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study based on the Shanghai PreConception Cohort (SPCC) study. Data on FA supplementation and socio-demographic features were collected using questionnaires. Couples visiting clinics for pre-pregnancy examination and pregnant women at < 14 gestational weeks were recruited in Shanghai, China, between March 2016 and September 2018. RESULTS: Among the pregnancy planners, 42.4% (4,710/11,099) women and 17.1% (1,377/8,045) men used FA supplements, while 93.4% (14,585/15,615) of the pregnant women used FA supplements. FA supplement use was higher in female pregnancy planners who were older ( RR: 1.13, 95% CI: 1.08-1.18), had higher education ( RR: 1.71, 95% CI: 1.53-1.92), and were residing in urban districts ( RR: 1.06, 95% CI: 1.01-1.11) of FA supplementation; female pregnancy planners with alcohol consumption ( RR: 0.95, 95% CI: 0.90-0.99) had lower odds of FA supplementation. In early pregnancy, women with higher educational level ( RR: 1.04, 95% CI: 1.03-1.06), who underwent pre-pregnancy examination ( RR: 1.02, 95% CI: 1.01-1.03) had higher odds of using an FA supplement; older aged ( RR: 0.99, 95% CI: 0.98-0.99), and multigravida ( RR: 0.97, 95% CI: 0.96-0.98) had lower odds of FA supplementation. CONCLUSION: Although the majority of pregnant women took FA supplements, more than half of the women planning for pregnancy did not. Urgent strategies are needed to improve pre-conception FA supplementation.

Transcriptomic and Translatomic Analyses Reveal Insights into the Developmental Regulation of Secondary Metabolism in the Young Shoots of Tea Plants (Camellia sinensis L.).

Accumulation of secondary metabolites in the young shoots of tea plants is developmentally modulated, especially flavonoids. Here, we investigate the developmental regulation mechanism of secondary metabolism in the developing leaves of tea plants using an integrated multiomic approach. For the pair of Leaf2/Bud, the correlation coefficient of the fold change of mRNA and RPFs abundances involved in flavonoid biosynthesis was 0.9359, being higher than that of RPFs and protein (R2 = 0.6941). These correlations were higher than the corresponding correlation coefficients for secondary metabolisms and genome-wide scale. Metabolomic analysis demonstrates that the developmental modulations of the structural genes for flavonoid biosynthesis-related pathways align with the concentration changes of catechin and flavonol glycoside groups. Relatively high translational efficiency (TE > 2) was observed in the four flavonoid structural genes (chalcone isomerase, dihydroflavonol 4-reductase, anthocyanidin synthase, and flavonol synthase). In addition, we originally provided the information on identified small open reading frames (small ORFs) and main ORFs in tea leaves and elaborated that the presence of upstream ORFs may have a repressive effect on the translation of downstream ORFs. Our data suggest that transcriptional regulation coordinates with translational regulation and may contribute to the elevation of translational efficiencies for the structural genes involved in the flavonoid biosynthesis pathways during tea leaf development.

Maternal folate levels during pregnancy and children's neuropsychological development at 2 years of age.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between maternal folate levels during pregnancy and children's neuropsychological development at 2 years of age. METHODS: In the birth cohort MKFOAD, maternal serum folate concentrations at 12-14, 22-26, and 34-36 weeks of gestation were measured, as well as red blood cell (RBC) folate at 12-14 weeks. Neurodevelopment of 2-year-old children was assessed by Gesell Development Scale (GDS), which contained subscales of gross motor, fine motor, language, adaptive behavior, and social behavior. Linear regression models were applied to investigate the association of maternal folate levels with children's developmental quotients (DQs). RESULTS: One hundred and eighty singleton children participated the GDS assessment, of whom 97 (53.9%) were boys. Median RBC folate concentration was 1002.8 (IQR = 577.6) nmol L-1 in early pregnancy and median serum folate concentrations were, respectively, 33.9 (IQR = 9.2) nmol L-1, 26.3 (IQR = 14.3) nmol L-1, and 26.7 (IQR = 18.9) nmol L-1. Maternal serum folate concentration in late pregnancy was significantly associated with children's language development, where language DQ increases by 3.1 (95% CI 0.6, 5.5) for every 10 nmol L-1 increment of serum folate concentration. And maternal serum folate in early pregnancy was significantly associated with children's fine motor development, with 2.0 (95% CI 0.1, 4.0) DQ decrease for 10 nmol L-1 increase of serum folate. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal serum folate in late pregnancy was significantly associated with children's language development at age 2, which supports the importance of remaining folic acid supplementation across the entire gestation. However, maternal serum folate in early pregnancy was also inversely associated with children's fine motor development.

Constructing fine-grained entity recognition corpora based on clinical records of traditional Chinese medicine.

BACKGROUND: In this study, we focus on building a fine-grained entity annotation corpus with the corresponding annotation guideline of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) clinical records. Our aim is to provide a basis for the fine-grained corpus construction of TCM clinical records in future. METHODS: We developed a four-step approach that is suitable for the construction of TCM medical records in our corpus. First, we determined the entity types included in this study through sample annotation. Then, we drafted a fine-grained annotation guideline by summarizing the characteristics of the dataset and referring to some existing guidelines. We iteratively updated the guidelines until the inter-annotator agreement (IAA) exceeded a Cohen's kappa value of 0.9. Comprehensive annotations were performed while keeping the IAA value above 0.9. RESULTS: We annotated the 10,197 clinical records in five rounds. Four entity categories involving 13 entity types were employed. The final fine-grained annotated entity corpus consists of 1104 entities and 67,799 tokens. The final IAAs are 0.936 on average (for three annotators), indicating that the fine-grained entity recognition corpus is of high quality. CONCLUSIONS: These results will provide a foundation for future research on corpus construction and named entity recognition tasks in the TCM clinical domain.