A preliminary study on the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms and methylation of dopamine system-related genes with psychotic symptoms in patients with methamphetamine use disorder.

Methamphetamine use disorder (MAUD) can substantially jeopardize public security due to its high-risk social psychology and behaviour. Given that the dopamine reward system is intimately correlated with MAUD, we investigated the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), as well as methylation status of dopamine receptor type 4 (DRD4), catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) genes, and paranoid and motor-impulsive symptoms in MAUD patients. A total of 189 MAUD patients participated in our study. Peripheral blood samples were used to detect 3 SNPs and 35 CpG units of methylation in the DRD4 gene promoter region and 5 SNPs and 39 CpG units in the COMT gene. MAUD patients with the DRD4 rs1800955 C allele have a lower percentage of paranoid symptoms than those with the rs1800955 TT allele. Individuals with paranoid symptoms exhibited a reduced methylation degree at a particular DRD4 CpG2.3 unit. The interaction of the DRD4 rs1800955 C allele and the reduced DRD4CpG2.3 methylation degree were associated with a lower occurrence of paranoid symptoms. Meanwhile, those with the COMT rs4818 CC allele had lower motor-impulsivity scores in MAUD patients but greater COMT methylation levels in the promoter region and methylation degree at the COMT CpG 51.52 unit. Therefore, based only on the COMT rs4818 CC polymorphism, there was a negative correlation between COMT methylation and motor-impulsive scores. Our preliminary results provide a clue that the combination of SNP genotype and methylation status of the DRD4 and COMT genes serve as biological indicators for the prevalence of relatively high-risk psychotic symptoms in MAUD patients.

Modulation of Electronic Synergy to Enhance the Intrinsic Activity of Fe5Ni4S8 Nanosheets in Restricted Space Carbonized Wood Frameworks for Efficient Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

Modulation of electronic structure and composition is widely recognized as an effective strategy to improve electrocatalyst performance. Herein, using a simple simultaneous carbonization and sulfidation strategy, NiFe double hydroxide-derived Fe5Ni4S8 (FNS) nanosheets immobilized on S-doped carbonized wood (SCW) framework by taking benefit of the orientation-constrained cavity and hierarchical porous structure of wood is proposed. Benefiting from the synergistic relationships between bimetal ions, the spatial confinement offered by the wood cavity, and the enhanced structural effects of the nanosheets array, the FNS/SCW exhibit enhanced intrinsic activity, increased accessibility of catalytically active sites, and convection-facilitated mass transport, resulting in an excellent oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity and durability. Specifically, it takes a low overpotential of 230 mV at 50 mA cm-2 and potential increase is negligible (3.8%) at 50 mA cm-2 for 80 hours. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations further reveal that the synergistic effect of bimetal can optimize the electronic structure and lower the reaction energy barrier. The FNS/SCW used as the cathode of zinc-air battery shows higher power density and excellent durability relative to commercial RuO2, exhibiting a good application prospect. Overall, this research offers proposals for designing and producing effective OER electrocatalysts using sustainable resources.

Broadband mid-infrared non-reciprocal absorption using magnetized gradient epsilon-near-zero thin films.

The study of magneto-optical absorption has stimulated diverse energy-technology-related explorations, showing potential in breaking the current theoretical efficiency limits of energy devices compared with reciprocal counterparts. However, experimentally realizing strong infrared non-reciprocal absorption remains an open challenge, and existing proposals of non-reciprocal absorbers are restricted to a narrow working waveband. Here we observe highly asymmetric absorption spectra over a broad mid-infrared band (nearly 10 µm) using doped InAs multilayers with gradient epsilon-near-zero frequencies. We reveal that the magnetized epsilon-near-zero behaviours and material loss play important roles in achieving strongly non-reciprocal absorption under a moderate external magnetic field using a thin epsilon-near-zero film (<λ/40, λ is the wavelength). Our approach enables flexible control over the working frequencies and non-reciprocal bandwidths by designing magnetized InAs films with different doping concentrations. The proposed principles can also be generalized to other III-V semiconductors, magnetized metals, topological Weyl semimetals, magnetized zero-index metamaterials and metasurfaces.

Control of Kinetic Pathways toward Supramolecular Chiral Polymorphs for Tunable Circularly Polarized Luminescence.

An amphiphilic aza-BODIPY dye (S)-1 bearing two chiral hydrophilic side chains with S-stereogenic centers was synthesized. This dye exhibited kinetic-controlled self-assembly pathways and supramolecular chiral polymorphism properties in MeOH/H2O (9/1, v/v) mixed solvent. The (S)-1 monomers first aggregated into a kinetic controlled, off-pathway species Agg. A, which was spontaneously transformed into an on-pathway metastable aggregate (Agg. B) and subsequently into the thermodynamic Agg. C. The three aggregate polymorphs of dye (S)-1 displayed distinct optical properties and nanomorphologies. In particular, chiral J-aggregation characteristics were observed for both Agg. B and Agg. C, such as Davydov-split absorption bands (Agg. B), extremely sharp and intense J-band with large bathochromic shift (Agg. C), non-diminished fluorescence upon aggregation, as well as strong bisignated Cotton effects. Moreover, the AFM and TEM studies revealed that Agg. A had the morphology of nanoparticle while fibril or rod-like helical nanostructures with left-handedness were observed respectively for Agg. B and Agg. C. By controlling the kinetic transformation process from Agg. B to Agg. C, thin films consisting of Agg. B and Agg. C with different ratios were prepared, which displayed tunable CPL with emission maxima at 788-805 nm and g-factors between -4.2×10-2 and -5.1×10-2.

Common and distinct functional brain network abnormalities in adolescent, early-middle adult, and late adult major depressive disorders.

BACKGROUND: The age-related heterogeneity in major depressive disorder (MDD) has received significant attention. However, the neural mechanisms underlying such heterogeneity still need further investigation. This study aimed to explore the common and distinct functional brain abnormalities across different age groups of MDD patients from a large-sample, multicenter analysis. METHODS: The analyzed sample consisted of a total of 1238 individuals including 617 MDD patients (108 adolescents, 12-17 years old; 411 early-middle adults, 18-54 years old; and 98 late adults, > = 55 years old) and 621 demographically matched healthy controls (60 adolescents, 449 early-middle adults, and 112 late adults). MDD-related abnormalities in brain functional connectivity (FC) patterns were investigated in each age group separately and using the whole pooled sample, respectively. RESULTS: We found shared FC reductions among the sensorimotor, visual, and auditory networks across all three age groups of MDD patients. Furthermore, adolescent patients uniquely exhibited increased sensorimotor-subcortical FC; early-middle adult patients uniquely exhibited decreased visual-subcortical FC; and late adult patients uniquely exhibited wide FC reductions within the subcortical, default-mode, cingulo-opercular, and attention networks. Analysis of covariance models using the whole pooled sample further revealed: (1) significant main effects of age group on FCs within most brain networks, suggesting that they are decreased with aging; and (2) a significant age group × MDD diagnosis interaction on FC within the default-mode network, which may be reflective of an accelerated aging-related decline in default-mode FCs. CONCLUSIONS: To summarize, these findings may deepen our understanding of the age-related biological and clinical heterogeneity in MDD.

Turning Polysaccharides into Injectable and Rapid Self-Healing Antibacterial Hydrogels for Antibacterial Treatment and Bacterial-Infected Wound Healing.

Great efforts have been devoted to the development of novel and multifunctional wound dressing materials to meet the different needs of wound healing. Herein, we covalently grafted quaternary ammonium groups (QAGs) containing 12-carbon straight-chain alkanes to the dextran polymer skeleton. We then oxidized the resulting product into oxidized quaternized dextran (OQD). The obtained OQD polymer is rich in antibacterial QAGs and aldehyde groups. It can react with glycol chitosan (GC) via the Schiff-base reaction to form a multifunctional GC@OQD hydrogel with good self-healing behavior, hemostasis, injectability, inherent superior antibacterial activity, biocompatibility, and excellent promotion of healing of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-infected wounds. The biosafe and nontoxic GC@OQD hydrogel with a three-dimensional porous network structure possesses an excellent swelling rate and water retention capacity. It can be used for hemostasis and treating irregular wounds. The designed GC@OQD hydrogel with inherent antibacterial activity possesses good antibacterial efficacy on both S. aureus (Gram-positive bacteria) and Escherichia coli (Gram-negative bacteria), as well as MRSA bacteria, with antibacterial activity greater than 99%. It can be used for the treatment of wounds infected by MRSA and significantly promotes the healing of wounds. Thus, the multifunctional antibacterial GC@OQD hydrogel has the potential to be applied in clinical practice as a wound dressing.

In vitro and in vivo fermentation models to study the function of dietary fiber in pig nutrition.

The importance of dietary fiber (DF) in animal diets is increasing with the advancement of nutritional research. DF is fermented by gut microbiota to produce metabolites, which are important in improving intestinal health. This review is a systematic review of DF in pig nutrition using in vitro and in vivo models. The fermentation characteristics of DF and the metabolic mechanisms of its metabolites were summarized in an in vitro model, and it was pointed out that SCFAs and gases are the important metabolites connecting DF, gut microbiota, and intestinal health, and they play a key role in intestinal health. At the same time, some information about host-microbe interactions could have been improved through traditional animal in vivo models, and the most direct feedback on nutrients was generated, confirming the beneficial effects of DF on sow reproductive performance, piglet intestinal health, and growing pork quality. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of different fermentation models were compared. In future studies, it is necessary to flexibly combine in vivo and in vitro fermentation models to profoundly investigate the mechanism of DF on the organism in order to promote the development of precision nutrition tools and to provide a scientific basis for the in-depth and rational utilization of DF in animal husbandry. KEY POINTS: • The fermentation characteristics of dietary fiber in vitro models were reviewed. • Metabolic pathways of metabolites and their roles in the intestine were reviewed. • The role of dietary fiber in pigs at different stages was reviewed.

The prevalence and possible risk factors of gaming disorder among adolescents in China.

BACKGROUND: Nowadays, moderate gaming behaviors can be a pleasant and relaxing experiences among adolescents. However, excessive gaming behavior may lead to gaming disorder (GD) that disruption of normal daily life. Understanding the possible risk factors of this emerging problem would help to suggest effective at preventing and intervening. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of GD and analyze its possible risk factors that adolescents with GD. METHODS: Data were collected between October 2020 and January 2021. In total, a sample of 7901 students (4080 (52%) boys, 3742 (48%) girls; aged 12-18 years) completed questionnaires regarding the Gaming-Related Behaviors Survey, Gaming Disorder Symptom Questionnaire-21 (GDSQ-21); Behavioral Inhibition System and Behavioral Activation System Scale (BIS/BAS Scale); Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ); Short-form Egna Minnenav Barndoms Uppfostran for Chinese (s-EMBU-C); and Adolescent Self-Rating Life Events Checklist (ASLEC). RESULTS: The prevalence of GD was 2.27% in this adolescent sample. The GD gamers were a little bit older (i.e., a higher proportion of senior grades), more boys, with more gaming hours per week in the last 12 months, with more reward responsiveness, maternal rejecting and occurrence of negative life events (e.g., interpersonal relationships, being punished and bereavement factors). CONCLUSION: These possible risk factors may influence the onset of GD. Future research in clinical, public health, education and other fields should focus on these aspects for provide target prevention and early intervention strategies.

Feasibility of laparoscopic versus open pancreatoduodenectomy following neoadjuvant chemotherapy for borderline resectable pancreatic cancer: a retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: There is no evidence supporting the feasibility of laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD) compared to open pancreatoduodenectomy (OPD) following neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). METHODS: The clinical data of consecutive patients with borderline resectable PDAC who received NACT and underwent either LPD or OPD between January 2020 and December 2022 at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center was prospectively collected and retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: The analysis included 57 patients in the OPD group and 20 in the LPD group. Following NACT, the LPD group exhibited a higher median CA19-9 decrease rate compared to the OPD group (85.3% vs. 66.9%, P = 0.042). Furthermore, 3 anatomically borderline PDACs in the LPD group and 5 in the OPD group were downstaged into resectable status (30.0% vs. 12.3%, P = 0.069). According to RECIST criteria, 51 (66.2%) patients in the entire cohort were evaluated as having stable disease. The median operation time for the LPD group was longer than the OPD group (419 vs. 325 min, P < 0.001), while the venous resection rate was 35.0% vs. 43.9%, respectively (P = 0.489). There was no difference in the number of retrieved lymph nodes, with a median number of 18.5 in the LPD group and 22 in the OPD group, and the R1 margin rate (15.0% vs. 12.3%) was also comparable. The incidence of Clavien-Dindo complications (35.0% vs. 66.7%, P = 0.018) was lower in the LPD group compared to the OPD group. Multivariable regression analysis revealed that a tumor diameter > 3 cm before NACT (HR 2.185) and poor tumor differentiation (HR 1.805) were independent risk factors for recurrence-free survival, and a decrease rate of CA19-9 > 70% (OR 0.309) was a protective factor for early tumor recurrence and overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: LPD for PDAC following NACT is feasible and oncologically equivalent to OPD. Effective control of CA19-9 levels is beneficial in reducing early tumor recurrence and improving overall survival.

Risk Perception Scale of Disease Aggravation for older patients with non-communicable diseases: Instrument development and cross-sectional validation study.

AIM: The present study aimed to develop the Risk Perception Scale of Disease Aggravation for older patients with non-communicable diseases and evaluate its psychometric properties. DESIGN: Instrument development and cross-sectional validation study were conducted. METHODS: This study contained four phases. In phase I, a systematic literature review was conducted to identify the conception of disease aggravation and risk perception. In phase II, a draft scale was formulated from face-to-face semi-structured in-depth interviews by Colaizzi's seven-step qualitative analysis method and group discussions among the researchers. In phase III, domains and items of the scale were revised in accordance with the suggestions from Delphi consultation and patient feedback. In phase IV, psychometric properties were evaluated. FINDINGS: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses determined four structural factors. Convergent and discriminant validities were acceptable because the average variance extracted coefficients ranged from .622 to .725, and the square roots of the average variance extracted coefficients for the four domains were larger than those of bivariate correlations between domains. The scale also exhibited excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability (Cronbach's alpha coefficient = .973, intraclass correlation coefficient = .840). CONCLUSIONS: Risk Perception Scale of Disease Aggravation is a new instrument that measures the risk perception of disease aggravation for older patients with non-communicable diseases, including possible reason, serious outcome, behaviour control and affection experience. The scale contains 40 items that are scored on a 5-point Likert scale, and it has acceptable validity and reliability. IMPACT: The scale is applied to identify different levels of risk perception of disease aggravation for older patients with non-communicable diseases. Clinical nurses can provide targeted interventions to improve older patients' risk perception of disease aggravation based on levels of risk perception during hospitalization and the period before discharge. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: Experts provided suggestions for revising the scale dimensions and items. Older patients participated in the scale revision process to improve the wording of the scale.

Quantitation of the Surface Shortwave and Longwave Radiative Effect of Dust with an Integrated System: A Case Study at Xianghe.

Aerosols play a crucial role in the surface radiative budget by absorbing and scattering both shortwave and longwave radiation. While most aerosol types exhibit a relatively minor longwave radiative forcing when compared to their shortwave counterparts, dust aerosols stand out for their substantial longwave radiative forcing. In this study, radiometers, a sun photometer, a microwave radiometer and the parameterization scheme for clear-sky radiation estimation were integrated to investigate the radiative properties of aerosols. During an event in Xianghe, North China Plain, from 25 April to 27 April 2018, both the composition (anthropogenic aerosol and dust) and the aerosol optical depth (AOD, ranging from 0.3 to 1.5) changed considerably. A notable shortwave aerosol radiative effect (SARE) was revealed by the integrated system (reaching its peak at -131.27 W·m-2 on 26 April 2018), which was primarily attributed to a reduction in direct irradiance caused by anthropogenic aerosols. The SARE became relatively consistent over the three days as the AODs approached similar levels. Conversely, the longwave aerosol radiative effect (LARE) on the dust days ranged from 8.94 to 32.93 W·m-2, significantly surpassing the values measured during the days of anthropogenic aerosol pollution, which ranged from 0.35 to 28.67 W·m-2, despite lower AOD values. The LARE increased with a higher AOD and a lower Ångström exponent (AE), with a lower AE having a more pronounced impact on the LARE than a higher AOD. It was estimated that, on a daily basis, the LARE will offset approximately 25% of the SARE during dust events and during periods of heavy anthropogenic pollution.

The association between team cohesion and performance: A network analysis of nurses.

Team cohesion, as a necessary condition for the cooperation and development of a team, has been shown to have a strong association with team performance. However, the mechanism of this internal correlation is unclear and more in-depth studies are lacking. The study aimed to explore the complex links between the dimensions of team cohesion and performance in nurses. A total of 1639 practice nurses from 118 nursing teams were included in this cross-sectional study. Data were collected using the Team Cohesion Scale (including consistency of affection, behavior, and cognition) and the Team Effectiveness Scale (including cooperation satisfaction, and task performance). Using network analysis, the team cohesion and performance network was constructed, and the strength and bridge strength of nodes were calculated. The results showed that the edges between team cohesion and performance dimensions were all positively correlated. Cooperation satisfaction and consistency of affection are the core variables in the network. Interventions targeting cooperation satisfaction and consistency of affection need to be developed at the team level to maximize team cohesion and performance among nurses.

A meta-analysis of the neural substrates of monetary reward anticipation and outcome in alcohol use disorder.

The capacity to anticipate and detect rewarding outcomes is fundamental for the development of adaptive decision-making and goal-oriented behavior. Delineating the neural correlates of different stages of reward processing is imperative for understanding the neurobiological mechanism underlying alcohol use disorder (AUD). To examine the neural correlates of monetary anticipation and outcome in AUD patients, we performed two separate voxel-wise meta-analyses of functional neuroimaging studies, including 12 studies investigating reward anticipation and 7 studies investigating reward outcome using the monetary incentive delay task. During the anticipation stage, AUD patients displayed decreased activation in response to monetary cues in mesocortical-limbic circuits and sensory areas, including the ventral striatum (VS), insula, hippocampus, inferior occipital gyrus, supramarginal gyrus, lingual gyrus and fusiform gyrus. During the outcome stage, AUD patients exhibited reduced activation in the dorsal striatum, VS and insula, and increased activation in the orbital frontal cortex and medial temporal area. Our findings suggest that different activation patterns are associated with nondrug rewards during different reward processing stages, potentially reflecting a changed sensitivity to monetary reward in AUD.

A new glance at autophagolysosomal-dependent or -independent function of transcriptional factor EB in human cancer.

Autophagy-lysosome system plays a variety of roles in human cancers. In addition to being implicated in metabolism, it is also involved in tumor immunity, remodeling the tumor microenvironment, vascular proliferation, and promoting tumor progression and metastasis. Transcriptional factor EB (TFEB) is a major regulator of the autophagy-lysosomal system. With the in-depth studies on TFEB, researchers have found that it promotes various cancer phenotypes by regulating the autophagolysosomal system, and even in an autophagy-independent way. In this review, we summarize the recent findings about TFEB in various types of cancer (melanoma, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, renal cell carcinoma, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, ovarian cancer and lung cancer), and shed some light on the mechanisms by which it may serve as a potential target for cancer treatment.

Fertilization can modify the enantioselective persistence of penthiopyrad in relation to the co-influence on soil ecological health.

Penthiopyrad is a widely used chiral fungicide for controlling rust and Rhizoctonia diseases. Development of optically pure monomers is an important strategy to realize amount reduction and increment effects of penthiopyrad, wherein, fertilizers as the co-exiting nutrient supplement may alter the enantioselective residues of penthiopyrad in soil. In our study, influences of urea, phosphate, potash, NPK compound, organic granular, vermicompost and soya bean cake fertilizers on enantioselective persistence of penthiopyrad were fully evaluated. This study demonstrated that R-(-)-penthiopyrad dissipated faster than S-(+)-penthiopyrad during 120 days. High pH, available nitrogen, invertase activities and reduced available phosphorus, dehydrogenase, urease, catalase activities were situated to benefit removing the concentrations of penthiopyrad and weakening enantioselectivity in soil. With respect to the impact of different fertilizers on soil ecological indicators, vermicompost contributed to enhanced pH. Urea and compound fertilizer played an absolute advantage in promoting available nitrogen. All fertilizers didn't go against available phosphorus. Dehydrogenase responded negatively to phosphate, potash and organic fertilizers. Urea increased invertase, besides, it and compound fertilizer both diminished urease activity. The catalase activity was not activated by organic fertilizer. Based on all the findings, soil application of urea and phosphate fertilizers was recommended and considered as a better option to exhibit high efficiency for the dissipation of penthiopyrad. The combined environmental safety estimation can effectively guide the treatment of fertilization soils in line with the nutrition requirements and pollution regulation from penthiopyrad.

The latent profile analysis of Chinese adolescents' gaming disorder: examination and validation.

BACKGROUND: Gaming disorder is a new disease, which is included in the disease unit of disorder caused by addiction in the 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases. This study examined the symptom characteristics of gaming disorders in Chinese adolescents using the latent profile analysis. METHODS: Totally, 5988 students (including 3285 boys and 2703 girls; aged 12-18 years) from junior high schools and senior high schools were enrolled. The Gaming Disorder Symptom Questionnaire-21 (GDSQ-21) was used to screen gaming disorder. A latent profile analysis was used for classifying the subgroups based on the extent of gaming usage. The relationship between adolescent gamers and demographic variables was analyzed by logistic regression. RESULTS: The results of latent profile analysis supported the models of four latent profiles, which were defined as healthy gamers (Profile 1, 56.83%), impaired control gamers (Profile 2, 26.09%), impaired control-game priority gamers (Profile 3, 9.72%) and gamers with disorder (Profile 4, 7.36%), respectively. Logistic regression analysis found that, compared with girls, boys were more likely to be classified into the group dominated by the impaired gamers, the impaired control-game priority gamers, and the gamers with disorder. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlighted that the latent profile analysis identified four different groups of adolescent gamers, showing a clearer conceptualization of heterogeneous gamers. Gender and average weekly gaming time can predict the latent profile of adolescents. Our findings may facilitate the design of individualized assessment and early intervention programs for adolescent gamer users based on different gaming usage symptoms.

Vitamin A regulates dermal papilla cell proliferation and apoptosis under heat stress via IGF1 and Wnt10b signaling.

Heat stress (HS) negatively affects the development of hair follicles. The present study investigated the effect of vitamin A (VA) on the development of rabbit dermal papilla cells (DPCs) under HS and the underlying regulatory mechanisms. Addition of 0.4 mg/L VA to the culture medium significantly enhanced cell proliferation (P < 0.001) and inhibited the apoptosis of DPCs (P < 0.01). VA decreased the proportion of DPCs in G0/G1 stage of the cell cycle under HS along with the expression of caspase 3, heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), and microRNA 195 (miR-195) (P < 0.05). VA also activated the insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) and Wnt10b/ß-catenin signaling pathways. The results of the dual luciferase reporter assay showed that IGF1 expression was modulated by miR-195-5p. Over-expression of miR-195-5p in DPCs with HS+VA treatment significantly reduced cell viability and IGF1 signaling (P < 0.01) and increased apoptosis (P < 0.01) compared with the HS+VA group. The positive effects of VA on proliferation and apoptosis of DPCs under HS were significantly attenu-ated by blocking Wnt10b and ß-catenin signaling with IWP-2 and XAV-939, respectively. These results demonstrate that VA can promote hair follicle development following HS via modulation of miR-195/IGF1 and Wnt10b/ß-catenin signaling pathways.

Construction and Validation of Machine Learning Algorithms to Predict Chronic Post-Surgical Pain Among Patients Undergoing Total Knee Arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: Chronic post-surgical pain (CPSP) is a common but undertreated condition with a high prevalence among patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA). An effective model for CPSP prediction has not been established yet. AIMS: To construct and validate machine learning models for the early prediction of CPSP among patients undergoing TKA. DESIGN: A prospective cohort study. PARTICIPANTS/SUBJECTS: A total of 320 patients in the modeling group and 150 patients in the validation group were recruited from two independent hospitals between December 2021 and July 2022. They were followed up for 6 months to determine the outcomes of CPSP through telephone interviews. METHODS: Four machine learning algorithms were developed through 10-fold cross-validation for five times. In the validation group, the discrimination and calibration of the machine learning algorithms were compared by the logistic regression model. The importance of the variables in the best model identified was ranked. RESULTS: The incidence of CPSP in the modeling group was 25.3%, and that in the validation group was 27.6%. Compared with other models, the random forest model achieved the best performance with the highest C-statistic of 0.897 and the lowest Brier score of 0.119 in the validation group. The top three important factors for predicting CPSP were knee joint function, fear of movement, and pain at rest in the baseline. CONCLUSIONS: The random forest model demonstrated good discrimination and calibration capacity for identifying patients undergoing TKA at high risk for CPSP. Clinical nurses would screen out high-risk patients for CPSP by using the risk factors identified in the random forest model, and efficiently distribute preventive strategy.

Relationship between quality of life, fear of disease progression, and coping styles in patients with pulmonary hypertension: A network analysis.

A poor quality of life (QoL) in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH) is often associated with emotional disturbances and the ability to cope. Little is known, however, about the intrinsic links among the QoL, fear of disease progression (FoP), and coping styles in patients with PH. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the relationships among QoL, FoP, and coping styles in patients with PH. We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 247 patients from a tertiary hospital in Jinan, China and analyzed the relationships using network analysis. Participants completed the World Health Organization's Quality of Life Questionnaire, Fear of Disease Progression Questionnaire and Simple Coping Style Questionnaire during the survey period. The total QoL, positive coping, and negative coping scores were 46.55 ± 10.46, 31.75 ± 6.85, and 18.75 ± 4.66, respectively. The QoL psychological domain had the strongest centrality, deserving more attention than other domains. The coping styles were bridge nodes that connected the whole network, where negative coping and social family FoP, and positive coping and both social and psychological QoL had the strongest positive correlations. There were no significant sex-based or age-based differences in the networks. To improve QoL and psychological well-being in people with PH, healthcare professionals must focus on issues beyond the patient's physical health. Specifically, they should focus on positive coping styles, while developing interventions to promote positive coping and reduce negative coping styles.

Combined Omics Analysis Further Unveils the Specific Role of Butyrate in Promoting Growth in Early-Weaning Animals.

Abnormal mutations in the microbial structure of early-weaning mammals are an important cause of enteritis. Based on the multiple known beneficial functions of butyrate, we hypothesized that butyrate would alleviate the imbalance of intestinal homeostasis induced by early weaning in animals. However, the mechanisms of action between butyrate and intestinal microbes are still poorly explored. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether butyrate exerts beneficial effects on the structure of the intestinal flora of weanling rabbits and their intestinal homeostasis, growth and development, and we attempted to elucidate the potential mechanisms of action through a combined omics analysis. We found that dietary butyrate upregulated the transcription of tight junction-related proteins in the epithelial barrier and improved the intestinal microbial structure by suppressing harmful bacteria and promoting beneficial ones. Intestinal and plasma metabolomes were also altered. The bile acid secretion, α-linolenic acid, apoptotic, and prostate cancer pathways responded to the positive dietary butyrate-induced metabolic changes in the weanling rabbits, resulting in the inhibition of inflammation, improved antioxidant capacity, increased rates of cell proliferation and survival, and decreased levels of apoptosis. Additionally, dietary butyrate suppressed the release of pro-inflammatory factors and enhanced positive appetite regulation, which increased the average daily gain of the rabbits. These results demonstrated that dietary butyrate can help maintain the integrity of the intestinal epithelial barrier, improve the structural composition of the intestinal microflora, enhance organismal metabolism, inhibit inflammation, reduce post-weaning anorexia, and promote growth and development in early-weaning rabbits. These positive effects of dietary butyrate were exerted via the modulation of the microbe-gut-brain axis.