Characteristic changes and environmental indicators of magnetic spherules in the South Yellow Sea mud area for about 7.5 ka.

Magnetic spherules originate from anthropogenic and natural sources and can be differentiated based on morphology and composition. Using magnetic measurement, diameter measurement, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) analysis of a 10 m sediment core in the mud area of the South Yellow Sea, we found that magnetic spherules occur at all observed depths of the core. The magnetic spherule concentrations vary from 10 spherules/0.5 g to 62 spherules/0.5 g. Here, concentrations generally less than 10 spherules/0.5 g are considered as the background value in the core. The peak value of magnetic spherules appeared at the 0.02, 0.3, 2 and 8 m, and their concentrations are 62, 52, 36, 48 spherules/0.5 g, respectively. According to the deposition age, concentration, diameter, morphology and chemical characteristics of the spherules, it is found that the spherules at 0.02 m are produced by industrial coal burning. A volcanic eruption event was the main responsible for the accumulation of spherules at 0.3 and 8 m, while the spherules located at 2 m are related to a wildfire event. Magnetic spherules are common in continental shelf regions and can well document the human activities and natural environment events.

Effect of frailty on medication deviation during the hospital-family transition period in older patients with cardiovascular disease: An observational study.

Studies have shown that frailty increases cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence in older patients and is associated with poor patient prognosis. However, the relationship between medication deviation (MD) and frailty remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the influence of frailty on MD during the hospital-family transition period among older patients with CVD. Between February 2022 and February 2023, 231 older people CVD patients were selected from a class III hospital in Nantong City using a multi-stage sampling method. A general information questionnaire was used to collect the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants prior to discharge, the frailty assessment scale was used to assess the participants frailty, and a medication deviation instrument was used to assess the participants MD on the 10th day after discharge. Propensity score matching was used to examine the effect of frailty on MD in older patients with CVD during the hospital-family transition period. The incidences of frailty and MD were 32.9% (76/231) and 75.8% (175/231), respectively. After propensity score matching, the risk of MD in frail patients with CVD was 4.978 times higher than that in non-frail patients with CVD (95% CI: [1.616, 15.340]; P = .005). Incidences of frailty and MD during the hospital-family transition period are high in older patients with CVD, and frailty has an impact on MD. Medical staff in the ward should comprehensively examine older patients with CVD for frailty and actively promote quality medication management during the hospital-family transition period to reduce MD occurrence and delay disease progression.

[Historical Trends of Atmospheric Trace Metal Pollution in Northern Guizhou Province as Reconstructed from Alpine Lake Sediments].

Atmospheric trace metal pollution is a striking environmental problem globally. Because of the limitations in monitoring data, our knowledge of the historical processes and sources of atmospheric trace metal pollution in China and its influence on remote terrestrial environmental quality is limited. The historical variations in atmospheric trace metal (Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn) pollution during the past 400 years in the Fanjing Mountain area, northern Guizhou Province were studied by analyzing the metal concentrations and Pb isotopes in lake sediments. The results showed that concentrations of all metals in the sediments were relatively constant before 1800(A.D.). After 1800, concentrations of Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn increased at first and then decreased, while concentrations of Hg, Cd, and Pb generally increased gradually over the most recent century and subsequent decades. The enrichment factor and 207Pb/206Pb analysis results indicated that Cd, Pb, and Hg were typical pollutants. Pollution of Hg began at around 1880(A.D.), and pollution of Cd and Pb has occurred since the 1950s; all pollutants exhibited aggravated trends in recent times. Pollution levels of Hg in recent years in the Fanjing Mountain area were comparable to those in other remote areas of East China, but levels were lower than those in Europe, America, and the Tibetan Plateau. In contrast, pollution levels of Cd and Pb in these areas showed large variability. By comparing the historical processes of trace metal pollution in different regions and exploring the potential pollution sources of metals in the study region, it can be deduced that atmospheric Hg pollution in the Fanjing Mountain area was the result of both global and regional emissions, while Cd and Pb pollution largely came from regional sources such as non-ferrous metals smelting and coal combustion emissions.

Functional analysis of FABP3 in the milk fat synthesis signaling pathway of dairy cow mammary epithelial cells.

Milk fat is the major energy component of milk, and regulation of its production relies on transcription factors sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 (SREBP1) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ). As one of the target genes of SREBP1 and PPARγ, fatty acid-binding protein 3(FABP3) is the main protein allowing for rapid diffusion and selective targeting of long-chain fatty acids toward specific organelles for metabolism. Whether FABP3 plays an important role in milk fat synthesis signaling pathway is largely unknown. In this study, we observed the effects of FABP3 overexpression and gene silencing in dairy cow mammary epithelial cells, as well as the effects of oleic acid, stearic acid, and palmitic acid on the expressions of FABP3 and lipid droplet formation, by using quantitative reverse transcriptase (qRT)-PCR, Western blotting, and fluorescent immunostaining techniques. FABP3 upregulated the expression of SREBP1 and PPARγ to increase lipid droplet accumulation. Oleic acid, stearic acid, and palmitic acid also increased lipid droplet accumulation by affecting expression of FABP3. These findings shed new insights for understanding the mechanism of FABP3 in regulating milk fat synthesis.