Effects of a step-by-step inpatient rehabilitation program on self-care ability and quality of life in patients with acute cerebral infarction following intravascular stent implantation: a prospective cohort study.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the influence of a step-by-step inpatient rehabilitation program (SIRP) on the self-care capability and quality of life of patients who have undergone intravascular stent implantation to treat large vessel occlusion during acute cerebral infarction (ACI). Methods: This study included a cohort of 90 patients with ACI who received intravascular stent implantations at a tertiary hospital in the Third Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University from January 2020 to February 2024. The patients were followed up for at least 3 months. Cohort grouping was based on the type of nursing care each patient received. The observation group participated in SIRP along with receiving routine nursing care, whereas the control group received only routine nursing care. Key outcome measures included the Barthel index, the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score, the incidence of complications, length of hospital stay, and 36-item short-form survey (SF-36) scores. These parameters were compared between the two groups. Results: At the time of admission, there were no significant differences in demographic data, NIHSS score, Barthel index, or SF-36 scores between the observation and control groups (all p > 0.05). However, at 3 months postoperatively, the observation group showed significant improvements, with higher average scores in the Barthel index (62.49 ± 7.32 vs. 53.16 ± 4.37, p < 0.001) and SF-36 scores (502.33 ± 14.28 vs. 417.64 ± 9.65, p < 0.001). Additionally, this group had significantly lower NIHSS scores (3.38 ± 1.19 vs. 10.24 ± 2.10, p < 0.001), fewer complications (3 vs. 15, p = 0.002), and shorter hospital stays (12.40 ± 1.68 vs. 15.56 ± 1.87, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Implementing SIRP notably enhanced self-care capabilities and overall quality of life, while also reducing complication rates and the length of hospital stays for patients with ACI who underwent intravascular stent implantation. This underscores the potential benefits of incorporating structured rehabilitation programs in the treatment and recovery processes of such patients.

Climate warming inhibits neonicotinoid photodegradation on vegetable leaves: Important role of the olefin group in leaf wax.

Neonicotinoid photodegradation is seldom considered in different vegetable leaves after spraying under climate warming. This study investigated the effect of elevated cultivated temperature from 15/10 °C to 21/16 °C on the photodegradation of dinotefuran, thiamethoxam, acetamiprid, and thiacloprid on four vegetable leaves under simulated sunlight irradiation. The photodegradation rates of neonicotinoids on spinach leaves were 1.1-1.6, 1.1-2.0, and 1.4-2.4 times higher than those on pak choi, Chinese cabbage, and radish leaves, respectively. The higher production concentrations of hydroxyl radicals (•OH) and superoxide radicals in spinach leaf wax may contribute to the fastest photodegradation among four vegetables. When the cultivated temperature increased from 15/10 °C to 21/16 °C, neonicotinoid photodegradation rates decreased by 1.4-2.8 times on the four vegetables. Elevated cultivated temperature decreased the polarity of wax, which reduced the contact probability of neonicotinoids with reactive species on vegetable leaves and photodegradation rates. A positive linear correlation was found between the content of CHCH groups in wax determining •OH generation and the neonicotinoid photodegradation rates on four vegetable leaves cultivated at three temperatures (R2 = 0.67-0.94). Insights into neonicotinoid photodegradation on edible vegetables under climate warming are of great significance for better evaluating human exposure to neonicotinoids through the dietary pathway.

The challenges of entering the metaverse: An experiment on the effect of extended reality on workload.

Information technologies exist to enable us to either do things we have not done before or do familiar things more efficiently. Metaverse (i.e. extended reality: XR) enables novel forms of engrossing telepresence, but it also may make mundate tasks more effortless. Such technologies increasingly facilitate our work, education, healthcare, consumption and entertainment; however, at the same time, metaverse bring a host of challenges. Therefore, we pose the question whether XR technologies, specifically Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), either increase or decrease the difficulties of carrying out everyday tasks. In the current study we conducted a 2 (AR: with vs. without) × 2 (VR: with vs. without) between-subject experiment where participants faced a shopping-related task (including navigating, movement, hand-interaction, information processing, information searching, storing, decision making, and simple calculation) to examine a proposed series of hypotheses. The NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) was used to measure subjective workload when using an XR-mediated information system including six sub-dimensions of frustration, performance, effort, physical, mental, and temporal demand. The findings indicate that AR was significantly associated with overall workload, especially mental demand and effort, while VR had no significant effect on any workload sub-dimensions. There was a significant interaction effect between AR and VR on physical demand, effort, and overall workload. The results imply that the resources and cost of operating XR-mediated realities are different and higher than physical reality.

A review of pesticide phototransformation on the leaf surface: Models, mechanism, and influencing factors.

Phototransformation is an important environmental fate of pesticides on plant leaves. This review found that the photodegradation rates of pesticides on leaves might be faster or slower than those in organic solvents or on glass because of the different spectral patterns and light fluxes on the model surface. Wax was found to play an important role in pesticide phototransformation because it has photosensitizing properties, which might be stimulated under light irradiation to produce reactive species, such as hydroxyl radicals, singlet oxygen, methyl radicals, alkyl radicals, and superoxide radicals. These reactive species could accelerate pesticide photodegradation by several times. Wax can also decrease the photodegradation rate of pesticides by quenching reactive species or light-shielding effects. The environmental conditions and phytochemical properties of leaves play important roles in pesticide phototransformation primarily because the composition of wax varies with plant species and environmental factors. The phototransformation of pesticides on leaves was promoted by a low dosage of adjuvant because they act as photosensitizers and improve the dispersity of pesticides, while it was inhibited at a high concentration of adjuvant because of their light shielding effect. Finally, recommendations for future research were discussed, including (1) distinguishing the direct and indirect photodegradation of pesticides; (2) developing model, molecular level visualization and analysis techniques; (3) conducting more field research; and (4) considering the effect of climate change, especially the interaction of climatic factors. This review gives a comprehensive overview of the current knowledge of pesticide phototransformation on leaves and provides suggestions for future studies.

Intense methane ebullition from urban inland waters and its significant contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.

The evasions of methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) from inland waters represent substantial fluxes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, offsetting a large part of the continental carbon sink. However, the CH4 and CO2 emissions from urban inland waters are less constrained. In particular, ebullitive CH4 emissions from these waters are poorly understood. Here, we measured the concentrations and fluxes of CH4 and CO2 in rivers and lakes in the megacity of Beijing, China, between 2018 and 2019. The CH4 concentration ranged from 0.08 to 70.2 µmol L-1 with an average of 2.5 ± 5.9 µmol L-1. The average CH4 ebullition was 11.3 ± 30.4 mmol m-2 d-1 and was approximately 6 times higher than the global average. The average total CH4 flux (14.2 ± 35.1 mmol m-2 d-1) was 3 times higher than the global average, with ebullition accounting for 80% of the flux. The high surface water CH4 concentrations and ebullitive fluxes were caused by high sediment organic carbon/dissolved organic carbon contents, high aquatic primary productivity and shallow water depths in the urban inland waters. The CH4 emissions accounted for 20% of CO2 emissions in terms of the carbon release and were 1.7 times higher in terms of CO2 equivalent emissions from Beijing inland waters. Furthermore, the CH4 ebullition and its contribution to the total carbon gas emissions increased exponentially with the water temperature, suggesting a positive feedback probably occurs between the greenhouse gas emissions from urban inland waters and climate warming. This study confirms the major role of CH4 ebullition from urban inland waters in the global carbon budget under the rapid progress of global urbanization.

Elevated Temperatures Decrease the Photodegradation Rate of Pyrethroid Insecticides on Spinach Leaves: Implications for the Effect of Climate Warming.

Climate warming is seldom considered in the transformation of pesticides on a plant leaf. This study investigated the effects of photodegradation temperature and spinach growth temperature from 15 to 21 °C on the photodegradation of bifenthrin, cypermethrin, fenvalerate, and deltamethrin on spinach leaves under xenon lamp irradiation in climate incubators. The photodegradation temperature had minor effects on pyrethroid photodegradation. Interestingly, the photodegradation rates decreased with increasing spinach growth temperature. For example, the photodegradation rate constant of bifenthrin on a spinach cultivated at 15 °C (3.73 (±0.59, 95% confidence level) × 10-2 h-1) was 1.9 times higher than that at 21 °C (1.96 (±0.17) × 10-2 h-1). Hydroxyl radicals (·OH) played a dominant role in the photodegradation. We speculate that ·OH originated from the degradation of hydroperoxide that was formed by oxidation of phenolic CH═CH, aliphatic CH3 and aromatic C-O-C, and subsequent hydrogen abstraction. The contents of these functional groups decreased with increasing growth temperature, which resulted in lower photodegradation rates at higher growth temperatures. A possible photodegradation pathway including ester bond cleavage, decyanation, and phenyl group removal was proposed. This work provides new insight into the effects of climate warming on the generation of reactive oxygen species and the transformation of pesticides on a plant leaf.

The effect of challenge-based gamification on learning: An experiment in the context of statistics education.

Gamification is increasingly employed in learning environments as a way to increase student motivation and consequent learning outcomes. However, while the research on the effectiveness of gamification in the context of education has been growing, there are blind spots regarding which types of gamification may be suitable for different educational contexts. This study investigates the effects of the challenge-based gamification on learning in the area of statistics education. We developed a gamification approach, called Horses for Courses, which is composed of main game design patterns related to the challenge-based gamification; points, levels, challenges and a leaderboard. Having conducted a 2 (read: yes vs. no) x 2 (gamification: yes vs. no) between-subject experiment, we present a quantitative analysis of the performance of 365 students from two different academic majors: Electrical and Computer Engineering (n=279), and Business Administration (n=86). The results of our experiments show that the challenge-based gamification had a positive impact on student learning compared to traditional teaching methods (compared to having no treatment and treatment involving reading exercises). The effect was larger for females or for students at the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Cation-π Interactions with Coexisting Heavy Metals Enhanced the Uptake and Accumulation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Spinach.

Few studies have considered the effect of co-occurring heavy metals on plant accumulation of hydrophobic organic compounds (HOCs), and less is known about the role of intermolecular interactions. This study investigated the molecular mechanisms of Cu/Zn effects on hydroponic uptake of four deuterated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs-d10) by spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.). Both solubility enhancement experiment and quantum mechanical calculations demonstrated the existence of [PAH-Cu(H2O)0-4]2+ and [2·PAH-Cu(H2O)0-2]2+ via cation-π interactions when Cu2+ concentration was ≤100 µmol/L. Notably, PAH-d10 concentrations in both roots and shoots increased significantly with Cu2+ concentration. This was because the formation of phytoavailable PAH-Cu2+ complexes decreased PAH-d10 hydrophobicity and consequently decreased their sorption onto dissolved organic carbon (DOC, i.e., root exudates), thereby increasing phytoavailable concentrations and uptake of PAHs-d10. X-ray absorption near-edge structure analysis showed that PAH-Cu2+ complexes could enter defective spinach roots via apoplastic pathway. However, Zn2+ and PAHs-d10 cannot form the cation-π interactions because of the high desolvation penalty of Zn2+. Actually, Zn2+ decreased the spinach uptake of PAHs-d10 due to the increase of DOC induced by Zn. This work provides molecular insights into how metals could selectively affect the plant uptake of HOCs and highlights the importance of considering the HOC phytoavailability with coexisting metals.

The combination of warming and copper decreased the uptake of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by spinach and their associated cancer risk.

Both climate warming and co-contamination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heavy metals are environmental issues of great concern. However, the interactive effects of warming and heavy metals on PAH accumulation in edible plants and the PAH-associated health risk remain unclear. In this study, enclosed soil/water-air-plant microcosm experiments were conducted to explore the effects of copper (Cu), warming (+6 °C), and their combination on the uptake of four deuterated PAH (PAH-d10) by spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) in aged soil. PAH-associated health risks for soil, plant, and air exposure pathways were also assessed. The results showed that both individual Cu or warming decreased the PAH-d10 concentrations in root and shoot (non-normalized by lipid content) as well as the total PAH-associated cancer risk. Although antagonism existed between warming and Cu, compared to the presence of Cu, warming further reduced the spinach uptake of PAHs-d10 and total PAH-associated cancer risk, and the reductions were stronger at higher Cu levels. The inhibitory effect of the binary combination on PAH-d10 root uptake was attributed to decreased root lipid content and phytoavailable concentrations of PAHs-d10 in soil as a consequence of biodegradation, aging effect and cation-π interaction. The antagonism between warming and Cu on spinach uptake could be explained by their opposite effects on PAH-d10 biodegradation and the inhibition of the cation-π interaction caused by warming. Additionally, the shoot uptake of PAHs-d10 was mainly controlled by their soil to air to shoot partitioning. The findings suggest that the interactive effects of climate warming and co-existing pollutants should be taken into account for the assessment of plant uptake and health risk of PAHs.

Climate-zone-dependent effect mechanism of humic acid and fulvic acid extracted from river sediments on aggregation behavior of graphene oxide.

Climate factors could affect the physicochemical properties of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in river sediments, which potentially influence the stability of nanoparticles in natural waters. In this study, we extracted humic acid (HA) and fulvic acid (FA) from river sediments in different climate zones of China. Their effect with different concentrations (0.2 and 1 mg·C·L-1) on the aggregation kinetics of large (589 nm) and small graphene oxide (GO, 200 nm) in NaCl solutions was investigated. Both concentrations of HA/FA significantly inhibited the aggregation of small GO because of the steric forces rendered by DOM. For large GO, the inhibition effect of HA on aggregation was higher than FA because of the higher molecular weight, longer carbon chain length, and more structure complexity of HA. Interestingly, with 0.2 mg·C·L-1 HA and large GO, Makou in Subtropical monsoon climate zone decreased the aggregation rate more significantly due to its larger molecular weight, while, Maqin in the Plateau and mountain (PM) climate zone with smaller molecular weight and greater hydrophobicity showed lower inhibition effect on the aggregation. One mg·C·L-1 FA with high polarity from Tangke in PM climate zone and Panjin from Temperate monsoon climate zone showed more stability ability towards large GO. Derjaguin-landau-verwey-overbeek (DLVO) theory indicated that the interaction energy barrier between GO particles dependent on physicochemical characteristics of DOM and GO size. Understanding the climate-zone-dependent effect of sediment DOM on stability of GO is essential for anticipating its fate in natural systems.

Occurrence and distribution of priority pharmaceuticals in the Yellow River and the Huai River in Henan, China.

The occurrence and spatial distribution of priority pharmaceuticals (PPs) in water samples from the Yellow River and the Huai River in the Henan region of China were investigated in this study. The concentration of the total PPs (ΣPPs; sum of the 10 observed PPs) ranged from not detected to 3474 ng L-1 in samples from the Yellow River and from 4.35 to 146 ng L-1 in samples from the Huai River. The level of the ΣPPs in the Huai River was much lower than that found in the Yellow River. The composition of the PPs differed between the two rivers. Norfloxacin, carbamazepine, and 5,5-diphenylhydantoin were detected at high concentrations in the Yellow River, whereas sulfamethazine, ampicillin trihydrate, carbamazepine, and 5,5-diphenylhydantoin were the dominant species in the Huai River, suggesting there were different pollution sources. In comparison to other studies around China, most of the PPs in water samples from the Yellow River and the Huai River were at low concentrations, except for norfloxacin and ofloxacin. There were significant seasonal variations among the PPs in water samples from the Huai River, whereas spatial distinctions were recorded among the PPs in the Yellow River. Dissolved organic carbon content did not correlate with the PPs in the studied area.

Uptake pathway and accumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in spinach affected by warming in enclosed soil/water-air-plant microcosms.

The partition of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) among water-soil-air is temperature-dependent. Thus, we hypothesized that climate warming will affect the accumulation and uptake pathway of PAHs in plants. To test this hypothesis, enclosed soil/water-air-plant microcosm experiments were conducted to investigate the impact of warming on the uptake and accumulation of four PAHs in spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.). The results showed that root uptake was the predominant pathway and its contribution increased with temperature due to the promoted acropetal translocation. Owing to the increase in freely dissolved concentrations of PAHs in soil pore water, the four PAH concentrations in roots increased by 60.8-111.5% when temperature elevated from 15/10 to 21/16 °C. A model was established to describe the relationship between bioconcentration factor of PAHs in root and temperature. Compared with 15/10 °C, the PAH concentrations in leaves at both 18/13 and 21/16 °C elevated due to the increase in PAH concentrations in air, while slightly decreased when temperature elevated from 18/13 to 21/16 °C because the PAH concentrations in air decreased, resulting from accelerated biodegradation of PAHs in topsoil. This study suggests that warming will generally enhance the PAH accumulation in plant, but the effect will differ among different plant tissues.

Parabens and their metabolite in surface water and sediment from the Yellow River and the Huai River in Henan Province: Spatial distribution, seasonal variation and risk assessment.

In this study, six alkyl esters of p-hydroxybenzoic acids (parabens) and their metabolite, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (p-HB) were simultaneously determined in surface water and sediment from the Yellow River and the Huai River in Henan Province, China. Concentrations of ∑parabens in surface water were 3.31-55.2 ng/L in the Yellow River and 15.0-164 ng/L in the Huai River, while in the sediment, concentrations of ∑parabens were 13.3-37.2 ng/g and 16.1-31.6 ng/g, respectively. Compared with other studies, levels of parabens in the studied area were relatively high in the sediments but middle in the surface water. MeP and PrP were the most abundant parabens, and were detected in all sampling sites. Contributions of EtP, BzP, BuP, and HeP to ∑parabens were each no more than 10%. 4-Hydroxybenzoic acid was found in all samples albeit at low concentrations. Significant positive correlations among parabens suggest similar sources of parabens in the Yellow River and the HuaiRiver. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) had an important effect on parabens in the surface water of the Yellow and Huai Rivers. Due to low dilution of discharges, high concentrations of parabens were found during moderate precipitation season as well as minimal precipitation season in surface water. However, no apparent seasonal variation of parabens in surface sediment was observed. Hazard quotients showed that the ecological risks of parabens was low in the studied area.

[Distribution Characteristics and Source Apportionment of n-Alkanes in Water from Yellow River in Henan Section].

To investigate the distributions and possible sources of n-alkanes in water and suspended particulate matter from Yellow River in Henan section, 26 water and suspended particulate matter samples were collected in August 2010 and 22 n-alkanes (C14-C36) were quantitatively determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC-MS). Potential sources of n-alkanes were analyzed using different characteristic parameters. The results indicated that total concentrations of 22 n-alkanes were 521-5,843 ng · L⁻¹ with a mean concentration of 1,409 ng · L⁻¹, while the total amounts of n-alkanes in the suspended particulate matter were 463-11,142 ng · L⁻¹ with a mean value of 1,951 ng · L⁻¹. The composition profiles of n-alkanes in water showed unimodal distribution with a peak at C25 in water. However, the composition characteristics of n-alkanes in SPM were of bimodal type, but still with the advantage of high carbon hydrocarbons peak at C25. Results of characteristic parameters including CPI, TAR, OEP and % WaxCn showed that n-alkanes in the studied area were derived mainly from combustion of fossil fuel, while terrestrial higher plant played a role in the existence of n-alkanes in water and suspended particulate matter from Yellow River in Henan section.

Distributions and potential sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in surface sediments from an emerging industrial city (Xinxiang).

To investigate the distributions, degree, and possible sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in bed sediments from four rivers of Xinxiang, 18 sediment samples were analyzed. The concentrations ranged from 4.45 × 10(3) to 29.0 × 10(3) ng/g for ∑15PAHs (sum of US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) priority PAHs apart from naphthalene (Nap)) and 3.37 × 10(3) to 23.5 × 10(3) ng/g for ∑7carPAHs (including benzo[a]anthracene (BaA), chrysene (Chr), benzo[b]fluoranthene (BbF), benzo[k]fluoranthene (BkF), benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), dibenzo[a,h]anthracene (DBA), and indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene (InP)) with average concentrations of 10.7 × 10(3) and 7.99 × 10(3) ng/g, respectively. Compared with those from other rivers in China, sediments from four rivers of Xinxiang were severely polluted with PAHs. Pearson correlation analysis showed that ∑15PAHs concentrations had a significant positive correlation with black carbon content. Four- to six-ring PAHs accounted for 83.4 % of total PAHs, which indicated that the main source of PAHs in the studied area could be pyrogenic contamination. Source apportionment using PCA/MLR and UNMIX revealed that coal and biomass combustion contributed 64.4-67.1 %, gasoline vehicle 23.2-27.2 %, and diesel vehicle 5.70-12.4 % of the total PAHs, respectively. The effects range low/effects range median (ERL/ERM) values showed that there was a high level of toxicity risk for BaA. The ecological risk assessment by mean effects range median quotients (mERMQ) revealed a medium ecological risk of ∑15PAHs in sediments from four rivers of Xinxiang, manifesting that a close attention should be paid to pollution of PAHs in the studied area.