Predictive Value of Impulse Oscillometry Combined with Fractional Expiratory Nitric Oxide Test for Asthma in Preschool Children.

Objective: Prediction of asthma in preschool children is challenging and lacks objective indicators. The aim is to observe and analyze the variances between impulse oscillometry (IOS) and fractional expiratory nitric oxide (FeNO) in preschool children with wheezing, establish a joint prediction model, and explore the diagnostic value of combining IOS with FeNO in diagnosing asthma among preschool children. Patients and methods: This study enrolled children aged 3-6 years with wheezing between June 2021 and June 2022. They were categorized as asthmatic (n=104) or non-asthmatic (n=109) after a 1-year follow-up. Clinical data, along with IOS and FeNO measurements from both groups, underwent univariate regression and multiple regression analyses to identify predictive factors and develop the most accurate model. The prediction model was built using the stepwise (stepAIC) method. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC), calibration curve, Hosmer-Lemeshow test, and decision curve analysis (DCA) were employed to validate and assess the model. Results: During univariate analysis, a history of allergic rhinitis, a history of eczema or atopic dermatitis, and measures including FeNO, R5, X5, R20, Fres, and R5-R20 were found to be associated with asthma diagnosis. Subsequent multivariate analysis revealed elevated FeNO, R5, and X5 as independent risk factors. The stepAIC method selected five factors (history of allergic rhinitis, history of eczema or atopic dermatitis, FeNO, R5, X5) and established a prediction model. The combined model achieved an AUROC of 0.94, with a sensitivity of 0.89 and specificity of 0.88, surpassing that of individual factors. Calibration plots and the HL test confirmed satisfactory accuracy. Conclusion: This study has developed a prediction model based on five factors, potentially aiding clinicians in early identification of asthma risk among preschool children.

Emerging single-atom catalysts in the detection and purification of contaminated gases.

Single atom catalysts (SACs) show exceptional molecular adsorption and electron transfer capabilities owing to their remarkable atomic efficiency and tunable electronic structure, thereby providing promising solutions for diverse important processes including photocatalysis, electrocatalysis, thermal catalysis, etc. Consequently, SACs hold great potential in the detection and degradation of pollutants present in contaminated gases. Over the past few years, SACs have made remarkable achievements in the field of contaminated gas detection and purification. In this review, we first provide a concise introduction to the significance and urgency of gas detection and pollutant purification, followed by a comprehensive overview of the structural feature identification methods for SACs. Subsequently, we systematically summarize the three key properties of SACs for detecting contaminated gases and discuss the research progress made in utilizing SACs to purify polluted gases. Finally, we analyze the enhancement mechanism and advantages of SACs in polluted gas detection and purification, and propose strategies to address challenges and expedite the development of SACs in polluted gas detection and purification.

Enhanced contact flexibility from nanoparticles in capillary suspensions.

HYPOTHESIS: Sample-spanning particle networks are used to induce structure and a yield stress, necessary for 3D printing of porous ceramics and paints. In capillary suspensions, a small quantity of immiscible secondary fluid is incorporated into a suspension. By further adding nanoparticles with a range of hydrophobicities, the structure of the bridges and microparticle-microparticle contacts is expected to be modified, resulting in a tunable yield stress and shear moduli. Moreover, the compressibility of these samples, important in many processing and application steps, is expected to be sensitive to these changes. EXPERIMENT: The nanoparticle hydrophobicity was altered and their position relative to the microparticles and the bridges was examined using confocal microscopy where the correlation between bridge size and network structure was observed. A step-wise uniaxial compression test on the confocal was conducted to monitor the microparticle movement and structural changes between capillary suspension networks with and without nanoparticles. FINDINGS: Our observation suggests that nanoparticles induce the formation of thin liquid films on the surface of the microparticles, mitigating contact line pinning and promoting internal liquid exchange. Additionally, nanoparticles at microparticle contact regions further diminish Hertzian contact, enhancing the capacity for rearrangement. These effects enhance microparticle movement, narrowing the bridge size distribution.

Epidemic Trends and Biofilm Formation Mechanisms of Haemophilus influenzae: Insights into Clinical Implications and Prevention Strategies.

Haemophilus influenzae (H. influenzae) is a significant pathogen responsible for causing respiratory tract infections and invasive diseases, leading to a considerable disease burden. The Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) conjugate vaccine has notably decreased the incidence of severe infections caused by Hib strains, and other non-typable H. influenzae (NTHi) serotypes have emerged as epidemic strains worldwide. As a result, the global epidemic trends and antibiotic resistance characteristics of H. influenzae have been altered. Researches on the virulence factors of H. influenzae, particularly the mechanisms underlying biofilm formation, and the development of anti-biofilm strategies hold significant clinical value. This article provides a summary of the epidemic trends, typing methods, virulence factors, biofilm formation mechanisms, and prevention strategies of H. influenzae. The increasing prevalence of NTHi strains and antibiotic resistance among H. influenzae, especially the high ß-lactamase positivity and the emergence of BLNAR strains have increased clinical difficulties. Understanding its virulence factors, especially the formation mechanism of biofilm, and formulating effective anti-biofilm strategies may help to reduce the clinical impact. Therefore, future research efforts should focus on developing new approaches to prevent and control H. influenzae infections.

Improvement strategy for immune checkpoint blockade: A focus on the combination with immunogenic cell death inducers.

Cancer immunotherapies have yielded promising outcomes in various malignant tumors by blocking specific immune checkpoint molecules, such as programmed cell death 1 and cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen 4. However, only a few patients respond to immune checkpoint blockade therapy because of the poor immunogenicity of tumor cells and immune-suppressive tumor microenvironment. Accumulating evidence suggests that chemotherapeutic agents, including oxaliplatin and doxorubicin, not only mediate direct cytotoxicity in tumor cells but also induce immunogenic cancer cell death to stimulate a powerful anti-cancer immune response in the tumor microenvironment. In this review, we summarize the recent advances in cancer combination therapy based on immune checkpoint inhibitors plus immunogenic cell death inducers. Despite some clinical failures and challenges, immunogenic cell death inducers have displayed great potential when combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors for anti-cancer treatment in both preclinical studies and clinical trials.

ZnO Nanorod-Immobilized Pt Single-Atoms as an Ultrasensitive Sensor for Triethylamine Detection.

Triethylamine (TEA) is a flammable and highly toxic gas, and the fast, accurate, and sensitive detection of gas TEA remains greatly challenging. Herein, we report a ZnO nanorod anchored with a single-atom Pt catalyst (Pt1/ZnO) as a gas sensor for TEA detection. The sensor shows high selectivity and high response to gas TEA with a response value of 4170 at 200 °C, which is 92 times higher than that of pure ZnO. Moreover, the Pt1/ZnO sensor has very short response and recovery times of only 34 and 76 s, respectively, and also has a high response to ppb-level TEA gas (100 ppb-21.6). The gas-sensing enhancement mechanism of the Pt1/ZnO sensor to gas TEA was systematically investigated using band structure analysis, in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transformation spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculations. The results show that the oxygen vacancies on Pt1/ZnO can effectively activate the adsorbed oxygen. Moreover, chemical bonds can be formed between Pt single atoms and N atoms in TEA to achieve effective adsorption and activation of TEA molecules, facilitating the reaction between TEA and the adsorbed oxygen on Pt1/ZnO, and thereby obtaining high gas-sensing performance. This work highlights the crucial role of Pt single-atom in improving the sensing performance for gas TEA detection, paving the way for developing more advanced gas sensors.

Environmental Adaptation in the Process of Human-Land Relationship in Southeast China's Ethnic Minority Areas and Its Significance on Sustainable Development.

The relationship between regional human development and geographic environment is the basis for dynamic social change, and studying the evolution of human-land relations in typical regions can provide background knowledge for global change studies. This study is based on GIS and spatio-temporal statistical techniques, combined with the analysis of toponymic cultural landscapes, to study ethnic minority regions of southeastern China. The results show that: (1) The geographical environment of the region will affect the naming of villages, and the orientation and family name are the most common; the frequency of plants, pit (keng), animals, and flat (ping) is also very high. (2) Han settlements and She settlements have obvious spatial differentiation, and in general the Han distribution area is lower than that of the She. Han settlements are mainly distributed in plain areas along rivers with elevations less than 200 m; She settlements are mainly distributed in hilly areas (200~500 m) and low mountain areas (500~800 m). (3) The results of quadrat analysis and nearest neighbor index analysis show that both Han and She settlements are clustered in the spatial distribution pattern, and the distribution of She settlements is more clustered than that of Han, with more dense settlements at a certain spatial scale. The regional cultural landscape is the result of the development and evolution of human-land relationship, and the comprehensive analysis of cultural landscape can understand the process of human-land relationship in a small region. The settlements in the region are indicative of the geographic environment in terms of village naming, spatial pattern, elevation differentiation and relationship with rivers, which can reflect the environmental adaptation process of human activities.

Role of Nanoparticles in Nanofluid Droplet Impact on Solid Surfaces.

Splashing of a liquid droplet onto a substrate, while ubiquitous, sits at the intersection of several key fluid mechanical regions. Typically, this problem is often simplified to the transition between spreading and splashing, even for splashing on complex surfaces. Recently, there has been increased interest in using not just pure liquids but also nanofluids in applications such as spray cooling. While the addition of a few percent of nanoparticles to a Newtonian fluid does not change its apparent viscosity, the influence of the nanoparticles on the splashing transition is pronounced. We often view splashing in terms of fluid mechanics where a simple material is subjected to a complex flow and the fluid can be simply characterized by a Newtonian viscosity. For nanofluids, we have an apparently simple material in a complex flow, but the results show that the impact of the particles is nontrivial. This implies that we must now combine some of the insights we obtain from studying the rheological properties of nanosuspensions with this already complex problem.

Combination therapy for pancreatic cancer: anti-PD-(L)1-based strategy.

Mortality associated with pancreatic cancer is among the highest of all malignancies, with a 5-year overall survival of 5-10%. Immunotherapy, represented by the blocking antibodies against programmed cell death protein 1 or its ligand 1 (anti-PD-(L)1), has achieved remarkable success in a number of malignancies. However, due to the immune-suppressive tumor microenvironment, the therapeutic efficacy of anti-PD-(L)1 in pancreatic cancer is far from expectation. To address such a fundamental issue, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy and even immunotherapy itself, have individually been attempted to combine with anti-PD-(L)1 in preclinical and clinical investigation. This review, with a particular focus on pancreatic cancer therapy, collects current anti-PD-(L)1-based combination strategy, highlights potential adverse effects of accumulative combination, and further points out future direction in optimization of combination, including targeting post-translational modification of PD-(L)1 and improving precision of treatment.

The dominant microbial metabolic pathway of the petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil of shale gas field: Carbon fixation instead of CO2 emissions.

In shale gas mining areas, indigenous microorganisms degrade organic pollutants such as petroleum hydrocarbons into carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) through aerobic metabolism. A large quantity of CO2 emissions will exacerbate the "Greenhouse effect". Based on the clean sieved soil and oil-based drilling fluid in the shale gas mining area, this experiment set three concentration gradients (3523 ± 159 mg/kg, 8715 ± 820 mg/kg and 22,031 ± 1533 mg/kg) to treat the soil, and each group was disposed for the same amount of time (63 days). By analyzing the dynamic changes of microbial diversity and the abundance of key functional genes for carbon fixation, the impact of petroleum hydrocarbons on carbon fixation potential was discovered, and the natural attenuation law of petroleum hydrocarbons in contaminated soil was explored. It provided the scientific research basis of ecology for the carbon cycle, carbon allocation, and carbon fixation in microbial remediation of petroleum hydrocarbon contaminated soil. The results obtained indicated the following: i) The removal rate of petroleum hydrocarbons under high-concentration pollution (45.33 ± 3.90%) was significantly lower than low and medium-concentration pollution. The TPH concentration removal rate of each group was the largest in the early stage of culture (1-5d), and there was no significant correlation between the TPH content and the community composition (R2 = 0.0736, P > 0.05). ii) Composition and function of Carbon Fixation associated microbiota were assessed by 16S rRNA sequencing and PICRUSt (phylogenetic investigation of communities by reconstruction of unobserved states) analysis. The main carbon fixation pathway in this study is the reductive citric acid cycle, because there was no shortage of enzymes that can affect subsequent reactions.

A novel educational tool helps teach intestinal absorption in physiology.

A novel educational tool helps teach intestinal absorption in physiology-We have designed an interesting educational tool to help sophomores learn intestinal absorption in physiology course. In the study group (2019), 51 sophomores from biomedical engineering were encouraged to learn the intestinal absorption knowledge through reading materials and group discussion. Then, using the form of flipped class, they stepped on the podium and simulated and explained the absorption processes with designed paper props as educational tool. In contrast, the control group (2018), 52 sophomores from the same specialty had taken the same professional courses before. The result of theoretical test showed the average score in the study group was higher than that in the control group. The questionnaire analysis showed the positive role of the education tool in their learning efficacy. To sum up, using our tool has achieved better teaching effects than the traditional lecture.

Nomogram for Prediction of Bronchial Mucus Plugs in Children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae Pneumonia.

The presence of bronchial mucus plugs (BMP) in children with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (MPP) results in delayed clinical and radiographic resolution and long-standing pulmonary sequelae. The predictive factors associated with BMP formation remains poorly defined. Nomograms to predict BMP presence in children with MPP were proposed using a cohort of patients who underwent bronchoscopy intervention at Children's Hospital in Eastern China. Patients with MPP in an earlier period formed the training cohort (n = 872) for nomogram development, and those thereafter formed the validation cohort (n = 399) to confirmed model's performance. BMP in children with MPP were found in 196 (22.5%) and 91(22.8%) patients in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. The independent risk factors associated with BMP were age >5years (OR 2.06; 95% CI 1.43 to 2.98), higher IL-10 level (>10 ng/L, 2.19; 95% CI 1.46 to 3.28), higher IFN-γ level (>30 ng/L, 1.69; 95% CI 1.13 to 2.54), and presence of complication (3.43; 95% CI 1.45 to 8.09). Incorporating these 4 factors, the nomogram achieved good concordance indexes of 0.771(95% CI, 0.734-0.808) and 0.796 (95% CI, 0.744-0.848) in predicting BMP in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. The nomogram achieved an optimal prediction of BMP in children with MPP. Using this model, the risk of BMP formation would be determined, contributing to a rational therapeutic choice.

Comparative RNA-Seq Analysis of High- and Low-Oil Yellow Horn During Embryonic Development.

Yellow horn (Xanthoceras sorbifolium Bunge) is an endemic oil-rich shrub that has been widely cultivated in northern China for bioactive oil production. However, little is known regarding the molecular mechanisms that contribute to oil content in yellow horn. Herein, we measured the oil contents of high- and low-oil yellow horn embryo tissues at four developmental stages and investigated the global gene expression profiles through RNA-seq. The results found that at 40, 54, 68, and 81 days after anthesis, a total of 762, 664, 599, and 124 genes, respectively, were significantly differentially expressed between the high- and low-oil lines. Gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis revealed some critical GO terms related to oil accumulation, including acyl-[acyl-carrier-protein] desaturase activity, pyruvate kinase activity, acetyl-CoA carboxylase activity, and seed oil body biogenesis. The identified differentially expressed genes also included several transcription factors, such as, AP2-EREBP family members, B3 domain proteins and C2C2-Dof proteins. Several genes involved in fatty acid (FA) biosynthesis, glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, and pyruvate metabolism were also up-regulated in the high-oil line at different developmental stages. Our findings indicate that the higher oil accumulation in high-oil yellow horn could be mostly driven by increased FA biosynthesis and carbon supply, i.e. a source effect.

Density Gradient Strategy for Preparation of Broken In2O3 Microtubes with Remarkably Selective Detection of Triethylamine Vapor.

Tubule-like structured metal oxides, combined with macroscale pores onto their surfaces, can fast facilitate gas-accessible diffusion into the sensing channels, thus leading a promoted utilization ratio of sensing layers. However, it generally remains a challenge for developing a reliable approach to prepare them. Herein, this contribution describes a density gradient strategy for obtaining broken In2O3 microtubes from the In2O3 products prepared using a chemical conversion method. These In2O3 microtubes hold a diameter about 1.5 µm with many broken regions and massive ultrafine nanopores onto their surfaces. When employed as a sensing element for detection of triethylamine (TEA) vapor, these broken In2O3 microtubes exhibited a significant response toward TEA at 1-100 ppm and the lowest detected concentration can reach 0.1 ppm. In addition, an excellent selectivity of the sensor to TEA was also displayed, though upon exposure of other interfering vapors, including ammonia, methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, acetone, toluene, and hydrogen. Such promoted sensing performances toward TEA were ascribed to the broken configuration (superior gas permeability and high utilization ratio), one-dimensional configuration with less agglomerations, and low bond energy for C-N in a TEA molecule.