Host-guest complexation of di-cyclohexanocucurbit[6]uril and hexa-cyclohexanocucurbit[6]uril with alkyldiammonium ions: a comparative study.

The host-guest complexation of symmetrical di-cyclohexanocucurbit[6]uril (Cy2Q[6]) and hexa-cyclohexanocucurbit[6]uril (Cy6Q[6]) with a series of alkyldiammonium ions (H(3+)N(CH(2))nNH(3+), n = 2-8) has been studied both in solution and in the gas phase. (1)H NMR data indicate that all alkyldiammonium ions have inclusion interactions with both hosts except for the ethanediammonium ion. In addition, if the alkyl chain of the alkyldiammonium ion is longer than n = 5 methylene groups, compressed conformation may occur, which depends on the cavity shape of the hosts and the length of the alkyl chain. Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) studies point out that the host-guest complexations of both hosts with the latter five alkyldiammonium ions are enthalpically driven. The comparison of the thermodynamic data reveals that the enthalpies of the van der Waals interactions contribute more to the host-guest complexation enthalpy than the ion-dipole interactions. The enthalpic gain arises from the van der Waals interactions and the reduction of entropy upon the host-guest complexation is strongly affected by the cavity shape of the host. Gas phase structures of long alkyldiammonium guests within both hosts are completely different from those in aqueous solution.

Comparison of Outcomes in Obese Patients after Total Knee Arthroplasty with Neutral or Mild Varus: A Retrospective Study with 8-Year Follow-Up.

OBJECTIVES: Residual varus after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) can affect functional outcomes, which may worsen in the presence of obesity. However, no studies were found to compare the outcomes of obese patients involving postoperative residual mild varus or neutral. The aim of this study was to compare postoperative complications and prosthesis survival, and functional outcomes for knees of obese patients with neutral or mild varus after TKA. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 188 consecutive obese patients (body mass index ≥30 kg/m2) at our hospital who underwent TKA due to varus knee osteoarthritis from January 2010 to December 2015. The mechanical hip-knee-ankle axis angle was measured in all patients at admission and discharge. Knee functions were retrospectively assessed based on the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) score, Knee Society Knee Score (KS-KS), Knee Society Function Score (KS-FS), Forgotten Joint Score (FJS), and range of motion (ROM). Continuous data were compared between knees with neutral or mild varus alignment using analysis of Student's t test or variance or the Kruskal-Wallis test as appropriate. For multiple comparisons of outcomes, we used Bonferroni-Dunn method to adjust p-values. Categorical data were compared using the chi-squared test. RESULTS: Of the 156 knees in 137 obese patients who completed follow-up for a mean of 8.32 ± 1.47 years, 97 knees were corrected from varus to neutral and 54 knees were kept in mild residual varus. Patients with mild varus knees had significantly WOMAC (8.25 ± 8.637 vs. 14.97 ± 14.193, p = 0.009) and better FJS (86.03 ± 15.607 vs. 70.22 ± 30.031, p = 0.002). The two types of knees did not differ significantly in KS-KS, KS-FS, or ROM. Although one patient with a neutral knee had to undergo revision surgery, there was no significant difference between two groups. CONCLUSIONS: For obese patients with osteoarthritis, preservation of residual varus alignment after TKA can improve functional outcomes without compromising prosthesis survival.

Outcomes of culture-negative or -positive periprosthetic joint infections: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: This study overviewed the current database of studies on periprosthetic joint infections (PJIs) to compare outcomes and antibiotic side effects in culture-negative or culture-positive PJIs and assess treatment options for culture-negative PJIs. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A systematic review and meta-analysis was undertaken using studies published before July 2022 in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library. All studies comparing treatment of culture-negative or -positive PJIs were included. Afterward, the infection control rate, periprosthetic or spacer fracture, hip joint or spacer dislocation, and antibiotic side effects in different treatment methods of PJI were analyzed. RESULTS: Eleven studies involving 1,747 patients were included. Most studies clearly defined the infection control criteria: no pain or swelling, no wound drainage, normal serology, and normal radiographic findings. Patients were followed until treatment failure, death, or until the last clinical visit without evidence of treatment failure. The two types of PJIs did not differ significantly in infection control rates (culture-negative PJI 79.2% vs. culture-positive PJI 76.6%; odds ratio [OR]=1.20, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.84 to 1.70), either after all types of surgical treatment or after two-stage revision arthroplasty (OR=1.12, 95% CI: 0.72 to 1.75), single-stage revision arthroplasty (OR=0.51, 95% CI: 0.19 to 1.37), or debridement, antibiotics, and implant retention (OR=0.88, 95% CI: 0.50 to 1.54). Similarly, we did not find differences in periprosthetic or spacer fracture and hip joint or spacer dislocation. For culture-negative PJIs, the infection control rate was 85.2% after two-stage revision arthroplasty, 90.6% after single-stage revision arthroplasty, and 69.7% after debridement, antibiotics, and implant retention. Data pooled from three studies showed higher incidence of antibiotic side effects for culture-negative PJIs. CONCLUSION: The clinical outcomes of one-stage revision and two-stage revision are comparable. Therefore, both of them can be considered in surgical treatment for culture-negative PJIs. In addition, limited data showed a higher incidence of antibiotic side effects in culture-negative PJIs.

Regulable high-contrast mechanofluorochromic enhancement behaviour based on substituent effects.

Herein, a facile strategy was established to build mechanoresponsive luminogens with high sensitivity to substituents and positional effects. Even in slightly different structures, distinct optical phenomena, including fluorescence efficiency and mechano-responsive properties, were clearly present. Outstanding mechanical-induced emission enhancement (5-100 times) properties and reversibility makes for promising applications in pressure sensors and OLEDs.

Health Risk Assessment of Employees Exposed to Chlorination By-products of Recreational Water in Large Amusement Parks in Shanghai.

Objective: Chlorination is often used to disinfect recreational water in large amusement parks; however, the health hazards of chlorination disinfection by-products (DBPs) to occupational populations are unknown. This study aimed to assess the exposure status of chlorinated DBPs in recreational water and the health risks to employees of large amusement parks. Methods: Exposure parameters of employees of three large amusement parks in Shanghai were investigated using a questionnaire. Seven typical chlorinated DBPs in recreational water and spray samples were quantified by gas chromatography, and the health risks to amusement park employees exposed to chlorinated DBPs were evaluated according to the WHO's risk assessment framework. Results: Trichloroacetic acid, dibromochloromethane, bromodichloromethane, and dichloroacetic acid were detected predominantly in recreational water. The carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks of the five DBPs did not exceed the risk thresholds. In addition, the carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks of mixed exposure to DBPs were within the acceptable risk limits. Conclusion: Typical DBPs were widely detected in recreational water collected from three large amusement parks in Shanghai; however, the health risks of DBPs and their mixtures were within acceptable limits.

How Do Determiners of Job Performance Matter During COVID-19? The Conservation of Resource Theory.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, business managers are facing many challenges from a severe challenge. Many organizations have changed their original management mode and organizational behavior to improve employees' organizational citizenship behavior, thus reducing their sense of anxiety and incapability. Thereinto, job performance of the employees also affects the growth and development of the organization. To explore how to fragment employees' positive psychology and job performance, this study discusses the influence on employees' subjective wellbeing and job performance from relevant factors at the organizational and individual levels. Also, to explore the influence of organizational support and occupation self-efficacy on job performance and the mediating role of subjective wellbeing during COVID-19, a total of 618 valid questionnaires were collected from all walks of life in 2020. Hypotheses were tested by structural equation modeling and Bootstrap technology. The results show that: (1) Professional self-efficacy and subjective wellbeing have a significant positive impact on job performance; (2) Subjective wellbeing plays a complete mediating role between organizational support and job performance, and subjective wellbeing plays a partial mediating role between professional self-efficacy and job performance; (3) Compared with the sense of organizational support, the positive effect of self-efficacy on job performance is more significant.

Cross-Cultural Differences in Adopting Social Cognitive Career Theory at Student Employability in PLS-SEM: The Mediating Roles of Self-Efficacy and Deep Approach to Learning.

Unable to keep pace with the expectations of employers and societies that are constantly changing around the world, higher education policy and talent training have given rise to a gap between university education and employment. However, the higher education and industrial needs derived from technological progress have changed the development in country. This study aims to verify the learning method of Taiwanese vs. Malaysian university students and examines the relationship between teacher knowledge transfer and student employability from the perspective of a social cognitive career theory. In this study, 619 copies of questionnaires from the Taiwanese sample group and 443 copies of questionnaires from the Malaysian sample group were collected in total to compare the two sample groups in the development of student employability. The results indicate that teacher knowledge transfer has significant positive correlations with self-efficacy and a deep approach to learning and student employability, and the self-efficacy and a deep approach to learning have significant positive correlations with student employability in the Taiwanese sample. In Malaysia, except for the path between teacher knowledge transfer and student employability, all paths were significant and positively related. Finally, according to our results and findings, this study proposes several insights with practical and theoretical implications for future study.

Prevalence of coccidia in domestic pigs in China between 1980 and 2019: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Swine coccidiosis, a protozoan disease caused by coccidia, can result in diarrhoea and weight loss in piglets and even economic losses in the pig industry. Here, we report the first systematic review and meta-analysis of the prevalence of coccidia (including Eimeria spp. and Cystoisospora suis) in pigs in China. METHODS: Five databases (PubMed, ScienceDirect, Chinese Web of Knowledge, Wanfang, and Chongqing VIP) were searched and 50 studies (46,926 domestic pigs, 22 provinces) ultimately identified pertaining to the prevalence of coccidia infection from 1980 to 2019. We incorporated the effect size using the random-effects model in the "meta" package in R software and conducted univariate and multivariate meta-regression analyses using a mixed-effects model. RESULTS: The pooled prevalence rate of coccidia in pigs was 21.9%, including the C. suis infection rate of 9.1%. The highest prevalence of coccidia (39.6%) was found in northwest China, and this region also presented the lowest prevalence of C. suis (4.7%). In the subgroup analysis based on sampling year, the highest prevalence of coccidia was detected in 2001 or earlier (32.6%), whereas the lowest rate was found in 2012 or later (14.3%). An opposite trend was observed for C. suis (5.5% in 2000 or earlier vs 14.4% in 2000 or later). The prevalence of coccidia in extensive farming systems (29.5%) was higher than that in intensive farming systems (17.3%). In contrast, the point estimate of C. suis prevalence was lower in the extensive farming systems (5.1%) than in the intensive farming systems (10.0%), but the difference was not significant (P > 0.05). Among the four age categories, the highest total coccidia prevalence (26.2%) was found in finishing pigs, followed by suckling piglets (19.9%), whereas the highest prevalence of C. suis (14.9%) was observed in suckling piglets. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that coccidia infection in Chinese pigs is common, although the prevalence of C. suis in pigs does not receive sufficient attention. We recommend the rational use of anticoccidial drugs to avoid drug resistance and the development of preventive and control measures for C. suis to reduce the incidence of swine coccidiosis.

The Effect of Relational Embeddedness, Absorptive Capacity, and Learning Orientation on SMEs' Competitive Advantage.

The combination of external new knowledge and organizational capability has become a cornerstone in the internationalized enterprises. Sources of knowledge acquisition are among the most valuable resources that an internationalized firm can achieve competitive advantage. This study aims to explore this phenomenon between knowledge sources and competitive advantage in the context of internationalized small and medium enterprises (SMEs) mainly by a quantitative approach. Based on contextual nature of resource-capability-competitive, absorptive capacity has long been a critical construct in organizational studies, as well as referring relational embeddedness as potential drivers of absorptive capacity, which is moderated by learning orientation. This study also investigates the mediating effect of absorptive capacity in terms of knowledge absorption and integration on international competitive advantage. To gain insights and provide essential implications for internationalized SMEs from the global economy, this study adopted purposive sampling to collect 211 valid responses. Via the partial least-squares structural modeling, the relationships among relational embeddedness, potential and realized absorptive capacity, and competitive advantage were measured. The results suggest that relational embeddedness positively influences potential and realized absorptive capacity with moderating effect of learning orientation. Potential and realized absorptive capacities have full mediating effect between relational embeddedness and competitive advantage. This study concludes insights and implications for research and practice.

Deficits of Tactile Passive Perception Acuity in Patients With Schizophrenia.

Background: Scarce literature has yet to characterize the tactile discrimination capability as well as the underlying mechanism of tactile deficits in psychotic disorder. In particular, very little is known regarding the tactile perception acuity in schizophrenia. Methods: A total of 131 clinically stable patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) and 79 healthy control (HC) volunteers were enrolled in the study. All the participants were tested on a tactile stimulus device which could quantify the tactile discrimination capability with right index finger scanned over the angles via the passive finger-movement apparatus. The MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) was adapted to assess the neurocognition of the participants. Correlation analysis and multivariate linear regression analysis were performed to investigate the relationship between tactile perception performance and neurocognitive function. Results: It was discovered that there existed a significant deficits in the tactile passive perception acuity (i.e., tactile angle discrimination threshold) in patients with schizophrenia compared with their healthy controls (F (3, 206) = 11.458, P = 0.001,partial η2 = 0.053). The MCCB total score and its six domains were significantly lower in SCZ patients than those in HCs (all p < 0.001). In the SCZ group, the composite score of the MCCB (r = -0.312, P < 0.001) and domains of neurocognition including speed of processing (r = -0.191, P = 0.031), attention/vigilance (r = -0.177, P = 0.047), working memory (r = -0.316, P < 0.001), verbal learning (r = - 0.332, P < 0.001), visual learning (r = -0.260, P = 0.004), and reasoning and problem solving (r = -0.209, P = 0.018) showed significant negative correlations with the tactile angle discrimination threshold. Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that neurocognition impairment, especially the decline of working memory (B = -0.312, P < 0.001),underpin the tactile perception discrimination deficits in patients with SCZ. Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to unravel the deficits of tactile passive perception acuity and its underlying neurocognition basis in patients with SCZ. This finding adds novel evidence to the subtle variation in haptic discrimination skills in schizophrenia which contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the sensory profiles of this disorder.

A Hemimethyl-Substituted Cucurbit[7]uril Derived from 3α-Methyl-glycoluril.

A novel hemimethyl-substituted cucurbit[7]uril (HMeQ[7]) derived from 3α-methyl-glycoluril has been prepared. HMeQ[7] is readily soluble in both water and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and displays not only host-guest interaction properties similar to those of the normal cucurbit[7]uril but also unusual properties in DMSO.

Interaction of Ln3+ with Methyl-Substituted Cucurbit[n]urils (n=5,6) Derived from 3α-Methyl Glycoluril.

The interactions between a series of lanthanide cations (Ln3+ ) and methyl-substituted cucurbiturils (SPMeQ[5] and SHMeQ[6]) derived from a 3α-methyl glycoluril have been investigated. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that both SPMeQ[5] and SHMeQ[6] selectively interact with certain lanthanide ions. SPMeQ[5] forms coordination capsules in the presence of [CdCl4 ]2- . The Ln3+ cations that interact are the four light lanthanides, La3+ , Ce3+ , Pr3+ , and Nd3+ , whereas the remaining lanthanide cations remain in solution. SHMeQ[6] formed adducts of SHMeQ[6] with aqua complexes of lanthanide cations ([Ln(H2 O)8 ]3+ ); for SHMeQ[6]-Ln(NO3 )3 -CdCl2 -HCl systems (Ln=Gd-Lu), no solid crystals were obtained from systems that contained La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, or Eu. Whereas solid crystals of adducts of SHMeQ[6] with aqua complexes of lanthanide cations (Ln=Sm-Lu) formed SHMeQ[6]-Ln(NO3 )3 systems in neutral solution, no solid crystals were obtained from systems that contained La, Ce, Pr, or Nd. These results suggest that SPMeQ[5]- and SHMeQ[6]-Ln(NO3 )3 systems could be useful for the selective isolation of these lighter or heavier lanthanide cations from mixtures. Energy-dispersive spectrometry indicated that the lighter or heavier lanthanide cations could be isolated from their heavier or lighter counterparts through interaction with SPMeQ[5] and SHMeQ[6].