The health benefits of dietary polyphenols on pediatric intestinal diseases: Mechanism of action, clinical evidence and future research progress.

Pediatric intestinal development is immature, vulnerable to external influences and produce a variety of intestinal diseases. At present, breakthroughs have been made in the treatment of pediatric intestinal diseases, but there are still many challenges, such as toxic side effects, drug resistance, and the lack of more effective treatments and specific drugs. In recent years, dietary polyphenols derived from plants have become a research hotspot in the treatment of pediatric intestinal diseases due to their outstanding pharmacological activities such, as anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxidant and regulation of intestinal flora. This article reviewed the mechanism of action and clinical evidence of dietary polyphenols in the treatment of pediatric intestinal diseases, and discussed the influence of physiological characteristics of children on the efficacy of polyphenols, and finally prospected the new dosage forms of polyphenols in pediatrics.

A GP130-Targeting Small Molecule, LMT-28, Reduces LPS-Induced Bone Resorption around Implants in Diabetic Models by Inhibiting IL-6/GP130/JAK2/STAT3 Signaling.

In this study, we examined the effect of the GP130-targeting molecule, LMT-28, on lipopolysaccharide- (LPS-) induced bone resorption around implants in diabetic models using in vitro and rat animal experiments. First, LMT-28 was added to osteoblasts stimulated by LPS and advanced glycation end products (AGEs), and nuclear factor-κB receptor-activating factor ligand (RANKL) and associated pathways were evaluated. Then, LMT-28 was administered by gavage at 0.23 mg/kg once every 5 days for 2 weeks to type 2 diabetic rats with peri-implantitis induced by LPS injection and silk ligature. The expression of IL-6 and RANKL was evaluated by immunohistochemistry, and the bone resorption around implants was evaluated by microcomputed tomography. The results showed that LMT-28 downregulated the expression of RANKL through the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in osteoblasts stimulated by LPS and AGEs, reduced bone resorption around implants with peri-implantitis, decreased the expression of IL-6 and RANKL, and decreased osteoclast activity in type 2 diabetic rats. This study confirmed the ability of LMT-28 to reduce LPS-induced bone resorption around implants in diabetic rats.

Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) rescues cardiac contractile dysfunction in an APP/PS1 murine model of Alzheimer's disease via inhibition of ACSL4-dependent ferroptosis.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is associated with high incidence of cardiovascular events but the mechanism remains elusive. Our previous study reveals a tight correlation between cardiac dysfunction and low mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) activity in elderly AD patients. In the present study we investigated the effect of ALDH2 overexpression on cardiac function in APP/PS1 mouse model of AD. Global ALDH2 transgenic mice were crossed with APP/PS1 mutant mice to generate the ALDH2-APP/PS1 mutant mice. Cognitive function, cardiac contractile, and morphological properties were assessed. We showed that APP/PS1 mice displayed significant cognitive deficit in Morris water maze test, myocardial ultrastructural, geometric (cardiac atrophy, interstitial fibrosis) and functional (reduced fractional shortening and cardiomyocyte contraction) anomalies along with oxidative stress, apoptosis, and inflammation in myocardium. ALDH2 transgene significantly attenuated or mitigated these anomalies. We also noted the markedly elevated levels of lipid peroxidation, the essential lipid peroxidation enzyme acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain family member 4 (ACSL4), the transcriptional regulator for ACLS4 special protein 1 (SP1) and ferroptosis, evidenced by elevated NCOA4, decreased GPx4, and SLC7A11 in myocardium of APP/PS1 mutant mice; these effects were nullified by ALDH2 transgene. In cardiomyocytes isolated from WT mice and in H9C2 myoblasts in vitro, application of Aß (20 µM) decreased cell survival, compromised cardiomyocyte contractile function, and induced lipid peroxidation; ALDH2 transgene or activator Alda-1 rescued Aß-induced deteriorating effects. ALDH2-induced protection against Aß-induced lipid peroxidation was mimicked by the SP1 inhibitor tolfenamic acid (TA) or the ACSL4 inhibitor triacsin C (TC), and mitigated by the lipid peroxidation inducer 5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (5-HETE) or the ferroptosis inducer erastin. These results demonstrate an essential role for ALDH2 in AD-induced cardiac anomalies through regulation of lipid peroxidation and ferroptosis.

[Distribution of bioactive compounds in different tissues of Paeonia lactiflora roots by DESI-MSI and UPLC].

The quality of Paeoniae Radix Alba and Paeoniae Radix Rubra is evaluated by root thickness, and paeoniflorin serves as a common quality indicator of them. However, the correlation between the content of bioactive compounds and the root size is still unclear. Therefore, this study characterized the distribution patterns and content of seven bioactive compounds including paeoniflorin in different tissues of Paeonia lactiflora roots, analyzed the correlation between the root size and the content of bioactive compounds based on the xylem-to-bark ratio, and further determined the index components for quality assessment. Nine samples of fresh P. lactiflora roots were collected from the genuine cultivation area. The distribution of bioactive compounds in different tissues on the cross-section of the root was firstly analyzed by desorption electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry imaging(DESI-MSI). Subsequently, the content of bioactive compounds was determined in the xylems and barks of the roots by UPLC. The compounds with the largest difference between the xylem and the bark were selected by orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis(OPLS-DA). The results indicated that paeoniflorin, benzoylpaeoniflorin, oxypaeoniflorin, gallic acid, and 1,2,3,4,6-pentagalloylglucose were significantly accumulated in the xylems, while albiflorin and catechin were mainly distributed in the barks. Paeoniflorin and albiflorin, with the largest differences in the xylem and the bark, had the highest content in the two tissues. The root diameter was positively correlated with paeoniflorin content and negatively correlated with albiflorin content. As isomers with different efficacies, paeoniflorin or albiflorin can be chosen as the quality marker corresponding to specific clinical application to launch quality classification evaluation of multi-functional Chinese medicines.

6-Shogaol from ginger shows anti-tumor effect in cervical carcinoma via PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway.

PURPOSE: 6-Shogaol, an active phenolic compound from ginger (Zingiber officinale), can inhibit the growth of a variety of human cancer cells. Nevertheless, its underlying molecular mechanisms in cervical cancer remain unclear. In this study, we systematically examine the inhibitory effect of 6-shogaol on cervical cancer in vitro and in vivo. METHODS: Cell proliferation was assessed by CCK8 assay and colony formation assay in HeLa and SiHa cells. We analyzed cell cycle and apoptosis through flow cytometry. GFP-LC3 puncta and transmission electron microscopy were used to observe autophagic bodies. Wound-healing assay and transwell assay were used for evaluating the migration of cells. Western blot was applied to detect protein expression levels. RESULTS: 6-Shogaol could suppress cell proliferation and migration, cause cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase in HeLa and SiHa cells. Moreover, 6-shogaol triggered the apoptosis process through the mitochondrial pathway by downregulating the expression levels of p-PI3K, p-Akt and p-mTOR. Further research indicated that the induction of apoptosis by 6-shogaol was remarkably decreased after the treatment of ROS scavenger and PI3K agonist. Additionally, 6-shogaol increased the number of LC3-positive puncta and autophagic bodies per cell in both HeLa and SiHa cells. Pretreatment of cells with Bafilomycin A1, an autophagy inhibitor, accelerated 6-shogaol mediated cell apoptosis, suggesting that induction of autophagy by 6-shogaol is suppressive to apoptosis. Furthermore, in vivo data revealed that 6-shogaol significantly inhibited tumor growth and cell proliferation in tumor tissues. CONCLUSION: These findings suggested that 6-shogaol could be developed as a functional food ingredient, which is potentially used as therapeutic agents for patients with cervical cancer.

Occluded-Object 3D Reconstruction Using Camera Array Synthetic Aperture Imaging.

With the three-dimensional (3D) coordinates of objects captured by a sequence of images taken in different views, object reconstruction is a technique which aims to recover the shape and appearance information of objects. Although great progress in object reconstruction has been made over the past few years, object reconstruction in occlusion situations remains a challenging problem. In this paper, we propose a novel method to reconstruct occluded objects based on synthetic aperture imaging. Unlike most existing methods, which either assume that there is no occlusion in the scene or remove the occlusion from the reconstructed result, our method uses the characteristics of synthetic aperture imaging that can effectively reduce the influence of occlusion to reconstruct the scene with occlusion. The proposed method labels occlusion pixels according to variance and reconstructs the 3D point cloud based on synthetic aperture imaging. Accuracies of the point cloud are tested by calculating the spatial difference between occlusion and non-occlusion conditions. The experiment results show that the proposed method can handle the occluded situation well and demonstrates a promising performance.

Inhibitory effects of low decibel infrasound on the cardiac fibroblasts and the involved mechanism.

INTRODUCTION: Infrasound is a mechanical vibration wave with frequency between 0.0001 and 20 Hz. It has been established that infrasound of 120 dB or stronger is dangerous to humans. However, the biological effects of low decibel infrasound are largely unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of low decibel infrasound on the cardiac fibroblasts. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The cardiac fibroblasts were isolated and cultured from Sprague-Dawley rats. The cultured cells were assigned into the following four groups: control group, angiotensin II (Ang II) group, infrasound group, and Ang II+infrasound group. The cell proliferation and collagen synthesis rates were evaluated by means of [3H]-thymidine and [3H]-proline incorporation, respectively. The levels of TGF-ß were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Moreover, RNAi approaches were used for the analysis of the biological functions of miR-29a, and the phosphorylation status of Smad3 was detected using western blotting analysis. RESULTS: The results showed that low decibel infrasound significantly alleviated Ang II-induced enhancement of cell proliferation and collagen synthesis. DISCUSSION: Compared with the control, Ang II markedly decreased the expression of miR-29a levels and increased the secretion of TGF-ß and phosphorylation of Smad3, which was partly reversed by the treatment with low decibel infrasound. Importantly, knockdown of miR-29a diminished the effects of infrasound on the cardiac fibroblasts. In conclusion, low decibel infrasound inhibits Ang II-stimulated cardiac fibroblasts via miR-29a targeting TGF-ß/Smad3 signaling.

Proteomic analysis of the response to NaCl stress of Lactobacillus bulgaricus.

Lactobacillus bulgaricus is commonly used in dairy products as a starter culture. Its viability during freeze-drying is of commercial interest. Here a significant (p < 0.05) improvement in survival rate of L. bulgaricus ATCC 11842 was achieved during freeze-drying when it was prestressed with 2 % (w/v) NaCl for 2 h in the late growth phase. To understand the mechanism of this stress-related viability improvement in L. bulgaricus, protein synthesis was analyzed by 2D difference gel electrophoresis. Nine protein spots were significantly altered by NaCl and were subsequently identified by peptide mass fingerprinting. The functions of the proteins included stress-related protein synthesis, amino acid biosynthesis, nucleotide biosynthesis, sugar metabolism, transport systems, and vitamin biosynthesis. These findings provide a considerable background regarding the NaCl stress response of L. bulgaricus.

[Distribution Characteristics and Risk Assessment of Microplastics in Water of Different Functional Parks in Guilin].

The water environment capacity of urban parks is small, and their self-purification ability is poor. They are also more likely to be affected by microplastics (MPs), which cause an imbalance of the water micro-ecosystem. Based on the functional characteristics of parks (comprehensive park, community park, and ecological park), this study investigated the distribution characteristics of MPs in the water of Guilin parks through spot sampling, microscopic observation, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. In addition, the pollution risk index and the pollution load index were used to evaluate the pollution risk of MPs.The results showed that the abundances of MPs in the park surface water and sediments ranged from 104.67-674.44 n·m-3 and 95.57-877.78 n·kg-1, respectively. There were four main shape types of MPs:fragments, fibers, films, and particles. MPs were dominated by fragments and fibers with small sizes (<1 mm). The polymers of MPs were polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate. There were significant differences in the abundance of MPs in the water of different functional parks, and the abundance of MPs in comprehensive parks was the highest. The abundance of MPs in park water was closely related to the function of the park and the number of people entering the park. The pollution risk of MPs in the surface water of Guilin parks was low, whereas the pollution risk of MPs in sediments was relatively high. The results of this study indicated that tourism was an important source of MPs pollution in the water of Guilin City parks. The pollution risk of MPs in the water of Guilin City parks was mild. However, the pollution risk of MPs accumulated in small freshwater waters of urban parks requires continued attention.

[Augmenting locking plate with autologous bone graft for the treatment of nonunion of long bone fracture in the lower extremity with retaining of the original intramedullary nail].

OBJECTIVE: To explore clinical effect of attaching locking plate with bone grafting based on retaining the original intramedullary nail in treating non-union after intramedullary nail fixation of long shaft fractures of lower limbs. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on 20 patients treated with non-union fractures after intramedullary nailing of long shaft fractures of lower limbs from June 2015 to June 2020. All patients were treated with the original intramedullary nailing and bone grafting from the iliac bone, and were underwent open reduction plate internal fixation and bone grafting for old fractures. Among them, 14 were males and 6 were females, aged from 35 to 56 years old with an average of (42.2±9.6) years old. Nine patients were femoral shaft fracture and 11 patients were tibial shaft fracture. According to characteristics of fracture end nonunion, 6 patients were stable/atrophic, 9 patients were unstable/large, and 5 patients were unstable/atrophic. The nonunion time ranged from 8 to 12 months with an average of(9.8±2.0) months after the initial surgery. Visual analogue scale (VAS), knee range of motion, bone healing time, complications and fracture-end healing were recorded before and at the latest follow-up. RESULTS: All patients were followed up for 18 to 48 months with an average of (36.3±10.5) months. The incision of all patients were healed at stageⅠwithout complications such as infection or internal fixation ruptur. Healing time of femur and tibia was (8.5±2.6) months and (9.5±2.2) months. Knee joint motion increased from preoperative (101.05±8.98) ° to postoperative (139.35±8.78) ° at the latest follow-up (t=-12.845, P<0.001). VAS decreased from preoperative (5.15±1.72) to postoperative (0.75±0.96) at the latest follow-up (t=11.186, P<0.001). CONCLUSION: On the basis of retaining the original intramedullary nail, the addition of locking plate internal fixation and autogenous iliac bone grafting have advantages of simple operation, less trauma, fewer complications and high fracture healing rate. It is one of the effective surgical schemes for the treatment of nonunion after intramedullary nail fixation of long bone fracture of lower extremity.

Vacciniumchaozhouense (Ericaceae), a new species from East Guangdong, China.

Vacciniumchaozhouense (Ericaceae), a new species from East Guangdong Province, China is described and illustrated. This new species is morphologically similar to V.wrightii by having flowers with persistent and leaf-like bracts, long pedicels, and white spherical-urceolate corollas, but is distinguished by having glandular trichomes on the abaxial surface of the leaf blade, shorter pedicels, sparsely pilose corolla ridges, and anther thecae longer than the tubules. A key to the new species and morphologically similar species is also provided.

TSHVNet: Simultaneous Nuclear Instance Segmentation and Classification in Histopathological Images Based on Multiattention Mechanisms.

Accurate nuclear instance segmentation and classification in histopathologic images are the foundation of cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Several challenges are restricting the development of accurate simultaneous nuclear instance segmentation and classification. Firstly, the visual appearances of different category nuclei could be similar, making it difficult to distinguish different types of nuclei. Secondly, it is thorny to separate highly clustering nuclear instances. Thirdly, rare current studies have considered the global dependencies among diverse nuclear instances. In this article, we propose a novel deep learning framework named TSHVNet which integrates multiattention modules (i.e., Transformer and SimAM) into the state-of-the-art HoVer-Net for the sake of a more accurate nuclear instance segmentation and classification. Specifically, the Transformer attention module is employed on the trunk of the HoVer-Net to model the long-distance relationships of diverse nuclear instances. The SimAM attention modules are deployed on both the trunk and branches to apply the 3D channel and spatial attention to assign neurons with appropriate weights. Finally, we validate the proposed method on two public datasets: PanNuke and CoNSeP. The comparison results have shown the outstanding performance of the proposed TSHVNet network among the state-of-art methods. Particularly, as compared to the original HoVer-Net, the performance of nuclear instance segmentation evaluated by the PQ index has shown 1.4% and 2.8% increases on the CoNSeP and PanNuke datasets, respectively, and the performance of nuclear classification measured by F1_score has increased by 2.4% and 2.5% on the CoNSeP and PanNuke datasets, respectively. Therefore, the proposed multiattention-based TSHVNet is of great potential in simultaneous nuclear instance segmentation and classification.

Segmentation of Breast Tubules in H&E Images Based on a DKS-DoubleU-Net Model.

The formation of breast tubules plays an important role in the pathological grading of breast cancer. Breast tubules surrounded by a large number of epithelial cells are located in the subcutaneous tissue of the chest. The shapes of breast tubules are various, including tubular, round, and oval, which makes the process of breast tubule segmentation a difficult task. Deep learning technology, capable of learning complex data structures via efficient representation, could help pathologists accurately detect breast tubules in hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained images. In this paper, we propose a deep learning model named DKS-DoubleU-Net to accurately segment breast tubules with complex appearances in H&E images. The proposed DKS-DoubleU-Net model suggests using a DenseNet module as the encoder of the second subnetwork of DoubleU-Net, which utilizes dense features between layers and strengthens the propagation of features extracted in all previous layers, in order to better discover the intrinsic characteristics of breast tubules with complex structures and diverse shapes. Moreover, a feature fusing module called Kernel Selecting Module (KSM) is inserted before each output layer of the two U-Net branches of the DoubleU-Net, to implement a multiscale feature fusion via a self-adaptive kernel selecting for the sake of accurate segmentation of breast tubules in different sizes. The experiments on the public BRACS dataset and a private clinical dataset have shown that our model achieves better segmentation performance, compared to the state-of-art models of U-Net, DoubleU-Net, ResUnet++, HRNet, and DeepLabV3+. Specifically, on the public BRACS dataset, our method produced an F1-Score of 92.98%, which outperforms the F1-Score of U-Net, DoubleU-Net, and HRNet by 4.24%, 0.37%, and 1.68%, respectively, and is much better than performances of DeepLabV3+ and ResUnet++ by 7.83% and 23.84%, respectively. On the private clinic dataset, the proposed model achieved an F1-Score of 73.13%, which has shown an improvement of 10.31%, 1.89%, 4.88%, 15.47%, and 31.1% to the performances of the U-Net, DoubleU-Net, HRNet, DeepLabV3+, and ResUnet++, respectively. Superior performance could also be observed when comparing the proposed DKS-DoubleU-Net with the others using the metrics of Dice and mIou.

How Paretic and Non-Paretic Ankle Muscles Contract during Walking in Stroke Survivors: New Insight Using Novel Wearable Ultrasound Imaging and Sensing Technology.

Abnormal muscle tone and muscle weakness are related to gait asymmetry in stroke survivors. However, the internal muscle morphological changes that occur during walking remain unclear. To address this issue, this study investigated the muscle activity of the tibialis anterior (TA) and medial gastrocnemius (MG) of both the paretic and non-paretic sides during walking in nine stroke survivors, by simultaneously capturing electromyography (EMG), mechanomyography (MMG), and ultrasound images, and using a validated novel wearable ultrasound imaging and sensing system. Statistical analysis was performed to examine the test−retest reliability of the collected data, and both the main and interaction effects of each "side" (paretic vs. non-paretic) and "gait" factors, in stroke survivors. This study observed significantly good test−retest reliability in the collected data (0.794 ≤ ICC ≤ 0.985), and significant differences existed in both the side and gait factors of the average TA muscle thickness from ultrasound images, and in the gait factors of TA and MG muscle's MMG and EMG signals (p < 0.05). The muscle morphological characteristics also appeared to be different between the paretic and non-paretic sides on ultrasound images. This study uncovered significantly different internal muscle contraction patterns between paretic and non-paretic sides during walking for TA (7.2% ± 1.6%) and MG (5.3% ± 4.9%) muscles in stroke survivors.

How Does Lower Limb Respond to Unexpected Balance Perturbations? New Insights from Synchronized Human Kinetics, Kinematics, Muscle Electromyography (EMG) and Mechanomyography (MMG) Data.

Making rapid and proper compensatory postural adjustments is vital to prevent falls and fall-related injuries. This study aimed to investigate how, especially how rapidly, the multiple lower-limb muscles and joints would respond to the unexpected standing balance perturbations. Unexpected waist-pull perturbations with small, medium and large magnitudes were delivered to twelve healthy young adults from the anterior, posterior, medial and lateral directions. Electromyographical (EMG) and mechanomyographical (MMG) responses of eight dominant-leg muscles (i.e., hip abductor/adductors, hip flexor/extensor, knee flexor/extensor, and ankle dorsiflexor/plantarflexors) together with the lower-limb joint angle, moment, and power data were recorded. The onset latencies, time to peak, peak values, and/or rate of change of these signals were analyzed. Statistical analysis revealed that: (1) agonist muscles resisting the delivered perturbation had faster activation than the antagonist muscles; (2) ankle muscles showed the largest rate of activation among eight muscles following both anteroposterior and mediolateral perturbations; (3) lower-limb joint moments that complied with the perturbation had faster increase; and (4) larger perturbation magnitude tended to evoke a faster response in muscle activities, but not necessarily in joint kinetics/kinematics. These findings provided insights regarding the underlying mechanism and lower-limb muscle activities to maintain reactive standing balance in healthy young adults.

Characteristics of the lunar samples returned by the Chang'E-5 mission.

Forty-five years after the Apollo and Luna missions returned lunar samples, China's Chang'E-5 (CE-5) mission collected new samples from the mid-latitude region in the northeastern Oceanus Procellarum of the Moon. Our study shows that 95% of CE-5 lunar soil sizes are found to be within the range of 1.40-9.35 µm, while 95% of the soils by mass are within the size range of 4.84-432.27 µm. The bulk density, true density and specific surface area of CE-5 soils are 1.2387 g/cm3, 3.1952 g/cm3 and 0.56 m2/g, respectively. Fragments from the CE-5 regolith are classified into igneous clasts (mostly basalt), agglutinate and glass. A few breccias were also found. The minerals and compositions of CE-5 soils are consistent with mare basalts and can be classified as low-Ti/low-Al/low-K type with lower rare-earth-element contents than materials rich in potassium, rare earth element and phosphorus. CE-5 soils have high FeO and low Mg index, which could represent a new class of basalt.

Aerobic Exercise Attenuates Pressure Overload-Induced Cardiac Dysfunction through Promoting Skeletal Muscle Microcirculation and Increasing Muscle Mass.

BACKGROUND: Aerobic exercise has been proven to have a positive effect on cardiac function after hypertension; however, the mechanism is not entirely clarified. Skeletal muscle mass and microcirculation are closely associated with blood pressure and cardiac function. OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to investigate the effects of aerobic exercise on the skeletal muscle capillary and muscle mass, to explore the possible mechanisms involved in exercise-induced mitigation of cardiac dysfunction in pressure overload mice. METHODS: In this study, 60 BALB/C mice aged 8 weeks were randomly divided into 3 groups: control (CON), TAC, and TAC plus exercise (TAE) group and utilized transverse aortic constriction (TAC) to establish hypertensive model; meanwhile, treadmill training is used for aerobic exercise. After 5 days of recovery, mice in the TAE group were subjected to 10-week aerobic exercise. Carotid pressure and cardiac function were examined before mice were executed by Millar catheter and ultrasound, respectively. Muscle mass of gastrocnemius was weighed; cross-sectional area and the number of capillaries of gastrocnemius were detected by HE and immunohistochemistry, respectively. The mRNA and protein levels of VEGF in skeletal muscle were determined by RT-PCR and western blot, respectively. RESULTS: We found that ① 10-week aerobic exercise counteracted hypertension and attenuated cardiac dysfunction in TAC-induced hypertensive mice; ② TAC decreased muscle mass of gastrocnemius and resulted in muscle atrophy, while 10-week aerobic exercise could reserve transverse aortic constriction-induced the decline of muscle mass and muscle atrophy; and ③ TAC reduced the number of capillaries and the protein level of VEGF in gastrocnemius, whereas 10-week aerobic exercise augmented the number of capillaries, the mRNA and protein levels of VEGF in mice were subjected to TAC surgery. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that 10-week aerobic exercise might fulfill its blood pressure-lowering effect via improving skeletal muscle microcirculation and increasing muscle mass.

Effect of competence health cultivation on the prevention and control of inadvertent perioperative hypothermia.

OBJECTIVE To explore the feasibility of health competence cultivation on the prevention and control of Inadvertent Perioperative Hypothermia (IPH). METHODS Patients with expected spinal surgery were divided into group A and group B by the random number method. Group B followed routine IPH management, and health training measures for performance and ability were implemented in Group A. The scores of the health competence questionnaire, the temperature at different times, IPH complications, and hospitalization for the two groups were observed and compared. RESULTS The main evaluation indexes, such as the health competence questionnaire score, temperature fluctuations, and IPH complications, during the perioperative period in group A were significantly better than those in group B (p < 0.05). The indexes of anesthesia, total hospital expenses, and health service satisfaction in group A were also significantly better than those in group B, which shows the advantages of cultivating health capabilities in both doctors and patients. CONCLUSION Through health competence cultivation and feasible health management measures, the medical staff can improve the quality of IPH prevention and management.

Making up or breaking up: the tortuous role of platelet-derived growth factor in vascular ageing.

1. Ageing has long been recognized as an independent risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases, contributing to high cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Age-associated remodelling of the vascular wall includes luminal enlargement, intimal and medial thickening and vascular stiffness. 2. A growing body of evidence has indicated that the migration and proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) play a pivotal role in the pathophysiological vascular ageing process. Both experimental and clinical evidence implicates platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) as having an essential role in the proliferation of VSMC, an early pathological feature of arteriosclerosis and vascular ageing. 3. In the present review, we summarize some of the recent progress made with regard to defining the role of PDGF in the proliferation of VSMC and vascular ageing, with an emphasis on the cell signalling mechanisms involved.

Predictive nomogram for postoperative delirium in elderly patients with a hip fracture.

To evaluate the risk factors for the development of postoperative delirium and design a predictive nomogram for the prevention of delirium in elderly patients with a hip fracture, we retrospectively studied 825 patients who sustained a femoral neck fracture from January 2005 to December 2015. Independent risk factors for developing delirium within 6 months of surgery were identified using multivariable logistic regression analyses. A predictive nomogram model was built based on the results, and the discrimination and calibration were determined by C-index and calibration plot. Of the 825 patients who met inclusion criteria, 118 (14.3%) developed postoperative delirium. According to the results, preoperative cognitive impairment (OR, 4.132, 95% CI, 1.831 to 9.324, P＜0.001), multiple medical comorbidities (OR, 1.452, 95% CI, 0.958-2.202, P = 0.079), ASA classification (OR, 1.655, 95% CI, 1.073-2.553, P = 0.023), transfusion exceeding 2 units of red blood cell (OR, 1.599, 95% CI, 1.043-2.451, P = 0.035), and intensive care (OR, 1.817, 95% CI, 1.127-2.930, P = 0.014) were identified to be the independent predictors of the development of postoperative delirium. The risk of postoperative delirium increased with the increasing risk score of predictive nomogram, and the C-index was 0.67 (0.62 - 0.72). The calibration showed that the predicted probabilities of delirium in the predictive nomogram were close to the observed frequency of delirium, and the decision curve analysis confirmed the clinical utility of the nomogram when the threshold probabilities were between 8% and 35% due to the net benefit.